Evidence for an Hesperian-aged South Circum-Polar Lake Margin Environment on Mars

A broad pitted plain and an elongated low rise occur near the south pole of Mars between a region of major cavi (Cavi Angusti) and a regionally smooth and broad valley (Argentea Planum). Viking, Mars Global Surveyor (MGS), and Odyssey data reveal a densely pitted plain covering ∼6750 km², and containing >300 irregularly shaped, steep-walled and flat-floored depressions with a mean diameter of ∼3.5 km. At the southernmost (poleward) extent of this plain are 12 north/south trending linear valleys that are characterized by theater-shaped heads abutting a major cavi within Cavi Angusti. The pitted plain, which abuts Cavi Angusti to the southwest, is separated from the floor of Argentea Planum by a smooth, elongated low rise that extends parallel to the plain for ∼200 km. These unusual features are all found within the Hesperian-aged circumpolar Dorsa Argentea Formation, which has been interpreted by some workers to be an ice-rich glacier-related deposit. We interpret the pitted plain to represent the maximum northern extent of the Angusti lobe ice deposit. The pits are analogous in morphology and distribution to terrestrial kettle holes, which form from the melting of isolated ice-blocks surrounded and partly buried by sediment, to leave hollows. The linear valleys are consistent with sapping valleys formed from the release of an elevated groundwater table, fed by meltwater lakes. On the basis of these characteristics, relationships and analogs, we interpret the marginal facies to represent an ice-sheet/lake contact environment that existed during Hesperian time.     

Stochastic Hill's equations for the study of errant rocket burns in orbit

The problem of errant rocket burns in low Earth orbit is of growing interest, especially in the area of safety analysis of nuclear powered spacecraft. The development of stochastic Hill's equations provides a rigorous mathematical tool for the study of such errant rocket maneuvers. These equations are analyzed within the context of a theory of linear dynamical systems driven by a random white noise. It is established that the trajectories of an errant rocket are realizations of a Gauss-Markov process, whose mean vector is given by the solution of a deterministic rocket problem. The time-dependent covariance matrix of the process is derived in an explicit form.     

Charge‐exchange X‐ray emission at hot/cool gas interfaces

Charge‐transfer (CT) X‐ray emission may occur at interfaces between a partially neutral gas and gas possessing high ions, provided there is a relative motion between those two phases. The CTX surface brightness from distant objects must be taken into account if it is not far below other “classical” emission sources, especially the thermal emission from the hot phase. I discuss those conditions and potential spectroscopic or photometric diagnostics. I also mention potential indirect effects of the CT reactions by means of pickup ion production, acceleration and subsequent modification of interface and plasma properties (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A survey of possible impact structures on 25143 Itokawa

We determined the morphologies and dimensions of possible impact craters on the surface of Asteroid 25143 Itokawa from images taken by the Hayabusa spacecraft. Circular depressions, circular features with flat floors or convex floors, and circular features with smooth surfaces were identified as possible craters. The survey identified 38 candidates with widely varying morphologies including rough, smooth and saddle-shaped floors, a lack of raised rims and fresh material exposures. The average depth/diameter ratio was 0.08±0.03: these craters are very shallow relative to craters observed on other asteroids. These shallow craters are a result of (1) target curvature influencing the cratering process, (2) raised rim not being generated by this process, and (3) fines infilling the craters. As many of the crater candidates have an unusual appearance, we used a classification scheme that reflects the likelihood of an observed candidate's formation by a hypervelocity impact. We considered a variety of alternative interpretations while developing this scheme, including inherited features from a proto-Itokawa, spall scars created by the disruption of the proto-Itokawa, spall scars following the formation of a large crater on Itokawa itself, and apparent depressions due to random arrangements of boulders. The size-frequency distribution of the crater candidates was close to the empirical saturation line at the largest diameter, and then decline with decreasing diameter.     

Sorted stone circles in Elysium Planitia, Mars: Implications for recent martian climate

We have found sorted stone circles and polygons near the equator of Mars, using new 25 cm/pixel NASA HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) images. The sorted circles occur in geologically recent catastrophic flood deposits in the equatorial Elysium Planitia region, and are diagnostic of periglacial processes: sorted polygons do not form from volcanic activity, as has been suggested for non-sorted polygons in this region. These landforms indicate that (i) a long-lived, geologically recent, active cryoturbation layer of ground ice was present in the regolith, (ii) there was some degree of freeze-thaw, and thus (iii) there were sustained period(s), likely within the last 10 Ma, in which the martian climate was 40 to 60 K warmer than current models predict.     

Mass dispersal and angular momentum transfer during collisions between rubble-pile asteroids. II. Effects of initial rotation and spin-down through disruptive collisions

Expanding on our previous N-body simulation of impacts between initially non-rotating rubble-pile objects [Takeda, T., Ohtsuki, K., 2007. Icarus 189, 256-273], we examine effects of initial rotation of targets on mass dispersal and change of spin rates. Numerical results show that the collisional energy needed to disrupt a rubble-pile object is not sensitive to initial rotation of the target, in most of the parameter range studied in our simulations. We find that initial rotation of targets is slowed down through disruptive impacts for a wide range of parameters. The spin-down is caused by escape of high-velocity ejecta and asymmetric re-accumulation of fragments. When these effects are significant, rotation is slowed down even when the angular momentum added by an impactor is in the same direction as the initial rotation of the target. Spin-down is most efficient when the impact occurs in the equatorial plane of the target, because in this case most of the ejected fragments originate from the equatorial region of the target and a significant amount of angular momentum can be easily removed. In the case of impacts from directions inclined relative to the target's equatorial plane, spin-down still occurs with reduced degree, unless impacts occur onto the pole region from the vertical direction. Our results suggest that such spin-down through disruptive impacts may have played an important role in spin evolution of asteroids through collisions in the gravity-dominated regime.     

Nonlinear evolution of Tayler unstable equilibrium states

We investigate the nonlinear evolution of Tayler unstable toroidal fields in a disk geometry, by numerical simulations. We consider non‐rotating and rigid rotating disks, with different radial field profiles. The initial configuration is in equilibrium, which is achieved by a pressure gradient or an external potential force. The nonlinear evolution of the system leads to a stable equilibrium with a current free toroidal field. Only for the fast rotating case we could preserve a ring type structure of the toroidal field. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

应力路径对黄土结构性的影响

利用SLB–1型应力应变控制式三轴剪切渗透试验仪,对陕西杨凌黄土进行了应力控制的常规三轴压缩、减压三轴压缩和等p应力路径的各向等压固结不排水三轴试验,探讨和分析应力路径对黄土结构性的影响。试验结果表明：不同应力路径下,随着初始围压的增大,黄土的结构性参数并不是一味地不断增大,而是在300 kPa时有一个峰值,且当黄土的含水率较高时,其结构性参数相对较小。