1988年9月张掖地区的太阳辐射状况的初步分析

1988年8～9月,在河西走廊的化音和张掖地区进行了一次预备性观测实验。本文利用预备观测中所取得的少量资料,分析了干旱地区太阳辐射各个分量和太阳分光谱辐射的一些气候学特征。结果表明:该地区秋季大气透明度较好;光资源充足;兰紫光在总辐射中所占比例较大;地表净辐射具有平原地区的特征,其值介于平原与高原地区之间。     

The correlation of whistler occurrence rate at a low latitude with thunderstorm activity at its conjugate region and with solar activity

The correlations of occurrence rate of whistlers in January during one solar cycle (1977–1987) at a low latitude station (Yamaoka, geomag. lat. 25°, L=1.26) with thunderstorm activity near its conjugate region and also with solar activity have been investigated, and it is found that the occurrence rate has no correlation with the lightning flashes near the conjugate point, while it is negatively correlated with solar activity. On the basis of these findings it is suggested that the ionospheric absorption is of major importance in the long-term variation of whistler occurrence rate, with the duct formation being of secondary effect, while the lightning activity is only a necessary condition for whistler occurrence.     

日食电离层效应

本文分析了1987年9月23日日环食期间,我国14个电离层站和1988年3月18日日全食期间两个站的垂测仪和偏振仪记录,并综合50年代以来历次日食电离层效应的观测结果,证实:1.E层和F₁层光食效应明显,F₂层动力学效应显著;2.f₀F₂存在日食日值大于、小于或等于控制日值三种典型情况;3.TEC食变曲线有凹陷和不凹陷两种典型情况,甚至出现日食日值大于控制日值的异常现象. 本文对F₂层和外电离层的动力学特征作了定性讨论,认为:空间等离子体温度急剧下降和沿场扩散是F₂层和外电离层日食效应的最主要因素;而磁赤道上空等离子体的沿场扩散、“喷泉”效应,热层风和全（环）食带方位是影响位于磁赤道异常区各电离层站日食电离层效应的主要因素.     

Radiation patterns of point sources situated close to structural interfaces and to the earth's surface

The seismic wave field is considerably influenced by local structures close to the source and to the receiver. This applies to sources and receivers situated close to localized inhomogeneities, to structural interfaces, to the earth's surface, etc. In this paper we concentrate our attention mainly to the ray-theoretical radiation patterns of point sources situated close to the structural interfaces and to the earth's surface. In numerical modeling of high-frequency seismic wave fields by the ray method, the interaction of the source with the earth's surface has not usually been taken into account.The proposed procedure of the computation of the radiation patterns of point sources situated directly on structural interfaces and on the earth's surface is based on the zero-order approximation of the ray method, assuming that the length of the ray between the source and the receiver is long. The derived equations are extended to point sources located close to structural interface, to the earth's surface and to thin transition layers using the hybrid ray-reflectivity method, seeervený (1989). The thin layer need not be homogeneous; it may include an arbitrary inner layering (transition layers, laminas, etc.) The only requirement is for the layer to be thin. Roughly speaking, we require its thickness to be less than one quarter of the prevailing wavelength. The hybrid ray-reflectivity method describes well even certain non-ray effects (tunneling.S ^* waves, etc.). Explicit analytical expressions for radiation patterns for all above listed point sources are found. These expression have a local character and may be easily implemented into computer codes designed for the routine computation of ray amplitudes and synthetic ray seismograms in 2-D and 3-D, laterally varying isotropic layered and block structures by the ray method.Numerical examples of radiation patterns ofP andS waves of point sources situated close to the earth's surface and to a thin low-velocity surface layer are presented and discussed. The explosive point source (center of dilatation) and the vertical and horizontal single force point sources are considered. It has been ascertained that the radiation patterns of point sources depend drastically on the depth of the source below the surface even if the depths vary within one quarter of the prevailing wavelength.     

Acceleration phenomena observed by interplanetary scintillation at 0.1–0.3 AU

Interplanetary scintillation has observed high-latitude streams which show low speeds (400 km/s) within 0.3 AU and high speeds (700 km/s) beyond 0.3 AU. The foot points of these streams were located in the HeI coronal holes or at their boundaries. Since the IPS measurement is biased by one or several mechanisms, we investigated whether this acceleration phenomena could be caused by bias effects or not. Speed increase of more than 100 km/s is left without being explained by the bias effects.     

The provenance and evolution of comets

The process of comet formation through the hierarchical aggregation of originally submicron-sized interstellar grains to form micron-sized particles and then larger bodies in the protoplanetary disc, culminating in the formation of planetesimals in the disc extending from Jupiter to beyond Neptune, is briefly reviewed. The planetesimal theory for the origin of comets implies the existence of distinct cometary reservoirs, with implications for the immediate provenance of observed comets (both long-period and short-period) and their evolution as a result of planetary perturbations and physical decay, for example splitting and sublimation. The principal mode of cometary decay and collisional interaction with the terrestrial planets is through the formation and evolution of streams of cometary debris and hitherto undiscovered families of cometary asteroids. Recent dynamical results, in particular the sungrazing and sun-colliding end-state for short-period comet and asteroid orbits, are briefly discussed.     

SWAN: A study of Solar Wind Anisotropies on SOHO with Lyman alpha sky mapping

On board the SOHO spacecraft poised at L1 Lagrange point, the SWAN instrument is mainly devoted to the measurement of large scale structures of the solar wind, and in particular the distribution with heliographic latitude of the solar wind mass flux. This is obtained from an intensity map of the sky Lyman emission, which reflects the shape of the ionization cavity carved in the flow of interstellar H atoms by the solar wind. The methodology, inversion procedure and related complications are described. The subject of latitude variation of the solar wind is shortly reviewed: earlier Lyman results from Prognoz in 1976 are confirmed by Ulysses. The importance of the actual value of the solar wind mass flux for the equation of dynamics in a polar coronal hole is stressed. The instrument is composed of one electronic unit commanding two identical Sensor Units, each of them allowing to map a full hemisphere with a resolution of 1°, thanks to a two-mirrors periscope system. The design is described in some details, and the rationale for choice between several variants are discussed. A hydrogen absorption cell is used to measure the shape of the interplanetary Lyman line and other Lyman emissions. Other types of observations are also discussed : the geocorona, comets (old and new), the solar corona, and a possible signature of the heliopause. The connexion with some other SOHO instruments, in particular LASCO, UVCS, SUMER, is briefly discussed.     

COBE observations of the microwave counterpart of GRBs

We have used the data from the COBE satellite to search for delayed microwave emission (31 - 90 GHz) from Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs). The large 7° beam of COBE is well matched to the large positional uncertainties in the GRB locations, although it also means that fluxes from (point source) GRB objects will be diluted. In view of this we are doing a statistical search of the GRBs which occurred during the currently released COBE DMR data (years 1990 and 1991), which overlap 200 GRBs recorded by GRO. Here we concentrate on just the top 10 GRBs (in peak counts/second). We obtain the limits on the emission by comparing the COBE fluxes before and after the GRB at the GRB location. Since it is thought that the microwave emission should lag the GRB event, we have searched the GRB position for emission in the few months following the GRB occurrence.     

Critical remarks on the use of medieval eclipse records for the determination of long-term changes in the Earth's rotation

The use of some Arabic medieval solar and lunar eclipse records for the determination of secular changes in the Earth's rotation is critically reviewed. The published results derived from these data suggest a non-uniform decrease in the Earth's rotation rate over the last 27 cy. There is, however, up to this day no sound physical explanation for the deduced non-tidal oscillations, with an apparent period of about 1500 yr and a semi-amplitude of some 4 ms in the l.o.d., which overlayed to a constant secular tidal change in the Earth's rotation rate produce a net non-uniform deceleration of the Earth's rotation. In this paper we discuss a set of observations, which were executed by professional Arabic astronomers. We show by our analysis the way in which the non-uniform deceleration of the Earth's rotation was constructed. A correct reading of the Arabic medieval observations shows that they do not contradict a secular constant decrease in the Earth's rotation rate of nearly -4.6 10-22 rad s-2. This value is in accordance with other similar ones derived from ancient eclipse records and from satellite tracking data.     

Identifying calcium-containing mineral species in the JEB Tailings Management Facility at McClean Lake,Saskatchewan

The JEB Tailings Management Facility (TMF) is central to reducing the environmental impact of the McClean Lake uranium mill facility that is operated by AREVA Resources Canada. This facility has been designed around the idea that elements of concern (e.g., U, As, Ni, Se, Mo) will be controlled through equilibrium with precipitants. Confirming the presence of calcium-containing carbonates in the JEB TMF is the first step in determining if gypsum (CaSO₄·2H₂O) controls the concentration of HCO₃⁻ (aq), limiting the formation of soluble uranyl bicarbonate complexes. A combination of X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES), and microprobe X-ray fluorescence (XRF) mapping was used to analyze a series of tailings samples from the JEB TMF. Calcium carbonate in the form of calcite (CaCO₃), aragonite (CaCO₃), and dolomite (CaMg(CO₃)₂) were identified by analysing Ca K-edge μ-XANES spectra coupled with microprobe XRF mapping. This is the first observation of these phases in the JEB TMF. The combination of μ-XANES and XRF mapping provided a greater sensitivity to low concentration calcium species compared to the other techniques used, which were only sensitive to the major species present (e.g., gypsum).