Ordinary chondrite-like colors in small Koronis family members

A survey of small (<5-10 km diameter) members of the Koronis family shows some objects with visible-wavelength broadband colors consistent with membership in the Q-class (Tholen, D.J. [1984]. Asteroid taxonomy from cluster analysis of photometry. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ; Bus, S.J., Binzel, R.P. [2002]. Icarus 158, 146-177). This agrees with an ordinary chondritic composition for this family and suggests the timescale for changing Q-class to S-class spectra in the main belt is roughly comparable to the regolith refresh time in the 2-5 km size range.     

The Australia telescope 20 GHz survey: hardware, observing strategy, and scanning survey catalog

The Australia Telescope 20 GHz (AT20G) survey is a large area (2?? sr), sensitive (40 mJy), high frequency (20 GHz) survey of the southern sky. The survey was conducted in two parts: an initial fast scanning survey, and a series of more accurate follow-up observations. The follow-up survey catalog has been presented by Murphy et al. (MNRAS 402:2403, 2010). In this paper we discuss the hardware setup and scanning survey strategy as well as the production of the scanning survey catalog.     

Planning in the age of Facebook: the role of social networking in planning processes

There has been rapid growth in the use of online social networking sites, such as Facebook. The public is increasingly using these sites for organizing around place-based issues. This research examines the extent to which the public and planners are using social networking sites to organize the public around place-based planning issues. Using content analysis of social networking sites, place-based planning groups are identified and analyzed. The administrators for the groups were contacted to determine their goals and satisfaction with their groups’ work. Planning departments in the same communities were then contacted to determine the degree to which the social networking groups influenced the planning process. The results of this study found that the public primarily organizes to oppose development projects. While on average these groups attract hundreds of people, planners and group administrators report that there is minimal influence on the planning process.     

The Role of Zooplankton Grazing and Nutrient Loading in the Occurrence of Harmful Cyanobacterial Blooms in Florida Bay,USA

Florida Bay is Florida’s (USA) largest estuary and has experienced harmful picocyanobacteria blooms for nearly two decades. While nutrient loading is the most commonly cited cause of algal blooms in Florida Bay, the role of zooplankton grazing pressure in bloom occurrence has not been considered. For this study, the spatial and temporal dynamics of cyanobacteria blooms, the microbial food web, microzooplankton and mesozooplankton grazing rates of picoplankton, and the effects of nutrients on plankton groups in Florida Bay were quantified. During the study, cyanobacteria blooms (>3 × 10⁵ cells mL⁻¹) persisted in the eastern and central regions of Florida Bay for more than a year. Locations with elevated abundance of cyanobacteria hosted microzooplankton grazing rates on cyanobacteria that were significantly lower (p < 0.001) and less frequently detectable compared to sites without blooms. Consistent with this observation, cyanobacteria abundances were significantly correlated with ciliates and heterotrophic nanoflagellates at low cyanobacteria densities (p < 0.001) but were not correlated during bloom events. The experimental enrichment of mesozooplankton abundance during blooms yielded a significant decrease in the net growth rate of picoplankton but had the opposite effect when blooms were absent, suggesting that the cascading effect of mesozooplankton grazing on the microbial food web was also altered during blooms. While inorganic nutrient enrichment significantly increased the net growth rates of eukaryotic phytoplankton and heterotrophic bacteria, such nutrient loading had no effect on the net growth rates of cyanobacteria. Hence, this study demonstrates that low rates of zooplankton grazing and low rates of inorganic nutrient loading contribute to the persistence of cyanobacteria blooms in Florida Bay.     

Time-window-based filtering method for near-surface detection of leakage from geologic carbon sequestration sites

We use process-based modeling techniques to characterize the temporal features of natural biologically controlled surface CO₂ fluxes and the relationships between the assimilation and respiration fluxes. Based on these analyses, we develop a signal-enhancing technique that combines a novel time-window splitting scheme, a simple median filtering, and an appropriate scaling method to detect potential signals of leakage of CO₂ from geologic carbon sequestration sites from within datasets of net near-surface CO₂ flux measurements. The technique can be directly applied to measured data and does not require subjective gap filling or data-smoothing preprocessing. Preliminary application of the new method to flux measurements from a CO₂ shallow-release experiment appears promising for detecting a leakage signal relative to background variability. The leakage index of ±2 was found to span the range of biological variability for various ecosystems as determined by observing CO₂ flux data at various control sites for a number of years.     

Dynamics of CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> fluxes and concentrations during a shallow subsurface CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> release

A field facility located in Bozeman, Montana provides the opportunity to test methods to detect, locate, and quantify potential CO₂ leakage from geologic storage sites. From 9 July to 7 August 2008, 0.3 t CO₂ day⁻¹ were injected from a 100-m long, ~2.5-m deep horizontal well. Repeated measurements of soil CO₂ fluxes on a grid characterized the spatio-temporal evolution of the surface leakage signal and quantified the surface leakage rate. Infrared CO₂ concentration sensors installed in the soil at 30 cm depth at 0–10 m from the well and at 4 cm above the ground at 0 and 5 m from the well recorded surface breakthrough of CO₂ leakage and migration of CO₂ leakage through the soil. Temporal variations in CO₂ concentrations were correlated with atmospheric and soil temperature, wind speed, atmospheric pressure, rainfall, and CO₂ injection rate.     

Multi-spectral imaging of vegetation for detecting CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> leaking from underground

Practical geologic CO₂ sequestration will require long-term monitoring for detection of possible leakage back into the atmosphere. One potential monitoring method is multi-spectral imaging of vegetation reflectance to detect leakage through CO₂-induced plant stress. A multi-spectral imaging system was used to simultaneously record green, red, and near-infrared (NIR) images with a real-time reflectance calibration from a 3-m tall platform, viewing vegetation near shallow subsurface CO₂ releases during summers 2007 and 2008 at the Zero Emissions Research and Technology field site in Bozeman, Montana. Regression analysis of the band reflectances and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index with time shows significant correlation with distance from the CO₂ well, indicating the viability of this method to monitor for CO₂ leakage. The 2007 data show rapid plant vigor degradation at high CO₂ levels next to the well and slight nourishment at lower, but above-background CO₂ concentrations. Results from the second year also show that the stress response of vegetation is strongly linked to the CO₂ sink–source relationship and vegetation density. The data also show short-term effects of rain and hail. The real-time calibrated imaging system successfully obtained data in an autonomous mode during all sky and daytime illumination conditions.     

Formation of submarine flat-topped volcanic cones in Hawai'i

 High-resolution bathymetric mapping has shown that submarine flat-topped volcanic cones, morphologically similar to ones on the deep sea floor and near mid-ocean ridges, are common on or near submarine rift zones of Kilauea, Kohala (or Mauna Kea), Mahukona, and Haleakala volcanoes. Four flat-topped cones on Kohala were explored and sampled with the Pisces V submersible in October 1998. Samples show that flat-topped cones on rift zones are constructed of tholeiitic basalt erupted during the shield stage. Similarly shaped flat-topped cones on the northwest submarine flank of Ni'ihau are apparently formed of alkalic basalt erupted during the rejuvenated stage. Submarine postshield-stage eruptions on Hilo Ridge, Mahukona, Hana Ridge, and offshore Ni'ihau form pointed cones of alkalic basalt and hawaiite. The shield stage flat-topped cones have steep (∼25°) sides, remarkably flat horizontal tops, basal diameters of 1–3 km, and heights <300 m. The flat tops commonly have either a low mound or a deep crater in the center. The rejuvenated-stage flat-topped cones have the same shape with steep sides and flat horizontal tops, but are much larger with basal diameters up to 5.5 km and heights commonly greater than 200 m. The flat tops have a central low mound, shallow crater, or levees that surrounded lava ponds as large as 1 km across. Most of the rejuvenated-stage flat-topped cones formed on slopes <10° and formed adjacent semicircular steps down the flank of Ni'ihau, rather than circular structures. All the flat-topped cones appear to be monogenetic and formed during steady effusive eruptions lasting years to decades. These, and other submarine volcanic cones of similar size and shape, apparently form as continuously overflowing submarine lava ponds. A lava pond surrounded by a levee forms above a sea-floor vent. As lava continues to flow into the pond, the lava flow surface rises and overflows the lowest point on the levee, forming elongate pillow lava flows that simultaneously build the rim outward and upward, but also dam and fill in the low point on the rim. The process repeats at the new lowest point, forming a circular structure with a flat horizontal top and steep pillowed margins. There is a delicate balance between lava (heat) supply to the pond and cooling and thickening of the floating crust. Factors that facilitate construction of such landforms include effusive eruption of lava with low volatile contents, moderate to high confining pressure at moderate to great ocean depth, long-lived steady eruption (years to decades), moderate effusion rates (probably ca. 0.1 km³/year), and low, but not necessarily flat, slopes. With higher effusion rates, sheet flows flood the slope. With lower effusion rates, pillow mounds form. Hawaiian shield-stage eruptions begin as fissure eruptions. If the eruption is too brief, it will not consolidate activity at a point, and fissure-fed flows will form a pond with irregular levees. The pond will solidify between eruptive pulses if the eruption is not steady. Lava that is too volatile rich or that is erupted in too shallow water will produce fragmental and highly vesicular lava that will accumulate to form steep pointed cones, as occurs during the post-shield stage. The steady effusion of lava on land constructs lava shields, which are probably the subaerial analogs to submarine flat-topped cones but formed under different cooling conditions. Received: 30 September 1999 / Accepted: 9 March 2000     

A Post-Cold War Geography of Forced Migration in Kenya and Somalia

Drawing on recent research in the Horn of Africa, emerging patterns of managing forced migration in the post-Cold War landscape are identified and analyzed. While camps continue to house refugees, the meaning and value of ‘refugee’ have changed dramatically since the Cold War. Efforts to prevent people from crossing political borders to seek safety are increasing, giving rise to a new set of safe spaces. These new spaces are expressions of a distinct geopolitical discourse and take the names ‘UN protectedarea’, ‘preventive zone’, and ‘safe haven’. Their significance as a challenge to state-centric geopolitics both within conflict zones and as refugee camps is explored in the Kenya-Somalia context.