Multiple stellar populations in the Sextans dwarf spheroidal galaxy?

We present wide-field     multiband ( BVI ) CCD photometry (down to     of the very low surface brightness dwarf spheroidal galaxy Sextans. In the derived colour–magnitude diagrams we find evidence suggesting the presence of multiple stellar populations in this dwarf spheroidal. In particular, we discover (i) a blue horizontal branch tail that appears to lie on a brighter sequence with respect to the prominent red horizontal branch and the RR Lyrae stars, very similar to what was found by Majewski et al. for the Sculptor dwarf spheroidal, (ii) hints of a bimodal distribution in colour of the red giant branch stars, (iii) a double red giant branch bump. All of these features suggest that (at least) two components are present in the old stellar population of this galaxy: the main one with     and a minor component around     . The similarity to the Sculptor case may indicate that multiple star formation episodes are also common in the most nearby dwarf spheroidals that ceased their star formation activity at very early epochs.     

Quaternary stratigraphy of the buried valleys of the lower Red Deer River,Alberta, Canada

The Quaternary fills of the buried valleys of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan have provided a wealth of information for the reconstruction of the glacial-interglacial record of the western plains of Canada, and this paper reports on the previously unstudied stratigraphy of the buried Calgary Valley and its former tributaries in the lower Red Deer River area. We attempt to differentiate Empress Group sediments, which potentially relate to pre-glacial, interglacial/ interstadial and post-glacial lake and river deposition, using sedimentology, stratigraphy and palaeoecology. Twenty-nine stratigraphical logs indicate that Empress Group sediments have infilled a considerably large area of badlands and tributary coulees that once drained into the Calgary Valley, located 15 km to the north of Dinosaur Provincial Park. Radiocarbon dates of 52.4 ka, 27.4 ka and > 42.4 ka and glacially modified quartz grains suggest that at least some of the valley fills date to interglacial or interstadial periods and may be mid-Wisconsinan in age. However, outcrops of an older till overlying other valley fills suggest that the buried valleys were only partially excavated during interglacials/interstadials and that older (even pre-glacial) sediments could have survived. Subglacial channels, recognisable on air photographs, largely coincide with buried valley positions due to the preferential excavation of the Quaternary sediment by meltwater and are filled with post-glacial lake sediment from which a radiocarbon date of 16 ka BP was obtained. Pre-glacial and glacial/post-glacial Empress Group sediments are lithologically indistinct but cover a large time span in southern Alberta.     

庐山星子群变质岩的变质作用P-T条件研究

对分布于扬子块体南缘古元古代星子群变质宏的变质作用研究表明，它们普遍经历了角闪岩相的变质，其变质温度为480℃-580℃，压力在300MPa-500MPa之间。这与扬子块体南缘其他元古代地层仅经历了轻微变质的事实截然不同，表明星子群变质岩具有独特的构造演化历史。越来越多的研究发现，星子群变质岩是由地壳伸展作用引发的、来源于下地壳的前寒武纪变质基底，它并不是来源于华夏块体的“飞来峰”。     

长江源各拉丹冬地区三叠纪结扎群沉积特征及层序地层研究

三叠纪结扎群分布于长江源各拉丹冬地区南北两侧，根据基本层序、沉积环境和层序界面特征，结扎群至少可划分出四个三级层序。沉积古地理格局显示出南浅北深的特点。南部靠近羌塘盆地中央隆起带，陆源物质供应丰富。北部雀莫错一带因远离中央隆起，陆源物质供应相对较少，以泥岩、灰岩为主，生物化石丰富，沉积环境以陆棚为主，在相对稳定的沉积水体中以双壳类、菊石类等生物群得以快速发展。     

辽西朝阳盆地早白垩世一新的无齿翼龙化石

采自辽西朝阳盆地早白垩世九佛堂组的一翼龙化石被记述。化石材料是一接近完整骨架的无齿的翼龙，带有一不完全的头骨。作者将其归于翼手龙类(Pteroclactyloidea)，并建一新属、新种一无齿吉大翼龙(Jidapterus edentus gen．et sp．nov．)。     

Practical VTI approximations: a systematic anatomy

Transverse isotropy (TI) with a vertical symmetry axis (VTI) often provides an appropriate earth model for prestack imaging of steep-dip reflection seismic data. Exact P-wave and SV-wave phase velocities in VTI media are described by complicated equations requiring four independent parameters. Estimating appropriate multiparameter earth models can be difficult and time-consuming, so it is often useful to replace the exact VTI equations with simpler approximations requiring fewer parameters. The accuracy limits of different previously published VTI approximations are not always clear, nor is it always obvious how these different approximations relate to each other. Here I present a systematic framework for deriving a variety of useful VTI approximations. I develop first a sequence of well-defined approximations to the exact P-wave and SV-wave phase velocities. In doing so, I show how the useful but physically questionable heuristic of setting shear velocities identically to zero can be replaced with a more precise and quantifiable approximation. The key here to deriving accurate approximations is to replace the stiffness a₁₃ with an appropriate factorization in terms of velocity parameters. Two different specific parameter choices lead to the P-wave approximations of Alkhalifah (Geophysics 63 (1998) 623) and Schoenberg and de Hoop (Geophysics 65 (2000) 919), but there are actually an infinite number of reasonable parametrizations possible. Further approximations then lead to a variety of other useful phase velocity expressions, including those of Thomsen (Geophysics 51 (1986) 1954), Dellinger et al. (Journal of Seismic Exploration 2 (1993) 23), Harlan (Stanford Exploration Project Report 89 (1995) 145), and Stopin (Stopin, A., 2001. Comparison of v(θ) equations in TI medium. 9th International Workshop on Seismic Anisotropy). Each P-wave phase velocity approximation derived this way can be paired naturally with a corresponding SV-wave approximation. Each P-wave or SV-wave phase velocity approximation can then be converted into an equivalent dispersion relation in terms of horizontal and vertical slownesses. A simple heuristic substitution also allows each phase velocity approximation to be converted into an explicit group velocity approximation. From these, in turn, travel time or moveout approximations can also be derived. The group velocity and travel time approximations derived this way include ones previously used by Byun et al. (Geophysics 54 (1989) 1564), Dellinger et al. (Journal of Seismic Exploration 2 (1993) 23), Tsvankin and Thomsen (Geophysics 59 (1994) 1290), Harlan (89 (1995) 145), and Zhang and Uren (Zhang, F. and Uren, N., 2001. Approximate explicit ray velocity functions and travel times for P-waves in TI media. 71st Annual International Meeting, Society of Exploration Geophysicists, Expanded Abstracts, 106–109).     

西藏南部郎杰学群碎屑物质来源的古水流证据

新近对西藏山南琼果和贡嘎地区(特提斯喜马拉雅北亚带)弱变质的上三叠统深海—半深海沉积地层——郎杰学群地质填图调查,在出露槽模沉积构造的37个古水流点获得了43组数据。赤平投影数据恢复后发现,这一地区主力古水流有南东140°～160°和南西190°～210°两个方向。这一分析结果为郎杰学群沉积物来自北边(未知块体)而非印度次大陆的观点提供了有力证据。     

Application of visual,statistical and artificial neural network methods in the differentiation of water from the exploited aquifers in Kuwait

The ability of artificial neural network to differentiate water samples from the two aquifers of Kuwait on the basis of their major ion chemistry has been demonstrated. The major ion concentration distribution in the groundwater of the Kuwait Group and the Dammam Formation aquifers of Kuwait appears very similar. Cross-plots, supported by the discriminant function analysis of the data, however, suggest that there are some subtle differences in the overall composition of the water from the two aquifers that make it possible to differentiate the water from the two aquifers in almost 80% of the cases. An artificial neural network improved the differentiation capability to 90% of the cases. It is also possible to estimate the fraction of Kuwait Group water in the flow stream of dually completed wells with the help of an artificial neural network developed for this purpose. Electronic Publication     

华北板块南缘栾川群研究

栾川群出露于东秦岭北部。在栾川群分布区域，古华北板块不同时代的地层往南逆冲，构成北秦岭的太华推覆体。栾川群存在于该推覆体内部的特定逆冲岩席之中，沿这一逆冲岩席追索，确定古华北板块南缘的栾川群是连续沉积的，而受后期推覆构造的改造，栾川群在推覆体前缘的分布是断续相连的。根据地层之间的接触关系、岩浆活动、沉积作用的研究，对栾川群的划分提出了新的看法，认为栾川群由三川组、南泥湖组、煤窑沟组及大红口组构成。栾川群形成于震旦纪晚期，由湖坪及潮下斜坡等滨浅海沉积物构成。栾川群的岩浆岩为具双众数特征的岩套，具典型的大陆裂谷岩浆岩特征。并认为中元古代以来，古华北板块南缘处于裂陷拉张环境。早期的裂陷形成了熊耳群、汝阳群、官道口群及竞坪群，晚期裂陷的过程形成了栾川群、陶湾群，其进一步发育导致以二郎坪群为代表的洋壳生成。