Black Carbon Contribution to the Aerosol Phase and its Scavenged Fraction in Mixed Phase Clouds at the High Alpine Site Jungfraujoch (3580m asl)

The mass fraction of black carbon (BC) in the atmospheric aerosol and its mixing state are important for the direct aerosol climate effect. These properties also determine if BC is incorporated into cloud hydrometeors (i.e. droplets and ice crystals) and are important because the microphysical and optical properties of the cloud are altered (indirect aerosol effect). Measurements were performed during several Cloud and Aerosol Characterization Experiments, in winter 2004 (CLACE3), summer 2004 (CLACE3.5), winter 2005 (CLACE4) and summer 2005 (CLACE4.5) at the high Alpine research station Jungfraujoch (3580 m asl)

Ground deformation analysis at Campi Flegrei (Southern Italy) by CGPS and tide-gauge network

Campi Flegrei caldera is located 15 km west of the city of Naples, within the central-southern sector of a large graben called Campanian Plain. It is an active volcanic area marked by a quasi-circular caldera depression, formed by a huge ignimbritic eruption occurred about 37000 years ago. This caldera was generated by several collapses produced by strong explosive eruptions (the last eruption, occurred in 1538, built an about 130 m spatter cone called Mt. Nuovo). Campi Flegrei area periodically experiences significant deformation episodes, with uplift phenomena up to more than 3.5 m in 15 years (from 1970 to 1984), which caused during 1983-84 the temporary evacuation of about 40000 people from the ancient part of Pozzuoli town. The deformation field obtainable by CGPS and tidegauge stations plays an important role for the modelling and interpretation of volcanic phenomena, as well as for forecasting purposes. The structural complexity of the Campi Flegrei area, together with the evidence of a strong interaction between magmatic chamber and shallow geothermal system, calls for a detailed characterization of the substructure and of magma-water interaction processes. The incoming experiment of deep drilling, down to about 4 km, will give detailed structural and physical constraints able to resolve the intrinsic ambiguities of geophysical data and in particular geodetic ones. In this poster we describe the recent ground deformations at Campi Flegrei area by means of GPS technique and tide gauge stations, discussing the possible interpretations also in light of further constraints likely coming from the next CFDDP (Campi Flegrei Deep Drilling) deep drilling experiment

Results from the CERN pilot CLOUD experiment

During a 4-week run in October–November 2006, a pilot experiment was performed at the CERN Proton Synchrotron in preparation for the Cosmics Leaving OUtdoor Droplets (CLOUD) experiment, whose aim is to study the possible influence of cosmic rays on clouds. The purpose of the pilot experiment was firstly to carry out exploratory measurements of the effect of ionising particle radiation on aerosol formation from trace H2SO4 vapour and secondly to provide technical input for the CLOUD design. A total of 44 nucleation bursts were produced and recorded, with formation rates of particles above the 3 nm detection threshold of between 0.1 and 100 cm -3 s -1, and growth rates between 2 and 37 nm h -1. The corresponding H2O concentrations were typically around 106 cm -3 or less. The experimentally-measured formation rates and htwosofour concentrations are comparable to those found in the atmosphere, supporting the idea that sulphuric acid is involved in the nucleation of atmospheric aerosols. However, sulphuric acid alone is not able to explain the observed rapid growth rates, which suggests the presence of additional trace vapours in the aerosol chamber, whose identity is unknown. By analysing the charged fraction, a few of the aerosol bursts appear to have a contribution from ion-induced nucleation and ion-ion recombination to form neutral clusters. Some indications were also found for the accelerator beam timing and intensity to influence the aerosol particle formation rate at the highest experimental SO2 concentrations of 6 ppb, although none was found at lower concentrations. Overall, the exploratory measurements provide suggestive evidence for ion-induced nucleation or ion-ion recombination as sources of aerosol particles. However in order to quantify the conditions under which ion processes become significant, improvements are needed in controlling the experimental variables and in the reproducibility of the experiments. Finally, concerning technical aspects, the most important lessons for the CLOUD design include the stringent requirement of internal cleanliness of the aerosol chamber, as well as maintenance of extremely stable temperatures (variations below 0.1 °C

Hierapolis di Frigia fra tarda antichità e XI secolo: l'apporto dello studio degli spazi domestici nell'insula 104

Il riferimento è al 2007, ma l'anno della pubblicazione è il settembre 2009

Aerosol-Cloud Interactions in the Lower Free Troposphere as Measured at the High Alpine Research Station Jungfraujoch in Switzerland

Within the WMO Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) program continuous measurements of aerosol parameters have been performed at the Jungfraujoch high Alpine site since 1988. This measurement site is located on an exposed mountain col in the Bernese Alps, Switzerland, at 3580 meters altitude. Throughout the year the station is within clouds about 40% of the time. In warm months, the site is influenced by injection of planetary boundary layer air into the free troposphere during sunny afternoons due to thermal convection, while in winter it is usually in the undisturbed free troposphere. Several intensive field studies, named CLACE (Cloud and Aerosol Characterization Experiment), have been performed in both summer and winter within international collaborations. State-of-the-art instrumentation is employed to characterize the aerosol size distribution (Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer, SMPS; Optical Particle Counter, OPC). The University of Manchester and the Max Planck Institute in Mainz operated two Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometers (AMS) to measure the size segregated chemical composition. Other measured parameters were the hygroscopic properties of the particles (Hygroscopicity Tandem Differential Mobility Analyzer, H-TDMA), cloud microphysics (Particulate Volume Monitor, PVM; Forward Scattering Spectrometer Probe, FSSP; Cloud Particle Imager, CPI), and particle morphology (Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope, ESEM). An Air Ion Spectrometer (AIS) and an outdoor SMPS were also employed. The latter two instruments are especially well suited to measure nanometer sized particles (charged particles and sum of neutral and charged particles, respectively) in order to elucidate their formation mechanisms and rates. Different inlets are used for these instruments: A heated inlet (25°C) designed to prevent ice build-up and to evaporate cloud particles at an early stage, ensuring that the cloud condensation nuclei and/or ice nuclei are also sampled. This is called the total inlet. An interstitial inlet operated with a PM2 cyclone impactor removed all cloud droplets and ice crystals from the ambient air. Within a cloud the sampled air thus represents the interstitial (or unactivated) aerosol fraction. In addition, the Institute for Tropospheric Research (IFT) operated a Counterflow Virtual Impactor (CVI, Mertes et al., 2005). The CVI was part of a new prototype sampling system (Ice-CVI) that allows for the separation of small ice particles from large ice crystals, cloud droplets and interstitial aerosol particles. The extracted ice particles are dried airborne in the system and the remaining residual particles which correspond to the former ice nuclei were analyzed with a variety of different instruments. Differencing the response downstream of the different inlets provides insight in the fractionation of aerosol particles between the cloud phase and the interstitial phase

Corrigendum: Internet Blogs, Polar Bears, and Climate-Change Denial by Proxy.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1093/biosci/bix133.]

Internet Blogs, Polar Bears, and Climate-Change Denial by Proxy

Increasing surface temperatures, Arctic sea-ice loss, and other evidence of anthropogenic global warming (AGW) are acknowledged by every major scientific organization in the world. However, there is a wide gap between this broad scientific consensus and public opinion. Internet blogs have strongly contributed to this consensus gap by fomenting misunderstandings of AGW causes and consequences. Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) have become a “poster species” for AGW, making them a target of those denying AGW evidence. Here, focusing on Arctic sea ice and polar bears, we show that blogs that deny or downplay AGW disregard the overwhelming scientific evidence of Arctic sea-ice loss and polar bear vulnerability. By denying the impacts of AGW on polar bears, bloggers aim to cast doubt on other established ecological consequences of AGW, aggravating the consensus gap. To counter misinformation and reduce this gap, scientists should directly engage the public in the media and blogosphere