The MASTER Global Robotic Telescope Network: Observations of Asteroid NEA 2015 TB145

The results of white-light photometry for a uniquely long series of data (13.5 hours of observations, 1124 measurements) for the Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) 2015 TB145 are presented. These data were obtained with the MASTER-Amur and MASTER-Tavrida wide-field robotic telescopes of the Mobile Astronomical System of Telescope-Robots (MASTER) global network of Lomonosov Moscow State University, located in the Crimea and in Blagoveshchensk. The object moved by more than 120° during the observations. The asteroid passed the point of closest approach to the Earth, i.e., observations were carried during both the asteroid's approach and recession. Thus, due to the geometry of the passage, this series of observations contains information about the asteroid viewed at different angles, and is very suitable for precisely determining the shape of the object. Mathematical modeling of the light curve and astrometric positions (with the Asteroids3D code) was carried out, and the probable shape of the asteroid (conical) and the rotation period of 5.9 hours were obtained, as well as the orientation of the rotation axis in ecliptic coordinates: longitude λ = 53°, latitude β = −20°. The derived period coincides with twice the period of 2.9 hours obtained by other observers published earlier, within the uncertainties.

     

Using multicomponent GPR to monitor cracks in a historical building

We tested the usefulness of acquiring multicomponent GPR data to detect cracks in a historical building, and to monitor their dynamics, caused by a slowly and irregularly moving landslide. We used 2 GHz bipolar antennas in a configuration that allows for acquiring the in-line and cross-line electric field components with x- and y-directed antennas. The 2 × 2 data matrix was collected on a floor in the building along transects at four different times over a period of one year. The data were processed with a standard 2D scalar algorithm and with the latest 3D single component vector algorithm that corrects for antenna effects. We have implemented a 3D single component vector migration algorithm in a 2.5D sense to produce 2D slices of a 3D vector migration image by applying the algorithm on line data. This procedure allows for migrating single component line data taking into account all vector effects as well as three-dimensional wave propagation. We show that the 2.5D vector migration images have a much better in-line resolution than the migration images obtained by applying a standard 2D scalar migration algorithm.The GPR profiles agree with the a priori information about the structure of the floor. In particular, we detected two different types of anomalies, only a few of which can be due to utilities and to metallic mesh. Some shallower anomalies agree well with the cracks visible on the tiling, suggesting that some cracks can be directly detected using GPR. Visually there were no changes in the cracks on the floor and no clear changes in the GPR data could be attributed to possible subsurface changes in the cracks. The variations in the GPR images seemed primarily caused by changes in the coupling of the antennas with the investigated structure (floor) depending on the season when the measurements were made. For this reason the monitoring aspect of the survey is not successful.     

Kinematic internal forces in deep foundations with inclined piles

This paper presents a parametric study that looks into the influence of pile rake angle on the kinematic internal forces of deep foundations with inclined piles. Envelopes of maximum kinematic bending moments, shear forces and axial loads are presented along single inclined piles and 2 × 2 symmetrical square pile groups with inclined elements subjected to an earthquake generated by vertically incident shear waves. Inclination angles from 0° to 30° are considered, and three different pile–soil stiffness ratios are studied. These results are obtained through a frequency–domain analysis using a boundary element–finite element code in which the soil is modelled by the boundary element method as a homogeneous, viscoelastic, unbounded region, and the piles are modelled by finite elements as Euler–Bernoulli beams. The rotational kinematic response of the pile foundations is shown to be a key factor on the evolution of the kinematic internal forces along the foundations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Seismic performance evaluation of plasterboard partitions via shake table tests

The damage of nonstructural components represents the largest contribution to the economic loss caused by an earthquake. Since nonstructural components are not amenable to traditional structural analysis, full-scale experimental testing is crucial to understand their behaviour under earthquake. For this reason, shaking table tests are performed to investigate the seismic behaviour of plasterboard partitions. A steel test frame is properly designed in order to simulate the seismic effects at a generic building storey. The tests are performed shaking the table simultaneously in both horizontal directions. To investigate a wide range of interstorey drift demand and seismic damage, the shakes are performed scaling the accelerograms at eleven different intensity levels. The tested plasterboard partitions from Siniat exhibit a good seismic behaviour, both in their own plane and out of plane, showing limited damage up to 1.1 % interstorey drift ratio. The correlation between the dynamic characteristics of the test setup and the recorded damage is evidenced. Finally, an interesting comparison between the experimental results and the analytical model is also performed.     

Subsurface Hydrology of the Lake Chad Basin from Convection Modelling and Observations

In the Lake Chad basin, the quaternary phreatic aquifer (named hereafter QPA) presents large piezometric anomalies referred to as domes and depressions whose depths are ~15 and ~60 m, respectively. A previous study (Leblanc et al. in Geophys Res Lett, 2003, doi: 10.1029/2003GL018094) noticed that brightness temperatures from METEOSAT infrared images of the Lake Chad basin are correlated with the QPA piezometry. Indeed, at the same latitude, domes are ~4–5 K warmer than the depressions. Leblanc et al. (Geophys Res Lett, 2003, doi: 10.1029/2003GL018094) suggested that such a thermal behaviour results from an evapotranspiration excess above the piezometric depressions, an interpretation implicitly assuming that the QPA is separated from the other aquifers by the clay-rich Pliocene formation. Based on satellite visible images, here we find evidence of giant polygons, an observation that suggests instead a local vertical connectivity between the different aquifers. We developed a numerical water convective model giving an alternative explanation for the development of QPA depressions and domes. Beneath the depressions, a cold descending water convective current sucks down the overlying QPA, while, beneath the dome, a warm ascending current produces overpressure. Such a basin-wide circulation is consistent with the water geochemistry. We further propose that the thermal diurnal and evaporation/condensation cycles specific to the water ascending current explain why domes are warmer. We finally discuss the possible influence of the inferred convective circulation on the transient variations of the QPA reported from observations of piezometric levels and GRACE-based water mass change over the region.     

Variability of Freezing Levels, Melting Season Indicators, and Snow Cover for Selected High-Elevation and Continental Regions in the Last 50 Years

We have used NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis data and a Northern Hemisphere snow cover data set to analyze changes in freezing level heights and snow cover for the past three to five decades. All the major continental mountain chains exhibit upward shifts in the height of the freezing level surface. The pattern of these changes is generally consistent with changes in snow cover, both over the course of the year and spatially. We examined different free-air temperature parameters (dry bulb temperature, virtual temperature, and 700–500 hPa thickness) using the Reanalysis grid point valueslocated over the different mountain areas as defined in this study. The different trend values were in reasonably good agreement with each other, particularly over the second half of the record.Freezing level changes in the American Cordillera are strongly modulated by the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon and the freezing level heights (FLH) respond to both interannual and decadal-scale change in tropical Pacific sea surface temperature (SST). The 0.5 °C increase in SST recorded in the tropical Pacific since the 1950s accounts for approximately half of the increase in FLH in tropical and subtropical latitudes of the Cordilleran region during that same time.     

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) onboard the European Mars Express mission

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) for the Mars Express mission is an infrared spectrometer optimised for atmospheric studies. This instrument has a short wave (SW) channel that covers the spectral range from 1700 to (1.2-) and a long-wave (LW) channel that covers 250- (5.5-). Both channels have a uniform spectral resolution of . The instrument field of view FOV is about 1.6^° (FWHM) for the Short Wavelength channel (SW) and 2.8^° (FWHM) for the Long Wavelength channel (LW) which corresponds to a spatial resolution of 7 and 12 km when Mars is observed from an height of 250  km. PFS can provide unique data necessary to improve our knowledge not only of the atmosphere properties but also about mineralogical composition of the surface and the surface-atmosphere interaction.The SW channel uses a PbSe detector cooled to 200-220 K while the LW channel is based on a pyroelectric (L_iT_aO₃) detector working at room temperature. The intensity of the interferogram is measured every 150 nm of physical mirrors displacement, corresponding to 600 nm optical path difference, by using a laser diode monochromatic light interferogram (a sine wave), whose zero crossings control the double pendulum motion. PFS works primarily around the pericentre of the orbit, only occasionally observing Mars from large distances. Each measurements take 4 s, with a repetition time of 8.5 s. By working roughly 0.6 h around pericentre, a total of 330 measurements per orbit will be acquired 270 looking at Mars and 60 for calibrations. PFS is able to take measurements at all local times, facilitating the retrieval of surface temperatures and atmospheric vertical temperature profiles on both the day and the night side.     

Fluid circulation and structural discontinuities inside Misti volcano (Peru) inferred from self-potential measurements

One of the seven potentially active andesite stratovolcanoes in southern Peru, Misti (5822 m), located 17 km northeast and 3.5 km above Arequipa, represents a major threat to the population (900,000 inhabitants). Our recent geophysical and geochemical research comprises an extensive self-potential (SP) data set, an audio–magnetotelluric (AMT) profile across the volcano and CO₂ concentrations in the soil along a radial profile. The SP survey is the first of its kind in providing a complete mapping of a large andesitic stratovolcano 20 km in diameter. The SP mapping enables us to analyze the SP signature associated with a subduction-related active volcano.The general SP pattern of Misti is similar to that of most volcanoes with a hydrogeologic zone in the lower flanks and a hydrothermal zone in the upper central area. A quasi-systematic relationship exists between SP and elevation. Zones with constant SP/altitude gradients (Ce) are observed in both hydrogeologic (negative Ce) and hydrothermal (positive Ce) zones. Transition zones between the different Ce zones, which form a concentric pattern around the summit, have been interpreted in terms of lateral heterogeneities in the lithology. The highest amplitudes of SP anomalies seem to coincide with highly resistive zones. The hydrothermal system 6 km in diameter, which extends over an area much larger than the summit caldera, may be constrained by an older, concealed collapse caldera. A sealed zone has apparently developed through alteration in the hydrothermal system, blocking the migration of CO₂ upward. Significant CO₂ emanations are thus observed on the lower flanks but are absent above the hydrothermal zone.     

The vibrational spectrum of calcite (CaCO<Subscript>3</Subscript>): an ab initio quantum-mechanical calculation

The vibrational spectrum of calcite (CaCO₃) is evaluated at an ab initio periodic quantum-mechanical level by using the CRYSTAL package. A localized basis set of Gaussian-type functions and the B3LYP hybrid Hamiltonian are adopted. The dynamical matrix is obtained by differentiating numerically the analytical first derivatives of the energy. The accuracy with respect to all computational parameters is documented. The calculated frequencies are compared with available IR and RAMAN data (16 and 5 peaks, respectively), the mean absolute error being less than 12 cm^–1 (frequencies range from 100 to 1600 cm^–1). Overall, the agreement with experiment is very satisfactory, and shows that simulation can produce at a relatively low cost the full spectra of crystalline compounds of mineralogical interest.     

A search at two eclipses for short-period waves that heat the corona

As part of a study of the cause of solar coronal heating, we searched for high-frequency (1 Hz) intensity oscillations in coronal loops in the [Fexiv] coronal green line. We summarize results from observations made at the 3 November 1994, total solar eclipse from the International Astronomical Union site in Putre, Chile, through partly cloudy skies, and at the 26 February 1998 total solar eclipse from Nord, Aruba, through clear skies. We discuss the image reduction and analysis of two simultaneous series of coronal CCD images digitized at 10 Hz for a total time of 160 s in Chile. One series of images was taken through a filter isolating the 5303 Å[Fexiv] coronal green line and the other through a 100 Å filter in the nearby K-corona continuum. We then discuss the modifications made for the 1998 eclipse, and the image reduction and analysis for those image sequences. After standard calibrations and image alignment of both data sets, we use Fourier analysis to search in the [Fexiv] channel for intensity oscillations in loops at the base of the corona. Such oscillations in the 1-Hz range are predicted as a result of density fluctuations from the resonant absorption of MHD waves. The dissipation of a significant amount of mechanical energy from the photosphere into the corona through this mechanism could provide sufficient energy to heat the corona. At neither eclipse do we find evidence for oscillations in the [Fexiv] green line at a level greater than 2% of coronal intensity.