Helmet Streamers with Triple Structures: Simulations of resistive dynamics

Recent observations of the solar corona with the LASCO coronagraph on board of the SOHO spacecraft have revealed the occurrence of triple helmet streamers even during solar minimum, which occasionally go unstable and give rise to large coronal mass ejections. There are also indications that the slow solar wind is either a combination of a quasi-stationary flow and a highly fluctuating component or may even be caused completely by many small eruptions or instabilities. As a first step we recently presented an analytical method to calculate simple two-dimensional stationary models of triple helmet streamer configurations. In the present contribution we use the equations of time-dependent resistive magnetohydrodynamics to investigate the stability and the dynamical behaviour of these configurations. We particularly focus on the possible differences between the dynamics of single isolated streamers and triple streamers and on the way in which magnetic reconnection initiates both small scale and large scale dynamical behaviour of the streamers. Our results indicate that small eruptions at the helmet streamer cusp may incessantly accelerate small amounts of plasma without significant changes of the equilibrium configuration and might thus contribute to the non-stationary slow solar wind. On larger time and length scales, large coronal eruptions can occur as a consequence of large scale magnetic reconnection events inside the streamer configuration. Our results also show that triple streamers are usually more stable than a single streamer.     

Analysis of soil moisture dynamics beneath olive trees

Olive cultivation is a widespread land use in Mediterranean climates. The proper implementation of soil and water conservation practices in groves requires detailed knowledge of the governing hydrological processes. In this work topsoil moisture dynamics under wet and dry conditions and across a small catchment was investigated in the inter row (IR) and directly under the olive tree canopies (UC). We do this using a sensor network (11 stations) and a simple bucket model which was calibrated (June, 2011–2012) and validated (June, 2012–2013). During most of the year the normalized soil moisture contents (s) were greater in the IR than under UC, with an average normalized soil moisture difference of 0.12. The difference between UC and IR normalized soil moisture followed a seasonal pattern, reaching a maximum near 0.30 during spring. An analysis of the normalized soil moisture probability density functions (pdfs) was bimodal, showing characteristic dominant wet and dry soil moisture states, with the highest probability densities for the dry state. Overall the spatial variability of soil moisture was lower UC than in the IR. This was a result of the soil moisture buffering capacity of the canopy with respect to rainfall and evaporation, in addition to observed differences in soil properties. Hourly soil moisture data were successfully modelled (R² > 0.85), both UC and in the IR, yet with the inclusion of a simple formulation for canopy interception for the former. The results provide insight into how olive trees change hydrological processes in their neighbourhood. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Hillslope response to knickpoint migration in the Southern Appalachians: implications for the evolution of post‐orogenic landscapes

The southern Appalachians represent a landscape characterized by locally high topographic relief, steep slopes, and frequent mass movement in the absence of significant tectonic forcing for at least the last 200 Ma. The fundamental processes responsible for landscape evolution in a post‐orogenic landscape remain enigmatic. The non‐glaciated Cullasaja River basin of south‐western North Carolina, with uniform lithology, frequent debris flows, and the availability of high‐resolution airborne lidar DEMs, is an ideal natural setting to study landscape evolution in a post‐orogenic landscape through the lens of hillslope–channel coupling. This investigation is limited to channels with upslope contributing areas >2.7 km², a conservative estimate of the transition from fluvial to debris‐flow dominated channel processes. Values of normalized hypsometry, hypsometric integral, and mean slope vs elevation are used for 14 tributary basins and the Cullasaja basin as a whole to characterize landscape evolution following upstream knickpoint migration. Results highlight the existence of a transient spatial relationship between knickpoints present along the fluvial network of the Cullasaja basin and adjacent hillslopes. Metrics of topography (relief, slope gradient) and hillslope activity (landslide frequency) exhibit significant downstream increases below the current position of major knickpoints. The transient effect of knickpoint‐driven channel incision on basin hillslopes is captured by measuring the relief, mean slope steepness, and mass movement frequency of tributary basins and comparing these results with the distance from major knickpoints along the Cullasaja River. A conceptual model of area–elevation and slope distributions is presented that may be representative of post‐orogenic landscape evolution in analogous geologic settings. Importantly, the model explains how knickpoint migration and channel–hillslope coupling is an important factor in tectonically‐inactive (i.e. post‐orogenic) orogens for the maintenance of significant relief, steep slopes, and weathering‐limited hillslopes. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cluster analysis of a regional-scale soil geochemical dataset in northern California

A regional-scale soil geochemical study was conducted within a 22,000 km² area in northern California including the Sierra Nevada, Sacramento Valley, and northern Coast Range. Over 1300 soil samples were chemically analyzed for 42 elements. The distribution of distinct groups of elements demonstrates the interplay of geologic, hydrologic, geomorphologic and anthropogenic factors; however, it is difficult to fully appreciate the complexity of geochemical transport and weathering processes on a landscape-scale in an area of very complex geology with such a large dataset containing more than 40 variables. To examine the data from a perspective of multi-element groupings, cluster analyses were applied to the dataset. The analysis identified several groups of elements whose spatial patterns could be related to specific geologic sources.     

The economic impacts of banning commercial bottomfish fishing in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

This study examines the economic impacts of closing the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands bottomfish fishery, as part of a larger effort to create an effective marine protected area. An overview of the market for NWHI bottomfish in Hawaii is given using input–output data and a fishery closure analysis is conducted using public data on commercial fishing and primary information collected through interviews with wholesalers, restaurants, and retailers. Assuming the worst-case scenario, the wholesale price per pound of Onaga and Opakapaka is estimated to increase by $0.80 and $0.42, respectively. But this is unlikely, as the own-price elasticity of demand for Hawaii-caught bottomfish is found to be highly elastic and there is widespread substitution with imports. The overall economic loss is thus quite small, while the environmental gains of creating the largest marine protected area in the world could be substantial.