Solar Wind Control of Jupiter's H3Auroras

A program of observations of Jupiter's H⁺₃auroras was conducted during the first 4 months of 1992, a period that spanned the Ulysses encounter. Daily variations of auroral intensity are small in magnitude (∼20%) and well correlated with variations in the solar wind ram pressure arriving at Jupiter. A much larger (factor of 3) time variation is observed to occur on a time scale of approximately 2 months. During the first 2 months of observation, the inferred total intrinsic intensity of the northern aurora exceeded that of the southern aurora by a factor of 2. Throughout the latter 2 months, characterized by less intense auroral activity, the intensity of the northern aurora was comparable to that of the southern aurora.     

Low-temperature behavior of single-domain through multidomain magnetite

We have investigated the low-temperature behavior of a suite of ‘grown’ synthetic and natural magnetites that span single-domain (SD) and multidomain (MD) behavior. Synthetic samples had been grown in the laboratory either in an aqueous medium or in glass. Natural samples included SD magnetites occurring in plagioclase and truly MD magnetites in the form of large octahedra. In all experiments a sample was first given a saturation remanence at room temperature; next, moment was measured continuously during cooling and warming between 230 K and 60 K. Similar to results reported earlier by other workers, magnetic memory is large in SD samples, whereas truly MD samples are almost completely demagnetized by cycling between room temperature and 60 K. Pseudo-single-domain samples exhibit behavior that is intermediate with respect to that of the SD and truly MD states. When data from this study are combined with data obtained by Hartstra [10] from sized, natural magnetites, it is found that the percentage of total remanence that survives cycling between room temperature and 60 K decreases linearly with the logarithm of grain size and, thus, with increasing number of domains. This relation suggests that memory can provide a reasonable estimate of grain size in those magnetite-bearing rocks for which these samples provide good analogues. Remarkably, some of the large natural octahedra provide a magnified view of MD response to low temperatures and thus reveal two surprising and intriguing types of behavior. First, below approximately 180 K these octahedra demagnetize through a series of large Barkhausen jumps. Second, near 117 K these same octahedra exhibit a ‘wild zone’, where magnetic moment executes large, random excursions. We interpret these two phenomena as direct evidence for the unpinning and irreversible displacement of domain walls in response to the drop in coercivity and, possibly, the broadening of domain walls as temperatures drop toward the isotropic point. One implication of this behavior is that cooling to progressively lower temperatures could provide an effective method for stepwise removal of paleomagnetic components carried by MD grains, even without passage through the isotropic point of magnetite.     

Ecotourism for sustainable development: Oxymoron or plausible strategy?

Acknowledgements: The research for this article was made possible by a Fulbright-Hays Faculty Research Grant. Guy King, Beth Mills, Chuck Nelson, and D.J. O'Donnell kindly provided assistance with various phases of map production.     

Geochemistry of the blue gem coal bed, Knox county, Kentucky

The Blue Gem coal bed (Middle Pennsylvanian Westphalian B, Breathitt Formation), has low-ash (with some sample sites having less than 1% ash) and low-sulfur contents through parts of Knox County, Kentucky. Most collection sites exhibit similar vertical elemental trends in ash geochemistry. The relatively high-ash (>1% ash) lower part of the bed displays enrichment in TiO₂, Zr, Cr, V and Ni; Co, Zn, Rb and Mn show enrichment at some sites. A low-ash (<1% ash) middle part of the bed displays enrichment in Sr, Ba and CaO; Fe₂O₃ is enriched in samples with carbonate minerals. The upper part of the bed contains >1% ash and a relative enrichment in SiO₂, K₂O and Rb and a relative decrease in Cu, Ni, Co, Ba and Mn when compared to the middle part of the bed. Principal components analysis indicates that the samples with an ash content 0.63–1.0% show associations for Ni, Cu, Cr and Co. Samples with between 1.01–2.0% ash display strong element associations that suggest increased clastic sediment contributions (TiO₂, Zr, K₂O, Rb, SiO₂). The low-ash content and the upwards decrease in trace concentrations both suggest that the Blue Gem peat swamp was ombrotrophic through at least a part of its geologic history.     

Syn-metamorphic element transfer across lithological boundaries in the Port-aux-Basques gneiss complex, Newfoundland

Mineralogical reaction-zones developed between mafic gneiss (amphibolite) and metapelite reveal the role of cm-scale metasomatism during amphibolite-facies metamorphism of the Port-aux-Basques gneiss complex (PBGC). Ionic diffusion between mafic and pelitic layers led to the development of 1–3 cm wide, schistose, biotite + garnet-rich (Type 1) reaction-zones at the margins of mafic layers, and/or the crystallization of poikiloblastic hornblende within a garnet- and biotite-depleted (Type 2) reaction-zone up to 20 cm wide within nearby paragneiss. Garnet-biotite thermometry of the Type 1 reaction-zones indicates T_max of c. 560–645°C at a pressure of c. 6 kbar constrained by “GASP” and “GRAIL” subassemblages in the host rock.

Compared to the “unaltered” amphibolite, Type 1 reaction-zones are enriched in K, Rb and Ba, and depleted in Ca and Sr; compared to the “unaltered” metapelite, Type 2 reaction-zones show opposite trends: they are depleted in K, Rb and Ba, and enriched in Ca and Sr. This indicates that the formation of the reaction-zones involved the exchange of K, Ca and related trace elements in opposite directions across the amphibolite/paragneiss interface, and that the system was approximately closed to these components where both reaction-zones are present.     

Summary of the mineral- and energy-resource endowment,BLM roswell resource area,east-central New Mexico

In this summary of two comprehensive resource reports produced by the U.S. Bureau of Mines and the U.S. Geological Survey for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, we discuss the mineral- and energyresource endowment of the 14-millon-acre Roswell Resource Area, New Mexico, managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The Bureau and Survey reports result from separate studies that are compilations of published and unpublished data and integrate new findings on the geology, geochemistry, geophysics, mineral, industrial, and energy commodities, and resources for the seven-county area. The reports have been used by the Bureau of Land Management in preparation of the Roswell Resource Area Resource Management Plan, and will have future use in nationwide mineral- and energy-resource inventories and assessments, as reference and training documents, and as public-information tools.In the Roswell Resource Area, many metals, industrial mineral commodities, and energy resources are being, or have been, produced or prospected. These include metals and high-technology materials, such as copper, gold, silver, thorium, uranium and/or vanadium, rare-earth element minerals, iron, manganese, tungsten, lead, zinc, and molybdenum; industrial mineral resources, including barite, limestone/dolomite, caliche, clay, fluorspar, gypsum, scoria, aggregate, and sand and gravel; and fuels and associated resources, such as oil, gas, tar sand and heavy oil, coal, and gases associated with hydrocarbons. Other commodities that have yet to be identified in economic concentrations include potash, halite, polyhalite, anhydrite, sulfur, feldspar, building stone and decorative rock, brines, various gases associated with oil and gas exploration, and carbon dioxide.     

Diatom-salinity relationships in 111 lakes from the Interior Plateau of British Columbia,Canada: the development of diatom-based models for paleosalinity reconstructions

Diatoms were identified and enumerated from the surface sediments of 111 lakes, 45 from the Kamloops region and 66 from the Cariboo/Chilcotin region, located on the southern Interior Plateau of British Columbia, Canada. This paper is an extension of another study which investigated the relationship of diatoms to salinity and ionic composition in 65 lakes from the Cariboo/Chilcotin region. The 111 lakes spanned a large gradient in salinity, ranging from fresh through hypersaline (late-summer salinity values ranged from 0.04 to 369 g l^–1), and included both carbonate- and sulphate-dominated lakes with sodium and magnesium as the dominant cations. The Kamloops region had more sulphate-dominated, hypersaline lakes and fewer carbonate-rich lakes than the Cariboo/Chilcotin region. Most lakes had higher salinities in the late-summer compared to the spring.Both salinity and brine-type were important variables that could explain the different diatom assemblages present in the lakes. The majority of diatom taxa had salinity optima in the freshwater to subsaline range (<3 g l^–1), and the taxa displayed a range of both narrow and broad tolerances along the salinity gradient. Weighted-averaging regression and calibration, and maximum likelihood techniques were used to develop salinity inference models from the diatom assemblages based on their relationship to the spring, late-summer and average lakewater salinity measurements. Simple weighted-averaging (WA) models generally produced the same or lower bootstrapped RMSEs of prediction than weighted-averaging with tolerance downweighting (WA(tol)) in the two regional and the combined datasets. Weighted averaging partial least squares (WA-PLS) showed little or no improvement in the predictive abilities of the datasets, as judged by the jackknifed RMSE of prediction. In all cases, the combined dataset of 102 lakes performed better than either of the smaller regional datasets, with relatively little difference between spring, average and late-summer salinity models. The maximum likelihood models gave lower apparent RMSEs of prediction in comparison to other methods; however, independent validation of this technique using methods such as bootstrapping were not undertaken because of the computer intensive nature of such analyses. These diatom-based salinity models are now available for reconstructing salinity and climatic trends from appropriately chosen closed-basin lakes in the Interior region of British Columbia.This is the second in a series of papers published in this issue on the paleolimnology of arid regions. These papers were presented at the Sixth International Palaeolimnology Symposium held 19–21 April, 1993 at the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. Dr A. R. Chivas served as guest editor for these papers.     

Resident fishes and macrobenthos in mangrove-rimmed habitats: Evaluation of habitat restoration by hydrologic modification

An impounded area (Cabbagehead Bayou) in Upper Tampa Bay, Florida, was studied for 13 mo prior to and 22 mo after berm removal. Sampling for small fish and macrobenthos was conducted both at Cabbagehead Bayou and at a nearby control site, Double Branch Bay. Before and After Control and Impact (BACI) analyses, as well as similarity indices, were used to evaluate faunal characteristics in control versus impacted areas. Berm removal drastically changed periodicity of water cover in the impacted site, with the previously impounded site becoming almost entirely exposed during low tide. Fish abundances, biomass, and mean monthly number of species decreased in Cabbagehead Bayou after tidal flow was established as compared to when it was impounded. Responses of macrofauna varied among taxa, but total amphipod and polychaete abundance displayed a relative increase in the impacted site after berm removal. BACI analyses indicated that the relationship between mean values for almost all polychaete and amphipod taxa in the impacted and control sites changed significantly after berm removal. Additional differences were apparent in BACI analyses, which showed a significant change in the relationship of fish abundance and biomass at both sites for prebreach vs post-breach samples. The changes in relationships were generally not indicative of convergence of control and impacted sites, however. Community similarity of fish, amphipod, and polychaete assemblages increased during the last year of the post-breach sampling but remained generally very low. These findings suggest that distinct faunal responses to alteration of tidal periodicity can be detected within less than 2 yr after reestablishment of tidal flow. However, attainment of close correspondence to control conditions for certain fauna may require more than 22 mo. Therefore, future studies attempting to document recovery of restored wetlands may benefit from extended duration.