Characterization of microbial communities associated with African desert dust and their implications for human and ecosystem health

Desert winds aerosolize several billion tons of soil-derived dust each year, including concentrated seasonal pulses from Africa and Asia. Huge dust events create an atmospheric bridge over continents and oceans, and eject a large pulse of soil-associated microorganisms into the atmosphere. These dust events might therefore have a role in expanding the biogeographical range of some microorganisms by facilitating rare long-distance dispersal events. The goal of this study is to characterize the microbes associated with African dust events and determine if they pose a risk to humans or downwind ecosystems. Air samples were collected by vacuum filtration in a source region （Mali, West Africa） during dust events and plated on R2A media to culture microorganisms. These organisms were compared to those in similar samples collected in the Caribbean during Saharan/Sahelian dust events. A high-volume liquid impinger is currently being tested in Barbados, collecting aerosol samples during African dust events. Over 100 bacteria and fungi （19 genera of bacteria and three genera of fungi） have been characterized from source region dust events.     

Factors controlling the spatial and temporal variability of dust emissions

New field measurement techniques are allowing researchers to better understand how surficial properties affect the temporal and spatial variability of dust emissions. In this paper we review the current understanding of the dust emission process and present new field measurements that examine how three surface properties： roughness, crust strength, and temporal changes of surface properties affect dust emissions. These data were collected using three unique measurement systems developed by our team. Roughness exerts considerable control on the entrainment threshold and emissions of dust from a surface. We have carried out a series of experiments designed to quantify roughness effects on aeolian sediment entrainment and transport in a shear stress partitioning framework. Our results show that the model of Raupach et al. （1993） provides very good agreement with available data to predict the amount of shearing stress on the intervening surface among roughness elements, relatively independent of their size and distribution. However, element size affects the aeolian sediment transport process beyond that attributable only to the reduction of surface shear stress caused by the roughness. Additional interactions of the elements with the saltation cloud appear to reduce the transport efficiency and potentially dust emissions as well. The effect of crust strength on dust emissions was assessed using a newly-developed pin penetrometer, which can measure crust strength in-situ. Previous researchers suggested that variation in crust strength even within a small area could lead to considerable spatial variability in dust emissions. Our measurements showed that crust strength is highly variable over a scale of centimeters. This variability may help to explain some of the observed scatter in field measurements of dust emissions for what appear to be homogeneous surfaces. Variability of dust emissions in time and space was also evaluated using a new instrument, the Portable In-Situ Wind Erosion Lab （PI-SWERL） developed to measure dust emissions from soil surfaces.     

Naturally acidic and metalliferous waters at unmined volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits in the Bonnifield mining district, Alaska Range, east-central Alaska

The Bonnifield district hosts 26 tmmined volcanogenic massive sulfide （VMS） occurrences. Environmental geochemical samples of water and stream sediment were collected at several occurrences, concentrating on the two best-exposed and largest deposits, Red Mountain （RM） and Sheep Creek （SC）. Limited samples were also collected at the poorly exposed WTF deposit. The deposits are Late Devonian to Early Mississippian, and are hosted by felsic metavolcanic and carbonaceous schist members of the Totatlanika Schist or Keevy Peak Fm. Spring and stream waters at RM and SC have pH values commonly 〈3.5 （as low as 2.4 at RM and 2.5 at SC）, high conductivity （up to 11000 μS/cm）, and very high （Is to 100s mg/L） dissolved contents of Al, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Ni, and Pb. Waters at RM are characterized by extremely high REE contents （summed REE median 3200 μg/L, n=33）. At both RM and SC, pyrite oxidation and dissolution produce low pH waters that interact with and dissolve bedrock minerals, resulting in acidic, metal-laden, naturally degraded streams that are mostly devoid of aquatic life. Ferricrete is common. In contrast, WTF barely produces a surficial environmental footprint, mostly due to topography and relief. RM and SC are well exposed in the areas of relatively high relief, and both exhibit extensive areas of quartz-sericite-pyrite-alteration. While WTF shares many of the same deposit-and alteration characteristics, it is concealed by tundra in a large, nearly flat area. Surface water at WTF is absent and outcrops are sparse. Even though WTF is roughly the same size as Red Mountain （both around 3 million tonnes） and has similar base- and precious-metal grades, the surficial geochemical manifestation of WTF is minimal. However, exposure through mining of the altered, mineralized rock at WTF potentially could initiate the same processes of pyrite oxidation, acid generation, and mineral dissolution that are observed naturally at RM and SC.     

青藏高原东缘龙门山晚新生代剥蚀厚度与弹性挠曲模拟

龙门山是青藏高原东缘边界山脉,具有青藏高原地貌、龙门山高山地貌和山前冲积平原三个一级地貌单元。利用数字高程模式图像和裂变径迹年代测定方法研究和计算龙门山晚新生代剥蚀厚度与剥蚀速率,结果表明:3.6 Ma以来龙门山的剥蚀厚度介于1.91-2.16 km之间,剥蚀速率介于0.53-0.60 mm/a之间。在此基础上,开展了该地区岩石圈的弹性挠曲模拟,结果表明龙门山的隆升机制具有以构造缩短隆升和剥蚀卸载隆升相叠合的特点。3.6 Ma之前,龙门山的隆升与逆冲推覆构造负载有关,以构造缩短驱动的构造隆升为特色;3.6 Ma之后,龙门山的隆升与剥蚀卸载驱动的抬升有关,并以剥蚀卸载隆升为特色,进而提出了龙门山晚新生代以来的隆升机制以剥蚀成山作用为主的认识。     

初夏一次特大暴雨的诊断分析

对新疆1996年5月28－30日一次特大暴雨过程的诊断分析，给出了暴雨产生的原因。     

人工影响天气在防御气象灾害中的重要作用

１概述加强对天气、气候和水相关的极端事件的预测和预报，并通过实施完备的防灾、减灾、救灾战略，最大限度地降低气象灾害极端事件带来的负面影响，保证国家经济建设顺利进行和广大人民群众的生命财产安全是我们面临的重要任务。人工影响天气作为防灾减灾手段之一，在抵御气象灾害方面发挥着越来越重要的作用，为人类未雨绸缪，趋利避害，营造美好的生存环境，做出了越来越大的贡献。人工影响天气技术问世已有半个多世纪了，并从起初的人工增水逐步扩展到人工防雹、人工消云（雾）、人工防霜、人工抑制闪电等方面。同时，人工影响天气的理…     

澳大利亚的第三纪及第三纪—第四纪过渡期(英文)

第三纪的板块运动驱动着澳大利亚的气候和植被进行演化。广布的湿润森林区是澳大利亚老第三纪的特征。一直到始新世 ,生物多样性都在不断地提高。毫无疑问 ,这是澳大利亚由高南纬区向北部中纬区运移的结果。从始新世到上新世 ,澳大利亚的气候总体上要比现在湿润 ,但降水量季节性变化的增强推动了中新世以后硬叶植物和旱生植物的发展。上新世晚期似乎与第四纪一样 ,都出现过周期性干旱。这种干旱与冰期条件有关 ,至少由南澳大利亚晚第四纪的记录可以认识到这一点 ,澳大利亚的这段历史与东亚的气候变迁是同步发生的。在东亚 ,印—澳板块的运动致使青藏高原抬升 ,从而引发了区内乃至全球气候的巨变。穿越赤道区的季风和信风的环流格局 ,致使新第三纪和第四纪中国与澳大利亚的气候系统的相关性更强。     

海底天然气渗漏形成水合物量的线性动力学模型:以墨西哥湾GC185区块Bush高地为例

世界许多地区如墨西哥湾，存在着大量天然气渗漏并形成水合物的现象，出于科学，生态，气候和安全的需要。人类有必要弄清存在于海底以水合成形式存在的天然气的比例。因此，构建了水合物形成量的线性动力学模型，以分析墨西哥湾GC185块区Bush高地海底渗漏天然气的地质过程和行为。Bush高地渗漏的天然气来源于附近的Jolliet气藏，结果表明，渗漏天然气中约有9％的海底形成了水合物。     

韩国关注里海陆架石油开发

6月21日,韩国驻哈萨克斯坦大使在会见了哈萨克斯坦政府总理后对斯闻界宣布,韩国财团计划参加里海哈萨克斯坦所属陆架的石油开采工作。最近成立的韩国财团由5大公司组成,这些能源公司在国外投资、经营等方面具有丰富的经验。计划参加哈石油、天然气开发的韩国财团虽然成立不久,但已经开始了投资项目的研究工作。大使先生说,哈国总理欢迎韩国参与共和国油气     

哈铜业公司加紧开发原料基地

“哈萨克铜业”公司新闻处领导人弗拉季斯拉夫·尼古拉耶夫在接受《全景报》记者采访时指出,目前该公司在获得俄罗斯原料资产的可能性方面没有任何进展。今年年初就在积极讨论“哈萨克铜业”公司参加俄罗斯在巴什基尔和伊尔库斯克州乌多坎铜矿开发招标中夺标的可能性。但是至今俄罗斯还没有公布开发这些铜矿的招标条件,因此“哈萨克铜业”公