The 6dF Galaxy Survey: final redshift release (DR3) and southern large-scale structures

We report the final redshift release of the 6dF Galaxy Survey (6dFGS), a combined redshift and peculiar velocity survey over the southern sky  (| b | > 10°)  . Its 136 304 spectra have yielded 110 256 new extragalactic redshifts and a new catalogue of 125 071 galaxies making near-complete samples with  ( K , H , J , r _F, b _J) ≤ (12.65, 12.95, 13.75, 15.60, 16.75)  . The median redshift of the survey is 0.053. Survey data, including images, spectra, photometry and redshifts, are available through an online data base. We describe changes to the information in the data base since earlier interim data releases. Future releases will include velocity dispersions, distances and peculiar velocities for the brightest early-type galaxies, comprising about 10 per cent of the sample. Here we provide redshift maps of the southern local Universe with   z ≤ 0.1  , showing nearby large-scale structures in hitherto unseen detail. A number of regions known previously to have a paucity of galaxies are confirmed as significantly underdense regions. The URL of the 6dFGS data base is http://www-wfau.roe.ac.uk/6dFGS .     

Graphite oxidation in the Apollo 17 orange glass magma: Implications for the generation of a lunar volcanic gas phase

An Apollo 17 picritic orange glass composition has been used to experimentally investigate the conditions at which graphite would oxidize to form a CO-rich gas, and ultimately produce lunar fire-fountain eruptions. Isothermal decompression experiments run above the A17 orange glass liquidus temperature (>1350 °C) suggest that the initial CO-rich gas phase produced by graphite oxidation would be generated during magma ascent at a pressure of 40 MPa, 8.5 km beneath the lunar surface. Additional experiments with 2000 ppm S and 1000 ppm Cl showed that the presence of these dissolved gas species would not affect the depth of graphite oxidation, verifying that the first volcanic gas phase would be generated by the oxidation of graphite.A simple ideal chemical mixing model for calculating melt FeO activity in a Fe-metal/silicate melt system was tested with a series of 0.1 MPa controlled oxygen fugacity experiments. Agreement between the model and experiments allows the model to be used to calculate oxygen fugacity in picritic lunar glass compositions such as the A17 orange glass. Using this model in a reanalysis of chemical equilibria between the natural A17 orange glass melt and the metal spherules (Fe₈₅Ni₁₄Co₁) trapped within the glass beads indicates a log oxygen fugacity of −11.2, 0.7 log units, more oxidized than previous estimates. At the A17 orange glass liquidus temperature (1350 ± 5 °C), this f_O2 corresponds to a minimum pressure of 41 MPa on the graphite–C–O surface. The fact that the same critical graphite oxidation pressure was determined in decompression experiments and from the Fe–FeO activity model for the natural A17 orange glass–metal assemblage strongly supports this pressure (8.5 km depth) for volcanic gas formation in lunar basalts. Generation of a gas by oxidation of C in ascending magma is likely to have been important in getting dense lunar magmas to the surface as well as in generating fire-fountain eruptions. The vesicles common in many lunar basalts and the ubiquitous Fe-metal in these rocks are also likely generated by the oxidation of carbon. The presence of carbon in the lunar basalts and the recent discovery of ppm levels of water in lunar basalts indicate that at least parts of the lunar interior still contained volatiles at 3.9 bybp.     

Experimental investigation of the scavenging of gaseous mercury by sea salt aerosol

Sea salt aerosol may be an important sink for reactive gaseous mercury (RGM) in the marine boundary layer, reducing ambient RGM concentrations and transferring the mercury (Hg) to the oceans and coastal ecosystems. The goal of this study was to determine the affinity of gaseous mercury for sea salt aerosol (SSA) by conducting adsorption experiments with sea salt-coated sampling denuders. In the first set of experiments, ambient outdoor air was passed through denuders coated with either KCl, as in the widely accepted method to sample RGM, or with NaCl, a primary component of sea salt aerosols. On the one sampling day in which RGM was above the MDL, the NaCl coated denuders removed Hg from the ambient air, equivalent to 87% of the RGM in the air (as determined by KCl denuders). For the second set of experiments HgCl₂ generated in the laboratory was passed through denuders coated with KCl and either NaCl or sea salt. The NaCl denuders collected an average of 99 ± 16% of the mercury that the KCl denuders collected. Newly coated sea salt denuders collected 88 ± 17% of the amount of mercury that the KCl denuders collected, but interestingly the sea salt denuders capacity decreased with repeated use. These experiments demonstrate that HgCl₂, a major component of RGM has a strong affinity for NaCl and sea salt and is therefore likely to be scavenged by SSA. This study adds to the growing evidence that RGM is scavenged by sea salt aerosols and therefore more quickly deposited to the ocean and coastal environment.     

Risk management tools for sustainable fisheries management under changing climate: a sea cucumber example

Sustainable fisheries management into the future will require both understanding of and adaptation to climate change. A risk management approach is appropriate due to uncertainty in climate projections and the responses of target species. Management strategy evaluation (MSE) can underpin and support effective risk management. Climate change impacts are likely to differ by species and spatially. We use a spatial MSE applied to a multi-species data-poor sea cucumber/béche-de-mer fishery to demonstrate the utility of MSE to test the performance of alternative harvest strategies in meeting fishery objectives; this includes the ability to manage through climate variability and change, and meeting management objectives pertaining to resource status and fishery economic performance. The impacts of fishing relative to the impacts of climate change are distinguished by comparing future projection distributions relative to equivalent no-fishing no-climate-change trials. The 8 modelled species exhibit different responses to environmental variability and have different economic value. Status quo management would result in half the species falling below target levels, moderate risks of overall and local depletion, and significant changes in species composition. The three simple strategies with no monitoring (spatial rotation, closed areas, multi-species composition) were all successful in reducing these risks, but with fairly substantial decreases in the average profit. Higher profits (for the same risk levels) could only be achieved with strategies that included monitoring and hence adaptive management. Spatial management approaches based on adaptive feedback performed best overall.     

An efficient forward model of the climate controls on interannual variation in tree-ring width

We present a simple, efficient, process-based forward model of tree-ring growth, called Vaganov–Shashkin-Lite (VS-Lite), that requires as inputs only latitude and monthly temperature and precipitation. Simulations of six bristlecone pine ring-width chronologies demonstrate the interpretability of model output as an accurate representation of the climatic controls on growth. Ensemble simulations by VS-Lite of two networks of North American ring-width chronologies correlate with observations at higher significance levels on average than simulations formed by regression of ring width on the principal components of the same monthly climate data. VS-Lite retains more skill outside of calibration intervals than does the principal components regression approach. It captures the dominant low- and high-frequency spatiotemporal ring-width signals in the network with an inhomogeneous, multivariate relationship to climate. Because continuous meteorological data are most widely available at monthly temporal resolution, our model extends the set of sites at which forward-modeling studies are possible. Other potential uses of VS-Lite include generation of synthetic ring-width series for pseudo-proxy studies, as a data level model in data assimilation-based climate reconstructions, and for bias estimation in actual ring-width index series.     

The Holme Pierrepont sand and gravel and the timing of Middle and Late Devensian floodplain aggradation in the English Midlands

This paper provides the first detailed, multi-proxy environmental record for the character of Lateglacial conditions in the lowest Pleistocene terrace of the main valley floor of the River Trent at Holme Pierrepont near Nottingham. The analysis of pollen, plant, insect and mollusc remains preserved within organic channels near the base of the terrace, named the Holme Pierrepont Sand and Gravel by the British Geological Survey (historically known as the Floodplain Terrace), provided evidence of cool, though not fully arctic climatic conditions and a largely treeless landscape, roamed by large herbivores. Radiocarbon dating indicates that these sediments were deposited during the Loch Lomond Stadial (Younger Dryas GS-1). Comparison of these dates from Holme Pierrepont with those from morphostratigraphically similar deposits in the wider Trent catchment suggests that the Holme Pierrepont Sand and Gravel may have been laid down in two separate pulses of braidplain aggradation either side of the ‘Last Glacial Maximum’. It has been demonstrated from historical documentation and riverine archaeological evidence that the middle Trent has been particularly sensitive to changing flood frequency and magnitude associated with climatic oscillations during the late Holocene; this study demonstrates that such sensitivity appears to extend back into the late Pleistocene. The timing of fluvial aggradation recorded at Holme Pierrepont agrees broadly with that recorded from other sites across England and north-west Europe.     

Hydrochemical and isotopic characterisation of groundwaters to define aquifer type and connectivity in a subtropical coastal setting,Fraser Coast,Queensland

Physico-chemical parameters, major ion chemistry and isotope composition of surface and groundwaters were determined in forested coastal catchments and adjacent coastal plains. Results showed obvious characterisation related to physical and hydrological setting, and highly variable spatial differences reflecting the complexities of these areas. All these coastal waters are dominated by Na–Cl and fall on a common dilution line; hydrochemical grouping is largely due to anionic differences (Cl, SO₄ and HCO₃), although Na and Mg ratios also vary. Six major hydrochemical facies were determined. For groundwaters, compositional differences are largely related to aquifer material and level of confinement; for coastal groundwaters important are tidal effects and proximity to the shoreline. Differentiation for surface waters is mainly by drainage morphology, flow regime plus proximity to the coast. Connectivity between water bodies is reflected by minor base flow to catchment streams, including with flood plain wetlands, but mostly occurs in low-lying zones where there is mixing of fresh and saline water within surface water and subterranean estuaries, or by seawater intrusion enhanced by overuse. Oxygen and hydrogen isotopic data for confined and semi-confined groundwaters along the coast indicates local recharge; fresh surface waters in the elevated catchments are shown to be sourced further inland plus have experienced evaporation.     

Very small waves and associated sediment resuspension on an estuarine intertidal flat

Field data from a microtidal estuarine intertidal flat (Tamaki estuary, New Zealand) are used to analyse very small waves (height <10 cm; period 1.0–1.8 s) and associated sediment resuspension under light winds. Mean spectral period at the bed varied over the tidal cycle, driven by changes in surface-wave spectrum and depth-attenuation of orbital motions. Wave-orbital currents exceeded 30 cm/s, disturbing the fine-sand (100–200 μm) matrix of the seabed and resulting in the release of fine silt (particle size <20 μm) at concentrations >120 mg/L. Resuspension was initiated when ∼40% of the maximum zero-downcrossing orbital speeds in a burst exceeded the critical speed for initiation of sediment motion. Sediment concentrations were highest around low tide, when waves were smaller compared to high tide because of a reduced fetch but depth-attenuation of orbital motions was less because the water was shallower. Wave period exerted a control on sediment resuspension through the wave friction factor. There was a hysteresis in the wave Reynolds number such that it was greater on the ebbing tide compared to on the flooding tide: since it did not exceed 3 × 10⁵ the bed was hydraulically smooth, and the wave friction factor therefore is inversely proportional to wave period. Hence, the tidal-cycle hysteresis in wave Reynolds number translated into a smaller wave friction factor on the ebbing tide, and accounting for this caused the ebb and flood sediment concentration data to collapse onto one curve when plotted against wave-induced skin friction. A simple model is presented to evaluate the relative contribution to sediment resuspension of waves associated with weak and strong winds. At the base of the flat (waves competent to resuspend sediment for 5% of the inundation time), waves associated with stronger, infrequent winds dominate resuspension. At the top of the flat (waves competent to resuspend sediment for 30% of the inundation time), waves associated with lighter, frequent winds dominate resuspension. Moderate winds – neither the strongest nor most frequently occurring – dominate resuspension integrated across the profile. The mass of sediment resuspended by waves is greatest towards the top of the flat: shoreward of this, resuspension is smaller because of wave dissipation; seaward of this, resuspension is smaller because of greater depth-attenuation of orbital motions. The location of maximum sediment mass resuspended by waves and the location of maximum duration of resuspension are not necessarily the same.     

Effect of Horizontal Resolution on the Representation of the Global Monsoon Annual Cycle in AGCMs

The sensitivity of the representation of the global monsoon annual cycle to horizontal resolution is compared in three AGCMs:the Met Office Unified Model-Global Atmosphere 3.0;the Meteorological Research Institute AGCM3;and the Global High Resolution AGCM from the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory.For each model,we use two horizontal resolution configurations for the period 1998–2008.Increasing resolution consistently improves simulated precipitation and low-level circulation of the annual mean and the first two annual cycle modes,as measured by the pattern correlation coefficient and equitable threat score.Improvements in simulating the summer monsoon onset and withdrawal are region-dependent.No consistent response to resolution is found in simulating summer monsoon retreat.Regionally,increased resolution reduces the positive bias in simulated annual mean precipitation,the two annual-cycle modes over the West African monsoon and Northwestern Pacific monsoon.An overestimation of the solstitial mode and an underestimation of the equinoctial asymmetric mode of the East Asian monsoon are reduced in all high-resolution configurations.Systematic errors exist in lower-resolution models for simulating the onset and withdrawal of the summer monsoon.Higher resolution models consistently improve the early summer monsoon onset over East Asia and West Africa,but substantial differences exist in the responses over the Indian monsoon region,where biases differ across the three low-resolution AGCMs.This study demonstrates the importance of a multi-model comparison when examining the added value of resolution and the importance of model physical parameterizations for simulation of the Indian monsoon.