Extreme rainfall events in Catalonia. The case of 12 November 1988

A study of the synoptic situation which produced the catastrophic floods of November 1988 in Catalonia (in the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula) is presented. Analyses of the vertical structure, potential instability, precipitable water, and instability index are made through the radiosounding data from Palma, Majorca. It is found that the 1988 situation is included in type I intense convective events in Catalonia (classification obtained from all the events since 1950, (Llasat, 1989)). It was characterized by:

ASTE observations of the massive-star forming region Sgr B2: a giant impact scenario

We report mapping observations of a 35 pc × 35 pc region covering the Sgr B2 molecular cloud complex in the ¹³CO (3-2) and the CS (7-6) lines using the ASTE 10 m telescope with high angular resolution. The central region was mapped also in the C¹⁸O (3-2) line. The images not only reproduce the characteristic structures noted in the preceding millimeter observations, but also highlight the interface of the molecular clouds with a large velocity jump of a few tens of km s⁻¹. These new results further support the scenario that a cloud–cloud collision has triggered the formation of massive cloud cores, which form massive stars of Sgr B2. Prospects of exciting science enabled by ALMA are discussed in relation to these observations.     

Molecular clouds and star formation in the Magellanic Clouds and the Milky Way

Star formation is a fundamental process that dominates the life-cycle of various matters in galaxies: Stars are formed in molecular clouds, and the formed stars often affect the surrounding materials strongly via their UV photons, stellar winds, and supernova explosions. It is therefore revealing the distribution and properties of molecular gas in a galaxy is crucial to investigate the star formation history and galaxy evolution. Recent progress in developing millimeter and sub-millimeter wave receiver systems has enabled us to rapidly increase our knowledge on molecular clouds. In this proceedings, the recent results from the surveys of the molecular clouds in the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds as well as the Galactic center as the most active regions in the Milky Way are presented. The high sensitivity with unrivaled high resolution of ALMA will play a key role in detecting denser gas that is tightly connected to star formation.     

AMI limits on 15-GHz excess emission in northern H ii regions

We present observations between 14.2 and 17.9 GHz of 16 Galactic H  ii regions made with the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager. In conjunction with data from the literature at lower radio frequencies we investigate the possibility of a spinning dust component in the spectra of these objects. We conclude that there is no significant evidence for spinning dust towards these sources and measure an average spectral index of  α= 0.15 ± 0.07  (where   S ∝ν^−α  ) between 1.4 and 17.9 GHz for the sample.     

分子云磁场与尘埃导致的偏振

磁场对分子云及其中的恒星的形成和演化起到重要的作用.分子云磁场的探测方法主要是谱线塞曼效应、尘埃热辐射的偏振,以及谱线的线偏振观测.利用谱线的塞曼效应可以直接测量视线方向的磁场强度.尘埃热辐射偏振可以有效地示踪磁场方向在天球上的分布.分子云内部的磁场会受到不同物理过程的影响.高分辨率观测可以研究磁场扰动的细节,低分辨率观测可以得到分子云甚至银河系大尺度磁场的宏观信息.只有多波段的观测才能全面地认识分子云磁场与各种物理过程的联系.该文对分子云尘埃热辐射偏振的观测情况做了调研,总结了分子云大尺度磁场的研究现状和发展前景.     

广汉机场一次非典型辐射平流雾的天气诊断分析

为探索广汉机场雾发生发展的机制,确保飞行安全,提高预报准确率,利用广汉机场地面观测资料、Mi—caps系统下的常规观测资料、探空资料和NCEP／NCAR再分析资料,采用天气诊断分析方法,对2012年11月13日-15日广汉机场持续性的辐射平流雾进行分析。结果表明,雾是在稳定的天气背景下形成。夜间地面长波辐射冷却触发了这次雾的形成,而在轻雾转大雾期间,地面长波辐射冷却作用明显减弱,低层暖湿平流则起到了主要作用。与典型辐射平流雾不同的是成雾后,机场由脊前西北气流转为南支槽前西南气流控制,天空中云量的迅速增加使得雾进一步加强。     

Anomalously low ozone of 1997 and 2011 Arctic spring: Monitoring results and analysis

Total ozone observations from the Total Ozone Unit （TOU） aboard the Chinese second generation polar orbiting mete- orological satellite, Fengyun-3/A （FY-3/A）, revealed that total column ozone over the Arctic declined rapidly from the beginning of March 2011. An extensive region of low column amount formed around mid March; monthly mean total column ozone in March 2011 was about 30% lower than the average observed during 1979-2010. Daily total column density of ozone near the center of low ozone area in mid March was less than 240 Dobson units, about half the total column ozone amount observed during the same period of the prior 10 years. We analyzed total column ozone data from different satellites during 1979-2011. Results show that the Arctic depletion of ozone in spring 2011 was initiated by the cold polar vortex in the lower stratosphere. The March mean total ozone over the Arctic has shown a decreasing trend over the past 32 years, and its variation is strongly correlated with the polar vortex. A similar low ozone process of spring 1997 was compared to that of 2011, but daily variations of total ozone in March over the Northern Hemisphere in 1997 and 2011 have different patterns.