On the possibility of earth-type habitable planets around 47 UMa

We investigate whether Earth-type habitable planets can in principle exist in the planetary system of 47 UMa. The system of 47 UMa consists of two Jupiter-size planets beyond the outer edge of the stellar habitable zone, and thus resembles our own Solar System most closely compared to all exosolar planetary systems discovered so far. Our study of habitability deliberately follows an Earth-based view according to the concept of Franck and colleagues, which assumes the long-term possibility of photosynthetic biomass production under geodynamic conditions. Consequently, a broad variety of climatological, biogeochemical, and geodynamical processes involved in the generation of photosynthesis-driven life conditions is taken into account. The stellar luminosity and the age of the star/planet system are of fundamental importance for planetary habitability. Our study considers different types of planetary continental growth models and takes into account a careful assessment of the stellar parameters. In the event of successful formation and orbital stability, two subjects of intense research, we find that Earth-type habitable planets around 47 UMa are in principle possible! The likelihood of those planets is increased if assumed that 47 UMa is relatively young (?6 Gyr) and has a relatively small stellar luminosity as permitted by the observational range of those parameters.     

A simple model for lensing by black holes in galactic nuclei

The lensing properties of the Plummer model with a central point mass and external shear are derived, including the image multiplicities, critical curves and caustics. This provides a simple model for a flattened galaxy with a central supermassive black hole. For the Plummer model with black hole, the maximum number of images is four, provided the black hole mass is less than an upper bound which is calculated analytically. This introduces a method to constrain black hole masses by counting images, thus applicable at cosmological distance. With shear, the maximum number of images is six and we illustrate the occurrence of an astroid caustic and two metamorphoses.     

Authors' Reply

Abstract— Jull et al. propose an alternative interpretation of our depth vs. ¹⁴C data measured on a peat core from the central Tunguska impact site (Rasmussen et al., 1999). We find that the proposed alternative is untenable.     

The global Frasnian-Famennian »Kellwasser Event«

During the UppermostP. gigas conodont zone (P. linguiformis zone) the stepwise Frasnian extinction culminates in the global transgressive-regressive Frasnian-Famennian »Kellwasser event«. Most pelagic organisms of the tropical marine environment are more or less affected by this mass extinction. During the early Upper Devonian extinction rates are clearly related to the deposition of black shales and the storage of a great amount of organic carbon in the (shelf) sediments. Contemporaneous positive excursions of the ¹³C recorded from pelagic limestones of Europe and Australia prove a worldwide change in the CO₂ content of the oceans surface water which is in balance with the atmosphere. If the climate is controlled by the CO₂ content of the atmosphere, a cyclic operation process might have developed with the succession: transgression — high organic production — deposition of organic carbon — lowering of CO₂ in the atmosphere — icehouse effect — polar glaciation — regression — erosion of organic carbon and re-supply of CO₂ to the ocean and atmosphere — greenhouse effect — deglaciation — transgression. During the change from a greenhouse to an icehouse effect an overturn of the anoxic oceans probably was one of the causes for the mass killing of low latitude marine organisms.

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Zusammenfassung Während der OberstenP. gigas-Zone (=P. linguiformis-Zone) kulminiert das stufenweise Erlöschen der Frasne Organismen im globalen transgressiv-regressiven »Kellwasser-Ereignis«, das die Frasne-Famenne-Grenze markiert. Die meisten Organismengruppen der tropischen Meere werden mehr oder weniger von dem Massensterben betroffen. Während des tiefen Oberdevons sind die Aussterberaten offensichtlich mit der Ablagerung von Schwarzschiefern verknüpft, in denen eine große Menge organischen Kohlenstoffs auf den Schelfen fixiert wird. Gleichzeitige positive Exkursionen der ¹³C-Kurven, die in pelagischen Kalken aus Europa und Australien gemessen wurden, deuten auf eine weltweite Änderung der CO₂-Gehalte des ozeanischen Oberflächenwassers und der Atmosphäre hin.Sollte das Klima vom CO₂ in der Atmosphäre gesteuert werden, könnte sich folgender Autozyklus entwickelt haben: Transgression — hohe organische Produktion — Ablagerung von organischem Kohlenstoff — Erniedrigung des CO₂-Gehaltes in der Atmosphäre — Abkühlung — polare Vereisung-Regression — Erosion und Oxidation von organischem Kohlenstoff — Erhöhung des CO₂-Gehaltes in der Atmosphäre — Treibhauseffekt — Abschmelzen der polaren Vereisung — Transgression. Aufsteigende anoxische Wässer beim Übergang vom Treibhaus- zum »Kühlhauseffekt« dürften eine der Ursachen für das Massensterben tropischer mariner Organismen gewesen sein.

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Résumé Au cours de la partie supérieure de la zone de conodontes àP. gigas (= zone àP. linguiformis), l'extinction progressive des organismes frasniens a culminé au moment de l'événement de Kellwasser, marqué par une transgression-régression globale à la limite Frasnien-Famennien. La plupart des organismes pélagiques des milieux marins tropicaux ont été affectés à des degrés divers par cette extinction de masse. Pendant le début du Dévonien supérieur, les taux d'extinction sont clairement en relation avec le dépôt de boues noires et le stockage d'une grande quantité de matière organique dans les sédiments de shelf. Simultanément, des variations positives de ¹³C enregistrées dans des calcaires pélagiques d'Europe et d'Australie indiquent un changement modial de la teneur en CO₂ de l'eau de surface des océans et de l'atmosphère.Si on admet que le climat est régi par la teneur en CO₂ de l'atmosphère, le processus cyclique suivant a pu se développer: transgression — forte production organique — dépôt de carbone organique — baisse de la teneur en CO₂ de l'atmosphère — refroidissement — glaciation polaire — régression — érosion et oxydation du carbone organique — élévation de la teneur en CO₂ de l'atmosphère — effet de serre — fusion des glaces polaires — transgression. Lors du passage du stade de l'effet de serre à celui du refroidissement, une remontée des eaux anoxiques océaniques peut être à l'origine de l'extinction de masse des organismes marins tropicaux.

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Stratigraphy and sedimentation rates of Upper Cretaceous deep-water systems of the Rhenodanubian Group (Eastern Alps, Germany)

In the Bavarian Alps (Germany), west of the Isar River, the abyssal deposits of the Lower Barremian to Upper Campanian Rhenodanubian Group consist of siliciclastic and calcareous turbidites alternating with hemipelagic non-calcareous mudstones. The up to 1500-m-thick succession, deposited in the Penninic Basin to the south of the European Plate, is characterized by a low mean sedimentation rate (c. 25 mm kyr⁻¹) over 60 million years. Palaeocurrents and turbidite facies distribution patterns suggest that sedimentation occurred on a weakly inclined abyssal plain. The highest sedimentation rates (up to 240 mm kyr⁻¹) were associated with the calcareous mud turbidites of the newly defined Röthenbach Subgroup, which includes the Piesenkopf, Kalkgraben and Hällritz formations (Middle Coniacian to Middle Campanian). These calcareous turbidites prograded from the west, and interfinger towards the east with red hemipelagic claystone. A high sea level presumably favoured pelagic carbonate production and accumulation on the shelves and on internal platforms in the western part of the basin, whereas siliciclastic shelves with steep slope angles have bordered the eastern part of the basin, where a dearth of turbidite sedimentation and increased Cretaceous oceanic red beds deposition occurred. In contrast to the eustatically-induced Middle Coniacian to Lower Campanian Cretaceous oceanic red beds (calcareous nannoplankton zones CC14 to CC18), red hemipelagites of Early Cenomanian age (upper part of calcareous nannoplankton zone CC9) and early Late Campanian age (upper part of zone CC21 and zone CC22) are interpreted as the result of regional tectonic activity.     

Calcareous nannoplankton, planktonic foraminiferal, and carbonate carbon isotope stratigraphy of the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary section in the Ultrahelvetic Zone (Eastern Alps, Upper Austria)

Ultrahelvetic units of the Eastern Alps were deposited on the distal European continental margin of the (Alpine) Tethys. The Rehkogelgraben section (“Buntmergelserie”, Ultrahelvetic unit, Upper Austria) comprises a 5 m thick succession of upper Cenomanian marl-limestone cycles overlain by a black shale interval composed of three black shale layers and carbonate-free claystones, followed by lower Turonian white to light grey marly limestones with thin marl layers. The main biostratigraphic events in the section are the last occurrence of Rotalipora and the first occurrences of Helvetoglobotruncana helvetica and Quadrum gartneri. The thickest black shale horizon has a TOC content of about 5%, with predominantly marine organic matter of kerogen type II. Vitrinite reflectance and Rock-Eval parameter T_max (<424 °C) indicate low maturity. HI values range from 261 to 362 mg HC/g TOC. δ¹³C values of bulk rock carbonates display the well documented positive shift around the black shale interval, allowing correlation of the Rehkogelgraben section with other sections such as the Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) succession at Pueblo, USA, and reference sections at Eastbourne, UK, and Gubbio, Italy. Sediment accumulation rates at Rehkogelgraben (average 2.5 mm/ka) are significantly lower than those at Pueblo and Eastbourne.     

Determination of fluid/melt partition coefficients by LA-ICPMS analysis of co-existing fluid and silicate melt inclusions: Controls on element partitioning

Analyses of co-existing silicate melt and fluid inclusions, entrapped in quartz crystals in volatile saturated magmatic systems, allowed direct quantitative determination of fluid/melt partition coefficients. Investigations of various granitic systems (peralkaline to peraluminous in composition, log fO₂ = NNO−1.7 to NNO+4.5) exsolving fluids with various chlorinities (1-14 mol/kg) allowed us to assess the effect of these variables on the fluid/melt partition coefficients (D). Partition coefficients for Pb, Zn, Ag and Fe show a nearly linear increase with the chlorinity of these fluid (D_Pb ∼ 6 ∗ m_Cl, D_Zn ∼ 8 ∗ m_Cl, D_Ag ∼ 4 ∗ m_Cl, D_Fe ∼ 1.4 ∗ m_Cl, where m_Cl is the molinity of Cl). This suggests that these metals are dissolved primarily as Cl-complexes and neither oxygen fugacity nor the composition of the melt affects significantly their fluid/melt partitioning. By contrast, partition coefficients for Mo, B, As, Sb and Bi are highest in low salinity (1-2 mol/kg Cl) fluids with maximum values of D_Mo ∼ 20, D_B ∼ 15, D_As ∼ 13, D_Sb ∼ 8, D_Bi ∼ 15 indicating dissolution as non-chloride (e.g., hydroxy) complexes. Fluid/melt partition coefficients of copper are highly variable, but highest between vapor like fluids and silicate melt (D_Cu ? 2700), indicating an important role for ligands other than Cl. Partition coefficients for W generally increase with increasing chlorinity, but are exceptionally low in some of the studied brines which may indicate an effect of other parameters. Fluid/melt partition coefficients of Sn show a high variability but likely increase with the chlorinity of the fluid (D_Sn = 0.3-42, D_W = 0.8-60), and decrease with decreasing oxygen fugacity or melt peraluminosity.