The mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) regions serve as a dynamic transition zone between the lower atmosphere, heavily influenced by anthropogenic and atmospheric wave activity, and the upper atmosphere, subject to significant solar activity and radiative forcing. The MLT region is characterized by several dynamic processes, particularly dynamic forcing due to atmospheric wave breaking (
The Atlantic maritime winds and waves, as natural forces, shaped the physiography of Sines, a peculiar rocky cliff cape at the western Portuguese coast, as well as cultural processes have shaped its spatial arrangement since ancient times. Despite its small size, Sines port has always been an important maritime trade corner. In the 1970s, winds and waves of modernity reached the Sines coast with an imposing industrial-port complex. We present the history of Sines cape focusing on its landscape dynamics. The patch-corridor-matrix model allowed us to describe the mosaic transformation of such a unique landscape. Spatial information was gathered mostly from historical maps processed with digital tools. A time series of thematic maps (landscape mosaic pattern) was obtained, covering more than 120 years. Current results emphasize that this landscape underwent relevant transformations related to human activities since former times, although disturbance and fragmentation of the landscape were strongly intensified after the arrival of the post-modern wave of the industrial culture. The present study provides a contribution to the history of the Portuguese and Mediterranean coastal landscapes; and results could be used to support decision making in sustainable management of this territory.
The University of Algarve in consortium with Saint-Gobain Weber Portugal and Cristal Construções-Materiais e Obras de Construção Civil is developing a new concept of sustainable swimming pool which is more energy efficient with less environmental footprint and with reduced construction and maintenance costs. The specific objectives are the use of recycled materials, the reduction of the CO2 emissions in the life cycle of the construction materials, the reduction of the water losses, the use of renewable energy from the sun by exploiting the thermal inertia of the materials surrounding the swimming pool and the reduction the energy consumption during the structure lifetime by increasing the durability and reducing the number of reparations. To this end, new formulations of concrete and mortar are being developed and tested in our laboratories. They incorporate recycled materials and also materials with reduction of CO2 emissions during the production phase. An important concern is related with the development of an innovative system for the use of renewable energy from the area surrounding the swimming pool. One of the outputs of this project will be the construction of a semiscale prototype of a swimming pool with dimensions of 10m x 5m x 1.5m, and with the characteristics mentioned above, in order to observe and validate the proposed developments.
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