Fluid venting from a mud volcano in the Mediterranean Ridge Diapiric Belt

Direct observation of active emission of fluids and mud from a submarine mud volcano were made for the first time in an extensive field of mud diapirs and mud volcanoes on the Mediterranean Ridge using a video camera towed 2 m above the seafloor in 1800 m of water. This recent research using both long range and deep-towed sidescan sonar systems indicates also that diapirism and eruption of mud along the crest of the ridge is more common than previously thought. The southwards increase in age of rock fragments carried within the erupted mud supports the hypothesis that the fluid mud becomes overpressured within a southward-dipping backthrust from the Inner Deformation Front of this accretionary prism.     

A discussion of the Cepheid amplitude behaviour in the instability strip

An analysis is presented which seeks to reveal the possible causes for discrepancy in the results on the dependence of Cepheid amplitudes on star positions in the instability strip noted by different investigators.A comparison of the data used in two of these investigations—that of Yakimova (1970) and that of Sandage and Tammann (1971)—shows that it is most unlikely to be able to explain completely the conflicting results obtained in these studies. But if we analyse the data of Sandage and Tammann following the approach of Yakimova — namely, by considering the Cepheids in only one stellar system and taking into account the stellar colours in maximum light — we obtain Yakimova's result: the light amplitude is the larger, the nearer to the low temperature edge of the instability strip a Cepheid is. Therefore, it appears that differences between the various approaches contribute greatly to the different results of Sandage and Tammann and Yakimova (and the other investigators).     

The Near-Earth Asteroid Size-Frequency Distribution: A Snapshot of the Lunar Impactor Size-Frequency Distribution

It is shown that the size-frequency distribution (SFD) of a time-averaged projectile population derived from the lunar crater SFD of Neukum and Ivanov (in Hazards Due to Comets and Asteroids (T. Gehrels, Ed.), 1994, pp. 359-416, Univ. of Arizona Press, Tucson) provides a convincing fit to the SFD of the current near-Earth asteroid (NEA) population, as deduced from the results of asteroid search programs. Our results suggest that the shape of the SFD of the impactor flux has remained in a steady state since the late heavy bombardment, so that the current NEA population can be viewed as a snapshot of the flux of impactors on the Moon. The number of bodies in the projectile population with diameters of 1 km or more is 700±130, which is in good agreement with recent estimates of the total number of NEAs in this size range. Our results imply that the contribution to the projectile flux from comets is small for diameters below 10 km.     

Generation of the Katrine hurricane during the geomagnetic extrastrom at crossing of the heliospheric current sheet: Is it an accidental coincidence or physical essence?

Attention is paid to the generation of the Katrine hurricane with destructive consequences during the geomagnetic extrastorm of August 24, 2005, at a repeated crossing of the strongly disturbed IMF sector boundary. This fact is discussed in the light of the Eigenson-Usmanov hypothesis that solar activity can affect generation of hurricanes. According to the law of enhancement, solar activity and corresponding geomagnetic disturbances increase baric contrasts in the lower atmosphere over oceans on the Earth’s dayside hemisphere and decrease background pressure at tropical latitudes. It has been assumed that this can be one of the factors facilitating triggering of the positive feedback mechanisms necessary for generation and maintenance of hurricanes according to the Golitsyn [1999] model.     

The period-amplitude diagram of the cepheids

A new period-amplitude diagram of cepheids has been constructed. The phtoelectric observations of 365 variables were used from which 78 were newly observed. Real differences exist both in the short and in the long period regions of the period-amplitude diagram between the Magellanic Clouds and the Galaxy. It seems there are no significant differences between the upper envelopes derived for M31 and the Galaxy.     

Barents Sea upstream events impact the properties of Atlantic water inflow into the Arctic Ocean: Evidence from 2005 to 2006 downstream observations

Inflow of Atlantic water (AW) from Fram Strait and the Barents Sea into the Arctic Ocean conditions the intermediate (100–1000 m) waters of the Arctic Ocean Eurasian margins. While over the Siberian margin the Fram Strait AW branch (FSBW) has exhibited continuous dramatic warming beginning in 2004, the tendency of the Barents Sea AW branch (BSBW) has remained poorly known. Here we document the contrary cooling tendency of the BSBW through the analysis of observational data collected from the icebreaker Kapitan Dranitsyn over the continental slope of the Eurasian Basin in 2005 and 2006. The CTD data from the R.V. Polarstern cruise in 1995 were used as a reference point for evaluating external atmospheric and sea-ice forcing and oxygen isotope analysis. Our data show that in 2006 the BSBW core was saltier (by ～0.037), cooler (by ～0.41 °C), denser (by ～0.04 kg/m³), deeper (by 150–200 m), and relatively better ventilated (by 7–8 μmol/kg of dissolved oxygen, or by 1.1–1.7% of saturation) compared with 2005. We hypothesize that the shift of the meridional wind from off-shore to on-shore direction during the BSBW translation through the Barents and northern Kara seas results in longer surface residence time for the BSBW sampled in 2006 compared with samples from 2005. The cooler, more saline, and better-ventilated BSBW sampled in 2006 may result from longer upstream translation through the Barents and northern Kara seas where the BSBW was modified by sea-ice formation and interaction with atmosphere. The data for stable oxygen isotopes from 1995 and 2006 reveals amplified brine modification of the BSBW core sampled downstream in 2006, which supports the assumption of an increased upstream residence time as indicated by wind patterns and dissolved oxygen values.     

Visualization of the solar magnetic field using coefficients of harmonic expansion in the potential approximation

A method for visualization of the solar magnetic field is suggested and implemented. The harmonic expansion coefficients obtained in the potential approximation from magnetic-field observations at the photospheric level are used as an input. Three-dimensional equations for field lines are numerically integrated, and the results are presented in the form of projections onto the picture plane. The density of the line number is assumed to be proportional to the magnetic flux density. The lines of different topological connectedness are differently colored and show areas with open and closed configurations, thus mapping the information about the field direction and magnitude. This method is useful for research and applied studies related to investigation and forecasting of space weather.