Stable isotope study of base metal deposits from the Eastern High Atlas,Morocco

Tertiary epigenetic lead ± zinc and copper mineralizations occur in the Mesozoic carbonate cover and stibnite, barite and copper mineralization in the Precambrian to Palaezoic basement in the Eastern High Atlas, Morocco. The carbon isotope data from host carbonates range from +3 to -1‰ PDB. The data are typical for marine carbon. There is no difference between surrounding dolomites and younger vein dolomites. The oxygen isotopic composition of the samples is enriched in ¹⁶O; the range is from -3 to -11‰ PDB with respect to that of carbonates in equilibrium with marine water. It is postulated that the isotopic composition was changed during dolomitization being caused by transition of connate formation waters diluted to some degree by meteoritic water. The bacteriogenically reduced sulphur from syngenetic sulphides and Mesozoic marine sulphate mobilized during Tertiary orogenesis are thought to be the source of H₂S and SO₄. Cambro-Ordovicien sulphate is also supposed to be the source of sulphur in the Jebel Zelmou barite deposit in the basement. Isotopic composition of lead from galenas in the Tertiary deposits from the Mesozoic cover are strikingly homogenous. Model ages vary between 230–180 Ma. It is suggested that important mobilization processes are responsible for Tertiary metallogeny in Morocco.

     

Eagle Nebula Pillars: From Models to Observations

Over the past few years, our group has been developing hydrodynamic models to simulate formation of the Eagle Nebula pillars. The true test of any model is, of course, how well it can reproduce the observations. Here, we discuss how we go about testing our models against observations. We describe the process by which we “observe” the model data to create synthetic maps. We show an example of this technique using one of our model runs and compare the resultant synthetic map to the real one.     

Discharge of biogenic substances with river runoff in Selenga basin

Averaged many-year measurement data on the concentrations of mineral forms of biogenic elements are analyzed, and their total concentrations in the rivers of Selenga, Chikoi, Khilok, Uda, Dzhida, and Temnik are evaluated. The monthly variations of the concentrations of major biogenic substances are characterized, and their ratios within a year are determined. Characteristics of river water runoff and biogenic substance concentrations are used to evaluate their within-year discharge by rivers. Characteristic variations in the ratios between the total and mineral forms of biogenic elements discharged by rivers have been revealed. It is established that the share of mineral components in the total input into the Selenga delta N_tot and P_tot are 82 and 22%, respectively.     

A Multiple Flare Scenario where the Classic Long-Duration Flare Was Not the Source of a CME

A series of flares (GOES class M, M and C) and a CME were observed in close succession on 20 January 2004 in NOAA 10540. Radio observations, which took the form of types II, III and N bursts, were associated with these events. We use the combined observations from TRACE, EIT, Hα images from Kwasan, MDI magnetograms and GOES to understand the complex development of this event. Contrary to a standard interpretation, we conclude that the first two impulsive flares are part of the CME launch process while the following long-duration event flare represents simply the recovery phase. Observations show that the flare ribbons not only separate but also shift along the magnetic inversion line so that magnetic reconnection progresses stepwise to neighboring flux tubes. We conclude that “tether cutting” reconnection in the sheared arcade progressively transforms it to a twisted flux tube, which becomes unstable, leading to a CME. We interpret the third flare, a long-duration event, as a combination of the classical two-ribbon flare with the relaxation process following forced reconnection between the expanding CME structure and neighboring magnetic fields. Electronic Supplementary Material  The online version of this article () contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Detection and extraction of signals from the epoch of reionization using higher-order one-point statistics

Detecting redshifted 21-cm emission from neutral hydrogen in the early Universe promises to give direct constraints on the epoch of reionization (EoR). It will, though, be very challenging to extract the cosmological signal (CS) from foregrounds and noise which are orders of magnitude larger. Fortunately, the signal has some characteristics which differentiate it from the foregrounds and noise, and we suggest that using the correct statistics may tease out signatures of reionization. We generate mock data cubes simulating the output of the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) EoR experiment. These cubes combine realistic models for Galactic and extragalactic foregrounds and the noise with three different simulations of the CS. We fit out the foregrounds, which are smooth in the frequency direction, to produce residual images in each frequency band. We denoise these images and study the skewness of the one-point distribution in the images as a function of frequency. We find that, under sufficiently optimistic assumptions, we can recover the main features of the redshift evolution of the skewness in the 21-cm signal. We argue that some of these features – such as a dip at the onset of reionization, followed by a rise towards its later stages – may be generic, and give us a promising route to a statistical detection of reionization.     

Structure of the Long-Living Elements of Solar Granulation

Spatial and temporal variations in thermodynamic and kinematic parameters of structural elements of solar granulation are investigated by solving the inverse nonequilibrium radiative transfer problem using the observational data from the Vacuum Tower Telescope (duration of observations 2.6 h). In the lower photosphere, we have detected long-living (with lifetime up to 1.5 h) structures—trees of fragmenting granules. They occur as a result of the division of an ascending granular flow into several fragments, which can be repeated multiple times. We have found that approximately 67% of the regions with the highest positive variations of pressure correspond to the time and place of fragmentation of granular flows; approximately 12% of the regions correspond to the approach of adjacent structures.     

A Solution of Einstein's Field Equations fora Tachyonic Gas: Possible Astrophysical Applications

In this paper we show that a change in the signs of some of the metric components of the solution of the field equations for the classical cosmic string results in a solution which we interpret as a time-dependent wall composed of tachyons. We show that the walls have the property of focusing the paths of particles which pass through them. As an illustration of this focusing, we demonstrate the results of a simple simulation of the interaction between one such tachyon wall and a rotating disk of point masses. This interaction leads to the temporary formation of spiral structures. These spiral structures exist for a time on the order of one galactic rotation. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.