The problem of critical inclination combined with a resonance in mean motion in artificial satellite theory

In this paper the two-degree of freedom problem of a geosynchronous artificial satellite orbiting near the critical inclination is studied. First a local approach of this problem is considered. A semi-numerical method, well suited to describe the perturbations of a non-trivial separable system, is then applied such that surfaces of section illustrating the global secular dynamics are obtained. The results are confirmed by numerical integrations of the full Hamiltonian.Research Assistant for the Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research     

Lava flow internal structure found from AMS and textural data: An example in methodology from the Chaîne des Puys,France

Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) data analysis is a convenient method used to investigate strain and flow during lava flow emplacement. In order to make a sound interpretation, the origin of the AMS signal must be verified. Two questions must be answered: 1) what phase, or phases carry the AMS signal and 2) when was the AMS fabric acquired? The verification steps themselves can provide extra data for interpreting lava flow conditions. Here, we present a methodology to answer the two questions in a 6 km-long Chaîne des Puys trachybasaltic lava flow that descended into the future site of Clermont Ferrand (France) 45,000 years ago. Knowledge of lava flow emplacement will be useful specifically to this site, if a reactivation of the volcanic chain occurs. The results are also of more general interest to understand lava flow emplacement dynamics.     

Understanding mass fluvial erosion along a bank profile: using PEEP technology for quantifying retreat lengths and identifying event timing

This study provides fundamental examination of mass fluvial erosion along a stream bank by identifying event timing, quantifying retreat lengths, and providing ranges of incipient shear stress for hydraulically driven erosion. Mass fluvial erosion is defined here as the detachment of thin soil layers or conglomerates from the bank face under higher hydraulic shear stresses relative to surface fluvial erosion, or the entrainment of individual grains or aggregates under lower hydraulic shear stresses. We explore the relationship between the two regimes in a representative, US Midwestern stream with semi‐cohesive bank soils, namely Clear Creek, IA. Photo‐Electronic Erosion Pins (PEEPs) provide, for the first time, in situ measurements of mass fluvial erosion retreat lengths during a season. The PEEPs were installed at identical locations where surface fluvial erosion measurements exist for identifying the transition point between the two regimes. This transition is postulated to occur when the applied shear stress surpasses a second threshold, namely the critical shear stress for mass fluvial erosion. We hypothesize that the regimes are intricately related and surface fluvial erosion can facilitate mass fluvial erosion. Selective entrainment of unbound/exposed, mostly silt‐sized particles at low shear stresses over sand‐sized sediment can armor the bank surface, limiting the removal of the underlying soil. The armoring here is enhanced by cementation from the presence of optimal levels of sand and clay. Select studies show that fluvial erosion strength can increase several‐fold when appropriate amounts of sand and clay are mixed and cement together. Hence, soil layers or conglomerates are entrained with higher flows. The critical shear stress for mass fluvial erosion was found to be an order of magnitude higher than that of surface fluvial erosion, and proceeded with higher (approximately 2–4 times) erodibility. The results were well represented by a mechanistic detachment model that captures the two regimes. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Impact of Boundary-Layer Processes on Near-Surface Turbulence Within the West African Monsoon

High frequency measurements of near-surface meteorological data acquired in north Benin during the 2006 West African monsoon seasonal cycle, in the context of the African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis (AMMA) experiment, offer insight into the characteristics of surface turbulence in relation to planetary boundary-layer (PBL) processes. A wide range of conditions is encountered at the lower and upper limits of the PBL: (i) from water-stressed to well-fed vegetation, and (ii) from small to large humidity and temperature jumps at the PBL top inversion, due to the Saharan air layer overlying the monsoonal flow. As a result, buoyant convection at the surface and entrainment at the PBL top play very different roles according to the considered scalar. We show that, when the boundary-layer height reaches the shear level between the monsoonal and Harmattan flows, the temperature source and humidity sink at the boundary-layer top are sufficient to allow the entrainment to affect the entire boundary layer down to the surface. This situation occurs mainly during the drying and moistening periods of the monsoon cycle and affects the humidity statistics in particular. In this case, the humidity turbulent characteristics at the surface are no longer driven solely by buoyant convection, but also by entrainment at the boundary-layer top. Consequently, the Monin–Obukhov similarity theory appears to fail for the parameterisation of humidity-related moments.     

Taraxerol and Rhizophora pollen as proxies for tracking past mangrove ecosystems

Angola Basin and Cape Basin (southeast Atlantic) surface sediments and sediment cores show that maxima in the abundance of taraxerol (relative to other land-derived lipids) covary with maxima in the relative abundance of pollen from the mangrove tree genus Rhizophora and that in the surface sediments offshore maxima in the relative abundance of taraxerol occur at latitudes with abundant coastal mangrove forests. Together with the observation that Rhizophora mangle and Rhizophora racemosa leaves are extraordinarily rich in taraxerol, this strongly indicates that taraxerol can be used as a lipid biomarker for mangrove input to the SE Atlantic. The proxy-environment relations for taraxerol and Rhizophora pollen down-core show that increased taraxerol and Rhizophora pollen abundances occur during transgressions and periods with a humid climate. These environmental changes modify the coastal erosion and sedimentation patterns, enhancing the extent of the mangrove ecosystem and/or the transport of mangrove organic matter offshore. Analyses of mid-Pleistocene sediments show that interruption of the pattern of taraxerol maxima during precession minima occurs almost only during periods of low obliquity. This demonstrates the complex environmental response of the interaction between precession-related humidity cycles and obliquity-related sea-level changes on mangrove input.     

Validation of age and growth of the Picasso triggerfish (Balistidae: Rhinecanthus aculeatus) from Okinawa Island, Japan, using sectioned vertebrae and dorsal spines

To understand age and growth of the Picasso triggerfish, Rhinecanthus aculeatus, monthly sampling was conducted from February 2010 to October 2011 on the subtropical Okinawa Island, Japan, using trammel net and speargun. Fish were measured by weight (W) and standard length (SL) and age was determined by examining thin-sections of the first dorsal spine and the second abdominal vertebra. A total of 352 fish were caught ranging from 20.9?mm to 209.5?mm (SL). Marginal increment analysis indicated that translucent rings were deposited annually during the colder season from October to January. The relationship of observed SL and age was described by the original form of the von Bertalanffy growth equation. Male and female growth models were significantly different. Overall growth was rapid during the first 2.5?years for both sexes, thereafter growth curves diverged. Males consequently reached larger sizes and greater ages. Maximum age for males and females was 13.5 and 9.5?years, respectively. Regression models of somatic growth (SL) as a function of vertebral and spine radii were significantly correlated (r?=?0.98 and r?=?0.96, respectively). According to the weight?Clength relationship, growth in R. aculeatus was negative allometric. Small recruits (SL?<?40?mm) appeared in high numbers in shallow coastal areas starting from August. This is the first record of age and growth for R. aculeatus. Our data suggest that the Picasso triggerfish is a moderately long-lived balistid and that the observed sex-specific growth pattern is driven by the fish??s polygynous mating system and different reproduction strategies of males and females.     

Minor changes in surface-water fertility across the oceanic anoxic event 1d (latest Albian,SE France) evidenced by calcareous nannofossils

The latest Albian sediments deposited in the Vocontian basin in south-eastern France record the oceanic anoxic event (OAE) 1d, locally named the Breistroffer interval. They are represented by argillaceous marls and marls, containing organic matter (total organic carbon varying from 0.8 to 1%). Changes in calcareous nannofossil abundance and assemblage composition as well as macrofauna abundance, ichnofossil assemblage, and bioturbation intensity were analysed in order to evaluate the main palaeoenvironmental factors controlling the deposition of the OAE 1d sediments in this area. The pelagic carbonate production is limited and the carbonate fraction is predominantly of nektonic/benthic, and of allochthonous origin from carbonate platforms. The enrichment in organic carbon within the Breistroffer interval is weak and not associated with high surface-water productivity. The organic matter is mainly terrigenous. Its record is due to (1) a good preservation under dysoxic conditions within the sediments, and (2) a weak input of allochthonous carbonates. Eustatic fluctuations strongly influenced the variations of nannofossil and macrofauna abundances. Distinctive patterns in nannofossil assemblages and macrofauna abundances within the Breistroffer interval are also recognized, reflecting changes from mesotrophic to more oligotrophic conditions which are probably controlled by climate.     

Luni-solar effects of geosynchronous orbits at the critical inclination

The luni-solar effects of a geosynchronous artificial satellite orbiting near the critical inclination is investigated. To tackle this four-degrees-of-freedom problem, a preliminary exploration separately analyzing each harmonic formed by a combination of the satellite longitude of the node and the Moon longitude of the node is opportune. This study demonstrates that the dynamics induced by these harmonics does not show resonance phenomena. In a second approach, the number of degrees of freedom is halved by averaging the total Hamiltonian over the two non-resonant angular variables. A semi-numerical method can now be applied as was done when considering solely the inhomogeneity of the geopotential (see Delhaise et Henrard, 1992). Approximate surfaces of section are constructed in the plane of the inclination and argument of perigee. The main effects of the Sun and Moon attractions compared to the terrestrial attraction alone are a strong increase in the amplitude of libration in inclination (from 0.6° to 3.2°) and a decrease of the corresponding libration period (from the order of 200 years to the order of 20 years).Research Assistant for the Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research     

Évaluation de la mobilité des métaux dans les sédiments fluviaux du bassin de la Vire (Normandie,France) par extractions simples ou séquentielles

This work compares the quantities of labile metals removed from the Vire River (Normandy) sediments by a sequential extraction procedure to those liberated by single leaches (Mg(NO₃)₂, HCl and EDTA). Compared to the other extractions, Mg(NO₃)₂ underestimated the mobility results. The sequential procedure was the most aggressive, except for Ca and Pb. The hypothetic correlation between quantities of an element removed by single leaches and its fractionation in the sediment according to the sequential procedure was not satisfying. Finally, it should be underlined that enrichments of Cd, Pb and Zn were noticed in the Vire sediments. To cite this article: L. Leleyter, F. Baraud, C. R. Geoscience 337 (2005).