Large ground surface temperature changes of the last three centuries inferred from borehole temperatures in the Southern Canadian Prairies, Saskatchewan

New temperature logs in wells located in the grassland ecozone in the Southern Canadian Prairies in Saskatchewan, where surface disturbance is considered minor, show a large curvature in the upper 100 m. The character of this curvature is consistent with ground surface temperature (GST) warming in the 20th century. Repetition of precise temperature logs in southern Saskatchewan (years 1986 and 1997) shows the conductive nature of warming of the subsurface sediments. The magnitude of surface temperature change during that time (11 years) is high (0.3–0.4°C). To assess the conductive nature of temperature variations at the grassland surface interface, several precise air and soil temperature time series in the southern Canadian Prairies (1965–1995) were analyzed. The combined anomalies correlated at 0.85. Application of the functional space inversion (FSI) technique with the borehole temperature logs and site-specific lithology indicates a warming to date of approximately 2.5°C since a minimum in the late 18th century to mid 19th century. This warming represents an approximate increase from 4°C around 1850 to 6.5°C today. The significance of this record is that it suggests almost half of the warming occurred prior to 1900, before dramatic build up of atmospheric green house gases. This result correlates well with the proxy record of climatic change further to the north, beyond the Arctic Circle [Overpeck, J., Hughen, K., Hardy, D., Bradley, R., Case, R., Douglas, M., Finney, B., Gajewski, K., Jacoby, G., Jennings, A., Lamourex, S., Lasca, A., MacDonald, G., Moore, J., Retelle, M., Smith, S., Wolfe, A., Zielinski, G., 1997. Arctic environmental change of the last four centuries, Science 278, 1251–1256.].     

Potential causes of differences between ground and surface air temperature warming across different ecozones in Alberta, Canada

Analysis and modelling of temperature anomalies from 25 selected deep wells in Alberta show that the differences between GST (ground surface temperature) warming for the northern Boreal Forest ecozone and the combined Prairie Grassland ecozone and Aspen Parkland transition region to the south occur during the latter half of this century. This corresponds with recent changes in surface albedo resulting from permanent land development in the northern areas and also to increases in natural forest fires in the past 20 years. Differences between GST and SAT (surface air temperature) warming are much higher in the Boreal Forest ecozone than in the Prairie Grassland ecozone and Aspen Parkland transition region. Various hypotheses which could account for the existing differences between the GST and SAT warming in the different ecozones of Alberta, and western Canada in general, are tested. Analysis of existing data on soil temperature, hydrological piezometric surfaces, snowfall and moisture patterns, and land clearing and forest fires, indicate that large areas of Alberta, characterised by anomalous GST warming, have experienced widespread changes to the surface landscape in this century. It is postulated that this has resulted in a lower surface albedo with a subsequent increase in the absorption of solar energy. Heat flow modelling shows that, after climatic SAT warming, permanent clearing of the land is the most effective and likely cause of the observed changes in the GST warming. The greater GST warming in the Boreal Forest ecozone in the latter half of this century is related to landscape change due to land development and increasing forest fire activity. It appears to account for a portion of the observed SAT warming in this region through a positive feedback loop with the overlying air. The anthropogenic effect on regional climatic warming through 20th century land clearing and landscape alteration requires further study. In future, more accurate quantification of these various forcings will be necessary in order to distinguish between, and to detect, the variety of natural and anthropogenic influences and on climate.     

Evidence of climatic warming in the southern Urals region derived from borehole temperatures and meteorological data

Thirty borehole temperature–depth profiles in the central and southern Urals, Russia were scrutinized for evidence of ground surface temperature histories. We explored two inversion schemes: a simple ramp inversion in which solutions are parameterized in terms of an onset time and magnitude of change and a more sophisticated functional space inverse algorithm in which the functional form of the solution is left unspecified. To enhance and potentially identify latitudinal differences in the ground surface temperature signal, we subdivided the data into three groups based on geographic proximity and simultaneously inverted the borehole temperature–depth logs. The simultaneous inversions highlighted 13 temperature–depth logs that could not both fit a common ground surface temperature history and a priori models within reasonable bounds. Our results confirm that this is an effective way to reduce site-specific noise from an ensemble of boreholes. Each inversion scheme gives comparable results indicating locally variable warming on the order of 1°C starting between 1800 and 1900 AD. Similarly surface air temperature records from 12 nearby meteorological stations exhibit locally variable warming also on the order of 1°C of warming during the 20th century. To explore the degree to which borehole temperatures and surface air temperature (SAT) time series are responding to the same signal, we average the SAT data into the same three groups and used these averages as a forcing function at the Earth's surface to generate synthetic transient temperature profiles. Root mean square (RMS) misfits between these synthetic temperature profiles and averaged temperature–depth profiles are low, suggesting that first-order curvature in borehole temperatures and variations in SAT records are correlated.     

Warming permafrost in European mountains

Here we present the first systematic measurements of European mountain permafrost temperatures from a latitudinal transect of six boreholes extending from the Alps, through Scandinavia to Svalbard. Boreholes were drilled in bedrock to depths of at least 100 m between May 1998 and September 2000. Geothermal profiles provide evidence for regional-scale secular warming, since all are nonlinear, with near-surface warm-side temperature deviations from the deeper thermal gradient. Topographic effects lead to variability between Alpine sites. First approximation estimates, based on curvature within the borehole thermal profiles, indicate a maximum ground surface warming of +1 °C in Svalbard, considered to relate to thermal changes in the last 100 years. In addition, a 15-year time series of thermal data from the 58-m-deep Murtèl–Corvatsch permafrost borehole in Switzerland, drilled in creeping frozen ice-rich rock debris, shows an overall warming trend, but with high-amplitude interannual fluctuations that reflect early winter snow cover more strongly than air temperatures. Thus interpretation of the deeper borehole thermal histories must clearly take account of the potential effects of changing snow cover in addition to atmospheric temperatures.     

Long-chain alkenones and U37′ variability along a south–north transect in the Western Pacific Ocean

In this paper, we present 50 surface water samples collected during the IMAGES III cruise (June–July 1997) along a transect from New Zealand to the China Sea (42°S–178°E, 21°N–120°E) covering a temperature range from 13.3 to 30.4 °C. A very worthwhile aspect of this study is a coupling of both biomarker (alkenone) and coccolithophorid counting. We show that the U₃₇^k′–temperature relationship is very similar to the Prahl et al. [Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 52 (1988) 2203] culture calibration and to the global core top calibration of Müller et al. [Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 62 (1998) 1757]. However, in the warmest surface waters of the Western Pacific ocean (>26.4 °C) where Gephyrocapsa oceanica is likely the most widespread species, the associated U₃₇^k′ has a constant value of 1.0. The consequence is that above this temperature threshold, U₃₇^k′ cannot be used as an accurate paleothermometer.     

Combining borehole temperature and meteorologic data to constrain past climate change

Geothermal observations from a suite of boreholes in western Utah, USA, combined with meteorologic data at nearby weather stations are used to test the hypothesis that temperatures in the earths subsurface contain an accurate record of recent climate change. The change in air temperature over the last hundred years successfully predicts detailed subsurface temperature profiles to better than ±0.05°C, indicating that ground temperatures tract air temperatures over long periods and that climate change signals are conducted into, and recorded in, the solid earth by the process of heat conduction. We combine borehole temperature data with meteorologic data from the nearest weather station to determine the time averaged difference between surface ground temperature and surface air temperature for borehole-weather station pairs and to infer the long term mean air temperature prior to the observational record. For our western Utah sites the preobservational mean temperature is close to the average surface air temperature for this century suggesting that up to 0.5°C of warming deduced from the last 100 years of weather station data may be attributed to recovery from a cool period at the turn of the century.     

Variations in ground surface temperature histories in the Thompson Belt, Manitoba, Canada: environment and climate changes

Several temperature–depth profiles recorded at Pipe Mine, 32 km southwest of Thompson, Manitoba, in central Canada, exhibit a marked departure from the equilibrium gradient. These profiles could be interpreted as indicating strong warming (up to 4.5 K) of the ground surface during the last 200 years. All the temperature profiles at Pipe Mine show perturbations stronger than at the others sites in the Thompson Nickel Belt. Temperature profiles recorded near the town of Thompson show a moderate warming (≈1–2 K) trend, while temperature profiles at Soab, 45 km southwest of Pipe Mine, indicate very moderate cooling (≈0.5 K). There was little human activity in this part of Manitoba before the development of the mining camp of Thompson in the late 1950s. Our study shows the variability of ground surface temperature histories at a very local scale (i.e. <1 km) with much stronger signals at some of the Pipe Mine drill holes than at others. These holes are located within 500 m of the highway and a power line built after 1955, at ≈3 km from the now abandoned open pit mine. The ground surface temperature history (GSTH) obtained by the inversion of Pipe Mine temperature profiles suggests that a recent (50 years) and strong (≈1–2 K) ground surface warming is superimposed on a 1–2 K warming trend that started 200 years ago, without any indication of a cold (little ice ages) episode before. The recent warming (40 years) at Pipe Mine is only a local effect and is likely to be related to the presence of the highway. Before 1960, the ground surface temperature history for Pipe is similar to other sites in the Thompson region. Ground surface temperature histories from other profiles within and near the city of Thompson seem less affected by environmental perturbations and their trends are parallel to that of the meteorological records in the Canadian Prairies.     

Climatic changes in central and eastern Canada inferred from deep borehole temperature data

We analyzed data from 23 boreholes at 19 sites in central and eastern Canada, for the purpose of estimating ground surface temperature (GST) histories. These boreholes were logged down to at least 550 m depth with thermistor probes. Thermal conductivity measurements had been previously made at small depth intervals for the entire depth ranges of most of the boreholes. The temperature profiles of these boreholes do not indicate water disturbance. We estimated terrain effects for each borehole using a time dependent solid-angle method. The thermal perturbations caused by lakes or deforestation near the borehole sites are insignificant in most cases. However, four of the holes were found to be severely influenced by terrain effects. GSTs estimated from the borehole data less influenced by the terraineffects form two groups. The first group, which are generally from data of better quality, show a cold period near the end of the last century before the recent warming trend; the second show it 80–100 years earlier. We consider the former typical of the climate of the Boreal climatic region of Canada. The difference between the two groups may reflect the spacial variability of the climate. Four GST estimates do not belong to either type, and the reasons are discussed.     

Subsurface temperature—depth profiles, anomalies due to climatic ground surface temperature changes or groundwater flow effects

Climatic temperature changes at the ground surface propagate downward to the subsurface creating transient disturbances to the temperature—depth (T(z)) profile. Due to the poor thermal diffusivity of rocks the disturbances are preserved long times in the bedrock, and in a conductive regime it is possible to reveal the ground surface temperature (GST) history from borehole temperature data with inversion techniques. Geothermal temperature measurements thus provide a source of palaeoclimatic information which so far has not been utilized extensively. Inversion of GST history is, however, not straightforward and any disturbing effects should be excluded before the data can be utilized in inversion. Groundwater flow is of special importance in this respect because it is a common phenomenon in bedrock and convection often produces temperature—depth profiles resembling those affected by palaeoclimatic GST changes. In interpreting temperature—depth (T(z)) logs it is therefore not always clear whether the recorded vertical gradient variations should be attributed to the effects of palaeoclimatic ground surface temperature (GST) changes or to groundwater circulation. Using several synthetic T(z) profiles and applying general least squares inversion techniques we simulate a situation of “misinterpreting” the curvature of the T(z) profile in terms of palaeoclimatic GST changes, although it is actually produced by convective heat transfer due to groundwater flow. For comparison the opposite case is also studied, namely, genuine palaeoclimatic effects are misinterpreted as being due to disturbances caused by groundwater flow. A homogeneous half-space model is used to model T(z) profiles disturbed conductively by GST changes during the time interval 10–10000 yr B.P. and a one-dimensional porous layer model is applied for convective heat transfer calculations. The results indicate that a given T(z) profile can be attributed to either of these effects with reasonable parameter values. In addition to the synthetic T(z) profiles, a case history from a 958 m deep drill hole at Lavia, southwestern Finland, is presented. Special care is needed in analyzing T(z) data. A knowledge of geothermal data, such as temperature, thermal conductivity and diffusivity is not necessarily adequate for determining which of the phenomena (or whether a combination of them) provides the most probable interpretation of a T(z) profile. Additional information on the hydrogeological properties of the drilled strata is essential.     

Near-IR imaging of Asteroid 4 Vesta

The Keck Observatory's adaptive optics (AO) system has been used to observe Asteroid 4 Vesta during its 2003 closest approach to Earth. Broadband K^′- and L^′-band images, centered at 2.1 and 3.6 μm, respectively, are presented here. The sharpness of the images was improved by applying a deconvolution algorithm, MISTRAL, to the images. The K^′- and L^′-band images at spatial resolutions of 53 km (^0.055″) and 88 km (^0.085″), respectively, display albedo features on the surface of the asteroid that can also be seen in the HST images (673 nm) presented by Thomas et al. [1997. Impact excavation on Asteroid 4 Vesta: Hubble Space Telescope results. Science 277, 1492-1495] and Binzel et al. [1997. Geologic mapping of Vesta from 1994 Hubble Space Telescope images. Icarus 128, 95-103] at the same latitudes and longitudes. While we cannot determine the morphology of these features, we can speculate that some of the albedo features may be impact craters filled with dark material. Spectra, centered at 1.65 and 2.1 μm, were also obtained. Spectra were corrected for the solar flux and are similar to those published by Gaffey [1997. Surface lithologic heterogeneity of Asteroid 4 Vesta. Icarus 127, 130-157], along the same wavelength range.     

Coupling the atmosphere with interior dynamics: Implications for the resurfacing of Venus

We calculated 2D and 3D mantle convection models for Venus using digitized atmosphere temperatures from the model of Bullock and Grinspoon (Bullock, M.A., Grinspoon, D.H. [2001]. Icarus 150, 19–37) to study the interaction between interior dynamics and atmosphere thermal evolution. The coupling between atmosphere and interior occurs through mantle degassing and the effect of varying concentrations of the greenhouse gas H₂O on the surface temperature. Exospheric loss of hydrogen to space is accounted for as a H₂O sink. The surface temperature enters the mantle convection model as a boundary condition.Our results suggest a self-consistent feedback mechanism between the interior and the atmosphere resulting in spatial–temporal surface renewal. Greenhouse warming of the atmosphere results in an increase in the surface temperature. Whenever the surface temperature reaches a critical value, the viscosity difference across the lithosphere becomes smaller than about 10⁵ and the surface becomes locally mobile. The critical surface temperature depends on the activation energy for mantle creep, the stress exponent in the non-Newtonian mantle rheology law, and the mantle temperature. Surface renewal together with surface lava flow may explain why the surface of Venus is young on average, i.e. not older than a few hundred million years.The mobilization of the near-surface lithosphere increases the rate of heat removal from the mantle and thereby the interior cooling rate. The enhanced cooling results in a reduction of the water outgassing rates. As a consequence of decreasing water concentrations in the atmosphere, the surface temperature decreases. Our model calculations suggest that Venus should have been geologically active until recently. This is in agreement with several lines of observational evidence from thermal emissivity measurements and crater distribution analyses.     

Longitudinal variation of radial growth at Alaska's northern treeline—recent changes and possible scenarios for the 21st century

The northern treeline is generally limited by available warmth. However, in recent years, more and more studies have identified drought stress as an additional limiting factor for tree growth in northern boreal forests and at treelines. Three growth responses to warming have been identified: increase in growth, decrease in growth, and nonsignificant correlation of tree growth with climate. Here we investigate the effect of drought stress on radial growth of white spruce at northern treelines along a longitudinal gradient spanning the entire Brooks Range in Alaska. We systematically sampled 687 white spruce at seven treeline sites. Where possible, we sampled three site types at a given site: high-density forest, low-density forest, and floodplain forest. We investigated the relationship of site and site type to tree growth responses. In the western part of our study area, we found very high numbers of trees responding with increase in growth to recent warming; while in the eastern part, trees responding with decrease in growth to recent warming are predominant. Within a given site, more trees reacting positively to warming grow on site types characterized by low tree density. These patterns coincide with precipitation decreases from west to east and local water availability gradients, therefore pointing to drought stress as the controlling factor for the distribution of trees responding with increase or decrease in growth to recent warming. Compared to 20th century climate, we project a 25–50% basal area (BA) increase in the western region for the 21st century due to climate warming as projected by five general circulation models, 4–11% in the central region and decreases (+1 to −11%) in the eastern region. The overall net change in projected 21st century BA increase at each site seems to be controlled by the relative proportion of responder groups. If these are similar, differences in the magnitude of increase versus decrease in growth control BA projections for that site. This study highlights the importance of regional-scale investigations of biosphere–climate interactions, since our results indicate a substantial gain in aboveground biomass as a result of future warming only in the western regions; while in the eastern regions, climate warming will decrease overall wood production and therefore carbon uptake potential.     

Waves in Jupiter's atmosphere observed by the Cassini ISS and CIRS instruments

The Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) and Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) reported a North Equatorial Belt (NEB) wave in Jupiter's atmosphere from optical images [Porco, C.C., and 23 colleagues, 2003. Science 299, 1541-1547] and thermal maps [Flasar, F.M., and 39 colleagues, 2004. Nature 427, 132-135], respectively. The connection between the two waves remained uncertain because the two observations were not simultaneous. Here we report on simultaneous ISS images and CIRS thermal maps that confirm that the NEB wave shown in the ISS ultraviolet (UV1) and strong methane band (MT3) images is correlated with the thermal wave in the CIRS temperature maps, with low temperatures in the CIRS maps (upwelling) corresponding to dark regions in the UV1 images (UV-absorbing particles) and bright regions in the MT3 images (high clouds and haze). The long period of the NEB wave suggests that it is a planetary (Rossby) wave. The combined observations from the ISS and CIRS are utilized to discuss the vertical and meridional propagation of the NEB wave, which offers a possible explanation for why the NEB wave is confined to specific latitudes and altitudes. Further, the ISS UV1 images reveal a circumpolar wave centered at 48.5° S (planetocentric) and probably located in the stratosphere, as suggested by the ISS and CIRS observations. The simultaneous comparison between the ISS and CIRS also implies that the large dark oval in the polar stratosphere of Jupiter discovered in the ISS UV1 images [Porco, C.C., and 23 colleagues, 2003. Science 299, 1541-1547] is the same feature as the warm regions at high northern latitudes in the CIRS 1-mbar temperature maps [Flasar, F.M., and 39 colleagues, 2004. Nature 427, 132-135]. This comparison supports a previous suggestion that the dark oval in the ISS UV1 images is linked to auroral precipitation and heating [Porco, C.C., and 23 colleagues, 2003. Science 299, 1541-1547].     

Numerical modelling of permafrost in bedrock in northern Fennoscandia during the Holocene

The occurrence of permafrost in bedrock in northern Fennoscandia and its dependence on past and presently ongoing climatic variations was investigated with one- (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) numerical models by solving the transient heat conduction equation with latent heat effects included. The study area is characterized by discontinuous permafrost occurrences such as palsa mires and local mountain permafrost. The ground temperature changes during the Holocene were constructed using climatic proxy data. This variation was used as a forcing function at the ground surface in the calculations. Several versions of the present ground temperature were applied, resulting in different subsurface freezing–thawing conditions in the past depending on the assumed porosity and geothermal conditions.Our results suggest that in high altitude areas with a cold climate (present mean annual ground temperature between 0°C and −3°C), there may have been considerable variations in permafrost thickness (ranging from 0 to 150 m), as well as periods of no permafrost at all. The higher is the porosity of bedrock filled with ice, the stronger is the retarding effect of permafrost against climatic variations.Two-dimensional models including topographic effects with altitude-dependent ground temperatures and slope orientation and inclination dependent solar radiation were applied to a case of mountain permafrost in Ylläs, western Finnish Lapland, where bedrock permafrost is known to occur in boreholes to a depth of about 60 m. Modelling suggests complicated changes in permafrost thickness with time as well as contrasting situations on southern and northern slopes of the mountain.Extrapolating the climatic warming of the last 200 years to the end of the next century when the anticipated increase in the annual average air temperature is expected to be about 2 K indicates that the permafrost occurrences in bedrock in northern Fennoscandia would be thawing rapidly in low-porosity formations. However, already a porosity of 5% filled with ice would retard the thawing considerably.     

Mercury's sodium exosphere

Mercury's neutral sodium exosphere is simulated using a comprehensive 3D Monte Carlo model following sodium atoms ejected from Mercury's surface by thermal desorption, photon stimulated desorption, micro-meteoroid vaporization and solar wind sputtering. The evolution of the sodium surface density with respect to Mercury's rotation and its motion around the Sun is taken into account by considering enrichment processes due to surface trapping of neutrals and ions and depletion of the sodium available for ejection from the surfaces of grains. The change in the sodium exosphere is calculated during one Mercury year taking into account the variations in the solar radiation pressure, the photo-ionization frequency, the solar wind density, the photon and meteoroid flux intensities, and the surface temperature. Line-of-sight column densities at different phase angles, the supply rate of new sodium, average neutral and ion losses over a Mercury year, surface density distribution and the importance of the different processes of ejection are discussed in this paper. The sodium surface density distribution is found to become significantly nonuniform from day to night sides, from low to high latitudes and from morning to afternoon because of rapid depletion of sodium atoms in the surfaces of grains mainly driven by thermal depletion. The shape of the exosphere, as it would be seen from the Earth, changes drastically with respect to Mercury's heliocentric position. High latitude column density maxima are related to maxima in the sodium surface concentration at high latitudes in Mercury's surface and are not necessarily due to solar wind sputtering. The ratio between the sodium column density on the morning side of Mercury's exosphere and the sodium column density on the afternoon side is consistent with the conclusions of Sprague et al. (1997, Icarus 129, 506-527). The model, which has no fitting parameters, shows surprisingly good agreement with recent observations of Potter et al. (2002, Meteor. Planet. Sci. 8, 3357-3374) successfully explaining their velocity and column density profiles vs. heliocentric distance. Comparison with this data allows us to constrain the supply rate of new sodium atoms to the surface. We also discuss the possible origins of the strong high latitude emissions (Potter and Morgan, 1990, Science 248, 835-838; 1997a, Adv. Space Res. 19, 1571-1576; 1997b, Planet. Space Sci. 45, 95-100; Sprague et al., 1998, Icarus 135, 60-68) and the strong variations of the total content of the sodium exosphere on short (Potter et al., 1999, Planet. Space Sci. 47, 1441-1449) and long time scales (Sprague et al., 1997, Icarus 129, 506-527).     

Recent warming in southeastern Zaire (Central Africa) inferred from disturbed geothermal gradients

Several temperature-depth profiles measured in Kasai and in Shaba provinces of Zaire using mining exploration boreholes exhibit a significant negative temperature gradient near the surface. This anomalous curvature which extends to 100–200 m depth could reflect the effect of variations in surface conditions. Applying the theory of heat conduction in a semi-infinite homogeneous medium, these profiles indicate a surface warming by 3–4°C. This warming is related to the effect of the environmental changes associated with the mining exploitation and the urbanization during the last 40–90 years.     

Surface-temperature history during the last 1000 years near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska: applying control theory to the inversion of borehole temperature profiles

The temperature-depth profile data by Lachenbruch et al. (1982) in ice-bearing permafrost near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, are analyzed with control theory to retrodict the last 1000-yr history of the surface temperature. For this purpose, an inversion scheme for a nonlinear problem of heat diffusion in permafrost is developed. The following conclusions are made: (1) During the last 1000 years, the surface temperature near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, oscillated with amplitude of 3 ± 1°C. (2) There was a minimum of the temperature in 1853 AD between two maxima at 1623 AD and 1937 AD. (3) A net warming by 4°C occurred from 1853 AD to 1973 AD.     

Minor element evidence that Asteroid 433 Eros is a space-weathered ordinary chondrite parent body

The NEAR mission to 433 Eros provided detailed data on the geology, mineralogy, and chemistry of this S-class asteroid [McCoy, T.J., Robinson, M.S., Nittler, L.R., Burbine, T.H., 2002. Chem. Erde 62, 89-121; Cheng, A.F., 1997. Space Sci. Rev. 82, 3-29] with a key science goal of understanding the relationship between asteroids and meteorites [Cheng, A.F., 1997. Space Sci. Rev. 82, 3-29; Gaffey, M.J., Burbine, T.H., Piatek, J.L., Reed, K.L., Chaky, D.A., Bell, J.F., Brown, R.H., 1993a. Icarus 106, 573-602]. Previously reported major element data revealed a bulk surface similar to that of ordinary chondrites, with the notable exception of sulfur, which was highly depleted [Trombka, J.I., and 23 colleagues, 2000. Science 289, 2101-2105; Nittler, L.R., and 14 colleagues, 2001. Meteorit. Planet. Sci. 36, 1673-1695]. The origin of this sulfur deficiency, and hence the fundamental nature of the asteroid's surface, has remained controversial. We report a new analysis of NEAR X-ray spectrometer data, indicating that Eros has Cr/Fe, Mn/Fe, and Ni/Fe ratios similar to ordinary chondrite meteorites of type LL or L. Chondritic levels of Cr, Mn, and Ni argue strongly against a partial melting explanation for the sulfur depletion. Instead, our results provide definitive evidence that Eros is a primitive body with composition and mineralogy similar to ordinary chondrites, but with a surface heavily modified by interactions with the solar wind and micrometeorites, processes collectively termed space weathering.     

An investigation of sand–dust storm events and land surface characteristics in China using NOAA NDVI data

Observations from 560 weather stations in China show that sand–dust storms occur most frequently in April in north China. The region consists of Sub-dry Mid Temperate, Dry Mid Temperate, Sub-dry South Temperate and Dry South Temperate Zones and much of the land surface is desert or semi-desert: it is relatively dry with minimal rainfall and a high annual mean temperature. In most regions of China, the annual mean frequency of sand–dust events decreased sharply between 1980 and 1997 and then increased from 1997 to 2000. Statistical analyses demonstrate that the frequency of sand–dust storms correlates highly with wind speed, which in turn is strongly related to land surface features; on the other hand, a significant correlation between storm events and other atmospheric quantities such as precipitation and temperature was not observed. Accordingly, land surface cover characteristics (vegetation, snowfall and soil texture) may play a significant role in determining the occurrence of sand–dust storms in China. Analysis of Normalized Difference Vegetation Index derived from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Empirical Orthogonal Function show that since 1995 surface vegetation cover in large areas of Northern China has significantly deteriorated. Moreover, a high correlation is shown to exist among the annual occurrence of sand–dust storms, surface vegetation cover and snowfall. This suggests that the deterioration of surface vegetation cover may strongly influence the occurrence of sand–dust storms in China. Soils with coarse and medium textures are found to be more associated with sand–dust storms than other soils.