Saturn's electrostatic discharges: Could lightning be the cause?

It is proposed that Saturn's electrostatic discharges (SED) might be generated in the planet's equatorial atmosphere, perhaps as lightning from a storm system. The 10^h10^m periodicity of the signal envelope duplicates that of Saturn's equatorial jet. The rings shield the atmosphere from solar EUV photons, and thereby substantially reduce the local ionospheric cutoff frequency to allow low-frequency SED to leak out. Many of the unusual properties of SED could be explained in terms of changes in the storm system, the relative spacecraft position in the beaming pattern of the source, local refraction of the signal by the highly disturbed ionosphere, and the influence of the ring particles on the highest frequency component of SED. A comparison of SED with planetary lightning on other planets shows that the two are similar in general character and some time behavior; the power output of SED may be higher than most planetary lightnings but that is unclear because of uncertainties in the measurements and variations in the signal's spectrum. Our simple discussion suggests that lightning could be a viable source for SED and that exotic ring mechanisms are not necessarily required.     

Mars data analysis program special issue no. 2

An extended photometric time series in the J and K bands of Neptune has a complex appearance which appears to require the simultaneous presence of three periodicities plus related harmonics in the (J-K) color. The most apparent of the fundamental periods is N1 = 17.73 hr. The two others are at N2 = 18.56 and N3 = 18.29 hr and may be the result of amplitude modulation of a previously reported period of 18.42 hr. We interpret the presence of multiple periodicity as indicating that distinct systems of zonal winds exist on the planet. We argue that these wind systems are probably confined to moderate or high latitudes on the basis of recent omages of the planet taken in a spectral region of strong CH₄ absorption, and, by analogy to the zonal wind systems that exist in Jupiter's atmosphere, deduce a period of rotation for the body of the planet of 18.2 ± 0.4 hr. Zonal wind contrasts of up to 109 m sec^?1 are implied in the atmosphere of Neptune by these observations.     

LATE EOCENE CRYSTAL-BEARING SPHERULES: TWO LAYERS OR ONE?

Late Eocene crystal-bearing spherules have been found in deep sea cores from the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, equatorial Pacific Ocean, and eastern equatorial Indian Ocean. Keller et al. (1987) have suggested that the spherules from the western equatorial Pacific (Site 292, core 38) and eastern Indian Ocean (Site 216) are older (Globigerapsis semiinvoluta Zone) than those from the central equatorial Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea (Globorotalia cerroazulensis Zone). The strongest argument in favor of two layers is the biostratigraphic data; however, published biostratigraphic interpretations are at odds with Keller et al.'s (1987) conclusions. Furthermore, paleomagnetic data for Site 292 seems to contradict Keller et al.'s conclusion that the spherules found in core 36 occur in sediments of the same stratigraphic age as those found in the central equatorial Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea sites. Although the spherules from Sites 216 and 292 (core 38) do have higher average CaO, and lower average Al₂O₃ and FeO contents than the late Eocene spherules from the other sites, there is a great deal of overlap in composition. It is our opinion that the similarities in composition and petrography between the late Eocene crystal-bearing spherules are greater than the differences. Additionally, there seems to be a systematic change in composition and in amount of iridium excess from east to west when all the sites containing the crystal-bearing spherules are considered. We believe, therefore, that it is likely that the late Eocene crystal-bearing spherules all belong to a single event.     

Summary results from a pilot study conducted around an oil production platform on the Northwest Shelf of Australia

The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) conducted a pilot study around the Harriet A oil production platform on the Northwest Shelf of Australia. We evaluated hepatic ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity, fluorescent aromatic compounds (FACs) in bile and immunodetection of CYP1A-like proteins in two Australian tropical fish species, Gold-Spotted Trevally (Carangoides fulvoguttatus) and Bar-Cheeked Coral Trout (Plectropomus maculatus) to assess exposure to petroleum hydrocarbons associated with produced formation water (PFW). Additionally, the incidence of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria isolated from the liver and bile of all fish captured was examined. Low EROD activity was found in both species, with EROD activity in C. fulvoguttatus showing significant site differences. FACs and CYP1A protein levels in C. fulvoguttatus showed a clear trend in hydrocarbon exposure consistent with hydrocarbon chemistry data: Harriet A>Harriet C>reference site. P. maculatus showed elevated levels of FACs at Harriet A as compared to the reference site and demonstrated detectable levels of CYP1A-like proteins at these two sites. Hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria were found in the liver and bile of both species, yet there was no correlation by sites. Our results demonstrate that C. fulvoguttatus and P. maculatus have potential as indicator species for assessing the effects from exposure to petroleum hydrocarbons. Both FACs and CYP1A are providing warning signs that there is potential for biological effects on fish populations exposed to PFW around the Harriet A production platform.     

Determination of the properties of Mercury's magnetic field by the MESSENGER mission

The MESSENGER mission to Mercury, to be launched in 2004, will provide an opportunity to characterize Mercury's internal magnetic field during an orbital phase lasting one Earth year. To test the ability to determine the planetary dipole and higher-order moments from measurements by the spacecraft's fluxgate magnetometer, we simulate the observations along the spacecraft trajectory and recover the internal field characteristics from the simulated observations. The magnetic field inside Mercury's magnetosphere is assumed to consist of an intrinsic multipole component and an external contribution due to magnetospheric current systems described by a modified Tsyganenko 96 model. Under the axis-centered-dipole approximation without correction for the external field the moment strength is overestimated by ∼4% for a simulated dipole moment of , and the error depends strongly on the magnitude of the simulated moment, rising as the moment decreases. Correcting for the external field contributions can reduce the error in the dipole term to a lower limit of ∼1-2% without a solar wind monitor. Dipole and quadrupole terms, although highly correlated, are then distinguishable at the level equivalent to an error in the position of an offset dipole of a few tens of kilometers. Knowledge of the external magnetic field is therefore the primary limiting factor in extracting reliable knowledge of the structure of Mercury's magnetic field from the MESSENGER observations.