Fractionation analysis of transport engine-generated soot particles with respect to hygroscopicity

Combustion-derived particles emitted by various transport engines are analyzed with respect to their morphology and composition. Soot particles collected behind an aircraft gas turbine engine combustor, in the diesel engine exhaust pipe, and at the end of ship pipe demonstrate heterogeneous morphological structures and different chemical identities. Individual particle analysis allows the characterization of emitted soot particles into three fractions, namely C-O, C-O-S, and Fe-C-O, with the dominant presence of chain soot agglomerates, irregular internally mixed soot, and particles of distinct morphology, respectively. The influence of oxygen and sulfur concentrations on the ability of soot to uptake water is proposed as a method for categorizing transport engine-generated particles. Categories of hydrophobic and hydrophilic particles within non-hygroscopic soots can be defined based on the amount of water uptake relative to several reference laboratory-made soots comparable to transport engine emissions. This method of characterizing hydrophobic/hydrophilic and hygroscopic soots in combustion emissions will help to determine the potential impacts of the combustion emissions on CCN/IN formation in the atmosphere.     

Coda Q before and after the eruptions of 13 November 1985, and 1 September 1989, at Nevado del Ruiz Volcano, Colombia

 Coda Q^–1 was calculated at Nevado del Ruiz Volcano (NRV) before and after two phreatomagmatic eruptions (November 1985, September 1989) and for a period of stability (May 1987) using a functional form for coda derived from a single scattering model (Sato 1977). Substantial changes were found before and after the eruptions. The highest value of Q^–1 was found during the November 1985 eruption, an intermediate value for the September 1989 eruption, and the lowest value for May 1987. It seems that the changes in coda Q^–1 at NRV have a still-unknown relationship with the volume or magnitude of the eruption. A relatively strong frequency dependence was found for all periods. Also Q^–1 clearly changed with time, suggesting that the scattering was strong for the eruption of November 1985 and decreased for the eruption of September 1989, and that the intrinsic absorption probably increased. This suggests the possibility that crystallization is taking place in the NRV magma. The clear change of coda Q^–1 before and after the eruptions at NRV also suggests the possibility that coda Q^–1 is a premonitory tool of activity at this volcano. Received: 25 October 1996 / Accepted: 21 January 1998     

Anthropogenic subsidence in the Mexicali Valley,Baja California,Mexico, and slip on the Saltillo fault

Deep fluid extraction in the Cerro Prieto geothermal field (CPGF) has caused subsidence and induced slip on tectonic faults in the Mexicali Valley (Baja California, Mexico). The Mexicali Valley is located in the southern part of the Salton Trough, at the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates. The Valley is characterized by being a zone of continuous tectonic deformation, geothermal activity, and seismicity. Within the Cerro Prieto pull-apart basin, seismicity is concentrated mainly in swarms, while strong earthquakes have occurred in the Imperial and Cerro Prieto transform faults, that are the eastern and western bound of the basin. Since 1973, fluid extraction at the CPGF has influenced deformation in the area, accelerating the subsidence and causing rupture (frequently as vertical slip or creep) on the surface traces of tectonic faults. Both subsidence and fault slip are causing damage to infrastructure like roads, railroad tracks, irrigation channels, and agricultural fields. Currently, accelerated extraction in the eastern part of CPGF has shifted eastwards the area of most pronounced subsidence rate; this accelerated subsidence can be observed at the Saltillo fault, a southern branch of the Imperial fault in the Mexicali Valley. Published leveling data, together with field data from geological surveys, geotechnical instruments, and new InSAR images were used to model the observed deformation in the area in terms of fluid extraction. Since the electricity production in the CPGF is an indispensable part of Baja California economy, extraction is sure to continue and may probably increase, so that the problem of damages caused by subsidence will likely increase in the future.     

A multi-proxy reconstruction of spatial and temporal variations in Asian summer temperatures over the last millennium

To investigate climate variability in Asia during the last millennium, the spatial and temporal evolution of summer (June–July–August; JJA) temperature in eastern and south-central Asia is reconstructed using multi-proxy records and the regularized expectation maximization (RegEM) algorithm with truncated total least squares (TTLS), under a point-by-point regression (PPR) framework. The temperature index reconstructions show that the late 20th century was the warmest period in Asia over the past millennium. The temperature field reconstructions illustrate that temperatures in central, eastern, and southern China during the 11th and 13th centuries, and in western Asia during the 12th century, were significantly higher than those in other regions, and comparable to levels in the 20th century. Except for the most recent warming, all identified warm events showed distinct regional expressions and none were uniform over the entire reconstruction area. The main finding of the study is that spatial temperature patterns have, on centennial time-scales, varied greatly over the last millennium. Moreover, seven climate model simulations, from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5), over the same region of Asia, are all consistent with the temperature index reconstruction at the 99 % confidence level. Only spatial temperature patterns extracted as the first empirical orthogonal function (EOF) from the GISS-E2-R and MPI-ESM-P model simulations are significant and consistent with the temperature field reconstruction over the past millennium in Asia at the 90 % confidence level. This indicates that both the reconstruction and the simulations depict the temporal climate variability well over the past millennium. However, the spatial simulation or reconstruction capability of climate variability over the past millennium could be still limited. For reconstruction, some grid points do not pass validation tests and reveal the need for more proxies with high temporal resolution, accurate dating, and sensitive temperature signals, especially in central Asia and before AD 1400.     

Space geodesy in geodynamic studies: Recent movements in the Zeya-Bureya Basin

The Amur-Zeya geodynamic test ground was set up in 2000 to study recent intracontinental crustal deformations. The velocity field calculations for the period of 2000 to 2003 describe three movements scales. The general level is characterized by the vectors of IGS sites in the eastern part of Asia, the BLAG (Blagoveshchensk) site included. The southeast movement of the IRKT (Irkutsk) site of the stable Siberian Platform is indicative of deformations in the northeastern part of the Amur Plate. Measurement data on the regional near-latitudinal profile Blagoveshchensk-Sutara, which crosses the Nizhnyaya Zeya Basin, demonstrate a southwestward displacement of the Badzhal-Bureya-Lesser Khingan block relative to the North China block. The dynamic effect of the convergent boundary between the Amur and Okhotsk Sea plates is assumed to extend inland also involving the Zeya-Bureya Basin area. The measurements on the local geodynamic test site relate the deformations of buildings and constructions in the Settlement of Konstantinovka to the mobility of basement faults in the southern part of the Nizhnyaya Zeya Basin. Aseismic deformations are determined by slow horizontal tectonic movements in the junction zone of NNE-trending structures of the latter basin and near-latitudinal faults of the Khailar-Xunhei Belt.     

Phytoplankton structure, composition and production in saline water-bodies in the Lower Amu Dar'ya

Phytoplankton and its production in water-bodies of the lower Amu Dar'ya were investigated in 1984–1989. The structure and functional nature of the phytoplankton in the water-bodies studied were analogous to those of the littoral zone of eutrophic lakes, considering hydrological and hydrochemical conditions. The very high average annual P/B ratios (453–582) are considered as regional features, namely high light intensity and prolonged light period, the salinity usual for saline waters under anthropogenic influence, the frequent and discrete income of nutrients in drainage water and from sediments.     

Transformation processes in Moscow and intra-urban stratification of population

Major trends of social restructuring of Moscow population and processes of intra-urban segregation are discussed. The article comprises two main parts. The first part deals with differences between the population of Moscow and that of Russia based on the main socio-economic indicators. In the second part, emphasis is placed on the urban processes of social stratification of the population on the basis of analysis of the demographic and employment patterns of the population and peculiarities of the functioning housing market. The merging of top government officials and new business elites is stressed. A conclusion is drawn about the variation of the character of urban population differentiation and its transition to a stage of property-based spatial segregation.