Galaxy-Galaxy Lensing by Non-Spherical Haloes I:Theoretical Considerations

We use Monte Carlo simulations to investigate the theory of galaxy-galaxy lensing by non-spherical dark matter haloes. The simulations include a careful accounting of the effects of multiple deflections. In a typical data set where the mean tangential shear of sources with redshifts zs ~ 0.6 is measured with respect to the observed symmetry axes of foreground galaxies with redshifts zl ~ 0.3, the signature of anisotropic galaxy-galaxy lensing differs substantially from the expectation that one would have in the absence of multiple deflections. The observed ratio of the mean tangential shears, g+/g-, is strongly suppressed compared to the function that one would measure if the intrinsic symmetry axes of the foreground galaxies were known. Depending upon the characteristic masses of the lenses, the observed ratio of the mean tangential shears may be consistent with an isotropic signal (despite the fact that the lenses are non-spherical), or it may even be reversed from the expected signal (i.e., the mean tangential shear for sources close to the observed minor axes of the lenses may exceed the mean tangential shear for sources close to the observed major axes of the lenses). These effects are caused primarily by the fact that the lens galaxies have, themselves, been lensed and therefore the observed symmetry axes of the lenses differ from their intrinsic symmetry axes. The effects of lensing of the foreground galaxies on the observed function g+/g- cannot be eliminated by the rejection of foreground galaxies with small image ellipticities, nor by focusing the analysis on sources that are located very close to the observed symmetry axes of the foreground galaxies. We conclude that any attempt to use a measurement of g+/g- to constrain the shapes of dark matter galaxy haloes must include Monte Carlo simulations that take multiple deflections properly into account.Comment: 15 pages, 17 figures, submitted to MNRAS, full manuscript with high-resolution version of Fig. 4 can be found at http://firedrake.bu.edu/preprints/preprints.htm

Increased bacterial growth efficiency with environmental variability: results from DOC degradation by bacteria in pure culture experiments.

This paper assesses how considering variation in DOC availability and cell maintenance in bacterial models affects Bacterial Growth Efficiency (BGE) estimations. For this purpose, we conducted two biodegradation experiments simultaneously. In experiment one, a given amount of substrate was added to the culture at the start of the experiment whilst in experiment two, the same amount of substrate was added, but using periodic pulses over the time course of the experiment. Three bacterial models, with different levels of complexity, (the Monod, Marr-Pirt and the dynamic energy budget – DEB – models), were used and calibrated using the above experiments. BGE has been estimated using the experimental values obtained from discrete samples and from model generated data. Cell maintenance was derived experimentally, from respiration rate measurements. The results showed that the Monod model did not reproduce the experimental data accurately, whereas the Marr-Pirt and DEB models demonstrated a good level of reproducibility, probably because cell maintenance was built into their formula. Whatever estimation method was used, the BGE value was always higher in experiment two (the periodically pulsed substrate) as compared to the initially one-pulsed-substrate experiment. Moreover, BGE values estimated without considering cell maintenance (Monod model and empirical formula) were always smaller than BGE values obtained from models taking cell maintenance into account. Since BGE is commonly estimated using constant experimental systems and ignore maintenance, we conclude that these typical methods underestimate BGE values. On a larger scale, and for biogeochemical cycles, this would lead to the conclusion that, for a given DOC supply rate and a given DOC consumption rate, these BGE estimation methods overestimate the role of bacterioplankton as CO<sub>2</sub> producers

Record-breaking ozone loss in the Arctic winter 2010/2011: comparison with 1996/1997

We present a detailed discussion of the chemical and dynamical processes in the Arctic winters 1996/1997 and 2010/2011 with high resolution chemical transport model (CTM) simulations and space-based observations. In the Arctic winter 2010/2011, the lower stratospheric minimum temperatures were below 195 K for a record period of time, from December to mid-April, and a strong and stable vortex was present during that period. Simulations with the Mimosa-Chim CTM show that the chemical ozone loss started in early January and progressed slowly to 1 ppmv (parts per million by volume) by late February. The loss intensified by early March and reached a record maximum of ~2.4 ppmv in the late March–early April period over a broad altitude range of 450–550 K. This coincides with elevated ozone loss rates of 2–4 ppbv sh^(−1) (parts per billion by volume/sunlit hour) and a contribution of about 30–55% and 30–35% from the ClO-ClO and ClO-BrO cycles, respectively, in late February and March. In addition, a contribution of 30–50% from the HO_x cycle is also estimated in April. We also estimate a loss of about 0.7–1.2 ppmv contributed (75%) by the NO_x cycle at 550–700 K. The ozone loss estimated in the partial column range of 350–550 K exhibits a record value of ~148 DU (Dobson Unit). This is the largest ozone loss ever estimated in the Arctic and is consistent with the remarkable chlorine activation and strong denitrification (40–50%) during the winter, as the modeled ClO shows ~1.8 ppbv in early January and ~1 ppbv in March at 450–550 K. These model results are in excellent agreement with those found from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder observations. Our analyses also show that the ozone loss in 2010/2011 is close to that found in some Antarctic winters, for the first time in the observed history. Though the winter 1996/1997 was also very cold in March–April, the temperatures were higher in December–February, and, therefore, chlorine activation was moderate and ozone loss was average with about 1.2 ppmv at 475–550 K or 42 DU at 350–550 K, as diagnosed from the model simulations and measurements