Wavelength predictions for the 1s 22s-1s2s3p satellite transitions

The experimentally known energies of the 1s ²2s 1s2s(¹ S, ³ S)3p transitions are considered for lithium to calcium. Their differences from the corresponding He-like resonances are fitted to the atomic number by means of a polynomial function and, through interpolation, the wavelengths for nitrogen to sodium are calculated.     

Laser Interferometer Space Antenna double black holes: dynamics in gaseous nuclear discs

We study the inspiral of double black holes, with masses in the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna ( LISA ) window of detectability, orbiting inside a massive circumnuclear, rotationally supported gaseous disc. Using high-resolution smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations, we follow the black hole dynamics in the early phase when gas-dynamical friction acts on the black holes individually, and continue our simulation until they form a close binary. We find that in the early sinking the black holes lose memory of their initial orbital eccentricity if they corotate with the gaseous disc. As a consequence, the massive black holes bind forming a binary with a low eccentricity, consistent with zero within our numerical resolution limit. The cause of circularization resides in the rotation present in the gaseous background where dynamical friction operates. Circularization may hinder gravitational waves from taking over and leading the binary to coalescence. In the case of counter-rotating orbits, the initial eccentricity (if present) does not decrease, and the black holes may bind forming an eccentric binary. When dynamical friction has subsided, for equal mass black holes and regardless their initial eccentricity, angular momentum loss, driven by the gravitational torque exerted on the binary by surrounding gas, is nevertheless observable down to the smallest scale probed (≃1 pc). In the case of unequal masses, dynamical friction remains efficient down to our resolution limit, and there is no sign of formation of any ellipsoidal gas distribution that may further harden the binary. During inspiral, gravitational capture of gas by the black holes occurs mainly along circular orbits; eccentric orbits imply high relative velocities and weak gravitational focusing. Thus, the active galactic nucleus activity may be excited during the black hole pairing process and double active nuclei may form when circularization is completed, on distance scales of tens of parsecs.     

Effects of waterborne nitrite on phase I-II biotransformation in channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus).

The effects of waterborne nitrite (3 mg/l NO2) on channel catfish were studied to evaluate changes in hematological parameters and phase I-II biotransformation in liver slices. Nitrite-exposed fish had significantly higher methemoglobin, blood and liver nitrite, and significantly lower pO2 than control fish. Total phase I-mediated metabolism of 7-ethoxycoumarin (EC) was not altered in nitrite-exposed fish compared with control fish (291 +/- 43 and 312 +/- 20 pmol/mg/h, respectively). However, phase II glucuronosyltransferase-mediated metabolism of 7-hydroxycoumarin (HC), both as a phase I metabolite of EC and as a parent substrate, was elevated in nitrite-exposed fish (204 +/- 17 and 1007 +/- 103 pmol/mg/h, respectively) as compared to control fish (149 +/- 14 and 735 +/- 87 pmol/mg/h) (P < 0.05). Sulfotransferase-mediated metabolism of HC (as a metabolite of EC and as a parent substrate) was not notably altered in nitrite-exposed fish (95 +/- 16 and 617 +/- 33 pmol/mg protein/h, respectively) as compared with control fish (118 +/- 24 and 575 +/- 55 pmol/mg/h, respectively). These studies indicate that in vivo nitrite exposure and associated changes in hematological parameters do not appear to affect hepatic phase I EC biotransformation in channel catfish. However, subtle but significant changes in phase II glucuronidation, but not sulfation activity, were observed. The mechanism of these alterations is unclear. However, the data suggest that environmentally realistic concentrations of nitrite may affect the dynamics of conjugative metabolism in exposed fish.     

The crystal chemistry of lithium and Fe3+ in synthetic orthopyroxene

Lithian ferrian enstatite with Li₂O = 1.39 wt% and Fe₂O₃ 7.54 wt% was synthesised in the (MgO–Li₂O–FeO–SiO₂–H₂O) system at P = 0.3 GPa, T = 1,000°C, fO₂ = +2 Pbca, and a = 18.2113(7), b = 8.8172(3), c = 5.2050(2) Å, V = 835.79(9) Å³. The composition of the orthopyroxene was determined combining EMP, LA-ICP-MS and single-crystal XRD analysis, yielding the unit formula ^M2(Mg_0.59Fe _0.21 ²⁺ Li_0.20) ^M1(Mg_0.74Fe _0.20 ³⁺ Fe _0.06 ²⁺ ) Si₂O₆. Structure refinements done on crystals obtained from synthesis runs with variable Mg-content show that the orthopyroxene is virtually constant in composition and hence in structure, whereas coexisting clinopyroxenes occurring both as individual grains or thin rims around the orthopyroxene crystals have variable amounts of Li, Fe³⁺ and Mg contents. Structure refinement shows that Li is ordered at the M2 site and Fe³⁺ is ordered at the M1 site of the orthopyroxene, whereas Mg (and Fe²⁺) distributes over both octahedral sites. The main geometrical variations observed for Li-rich samples are actually due to the presence of Fe³⁺, which affects significantly the geometry of the M1 site; changes in the geometry of the M2 site due to the lower coordination of Li are likely to affect both the degree and the kinetics of the non-convergent Fe²⁺-Mg ordering process in octahedral sites.     

Chemical Analysis of Iron Meteorites Using a Hand‐Held X‐Ray Fluorescence Spectrometer

We evaluate the performance of a hand‐held XRF (HHXRF) spectrometer for the bulk analysis of iron meteorites. Analytical precision and accuracy were tested on metal alloy certified reference materials and iron meteorites of known chemical composition. With minimal sample preparation (i.e., flat or roughly polished surfaces) HHXRF allowed the precise and accurate determination of most elements heavier than Mg, with concentrations > 0.01% m/m in metal alloy CRMs, and of major elements Fe and Ni and minor elements Co, P and S (generally ranging from 0.1 to 1% m/m) in iron meteorites. In addition, multiple HHXRF spot analyses could be used to determine the bulk chemical composition of iron meteorites, which are often characterised by sulfide and phosphide accessory minerals. In particular, it was possible to estimate the P and S bulk contents, which are of critical importance for the petrogenesis and evolution of Fe‐Ni‐rich liquids and iron meteorites. This study thus validates HHXRF as a valuable tool for use in meteoritics, allowing the rapid, non‐destructive (a) identification of the extraterrestrial origin of metallic objects (i.e., archaeological artefacts); (b) preliminary chemical classification of iron meteorites; (c) identification of mislabelled/unlabelled specimens in museums and private collections and (d) bulk analysis of iron meteorites.     

Methodical series tests for fuller ship hull forms

In recent years many fuller ship hull forms have been designed and constructed in various shipbuilding countries, but the data available for the development of the fuller forms are inadequate from the point of view of preliminary ship design. In this paper the authors describe how they have systematically tested vessel forms of block coefficients ranging from 0.80 to 0.90. The analysis and presentation of the test results have been made in such a manner that designers can produce hull forms like those of tankers and other bulk carriers quickly and reliably.     

The Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array: overview & status

The Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an international millimeter-wavelength radio telescope under construction in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. ALMA will be situated on a high-altitude site at 5000 m elevation which provides excellent atmospheric transmission over the instrument wavelength range of 0.3 to 3 mm. ALMA will be comprised of two key observing components—a main array of up to sixty-four 12-m diameter antennas arranged in a multiple configurations ranging in size from 0.15 to ∼18 km, and a set of four 12-m and twelve 7-m antennas operating in a compact array ∼50 m in diameter (known as the Atacama Compact Array, or ACA), providing both interferometric and total-power astronomical information. High-sensitivity dual-polarization 8 GHz-bandwidth spectral-line and continuum measurements between all antennas will be available from two flexible digital correlators. At the shortest planned wavelength and largest configuration, the angular resolution of ALMA will be 0.005″. The instrument will use superconducting (SIS) mixers to provide the lowest possible receiver noise contribution, and special-purpose water vapor radiometers to assist in calibration of atmospheric phase distortions. A complex optical fiber network will transmit the digitized astronomical signals from the antennas to the correlators in the Array Operations Site Technical Building, and post-correlation to the lower-altitude Operations Support Facility where the array will be controlled, and initial construction and maintenance of the instrument will occur. ALMA Regional Centers in the US, Europe, Japan and Chile will provide the scientific portals for the use of ALMA; early science observations are expected in 2010, with full operations in 2012.     

Effects of limestone petrography and calcite microstructure on OPC clinker raw meals burnability

Mineralogy and Petrology - Limestone represents the main raw material for ordinary Portland cement clinker production. In this study eight natural limestones from different geological environments...     

The Holocene Secche di Lazzaro phreatomagmatic succession (Stromboli,Italy): evidence of pyroclastic density current origin deduced by facies analysis and AMS flow directions

The edifice of Stromboli volcano gravitationally collapsed several times during its volcanic history (>100 ka–present). The largest Holocene event occurred during the final stage of the Neostromboli activity (∼13–5 ka), and was accompanied by the emplacement of phreatomagmatic and lahar deposits, known as the Secche di Lazzaro succession. A stratigraphic and paleomagnetic study of the Secche di Lazzaro deposits allows the interpretation of the emplacement and the eruptive processes. We identify three main units within the succession that correspond to changing eruption conditions. The lower unit (UA) consists of accretionary lapilli-rich, thinly bedded, parallel- to cross-stratified ash deposits, interpreted to indicate the early stages of the eruption and emplacement of dilute pyroclastic density currents. Upward, the second unit (UB) of the deposit is more massive and the beds thicker, indicating an increase in the sedimentation rate from pyroclastic density currents. The upper unit (UC) caps the succession with thick, immediately post-eruptive lahars, which reworked ash deposited on the volcano’s slope. Flow directions obtained by Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility (AMS) analysis of the basal bed of UA at the type locality suggest a provenance of pyroclastic currents from the sea. This is interpreted to be related to the initial base-surges associated with water–magma interaction that occurred immediately after the lateral collapse, which wrapped around the shoulder of the sector collapse scar. Upward in the stratigraphy (upper beds of UA and UB) paleoflow directions change and show a provenance from the summit vent, probably related to the multiple collapses of a vertical, pulsatory eruptive column.