Passatwindkumuli spielen eine essentielle Rolle im Strahlungshaushalt der Erde und sind verantwortlich für bis zu 20 % des tropischen Niederschlags. Noch ist nicht bekannt, wie Passatwindkumuli auf die globale Erwärmung reagieren werden. Durch Niederschlag verändern sich Wolkeneigenschaften, aber auch die Grenzschichtstruktur und -dynamik. Aufgrund der Vielzahl der beteiligten Prozesse ist die Niederschlagsentwicklung in Modellen ist unsicher. Die Konfiguration der Simulationen und Wahl der Parameterisierung, wie das Autokonversionsschema, beeinflussen Niederschlagsfluss, Wolkenstruktur und â€Ìorganisation. Bisher konnten Vergleiche mit Beobachtungen noch nicht zur Reduktion der Unsicherheit des Autokonversionsschemas beitragen. Radarreflektivität, die mit Standardmethoden aus bodengebundenen Messungen abgeleitet wird, erkennt Niederschlag erst in einem fortgeschrittenen Stadium, was es schwierig macht, die verschiedenen, den Regen verursachenden Faktoren zu entflechten. Durch die Verdunstung des Niederschlags unterhalb der Wolkenunterkante (WUK) bestimmt dieser die Stärke der Coldpools und ist so bedeutend für die Organisation von Konvektion und somit die Klimasensitivität: Daher ist es essentiell Verdunstungsraten zu bestimmen und deren räumlich-zeitliche Variabilität zu verstehen. Zwar gibt es Parameterisierungen der Verdunstung unterhalb der WUK, allerdings sind diese von der Größe der Regentropfen abhängig, welche jedoch schlecht direkt zu beobachten ist.Ziel dieses Antrages ist die Bestimmung von Faktoren, welche die Niederschlagsformation in Passatwindkumuli beeinflussen. Dazu werden neuartige Radarbeobachtungen dieser Prozesse zur genaueren Beschreibung der Niederschlagsentwicklung in Grobstruktursimulationen (LES) herangezogen. Die räumlich-zeitliche Verdunstungsverteilung wird unterhalb der WUK in den Passatwindkumuli untersucht und treibende Faktoren identifiziert. Das Forschungsvorhaben ergänzt die bevorstehende EUREC4A (A Field Campaign to Elucidate the Couplings Between Clouds, Convection and Circulation) Kampagne und nutzt die langjährige Datenreihe des Barbados Cloud Observatory (BCO).Die synergetischen bodengebundenen Beobachtungen und der neue Ansatz, Niederschlag in Wolken mit Hilfe höherer Momente des Wolkenradardopplerspektrums zu bestimmen, werden erstmalig zur Beobachtungen von Passatwindkumuli und der Charakterisierung des Niederschlagslebenszyklus zu angewendet. Damit wird es möglich die Niederschlagsentwicklung in den hochauflösenden ICON-LEM und DHARMA-LES Modellen zu evaluieren. Für einen statistischen Vergleich der Simulationen und der Beobachtungen wird der Vorwärtsoperator PAMTRA verwendet, so dass im Beobachtungsraum untersucht werden kann, inwiefern die Modelle die beobachteten, mittleren Werte und Abhängigkeiten reproduzieren können und systematischen Fehler identifiziert werden. Damit trägt das Vorhaben zum Grand Challenge on Cloud Circulation and Climate Sensitivity des Weltklimaforschungsprogramm WRCP bei.
We propose to use positron emission tomography (PET) for imaging of tracer migration in a soil horizon, to be coupled with image simulation using the lattice Boltzmann equation (LBE) modeling approach. PET enables direct visualization of inert KF or KBr solute migration at the soil horizon scale, but also reactive halogenated organic target (2,4-D and MCPA) compound migration down to nM concentrations once radiolabelling with 18F or 76Br marker is achieved. Retardation at biogeochemical interfaces with different sorption properties will thus be imaged in-situ. Theoretical image simulation for process verification will be enabled by introducing a multi-grid approach and additional kinetic boundary conditions in the parallelized LBE solver. As a boundary condition for the latter, the real pore scale and distribution of biogeochemical interfaces will be derived by X-ray computer-tomography (XCT) down to 300 nm spatial voxel resolution. The aim is to produce by both approaches velocity field movies due to heterogeneous biogeochemical retardation of the target compounds with high resolution in both the spatial and temporal scale (4D).
Previous studies indicated that the development and biogeochemistry of paddy soils relates to the parent material, thus the original soil paddies derive from. The proposed research focuses on redox-mediated changes in mineral composition and mineral-associated organic matter (OM) during paddy transformation of different soils. We plan to subject soil samples to a series of redox cycles, in order to mimic paddy soil formation and development. Soils with strongly different properties and mineral composition as well as at different states of paddy transformation; ranging from unchanged soils to fully developed paddy soils, are to be included. We hypothesize that dissolved organic matter is one key driver in redox-mediated transformations, serving as an electron donator as well as interacting with dissolved metals and minerals. The extent of effects shall depend on the parent soil's original mineral assemblage and organic matter and their mutual interactions. The experimental paddy soil transformation will tracked by analyses of soil solutions, of the (re-)distribution of carbon (by addition of 13C-labelled rice straw), of indicative biomolecules (sugars, amino sugars, fatty acids, lignin) and of minerals (including the redox state of Fe). For analyses of organic matter as well as of mineral characteristics we plan to utilize EXAFS and XPS, for Fe-bearing minerals also Mößbauer spectroscopy. This approach of experimental pedology seems appropriate to give insight into the major factors during paddy soil formation and development.
Rain-cracking limits the production of many soft and fleshy fruit including sweet cherries world wide. Cracking is thought to result from increased water uptake through surface and pedicel. Water uptake increases fruit volume, and hence, turgor of cells (Pcell) and the pressure inside the fruit (Pfruit) and subjects the skin to tangential stress and hence, strain. When the strain exceeds the limits of extensibility the fruit cracks. This hypothesis is referred to as the Pfruit driven strain cracking. Based on this hypothesis cracking is related to two independent groups of factors: (1) water transport characteristics and (2) the intrinsic cracking susceptibility of the fruit defined as the amount of cracking per unit water uptake. The intrinsic cracking susceptibility thus reflects the mechanical constitution of the fruit. Most studies focussed on water transport through the fruit surface (factors 1), but only little information is available on the mechanical constitution (i.e., Pfruit and Pcell, tensile properties such as fracture strain, fracture pressure and modulus of elasticity of the exocarp; factors 2). The few published estimates of Pfruit in sweet cherry are all obtained indirectly (calculated from fruit water potential and osmotic potentials of juice extracts) and unrealistically high. They exceed those measured by pressure probe techniques in mature grape berry by several orders of magnitude. The objective of the proposed project is to test the hypothesis of the Pfruit driven strain cracking. Initially we will focus on establishing systems of widely differing intrinsic cracking susceptibility by varying species (sweet and sour cherry, Ribes and Vaccinium berries, plum, tomato), genotype (within sweet cherry), stage of development and temperature. These systems will then be used for testing the hypothesis of Pfruit driven strain cracking. We will quantify Pfruit und Pcell by pressure probe techniques and compression tests and the mechanical properties of the exocarp using biaxial tensile tests. When the presence of high Pfruit and Pcell is confirmed by direct measurements, subsequent studies will focus on the mode of failure of the exocarp (fracture along vs. across cell walls) and the relationship between failure thresholds and morphometric characteristics of the exocarp. However, when Pfruit und Pcell are low, the hypothesis of Pfruit driven strain cracking must be rejected and the mechanistic basis for low pressures (presence of apoplastic solutes) clarified on a temporal (in the course of development) and a spatial scale (exocarp vs. mesocarp). We focus on sweet cherry, because detailed information on this species and experience in extending the short harvest period is available. Where appropriate, other cracking susceptible species (sour cherry, plum, Vaccinium, Ribes, tomato) will be included to further extend the experimental period and to maximize the range in intrinsic cracking susceptibility.
In subsoils, organic matter (SOM) concentrations and microbial densities are much lower than in topsoils and most likely highly heterogeneously distributed. We therefore hypothesize, that the spatial separation between consumers (microorganisms) and their substrates (SOM) is an important limiting factor for carbon turnover in subsoils. Further, we expect microbial activity to occur mainly in few hot spots, such as the rhizosphere or flow paths where fresh substrate inputs are rapidly mineralized. In a first step, the spatial distribution of enzyme and microbial activities in top- and subsoils will be determined in order to identify hot spots and relate this to apparent 14C age, SOM composition, microbial community composition and soil properties, as determined by the other projects within the research unit. In a further step it will be determined, if microbial activity and SOM turnover is limited by substrate availability in spatially distinct soil microsites. By relating this data to root distribution and preferential flow paths we will contribute to the understanding of stabilizing and destabilizing processes of subsoil organic matter. As it is unclear, at which spatial scale these differentiating processes are effective, the analysis of spatial variability will cover the dm to the mm scale. As spatial segregation between consumers and substrates will depend on the pore and aggregate architecture of the soil, the role of the physical integrity of these structures on SOM turnover will also be investigated in laboratory experiments.
Magnetic properties of ferrimagnetic minerals depend on their crystal lattice, anisotropy, chemical composition and grain size. The latter parameter is strongly controlled by microstructures, which are significant for the interpretation of the magnetic properties of shocked magnetic minerals. Fracturing and lattice defects are the main causes for magnetic domain size reduction and generate an increase in coercivity and the suppression of magnetic transitions (e.g. 34 K transition in pyrrhotite, Verwey transition in magnetite).Especially for an adequate investigation of shock-induced modifications in ferromagnetic minerals, a combination of microstructural and magnetic measurements is therefore essential.This project focusses on two significant aspects of extreme conditions - the consequence of shock waves on natural material on Earth and on the magnetic mineralogy of exotic magnetic minerals in iron meteorites. In order to obtain general correlations between deformation structures and magnetic properties, the specific magnetic properties and carriers as well as microstructures of samples from two impact structures in marine targets (Lockne and Chesapeake Bay) will be compared with shocked magnetite ore and magnetite-bearing target lithologies from outside the crater (Lockne) as well as from undeformed megablocks within the crater (Chesapeake Bay). We will test the hypothesis if shock-related microstructures and associated magnetic properties can significantly be overprinted by postshock hydrothermal alteration. We especially want to focus on the Verwey transition (TV) as lower TVs are described for shocked impact lithologies. Hence, the main focus of this study lies on magneto-mineralogical investigations which combine low- and high-temperature magnetic susceptibility and saturation isothermal remanent magnetization with mineralogical and microstructural investigations. The same methods will then be used for the investigation of iron meteorites, whose magnetic properties are often controled by exotic magnetic minerals like cohenite, schreibersite and daubreelite in addition to the metal phases. Magnetic transition temperatures of those phases are poorly documented in relation to their chemical composition as well as to their crystallographic and microstructural configuration. For a general understanding of shock-related magnetization processes in extraterrestrial and terrestrial material, however, it is crucial to obtain a general correlation between the initial 'unshocked' state and the subsequent shock- and alteration-related overprints.
The majority of the worlds forests has undergone some form of management, such as clear-cut or thinning. This management has direct relevance for global climate: Studies estimate that forest management emissions add a third to those from deforestation, while enhanced productivity in managed forests increases the capacity of the terrestrial biosphere to act as a sink for carbon dioxide emissions. However, uncertainties in the assessment of these fluxes are large. Moreover, forests influence climate also by altering the energy and water balance of the land surface. In many regions of historical deforestation, such biogeophysical effects have substantially counteracted warming due to carbon dioxide emissions. However, the effect of management on biogeophysical effects is largely unknown beyond local case studies. While the effects of climate on forest productivity is well established in forestry models, the effects of forest management on climate is less understood. Closing this feedback cycle is crucial to understand the driving forces behind past climate changes to be able to predict future climate responses and thus the required effort to adapt to it or avert it. To investigate the role of forest management in the climate system I propose to integrate a forest management module into a comprehensive Earth system model. The resulting model will be able to simultaneously address both directions of the interactions between climate and the managed land surface. My proposed work includes model development and implementation for key forest management processes, determining the growth and stock of living biomass, soil carbon cycle, and biophysical land surface properties. With this unique tool I will be able to improve estimates of terrestrial carbon source and sink terms and to assess the susceptibility of past and future climate to combined carbon cycle and biophysical effects of forest management. Furthermore, representing feedbacks between forest management and climate in a global climate model could advance efforts to combat climate change. Changes in forest management are inevitable to adapt to future climate change. In this process, is it possible to identify win-win strategies for which local management changes do not only help adaptation, but at the same time mitigate global warming by presenting favorable effects on climate? The proposed work opens a range of long-term research paths, with the aim of strengthening the climate perspective in the economic considerations of forest management and helping to improve local decisionmaking with respect to adaptation and mitigation.
Biogeochemical interfaces shape microbial community function in soil. On the other hand microbial communities influence the properties of biogeochemical interfaces. Despite the importance of this interplay, basic understanding of the role of biogeochemical interfaces for microbial performance is still missing. We postulate that biogeochemical interfaces in soil are important for the formation of functional consortia of microorganisms, which are able to shape their own microenvironment and therefore influence the properties of interfaces in soil. Furthermore biogeochemical interfaces act as genetic memory of soils, as they can store DNA from dead microbes and protect it from degradation. We propose that for the formation of functional biogeochemical interfaces microbial dispersal (e.g. along fungal networks) in response to quality and quantity of bioavailable carbon and/or water availability plays a major role, as the development of functional guilds of microbes requires energy and depends on the redox state of the habitat.To address these questions, hexadecane degradation will be studied in differently developed artificial and natural soils. To answer the question on the role of carbon quantity and quality, experiments will be performed with and without litter material at different water contents of the soil. Experiments will be performed with intact soil columns as well as soil samples where the developed interface structure has been artificially destroyed. Molecular analysis of hexadecane degrading microbial communties will be done in vitro as well as in situ. The corresponding toolbox has been successfully developed in the first phase of the priority program including methods for genome, transcriptome and proteome analysis.
In structured soils, the interaction of percolating water and reactive solutes with the soil matrix is mostly restricted to the surfaces of preferential flow paths. Flow paths, i.e., macropores, are formed by worm burrows, decayed root channels, cracks, and inter-aggregate spaces. While biopores are covered by earthworm casts and mucilage or by root residues, aggregates and cracks are often coated by soil organic matter (SOM), oxides, and clay minerals especially in the clay illuviation horizons of Luvisols. The SOM as well as the clay mineral composition and concentration strongly determine the wettability and sorption capacity of the coatings and thus control water and solute movement as well as the mass exchange between the preferential flow paths and the soil matrix. The objective of this proposal is the quantitative description of the small-scale distribution of physicochemical properties of intact structural surfaces and flow path surfaces and of their distribution in the soil volume. Samples of Bt horizons of Luvisols from Loess will be compared with those from glacial till. At intact structural surfaces prepared from soil clods, the spatial distribution (mm-scale) of SOM and clay mineral composition will be characterized with DRIFT (Diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform) spectroscopy using a self-developed mapping technique. For samples manually separated from coated surfaces and biopore walls, the contents of organic carbon (Corg) and the cation exchange capacity (CEC) will be analyzed and related to the intensities of specific signals in DRIFT spectra using Partial Least Square Regression (PLSR) analysis. The signal intensities of the DRIFT mapping spectra will be used to quantify the spatial distribution of Corg and CEC at these structural surfaces. The DRIFT mapping data will also be used for qualitatively characterizing the small scale distribution of the recalcitrance, humification, and microbial activity of the SOM from structural surfaces. The clay mineral composition of defined surface regions will be characterized by combining DRIFT spectroscopic with X-ray diffractometric analysis of manually separated samples. Subsequently, the spatial distribution of the clay mineral composition at structural surfaces will be determined from the intensities of clay mineral-specific signals in the DRIFT mapping spectra and exemplarily compared to scanning electron microscopic and infrared microscopic analysis of thin sections and thin polished micro-sections. The three-dimensional spatial distribution of the total structural surfaces in the volume of the Bt horizons will be quantified using X-ray computed tomography (CT) analysis of soil cores. The active preferential flow paths will be visualized and quantified by field tracer experiments. These CT and tracer data will be used to transfer the properties of the structural surfaces characterized by DRIFT mapping onto the active preferential flow paths in the Bt horizons.
Prehistoric pits are filled with ancient topsoil material, which has been preserved there over millennia. A characteristic of these pit fillings is that their colour is different depending on the time the soil material was relocated. Soil colour is the result of soil forming processes and soil properties, and it could therefore indicate the soil characteristics present during that specific period. To the best of our knowledge, no investigation analysed and explained the reasons for these soil colour changes over time. The proposed project will investigate soil parameters from pit fillings of different archaeological periods in the loess area of the Lower Rhine Basin (NW-Germany). It aims to implement the measurement of colour spectra as a novel analytical tool for the rapid analyses of a high number of soil samples: the main goal is to relate highresolution colour data measured by a spectrophotometer to soil parameters that were analysed by conventional pedogenic methods and by mid infrared spectroscopy (MIRS), with a main focus on charred organic matter (BPCAs). This tool would enable us to quantify the variation of soil properties over a timescale of several millennia, during different prehistoric periods at regional scale and for loess soils in general. Detailed information concerning changing soil properties on a regional scale is necessary to determine past soil quality and it helps to increase our understanding of prehistoric soil cultivation practices. Furthermore, these information could also help to increase our understanding about agricultural systems in different archaeological periods.
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