Search results for "atmosphere"
showing 10 items of 673 documents
Recent evolution of the multi-isotopic radioactive content in ice of Livingston Island, Antarctica.
1999
The temporal arrangement of the ice layers that are produced in ecosystems with perpetual snows form situations that greatly favour the study of the temporal evolution of the radioactive fallout that occurs in the said zones, whether this fallout is natural or artificial in origin. This allows one to investigate the causes of the fallout and the mechanisms transporting the radionuclides involved from their source point to the study zone, as well as their subsequent behaviour in that zone. There are special difficulties involved in this type of study in Antarctica. Some are of a general character deriving from the conditions of extreme climate and isolation which complicate the processes of …
Mosses as biomonitors of atmospheric heavy metal deposition : Spatial patterns and temporal trends in Europe
2010
In recent decades, mosses have been used successfully as biomonitors of atmospheric deposition of heavy metals. Since 1990, the European moss survey has been repeated at five-yearly intervals. Although spatial patterns were metal-specific, in 2005 the lowest concentrations of metals in mosses were generally found in Scandinavia, the Baltic States and northern parts of the UK ; the highest concentrations were generally found in Belgium and south-eastern Europe. The recent decline in emission and subsequent deposition of heavy metals across Europe has resulted in a decrease in the heavy metal concentration in mosses for the majority of metals. Since 1990, the concentration in mosses has decli…
Timing and patterns of the ENSO signal in Africa over the last 30 years: insights from normalized difference vegetation index data.
2014
Abstract A more complete picture of the timing and patterns of the ENSO signal during the seasonal cycle for the whole of Africa over the three last decades is provided using the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). Indeed, NDVI has a higher spatial resolution and is more frequently updated than in situ climate databases, and highlights the impact of ENSO on vegetation dynamics as a combined result of ENSO on rainfall, solar radiation, and temperature. The month-by-month NDVI–Niño-3.4 correlation patterns evolve as follows. From July to September, negative correlations are observed over the Sahel, the Gulf of Guinea coast, and regions from the northern Democratic Republic of Congo…
The HADES RV Programme with HARPS-N@TNG. III. Flux-flux and activity-rotation relationships of early-M dwarfs
2016
(Abridged) Understanding stellar activity in M dwarfs is crucial for the physics of stellar atmospheres as well as for ongoing radial velocity exoplanet programmes. Despite the increasing interest in M dwarfs, our knowledge of the chromospheres of these stars is far from being complete. We aim to test whether the relations between activity, rotation, and stellar parameters and flux-flux relationships also hold for early-M dwarfs on the main-sequence. We analyse in an homogeneous and coherent way a well defined sample of 71 late-K/early-M dwarfs that are currently being observed in the framework of the HArps-n red Dwarf Exoplanet Survey (HADES). Rotational velocities are derived using the cr…
Precipitation pattern in the Baltic countries under the influence of large-scale atmospheric circulation and local landscape factors
2010
The main objectives of the study are to analyse the mean precipitation pattern in the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) and the influence of local landscape factors on it, to derive a regionalization, i.e. select regions having coherent fluctuations in precipitation, and to analyse relationships between precipitation and characteristics of the large-scale atmospheric circulation. Monthly precipitation data from 123 stations in the Baltic countries from 1966 to 2005 are analysed in relation to 52 landscape variables and 13 circulation variables. The landscape variables characterize landscape around the meteorological stations: land cover, land surface elevation, distance from the…
Sulfur cycling and methanogenesis primarily drive microbial colonization of the highly sulfidic Urania deep hypersaline basin
2009
Urania basin in the deep Mediterranean Sea houses a lake that is >100 m deep, devoid of oxygen, 6 times more saline than seawater, and has very high levels of methane and particularly sulfide (up to 16 mM), making it among the most sulfidic water bodies on Earth. Along the depth profile there are 2 chemoclines, a steep one with the overlying oxic seawater, and another between anoxic brines of different density, where gradients of salinity, electron donors and acceptors occur. To identify and differentiate the microbes and processes contributing to the turnover of organic matter and sulfide along the water column, these chemoclines were sampled at a high resolution. Bacterial cell numbers…
Assessment of Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes level in ready-to-cook poultry meat: Effect of various high pressure treatments and potassium lac…
2014
International audience; The objective of this study was to develop a probabilistic model in order to determine the contamination level of Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-cook poultry meat, after a high pressure (HP) treatment. The model included four steps: i) Reception of raw meat materials, mincing and mixing meat, ii) Partitioning and packaging into 200-g modified atmosphere packs, iii) High pressure treatment of the meat, and iv) Storage in chilled conditions until the end of the shelf-life. The model excluded the cooking step and consumption at consumer's home as cooking practices and heating times are highly variable. The initial contamination level of Salmonella and…
EFFECT OF PASSIVE ATMOSPHERE AND CHEMICAL TREATMENT ON FRESH CUT OF WHITE-FLESH PEACH CULTIVAR 'SETTEMBRINA DI BIVONA'
2015
Peach germplasm in Italy includes white- and yellow-flesh peaches, all of them characterized by a persistent aroma and an excellent flavor. However, their behavior, in terms of postharvest maintenance and suitability for minimal processing, has never been investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of passive atmosphere and chemical treatment, with 2% ascorbic acid and 1% calcium lactate, in order to prevent fruit browning and to maintain the quality of fresh cut slices of the white-flesh peach cultivar ‘Settembrina di Bivona’. To achieve a passive atmosphere condition, approximately 150 g of peach fruit slices were placed in rigid bi-oriented polystyrene bags and sto…
Quality changes in fresh-cut mango cubes submitted to different gas partial pressure of active MAPs
2018
The study was performed to assess chemical-physical and sensory quality changes in 4±1°C stored fresh-cut mangos and to test the effect of active modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) with different gas partial pressures. Sicilian fruits of ‘Keitt’ mango (Mangifera indica L.) were immerged in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) after being peeled. Next, the flesh was cut in cubes and dipped in citric acid (0.5%, w/v) and ascorbic acid (0.5%, w/v). Treated fruits were placed in a non-perforated high density polyethylene package flushing different gas mixtures and kept at 4°C for 21 days. We used four different gas partial pressures: a) 60 kPa N2, 30 kPa CO2 and 10 kPa O2; b) 30 kPa CO2 and 70 kPa N2; c) …
Evolution of qualitative characteristics during blueberry fruit storage in a modified atmosphere
2015
The objective of this work was to evaluate the performance of different films to maintain MAP conditions for storing ‘Duke’ blueberries by verifying the evolution of qualitative traits of berries. The fruits were picked manually, individually deposited in polyethylene baskets and immediately transferred (1 h) to the laboratory under chilled conditions (10°C). The experimental storage units consisted of a pallet bag of two different types of film, polyethylene (100 μm) and a biobased film derived from starch (50 μm). The O2 and CO2 transmission rates, measured according to the ASTM F 2622-08 and ASTM F 2476-05 methods at 38°C and 90% RH, were, 2642 and 10654 [cm3/(m2·24 h)], respectively, fo…