The modern fluvial system on the lowland East European Plain is of depositional type. Sediment transport to the seas is only a few percent of the total erosion, and the main part of eroded material is accumulated in the channels. The recent deposition of suspended sediments is caused by accelerated soil erosion on the arable slopes, which led to a high rate of lateral sediment input and deposition at the river headwaters and on the floodplains. The process of accumulation is facilitated by the unfilled “negative” volume of the net of dry valleys formed during the Late Glacial catastrophic erosion event. Such events of catastrophic erosion of the sediments deposited in the lowland fluvial systems occur with a frequency of 100-120 thousand years. In the conditions of both scarce vegetation and extremal surface runoff, the entire fluvial systems become the area of intensive erosion, with the deep incision of gullies and of the river channels. Therefore, despite the modern intensive deposition, delivery ratio for the fluvial systems on this lowland territory is close to one in the long-term perspective.

The paper is concerned with the small mammal fauna evolution in Europe in the Middle Pleistocene. The information on the faunas of the end of the Early Pleistocene has been also taken into consideration. The data available made possible identifying several stages in the small mammal evolution. Not all intervals within the Middle Pleistocene are provided with sufficient information for recognizing individual stages; that is particularly true for the cold periods of the Middle Pleistocene – the Donian and the Okian glaciations (=Elsterian, =Anglian). Based on the studies of small mammal localities, the biostratigraphic scheme has been developed, the principal phylogenetic lineages of Arvicolinae were traced, and maps of the Middle Pleistocene small mammal localities have been compiled

This article proposes that there is a need for a sustained engagement with and deconstruction of steppe imaginaries in Russian and Soviet literature in the twentieth century. It argues that “steppe” is not solely a term describing a particular environment, but also a pivotal idea which has shaped and shapes identities, cultural assumptions, political reasoning and even geopolitical thought. Based on the review of existing scholarship, the paper demonstrates the centrality of the steppe as a key imaginary for Russian history until the nineteenth century. However, it also reveals that the research on the relevance of such imaginaries for Russian and Soviet political history in the twentieth century is largely absent. Yet, it was during this period that the steppe environments underwent largescale transformations through processes of land reclamation, irrigation development and industrial agriculture.

The traditional methods for measuring water quality variables are timeconsuming and do not give a synoptic view of a water body or, more significantly, a synoptic view of different water bodies across the landscape. However, remote sensing technology with advantages such as wide area coverage and short revisit interval have been effectively used for environmental pollution applications, such as for monitoring water quality parameters. Many studies around the world show that optical satellite imagery can be used effectively in evaluating suspended sediment concentration. This article presents results of monitoring suspended sediment concentration in Red River, Hanoi, Vietnam through ground truth measurements and VNREDSat-1A multispectral data. The results obtained in the study can be used to serve the management, monitoring and evaluation of surface water quality.

Based on observational data from 70 hydrological stations in the North Caucasus an evaluation of present values of mean annual runoff, minimum monthly winter and summer runoff was carried out. Series of maps was drawn. Significant changes in mean annual. minimum monthly and maximum runoff during last decades have been revealed in the North Caucasus. A rise in both amount of water availability and potential natural hazard is characteristic of the most of the North Caucasus that is considered to be caused by recent climate change. Mean annual runoff during 1978-2010 increased compared to 1945-1977 by 5-30 % in the foothills and by 30-70% in the plain area. An increase in winter minimum monthly runoff is as well most intensive in the plain part of study area (>100%). Within the foothills it amounts to 50-100%. In mountainous area long-term oscillation of winter minimum monthly discharge strongly depends on local factors, such as geological structure. The rate of the increase in summer minimum monthly discharge regularly grows from central foothill part of Northern Caucasus (30-50%) to the Western plain territory (70-100%). In Kuban river basin 30% of analyzed gauging stations show positive trend in maximum instantaneous discharge, while 9% negative. On the contrary, in the Eastern part – Terek river basin – negative trend in maximum instantaneous discharge is prevalent: 38% of gauging stations. Positive trend in Terek river basin is characteristic of 9.5% of analyzed gauging stations.

In this study the power of the sulfur dioxide emissions from the Mid-Urals copper-smelting enterprise (MUCE) was estimated by using plume cross-scanning. The combination of the observational data obtained by the TROICA experiments and information obtained by satellite photos of the Earth’s surface together with the ISCST3 dispersion model is promising for studies of the short-range atmospheric transport of chemically inactive pollutants. The results of ISCT3 model simulations indicate that the SO2 emissions in terms of sulfur make up about 3–4% of the plant sulfuric acid production. Also the cross validation between ISCST3 and NOAA HYSPLIT dispersion models was carried out. The emission rate obtained at the NOAA HYSPLIT model simulation is 1.5 times higher than the emission rate calculated at the ISCST3 simulation. It was emphasized, that the using of mobile platforms on electric traction has advantages in studying the environmental situation in comparison with the measurement system, constructed on the stationary Environmental Protection Stations. The cross-plume scanning method to a lesser degree depends on the wind rose, the features of the landscape and a relative location of emission sources and sensors.

Urban temperature anomalies, frequently referred to as the urban heat islands (UHIs), are of the most distinct and influential climatic factors with significant impact on urban life and environment. However, UHIs in high latitudes are still studied only fragmentary. There is a knowledge gap related to the urban temperature distinction with respect to local temperature anomalies of natural surface types. This study extends upon our recent high latitude regional-scale climatic survey in 28 cities in the Northern West Siberia (NWS) region. Based on MODIS land surface temperature (LST) products covering 15 years between 2001 and 2015, it was revealed that all 28 cities have significant surface urban heat islands (SUHIs). The strong statistical dependence (r = 0.73) on endogenous factors such as city size and the population was found. It was suggested that exogenous factors such as the background LC types could be significant as well. This study presents the analysis of the exogenous factors shaping the apparent SUHI intensities. The major contribution to the SUHI was revealed for water, sparse vegetation, grassland, and shrubland. There are no clear dependence between the partial SUHI intensity and the area fraction occupied by the given LC type. The mechanisms and pathways of the SUHI maintenance cannot be inferred solely from the remote sensing data. Further understanding requires numerical experiments with turbulence-resolving models.

The study deals with the socio-economic geographical analysis of the solar energy production — one of the most rapidly developing industries of the world energy complex. The aim of the study is to identify and explain main features of the territorial structure of solar energy production and assess its role and place in the world. The paper also investigates the factors that affect the development of solar energy production itself as well as the deployment of individual solar panels or solar power stations. The study carried out is based on the review of datasets and official documents which enable to draw a conclusion that the result of an intensive development of solar energy production is its dynamic spatial expansion visible in the emergence of new poles of growth which largely changes the territorial structure of the industry, transforming it from a monocentric to polycentric.

This study compared soil properties and quality under five different farm practices in a part of the southwest Nigeria. The study indicated that fewer soil properties accounted for more percentage change in total variance at the fallow and mono-cropping plots than at the forest, crop rotation and alley farming systems. It also showed that soils under fallow and mono-cropping systems exhibited the lowest quality values among the farm practices system studied. The study recommends improved soil management approaches in plots under mono-cropping practices, and extensive soil recovery programmes for fallow lands.