Multidecadal Changes in the Relationship between ENSO and Wet-Season Precipitation in the Arabian Peninsula

Abstract Multidecadal variations in the relationship between El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Arabian Peninsula rainfall are investigated using observed data for the last 60 years and various atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM) experiments. The wet season in the Arabian Peninsula from November to April was considered. The 6-month averaged Arabian rainfall was negatively correlated with ENSO for an earlier 30-yr period from 1950 to 1979 and positively correlated to ENSO for a more recent period from 1981 to 2010. The multidecadal variations can be attributed to the variations in Indian Ocean SST anomalies accompanied by ENSO. In the early 30-yr period, ENSO accompanied relatively large SST anomalies in the Indian Ocean, whereas in the recent 30-yr period it accompanied relatively small SST anomalies in the Indian Ocean. The atmospheric anomalies in the Arabian region during ENSO are combined responses to the Pacific and Indian Ocean SST anomalies, which offset each other during ENSO. The recent El Niño events accompanied negative 200-hPa geopotential height (GH) anomalies over the Arabian region, mainly forced by the Pacific SST anomalies, resulting in an increase of precipitation over the region. In contrast, in the early 30-yr period, Indian Ocean SST anomalies played a dominant role in the atmospheric responses over the Arabian region during ENSO, and the negative GH anomalies and more precipitation over the Arabian region were mainly forced by the negative SST anomalies over the Indian Ocean, which appeared during La Niña. These observed findings are confirmed by various AGCM experiments

Second harmonic generation and photochromic grating in polyurethane films containing diazo isoxazole chromophore

The chromophoric intermediate: 2,2′-({4-[(E)-(5-methylisoxazol-3-yl)diazenyl]phenyl}-imino)diethanol was used in polyaddition reaction with di-isocyanate to obtain a new polyurethane polymeric material showing nonlinear optical and photochromic properties. The maximum absorption band of the polymer film was at 418 nm. The illumination of the film with crossed beams of the 488 nm Ar+ laser yielded surface relief grating of regular structure. Measurement of the frequency doubling signal with 1064 nm laser indicated the polymer as interesting material for photooptical applications. The measured nonlinear optical coefficient, d33, reached 90.2 pm/V

Atlantic Ocean influence on Middle East summer surface air temperature

Middle East surface air temperature (ME-SAT), during boreal summer (June to August: JJA), shows robust multidecadal variations for the period 1948−2016. Here, using observational and reanalysis datasets, as well as coupled atmosphere–ocean model simulations, we linked the observed summer ME-SAT variability to the multidecadal variability of sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic Ocean (AMV). This Atlantic−ME connection during summer involves ocean–atmosphere interactions through multiple ocean basins, with an influence from the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. The downstream response to Atlantic SST is a weakening of the subtropical westerly jet stream that impacts summer ME-SAT variability through a wave-like pattern in the upper tropospheric levels. The Atlantic SST response is further characterized by positive geopotential height anomalies in the upper levels over the Eurasian region and a dipole-like pressure distribution over the ME in lower levels. For positive Atlantic SST anomalies this pressure gradient initiates anomalous low-level southerly flow, which transports moisture from the neighboring water bodies toward the extremely hot and dry ME landmass. The increase in atmospheric moisture reduces the longwave radiation damping of the SAT anomaly, increasing further ME-SAT. A suite of Atlantic Pacemaker experiments skillfully reproduces the North Atlantic–ME teleconnection. Our findings reveal that in observations and models the Atlantic Ocean acts as a critical pacemaker for summer ME-SAT multidecadal variability and that a positive AMV can lead to enhanced summer warming over the Middle East

Nuclear Structure Calculations with Coupled Cluster Methods from Quantum Chemistry

We present several coupled-cluster calculations of ground and excited states of 4He and 16O employing methods from quantum chemistry. A comparison of coupled cluster results with the results of exact diagonalization of the hamiltonian in the same model space and other truncated shell-model calculations shows that the quantum chemistry inspired coupled cluster approximations provide an excellent description of ground and excited states of nuclei, with much less computational effort than traditional large-scale shell-model approaches. Unless truncations are made, for nuclei like 16O, full-fledged shell-model calculations with four or more major shells are not possible. However, these and even larger systems can be studied with the coupled cluster methods due to the polynomial rather than factorial scaling inherent in standard shell-model studies. This makes the coupled cluster approaches, developed in quantum chemistry, viable methods for describing weakly bound systems of interest for future nuclear facilities.Comment: 10 pages, Elsevier latex style, Invited contribution to INPC04 proceedings, to appear in Nuclear Physics

Canalization of the evolutionary trajectory of the human influenza virus

Since its emergence in 1968, influenza A (H3N2) has evolved extensively in genotype and antigenic phenotype. Antigenic evolution occurs in the context of a two-dimensional 'antigenic map', while genetic evolution shows a characteristic ladder-like genealogical tree. Here, we use a large-scale individual-based model to show that evolution in a Euclidean antigenic space provides a remarkable correspondence between model behavior and the epidemiological, antigenic, genealogical and geographic patterns observed in influenza virus. We find that evolution away from existing human immunity results in rapid population turnover in the influenza virus and that this population turnover occurs primarily along a single antigenic axis. Thus, selective dynamics induce a canalized evolutionary trajectory, in which the evolutionary fate of the influenza population is surprisingly repeatable and hence, in theory, predictable.Comment: 29 pages, 5 figures, 10 supporting figure

Wild boar visits to commercial pig farms in southwest England: implications for disease transmission.

Contact between wild animals and farmed livestock may result in disease transmission with huge financial, welfare and ethical consequences. Conflicts between people and wildlife can also arise when species such as wild boar (Sus scrofa) consume crops or dig up pasture. This is a relatively recent problem in England where wild boar populations have become re-established in the last 20 years following a 500-year absence. The aim of this pilot study was to determine if and how often free-living wild boar visited two commercial pig farms near the Forest of Dean in southwest England. We placed 20 motion-sensitive camera traps at potential entry points to, and trails surrounding, the perimeter of two farmyards housing domestic pigs between August 2019 and February 2021, covering a total of 6030 trap nights. Forty wild boar detections were recorded on one farm spread across 27 nights, with a median (range) of 1 (0 to 7) night of wild boar activity per calendar month. Most of these wild boar detections occurred between ten and twenty metres of housed domestic pigs. No wild boar was detected at the other farm. These results confirm wild boar do visit commercial pig farms, and therefore, there is potential for contact and pathogen exchange between wild boar and domestic pigs. The visitation rates derived from this study could be used to parameterise disease transmission models of pathogens common to domestic pigs and wild boars, such as the African swine fever virus, and subsequently to develop mitigation strategies to reduce unwanted contacts

Towards a unified generic framework to define and observe contacts between livestock and wildlife: a systematic review

Wild animals are the source of many pathogens of livestock and humans. Concerns about the potential transmission of economically important and zoonotic diseases from wildlife have led to increased surveillance at the livestock-wildlife interface. Knowledge of the types, frequency and duration of contacts between livestock and wildlife is necessary to identify risk factors for disease transmission and to design possible mitigation strategies. Observing the behaviour of many wildlife species is challenging due to their cryptic nature and avoidance of humans, meaning there are relatively few studies in this area. Further, a consensus on the definition of what constitutes a ‘contact’ between wildlife and livestock is lacking. A systematic review was conducted to investigate which livestock-wildlife contacts have been studied and why, as well as the methods used to observe each species. Over 30,000 publications were screened, of which 122 fulfilled specific criteria for inclusion in the analysis. The majority of studies examined cattle contacts with badgers or with deer; studies involving wild pig contacts with cattle or with domestic pigs were the next most frequent. There was a range of observational methods including motion-activated cameras and global positioning system collars. As a result of the wide variation and lack of consensus in the definitions of direct and indirect contacts, we developed a unified framework to define livestock-wildlife contacts that is sufficiently flexible to be applied to most wildlife and livestock species for non-vector-borne diseases. We hope this framework will help standardise the collection and reporting of contact data; a valuable step towards being able to compare the efficacy of wildlife-livestock observation methods. In doing so, it may aid the development of better disease transmission models and improve the design and effectiveness of interventions to reduce or prevent disease transmission

Effects of partial triple excitations in atomic coupled cluster calculations

In this article we study the effects of higher body excitations in the relativistic CC calculations for atoms and ions with one valence electron using Fock-space CCSD, CCSD(T) and its unitary variants. The present study demonstrates that CCSD(T) estimates the ionization potentials (IPs) and the valence electron removal energies quite accurately for alkali atoms and singly ionized alkaline earth ions, but yields unphysical energy levels for atoms and/or ions with partially filled sub-shell like C II. We further demonstrate that the higher body excitation effects can be incorporated more effectively through the unitary coupled cluster theory (UCC) compared to the CCSD(T) method.Comment: 5 EPS figures, Latex 2