The distribution of infrared sources in the galactic plane

A study of the galactic structure has been made by deriving the brightness distribution of the galactic plane at 2.2 m and 4.2 m near infrared region using infrared objects detected by ground-based sky surveys. The infrared brightness distribution shows distinct peaks at every 8–12° galactic longitude and indicates a periodic structure. The one-to-one positional correlation observed between the periodic structure in 2.2 m infrared brightness and the 2.6 mm CO emission line suggests that the near-infrared sources are strongly associated with dense clouds of molecular hydrogen distributed in the galactic plane.     

The radiative relaxation time in the chromosphere

The cooling effect of emission in the spectral lines, which dominates over continuous emission in the chromosphere and becomes important first around the temperature minimum, modifies greatly the radiative relaxation timet _r in the solar atmosphere. This rises from low photospheric values to a maximum of 8 min just aboveT _min, falls in the low chromosphere to 1.5 min because of line emission, but rises again to 6 min atT 7000–8400 K in the chromosphere where hydrogen ionization increases the specific heat.     

Mathematical models for petroleum-forming processes: carbon isotope fractionation

A mathematical model has been developed in which carbon isotope fractionation during thermal cracking of n-paraffins can be simulated. The model has been calibrated based on data from laboratory cracking experiments carried out on n-octadecane. Relative rate constants for cleavage of C¹²-C¹², C¹²-C¹³ and C¹³-C¹³ bonds agree with the experimental values obtained by other workers.Application of this model to the process of petroleum formation gives good agreement with some existing experimental data, but suggests that a review of our understanding of isotope fractionation during thermal cracking may be necessary. The relative importance of the degree to which the organic material has been cracked and of the type of the organic material in influencing δC¹³ values is discussed.The present model predicts that cracking of n-paraffin distributions having initial odd or even carbon number predominances can induce isotopic inhomogeneity among the homologs of the resulting distribution. The model exhibits some deficiencies in explaining or predicting the δC¹³ values of ethane and propane in relation to methane in gases and of oils and associated methane. Explanations for these discrepancies may lie in the simplicity of our mathematical model, in our assumption of initial isotopic homogeneity within molecules and in our use of only n-paraffins as the source molecules for the cracking reactions.     

Mathematical models for petroleum-forming processes: n-paraffins and isoprenoid hydrocarbons

Mathematical models have been developed which simulate both random and nonrandom thermal cracking of branched and straight-chain hydrocarbons. Application of these models to n-paraffins suggests that thermal cracking alone cannot be the dominant mechanism in formation of the n-paraffin distributions present in crude oils. Application to isoprenoid hydrocarbons indicates that nonrandom cracking could be important in producing the isoprenoid distributions found in oils.Results of the mathematical modeling show that methane formation should, as predicted from energy considerations, be kinetically disfavored. It therefore is likely that substantial quantities of methane are produced from saturated hydrocarbons only under thermal conditions more severe than those under which oil is produced.The mathematical models employed are adaptable for other geochemical applications, such as isotope fractionation.     

Analysis of stellar occultation data: Effects of photon noise and initial conditions

A new inversion technique for obtaining temperature, pressure, and number density profiles of a planetary atmosphere from an occultation light curve is described. This technique employs an improved boundary condition to begin the numerical inversion and permits the computation of errors in the profiles caused by photon noise in the light curve. We present our assumptions about the atmosphere, optics, and noise and develop the equations for temperature, pressure, and number density and their associated errors. By inverting in equal increments of altitude, Δh, rather than in equal increments of time, Δt, the inversion need not be halted at the first negative point on the light curve as required by previous methods. The importance of the boundary condition is stressed, and a new initial condition is given. Numerical results are presented for the special case of inversion of a noisy isothermal light curve. From these results, simple relations are developed which can be used to predict the noise quality of an occultation. It is found that fractional errors in temperature profiles are comparable to those of pressure and number density profiles. An example of the inversion method is shown. Finally, we discuss the validity of our assumptions. In an appendix we demonstrate that minimum fractional errors in scale height determined from the inversion are comparable to those from an isothermal fit to a noisy isothermal light curve.     

Effective temperatures,radii and bolometric magnitudes of Ap and Am stars

The effective temperatures radii and bolometric magnitudes of Ap, Am and normal A stars have been estimated from their energy distribution curves between 478 nm and 680 nm. All the Am stars and one Ap star (i.e. CrB) were found to be affected by line blanketing, a rough estimation of which in the respective (B-V) colours has been found out in each case.The range in effective temperature is 0.45–0.60 in terms of (=5040/T _e), while it is 1.8–4.8R in the case of radius, that in bolometric magnitude being from-0^m.67 to+1^m.61. An approximate estimate of the masses shows that they are between 1.5 and 3.0M . All these estimates are in agreement with those of the normal A stars. The Ap and Am stars are found to be slightly evolved and, therefore, are probably in the hydrogen shell-burning phase.