Phase transition in Ca-poor clinopyroxenes

High(C2/c)-low(P2₁/c) phase transition in clinoenstatite and pigeonite was successfully observed in situ at high temperatures for the first time under a transmission electron microscope. The phase transition was revealed to possess the characteristics of a first-order transition, due to the coexistence of both phases separated by the sharp interfaces and the nucleation-growth process. The diffusionless and time-independent reaction suggests that the transition occurs athermal-martensitically. Furthermore, the small or even negative thermal hysteresis and the interface motion suggest that the transition is not a typical type but a thermoelastic type of the martensitic transformation. This type of the transformation, studied extensively in metallurgy in relation to shape memory effect, is first recognized in rock-forming minerals.     

Behavior of fresh water injected at the surface of a uniformly rotating ocean

The behavior of low density fresh water injected at the surface of a uniformly rotating saline water was investigated on the basis of a tank experiment. The injected water mass shows a clockwise circulation and grows gradually with an axisymmetric convex shape, until it breaks into two vortices at a critical size. An experimental formula for the change of radius of the water mass with time for the axisymmetric stage is obtained. It is shown that within our experimental range of values the radius of the water mass increases almost in proportion tot ^1/2, wheret is the elapse time, while the inviscid theory indicates that the radius should increase in proportion tot ^1/4. The dependence of the radius on elapse time is essential for forecasting the extent of discharged waters. The position of the maximum azimuthal velocity is fixed at \(V = - ge^{ - a^2 q^2 } \) within our experimental range of values wherer is the radial coordinate,f the Coriolis parameter,v the viscosity coefficient andQ the flow rate of injection, respectively. This radius corresponds to the radial scale derived by Gillet al. (1979). The steadiness of the position of the maximum azimuthal velocity may be essential in partition of the water mass into inner and outer regions and in the understanding the derived experimental formula. The critical radius for breaking is also investigated. The radius is shown to be independent ofQ and to be almost proportional to (Δ _ρ / _ρ )^1/2 f ^-1 whereρ is the density of the saline water andΔρ the density difference between the saline and injected waters. Even after the water supply is cut off in the axisymmetric stage, the radius of the water mass increases at almost the same rate as before, while its thickness decreases. The behavior after supply cut-off is discussed in the Appendix.     

Deserpentinization and high-pressure(eclogite-facies) metamorphic features in the Eoarchean ultramafic body from Isua,Greenland

Discontinuous chains of ultramafic rock bodies form part of the 3800–3700 Ma Isua Supracrustal Belt(ISB),hosted in the Itsaq Gneiss Complex of southwestern Greenland.These bodies are among the world’s oldest outcrops of ultramafic rocks and hence an invaluable geologic record.Ultramafic rocks from Lens B in the northwestern limb of ISB show characteristics of several stages of serpentinization and deserpentinization forming prograde and retrograde mineral assemblages.Ti-rich humite-group minerals such as titanian chondrodite(Ti-Chn)and titanian clinohumite(Ti-Chu)often occur as accessory phases in the metamorphosed ultramafic rocks.The Ti-rich humite minerals are associated with metamorphic olivine.The host olivine is highly forsteritic(Fo96-98)with variable Mn O and Ni O contents.The concentrations of the rare-earth elements(REE)and high-field strength elements(HFSE)of the metamorphic olivine are higher than typical mantle olivine.The textural and chemical characteristics of the olivine indicate metamorphic origin as a result of deserpentinization of a serpentinized ultramafic protolith rather than primary assemblage reflecting mantle residues from high-degrees of partial melting.The close association of olivine,antigorite and intergrown Ti-Chn and Ti-Chu suggests pressure condition between$1.3–2.6 GPa within the antigorite stability field(<700°C).The overall petrological and geochemical features of Lens B ultramafic body within the Eoarchean ISB indicate that these are allochthonous ultramafic rocks that recorded serpentine dehydration at relatively lower temperature and reached eclogite facies condition during their complex metamorphic history similar to exhumed UHP ultramafic rocks in modern subduction zone channels.     

Adsorption of tributyltin by tributyltin resistant marine Pseudoalteromonas sp. cells

The isolate, Pesudoalteromonas sp. TBT1, could grow to overcome the toxicity of tributyltin chloride (TBTCl) up to 30 microM in the absence of Cl(-) in the medium until the cells reached an exponential phase of growth. The viability, however, was reduced after the cells reached a stationary phase. The degradation products, such as dibutyltin (DBT) and monobutyltin (MBT), were not detected in the growth medium, indicating that the isolate has no ability to degrade TBT into less toxic DBT and MBT. Up to about 10(7.5) TBT molecules were adsorbed by a single cell. The observation of morphological changes with an electron microscope showed that the cell surface became wrinkled after exposure to the lethal concentration of 10 mM TBTCl. These results indicate that the resistance of the isolate toward the toxicity of TBTCl is not related to the unique cell surface, which seems to play an important role in preventing the diffusion of TBTCl into the cytoplasm.     

Suspended sediment discharge in subsurface flow from the head hollow of a small forested watershed,northern Japan

Surface flow and suspended sediment discharge from the head hollow of the Jozankei Experimental Watershed in Hokkaido, northern Japan, were measured to clarify the implications of subsurface hydrology for soil movement. Subsurface discharges during the extremely large storms of 1993 to 1994 were measured in a V-notch weir installed at a natural spring near the bottom of the head hollow, and shallow groundwater levels were observed in the wells excavated in the hollow. Sediment samples whose particle size range from 0·001 to 0·1 mm were manually and automatically collected at 15 to 60 min intervals, by use of 1 or 21 polyethylene bottles. Maximum concentration and flux of suspended sediment during the storms preceded the peak discharge of subsurface flow by several hours. Neither the changes in concentration (mg l⁻¹) nor flux (mg s⁻¹) of suspended sediment coincided with those in subsurface discharge (l s⁻¹). Furthermore, sediment concentration was poorly correlated with the rate of change in subsurface discharge (l s⁻²) during the rising limb of the hydrograph. Suspended sediment flux during the acceleratory limb, however, was closely correlated with the rate of change in subsurface discharge. The relationship between suspended sediment flux and rate of change in subsurface discharge were in inverse proportion to initial subsurface discharge before the storm runoff and they represented rare seasonal variation. Subsurface hydraulic erosion and transport of suspended sediment resulting from changes in rate of change in subsurface discharge actively occur during the acceleratory rising limb of the hydrograph. Accordingly, subsurface hydraulic erosion during the acceleratory rising limb of the hydrograph can be physically understood by analysing suspended sediment flux associated with rate of change in subsurface discharge and initial subsurface discharge. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Dynamic stiffness for rectangular rigid foundations on a semi-infinite elastic medium

The present paper deals with the dynamic steady-state force-displacement relationships (complex stiffness) for rectangular rigid foundations resting on a semi-infinite medium, consisting of homogenous, isotropic, linear elastic materials. The foundations are considered to be excited under harmonic vertical and rocking vibration. This gives mixed boundary value problems which cannot be easily solved by analytical approaches. Therefore, a numerical method is proposed here. The method is based on quite, simple equations, and is straightforward in computation, compared with other methods. Although the proposed method gives just approximate solutions, it is satisfactory for engineering practices, and the soluations become highly accurate for a small value of ωB/V_s. The results obtained by the proposed method are compared with those of other methods to evaluate the accuracy of the results. The effects of length/width ratio and the area of the contact plane of the foundations are also discussed.     

Discovery of Jurassic ammonoids from the Shyok suture zone to the northeast of Chang La Pass, Ladakh, northwest India and its tectonic significance

Abstract   Callovian (late Middle Jurassic) ammonoids Macrocephalites and Jeanneticeras were recovered from the Shyok suture zone, northeast of Chang La Pass, Ladakh, northwest India. They are the first reliable Jurassic fossils and the oldest chronologic data from the Shyok suture zone. The ammonoid-bearing Jurassic strata, newly defined as the Tsoltak Formation, consist largely of terrigenous mudstone with thin sandstone beds and were probably a part of the continental basement to the Cretaceous Ladakh Arc.     

Time variation of the X-ray spectrum and optical luminosity of SCO X-1

Results of rocket observations of SCO X-1 over the spectral range of 220 keV are presented. The observations have been performed partly in India and partly in Japan under the collaboration of the three groups. The present results are compared with results of similar observations carried out by the LRL (Lawrence Radiation Laboratory) group. Some of these X-ray observations were accompanied by simultaneous optical observations. Relationships between the hardness of the X-ray spectrum and the X-ray intensity and between the hardness and the optical luminosity are compiled. The relationships among the parameters (temperature, density and size) which characterize the postulated isothermal cloud model of SCO X-1 are given. They indicate that SCO X-1 is characterized by a temperature of about 10⁷–10⁸K, a density of about 10¹⁶–10¹⁷ cm^–3 and a radius of about 10⁸–10⁹ cm respectively. We further show that the temperature is inversely correlated with the size of the source; an increase in temperature corresponds to a decrease in the radius and an increase in density.     

Collapse and fragmentation of rotating magnetized clouds – I. Magnetic flux–spin relation

We discuss the evolution of the magnetic flux density and angular velocity in a molecular cloud core, on the basis of three-dimensional numerical simulations, in which a rotating magnetized cloud fragments and collapses to form a very dense optically thick core of  >5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³  . As the density increases towards the formation of the optically thick core, the magnetic flux density and angular velocity converge towards a single relationship between the two quantities. If the core is magnetically dominated its magnetic flux density approaches  1.5( n /5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³)^1/2 mG  , while if the core is rotationally dominated the angular velocity approaches  2.57 × 10⁻³ ( n /5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³)^1/2 yr⁻¹  , where n is the density of the gas. We also find that the ratio of the angular velocity to the magnetic flux density remains nearly constant until the density exceeds  5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³  . Fragmentation of the very dense core and emergence of outflows from fragments will be shown in the subsequent paper.     

Encystment and excystment of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gyrodinium instriatum</Emphasis> Freudenthal et Lee

In the present study, we have investigated the conditions influencing encystment and excystment in the dinoflagellate Gyrodinium instriatum under laboratory conditions. We incubated G. instriatum in modified whole SWM-3 culture medium and in versions of modified SWM-3 from which NO₃ ⁻, PO₄ ³⁻, NO₃ ⁻ + PO₄ ³⁻, or Si had been omitted and observed encystment. Percentage encystment was high in the media without N and without P, while the percentage encystment in the medium lacking both N and P was highest. Moreover, to investigate N or P concentration which induced the encystment, Gyrodinium instriatum was also incubated in media with different concentrations of inorganic N and P; the concentrations of NO₂ ⁻ + NO₃ ⁻ and PO₄ ³⁻ were measured over time. The precursors of cysts appeared within 2 or 3 days of a decrease in NO₂ ⁻ + NO₃ ⁻ or PO₄ ³⁻ concentration to values lower than 1 μM or 0.2 μM, respectively. When cysts produced in the laboratory were incubated, we observed excystment after 8–37 days, without a mandatory period of darkness or low temperature. We incubated cysts collected from nature at different temperatures or in the dark or light and observed excystments. Natural cysts excysted at temperatures from 10 to 30°C, in both light and dark, but excystment was delayed at low temperatures. These studies indicate that G. instriatum encysts in low N or P concentration and excysts over a wide temperature range, regardless of light conditions, after short dormancy periods.