Sporadic meteor sources as observed by the Jicamarca high-power large-aperture VHF radar

We present, for the first time, the main sources of sporadic meteors as inferred from meteor-head echoes obtained by a high-power large-aperture radar (HPLAR). Such results have been obtained at the Jicamarca HPLAR (11.95° S, 76.87° W, 1° dip angle). Observations are based on close to 170,000 meteors detected in less than 90 h spread over 14 days, between November 2001 and February 2006. Meteors with solar orbits are observed to come from basically six previously known sources, i.e., North and South Apex, Helion, Anti-Helion, and North and South Toroidal, representing ∼91% of the observations. The other ∼9% represents meteors with observed velocities greater than the Sun's escape velocity at 1 AU, most of them of extra-solar origin. Results are given before and after removing the Earth's velocity and the sources are modeled with two-dimensional Gaussian distributions. In general, our results are in very good agreement with previously known sources reported by Jones and Brown [Jones, J., Brown, P.G., 1993. Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 265, 524-532] using mainly specular meteor radar (SMR) data gathered over many years and different sites. However, we find slightly different locations and widths, that could be explained on the basis of different sensitivities of the two techniques and/or corrections needed to our results. For example, we find that the North and South Apex sources are well defined and composed each of them of two collocated Gaussian distributions, one almost isotropic with ∼10° width and the other very narrow in ecliptic longitude and wide in ecliptic latitude. This is the first time these narrow-width sources are reported. A careful quantitative analysis is needed to be able to compare the strengths of meteor sources as observed with different techniques. We also present speed and initial altitude distributions for selected sources. Using a simple angular sensitivity function of the combined Earth-atmosphere-radar instrument, and an altitude selection criteria, the resulting meteor sources are in better qualitative agreement with the results obtained with SMRs.     

Spectral reflectance of highland rock types at Apollo 17: Evidence from Boulder 1, Station 2

Many of the non-mare rock types at Apollo 17 can be identified uniquely by their spectral reflectance properties. Mineralogical and textural information is present in the spectral curves of samples from Boulder 1, Station 2. It should be possible to determine the regional extent of rocks similar to the boulder using reflectance spectra from a spacecraft in lunar orbit.     

Ion-ion mutual neutralization and ion-neutral switching reactions of some stratospheric ions

Following the recent mass spectrometric observations of the ambient stratospheric positive and negative ions we have carried out co-ordinated laboratory experiments using a selected ion flow tube apparatus and a flowing afterglow apparatus for the following purposes: (i) to consider whether CH₃CN is a viable candidate molecule for the species X in the observed stratospheric ion series H⁺ (H₂O_n (X)_m and (ii) to determine the binary mutual neutralization rate coefficients α_i for the reactions ofH⁺ (H₂O₄ and H⁺(H₂O)(CH₃CN)₃ with several of the negative ion species observed in the stratosphere. We conclude from (i) that CH₃CN is indeed a viable candidate for X and from (ii) that the α_i for stratospheric ions are within the limited range (5–6) × 10^?8 cm³ s^?1.     

Fourcade: the Centenary of a Stereoscopic Method of Photographic Surveying

In the Preface to his book, The Four Faces of Fourcade, Clare Storrar (1990) wrote: "It is di.cult to appreciate the breadth and depth of Henry Georges Fourcade's intelligence and creative power. He was an intellectual giant, a phenomenon, whose theoretical and practical achievements have never received proper recognition. These were all the more remarkable because he began his original work on photogrammetry when science in South Africa was in its infancy, and he laboured alone far from libraries and other research facilities. His only higher academic training was in land surveying. He was adept in each of four sciences at various stages in his life, but, mainly because of his natural reserve, his reputation was highly compartmentalised. To foresters he was 'the most brilliant forestry officer of his time' to surveyors, he was exceptionally learned in theory and skilled in practice. Photogrammetry was a new subject, unheard of, except by a handful of scientists. In botany, which he took up seriously at the age of fifty-five, his work was highly regarded by leading botanists in South Africa and in Europe. All stood in awe of his extraordinary talent and ability. Some were frightened of him. But few were able—in fact, not even the best brains were wholly qualified—to grasp fully the tremendous intellectual stature and potential of this protean man."
This paper briefly describes the historic achievements of Henry Georges Fourcade, with the emphasis on his land surveying and, in particular, his photogrammetric contributions to science. The centenary of one of these, his proposal of a stereoscopic method of photographic surveying, occurs in October 2001.     

L'archivage des activités humaines par les neiges et glaces polaires : le cas du plomb

The investigation of the occurrence of lead in dated snow and ice from Greenland and Antarctica has played a major role in our understanding of the history of the pollution of the atmosphere of our planet by this metal. Such studies have however proved to be very demanding, mainly because of the extreme purity of polar snow and ice. Reliable measurements can be obtained only if ultra-clean and highly sensitive procedures are used, as pioneered by Clair Patterson. The Greenland data show evidence of large-scale pollution of the atmosphere of the Northern Hemisphere for lead as early as two millennia ago during Greco–Roman times, especially because of mining and smelting activities in southern Spain. It peaked at the end of the 1960s, with lead concentrations in snow about 200 times higher than natural values, before declining during recent times because of the fall in the use of leaded gasoline. Lead pollution in Antarctica was already significant at the end of the 19th century as a consequence of whaling activities, the traffic of coal-powered ships crossing the Cape Horn, and mining activities in South America, South Africa and Australia. After declining because of the opening of the Panama Canal, the great economic depression and World War II, it reached a maximum during the 1980s, with lead concentrations 20 times higher than natural values. Other studies focus on past natural variations of lead in ancient ice dated from the last climatic cycles. To cite this article: C. Boutron et al., C. R. Geoscience 336 (2004).     

Development of a coupled surface-groundwater-pipe network model for the sustainable management of karstic groundwater

This paper considers the hydrogeological simulation of groundwater movement in karstic regions using a hydrological modelling system (SHETRAN) which has been adapted for modelling flow in karstic aquifers. Flow and transport through karstic aquifers remains poorly understood, yet quantitative hydrogeological models are essential for developing and implementing groundwater protection policies. The new model has been developed and used within the STALAGMITE (Sustainable Management of Groundwater in Karstic Environments) project, funded by the European Commission. The SHETRAN model is physically based insofar as most of the parameters have some physical meaning. The SHETRAN model represents all of the key processes in the hydrological cycle, including subsurface flow in the saturated and unsaturated zones, surface flow over the ground surface and in channels, rainfall interception by vegetation canopies, evapotranspiration, snow-pack development and snowmelt. The modifications made to SHETRAN to simulate karstic aquifers are (1) the coupling of a pipe network model to a variably saturated, three-dimensional groundwater component (the VSS-NET component), to simulate flow under pressure in saturated conduits; (2) the coupling of surface water features (e.g. sinking streams or "ponors", and spring discharges) to the conduit system; (3) the addition of a preferential "bypass" flow mechanism to represent vertical infiltration through a high-conductivity epikarst zone. Lastly, a forward particle tracking routine has been developed to trace the path of hypothetical particles with matrix and pipe flow to springs or other discharge points. This component allows the definition of groundwater protection zones around a source for areas of the catchment (watershed) which are vulnerable to pollution from non-point sources (agriculture and forestry).     

Age and paleoclimatic significance of late Holocene lakes in the Carson Sink, NV, USA

New dating in the Carson Sink at the termini of the Humboldt and Carson rivers in the Great Basin of the western United States indicates that lakes reached elevations of 1204 and 1198 m between 915 and 652 and between 1519 and 1308 cal yr B.P., respectively. These dates confirm Morrison's original interpretation (Lake Lahontan: Geology of the Southern Carson Desert, Professional Paper 40, U.S. Geol. Survey, 1964) that these shorelines are late Holocene features, rather than late Pleistocene as interpreted by later researchers. Paleohydrologic modeling suggests that discharge into the Carson Sink must have been increased by a factor of about four, and maintained for decades, to account for the 1204-m lake stand. The hydrologic effects of diversions of the Walker River to the Carson Sink were probably not sufficient, by themselves, to account for the late Holocene lake-level rises. The decadal-long period of increased runoff represented by the 1204-m lake is also reflected in other lake records and in tree ring records from the western United States.