Experimental impact cratering: A summary of the major results of the MEMIN research unit

This paper reviews major findings of the Multidisciplinary Experimental and Modeling Impact Crater Research Network (MEMIN). MEMIN is a consortium, funded from 2009 till 2017 by the German Research Foundation, and is aimed at investigating impact cratering processes by experimental and modeling approaches. The vision of this network has been to comprehensively quantify impact processes by conducting a strictly controlled experimental campaign at the laboratory scale, together with a multidisciplinary analytical approach. Central to MEMIN has been the use of powerful two-stage light-gas accelerators capable of producing impact craters in the decimeter size range in solid rocks that allowed detailed spatial analyses of petrophysical, structural, and geochemical changes in target rocks and ejecta. In addition, explosive setups, membrane-driven diamond anvil cells, as well as laser irradiation and split Hopkinson pressure bar technologies have been used to study the response of minerals and rocks to shock and dynamic loading as well as high-temperature conditions. We used Seeberger sandstone, Taunus quartzite, Carrara marble, and Weibern tuff as major target rock types. In concert with the experiments we conducted mesoscale numerical simulations of shock wave propagation in heterogeneous rocks resolving the complex response of grains and pores to compressive, shear, and tensile loading and macroscale modeling of crater formation and fracturing. Major results comprise (1) projectile–target interaction, (2) various aspects of shock metamorphism with special focus on low shock pressures and effects of target porosity and water saturation, (3) crater morphologies and cratering efficiencies in various nonporous and porous lithologies, (4) in situ target damage, (5) ejecta dynamics, and (6) geophysical survey of experimental craters.     

Variability and propagation of Labrador Sea Water in the southern subpolar North Atlantic

The variability of two modes of Labrador Sea Water (LSW) (upper and deep Labrador Sea Water) and their respective spreading in the interior North Atlantic Ocean are investigated by means of repeated ship surveys carried out along the zonal WOCE line A2/AR19 located at 43–48°N (1993–2007) and along the GOOS line at about 48–51°N (1997–2002). Hydrographic section data are complemented by temperature, salinity, and velocity time series recorded by two moorings. They have been deployed at the western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) in the Newfoundland Basin during 1996–2004. The analysis of hydrographic anomalies at various longitudes points to a gradual eastward propagation of LSW-related signals, which happens on time scales of 3–6 years from the formation region towards the MAR. Interactions of the North Atlantic Current (NAC) with the Deep Western Boundary Current (DWBC) close to Flemish Cap point to the NAC being the main distributor of the different types of LSW into the interior of the Newfoundland Basin. Comparisons between the ship data and the mooring records revealed that the mooring sites are located in a region affected by highly variable flow. The mooring time series demonstrate an elevated level of variability with eddy activity and variability associated with the NAC considerably influencing the LSW signals in this region. Hydrographic data taken from Argo profiles from the vicinity of the mooring sites turned out to mimic quite well the temporal evolution captured by the moorings. There is some indication of occasional southward flow in the LSW layer near the MAR. If this can be considered as a hint to an interior LSW-route, it is at least of minor importance in comparison to the DWBC. It acts as an important supplier for the interior North Atlantic, distributing older and recently formed LSW modes southward along the MAR.     

DARCY'S COEFFICIENT OF PERMEABILITY AS SYMMETRIC TENSOR OF SECOND RANK

Synopsis

The dynamic equation of motion that governs the laminar flow of water through soils is the empirical equation of Darcy. According to Darcy's equation the velocity of the flowing water is proportional to the hydraulic gradient under which the water is flowing, with the constant of proportionality being the coefficient of permeability. The interesting question arising is whether or not the coefficient of permeability is a scalar quantity (having only a magnitude) or a vector (having both magnitude and direction). It is proved, in the present paper, that the permeability coefficient is neither a scalar nor a vector but a symmetric tensor of second rank. The fact that the permeability tensor is symmetric gives rise to great simplifications and permits a simple graphical construction of the tensor ellipsoid. Having the tensor ellipsoid, the determination of the direction at which the water will flow under a known imposed hydraulic gradient can be found graphically. In case of isotropic soils (the permeability coefficient has the same value along any direction) the ellipsoid reduces to a sphere and the tensor becomes a scalar. In the general case of anisotropic soils the permeability tensor is an entity with nine elements, six of which are independent representing pure extension or contraction along the three principal coordinate axes, thus transforming the permeability sphere into an ellipsoid and vice versa. It should be noted that in anisotropic soils the only directions along which the flow takes place in the direction of the hydraulic gradient are those of the principal axes of the tensor ellipsoid.

Permeability tests were conducted on anisotropic sandstone samples taken at different directions with respect to rectangular coordinates. The permeability coefficient values plotted on a two-dimensional polar coordinate graph paper give rise to an ellipse substantiating therefore the tensor concept of the permeability coefficient. The graphical construction of the tensor ellipse and the use of it in order to obtain the direction of flow by knowing the direction of the hydraulic gradient is also shown.     

Australia's great comet hunter

John Tebbutt was Australia's pre-eminent 19th-century astronomer who discovered two great comets of that century. Ragbir Bathal tells his story.     

MinIdent: An application to the identification and classification of amphiboles

Summary Amphibole data in the MinIdent database (Smith andLeibovitz, 1986) were initially entered using species names quoted in the original source. The database has been updated by reclassifying these early data using the program AMPHTAB supplied by N. M. S. Rock and by adding supplemental data from the more recent literature, with the species names again checked using AMPHTAB. Associated MinIdent mineral identification software was utilized to determine which minerals in the database most closely resemble a series of unknown specimens chemically, as expressed in the Chemical Matching Index, CM, a relative figure-of-merit. Chemical data fromMogessie and Tessadri (1982) and Hawthorne (1983) were used to check the agreement between MinIdent and AMPHTAB for the classification of 221 unknown amphiboles.With 450 amphibole analyses entered and compiled in MinIdent, the name assigned by AMPHTAB showed the highest value of CM in MinIdent for 127 of the 221 unknown amphiboles (57.5°/x) and the second highest value for another 32 (14.5%). A chemically adjacent amphibole field had the highest value of CM for 59 of the 221 unknowns (26.7%), where chemically adjacent refers to a change in one chemical parameter. The greatest discrepancy between the two programs occurred in the hornblendes, with an agreement of just 20%, although for 58% of the unknowns the species with the highest CM in MinIdent was in a chemical field adjacent to the species name assigned by AMPHTAB. In many cases the disagreement between MinIdent and AMPHTAB could be ascribed to a lack of data in MinIdent.A comparison of the two programs suggests that the assignment of a single name to an unknown amphibole by AMPHTAB with no direct indication of its reliability may be; misleading. Standard analytical errors are frequently sufficient to overlap the arbitrary boundaries between amphibole species fields. In such cases it may be preferable to use a program such as MinIdent which, rather than assigning an arbitrary amphibole name, presents a list of 20 amphiboles with the degree of similarity between them and the unknown amphibole indicated. MinIdent offers the additional benefit of allowing input of other than chemical data and bases the match between unknown and standard data upon all input data. This will become more of an advantage as instruments such as automated refractometers become available for routine use.

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Zusammenfassung Ausgangspunkt war das Amphibol-Datenmaterial (Smith und Leibovitz, 1986) mit den dort verwendeten Artnamen. Diese Basisdaten wurden vervollständigt und erneuert durch Reklassifizierung mittels des AMPHTAB Programms, ergänzt durch N. M. S. Rock, und durch Hinzufügung weiterer Daten aus der neuesten Literatur, deren Speciesnamen wiederum mit AMPHTAB überprüft wurden. Außerdem wurde eine MinIdent Mineralidentifizierungs-Software verwendet, um die Minerale zu bestimmen, die in ihrem Chemismus am ehesten einer Serie von unbekannten Amphibol-Species entsprechen, wie sie im Chemical Matching Index (CM) aufscheinen. Zur Klassifikation von 221 unbekannten Amphibolen wurden chemische Daten von Mogessie und Tessadri (1982) verwendet um die Übereinstimmung zwischen MinIdent und AMPHTAB zu überprüfen.Unter den 450 in MinIdent zusammengestellten und eingegebenen Amphibolanalysen zeigen die bei AMPHTAB angegebenen die höchsten CM Werte, nämlich 127 von 221 unbekannten Amphibolen (57,5%) und weitere 32 (14,5%) die zweithöchsten Werte. Innerhalb eines chemisch benachbarten Amphibolfeldes hatten 59 der 221 unbekannten Amphibole (26,7%) die höchsten CM Werte, wobei unter achemisch benachbart die Änderung eines chemischen Parameters zu verstehen ist. Die größten Unterschiede zwischen den beiden Programmen traten bei den Hornblenden auf. Die Übereinstimmung lag bei nur 20%, obwohl bei 58% der unbekannten Amphibole die Species mit dem höchsten CM Wert in MinIdent in ein chemisches Feld zu liegen kamen, welches zu den bei AMPHTAB angegebenen Speciesnamen eine benachbarte Position einnimmt. Die Unterschiede zwischen MinIdent und AMPHTAB könnten in vielen Fällen auf ein Fehlen von Daten in MinIdent zurükzuführen sein.Ein Vergleich beider Programme deutet an, daß die Angabe eines Einzelnamens für ein unbekanntes Amphibol im AMPHTAB Programm ohne Angaben über die Zuverlässigkeit zu Mißverständnissen führen kann. Normale analytische Fehler können bereits dazu führen, daß die Grenzen zweier willkürlicher Amphibolfelder überlappen. In derartigen Fällen emphiehlt sich die Anwendung des MinIdent Programmes, welches eben nicht einen willkürlichen Amphibolnamen angibt, sondern eine Liste von 20 Amphibolen mit dem Grad ihrer Ähnlichkeit, und einem Hinweis auf den unbekannten Amphibol. MinIdent bietet den zusätzlichen Vorteil, daß man außer chemischen auch andere Daten eingeben kann, und stellt dann sämtliche Daten des unbekannten Amphibols den Standard Daten gegenüber. Dieser Klassifizierungsvorgang wird mit der zunehmenden Routineanwendung von automatischen Refraktometern verstärkte Anwendung finden.

     

Industrialisation in Fiji: Industrial structure and organisation

This paper analyses the significance, structure, and organisation of the manufacturing sector in Fiji, drawing on the author's earlier much larger study of industrialisation in Fiji. The latest Fijian census of industrial production (1984) and the author's 1983 survey of manufacturers in Fiji provide the main statistical basis of the study, which shows that the manufacturing sector is a moderately important component of the Fijian economy. It is dominated by resource industries, particularly food processing, but a wide range of manufacturing activities have, nonetheless, developed. There is a substantial number of small manufacturing establishments with a few large establishments, the latter, however, making an overwhelmingly important contribution to employment, gross output and value added. The market structure in the manufacturing sector is dominated by monopolies and oligopolies resulting from Fiji's small domestic market and its import substitution industrialisation strategy. There is an absence of informal sector activities in Fijian manufacturing, most firms being incorporated companies. The state has a major role as a direct producer in Fijian manufacturing. There are bound to be major changes in the manufacturing sector due to Fiji's current political crisis, but this paper does not address these because of the recency of the events and the consequent unavailability of relevant data.     

Acidic deposition impacts mediated by sulfur cycling in a coastal plain forest ecosystem

Deposition in the New Jersey Pinelands was very acidic (pH=4.17) and contained high levels of SO₂ ⁻² based on bulk deposition measurementsfrom July 1984–July 1986. Streamwater over the same interval in undisturbed watersheds was less acidic (pH =4.52) and had proportionately less SO₄ ⁻². A preliminary alkalinity budget for undisturbed watersheds suggested that SO₄ ⁻² retention within Pinelands watersheds accounted for a large portion of the total alkalinity generated and thereby lessened the impact of acidic deposition on surface waters. The only process capable of explaining the retention of SO₄ ⁻² was microbial sulfate reduction in the extensive wetlands surrounding Pinelands streams which occurred at high rates.