Tropical Cyclones and Polar Lows: Velocity, Size, and Energy Scales, and Relation to the 26℃ Cyclone Origin Criteria

The goal of this paper is to quantitatively formulate some necessary conditions for the development of intense atmospheric vortices. Specifically, these criteria are discussed for tropical cyclones (TC) and polar lows (PL) by using bulk formulas for fluxes of momentum, sensible heating, and latent heating between the ocean and the atmosphere. The velocity scale is used in two forms: (1) as expressed through the buoyancy flux b and the Coriolis parameter lc for rotating fluids convection, and (2) as expresse...     

山西省夏季年际气候异常研究2．北少（多）南多（少）雨型

采用EOF分解和合成分析方法研究了1960-2003年山西夏季降水异常之北少(多)南多(少)型(第二类雨型)和山西省气温的变化异常.结果表明,两者具有较好的对应关系.分析了第二类异常雨型的时空分布,并给出相应的典型年份.EOF时间系数变化特征揭示了山西夏季降水第二类雨型有显著的年际振荡.利用合成分析,从500hPa位势高度场、纬向风、850hPa风场、700hPa水汽场和水汽输送场等物理量场研究了山西夏季第二类雨型的环流异常特征.结果表明,第二类雨型与弱的东亚夏季风相关联,北多南少和北少南多是弱夏季风的不同表现.山西省夏季降水北多南少年副高呈带状分布,位置偏北,强度较强;中高纬度地区异常波列呈大圆路径分布,在高纬度地区存在纬向排列的- -波列,同时在东亚大陆沿岸存在经向排列的- -波列.并且华北北部有西风异常,北支锋区偏北,由西南向东北水汽输送较强.北少南多年与之相反.海温场分析表明,第二类雨型与中北太平洋海温异常紧密相关.     

Incorporation of argon, krypton and xenon into clathrates on Mars

Calculations of the trapping of heavy noble gases within multiple guest clathrates under Mars-like conditions show that a substantial fraction of the martian Xe, perhaps even the vast majority, could be in clathrates. In addition, the Xe/Kr ratio in the clathrates would probably be much higher than in the atmosphere, so the formation or dissociation of a relatively small amount of clathrate could measurably change the atmospheric ratio. Relatively crude (factor of 2) measurements of the seasonal variability in that ratio by in situ spacecraft would be sensitive to ∼10% of the seasonal atmospheric CO₂ variability being a result of clathrates, rather than pure CO₂ frost. In addition, sequestration of Xe in clathrates remains a viable mechanism for explaining the variable Xe/Kr ratios seen in different suites of martian meteorites.     

南昆仑造山带西段构造样式及构造序列

南昆仑造山带西段发育逆冲推覆构造、平行走滑构造、地垒一地堑构造和阿尔卑斯式褶皱、侏罗山式褶皱,前两类构造尚有韧性剪切带伴生;其构造组合在平面上具有内带一外带一前陆带明显的分带性,且形成了逆冲推覆构造一平行走滑构造一地垒一地堑构造的构造序列。     

Summer season variability of the north residual cap of Mars as observed by the Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer (MGS-TES)

Previous observations have noted the change in albedo in a number of North Pole bright outliers and in the distribution of bright ice deposits between Mariner 9, Viking, and Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) data sets. Changes over the summer season as well as between regions at the same season (L_s) in different years have been observed. We used the bolometric albedo and brightness temperature channels of the Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) on the MGS spacecraft to monitor north polar residual ice cap variations between Mars years and within the summer season for three northern Martian summers between July 1999 and April 2003. Large-scale brightness variations are observed in four general areas: (1) the patchy outlying frost deposits from 90 to 270°E, 75 to 80°N; (2) the large “tail” below the Chasma Boreale and its associated plateau from 315 to 45°E, 80 to 85°N, that we call the “Boreale Tongue” and in Hyperboreae Undae; (3) the troughed terrain in the region from 0 to 120°E longitude (the lower right on a polar stereographic projection) we have called “Shackleton's Grooves” and (4) the unit mapped as residual ice in Olympia Planitia. We also note two areas which seem to persist as cool and bright throughout the summer and between Mars years. One is at the “source” of Chasma Boreale (∼15°E, 85°N) dubbed “McMurdo”, and the “Cool and Bright Anomaly (CABA)” noted by Kieffer and Titus 2001. TES Mapping of Mars’ north seasonal cap. Icarus 154, 162-180] at ∼330°E, 87°N called here “Vostok”. Overall defrosting occurs early in the summer as the temperatures rise and then after the peak temperatures are reached (L_s∼110) higher elevations and outlier bright deposits cold trap and re-accumulate new frost. Persistent bright areas are associated with either higher elevations or higher background albedos suggesting complex feedback mechanisms including cold-trapping of frost due to albedo and elevation effects, as well as influence of mesoscale atmospheric dynamics.     

Study of a thermal drill head for the exploration of subsurface planetary ice layers

The recently discovered water vapor plumes on Saturn's moon Enceladus, the polar caps of planet Mars and the possible ice volcanism on the Jovian satellites call for suitable techniques to explore deep ice layers of the solar system bodies. This paper presents a novel approach to deliver scientific probes into deeper layers of planetary ice. Several existing locomotion concepts and techniques for such probes are presented. After studying the mathematical framework of the melting locomotion process, melting tests with different head forms were done to evaluate the influence of the head's geometry on the melting process. This work led to a novel concept of a thermal drill head, using heat and mechanical drill in combination to penetrate the ice. We compare the performance of such a hybrid concept versus the melting penetration alone by a mathematical model and tests in ice with a prototype of the melting drill head.     

Climate, weather, and north polar observations from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Color Imager

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter observes Mars from a nearly circular, polar orbit. From this vantage point, the Mars Color Imager extends the ∼5 Mars years record of Mars Global Surveyor global, visible-wavelength multi-color observations of meteorological events and adds measurements at three additional visible and two ultraviolet wavelengths. Observations of the global distribution of ozone (which anti-correlates with water vapor) and water ice and dust clouds allow tracking of atmospheric circulation. Regional and local observations emphasize smaller scale atmospheric dynamics, especially those related to dust lifting and subsequent motion. Polar observations detail variations related to the polar heat budget, including changes in polar frosts and ices, and storms generated at high thermal contrast boundaries.     

Hydrogen content of sand dunes within Olympia Undae

Neutron currents measured using the Mars Odyssey Neutron Spectrometer, seasonally varying temperatures measured using the Thermal Emission Spectrometer, and visible images measured using the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) are studied to determine the water content and stratigraphy of Olympia Undae. Both the neutron and thermal infrared data are best represented by a two-layered model having a water-ice equivalent hydrogen content of 30±5% in a lower semi-infinite layer, buried beneath a relatively desiccated upper layer that is 9±6 g/cm² thick (about 6 cm depth at a density of 1.5 g/cm³). A model that is consistent with all three data sets is that the dunes contain a top layer that is relatively mobile, which overlays a niveo-aeolian lower layer. The geomorphology shown by the HiRISE images suggests that the bottom layer may be cemented in place and therefore relatively immobile.     

PFS/MEX observations of the condensing CO2 south polar cap of Mars

The condensing CO₂ south polar cap of Mars and the mechanisms of the CO₂ ice accumulation have been studied through the analysis of spectra acquired by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) during the first two years of ESA's Mars Express (MEX) mission. This dataset spans more than half a martian year, from Ls∼330° to Ls∼194°, and includes the southern fall season which is found to be extremely important for the study of the residual south polar cap asymmetry. The cap expands symmetrically and with constant speed during the fall season. The maximum extension occurs sometime in the 80°-90° Ls range, when the cap edges are as low as −40° latitude. Inside Hellas and Argyre basins, frost can be stable at lower latitudes due to the higher pressure values, causing the seasonal cap to be asymmetric. Within the seasonal range considered in this paper, the cap edge recession rate is approximately half the rate at which the cap edge expanded. The longitudinal asymmetries reduce during the cap retreat, and disappear around Ls∼145°. Two different mechanisms are responsible for CO₂ ice accumulation during the fall season, especially in the 50°-70° Ls range. Here, CO₂ condensation in the atmosphere, and thus precipitation, is allowed exclusively in the western hemisphere, and particularly in the longitudinal corridor of the perennial cap. In the eastern hemisphere, the cap consists mainly of CO₂ frost deposits, as a consequence of direct vapor deposition. The differences in the nature of the surface ice deposits are the main cause for the residual south polar cap asymmetry. Results from selected PFS orbits have also been compared with the results provided by the martian general circulation model (GCM) of the Laboratoire de Météorologie dynamique (LMD) in Paris, with the aim of putting the observations in the context of the global circulation. This first attempt of cross-validation between PFS measurements and the LMD GCM on the one hand confirms the interpretation of the observations, and on the other hand shows that the climate modeling during the southern polar night on Mars is extremely sensitive to the dynamical forcing.     

南华北地区的构造演化与含油气性

本文对南华北盆地进行了深入细致的研究后认为其经历了12个演化阶段:变质结晶基底的形成(Ar-Pt1)、拗拉槽-裂谷盆地阶段(长城纪Ch)、克拉通—裂谷盆地阶段(蓟县纪Jx-新元古代青白口纪Qb)、克拉通-被动大陆边缘盆地阶段(Z-O2)、整体隆升-弧后盆地阶段(O3-D2)、克拉通-(弧后)前陆盆地阶段(D3-T1)、印支运动阶段(T2-T3)、类前陆盆地阶段(T3-J2)、压扭背景下的挤压冲断-走滑拉分盆地阶段(J3-K11)、冲断抬升剥蚀阶段(K21-K2)、裂陷盆地阶段(E)及坳陷盆地阶段(N-Q)。南华北盆地石炭-二叠系煤系地层是南华北盆地的主要烃源岩。石炭-二叠系煤系地层经历了沉积→埋深→抬升剥蚀改造→再埋深的过程,在再次埋深过程中具备二次生烃的条件。