ABSTRACT
The use of acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) for discharge measurements and three‐dimensional flow mapping has increased rapidly in recent years and has been primarily driven by ...advances in acoustic technology and signal processing. Recent research has developed a variety of methods for processing data obtained from a range of ADCP deployments and this paper builds on this progress by describing new software for processing and visualizing ADCP data collected along transects in rivers or other bodies of water. The new utility, the Velocity Mapping Toolbox (VMT), allows rapid processing (vector rotation, projection, averaging and smoothing), visualization (planform and cross‐section vector and contouring), and analysis of a range of ADCP‐derived datasets. The paper documents the data processing routines in the toolbox and presents a set of diverse examples that demonstrate its capabilities. The toolbox is applicable to the analysis of ADCP data collected in a wide range of aquatic environments and is made available as open‐source code along with this publication. Published 2012. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
Planet Hunters IX. KIC 8462852 – where's the flux? Boyajian, T. S; LaCourse, D. M; Rappaport, S. A ...
Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society,
04/2016, Letnik:
457, Številka:
4
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Over the duration of the Kepler mission, KIC 8462852 was observed to undergo irregularly shaped, aperiodic dips in flux of up to ∼20 per cent. The dipping activity can last for between 5 and 80 d. We ...characterize the object with high-resolution spectroscopy, spectral energy distribution fitting, radial velocity measurements, high-resolution imaging, and Fourier analyses of the Kepler light curve. We determine that KIC 8462852 is a typical main-sequence F3 V star that exhibits no significant IR excess, and has no very close interacting companions. In this paper, we describe various scenarios to explain the dipping events observed in the Kepler light curve. We confirm that the dipping signals in the data are not caused by any instrumental or data processing artefact, and thus are astrophysical in origin. We construct scenario-independent constraints on the size and location of a body in the system that are needed to reproduce the observations. We deliberate over several assorted stellar and circumstellar astrophysical scenarios, most of which have problems explaining the data in hand. By considering the observational constraints on dust clumps in orbit around a normal main-sequence star, we conclude that the scenario most consistent with the data in hand is the passage of a family of exocomet or planetesimal fragments, all of which are associated with a single previous break-up event, possibly caused by tidal disruption or thermal processing. The minimum total mass associated with these fragments likely exceeds 10−6 M⊕, corresponding to an original rocky body of >100 km in diameter. We discuss the necessity of future observations to help interpret the system.
We present a catalog of 9888 M, L and T dwarfs detected in the Pan-STARRS1 3π Survey (PS1), covering three-quarters of the sky. Our catalog contains nearly all known objects of spectral types L0-T2 ...in the PS1 field, with objects as early as M0 and as late as T9, and includes PS1, 2MASS, AllWISE, and Gaia DR1 photometry. We analyze the different types of photometry reported by PS1 and use two types in our catalog in order to maximize both depth and accuracy. Using parallaxes from the literature, we construct empirical SEDs for field ultracool dwarfs spanning 0.5-12 m. We determine typical colors of M0-T9 dwarfs and highlight the distinctive colors of subdwarfs and young objects. We combine astrometry from PS1, 2MASS, and Gaia DR1 to calculate new proper motions for our catalog. We achieve a median precision of 2.9 mas yr−1, a factor of 3−10 improvement over previous large catalogs. Our catalog contains proper motions for 2405 M6-T9 dwarfs and includes the largest set of homogeneous proper motions for L and T dwarfs published to date, 406 objects for which there were no previous measurements, and 1176 objects for which we improve upon previous literature values. We analyze the kinematics of ultracool dwarfs in our catalog and find evidence that bluer but otherwise generic late-M and L field dwarfs (i.e., not subdwarfs) tend to have tangential velocities higher than those of typical field objects. With the public release of the PS1 data, this survey will continue to be an essential tool for characterizing the ultracool dwarf population.
Background
Identification of myositis‐specific autoantibodies (MSAs) for dermatomyositis (DM) could allow the characterization of an antibody‐associated clinical phenotype.
Objective
We sought to ...define the clinical phenotype of DM and the risk of cancer, interstitial lung disease (ILD) and calcinosis based on MSA.
Methods
A 3.5‐year multicentre prospective study of adult DM patients was conducted to determine the clinical phenotype associated with MSAs and the presence of cancer, ILD and calcinosis.
Results
MSAs were detected in 47.1% of 117 included patients. Patients with antimelanoma differentiation‐associated protein‐5 antibodies (13.7%) had significantly more palmar violaceous macules/papules odds ratio (OR) 9.9, mechanic's hands (OR 8), cutaneous necrosis (OR 3.2), articular involvement (OR 15.2) and a higher risk of ILD (OR 25.3). Patients with antitranscriptional intermediary factor‐1 antibodies (11.1%), antinuclear matrix protein‐2 antibodies (6.8%) and antiaminoacyl‐transfer RNA synthetase (5.1%) had, respectively, significantly more poikiloderma (OR 5.9), calcinosis (OR 9.8) and articular involvement (OR 15.2). Cutaneous necrosis was the only clinical manifestation significantly associated with cancer (OR 3.1).
Conclusion
Recognition of the adult DM phenotype associated with MSAs would allow more accurate appraisal of the risk of cancer, ILD and calcinosis.
Sand patches are one of the precursors to early stage protodunes and occur widely in both desert and coastal aeolian environments. Here we show field evidence of a mechanism to explain the initiation ...of sand patches on non‐erodible surfaces, such as desert gravels and moist beaches. Changes in sand transport dynamics, directly associated with the height of the saltation layer and variable transport law, observed at the boundary between non‐erodible and erodible surfaces lead to sand deposition on the erodible surface. This explains how sand patches can form on surfaces with limited sand availability where linear stability of dune theory does not apply. This new mechanism is supported by field observations that evidence both the change in transport rate over different surfaces and in situ patch formation that leads to modification of transport dynamics at the surface boundary.
Plain Language Summary
Sand patches can be observed in various environments such as beaches and gravel plains in deserts. Expected to be precursors of dunes when sediment supply is limited, these bedforms are typically a few centimeters high and present a reverse longitudinal elevation profile, with a sharp upwind edge and a smooth downwind tail. Based on field measurements, we propose a formation mechanism for these patches associated with the sensitive nature of wind‐blown sand transport to changing bed conditions: sand saltation is reduced at the transition from a solid to an erodible surface, hence favoring deposition on the patches. This allows us to explain their typical meter‐scale length as well as their asymmetric shapes.
Key Points
Sand patches can emerge on non‐erodible surfaces
Differing surfaces characteristics control particle behavior
Field measurements demonstrate the key role of sand transport in bedform initiation
Understanding sedimentary preservation underpins our ability to interpret the ancient sedimentary record and reconstruct paleoenvironments and paleoclimates. Dune sets are ubiquitous in preserved ...river deposits and are typically interpreted based on a model that describes the recurrence of erosion in a vertical sequence, but without considering spatial variability. However, spatial variability in flow and sediment transport will change the recurrence of erosion, and therefore dune preservation. In order to better understand the limits of these interpretations and outline the causes of potential variability in preservation potential, this paper reviews existing work and presents new observations of an extreme end-member of dune preservation: ‘form-sets’, formed by dunes in which both stoss- and lee-slopes are preserved intact. These form-sets do not conform to models that are based on the recurrence of erosion, since erosion does not recur in their case, and can therefore be used to evaluate the assumptions that underpin sedimentary preservation.
New Ground Penetrating Radar data from the Río Paraná, Argentina, show dune fields that are buried intact within larger scale barforms. These trains of form-sets are up to 300m in length, are restricted to unit-bar troughs in the upper 5m of the channel deposits, occur in >5% of the mid-channel bar deposits, show reactivation surfaces, occur in multiple levels, and match the size of average-flow dunes. A review of published accounts of form-sets highlights a diversity of processes that can be envisaged for their formation: i) abandonment after extreme floods, ii) slow burial of abandoned dune forms by cohesive clay in sheltered bar troughs and meander-neck cut-offs, iii) fast burial by mass-movement processes, and iv) climbing of dune sets due to local dominance of deposition over dune migration.
Analysis of these new and published accounts of form-sets and their burial processes highlights that form-sets need not be indicative of extreme floods. Instead, form-sets are closely associated with surrounding geomorphology such as river banks, meander-neck cut-offs, and bars because this larger-scale context controls the local sediment budget and the nature of recurrence of erosion. Locally enhanced preservation by the ‘extreme’ dominance of deposition is further promoted by finer grain sizes and prolonged changes in flow stage. Such conditions are characteristic, although not exclusive, of large lowland rivers such as the Río Paraná. The spatial control on dune preservation is critical: although at-a-point models adequately describe near-horizontal sets of freely migrating dunes in uniform flows, they are unsuitable for inclined dune co-sets and other cases where multiple scales of bedforms interact. Spatial and temporal variations in flow and sediment transport between the thalweg and different positions on larger bar-forms can change the preservation potential of dunes within river channels. Therefore, dune set thickness distributions are likely grouped in larger-scale units that reflect both formative dune geometries and bar-scale variations in preservation potential. The multi-scale dynamics of preservation highlighted herein also provides a useful comparison for other sedimentary systems.
Most past studies of river dune dynamics have concentrated on two‐dimensional (2‐D) bed forms, with constant heights and straight crest lines transverse to the flow, and their associated turbulent ...flow structure. This morphological simplification imposes inherent limitations on the interpretation and understanding of dune form and flow dynamics in natural channels, where dune form is predominantly three‐dimensional. For example, studies over 2‐D forms neglect the significant influence that lateral flows and secondary circulation may have on the flow structure and thus dune morphology. This paper details a field study of a swath of 3‐D dunes in the Rio Paraná, Argentina. A large (0.35 km wide, 1.2 km long) area of dunes was surveyed using a multibeam echo sounder (MBES) that provided high‐resolution 3‐D detail of the river bed. Simultaneous with the MBES survey, 3‐D flow information was obtained with an acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP), revealing a complicated pattern of dune morphology and associated flow structure within the swath. Dune three‐dimensionality appears intimately connected to the morphology of the upstream dune, with changes in crest line curvature and crest line bifurcations/junctions significantly influencing the downstream dune form. Dunes with lobe or saddle‐shaped crest lines were found to have larger, more structured regions of vertical velocity with smaller separation zones than more 2‐D straight‐crested dunes. These results represent the first integrated study of 3‐D dune form and mean flow structure from the field and show several similarities to recent laboratory models of flow over 3‐D dunes.
Rainbow trout have, as salmonid fish species, undergone sequential genome duplication events in their evolutionary history. In addition to a teleost-specific whole genome duplication approximately ...320–350 million years ago, rainbow trout and salmonids in general underwent an additional salmonid lineage-specific genome duplication event approximately 80 million years ago. Through the recent sequencing of salmonid genome sequences, including the rainbow trout, the identification and study of duplicated genes has become available. A particular focus of interest has been the evolution and regulation of rainbow trout gluconeogenic genes, as recent molecular and gene expression evidence points to a possible contribution of previously uncharacterized gluconeogenic gene paralogues to the rainbow trout long-studied glucose intolerant phenotype. Since the publication of the initial rainbow trout genome draft, resequencing and annotation have further improved genome coverage. Taking advantage of these recent improvements, we here identify a salmonid-specific genome duplication of ancestral mitochondrial phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 2 isoenzyme, we termed pck2a and pck2b. Cytosolic phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (Pck1) and, more recently mitochondrial Pck2, are considered to be the rate-limiting enzymes in de novo gluconeogenesis. Following in silico confirmation of salmonid pck2a and pck2b evolutionary history, we simultaneously profiled cytosolic pck1 and mitochondrial pck2a and pck2b expression in rainbow trout liver under several experimental conditions known to regulate hepatic gluconeogenesis. Cytosolic pck1 abundance was increased by nutritional (diets with a high protein to carbohydrate ratio compared to diets with a low carbohydrate to protein ratio) and glucoregulatory endocrine factors (glucagon and cortisol), revealing that the well-described transcriptional regulation of pck1 in mammals is present in rainbow trout. Conversely, and in contrast to mammals, we here describe endocrine regulation of pck2a (decrease in abundance in response to glucagon infusion), and nutritional, social-status-dependent and hypoxia-dependent regulation of pck2b. Specifically, pck2b transcript abundance increased in trout fed a diet with a low protein to carbohydrate ratio compared to a diet with a high protein to carbohydrate ratio, in dominant fish compared to subordinate fish as well as hypoxia. This specific and differential expression of rainbow trout pck2 ohnologues is indicative of functional diversification, and possible functional consequences are discussed in light of the recently highlighted gluconeogenic roles of mitochondrial pck2 in mammalian models.
•The salmonid lineage experienced pck2 genome duplication, yielding pck2a and pck2b•pck1 is largely regulated by nutritional and endocrine stimuli, as mammals•Transcript abundance of pck2a and pck2b is differentially regulated suggesting possible sub- or neo-funtionalization•Transcript abundance pck2b a isinduced by carbohydrate-rich diets and hypoxia, but decreased in socially subordinate fish