Observation and modeling of thermally induced upslope flow

Thermally induced upslope flows were observed on several slopes and in valleys, and a simple one-layer model of upslope flow was developed. In this model, the thickness and speed of upslope flow are expressed in terms of sensible heat flux from the slope surface, drag coefficient of the slope surface, slope steepness and stability of the ambient atmosphere. Model results compare favorably with the observations.The development process in the upslope direction of a steady upslope flow was investigated with this model. A steadily developing state in the upslope direction is expressed by the dimensionless equations together with a unique parameter associated with momentum advection. The vertical distance of the slope required for well-developed upslope flow has a minimum value for a moderate slope steepness, but increases monotonously with decreasing ambient stability. The effect of unsteadiness on upslope flow was also investigated. The transient time required to reach a steady state becomes shorter with increasing ambient stability and slope steepness.     

Numerical studies on the two-dimensional flow in horizontally homogeneous canopy layers

The two-dimensional equation of motion containing the pressure gradient and Coriolis force is numerically solved for the wind field in and above the layers of a horizontally homogeneous canopy with a vertical distribution of leaf-area densities. The solution shows that, in the case of descending through the canopy, the wind vector turns with an angle which depends on the profile of leaf-area densities. In particular, for the canopy of a forest consisting of upper layers with higher densities and lower layers with smaller densities, the turning is striking; a secondary maximum in wind profile appears in the lower layers.Variations of the aerodynamic parameters for the flow above the canopy are indicated with respect to the leaf-area density. The roughness length varies in such a manner that a maximum appears in intermediate density values, depending on the shape of the profile of leaf-area density. In the case of very dense canopies, the shearing stress acting on the flow above the canopy is determined by the contribution from only the upper canopy elements, but not by that from the lower parts of the canopy.     

1-Gbps VLBI, The First Detection of Fringes

We report on the detection of VLBI fringes from quasars by a new VLBI system operating at 1 Gbps (1024 Mbits-per-second). Newly developed 1024 Msps (mega sample-per-second) AD samplers and 1024 Mbps recorders were used for the observations. A correlator with external buffers was used for the 1024 Mbps correlation processing of the tapes data.Our new VLBI system enabled 1024 Mbps VLBI, and this allowed the sampling of a 512 MHz bandwidth from a radio telescope receiver. This is the highest sampling speed ever used for VLBI, and the widest bandwidth used for VLBI observation. Initial sensitivity as evaluated by SNR comparison with earlier VLBI systems produced results to matched the expanded bandwidth. In our first observations, simultaneous optical fibre linked real-time VLBI observations were made to check the validity of data and precisely detemine the clock offsets among the radio telescopes.     

Structural characteristics off Miyagi forearc region, the Japan Trench seismogenic zone, deduced from a wide-angle reflection and refraction study

The Japan Trench subduction zone, located east of NE Japan, has regional variation in seismicity. Many large earthquakes occurred in the northern part of Japan Trench, but few in the southern part. Off Miyagi region is in the middle of the Japan Trench, where the large earthquakes (M > 7) with thrust mechanisms have occurred at an interval of about 40 years in two parts: inner trench slope and near land. A seismic experiment using 36 ocean bottom seismographs (OBS) and a 12,000 cu. in. airgun array was conducted to determine a detailed, 2D velocity structure in the forearc region off Miyagi. The depth to the Moho is 21 km, at 115 km from the trench axis, and becomes progressively deeper landward. The P-wave velocity of the mantle wedge is 7.9–8.1 km/s, which is typical velocity for uppermost mantle without large serpentinization. The dip angle of oceanic crust is increased from 5–6° near the trench axis to 23° 150 km landward from the trench axis. The P-wave velocity of the oceanic uppermost mantle is as small as 7.7 km/s. This low-velocity oceanic mantle seems to be caused by not a lateral anisotropy but some subduction process. By comparison with the seismicity off Miyagi, the subduction zone can be divided into four parts: 1) Seaward of the trench axis, the seismicity is low and normal fault-type earthquakes occur associated with the destruction of oceanic lithosphere. 2) Beneath the deformed zone landward of the trench axis, the plate boundary is characterized as a stable sliding fault plain. In case of earthquakes, this zone may be tsunamigenic. 3) Below forearc crust where P-wave velocity is almost 6 km/s and larger: this zone is the seismogenic zone below inner trench slope, which is a plate boundary between the forearc and oceanic crusts. 4) Below mantle wedge: the rupture zones of thrust large earthquakes near land (e.g. 1978 off Miyagi earthquake) are located beneath the mantle wedge. The depth of the rupture zones is 30–50 km below sea level. From the comparison, the rupture zones of large earthquakes off Miyagi are limited in two parts: plate boundary between the forearc and oceanic crusts and below mantle wedge. This limitation is a rare case for subduction zone. Although the seismogenic process beneath the mantle wedge is not fully clarified, our observation suggests the two possibilities: earthquake generation at the plate boundary overridden by the mantle wedge without serpentinization or that in the subducting slab.     

Homogenization of saturated double porous media with Eshelby-like velocity field

In this paper, we focus on strength properties of double porous materials having a Drucker-Prager solid phase at microscale. The porosity consists in two populations of micropores and mesopores saturated with different pressures. To this end, we consider a hollow sphere subjected to a uniform strain rate boundary conditions. For the microscale to mesoscale transition, we take advantage of available results by Maghous et al. (2009), while the meso to macro upscaling is performed by implementing a kinematical limit analysis approach using Eshelby-like trial velocity fields. This two-step homogenization procedure delivers analytical expression of the macroscopic criterion for the considered class of saturated double porous media. This generalizes and improves previous results established by Shen et al. (2014). The results are discussed in terms of the existence or not of effective stresses. Some illustrations are provided.     

Gamma-ray observations from Hinotori

Some interesting results on gamma-ray line emission and its time profiles observed by Hinotori are presented. Possible explanations of gamma-ray line and hard X-ray emissions for the impulsive and gradual flares are discussed. Relationship between the gamma-ray line emission and acceleration and escape of the solar particles is also studied.     

On the physical parameters for Centaurus X-3 and Hercules X-1

Upper and lower limits on the physical parameters for Cen X-3 and Her X-1 have been computed from a simple assumption involving the mass function.     

High-pressure phase transition and behavior of protons in brucite Mg(OH)2: a high-pressure–temperature study using IR synchrotron radiation

 Infrared absorption spectra of brucite Mg (OH)₂ were measured under high pressure and high temperature from 0.1 MPa 25 °C to 16 GPa 360 °C using infrared synchrotron radiation at BL43IR of Spring-8 and a high-temperature diamond-anvil cell. Brucite originally has an absorption peak at 3700 cm⁻¹, which is due to the OH dipole at ambient pressure. Over 3 GPa, brucite shows a pressure-induced absorption peak at 3650 cm⁻¹. The pressure-induced peak can be assigned to a new OH dipole under pressure. The new peak indicates that brucite has a new proton site under pressure and undergoes a high-pressure phase transition. From observations of the pressure-induced peak under various P–T condition, a stable region of the high-pressure phase was determined. The original peak shifts to lower wavenumber at −0.25 cm⁻¹ GPa⁻¹, while the pressure-induced peak shifts at −5.1 cm⁻¹ GPa⁻¹. These negative dependences of original and pressure-induced peak shifts against pressure result from enhanced hydrogen bond by shortened O–H···O distance, and the two dependences must result from the differences of hydrogen bond types of the original and pressure-induced peaks, most likely from trifurcated and bent types, respectively. Under high pressure and high temperature, the pressure-induced peak disappears, but a broad absorption band between 3300 and 3500 cm⁻¹ was observed. The broad absorption band may suggest free proton, and the possibility of proton conduction in brucite under high pressure and temperature. Received: 16 July 2001 / Accepted: 25 December 2001