scholarly journals A local model of snow-firn dynamics and application to Colle Gnifetti site

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabiola Banfi ◽  
Carlo De Michele
Keyword(s):  
Wind Erosion ◽  
Single Layer ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Local Model ◽  
Mean Annual Precipitation ◽  
Run Off ◽  
Glacier Ice ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Monte Rosa

Abstract. The regulating role of glaciers on catchment run-off is of fundamental importance in sustaining people living in low lying areas. The reduction in glacierized areas under the effect of climate change disrupts the distribution and amount of run-off, threatening water supply, agriculture and hydropower. The prediction of these changes requires models that integrate hydrological, nivological and glaciological processes. In this work we propose a local model that combines the nivological and glaciological scales. The model describes the formation and evolution of the snowpack and the firn below it, under the influence of temperature, wind speed and precipitation. The model has been implemented in two versions: (1) a multi-layer one that considers separately each firn layer, and (2) a single-layer one that models firn and underlying glacier ice as a single layer. The model was applied at the site of Colle Gnifetti (Monte Rosa massif, 4400–4550 m a.s.l.). We observed an average reduction of annual snow accumulation due to wind erosion of 2 · 103 kg m−2 y−1 to be compared with a mean annual precipitation of about 2.7 · 103 kg m−2 y−1. The conserved accumulation is made up mainly of snow deposited between April and September, when temperatures above melting point are also observed. End of year snow density, instead, increased in average of 65 kg m−3 when the contribution of wind to snow compaction was added. Observations show a high spatial and interannual variability in the characteristics of snow and firn at the site and a correlation of net balance with radiation and number of melt layers. The computation of snowmelt in the model as a solely function of air temperature may therefore be one of the reasons of the observed mismatch between model and observations.

scholarly journals A local model of snow-firn dynamics and application to Colle Gnifetti site

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabiola Banfi ◽  
Carlo De Michele
Keyword(s):  
Ice Cores ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Local Model ◽  
Momentum Balance ◽  
Distributed Models ◽  
The North ◽  
Run Off ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Monte Rosa

Abstract. The regulating role of glaciers on catchment run-off is of fundamental importance in sustaining people living in low lying areas. The reduction in glacierized areas under the effect of climate change disrupts the distribution and amount of run-off, threatening water supply, agriculture and hydropower. The prediction of these changes requires models that integrate hydrological, nivological and glaciological processes. In this work we propose a local model that combines the nivological and glaciological scales, developed with the aim of a subsequent integration in hydrological distributed models. The model was derived from mass balance, momentum balance and rheological equations and describes the formation and evolution of the snowpack and the firn below it. The model was applied at the site of Colle Gnifetti (Monte Rosa massif, 4400–4550 m a.s.l.). We obtained an average net accumulation of 0.26 · 103 kg m−2 y−1 to be compared with the observed net annual accumulation that increases from about 0.15 · 103 kg m−2 y−1 to about 1.2 · 103 kg m−2 y−1 moving from the north facing to the south facing slope. The model results confirm the strong influence of wind on snow accumulation and densification, observed also from ice cores. The conserved precipitation is made up mainly of snow deposited between May and September, when temperatures above melting point are also observed. Even tough the variability of annual snow accumulation is not well reproduced by the model, the modelled and observed firn densities show a good agreement up to the depth reached by the model with the available input data.

scholarly journals Comparison of FASST and SNTHERM in Three Snow Accumulation Regimes

2008 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1443-1463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Frankenstein ◽  
Anne Sawyer ◽  
Julie Koeberle
Keyword(s):  
Surface Energy ◽  
Single Layer ◽  
Soil Strength ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Dynamic State ◽  
Energy Fluxes ◽  
One Dimensional ◽  
Surface Energy Fluxes ◽  
Snow Model ◽  
Surface Ice

Abstract Numerical experiments of snow accumulation and depletion were carried out as well as surface energy fluxes over four Cold Land Processes Experiment (CLPX) sites in Colorado using the Snow Thermal model (SNTHERM) and the Fast All-Season Soil Strength model (FASST). SNTHERM is a multilayer snow model developed to describe changes in snow properties as a function of depth and time, using a one-dimensional mass and energy balance. The model is intended for seasonal snow covers and addresses conditions found throughout the winter, from initial ground freezing in the fall to snow ablation in the spring. It has been used by many researchers over a variety of terrains. FASST is a newly developed one-dimensional dynamic state-of-the-ground model. It calculates the ground’s moisture content, ice content, temperature, and freeze–thaw profiles as well as soil strength and surface ice and snow accumulation/depletion. Because FASST is newer and not as well known, the authors wanted to determine its use as a snow model by comparing it with SNTHERM, one of the most established snow models available. It is demonstrated that even though FASST is only a single-layer snow model, the RMSE snow depth compared very favorably against SNTHERM, often performing better during the accumulation phase. The surface energy fluxes calculated by the two models were also compared and were found to be similar.

scholarly journals The role of atmospheric rivers in anomalous snow accumulation in East Antarctica

2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (17) ◽  
pp. 6199-6206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina V. Gorodetskaya ◽  
Maria Tsukernik ◽  
Kim Claes ◽  
Martin F. Ralph ◽  
William D. Neff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Atmospheric Rivers

scholarly journals The Role of Radio Loud Phase of Nuclear Activity in Galaxy Formation and Evolution

2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (S304) ◽  
pp. 419-420
Author(s):  
Gabriel A. Ohanian
Keyword(s):  
Galaxy Formation ◽  
Subsequent Development ◽  
Nuclear Activity ◽  
Evolution Of Galaxies ◽  
Galaxy Formation And Evolution ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Key Questions

AbstractKey questions, which arise when one tries to clear up a problem of formation and evolution of galaxies, is the question of energy: what is the energetic budget of AGN owing to form galaxies and provide its subsequent development? Hence, for understanding the formation and evolution of galaxies, it is important to estimate the energetic budget of AGN which we try to do involving radio loud phase of nuclear activity.

scholarly journals Mapping the Distribution of Buried Glacier Ice – An Example From Lago Delle Locce, Monte Rosa, Italian Alps

1986 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 78-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Haeberli ◽  
F. Epifani
Keyword(s):  
Snow Cover ◽  
Seismic Refraction ◽  
Italian Alps ◽  
Frozen Ground ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Winter Snow ◽  
Glacier Ice ◽  
Geoelectrical Resistivity ◽  
Monte Rosa

Techniques for mapping the distribution of buried glacier ice are discussed and the results, from a study carried out within the framework of flood protection work in the Italian Alps, are presented. Bottom temperatures of the winter snow cover (BTS) primarily indicate the heat flow conditions in the underlying ground and mainly depend on the presence or absence of an ice layer beneath the surface. Determination of BTS values is therefore an inexpensive method for quickly mapping the near-surface underground ice in areas where there is 1 m or more of winter snow cover. At greater depths, and/or when more detail is required, geoelectrical resistivity soundings and seismic refraction soundings are most commonly used to investigate underground ice. A combination of the two sounding techniques allows the vertical extent and the main characteristics (frozen ground, dead glacier ice) to be determined in at least a semi-quantitative way. Complications mainly arise from irregularity in the horizontal extension of the studied underground ice bodies, and they may have to be overcome by expensive core drillings and borehole measurements. Widespread occurrence of buried glacier ice was observed in morainic deposits, surrounding an ice-dammed lake near Macugnaga, Italy.

scholarly journals Iridescent structural colour production in male blue-black grassquit feather barbules: the role of keratin and melanin

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (suppl_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafael Maia ◽  
João Victor O Caetano ◽  
Sônia N Báo ◽  
Regina H Macedo
Keyword(s):  
Thin Film ◽  
Natural Variation ◽  
Single Layer ◽  
Coherent Scattering ◽  
Interspecific Variation ◽  
Stray Light ◽  
Main Role ◽  
Minimum Number ◽  
Keratin Layer

Iridescent coloration plays an important role in the visual communication system of many animal taxa. It is known that iridescent structural colours result from layers of materials with different refractive indexes, which in feathers usually are keratin, melanin and air. However, the role of these materials in the production of structural iridescent coloration is still poorly documented. Despite the great interspecific variation in the organization of such structures in bird plumage, melanin layers are usually considered too opaque, suggesting its main role is to delineate the outermost keratin layer and absorb incoherently scattered stray light. We combined spectrometry, electron microscopy and thin-film optical modelling to describe the UV-reflecting iridescent colour of feather barbules of male blue-black grassquits ( Volatinia jacarina ), characterized by a keratin layer overlying a single melanin layer. Our models indicate that both the keratin and the melanin layers are essential for production of the observed colour, influencing the coherent scattering of light. The melanin layer in some barbules may be thin enough to allow interaction with the underlying keratin; however, individuals usually have, on an average, the minimum number of granules that optimizes absorbance by this layer. Also, we show that altering optical properties of the materials resulted in better-fitting models relative to the empirically measured spectra. These results add to previous findings concerning the influence of melanin in single-layer iridescence, and stress the importance of considering natural variation when characterizing such photonic structures.

scholarly journals The Specificities of the Temperature Regime of Seasonaly Freezing Soils of Tundra Landscape of European North East of Russia

2017 ◽  
pp. 3-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. A. Kaverin ◽  
A. V. Pastukhov
Keyword(s):  
Temperature Regime ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Soil Freezing ◽  
North East ◽  
European North ◽  
Soil Temperature Regime ◽  
Taiga Soils ◽  
The Impact

The specificities of temperature regime of automorphic clayey soils forming under the suffruticous and shrub vegetation within the zone of tundra and forest tundra in the European North-East were studied. As the objects of investigation we chose the organic cryometamorphic soils and cryometamorphic gleezems; in the both soil types the CRM cryometamorphic horizon is developed. The soils are formed in conditions of long-termed seasonal freezing at the absence (deep occurrence) of the permafrost rocks. The dynamics near the zero temperatures (zero curtains) is characterized. The hypothesis, concerning the role of zero curtains in the sustaining of the specific angular-grainy structure within the mass of cryometamorphic horizons is formulated. The mass of cryometamorphic horizons and the depth of present-day zero curtains, which observed at the long-term seasonal soil freezing, correlate to each other. The impact of suffruticous and shrub vegetation on the specificities of winter and summer soil temperature regime is determined. We discovered that the main differences between the soils developing under suffruticous and shrub vegetation tundras are stipulated by the different intensity of the snow accumulation within these areas. The soils that are developed under the shrub vegetation are warmer than soils developed under the suffruticous tundra, where permafrost may occur at the depth of 2-3 cm. In general, seasonaly freezing tundra soils are located in the middle of the range of the automorphic clay loamy soils in the tundra-taiga ecotone of European North-East of Russia, and occupy the niche between permafrost tundra and non-permafrost north taiga soils.

scholarly journals Rapid destruction of planetary debris around white dwarfs through aeolian erosion

2021 ◽  
Vol 502 (4) ◽  
pp. 5176-5184
Author(s):  
Mor Rozner ◽  
Dimitri Veras ◽  
Hagai B Perets
Keyword(s):  
White Dwarfs ◽  
Extensive Study ◽  
Destructive Process ◽  
Rapid Destruction ◽  
Aeolian Erosion ◽  
Formation And Evolution ◽  
Destructive Processes ◽  
Solid Bodies ◽  
Erosive Effect

ABSTRACT The discovery of numerous debris discs around white dwarfs (WDs) gave rise to extensive study of such discs and their role in polluting WDs, but the formation and evolution of these discs is not yet well understood. Here, we study the role of aeolian (wind) erosion in the evolution of solids in WD debris discs. Aeolian erosion is a destructive process that plays a key role in shaping the properties and size distribution of planetesimals, boulders, and pebbles in gaseous protoplanetary discs. Our analysis of aeolian erosion in WD debris discs shows that it can also play an important role in these environments. We study the effects of aeolian erosion under different conditions of the disc and its erosive effect on planetesimals and boulders of different sizes. We find that solid bodies smaller than $\sim \! 5 \, \rm {km}$ will be eroded within the short disc lifetime. We compare the role of aeolian erosion in respect to other destructive processes such as collisional fragmentation and thermal ablation. We find that aeolian erosion is the dominant destructive process for objects with radius $\lesssim \! 10^3 \, \rm {cm}$ and at distances $\lesssim \! 0.6 \, \mathrm{R}_\odot$ from the WD. Thereby, aeolian erosion constitutes the main destructive pathway linking fragmentational collisions operating on large objects with sublimation of the smallest objects and Poynting–Robertson drag, which leads to the accretion of the smallest particles on to the photosphere of WDs, and the production of polluted WDs.

scholarly journals Here, there and everywhere – the importance of neutral lipids in plant growth and development

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Zienkiewicz ◽  
Marta Saldat ◽  
Krzysztof Zienkiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Neutral Lipids ◽  
Single Layer ◽  
Pollen Grains ◽  
Dynamic Nature ◽  
Plant Life ◽  
Plant Environment ◽  
Plant Life Cycle ◽  
Diverse Plant

In plants, lipids serve as one of the major and vital cellular constituents. Neutral lipids reserves play an essential role in the plant life cycle by providing carbon and energy equivalents for periods of active metabolism. The most common form of lipid storage are triacylglycerols (TAGs) packed into specialized organelles called lipid droplets (LDs). They have been observed in diverse plant organs and tissues, like oil seeds or pollen grains. LDs consist of a core, composed mostly of TAGs, enclosed by a single layer of phospholipids that is decorated by a unique set of structural proteins. Moreover, the recent advances in exploration of LDs proteome revealed a plethora of diverse proteins interacting with LDs. This is likely the result of a highly dynamic nature of these organelles and their involvement in many diverse aspect of cellular metabolism, tightly synchronized with plant developmental programs and directly related to plant-environment interactions. In this review we summarize and discuss the current progress in understanding the role of LDs and their cargo during plants life cycle, with a special emphasis on developmental aspects.

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