Wave propagation in a non-isothermal atmosphere and the solar five-minute oscillations

This paper presents a detailed discussion of the properties of linear, periodic acoustic waves that propagate vertically in a non-isothermal atmosphere. In order to retain the basic feature of the solar atmosphere we have chosen a temperature profile presenting a minimum. An analytical solution of the problem is possible if T/, being the mean molecular weight, varies parabolically with height. The purpose of this study is to point out the qualitative differences existing between the case treated here and the customary analysis based on a locally isothermal treatment. The computed velocity amplitude and the temperature-perturbation as functions of the wave period exhibit a sharp peak in the region between 180 and 300 s, thus showing the possibility of interpreting the five-minute oscillations as a resonant phenomenon. The propagating or stationary nature of the waves is investigated by a study of the phase of the proposed analytical solution.     

Thermal springs,fumaroles and gas vents of continental Yemen: Their relation with active tectonics,regional hydrology and the country’s geothermal potential

Most thermal springs of continental Yemen (about 65 emergences at 48 sampling sites) and a couple of fumaroles and boiling water pools have been sampled and analyzed for chemical and isotopic composition in the liquid phase and the associated free-gas phase. Whatever the emergence, all the water discharges have an isotopic signature of meteoric origin. Springs seeping out from high altitudes in the central volcanic plateau show a prevalent Na–HCO₃-composition, clearly affected by an anomalous flux of deep CO₂ deriving from active hydrothermal systems located in the Jurassic Amran Group limestone sequence and/or the Cretaceous Tawilah Group, likely underlying the 2000–3000 m thick volcanic suite. At lower elevations, CO₂ also affects the composition of some springs emerging at the borders of the central volcanic plateau.     

Biochemical and microbial features of shallow marine sediments along the Terra Nova Bay (Ross Sea,Antarctica)

Shallow marine sediments were collected from seven stations (three of which located at Gerlache Inlet, two at Tethys Bay, one at Adelie Cove and one just beneath the Italian Research Base) along the Terra Nova Bay coast (Ross Sea, Antarctica). Their chemical, biochemical and microbiological properties were studied in order to provide further insights in the knowledge of this Antarctic benthic ecosystem. Overall, the organic carbon (OC) represented the major fraction of total carbon (TC) and displayed concentrations similar to or slightly lower than those previously measured in Antarctic bottom sediments. The biopolymeric carbon within OC ranged from 4.1% to 19.9% and showed a wide trophic range (65–834 μg g⁻¹ d.w.). Proteins (PRT) represented on average the main biochemical class contributing to labile organic carbon, followed by lipids (LIP) and carbohydrates (CHO). The activity of aminopeptidase, β-d-glucosidase, alkaline phosphatase and esterase was checked, giving the highest values at Tethys Bay and at the deepest water sediments. The principal component analysis, which was computed considering physical, chemical (elemental and biochemical sedimentary composition) and microbiological parameters (including bacterial abundance, ectoenzymatic activities, T-RFs richness and diversity indices), allowed to obtain two main clusters (“Tethys Bay” and “other stations”). Based on data obtained, two representative 16S rRNA clone libraries using samples from Tethys Bay and Gerlache Inlet were constructed. The sequences of 171 clones were compared to those available in public databases to determine their approximate phylogenetic affiliations. Both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria were disclosed, with the majority of them affiliated with the Gamma- and Deltaproteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Acidobacteria. The occurrence of strictly anaerobic bacteria suggests that sediments might also undergo anoxic conditions that, in turn, could favor the accumulation of PRT in respect to CHO, assuming that fermentation of amino acids is slower than that of sugars from decomposing polysaccharides.     

Pier scour monitoring system by bed-level image tracking

A scour monitoring system with a micro camera tracking the bed-level images is proposed in this study.Two image recognition algorithms have been developed to support the bed-level image tracking approach.Through the laboratory experiments of pier scour,this study demonstrates that the proposed system is able to accurately monitor the scour-depth evolution in real time.In addition,five commonly-used temporal scour models are employed to simulate scour-depth evolution and their results are compared with monitoring data.In general,the results indicate that the proposed scour monitoring system has the potential for further applications in the field.     

Re-assessing the surface cycling of molybdenum and rhenium

We re-evaluate the cycling of molybdenum (Mo) and rhenium (Re) in the near-surface environment. World river average Mo and Re concentrations, initially based on a handful of rivers, are calculated using 38 rivers representing five continents, and 11 of 19 large-scale drainage regions. Our new river concentration estimates are 8.0 nmol kg⁻¹ (Mo), and 16.5 pmol kg⁻¹ (Re, natural + anthropogenic). The linear relationship of dissolved Re and in global rivers (R² = 0.76) indicates labile continental Re is predominantly hosted within sulfide minerals and reduced sediments; it also provides a means of correcting for the anthropogenic contribution of Re to world rivers using independent estimates of anthropogenic sulfate. Approximately 30% of Re in global rivers is anthropogenic, yielding a pre-anthropogenic world river average of 11.2 pmol Re kg⁻¹. The potential for anthropogenic contribution is also seen in the non-negligible Re concentrations in precipitation (0.03-5.9 pmol kg⁻¹), and the nmol kg⁻¹ level Re concentrations of mine waters. The linear Mo- relationship (R² = 0.69) indicates that the predominant source of Mo to rivers is the weathering of pyrite. An anthropogenic Mo correction was not done as anthropogenically-influenced samples do not display the unambiguous metal enrichment observed for Re. Metal concentrations in high temperature hydrothermal fluids from the Manus Basin indicate that calculated end-member fluids (i.e. Mg-free) yield negative Mo and Re concentrations, showing that Mo and Re can be removed more quickly than Mg during recharge. High temperature hydrothermal fluids are unimportant sinks relative to their river sources 0.4% (Mo), and 0.1% (pre-anthropogenic Re). We calculate new seawater response times of 4.4 × 10⁵ yr (τ_Mo) and 1.3 × 10⁵ yr (τ_Re, pre-anthropogenic).     

Evolution of Stratocumulus Over Land: Comparison of Ground and Aircraft Observations with Numerical Weather Prediction Simulations

Forecasting of low cloud continues to challenge numerical weather prediction. With this in mind, surface and airborne observations were made over East Anglia, UK, during March 2011 to investigate stratus and stratocumulus advecting from the sea over land. Four surface sites were deployed at various distances inland aligned approximately along the flow. In situ data include cloud-droplet measurements from an aircraft operating off the coast and a tethered balloon 100 km inland. Comparisons of thermodynamic and cloud properties are made with Met Office operational model simulations at horizontal resolutions of 4 and 1.5 km. The clouds contained droplet concentrations up to 600 cm \(^{-3}\) within polluted outflow off Europe. These measurements were compared to three different model schemes for predicting droplet concentration: two of them perform well at low to moderate concentrations but asymptote to 375 cm \(^{-3}\) . Microwave radiometers at the ground sites retrieved liquid water paths that reduced with distance inland and were generally below 200 g m \(^{-2}\) . The modelled water path performs well upstream but more erratically far inland. Comparisons of thermodynamic profiles are made within both Lagrangian and Eulerian frameworks and show the model predicted changes in equivalent potential temperature generally within 1 K, with occasional errors of 2 K or more. The modelled cloud-top temperatures were in good agreement with the observations down to \(-\) 7  \(^{\circ }\) C, but the magnitude of the temperature inversion, although good at times, was too small by on average 1.6 K. The different simulations produced different cloud-top water contents due to a combination of resolution and scientific upgrades to the model, but they generally underestimate the amount of cloud water. Major changes, such as the mesoscale temporary cloud breaks on 2 March 2011 and the complete clearance on 4 March, were seemingly predicted by the model for the correct reasons.     

Geological and geochemical characteristics of the Baimazhai Ni-Cu-（PGE） sulphide deposit in Yunnan, China

The sulphide ores of the Baimazhai deposit, although typically orthomagmatic, locally exhibit peculiar textural features and are intimately associated with hydrothermal minerals, such as biotite, amphibole and chlorite. This association suggests that the magmatic sulphide ores were subjected to hydrothermal alteration and subsequent redistribution, resulting in the observed textural features. Geochemically, the Baimazhai sulphide ores are enriched in Cu, Pd and Au, which,according to previous studies, reflects the action of hydrothermal fluids. Interestingly, Ar-Ar dating yielded the plateau ages of about 160–170 Ma, which are at odds with the established Permian age of the Emeishan large igneous province. We interpreted these younger ages as due to thermal resetting during post-Permian tectonothermal events. We have proposed a model in which tectonic movements and hydrothermal fluids related to these events modified the pre-existing magmatic sulphides. Given the degree of overprint, we suggested two possible scenarios: 1) the sulphide disseminations that surround the massive magmatic ores are the result of deformation and hydrothermal alteration; and 2) there were both magmatic massive and disseminated sulphides, in which case the scale and relocation of remobilization would have been smaller, but still detectable.