The CREp program and the ICE-D production rate calibration database: A fully parameterizable and updated online tool to compute cosmic-ray exposure ages

Over the last decades, cosmogenic exposure dating has permitted major advances in many fields of Earth surface sciences and particularly in paleoglaciology. Yet, exposure age calculation remains a complicated and dense procedure. It requires numerous choices of parameterization and the use of an accurate production rate.This study describes the CREp program (http://crep.crpg.cnrs-nancy.fr) and the ICE-D production rate online database (http://calibration.ice-d.org). This system is designed so that the CREp calculator will automatically reflect the current state of this global calibration database production rate, ICE-D. ICE-D will be regularly updated in order to incorporate new calibration data and reflect the current state of the available literature.CREp is a Octave/Matlab^© online code that computes Cosmic Ray Exposure (CRE) ages for ³He and ¹⁰Be. A stand-alone version of the CREp code is also released with the present article. Note however that only the online version is connected to the online database ICE-D. The CREp program offers the possibility to calculate ages with two scaling models: i.e. the empirical Lal-Stone time-dependent model (Balco et al., 2008; Lal, 1991; Stone, 2000) with the muon parameters of Braucher et al. (2011), and the Lifton-Sato-Dunai (LSD) theoretical model (Lifton et al., 2014). The default atmosphere model is the ERA-40 database (Uppala et al., 2005), but one may also use the standard atmosphere for comparison (N.O.A.A, 1976). To perform the time-dependent correction, users may import their own geomagnetic database for paleomagnetic corrections or opt for one of the three proposed datasets (Lifton, 2016; Lifton et al., 2014; Muscheler et al., 2005).For the important choice of the production rate, CREp is linked to a database of production rate calibration data that is part of the ICE-D (Informal Cosmogenic-nuclide Exposure-age Database) project (http://calibration.ice-d.org). This database includes published empirical calibration rate studies that are publicly available at present, comprising those of the CRONUS-Earth and CRONUS-EU projects, as well as studies from other projects. In the present study, the efficacy of the different scaling models has also been evaluated looking at the statistical dispersion of the computed Sea Level High Latitude (SLHL) production rates. Lal/Stone and LSD models have comparable efficacies, and the impact of the tested atmospheric model and the geomagnetic database is also limited.Users however have several possibilities to select the production rate: 1) using a worldwide mean value, 2) a regionally averaged value (not available in regions with no data), 3) a local unique value, which can be chosen among the existing dataset or imported by the user, or 4) any combination of multiple calibration data.If a global mean is chosen, the 1σ uncertainty arising from the production rate is about 5% for ¹⁰Be and 10% for ³He. If a regional production rate is picked, these uncertainties are potentially lower.CREp is able to calculate a large number of ages in a reasonable time (typically < 30 s for 50 samples). The user may export a summary table of the computed ages and the density probability function associated with each age (in the form of a spreadsheet).     

New equations for binary gas transport in porous media,Part 2: experimental validation

A previous study [Water Resour Res 39 (3) (2003) doi:10.1029/2002WR001338] questioned the validity of the traditional advection–dispersion equation for describing gas flow in porous media. In an original mathematical derivation presented in Part 1 [Adv Water Resour, this issue] we have demonstrated the theoretical existence of two novel physical phenomena which govern the macroscopic transport of gases in porous media. In this work we utilize laboratory experiments and numerical modeling in order to ascertain the importance of these novel theoretical terms. Numerical modeling results indicate that the newly derived sorptive velocity, arising from closure level coupling effects, does not contribute noticeably to the overall flux, under the conditions explored in this work. We demonstrate that the newly discovered “slip coupling” phenomenon in the mass conservation equation plays an important role in describing the physics of gas flow through porous solids for flow regimes of both environmental and industrial interest.     

Experimental analysis of track-ground vibrations on a stretch of the Portuguese railway network

This paper presents a comprehensive experimental campaign developed on a stretch of the Portuguese railway network. The experimental work includes three fundamental and complementary components: the characterization of the ground, the characterization of the track and the measurement of the vibrations generated by railway traffic. The characterization of the ground was performed using a combination of conventional and geophysical tests (cross-hole and SASW). The mechanical characterization of the track was performed through receptance tests and the rail unevenness profile was accurately measured. The vibrations due to the passage of more than 20 trains were measured. First, a selection of the results is presented and analysed in detail; later, the variability of the responses is briefly discussed. The presented data may be used by other researchers (e.g. in the validation of their prediction models), since it can be downloaded from www.fe.up.pt/~csf/DataCarregado.zip.     

An accessible strong-motion dataset (PGA,PGV, and site vS30) of 2022 MS6.8 Luding,China Earthquake

A M_S6.8 earthquake occurred on 5th September 2022 in Luding county, Sichuan, China, at 12: 52 Beijing Time(4:52 UTC). We complied a dataset of PGA, PGV, and site v_S30 of 73 accelerometers and 791 Micro-Electro-Mechanical System(MEMS)sensors within 300 km of the epicenter. The inferred v_S30 of 820 recording sites were validated. The study results show that:(1)The maximum horizontal PGA and PGV reaches 634.1 Gal and 71.1 cm/s respectively.(2) Over 80% of records ar...     

Selection of spectrum- and seismo-compatible accelerograms for the Tuscany region in Central Italy

This article illustrates the results of a study aimed at developing a methodology for the automatic identification of the seismic input at outcropping rock sites and flat topographic conditions necessary to carry out non-linear dynamic analysis of structures and geotechnical systems. The seismic input is provided in terms of a set of 7 natural accelerograms recorded on outcropping rock and satisfying the average spectral compatibility requirements prescribed by the Italian seismic code (NTC08).The study focuses on the territory encompassing Tuscany region in Central Italy and it has been carried out for six return periods, which are 50, 75, 101, 475, 712 and 949 years. The procedure involved four main steps: (1) grouping of the response spectra with similar features; (2) definition of the reference response spectrum for each group; (3) selection of spectrum-compatible accelerograms using the reference response spectrum of each group; and (4) linear scaling of the accelerograms to satisfy the compatibility requirement with respect to other response spectra of the group. The last step is implemented through an interactive, user-friendly program named SCALCONA 2.0, which provides the seismic input in agreement with the site location and return period specified by the user. The program is freely available at the following web site: http://www.rete.toscana.it/sett/pta/sismica/01informazione/banchedati/input_sismici/progettazione/index.htm.     

ESRfrag: A new suite of open access programs for the efficient handling of Electron Spin Resonance spectra of enamel fragments

Accurate decomposition of Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) spectrum is a crucial task to extract compound signal intensities of enamel fragments at different irradiation time, in particular for dose recovery accuracy. While it can be achieved manually, the task is laborious and repetitive. In this paper, we present a new freely available program “ESRfrag” that allows the alignment, merging, and computation of complex angular ESR spectra. This program is an open access web-based code, designed to specifically alleviate the daunting task of working with large amounts of ESR spectra for enamel fragment dating. ESRfrag provides an increased reliability and precision on the results compared to manual calculation by removing operators bias. The program can be freely access through the Geoarchaeology and Archaeometry Research Group website (https://www.garg.org.au/projects).     

Radiation belt modelling in the framework of space weather effects and forecasting

The Earth's trapped radiation belts were discovered at the beginning of the space age and were immediately recognised as a considerable hazard to space missions. Consequently, considerable effort was invested in building models of the trapped proton and electron populations, culminating in the NASA AP-8 and AE-8 models which have been de facto standards since the 1970s. The CRRES mission has demonstrated that the trapped radiation environment is much more complex than the static environment described by the old models. Spatial and especially temporal variations were shown to be much more important than previously thought, and to require more complex models than those in use at that time. Such models are now becoming available, but they are as yet limited in spatial and temporal coverage. It is vital to coordinate future modelling efforts in order to develop new standard models.The lack of standardisation of radiation belt models complicates their use in engineering applications where particle fluxes are needed as input to radiation effects models. ESA's SPace ENVironment Information System (SPENVIS) provides standardised access to models of the hazardous space environment, including but not limited to radiation effects, through a user-friendly World Wide Web interface. The interface includes parameter input with extensive defaulting, definition of user environments, streamlined production of results (both in graphical and textual form), background information, and on-line help. The system can be accessed at the WWW site http://www.spenvis.oma.be/spenvis/. SPENVIS Is designed to help spacecraft engineers perform rapid analyses of environmental problems and, with extensive documentation and tutorial information, allows engineers with relatively little familiarity to produce reliable results. It has been developed in response to the increasing pressure for rapid-response tools for system engineering, especially in low-cost commercial and educational programmes.     

Field testing and analysis of high speed rail vibrations

This paper outlines an experimental analysis of ground-borne vibration levels generated by high speed rail lines on various earthwork profiles (at-grade, embankment, cutting and overpass). It also serves to provide access to a dataset of experimental measurements, freely available for download by other researchers working in the area of railway vibration (e.g. for further investigation and/or the validation of vibration prediction models).First, the work outlines experimental investigations undertaken on the Belgian high speed rail network to investigate the vibration propagation characteristics of three different embankment conditions. The sites consist of a 5.5 m high embankment, an at-grade section and a 7.2 m deep cutting. The soil material properties of each site are determined using a ‘Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves’ technique and verified using refraction analysis. It is shown that all sites have relatively similar material properties thus enabling a generalised comparison.Vibration levels are measured in three directions, up to 100 m from the track due to three different train types (Eurostar, TGV and Thalys) and then analysed statistically. It is found that contrary to commonly accepted theory, vertical vibrations are not always the most dominant, and that horizontal vibrations should also be considered, particularly at larger offsets. It is also found that the embankment earthworks profile produced the lowest vibration levels and the cutting produced the highest. Furthermore, a low (positive) correlation between train speed and vibration levels was found. A selection of the results can be downloaded from www.davidpconnolly.com.     

The development of new solar indices for use in thermospheric density modeling

New solar indices have been developed to improve thermospheric density modeling for research and operational purposes. Out of 11 new and 4 legacy indices and proxies, we have selected 3 (F_10.7, S_10.7, and M_10.7) for use in the new JB2006 empirical thermospheric density model. In this work, we report on the development of these solar irradiance indices. The rationale for their use, their definitions, and their characteristics, including the IS 21348:2007 spectral category and sub-category, wavelength range, solar source temperature region, solar source feature, altitude region of terrestrial atmosphere absorption at unit optical depth, and terrestrial atmosphere thermal processes in the region of maximum energy absorption, are described. We also summarize for each solar index the facility and instrument(s) used to observe the solar emission, the time frame over which the data exist, the measurement cadence, the data latency, and the research as well as operational availability. The new solar indices are provided in forecast as well as real time and historical time frames (http://SpaceWx.com JB2006 Quicklink). We describe the forecast methodology, compare results with actual data for active and quiet solar conditions, and compare improvements in F_10.7 forecasting with legacy HASDM and NOAA SWPC forecasts.     

The response in the Pacific to the sun's decadal peaks and contrasts to cold events in the Southern Oscillation

van Loon et al. [2007. Coupled air–sea response to solar forcing in the Pacific region during northern winter. Journal of Geophysical Research 112, D02108, doi:10.1029/2006JD007378] showed that the Pacific Ocean in northern winter is sensitive to the influence of the sun in its decadal peaks. We extend this study by three solar peaks to a total of 14, examine the response in the stratosphere, and contrast the response to solar forcing to that of cold events (CEs) in the Southern Oscillation. The addition of three solar peak years confirms the earlier results. That is, in solar peak years the sea level pressure (SLP) is, on average, above normal in the Gulf of Alaska and south of the equator, stronger southeast trades blow across the Pacific equator and cause increased upwelling and thus anomalously lower sea surface temperatures (SSTs). Since the effect on the Pacific climate system of solar forcing resembles CEs in the Southern Oscillation, we compare the two and note that, even though their patterns appear similar in some ways, they are particularly different in the stratosphere and are thus due to separate processes. That is, in July–August (JA) of the year leading into January–February (JF) of the solar peak years, the Walker cell expands in the Pacific troposphere, and the stratospheric wind anomalies are westerly below 25 hPa and easterly above, whereas this signal in the stratosphere is absent in CEs. Thus the large-scale east–west tropical atmospheric (Walker) circulation is enhanced, though not to the extent that it is in CEs in the Southern Oscillation, and the solar influence thus appears as a strengthening of the climatological mean regional precipitation maxima in the tropical Pacific. Additionally, CEs have a 1-year evolution, while the response to solar peaks extends across 3 years such that the signal in the Pacific SLP of the solar peaks is similar but weaker in the year leading into the peak and in the year after the peak. The concurrent negative SST anomalies develop during the year before the solar peak, and after the peak the anomalies are still present but are waning. In the stratosphere in solar peaks, the equatorial quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) is amplified when it is in its westerly phase in the lower stratosphere and easterly phase above; and the QBO is suppressed when in its easterly phase below–westerly phase above. Such an association is not evident in CEs.     

Response of the radiation belt electron flux to the solar wind velocity: Parameterization by radial distance and energy

The solar wind velocity is the primary driver of the electron flux variability in Earth's radiation belts. The response of the logarithmic flux (“log-flux”) to this driver has been determined at the geosynchronous orbit and at a fixed energy [Baker, D.N., McPherron, R.L., Cayton, T.E., Klebesadel, R.W., 1990. Linear prediction filter analysis of relativistic electron properties at 6.6 RE. Journal of Geophysical Research 95(A9), 15,133–15,140) and as a function of L shell and fixed energy [Vassiliadis, D., Klimas, A.J., Kanekal, S.G., Baker, D.N., Weigel, R.S., 2002. Long-term average, solar-cycle, and seasonal response of magnetospheric energetic electrons to the solar wind speed. Journal of Geophysical Research 107, doi:10.1029/2001JA000506). In this paper we generalize the response model as a function of particle energy (0.8–6.4 MeV) using POLAR HIST measurements. All three response peaks identified earlier figure prominently in the high-altitude POLAR measurements. The positive response around the geosynchronous orbit is peak P₁ (τ=2±1 d; L=5.8±0.5; E=0.8–6.4 MeV), associated with high-speed, low-density streams and the ULF wave activity they produce. Deeper in the magnetosphere, the response is dominated by a positive peak P₀ (0±1 d; 2.9±0.5R_E; 0.8–1.1 MeV), of a shorter duration and producing lower-energy electrons. The P₀ response occurs during the passage of geoeffective structures containing high IMF and high-density parts, such as ICMEs and other mass ejecta. Finally, the negative peak V₁ (0±0.5 d; 5.7±0.5R_E; 0.8–6.4 MeV) is associated with the “D_st effect” or the quasiadiabatic transport produced by ring-current intensifications. As energies increase, the P₁ and V₁ peaks appear at lower L, while the D_st effect becomes more pronounced in the region L<3. The P₀ effectively disappears for E>1.6 MeV because of low statistics, although it is evident in individual events. The continuity of the response across radial and energy scales supports the earlier hypothesis that each of the three modes corresponds to a qualitatively different type of large-scale electron acceleration and transport.