Assessment aspect of contamination of the Arctic estuary ecosystems

Estuarine ecosystem may be considered as ‘pulse-targets’ where information about contamination of all-river basin and about scale and forms of contaminants input to the seas is concentrated. The nucleus of the estuarine processes of contaminants transformation and sedimentation is the critical salinity zone. In the real natural conditions of the Arctic the salinity dependent processes are masked by hydrodynamic effect. The tasks of effective chemical and biological monitoring of Russian Arctic estuarine ecosystems are formulated.     

Displacement of large-scale open solar magnetic fields from the zone of active longitudes and the heliospheric storm of November 3–10, 2004: 2. “Explosion” of singularity and dynamics of sunspot formation and energy release

A more detailed scenario of one stage (August–November 2004) of the quasibiennial MHD process “Origination ... and dissipation of the four-sector structure of the solar magnetic field” during the decline phase of cycle 23 has been constructed. It has been indicated that the following working hypothesis on the propagation of an MHD disturbance westward (in the direction of solar rotation) and eastward (toward the zone of active longitudes) with the displacement of the large-scale open solar magnetic field (LOSMF) from this zone can be constructed based on LOSMF model representations and data on sunspot formation, flares, active filaments, and coronal ejections as well as on the estimated contribution of sporadic energy release to the flare luminosity and kinetic energy of ejections: (1) The “explosion” of the LOSMF singularity and the formation in the explosion zone of an anemone active region (AR), which produced the satellite sunspot formation that continued west and east of the “anemone,” represented a powerful and energy-intensive source of MHD processes at this stage. (2) This resulted in the origination of two “governing” large-scale MHD processes, which regulated various usual manifestations of solar activity: the fast LOSMF along the neutral line in the solar atmosphere, strongly affecting the zone of active longitudes, and the slow LOSMF in the outer layers of the convection zone. The fronts of these processes were identified by powerful (about 10³¹ erg) coronal ejections. (3) The collision of a wave reflected from the zone of active longitudes with the eastern front of the hydromagnetic impulse of the convection zone resulted in an increase in LOSMF magnetic fluxes, origination of an active sector boundary in the zone of active longitudes, shear-convergent motions, and generation and destabilization of the flare-productive AR 10696 responsible for the heliospheric storm of November 3–10, 2004.     

Three-dimensional inversion of the single-profile magnetotelluric data

It is preferable to use the three-dimensional (3D) magnetotelluric inversion, which provides volumetric geoelectric models, to handle the array input data. However, the soundings are frequently conducted on the single profiles or on the profiles that are considerably spaced apart from each other. We explore the possibilities of the 3D inversion of such data by the example of a three-layer model containing three local inhomogeneities. We previously showed that the simple processing of the data and their 1D or 2D inversion enable reconstructing the background cross section and locating all the three inhomogeneities. In the present paper, we use this information for constructing several versions of the starting model and carrying out the smoothing 3D inversion of the data. The experiments show that if the background cross section is incorporated into the starting model, the final model provided by the inversion closely reproduces the real distribution of all geoelectric parameters. At the same time, if the starting model that hosts the inhomogeneities has the form of a homogeneous half-space, the inversion is not able to reconstruct an adequate final model.     

Event-scale pebble mobility observed by RFID tracking in a pre-Alpine stream: a field laboratory

Understanding coarse sediment transport is crucial for the prediction of sediment migration and the consequent development of fluvial morphologies. In this study, cobble displacements in a pre-Alpine creek have been recorded by means of radio frequency identification (RFID). Pebble monitoring has been systematically performed after each rainfall event with moderate precipitation, in order to exclude the superimposition of sediment displacements induced by triggering factors acting at different times. The analysis of the collected data was carried out through the application of both a principal component analysis and the Buckingham Π theorem. The experimental trends were interpreted considering the ratio of mobile pebbles, the pebbles' displacement and virtual velocity as the dependent variables. These quantities mostly depend on the event peak discharge, with a nonlinear increase of the travelled distance and a growth of up to two orders of magnitude of the virtual velocity (for an approximately 10× increase in peak discharge). An inverse dependency of the virtual velocity on the event duration was also observed. A comparison of the results obtained with those from laboratory investigations of bedload transport mechanics evidenced the differences in parametric trends associated with sediment mobility in the two environments. This contrast brings forward the combination of multiple drivers of sediment mobility, such as local morphology, sediment dimensions and flow unsteadiness, warranting a further in-depth investigation. Representation of results in a dimensionless form is suggested as a good practice to analyse data from case studies characterized by different scales. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ten-antenna prototype of a radio heliograph based on the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope

An upgrade of the Siberian Solar Radio Telescope (SSRT) [Smolkov et al., 1986; Grechnev et al., 2003] to a multiwave radio heliograph has been started. The radio heliograph being created will be designed mainly to measure coronal magnetic fields, to determine the locations of solar-flare energy release, and to investigate coronal mass ejections. These tasks define the parameters of next-generation radio heliographs. A high spatial resolution, a high image acquisition rate, and a high sensitivity are required simultaneously. All these parameters should be realized in the widest possible frequency range—from fractions to tens of GHz). The expected parameters of the future SSRT-based radio heliograph are listed below: spatial resolution 12″–24″, temporal resolution 0.02–1.0 s, frequency range 4–8 GHz, sensitivity up to 100 K, left-hand and right-hand circular polarizations, data rate 0.5–20 Mb s⁻¹ (normal and flare modes). In this paper, we describe the broadband antennas, analog optical data transmission lines, and correlator used in the 10-antenna radio heliograph prototype.     

Correlation between tropical cyclones and magnetic storms during cycle 23 of solar activity

The correlation between cyclic (11-year) variations in geomagnetic activity and tropical cyclogenesis during the completed solar activity cycle (cycle 23, 1996–2006) is studied. The total number of the semidiurnal intervals, with the mean values of the planetary a _p index not less than 40, for each year and the annual number of cyclones, regardless of their intensity, are used as the characteristics. The correlation coefficients r are calculated for each of the following four cyclogenesis regions: the Atlantic, northeastern and central Pacific, northwestern Pacific, and water areas of oceans and seas in the Southern Hemisphere. The conclusion that the correlation exists between magnetic storms and tropical cyclones in the Atlantic, obtained earlier by Ivanov [2006] on the basis of the data for 1996–2005, is confirmed. It has been found that the linear correlation coefficient r changed in different regions from positive to negative values: 0.55, 0, ?0.50, and ?0.50, respectively.     

Online Publication of Tiltmeter Data Based on the SeedLink Protocol

The main goal of this work is to provide real-time access to the data of the NSH tunnel tiltmeters via the Internet. Software is developed that solves this problem and also provides real-time visualization and archiving of data. The solution is based the specialized real-time protocol SeedLink, which ensures lossless data delivery with minimal transmission overhead. In order to simplify access to the device via IPv4 and to protect data from unauthorized access, a secure channel based on virtual private networks has been used. The solution was tested on two tiltmeters installed in the building of the Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences (IPE RAS). Further device testing with an unstable power supply and communication conditions is planned. Therefore, the developed software was ported to energy-efficient ARM computers. Data transmission tests were carried out in the local IPE RAS network and in the wireless network of a mobile network operator. Real-time visualization of data from both tiltmeters and access to the archive are provided in addition to real-time access to data on the IPE RAS website.     

Three-dimensional inversion of the single-profile magnetotelluric data

It is preferable to use the three-dimensional (3D) magnetotelluric inversion, which provides volumetric geoelectric models, to handle the array input data. However, the soundings are frequently conducted on the single profiles or on the profiles that are considerably spaced apart from each other. We explore the possibilities of the 3D inversion of such data by the example of a three-layer model containing three local inhomogeneities. We previously showed that the simple processing of the data and their 1D or 2D inversion enable reconstructing the background cross section and locating all the three inhomogeneities. In the present paper, we use this information for constructing several versions of the starting model and carrying out the smoothing 3D inversion of the data. The experiments show that if the background cross section is incorporated into the starting model, the final model provided by the inversion closely reproduces the real distribution of all geoelectric parameters. At the same time, if the starting model that hosts the inhomogeneities has the form of a homogeneous half-space, the inversion is not able to reconstruct an adequate final model.