The AzTEC mm-wavelength camera

AzTEC is a mm-wavelength bolometric camera utilizing 144 silicon nitride micromesh detectors. Here, we describe the AzTEC instrument architecture and its use as an astronomical instrument. We report on several performance metrics measured during a three-month observing campaign at the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope and conclude with our plans for AzTEC as a facility instrument on the Large Millimetre Telescope.     

Spitzer IRAC infrared colours of submillimetre-bright galaxies

High-redshift submillimetre-bright galaxies identified by blank field surveys at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths appear in the region of the Infra Red Array Camera (IRAC) colour–colour diagrams previously identified as the domain of luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs). Our analysis using a set of empirical and theoretical dusty starburst spectral energy distribution (SED) models shows that power-law continuum sources associated with hot dust heated by young (≲100 Myr old), extreme starbursts at z > 2 also occupy the same general area as AGNs in the IRAC colour–colour plots. A detailed comparison of the IRAC colours and SEDs demonstrates that the two populations are distinct from each other, with submillimetre-bright galaxies having a systematically flatter IRAC spectrum (≳1 mag bluer in the observed [4.5]–[8.0] colour). Only about 20 per cent of the objects overlap in the colour–colour plots, and this low fraction suggests that submillimetre galaxies powered by a dust-obscured AGN are not common. The red infrared colours of the submillimetre galaxies are distinct from those of the ubiquitous foreground IRAC sources, and we propose a set of infrared colour selection criteria for identifying SMG counterparts that can be used even in the absence of radio or Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer (MIPS) 24 μm data.     

Heavy metal pollution in Wellington Harbour

Heavy metal analysis of the < 20 μm fraction of marine sediments from Wellington Harbour and Waiwhetu Stream have shown that the Waiwhetu Stream is easily the most polluted area in the Wellington Harbour system with Pb and Zn in the extremely polluted category and Cu, Cd, and Hg in the moderately to strongly polluted category. These elements have different distributions in the stream sediments reflecting their different sources from adjacent factories. In Wellington Harbour itself, the central basin of the harbour suffers from minimal pollution. Pb, and to a lesser extent Zn and Cu, are the main pollutants and local enrichment of these elements is noted in Lambton Harbour basin, off Pencarrow and Moa Point outfalls, in Evans Bay, and off Petone and Kaiwharawhara. The geochemical data do not enable us to identify the source of the pollutants unambiguously. A summary of the history of waste discharges into the harbour suggests that heavy metal pollution may have been higher in the past.     

Polar cap particle precipitation and aurora: Review and commentary

Polar rain has a beautiful set of symmetry properties, individually established, but not previously discussed collectively, which can be organized by a single unifying principle. The key polar rain properties are favored hemisphere (controlled by the interplanetary magnetic field B_x), dawn/dusk gradient (IMF B_y), merging rate (IMF B_z or more generally dΦ_MP/dt), nightside/dayside gradient, and seasonal effect. We argue that all five properties involve variants on a single theme: the further downstream a field line exits the magnetosphere (or less directly points toward the solar wind electron heat flux), the weaker the polar rain. This effect is the result of the requirements of charge quasi-neutrality, and because the ion thermal velocity declines and the tailward ion bulk flow velocity rises moving down tail from the frontside magnetopause.Polar cap arcs (or more properly, high-latitude sun-aligned arcs) are largely complementary to the polar rain, occurring most frequently when the dayside merging rate is low, and thus when polar rain is weak. Sun-aligned arcs are often considered as originating either in the polar rain or the expansion of the plasma sheet into the polar cap. In fact three quite distinct types of sun-aligned high-latitude arcs exist, two common, and one rare. One type of arc occurs as intensifications of the polar rain, and is common, but weak, typically <0.1 ergs/cm² s, and lacks associated ion precipitation. A second category of Sun-aligned arcs with energy flux >0.1 ergs/cm² s usually occurs adjacent to the auroral oval, and includes ion precipitation. The plasma regime of these common, and at times intense, arcs is often distinct from the oval which they abut. Convection alone does not specify the open/closed nature of these arcs, because multiple narrow convection reversals are common around such arcs, and the arcs themselves can be embedded within flows that are either sunward or anti-sunward. These observational facts do not neatly fit into either a plasma sheet origin or a polar rain origin (e.g., the necessity to abut the auroral oval, and the presence of ions does not fit the properties of polar rain, which can in any event be nearly absent for northward interplanetary magnetic field). One theory is that such arcs are associated with merging tailward of the cusp. Both of these common types of sun-aligned arcs fade within about 30 min of a southward IMF turning.The third, and rarest, category of sun-aligned arcs are intense, well detached from the auroral oval, contain plasma sheet origin ion precipitation as well as electrons, and persist for hours after a southward turning. These intense detached sun-aligned arcs can rapidly cross the polar cap, sometimes multiple times. Most events discussed in the literature as “theta-aurora” do not fit into this category (for example, although they may appear detached in images, they abut the oval in particle data, and do not have the persistence of detached events under southward IMF turnings). It is possible that no single theory can account for all three types of sun-aligned arcs.Solar energetic particle (SEP) events are at times used to demarcate polar cap open/closed boundaries. Although this works at times, examples exist where this method fails (e.g., very quiet conditions for which SEP reaches below L=4), and the method should be used with caution. Finally, it is shown that, although it is rare, the polar cap can at times completely close.     

Chemical Reduction of Hexavalent Chromium Present in Contaminated Soil using a Packed-bed Column Reactor

Soil samples extracted from a contaminated landfill with hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), were treated in a packed-bed column reactor applying different reductant solutions under controlled flow conditions. In all cases, the kinetic study concerning removal of Cr(VI) from packed soil revealed the overall process (leaching and redox reaction) is described by pseudo-first order kinetics. The complexity of the process taking place in non-isotropic medium (packed soil) was evidenced by dependence of the overall pseudo-first order kinetic rate constant, k*, on treatment time, volumetric flow rate, and composition and concentration of the reductant solution. A phenomenological equation was proposed in order to represent k* in non-ideal conditions. The comparative study concerning the use of different reductants revealed application of ferrous sulphate, Fe(II), under flow conditions furnished the best results, since in this case the redox process reached a considerable extent and the reduced chromium, Cr(III), was immobilized in packed soil as an insoluble mixed compound.     

Laboratory soil piping and internal erosion experiments: evaluation of a soil piping model for low‐compacted soils

Mechanistic models have been proposed for soil piping and internal erosion on well‐compacted levees and dams, but limited research has evaluated these models in less compacted (more erodible) soils typical of hillslopes and streambanks. This study utilized a soil box (50 cm long, 50 cm wide and 20 cm tall) to conduct constant‐head, soil pipe and internal erosion experiments for two soils (clay loam from Dry Creek and sandy loam from Cow Creek streambanks) packed at uniform bulk densities. Initial gravimetric moisture contents prior to packing were 10, 12 and 14% for Dry Creek soil and 8, 12, and 14% for Cow Creek soil. A 1‐cm diameter rod was placed horizontally along the length of the soil bed during packing and carefully removed after packing to create a continuous soil pipe. A constant head was maintained at the inflow end. Flow rates and sediment concentrations were measured from the pipe outlet. Replicate submerged jet erosion tests (JETs) were conducted to derive erodibility parameters for repacked samples at the same moisture contents. Flow rates from the box experiments were used to calibrate the mechanistic model. The influence of the initial moisture content was apparent, with some pipes (8% moisture content) expanding so fast that limited data was collected. The mechanistic model was able to estimate equivalent flow rates to those observed in the experiments, but had difficulty matching observed sediment concentrations when the pipes rapidly expanded. The JETs predicted similar erodibility coefficients compared to the mechanistic model for the more erodible cases but not for the less erodible cases (14% moisture content). Improved models are needed that better define the changing soil pipe cross‐section during supply‐ and transport‐limited internal erosion, especially for piping through lower compacted (more erodible) soils as opposed to more well‐compacted soils resulting from constructing levees and dams. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Factors Controlling In Situ Biogeochemical Transformation of Trichloroethene: Column Study

In situ biogeochemical transformation involves biological formation of reactive minerals in an aquifer that can destroy chlorinated solvents such as trichloroethene (TCE) without accumulation of intermediates such as vinyl chloride. There is uncertainty regarding the materials and geochemical conditions that are required to promote biogeochemical transformation. The objective of this study was to identify amendments and biogeochemical conditions that promote in situ biogeochemical transformation. Laboratory columns constructed with plant mulch were supplemented with different amendments and were operated under varying conditions of water chemistry and hydraulic residence time. Four patterns of TCE removal were observed: (1) no removal, (2) biotic transformation of TCE to cis‐1,2‐dichloroethene (cis‐1,2‐DCE), (3) biogeochemical transformation of TCE without accumulation of reductive dechlorination products, and (4) mixed behavior where a combination of patterns was observed either simultaneously or over time. Principal coordinates analysis and analysis of variance (ANOVA) identified factors that promoted biogeochemical transformation: (1) high influent sulfate concentration, (2) relatively high hydraulic retention time, (3) supplementation of mulch with vegetable oil, and (4) addition of hematite or magnetite. The combination of the first three factors promoted complete sulfate reduction and a high volumetric sulfate consumption rate. The fourth factor provided a source of ferrous iron and/or a surface to which sulfide could react to form reactive iron sulfides. Many columns demonstrated either no TCE removal or a biotic TCE transformation pattern. Modification of column operation to include all four factors identified above promoted biogeochemical transformation in these columns. These results support the importance of the factors in biogeochemical transformation.     

Effect of local variations of vertical and horizontal stresses on the Cenozoic structuring of the mid-Norwegian shelf

The mid-Norwegian margin has a complex history and has experienced several phases of changing horizontal and vertical stresses on regional and local scale during the Cenozoic time. In addition to regional stresses related to the opening of the North Atlantic (i.e. ridge push), local variations in stress history may be important for development, distribution and reactivation of structures in the Vøring area in Cenozoic time. Presence and stability of flexural hinge zones between areas of relative uplift and subsidence have played an important role for focusing shallow horizontal stresses within the basins. Emplacement of lower crustal bodies during break-up will, whatever the nature of these bodies, have substantial isostatic effects, and modelling show that this could cause many hundred meters of temporal uplift above the lower crustal bodies, locally exceeding 1300 m of surface uplift. Effects of intra plate stress (IPS) are modelled along three 2D transects across the Vøring Basin. Modelling shows that IPS may have given substantial vertical motions in certain areas of the mid-Norwegian shelf, both with extensional IPS at the time of break-up, and later with compressive IPS during Tertiary time. The modelling assumes a strongly reduced effective elastic thickness (EET) due to lithospheric heating at break-up and later increasing EET as the lithosphere cooled towards present time. Our modelling takes into account the tectonic and isostatic effects of loading faulting and lithospheric thinning throughout the geological history, including several phases of extension prior to the Cenozoic compression. This approach emphasizes the importance of the deformation history of the lithosphere compared to other studies that only take into account the effects of Cenozoic processes of compression and loading on the sedimentary units. We do not state that isostatic uplift or intra plate stress are the most important causes for Cenozoic uplift and compressional deformation in this area, but point to the fact that these factors locally may have played an important role in focusing deformation caused by an interplay of different mechanisms.     

Tsunami impact assessment: development of vulnerability matrix for critical infrastructure and application to Christchurch,New Zealand

Natural Hazards - Tsunamis can have severe impacts on society. In addition to casualties and damage to buildings, they can also damage and disrupt critical infrastructure. To support effective risk...     

Provenance,tectonic setting and source of Archean metasedimentary rocks of the Browns Range Metamorphics,Tanami Region,Western Australia

This study combines U–Pb age and Lu–Hf isotope data for magmatic and detrital zircons, with whole-rock geochemistry of the Browns Range Metamorphics (BRM), Western Australia. The BRM are medium- to coarse-grained metasandstones that consist of angular to sub-rounded detrital quartz and feldspars with minor granitic lithic fragments. The sequence has undergone partial to extensive quartz–muscovite alteration and rare-earth-element mineralisation and has been intruded by mafic/ultramafic, syenitic and pegmatitic intrusive rock units. Uranium–Pb and Lu–Hf isotopic data on detrital zircons from the metasandstones and intruding granitic rocks yield a well-defined age of ca 3.2 to ca 3.0 Ga for all samples, with relatively radiogenic ?_Hf values (?_Hf = –1.7 to 5.1) indicating derivation from Mesoarchean granite basement of juvenile origin. This is consistent with geochemical and petrological data that support deposition from a granitic source in a continental rift basin setting. The timing of sediment deposition is constrained between the ca 3.0 Ga age of the source rocks and ca 2.5 Ga age of the granitic intrusive bodies that cross-cut the metasedimentary rocks. The ca 2.5 Ga zircons from the intrusive rocks have ?_Hf model ages of ca 3.4 to ca 3.1 Ga, which is consistent with formation via partial melting of the BRM, or the Mesoarchean granite basement. Zircons of the Gardiner Sandstone that unconformably overlies the BRM return detrital ages of ca 2.6 to ca 1.8 Ga with no trace of ca 3.1 Ga zircons, which discounts a significant contribution from the underlying BRM. The Mesoarchean age and isotopic signatures of the BRM zircons are shared by some zircon records from the Pine Creek Orogen, and the Pilbara, Yilgarn and Gawler cratons. Collectively, these records indicate that juvenile Mesoarchean crust is a more significant component of Australian cratons than is currently recognised. This work also further demonstrates that detrital minerals in Paleoproterozoic/Archean sedimentary rocks are archives to study the early crustal record of Earth.