Upwelling signals in radiocarbon from early 20th-century Peruvian bay scallop (Argopecten purpuratus) shells

We quantified Δ¹⁴C, δ¹⁸O, and δ¹³C cycles along ontogeny within four bay scallop (Argopecten purpuratus) shells collected from Callao Bay, Salaverry, and Sechura Bay, Peru following the 1907–1908 non-El Niño years and the 1925–1926 El Niño. Δ¹⁴C and δ¹³C generally covary; Δ¹⁴C and δ¹⁸O vary inversely. Simultaneous decreases in Δ¹⁴C and increases in δ¹⁸O in non-El Niño shells are followed by constant Δ¹⁴C and gradually decreasing δ¹⁸O, which we interpret as evidence for discrete marine upwelling events followed by warming of the initially cold upwelled water. Upwelling changes from El Niño events are detectable with difficulty in mollusk shell Δ¹⁴C.     

Aerial electromagnetic sounding of the lithosphere of Venus

Electromagnetic (EM) investigation depths are larger on Venus than Earth due to the dearth of water in rocks, in spite of higher temperatures. Whistlers detected by Venus Express proved that lightning is present, so the Schumann resonances ～10–40 Hz may provide a global source of electromagnetic energy that penetrates ～10–100 km. Electrical conductivity will be sensitive at these depths to temperature structure and hence thermal lithospheric thickness. Using 1D analytic and 2D numerical models, we demonstrate that the Schumann resonances—transverse EM waves in the ground-ionosphere waveguide—remain sensitive at all altitudes to the properties of the boundaries. This is in marked contrast to other EM methods in which sensitivity to the ground falls off sharply with altitude. We develop a 1D analytical model for aerial EM sounding that treats the electrical properties of the subsurface (thermal gradient, water content, and presence of conductive crust) and ionosphere, and the effects of both random errors and biases that can influence the measurements. We initially consider specified 1D lithospheric thicknesses 100–500 km, but we turn to 2D convection models with Newtonian temperature-dependent viscosity to provide representative vertical and lateral temperature variations. We invert for the conductivity-depth structure and then temperature gradient. For a dry Venus, we find that the error on temperature gradient obtained from any single local measurement is ～100%—perhaps enough to distinguish “thick” vs. “thin” lithospheres. When averaging over thousands of kilometers, however, the standard deviation of the recovered thermal gradient is within the natural variability of the convection models, <25%. A “wet” interior (hundreds of ppm H₂O) limits EM sounding depths using the Schumann resonances to <20 km, and errors are too large to estimate lithospheric properties. A 30-km conductive crust has little influence on the dry-interior models because the Schumann penetration depths are significantly larger. We conclude that EM sounding of the interior of Venus is feasible from a 55-km high balloon. Lithospheric thickness can be measured if the upper-mantle water content is low. If H₂O at hundreds of ppm is present, the deeper, temperature-sensitive structure is screened, but the “wet” nature of the upper mantle, as well as structure of the upper crust, is revealed.     

Reflections on the history of research on large wood in rivers

Dynamics and functions of large wood have become integral considerations in the science and management of river systems. Study of large wood in rivers took place as monitoring of fish response to wooden structures placed in rivers in the central United States in the early 20th century, but did not begin in earnest until the 1970s. Research has increased in intensity and thematic scope ever since. A wide range of factors has prompted these research efforts, including basic understanding of stream systems, protection and restoration of aquatic ecosystems, and environmental hazards in mountain environments. Research and management have adopted perspectives from ecology, geomorphology, and engineering, using observational, experimental, and modelling approaches. Important advances have been made where practical information needs converge with institutional and science leadership capacities to undertake multi-pronged research programmes. Case studies include ecosystem research to inform regulations for forest management; storage and transport of large wood as a component in global carbon dynamics; and the role of wood transport in environmental hazards in mountain regions, including areas affected by severe landscape disturbances, such as volcanic eruptions. As the field of research has advanced, influences of large wood on river structures and processes have been merged with understanding of streamflow and sediment regimes, so river form and function are now viewed as involving the tripartite system of water, sediment, and wood. A growing community of researchers and river managers is extending understanding of large wood in rivers to climatic, forest, landform, and social contexts not previously investigated. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the nature of the z=0 X-ray absorbers: I. Clues from an external group

We describe the main features of the evolutionary code ATON 3.1 and its latest version, particularly deviced to be apt for follow up asteroseismology applications. An older version of the code including rotational evolution is also shortly described.     

Depositional ice nucleation on NX illite and mixtures of NX illite with organic acids

Mineral dust particles are known to be efficient ice nuclei in the atmosphere. Previous work has probed heterogeneous ice nucleation on various laboratory dust samples including Arizona Test Dust, kaolinite, montmorillonite, and illite as atmospheric dust surrogates. However, it has recently been suggested that NX illite may be a better representation of atmospheric dust. Hiranuma et al. (2015) performed a laboratory comparison for immersion ice nucleation on NX illite, but here we focus on depositional ice nucleation because of its importance in low temperature cirrus cloud formation. A Raman microscope setup was used to examine the ice-nucleating efficiency of NX illite. Organic coatings on the NX illite particles were also investigated using a mixture of 5 dicarboxylic acids (M5). The ratio of NX illite to M5 was varied from 1:10 to 100:1. It was found that NX illite efficiently nucleates ice with S_ice = 1.07 ± 0.01 at ?47 °C, with S_ice slightly increasing at lower temperatures. In contrast, pure M5 is a poorer ice nucleus with S_ice = 1.30 ± 0.02 at ?40 °C, relatively independent of temperature. Further, it was found that M5 coatings on the order of several monolayers thick hindered the ice nucleating ability of NX illite. Optical images suggest that at colder temperatures (< ?50 °C) 1:1 NX illite:M5 particles and pure M5 particles nucleate ice depositionally, while at warmer temperatures (> ?50 °C) subsaturated immersion ice nucleation dominates. These experiments suggest that mineral dust particles may become less active towards ice nucleation as they age in the atmosphere.