Comparison of Satellite Altimetric Gravity and Global Geopotential Models with Shipborne Gravity in the Red Sea

The determination of high-resolution geoid for marine regions requires the integration of gravity data provided by different sources, e.g. global geopotential models, satellite altimetry, and shipborne gravimetric observations. Shipborne gravity data, acquired over a long time, comprises the short-wavelengths gravitation signal. This paper aims to produce a consistent gravity field over the Red Sea region to be used for geoid modelling. Both, the leave-one-out cross-validation and Kriging prediction techniques were chosen to ensure that the observed shipborne gravity data are consistent as well as free of gross-errors. A confidence level equivalent to 95.4% was decided to filter the observed shipborne data, while the cross-validation algorithm was repeatedly applied until the standard deviation of the residuals between the observed and estimated values are less than 1.5 mGal, which led to the elimination of about 17.7% of the shipborne gravity dataset. A comparison between the shipborne gravity data with DTU13 and SSv23.1 satellite altimetry-derived gravity models is done and reported. The corresponding results revealed that altimetry models almost have identical data content when compared one another, where the DTU13 gave better results with a mean and standard deviation of ?2.40 and 8.71 mGal, respectively. A statistical comparison has been made between different global geopotential models (GGMs) and shipborne gravity data. The Spectral Enhancement Method was applied to overcome the existing spectral gap between the GGMs and shipborne gravity data. EGM2008 manifested the best results with differences characterised with a mean of 1.35 mGal and a standard deviation of 11.11 mGal. Finally, the least-squares collocation (LSC) was implemented to combine the shipborne gravity data with DTU13 in order to create a unique and consistent gravity field over the Red Sea with no data voids. The combined data were independently tested using a total number of 95 randomly chosen shipborne gravity stations. The comparison between the extracted shipborne gravity data and DTU13 altimetry anomalies before and after applying the LSC revealed that a significant improvement is procurable from the combined dataset, in which the mean and standard deviation of the differences dropped from ?3.60 and 9.31 mGal to ?0.39 and 2.04 mGal, respectively.     

The secular variation of the geomagnetic field in Egypt in the last 5000 years

The palaeo-intensities (F _a) of the geomagnetic field in Egypt at some ages are determined by archaeomagnetic measurements and found to be:F _a=36.2 T at 3100 B.C., F_a=46.8 T at 3000 B.C.,F _a=36.5 T at 2780 B.C., 49.0 T at 2500 B.C., 36.4 T at 2200 B.C., 57.5 T at 1990 B.C., 62.1 T atca 1400 B.C., 61.5 T at 1400 B.C., 69.9 T at 600 B.C., 59.3 T at 550 B.C., 79.9 T at 460 B.C., 73.7 T at 450 B.C., 69.7 T at 320 B.C., 56.2 T at A.D. 50, 64.9 T, at A.D. 400, 54.4 T at A.D. 300, 57.5 T at A.D. 700 and 43.0 T at A.D. 1975.The palaeo-inclinations (I _a) at some ages are found to be:I _a=24.2° at 420 B.C., 44° at A.D. 50, 60.7° at A.D. 703 and 42° at A.D. 1795.The measured values ofF _a are affected by the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility of the samples by 13% to 20% of the expected correct value. The suitable correction of this effect is by multiplyingF by 1/((1+0.2(/90)) andF by 1/((1–0.13 (/90)), whereF andF are the resultant values ofF _a if the laboratory field is perpendicular or parallel to the wall of the sample during the Thelliers' experiments, respectively, and is the angle between the direction of natural remnant magnetization of the sample and the direction of the laboratory field.The results of this paper, together with the previous results for Egypt and the neighbourhoods, lead to the production of the secular variation curve of the geomagnetic field in Egypt for the last 5000 years. The intensity of the field shows a periodicity of about 400 years with multiples.     

Exact and hybrid-element solutions for the vibration of a thin elastic structure seated on the sea floor

Exact analytical solutions are derived for simple elastic structures vibrating in water. Linear acoustic and beam theories are used to treat several cases some of which have been studied by more approximate methods before. A hybrid element method which is based on a localized variational principle is demonstrated numerically for a beam-dam; its theoretical bases is then generalized for arbitrary two-dimensional elastic structure. Foundation compliance is not included.     

Pipeline breakout from sea floor under wave action

The vertical stability of a submarine pipeline laid half-buried on the sea floor under wave action is studied. As the wave-induced lifting force acts to detach the pipe from the sea floor, mud suction resistance will be developing at pipe-soil interface, acting to hold the pipe in place. This couples the pipe equilibrium with the seabed response which is modelled as a poroelastic media, following the formulation of Biot. Conditions for pipe detachment or breakout from the sea floor are investigated for typical seawave, pipe, and seabed parameters. A general power law will describe the slow quasistatic breakout of the pipe. In the case when the forcing wave period is much shorter than the quasistatic breakout time, the response function of the coupled pipe-seabed system will involve weak nonlinear terms of higher harmonics. The possibilities for resonating the system in such case are examined by including the inertia of the pipe in the analysis.     

Effects of merging histories on angular momentum distribution of dark matter haloes

The effects of merging histories of proto-objects on the angular momentum distributions of the present-time dark matter haloes are analysed. An analytical approach to the analysis of the angular momentum distributions assumes that the haloes are initially homogeneous ellipsoids and that the growth of the angular momentum of the haloes halts at their maximum expansion time. However, the maximum expansion time cannot be determined uniquely, because in the hierarchical clustering scenario each progenitor, or subunit, of the halo has its own maximum expansion time. Therefore the merging history of the halo may be important in estimating its angular momentum. Using the merger tree model by Rodrigues &38; Thomas, which takes into account the spatial correlations of the density fluctuations, we have investigated the effects of the merging histories on the angular momentum distributions of dark matter haloes. It was found that the merger effects, that is, the effects of the inhomogeneity of the maximum expansion times of the progenitors which finally merge together into a halo, do not strongly affect the final angular momentum distributions, so that the homogeneous ellipsoid approximation happens to be good for the estimation of the angular momentum distribution of dark matter haloes. This is because the effect of the different directions of the angular momenta of the progenitors cancels out the effect of the inhomogeneity of the maximum expansion times of the progenitors.   The contribution of the orbital angular momentum to the total angular momentum when two or more pre-existing haloes merge together was also investigated. It is shown that this contribution is more important than that of the angular momentum of diffuse accreting matter to the total angular momentum, especially when the mergers occur many times.     

Synergie entre la télédétection multispectrale et les données de terrain pour la conception d'un nouveau modèle géodynamique d'ouverture du bassin paléozoïque des Jebilet centrales (Maroc)

The geodynamic model of the Palaeozoic basin opening of central Jebilet has been unknown before this study in spite of the abundance in the geological studies carried out in the studied sector using conventional methods. This is due to the scarcity of the key beds and synsedimentary structures. Using the synergy between the image data of the Landsat satellite TM sensor and the ground data, we have highlighted, herein, new structural data allowing the design of a new model of the Palaeozoic basin opening of central Jebilet. This opening could have been made according to dextral submeridian transverse faults with the individualization of subequatorial normal faults. To cite this article: A. El Harti et al., C. R. Geoscience 336 (2004).     

Geotechnical and mineralogical characteristics of marl deposits in Jordan

Marls and marly limestone deposits cover most of Northern Jordan, where Amman City and its suburbs are located. These deposits serve as foundations for most buildings and roads as well as fill material for structural back filling, especially road bases and sub-bases. The present study aims at investigating the geotechnical characteristics and mineral composition of the marl units of these deposits through field investigations and laboratory testing. Using X-ray diffraction technique along with chemical analysis, representative samples of marl horizons were tested for mineral composition, and for a set of index and geotechnical properties including: specific gravity, grain size, Atterberg limits, Proctor compaction and shear strength properties. The test results show a positive linear relationship as expected between the clay content and both liquid and plastic limits. The tests results also show an inverse linear relationship between the clay content and the maximum dry density in both standard and modified compaction. This is attributed to the adsorption of water by the clay minerals. The relationship is more prominent in the case of modified compaction test. The results also indicate a similar relationship for the angle of internal friction. No clear correlation between cohesion and clay content was apparent.     

Mouvements actuels des blocs tectoniques dans l’arc Bético-Rifain à partir des mesures GPS entre 1999 et 2005

GPS velocities and seismicity across the Betic–Rif Arc structural domains (Morocco and Iberia) provide a basis to evaluate present-day seismotectonic processes between different deformation belts. The results show asymmetric movements in the complex Alboran system accommodating the convergence between the African (Nubian) and Eurasian plates. While the Betic Mountains are attached to Iberia, moving toward the southeast with respect to Africa, the Rif is divided into three blocks with distinct displacements relative to Nubia: (1) the Tangier block moving southeastward, (2) the Central Rif block moving SSW, and (3) the Oriental Rif block undergoing clockwise rotation. GPS-derived motions decrease in rate from the Rif nappes complex to the foreland.     

Ion dynamics associated with substorm dipolarization fronts

We report where and how ions are accelerated in the proximity of earthward propagating dipolarization fronts(DFs) in the magnetotail during a magnetospheric substorm on February 15, 2008. Two DFs were observed by multiple THEMIS spacecraft in the near-Earth magnetotail(~?10 Re). We studied the ion dynamics associated with these DFs by comparing observed results with large scale kinetic(LSK) simulation results. The LSK simulation reproduced the sudden ion energy flux enhancement concurrent with the arrival of the DF at the satellite locations. We found that ions can be accelerated to more than 100 keV energy at the DF. These ions were initially non-adiabatically accelerated near magnetic reconnection site and then still non-adiabatically accelerated at the DF structure.