Motions in the solar atmosphere associated with the white light flare of 11 July 1978

Series of white light heliograms and oft- and on-band H filtergrams have been obtained, with an average spatial resolution of 1, to study the flare active McMath region 15403 on 11 July, 1978. A great number of accurate heliographic positions were determined for the umbrae, the white light flare patches and several bright H flare knots, as well as along the principal zero filament and an arch prominence. Using the measured heliographic coordinates of these objects their motions could be analyzed in some detail. The velocities of several different objects could be deduced from the coordinates. Since the heliocentric angle of the region was about 45°, the variation in apparent heliographic coordinates also enabled some variations in heights to be determined.It is pointed out that the flare when fully developed, consisted almost entirely of loops. The zero filament which was activated prior to the flare ran between two umbrae of common penumbra and opposite polarity, one belonging to an old, the other to a new spot group. The white light flare developed on both sides of the filament where it passed between these two umbrae; it was also the place where the flare started. Observational evidence appears to indicate that the erupted filament re-formed from below.An indication has been found that there was a link between the motion of some umbrae and the major flare occurrence.     

North Atlantic atmospheric circulation and surface wind in the Northeast of the Iberian Peninsula: uncertainty and long term downscaled variability

The variability and predictability of the surface wind field at the regional scale is explored over a complex terrain region in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula by means of a downscaling technique based on Canonical Correlation Analysis. More than a decade of observations (1992–2005) allows for calibrating and validating a statistical method that elicits the main associations between the large scale atmospheric circulation over the North Atlantic and Mediterranean areas and the regional wind field. In an initial step the downscaling model is designed by selecting parameter values from practise. To a large extent, the variability of the wind at monthly timescales is found to be governed by the large scale circulation modulated by the particular orographic features of the area. The sensitivity of the downscaling methodology to the selection of the model parameter values is explored, in a second step, by performing a systematic sampling of the parameters space, avoiding a heuristic selection. This provides a metric for the uncertainty associated with the various possible model configurations. The uncertainties associated with the model configuration are considerably dependent on the spatial variability of the wind. While the sampling of the parameters space in the model set up moderately impact estimations during the calibration period, the regional wind variability is very sensitive to the parameters selection at longer timescales. This fact illustrates that downscaling exercises based on a single configuration of parameters should be interpreted with extreme caution. The downscaling model is used to extend the estimations several centuries to the past using long datasets of sea level pressure, thereby illustrating the large temporal variability of the regional wind field from interannual to multicentennial timescales. The analysis does not evidence long term trends throughout the twentieth century, however anomalous episodes of high/low wind speeds are identified.     

Weather categorization in climate change research: Preliminary results

Summary The results of an objective weather categorization are presented. The 9 meteorological variables recorded daily during winter seasons of 1961–66 at Prague-Clementinum represent the input dataset. The principal component analysis and a few clustering procedures have been evaluated. 5 component solution and the average linkage clustering method were found optimal. The winter days have been grouped, according to their meteorological character, into 14 clusters. The warm categories represent 20% of the time and the cold categories less than 15% of the days. The mean maps of 1000 hPa and 500 hPa are shown for a few selected categories. Clustering techniques applied to long-time instrumental series can provide a better basis for attempting to detect temperature changes which have taken place over a long time span.     

Geophysical evidence for a large impact structure on the Falkland (Malvinas) Plateau

A large, roughly circular structural basin is recognised on the Falkland (Malvinas) Plateau to the NW of West Falkland (Gran Malvina) Island (S 51°00′, W 62°00′). The basin, seen in seismic‐reflection profiles and evident as a large negative gravity anomaly, has a diameter of ~250 km. The age of the basin is estimated to be Late Palaeozoic. It is completely buried by younger sediments and has no topographic expression on the sea floor. We propose that the basin and geophysical anomalies, especially the combination of a large circular negative gravity anomaly with a rim of positive anomalies, and a marked circular series of positive magnetic anomalies in the same area, may be best explained by the presence of a large buried impact structure.     

Influence of high-pressure processing on the structure and memory effect of synthetic layered double hydroxides

We investigate the structural evolution of synthetic layered double hydroxides (LDH) samples, processed at room temperature and high-pressure (up to 7.7 GPa) in a toroidal chamber with two pressure-transmitting media, lead and graphite, using X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry and N₂-adsorption isotherms techniques. The X-ray patterns of compacted samples show a decrease in the peak intensities. For both pressure-transmitting media, our samples revealed a reduction of the basal d-spacing for the (003) plane when processed at 7.7 GPa. The expected high-pressure-induced amorphization was not observed. Surprisingly, we find high-pressure processing to have a strong influence on the memory effect of the LDH, due essentially to the reduction of the surface area and pore closing. Even when immersed in water, our samples did not recover the LDH structure, when either calcined at 450°C and compacted at 7.7 GPa, or calcined at 700°C and immediately compacted at 2.5 and 7.7 GPa.     

Introductory review of specific factors influencing urban groundwater, an emerging branch of hydrogeology, with reference to Barcelona, Spain

A number of specific factors must be considered when dealing with groundwater in urban areas. Urbanization significantly affects the natural water cycle, both in terms of quantity and quality. In particular, the main contributors to recharge and discharge clearly differ from those in natural systems. Moreover, water can affect underground structures and infrastructure characteristics of cities such as basements, public transport services (trains, underground railways, etc.), and utility conduits. As a result, urban groundwater is emerging as a distinct branch of hydrogeology. The objective of this paper is to review some of the topics that are specific to urban groundwater. These include (1) fluctuations in groundwater levels caused by changes in land and water uses; (2) pollution problems caused by point or non-point sources in urban areas; (3) characterization and quantification of the components contributing to groundwater recharge and discharge; (4) specific characteristics of groundwater flow and solute transport models in urban areas; and (5) integration of data for sustainable urban water management. Some of these issues are illustrated for the particular case of Barcelona, where a comprehensive hydrogeological study has been carried out during the last few years by both the public and the private sectors.

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Resumen Se debe considerar una serie de factores específicos al tratar las aguas subterráneas en áreas urbanas. El proceso de urbanización afecta el ciclo natural del agua de manera significativa tanto en lo que se refiere a cantidad como a calidad. En particular, los contribuyentes principales a la recarga y descarga claramente difieren de aquellos aplicables a los sistemas naturales. Es más, el agua puede afectar los estructuras subterráneas de las ciudades tales como sótanos, servicios de transporte público (trenes, trenes subterráneos) y los servicios básicos. Como resultado de esto, la hidrogeologia urbana está emergiendo como una rama específica de la hidrogeología. El objectivo de este artículo es revisar algunos de los temas que son específicos al agua subterránea urbana. Estos incluyen: 1) Fluctuaciones en los niveles de agua subterránea causados por cambios en los usos de terreno y del agua; 2) Problemas de contaminación causados por fuentes puntuales o no puntuales en áreas urbanas; 3) Caracterización y cuantificación de los componentes que contribuyen a la recarga y descarga de agua subterránea; 4) Características especificas de flujo de agua subterránea y modelos de transporte de solutos en áreas urbanas; y 5) Integración de datos para el manejo sostenible de agua urbana. Algunos de estos puntos se han ilustrados para el caso particular de Barcelona en donde se ha llevado a cabo un estudio hidrogeológico amplio durante los últimos años tanto por el sector privado como el público.

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Résumé Une série de facteurs spécifiques doit être considérée lorsque leau souterraine en région urbaine est étudiée. Lurbanisation affecte significativement le cycle naturel de leau, autant du point de vue quantitatif que qualitatif. Plus particulièrement, les zones de recharge et de décharge diffèrent considérablement des systèmes naturels. Leau souterraine peut affecter les structures souterraines ainsi que les infrastructures municipales telles que les sous-sols, les systèmes de transport publique (trains, métros, ...) et les conduits de service. De ce fait, lhydrogéologie en milieu urbain émerge comme une branche distincte de lhydrogéologie classique. Lobjectif de cet article est de revoir certaines notions qui sont spécifiques à létude de leau souterraine en milieu urbain. Parmi ces notions : 1) les fluctuations de la nappe phréatique causées par des changements dans lutilisation du territoire et de leau, 2) les problèmes de pollution causés par des sources ponctuelles ou diffuses en milieu urbain, 3) la caractérisation et quantification des composants qui contribuent à la recharge et décharge des aquifères, 4) les caractéristiques spécifiques des modèles découlement de leau souterraine et de transport de solutés en milieux urbain, et 5) lintégration des données pour la gestion durable de leau en milieu urbain. Certaines de ces questions sont étudiées pour le cas particulier de la ville de Barcelone où une étude hydrogéologique complète a été menée au cours des dernières années par les secteurs privé et public.

     

Radiative transfer for polarized light: Equivalence between Stokes parameters and coherency matrix formalisms

Two formal solutions of the radiative transfer equation for polarized light have been proposed. One uses the Stokes parameters to describe the polarization, while the other uses the coherency matrix. It is shown in the present work that they are equivalent. Both can be used to compute response and contribution functions for the Stokes parameters and both require the solution of systems of differential equations with similar numbers of independent variables. New equations to solve the radiative transfer problem using the Stokes parameters formalism are presented. In addition, a computer code which synthesizes the Stokes profiles by means of these equations is described.The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.     

Grain‐scale pressure variations and chemical equilibrium in high‐grade metamorphic rocks

In the classical view of metamorphic microstructures, fast viscous relaxation (and so constant pressure) is assumed, with diffusion being the limiting factor in equilibration. This contribution is focused on the only other possible scenario – fast diffusion and slow viscous relaxation – and brings an alternative interpretation of microstructures typical of high‐grade metamorphic rocks. In contrast to the pressure vessel mechanical model applied to pressure variation associated with coesite inclusions in various host minerals, a multi‐anvil mechanical model is proposed in which strong single crystals and weak grain boundaries can maintain pressure variation at geological time‐scales in a polycrystalline material. In such a mechanical context, exsolution lamellae in feldspar are used to show that feldspar can sustain large differential stresses (>10 kbar) at geological time‐scales. Furthermore, it is argued that the existence of grain‐scale pressure gradients combined with diffusional equilibrium may explain chemical zoning preserved in reaction rims. Assuming zero net flux across the microstructure, an equilibrium thermodynamic method is introduced for inferring pressure variation corresponding to the chemical zoning. This new barometric method is applied to plagioclase rims around kyanite in felsic granulite (Bohemian Massif, Czech Republic), yielding a grain‐scale pressure variation of 8 kbar. In this approach, kinetic factors are not invoked to account for mineral composition zoning preserved in rocks metamorphosed at high grade.     

Molecular gas in young planetary nebulae

We review our recent results concerning the molecular gas content of young planetary nebulae NGC 2346, M 2–9, and NGC 6720 (the Ring Nebula in Lyra).Paper presented at the 11th European Regional Astronomical Meetings of the IAU on New Windows to the Universe, held 3–8 July, 1989, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.