2008 Vol. 18, No. 3

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Articles
Approach to Delimiting Metropolitan Regions' Boundary and Grading Urban Hierarchy Within a Metropolitan Region——A Case Study of Shanghai Metropolitan Region
LUO Shougui, Andrew JOHNSTON, CHEN Dongchun
2008, 18(3): 197-205. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0197-z
Abstract:
In metropolitan regions, the change in the strength of "flows" between a core city and surrounding cities reflects the range of the core city's influence, while the gravity between core city and other cities reflects the strength of potential relation between them. This article firstly attempts to delimit the boundary of metropolitan regions with the two dimensions measure combining "flows" and gravitation. The former is measured through the flow of people between the core city and surrounding cities, and the latter is measured through both population and gross domestic products (GDP) of the core city and surrounding cities. The hierarchy of the cities within a metropolitan region is classified in order to emphasize the roles of the cities belonging to the metropolitan regions, different from the general way through population scale and administrative level, and is typical in China. This paper uses the Shanghai metropolitan region as a research case, determining boundary of this metropolitan region clearly and classifying hierarchy of the cities within the region. The final results are significantly different to previous work, even overthrowing the traditional system of urban hierarchy partly. It is helpful to highlight the function of cities in organizing the regional economy, the level structure of metropolitan regions, and each city's relative importance in a metropolitan region, which can be taken as scientific basis for planning integrated regions or urban systems.
Spatial Distribution of Integrated Impact Index of Mega-event——A Case Study of Expo '99 Kunming
DAI Guangquan, BAO Jigang
2008, 18(3): 214-223. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0214-2
Abstract:
Taking the affinity between events and media as a conceptualization base, a total of 1032 related news re-ports of Expo '99 Kunming, gathered from the internet data bank of China INFOBANK from 1992 to 2003, are used as data sources. After classifying them with a communication research method—the content analysis, a data bank for SPSS is set up, and a mathematic model called the Integrated Impact Index of Expo '99 Kunming is constituted. With the model, the spatial distribution of the total integrated impacts of Expo '99 Kunming on the regions or cities with different regional scales is analysed quantitatively. The conclusions are: 1) the Expo '99 Kunming made obvious integrated impacts on the regions or cities of every scale, especially in the venue city and the region—Kunming City and Yunnan Province; 2) it had corresponding impacts on other provinces; 3) the spatial distribution of Integrated Impact Index had a disaggregation with both plane extension and spotted decentralization; and 4) there was a distance decay law in all three scales of regions (Kunming City, Yunnan Province and the whole China), which incarnated the spatial extension law of the integrated impact of a special mega-event.
Influencing Factors for Formation of Urban and Rural Spatial Structure in Metropolis Fringe Area——Taking Shuangliu County of Chengdu in China as a Case
WANG Kaiyong, GAO Xiaolu, CHEN Tian
2008, 18(3): 224-234. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0224-0
Abstract:
With rapid urbanization process, the pace of urban sprawl has been quickened and most metropolises have ex-perienced expansions in leaps and bounds in suburbanization, which has greatly changed the urban and rural spatial structure of the metropolis fringe area. In this paper, Shuangliu County is taken as a case, since it is a typical fringe area of Chengdu Metropolis. Based on Landsat TM images of Chengdu City and Shuangliu County obtained in 1985, 2000 and 2004, characteristics of urban and rural spatial structure in Shuangliu County were analyzed, such as core-periphery spatial structure and some obvious integration trends. Then the influencing factors for the formation of urban and rural spatial structure were identified, including some natural, social, economic and political factors. According to the discussion of this paper, Shuangliu County is undergoing a key transition and reform period. Its formation of urban and rural spatial structure was affected not only by such common factors as the location, natural background, industrial transition, migration, etc., but also by some unique factors such as city planning and policy guidance, which played an important role in accelerating its uneven spatial structure. The understanding of the role of the influencing factors would be useful for carrying out spatial management and development planning of metropolis fringe area.
Application of SCS Model in Estimation of Runoff from Small Watershed in Loess Plateau of China
LIU Xianzhao, LI Jiazhu
2008, 18(3): 235-241. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0235-x
Abstract:
Soil Conservation Service (SCS) model, developed by U. S. Soil Conservation Service in 1972, has been widely applied in the estimation of runoff from an small watershed. In this paper, based on the remote sensing geo-information data of land use and soil classification all obtained from Landsat images in 1996 and 1997 and con-ventional data of hydrology and meteorology, the SCS model was investigated for simulating the surface runoff for single rainstorm in Wangdonggou watershed, a typical small watershed in the Loess Plateau, located in Changwu County of Shaanxi Province of China. Wangdonggou watershed was compartmentalized into 28 sub-units according to natural draining division,and the table of curve number (CN) values fitting for Wangdonggou watershed was also presented. During the flood period from 1996 to 1997, the hydrograph of calculated runoff process using the SCS model and the hydrograph of observed runoff process coincided very well in height as well as shape, and the model was of high precision above 75%. It is indicated that the SCS model is legitimate and can be successfully used to simulate the runoff generation and the runoff process of typical small watershed based on the remote sensing geo-information in the Loess Plateau.
Comparison of Some Vegetation Indices in Seasonal Information
HAO Chengyuan, WU Shaohong, XU Chuanyang
2008, 18(3): 242-248. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0242-y
Abstract:
With the development of vegetation indices, the reflection capability of vegetation indices to the state of vegetation has been improved in various degrees. Especially, the vegetation index of Terra/MODIS-EVI is believed to have the highest sensitivity to the seasonality of vegetation. This study compares the reflection susceptibility of three vegetation indices (NOAA/AVHRR-NDVI, Terra/MODIS-NDVI and Terra/MODIS-EVI) to the seasonal variations of vegetation in the mid-south of Yunnan Province of China. It has been found that Terra/MODIS-EVI does best in the elimination of external disturbance. Firstly, it obviously improves the linear relationship with vegetation cover degree, especially in the high vegetation coverage area. Secondly, it avoids the emergence of vegetation index saturation. Thirdly, it reduces the environmental influence including both effects of atmosphere and soil. So it is believed that the Terra/MODIS-EVI can offer excellent tool for quantitative research of remote sensing, and has realized to be oriented by data with high quality.
Detection of Acid Rain Stress Effect on Plant Using Hyperspectral Data in Three Gorges Region, China
SONG Xiaodong, JIANG Hong, YU Shuquan, ZHOU Guomo
2008, 18(3): 249-254. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0249-4
Abstract:
This paper aims to use hyperspectral data to detect the spectral change caused by acid stress to a native forest type in the Three Gorges region of China. For this purpose, a ground-based hyperspectral experiment was conducted at the Three Gorges region to detect acid deposition that caused Masson pine (Pinus massoniana) forest degradation. Continuum removal method was used to isolate wavebands more responsive to stress in wavelengths 450–750nm. The differences in chlorophyll concentrations and needle thickness caused by acidic stress are found to be explicable to the different spectral reflectance patterns in the visible and near-infrared wavelengths. Two new chlorotic indices were utilized to explain the stress-caused leaf chlorosis. The comparison of simulated vegetation indices and principal component analysis (PCA) results suggests that it would be possible to monitor acid rain stress effect on forest ecosystem from some wider spectral regions.
Field Measurements of Influence of Sand Transport Rate on Structure of Wind-sand Flow over Coastal Transverse Ridge
DONG Yuxiang, S L NAMIKAS, P A HESP, MA Jun
2008, 18(3): 255-261. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0255-6
Abstract:
The structure of wind-sand flow under different total sand transport rates was measured with field vertical anemometer and sand trap on the crest of typical coastal transverse ridge in Changli Gold Coast of Hebei Province, which is one of the most typical coastal aeolian distribution regions in China and famous for the tall and typical coastal transverse ridges. The measurement results show that, on the conditions of approximate wind velocities and same surface materials and environments, some changes happen to the structure of wind-sand flow with the increase of total sand transport rate on the crest of coastal transverse ridge. First, the sand transport rates of layers at different heights in the wind-sand flow increase, with the maximum increase at the height layer of 4–8cm. Second, the ratios of sand transport rates of layers at different heights to total sand transport rate decrease at the low height layer (0–4cm), but increase at the high height layer (4–60cm). Third, the distribution of the sand transport rate in the wind-sand flow can be expressed by an exponential function at the height layer of 0–40cm, but it changes from power function model to ex-ponential function model in the whole height layer (0–60cm) and changes into polynomial function model at the height layer of 40–60cm with the increase of total sand transport rate. Those changes have a close relationship with the limit of sand grain size of wind flow transporting and composition of sand grain size in the wind-sand flow.
Flood and Waterlogging Monitoring over Huaihe River Basin by AMSR-E Data Analysis
ZHENG Wei, LIU Chuang, XIN Zhongbao, WANG Zhengxing
2008, 18(3): 262-267. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0262-7
Abstract:
In this paper, we investigated the potential of Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for Earth Observation System (AMSR-E) for flood monitoring. The proposed approach was based on the polarized ratio index (PRI), which was computed by using AMSR-E data at 37GHz, vertically and horizontally polarized brightness temperature values and the water surface fraction (WSF) got by using the PRI at 37GHz. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrora-diometer (MODIS) data were used to validate the WSF values. The analysis of flood and waterlogging using the WSF map on July 6, 2003 indicates that the use of WSF for flood and waterlogging disaster assessment is feasible. Utilizing the correlation of WSF derived from AMSR-E and water area derived from MODIS, the water area of the Huaihe River Basin were computed by only using AMSR-E data in the summer of 2003, which overcame the influence of cloud on water estimation using MODIS data during flood.
Identification and Categorization of Climate Change Risks
ZHANG Yuehong, WU Shaohong, DAI Erfu, LIU Dengwei, YIN Yunhe
2008, 18(3): 268-275. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0268-1
Abstract:
The scientific evidence that climate is changing due to greenhouse gas emission is now incontestable, which may put many social, biological, and geophysical systems in the world at risk. In this paper, we first identified main risks induced from or aggravated by climate change. Then we categorized them applying a new risk categorization system brought forward by Renn in a framework of International Risk Governance Council. We proposed that "uncer-tainty" could be treated as the classification criteria. Based on this, we established a quantitative method with fuzzy set theory, in which "confidence" and "likelihood" , the main quantitative terms for expressing uncertainties in IPCC, were used as the feature parameters to construct the fuzzy membership functions of four risk types. According to the maximum principle, most climate change risks identified were classified into the appropriate risk types. In the mean time, given that not all the quantitative terms are available, a qualitative approach was also adopted as a complementary classification method. Finally, we get the preliminary results of climate change risk categorization, which might lay the foundation for the future integrated risk management of climate change.
Spatial Distribution and Changes of Heavy Metals of Agricultural Lands in Typical Pregrading Coast in Dongtai City, Jiangsu Province, China
LIAO Fuqiang, ZHOU Shenglu, ZHANG Hongfu, WU Shaohua, ZHAO Qiguo
2008, 18(3): 276-283. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0276-1
Abstract:
According to the historical changes of coastal lines, seven soil sampling districts, from land to sea, were arranged in Dongtai City, Jiangsu Province to sample soils from surface and profile. Concentrations of seven major heavy metals (HMs), granularity, pH, organic matters and C/N of the soil samples were analyzed. Results show that concentrations of heavy metals in agricultural land present a certain spatial variance, decreasing from land to sea. Pollution assessment indicates that the agricultural soils were not polluted by HMs, but the potential pollution of Cu and Hg needs to be alerted. Different HMs accumulate in the surface and sub-surface of the soil profiles, and concentrations of Hg and Pb decrease significantly with the increment of soil depth. Concentrations of HMs exhibit a significantly negative correlation to pH, but have no significant relation with organic matters in soil. Principle component analysis show that the concentrations of HMs relate to the land use history. Concentrations of Hg, Ni and Cr in soil are closely related with land use history, and concentrations of Pb, Cu and Cr are affected by land use history as well as other factors. However, there is no significant relation between concentration of As and land use history.
Dynamics and Relationships of Ca, Mg, Fe in Litter, Soil Fauna and Soil in Pinus koraiensis-Broadleaf Mixed Forest
SONG Bo, YIN Xiuqin, ZHANG Yu, DONG Weihua
2008, 18(3): 284-290. doi: 10.1007/s11769-008-0284-1
Abstract:
The Liangshui Natural Reserve in Heilongjiang Province of China was selected as the study area. The authors collected the samples of forest litter (Tilia amurensis, Fraxinus mandshurica, Pinus koraiensis, Acer mono, Betula costata, and mixed litter), soil in humus horizon (0–5cm) and soil horizon (5–20cm), and soil macrofauna (Oli-gochaeta, Geophiloporpha and Juliformia) from 2001 to 2002. The role of soil macrofauna in the material cycle was analyzed through comparing the macro-element contents among various parts of the subsystems and using enrichment index (EI). The results indicate that dynamic changes of various litters are very complicated. The contents of Fe in each kind of litter increase firstly, and then decrease in the study period. The changes of macro-element contents are greater in the broad-leaf litter than in the coniferous litter, and the mixed litter is in the middle level, but the differences among them are not significant. The contents of Mg and Fe in humus are higher than those in soil, but the contents of Ca in soil are higher than that in humus. The dynamic changes of macro-element contents in soil and soil fauna are not consistent with those in litter. The diplopod presented obvious enrichment of Ca and Mg (EI>1), but it does not significantly enrich Fe. Earthworm has a stronger enrichment ability of Fe than diplopod and scolopendra, but EI<1. Soil fauna can make great influences on the material cycle of the subsystems.