Conformal analogs of the Jordan-Brans-Dicke theory. I.

Recent cosmological observations of large-scale structures (red shift of type Ia supernovae) confirm that the universe is currently expanding at an accelerating rate and its dominant component is dark energy. This has stimulated the development of the theory of gravity and led to many alternative variants, including tensor-scalar ones. This paper deals with the role of conformal transformations in the Jordan-Brans-Dicke theory. Variants of intrinsic, conformally coupled, and Einstein representations are examined. In the Einstein representation an exact analytic solution for the standard cosmological model is obtained. It is expressed in terms of the relative energy contributions of ordinary matter Ω _m , the scalar field Ω _CK , and a term Ω_Λ related to the cosmological constant Λ . Information on the evolution of the universe for the case with a minimally coupled scalar field is given in the form of graphs.     

Variant of the bimetric theory of gravitation. II. Energy-momentum tensor of the gravitational field

Starting from the invariance of action relative to coordinate transformations, differential conservation laws are established in the bimetric theory of gravitation with a Lagrangian that is quadratic with respect to “intensities.” Explicit expressions are found for the canonical and metric energymomentum tensors of the gravitational field, as well as for the tensor analog of the Landau-Lifshitz pseudotensor. Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 43, No. 3, pp. 493-499, July–September, 2000.     

Seismic deformation in the St. Simeon Monasteries (Qal'at Sim'an), Northwestern Syria

The St. Simeon Fault is 80 km long and stretches from the eastern side of the Al Ghab Depression to the north–east; it links the structures of the Levant and East-Anatolian active zones. Left-lateral strike-slip displacements and deformations of landforms cut by the fault have been recorded. The Sim'an Ridge is located between two branches of the fault and displaced by 1.2 km, overlapping a young depression. As the terminations of these branches at the site of their overlapping converge northerly, the mechanism of structural scissors considerably enhances the lateral extrusion of the Sim'an Ridge. The St. Simeon Monastery, built by the Byzantine in the 5th century AD, is situated on the top of the Sim'an Ridge.The main church of the St. Simeon Monastery has a cruciform shape, and its eastern wing is deflected by 3–9° to the north. The existing architectural explanation of this phenomenon assumes initial designing of this bend by the builders and contains many contradictions. Upon our study of active faults, specific features and traces of seismic impacts on the monastery structures, we suggest an alternative, seismic explanation. Our scenario interprets the curvatures of the monastery structures as a consequence of distributed co-seismic or post-seismic deformations in the intra-fault block delimited by the branches of the St. Simeon Fault.     

Active faulting and natural hazards in Armenia, eastern Turkey and northwestern Iran

Active fault zones of Armenia, SE Turkey and NW Iran present a diverse set of interrelated natural hazards. Three regional case studies in this cross-border zone are examined to show how earthquakes interact with other hazards to increase the risk of natural disaster. In northern Armenia, a combination of several natural and man-made phenomena (earthquakes, landslides and unstable dams with toxic wastes) along the Pambak-Sevan-Sunik fault (PSSF) zone lowers from 0.4 to 0.2–0.3g the maximum permissible level (MPL) of seismic hazard that may induce disastrous destruction and loss of life in the adjacent Vanadzor depression.

In the Ararat depression, a large active fault-bounded pull-apart basin at the junction of borders of Armenia, Turkey, Iran and Azerbaijan, an earthquake in 1840 was accompanied by an eruption of Ararat Volcano, lahars, landslides, floods, soil subsidence and liquefaction. The case study demonstrates that natural hazards that are secondary with respect to earthquakes may considerably increase the damage and the casualties and increase the risk associated with the seismic impact.

The North Tabriz–Gailatu fault system poses a high seismic hazard to the border areas of NW Iran, eastern Turkey, Nakhichevan (Azerbaijan) and southern Armenia. Right-lateral strike–slip motions along the North Tabriz fault have given rise to strong earthquakes, which threaten the city of Tabriz with its population of 1.2 million.

The examples illustrate how the concentration of natural hazards in active fault zones increases the risk associated with strong earthquakes in Armenia, eastern Turkey and NW Iran. This generally occurs across the junctions of international borders. Hence, the transboundary character of active faults requires transboundary cooperation in the study and mitigation of the natural risk.     

Variant of the bimetric theory of gravitation. I. Parameterized post-newtonian formalism

A bimetric theory of gravitation with a Lagrangian that is quadratic with respect to “intensities” is considered. All the post-Newtonian parameters are determined and it is shown that they coincide with the respective parameters of the general theory of relativity. Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 43, No. 2, pp. 303-312, April–June, 2000.     

The East Anatolia-Lesser Caucasus ophiolite:An exceptional case of large-scale obduction,synthesis of data and numerical modelling

We present new,geological,metamorphic,geochemical and geochronological data on the East Anatolian-Lesser Caucasus ophiolites.These data are used in combination with a synthesis of previous data and numerical modelling to unravel the tectonic emplacement of ophiolites in this region.All these data allow the reconstruction of a large obducted ophiolite nappe,thrusted for>100 km and up to 250 km on the Anatolian-Armenian block.The ophiolite petrology shows three distinct magmatic series,highlighted by new isotopic and trace element data:(1)The main Early Jurassic Tholeiites(ophiolite s.s.)bear LILEenriched,subduction-modified,MORB chemical composition.Geology and petrology of the Tholeiite series substantiates a slow-spreading oceanic environment in a time spanning from the Late Triassic to the Middle-Late Jurassic.Serpentinites,gabbros and plagiogranites were exhumed by normal faults,and covered by radiolarites,while minor volumes of pillow-lava flows infilled the rift grabens.Tendency towards a subduction-modified geochemical signature suggests emplacement in a marginal basin above a subduction zone.(2)Late Early Cretaceous alkaline lavas conformably emplaced on top of the ophiolite.They have an OIB affinity.These lavas are featured by large pillow lavas interbedded a carbonate matrix.They show evidence for a large-scale OIB plume activity,which occurred prior to ophiolite obduction.(3)Early-Late Cretaceous calc-alkaline lavas and dykes.These magmatic rocks are found on top of the obducted nappe,above the post-obduction erosion level.This series shows similar Sr-Nd isotopic features as the Alkaline series,though having a clear supra-subduction affinity.They are thus interpreted to be the remelting product of a mantle previously contaminated by the OIB plume.Correlation of data from the Lesser Caucasus to western Anatolia shows a progression from back-arc to arc and fore-arc,which highlight a dissymmetry in the obducted oceanic lithosphere from East to West.The metamorphic P-T-t paths of the obduction sole lithologies define a southward propagation of the ophiolite:(1)P-T-t data from the northern Sevan-Akera suture zone(Armenia)highlight the presence and exhumation of eclogites(1.85±0.02 GPa and 590±5℃)and blueschists below the ophiolite,which are dated at ca.94 Ma by Ar-Ar on phengite.(2)Neighbouring Amasia(Armenia)garnet amphibolites indicate metamorphic peak conditions of 0.65±0.05 GPa and 600±20 C with a U-Pb on rutile age of 90.2±5.2 Ma and Ar-Ar on amphibole and phengite ages of 90.8±3.0 Ma and 90.8±1.2 Ma,respectively.These data are consistent with palaeontological dating of sediment deposits directly under(Cenomanian,i.e.>93.9 Ma)or sealing(Coniacian-Santonian,i.e.,≤89.8 Ma),the obduction.(3)At Hinis(NE Turkey)PT-t conditions on amphibolites(0.66±0.06 GPa and 660±20℃,with a U-Pb titanite age of80.0±3.2 Ma)agree with previous P-T-t data on granulites,and highlight a rapid exhumation below a top-to-the-North detachment sealed by the Early Maastrichtian unconformity(ca.70.6 Ma).Amphibolites are cross-cut by monzonites dated by U-Pb on titanite at 78.3±3.7 Ma.We propose that the HT-MP metamorphism was coeval with the monzonites,about 10 Ma after the obduction,and was triggered by the onset of subduction South of the Anatolides and by reactivation or acceleration of the subduction below the Pontides-Eurasian margin.Numerical modelling accounts for the obduction of an"old"~80 Myr oceanic lithosphere due to a significant heating of oceanic lithosphere through mantle upwelling,which increased the oceanic lithosphere buoyancy.The long-distance transport of a currently thin section of ophiolites(<1 km)onto the Anatolian continental margin is ascribed to a combination of northward mantle extensional thinning of the obducted oceanic lithosphere by the Hinis detachment at ca.80 Ma,and southward gravitational propagation of the ophiolite nappe onto its foreland basin.     

Dissolved organic matter dynamics during the spring snowmelt at a boreal river valley mire complex in Northwest Russia

Boreal mire landscapes are rich in soil carbon and significantly contribute to the carbon input of aquatic ecosystems. They are composed of different mesoscale ecohydrological subunits, whose individual contributions to the water and carbon export of mire catchments are not well understood. The spring snowmelt period is the major hydrological event in the annual water cycle of the boreal regions and strongly influences the carbon flux between the terrestrial and aquatic systems. The aim of this study was (1) to provide a conceptual understanding of the spatial and temporal dynamics of the surface water chemistry along a swamp forest‐fen‐bog gradient during the snowmelt period, (2) to quantify the exported dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content in the runoff and (3) to identify the ecohydrological landscape unit that contributes most to DOC export during the snowmelt period in a heterogeneous mire complex in Northwest Russia. The highest DOC concentrations were detected in the swamp forest, and the lowest concentrations were observed at the treeless bog by the end of the snowmelt period (swamp forest: 37–43 mg l^?1, bog: 13–17 mg l^?1). During the spring snowmelt period, a significant amount (~1.7 g C m^?2) of DOC was transferred by the ~74 mm of runoff from the catchment into the river. Variability in the thawing periods led to differences in the relative contributions of each ecohydrological zone to the carbon export measured at a stream channel draining the studied part of the mire complex. An increased understanding of the variation in DOC concentrations and contributions from the mesoscale ecohydrological subunits to carbon export can help to predict the potential regional loss of DOC based on land cover type under climate change. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dynamics of a Cosmological Model with a Conformally-Coupled Scalar Field

Astrophysics - Cosmological evolution is examined in a model with a conformally-coupled scalar field and with a cosmological constant. Models of this type arise in two types of gravitational...