Phytoplankton-zooplankton coupling in the outer continental shelf and slope waters of the Mid-Atlantic Bight,June 1979

Measurements of phytoplankton distribution and production, and zooplankton abundance and biomass were made during the summer of 1979 along several shelf-slope transects in the Mid-Atlantic Bight. At the shelf-break, macrozooplankton (>200 μm) grazing was estimated to be sufficient to remove a substantial proportion of daily phytoplankton production. In contrast, on the shelf and in slope waters, where ciliates were abundant, estimates of macrozooplankton grazing indicated a consumption rate less than 15% of the daily primary production. Ciliate grazing, even at non-maximum rates, potentially could have consumed the entire daily primary production in all areas sampled. The findings indicate that the nature of the heterotrophic community is spatially variable in offshore waters even during summer conditions and could influence not only trophodynamic pathways but perhaps nutrient regeneration and recycling. This would be an important consideration in evaluating the fate of particle-bound chemcial species in the water column since fecal pellet producing zooplankton would affect rates of removal and sedimentation in a different manner than ciliates which produce non-compacted digestive debris.     

Validating a rapid-update satellite precipitation analysis across telescoping space and time scales

In order to properly utilize remotely sensed precipitation estimates in hydrometeorological applications, knowledge of the accuracy of the estimates are needed. However, relatively few ground validation networks operate with the necessary spatial density and time-resolution required for validation of high-resolution precipitation products (HRPP) generated at fine space and time scales (e.g., hourly accumulations produced on a 0.25° spatial scale). In this article, we examine over-land validation statistics for an operationally designed, meteorological satellite-based global rainfall analysis that blends intermittent passive microwave-derived rainfall estimates aboard a variety of low Earth-orbiting satellite platforms with sub-hourly time sampling capabilities of visible and infrared imagers aboard operational geostationary platforms. The validation dataset is comprised of raingauge data collected from the dense, nearly homogeneous, 1-min reporting Automated Weather Station (network of the Korean Meteorological Administration during the June to August 2000 summer monsoon season. The space-time RMS error, mean bias, and correlation matrices were computed using various time windows for the gauge averaging, centered about the satellite observation time. For ±10 min time window, a correlation of 0.6 was achieved at 0.1° spatial scale by averaging more than 3 days; coarsening the spatial scale to 1.8° produced the same correlation by averaging over 1 h. Finer than approximately 24-h and 1° time and space scales, respectively, a rapid decay of the error statistics was obtained by trading-off either spatial or time resolution. Beyond a daily time scale, the blended estimates were nearly unbiased and with an RMS error of no worse than 1 mm day^?1.     

Preparing for climate change in Washington State

Climate change is expected to bring potentially significant changes to Washington State’s natural, institutional, cultural, and economic landscape. Addressing climate change impacts will require a sustained commitment to integrating climate information into the day-to-day governance and management of infrastructure, programs, and services that may be affected by climate change. This paper discusses fundamental concepts for planning for climate change and identifies options for adapting to the climate impacts evaluated in the Washington Climate Change Impacts Assessment. Additionally, the paper highlights potential avenues for increasing flexibility in the policies and regulations used to govern human and natural systems in Washington.     

High-frequency Faraday rotation observations of the solar corona

This thesis, presented on January 31, 2007 under the supervision of Professor Christopher T. Russell, discusses the solar coronal magnetic field observations that can be obtained using the phenomenon of Faraday rotation. It was defended in the Department of Earth and Space Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles (595 Charles E. Young, Dr. East, Los Angeles, CA 90095). A resume can be found at http://acs-consulting.com/.     

A limit on the number density of bright z≈ 7 galaxies

We present a survey of bright optical dropout sources in two deep, multiwavelength surveys comprising 11 widely separated fields, aimed at constraining the galaxy luminosity function at   z ≈ 7  for sources at  5–10  L * ( z = 6)  . Our combined survey area is 225 arcmin² to a depth of   J _AB= 24.2  (3σ) and 135 arcmin² to   J = 25.3  (4σ). We find that infrared data longwards of 2 μm are essential for classifying optical dropout sources, and in particular for identifying cool Galactic star contaminants. Our limits on the number density of high-redshift sources are consistent with current estimates of the Lyman break galaxy luminosity function at   z = 6  .     

Reanalysis of the Historic AFTAC Bolide Infrasound Database

We have recently digitized and partially reanalyzed the historic bolide infrasonic database. These 10 events were originally detected by the U.S. Air Force Technical Applications Center (AFTAC) from ∼1960 to 1974. In this paper we present the first preliminary reanalysis results for two of the 10 bolide events, namely the Revelstoke bolide of 3/31/1965 as well as the Prince Edward Islands (P.E.I). S. African bolide of 8/03/1963, which were among the largest bolides detected during this time period. These bolides have been investigated initially since they are most likely to have had a significant effect on the computed global influx rate of ReVelle (Global Infrasonic Monitoring of Large Bolides, pp 483–490, 2001) as indicated in Brown et al. (Nature, 420:314–316, 2002). We are in the process of recomputing all relevant infrasonic propagation quantities such as plane wave back azimuth, signal velocities, power spectra, spectrograms, as well as energy estimates using multiple techniques. In a future paper we will present a complete digital reanalysis of the AFTAC bolide infrasonic data and its final resulting global bolide influx implications.     

A complete sample of radio sources in the North Ecliptic Cap, selected at 38 MHz – III. Further imaging observations and the photometric properties of the sample

Further imaging observations of a sample of radio sources in the North Ecliptic Cap are presented and a number of new identifications are made. Using redshifts from spectroscopic data presented in a companion paper by Lacy et al., the photometric properties of the galaxies in the sample are discussed. It is shown that: (1) out to at least z ≈0.6 radio galaxies are good standard candles irrespective of radio luminosity; (2) for 0.6≲ z ≲1 a large fraction of the sample has magnitudes and colours consistent with a non-evolving giant elliptical, and (3) at higher redshifts, where the R -band samples the rest-frame UV flux, most objects have less UV luminosity than expected if they form their stellar populations at a constant rate from a high redshift to z ∼1 in unobscured star-forming regions (assuming an Einstein–de Sitter cosmology). The consequences of these observations are briefly discussed.     

Fijian villagers adapt to changes in local fisheries

This paper analyzes some of the problems encountered by a village-run fishing cooperative in rural Fiji. Concern about the limited success of this fishing cooperative led the villagers of Kaba Point, Fiji to ask for biological and socioeconomic studies to determine the roots of the cooperative’s problems. The villagers also required an assessment of their proposal to revitalize the cooperative through a development scheme that would enable them to increase their catch. The surveys, undertaken by researchers from the University of the South Pacific and the Fiji Fisheries Division, indicate that the area has been overfished, primarily through the widespread local and commercial use of gillnets and the reliance on fishing as a sole source of village income, and further expansion of the current resource exploitation patterns would be very damaging. In addition, although the cooperative provides an important sense of communalism in the village, only a few people regularly provide fish to the coop. The semi-subsistence lifestyle of rural Fiji is one factor limiting villagers participation in full-time fishing activities. The traditional social and management structures inherent in this village (especially, marine tenure, chiefly responsibility for the community, and a demonstrated history of communal projects) can form a strong basis for a modern community-based marine management program. However, if not carefully watched, resources can also be locally mismanaged because of the increasing demands of the modern market-driven economy.