Preserved organic matter in a fossil Ocean Continent Transition in the Alps: the example of Totalp,SE Switzerland

Evidence from ultraslow spreading mid-ocean ridges and both fossil and present-day Ocean–Continent Transitions (OCT) demonstrates that mantle serpentinization resulting from the interaction of mantle rock and water during tectonic exhumation is widespread. Observations at white smokers in modern ocean settings suggest that methane produced by serpentinization can support methanotrophic bio-systems, which use methane as the only source of carbon. An important question is whether such bio-systems are more generally pervasive in their association with serpentinized mantle in the subsurface. In this study, we examined whether there is evidence for such a methanotrophic system in exhumed serpentinized mantle at a magma-poor rifted continental margin, by probing for characteristic biological markers in these and associated sedimentary rocks in the Totalp unit of SE Switzerland. This unit represents a remnant of the former OCT of the southern Alpine Tethyan margin and was chosen because of its mild Alpine tectonic and low-grade metamorphic overprint during Alpine orogeny, hence giving potential for the preservation of indigenous organic matter (OM). Totalp samples are characterized by low organic carbon contents of 11–647 ppm. The majority of the samples contain hydrocarbons in the form of n-alkanes in the range C₁₇–C₃₆. Some sediments contain isoprenoids, for example pristane and phytane and a suite of steranes that are consistent with a marine origin for the OM preserved in the rocks. Traces of marine planktonic and bacterial OM are preserved in the serpentinized mantle and overlying sediments of this ancient Tethyan OCT, but there is no evidence that the OM has been generated from methanotrophic bio-systems.     

Recent and fossil resins from New Zealand and Australia

The carbon-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectra of fossil resins from New Zealand and Australia have been compared with those of modern and semifossilized materials. The great majority of the fossilized samples have strong spectral similarities to modern Agathis resins and to North American fossil resins, which have been attributed to Agathis. The Agathis-related spectra are different from those of modern Hymenaea and Araucaria. A small subgroup of Late Cretaceous resins from Australia and Papua New Guinea appears to derive from a different botanical source and shows strong resemblances to Claiborne amber from Arkansas. The spectral resonances of the exomethylene carbons degrade over time and on average provide an approximate measure of the geological age of Agathis-related fossil resins. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Foreword

Destructive earthquakes have caused great damage in China and the United States and collapsing buildings have caused many deaths and injuries. The field of earthquake engineering studies     

Characterization of permineralized kerogen from an Eocene fossil fern

The processes of organic maturation that occur during the permineralization of fossils and the detailed chemistry of the resulting products are incompletely understood. Primary among such processes is the geochemical alteration of biological matter to produce kerogen, such as that which comprises the cell walls of the fossils studied here: essentially unmetamorphosed, Eocene plant axes (specimens of the fossil fern Dennstaedtiopsis aerenchymata cellularly permineralized in cherts of the Clarno Formation of Oregon and the Allenby Formation of British Columbia). The composition and molecular structure of the kerogen that comprises the cell walls of such axes were analyzed using ultraviolet Raman spectroscopy (UV–Raman), solid state ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹³C NMR) and pyrolysis–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (py–GC–MS).Cellularly well-preserved fern axes from both geologic units exhibit similar overall molecular structure, being composed primarily of networks of aromatic rings and polyene chains that, unlike more mature kerogens, lack large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) constituents. The cell walls of the Allenby Formation specimens are, however, less altered than those of the Clarno chert, exhibiting more prevalent oxygen-containing and alkyl functional groups and comprising a greater fraction of rock mass.The study represents the first demonstration of the effectiveness (and limitations) of the combined use of UV–Raman, ¹³C NMR and py–GC–MS for the analysis of the kerogenous cell walls of chert-permineralized vascular plants.     

One- and multi-component models of the upper photosphere based on molecular spectra

Non-LTE synthetic spectra derived from a detailed analysis of the formation of the CN (0, 0) λ13883 Å spectrum are compared with center-limb photoelectric spectra taken at Kitt Peak National Observatory. Kitt Peak National Observatory is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under contract with the National Science Foundation. Significant non-LTE effects are found and the Kurucz, Altrock-Cannon, Mount-Linsky II, and HSRA models are compared. We derive a solar carbon abundance of A _c =8.30±0.10 for the Mount-Linsky model and A _c =8.40±0.10 for the Altrock-Cannon model, compared to the HSRA value of A _c =8.55±0.10, assuming a nitrogen abundance of logA _N=7.93. In addition we specify the regions of formation for the CN(0, 0) 3883.35 Å bandhead at disc center and limb.     

Tracing the Electron Density from the Corona to 1 au

We derive the electron density distribution in the ecliptic plane, from the corona to 1 AU, using observations from 13.8 MHz to a few kHz by the radio experiment WAVES aboard the spacecraft Wind. We concentrate on type III bursts whose trajectories intersect the spacecraft, as determined by the presence of burst-associated Langmuir waves, or by energetic electrons observed by the 3-D Plasma experiment. For these bursts we are able to determine the mode of emission, fundamental or harmonic, the electron density at 1 AU, the distance of emission regions along the spiral, and the time spent by the beams as they proceed from the low corona to 1 AU. For all of the bursts considered, the emission mode at burst onset was the fundamental; by contrast, in deriving many previous models, harmonic emission was assumed.By measuring the onset time of the burst at each frequency we are able to derive an electron density model all along the trajectory of the burst. Our density model, after normalizing the density at 1 AU to be ne(215 R0)=7.2 cm–3 (the average value at the minimum of solar activity when our measurements were made), is ne=3.3×105 r–2+4.1×106 r–4+8.0×107 r–6 cm–3, with r in units of R0. For other densities at 1 AU our result implies that the coefficients in the equation need to be multiplied by n _e (1 AU)/7.2.We compare this with existing models and those derived from direct, in-situ measurements (normalized to the same density at 1 AU) and find that it agrees very well with in-situ measurements and poorly with radio models based on apparent source positions or assumptions of the emission mode. One implication of our results is that isolated type III bursts do not usually propagate in dense regions of the corona and solar wind, as it is still sometimes assumed.     

VHF double-peaked spectra at negative Doppler shifts in the morning sector of radio aurora

This paper presents a new Doppler spectral type of VHP (42 MHz) radio auroral backscatter. This spectrum, which has a double-peaked structure, was observed repeatedly during the morning sector of an exceptionally strong event (A_p = 48) and is due to irregularities moving northwards with quite different velocities. The stronger spectral component, which has a smaller Doppler shift, is centred in frequency at ～?130 Hz, corresponding to the ion-acoustic velocity range in the medium; the weak component, which has a greater frequency shift, usually is centred at about ?300 Hz (～ 1050 m s^?1). Evidence based on spectral analysis of sequential short time sequences shows that the spectral power alternates in time between the two distinct frequency bands where the peaks are located, suggesting that the double-peaked spectrum may result from two competing processes which cannot operate simultaneously. The possibility exists that the theoretical model proposed by Sato (1977), which predicts two different quasi-linear stabilization mechanisms for the two-stream instability, could explain the observed double-peaked spectral type.     

Long term storage of relativistic particles in the solar corona

A model is presented which shows that large numbers of energetic electrons (0.3-> 10 MeV) and protons (1–30 MeV) can be stored in the solar corona at altitudes around 3 × 10⁵ km for periods in excess of 5 days. Specific reference is made to the time period July 6–16 1968 as an excellent example of energetic solar particle storage. Time histories of interplanetary charged particle intensities observed by the IMP-4 and Pioneer 8 satellites are used to substantiate this contention. Detailed reference is also made to solar X-ray, optical and radio data obtained during the period in question, in addition to interplanetary magnetometer data. This model provides a unique solution to many hitherto unexplained solar particle events, and can also account for the lack of prompt particle emission from certain large solar flares recorded in the past.