Spectroscopic study of the supergiant star 6 Cassiopeiae

Twenty-five coudé spectrograms (22 with dispersion 12 Å mm^–1 and three 7 Å mm^–1) of 6 Cassiopeiae (A3 Ia) have been studied. The observations were made at the Haute Provence Observatory. The results of the analysis suggest a correlation between the variations of the equivalent widths, the microturbulence and the radial velocity. The radial velocity and turbulent velocity present a rapid variation with time, even in intervals as short as about an hour. The hydrogen lines are slightly asymmetric but the strongest Feii lines are clearly asymmetric. We found that the amount of asymmetry of the strongest Feii lines (I>6) correlates with the loggf value, with the estimated laboratory intensityI, and with the equivalent widthW .The observations have been made at the Astronomical Observatory of Haute Provence (CNRS). This work has been supported by TUBITAK (Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey), and partially by CNR (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche) of Italy.     

The QuakeSim Project: Web Services for Managing Geophysical Data and Applications

We describe our distributed systems research efforts to build the “cyberinfrastructure” components that constitute a geophysical Grid, or more accurately, a Grid of Grids. Service-oriented computing principles are used to build a distributed infrastructure of Web accessible components for accessing data and scientific applications. Our data services fall into two major categories: Archival, database-backed services based around Geographical Information System (GIS) standards from the Open Geospatial Consortium, and streaming services that can be used to filter and route real-time data sources such as Global Positioning System data streams. Execution support services include application execution management services and services for transferring remote files. These data and execution service families are bound together through metadata information and workflow services for service orchestration. Users may access the system through the QuakeSim scientific Web portal, which is built using a portlet component approach.     

The morphology and chemistry of K-feldspar megacrysts from Ikizdere Pluton: evidence for acid and basic magma interactions in granitoid rocks, NE-Turkey

Ikizdere Pluton consists of granite, granodiorite, tonalite, monzonite, quartz monzonite containing pinkish colored K-feldspar megacrysts (KFMs). The crystal sizes of the KFMs range from 1 to 4 cm. The lath-shaped megacrysts are uniformly (i.e., randomly) distributed in the host plutonic rocks and have mafic and felsic inclusions whose crystal sizes are smaller than 1 mm. The crystal inclusions are biotite, slightly annitic in composition with X_Mg[=Fe_tot/(Fe_tot+Mg)]=0.50-0.58, amphibole (magnesio-hornblende, X_Mg[=Mg/(Mg+Fe_tot)]=0.70-0.79), iron-titanium oxide (low titanium magnetit and ilmenite), plagioclase (Ab₇₅₋₂₅An₆₅₋₃₅) and as minor quartz. The compositions of the KFMs range from Or₉₅Ab₅An₀ to Or₈₂Ab₁₇An₁. BaO contents of the megacrysts increase from core to rim. The mafic and felsic inclusions are compositionally similar those of the host rocks.The chemical and textural features of K-feldspar are typical for megacrysts that grew as phenocrysts in dynamic granitoidic magma systems. The overgrowth of KFMs and mafic magma injections (magma mixing) may be related to temperature, pressure and compositional fluctuations in the magma chamber. Remnant of earlier formed K-feldspar crystals remain in the felsic magma system, while the mafic injection can decompose some earlier precipitated KFMs. The remnant of K-feldspar remaining after mafic injection are overgrown by rapid diffusion of Ba, K and Na elements in liquid phase, during the later stages of crystallization of the host magma.     

Chemical Speciation of Vanadium in Coal Bottom Ash

Chemical speciation of vanadium is important to understand the true nature of this element in the environment as well as its biochemical pathways. Sample pretreatment, preparation, and chemical speciation methods were applied for vanadium in coal bottom ash here. Two‐stage microwave acid digestion was used to preparation of samples. Determination of vanadium was performed using inductively coupled plasma‐optical emission spectrometry (ICP‐OES). Speciation of vanadium was carried out using a seven‐step sequential extraction procedure of the coal bottom ash each releasing species of vanadium: Water soluble, exchangeable, carbonate, reducible, oxidizable, sulfide, and residual fractions. Total vanadium concentration in the coal bottom ash is 701 mg kg^?1 d.w. The most abundant form of vanadium in coal bottom ash is residual fraction of vanadium (196 mg kg^?1 d.w.). Relative abundances of the remaining vanadium fractions in coal bottom ash are as follows: Reducible (176 mg kg^?1 d.w.) > sulfide (176 mg kg^?1 d.w.) > carbonate (85 mg kg^?1 d.w.) > oxidizable (50 mg kg^?1 d.w.) > water soluble (10.6 mg kg^?1 d.w.) > exchangeable (9.0 mg kg^?1 d.w.).     

A precise gravimetric geoid model in a mountainous area with scarce gravity data: a case study in central Turkey

In mountainous regions with scarce gravity data, gravimetric geoid determination is a difficult task that needs special attention to obtain reliable results satisfying the demands, e.g., of engineering applications. The present study investigates a procedure for combining a suitable global geopotential model and available terrestrial data in order to obtain a precise regional geoid model for Konya Closed Basin (KCB). The KCB is located in the central part of Turkey, where a very limited amount of terrestrial gravity data is available. Various data sources, such as the Turkish digital elevation model with 3 ?? × 3?? resolution, a recently published satellite-only global geopotential model from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellite (GRACE) and the ground gravity observations, are combined in the least-squares sense by the modified Stokes?? formula. The new gravimetric geoid model is compared with Global Positioning System (GPS)/levelling at the control points, resulting in the Root Mean Square Error (RMS) differences of ±6.4 cm and 1.7 ppm in the absolute and relative senses, respectively. This regional geoid model appears to be more accurate than the Earth Gravitational Model 2008, which is the best global model over the target area, with the RMS differences of ±8.6 cm and 1.8 ppm in the absolute and relative senses, respectively. These results show that the accuracy of a regional gravimetric model can be augmented by the combination of a global geopotential model and local terrestrial data in mountainous areas even though the quality and resolution of the primary terrestrial data are not satisfactory to the geoid modelling procedure.     

Correction to: Landslide susceptibility mapping of the Sera River Basin using logistic regression model

Natural Hazards - The article “Landslide susceptibility mapping of the Sera River Basin using logistic regression model,” written by Nussaïbah B. Raja, Ihsan Çiçek, Necla...     

C2/c pyroxene phenocrysts from three potassic series in the Neogene alkaline volcanics, NE Turkey: their crystal chemistry with petrogenetic significance as an indicator of P–T conditions

Chemical and structural data are reported for C2/c pyroxene phenocrysts collected from three potassic series (Group A: basanite-tephrite, Group B: tephrite-phonolitic tephrite, Group C: alkaline basalt-trachybasalt) of the Neogene alkaline volcanics (NAVs) in northeastern Turkey, in order to investigate the evolution of the magmatic plumbing system and the location of magma chamber(s) with crystallization conditions. The rock series hosting the clinopyroxene phenocrysts show generally porphyritic texture and have a variable phenocryst-rich nature (20–58%), with phenocryst assemblages characterized by cpx ± ol ± plag ± foid ± amp ± bio. The clinopyroxene phenocrysts can be chemically classified as Ti- and Fe³⁺-rich Al-diopsides for Groups A and B (AB-cpxs) and Ti- and Fe³⁺-poor Al-diopsides for Group C (C-cpxs). They have poorly variable composition, clustering in the diopside field. Structurally, the diopside groups have nearly similar a (ranging from 9.73 to 9.75 ?), V _cell (437.2–440.9 ?³), and 〈beta〉 angle values (106.01°–106.23°), but some differences in polyhedral parameters and geometries of the AB-cpxs and C-cpxs have been observed. For example, the AB-cpxs are characterized by larger c (5.27–5.30 vs. 5.25–5.28 ?), V _T (2.27–2.30 vs. 2.23–2.28 ?³), and V _M2 (25.53–25.72 vs. 25.41–25.59 ?³) values and smaller b (8.87–8.88 vs. 8.88–8.91 ?) and V _M1 (11.49–11.63 vs. 11.64–11.83 ?³) values with respect to the C-cpxs. In addition, the AB-cpxs show higher values of V _M2/V _M1 (2.20–2.23) due to large V _M2 and small V _M1 compared to the V _M2/V _M1 ratios of the C-cpxs (<2.19). Such differences in the crystal structure of the AB-cpxs and C-cpxs from the NAVs are partly related to different crystallization pressures, but mostly related to variation in melt composition and, possibly, the influence of other crystallizing mineral phases. In particular, R(M2-O1) and R(M1-O2) (i.e. bond lengths) differences in the clinopyroxenes of different groups support the presence of evolved host rocks with different alkaline character (i.e. silica-undersaturated Groups A–B and silica-saturated Group C). Based on the cpx-geothermobarometry, the crystallization pressures for the C-cpxs are lower than 4.5 kbars, but the AB-cpxs have relatively high-pressure values (5.6–10.6 kbars), suggesting that the AB-cpxs crystallized in higher pressure environments. The relatively higher crystallization temperatures of the AB-cpxs also indicate higher cooling rates. The P–T estimates suggest that the source regions of the clinopyroxene phenocrysts from the NAVs were crustal magma chambers in a closed plumbing system at a moderate- to low-pressure regime.     

Sea ice induced changes in ocean circulation during the Eemian

We argue that Arctic sea ice played an important role during early stages of the last glacial inception. Two simulations of the Institut Pierre Simon Laplace coupled model 4 are analyzed, one for the time of maximum high latitude summer insolation during the last interglacial, the Eemian, and a second one for the subsequent summer insolation minimum, at the last glacial inception. During the inception, increased Arctic freshwater export by sea ice shuts down Labrador Sea convection and weakens overturning circulation and oceanic heat transport by 27 and 15%, respectively. A positive feedback of the Atlantic subpolar gyre enhances the initial freshening by sea ice. The reorganization of the subpolar surface circulation, however, makes the Atlantic inflow more saline and thereby maintains deep convection in the Nordic Seas. These results highlight the importance of an accurate representation of dynamic sea ice for the study of past and future climate changes.