Related papers: Circadian rhythm of dune-field activity
Barchan dunes are found where sand availability is low and wind direction quite constant. The two dimensional shear stress of the wind field and the sand movement by saltation and avalanches over a barchan dune are simulated. The resulting…
Reliably predicting the geomorphology and climate of planetary bodies requires knowledge of the dynamic threshold wind shear velocity below which saltation transport ceases. Here we measure this threshold in a wind tunnel for four…
Dust offers a unique probe of the interstellar medium (ISM) across multiple size, density, and temperature scales. Dust is detected in outflows of evolved stars, star-forming molecular clouds, planet-forming disks, and even in galaxies at…
Relatively long-period nonsynchronized planets---such as warm Jupiters---potentially retain the primordial rotation, eccentricity, and obliquity that might encapsulate information on planetary climate and formation processes. To date, there…
Water vapor is not only Earth's dominant greenhouse gas. Through the release of latent heat when it condenses, it also plays an active role in dynamic processes that shape the global circulation of the atmosphere and thus climate. Here we…
Aeolian sand beds exhibit regular patterns of ripples resulting from the interaction between topography and sediment transport. Their characteristics have been so far related to reptation transport caused by the impacts on the ground of…
The saturation length of aeolian sand transport ($L_s$), characterizing the distance needed by wind-blown sand to adapt to changes in the wind shear, is essential for accurate modeling of the morphodynamics of Earth's sandy landscapes and…
A new modelling approach shows how the Earth's hidden vibrations may drive global weather dynamics and atmospheric pressure variations, hinting that the planet's own beat could be imprinted on our climate. The atmospheric rotational…
The interaction of dust grains originating from the local interstellar cloud with the environment inside the heliosphere is investigated. As a consequence of this interaction the spatial distribution of interstellar dust grains changes with…
The terrestrial water cycle links the soil and atmosphere moisture reservoirs through four fluxes: precipitation, evaporation, runoff and atmospheric moisture convergence. Each of these fluxes is essential for human and ecosystem…
The purpose of this review-and-research paper is twofold: (i) to review the role played in climate dynamics by fluid-dynamical models; and (ii) to contribute to the understanding and reduction of the uncertainties in future climate-change…
Semidiurnal atmospheric thermal tides are important for terrestrial exoplanets in the habitable zone of their host stars. With solid tides, they torque these planets, thus contributing to determine their rotation states as well as their…
Aeolian sand dunes originate from wind flow and sand bed interactions. According to wind properties and sand availability, they can adopt different shapes, ranging from huge motion-less star dunes to small and mobile barchan dunes. The…
Understanding the sources of lunar water is crucial for studying the history of lunar evolution, and also the solar wind interaction with the Moon and other airless bodies. Recent observations revealed lunar hydration is very likely a…
The meridional component of the earth's rotation is often neglected in geophysical contexts. This is referred to as the `traditional approximation' and is justified by the typically small vertical velocity and aspect ratio of such problems.…
Identification of habitable planets beyond our solar system is a key goal of current and future space missions. Yet habitability depends not only on the stellar irradiance, but equally on constituent parts of the planetary atmosphere. Here…
Thermal tides are atmospheric planetary-scale waves with periods that are harmonics of the solar day. In the Martian atmosphere thermal tides are known to be especially significant compared to any other known planet. Based on the data set…
Understanding processes that determine the global circulation of the atmosphere is necessary for long-term weather forecasting and climate studies which are critical for ensuring energy security. Processes in the atmosphere depend on many…
Context. Findings by the Helios and STEREO mission have indicated the presence of a resonant circumsolar ring of dust associated with Venus. Attempts to model this phenomenon as an analogue to the resonant ring of Earth - as a result of…
Micron-sized dust grains have been successfully employed as non-perturbative probes to measure variations in plasma conditions on small spatial scales, such as those found in plasma sheaths. The dynamics of the grains can be used to map the…