We present a survey on coronal prominence cavities conducted using 19 months of data from the
Atmospheric Imaging Assembly
(AIA) instrument aboard the
Solar Dynamics Observatory
(SDO) satellite. ...Coronal cavities are elliptical regions of rarefied density lying above and around prominences. They can be long-lived (weeks to months) but are often observed to eventually erupt as part of a coronal mass ejection (CME). We determine morphological properties of the cavities both by qualitatively assessing their shape, and quantitatively fitting them with ellipses. We demonstrate consistency between these two approaches, and find that fitted ellipses are taller than they are wide for almost all cavities studied, in agreement with an earlier analysis of white-light cavities. We examine correlations between cavity shape, aspect ratio, and propensity for eruption. We find that cavities with a teardrop-shaped morphology are more likely to erupt, and we discuss the implications of this morphology for magnetic topologies associated with CME models. We provide the full details of the survey for broad scientific use as supplemental material.
To investigate cytokine levels in the tear fluid of patients receiving serial intravitreal injections (IVI) with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) for neovascular age-related ...macular degeneration (nAMD).
Concentrations of six cytokines (IFN-γ, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, TNF and VEGF) in tears of patients receiving anti-VEGF in one eye were assayed using multiplex cytometric bead array. The fellow untreated eye served as control. Tear sampling was performed on a single occasion at a minimum of four weeks after IVI. Patients underwent a pre-IVI antisepsis protocol with povidone-iodine.
Tear fluid from thirty patients with a mean age of 78.8 years (range 58–90) was assayed. Subjects received a median of 43.5 (range 22–106) IVI in one eye. The median level of IFN-γ was 0.33 (interquartile range (IQR) 0.22–0.52) pg/mg of total protein in injected eyes versus 0.41 (IQR 0.21–1.05) pg/mg in fellow eyes (p = 0.017). For TNF, a median level of 0.12 (IQR 0.08–0.18) pg/mg of total protein was found in injected eyes versus 0.14 (IQR 0.07–0.33) pg/mg of total protein in fellow eyes (p = 0.019). There were no differences between injected and fellow eyes regarding the levels of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8 and VEGF.
Tear fluid in eyes receiving serial IVI with anti-VEGF and preoperative povidone-iodine antisepsis constitutes lower levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IFN-γ and TNF compared to fellow eyes. This provides biochemical support of previous findings of reduced signs of inflammation and healthier tear film parameters in patients treated with serial IVI.
Determining the 3D coronal magnetic field is a critical, but extremely difficult problem to solve. Since different types of multiwavelength coronal data probe different aspects of the coronal ...magnetic field, ideally these data should be used together to validate and constrain specifications of that field. Such a task requires the ability to create observable quantities at a range of wavelengths from a distribution of magnetic field and associated plasma i.e., to perform forward calculations. In this paper we describe the capabilities of the FORWARD SolarSoft IDL package, a uniquely comprehensive toolset for coronal magnetometry. FORWARD is a community resource that may be used both to synthesize a broad range of coronal observables, and to access and compare synthetic observables to existing data. It enables forward fitting of specific observations, and helps to build intuition into how the physical properties of coronal magnetic structures translate to observable properties. FORWARD can also be used to generate synthetic test beds from MHD simulations in order to facilitate the development of coronal magnetometric inversion methods, and to prepare for the analysis of future large solar telescope data.
STATE OF THE CLIMATE IN 2005 Shein, K. A.
Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society,
06/2006, Letnik:
87, Številka:
6
Journal Article
Recenzirano
The State of the Climate 2005 report summarizes global and regional climate conditions and places them, where possible, into the context of historical records. Descriptions and analyses of notable ...climatic anomalies, both global and regional, also are presented.
According to the Smith and Reynolds global land and ocean surface temperature dataset in use at the NOAA National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), the globally averaged annual mean surface temperature in 2005 was the warmest since the inception of consistent temperature observations in 1880. Unlike the previous record positive anomaly of 1998 (+0.50°C), the 2005 global anomaly of 0.53°C above the 1961–90 mean occurred in the absence of a strong El Niño signal. The record ranking of 2005 was corroborated by a dataset maintained at NASA, while United Kingdom archives placed 2005 second behind 1998. However, statistically, the 2005 global temperature anomaly could not be differentiated from either 1998 or any of the past four years. The majority of the top 10 warmest years on record have occurred in the past decade, and 2005 continues a marked upward trend in globally averaged temperature since the mid-1970s. Lower-tropospheric temperature was the second warmest on record, with northern polar regions the warmest at 1.3°C above the 1979–98 mean.
Unlike air temperatures, globally averaged precipitation was near normal relative to the 1961–90 period mean value. The global 2005 anomaly was just −0.87 mm. Over the past 25 years, only 7 years have had above-normal precipitation. Additionally, in 2005, only September–November experienced a positive anomaly. Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent was 0.9 million km² below the 36-year average (fifth lowest) and Arctic sea ice extent was record lowest in all months of 2005 except May, resulting in a record lowest annual average Arctic sea ice extent for the year and continuing a roughly 8% yr−1decline in ice extent.
Carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentrations rose to a global average of 378.9 parts per million (ppm); about 2 ppm over the value from 2004. This record CO₂ concentration in 2005 continues a trend toward increased atmospheric CO₂ since the preindustrial era values of around 280 ppm. The globally averaged methane (CH₄) concentration in 2005 was 1774.8 parts per billion (ppb), or 2.8 ppb less than in 2004. Stratospheric ozone over Antarctica reached a minimum of 110 Dobson units (DU) on 29 September. This represented the 10th lowest minimum level in the 20 years of measurement of stratospheric ozone.
In the global ocean, sea level was above the 1993–2001 base period mean and rose at a rate of 2.9 ±0.4 mm yr−1. The largest positive anomalies were in the Tropics and Southern Hemisphere. Globally averaged sea surface temperature (SST) also was above normal in 2005 (relative to the 1971–2002 mean), reflecting the general warming trend in SST observed since 1971. In the Tropics, only a weak warm phase of El Niño materialized, but dissipated by March. A relatively active Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) resulted in the disruption of normal convective patterns in the tropical Pacific and generated several Kelvin waves in the oceanic mixed layer.
In the Atlantic Ocean basin, there was record tropical storm activity, with 27* named storms (15 hurricanes). Three became category 5 storms on the Saffir–Simpson scale, and Hurricane Wilma set a new record for the lowest pressure (882 hPa) recorded in the basin. Both Hurricanes Stan and Katrina had exceptional death tolls, and Katrina became the costliest storm on record. Below-normal tropical storm activity in several other basins resulted in near-normal conditions globally in 2005.
Regionally, annual and monthly averaged temperatures were above normal across most of the world. Australia experienced its warmest year on record, as well is its hottest April. For both Russia and Mexico 2005 was the second warmest year on record.
Intermittent and delayed monsoons in Africa and East Asia resulted in below-normal precipitation in many areas. Drought continued in much of the Greater Horn of Africa and developed in the central United States. Record severe drought occurred over both the Iberian Peninsula and western Amazonia in 2005. In the Amazon, river levels dropped by as much as 11 m between May and September. Conversely, heavy snows early in 2005 combined with a warm boreal spring to generate widespread flooding in areas of southwest Asia. Canada experienced its wettest year on record in 2005, with flooding in Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario. In July, the South Asian monsoon delivered a record 944.2 mm of precipitation over 24 h to areas around Mumbai, India.
Cefonicid is a cephalosporin with a longer t½ than currently available cephalosporins. Cefonicid kinetics after an intravenous dose of 7.5 mg/kg were followed in four groups of subjects: group 1, ...four subjects with normal creatinine clearance (Clcr > 80 ml/min); group II, seven subjects with mild renal insufficiency (Clcr 50 to 80 ml/min); group III, five subjects with moderate to severe renal impairment (Clcr 8 to 49 ml/min); and group IV, five subjects with end‐stage renal disease who were receiving maintenance hemodialysis (Clcr < 8 ml/ml). Cefonicid volume of distribution ranged from 6.9% to 17.6% body weight but was not related to Clcr. Elimination t½ was 4.6 ± 0.7 hr in group I, 6.0 ± 2.7 hr in group II, 25.6 ± 14.0 hr in group III, and 65.3 ± 43.6 hr in group IV. There was a strong correlation between plasma cefonicid clearance and Clcr. Nonrenal clearance did not change with decreasing Clcr. Hemodialysis clearance calculated from plasma concentrations and recovery in dialysate was 2.5 ± 0.9 ml/min. These kinetic parameters were used to formulate dosage regimens for patients with renal impairment.
Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (1984) 35, 798–803; doi:10.1038/clpt.1984.115
The Coronal Multi-channel Polarimeter (CoMP) obtains daily full-Sun above-the-limb coronal observations in linear polarization, allowing for the first time a diagnostic of the coronal magnetic field ...direction in quiescent prominence cavities. We find that these cavities consistently possess a characteristic "lagomorphic" signature in linear polarization indicating twist or shear extending up into the cavity above the neutral line. We demonstrate that such a signature may be explained by a magnetic flux-rope model, a topology with implications for solar eruptions. We find corroborating evidence for a flux rope structure in the pattern of concentric rings within cavities seen in CoMP line-of-sight velocity.
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