Modern Wyoming plant and pronghorn isoscapes and their implications for archaeology

Stable isotope ratios obtained from pronghorn teeth recovered from archaeological sites in southwestern Wyoming may provide information on past climate and hunter behavior. However, the interpretation of archaeological isotope values depends on pronghorn isotopic correlations with the environment and geography. To investigate these correlations, a series of modern Wyoming carbon, oxygen and strontium isoscapes are compared with recent temperature, humidity and geological variation. Results indicate that both pronghorn and sagebrush carbon, and to a lesser degree oxygen, isotope ratios are tied to relative humidity. Temperature is correlated with oxygen isotope ratios in sagebrush, but not pronghorn. Strontium isotope ratios in both sagebrush and pronghorn vary with geography, which in turn reflects variation in geology.     

Estimating black hole masses in quasars using broad optical and UV emission lines

We review past work using broad emission lines as virial estimators of black hole masses in quasars. Basically one requires estimates of the emitting region radius and virial velocity dispersion to obtain black hole masses. The three major ways to estimate the broad-line emitting region (BLR) radius involve: (1) direct reverberation mapping, (2) derivation of BLR radius for larger samples using the radius-luminosity correlation derived from reverberation measures, and (3) estimates of BLR radius using the definition of the ionization parameter solved for BLR radius (photoionization method). At low redshift (z ? 0.7) FWHM Hβ serves as the most widely used estimator of virial velocity dispersion. FWHM Hβ can provide estimates for tens of thousands of quasars out to z ≈ 3.8 (IR spectroscopy beyond z ≈ 1). A new photoionization method also shows promise for providing many reasonable estimates of BLR radius via high S/N IR spectroscopy of the UV region 1300–2000 Å. FWHM Mgiiλ2800 can serve as a surrogate for FWHM Hβ in the range 0.4 ? z ? 6.5 while civλ1549 is affected by broadening due to non-virial motions and best avoided (i.e. there is no clear conversion factor between FWHM Hβ and FWHM Civλ1549). Most quasars yield mass estimates in the range 7 ? log M_BH ? 9.7. There is no strong evidence for values above 10.0 and there may be evidence for a turnover in the maximum black hole mass near z ≈ 5.     

Derivation of density and temperature from the Cassini–Huygens CAPS electron spectrometer

In this paper we present two methods to derive electron fluid parameters from the CAPS–ELS spectrometer on board the Cassini spacecraft currently in orbit around Saturn. In the first part of the paper we give a basic overview of the instrument and describe the challenges inherent in the derivation of density and temperature values using these techniques. We then describe a method to calculate electron moments by integrating the particle distribution function. We also describe a second technique in which we fit the electron energy spectrum with a Gaussian curve and use the peak energy of this curve to derive density and temperature values. We then compare the two methods with particular emphasis on their application to Cassini SOI observations in the saturnian environment and point out the limitations of the two techniques. We will show that results from the two very different methods are in agreement when the physical properties of the environment and of the observed electron populations have been inferred from inspection of the raw data. Finally we will suggest future developments that will remove these limitations.     

The information system of the French Peatland Observation Service: Service National d'Observation Tourbières – A valuable tool to assess the impact of global changes on the hydrology and biogeochemistry of temperate peatlands through long term monitoring

Mitigating and adapting to global changes requires a better understanding of the response of the Biosphere to these environmental variations. Human disturbances and their effects act in the long term (decades to centuries) and consequently, a similar time frame is needed to fully understand the hydrological and biogeochemical functioning of a natural system. To this end, the ‘Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique’ (CNRS) promotes and certifies long-term monitoring tools called national observation services or ‘Service National d'Observation’ (SNO) in a large range of hydrological and biogeochemical systems (e.g., cryosphere, catchments, aquifers). The SNO investigating peatlands, the SNO ‘Tourbières’, was certified in 2011 ( https://www.sno-tourbieres.cnrs.fr/ ). Peatlands are mostly found in the high latitudes of the northern hemisphere and French peatlands are located in the southern part of this area. Thus, they are located in environmental conditions that will occur in northern peatlands in coming decades or centuries and can be considered as sentinels. The SNO Tourbières is composed of four peatlands: La Guette (lowland central France), Landemarais (lowland oceanic western France), Frasne (upland continental eastern France) and Bernadouze (upland southern France). Thirty target variables are monitored to study the hydrological and biogeochemical functioning of the sites. They are grouped into four datasets: hydrology, fluvial export of organic matter, greenhouse gas fluxes and meteorology/soil physics. The data from all sites follow a common processing chain from the sensors to the public repository. The raw data are stored on an FTP server. After operator or automatic processing, data are stored in a database, from which a web application extracts the data to make them available ( https://data-snot.cnrs.fr/data-access/ ). Each year at least, an archive of each dataset is stored in Zenodo, with a digital object identifier (DOI) attribution ( https://zenodo.org/communities/sno_tourbieres_data/ ).     

The mobilization and deposition of mud deposits in a coastal plain estuary

Muddy sediments with their potential for containing contaminants are commonly deposited and remobilized by tidal currents in estuarine environments. We examined the mobilization and subsequent redeposition of mud in a coastal plain estuary located in the southeastern United States. Time-series data for salinity, suspended sediment concentrations and quality (percent organic matter and pigment concentrations) were obtained over a 13-hour tidal cycle. We found that fast-settling mud particles are found during the highest tidal current speeds. Particle quality analyses suggest that all the material is of similar origin, and that phaeopigment can be used as a tracer of particles in this system. These particles settle onto the bed when current speeds approach slack conditions. We speculate that the quantity of mud mobilized during neap tide is less than during spring tide resulting in an opportunity for the mud to partially consolidate on the bottom and be removed from resuspension. We further speculate that the muddy sediments are mainly derived from fringing marshes in this estuary.     

Systematic winds at heights between 350 and 675 km from analysis of the orbits of four balloon satellites

Six values of the rate of rotation of the Earth's upper atmosphere have been obtained by analysis of the orbital inclinations of four balloon satellites in the intervals just before the final decay of their orbits. The effective heights of these results range from about 350 to about 675 km. The values themselves range from 0·8 to 1·4 times the Earth's rotation and correspond to zonal wind speeds between 100 m/sec westward and 200 m/sec eastward. All the results correspond to fairly specific local times and are consistent with a diurnal wind pattern in low latitudes having a strong eastward maximum near local midnight and a lesser westward maximum near 10:00 LT. They argue against the contention of a sharp decrease in the rate with respect to that of the Earth, which is supposed to begin at about 360 km. The factors involved in the determination of these values and the method used are discussed in considerable detail.     

Data Analysis and Modeling to Optimize Thermal Treatment Cost and Performance

The objective of in situ thermal treatment is typically to reduce the contaminant mass or average soil concentration below a specified value. Evaluation of whether the objective has been met is usually made by averaging soil concentrations from a limited number of soil samples. Results from several field sites indicate large performance uncertainty using this approach, even when the number of samples is large. We propose a method to estimate average soil concentration by fitting a log normal probability model to thermal mass recovery data. A statistical approach is presented for making termination decisions from mass recovery data, soil sample data, or both for an entire treatment volume or for subregions that explicitly considers estimation uncertainty which is coupled to a stochastic optimization algorithm to identify monitoring strategies to meet objectives with minimum expected cost. Early termination of heating in regions that reach cleanup targets sooner enables operating costs to be reduced while ensuring a high likelihood of meeting remediation objectives. Results for an example problem demonstrate that significant performance improvement and cost reductions can be achieved using this approach.     

A probabilistic framework for estimating the residual drift of idealized SDOF systems of non‐degrading conventional and damped structures

This paper presents a general framework for predicting the residual drift of idealized SDOF systems that can be used to represent non‐degrading structures, including those with supplemental dampers. The framework first uses post‐peak oscillation analysis to predict the maximum ratio of residual displacement to the peak transient displacement in a random sample. Then, residual displacement ratios obtained from nonlinear time‐history analyses using both farfield and near‐fault‐pulse records were examined to identify trends, which were explained using the oscillation mechanics of SDOF systems. It is shown that large errors can result in existing probability models that do not capture the influence of key parameters on the residual displacement. Building on the observations that were made, a general probability distribution for the ratio of residual displacement to the peak transient displacement that more accurately reflects the physical bounds obtained from post‐peak oscillation analysis is proposed for capturing the probabilistic residual displacement response of these systems. The proposed distribution is shown to be more accurate when compared with previously proposed distributions in the literature due to its explicit account of dynamic and damping properties, which have a significant impact on the residual displacement. This study provides a rational basis for further development of a residual drift prediction tool for the performance‐based design and analysis of more complex multi‐degree‐of‐freedom systems.