A cyclical period variation detected in the updated orbital period analysis of TV Columbae

Two CCD photometries of the intermediate polar TV Columbae are made for obtaining two updated eclipse timings with high precision. There is an interval time ～17 yr since the last mid-eclipse time observed in 1991. Thus, the new mid-eclipse times might offer an opportunity to check the previous orbital ephemerides. A calculation indicates that the orbital ephemeris derived by Augusteijn et al. (Astron. Astrophys. Suppl. Ser. 107:219, 1994) should be corrected. Based on the proper linear ephemeris (Hellier in Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 264:132, 1993), the new orbital period analysis suggests a cyclical period variation in the O–C diagram of TV Columbae. Using Applegate’s mechanism to explain the periodic oscillation in the O–C diagram, the required energy is larger than the energy that a M0-type star can afford over a complete variation period of ～31.0(±3.0) yr. Thus, the light travel-time effect indicates that the tertiary component in TV Columbae may be a dwarf with a low mass, which is near the lower mass limit of ～0.08M _⊙ as long as the inclination of the third body is high enough.     

NLTE wind models of hot subdwarf stars

We calculate NLTE models of stellar winds of hot compact stars (central stars of planetary nebulae and subdwarf stars). The studied range of subdwarf parameters is selected to cover a large part of these stars. The models predict the wind hydrodynamical structure and provide mass-loss rates for different abundances. Our models show that CNO elements are important drivers of subdwarf winds, especially for low-luminosity stars. We study the effect of X-rays and instabilities on these winds. Due to the line-driven wind instability, a significant part of the wind could be very hot.     

Coronal Shocks Associated with Impulsive and Decaying Phases of Solar Flares

We have analyzed a set of 147 metric Type II radio bursts observed by Culgoora radio spectrograph from November 1997 to December 2006. These events were divided into two sets: The first subset contains Type II events that started during the impulsive phase of the associated solar flares and the second subset contains those starting during the decaying phase of flares. Our main aim is to differentiate the metric Type IIs, flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) of these two subsets. It is found that while Type II burst characteristics of both subsets are very similar, there are significant differences between flare and CME properties for these two subsets. Considering all analyzed relationships between the characteristics of Type IIs, flares and CMEs in these two Type II subsets, we conclude that most of the coronal shocks causing metric Type II bursts are driven by CMEs, but that a fraction of events are probably ignited by solar flares.     

Manifestations of the North – South Asymmetry in the Photosphere and in the Green Line Corona

The north – south asymmetries (NSA) of three solar activity indices are derived and mutually compared over a period of more than five solar cycles (1945 – 2001). A catalogue of the hemispheric sunspot numbers, the data set of the coronal green line brightness developed by us, and the magnetic flux derived from the NSO/KP data (1975 – 2001) are treated separately within the discrete low- and mid-latitude zones (5° – 30°, 35° – 60°). The calculated autocorrelations, cross-correlations, and regressions between the long-term NSA data sets reveal regularities in the solar activity phenomenon. Namely, the appearance of a distinct quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) is evident in all selected activity indices. Nevertheless, a smooth behavior of QBO is derived only when sufficient temporal averaging is performed over solar cycles. The variation in the significance and periodicity of QBO allows us to conclude that the QBO is not persistent over the whole solar cycle. A similarity in the photospheric and coronal manifestations of the NSA implies that their mutual relation will also show the QBO. A roughly two-year periodicity is actually obtained, but again only after significant averaging over solar cycles. The derived cross-correlations are in fact variable in degree of correlation as well as in changing periodicity. A clear and significant temporal shift of 1 – 2 months in the coronal manifestation of the magnetic flux asymmetry relative to the photospheric manifestation is revealed as a main property of their mutual correlation. This shift can be explained by the delayed large-scale coronal manifestation in responding to the emergence of the magnetic flux in the photosphere. The reliability of the derived results was confirmed by numerical tests performed by selecting different numerical values of the used parameters.     

Observations of tectonic microdisplacements in Europe in relation to the Iran 1997 and Turkey 1999 earthquakes

Long-term repeated measurements of microdisplacements in tectonic fault structures of various parts of Central Europe and the Balkan Mountains showed that displacement trends changed significantly at several points in the period from 1997 through 2000; afterward, long-term trends were restored. This phenomenon took place in the periods of strong (M > 7) earthquakes in Iran (1997) and in the North Anatolian fault zone in Turkey (1999). Two strong Izmit earthquakes of 1999 in Turkey at distances of 600 km from the Balkan Peninsula and 1400 km from observation points in Central Europe were the main seismic events of the period studied. Apparently, the crustal deformation due to the sources of the aforementioned earthquakes reaches the central part of the European craton. Anomalous displacements in some areas occurred due to deformation propagating for great distances in the heterogeneous block medium of the West European part of the Eurasian plate. Changes in stresses can be caused by impulsive deformations of various intensities acting on some structural units (fault segments) at various distances.     

Experimental constraints on ultrapotassic magmatism from the Bohemian Massif (durbachite series, Czech Republic)

The equilibrium phase relations of a mafic durbachite (53 wt.% SiO₂) from the Třebíč pluton, representative of the Variscan ultrapotassic magmatism of the Bohemian Massif (338–335 Ma), have been determined as a function of temperature (900–1,100°C), pressure (100–200 MPa), and H₂O activity (1.1–6.1 wt.% H₂O in the melt). Two oxygen fugacity ranges were investigated: close to the Ni–NiO (NNO) buffer and 2.6 log unit above NNO buffer (∆NNO + 2.6). At 1,100°C, olivine is the liquidus phase and co-crystallized with phlogopite and augite at 1,000°C for the whole range of investigated pressure and water content in the melt. At 900°C, the mineral assemblage consists of augite and phlogopite, whereas olivine is not stable. The stability field of both alkali feldspar and plagioclase is restricted to low pressure (100 MPa) at nearly water-saturated conditions (<3–4 wt.% H₂O) and T < 900°C. A comparison between experimental products and natural minerals indicates that mafic durbachites have a near-liquidus assemblage of olivine, augite, Ti-rich phlogopite, apatite and zircon, followed by alkali feldspar and plagioclase, similar to the mineral assemblage of minette magma. Natural amphibole, diopside and orthopyroxene were not reproduced experimentally and probably result from sub-solidus reactions, whereas biotite re-equilibrated at low temperature. The crystallization sequence olivine followed by phlogopite and augite reproduces the sequence inferred in many mica-lamprophyre rocks. The similar fractionation trends observed for durbachites and minettes indicate that mafic durbachites are probably the plutonic equivalents of minettes and that K- and Mg-rich magmas in the Bohemian Massif may have been generated from partial melting of a phlogopite–clinopyroxene-bearing metasomatized peridotite. Experimental melt compositions also suggest that felsic durbachites can be generated by simple fractionation of a more mafic parent and mixing with mantle-derived components at mid crustal pressures.     

Sulfur isotope variations from orebody to hand-specimen scale at the Mežica lead–zinc deposit, Slovenia: a predominantly biogenic pattern

The Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) Pb–Zn ore district at Mežica is hosted by Middle to Upper Triassic platform carbonate rocks in the Northern Karavanke/Drau Range geotectonic units of the Eastern Alps, northeastern Slovenia. The mineralization at Mežica covers an area of 64 km² with more than 350 orebodies and numerous galena and sphalerite occurrences, which formed epigenetically, both conformable and discordant to bedding. While knowledge on the style of mineralization has grown considerably, the origin of discordant mineralization is still debated. Sulfur stable isotope analyses of 149 sulfide samples from the different types of orebodies provide new insights on the genesis of these mineralizations and their relationship. Over the whole mining district, sphalerite and galena have δ ³⁴ S values in the range of –24.7 to –1.5‰ VCDT (–13.5 ± 5.0‰) and –24.7 to –1.4‰ (–10.7 ± 5.9‰), respectively. These values are in the range of the main MVT deposits of the Drau Range. All sulfide δ ³⁴ S values are negative within a broad range, with δ ³⁴ S _pyrite <δ ³⁴ S _sphalerite <δ ³⁴ S _galena for both conformable and discordant orebodies, indicating isotopically heterogeneous H₂S in the ore-forming fluids and precipitation of the sulfides at thermodynamic disequilibrium. This clearly supports that the main sulfide sulfur originates from bacterially mediated reduction (BSR) of Middle to Upper Triassic seawater sulfate or evaporite sulfate. Thermochemical sulfate reduction (TSR) by organic compounds contributed a minor amount of ³⁴S-enriched H₂S to the ore fluid. The variations of δ ³⁴ S values of galena and coarse-grained sphalerite at orefield scale are generally larger than the differences observed in single hand specimens. The progressively more negative δ ³⁴ S values with time along the different sphalerite generations are consistent with mixing of different H₂S sources, with a decreasing contribution of H₂S from regional TSR, and an increase from a local H₂S reservoir produced by BSR (i.e., sedimentary biogenic pyrite, organo-sulfur compounds). Galena in discordant ore (–11.9 to –1.7‰; –7.0 ± 2.7‰, n = 12) tends to be depleted in ³⁴ S compared with conformable ore (–24.7 to –2.8‰, –11.7 ± 6.2‰, n = 39). A similar trend is observed from fine-crystalline sphalerite I to coarse open-space filling sphalerite II. Some variation of the sulfide δ ³⁴ S values is attributed to the inherent variability of bacterial sulfate reduction, including metabolic recycling in a locally partially closed system and contribution of H₂S from hydrolysis of biogenic pyrite and thermal cracking of organo-sulfur compounds. The results suggest that the conformable orebodies originated by mixing of hydrothermal saline metal-rich fluid with H₂S-rich pore waters during late burial diagenesis, while the discordant orebodies formed by mobilization of the earlier conformable mineralization.     

Re–Os age of non-mineralized black shale from the Kupferschiefer, Poland, and implications for metal enrichment

Six samples of non-mineralized black shale from a Kupferschiefer section in the northern part of the Polish Zechstein Basin (Zdrada IG-8 drill hole: 1026.16–1026.90 m) were studied for Re–Os isotopes and selected major and trace elements. These black shales, averaging 5.82 wt.% C_org and 1.69 wt.% S_tot, display very low base metal values (up to 106 ppb Cu, 792 ppb Pb, and 144 ppb Zn) and have abundances of 64–1376 ppb Re and 0.37–1.25 ppb Os, with a ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os ratio of 6.95–22.5. The regression of all Re–Os data yields an age of 247 ± 20 Ma, which is within the range of uncertainties of previous Rb–Sr and K–Ar geochronological studies. The scatter in the Re–Os data can be explained in terms of fluctuations in sedimentary conditions, i.e., restricted basin with terrestrial influence.     

Thermal expansion and high-temperature P21/c–C2/c phase transition in clinopyroxene-type LiFeGe2O6 and comparison to NaFe(Si,Ge)2O6

A synthetic clinopyroxene with composition LiFe³⁺Ge₂O₆, monoclinic s.g. P2₁/c, a = 9.8792(7), b = 8.8095(5), c = 5.3754(3) Å, β = 108.844(6)°, V = 442.75(16) ų, has been studied by in situ low- and high-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The variation of lattice parameters and the intensity of the b-type reflections (h + k = 2n + 1, only present in the P-symmetry) with increasing temperature showed a displacive phase transition from space group P2₁/c to C2/c at a transition temperature T _tr = 789 K, first order in character, with a sudden volume increase of 1.6% and a decrease of β by 1° at the transition. This spontaneous dilatation is reversible, shows a limited hysteresis of ±10°C, and corresponds to the vanishing of the b-type reflections, thus indicating a symmetry increase to space group C2/c. Below T _tr an expansion is observed for all the cell parameters, while the β angle remained almost constant; at T > T _tr the thermal volume expansion is due to dilatation of the structure in the $(\bar{1}\,0\,1) A synthetic clinopyroxene with composition LiFe³⁺Ge₂O₆, monoclinic s.g. P2₁/c, a = 9.8792(7), b = 8.8095(5), c = 5.3754(3) ?, β = 108.844(6)°, V = 442.75(16) ?³, has been studied by in situ low- and high-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The variation of lattice parameters and the intensity of the b-type reflections (h + k = 2n + 1, only present in the P-symmetry) with increasing temperature showed a displacive phase transition from space group P2₁/c to C2/c at a transition temperature T _tr = 789 K, first order in character, with a sudden volume increase of 1.6% and a decrease of β by 1° at the transition. This spontaneous dilatation is reversible, shows a limited hysteresis of ±10°C, and corresponds to the vanishing of the b-type reflections, thus indicating a symmetry increase to space group C2/c. Below T _tr an expansion is observed for all the cell parameters, while the β angle remained almost constant; at T > T _tr the thermal volume expansion is due to dilatation of the structure in the ([`1] 0 1)(\bar{1}\,0\,1) plane, mostly along [0 1 0], and pure shear in the (0 1 0) plane due to the decrease of β. From comparison with silicate analogues, the germanate clinopyroxenes are more expansible, while the P2₁/c expands more than the C2/c phase. The evolution of Q ² (calculated as the normalized intensity of b-type reflections) with T in the framework of the Landau theory has been done using a standard expression for a first order phase transition. We observe a jump of Q ₀² = 0.538(2) at T _tr, with T _c of 481(7) K, b/a = −2,290 K, and c/a = 3,192 K, and thus far from being tri-critical point. A closely related composition (LiFe³⁺Si₂O₆) shows an equivalent phase transition at 228 K, which is very close to the tri-critical point and 561 K cooler. This result indicates that a change in the composition of tetrahedral sites can have dramatic effects on the P2₁/c ↔ C2/c displacive phase transition in clinopyroxenes. The major changes observed in the evolution of the crystal structure with T are observed in the M2 polyhedron, with a volume decrease by ca. 13.3%, compared to ca. 1.3% observed in the M1 polyhedron. The tetrahedra behave as rigid units with neither a significant change of volume at T > T _tr (<1‰), nor a change of tilting of the basal plane. No change in coordination is observed at T > T _tr in the M2 polyhedron, which remains sixfold coordinated although a strong deformation of this polyhedron is observed. This deformation is related to a strong change by 51.4° at T _tr of the kinking angle (O3–O3–O3 angle) of the B-chain of tetrahedra, which switches from O-rotated to S-rotated [from 143.3(5)° to 194.7(6)°]. The A-chain is S-rotated at T < T _tr [206.8(5)° at 703 K] and extends by 12° at the transition.