ESA : CryoSat reveals Antarctica in 3D .- CryoSat revela la Antártida en 3D

http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/CryoSat/CryoSat_reveals_Antarctica_in_3D
http://www.esa.int/esl/ESA_in_your_country/Spain/CryoSat_nos_revela_la_Antartida_en_3D

CryoSat nos revela la Antártida en 3D

Antártida en 3D

 

28 marzo 2017

Los 250 millones de mediciones realizados por el satélite CryoSat de la ESA en los últimos seis años han permitido generar una imagen en 3D de la Antártida, ofreciendo una vista única de la ondulante superficie de la capa de hielo continental. 

El altímetro radar de CryoSat detecta las más mínimas variaciones en la altura del hielo de todo el continente, incluso en los pronunciados márgenes continentales, donde se producen la mayoría de las pérdidas de hielo.

Cabe destacar que la órbita del satélite llega a latitudes a menos de 200 km de los polos norte y sur, más cerca que otros satélites de observación de la Tierra.

Evidentemente, la misión también sirve para registrar los cambios en el grosor del hielo que flota en los océanos polares, algo especialmente importante para el Ártico.

Este nuevo ‘modelo de elevación digital’ se hizo público en la reunión de científicos de CryoSat que tuvo lugar esta semana en Banff, Canadá.

Tom Slater, investigador del Centro de Observación y Modelización Polar (CPOM) del Reino Unido, explica: “Hemos empleado unos 250 millones de mediciones realizadas por CryoSat entre 2010 y 2016 para crear la imagen más completa de la elevación del hielo antártico disponible hasta la fecha”.

Mostrar la superficie de la Antártida con tal nivel de detalle permite emplear el mapa en multitud de aplicaciones, desde la planificación de trabajos de campo hasta la modelización de la capa de hielo.

 

Altura del hielo

 

Además, también permite a los científicos distinguir cambios en la topografía y el movimiento del hielo al trabajar con otras mediciones satelitales, como las utilizadas para calcular el equilibrio entre el crecimiento de la capa de hielo por la acumulación de nieve y el hielo que se pierde por el deshielo o la creación de icebergs.

Este modelo pronto estará disponible de forma gratuita en el portal de CPOM, que ofrece información sobre el volumen y el grosor de la banquisa, la velocidad del hielo y, en breve, también sobre las capas de hielo. No obstante, por el momento es posible descargar el modelo aquí.

El director del CPOM, Andrew Shepherd, añade: “Queremos que el modelo de elevación digital esté accesible para todo aquel que utilice en su trabajo medidas topográficas de la superficie de la capa de hielo”.

“Este modelo no solo aportará beneficios a los estudios del hielo antártico, sino también a las proyecciones sobre el futuro aumento del nivel del mar”.

Por su parte, el responsable de la misión CryoSat de la ESA, Tommaso Parrinello, aclara: “Aquí en Banff nos estamos enterando de los grandes resultados obtenidos en la misión”. 

 

Misión del hielo de la ESA

 

“Parece claro que la disminución del hielo polar es uno de los primeros efectos adversos del cambio climático, pero disponer de datos concluyentes es fundamental, y esto es precisamente lo que nos permite CryoSat”.

“También es importante asegurarnos de que los datos del satélite son correctos, por lo que acabamos de poner en marcha en el Ártico una importante campaña para tomar medidas ‘de campo’ desde el aire y en el hielo para compararlas con las de CryoSat. No va a ser nada fácil, así que les deseamos mucha suerte”.

Antarctica in 3D

 

24 March 2017  a vuelo

Around 250 million measurements taken by ESA’s CryoSat over the last six years have been used to create a unique 3D view of Antarctica, offering a snapshot of the undulating surface of this vast ice sheet.

CryoSat’s radar altimeter detects tiny variations in the height of the ice across the entire continent, including on the steeper continental margins where the vast majority of ice losses occur.

Importantly, the satellite’s orbit takes it to latitudes within 200 km of the north and south poles – closer than other Earth observation satellites.

Naturally, the mission is also used to map changes in the thickness of ice floating in the polar oceans, which is particularly important for the Arctic.

This new ‘digital elevation model’ was revealed at this week’s gathering of CryoSat scientists in Banff, Canada.

Tom Slater, researcher at the UK Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling (CPOM), said, “We used around 250 million measurements taken by CryoSat between 2010 and 2016 to create the most comprehensive picture of Antarctic ice elevation currently available.”

It offers wide range of applications – showing the surface of Antarctica in such detail means it can be used in anything from planning fieldwork to modelling the ice sheet. 

 

Ice height

It also allows scientists to distinguish between changes in topography and ice motion when working with other satellite measurements, such as those used to calculate the balance between how much the ice sheet is gaining by accumulating snow and losing through melting and creating icebergs.

The model will soon be freely available via the CPOM portal, which already provides information on sea-ice volume and thickness, ice velocity and, shortly, ice sheets. In the meantime, however, the model can be downloaded here.

CPOM Director Andrew Shepherd added, “We want the digital elevation model to be accessible to anyone who uses ice-sheet surface topography measurements in their work.

“This should benefit not only studies of the Antarctic ice sheet, but also projections of future sea-level rise.”

ESA’s CryoSat mission manager, Tommaso Parrinello, said, “We are hearing some great results from our mission at the meeting here in Banff.

 

ESA's ice misión

 

“It’s now widely recognised that dwindling polar ice is one of the first casualties of climate change, but it’s important to provide the hard facts – and this we can do with CryoSat.

“It’s equally important to make sure the satellite’s data are correct and so we have a huge international field campaign just started in the Arctic to take ‘ground  truth’ measurements from aircraft and on the ice to compare with those of CryoSat. It’s a tough environment – so we wish them lots of luck.”

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ESA : Unravelling Earth’s magnetic field .- Desentrañar el campo magnético de la Tierra

http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/Swarm/Unravelling_Earth_s_magnetic_field
                

Lithospheric magnetic field

Access the video

explained Nils Olsen from the Technical University of Denmark, one of the scientists behind the new map.

Unravelling Earth’s magnetic field

21 March 2017 A vuelo

ESA’s Swarm satellites are seeing fine details in one of the most difficult layers of Earth’s magnetic field to unpick – as well as our planet’s magnetic history imprinted on Earth’s crust.

Earth’s magnetic field can be thought of as a huge cocoon, protecting us from cosmic radiation and charged particles that bombard our planet in solar wind. Without it, life as we know it would not exist.

Most of the field is generated at depths greater than 3000 km by the movement of molten iron in the outer core. The remaining 6% is partly due to electrical currents in space surrounding Earth, and partly due to magnetised rocks in the upper lithosphere – the rigid outer part of Earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle.

Although this ‘lithospheric magnetic field’ is very weak and therefore difficult to detect from space, the Swarm trio is able to map its magnetic signals. After three years of collecting data, the highest resolution map of this field from space to date has been released.

“By combining Swarm measurements with historical data from the German CHAMP satellite, and using a new modelling technique, it was possible to extract the tiny magnetic signals of crustal magnetisation,”

 

Magnetic anomaly: Bangui

 

ESA’s Swarm mission manager, Rune Floberghagen, added: “Understanding the crust of our home planet is no easy feat. We can’t simply drill through it to measure its structure, composition and history.

“Measurements from space have great value as they offer a sharp global view on the magnetic structure of our planet’s rigid outer shell.”

Presented at this week’s Swarm Science Meeting in Canada, the new map shows detailed variations in this field more precisely than previous satellite-based reconstructions, caused by geological structures in Earth’s crust.

One of these anomalies occurs in Central African Republic, centred around the city of Bangui, where the magnetic field is significantly sharper and stronger. The cause for this anomaly is still unknown, but some scientists speculate that it may be the result of a meteorite impact more than 540 million years ago.

The magnetic field is in a permanent state of flux. Magnetic north wanders, and every few hundred thousand years the polarity flips so that a compass would point south instead of north.

When new crust is generated through volcanic activity, mainly along the ocean floor, iron-rich minerals in the solidifying magma are oriented towards magnetic north, thus capturing a ‘snapshot’ of the magnetic field in the state it was in when the rocks cooled.

Since magnetic poles flip back and forth over time, the solidified minerals form ‘stripes’ on the seafloor and provide a record of Earth’s magnetic history.

 

Swarm

 

The latest map from Swarm gives us an unprecedented global view of the magnetic stripes associated with plate tectonics reflected in the mid-oceanic ridges in the oceans.

“These magnetic stripes are evidence of pole reversals and analysing the magnetic imprints of the ocean floor allows the reconstruction of past core field changes. They also help to investigate tectonic plate motions,” said Dhananjay Ravat from the University of Kentucky in the USA.

“The new map defines magnetic field features down to about 250 km and will help investigate geology and temperatures in Earth’s lithosphere.” 

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Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
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ESA : Opening of Swarm and CryoSat Science Meetings .- Apertura de las Reuniones Científicas de Swarm y CryoSat

http://www.esa.int/spaceinvideos/Videos/2017/03/Opening_of_Swarm_and_CryoSat_Science_Meetings

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Details

• Title Opening of Swarm and CryoSat Science Meetings
• Released: 20/03/2017
• Language English
• Footage Type Live Footage
• Copyright ESA
• Description
  Scientists convened in Banff, Canada on 20 March 2017 to discuss the latest results coming from the three-satellite Swarm mission on Earth’s magnetic field, as well as new information on the planet’s changing ice masses from the CryoSat satellite. Hosted by the Canadian Space Agency, the event also brought together the heads of the two largest Earth observation programmes in the world: from ESA and NASA.
  Programme:
  Welcome addresses by:
  Sylvain Laporte, President of the Canadian Space Agency
  Josef Aschbacher, Director of ESA’s Earth Observation Programmes
  Michael Freilich, Director of NASA’s Earth Science Division
  Professor Ed McCauley, Vice President of the University of Calgary
  Followed by keynote addresses:
  The Citizen Scientist - A New Era by Eric Franck Donovan
  Understanding polar regions with CryoSat by Andrew Shepherd
  The International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics by Michael Sideris
  Mark Drinkwater, ESA Head of Mission Science Division

TAGS

• Click on the tags to find the matching videos.
• Activity Exhibitions and Events, Observing the Earth
• Mission CryoSat
• System CryoSat, Cryosat Satellite     
• Location Canada
• Keywords Conference, Earth Explorers, Earth observation , ESA Live Archive, ESA satellites (ESA satellites in general)

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NASA : Mackenzie River in Canada's Northwest Territories .- Río Mackenzie en los Territorios del Noroeste de Canadá

https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/mackenzie-river-in-canadas-northwest-territories
     

This view, acquired on Nov. 7, 2016, by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8, shows a portion of Canada's Mackenzie River Delta and the town of Inuvik, home to more than 3,000 people. A frozen highway -- 194 kilometers (120 miles) long -- runs between the remote outposts of Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk along the river’s East Channel. White, snow-and-ice covered waterways stand out amid green, pine-covered land. The low angle of the sunlight bathes the higher elevations in golden light.

The Mackenzie River system is Canada’s largest watershed, and the tenth largest water basin in the world. The river runs 4,200 kilometers (2,600 miles) from the Columbia Icefield in the Canadian Rockies to the Arctic Ocean.

Every so often, flooding from the Mackenzie River replenishes the surrounding lakes. A 1950s-era map of the area indicates that its landforms have not changed much since then. However, parts of the watershed sit atop permafrost, which makes the area vulnerable to climate change.

The pond- and lake-covered lands around the river are home to caribou, waterfowl, and a number of fish species. Several thousand reindeer travel through this area each year on the way to their calving grounds.

Annotated image and references: NASA Earth Observatory a vuelo

Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory images by Joshua Stevens, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey
Caption: Pola Lem

Last Updated: March 20, 2017

Editor: Sarah Loff

Tags:  Earth, Image of the Day, Land, Landsat,

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NSF: Discovery .- Atmospheric scientists boldly go into the heart of a tornado .- Los científicos atmosféricos alcanzar lugares en el corazón de un tornado

http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=138996&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51&WT.mc_ev=click

TWIRL project researchers plant instruments directly in tornado's path

Atmospheric scientists on the TWIRL tornado project set up for an oncoming twister. Credit and Larger Version

June 24, 2016

This is part 18 in a series on NSF's geosciences risk and resilience interest area. Please see parts one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17.

It was the afternoon of May 9, dead center in Tornado Alley: Oklahoma. Severe thunderstorms were forecast for the southern part of the state.

That was the "go" call for atmospheric scientists Josh Wurman and Karen Kosiba of the Center for Severe Weather Research (CSWR) in Boulder, Colorado. Wurman and Kosiba were at the start of a project called TWIRL: Tornadic Winds: In-situ and Radar observations at Low levels, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).

TWIRL’s field season ran from May 1 through June 15. That's the time of year when two ingredients required for tornadoes -- very unstable air and strong vertical wind shear -- are most common.

The TWIRL scientists are developing 3-D maps of the strongest tornado winds near the ground, and studying how these winds cause damage to buildings, power lines, trees -- and anything else in their way.

"TWIRL researchers are focusing on low-level winds flowing into the cores of tornadoes," said Ed Bensman, program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funds TWIRL. "They're using a combination of surface weather sensors placed ahead of developing storms, and Doppler-on-Wheels [DOW] mobile weather radars. From TWIRL, we will gain a better understanding of the role low-level winds play in the development of tornadoes, and why some tornadoes become the most violent."

To peer into the heart of a tornado, TWIRL researchers -- nomads of science -- traveled more than 16,000 miles this spring across the Great Plains, from Texas to the Dakotas, Montana to the Mississippi River, chasing thunderstorms that produce tornadoes.

"It’s an ideal location due to warm, humid air flowing northward from the Gulf of Mexico at low levels, and cold, dry air coming down from Canada at upper levels, producing very unstable air," said Roger Wakimoto, NSF assistant director for Geosciences.

 

 

Tornado on the way

 

 

On May 9, TWIRL's fleet of instrument-laden DOW trucks was split between two towns in Oklahoma, Sulphur and Wynnewood. The DOWs sought out vantage points ahead of a developing storm. Deployed less than a mile from a rapidly forming tornado, they scanned every seven seconds and measured details of the storm as low as 30 feet above the ground.

A DOW looks more like the dish of a radio telescope mounted on the back of a flat-bed truck than a sophisticated weather instrument. With a DOW onboard, the truck becomes an odd configuration of generator, equipment and operator cabin.

Ungainly as it may appear, Wurman says, it's ideally suited to providing detailed information on the inner workings of tornadoes and other storms such as hurricanes and blizzards.

Wurman should know. He and colleagues developed the first DOW, now one of several, in 1995. The DOW uses Doppler radar to collect velocity data about objects (such as tornadoes and other severe storms) at a distance.

The stories a DOW could tell. Like the time one measured a world-record wind speed of 301 miles per hour just above ground level in an Oklahoma tornado. Or when a DOW was the only "scientific team" to successfully brave Hurricane Ike's knock-down winds in Galveston, Texas.

DOWs may hold the key to more accurate forecasts of tornadoes, hurricanes, snowstorms -- whatever severe weather Earth's atmosphere produces.

 

 

Scrambling into position

 

 

Tornadoes usually occur in association with particular types of severe storms, such as supercells and squall lines. But not all such storms form tornadoes. Tornadogenesis, as the formation of tornadoes is called, remains the "holy grail" of tornado research, Wakimoto said. "TWIRL will improve our understanding of tornadogenesis and tornado evolution."

On May 9, the TWIRL DOWs and tornado pod vehicles suddenly scrambled to get as close as possible -- safely -- to a supercell thunderstorm. A tornado had formed in nearby Katie, Oklahoma.

The DOWs and Pods were placed directly in the tornado's path, but the storm fizzled out. The TWIRL team, however, was far from done for the day.

Another, still larger, tornado had formed near Joy, Oklahoma. The TWIRL researchers again worked to get out in front.

"The second tornado was huge," Wurman said. "It created a damage swath more than a mile wide." Getting ahead of it meant driving through the core of the supercell thunderstorm, watching warily with the DOWs for any deviation in the tornado’s path.

After minutes that seemed like hours of pummeling by wind-driven hail, the TWIRL researchers and vehicles were safely east of the huge, wedge-shaped vortex. One crew quickly dropped a pod in the path of the tornado, then dashed to safety. Pods, says Wurman, "get run over by tornadoes. Their job is to measure winds three feet above the ground."

 

Into a tornado’s heart

 

DOW7 was parked just north of the tornado's predicted path, while its crew coordinated the deployment of the other DOWs.

Data from DOW7 revealed winds of more than 224 miles per hour and a dangerous multiple-vortex structure. A pod recorded winds of 100 miles per hour at the edge of the tornado; one of its anemometers was destroyed by airborne debris. The TWIRL scientists could see buildings flying apart.

The crew in SCOUT-3, a customized pickup truck, drove south in front of the tornado, sampling an intense downdraft with winds at 100 miles per hour. "Power lines, trees and weaker structures were all destroyed," Kosiba says.

On days like May 9, Wurman and Kosiba constantly balance a desire for instrument deployments that will collect new and important data from inside tornadoes, with the critical requirement to keep the TWIRL research team safe.

The goal?

"We hope to discover new information about which storms are most likely to have violent tornadoes," Wurman says. "Our ultimate aim is to protect not only TWIRL teams, but everything and everyone in these tornadoes' paths."

--	Cheryl Dybas, NSF (703) 292-7734  cdybas@nsf.gov

Investigators Karen Kosiba
Joshua Wurman
Curtis Alexander

Related Institutions/Organizations The Center for Severe Weather Research
Related Programs Physical and Dynamic Meteorology
Related Awards #1447268 An Analysis of the Evolution and Structure of Supercell Storms and Tornadoes
Total Grants S/.428.770
Related WebsitesNSF Discovery Article: Five Things You Need to Know About Tornadoes: https://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=138579

The Doppler-on-Wheels number 7 (DOW7) is chased by menacing thunderstorm clouds.
Credit and Larger Version

The TWIRL team checks skies before settling on a storm-tracking location.
Credit and Larger Version

TWIRL researchers Josh Wurman and Karen Kosiba at work inside a deployed Doppler-on-Wheels.
Credit and Larger Version

TWIRL researchers get a tornado pod set-to-go; a tornado is about to pass by.
Credit and Larger Version

TWIRL tornado pod in Oklahoma on May 9, 2016; the pods are designed to be "run over" by tornadoes.
Credit and Larger Version

the National Science Foundation (NSF)
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NASA : Smoke From Canadian Wildfires Trapped in Clouds .- El humo de los incendios forestales canadienses atrapados en las nubes

Hola amigos:  A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., la Agencia Espacial NASA, nos hace llegar la información de la gravedad de los incendios que están sucediendo en Canadá, y son tan intensos que el humo se encuentra atrapado entre las nubes.

More information...

http://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2016/smoke-from-canadian-wildfires-trapped-in-clouds

NASA's Aqua satellite captured this image of the clouds over Canada.  Entwined within the clouds is the smoke billowing up from the wildfires that are currently burning across a large expanse of the country.  The smoke has become entrained within the clouds causing it to twist within the circular motion of the clouds and wind.  This image was taken by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on the Aqua satellite on May 9, 2016. 

Image Credit: NASA image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz LANCE/EOSDIS MODIS Rapid Response Team, GSFC
Caption: Lynn Jenner

Last Updated: May 10, 2016

Editor: Lynn Jenner

Tags:  Aqua Satellite, Fire and Smoke, Hazards, Image of the Day,

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NASA : Early Snow on the Great Smokies .- Nieve temprana en las Grandes Montañas Humeantes

Hola amigos: A VUELO DE UN QUINDE EL BLOG., la Agencia Espacial NASA, nos informa sobre la temprana caía de nieve en diferentes lugares de las grandes montañas de Los Estados Unidos y Canadá.............." Un sistema meteorológico potente con orígenes en Manitoba, Canadá se trasladó al sur a través de los Grandes Lagos en Halloween y voló todo el camino a la Florida, trayendo nieve y las heladas difícil regiones, que o bien no se pueden  ver en algunos inviernos. A continuación, el sistema de tormenta se movió de nuevo hasta la costa este de los Estados Unidos y Nueva Inglaterra golpeó con un Noreste....................

Esta imagen muestra el sur de cordillera de los Apalaches, a lo largo de la frontera de Tennessee, Carolina del Norte y Carolina del Sur, el color de la caída se convirtió a blanco invierno. La imagen de color natural fue adquirida por el Visible Infrared Imaging Suite de radiómetro en el satélite Suomi NPP el 2 de noviembre de 2014.....................
Seis pulgadas de nieve cayeron en Asheville, Carolina del Norte, donde la nieve no cae lo general antes de Navidad. Superior en las montañas, cerca de Gatlinburg, Tennessee, Leconte Logia (elevación 6.400 pies) reportó 22 centímetros de nieve y temperaturas de 9 grados Fahrenheit. En Columbia, Carolina del Sur, la nieve mensurable cayó nueve días antes de que se haya registrado para Que la ciudad................."

Early Snow on the Great Smokies

A potent weather system with origins in Manitoba, Canada moved south across the Great Lakes on Halloween and blew all the way to Florida, bringing snow and hard frost to regions that do not see either in some winters. The storm system then moved back up the U.S. East Coast and pounded New England with a Nor'easter.

This image shows the southern Appalachian Mountain range, along the border of Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolina, as fall color was turned to winter white. The natural-color image was acquired by the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite on the Suomi NPP satellite on Nov. 2, 2014.

Six inches of snow fell in Asheville, North Carolina, where snow usually doesn't fall before Christmas. Higher in the mountains, near Gatlinburg, Tennessee, LeConte Lodge (elevation 6400 feet) reported 22 inches of snow and temperatures of 9 degrees Fahrenheit. In Columbia, South Carolina, measurable snow fell nine days earlier than ever recorded for that city.

More information.

Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

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Premio Nobel de Literatura: El Nobel de Literatura premia la maestría narrativa de la canadiense Alice Munro

Alice Ann Laidlaw
Nombre completo	Alice Ann Laidlaw
Nacimiento	10 de julio de 1931 (82 años) Wingham, Canadá
Ocupación	Escritora
Nacionalidad	canadiense
Género	Relato
Cónyuge	James Munro (1951–1972) Gerald Fremlin (1976–2013)
Descendencia	3
Premios	Premio Nobel en 2013

Obras:

• Dance of the Happy Shades, 1968, cuentos.
• Lives of Girls and Women, 1971, novela. Las vidas de las mujeres, Lumen, 2011.
• Something I’ve Been Meaning to Tell You, 1974, relatos entrelazados
• The Beggar Maid (aparecido antes como Who Do You Think You Are?), 1978, cuentos.
• The Moons of Jupiter, 1982. Tr.: Las lunas de Júpiter, De Bolsillo, 2010, cuentos.
• The Progress of Love, 1986. Tr.: El progreso del amor, RBA, 2009, cuentos.
• Friend of My Youth, 1990. Tr.: Amistad de juventud, De Bolsillo, 2010, cuentos.
• Open Secrets, 1994. Tr.: Secretos a voces, RBA, 2008, cuentos.
• The Love of a Good Woman, 1998. Tr.: El amor de una mujer generosa, RBA, 2009, cuentos.
• Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage, 2001. Tr.: Odio, amistad, noviazgo, amor, matrimonio, RBA, 2007, cuentos.
• Runaway, 2004. Tr.: Escapada, RBA, 2005, cuentos.
• The View from Castle Rock, 2006. Tr.: La vista desde Castle Rock, RBA, 2008, relatos enlazados sobre su familia.
• Too Much Happiness, 2009. Tr.: Demasiada felicidad, Lumen, 2010, cuentos.
• Dear Life, 2012. Tr.: Mi vida querida, Lumen, 2013, cuentos.

Wikipedia.-

El Nobel de Literatura premia la maestría narrativa de la canadiense Alice Munro

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El Nobel de Literatura premia la maestría narrativa de la canadiense Alice Munro.-

(EFE) – Hace 1 día 

Copenhague, 10 oct (EFE).- El Nobel de Literatura premió este año a la canadiense Alice Munro, considerada una "maestra del relato breve contemporáneo", según el fallo difundido en Estocolmo por la Academia Sueca.

Munro sonaba desde hacía años como una de las candidatas de peso al prestigioso premio, aunque esta vez el principal favorito en las apuestas era, de nuevo, el japonés Haruki Murakami.

Su estilo claro y el realismo psicológico de sus obras han motivado que algunos críticos la llamen "la Chéjov canadiense", una comparación a la que también aludió el secretario permanente de la Academia Sueca, Peter Englund, pocos minutos después de anunciar el premio en el edificio de la Bolsa de Estocolmo.

Ese "arte de la perfección" narrativa al que aludió England en declaraciones a la televisión pública sueca se plasma en relatos que suelen estar ambientados en pequeñas ciudades, donde la lucha por unas condiciones de vida aceptables resulta a veces en relaciones tensas y en conflictos morales.

Sus cuentos suelen incluir también descripciones de hechos cotidianos pero a la vez decisivos, lo que la Academia Sueca califica de "especie de epifanías que arrojan luz sobre la narración que las rodea y permiten que cuestiones existenciales aparezcan de repente como iluminadas por la luz de un relámpago".

Munro es la décimo tercera mujer que gana el Nobel de Literatura -la anterior fue la rumanoalemana Herta Müller-, y la primera fémina galardonada con un Nobel desde 2011, ya que en la edición del año pasado y en las tres primeras categorías falladas en 2013 solo habían ganado hombres.

Nacida en 1931 en Wingham (Canadá), Munro comenzó a estudiar Periodismo e Inglés en la Universidad del Oeste de Ontario, pero lo dejó al casarse en 1951, y luego se estableció con su esposo en Victoria, en la Columbia Británica, donde abrieron una librería.

Aunque había comenzado a escribir relatos de adolescente, no publicó su primer libro hasta 1968, con la colección "Dance of the Happy Shades", que fue bien recibida en su país.

Tres años después salió "Lives of Girls and Women" (La vida de las mujeres), considerada su novela de iniciación.

A lo largo de los años ha seguido publicando varias colecciones de relatos como "The Moons of Jupiter" (Las lunas de Júpiter), "Runaway" (Escapada) o "The View from Castle Rock" (La vista desde Castle Rock).

La última obra publicada de la autora canadiense es "Dear Life" (2012) (Mi vida querida).

El triunfo de Munro pone de manifiesto el dominio en el Nobel de la literatura en lengua inglesa, que no era galardonada desde 2007 con la británica Doris Lessing: nueve de los veinticinco últimos galardonados usaban este idioma para escribir.

En ese mismo período, han sido premiados por ejemplo tres autores hispanos -Camilo José Cela, Octavio Paz y Mario Vargas Llosa-, tres en lengua alemana -Günter Grass, Elfriede Jelinek, Herta Müller- y dos chinos -Gao Xingjian, Mo Yan- por uno solo en francés -Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio- y en portugués -José Saramago-.

El Nobel de Literatura, que el año pasado obtuvo el chino Mo Yan, está dotado con ocho millones de coronas suecas (922.000 euros o 1,3 millones de dólares), al igual que el resto de galardones.

La ronda de ganadores de los Nobel continuará mañana con el de la Paz, otro de los que más expectativas genera y para el que suena por encima de todos la paquistaní Malala Yousafzai, aunque entre los candidatos más nombrados figuran también el médico congoleño Denis Mukwege y el obispo mexicano José Raúl Vera López.

© EFE 2013. Está expresamente prohibida la redistribución y la redifusión de todo o parte de los contenidos de los servicios de Efe, sin previo y expreso consentimiento de la Agencia EFE S.A.

EFE.

 

Alice

Alice Munro "Duchess of Ontario" en El País

Alice Munro
HUIDA Y VOCACIÓN

Antonio Muñoz Molina

Alice Munro tiene una espléndida corola de pelo blanco luminoso y revuelto y una gran sonrisa que se convierte fácilmente en carcajada durante las entrevistas que le hacen en la radio. A los 74 años, no es una de esas mujeres de las que se dice que han debido de ser muy guapas: es una mujer muy guapa, con una cara de expresión tan intensa como las aventuras de su vida, con unos ojos brillantes en los que se mantiene intacta la curiosidad por el mundo que la llevó a concebir para sí misma una resuelta vocación literaria desde el principio de su adolescencia. Las coordenadas de su biografía son las mismas que las de su literatura: nacida en 1931, en una zona rural de la provincia de Ontario, conoció de niña la exaltación de la naturaleza y de los espacios abiertos y también las penurias de la Depresión. Los paisajes canadienses en los que transcurrió su infancia aún conservaban una parte del espíritu de frontera, promesa de aventura y dureza brutal de la existencia que habían conocido no mucho tiempo atrás los pioneros recién llegados, los hombres y mujeres de la generación de los abuelos de Alice Munro. El principio de su vida adulta coincidió con el salto del pasado rural a la prosperidad suburbana y al primer consumismo de los años cincuenta. La niña aventurera y lectora, aficionada a inventar para sí misma novelas y porvenires fabulosos, atada al aislamiento y a la escasez de la granja familiar y al mismo tiempo empapada en las impresiones paradisiacas de una infancia en estrecho contacto con una naturaleza todavía parcialmente indomada, se convirtió primero en estudiante pobre y con beca en una universidad provinciana y luego en ama de casa, atrapada fatalmente en una vida de obligaciones domésticas, embarazos, crianza de hijos, subordinación a la carrera o al negocio del marido, en su caso una librería en Vancouver.

En la universidad, Munro había empezado a publicar algunos cuentos en revistas y a recibir alguna atención. Su retirada hacia la vida familiar la redujo durante años a un silencio que seguramente tenía mucho de capitulación. Desde niña se había sabido rara y distinta, y había comprendido que para no sufrir el escarnio de los demás tendría que disimular, fingir que acataba las expectativas permitidas a una mujer. Preferir secretamente la vocación de la literatura a la de la maternidad tenía algo de impulso de perdición.

De esos años en los que se debió de ver a sí misma atrapada por la invisibilidad y la renuncia, encerrada en la vida de conformidad y confort que retrataban las películas -el marido, los hijos, la casa con jardín, los electrodomésticos- procede un tipo de personaje que se repite mucho en las historias de Alice Munro: la mujer que guarda sus sentimientos y sus pasiones para sí, debajo de una superficie apacible, y que de pronto un día se atreve a hacer algo que le provoca remordimiento pero de lo que no se arrrepiente, porque sabe que no podría haber actuado de otra manera. Su último libro de cuentos -que apareció en Canadá y en Estados Unidos el otoño pasado- se llama Runaway (Huida), pero ese título se podría también aplicar a un número considerable de las historias que ha ido publicando desde hace más de treinta años. Las mujeres de Alice Munro huyen de pronto, desertan, se entregan a aventuras eróticas que saben insensatas pero a las que no quieren renunciar, abandonan a sus familias y renuncian a la respetabilidad social y a la solidez económica para instalarse en ciudades lejanas, en baratos apartamentos alquilados. Obtienen trabajos mediocres, escriben cartas, resisten a cuerpo limpio el cerco de la soledad y el desasosiego de la culpa. No son víctimas del abuso físico, cargadas de razones, o mujeres de una altura intelectual o de romanticismo que sus romos maridos no aceptan ni entienden. No son exactamente buenas, ni positivas, a la manera de esas heroínas como de realismo socialista soviético que abundan en la literatura considerada canónicamente de mujeres. Sus maridos las aman y les tienen respeto, pero ellas no están interesadas en el respeto ni en el amor de sus maridos, y les son infieles con mala conciencia, pero también con perfecta convicción, con una distancia fría que es la misma que a veces dedican a sus hijos. Cuidan a esposos o a padres enfermos, cumpliendo antiguas deudas de ternura, y a la vez sienten la molestia inmensa de esa obligación, y desearían salir huyendo de ella.

En las historias de Alice Munro las protagonistas saben que elegir tiene un precio muchas veces muy alto, y que lo más deseado, lo que más se corresponde con la verdad íntima de uno mismo, puede ser dañino o cruel para otros. Su atención cuidadosa y escrutadora a los sentimientos es un cristal transparente que no se empaña nunca de complacencia ni de sentimentalismo. Sus mujeres tienen la tentación urgente del porvenir y el legado de una memoria que las vincula a un ayer extinguido, opresor y mezquino, marcado por la pobreza y las tristes sombras familiares, pero también iluminado por las sensaciones de la infancia. Dice Alice Munro que tiene muy buena memoria: que al ver al cabo de 50 años una foto en blanco y negro de los alumnos de su clase podía acordarse de los colores de la ropa que cada uno llevaba. En su escritura, tan limpia, está esa claridad en las percepciones, esa capacidad de revivir los pormenores de un objeto vulgar o de una planta o del plumaje de un pájaro y de transmitir el tono de una voz y las singularidades del habla de alguien.

La oí decir hace poco, en la radio, que muchas veces ha empezado historias que le parecían destinadas a convertirse en novelas, pero que siempre acaban siendo relatos más o menos cortos, con frecuencia sutilmente conectados entre sí. Lo decía riéndose, como aceptando una fatalidad contra la que no puede hacer nada. Pero los relatos de Alice Munro contienen muchas veces novelas enteras, abarcan amplitudes temporales y saltos de generaciones que uno no imaginaba que pudieran caber en el espacio de unas pocas decenas de páginas. "Veo la vida como piezas separadas que no acaban de encajar entre sí", decía en esa entrevista: pero esas piezas, en la trama de sus relatos, muy detalladas y a la vez despojadas de lazos precisos de continuidad, trazan perspectivas temporales que nos sobrecogen con ese sentimiento de duración, de aprendizaje y de pérdida, que parece privativo de la novela. Hay cuentos de Alice Munro que contienen una novela río en la limpia brevedad de un vaso de agua.

Su mundo es limitado, en el espacio y en el tiempo, en el repertorio de sus temas y de sus imágenes, y a la vez parece prácticamente infinito. Desde la primera línea uno sabe que ha ingresado en un cuento de Alice Munro y agradece esa familiaridad, y al mismo tiempo se mantiene alerta para apresar los nuevos matices, los quiebros, los espacios en blanco, las sorpresas con las que sin duda va a encontrarse. En la literatura los márgenes se convierten en el centro. Lugares y vidas dejados de la mano de Dios resultan contener un mapa preciso y palpitante y completo del mundo: el Sur de Faulkner, la Trinidad de las primeras novelas de V. S. Naipaul, los barrios judíos de Varsovia y las aldeas del Este de Europa de Bashevis Singer, la Santa María provinciana de Juan Carlos Onetti. A ese gran planisferio de la literatura moderna Alice Munro ha añadido su rincón apartado de la provincia de Ontario, habitado por mujeres tan bravas y rectas como ella, por seres ásperos, pintorescos y perdidos de un mundo que ya no existe. Su naturalidad es tan perfecta, sus personajes parecen tan comunes, que no siempre se advierte a primera vista la magnitud de su talento. Esa señora canadiense de pelo blanco, de voz educada e irónica, de risa fácil, es uno de los grandes en la literatura de ahora mismo.
El País
sábado 6 de agosto de 2005

Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
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ESA : European ground stations enable Galileo search and rescue testing

Maspalomas station

European ground stations enable Galileo search and rescue testing

8 October 2013

ESA’s completion of a pair of dedicated ground stations at opposite ends of Europe has enabled Galileo satellites in orbit to participate in global testing of the Cospas–Sarsat search and rescue system.

The Maspalomas station, at the southern end of the largest island of the Canary Islands, at the southern fringe of European waters, was activated in June. And this last month has seen the Svalbard site on Spitsbergen in the Norwegian Arctic come on line – the two sites can already communicate and will soon be performing joint tests.

This speedy progress has enabled the participation of the latest two Galileo satellites in an international demonstration and evaluation programme – a worldwide test campaign for a new expansion of the world’s oldest and largest satellite-based rescue system, Cospas–Sarsat.

Founded by Canada, France, Russia and the US, Cospas–Sarsat has assisted in the rescue of tens of thousands of souls in its three decades of service. Distress signals from across the globe are detected by satellites, then swiftly relayed to the nearest search and rescue (SAR) authorities.

Svalbard station

Now the programme is introducing a new medium-orbit SAR system to improve coverage and response times, with the Galileo satellites in the vanguard of this major expansion.

Supporting search and rescue is a separate function to Galileo’s main task of providing global navigation and timing services, but no less important.

The second pair of Europe’s Galileo satellites – launched together on 12 October last year – are the first of the constellation to host SAR payloads. These can pick up UHF signals from emergency beacons aboard ships, aircraft or carried by individuals, which are then relayed to ground stations. There, the source is pinpointed and automatically passed on to a control centre, which then routes it to local authorities for rescue.

Test localisation from Maspalomas

“The Galileo satellites, tested in combination with the same SAR payloads on Russian Glonass satellites as well as compatible repeaters on a pair of US GPS satellites, showed an ability to pinpoint simulated emergency beacons down to an accuracy of 2–5 km in a matter of minutes,” explained ESA’s Galileo SAR engineer, Igor Stojkovic.

“Our in-orbit validation tests so far have been in line with expectation and beyond, giving us a lot of confidence in the performance of the final system, once completed.

“And using a combination of satellites is just how the upgraded system will operate in practice, in order to localise distress signals.”

 

Hide continue

 

Cospas–Sarsat system

Currently, Cospsas–Sarsat relies on satellites in both low and geostationary orbits. Galileo’s SAR payloads support the introduction of a new system based instead on satellites in medium orbits, combining the ability to perform rapid localisation with the very wide field of view afforded by the satellites’ high altitude – 23 222 km in the case of Galileo.
This increases the probability that the alert will be detected by multiple satellites at once, especially important if the beacon is partially obscured in a rugged landscape.

This high vantage point also means much fewer ground stations are required: “Just a trio of these stations has been deemed enough to serve all of European territory,” explained Erik van der Wenden, who oversaw their procurement for ESA.

“Maspalomas and Spitsbergen will combine with a third station at Larnaca in Cyprus, currently approaching completion. These three sites are monitored and controlled from the SAR Ground Segment Data Service Provider site, based at Toulouse in France.

Extending Europe's search and rescue cover

“Each site is equipped with four antennas to track four satellites. The stations are networked to share raw data, effectively acting as a single huge 12-antenna station, achieving unprecedented detection time and localisation accuracy.”

All future Galileo satellites will carry SAR payloads, as will Glonass and the new generation of US GPS satellites, debuting later this decade.

In 2015–16, as the number of available satellites in medium orbits increases, the service will enter ‘Initial Operational Capability’, although an initial ‘SAR/Galileo Early Service’ is expected to start sooner.

 

(69.46 kB)

 

ESA

Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui

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nsf.gov - News - Whitebark Pine Trees: Is Their Future at Risk?

Widespread tree death from beetle infestations, tree disease outbreaks affecting seed production.-

 
Ecologist Josh Rapp climbs a whitebark pine to sample cone-bearing branches.
Credit: Dash Donnelly
Download the high-resolution JPG version of the image. (693 KB)
 
Whitebark pine trees killed by mountain pine beetle (foreground and on mountain).
Credit: Josh Rapp
Download the high-resolution JPG version of the image. (394 KB)
 
Current range of the whitebark pine tree: Will it soon be much smaller?
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Download the high-resolution PNG version of the image. (184 KB)

Clark's Nutcrackers are the main carriers of whitebark pine seeds to new areas.
Credit: Clarisse Hart
Download the high-resolution JPG version of the image. (4 MB)



Whitebark pine seed cones are found in clusters of two-to-four cones at ends of branches.
Credit: Josh Rapp
Download the high-resolution JPG version of the image. (434 KB)
 
 
Grizzlies: likelier to come into conflict with humans when whitebark pine cone crops fail.
Credit: Josh Rapp
Download the high-resolution JPG version of the image. (412 KB)

There's trouble ahead for the whitebark pine, a mountain tree that's integral to wildlife and water resources in the western United States and Canada.

Over the last decade, some populations of whitebark pines have declined by more than 90 percent. But these declines may be just the beginning.

New research results, supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and published today in the Journal of Ecology, suggest that as pine stands are increasingly fragmented by widespread tree death, surviving trees may be hindered in their ability to produce their usually abundant seeds.

"With fewer seeds, you get less regeneration," says ecologist Joshua Rapp, affiliated with NSF's Harvard Forest Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site and lead author of the paper.

Whitebark pine populations vary between producing a high number of seed cones some years, and a low number of seed cones other years.

This variation depends on four factors: male pollen cones, female seed cones, wind and proximity.

Each year, pollen from male cones is carried on the air to fertilize female seed cones perched atop nearby trees.

"In low-cone years, less pollen is released, reaching extremely few female cones," says Elizabeth Crone, senior ecologist at the NSF Harvard Forest LTER site and co-author of the paper.

"But as more and more whitebark pines die, every year becomes a low-cone year."

In isolated pockets of trees, the gene pool is also diminished, meaning the seeds produced may be less viable over time.

"For decades, researchers have struggled to understand why many different organisms--trees, fish, corals, insects--from various habitats reproduce synchronously and at certain intervals," says Saran Twombly, program director in NSF's Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research.

"By combining field data on seed and pollen production for whitebark pines with models that simulate mature cone production, this study helps to answer that question for these pines."

To reach their conclusions, the scientists had to look back in time.

They inspected branches from seven whitebark pine sites in western Montana, counting the scars left by pollen cones and seed cones.

"All the years with a high number of seed cones had one thing in common: a high number of pollen cones," says Rapp. "The success of the seeds seems to depend on the amount of pollen produced."

Whitebark pine seeds are an essential food source for many animals in mountain habitats.

The Clark's Nutcracker, a mountain bird, can store up to 100,000 seeds in underground caches each year. Squirrels also store thousands of seeds underground.

A diminished number of seed cones has an effect on grizzly bears, the scientists say; the bears regularly raid squirrel seed caches to prepare for winter hibernation.

"In the past, low years for whitebark pine cones have led to six times more conflicts between grizzlies and humans, as hungry bears look for food in campgrounds," says Crone.

"Now, concerns about viability of whitebark pine populations are one of the main reasons grizzly bears in Yellowstone National Park are still listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act."

Birds, squirrels and bears are not the only species that depend on whitebark pine.

Vast stands of whitebark pine help to maintain the mountain snowpacks that provide water to more than 30 million people in 16 U.S. states each year.

Whitebark pines are often the only trees at the highest elevations. Their branches retain snow as it blows across gusty mountaintops. Their shade moderates snow-melt in the spring, keeping flows down the mountain in check.

A small percentage of whitebark pine trees have outlived the ongoing destruction by pests and disease. These trees are the next area of focus for Crone's team.

"We want to find out whether the surviving trees are still producing cones," Crone says. "They represent the future of whitebark pines."

-NSF-

Media Contacts Cheryl Dybas, NSF (703) 292-7734

 cdybas@nsf.gov
Clarisse Hart, NSF Harvard Forest LTER Site (978) 756-6157

 hart3@fas.harvard.edu

Related WebsitesNSF Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) Network: 

http://www.lternet.edu
NSF Harvard Forest LTER Site:

 http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/research/LTER
NSF Publication: Discoveries in Long-Term Ecological Research:

 http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2013/nsf13083/nsf13083.pdf?WT.mc_id=USNSF_25&WT.mc_ev=click
NSF Publication: Discoveries in Sustainability:

 http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/disco12001/disco12001.pdf

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering. In fiscal year (FY) 2012, its budget was $7.0 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and other institutions. Each year, NSF receives about 50,000 competitive requests for funding, and makes about 11,500 new funding awards. NSF also awards about $593 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

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 The National Science Foundation (NSF).

Guillermo Gonzalo Sánchez Achutegui
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