172 research outputs found
Climate and site management as driving factors for the atmospheric greenhouse gas exchange of a restored wetland
The atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) budget of a restored wetland in western Denmark was established for the years 2009â2011 from eddy covariance measurements of carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) and methane (CH<sub>4</sub>) fluxes. The water table in the wetland, which was restored in 2002, was unregulated, and the vegetation height was limited through occasional grazing by cattle and grass cutting. The annual net CO<sub>2</sub> uptake varied between 195 and 983 g m<sup>â2</sup> and the annual net CH<sub>4</sub> release varied between 11 and 17 g m<sup>â2</sup>. In all three years the wetland was a carbon sink and removed between 42 and 259 g C m<sup>â2</sup> from the atmosphere. However, in terms of the full annual GHG budget (assuming that 1 g CH<sub>4</sub> is equivalent to 25 g CO<sub>2</sub> with respect to the greenhouse effect over a time horizon of 100 years) the wetland was a sink in 2009, a source in 2010 and neutral in 2011. Complementary observations of meteorological factors and management activities were used to explain the large inter-annual variations in the full atmospheric GHG budget of the wetland. The largest impact on the annual GHG fluxes, eventually defining their sign, came from site management through changes in grazing duration and animal stocking density. These changes accounted for half of the observed variability in the CO<sub>2</sub> fluxes and about two thirds of the variability in CH<sub>4</sub> fluxes. An unusually long period of snow cover in 2010 had the second largest effect on the annual CO<sub>2</sub> flux, whose interannual variability was larger than that of the CH<sub>4</sub> flux. Since integrated CO<sub>2</sub> and CH<sub>4</sub> flux data from restored wetlands are still very rare, it is concluded that more long-term flux measurements are needed to quantify the effects of ecosystem disturbance, in terms of management activities and exceptional weather patterns, on the atmospheric GHG budget more accurately
It is not just a âtradeâoffâ: : indications for sinkâ and sourceâlimitation to vegetative and regenerative growth in an oldâgrowth beech forest
Summary Controls on tree growth are key issues in plant physiology. The hypothesis of our study was that the interannual variability of wood and fruit production are primarily controlled directly by weather conditions (sink limitation), while carbon assimilation (source limitation) plays a secondary role. We analyzed the interannual variability of weather conditions, gross primary productivity (GPP) and net primary productivity (NPP) of wood and fruits of an oldâgrowth, unmanaged Fagus sylvatica forest over 14 yr, including six mast years. In a multiple linear regression model, c . 71% of the annual variation in woodâNPP could be explained by mean air temperature in May, precipitation from April to May (positive influence) and fruitâNPP (negative influence). GPP of June to July solely explained c . 42% of the variation in woodâNPP. FruitâNPP was positively related to summer precipitation 2 yr before ( R 2 = 0.85), and negatively to precipitation in May ( R 2 = 0.83) in the fruit years. GPP had no influence on fruitâNPP. Our results suggest a complex system of sink and source limitations to tree growth driven by weather conditions and going beyond a simple carbonâmediated âtradeâoffâ between regenerative and vegetative growth
Fiscal Centralization, Limited Government, and Public Revenues in Europe, 1650-1913
Old Regime polities typically suffered from fiscal fragmentation and absolutist rule. By the start of World War I, however, many such countries had centralized institutions and limited government. This article uses a new panel data set to perform a statistical analysis of political regimes and public revenues in Europe from 1650 to 1913. Panel regressions indicate that centralized and limited regimes were associated with significantly higher revenues than fragmented and absolutist ones. Structural break tests also suggest close relationships between major turning points in revenue series and political transformations
Standardisation of eddy-covariance flux measurements of methane and nitrous oxide
Commercially available fast-response analysers for methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) have recently become more sensitive, more robust and easier to operate. This has made their application for long-term flux measurements with the eddycovariance method more feasible. Unlike for carbon dioxide (CO2) and water vapour (H2O), there have so far been no guidelines on how to optimise and standardise the measurements. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art of the various steps of the measurements and discusses aspects such as instrument selection, setup and maintenance, data processing as well as the additional measurements needed to aid interpretation and gap-filling. It presents the methodological protocol for eddy covariance measurements of CH4 and N2O fluxes as agreed for the ecosystem station network of the pan-European Research Infrastructure Integrated Carbon Observation System and provides a first international standard that is suggested to be adopted more widely. Fluxes can be episodic and the processes controlling the fluxes are complex, preventing simple mechanistic gap-filling strategies. Fluxes are often near or below the detection limit, requiring additional care during data processing. The protocol sets out the best practice for these conditions to avoid biasing the results and long-term budgets. It summarises the current approach to gap-filling.Peer reviewe
The Integrated Carbon Observation System in Europe
Since 1750, land-use change and fossil fuel combustion has led to a 46% increase in the atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations, causing global warming with substantial societal consequences. The Paris Agreement aims to limit global temperature increases to well below 2 degrees C above preindustrial levels. Increasing levels of CO2 and other greenhouse gases (GH6s), such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), in the atmosphere are the primary cause of climate change. Approximately half of the carbon emissions to the atmosphere are sequestered by ocean and land sinks, leading to ocean acidification but also slowing the rate of global warming. However, there are significant uncertainties in the future global warming scenarios due to uncertainties in the size, nature, and stability of these sinks. Quantifying and monitoring the size and timing of natural sinks and the impact of climate change on ecosystems are important information to guide policy-makers' decisions and strategies on reductions in emissions. Continuous, long-term observations are required to quantify GHG emissions, sinks, and their impacts on Earth systems. The Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) was designed as the European in situ observation and information system to support science and society in their efforts to mitigate climate change. It provides standardized and open data currently from over 140 measurement stations across 12 European countries. The stations observe GHG concentrations in the atmosphere and carbon and GHG fluxes between the atmosphere, land surface, and the oceans. This article describes how ICOS fulfills its mission to harmonize these observations, ensure the related long-term financial commitments, provide easy access to well-documented and reproducible high-quality data and related protocols and tools for scientific studies, and deliver information and GHG-related products to stakeholders in society and policy.Peer reviewe
The Electron Capture in Ho Experiment - a Short Update
The definition of the absolute neutrino mass scale is one of the main goals of the Particle Physics today. The study of the end-point regions of the ÎČ- and electron capture (EC) spectrum offers a possibility to determine the effective electron (anti-)neutrino mass in a completely model independent way, as it only relies on the energy and momentum conservation.
The ECHo (Electron Capture in 163Ho) experiment has been designed in the attempt to measure the effective mass of the electron neutrino by performing high statistics and high energy resolution measurements of the 163 Ho electron capture spectrum. To achieve this goal, large arrays of low temperature metallic magnetic calorimeters (MMCs) implanted with with 163Ho are used. Here we report on the structure and the status of the experiment
State Capacity and Long-Run Economic Performance
Almost final version of the paperWe present new evidence about the long-run relationship between state capacity { the
scal and administrative power of states { and economic performance. Our database is novel
and spans 11 European countries and 4 centuries from the Old Regime to World War I. We
argue that national governments undertook two political transformations over this period:
fi scal centralisation and limited government. We fund a signifi cant direct relationship between
fiscal centralisation and economic growth. Furthermore, we fi nd that an increase in the state's
capacity to extract greater tax revenues was one mechanism through which both political
transformations improved economic performance. Our analysis shows systematic evidence that
state capacity is an important determinant of long-run economic growth
Geophysical and atmospheric evolution of habitable planets
The evolution of Earth-like habitable planets is a complex process that depends on the geodynamical and geophysical environments. In particular, it is necessary that plate tectonics remain active over billions of years. These geophysically active environments are strongly coupled to a planet's host star parameters, such as mass, luminosity and activity, orbit location of the habitable zone, and the planet's initial water inventory. Depending on the host star's radiation and particle flux evolution, the composition in the thermosphere, and the availability of an active magnetic dynamo, the atmospheres of Earth-like planets within their habitable zones are differently affected due to thermal and nonthermal escape processes. For some planets, strong atmospheric escape could even effect the stability of the atmosphere
Towards long-term standardised carbon and greenhouse gas observations for monitoring Europe's terrestrial ecosystems : a review
Research infrastructures play a key role in launching a new generation of integrated long-term, geographically distributed observation programmes designed to monitor climate change, better understand its impacts on global ecosystems, and evaluate possible mitigation and adaptation strategies. The pan-European Integrated Carbon Observation System combines carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG; CO2, CH4, N2O, H2O) observations within the atmosphere, terrestrial ecosystems and oceans. High-precision measurements are obtained using standardised methodologies, are centrally processed and openly available in a traceable and verifiable fashion in combination with detailed metadata. The Integrated Carbon Observation System ecosystem station network aims to sample climate and land-cover variability across Europe. In addition to GHG flux measurements, a large set of complementary data (including management practices, vegetation and soil characteristics) is collected to support the interpretation, spatial upscaling and modelling of observed ecosystem carbon and GHG dynamics. The applied sampling design was developed and formulated in protocols by the scientific community, representing a trade-off between an ideal dataset and practical feasibility. The use of open-access, high-quality and multi-level data products by different user communities is crucial for the Integrated Carbon Observation System in order to achieve its scientific potential and societal value.Peer reviewe
PDRs4All IV. An embarrassment of riches: Aromatic infrared bands in the Orion Bar
(Abridged) Mid-infrared observations of photodissociation regions (PDRs) are
dominated by strong emission features called aromatic infrared bands (AIBs).
The most prominent AIBs are found at 3.3, 6.2, 7.7, 8.6, and 11.2 m. The
most sensitive, highest-resolution infrared spectral imaging data ever taken of
the prototypical PDR, the Orion Bar, have been captured by JWST. We provide an
inventory of the AIBs found in the Orion Bar, along with mid-IR template
spectra from five distinct regions in the Bar: the molecular PDR, the atomic
PDR, and the HII region. We use JWST NIRSpec IFU and MIRI MRS observations of
the Orion Bar from the JWST Early Release Science Program, PDRs4All (ID: 1288).
We extract five template spectra to represent the morphology and environment of
the Orion Bar PDR. The superb sensitivity and the spectral and spatial
resolution of these JWST observations reveal many details of the AIB emission
and enable an improved characterization of their detailed profile shapes and
sub-components. While the spectra are dominated by the well-known AIBs at 3.3,
6.2, 7.7, 8.6, 11.2, and 12.7 m, a wealth of weaker features and
sub-components are present. We report trends in the widths and relative
strengths of AIBs across the five template spectra. These trends yield valuable
insight into the photochemical evolution of PAHs, such as the evolution
responsible for the shift of 11.2 m AIB emission from class B in
the molecular PDR to class A in the PDR surface layers. This
photochemical evolution is driven by the increased importance of FUV processing
in the PDR surface layers, resulting in a "weeding out" of the weakest links of
the PAH family in these layers. For now, these JWST observations are consistent
with a model in which the underlying PAH family is composed of a few species:
the so-called 'grandPAHs'.Comment: 25 pages, 10 figures, to appear in A&
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