Recent and projected changes in climate patterns in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Observational and reanalysis datasets reveal a northward shift of the convective regions over northern Africa in summer and an eastward shift in winter in the last four decades, with the changes in the location and intensity of the thermal lows and subtropical highs also modulating the dust loading and cloud cover over the Middle East and North Africa region. A multi-model ensemble from ten models of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project-sixth phase gives skillful simulations when compared to in-situ measurements and generally captures the trends in the ERA-5 data over the historical period. For the most extreme climate change scenario and towards the end of the twenty-first century, the subtropical highs are projected to migrate poleward by 1.5°, consistent with the projected expansion of the Hadley Cells, with a weakening of the tropical easterly jet in the summer by up to a third and a strengthening of the subtropical jet in winter typically by 10% except over the eastern Mediterranean where the storm track is projected to shift polewards. The length of the seasons is projected to remain about the same, suggesting the warming is likely to be felt uniformly throughout the year.

African dust transport and deposition modelling verified through a citizen science campaign in Finland.

African desert dust is emitted and long-range transported with multiple effects on climate, air quality, cryosphere, and ecosystems. On 21-23 February 2021, dust from a sand and dust storm in northern Africa was transported to Finland, north of 60°N. The episode was predicted 5 days in advance by the global operational SILAM forecast, and its key features were confirmed and detailed by a retrospective analysis. The scavenging of dust by snowfall and freezing rain in Finland resulted in a rare case of substantial mineral dust contamination of snow surfaces over a large area in the southern part of the country. A citizen science campaign was set up to collect contaminated snow samples prepared according to the scientists' instructions. The campaign gained wide national interest in television, radio, newspapers and social media, and dust samples were received from 525 locations in Finland, up to 64.3°N. The samples were utilised in investigating the ability of an atmospheric dispersion model to simulate the dust episode. The analysis confirmed that dust came from a wide Sahara and Sahel area from 5000 km away. Our results reveal the features of this rare event and demonstrate how deposition samples can be used to evaluate the skills and limitations of current atmospheric models in simulating transport of African dust towards northern Europe.

Conceptualization of arid region radioecology strategies for agricultural ecosystems of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Since the last decade, ambitious nuclear power programmes have begun maturing in the Arab countries, most importantly in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The region's environment and population, therefore, are prone to adverse, long-term impacts of radionuclide discharges. To calculate the associated exposure scenarios, to estimate doses and their consequences, and finally, to lay out a radiological emergency management plan, arid region radioecology is taking shape in the UAE as a major field of research. Geography, demography, food habits, weather, soil, water, flora, and fauna of the desert-marine regions are quite distinct from their temperate counterparts. This results in the need to increase the knowhows of environmental migration and bioaccumulation of radionuclides in the region's agricultural ecosystems. In this paper, we present a detailed review of the measured data from the UAE and nearby nations, generating insights for the soil radioactivity and soil-to-plant transfer phenomena under local arid conditions. In the literature, the radionuclide activity concentrations (in Bq kg-1) vary over five orders of magnitude depending on nuclide type, sample type, and locality. Variabilities over six orders of magnitude are observed for transfer parameters too, and in-depth studies on the transfer mechanisms are usually scarce. We discuss the recent progresses made in root and foliar uptake studies with methods relatively new to sandy soils, like controlled potting, and soil Kd measurements. Showing the serious gaps in the data and interpretations, we provide a justification for the immediate experimentation in the understudied aspects of radioecology in the UAE and in arid lands in general.

Increased Shamal winds and dust activity over the Arabian Peninsula during the COVID-19 lockdown period in 2020.

While anthropogenic pollutants have decreased during the lockdown imposed as an effort to contain the spread of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), changes in particulate matter (PM) do not necessarily exhibit the same tendency. This is the case for the eastern Arabian Peninsula, where in March-June 2020, and with respect to the same period in 2016-2019, a 30 % increase in PM concentration is observed. A stronger than normal nocturnal low-level jet and subtropical jet over parts of Saudi Arabia, in response to anomalous convection over the tropical Indian Ocean, promoted enhanced and more frequent episodes of Shamal winds over the Arabian Peninsula. Increased surface winds associated with the downward mixing of momentum to the surface fostered, in turn, dust lifting and increased PM concentrations. The stronger low-level winds also favoured long-range transport of aerosols, changing the PM values downstream. The competing effects of reduced anthropogenic and increased dust concentrations leave a small positive signal (<5 W m-2) in the net surface radiation flux (Rnet), with the former dominating during daytime and the latter at night. However, in parts of the Arabian Gulf, Sea of Oman and Iran Rnet increased by >20 W m-2 with respect to the baseline period, owing to a clearer environment and weaker winds. It is concluded that a reduction in anthropogenic emissions due to the lockdown does not necessarily go hand in hand with lower particulate matter concentrations. Therefore, emissions reduction strategies need to account for feedback effects in order to reach the planned long-term outcomes.

On the crucial role of atmospheric rivers in the two major Weddell Polynya events in 1973 and 2017 in Antarctica.

This study reports the occurrence of intense atmospheric rivers (ARs) during the two large Weddell Polynya events in November 1973 and September 2017 and investigates their role in the opening events via their enhancement of sea ice melt. Few days before the polynya openings, persistent ARs maintained a sustained positive total energy flux at the surface, resulting in sea ice thinning and a decline in sea ice concentration in the Maud Rise region. The ARs were associated with anomalously high amounts of total precipitable water and cloud liquid water content exceeding 3 SDs above the climatological mean. The above-normal integrated water vapor transport (IVT above the 99th climatological percentile), as well as opaque cloud bands, warmed the surface (+10°C in skin and air temperature) via substantial increases (+250 W m-2) in downward longwave radiation and advection of warm air masses, resulting in sea ice melt and inhibited nighttime refreezing.

Orthotic management of fixed flexion deformity of the proximal interphalangeal joint following traumatic injury: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Fixed flexion deformity of the proximal interphalangeal joint can commonly occur following a traumatic injury impacting on hand function and occupational performance. Numerous interventions have been proposed for fixed flexion deformity resolution. This paper investigates the efficacy of static or dynamic orthoses in reducing fixed flexion deformity contracture following traumatic proximal interphalangeal joint injury. METHODS: A multi-database search of three databases (CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE) was conducted. Data extracted for each study were design, patient descriptions, degree of fixed flexion deformity pre- and post-orthoses, and prescribed interventions and exercise programmes. RESULTS: The search yielded 643 studies, of which eight met the inclusion criteria. Studies used heterogeneous methodologies investigating various orthotic interventions. Meta-analysis or pooling of results was not possible. Dissimilar orthotic wear regimes were noted in all studies and an alternative clinical significance outcome was found. CONCLUSION: More research is required to support clinical reasoning in orthotic choice for fixed flexion deformity of the proximal interphalangeal joint post-traumatic injury.