A toroidal vortex field as an origin of the narrow mass spectrum of neutron stars

The evolution and collapse of a gaseous, self-gravitating sphere in the presence of an internal massive toroidal vortex analogous to the vortex created by the toroidal magnetic field of the Sun is considered. When thermal pressure is taken into account, for sufficiently high masses, the instability is preserved even for a polytropic index γ < 4/3. In the case of a degenerate gas, the evolution of the electrons and neutrons differs appreciably. In the ultrarelativistic limit, an interval of stablemasses arises in a neutron gas, between a minimum mass that depends on the circulation velocity in the vortex and the critical mass for the formation of a black hole. This suggests toroidal vortex fields as a possible physical origin for the observed narrow spectrum of neutron-star masses.     

The influence of geodynamic factors on the lithification of sedimentary deposits in the stratisphere

The peculiarities of the processes of postsedimentary lithification and their dynamics in various geostructural areas (cratons, young platforms, and orogens) are considered. The direct and indirect impacts of geodynamic factors on these processes are substantiated.     

Characteristics of Arc-Polarized Alfvén Waves in the Near-Earth Solar Wind

Geomagnetism and Aeronomy - The arc-polarized Alfvén waves observed in the near-Earth region of the heliosphere are studied with instruments of the WIND spacecraft in 1995–2011....     

Baroclinic seiches in rotating basins of variable depth in the case of two-layer density stratification

We solve a plane problem of linear baroclinic seiches in closed rotating basins of variable depth with two-layer density stratification. In the long-wave approximation, we get a boundary-value problem for a system of ordinary differential equations and propose a numerical procedure for finding internal seiches. The analytic solutions of the problem are obtained for a basin of constant depth. The numerical analysis of seiches is performed for the distributions of depth corresponding to the zonal and meridional sections of the Black Sea and model basins including the cases of a shelf zone and an underwater ridge. It is shown that the baroclinic seiches become more intense in shallow-water regions and that the intense longshore currents caused by Earth’s rotation are formed in the shelf zones and over the underwater ridges.     

Convection Regime of the Development of an Impulse–Buoyant Transient Jet Submerged in a Homogeneous Fluid

An intergral model of a transient vertical impulse–buoyant jet is suggested. The model contains a universal equation describing the propagation of the upper boundary of the convection front depending on the strength of the point source of buoyancy and momentum. The convective regime of jet propagation is considered, which includes a class of self-similar solutions corresponding to the buoyancy sources, whose strength varies with time following power and exponential laws. The obtained numerical solutions are compared with available experimental data on the profiles of vertical velocity and buoyancy on the jet axis.     

Aeolian sediment transport following wildfire in sagebrush steppe

Wind erosion of soil is an appreciable but unstudied event following fires in cold desert. We examined aeolian transport of sediment for 1 year following fire in semi-arid shrub steppe on loess soils in southern Idaho, USA. Sediment collectors were used to determine horizontal mass transport of soil and saltation sensors and anemometers were used to determine saltation activity (fraction of time having saltation) and threshold wind speed in an area burned in August and an unburned control site. Horizontal mass transport (per 30-day period) was negligible in the unburned area, but in the burned area was 5.40 kg m^?1 in October and decreased to 2.80 kg m^?1 in November and 0.32 kg m^?1 in December. Saltation activity was high enough to determine threshold wind speeds only in the burn site during fall, when values ranged from 10.0 to 10.6 m s^?1. Sediment flux and saltation activity in the burned site became much less pronounced following the emergence of herbaceous vegetation in the spring. Post-fire sediment flux in the shrub steppe we examined was of greater magnitude but shorter duration than post-fire fluxes in warm deserts or sandier regions that experience more frequent wind erosion.     

Book reviews

APPLIED GEOGRAPHY: Issues, Questions and Concerns (Geo Journal Library Vol. 15) edited by M. S. Kenzer. 16 × 24 cm, x and 210 pages. Kluwer: Dordrecht 1989 (ISBN 0 7923 04381).

WINE AND THE VINE: An Historical Geography of Viticulture and the Wine Trade by T. Unwin. 16 × 24 cm, xvi and 409 pages. Routledge: London 1991 (ISBN 0 415 13120 6) $A155.00 (hard); distributed by The Law Book Co.

WATERFRONT SYDNEY 1860–1920 by G. Aplin and J. Storey. 26 × 18 cm. 144 pages. Allen & Unwin: Sydney 1991 (first published 1984) (ISBN 1 86373 098 2) $A24.95 (soft).

Australian Geographer 23 (2), November 1992

INDUSTRIAL LOCATION: Principles and Policies (Second Edition) by K. Chapman and D. F. Walker. 15 × 23 cm, xiii and 322 pages. Basil Black‐well: Oxford 1991 (ISBN 0 631 16789 7) $A39.95 (soft).

INTERNATIONALISATION OF AUSTRALIA'S SERVICE INDUSTRIES by J. V. Langdale. 17 × 25 cm, iv and 373 pages. Australian Government Publishing Service, for Department of Industry, Technology and Commerce: Canberra 1991 (ISBN 0 644 13841 6).

TOURISM AND GOLD IN KAKADU: The Impact of Current and Potential Natural Resource Use on the Northern Territory Economy by B. Knapman, O. Stanley and J. Lea. 21 × 29 cm, vi and 49 pages. North Australia Research Unit, Australian National University: Darwin 1991 (ISBN 0 7315 1179 4).

ABORIGINAL AUSTRALIA AND THE ‘NEW FEDERALISM’ INITIATIVE (Discussion Paper No. 2) by G. J. Crough. 14 × 21 cm, 42 pages. North Australia Research Unit, Australian National University: Darwin 1991 (ISBN 0 7315 1325 8).

AUSTRALIAN NATIONHOOD AND OUTBACK INDIGENOUS PEOPLES (Discussion Paper No. 1) by P. Jull. 14 × 21 cm, 38 pages. North Australia Research Unit, Australian National University: Darwin 1991 (ISBN 0 7315 1309 6).

MIGRATION AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC (Pacific Research Monograph No. 24) edited by J. Connell. 17 × 25 cm, xii and 199 pages. National Centre for Development Studies, Australian National University: Canberra 1990 (ISBN 0 07315 0668 5) $A25.00 (soft).

POPIULESIN BLONG HONIARA: Olketa Popiulesin Map Blong 1986 Sensis. HONIARA: 1986 Census Atlas (Statistics Office Occasional Paper No. 4 / Board of Development Studies Monograph No. 1) by A.C. Walsh. 21 × 29 cm, vii and 95 pages. Department of Statistics: Honiara and Board of Development Studies, Massey University: Palmerston North 1990 (ISSN 0114 8834) $NZ34.00 in New Zealand, $NZ38.00 elsewhere (soft).

DOI MOI: Vietnam's Renovation Policy and Performance (Political and Social Change Monograph No. 14) edited by D. K. Forbes, T. H. Hull, D. G. Marr and B. Brogan. 15 × 22 cm, xiv and 263 pages. Department of Political and Social Change, Australian National University: Canberra 1991 (ISBN 0 7315 1303 7).     

A new approach to the automatic computation of partial volumes of river runoff with various degrees of pollution (a case study for the Selenga River)

Proposed are the methods and software package that enable estimating automatically the degree of the pollution of annual and long-term river runoff at the joint processing of large volumes of standard (routine) hydrological and hydrochemical information. As a result of computations, the individual quality certificate of river runoff was created for the part of the river under study. Computation methods include regulations concerning the parameters that connect the water runoff volume with water quality; the parameters that may connect the computation of the pollution degree using RD 52.24.643-2002 adapted for the partial volumes of the annual runoff according to these methods, with the subsequent classification of the pollution degree. The computation technique was worked out and used for the first time. The informativeness of estimates is demonstrated for one of the discharge section lines of the Selenga River.     

Geochemistry and Metallogeny of Phosphorus in the Russian Platform during the Jurassic–Cretaceous

The composition and metallogeny of igneous rocks and relevant weathering crusts of Jurassic–Cretaceous provenances of the Russian Platform are considered. It is shown that the association of metals that accumulated in the process of weathering and erosion of ancient substratum includes P, Fe, Ti, V, and Cr. This process is reflected in the formation of nodular phosphorites, Ti and Zr placers, and iron ore deposits in the Jurassic–Cretaceous seas of the platform.