On detecting long-term changes in atmospheric moisture

Long-term temperature changes are expected to give rise to changes in the water vapor content of the atmosphere, which in turn would accentuate the temperature change. It is thus important to monitor water vapor in the troposphere and lower stratosphere. This paper reviews existing data for such an endeavor and the prospects for improvement in monitoring.In general, radiosondes provide the longest record but the data are fraught with problems, some arising from the distribution of stations and some from data continuity questions arising from the use of different measuring devices over both time at one place and over space at any one time. Satellite records are now of limited duration but they will soon be useful in detecting changes. Satellite water vapor observations have their own limitations; there is no one system capable of measuring water vapor over all surfaces in all varieties of weather. Among the needs are careful analysis of existing records, the collection of metadata about the measuring systems, the development of a transfer standard radiosonde system, and the commitment to maintaining an observing system dedicated to describing any climate changes worldwide.     

Instrumentation for measuring static pressure fluctuations within the atmospheric boundary layer

An instrument is described which is capable of making Eulerian measurements of microscale fluctuations in the static pressure when it is placed within the turbulent flow of the lower atmospheric boundary layer. The sampling ports are located on an accurately shaped streamlined circular disc; dynamic pressure changes at these ports, due to the flow fluctuations, are small when compared to the static pressure changes. Wind tunnel tests and anin situ test show that the instrument can sample the amplitudes and phases of fluctuations in the static pressure to better than ± 20% and to about ± 5 °, respectively.     

Spatial and temporal variability of mesozooplankton and tintinnid ciliates in a seasonally hypersaline estuary

The zooplankton community of Mission Bay, San Diego, California, was monitored over two years, to study spatial and temporal patterns and the response of zooplankton species composition to environmental variation. Data were collected every two weeks from six stations and included hydrographic parameters, dissolved nutrient concentrations, and phytoplankton and zooplankton species composition. Hydrography varied seasonally, along a spatial gradient from the mouth to the back of the bay, and between the two years around the influence of rainfall. Spatially, Mission Bay could be divided into three regions during this study based on hydrography and zooplankton species composition. Zooplankton species composition followed a predictable seasonal progression, with different groups of species being characteristic to particular times of the year. Variability in zooplankton species composition was also evident between years, as certain species were more common in one or the other year of the study. Spatial patterns were more consistent than temporal ones, and related to distance from the mouth of the bay during much of the year and distance from freshwater inlets during the relatively short rainy season. Multivariate analysis revealed that variation in zooplankton species composition was best related to measured abiotic factors (temperature, salinity, rainfall, and tidal velocity).     

Mineral chemistry constraints on the evolution of the 1.88–1.87 Ga post-kinematic granite plutons in the Central Finland Granitoid Complex

A suite of post-kinematic, 1.88–1.87 Ga, silicic plutons crosscut 1.89–1.88 Ga synkinematic granitoids in the Central Finland Granitoid Complex (CFGC) in south-central Finland. The plutons range from biotite±hornblende quartz monzonite to syenogranite and include pyroxene- and olivine-bearing varieties. Mineral chemical data on feldspars, biotite, amphibole, pyroxenes, olivine, and oxides of the post-kinematic plutons are presented. The data are interpreted to show that these plutons register (1) a considerable range in pressure from 2–4 kbar (amphibole barometry) to 5–7 kbar (olivine–pyroxene barometry), (2) temperatures mostly reflecting resetting during cooling (450–800°C; QUIlF thermometry), and (3) low fO₂ (log fO₂ ΔFMQ −0.3 to −1.5; QUIlF equilibria). In particular, plutons with olivine- and pyroxene-bearing margins and amphibole-dominated central parts record progressive oxidation and hydration upon cooling, shifting from the QUIlF equilibrium toward KUIlB. The post-kinematic granites can be considered post-collisional in regard to compressional events in the CFGC and display many of the characteristics of the anorogenic 1.6 Ga rapakivi granites further south. They were presumably derived from a deep and dry crustal source, like the rapakivi granites.     

Use of annular flumes to determine the influence of current velocity and bivalves on material flux at the sediment-water interface

A benthic annular flume for both laboratory and in situ deployment on intertidal mudflats is described. The flume provides a means of quantifying material flux (i.e., biodeposition of suspended particulates, sediment resuspension, nutrients, oxygen, and contaminants) across the sediment-water interface in relation to changes in current velocity and benthic community structure and/or population density of key macrofauna species. Flume experiments have investigated the impact of the infaunal bivalveMacoma balthica and the epifaunal bivalveMytilus edulis on seston and sediment flux at the sediment-water interface. The bioturbatorMacoma was found to increase the sediment resuspension and/or erodability by 4-fold, at densities similar to those recorded at the Skeffling mudflat (Humber estuary) (i.e., >1000 individuals m^?2). There was a significant correlation between sediment resuspension andMacoma density (r=0.99; p<0.001), which supported previous in situ field observations indicating bioturbation byMacoma enhanced sediment erodability. Biodeposition rates (g m^?2 h¹) ofMytilus edulis andCerastoderma edule were quantified and related to changes in population density in a mussel bed (Cleethorpes, Humber estuary). Biodeposition rates were up to 40-times the natural sedimentation rates. At the highest mussel bed densities (i.e., 50–100% cover or >1400 mussels m^?2) the physical presence of this epifaunal bivalve on the sediment surface reduced erosion by 10-fold. The shift from net biodeposition to net erosion occurred at current velocities of 20–25 cm s^?1. These results demonstrate that infaunal and epifaunal bivalves can have a significant impact on seston flux or sediment deposition and on sediment resuspension or erodability in estuaries where there are extensive mudflats.     

The stellar mass spectrum of the open cluster NGC 3293

We have obtained and analyzed UBVRI CCD frames of the young, 4–10 Myr, open cluster NGC 3293 and the surrounding field in order to study its stellar content and determine the cluster’s IMF. We found significantly fewer lower mass stars, M≤2.5M _⊙, than expected. This is particularly so if a single age for the cluster of 4.6 Myr is adopted as derived from fitting evolutionary models to the upper main sequence. Some intermediate-mass stars near the main sequence in the HR diagram imply an age for the cluster of about 10 Myr. When compared with the Scalo (The stellar initial mass function. ASP conference series, vol. 24, p. 201, 1998) IMF scaled to the cluster IMF in the intermediate mass range, 2.5≤M/M _⊙≤8.0 where there is good agreement, the high mass stars have a distinctly flatter IMF, indicating an over abundance of these stars, and there is a sharp turnover in the distribution at lower masses. The radial density distribution of cluster stars in the massive and intermediate mass regimes indicate that these stars are more concentrated to the cluster core whereas the lower-mass stars show little concentration. We suggest that this is evidence supporting the formation of massive stars through accretion and/or coagulation processes in denser cluster cores at the expense of the lower mass proto-stars. R.W. Slawson and E.P. Horch are guest investigators at the University of Toronto Southern Observatory, Las Campanas, Chile.     

Medium- and Long-term Recovery of Estuarine and Coastal Ecosystems: Patterns,Rates and Restoration Effectiveness

Many estuarine and coastal marine ecosystems have increasingly experienced degradation caused by multiple stressors. Anthropogenic pressures alter natural ecosystems and the ecosystems are not considered to have recovered unless secondary succession has returned the ecosystem to the pre-existing condition or state. However, depending upon the scales of time, space and intensity of anthropogenic disturbance, return along the historic trajectory of the ecosystem may: (1) follow natural restoration though secondary succession; (2) be re-directed through ecological restoration, or (3) be unattainable. In order to address the gaps in knowledge about restoration and recovery of estuarine and coastal ecosystems, this special feature includes the present overview and other contributions to provide a synthesis of our knowledge about recovery patterns, rates and restoration effectiveness. From the 51 examples collated in this contribution, we refine the recovery from the list of stressors into six recovery mechanisms: (1) recovery from sediment modification, which includes all aspects of dredging and disposal; (2) recovery by complete removal of stressors limiting natural ecosystem processes, which includes tidal marsh and inundation restoration; (3) recovery by speed of organic degradation, which includes oil discharge, fish farm wastes, sewage disposal, and paper mill waste; (4) recovery from persistent pollutants, which includes chemical discharges, such as TBT; (5) recovery from excessive biological removal, related to fisheries and (6) recovery from hydrological and morphological modification. Drawing upon experience both from these many examples and from an example of one comprehensive study, we show that although in some cases recovery can take <5 years, especially for the short-lived and high-turnover biological components, full recovery of coastal marine and estuarine ecosystems from over a century of degradation can take a minimum of 15–25 years for attainment of the original biotic composition and diversity may lag far beyond that period.