IN-FLIGHT PERFORMANCE OF THE VIRGO LUMINOSITY OSCILLATIONS IMAGER ABOARD SOHO

The Luminosity Oscillations Imager (LOI) is a part of the VIRGO instrument aboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). The scientific objective of the LOI experiment is to identify and characterize pressure and internal gravity oscillations of the Sun by observing the radiance variations. The LOI is a low-resolution imager with 12 pixels, for the measurement of the radiance distribution over the solar disk at 500 nm. The low resolution capability of the instrument allows the identification of individual azimuthal orders for l = 0 to 7, without suffering the mixing that affects integrated solar disk instruments. The performance, calibrations and instrumental effects of the LOI are described together with the procedures for extracting the solar p modes.     

Rangeland degradation assessment in Kyrgyzstan: vegetation and soils as indicators of grazing pressure in Naryn Oblast

Rangelands occupy more than 80% of the agricultural land in Kyrgyzstan. At least 30% of Kyrgyz pasture areas are considered to be subject to vegetation and soil degradation. Since animal husbandry is the economic basis to sustain people’s livelihoods, rangeland degradation presents a threat for the majority of the population. We present for the first time an ecological assessment of different pasture types in a remote area of the Naryn Oblast, using vegetation and soils as indicators of rangeland conditions. We analysed the current degree of utilization (grazing pressure), the amount of biomass, soil samples, and vegetation data, using cluster analysis as well as ordination techniques. Winter pastures (kyshtoo) are characterized by higher pH values (average of 7.27) and lower organic matter contents (average of 12.83%) compared to summer pastures (dzailoo) with average pH values of 6.03 and average organic matter contents of 21.05%. Additionally, summer pastures show higher above-ground biomass, and higher species richness and diversity. Our results support the hypothesis that winter pastures, which are located near settlements, suffer from over-utilisation, while the more distant summer pastures are subjected to much lower grazing pressure.     

VIRGO: Experiment for helioseismology and solar irradiance monitoring

The scientific objective of the VIRGO experiment (Variability of solar IRradiance and Gravity Oscillations) is to determine the characteristics of pressure and internal gravity oscillations by observing irradiance and radiance variations, to measure the solar total and spectral irradiance and to quantify their variability over periods of days to the duration of the mission. With these data helioseismological methods can be used to probe the solar interior. Certain characteristics of convection and its interaction with magnetic fields, related to, for example, activity, will be studied from the results of the irradiance monitoring and from the comparison of amplitudes and phases of the oscillations as manifest in brightness from VIRGO, in velocity from GOLF, and in both velocity and continuum intensity from SOI/MDI. The VIRGO experiment contains two different active-cavity radiometers for monitoring the solar constant, two three-channel sunphotometers (SPM) for the measurement of the spectral irradiance at 402, 500 and 862 nm, and a low-resolution imager (LOI) with 12 pixels, for the measurement of the radiance distribution over the solar disk at 500 um. In this paper the scientific objectives of VIRGO are presented, the instruments and the data acquisition and control system are described in detail, and their measured performance is given.died 13 October 1994     

The stability of fission tracks in epidote and vesuvianite

The stability of fission tracks in epidote and vesuvianite (idiocrase) was studied at different temperatures for several periods of time. The tracks in epidote are almost as heat-resistant as those in garnet; in vesuvianite they are much less stable. These results are in line with the rule that tracks in minerals with high lattice energies need higher activation energies to fade than in minerals with low lattice energies.     

Einjährige Feldstärkemessungen im UKW-Rundfunkband in Kolberg bei Berlin

Zusammenfassung Es wird über einjährige UKW-Ausbreitungsmessungen auf festen Meßstrecken im UKW-Rundfunkband berichtet. Im jährlichen Verlauf der Empfangsfeldstärken konnten im Mittel in den Monaten Juni und Dezember die niedrigsten Feldstärken festgestellt werden. Es zeigte sich ein Zusammenhang zwischen den Temperatursprüngen an Inversionen und den Feldstärken sowohl bei den Monatsmitteln als auch bei den Einzelwerten. Bei der Untersuchung des Korrelationskoeffizienten zwischen den Temperatursprüngen an Inversionen und den Feldstärken ließ sich eine Entfernungsabhängigkeit nachweisen. Auch die Amplitude des Tagesganges und die Schwankungen der Tagesmittelwerte zeigen eine eindeutige Entfernungsabhängigkeit mit Höchstwerten in 200 bis 300 km Entfernung. Mit einem Korrelationskoeffizienten von 0.49 wurde ein guter Zusammenhang zwischen den Feldstärken und dem Bodenluftdruck ermittelt. Da sich außerdem eine Abhängigkeit der Feldstärken von den Temperaturschwankungen der unteren Troposphärenschichten gezeigt hatte, wurde unter Heranziehung des Luftdruckverlaufes und der Temperaturänderungen der 700 mb-Fläche eine Erhöhung des Korrelationskoeffizienten bei Verwendung von Tageswerten auf 0.58 festgestellt. Neben der Abhängigkeit der Feldstärken von der jeweils herrschenden Luftmasse, von der Höhe der 700 mb-Fläche u.a. wurden die Feldstärkeerhöhungen bei Vergrößerung des vertikalen Temperatursprunges an Inversionen untersucht und in Diagrammen mitgeteilt. Die Feldstärkeabhängigkeit mit der Entfernung ergab eine Kurve, die für Entfernungen über 300 km etwas unterhalb der vom Meteorologischen Observatorium Kühlungsborn mitgeteilten Kurve lag und außerdem etwas höhere Werte zeigt als die auf der CCIR-Konferenz in Warschau 1956 neuen mitgeteilten amerikanischen Feldstärkekurven.

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Summary The results of field-strength-measurements over some propagation paths in the frequency range from 88–100 Mc are presented. On the average the lowest field-strength could be observed in June and December. There was found a correlation between the temperature gradient at inversions and the field-strength when using the average values of field-strenght and the single values. The correlation coefficient between the field-strength and the temperature gradient at the inversions is a function of the length of the propagation path. In the same way the amplitude of the daily variation of field-strength depends on the length of the propagation path; the values being a maximum at a distance of 200 to 300 km. With a coefficient of 0.49 there was found a good correlation between the field-strength and the air pressure variation at ground level. As there also exists a correlation between the field-strength and the temperature variations in the lower part of the troposphere a better correlation coefficient of 0.58 was found when comparing the field-strength with the air pressure variation and the variation of the temperature at the 700 mb-level.There are given some diagrams of the field-strengt dependent upon the available air mass, the height of the 700 mb-level a.o. Some diagrams present the field-strength variation with varying temperature gradient on inversions.As to the field-strength variation with distance there was found a curve which for more than 300 Km is somewhat below this curve that was measured by the Meteorological Observatory Kühlungsborn. The curve showed somewhat higher values compared with one curve which wac published in a document of the USA presented at the CCIR Assembly in Warsaw in 1956.

     

Tournaisian age of granitoids from the Odra Fault Zone (southwestern Poland): equivalent of the Mid-German Crystalline High?

The Odra Fault Zone of southwestern Poland is a NW-trending horst marked by gravimetric and magnetic anomalies and composed of high- to low-grade metamorphic and igneous rocks which are only known from boreholes. This zone embraces a concealed border between Variscan internides and externides. It also contains an array of several I-type, metaluminous to peraluminous, high potassic granitoid bodies which intruded earlier metamorphosed rocks. Except for one case, they remain unfoliated and undeformed, and presumably play a role of stitching plutons at the suture between two obliquely colliding terranes. U–Pb TIMS dating of single zircons from one foliated and one unfoliated granitoid samples yielded identical concordant ages of 344±1 Ma (Tournaisian). They resemble a Pb–Pb age of 350±5 Ma obtained for S-type granitoids from the Luckau area further west in Germany, which is generally regarded as an eastern segment of the Mid-German Crystalline High. Carboniferous granitic intrusions in the high are generally younger (340–290 Ma). Correlations of the the Odra Fault Zone with the Mid-German Crystalline High appear plausible, but by no means certain and require further confirmation.     

A description of the tides and effect of Qeshm canal on that in the Persian Gulf using two-dimensional numerical model

The main semidiurnal (M2 and S2) and diurnal (K1 and O1) tidal constituents are simulated in the Persian Gulf (PG). The topography is discretized on a spherical grid with a resolution of 30 s in both latitude and longitude. It includes coastal areas prone to flooding. The model permits flooding of drying banks up to 5 m above mean sea level. At the open boundary, it is forced by 13 harmonic constituents extracted from a global tidal model. The model results are in good agreement with tide gauge observations. Co-tidal charts and flow extremes are presented for each tidal constituent. The co-tidal charts show two amphidromic points for semidiurnal and one for diurnal tidal constituents. Maximum amplitudes of sea level are obtained for the north-western part of the PG, where coastal flooding prevails in wide areas. Strong tidal currents occur in different parts of the PG for different types of constituents. Maximum velocities are found in shallow regions. Particularly, high amplitudes of elevations and high speed currents are founded in the canal between Qeshm Island and the mainland. Rectification of tides around Qeshm Island affects the propagation of tides in the PG as far as the coast of Saudi Arabia and the northern part of the PG.