Cassini SAR, radiometry, scatterometry and altimetry observations of Titan’s dune fields

Large expanses of linear dunes cover Titan’s equatorial regions. As the Cassini mission continues, more dune fields are becoming unveiled and examined by the microwave radar in all its modes of operation (SAR, radiometry, scatterometry, altimetry) and with an increasing variety of observational geometries. In this paper, we report on Cassini’s radar instrument observations of the dune fields mapped through May 2009 and present our key findings in terms of Titan’s geology and climate. We estimate that dune fields cover ∼12.5% of Titan’s surface, which corresponds to an area of ∼10 million km², roughly the area of the United States. If dune sand-sized particles are mainly composed of solid organics as suggested by VIMS observations (Cassini Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer) and atmospheric modeling and supported by radiometry data, dune fields are the largest known organic reservoir on Titan. Dune regions are, with the exception of the polar lakes and seas, the least reflective and most emissive features on this moon. Interestingly, we also find a latitudinal dependence in the dune field microwave properties: up to a latitude of ∼11°, dune fields tend to become less emissive and brighter as one moves northward. Above ∼11° this trend is reversed. The microwave signatures of the dune regions are thought to be primarily controlled by the interdune proportion (relative to that of the dune), roughness and degree of sand cover. In agreement with radiometry and scatterometry observations, SAR images suggest that the fraction of interdunes increases northward up to a latitude of ∼14°. In general, scattering from the subsurface (volume scattering and surface scattering from buried interfaces) makes interdunal regions brighter than the dunes. The observed latitudinal trend may therefore also be partially caused by a gradual thinning of the interdunal sand cover or surrounding sand sheets to the north, thus allowing wave penetration in the underlying substrate. Altimetry measurements over dunes have highlighted a region located in the Fensal dune field (∼5° latitude) where the icy bedrock of Titan is likely exposed within smooth interdune areas. The hemispherical assymetry of dune field properties may point to a general reduction in the availability of sediments and/or an increase in the ground humidity toward the north, which could be related to Titan’s asymmetric seasonal polar insolation. Alternatively, it may indicate that either the wind pattern or the topography is less favorable for dune formation in Titan’s northern tropics.     

鲜水河断裂带的构造大地测量

利用短边GPS点阵、短基线标石阵和精密激光测距 ,在与鲜水河断裂带的断层破裂带垂直的剖面上和构造盆地内进行构造大地测量 ,获得了断层软弱带和断层蠕变带上的最佳形变分布。综合利用相关地学成果和理论 ,揭示了构造形变所隐含的动力学信息 ,识别了断层应变带、塑性流变带和主断面在地面的分布范围。用外围GPS远场联测成果探讨了该断裂带的驱动力机制 ,匡正了其“左旋”运动和现今活动速度的含义。最后 ,评估了该断裂的地震活动趋势     

青海南部地区煤炭资源勘查思路

青海南部及其毗邻地区,是青海省乃至全国工业基础最薄弱、社会经济最落后的地区。煤炭资源紧缺,是制约其经济发展的重要因素之一。查明煤炭资源赋存状况,探讨聚煤规律,指出进一步找煤勘探的方向,科学、合理地开发煤炭资源,以带动其它资源开发,使该区尽快脱贫致富,意义重大。     

Fundamentally distinct outcomes of asteroid collisional evolution and catastrophic disruption

The outcomes of asteroid collisional evolution are presently unclear: are most asteroids larger than 1 km size gravitational aggregates reaccreted from fragments of a parent body that was collisionally disrupted, while much smaller asteroids are collisional shards that were never completely disrupted? The 16 km mean diameter S-type asteroid 433 Eros, visited by the NEAR mission, has surface geology consistent with being a fractured shard. A ubiquitous fabric of linear structural features is found on the surface of Eros and probably indicates a globally consolidated structure beneath its regolith cover. Despite the differences in absolute scale and in lighting conditions for NEAR and Hayabusa, similar features should have been found on 25143 Itokawa if present. This much smaller, 320 m diameter S-asteroid was visited by the Hayabusa spacecraft. Comparative analyses of Itokawa and Eros geology reveal fundamental differences, and interpretation of Eros geology is illuminated by comparison with Itokawa. Itokawa lacks a global lineament fabric, and its blocks, craters, and regolith may be inconsistent with formation and evolution as a fractured shard, unlike Eros. An object as small as Itokawa can form as a rubble pile, while much larger Eros formed as a fractured shard. Itokawa is not a scaled-down Eros, but formed by catastrophic disruption and reaccumulation.     

Analysis and interpretation of Cassini Titan radar altimeter echoes

The Cassini spacecraft has acquired 25 radar altimeter elevation profiles along Titan's surface as of April 2008, and we have analyzed 18 of these for which there are currently reconstructed ephemeris data. Altimeter measurements were collected at spatial footprint sizes from 6-60 km along ground tracks of length 400-3600 km. The elevation profiles yield topographic information at this resolution with a statistical height accuracy of 35-50 m and kilometer-scale errors several times greater. The data exhibit significant variations in terrain, from flat regions with little topographic expression to very rugged Titanscapes. The bandwidth of the transmitted waveform admits vertical resolution of the terrain height to 35 m at each observed location on the surface. Variations in antenna pointing and changes in surface statistics cause the range-compressed radar echoes to exhibit strong systematic and time-variable biases of hundreds of meters in delay. It is necessary to correct the received echoes for these changes, and we have derived correction algorithms such that the derived echo profiles are accurate at the 100 m level for off-nadir pointing errors of 0.3° and 0.6°, for leading edge and echo centroid estimators, respectively. The leading edge of the echo yields the elevation of the highest points on the surface, which we take to be the peaks of any terrain variation. The mean value of the echo delay is more representative of the mean elevation, so that the difference of these values gives an estimate of any local mountain heights. Finding locations where these values diverge indicates higher-relief terrain. Elevation features are readily seen in the height profiles. Several of the passes show mountains of several hundred m altitude, spread over 10's or even 100's of km in spatial extent, so that slopes are very small. Large expanses of sub-100 m topography are commonplace on Titan, so it is rather smooth in many locations. Other areas exhibit more relief, although the overall observed variation in surface height on any pass is less than about 1 km. Some elevation features correspond to observed changes in brightness in Cassini infrared images, but many do not. Correspondence between the imaging SAR ground tracks and the altimeter paths is limited, so that identifying elevation changes with higher resolution SAR features is premature at present.     

10 Years of the optical &; UV monitor (OM) on-board <Emphasis Type="Italic">XMM-Newton</Emphasis>

The XMM-Newton X-ray observatory was launched at the end of 1999 and it is still successfully operated. In addition to the X-ray instruments, the payload carries a small telescope, the Optical Monitor, which provides simultaneous imaging and spectroscopic observations in the optical and UV ranges. In this report we review the status of the OM and its main achievements after 10 years of operations. We also introduce the XMM-OM Serendipitous Ultra-violet Source Survey (SUSS) Catalogue.     

西藏南部郎杰学群碎屑物质来源的古水流证据

新近对西藏山南琼果和贡嘎地区(特提斯喜马拉雅北亚带)弱变质的上三叠统深海—半深海沉积地层——郎杰学群地质填图调查,在出露槽模沉积构造的37个古水流点获得了43组数据。赤平投影数据恢复后发现,这一地区主力古水流有南东140°～160°和南西190°～210°两个方向。这一分析结果为郎杰学群沉积物来自北边(未知块体)而非印度次大陆的观点提供了有力证据。     

应用氢氧同位素方法研究兰州市傍河水源地地下水水体的形成和循环机理

本文通过测定水中氢氧同位素的变化来对兰州市傍河水源地地下水体的形成和循环机理进行分析探讨。分析了兰州市马滩水源地水质恶化的程度,探讨了恶化的原因。对其工作原理及方法作了较详尽的论述。     

河南省煤系地层地震反射波发育特征

对河南省不同区域的煤系地层反射波发育特点进行分析研究、归类总结和正反演对比,建立了地震波-地质层位的对应关系,有利于解释人员从时间剖面上准确分辨出新生界、煤系地层和煤系基底反射波组,确定煤层反射波及煤层赋存状况,为类似地区的地震资料解释工作提供科学的指导。     

塔巴庙地区上古生界砂岩成岩作用特征及其储集性分析

鄂尔多斯盆地北部塔巴庙地区上古生界发育一套低孔低渗致密砂岩储层，储集空间以溶蚀微孔、蜂窝状溶孔和高岭石晶间隙为主，孔喉以细——微细为主。成岩作用决定了砂岩内部储集空间特征和储集性能，主要表现在较强的压实作用和胶结作用使砂岩的原生孔隙很少得到保存；较弱的溶蚀作用和强的蚀变作用使砂岩储集空间以微孔、超微孔为主，具有孔径小喉道细的特征，这是砂岩储集物性特别是渗透率偏低的直接原因。