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At least 451 records · Page 25

Recent Amplified Global Gross Primary Productivity Due to Temperature Increase is Offset by Reduced Productivity Due to Water Constraints

Satellite remote sensing observationsshow an increased greenness trend over land in recent decades. Whilegreennessobservationscanindicateincreased productivity, estimation of total annual productivity is highly dependent on vegetation response to climate and environmental conditions. Models have been struggling to determinehow much carbon is taken up by plants as a result of increased atmospheric CO2fertilization. Current remote sensing light use efficiency (LUE) models contain considerable uncertainty due to the lack of spatial and temporal variability in maximum LUE parameter and climate sensitivity defined for global plantfunctional types (PFTs). We usedthe optimum LUE (LUEopt) previously derived fromtheglobal FLUXNET network to improve estimation of global gross primary productivity (GPP)for the period 1982–2016. Our results indicateincreasing GPP in northern latitudesowing to reduced cold temperature constraintson plant growth, thereby suggesting increasing negative carbon-climate feedbackin high latitudes. In the tropics, by contrast, our results indicate an emerging positive climate feedback,mainly due to increasing atmospheric vapor pressure deficit(VPD).Further pervasive VPD increase is likely to continue to reduce global GPPand amplify carbon emissions.

Climate change↗

Chandra spectral measurements of the O supergiant ζ Puppis indicate a surprising increase in the wind mass-loss rate over 18 yr

New long Chandra grating observations of the O supergiant ζ Pup show not only a brightening of the X-ray emission line flux of 13 per cent in the 18 yr since Chandra’s first observing cycle, but also clear evidence – at more than 4σsignificance – of increased wind absorption signatures in its Doppler-broadened line profiles. We demonstrate this with non-parametric analysis of the profiles as well as Gaussian fitting and then use line-profile model fitting to derive a mass-loss rate of 2.47±0.09×10−6Myr−1, which is a 40 per cent increase over the value obtained from the cycle 1 data. The increase in the individual emission line fluxes is greater for short-wavelength lines than long-wavelength lines, as would be expected if a uniform increase in line emission is accompanied by an increase in the wavelength-dependent absorption by the cold wind in which the shock-heated plasma is embedded.

David H. Cohen↗

Continued Increases of Gross Primary Production in Urban Areas During 2000–2016

Urbanization affects vegetation within city administrative boundary and nearby rural areas. Gross primary production (GPP) of vegetation in global urban areas is one of important metrics for assessing the impacts of urbanization on terrestrial ecosystems. To date, very limited data and information on the spatial-temporal dynamics of GPP in the global urban areas are available. In this study, we reported the spatial distribution and temporal dynamics of annual GPP during 2000–2016 from 8,182 gridcells (0.5° by 0.5° latitude and longitude) that have various proportion of urban areas. Approximately 79.3% of these urban gridcells had increasing trends of annual GPP during 2000-2016. As urban area proportion (%) within individual urban gridcells increased, the means of annual GPP trends also increased. Our results suggested that for those urban gridcells, the negative effect of urban expansion (often measured by impervious surfaces) on GPP was to large degree compensated by increased vegetation within the gridcells, mostly driven by urban management and local climate and environment. Our findings on the continued increases of annual GPP in most of urban gridcells shed new insight on the importance of urban areas on terrestrial carbon cycle and the potential of urban management and local climate and environment on improving vegetation in urban areas.

Yaoping Cui↗

Virus Infection of Phytoplankton Increases Average Molar Mass and Reduces Hygroscopicity of Aerosolized Organic Matter

Viral infection of phytoplankton is a pervasive mechanism of cell death and bloom termination, which leads to the production of dissolved and colloidal organic matter that can be aerosolized into the atmosphere. Earth-observing satellites can track the growth and death of phytoplankton blooms on weekly time scales but the impact of viral infection on the cloud forming potential of associated aerosols is largely unknown. Here, we determine the influence of viral-derived organic matter, purified viruses, and marine hydrogels on the cloud condensation nuclei activity of their aerosolized solutions, compared to organic exudates from healthy phytoplankton. Dissolved organic material derived from exponentially growing and infected cells of well-characterized eukaryotic phytoplankton host-virus systems, including viruses from diatoms, coccolithophores and chlorophytes, was concentrated, desalted, and nebulized to form aerosol particles composed of primarily of organic matter. Aerosols from infected phytoplankton cultures resulted in an increase in critical activation diameter and average molar mass in three out of five combinations evaluated, along with a decrease in organic kappa (hygroscopicity) compared to healthy cultures and seawater controls. The infected samples also displayed evidence of increased surface tension depression at realistic cloud water vapor supersaturations. Amending the samples with xanthan gum to simulate marine hydrogels increased variability in organic kappa and surface tension in aerosols with high organic to salt ratios. Our findings suggest that the pulses of increased dissolved organic matter associated with viral infection in surface waters may increase the molar mass of dissolved organic compounds relative to surface waters occupied by healthy phytoplankton or low phytoplankton biomass.

Atmospheric science↗

Landslide Hazard is Projected to Increase Across High Mountain Asia

High Mountain Asia has long been known as a hotspot for landslide risk, and studies have suggested that landslide hazard is likely to increase in this region over the coming decades. Extreme precipitation may become more frequent, with a nonlinear response relative to increasing global temperatures. However, these changes are geographically varied. This article maps probable changes to landslide hazard, as shown by a landslide hazard indicator (LHI) derived from downscaled precipitation and temperature. In order to capture the nonlinear response of slopes to extreme precipitation, a simple machine-learning model was trained on a database of landslides across High Mountain Asia to develop a regional LHI. This model was applied to statistically downscaled data from the 30 members of the Seamless System for Prediction and Earth System Research large ensembles to produce a range of possible outcomes under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways 2-4.5 and 5-8.5. The LHI reveals that landslide hazard will increase in most parts of High Mountain Asia. Absolute increases will be highest in already hazardous areas such as the Central Himalaya, but relative change is greatest on the Tibetan Plateau. Even in regions where landslide hazard declines by year 2100, it will increase prior to the mid-century mark. However, the seasonal cycle of landslide occurrence will not change greatly across High Mountain Asia. Although substantial uncertainty remains in these projections, the overall direction of change seems reliable. These findings highlight the importance of continued analysis to inform disaster risk reduction strategies for stakeholders across High Mountain Asia.

Thomas A Stanley↗

A Simulated High CO 2 Spaceflight Environment Increases Plant Preference for Ammonium as a Nitrogen Source.

Future long-duration missions will require a sustainable supply of food to support human crews. The spaceflight cabin environment often contains very high concentrations of CO 2 due to release of CO 2 by astronauts that is not completely scrubbed from the cabin, and it is therefore crucial to understand plant responses to elevated CO 2 (eCO 2 ) environments. Much focus has been given to changes in plant photosynthetic and performance parameters in response to eCO 2 , but the effects of eCO 2 on nitrogen (N) uptake are poorly understood. Shoot nitrate reduction may be reduced at eCO 2 , likely due to less reductant available for nitrate reduction because of reduced photorespiration and increased carbon fixation 1. Relative growth rate can be reduced at eCO 2 when N is provided only as nitrate and can be unaffected when N is supplied as ammonium. However, N uptake in response to eCO 2 has, to our knowledge, not yet been studied. An increased ‘preference’ for plants to take up N as ammonium at eCO 2 could have important implications for growth in the space environment, where N is currently only supplied as nitrate. In this study, novel stable isotope approaches were used in conjunction with hydroponics and isotope ratio mass spectrometry to determine the effect of eCO 2 on N preference for ammonium or nitrate in spring barley and lettuce when both N forms are provided equally. Several varieties of spring barley displayed increased ammonium preference at eCO 2 (720 ppm) compared to ambient CO 2 (410 ppm), though this was not true for all varieties. In most cases, increases in ammonium preference were driven by increases in ammonium uptake at eCO 2 and not decreases in nitrate uptake. Current research is assessing whether similar responses are observed in the candidate space crop lettuce, at levels of CO 2 like those observed on ISS (3000 ppm), and these results will also be presented. This work will enable the development of optimized nutrient regimes for candidate crops in space environments and the selection of crop varieties adapted to eCO 2 environments. Plants adapted to ammonium nutrition may play a role in future plant-based bioregenerative life support systems with higher ammonium concentrations due to waste recycling. Moreover, this research will further our understanding of plant responses to the eCO 2 environment brought about by climate change, allowing the development of future-proof crops that will help to maintain food security.

nitrogen↗

A Simulated High CO 2 Spaceflight Environment Increases Plant Preference for Ammonium as a Nitrogen Source

Long-duration exploration missions will require a sustainable supply of food to support human crews. The spaceflight environment contains high concentrations of CO 2 due to release by astronauts that cannot be completely scrubbed. It is therefore crucial to understand plant responses to elevated CO 2 (eCO 2 ) environments. Nitrogen (N) is crucial for plant survival, though the effects of eCO 2 on plant N uptake remain poorly understood. Shoot nitrate reduction may be reduced at eCO 2 , due to reduced reductant availability for nitrate reduction due to reduced photorespiration and increased carbon fixation. Relative growth rate may be reduced at eCO 2 when N is provided only as nitrate and can be unaffected when N is supplied as ammonium, suggesting eCO 2 may drive increased plant ‘preference’ for ammonium. However, changes in N preference in response to eCO 2 have, to our knowledge, not yet been studied. In this study, novel stable isotope approaches were used in conjunction with hydroponics and isotope ratio mass spectrometry to determine the effect of space station-like eCO 2 (3000 ppm) on preference for ammonium or nitrate in several lettuce varieties previously grown in space, when both N forms are provided equally. All varieties displayed significant ammonium preference irrespective of CO 2 concentration, however the extent of this preference varied. Increased ammonium preference was observed for all varieties at eCO 2 compared to ambient CO 2 (410 ppm), driven by increases in nitrogen uptake which plants disproportionately took up as ammonium. These results suggest that future nutrient formulations should favor ammonium as a major N source for space crop production. Moreover, increased ammonium preference may play a role in future plant-based bioregenerative life support systems with higher ammonium concentrations due to waste recycling. Additionally, this research furthers our understanding of plant responses to future high CO 2 climates, allowing the development of future-proof crops to maintain food security.

space crop production↗

Vegetation Greening Mitigates the Impacts of Increasing Extreme Rainfall on Runoff Events

Future flood risk assessment has primarily focused on heavy rainfall as the main driver, with the assumption that projected increases in extreme rain events will lead to subsequent flooding. However, the presence of and changes in vegetation have long been known to influence the relationship between rainfall and runoff. Here, we extract historical (1850–1880) and projected (2070–2100) daily extreme rainfall events, the corresponding runoff, and antecedent conditions simulated in a prominent large Earth system model ensemble to examine the shifting extreme rainfall and runoff relationship. Even with widespread projected increases in the magnitude (78% of the land surface) and number (72%) of extreme rainfall events, we find projected declines in event-based runoff ratio (runoff/rainfall) for a majority (57%) of the Earth surface. Runoff ratio declines are linked with decreases in antecedent soil water driven by greater transpiration and canopy evaporation (both linked to vegetation greening) compared to areas with runoff ratio increases. Using a machine learning regression tree approach, we find that changes in canopy evaporation is the most important variable related to changes in antecedent soil water content in areas of decreased runoff ratios (with minimal changes in antecedent rainfall) while antecedent ground evaporation is the most important variable in areas of increased runoff ratios. Our results suggest that simulated interactions between vegetation greening, increasing evaporative demand, and antecedent soil drying are projected to diminish runoff associated with extreme rainfall events, with important implications for society.

soil moisture↗

Localized Flow Modification to Increase Power Capture of a Small-Scale Floating Undershot Waterwheel

The goal of the work described in this thesis is to design a flow augmentation device to increase the power capture and efficiency of a small-scale floating Under-Shot Water Wheel (USWW) currently being developed by Florida Atlantic University research funded by the U.S Department of Energy. The flow concentrator subsystem is intended to maximize the kinetic energy extracted by the marine hydrokinetic (MHK) energy collection device through modification of the local flow field across the capture plane. The primary objective is to increase the velocity and/or rate of mass inflow through the turbine through inserting a streamlined body in the region of interest. By utilizing the resulting flow field to increase hydraulic forcing on the waterwheel blades, the torque and/or RPM of the USWW can be increased. Based on experimental testing in the FAU wave tank at 1:5 prototype scale (280 mm wheel diameter) the flow concentrator was shown to produce an increase in device power coefficient of 17-55% measured over a velocity range of 0.16-0.45 m/s.

Hess, Sullivan↗

Geothermally warmed soils reveal persistent increases in the respiratory costs of soil microbes contributing to substantial C losses

Increasing temperatures can accelerate soil organic matter decomposition and release large amounts of CO 2 to the atmosphere, potentially inducing positive warming feedbacks. Alterations to the temperature sensitivity and physiological functioning of soil microorganisms may play a key role in these carbon (C) losses. Geothermally active areas in Iceland provide stable and continuous soil temperature gradients to test this hypothesis, encompassing the full range of warming scenarios projected by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for the northern region. We took soils from these geothermal sites 7 years after the onset of warming and incubated them at varying temperatures and substrate availability conditions to detect persistent alterations of microbial physiology to long-term warming. Seven years of continuous warming ranging from 1.8 to 15.9 °C triggered a 8.6–58.0% decrease on the C concentrations in the topsoil (0–10 cm) of these sub-arctic silt-loam Andosols. The sensitivity of microbial respiration to temperature (Q 10 ) was not altered. However, soil microbes showed a persistent increase in their microbial metabolic quotients (microbial respiration per unit of microbial biomass) and a subsequent diminished C retention in biomass. After an initial depletion of labile soil C upon soil warming, increasing energy costs of metabolic maintenance and resource acquisition led to a weaker capacity of C stabilization in the microbial biomass of warmer soils. This mechanism contributes to our understanding of the acclimated response of soil respiration to in situ soil warming at the ecosystem level, despite a lack of acclimation at the physiological level. Furthermore, persistent increases in the respiratory costs of soil microbes in response to warming constitute a fundamental process that should be incorporated into climate change-C cycling models.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Global Crop Production: Adaptation to Temperature Increase Is Possible by Maintaining the Current Growing Periods

Increasing temperature trends are expected to impact yields of major field crops by affecting various plant processes, such as phenology and growth. However, future projections, especially at the global scale, do not consider any agronomic adaptation in farming practices. We use an ensemble of seven Global Gridded Crop Models (GGCMs) contributing to the AgMIP-Gridded project to quantify the impacts and adaptation potential of field crops under increasing temperature. We study how uniform warming scenarios up to 6 K affect the productivity and growing period duration of five major crops. The design of the experiment aims at understanding adaptation measures targeted to temperature-driven impacts and therefore leaves out changes in any other climate variable. We find that, without adaptation the dominant effect of temperature increase is to shorten the growing period and to reduce yields and production, consistently across crops and regions. We then test the potential of two agronomic measures to contrast warming-induced yield reduction, assuming that (i) cultivars with adjusted phenology would be used to regain the reference growing period duration; (ii) rainfed systems would be converted to irrigated. Despite substantial uncertainties in model parametrization and little agreement in spatial patterns, at the global aggregation, model results are robust. We find that up to 3 K of temperature increase, production losses could be fully compensated by maintaining the original crop growing period. Irrigation would also compensate production losses, but would not reduce the temperature impacts. Across regions, the model ensemble estimates larger adaptation potentials from unchanged growing periods in continental and temperate regions, than in tropical and arid regions, where also irrigation has respectively little effects and availability.

Irrigation↗

Increase in the Intensity of Postmonsoon Bay of Bengal Tropical Cyclones

The post-monsoon (October-November) tropical cyclone (TC) season in the Bay of Bengal has spawned many of the deadliest storms in recorded history. Here it is shown that the intensity of post-monsoon Bay of Bengal TCs, and the contribution of major TCs to total TC power, increased during 1981-2010. It is found that changes in environmental parameters are responsible for the observed increases in TC intensity. Increases in sea surface temperature and upper ocean heat content made the ocean more conducive to TC development, while enhanced convective instability made the atmosphere more favorable for the growth of TCs. The largest changes in the atmosphere and ocean occurred in the eastern Bay of Bengal, where nearly all major TCs form. These changes are part of positive linear trends, suggesting that the intensity of post-monsoon Bay of Bengal TCs may continue to increase in the future.

Bay of Bengal↗

Increased stream discharge after the 3 September 2016 M w 5.8 Pawnee, Oklahoma earthquake

Earthquakes influence hydrogeological processes and properties in Earth's crust, some of which affect surface waters. Here we document increased discharge in a stream after the 3 September 2016 M w 5.8 earthquake near Pawnee, Oklahoma, an event likely induced by underground wastewater disposal. Discharge increased by an order of magnitude and remained elevated until the change was obscured by rain 1 week later. Given the earthquake magnitude and distance from the stream, by comparison with previous examples of responses to earthquakes, increased discharge after this earthquake is expected. While the mechanism increasing discharge cannot be confirmed, the observations require changes in physical properties of the subsurface. Fluid injection may thus influence hydrogeological properties of shallow groundwater systems and aquifers indirectly by inducing seismicity, if the induced seismic events are large enough.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Unrealized Global Temperature Increase: Implications of Current Uncertainties

Unrealized increase in global mean surface air temperature (GMST) may result from the climate system not being in steady state with forcings and/or from cessation of negative aerosol forcing that would result from decreases in emissions. An observation-constrained method is applied to infer the dependence of Earth's climate sensitivity on forcing by anthropogenic aerosols within the uncertainty on that forcing given by the Fifth (2013) Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Within these uncertainty ranges the increase in GMST due to temperature lag for future forcings held constant is slight (0.09–0.19 K over 20 years; 0.12–0.26 K over 100 years). However the incremental increase in GMST that would result from a hypothetical abrupt cessation of sources of aerosols could be quite large, but is highly uncertain, 0.1–1.3 K over 20 years. Decrease in CO2 abundance and forcing following abrupt cessation of emissions would offset these increases in GMST over 100 years by as little as 0.09 K to as much as 0.8 K. The uncertainties quantified here greatly limit confidence in projections of change in GMST that would result from any strategy for future reduction of emissions.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Dopant-Dependent Increase in Seebeck Coefficient and Electrical Conductivity in Blended Polymers with Offset Carrier Energies

The strong and counterproductive interrelationship of thermoelectric parameters remains a bottleneck to improving thermoelectric performance, especially in polymer-based materials. In this paper, we decouple the electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient, achieving increases in at least one of these two parameters while the other is maintained or slightly increased as well. This is done using an alkylthio-substituted polythiophene (PQTS12) as additive in poly(bisdodecylquaterthiophene) (PQT12) with tetrafluorotetracyanoquinodimethane (F4TCNQ) and nitrosyl tetrafluoroborate (NOBF4) as dopants. The power factor increased two orders of magnitude with the PQTS12 additive at constant doping level. Using a second pair of polymers, poly(2,5-bis(3-dodecylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (PBTTTC12) and poly(2,5-bis(3-dodecylthiothiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene, (PBTTTSC12), with higher mobilities, we also observed the decoupling of the Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity, and achieved higher power factor. Distinguished from recently reported works, these two sets of polymers possess very closely offset carrier energy levels (0.05 ~ 0.07 eV), and the microstructure, assessed using grazing incidence X-ray scattering, and mobility evaluated in field-effect transistors, was not adversely affected by the blending. Experiments, calculations and simulations are consistent with the idea that blending and doping polymers with closely-spaced energy levels and compatible morphologies to promote carrier mobility favors increased power factors.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Miscanthus × giganteus increases soil maximum water holding capacity compared to maize

Soil ecosystem services, like the ability to store water, have been depleted after a century of conventional, annual cropping, and perennial crops offer a solution to this and other agricultural environmental issues. We assessed the impact of Miscanthus × giganteus (miscanthus), a perennial biomass crop, on soil water holding capacity and structure compared to continuous maize (Zea mays L.) at two sites in Iowa. After three growing seasons, we measured the following: (1) maximum water holding capacity (MWHC) with and without soil structure, and (2) total porosity and pore size distribution (PSD) via micro-computed tomography (microCT). Miscanthus increased MWHC by 14.7% across both sites relative to maize (p = 0.002), and we attributed this to structural changes due to the lack of a crop effect when measured on structureless soils. No significant changes were detected in soil organic matter, texture, total porosity, or PSD that could explain the increase in MWHC under miscanthus. Our findings suggest that the increases in MWHC are primarily due to structural changes rather than increases in soil organic matter or porosity (at least porosity detectable by microCT). This study highlights miscanthus' potential to enhance soil water storage and underscores the need for further investigation to clarify the mechanisms through which this biomass crop influences soil structural properties.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Grazing disturbance increases transient but decreases persistent soil seed bank

Abstract Very few studies have examined whether the impacts of grazing disturbance on soil seed banks occur directly or indirectly through aboveground vegetation and soil properties. The potential role of the seed bank in alpine wetland restoration is also unknown. We used SEM (structural equation modeling) to explore the direct effect of grazing disturbance on the seed bank and the indirect effect through aboveground vegetation and soil properties. We also studied the role of the seed bank on the restoration potential in wetlands with various grazing intensities: low (fenced, winter grazed only), medium (seasonally grazed), and high (whole‐year grazed). For the seed bank, species richness and density per plot showed no difference among grazing intensities for each depth (0–5, 5–10, 10–15 cm) and for the whole depth (0–15 cm) in spring and summer. There was no direct effect of grazing disturbance on seed bank richness and density both in spring and summer, and also no indirect effect on the seed bank through its direct effect on vegetation richness and abundance. Grazing disturbance indirectly increased spring seed bank density but decreased summer seed bank density through its direct effect (negative correlation) on soil moisture and total nitrogen and its indirect effect on vegetation abundance. Species composition of the vegetation changed with grazing regime, but that of the seed bank did not. An increased trend of similarity between the seed bank and aboveground vegetation with increased grazing disturbance was found in the shallow depth and in the whole depth only in spring. Although there was almost no change in seed bank size with grazing intensities, grazing disturbance increased the quantity of transient seeds but decreased persistent seeds. Persistent seeds stored in the soil could play a crucial role in vegetation regeneration and in restoration of degraded wetland ecosystems. The seed bank should be an integral part of alpine wetland restoration programs.

Ma, Miaojun↗

Increasing temperature and flow management alter mercury dynamics in East Fork Poplar Creek

East Fork Poplar Creek (EFPC) is a mercury (Hg) contaminated creek in east Tennessee, USA. Stream restoration activities included the initiation of a flow management programme in 1996 in which water from a nearby lake was pumped to the head of the creek. We conducted regular water sampling for 2 years along the length of EFPC during active flow management and for 5 years after flow management stopped. Total Hg and total monomethylmercury (MMHg) concentration and flux decreased in the uppermost reaches of EFPC that were closest to the point of water addition. Most water quality parameters, including DOC concentration, remained unchanged after flow management termination. Nevertheless, SUVA 254 , a measure of dissolved organic matter (DOM) composition, increased and coincided with increased dissolved Hg (Hg D ) concentration and flux and decreased Hg solid-water partitioning coefficients throughout EFPC. Higher SUVA 254 and Hg D concentration have potential implications for bioavailability and MMHg production. Total and dissolved MMHg concentrations increased in lower reaches of EFPC after the end of flow management and these increases were most pronounced during spring and early summer when biota are more susceptible to exposure and uptake. A general warming trend in the creek after active flow management ended likely acted in concert with higher Hg D concentration to promote higher MMHg concentration. Total and dissolved MMHg concentrations were positively correlated with water temperature above a threshold value of 10°C. Concentration changes for Hg and MMHg could not be accounted for by changes in creek discharge that accompanied the cessation of flow management. In addition to the changing DOM composition in-stream, other watershed-scale factors likely contributed to the observed patterns, as these changes occurred over months rather than instantaneously after flow management stopped. Nevertheless, similar changes in MMHg have not been observed in a tributary to EFPC.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗