Use of biliary PAH metabolites as a biomarker of pollution in fish from the Baltic Sea

During field campaigns of the BEEP project (Biological Effects of Environmental Pollution in Marine Coastal Ecosystems) in 2001-2002, metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined in bile samples from three fish species, flounder (Platichthys flesus), perch (Perca fluviatilis) and eelpout (Zoarces viviparus), from four separate areas in the Baltic Sea. Two determination methods were applied: fixed wavelength fluorescence (FF) for pyrene-type metabolites and high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC). There was a good correlation between the FF method and 1-OH pyrene determined by HPLC. Normalisation of the FF data for absorbance at 380 nm or bile protein concentrations greatly increased variance in one third and decreased it in two thirds of the cases and resulted in a loss of significant differences (protein normalisation) between the sampling stations, but normalisation of the HPLC data had little effect on the results. The biliary PAH metabolite content was usually higher in males than in females. In perch and eelpout the biliary PAH contents were at similar levels, whereas in flounder the levels were lower. The sampling areas arranged in decreasing order of biliary PAH contents were: Wismar Bay > Gulf of Gdansk > Lithuanian coast > Kvadofj?rden (reference area). It is concluded that FF with un-normalised data is a reliable and simple method for monitoring purposes and only one sex of a selected species should be used.     

The positions of H+, Li+ and Na+ impurities in beryl

Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) measurements show that Li⁺ impurities are located at two different positions in beryl, one in the crystal lattice and the other in the crystal channel. The position of the Li⁺ impurity in the lattice is generally assumed to be at the site of a missing Be²⁺ ion. It is shown that this is not the case, but that the Li⁺ ion is located in a tetrahedron formed by the oxygens of one side of the Be tetrahedron and the nearest oxygen in the channel ring. This Li site has the coordinates (0.423, 0.344, 0.167) and can only be occupied when the neighbouring Be site is empty. There are four such sites around every Be tetrahedron at the distance of 1.46 Å from the Be site. The distance from the Li site to the oxygens of the Li tetrahedron is 1.84 Å. This compares favourably with the much smaller distance of 1.65 Å in the Be tetrahedron. Protons in beryl are trapped at or near these Li sites. Na⁺ is known to be located at the 2b position at the center of the silicate rings, where it is stabilized by one water molecule located at each of the two surrounding 2a sites. This is also the position of Li⁺ in the beryl channel. It is found that the presence of Na⁺ in the ring of six oxygens reduces the radius of this ring. The Na⁺ impurity has also been supposed to be located at position 2a alone and at 2b stabilized by only one water molecule. It is now proposed that Na⁺ and H₂O are located together in the Al–Be plane when only one water molecule is associated with Na⁺. The water oxygen is located at or near 2a and Na is closer to the Be site in tetrahedral beryl and closer to the Al site in octahedral beryl. It is proposed that the water protons are also located in the Al–Be plane, which would mean that there exists a third type of water in beryl. The origin of protons and OH^? ions in beryl is discussed and it is suggested that the plugs in the beryl channels are CO ₃ ^2? ions. Diffusion of OH^? ions and natural radiation may have led to the creation of NO₃ and the blue colour of Maxixe beryl.     

Attenuation Correction Procedures for Water Vapour Fluxes from Closed-Path Eddy-Covariance Systems

Evapotranspiration is a source of water vapour to the atmosphere, and as a crucial indicator of landscape behaviour its accurate measurement has widespread implications. Here we investigate errors that are prevalent and systematic in the closed-path eddy-covariance measurement of latent heat flux: the attenuation of fluxes through dampened cospectral power at high frequencies. This process is especially pronounced during periods of high relative humidity through the adsorption and desorption of water vapour along the tube walls. These effects are additionally amplified during lower air temperature conditions. Here, we quantify the underestimation of evapotranspiration by a closed-path system by comparing its flux estimate to simultaneous and adjacent measurements from an open-path sensor. We apply models relating flux loss to relative humidity itself, to the lag time of the cross-correlation peak between the water vapour and vertical wind velocity signals, and to models of cospectral attenuation relative to the cospectral power of simultaneous sensible heat-flux measurements. We find that including the role of temperature in modifying the attenuation–humidity relationship is essential for unbiased flux correction, and that physically based cospectral attenuation methods are effective characterizers of closed-path instrument signal loss relative to the unattenuated flux value.     

The relative importance of land use and climatic change in Alpine catchments

Carbon storage and catchment hydrology are influenced both by land use changes and climatic changes, but there are few studies addressing both responses under both driving forces. We investigated the relative importance of climate change vs. land use change for four Alpine catchments using the LPJ-GUESS model. Two scenarios of grassland management were calibrated based on the more detailed model PROGRASS. The simulations until 2100 show that only reforestation could lead to an increase of carbon storage under climatic change, whereby a cessation of carbon accumulation occurred in all catchments after 2050. The initial increase in carbon storage was attributable mainly to forest re-growth on abandoned land, whereas the stagnation and decline in the second half of the century was mainly driven by climate change. If land was used more intensively, i.e. as grassland, litter input to the soil decreased due to harvesting, resulting in a decline of soil carbon storage (1.2−2.9 kg C m^–2) that was larger than the climate-induced change (0.8–1.4 kg C m⁻²). Land use change influenced transpiration both directly and in interaction with climate change. The response of forested catchments diverged with climatic change (11–40 mm increase in AET), reflecting the differences in forest age, topography and water holding capacity within and between catchments. For grass-dominated catchments, however, transpiration responded in a similar manner to climate change (light management: 23–32 mm AET decrease, heavy management: 29–44 mm AET decrease), likely because grassroots are concentrated in the uppermost soil layers. Both the water and the carbon cycle were more strongly influenced by land use compared to climatic changes, as land use had not only a direct effect on carbon storage and transpiration, but also an indirect effect by modifying the climate change response of transpiration and carbon flux in the catchments. For the carbon cycle, climate change led to a cessation of the catchment response (sink/source strength is limited), whereas for the water cycle, the effect of land use change remains evident throughout the simulation period (changes in evapotranspiration do not attenuate). Thus we conclude that management will have a large potential to influence the carbon and water cycle, which needs to be considered in management planning as well as in climate and hydrological modelling.     

Water diffusion in dacitic melt

H₂O diffusion in dacitic melt was investigated at 0.48-0.95 GPa and 786-893 K in a piston-cylinder apparatus. The diffusion couple design was used, in which a nominally dry dacitic glass makes one half and is juxtaposed with a hydrous dacitic glass containing up to ∼8 wt.% total water (H₂O_t). H₂O concentration profiles were measured on quenched glasses with infrared microspectroscopy. The H₂O diffusivity in dacite increases rapidly with water content under experimental conditions, similar to previous measurements at the same temperature but at pressure <0.15 GPa. However, compared with the low-pressure data, H₂O diffusion at high pressure is systematically slower. H₂O diffusion profiles in dacite can be modeled by assuming molecular H₂O (H₂O_m) is the diffusing species. Total H₂O diffusivity D_H2Ot within 786-1798 K, 0-1 GPa, and 0-8 wt.% H₂O_t can be expressed as: where D_H2Ot is in m²/s, T is temperature in K, P is pressure in GPa, K = exp(1.49 − 2634/T) is the equilibrium constant of speciation reaction (H₂O_m+O?2OH) in the melt, X = C/18.015/[C/18.015 + (100 − C)/33.82], C is wt.% of H₂O_t, and 18.015 and 33.82 g/mol correspond to the molar masses of H₂O and anhydrous dacite on a single oxygen basis. Compared to H₂O diffusion in rhyolite, diffusivity in dacite is lower at intermediate temperatures but higher at superliquidus temperatures. This general H₂O diffusivity expression can be applied to a broad range of geological conditions, including both magma chamber processes and volcanic eruption dynamics from conduit to the surface.     

Pyrometallurgical relics of Pb–Cu–Fe deposits in south-eastern Germany: An exploration tool and a record of mining history

Pyrometallurgical relics from smelting of iron as well as base metal ores are mineralogically and chemically investigated and dated using the radiocarbon method and optically stimulated luminescence. This study addresses the question whether these pyrometallurgical remains may be used as an exploration tool enabling geologists to discriminate between false and true gossans. Moreover, these investigations make a historical contribution and demonstrate how mining and smelting activities spread across NE Bavaria, Germany.     

Atlantic Water flow through the Barents and Kara Seas

The pathway and transformation of water from the Norwegian Sea across the Barents Sea and through the St. Anna Trough are documented from hydrographic and current measurements of the 1990s. The transport through an array of moorings in the north-eastern Barents Sea was between 0.6 Sv in summer and 2.6 Sv in winter towards the Kara Sea and between zero and 0.3 Sv towards the Barents Sea with a record mean net flow of 1.5 Sv. The westward flow originates in the Fram Strait branch of Atlantic Water at the Eurasian continental slope, while the eastward flow constitutes the Barents Sea branch, continuing from the western Barents Sea opening.About 75% of the eastward flow was colder than 0°C. The flow was strongly sheared, with the highest velocities close to the bottom. A deep layer with almost constant temperature of about −0.5°C throughout the year formed about 50% of the flow to the Kara Sea. This water was a mixture between warm saline Atlantic Water and cold, brine-enriched water generated through freezing and convection in polynyas west of Novaya Zemlya, and possibly also at the Central Bank. Its salinity is lower than that of the Atlantic Water at its entrance to the Barents Sea, because the ice formation occurs in a low salinity surface layer. The released brine increases the salinity and density of the surface layer sufficiently for it to convect, but not necessarily above the salinity of the Atlantic Water. The freshwater west of Novaya Zemlya primarily stems from continental runoff and at the Central Bank probably from ice melt. The amount of fresh water compares to about 22% of the terrestrial freshwater supply to the western Barents Sea. The deep layer continues to the Kara Sea without further change and enters the Nansen Basin at or below the core depth of the warm, saline Fram Strait branch. Because it is colder than 0°C it will not be addressed as Atlantic Water in the Arctic Ocean.In earlier decades, the Atlantic Water advected from Fram Strait was colder by almost 2 K as compared to the 1990s, while the dense Barents Sea water was colder by up to 1 K only in a thin layer at the bottom and the salinity varied significantly. However, also with the resulting higher densities, deep Eurasian Basin water properties were met only in the 1970s. The very low salinities of the Great Salinity Anomaly in 1980 were not discovered in the outflow data. We conclude that the thermal variability of inflowing Atlantic water is damped in the Barents Sea, while the salinity variation is strongly modified through the freshwater conditions and ice growth in the convective area off Novaya Zemlya.     

Rheologies and ages of lava flows on Elysium Mons,Mars

We present results of our study of the rheologies and ages of lava flows in the Elysium Mons region of Mars. Previous studies have shown that the geometric dimensions of lava flows reflect rheological properties such as yield strength, effusion rate and viscosity. In this study the rheological properties of lava flows in the Elysium Mons region were determined and compared to the rheologies of the Ascraeus Mons lava flows. We also derived new crater size-frequency distribution measurements (CSFDs) for the Elysium lava flows to identify possible changes in the rheological properties with time. In addition, possible changes in the rheological properties with the distance from the caldera of Elysium Mons were analyzed.In total, 35 lava flows on and around Elysium Mons were mapped, and divided into three groups, lava flows on the flanks of Elysium Mons, in the plains between the three volcanoes Elysium Mons, Hecates and Albor Tholus and lava flows south of Albor Tholus. The rheological properties of 32 of these flows could be determined. Based on our morphometric measurements of each individual lava flow, estimates for the yield strengths, effusion rates, viscosities, and eruption duration of the studied lava flows were made. The yield strengths of the investigated lava flows range from ～3.8 × 10² Pa to ～1.5 × 10⁴ Pa, with an average of ～3.0 × 10³ Pa. These yield strengths are in good agreement with estimates for terrestrial basaltic lava flows. The effusion rates are on average ～747 m³ s^?1, ranging from ～99 to 4450 m³ s^?1. The viscosities are on average ～4.1 × 10⁶ Pa s, with a range of 1.2 × 10⁵ Pa s to 3.1 × 10⁷ Pa s. The eruption durations of the flows were calculated to be between 6 and 183 days, with an average of ～51 days. The determined rheological properties are generally very similar to those of other volcanic regions on Mars, such as on Ascraeus Mons in the Tharsis region. Calculated yield strengths and viscosities point to a basaltic/andesitic composition of the lava flows, similar to basaltic or andesitic a’a lava flows on Earth.Absolute model ages of all 35 lava flows on Elysium Mons were derived from crater size-frequency distribution measurements (CSFD). The derived model ages show a wide variation from about 632 Ma to 3460 Ma. Crater size-frequency distribution measurements of the Elysium Mons caldera show an age of ～1640 Ma, which is consistent with the resurfacing age of Werner (2009). Significant changes of the rheologies with time could not be observed. Similarly, we did not observe systematic changes in ages with increasing distances of lava flows from the Elysium Mons caldera.     

Is the soil moisture precipitation feedback enhanced by heterogeneity and dry soils? A comparative study

The interaction between the land surface and the atmosphere is a crucial driver of atmospheric processes. Soil moisture and precipitation are key components in this feedback. Both variables are intertwined in a cycle, that is, the soil moisture – precipitation feedback for which involved processes and interactions are still discussed. In this study the soil moisture – precipitation feedback is compared for the sempiternal humid Ammer catchment in Southern Germany and for the semiarid to subhumid Sissili catchment in West Africa during the warm season, using precipitation datasets from the Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS), from the German Weather Service (REGNIE) and simulation datasets from the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model and the hydrologically enhanced WRF-Hydro model. WRF and WRF-Hydro differ by their representation of terrestrial water flow. With this setup we want to investigate the strength, sign and variables involved in the soil moisture – precipitation feedback for these two regions. The normalized model spread between the two simulation results shows linkages between precipitation variability and diagnostic variables surface fluxes, moisture flux convergence above the surface and convective available potential energy in both study regions. The soil moisture – precipitation feedback is evaluated with a classification of soil moisture spatial heterogeneity based on the strength of the soil moisture gradients. This allows us to assess the impact of soil moisture anomalies on surface fluxes, moisture flux convergence, convective available potential energy and precipitation. In both regions the amount of precipitation generally increases with soil moisture spatial heterogeneity. For the Ammer region the soil moisture – precipitation feedback has a weak negative sign with more rain near drier patches while it has a positive signal for the Sissili region with more rain over wetter patches. At least for the observed moderate soil moisture values and the spatial scale of the Ammer region, the spatial variability of soil moisture is more important for surface-atmosphere interactions than the actual soil moisture content. Overall, we found that soil moisture heterogeneity can greatly affect the soil moisture – precipitation feedback.     

Diversity-accuracy assessment of multiple classifier systems for the land cover classification of the Khumbu region in the Himalayas

Land cover classification of mountainous environments continues to be a challenging remote sensing problem,owing to landscape complexities exhibited by the regi...