Search results for "Missions"
showing 10 items of 380 documents
Gas emissions from five volcanoes in northern Chile and implications for the volatiles budget of the Central Volcanic Zone
2014
This study performed the first assessment of the volcanic gas output from the Central Volcanic Zone (CVZ) of northern Chile. We present the fluxes and compositions of volcanic gases (H2O, CO2, H2, HCl, HF, and HBr) from five of the most actively degassing volcanoes in this region—Lascar, Lastarria, Putana, Ollague, and San Pedro—obtained during field campaigns in 2012 and 2013. The inferred gas plume compositions for Lascar and Lastarria (CO2/Stot = 0.9–2.2; Stot/HCl = 1.4–3.4) are similar to those obtained in the Southern Volcanic Zone of Chile, suggesting uniform magmatic gas fingerprint throughout the Chilean arc. Combining these compositions with our own UV spectroscopy measurements of …
A Risk-Based Approach for Mitigating Ethical Lapses
2019
In early 2008, the CEO of Volkswagen announced a 10-year plan that called for tripling the company’s U.S. sales by 2018. The executive gave marching orders to engineers to come up with a new technology that would enable VW to lower emissions of the new cars. The engineers failed to come up with a device that could do the job. Instead they deployed a defeating software would defeat the testing process. The 2009 VW Jetta clean diesel was launched in April 2008 and followed by the introduction of similarly equipped VW Golfs and Audi A3s. Over 145,000 vehicles were sold in the U.S. in three years. The scheme was eventually exposed, costing the company millions of dollars. This paper describes t…
The contribution of volcanic emissions (Etna, Stromboli and Vulcano) to the atmospheric trace metals budget in the Mediterranean basin
2010
Volcanic emissions represent one of the major natural source for several trace metals (Cd, Cu, As, Pb, Hg and Zn) into the atmosphere both as gaseous and aerosol forms. The Mediterranean Sea can be considered a large geochemical sink for these elements whose source are the huge amounts of aerosols of different origin. The industrialized areas located in the northern part of the basin represent a nearly constant source of the anthropogenic-dominated aerosol. By contrast, the arid and desert regions located at the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean, are the sources of frequent dust “pulses” perturbing the “steady-state” conditions of the local atmosphere through the input of seve…
Measurement methodology for greenhouse gas emissions from storage of forest chips–A review
2015
Abstract Research on greenhouse gas emission related to solid biofuels has focused mainly on the emissions from end use and the production chain. GHG emissions from the storage of forest chips have not received much attention in recent literature. In order for EU emission reduction targets to be fully understood, emissions from solid biofuel storage needs to be better described. Usually emissions from chip piles have been modelled using studies from organic waste composting but these two materials can differ appreciably; for example the C/N-ratio and moisture content. Herein, previous studies on greenhouse gas emissions from forest chips piles during storage are reviewed. The objective is t…
Torrefied versus conventional pellet production – A comparative study on energy and emission balance based on pilot-plant data and EU sustainability …
2015
Abstract Torrefaction is an emerging technology which enables greater co-firing rates of biomass with coal. To date however there has been a lack of real production data from pilot-scale torrefaction plants. Without such data any environmental benefits of torrefied pellet production are difficult to quantify. In this study data on consumable inputs from a semi-industrial torrefaction plant and the physical properties of produced pellets are used to analyse energy input and air emissions of torrefied pellet production and product transport. EU sustainability criteria are used to compare CO2-equivalent emissions from torrefied and conventional pellet production starting from harvesting of log…
INNOVAZIONE DEI MATERIALI NATURALI: TERRA E NANOTUBI DI ARGILLA PER UNA SFIDA SOSTENIBILE
2019
All’interno del dibattito culturale che vede la questione ambientale come prioritaria e con riferimento a studi e ricerche che negli ultimi anni hanno promosso materiali compositi a base di terra cruda, gli Autori, consapevoli della necessità che il rapporto fra Progetto e Materia debba assumere una nuova centralità supportato dalle specificità della Tecnologia dell’Architettura, illustrano le risultanze di una sperimentazione che ha l’obiettivo di migliorare le prestazioni della terra cruda con l’apporto delle nanotecnologie, sviluppando un ‘nuovo materiale’ con una ridotta embodied energy e una ridotta quantità di emissioni di CO2 in atmosfera.
Filters for X-Ray Detectors on Space Missions
2022
Thin filters and gas-tight windows are used in space to protect sensitive X-ray detectors from out-of-band electromagnetic radiation, low-energy particles, and molecular contamination. Though very thin and made of light materials, filters are not fully transparent to X-rays. For this reason, they ultimately define the detector quantum efficiency at low energies. In this chapter, we initially provide a brief overview of filter materials and specific designs adopted on space experiments with main focus on detectors operating at the focal plane of grazing incidence X-ray telescopes. We then provide a series of inputs driving the design and development of filters for high-energy astrophysics sp…
LOFT: the Large Observatory For X-ray Timing
2012
The LOFT mission concept is one of four candidates selected by ESA for the M3 launch opportunity as Medium Size missions of the Cosmic Vision programme. The launch window is currently planned for between 2022 and 2024. LOFT is designed to exploit the diagnostics of rapid X-ray flux and spectral variability that directly probe the motion of matter down to distances very close to black holes and neutron stars, as well as the physical state of ultra-dense matter. These primary science goals will be addressed by a payload composed of a Large Area Detector (LAD) and a Wide Field Monitor (WFM). The LAD is a collimated (<1 degree field of view) experiment operating in the energy range 2-50 keV,…
Towards human exploration of space: the THESEUS review series on cardiovascular, respiratory, and renal research priorities
2016
International audience; The THESEUS project (Towards Human Exploration of Space: aEUropean Strategy) was initiated within the seventh FrameworkProgramme by the European Commission. This project aimed toprovide a cross-cutting, life science-based roadmap for Europe’sstrategy towards human exploration of space, especially for deepspace missions and its relevance to applications on Earth. Toaddress these challenges, relevance of space research on thecardiovascular system, the lungs and kidneys, was discussed in anexpert group and its principal conclusions will be presented in thisarticle.
Differential Responses of Nitrate Reducer Community Size, Structure, and Activity to Tillage Systems
2009
ABSTRACT The main objective of this study was to determine how the size, structure, and activity of the nitrate reducer community were affected by adoption of a conservative tillage system as an alternative to conventional tillage. The experimental field, established in Madagascar in 1991, consists of plots subjected to conventional tillage or direct-seeding mulch-based cropping systems (DM), both amended with three different fertilization regimes. Comparisons of size, structure, and activity of the nitrate reducer community in samples collected from the top layer in 2005 and 2006 revealed that all characteristics of this functional community were affected by the tillage system, with increa…