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A nitrogen-rich atmosphere on ancient Mars consistent with isotopic evolution models
No full textThe ratio of nitrogen isotopes in the Martian atmosphere is a key constraint on the planet’s atmospheric evolution. However, enrichment of the heavy isotope expected due to atmospheric loss from sputtering and photochemical processes is greater than measurements. A massive, multi-bar early CO₂-dominated atmosphere and recent volcanic outgassing have been proposed to explain this discrepancy, and many previous models have assumed atmospheric nitrogen rapidly reached a steady state where loss to space balanced volcanic outgassing. Here we show using time-dependent models that the abundance and isotopic composition of nitrogen in the Martian atmosphere can be explained by a family of evolutionary scenarios in which the initial partial pressure of nitrogen is sufficiently high that a steady state is not reached and nitrogen levels gradually decline to present-day values over 4 billion years. Our solutions do not require a multi-bar early CO₂ atmosphere and are consistent with volcanic outgassing indicated by both geologic mapping and the atmospheric ³⁶Ar/³⁸Ar ratio. Monte Carlo simulations that include these scenarios estimate that the partial pressure of N₂ was 60–740 mbar (90% confidence, with a median value of 310 mbar) at 3.8 billion years ago when the valley networks formed. We suggest that such a high nitrogen partial pressure could have contributed substantially to warming on early Mars
Sensitive Spatiotemporal Tracking of Spontaneous Metastasis in Deep Tissues via a Genetically-Encoded Magnetic Resonance Imaging Reporter
No full textMetastasis remains a poorly understood aspect of cancer biology and the leading cause of cancer-related death, yet most preclinical cancer studies do not examine metastasis, focusing solely on the primary tumor. One major factor contributing to this paradox is a gap in available tools for accurate spatiotemporal measurements of metastatic spread in vivo. Our objective was to develop an imaging reporter system that offers sensitive three-dimensional detection of cancer cells at high resolutions in live mice. We utilized organic anion-transporting polypeptide 1b3 (oatp1b3) as a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reporter gene to this end, and systematically optimized its framework for in vivo tracking of viable cancer cells in a spontaneous metastasis model. We were able to image metastasis on oatp1b3-MRI at the single lymph node level and continued to track its progression over time as cancer cells spread to multiple lymph nodes and different organ systems in single animals. While initial single lesions were successfully imaged in parallel via bioluminescence, later metastases were obscured by light scatter from the initial node. Importantly, we demonstrate and validate that 100-μm isotropic resolution MR images could detect micrometastases in lung tissue estimated to contain fewer than 10³ cancer cells. In summary, oatp1b3-MRI enables precise determination of lesion size and location over time and offers a path towards deep-tissue tracking of any oatp1b3-engineered cell type with combined high resolution, high sensitivity, 3D spatial information, and surrounding anatomical context
Hubble Space Telescope Imaging of Luminous Extragalactic Infrared Transients and Variables from the Spitzer Infrared Intensive Transients Survey
No full textThe SPitzer InfraRed Intensive Transients Survey (SPIRITS) searched for luminous infrared (IR) transients and variables in nearly 200 nearby galaxies from 2014 to 2019, using the warm Spitzer telescope at 3.6 and 4.5 μm. Among the SPIRITS variables are IR-bright objects that are undetected in ground-based optical surveys. We classify them as (1) transients, (2) periodic variables, and (3) irregular variables. The transients include eSPecially Red Intermediate-luminosity Transient Events (SPRITEs), having maximum luminosities fainter than supernovae, red IR colors, and a wide range of outburst durations (days to years). Here we report deep optical and near-IR imaging with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) of 21 SPIRITS variables. They were initially considered SPRITE transients, but many eventually proved instead to be periodic or irregular variables as more data were collected. HST images show most of these cool and dusty variables are associated with star-forming regions in late-type galaxies, implying an origin in massive stars. Two SPRITEs lacked optical progenitors in deep preoutburst HST images; however, one was detected during eruption at J and H, indicating a dusty object with an effective temperature of ∼1050 K. One faint SPRITE turned out to be a dusty classical nova. About half the HST targets proved to be periodic variables, with pulsation periods of 670–2160 days; they are likely dusty asymptotic-giant-branch (AGB) stars with masses of ∼5–10 M⊙. A few of them were warm enough to be detected in deep HST frames, but most are too cool. Out of six irregular variables, two were red supergiants with optical counterparts in HST images; four were too enshrouded for HST detection
Improving Channel Hydrological Connectivity in Coastal Hydrodynamic Models With Remotely Sensed Channel Networks
No full textCoastal wetlands are nourished by rivers and periodical tidal flows through complex, interconnected channels. However, in hydrodynamic models, channel dimensions with respect to model grid size and uncertainties in topography preclude the correct propagation of tidal and riverine signals. It is therefore crucial to enhance channel geomorphic connectivity and simplify sub-channel features based on remotely sensed networks for practical computational applications. Here, we utilize channel networks derived from diverse remote sensing imagery as a baseline to build a ∼10 m resolution hydrodynamic model that covers the Wax Lake Delta and adjacent wetlands (∼360 km2) in coastal Louisiana, USA. In this richly gauged system, intensive calibrations are conducted with 18 synchronous field-observations of water levels taken in 2016, and discharge data taken in 2021. We modify channel geometry, targeting realism in channel connectivity. The results show that a minimum channel depth of 2 m and a width of four grid elements (approximatively 40 m) are required to enable a realistic tidal propagation in wetland channels. The optimal depth for tidal propagation can be determined by a simplified cost function method that evaluates the competition between flow travel time and alteration of the volume of the channels. The integration of high spatial-resolution models and remote sensing imagery provides a general framework to improve models performance in salt marshes, mangroves, deltaic wetlands, and tidal flats
Atmospheric Deposition of Particulate Matter and Micropollutants as a Major Mass Transport Route to Surface Water in Winter: Measurement and Modeling in Beijing in 2014 and 2021
No full textDeposition is a major route for atmospheric pollutants such as heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to transport to surface water. Here, we study Beijing, China, during the heavy haze period (2014) and the pandemic period (2021) to investigate the correlation between the atmospheric and surface water concentrations of 12 heavy metals and 16 PAHs. Pearson correlations and a series of back propagation (BP) neural network (NN) models are employed, and local meteorological conditions are included as input variables for the analysis. The surface water concentration of most pollutants analyzed correlate positively with humidity, PM_(2.5), PM₁₀, NO₂, SO₂, and CO, while negatively with the wind speed. The correlation coefficients are bigger in 2014 than in 2021, indicating accelerated gas–aqueous mass transport during haze episodes. The accurate prediction of the BP NN model in 2014 and 2021 presents itself as a promising tool in guiding future modeling efforts and policy changes
Functional Cell Types in the Mouse Superior Colliculus
No full textThe superior colliculus (SC) represents a major visual processing station in the mammalian brain that receives input from many types of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). How many parallel channels exist in the SC, and what information does each encode? Here we recorded from mouse superficial SC neurons under a battery of visual stimuli including those used for classification of RGCs. An unsupervised clustering algorithm identified 24 functional types based on their visual responses. They fall into two groups: one that responds similarly to RGCs, and another with more diverse and specialized stimulus selectivity. The second group is dominant at greater depths, consistent with a vertical progression of signal processing in the SC. Cells of the same functional type tend to cluster near each other in anatomical space. Compared to the retina, the visual representation in the SC has lower dimensionality, consistent with a sifting process along the visual pathway
The Daily-Resolved Southern Ocean Mixed Layer: Regional Contrasts Assessed Using Glider Observations
No full textWater mass transformation in the Southern Ocean is vital for driving the large-scale overturning circulation, which transports heat from the surface to the ocean interior. Using profiling gliders, this study investigates the role of summertime buoyancy forcing and wind-driven processes on the intraseasonal (1–10 days) mixed layer thermohaline variability in three Southern Ocean regions southwest of Africa important for water mass transformation—the Subantarctic Zone (SAZ), Polar Frontal Zone (PFZ), and Marginal Ice Zone (MIZ). At intraseasonal time scales, heat flux was shown as the main driver of buoyancy gain in all regions. In the SAZ and MIZ, shallow mixed layers and strong stratification enhanced mixed layer buoyancy gain by trapping incoming heat, while buoyancy loss resulted primarily from the entrainment of cold, salty water from below. In the PFZ, rapid mixing linked to Southern Ocean storms set persistently deep mixed layers and suppressed mixed layer intraseasonal thermohaline variability. In the polar regions, lateral stirring of meltwater from seasonal sea-ice melt dominated daily mixed layer salinity variability. We propose that these meltwater fronts are advected to the PFZ during late summer, indicating the potential for seasonal sea-ice freshwater to impact a region where the upwelling limb of overturning circulation reaches the surface. This study reveals a regional dependence of how the mixed layer thermohaline properties respond to small spatiotemporal processes, emphasizing the importance of surface forcing occurring between 1 and 10 days on the mixed layer water mass transformation in the Southern Ocean
Analytic bootstrap in 2D boundary conformal field theory: towards braneworld holography
No full textRecently, boundary conformal field theories (BCFTs) have attracted much attention in the context of quantum gravity. This is because a BCFT can be dual to gravity coupled to a heat bath CFT, known as the island model. On this background, it would be interesting to explore the duality between the boundary and the braneworld. However, this seems to be a challenging problem. The reason is because although there has been much study of rational BCFTs, there has been comparatively little study of irrational BCFTs, and irrational BCFTs are expected to be the boundary duals of the braneworlds. For this reason, we explore properties of boundary ingredients: the boundary primary spectrum, the boundary-boundary-boundary OPE coefficients and the bulk-boundary OPE coefficients. For this purpose, the conformal bootstrap is extremely useful. This is the first step in providing an understanding of BCFTs in the context of braneworld holography by using the conformal bootstrap. The techniques developed in this paper may be useful for further investigation of irrational BCFTs
Iridium-catalyzed asymmetric trans-selective hydrogenation of 1,3-disubstituted isoquinolines
No full textThe development of the first asymmetric trans-selective hydrogenation of 1,3-disubstituted isoquinolines is reported. Utilizing [Ir(cod)Cl]₂ and a commercially available chiral Josiphos ligand, a variety of differentially substituted isoquinolines are hydrogenated to produce enantioenriched trans-tetrahydroisoquinolines in good yield with high levels of enantioselectivity. Directing group studies demonstrate that the hydroxymethyl functionality at the C1 position is critical for hydrogenation to favor the trans-diastereomer. Preliminary mechanistic studies reveal that non-coordinating chlorinated solvents and halide additives are crucial to enable trans-selectivity
Aftershock Moment Tensor Scattering
No full textCoseismic rotations of principal stress axes can provide insights into the strength of the crust, but it is unclear how common this phenomenon is. We use a nearest-neighbor clustering algorithm to identify earthquake sequences in the global ISC-GEM catalog and the regional Southern California catalog. Using an inner-product-based pairwise measure of moment tensor similarity, we demonstrate that, in both catalogs, aftershocks are less similar to their respective mainshocks than foreshocks are. We interpret this effect, which we call moment tensor scattering, as evidence for widespread coseismic stress rotations. Moment tensor scattering is observable for a broad range of mainshock magnitudes in both catalogs. We further demonstrate that mainshock-aftershock similarity recovers logarithmically to pre-mainshock levels on decadal timescales. We conclude that moment tensor scattering is a generally observable feature of seismic sequences which may be useful in future work to discriminate between models of crustal strength