Effects of natural attenuation processes on groundwater contamination caused by abandoned waste sites in Berlin

The aim of this research project is to identify, characterize and quantify natural attenuation (NA) processes in groundwater affected by emissions of abandoned waste disposal sites in Berlin-Kladow/Gatow, Germany. It is part of the funding priority called KORA established by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) to explore the extent to which NA can be used for remedial purposes for varied forms of soil and groundwater contamination. Information on the emission behaviour of individual parameters is generated on the basis of hydrogeochemical comparison of 20 years old and new data. Using groundwater-modelling and CFC-analysis, information on the transport and retention of pollutants in groundwater is compiled. The microbial colonization of contaminated aquifers is characterized by molecular biological methods [polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE)] to differentiate between contaminated and not contaminated zones.     

Evidence for enhanced hydration on the northern flank of Olympus Mons, Mars

In this paper we report about a small region on the northern scarp of Olympus Mons showing an increase of the 3 μm hydration band in the OMEGA spectra, together with low superficial temperatures. Although water ice clouds can occurs on the flank of big martian volcanoes, radiative transfer modeling indicates that atmospheric water ice alone cannot justify the shape of the observed band. A fit of the 1.9–3 μm absorption features is obtained by hypothesizing that the study region consists of a mixture of dust and water ice covered by an optically thin (τ=0.08 at 3 μm) layer of dust. Thermal modeling also suggests that water ice in this region may be stable during most of the martian year due to the saturation of the atmosphere. If water ice is responsible for the observed spectral behavior, it might consist of a number of ice or snow patches possibly deposited in small depressions.     

Scientific uncertainty and climate change: Part II. Uncertainty and mitigation

In public debate surrounding climate change, scientific uncertainty is often cited in connection with arguments against mitigative action. This article examines the role of uncertainty about future climate change in determining the likely success or failure of mitigative action. We show by Monte Carlo simulation that greater uncertainty translates into a greater likelihood that mitigation efforts will fail to limit global warming to a target (e.g., 2 °C). The effect of uncertainty can be reduced by limiting greenhouse gas emissions. Taken together with the fact that greater uncertainty also increases the potential damages arising from unabated emissions (Lewandowsky et al. 2014), any appeal to uncertainty implies a stronger, rather than weaker, need to cut greenhouse gas emissions than in the absence of uncertainty.     

用电子束CT作冠状动脉血管造影

本文介绍用电子束ＣＴ作冠状动脉可视化造影的方法,说明本项成就的特征和在应用这项技术的局限性,并指出这种技术在临床上,可能成为新无创伤性的诊断工具。     

Seasonal connections between meteoric water and streamflow generation along a mountain headwater stream

In snowmelt-driven mountain watersheds, the hydrologic connectivity between meteoric waters and stream flow generation varies strongly with the season, reflecting variable connection to soil and groundwater storage within the watershed. This variable connectivity regulates how streamflow generation mechanisms transform the seasonal and elevational variation in oxygen and hydrogen isotopic composition (δ¹⁸O and δD) of meteoric precipitation. Thus, water isotopes in stream flow can signal immediate connectivity or more prolonged mixing, especially in high-relief mountainous catchments. We characterized δ¹⁸O and δD values in stream water along an elevational gradient in a mountain headwater catchment in southwestern Montana. Stream water isotopic compositions related most strongly to elevation between February and March, exhibiting higher δ¹⁸O and δD values with decreasing elevation. These elevational isotopic lapse rates likely reflect increased connection between stream flow and proximal snow-derived water sources heavily subject to elevational isotopic effects. These patterns disappeared during summer sampling, when consistently lower δ¹⁸O and δD values of stream water reflected contributions from snowmelt or colder rainfall, despite much higher δ¹⁸O and δD values expected in warmer seasonal rainfall. The consistently low isotopic values and absence of a trend with elevation during summer suggest lower connectivity between summer precipitation and stream flow generation as a consequence of drier soils and greater transpiration. As further evidence of intermittent seasonal connectivity between the stream and adjacent groundwaters, we observed a late-winter flush of nitrate into the stream at higher elevations, consistent with increased connection to accumulating mineralized nitrogen in riparian wetlands. This pattern was distinct from mid-summer patterns of nitrate loading at lower elevations that suggested heightened human recreational activity along the stream corridor. These observations provide insights linking stream flow generation and seasonal water storage in high elevation mountainous watersheds. Greater understanding of the connections between surface water, soil water and groundwater in these environments will help predict how the quality and quantity of mountain runoff will respond to changing climate and allow better informed water management decisions.     

Mechanisms linking active rock glaciers and impounded surface water formation in high‐mountain areas

Rock glaciers are slowly flowing mixtures of debris and ice occurring in mountains. They can represent a reservoir of water, and melting ice inside them can affect surface water hydrochemistry. Investigating the interactions between rock glaciers and water bodies is therefore necessary to better understand these mechanisms. With this goal, we elucidate the hydrology and structural setting of a rock glacier–marginal pond system, providing new insights into the mechanisms linking active rock glaciers and impounded surface waters. This was achieved through the integration of waterborne geophysical techniques (ground penetrating radar, electrical resistivity tomography and self‐potentials) and heat tracing. Results of these surveys showed that rock glacier advance has progressively filled the valley depression where the pond is located, creating a dam that could have modified the level of impounded water. A sub‐surface hydrological window connecting the rock glacier to the pond was also detected, where an inflow of cold and mineralised underground waters from the rock glacier was observed. Here, greater water contribution from the rock glacier occurred following intense precipitation events during the ice‐free season, with concomitant increasing electrical conductivity values. The outflowing dynamic of the pond is dominated by a sub‐surface seepage where a minor fault zone in bedrock was found, characterised by altered and highly‐fractured rocks. The applied approach is evaluated here as a suitable technique for investigating logistically‐complex hydrological settings which could be possibly transferred to wider scales of investigation. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The pre-weichselian glaciations of North-West Europe

In North-West Europe no evidence has been found for glaciations older than the Elsterian. The Elsterian seems to consist of at least two separate ice advances with a minor interval in between. During the Elsterian in the area south of the Baltic Sea over 400 m deep channels were cut into the underlying substratum by a combination of glacial erosion and meltwater activity. The channels were active until the Late Elsterian and were subsequently filled with meltwater deposits and glaciolacustrine silt and clay. During the Saalian no comparative channels were being formed. Three different ice advances can be distinguished within the Saalian, the stratigraphical correlation of which is to be discussed. No convincing evidence was found for any interglacial within the Saalian sequence. There are good reasons to assume that the ice advances were only separated from each other by minor ice-free intervals.     

The Scaling Behaviour of a Turbulent Kinetic Energy Closure Model for Stably Stratified Conditions

We investigate the scaling behaviour of a turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) closure model for stably stratified conditions. The mixing length scale for stable stratification is proportional to the ratio of the square root of the TKE and the local Brunt–Väisälä frequency, which is a commonly applied formulation. We analyze the scaling behaviour of our model in terms of traditional Monin–Obukov Similarity Theory and local scaling. From the model equations, we derive expressions for the stable limit behaviour of the flux–gradient relations and other scaling quantities. It turns out that the scaling behaviour depends on only a few model parameters and that the results obey local scaling theory. The analytical findings are illustrated with model simulations for the second GABLS intercomparison study. We also investigate solutions for the case in which an empirical correction function is used to express the eddy diffusivity for momentum as a function of the Richardson number (i.e. an increasing turbulent Prandtl number with stability). In this case, it seems that for certain parameter combinations the model cannot generate a steady-state solution. At the same time, its scaling behaviour becomes unrealistic. This shows that the inclusion of empirical correction functions may have large and undesired consequences for the model behaviour.     

Laboratory studies about the interaction of ammonia with ice crystals at temperatures between 0 and −20°C

In laboratory experiments the interactions of ammonia with ice crystals were studied within the temperature range between 0 and −20°C. In a first series of experiments dendritic ice crystals were grown from water vapor in presence of ammonia gas in various concentrations between 4 and 400 ppbv. In a second series of experiments pure ice crystals were exposed to a humidified ammonia–air mixture inside a horizontal flow tube. The influence of temperature, ammonia gas concentration (0.6, 1.5, and 10 ppmv), exposure time, and the presence of impurities such as sulfate on the ammonia uptake by the ice surface was investigated by determining the ammonium content in the melt water of the ice crystals by ion chromatography. During the growth of ice crystals significant amounts of ammonia (around 200 μg/l) were taken up even at small gas concentrations. In contrast, even at high gas concentrations the uptake of ammonia by non-growing ice crystals was lower by approximately one order of magnitude. The presence of sulfate on the ice surface affected an enhanced uptake of ammonia by a factor of 5–10. A model is presented which describes the uptake of ammonia by ice considering the chemical processes occurring in the ice surface layer and simultaneous diffusion of ammonia into bulk ice. Even the increased uptake of ammonia by growing ice is rather small compared to the uptake by water droplets; thus, the major process for scavenging of ammonia from the atmosphere via the ice phase might not be the direct uptake by ice crystals but the riming involving super-cooled droplets containing ammonia.