The motion of a satellite in resonance with the second-degree sectorial harmonic

The solution to the motion of a satellite in an eccentric orbit and in resonance with the second-degree sectorial harmonic of the potential field is developed. The method of solution used parallels the well known von Zeipel method of general perturbations. The solution consists of expressions for the variations of the Delaunay variables. These expressions are composed of the perturbations developed by Brouwer in 1959 for the motion of an artificial satellite plus first-order perturbations due to the second-degree sectorial harmonic (in terms of the Legendre normal elliptic integrals of the first and second kind).This paper presents the results of one phase of research carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under Contract No. NAS 7-100, sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.     

Copper emissions from antifouling paint on recreational vessels

Trace metals, especially copper, are commonly occurring contaminants in harbors and marinas. One source of copper to these environs is copper-based antifouling coatings used on vessel hulls. The objective of this study was to measure dissolved copper contributions from recreational vessel antifouling coatings for both passive leaching and hull cleaning activities. To accomplish this goal, three coating formulations, including hard vinyl, modified epoxy and a biocide free bottom paint were applied on fiberglass panels and placed in a harbor environment. In situ measurements of passive leaching were made using a recirculating dome system. Monthly average flux rates of dissolved copper for the hard vinyl and modified epoxy coatings were 3.7 and 4.3 microg/cm(2)/day, respectively, while flux rates for the biocide free coating was 0.2 microg/cm(2)/day. The highest passive flux rates were measured initially after cleaning activities, rapidly decreasing to a baseline rate within three days, regardless of copper-based coating formulation. Hull cleaning activities generated between 8.6 and 3.8 microg dissolved copper/cm(2)/event for the modified epoxy and hard vinyl coatings, respectively. Aggressive cleaning using an abrasive product doubled the copper emissions from the modified epoxy coating, but produced virtually no change in the much tougher hard vinyl coating. When compared on a mass basis, roughly 95% of copper is emitted during passive leaching compared to hull cleaning activities over a monthly time period for a typical 9.1 m power boat.     

The use of tracers to assess leakage from the sequestration of CO2 in a depleted oil reservoir,New Mexico,USA

Geological sequestration of CO₂ in depleted oil reservoirs is a potentially useful strategy for greenhouse gas management and can be combined with enhanced oil recovery. Development of methods to estimate CO₂ leakage rates is essential to assure that storage objectives are being met at sequestration facilities. Perfluorocarbon tracers (PFTs) were added as three 12 h slugs at about one week intervals during the injection of 2090 tons of CO₂ into the West Pearl Queen (WPQ) depleted oil formation, sequestration pilot study site located in SE New Mexico. The CO₂ was injected into the Permian Queen Formation. Leakage was monitored in soil–gas using a matrix of 40 capillary adsorbent tubes (CATs) left in the soil for periods ranging from days to months. The tracers, perfluoro-1,2-dimethylcyclohexane (PDCH), perfluorotrimethylcyclohexane (PTCH) and perfluorodimethylcyclobutane (PDCB), were analyzed using thermal desorption, and gas chromatography with electron capture detection. Monitoring was designed to look for immediate leakage, such as at the injection well bore and at nearby wells, and to develop the technology to estimate overall CO₂ leak rates based on the use of PFTs. Tracers were detected in soil–gas at the monitoring sites 50 m from the injection well within days of injection. Tracers continued to escape over the following years. Leakage appears to have emanated from the vicinity of the injection well in a radial pattern to about 100 m and in directional patterns to 300 m. Leakage rates were estimated for the 3 tracers from each of the 4 sets of CATs in place following the start of CO₂ injection. Leakage was fairly uniform during this period. As a first approximation, the CO₂ leak rate was estimated at about 0.0085% of the total CO₂ sequestered per annum.     

The ice nucleating ability of pollen: Part III: New laboratory studies in immersion and contact freezing modes including more pollen types

Based on earlier experimental studies, the ice nucleating abilities of further pollen types were investigated in the immersion and contact freezing modes. The studies were carried out at the Mainz vertical wind tunnel with freely floating supercooled droplets down to − 28 °C. The pollen had diameters between 26 and 28 μm and correspondingly low sink velocities around 2.5 cm s^{− 1}. The radii of the studied drops were calculated from the recorded wind velocity and for both freezing modes the radii of the observed droplets varied between 315 and 380 μm. Immersion freezing experiments were conducted with pollen particles added to the droplets while in contact freezing experiments supercooled droplets were subjected to a burst of pollen particles. The median freezing temperatures found in the immersion freezing mode were: − 13.5 °C (alder), − 21.5 °C (lombardy poplar), − 21.0 °C (redtop grass) and − 19.8 °C (kentucky blue). The median freezing temperatures in the contact freezing mode were found as: − 12.6 °C (alder), − 17.9 °C (lombardy poplar), − 18.7 °C (redtop grass) and − 16.1 °C (kentucky blue). The results show that the ice nucleating ability of pollen is not restricted to single pollen types but seems to be a general pollen property.     

Fluvial sediment supply and pioneer woody seedlings as a control on bar‐surface topography

Plants influence river channel topography, but our understanding of the interaction among plants, flow, and sediment is limited, especially when sediment supply is variable. Using laboratory experiments in a recirculating flume with live seedlings in a mobile sand bed, we demonstrate how varying the balance between sediment supply and transport capacity shifts the relationship between plants and bar‐surface topography. Each experimental trial contrasted two sediment conditions, in which initially supply was maintained in equilibrium with transport via sediment recirculation, followed by sediment deficit, in which transport capacity exceeded supply, which was set to zero. For both sediment balances, the topographic response was sensitive to plant size, with larger plants inducing greater aggradation relative to a baseline condition. During sediment equilibrium, the positive relationship between plant size and topographic change also depended on species morphology (multi‐stemmed shrubs versus single‐stemmed plants). Plant morphology effects disappeared when the sediment balance shifted to a deficit, but the presence of plants had a greater impact on the magnitude of change compared to the topographic response under sediment equilibrium. Our results suggest that the interactions among sediment supply, plants, and topography may be strongest on rivers with a balance in sediment supply and transport capacity. Because of the large variability in fluvial sediment supply resulting from natural and anthropogenic influences, these interactions will differ spatially (e.g. longitudinally through a watershed) and at different temporal scales, from single flood events to longer time periods. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structural and thermal controls of rockfall frequency and magnitude within rockwall–talus systems (Swiss Alps)

Both from a systemic and natural hazard perspective, it is essential to understand the causes and frequency of rockfalls in mountain terrain and to predict the block sizes deposited at specific locations. Commonly, rockfalls are studied either retrospectively, using talus slopes, or directly by rockwall surveys. Nevertheless, our understanding of rockfall activity, particularly at the lower magnitude spectrum, is still incomplete. Moreover, the explanatory framework is rarely addressed explicitly. In this study, we investigate two rockwall–talus systems in the Swiss Alps to estimate the rockfall frequency–magnitude pattern and their key controls. We present a holistic approach that integrates deductive geotechnical and thermal investigations of the source rockwalls with abductive talus‐based explanations of rockfall volume and frequency. The rockwalls' three‐dimensional (3D) joint pattern indicates that 75% of the blocks may be released as debris fall (< 14 m³) and boulder falls (14–61 m³), which is mirrored in the corresponding talus material. Using two‐year records of near‐surface rockwall temperatures as input for a 1D heat conduction model underlines the destabilizing role of seasonal ice segregation. Deepest frost cracking of 300 cm may occur on the north‐northeast (NNE)‐exposed, snow‐rich rockwall, with peaks at the outermost surface. The synthesis of all data suggests that infrequent, large planar slides (approximately every 250 years) overlain by smaller, more frequent wedge and toppling failures (approximately every 17–50 years) as well as high‐frequency flake‐like clasts (3–6 events/year) characterize the rockfall frequency–magnitude pattern at Hungerli Peak. Here, we argue that small‐size rockfalls need more scientific attention, particularly in discontinuous permafrost zones. Our study emphasizes that future frequency–magnitude research should ideally incorporate site‐specific structural and thermal properties, rather than just focusing on climatic or meteorological triggers. We discuss how holistic rockwall–talus approaches, as proposed here, could help to increase our process understanding of rockfalls in mountain environments. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ground-based calibration and characterization of the Fermi gamma-ray burst monitor detectors

One of the scientific objectives of NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is the study of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs). The Fermi Gamma-Ray Burst Monitor (GBM) was designed to detect and localize bursts for the Fermi mission. By means of an array of 12 NaI(Tl) (8 keV to 1 MeV) and two BGO (0.2 to 40 MeV) scintillation detectors, GBM extends the energy range (20 MeV to > 300 GeV) of Fermi’s main instrument, the Large Area Telescope, into the traditional range of current GRB databases. The physical detector response of the GBM instrument to GRBs is determined with the help of Monte Carlo simulations, which are supported and verified by on-ground individual detector calibration measurements. We present the principal instrument properties, which have been determined as a function of energy and angle, including the channel-energy relation, the energy resolution, the effective area and the spatial homogeneity.     

Paleomagnetic constraints on eruption patterns at the Pacaya composite volcano,Guatemala

Pacaya volcano is an active composite volcano located in the volcanic highlands of Guatemala about 40 km south of Guatemala City. Volcanism at Pacaya alternates between Strombolian and Vulcanian, and during the past five years there has been a marked increase in the violence of eruptions. The volcano is composed principally of basalt flows interbedded with thin scoria fall units, several pyroclastic surge beds, and at least one welded tuff. Between 400 and 2000 years BP the W-SW sector of the volcano collapsed producing a horseshoeshaped amphitheater (0.65 km³) and providing a window into the cone's infrastructure. Lava flows and tephra exposed in the amphitheater are more then 200 m thick and when combined with flows erupted recently represent between 30 and 40% of the cone's history. Pacaya is ideally suited for a paleomagnetic study into the timing and duration of eruption episodes at a large, composite volcano. We drilled 27 paleomagnetic sites (25 aa flows, 1 dike, and 1 welded tuff) from four lava-flow sequences with between 4 and 14 sites per sequence. The four sequences represent initial through historic activity at Pacaya. We resolved, what appear to be, 22 time-independent paleomagnetic sites by averaging together directions from successive sites where the sitemean directions were indistinguishable at the 95% level of confidence. However, mean-sequence directions of individual lava-flow sequences yielded unusually high Fisher precision parameters (k=44–224) and small circles of 63% confidence (a₆₃=1.6–6.1°) suggesting as few as three or four time-independent sites were collected. This indicates that activity as Pacaya is strongly episodic and that episodes are characterized by voluminous outpouring of lavas. Modelling the data using Holocene PSV rates confirms this and shows that differences in within-sequence directions (6–11.5°) are consistent with emplacement of lava-flow sequences in less than 100 years to as many as 300 years. Relatively larger differences in directions (18–23°) between subjacent lava-flow sequences indicates that repose is at least 300–500 years and could be even longer.