Zur Geologie von Ayûn Mûsa am westlichen Sinai, Ägypten

Zusammenfassung Der geologische Aufbau des Untergrunds von Ayûn Mûsa am westlichen Sinai wird beschrieben. Mesozoische Gesteinsserien unter dem an der Oberfläche allein verbreiteten U. Miozän (Burdigal), wurden bei mehreren Bohrungen auf Kohle durchörtert.Der Nubische Sandstein, der örtlich verschiedenes stratigraphisches Alter aufweisen kann, wird hier in seiner gleichförmigen Ausbildung durch eingeschaltete marine Serien des mittleren und oberen Juras untergliedert. Etwa an der Wadi Araba—G. Somâr-Achse findet diese marine Ausbildung die südliche Begrenzung und die Abfolge geht in die kontinentale oder ästuarine Fazies des Nubischen Sandsteins über.Der vortertiäre Schichtenverband wurde im Gefolge der laramischen Gebirgsbildungen strukturelles Teilstück im Syrischen Bogen und damit aus dem marinen Sedimentationsbereich herausgehoben. Das NE-SW streichende flachwellige Faltungsgebiet unterlag an der Wende Mesozoikum-Känozoikum tiefgründiger Abtragung, bis im Eozän die Lutet-Transgression auch den Raum von Ayûn Mûsa erfaßt. Danach wurde der Sinai erneut aus dem meerischen Sedimentationsraum herausgehoben und wieder Abtragungsgebiet.Die miozäne Transgression (Globigerinen-Mergel des Burdigal) griff mit mächtigen Konglomeraten undAmphistegina-Sanden über das eingeebnete und absinkende Gebiet am westlichen Sinai. Der Einbruch des Roten-Meer-Grabens und die Heraushebung des Plateaus von El Tih im zentralen Sinai engte den marinen Bereich auf die heutigen Tiefenfurchen (Golf von Suez und Aqaba) ein. Im Gefolge dieser Grabentektonik wurde das Ayûn-Mûsa-Gebiet horstförmig zerschnitten.

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The subsurface geology of Ayûn Mûsa (West Sinai) ist briefly described from several boreholes. Lower Miocene (Burdigalian) covers the entire region, underlain by a Mesozoic sequence.The Nubian Sandstone, which is of different age at various localities in Egypt, interfingers with marine Middle and Upper Jurassic beds, extending as far south as the Wadi Araba — G. Somâr Axis.The Pre-Tertiary beds of Ayûn Mûsa were gently folded with a NE-SW strike during the Laramic orogeny and became structurally part of the Syrian Arc.After the folding the region was deeply eroded until Eocene when the Lutetian transgression invaded Ayûn Mûsa area. This was followed by a general upheaval and further erosion of the Sinai structural complex.This period of erosion is followed by a Miocene transgression in the subsiding area of western Sinai. The basal part of the Lower Miocene consists of thick conglomerats andAmphistegina sands which pass upwards into BurdigalianGlobigerina-Marls. Later differential block movements caused the formation of the Red-Sea-Graben and the uplift of the Plateau of El Tih (Central Sinai) resulting in a local horst in the Ayûn Mûsa district. This restricted the marine sedimentation to the region of the Golf of Suez and Aqaba.

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Résumé L'auteur décrit la constitution géologique du soubassement de Ayûn Mûsa dans la partie occidentale du Sinaï. Des séries de roches mésozoïques parmi lesquelles seul le Miocène inférieur (Burdigalien) affleure, ont été traversées par plusieurs sondages pour recherches de charbon.Le grès nubien, qui, suivant les endroits, peut être d'âge stratigraphique différent, est divisé ici dans un faciès uniforme, par des séries marines intercalées appartenant au Jurassique moyen et supérieur. Cette formation marine se termine vers le Sud a peu près suivant l'axe Wadi Araba — G. Somâr et la série passe au faciès continental ou estuairien du grès nubien.Le complexe de couches pré-tertiaires fut soulevé au cours de la formation des chaînes laramiques suivant l'arc syrien et soustrait ainsi au domaine de sédimentation marine. La région largement plissée dirigée NE-SW a subi, à la limite du Mésozoïque-Cénozoïque, une érosion profonde jusqu'au moment où, à l'Eocène, la transgression du Lutétien atteignit la région de Ayûn Mûsa. Ensuite le Sinaï a été soulevé à nouveau et soumis à l'érosion. La transgression miocène (Marne à globigerines du Burdigalien) a empiété avec ses conglomérats puissants et les sables àAmphistegina sur le domaine pénéplané et en voie d'affaissement à l'Ouest du Sinaï. L'affaissement du Graben de la Mer Rouge et le soulèvement du plateau de El Tih dans le Sinaï central a rétréci le domaine marin au sillon profond tel qu'il existe aujourd'hui (Golfes de Suez et d'Akaba). A la suite de cette tectonique en graben, le domaine de Ayûn Mûsa a été découpé suivant une structure en horst.

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Performance and Early Results from the Golf Instrument Flown on the Soho Mission

GOLF in-flight commissioning and calibration was carried out during the first four months, most of which represented the cruise phase of SOHO towards its final L1 orbit. The initial performance of GOLF is shown to be within the design specification, for the entire instrument as well as for the separate sub-systems. Malfunctioning of the polarising mechanisms after 3 to 4 months operation has led to the adoption of an unplanned operating sequence in which these mechanisms are no longer used. This mode, which measures only the blue wing of the solar sodium lines, detracts little from the detection and frequency measurements of global oscillations, but does make more difficult the absolute velocity calibration, which is currently of the order of 20%. Data continuity in the new mode is extremely high and the instrument is producing exceptionally noise-free p-mode spectra. The data set is particularly well suited to the study of effects due to the excitation mechanism of the modes, leading to temporal variations in their amplitudes. The g modes have not yet been detected in this limited data set. In the present mode of operation, there are no indications of any degradation which would limit the use of GOLF for up to 6 years or more.     

Recognition of Space Weather Impact on the Isophot Detectors

The effects of changes in the space environment on the ISOPHOT photoconductivedetectors over the whole ISO mission were studied using the complete setof responsivity check measurements taken after the curing of the detectors.We found that the responsivity of the Ge-based, low bias voltage far-infrared detectors (P3, C100, and C200) is sensitive to the conditions of the Space Weather.We present evidence that an increased responsivity level (20% – 50%) after curing of the detectors is linked to the onset of geomagnetic storms. TheSi-based, high bias voltage detectors P1, P2 and PHT–SS show only small changesin their responsivity. An exception is the PHT–SL array which shows a similar,but less pronounced behaviour as the FIR detectors. While these relationshave been demonstrated by our study, a detailed physical understanding is still outstanding. The Space Weather dependent scatter of the responsivity,being the photometric scaling factor (conversion from measured photo currentto inband power on the detector), justifies the observing mode design to include frequent monitoring of its actual level.     

Experimental approach to generate shock veins in single crystal olivine by shear melting

Abstract— A shock experiment has been devised to produce large shear in a single crystal sample of olivine. The recovered sample exhibits macroscopic shear faults resembling shock veins in ordinary chondrites. Examination with transmission electron microscopy reveals a high density of dislocations in the bulk olivine. The shear faults appear as thin veins containing small grains of olivine and pockets of glass. The microstructure and composition of the material in the veins point to fractional crystallization of a melt. An order of magnitude calculation is consistent with the idea that the veins were produced by shear melting. These results support the view that shock veins in meteorites are the result of shear heating rather than of pressure heterogeneities.     

Olivine‐rich exposures at Bellicia and Arruntia craters on (4) Vesta from Dawn FC

We present an analysis of olivine‐rich exposures at Bellicia and Arruntia craters using Dawn Framing Camera (FC) color data. Our results confirm the existence of olivine‐rich materials at these localities as described by Ammannito et al. ( 2013a ) using Visual Infrared Spectrometer (VIR) data. Analyzing laboratory spectra of various howardite–eucrite–diogenite meteorites, high‐Ca pyroxenes, olivines, and olivine‐orthopyroxene mixtures, we derive three FC spectral band parameters that are indicators of olivine‐rich materials. Combining the three band parameters allows us, for the first time, to reliably identify sites showing modal olivine contents >40%. The olivine‐rich exposures at Bellicia and Arruntia are mapped using higher spatial resolution FC data. The exposures are located on the slopes of outer/inner crater walls, on the floor of Arruntia, in the ejecta, as well as in nearby fresh small impact craters. The spatial extent of the exposures ranges from a few hundred meters to few kilometers. The olivine‐rich exposures are in accordance with both the magma ocean and the serial magmatism model (e.g., Righter and Drake 1997 ; Yamaguchi et al. 1997 ). However, it remains unsolved why the olivine‐rich materials are mainly concentrated in the northern hemisphere (approximately 36–42°N, 46–74°E) and are almost absent in the Rheasilvia basin.     

Spectral Line Selection for HMI: A Comparison of Fe I 6173 Å and Ni I 6768 Å

We present a study of two spectral lines, Fe I 6173 Å and Ni I 6768 Å, that were candidates to be used in the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) for observing Doppler velocity and the vector magnetic field. The line profiles were studied using the Mt. Wilson Observatory, the Advanced Stokes Polarimeter and the Kitt Peak-McMath Pierce telescope and one-meter Fourier transform spectrometer atlas. Both Fe I and Ni I profiles have clean continua and no blends that threaten instrument performance. The Fe I line is 2% deeper, 15% narrower, and has a 6% smaller equivalent width than the Ni I line. The potential of each spectral line to recover pre-assigned solar conditions is tested using a least-squares minimization technique to fit Milne-Eddington models to tens of thousands of line profiles that have been sampled at five spectral positions across the line. Overall, the Fe I line has a better performance than the Ni I line for vector-magnetic-field retrieval. Specifically, the Fe I line is able to determine field strength, longitudinal and transverse flux four times more accurately than the Ni I line in active regions. Inclination and azimuthal angles can be recovered to ≈2^° above 600 Mx cm^?2 for Fe I and above 1000 Mx cm^?2 for Ni I. Therefore, the Fe I line better determines the magnetic-field orientation in plage, whereas both lines provide good orientation determination in penumbrae and umbrae. We selected the Fe I spectral line for use in HMI due to its better performance for magnetic diagnostics while not sacrificing velocity information. The one exception to the better performance of the Fe I line arises when high field strengths combine with high velocities to move the spectral line beyond the effective sampling range. The higher g _eff of Fe I means that its useful range of velocity values in regions of strong magnetic field is smaller than Ni I.     

The L3–6 chondritic regolith breccia Northwest Africa (NWA) 869: (II) Noble gases and cosmogenic radionuclides

Abstract– We measured cosmogenic radionuclides and noble gases in the L3–6 chondrite breccia Northwest Africa (NWA) 869, one of the largest meteorite finds from the Sahara. Concentrations of ¹⁰Be, ²⁶Al, and ³⁶Cl in stone and metal fractions of six fragments of NWA 869 indicate a preatmospheric radius of 2.0–2.5 m. The ¹⁴C and ¹⁰Be concentrations in three fragments yield a terrestrial age of 4.4 ± 0.7 kyr, whereas two fragments show evidence for a recent change in shielding, most likely due to a recent impact on the NWA meteoroid, approximately 10⁵ yr ago, that excavated material up to approximately 80 cm deep and exposed previously shielded material to higher cosmic‐ray fluxes. This scenario is supported by the low cosmogenic ³He/²¹Ne ratios in these two samples, indicating recent loss of cosmogenic ³He. Most NWA samples, except for clasts of petrologic type 4–6, contain significant amounts of solar Ne and Ar, but are virtually free of solar helium, judging from the trapped ⁴He/²⁰Ne ratio of approximately 7. Trapped planetary‐type Kr and Xe are most clearly present in the bulk and matrix samples, where abundances of ¹²⁹Xe from decay of now extinct ¹²⁹I are highest. Cosmogenic ²¹Ne varies between 0.55 and 1.92 × 10^?8 cm³ STP g^?1, with no apparent relationship between cosmogenic and solar Ne contents. Low cosmogenic (²²Ne/²¹Ne)_c ratios in solar gas free specimens are consistent with irradiation in a large body. Combined ¹⁰Be and ²¹Ne concentrations indicate that NWA 869 had a 4π cosmic‐ray exposure (CRE) age of 5 ± 1 Myr, whereas elevated ²¹Ne concentrations in several clasts and bulk samples indicate a previous CRE of 10–30 Myr on the parent body, most probably as individual components in a regolith. Unlike many other large chondrites, NWA 869 does not show clear evidence of CRE as a large boulder near the surface of its parent body. Radiogenic ⁴He concentrations in most NWA 869 samples indicate a major outgassing event approximately 2.8 Gyr ago that may have also resulted in loss of solar helium.     

Observations and interpretations at Vredefort,Sudbury, and Chicxulub: Towards an empirical model of terrestrial impact basin formation

Abstract— The structural, topographic and other characteristics of the Vredefort, Sudbury, and Chicxulub impact structures are described. Assuming that the structures originally had the same morphology, the observations/interpretations for each structure are compared and extended to the other structures. This does not result in any major inconsistencies but requires that the observations be scaled spatially. In the case of Vredefort and Sudbury, this is accomplished by scaling the outer limit of particular shock metamorphic features. In the case of Chicxulub, scaling requires a reasoned assumption as to the formation mechanism of an interior peak ring. The observations/interpretations are then used to construct an integrated, empirical kinematic model for a terrestrial peak‐ring basin. The major attributes of the model include: a set of outward‐directed thrusts in the parautochthonous rocks of the outermost environs of the crater floor, some of which are pre‐existing structures that have been reactivated during transient cavity formation; inward‐directed motions along the same outermost structures and along a set of structures, at intermediate radial distances, during transient cavity collapse; structural uplift in the center followed by a final set of radially outward‐directed thrusts at the outer edges of the structural uplift, during uplift collapse. The rock displacements on the intermediate, inward and innermost, outward sets of structures are consistent with the assumption that a peak ring will result from the convergence of the collapse of the transient cavity rim area and the collapse of the structural uplift.     

Experimental evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms from Mars and Mars-like planets

Bacterial spores (Bacillus subtilis), cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsis sp.), and lichen (Xanthoria elegans) embedded in martian analogue rock (gabbro) were exposed to shock pressures between 5 and 50 GPa which is the range of pressures observed in martian meteorites. The survival of Bacillus subtilis and Xanthoria elegans up to 45 GPa and of Chroococcidiopsis sp. up to 10 GPa supports the possibility of transfer of life inside meteoroids between Mars and Earth and it implies the potential for the transfer of life from any Mars-like planet to other habitable planets in the same stellar system.     

Maribo—A new CM fall from Denmark

Abstract– Maribo is a new Danish CM chondrite, which fell on January 17, 2009, at 19:08:28 CET. The fall was observed by many eye witnesses and recorded by a surveillance camera, an all sky camera, a few seismic stations, and by meteor radar observatories in Germany. A single fragment of Maribo with a dry weight of 25.8 g was found on March 4, 2009. The coarse‐grained components in Maribo include chondrules, fine‐grained olivine aggregates, large isolated lithic clasts, metals, and mineral fragments (often olivine), and rare Ca,Al‐rich inclusions. The components are typically rimmed by fine‐grained dust mantles. The matrix includes abundant dust rimmed fragments of tochilinite with a layered, fishbone‐like texture, tochilinite–cronstedtite intergrowths, sulfides, metals, and carbonates often intergrown with tochilinite. The oxygen isotopic composition: (δ¹⁷O = ?1.27‰; δ¹⁸O = 4.96‰; Δ¹⁷O = ?3.85‰) plots at the edge of the CM field, close to the CCAM line. The very low Δ¹⁷O and the presence of unaltered components suggest that Maribo is among the least altered CM chondrites. The bulk chemistry of Maribo is typical of CM chondrites. Trapped noble gases are similar in abundance and isotopic composition to other CM chondrites, stepwise heating data indicating the presence of gas components hosted by presolar diamond and silicon carbide. The organics in Maribo include components also seen in Murchison as well as nitrogen‐rich components unique to Maribo.