The cosmic ray record in the San Juan Capistrano meteorite

An integrated study of the cosmic ray exposure history of the San Juan Capistrano meteorite was carried out using measurements of rare gas isotopic abundances, particle track densities and radioisotope concentrations. Spallation systematics determined for Kr isotopes in lunar samples are shown to be valid also for the San Juan Capistrano and St. Severin meteorites, thus allowing us to determine a reliable ⁸¹Kr/⁸³Kr production ratio as needed for applying the ⁸¹Kr-Kr dating method. The ⁸¹Kr-Kr age of SJC is 28.7 ± 2.0 Myr, about 35% longer than ages determined by spallation He or Ne. The minimum observed track production rate (2.6 × 10⁵ tracks/cm² · Myr) sets a minimum of 8 cm for the preatmospheric radius of an assumed spherical body. Track density gradients and the low ⁶⁰Co activity (<2.9 dpm/g Co) both set an upper limit of 10 cm to the radius. Track results show that ablation losses have averaged 6cm. The relative spallation yields of ⁷⁸Kr and ⁸³Kr, and the ratios ³He/²¹Ne and ²²Ne/²¹Ne are all compatible with a hard irradiation as would be experienced by a sample depth of about 6 cm in a body of 8–10 cm. The low activities of ⁵⁴Mn, ²²Na and ²⁶Al are also consistent with these irradiation conditions.     

A revision of the meteorite based cosmic abundance of boron

Analyses of meteorites for B abundances have shown that many chondrites are contaminated with terrestrial B, producing erroneously high meteoritic abundances of this element. Boron concentrations in freshly prepared interior samples are significantly lower than they are in samples with unknown or unspecified terrestrial histories. An estimate of the cosmic abundance based upon the analyses of 8 interior samples of 2 carbonaceous chondrites and 1 interior sample of each of 8 ordinary chondrites is a factor of 6.7 less than the previous low estimate. Our revised value, 3.0 B/10¹⁰H, is in excellent agreement with estimates based on observations of the solar photosphere. There is no longer a need to consider processes that enrich B in carbonaceous chondrites or deplete it in the sun. Relative meteoritic abundances of Li, Be and B are now in general agreement with models of nucleosynthesis of these light elements by galactic cosmic ray induced spallation.     

The generation of low-energy cosmic rays in molecular clouds

Arguments are presented in support of the idea that the total energy losses of cosmic rays passing through molecular clouds can exceed the energy production due to the action of shocks in supernovae. Galactic cosmic rays interacting with the surface layers of molecular clouds can be efficiently reflected, so that they do not penetrate into the depths of the clouds. Low-energy cosmic rays (E < 1 GeV) that can produce the primary ionization of the molecular-cloud gas can be generated inside such clouds by numerous shocks arising due to supersonic turbulence.     

吉林陨石的热释光剖面与母体宇宙暴露历史示踪

对３个已知取样浓度和３个未知取样部位的吉林陨石样品的热释光研究表明,其自然热释光值具有宇宙成因核素含量相似的性质即浓度分布效应,随着样品距离表面位置的增大而降低,这表征了母体暴露期间宇宙射线的分布状况。诱导热释光数据表明,母体表面部分的样品的峰温和峰宽高于较深部位样品,说明这些样品中发光体矿物由有序态向无序态转化趋势明显。表面位置样品明显高的热释光数据说明在母体暴露过程中,除了银河宇宙射线外,太阳     

On the origin of the low energy cosmic rays from stellar sources

The model of stellar origin of the anomalous component in the low energy cosmic rays for He to Fe ions observed in space vehicles is studied in the light of recent results. The model of heliospheric origin by Fisket al which has several attractive features cannot explain the long-term variations of intensity observed during 1974 to 1978 as pointed out by Nagashima and Morishita. The stellar origin model of Durgaprasad and Biswas, on the other hand, can easily account for the sudden appearance of the anomalous component in 1972 and its large decrease in intensity in 1978 on the basis of polarity reversal of the solar magnetic field as discussed by Nagashima and Morishita (1980). In this work, we show that in the stellar model energetic ions of He, C, N, O, etc. could originate in O-type stars which manifest very strong stellar wind with mass loss rate of 3·10^?6 M_⊙ per year. These have terminal velocities of about 1200 to 4000 km/sec and are typically a few times their escape velocity. These velocities correspond to ion energies of 10 to 100 keV/amu. These ions are in partly ionised state and are accelerated in the interstellar shock fronts to about 1 to 50 MeV/amu and thus account for the observed anomalous component of low energy cosmic rays.     

The influence of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays on star formation in the early Universe

The presence of ultrahigh-energy (UHE) cosmic rays results in an increase in the degree of ionization in the post-recombination Universe, which stimulates the efficiency of the production of H₂ molecules and the formation of the first stellar objects. As a result, the onset of the formation of the first stars is shifted to higher redshifts, and the masses of the first stellar systems decrease. As a consequence, a sufficient increase in the ionizing radiation providing the reionization of the Universe can occur. We discuss the possible observational manifestations of these effects and their dependence on the parameters of UHE cosmic rays.     

An induction accelerator of cosmic rays on the axis of an accretion disk

The structure and magnitude of the electric field created by a rotating accretion disk with a poloidal magnetic field is found for the case of a vacuum approximation along the axis. The accretion disk is modeled as a torus filled with plasma and a frozen-in magnetic field. The dimensions and location of the maximum electric field as well as the energy of the accelerated particles are found. The gravitational field is assumed to be weak.     

The influence of nonthermal particles and radiation on the charge state of heavy ions in solar cosmic rays

The influence of various types of nonthermal electron and proton distributions and photoionization on the charge state of energetic heavy elements moving in a plasma is investigated. The mean charges of Mg, Si, and Fe are calculated for a bi-Maxwellian distribution of the background electrons and for electron and neutral beams with power-law energy distributions. An anomalously high density of the nonthermal component is required to obtain substantial deviations of the equilibrium mean charges of these elements (a few charge units) from the case when they interact with a purely Maxwellian plasma. In this context, the mean charges for O, Ne, Mg, Si, and Fe ions are also calculated for a model with charge-consistent acceleration. The results indicate that photoionization does not significantly influence the charge state of solar cosmic rays if the parameters of the plasma are those characteristic of impulsive solar events.     

Long-term galactic cosmic ray variations over the last billion years based on the cosmic-ray exposure ages of iron meteorites

The distribution of the cosmic-ray exposure ages (T) of iron meteorites was analyzed to establish the possible variations in the intensity of the galactic cosmic ray (GCR) over the last billion years. The analysis was made for the entire data set containing ~80 age values from the literature (Voshage et al., 1983) and the corrected set after the exclusions of paired meteorites (using the Akaike information criterion). The dependence of the criterion χ² in the distribution of the phase values Ph = T/t–int(T/t) on the values of the assumed period (t) of GCR variations was analyzed for both sets of meteorites. The significant deviations of these parameters from the respective average values were found for t ~ 400–500 Myr and, in part, for t ~ 150 Myr. These deviations were interpreted by numerical modeling using the values of ages randomly distributed in the range of 0–1000 Ma. It was found that for variations with a period of 450 Myr, the distribution of the phase values and cosmic-ray exposure ages in the model data set is similar to that of iron meteorites. These results testify to the existence of the GCR variations with a period of ~400–500 Myr during the last 1 Gyr. The variations in the GCR flux can be explained by periodic galactic spiral arm crossings of the solar system. The GCR variations with a period of ~150 Myr discussed in the previous studies (Shaviv, 2002; 2003; Scherer et al., 2006) appears to be less certain.     

The structure of the Tuapse shear zone according to the field tectonophysical data

The results of field structural studies of the Tuapse shear zone in the Northwest Caucasus are presented. This zone is characterized by shear displacements of various scales with a dominant horizontal shear, viz., a geodynamic type of the stress state, which leads to the formation of faults with mostly lateral displacement of wings, i.e., along the strike of the fault surface. The quantitative characteristics of the local stress conditions in the shear zone (the positions of principal axes and the Lode–Nadai coefficient) are determined on the basis of cataclastic analysis and geological indicators of the paleostresses. The differences between these characteristics are considered for the large tectonic zones. Significant spatial (areal) variations in orientations of the axes of major normal stresses in the shear zone and their local weak gentle variations are evidence of a consistent general stress direction during the formation of faults during the Late Eocene–Miocene deformation epoch.     

Diagnostics of the preseismogenic state of heterogeneous media according to deformation monitoring data

A new approach to diagnostics of the preseismogenic state of the lithosphere within the focal area was considered by the example of spectral analysis of the monitoring data on ice cover deformations in Lake Baikal.     

A climatological study of the relations among solar activity,galactic cosmic ray and precipitation on various regions over the globe

We apply Fourier and wavelet analyses to the precipitation and sunspot numbers in the time series (1901–2000) over Australia (27°S, 133°E), Canada (60°N, 95°W), Ethiopia (8°N, 38°E), Greenland (72°N, 40°W), United Kingdom (54°N, 2°W), India (20°N, 77°E), Iceland (65°N, 18°W), Japan (36°N, 138°E), United States (38°N, 97°W), South Africa (29°S, 24°E) and Russia (60°N, 100°E). Correlation analyses were also performed to find any relation among precipitation, sunspot numbers, temperature, and cloud-cover at the same spatial and temporal scale. Further correlations were also performed between precipitation with electron and proton fluence at the time interval, 1987–2006. All these parameters were considered in annual and seasonal scales. Though correlation study between precipitation and other parameters do not hint any linear relation, still the Fourier and wavelet analyses give an idea of common periodicities. The 9–11 year periodicity of sunspot numbers calculated by Fourier transform is also confirmed by wavelet transform in annual scale. Similarly, wavelet analysis for precipitation also supports the short periods at 2–5 years which is verified by Fourier transform in discontinuous time over different geographic regions.     

Block structures and kinematics of Western Eurasia according to GPS data

The transitional Alpine-Iranian and North African-Apulian zones, which extend between the North Eurasian, Arabian, and African lithospheric plates, are composed largely of crustal blocks bounded by seismically active faults and, as follows from the data of satellite geodesy, are characterized by the variously directed present-day motions of these blocks. The measured horizontal displacements of the largest blocks in the ITRF system are compared with motions of the main lithospheric plates suggested by the NNR-NUVEL-1A model. The established discrepancies are related to the deformation of blocks in the transitional zones between interacting plates, a circumstance that is consistent with relative block displacements. The close coincidence of the measured and the model velocities of horizontal motions at observation points in western Europe beyond the alps allows us to extend the North Eurasian Plate to the west of the Rhine Grabens. The systems of intraplate active faults are considered, and the depth of that surface, along which tectonic blocks move in the horizontal direction, is estimated.     

Geoeffective Disturbances in the Solar Wind near the Solar Activity Minimum according to the Data of a Two-year Series of Observations of Interplanetary Scintillations with the BSA LPI Radio Telescope

Astronomy Reports - A joint analysis of the monitoring data of interplanetary scintillations with solar and geophysical data showed that at the descending phase of the 24 solar activity cycle, the...     

On the stress state of the Sakhalin crust according to the data of drilling deep boreholes

The stress state of the sedimentary rocks in the oil-and-gas fields of Sakhalin is estimated and analyzed; data from exploratory boreholes in the eastern Pacific (San-Andreas fault zone) are considered. The vertical and limiting horizontal stresses are calculated for different depths. The maximum sublateral compression can exceed the vertical stress by a factor of 1.2–4 on average in northern and southern Sakhalin. It is shown that the limiting horizontal stress and the maximum shear stress grow as the depth increases.