Eckfeld Maar: Window into an Eocene Terrestrial Habitat in Central Europe

<正>To mark the occasion of the 175th anniversary of the Rheinische Naturforschende Gesellschaft in 2009 and of the centennial of the Mainz Natural History Museum in 2010,we present a short account of our present knowledge of the Eckfeld Maar after 20 years of continuous research.This paper does not attempt to include all of the detailed results on the geology of the Eckfeld site or its biota.To date,nearly 250 papers and books have been published since the start of our project.An up-to-date list of these publications can be found at www.eckfeldermaar. de.     

Discriminant analysis for estimation of groundwater age from hydrochemistry and well construction: application to New Zealand aquifers

Concentrations of tritium, chlorofluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride have been measured at over 100 groundwater monitoring sites across New Zealand, followed by interpretation of groundwater age distribution using the exponential-piston flow model. Interpreted mean residence times ranged from less than 1 year to more than 100 years, with the 25th, 50th (median) and 75th percentiles being approximately 10, 40 and 100 years, respectively. Classification functions derived from discriminant analysis and based on nine input variables (well depth, electrical conductivity and the concentrations of the ions Na, K, Ca, Mg, HCO₃, Cl and SO₄) allowed assignment of 71% of the sites to the correct of four age categories (mean residence time 10 years or less, 11–40 years, 41–100 years, or more than 100 years). The discriminant analysis classification functions were more effective than regression methods for estimating groundwater age from hydrochemistry and well depth, and can thus be used to predict the groundwater age category for any monitoring site in New Zealand.     

Hi-Fix—ein neues Hilfsmittel zur Ortsbestimmung in küstennahen Seegebieten

Zusammenfassung Das Hi-Fix-Verfahren ist ein funktechnisches Hilfsmittel zur Ortsbestimmung auf der Grundlage der Hyperbelnavigation, das in küstennahen Seegebieten eingesetzt wird. Es werden das Prinzip, die Technik und die Anwendung dieses Verfahrens behandelt. Über die im praktischen Einsatz gesammelten Erfahrungen, sowie über die Aufgabenstellung für die Auswertung zahlreichen Registriermaterials, das während des Großversuches einiger Bundesbehörden in den Jahren 1964 und 1965 anfiel, wird berichtet. Es soll dabei untersucht werden, welchen Einfluß geophysikalische Größen, wie z. B. die Bodenleitfähigkeit und atmosphärische Störungen (Gewitter) sowie Sekundärstrahlungen von metallischen Gebilden in Empfängernähe auf die Anzeigegenauigkeit der Hi-Fix-Geräte ausüben.

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Hi-Fix — a new tool of position fixing in near-coastal sea areas

Summary Hi-Fix is a new tool of position fixing on the basis of hyperbolic navigation that is used in near-coastal sea areas. Principle, technique, and application of this system are treated. A report is given of the experience gained from field work as well as of the objects of the evaluation of the numerous recordings obtained from a large-scale experiment conducted by several federal agencies in the years 1964 and 1965. The effect of geophysical quantities, such as soil conductivity and atmospherics (thunderstorm) as well as secondary radiation from metallic bodies in the vicinity of the receiver on the indication accuracy of the Hi-Fix devices shall be studied.

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Hi-Fix — un nouveau procédé de localisation en mer à proximité de la côle

Résumé Le procédé Hi-Fix apporte une nouvelle contribution au problème de la localisation; il est basé sur le système hyperbolique et utilisé dans les eaux côtières. Il est rendu compte des expériences réalisées pratiquement ainsi que de la tâche qu'imposait, à quelques autorités fédérales, l'exploitation des nombreuses informations recueillies au cours des essais à grande échelle des années 1964 et 1965. A cette occasion on cherche à mesurer l'influence qu'exercent sur la précision fournie par les appareils Hi-Fix, des grandeurs atmosphériques (orages) ainsi que les rayonnements secondaires de formations métalliques au voisinage du récepteur.

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Nach einem Vortrag, gehalten auf der Meteorologen-Geophysiker-Tagung am 4. 4. 1968 in Hamburg.

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Hi-Fix ist eine Abkürzung für High Accuracy Position Fixing, es wird ebensowenig aufgelöst wie z. B. Radar. Die Redaktion.     

Spectroscopic evidence for two achondrite parent bodies: asteroids 349 Dembowska and 4 Vesta

A Fourier spectrometer was used to obtain IR spectra of asteroids 349 Dembowska and 4 Vesta (0.8–2.5μm; 25cm ^?1 resolution). The spectrum of Dembowska shows olivine and pyroxene (Fs_{24 ± 8}) with an olivine/pyroxene abundance ratio greater than 2, and possibly as high as 10. This is probably an unsampled achondritic composition, similar to the unique achondrite ALHA 77005. Similar olivine-rich compositions have also been proposed for the mantles of basaltic achondrite parent bodies. Dembowska's mineralogy therefore appears related in some way to the achondrites. but a direct link cannot as yet be made. Our IR observations of Vesta have more complete spectral coverage than those first obtained by Larson and Fink (1975b). Pyroxene (Fs_{50 ± 5}) and plagioclase feldspar are both seen, with a pyroxene/feldspar abundance ratio between 1.5 and 2.0. Vesta's mineralogy is consistent with a mixture of eucrites and howardites on its surface. Time-resolved observations over one-half of the rotation period show no spectral variations at the 2% level, indicating compositional homogeneity. Both 349 Dembowska and 4 Vesta can be considered as candidates for the parent bodies of igneous meteorites.     

A new equation of state for high compression

A new equation of state for metals is developed. The starting point for this development is a realistic expression for the free energy, allowance being made not only for the lattice energy but also for the Fermi energy, the exchange and correlation energies of the electrons. This expression is extended by means of three free parameters. The equation of state is successfully transformed in such a way that only macrophysical material parameters occur in it. In this way, the equation can be applied both to experimental high-pressure physics and to geophysics, its advantage resting in the fact that the bonding structure has been taken into account better than in other equations of state.The new equation, along with two other well-proven equations of state, was tried out on isothermal and Hugoniot data of 40 materials. Good agreement with the measured data was found not only for metallic elements, but also for halides and some oxides of geophysical importance. This agreement even proved to be better for most of the materials than that obtained with the other two equations of state.     

Convection currents in the Earth's mantle and the spherical harmonic development of the topography of the earth

Summary A system of simple principles concerning the kinematics of the convection currents in the Earth's mantle was postulated as the starting point. The mantle is supposed to become more and more homogeneous downward. Here it is essential, for the reason of symmetry, that the current system has a degree of regularity as high as possible and is modified only in the upper part, mainly due to the distribution of continents and oceans. The adequate system is chosen by the help of the theory of point groups. Evaluating the distribution to be expected of the coefficients of the spherical harmonic development of the Earth's theoretical topography by means of electronic computers, accordance is found for the extrema to the 31 st order, i.e. as far as they have been determined until now. — The system yields the seismic discontinuities of the Earth's mantle as a secondary product. That does not mean that the system explains them, but it is absolutely consistent with them. That seems to be aquantitative proof of the system regarded as probable on the strength of group-theoretic considerations.Report No. 74, lectured in Potsdam, May 7, 1970.     

Tellurium isotopic composition of the early solar system—A search for effects resulting from stellar nucleosynthesis, Sn decay, and mass-independent fractionation

New precise Te isotope data acquired by multiple collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICPMS) are presented for selected extraterrestrial and terrestrial materials. Bulk samples of carbonaceous, ordinary and enstatite chondrites as well as the metal and sulfide phases of iron meteorites were analyzed to search for nucleosynthetic isotope anomalies and to find evidence of formerly live ¹²⁶Sn, which decays to ¹²⁶Te with a half-life of 234,500 yr. None of the meteorites show evidence of mass dependent Te isotope fractionations larger than 2‰ for δ^126/128Te. Following internal normalization of the data to ¹²⁵Te/¹²⁸Te, the Te isotope ratios of all analyzed meteorites were found to be identical to a terrestrial standard, within uncertainties. This provides evidence that the regions of the solar disk that were sampled during accretion of the meteorite parent bodies were well mixed and homogeneous on a large scale, with respect to Te isotopes. The data acquired for bulk carbonaceous chondrites indicate that the initial ¹²⁶Sn/¹¹⁸Sn ratio of the solar system was <4 × 10⁻⁵, but this is dependent on the assumption that no redistribution of Sn and Te occurred since the start of the solar system. Five Archean sedimentary sulfides that display both mass dependent and mass-independent isotope effects for S yield internally normalized Te isotope data, which indicate that mass-independent Te isotope effects are absent. The mass dependent fractionations in these samples are constrained to be less than ∼1‰ for δ^126/128Te.     

Late Quaternary glacial and climate history of the Pamir Mountains derived from cosmogenic Be exposure ages

Moraines southwest of Lake Yashilkul, Pamir, Tajikistan, were dated using ¹⁰Be exposure ages of boulder surfaces. We found evidence for (1) an extensive glaciation ∼60,000 yr ago; (2) a less extensive glacial advance, which deposited a characteristic hummocky moraine lobe with exposure ages ranging from ∼11,000 to 47,000 yr, probably deposited at or before 47,000 yr ago; and (3) lateral moraines with exposure ages of ∼40,000 yr, 27,000 yr and 19,000 yr, respectively. Increasing aridity in the Pamir is most likely responsible for the progressively limited extent of the glaciers during the Late Pleistocene.