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A post-wildfire response in cave dripwater chemistry

Our current understanding of wildfires on Earth is filled with knowledge gaps. One reason for this is our poor record of fire in natural archives. We open the possibility for speleothems to be “a missing piece to the fire-puzzle”. We find by effecting surface evaporation and transpiration rates, wildfires can have a multi-year impact on speleothem, forming dripwater hydrology and chemistry. We open a new avenue for speleothems as potential palaeo-fire archives.

The PRISM4 (mid-Piacenzian) paleoenvironmental reconstruction

Past intervals in Earth history provide unique windows into conditions much different than those observed today. We investigated the paleoenvironments of a past warm interval (~ 3 million years ago). Our reconstruction includes data sets for surface temperature, vegetation, soils, lakes, ice sheets, topography, and bathymetry. These data are being used along with global climate models to expand our understanding of the climate system and to help us prepare for future changes.

Can mussels be used as sentinel organisms for characterization of pollution in urban water systems?

We assessed if nitrogen stable isotopes in mussels are a suitable indicator, capable of resolving spatial and temporal variability of nutrient pollution in an urban estuary. Our results highlight the value of using stable isotope analysis as an integrative tool to establish an understanding of local processes and pollution levels in theses urban aquatic systems. We suggest that mussels can become a robust tool for the detection of emerging anthropogenic pollutants of concern in urban water systems.

Multi-scale statistical analysis of coronal solar activity

We use temperature maps of the solar corona for three regions and use a technique that separates multiple timescales and space scales to show that the small-scale temperature fluctuations appear more frequently prior to the occurrence of a solar flare, in comparison with the same region after the flare and with a quiet region. We find that, during the flare, energy flows from large to small scales and heat transport associated with a heat front is convective along and diffusive across the front.

The impact of ancestral heath management on soils and landscapes: a reconstruction based on paleoecological analyses of soil records in the central and southeastern Netherlands

SOIL
DOI 10.5194/soil-2-311-2016
4 July 2016

Soil records provide information about 5 millennia of heath management in cultural landscapes on sandy soils. Deforestations and the introduction of the deep, stable economy in the 18th century resulted in sand drifting and heath degradation. After the introduction of chemical fertilizers more than 90 % of the heaths were transformed into productive arable field or forests. Currently the last heaths are preserved as part of the cultural heritage.

Impacts of Tibetan Plateau uplift on atmospheric dynamics and associated precipitation δ18O

We use an isotope-equipped GCM and develop original theoretical expression for the precipitation composition to assess δ¹⁸O of paleo-precipitation changes with the Tibetan Plateau uplift. We show that δ¹⁸O of precipitation is very sensitive to climate changes related to the growth of mountains, notably changes in relative humidity and precipitation amount. Topography is shown to be not an exclusive controlling factor δ¹⁸O in precipitation that have crucial consequences for paleoelevation studies.

Spatial and temporal variations in plant water-use efficiency inferred from tree-ring, eddy covariance and atmospheric observations

Our analysis allows us to infer maps of changing plant water-use efficiency (WUE) for 1901–2010, using atmospheric observations of temperature, humidity and CO₂. Our estimated increase in global WUE is consistent with the tree-ring and eddy covariance data, but much larger than the historical WUE increases simulated by Earth System Models (ESMs). We therefore conclude that the effects of increasing CO₂ on plant WUE are significantly underestimated in the latest climate projections.

Increasing the accuracy and temporal resolution of two-filter radon–222 measurements by correcting for the instrument response

Surface-based two-filter radon detectors monitor the ambient concentration of atmospheric radon-222, a natural tracer of mixing and transport. They are sensitive, but respond slowly to ambient changes in radon concentration. In this paper, a deconvolution method is used to successfully correct observations for the instrument response. Case studies demonstrate that it is beneficial, sometimes necessary, to account for the detector response, especially when studying near-surface mixing.

Which are the highest peaks in the US Arctic? Fodar settles the debate

We measured the heights of the five tallest peaks in the US Arctic using fodar, a new airborne photogrammetric technique using structure-from-motion software. The highest peaks are Mt Isto (2735.6 m), Mt. Hubley (2717.6 m), Mt. Chamberlin (2712.3 m), Mt. Michelson (2698.1 m), and an unnamed peak (2694.9 m). We found fodar suitable for topographic change detection on the centimeter scale in steep mountain terrain, such as for measuring snow depths.

Growth of nucleation mode particles in the summertime Arctic: a case study

We present a case study focused on an aerosol growth event observed in the Canadian High Arctic during summer. Using measurements of aerosol chemical and physical properties we find evidence for aerosol growth into cloud condensation nuclei-active sizes, through marine-influenced secondary organic aerosol formation. Understanding the mechanisms that control the formation and growth of aerosol is crucial for our ability to predict cloud properties, and therefore radiative balance and climate.

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