The mass ratio of Charon to Pluto from Hubble Space Telescope astrometry with the fine guidance sensors

The mass ratio of Charon to Pluto is a basic parameter describing the binary system and is necessary for determining the individual masses and densities of these two bodies. Previous measurements of the mass ratio have been made, but the solutions differ significantly (Null et al., 1993; Young et al., 1994; Null and Owen, 1996; Foust et al., 1997; Tholen and Buie, 1997). We present the first observations of Pluto and Charon with a well-calibrated astrometric instrument—the fine guidance sensors on the Hubble Space Telescope. We observed the motion of Pluto and Charon about the system barycenter over 4.4 days (69% of an orbital period) and determined the mass ratio to be 0.122±0.008 which implies a density of 1.8 to 2.1 g cm⁻³ for Pluto and 1.6 to 1.8 g cm⁻³ for Charon. The resulting rock-mass fractions for Pluto and Charon are higher than expected for bodies formed in the outer solar nebula, possibly indicating significant postaccretion loss of volatiles.     

EFFECTS OF FISH OIL,DHA OIL AND LECITIHIN IN MICROPARTICULATE DIETS ON STRESS TOLERANCE OF LARVAL GILTHEAD SEABREAM（SPARUS AURATA）

The effects of natural fish oil,DHA oil and soybean lecithin in microparticulate diets on stress tolerance of larval gilthead seabream(Sparus aurata)were investigated after 15 days feeding trials.The tolerance of larval gilthead seabream to various stress factors such as exposure to air(lack of dissolved oxygen),changes in water temperature(low)and salinity(high) were determined.This study showed that microparticulate diet with natural fish oil and soybean lecithin was the most effective for in-creasing the tolerance of larval gilthead seabream to various stresses,and that microparticulate diet with natural fish oil and palmitic acid(16:0)was more effective than microparticulate diet with DHA oil and soybean lecithin.     

SPATIAL—TEMPORAL VARIATION OF HEAVY METAL ELEMENTS CONTENT IN COVERING SPIL OF RECLAMATION AREA IN FUSHUN COAL MINE

Grid method is employed for sampling covering soil at the test field,which is reclamation area filled by coal mining wastes for cropland in the Fushun coal mine,Liaoning Province,the Northeast China.The soil samples are taken at different locations,including three kinds of covering soil,three different depths of soil layers and four different covering ages of covering soil.The spatial-temporal variation of heavy metal element content in reclamation soil is stud-ied.The results indicate that the content of heavy metal elements is decreasing year after year,the determinant reason why the content of heavy metal elements at 60cm depth layer is higher than that at 30cm depth layer and surface is fertiliz-er and manure application;the metal elements mainly come from external environment;there is no metal pollution coming from mother material (coal mining wastes)in plough layer of covering soil.     

Planar deformation features and impact glass in inclusions from the Vredefort Granophyre,South Africa

Abstract— The Vredefort Granophyre represents impact melt that was injected downward into fractures in the floor of the Vredefort impact structure, South Africa. This unit contains inclusions of country rock that were derived from different locations within the impact structure and are predominantly composed of quartzite, feldspathic quartzite, arkose, and granitic material with minor proportions of shale and epidiorite. Two of the least recrystallized inclusions contain quartz with single or multiple sets of planar deformation features. Quartz grains in other inclusions display a vermicular texture, which is reminiscent of checkerboard feldspar. Feldspars range from large, twinned crystals in some inclusions to fine‐grained aggregates that apparently are the product of decomposition of larger primary crystals. In rare inclusions, a mafic mineral, probably biotite or amphibole, has been transformed to very fine‐grained aggregates of secondary phases that include small euhedral crystals of Fe‐rich spinel. These data indicate that inclusions within the Vredefort Granophyre were exposed to shock pressures ranging from <5 to 8–30 GPa. Many of these inclusions contain small, rounded melt pockets composed of a groundmass of devitrified or metamorphosed glass containing microlites of a variety of minerals, including K‐feldspar, quartz, augite, low‐Ca pyroxene, and magnetite. The composition of this devitrified glass varies from inclusion to inclusion, but is generally consistent with a mixture of quartz and feldspar with minor proportions of mafic minerals. In the case of granitoid inclusions, melt pockets commonly occur at the boundaries between feldspar and quartz grains. In metasedimentary inclusions, some of these melt pockets contain remnants of partially melted feldspar grains. These melt pockets may have formed by eutectic melting caused by inclusion of these fragments in the hot (650 to 1610 °C) impact melt that crystallized to form the Vredefort Granophyre.     

大同—阳高Ms6.1地震前兆综合加权信息熵的变化

利用“地震预报计算机专家系统”的思想对大同 -阳高 Ms6 .1地震前每一前兆异常事件进行综合评估 ,以每一异常的最可能发震时间来计算发震概率 ,利用地震前兆综合加权信息熵研究了系统熵值与地震的关系。对华北地区的地震前兆综合加权信息熵研究表明 ,在大同 -阳高 Ms6 .1地震前 ,信息熵出现了明显的减熵有序变化     

Digital photographic photometry of NGC 5253 and NGC 2915

The surface digital photometry for NGC 5253 and NGC 2915 is given. The luminosity profiles and colour gradients are discussed and compared. It is concluded that NGC 2915 differs from NGC 5253, both in the extension and intensity of the star burst event because of the kinematical behaviour of the captured gas.CONICET, Buenos Aires, Visiting Astronomer, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, La Serena, Chile, operated by NSF