Testing potential bias in marine plankton respiration rates by dark bottle incubations in the NW Iberian shelf: incubation time and bottle volume

The accurate determination of the balance between plankton production and respiration in the ocean is important for C budgets and global change predictions. Disagreements on the measurement of such a balance at different scales (from microbiological to biogeochemical) have produced a controversy over the trophic status of the ocean. This is especially striking in the oligotrophic open ocean, where plankton community O₂ consumption rates in 24 h incubations have frequently produced a net heterotrophic balance, but similar difficulties emerge in coastal systems. These results have been criticised due to the possibility that the standard 24 h in vitro incubations are biased because of the long incubation time needed and the so-called “bottle effect”.To study the influence of the incubation time and bottle volume on the measurement of plankton net metabolism, we carried out several time series experiments in the NW Iberian coastal system. Here we present measurements of plankton community respiration rates concurrently obtained through (1) standard in vitro changes in dissolved oxygen concentration after different incubation times ranging from 2 to 48 h, and with bottle volumes of 50, 125 and 570 mL, and (2) the decrease in the oxygen concentration measured every 20 s with oxygen microsensors, during 48 h. Our results refute the contention that 24 h dark 125 mL bottle incubations are systematically biased, and highlight the validity of oxygen microsensors to study the dynamics of natural marine plankton respiration.     

Combined Effects of Tectonic and Landslide-Generated Tsunami Runup at Seward, Alaska During the M W 9.2 1964 Earthquake

We apply a recently developed and validated numerical model of tsunami propagation and runup to study the inundation of Resurrection Bay and the town of Seward by the 1964 Alaska tsunami. Seward was hit by both tectonic and landslide-generated tsunami waves during the $M_{\rm W}$ 9.2 1964 megathrust earthquake. The earthquake triggered a series of submarine mass failures around the fjord, which resulted in landsliding of part of the coastline into the water, along with the loss of the port facilities. These submarine mass failures generated local waves in the bay within 5?min of the beginning of strong ground motion. Recent studies estimate the total volume of underwater slide material that moved in Resurrection Bay to be about 211?million m³ (Haeussler et?al. in Submarine mass movements and their consequences, pp 269?C278, 2007). The first tectonic tsunami wave arrived in Resurrection Bay about 30?min after the main shock and was about the same height as the local landslide-generated waves. Our previous numerical study, which focused only on the local landslide-generated waves in Resurrection Bay, demonstrated that they were produced by a number of different slope failures, and estimated relative contributions of different submarine slide complexes into tsunami amplitudes (Suleimani et?al. in Pure Appl Geophys 166:131?C152, 2009). This work extends the previous study by calculating tsunami inundation in Resurrection Bay caused by the combined impact of landslide-generated waves and the tectonic tsunami, and comparing the composite inundation area with observations. To simulate landslide tsunami runup in Seward, we use a viscous slide model of Jiang and LeBlond (J Phys Oceanogr 24(3):559?C572, 1994) coupled with nonlinear shallow water equations. The input data set includes a high resolution multibeam bathymetry and LIDAR topography grid of Resurrection Bay, and an initial thickness of slide material based on pre- and post-earthquake bathymetry difference maps. For simulation of tectonic tsunami runup, we derive the 1964 coseismic deformations from detailed slip distribution in the rupture area, and use them as an initial condition for propagation of the tectonic tsunami. The numerical model employs nonlinear shallow water equations formulated for depth-averaged water fluxes, and calculates a temporal position of the shoreline using a free-surface moving boundary algorithm. We find that the calculated tsunami runup in Seward caused first by local submarine landslide-generated waves, and later by a tectonic tsunami, is in good agreement with observations of the inundation zone. The analysis of inundation caused by two different tsunami sources improves our understanding of their relative contributions, and supports tsunami risk mitigation in south-central Alaska. The record of the 1964 earthquake, tsunami, and submarine landslides, combined with the high-resolution topography and bathymetry of Resurrection Bay make it an ideal location for studying tectonic tsunamis in coastal regions susceptible to underwater landslides.     

The Afragola settlement near Vesuvius,Italy: The destruction and abandonment of a Bronze Age village revealed by archaeology,volcanology and rock-magnetism

Public works in progress in the Campanian plain north of Somma-Vesuvius recently encountered the remains of a prehistoric settlement close to the town of Afragola. Rescue excavations brought to light a Bronze Age village partially destroyed and buried by pyroclastic density currents (PDCs) of the Vesuvian Pomici di Avellino eruption (3.8 ¹⁴C ka BP) and subsequently sealed by alluvial deposits. Volcanological and rock-magnetic investigations supplemented the excavations.Careful comparison between volcanological and archaeological stratigraphies led to an understanding of the timing of the damage the buildings suffered when they were struck by a series of PDCs. The first engulfed the village, located some 14 km to the north of the inferred vent, and penetrated into the dwellings without causing major damage. The buildings were able to withstand the weak dynamic pressure of the currents and deviate their path, as shown by the magnetic fabric analyses. Some later collapsed under the load of the deposits piled up by successive currents. Stepwise demagnetization of the thermal remanent magnetization (TRM) carried by potsherds embedded in the deposits yields deposition temperatures in the order of 260–320 °C, fully consistent with those derived from pottery and lithic fragments from other distal and proximal sites. The fairly uniform temperature of the deposits is here ascribed to the lack of pervasive air entrainment into the currents. This, in turn, resulted from the lack of major topographical obstacles along the flat plain.The coupling of structural damage and sedimentological analyses indicates that the currents were not destructive in the Afragola area, but TRM data indicate they were still hot enough to cause death or severe injury to humans and animals. The successful escape of the entire population is apparent from the lack of human remains and from thousands of human footprints on the surface of the deposits left by the first PDCs. People were thus able to walk barefoot across the already emplaced deposits and escape the subsequent PDCs. The rapid cooling of the deposits was probably due to both their thinness and heat dissipation due to condensation of water vapour released in the mixture by magma–water interaction.     

Study of site effects in the area of Nocera Umbra (Central Italy) during the 1997 Umbria-Marche seismic sequence

During the M_L = 5.6 and 5.8 earthquakes occurredin central Italy on 26 September 1997 the historiccentre of Nocera Umbra, lying on top of a 120 m highhill, was diffusely damaged (VII-VIII degrees of MCSintensity). Some recently built houses in the modernpart of the town suffered an even higher level ofdamage. A temporary seismic array was deployed toinvestigate a possible correlation between localamplifications of ground motion in this area and theobserved pattern of damage. After a geologic andmacroseismic survey, eight sites were selected asrepresentative of different local conditions, such astopographic irregularities, sharp hard-to-softlithology transitions, alluvium-filled valleys, andboth undisturbed and deformed rocks.Horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratios for bothmicrotremor and earthquake recordings, as well asspectral ratios referred to undisturbed rock sites,were used to quantify local variations of groundmotion. In spite of the diffuse damage in the historiccentre of Nocera Umbra, a small amplification isobserved at the stations on the hill's top. Thissuggests that the higher vulnerability of the ancientbuildings mainly accounts for the diffuse damage inthat part of the town. In the frequency band ofengineering interest (1 to 10 Hz) the largestamplifications of ground motion are found at softsites: in the Topino river valley, where many episodesof severe structural damage occurred, spectralamplification is significant over a broad frequencyband ranging from 2 Hz to more than 20 Hz. Inparticular, in the central part of the valley highamplification (> 4) is found from 3 to 10 Hz,reaching a maximum of 20 around 4 Hz. At the edge ofthe valley, close to the soil-to-rock transition,amplification is as large as 10 in a frequency bandranging from 4 to more than 20 Hz. A significantamplification (by a factor of 10 around 10 Hz) isobserved also at one of the rock sites, possibly dueto the presence of a cataclastic zone related to theactivity of a regional fault that altered themechanical properties of the rock.     

Volume diffusion of Ytterbium in YAG: thin-film experiments and combined TEM–RBS analysis

In this study, we address volume diffusion of ytterbium in yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG) using thin-film single crystal diffusion couples. We employ analytical transmission electron microscopy (ATEM) as a tool for combined microstructural and microchemical analysis and compare the results to Rutherford backscattering (RBS) analysis. Given the high spatial resolution of the method, we focus on microstructural changes of the thin-film diffusant source during the diffusion anneal. We evaluate the potential influence of the associated changes in its transport properties on the evolution of concentration profiles in the single crystal substrate. This approach allows us to test the reliability of determination of volume diffusion coefficients from thin-film diffusion experiments. We found that for the chosen experimental setting, the influence of thin-film re-crystallization is small when compared with the experimental uncertainty and good estimates for the volume diffusion coefficients of Yb in YAG can be obtained using standard assumptions. Both Yb-concentration profiles analyzed with ATEM and with RBS give similar results. At 1,450°C and 1 bar, we infer log D _Yb (m²/s) values of −19.37 ± 0.07 (TEM) and −19.84 ± 0.02 (RBS). Although the change in thin-film transport properties associated with successive crystallization during the diffusion anneal does not play a major role for our experimental setup, this effect cannot generally be ignored.     

Omeonga—A possible large impact structure on the Eastern Kasai Province (D.R. Congo)?

Abstract– The Omeonga ring structure (D.R. Congo) shows a remarkable drainage pattern encircling an area up to 45 km wide and encompassing a central smoothed relief 20 km wide. This inner circular ridge is elevated about 70 m above the ring depression corresponding to the bed of the Unia River, which flows between the inner ridge and an outer irregular ridge. Landsat 7 ETM and ASTER DEM show that the structural characteristics resemble those of several wide impact structures known on Earth. Other geological modes of origin that could produce ring structures, such as magmatic activity, salt diapirism, and karst dissolution have been considered. However, after evaluating the regional stratigraphy, the distribution of volcanism, and morphometry, these processes seem to be rather unlikely. If of impact origin, the age of the Omeonga structure can be constrained to the Late Cretaceous‐Cenozoic according to the youngest units in which the ring structure was formed.     

Lakes of the Jom-Bolok Volcanoes Valley in the East Sayan Mts., Baikal region

Journal of Geographical Sciences - This article describes the lake basins of the Jom-Bolok volcanic region in the East Sayan (the largest manifestation of the Holocene eruptions in Central Asia)....     

Narrow-band CCD photometry of giant H ii regions

We have obtained accurate CCD narrow-band Hβ and Hα photometry of giant H  ii regions (GEHRs) in M33, NGC 6822 and M101. Comparison with previous determinations of emission-line fluxes shows large discrepancies; their probable origins are discussed. Combining our new photometric data with global velocity dispersion ( σ ) derived from emission linewidths, we review the     relation. A re-analysis of the properties of the GEHRs included in our sample shows that age spread and the superposition of components in multiple regions introduce a considerable spread in the regression. Combining the information available in the literature regarding ages of the associated clusters, evolutionary footprints on the interstellar medium, and kinematical properties of the knots that build up the multiple GEHRs, we find that a subsample – which we refer to as young and single GEHRs – do follow a tight relation in the     plane.     

Kuramoto Model of Nonlinear Coupled Oscillators as a Way for Understanding Phase Synchronization: Application to Solar and Geomagnetic Indices

We apply a Kuramoto model of nonlinear coupled oscillators to the simulation of slow variations of the phase difference between sunspot number [R _I ] and geomagnetic indices [aa and ζ]. The Kuramoto model is described for the particular case of two oscillators connected by symmetric coupling with quasi-stationary behavior, and its properties are investigated. By solving an inverse problem, we reconstruct the evolution of the couplings between pairs of indices [R _I and aa, R _I and ζ, aa and ζ], and interpret these in terms of the physics of the solar dynamo. The de-correlation between R _I and geomagnetic indices found in Solar Cycle 20 by Le Mouël et al. (J. Geophys. Res. 117, A09103, 2012) is successfully reproduced by the Kuramoto model and corresponds to the alternation of the leading oscillator. Application of the Kuramoto model to the cross-correlations [C(R _I ,ζ) and C(aa,ζ)] for ζ-indices computed in eight geomagnetic stations shows the latitudinal dependence of the mean phase difference. We discuss these results in terms of the solar-wind contribution to local geomagnetic indices [ζ].