Problem of the Relationship between Phosphorites and Evaporites (Critical Comments to the Work by A.S. Sokolov “Paragenetic Interrelations between Phosphoritic and Saliferous Basins,” Lithology and Mineral Resources, 1999, no. 2)

Lithology and Mineral Resources -     

Temperature variation in the mesosphere during solar eclipse

Rocket-borne observations of the extinction of solar hydrogen Lyman-alpha radiation made during the solar eclipses of 20 May 1966 at Karistos for normal and 44% visibility and of 7 March 1970 at East Quoddy for normal, 10% and 0.6% visibility have been used to study the variation of temperature in the mesosphere during these events. It is seen that near the mesopause the decrease of temperature at Karistos is by 20° K for 44% visibility and at East Quoddy by 100° K for 0.6% visibility. Possible causes of these temperature variationsvis-a-vis molecular oxygen and pressure variations have been briefly discussed.     

Recent observations of meteotsunamis on the Finnish coast

We present four case studies of exceptional wave events of meteorological origin, observed on the Finnish coast in the summers of 2010 and 2011. Eyewitnesses report unusually rapid and strong sea-level variations (up to 1 m in 5–15 min) and strong oscillating currents during these events. High-resolution sea-level measurements confirm the eyewitness observations, but the oscillations recorded by tide gauges mostly have a considerably smaller amplitude. The oscillations coincide with sudden jumps in surface air pressure at coastal observation stations, related to the passage of squall lines or gust fronts. These fronts propagate above the sea at a resonant speed, allowing efficient energy transfer between the atmospheric disturbance and the sea wave that it generates. Thus, we interpret the observed sea-level oscillations as small meteotsunamis, long tsunami-like waves generated by meteorological processes and resonance effects.     

Ultrastructure of a microbial mat-generated phosphorite

Optical and SEM observations of phosphorites reveal that mineralization is concentrated on ooids and micro-oncoids. The coated grains occur within microbial mats. Microbial mats represent the formational environment of the ooids and oncoids. Both coated grains and mats exhibit similar filamentous micro-organisms. The mat filaments show no fixed orientation and they merge with the concentrically oriented filaments of the coated grains. The branching nature and chlamydospore-like structures of filaments suggest that both mat and coated grains have been formed by fungi. Some coated grains appear to have been slightly disturbed and sometimes mobilized from their sites of formation due to separation from the parent mat resulting perhaps from contraction/fragmentation. The voids so created within the mat had been later filled with either micrite or sparite.     

Physical Libration of the Moon: An Extended Problem

Astronomy Reports - The work is devoted to the study of the physical libration of the Moon. Interest in the traditional topic related to the rotation of the Moon is stirred up by the activity of...     

Geochemical Indicators of “Camouflaged” Pyroclastic Material in the Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous Deposits of the Eastern Russian Platform

Doklady Earth Sciences - Based on the results of studying the lithological–geochemical features of the Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous mudrocks and black shales in the Eastern Russian...