The microwave structure of coronal condensations and its relation to proton flares

Active regions on the Sun in the 20th solar cycle are studied with special reference to their association with proton flares based on microwave interferometric observations at Toyokawa Observatory. It has been reconfirmed that the active regions associated with intense S-component emission with a high 3-cm to 8-cm flux ratio are likely to produce proton flares. About one fourth of 259 active regions during the period investigated are found to have definite features in the spatial distribution of polarization at a wavelength of 3 cm. Active regions with one particular type of polarization pattern have a good correlation with the occurrence of proton flares.     

Search For Correlations Between Batse Gamma-Ray Bursts and Supernovae

We report on our statistical research of space–time correlated supernovae and CGRO-BATSE gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). There exists a significantly higher abundance of core-collapse supernovae among the correlated supernovae, but the subset of all correlated objects does not seem to be physically different from the whole set.     

Subsurface flow measurements using passive flux meters in variably-saturated cold-regions landscapes

To date, passive flux meters have predominantly been applied in temperate environments for tracking the movement of contaminants in groundwater. This study applies these instruments to reduce uncertainty in (typically instantaneous) flux measurements made in a low-gradient, wetland dominated, discontinuous permafrost environment. This method supports improved estimation of unsaturated and over-winter subsurface flows which are very difficult to quantify using hydraulic gradient-based approaches. Improved subsurface flow estimates can play a key role in understanding the water budget of this landscape.     

Integration of remote sensing data into hydrological models for reservoir management

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present the methodology set up to derive catchment soil moisture from Earth Observation (EO) data using microwave spaceborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images from ERS satellites and to study the improvements brought about by an assimilation of this information into hydrological models. The methodology used to derive EO data is based on the appropriate selection of land cover types for which the radar signal is mainly sensitive to soil moisture variations. Then a hydrological model is chosen, which can take advantage of the new information brought by remote sensing. The assimilation of soil moisture deduced from EO data into hydrological models is based principally on model parameter updating. The main assumption of this method is that the better the model simulates the current hydrological system, the better the following forecast will be. Another methodology used is a sequential one based on Kalman filtering. These methods have been put forward for use in the European AIMWATER project on the Seine catchment upstream of Paris (France) where dams are operated to alleviate floods in the Paris area.     

Validation and Application of Plants as Biomonitors of Trace Element Atmospheric Pollution – A Co-Ordinated Effort in 14 Countries

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) organized a co-ordinated research project (CRP) on Validation and application of plants as biomonitors of trace element atmospheric pollution analysed by nuclear and related techniques involving 14 participating countries. The CRPs objective was to identify appropriate bioindicators for local and/or regional application and validate them for general air pollution monitoring. Activities included quantification studies, research into spatial and time resolution for particular organisms, and physiological studies. A number of suitable bioindicators were identified in different parts of the globe and tested during the CRP. Sampling strategies were reviewed and the recommended approach adopted by the group. Appropriate sample preparation procedures were assessed and harmonised to the degree allowed by different geographic and climatic conditions in the participating countries. Two interlaboratory comparison exercises were carried out on lichen and moss materials. Results confirmed definite improvement in analytical performance of the participating laboratories, but also revealed possible inconsistencies due to different sample processing procedures. Several monitoring surveys were carried out and consequently pollution maps drawn for extended areas or countries. Overall results confirmed applicability of lower plants for assessing the degree of atmospheric pollution and provided several countries with effective monitoring tools not used before.     

Proglacial groundwater storage dynamics under climate change and glacier retreat

Proglacial aquifers are an important water store in glacierised mountain catchments that supplement meltwater-fed river flows and support freshwater ecosystems. Climate change and glacier retreat will perturb water storage in these aquifers, yet the climate-glacier-groundwater response cascade has rarely been studied and remains poorly understood. This study implements an integrated modelling approach that combines distributed glacio-hydrological and groundwater models with climate change projections to evaluate the evolution of groundwater storage dynamics and surface-groundwater exchanges in a temperate, glacierised catchment in Iceland. Focused infiltration along the meltwater-fed Virkisá River channel is found to be an important source of groundwater recharge and is projected to provide 14%–20% of total groundwater recharge by the 2080s. The simulations highlight a mechanism by which glacier retreat could inhibit river recharge in the future due to the loss of diurnal melt cycling in the runoff hydrograph. However, the evolution of proglacial groundwater level dynamics show considerable resilience to changes in river recharge and, instead, are driven by changes in the magnitude and seasonal timing of diffuse recharge from year-round rainfall. The majority of scenarios simulate an overall reduction in groundwater levels with a maximum 30-day average groundwater level reduction of 1 m. The simulations replicate observational studies of baseflow to the river, where up to 15% of the 30-day average river flow comes from groundwater outside of the melt season. This is forecast to reduce to 3%–8% by the 2080s due to increased contributions from rainfall and meltwater runoff. During the melt season, groundwater will continue to contribute 1%–3% of river flow despite significant reductions in meltwater runoff inputs. Therefore it is concluded that, in the proglacial region, groundwater will continue to provide only limited buffering of river flows as the glacier retreats.     

Type III radio burst productivity of solar flares

We study the occurrence probability of type III radio bursts during flares as a function of the flare position on the Sun. We find that this probability peaks around 30° east of the central meridian, which points to a reciprocal tilt of the average radiation pattern of type IIIs. We argue that anisotropic scattering of the radiation by overdense coronal fibers parallel to the magnetic field is the dominant factor determining the orientation of radiation patterns. It follows that the average magnetic field appears to be tilted 30° west from the vertical. We also find that within a given active region, the average type III production rate of flares peaks 1° west of the center of gravity of all the flares of this active region.We infer that the coronal magnetic field above active regions presents a strong east-west asymmetry, resulting from the well known asymmetry at the photospheric level. As the west side of an active region covers a smaller area with stronger magnetic field than the east side, western flares are generally closer to open field lines than eastern flares. As a consequence, accelerated particles on the trailing (east) side of active regions usually stay trapped in magnetic loops, while on the leading (west) side they are more likely to escape along open lines into interplanetary space. As a result of the initial westward tilt of these open lines, we estimate that the corresponding Archimedean spiral is on average (apparently) rooted 15° west of the flare.     

A parametric study of stability and resonances around L 4 in the elliptic restricted three-body problem

The size of the stable region around the Lagrangian point L ₄ in the elliptic restricted three-body problem is determined by numerical integration as a function of the mass parameter and eccentricity of the primaries. The size distribution of the stable regions in the mass parameter-eccentricity plane shows minima at certain places that are identified with resonances between the librational frequencies of motions around L ₄. These are computed from an approximate analytical equation of Rabe relating the frequency, mass parameter and eccentricity. Solutions of this equation are determined numerically and the global behaviour of the frequencies depending on the mass parameter and eccentricity is shown and discussed. The minimum sizes of the stable regions around L ₄ change along the resonances and the relative strength of the resonances is analysed. Applications to possible Trojan exoplanets are indicated. Escape from L ₄ is also investigated.