Influence of periodic orbits on the formation of giant planetary systems

The late-stage formation of giant planetary systems is rich in interesting dynamical mechanisms. Previous simulations of three giant planets initially on quasi-circular and quasi-coplanar orbits in the gas disc have shown that highly mutually inclined configurations can be formed, despite the strong eccentricity and inclination damping exerted by the disc. Much attention has been directed to inclination-type resonance, asking for large eccentricities to be acquired during the migration of the planets. Here we show that inclination excitation is also present at small to moderate eccentricities in two-planet systems that have previously experienced an ejection or a merging and are close to resonant commensurabilities at the end of the gas phase. We perform a dynamical analysis of these planetary systems, guided by the computation of planar families of periodic orbits and the bifurcation of families of spatial periodic orbits. We show that inclination excitation at small to moderate eccentricities can be produced by (temporary) capture in inclination-type resonance and the possible proximity of the non-coplanar systems to spatial periodic orbits contributes to maintaining their mutual inclination over long periods of time.     

Green Lake Landslide and other giant and very large postglacial landslides in Fiordland,New Zealand

Green Lake Landslide is an ancient giant rock slide in gneiss and granodiorite located in the deeply glaciated Fiordland region of New Zealand. The landslide covers an area of 45 km² and has a volume of about 27 km³. It is believed to be New Zealand's largest landslide, and possibly the largest landslide of its type on Earth. It is one of 39 known very large (10⁶–10⁷ m³) and giant (≥10⁸ m³) postglacial landslides in Fiordland discussed in the paper. Green Lake Landslide resulted in the collapse of a 9 km segment of the southern Hunter Mountains. Slide debris moved up to 2.5 km laterally and 700 m vertically, and formed a landslide dam about 800 m high, impounding a lake about 11 km long that was eventually infilled with sediments. Geomorphic evidence supported by radiocarbon dating indicates that Green Lake Landslide probably occurred 12 000–13 000 years ago, near the end of the last (Otira) glaciation. The landslide is described, and its geomorphic significance, age, failure mechanism, cause, and relevance in the region are discussed, in relation to other large landslides and recent earthquake-induced landslides in Fiordland. The slope failure occurred on a low-angle fault zone undercut by glacial erosion, and was probably triggered by strong shaking (MM IX–X) associated with a large (≥ M 7.5–8) earthquake, on the Alpine Fault c. 80 km to the northwest. Geology was a major factor that controlled the style and size of Green Lake landslide, and in that respect it is significantly different from most other gigantic landslides. Future large earthquakes on the Alpine Fault in Fiordland are likely to trigger more very large and giant landslides across the region, causing ground damage and devastation on a scale that has not occurred during the last 160 years, with potentially disastrous effects on towns, tourist centres, roads, and infrastructure. The probability of such an event occurring within the next 50 years may be as high as 45%.     

A 20 cm2 CCD mosaic camera for a dark matter search part I : Mechanics,optics and cryogeny

A 20cm ² CCD mosaic camera has been especially built to search for dark galactic halo objects by the gravitational microlensing effect. The sensitive area is made of 16 edge-buttable CCDs developped by Thomson-CTS, with 23×23 µm ² pixels. The 35 kg camera housing and mechanical equipment is presented. The associated electronics and data acquisition system are described in a separate paper. The camera resides at the focal plane of a 40 cm, f/10, Ferson reflector. The instrument has been in operation since December 1991 at the La Silla Observatory (ESO).     

Impact of nitrogenous fertilizers on carbonate dissolution in small agricultural catchments: Implications for weathering CO2 uptake at regional and global scales

The goal of this study was to highlight the occurrence of an additional proton-promoted weathering pathway of carbonate rocks in agricultural areas where N-fertilizers are extensively spread, and to estimate its consequences on riverine alkalinity and uptake of CO₂ by weathering. We surveyed 25 small streams in the calcareous molassic Gascogne area located in the Garonne river basin (south-western France) that drain cultivated or forested catchments for their major element compositions during different hydrologic periods. Among these catchments, the Hay and the Montoussé, two experimental catchments, were monitored on a weekly basis. Studies in the literature from other small carbonate catchments in Europe were dissected in the same way. In areas of intensive agriculture, the molar ratio (Ca + Mg)/HCO₃ in surface waters is significantly higher (0.7 on average) than in areas of low anthropogenic pressure (0.5). This corresponds to a decrease in riverine alkalinity, which can reach 80% during storm events. This relative loss of alkalinity correlates well with the content in surface waters. In cultivated areas, the contribution of atmospheric/soil CO₂ to the total riverine alkalinity (CO_{2 ATM-SOIL}/HCO₃) is less than 50% (expected value for carbonate basins), and it decreases when the nitrate concentration increases. This loss of alkalinity can be attributed to the substitution of carbonic acid (natural weathering pathway) by protons produced by nitrification of N-fertilizers (anthropogenic weathering pathway) occurring in soils during carbonate dissolution. As a consequence of these processes, the alkalinity over the last 30 years shows a decreasing trend in the Save river (one of the main Garonne river tributaries, draining an agricultural catchment), while the nitrate and calcium plus magnesium contents are increasing.We estimated that the contribution of atmospheric/soil CO₂ to riverine alkalinity decreased by about 7-17% on average for all the studied catchments. Using these values, the deficit of CO₂ uptake can be estimated as up to 0.22-0.53 and 12-29 Tg¹ yr⁻¹ CO₂ on a country scale (France) and a global scale, respectively. These losses represent up to 5.7-13.4% and only 1.6-3.8% of the total CO₂ flux naturally consumed by carbonate dissolution, for France and on a global scale, respectively. Nevertheless, this loss of alkalinity relative to the Ca + Mg content relates to carbonate weathering by protons from N-fertilizers nitrification, which is a net source of CO₂ for the atmosphere. This anthropogenic CO₂ source is not negligible since it could reach 6-15% of CO₂ uptake by natural silicate weathering and could consequently partly counterbalance this natural CO₂ sink.     

Inner part observation of theβ pictoris disk

The inner regions of the circumstellar disk around Pictoris might be dust-free due to a possible planet which may have cleared up dust particles. We present a new observational technique based on the use of an anti-blooming CCD in order to directly image this zone. The structure of the disk is revealed down to 2 arcsec from the star (30 AU). We show that the Pic disk brightness is neutral inV, R, andI _C , but drops down when going inward inB, possibly related to a change in the dust composition. Also, a slight disk asymmetry is present but inverted from the outer to the inner zones.Paper presented at the Conference onPlanetary Systems: Formation, Evolution, and Detection held 7–10 December, 1992 at CalTech, Pasadena, California, U.S.A.     

A methodology for regionalizing 3‐D effective porosity at watershed scale in crystalline aquifers

An innovative approach for regionalizing the 3‐D effective porosity field is presented and applied to two large, overexploited, and deeply weathered crystalline aquifers located in southern India. The method derives from earlier work on regionalizing a 2‐D effective porosity field in that part of an aquifer where the water table fluctuates, which is now extended over the entire aquifer using a 3‐D approach. A method based on geological and geophysical surveys has also been developed for mapping the weathering profile layers (saprolite and fractured layers). The method for regionalizing 3‐D effective porosity combines water table fluctuation and groundwater budget techniques at various cell sizes with the use of satellite‐based data (for groundwater abstraction), the structure of the weathering profile, and geostatistical techniques. The approach is presented in detail for the Kudaliar watershed (983 km²) and tested on the 730 km² Anantapur watershed. At watershed scale, the effective porosity of the aquifer ranges from 0.5% to 2% in Kudaliar and between 0.3% and 1% in Anantapur, which agrees with earlier works. Results show that (a) depending on the geology and on the structure of the weathering profile, the vertical distribution of effective porosity can be very different and that the fractured layers in crystalline aquifers are not necessarily characterized by a rapid decrease in effective porosity and (b) that the lateral variations in effective porosity can be larger than the vertical ones. These variations suggest that within a same weathering profile, the density of open fractures and/or degree of weathering in the fractured zone may significantly vary from a place to another. The proposed method provides information on the spatial distribution of effective porosity that is of prime interest in terms of flux and contaminant transport in crystalline aquifers. Implications for mapping groundwater storage and scarcity are also discussed, which should help in improving groundwater resource management strategies.     

Numerical analysis of frost effects in porous media. Benefits and limits of the finite element poroelasticity formulation

The aim of this paper is to analyse the performance of a finite element formulation usable for predicting the mechanical consequences of frost effects on porous media. It considers the characteristics of porous media and how the frost action can be assessed. The problem is then separated into two parts: thermal and poromechanical calculations. The constitutive equations developed in the framework of poromechanics are presented and the implementation in a usual finite element poroelasticity formulation based on Zuber's method is adopted. An analysis of the time‐step influence on the convergence rate is given and leads us to propose a simple method in order to obtain objectivity of the finite element response and avoid over‐long calculations. Frost effect simulations are carried out on real porous media (two fired clays) as a case study. Although the experimental behaviour of the porous media subjected to frost action is in accordance with some observations, the calculated strains appear to be overestimated compared with measurements. The problem could be largely attributable to the difficulty of assessing permeability evolution during frost development. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

阿尔金断裂带对青藏高原北部生长、隆升的制约

大量的同位素年代学证据表明(古)阿尔金断裂带可能形成于三叠纪,后又经历了侏罗纪、白垩纪的强烈左旋走滑活动,自印度板块与欧亚大陆碰撞后阿尔金断裂再次活动。主要的走滑活动发生在:(1)245~220Ma;(2)180~140Ma;(3)120~100Ma;(4)90~80Ma;(5)60~45Ma;(6)渐新世至中新世;(7)上新世至更新世以及(8)全新世。沿阿尔金断裂带,伴随左旋走滑活动形成一系列的逆冲断裂和正断裂,反映走滑过程中伴随隆升作用的存在,并且形成自北向南包括祁连山、大雪山、党河南山、柴北缘山、祁漫塔格山和昆仑山,表明阿尔金断裂带制约着青藏高原北部的生长和隆升。阿尔金断裂带东、西两端的白垩纪和新生代火山活动是断裂走滑活动的响应。     

Mapping the food environment: The reliability of volunteered geographical information and institutional data sources in France

The obesity epidemic and inequalities in access to food are prompting increasing numbers of food environment studies, which rely on secondary data sources for mapping. This article assesses the reliability of the two main food outlet data sources in France: the volunteered geographical information (VGI) collaborative map OpenStreetMap (OSM) and the national business register Sirene. Their information on food outlets was assessed through ground-truthing in the city-region of Montpellier. Sensitivity, positive predictive value, and concordance were computed for each database. We analyzed the socio-spatial variability of these measures according to households' income level. The sensitivity of Sirene is good and that of OSM moderate, while the opposite holds for positive predictive value, and the concordance of both OSM and Sirene is fair. Sirene provides more reliable data on deprived neighborhoods and OSM on wealthy neighborhoods. Caution is recommended regarding the classifications on which they are based, the time required to update the institutional database, and socially influenced contributions to VGI.