bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Atmospheric effects and societal consequences of regional scale nuclear conflicts and acts of individual nuclear terrorism
Authors: Toon O. B. , Turco R. P. , Robock A. , Bardeen C. , Oman L. , Stenchikov G. L. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. We assess the potential damage and smoke production associated with the detonation of small nuclear weapons in modern megacities. While the number of nuclear warheads in the world has fallen by about a factor of three since its peak in 1986, the number of nuclear weapons states is increasing and the potential exists for numerous regional nuclear arms races. Eight countries are known to have nuclear weapons, 2 are constructing them, and an additional 32 nations already have the fissile material needed to build substantial arsenals of low-yield (Hiroshima-sized) explosives. Population and economic activity worldwide are congregated to an increasing extent in megacities, which might be targeted in a nuclear conflict. Our analysis shows that, per kiloton of yield, low yield weapons can produce 100 times as many fatalities and 100 times as much smoke from fires as high-yield weapons, if they are targeted at city centers. A single "small'' nuclear detonation in an urban center could lead to more fatalities, in some cases by orders of magnitude, than have occurred in the major historical conflicts of many countries. We analyze the likely outcome of a regional nuclear exchange involving 100 15-kt explosions (less than 0.1% of the explosive yield of the current global nuclear arsenal). We find that such an exchange could produce direct fatalities comparable to all of those worldwide in World War II, or to those once estimated for a "counterforce'' nuclear war between the superpowers. Megacities exposed to atmospheric fallout of long-lived radionuclides would likely be abandoned indefinitely, with severe national and international implications. Our analysis shows that smoke from urban firestorms in a regional war would rise into the upper troposphere due to pyro-convection. Robock et al. (2006) show that the smoke would subsequently rise deep into the stratosphere due to atmospheric heating, and then might induce significant climatic anomalies on global scales.We also anticipate substantial perturbations of global ozone. While there are many uncertainties in the predictions we make here, the principal unknowns are the type and scale of conflict that might occur. The scope and severity of the hazards identified pose a significant threat to the global community. They deserve careful analysis by governments worldwide advised by a broad section of the world scientific community, as well as widespread public debate.
SAWA experiment – properties of mineral dust aerosol as seen by synergic lidar and sun-photometer measurements
Authors: Kardas A. E. , Markowicz K. M. , Malinowski S. P. , Karasiński G. , Stacewicz T. , Stelmaszczyk K. , Hochhertz C. , Woeste L. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. We propose a method of retrieving basic information on mineral dust aerosol particles from synergic sun-photometer and multi-wavelength lidar measurements as well as from the observations of lidar light depolarisation. We use this method in a case study of mineral dust episode in Central Europe. Lidar signals are inversed with a modified Klett-Fernald algorithm. Aerosol optical depth measured with the sun-photometer allows to reduce uncertainties in the inversion procedure through which we estimate vertical profile of aerosol extinction. Next we assume that aerosol particles may be represented by ensemble of randomly oriented, identical spheroids. Having calculated vertical profiles of aerosol extinction coefficients for lidar wavelengths, we compute the profiles of local Angstrom exponent. We use laser beam depolarisation together with the calculated Angstrom exponents to estimate the shapes (aspect ratios) and sizes of the spheroids. Numerical calculations are performed with the transition matrix (T-matrix) algorithm by M. Mishchenko. The proposed method was first used during SAWA measurement campaign in Warsaw, spring 2005, to characterise the particles of desert dust, drifting over Poland with a southern-eastern wind (13–14 April). Observations and T-matrix calculations show that mode radii of spheroids representative for desert aerosols' particles are in the range of 0.15–0.3 μm, while their aspect ratios are lower than 0.7 or larger than 1.7.
Imaging gravity waves in lower stratospheric AMSU-A radiances, Part 2: validation case study
Authors: Eckermann S. D. , Wu D. L. , Doyle J. D. , Burris J. F. , McGee T. J. , Hostetler C. A. , Coy L. , Lawrence B. N. , Stephens A. , McCormack J. P. , Hogan T. F. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. Two-dimensional radiance maps from Channel 9 (~60–90 hPa) of the Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU-A), acquired over southern Scandinavia on 14 January 2003, show plane-wave-like oscillations with a wavelength λh of ~400–500 km and peak brightness temperature amplitudes of up to 0.9 K. The wave-like pattern is observed in AMSU-A radiances from 8 overpasses of this region by 4 different satellites, revealing a growth in the disturbance amplitude from 00:00 UTC to 12:00 UTC and a change in its horizontal structure between 12:00 UTC and 20:00 UTC. Forecast and hindcast runs for 14 January 2003 using high-resolution global and regional numerical weather prediction (NWP) models generate a lower stratospheric mountain wave over southern Scandinavia with peak 90 hPa temperature amplitudes of ~5–7 K at 12:00 UTC and a similar horizontal wavelength, packet width, phase structure and time evolution to the disturbance observed in AMSU-A radiances. The wave's vertical wavelength is ~12 km. These NWP fields are validated against radiosonde wind and temperature profiles and airborne lidar profiles of temperature and aerosol backscatter ratios acquired from the NASA DC-8 during the second SAGE III Ozone Loss and Validation Experiment (SOLVE II). Both the amplitude and phase of the stratospheric mountain wave in the various NWP fields agree well with localized perturbation features in these suborbital measurements. In particular, we show that this wave formed the type II polar stratospheric clouds measured by the DC-8 lidar. To compare directly with the AMSU-A data, we convert these validated NWP temperature fields into swath-scanned brightness temperatures using three-dimensional Channel 9 weighting functions and the actual AMSU-A scan patterns from each of the 8 overpasses of this region. These NWP-based brightness temperatures contain two-dimensional oscillations due to this resolved stratospheric mountain wave that have an amplitude, wavelength, horizontal structure and time evolution that closely match those observed in the AMSU-A data. These comparisons not only verify gravity wave detection and horizontal imaging capabilities for AMSU-A Channel 9, but provide an absolute validation of the anticipated radiance signals for a given three-dimensional gravity wave, based on the modeling of Eckermann and Wu (2006).
Homogeneous nucleation rates of nitric acid dihydrate (NAD) at simulated stratospheric conditions – Part I: Experimental results
Authors: Stetzer O. , Möhler O. , Wagner R. , Benz S. , Saathoff H. , Bunz H. , Indris O. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. The low temperature aerosol chamber AIDA was used to study the nucleation of nitric acid dihydrate (NAD) in super-cooled nitric acid aerosols under simulated stratospheric conditions in the temperature range 192 K–197 K. The nucleating solution droplets had median diameters between 225 and 290 nm and molar fractions of nitric acid between 0.26 and 0.28. Nucleation of solid particles was unambiguously observed in two out of three experiments during time periods of up to five hours. The newly formed crystals could be clearly distinguished from the remaining liquid droplets by their increasing size with an optical particle spectrometer. The solid particles could be unequivocally identified as strongly aspherical nitric acid dihydrate crystals (α-NAD) by in-situ FTIR-spectroscopy. From our experimental data set there is no indication of direct nucleation of NAT or a conversion of NAD into NAT while having saturation ratios with resprect to NAT of about 20–26. The temporal evolutions of the NAD particle concentrations were used to derive individual nucleation rates for NAD. The measured volume nucleation rates ranged from 3.9·105 cm-3s-1 at 195.8 K and XNA=0.27 to 1.9·107 cm-3s-1 at 192.1 K and XNA=0.28. The corresponding hypothetical surface nucleation rates of 2·100 to 1·102 cm-2s-1 are smaller than the parameterisation of Tabazadeh et al. (2002) by factors between 25 and >103.
Interannual variability of global biomass burning emissions from 1997 to 2004
Authors: van der Werf G. R. , Randerson J. T. , Giglio L. , Collatz G. J. , Kasibhatla P. S. , Arellano A. F. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. Biomass burning represents an important source of atmospheric aerosols and greenhouse gases, yet little is known about its interannual variability or the underlying mechanisms regulating this variability at continental to global scales. Here we investigated fire emissions during the 8 year period from 1997 to 2004 using satellite data and the CASA biogeochemical model. Burned area from 2001–2004 was derived using newly available active fire and 500 m burned area datasets from MODIS following the approach described by Giglio et al. (2005). ATSR and VIRS satellite data were used to extend the burned area time series back in time through 1997. In our analysis we estimated fuel loads, including peatland fuels, and the net flux from terrestrial ecosystems as the balance between net primary production (NPP), heterotrophic respiration (Rh), and biomass burning, using time varying inputs of precipitation (PPT), temperature, solar radiation, and satellite-derived fractional absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (fAPAR). For the 1997–2004 period, we found that on average approximately 58 Pg C year−1 was fixed by plants, and approximately 95% of this was returned back to the atmosphere via Rh. Another 4%, or 2.5 Pg C year−1 was emitted by biomass burning; the remainder consisted of losses from fuel wood collection and subsequent burning. At a global scale, burned area and total fire emissions were largely decoupled from year to year. Total carbon emissions tracked burning in forested areas (including deforestation fires in the tropics), whereas burned area was largely controlled by savanna fires that responded to different environmental and human factors. Biomass burning emissions showed large interannual variability with a range of more than 1 Pg C year−1, with a maximum in 1998 (3.2 Pg C year−1) and a minimum in 2000 (2.0 Pg C year−1).
NO2 Profile Retrieval using airborne multi axis UV-visible skylight absorption measurements over central Europe
Authors: Bruns M. , Buehler S. A. , Burrows J. P. , Richter A. , Rozanov A. , Wang P. , Heue K.-P. , Platt U. , Pundt I. , Wagner T. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. A recent development in ground-based remote sensing of atmospheric constituents by UV/visible absorption measurements of scattered light is the simultaneous use of several directions with small elevation angles in addition to the traditional zenith-sky pointing. The different light paths through the atmosphere enable the vertical distribution of some atmospheric absorbers such as NO2, BrO or O3 to be retrieved. In this study, the amount of profile information that can be retrieved from such measurements on aircraft is investigated for the trace gas NO2. A Sensitivity study on synthetic data is performed for a combination of four lines of sight (LOS) (0° (nadir), 88°, 92°, and 180° (zenith)) and three wavelength regions [center wavelengths: 362.5 nm, 437.5 nm, and 485.0 nm]. This investigation demonstrates the potential of this LOS/wavelengths setup to retrieve a significant amount of profile information from airborne multiaxis differential optical absorption spectrometer (AMAXDOAS) measurements with a vertical resolution of 3.0 to 4.5 km in the lower troposphere and 2.0 to 3.5 km near flight altitude. Above 13 km the profile information content of AMAXDOAS measurements is sparse. Further, retrieved profiles with a significant amount (up to 3.2 ppbv) of NO2 in the boundary layer over the Po-valley (Italy) are presented. Airborne multiaxis measurements are thus a promising tool for atmospheric studies in the troposphere.
Probing ice clouds by broadband mid-infrared extinction spectroscopy: case studies from ice nucleation experiments in the AIDA aerosol and cloud chamber
Authors: Wagner R. , Benz S. , Möhler O. , Saathoff H. , Schurath U. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. Series of infrared extinction spectra of ice crystals were recorded in the 6000–800 cm-1 wavenumber regime during expansion cooling experiments in the large aerosol and cloud chamber AIDA of Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe. Either supercooled sulphuric acid solution droplets or dry mineral dust particles were added as seed aerosols to initiate ice formation after having established ice supersaturated conditions inside the chamber. The various ice nucleation runs were conducted at temperatures between 237 and 195 K, leading to median sizes of the nucleated ice particles of 1–15 µm. The measured infrared spectra were fitted with reference spectra from T-matrix calculations to retrieve the number concentration as well as the number size distribution of the generated ice clouds. The ice particles were modelled as finite circular cylinders with aspect ratios ranging from 0.5 to 3.0. Benefiting from the comprehensive diagnostic tools for the characterisation of ice clouds which are available at the AIDA facility, the infrared retrieval results with regard to the ice particle number concentration could be compared to independent measurements with various optical particle counters. This provided a unique chance to quantitatively assess potential errors or solution ambiguities in the retrieval procedure which mainly originate from the difficulty to find an appropriate shape representation for the aspherical particle habits of the ice crystals. Based on these inter-comparisons, we demonstrate that there is no standard retrieval approach which can be routinely applied to all different experimental scenarios. In particular, the concept to account for the asphericity of the ice crystals, the a priori constraints which might be imposed on the unknown number size distribution of the ice crystals (like employing an analytical distribution function), and the wavenumber range which is included in the fitting algorithm should be carefully adjusted to each single retrieval problem.
Mid-latitude ozone changes: studies with a 3-D CTM forced by ERA-40 analyses
Authors: Feng W. , Chipperfield M. P. , Dorf M. , Pfeilsticker K. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. We have used an off-line three-dimensional (3-D) chemical transport model (CTM) to study long-term changes in stratospheric O3. The model was run from 1977–2004 and forced by ECMWF ERA-40 and operational analyses. Model runs were performed to examine the impact of increasing halogens and additional stratospheric bromine from short-lived source gases. The analyses capture much of the observed interannual variability in column ozone, but there are also unrealistic features. In particular the ERA-40 analyses cause a large positive anomaly in northern hemisphere (NH) column O3 in the late 1980s. Also, the change from ERA-40 to operational winds at the start of 2002 introduces abrupt changes in some model fields which affect analysis of trends. The model reproduces the observed column increase in NH mid-latitudes from the mid 1990s. Analysis of a run with fixed halogens shows that this increase is not due to a significant decrease in halogen-induced loss, i.e. is not an indication of recovery. The model predicts only a small decrease in halogen-induced loss after 1999. In the upper stratosphere, despite the modelled turnover of chlorine around 1999, O3 does not increase to the effects of increasing ECMWF temperatures, decreasing modelled CH4 at this altitude, and abrupt changes to the SH temperatures at the end of the ERA-40 period. The impact of an additional 5 pptv stratospheric bromine from short-lived species decreases mid-latitude column O3 by about 10 DU. However, the impact on the modelled relative O3 anomaly is generally small except during periods of large volcanic loading.
How unusual was late 20th century El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO)? Assessing evidence from tree-ring, coral, ice-core and documentary palaeoarchives, A.D. 1525-2002
Authors: Gergis J. L. , Fowler A. M. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. Multiple proxy records (tree-ring, coral, ice and documentary) were examined to isolate ENSO signals associated with both phases of the phenomenon for the period A.D. 1525-2002. To avoid making large-scale inferences from single proxy analysis, regional signals were aggregated into a network of high-resolution records, revealing large-scale trends in the frequency, magnitude and duration of pre-instrumental ENSO using novel applications of percentile analysis. Here we use the newly introduced coupled ocean-atmosphere ENSO index (CEI) as a baseline for the calibration of proxy records. The reconstruction revealed 83 extreme or very strong ENSO episodes since A.D. 1525, expanding considerably on existing ENSO event chronologies. Significantly, excerpts of the most comprehensive list of La Niña events complied to date are presented, indicating peak activity during the 16th to mid 17th and 20th centuries. Although extreme events are seen throughout the 478-year reconstruction, 43% of the extreme ENSO events noted since A.D. 1525 occur during the 20th century, with an obvious bias towards enhanced El Niño conditions in recent decades. Of the total number of extreme event years reconstructed, 30% of all reconstructed ENSO event years occur post-1940 alone suggesting that recent ENSO variability appears anomalous in the context of the past five centuries.
Regional scale analysis of the altimetric stream network evolution
Authors: Ghizzoni T. , Lomazzi M. , Roth G. , Rudari R. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. Floods result from the limited carrying capacity of stream channels when compared to the discharge peak value. The transit of flood waves - with the associated erosion and sedimentation processes - often modifies local stream geometry. In some cases this results in a reduction of the stream carrying capacity, and consequently in an enhancement of the flooding risk. A mathematical model for the prediction of potential altimetric stream network evolution due to erosion and sedimentation processes is here formalized. It works at the regional scale, identifying the tendency of river segments to sedimentation, stability, or erosion. The model builds on geomorphologic concepts, and derives its parameters from extensive surveys. As a case study, tendencies of rivers pertaining to the Valle d'Aosta region are analyzed. Some validation is provided both at regional and local scales of analysis. Local validation is performed both through a mathematical model able to simulate the temporal evolution of the stream profile, and through comparison of the prediction with ante and post-event river surveys, where available. Overall results are strongly encouraging. Possible use of the information derived from the model in the context of flood and landslide hazard mitigation is briefly discussed.
Temperature sensitivity of decomposition in relation to soil organic matter pools: critique and outlook
Authors: Reichstein M. , Kätterer T. , Andrén O. , Ciais P. , Schulze E.-D. , Cramer W. , Papale D. , Valentini R. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. Knorr et al. (2005) concluded that soil organic carbon pools with longer turnover times are more sensitive to temperature. We show that this conclusion is equivocal, largely dependent on their specific selection of data and does not persist when the data set of Kätterer et al. (1998) is analysed in a more appropriate way. Further, we analyse how statistical properties of the model parameters may interfere with correlative analyses that relate the Q10 of soil respiration with the basal rate, where the latter is taken as a proxy for soil organic matter quality. We demonstrate that negative parameter correlations between Q10-values and base respiration rates are statistically expected and not necessarily provide evidence for a higher temperature sensitivity of low quality soil organic matter. Consequently, we propose it is premature to conclude that stable soil carbon is more sensitive to temperature than labile carbon.
Methane emission and consumption at a North Sea gas seep (Tommeliten area)
Authors: Niemann H. , Elvert M. , Hovland M. , Orcutt B. , Judd A. , Suck I. , Gutt J. , Joye S. , Damm E. , Finster K. , Boetius A. 
Published: April 2010

Abstract. The Tommeliten seepage area is part of the Greater Ekofisk area, which is situated above the Tommeliten Delta salt diapir in the central North Sea (56°29.90' N, 2°59.80' E, Norwegian Block 1/9, 75 m water depth). Here, cracks in a buried marl horizon allow methane to migrate into overlying clay-silt and sandy sediments. Hydroacoustic sediment echosounding showed several venting spots coinciding with the apex of marl domes where methane is released into the water column and potentially to the atmosphere. In the vicinity of the gas seeps, sea floor observations showed small mats of giant sulphide-oxidizing bacteria above patches of black sediments as well as carbonate crusts, which are exposed 10 to 50 cm above seafloor forming small reefs. These Methane-Derived Authigenic Carbonates (MDACs) contain 13C-depleted, archaeal lipids indicating previous gas seepage and AOM activity. High amounts of sn2-hydroxyarchaeol relative to archaeol and low abundances of biphytanes in the crusts give evidence that ANaerobic MEthane-oxidising archaea (ANME) of the phylogenetic cluster ANME-2 were the potential mediators of Anaerobic Oxidation of Methane (AOM) at the time of carbonate formation. Small pieces of MDACs were also found subsurface at about 1.7 m sediment depth, associated with the AOM zone. This zone is characterized by elevated AOM and Sulphate Reduction (SR) rates, increased concentrations of 13C-depleted tetraether derived biphytanes, and specific bacterial Fatty Acids (FA). Further biomarker and 16S rDNA based analyses of this horizon give evidence that AOM is mediated by archaea belonging to the ANME-1b group and Sulphate Reducing Bacteria (SRB) most likely belonging to the Seep-SRB1 cluster. The zone of active methane consumption was restricted to a distinct horizon of about 20 cm. Concentrations of 13C-depleted lipid biomarkers (e.g. 500 ng g-dw−1 biphythanes, 140 ng g-dw−1 fatty acid ai-C15:0), cell numbers (1.5×108 cells cm−3), AOM and SR rates (3 nmol cm−3 d−1) in the Tommeliten AOM zone are 2–3 orders of magnitude lower compared to AOM zones of highly active deep water cold seeps such as Hydrate Ridge or the Gulf of Mexico.