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The paper provides an overview of methods and technical devices for remote temperature and humidity sensing of the Earth's atmosphere from satellites developed in Russia. A brief description of modern and forthcoming infrared and microwave atmospheric sounders installed on Meteor-M operational polar-orbiting weather satellites is given. The physical and mathematical base of interpreting measurements of atmospheric sounders (IKFS-2 infrared Fourier spectrometer and MTVZA-GYa microwave radiometer) is presented. The technologies for retrieving atmospheric temperature and humidity profiles are described. The results of retrieval validation as well as the prospects for further development of satellite remote temperature and humidity sensing systems are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis and evaluation of the factors that have an effect on the frequency of ice jams and the characteristics of the accompanying floods have been shown to remain an important field of hydrophysical studies. Discriminant analysis of the data of long-term observations of river water regime in the Northern Dvina basin has been used to assess the backwater effect of downstream reaches on the characteristics of ice-jam floods in jam-hazardous river reaches with the construction of classification functions for characteristic reaches. Multiple regression models were analyzed to assess the effect of the morphometric features of river channel on the frequency of ice jams within two extended river basins in the European and Asian Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We studied the distribution of tephra deposits discharged by the basaltic (52-54% SiO) explosive eruption of 1973 on Tyatya Volcano (Kunashir I., Kuril Islands). We made maps showing lines of equal tephra thickness (isopachs) and lines of maximum size of pyroclastic particles (isopleths). These data were used to find the parameters of explosive activity using the standard techniques for each of the two phases of this eruption separately. The first, phreatomagmatic, phase discharged 0.008 km of tephra during the generation of maars on the volcano's northern slope. The tephra mostly consisted of fragmented host rocks with admixtures of fragments of low vesiculated juvenile basalt. The phase lasted 20 hours, the rate of pyroclastic discharge was 2 × 10 kg/s; the eruptive plume reached heights of 4-6 km with wind speeds within 10 m/s. The second, magmatic, phase discharged 0.07 km of tephra during the generation of the Otvazhnyi scoria cone on the volcano's southeastern slope. The tephra mostly consisted of juvenile basaltic scoria. The highly explosive Plinian part of this phase lasted 36 hours, the rate of pyroclastic discharge was 8 × 10 kg/s; the eruptive plume reached heights of 6-8 km with wind speeds of 10-20 m/s. The total tephra volume discharged by the eruption was approximately 0.08 km; the total amount of ejected pyroclastic material (including the resulting monogenic edifices) was 0.11 km; the volume of erupted magma was 0.05 km (the conversion was based on 2800 kg/m density); the volcanic explosivity index, or VEI, was 3. The production rate of the Tyatya plumbing system is estimated as 3 × 10 m magma per annum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The soil cover of the Terekhol intermontane Depression in the Tyva Region is poorly studied. The data obtained in the 1950s do not reflect the real genetic diversity of soils and their specific character. According to these data, the soil cover was dominated by meadow-chernozemic soils under virgin steppe-like meadows. The investigations of 2007-2009 show that the disperse-carbonate chernozems, which are often solonetzic and weakly saline; the specific polygenetic dark soda solonchaks-solonetzes; and the postagrogenic chernozems, solonetzes, and agrozems are the main components of the soil cover of the depression at the present time. The described chernozems correspond mainly to the central image of southern Siberia chernozems. The investigated solonetzes are characterized by a number of evolution-genetic features that distinguish them from previously described solonetzes of Tyva and from all the solonetzic soils in the current interpretation. The chernozems and solonetzes have cryogenic features due to the cold extremely continental climate and relatively shallow continuous permafrost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the development of operational employment of naval forces of Russia during the World War I. Implementation of military shipbuilding programs; Factors that influenced the concept of employment of naval forces; Problems in the operation disposition of army and navy forces in a coastal sector.

The primary formation of soil spatial heterogeneity of young surfaces is not well studied. Along the coast of the Caspian Sea, due to the constant sea-level changes of this closed water basin, young soilscapes have formed in the last centuries. The variability and the spatial pattern of soil salinity were studied at two key sites located at the coast of Russia (northern Dagestan) and Iran (northern Golestan) at the same altitude of 25.5 m below sea level, or 2.5 m above the present-day level of the Caspian Sea. The age of surface deposits is 50–70 years old at the Iranian coast (Gomishan-1) and 293 ± 13 years calBP at the Russian coast (Caspii-2). The soils at both key sites are weakly developed strongly saline soils (Gleyic Solonchaks). The key sites have similar aridity and lithology with different vegetation and microtopography: the Gomishan-1 site has a smooth microtopography and homogeneous vegetation, and the Caspii-2 site has a pronounced microtopography and diverse vegetation. Approx. 60 boreholes at each site were sampled twice to the depth of 1 m in autumn 2017 and 0.5 m in spring 2018. The electrical conductivity (1:2.5) was measured in soil samples. At both key sites, the spatial and seasonal salt translocation is well pronounced. The variability of soil salinity grows by the end of the dry and hot season (September/October). The mean, median and variance differ between two sites in spring and become similar between two sites in autumn, which shows that the seasonal drying of coastal soils leads to the formation of similar heterogeneity under similar aridity and lithology despite the differences in vegetation and microtopography. Even with the strong seasonal dynamics at both key sites, there are clear trends in these changes, which show that the spatial pattern is stable in time. The analysis of the relationship between salinity patterns and vegetation has shown that there is no such correlation at both key sites. The analysis of the relationship between salinity patterns and microtopography has shown that there is no such correlation at the younger site (Gomishan-1 , Iran) and there is a moderate correlation at the more mature site (Caspii-2, Russia) where soil salinity is inversely dependent on the microtopography (R2 = 0.21 ... 0.46). The overview of the facts obtained in this study as well as in the published literature led us to the conclusion that the formation of spatial heterogeneity in soil salinity chronologically precedes the spatial distribution of vegetation and microtopography at the coastal area of the Caspian Sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]