Authigenic carbonates in methane seeps from the Norwegian sea: Mineralogy, geochemistry, and genesis

Authigenic carbonates in the caldera of an Arctic (72°N) submarine mud volcano with active CH₄bearing fluid discharge are formed at the bottom surface during anaerobic microbial methane oxidation. The microbial community consists of specific methane-producing bacteria, which act as methanetrophic ones in conditions of excess methane, and sulfate reducers developing on hydrogen, which is an intermediate product of microbial CH₄ oxidation. Isotopically light carbon (δ¹³C_av =−28.9%0) of carbon dioxide produced during CH₄ oxidation is the main carbonate carbon source. Heavy oxygen isotope ratio (δ¹⁸O_av = 5%0) in carbonates is inherited from seawater sulfate. A rapid sulfate reduction (up to 12 mg S dm⁻³ day⁻¹) results in total exhausting of sulfate ion in the upper sediment layer (10 cm). Because of this, carbonates can only be formed in surface sediments near the water-bottom interface. Authigenic carbonates occurring within sediments occur do notin situ. Salinity, as well as CO ₃ ²⁻ /Ca and Mg/Ca ratios, correspond to the field of nonmagnesian calcium carbonate precipitation. Calcite is the dominant carbonate mineral in the methane seep caldera, where it occurs in the paragenetic association with barite. The radiocarbon age of carbonates is about 10000 yr.     

Dangerous fogs on the territory of Georgia

The statistical structure of dangerous fogs with the visibility of less than 50 m is studied using the observation data of 50 meteorological stations in Georgia for the period of 1961–2006. The contribution of dangerous fogs to the total number of foggy days is estimated. The number of days with dangerous fogs and their duration in different regions of the country are determined and the empirical functions of their distribution, sizes of areas of their expansion, temperature regime, and peculiarities of annual variations are studied.     

Estimation of drought-related yield loss using the dynamic statistical model of crop productivity forecasting

The methodological approach is proposed to the estimation of drought-related crop yield loss based on the dynamic statistical model of crop productivity forecasting. The obtained results agree well with the total actual crop yield loss. The approach under consideration is the first stage of creation of operational assessment of expected loss.     

VLA observations of class I methanol masers in the region of low-mass star formation L1157

We present the results of VLA observations of a maser candidate in the low-mass star formation region L1157 in the 7₀-6₁ A ⁺ transition at 44 GHz. The line is emitted by a compact, undoubtedly maser source associated with clump B0a, which is seen in maps of L1157 in thermal lines of methanol and other molecules. A much weaker compact source is associated with clump B1a, which is brighter than B0a in thermal methanol lines. The newly detected masers may form in thin layers of turbulent post-shock gas. In this case, the maser emission may be beamed, so that only an observer located in or near the planes of the layers can observe strong masers. On the other hand, the maser lines are double with a “red” asymmetry, indicating that the masers may form in collapsing clumps. A detailed analysis of collapsing-cloud maser models and their applicability to the masers in L1157 will be developed in subsequent papers.     

Monitoring volcanic hazard using eddy covariance at Solfatara volcano, Naples, Italy

An eddy covariance (EC) station was deployed at Solfatara crater, Italy, June 8–25, 2001 to assess if EC could reliably monitor CO₂ fluxes continuously at this site. Deployment at six different locations within the crater allowed areas of focused gas venting to be variably included in the measured flux. Turbulent (EC) fluxes calculated in 30-min averages varied between 950 and 4460 g CO₂ m⁻² d⁻¹; the highest measurements were made downwind of degassing pools. Comparing turbulent fluxes with chamber measurements of surface fluxes using footprint models in diffuse degassing regions yielded an average difference of 0% (±4%), indicating that EC measurements are representative of surface fluxes at this volcanic site. Similar comparisons made downwind of degassing pools yielded emission rates from 12 to 27 t CO₂ d⁻¹ for these features. Reliable EC measurements (i.e. measurements with sufficient and stationary turbulence) were obtained primarily during daytime hours (08:00 and 20:00 local time) when the wind speed exceeded 2 m s⁻¹. Daily average EC fluxes varied by ±50% and variations were likely correlated to changes in atmospheric pressure. Variations in CO₂ emissions due to volcanic processes at depth would have to be on the same order of magnitude as the measured diurnal variability in order to be useful in predicting volcanic hazard. First-order models of magma emplacement suggest that emissions could exceed this rate for reasonable assumptions of magma movement. EC therefore provides a useful method of monitoring volcanic hazard at Solfatara. Further, EC can monitor significantly larger areas than can be monitored by previous methods.     

Barometric pumping effects on soil gas studies for geological and environmental characterization

Data from two free soil gas sampling programs are evaluated for the effects of barometric pumping over time on measured soil gas volumes. One program collected data from the trapped atmosphere immediately above two hazardous waste landfill areas. Of these areas, one had extremely high soil gas emanations, whereas the other had a more modest soil gas release. The second experimental program involved the collection of free soil gas samples on a rough grid with an approximate spacing of 1.6 km over a 720-sq-km area. This reconnaissance effort was designed to establish regional soil gas background values and to establish the utility of this method as a geological mapping tool in the Atlantic Coastal Plain. Methane, ethane, propane, and hydrogen data are used for this study. The data suggest that there is a predictable change in soil gas volume with a given change in barometric pressure. The rate of change is greater with large soil gas volumes in permeable soils versus lower soil gas volumes in impermeable soils; however, a simple linear relationship seems to generate a predictable curve with a margin of error of approximately 50%. Furthermore, the results of this study indicate that barometric pumping effects should be strongly considered during soil gas screening efforts at hazardous waste sites as well as in regional studies for hydrocarbon source potential mapping.     

Stokes problem for infinite vertical plate with constant heat flux

An exact solution for the Stokes problem for an infinite vertical plate has been derived on taking into account the constant heat flux at the plate. It has been observed that the velocity of the fluid increases with increasingt (time) orG (the Grashof number).     

Mass ratios of three bodies for stable low-inclination three-dimensional periodic motion

The intervals of possible stability, on the -axis, of the basic families of three-dimensional periodie motions of the restricted three-body problem (determined in an earlier paper) are extended into regions of the -m ₃ parameter space of the general three-body problem. Sample three-dimensional periodic motions corresponding to these regions are computed and tested for stability. Six regions, corresponding to the vertical-critical orbitsl1v, m1v,m2v, andilv, survive this preliminary stability test-therefore, emerging as the mass parameters regions allowing the simplest types of stable low inclination three-dimensional motion of three massive bodies.