A Note on Extension Variances in IR2

Matheron (1971) proposed an approximation of the extension variance in IR. We propose in this note an extension of this formula in IR ² , based on a MacLaurin formula. Its application is shown in an example, the estimation of the maximum depressional storage of a soil surface.     

Thermal alteration experiments on organic matter in recent marine sediment—II. Isoprenoids

Several isoprenoid compounds were isolated from a heat-treated marine sediment in the southern California continental shelf (from Tanner Basin) which were not present in the original sediment. Among the compounds identified were: phytol, dihydrophytol, C₁₈-isoprenoid ketone, phytanic and pristanic acids, C₁₉- and C₂₀-monoolefins, and the alkanes 2,6,10-trimethylpentadecane, pristane and phytane. The significance and possible routes leading to these compounds is discussed.     

Thermal alteration experiments on organic matter in recent marine sediment—III. Aliphatic and steroidal alcohols

Recent sediments from Tanner Basin (off southern California) and Bandaras Bay (in Gulf of California) have been analyzed for normal, isoprenoid and steroidal alcohols using chromatographic (column, GLC, TLC), and spectroscopic (u.v., i.r., MS) methods, prior to and after heat-treatment (from 65 to 150°C). Normal saturated alcohols (C₁₄-C₂₄) and monounsaturated alcohols (C₂₂-C₂₄) were identified, as well as the isoprenoid alcohols, phytol and dihydrophytol.Two series of sterols (Δ⁵ and Δ⁷) were found in Tanner Basin, and Δ⁵-sterols and triterpenes, in Bandaras Bay sediment. Sterols from both sediments contained the corresponding stanols.     

Determination of polar motion by Doppler tracking of artificial satellite

Doppler tracking of artificial satellites has been applied to determine the pole components through an experiment called MEDOC. In addition to developing scientific aspects dealing with polar motion, it is proposed to promote new observational techniques and to investigate the possibility of operating an international permanent service. So far, nearly two years of bi-daily solutions have been derived. Each improvement of computational procedures, data processing and station component determination has contributed to better precision in the computed pole positions. MEDOC pole coordinate solutions show good agreement with DMA and BIH global solutions corrected for annual terms. Differences of the smoothed values are less than one meter for both components. The MEDOC experiment was initiated by the GRGS (Groupe de Recherches de Géodésie Spatiale) and took place in 1977 and 1978. The experiment as presently organized will continue up to 1980. Future improvements are still foreseen by increasing the number of observing sites and refinement of the force models, but already international involvement is taking place in the MEDOC experiment.     

Deposition and fate of reactive Fe,Mn, P,and C in suspended particulate matter in the Bay of Biscay

Hydrographic structure of the water column, dissolved nutrient concentrations and the distribution of suspended particulate matter were recorded from CDT measurements and Niskin bottles sampling on the continental slope of the Bay of Biscay and on the axis of Capbreton canyon. Ascorbate extraction was applied here for the first time on marine suspended particles to determine the content of reactive Fe- and Mn-oxides, and P associated with Fe-oxides. Hydrographic structure of the south-eastern part of the Bay of Biscay did not change during the last three decades. Particulate organic carbon (POC) contents dropped strongly with depth, showing that organic matter mineralization was efficient in the water column. Organic matter mineralized in the water column had a Redfield N:P ratio. POC percent of particles collected at depth were higher during a bloom period, suggesting that some new organic matter reached the bottom. Contents of Fe and Mn extracted with the ascorbate leaching solution showed that suspended particles originated from the Gironde estuary, one of the major sources of particles in the Bay of Biscay. Intermediate and deeper nepheloid layers occurred in the Capbreton canyon. Particles of nepheloid layers were enriched in Mn- and Fe-oxides because they originated from resuspension of surface sediment.     

Currents and sediment transport in the Mississippi Canyon and effects of Hurricane Georges

The temporal variability in currents, temperature, and particulate matter concentration were measured in the Mississippi Canyon axis where the thalweg was 300 m deep from May–July and August–November 1998 using current meters, thermographs, a light-scattering sensor, and sediment traps. Canyon sediments were sampled by coring and observed using an ROV video camera. Currents in the upper Mississippi Canyon generally oscillated up/down canyon with diurnal periodicity and were bottom-intensified. Mean current speed at 3.5 mab was approximately 8 cm s^?1 during both deployments, reaching maximum speeds of over 50 cm s^?1 under normal conditions. Based on current velocities, critical bed shear stress for resuspension of canyon-floor sediments was exceeded about 30% of the time during both deployments. In late September, Hurricane Georges passed 150 km NE of the study site, significantly intensifying current velocities, bed shear stress, resuspension, trap fluxes and temperature fluctuations. As the hurricane passed, maximum current speed reached 68 cm^?s and temperature decreased ～7 °C in less than two hours. Critical bed shear stress for sediment resuspension was exceeded approximately 50% of the time during the five days of hurricane influence. Further evidence for sediment resuspension was the five-fold (and perhaps 70–130 fold) increase in trap fluxes and compositional similarities between canyon surface sediment and material collected by traps.     

Concurrent imaging of chlorophyll fluorescence,Chlorophyll a content and green fluorescent proteins‐like proteins of symbiotic cnidarians

Research on photosynthetic cnidarians has been mainly focused on the symbiosis established between the cnidarian host and its dinoflagellates endosymbionts from genus Symbiodinium. Despite the potential of imaging techniques for assessing the spatial distribution of key parameters of cnidarian photobiology, such as photochemical activity, chlorophyll a content or green fluorescent proteins (GFPs), to our best knowledge, no study has ever attempted to simultaneous map these three features. In this study, we developed a modified imaging pulse amplitude fluorometer by applying excitation light of different wavelengths and selectively detecting short spectral bands through bandpass filters. The imaging system was used to sequentially excite and quantify chlorophyll variable fluorescence (maximum quantum yield of photosystem II, F_v/F_m), Chl a content (normalized difference vegetation index) and relative content of GFPs. The spatial distribution of these photophysiological parameters was mapped both horizontally, across the surface of the soft corals Sarcophyton cf. glaucum and Sinularia flexibilis and the zoanthid Protopalythoa sp., and vertically, throughout a vertical section of S. cf. glaucum. Results showed bleached areas within each individual coral colony and registered photophysiological changes with S. cf. glaucum tissue depth. Analysis of Protopalythoa sp. polyps’ expansion revealed differential surface patterns of NDVI and GFP concentration, and a negative relation between these latter parameters within each polyp. This novel non‐invasive approach allowed a high‐resolution characterization of the spatial relationship between these key parameters through the analysis of image information on a pixel‐by‐pixel basis, which has great potential for investigating the physiological state of symbiotic associations.     

Chondrules in CK carbonaceous chondrites and thermal history of the CV–CK parent body

CK chondrites are the only group of carbonaceous chondrites with petrologic types ranging from 3 to 6. It is commonly reported than ~15 vol% of CK4–6 samples are composed of chondrules. The modal abundance of chondrules estimated here for 18 CK3–6 (including five CK3s) ranges from zero (totally recrystallized) to 50.5%. Although almost all chemically re‐equilibrated with the host matrix, we recognized in CK3s and Tanezrouft (Tnz) 057 (CK4) up to 85% of chondrules as former type I chondrules. Mean diameters of chondrules range from 0.22 to 1.05 mm for Karoonda (CK4) and Tnz 057 (CK4), respectively. Up to ~60% of chondrules in CK3–4 are surrounded by igneous rims (from ~20 μm to 2 mm width). Zoned olivines were found in unequilibrated chondrules from DaG 431 (CK3‐an), NWA 4724 (CK3.8), NWA 4423 (CK3.9), and Tnz 057 (CK4). We modeled Fe/Mg interdiffusion profiles measured in zoned olivines to evaluate the peak metamorphic temperatures and time scales of the CK parent body metamorphism, and proposed a two‐stage diffusion process in order to account for the position of inflection points situated within chondrules. Time scales inferred from Fe/Mg interdiffusion in olivine from unequilibrated chondrules are on the order of tens to a hundred thousand years (from 50 to 70,000 years for peak metamorphic temperatures of 1140 and 920 K, respectively). These durations are longer than what is commonly accepted for shock metamorphism and shorter than what is required for nuclide decay. Using the concept of a continuous CV–CK metamorphic series, which is reinforced by this study, we estimated peak metamorphic temperatures <850 K for CV, 850–920 K for CK3, and 920–1140 K for CK4–6 chondrites considering a duration of 70,000 years.