Comparison of the Energy Spectra and Number Fluxes From a simple Flare Model to Observations

In this paper, we investigate the energy spectra produced by a simple test particle X-point model of a solar flare for different configurations of the initial electromagnetic field. We find that once the reconnection electric field is larger than 1 Vm^-1 the particle distribution transits from a heated one to a partially accelerated one. As we close the separatrices of the X-point and the angle in the inflow direction widens we find that more particles are accelerated out of the thermal distribution and this power–law component extends to lower energies. When we introduce a guiding magnetic field component we find that more particles are energised, but only up to a maximum energy dictated primarily by the reconnection electric field. Despite being able to accelerate particles to observable energies and demonstrate behaviour in the energy spectra that is consistent with observations, this single X-line model can only deliver the number fluxes required for microflares.     

Synthesis, crystal structure and crystal chemistry of ferri-clinoholmquistite, ?Li 2Mg 3Fe 3+ 2Si 8O 22(OH) 2

This work reports the synthesis of ferri-clinoholmquistite, nominally _Li2(Mg₃Fe³⁺₂)Si₈O₂₂(OH)₂, at varying f_O2 conditions. Amphibole compositions were characterized by X-ray (powder and single-crystal) diffraction, microchemical (EMPA) and spectroscopic (FTIR, Mössbauer and Raman) techniques. Under reducing conditions ( NNO+1, where NNO = Nickel–Nickel oxide buffer), the amphibole yield is very high (>90%), but its composition, and in particular the FeO/Fe₂O₃ ratio, departs significantly from the nominal one. Under oxidizing conditions ( NNO+1.5), the amphibole yield is much lower (<60%, with Li-pyroxene abundant), but its composition is close to the ideal stoichiometry. The exchange vector of relevance for the studied system is ^M2(Mg,Fe²⁺) ^M4(Mg,Fe²⁺) ^M2Fe³⁺_–1 ^M4Li_–1, which is still rather unexplored in natural systems. Amphibole crystals of suitable size for structure refinement were obtained only at 800 °C, 0.4 GPa and NNO conditions (sample 152), and have C2/m symmetry. The X-ray powder patterns for all other samples were indexed in the same symmetry; the amphibole closest to ideal composition has a = 9.428(1) Å, b = 17.878(3) Å, c = 5.282(1) Å, = 102.06(2)°, V = 870.8(3) ų. Mössbauer spectra show that Fe³⁺ is strongly ordered at M2 in all samples, whereas Fe²⁺ is disordered over the B and C sites. FTIR analysis shows that the amount of ^CFe²⁺ increases for increasingly reducing conditions. FTIR data also provide strong evidence for slight but significant amounts of Li at the A sites.     

Structure modelling and cation partitioning of spinel solid solutions at high <Emphasis Type="Italic">T</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">P</Emphasis> conditions

This paper presents evaluation of cation distributions from diffraction data collected at high T, P, and is an extension of the spinel structure modelling procedure by Lavina et al. (2002). Optimised cation-to-oxygen distances are modified for thermal expansion and compressibility at T and P of interest following Hazen and Prewitt (1977) and Hazen and Yang (1999). The procedure is applied to literature data concerning hercynite, spinel s.s., Zn aluminate, Zn ferrite, magnetite and the (Fe₃O₄)_{1– x} (MgAl₂O₄) _x join. Calculated cation distribution is strongly affected by standard deviations in cell parameters and oxygen coordinates. The underestimated values often reported in the literature for powder profile refinements may strongly affect the cation distribution; however, if standard deviations are increased to physically realistic values, consistent results are obtained. For P up to 10 GPa, reasonable evaluations of cation distribution are obtained for spinel s.s., Zn aluminate and magnetite, whereas for Zn ferrite they are limited to 1.8 GPa. For P beyond 10 GPa, compressibility cannot be assumed to be linear; the relationship between cell parameter and pressure is well-defined, but the inaccuracy of oxygen coordinate prevents simple modelling of bond distances with pressure.     

Sedimentology and luminescence ages of Glacial Lake Humber deposits in the central Vale of York

The sedimentary sequence through the Hemingbrough Formation exposed at two sites in the central part of the Vale of York, south of the Escrick moraine ridge, is described and used to reconstruct the palaeoenvironmental history of Glacial Lake Humber. Interbedded wave ripples and laminated silts and clays at both sites indicate that Lake Humber was characterised by fluctuating water levels, often no deeper than wave base. Optically stimulated luminescence ages of 21.0 ± 1.9, 21.9 ± 2.0, and 24.1 ± 2.2 kyr returned from two wave-rippled sandy beds within the glaciolacustrine sequence at Hemingbrough, c. 10 km south of the Escrick moraine ridge, provide the first direct chronological determination for the low-level phase of Lake Humber. As these beds are principally attributed to glacial meltwater emanating from the Vale of York ice lobe of the British Ice Sheet, when its margin was at or near the Escrick moraine ridge, this corroborates the interpretation that this ridge marks the LGM ice limit.     

BIFoR FACE: Water–soil–vegetation–atmosphere data from a temperate deciduous forest catchment,including under elevated CO2

The ecosystem services provided by forests modulate runoff generation processes, nutrient cycling and water and energy exchange between soils, vegetation and atmosphere. Increasing atmospheric CO₂ affects many linked aspects of forest and catchment function in ways we do not adequately understand. Global levels of atmospheric CO₂ will be around 40% higher in 2050 than current levels, yet estimates of how water and solute fluxes in forested catchments will respond to increased CO₂ are highly uncertain. The Free Air CO₂ Enrichment (FACE) facility of the University of Birmingham's Institute of Forest Research (BIFoR) is the only FACE in mature deciduous forest. The site specializes in fundamental studies of the response of whole ecosystem patches of mature, deciduous, temperate woodland to elevated CO₂ (eCO₂). Here, we describe a dataset of hydrological parameters – seven weather parameters at each of three heights and four locations, shallow soil moisture and temperature, stream hydrology and CO₂ enrichment – retrieved at high frequency from the BIFoR FACE catchment.     

Subarctic catchment water storage and carbon cycling – Leading the way for future studies using integrated datasets at Pallas,Finland

Subarctic ecohydrological processes are changing rapidly, but detailed and integrated ecohydrological investigations are not as widespread as necessary. We introduce an integrated research catchment site (Pallas) for atmosphere, ecosystems, and ecohydrology studies in subarctic conditions in Finland that can be used for a new set of comparative catchment investigations. The Pallas site provides unique observational data and high-intensity field measurement datasets over long periods. The infrastructure for atmosphere- to landscape-scale research in ecosystem processes in a subarctic landscape has recently been complemented with detailed ecohydrological measurements. We identify three dominant processes in subarctic ecohydrology: (a) strong seasonality drives ecohydrological regimes, (b) limited dynamic storage causes rapid stream response to water inputs (snowmelt and intensive storms), and (c) hydrological state of the system regulates catchment-scale dissolved carbon dynamics and greenhouse (GHG) fluxes. Surface water and groundwater interactions play an important role in regulating catchment-scale carbon balances and ecosystem respiration within subarctic peatlands, particularly their spatial variability in the landscape. Based on our observations from Pallas, we highlight key research gaps in subarctic ecohydrology and propose several ways forward. We also demonstrate that the Pallas catchment meets the need for sustaining and pushing the boundaries of critical long-term integrated ecohydrological research in high-latitude environments.     

The statistical properties of Λ cold dark matter halo formation

We present a comparison of the statistical properties of dark matter halo merger trees extracted from the Millennium Simulation with Extended Press–Schechter (EPS) formalism and the related galform Monte Carlo method for generating ensembles of merger trees. The volume, mass resolution and output frequency make the Millennium Simulation a unique resource for the study of the hierarchical growth of structure. We construct the merger trees of present-day friends-of-friends groups and calculate a variety of statistics that quantify the masses of their progenitors as a function of redshift, accretion rates, and the redshift distribution of their most recent major merger. We also look in the forward direction and quantify the present-day mass distribution of haloes into which high-redshift progenitors of a specific mass become incorporated. We find that the EPS formalism and its Monte Carlo extension capture the qualitative behaviour of all these statistics, but as redshift increases they systematically underestimate the masses of the most massive progenitors. This shortcoming is worst for the Monte Carlo algorithm. We present a fitting function to a scaled version of the progenitor mass distribution and show how it can be used to make more accurate predictions of both progenitor and final halo mass distributions.     

Holocene hydrological variability of Lake Ladoga,northwest Russia,as inferred from diatom oxygen isotopes

This article presents a new comprehensive assessment of the Holocene hydrological variability of Lake Ladoga, northwest Russia. The reconstruction is based on oxygen isotopes of lacustrine diatom silica (δ¹⁸O_diatom) preserved in sediment core Co 1309, and is complemented by a diatom assemblage analysis and a survey of modern isotope hydrology. The data indicate that Lake Ladoga has existed as a freshwater reservoir since at least 10.8 cal. ka BP. The δ¹⁸O_diatom values range from +29.8 to +35.0‰, and relatively higher δ¹⁸O_diatom values around +34.7‰ between c. 7.1 and 5.7 cal. ka BP are considered to reflect the Holocene Thermal Maximum. A continuous depletion in δ¹⁸O_diatom since c. 6.1 cal. ka BP accelerates after c. 4 cal. ka BP, indicating Middle to Late Holocene cooling that culminates during the interval 0.8–0.2 cal. ka BP, corresponding to the Little Ice Age. Lake‐level rises result in lower δ¹⁸O_diatom values, whereas lower lake levels cause higher δ¹⁸O_diatom values. The diatom isotope record gives an indication for a rather early opening of the Neva River outflow at c. 4.4–4.0 cal. ka BP. Generally, overall high δ¹⁸O_diatom values around +33.5‰ characterize a persistent evaporative lake system throughout the Holocene. As the Lake Ladoga δ¹⁸O_diatom record is roughly in line with the 60°N summer insolation, a linkage to broader‐scale climate change is likely.     

Collaborative Governance and Conflict Management: Lessons Learned and Good Practices from a Case Study in the Amazon Basin

Abstract

Given the linkages between natural resources and social conflicts, evidence increasingly shows that successful natural resource management requires conflict mitigation and prevention. However, there may be a gap in practice between knowing what processes and tools need to be used to manage conservation conflicts and how to actually implement them. We present learning from a practice-based case study of conflict management in the Amarakaeri Communal Reserve in the Peruvian Amazon that aimed to develop natural resource governance institutions and build stakeholder capacity, including of indigenous groups, to navigate existing conflict resolution mechanisms. Through applying good practices in conservation conflict management and collaborative governance, we generated important lessons on the practical considerations involved in collaborative conservation. These lessons, while specific to our case, could be applied to a variety of protected areas facing complex social-ecological systems dynamics and wicked problems.