The orbit, mass, and albedo of transneptunian binary (66652) 1999 RZ253

We have observed (66652) 1999 RZ₂₅₃ with the Hubble Space Telescope at seven separate epochs and have fit an orbit to the observed relative positions of this binary. Two orbital solutions have been identified that differ primarily in the inclination of the orbit plane. The best fit corresponds to an orbital period, days, semimajor axis a=4660±170 km and orbital eccentricity e=0.460±0.013 corresponding to a system mass m=3.7±0.4×¹⁰¹⁸ kg. For a density of the albedo at 477 nm is p₄₇₇=0.12±0.01, significantly higher than has been commonly assumed for objects in the Kuiper belt. Multicolor, multiepoch photometry shows this pair to have colors typical for the Kuiper belt with a spectral gradient of 0.35 per 100 nm in the range between 475 and 775 nm. Photometric variations at the four epochs we observed were as large as 12±3% but the sampling is insufficient to confirm the existence of a lightcurve.     

On-line Resources Supporting the Data, Products, and Information Infrastructure for the International DORIS Service

The International DORIS Service (IDS) was formed under the direction of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG) in 2003 to support geodetic research utilizing DORIS data and products. The IDS is organized into a hierarchy of components: network of Tracking Stations, Satellite Segment, Data Centers, Analysis Centers, Central Bureau, and Governing Board. The DORIS infrastructure consists of a globally distributed network of over 50 ground beacons and a constellation of five satellites equipped with receivers that relay range rate measurements through a central collection facility to the IDS archives. The Data Centers and Central Bureau supporting the IDS are the primary means of distributing DORIS data, products, and general information to the user community. These facilities utilize Web and ftp servers, as well as an email service, to support the users of DORIS data and products. The current status and recent developments of these components are discussed, as well as a review of available information, data, and geodetic product types.     

Zur Kristallehemie des Zinnsteins (Kassiterit)

Zusammenfassung Im Gegensatz zum künstlichen, reinen, kristallinen SnO₂ sind die natürlichen Zinnsteine fast alle mehr oder weniger tief gefärbt bis beinahe undurchsichtig. Über die Ursachen dieser Färbung was bisher nichts Sicheres bekannt, doch konnte nach den bisherigen Schrifttumsangaben vermutet werden, daß. sie irgendwie mit Gehalten an Fe, Mn, Ti, Nb und Ta in irgendeiner unbekannten Form in Beziehung zu bringen sei. Da anzunehmen war, daß diese Fremdstoffgehalte im Zinnstein auch von erheblicher Bedeutung für sein magnetisches und Oberflächenverhalte sein würden, erschien es wünschenswert, die Frage der Zinnsteinfärbung und damit die der genannten Fremdbeimengungen zu klären. Diese Aufgabe bildet den Gegenstand der vorliegenden Untersuchung.Als Dissertation von der Chemischen Fakultät der Technischen Hochschule Darmstadt angenommen am 4. 7. 1944.     

Structural architecture of the Owen Conglomerate,West Coast Range,western Tasmania: field evidence for Late Cambrian extension.

The Owen Conglomerate comprises coarse-grained siliciclastics that were deposited in response to Late Cambrian extension. The identification of normal faults that host thickened accumulations of siliciclastics is used here to support interpretation of syn-fill extension. Local mapping and section construction have identified a series of north-trending, en échelon, segmented normal faults that exhibit changes in along-strike polarity. The Late Cambrian faults are adjacent to sedimentary packages that define half-graben geometries, with an unconformity that defines basal contacts with underlying Mt Read Volcanics and onlap geometries onto the opposing basin margin. Faults that were active during deposition of the Owen Conglomerate were subsequently reversed during D₁ Middle Devonian deformation, with reverse displacement controlling the development of inversion structures defined by north-trending fold structures. Pervasive northwest-trending D₂ deformation extensively overprints earlier deformation features, and has led to the spectacular development of type 1 interference patterns that largely control outcrop distributions along the West Coast Range. Field evidence is documented in support for a simple structural history that accounts for geometries associated with Late Cambrian extension, prior to Middle Devonian inversion (D₁) and subsequent shortening (D₂).     

Urban land use mapping: A case study of ahmedabad city and its environs

Proper urban planning and effective implementation requires reliable urban land use statistics. In this context, satellite remote sensing data has been studied using both visual and digital techniques. A portable eight-band radiometer has been used to collect spectral signatures of surface features present in Ahmedabad city and its environs. Using these signatures a suitable approach employing visual and digital techniques has been developed for urban land use/sprawl mapping. Urban land-use maps of Ahmedabad city and its environs were prepared on 1:25,000 scale and for Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority Area on 1:50,000 scale using this methodology. It has been found that edge-enhancement techniques are useful to enhance the contrast among different urban land uses. Classification techniques such as MXL and Bayes classifiers are not successful in discriminating urban land uses. Tonal characteristics alongwith other elements of interpretation are required to classify urban land uses such as residential, industrial etc. Spatial distribution of various urban and uses and the space devoted to each urban land use has been brought out.     

The International DORIS Service: genesis and early achievements

All space-geodetic techniques are now organized as separate services of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG), supporting the first pilot project “Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS)”. The International DORIS (Détermination d’Orbite et Radiopositionnement Intégrés par Satellite) Service (IDS) was created in mid-2003 to organize a DORIS contribution to this project and to foster a larger international cooperation on this topic. The goal of this paper is to summarize the key steps that were taken to create this structure and to present its current organization and recent results. At present, more than 50 groups from 35 different countries participate in the IDS at various levels, including 43 groups hosting DORIS stations in 32 countries all around the globe. Four Analysis Centres (ACs) provide results, such as estimates of weekly or monthly station coordinates, geocentre variations or Earth polar motion, that will soon be used to generate IDS-combined products for geodesy and geodynamics. As a first test, a preliminary combination was performed for all the 2004 data from these four ACs. Three of them show RMS of weighted station residuals with respect to this combination solution between 1 and 2 cm. The main topic under investigation is a discrepancy in the scale factor of the terrestrial reference frame (TRF) to map the individual solutions into the combination solution, which reaches 6 cm (multiplying the unit-less scale factor by the Earth radius to get convert scale to millimetre in vertical at the Earth’s surface). Finally, foreseen improvements of the DORIS technology are discussed as well as future improvements concerning the service organization itself and the accuracy and reliability of its scientific products.     

Evidence for two populations of classical transneptunian objects: The strong inclination dependence of classical binaries

We have searched 101 Classical transneptunian objects for companions with the Hubble Space Telescope. Of these, at least 21 are binary. The heliocentric inclinations of the objects we observed range from 0.6°-34°. We find a very strong anticorrelation of binaries with inclination. Of the 58 targets that have inclinations of less than 5.5°, 17 are binary, a binary fraction of . All 17 are similar-brightness systems. On the contrary, only 4 of the 42 objects with inclinations greater than 5.5° have satellites and only 1 of these is a similar-brightness binary. This striking dichotomy appears to agree with other indications that the low eccentricity, non-resonant Classical transneptunian objects include two overlapping populations with significantly different physical properties and dynamical histories.     

Detection of terrestrial fluorine by proton induced gamma emission (PIGE): A rapid quantification for Antarctic meteorites

Abstract— The enrichment of fluorine on the surface of Antarctic meteorites is investigated by applying the nuclear reactions ¹⁹F(p, αγ)¹⁶O or ¹⁹F(p, p'γ)¹⁹F with the proton induced gamma emission (PIGE) technique, a class of nuclear reaction analysis (NRA). Results for the Antarctic meteorites ALHA77294, TIL 82409, LEW 86015, ALHA77003, and ALH 83108 are presented. Possible sources of terrestrial F are: volcanic exhalation, tephra layers (volcanic glass), continental soil dust, or sea spray. Material from blue‐ice dust‐band samples also shows concentrations of F that are significantly higher than the bulk concentrations of meteorites. Finally, a quick investigation for Antarctic meteorites by external PIGE is proposed, leading to a F‐contamination index that supplements the qualitative ABC‐weathering index.     

UV spectrum of Enceladus

We present a far ultraviolet (FUV) spectrum of Saturn’s moon Enceladus from the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). We have put upper limits on emission from C, N, and O lines in Enceladus’ atmosphere and column densities for the C lines assuming solar resonance scattering. We find these upper limits to be relatively low—on the order of tens to thousands of Rayleighs and with C column densities on the order of 10⁸–10¹⁵ cm^?2, depending on the assumed source size. We also present a segment of a reflectance spectrum in the FUV from ～1900–2130 Å. This region was sensitive to the different ice mixtures in the model spectra reported by Hendrix et al. (Hendrix, A.R., Hansen, C.J., Holsclaw, G.M. [2010]. Icarus, 206, 608). We find the spectrum brightens quickly longward of ～1900 Å, constraining the absorption band observed by Hendrix et al. from ～170 to 190 nm. We find our data is consistent with the suggestion of Hendrix et al. of the presence of ammonia ice (or ammonia hydrate) to darken that region, and also possibly tholins to darken the mid-UV, as reported by Verbiscer et al. (Verbiscer, A.J., French, R.G., McGhee, C.A. [2005]. Icarus, 173, 66).