Asteroidal regoliths

We develop a physical model for the evolution of regoliths on small bodies and apply it to the asteroids and meteorite parent bodies. The model considers global deposition of that fraction of cratering ejecta that is not lost to space. It follows the build up of regolith on a typical region, removed from the larger craters which are the source of most regolith blankets. Later in the evolution, larger craters saturate the surface and are incorporated into the typical region; their net ejection of materials to space causes the elevation of the typical region to decrease and once-buried regolith becomes susceptible to ejection or gardening. The model is applied to cases of both strong, cohesive bodies and to bodies of weak, unconsolidated materials. Evolution of regolith depths and gardening rates are followed until a sufficiently large impact occurs that fractures the entire asteroid. (Larger asteroids are not dispersed, however, and evolve mergaregoliths from multiple generations of surficial regoliths mixed into their interiors.) We find that large, strong asteroids generate surficial regoliths of a few kilometers depth while strong asteroids smaller than 10-km diameter generate negligible regoliths. Our model does not treat large, weak asteroids, because their cratering ejecta fail to surround such bodies; regolith evolution is probably similar to that of the Moon. Small, weak asteroids of 1- to 10-km diameter generate centimeter- to meter-scale regoliths. In all cases studied, blanketing rates exceed excavation rates, so asteroid regoliths are rarely, if ever, gardened and should be very immature measured by lunar standards. They should exhibit many of the characteristics of the brecciated, gas-rich meteorites; intact foreign clasts, relatively low-exposure durations to galactic and solar cosmic rays low solar gas contents, minimal evidence for vitrification and agglutinate formation, etc. Both large, strong asteroids and small, weak ones provide regolith environments compatible with those inferred for the parent bodies of brecciated meteorites. But from volumetric calculations, we conclude that most brecciated meteorites formed on the surfaces of, and were recycled through the interiors of, parent bodies at least several tens of kilometers in diameter. The implications of our regolith model are consistent with properties inferred for asteroid regoliths from a variety of astronomical measurements of asteroids, although such data do not constrain regolith properties nearly as strongly as meteoritical evidence Our picture of substantial asteroidal regoliths produced predominantly by blanketing differs from earlier hypotheses that asteroidal regoliths might be thin or absent and that short surface exposure of asteroidal materials is due chiefly to erosion rather than blanketing.     

Far-field effects of tidal energy extraction in the Minas Passage on tidal circulation in the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine using a nested-grid coastal circulation model

The Bay of Fundy in eastern Canada has the highest tides in the world. Harnessing the tidal energy in the region has long been considered. In this study, the effects of tidal in-stream energy extraction in the Minas Passage on the three-dimensional (3D) tidal circulation in the Bay of Fundy (BoF) and the Gulf of Maine (GoM) are examined using a nested-grid coastal ocean circulation model based on the Princeton Ocean Model (POM). The nested-grid model consists of a coarse-resolution (~4.5 km) parent sub-model for the GoM and a high-resolution (~1.5 km) child sub-model for the BoF. The tidal in-stream energy extraction in the model is parameterized in terms of nonlinear Rayleigh friction in the momentum equation. A suite of numerical experiments are conducted to determine the ranges of extractable tidal in-stream energy and resulting effects on the 3D tidal circulation over the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine (BoF-GoM) in terms of the Rayleigh friction coefficients. The 3D model results suggest that the maximum energy extraction in the Minas Passage increases tidal elevations and tidal currents throughout the GoM and reduces tidal elevations and circulation in the upper BoF, especially in the Minas Basin. The far-field effect of tidal energy extraction in the Passage on the 3D tidal circulation in the BoF-GoM is examined in two cases of harnessing tidal in-stream energy from (a) the entire water column and (b) the lower water column within 20 m above the bottom in the Passage. The 3D model results demonstrate that tidal in-stream energy extraction from the lower water column has less impact on the tidal elevations and circulation in the BoF-GoM than the energy extraction from the whole water column in the Minas Passage.     

The formation and viability of a non-basin water management: The US–Canada case

Despite the much-vaunted advantages of basin-wide management many transboundary water regimes do not conform in practice to the basin-wide scale. This study examines whether a spatial alternative that includes only parts of the basin is indeed viable. To this end the US–Canada case is examined. Two questions are asked: why has a non-basin scale been adopted? And whether this option is indeed viable. The review of the negotiations leading up to the US–Canada 1909 Boundary Treaty, and to the establishment of the International Joint Commission (IJC) to control the boundary water (i.e., only the water that crosses the boundary at the point of crossing), shows that the choice of this scale was an outcome of a deadlock in negotiations at the basin scale. The boundary scale was chosen as it reduced the number of players involved in the decision-making process and, consequently, the political costs of a basin-wide agreement. Inevitably, in the subsequent decades the regime faced challenges due to the discrepancy between its jurisdiction and basins. Perhaps the most severe challenge was posed by the Chicago Diversion that was excluded from the regime jurisdiction. Therefore, the paper focuses on how the boundary scale addressed the Chicago diversion externalities. The discussion of this case suggests that the combination of the flexibility of the regime and its interpretations, the nature of the resource (inter-connected lakes) and the two-way upstream–downstream relations along the borders allowed this challenge to be contained. It seems, thus, that a regime can indeed be set at a different scale than the basin-wide one and still be viable.     

How fast do Galilean satellites spin?

Each of the Galilean satellites, as well as most other satellites whose initial rotations have been substantially altered by tidal dissipation, has been widely assumed to rotate synchronously with its orbital mean motion. Such rotation would require a small permanent asymmetry in the mass distribution in order to overcome the small mean tidal torque. Since Io and Europa may be substantially fluid, they may not have the strenght to support the required permanent asymmetry. Thus, each may rotate at the unknown but slightly nonsynchronous rate that corresponds to zero mean tidal torque. This behaviour may be observable by Galileo spacecraft imaging. It may help explain the longitudinal variation of volcanism on Io and the cracking of Europa's crust.     

Local relief and the height of Mount Olympus

A three‐dimensional assessment of the net volume of rock differentially eroded from below mountain tops to form valleys yields a range‐wide constraint on feedback between valley development and the height of mountain peaks. The ‘superelevation’ of mountain peaks potentially attributable to differential removal of material from below peaks in the Olympic Mountains, Washington, was constrained by fitting a smoothed surface to the highest elevation points on a 30 m grid digital elevation model of the range. High elevation areas separate into two primary areas: one centred on Mount Olympus in the core of the range and the other at the eastern end of the range. The largest valleys, and hence areas with the greatest volume of differentially eroded material, surround Mount Olympus. In contrast, the highest mean elevations concentrate in the eastern end of the range. Calculation of the isostatic rebound at Mount Olympus attributable to valley development ranges from 500 to 750 m (21 to 32 per cent of its height) for a 5 to 10 km effective elastic thickness of the crust. Comparison of cross‐range trends in mean and maximum elevation reveals that this calculated rebound for Mount Olympus corresponds well with its ‘superelevation’ above the general cross‐range trend in mean elevation. It therefore appears that the location of the highest peak in the Olympics is controlled by the deep valleys excavated in the centre of the range. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.