Compatible taper and stem volume equations for <Emphasis Type="Italic">Larix kaempferi</Emphasis> (Japanese larch) species of South Korea

In this study, compatible taper and stem volume equations were developed for Larix kaempferi species of South Korea. The dataset was split into two groups: 80% of the data were used in model fitting and the remaining 20% were used for validation. The compatible MB76 equations were used to predict the diameter outside bark to a specific height, the height to a specific diameter and the stem volume of the species. The result of the stem volume analysis was compared with the existing stem volume model of Larix kaempferi species of South Korea which was developed by the Korea Forest Research Institute and with a simple volume model that was developed with fitting dataset in this study. The compatible model provided accurate prediction of the total stem volume when compared to the existing stem volume model and with a simple volume model. It is concluded that the compatible taper and stem volume equations are more convenient to use and therefore it is recommended to be applied in the Larix kaempferi species of South Korea.     

Comparative analysis of four stem taper models for Quercus glauca in Mount Halla,Jeju Island,South Korea

This study was conducted to fit the diameter-height data of Quercusglaucain Jeju Island, South Korea to the four commonly used stem taper equations andto evaluate the performance of the four stem taper models using four statistical criteria： Fit index （FI）, root mean square error （RMSE）, bias （）,and absolute mean difference （AMD）. Results showed that the Kozak02stem taper equation provided the best FI（0.9847）, RMSE（1.5745）,（-0.0030 cm） and AMD （1.0990 cm） whileMax and Burkhart model had the poorest performance among the four stem taper models based on the four evaluation statistics （FI ： 0.9793,RMSE ： 1.8272, ： 0.3040 cm and AMD ： 1.3060 cm）. These stem taper equations can serve as a useful tool for forest managers in estimating the diameter outside bark at any given height, merchantable stem volumes and total stem volumesof the standing trees of Quercusglaucain theGotjawal forests located in Mount Halla, Jeju Island, South Korea.     

The appearance of Ulva laetevirens (Ulvophyceae,Chlorophyta) in the northeast coast of the United States of America

Introduced species may outcompete or hybridize with native species, resulting in the loss of native biodiversity or even alteration of ecosystem processes. In this study, we reported an alien distromatic Ulva species, which was found in an embayment (Holly Pond) connected with Long Island Sound, USA. The morphological and anatomical observations in combination with molecular data were used for its identification to species. Anatomy of collected specimens showed that the cell shape in rhizoidal and basal regions was round and the marginal teeth along the basal and median region were not found. These characteristics were primarily identical to the diagnostic characteristics of Ulva laetevirens Areschoug (Chlorophyta). The plastid-encoding tufA and nucleusencoding ITS1 were used for its molecular identification. Phylogenetic analysis for the tufA gene placed the specimens from Holly Pond in a well-supported clade along with published sequences of U. laetevirens identified early without any sequence divergence. In ITS tree, the sample also formed well-supported clades with the sequences of U. laetevirens with an estimated sequence divergence among the taxa in these clades as low as 1%. These findings confirmed the morpho-anatomical conclusion. Native to Australia, this species was reported in several countries along the Mediterranean coast after the late of 1990s. This is the first time that U. laetevirens is found in the northeast coast of United States and the second record for Atlantic North America.     

Biomass and carbon storage of Gracilariopsis lemaneiformis （Rhodophyta） in Zhanshan Bay,Qingdao, China

Marine macroalgae can absorb carbon and play an important role in carbon sequestration. As an important economic macroalga, Gracilariopsis lemaneiformis has the potential to significantly affect carbon absorption and storage in wave-sheltered intertidal reef systems. However, detailed knowledge on seasonal biomass changes and carbon storage of G. lemaneiformis is lacking, especially in many small and scattered ecosystems. Considering the influence of human activities on wild distribution of G. lemaneiformis, the understanding of seasonal dynamics of an economically important species in nature is necessary. In this study, we first investigated seasonal variations in biomass, coverage area, and carbon storage during low tide from August 2011 to July 2012 in Zhanshan Bay, Qingdao, China. Furthermore, we estimated the carbon storage potential of wild G. lemaneiformis using light use efficiency(LUE). The results show that the standing biomass and coverage area changed significantly with season. However, seasonal variations in carbon content and water content were not obvious, with an average content of 35.1% and 83.64%, respectively. Moreover, carbon storage in individual months varied between 0.67 and 47.03 g C/m 2, and the value of carbon storage was the highest in August and June and the lowest in February. In Zhanshan Bay, LUE of G. lemaneiformis was only 0.23%. If it is increased to the theoretical maximum(5%–6%), the carbon storage will have an increase of at least 21 times compared with the current, which suggested that carbon storage of wild G. lemaneiformis had a high enhancement potential. The study will help to assess a potential role of G. lemaneiformis in reducing atmospheric CO2.     

FISS Observations of Vertical Motion of Plasma in Tiny Pores

Pores can be exploited for the understanding of the interaction between small-scale vertical magnetic field and the surrounding convective motions as well as the transport of mechanical energy into the chromosphere along the magnetic field. For better understanding of the physics of pores, we investigate tiny pores in a new emerging active region (AR11117) that were observed on 26 October 2010 by the Solar Optical Telescope (SOT) on board Hinode and the Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph (FISS) of the 1.6 meter New Solar Telescope (NST). The pores are compared with nearby small magnetic concentrations (SMCs), which have similar magnetic flux as the pores but do not appear dark. Magnetic flux density and Doppler velocities in the photosphere are estimated by applying the center-of-gravity method to the Hinode/Spectro-Polarimeter data. The line-of-sight motions in the lower chromosphere are determined by applying the bisector method to the wings of the Hα and the Ca?ii 8542 Å line simultaneously taken by the FISS. The coordinated observation reveals that the pores are filled with plasma which moves down slowly and are surrounded by stronger downflow in the photosphere. In the lower chromosphere, we found that the plasma flows upwards inside the pores while the plasma in the SMCs is always moving down. Our inspection of the Ca?ii 8542 Å line from the wing to the core shows that the upflow in the pores slows down with height and turns into downflow in the upper chromosphere while the downflow in the SMCs gains its speed. Our results are in agreement with the numerical studies which suggest that rapid cooling of the interior of the pores drives a strong downflow, which collides with the dense lower layer below and rebounds into an upflow.     

Temperature of Solar Prominences Obtained with the Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph on the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope at the Big Bear Solar Observatory

We observed solar prominences with the Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph (FISS) at the Big Bear Solar Observatory on 30 June 2010 and 15 August 2011. To determine the temperature of the prominence material, we applied a nonlinear least-squares fitting of the radiative transfer model. From the Doppler broadening of the Hα and Ca ii lines, we determined the temperature and nonthermal velocity separately. The ranges of temperature and nonthermal velocity were 4000?–?20?000 K and 4?–?11 km?s^?1. We also found that the temperature varied much from point to point within one prominence.     

Comparison of Cone Model Parameters for Halo Coronal Mass Ejections

Halo coronal mass ejections (HCMEs) are a major cause of geomagnetic storms, hence their three-dimensional structures are important for space weather. We compare three cone models: an elliptical-cone model, an ice-cream-cone model, and an asymmetric-cone model. These models allow us to determine three-dimensional parameters of HCMEs such as radial speed, angular width, and the angle [γ] between sky plane and cone axis. We compare these parameters obtained from three models using 62 HCMEs observed by SOHO/LASCO from 2001 to 2002. Then we obtain the root-mean-square (RMS) error between the highest measured projection speeds and their calculated projection speeds from the cone models. As a result, we find that the radial speeds obtained from the models are well correlated with one another (R > 0.8). The correlation coefficients between angular widths range from 0.1 to 0.48 and those between γ-values range from ?0.08 to 0.47, which is much smaller than expected. The reason may be the different assumptions and methods. The RMS errors between the highest measured projection speeds and the highest estimated projection speeds of the elliptical-cone model, the ice-cream-cone model, and the asymmetric-cone model are 376 km?s^?1, 169 km?s^?1, and 152 km?s^?1. We obtain the correlation coefficients between the location from the models and the flare location (R > 0.45). Finally, we discuss strengths and weaknesses of these models in terms of space-weather application.     

Infrared Spectroscopy of Comet Hale-Bopp

High resolution (λ/δλ ∼ 20,000) spectra of comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) in the 2–5 μm region were obtained during UT 2–5 March 1997 using CSHELL at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea. The heliocentric and geocentric distances of the comet were ∼1.1 AU and ∼1.5 AU,respectively. We detected emission lines of the gas-phase molecules H₂O, ₄, C₂H₆, C₂H₂, HCN, and CO and derived absolute production rates and relative abundances for all species. We also used the 2-dimensional nature of the CSHELL data to investigate the spatial distribution of the molecules and find evidence that CO was derived at least partly from an extended source in the coma. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.