Pelagic tar off Georgia and Florida in relation to physical processes

Following the Ixtoc I oil rig blowout in Campeche Bay we hypothesized that resulting tarballs should eventually appear in the Gulf Stream off Gerogia and that because of dynamic barriers in the innershelf little would reach nearshore areas. To test these hypotheses, surface tows to collect floating tar were taken off the coasts of Georgia and Florida in October and December, 1979.No tar was found within 40 km of the shore. All samples more than 40 km offshore contained some tar. The mean concentration was 0.82 mg m^?2 with a range of 0.01–5.6 mg m^?2. Closely spaced sampling showed extreme variation but trends were consistent. Perylene was the most abundant compound in the tarballs.     

Epizooic metazoan meiobenthos associated with tubeworm and mussel aggregations from cold seeps of the northern Gulf of Mexico

The abundance and higher taxonomic composition of epizooic metazoan meiobenthic communities associated with mussel and tubeworm aggregations of hydrocarbon seeps at Green Canyon, Atwater Valley, and Alaminos Canyon in depths between 1400 and 2800?m were studied and compared to the infaunal community of non-seep sediments nearby. Epizooic meiofaunal abundances of associated meiobenthos living in tubeworm bushes and mussel beds at seeps were extremely low (usually <100?ind. 10?cm(-2)), similar to epizooic meiofauna at deep-sea hydrothermal vents, and the communities were composed primarily of nematodes, copepods, ostracods, and halacarids. In contrast, epizooic meiobenthic abundance is lower than previous studies have reported for infauna from seep sediments. Interestingly, non-seep sediments contained higher abundances and higher taxonomic diversity than epizooic seep communities, although in situ primary production is restricted to seeps.     

Forensic identification of sixteen species of Chesapeake Bay sportfishes using mitochondrial DNA restriction fragment-length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis

A method for the genetic identification of sixteen species of Chesapeake Bay sportfishes was developed using restriction fragment-length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of two mitochondrial (mt) DNA gene regions amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). To facilitate molecular-based identifications we screened for genetic markers that revealed minimal intraspecific variation but consistently discriminated among the different species. Two mitochondrial markers were developed to provide redundancy for identifications, and 40 individuals of each species were screened with both markers. The primary marker was a region of mtDNA approximately 1,495 base-pairs (bp) in length that included part of the 12S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene and crossed into the adjacent 16S rRNA gene. When digested with the restriction enzymeRsa I, this region provided unique restriction patterms for all sixteen species. The second marker was a region of the mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase 4 (ND4) gene approximately 1,700 bp in length and digested with the restriction enzymeBstO I. This marker also discriminated among all sixte en species, but revealed higher levels of intraspecific variation than the rRNA genes. An additional set of restriction profiles was obtained for this region using the enzymeAva II to provide identification in the event a novel restriction pattern might be encountered in future studies. Because a minimal amount of tissue is required for the PCR/RFLP analysis, these molecular markers should prove useful in identifying fishes both as adults and in their early life history stages.     

A multi-site campaign on the long period variable subdwarf b star PG 1627+017

We report on the outcome of the first major multi-site campaign on a long-period variable subdwarf B star. The target PG 1627+017 was observed for a total of 334 h during April/May/June 2003 from the lynchpin observatory at Mt. Bigelow, Arizona, with important contributions coming from co-observations at SAAO, Calar Alto and Siding Spring. Preliminary analysis indicates the presence of 8–10 probable periods in the range ～4500 to ～8900 s with relative amplitudes between 0.1 and 0.5%;. The range over which the periods are found is in qualitative agreement with theoretical predictions and the number of periods found shows potential for an in-depth asteroseismological analysis. Multi-colour observations show that the relative amplitudes of pulsation are larger in the U-band than in the R, which again is in agreement with theory. However, more multi-colour observations are needed to be able to make statements at the quantitative level.     

Arecibo observations of Parkes multibeam pulsars

The on-going Parkes multibeam survey has been astoundingly successful (Manchesteret al. 2001), and its discovery of over 600 pulsars has opened up new avenues for probing the Galaxy’s electron content and magnetic field. Here we report on recent observations made with the Arecibo 305-m telescope, where 80 distant, high dispersion measure pulsars (of which 35 are from the multibeam survey) were studied at multiple frequency bands in the range 0.4–2.4 GHz, in order to determine their scattering properties, rotation measures and spectral indices. The results will be used to meet a variety of science goals; viz., creating an improved model of the electron density, mapping out the Galactic magnetic field, and modeling the pulsar population.     

The Galactic Distribution of Electron Density Microstructure Inferred from Radio Scattering Observations

I first review the observables and optics of interstellar seeing associated with radio wave scattering in the interstellar medium. I then describe the Galactic distribution of electron density and its fluctuations, as inferred from a number of observables, including angular and pulse broadening, diffractive scintillations, and dispersion measures. Propects for improving the Galactic model are outlined. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Vortex–interface interactions and generation of glitches in pulsars

We show that the crust–core interface in neutron stars acts as a potential barrier to the peripheral neutron vortices approaching the interface in the model in which these are coupled to the proton vortex clusters. This elementary barrier arises because of the interaction of vortex magnetic flux with the Meissner currents set up by the crustal magnetic field at the interface. The dominant part of the force is derived from the cluster–interface interaction. As a result of the stopping of the continuous neutron vortex current through the interface, angular momentum is stored in the superfluid layers in the vicinity of the crust–core interface during the interglitch period. Discontinuous annihilation of proton vortices at the boundary restores the neutron vortex current and spins up the observable crust on short time-scales, leading to a glitch in the spin characteristics of a pulsar.     

Biogeographic variability in the physiological response of the cold‐water coral Lophelia pertusa to ocean acidification

While ocean acidification is a global issue, the severity of ecosystem effects is likely to vary considerably at regional scales. The lack of understanding of how biogeographically separated populations will respond to acidification hampers our ability to predict the future of vital ecosystems. Cold‐water corals are important drivers of biodiversity in ocean basins across the world and are considered one of the most vulnerable ecosystems to ocean acidification. We tested the short‐term physiological response of the cold‐water coral Lophelia pertusa to three pH treatments (pH = 7.9, 7.75 and 7.6) for Gulf of Mexico (USA) and Tisler Reef (Norway) populations, and found that reductions in seawater pH elicited contrasting responses. Gulf of Mexico corals exhibited reductions in net calcification, respiration and prey capture rates with decreasing pH. In contrast, Tisler Reef corals showed only slight reductions in net calcification rates under decreased pH conditions while significantly elevating respiration and capture rates. These differences are likely the result of environmental differences (depth, pH, food supply) between the two regions, invoking the potential for local adaptation or acclimatization to alter their response to global change. However, it is also possible that variations in the methodology used in the experiments contributed to the observed differences. Regardless, these results provide insights into the resilience of L. pertusa to ocean acidification as well as the potential influence of regional differences on the viability of species in future oceans.     

Importance of seep primary production to Lophelia pertusa and associated fauna in the Gulf of Mexico

To investigate the importance of seep primary production to the nutrition of Lophelia pertusa and associated communities and examine local trophic interactions, we analyzed stable carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur compositions in seven quantitative L. pertusa community collections. A significant seep signature was only detected in one of the 35 species tested (Provanna sculpta, a common seep gastropod) despite the presence of seep fauna at the three sample sites. A potential predator of L. pertusa was identified (Coralliophila sp.), and a variety of other trophic interactions among the fauna occupying the coral framework were suggested by the data, including the galatheid crab Munidopsis sp. 2 feeding upon hydroids and the polychaete Eunice sp. feeding upon the sabellid polychaete Euratella sp. Stable carbon abundances were also determined for different sections of L. pertusa skeleton representing different stages in the growth and life of the aggregation. There was no temporal trend detected in the skeleton isotope values, suggesting that L. pertusa settles in these areas only after seepage has largely subsided. Isotope values of individual taxa that were collected from both L. pertusa and vestimentiferan habitats showed decreasing reliance upon seep primary production with average age of the vestimentiferan aggregation, and finally, no seep signature was detected in the coral collections. Together our data suggest that it is the presence of authigenic carbonate substrata, a product of past seep microbial activity, as well as hydrodynamic processes that drive L. pertusa occurrence at seep sites in the Gulf of Mexico, not nutritional dependence upon primary production by seep microbes.     

Strong-field tests of gravity using pulsars and black holes

The sensitivity of the SKA enables a number of tests of theories of gravity. A Galactic Census of pulsars will discover most of the active pulsars in the Galaxy beamed toward us. In this census will almost certainly be pulsar–black hole binaries as well as pulsars orbiting the super-massive black hole in the Galactic centre. These systems are unique in their capability to probe the ultra-strong field limit of relativistic gravity. These measurements can be used to test the Cosmic Censorship Conjecture and the No-Hair theorem.The large number of millisecond pulsars discovered with the SKA will also provide a dense array of precision clocks on the sky. These clocks will act as the multiple arms of a huge gravitational wave detector, which can be used to detect and measure the stochastic cosmological gravitational wave background that is expected from a number of sources.