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Tag: Scientific Reports

  • London Underground polluted with metallic particles small enough to enter human bloodstream

    London Underground polluted with metallic particles small enough to enter human bloodstream

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    Newswise — The London Underground is polluted with ultrafine metallic particles small enough to end up in the human bloodstream, according to University of Cambridge researchers. These particles are so small that they are likely being underestimated in surveys of pollution in the world’s oldest metro system.

    The researchers carried out a new type of pollution analysis, using magnetism to study dust samples from Underground ticket halls, platforms and operator cabins.

    The team found that the samples contained high levels of a type of iron oxide called maghemite. Since it takes time for iron to oxidise into maghemite, the results suggest that pollution particles are suspended for long periods, due to poor ventilation throughout the Underground, particularly on station platforms.

    Some of the particles are as small as five nanometres in diameter: small enough to be inhaled and end up in the bloodstream, but too small to be captured by typical methods of pollution monitoring. However, it is not clear whether these particles pose a health risk.

    Other studies have looked at overall pollution levels on the Underground and the associated health risks, but this is the first time that the size and type of particles has been analysed in detail. The researchers suggest that periodic removal of dust from Underground tunnels, as well as magnetic monitoring of pollution levels, could improve air quality throughout the network. Their results are reported in the journal Scientific Reports.

    The London Underground carries five million passengers per day. Multiple studies have shown that air pollution levels on the Underground are higher than those in London more broadly, and beyond the World Health Organization’s (WHO) defined limits. Earlier studies have also suggested that most of the particulate matter on the Underground is generated as the wheels, tracks and brakes grind against one another, throwing up tiny, iron-rich particles.

    “Since most of these air pollution particles are metallic, the Underground is an ideal place to test whether magnetism can be an effective way to monitor pollution,” said Professor Richard Harrison from Cambridge’s Department of Earth Sciences, the paper’s senior author. “Normally, we study magnetism as it relates to planets, but we decided to explore how those techniques could be applied to different areas, including air pollution.”

    Pollution levels are normally monitored using standard air filters, but these cannot capture ultrafine particles, and they do not detect what kinds of particles are contained within the particulate matter.

    “I started studying environmental magnetism as part of my PhD, looking at whether low-cost monitoring techniques could be used to characterise pollution levels and sources,” said lead author Hassan Sheikh from Cambridge’s Department of Earth Sciences. “The Underground is a well-defined micro-environment, so it’s an ideal place to do this type of study.”

    Working with colleagues from Cambridge’s Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, Sheikh and Harrison analysed 39 dust samples from the London Underground, provided by Transport for London (TfL). The samples were collected in 2019 and 2021 from platforms, ticket halls, and train operator cabins on the Piccadilly, Northern, Central, Bakerloo, Victoria, Northern, District and Jubilee lines. The sampling included major stations such as King’s Cross St Pancras, Paddington, and Oxford Circus.

    The researchers used magnetic fingerprinting, 3D imaging and nanoscale microscopy to characterise the structure, size, shape, composition and magnetic properties of particles contained in the samples. Earlier studies have shown that 50% of the pollution particles in the Underground are iron-rich, but the Cambridge team were able to look in much closer detail. They found a high abundance of maghemite particles, ranging in diameter from five to 500 nanometres, and with an average diameter of 10 nanometres. Some particles formed larger clusters with diameters between 100 and 2,000 nanometres.

    “The abundance of these very fine particles was surprising,” said Sheikh. “The magnetic properties of iron oxides fundamentally change as the particle size changes. In addition, the size range where those changes happen is the same as where air pollution becomes a health risk.”

    While the researchers did not look at whether these maghemite particles pose a direct health risk, they say that their characterisation methods could be useful in future studies.

    “If you’re going to answer the question of whether these particles are bad for your health, you first need to know what the particles are made of and what their properties are,” said Sheikh.

    “Our techniques give a much more refined picture of pollution in the Underground,” said Harrison. “We can measure particles that are small enough to be inhaled and enter the bloodstream. Typical pollution monitoring doesn’t give you a good picture of the very small stuff.”

    The researchers say that due to poor ventilation in the Underground, iron-rich dust can be resuspended in the air when trains arrive at platforms, making the air quality on platforms worse than in ticket halls or in operator cabins.

    Given the magnetic nature of the resuspended dust, the researchers suggest that an efficient removal system might be magnetic filters in ventilation, cleaning of the tracks and tunnel walls, or placing screen doors between platforms and trains.

    The research was supported in part by the European Union, the Cambridge Trust and Selwyn College, Cambridge.

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  • Researchers propose new structures to harvest untapped source of freshwater

    Researchers propose new structures to harvest untapped source of freshwater

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    Newswise — An almost limitless supply of fresh water exists in the form of water vapor above Earth’s oceans, yet remains untapped, researchers said. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is the first to suggest an investment in new infrastructure capable of harvesting oceanic water vapor as a solution to limited supplies of fresh water in various locations around the world.

    The study, led by civil and environmental engineering professor and Prairie Research Institute executive director Praveen Kumar, evaluated 14 water-stressed locations across the globe for the feasibility of a hypothetical structure capable of capturing water vapor from above the ocean and condensing it into fresh water – and do so in a manner that will remain feasible in the face of continued climate change.

    Kumar, graduate student Afeefa Rahman and atmospheric sciences professor Francina Dominguez published their findings in the journal Nature Scientific Reports.

    “Water scarcity is a global problem and hits close to home here in the U.S. regarding the sinking water levels in the Colorado River basin, which affects the whole Western U.S.,” Kumar said. “However, in subtropical regions, like the Western U.S., nearby oceans are continuously evaporating water because there is enough solar radiation due to the very little cloud coverage throughout the year.”

    Previous wastewater recycling, cloud seeding and desalination techniques have met only limited success, the researchers said. Though deployed in some areas across the globe, desalination plants face sustainability issues because of the brine and heavy metal-laden wastewater produced – so much so that California has recently rejected measures to add new desalination plants.

    “Eventually, we will need to find a way to increase the supply of fresh water as conservation and recycled water from existing sources, albeit essential, will not be sufficient to meet human needs. We think our newly proposed method can do that at large scales,” Kumar said.

    The researchers performed atmospheric and economic analyses of the placement of hypothetical offshore structures 210 meters in width and 100 meters in height.

    Through their analyses, the researchers concluded that capturing moisture over ocean surfaces is feasible for many water-stressed regions worldwide. The estimated water yield of the proposed structures could provide fresh water for large population centers in the subtropics.

    One of the more robust projections of climate change is that dry regions will get drier, and wet areas will get wetter. “The current regions experiencing water scarcity will likely be even drier in the future, exacerbating the problem,” Dominguez said. “And unfortunately, people continue moving to water-limited areas, like the Southwestern U.S.”

    However, this projection of increasingly arid conditions favors the new ocean vapor-harvesting technology.

    “The climate projections show that the oceanic vapor flux will only increase over time, providing even more fresh water supply,” Rahman said. “So, the idea we are proposing will be feasible under climate change. This provides a much needed and effective approach for adaptation to climate change, particularly to vulnerable populations living in arid and semi-arid regions of the world.”

    The researchers said one of the more elegant features of this proposed solution is that it works like the natural water cycle.

     “The difference is that we can guide where the evaporated water from the ocean goes,” Dominguez said. “When Praveen approached me with this idea, we both wondered why nobody had thought about it before because it seemed like such an obvious solution. But it hasn’t been done before, and I think it is because researchers are so focused on land-based solutions – but our study shows other options do, in fact, exist.”  

    The researchers said this study opens the door for novel infrastructure investments that can effectively address the increasing global scarcity of fresh water.

    The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the Lovell Professorship in the department of civil and environmental engineering, The University Scholar Program and the National Science Foundation supported this research.

     

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    University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

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  • What does Polly say? Community science data reveal species differences in vocal learning by parrots

    What does Polly say? Community science data reveal species differences in vocal learning by parrots

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    Newswise — While most animals don’t learn their vocalizations, everyone knows that parrots do – they are excellent mimics of human speech. But how large is the vocabulary of different parrot species? Do males “talk” more than females? Does a parrot’s vocabulary expand with age? A new study publishing Dec. 5 in the Nature journal Scientific Reports, titled “A survey of vocal mimicry in companion parrots,” adds to what we know about animal vocal learning by providing the largestcomparative analysis to date of parrot vocal repertoires.

    The paper documents species differences in vocal mimicry, shows that many parrots use words in appropriate contexts, and highlights the value of crowd-sourced data.

    Data were collected as part of a community science project entitled “What does Polly Say?” Humans who live with companion parrots reported on the number of human “words” and “phrases” used by their parrots, as well as human-associated sounds (such as whistling a tune) and contextual use of sounds. This approach allowed researchers to collect standardized data on vocal learning by nearly 900 parrots from 73 species, a sample that would have been impossible to gather on wild parrots.

    What researchers from the University of Northern Colorado (UNC) and the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown (UPJ) found:

    Species matters — “As it turns out, Polly’s species might have a strong impact on what she says” said co-author Lauryn Benedict, professor and associate director of UNC’s School of Biological Sciences. Some species are much better mimics than others. African grey parrots, long understood to be the best at learning human sounds, were found to have the largest repertoires, averaging about 60 human words. Cockatoos, Amazons, and Macaws also were excellent mimics, with average repertoires of 20-30 words.Most species learned more phrases than sounds, but a few, including Cockatiels and Fischer’s Lovebirds,learned more human sounds than phrases.

    Learning over time — The study concludes that age and sex are weak predictors of vocal mimicry. Age-based analyses showed that juveniles expanded their repertoires until they reached maturity, but after that repertoire sizes reached a plateau. Fifty-year–old birds did not have larger repertoires than 5–year–old birds.

    Males versus females — Sex-based analyses showed that males and females of most species were equally good mimics. There are, however, some exceptions, including Budgerigars, in which males had larger vocal repertoires, Pacific Parrotlets, among which only males were reported to “talk,” and Yellow-headed Amazons, among which females learned more sounds.

    Although most males and females were equally good human mimics, the researchers documented a reporting bias whereby birds of uncertain sex were more often marked as male (74%). They conclude that humans who live with parrots of uncertain sex overwhelmingly, and often mistakenly, assume those birdsare male.

    Parrots have timing — Human survey-takers reported that a very high proportion of companion parrots (89 %) spontaneously used human mimicry in appropriate contexts, with most birds doing so frequently. The researchers conclude that parrots learn both what to say, and also when to say it.

    “This research highlights just how much parrots still have to teach us,” said co-author Christine Dahlin, associate professor of Biology from UPJ. “Approximately 30% of parrot species in the wild are declining to the point of being threatened, endangered or critically endangered, primarily from poaching and habitat loss. Without conservation of remaining populations, we risk losing the opportunity to understand the evolution of complex communication in these amazing animals.”

    As vocal learners, parrots are important research subjects for understanding the physiological, neurobiological, and evolutionary underpinnings of acoustic communication in nature. It is clear that both companion and wild parrots use vocal mimicry to navigate their complex social and cognitive worlds. The species and sex specific differences documented by this research can spur new avenues of research andlead to increased appreciation for parrots.


    Anyone who lives with a parrot is invited to join the community science team and contribute to this ongoing research by filling out the survey at this link: https://bit.ly/2S7nx3K.

    For reference, here are public links highlighting parrots known for their large repertoires: Alex, a Grey Parrot: https://alexfoundation.org/; and Sparkie Williams, a Budgerigar: https://blogs.bl.uk/sound-and-vision/2017/02/recording-of-the-week-sparkie-williams-the-talking-budgerigar.html

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    University of Pittsburgh

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  • Archaeology: Owl-shaped plaques may have been on Copper Age children’s wish list

    Archaeology: Owl-shaped plaques may have been on Copper Age children’s wish list

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    Newswise — Ancient owl-shaped slate engraved plaques, dating from around 5,000 years ago in the Iberian Peninsula, may have been created by children as toys, suggests a paper published in Scientific Reports. These findings may provide insights into how children used artefacts in ancient European societies.

    Around 4,000 engraved slate plaques resembling owls – with two engraved circles for eyes and a body outlined below – and dating from the Copper Age between 5,500 and 4,750 years ago have been found in tombs and pits across the Iberian Peninsula. It has been speculated that these owl plaques may have had ritualistic significance and represented deities or the dead.

    Now, Juan Negro and colleagues re-examined this interpretation and suggest instead that these owl plaques may have been crafted by young people based on regional owl species, and may have been used as dolls, toys, or amulets. The authors assessed 100 plaques and rated them (on a scale of one to six) based on how many of six owl traits they displayed including two eyes, feathery tufts, patterned feathers, a flat facial disk, a beak, and wings. The authors compared these plaques to 100 modern images of owls drawn by children aged 4 to 13 years old, and observed many similarities between the depictions of owls. Owl drawings more closely resembled owls as children aged and became more skilful.

    The authors observe the presence of two small holes at the top of many plaques. These holes appear impractical to pass a cord through in order to hang the plaque, and lack the expected lack wear-marks if this was their use. Instead they speculate that feathers could be inserted through the holes in order to resemble the tufts on the heads of some regional owl species, such as the long-eared owl (Asio otus).

    The authors propose that, rather than being carved by skilled artisans for use in rituals, many of the owl plaques were created by children, and more closely resembled owls as the children’s carving skills increased. They may represent a glimpse into childhood behaviours in Copper Age societies.

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  • Cultural heritage may influence choice of tools by capuchin monkeys, study suggests

    Cultural heritage may influence choice of tools by capuchin monkeys, study suggests

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    Newswise — Capuchin monkeys (Sapajus spp.) are among only a few primates that use tools in day-to-day activities. In the Cerrado and Caatinga, they use stones as hammers and anvils to crack open cashew nuts, seed pods of Hymenaea courbaril (West Indian locust; jatobá in Brazil) and other hard foods. 

    In an article published in Scientific Reports, Brazilian researchers show that food hardness and tool size do not always correlate as closely as has been thought. 

    In their study, the researchers observed three populations of bearded capuchin monkeys (Sapajus libidinosus), measuring food hardness, tool size and weight, and local availability of stones. They concluded that culture, defined as information passed on from one generation to the next by social learning, can also influence behavior in this regard. 

    “In one of the populations we analyzed, even when they have stones that are suitable for use on a particular food resource, they may use disproportionately heavy tools, possibly evidencing a cultural trait of that group,” said Tiago Falótico, a researcher at the University of São Paulo’s School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities (EACH-USP) supported by FAPESP.

    The population to which he referred lives in Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park in Goiás, a state in Brazil’s Center-West region. In the study, this population was compared with capuchins living in Serra das Confusões National Park, in Piauí, a state in the Northeast region, and another population that lives in Serra da Capivara National Park, about 100 km away in the same state. 

    The tools are pieces of quartzite and sandstone found in places referred to as processing sites. The animals frequent these sites solely to look for these stones for use as hammers and anvils. One stone is used to pound a nut or seed resting on another stone used as an anvil. 

    “In Serra das Confusões, they use smaller tools to open smaller and softer fruit but use large, heavy hammers to crack coconut shells, which are very hard. In Chapada dos Veadeiros, where there are stones of varying sizes to choose from, they use the heaviest ones even for fragile foods,” Falótico said.

    Not by chance, it was in this latter park that the researchers recorded the heaviest stone lifted by capuchins. An adult male weighs 3.5 kg on average, and they filmed an individual lifting a hammer stone that was later found to weigh 4.65 kg. “They’re champion weightlifters,” he chuckled.

    Measurements

    The findings were the result of a great deal of hard work. The researchers documented the kinds of food most frequently found in the processing sites, such as babassu (Attalea speciosa), West Indian locust, cashew, and wild cassava (Manihot spp). They also documented the stones available, as well as the sizes and weights of the tools they found, measured the hardness of each type of food using a special device, and observed and filmed tool usage in each study area.

    “We expected to find a very close correlation between the type of food and the size and weight of the tool, but the population in Chapada dos Veadeiros mainly used the larger ones even though stones of all sizes are plentiful and they can choose a smaller size. They probably inherited this habit from their ancestors. It’s a cultural difference compared with the other populations,” Falótico said.

    The cultural learning hypothesis is reinforced by the fact that studies in other areas, such as Serra de Itabaiana in Sergipe and Chapada Diamantina in Bahia (both states in the Northeast), involving Sapajus capuchins, stones and the same kinds of fruit and seed have not found processing sites or the use of stone tools for this purpose. In Serra das Confusões, the capuchins use tools to crack open several kinds of food except cashew nuts, which are nevertheless abundant.

    “Their behavior isn’t due to the availability of resources but to cultural heritage,” Falótico said.

    The researchers are now analyzing the genomes of all three populations to see if the cultural differences can be linked to genetic differences.

    The study was also supported by FAPESP via a scholarship awarded to Tatiane Valença, a PhD candidate at EACH-USP.

    Human evolution

    A paper by Falótico and a team of archeologists from Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom, published in the Journal of Human Evolution, reports the results of field experiments conducted to test the potential for accidental flake production during nut cracking by capuchins using various types of rock as anvils.

    Some capuchins ingest or anoint themselves with powder produced by pounding stones. They may also rub the powder on their teeth. Their reasons for doing so are unknown, but the researchers believe one aim may be to combat parasites. In the experiments, flakes were also produced by fragmentation of anvils comprising homogeneous material.

    The monkeys did not use the flakes, which closely resembled the lithic tools found by archeologists at digs around the world. The researchers believe the earliest hominins obtained flakes accidentally before their deliberate production for use as tools.

    “Capuchins may also use flakes as tools in future if an innovative individual starts doing so, and others learn by observing. These primates can therefore serve as a model to help us understand human evolution,” Falótico said.

    A previous study by the same group of researchers showed how lithic tools used by the capuchin population in Serra da Capivara displayed different patterns of wear marks depending on the activities involved (read more at: agencia.fapesp.br/35251). 

    Comparisons of the use-wear marks on tools used by monkeys and hominins could reveal how our earliest ancestors used lithic tools. It may therefore be possible to find out more about human evolution from the study of Brazilian capuchin monkeys.

    The article “Stone tools differences across three capuchin monkey populations: food’s physical properties, ecology, and culture” is at: www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-18661-3. 

    About São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)

    The São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) is a public institution with the mission of supporting scientific research in all fields of knowledge by awarding scholarships, fellowships and grants to investigators linked with higher education and research institutions in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. FAPESP is aware that the very best research can only be done by working with the best researchers internationally. Therefore, it has established partnerships with funding agencies, higher education, private companies, and research organizations in other countries known for the quality of their research and has been encouraging scientists funded by its grants to further develop their international collaboration. You can learn more about FAPESP at www.fapesp.br/en and visit FAPESP news agency at www.agencia.fapesp.br/en to keep updated with the latest scientific breakthroughs FAPESP helps achieve through its many programs, awards and research centers. You may also subscribe to FAPESP news agency at http://agencia.fapesp.br/subscribe

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  • Inverted Dancers Have More Acute Visuomotor Perception

    Inverted Dancers Have More Acute Visuomotor Perception

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    Newswise — Previous studies have determined that astronauts can judge inverted movements better than people on Earth due to the astronauts’ unique visuomotor experience with inverted movements in space.

    Now, a new study, in which University of Wyoming researchers played key lead roles, shows that people on Earth with extended visuomotor experience with inverted movements — such as vertical dancers — can overcome the inversion effect in perceiving biological motion.  

    Qin Zhu, a UW professor of kinesiology and health, was lead and senior author of a paper titled “Extended Visuomotor Experience With Inverted Movements Can Overcome the Inversions of Effect in Biological Motion Perception” that was published Oct. 20 in Scientific Reports, an online peer-reviewed, open-access journal that covers all areas of the natural sciences.

    “As indicated by the title of the article, we proved that the inversion effect in biological motion perception (BMP) can be overcome,” Zhu says. “BMP is intriguing because it is a survival skill humans and animals both share. We can read the motions produced by others in same or different species and figure out who the actor is and what is intended by the actor. So, we can better prepare our response, either to escape or engage. However, if the motion is performed upside-down, or inverted, such a capability will be greatly impaired.”

    Margaret Wilson, professor and head of the UW Department of Theatre and Dance, was second author of the paper. For the study, Wilson provided the list of vertical dance movements; facilitated motion-capture of the movements; recruited vertical dancers for the experiment; and revised the paper.

    Xiaoye Wang, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education at the University of Toronto, was another lead author of the paper. Zhu worked with Wang to conceptualize and implement the study; analyze results; and draft and revise the paper.

    Other contributors were from Shanghai University of Sport and Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, who helped recruit participants in China to help increase the diversity of sample sizes of the study.

    The study was composed of 52 adult volunteers — 15 participants without any dance experience; 21 participants with an average of 7.71 years of typical dance experience; and 16 participants with 4.75 years of vertical dance experience. The vertical dancers were from UW and Europe.

    Subjects were presented 40 dance movements as point-light displays on a computer. There were 10 pairs of dance movements, with each pair including a dance movement performed on the ground and another performed in the air. In half of the test trials, the display was artificially inverted. Vertical dancers, traditional dancers and non-dancers were asked whether the display was artificially inverted or as it was.

    Only vertical dancers could identify the inversion movements performed in the air. Vertical dancers were equally capable of identifying an artificial inversion regardless of whether the dance movement was performed on the ground or in the air.

    Traditional dancers and non-dancers — who had no experience with performing inverted movement — could not distinguish the inversion on the point-light display for the inverted movements performed in the air, according to the paper. The paper’s findings suggest that visuomotor experience with inverted movements plays a more critical role in allowing observers to identify in the inverted biological motion.

    Zhu says those with experience viewing and/or performing inverted movements while suspended in the air can use that experience to perceive and understand the inverted movements.

    “Therefore, spectators who have seen vertical dance performances before will have a better understanding of inverted movements than those who have never seen such a performance,” Zhu says. “And, for those who want to learn and perform vertical dance in the future, both visual and motor training — with respect to the inverted movements — are required to improve awareness and perception of self-movements in relation to partners or spectators while performing vertical dance.”

    Zhu adds that people without any dance experience can judge the upright dance movements “pretty well” compared to trained dancers, which suggests that there are similarities between upright dance movements and movements in daily life.

    “Relating to science fiction, Spiderman should have a superior ability over others to read any inverted movements,” Zhu says.

    A follow-up study, using an eye tracker, has been performed to examine the visual search patterns of vertical dancers versus traditional dancers while each group observes the point-light displays to judge the actions.

    “Based on the research findings, a visual training program will be designed to train students who are enrolled in UW vertical dance classes,” Zhu says. 

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    University of Wyoming

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  • Opening the eye of the storm

    Opening the eye of the storm

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    Newswise — For the first time, high-energy muon particles created in the atmosphere have allowed researchers to explore the structures of storms in a way that traditional visualization techniques, such as satellite imaging, cannot. The detail offered by this new technique could aid researchers modeling storms and related weather effects. This could also lead to more accurate early warning systems.

    It’s hard not to notice the number of stories in the news about heavy storms in different parts of the world, often attributed to climate change. Weather prediction and early warning systems have always been important, but with increased storm activity it seems especially so these days. A team of researchers, led by Professor Hiroyuki Tanaka from Muographix at the University of Tokyo, offer the world of meteorology a novel way of detecting and exploring tropical cyclones using a quirk of particle physics that takes place above our heads all the time.

    “You’ve probably seen photographs of cyclones taken from above, showing swirling vortices of clouds. But I doubt you’ve ever seen a cyclone from the side, perhaps as a computer graphic, but never as actual captured sensor data,” said Tanaka. “What we offer the world is the ability to do just this, visualize large-scale weather phenomena like cyclones from a 3D perspective, and in real time too. We do this using a technique called muography, which you can think of like an X-ray, but for seeing inside truly enormous things.”

    Muography creates X-ray-like images of large objects, including volcanoes, the pyramids, bodies of water, and now, for the first time, atmospheric weather systems. Special sensors called scintillators are joined together to make a grid, a little like the pixels on your smartphone’s camera sensor. However, these scintillators don’t see optical light, but instead see particles called muons which are created in the atmosphere when cosmic rays from deep space collide with the atoms in the air. Muons are special because they pass through matter easily without scattering as much as other types of particles. But the small amount they do deviate by as they pass through solid, liquid, or even gaseous matter, can reveal details of their journey between the atmosphere and the sensors. By capturing a large number of muons passing through something, an image of it can be reconstructed.

    “We successfully imaged the vertical profile of a cyclone, and this revealed density variations essential to understanding how cyclones work,” said Tanaka. “The images show cross sections of the cyclone which passed through Kagoshima Prefecture in western Japan. I was surprised to see clearly it had a low-density warm core that contrasted dramatically with the high-pressure cold exterior. There is absolutely no way to capture such data with traditional pressure sensors and photography.”

    The detector the researchers used has a viewing angle of 90 degrees, but Tanaka envisages combining similar sensors to create hemispherical and therefore omnidirectional observation stations which could be placed along the length of a coastline. These could potentially see cyclones as far away as 300 kilometers. Although satellites already track these storms, the extra detail offered by muography could improve predictions about approaching storms.

    “One of the next steps for us now will be to refine this technique in order to detect and visualize storms at different scales,” said Tanaka. “This could mean better modeling and prediction not only for larger storm systems, but more local weather conditions as well.”

    ###

    Journal article: Hiroyuki K.M. Tanaka, Jon Gluyas, Marko Holma, Jari Joutsenvaara, Pasi Kuusiniemi, Giovanni Leone, Domenico Lo Presti, Jun Matsushima, László Oláh, Sara Steigerwald, Lee F. Thompson, Ilya Usoskin, Stepan Poluianov, Dezső Varga, Yusuke Yokota. “Atmospheric Muography for Imaging and Monitoring Tropic Cyclones”. Scientific Reports.

     

    About The University of Tokyo
    The University of Tokyo is Japan’s leading university and one of the world’s top research universities. The vast research output of some 6,000 researchers is published in the world’s top journals across the arts and sciences. Our vibrant student body of around 15,000 undergraduate and 15,000 graduate students includes over 4,000 international students. Find out more at www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/ or follow us on Twitter at @UTokyo_News_en.

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