Returning magnetic flux in sunspot penumbrae

We study the presence of reversed polarity magnetic flux in sunspot penumbra. We applied a new regularized method to deconvolve spectropolarimetric data observed with the spectropolarimeter SP onboard Hinode. The new regularization is based on a principal component decomposition of the Stokes profiles. The resulting Stokes profiles were inverted to infer the magnetic field vector using SIR. We find, for the first time, reversed polarity fields at the border of many bright penumbral filaments in the whole penumbra.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in A&A Letter

Spatial deconvolution of spectropolarimetric data: an application to quiet Sun magnetic elements

Observations of the Sun from the Earth are always limited by the presence of the atmosphere, which strongly disturbs the images. A solution to this problem is to place the telescopes in space satellites, which produce observations without any (or limited) atmospheric aberrations. However, even though the images from space are not affected by atmospheric seeing, the optical properties of the instruments still limit the observations. In the case of diffraction limited observations, the PSF establishes the maximum allowed spatial resolution, defined as the distance between two nearby structures that can be properly distinguished. In addition, the shape of the PSF induce a dispersion of the light from different parts of the image, leading to what is commonly termed as stray light or dispersed light. This effect produces that light observed in a spatial location at the focal plane is a combination of the light emitted in the object at relatively distant spatial locations. We aim to correct the effect produced by the telescope's PSF using a deconvolution method, and we decided to apply the code on Hinode/SP quiet Sun observations. We analyze the validity of the deconvolution process with noisy data and we infer the physical properties of quiet Sun magnetic elements after the deconvolution process.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figure

Estimation procedure of the descriptor LAeq,T from the stabilization time of the sound pressure level value

Temporal structure of sound pressure level is a key aspect at the time of characterizing urban sound environments. In urban agglomerations, environmental noise levels fluctuate over a large range as a result of the great complexity of these settings, with considerable temporal and spatial heterogeneity. Furthermore, the domain in urban environments of noise sources, such as road traffic, commercial or leisure activities, construction works, etc., together with the occurrence of sudden sound-level maxima events (bells, sirens, vehicles at high traffic speed, honking horns...), which are quite frequent in urban agglomerations, generate the appearance of very high values of the impulsiveness of sound pressure level. This aspect causes a great influence on the time necessary for environmental noise levels to become stabilized, which is a key aspect for the accurate measurement, interpretation and guarantee of a statistically representative sample of a given urban sound environment. Therefore, the goal pursued in this work is to put forth a procedure for the calculation of a value of LAeq,T, representative of a certain urban location in a short-term time period, from the utilization of the value of the stabilization time of the sound pressure level

AGROCLIMA-SSP v1.0 a tool for Scientific Support to Policies for strategy assessment in agricultural systems under climate change scenarios

A tool to support decision makers in the design of new irrigation planning is being constructed. Information for decision makers (from Agricultural Extension Services to Ministries relating to Infrastructures for Irrigation Planning) on the impacts of climate change on yields and water requirements, as well as the need to consider changes in the cropping areas and systems is difficult to convey because of the uncertainties linked to climate projections. This explains the need for tools to assist evaluation and dissemination of climate impact projections that do not over-simplify, but yet present clear outputs without loss of content. An improved transfer of results on impacts, uncertainties and adaptations that incorporate the feed-back from decision makers can be done through tools that synthesise main conclusions while avoiding generalisations that hide regional differences, and individual crop and cropping options results. These tools should be designed to facilitate participation and interaction of different users or partners, always though the modelling expert, and in this context AGROCLIMA-SSP is being constructed

Genetic characterization of Acipenser sturio L., 1758 in relation to other sturgeon species using satellite DNA

We obtained and characterized a satellite (st) DNA family named HindIII from the genomes of the Adriatic sturgeon Acipenser naccarii Bonaparte, 1836, Siberian sturgeon Acipenser baerii Brandt, 1869, and beluga sturgeon Huso huso (L., 1758). We did not find this stDNA in the genome of the Atlantic sturgeon Acipenser sturio L., 1758. The comparison of sturgeon species using the HindIII stDNA revealed the following: (1) A. naccarii and A. baerii are closely related; (2) H. huso appears to belong to the genus Acipenser and, probably, Huso is not a separate genus within the Acipenserinae; (3) A. sturio differs from the other three studied species by the absence of the HindIII stDNA and, most likely, it represents a separate evolutionary lineage within the Acipenseridae. The data on the HindIII stDNA can be successfully used for species identification of sturgeon specimens captured in different European regions.En este trabajo presentamos la caracterización del genoma de Acipenser sturio L., 1758 en relación con el genoma de Acipenser naccarii Bonaparte, 1836, Acipenser baerii Brandt, 1869 y Huso huso (L., 1758) utilizando una familia de ADN satélite (la familia HindIII). Nuestro análisis revela que: (1) A. naccarii y A. baerii son especies muy emparentadas; (2) H. huso aparece muy relacionada con las especies del género Acipenser y, probablemente, podría ser considerada como una especie perteneciente a dicho género, y (3) A. sturio difiere del resto de las especies analizadas, lo que sugiere que esta especie ha debido seguir una evolución independiente respecto a las otras especies. Estos datos pueden ser muy útiles, no sólo para establecer las relaciones filogenéticas entre A. sturio y las otras especies de Acipenseridae, sino también para la identificación de ejemplares de esturiones capturados en diferentes regiones europeas.Instituto Español de Oceanografí

Role of endogenous cannabinoids in the control of basal ganglia activity

The cannabinoid system is a novel intercellular signaling system that plays a prominent role, among others, in the control of basal ganglia function. This finding can be concluded from the data obtained in different series of anatomical, biochemical, electrophysiological and pharmacological studies. These data demonstrated: (i) that the basal ganglia contain high levels of endocannabinoids and their receptors, mainly including the cannabinoid CB1 receptor subtype but also a related receptor type, the vanilloid TRPV1 receptor; (ii) that the activation or the blockade of this system produces important changes in motor behavior, changes that are originated as a consequence of interactions of the cannabinoid system with various classic neurotransmitters such as GABA, dopamine or glutamate; and (iii) the occurrence of marked changes in specific elements of the cannabinoid signaling system in various basal ganglia disorders, with emphasis in the induction/upregulation of the cannabinoid CB2 receptor subtype. This large evidence relating endocannabinoids and their receptors to the function of the basal ganglia, both in the healthy and the pathological brain, has provided support for the idea that cannabinoid-based medicines, with selectivity for different targets of the cannabinoid signaling system (synthetic enzymes, receptors, inactivation system), might have therapeutic potential to alleviate symptoms and/or provide neuroprotection in basal ganglia disorders, in particular Parkinson´s disease and Huntington´s chorea. The present chapter will review the knowledge on this issue trying to establish the future lines for the research on the therapeutic potential of the cannabinoid signaling system in basal ganglia disorders.peer-reviewe