A comparison of the photospheric and interplanetary magnetic fields during the flight of Mariner IV

The polarity of the interplanetary magnetic field observed by the Mariner IV spacecraft is compared to the polarity of the photospheric magnetic field observed with the solar magnetograph at Mt. Wilson Observatory. Unlike the results obtained from observations during the flight of IMP-I, these polarities are not well correlated when the photospheric polarity is determined from data along a narrow latitudinal strip. It is suggested that the structure of the interplanetary field is often related to major features in the photospheric field that are observed over a broad range of solar latitudes.     

Amplitude distributions of solar photospheric fluctuations

Amplitude distributions, which are nearly Gaussian, have been calculated for radial velocity, continuum brightness, spectral line equivalent width and spectral line central residual intensity fluctuations measured from high-dispersion high-resolution spectrograms taken at the center of the solar disk. The RMS and skewness S for each distribution have been calculated in a manner which allows testing of the homogeneity of the granulation pattern (i.e. variations in its statistics across the solar disk and with time). Pattern inhomogeneity across the disk is strongly indicated, and further evidence suggesting appreciable pattern persistence over time intervals 15 minutes is presented. The possibilities for investigations of S and its associated bi-spectrum are discussed. The qualitative values of S obtained are shown not to be due to unusually bright, rising granules (though a statistical tendency towards such granules is possible). An attempt to explain S for continuum brightness fluctuations in terms of the nonlinear effects of Planckian emission and opacity fluctuations in a stratified photosphere, leads to contradiction with the measured amplitude distributions, a contradiction which is probably due to an oversimplified treatment of radiative transfer in an inhomogeneous photosphere.     

A proposal for a new scenario framework to support research and assessment in different climate research communities

In this paper, we propose a scenario framework that could provide a scenario “thread” through the different climate research communities (climate change – vulnerability, impact, and adaptation - and mitigation) in order to support assessment of mitigation and adaptation strategies and climate impacts. The scenario framework is organized around a matrix with two main axes: radiative forcing levels and socio-economic conditions. The radiative forcing levels (and the associated climate signal) are described by the new Representative Concentration Pathways. The second axis, socio-economic developments comprises elements that affect the capacity for mitigation and adaptation, as well as the exposure to climate impacts. The proposed scenarios derived from this framework are limited in number, allow for comparison across various mitigation and adaptation levels, address a range of vulnerability characteristics, provide information across climate forcing and vulnerability states and span a full century time scale. Assessments based on the proposed scenario framework would strengthen cooperation between integrated-assessment modelers, climate modelers and vulnerability, impact and adaptation researchers, and most importantly, facilitate the development of more consistent and comparable research within and across these research communities.     

Chlorine variations in the magma of Soufrière Hills Volcano, Montserrat: Insights from Cl in hornblende and melt inclusions

The Soufrière Hills Volcano in Montserrat erupts a Cl-rich, porphyritic andesite. HCl degassing accompanies eruption and is dependent on the growth rate of the lava dome. The magma contains hornblende phenocrysts that show repetitive zoning in most elements, including Cl. On the basis of the zoning data, (Cl/OH) ratios in the melt, calculated from partitioning data, increase rimward through each zone, indicating that the phenocrysts formed under conditions of varying (Cl/OH)_m. An empirical relationship between A-site occupancy in the hornblende and temperature implies that crystallisation of each zone is also accompanied by increasing temperature. Each zone ends at a resorption horizon, and crystallisation recommences at lower temperature and (Cl/OH)_m. Melt inclusion H₂O and Cl contents for the 8th January 2007 explosive eruption can be explained by closed-system degassing with D_Cl^fl-m between 5 and 30, or by open-system degassing accompanied by a small amount of crystallisation. However, neither simple closed-system degassing nor convective circulation of magma can explain the positive correlation of (Cl/OH)_m with temperature. We suggest that the zoning can be caused by accumulation of CO₂-rich vapour in the andesite, probably as a result of mafic magma injection into the chamber. Decreasing H₂O fugacity and/or increasing Cl_m result in increasing (Cl/OH)_m while heat transferred with the volatiles causes the rise in temperature. Intermittently, the accumulated fluid is lost to the surface, possibly as a result of renewed eruptive activity. This model requires the CO₂-rich fluid to be decoupled from the magma, consistent with previous observations of continuous CO₂ emissions at the surface.     

Increasing fiscal resilience to disasters in the Pacific

Pacific Island countries are among the list of countries that face the highest disaster risk globally—in per capita terms. In recent years, governments in the region have been confronted by a rise in damages from extreme catastrophic events, many increasingly linked to climate change. These events pose significant challenges to Pacific governments in terms of maintaining fiscal stability and the operation of their limited and under-diversified economies and shallow financial sectors. Governments in the region generally play a leading role in domestic economies and are responsible for leading disaster prevention, mitigation, and recovery efforts. Accordingly, measures to improve financial sustainability and the public sector’s ability to provide public services in the aftermath of major disasters must be prioritized. This paper examines the literature on fiscal resilience to disasters, the estimated impacts of major events in the Pacific, and analyses the applicability of available financial instruments to facilitate both ex ante and ex post disaster fiscal risk management in the region. The paper also discusses policies that can improve resilience against fiscal risks.

     

Analyzing Accessibility Using Parcel Data: Is There Still an Access–Space Trade-Off in Long Beach,California?

This article analyzes the impact of changing housing and neighborhood characteristics on the accessibility of neighborhood businesses using Long Beach, California, as a case study. Although advocates of smart growth and New Urbanism encourage land use mixing, aggregate-level analysis can be too coarse to pick up on fine-grained aspects of urban streetscapes. This study uses assessor parcel records and a point-based business establishment data set to analyze city-wide patterns of accessibility from individual dwelling units to thirty-one types of neighborhood businesses, including grocery stores, service shops, drug stores, doctor's offices, and banks. Regression results compare parcel-level and neighborhood-level drivers of accessibility between 2006 and 2015 to gauge the aggregated effect of recent economic, demographic, and built environment changes on this aspect of urban spatial structure. Larger homes in older, multiunit buildings and higher income neighborhoods show substantial increases in accessibility to most establishment types, suggesting a trend toward both greater accessibility and larger dwelling units—despite the traditional trade-off between access and space. Although gradual increases in home and business density increased overall accessibility over this period, weaker neighborhood-level results indicate that this trend is less pronounced in high-poverty and non-white areas.     

Controls on the occurrence and prevalence of floodplain channels in meandering rivers

The process of channelization on river floodplains plays an essential role in regulating river sinuosity and creating river avulsions. Most channelization occurs within the channel belt (e.g. chute channels), but growing evidence suggests some channels originate outside of the channel‐belt in the floodplain. To understand the occurrence and prevalence of these floodplain channels we mapped 3064 km² of floodplain in Indiana, USA using 1.5 m resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) derived from airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data. We find the following range of channelization types on floodplains in Indiana: 6.8% of floodplain area has no evidence of channelization, 55.9% of floodplains show evidence (e.g. oxbow lakes) of chute‐channel activity in the channel belt, and 37.3% of floodplains contain floodplain channels that form long, coherent down‐valley pathways with bifurcations and confluences, and they are active only during overbank discharge. Whereas the first two types of floodplains are relatively well studied, only a few studies have recognized the existence of floodplain channels. To understand why floodplain channels occur, we compared the presence of channelization types with measured floodplain width, floodplain slope, river width, river meander rate, sinuosity, flooding frequency, soil composition, and land cover. Results show floodplain channels occur when the fluvial systems are characterized by large floodplain‐to‐river widths, relatively higher meandering rates, and are dominantly used for agriculture. More detailed reach‐scale mapping reveals that up to 75% of channel reaches within floodplain channels are likely paleo‐meander cutoffs. The meander cutoffs are connected by secondary channels to form floodplain channels. We suggest that secondary channels within floodplains form by differential erosion across the floodplain, linking together pre‐existing topographic lows, such as meander cutoffs. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A three‐dimensional transmitting boundary formulated in Cartesian co‐ordinate system for the dynamics of non‐axisymmetric foundations

A three‐dimensional transmitting boundary is formulated in the Cartesian co‐ordinate system. It is developed for the dynamic soil–structure interaction problems of arbitrary shape foundations in laterally heterogeneous strata overlying rigid bedrock. Dynamics of a rectangular rigid surface foundation on a homogeneous stratum is analysed by a hybrid approach in which the finite region including foundation is modelled by the conventional finite element method and the surrounding infinite region by the newly developed transmitting boundary. To demonstrate its strength, the present method is applied to a rectangular foundation in a horizontally heterogeneous ground consisting of two distinct regions divided by and welded along a vertical plane. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Integrated UAS and LiDAR reveals the importance of land cover and flood magnitude on the formation of incipient chute holes and chute cutoff development

Meandering river sinuosity increases until the channel erodes into itself (neck cutoff) or forms a new channel over the floodplain (chute cutoff) and sinuosity is reduced. Unlike neck cutoff, which can be measured or modelled without considering overbank processes, chute cutoff must be at least partially controlled by channel-forming processes on the floodplain. Even though chute cutoff controls meandering river form, the processes that cause chute cutoff are not well understood. This study analyses the morphology of two incipient chute cutoffs along the East Fork White River, Indiana, USA, using high temporal and spatial resolution UAS-based LiDAR and aerial photography. LiDAR and aerial imagery obtained between 1998 and 2019 reveals that large scour holes formed in the centre of both chutes sometime after chute channel initiation. A larger analysis within the study watershed reveals that scour holes within incipient chutes can be stable or unstable, and tend to stabilize when the chute is colonized by native vegetation and forest. When the scour holes form in farmed floodplain, they enlarge rapidly after initial formation and contribute to complete chute cutoff. In addition, this study shows that the formation of scour holes can occur in response to common, relatively low-magnitude floods and that the amount of incipient chute erosion does not depend on peak flood magnitude. The role of scour holes in enlarging chute channels could be an important mechanism for chute channel evolution in meandering rivers. This study also confirms that understanding the relationships among flow, land cover, and cutoff morphology is substantially improved with on-demand remote sensing techniques like integrated UAS and LiDAR. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Three sipunculan species (two new) from New Zealand

Two new species of Sipuncula arc described from New Zealand; Phascolion temporariae from, the empty tubes of the polychaete Temporaria inexpectata (Mestayeri), and Phascolion tortum from the shells of four species of molluscs. Specimens of Golfingia improvisa (Theel) are also reported from the empty frustules of the foraminiferan Ammodiscoides mestayeri (Cushman) and the sandy tubes of the foraminifera Rhizammina sp. All the species were dredged at depths of 370–660 m from Taiaroa and Papanui Canyons, off the Otago Peninsula, New Zealand. The body cavity of several specimens of G. improvisa contained the larval stage of a nematode.