Extreme normalised residuals of daily temperatures in Catalonia (NE Spain): sampling strategies, return periods and clustering process

Extreme normalised residuals, defined as departures from the average values, of 65 daily maximum, T _max, and minimum, T _min, temperature series recorded in Catalonia (NE Spain) during 1950–2004 are analysed. Similarly to the sampling strategies applied to long dry spells, the partial duration series (PDS) offer some advantages in comparison with the annual extreme series. Instead of using a common percentile threshold for all temperature series, PDS are chosen according to the mean excess plot procedure. Series of extreme residuals are modelled, in terms of the L-moments formulation, by the generalised Pareto distribution. Extreme residuals of T _max and T _min are estimated for return periods ranging from 2 to 50 years and their spatial distribution is represented for selected return periods of 2, 5, 10, 25 and 50 years. Two daily extreme temperatures events, a hot episode (in August) and a cold episode (in February), are simulated taking into account the average T _max (T _min) for a day in August (February), their standard deviations and the extremes for a 50-year return period. Both simulations are compared with outstanding real episodes recorded on August 13th 2003 and February 11th 1956. Additionally, a spatial regionalisation of Catalonia in several clusters, in terms of the extreme residuals for return periods from 2 to 50 years, is done. A principal component analysis is applied to the extreme residual curves characterising every temperature series and, using as variables the principal components, the regionalisation is obtained by applying the average linkage clustering algorithm. Finally, each cluster is characterised by its average extreme residual curve for return periods ranging from 2 to 50 years at 1-year interval.     

Arome,a balloon-borne instrument for astronomical near-infrared spectrophotometry

We present here the French balloon-borne experiment named AROME. This astronomical instrument is specifically designed for the detection of near infrared emission bands (=3–12m) from extended sources of low surface brightness with an angular resolution of 0.5°. The rms sensitivity achieved is of the order of 10^-8 Wm^-2sr^-1, in terms of the power radiated in the 3.3m band. We recall that this program led to the first detection of the 3.3m feature in the spectrum of the diffuse galactic emission. The scientific results were presented and interpreted in Paper I, Giard et al., 1989. Future work will include both the observation of fainter objects at 3.3m and the detection of other emission bands at 6.2 and 11.3m.     

A possible impact crater for the 1908 Tunguska Event

The so‐called ‘Tunguska Event’ refers to a major explosion that occurred on 30 June 1908 in the Tunguska region of Siberia, causing the destruction of over 2000 km² of taiga, globally detected pressure and seismic waves, and bright luminescence in the night skies of Europe and Central Asia, combined with other unusual phenomena. The ‘Tunguska Event’ may be related to the impact with the Earth of a cosmic body that exploded about 5–10 km above ground, releasing in the atmosphere 10–15 Mton of energy. Fragments of the impacting body have never been found, and its nature (comet or asteroid) is still a matter of debate. We report results from the investigation of Lake Cheko, located ∼8 km NNW of the inferred explosion epicenter. Its funnel‐like bottom morphology and the structure of its sedimentary deposits, revealed by acoustic imagery and direct sampling, all suggest that the lake fills an impact crater. Lake Cheko may have formed due to a secondary impact onto alluvial swampy ground; the size and shape of the crater may have been affected by the nature of the ground and by impact‐related melting and degassing of a permafrost layer.     

Localized algal blooms induced by river inflows in a canyon type reservoir

The local response of the phytoplankton community to river inflow processes was investigated with modeling and field analyses in a long and narrow, stratified reservoir in mid-summer. The river water had high concentrations of phosphorus and nitrogen (ammonium and nitrate) and temperature had large variations at diurnal scales. As a consequence of the large variation in river temperature, the level of neutral buoyancy (the depth where the river water spreads laterally in the reservoir) oscillated between the surface (overflows) during the day, and the depth of the metalimnion (interflows) during the night. The reservoir remained strongly stratified, which favoured the presence of cyanobacteria. It is shown that under these conditions, nutrient-rich river water injected during overflows into the surface layers promoted the occurrence of localized algal blooms in the zones where the overflow mixed with the quiescent water of the reservoir. A series of hydrodynamic simulations of the reservoir were conducted both with synthetic and realistic forcing to assess the importance of river temperatures and wind-driven hydrodynamics for algal blooms. The simulations confirmed that the river inflow was the main forcing mechanism generating the localized bloom.     

Effect of submerged aquatic vegetation on turbulence induced by an oscillating grid

In wetlands wind-induced turbulence significantly affects the bottom boundary, and the interaction between turbulence and plant canopies is therefore particularly important. The aim of this study is to advance understanding of the impact of this interaction in submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV)¹ on vertical mixing in a fluid dominated by turbulence. Wind-generated turbulence was simulated in the laboratory using an oscillating grid. We quantify the vertical distribution of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE)² above and within different types of vegetation, measured by an acoustic Doppler velocimeter. Experimental conditions are analysed in two canopy models (rigid and semi-rigid) with seven solid plant fractions (SPFs)³, three stem diameters (d)⁴ and three oscillation grid frequencies (f)⁵ and four natural SAVs (Cladium mariscus, Potamogeton nodosus, Myriophyllum verticillatum and Ruppia maritima).     

Cinq années de sondages ozone sur Cagliari (Sardaigne)

Resumé Pendant la période Février 1967-Février 1972 ont été accomplies, à l'Observatoire de Meteorologie Aéronautique de Cagliari,²) 157 sondages ozone par des sondes électrochimiques type Brewer.On présente un résumé des resultats des mesures et on décrit les caracteristiques principales de la répartition de l'ozone sur la verticale de Cagliari et ses variations saisonniéres.     

The origin of Lake Cheko and the 1908 Tunguska Event recorded by forest trees

Several lines of evidence indicate that Cheko, a small lake close to the epicentre of the 1908 Tunguska Event (TE), fills a crater left behind by a fragment of the Tunguska Cosmic Body that impacted the ground downrange of the main explosion. It is thought that over 80 million trees were flattened or burnt as a consequence of the TE. However, a small number of trees in the devastated area survived the explosion and recorded in their growth‐ring patterns the environmental changes that followed this event. Some of those trees were found around Lake Cheko, ~10 km NW of the inferred TE epicentre. We analysed new data from the floor of Lake Cheko, including seismic‐reflection profiles, side‐scan sonar and video images, as well as dendrochronological evidence in tree samples collected along the shores, to test the hypothesis of a 1908 formation of the lake.