Is Comet C/1853 E1 (Secchi) extrasolar?

Comet C/1853 E1 (Secchi) has a hyperbolic orbit with eccentricity 1.01060 and perihelion outside of the Earth's orbit. Integrating the orbit with barycentric coordinates backwards to 50000 AU, the approximate edge of the Oort cloud, shows that the orbit remains hyperbolic. This is still true even if plutoids additional to Pluto are included in the integration. Nor does including Galactic tidal and disc effects and possible nongravitational forces change the orbit to a high eccentricity ellipse. Although certain factors, such as unknown massive plutoids, gravitational effects by interstellar gas clouds, or unmodelled nongravitational forces operating on the comet, could change this situation, the tentative conclusion that the origin of this comet is extrasolar remains the one most consistent with the observations (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Magnetic properties of soils from sites with different geological and environmental settings

Measurements of magnetic susceptibility of soils, reflecting magnetic enhancement of topsoils due to atmospherically deposited magnetic particles of industrial origin, are used recently in studies dealing with outlining polluted areas, as well as with approximate determination of soil contamination with heavy metals. One of the natural limitations of this method is magnetic enhancement of soils caused by weathering magnetically rich parent rock material. In this study we compare magnetic properties of soils from regions with different geological and environmental settings. Four areas in the Czech Republic and Austria were investigated, representing both magnetically rich and poor geology, as well as point-like and diffuse pollution sources. Topsoil and subsoil samples were investigated and the effect of geology and pollution was examined. Magnetic data including mass and volume magnetic susceptibility, frequency-dependent susceptibility, and main magnetic characteristics such as coercivity (Hc and Hcr) and magnetization (Ms and Mrs) parameters are compared with heavy metal contents. The aim of the paper is to assess the applicability of soil magnetometry under different geological-environmental conditions in terms of magnetic discrimination of dominant lithogenic/anthropogenic contributions to soil magnetic signature. Our results suggest that lithology represents the primary effect on soil magnetic properties. However, in case of significant atmospheric deposition of anthropogenic particles, this contribution can be clearly recognized, independent of the type of pollution source (point-like or diffuse), and discriminated from the lithogenic one. Different soil types apparently play no role. Possible effects of climate were not investigated in this study.     

Computation of 5-day temperature normals in western Europe and the Mediterranean area

Summary UsingCraddock's method of representing the annual temperature variation by a two-term harmonic form fitted to monthly means, the harmonic coefficients of 63 stations in western Europe and around the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the 5-day normals for 24 Mediterranean stations, were computed and tabulated. In addition, some of the harmonic coefficients were charted and isoplethed, showing very distinctly the influence of continentality and topography. These charts, together withCraddock's charts for northern and northwestern Europe, provide fairly complete coverage of Europe and the Mediterranean area.This paper was prepared in the offices of the Technical Support Division of the 2d Weather Wing, United States Air Force, as a matter of routine business. The information contained herein was presented at the 5th Meeting of the Italian Society of Geophysics and Meteorology by Dr.Ingrid Weiss (Genoa: 23–25 April 1957). Since the paper is of general interest to all meteorologists of the Mediterranean area, it is published here with the permission of the originating agency as «Mémoire No. 3 du Centre International de Recherches sur la Météorologie de la Méditerranée (CIRMM)».     

Seismic reflection survey of an oblique aseismic basement trend on the Reykjanes Ridge

A detailed (5 km track separation) seismic reflection survey of a portion of the upper flank of Reykjanes Ridge supports the existence of an oblique aseismic ridge, previously postulated from other data. The oblique basement ridge may have been formed by a magma center moving southwest under this portion of the Reykjanes Ridge at about 6 cm/yr between 7 and 5 mbyp. The oblique ridge is complex, being interrupted by saddles about every 30 km length. This spacing could reflect incipient, very weakly developed transverse fractures, or more probably the concentration of volcanic activity at particularly active vents, which shift southwestward every million years or so in response to the south-westward moving magma chambers entrained in the asthenosphere. Minor irregularities in the oblique ridge parallel crustal isochrons; such small features are probably elongate fissure eruptions restricted to a narrow spreading axis.     

塔里木盆地巴楚—麦盖提地区石炭系混合沉积研究*

通过岩心、薄片观察,从岩石学特征入手,结合测井资料,对塔里木盆地巴楚—麦盖提地区石炭系的陆源碎屑—碳酸盐混积岩和混积层系进行了研究。根据混积强度将混积岩划分为混积型碎屑岩、混积型碳酸盐岩和高度混积岩。巴楚组下泥岩段和中泥岩段发育混积型碎屑岩,巴楚组生屑灰岩段、中泥岩段和小海子组发育混积型碳酸盐岩,卡拉沙依组上泥岩段、巴楚组下泥岩段及巴什托局部地区的中泥岩段发育高度混积岩。高度混积岩出现在海退期沉积的碎屑岩段,代表了陆源碎屑—碳酸盐强烈混合的过渡性沉积环境。研究区石炭系可识别出4个三级层序,混积层系主要发育在海侵体系域早期和高位体系域晚期,以间断混合和相缘混合为主。研究认为混积强度是评价混合沉积环境性质的主要参数,并将其划分为4级。下泥岩段存在混积强度达3级以上的混积界面,能用于地层对比。最后,结合混合沉积特征讨论了构造运动和海平面变化对研究区石炭系层序组以上的混合沉积的控制作用。     

龙门山及其邻区的地壳厚度和泊松比

根据龙门山及其周边地区(26°～35°N,98°～109°E)的132个台站的宽频带远震记录,使用H-k叠加方法计算地壳厚度和波速比.结果表明该区域的地壳厚度总体变化是:从东向西增加,东部的最小厚度为37.8km,西部的最大厚度是68.1 km,其中横跨龙门山断裂带的地壳厚度变化最大,从东南的41.5km增加到西北的52.5km.根据Airy均衡理论,用台站的高程和观测地壳厚度数据求得最小二乘意义下的壳幔密度差为0.649g/cm3,平均地壳厚度为37.9km.龙门山及其邻近地区基本上处于均衡状态.松潘-甘孜地体北部和西秦岭造山带具有低泊松比(v<0.26),扬子地台的西南部具有低一中泊松比(v<0.27),松潘-甘孜地体南部、三江褶皱带和四川盆地具有中一高泊松比(0.26≤P≤0.29).该地区的泊松比空间分布不支持青藏高原东部广泛分布的下地壳流的假说.龙门山断裂带南段及其附近地区的高泊松比(v≥0.30)可以看成是地壳具有较高的铁镁质组分和/或存在部分熔融.该地区下地壳可能是处于富含流体和温度较高的部分熔融状态.松潘-甘孜块体南部的上地壳物质向东运动,受刚性强度较大的扬子地台的阻挡,导致沿龙门山断裂带产生应变积累.当断层被地壳流体弱化,积累的应变能量快速释放,产生汶川Ms8.0地震.     

Aluminum-26 in meteorites—VII. Ureilites,their unique radiation history

Cosmogenic ²⁶A1 activities have been measured by γ-γ coincidence counting in the three ureilites which had not previously been studied. The values in dpm/kg are: Dingo Pup Donga, 38.4 ± 2.4; North Haig, 39.3 ± 4.8; Dyalpur, 55.8 ± 4.8. Five of the six known ureilites thus have lower ²⁶A1 contents, 63 per cent to 77 per cent, than the calculated saturation values, in marked contrast to most other stony meteorites. This cannot be attributed to short cosmic ray exposure ages. Nor do size and depth effects account for the narrow range of ²⁶A1 activities, because a nuclear particle track study indicates that preatmospheric radii were highly variable, from ≥ 40 cm for Goalpara to only a few cm for Dingo Pup Donga. By default, the most likely explanation is that the ureilites had much smaller or much larger orbits than all other stony meteorites.     

Kinematics of the structure of the active region in Orion-KL

The kinematics of the superfine structure of the active star-forming region in the dense molecular cloud Orion-KL has been investigated in the Н₂О maser emission for the period 1998–2003. It has been established that the surrounding gas inflows onto the disk and is transferred in a spiral trajectory to the center. An excess angular momentum as it is accumulated is carried away by a bipolar outflow; a highvelocity central flow surrounded by low-velocity components is formed. The outer low-velocity component observed at the detection limit has a diameter Ø₃ ≈ 4.5 AU, further out, Ø₂ ≈ 0.5 AU and Ø₁ ≈ 0.24 AU. The gas transfer velocity increases exponentially as the center is approached. The maser emission from the central flow is decisive. A rise in the velocity leads to a flow discontinuity and a reduction in the amount of inflowingmaterial and, accordingly, the emission level. The emission in the period under consideration was reduced exponentially for ~6 months, whereupon its restoration began.     

Diurnal variability of upper ocean temperature and heat budget in the southern Bay of Bengal during October–November, 1998 (BOBMEX-Pilot)

Time-series data on upper-ocean temperature, Vessel-Mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (VM-ADCP) measured currents and surface meteorological parameters have been obtained for the first time in the southern Bay of Bengal at 7‡N, 10‡N, and 13‡N locations along 87‡E during October–November, 1998 under BOBMEX-Pilot programme. These data have been analysed to examine the diurnal variability of upper oceanic heat budget and to estimate the eddy diffusivity coefficient of heat in the upper layer. Diurnal variation of near-surface temperature is typical at northern location (13‡N) with a range of 0.5‡C while the diurnal range of temperature is enhanced to 0.8‡C at the central location (10‡N) due to intense solar radiation (1050 W/m²), clear skies and low wind speeds. At the southern location (7‡N), the diurnal variation of temperature is atypical with the minimum temperature occurring at 2000 hrs instead of at early morning hours. In general, the diurnal curve of temperature penetrated up to 15 to 20 m with decreasing diurnal range with depth. The VM-ADCP measured horizontal currents in the upper ocean were predominantly easterly/northeasterly at southern location, north/northerly at central location and northwesterly at northern location, thus describing a large-scale cyclonic gyre with the northward meridional flow along 87‡E. The magnitudes of heat loss at the surface due to air-sea heat exchanges and in the upper 50 m layer due to vertical diffusion of heat are highest at the southern location where intense convective activity followed by overcast skies and synoptic disturbance prevailed in the lower atmosphere. This and the estimated higher value (0.0235 m²/s) of eddy diffusivity coefficient of heat in the upper ocean (0–50 m depth) suggest that 1-D processes controlled the upper layer heat budget at the southern location. On the other hand, during the fair weather conditions, at the central and northern locations, the upper layer gained heat energy, while the sea surface lost (gained) heat energy at northern (central) location. This and lower values of eddy diffusivity coefficient of heat (0.0045 and 0.0150 m²/s) and the northward intensification of horizontal currents at these locations suggest the greater role of horizontal heat advection over the 1-D processes in the upper ocean heat budget at these two locations.     

Wrench tectonics flip at oblique subduction. A model from New Zealand

In eastern North Island New Zealand, oblique subduction of the Pacific Plate beneath the Australian Plate is associated with strain partitioning. Dextral along-strike component of displacement occurred first at Early Miocene major faults within the eastern fore-arc domain. These faults were active from Early Miocene to Pliocene times. Since Pliocene times, most of the movement occurs at western faults such as the Wellington Fault. The latter joins the back-arc domain to the north. The jump of wrench faulting is related to the oblique opening of the back-arc domain. Both phenomena are impeded southwards by the Hikurangi oceanic plateau entering the subduction zone. To cite this article: J. Delteil et al., C. R. Geoscience 335 (2003).