Der Beitrag des Flugverkehrs zum Tagesgang der Zirrenbedeckung und der ausgehenden langwelligen Strahlung über dem Nordatlantischen Flugkorridor

Der Flugverkehr trägt durch seine Emissionen auf verschiedene Weise zum Klimawandel bei. Bei der Verbrennung fossiler Treibstoffe entsteht das Treibhausgas Kohlendioxid. Daneben beeinflussen Stickoxidemissionen die Konzentrationen der Treibhausgase Ozon und Methan. Wasserdampfemissionen erhöhen zumindest kurzfristig und lokal die Konzentration dieses Treibhausgases in der Atmosphäre. Zusätzlich bilden sich unter bestimmten atmosphärischen Bedingungen im Nachlauf von Flugzeugen Kondensstreifen. Diese Kondensstreifen können - abhängig von den jeweils herrschenden atmosphärischen Bedingungen - längere Zeit existieren. Dabei verlieren sie im Laufe ihrer Evolution ihre anfänglich linienförmige Gestalt und können infolge von Scherung, Diffusion und Turbulenz in ihrer Erscheinungsform nicht mehr von natürlichen Zirren unterschieden werden. Daher ist es bisher nicht gelungen, diese vom Flugverkehr induzierte Zirrenbedeckung in Messungen verlässlich zu quantifizieren. Frühere Studien beschränkten sich entweder auf die Anwendung von Linienerkennungsverfahren und quantifizierten so den Bedeckungsgrad von Kondensstreifen in verschiedenen Regionen, oder analysierten Langzeittrends der Zirrenbedeckung zur Abschätzung des darin enthaltenen Flugverkehrsbeitrags. Auch bei der Quantifizierung des Strahlungsantriebs und der typischen Wirkungsdauer flugverkehrsinduzierter Zirrenbedeckung gibt es große Unsicherheiten. In dieser Arbeit wird eine neue Methode entwickelt, die in der Lage ist, die gesamte vom Flugverkehr verursachte Änderung der Zirrenbedeckung und die mit ihr verbundene Änderung im langwelligen Strahlungsfluss zu quantifizieren. Die Methode nutzt die Form des Tagesgangs der Flugverkehrsdichte in einem Beobachtungsgebiet. Mithilfe verschiedener Funktionen, die die mittlere Wirkung von Flugverkehrsdichte auf atmosphärische Messgrößen als Funktion des Alters beschreiben, kann der Tagesgang der Flugverkehrsdichte auf einen Tagesgang dieser Messgrößen abgebildet werden. Als solche, Satellitenmessungen zugängliche Messgrößen werden in der Arbeit der lineare Kondensstreifenbedeckungsgrad, der Zirrenbedeckungsgrad und die ausgehende langwellige Strahlungsflussdichte betrachtet. Durch einen Fit des über diese Funktion ermittelten Tagesgangs an den beobachteten Tagesgang - teilweise nach Abzug des natürlicherweise zu erwartenden Tagesgangs - lassen sich die Parameter der Transformationsfunktionen ableiten. Sie erlauben die Quantifizierung der vom Flugverkehr induzierten Wirkung sowie die Ableitung einer typischen Antwortzeit der Atmosphäre auf ein Flugverkehrsereignis. Die Methode erlaubt es, über den bisher mithilfe von Linearitätskriterien bestimmten Bedeckungsgrad von Kondensstreifen hinaus auch gealterte, nicht mehr linienförmige Kondensstreifen zu erfassen und zu quantifizieren. Sie wird auf ein Untersuchungsgebiet im Nordatlantik angewandt, das weite Teile des Nordatlantischen Flugkorridors abdeckt

Radiative heating in contrail cirrus

We developed an effective model (within our contrail cirrus prediction model, CoCiP) which computes the radiative heating rate in both the longwave and shortwave spectral ranges. The model parameterizes the impact of radiative heating on turbulent mixing and sublimation of ice particles in a thin cirrus layer

Diurnal cycle of linear contrails, cirrus, and outgoing longwave radiation in the North Atlantic from MODIS, MSG and models

Cloud cover from linear contrails, cirrus cloud cover, and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) at top of the atmosphere were derived from MSG SEVIRI in a North Atlantic region (NAR) for a period of eight years (Febr 2004- Jan 2012) with 15 min time resolution. The aviation induced contributions to cirrus coverage and OLR in the NAR flight corridor were derived from these data assuming linear response of cirrus and OLR changes to air traffic density and cirrus/OLR background without aviation assumed either constant of as observed in the corresponding South Atlantic region (SAR). Global results were obtained by extrapolating the regional results with global models [Graf et al., 2012; Schumann and Graf, 2013]. Here, the results are compared with linear contrail coverage values derived from MODIS aboard the LEO satellites Terra and Aqua [Duda, Minnis et al., 2013] . The global observations revealed surprisingly high contrail cover in the North Atlantic region. Terra and Aqua overpass times in the NAR are limited to four narrow time intervals and hence cannot resolve the full diurnal cycle. The results are also compared with predictions of contrail cover and OLR forecast by the Contrail and Cirrus Prediction tool CoCiP. CoCiP computes the cirrus and OLR changes for given meteorology and given air traffic. The comparisons show that the LEO observations tend to overestimate the daily mean aviation effects in the NAR because the observations times coincide with times of traffic peaks in the NAR

Effects of the Invasive Freshwater Mussel Limnoperna fortunei on Sediment Properties and Accumulation Rates

Since its introduction into South America around 1990, the freshwater bivalve Limnoperna fortunei (the golden mussel) has spread rapidly and is now a dominant component of the benthic and periphytic fauna in many rivers, lakes, and reservoirs. Sizable impacts of this nonindigenous species on nutrient recycling, plankton abundance and composition, and trophic relationships with fishes have been reported, but its effects on the sediments have received little attention. In this work, we use eighteen 20-L flow-through experimental units with and without mussels where changes in the mass and characteristics of the sediments accumulated throughout a yearly cycle in monthly, biannual, and annual intervals are analyzed. Experimental units with mussels yielded almost 2 times more sediments than units without mussels and contained significantly higher loads of organic matter and total N. Total P was not affected by the presence of mussels. Sediments accumulated in the biannual and annual experimental units agreed well with the yields of the monthly units, but the vertical stratification of organic matter, N, and P was unpatterned. Seasonal changes in the volume of total sediments, biodeposits, and their organic matter and N contents were positively associated with ambient water temperature and with intermediate (~150–250 NTU, nephelometric turbidity units) turbidity. Our results suggest that ecosystem-wide modifications in the living conditions of the benthic epifaunal and infaunal organisms in waterbodies invaded by the mussel are likely significant, although variable locally, regionally, and across taxa.Fil: Tokumon, Romina Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia”; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Boltovskoy, Demetrio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Cataldo, Daniel Hugo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia”; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Development of a high sensitivity label free waveguide interferometry instrument : a project of Creoptix GmbH with the center for Biochemistry ZHAW as main research partner

Creoptix GmbH has developed a novel and innovative technology for label-free detection of molecules based on grating-coupled interferometry (GCI). GCI is a proprietary technology characterized by a very high sensitivity at low technical complexity. One main application will be the measurement of binding affinities in research and development projects such as drug discovery. Goal of an interdisciplinary CTI project with the partners from ZHAW, FHNW and CSEM together with Creoptix is the development of a first GCI instrument including disposables and the optimization of its functionality, followed by field tests to pave the way to market introduction

The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment: Exploring Fundamental Symmetries of the Universe

The preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early Universe, the dynamics of the supernova bursts that produced the heavy elements necessary for life and whether protons eventually decay --- these mysteries at the forefront of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early evolution of our Universe, its current state and its eventual fate. The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment (LBNE) represents an extensively developed plan for a world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions. LBNE is conceived around three central components: (1) a new, high-intensity neutrino source generated from a megawatt-class proton accelerator at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, (2) a near neutrino detector just downstream of the source, and (3) a massive liquid argon time-projection chamber deployed as a far detector deep underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility. This facility, located at the site of the former Homestake Mine in Lead, South Dakota, is approximately 1,300 km from the neutrino source at Fermilab -- a distance (baseline) that delivers optimal sensitivity to neutrino charge-parity symmetry violation and mass ordering effects. This ambitious yet cost-effective design incorporates scalability and flexibility and can accommodate a variety of upgrades and contributions. With its exceptional combination of experimental configuration, technical capabilities, and potential for transformative discoveries, LBNE promises to be a vital facility for the field of particle physics worldwide, providing physicists from around the globe with opportunities to collaborate in a twenty to thirty year program of exciting science. In this document we provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess.Comment: Major update of previous version. This is the reference document for LBNE science program and current status. Chapters 1, 3, and 9 provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess. 288 pages, 116 figure

Combination of temozolomide with immunocytokine F16–IL2 for the treatment of glioblastoma

Glioblastoma patients are still not cured by the treatments available at the moment. We investigated the therapeutic properties of temozolomide in combination with F16-IL2, a clinical-stage immunocytokine consisting of human interleukin (IL)-2 fused to the human antibody F16, specific to the A1 domain of tenascin-C

Functional Clustering Drives Encoding Improvement in a Developing Brain Network during Awake Visual Learning

Sensory experience drives dramatic structural and functional plasticity in developing neurons. However, for single-neuron plasticity to optimally improve whole-network encoding of sensory information, changes must be coordinated between neurons to ensure a full range of stimuli is efficiently represented. Using two-photon calcium imaging to monitor evoked activity in over 100 neurons simultaneously, we investigate network-level changes in the developing Xenopus laevis tectum during visual training with motion stimuli. Training causes stimulus-specific changes in neuronal responses and interactions, resulting in improved population encoding. This plasticity is spatially structured, increasing tuning curve similarity and interactions among nearby neurons, and decreasing interactions among distant neurons. Training does not improve encoding by single clusters of similarly responding neurons, but improves encoding across clusters, indicating coordinated plasticity across the network. NMDA receptor blockade prevents coordinated plasticity, reduces clustering, and abolishes whole-network encoding improvement. We conclude that NMDA receptors support experience-dependent network self-organization, allowing efficient population coding of a diverse range of stimuli.Canadian Institutes of Health Researc

The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment: Exploring Fundamental Symmetries of the Universe

Major update of previous version. This is the reference document for LBNE science program and current status. Chapters 1, 3, and 9 provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess. 288 pages, 116 figuresMajor update of previous version. This is the reference document for LBNE science program and current status. Chapters 1, 3, and 9 provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess. 288 pages, 116 figuresThe preponderance of matter over antimatter in the early Universe, the dynamics of the supernova bursts that produced the heavy elements necessary for life and whether protons eventually decay --- these mysteries at the forefront of particle physics and astrophysics are key to understanding the early evolution of our Universe, its current state and its eventual fate. The Long-Baseline Neutrino Experiment (LBNE) represents an extensively developed plan for a world-class experiment dedicated to addressing these questions. LBNE is conceived around three central components: (1) a new, high-intensity neutrino source generated from a megawatt-class proton accelerator at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, (2) a near neutrino detector just downstream of the source, and (3) a massive liquid argon time-projection chamber deployed as a far detector deep underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility. This facility, located at the site of the former Homestake Mine in Lead, South Dakota, is approximately 1,300 km from the neutrino source at Fermilab -- a distance (baseline) that delivers optimal sensitivity to neutrino charge-parity symmetry violation and mass ordering effects. This ambitious yet cost-effective design incorporates scalability and flexibility and can accommodate a variety of upgrades and contributions. With its exceptional combination of experimental configuration, technical capabilities, and potential for transformative discoveries, LBNE promises to be a vital facility for the field of particle physics worldwide, providing physicists from around the globe with opportunities to collaborate in a twenty to thirty year program of exciting science. In this document we provide a comprehensive overview of LBNE's scientific objectives, its place in the landscape of neutrino physics worldwide, the technologies it will incorporate and the capabilities it will possess

Aviation-induced cirrus and radiation changes at diurnal timescales

The radiative forcing from aviation-induced cirrus is derived from observations and models. The annual-mean diurnal cycle of airtraffic in the North Atlantic region (NAR) exhibits two peaks in early morning and afternoon with different peak times in the western and eastern parts of the NAR. The same "aviation fingerprint" is found in eight years (2004-2011) of Meteosat observations of cirrus cover and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR). The observations are related to airtraffic data with linear response models assuming the background atmosphere without aviation to be similar to that observed in the South Atlantic. The change in OLR is interpreted as aviation-induced longwave radiative forcing (LW RF). The data analysis suggests a LW RF of about 600—900 mW m-2 regionally. A detailed contrail-cirrus model for given global meteorology and airtraffic in 2006 gives similar results. The global RF is estimated from the ratio of global and regional RF as derived from three models. The extrapolation implies about 100--160 mW m-2 global LW RF. The models show large differences in the shortwave/longwave RF-magnitude ratio. One model computes a ratio of 0.6, implying an estimate of global net RF of about 50 (40-80) mW m-2. Other models suggest smaller ratios, with less cooling during day, which would imply considerably larger net effects. The sensitivity of the results to the accuracy of the observations, traffic data, models and the estimated background is discussed