High frequency oscillations during magnetar flares     

Anna L. Watts  Tod E. Strohmayer 《Astrophysics and Space Science》2007,308(1-4):625-629

The recent discovery of high frequency oscillations during giant flares from the Soft Gamma Repeaters SGR 1806-20 and SGR 1900+14 may be the first direct detection of vibrations in a neutron star crust. If this interpretation is correct it offers a novel means of testing the neutron star equation of state, crustal breaking strain, and magnetic field configuration. We review the observational data on the magnetar oscillations, including new timing analysis of the SGR 1806-20 giant flare using data from the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager and the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer. We discuss the implications for the study of neutron star structure and crust thickness, and outline areas for future investigation.   相似文献   

Econometric analysis of the ship demolition market     

Sabine Knapp  Shashi N. Kumar  Anna Bobo Remijn   《Marine Policy》2008,32(6):1023-1036

The topic of ship recycling has obtained considerable attention during the last two decades for a variety of reasons with the likelihood of the adoption of a new international convention under the auspices of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). This study applies econometric modeling to a unique data set to provide insight into the dynamics of the ship recycling market. The data set contains information on 51,112 ships over 100 gt and includes 748,621 events over a period of 29 years. The analysis confirms a negative relationship of earnings and a positive relationship of scrap prices for all locations while Bangladesh seems to be more sensitive to changes in earnings than the other locations and more likely demolishes larger and older vessels. The results for flag and ownership vary across scrapping locations with Malta and Cyprus indicating potential importance from a registry perspective. The overall safety profile of a vessel seems to be less important towards the probability of a ship being scrapped. Possible implementation of the convention at EU level will mostly likely affect Turkey while non-ratification of one of the major flags will most likely affect China or Bangladesh.  相似文献   

The first cuckoo in winter: Phenology,recording, credibility and meaning in Britain     

Anna Lawrence 《Global Environmental Change》2009,19(2):173-179

Biological recording is a long-established feature of amateur natural history in Britain. Phenology (the recording of seasonal events) in particular has provided scientists with important long-term data sets. These data are of increasing interest as indicators of climate change and its impacts. Most scientists treat the data as the object of interest, while less attention has been paid to the two-way process of knowledge creation, and the significance of the inner, personal part of that. Phenological recording provides an interesting window on this because it is relatively straightforward (and therefore involves a wider range of people than more technically demanding recording), and because it is linked to the climate change discourse (and therefore connected with emotional and moral framings of the situation). This paper describes the rise of popular phenology in the UK and explores these dynamically related aspects of knowledge creation by drawing on accounts in the media and by participants. It concludes that reflexivity and credibility are important aspects of both personal and interpersonal meaning-making, and suggests that attention to both subjective integration of data, and the scale of local cultures of knowledge, are important in understanding the potential for connecting networks of citizen science. Phenology therefore appears to have a particular role to play in public understanding of climate change, which extends beyond the merely extractive collection of data to a more deeply integrated connection between observation and meaning.  相似文献   

Microbial photosynthesis in coral reef sediments (Heron Reef, Australia)     

Ursula Werner  Anna Blazejak  Paul Bird  Gabriele Eickert  Raphaela Schoon  Raeid M.M. Abed  Andrew Bissett  Dirk de Beer   《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》2008,76(4):876-888

We investigated microphytobenthic photosynthesis at four stations in the coral reef sediments at Heron Reef, Australia. The microphytobenthos was dominated by diatoms, dinoflagellates and cyanobacteria, as indicated by biomarker pigment analysis. Conspicuous algae firmly attached to the sand grains (ca. 100 μm in diameter, surrounded by a hard transparent wall) were rich in peridinin, a marker pigment for dinoflagellates, but also showed a high diversity based on cyanobacterial 16S rDNA gene sequence analysis. Specimens of these algae that were buried below the photic zone exhibited an unexpected stimulation of respiration by light, resulting in an increase of local oxygen concentrations upon darkening. Net photosynthesis of the sediments varied between 1.9 and 8.5 mmol O₂ m⁻² h⁻¹ and was strongly correlated with Chl a content, which lay between 31 and 84 mg m⁻². An estimate based on our spatially limited dataset indicates that the microphytobenthic production for the entire reef is in the order of magnitude of the production estimated for corals. Photosynthesis stimulated calcification at all investigated sites (0.2–1.0 mmol Ca²⁺ m⁻² h⁻¹). The sediments of at least three stations were net calcifying. Sedimentary N₂-fixation rates (measured by acetylene reduction assays at two sites) ranged between 0.9 to 3.9 mmol N₂ m⁻² h⁻¹ and were highest in the light, indicating the importance of heterocystous cyanobacteria. In coral fingers no N₂-fixation was measurable, which stresses the importance of the sediment compartment for reef nitrogen cycling.  相似文献   

A reach‐scale biogeochemical model for temporary rivers     

Ourania Tzoraki  Nikolaos P. Nikolaidis  Anna Rosa Trancoso  Frank Braunschweig  Ramiro Neves 《水文研究》2009,23(2):272-283

The RS‐tempQ Model ( r each– s cale t emporary flow biogeochemical model) is a conceptual model that can describe the hydrologic, sediment transport and biogeochemical processes of temporary rivers at the reach scale. The model takes into account the expansion–contraction of the inundated area of the river. It simulates the sediment transport and the nutrient fluxes that are transferred to the coastal area due to the first flash flood and during extreme rain events. The RS‐tempQ Model simulates the in‐stream processes during the wet and dry cycles as the river corridor expands and contracts. The model was used to assess and quantify the hydrologic and geochemical processes occurring in a temporary river reach (Krathis River) in Greece. Since the conventional gauging techniques cannot measure the flow in rivers that are split into small braided streams, discharge measurements could not be obtained in order to calibrate and verify the model. Other field measurements such as infiltration losses and sediment accumulation were used for model calibration. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.  相似文献   

Sulfide and iron control on mercury speciation in anoxic estuarine sediment slurries   总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2  

Seunghee Han  Anna Obraztsova  Patrizia Pretto  Dimitri D. Deheyn  Joris Gieskes  Bradley M. Tebo   《Marine Chemistry》2008,111(3-4):214-220

In order to understand the role of sulfate and Fe(III) reduction processes in the net production of monomethylmercury (MMHg), we amended anoxic sediment slurries collected from the Venice Lagoon, Italy, with inorganic Hg and either potential electron acceptors or metabolic byproducts of sulfate and Fe(III) reduction processes, gradually changing their concentrations. Addition of sulfide (final concentration: 0.2–6.3 mM) resulted in an exponential decrease in the sulfate reduction rate and MMHg concentration with increasing concentrations of sulfide. Based on this result, we argue that the concentration of dissolved sulfide is a critical factor controlling the sulfate reduction rate, and in turn, the net MMHg production at steady state. Addition of either Fe(II) (added concentration: 0–6.1 mM) or Fe(III) (added concentration: 0–3.5 mM) resulted in similar trends in the MMHg concentration, an increase with low levels of Fe additions and a subsequent decrease with high levels of Fe additions. The limited availability of dissolved Hg, associated with sulfide removal by precipitation of FeS, appears to inhibit the net MMHg production in high levels of Fe additions. There was a noticeable reduction in the net MMHg production in Fe(III)-amended slurries as compared to Fe(II)-amended ones, which could be caused by a decrease in the sulfate reduction rate. This agrees with the results of Hg methylation assays using the enrichment cultures of anaerobic bacteria: whereas the enrichment cultures of sulfate reducers showed significant production of MMHg (4.6% of amended Hg), those of Fe(III), Mn(IV), and nitrate reducers showed no production of MMHg. It appears that enhanced Fe(III)-reduction activities suppress the formation of MMHg in high sulfate estuarine sediments.  相似文献   

The effects of beach nourishment on the sandy-beach amphipod Exoediceros fossor: impact and recovery in Botany Bay, New South Wales, Australia     

Alan R. Jones  Anna Murray  Theresa A. Lasiak  & Robin E. Marsh 《Marine Ecology》2008,29(S1):28-36

Beach nourishment is increasingly being implemented to address problems of erosion. However, the ecological consequences of nourishment are poorly understood, especially in Australia. In Botany Bay, sand was piped from an intertidal borrow area at Elephant's Trunk to nourish the nearby eroding beach at Towra Point. The effects on an intertidal exoedicerotid amphipod, Exoediceros fossor (Stimpson, 1856), were examined using a beyond-BACI (Before–After, Control–Impact) sampling design. Sampling was conducted before and after engineering operations at sites within the borrow and nourishment locations and multiple control locations. Hypotheses concerning impact and recovery were tested using asymmetrical ANOVAs and two-tailed F-tests. These examined the effects on abundance and spatial variability, respectively. The impact of the engineering operations on abundance was very large at both borrow and nourishment locations. However, recovery started within several weeks and, using space × time interactions as a criterion, appeared to be complete within a year. This conclusion is made cautiously because of low statistical power and because other criteria for recovery suggest that it was not complete at some sites. As beach erosion is likely to increase in severity with rising sea levels and greater storm surges associated with climate change, management authorities will need a better understanding of the ecological effects of beach nourishment.  相似文献   

Patterns in abundance and size of two deep-water gorgonian octocorals,in relation to depth and substrate features off Nova Scotia     

Shana Watanabe  Anna Metaxas  Jessica Sameoto  Peter Lawton 《Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers》2009,56(12):2235-2248

Deep-water corals form unique ecosystems, yet very little is known about factors that regulate their distribution and growth. The abundance and size of two deep-water gorgonian coral species, Paragorgia arborea and Primnoa resedaeformis, and their relationship with depth and substratum cover, were investigated at Northeast Channel, off Nova Scotia, in July 2006. This is the first study to measure abundance and size of these two coral species at depths >500 m in the Canadian Atlantic region. A total of 5 transects between 500 and 1000 m depth were examined using video collected by the remotely operated vehicle ROPOS. Abundance of both species was patchy, but higher at these deeper depths than at <500 m. Abundance generally declined with depth, and was moderately correlated with cover of hard substratum (cobble, boulder, bedrock). These relationships were stronger and less variable for P. resedaeformis than for P. arborea, suggesting that factors such as topographic relief may play an additional role in regulating distributions of P. arborea. Maximum colony height was 125 and 240 cm for P. resedaeformis and P. arborea, respectively, and much greater than recorded for depths <500 m. Overall, colony height and depth relationships were strong for both species, but variable among transects. P. resedaeformis showed a negative relationship with depth, while the opposite was observed for P. arborea, suggesting that the two species are affected differently by factors that vary with depth (e.g. temperature, fishing disturbance). Relationships between colony size and size of attachment stone were stronger for P. arborea, especially for overturned colonies, than for P. resedaeformis, suggesting that availability of suitably coarse substrate may be more important for the long-term persistence of P. arborea colonies.  相似文献   

Consistent global responses of marine ecosystems to future climate change across the IPCC AR5 earth system models     

Cabré  Anna  Marinov  Irina  Leung  Shirley 《Climate Dynamics》2015,45(5-6):1253-1280

Climate Dynamics - We analyze for the first time all 16 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 models with explicit marine ecological modules to identify the common mechanisms involved in...  相似文献   

Characteristics of Type-II Radio Bursts Associated with Flares and CMEs     

V.?VasanthEmail author  S.?Umapathy  Bojan?Vr?nak  M.?Anna?Lakshmi 《Solar physics》2011,273(1):143-162

We present a statistical study of the characteristics of type-II radio bursts observed in the metric (m) and deca-hectometer (DH) wavelength range during 1997–2008. The collected events are divided into two groups: Group I contains the events of m-type-II bursts with starting frequency ≥ 100 MHz, and group II contains the events with starting frequency of m-type-II radio bursts < 100 MHz. We have analyzed both samples considering three different aspects: i) statistical properties of type-II bursts, ii) statistical properties of flares and CMEs associated with type-II bursts, and iii) time delays between type-II bursts, flares, and CMEs. We find significant differences in the properties of m-type-II bursts in duration, bandwidth, drift rate, shock speed and delay between m- and DH-type-II bursts. From the timing analysis we found that the majority of m-type-II bursts in both groups occur during the flare impulsive phase. On the other hand, the DH-type-II bursts in both groups occur during the decaying phase of the associated flares. Almost all m-DH-type-II bursts are found to be associated with CMEs. Our results indicate that there are two kinds of shock in which group I (high frequency) m-type-II bursts seem to be ignited by flares whereas group II (low frequency) m-type-II bursts are CME-driven.  相似文献