Paleo‐fires and Atmospheric Oxygen Levels in the Latest Permian: Evidence from Maceral Compositions of Coals in Eastern Yunnan,Southern China

Inertinite maceral compositions of the Late Permian coals from three sections in the terrestrial and paralic settings of eastern Yunnan are analyzed in order to reveal the paleo-fire events and the atmospheric oxygen levels in the latest Permian. Although the macerals in the studied sections are generally dominated by vitrinite, the inertinite group makes up a considerable proportion. Its content increases upward from the beginning of the Late Permian to the coal seam near the Permian-Triassic boundary. Based on the microscopic features and the prevailing theory that inertinite is largely a by-product of paleo-fires, we suggest that the increasing upward trend of the inertinite abundance in the latest Permian could imply that the Late Permian peatland had suffered from frequent wildfires. Since ignition and burning depend on sufficient oxygen, a model-based calculation suggests that the O2 levels near the Wuchiapingian/Changhsingian boundary and the Permian-Triassic boundary are 27% and 28% respectively. This output adds supports to other discoveries made in the temporal marine and terrestrial sediments, and challenges the theories advocating hypoxia as a mechanism for the Permian-Triassic boundary crisis.     

A DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS OF AIR TEMPERATURE ANOMALY MODE OVER CHINA IN 2009/2010 WINTER BASED ON GENERALIZED EQUILIBRIUM FEEDBACK ASSESSMENT (GEFA) METHOD

By using the observed monthly mean data over 160 stations of China and NCAR/NCEP reanalysis data, the generalized equilibrium feedback assessment(GEFA) method, combined with the methods of EOF analysis, correlation and composite analysis, is used to explore the influence of different SST modes on a wintertime air temperature pattern in which it is cold in the northeast and warm in the southwest in China. The results show that the 2009/2010 winter air temperature oscillation mode between the northern and southern part of China is closely related to the corresponding sea surface temperature anomalies(SSTA) and its associated atmospheric circulation anomalies. Exhibiting warming in Northeast China and cooling in Southwest China, the mode is significantly forced by the El Nio mode and the North Atlantic SSTA mode, which have three poles. Under the influence of SSTA modes, the surface northerly flow transported cold air to North and Northeast China, resulting in low temperatures in the regions. Meanwhile, the mid-latitude westerlies intensify and the polar cold air stays in high latitudes and cannot affect the Southwest China, resulting in the warming there.     

The Linkage between Midwinter Suppression of the North Pacific Storm Track and Atmospheric Circulation Features in the Northern Hemisphere

The midwinter suppression(MWS) of the North Pacific storm track(NPST) has been an active research topic for decades. Based on the daily-mean NCEP/NCAR reanalysis from 1948 to 2018, this study investigates the MWS-related atmospheric circulation characteristics in the Northern Hemisphere by regression analysis with respect to a new MWS index, which may shed more light on this difficult issue. The occurrence frequency of the MWS of the upper-tropospheric NPST is more than 0.8 after the mid-1980 s. The MWS is accompanied by significantly positive sea-level pressure anomalies in Eurasia and negative anomalies over the North Pacific, which correspond to a strengthened East Asian winter monsoon. The intensified East Asian trough and atmospheric blocking in the North Pacific as well as the significantly negative low-level air temperature anomalies, lying upstream of the MNPST, are expected to be distinctly associated with the MWS. However, the relationship between the MWS and low-level atmospheric baroclinicity is somewhat puzzling.From the diagnostics of the eddy energy budget, it is identified that the inefficiency of the barotropic energy conversion related to the barotropic governor mechanism does not favor the occurrence of the MWS. In contrast, weakened baroclinic energy conversion, buoyancy conversion, and generation of eddy available potential energy by diabatic heating are conducive to the occurrence of the MWS. In addition, Ural blocking in the upstream region of the MNPST may be another candidate mechanism associated with the MWS.     

Gamma-Hadron Separation using Čerenkov Photon Density Fluctuations

In the atmospheric Čerenkov technique γ-rays are detected against the abundant background produced by hadronic showers. In order to improve the signal to noise ratio of theexperiment, it is necessary to reject a significant fraction of hadronic showers. Traditional background rejection methods based on image shape parameters have been extensively used for the data from imaging telescopes. However, non-imaging Čerenkov telescopes have to develop very different means of statistically identifying and removing cosmic ray events. Some of the parameters, which could be potentially important for non-imaging arrays, are the temporal and spectral differences, the lateral distributions and density fluctuations of Čerenkov photons generated by γ-ray and hadron primaries. Here we study the differences in fluctuations of Čerenkov photon density in the light pool at the observation level from showers initiated by photons and those initiated by protons or heavier nuclei. The database of simulated events for the PACT array has been used to evaluate the efficiency of the new technique. Various types of density fluctuations like the short range and medium range fluctuations as well as flatness parameter are studied. The estimated quality factors reflect the efficiencies with which the hadrons can be rejected from the data. Since some of these parameters are independent, the cuts may be applied in tandem and we demonstrate that the proton rejection efficiency of ∼90% can be achieved. Use of density fluctuations is particularly suited for wavefront sampling observations and it seems to be a good technique to improve the signal to noise ratio. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

应用纤维素示踪北京市PM2.5天然植被排放来源的研究

大气细粒子(PM_2.5)污染是全球尤其是我国许多城市的重要环境问题。利用示踪物质识别和估算大气颗粒物来源是公认的可靠技术,纤维素可以作为示踪物质表征一次颗粒物的天然植被排放来源。本文针对大气细粒子中纤维素含量低、全程序空白相对较高等难点,优化建立了纤维素酶水解、GOD-苯酚-四氨基安替比林测糖法,在我国首次应用于测定大气PM_2.5中纤维素的含量,估算天然植被排放源的贡献。方法检出限为0.26 μg/m³(纤维素),可以满足大气PM_2.5纤维素测定要求;而且有效地降低了空白,全程序空白值(36.5 μg葡萄糖)低于文献方法空白值(53.8 μg葡萄糖),使之更适合于PM_2.5的测定。使用本方法对2012年5月至6月采集的北京市大气PM_2.5样品进行分析,纤维素检出率为96%,纤维素的平均含量为(0.573±0.17) μg/m³,折合为天然植被排放量占PM_2.5质量浓度的1.37%±0.65%;天然植被排放源对有机碳的平均贡献率为4.4%,最大达到9.2%,反映出天然植被排放是北京市PM_2.5的重要来源之 一。本研究方法为我国城市大气颗粒物(包括总悬浮颗粒物、PM₁₀、PM_2.5等)来源识别提供了新的手段。     

RETRACTION: Numerical simulation of a wind-sand flow under different conditions of atmospheric stability

A theoretical model for wind‐sand flow is developed by considering the coupling between wind flow and sand particle motion, the latter subject to the Magnus effect, under different atmospheric stability conditions. Using this model, the characteristics of the wind‐sand flow are discussed in detail. The results show that the atmospheric stability and the Magnus effect both have a strong influence on wind profiles and on the trajectories of sand particles. This approach produces results with characteristics that differ from those previously reported; the latter only applying to atmospheric conditions of neutral stability. The saltating sand reaches a greater height under non‐neutral stability than under neutral stability, while the maximum horizontal distance is greater under unstable conditions and is smaller under stable conditions than under conditions of neutral stability.     

两类中太平洋El Nio特征的对比分析

利用1979—2012年逐月Hadley中心海表温度、欧洲中期天气预报中心次表层海温、NCEP/NCAR风场再分析资料,对两类中太平洋(CP)El Nio及耦合的大气环流特征进行分析。结果表明,第一类CP El Nio(CP-ⅠEl Nio)增暖中心位于Nio4区且关于赤道对称;第二类CP El Nio(CP-ⅡEl Nio)的Nio4区与热带东北太平洋区域(NEP,130~110°W、15~25°N)同位相变化,冬季成熟后形成关于赤道非对称的带状增暖结构。进一步的研究表明,两类CP El Nio次表层结构存在差异:CP-ⅠEl Nio冬季次表层海温异常(SOTA)在中东太平洋与西太平洋呈显著偶极分布;CP-ⅡEl Nio在中、西太平洋位相相反但东太平洋异常较弱,且经向异常主要在赤道及其以北。两类CP El Nio耦合的大气环流特征不同:CP-ⅠEl Nio冬季异常Walker环流上升中心位于赤道上空,经向风向赤道辐合,低纬地区Hadley环流加强;CP-ⅡEl Nio冬季低层向北越赤道气流加强,Walker环流上升中心移到赤道以北,低纬地区Hadley环流减弱。     

长株潭近地表大气尘矿物特征及环境指示意义

通过X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜/能谱(SEM/EDX)方法对长沙、株洲和湘潭(以下简称长株潭)地区近地表大气尘中矿物成份进行分析研究,结果显示大气尘中含有石英、石膏、方解石、白云石、硫酸镉等23种自然矿物,还含有SiS2、Cadmium Arsenide(Cd3As2)、RhZn、Cr2Nb、NiTi、HfMo2等14种非自然矿物;近地表大气尘矿物形貌特征显示Cd元素主要富集在有矿物颗粒的地方,且呈近浸染状分布,能谱半定量分析,Cd含量可达4%,表明Cd易被吸附在矿物表面。分析长株潭地区大气尘中矿物成份、空间分布特征及其来源,对长株潭城市一体化具有及其重要的环境指导意义。     

大地形对正压扰动演变影响

本文着重研究大地形对正压大气迭加在非均匀纬向基本气流上挑动演变的影响。用WKBJ方法推导了正压扰动的频率和频散关系以及波作用量所满足的方程。当基本流场定常且存在无限长的东西向山脉时,则有波作用量守恒。据此,获得了正压不稳定的必要条件:即在所考察的平面域内至少在某点或某些点上含地形效应的某一物理量等于零,扰动就可能得到发展。对波包动能的倚时变化的讨论得知,在无摩擦正压纬向非均匀基流的情形,地形对扰动动能并无直接影响,即导波和曳波分别在西风急流的南侧和北侧得到加强,并分别在西风急流的北侧和南侧强度减弱。扰动的发展由扰动的结构所决定。导波和曳波的波长缩短总伴同其轴线倾向于东西向相联系,而它们的波长伸长总是与其轴线倾向于南北向同时发生。还指出,正压扰动的加强(或减弱)与波长的伸长(或缩短)不是必然的联系,它的成立是有条件的。     

利用FY-3C气象卫星GNSS掩星估计全球重力波变化与分析

大气重力波是地球大气层中广泛存在的重要大气动力学扰动,研究其分布和变化规律对理解大气物理、大气结构以及大气动力学等具有重要意义.传统大气重力波探测手段,如雷达和探空气球等,均存在探测时间短、有效探测高度低等缺点,全球卫星导航系统（GNSS）掩星观测具有全天候、低成本、高精度等优点,被广泛应用于地球大气探测和研究,为研究区域或全球重力波变化和活动特征提供了新的观测手段.本文利用中国第一颗搭载GNSS掩星设备气象卫星——风云3C （FY-3C）获得的掩星数据,反演得到2014年8月—2016年12月大气温度轮廓线,并首次估计重力波参数分布,分析了重力波参数的时空变化分布特征.结果表明,海陆季节性对流导致冬夏两季的重力波势能强于春秋两季,赤道对流作用导致赤道区域重力波强于两极,夏季南半球中低纬度地区重力波活动频繁,冬季北半球中低纬度区域重力波活动频繁.重力波随着高度的上升,势能逐渐下降.另外,地形是低层大气重力波的主要来源.