Abstract: Stable Water Isotopes Are A Tracer Of Hydrological Processes And A Paleoclimate Proxy From Ice Core Records. The Interpretation Of The Latter Relies On Fractionation Processes Throughout The Hydrological Cycle, From The Evaporation Over The Ocean, During Each Precipitation Event, And During Post-deposition Processes, In Particular Due To The Exchanges Between The Snow And The Moisture In The Atmosphere. Thanks To New Developments In Infrared Spectroscopy, It Is Now Possible To Monitor Not Only The Snow Isotopic Composition But Also The Vapour Continuously, And Thus Document Exchanges Between The Snow And The Vapour. On The East Antarctic Plateau, Records Of Water Vapour Isotopic Composition In Kohnen And Dome C During Summer Have Revealed Significant Diurnal Variability Which Can Be Used To Address The Exchange Between Surface Snow And Atmospheric Water Vapour As Well As The Stability Of The Atmospheric Boundary Layer. in This Study, We Present The First Vapour Monitoring On A Transect Across East Antarctica For A Period Of 3 Months From November 2019 To February 2020 During The Eaiist Traverse, Covering More Than 3600 Km. In Parallel, We Also Monitored The Vapour Isotopic Composition At Two Stations: Dumont D’urville (Ddu), The Starting Point, And Dome C, Half Way Through. Efforts On The Calibration On Each Monitoring Station, As Well As Cross-calibration Of The Different Instruments Offer A Unique Opportunity To Compare Both The Spatial And Temporal (Diurnal Variability Or At The Scale Of Several Days) Gradients Of Humidity, Temperature And Water Vapour Isotopic Composition In East Antarctica During The Summer Season. with The Use Of The Modele Atmospherique Régional (Mar), We Compare The Variability Measured In Water Vapour Isotopic Composition, Temperature And Humidity With The Different Systems (Fixed Or Mobile Location). Although Further Comparisons With The Surface Snow Isotopic Composition Are Required To Quantify The Impact Of The Snow-atmosphere Exchanges On The Local Surface Mass Balance, These Three Simultaneous Measurements Of The Vapour Isotopic Composition Show The Potential Of Using Water Stables Isotopes To Evaluate Hydrological Processes In East Antarctica.  

Abstract: We report the discovery and characterization of a pair of sub-Neptunes transiting the bright K-dwarf TOI-1064 (TIC 79748331), initially detected in the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) photometry. To characterize the system, we performed and retrieved the CHaracterising ExOPlanets Satellite (CHEOPS), TESS, and ground-based photometry, the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher (HARPS) high-resolution spectroscopy, and Gemini speckle imaging. We characterize the host star and determine $T{\rm eff, \star }=4734\pm 67\,\mathrm{ K}$, $R{\star }=0.726\pm 0.007\, \mathrm{ R}{\odot }$, and $M{\star }=0.748\pm 0.032\, \mathrm{ M}{\odot }$. We present a novel detrending method based on point spread function shape-change modelling and demonstrate its suitability to correct flux variations in CHEOPS data. We confirm the planetary nature of both bodies and find that TOI-1064 b has an orbital period of Pb = 6.44387 ± 0.00003 d, a radius of Rb = 2.59 ± 0.04 R⊕, and a mass of $M{\rm b} = 13.5{-1.8}^{+1.7}$ M⊕, whilst TOI-1064 c has an orbital period of $P{\rm c} = 12.22657^{+0.00005}_{-0.00004}$ d, a radius of Rc = 2.65 ± 0.04 R⊕, and a 3σ upper mass limit of 8.5 M⊕. From the high-precision photometry we obtain radius uncertainties of ∼1.6 per cent, allowing us to conduct internal structure and atmospheric escape modelling. TOI-1064 b is one of the densest, well-characterized sub-Neptunes, with a tenuous atmosphere that can be explained by the loss of a primordial envelope following migration through the protoplanetary disc. It is likely that TOI-1064 c has an extended atmosphere due to the tentative low density, however further radial velocities are needed to confirm this scenario and the similar radii, different masses nature of this system. The high-precision data and modelling of TOI-1064 b are important for planets in this region of mass–radius space, and it allow us to identify a trend in bulk density–stellar metallicity for massive sub-Neptunes that may hint at the formation of this population of planets.

Abstract: Mercury (Hg) is highly toxic in its methylated form (MeHg), and global change is likely to modify its bioavailability in the environment. However, it is unclear how top predators will be impacted. We studied blood Hg concentrations of chick-rearing black-legged kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla (2000–2019) in Svalbard (Norway). From 2000 to 2019, Hg concentrations followed a U-shaped trend. The trophic level, inferred from nitrogen stable isotopes, and chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations better predicted Hg concentrations, with positive and U-shaped associations, respectively. As strong indicators of primary productivity, Chl a concentrations can influence production of upper trophic levels and, thus, fish community assemblage. In the early 2000s, the high Hg concentrations were likely related to a higher proportion of Arctic prey in kittiwake’s diet. The gradual input of Atlantic prey in kittiwake diet could have resulted in a decrease in Hg concentrations until 2013. Then, a new shift in the prey community, added to the shrinking sea ice-associated release of MeHg in the ocean, could explain the increasing trend of Hg observed since 2014. The present monitoring provides critical insights about the exposure of a toxic contaminant in Arctic wildlife, and the reported increase since 2014 raises concern for Arctic seabirds.

Abstract: Global seismographic networks (GSNs) emerged during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, facilitated by seminal international developments in theory, technology, instrumentation, and data exchange. The mid- to late-twentieth century saw the creation of the World-Wide Standardized Seismographic Network (1961) and International Deployment of Accelerometers (1976), which advanced global geographic coverage as seismometer bandwidth increased greatly allowing for the recording of the Earth's principal seismic spectrum. The modern era of global observations and rapid data access began during the 1980s, and notably included the inception of the GEOSCOPE initiative (1982) and GSN (1988). Through continual improvements, GEOSCOPE and the GSN have realized near-real time recording of ground motion with state-of-art data quality, dynamic range, and timing precision to encompass 180 seismic stations, many in very remote locations. Data from GSNs are increasingly integrated with other geophysical data (e.g., space geodesy, infrasound and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar). Globally distributed seismic data are critical to resolving crust, mantle, and core structure; illuminating features of the plate tectonic and mantle convection system; rapid characterization of earthquakes; identification of potential tsunamis; global nuclear test verification; and provide sensitive proxies for environmental changes. As the global geosciences community continues to advance our understanding of Earth structure and processes controlling elastic wave propagation, GSN infrastructure offers a springboard to realize increasingly multi-instrument geophysical observatories. Here, we review the historical, scientific, and monitoring heritage of GSNs, summarize key discoveries, and discuss future associated opportunities for Earth Science.