Observations of OH maser lines at an 18-cm wavelength in 9P/Temper1 and Lulin C/2007 N3 comets with RT-22 at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory

Investigations on OH maser lines in comets have been performed with the RT-22 at CrAO. The results of observations of 9P/Temper1 and Lulin C/2007 N3 comets in the OH molecule line at a wavelength of 18 cm are presented. An original technique for observation data analysis has been developed. The gas production rate of OH molecules in these comets is estimated.     

Observations of the structure and evolution of solar flares with a soft X-ray telescope

132 soft X-ray flare events have been observed with The Aerospace Corporation/Marshall Space Flight Center S-056 X-ray telescope that was part of the ATM complement of instruments aboard Skylab. Analyses of these data are reported in this paper. The observations are summarized and a detailed discussion of the X-ray flare structures is presented. The data indicated that soft X-rays emitted by a flare come primarily from an intense well-defined core surrounded by a region of fainter, more diffuse emission. Loop structures are found to constitute a fundamental characteristic of flare cores and arcades of loops are found to play a more important role in the flare phenomena than previously thought. Size distributions of these core features are presented and a classification scheme describing the brightest flare X-ray features is proposed. The data show no correlations between the size of core features and: (1) the peak X-ray intensity, as indicated by detectors on the SOLRAD satellite; (2) the rise time of the X-ray flare event, or (3) the presence of a nonthermal X-ray component. An analysis of flare evolution indicates evidence for preliminary heating and energy release prior to the main phase of the flare. Core features are found to be remarkably stable and retain their shape throughout a flare. Most changes in the overall configuration seem to be the result of the appearance, disappearance or change in brightness of individual features, rather than the restructuring or re-orientation of these features. Brief comparisons with several theories are presented.     

Dunes on Titan observed by Cassini Radar

Thousands of longitudinal dunes have recently been discovered by the Titan Radar Mapper on the surface of Titan. These are found mainly within ±30° of the equator in optically-, near-infrared-, and radar-dark regions, indicating a strong proportion of organics, and cover well over 5% of Titan's surface. Their longitudinal duneform, interactions with topography, and correlation with other aeolian forms indicate a single, dominant wind direction aligned with the dune axis plus lesser, off-axis or seasonally alternating winds. Global compilations of dune orientations reveal the mean wind direction is dominantly eastwards, with regional and local variations where winds are diverted around topographically high features, such as mountain blocks or broad landforms. Global winds may carry sediments from high latitude regions to equatorial regions, where relatively drier conditions prevail, and the particles are reworked into dunes, perhaps on timescales of thousands to tens of thousands of years. On Titan, adequate sediment supply, sufficient wind, and the absence of sediment carriage and trapping by fluids are the dominant factors in the presence of dunes.     

Silica diagenesis in Eocene shallow-water platform carbonates, southern Pyrenees

Spectacularly developed lower Eocene chert in the Corones platform carbonates of the Spanish Pyrenees is concentrated within a restricted, brackish-water, laminated ostracod-rich facies, which also contains abundant sponge spicules. The chert occurs as nodular, bedded and mottled varieties, and four petrographic types of quartz are developed: microquartz; length-fast (LF) chalcedony; megaquartz; and microspheres. δ¹⁸O values of chert range from 29·6‰ to 30·9‰ (SMOW), which correspond to a broad isotope rank common for biogenic and diagenetic replacement cherts. Calcian dolomite crystals with high Fe and Na are disseminated within the microquartz and LF-chalcedony, but are absent from the megaquartz and host carbonate. The chert is closely associated with desiccation cracks and with interstratal dewatering structures. Load casts are silicified, and laminae rich in sponge spicules are convoluted. Early cracks related to dewatering are filled by microquartz and quartz cements. Ostracod shells within chert are locally fractured; those in the host carbonate are commonly flattened. Late fractures are filled by LF-chalcedony and megaquartz. There is much evidence for the dissolution of sponge spicules and their calcitization in the carbonate host rock. Silica for the Corones cherts was derived from sponges during early diagenesis and shallow burial. Early mechanical compaction and sediment dewatering played a major role in sponge spicule dissolution, migration of silica-rich fluids and the consequent precipitation of chert. Quartz cements continued to be precipitated into the burial environment.     

Noble gases in eleven H-chondrites

He, Ne, Ar and Xe were measured in aliquots of 11 H-chondrites, to complement trace element studies on the same meteorites (Laulet al., 1972). Bielokrynitschie, Charsonville, Pultusk and Supuhee have lost radiogenic gases before cosmic-ray exposure and Doroninsk, during exposure.     

Simulating the moderating effect of a lake on downwind temperatures

A steady-state, two-dimensional numerical model is used to simulate air temperatures and humidity downwind of a lake at night. Thermal effects of the lake were modelled for the case of moderate and low surface winds under the cold-air advective conditions that occur following the passage of a cold front. Surface temperatures were found to be in good agreement with observations. A comparison of model results with thermal imagery indicated the model successfully predicts the downwind distance for which thermal effects due to the lake are significant.     

The measurement and extraction of the <nu>6 atmospheric emission band of CFC-12 from interfering emission features

Ground-based thermal emission measurements of the zenith sky have been made at Peterborough, Ontario since January 1993. In this paper, the measurement of the ₆ band of atmospheric CFC-12, an important greenhouse gas, is presented for a cold, clear day in January 1994. A spectrum of the non-CFC-12 emission features has been simulated using the FASCD3P radiation code and measured radiosonde profiles of temperature, pressure and humidity. This has enabled a satisfactory subtraction of the interfering emission features from the CFC-12 emission spectrum. A comparison of the observed and simulated ₆-bands of CFC-12 shows good agreement at all frequencies of emission. From these spectra the total downward greenhouse radiative flux from the CFC-12 ₆ emission based for a very cold day has been estimated to be 0.27 W m⁻²±10%.     

Automated mapping of rock slope geometry,kinematics and stability with RSS-GIS

A GIS-implemented, deterministic approach for the automated spatial evaluation of geometrical and kinematical properties of rock slope terrains is presented. Based on spatially distributed directional information on planar geological fabrics and DEM-derived topographic attribute data, the internal geometry of rock slopes can be characterized on a grid cell basis. For such computations, different approaches for the analysis and regionalization of available structural directional information applicable in specific tectonic settings are demonstrated and implemented in a GIS environment. Simple kinematical testing procedures based on feasibility criteria can be conducted on a pixel basis to determine which failure mechanisms are likely to occur at particular terrain locations. In combination with hydraulic and strength data on geological discontinuities, scenario-based rock slope stability evaluations can be performed. For conceptual investigations on rock slope failure processes, a GIS-based specification tool for a 2-D distinct element code (UDEC) was designed to operate with the GIS-encoded spatially distributed rock slope data. The concepts of the proposed methodology for rock slope hazard assessments are demonstrated at three different test sites in Germany.     

Separation of global time-variable gravity signals into maximally independent components

The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) products provide valuable information about total water storage variations over the whole globe. Since GRACE detects mass variations integrated over vertical columns, it is desirable to separate its total water storage anomalies into their original sources. Among the statistical approaches, the principal component analysis (PCA) method and its extensions have been frequently proposed to decompose the GRACE products into space and time components. However, these methods only search for decorrelated components that on the one hand are not always interpretable and on the other hand often contain a superposition of independent source signals. In contrast, independent component analysis (ICA) represents a technique that separates components based on assumed statistical independence using higher-order statistical information. If one assumes that independent physical processes generate statistically independent signal components added up in the GRACE observations, separating them by ICA is a reliable strategy to identify these processes. In this paper, the performance of the conventional PCA, its rotated extension and ICA are investigated when applied to the GRACE-derived total water storage variations. These analyses have been tested on both a synthetic example and on the real GRACE level-2 monthly solutions derived from GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam (GFZ RL04) and Bonn University (ITG2010). Within the synthetic example, we can show how imposing statistical independence in the framework of ICA improves the extraction of the ‘original’ signals from a GRACE-type super-position. We are therefore confident that also for the real case the ICA algorithm, without making prior assumptions about the long-term behaviour or on the frequencies contained in the signal, improves over the performance of PCA and its rotated extension in the separation of periodical and long-term components.