No abstract

In the context of climate change and variability, there is considerable interest in how large scale climate indicators influence regional precipitation occurrence and its seasonality. Seasonal and longer climate projections from coupled ocean-atmosphere models need to be downscaled to regional levels for hydrologic applications, and the identification of appropriate state variables from such models that can best inform this process is also of direct interest. Here, a Non-Homogeneous Hidden Markov Model (NHMM) for downscaling daily rainfall is developed for the Agro-Pontino Plain, a coastal reclamation region very vulnerable to changes of hydrological cycle. The NHMM, through a set of atmospheric predictors, provides the link between large scale meteorological features and local rainfall patterns. Atmospheric data from the NCEP/NCAR archive and 56-years record (1951-2004) of daily rainfall measurements from 7 stations in Agro-Pontino Plain are analyzed. A number of validation tests are carried out, in order to: 1) identify the best set of atmospheric predictors to model local rainfall; 2) evaluate the model performance to capture realistically relevant rainfall attributes as the inter-annual and seasonal variability, as well as average and extreme rainfall patterns. Validation tests show that the best set of atmospheric predictors are the following: mean sea level pressure, temperature at 1000 hPa, meridional and zonal wind at 850 hPa and precipitable water, from 20°N to 80°N of latitude and from 80°W to 60°E of longitude. Furthermore, the validation tests show that the rainfall attributes are simulated realistically and accurately. The capability of the NHMM to be used as a forecasting tool to quantify changes of rainfall patterns forced by alteration of atmospheric circulation under climate change and variability scenarios is discussed

This study aimed to evaluate the antibacterial action of KTP (potassium-titanyl-phosphate) laser irradiations (compared with 980 nm diode laser), associated with conventional endodontic procedures, on Enterococcus faecalis biofilms. Fifty-six dental roots with single canals were prepared with Ni-Ti rotary instruments, autoclaved, inoculated with an E. faecalis suspension and incubated for 72 h. They were randomly allocated to control and treatment groups. Laser parameters were as follows: power 2.5 W, Ton 35 ms, Toff 50 ms (KTP laser); power 2.5 W, Ton 30 ms, Toff 30 ms (980 nm diode laser). To evaluate the residual bacterial load, BioTimer Assay was employed. The chemo-mechanical treatment together with laser irradiations (KTP and 980 nm diode lasers) achieved a considerable reduction of bacterial load (higher than 96% and 93%, respectively). Regarding both laser systems, comparisons with conventional endodontic procedures (mortality rate of about 67%) revealed statistically highly significant differences (P ≤ 0.01). This study confirms that laser systems can provide an additional aid in endodontic disinfection.

The paper discusses advances in coupling satellite driven soil water balance model and meteorological forecast as support for precision smart irrigation use in a case study of an operative farm in the South of Italy where semi-arid climatic conditions holds. Crop water needs forecast are computed with the intuitive idea of forcing the soil water balance model with the meteorological model outlooks. Discussion on the methodology approach is presented, comparing, for a reanalysis period between June and September 2014, the forecast system outputs with observed soil moisture and crop water needs. Two main issues are here in emphasized: the characteristic of soil moisture water balance model, that due to its state variables may be directly calibrated and validated using satellite or near sensing land surface temperatures; the accuracy of those forecast meteorological variables that are the most important in driving the soil water and energy balance. The soil water balance model performances are then discussed highlighting the importance of using a model which state variable (the pixel surface equi-librium temperature) is the same as the data detected by satellite (Land Surface Temperature), so that it can be used for calibrating and validating soil hydrological parameters. Model outputs are also validated with a comparison of ground latent and sensible heat fluxes from an eddy covariance station and soil moisture data. Problems insight into the meteorological modeling, such as temporal and spatial scale, and their influence on soil moisture forecast are discussed showing on the base of several observation periods the need to increase the meteorological forcings accuracy for this type of applications.The obtained results show how the proposed methodology of the forecasting system is able to have a high reliability in soil moisture forecast correctly providing irrigation suggestion.

Abstract:The Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon prevalently concerns industrialized countries. It consists of a significant increase in temperatures, especially in industrialized and urbanized areas, in particular, during extreme warm periods like summer. This paper explores the climate variability of temperatures in two stations located in Matera city (Southern Italy), evaluating the increase in temperatures from 1988 to 2015. Moreover, the Corine Land Covers (1990Covers ( -2000Covers ( -2006Covers ( -2012 were used in order to investigate the effect of land use on temperatures. The results obtained confirm the prevalence of UHI phenomena for industrialized areas, highlighting the proposal that the spreading of settlements may further drive these effects on the microclimate. In particular, the presence of industrial structures, even in rural areas, shows a clear increase in summer maximum temperatures. This does not occur in the period before 2000, probably due to the absence of the industrial settlement. On the contrary, from 2000 to 2015, changes are not relevant, but the maximum temperatures have always been higher than in the suburban area (station localized in green zone) during daylight hours.