Topological changes of the photospheric magnetic field inside active regions: A prelude to flares?

The detection of magnetic field variations as a signature of flaring activity is one of the main goals in solar physics. Past efforts gave apparently no unambiguous observations of systematic changes. In the present study, we discuss recent results from observations that scaling laws of turbulent current helicity inside a given flaring active region change in response to large flares in that active region. Such changes can be related to the evolution of current structures by a simple geometrical argument, which has been tested using high Reynolds number direct numerical simulations of the MHD equations. Interpretation of the observed data within this picture indicates that the change in scaling behavior of the current helicity seems to be associated with a topological reorganization of the footpoint of the magnetic field loops, namely with the dissipation of small scales structures in turbulent media.     

Pole coordinates of the asteroids 9 metis, 22 kalliope,and 44 Nysa

By means of new photoelectric observations made in 1974 an attempt to determine the poles of asteroids 9 and 44 was made. Following a method based upon the magnitude-aspect and amplitude-aspect relations, the coordinates of the poles for 9 and 44 were found to be, respectively, λ₀ = 191° ± 5°, β₀ = 56° ± 6° and λ₀ = 100° ± 10°, β₀ = 50° ± 10°. The previously published pole for asteroid 22, λ₀ = 215° ± 10°, β₀ = 45° ± 15°, was confirmed. From its phase relation we determined the phase coefficient of 44 Nysa, a very high albedo object (p_v = 0.377). The very low phase coefficient obtained (β_v = 0.018 mag/deg) agrees very well with an inverse relation between geometrical albedo and phase coefficient. The results are summarized in a table.     

The Lower Miocene volcaniclastic sedimentation in the Sicilian sector of the Maghrebian Flysch Basin: geodynamic implications

Abstract

Volcaniclastic debris-rich formations, characterising the Troina-Tusa Unit in the Sicilian Maghrebian Chain, are examined. The Troina-Tusa Unit terrains sedimented in the Maghrebian Flysch Basin, which, from Jurassic to Early Miocene, constituted the southernmost branch of the Western Tethys, located between Africa and the Mesomediterranean Terrane margins. New field, biostratigraphic and pétrographie data enable a reconstruction of the palaeogeographic and structural evolution of the Flysch Basin immediately before its deformation. All the studied formations transpired to be Burdigalian in age. The sandstone compositions, showing different source areas (magmatic arc, recycled orogen and continental block), indicate a provenance for the clastic material from a crystalline basement with an active volcanic arc, replaced by a remnant volcanic arc, which was rapidly completely eroded. The source area that has been considered is Sardinia, where Upper Oligocene -Aquitanian calc-alkaline volcanites are widespread, but the sedimentological characteristics and the Burdigalian age do not fit with this provenance. The Burdigalian calc-alkaline arc should be located on the internal side of the Troina-Tusa Basin, above the already stacked Peloritanian units. A migration of the volcanic activity, connected with the subduction plain roll-back, can be envisaged from the Sardinia Block to the Peloritanian Chain, this latter still docked to the Sardinia-Corsica massif. © 2002 Editions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.     

SERS investigation of possible extraterrestrial life traces: Experimental adsorption of adenine on a Martian meteorite

Abstract– The identification of adenine by surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) on different mineral phases of a Martian meteorite Dar al Gani (DaG) 670 has been adopted as a test to verify the capability of this technique to detect trace amounts of organic or biological substances deposited over, or contained in, extraterrestrial materials. Raman spectra of different phases of meteorite (olivine, pyroxene, and ilmenite), representative of Martian basaltic rocks, have been measured by three laser sources with wavelengths at 785, 632.8, and 514.5 nm, coupled to a confocal micro‐Raman apparatus. Adenine deposited on the Martian meteorite cannot be observed in the normal Raman spectra; when, instead, meteorite is treated with silver colloidal nanoparticles, the SERS bands of adenine are strongly enhanced, allowing an easy and simple identification of this nucleobase at subpicogram level.     

Comparing theoretically supported rainfall‐runoff erosivity factors at the Sparacia (South Italy) experimental site

Interpreting rainfall‐runoff erosivity by a process‐oriented scheme allows to conjugate the physical approach to soil loss estimate with the empirical one. Including the effect of runoff in the model permits to distinguish between detachment and transport in the soil erosion process. In this paper, at first, a general definition of the rainfall‐runoff erosivity factor REF_e including the power of both event runoff coefficient Q_R and event rainfall erosivity index EI₃₀ of the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) is proposed. The REF_e factor is applicable to all USLE‐based models (USLE, Modified USLE [USLE‐M] and Modified USLE‐M [USLE‐MM]) and it allows to distinguish between purely empirical models (e.g., Modified USLE‐M [USLE‐MM]) and those supported by applying theoretical dimensional analysis and self‐similarity to Wischmeier and Smith scheme. This last model category includes USLE, USLE‐M, and a new model, named USLE‐M based (USLE‐MB), that uses a rainfall‐runoff erosivity factor in which a power of runoff coefficient multiplies EI₃₀. Using the database of Sparacia experimental site, the USLE‐MB is parameterized and a comparison with soil loss data is carried out. The developed analysis shows that USLE‐MB (characterized by a Nash–Sutcliffe Efficiency Index NSEI equal to 0.73 and a root mean square error RMSE = 11.7 Mg ha^?1) has very similar soil loss estimate performances as compared with the USLE‐M (NSEI = 0.72 and RMSE = 12.0 Mg ha^?1). However, the USLE‐MB yields a maximum discrepancy factor between predicted and measured soil loss values (176) that is much lower than that of USLE‐M (291). In conclusion, the USLE‐MB should be preferred in the context of theoretically supported USLE type models.     

Testing the Universal Soil Loss Equation‐MB equation in plots in Central and South Italy

Planning soil conservation strategies requires predictive techniques at event scale because a large percentage of soil loss over a long‐time period is due to relatively few large storms. Considering runoff is expected to improve soil loss predictions and allows relation of the process‐oriented approach with the empirical one, furthermore, the effects of detachment and transport on soil erosion processes can be distinguished by a runoff component. In this paper, the empirical model USLE‐MB (USLE‐M based), including a rainfall‐runoff erosivity factor in which the event rainfall erosivity index EI₃₀ of the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) multiplies the runoff coefficient Q_R raised to an exponent b₁ > 1 is tested by the measurements carried out for the Masse (10 plots) and Sparacia (22 plots) experimental stations in Italy. For the Masse experimental station, an exponent b₁ > 1 was also estimated by tests carried out by a nozzle‐type rainfall simulator. For each experimental site in fallow conditions, the effect of the sample size of the plot soil loss measurements on the estimate of the b₁ coefficient was also studied by the extraction of a fixed number N of randomly obtained pairs of the normalized soil loss and runoff coefficient. The analysis showed that the variability of b₁ with N is low and that 350 pairs are sufficient to obtain a stable estimate of b₁. A total of 1,262 soil loss data were used to parameterize the model both locally and considering the two sites simultaneously. The b₁ exponent varied between the two sites (1.298–1.520), but using a common exponent (1.386) was possible. Using a common b₁ exponent for the two experimental areas increases the practical interest for the model and allows the estimation of a baseline component of the soil erodibility factor, which is representative of the at‐site soil intrinsic and quasi‐static properties. Development of a single USLE‐MB model appears possible, and sampling other sites is advisable to develop a single USLE‐MB model for general use.     

A comprehensive analysis of Universal Soil Loss Equation-based models at the Sparacia experimental area

Improving Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE)-based models has large interest because simple and reliable analytical tools are necessary in the perspective of a sustainable land management. At first, in this paper, a general definition of the event rainfall- runoff erosivity factor for the USLE-based models, REF_e = (Q_R)^b1(EI₃₀)^b2, in which Q_R is the event runoff coefficient, EI₃₀ is the single-storm erosion index, and b₁ and b₂ are coefficients, was introduced. The rainfall-runoff erosivity factors of the USLE (b₁ = 0 and b₂ = 1), USLE-M (b₁ = b₂ = 1), USLE-MB (b₁ ≠ 1 and b₂ = 1), USLE-MR (b₁ = 1 and b₂ ≠ 1), USLE-MM (b₁ = b₂ ≠ 1), and USLE-M2 (b₁ ≠ b₂ ≠ 1) can be defined using REF_e. Then the different expressions of REF_e were simultaneously tested against a data set of normalized bare plot soil losses, A_eN, collected at the Sparacia (south Italy) site. As expected, the poorest A_eN predictions were obtained with the USLE. The observed tendency of this model to overestimate small A_eN values and underestimate high A_eN values was reduced by introducing in the soil loss prediction model both Q_R and an exponent for the erosivity term. The fitting to the data was poor with the USLE-MR as compared with the USLE-MB and the USLE-MM. Estimating two distinct exponents (USLE-M2) instead of a single exponent (USLE-MB, USLE-MR, and USLE-MM) did not appreciably improve soil loss prediction. The USLE-MB and the USLE-MM were recognized to be the best performing models among the possible alternatives, and they performed similarly with reference to both the complete data set and different sub-data sets, only including small, intermediate, and severe erosion events. In conclusion, including the runoff coefficient in the soil loss prediction model is important to improve the quality of the predictions, but a great importance has to be paid to the mathematical structure of the model.     

Comparing flow resistance law for fixed and mobile bed rills

Rills caused by run‐off concentration on erodible hillslopes have very irregular profiles and cross‐section shapes. Rill erosion directly depends on the hydraulics of flow in the rills, which may differ greatly from hydraulics of flow in larger and regular channels. In this paper, a recently theoretically deduced rill flow resistance equation, based on a power–velocity profile, was tested experimentally on plots of varying slopes (ranging from 9% to 26%) in which mobile and fixed bed rills were incised. Initially, measurements of flow velocity, water depth, cross‐section area, wetted perimeter, and bed slope, carried out in 320 reaches of mobile bed rills and in 165 reaches of fixed rills, were used for calibrating the theoretical flow resistance equation. Then the relationship between the velocity profile parameter Γ, the channel slope, and the flow Froude number was separately calibrated for the mobile bed rills and for the fixed ones. The measurements carried out in both conditions (fixed and mobile bed rills) confirmed that the Darcy–Weisbach friction factor can be accurately estimated using the proposed theoretical approach. For mobile bed rills, the data were supportive of the slope independence hypothesis of velocity, due to the feedback mechanism, stated by Govers. The feedback mechanism was able to produce quasicritical flow conditions. For fixed bed rills, obtained by fixing the rill channel, by a glue, at the end of the experimental run with a mobile bed rill, the slope independence of the flow velocity measurements was also detected. Therefore, an experimental run carried out by a rill bed fixed after modelling flow action is useful to detect the feedback mechanism. Finally, the analysis showed that, for the investigated conditions, the effect of sediment transport on the flow resistance law can be considered negligible respect to the grain roughness effect.     

An automatic approach for rill network extraction to measure rill erosion by terrestrial and low‐cost unmanned aerial vehicle photogrammetry

For an erosion event (October 2016) occurred at the Sparacia experimental area (Southern Italy), both terrestrial and low‐altitude aerial surveys were carried out by consumer grade camera and quadcopter (low‐cost unmanned aerial vehicle [UAV]) to measure rill erosion on two plots with steepness of 22% and 26%. Applying the structure from motion (SfM) technique, the three‐dimensional digital terrain models (3D‐DTMs) and the quasi three‐dimensional models (2.5D‐digital elevation model [DEM]) were obtained by the two surveys. Furthermore, 3D‐DTM and DEM were built using the available aerial photographs (166) and adding 40 terrestrial photographs. For the first time, the convergence index was applied to high‐resolution rill data for extracting the rill network, and a subsequent separation into contributing and non‐contributing rills was carried out. The comparison among the three surveys (terrestrial, UAV, and UAV + terrestrial) was developed using two morphometric parameters of the rill network (drainage density and drainage frequency). Moreover, using as reference the weight of sediment stored on the tanks located downstream of the plots, the reliability of soil loss measurement by 3D models was tested. For both contributing and non‐contributing rills, the morphometric parameters were higher for the terrestrial than for UAV and UAV + terrestrial surveys. For both plots, SfM always provided reliable soil loss measurements, which were affected by errors ranging from ?8% to 13%. Although the applied technique used a low‐cost UAV and a consumer grade camera, the obtained results demonstrated that a reliable estimate of rill erosion can be obtained in an area of interest.     

Multiparametric Approach in Investigating Volcano-Hydrothermal Systems: the Case Study of Vulcano (Aeolian Islands, Italy)

Seismic activity, ground deformation, and soil and fumarole temperatures acquired during 2004–2007 at Vulcano (Aeolian Islands) are analysed and the time relations among the different time series are discussed. Changes in temperature of fumarolic gases took place during four “anomalous” periods (November 2004–March 2005; October 2005–February 2006; August–October 2006; July–December 2007) at the same time as an increasing number of volcano-seismic events. In particular, the temperatures at high temperature vents and at steam heated soil ranged in time from 180 to 440°C and from 20 to 90°C, respectively. The maximum daily number of volcano-seismic events was 57, reached during the second anomalous period. This seismicity, characterised by focal depth generally lower than 1?km below sea level (b.s.l.) and composed of different kinds of events associated to both resonance and shear failure processes, is related to the shallow dynamics of the hydrothermal system. During the analysed period, very few volcano-tectonic earthquakes took place and tilt recordings showed no sharp or important changes. In light of such observations, the increases in both temperature and volcano-seismic events number were associated to increases in the release of gas from a deep and stable magma body, without magma intrusions within the shallow hydrothermal system. Indeed, a greater release of gas from depth leads to increased fluid circulation, that can promote increases in volcano-seismic events number by both fracturing processes and resonance and vibration in cracks and conduits. The different trends observed in the measured geochemical and geophysical series during the anomalous periods can be due to either time changes in the medium permeability or a changing speed of gas release from a deep magma body. Finally, all the observed variations, together with the changing temporal distribution of the different seismic event kinds, suggest that the hydrothermal system at Vulcano can be considered unsteady and dynamic.