Atmospheric concentrations and sources of trace metals at the South pole

The chemical composition of atmospheric particulate material collected at the geographic South Pole indicates that Al, Sc, Th, Sm, V, Mn, Eu, Fe, La, Ce, Co, Cr, Na, K, Mg, and Ca are derived from either crustal weathering or the ocean. The relatively volatile elements Zn, Cu, Sb, Se, Pb, and Br are apparently derived from other sources. Because of their volatility, vapor-phase condensation or a high-temperature dispersion source is suspected for these elements or their compounds.     

Sulfate and nitrate concentrations from a South greenland ice core

An ice core in south Greenland covering the period 1869 to 1984 was analyzed for oxygen isotopes and chloride, nitrate, and sulfate concentrations. The data show that the "excess" (nonsea-salt) sulfate concentration has tripled since approximately 1900 to 1910 and the nitrate concentration has doubled since approximately 1955. The increases may be attributable to the deposition of these chemical specis from air masses carrying North American and Eurasian anthropogenic emissions.     

Atmospheric CO2 concentrations over the last glacial termination

A record of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration during the transition from the Last Glacial Maximum to the Holocene, obtained from the Dome Concordia, Antarctica, ice core, reveals that an increase of 76 parts per million by volume occurred over a period of 6000 years in four clearly distinguishable intervals. The close correlation between CO2 concentration and Antarctic temperature indicates that the Southern Ocean played an important role in causing the CO2 increase. However, the similarity of changes in CO2 concentration and variations of atmospheric methane concentration suggests that processes in the tropics and in the Northern Hemisphere, where the main sources for methane are located, also had substantial effects on atmospheric CO2 concentrations.     

Atmospheric aerosols: increased concentrations during the last decade

Atmospheric turbidity values calculated each month from solar radiation observations at MaunaLoa Observatory, Hawaii, show an increase of aerosols from 1958 through the present. These data indicate that either the effects of the Mount Agung eruption are still being observed or a longer-term trend of increasing turbidity is in evidence.     

Atmospheric sulfur: its effect on the chemical weathering of New England

The present acidity and sulfur content of the upland streams of New England can be accounted for on the basis of the rainout and washout of sulfuric acid from the atmosphere. In spite of this excess acid flux over the New England landscape, the rate of cationic denudation of upland watersheds is relatively low.     

鲁南夏季降水与南亚高压及大气环流的关系分析

[目的]研究鲁南夏季降水与南亚高压及大气环流的关系。[方法]以位于黄淮的鲁南地区降水为研究对象,利用1961～2005年NCEP/NCAR资料和鲁南夏季26个站降水资料,分析了鲁南夏季旱年和涝年南亚高压及大气环流的特点,探讨100 hPa南亚高压影响鲁南降水的机制,并分析了高低层大气环流的不同配置以及不同纬度、不同系统之间的相互作用。[结果]鲁南夏季降水EOF分解的第1模态解释了63%以上的方差,反应了降水的普遍形式。旱年和涝年南亚高压高度场中心位置偏差不大,但风场中心并不一致。当100hPa等压面亚洲90°E以东、贝湖以南地区为异常气旋式切变,中低层为异常气旋时,南亚高压面积偏小,其东部高压脊线经鲁南和长江口之间伸向西太平洋,鲁南夏季偏涝;当100 hPa等压面亚洲90°E以东、贝湖以南地区为异常反气旋式切变,中低层为异常反气旋时,南亚高压面积偏大,其东部脊线经长江口附近伸向西太平洋,鲁南夏季偏旱。鲁南夏季降水与亚欧大陆上高纬的东西向遥相关波列和东亚-西太平洋经向的PJ型遥相关波列均存在密切的关系,当亚欧大陆高纬地区里海以北、贝湖附近、堪察加半岛地区高度距平呈＂＋-＋＂波列,东亚-西太平洋地区高度距平从低纬到高纬呈＂-＋＂波列时,鲁南夏季偏涝;反之,鲁南夏季偏旱。[结论]该研究为鲁南夏季降水的机制分析提供理论依据。     

Residential biofuels in South Asia: carbonaceous aerosol emissions and climate impacts

High concentrations of pollution particles, including "soot" or black carbon, exist over the Indian Ocean, but their sources and geographical origins are not well understood. We measured emissions from the combustion of biofuels, used widely in south Asia for cooking, and found that large amounts of carbonaceous aerosols are emitted per kilogram of fuel burnt. We calculate that biofuel combustion is the largest source of black carbon emissions in India, and we suggest that its control is central to climate change mitigation in the south Asian region.     

Mammalian evolution and the great american interchange

A reciprocal and apparently symmetrical interchange of land mammals between North and South America began about 3 million years ago, after the appearance of the Panamanian land bridge. The number of families of land mammals in South America rose from 32 before the interchange to 39 after it began, and then back to 35 at present. An equivalent number of families experienced a comparable rise and decline in North America during the same interval. These changes in diversity are predicted by the MacArthur-Wilson species equilibrium theory. The greater number of North American genera (24) initially entering South America than the reverse (12) is predicted by the proportions of reservoir genera on the two continents. However, a later imbalance caused by secondary immigrants (those which evolved from initial immigrants) is not expected from equilibrium theory.     

Atmospheric halocarbons, hydrocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride: global distributions, sources, and sinks

The global distribution of fluorocarbon-12 and fluorocarbon-11 is used to establish a relatively fast interhemispheric exchange rate of 1 to 1.2 years. Atmospheric residence times of 65 to 70 years for fluorocarbon-12 and 40 to 45 years for fluorocarbon-l1 best fit the observational data. These residence times rule out the possibility of any significant missing sinks that may prevent these fluorocarbons from entering the stratosphere. Atmospheric measurements of methyl chloroform support an 8-to 10-year residence time and suggest global average hydroxyl radical (HO) concentrations of 3 x 10(5) to 4 x 10(5) molecules per cubic centimeter. These are a factor of 5 lower than predicted by models. Additionally, methyl chloroform global distribution supports Southern Hemispheric HO levels that are a factor of 1.5 or more larger than the Northern Hemispheric values. The long residence time and the rapid growth of methyl chloroform cause it to be a potentially significant depleter of stratospheric ozone. The oceanic sink for atmospheric carbon tetrachloride is about half as important as the stratospheric sink. A major source of methyl chloride (3 x 10(12)grams per year), sufficient to account for nearly all the atmospheric methyl chloride, has been identified in the ocean.     

1980～2011年南宁市大气稳定度和混合层厚度特征

利用南宁市1980～2011年逐日4个时次的气象资料,运用修正的Pasquill稳定度分类方法和国家标准GB/T13201-91规定的混合层厚度计算方法,计算逐日4个时次的稳定度等级和混合层厚度,分析各类稳定度频率和混合层厚度的逐年、逐月和不同时次的变化规律。结果表明,南宁市大气稳定度以中性、稳定类、较稳定类为主,而不稳定类中以B类居多,且不稳定类主要出现在汛期和午后;南宁市大气混合层厚度春夏高,秋冬低。     

Bacterial taxa that limit sulfur flux from the ocean

Flux of dimethylsulfide (DMS) from ocean surface waters is the predominant natural source of sulfur to the atmosphere and influences climate by aerosol formation. Marine bacterioplankton regulate sulfur flux by converting the precursor dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) either to DMS or to sulfur compounds that are not climatically active. Through the discovery of a glycine cleavage T-family protein with DMSP methyltransferase activity, marine bacterioplankton in the Roseobacter and SAR11 taxa were identified as primary mediators of DMSP demethylation to methylmercaptopropionate. One-third of surface ocean bacteria harbor a DMSP demethylase homolog and thereby route a substantial fraction of global marine primary production away from DMS formation and into the marine microbial food web.     

Organic aerosol formation downwind from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill

A large fraction of atmospheric aerosols are derived from organic compounds with various volatilities. A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) WP-3D research aircraft made airborne measurements of the gaseous and aerosol composition of air over the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that occurred from April to August 2010. A narrow plume of hydrocarbons was observed downwind of DWH that is attributed to the evaporation of fresh oil on the sea surface. A much wider plume with high concentrations of organic aerosol (>25 micrograms per cubic meter) was attributed to the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) from unmeasured, less volatile hydrocarbons that were emitted from a wider area around DWH. These observations provide direct and compelling evidence for the importance of formation of SOA from less volatile hydrocarbons.     

Visual and "phonetic" coding of movement: evidence from american sign language

Hearing subjects unfamiliar with American Sign Language and deaf native signers made triadic comparisons of movements of the hands and arms isolated from American Sign Language. Clustering and scaling of subjects' judgments revealed different psychological representations of movement form for deaf and hearing observerd. Linguistically relevant dimensions acquired modified salience for users ofa visual-gestural language. The data indicate that the modification of natural perceptual categories after language acquisition is not bound to a particular transmission modality, but rather can be a more general consequence of acquiring a formal linguistic system.     

Effects of aerosol from biomass burning on the global radiation budget

An analysis is made of the likely contribution of smoke particles from biomass burning to the global radiation balance. These particles act to reflect solar radiation directly; they also can act as cloud condensation nuclei, increasing the reflectivity of clouds. Together these effects, although uncertain, may add up globally to a cooling effect as large as 2 watts per square meter, comparable to the estimated contribution of sulfate aerosols. Anthropogenic increases of smoke emission thus may have helped weaken the net greenhouse warming from anthropogenic trace gases.     

Atmospheric imaging results from the Mars exploration rovers: Spirit and Opportunity

A visible atmospheric optical depth of 0.9 was measured by the Spirit rover at Gusev crater and by the Opportunity rover at Meridiani Planum. Optical depth decreased by about 0.6 to 0.7% per sol through both 90-sol primary missions. The vertical distribution of atmospheric dust at Gusev crater was consistent with uniform mixing, with a measured scale height of 11.56 +/- 0.62 kilometers. The dust's cross section weighted mean radius was 1.47 +/- 0.21 micrometers (mm) at Gusev and 1.52 +/- 0.18 mm at Meridiani. Comparison of visible optical depths with 9-mm optical depths shows a visible-to-infrared optical depth ratio of 2.0 +/- 0.2 for comparison with previous monitoring of infrared optical depths.     

硫肥对烤烟农艺性状及光合特性的影响

【目的】研究不同施硫量对烤烟农艺性状和光合特性的影响,以探明烤烟对硫的光合响应机制。【方法】以烤烟K326为供试材料,采用大田试验,施硫量分别为0,50,100,150和200kg/hm2,于烤烟移栽后不同时间测定烤烟农艺性状、叶绿素含量和光合参数。【结果】不同硫肥水平对烤烟的株高、茎围影响不大。在植烟土壤有效硫含量为20.07mg/kg时,不施硫肥使烤烟叶片的最大叶面积和叶绿素含量显著降低,从而导致净光合速率(Pn)、蒸腾速率(Tr)、气孔导度(Gs)、叶面蒸汽压力亏缺(VPD)显著降低,气孔限制值(Ls)、瞬时水分利用率(WUE)和潜在水分利用率(WUEi)明显升高。但过量施硫(200kg/hm2)也会使烤烟的最大叶面积、节间距、叶绿素含量、Pn、Tr、Gs、VPD显著降低。在施硫量为50~100kg/hm2时,烤烟最大叶面积显著增加,叶绿素含量、Pn、Tr、Gs、VPD明显提高,促进了烤烟正常的生长发育和光合作用。【结论】由于植物对养分的吸收受土壤条件、农田气候及作物特性等综合因素的影响,即使植烟土壤有效硫含量在适宜范围的上限,也应该对植烟土壤增施硫肥,但硫肥的用量不宜过高,以50~100kg/hm2较为适宜。