| 1. |
- Achberger, Christine, 1968, et al.
(författare)
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State of the Climate in 2011
- 2012
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Ingår i: Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. - 0003-0007. ; 93:7
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Large-scale climate patterns influenced temperature and weather patterns around the globe in 2011. In particular, a moderate-to-strong La Nina at the beginning of the year dissipated during boreal spring but reemerged during fall. The phenomenon contributed to historical droughts in East Africa, the southern United States, and northern Mexico, as well the wettest two-year period (2010-11) on record for Australia, particularly remarkable as this follows a decade-long dry period. Precipitation patterns in South America were also influenced by La Nina. Heavy rain in Rio de Janeiro in January triggered the country's worst floods and landslides in Brazil's history. The 2011 combined average temperature across global land and ocean surfaces was the coolest since 2008, but was also among the 15 warmest years on record and above the 1981-2010 average. The global sea surface temperature cooled by 0.1 degrees C from 2010 to 2011, associated with cooling influences of La Nina. Global integrals of upper ocean heat content for 2011 were higher than for all prior years, demonstrating the Earth's dominant role of the oceans in the Earth's energy budget. In the upper atmosphere, tropical stratospheric temperatures were anomalously warm, while polar temperatures were anomalously cold. This led to large springtime stratospheric ozone reductions in polar latitudes in both hemispheres. Ozone concentrations in the Arctic stratosphere during March were the lowest for that period since satellite records began in 1979. An extensive, deep, and persistent ozone hole over the Antarctic in September indicates that the recovery to pre-1980 conditions is proceeding very slowly. Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations increased by 2.10 ppm in 2011, and exceeded 390 ppm for the first time since instrumental records began. Other greenhouse gases also continued to rise in concentration and the combined effect now represents a 30% increase in radiative forcing over a 1990 baseline. Most ozone depleting substances continued to fall. The global net ocean carbon dioxide uptake for the 2010 transition period from El Nino to La Nina, the most recent period for which analyzed data are available, was estimated to be 1.30 Pg C yr(-1), almost 12% below the 29-year long-term average. Relative to the long-term trend, global sea level dropped noticeably in mid-2010 and reached a local minimum in 2011. The drop has been linked to the La Nina conditions that prevailed throughout much of 2010-11. Global sea level increased sharply during the second half of 2011. Global tropical cyclone activity during 2011 was well-below average, with a total of 74 storms compared with the 1981-2010 average of 89. Similar to 2010, the North Atlantic was the only basin that experienced above-normal activity. For the first year since the widespread introduction of the Dvorak intensity-estimation method in the 1980s, only three tropical cyclones reached Category 5 intensity level-all in the Northwest Pacific basin. The Arctic continued to warm at about twice the rate compared with lower latitudes. Below-normal summer snowfall, a decreasing trend in surface albedo, and above-average surface and upper air temperatures resulted in a continued pattern of extreme surface melting, and net snow and ice loss on the Greenland ice sheet. Warmer-than-normal temperatures over the Eurasian Arctic in spring resulted in a new record-low June snow cover extent and spring snow cover duration in this region. In the Canadian Arctic, the mass loss from glaciers and ice caps was the greatest since GRACE measurements began in 2002, continuing a negative trend that began in 1987. New record high temperatures occurred at 20 m below the land surface at all permafrost observatories on the North Slope of Alaska, where measurements began in the late 1970s. Arctic sea ice extent in September 2011 was the second-lowest on record, while the extent of old ice (four and five years) reached a new record minimum that was just 19% of normal. On the opposite pole, austral winter and spring temperatures were more than 3 degrees C above normal over much of the Antarctic continent. However, winter temperatures were below normal in the northern Antarctic Peninsula, which continued the downward trend there during the last 15 years. In summer, an all-time record high temperature of -12.3 degrees C was set at the South Pole station on 25 December, exceeding the previous record by more than a full degree. Antarctic sea ice extent anomalies increased steadily through much of the year, from briefly setting a record low in April, to well above average in December. The latter trend reflects the dispersive effects of low pressure on sea ice and the generally cool conditions around the Antarctic perimeter.
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| 2. |
- Blunden, Jessica, et al.
(författare)
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State of the Climate in 2012
- 2013
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Ingår i: Bulletin of The American Meteorological Society - (BAMS). - 0003-0007 .- 1520-0477. ; 94:8, s. S1-S258
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- For the first time in serveral years, the El Nino-Southern Oscillation did not dominate regional climate conditions around the globe. A weak La Ni a dissipated to ENSOneutral conditions by spring, and while El Nino appeared to be emerging during summer, this phase never fully developed as sea surface temperatures in the eastern conditions. Nevertheless, other large-scale climate patterns and extreme weather events impacted various regions during the year. A negative phase of the Arctic Oscillation from mid-January to early February contributed to frigid conditions in parts of northern Africa, eastern Europe, and western Asia. A lack of rain during the 2012 wet season led to the worst drought in at least the past three decades for northeastern Brazil. Central North America also experienced one of its most severe droughts on record. The Caribbean observed a very wet dry season and it was the Sahel's wettest rainy season in 50 years. Overall, the 2012 average temperature across global land and ocean surfaces ranked among the 10 warmest years on record. The global land surface temperature alone was also among the 10 warmest on record. In the upper atmosphere, the average stratospheric temperature was record or near-record cold, depending on the dataset. After a 30-year warming trend from 1970 to 1999 for global sea surface temperatures, the period 2000-12 had little further trend. This may be linked to the prevalence of La Ni a-like conditions during the 21st century. Heat content in the upper 700 m of the ocean remained near record high levels in 2012. Net increases from 2011 to 2012 were observed at 700-m to 2000-m depth and even in the abyssal ocean below. Following sharp decreases in to the effects of La Ni a, sea levels rebounded to reach records highs in 2012. The increased hydrological cycle seen in recent years continued, with more evaporation in drier locations and more precipitation in rainy areas. In a pattern that has held since 2004, salty areas of the ocean surfaces and subsurfaces were anomalously salty on average, while fresher areas were anomalously fresh. Global tropical cyclone activity during 2012 was near average, with a total of 84 storms compared with the 1981-2010 average of 89. Similar to 2010 and 2011, the North Atlantic was the only hurricane basin that experienced above-normal activity. In this basin, Sandy brought devastation to Cuba and parts of the eastern North American seaboard. All other basins experienced either near-or below-normal tropical cyclone activity. Only three tropical cyclones reached Category 5 intensity-all in Bopha became the only storm in the historical record to produce winds greater than 130 kt south of 7 N. It was also the costliest storm to affect the Philippines and killed more than 1000 residents. Minimum Arctic sea ice extent in September and Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent in June both reached new record lows. June snow cover extent is now declining at a faster rate (-17.6% per decade) than September sea ice extent (-13.0% per decade). Permafrost temperatures reached record high values in northernmost Alaska. A new melt extent record occurred on 11-12 July on the Greenland ice sheet; 97% of the ice sheet showed some form of melt, four times greater than the average melt for this time of year. The climate in Antarctica was relatively stable overall. The largest maximum sea ice extent since records begain in 1978 was observed in September 2012. In the stratosphere, warm air led to the second smallest ozone hole in the past two decades. Even so, the springtime ozone layer above Antarctica likely will not return to its early 1980s state until about 2060. Following a slight decline associated with the global 2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion and cement production reached a record 9.5 +/- 0.5 Pg C in 2011 and a new record of 9.7 +/- 0.5 Pg C is estimated for 2012. Atmospheric CO2 concentrations increased by 2.1 ppm in 2012, to 392.6 ppm. In spring 2012, 2 concentration exceeded 400 ppm at 7 of the 13 Arctic observation sites. Globally, other greenhouse gases including methane and nitrous oxide also continued to rise in concentration and the combined effect now represents a 32% increase in radiative forcing over a 1990 baseline. Concentrations of most ozone depleting substances continued to fall.
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| 3. |
- Smiljanic, R., et al.
(författare)
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The Gaia-ESO Survey: The analysis of high-resolution UVES spectra of FGK-type stars
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 570
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. The ongoing Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey is using FLAMES at the VLT to obtain high-quality medium-resolution Giraffe spectra for about 10(5) stars and high-resolution UVES spectra for about 5000 stars. With UVES, the Survey has already observed 1447 FGK-type stars. Aims. These UVES spectra are analyzed in parallel by several state-of-the-art methodologies. Our aim is to present how these analyses were implemented, to discuss their results, and to describe how a final recommended parameter scale is defined. We also discuss the precision (method-to-method dispersion) and accuracy (biases with respect to the reference values) of the final parameters. These results are part of the Gaia-ESO second internal release and will be part of its first public release of advanced data products. Methods. The final parameter scale is tied to the scale defined by the Gaia benchmark stars, a set of stars with fundamental atmospheric parameters. In addition, a set of open and globular clusters is used to evaluate the physical soundness of the results. Each of the implemented methodologies is judged against the benchmark stars to define weights in three different regions of the parameter space. The final recommended results are the weighted medians of those from the individual methods. Results. The recommended results successfully reproduce the atmospheric parameters of the benchmark stars and the expected T-eff-log g relation of the calibrating clusters. Atmospheric parameters and abundances have been determined for 1301 FGK-type stars observed with UVES. The median of the method-to-method dispersion of the atmospheric parameters is 55K for T-eff, 0.13dex for log g and 0.07 dex for [Fe/H]. Systematic biases are estimated to be between 50-100 K for T-eff, 0.10-0.25 dex for log g and 0.05-0.10 dex for [Fe/H]. Abundances for 24 elements were derived: C, N, O, Na, Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Y, Zr, Mo, Ba, Nd, and Eu. The typical method-to-method dispersion of the abundances varies between 0.10 and 0.20 dex. Conclusions. The Gaia-ESO sample of high-resolution spectra of FGK-type stars will be among the largest of its kind analyzed in a homogeneous way. The extensive list of elemental abundances derived in these stars will enable significant advances in the areas of stellar evolution and Milky Way formation and evolution.
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| 4. |
- Damiani, F., et al.
(författare)
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Gaia-ESO Survey: Empirical classification of VLT/Giraffe stellar spectra in the wavelength range 6440-6810 angstrom in the gamma Velorum cluster, and calibration of spectral indices
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 566
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present a study of spectral diagnostics available from optical spectra with R = 17 000 obtained with the VLT/Giraffe HR15n setup, using observations from the Gaia-ESO Survey, on the gamma Vel young cluster, with the purpose of classifying these stars and finding their fundamental parameters. We define several spectroscopic indices, sampling the amplitude of TiO bands, the H alpha line core and wings, and temperature- and gravity-sensitive sets of lines, each useful as a T-eff or log g indicator over a limited range of stellar spectral types. H alpha line indices are also useful as chromospheric activity or accretion indicators. Furthermore, we use all indices to define additional global T-eff - and logg-sensitive indices tau and gamma, valid for the entire range of types in the observed sample. We find a clear difference between gravity indices of main-sequence and pre-main-sequence stars, as well as a much larger difference between these and giant stars. The potentially great usefulness of the (gamma, t) diagram as a distance-independent age measurement tool for young clusters is discussed. We discuss the effect on the defined indices of classical T Tauri star veiling, which is however detected in only a few stars in the present sample. Then, we present tests and calibrations of these indices, on the basis of both photometry and literature reference spectra, from the UVES Paranal Observatory Project and the ELODIE 3.1 Library. The known properties of these stars, spanning a wide range of stellar parameters, enable us to obtain a good understanding of the performances of our new spectral indices. For non-peculiar stars with known temperature, gravity, and metallicity, we are able to calibrate quantitatively our indices, and derive stellar parameters for a wide range of stellar types. To this aim, a new composite index is defined, providing a good metallicity indicator. The ability of our indices to select peculiar, or otherwise rare classes of stars is also established. For pre-main-sequence stars outside the parameter range of the ELODIE dataset, index calibration relies on model isochrones. We check our calibrations against current Gaia-ESO UVES results, plus a number of Survey benchmark stars, and also against Gaia-ESO observations of young clusters, which contribute to establishing the good performance of our method across a wide range of stellar parameters. Our gravity determination for late-type PMS stars is found to be accurate enough to let us obtain gravity-based age estimates for PMS clusters. Finally, our gravity determinations support the existence of an older pre-main-sequence population in the gamma Vel sky region, in agreement with evidence obtained from the lithium depletion pattern of the same stars.
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| 5. |
- Sacco, G. G., et al.
(författare)
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The Gaia-ESO Survey: processing FLAMES-UVES spectra
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 565
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Gaia-ESO Survey is a large public spectroscopic survey that aims to derive radial velocities and fundamental parameters of about 10(5) Milky Way stars in the field and in clusters. Observations are carried out with the multi-object optical spectrograph FLAMES, using simultaneously the medium-resolution (R similar to 20 000) GIRAFFE spectrograph and the high-resolution (R similar to 47 000) UVES spectrograph. In this paper we describe the methods and the software used for the data reduction, the derivation of the radial velocities, and the quality control of the FLAMES-UVES spectra. Data reduction has been performed using a workflow specifically developed for this project. This workflow runs the ESO public pipeline optimizing the data reduction for the Gaia-ESO Survey, automatically performs sky subtraction, barycentric correction and normalisation, and calculates radial velocities and a first guess of the rotational velocities. The quality control is performed using the output parameters from the ESO pipeline, by a visual inspection of the spectra and by the analysis of the signal-to-noise ratio of the spectra. Using the observations of the first 18 months, specifically targets observed multiple times at different epochs, stars observed with both GIRAFFE and UVES, and observations of radial velocity standards, we estimated the precision and the accuracy of the radial velocities. The statistical error on the radial velocities is sigma similar to 0.4 km s(-1) and is mainly due to uncertainties in the zero point of the wavelength calibration. However, we found a systematic bias with respect to the GIRAFFE spectra (similar to 0.9 km s(-1)) and to the radial velocities of the standard stars (similar to 0.5 km s(-1)) retrieved from the literature. This bias will be corrected in the future data releases, when a common zero point for all the set-ups and instruments used for the survey is be established.
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| 6. |
- Spina, L., et al.
(författare)
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The Gaia-ESO Survey: Metallicity of the Chamaeleon I star-forming region
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 568
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Recent metallicity determinations in young open clusters and star-forming regions suggest that the latter may be characterized by a slightly lower metallicity than the Sun and older clusters in the solar vicinity. However, these results are based on small statistics and inhomogeneous analyses. The Gaia-ESO Survey is observing and homogeneously analyzing large samples of stars in several young clusters and star-forming regions, hence allowing us to further investigate this issue. Aims. We present a new metallicity determination of the Chamaeleon I star forming region. based on the products distributed in the first internal release of the Gaia-ESO Survey. Methods. The 48 candidate members of Chamaeleon I have been observed with the high-resolution, spectrograph UVES. We use the surface gravity, lithium line equivalent width, and position in the Hertzsprimg-Russell diagram to confirm the cluster members, and we use the iron abundance to derive the mean metallicity of the region. Results. Out of the 48 targets. we confirm 15 high probability members. Considering the metallicity measurements for nine of them. we find that the iron abundance of Chamaeleon I is slightly subsolar with a mean value [Fe/H] = -0.08 +/- 0.04 dex, This result agrees with the metallicity determination of other nearby star-forming regions and suggests that the chemical pattern of the youngest stars in the solar neighborhood is indeed more metal-poor than the Sun. We argue that this evidence may be related to the chemical distribution of the Gould Belt that contains most of the nearby star-forming regions and young clusters.
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| 7. |
- Friel, E. D., et al.
(författare)
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Gaia-ESO Survey : Properties of the intermediate age open cluster NGC 4815
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 563, s. A117-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. NGC 4815 is a populous similar to 500 Myr open cluster at R-gc similar to 7 kpc observed in the first six months of the Gaia-ESO Survey. Located in the inner Galactic disk, NGC 4815 is an important potential tracer of the abundance gradient, where relatively few intermediate age open clusters are found. Aims. The Gaia-ESO Survey data can provide an improved characterization of the cluster properties, such as age, distance, reddening, and abundance profile. Methods. We use the survey derived radial velocities, stellar atmospheric parameters, metallicity, and elemental abundances for stars targeted as potential members of this cluster to carry out an analysis of cluster properties. The radial velocity distribution of stars in the cluster field is used to define the cluster systemic velocity and derive likely cluster membership for stars observed by the Gaia-ESO Survey. We investigate the distributions of Fe and Fe-peak elements, alpha-elements, and the light elements Na and Al and characterize the cluster's internal chemical homogeneity comparing it to the properties of radial velocity non-member stars. Utilizing these cluster properties, the cluster color-magnitude diagram is analyzed and theoretical isochrones are fit to derive cluster reddening, distance, and age. Results. NGC 4815 is found to have a mean metallicity of [Fe/H] = +0.03 +/- 0.05 dex (s.d.). Elemental abundances of cluster members show typically very small internal variation, with internal dispersions of similar to 0.05 dex. The alpha-elements [Ca/Fe] and [Si/Fe] show solar ratios, but [Mg/Fe] is moderately enhanced, while [Ti/Fe] appears slightly deficient. As with many open clusters, the light elements [Na/Fe] and [Al/Fe] are enhanced, [Na/Fe] significantly so, although the role of internal mixing and the assumption of local thermodynamical equilibrium in the analysis remain to be investigated. From isochrone fits to color-magnitude diagrams, we find a cluster age of 0.5 to 0.63 Gyr, a reddening of E(B-V) = 0.59 to 0.65, and a distance modulus (m -M)(0) = 11.95 to 12.20, depending on the choice of theoretical models, leading to a Galactocentric distance of 6.9 kpc.
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| 8. |
- Gilmore, G., et al.
(författare)
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The Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey
- 2012
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Ingår i: The Messenger. - 0254-4423. ; 147, s. 25-31
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey has begun and will obtain high quality spectroscopy of some 100000 Milky Way stars, in the field and in open clusters, down to magnitude 19, systematically covering all the major components of the Milky Way. This survey will provide the first homogeneous overview of the distributions of kinematics and chemical element abundances in the Galaxy. The motivation, organisation and implementation of the Gaia-ESO Survey are described, emphasising the complementarity with the ESA Gaia mission. Spectra from the very first observing run of the survey are presented.
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| 9. |
- Jeffries, R. D., et al.
(författare)
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The Gaia-ESO Survey: Kinematic structure in the Gamma Velorum cluster
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 563
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. A key science goal of the Gaia-ESO survey (GES) at the VLT is to use the kinematics of low-mass stars in young clusters and star forming regions to probe their dynamical histories and how they populate the field as they become unbound. The clustering of low-mass stars around the massive Wolf-Rayet binary system gamma(2) Velorum was one of the first GES targets. Aims. We empirically determine the radial velocity precision of GES data, construct a kinematically unbiased sample of cluster members and characterise their dynamical state. Methods. Targets were selected from colour-magnitude diagrams and intermediate resolution spectroscopy was used to derive radial velocities and assess membership from the strength of the Li I 6708 angstrom line. The radial velocity distribution was analysed using a maximum likelihood technique that accounts for unresolved binaries. Results. The GES radial velocity precision is about 0.25 km s(-1) and sufficient to resolve velocity structure in the low-mass population around gamma(2) Vel. The structure is well fitted by two kinematic components with roughly equal numbers of stars; the first has an intrinsic dispersion of 0.34 +/- 0.16 km s(-1), consistent with virial equilibrium. The second has a broader dispersion of 1.60 +/- 0.37 km s(-1) and is offset from the first by congruent to 2 kms(-1). The first population is older by 1-2 Myr based on a greater level of Li depletion seen among its M-type stars and is probably more centrally concentrated around gamma(2) Vel. Conclusions. We consider several formation scenarios, concluding that the two kinematic components are a bound remnant of the original, denser cluster that formed gamma(2) Vel, and a dispersed population from the wider Vela OB2 association, of which gamma(2) Vel is the most massive member. The apparent youth of gamma(2) Vel compared to the older (>= 10 Myr) low-mass population surrounding it suggests a scenario in which the massive binary formed in a clustered environment after the formation of the bulk of the low-mass stars.
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| 10. |
- Magrini, L., et al.
(författare)
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The Gaia-ESO Survey: Abundance ratios in the inner-disk open clusters Trumpler 20, NGC 4815, NGC 6705
- 2014
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Ingår i: Astronomy & Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 563
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Open clusters are key tools to study the spatial distribution of abundances in the disk and their evolution with time. Aims. Using the first release of stellar parameters and abundances of the Gaia-ESO Survey, we analyse the chemical properties of stars in three old/intermediate-age open clusters, namely NGC 6705, NGC 4815, and Trumpler 20, which are all located in the inner part of the Galactic disk at Galactocentric radius R-GC similar to 7 kpc. We aim to prove their homogeneity and to compare them with the field population. Methods. We study the abundance ratios of elements belonging to two different nucleosynthetic channels: alpha-elements and iron-peak elements. For each element, we analyse the internal chemical homogeneity of cluster members, and we compare the cumulative distributions of cluster abundance ratios with those of solar neighbourhood turn-off stars and of inner-disk/bulge giants. We compare the abundance ratios of field and cluster stars with two chemical evolution models that predict different alpha-enhancement dependences on the Galactocentric distance due to different assumptions on the infall and star-formation rates. Results. The main results can be summarised as follows: i) cluster members are chemically homogeneous within 3 sigma in all analysed elements; ii) the three clusters have comparable [El/Fe] patterns within similar to 1 sigma, but they differ in their global metal content [El/H] with NGC 4815 having the lowest metallicity; their [El/Fe] ratios show differences and analogies with those of the field population, in both the solar neighbourhood and the bulge/inner disk; iii) comparing the abundance ratios with the results of two chemical evolution models and with field star abundance distributions, we find that the abundance ratios of Mg, Ni, and Ca in NGC 6705 might require an inner birthplace, implying a subsequent variation in its R-GC during its lifetime, which is consistent with previous orbit determination. Conclusions. Using the results of the first internal data release, we show the potential of the Gaia-ESO Survey through a homogeneous and detailed analysis of the cluster versus field populations to reveal the chemical structure of our Galaxy using a completely uniform analysis of different populations. We verify that the Gaia-ESO Survey data are able to identify the unique chemical properties of each cluster by pinpointing the composition of the interstellar medium at the epoch and place of formation. The full dataset of the Gaia-ESO Survey is a superlative tool to constrain the chemical evolution of our Galaxy by disentangling different formation and evolution scenarios.
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