Forest operations,tree species composition and decline in rainfall explain runoff changes in the Nacimiento experimental catchments,south central Chile

Few long-term studies have explored how intensively managed short rotation forest plantations interact with climate variability. We examine how prolonged severe drought and forest operations affect runoff in 11 experimental catchments on private corporate forest land near Nacimiento in south central Chile over the period 2008–2019. The catchments (7.7–414 ha) contain forest plantations of exotic fast-growing species (Pinus radiata, Eucalyptus spp.) at various stages of growth in a Mediterranean climate (mean long-term annual rainfall = 1381 mm). Since 2010, a drought, unprecedented in recent history, has reduced rainfall at Nacimiento by 20%, relative to the long-term mean. Pre-drought runoff ratios were <0.2 under 8-year-old Eucalyptus; >0.4 under 21-year-old Radiata pine and >0.8 where herbicide treatments had controlled vegetation for 2 years in 38% of the catchment area. Early in the study period, clearcutting of Radiata pine (85%–95% of catchment area) increased streamflow by 150 mm as compared with the year before harvest, while clearcutting and partial cuts of Eucalyptus did not increase streamflow. During 2008–2019, the combination of emerging drought and forestry treatments (replanting with Eucalyptus after clearcutting of Radiata pine and Eucalyptus) reduced streamflow by 400–500 mm, and regeneration of previously herbicide-treated vegetation combined with growth of Eucalyptus plantations reduced streamflow by 1125 mm (87% of mean annual precipitation 2010–2019). These results from one of the most comprehensive forest catchment studies in the world on private industrial forest land indicate that multiple decades of forest management have reduced deep soil moisture reservoirs. This effect has been exacerbated by drought and conversion from Radiata pine to Eucalyptus, apparently largely eliminating subsurface supply to streamflow. The findings reveal tradeoffs between wood production and water supply, provide lessons for adapting forest management to the projected future drier climate in Chile, and underscore the need for continued experimental work in managed forest plantations.     

Geography Deserts: State and Regional Variation in the Formal Opportunity to Learn Geography in the United States, 2005–2015

The formal opportunity to learn geography in the United States is unevenly distributed across space, creating possible geography deserts. Data on the number of exams taken in Advanced Placement Human Geography (APHG) and bachelor’s degrees earned in geography are mapped at the state and regional scales. Normalized rates are ranked and grouped into quintiles. For APHG exams, states in the southeastern region of the United States are in the uppermost quintiles while states in the northeastern region are in the lowermost quintiles. The pattern for bachelor’s degrees in geography is somewhat the spatial inverse of that for APHG.     

A WKBJ spectral method for computation of SV synthetic seismograms in a cylindrically symmetric medium

Summary. A method of synthetic seismogram computation for teleseismic SV -waves is developed in order to treat quantitatively SV -waves in problems of body wave source inversion and source—receiver structure studies. The method employs WKBJ theory for a generalized ray in a vertically inhomogeneous half-space and the propagator matrix technique for waves in near-surface homogeneous layers. Wavenumber integration is done along the real axis of the wavenumber plane and anelasticity is included by using complex velocity in all regions of the earth model. The near-surface source structure is taken into account in the computation for the case of the shallow source by allowing a point source to be located in the homogeneous layers. Source and receiver area structures are also allowed to differ. A general moment tensor point source is considered.     

CCD photometry inVRI bands of the galactic cluster NGC 2818

bdAbstract The open cluster NGC 2818 containing a planetary nebula has been observed inVRI bands using the CCD system at prime focus of the 2.3-metre Vainu Bappu Telescope. The study extending to starsV ∼ 21 magnitude establishes the distance modulus as(m-M) ₀ = 12.9 ±0.1 for the cluster. Based on the fitting of theoretical isochrones computed for solar metallicity, an age of 5(±1) × 10₈ years has been assigned to the cluster. Association of the planetary nebula with the cluster indicates that the progenitor mass of the planetary nebula on the main sequence is ≥2.5M_⊙ Based on observations obtained with the Vainu Bappu Telescope.     

The mass ratio of Nova Muscae 1991

We report intermediate resolution H spectroscopy of the black hole candidate Nova Muscae 1991 during quiescence. We classify the companion star as a K3-K4V which contributes 85±6 percent to the total flux from the binary. The photospheric absorption lines are broadened by 106±13 kms⁻¹ with respect to template field stars, leading to a system mass ratio of q =M₁/M₂ = 7.8_−2.0^+3.4. Doppler imaging of the H line shows strong emission coming from the secondary star (EW=3.1±0.6Å) which we associate with chromospheric activity. However, the hot-spot is not detected and this may indicate a lower mass transfer rate than in other X-ray transients of comparable orbital periods. The surface brightness distribution of the accretion disk in H follows a relation I∝R^−1.1, less steep than typically observed in cataclysmic variables. Updated system parameters are also presented.     

Near-Infrared Imaging Spectrophotometry Of Comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) Near Perihelion

We present 1- to 5-μm broadband and CVF images of comet Hale-Bopp taken 1997 February 10.5 UT, 50 days before perihelion. All the images exhibit a nonspherical coma with a bright “ridge” in the direction of the dust tail approximately 10″ from the coma. Synthetic aperture spectrophotometry implies that the optically important grains are of a radius ≤0.4 μm; smallest radius for any comet seen to date. The variation of the integrated surface brightness with radial distance from the coma (ρ) in all the images closely follows the “steady state” ρ⁻¹ model for comet dust ablation (Gehrz and Ney, 1992). The near-infrared colors taken along the dust tail are not constant implying the dust grain properties vary with coma distance. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The NAIAD experiment for WIMP searches at Boulby mine and recent results

The NAIAD experiment (NaI Advanced Detector) for weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) dark matter searches at Boulby mine (UK) is described. The detector consists of an array of encapsulated and unencapsulated NaI(Tl) crystals with high light yield. Six crystals are collecting data at present. Data accumulated by four of them (10.6 kg × year exposure) have been used to set upper limits on the WIMP–nucleon spin-independent and WIMP–proton spin-dependent cross-sections. Pulse shape analysis has been applied to discriminate between nuclear recoils, as may be caused by WIMP interactions, and electron recoils due to gamma background. Various calibrations of crystals are presented.     

The D-CIXS X-ray mapping spectrometer on SMART-1

The D-CIXS Compact X-ray Spectrometer will provide high quality spectroscopic mapping of the Moon, the primary science target of the ESA SMART-1 mission. D-CIXS consists of a high throughput spectrometer, which will perform spatially localised X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. It will also carry a solar monitor, to provide the direct calibration needed to produce a global map of absolute lunar elemental abundances, the first time this has been done. Thus it will achieve ground breaking science within a resource envelope far smaller than previously thought possible for this type of instrument, by exploiting two new technologies, swept charge devices and micro-structure collimators. The new technology does not require cold running, with its associated overheads to the spacecraft. At the same time it will demonstrate a radically novel approach to building a type of instrument essential for the BepiColombo mission and potential future planetary science targets.