Stability of clinohumite in the system MgO-SiO2-H2O

The low-pressure stability of clinohumite has been investigated in phase-equilibrium experiments on the reaction forsterite + brucite = clinohumite. The reaction was bracketed between 2.45 and 2.84 GPa at 650 °C, extending to between 1.37 and 1.57 GPa at 850 °C. At temperatures above the reaction brucite = periclase + vapour, the reaction clinohumite = forsterite + vapour was bracketed between 1.27 and 1.52 GPa at 900 °C, rising to between 1.90 and 2.00 GPa at 1000 °C. The position of the reaction forsterite + brucite = clinohumite is ∼0.5 GPa below the position determined in previous work, the difference arising either from pressure uncertainties in both studies, from enhanced reaction to clinohumite in this study due to the presence of excess brucite in the starting material, or from different concentrations of defects in the two samples. The brackets on the reaction were combined with other measured and estimated thermodynamic data for clinohumite to determine its enthalpy of formation and entropy, in a revised version of the thermodynamic dataset of Holland and Powell (1998). The values obtained were ΔH _f =−9607.29±3.05 kJ mol⁻¹, S=445 J mol⁻¹ K⁻¹. These data were used to calculate positions of other reactions involving clinohumite. The calculations suggest a larger stability field for clinohumite than implied by the results of previous experimental studies, indicating a need for more high-pressure phase-equilibrium studies to provide better thermodynamic data. Received: 30 April 1999 / Accepted: 8 November 1999     

High-resolution simulations of stellar collisions between equal-mass main-sequence stars in globular clusters

We performed high-resolution simulations of two stellar collisions relevant for stars in globular clusters. We considered one head-on collision and one off-axis collision between two 0.6-M_⊙ main-sequence stars. We show that a resolution of about 100 000 particles is sufficient for most studies of the structure and evolution of blue stragglers. We demonstrate conclusively that collision products between main-sequence stars in globular clusters do not have surface convection zones larger than 0.004 M_⊙ after the collision, nor do they develop convection zones during the 'pre-main-sequence' thermal relaxation phase of their post-collision evolution. Therefore, any mechanism which requires a surface convection zone (i.e. chemical mixing or angular momentum loss via a magnetic wind) cannot operate in these stars. We show that no disc of material surrounding the collision product is produced in off-axis collisions. The lack of both a convection zone and a disc proves a continuing problem for the angular momentum evolution of blue stragglers in globular clusters.     

How much oxygen is too much? Constraining Saturn's ring atmosphere

The discovery of a molecular oxygen atmosphere around Saturn's rings has important implications for the electrodynamics of the ring system. Its existence was inferred from the Cassini in situ detection of molecular oxygen ions above the rings during Saturn Orbit Insertion in 2004. Molecular oxygen is difficult to observe remotely, and theoretical estimates have yielded only a lower limit (Nn?¹⁰¹³ cm⁻²) to the O₂ column density. Comparison with observations has previously concerned matching ion densities at spacecraft altitudes far larger than the scale height of the neutral atmosphere. This is further complicated by charged particle propagation effects in Saturn's offset magnetic field. In this study we adopt a complementary approach, by focusing on bulk atmospheric properties and using additional aspects of the Cassini observations to place an upper limit on the column density. We develop a simple analytic model of the molecular atmosphere and its photo-ionization and dissociation products, with Nn a free parameter. Heating of the neutrals by viscous stirring, cooling by collisions with the rings, and torquing by collisions with pickup ions are all included in the model. We limit the neutral scale height to h?3000 km using the INMS neutral density nondetection over the A ring. A first upper limit to the neutral column is derived by using our model to reassess O₂ production and loss rates. Two further limits are then obtained from Cassini observations: corotation of the observed ions with the planet implies that the height-integrated conductivity of the ring atmosphere is less than that of Saturn's ionosphere; and the nondetection of fluorescent atomic oxygen over the rings constrains the molecular column from which it is produced via photo-dissociation. These latter limits are independent of production and loss rates and are only weakly dependent on temperature. From the three independent methods described, we obtain similar limits: Nn?2×¹⁰¹⁵ cm⁻². The mean free path for collisions between neutrals thus cannot be very much smaller than the scale height.     

Rb‐Sr and Sm‐Nd isotopic and REE studies of igneous components in the bulk matrix domain of Martian breccia Northwest Africa 7034

The bulk matrix domain of the Martian breccia NWA 7034 was examined petrographically and isotopically to better understand the provenance and age of the source material that make up the breccia. Both ¹⁴⁷Sm‐¹⁴³Nd and ¹⁴⁶Sm‐¹⁴²Nd age results for mineral separates from the bulk matrix portion of breccia NWA 7034 suggest that various lithological components in the breccia probably formed contemporaneously ~4.44 Ga ago. This old age is in excellent agreement with the upper intersection ages (4.35–4.45 Ga) for U‐Pb discordia and also concordia defined by zircon and baddeleyite grains in matrix and igneous‐textured clasts. Consequently, we confirm an ancient age for the igneous components that make up the NWA 7034 breccia. Substantial disturbance in the Rb‐Sr system was detected, and no age significance could be gleaned from our Rb‐Sr data. The disturbance to the Rb‐Sr system may be due to a thermal event recorded by bulk‐rock K‐Ar ages of 1.56 Ga and U‐Pb ages of phosphates at about 1.35–1.5 Ga, which suggest partial resetting from an unknown thermal event(s), possibly accompanying breccia formation. The NWA 7034 bulk rock is LREE enriched and similar to KREEP‐rich lunar rocks, which indicates that the earliest Martian crust was geochemically enriched. This enrichment supports the idea that the crust is one of the enriched geochemical reservoirs on Mars that have been detected in studies of other Martian meteorites.     

The DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey: the role of galaxy environment in the cosmic star formation history

Using galaxy samples drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the DEEP2 Galaxy Redshift Survey, we study the relationship between star formation and environment at   z ∼ 0.1  and 1. We estimate the total star formation rate (SFR) and specific star formation rate (sSFR) for each galaxy according to the measured [O  ii ]λ 3727 Å nebular line luminosity, corrected using empirical calibrations to match more robust SFR indicators. Echoing previous results, we find that in the local Universe star formation depends on environment such that galaxies in regions of higher overdensity, on average, have lower SFRs and longer star formation time-scales than their counterparts in lower density regions. At   z ∼ 1  , we show that the relationship between sSFR and environment mirrors that found locally. However, we discover that the relationship between total SFR and overdensity at   z ∼ 1  is inverted relative to the local relation. This observed evolution in the SFR–density relation is driven, in part, by a population of bright, blue galaxies in dense environments at   z ∼ 1  . This population, which lacks a counterpart at   z ∼ 0  , is thought to evolve into members of the red sequence from   z ∼ 1  to ∼0. Finally, we conclude that environment does not play a dominant role in the cosmic star formation history at   z < 1  : the dependence of the mean galaxy SFR on local galaxy density at constant redshift is small compared to the decline in the global SFR space density over the last 7 Gyr.     

Stable carbon and oxygen isotope record of central Lake Erie sediments

Stable carbon and oxygen isotope data from mollusc aragonite extracted from sediment cores provide new information on the origin and history of sedimentation in the southwestern area of the central basin of Lake Erie. Sediments infilling the Sandusky subbasin consist of three lithologic units overlying glacial deposits. The lowest of these is a soft gray mud overlain by a shell hash layer containing Sphaerium striatinum fragments. A fluid mud unit caps the shell hash layer and extends upwards to the sediment-water interface. New stable isotope data suggest that the soft gray mud unit is of postglacial, rather than proglacial, origin. These data also suggest that the shell hash layer was derived from erosional winnowing of the underlying soft gray mud layer. This winnowing event may have occurred as a result of the Nipissing flood.The Pelee-Lorain moraine, which forms the eastern boundary of the Sandusky subbasin, is an elevated area of till capped by a sand deposit that originated as a beach. The presence of both the shell hash layer and relict beach deposit strengthens the interpretation that the Nipissing flood was a critical event in the development of the southwestern area of the central basin of Lake Erie. This event, which returned drainage from the upper lakes to the Lake Erie basin, was a dominant influence on regional stratigraphy, bathymetry, and depositional setting.     

Gender, geography and policy: the conundrums of engagement

This paper contemplates the relationship between the discipline of geography, and the making of public policy. It is particularly concerned with the compatibilities and incompatibilities of the nature of academic knowledge production and public policy development. As such, we contribute to an ongoing debate among geographers regarding whether and how they should engage with policy, and utilize examples from our involvement in the Metropolis Project, a Canadian initiative based on interdisciplinary research networks linked to government and public service agencies involved in immigrant settlement. We argue ultimately that geographers do need to engage politically with policymaking, but that the manner in which to do this is never straightforward, but rather takes place across institutional, ideological, and political landscapes that are perpetually shifting. Finally we suggest some helpful tools from feminist methodologies with which to approach policy-related issues.     

Far-travelled ash in past and future eruptions: combining tephrochronology with volcanic studies

Studies of recent eruptions have improved our understanding of volcanic ash transport and deposition, but have also raised important questions about the behaviour of far-travelled (distal) volcanic ash. In particular, it is difficult to reconcile estimates of distal ash mass and transport distance determined from eyewitness accounts, mapped deposits, satellite-based observations and cryptotephra records. Here we address this problem using data from well-characterized eruptions that, collectively, include all four data types. Data from recent eruptions allow us to relate eyewitness accounts to mapped deposits on the ground and satellite-based observations of ash in the air; observations from an historical eruption link eyewitness accounts to cryptotephra deposits. Together these examples show that (i) 10–20% of the erupted mass is typically deposited outside the mapped limits; (ii) estimates of the ash mass transported in volcanic clouds cannot account for all of this unmapped ash; and (iii) ash fall observed at distances beyond mapped deposits can have measurable impacts, and can form cryptotephra deposits with high (>~1000 cm⁻³) shard counts. We conclude that cryptotephra data can be incorporated into volcanological studies of ash transport and deposition and provide important insight into both the behaviour and impacts of far-travelled volcanic ash particles.     

Thermochemolysis of organic matter preserved in stalagmites: A preliminary study

The analysis of organic matter (OM) preserved in stalagmites is a growing field, but there have been few studies of biomarker compounds such as lignin phenols that are widely used in other palaeoenvironmental contexts. Here we present a preliminary qualitative study of the OM in six stalagmite samples from contrasting environments, using thermochemolysis in the presence of tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH). The results indicate that a wide variety of products is preserved, including several potential lignin-derived compounds, but also that further research is needed to maximise compound recovery and allow the analysis of dissolved OM preserved in stalagmites to reach its full potential.