International program of observations of selected minor planets: first results

International programs of observations of selected minor planets have lasted about 50 years and the last one comes to the end in 2000. The main aim of these observational programs consists in obtaining the orientation of the stellar reference frame with respect to the dynamical one using observations of the bright minor planets. The observations are also useful for the orbital improvements of the asteroids themselves. They are available from the author via e-mail at the address .During the above mentioned period more than 23 000 observations of minor planets, referred to different reference star catalogues, have been obtained. The reduction procedure of observations to the PPM star catalogue is described. The orientation parameters are given and discussed.     

The influence of a non‐associated flow rule on the calculation of the factor of safety of soil slopes

This paper presents a method that incorporates a non‐associated flow rule into the limit analysis to investigate the influence of the dilatancy angle on the factor of safety for the slope stability analysis. The proposed method retain's the advantage of the upper bound method, which is simple and has no stress involvement in the calculation of the energy dissipation and the factor of safety. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Energy flow in Branchiura sowerbyi (Oligochaeta: tubificidae) in a shallow macrophyte-dominated lake, Biandantang Lake

The energy flow ofBranchiura sowerbyi was studied for the first time in China in a shallow macrophytic lake, Biandantang Lake, Hubei Province. The energy flow was calculated from the measurement of flesh production (12.5241kJ/m²a), egestion (517.7302kJ/m²a), metabolism (38.3273 kJ/m²a), and excretion (4.3798kJ/m²a). The net growth efficiency of the species is about 22.7%, which accords well with the generally reported value for oligochaetes. In addition, the relationship between starvation respiration (R, mgO₂/ind·d), wet weight (Ww, mg) and temperature (T, °C) were also measured, with the regression function beingR=0.008Ww^0.736 e^0.050T. Project supported by NSFC (30270278, 3960019), the foundation of the government of Hubei Province (No. 2000J109), and the foundation of Ecological Station, CAS in the Institute of Hydrobiology.     

Late Quaternary submarine bedforms and ice‐sheet flow in Gerlache Strait and on the adjacent continental shelf,Antarctic Peninsula

Geophysical data from Gerlache Strait, Croker Passage, Bismarck Strait and the adjacent continental shelf reveal streamlined subglacial bedforms that were produced at the bed of the Antarctic Peninsula Ice Sheet (APIS) during the last glaciation. The spatial arrangement and orientation of these bedforms record the former drainage pattern and flow dynamics of an APIS outlet up‐flow, and feeding into, a palaeo‐ice stream in the Western Bransfield Basin. Evidence suggests that together, they represent a single ice‐flow system that drained the APIS during the last glaciation. The ice‐sheet outlet flowed north/northeastwards through Gerlache Strait and Croker Passage and converged with a second, more easterly ice‐flow tributary on the middle shelf to form the main palaeo‐ice stream. The dominance of drumlins with low elongation ratios suggests that ice‐sheet outlet draining through Gerlache Strait was comparatively slower than the main palaeo‐ice stream in the Western Bransfield Basin, although the low elongation ratios may also partly reflect the lack of sediment. Progressive elongation of drumlins further down‐flow indicates that the ice sheet accelerated through Croker Passage and the western tributary trough, and fed into the main zone of streaming flow in the Western Bransfield Basin. Topography would have exerted a strong control on the development of the palaeo‐ice stream system but subglacial geology may also have been significant given the transition from crystalline bedrock to sedimentary strata on the inner–mid‐shelf. In the broader context, the APIS was drained by a number of major fast‐flowing outlets through cross‐shelf troughs to the outer continental shelf during the last glaciation. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Low-cost volcano surveillance from space: case studies from Etna, Krafla, Cerro Negro, Fogo, Lascar and Erebus

 Satellite data offer a means of supplementing ground-based monitoring during volcanic eruptions, especially at times or locations where ground-based monitoring is difficult. Being directly and freely available several times a day, data from the advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) offers great potential for near real-time monitoring of all volcanoes across large (3000×3000 km) areas. Herein we describe techniques to detect and locate activity; estimate lava area, thermal flux, effusion rates and cumulative volume; and distinguish types of activity. Application is demonstrated using data for active lavas at Krafla, Etna, Fogo, Cerro Negro and Erebus; a pyroclastic flow at Lascar; and open vent systems at Etna and Stromboli. Automated near real-time analysis of AVHRR data could be achieved at existing, or cheap to install, receiving stations, offering a supplement to conventional monitoring methods. Received: 21 January 1997 / Accepted: 3 April 1997     

ENERGY FLOW OF BELIAMYA AERUGINOSA IN A SHALLOW ALGAL LAKE, HOUHU LAKE （WUHAN, CHINA）

The energy budget ofBellamya earuginosa in a shallow algal lake, Houhu Lake (Wuhan, China) was investigated by the measurement of flesh production (32.8 kJ/(m²·a)), egestion (337.7 kJ/(m²·a)), metabolism (246.7 kJ/(m²·a)), and estimation of excretion (21.4kJ/(m²·a)). The net growth efficiency of the species is about 10.9%, which accords with the generally reported value for gastropods. In addition, the relationships between starvation respiration (R, mgO₂/(Ind·d)), body weight (Wd, mg in dry wt) and temperature (T, °C) were also determined. The regression equationR=0.044Wd ^0.537 e ^0.061T was obtained by the least square method, The measured SDA of the species is 26.51% of its gross metabolism. Project No. 3960019 and 39430101 supported by NSFC and also a granted for the East Lake Ecological Experimental Station, CAS, Wuhan.     

石英砂扫描电镜在漓江“泥砾”成因中的应用

本文根据扫描电镜对从漓江河谷钻孔中的泥砾层取得的481粒石英砂表面形态特证研究结果:石英砂多数颗粒保持棱角状外形并遭受不同程度的磨蚀,具阶状贝壳断口,平直或弧形刮削面和多向擦痕,沿解理面破碎呈“V”字形沟和撞击碟形坑,以及微溶蚀孔、隙、蜂窝状溶孔群和SiO_2再沉积等表面形态结构特征。认为它是在第四纪古地理湿热气候条件下泥石流沉积的产物,物源可能来自境内或周边的泥盆系砂岩和境外的花岗岩。     

Hydrodynamic control of phytoplankton in low salinity waters of the James River estuary,Virginia, U.S.A.

Autotrophic biomass and productivity as well as nutrient distributions and phytoplankton cell populations in the James River estuary, Virginia, were quantified both spatially and temporally over a 17-month period. Emphasis was placed on the very low salinity region of the estuary in order to gain information on the fate of freshwater phytoplankters. Differing amounts of freshwater plant biomass are advected into the estuary as living material, DOC or POC and the demonstrated variability of this input must play an important role in marine biogeochemical cycling.Late summer and fall maxima in both chlorophyll a and the photosynthetic production of particulate organic carbon in very low salinity regions were inversely correlated with river discharge.During periods of low river discharge greater than 50% of the chlorophyll a biomass measured at 0‰ disappeared within a narrow range of salinity (0–2‰). Cell enumeration data suggest that species introduced from the freshwater end-member tend to comprise the bulk of the biomass removed. Confounding factors, which may contribute to the regulation of both the abundance and species of phytoplankters mid-river, include the flocculation of colloidal material with phytoplankton cells, the presence of the turbidity maximum and the growth of endemic phytoplankton populations.An inverse relationship exists between the phytoplankton abundance in very low salinity waters and the abundance of biomass measured in the lower portion of the river (estuary). Thus, autotrophic production in the fresh and very low salinity areas may indirectly regulate the onset on the spring bloom in the estuary by controlling the amount of nutrients available.     

Minor planet short periodic perturbations: The indirect part of the disturbing function

Leverrier's development of the indirect part of the disturbing function has been extended to include terms up to degree 4 in eccentricity and inclination; the resulting series has been expressed with respect to a fixed plane, and in a computer readable form (a list of integers). Tests have been performed for the relative significance of the terms of degrees 2, 3 and 4, and estimates have been obtained for the accuracy of the short periodic perturbations of a minor planet, and of the corresponding mean orbital elements. It was found that: (i) even in extreme cases, the indirect part of the disturbing function gives rise to very small short periodic perturbations; (ii) bodies of very high eccentricity/inclination and those close to mean motion resonances are most significantly affected; (iii) indirect perturbations for minor planets can be computed up to the degree 2 terms only, without any significant loss of accuracy; and (iv) higher degree indirect perturbations appear to be important only for their contribution to the long periodic effects of higher order (with respect to the perturbing mass).