Thermal bioclimate in Strasbourg - the 2003 heat wave     

Andreas Matzarakis  Manuela De Rocco  Georges Najjar 《Theoretical and Applied Climatology》2009,98(3-4):209-220

This case study highlights the implications of the 2003 heat wave for the city of Strasbourg, France. The urban centers of France and other European countries were particularly affected by the heat wave. In some urban areas, the mortality rate was 60% above the expected value (Institute de Veille Sanitaire, 2003). The 2003 heat wave demonstrated once again that populations in urban centers are much more affected by extreme meteorological events than people living in rural areas. The aim of this analysis is to explore differences in thermal comfort conditions of (a) the city center of Strasbourg, and (b) its hinterland. The differences in thermal conditions existing between rural and urban areas are quantified by using a bio-climatological index termed physiologically equivalent temperature (PET). This index is based on the human energy balance and builds a relevant index for the quantification of the thermal environment of humans. We calculate the PET for the years 2003 and 2004 to highlight the temporal changes in the severity of climate extremes. The spatial scope of this study is improved compared to previous works in the field through the inclusion of PET calculations for five different sites on a central place in Strasbourg (Place Kléber). The calculations are characterized by different sky view factors and are compared to the reference site, which is located in a rural area. In the rural hinterland (Entzheim), the analysis of PET indicates a strong cold thermal stress during the winter months but no significant stress in summer. In 2003, summer temperatures were sensed as warmer compared to other years, but did not reach the extreme temperatures that may cause severe heat stress. For both the rural and the urban study sites PET was higher in the summer of 2003 than in 2004, which reflects the inferior thermal conditions in the urban area during the heat wave in 2003. For the entire study period, urban and rural day-time PET reached similar maximal values. Strong differences in PET, however, were observed between the rural and urban areas at night-time. The study of PET for several study sites on a central place in the city (Place Kléber) of Strasbourg for the years 2003 and 2004 showed that the sites with a higher sky view factor present higher values than sites with a lower sky view factor. The comparison of these PET values (Place Kléber) to the results for the rural area showed that during the day and the night the rural city of Entzheim has the lowest PET. During the day, the site at Place Kléber, which is located under a tree, has the lowest PET. The comparison of PET for the years 2003 and 2004 shows that PET in 2003 was about 5 to 7 K higher.  相似文献   

Site-aspect influence on climate sensitivity over time of a high-altitude Pinus cembra tree-ring network   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Giovanni Leonelli  Manuela Pelfini  Giovanna Battipaglia  Paolo Cherubini 《Climatic change》2009,96(1-2):185-201

Recently a divergence between tree-ring parameters from temperature-limited environments and temperature records has been observed worldwide but comprehensive explanations are still lacking. From a dendroclimatic analysis performed on a high-altitude tree-ring network of Pinus cembra (L.) in the Central Italian Alps we found that site aspect influences non-stationary growth-climate relationships over time. A general increasing divergence between ring width and the summer temperature record (J–A) has been observed especially for chronologies from SW-facing slopes, whereas chronologies from N-facing sites showed stable relationships over time. The monthly analysis revealed that the decrease in sensitivity was mostly accounted for by the changes in the relationships with June temperature (decreasing correlations especially for S- and W-facing site chronologies), whereas trees from N-facing sites showed an increasing sensitivity to July temperatures. Our data suggest that at high altitudes, low temperatures at the beginning of the growing season no longer limit growth. We also found that our temperature-sensitive trees did not linearly respond in radial growth to the extreme heat event of summer 2003, and formed an annual ring of average width, resulting in a strong divergence from the temperature record. Our findings underline the importance of site ecology for tree-ring based climate reconstructions using temperature-sensitive ring-width chronologies, and may help in solving the ‘divergence problem’.  相似文献   

Novel narrow filters for imaging in the 50–150 nm VUV range     

Mónica Fernández-Perea  Manuela Vidal-Dasilva  Juan Ignacio Larruquert  José Antonio Méndez  José Antonio Aznárez 《Astrophysics and Space Science》2009,320(1-3):243-246

GOLD (Grupo de Óptica de Láminas Delgadas) is devoted to the development of novel coatings with challenging performance in the far and the extreme ultraviolet (FUV-EUV, 50–200 nm). One of the main goals of this research is to provide the communities of astronomy, solar physics and atmospheric physics with coatings with high reflectance or transmittance at a target wavelength or band, and high rejection of the out-of-band at this complicated spectral range. Above the transparency cutoff of MgF₂ (115 nm), transmittance filters based on Al/MgF₂ multilayers have been developed peaked at wavelengths as short as 124 nm, with a peak transmittance of 27% and a FWHM of 12 nm for a non-aged coating. Below 115 nm, a research on reflectance filters has recently started with very promising results on filters peaked at the 83.4 nm OII spectral line. Fresh filters with 27% peak reflectance at normal incidence and a FWHM of 14 nm have been obtained. Furthermore, the peak reflectance wavelength of these filters can be tuned by rotation. A filter peaked at 83 nm at normal incidence will shift to ～73 nm at 30 deg from the normal and to ～58 nm at 45 deg. These novel reflective filters based on Al, Yb and SiO must still demonstrate stability over time.  相似文献   

In situ hydrocarbon concentrations from pressurized cores in surface sediments, Northern Gulf of Mexico     

Katja U. Heeschen  Hans Jürgen Hohnberg  Matthias Haeckel  Friedrich Abegg  Manuela Drews  Gerhard Bohrmann   《Marine Chemistry》2007,107(4):498-515

Two newly developed coring devices, the Multi-Autoclave-Corer and the Dynamic Autoclave Piston Corer were deployed in shallow gas hydrate-bearing sediments in the northern Gulf of Mexico during research cruise SO174 (Oct–Nov 2003). For the first time, they enable the retrieval of near-surface sediment cores under ambient pressure. This enables the determination of in situ methane concentrations and amounts of gas hydrate in sediment depths where bottom water temperature and pressure changes most strongly influence gas/hydrate relationships. At seep sites of GC185 (Bush Hill) and the newly discovered sites at GC415, we determined the volume of low-weight hydrocarbons (C₁ through C₅) from nine pressurized cores via controlled degassing. The resulting in situ methane concentrations vary by two orders of magnitudes between 0.031 and 0.985 mol kg^− 1 pore water below the zone of sulfate depletion. This includes dissolved, free, and hydrate-bound CH₄. Combined with results from conventional cores, this establishes a variability of methane concentrations in close proximity to seep sites of five orders of magnitude. In total four out of nine pressure cores had CH₄ concentrations above equilibrium with gas hydrates. Two of them contain gas hydrate volumes of 15% (GC185) and 18% (GC415) of pore space. The measurements prove that the highest methane concentrations are not necessarily related to the highest advection rates. Brine advection inhibits gas hydrate stability a few centimeters below the sediment surface at the depth of anaerobic oxidation of methane and thus inhibits the storage of enhanced methane volumes. Here, computerized tomography (CT) of the pressure cores detected small amounts of free gas. This finding has major implications for methane distribution, possible consumption, and escape into the bottom water in fluid flow systems related to halokinesis.  相似文献   

Dioxin compounds in the deep-sea rose shrimp Aristeus antennatus (Risso, 1816) throughout the Mediterranean Sea   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Guiomar Rotllant  Esteban Abad  Francisco Sard  Manuela balos  Joan B. Company  Josep Rivera 《Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers》2006,53(12):1895-1906

Polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDFs) are among the more toxic anthropogenic contaminants. They are fat-soluble and accumulate in animal tissues. Exposure to PCDD/Fs can cause several endocrine, reproductive and developmental problems in animals, including human beings. Several studies have demonstrated that fish and invertebrates living in association with sediments are exposed to and accumulate contaminants, but to date there have been no studies of PCDD/Fs contamination in deep-sea regions. Specimens of Aristeus antennatus (Risso, 1816) were collected from depths of 600–2500 m at different points in the Mediterranean Sea, from the western basin off the coast of Barcelona to the central basin off the Peloponnesian Peninsula, with otter trawl gear. Amounts of PCDD/Fs were measured in different animal tissues by high resolution gas chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (HRGC–HRMS). This is the first study to report the presence of PCDD/Fs in deep-sea organisms dwelling at depths below 600 m. A. antennatus presented levels of PCDD/Fs of the same order of magnitude, or slightly higher, as those found in shallow-water species (Melicertus kerathurus) with respect to land-generated contamination. This highlights the widespread distribution of these pollutants and the potential threat posed to the biodiversity of fragile and vulnerable ecosystems such as the deep-sea. PCDD/F levels detected in the edible parts (muscle) of the commercial shrimp A. antennatus were clearly below the toxic limit value established by European legislation. Levels followed the trend muscle<ovary<hepatopancreas, according to the lipid content of the organs in question. The specific profile of toxic PCDD/F congeners in the studied Penaeid shrimp specimens was characterized mainly by octachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (OCDD), 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (TCDF) and 2,3,4,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran (PeCDF) congeners. Moreover, non 2,3,7,8-substituted congeners bioaccumulated in this species, as observed in shallow-water crustaceans. PCDD/Fs were found in the shrimp A. antennatus throughout the Mediterranean Sea. Total PCDD/Fs burdens were higher in shrimps caught in the western Mediterranean than in those caught at eastern Mediterranean sites. There was a tendency for higher levels of PCDD/F contamination in samples obtained from deeper (2500 m) than from shallower sites (600 m).  相似文献   

Acceleration Phase of Coronal Mass Ejections: I. Temporal and Spatial Scales     

Bojan Vršnak  Darije Maričić  Andrew L. Stanger  Astrid M. Veronig  Manuela Temmer  Dragan Roša 《Solar physics》2007,241(1):85-98

We study kinematics of 22 coronal mass ejections (CMEs) whose motion was traced from the gradual pre-acceleration phase up to the post-acceleration stage. The peak accelerations in the studied sample range from 40, up to 7000 m s⁻², and are inversely proportional to the acceleration phase duration and the height range involved. Accelerations and velocities are, on average, larger in CMEs launched from a compact source region. The acceleration phase duration is proportional to the source region dimensions; i.e., compact CMEs are accelerated more impulsively. Such behavior is interpreted as a consequence of stronger Lorentz force and shorter Alfvén time scales involved in compact CMEs (with stronger magnetic field and larger Alfvén speed being involved at lower heights). CMEs with larger accelerations and velocities are on average wider, whereas the widths are not related to the source region dimensions. Such behavior is explained in terms of the field pile-up ahead of the erupting structure, which is more effective in the case of a strongly accelerated structure.  相似文献   

Relative influence of biotic and abiotic processes on travertine fabrics,Satono‐yu hot spring,Japan     

Fumito Shiraishi  Yuki Eno  Yuki Nakamura  Yusaku Hanzawa  Jiro Asada  Anelize Manuela Bahniuk 《Sedimentology》2019,66(2):459-479

The relative influences of biotic and abiotic processes on travertine fabrics are still not well understood, despite increasing interest in the last decade to better understand the record of ancient microbial life and sedimentary fabrics in microbial hydrocarbon reservoirs. This study examines travertines at Satono‐yu hot spring in Japan (the temperature of water flowing over the travertine was ca 35°C), to better understand the interaction between depositional, hydrochemical and microbial parameters at different flow settings. Characteristics of the bulk hydrochemistry, mineralogy (exclusively aragonite) and the driving force for precipitation (primarily abiotic CO₂ degassing with some photosynthetic microbial contribution) were similar among all of the flow settings. Conversely, the increase in flow velocity suppressed the influence of photosynthesis and enhanced the abiotic precipitation due to the thinner diffusive boundary layer at the travertine surface–water interface. Additionally, the increase in flow velocity changed the microbial composition and decreased the bacterial diversity by reflecting their adhesion efficiency on the travertine substrate. The acidity of the cyanobacterial sheaths controls the aragonite nucleation rate and the resulting calcification, even at significantly high equilibrium CO₂ partial pressure (ca 22 to 28 matm), high dissolved inorganic carbon concentration (ca 35 to 38 mmol l^?1), and elevated aragonite saturation state (ca 20‐fold to 34‐fold). Therefore, the increase in flow velocity suppresses the microbial influence with respect to the increase in the saturation state, the nucleation site supply and pore space generation. Overall, this results in the predominance of abiotic precipitation under high flow velocities. Consequently, a sparse‐micritic fabric with abundant interlamina porosity forms under lower flow velocity where the microbial influence is effective, while a dense‐sparitic fabric with little inter‐crystalline porosity forms under higher flow velocity where abiotic precipitation prevails. These findings provide an essential base for assessing the formation processes of ancient travertines and comparable deposits from petrological fabrics.  相似文献   

A hybrid fast algorithm for first arrivals tomography     

Manuela Mendes 《Geophysical Prospecting》2009,57(5):803-809

A hybrid algorithm, combining Monte-Carlo optimization with simultaneous iterative reconstructive technique (SIRT) tomography, is used to invert first arrival traveltimes from seismic data for building a velocity model. Stochastic algorithms may localize a point around the global minimum of the misfit function but are not suitable for identifying the precise solution. On the other hand, a tomographic model reconstruction, based on a local linearization, will only be successful if an initial model already close to the best solution is available. To overcome these problems, in the method proposed here, a first model obtained using a classical Monte Carlo-based optimization is used as a good initial guess for starting the local search with the SIRT tomographic reconstruction. In the forward problem, the first-break times are calculated by solving the eikonal equation through a velocity model with a fast finite-difference method instead of the traditional slow ray-tracing technique. In addition, for the SIRT tomography the seismic energy from sources to receivers is propagated by applying a fast Fresnel volume approach which when combined with turning rays can handle models with both positive and negative velocity gradients. The performance of this two-step optimization scheme has been tested on synthetic and field data for building a geologically plausible velocity model.This is an efficient and fast search mechanism, which permits insertion of geophysical, geological and geodynamic a priori constraints into the grid model and ray path is completed avoided. Extension of the technique to 3D data and also to the solution of 'static correction' problems is easily feasible.  相似文献   

Investigation on the properties of the relationship between rare and extreme rainfall and flood volumes, under some distributional restrictions   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

Mauro Naghettini  Nebai Tavares Gontijo  Maria Manuela Portela 《Stochastic Environmental Research and Risk Assessment (SERRA)》2012,26(6):859-872

The fact that rainfall data are usually more abundant and more readily regionalized than streamflow data has motivated hydrologists to conceive methods that incorporate the hydrometeorologial information into flood frequency analyses. Some of them, particularly those derived from the French GRADEX method, involve assumptions concerning the relationship between extreme rainfall and flood volumes, under some distributional restrictions. In particular, for rainfall probability distributions exhibiting exponential-like upper tails, it is possible to derive the shape and scale of the probability distribution of flood volumes by hypothesizing the basic properties of such a relationship, under rare and/or extreme conditions. This paper focuses on a parametric mathematical model for the relationship between rare and extreme rainfall and flood volumes under exponentially-tailed distributions. The model is analyzed and fitted to rare and extreme events derived from hydrological simulation of long stochastically-generated synthetic series of rainfall and evaporation for the Indaiá River basin, located in south-central Brazil. The paper also provides a sensitivity analysis of the model parameters in order to better understand flood events under rare and extreme conditions. By working with hydrologically plausible hypothetical events, the modeling approach proved to be a useful way to explore extraordinary rainfall and flood events. The results from this exploratory analysis provide grounds to derive some conclusions regarding the relative positions of the upper tails of the probability distributions of rainfall and flood volumes.  相似文献   

Complex dynamics of small-moderate volcanic events: the example of the 2011 rhyolitic Cordón Caulle eruption,Chile     

Marco?PistolesiEmail author  Raffaello?Cioni  Costanza?Bonadonna  Manuela?Elissondo  Valerie?Baumann  Antonella?Bertagnini  Laura?Chiari  Rafael?Gonzales  Mauro?Rosi  Lorella?Francalanci 《Bulletin of Volcanology》2015,77(1):3

After decades of repose, Puyehue-Cordón Caulle Volcano (Chile) erupted in June 2011 following a month of continuously increasing seismic activity. The eruption dispersed a large volume of rhyolitic tephra over a wide area and was characterized by complex dynamics. During the initial climactic phase of the eruption (24–30 h on 4–5 June), 11–14-km-high plumes dispersed most of the erupted tephra eastward towards Argentina, reaching as far as the Atlantic Ocean. This first eruptive phase was followed by activity of lower intensity, leading to the development of a complex stratigraphic sequence, mainly due to rapid shifts in wind direction and eruptive style. The resulting tephra deposits consist of 13 main layers grouped into four units. Each layer was characterized based on its dispersal direction, sedimentological features, and on the main characteristics of the juvenile fraction (texture, density, petrography, chemistry). The lowest part of the eruptive sequence (Unit I), corresponding to the tephra emitted between 4 and 5 June, is composed of alternating lapilli layers with a total estimated volume of ca. 0.75 km³; these layers record the highest intensity phase, during which a bent-over plume dispersed tephra towards the southeast-east, with negligible up-wind sedimentation. Products emitted during 5–6 June (Unit II) signaled an abrupt shift in wind direction towards the north, leading to the deposition of a coarse ash deposit in the northern sector (ca. 0.21 km³ in volume), followed by a resumption of easterly directed winds. A third phase (Unit III) began on 7 June and resulted in tephra deposits in the eastern sector and ballistic bombs around the vent area. A final phase (Unit IV) started after 15 June and was characterized by the emission of fine-grained white tephra from ash-charged plumes during low-level activity and the extrusion of a viscous lava flow. Timing and duration of the first eruptive phases were constrained based on comparison of the dispersal of the main tephra layers with satellite images, showing that most of the tephra was emitted during the first 72 h of the event. The analyzed juvenile material tightly clusters within the rhyolitic field, with negligible chemical variations through the eruptive sequence. Textural observations reveal that changes in eruption intensity (and consequently in magma ascent velocity within the conduit) and complex interactions between gas-rich and gas-depleted magma portions during ascent resulted in vesicular clasts with variable degrees of shear localization, and possibly in the large heterogeneity of the juvenile material.  相似文献