Earth-orbit-approaching comets and their theoretical meteor radiants

Sixteen comets produce recognizable meteor showers that are found in A. F. Cook's (1973, In Evolutionary and Physical Properties of Meteoroids (C. L. Hemenway, P. M. Millman, and A. F. Cook, Eds.), pp. 183–191, U.S. Govt. Printing Office, Washington, D.C.), working list of meteor streams. Of these, five are long period, including one in a parabolic and one in a hyperbolic orbit. The largest Earth-comet orbit miss distance is 0.20 AU for P/Encke and the Northern and Southern Taurids. Using this is an upper limit for meteor showers from comets, all comets which approach the Earth's orbit to within 0.20 AU were extracted from the Catalogue of Cometary Orbits (B. G. Marsden, 1979. 3rd ed., Central Bureau of Astronomical Telegrams, IAU SAO, Cambridge, Mass.). A compilation of such comets is presented by date minimum approach, along with the distance of closest approach and the theoretical geocentric radiants and velocities of possible associated meteor showers. Both pre- and postpperihelion encounters with the Earth's orbit are considered. There are 240 entries for 178 long-period comets, and 36 for 28 short-period comets. It is noted that all short-period comets that have approached the Earth's orbit to within 0.08 AU have produced meteors, except P/Lexell, P/Finlay, P/Denning-Fujikawa, and P/Grigg-Skjellerup. Attention is called to the favorable observing conditions for detecting meteors from P/Grigg-Skjellerup in April 1982, and for the possibility of another great Draconid storm from P/Giacobini-Zinner in October 1985. A comparison is made between observed sporadic meteor rates and the distribution of theoretical radiants throughout the year, from which it is concluded that the currently known comets can account for sporadic meteors. A criterion is developed to test whether or not an observed meteor shower can be associated with a given theoretical radiant. Based on known examples, a qualitative model for comet/meteor relationships is also presented.     

Faulted backfold versus reactivated backthrust: the role of inherited structures during late extension in the frontal Piémont nappes east of Pelvoux (Western Alps)

In the central part of the internal Western Alps, widespread multidirectional normal faulting resulted in an orogen-scale radial extension during the Neogene. We revisit the frontal Piémont units, between Doire and Ubaye, where contrasting lithologies allow analysing the interference with the N–S trending Oligocene compressive structures. A major extensional structure is the orogen-perpendicular Chenaillet graben, whose development was guided by an E–W trending transfer fault zone between the Chaberton backfold to the north and the Rochebrune backthrust to the south. The Chaberton hinge zone was passively crosscut by planar normal faults, resulting in a E–W trending step-type structure. Within the Rochebrune nappe, E–W trending listric normal faults bound tilted blocks that slipped northward along the basal backthrust surface reactivated as an extensional detachment. Gravity-driven gliding is suggested by the general northward tilting of the structure in relation with the collapse of the Chenaillet graben. The stress tensors computed from brittle deformation analysis confirm the predominance of orogen-parallel extension in the entire frontal Piémont zone. This can be compared with the nearby Briançonnnais nappe stack where the extensional reactivation of thrust surfaces locally resulted in prominent orogen-perpendicular extension. Such a contrasting situation illustrates how the main direction of the late-Alpine extension may be regionally governed by the nature and orientation of the pre-existing structures inherited from the main collision stage.     

Correction to: Predicting surf zone injuries along the Delaware coast using a Bayesian network

Natural Hazards - The article was published with errors.     

Meteorite transport—Revisited II

In Wisdom (2017), I presented new simulations of meteorite transport from the chaotic zones associated with major resonances in the asteroid belt: the ν₆ secular resonance, the 3:1 mean motion resonance with Jupiter, and the 5:2 mean motion resonance with Jupiter. I found that the observed afternoon excess (the fact that approximately twice as many meteorites fall in the afternoon as in the morning) of the ordinary chondrites is consistent with chaotic transport from the 3:1 resonance, contradicting prior reports. Here I report an additional study of the transport of meteorites from ν₆ secular resonance and the 3:1 mean motion resonance. I use an improved integration algorithm, and study the evolution of more particles. I confirm that the afternoon excess of the ordinary chondrites is consistent with transport from the 3:1 resonance.     

Evolution and preservation potential of fluvial and transgressive deposits on the Louisiana inner shelf: understanding depositional processes to support coastal management

The barrier-island systems of the Mississippi River Delta plain are currently undergoing some of the highest rates of shoreline retreat in North America (~20 m/year). Effective management of this coastal area requires an understanding of the processes involved in shoreline erosion and measures that can be enacted to reduce loss. The dominant stratigraphy of the delta plain is fluvial mud (silts and clays), delivered in suspension via a series of shallow-water delta lobes that prograded across the shelf throughout the Holocene. Abandonment of a delta lobe through avulsion leads to rapid land subsidence through compaction within the muddy framework. As the deltaic headland subsides below sea level, the marine environment transgresses the bays and wetlands, reworking the available sands into transgressive barrier shorelines. This natural process is further complicated by numerous factors: (1) global sea-level rise; (2) reduced sediment load within the Mississippi River; (3) diversion of the sediment load away from the barrier shorelines to the deep shelf; (4) storm-induced erosion; and (5) human alteration of the littoral process through the construction of hardened shorelines, canals, and other activities. This suite of factors has led to the deterioration of the barrier-island systems that protect interior wetlands and human infrastructure from normal wave activity and periodic storm impact. Interior wetland loss results in an increased tidal prism and inlet cross-sectional areas, and expanding ebb-tidal deltas, which removes sand from the littoral processes through diversion and sequestration. Shoreface erosion of the deltaic headlands does not provide sufficient sand to balance the loss, resulting in thinning and dislocation of the islands. Abatement measures include replenishing lost sediment with similar material, excavated from discrete sandy deposits within the muddy delta plain. These sand bodies were deposited by the same cyclical processes that formed the barrier islands, and understanding these processes is necessary to characterize their location, extent, and resource potential. In this paper we demonstrate the dominant fluvial and marine-transgressive depositional processes that occur on the inner shelf, and identify the preservation and resource potential of fluvio-deltaic deposits for coastal management in Louisiana.