Temporal and spatial variability of extreme river flow quantiles in the Upper Vistula River basin,Poland

Temporal and spatial variability in extreme quantile anomalies of seasonal and annual maximum river flows was studied for 41 gauging stations at rivers in the Upper Vistula River basin, Poland. Using the quantile perturbation method, the temporal variability in anomalies was analysed. Interdecadal oscillating components were extracted from the series of anomalies using the Hilbert‐Huang transform method. Period length, part of variance of each component, and part of unexplained variance were assessed. Results show an oscillating pattern in the temporal occurrence of extreme flow quantiles with clusters of high values in the 1960–1970s and since the late 1990s and of low values in the 1980s and at the beginning of the 1990s. The anomalies show a high variability on the right bank of the Upper Vistula River basin during the summer season with the highest values in catchments located in the western and south‐western parts of the basin. River flow extreme quantiles were found to be associated with large‐scale climatic variables from the regions of the North Atlantic Ocean, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, Asia, and, to a lesser extent, the Pacific Ocean. Similarities between temporal variability of river flows and climatic factors were revealed. Results of the study are important for flood frequency analysis because a long observation period is necessary to capture clusters of high and low river flows.     

Helioseismic imaging of sunspots at their antipodes

Recent work by Braun, Duvall, and LaBonte has shown that sunspots absorb helioseismic waves. We propose that sunspot absorption causes a seismic deficit that should be imaged at the antipode of the sunspot. If these images are observable, it should be possible to produce seismic maps of magnetic regions on the far side of the Sun. This possibility opens a broad range of synoptic and diagnostic applications. Diagnostic applications would include lifetimes of higher-frequency modes, and possibly rotation of the solar interior and detection of subsurface magnetic structure. We outline elements of the theory of seismic imaging and consider some applications. We propose the extention of acoustic holography to solar interior diagnostics in the context of antipodal imaging.Now at the Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, U.S.A.     

Quasar absorption lines and sites of absorbing media

A method for the determination of distances of quasars and sites of absorbing media is presented. It is illustrated by application to 3C 191 and PKS 0237-23. The results are compared with those obtained from the traditional Hubble Law.     

Errors in travel times measured on paper seismograms

Summary. The investigation of temporal variations in seismic velocities sometimes requires the use of paper seismograms. For this reason, an investigation of all of the sources of random error in measuring travel times on seismograms has been undertaken using a mathematical model devised by Jeffreys and some additional results derived using elementary statistics. The most important contribution to the total error is often the error due to linear interpolation between minute markers or other time marks on the seismogram, which can be as high as 0.13 s on smoked paper seismograms recorded at 120 mm min⁻¹, and as high as 0.076 s on short-period seismograms of the Canadian network recorded at 60 mm min⁻¹. For 32 explosions at short distances (< 50 km) recorded on smoked paper, however, the median value of the total error in the travel times was 0.016 s. Interpolation errors are generally insignificant for travel-time studies of teleseisms, but may be important in some special studies of local earthquakes and explosions. The theoretical results are useful, not only in seismology, but wherever the accurate timing of an event relative to two reference time markers on a chart recorder is required.     

The NASA/NSO Spectromagnetograph

The NASA/NSO Spectromagnetograph is a new focal plane instrument for the National Solar Observatory/Kitt Peak Vacuum Telescope which features real-time digital analysis of long-slit spectra formed on a two-dimensional CCD detector. The instrument is placed at an exit port of a Littrow spectrograph and uses an existing modulator of circular polarization. The new instrument replaces the 512-channel Diode Array Magnetograph first used in 1973. Commercial video processing boards are used to digitize the spectral images at video rates and to separate, accumulate, and buffer the spectra in the two polarization states. An attached processor removes fixed-pattern bias and gain from the spectra in cadence with spatial scanning of the image across the entrance slit. The data control computer performs position and width analysis of the line profiles as they are acquired and records line-of-sight magnetic field, Doppler shift, and other computed parameters. The observer controls the instrument through windowed processes on a data control console using a keyboard and mouse. Early observations made with the spectromagnetograph are presented and plans for future development are discussed.The National Solar Observatory is a Division of the National Optical Astronomy Observatories which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation.     

The visual double star data base

Any use of stars for astrometric purposes necessarily involves examination of their duplicity characteristics. The Washington Double Star Catalog (WDS) provides this information in a continuously updated and machine-readable format. This contribution describes the current data base and plans for its future extension.     

Comments on the application of power series solutions to problems in celestial mechanics

The author relates his experiences in utilizing the power series method to generate trajectories for orbital and sub-orbital vehicles and for then-body problem.     

UV image sensors and associated technologies

Large-format ultraviolet image sensors have been and are actively being developed for a variety of space-borne astronomy missions. The detector, which historically is one of the most problematic parts of any astronomical spacecraft, plays a critical role in the overall capability of the instrument. There are numerous detector systems with none being ideal for all applications. This paper presents an overview of UV image sensors that are currently available and associated technologies that are undergoing further development. Special attention is given to physical processes responsible for the inherent strengths and weaknesses of a few important UV detectors. Technological advances that are likely to impact the performance of future image sensors are also discussed.An Invited Review for Experimental AstrophysicsThis research was supported in part by contract NAS5-30131 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and and by a grant from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation