The HI halo of spiral galaxies

A deep H I survey with the VLA of the spiral galaxy NGC 2403 has revealed the existence of a thick, low density layer of neutral gas surrounding the thin ‘cold’ disk. This layer has a mean rotation velocity 25–50 km s^-1 lower than that of the disk and a 10–20 km s^-1inflow towards the centre of the galaxy. In the central parts there are velocity differences from rotation of up to 150 km s^-1.Chandra observations of NGC 2403 show a diffuse, hot X-ray emitting gas component with a temperature of a few 10⁶ K. These results point at galactic fountain type of flows between disk and halo. ‘Halo’ gas with similar characteristics has also been observed in other spiral galaxies(e.g. NGC 6946, NGC 891). Such gas is probably similar to the IVCs and to some of the HVCs of the Milky Way.     

The effects of wastewater discharges on the functioning of a small temporarily open/closed estuary

Wastewater discharges affect the functioning of small temporarily open/closed estuaries (TOCEs) through two main mechanisms: (1) they can significantly change the water balance by altering the quantity of water inflows, and (2) they can significantly change the nutrient balance and hence the water quality. This study investigated the bio-physical responses of a typical, small TOCE on the east coast of South Africa, the Mhlanga Estuary. This estuary receives significant inflows of treated effluent from upstream wastewater treatment works. Water and nutrient budgets were used together with biological sampling to investigate changes in the functioning of the system. The increase in inflows due to the effluent discharges has significantly increased the mouth breaching frequency. Furthermore, when the mouth closes, the accumulation of nutrients leads to eutrophication and algal blooms. A grey water index, namely the proportion of effluent in the estuary and an indicator of the additional nutrient inputs into the estuary, reached high values (?50%) during low flow regimes and when the mouth was closed. In these hyper-eutrophic conditions (DIN and DIP concentrations up to 457 μM and 100 μM respectively), field measurements showed that algal blooms occurred within about 14 days following closure of the mouth (chlorophyll-a concentrations up to 375 mg chl-a m⁻³). Water and nutrient balance simulations for alternative scenarios suggest that further increases in wastewater discharges would result in more frequent breaching events and longer open mouth conditions, but the occurrence of hyper-eutrophic conditions would initially intensify despite more frequent openings. The study indicates how water and nutrient balance simulations can be used in the planning and impact assessment of wastewater treatment facilities.     

Acoustic sounding of land and sea breezes

Sodar measurements have been made at La Spezia, Italy during land- and sea-breeze conditions. The backscatter returns are discussed qualitatively, including their relation to the vertical structure of the boundary layer as revealed by vertical soundings of wind and temperature. During inversion conditions, the sodar signals may be difficult to interpret especially when there is a land breeze flowing over irregular terrain.     

The June 4th 1999 severe weather episode in San Quirino, Italy: a tornado event?

On the morning of June 4th 1999, a severe weather event took place in San Quirino, a small village of Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the northeast of Italy. This village is located near the piedmont of the Alps, 40 km west from Udine and 60 km north from Venice.Around 0900 UTC (1100 local time), a thunderstorm with an intense hail fall affected the area of San Quirino. A few minutes later (around 0920 UTC, source: a farmer), a funnel cloud from a cumulonimbus touched the ground, producing damages to houses, trees and sheds. The damaged area was quite narrow (about 300 m) and short (less than 10 km). No injuries to people were reported.In spite of the smallness of the area interested by the phenomenon, this storm is studied here starting from the synoptic scale, moving to the mesoscale and finishing with the storm scale, trying to underline its characteristics. These analyses, especially those coming from the Doppler radar images, bring us to the conclusion that the San Quirino episode was produced by a supercell storm.     

Magmatic History of Somma-Vesuvius on the Basis of New Geochemical and Isotopic Data from a Deep Borehole (Camaldoli della Torre)

A continuous-coring borehole recently drilled at Camaldoli dellaTorre on the southern slopes of Somma–Vesuvius providesconstraints on the volcanic and magmatic history of the Vesuvianvolcanic area since c. 126 ka BP. The cored sequence includesvolcanic units, defined on stratigraphical, sedimentological,petrological and geochemical grounds, emitted from both localand distal vents. Some of these units are of known age, suchas one Phlegraean pre-Campanian Ignimbrite, Campanian Ignimbrite(39 ka), Neapolitan Yellow Tuff (14· 9 ka) and VesuvianPlinian deposits, which helps to constrain the relative ageof the other units. The main rock types encountered are shoshonite,phonotephrite, latite, trachyte and phonolite. The sequenceincludes, from the base upwards: a thick succession of pyroclasticunits emplaced between 126 and 39 ka, most of them attributedto eruptions that occurred in the Phlegraean area; the CampanianIgnimbrite; the products of a local tuff cone formed between39 ka and the deposition of the products of the earliest activityof the Mt. Somma volcano; the products of the Somma–Vesuviusvolcano, which include from the base upwards a thick sequenceof lavas, pyroclastic rocks and the products of a local spattercone dated between 3· 7 ka and AD 79. The data obtainedfrom the study of the borehole show that, before the CampanianIgnimbrite eruption, low-energy explosive volcanism took placein the Vesuvian area, whereas mostly high-energy explosive eruptionscharacterized the Campi Flegrei activity. In the Vesuvian area,Campanian Ignimbrite deposition was followed by the eruptionof a local tuff cone and a long repose time, which predatedthe formation of the Mt. Somma edifice. Since 18· 3 ka(Pomici di Base eruption) the activity of Somma–Vesuviusbecame mostly explosive with rare lava effusions. The shallowestcored deposits belong to the Camaldoli della Torre cone, formedbetween the Pomici di Avellino and Pomici di Pompei eruptions(3· 7 ka–AD 79). New geochemical and Sr–Nd–Pb–B-isotopicdata on samples from the drilled core, together with those availablefrom the literature, allow us to further distinguish the volcanicrocks as a function of both their provenance (i.e. Phlegraeanor Vesuvian areas) and age, and to identify different magmaticprocesses acting through time in the Vesuvian mantle source(s)and during magma ascent towards the surface. Isotopically distinctmagmas, rising from a mantle source variably contaminated byslab-derived components, stagnated at mid-crustal depths (8–10km below sea level) where magmas differentiated and were probablycontaminated. Contamination occurred either with Hercynian continentalcrust, mostly during the oldest stages of Vesuvian activity(from 39 to 16 ka), or with Mesozoic limestone, mostly duringrecent Vesuvian activity. Energy constrained assimilation andfractional crystallization (EC-AFC) modelling results show thatcontamination with Hercynian crust probably occurred duringdifferentiation from shoshonite to latite. Contamination withlimestone, which is not well constrained with the availabledata, might have occurred only during the transition from shoshoniteto tephrite. From the ‘deep’ reservoir, magmas rosetowards a series of shallow reservoirs, in which they differentiatedfurther, mixed, and fed volcanic activity. KEY WORDS: Somma–Vesuvius; crustal contamination; source heterogeneity; radiogenic and stable isotopes; magmatic system     

Sensitivity Analysis and Investigation of the Behaviour of the UTOPIA Land-Surface Process Model: A Case Study for Vineyards in Northern Italy

We used sensitivity-analysis techniques to investigate the behaviour of the land-surface model UTOPIA while simulating the micrometeorology of a typical northern Italy vineyard (Vitis vinifera L.) under average climatic conditions. Sensitivity-analysis experiments were performed by sampling the vegetation parameter hyperspace using the Morris method and quantifying the parameter relevance across a wide range of soil conditions. This method was used since it proved its suitability for models with high computational time or with a large number of parameters, in a variety of studies performed on different types of biophysical models. The impact of input variability was estimated on reference model variables selected among energy (e.g. net radiation, sensible and latent heat fluxes) and hydrological (e.g. soil moisture, surface runoff, drainage) budget components. Maximum vegetation cover and maximum leaf area index were ranked as the most relevant parameters, with sensitivity indices exceeding the remaining parameters by about one order of magnitude. Soil variability had a high impact on the relevance of most of the vegetation parameters: coefficients of variation calculated on the sensitivity indices estimated for the different soils often exceeded 100 %. The only exceptions were represented by maximum vegetation cover and maximum leaf area index, which showed a low variability in sensitivity indices while changing soil type, and confirmed their key role in affecting model results.     

I frigorimetri “Z” caratteristiche,costruzione, impiego

Riassunto Si descrivono i frigorimetri Z studiati dall'Autore ponendone in luce le caratteristiche fondamentali rispetto ad altri tipi di frigorimetri, si danno istruzioni complete per la loro posa e per la lettura dei valori frigorimetrici e si accenna alle loro applicazioni termotecniche e climatologiche.

---

Zusammenfassung Die vom Verf. gezeichneten und gebauten Z-Frigorimeter werden ausführlich beschrieben mit Hervorhebung der betreffenden Eigentümlichkeiten in Verhältnis mit den anderen Typen von solcher Instrumente. Vollständige Winke zum praktischen Gebrauch sind angegeben, mit Erörtung der thermotechnischen und klimatologischen Anwendungen.

---

Résumé On décrit les frigorimètres Z, étudiés par l'Auteur, expliquant leur caractèristiques fondamentelles en comparaison des autres types de frigorimètres; en même temps on expose des instructions complètes sur leur installation et sur la lecture des valeurs frigorimètriques, en rélation aux applications termotechniques et climatologiques.

     

A comparative study of microalgal production in a marine versus a river-dominated temporarily open/closed estuary, South Africa

Temporarily open/closed estuaries (TOCEs) account for almost 71% of the total number of South African estuarine systems. To date the dynamics of microalgal production and biomass in TOCEs is poorly understood. A survey was therefore conducted in two TOCEs along the KwaZulu-Natal coast: the river-dominated Mdloti and the marine-dominated Mpenjati. The aims of this investigation were: (1) to compare the variability of benthic and pelagic microalgal production and biomass in these two contrasting systems; (2) to determine the key environmental parameters influencing primary production in these TOCEs. Results show a similar pattern of primary production and biomass in both estuaries. High benthic microalgal biomass with low primary production and low phytoplankton biomass with high rates of pelagic primary production were observed in both estuaries. Possible explanations for this include: (a) optimum light conditions in the water column, compared to the sediment surface; (b) high impact of grazing by zooplankton in the water column; and (c) settling of phytoplankton. Significant correlations were observed between primary production and environmental parameters (K_d, PAR, temperature, DIN and DIP), during the open and closed phases of both estuaries. A BIOENV (PRIMER) analysis showed that patterns of primary production in both estuaries were influenced primarily by interactions of multiple independent parameters. Comparisons between measured hourly pelagic primary production rates at the Mpenjati and Mdloti and the composite parameter (P_c) of Cole and Cloern (1987) revealed highly significant relationships (r² = 0.8; p < 0.001) between these differently derived variables.     

Reconstruction of the Sunspot Number Source Database and the 1947 Zurich Discontinuity

Solar Physics - The final version (V.19) of the total solar irradiance data from the SOlar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) Total Irradiance Monitor has been released. This version includes...     

Origin of talc in the Ionian Sea waters

Talc and/or pyrophyllite have been detected as suspended particulates in the waters of the Ionian Sea (eastern Mediterranean). Differing from similar findings reported in some recent works by many authors, the presence of these silicates is completely attributable to unavoidable contamination during collection and analytical processing of the water samples.