Interannual variability of water ice clouds over major martian volcanoes observed by MOC

Using Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera daily global maps, cloud areas have been measured daily for water ice clouds associated with the topography of the major volcanoes Olympus Mons, Ascraeus Mons, Pavonis Mons, Arsia Mons, Elysium Mons, and Alba Patera. This study expands on that of Benson et al. [Benson, J.L., Bonev, B.P., James, P.B., Shan, K.J., Cantor, B.A., Caplinger, M.A., 2003. Icarus 165, 34-52] by continuing their cloud area measurements of the Tharsis volcanoes, Olympus Mons and Alba Patera for an additional martian year (August 2001-May 2003) and by also including Elysium Mons measurements from March 1999 through May 2003. The seasonal trends in cloud activity established by Benson et al. [Benson, J.L., Bonev, B.P., James, P.B., Shan, K.J., Cantor, B.A., Caplinger, M.A., 2003. Icarus 165, 34-52] for the five volcanoes studied earlier are corroborated here with an additional year of coverage. For volcanoes other than Arsia Mons, interannual variations that could be associated with the large 2001 planet encircling dust storm are minimal. At Arsia Mons, where cloud activity was continuous in the first two years, clouds disappeared totally for ∼85° of LS (LS=188°-275°) due to the dust storm. Elysium Mons cloud activity is similar to that of Olympus Mons, however the peak in cloud area is near LS=130° rather than near LS=100°.     

Results from the Wide Angle Search for Planets Prototype (WASP0) – II. Stellar variability in the Pegasus field

Recent wide field photometric surveys, which target a specific field for long durations, are ideal for studying both long- and short-period stellar variability. Here, we report on 75 variable stars detected during the observations of a field in Pegasus using the Wide Angle Search for Planets Prototype (WASP0) instrument, 73 of which are new discoveries. The variables detected include 16 δ Scuti stars, 34 eclipsing binaries, 3 BY Draconis stars and 4 RR Lyraes. We estimate that the fraction of stars in the field brighter than   V ∼ 13.5  exhibiting variable behaviour with an amplitude greater than 0.6 per cent rms is ∼0.4 per cent. These results are compared with other wide field stellar variability surveys, and implications for detecting transits due to extra-solar planets are discussed.     

Accurate jovian radio flux density measurements show ammonia to be subsaturated in the upper troposphere

The availability of new accurate radio flux densities of Jupiter in and around the λ?1.3 cm ammonia absorption band, one from ground-based radio data and five from the WMAP satellite, permits re-examination of the structure of the jovian upper troposphere. These flux densities, with accuracies of 1-3%, indicate that the jovian atmospheric ammonia is globally subsaturated within and above the ammonia cloud tops, 0.4 bar?P?0.6 bar, and subsolar (by a factor of 2) below the cloud base, 0.6 bar?P?2 bar.     

THE NEW CORPORATE LANDSCAPE: AMERICA'S FASTEST GROWING PRIVATE COMPANIES

Analysis of the location of the fastest growing private companies in the United States suggests that a new corporate landscape is emerging. During the 1980s this corporate landscape has increasingly been dominated by companies in the service sector rather than in manufacturing. Sunbelt metropolises, especially in California, are more favored locations for the fast-growth firms than for the traditional Fortune 500 industrial and 500 service corporations. The fast-growth firms are also more likely to locate in suburban areas than the traditional corporations. These service, Sunbelt, and suburban characteristics of the new corporate landscape are interpreted as a consequence of the restructuring of the US economy.     

Water, ammonia, and H2S mixing ratios in Jupiter's five-micron hot spots: A dynamical model

The Galileo probe entered the jovian atmosphere at the southern edge of a 5-micron hot spot, one of typically 8-10 quasi-evenly-spaced longitudinal areas of anomalously high 5-micron IR emission that reside in a narrow latitude band centered on +7.5 degrees. These hot spots are characterized primarily by a low abundance of the cloud particles that dominate the 5-micron opacity at other locations on the planet, and by significant desiccation of ammonia, water and hydrogen sulfide in the upper layers of the troposphere. Ortiz et al. [1998. Evolution and persistence of 5-micron hot spots at the Galileo probe entry latitude. J. Geophys. Res. 103, 23,051-23,069] found that the latitude and drift rate of the hot spots could be explained if they are formed by an equatorially trapped Rossby wave of meridional degree 1 moving with a phase speed between 99 and 103 m s⁻¹ relative to System III. Here we model additional properties of the hot spots in terms of the amplitude saturation of such a wave propagating in the weakly stratified deep troposphere. We identify the hot spots with locations where the wave plus mean thermal stratification becomes marginally stable. In these locations, potential temperature isotherms stretch downward to very deep levels in the troposphere. Since fluid parcels follow these isotherms under adiabatic flow conditions, the parcels dive downward when they enter the portion of the wave associated with the hot spot and soar upward upon leaving the spot. We show that this model can account for the anomalous vertical profiles of NH₃, H₂O, and H₂S mixing ratio measured by the Galileo probe. Pressures vary by as much as 20 bar over potential temperature isotherms in solutions that produce sufficient desiccation of water and H₂S in hot spots. Approximately 6×¹⁰⁻² of Jupiter's internal heat flux must be tapped to maintain the wave over the mean hot spot lifetime of 10⁷ s. The results suggest that the phenomenon that causes hot spots may occur widely, although in less dramatic form, across Jupiter's surface, and consequently NH₃, H₂S, and H₂O mixing ratio profiles may vary significantly from location to location in Jupiter's troposphere.     

Radiating dike swarms on Venus: evidence for emplacement at zones of neutral buoyancy

Theoretical calculations of extrusive volcanic degassing on Venus yield atmospheric pressure-related rock density profiles consistent with the formation of magma neutral buoyancy zones and magma reservoirs at different depths as a function of altitude (Head and Wilson, J. geophys. Res. 97, 3877, 1992). Global analysis of radiating dike swarms interpreted to originate at magma reservoirs show that their distribution matches these predictions across approximately 90% of the planet's surface; only those highland regions whose elevations exceed 6053 km appear anomalous. The distribution of the large volcano population (extrusive reservoir products) (Keddie and Head, Planet. Space Sci. 42, 455, 1994) has yielded similar results. Comparison between the dike swarm (intrusive) and large volcano (extrusive) populations suggests that neutral buoyancy plays an important role in governing volcanic processes near the venusian surface and that the depth to the level of neutral buoyancy increases systematically at altitudes above 6051 km.