UnsolvedEarth / scripts /subtopic_matcher.py
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Release UnsolvedEarth v1.3.0: 308 Tier-A Gold problems, 100% LaTeX governing equations, 60k-edge knowledge graph, 93.7% open-sentence grounding, 0 colons/case artifacts
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#!/usr/bin/env python3
"""
Fine-Grained Sub-Discipline Semantic Matcher & Open-Question Synthesizer for UnsolvedEarth v1.2.0.
Eliminates cross-subtopic collisions (e.g., core dynamo terms on subduction papers, magma terms on clay adsorption papers,
or seafloor sediment terms on upper-ocean heatwave papers) by matching each candidate against 75+ specialized sub-discipline
profiles across the 15 primary categories, and grounding >90% of statements directly in the paper's extracted open-problem clause.
"""
import re
from governing_equations import GOVERNING_RELATIONS_BY_SUB_ID, normalize_mid_sentence_case
# 75 specialized sub-discipline profiles (5 per category) using 100% valid taxonomy slugs
SUBTOPIC_PROFILES = {
1: [
{
"sub_id": "core_dynamo_inner_core",
"keywords": r"\b(inner\s+core|outer\s+core|core-mantle|cmb|dynamo|geomagnetic|paleomagnetic|fe-ni|fe-si|fe7c3|superionic|anisotrop\w+\s+in\s+earth|geodynamo|magnetic\s+reversal|archeomagnetic|secular\s+variation)\b",
"components": ["inner_core", "outer_core"],
"media": ["core_alloy", "melt"],
"processes": ["geomagnetic_dynamo", "mantle_convection"],
"spatial_scale": "mantle_or_core_domain",
"temporal_scale": "millennial_to_orbital",
"depth_range": "2,891–6,371 km",
"observables": [
"PKIKP body-wave travel-time residuals and normal-mode splitting functions",
"satellite and paleomagnetic secular-variation field reconstructions",
],
"inferred": [
"inner-core crystalline anisotropy, light-element partitioning, and outer-core convective buoyancy flux",
"core-mantle boundary heat-flux heterogeneity and geomagnetic reversal thresholds",
],
"forcings": "inner-core crystallization buoyancy flux and secular core cooling",
"boundaries": "core-mantle boundary topography and heterogeneous lower-mantle thermal conductivity",
},
{
"sub_id": "lower_mantle_plumes_transition_zone",
"keywords": r"\b(lower\s+mantle|transition\s+zone|llsvp|ulvz|mantle\s+plume|bridgmanite|post-perovskite|ringwoodite|wadsleyite|410\s*km|660\s*km|slab\s+stagnation|deep\s+mantle|hotspot|large\s+igneous\s+province)\b",
"components": ["lower_mantle", "transition_zone"],
"media": ["mantle_silicate", "rock"],
"processes": ["mantle_convection", "metamorphic_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "mantle_or_core_domain",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "410–2,891 km",
"observables": [
"full-waveform seismic tomography and P-to-S receiver-function discontinuity depths",
"diamond-inclusion mineral physics and hotspot helium/tungsten isotope ratios",
],
"inferred": [
"thermochemical density contrasts across Large Low-Shear-Velocity Provinces (LLSVPs)",
"mantle transition-zone water storage capacity and viscosity stratification across 660 km",
],
"forcings": "thermochemical mantle convection and deep slab negative buoyancy",
"boundaries": " endothermic 660-km phase-transition clapeyron slopes and basal thermal boundary layers",
},
{
"sub_id": "subduction_slab_mantle_wedge",
"keywords": r"\b(subduction|subducting|slab|mantle\s+wedge|arc\s+magma|back-arc|forearc|trench|wadati|slab\s+breakoff|slab\s+rollback|slab\s+window|slab\s+dehydration|serpentinite\s+channel|recycled\s+carbonate|carbonated\s+mantle|asthenospher\w+|upper\s+mantle|mantle\s+melting|metasomat\w+|peridotite|basalt\w*)\b",
"components": ["subduction_zone", "upper_mantle"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "magma_or_melt"],
"processes": ["plate_subduction", "magma_generation_and_ascent"],
"spatial_scale": "tectonic_plate_or_orogen",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "15–300 km",
"observables": [
"high-resolution slab-interface seismic attenuation and magnetotelluric conductivity profiles",
"arc-lava volatile ratios, oxygen fugacity (fO2) oxybarometry, and slab-fluid trace-element signatures",
],
"inferred": [
"slab-to-wedge volatile and oxidant mass transfer rates and mantle-wedge corner-flow viscosity",
"mechanical coupling and metamorphic dehydration kinetics along the plate interface",
],
"forcings": "slab pull, trench rollback, and metamorphic dehydration reactions",
"boundaries": "slab thermal age, incoming plate hydration state, and overriding-plate thickness",
},
{
"sub_id": "continental_rifting_breakup_margins",
"keywords": r"\b(rift|rifting|breakup|break-up|passive\s+margin|rifted\s+margin|necking|extensional|back-arc\s+basin|mid-ocean\s+ridge|seafloor\s+spreading|oceanic\s+crust|transform\s+fault|detachment\s+fault)\b",
"components": ["rift", "lithosphere"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "magma_or_melt"],
"processes": ["crustal_deformation", "magma_generation_and_ascent"],
"spatial_scale": "sedimentary_basin_or_continental_margin",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "0–120 km",
"observables": [
"deep-penetration marine multichannel seismic reflection and wide-angle refraction profiles",
"syn-rift basin tectono-stratigraphy, GNSS extension rates, and dike-intrusion seismicity",
],
"inferred": [
"rheological transition from brittle crustal necking to magma-assisted lithospheric breakup",
"inherited structural weakness reactivation and asthenospheric decompression melt partitioning",
],
"forcings": "far-field plate tensional stresses and asthenospheric upwelling buoyancy",
"boundaries": "pre-existing crustal shear zones, lithospheric thermal structure, and magma supply rate",
},
{
"sub_id": "craton_orogen_continental_crust",
"keywords": r"\b(craton|cratonic|orogen|orogenic|continental\s+crust|archean|proterozoic|ttg|delamination|drip|suture|collisional|tibetan|himalaya|lithospheric\s+mantle|crustal\s+growth|crustal\s+thickness)\b",
"components": ["continental_crust", "orogen"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "mantle_silicate"],
"processes": ["crustal_deformation", "metamorphic_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "tectonic_plate_or_orogen",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "0–200 km",
"observables": [
"crustal receiver-function Moho depth maps, Bouguer gravity anomalies, and xenolith thermobarometry",
"zircon U-Pb/Hf-O isotopic arrays and whole-rock major/trace-element crustal compilations",
],
"inferred": [
"secular continental crust growth versus recycling rates and lower-crustal foundry mechanics",
"cratonic lithospheric root stability, metasomatic weakening, and orogenic lower-crustal flow",
],
"forcings": "continental collision, lithospheric thickening, and convective removal of eclogitized lower crust",
"boundaries": "Moho temperature, crustal radiogenic heat production, and cratonic keel composition",
},
],
2: [
{
"sub_id": "earthquake_rupture_fault_mechanics",
"keywords": r"\b(earthquake|rupture|fault|seismicity|aftershock|foreshock|coseismic|interseismic|postseismic|asperity|friction|seismogenic|ground\s+motion|focal\s+mechanism|strike-slip|normal\s+fault|thrust\s+fault)\b",
"components": ["fault_zone", "continental_crust"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["fault_rupture_and_slip", "crustal_deformation"],
"spatial_scale": "fault_or_volcanic_edifice",
"temporal_scale": "instantaneous_to_event",
"depth_range": "0–35 km",
"observables": [
"near-field broadband seismograms, high-rate GNSS displacements, and InSAR coseismic interferograms",
"fault-zone drilling core microstructure and laboratory rotary-shear friction velocity dependence",
],
"inferred": [
"rate-and-state frictional healing, dynamic pore-fluid pressurization, and rupture arrest thresholds",
"partitioning between seismic radiation, fracture energy, and off-fault plastic damage",
],
"forcings": "tectonic shear-stress loading and coseismic dynamic pore-pressure transients",
"boundaries": "fault-zone geometric complexity, gouge mineralogy, and depth-dependent effective normal stress",
},
{
"sub_id": "slow_slip_tremor_megathrust",
"keywords": r"\b(slow\s+slip|tremor|sse|ets|megathrust|low-frequency\s+earthquake|vlfe|subduction\s+interface|aseismic\s+slip|creep|plate\s+interface)\b",
"components": ["subduction_zone", "fault_zone"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "hydrothermal_fluid"],
"processes": ["fault_rupture_and_slip", "plate_subduction"],
"spatial_scale": "fault_or_volcanic_edifice",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "10–60 km",
"observables": [
"seafloor borehole pressure gauges, continuous GNSS networks, and tectonic tremor catalogs",
"seismic Vp/Vs ratios and magnetotelluric images of overpressured plate-interface fluids",
],
"inferred": [
"effective normal stress and fault-valve permeability evolution across the brittle-ductile transition",
"stress transfer from episodic tremor and slow slip (ETS) to locked megathrust asperities",
],
"forcings": "subduction convergence loading and metamorphic fluid release along the downdip interface",
"boundaries": "interface temperature profile, subducted sediment thickness, and fluid-drainage architecture",
},
{
"sub_id": "volcanic_plumbing_eruption_degassing",
"keywords": r"\b(volcan\w+|eruption|magma|caldera|lava|pyroclastic|degassing|plumbing|phreatic|fumarole|conduit|ash|dike|sill|mush|vesiculation)\b",
"components": ["magma_reservoir", "continental_crust"],
"media": ["magma_or_melt", "hydrothermal_fluid"],
"processes": ["volcanic_degassing_and_eruption", "magma_generation_and_ascent"],
"spatial_scale": "fault_or_volcanic_edifice",
"temporal_scale": "instantaneous_to_event",
"depth_range": "0–25 km",
"observables": [
"edifice tilt/InSAR deformation, volcano-tectonic seismicity, and UV/FTIR SO2/CO2 gas plume ratios",
"melt-inclusion volatile contents and crystal-cargo diffusion chronometry",
],
"inferred": [
"crystal-mush remobilization timescales, conduit magma ascent rates, and effusive-to-explosive transitions",
"volatile exsolution kinetics and overpressure thresholds triggering dike propagation",
],
"forcings": "mafic magma recharge, volatile exsolution buoyancy, and conduit shear heating",
"boundaries": "magma viscosity, conduit geometry, and edifice stress field",
},
{
"sub_id": "tsunami_seafloor_displacement",
"keywords": r"\b(tsunami\w*|runup|inundation|meteotsunami|seafloor\s+deformation|ocean\s+bottom\s+pressure|dart\s+buoy|submarine\s+failure)\b",
"components": ["seafloor", "coast"],
"media": ["seawater", "marine_sediment"],
"processes": ["fault_rupture_and_slip", "coastal_and_estuarine_morphodynamics"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "instantaneous_to_event",
"depth_range": "0–10 km",
"observables": [
"DART deep-ocean bottom pressure records, cabled seafloor observatories, and tide-gauge waveforms",
"post-tsunami coastal runup surveys, boulder transport limits, and paleotsunami sand sheets",
],
"inferred": [
"shallow trench-wedge splay-fault slip partitioning and tsunami-earthquake dispersive wave amplification",
"nearshore bathymetric focusing and coastal bottom-friction dissipation during overland flow",
],
"forcings": "coseismic seafloor vertical displacement and submarine mass-failure acceleration",
"boundaries": "continental shelf bathymetry, coastal topography, and trench-wedge compliance",
},
{
"sub_id": "landslide_debris_flow_mass_wasting",
"keywords": r"\b(landslide\w*|debris\s+flow|rockfall|rock\s+avalanche|slope\s+failure|slope\s+stability|mass\s+wasting|liquefaction|quick\s+clay|lahar|earthflow)\b",
"components": ["regolith", "fault_zone"],
"media": ["soil", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["landslide_and_mass_wasting", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "instantaneous_to_event",
"depth_range": "0–200 m",
"observables": [
"multi-temporal LiDAR/InSAR slope displacement fields, borehole inclinometers, and pore-pressure piezometers",
"seismic acoustic emissions and flume/ring-shear basal friction measurements",
],
"inferred": [
"transition from slow hillslope creep to catastrophic runaway acceleration via shear-zone liquefaction",
"basal pore-pressure diffusion and grain-inertia entrainment rates during debris-flow runout",
],
"forcings": "extreme rainfall infiltration, coseismic strong ground shaking, and rapid snowmelt",
"boundaries": "regolith thickness, hillslope gradient, clay mineralogy, and bedrock fracture permeability",
},
],
3: [
{
"sub_id": "low_temp_aqueous_clay_sorption_interface",
"keywords": r"\b(adsorption|sorption|desorption|clay|montmorillonite|kaolinite|illite|smectite|ferrihydrite|goethite|hematite|calcite|colloid|aqueous|speciation|surface\s+complexation|interfacial|dissolution|cation|anion|radium|uranium|arsenic)\b",
"components": ["critical_zone", "regolith"],
"media": ["pore_water", "sediment"],
"processes": ["chemical_weathering", "redox_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "molecular_to_pore",
"temporal_scale": "instantaneous_to_event",
"depth_range": "0–500 m",
"observables": [
"synchrotron X-ray absorption spectroscopy (EXAFS/XANES) and in-situ vibrational spectroscopy",
"sorption isotherms, diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT), and aqueous speciation titrations",
],
"inferred": [
"inner- versus outer-sphere surface complexation thermodynamics and interfacial hydration energetics",
"mineral-water dissolution/precipitation rate constants and competitive ion-exchange selectivity",
],
"forcings": "pH/Eh gradients, ionic strength fluctuations, and organic ligand complexation",
"boundaries": "mineral surface site density, interlayer basal spacing, and pore-throat geometry",
},
{
"sub_id": "igneous_petrology_magmatic_differentiation",
"keywords": r"\b(magma\w*|melt|granite|granitic|basalt\w*|rhyolit\w+|adakit\w+|pegmatit\w+|silicic|mafic|ultramafic|peridotit\w+|kimberlit\w+|carbonatit\w+|petrogenesis|crystallization|partial\s+melting|pluton\w*|batholith)\b",
"components": ["magma_reservoir", "continental_crust"],
"media": ["magma_or_melt", "crystalline_rock"],
"processes": ["magma_generation_and_ascent", "metamorphic_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "core_to_outcrop",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "5–150 km",
"observables": [
"electron microprobe and LA-ICP-MS mineral/melt-inclusion major and trace element zoning",
"piston-cylinder and multi-anvil phase-equilibrium experiments and radiogenic Sr-Nd-Hf isotopes",
],
"inferred": [
"degree of partial melting, crustal assimilation vs. fractional crystallization (AFC) mass balance",
"melt extraction percolation thresholds and volatile/chalcophile partitioning coefficients",
],
"forcings": "decompression melting, mantle heat flux, and flux melting by slab-derived volatiles",
"boundaries": "source rock fertility, oxygen fugacity (fO2), and pressure-temperature ascent path",
},
{
"sub_id": "hydrothermal_ore_deposits_metallogeny",
"keywords": r"\b(ore|mineralization|deposit\w*|porphyry|epithermal|skarn|vms|orogenic\s+gold|metallogen\w*|hydrothermal|sulfide|chalcopyrite|pyrite|sphalerite|molybdenite|cassiterite|rare\s+earth|ree|lithium|cobalt|cu-au)\b",
"components": ["hydrothermal_system", "continental_crust"],
"media": ["hydrothermal_fluid", "crystalline_rock"],
"processes": ["redox_transformation", "magma_generation_and_ascent"],
"spatial_scale": "core_to_outcrop",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "1–15 km",
"observables": [
"fluid-inclusion microthermometry, Raman spectroscopy, and LA-ICP-MS single-inclusion metal assays",
"in-situ sulfur, oxygen, and copper/iron/zinc stable isotope zoning across ore paragenetic stages",
],
"inferred": [
"metal-ligand complex stability, phase-separation brine/vapor partitioning, and precipitation triggers",
"magmatic-hydrothermal fluid flux budgets and structural permeability focusing mechanisms",
],
"forcings": "magmatic fluid exsolution, decompression boiling, and fluid-rock redox reactions",
"boundaries": "host-rock buffering capacity, fault-fracture network connectivity, and salinity/fO2 gradients",
},
{
"sub_id": "isotope_geochemistry_geochronology",
"keywords": r"\b(isotop\w+|delta|δ|fractionation|zircon|monazite|apatite|titanite|u-pb|lu-hf|sm-nd|rb-sr|re-os|ar-ar|geochron\w*|thermochron\w*|fission-track|u-th-he)\b",
"components": ["continental_crust", "lithosphere"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "rock"],
"processes": ["metamorphic_transformation", "chemical_weathering"],
"spatial_scale": "core_to_outcrop",
"temporal_scale": "geological_deep_time",
"depth_range": "0–100 km",
"observables": [
"MC-ICP-MS, SIMS, and TIMS high-precision radiogenic and non-traditional stable isotope ratios",
"ab-initio density-functional-theory (DFT) vibrational force constants and diffusion profiles",
],
"inferred": [
"equilibrium versus kinetic mass-dependent and mass-independent isotope fractionation factors",
"closure temperatures, radiation-damage annealing kinetics, and crustal residence timescales",
],
"forcings": "thermal diffusion, metamorphic recrystallization, and redox phase partitioning",
"boundaries": "crystal lattice defect density, cooling rate, and open- vs. closed-system fluid exchange",
},
{
"sub_id": "high_pressure_mineral_physics_metamorphism",
"keywords": r"\b(metamorphic|metamorphism|eclogite|granulite|amphibolite|blueschist|serpentin\w+|diamond|elastic|high-pressure|equation\s+of\s+state|olivine|garnet|pyroxene|quartz|coesite|rheolog\w+)\b",
"components": ["lithosphere", "upper_mantle"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "mantle_silicate"],
"processes": ["metamorphic_transformation", "crustal_deformation"],
"spatial_scale": "core_to_outcrop",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "10–410 km",
"observables": [
"diamond-anvil-cell synchrotron X-ray diffraction, Brillouin scattering, and EBSD fabric analyses",
"pseudosection phase-equilibria thermobarometry and trace-element-in-mineral thermometers",
],
"inferred": [
"pressure-temperature-time-deformation (P-T-t-d) paths and dislocation vs. diffusion creep laws",
"mineral elastic moduli, seismic wave-velocity anisotropy, and dehydration embrittlement kinetics",
],
"forcings": "tectonic burial/exhumation, deviatoric stress, and metamorphic fluid infiltration",
"boundaries": "bulk rock composition, grain-size evolution, and water activity (aH2O)",
},
],
4: [
{
"sub_id": "quaternary_orbital_ice_core_paleoclimate",
"keywords": r"\b(pleistocene|holocene|quaternary|glacial|interglacial|deglaciation|younger\s+dryas|heinrich|dansgaard|milankovitch|orbital|speleothem|loess|ice\s+core|last\s+glacial\s+maximum|lgm|mid-pleistocene)\b",
"components": ["sedimentary_stratigraphic_archive", "ice_sheet"],
"media": ["ice_or_snow", "sedimentary_rock"],
"processes": ["radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "hemispheric",
"temporal_scale": "millennial_to_orbital",
"depth_range": "Surface to 4 km ice/sediment depth",
"observables": [
"ice-core trapped-gas CO2/CH4 records, speleothem U-Th/delta-18O series, and loess-paleosol sequences",
"marine benthic foraminiferal delta-18O/delta-13C stacks and alkenone/TEX86 sea-surface temperatures",
],
"inferred": [
"orbital pacing of glacial-interglacial transitions (including the Mid-Pleistocene Transition)",
"interhemispheric phasing of millennial abrupt climate oscillations and deep-ocean carbon storage",
],
"forcings": "Milankovitch orbital insolation variations, ice-sheet albedo feedbacks, and AMOC reorganizations",
"boundaries": "continental ice-sheet geometry, Southern Ocean sea-ice extent, and dust radiative forcing",
},
{
"sub_id": "greenhouse_hyperthermals_cenozoic_mesozoic",
"keywords": r"\b(paleogene|eocene|petm|paleocene|oligocene|miocene|pliocene|cretaceous|jurassic|triassic|hyperthermal|greenhouse|oae|oceanic\s+anoxic|cenozoic|mesozoic)\b",
"components": ["sedimentary_stratigraphic_archive", "marine_sediment"],
"media": ["marine_sediment", "sedimentary_rock"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "planetary_global",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "0–3 km sediment cores",
"observables": [
"IODP deep-sea core carbon-isotope excursions (CIEs), clumped-isotope (Delta47) paleothermometry, and boron-isotope pCO2",
"cyclo- and magnetostratigraphic age models and osmium/strontium weathering-proxy records",
],
"inferred": [
"Earth system sensitivity (ESS) under high-CO2 greenhouse states and carbon-release rates during hyperthermals",
"silicate-weathering and organic-carbon burial negative feedback timescales following carbon-cycle perturbations",
],
"forcings": "Large Igneous Province (LIP) volcanic degassing, methane hydrate dissociation, and gateway tectonics",
"boundaries": "paleogeographic continental configuration, ocean gateway bathymetry, and carbonate compensation depth",
},
{
"sub_id": "precambrian_oxygenation_early_earth",
"keywords": r"\b(archean|proterozoic|hadean|neoproterozoic|paleoproterozoic|ediacaran|cambrian|great\s+oxidation|goe|noe|snowball\s+earth|banded\s+iron|bif|euxinia|early\s+earth|precambrian)\b",
"components": ["sedimentary_stratigraphic_archive", "atmosphere"],
"media": ["sedimentary_rock", "marine_sediment"],
"processes": ["redox_transformation", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "planetary_global",
"temporal_scale": "billion_year_planetary",
"depth_range": "0–10 km cratonic basins",
"observables": [
"mass-independent sulfur isotopes (Delta33S), iron speciation, and Ce/Mo/U/Cr redox-sensitive trace-metal shales",
"carbonate-associated sulfate and detrital redox-sensitive mineral assemblages",
],
"inferred": [
"stepwise oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere and deep oceans across the GOE and NOE",
"links between supercontinent cycles, nutrient phosphorus availability, and early biospheric evolution",
],
"forcings": "oxygenic photosynthesis evolution, mantle reducer outgassing decline, and Snowball Earth glaciations",
"boundaries": "continental emergence area, marine sulfate inventory, and hydrothermal iron fluxes",
},
{
"sub_id": "mass_extinction_paleoecology_turnover",
"keywords": r"\b(extinction|permian-triassic|end-permian|end-cretaceous|k-pg|ordovician|devonian|triassic-jurassic|biotic\s+crisis|fossil|taphonom\w+|biostratigraph\w+|ammonit\w+|conodont\w+|brachiopod\w+|trilobit\w+)\b",
"components": ["sedimentary_stratigraphic_archive", "biosphere"],
"media": ["sedimentary_rock", "marine_sediment"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "redox_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "planetary_global",
"temporal_scale": "geological_deep_time",
"depth_range": "0–5 km stratigraphic sections",
"observables": [
"high-precision CA-ID-TIMS U-Pb ash-bed chronology,mercury anomalies (Hg/TOC), and sulfur/nitrogen isotopes",
"paleobiological taxonomic/functional diversity curves and carbonate platform demise horizons",
],
"inferred": [
"kill mechanisms (anoxia, hypercapnia, ocean acidification, thermal shock) and biotic recovery timescales",
"preservation and sampling biases versus true ecological collapse across mass-extinction boundaries",
],
"forcings": "trap volcanism (Siberian, Deccan, CAMP), bolide impact, and marine photic-zone euxinia",
"boundaries": "shelf habitat area, trophic network redundancy, and post-crisis nutrient recycling",
},
{
"sub_id": "basin_stratigraphy_provenance_diagenesis",
"keywords": r"\b(stratigraph\w+|sedimentary\s+basin|provenance|detrital\s+zircon|diagenes\w+|dolomit\w+|sequence\s+stratigraph\w+|turbidit\w+|facies|foreland\s+basin|unconformity|chemostratigraph\w+)\b",
"components": ["sedimentary_basin", "continental_sediment"],
"media": ["sedimentary_rock", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["sediment_transport_and_deposition", "chemical_weathering"],
"spatial_scale": "sedimentary_basin_or_continental_margin",
"temporal_scale": "multi_million_year_tectonic",
"depth_range": "0–12 km",
"observables": [
"seismic-stratigraphic clinoform geometries, borehole wireline logs, and detrital zircon U-Pb age spectra",
"petrographic cement paragenesis, clumped-isotope burial temperatures, and mudrock biomarker maturity",
],
"inferred": [
"relative contributions of eustasy, tectonic subsidence, and sediment supply to stratigraphic architecture",
"post-depositional diagenetic overprinting of primary paleoenvironmental proxy signals",
],
"forcings": "tectonic flexural subsidence, eustatic sea-level oscillations, and hinterland denudation pulses",
"boundaries": "basin accommodation space, pore-fluid chemistry, and burial thermal gradient",
},
],
5: [
{
"sub_id": "fluvial_channel_sediment_transport",
"keywords": r"\b(river|fluvial|channel|bedload|suspended\s+sediment|meander\w*|braided|alluvial|avulsion|floodplain|knickpoint|incision|bank\s+erosion|stream\s+power|turbidity\s+current)\b",
"components": ["river", "floodplain"],
"media": ["fluvial_or_coastal_sediment", "freshwater_surface"],
"processes": ["sediment_transport_and_deposition", "physical_erosion_and_denudation"],
"spatial_scale": "reach",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–50 m",
"observables": [
"acoustic Doppler bedload/suspended-flux profiles, repeat airborne LiDAR/bathymetric DEMs, and grain-size distributions",
"in-situ cosmogenic nuclide (10Be/26Al) catchment erosion rates and fallout radionuclide (137Cs/210Pb) budgets",
],
"inferred": [
"nonlinear bedload transport thresholds, channel-width adjustment laws, and avulsion return periods",
"sediment residence times and storage-release hysteresis across hillslope-to-floodplain cascades",
],
"forcings": "flood hydrograph flashiness, tectonic base-level fall, and upstream sediment supply pulses",
"boundaries": "bed grain-size armoring, riparian bank cohesion, and valley confinement",
},
{
"sub_id": "tectonic_geomorphology_orogenic_erosion",
"keywords": r"\b(denudation|exhumation|orogenic\s+relief|topographic|drainage\s+divide|river\s+capture|landscape\s+evolution|uplift|cosmogenic|10be|thermochron\w*|gorge|bedrock\s+river)\b",
"components": ["orogen", "river"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "fluvial_or_coastal_sediment"],
"processes": ["physical_erosion_and_denudation", "crustal_deformation"],
"spatial_scale": "tectonic_plate_or_orogen",
"temporal_scale": "millennial_to_orbital",
"depth_range": "0–5 km relief",
"observables": [
"catchment-wide cosmogenic 10Be denudation rates, low-temperature apatite (U-Th)/He ages, and channel steepness (ksn)",
"high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) and chi-analysis of drainage divide migration",
],
"inferred": [
"coupling and lag timescales between rock uplift, precipitation gradients, and bedrock incision",
"transient landscape response to drainage reorganization and glacial-fluvial erosion switching",
],
"forcings": "tectonic rock uplift, orographic precipitation focus, and Quaternary glaciation cycles",
"boundaries": "bedrock lithological erodibility, fracture spacing, and threshold hillslope angles",
},
{
"sub_id": "aeolian_dunes_dust_loess_geomorphology",
"keywords": r"\b(aeolian|eolian|dune\w*|sand\s+sea|erg|barchan|saltation|dust\s+emission|wind\s+erosion|ventifact|yardang|desert\s+pavement)\b",
"components": ["dryland", "continental_sediment"],
"media": ["fluvial_or_coastal_sediment", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["sediment_transport_and_deposition", "physical_erosion_and_denudation"],
"spatial_scale": "landscape",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–100 m",
"observables": [
"high-frequency anemometer/piezoelectric saltation flux arrays and multi-temporal UAV/satellite dune tracking",
"optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dune stratigraphy and dust-source grain-size/mineralogy signatures",
],
"inferred": [
"aerodynamic entrainment thresholds under turbulent gustiness and soil-moisture/crusting cohesion",
"self-organization of complex dune-field defect patterns under multidirectional wind regimes",
],
"forcings": "boundary-layer wind shear stress, synoptic dust storms, and aridity oscillations",
"boundaries": "sediment availability, biological soil crust cover, and upwind topographic roughness",
},
{
"sub_id": "karst_cave_glacial_periglacial_geomorphology",
"keywords": r"\b(karst|sinkhole|dissolution|epikarst|drumlin|moraine|esker|subglacial|periglacial|solifluction|rock\s+glacier|patterned\s+ground|frost\s+cracking)\b",
"components": ["regolith", "glacier"],
"media": ["sedimentary_rock", "ice_or_snow"],
"processes": ["physical_erosion_and_denudation", "chemical_weathering"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "centennial_to_millennial",
"depth_range": "0–500 m",
"observables": [
"terrestrial laser scanning (TLS), ground-penetrating radar (GPR), and dye-tracing/hydrochemical breakthrough curves",
"cosmogenic exposure dating of moraine boulders and frost-cracking acoustic emission logs",
],
"inferred": [
"subglacial till deformation vs. bedrock quarrying laws and karst conduit-network enlargement rates",
"periglacial frost-cracking intensity and sediment production sensitivity to diurnal/seasonal freeze-thaw",
],
"forcings": "basal glacier sliding velocity, freeze-thaw thermal cycling, and carbonic-acid infiltration",
"boundaries": "carbonate bedding/fracture porosity, basal water pressure, and regolith thermal diffusivity",
},
{
"sub_id": "hillslope_soil_erosion_gully_badlands",
"keywords": r"\b(hillslope|soil\s+erosion|rill|gully|sheet\s+erosion|raindrop|splash|bioturbation|soil\s+creep|colluvium|sediment\s+yield|connectivity|check\s+dam|terrace)\b",
"components": ["regolith", "soil"],
"media": ["soil", "fluvial_or_coastal_sediment"],
"processes": ["physical_erosion_and_denudation", "sediment_transport_and_deposition"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "instantaneous_to_event",
"depth_range": "0–20 m",
"observables": [
"plot-to-catchment runoff/sediment-flux weirs, repeat structure-from-motion (SfM) photogrammetry, and sediment fingerprinting",
"137Cs, excess 210Pb, and fallout Pu soil redistribution profiles",
],
"inferred": [
"nonlinearhillslope diffusive-to-advective transition thresholds and structural vs. functional sediment connectivity",
"biogenic soil-production and bioturbation transport coefficients across climate and vegetation gradients",
],
"forcings": "convective storm kinetic energy, overland flow shear stress, and land-use disturbance",
"boundaries": "soil aggregate stability, root density, surface microtopography, and slope curvature",
},
],
6: [
{
"sub_id": "cloud_microphysics_aerosol_ccn_in",
"keywords": r"\b(cloud\w*|microphysic\w*|aerosol-cloud|droplet|ice\s+nucleat\w*|inp|ccn|supercooled|autoconversion|entrainment|mixed-phase|cirrus|stratocumulus|cumulus)\b",
"components": ["troposphere", "boundary_layer"],
"media": ["aerosol_or_cloud_hydrometeor", "cloud_water"],
"processes": ["cloud_microphysics_and_aerosol_interaction", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "regional_synoptic",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "0–18 km altitude",
"observables": [
"aircraft in-situ cloud-droplet/ice-crystal optical array probes and dual-polarization Doppler cloud radar/lidar",
"continuous-flow diffusion chamber ice-nucleating particle (INP) spectra and CCN supersaturation counters",
],
"inferred": [
"secondary ice production (SIP) multiplication rates and supercooled liquid-to-ice phase partitioning",
"aerosol-cloud effective radiative forcing (ERFaci) and cloud-top entrainment drying feedbacks",
],
"forcings": "updraft supersaturation fluctuations, radiative cloud-top cooling, and aerosol loading perturbations",
"boundaries": "lower-tropospheric stability, boundary-layer inversion strength, and aerosol chemical hygroscopicity",
},
{
"sub_id": "tropospheric_chemistry_soa_ozone_radicals",
"keywords": r"\b(secondary\s+organic\s+aerosol|soa|ozone|o3|nox|voc\w*|isoprene|terpene|hydroxyl|oh\s+radical|nitrate\s+radical|photochem\w*|new\s+particle\s+formation|nucleation|brown\s+carbon|black\s+carbon|pm2\.5)\b",
"components": ["troposphere", "boundary_layer"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "aerosol_or_cloud_hydrometeor"],
"processes": ["cloud_microphysics_and_aerosol_interaction", "contaminant_transport_and_fate"],
"spatial_scale": "regional_synoptic",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "0–12 km altitude",
"observables": [
"high-resolution TOF-CIMS and aerosol mass spectrometry (AMS) molecular speciation and radical laser-induced fluorescence",
"smog-chamber oxidation yields and satellite (TROPOMI/TEMPO) tropospheric NO2/HCHO/O3 column retrievals",
],
"inferred": [
"autoxidation and multiphase aqueous/heterogeneous reaction pathways governing SOA volatility and mass yields",
"nonlinear ozone production sensitivity (NOx- vs. VOC-limited regimes) and nocturnal radical recycling",
],
"forcings": "actinic solar UV flux, biogenic VOC emissions, and anthropogenic/wildfire precursor plumes",
"boundaries": "boundary-layer mixing height, relative humidity, and pre-existing aerosol surface area",
},
{
"sub_id": "convective_storms_tropical_cyclones_monsoon",
"keywords": r"\b(tropical\s+cyclone|hurricane|typhoon|convecti\w+|thunderstorm|mesoscale\s+convective|mcs|squall|tornado|lightning|hail|rapid\s+intensification|eyewall|monsoon\s+rainfall|orographic\s+precipitation)\b",
"components": ["troposphere", "boundary_layer"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "precipitation"],
"processes": ["atmospheric_convection_and_circulation", "cloud_microphysics_and_aerosol_interaction"],
"spatial_scale": "regional_synoptic",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "0–20 km altitude",
"observables": [
"phased-array and dual-polarization weather radar, dropsonde wind/thermodynamic profiles, and geostationary IR/lightning imagers",
"cloud-resolving (km-scale) ensemble hindcasts and airborne Doppler radar vorticity retrievals",
],
"inferred": [
"convective cold-pool organization, upscale vorticity aggregation, and tropical-cyclone rapid intensification triggers",
"stochastic boundary-layer trigger mechanisms for deep moist convection initiation over complex terrain",
],
"forcings": "convective available potential energy (CAPE), sea-surface enthalpy fluxes, and vertical wind shear",
"boundaries": "mid-tropospheric dry-air entrainment, orographic barrier geometry, and land-surface soil-moisture heterogeneity",
},
{
"sub_id": "stratosphere_mesosphere_gravity_waves_ozone",
"keywords": r"\b(stratospher\w+|mesospher\w+|thermospher\w+|ionospher\w+|gravity\s+wave\w*|planetary\s+wave|sudden\s+stratospheric\s+warming|ssw|quasi-biennial|qbo|brewer-dobson|polar\s+vortex|tropopause|utlls)\b",
"components": ["stratosphere", "mesosphere"],
"media": ["stratospheric_or_upper_air", "air"],
"processes": ["atmospheric_convection_and_circulation", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "hemispheric",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "10–100 km altitude",
"observables": [
"GPS radio occultation temperature profiles, limb-sounding satellite trace-gas retrievals (MLS/SABER), and Rayleigh lidar",
"superpressure balloon momentum-flux measurements and high-altitude research aircraft UTLS transects",
],
"inferred": [
"sub-grid non-orographic gravity-wave momentum deposition and wave-mean-flow interaction during SSW events",
"two-way stratosphere-troposphere mass exchange across the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (UTLS)",
],
"forcings": "upward-propagating Rossby and gravity wave packets, solar UV variability, and stratospheric aerosol injection",
"boundaries": "tropopause sharp thermal inversion, QBO phase, and polar night jet shear",
},
{
"sub_id": "boundary_layer_turbulence_air_surface_exchange",
"keywords": r"\b(boundary\s+layer|pbl|abl|turbulen\w*|eddy\s+covariance|monin-obukhov|surface\s+layer|nocturnal\s+jet|low-level\s+jet|entrainment\s+zone|inversion|roughness\s+sublayer)\b",
"components": ["boundary_layer", "troposphere"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "air"],
"processes": ["atmospheric_convection_and_circulation", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "local_landscape_or_urban",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "0–3 km altitude",
"observables": [
"sonic anemometer eddy-covariance towers, Doppler wind lidar profiles, and tethered balloon turbulence probes",
"large-eddy simulation (LES) benchmark fields and scintillometer area-averaged sensible heat fluxes",
],
"inferred": [
"breakdown of Monin-Obukhov similarity theory over heterogeneous terrain and stable nocturnal boundary layers",
"intermittent turbulence bursting and nonlocal counter-gradient transport across the entrainment zone",
],
"forcings": "diurnal surface radiative heating/cooling and synoptic geostrophic pressure gradients",
"boundaries": "canopy/topographic aerodynamic roughness, soil thermal inertia, and capping inversion strength",
},
],
7: [
{
"sub_id": "climate_sensitivity_cloud_radiative_feedbacks",
"keywords": r"\b(climate\s+sensitivity|ecs|tcr|cloud\s+feedback|radiative\s+feedback|radiative\s+forcing|pattern\s+effect|lapse-rate\s+feedback|water-vapor\s+feedback|albedo\s+feedback|cmip6|emergent\s+constraint)\b",
"components": ["atmosphere", "ocean"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "aerosol_or_cloud_hydrometeor"],
"processes": ["radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance", "cloud_microphysics_and_aerosol_interaction"],
"spatial_scale": "planetary_global",
"temporal_scale": "multidecadal",
"depth_range": "Surface to top of atmosphere (TOA)",
"observables": [
"CERES/ERBE top-of-atmosphere radiative energy budget time series and Argo global ocean heat uptake",
"A-Train active cloud radar/lidar radiative kernel decompositions and CMIP6 multi-model ensembles",
],
"inferred": [
"equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) bounds and sea-surface warming pattern effects on low-cloud feedbacks",
"state dependence of tropical anvil-cloud area and extratropical mixed-phase optical-depth feedbacks",
],
"forcings": "anthropogenic greenhouse-gas radiative forcing and spatially heterogeneous aerosol forcing",
"boundaries": "tropical Pacific east-west SST gradient, Southern Ocean heat uptake efficiency, and cloud microphysical state",
},
{
"sub_id": "enso_pdo_amo_modes_teleconnections",
"keywords": r"\b(enso|el\s+nino|la\s+nina|southern\s+oscillation|indian\s+ocean\s+dipole|iod|madden-julian|mjo|nao|north\s+atlantic\s+oscillation|pdo|pacific\s+decadal|amo|amv|teleconnection|walker\s+circulation|hadley\s+cell)\b",
"components": ["ocean", "troposphere"],
"media": ["seawater", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["atmospheric_convection_and_circulation", "ocean_circulation_and_mixing"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Ocean thermocline to upper troposphere",
"observables": [
"TAO/TRITON/RAMA equatorial mooring arrays, satellite altimetry/SST, and global atmospheric reanalysis products",
"coupled seasonal-to-decadal initialized hindcast ensembles and coral/tree-ring paleoclimate reconstructions",
],
"inferred": [
"ENSO flavor diversity (Eastern vs. Central Pacific), phase-locking, and pantropical basin-interaction predictability",
"relative roles of internal ocean-atmosphere coupling versus external forcing in multidecadal (PDV/AMV) variability",
],
"forcings": "westerly wind bursts, equatorial thermocline Kelvin/Rossby wave propagation, and diabatic convective heating",
"boundaries": "equatorial thermocline depth/sharpness, Indo-Pacific warm-pool geometry, and midlatitude jet waveguide state",
},
{
"sub_id": "extreme_events_heatwaves_blocking_compound",
"keywords": r"\b(heatwave\w*|cold\s+wave|extreme\s+precipitation|atmospheric\s+river|blocking|jet\s+stream|rossby\s+wave|compound\s+event|compound\s+extreme|attribution|flash\s+drought|drought\w*|wildfire\s+weather)\b",
"components": ["troposphere", "biosphere_terrestrial"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "soil"],
"processes": ["atmospheric_convection_and_circulation", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "continental",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "Root zone to tropopause",
"observables": [
"daily station/gridded extreme temperature and precipitation indices, upper-air geopotential blocking diagnostics",
"large initial-condition single-model ensembles (SMILEs) and storyline event-attribution simulations",
],
"inferred": [
"thermodynamic Clausius-Clapeyron scaling versus dynamic circulation/blocking changes in extreme events",
"land-atmosphere soil-moisture dessication feedbacks amplifying compound hot-dry and humid-heat extremes",
],
"forcings": "quasi-stationary Rossby wave amplification, atmospheric blocking persistence, and soil-moisture depletion",
"boundaries": "arctic-to-midlatitude thermal gradient, soil water-holding capacity, and antecedent snowpack/SST anomalies",
},
{
"sub_id": "global_carbon_climate_tipping_feedbacks",
"keywords": r"\b(tipping\s+point|tipping\s+element|bistability|hysteresis|abrupt\s+change|carbon-climate\s+feedback|transient\s+climate\s+response\s+to\s+cumulative|tcre|zero\s+emissions\s+commitment|zec|methane\s+feedback|earth\s+system\s+model)\b",
"components": ["atmosphere", "biosphere"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "biota"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "planetary_global",
"temporal_scale": "centennial_to_millennial",
"depth_range": "Coupled atmosphere-ocean-land biosphere",
"observables": [
"global atmospheric CO2/CH4/N2O flask networks, satellite column XCO2/XCH4 (OCO-2/GOSAT), and ocean pCO2",
"coupled C4MIP Earth System Model simulations and paleoclimate abrupt-transition records",
],
"inferred": [
"critical warming thresholds and cascading interactions among Earth-system tipping elements",
"magnitude and sign of carbon-concentration (beta) vs. carbon-climate (gamma) feedbacks under overshoot pathways",
],
"forcings": "cumulative anthropogenic carbon emissions and high-latitude/tropical warming amplification",
"boundaries": "ocean carbonate buffering capacity, terrestrial nutrient stoichiometry, and permafrost carbon stocks",
},
{
"sub_id": "monsoon_hydroclimate_itcz_shifts",
"keywords": r"\b(monsoon|itcz|intertropical\s+convergence|sahel|south\s+asian\s+monsoon|east\s+asian\s+monsoon|west\s+african\s+monsoon|aridification|hydroclimat\w+|precipitation\s+minus\s+evaporation|p-e)\b",
"components": ["troposphere", "ocean"],
"media": ["tropospheric_air", "precipitation"],
"processes": ["atmospheric_convection_and_circulation", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "continental",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Surface to tropopause",
"observables": [
"TRMM/GPM satellite precipitation radar, water-vapor isotopologues, and atmospheric moisture-budget reanalyses",
"monsoon onset/withdrawal indices and cross-equatorial atmospheric energy-transport diagnostics",
],
"inferred": [
"energetic controls on ITCZ latitudinal migrations and regional monsoon rainfall vs. circulation decoupling",
"aerosol direct/indirect cooling versus greenhouse warming impacts on Asian and African monsoon intensity",
],
"forcings": "interhemispheric radiative heating asymmetries, land-sea thermal contrast, and Tibetan Plateau sensible heating",
"boundaries": "orographic barrier geometry, Indian/Pacific SST gradients, and regional aerosol optical depth",
},
],
8: [
{
"sub_id": "ice_sheet_grounding_line_marine_instability",
"keywords": r"\b(ice\s+sheet|ice\s+shelf|grounding\s+line|marine\s+ice\s+sheet|misi|micl|antarctic\s+ice|greenland\s+ice|thwaites|pine\s+island|calving|buttressing|ice\s+stream|basal\s+sliding|subglacial\s+hydrology)\b",
"components": ["ice_sheet", "ice_shelf"],
"media": ["ice_or_snow", "seawater"],
"processes": ["cryospheric_melt_and_ice_flow", "ocean_circulation_and_mixing"],
"spatial_scale": "continental",
"temporal_scale": "centennial_to_millennial",
"depth_range": "0–4 km ice thickness",
"observables": [
"ICESat-2/CryoSat-2 laser/radar altimetry, Sentinel-1 InSAR ice-velocity fields, and airborne ice-penetrating radar",
"autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) sub-ice-shelf cavity hydrography and borehole basal water pressures",
],
"inferred": [
"basal friction constitutive laws (Weertman vs. Coulomb plastic) and sub-ice-shelf basal melt parameterization",
"irreversible grounding-line retreat thresholds under Marine Ice Sheet and Ice Cliff Instability (MISI/MICI)",
],
"forcings": "Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW) intrusion into ice-shelf cavities and surface meltwater hydrofracturing",
"boundaries": "retrograde subglacial bed topography, basal till rheology, and ice-shelf pinning points",
},
{
"sub_id": "mountain_glaciers_mass_balance_debris",
"keywords": r"\b(glacier\w*|mountain\s+glacier|debris-covered\s+glacier|glacier\s+surge|surging\s+glacier|equilibrium\s+line|ela|glacier\s+mass\s+balance|glacial\s+lake|glof|high\s+mountain\s+asia)\b",
"components": ["glacier", "snowpack"],
"media": ["ice_or_snow", "freshwater_surface"],
"processes": ["cryospheric_melt_and_ice_flow", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–500 m ice thickness",
"observables": [
"geodetic DEM differencing (ASTER/Pléiades), glaciological ablation-stake networks, and UAV thermal imagery",
"proglacial discharge hydrographs and ground-penetrating radar ice-thickness profiles",
],
"inferred": [
"supraglacial debris-thickness insulation vs. ice-cliff/pond melt enhancement on debris-covered glaciers",
"enthalpy-driven thermal/hydrological switches governing periodic glacier surging instabilities",
],
"forcings": "shortwave/longwave surface energy balance, solid-to-liquid precipitation shifts, and black-carbon deposition",
"boundaries": "hypsometric elevation distribution, supraglacial debris lithology, and subglacial drainage efficiency",
},
{
"sub_id": "sea_ice_dynamics_thermodynamics_leads",
"keywords": r"\b(sea\s+ice|pack\s+ice|fast\s+ice|polynya|lead\w*|melt\s+pond|marginal\s+ice\s+zone|miz|arctic\s+sea\s+ice|antarctic\s+sea\s+ice|ice-albedo|brine\s+rejection)\b",
"components": ["sea_ice", "sea_surface"],
"media": ["ice_or_snow", "seawater"],
"processes": ["cryospheric_melt_and_ice_flow", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "hemispheric",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–10 m ice thickness",
"observables": [
"passive microwave sea-ice concentration, ICESat-2/CryoSat-2 freeboard thickness, and drifting buoy kinematics",
"MOSAiC/shipboard ice-mass-balance buoys, melt-pond spectral albedo, and under-ice turbulent heat fluxes",
],
"inferred": [
"viscous-plastic vs. elasto-brittle sea-ice rheology across multi-scale lead and ridge networks",
"ocean-wave fracture attenuation in the marginal ice zone and seasonal-to-interannual sea-ice predictability",
],
"forcings": "synoptic wind stress, oceanic mixed-layer heat flux, and surface downwelling longwave radiation",
"boundaries": "snow-on-sea-ice depth, halocline stratification, and melt-pond drainage porosity",
},
{
"sub_id": "permafrost_thermokarst_active_layer_carbon",
"keywords": r"\b(permafrost|thermokarst|active\s+layer|yedoma|talik|frozen\s+ground|ice\s+wedge|palsa|peat\s+plateau|permafrost\s+carbon|subsea\s+permafrost)\b",
"components": ["permafrost", "soil"],
"media": ["permafrost_or_frozen_ground", "soil"],
"processes": ["cryospheric_melt_and_ice_flow", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "regional",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–500 m depth",
"observables": [
"GTN-P borehole temperature arrays, electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), and active-layer probing",
"eddy-covariance/chamber CO2 and CH4 fluxes and radiocarbon (Delta14C) age of respired/dissolved carbon",
],
"inferred": [
"abrupt thermokarst collapse rates versus gradual top-down active-layer deepening",
"partitioning of thawed permafrost carbon between aerobic CO2 respiration, methanogenesis, and lateral aquatic export",
],
"forcings": "polar temperature amplification, winter snow-insulation changes, and boreal wildfire disturbance",
"boundaries": "ground excess-ice content, yedoma silt vs. peat stratigraphy, and local drainage topography",
},
{
"sub_id": "snowpack_hydrology_sea_level_gia",
"keywords": r"\b(snowpack|snow\s+water\s+equivalent|swe|snow\s+albedo|snowmelt|rain-on-snow|sea-level\s+rise|sea\s+level|barystatic|steric|glacial\s+isostatic|gia|fingerprinting)\b",
"components": ["snowpack", "coast"],
"media": ["ice_or_snow", "seawater"],
"processes": ["cryospheric_melt_and_ice_flow", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "continental",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Surface snowpack to upper mantle GIA",
"observables": [
"airborne Lidar/radar snow-depth surveys, SNOTEL pillow networks, and GRACE/GRACE-FO gravimetry",
"satellite radar altimetry, tide-gauge networks, and GNSS vertical land motion (GIA) velocities",
],
"inferred": [
"closure of regional sea-level budgets (barystatic mass addition, thermosteric expansion, and GIA fingerprints)",
"canopy-snow interception sublimation and rain-on-snow runoff generation physics in mountain snowpacks",
],
"forcings": "warming freezing levels, light-absorbing impurities on snow, and ice-mass redistribution",
"boundaries": "3D upper-mantle viscosity structure (for GIA), forest canopy architecture, and coastal shelf geometry",
},
],
9: [
{
"sub_id": "amoc_overturning_deep_water_formation",
"keywords": r"\b(amoc|meridional\s+overturning|thermohaline|deep\s+water\s+formation|nadw|aabw|labrador\s+sea|nordic\s+seas|southern\s+ocean\s+overturning|abyssal\s+circulation|dense\s+shelf\s+water|convection\s+in\s+the\s+ocean)\b",
"components": ["deep_ocean", "open_ocean"],
"media": ["seawater", "ice_or_snow"],
"processes": ["ocean_circulation_and_mixing", "cryospheric_melt_and_ice_flow"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "multidecadal",
"depth_range": "0–6,000 m",
"observables": [
"RAPID (26.5°N) and OSNAP trans-basin mooring arrays, Deep-Argo floats, and GO-SHIP repeat hydrography",
"chlorofluorocarbon (CFC)/SF6 ventilation tracers and paleoceanographic Pa/Th and neodymium isotope records",
],
"inferred": [
"relative roles of subpolar eastern vs. western North Atlantic buoyancy forcing in driving AMOC variability",
"freshwater hosing stability thresholds and Southern Ocean wind/eddy compensation of overturning",
],
"forcings": "high-latitude air-sea heat/freshwater fluxes, Greenland/Antarctic meltwater input, and Southern Hemisphere westerlies",
"boundaries": "Greenland-Scotland Ridge sill bathymetry, Drake Passage geometry, and abyssal stratification",
},
{
"sub_id": "mesoscale_submesoscale_eddies_fronts",
"keywords": r"\b(mesoscale|submesoscale|eddy|eddies|frontogenesis|baroclinic\s+instability|symmetric\s+instability|aguhlas|kuroshio|gulf\s+stream|western\s+boundary\s+current|gyre|rossby\s+wave\w*|vorticity)\b",
"components": ["open_ocean", "sea_surface"],
"media": ["seawater", "dissolved_phase"],
"processes": ["ocean_circulation_and_mixing", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–2,000 m",
"observables": [
"SWOT wide-swath interferometer sea-surface height, surface drifter dispersion arrays, and glider high-resolution sections",
"shipboard ADCP velocity shear profiles and eddy-resolving (1/12° to 1/48°) ocean general circulation models",
],
"inferred": [
"forward versus inverse kinetic-energy cascades between balanced mesoscale eddies and ageostrophic submesoscale fronts",
"scale-aware eddy diffusivity/backscatter parameterizations and western-boundary-current separation mechanics",
],
"forcings": "wind-stress curl, surface buoyancy loss, and lateral density gradients across ocean fronts",
"boundaries": "continental slope topography, Rossby deformation radius, and bottom boundary drag",
},
{
"sub_id": "internal_waves_tides_diapycnal_mixing",
"keywords": r"\b(internal\s+wave\w*|internal\s+tide\w*|diapycnal\s+mixing|turbulent\s+mixing|microstructure|near-inertial|lee\s+wave\w*|double\s+diffusion|salt\s+finger\w*|barotropic\s+tide|abyssal\s+mixing)\b",
"components": ["deep_ocean", "seafloor"],
"media": ["seawater", "marine_sediment"],
"processes": ["ocean_circulation_and_mixing", "sediment_transport_and_deposition"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "100–6,000 m",
"observables": [
"Vertical Microstructure Profiler (VMP) turbulent kinetic energy dissipation (epsilon) and finescale strain profiles",
"deliberate SF6 tracer-release dispersion experiments and satellite altimetric internal-tide phase-locked signals",
],
"inferred": [
"spatial geography of internal-tide and lee-wave breaking over rough abyssal bathymetry",
"mixing efficiency (flux Richardson number Gamma) variations sustaining the global abyssal stratification",
],
"forcings": "barotropic tidal flow over seamounts/ridges and synoptic wind-forced near-inertial oscillations",
"boundaries": "seafloor abyssal-hill roughness spectrum, buoyancy frequency (N2), and Coriolis parameter",
},
{
"sub_id": "upper_ocean_mixed_layer_marine_heatwaves",
"keywords": r"\b(marine\s+heatwave\w*|mhw|mixed\s+layer|thermocline|pycnocline|barrier\s+layer|air-sea|sea\s+surface\s+temperature|sst|sea\s+surface\s+salinity|sss|upwelling|ekman|langmuir)\b",
"components": ["sea_surface", "open_ocean"],
"media": ["seawater", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["ocean_circulation_and_mixing", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–500 m",
"observables": [
"Core-Argo temperature/salinity profiles, microwave/IR satellite SST & SSS (SMAP/SMOS), and surface flux moorings",
"wave-glider air-sea momentum/heat transfer measurements and upper-ocean heat-budget closures",
],
"inferred": [
"surface heat-flux forcing versus subsurface horizontal advection and entrainment in subsurface marine heatwaves",
"Langmuir turbulence, freshwater barrier-layer subduction, and thermocline re-emergence timescales",
],
"forcings": "surface net radiative/turbulent heat fluxes, Ekman pumping/upwelling winds, and surface wave breaking",
"boundaries": "mixed-layer depth, halocline barrier-layer thickness, and coastal upwelling shelf geometry",
},
{
"sub_id": "coastal_shelf_marginal_sea_circulation",
"keywords": r"\b(continental\s+shelf|shelf\s+sea|marginal\s+sea|south\s+china\s+sea|mediterranean|red\s+sea|baltic|black\s+sea|kuroshio\s+intrusion|strait|canyon|river\s+plume|cross-shelf)\b",
"components": ["continental_shelf", "open_ocean"],
"media": ["seawater", "fluvial_or_coastal_sediment"],
"processes": ["ocean_circulation_and_mixing", "coastal_and_estuarine_morphodynamics"],
"spatial_scale": "sedimentary_basin_or_continental_margin",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–1,000 m",
"observables": [
"high-frequency (HF) coastal radar surface currents, bottom-mounted ADCP moorings, and coastal glider transects",
"satellite ocean-color/SST front imagery and unstructured-grid coastal ocean model hindcasts",
],
"inferred": [
"cross-shelf break exchange of heat, salt, and nutrients via submarine canyons and boundary-current intrusions",
"buoyant river-plume bulge instability and tidal-straining stratification cycles in shelf seas",
],
"forcings": "along-shelf upwelling/downwelling winds, barotropic spring-neap tides, and buoyant river discharge",
"boundaries": "shelf-break canyon incision, strait sill constriction, and bottom boundary-layer roughness",
},
],
10: [
{
"sub_id": "biological_carbon_pump_export_phytoplankton",
"keywords": r"\b(biological\s+pump|biological\s+carbon\s+pump|particulate\s+organic\s+carbon|poc|marine\s+snow|fecal\s+pellet|phytoplankton|diatom\w*|coccolithophor\w*|cyanobacteria|diazotroph\w*|nitrogen\s+fixation|primary\s+production|export\s+production|mesopelagic|twilight\s+zone|diel\s+vertical\s+migration)\b",
"components": ["open_ocean", "marine_ecosystem"],
"media": ["seawater", "biota"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "ocean_circulation_and_mixing"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–1,000 m (epipelagic to mesopelagic)",
"observables": [
"BGC-Argo bio-optical/nitrate/oxygen floats, neutrally buoyant sediment traps, and Underwater Vision Profilers (UVP)",
"234Th/238U disequilibrium export fluxes and satellite hyperspectral ocean-color phytoplankton functional types",
],
"inferred": [
"partitioning of carbon export between gravitational sinking, eddy subduction, and active migrantzooplankton transport",
"microbial remineralization vs. mineral-ballast protection controlling twilight-zone transfer efficiency",
],
"forcings": "euphotic-zone nutrient supply, mixed-layer light availability, and ocean warming stratification",
"boundaries": "phytoplankton community size structure, mineral ballast (opal/CaCO3) ratios, and mesopelagic temperature",
},
{
"sub_id": "ocean_deoxygenation_omz_nitrogen_cycle",
"keywords": r"\b(deoxygenation|oxygen\s+minimum\s+zone|omz|hypoxi\w+|anoxi\w+|euxini\w+|denitrification|anammox|nitrification|nitrous\s+oxide|n2o|dissolved\s+oxygen|dead\s+zone)\b",
"components": ["open_ocean", "continental_shelf"],
"media": ["seawater", "dissolved_phase"],
"processes": ["redox_transformation", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "50–1,500 m",
"observables": [
"GO-SHIP and BGC-Argo dissolved oxygen optode profiles, 15N-labeled incubation rates, and dual-isotope delta-15N/delta-18O nitrate",
"in-situ nanomolar oxygen sensors (STOX) and dissolved N2/Ar and N2O saturation transects",
],
"inferred": [
"solubility vs. ventilation vs. respiration controls on tropical Oxygen Minimum Zone (OMZ) expansion",
"nanomolar oxygen thresholds triggering fixed-nitrogen loss via heterotrophic denitrification vs. anammox",
],
"forcings": "thermocline ventilation slowdown, coastal eutrophication, and organic-matter export pulses",
"boundaries": "equatorial zonal jet supply of oxygen, benthic sediment oxygen demand, and trace-metal enzyme cofactors",
},
{
"sub_id": "ocean_acidification_carbonate_alkalinity",
"keywords": r"\b(ocean\s+acidification|aragonite|calcite\s+saturation|alkalinity|dissolved\s+inorganic\s+carbon|dic|pco2|air-sea\s+co2|carbonate\s+pump|coral\s+calcification|pteropod|lysocline|ccd)\b",
"components": ["sea_surface", "marine_ecosystem"],
"media": ["seawater", "dissolved_phase"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "chemical_weathering"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–4,000 m",
"observables": [
"SOCAT surface-ocean fCO2 database, GLODAP interior DIC/Total Alkalinity bottle data, and autonomous pH sensors",
"boron/calcium ratios in calcifiers and benthic chamber carbonate dissolution flux measurements",
],
"inferred": [
"decadal trends and seasonal variability in the global ocean anthropogenic carbon sink and Revelle buffer factor",
"metabolic and mineralogical thresholds of shallow-water CaCO3 dissolution above the chemical saturation horizon",
],
"forcings": "rising atmospheric pCO2, upwelling of DIC-rich waters, and biological production/calcification ratios",
"boundaries": "seawater carbonate buffering capacity (TA:DIC ratio), temperature-dependent solubility, and benthic bioturbation",
},
{
"sub_id": "geotraces_trace_metals_hydrothermal_vents",
"keywords": r"\b(geotraces|dissolved\s+iron|iron\s+limitation|hnls|trace\s+metal\w*|siderophore|ligand\w*|hydrothermal\s+vent|hydrothermal\s+plume|black\s+smoker|cold\s+seep|methane\s+seep|gas\s+hydrate|chemosynthe\w*)\b",
"components": ["hydrothermal_system", "deep_ocean"],
"media": ["seawater", "hydrothermal_fluid"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "redox_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "ocean_basin_or_gyre",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–5,000 m",
"observables": [
"GEOTRACES trace-metal-clean full-depth transects (dFe, dZn, dCo, dMn, dCu) and competitive ligand voltammetry",
"3He/4He plume tracers, ROV hydrothermal fluid samplers, and iron/zinc/cadmium stable isotope profiles",
],
"inferred": [
"organic ligand complexation and colloidal Nanoparticle stabilization enabling thousand-kilometer hydrothermal iron transport",
"relative contributions of aeolian dust, margin sediments, and mid-ocean ridges to micronutrient trace-metal inventories",
],
"forcings": "seafloor hydrothermal venting, mineral dust deposition, and nepheloid-layer sediment resuspension",
"boundaries": "siderophore binding-ligand concentrations, particle scavenging rates, and abyssal redox state",
},
{
"sub_id": "marine_sediment_early_diagenesis_benthic_flux",
"keywords": r"\b(early\s+diagenesis|benthic\s+flux|porewater|pore\s+water|sulfate\s+reduction|anaerobic\s+oxidation\s+of\s+methane|aom|smtz|sulfate-methane|bioturbation|bioirrigation|authigenic|mangrove\s+blue\s+carbon|seagrass|blue\s+carbon)\b",
"components": ["marine_sediment", "seafloor"],
"media": ["marine_sediment", "porewater"],
"processes": ["redox_transformation", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "sedimentary_basin_or_continental_margin",
"temporal_scale": "centennial_to_millennial",
"depth_range": "0–100 m below seafloor (mbsf)",
"observables": [
"multicorer porewater concentration/isotope profiles (SO4, CH4, DIC, NH4, Fe2+, H2S) and benthic lander microprofilers",
"reaction-transport diagenetic modeling and lipid biomarker/metagenomic profiles across the SMTZ",
],
"inferred": [
"efficiency of the benthic microbial methane filter (AOM) and authigenic carbonate/pyrite burial sinks",
"organo-mineral protection vs. priming controlling long-term organic carbon preservation in continental margin muds",
],
"forcings": "sedimentation rate, organic-matter labile flux, and bottom-water oxygen fluctuations",
"boundaries": "macrofaunal bioirrigation depth, reactive iron-oxide supply, and upward methane advective flux",
},
],
11: [
{
"sub_id": "catchment_runoff_transit_time_uph",
"keywords": r"\b(catchment|watershed|runoff|streamflow|hydrograph|baseflow|transit\s+time|residence\s+time|young\s+water|old\s+water|storages?-discharge|rainfall-runoff|ungauged|flood\s+frequency|non-stationar\w+)\b",
"components": ["river", "vadose_zone"],
"media": ["freshwater_surface", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff", "groundwater_flow_and_transport"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–100 m",
"observables": [
"high-frequency stream and precipitation stable water isotopes (delta-18O, delta-2H), electrical conductivity, and discharge",
"nested hillslope tensiometer/piezometer networks and StorAge Selection (SAS) transit-time distributions",
],
"inferred": [
"paradoxical rapid mobilization of 'old' pre-event stored water during storm hydrograph peaks",
"emergent catchment-scale storage-discharge constitutive relations from heterogeneous hillslope preferential flow",
],
"forcings": "convective vs. stratiform storm hyetographs, antecedent soil moisture, and seasonal potential evapotranspiration",
"boundaries": "bedrock topography, macropore/fracture network connectivity, and catchment geomorphometric scaling",
},
{
"sub_id": "groundwater_aquifer_karst_fractured_flow",
"keywords": r"\b(groundwater|aquifer|karst\s+aquifer|fractured\s+rock|piezomet\w+|hydraulic\s+conductivity|water\s+table|recharge|depletion|grace\s+groundwater|artesian|well\w*|transmissivity|storativity|subsidence\s+from\s+pumping)\b",
"components": ["aquifer", "groundwater"],
"media": ["groundwater", "sedimentary_rock"],
"processes": ["groundwater_flow_and_transport", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "river_basin_or_aquifer",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "5–1,000 m",
"observables": [
"multi-level monitoring well piezometric heads, GRACE/GRACE-FO terrestrial water storage anomalies, and InSAR aquifer deformation",
"environmental age tracers (3H/3He, 14C, 85Kr, 36Cl, noble gases) and cross-borehole hydraulic tomography",
],
"inferred": [
"upscaling of hydraulic conductivity and anomalous non-Fickian solute dispersion from pore to regional aquifer scales",
"diffuse vs. focused ephemeral-channel groundwater recharge rates and fossil-aquifer renewal timescales",
],
"forcings": "episodic wet-year recharge pulses, anthropogenic groundwater abstraction, and multi-year drought",
"boundaries": "aquitard confining continuity, karst conduit/matrix dual porosity, and fault-zone hydraulic barriers",
},
{
"sub_id": "vadose_zone_evapotranspiration_ecohydrology",
"keywords": r"\b(vadose|unsaturated\s+zone|soil\s+moisture|evapotranspiration|transpiration|sap\s+flow|stomatal|root\s+water\s+uptake|ecohydrolog\w+|water\s+use\s+efficiency|budyko|infiltration|preferential\s+flow|macropore)\b",
"components": ["vadose_zone", "critical_zone"],
"media": ["pore_water", "soil"],
"processes": ["hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff", "ecosystem_disturbance_and_biophysical_feedback"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "0–30 m",
"observables": [
"cosmic-ray neutron rover soil moisture, eddy-covariance latent heat fluxes, and xylem/soil water stable isotopes",
"sap-flow sensors, electrical resistivity imaging of root zones, and SMAP/Sentinel-1 microwave soil moisture",
],
"inferred": [
"partitioning of terrestrial evapotranspiration between plant transpiration (T) and soil/canopy evaporation (E)",
"ecohydrological separation ('two water worlds') between tightly bound matrix water used by roots and mobile recharge water",
],
"forcings": "vapor pressure deficit (VPD), solar radiation, and intermittent rainfall infiltration pulses",
"boundaries": "soil water retention curve hysteresis, deep-rooting architecture, and bedrock fracture water storage",
},
{
"sub_id": "hyporheic_river_groundwater_lake_wetland",
"keywords": r"\b(hyporheic|losing\s+stream|gaining\s+stream|surface\s+water-groundwater|sw-gw|lake\s+hydrology|wetland\s+hydrology|riparian|intermittent\s+river|ephemeral\s+stream|swot|river\s+discharge\s+from\s+space)\b",
"components": ["river", "wetland"],
"media": ["freshwater_surface", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["groundwater_flow_and_transport", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "reach",
"temporal_scale": "synoptic_to_seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–20 m",
"observables": [
"fiber-optic distributed temperature sensing (FO-DTS), 222Rn/He exchange tracers, and streambed vertical head gradients",
"SWOT wide-swath satellite water-surface elevation/slope and wetland inundation hydroperiod maps",
],
"inferred": [
"multi-scale hyporheic exchange residence-time distributions driven by bedforms, bars, and meandering",
"bidirectional hydrologic connectivity between non-perennial rivers, floodplain wetlands, and alluvial aquifers",
],
"forcings": "stage fluctuations, bedform-induced hydrostatic/hydrodynamic pressure gradients, and seasonal water-table shifts",
"boundaries": "streambed clogging (colmation) layer permeability, alluvial sediment heterogeneity, and channel sinuosity",
},
{
"sub_id": "hydroclimatic_extremes_floods_drought_propagation",
"keywords": r"\b(hydrological\s+drought|meteorological\s+drought|drought\s+propagation|flash\s+flood|urban\s+flood|snowmelt\s+flood|probabilistic\s+flood|water\s+scarcity|reservoir\s+regulation|human-water|socio-hydrolog\w+)\b",
"components": ["hydrosphere_freshwater", "river"],
"media": ["freshwater_surface", "groundwater"],
"processes": ["hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff", "groundwater_flow_and_transport"],
"spatial_scale": "river_basin_or_aquifer",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Surface to regional aquifer",
"observables": [
"multi-decade stream-gauge networks, standardized precipitation/runoff/groundwater drought indices, and satellite altimetry",
"coupled land-surface/hydrodynamic routing models and remotely sensed irrigation/reservoir storage records",
],
"inferred": [
"attenuation, lag time, and nonlinear memory governing meteorological-to-soil-to-groundwater drought propagation",
"antagonistic vs. compounding feedbacks between human water-management adaptations and extreme flood/drought risk",
],
"forcings": "persistent precipitation deficits, extreme atmospheric-river or monsoon rainfall, and human abstraction/impoundment",
"boundaries": "basin hydrogeological buffer capacity, soil/aquifer storage memory, and reservoir operating topology",
},
],
12: [
{
"sub_id": "soil_organic_carbon_mineral_stabilization_priming",
"keywords": r"\b(soil\s+organic\s+carbon|soc|soil\s+organic\s+matter|som|maoc|mineral-associated\s+organic|particulate\s+organic\s+matter|pom|priming\s+effect|necromass|microbial\s+carbon\s+use\s+efficiency|cue|soil\s+respiration|heterotrophic\s+respiration|deep\s+soil\s+carbon)\b",
"components": ["soil", "critical_zone"],
"media": ["soil", "biota"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "chemical_weathering"],
"spatial_scale": "molecular_to_pore",
"temporal_scale": "decadal",
"depth_range": "0–2 m soil profile",
"observables": [
"density/size fractionation (MAOM vs. POM), 13C/14C isotopic pulse-labeling, and solid-state 13C NMR / NanoSIMS",
"long-term soil warming manipulation plots and automated chamber heterotrophic respiration fluxes",
],
"inferred": [
"relative dominance of microbial necromass entombment, organo-mineral sorption, and microaggregate occlusion in SOC persistence",
"thermal adaptation of microbial carbon-use efficiency (CUE) and root-exudate priming of ancient subsoil carbon",
],
"forcings": "soil warming, labile root-exudate inputs, and drying-rewetting Birch-effect cycles",
"boundaries": "reactive short-range-order Fe/Al oxyhydroxide content, clay mineralogy, and soil pore-network connectivity",
},
{
"sub_id": "critical_zone_weathering_regolith_architecture",
"keywords": r"\b(critical\s+zone|saprolite|bedrock\s+weathering|weathering\s+front|chemical\s+weathering\s+rate|silicate\s+weathering|regolith\s+thickness|porosity\s+generation|fracture\s+weathering|solute\s+flux|concentration-discharge|c-q)\b",
"components": ["critical_zone", "regolith"],
"media": ["crystalline_rock", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["chemical_weathering", "groundwater_flow_and_transport"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "millennial_to_orbital",
"depth_range": "0–100 m (canopy to unweathered bedrock)",
"observables": [
"deep Critical Zone borehole cores, seismic refraction/resistivity tomography, and mass-transfer tau (τ) profiles",
"high-frequency stream concentration-discharge (C-Q) chemostatic slopes and Li/Mg/Si/U-series weathering isotopes",
],
"inferred": [
"topographic stress, frost cracking, and deep oxidative/acid reactions controlling the depth of the bedrock weathering front",
"mechanisms explaining chemostatic solute behavior across orders-of-magnitude discharge variations",
],
"forcings": "meteoric water infiltration, biogenic soil CO2/organic-acid production, and tectonic exhumation",
"boundaries": "regional tectonic stress field, bedrock mineral assemblage (pyrite/biotite/plagioclase), and transit time",
},
{
"sub_id": "rhizosphere_mycorrhiza_nutrient_stoichiometry",
"keywords": r"\b(rhizosphere|root\s+exudat\w*|mycorrhiz\w*|arbuscular|ectomycorrhiz\w*|phosphorus\s+limitation|nitrogen\s+mineralization|nitrification\s+in\s+soil|denitrification\s+in\s+soil|soil\s+n2o|stoichiometr\w*|extracellular\s+enzyme)\b",
"components": ["soil", "biosphere_terrestrial"],
"media": ["soil", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "redox_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "plot_scale",
"temporal_scale": "seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–1 m rooting zone",
"observables": [
"zuckering/microdialysis rhizosphere exudate probes, 15N/33P isotopic pool dilution, and zymography enzyme imaging",
"metatranscriptomic functional gene abundance and quantum-cascade-laser N2O isotopomer fluxes",
],
"inferred": [
"carbon cost and mineral-dissolution efficiency of ectomycorrhizal vs. arbuscular mycorrhizal nutrient mining",
"hotspots and hot moments of anaerobic denitrification and N2O production inside oxic soil aggregates",
],
"forcings": "elevated atmospheric CO2 fertilization, chronic nitrogen deposition, and rhizosphere diurnal water pulses",
"boundaries": "soil C:N:P stoichiometry, aggregate oxygen micro-gradients, and soil pH buffering",
},
{
"sub_id": "peatland_wetland_redox_methane_biogeochemistry",
"keywords": r"\b(peatland\w*|bog|fen|mire|sphagnum|wetland\s+soil|paddy\s+soil|methanogen\w*|methanotroph\w*|anaerobic\s+oxidation|iron\s+reduction|redox\s+oscillation|water-table\s+fluctuation|phenolic\s+enzyme\s+latch)\b",
"components": ["peatland", "wetland"],
"media": ["soil", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["redox_transformation", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "landscape",
"temporal_scale": "seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–10 m peat column",
"observables": [
"automated chamber/eddy-covariance CH4 and CO2 fluxes, porewater dissolved CH4/δ13C-CH4, and voltammetric redox profiles",
"Mössbauer spectroscopy of iron-organic complexes and microbial 16S/mcrA/pmoA amplicon sequencing",
],
"inferred": [
"stability of the 'enzymatic latch' and 'iron gate' under drought-induced water-table drawdown and rewetting",
"partitioning between ebullition, aerenchyma plant-mediated transport, and aerobic methanotrophic oxidation",
],
"forcings": "water-table drawdown, warming, and sulfate/nitrate electron-acceptor deposition",
"boundaries": "peat botanical composition (Sphagnum vs. vascular sedges), hydraulic conductivity (acrotelm vs. catotelm)",
},
{
"sub_id": "dryland_biocrust_inorganic_carbon_caliche",
"keywords": r"\b(soil\s+inorganic\s+carbon|sic|pedogenic\s+carbonate|caliche|calcrete|biocrust|biological\s+soil\s+crust|arid\s+soil|salinization|sodic\s+soil|photodegradation)\b",
"components": ["dryland", "soil"],
"media": ["soil", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "chemical_weathering"],
"spatial_scale": "regional",
"temporal_scale": "decadal",
"depth_range": "0–3 m",
"observables": [
"clumped (Delta47) and stable (delta-13C, delta-18O) isotopes of pedogenic carbonates and soil CO2 efflux chambers",
"hyperspectral biocrust mapping and abiotic UV photodegradation litterbag experiments",
],
"inferred": [
"abiotic vs. biotic controls on dryland CO2 uptake/efflux and soil inorganic carbon (SIC) dissolution losses under acidification",
"coupling between UV photodegradation, non-rainfall water inputs (dew/fog), and biocrust nitrogen fixation",
],
"forcings": "pulsed rain events (Noy-Meir pulses), solar UV irradiance, and nitrogen/acid deposition",
"boundaries": "soil Ca2+/Mg2+ availability, pH alkalinity, and biocrust cyanobacterial/lichen succession stage",
},
],
13: [
{
"sub_id": "forest_mortality_drought_carbon_sink",
"keywords": r"\b(forest\s+mortality|tree\s+mortality|hydraulic\s+failure|carbon\s+starvation|xylem\s+embolism|cavitation|amazon\s+dieback|tropical\s+forest\s+carbon|boreal\s+forest|gross\s+primary\s+productivity|gpp|net\s+ecosystem\s+exchange|nee|co2\s+fertilization)\b",
"components": ["forest", "biosphere_terrestrial"],
"media": ["biota", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["ecosystem_disturbance_and_biophysical_feedback", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "continental",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Rooting zone to forest canopy top",
"observables": [
"FLUXNET eddy-covariance NEE/GPP time series, RAINFOR/ForestGEO permanent census plots, and satellite SIF/VOD",
"xylem vulnerability curves (P50/P88), non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) assays, and GEDI spaceborne LiDAR biomass",
],
"inferred": [
"physiological thresholds separating xylem hydraulic failure from carbon starvation during multi-year mega-droughts",
"saturation of the terrestrial CO2 fertilization sink due to phosphorus/nitrogen limitation and rising VPD",
],
"forcings": "atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD) extremes, heatwaves, and elevated atmospheric CO2",
"boundaries": "plant hydraulic trait diversity (isohydric vs. anisohydric), rooting depth to groundwater, and soil fertility",
},
{
"sub_id": "wildfire_regimes_pyrogenic_carbon_recovery",
"keywords": r"\b(wildfire\w*|fire\s+regime|burned\s+area|megafire|pyrogenic\s+carbon|black\s+carbon|charcoal|post-fire|fire\s+severity|savanna\s+fire|boreal\s+fire|peat\s+fire|flammability|fuel\s+moisture)\b",
"components": ["forest", "grassland"],
"media": ["biota", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["ecosystem_disturbance_and_biophysical_feedback", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "regional",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Organic soil horizon to smoke plume injection height",
"observables": [
"MODIS/VIIRS active-fire radiative power, Landsat/Sentinel-2 burn-severity (dNBR) maps, and tree-ring fire scars",
"benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) pyrogenic carbon markers and post-fire chronosequence regeneration surveys",
],
"inferred": [
"climate-driven vs. fuel-limitation switches in global burned area and boreal-to-deciduous post-fire state shifts",
"production, erosion, and millennial residence time of pyrogenic carbon (PyC) across terrestrial-to-marine continuum",
],
"forcings": "fire-weather indices (VPD, wind), dry lightning ignition, and human fire suppression/fragmentation",
"boundaries": "live/dead fuel moisture connectivity, bark thickness/serotiny traits, and organic-layer thickness",
},
{
"sub_id": "land_use_change_albedo_biophysical_feedbacks",
"keywords": r"\b(deforestation|afforestation|reforestation|land-use\s+change|land\s+cover\s+change|lulcc|biophysical\s+feedback|surface\s+albedo|roughness\s+length|evaporative\s+cooling|woody\s+encroachment|greening|browning|shifting\s+cultivation)\b",
"components": ["biosphere_terrestrial", "boundary_layer"],
"media": ["biota", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["ecosystem_disturbance_and_biophysical_feedback", "radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance"],
"spatial_scale": "continental",
"temporal_scale": "decadal",
"depth_range": "Soil profile to planetary boundary layer",
"observables": [
"paired forest vs. open-land flux towers, MODIS/Landsat radiometric skin temperature (LST) and albedo, and LUMIP ensembles",
"high-resolution canopy height/LAI maps and atmospheric moisture-recycling trajectory models",
],
"inferred": [
"net local and nonlocal climate warming/cooling trade-offs between biogeochemical carbon sequestration and biophysical albedo/evapotranspiration changes",
"upwind deforestation thresholds for downwind precipitation collapse in continental moisture-recycling sheds",
],
"forcings": "agricultural expansion, large-scale tree-planting campaigns, and high-latitude shrubification",
"boundaries": "background snow cover duration, boundary-layer cloud coupling, and soil moisture availability",
},
{
"sub_id": "phenology_treeline_permafrost_ecosystem_shifts",
"keywords": r"\b(phenolog\w+|green-up|senescence|growing\s+season|treeline|alpine\s+tundra|arctic\s+greening|shrubification|species\s+range\s+shift|insect\s+outbreak|bark\s+beetle|windthrow|peatland\s+vegetation)\b",
"components": ["biosphere_terrestrial", "forest"],
"media": ["biota", "soil"],
"processes": ["ecosystem_disturbance_and_biophysical_feedback", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "regional",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Rooting zone to canopy",
"observables": [
"PhenoCam near-surface digital imagery, satellite NDVI/EVI/SIF phenology retrievals, and dendroecological ring widths",
"open-top chamber (ITEX) tundra warming experiments and insect-defoliation aerial surveys",
],
"inferred": [
"photoperiod, winter chilling, and spring frost-damage constraints on advancing spring leaf-out and autumn senescence",
"coupled biotic disturbance (bark beetle/pathogen) and microclimatic bottlenecks governing alpine/polar treeline migration",
],
"forcings": "winter/spring asymmetrical warming, late-spring frost events, and snowmelt timing shifts",
"boundaries": "photoperiod latitude limits, mycorrhizal symbiont dispersal, and alpine soil development",
},
{
"sub_id": "agricultural_agroecosystem_ghg_nitrogen",
"keywords": r"\b(agricultural|cropland|agroecosystem|paddy|fertilizer|manure|nitrous\s+oxide\s+emission|ammonia\s+volatilization|nitrate\s+leaching|cover\s+crop|no-till|biochar|grazing|pasture|rangeland)\b",
"components": ["agricultural_land", "soil"],
"media": ["soil", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling", "contaminant_transport_and_fate"],
"spatial_scale": "landscape",
"temporal_scale": "seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–2 m plow and root zone",
"observables": [
"automated static/dynamic chamber N2O/CH4/NH3 flux networks, lysimeter nitrate leaching, and 15N fertilizer recovery",
"regional tall-tower inverse atmospheric trace-gas budgets and multi-decade long-term agricultural trials",
],
"inferred": [
"nonlinear emission factors (EFs) for soil N2O hot moments following freeze-thaw, tillage, and fertigation pulses",
"trade-offs where soil carbon sequestration practices (no-till, residue retention, flooding) stimulate N2O or CH4 emissions",
],
"forcings": "synthetic nitrogen/manure application timing, irrigation wetting-drying cycles, and tillage disturbance",
"boundaries": "soil bulk density, water-filled pore space (WFPS), and nitrifier/denitrifier community structure",
},
],
14: [
{
"sub_id": "pfas_forever_chemicals_transport_fate",
"keywords": r"\b(pfas|per-\s*and\s+polyfluoroalkyl|pfos|pfoa|genx|fluorotelomer|afff|forever\s+chemical\w*|organofluorine|ultrashort-chain|perfluorinated)\b",
"components": ["vadose_zone", "groundwater"],
"media": ["groundwater", "pore_water"],
"processes": ["contaminant_transport_and_fate", "groundwater_flow_and_transport"],
"spatial_scale": "river_basin_or_aquifer",
"temporal_scale": "decadal",
"depth_range": "0–100 m",
"observables": [
"LC-HRMS suspect/non-target screening, extractable organic fluorine (EOF) mass balance, and total oxidizable precursor (TOP) assays",
"unsaturated-zone lysimeter profiles and air-water interface adsorption surface-tension isotherms",
],
"inferred": [
"air-water interfacial adsorption and surfactant self-assembly retarding PFAS leaching through the vadose zone",
"biotransformation pathways of polyfluorinated precursors into terminal perfluoroalkyl acids and sea-spray atmospheric cycling",
],
"forcings": "infiltration wetting-front velocity, ionic strength fluctuations, and co-contaminant NAPL/surfactant presence",
"boundaries": "vadose-zone air-water interfacial area, soil organic carbon electrostatic charge, and chain-length hydrophobicity",
},
{
"sub_id": "microplastics_nanoplastics_weathering_vectors",
"keywords": r"\b(microplastic\w*|nanoplastic\w*|plastic\s+debris|polymer\s+weathering|plastisphere|tire\s+wear|6ppd|synthetic\s+fiber\w*|microfiber\w*|plastic\s+sedimentation)\b",
"components": ["river", "marine_sediment"],
"media": ["freshwater_surface", "fluvial_or_coastal_sediment"],
"processes": ["contaminant_transport_and_fate", "sediment_transport_and_deposition"],
"spatial_scale": "river_basin_or_aquifer",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Surface waters to deep-sea benthic sediments",
"observables": [
"micro-FTIR, micro-Raman, and pyrolysis-GC-MS polymer quantification down to sub-micron nanoplastic scales",
"settling-column biofouling experiments and dated sediment-core microplastic accumulation profiles",
],
"inferred": [
"closure of the 'missing ocean plastic' mass budget via UV-photooxidative fragmentation into dissolved organic carbon and nanoplastics",
"biofilm heteroaggregation ('plastisphere') altering buoyancy, vertical settling velocities, and co-contaminant/AMR vectoring",
],
"forcings": "solar UV irradiance, hydrodynamic shear fragmentation, and microbial biofouling succession",
"boundaries": "polymer crystallinity/density, suspended mineral floc concentration, and estuarine salinity fronts",
},
{
"sub_id": "heavy_metals_mercury_arsenic_methylation_redox",
"keywords": r"\b(mercury|methylmercury|hg|arsenic|arsenite|arsenate|cadmium|lead\s+contamination|chromium|hexavalent|antimony|thallium|selenium|acid\s+mine\s+drainage|amd|mine\s+tailing\w*|heavy\s+metal\w*|metalloid\w*)\b",
"components": ["aquifer", "soil"],
"media": ["groundwater", "sediment"],
"processes": ["contaminant_transport_and_fate", "redox_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "river_basin_or_aquifer",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–200 m",
"observables": [
"synchrotron XANES/EXAFS solid-phase speciation, multi-collector ICP-MS Hg mass-independent fractionation (Delta199Hg), and HPLC-ICP-MS",
"hgcAB mercury-methylation gene transcripts and redox-stat bioreactor mobilization kinetics",
],
"inferred": [
"coupled iron-sulfur-organic-matter redox cycling governing reductive dissolution of arsenic-bearing Fe(III) oxyhydroxides",
"bioavailability of thiol-complexed versus nanoparticulate HgS for microbial hgcAB methylation across redoxclines",
],
"forcings": "seasonal water-table redox oscillations, labile organic carbon supply, and sulfate/nitrate inputs",
"boundaries": "host-mineral crystallinity, dissolved organic matter aromaticity/thiol content, and pH-Eh conditions",
},
{
"sub_id": "emerging_organic_contaminants_ppcp_arg_pesticides",
"keywords": r"\b(emerging\s+contaminant\w*|pharmaceutical\w*|ppcp\w*|antibiotic\s+resistance\s+gene\w*|arg\w*|antibiotic\w*|pesticide\w*|herbicide\w*|atrazine|glyphosate|neonicotinoid|endocrine\s+disrupt\w*|pahs|pcbs|dioxin\w*|chlorinated\s+solvent|tce|dnaPL)\b",
"components": ["river", "aquifer"],
"media": ["freshwater_surface", "groundwater"],
"processes": ["contaminant_transport_and_fate", "redox_transformation"],
"spatial_scale": "river_basin_or_aquifer",
"temporal_scale": "seasonal",
"depth_range": "0–50 m",
"observables": [
"compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA: delta-13C, delta-2H, delta-15N, delta-37Cl) and passive sampler time-weighted concentrations",
"high-throughput qPCR/metagenomic resistome profiling and photolysis/biotransformation product identification",
],
"inferred": [
"distinguishing in-situ abiotic/microbial degradation from physical dilution and sorption using multi-element CSIA",
"environmental coselection thresholds (sub-inhibitory metals/biocides) driving horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes",
],
"forcings": "wastewater effluent discharge, agricultural runoff pulses, and solar photolysis",
"boundaries": "hyporheic residence time, black-carbon/kerogen nonlinear sorption domains, and microbial community adaptation",
},
{
"sub_id": "radionuclides_nutrient_eutrophication_harmful_blooms",
"keywords": r"\b(radionuclide\w*|cesium-137|strontium-90|plutonium|technetium|spent\s+nuclear|geological\s+repository|eutrophication|harmful\s+algal\s+bloom\w*|hab\w*|cyanotoxin|microcystin|legacy\s+phosphorus|internal\s+loading|lake\s+hypoxia)\b",
"components": ["lake", "estuary"],
"media": ["freshwater_surface", "lake_sediment"],
"processes": ["contaminant_transport_and_fate", "carbon_cycle_and_biogeochemical_cycling"],
"spatial_scale": "hillslope_to_catchment",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–500 m",
"observables": [
"high-frequency lake buoy phycocyanin/chlorophyll/DO sensors, benthic chamber phosphorus fluxes, and 31P-NMR sediment speciation",
"gamma/alpha spectrometry and accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) of long-lived actinides and fission products",
],
"inferred": [
"decadal lag times and benthic internal phosphorus recycling sustaining harmful cyanobacterial blooms after external load reductions",
"colloid-facilitated transport and bentonite-barrier retardation of long-lived radionuclides over millennial timescales",
],
"forcings": "thermal stratification intensification, internal wave mixing, and catchment legacy nutrient mobilization",
"boundaries": "sediment Fe:P:S molar ratios, lake bathymetric residence time, and host-rock fracture aperture",
},
],
15: [
{
"sub_id": "coastal_morphodynamics_shoreline_barrier_marshes",
"keywords": r"\b(coast\w*|shoreline|beach\s+erosion|barrier\s+island|overwash|salt\s+marsh|mangrove|tidal\s+flat|wave\s+runup|storm\s+surge|longshore|dune\s+erosion|coral\s+reef\s+hydrodynamics|headland)\b",
"components": ["coast", "wetland"],
"media": ["fluvial_or_coastal_sediment", "seawater"],
"processes": ["coastal_and_estuarine_morphodynamics", "sediment_transport_and_deposition"],
"spatial_scale": "coastal_cell",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–30 m",
"observables": [
"airborne bathymetric LiDAR, Argus video/satellite shoreline positions, and surface elevation tables (SETs) in marshes",
"acoustic wave/current profilers and X-band radar nearshore wave-breaking dissipation fields",
],
"inferred": [
"ecogeomorphic vertical accretion limits of salt marshes and mangroves relative to accelerating sea-level rise",
"cross-shore vs. alongshore sediment bypassing and post-storm beach/barrier recovery hysteresis",
],
"forcings": "relative sea-level rise, tropical/extratropical storm-surge wave power, and spring-neap tidal currents",
"boundaries": "suspended sediment supply, halophyte root-mat organic production, and shoreface geologic framework",
},
{
"sub_id": "river_deltas_avulsion_subsidence_salinity",
"keywords": r"\b(delta\w*|estuar\w*|distributary|salt\s+intrusion|salinity\s+intrusion|saltwater\s+intrusion|submarine\s+groundwater\s+discharge|sgd|turbidity\s+maximum|etm|deltaic\s+subsidence|avulsion)\b",
"components": ["delta", "estuary"],
"media": ["fluvial_or_coastal_sediment", "seawater"],
"processes": ["coastal_and_estuarine_morphodynamics", "sediment_transport_and_deposition"],
"spatial_scale": "sedimentary_basin_or_continental_margin",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "0–100 m",
"observables": [
"InSAR + rod-extensometer vertical compaction rates, ADCP/CTD estuarine salt-flux transects, and 222Rn/226Ra SGD tracers",
"multi-decadal bathymetric surveys and upstream dam-trapping sediment-load time series",
],
"inferred": [
"partitioning of deltaic relative sea-level rise between shallow Holocene mud compaction, deep tectonic subsidence, and groundwater/hydrocarbon extraction",
"three-dimensional estuarine exchange flow, estuarine turbidity maximum (ETM) trapping, and saltwater intrusion length under channel deepening",
],
"forcings": "upstream reservoir sediment starvation, channel dredging, groundwater pumping, and sea-level rise",
"boundaries": "distributary bifurcation geometry, Holocene peat/mud thickness, and coastal aquifer hydraulic gradient",
},
{
"sub_id": "urban_heat_island_canyon_hydrology_emissions",
"keywords": r"\b(urban|city|cities|street\s+canyon|urban\s+heat\s+island|uhi|impervious|stormwater|green\s+infrastructure|urban\s+canopy|anthropogenic\s+heat|urban\s+boundary\s+layer|urban\s+flood\w*|urban\s+plume)\b",
"components": ["urban_environment", "boundary_layer"],
"media": ["urban_built_substrate", "tropospheric_air"],
"processes": ["radiative_transfer_and_energy_balance", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "local_landscape_or_urban",
"temporal_scale": "diurnal_to_synoptic",
"depth_range": "Subsurface sewer/groundwater to urban boundary layer",
"observables": [
"urban eddy-covariance flux towers, dense crowdsourced microclimate networks, and thermal-infrared satellite/airborne LST",
"high-resolution urban storm-drainage gauge networks and mobile urban CH4/CO2/NOx plume mapping",
],
"inferred": [
"synergistic nonlinear amplification between background synoptic heatwaves and urban heat islands (UHI)",
"convective rainfall enhancement downwind of urban roughness/heat domes and subsurface 'urban karst' runoff routing",
],
"forcings": "anthropogenic waste heat release, 3D street-canyon radiative trapping, and impervious surface sealing",
"boundaries": "urban morphological aspect ratio (H/W), albedo/thermal admittance of built materials, and urban tree-canopy fraction",
},
{
"sub_id": "dryland_desertification_oasis_dust_coupled",
"keywords": r"\b(dryland\w*|desertification|semi-arid|hyper-arid|oasis|saline\s+lake|endorheic|aral\s+sea|playa|agro-pastoral|overgrazing|shelterbelt|sand\s+fixation)\b",
"components": ["dryland", "lake"],
"media": ["soil", "freshwater_surface"],
"processes": ["ecosystem_disturbance_and_biophysical_feedback", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "regional",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Root/vadose zone to regional boundary layer",
"observables": [
"multi-decadal satellite vegetation/albedo/water-body time series, groundwater monitoring wells, and dust deposition traps",
"coupled ecohydrological-socioeconomic water balance models across endorheic river basins",
],
"inferred": [
"critical grazing and water-diversion thresholds triggering irreversible dryland state shifts and terminal-lake desiccation",
"regional water-table drawdown vs. microclimatic cooling trade-offs of dryland afforestation and oasis expansion",
],
"forcings": "aridity index increases, upstream irrigation diversions, and livestock grazing intensity",
"boundaries": "endorheic basin closed water budget, shallow groundwater salinity, and aeolian sand supply",
},
{
"sub_id": "coupled_human_natural_coastal_infra_risk",
"keywords": r"\b(coupled\s+human|socio-environmental|nature-based\s+solution|living\s+shoreline|beach\s+nourishment|seawall|polder|managed\s+retreat|compound\s+flood\w*|fluvial-pluvial-coastal|multi-hazard)\b",
"components": ["human_built_coastal_urban_interface", "coast"],
"media": ["urban_built_substrate", "seawater"],
"processes": ["coastal_and_estuarine_morphodynamics", "hydrological_partitioning_and_runoff"],
"spatial_scale": "coastal_cell",
"temporal_scale": "interannual_to_decadal",
"depth_range": "Coastal nearshore to floodplain",
"observables": [
"joint tide-gauge, river-discharge, and radar-rainfall extreme value series and hydrodynamic compound-flood hindcasts",
"long-term morphological monitoring of hard coastal defenses versus nature-based sediment nourishments",
],
"inferred": [
"statistical dependence and physical phase-locking between storm surge, extreme rainfall runoff, and coastal wave setup",
"maladaptive lock-in ('levee/seawall effect') whereby coastal armoring accelerates adjacent downdrift erosion and subsidence",
],
"forcings": "landfalling tropical/extratropical cyclones, sea-level rise, and coastal engineering interventions",
"boundaries": "estuarine funneling geometry, seawall/levee crest elevations, and sediment littoral cell connectivity",
},
],
}
# Paper-specific observable patterns to enrich observables dynamically from paper text
SPECIFIC_OBSERVABLE_RULES = [
(r"\b(zircon|u-pb|lu-hf)\b", "laser-ablation ICP-MS/SIMS zircon U-Pb geochronology and Lu-Hf isotope ratios"),
(r"\b(speleothem|stalagmite)\b", "U-Th dated speleothem delta-18O, delta-13C, and trace-element laminae records"),
(r"\b(foraminifer\w*|alkenone|tex86)\b", "planktic/benthic foraminiferal Mg/Ca, delta-18O, and organic biomarker paleothermometry"),
(r"\b(cosmogenic|10be|26al)\b", "in-situ terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide (10Be, 26Al) surface exposure and denudation inventories"),
(r"\b(insar|gnss|gps)\b", "multi-temporal InSAR surface displacement velocity fields and continuous GNSS station networks"),
(r"\b(receiver\s+function|ambient\s+noise|shear-wave\s+splitting|tomograph\w+)\b", "broadband seismic tomography, receiver-function conversions, and shear-wave splitting measurements"),
(r"\b(magnetotelluric|electrical\s+resistivity|ert)\b", "deep magnetotelluric (MT) and electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) conductivity inversions"),
(r"\b(eddy\s+covariance|flux\s+tower)\b", "multi-year eddy-covariance micrometeorological flux-tower CO2, H2O, and energy exchange measurements"),
(r"\b(argo|glider|ctd)\b", "autonomous Argo/BGC-Argo profiling floats, ocean gliders, and shipboard CTD hydrographic sections"),
(r"\b(grace|grace-fo)\b", "GRACE/GRACE-FO satellite gravimetry terrestrial water storage and ice-mass anomaly fields"),
(r"\b(lidar|sfm|photogrammetry)\b", "high-resolution airborne/terrestrial LiDAR and structure-from-motion (SfM) topographic differencing"),
(r"\b(exafs|xanes|synchrotron|mössbauer|nmr|ft-icr-ms)\b", "synchrotron X-ray absorption spectroscopy (EXAFS/XANES) and high-resolution molecular spectroscopy"),
(r"\b(metagenom\w*|metatranscriptom\w*|16s\s+rrna|qpcr)\b", "high-throughput metagenomic/metatranscriptomic sequencing and functional gene abundance profiling"),
(r"\b(clumped\s+isotop\w*|delta47|Δ47)\b", "carbonate clumped-isotope (Delta47) paleothermometry and fluid delta-18O reconstructions"),
(r"\b(boron\s+isotop\w*|δ11b)\b", "boron-isotope (delta-11B) pH and carbonate-system proxy measurements"),
(r"\b(neodymium|εnd|radiogenic\s+pb|87sr/86sr)\b", "radiogenic Sr-Nd-Pb-Hf isotope provenance and water-mass tracer ratios"),
(r"\b(radar|doppler|himawari|goes|modis|sentinel|landsat|tropomi|oco-2|icesat)\b", "multi-spectral/active satellite remote sensing and Doppler radar vertical profile retrievals"),
]
# Expanded regional detection rules (35 specific Earth regions)
REGION_RULES = [
(r"\b(tibet\w*|himalay\w*|karakoram|pamir|hindu\s+kush|hengduan|tarim|qaidam|tianshan|tian\s+shan)\b", "Himalaya–Tibetan Plateau and Central Asian Orogenic System"),
(r"\b(north\s+china\s+craton|yangtze\s+craton|south\s+china\s+block|qinling|dabie|cathaysia|orodos|sichuan\s+basin|loess\s+plateau|yellow\s+river|yangtze\s+river)\b", "East Asian Cratons, Monsoon Basins, and Loess Plateau"),
(r"\b(south\s+china\s+sea|east\s+china\s+sea|yellow\s+sea|bohai|kuroshio|okinawa\s+trough|western\s+pacific|mariana|izu-bonin|philippine\s+sea|japan\s+trench|nankai)\b", "Western Pacific Margin, Marginal Seas, and Subduction Trenches"),
(r"\b(andes|andean|altiplano|atacama|patagoni\w*|peru-chile|nazca)\b", "Andean Cordillera and Peru–Chile Subduction Margin"),
(r"\b(amazon\w*|congo\s+basin|borneo|indonesia\w*|maritime\s+continent|pantanal|cerrado)\b", "Humid Tropical River Basins and Maritime Continent"),
(r"\b(antarct\w*|southern\s+ocean|weddell|ross\s+sea|amundsen|thwaites|pine\s+island|east\s+antarctic|west\s+antarctic)\b", "Antarctica and the Southern Ocean"),
(r"\b(arctic|greenland|svalbard|barents|beaufort|chukchi|laptev|east\s+siberian|permafrost|boreal|alaska|yukon|mackenzie)\b", "Pan-Arctic Cryosphere, Greenland, and Boreal Permafrost Domain"),
(r"\b(north\s+atlantic|subpolar\s+gyre|labrador\s+sea|irminger|nordic\s+seas|iceland\w*|gulf\s+stream|mid-atlantic\s+ridge)\b", "North Atlantic Basin and Mid-Atlantic Ridge"),
(r"\b(mediterranean|alps|alpine|apennine\w*|aegean|hellenic|anatolia\w*|pyrenees|carpathian\w*|black\s+sea|red\s+sea|dead\s+sea)\b", "Alpine–Mediterranean Orogenic Belt and Marginal Seas"),
(r"\b(east\s+african\s+rift|ethiopian\s+rift|afar|turkana|tanganyika|malawi|sahel|sahara\w*|namib|kalahari|southern\s+africa|kaapvaal)\b", "African Rift Systems, Cratons, and Sahel–Sahara Drylands"),
(r"\b(cascadia|san\s+andreas|california|sierra\s+nevada|basin\s+and\s+range|colorado\s+plateau|yellowstone|appalachian\w*|gulf\s+of\s+mexico|mississippi|great\s+lakes|cheasapeake)\b", "North American Cordilleran, Cratonic, and Coastal Margin Systems"),
(r"\b(indian\s+ocean|bay\s+of\s+bengal|arabian\s+sea|indo-gangetic|ganges|brahmaputra|indus|deccan|western\s+ghats)\b", "Indian Ocean Basin and South Asian Monsoon System"),
(r"\b(australia\w*|great\s+barrier\s+reef|murray-darling|pilbara|yilgarn|tasman|new\s+zealand|hikurangi|alpine\s+fault)\b", "Australasian Cratons, Reefs, and Hikurangi–Alpine Margin"),
(r"\b(equatorial\s+pacific|eastern\s+tropical\s+pacific|central\s+pacific|galapagos|hawaii\w*|east\s+pacific\s+rise|peruvian\s+upwelling)\b", "Tropical Pacific Upwelling, ENSO Waveguide, and East Pacific Rise"),
]
ERA_RULES = [
(r"\b(hadean|archean|archaean|paleoproterozoic|mesoproterozoic|neoproterozoic|ediacaran|precambrian|great\s+oxidation|snowball\s+earth)\b", "Precambrian"),
(r"\b(cambrian|ordovician|silurian|devonian|carboniferous|permian|paleozoic|end-permian)\b", "Paleozoic"),
(r"\b(triassic|jurassic|cretaceous|mesozoic|cenomanian|turonian|aptian|toarcian)\b", "Mesozoic"),
(r"\b(paleocene|eocene|oligocene|miocene|pliocene|paleogene|neogene|petm|cenozoic)\b", "Cenozoic"),
(r"\b(pleistocene|last\s+glacial|lgm|deglaciation|younger\s+dryas|heinrich|interglacial|quaternary)\b", "Pleistocene"),
(r"\b(holocene|mid-holocene|late\s+holocene|little\s+ice\s+age|medieval\s+climate)\b", "Holocene"),
(r"\b(anthropocene|future|projection|cmip6|ssp\d|21st\s+century|warming\s+world|urban|pfas|microplastic|industrial)\b", "Anthropocene"),
]
for _cid, _plist in SUBTOPIC_PROFILES.items():
for _p in _plist:
_p["_rx"] = re.compile(_p["keywords"], flags=re.I)
_COMPILED_OBS_RULES = [(re.compile(pat, flags=re.I), label) for pat, label in SPECIFIC_OBSERVABLE_RULES]
_COMPILED_REGION_RULES = [(re.compile(pat, flags=re.I), label) for pat, label in REGION_RULES]
_COMPILED_ERA_RULES = [(re.compile(pat, flags=re.I), label) for pat, label in ERA_RULES]
def match_subtopic_profile(cat_id, title, open_sent, abstract=""):
"""Select the best-matching sub-discipline profile within cat_id using keyword overlap."""
profiles = SUBTOPIC_PROFILES[cat_id]
text = f"{title} {title} {open_sent} {abstract}".lower()
default_idx = 4 if cat_id == 1 else (1 if cat_id == 3 else 0)
best_prof = profiles[default_idx]
best_score = 0
for prof in profiles:
matches = prof["_rx"].findall(text)
score = len(matches) * 3 + len(set(matches)) * 5
if score > best_score:
best_score = score
best_prof = prof
return best_prof
def extract_rich_metadata(title, open_sent, abstract, sub_prof, idx_in_cat):
"""Extract paper-specific observables, region, and geologic era."""
text = f"{title} {open_sent} {abstract}"
obs = []
for rx, label in _COMPILED_OBS_RULES:
if rx.search(text) and label not in obs:
obs.append(label)
if len(obs) == 2:
break
for default_obs in sub_prof["observables"]:
if len(obs) < 2 and default_obs not in obs:
obs.append(default_obs)
region = None
for rx, reg_label in _COMPILED_REGION_RULES:
if rx.search(text):
region = reg_label
break
if not region:
region_defaults = {
"core_dynamo_inner_core": "Planetary Deep Interior (Inner and Outer Core)",
"lower_mantle_plumes_transition_zone": "Global Mantle Transition Zone and Lower Mantle",
"subduction_slab_mantle_wedge": "Circum-Pacific and Tethyan Subduction Margins",
"continental_rifting_breakup_margins": "Continental Rift Systems and Rifted Passive Margins",
"craton_orogen_continental_crust": "Archean–Proterozoic Cratons and Continental Orogens",
"earthquake_rupture_fault_mechanics": "Plate-Boundary and Intraplate Seismogenic Fault Zones",
"slow_slip_tremor_megathrust": "Subduction Megathrust Interfaces",
"volcanic_plumbing_eruption_degassing": "Active Arc, Rift, and Hotspot Volcanic Systems",
"tsunami_seafloor_displacement": "Tsunamigenic Subduction Trenches and Coastal Margins",
"landslide_debris_flow_mass_wasting": "Steep Orogenic Hillslopes and Volcanic Edifices",
"low_temp_aqueous_clay_sorption_interface": "Near-Surface Mineral–Water Interfaces and Regolith",
"igneous_petrology_magmatic_differentiation": "Crustal and Upper-Mantle Magmatic Provinces",
"hydrothermal_ore_deposits_metallogeny": "Magmatic–Hydrothermal and Submarine Metallogenic Belts",
"isotope_geochemistry_geochronology": "Crustal and Mantle Geochemical Reservoirs",
"high_pressure_mineral_physics_metamorphism": "High-Pressure Metamorphic Terranes and Deep Lithosphere",
}
region = region_defaults.get(sub_prof["sub_id"], "Global and Representative Regional Observatories")
era = None
for rx, era_label in _COMPILED_ERA_RULES:
if rx.search(text):
era = era_label
break
if not era:
if sub_prof["temporal_scale"] in ("geological_deep_time", "billion_year_planetary", "multi_million_year_tectonic"):
era = "Cenozoic"
elif sub_prof["temporal_scale"] in ("millennial_to_orbital", "centennial_to_millennial"):
era = "Quaternary"
else:
era = "Holocene" if idx_in_cat % 2 == 0 else "Anthropocene"
return obs, region, era
# Finite declarative verbs commonly found in research paper titles
DECLARATIVE_VERB_MAP = [
(r"^(.+?)\s+(?:shows?|demonstrates?|indicates?|suggests?|supports?|implies?)\s+(?:that\s+)?(.+)$", "Evidence from {0} for {1}", "how {0} relates to {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+drives\s+(.+)$", "Controls of {0} on {1}", "how {0} drives {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+drive\s+(.+)$", "Controls of {0} on {1}", "how {0} drive {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+controls?\s+(.+)$", "Controls of {0} on {1}", "how {0} controls {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+tracks?\s+(.+)$", "Tracking of {1} by {0}", "how {0} tracks {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+reveals?\s+(.+)$", "{1} Inferred from {0}", "how {0} constrains {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+governs?\s+(.+)$", "Mechanisms by Which {0} Governs {1}", "how {0} governs {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+regulates?\s+(.+)$", "Regulation of {1} by {0}", "how {0} regulates {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+determines?\s+(.+)$", "Determination of {1} by {0}", "how {0} determines {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+influences?\s+(.+)$", "Influence of {0} on {1}", "how {0} influences {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+affects?\s+(.+)$", "Effects of {0} on {1}", "how {0} affects {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+promotes?\s+(.+)$", "Role of {0} in Promoting {1}", "how {0} promotes {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+enhances?\s+(.+)$", "Enhancement of {1} by {0}", "how {0} enhances {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+accelerates?\s+(.+)$", "Acceleration of {1} by {0}", "how {0} accelerates {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+triggers?\s+(.+)$", "Triggering of {1} by {0}", "how {0} triggers {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+induces?\s+(.+)$", "Induction of {1} by {0}", "how {0} induces {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+causes?\s+(.+)$", "Causal Link Between {0} and {1}", "how {0} causes {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+suppresses?\s+(.+)$", "Suppression of {1} by {0}", "how {0} suppresses {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+mitigates?\s+(.+)$", "Modulation of {1} by {0}", "how {0} modulates {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+modulates?\s+(.+)$", "Modulation of {1} by {0}", "how {0} modulates {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+dominates?\s+(.+)$", "Dominance of {0} in {1}", "the extent to which {0} dominates {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+explains?\s+(.+)$", "Mechanisms Explaining {1} via {0}", "whether {0} explains {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+shapes?\s+(.+)$", "Influence of {0} on {1}", "how {0} shapes {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+alters?\s+(.+)$", "Alteration of {1} by {0}", "how {0} alters {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+amplifies?\s+(.+)$", "Amplification of {1} by {0}", "how {0} amplifies {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+weakens?\s+(.+)$", "Weakening of {1} by {0}", "how {0} weakens {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+stabilizes?\s+(.+)$", "Stabilization of {1} by {0}", "how {0} stabilizes {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+constrains?\s+(.+)$", "Constraints from {0} on {1}", "how {0} constrains {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+limits?\s+(.+)$", "Limitation of {1} by {0}", "how {0} limits {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+sustains?\s+(.+)$", "Sustaining of {1} by {0}", "how {0} sustains {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+maintains?\s+(.+)$", "Maintenance of {1} by {0}", "how {0} maintains {1}"),
(r"^(.+?)\s+is\s+(?:recycled|transported|mobilized|trapped|stored|released)\s+(.+)$", "Mechanisms of {0} Cycling {1}", "how {0} is cycled {1}"),
]
_COMPILED_DECL_MAP = [(re.compile(pat, flags=re.I), tf, sf) for pat, tf, sf in DECLARATIVE_VERB_MAP]
_RX_BAD_DECL_A = re.compile(r"\b(?:as|for|to|of|in|on|with|by|from|and|or|the|a|an|their|its|our|between|among|under|during|through|via)$", re.I)
_RX_BAD_DECL_B = re.compile(r"^(?:of|in|on|for|from|with|by|at|to|and|or|as|between|among)\b", re.I)
def clean_and_nominalize_title(raw_title):
"""
Return (clean_problem_title, grammatical_subject_phrase) so that declarative paper titles
never cause double-verb collisions, mid-sentence colons, or Title-Case artifacts when embedded in questions.
"""
t = re.sub(r"<[^>]+>", "", raw_title or "").strip().rstrip(".")
t = re.sub(r"\s+", " ", t)
# Convert leading "What drives X" / "What controls X" into "Drivers of X" / "Controls on X"
t = re.sub(r"^what\s+drives\s+(?:the\s+)?", "Drivers of ", t, flags=re.I)
t = re.sub(r"^what\s+controls\s+(?:the\s+)?", "Controls on ", t, flags=re.I)
# Strip conversational paper-style suffixes after colon/dash
t = re.sub(
r"\s*[:–—-]\s*(?:a\s+key\s+to\s+understanding\s+|insights?\s+from\s+|evidence\s+from\s+|"
r"a\s+case\s+study\s+(?:of|from|in)\s+|new\s+constraints?\s+(?:from|on)\s+|"
r"implications?\s+for\s+|a\s+review\s+of\s+|perspectives?\s+from\s+)(.+)$",
r" (\1)",
t,
flags=re.I,
)
t = re.sub(r"\s*[:–—-]\s*a\s+review$", "", t, flags=re.I)
# Strip leading gerunds like "Quantifying the ...", "Understanding the ...", "Assessing the ..."
t_core = re.sub(
r"^(?:quantifying|understanding|assessing|evaluating|investigating|exploring|unraveling|deciphering|probing|revisiting|constraining|characterizing|modeling|simulating)\s+(?:the\s+)?",
"",
t,
flags=re.I,
)
if len(t_core) >= 20:
t = t_core[0].upper() + t_core[1:]
# Replace secondary compound verbs ("and reveals", "and shows", "and indicates")
t = re.sub(r"\b(?:and|which)\s+(?:reveals?|shows?|demonstrates?|indicates?|suggests?)\b", "and", t, flags=re.I)
if t.endswith("?"):
q_clean = t.rstrip("?").strip()
subj = normalize_mid_sentence_case(q_clean[0].lower() + q_clean[1:])
return q_clean, subj
for rx, title_fmt, subj_fmt in _COMPILED_DECL_MAP:
m = rx.match(t)
if m:
a = m.group(1).strip()
b = m.group(2).strip()
if len(a) >= 4 and len(b) >= 4 and not _RX_BAD_DECL_A.search(a) and not _RX_BAD_DECL_B.search(b):
a_low = a[0].lower() + a[1:] if not a[:2].isupper() else a
b_low = b[0].lower() + b[1:] if not b[:2].isupper() else b
new_title = title_fmt.format(a, b)
new_subj = normalize_mid_sentence_case(subj_fmt.format(a_low, b_low))
return new_title, new_subj
subj = normalize_mid_sentence_case(t)
return t, subj
_RX_FIRST_PERSON = re.compile(
r"\b(?:we\s+|our\s+(?:study|work|paper|results|model|data|simulations|findings|approach|analysis|method|experiments|observations|measurements)|this\s+study|this\s+paper|have\s+explored|was\s+based)\b",
re.I,
)
_RX_POST = re.compile(
r"(?:remains?|is|are|has\s+remained|have\s+remained|remain\s+to\s+be|has\s+yet\s+to\s+be)\s+"
r"(?:(?:at\s+present|currently|generally|relatively|often|very|somewhat|quite|still|largely|poorly|widely|highly|mostly|badly|yet\s+to\s+be|not\s+well|not\s+fully|not\s+yet|rarely|seldom|as\s+yet|hotly|actively)\s+)*"
r"(?:unclear|unknown|debated|controversial|unresolved|elusive|underconstrained|unconstrained|understood|constrained|quantified|determined|explored|documented|resolved|clear|known|open\s+question|unanswered|a\s+topic\s+of\s+debate|a\s+matter\s+of\s+debate|under\s+debate)\s*"
r"(?:as\s+to\s+|regarding\s+|concerning\s+|is\s+)?"
r"((?:whether|if|how|why|what|to\s+what\s+extent|which|when|where)\b.{18,240})",
re.I,
)
_RX_PRE = re.compile(
r"(?:^|(?:however|yet|nevertheless|nonetheless|but|whilst|while|whereas|although[^,;]+,|because[^,;]+,|despite[^,;]+,|and|;\s*)\s*,?\s*)"
r"([A-Za-zδΔε][^.?!;:]{10,190}?)\s+"
r"(?:remains?|is|are|has\s+remained|have\s+remained|has\s+been|have\s+been|remain|continue\s+to\s+be|continues\s+to\s+be)\s+"
r"(?:as\s+)?(?:(?:at\s+present|currently|generally|relatively|often|very|somewhat|quite|still|largely|poorly|widely|highly|mostly|badly|not\s+well|not\s+fully|not\s+yet|inhomogeneously|incompletely|rarely|seldom|yet\s+to\s+be|as\s+yet|hotly|actively|hence)\s+)*"
r"(?:unclear|unknown|debated|controversial|unresolved|elusive|underconstrained|unconstrained|poorly\s+constrained|poorly\s+understood|not\s+well\s+understood|not\s+fully\s+understood|constrained|understood|quantified|documented|resolved|determined|lacking|open|uncertain|enigmatic|unanswered|an\s+open\s+question|a\s+fundamental\s+question|a\s+major\s+challenge|a\s+key\s+challenge|subject\s+to\s+debate|a\s+matter\s+of\s+debate|a\s+topic\s+of\s+debate|under\s+debate|in\s+debate|to\s+be\s+determined|to\s+be\s+resolved|to\s+be\s+quantified)",
re.I,
)
_RX_MOD = re.compile(
r"\b(?:poorly\s+constrained|poorly\s+understood|poorly\s+documented|rarely\s+quantified|unresolved|long-standing\s+debate\s+(?:over|on|regarding)|fundamental\s+questions?\s+(?:on|about|regarding|related\s+to))\s+([a-zA-ZδΔ][^.?!;:]{12,140})",
re.I,
)
_RX_LITTLE = re.compile(
r"\b(?:little\s+is\s+known\s+(?:about|regarding|on|concerning)|"
r"few\s+studies\s+have\s+(?:quantified|examined|investigated|constrained|addressed|evaluated|explored)|"
r"lack\s+(?:of\s+)?(?:a\s+)?(?:consensus|quantitative\s+understanding|mechanistic\s+understanding)\s+(?:on|regarding|of|about)|"
r"there\s+is\s+no\s+consensus\s+(?:on|regarding|about|as\s+to)|"
r"(?:open\s+questions?|major\s+uncertainties|fundamental\s+uncertainties|significant\s+uncertainties|key\s+questions?|fundamental\s+questions?)\s+(?:still\s+)?(?:remain\s+|exist\s+|persist\s+)?(?:regarding|about|on|concerning|in|related\s+to|surrounding|include)\s*[:\-]?)\s*"
r"([A-Za-zδΔε][^.?!;:]{14,180})",
re.I,
)
_RX_CHALLENGE = re.compile(
r"([A-Za-zδΔε][^.?!;:]{14,160}?)\s+(?:poses?\s+a\s+(?:major|fundamental|key|significant|critical)\s+challenge|is\s+one\s+of\s+the\s+most\s+(?:uncertain|controversial|debated|challenging)\b[^.?!;:]{0,50})",
re.I,
)
def extract_open_clause_from_sentence(open_sent, subj_phrase):
"""
Parse the open-problem sentence from the paper abstract into a structured research question core.
Handles post-predicate wh-clauses, pre-predicate open subjects, contrast gaps, and direct questions.
"""
if not open_sent:
return None, None
s = re.sub(r"<[^>]+>", " ", open_sent)
s = re.sub(r"^(?:Abstract|Summary|Plain\s+Language\s+Summary|Key\s+Points)\s*[:.\-]?\s*", "", s, flags=re.I)
# Strip inline superscript reference numbers attached to words (e.g. "plumes5", "lithosphere4,6")
s = re.sub(r"(?<=[a-zA-Z\)])\d+(?:[,\-–]\d+)*", "", s)
# Normalize impersonal "our understanding of " / "our knowledge of "
s = re.sub(r"\bour\s+(?:understanding|knowledge)\s+of\s+", "the mechanisms of ", s, flags=re.I)
# Remove comma-bounded transitional adverbs
s = re.sub(r",\s*(?:however|nevertheless|nonetheless|therefore|thus|consequently|moreover|furthermore|for\s+example|in\s+particular|in\s+contrast)\s*,", " ", s, flags=re.I)
s = re.sub(r"\s+", " ", s).strip()
def de_anaphorize(cl):
cl = re.sub(r"^(?:however|yet|nevertheless|nonetheless|but|although|while|whereas|consequently|therefore|thus|still|nonetheless|furthermore|moreover)\s*,?\s*", "", cl, flags=re.I)
cl = re.sub(r"\b(?:in\s+this\s+study|in\s+this\s+work|in\s+this\s+paper|here\s+we\s+\w+|in\s+this\s+region|in\s+this\s+area|in\s+the\s+study\s+area)\b", "", cl, flags=re.I)
cl = re.sub(r"\s+\bthere\b", "", cl, flags=re.I)
# If there is a comma where the preceding clause is a subordinate/introductory clause or contains a finite verb, take the final segment after the comma (unless cl starts with a WH-word)
if ", " in cl and not cl.lower().startswith(("whether ", "how ", "why ", "what ", "to what extent ")):
parts = [p.strip() for p in cl.split(", ") if p.strip()]
if len(parts) >= 2:
prefix = " ".join(parts[:-1])
if re.search(
r"\b(?:although|while|whereas|despite|because|since|when|if|many|most|several|previous|studies|have|has|had|was|were|is|are|explored|investigated|documented|known|based|observed|reported|shown|found|believed|proposed|due\s+to|owing\s+to|in\s+the\s+absence)\b",
prefix,
flags=re.I,
):
cl = parts[-1]
# Replace demonstrative/possessive anaphors without duplicating head nouns already in subj_phrase
def _replace_possessive(m):
noun = m.group(1).strip()
head_word = noun.split()[0].lower()
if len(head_word) >= 4 and head_word in subj_phrase.lower():
return f"the {noun}"
return f"the {noun} of {subj_phrase}"
cl = re.sub(
r"^\b(?:its|their|this|these|such)\s+([a-z][a-z\s\-]{3,45})\b",
_replace_possessive,
cl,
flags=re.I,
)
cl = re.sub(
r"\b(?:this|these)\s+(change|process|processes|mechanism|mechanisms|transport|phenomenon|effect|effects|weakness|weaknesses|interaction|interactions|variation|variability|feature|features|anomaly|anomalies|transition|relationship|relationships)\b",
lambda m: f"the {m.group(1)}",
cl,
flags=re.I,
)
cl = re.sub(r"\s*:\s*", " — ", cl)
cl = normalize_mid_sentence_case(cl)
return re.sub(r"\s+", " ", cl).strip().rstrip(".,;:")
# 1. Direct question in open_sentence
if "?" in s:
q_part = s.split("?")[0].strip()
if ":" in q_part and len(q_part.split(":")[-1].strip()) > 25:
q_part = q_part.split(":")[-1].strip()
q_part = re.sub(r"\s*:\s*", " — ", q_part)
if len(q_part) >= 28 and not _RX_FIRST_PERSON.search(q_part):
return "direct_q", q_part[0].upper() + q_part[1:] + "?"
# 2. Post-predicate WH-clause
m_post = _RX_POST.search(s)
if m_post:
cl = de_anaphorize(m_post.group(1))
if len(cl) >= 20 and not _RX_FIRST_PERSON.search(cl):
return "post_wh", cl
# 3. Pre-predicate open subject
m_pre = _RX_PRE.search(s)
if m_pre:
cl = de_anaphorize(m_pre.group(1))
if len(cl) >= 12 and not _RX_FIRST_PERSON.search(cl):
return "pre_subj", cl
# 4. Noun phrase with embedded "poorly constrained / poorly understood / unresolved" modifier
m_mod = _RX_MOD.search(s)
if m_mod:
cl = de_anaphorize(m_mod.group(1))
if len(cl) >= 14 and not _RX_FIRST_PERSON.search(cl):
return "pre_subj", cl
# 5. "little is known about ...", "few studies have quantified ...", "open questions remain regarding ..."
m_little = _RX_LITTLE.search(s)
if m_little:
cl = de_anaphorize(m_little.group(1))
if len(cl) >= 14 and not _RX_FIRST_PERSON.search(cl):
if cl.lower().startswith(("whether ", "if ", "how ", "why ", "what ", "to what extent ", "which ", "when ", "where ")):
return "post_wh", cl
return "pre_subj", cl
# 6. "... poses a major challenge ..." / "... is one of the most uncertain/controversial ..."
m_chal = _RX_CHALLENGE.search(s)
if m_chal:
cl = de_anaphorize(m_chal.group(1))
if len(cl) >= 14 and not _RX_FIRST_PERSON.search(cl):
return "pre_subj", cl
return None, None
def synthesize_grounded_statements(title, open_sent, abstract, sub_prof, obs_list, region, idx_in_cat):
"""
Synthesize (clean_title, statement, plain_statement, precise_statement, what_would_settle_it, is_grounded).
Guarantees 0 mid-sentence colons, 0 Title-Case artifacts, and embeds sub-discipline governing equations in precise_statement.
"""
clean_title, subj = clean_and_nominalize_title(title)
kind, cl = extract_open_clause_from_sentence(open_sent, subj)
comp = sub_prof["components"][0].replace("_", " ")
med = sub_prof["media"][0].replace("_", " ")
proc0 = sub_prof["processes"][0].replace("_", " ")
proc1 = sub_prof["processes"][1].replace("_", " ")
obs0 = obs_list[0]
obs1 = obs_list[1] if len(obs_list) > 1 else sub_prof["observables"][-1]
inf0 = sub_prof["inferred"][idx_in_cat % len(sub_prof["inferred"])]
forc = sub_prof["forcings"]
bndry = sub_prof["boundaries"]
depth = sub_prof["depth_range"]
gov_eqs = GOVERNING_RELATIONS_BY_SUB_ID[sub_prof["sub_id"]]
gov_eq = gov_eqs[idx_in_cat % len(gov_eqs)]
if kind == "direct_q":
statement = cl
elif kind == "post_wh":
cl_low = cl[0].lower() + cl[1:] if not cl[:2].isupper() else cl
if cl_low.lower().startswith(("whether ", "if ")):
body = re.sub(r"^(?:whether|if)\s+", "", cl_low, flags=re.I)
statement = f"Regarding {subj}, what mechanisms determine whether {body}?"
elif cl_low.lower().startswith(("how ", "why ", "what ", "which ", "when ", "where ")):
subj_words = set(re.findall(r"[a-z]{4,}", subj.lower()))
cl_words = set(re.findall(r"[a-z]{4,}", cl_low.lower()))
if len(subj_words & cl_words) >= 2:
statement = f"In {comp} systems, {cl_low}, and how is this governed by {forc}?"
else:
statement = f"In the context of {subj}, {cl_low}?"
else:
statement = f"Regarding {subj}, {cl_low} under varying {bndry}?"
elif kind == "pre_subj":
cl_low = cl[0].lower() + cl[1:] if not cl[:2].isupper() else cl
subj_words = set(re.findall(r"[a-z]{4,}", subj.lower()))
cl_words = set(re.findall(r"[a-z]{4,}", cl_low.lower()))
overlap = len(subj_words & cl_words)
if cl_low.lower().startswith(("how ", "why ", "what ", "whether ")):
if overlap >= 2:
statement = f"Within {comp} environments, what physical and chemical processes determine {cl_low}?"
else:
statement = f"In the study of {subj}, what mechanisms determine {cl_low}?"
else:
if overlap >= 2:
q_patterns = [
f"What physical, chemical, and dynamical mechanisms govern {cl_low}, and how do {forc} interact with {bndry}?",
f"How can {cl_low} be quantitatively constrained across {region}, and what is the relative importance of {proc0} versus {proc1}?",
f"What processes control {cl_low} within the {comp}, and what thresholds govern its response to {forc}?",
]
else:
q_patterns = [
f"In the context of {subj}, what mechanisms govern {cl_low}, and how is it modulated by {bndry}?",
f"Regarding {subj}, how do {proc0} and {forc} control {cl_low} across {region}?",
f"What quantitative constraints govern {cl_low} in {subj}, and how does this resolve {inf0}?",
]
statement = q_patterns[idx_in_cat % len(q_patterns)]
else:
sub_templates = [
f"What physical and biogeochemical mechanisms govern {subj} within the {comp}, and how do {forc} interact with {bndry}?",
f"How do coupled processes of {proc0} and {proc1} in {med} control {subj} across {region}, and how can {obs0} resolve {inf0}?",
f"What are the relative causal contributions of {forc} and {bndry} in controlling {subj}, and what thresholds govern {inf0}?",
]
statement = sub_templates[idx_in_cat % len(sub_templates)]
statement = re.sub(r"\s*:\s*", " — ", statement)
statement = re.sub(r"\s+", " ", statement).strip().rstrip(".?!") + "?"
if kind in ("pre_subj", "post_wh") and cl and len(cl) < 110:
cl_short = cl[0].lower() + cl[1:] if not cl[:2].isupper() else cl
plain_templates = [
f"What natural processes control {cl_short} in relation to {subj}?",
f"How do {proc0} and environmental conditions govern {cl_short} in {subj}?",
f"Why does {subj} remain difficult to predict, and what controls {cl_short} in Earth's {comp}?",
]
else:
plain_templates = [
f"What natural processes control {subj} in Earth's {comp}, and how does it respond to {forc}?",
f"How do {proc0} and {med} properties work together to govern {subj} across {region}?",
f"Why does {subj} vary across space and time, and what observations can resolve {inf0}?",
]
plain_statement = re.sub(r"\s*:\s*", " — ", plain_templates[idx_in_cat % len(plain_templates)])
plain_statement = re.sub(r"\s+", " ", plain_statement).strip().rstrip(".?!") + "?"
precise_statement = (
f"Within {med} of the {comp} ({depth}), how do {forc} and {bndry} interact via {proc0} "
f"(governed by {gov_eq}) to control {subj}, and can {obs0} uniquely resolve {inf0}?"
)
precise_statement = re.sub(r"\s*:\s*", " — ", precise_statement)
precise_statement = re.sub(r"\s+", " ", precise_statement).strip().rstrip(".?!") + "?"
what_would_settle_it = (
f"Co-located observations of {obs0} and {obs1} coupled with "
f"process-resolving models of {proc0} to constrain {inf0}."
)
return clean_title, statement, plain_statement, precise_statement, what_would_settle_it, kind is not None