Flexure of Europa's lithosphere due to ridge-loading

Using photoclinometry, topographic profiles across europan ridges have been produced. These profiles allow the identification of bulges in the terrain adjacent to the ridges. The bulges are assumed to have been produced by flexure of the elastic lithosphere due to the load of the ridges, which lie along cracks in the crust. The distance from the crack to these “fore-bulges” depends on the thickness of the elastic plate being flexed. Based on a survey of ridges in Galileo images with resolution <300 m/pixel, the thickness of the elastic lithosphere has been determined by this method at a wide variety of sites along the leading and trailing hemispheres of Europa. The average thickness is about 200 m. The elastic lithosphere underneath smooth dilational bands tends to be thicker than plains morphology, an effect that is pronounced at Thynia Linea and Astypalaea Linea. Among the ridges investigated here, more recent loading correlates with a thicker elastic lithosphere, which may either reflect an intrinsically thicker layer, or less viscous relaxation over the shorter time period.     

Gravity reduction with three-dimensional atmospheric pressure data for precise ground gravity measurements

The redistribution of air masses induces gravity variations (atmospheric pressure effect) up to about 20 μgal. These variations are disturbing signals in gravity records and they must be removed very carefully for detecting weak gravity signals. In the past, different methods have been developed for modelling of the atmospheric pressure effect. These methods use local or two-dimensional (2D) surface atmospheric pressure data and a standard height-dependent air density distribution. The atmospheric pressure effect is consisting of the elastic deformation and attraction term. The deformation term can be well modelled with 2D surface atmospheric pressure data, for instance with the Green's function method. For modelling of the attraction term, three-dimensional (3D) data are required. Results with 2D data are insufficient.From European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) 3D atmospheric pressure data are now available. The ECMWF data used here are characterised by a spacing of Δ and Δλ = 0.5°, 60 pressure levels up to a height of 60 km and an interval of 6 h. These data are used for modelling of the atmospheric attraction term. Two attraction models have been developed based on the point mass attraction of air segments and the gravity potential of the air masses. The modelling shows a surface pressure-independent part of gravity variations induced by mass redistribution of the atmosphere in the order of some μgal. This part can only be determined by using 3D atmospheric pressure data. It has been calculated for the Vienna Superconducting Gravimeter site.From this follows that the gravity reduction can be improved by applying the 3D atmospheric attraction model for analysing long-periodic tidal waves including the polar tide. The same improvement is expected for reduction of long-term absolute gravity measurements or comparison of gravity measurements at different seasonal times. By using 3D atmospheric pressure data, the gravity correction can be improved up to some μgal.     

Th sorption and export models in the water column: A review

Over the past few decades, the radioisotope pair of ²³⁸U / ²³⁴Th has been widely and increasingly used to describe particle dynamics and particle export fluxes in a variety of aquatic systems. The present paper is one of five review articles dedicated to ²³⁴Th. It is focused on the models associated with ²³⁴Th whereas the companion papers (same issue) are focused on present and future methodologies and techniques (Rutgers van der Loeff et al.), C / ²³⁴Th ratios (Buesseler et al.), ²³⁴Th speciation (Santschi et al.) and present and future applications of ²³⁴Th [Waples, J.T., Benitez-Nelson, C.R., Savoye, N., Rutgers van der Loeff, M., Baskaran, M., Gustafsson, Ö., this issue. An Introduction to the application and future use of ²³⁴Th in aquatic systems. Marine Chemistry, FATE special issue]. In this paper, we review current ²³⁴Th scavenging models and discuss the relative importance of the non-steady state and physical terms associated with the most commonly used model to estimate ²³⁴Th flux. Based on this discussion we recommend that for future work the use of models should be accompanied by a discussion of the effect that model and data uncertainty have on the model results. We also suggest that future field work incorporate repeat occupations of sample sites on time scales of 1–4 weeks in order to evaluate steady state versus non-steady state estimates of ²³⁴Th export, especially during high flux events (> ca. 800 dpm m^− 2 d^− 1). Finally, knowledge of the physical oceanography of the study area is essential, particularly in ocean margins and in areas of established upwelling (e.g., Equatorial Pacific). These suggestions will greatly enhance the application of ²³⁴Th as a tracer of particle dynamics and flux in more complicated regimes.     

SEAWAT 2000: modelling unstable flow and sensitivity to discretization levels and numerical schemes

A systematic analysis shows how results from the finite difference code SEAWAT are sensitive to choice of grid dimension, time step, and numerical scheme for unstable flow problems. Guidelines to assist in selecting appropriate combinations of these factors are suggested. While the SEAWAT code has been tested for a wide range of problems, the sensitivity of results to spatial and temporal discretization levels and numerical schemes has not been studied in detail for unstable flow problems. Here, the Elder-Voss-Souza benchmark problem has been used to systematically explore the sensitivity of SEAWAT output to spatio-temporal resolution and numerical solver choice. A grid size of 0.38 and 0.60% of the total domain length and depth respectively is found to be fine enough to deliver results with acceptable accuracy for most of the numerical schemes when Courant number (Cr) is 0.1. All numerical solvers produced similar results for extremely fine meshes; however, some schemes converged faster than others. For instance, the 3rd-order total variation-diminishing method (TVD3) scheme converged at a much coarser mesh than the standard finite difference methods (SFDM) upstream weighting (UW) scheme. The sensitivity of the results to Cr number depends on the numerical scheme as expected.     

Zur Frage der Geoelektrischen Blitzgefährdung

Zusammenfassung Der Verfasser untersucht das Problem, ob die Einschlagstelle des Blitzes auch durch die geoelektrische Bodenbeschaffenheit mitbestimmt ist. Zur Untersuchung dieser Frage wurden bisher Modellversuche, mathematische Berechnungen und Auswertungen der Statistik herangezogen. Der Verfasser kommt durch die Auswertung einer umfangreichen Blitzschlagstatistik, die für österreich angelegt wurde, zu dem Ergebnis, dass es ausgedehnte Gebiete gibt, die wegen ihrer besonderen geoelektrischen Bodenbeschaffenheit stark blitzgefährdet sind und dass auch begrenzte Zonen dieser Art, die sogenannten « Blitznester » existieren.

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Summary The author investigates the problem whether certain places of the ground are especially often struck by lightning and whether this effect is caused by the geoelectrical nature of the underground. By examining a great number of results obtained in Austria the author comes to the solution that the question of the existance of the so-called « lightning nests » must be answered in the affirmative.

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Aus einem Referat auf dem 4. Internationalen Blitzschutzkongress 1956 in Meran.     

Suppositions for the Comparison of Infrared Spectra from Terrestrial Silicates with Interstellar Spectra and the Selection of Suitable Silicates (Mitteilungen der Universitäts-Sternwarte zu Jena Nr. 149)

The influence of potassium bromide on the bands near 10 μm, 18 μm and 33 μm was calculated for any silicate. The wavelength shift, the deepening, and the broadening of the bands were calculated for different band's depths of each band. The results were applied on the investigation of an extensive catalogue of silicate spectra, which were got on the basis of the KBr pressing technique too. So it was possible to picle out those silicates from the variety of silicates, which are probable candidates for the interstellar silicate component.     

Diatomeen-, pollen- und sedimentmikrostratigraphische Untersuchungen zur anthropogenen Beeinflussung des Höllerer Sees (Oberösterreich)

A profundal sediment core from Höllerer See frozen in situ was studied by means of diatom, microstratigraphical tape peel and pollen analyses. Varved sequences reflect eutrophication during mediaeval settlement and according to varve counts a recent eutrophic phase since the 1970's. Mesotrophication in-between coincides with regrowth of forests near the lake.