The use of high-resolution gridded climate data in the development of chironomid-based inference models from remote areas

The development of chironomid-based air temperature inference models in high latitude regions often relies on limited spatial coverage of meteorological data and/or on punctual measurements of water temperature at the time of sampling. The use of simple linear regression to relate air temperature and latitude was until recently the best method to characterize the air temperature gradient along a latitudinal gradient. However, recent studies have used high-resolution gridded climate data to develop new chironomid-based air temperature inference models. This innovative approach has, however, never been further analyzed to test its reliability. This study presents a method using ArcGIS^® to extract air temperatures from a high-resolution global gridded climate data set (New et al. 2002) and to incorporate these new data in a variety of chironomid-based air temperature inference models to test their performance. Results suggest that this method is reliable and produces better estimates of air temperature and will be helpful in the development of further quantitative air temperature inference models in remote areas.     

A Linking Test to reduce the number of hydraulic parameters necessary to simulate groundwater recharge in unsaturated soils

In environmental studies, numerical simulation models are valuable tools for testing hypothesis about systems functioning and to perform sensitivity studies under scenarios of land use or climate changes. The simulations depend upon parameters which are not always measurable quantities and must be calibrated against observations, using for instance inverse modelling. Due to the scarcity of these observations, it has been found that parameter sets allowing a good matching between simulated and measured quantities are often non-unique, leading to the problem of equifinality. This can lead to non-physical values, erroneous fluxes and misleading sensitivity analysis. Therefore, a simple but robust inverse method coined the Linking Test is presented to determine if the parameters are linked. Linked parameters are then sub-divided into classes according to their impact on water fluxes. The Linking Test establishes the causes of non-uniqueness of parameter sets and the feasibility of the inverse modelling.     

Coloring and preservation state of faunal remains from the neanderthal levels of Kůlna Cave,Czech republic

The preservation process of faunal remains from the Middle Paleolithic levels of Kůlna Cave was studied within a taphonomic and palaeodietary framework. A visual examination of bones and teeth showed that they display a wide variety of colors. Chemical analyses (C, N, Fe, Mn) and a combination of analytical techniques, such as Fourier transform infrared (FT‐IR), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrometry, were conducted on 13 fossil remains. The crystallinity indexes, IR‐SF, XRD‐CI, XRD‐L200, the IR area band (Amide I), and the ESR analyses showed that the bones were not burned at a temperature higher than 200°C. This implies that the bone remains were not used as fuel by Neanderthals at Kůlna Cave. Coloring in these bones is largely due to the presence of Mn and Fe. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Assimilating along-track SLA data using the EnOI in an eddy resolving model of the Agulhas system

The greater Agulhas Current is one of the most energetic current systems in the global ocean. It plays a fundamental role in determining the mean state and variability of the regional marine environment, affecting its resources and ecosystem, the regional weather and the global climate on a broad range of temporal and spatial scales. In the absence of a coherent in-situ and satellite-based observing system in the region, modelling and data assimilation techniques play a crucial role in both furthering the quantitative understanding and providing better forecasts of this complicated western boundary current system. In this study, we use a regional implementation of the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model and assimilate along-track satellite sea level anomaly (SLA) data using the Ensemble Optimal Interpolation (EnOI) data assimilation scheme. This study lays the foundation towards the development of a regional prediction system for the greater Agulhas Current system. Comparisons to independent in-situ drifter observations show that data assimilation reduces the error compared to a free model run over a 2-year period. Mesoscale features are placed in more consistent agreement with the drifter trajectories and surface velocity errors are reduced. While the model-based forecasts of surface velocities are not as accurate as persistence forecasts derived from satellite altimeter observations, the error calculated from the drifter measurements for eddy kinetic energy is significantly lower in the assimilation system compared to the persistence forecast. While the assimilation of along-track SLA data introduces a small bias in sea surface temperatures, the representation of water mass properties and deep current velocities in the Agulhas system is improved.     

Reconstructing temperature at Egelsee,Switzerland, using North American and Swedish chironomid transfer functions: potential and pitfalls

The temperature reconstruction obtained from chironomids preserved in the sediment of Egelsee, Switzerland, was partially flawed by the low percentages of fossil taxa represented in the Swiss calibration set (Larocque-Tobler et al. 2009a). Transfer functions (TFs) from other regions, which allow a good representation of the fossil taxa (>80%), could be applied to the fossil assemblages of Egelsee. First, the validity of using two (a Swedish and a North American (NA)) TFs was tested by comparing the chironomid-inferred temperatures with instrumental data. Since good relationships (r _Pearson = 0.71 and 0.61, p = 0.001 for the NA and Swedish TFs, respectively) were obtained, these two models were used to reconstruct the Late Glacial and early Holocene periods at Egelsee. Reconstructions using both models showed clear cold periods during the Younger Dryas and the so-called 8,200 calibrated years BP event. However, the amplitude of changes during these periods was higher when the NA transfer function was used, probably due to the fact that 37% of the taxa in the core had temperature optima colder in the NA than in the Swedish and Swiss models. The results indicate that TFs from other regions can be applied when they are based on samples with good modern analogues, however, caution should be taken when the amplitude of temperature changes is considered.     

An insight into the formation of severe ozone episodes: modeling the 21/03/01 event in the ESCOMPTE region

High ozone concentrations are observed more and more frequently in the lower troposphere. The development of such polluted episodes is linked to a complex set of chemical, physical and dynamical parameters that interact with each other. To improve air quality, it is necessary to understand and quantify the role of all these processes on the intensity of ozone formation. The ESCOMPTE program, especially dedicated to the numerical simulation of photochemical episodes, offers an ideal frame to investigate details of the roles of many of these processes through 3D modeling. This paper presents the analysis, with a 3D eulerian model, of a severe and local episode of ozone pollution that occurred on the 21st of March 2001 in the ESCOMPTE region. This episode is particularly interesting due to the intensity of the observed ozone peaks (450 μg/m³ during 15 mn) but also because it did not occur in summer but at the beginning of spring. As part of the premodeling work of the ESCOMPTE program, this study focuses on the sensitivity of the simulated ozone peaks to various chemical and physical phenomena (long-range transport, industrial emissions, local dynamic phenomena…) to determine their influence on the rise of high local photooxidant concentrations and to better picture the photochemistry of the ESCOMPTE region. Through sensitivity tests to dynamical calculation resolution and emissions, this paper shows how the combination of sea and pond breezes with emissions of reactive VOCs can generate local intense ozone peaks.     

Asian dustfall in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, Canada

In April 2001, a major atmospheric dustfall event occurred in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon Territory, Canada. Field samples were collected and analyzed for particle size, mineralogy, chemical composition and Sr, Nd and Pb isotopes. Dusts found above ∼3000 m had their source in the Gobi desert region of northern China and Inner Mongolia, and were transported to the Yukon following a series of major dust storms that took place in early April. Dusts found below 3000 m had local (Yukon) or mixed source(s). The Asian dusts had a modal volume diameter of ∼4 μm typical of far-traveled mineral aerosols. However larger (>10 μm) particles were also found at ∼5000 m, suggesting a very rapid trans-Pacific transport in the mid-troposphere. We estimate that the April 2001 event deposited from 5500 to 6335 tons of dust over an area of 21,000 km² in the southwestern Yukon, most of which probably fell within a week. Our findings are consistent with instrumental observations and model simulations of the April 2001 event. While the dust cloud was reportedly mixed with volatile pollutants from Asia, we found no evidence of metal pollution associated with the dustfall in the Yukon. Our findings contribute to clarify the dynamics and the geochemical impact of Asian dust long-range transport events, and to better estimate eolian fluxes of dustborne elements (e.g., Fe) to the Ocean associated with such events. They may also assist in identifying past Asian dust events in ice cores drilled from the St. Elias Mountains icefields, to develop a long-term record of their frequency, magnitude and source(s).