Planetary balloons

Discussion of the physics of aerostats for the exploration of Venus, Mars and Titan, with a prospective view on future missions     

Arctic microbial ecosystems and impacts of extreme warming during the International Polar Year

As a contribution to the International Polar Year program MERGE (Microbiological and Ecological Responses to Global Environmental change in polar regions), studies were conducted on the terrestrial and aquatic microbial ecosystems of northern Canada (details at: http://www.cen.ulaval.ca/merge/). The habitats included permafrost soils, saline coldwater springs, supraglacial lakes on ice shelves, epishelf lakes in fjords, deep meromictic lakes, and shallow lakes, ponds and streams. Microbiological samples from each habitat were analysed by HPLC pigment assays, light and fluorescence microscopy, and DNA sequencing. The results show a remarkably diverse microflora of viruses, Archaea (including ammonium oxidisers and methanotrophs), Bacteria (including filamentous sulfur-oxidisers in a saline spring and benthic mats of Cyanobacteria in many waterbodies), and protists (including microbial eukaryotes in snowbanks and ciliates in ice-dammed lakes). In summer 2008, we recorded extreme warming at Ward Hunt Island and vicinity, the northern limit of the Canadian high Arctic, with air temperatures up to 20.5 °C. This was accompanied by pronounced changes in microbial habitats: deepening of the permafrost active layer; loss of perennial lake ice and sea ice; loss of ice-dammed freshwater lakes; and 23% loss of total ice shelf area, including complete break-up and loss of the Markham Ice Shelf cryo-ecosystem. These observations underscore the vulnerability of Arctic microbial ecosystems to ongoing climate change.     

The 1856 Tsunami of Djidjelli (Eastern Algeria): Seismotectonics, Modelling and Hazard Implications for the Algerian Coast

On August 21st and 22nd 1856, two strong earthquakes occurred off the seaport of Djidjelli, a small city of 1000 inhabitants, located 300 km east of Algiers (capital of Algeria). In relation to these two earthquakes, an important tsunami (at least one) affected the western Mediterranean region and the eastern Algerian coastline between Algiers and La Calle (Algero-Tunisian border). Based on historical information as well as on data recently collected during the Maradja 2 survey conducted in 2005 over the Algerian margin, we show that the tsunami could have been generated by the simultaneous rupture of a set of three en echelon faults evidenced off Djidjelli. From synthetic models, we point out that the area affected along the Algerian coast extended from Bejaia to Annaba. The maximum height of waves reached 1.5 m near the harbor of Djidjelli.     

A rapid method for converting medical Computed Tomography scanner topogram attenuation scale to Hounsfield Unit scale and to obtain relative density values

Medical Computed Tomography scanners permit to rapidly obtain qualitative and quantitative information on objects in a non-destructive manner in both longitudinal and transversal directions. CT-scan scales used to express attenuation on the images are different for longitudinal (topograms) and transversal (tomograms) views, restraining the complementary use of the information extracted from both views. Moreover, topograms are of full use in core analysis as they reveal fine-scale information on stratigraphical, sedimentological and physical properties of the material. This paper presents a method to convert CT-scan topogram intensity scale to Hounsfield Unit (HU; scale used on tomograms) and to later extract a relative density from it. The method is based on relationships between topogram and tomogram values, absolute density and effective atomic numbers obtained on a series of minerals. Results show excellent correlations between converted topogram values and HU values obtained on the tomograms, as well as between relative densities derived from the converted topogram values, and the absolute density of the minerals.     

海西至印支期郯庐断裂带的性质--据中国东部石炭纪至三叠纪的岩相古地理特征分析

文中通过对晚石炭世至早三叠世华南和华北地块古地理特征以及地层学证据的分析,认为中国东部的郯庐断裂带自海西期以来经历了两个主要发展阶段：第一阶段是广义的郯庐断裂带发展阶段,在海西期它是扬子地块北东缘呈宽缓弧形展布的边缘裂陷槽(或盆地)的边界;在印支期由于扬子地块与华北地块的碰撞,成为两地块的对接边界,具有逆冲推覆的性质,属广义的特提斯构造域。第二发展阶段从燕山期以来,发展成为一条平移断裂带,属于狭义的环太平洋构造域的平移系统。自晚石炭世至早三叠世的中国南方及华北东南部的岩相古地理资料显示了扬子地块与华北地块的对接始于晚二叠世早期,地块的抬升自南向北、自南东向北西方向呈迁移趋势;印支期的郯庐断裂带是一条北东、北北东展布的缓‘S’形的地块拼贴边界,在现今的郯庐断裂带上表现为残留的由北北西向南南东的斜向逆冲推覆的性质,表现为大别苏鲁造山带的中上部构造层的变形,即张八岭构造带及前陆褶皱冲断带的变形;燕山期以来则为众所周知的狭义的郯庐断裂带即郯庐平移断裂系统的一部分。     

Thermal anomalies and paleoclimatic diffusive and advective phenomena: example of the Anglo-Paris Basin,northern France

This study is the first quantification of the combined impact of diffusive and advective paleoclimatic phenomena to explain the weak vertical thermal flux anomaly in the upper part of the Anglo-Paris intracratonic sedimentary basin in northern France. The aim of the research is to understand the mechanisms at the origin of the thermal flux anomaly at the level of the Meso-Cenozoic sediment pile. Based on a temperature profile representative of the basin, transient thermo-hydraulic simulations were performed along a representative vertical cross-section of about 400 km within the Lower Cretaceous multi-layer aquifer. Four paleoclimatic scenarios are the combination of two paleotemperature climatic forcings and two hydrodynamic regimes, one of them taking into account the interruption of the recharge linked to permafrost development. The simulation results clearly show the transient nature of the basin’s thermal regime. Then, for the reference well, the majority of the thermal flux anomaly can be explained by advective and paleoclimatic mechanisms with a decrease in geothermal flux simulated up to a little over 30 mW/m², depending on the scenarios. Decrease in heat flux because of basin-scale subsurface flows in the Lower Cretaceous is around 15 mW/m². There are several ways forward from this first simple model, including simulation of development of permafrost and also the integration of vertical flows in the basin by use of a three-dimensional model to better explain the data.     

Boris Choubert: The forgotten fit of the circum-Atlantic continents

Boris Choubert was a strong supporter of Wegener's continental drift theory. In 1935, he published a very accurate fit of the circum-Atlantic continents, which was based on continental edges instead of coastlines; in the same paper, he interpreted the Palaeozoic belts as the result of horizontal movements of the Precambrian blocks; so, he greatly expanded the role of continental drift through time. This original and very prophetic work was almost completely ignored by his contemporaries. Thirty years later (1965), Bullard, Everett and Smith published in turn a similar but more sophisticated fit; they did not acknowledge Choubert's initial work. Bullard's fit was met with immediate and tremendous success. The present paper analyses the reasons why Boris Choubert was frustrated of his pioneering role. This lack of recognition is related to: (1) a great evolution in the geological concepts between 1935 and 1965, and (2) a poor choice of Choubert, regarding the title of his 1935 article.     

汶川MS8.0大震前的电磁现象

本文应用最大熵谱估计方法(MEM)等处理了2008年四川汶川M_S8.0地震震中周围电磁台的观测数据,研究了地电、地磁场变化,得到:(1) 在汶川大震前,位于青藏高原东北缘的电磁台记录了显著的自然电场变化、地电场功率谱值增大以及地磁场日变化波形畸变等电磁现象,特别是地电场周期约小于3 h的低频成分的谱值增大了3个数量级以上.(2) 在距离主震震中约500 km范围内,记录了地电、地磁场低频谱值增大为主的电磁现象,特别是距离主震震中最近的成都台地电场谱值增大了4个数量级.(3) 震前电磁现象的时空分布与青藏高原的大震活动(包括2008年新疆于田M_S7.3地震)有大空间尺度的构造关联性.本文讨论了电磁现象的机理,认为在震前地下介质内部的微裂隙发展、定向排列过程中,微破裂"机-电转换"作用和地下水运移等多因素引起了地电、地磁场变化.在本次大震前电磁现象的时空强图像很复杂,可能原因是台站所在处的地下局部介质作用和震源孕育激发的电磁辐射引起了复杂的电磁现象.     

Variability in Solomon Sea circulation derived from altimeter sea level data

The Solomon Sea is a key region in the Pacific Ocean where equatorial and subtropical circulations are connected. The region exhibits the highest levels in sea level variability in the entire south tropical Pacific Ocean. Altimeter data was utilized to explore sea level and western boundary currents in this poorly understood portion of the ocean. Since the geography of the region is extremely intricate, with numerous islands and complex bathymetry, specifically reprocessed along-track data in addition to standard gridded data were utilized in this study. Sea level anomalies (SLA) in the Solomon Sea principally evolve at seasonal and interannual time scales. The annual cycle is phased by Rossby waves arriving in the Solomon Strait, whereas the interannual signature corresponds to the basin-scale ENSO mode. The highest SLA variability are concentrated in the eastern Solomon Sea, particularly at the mouth of the Solomon Strait, where they are associated with a high eddy kinetic energy signal that was particularly active during the phase transition during the 1997–1998 ENSO event. Track data appear especially helpful for documenting the fine structure of surface coastal currents. The annual variability of the boundary currents that emerged from altimetry compared quite well with the variability seen at the thermocline level, as based on numerical simulations. At interannual time scales, western boundary current transport anomalies counterbalance changes in western equatorial Pacific warm water volume, confirming the phasing of South Pacific western boundary currents to ENSO. Altimetry appears to be a valuable source of information for variability in low latitude western boundary currents and their associated transport in the South Pacific.