Membership in the open cluster NGC 2301

Astrometric cluster membership probabilities have been derived from proper motion of the open cluster NGC 2301. A comparison with previous investigations is presented.     

Asteroids 1 ceres and 4 vesta: Objects of the Dawn space mission

The Dawn spacecraft of the NASA space mission to asteroids 1 Ceres and 4 Vesta was launched in September 2007. The choice of these two asteroids is deeply grounded: they are the largest and most massive objects of the main belt that are completely different in material composition, evolution history, and internal structure. Recently, the results of observations and numerical modeling have shown their amazing uniqueness: they both have experienced the complex process of thermal evolution and differentiation of their internal mineral resources, but have a completely different internal structure. Being the largest bodies, have they managed to resist the process of collisional evolution in the asteroid belt and have survived in their “primitive form.” Because of this, their study is very important from the point of view of cosmogonic problems regarding the asteroid belt and the Solar System as a whole. The present paper shortly reviews the recent progress in the study of Ceres and Vesta achieved due to observations performed on the Earth (including the polarimetric observations made by the authors) and from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) before the long-term orbital investigations performed by the Dawn spacecraft.     

On the A-transform of the exponential integrals

In this paper, a technique of recursive analysis is developed for the integral transform A of the exponential integral functionsE _n which is denoted as _n (). The main result of this analysis enables us to establish a two-term recurrence formula for _n (0) and a three-term recurrence formula for _n (); 0. A computational algorithm based on these formulae is also constructed and its numerical results forn=2(1)25 are presented to 15-digit accuracy.     

The meteoritic origin of Tutankhamun's iron dagger blade

Scholars have long discussed the introduction and spread of iron metallurgy in different civilizations. The sporadic use of iron has been reported in the Eastern Mediterranean area from the late Neolithic period to the Bronze Age. Despite the rare existence of smelted iron, it is generally assumed that early iron objects were produced from meteoritic iron. Nevertheless, the methods of working the metal, its use, and diffusion are contentious issues compromised by lack of detailed analysis. Since its discovery in 1925, the meteoritic origin of the iron dagger blade from the sarcophagus of the ancient Egyptian King Tutankhamun (14th C. BCE) has been the subject of debate and previous analyses yielded controversial results. We show that the composition of the blade (Fe plus 10.8 wt% Ni and 0.58 wt% Co), accurately determined through portable x‐ray fluorescence spectrometry, strongly supports its meteoritic origin. In agreement with recent results of metallographic analysis of ancient iron artifacts from Gerzeh, our study confirms that ancient Egyptians attributed great value to meteoritic iron for the production of precious objects. Moreover, the high manufacturing quality of Tutankhamun's dagger blade, in comparison with other simple‐shaped meteoritic iron artifacts, suggests a significant mastery of ironworking in Tutankhamun's time.     

Does salinity change determine zooplankton variability in the saline Qarun Lake(Egypt)?

Zooplankton and 14 abiotic variables were studied during August 2011 at 10 stations in Lake Qarun,Egypt.Stations with the lowest salinity and highest nutrient concentrations and turbidity were close to the discharge of waters from the El-Bats and El-Wadi drainage systems.A total of 15 holozooplankton species were identified.The salinity in Lake Qarun increased and fluctuated since 1901:12 g/L in 1901;8.5 g/L in 1905;12.0 g/L in 1922;30.0 g/L in 1985;38.7 g/L in 1994;35.3 g/L in 2006,and 33.4 g/L in 2011.The mean concentration of nutrients(nitrate,nitrite and orthophosphate) gradually increased from 35,0.16 and 0.38 ? g/L,respectively,in 1953–1955 to 113,16.4,and 30.26 ? g/L in 2011.From 1999–2003 some decrease of species diversity occurred.Average total zooplankton density was 30 000 ind./m 3 in 1974–1977;356 125 ind./m 3 in 1989;534 000 ind./m 3 in 1994–1995;from 965 000 to 1 452 000 ind./m 3 in 2006,and 595 000 ind./m 3 in 2011.A range of long-term summer salinity variability during the last decades was very similar to a range of salinity spatial variability in summer 2011.There is no significant correlation between zooplankton abundance and salinity in spatial and long-term changes.We conclude that salinity fluctuations since at least 1955 did not directly drive the changes of composition and abundance of zooplankton in the lake.A marine community had formed in the lake,and it continues to change.One of the main drivers of this change is a regular introduction and a pressure of alien species on the existent community.Eutrophication also plays an important role.The introduction of Mnemiopsis leidyi,first reported in 2014,may lead to a start of a new stage of the biotic changes in Lake Qarun,when eutrophication and the population dynamics of this ctenophore will be main drivers of the ecosystem change.     

Textural attributes, mineralogy and provenance of sand dune fields in the greater Al Ain area, United Arab Emirates

Sand dunes and interdune sediments around Al Ain city have markedly high carbonate contents which increase towards Jabal Hafit mountain and the Arabian Gulf coast. The dunes are composed predominantly of well-sorted fine sands, consisting of unstrained quartz and carbonate grains together with minor proportions of chert and feldspars. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) examination reveals that quartz grains display various mechanically- and chemically-formed surface textures. The heavy minerals are dominated by opaques and pyroxenes with minor tourmaline, garnet, rutile, epidote, monazite, zircon, hornblende and staurolite.Interdune sediments consist of fine and very fine, poorly- to extremely poorly-sorted sands together with small concentrations of gravel, silt and clay. The light sand fractions compositionally resemble those of dunes but contain, in addition, gypsum, anhydrite, halite and celestite. Percentages of pyroxenes are higher whereas those of zircon, tourmaline and rutile are lower than in dunes. X-ray diffractometry reveals that the clay fractions consist solely of palygorskite. Generally, interdune sediments are much less mature texturally and mineralogically than dune sands; the maturity of both types of sediments decreases toward the NE of the study area.Sand dunes in the various districts of the greater Al Ain area are genetically related. Also, there is a partial genetic relationship between the dunes and interdune sediments; both are mainly multicyclic. Their major parts were brought mainly by the dominant north-west (El Shamal) winds from older dune fields in other localities in U.A.E., Qatar and El-Rub El-Khali. Local contributions to the dune fields from Jabal Hafit mountain, the Oman Mountains and the calcareous coast of the Arabian Gulf were, in cases, significant. Also, authigenesis by groundwater under highly evaporitic conditions played a major role in the formation of interdune sediments through the genesis of the clay and some nonclay minerals.     

Define a protected buffer zone for Ismailia Canal, Egypt using Geographic Information Systems

Ismailia Canal is the principle source of drinking water supply to Suez Canal and Sinai governorates. However, Ismailia Canal is endangered from unwise activities in the surrounding environment. Drinking water resources protection can be implemented using land-use monitoring system or through land-use controls based on hydrogeologic mapping to study the impacts of development on water quality. Our approach is to protect the direct and indirect catchment areas for surface water supply, especially the sensitive areas, those that are more vulnerable to contamination than other areas. Remote sensing and geographic information system techniques are applied to construct and integrate the hydrogeological data, inventory for potential sources of contamination and mapping the sensitive areas in order to construct the a protected buffer zone for Ismailia Canal, and to constrain the development activities in all the surrounding areas of surface water supply. The sensitive areas are delineated, where extra protection is required, based on soils properties, geology, and specific hydrogeological criteria. Industrial areas, drains, and septic tanks in the surrounding villages are the common potential sources of contamination. The hydrologic relation between Ismailia Canal and groundwater has great variations. Comprehensive plan for water protection were composed. It includes maintaining three natural protection zones of at least 300-m width along the main course of the Canal and delineating vulnerable zones depending on the aerial extension of the sensitive areas within 10 km on both sides of the Canal. Specific protection measures are recommended over the sensitive areas. The natural ecosystems of swamps around Ismailia Canal should be conserved and the processes of continuous burial prevented.     

Groundwater investigation in the southern part of Gabes using resistivity sounding, southern Tunisia

The groundwater hydrogeology of southern Tunisia emphasizes two main groundwater bodies so-called Zeuss-Koutine and south Gabes. These groundwater bodies yielding economically important storage of useful water present complex internal architecture and heterogeneity allowing exchange flows throughout permeable or/and fractured bodies. A geophysical survey using resistivity soundings was carried out along this area to describe in detail the field structure and the 3D extent of these groundwater bodies by the hydrogeological new data and detailed subsurface mapping based on resistivity sounding and seismic data. This survey discusses also the potentialities of some permeable layer in water storage and purposes potential favorable areas for optimum groundwater mining.     

Hydrogeophysical study for additional groundwater supplies in El Heiz Area, Southern part of El Bahariya Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt

El Bahariya Oasis is a part of the great groundwater reservoir of the Western Desert of Egypt. The different stratigraphic units, the water-bearing zones, aquifer potentiality conditions, and the favorable locations for drilling new wells were evaluated by carrying out 24 Schlumberger vertical electrical soundings (VESs), along with the data of some wells drilled in the near vicinity of the measuring sites. The results of the interpreted field data revealed the presence of ten distinctive subsurface geoelectric layers; a thin surface, dry loose sand and gravel, sandy clay and shale interclations, saturated coarse sand layer, shale and clay, and saturated fine sandstone and saturated coarse sandstone. The aquifer is a multilayer aquifer with different thicknesses represented by the fourth, sixth, eighth, and tenth geoelectric layers. Results also revealed that the thicknesses of the water-bearing horizons increase towards the east direction, consequently the aquifer potentiality increases. Therefore, the best production well locations are in that direction. Depth to water starts from 40 m at VES no. 14 and increases gradually toward the east to reach 66 m at VES no. 5. Hydrogeochemical analysis of two groundwater samples taken from Ein El Ezza and well no. 2 showed that groundwater in the study area is suitable for agricultural purposes but not for human consumption due to the high iron content. Recommendations concerning site selection for drilling new productive groundwater wells are given.     

Condition of development of collapse structure in the southern–central Atlassic Tunisia case study to Gafsa Basin

The Bou Omrane is an example of southern–central Atlassic Tunisian folds, this massive is presented by an anticline delimited by a NE–SW thrust. The geometry study of this anticline (hinge and subvertical layers) associated to structural and stratigraphic correlation confirms the development of structures according to “fault propagation fold” model. Using numerical software Rampe 1.3.0, the balanced cross-sections demonstrate the complicated growth of Bou Omrane anticline. The resulted structure is obtained by thrusting on breakthrough coupled to blockage of ramp on the back limb. All these condition confirm the role of diversity of tectonics events and the inheritance tectonics notion associated with the reactivation of pre-existing faults on the genesis of folds and the development of collapse structures according to more than one decollement level.