Analytical two-dimensional model of a quadrupole magnetosphere

A model of a quadrupole magnetosphere is developed with the aid of conformal mappings. Such a type of magnetosphere might have occurred at the Earth during times of polarity reversals of the dipole field, when the residual field essentially may have had a quadrupole structure. The magnetospheric field-line configuration is calculated for an axial quadrupole directed perpendicular to the solar-wind flow. The model is two-dimensional and leads to analytical formulae.     

Alternative approaches for analyses of a 100,000 m<Superscript>3</Superscript> rock slide based on Barton–Bandis shear strength criterion

A data set was derived for the Åknes rock slope, Norway, with the main focus on deriving input parameters for the Barton–Bandis shear strength criterion. Back-calculations of a 100,000 m³ rock slide were performed for evaluation of the data set. The limit equilibrium analysis showed that the joint roughness coefficient (JRC) has the greatest effect on the calculated safety factor of the slide. Probabilistic computations showed that the JRC stands out as the most important contributor to the total uncertainty over the whole set of variables and that the computed failure probability of the 1960 slide was very high, which may be interpreted that the input variables and the Barton–Bandis shear strength criterion are reasonable for the slide. JRC was measured on 0.25 m scale and on 1 m scale. The results from the two scales were different.     

Identification of the projectile at the Brent crater,and further considerations of projectile types at terrestrial craters

Impact melt samples from drill hole B1-59 at the 3.8 km diameter Brent crater (Ontario) have been analysed for siderophile trace elements indicative of meteoritic contamination. Samples from the basal melt zone at 823–857 m depth are enriched in Ir, Os, Pd, Ni, Co, Cr and Se over basement, with the abundance pattern suggesting a chondritic projectile for Brent. From a Ni-Cr correlation of 10 melt samples an L or LL chondrite is inferred. The contribution of an ultramafic country rock (alnoite) in the melt is too small to significantly influence its $\text{Ni}\text{Cr}$ ratio. Glass-rich breccias from the allochthonous breccias filling the crater also contain a meteoritic component. Interelement ratios (e.g. $\text{Ni}\text{Cr}$) are, however, fractionated relative to the melt zone samples. This, as well as the low Au content of all Brent samples, is probably a product of alteration.Additional data on impact melts from the 65 km diameter crater Manicouagan still did not reveal a meteoritic component, as also for the Mistastin crater (28 km diameter) where Cr analyses set an upper limit of 1% of an achondritic projectile component in the melt. Irghizites (tektite like glasses) from the Zhamanshin impact structure have been found to contain high Ni and Co concentrations, and our data show that Ir is also enriched. It is however not possible to define the projectile-type. Enrichment of an Ivory Coast tektite in Ir is confirmed. There are large differences in siderophile element concentrations among tektites, with otherwise similar chemical composition.There are now four known craters formed by chondrites (Clearwater East, Lapparjärvi, Wanapitei, and Brent), with Brent being the smallest of these. For smaller craters the projectiles appear to be limited to iron or stony-iron meteorites, because of atmospheric destruction of relatively small stony meteorites. It appears, however, that all major classes of meteorites are represented among the projectiles at terrestrial impact craters.     

Interpretation of metal concentrations in estuarine sediments of Florida using aluminum as a reference element

Metal contamination of estuarine sediments is an increasing problem in Florida and elsewhere as urbanization extends into previously undeveloped areas. Effective estuarine management practices require scientifically valid tools to assess the extent of estuarine contamination. Interpretation of anthropogenic metal contributions has been hampered by the fact that natural metal concentrations in sediments vary by orders of magnitude in different sediments. Normalization of metal concentrations to a reference element, aluminum, appears to be a promising method for comparing estuarine sediment metal concentrations on a regional basis. In this paper we describe an interpretive method based on the relationship between sediment metals and aluminum derived from statewide data on natural estuarine sediments in Florida. We show how the method can be used to interpret metal concentrations with an example using data from the Miami River and Biscayne Bay.     

Submarine cables: a challenge for ocean management

The international submarine cable industry is a major component of the global telecommunications system, providing important services and requiring increased levels of protection for the maintenance of global economic and maritime security, broadly defined. An overview is given of the submarine cable industry, including its technological developments, legal aspects, security considerations, and implications for integrated ocean planning and management. In the context of multiple ocean use, submarine cables can cause spatial conflicts with other ocean users, particularly the fishing industry. Issues to be examined include compensation for lost or damaged gear, legal liability for cable damage, and regulation and licensing of cables on the seabed of the continental shelf and the high seas. Recent industry-to-industry agreements and programs for compensation to fishers in the USA and Canada are significant advancements in the implementation of integrated approaches to ocean management and planning. The development of transparent and stable interdepartmental processes for the coordinated planning, management and regulation of submarine cables is required for national EEZs. The regulation of international cable industry practices must be harmonized with national management approaches.     

Rheological characteristics of mixed kaolin–sand slurry,impacts of pH,temperature, solid concentration and kaolin–sand mixing ratio

Significant amount of slurry waste is produced from mineral processing plants globally constituting high levels of both kaolin and sand in aqueous suspension. Large quantities of slurry and mine tailings require efficient handling, transportation and storage system. The transportation and treatment of kaolin–sand slurry is dependent on its rheological behaviour which is a function of temperature, total solid concentration and pH. In this study, the effects of total solid concentration, pH and temperature on rheological behaviour of kaolin–sand mixture were investigated. These parameters were varied to analyse the viscosity, yield stress, flow index and shear force requirements of the mixed kaolin–sand suspension as a function of these varying parameters. Experimental rheological investigation conducted on rotational stress-controlled rheometer equipped with Peltier concentric cylinder system showed that the kaolin–sand mixture suspension is shear thickening in nature. The shear stress-rate rheograms for the kaolin–sand suspension can be modelled by the Herschel–Bulkley model with high levels of accuracy for pH range of 4–11, temperature range of 20–50 °C and solid concentration of 5–50 %. Solid concentration of the suspension was found to significantly affect the rheological behaviour of the mixture where higher kaolin–sand slurry concentration resulted in greater viscosity and the trend becoming less predictable for solid concentration greater than 50 % by weight. pH was another factor affecting the rheological behaviour of kaolin–sand slurry. pH of 3 or less resulted in the dramatic increase of viscosity of the suspension possibly due to the isoelectric point of the mixture system found between pH of 3 and 4.     

Surface aerosol measurements at Barrow during AGASP-II

Measurements at Barrow during the second Arctic Gas and Aerosol Sampling Program (AGASP-II), conducted in April 1986, showed no rapid long-range transport from lower-latitude source regions to Barrow, and only limited vertical transport from above the boundary layer to the surface. New aerosol size distribution measurements in the 0.005–0.1 m diameter size range using a Nuclepore-filter diffusion battery apparatus showed a median diameter of about 0.01 m during times of high condensation nucleus (CN) concentrations. Aerosol black carbon concentrations exceeding 400 ng m^–3 were detected at the surface and were more strongly correlated with CN concentrations than with aerosol scattering extinction (_sp), suggesting that aerosol carbon was generally associated with small particles rather than large particles. Measurements at Barrow during AGASP-I, conducted in March–April 1983, showed a series of aerosol events detected at the ground that were caused by rapid long-range transport paths to the vicinity of Barrow from Eurasia. These events were strongly correlated with aerosol loading in the vertical column (optical depth).