Microseismicity and faulting geometry in the Gulf of Corinth (Greece)

During the summer of 1993, a network of seismological stations was installed over a period of 7 weeks around the eastern Gulf of Corinth where a sequence of strong earthquakes occurred during 1981. Seismicity lies between the Alepohori fault dipping north and the Kaparelli fault dipping south and is related to both of these antithetic faults. Focal mechanisms show normal faulting with the active fault plane dipping at about 45° for both faults. The aftershocks of the 1981 earthquake sequence recorded by King et al . (1985 ) were processed again and show similar results. In contrast, the observations collected near the western end of the Gulf of Corinth during an experiment conducted in 1991 ( Rigo et al . 1996 ), and during the aftershock studies of the 1992 Galaxidi and the 1995 Aigion earthquakes ( Hatzfeld et al . 1996 ; Bernard et al . 1997 ) show seismicity dipping at a very low angle (about 15°) northwards and normal faulting mechanisms with the active fault plane dipping northwards at about 30°. We suggest that the 8–12 km deep seismicity in the west is probably related to the seismic–aseismic transition and not to a possible almost horizontal active fault dipping north as previously proposed. The difference in the seismicity and focal mechanisms between east and west of the Gulf could be related to the difference in the recent extension rate between the western Gulf of Corinth and the eastern Gulf of Corinth, which rotated the faults dipping originally at 45° (as in the east of the Gulf) to 30° (as in the west of the Gulf).     

Contribution of electrical tomography methods in geotechnical investigations at Mavropigi lignite open pit mine,Northern Greece

In this paper, the application of 2D and 3D electrical resistivity methods in geotechnical investigations is explored through a case study in Northern Greece. These two methods were employed at a lignite surface mining operation where fracture zones and discontinuities have been recently observed close to the pit boundaries. The main aim of the geophysical survey was to estimate the inclination of the contact between the Neogene and Schist/Carbonate formations near the southern limits of the pit, as well as to estimate the thickness of the carbonate rocks on top of the Schist formations to evaluate the stability of the southern slopes. Synthetic data were initially generated to help plan an efficient electrical tomography survey, in a region with complex geology and irregular terrain. Three configurations (Wenner–Schlumberger and dipole–dipole or pole–dipole) proved essential in such conditions and helped improving the resolution of the resistivity section. The sections were then calibrated by boreholes. Finally, the geophysical survey provided invaluable data regarding the geometry of the bedrock and possible faults, which was essential for the slope stability calculations.     

Radiative transfer

Chandrasekhar’s work in radiative transfer theory began in 1944 and culminated with the publication of his influential treatiseRadiative Transfer in 1950. In this review his major contributions to radiative transfer will be recounted and evaluated. These include his development of the discrete ordinates method, the invariance principles, and his formulation and solution of the transfer equation for polarized light.     

Axial kinematic response of end‐bearing piles to P waves

Kinematic pile–soil interaction under vertically impinging seismic P waves is revisited through a novel continuum elastodynamic solution of the Tajimi type. The proposed model simulates the steady‐state kinematic response of a cylindrical end‐bearing pile embedded in a homogeneous viscoelastic soil stratum over a rigid base, subjected to vertically propagating harmonic compressional waves. Closed‐form solutions are obtained for the following: (i) the displacement field in the soil and along the pile; (ii) the kinematic Winkler moduli (i.e., distributed springs and dashpots) along the pile; (iii) equivalent, depth‐independent, Winkler moduli to match the motion at the pile head. The solution for displacements is expressed in terms of dimensionless transfer functions relating the motion of the pile head to the free‐field surface motion and the rock motion. It is shown that (i) a pile foundation may significantly alter (possibly amplify) the vertical seismic excitation transmitted to the base of a structure and (ii) Winkler moduli pertaining to kinematic loading differ from those for inertial loading. Simple approximate expressions for kinematic Winkler moduli are derived for use in applications. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the astrometric detection of neighboring planetary systems,II

Extensive testing suggests that astrometric techniques can be employed to detect and study virtually any planetary system that may exist within 40 light years (12.5 parsec) of the Sun. Following the conclusion of Paper I [G. Gatewood, Icarus27 (1976), 1–12], the astrometric group at the Allegheny Observatory began an intensive survey of 20 nearby stars to detect the nonlinear variations in their motion that planetary systems would induce. Several tests conducted to further our understanding of the limitations of this survey indicated that the photographic detector itself is responsible for the majority of the random error. A new photoelectric detector has been designed and a simplified prototype of it successfully tested. The new detector is expected to be able to utilize virtually all of the astrometric information transmitted through the Earth's atmosphere. This is sufficient to determine relative positions to within an accuracy of approximately 1 milliarcsec/hr. Such precisions exceed the design capabilities of the best existing astrometric telescopes, thus a feasibility study has been conducted for the design of an improved instrument. The study concludes that a new ground-based telescope and the new detector combined should be able to study stars as faint as the 17th magnitude with an annual accuracy of a few tenths of a milliarcsecond. However, to obtain the ultimate accuracy possible from current technology, we must place an astrometric system above the Earth's atmosphere. A space-borne instrument utilizing the new detector would in theory have sufficient accuracy to detect any Earth-like planet orbiting any of the several hundred stars nearest the Sun.     

Crystal field stabilization energies of almandine-pyrope and almandine-spessartine garnets determined by FTIR near infrared measurements

The band positions of three partially overlapping Fe²⁺ spin-allowed transitions located between 4000 and 9000 cm^–1 in almandine-pyrope and almandinespessartine garnets solid solutions were measured using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. The crystal field stabilization energies (CFSE) along both binaries were calculated assuming a splitting of 1100 cm^–1 for the lower orbitals. The CFSE show a slight increase along the almandine-spessartine binary from 3730 to 3810 cm^–1 and a larger increase from 3730 to 3970 cm^–1 for the almandine-pyrope binary. Dodecahedral Fe²⁺-site distortion increases with an increase in spessartine component and decreases with increasing pyrope component, in agreement with average dodecahedral site distortions determined from diffraction experiments. The excess CFSE's along both joins are negative. For the almandinespessartine binary they are small, but are about 3.5 times larger in magnitude along the join almandine-pyrope, where an interaction parameter of W= -2.9 KJ/mole has been derived from a symmetric mixing model. The excess CFSE are relatively small compared to the magnitudes of the excess enthalpies of mixing that have been assigned to garnet solid solutions. Moreover, they give no indication which could support the positive and asymmetric excess enthalpies of mixing that have been proposed for almandine-pyrope solid solutions.     

Footings under seismic loading: Analysis and design issues with emphasis on bridge foundations

The paper provides state-of-the-art information on the following aspects of seismic analysis and design of spread footings supporting bridge piers: (1) obtaining the dynamic stiffness (“springs” and “dashpots”) of the foundation; (2) computing the kinematic response; (3) determining the conditions under which foundation–soil compliance must be incorporated in dynamic structural analysis; (4) assessing the importance of properly modeling the effect of embedment; (5) elucidating the conditions under which the effect of radiation damping is significant; (6) comparing the relative importance between kinematic and inertial response. The paper compiles an extensive set of graphs and tables for stiffness and damping in all modes of vibration (swaying, rocking, torsion), for a variety of soil conditions and foundation geometries. Simplified expressions for computing kinematic response (both in translation and rotation) are provided. Special issues such as presence of rock at shallow depths, the contribution of foundation sidewalls, soil inhomogeneity and inelasticity, are also discussed. The paper concludes with parametric studies on the seismic response of bridge bents on embedded footings in layered soil. Results are presented (in frequency and time domains) for accelerations and displacements of bridge and footing, while potential errors from some frequently employed simplifications are illustrated.     

Recent and fossil resins from New Zealand and Australia

The carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of fossil resins from New Zealand and Australia have been compared with those of modern and semifossilized materials. The great majority of the fossilized samples have strong spectral similarities to modern Agathis resins and to North American fossil resins, which have been attributed to Agathis. The Agathis-related spectra are different from those of modern Hymenaea and Araucaria. A small subgroup of Late Cretaceous resins from Australia and Papua New Guinea appears to derive from a different botanical source and shows strong resemblances to Claiborne amber from Arkansas. The spectral resonances of the exomethylene carbons degrade over time and on average provide an approximate measure of the geological age of Agathis-related fossil resins. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Foreword

Destructive earthquakes have caused great damage in China and the United States and collapsing buildings have caused many deaths and injuries. The field of earthquake engineering studies