Energetic Particle Acceleration and Propagation in Strong CME-Less Flares

Flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) contribute to the acceleration and propagation of solar energetic particles (SEP) detected in the interplanetary space, but the exact roles of these phenomena are yet to be understood. We examine two types of energetic particle tracers related with 15 CME-less flares that emit bright soft X-ray bursts (GOES X class): radio emission of flare-accelerated electrons and in situ measurements of energetic electrons and protons near 1 AU. The CME-less flares are found to be vigorous accelerators of microwave-emitting electrons, which remain confined in low coronal structures. This is shown by unusually steep low-frequency microwave spectra and by lack of radio emission from the middle and high corona, including dm?–?m wave type IV continua and metre-to-hectometre type III bursts. The confinement of the particles accelerated in CME-less flares agrees with the magnetic field configuration of these events inferred by others. Two events produced isolated metric type II bursts revealing coronal shock waves. None of the seven flares in the western hemisphere was followed by enhanced particle fluxes in the GOES detectors, but one, which was accompanied by a type II burst, caused a weak SEP event detected at SoHO and ACE. Three of the CME-less flares were followed within some hours by SEP-associated flares from the same active region. These SEP-producing events were clearly distinct from the CME-less ones by their association with fast and broad CMEs, dm?–?m wave radio emission, and intense DH type III bursts. We conclude that radio emission at decimetre and longer waves is a reliable indication that flare-accelerated particles have access to the high corona and interplanetary space. The absence of such emission can be used as a signal that no SEP event is to be expected despite the occurrence of a strong soft X-ray burst.     

Relationships between land use and stream invertebrate community structure in a South Island,New Zealand,coastal stream catchment

Macroinvertebrate community composition was compared across streams draining catchments dominated by either native bush, agricultural or urban land uses within the Water of Leith stream catchment near Dunedin, New Zealand. Land use was associated with differences in taxon richness and faunal composition of communities present in each stream. The mean abundance levels of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera were highest in native bush catchments, and lowest in urban catchments. In contrast, the mean abundance of Oligochaeta exhibited the opposite pattern. Increasing dominance of the urban and agricultural streams by pollution tolerant taxa was reflected in the Macroinvertebrate Community Index and Quantitative Macroinvertebrate Community Index scores.     

Diel patterns of mysid drift (Crustacea: Mysidacea) in the Taieri River estuary,New Zealand

Drifting mysids were sampled to determine diel activity, and whether mysid numbers vary with respect to inflowing and outflowing tides. Samples of drifting mysids were collected at the mouth of the Taieri River, New Zealand, over one 24‐h cycle using five replicate conical drift nets in January 1999. One‐night and 1‐day ebb and flood tide were each sampled. Four species of mysid Tenagomysis macropsis, T. novae‐zealandiae, T. robusta, and an apparently undescribed species of Gastrosaccus sp., were collected over the sampling period. One species, T. robusta, has not previously been collected from estuarine or riverine systems. The undescribed Gastrosaccus sp. was the most abundant of the four species. All four species were more abundant at night, with T. robusta and Gastrosaccus sp. being considerably more abundant in the drift on outflowing tides. In contrast, roughly equal numbers of T. macropsis and T. novae‐zealandiae were observed drifting in and out of the estuary at night.     

How does afforestation affect the hydrology of a blanket peatland? A modelling study

Over the last century, afforestation in Ireland has increased from 1% of the land area to 10%, with most plantations on upland drained blanket peatlands. This land use change is considered to have altered the hydrological response and water balance of upland catchments with implications for water resources. Because of the difficulty of observing these long‐term changes in the field, the aim of this study was to utilize a hydrological model to simulate the rainfall runoff processes of an existing pristine blanket peatland and then to simulate the hydrology of the peatland if it were drained and afforested. The hydrological rainfall runoff model (GEOtop) was calibrated and validated for an existing small (76 ha) pristine blanket peatland in the southwest of Ireland for the 2‐year period, 2007–2008. The current hydrological response of the pristine blanket peatland catchment with regard to streamflow and water table (WT) levels was captured well in the simulations. Two land use change scenarios of afforestation were also examined, (A) a young 10‐year‐old and (B) a semi‐mature 15‐year‐old Sitka Spruce forest. Scenario A produced similar streamflow dynamics to the pristine peatland, whereas total annual streamflow from Scenario B was 20% lower. For Scenarios A and B, on an annual average basis, the WT was drawn down by 16 and 20 cm below that observed in the pristine peatland, respectively. The maximum WT draw down in Scenario B was 61 cm and occurred in the summer months, resulting in a significant decrease in summer streamflow. Occasionally in the winter (following rainfall), the WT for Scenario B was just 2 cm lower than the pristine peatland, which when coupled with the drainage networks associated with afforestation led to higher peak streamflows. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Second-species solutions in the circular and elliptic restricted three-body problem

An analytical proof of the existence of some kinds of periodic orbits of second species of Poincaré, both in the Circular and Elliptic Restricted three-body problem, is given for small values of the mass parameter. The proof uses the asymptotic approximations for the solutions and the matching theory developed by Breakwell and Perko. In the paper their results are extended to the Elliptic problem and applied to prove the existence of second-species solutions generated by rectilinear ellipses in the Circular problem and nearly-rectilinear ones in the Elliptic case.     

The relation between productivity and temperature in the Pliocene North Atlantic at the onset of northern hemisphere glaciation: a palynological study

High resolution palynological analysis of DSDP Cores 607/607A shows for the interval between 2.8 and 2.2 Ma B.P. (which includes the onset of major northern hemisphere glaciations) a 41 ka cyclicity characterised by much higher palynomorph concentrations for the cooler intervals than for the warmer ones. Variation in dilution and concentration of palynomorphs can neither be explained by differential input of terrigenous clastics or carbonate, nor by differences in sedimentation rate, sediment density or selective preservation of palynomorphs. Subdivision of the palynomorph record in terms of autochthonous and allochthonous components, provides a way to detect changes in open ocean productivity and transport through time. It seems that a negative correlation between productivity and temperature in the latest Pleistocene open Atlantic had already been established before the major onset of northern hemisphere glaciations. A conceptual model is proposed to explain the observed lead of the palynological record relative to the isotope and carbonate records is proposed. This early response can result from changes in North Atlantic surface ocean circulation induced by changing atmospheric circulation.     

Joint Measurements of Flare Flux Densities at 210 – 212 GHz by Two Different Radio Telescopes

Multiple-beam observations of solar flares at submillimeter wavelengths need detection with at least four beams to derive the flux density $\mbox{$F$} $ of the emitting source, its size, and centroid position. When this condition is not fulfilled, the assumptions on the location and/or size of the emitting source have to be made in order to compute $\mbox{$F$}$ . Otherwise, only a flux density range $\mbox{$\Delta F$}$ can be estimated. We report on simultaneous flare observations at 212 and 210 GHz obtained by the Solar Submillimeter Telescope (SST) and the Bernese Multibeam Radiometer for Kosma (BEMRAK), respectively, during two solar events on 28 October 2003. For both events, BEMRAK utilized four beam information to calculate the source flux density F ₂₁₀, its size and position. On the other hand, the SST observed the events with only one beam, at low solar elevation angles and during high atmospheric attenuation. Therefore, because of these poor observing conditions at 212 GHz, only a flux density range ΔF ₂₁₂ could be estimated. The results show that ΔF ₂₁₂ is within a factor of 2.5 of the flux density F ₂₁₀. This factor can be significantly reduced (e.g. 1.4 for one of the studied events) by an appropriate choice of the 212 GHz source position using flare observations at other wavelengths. By adopting the position and size of the 210 GHz source measured by BEMRAK, the flux density at 212 GHz, F _212b, is comparable to F ₂₁₀ within the uncertainties, as expected. Therefore our findings indicate that even during poor observing conditions, the SST can provide an acceptable estimate of the flux density at 212 GHz. This is a remarkable fact since the SST and BEMRAK use quite different procedures for calibration and flux density determination. We also show that the necessary assumptions made on the size of the emitting source at 212 GHz in order to estimate its flux density are not critical, and therefore do not affect the conclusions of previous studies at this frequency.