People and environment in the Russian far east from Paleolithic to Middle Ages: Chronology,palaeogeography, interaction

The Late Paleolithic sites existed in cold and dry climat (Ustinovka I, 10–25 ky ago; Ust-Ulma, 19, 360 ± 65 BP) with warmer stages (Suvorovo IV, 15,300 ± 140 BP) and on the Pleistocene/Holocene transition, near 10,000 BP (Suvorovo III). The Final Paleolithic sites existed in Late Glacial time, 10,000–12,000 BP (Gorbatka III, lower level) and in Boreal period, 8,000–9,000 BP (Ilistaya I, 7, 840 ± 60 BP; Timofeevka I). The Developed Neolithic sites existed during the warm and humid Middle-Late Atlantic period, 6,000–8,000 BP; the Late Neolithic sites — 3,000–5,000 BP. The human impact in the Paleolithic-Neolithic was restricted to burning and trampling the vegetation near the sites; the bases of paleoeconomy were hunting, fishing, gathering. The presence of pastoral anthropogenic indicators in pollen spectra of the Neolithic sites may reflect the beginning of cattle breeding.The Bronze Age (end of the 4th-2nd millenia BC) provides the first reliable evidence of cultivated plants (foxtail and Japanese millet) and domestic animals (pig, dog). In the paleoeconomy agriculture and cattle breeding appeared; the first stage of human impact increased (4,000–4,500 BP, ie 2550–3230 cal. BC) is reflected in pollen spectra from cultural layers. From the Early Iron Age to the Middle Ages (end of 2nd millenium BC-13th century AD) agriculture and cattle breeding were the base of paleoeconomy. From the 8th to the 10th centures AD, due to the development of ploughing (arable), the human impact intensified.Paper was presented on the 27th International Geographical Congress, Washington, DC, USA, August 9–14, 1992 (section Human Induced Environmental Change, the Ancient Past)     

Results of TV imaging of Phobos (Experiment VSK-Fregat)

From February to March 1989 the Phobos 2 spacecraft took 37 TV images of Phobos at a distance of 190-1100 km. These images complement Mariner-9 and Viking data by providing higher-resolution coverage of a large region West of the crater Stickney (40-160 degrees W) and by providing disk-resolved measurements of surface brightness at a greater range of wavelengths and additional phase angles. These images have supported updated mapping and characterization of large craters and grooves, and have provided additional observations of craters' and grooves' bright rims. Variations in surface visible/near-infrared color ratio of almost a factor of 2 have been recognized; these variations appear to be associated with the ejecta of specific large impact craters. Updated determinations of satellite mass and volume allow calculation of a more accurate value of bulk density, 1.90 +/- 0.1 g cm-3. This is significantly lower than the density of meteoritic analogs to Phobos' surface, suggesting a porous interior perhaps containing interstitial ice.     

The effect of long-range atmospheric transport of organochlorine compounds by soil studies from Mongolia to the Arctic

The results of studies on the distribution regularities are presented for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) of different degrees of chlorination and for organochlorine pesticides (OCPs): hexachlorobenzene (HCB), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCCH), and DDT with its metabolites in the soils along the Lena River valley and in background areas of Eastern Siberia and Mongolia. A statistically reliable correlation is found between the PCB–OCP and C_org concentrations. The highest levels of HCB are registered in the soils between 50 and 60° N. The concentrations of αand γ-HCCH increase reliably, while those of pp′-DDT and pp′-DDE decrease from south to north. A trend of the decrease in concentrations from Mongolia to the Laptev Sea is revealed for tri-, tetra-, and penta-chlorine-substituted PCB congeners. However, the soils sampled northwards from 60° N show a reliable increase in the concentrations of tetra-, penta-, and hexachlorine-substituted congeners.     

Paleoproterozoic gabbro–diorite–granite magmatism of the Batomga Rise (NE Aldan Shield): Sm–Nd isotope geochemical evidence

The geochemical similarity and almost simultaneous (2055–2060 Ma) formation of Utakachan gabbro-amphibolite, Jagdakin granodiorite-diorite, Khoyunda granitoid, and Tygymyt leucogranite complexes, which inruded metamorphic formations of the Batomga Group are evidence of their formaton from unified magmatic source. All this makes it possibble to combine aforementioned complexes into the unified Early Proterozoic diferentiated gabbro-diorite-granite complex.     

Experimental studies of thermal radiation intensity dependence on near-water wind speed for rough sea surface

The results of in situ measurements of the characteristics of intrinsic microwave radiation from the sea surface are presented. The studies were carried out on the oceanographic platform of the Experimental Department of Marine Hydrophysical Institute during the summer–fall periods for 3 years, which made it possible to accumulate a significant amount of information on the change in the radiation intensity of under different meteorological conditions. Attention is primarily focused on the construction of wind-radiation dependences and their steepness analysis based on the measurement data obtained by a radiometer-polarimeter with a central frequency of received radiation equal to 37.7 GHz. The results are compared with the previous experimental studies and the model estimates of this effect.     

Long-Term Geochemical Monitoring of the Source of the Angara River (Runoff from Lake Baikal)

The long-term data (1950–2017) on the chemical composition of the water from the source of the Angara River, which is the only run-off from Lake Baikal, a large and clean fresh water reservoir, are presented. The absence of water contamination despite the anthropogenic influence is shown. The similarity and constancy of the current composition of the waters in the lake and the Angara River are recorded. It is recommended to continue geochemical studies of this unique world heritage site.     

Foidite and Meimechite Lavas of Polar Siberia (Some Questions of Petrogenesis)

Doklady Earth Sciences - For the Permian–Triassic foidite and meimechite lavas of Polar Siberia, both the whole-rock petrochemistry and geochemistry and that of melt inclusions in olivine...     

The Khan-Taishir ophiolitic complex of Western Mongolia,its petrology,origin and comparison with other ophiolitic complexes

The Khan-Taishir ophiolitic complex is situated within Early Caledonian structures of Western Mongolia. It consists (from below upward) of strongly differentiated ultramafics (dunites and harzburgites), pyroxenites and gabbro, sheeted dikes, pillow lavas and sediments, including in their uppermost part archaeocyatic limestones of Lower Cambrian age. Geological, petrochemical and geochemical data indicate that the ultramafics are turn off from the overlying ophiolitic sequence. Igneous rocks of the ophiolitic complex, except the ultramafics, were formed by two-stage differentiation of mantle magma of quartz-tholeiitic composition exhausted in potassium and titanium. Pyroxenites and gabbro with an anorthositic trend of differentiation were generated during the first stage, and sheeted dikes and pillow lavas with a quartz trend of differentiation were formed during the second one. Ophiolites of the Khan-Taishir complex petrochemically and geochemically differ strongly from mafic and ultramafic rocks of midoceanic ridges. Together with ophiolites of the Troodos complex (Cyprus) and Macquarie Island (eastern Indian Ocean) they constitute the special type of ophiolite peculiar rather to slip boundaries of lithosphere plates. The other type of ophiolite, including complexes like the Dzolen complex of south Mongolia, contains poorly differentiated ultramafics and does not contain sheeted dikes; while the igneous rocks are very similar to mafic and ultramafic rocks dredged from midoceanic and formed probably in midoceanic ridge environments as well.     

Seasonal redistribution of water in the surficial Martian regolith: Results from the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mars Odyssey</Emphasis> high-energy neutron detector (HEND)

The seasonal variation of neutron emissions from Mars in different spectral intervals measured by the HEND neutron detector for the entire Martian year are analyzed. Based on these data, the spatial variations of the neutron emissions from the planet are globally mapped as a function of season, and the dynamics of seasonal variation of neutron fluxes with different energies is analyzed in detail. No differences were found between seasonal regimes of neutron fluxes in different energy ranges in the southern hemisphere of Mars, while the regime of fast neutrons (with higher energies) during the northern winter strongly differs from that during the southern winter. In winter (L _s = 270°–330°), the fast neutron fluxes are noticeably reduced in the northern hemisphere (along with the consecutive thickening of the seasonal cap of solid carbon dioxide). This provides evidence of a temporary increase in the water content in the effective layer of neutron generation. According to the obtained estimates, the observed reduction of the flux of fast neutrons in the effective layer corresponds to an increase in the water abundance of up to 5% in the seasonal polar cap (70°–90°N), about 3% at mid-latitudes, and from 1.5 to 2% at low latitudes. The freezing out of atmospheric water at the planetary surface (at middle and high latitudes) and the hydration of salt minerals composing the Martian soil are considered as the main processes responsible for the temporary increase in the water content in the soil and upper layer of the seasonal polar cap. The meridional atmospheric transport of water vapor from the summer southern to the winter northern hemisphere within the Hadley circulation cell is a basic process that delivers water to the subsurface soil layer and ensures the observed scale of the seasonal increase in water abundance. In the summer northern hemisphere, the similar Hadley circulation cell transports mainly dry air masses to the winter southern hemisphere. The point is that the water vapor becomes saturated at lower heights during aphelion, and the bulk of the atmospheric water mass is captured in the near-equatorial cloudy belt and, thus, is only weakly transferred to the southern hemisphere. This phenomenon, known as the Clancy effect, was suggested by Clancy et al. (1996) as a basic mechanism for the explanation of the interhemispheric asymmetry of water storage in permanent polar caps. The asymmetry of seasonal meridional circulation of the Martian atmosphere seems to be another factor determining the asymmetry of the seasonal water redistribution in the “atmosphere-regolith-seasonal polar caps” system, found in the peculiarities of the seasonal regime of the neutron emission of Mars.