Seasonal connections between meteoric water and streamflow generation along a mountain headwater stream

In snowmelt-driven mountain watersheds, the hydrologic connectivity between meteoric waters and stream flow generation varies strongly with the season, reflecting variable connection to soil and groundwater storage within the watershed. This variable connectivity regulates how streamflow generation mechanisms transform the seasonal and elevational variation in oxygen and hydrogen isotopic composition (δ¹⁸O and δD) of meteoric precipitation. Thus, water isotopes in stream flow can signal immediate connectivity or more prolonged mixing, especially in high-relief mountainous catchments. We characterized δ¹⁸O and δD values in stream water along an elevational gradient in a mountain headwater catchment in southwestern Montana. Stream water isotopic compositions related most strongly to elevation between February and March, exhibiting higher δ¹⁸O and δD values with decreasing elevation. These elevational isotopic lapse rates likely reflect increased connection between stream flow and proximal snow-derived water sources heavily subject to elevational isotopic effects. These patterns disappeared during summer sampling, when consistently lower δ¹⁸O and δD values of stream water reflected contributions from snowmelt or colder rainfall, despite much higher δ¹⁸O and δD values expected in warmer seasonal rainfall. The consistently low isotopic values and absence of a trend with elevation during summer suggest lower connectivity between summer precipitation and stream flow generation as a consequence of drier soils and greater transpiration. As further evidence of intermittent seasonal connectivity between the stream and adjacent groundwaters, we observed a late-winter flush of nitrate into the stream at higher elevations, consistent with increased connection to accumulating mineralized nitrogen in riparian wetlands. This pattern was distinct from mid-summer patterns of nitrate loading at lower elevations that suggested heightened human recreational activity along the stream corridor. These observations provide insights linking stream flow generation and seasonal water storage in high elevation mountainous watersheds. Greater understanding of the connections between surface water, soil water and groundwater in these environments will help predict how the quality and quantity of mountain runoff will respond to changing climate and allow better informed water management decisions.     

Subsurface flow measurements using passive flux meters in variably-saturated cold-regions landscapes

To date, passive flux meters have predominantly been applied in temperate environments for tracking the movement of contaminants in groundwater. This study applies these instruments to reduce uncertainty in (typically instantaneous) flux measurements made in a low-gradient, wetland dominated, discontinuous permafrost environment. This method supports improved estimation of unsaturated and over-winter subsurface flows which are very difficult to quantify using hydraulic gradient-based approaches. Improved subsurface flow estimates can play a key role in understanding the water budget of this landscape.     

The mass ratio of Charon to Pluto from Hubble Space Telescope astrometry with the fine guidance sensors

The mass ratio of Charon to Pluto is a basic parameter describing the binary system and is necessary for determining the individual masses and densities of these two bodies. Previous measurements of the mass ratio have been made, but the solutions differ significantly (Null et al., 1993; Young et al., 1994; Null and Owen, 1996; Foust et al., 1997; Tholen and Buie, 1997). We present the first observations of Pluto and Charon with a well-calibrated astrometric instrument—the fine guidance sensors on the Hubble Space Telescope. We observed the motion of Pluto and Charon about the system barycenter over 4.4 days (69% of an orbital period) and determined the mass ratio to be 0.122±0.008 which implies a density of 1.8 to 2.1 g cm⁻³ for Pluto and 1.6 to 1.8 g cm⁻³ for Charon. The resulting rock-mass fractions for Pluto and Charon are higher than expected for bodies formed in the outer solar nebula, possibly indicating significant postaccretion loss of volatiles.     

O. Richard Norton,The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Meteorites: Book Review

Earth, Moon, and Planets -     

First evidence of IMF control of Jovian magnetospheric boundary locations: Cassini and Galileo magnetic field measurements compared

The Cassini spacecraft, en route to Saturn, passed close to Jupiter while the Galileo spacecraft was completing its 28th and 29th orbits of Jupiter, thus offering a unique opportunity for direct study of the solar wind-Jovian interaction. Here evidence is given of response of the Jovian magnetopause and bow shock positions to changes of the north-south component of the solar wind magnetic field, a phenomenon long known to occur in equivalent circumstances at Earth. The period analyzed starts with the passage over Cassini of an interplanetary shock far upstream of Jupiter. The shock's arrival at Galileo on the dusk-flank of the magnetosphere caused Galileo to exit into the solar wind. Using inter-spacecraft timing based on the time delay established from the shock arrival at each spacecraft, we point out that Galileo's position with respect to the Jovian bow shock appears to correlate with changes in the disturbed north-south reversing field seen behind the shock. We specifically rule out the alternative of changes in the shape of the bow shock with rotations of the interplanetary magnetic field as the cause.     

青藏高原隆升的非线性动态有限元仿真研究

根据青藏高原的地质特征建立分析模型，采用3维动态有限元方法，在计算仿真板块速度场的基础上，计算在青藏高原的隆升过程中该地区地壳岩石的等效应力和位移随时间的变化，计算仿真得到的速度场与1998年GPS观测的速度场吻合良好；与过去一贯的假设相反，计算结果反映出地壳应力场不是静态的，而是此起彼伏，不断变化的，应力值最大且变化最剧烈的地区在克什米尔地区、鄂尔多斯地区和鲜水河－小江断裂带，与地震多发区域吻合。