Helical structures around quiescent solar prominences computed from observable magnetic fields

We analyse the magnetic support of solar prominences in two-dimensional linear force-free fields. A line current is added to model a helical configuration, well suited to trap dense plasma in its bottom part. The prominence is modeled as a vertical mass-loaded current sheet in equilibrium between gravity and magnetic forces.We use a finite difference numerical technique which incorporates both vertical photospheric and horizontal prominence magnetic field measurements. The solution of this mixed boundary problem generally presents singularities at both the bottom and top of the model prominence. The removal of the singularities is achieved by superposition of solutions. Together with the line current equilibrium, these three conditions determine the amplitude of the magnetic field in the prominence, the flux below the prominence and the current intensity, for a given height of the line current. A numerical check of accuracy in the removal of singularities, is done by using known analytical solutions in the potential limit.We have investigated both bipolar and quadrupolar photospheric regions. In this mixed boundary problem the polarity of the field component orthogonal to the prominence is mainly fixed by the imposed height of the line current. For bipolar regions above (respectively below) a critical height the configuration is inverse (respectively normal). For quadrupolar regions the polarity is reversed if we refer the prominence polarity to the closest photospheric polarities. We introduce the polarity of the component parallel to the prominence axis with reference to a sheared arcade. Increasing the shear with fixed boundary conditions can increase or decrease the mass supported depending on the configuration.     

A comparison of boundary layer diffusion schemes in unstable conditions over land

We compare the results of a local and a nonlocal scheme for vertical diffusion in the atmospheric boundary layer with observations at the 200 m tower at Cabauw. This is done for a 12 h period during daytime on 31 May 1978, which is characterised by strong insolation, clear skies, moderately strong winds and weak advection. The local diffusion scheme uses an eddy diffusivity determined independently at each point along the vertical based on local vertical gradients of wind and virtual potential temperature, similar to the usual approach in atmospheric models. The nonlocal scheme determines an eddy diffusivity profile based on a diagnosed boundary-layer height and a turbulent velocity scale. It also incorporates nonlocal (vertical) transport effects for heat and moisture. The boundary-layer diffusion schemes are forced with the locally observed fluxes for heat and moisture. The outputs of the scheme are compared with the observed mean structure along the Cabauw tower, and the radiosonde profile at a nearby location (De Bilt). Overall, the nonlocal scheme transports moisture away from the surface more rapidly than the local scheme, and deposits the moisture at higher levels. The local scheme tends to saturate the lowest model levels unrealistically in comparison with the observations. We also compare the outputs of the two diffusion schemes with the results of a transilient model simulation. Subsequently, we study the impact on the model behaviour by varying important parameters in both diffusion schemes and we investigate the sensitivity to uncertainty in the environmental conditions. Finally, we study the interaction of the diffusion schemes with a simple surface flux scheme.     

Dispersed Sedimentary Matter of the Barents Sea

Oceanology - The article presents the results of studying the distribution and composition of dispersed sedimentary matter (suspended particulate matter, SPM) in the Barents Sea water column. The...     

The Quantitative Mineral Composition of Sedimentary Rocks: Calculation from Chemical Analyses and Assessment of Adequacy (MINLITH Computer Program)

The MINLITH program provides for calculating the first approximation mineral composition of sedimentary rocks and their metamorphic counterparts from the bulk chemical compositions. The method is universal and can be applied to most types of clastic, pelitic, and carbonate sedimentary rocks based on a limited set of minerals and their simplified compositions. The program comprises a great number of arithmetic operations making up an algorithm. Each operation solves the equations allocating the major oxides to possible (expected) normative minerals. The operation sequence is determined from empirical relationships based on the study of numerous reference samples. The accuracy of MINLITH calculations was statistically estimated from comparison with results of the high-precision study of modal mineral compositions. Uncertainty is commonly within a range of 5–15 rel % and attains 60–70 rel % if the mineral content is below 5 wt %. It is evident that the program is a rather simple, convenient, and useful tool for the approximate estimation of mineral compositions of sedimentary rocks for lithological purposes.     

On the effectiveness of the ocean's biological pump in global CO2 scenarios

An evaluation is made of the effectiveness of the ocean's biological pump in driving the deep-sea excess CO₂ from the atmosphere. It is based on sediment-trap data available in the literature and on estimates of present and future inputs of anthropogenic nitrogen and phosphorous. The fraction of annual CO₂ production from fossil fuel combustion going into this sink turns out to be insignificant in the total budget of man-made CO₂. A discussion is presented on the formation of macroflocs under oceanic conditions, a process that has been believed to be important for the effectiveness of the biological pump.     

The lithosphere beneath the Sangilen Plateau, Siberia: evidence from peridotite, pyroxenite and gabbro xenoliths from alkaline basalts

Summary Ultramafic and mafic xenoliths in Ordovician Agardag alkaline basalt dikes from the Sangilen Plateau, southeastern Siberia, provide samples from the upper mantle and crust beneath central Asia. Three major groups were distinguished among the xenoliths: Group I xenoliths are spinel lherzolites, Group II xenoliths are spinel-garnet clinopyroxenites, and Group III comprises gabbroic xenoliths with two subgroups: Group IIIa comprises garnet bearing gabbroids and Group IIIb is represented by garnet-free gabbroids. The spinel lherzolite xenoliths represent the uppermost lithospheric mantle beneath the Sangilen Plateau and have geochemical characteristics similar to those of primitive mantle. Spinel-garnet clinopyroxenite and gabbroic xenoliths are of igneous origin and represent fragments of intrusive bodies crystallized at depths close to the mantle-crust boundary, as well as in the lower and the upper crust. The gabbroic xenoliths are evidently the crystallization products of melts similar in major and trace element composition to parental magma of the Bashkymugur gabbronorite-monzodiorite intrusion. Gabbroic xenoliths from the Ordovician Agardag alkaline basalt dikes demonstrate the presence of intermediate magmatic chambers within the crust beneath the Sangilen Plateau during the Early Palaeozoic. The relatively high equilibration temperatures of the mantle and lower crust xenoliths in the Agardag alkaline basalt dikes are largely attributable to a plume occurring beneath the Sangilen Plateau during the Ordovician.     

A simple analytic model of reconnection in a high-temperature turbulent sheet

We present a simple model of high-temperature (T≥10⁸ K) turbulent current sheets forming in magnetic-reconnection regions on the Sun. The model is based on an empirical formula by de Kluiver et al. (1991) for turbulent plasma conductivity and is apparently valid over a wide range of physical conditions. A comparison of the new results with known test calculations suggests agreement between the theoretical and empirical approaches to calculating the anomalous conductivity in turbulent plasma. The energy release in current sheets is powerful enough for flares, coronal transients, and coronal mass ejections to be interpreted.     

Stellar contents of two young open clusters: NGC 663 and 654

UBVRI CCD photometry in a wide field around two young open clusters, NGC 663 and 654, has been carried out. Hα and polarimetric observations for the cluster NGC 654 have also been obtained. We use the photometric data to construct colour–colour and colour–magnitude diagrams, from which we can investigate the reddening, age, mass and evolutionary states of the stellar contents of the these clusters. The reddening across the cluster regions is found to be variable. There is evidence for anomalous reddening law in both clusters; however, more infrared and polarimetric data are needed to conclude about the reddening law. Both clusters are situated at about a distance of 2.4 kpc. Star formation in both clusters is found to be a continuous process. In the case of NGC 663, star formation seems to have taken place sequentially, in the sense that formation of low-mass stars precedes the formation of most massive stars. Whereas, in the case of NGC 654, formation of low-mass stars did not cease after the formation of most massive stars in the cluster.     

A constitutive model for mechanical and chemo‐mechanical compaction in sedimentary basins and finite element analysis

Compaction and associated fluid flow are fundamental processes in sedimentary basin deformation. Purely mechanical compaction originates mainly from pore fluid expulsion and rearrangement of solid particles during burial, while chemo‐mechanical compaction results from Intergranular Pressure‐Solution (IPS) and represents a major mechanism of deformation in sedimentary basins during diagenesis. The aim of the present contribution is to provide a comprehensive 3D framework for constitutive and numerical modeling of purely mechanical and chemo‐mechanical compaction in sedimentary basins. Extending the concepts that have been previously proposed for the modeling of purely mechanical compaction in finite poroplasticity, deformation by IPS is addressed herein by means of additional viscoplastic terms in the state equations of the porous material. The finite element model integrates the poroplastic and poroviscoplastic components of deformation at large strains. The corresponding implementation allows for numerical simulation of sediments accretion/erosion periods by progressive activation/deactivation of the gravity forces within a fictitious closed material system. Validation of the numerical approach is assessed by means of comparison with closed‐form solutions derived in the context of a simplified compaction model. The last part of the paper presents the results of numerical basin simulation performed in one dimensional setting, demonstrating the ability of the modeling to capture the main features in elastoplastic and viscoplastic compaction. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.