Processing of cometary grains at the nucleus surface

Cometary material inevitably undergoes chemical changes before and on leaving the nucleus. In seeking to explain comets as the origin of many IDPs (interplanetary dust particles), an understanding of potential surface chemistry is vital. Grains are formed and transformed at the nucleus surface; much of the cometary volatiles may arise from the organic material. In cometary near-surface permafrost, one expects cryogenic chemistry with crystal growth and isotope. This could be the hydrous environment where IDPs form. Seasonal and geographic variations imply a range of environmental conditions and surface evolution. Interplanetary dust impacts and electrostatic forces also have roles in generating cometary dust. The absence of predicted cometary dust envelopes is compatible with the wide range of particle structures and compositions. Study of IDPs would distinguish between this model and alternatives that see comets as aggregates of core-mantle grains built in interstellar clouds.     

Dynamical evolution of comets and the problem of cometary fading

Possibilities to explain the observed 1/a-distribution are discussed in the light of improved understanding of the dynamical evolution of long-period comets. It appears that the fading problem applies both to single-injection and continuous-injection models. Although uncertainties due to nongravitational effects do not allow detailed results to be drawn from the observed 1/a-distribution at small perihelion distance q, that for q 1.5 AU shows that a constant fading probability cannot explain all the features of the observed distribution. Assuming that comets can reappear following a period of fading, values for the assumed constant fading and renewal probabilities, and the total cometary flux have been estimated for q > 1.5 AU.     

The solar surface differential rotation from disk-integrated chromospheric fluxes

Disk-integrated solar chromospheric Caii K-line (3933.68 ) fluxes have been measured almost daily at Sacramento Peak Observatory since 1977. Using observing windows selected to mimic seasonal windows for chromospheric measurements of lower Main-Sequence stars such as those observed by Mount Wilson Observatory's HK Project, we have measured the solar rotation from the modulation of the Caii K-line flux. We track the change of rotation period from the decline of cycle 21 through the maximum of cycle 22. This variation in rotation period is shown to behave as expected from the migration of active regions in latitude according to Maunder's butterfly diagram, including an abrupt change in rotation period at the transition from cycle 21 to cycle 22. These results indicate the successful detection of solar surface differential rotation from disk-integrated observations. We argue that the success of our study compared to previous investigations of the solar surface differential rotation from disk-integrated fluxes lies primarily with the choice of the length of the time-series window. Our selection of 200 days is shorter than in previous studies whose windows are typically on the order of one year. The 200-day window is long enough to permit an accurate determination of the rotation period, yet short enough to avoid complications arising from active region evolution. Thus, measurements of the variation of rotation period in lower Main-Sequence stars, especially those that appear to be correlated with long-term changes in chromospheric activity (i.e., cycles), are probably evidence for stellar surface differential rotation.     

Dynamical evolution of NEAs: Close encounters, secular perturbations and resonances

We discuss the main mechanisms affecting the dynamical evolution of Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) by analyzing the results of three numerical integrations over 1 Myr of the NEA (4179) Toutatis. In the first integration the only perturbing planet is the Earth. So the evolution is dominated by close encounters and looks like a random walk in semimajor axis and a correlated random walk in eccentricity, keeping almost constant the perihelion distance and the Tisserand invariant. In the second integration Jupiter and Saturn are present instead of the Earth, and the 3/1 (mean motion) and v ₆ (secular) resonances substantially change the eccentricity but not the semimajor axis. The third, most realistic, integration including all the three planets together shows a complex interplay of effects, with close encounters switching the orbit between different resonant states and no approximate conservation of the Tisserand invariant. This shows that simplified 3-body or 4-body models cannot be used to predict the typical evolution patterns and time scales of NEAs, and in particular that resonances provide some fast-track dynamical routes from low-eccentricity to very eccentric, planet-crossing orbits.On leave from the Department of Mathematics, University of Pisa, Via Buonarroti 2, 56127 Pisa, Italy, thanks to the G. Colombo fellowships of the European Space Agency.     

我国西南地区现代构造应力场与现代构造活动特征的探讨

本文通过对我国西南地区以及相邻的越南、缅甸北部地区的51个地震的震源机制结果和10个地震破裂带资料的力学分析,讨论了我国西南地区现代构造应力场分区及现代构造活动特征。并得出由鲜水河断裂带、安宁河断裂带、小江断裂带、通海曲江断裂带和红河断裂带所围成的一个不封闭菱形地块相对外围区域有向南南东移动的趋势。此菱形地块控制着我国西南地区的主要地震活动。     

地电台址大范围介质条件的数值模拟研究

本文取两类震源模型,即“闭锁”模型和“膨胀”模型进行数值模拟,计算了大范围层状介质在多种不同组合情况下,其应力、应变场的分布,并进而计算了由附加应力、应变产生的视电阻率变化量。结果表明,不同介质组合对地电阻率前兆异常观测的影响不同,有利于发现前兆异常的大范围介质条件是:(1)坚硬层孕震;(2)孕育地震的高强度坚硬层要薄;(3)地表疏松覆盖层不能太厚。此外,计算结果还表明,地电台站探测范围内的介质力学,电性条件对前兆异常观测也有重大影响。     

Characteristics of afferent activity of ampullary electroreceptors in catfish Parasilurus asotus

The spontaneous and evoked activity of electroreceptors were electrophysiologically studied. The results are:

井下记录的PP和SS震相

本文在系统分析静海台井下地震记录图的基础上,发现并解决了具有一定实际和理论意义的两个问题:其一是证明了最初误认为是干扰的“双脉冲”图形实际上均是微地震。从而指出研究静海周围地区的地震活动性应考虑微震活动问题。其二确认静海周围地区微震波形的4个主要震相是P、PP、S和SS,并对地面反射波PP和SS能够观测到的条件作了初步分析,其结果进一步说明井下地震记录较之地面记录更为“逼真”,复杂和丰富。     

Two methods of orthogonally stepwise discrimination and their applications

In this paper, we describe two methods of discrimination based on MSE ratio and regression, respectively, and an algorithm of orthogonally stepwise discrimination. The method is not limited by the assumption that the sample covariance matrix is not ill-conditioned or singular, and by any assumption about the distribution of each population as well. So, it has wide range of application to various problems, particularly, to the problem of discrimination with both quantitative and qualitative variables. After variables are selected in the procedure of stepwise discrimination, they need not be rejected. Several examples have been calculated by using the method, and the results are quite satisfying.