L and T brown dwarfs in the Ursa Major moving group

We have applied the “moving cluster” method to an archive of L and T brown dwarf stars to identify those stars which are members of the Ursa Major moving group.We show that five stars have proper motion directions which agree with the direction of motion expected for a cluster member, and which have proper motion distances in agreement with distances determined by trigonometrical parallax observations. We then use 2MASS data to produce an M _K versus J ‐ K _S colour magnitude diagram. The group members define an empirical 400 Myr isochrone, which is compared to theoretical models. This is the first cluster/group to have a known T dwarf member. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A regional stratigraphic correlation for the upper Campanian phosphorites and associated rocks in Egypt and Jordan

Facies analyses and a sequence stratigraphical framework with regional correlation of the upper Campanian phosphate province are presented, based on three main sections located in Egypt (Gebel Duwi and Abu Tartur sections) and north Jordan (Umm Qais section). Fifteen facies types were grouped into: phosphate (FT1–5), carbonate (FT6–11) and siliciclastic (FT12–15) facies associations. The main component of phosphate rocks is pellets in situ and common reworked biogenic debris, especially in the upper phosphate beds (e.g. fish teeth and bones), which along with abundant Thalassinoides burrows suggests that the skeletal material was the main source for phosphates in Egypt; in contrast the common authigenic phosphatic grains (pristine) in Jordan reflect an upwelling regime. Based on age assignment as well as stratigraphical position, the phosphorite beds show great similarity that may suggests a similar origin and proximity during the period of deposition of the Duwi Formation of the Red Sea coast of Egypt and its equivalent, the Al-Hisa Phosphorite Formation in Jordan, which represents an early transgressive system tract of a depositional sequence. On the Abu Tartur plateau, the presence of sandy pyritic phosphatic grainstone (FT1) and glauconitic quartz arenite (FT12) in the middle part of the studied section, along with the absence of chert facies (FT14), reflects a more shallow marine depositional environment with increased fluvial sediment supply compared to those along the Red Sea coast and north Jordan.     

Sedimentary palaeoenvironment,petrography, provenance and diagenetic inference of the Anacleto Formation in the Neuquén Basin,Late Cretaceous,Argentina

The Anacleto Formation is the uppermost unit of the Neuquén Group, which makes up the foreland stage infill of the Neuquén Basin, during Late Cretaceous. The detailed sedimentological study performed in the excellent outcrops of this formation on the eastern border of the basin allowed the identification of eight fluvial lithofacies, grouped into six facies associations. A meandering fluvial system with palaeo flows from the SW can be interpreted from distribution of facies associations, architectural framework, channel/floodplain ratio, etc. The compositional analysis of the sandstones was performed by mean of petrographic characterization and modal analysis. Sandstones of the Anacleto Fm are mainly subarkosic, arkosic, lithic arenites and, to a lesser extent, sublitoarenites (Q₅₄-F₂₅-R₂₁; Q₅₂-F₂₄-L₂₅). The composition suggests underlying igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks in the main source area. Sedimentological and petrographic analyses, jointly with palaeocurrents orientations suggest that high areas of the North Patagonian Massif were the main source of the fluvial system. The diagenetic stages interpreted from the petrographic characters, SEM observations and X-ray diffraction determine eodiagenesis and telodiagenesis, which are consistent with the burial history of the Neuquén Group. Furthermore, palaeoclimatic considerations based on compositional analysis suggest semiarid to semihumid conditions for the deposition of the Anacleto Fm. These conditions are also supported by clay mineralogy that confirmed smectite as dominant species. A strong climatic seasonality is also deduced by the presence of calcrete levels and frequent discharge channels.     

石煤中钒元素在燃烧前后赋存状态变化的研究

石煤是一种可综合利用的矿产资源,提取石煤中钒、钼、镍等金属是其综合利用之一.石煤在发电燃烧过程中钒的物相发生显著变化,而钒物相的变化对钒的可浸出性产生较大的影响.笔者采用选择性连续提取方法对四川某地石煤原矿和石煤飞灰进行分析研究,发现石煤原矿中钒主要存在于硅铝酸盐相和有机质相中,部分存在于铁锰氧化物相及吸附态中,极少部分存在于碳酸盐相中.而石煤发电飞灰中钒主要存在于有机质相、硅铝酸盐相和铁锰氧化物相中,少量的钒以吸附态形式赋存.燃烧过程中石煤的各种含钒矿物发生离解,其中的钒得到释放并被氧化成高价态.高价钒一部分与Na、Cl等结合生成可溶性化合物,形成吸附态的钒;另一部分与Fe、Na、Ca等发生反应生成难溶性化合物,并以一定形式富集在飞灰的有机质相、硅铝酸盐相和铁锰氧化物相中.     

Stratigraphy and sedimentology of the Upper Cretaceous to Paleogene Kilwa Group, southern coastal Tanzania

The geology of southern coastal Tanzania has remained poorly understood since the first comments on its stratigraphy were made over 100 years ago. However, new field surveys combined with shallow drilling along the coast between Kilwa and Lindi are beginning to resolve the depositional history and structural evolution of this region over the past 85 Ma. Here we present the first attempt to synthesize the results of these studies to provide a coherent sedimentological, litho- and sequence stratigraphic framework, including new geological maps, for the Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene of the coastal zone.Santonian to Oligocene sediments crop out along a broad coastal belt south of the Rufiji River from the Kilwa peninsula to Lindi Creek in southern Tanzania. During 55 Ma, over 1 km of a broadly homogeneous, mid to outer shelf clay-dominated succession was deposited across the passive margin, which we define here as the Kilwa Group. This lies disconformably across the shelf on Albian marls and is itself unconformably overlain by shallow water Miocene clays and more recent limestones, sands and gravels. Four formations can be identified within the Kilwa Group on the basis of characteristic secondary lithologies and facies, described here for the first time; the Nangurukuru, Kivinje, Masoko and Pande Formations. These formations include conformable stratigraphic intervals through both the Paleocene–Eocene and Eocene–Oligocene boundaries. Within the Kilwa Group, 12 sequence stratigraphic cycles can be identified at present, demonstrating relatively uniform and continual subsidence across the margin from Santonian to Early Oligocene time. A further major bounding surface is present between the Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene, but this may become partly conformable in the Lindi area. Although the principal lithology in all formations is clay or claystone, there are more permeable intervals containing pervasive coarser siliciclastic sediments and these have yielded traces of crude oil which is likely to have migrated from lower in the succession. The Kilwa Group thus also provides important new evidence for petroleum play development in the southern coastal zone.     

Kinematics of the Scorpius-Centaurus OB association

A fine structure related to the kinematic peculiarities of three components of the Scorpius-Centaurus association (LCC, UCL, and US) has been revealed in the UV-velocity distribution of Gould Belt stars. We have been able to identify the most likely members of these groups by applying the method of analyzing the two-dimensional probability density function of stellar UV velocities that we developed. A kinematic analysis of the identified structural components has shown that, in general, the center-of-mass motion of the LCC, UCL, and US groups follows the motion characteristic of the Gould Belt, notably its expansion. The entire Scorpius-Centaurus complex is shown to possess a proper expansion with an angular velocity parameter of 46 ± 8 km s^?1 kpc^?1 for the kinematic center with l ₀ = ?40° and R ₀ = 110 pc found. Based on this velocity, we have estimated the characteristic expansion time of the complex to be 21 ± 4 Myr. The proper rotation velocity of the Scorpius-Centaurus complex is lower in magnitude, is determined less reliably, and depends markedly on the data quality.     

Trigonometric parallaxes and a kinematically adjusted distance sale for OB associations

By directly comparing the photometric distances of Blaha and Humphreys (1989) (BH) to OB associations and field stars with the corresponding Hipparcos trigonometric parallaxes, we show that the BH distance scale is overestimated, on average, by 10–20%. This result is independently corroborated by applying the rigorous statistical-parallax method and its simplified analog (finding a kinematically adjusted rotation-curve solution from radial velocities and proper motions) to a sample of OB associations. These two methods lead us to conclude that the BH distance scale for OB associations should be shrunk, on average, by 11±6 and 24±10%, respectively. Kinematical parameters have been determined for the system of OB associations: u ₀ = 8.2 ± 1.3 km s^?1, v ₀ = 11.9 ± 1.1 km s^?1, w ₀ = 9.5 ± 0.9 km s^?1, σ _u = 8.2 ± 1.1 km s^?1, σ _v = 5.8 ± 0.8 km s^?1, σ _w = 5.0 ± 0.8 km s^?1, Ω₀ = 29.1 ± 1.0 km s^?1 kpc^?1, Ω₀′ = ?4.57 ± 0.20 km s^?1 kpc^?2, and Ω₀″ = 1.32 ± 0.14 km s^?1 kpc^?3. The distance scale for OB associations reduced by 20% matches the short Cepheid distance scale (Berdnikov and Efremov 1985; Sitnik and Mel’nik 1996). Our results are a further argument for the short distance scale in the Universe.     

On the infant weight loss of low- to intermediate-mass star clusters

Star clusters are born in a highly compact configuration, typically with radii of less than about 1 pc roughly independently of mass. Since the star formation efficiency is less than 50 per cent by observation and because the residual gas is removed from the embedded cluster, the cluster must expand. In the process of doing so it only retains a fraction f _st of its stars. To date there are no observational constraints for f _st, although N -body calculations by Kroupa, Aarseth & Hurley suggest it to be about 20–30 per cent for Orion-type clusters. Here we use the data compiled by Testi et al., Testi, Palla & Natta and Testi, Palla & Natta for clusters around young Ae/Be stars and by de Wit et al. and de Wit et al. around young O stars and the study of de Zeeuw et al. of OB associations and combine these measurements with the expected number of stars in clusters with primary Ae/Be and O stars, respectively, using the empirical correlation between maximal stellar mass and star cluster mass of Weidner & Kroupa. We find that   f _st < 50  per cent with a decrease to higher cluster masses/more massive primaries. The interpretation would be that cluster formation is very disruptive. It appears that clusters with a birth stellar mass in the range  10–10³ M_⊙  keep at most 50 per cent of their stars.