Assessment of potential transport of pollutants into the Barents Sea via sea ice--an observational approach

The present estimates of ice drift in the Arctic include utilization of satellite imagery data (special sensor microwave/imager) and a reconstruction of air pressure for the period 1899-1998. A significant part of the sea ice in the Arctic Ocean has its origin in the Kara Sea and melts in the Greenland and the Barents Sea (BS). Consequently there may be a particular risk of pollutants in the Kara Sea entering the food webs of the Greenland and BS. The ice export from the Kara Sea between 1988 and 1994 was about 208,000 km2 (154 km3) per year. The import of ice into the BS was during the same period 161,000 km2 (183 km3) per year while the ice drift through the Fram Strait into the Greenland Sea was 583,000 km2 (1859 km3) per year. Ice which formed adjacent to the Ob and Yenisey rivers in early January, drifted into the BS within two years (with a probability of about 50%.     

An evaluation of hemolymph cholinesterase activities in the tropical scallop,Euvola (Pecten) ziczac,for the rapid assessment of pesticide exposure

The use of sequential measurements of hemolymph cholinesterase activities as a non-invasive biomarker of seasonal organophosphate/carbamate exposure was investigated for the tropical scallop, Euvola (Pecten) ziczac. Overall activities of both acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase were relatively high compared to studies with bivalve tissues. Acute in vivo experiments showed inhibition of hemolymph acetylcholinesterase activity at concentrations of the organophosphate insecticide chlorpyrifos of 0.1, 1 and 10 ng l(-1). Monthly sampling of hemolymph from scallops at two sites in Bermuda over a 15 month period showed seasonal acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase inhibition. Direct and indirect evidence suggests that this inhibition did not relate to biochemical or physiological changes associated with gonad maturation and spawning, but rather reflected diffuse contamination of the marine environment by cholinesterase inhibitors or increased bioavailability of such inhibitors at these times. Repetitive sampling of scallop hemolymph for cholinesterase activities represents a rapid, sensitive and non-invasive method for assessing seasonal, sublethal pesticide exposure in these commercially important bivalves and suggests a wider use in marine pollution monitoring.     

Analyses of organic and inorganic contaminants in Salton Sea fish

Chemical contamination of fish from the Salton Sea, a quasi-marine lake in Southern California, could adversely impact millions of birds using the Pacific Flyway and thousands of humans using the lake for recreation. Bairdiella icistia (bairdiella), Cynoscion xanthulus (orangemouth corvina), and Oreochromis spp. (tilapia) were sampled from two river mouths and two nearshore areas of the Salton Sea. Muscle tissues were analyzed for a complete suite of 14 trace metals and 53 pesticides. Fish muscle tissues had concentrations of selenium ranging between 1.89 and 2.73 microg/g wet weight. 4,4'-DDE accounted for 94% of the total DDT metabolites. Total DDTs ranged between 17.1 and 239.0 and total PCBs between 2.5 and 18.6 ng/g wet weight. PCB congeners 132, 138, 153, 168, and 180 comprised over 50% of the total PCBs. Given the potential implementation of a commercial fishing at the Salton Sea in the future, the presence of persistent organic pollutants and selenium warrants further research into the effects of these mixtures on fish populations, and on wildlife and humans consuming fish.     

New CO and Millimeter Continuum Observations of the z = 2.394 Radio Galaxy 53W002

The Chandra X-Ray Observatory observed the Crab Nebula and pulsar during orbital calibration. Zeroth-order images with the High-Energy Transmission Grating (HETG) readout by the Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer spectroscopy array (ACIS-S) show a striking richness of X-ray structure at a resolution comparable to that of the best ground-based visible-light observations. The HETG-ACIS-S images reveal, for the first time, an X-ray inner ring within the X-ray torus, the suggestion of a hollow-tube structure for the torus, and X-ray knots along the inner ring and (perhaps) along the inward extension of the X-ray jet. Although complicated by instrumental effects and the brightness of the Crab Nebula, the spectrometric analysis shows systematic variations of the X-ray spectrum throughout the nebula.     

Discovery of High Proper-Motion Ancient White Dwarfs: Nearby Massive Compact Halo Objects?

We present the discovery and spectroscopic identification of two very high proper-motion ancient white dwarf stars, found in a systematic proper-motion survey. Their kinematics and apparent magnitude clearly indicate that they are halo members, while their optical spectra are almost identical to the recently identified cool halo white dwarf WD 0346+246. Canonical stellar halo models predict a white dwarf volume density that is 2 orders of magnitude less than the rho approximately 7x10-4 M middle dot in circle pc-3 inferred from this survey. With the caveat that the sample size is very small, it appears that a significant fraction, approximately 10%, of the local dark matter halo is in the form of very old, cool, white dwarfs.     

南非陆相二叠系-三叠系界线研究进展

从岩石地层研究着手,介绍了南非卡鲁盆地内综合地层研究的相关成果.在生物地层方面,脊椎动物和植物化石的研究在该区具有传统优势,孢粉化石的研究则是在最近几年才取得较大进展,在陆相界线地层研究中菌孢化石在二叠系-三叠系界线处约1 m厚的地层内的富集事件属首次报道.在地球化学地层方面,南非有机碳同位素在二叠系-三叠系界线附近的变化趋势与海相二叠系-三叠系界线地层存在相似的对应关系,可以作为海、陆相界线地层对比的辅助标志.在磁性地层方面,南非卡鲁盆地内的磁极性存在从反向到正向然后再反转(R-N-R)的变化,二叠系-三叠系界线则位于第一反向极性带的顶部.同时,结合目前全球陆相二叠系-三叠系界线的研究现状及特点,分析了陆相界线地层研究中存在的基本问题,指出华南地区可能为突破传统观念的研究地区,陆地事件地层研究意义重大.     

黄河源区早更新世含植物化石地层的发现及意义

通过对扎根加陇早更新世湖相地层(1919.6kaB.P.)、棒咯涌K5号钻孔早更新世河湖相地层(1135.9～945.4kaB.P.)、野牛河西岸早更新世河湖相地层(1548.2～765.4kaB.P.)以及产于扎根加陇早更新世湖相地层中的植物化石、各剖面孢粉资料的分析,获知黄河源区早更新世早期为亚热带山地针叶林植被景观,地层中木本植物花粉占绝对优势,以针叶植物云杉属、松属、冷杉属、铁杉属为主,是源区动植物发育的鼎盛时期;进入早更新世晚期初,乔木植物花粉迅速减少乃至全部消失,草本植物花粉大幅度增加。晚期末,孢粉出现贫化,以草本植物花粉为主,呈现荒漠草原植被景观。提出了现今黄河源区生态地质环境的形成是地质演化的必然结果。     

青藏高原北羌塘新生代火山岩中的麻粒岩捕虏体

北羌塘枕头崖地区新生代火山岩主要岩石类型为安山岩和英安岩类。其中,安山岩在一定程度上显示了埃达克质火山岩的特征,如高Sr(>1000×10-6)、Sr/Y>50以及低Yb(<2×10-6),表明其应源于榴辉岩相的青藏高原加厚陆壳中下部(>45km深度)。而英安岩类富集LILE,如Rb、Ba、Th、U和K等,亏损HFSE,如Ti、Nb、Ta和Sr等,尤其是Sr显著亏损,表明其应源于斜长石稳定的麻粒岩相源区。该区新生代安山岩和英安岩中麻粒岩捕虏体可分为两种类型,即二辉石麻粒岩和单斜辉石麻粒岩。二辉石麻粒岩平衡温度为783~818℃,单斜辉石麻粒岩形成压力在0·845~0·858GPa之间,来源深度约为27·9~28·3km,表明它们是来自青藏高原加厚陆壳中部的岩石样品,代表了本区英安岩类火山岩的源区物质组成。     

Leica SmartStation及GX1230在中国第22次南极考察中的应用

一、引言电子经纬仪与电磁波测距仪的集成产生了电子全站仪,这种全站仪在大地测量及工程测量中发挥了重要作用,但同时也具有一定的局限性。GPS的发展从很大程度上弥补了全站仪的缺点,但由于其必须保持对卫星通视条件下才能作业,因此广大测绘工作者采用了GPS和TPS联合作业的方式     

石油资源面临衰竭

2004年当油价攀升至50美元／桶时,世界的目光都集中到石油供给是否充足的问题上——特别是石油产量何时将达到峰值,何时又会下降。早就有分析家意识到这个问题,最近一些权威人士指出,石油产量已经逼近峰值。