Modelling of sediment supply from torrent catchments in the Western Alps using the sediment contributing area (SCA) approach

The production of coarse sediment in mountain landscapes depends mainly on the type and activity of geomorphic processes and topographic and natural conditions (e.g. vegetation cover) of these catchments. The supply of sediment from these slopes to mountain streams and its subsequent transport lead to sediment connectivity, which describes the integrated coupled state of these systems. Studies from the Northern Calcareous Alps show that the size of the sediment contributing area (SCA), a subset of the drainage area that effectively delivers sediment to the channel network, can be used as a predictor of sediment delivery to mountain streams. The SCA concept is delineated on a digital elevation model (DEM) using a set of rules related to the steepness and length of slopes directly adjacent to the channel network, the gradient of the latter and the vegetation cover. The present study investigates the applicability of this concept to the Western Alps to identify geomorphologically active areas and to estimate mean annual sediment yield (SY) in mainly debris-flow-prone catchments. We use a statistical approach that shows a parameter optimisation and a linear regression of SY on SCA extent. We use a dataset of ~25 years of assessed coarse sediment accumulation in 35 sediment retention basins. In the investigated catchments, sediment transport is governed by several factors, mainly by the extent of vegetation-free areas with a minimum slope of 23° that is coupled to the channel network with a very low gradient of the latter. With our improved framework, we can show that the SCA approach can be applied to catchments that are widely distributed, in a large spatial scale (hectare area) and very heterogeneous in their properties. In general, the investigated catchments show high connectivity, resulting in significant correlations between long-term average yield and the size of the SCA.     

Long-term groundwater resource observatory for Southwestern Madagascar

Madagascar has one of the highest poverty rates in the world and consequently the long-term monitoring of groundwater resources is not a priority for the authorities. However, groundwater is often the only sustainable resource that has a satisfactory quality to supply the population. This is especially true in the south-west of the country, which is a semi-arid region and a global change hot spot (intense land use and climate changes). In response to the lack of data, the Groundwater Resource Observatory for Southwestern Madagascar (GROSoM) was established to monitor piezometry and meteorology over the longer term as part of a humanitarian response. The first site was setup in 2014 in a catchment located over a carbonate plateau; in 2018, a second site was installed in an alluvial setting within a crystalline basement catchment and a third site will be installed in 2020 to monitor groundwater dynamics in a coastal setting. The three sites, located between Toliara and Taolagnaro cities, are complementary and representative of various hydrogeological systems in Southwestern Madagascar. Each site includes a weather station and between 3 and 6 piezometric probes. The monitoring data indicate a strong inter-annual variability in precipitation, which induces a strong variability in aquifers recharge. One of the driest years in 2016 seems to be consistent with strong El Niño – Southern Oscillation (ENSO) effects observed at the global scale, while years with higher recharge appear to be related to cyclones such as Fundi in 2015 and Eketsang in 2019. Preliminary results of cross-disciplinary studies demonstrated a link between groundwater and health issues (i.e., admissions to basic health centres). This observatory aims to produce long-term data and has two objectives: (i) strengthening the early warning system for humanitarian crises in Madagascar; (ii) contributing to a better understanding of the effects of climate change on groundwater resources in this semi-arid region.     

Is the soil moisture precipitation feedback enhanced by heterogeneity and dry soils? A comparative study

The interaction between the land surface and the atmosphere is a crucial driver of atmospheric processes. Soil moisture and precipitation are key components in this feedback. Both variables are intertwined in a cycle, that is, the soil moisture – precipitation feedback for which involved processes and interactions are still discussed. In this study the soil moisture – precipitation feedback is compared for the sempiternal humid Ammer catchment in Southern Germany and for the semiarid to subhumid Sissili catchment in West Africa during the warm season, using precipitation datasets from the Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS), from the German Weather Service (REGNIE) and simulation datasets from the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model and the hydrologically enhanced WRF-Hydro model. WRF and WRF-Hydro differ by their representation of terrestrial water flow. With this setup we want to investigate the strength, sign and variables involved in the soil moisture – precipitation feedback for these two regions. The normalized model spread between the two simulation results shows linkages between precipitation variability and diagnostic variables surface fluxes, moisture flux convergence above the surface and convective available potential energy in both study regions. The soil moisture – precipitation feedback is evaluated with a classification of soil moisture spatial heterogeneity based on the strength of the soil moisture gradients. This allows us to assess the impact of soil moisture anomalies on surface fluxes, moisture flux convergence, convective available potential energy and precipitation. In both regions the amount of precipitation generally increases with soil moisture spatial heterogeneity. For the Ammer region the soil moisture – precipitation feedback has a weak negative sign with more rain near drier patches while it has a positive signal for the Sissili region with more rain over wetter patches. At least for the observed moderate soil moisture values and the spatial scale of the Ammer region, the spatial variability of soil moisture is more important for surface-atmosphere interactions than the actual soil moisture content. Overall, we found that soil moisture heterogeneity can greatly affect the soil moisture – precipitation feedback.     

Role of reservoir regulation and groundwater feedback in a simulated ground-soil-vegetation continuum: A long-term regional scale analysis

The regional terrestrial water cycle is strongly altered by human activities. Among them, reservoir regulation is a way to spatially and temporally allocate water resources in a basin for multi-purposes. However, it is still not sufficiently understood how reservoir regulation modifies the regional terrestrial- and subsequently, the atmospheric water cycle. To address this question, the representation of reservoir regulation into the terrestrial component of fully coupled regional Earth system models is required. In this study, an existing process-based reservoir network module is implemented into NOAH-HMS, that is, the terrestrial component of an atmospheric–hydrologic modelling system, namely, the WRF-HMS. It allows to quantitatively differentiate role of reservoir regulation and of groundwater feedback in a simulated ground-soil-vegetation continuum. Our study focuses on the Poyang Lake basin, where the largest freshwater lake of China and reservoirs of different sizes are located. As compared to streamflow observations, the newly extended NOAH-HMS slightly improves the streamflow and streamflow duration curves simulation for the Poyang Lake basin for the period 1979–1986. The inclusion of reservoir regulation leads to major changes in the simulated groundwater recharges and evaporation from reservoirs at local scale, but has minor effects on the simulated soil moisture and surface runoff at basin scale. The performed groundwater feedback sensitivity analysis shows that the strength of the groundwater feedback is not altered by the consideration of reservoir regulation. Furthermore, both reservoir regulation and groundwater feedback modify the partitioning of the simulated evapotranspiration, thus affecting the atmospheric water cycle in the Poyang Lake region. This finding motivates future research with our extended fully coupled atmospheric–hydrologic modelling system by the community.     

Dynamics and transport from the boundary Northern Current toward the Toulon Bay: multi-platform observations and downscaling modelling approaches

Ocean Dynamics - Coastal regions are vulnerable areas with often high population density, as well as tourism and maritime activities that may have negative impact on the environment. From a...     

Unveiling the chemistry of hot protostellar cores with ALMA

High angular resolution mm-wave observations of the Orion-KL region, made with the IRAM Plateau de Bure interferometer (PdBI), reveal the presence of several cores of size 10³ AU, which have distinct spectral signatures. Complex molecules such as ethanol, vinyl cyanide and dimethyl ether show different distributions and their relative abundance varies from core to core by orders of magnitude. The molecular column densities derived in the cores also differ widely from the beam-averaged column densities observed with large single-dish telescopes. Obviously, the predictions of hot core chemistry models must be checked against high resolution observations. ALMA, which allies sensitivity and high angular resolution, will be a key instrument for this type of studies. The PdBI observations were part of a search for interstellar glycine, also carried out with the IRAM 30-m telescope and the Green Bank Telescope. We derive a 3σ upper limit on the column density of glycine of 1×10¹⁵ cm⁻² per 2″×3″ beam in the Orion Hot Core and Compact Ridge. Based on observations made with the IRAM PdB Interferometer, the IRAM 30-m telescope and the NRAO Green-Bank telescope. IRAM is supported by CNRS, MPG and IGN.     

PULSE: a finite element code for solving adiabatic nonradial pulsation equations

We briefly present the nonradial adiabatic pulsation code PULSE first developped for white dwarf asteroseismology and now used to compute adiabatic oscillation properties for various types of stellar objects. Numerical tests show that the code is able to provide the accuracy (for a given stellar model) required to deal with the precision in frequency expected from the COROT long runs. While the ultimate objective is to compare the output of various pulsation codes (see these proceedings), we already emphasize problems that need to be addressed concerning, in particular, the mesh resolution of the input stellar models and its impact on the accuracy at which frequencies can be computed.     

A new model for QPOs in accreting black holes: application to the microquasar GRS 1915+105

In this paper we extend the idea suggested previously by Pétri (Astron. Astrophys. 439:L27, 2005a; 443:777, 2005b) (papers I and II) that the high frequency quasi-periodic oscillations (HF-QPOs) observed in low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) may be explained as a resonant oscillation of the accretion disk with a rotating asymmetric background (gravitational or magnetic) field imposed by the compact object. Here, we apply this general idea to black hole binaries. It is assumed that a test particle experiences a similar parametric resonance mechanism such as the one described in paper I and II but now the resonance is induced by the interaction between a spiral density wave in the accretion disk, excited close to the innermost stable circular orbit, and vertical epicyclic oscillations. We use the Kerr spacetime geometry to deduce the characteristic frequencies of this test particle. The response of the test particle is maximal when the frequency ratio of the two strongest resonances is equal to 3:2 as observed in black hole candidates. Finally, applying our model to the microquasar GRS 1915+105, we reproduce the correct value of several HF-QPOs. Indeed the presence of the 168/113/56/42/28 Hz features in the power spectrum time analysis is predicted. Moreover, based only on the two HF-QPO frequencies, our model is able to constrain the mass M _BH and angular momentum a _BH of the accreting black hole. We show the relation between M _BH and a _BH for several black hole binaries. For instance, assuming a black hole weakly or mildly rotating, i.e. a _BH≤0.5?G? M _BH/c ², we find that for GRS 1915+105 its mass satisfies 13?M _⊙≤M _BH≤20?M _⊙. The same model applied to two other well-known BHCs gives for GRO J1655-40 a mass 5?M _⊙≤M _BH≤7?M _⊙ and for XTE J1550-564 a mass 8?M _⊙≤M _BH≤11?M _⊙. This is consistent with other independent estimations of the black hole mass. Finally for H1743-322, we found the following bounds, 9?M _⊙≤M _BH≤13?M _⊙.     

Solar radio pulsating structures during September 9, 2001 at meter wavelength

Pulsating structures recorded at 237 MHz that are associated to decimetric continuum enhancement during the September 9, 2001 solar radio burst are described. We analyzed the radiopolarimetric data recorded at the Trieste Solar Radio System (INAF—Trieste Astronomical Observatory—Basovizza Observing Station) with very high time resolution (1 ms) at metric frequencies. Two different types of pulsations that occur in about 4 minutes at the same frequency are described. The possible mechanisms are analyzed and some parameters of the associated magnetic structure are estimated.     

Periastron precession measurements in transiting extrasolar planetary systems at the level of general relativity

Transiting exoplanetary systems are surpassingly important among the planetary systems since they provide the widest spectrum of information for both the planet and the host star. If a transiting planet is on an eccentric orbit, the duration of transits T _D is sensitive to the orientation of the orbital ellipse relative to the line of sight. The precession of the orbit results in a systematic variation in both the duration of individual transit events and the observed period between successive transits,   P _obs  . The periastron of the ellipse slowly precesses due to general relativity and possibly the presence of other planets in the system. This secular precession can be detected through the long-term change in   P _obs  (transit timing variations, TTV) or in T _D (transit duration variations, TDV). We estimate the corresponding precession measurement precision for repeated future observations of the known eccentric transiting exoplanetary systems (XO-3b, HD 147506b, GJ 436b and HD 17156b) using existing or planned space-borne instruments. The TDV measurement improves the precession detection sensitivity by orders of magnitude over the TTV measurement. We find that TDV measurements over a approximately 4 yr period can typically detect the precession rate to a precision well exceeding the level predicted by general relativity.