Rocky Mountains

On two days during SUCCESS, the NASA DC-8 flew carefully designed flight tracks to sample wave clouds downstream of the Rocky mountains. Wave morphology was deduced by applying linear perturbation theory to in-situ measurements of the Meteorological Measurement System (MMS) and remotely sensed isentrope profiles of the Micro-wave Temperature Profiler (MTP). Vertical winds from the MMS were consistent with updraft velocities derived from air parcel displacements estimated from the MTP. Derived wave characteristics and cooling rates are useful inputs to cloud microphysics models.

Greater Yellowstone ecosystem and to the Central Idaho area in an attempt to restore the endangered gray wolf to the Rocky Mountains. The restoration of wolves to Yellowstone National Park has become one of the most successful wildlife conservation programs in the history of endangered species conservation. Yellowstone is now considered one of the best places in the world to watch wild wolves. Visibility of the wolves within the park, and public interest in wolves and wolf-based education programs, have far exceeded initial expectations. During the preparation of the environmental impact statement (EIS; US Fish and Wildlife Service 1994) that was completed by the National Park Service (NPS) prior to wolf restoration, more than 170,000 public comments were reviewed to determine the public’s key concerns. One of the main issues identified during this process was the concern about the possible economic effects of wolf restoration. Among the concerns of opponents were the expenditure of...

Using repeated high precision GPS measurements on existing monuments, we hope to accurately determine the present day crustal strain rates in the State of Colorado on a regional and/or local scale. We will provide the first modern, space-based crustal strain and surface velocity estimates for the southern Rocky Mountain region, including the Front Range and Rio Grande Rift. In addition,

This paper describes how operational radar, satellite and lightning data may be used in conjunction with numerical weather model data to provide remote detection and diagnosis of atmospheric turbulence in and around thunderstorms. In-cloud turbulence is measured with the NEXRAD Turbulence Detection Algorithm (NTDA) using extensively qualitycontrolled, ground-based Doppler radar data. A real-time demonstration of the NTDA includes generation of a 3-D turbulence mosaic covering the CONUS east of the Rocky Mountains, a web-based display, and experimental uplinks of turbulence maps to en-route commercial aircraft. Near-cloud turbulence is inferred from thunderstorm morphology, intensity, growth rate and environment data provided by (1) satellite radiance measurements, rates of change, winds, and other derived features, (2) lightning strike measurements, (3) radar reflectivity measurements and (4) weather model data. These are combined via a machine learning technique trained using a database of in situ turbulence measurements from commercial aircraft to create a predictive model. This new capability is being developed under FAA and NASA funding to enhance current U.S. and international turbulence decision support systems, allowing rapid-update, highresolution, comprehensive assessments of atmospheric turbulence hazards for use by pilots, dispatchers, and air traffic controllers. It will also contribute to the comprehensive 4-D weather information database for NextGen.

Referat im Mittelseminar MS 6733 im Sommersemester 2010
Physische Geographie von Nordamerika
Prof. Dr. A. Vött
Geographisches Institut der Universität zu Köln

Referent: Manfred Bundschuh, 29. 6. 2010

Grundzüge der südlichen Canadian Rocky Mountains – eine Fallstudie

Inhalt: Seite

1. Lage und kurze Geologie/Geomorphologie.des Arbeitsgebiets……….........….…….1
2. Kurze geologische Geschichte…………..…………………………...…….......................………....2
3. Erforschung, Bodenschätze, Klima, Vegetation, Fauna und Hydrologie................fernie....2
4. Jasper National Park und Glacier Highway, Red Deer Valley......................…….....3
5. Horseshoe Canyon, Dinosaur Park, Kananaskis......................................................5
6. Banff und Yoho National Parks...................................................................................5
7. Kicking Horse Pass, Burgess Shale............................................................................6
8. Revelstoke, Columbia River Valley, Radium Hot Springs........................................7
9. Fernie Basin, Crownsnest Pass, Frank Slide.............................................................7
10. Waterton Lakes National Park...................................................................................8
11. Zusammenfassung....................................................................................................10
12. Literatur..…………………………………………………………………….................................................10

siehe Details auch in
https://uni-koeln.academia.edu/ManfredBundschuh
in meinen Kapiteln über Ur-und Frühgeschichte und Geowissenschaften

please see details also in
https://uni-koeln.academia.edu/ManfredBundschuh
in my chapters about Prehistory and Geosciences

Entering torpor can yield significant energy savings for temperate-zone bats but can be costly for reproductive females by slowing fetal development and reducing milk production. We studied western long-eared bats (Myotis evotis (H. Allen, 1864)) in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta to test the hypothesis that different costs of torpor result in different patterns of thermoregulation and roosting behaviour for reproductive and nonreproductive females. We radio-tracked bats to monitor body temperatures and locate roosts. We took roost measurements and inserted temperature data loggers to measure roost microclimate. Bats entered torpor frequently, but nonreproductive females spent longer periods in torpor, had lower minimum body temperatures, and entered deep torpor more often than reproductive females did, supporting the hypothesis that entering torpor is more costly for reproductive individuals. Roosts were located mainly in rock fields on steep, open, south-facing slopes. Reproductive females roosted in crevices between rocks located above or on the surface of the ground. Roosts warmed rapidly and reached warm daytime temperatures. Females roosted alone during pregnancy but formed small colonies within roosts during lactation when ambient conditions were cooler. Clustering may reduce ther- moregulatory costs for both adults and young. Nonreproductive females roosted mainly alone in crevices in the ground. These roosts had cooler, more stable microclimates, allowing females to enter deeper bouts of torpor and remain torpid longer.

The Centennial Voyageur Canoe Pageant was one of the most successful events of Canada's Centennial year, garnering extensive radio, newspaper, and television coverage, and involving many small northern communities in centennial celebrations. Ten teams representing eight provinces and two territories took part in the race, which left Rocky Mountain House in Alberta on 24 May 1967 and arrived at the

In western North America, Rocky Mountain national parks represent a major resource for nature-based tourism. This paper examines how climate change may influence park tourism in the Rocky Mountain region by focusing on both the direct and indirect impacts of climate change for visitation to Waterton Lakes National Park (WLNP) (Alberta, Canada). A statistical model of monthly visitation and climate was developed to examine the direct impact of climate change on visitation. The model projected that annual visitation would increase between 6% and 10% in the 2020s and between 10% and 36% in the 2050s. To explore how climate-induced environmental change could also indirectly affect visitation, a visitor survey was used (N=425N=425). The environmental change scenarios for the 2020s and 2050s were found to have minimal influence on visitation, however the environmental change scenario for the 2080s (under the warmest climate change conditions) was found to have a negative effect on visitation, as 19% of respondents indicated they would not visit the park and 37% stated they would visit the park less often. The contrasting result of the two analyses for the longer-term impact of climate change was a key finding. The management implications of these findings and methodological challenges associate with climate change impact assessment for tourism are also discussed.

Question: Do landscape metrics reflect differences in dominant factors controlling ribbon forest patterns among sites?Location: West Flattop Mountain, Glacier National Park, Montana (Flattop); Medicine Bow Mountains, Wyoming (Medicine Bow); Park Range, Colorado (Park Range).Methods: High-resolution aerial photography was used to delineate ribbon forest patches, and to calculate landscape metrics to distinguish between long, narrow, regular patterns expected from strong microtopographic control, and smaller, more compact, and variable patterns expected from wind-snowdrift interactions.Results: All but two metrics were significantly different (P<0.05) among the three sites. The rank and magnitude of differences indicated that ribbons at Flattop and Park Range are more similar to each other than to those at Medicine Bow. Flattop ribbons were also more elongated, narrower and less variable than those at Park Range, suggesting differences in the type and strength of structural control. Previous research showed that Flattop ribbons occupy regular lithologic ridges, while our observations of ribbons and analysis of geologic maps suggests weaker and less consistent microtopographic control at Park Range, and dominant wind-snowdrift interactions with little to no microtopographic influence at Medicine Bow.Conclusions: Landscape metrics indicate differences in pattern among sites that reflect differences in dominant factors influencing ribbon forest development and maintenance. Explanations of ribbon forest dynamics are site-specific and are more complex than is currently recognized. The sites vary in the level of endogenous versus exogenous control of ribbon patterns, and consequently in the sensitivity of this phenomenon to climate.

Referat im Mittelseminar MS 6733 im Sommersemester 2010
Physische Geographie von Nordamerika Prof. Dr. A. Vött
Geographisches Institut der Universität zu Köln Referent: Manfred Bundschuh, 29. 6. 2010

1. Lage und kurze Geologie/Geomorphologie.des Arbeitsgebiet.….…….1
2. Kurze geologische Geschichte…………..………………………….......……………......2
3. Erforschung, Bodenschätze, Klima, Vegetation, Fauna und Hydrologie.........................................................................................................2
4. Jasper National Park und Glacier Highway, Red Deer Valley..............3
5. Horseshoe Canyon, Dinosaur Park, Kananaskis...................................5
6. Banff und Yoho National Parks................................................................5
7. Kicking Horse Pass, Burgess Shale........................................................6
8. Revelstoke, Columbia River Valley, Radium Hot Springs....................7
9. Fernie Basin, Crownsnest Pass, Frank Slide.........................................7
10. Waterton Lakes National Park..............................................................8
11. Zusammenfassung..............................................................................10
12. Literatur..………………………………………………................……………………...........10

Blethisa aurata Fischer von Waldheim, 1828 is redescribed based on recently collected specimens. The taxon is kept as a subspecies of B. multipunctata (Linnaeus 1758). This subspecies is known from forested regions on the Pacific watershed of Russia and Hokkaido (Japan), and Alaska (United States) and subarctic regions of the Northwest Territories (Canada). Blethisa inexspectata Goulet and Smetana, 1983 is

River ecosystems are naturally variable in time and space and this variability is largely determined by climate, geology, and topography. We explore how variability in cli- mate influences rivers. Our specific goals are to discuss (1) the major natural drivers of global- scale climate; (2) variability in temperature, precipitation, and streamflow patterns and how they relate to natural climate oscillations, such as ENSO (El Niño/Southern Oscillation, PDO (Pacific Decadal Oscillation), and AO/NAO (Arctic Oscillation/North Atlantic Oscillation); (3) how human activities influence climate variability; (4) how climate variability influences river systems; and (5) the need to account for climate variability in river restoration activities. Three regional-scale river drainages are explored in detail: the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest; the Colorado River in the Rocky Mountains and the Southwestern USA; and the Kissimmee-Okeechobee-Everglades drainage in South Florida. As is true ...

Desjardins, P.R., Mángano, M.G., Buatois, L.A. & Pratt, B.R. 2010: Skolithos pipe rock and associated ichnofabrics from the southern Rocky Mountains, Canada: colonization trends and environmental controls in an early Cambrian sand-sheet complex. Lethaia, 10.1111/j.1502-3931.2009.00214.xThe Lower Cambrian Gog Group of the southern Rocky Mountains of western Canada offers an opportunity to explore animal–sediment relationships in a high-energy setting, during the early phase of Phanerozoic diversification. Its strata record a sand-sheet complex on the broad pericontinental shelf of West Laurentia. Six ichnofabrics are recognized: Skolithos IF-1 characterized by Skolithos linearis in planar cross-stratified sandstone; Skolithos IF-2 with Skolithos linearis and accessory Diplocraterion parallelum in ripple cross-laminated, and planar and trough cross-stratified sandstone; Skolithos IF-3 with S. linearis and Planolites montanus in wavy- and flaser-bedded sandstone, interfingering with bioturbated mudstone exhibiting P. montanus and Teichichnus rectus; Skolithos IF-4, characterized by abundant Skolithos linearis in planar and trough cross-stratified sandstone; Rosselia IF-1 consisting of Rosselia isp. in planar cross-stratified sandstone; and Rosselia IF-2 consisting of scattered small Rosselia isp. in hummocky, cross-stratified sandstone. The presence of contrasting ichnofabrics within a single early Cambrian sand-sheet complex illuminates how the colonization trends of suspension and detritus feeders were controlled by factors specific to the various sub-environments. □Gog Group, Ichnofabric, Lower Cambrian, Pipe Rock, Rosselia, Skolithos.