Late Quaternary paleoclimate of western Alaska inferred from fossil chironomids and its relation to vegetation histories

Fossil Chironomidae assemblages (with a few Chaoboridae and Ceratopogonidae) from Zagoskin and Burial Lakes in western Alaska provide quantitative reconstructions of mean July air temperatures for periods of the late-middle Wisconsin (～39,000–34,000 cal yr B.P.) to the present. Inferred temperatures are compared with previously analyzed pollen data from each site summarized here by indirect ordination. Paleotemperature trends reveal substantial differences in the timing of climatic warming following the late Wisconsin at each site, although chronological uncertainty exists. Zagoskin Lake shows early warming beginning at about 21,000 cal yr B.P., whereas warming at Burial Lake begins ～4000 years later. Summer climates during the last glacial maximum (LGM) were on average ～3.5 °C below the modern temperatures at each site. Major shifts in vegetation occurred from ～19,000 to 10,000 cal yr B.P. at Zagoskin Lake and from ～17,000 to 10,000 cal yr B.P. at Burial Lake. Vegetation shifts followed climatic warming, when temperatures neared modern values. Both sites provide evidence of an early postglacial thermal maximum at ～12,300 cal yr B.P. These chironomid records, combined with other insect-based climatic reconstructions from Beringia, indicate that during the LGM: (1) greater continentality likely influenced regions adjacent to the Bering Land Bridge and (2) summer climates were, at times, not dominated by severe cold.     

Fractional Crystallization and Liquid Immiscibility Processes in the Alkaline-Carbonatite Complex of Juqui (So Paulo, Brazil)

The Juqui circular intrusion, which is Cretaceous in age (130–135Ma), crops out in the Precambrian gneissic basement in Brazilover an area of 14 km2. It consists of olivine clinopyroxen-itecumulates (with minor olivine gabbros) in the northeastern sector(74 vol.%), whereas ijolites-melteigites-urtites (4%) and nephelinesyenites with minor essexites and syenodiorites (21%) outlinesubannular concentric patterns with an Mg-carbonatite core (1%), in the southwestern part of the complex. Petrographical, bulk rock, and mineral compositional trendsindicate that the origin of the complex can be largely accountedfor by shallow-level fractional crystallization of a carbonatedbasanitic parental magma. Such a magma was generated deep inthe subcontinental lithosphere by low-degree partial meltingof a garnet-phlogopite peridotite source. Mass-balance calculations in agreement with field volume estimatespermit definition of several fractionation stages of the magmaticevolution under nearly closed-system conditions, with inwarddevelopment of zonally arranged side-wall cumulates. These stagesinvolved: (1) fractionation from basanite to essexite magma(liquid fraction F = 33–5%) by crystallization of olivineclinopyroxenite plus minor olivine alkali gabbro cumulates;(2) derivation of the least differentiated mafic nepheline syenite(F = 5–5 %) from essexitic magma by subtraction of a syenodioriteassemblage; (3) exsolution of a carbonatite liquid (5%) froma CO₂-enriched mafic nepheline syenite magma, which also underwentcontinuous fractionation giving rise to ijolite-melteigite-urtitecumulates. The proportion of cumulus clinopyroxene and biotiteand intercumulus nepheline and alkali feldspar in these lastrocks, as well as the absence of alkalis in carbonatite, maybe attributed, at least in part, to loss of alkali-rich hydrousfluids released during and after the unmixing formation of thetwo conjugate liquids. The KD values determined for Mg-carbonatite/nepheline syeniteare lower (1–4–2–9) for light rare earth elements(LREE) than for REE from Eu to Yb (4–6–7–8),in contrast to recent experimental results (Hamilton et al.,1989). A possible explanation is that Juquia Mg-carbonatiterepresents an alreadydifferentiated magma, which underwent extensivefractionation of LREE-enriched calcite. In this way, the highvariability of K₀ REE patterns observed in several alkaline-carbonatitecomplexes can also be accounted for. The remarkably constant initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios (mostly between0–7052 and 0–7057) support the interpretation ofthe intrusion as having been generated by fractrional crystallizationand liquid immiscibility from a common parental magma. Iligherisotopic ratios (0–7060–0–7078), found mainlyin dykes and in the border facies of the intrusion, may be dueto contamination by the gecissic basement.     

Simulation of forsterite protonation by the interatomic potential method

The interatomic potential method in an ionic approximation was used to model the protonation of forsterite crystals. The formation of isolated OH^? groups in iron-free and iron-bearing crystals and neutral clusters of protonated cation vacancies was considered. It was shown that the presence of trivalent impurities may significantly facilitate protonation processes owing to their reduction to a divalent state or formation of clusters with cation vacancies. In most cases, charge balancing of hydrogen-bearing defects by magnesium vacancies is energetically favorable over that involving silicon vacancies.     

The acute aquatic toxicity of some substances carried by ships

At the request of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), our laboratory has performed acute toxicity testing with 43 substances, for which insufficient or no data had been available for hazard rating concerning damage to marine living resources.     

The production of light elements in unconventional cosmologies with VMOs

The abundances of light elements (deuterium, helium and lithium) are calculated in unconventional cosmologies in which these elements are produced by interaction of fast -particles ejected by massive pregalactic stars with a purely hydrogenous cosmological substrate. The number density and energetics of such stars needed for suitable production of light elements are estimated. It is shown that the models always lead to overproduction of lithium. The intensity of ultraviolet, X-ray, and -ray emission caused by explosions of pregalactic massive stars is calculated. The distortions of cosmic background radiation by Compton losses of electrons heated by explosive stars are also calculated.     

A fractal-multifractal approach to groundwater contamination. 2. Predicting conservative tracers at the Borden site

 In a companion paper (Puente et al., this issue), the capability of a deterministic fractal-multifractal (FM) approach to faithfully and compactly describe the geometry of chloride and bromide tracers gathered at the Borden site was illustrated. As trends in surrogate parameter space were found for successive plume contours (i.e. linear growth in coordinates by which fractal interpolating functions pass, nearly constant rotations and fairly high scalings), this article reports usage of a variety of prediction schemes, based on linear regressions and the aforementioned trends, in order to study the evolving plumes. It is shown that the FM representation leads to plausible non-Gaussian plume evolutions and yields predictions that closely approximate records for a period of time that extends even beyond one year. It is illustrated that such predicted geometries are also consistent with predictions made via stochastic theories (i.e. Dagan, 1984).     

Cloud effects on air-sea interactions during the 1979 Indian summer monsoon as studied from satellite observations

Summary The Indian summer monsoon, one of the earth's most vigorous and energetic seasonally occurring weather events, influences the global atmospheric circulation. Its onset, duration, and intensity are governed by large- and meso-scale geophysical processes, such as surface solar heating and air-sea interactions. In this paper, using innovative combinations of satellite sensor data, we investigate some of these fundamental processes which are closely tied to clouds and control the monsoon system's evolution. The study, which focuses on the monsoon period of June, 1979, examines the low-frequency variability of clouds and their effects on air-sea processes through an analysis of the complex influence clouds play on the surface heat and water budgets. First, the effects of clouds on both the solar and longwave components of the surface radiation budget are assessed using a cloud radiative forcing parameter. While the effects of clouds on the long-wave irradiance act in a manner opposite to their effects on the shortwave irradiance, only a partial compensation is found to take place and the net effect results in a maximum cloud forcing of 60 Wm^–2 in the southwestern Arabian Sea. Second, employing satellite-derived precipitation and evaporation estimates, the paper analyzes the net surface fresh water budget variability around the monsoon onset. This budget is important in that fresh water affects the upper ocean density distribution and, consequently, the thermohaline circulation. Two regions are found to dominate the analysis: the western Arabian Sea, where evaporation is dominant by more than 10 mm day^–1, and the eastern Arabian Sea, where precipitation is dominant by more than 10 mm day^–1. Thus, a strong zonal gradient of fresh water at the surface is established during the monsoon. The last topic investigated is the intraseasonal variability of convection as analyzed using a cloud parameter indicative of deep convection. Cloud oscillations of 30–50 days, associated with the different phases of the monsoon, are found to propagate northward in the eastern Indian Ocean and eastward in the Bay of Bengal. Our analysis not only supports the hypothesis that the 30–50-day oscillation is driven by deep convection but also, and more importantly, suggests that the ocean thermal forcing is modulated by 30–50-day oscillations through cloud-induced surface radiative forcing. Although the results presented are limited in scope and preliminary because of the diffculty in quantifying the accuracy of the parameters examined, they do demonstrate: 1) the role of clouds in modulating the surface heat and water budgets, 2) the advantage of using combinations of multi-sensor and multi-platform satellite observations to quantify interrelated surface heat/water budget processes, and 3) the potential to examine the intraseasonal variability of air-sea interaction processes associated with the monsoon, even though these processes are not directly measurable from space.With 6 FiguresB. DiJulio passed away in September 1990.     

Meteor44 Video Meteor Photometry

Meteor44 is a software system developed at MSFC for the calibration and analysis of video meteor data. The photometric range of the (8 bit) video data is extended from a visual magnitude range of from 8 to 3 to from 8 to −8 for both meteors and stellar images using saturation compensation. Camera and lens specific saturation compensation coefficients are derived from artificial variable star laboratory measurements. Saturation compensation significantly increases the number of meteors with measured intensity and improves the estimation of meteoroid mass distribution. Astrometry is automated to determine each image's plate coefficient using appropriate star catalogs. The images are simultaneously intensity calibrated from the contained stars to determine the photon sensitivity and the saturation level referenced above the atmosphere. The camera's spectral response is used to compensate for stellar color index and typical meteor spectra in order to report meteor light curves in traditional visual magnitude units. Recent efforts include improved camera calibration procedures and long focal length "streak" meteor photometry. Meteor44 has been used to analyze data from the 2001, 2002 and 2003 MSFC Leonid observational campaigns as well as several lesser showers.     

Nature of the small main belt Asteroid 3169 Ostro

We present a set of rotational lightcurve measurements of the small main belt Asteroid 3169 Ostro. Our observations reveal an unambiguous, double-peaked rotational lightcurve with a peak-to-peak variation up to 1.2±0.05 mag and a synodic period of 6.509±0.001 h. From the large flux variation and the overall shape of the lightcurves, we suggest that 3169 Ostro could be a tightly bound binary or a contact binary, similar to the Trojan Asteroid 624 Hektor. A shape model of this system is proposed on the assumption that 3169 Ostro is a Roche binary described by a pair of homogeneous elongated bodies, with a size ratio of 0.87, in hydrostatic equilibrium and in circular synchronous motion around each other. The direction of the spin axis is determined modulo 180° by its J2000 ecliptic coordinates λ₀=50±10°, β₀=±54±5°. The binary interpretation and the pole solution adequately fit the earlier photometric observations made in 1986 and 1988. However, additional supporting lightcurves are highly desirable especially in the next mutual events occurrence of 2008 and 2009 in order to remove the pole ambiguity and to confirm unambiguously the binary nature of 3169 Ostro.     

Allochthonous and autochthonous organic matter in surface waters in Karelia

A relationship between indirect chemical indices of organic matter content of surface waters and light absorption in the visible and ultraviolet ranges is discussed. The allochthonous and autochthonous types of organic matter are found to essentially differ in the rate of light absorption. Techniques are proposed for the calculation of the concentrations of allochthonous and autochthonous organic matter by the integral rate of light consumption in the visible region and the bichromate oxidability of water, as well as by three indirect indices: chemical oxygen demand, permanganate oxidability, and water color index. The mean concentrations of allochthonous and autochthonous organic matter in large lakes (Ladoga, Onega, and Baikal) and in rivers and smaller water bodies in Karelia (>300 water objects) are analyzed. Allochthonous organic matter was found to predominate in most surface waters of Karelia (>80%), while allochthonous organic matter predominates only in lakes with a small specific catchment area (supposedly, <5) and in highly eutrophic lakes.