Why Mt Etna?

The Etna volcano is located in an apparently anomalous position on the hinge zone of the Apennines subduction and its Na-alkaline geochemistry does not favour a magma source from the deep slab as indicated for the Aeolian K-alkaline magmatism. The steeper dip of the regional foreland monocline at the front of the Apennines in the Ionian Sea than in Sicily, implies a larger rollback of the subduction hinge in the Ionian Sea. Moreover, the lengthening of the Apennines arc needs extension parallel to the arc. Therefore, the larger southeastward subduction rollback of the Ionian lithosphere with respect to the Hyblean plateau in Sicily, should kinematically produce right-lateral transtension and a sort of vertical 'slab window' which might explain (i) the Plio-Pleistocene alkaline magmatism of eastern Sicily (e.g. the Etna volcano) and (ii) the late Pliocene to present right lateral transtensional tectonics and seismicity of eastern Sicily. The area of transfer of different dip and rollback occurs along the inherited Mesozoic passive continental margin between Sicily and the oceanic Ionian Sea, i.e. the Malta escarpment.     

Grain boundary diffusion in enstatite

We have investigated grain boundary diffusion rates in enstatite by heating single crystals of quartz packed in powdered San Carlos olivine (Mg_0.90Fe_0.10)₂SiO₄ at controlled oxygen fugacities in the range 10^?5.7 to 10^?8.7?atm and temperatures from 1350° to 1450?°C for times from 5 to 100?h at 1?atm total pressure. Following the experiments, the thickness of the coherent polycrystalline reaction rim of pyroxene that had formed between the quartz and olivine was measured using backscatter scanning imaging in the electron microprobe. Quantitative microprobe analysis indicated that the composition of this reaction phase is (Mg_0.92Fe_0.08)₂Si₂O₆. The rate of growth of the pyroxene increases with increasing temperature, is independent of the oxygen fugacity, and is consistent with a parabolic rate law, indicating that the growth rate is controlled by ionic diffusion through the pyroxene rim. Microstructural observations and platinum marker experiments suggest that the reaction phase is formed at the olivine-pyroxene interface, and is therefore controlled by the diffusion of silicon and oxygen. The parabolic rate constants determined from the experiments were analyzed in terms of the oxide activity gradient across the rim to yield mean effective diffusivities for the rate-limiting ionic species, assuming bulk transport through the pyroxene layer. These effective diffusivities are faster than the lattice diffusivities for the slowest species (silicon) calculated from creep experiments, but slower than measured lattice diffusivities for oxygen in enstatite. Thus, silicon grain boundary diffusion is most likely to be the rate-limiting process in the growth of the pyroxene rims. Also, as oxygen transport through the pyroxene rims must be faster than silicon transport, diffusion of oxygen along the grain boundaries must be faster than through the lattice. The grain boundary diffusivity for silicon in orthopyroxenite is then given by D¯gbSiδ=(3.3±3.0)×10^?9f0.0O₂e^?400±65/RT?m³s^?1, where the activation energy for diffusion is in kJ/mol, and δ is the grain boundary width in m. Calculated growth rates for enstatite under these conditions are significantly slower than predicted by an extrapolation from similar experiments performed at 1000?°C under high pressure (hydrous) conditions by Yund and Tullis (1992), perhaps due to water-enhancement of diffusion in their experiments.     

Perspectives of the ROT 54/32/2.6 in astronomy

Perspectives for the Radio-Optical Telescope 54/32/2.6 are given for scientific research in radioastronomy. Its characteristics and potential scientific fields are summarized in the frame of the present French-Armenian collaboration. A 3-phase upgrade plan including a detailed technical evaluation of the antenna is presented.Published in Astrofizika, Vol. 38, No. 4, pp. 645–648, October–December, 1995.     

An experimental study in forming a long synthetic aperture at sea

The testing of a synthetic aperture technique, the ETAM algorithm, is extended and its performance for CW pseudorandom signals and broadband ship noise is examined. The results show the limitations of the technique and are of special interest for operational systems development. In the CW experiments, the transmitted signal was generated with high temporal coherence, and loss of the spatial and temporal coherence of the received signal was introduced only by the medium and the stability of the towed array. In the experiments that included the pseudorandom signal and the ship noise, the temporal coherence of the transmitted signals was deliberately chosen to be poor in order to study the effects and the performance of this algorithm with broadband signals. The related experimental results show that for received signals, which have their segments over the synthesizing period highly cross-correlated, a synthetic aperture array gain was achieved that corresponds to the length of an equivalent fully populated array     

Radar observations of the Geminid meteoroid stream

Continuous radio-wave monitoring of the Geminid activity in December 1992 and 1993 by using a forward scatter (FS) bistatic radar over the Bologna-Lecce baseline (700 km) in Italy, reveals peculiar structural aspects of the stream in terms of signal amplitude-rate and duration-rate dependence. The observational results of the Geminid display obtained in the two consecutive years with differentiated peak levels of transmitted power, exhibit different time distributions of underdense meteors against the signal received power. Both sets of the data relative to the peak activity in December 12–14, show reflection properties of Geminids which are atypical if compared with echoes from cometary-type showers, with really high echo counts at mid-upper levels of the peak received power. An assymmetric curve of activity of the Geminids complex is evidenced, with the peak flux of smaller particles occurring earlier than that of larger ones.     

A techno-economic comparison of power systems for autonomousunderwater vehicles

This paper compares lead-acid batteries, sodium-sulfur batteries, solid polymer fuel cells and closed-cycle diesel engines for autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) applications. The service is described in terms of a parametric mission and life cycle. A generic AUV is used as a basis for comparison. Power systems are evaluated by two criteria: (1) submerged endurance capability and (2) life cycle cost. This study determines categories of service for which each power system is preferred. The solid polymer fuel cell can provide greater submerged endurance than other power systems examined. For extremely long duration AUV missions, the fuel cell is the required system, indicating a possible market niche for today's fuel cell technology. Considering cost projections for each power system, the results also show that the SPFC can become cost-competitive with conventional technologies, particularly for services characterized by high levels of utilization     

Geophysical investigations over a segment of the Central Indian Ridge, Indian Ocean

 Swath bathymetric, gravity, and magnetic studies were carried out over a 55 km long segment of the Central Indian Ridge. The ridge is characterized by 12 to 15 km wide rift valley bounded by steep walls and prominent volcanic constructional ridges on either side of the central rift valley. A transform fault at 7°45′S displaces the ridge axis. A mantle Bouguer anomaly low of −14 mGals and shallowing of rift valley over the middle of the ridge segment indicate along axis crustal thickness variations. A poorly developed neovolcanic zone on the inner rift valley floor indicate dominance of tectonic extension. The off-axis volcanic ridgs suggest enhanced magmatic activity during the recent past. Received: 24 May 1996 / Rivision received: 13 January 1997     

Multiple-source localization using GPS technology and receivedarrival time structure analysis in an air-deployed system

An efficient and robust method has been developed to locate multiple impulsive sources in an ocean environment. Global position system (GPS) receivers were installed on sonobuoys to obtain their locations within a few meters of accuracy. A sonobuoy field was deployed in a ring-type pattern. Charges were then set off at arbitrary locations within the ring, High-resolution plots were used to obtain direct path and/or first bottom bounce arrivals on each buoy. A model grid of arrival times was constructed, corresponding to the dimensions of the buoy field. A ray model previously developed here at the Applied Research Laboratories at the University of Texas at Austin (ARL:UT) was used to obtain model travel times. The minimum value of the least-square-type error between the real arrival times and the modeled travel times resulted in an unambiguous location of the source, within the limits of the grid spacing chosen. This value was calculated by picking one receiver as the reference and then summing the timing errors of the remaining receivers relative to the reference. Successive iterations with finer grid spacings result in source localization within the accuracy of the buoy locations. The localization routine was extended by allowing permutations of the pulse arrivals on each buoy to account for multiple sources closely separated in time and/or space. An automated correlation technique is presented as an alternative to the leading edge-detection method used here for obtaining relative arrival times. Two proof-of-concept experiments were performed and some results of data obtained at Lake Travis and the Gulf of Mexico are presented