Dynamic response of an elastic and viscoelastic full-space to a spherical source

The dynamic response due to a spherical source of radius a embedded in an elastic and viscoelastic full-space is investigated at a distance R from the source. Previous solutions to the elastic case are extended to incorporate realistic source pressure functions. The elastic solution is then cast in a scale independent form in order to generalize the application. The results show that the near-field of the spherical source may be defined by R/a < 5. For this region the particle velocity and displacement decrease as R^?2, and the risetime decreases as R^?1. However. in the far-field region (R/a > 5) the particle velocity and displacement decrease as R^?1, and the risetime is independent of R. A non-constant Q model is developed to model viscoelastic attenuation and a complete analytical solution for wave propagation is obtained by cascading the separate mechanisms of geometric attenuation and viscoelastic attenuation. A comparison of our analytical model with the results of dynamic finite element modelling shows excellent agreement. This suggests that the method of cascading the separate transfer functions is a valid approach for wave propagation in viscoelastic media.     

The stochastic background of gravitational waves from neutron star formation at cosmological distances

We investigate the stochastic gravitational wave background that results from neutron star birth throughout the Universe. The neutron star birth rate, as a function of redshift, is calculated using an observation-based model for the evolving star formation rate, together with an estimate of the rate of core-collapse supernovae in the nearby Universe and an estimate of the neutron star/black hole branching ratio. Using three sample waveforms, based on numerical models of stellar core collapse by Zwerger & Müller, the spectral flux density, spectral strain, spectral energy density and duty cycle of the background have been computed. Our results show, contrary to recent claims, that the spectrum of the stochastic background clearly reflects the different physics in the core-collapse models. For a star formation model that is corrected for dust extinction, the neutron star formation rate throughout the Universe is high enough to result in a nearly continuous background of gravitational waves, with spectral features that can be related to emission mechanisms.     

Finite element modelling of ground surface displacements due to underground blasting

Elastic wave radiation from an equivalent cylindrical cavity due to an underground explosion is considered in detail. Both static and steady state dynamic finite element models are used to investigate the surface displacements due to the interaction of such wave radiation with both the free surface topography and stope formation. For a blast 430 m below the surface the models predict a negligible displacement effect due to the irregular topography but a significant effect due to the stope. A comparison between the models and a site experiment verified the cylindrical wave nature of the problem. Due to experimental uncertainties however it was difficult to clearly detect the surface displacement effect due to the large underground open stope.     

Global geographic differences in marine metals toxicity

Biochemical reaction rates, metabolic rates, and other rates of biological activity increase exponentially with temperature. It has thus been hypothesized that toxicity to chemical contaminants may increase from polar to temperate to tropical species; however, until recently, polar data to test this hypothesis were not available. This study examined differences in the acute sensitivities of marine invertebrates to four metals (Cu, Cd, Zn, Pb) for polar, temperate and tropical species; data deficiencies for polar regions prohibited comparisons using chronic end-points or other chemicals. Differences between the three geographic regions were not predictable based on temperature (other factors such as differences in dissolved organic carbon concentrations also affect toxicity). There appears to be no universal, predictable pattern of increased toxicity from polar to tropical regions. Toxicity data from one geographic region will not be universally protective of other regions.     

Extraction of Nd isotopes from bulk deep sea sediments for paleoceanographic studies on Cenozoic time scales

Nd isotopes preserved in fossil fish teeth and ferromanganese crusts have become a common tool for tracking variations in water mass composition and circulation through time. Studies of Nd isotopes extracted from Pleistocene to Holocene bulk sediments using hydroxylamine hydrochloride (HH) solution yield high resolution records of Nd isotopes that can be interpreted in terms of deep water circulation, but concerns about diagenesis and potential contamination of the seawater signal limit application of this technique to geologically young samples.In this study we demonstrate that Nd extracted from the > 63 μm, decarbonated fraction of older Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) sediments using a 0.02 M HH solution produces Nd isotopic ratios that are within error of values from cleaned fossil fish teeth collected from the same samples, indicating that the HH-extractions are robust recorders of deep sea Nd isotopes. This excellent correlation was achieved for 94 paired fish teeth and HH-extraction samples ranging in age from the Miocene to Cretaceous, distributed throughout the north, tropical and south Atlantic, and composed of a range of lithologies including carbonate-rich oozes/chalks and black shales. The strong Nd signal recovered from Cretaceous anoxic black shale sequences is unlikely to be associated with ferromanganese oxide coatings, but may be derived from abundant phosphatic fish teeth and debris or organic matter in these samples.In contrast to the deep water Nd isotopic signal, Sr isotopes from HH-extractions are often offset from seawater values, suggesting that evaluation of Sr isotopes is a conservative test for the integrity of Nd isotopes in the HH fraction. However, rare earth elements (REE) from the HH-extractions and fish teeth produce distinctive middle REE bulge patterns that may prove useful for evaluating whether the Nd isotopic signal represents uncontaminated seawater. Alternatively, a few paired HH-extraction and cleaned fish teeth samples from each site of interest can be used to verify the seawater composition of the HH-extractions. The similarity between isotopic values for the HH-extraction and fish teeth illustrates that the extensive cleaning protocol applied to fish teeth samples is not necessary in typical, carbonate-rich, deep sea sediments.     

Reassessing the uranium decay constants for geochronology using ID-TIMS U-Pb data

As the internal precision of radiometric dates approaches the 0.1% level, systematic biases between different methods have become apparent. Many workers have suggested that calibrating other decay constants against the U-Pb system is a viable solution to this problem. We test this assertion empirically and quantitatively by analyzing U-Pb systematics of zircon and xenotime on the single- to sub-grain scale by high-precision ID-TIMS geochronology on 11 rock samples ranging from 0.1 to 3.3 Ga. Large statistically equivalent datasets give ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb dates that are systematically older than ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U dates by ∼0.15% in Precambrian samples to as much as ∼3.3% in Mesozoic samples, suggesting inaccuracies in the mean values of one or both of the U decay constants. These data are used to calculate a ratio of the U decay constants that is lower than the accepted ratio by 0.09% and is a factor of 5 more precise. Four of the samples are used to augment existing data from which the U-Pb and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar systems can be compared. The new data support most previous observations that U-Pb and ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb dates are older than ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar by ?1%, though scatter in the amount of offset in samples as a function of age suggests that the bias is not entirely systematic, and may incorporate interlaboratory biases and/or geologic complexities. Studies that calibrate other decay schemes against U-Pb should include an assessment of inaccuracies in the U decay constants in addition to other systematic biases and non-systematic geologic uncertainty.