Mechanical shaking and soil water affect the growth of Psammochloa villosa in the Mu Us Sandland

The Mu Us Sandland is basically characterized by water shortage and high wind. Thus, wind-induced mechanical perturbation (MP) and soil water availability are likely to interact to affect plant growth. Since high water availability and MP can induce responses that are in the opposite direction, we hypothesized that MP effects on perennial grasses might be mitigated by increased soil water availability in the Mu Us Sandland. We counducted an experiment in which seedlings of Psammochloa villosa were subjected to two levels of MP (non-MP vs. MP 1 min d⁻¹) and two levels of water availability (200 ml d⁻¹vs. 400 ml d⁻¹) and measured three plant traits. MP significantly decreased plant height, total biomass, and root/shoot ratio. There were significant interactions between MP and soil water availability on plant height and root/shoot ratio. These findings imply that MP alone is a stressful factor for P. villosa and MP effects on its growth can be partially mitigated by increased soil water availability, and also suggest that P. villosa may respond to MP in a way that allows plants to survive in the windy semiarid environments.     

Conifer stomata analysis in paleoecological studies on the Loess Plateau: An example from Tianchi Lake, Liupan Mountains

The identification of fossil conifer stomata was conducted from a lake sedimentary sequence on the Liupan Mountains, southwestern Loess Plateau, in order to reconstruct detailed forest history and assess the potential of using stomata as a supplement to pollen analysis to determine the local presence of conifers over the last 3200 years. The pollen has already been analyzed in our previous study. Reference conifer stomata were prepared for the fossil stomata identification and demonstrate that the conifer stomata could be identified to at least genus level. Our stomata and pollen results reveal three clear stages of the forest recession during the late Holocene: mixed conifer-deciduous forest, steppe-forest and steppe. Combined stomata and pollen results confirm the local presence of conifer trees (Abies and Pinus) in the vicinity of the Tianchi Lake. Abundant Abies trees existed during 3200-2200 cal yr BP. Then it decreased and finally demised at ca.210 cal yr BP. Pinus trees have been continuously present with very low abundance throughout the late Holocene. Application of comprehensive studies comprising both stomata and pollen analyses allowed a detailed determination of the stages of conifer trees presence in the vicinity of the Tianchi Lake. Our study suggests that the analysis of fossil stomata is a valuable methodological tool for the provision of unambiguous evidence of the past local presence of the coniferous taxa in this region.     

Spatial and temporal variations in C3 and C4 plant abundance over the Chinese Loess Plateau since the last glacial maximum

Stable carbon isotopes of soil organic matter from 12 sites in the southern Chinese Loess Plateau are reviewed to examine spatial and temporal patterns of C₃ and C₄ plants in the arid to semiarid monsoonal region during three key periods - last glacial maximum, mid-Holocene, and modern. We have tentatively corrected the effects of atmospheric CO₂ concentrations and precipitation amounts on the δ¹³C endmembers for C₃ plants to reconstruct the relative proportion of C₄ plants because the δ¹³C values of C₃ plants are variable under different CO₂ and climate conditions. The results indicate that C₄ grasses increase from northwest to southeast spatially, which is consistent with present-day increasing precipitation and temperature patterns. This suggests that for a monsoon-dominant arid to semiarid region, such as the Loess Plateau, warm-season rainfall is a primary factor limiting C₄ plants growth, and thus C₄ grasses have been outcompeted by C₃ grasses/shrubs under cold-dry climate conditions. However, temporal fluctuations in atmospheric CO₂ concentration may also affect plant growth through altering water-use efficiency (WUE). Enhanced drought caused by decreased WUE due to low atmospheric CO₂ concentrations during glacial periods, combined with a cold-dry climate, leads to a decline in C₄ grasses, canceling out any advantages gained from lowered atmospheric CO₂ concentrations. To reconstruct accurately the abundance of C₃ and C₄ plants in an ecosystem and explore their controlling factors, process-based vegetation models integrating CO₂ and climatic parameters interactive with plant physiology are necessary.     

Field measurement and scaled-down wind-tunnel model measurement of airflow field over a barchan dune

Airflow is measured over a barchan dune in the field and over a scaled-down model in a wind tunnel. The change of the flow speed over the stoss side is represented by the change of speed-up ratio. According to the field measurement, the wind profiles within 0-3m above the stoss can be divided into two segments. The lower segment, about 0.66 m thick, is the inner-boundary layer, within which the friction velocities derived from the wind profiles increase from the upwind inter-dune region to the upper stoss, and then decrease near the dune top. This change, together with the changes of airflow field, speed-up ratio and sand flux, is related to the morphological change and contributes to the stable shape and height of a barchan dune. In the wind tunnel, airflow varies in a similar way as in the field, with the speed-up ratios constantly higher than 1.0 and increasing along the stoss slope. While the segmentation of wind profiles also occurs in the wind tunnel, friction velocities derived from the wind profiles decrease along the stoss, indicating a very thin inner-boundary layer above the wind tunnel model where the detailed wind-speed change becomes difficult to measure using the present instruments.     

南京市城市居民对乡村旅游发展的感知及旅游行为研究

运用问卷调查法和基于SPSS软件的统计分析法,以南京市为例,从城市居民感知视角考察乡村旅游的发展情况。从旅游偏好、旅游频率和空间分布等方面探讨城市居民的乡村旅游行为特征,并进一步分析了乡村旅游的知晓度、居民对各乡村旅游点开发水平的感知与其空间分布之间的相关关系,以及居民对乡村旅游发展总体印象与旅游频率之间的相关关系。在此基础上,提出南京市乡村旅游发展的有关对策与建议。     

The interaction and eruption of two adjacent filaments

We present a case study of two successive filament eruptions at the southeast limb of the Sun observed by Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) on 2012 April 19. At the initial stage of the first filament (F1) eruption, one leg of the F1 moved toward the second filament (F2) and swept the F2. The interaction between two filaments occurred. After the leg of the F1 swept the F2, it returned from northeast to southwest following the F1 expansion. During the F1 eruption, the middle of the F1 exhibited an obvious twisted structure. The rising speed of the F1 was 85.6 km/s. The partial material of the F1 fell back to the surface along the other leg of the F1 after the F1 eruption and the falling speed was 311.6 km/s. A CME was observed by SOHO/LASCO after the F1 eruption. One of the bright flare ribbons and the dimming regions formed after the F1 eruption were found to move toward the F2. The propagation speeds of the flare ribbons were 4.7 km/s and 4.1 km/s and the propagation speeds of the dimmings were 3 km/s and 6.3 km/s. The small active region was emerging in the northern flank of the F2. The ejection and the falling plasma in the small active region produced the disturbance to the right part of the F2. When the F1 erupted, the large-scale overlying coronal loops of the F1 were pushed out toward the southeast of the Sun by its expanding. During the F1 eruption, the large-scale overlying coronal loops of the F2 began to open toward the southeast. Following the opening of the large-scale overlying coronal loops, the F2 became instable and began to erupt. The rising speed of the F2 was 300.1 km/s. A two-ribbon flare and a weak CME were formed after the F2 eruption. These observations evidenced that the interaction of two filaments and the opening of the large-scale overlying coronal loops caused by the F1 eruption are the most important reason that led to the F2 eruption. Our observations also support the standard solar flare model.     

Calibration of Vector Magnetograms with the Chromospheric Mg b2 Line

Stokes polarization profiles of the Mg?b₂ 5172.68 Å spectral line on two simple sunspots are obtained with the Multi-Channel Solar Telescope (MCST) at the Huairou Solar Observing Station (HSOS). This is done by means of scanning this line over the wavelength interval from 200 mÅ redward of the line center to 200 mÅ blueward, in steps of 10 mÅ. A generalized analytic solution to the transfer equation for polarized radiation is presented. With a nonlinear least-square fitting technique, the linear calibration coefficients for the low-chromospheric longitudinal magnetic field is obtained in the weak-field case. We also discuss the problems in calibrating the transverse field with this line. It is shown that the weak-field approximation is not applicable to the chromospheric Mg?b₂ line for the transverse component of the magnetic field.     

Composition and petrology of HED polymict breccias: The regolith of (4) Vesta

We have done petrologic and compositional studies on a suite of polymict eucrites and howardites to better understand regolith processes on their parent asteroid, which we accept is (4) Vesta. Taking into account noble gas results from companion studies, we interpret five howardites to represent breccias assembled from the true regolith: Elephant Moraine (EET) 87513, Grosvenor Mountains (GRO) 95535, GRO 95602, Lewis Cliff (LEW) 85313, and Meteorite Hills (MET) 00423. We suggest that EET 87503 is paired with EET 87513, and thus is also regolithic. Pecora Escarpment (PCA) 02066 is dominated by melt‐matrix clasts, which may have been formed from true regolith by impact melting. These meteorites display a range in eucrite:diogenite mixing ratio from 55:45 to 76:24. There is no correlation between degree of regolith character and Ni content. The Ni contents of howardite, eucrite, and diogenites (HEDs) are mostly controlled by the distribution of coarse chondritic clasts and metal grains, which in some cases resulted from individual, low‐velocity accretion events, rather than extensive regolith gardening. Trace element compositions indicate that the mafic component of HED polymict breccias is mostly basalt similar to main‐group eucrites; Stannern‐trend basaltic debris is less common. Pyroxene compositions show that some trace element‐rich howardites contain abundant debris from evolved basalts, and that cumulate gabbro debris is present in some breccias. The scale of heterogeneity varies considerably; regolithic howardite EET 87513 is more homogeneous than fragmental howardite Queen Alexandra Range (QUE) 97001. Individual samples of a given howardite can have different compositions even at roughly 5 g masses, indicating that obtaining representative meteorite compositions requires multiple or large samples.     

Monazite and xenotime U–Th–Pb geochronology by ion microprobe: dating highly fractionated granites at Xihuashan tungsten mine, SE China

Zircon, monazite, and xenotime have proven to be valuable chronometers for various geological processes due to their commonly high-U–Th and low common Pb contents. However, zircons that have crystallized in highly fractionated granites often have such high-U contents that radiation damage can lead to scattered U–Pb ages when measured with secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). In this study, monazite and xenotime were separated from a number of highly fractionated granites at the Xihuashan tungsten mine, Southeast China, for alternative dating methods by SIMS. For monazite analysis, obvious excess ²⁰⁴Pb signal (mainly from interference of ²³²Th¹⁴⁴Nd¹⁶O₂ ⁺⁺) was observed in high-Th (>2 wt%) monazite, which hinders ²⁰⁴Pb-based common Pb corrections. A ²⁰⁷Pb-based common Pb correction method was used instead. By employing power law relationships between Pb⁺/U⁺ versus UO₂ ⁺/U⁺, Pb⁺/Th⁺ versus ThO₂ ⁺/Th⁺ and suitable exponentials, monazites with ThO₂ contents in the range of ~3–19 % do not exhibit this matrix effect. Independent SIMS U–Pb ages and Th–Pb ages of three phases of Xihuashan granite samples were consistent with each other and yielded dates of 158.7 ± 0.7, 158.0 ± 0.7, and 156.9 ± 0.7 Ma, respectively. Xenotime does show marked matrix effects due to variations of U, Th, and Y [or total rare earth element (REE), referred as ΣREE hereafter] contents. Suitable correction factors require end-member standards with extremely high or low U, Th, and Y (or ΣREE) contents. No excess ²⁰⁴Pb was observed, indicating that the ²⁰⁴Pb-based common Pb correction method is feasible. Independent ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb ages can be obtained, although multi-collector mode is necessary to improve precision. The main difficulties with dating xenotime are when high-Th (U) mineral inclusions are ablated. We can identify when this occurs, however, by comparing the measured UO₂ ⁺/U⁺ and ThO₂ ⁺/Th⁺ with those in xenotime standards. Three xenotime samples from the first phase of Xihuashan granite yielded a weighted mean ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb date of 159.5 ± 4.4 Ma (MSWD = 1.0) and a ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U date of 159.4 ± 0.9 Ma (MSWD = 1.6), which are consistent with monazite U–Pb and Th–Pb ages from the same granites. This study demonstrates that monazite and xenotime are better SIMS chronometers for highly fractionated granites than zircon, which can yield doubtful ages due to high-U contents.     

长江水氢、氧同位素组成的时空变化及其环境意义

在2003～2007年间,在长江干流的25个水文站及主要支流的13个水文站系统采样,进行了氢氧同位素研究。观测到的D变化范围为-30‰～-112‰,变化范围为-3.8‰～-15.4‰。从长江源头到河口,不同时期的样品均显示相同的氢氧同位素沿程变化特征。从源头到攀枝花,长江干流的D与逐步下降;而由攀枝花到入海口,D与值逐渐升高。 研究发现,控制长江水的氢氧同位素组成的主要因素是大气降水。长江干流D与值所展现的从攀枝花至河口逐渐升高的趋势就是对流域大气降水的D与变化趋势的响应。长江各支流在氢氧同位素组成上的差别及其对干流的影响也反映大气降水对长江水的制约。 蒸发作用对长江水的氢氧同位素组成也有重要影响。长江源头地处青藏高原,高原湖泊和沼泽星罗棋布。由于气候干燥、日照强烈,湖沼水经过长期的蒸发,盐度逐渐加大,D和18O值也逐渐升高。这些湖水的加入对长江水的氢氧同位素组成也造成一定影响。蒸发作用在枯水期也使洞庭湖与鄱阳湖的D和18O值升高,进而提高长江相关河段的D和18O值。 冰雪融化是影响长江水的氢氧同位素组成的另一重要因素。在长江源头和所有左岸支流的源头,冰川融雪都是重要的水源之一。由于冰川水在氢氧同位素组成上的特殊性,其对河水贡献的大小将影响河水的氢氧同位素组成。 三峡大坝对于长江的水动力体系影响巨大,三峡水库对长江水资源的调控作用有待长期观测研究。从本次的研究资料来看,三峡大坝在丰水期对相应河段的氢氧同位素变化趋势影响不大。但在枯水季节,三峡水库蓄水使下游的宜昌和沙市的水源发生明显变化,导致D和18O值的显著降低。 长江水资源状况及其演变趋势是受到各方面高度关注的重要研究课题。为深入探讨这一问题,需要了解长江水资源的变化与各种气象与水文要素之间的关系,查明大气降水、地下水、冰川水、湖水与河水之间的交互作用。而氢氧同位素示踪技术在这方面可以发挥关键性的作用。由于现有资料有限,目前还无法利用氢氧同位素组成来追溯其气候条件的详细演化过程。但若能在进行系统水文测量的同时,适当开展氢氧同位素测定,将对研究长江水资源状况及其演变趋势大有脾益。