Die Aufnahme von Wasserdampf durch menschliche Haut,Pflanze und Erdboden

Zusammenfassung Laboratoriumsversuche und Feldbeobachtungen zeigen einen unerwartet starken Transport von Wasserdampf in die menschliche Haut, in getrocknete und in lebende Pflanzen und in trockenen Erdboden hinein. Diese Vorg?nge selbst beruhen offenbar auf Diffusion und Sorption. Dabei ist für menschliche Haut und für Pflanzen das Entstehen hoher osmotischer Drucke, d. h. niederer Wasserkonzentration, wahrscheinlich gemacht; doch sind die Ursachen dafür noch unbekannt.

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Summary Laboratory experiments and field observations show surprisingly high amounts of transfer of water vapor into human skin, into dry and living plants, and into dry soil. The processes involved seem to be based on diffusion and sorption. These results may be explained by assuming the existence of high osmotic pressures in skin and in plants; the reason for this concentration is not yet known.

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Résumé Des essais de laboratoire et dans la nature montrent un transport inattendu de vapeur d'eau dans la peau humaine, dans des plantes séchées et vivantes ainsi que dans le sol sec. Les phénomènes reposent apparemment sur la diffusion et sur la sorption. En ce qui concerne la peau humaine et les plantes, il est donc probable qu'elles entretiennent des pressions osmotiques élevées; mais la cause en est encore inconnue.

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Contribution Number 32 of the Department of Meteorology and Climatology, University of Washington.

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Herrn Dr.Anders K. ?ngstr?m zu seinem 70. Geburtstag gewidmet.     

Measuring galaxy potentials using shell kinematics

We show that the kinematics of the shells seen around some elliptical galaxies provide a new, independent means for measuring the gravitational potentials of elliptical galaxies out to large radii. A numerical simulation of a set of shells formed in the merger between an elliptical and a smaller galaxy reveals that the shells have a characteristic observable kinematic structure, with the maximum line-of-sight velocity increasing linearly as one moves inward from a shell edge. A simple analytic calculation shows that this structure provides a direct measure of the gradient of the gravitational potential at the shell radius. In order to extract this information from attainable data, we have also derived a complete distribution of line-of-sight velocities for material within a shell; comparing the observed spectra of a shell to a stellar template convolved with this distribution will enable us to measure the gradient of the potential at this radius. Repeating the analysis for a whole series of nested shells in a galaxy allows the complete form of the gravitational potential as a function of radius to be mapped out. The requisite observations lie within reach of the up-coming generation of large telescopes.     

New active galactic nuclei science cases with interferometry

Infrared (IR) interferometry has made widely recognised contributions to the way we look at the dusty environment of supermassive black holes on parsec scales. It finally provided direct evidence for orientation-dependent unification of active galaxies, however it also showed that the classical “torus” picture is oversimplified. New scientific opportunities for AGN have been suggested, and will soon be carried out, focusing on the dynamical aspects of spectrally and spatially resolved interferometry, as well as the potential to employ interferometry for cosmology. This will open interferometry to new scientific communities.     

MOISTURE TRAJECTORIES ASSOCIATED WITH HEAVY RAINFALL IN THE APPALACHIAN REGION OF THE UNITED STATES

Synoptic data associated with a sample of 554 heavy rainfall events is utilized to carry out a trajectory analysis that identifies the movements of moisture towards regions of heavy rain. Both seasonal and regional variations are found in the moisture trajectories associated with heavy rain events occurring in three regions in the Appalachian study area. Numerous events in the region west of the mountain range are tied to westerly and south-southwesterly circulations that bring moisture from the Mississippi River Valley and the Gulf of Mexico during the warm and cool seasons, respectively. Many events southeast of the mountain range are associated with southerly to southeasterly circulations that advect moisture from the Atlantic Ocean. Because of orographic precipitation enhancement and a good exposure to the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, the southern and southeastern slopes of the Appalachian mountains display high frequencies of heavy rainfall, particularly during the cool season. The interior portions of the mountain range and the adjacent plateau to the northwest, on the other hand, are sheltered from moisture source regions and, therefore, exhibit low heavy rain frequencies. [Key words: precipitation, synoptic climatology, Appalachia.]     

Sub-regional snow cover distribution across the southern Appalachian Mountains

Abstract

Snowfall in the Southern Appalachian Mountain region of the eastern US is characterized by much spatiotemporal variability. Annual snowfall totals vary by up to 75 cm, and variations in snowfall intensity can lead to large differences in the local snowfall distribution. Research has shown that the synoptic pattern associated with the snowfall strongly influences the regional-scale distribution of snow cover. However, topographic variability results in locally complex snow cover patterns that are not well understood or documented. In this study, we characterize the snow covered area (SCA) and fractional snow cover associated with different synoptic patterns in 14 individual sub-regions. We analyze 63 snow events using Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer standard snow cover products to ascertain both qualitative and quantitative differences in snow cover across sub-regions. Among sub-regions, there is significant variation in the snow cover pattern from individual synoptic classes. Furthermore, the percent SCA follows the regional snowfall climatology, and sub-regions with the highest elevations and northerly latitudes exhibit the greatest variability. Results of the sub-regional analysis provide valuable guidance to forecasters by contributing a deeper understanding of local snow cover patterns and their relationship to synoptic-scale circulation features.     

Testing the reliability of pollen-based diversity estimates

Rarefaction analysis is a common tool for estimating pollen richness. Using modern and fossil pollen data from the Canadian Arctic and Greenland, we examine the effects of pollen concentration (grains/cc) and evenness (the distribution of species abundances) on palynological richness. Our results show that pollen richness and concentration have a strong negative correlation at low pollen concentrations. There is a positive correlation between pollen evenness and richness, although the strength of this relationship is difficult to determine. Rarefaction analysis on samples of low concentration or high evenness is likely to lead to pollen richness being less underestimated than on samples of high concentration or low evenness. These findings corroborate theoretical research on these issues.