Pre-collisional high pressure metamorphism and nappe tectonics at active continental margins: a numerical simulation

The evolution of a subduction channel and orogenic wedge is simulated in 2D for an active continental margin, with P-T paths being displayed for selected markers. In our simulation, subduction erosion affects the active margin and a structural pattern develops within a few tens of millions of years, with four zones from the trench into the forearc: (i) an accretionary complex of low grade metamorphic sedimentary material, (ii) a wedge of nappes with alternating upper and lower crustal provenance, and minor interleaving of oceanic or hydrated mantle material, (iii) a megascale melange composed of high pressure (HP) and ultra-high pressure (UHP) metamorphic rocks extruded from the subduction channel, and (iv) the upward tilted frontal part of the remaining lid. The P–T paths and time scales correspond to those typically recorded in orogenic belts. The simulation shows that HP/UHP metamorphism of continental crust does not necessarily indicate collision, but that the material can be derived from the active margin by subduction erosion and extruded from the subduction channel beneath the forearc during ongoing subduction.     

Inverted echo sounder measurement of dynamic height through an ENSOcycle in the central equatorial Pacific

A four-year record from an inverted echo sounder deployed near Palmyra Island at 6°N in the central Pacific Ocean is compared with a simultaneous record of subsurface pressure from this island lagoon. A factor m, converting round-trip acoustic travel time to surface dynamic height relative to a deep pressure level, was estimated from the ratio of the spectra of the two records in the energetic synoptic oscillation band. Year-to-year variation in m was not statistically significant. For the overall record, m was found to be -70±8 dynamic m/s, where the error bounds represent a 90% confidence interval. This is consistent with first-baroclinic-mode excitation     

Some Problems with Slow Rotation of CP Stars

Some difficulties in explaining the slow rotation of CP stars are discussed. The most likely hypotheses are (1) a loss of angular momentum involving a magnetic field during “pre-main sequence” evolution and (2) the slow rotation existed from the very start of the creation of these stars. The braking hypothesis is supported by only one property of CP stars— the lower the mass of the star is, the greater the difference between its average rotation velocity vsini and that of normal stars. On the other hand, there is another property— the lower the rotation speeds of CP stars are, the greater their fraction among normal stars. The latter property supports the hypothesis that the lower the initial rotation speed of a star is when it is created, the greater the probability will become chemically peculiar. This property is inherent in chemically peculiar stars both with and without a magnetic field. It is proposed that the cause of the slow rotation of CP stars must be sought in the very earliest phases of their formation, as should the cause of the separation into chemically peculiar magnetic, chemically peculiar nonmagnetic, and normal stars.__________Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 48, No. 2, pp. 229–245 (May 2005).     

Ambipolar diffusion in the solar atmosphere

The process of non-linear ambipolar diffusion in the region overlying the solar surface can be an effective mechanism for producing sharp magnetic structures and current sheets. These may be the sites responsible for the occurrence of connectivity of magnetic field lines, and the subsequent explosive input of energy for heating of some of the features in the atmosphere of the Sun..     

Emission-line outflows in PKS1549−79: the effects of the early stages of radio-source evolution?

We present new spectroscopic observations of the southern radio galaxy         . Despite the flat-spectrum character of the radio emission from this source, our optical spectra show no sign of the broad permitted lines and non-stellar continuum characteristic of quasar nuclei and broad-line radio galaxies. However, the high-ionization forbidden lines, including [O  iii ] λλ 5007, 4959, are unusually broad for a narrow-line radio galaxy     , and are blueshifted by 600 km s⁻¹ relative to the low-ionization lines such as [O  ii ] λλ 3726,3729. The [O  ii ] lines are also considerably narrower     than the [O  iii ] lines, and have a redshift consistent with that of the recently detected H  i 21-cm absorption-line system. Whereas the kinematics of the [O  iii ] emission lines are consistent with outflow in an inner narrow-line region, the properties of the [O  ii ] emission lines suggest that they are emitted by a more extended and quiescent gaseous component. We argue that, given the radio properties of the source, our line of sight is likely to be lying close to the direction of bulk outflow of the radio jets. In this case it is probable that the quasar nucleus is entirely obscured at optical wavelengths by the material responsible for the H  i absorption-line system. The unusually broad [O  iii ] emission lines suggest that the radio source is intrinsically compact. Overall, our data are consistent the idea that     is a radio source in an early stage of evolution.     

Circumstellar Silicate Mineralogy

This paper reviews spectra obtained with the SWS on board of ISO of dust shells around O-rich objects. These spectra reveal the presence of many new emission features between 10 and 45 μm. These bands are generally much narrower than the well-known 10 and 20 μm silicates features. The strength of these features relative to the underlying broad continuum varies from source to source (≅ 5-50%). The 10 μm region shows evidence for the presence of Al2O3 grains. At longer wavelength, the spectra are dominated by features due to crystalline olivine and pyroxene. The exact peak position of these features shows that the emitting grains consist of the Mg-rich end-members of these minerals with an Fe-content of < 10%. The underlying continuum is attributed to amorphous silicate grains. These observations of aluminum-rich and magnesium-rich compounds compare well with the thermodynamic condensation sequence of minerals expected for O-rich outflows. The observations also imply that freeze out (ie., kinetics) of this condensation sequence at different temperatures is an important characteristic of dust formation in these objects. It is suggested that the absence of Fe-rich silicates is a natural consequence of the low temperature at which gaseous Fe reacts with Mg-rich silicates in these outflows, resulting in amorphous grains with little characterizing spectral detail. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.