The Production of Methanol by Flowering Plants and the Global Cycle of Methanol

Methanol has been recognised as an important constituent of the background atmosphere, but little is known about its overall cycle in the biosphere/atmosphere system. A model is proposed for the production and emission to the atmosphere of methanol by flowering plants based on plant structure and metabolic properties, particularly the demethylation of pectin in the primary cell walls. This model provides a framework to extend seven sets of measurements of methanol emission rates to the global terrestrial biosphere. A global rate of release of methanol from plants to the atmosphere of 100 Tg y^–1 is calculated. A separate model of the global cycle of methanol is constructed involving emissions from plant growth and decay, atmospheric and oceanic chemical production, biomass burning and industrial production. Removal processes occur through hydroxyl radical attack in the atmosphere, in clouds and oceans, and wet and dry deposition. The model successfully reproduces the methanol concentrations in the continental boundary-layer and the free atmosphere, including the inter-hemispheric gradient in the free atmosphere. The model demonstrates a new concept in global biogeochemistry, the coupling of plant cell growth with the global atmospheric concentration of methanol. The model indicates that the ocean provides a storage reservoir capable of holding at least 66 times more methanol than the atmosphere. The ocean surface layer reservoir essentially buffers the atmospheric concentration of methanol, providing a physically based smoothing mechanism with a time constant of the order of one year.     

Land reclamation in Egypt: A study of life in the new lands

For decades, Egypt has tried to increase its agricultural area through reclamation of desert land. The significance of land reclamation goes beyond the size of the reclaimed area and number of new settlers and has been important to Egyptian agricultural policies since the 1952-revolution. This paper examines from a micro-perspective, the life of Egyptians resettled in the new lands. The first part of the paper provides an introduction to the discourses of land reclamation, to the policies of reclaimed land distribution, and to the background of the settlers. The second part is based on fieldwork in a village in the new lands; it is inhabited by graduates who have received land under the Mubarak Project. The analysis shows that they move there in hope of making a better life especially for their children. Nevertheless, the settlers have difficulties building a sense of belonging to the new villages, and lack of good schools and other public services may cause families to split up. For some, however, resettlement in the new lands entails new social and economic possibilities. The paper concludes that while land reclamation may not be ecologically or economic sustainable, the new lands provide settlers with new opportunities.     

The geography of pastoral mobility: A spatio-temporal analysis of GPS data from Sahelian Senegal

The aim of this paper is to show the contribution of geography to the study of pastoral mobility. While pastoralists of Ferlo, Senegal, have become semi-sedentary, little is known about the mobility of their livestock. In this paper, pastoral mobility is analysed using GPS measurements of cattle movements made by a pastoralist from 1997 to 2000. Based on data from 3 years, a quantification of the extent of movements and mappings of the patterns are made. The results show that cattle walk about 5000 km on an annual basis, and while a great deal of the mobility can be characterised as daily circular movements between the camp and watering points, occasional transhumance is still used to make the most of variable resources.     

Occurrence of polar stratospheric clouds at Kiruna

Polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) are often observed in the Kiruna region in northern Sweden, east of the Scandinavian mountain range, during wintertime. PSC occurrence can be detected by ground-based optical instruments. Most of these require clear tropospheric weather. By applying the zenith-sky colour index technique, which works under most weather conditions, the data availability can be extended. The observations suggest that PSC events, especially of type II (water PSCs) may indeed more common than predicted by synoptic models, which is expected because of the frequent presence of mountain-induced leewaves. However, it will be of importance to increase the density of independent observations.     

Seasonal characteristics of tropical marine boundary layer air measured at the Cape Verde Atmospheric Observatory

Observations of the tropical atmosphere are fundamental to the understanding of global changes in air quality, atmospheric oxidation capacity and climate, yet the tropics are under-populated with long-term measurements. The first three years (October 2006–September 2009) of meteorological, trace gas and particulate data from the global WMO/Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW) Cape Verde Atmospheric Observatory Humberto Duarte Fonseca (CVAO; 16° 51′ N, 24° 52′ W) are presented, along with a characterisation of the origin and pathways of air masses arriving at the station using the NAME dispersion model and simulations of dust deposition using the COSMO-MUSCAT dust model. The observations show a strong influence from Saharan dust in winter with a maximum in super-micron aerosol and particulate iron and aluminium. The dust model results match the magnitude and daily variations of dust events, but in the region of the CVAO underestimate the measured aerosol optical thickness (AOT) because of contributions from other aerosol. The NAME model also captured the dust events, giving confidence in its ability to correctly identify air mass origins and pathways in this region. Dissolution experiments on collected dust samples showed a strong correlation between soluble Fe and Al and measured solubilities were lower at high atmospheric dust concentrations. Fine mode aerosol at the CVAO contains a significant fraction of non-sea salt components including dicarboxylic acids, methanesulfonic acid and aliphatic amines, all believed to be of oceanic origin. A marine influence is also apparent in the year-round presence of iodine and bromine monoxide (IO and BrO), with IO suggested to be confined mainly to the surface few hundred metres but BrO well mixed in the boundary layer. Enhanced CO₂ and CH₄ and depleted oxygen concentrations are markers for air-sea exchange over the nearby northwest African coastal upwelling area. Long-range transport results in generally higher levels of O₃ and anthropogenic non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) in air originating from North America. Ozone/CO ratios were highest (up to 0.42) in relatively fresh European air masses. In air heavily influenced by Saharan dust the O₃/CO ratio was as low as 0.13, possibly indicating O₃ uptake to dust. Nitrogen oxides (NO_x and NO_y) show generally higher concentrations in winter when air mass origins are predominantly from Africa. High photochemical activity at the site is shown by maximum spring/summer concentrations of OH and HO₂ of 9?×?10⁶ molecule cm^?3 and 6?×?10⁸ molecule cm^?3, respectively. After the primary photolysis source, the most important controls on the HO_x budget in this region are IO and BrO chemistry, the abundance of HCHO, and uptake of HO_x to aerosol.