Astronomical Site Testing in Northwest of Argentina

We present the preliminary results of the astronomical site testing, which the group IATE of the OAC is developing in northwest of Argentine in collaboration with ESO and the Department of Astronomy of Cornell University. We show the results, which we have obtained from the analysis of GOES 8 satellite images in the 10.7 μm band, which allowed us to configurate a map of clear sky regions in an area between 23° and 28° S, and 66° 30′ and 69° W. We also comment logistical and tectonic aspects, and discuss next steps to follow in the research.     

Simulations of Galactic Cosmic Ray impacts onto the Herschel/PACS photoconductor arrays with Geant4 code

We present results of simulations performed with the Geant4 software code of the effects of Galactic Cosmic Ray impacts on the photoconductor arrays of the PACS instrument. This instrument is part of the ESA-Herschel payload, which will be launched in 2008 and will operate at the Lagrangian L2 point of the Sun-Earth system. Both the Satellite plus the cryostat (the shield) and the detector act as source of secondary events, affecting the detector performance. Secondary event rates originated within the detector and from the shield are of comparable intensity. The impacts deposit energy on each photoconductor pixel but do not affect the behaviour of nearby pixels. These latter are hit with a probability always lower than 7%. The energy deposited produces a spike which can be hundreds times larger than the noise. We then compare our simulations with proton irradiation tests carried out for one of the detector modules and follow the detector behaviour under ‘real’ conditions.     

Evaluation of hydrogeochemical processes and groundwater quality for suitability of drinking and irrigation purposes: a case study in the Aosta Valley region,Italy

The present study aims to discuss the hydrogeochemical processes in the Aosta Valley region and assess the quality of its groundwater for suitability of drinking and irrigation purposes. One hundred twenty-two samples were collected from the Aosta Valley region in the years 2007 and 2008 (61 per year), and analysed for pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS), total hardness, major cations and anions. The pH of the samples in both years indicated a near-neutral to alkaline nature of the groundwater. The cation and anion chemistry showed the general ionic abundance as: Ca²⁺ > Mg²⁺ > Na⁺ > K⁺ and HCO₃ ^?>SO₄ ^2?>Cl^?>NO₃ ^?>F^? in both years. Ca²⁺-Mg²⁺-HCO₃ ^? and Ca²⁺-Mg²⁺-Cl^?-SO₄ ^2? were the dominant hydrogeochemical facies. The computed saturation indices demonstrated that the groundwater was supersaturated with respect to dolomite and calcite in both years. The groundwater chemistry of the study area was mainly controlled by the dissolution of carbonate, sulphate and silicate minerals, as well as ion exchange processes. A comparison of the groundwater quality in relation to drinking water standards showed that most of the water samples were suitable for drinking and domestic uses. The computed water quality index (WQI) values of the study area groundwater ranged from 24 to 84 in the year 2007 and from 22 to 82 in the year 2008, and all the location fell under the Excellent to Good category. Quality assessment for irrigation uses revealed that the groundwater was good to permissible quality for irrigation; however, locally higher salinity, residual sodium carbonate (RSC) and magnesium hazard (MH) restricted its suitability for irrigation at a few sites. These results will be useful in implementing future measures in groundwater resource management at regional and national level.     

Interaction of bentonite colloids with Cs, Eu, Th and U in presence of humic acid: A flow field-flow fractionation study

The interaction of Cs(I), Eu(III), Th(IV) and U(VI) with montmorillonite colloids was investigated in natural Grimsel Test Site groundwater over a 3 years period. The asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation combined with various detectors was applied to study size variations of colloids and to monitor colloid association of trace metals. The colloids suspended directly in the low ionic strength (I), slightly alkaline granitic groundwater (I = 10⁻³ mol/L, pH 9.6) showed a gradual agglomeration with a size distribution shift from initially 10-200 nm to 50-400 nm within over 3 years. The Ca²⁺ concentration of 2.1 × 10⁻⁴ mol/L in the ground water is believed to be responsible for the slow agglomeration due to Ca²⁺ ion exchange against Li⁺ and Na⁺ at the permanently charged basal clay planes. Furthermore, the Ca²⁺ concentration lies close to the critical coagulation concentration (CCC) of 10⁻³ mol L⁻¹ for clay colloids. Slow destabilization may delimit clay colloid migration in this specific groundwater over long time scales. Eu(III) and Th(IV) are found predominantly bound to clay colloids, while U(VI) prevails as the UO₂(OH)₃⁻ complex and Cs(I) remains mainly as aquo ion under our experimental conditions. Speciation calculations qualitatively represent the experimental data. A focus was set on the reversibility of metal ion-colloid binding. Addition of humic acid as a competing ligand induces rapid metal ion dissociation from clay colloids in the case of Eu(III) even after previous aging for about 3 years. Interestingly only partial dissociation occurs in the case of Th(IV). Experiments and calculations prove that the humate complexes dominate the speciation of all metal ions under given conditions. The partial irreversibility of clay bound Th(IV) is presently not understood but might play an important role for the colloid-mediated transport of polyvalent actinides over wide distances in natural groundwater.     

Recent developments in planning the settlement hierarchy of Barbados: Implications concerning the debate on urban primacy

The topic of big-city growth is receiving increasing attention from geographers, economists, planners and environmentalists, particularly in relation to the likely social and economic impact of urban primacy, and the theoretical and practical implications of optimal city size. This short paper examines these issues in the context of Barbados, where Bridgetown, the chief port and capital city houses some 42% of the island's total population. Initially, the recommendations of the Physical Development Plan for Barbados, published in 1970 with United Nations technical assistance, are presented. In essence, the plan advocated the creation of a hierarchy of settlements within the island by the 1980s, in order to counter the perceived supremacy of Bridgetown. Subsequently, recent progress in promoting the decentralization of population and facilities from Bridgetown is reviewed; and in conclusion, the original proposals and recent developments are critically evaluated.