Production of atmospheric condensation nuclei by solar radiation

Summary Air with a very low count of atmospheric condensation nuclei was irradiated by direct sunlight through an uviol glass window, or through ordinary glass or in a polyethylene balloon. The nucleus count rises immediately and reaches very high values.

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Zusammenfassung Luft mit sehr niedriger Zahl von atmosphärischen Kondensations-Kernen wurde mit direktem Sonnenlicht bestrahlt, entweder durch ein UV Glas oder durch gewöhnliches Glas oder durch einen Polyethylen-Ballon. Die Zahl der atmosphärischen Kondensations-Kerne steigt sogleich und erreicht sehr hohe Werte.

     

Isotope systematics of noble gases in the Earth's mantle: possible sources of primordial isotopes and implications for mantle structure

The Earth's mantle contains a mixture of primordial noble gases, in particular solar-type helium and neon, and radiogenic rare gases from long-lived U, ²³²Th, ⁴⁰K and short-lived ¹²⁹I, ²⁴⁴Pu. Rocks derived from deep mantle plume magmatism like on Hawaii or Iceland contain a higher proportion of primordial nuclides than rocks from the shallow upper mantle, e.g. mid ocean ridge basalts (MORBs). This is widely regarded as the key evidence for survival of a less degassed and more “primitive” reservoir within the lower mantle. We present an evaluation of noble gas composition showing the shallow mantle to have about five times more radiogenic (relative to primordial) isotopes than Hawaii/Iceland-type plume reservoirs, no matter if short- or long-lived decay systems are considered. This fundamental property suggests that both MORB and plume-type noble gases are mixtures of: (1) a homogeneous radiogenic component present throughout most of the mantle and (2) a uniform primordial noble gas component with very minor radiogenic ingrowth. This conclusion depends crucially on the observed excess of radiogenic Xe in plume-derived rocks, and is only valid if this Xe excess is inherent to the plume sources.Possible sources of the primordial component of mantle plume reservoirs—and possibly also the MORB mantle—could be mantle reservoirs that remained relatively isolated over most of Earth's history (“blobs”, a deep abyssal layer, or the D” layer), but these need a considerable concentration of primordial gases to compensate U, Th, K decay over 4.5 Ga. Earth's core is evaluated as an alternative viable source feeding primordial nuclides into mantle reservoirs: even low metal-silicate partitioning coefficients allow sufficient primordial noble gases to be incorporated into the early forming core, as the undifferentiated proto-Earth was initially gas-rich. Massive mantle degassing soon after core formation then provides the opposite concentration gradient that allows primordial noble gases reentering the mantle at the core-mantle boundary, probably via partial mantle melts. Another possible source of primordial noble gases in Earth's mantle are subducted sediments containing extraterrestrial dust with solar He and Ne, but this supply mechanism crucially depends on largely unconstrained parameters. The latter two scenarios do not require the preservation of a “primitive” mantle reservoir over 4.5 Ga, and can potentially better reconcile increasing geochemical evidence of recycled lithospheric components in mantle plumes and seismic evidence for whole mantle convection.     

High-temperature single-crystal neutron diffraction study of natural chondrodite

The H-atom environment in a Tilly Foster chondrodite was analyzed using single-crystal neutron-diffraction data collected at 500, 700 and 900 K and previously published low temperature data collected at 10, 100 and 300 K on the same crystal (Mg_4.64Fe_0.28Mn_0.014Ti_0.023(Si_1.01O₄)₂F_1.16(OH)_0.84; Friedrich et al. in Am Mineral 86:981–989, 2001). The full mean square displacement matrix Σ of the O–H pair was determined from the temperature dependence of the anisotropic displacement parameters, enabling a proper correction of the O–H bond for thermal vibration without assumptions about the correlation of O and H movements. The results show that the perpendicular O–H motions in chondrodite are intermediate between the riding and the independent motion models. The corrected O–H bond lengths do not change with temperature whereas the corrected H···F distances show an increase of ~0.02 Å with temperature, as do the Mg–O distances. This result shows that spectroscopic observations on the strength of the covalent O–H bond cannot be interpreted unambiguously in terms of a corresponding behaviour of the associated H···O/F hydrogen bond.     

Permian high-temperature metamorphism in the Western Alps (NW Italy)

International Journal of Earth Sciences - During the late Palaeozoic, lithospheric thinning in part of the Alpine realm caused high-temperature low-to-medium pressure metamorphism and partial...     

Deformation twinning and residual stress in calcite studied with synchrotron polychromatic X-ray microdiffraction

Microstructures of deformed calcite in marble from the Bergell Alps are studied by using a microfocused polychromatic synchrotron X-ray beam. The high spatial resolution, together with orientation and strain resolutions, reveals twin plane orientation, multiple twin lamellae, and strain distributions associated with the twins. Single and multiple mechanical twins on e = { 01[`1] 8 } e = \left\{ {01\overline{1} 8} \right\} systems are confirmed. Residual stresses are derived from the strain tensor that is derived from Laue diffraction patterns. Average lattice strains from several hundred to over one thousand microstrains are detected in a deformed marble from the Bergell Alps. Such strains suggest 60–120 MPa residual stresses. A detailed study of strain components shows that shear stresses on twin planes are completely released.     

Visualization of uncertainty in natural hazards assessments using an interactive cartographic information system

Natural hazard assessments are always subject to uncertainties due to missing knowledge about the complexity of hazardous processes as well as their natural variability. Decision-makers in the field of natural hazard management need to understand the concept, components, sources, and implications of existing uncertainties in order to reach informed and transparent decisions. Until now, however, only few hazard maps include uncertainty visualizations which would be much needed for an enhanced communication among experts and decision-makers in order to make informed decisions possible. In this paper, an analysis of how uncertainty is currently treated and communicated by Swiss natural hazards experts is presented. The conducted expert survey confirmed that the communication of uncertainty has to be enhanced, possibly with the help of uncertainty visualizations. However, in order to visualize the spatial characteristics of uncertainty, existing uncertainties need to be quantified. This challenge is addressed by the exemplary simulation of a snow avalanche event using a deterministic model and quantified uncertainties with a sensitivity analysis. Suitable visualization methods for the resulting spatial variability of the uncertainties are suggested, and the advantages and disadvantages of their implementation in an interactive cartographic information system are discussed.