Paleozoic northward drift of the North Tien Shan (Central Asia) as revealed by Ordovician and Carboniferous paleomagnetism

Three new Middle–Late Ordovician and two new Early Carboniferous paleomagnetic poles have been obtained from the North Tien Shan Zone (NTZ) of the Ural–Mongol belt in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Paleolatitudes for the Carboniferous are unambiguously northerly and average 15.5°N, whereas the Ordovician paleolatitudes (6°, 9°, and 9°) are inferred to be southerly, given that a very large (180°) rotation of the NTZ would be necessary during the middle Paleozoic if the other polarity option was chosen. Thus, the NTZ drifted northward during much of the Paleozoic; east–west drift cannot be determined, as is well known, from paleomagnetic data. In addition, detailed thermal demagnetization analysis reveals two overprints, one of recent age and the other of Permian age, which is a time of strong deformation in the NTZ. The paleolatitude of the combined Permian overprint is 30.5+2°N. The paleolatitudes collectively track those predicted for the area by extrapolation from Baltica very well, but are different from those of Siberia for Ordovician times. This finding is compatible with Sengör and Natal'in's [Sengör, A.M.C., Natal'in, B.A., 1996. Paleotectonics of Asia: fragments of a synthesis. In: Yin A., Harrison, M. (Eds.), The Tectonic Evolution of Asia. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, pp. 486–640] model of tectonic evolution of the Ural–Mongol belt and disagrees with the models of other researchers. Declinations of the Ordovician and Early Carboniferous results range from northwesterly to northeasterly, and are clearly affected by local relative rotations, which seem characteristic for the entire NTZ, because the Permian overprint declinations also show such a spread. Apparently, the important latest Paleozoic–Triassic deformation involved shear zone-related rotations as well as folding and significant granitic intrusions.     

On the variation of pulsar periods in close binary systems

X-ray pulsars, which form together with a main sequence star or a giant a close binary system, show strong variations in their pulse period. Epochs of spin-up and spin-down interchange on timescales of some tens up to some thousand days.

We study this phenomenon in the framework of the disk-fed model by Ghosh and Lamb, which we generalize by allowing for an inclination angle χ between the magnetic dipole moment μ and the rotation axis. Moreover, we take into account the relatively small magnetic field induced by currents in the magnetosphere flowing along the dipole field lines. This component, which we calculate numerically, leads to a torque perpendicular to the rotation axis and induces a precession of it. Due to this additional degree of freedom, the calculated pulse period history is much smoother than in the classical Ghosh and Lamb model. Within this extended model we compute, as an example, the pulse period history of Cen X-3 using the observed X-ray flux as a measure for the mass accretion rate. Qualitative accordance with the measured pulse period data (see e.g. Nelson et al., 1997 [ApJ, 488, L117]) is found to be good.     

Imaging distribution patterns of magnetic minerals by a novel high-Tc-SQUID-based field distribution measuring system: application to Permian sediments

A newly developed field distribution measuring system based on a high- T _c SQUID has been employed in the study of magnetic mineral distribution in several Permian sedimentary rocks. The instrument consists of a small, 1.4×1.4 mm sized YBaCu-oxide SQUID magnetic field sensor that is operated in a thin-walled dewar, so that the sample's surface, at room temperature, can be scanned at a distance of only ∼1.5 mm. The samples were subjected to a saturation remanence perpendicular to the surface and the scanning measurements in zero field reveal that the magnetization might be carried by only a small part of a sample, in one case associated with secondary oxide phases. High-resolution magnetic scans can aid in the interpretation of the magnetic remanence acquisition process.     

On the significance and utilization of secondary magnetizations in red beds

We document three cases of observed Quaternary or much older secondary magnetizations in red beds. A better than usual knowledge about past and present temperature conditions enables us to compare these secondary magnetizations with theoretical relationships between relaxation time and the temperature of acquisition of viscous partial thermo remanent magnetizations (VpTRM's). Arguments can be made for a viscous-thermal origin of the secondary magnetizations in two of the red bed collections, involving Beltian argillites from Montana and Late Precambrian red beds from the Michigan basin. In the third cases, involving Upper Keweenawan sediments from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, a chemical origin must be assigned to the secondary magnetizations, because thermal and viscous cuases can be ruled out. Stability, blocking-temperature ranges, and discreteness of secondary and characteristics magnetizations are very similar for all three of the red bed collections, so that apparently no magnetic criteria exist to distinguish between partial remagnetizations of thermal or chemical origin in red beds. However, when thermal causes can be documented the theory of VpTRM acquisition offers possibilities for palaeo-heat-flow determinations.     

Tektonische Standardnetze und Beanspruchungspläne für Erde und Mars

Zusammenfassung Bei einer Untersuchung der azimutalen Verteilung der Mars-Lineationen wurden markante Maxima bei 0°, 50°, 90° und 140° aufgefunden. Da die gleichen Richtungen auch bei Auswertungen tektonischer Messungen auf der Erde, besonders bei photogeologischen Untersuchungen häufiger zu beobachten sind, wird die Frage nach der Existenz eines tektonischen Standardnetzes aufgeworfen. Die photogeologischen und tektonischen Konsequenzen und die möglichen Ursachen eines Standardnetzes werden angesprochen und der für ein solches Netz wahrscheinliche globale Beanspruchungsplan diskutiert.

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The azimuth distribution of Mars lineaments shows peaks at 0°, 50°, 90° and 140°. As the same master shear directions can be observed on the Earth, especially when using aerial photography or satellite imagery for tectonic analyses, the question of the existence of a tectonic standard net is raised.The consequences concerning photogeology and structural geology are discussed as well as the probable causes and the global stress/strain distribution leading to this form of a standard net.

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Résumé Sur Mars, les directions principales des failles montrent des maxima de 0°, 50°, 90° et 140°. Comme on trouve les mêmes directions dominantes sur la Terre — surtout lors d'analyses photogéologiques — la question d'un «réseau standard» est soulevée.Les conséquences regardant la photointerprétation et la tectonique sont discutées ainsi que les causes probables et le plan global de la distribution des efforts tectoniques conduisant à un tel réseau.

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0°, 50°, 90° 140°. .. , , , . .

     

Considerations on a suction drill for lunar surface drilling and sampling: I. Feasibility study

In this paper, we consider a drilling method, which might prove useful both for applications on the Moon and for drilling on Mars, Venus, or other planetary surfaces. It is based on the use of a cold gas flow for pumping fine-grained debris particles out of the borehole, after they have been pulverized by the bore crown. We present a basic design and demonstrate by a hydrodynamic calculation that such a system should work effectively even on an airless body like the Moon, where the driver gas has to be provided from the associated lander or rover, which acts as the bore platform.     

The effect of DHM resolution in computing the topographic-isostatic harmonic coefficients within the window technique

The window technique was suggested earlier to get rid of the double consideration of the topographic-isostatic masses within the data window in the framework of the remove-restore technique. Within the course of the window technique, one needs to compute the harmonic coefficients of the topographic-isostatic masses for the data window. The paper studies the effect of using Digital Height Models (DHMs) with different resolutions of the computed harmonic coefficients of the topographic-isostatic masses for the data window. Two different test areas, one in Austria and one in Egypt, are considered in this investigation. A set of DHMs with different resolutions is available for both test areas. The harmonic coefficients of the topographic-isostatic masses for the data window are computed for both test areas using the available DHMs with different resolutions. A comparison among the potential degree variances of the different DHMs is carried out. The computation of the window topographic-isostatic gravity anomalies for both data sets is performed using the set of the available DHMs with different resolutions. The results show that using a DHM with the grid size of about 5 km for smooth topography and of about 3 km for rough topography gives practically the same topographic-isostatic gravity anomalies for the data window in a significantly much less CPU time compared to that of using the finest DHM.     

Sampling of Mars analogue materials in a laboratory environment

Acta Geotechnica - Two laboratory test series were performed with the aim of ensuring the proper functionality of the key sampling mechanisms installed aboard the Mars rover ExoMars, currently...