Energetic particle influence on the Earth's atmosphere

This manuscript gives an up-to-date and comprehensive overview of the effects of energetic particle precipitation (EPP) onto the whole atmosphere, from the lower thermosphere/mesosphere through the stratosphere and troposphere, to the surface. The paper summarizes the different sources and energies of particles, principally galactic cosmic rays (GCRs), solar energetic particles (SEPs) and energetic electron precipitation (EEP). All the proposed mechanisms by which EPP can affect the atmosphere are discussed, including chemical changes in the upper atmosphere and lower thermosphere, chemistry-dynamics feedbacks, the global electric circuit and cloud formation. The role of energetic particles in Earth’s atmosphere is a multi-disciplinary problem that requires expertise from a range of scientific backgrounds. To assist with this synergy, summary tables are provided, which are intended to evaluate the level of current knowledge of the effects of energetic particles on processes in the entire atmosphere

Opportunity and justice: building a valuable and sustaining educational experience for disenfranchised and disengaged youth

Building a valuable and sustainable educational experience for disenfranchised and disengaged youth remains a challenge for secondary schools. This article examines successful schools located in areas of deprivation through the lens of Rawlsianism, particularly those ideas stated in A Theory of Justice (1971). Case studies from 16 schools located in England and Wales are examined for characteristics identified by heads, teachers and pupils which support their overcoming low performance, poverty and social disadvantage. The article reports both the 15-year quantitative outcomes of the schools on national performance measures and qualitative findings on strategies used by the schools and students to reach comparatively higher levels of success than students at more privileged schools reach. Central to these characteristics is the schools' ability to offer adequate basic rights or opportunities to all pupils. These schools were able to diminish social and economic inequalities for the least-advantaged students without diminishing these same opportunities for all students

Observations of ozone transport from the free troposphere to the Los Angeles basin

Analysis of in situ airborne measurements from the CalNex 2010 field experiment (Research at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change) show that ozone in the boundary layer over Southern California was increased by downward mixing of air from the free troposphere (FT). The chemical composition, origin, and transport of air upwind and over Los Angeles, California, were studied using measurements of carbon monoxide (CO), ozone, reactive nitrogen species, and meteorological parameters from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration WP-3D aircraft on 18 research flights in California in May and June 2010. On six flights, multiple vertical profiles from 0.2-3.5 km above ground level were conducted throughout the Los Angeles (LA) basin and over the Pacific Ocean. Gas phase compounds measured in 32 vertical profiles are used to characterize air masses in the FT over the LA basin, with the aim of determining the source of increased ozone observed above the planetary boundary layer (PBL). Four primary air mass influences were observed regularly in the FT between approximately 1 and 3.5 km altitude: upper tropospheric air, long-range transport of emissions, aged regional emissions, and marine air. The first three air mass types accounted for 89% of the FT observations. Ozone averaged 71 ppbv in air influenced by the upper troposphere, 69 ppbv in air containing emissions transported long distances, and 65 ppbv in air with aged regional emissions. Correlations between ozone and CO, and ozone and nitric acid, demonstrate entrainment of ozone from the FT into the LA PBL. Downward transport of ozone-rich air from the FT into the PBL contributes to the ozone burden at the surface in this region and makes compliance with air quality standards challenging