http://hdl.handle.net/2122/87 Search the Channel search http://www.earth-prints.org/simple-search http://hdl.handle.net/2122/4165 Title: EFFECTS OF ENERGETIC SOLAR PARTICLES ON OZONE AND MINOR ATMOSPHERIC COMPONENTS INSIDE THE POLAR REGIONS <br/> <br/>Authors: Damiani, A.; INAF-IFSI <br/> <br/>Abstract: Solar activity influences the Earth’s environment, in particular the atmospheric ozone, by the direct output of the e.m. radiation or through the variability of the incoming cosmic ray flux (solar and galactic particles). Especially energetic particles, arising from huge explosions on the Sun’s surface, travel in the interplanetary medium and, if the circumstances were favorable, they could enter the terrestrial atmosphere (driven by the geomagnetic field lines of our planet) and reach the polar cap regions (geomagnetic latitude > 60°). There, they provide additional external energy and are able to produce ionizations, dissociations, dissociative ionizations and excitations phenomena by interacting with the minor constituents. The induced changes are not confined to the ion chemistry but also to the neutral components. In this way a rise of the concentration of HOx and NOx species and the triggering of catalytic cycles which lead to short (hours) and medium (days) term ozone destruction occur. Finally, also no-reactive reservoir species (e.g., HNO3, HCl, HOCl) are involved in these processes and endure large variations. The present thesis highlights the chemical variability of the middle atmosphere during and after some Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) events recorded during the current solar cycle. Special attention has been paid to the relationship between ozone and HOx data (retrieved from the Microwave Limb Sounder of EOS AURA satellite) for four events referred to 2005. The HOx data, recorded for the first time during the intense ionization caused by the SEP flux, have pointed out some features related to these phenomena not wholly captured by the current theoretical models. In addition, they have highlighted that the HOx rise is able to destroy the so-called third ozone peak at the polar latitudes of the winter hemisphere and it occurs also during medium intensity events. Besides, the analyses of January 2005 SEP events have shown that the changes on the hydrogen species leaded to variability in the concentration and partitioning of chlorine family, not discernible in the summer hemisphere. Further, the use of data coming from the HALOE instrument, referred to SEP events occurred in July 2000 and April 2002, has in short confirmed past experimental results. Finally, the study of a little SEP event occurred during May 2003 has pointed out that SEP events are not the unique ionization source inside the polar latitudes during the winter. http://hdl.handle.net/2122/4067 Title: Monitoring climatic changes and carbon cycle in canyons and caves: the C6 project. <br/> <br/>Authors: Madonia, Paolo; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Palermo, Palermo, Italia <br/> <br/>Editors: De Santis, Angelo; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma2, Roma, Italia <br/> <br/>Abstract: The acronym C6 means "Climatic Changes and Carbon Cycle in Canyons and Caves". It is a monitoring project, for the evaluation of climate change signals, based on measuring sites located inside canyons and caves; it merged in the year 2005, under the scientific supervision of the Palermo Branch of the Italian National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology (I.N.G.V.), two different monitoring programs active since 1999. The choice of these environments is based on their morphological structure: being them more or less segregated respect the outer atmosphere, they act as low-pass filters respect the variations of the monitored parameters, which are rainfall and dropping water amounts and rates, air temperatures and relative humidity and carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere. On the basis of the preliminary data, reported and discussed in the paper, the C6 network seems to be capable to give useful information on the local effects of global changes, even if at the moment the monitored parameters concern only the abiotic components of the studied ecosystems. http://hdl.handle.net/2122/3959 Title: Magnetic proxy climate results from the Duanjiapo loess section, southernmost extremity of the Chinese loess plateau <br/> <br/>Authors: Florindo, F.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma2, Roma, Italia; Zhu, R.; Institute of Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Guo, B.; Institute of Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Yue, L.; Department of Geology, Northwest University, Xi'an, China; Pan, Y.; Institute of Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Speranza, F.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma2, Roma, Italia <br/> <br/>Abstract: We report mineral magnetic results from a 7.5 m loess sequence (150 samples) from the southernmost extremity of the Chinese loess plateau (which includes the last two glacial cycles). In this area the loess sediments experienced particularly intense weathering processes. The magnetic assemblage is dominated by a mixture of pseudo-single domain (PSD) and multidomain (MD) magnetite with associated superparamagnetic (SP) grains of either magnetite or maghemite in the paleosols and weathered loess horizons. All the rock magnetic parameters fluctuate in parallel with marine sediment δ18O data over the last 150Kyr, thus reflecting changing global paleoclimatic conditions. This relationship is also supported by the evidence of Milankovitch cycles in the magnetic susceptibility record. Paleorainfall estimates, when compared with other studies from the Chinese loess plateau, underline the (more) humid character of this region during the last ~130 kyr. http://hdl.handle.net/2122/3826 Title: Il programma di monitoraggio C6: Climatic Changes and Carbon Cycle in Canyons and Caves <br/> <br/>Authors: Madonia, Paolo; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Palermo, Palermo, Italia <br/> <br/>Editors: Cimmaruta, Roberta; S.It.E.; Bondanelli, Paola; S.It.E. <br/> <br/>Abstract: L'acronimo C6 sta per "Climatic Changes and Carbon Cycle in Canyons and Caves". E' un progetto di monitoraggio dei parametri climatici e dell'anidride carbonica, nato come tale nel 2005, ma che ha raggruppato al proprio interno attività di monitoraggio ambientale promosse da gestori di aree protette ed associazioni sportivo-ambientali sin dal 1999. Allo stato attuale sono attivi 6 siti di misura, disposti lungo un transetto Sud-Nord nell'areale mediterraneo, dalla Giordania sino all’Appennino Settentrionale. Un settimo sito sarà attivato entro l'estate 2006 in una cavità carsica in prossimità di Sarajevo (Bosnia Herzegovina). Il progetto si propone di monitorare parametri climatici ed ambientali all'interno di gole e grotte, con particolare riferimento alle concentrazioni di anidride carbonica in atmosfera, a temperatura ed umidità atmosferiche ed alle intensità di pioggia e stillicidio.Il progetto C6 assume rilevanza ai fini della conservazione della biodiversità in quanto le gole, specialmente in ambienti aridi e semi-aridi, rappresentano spesso l'unico luogo della superficie dove è presente acqua, costituendo quindi un rifugio preferenziale per tutte quelle specie viventi per le quali la disponibilità costante di acqua è fondamentale per il proprio ciclo vitale. Attraverso la rete C6 ci si propone di valutare la criticità dei parametri monitorati ai fini della conservazione degli ecosistemi presenti ed i possibili effetti derivanti da processi di cambiamento climatico