Photochemistry and Vertical Transport in Io's Atmosphere and Ionosphere

We present an updated model for the photochemistry of Io's atmosphere and ionosphere and use this model to investigate the sensitivity of the chemical structure to vertical transport rates. SO₂is assumed to be the dominant atmospheric gas, with minor molecular sodium species such as Na₂S or Na₂O released by sputtering or venting from the surface. Photochemical products include SO, O₂, S, O, Na, NaO, NaS, and Na₂. We consider both “thick” and “thin” SO₂atmospheres that encompass the range allowed by recent HST and millimeter-wave observations, and evaluate the possibility that O₂and/or SO may be significant minor dayside constituents and therefore likely dominant nightside gases. The fast reaction between S and O₂limits the column abundance of O₂to ∼10⁴less than that calculated by Kumar (J. Geophys. Res.87, 1677–1684, 1982; 89(A9), 7399–7406, 1984) for a pure sulfur/oxygen atmosphere. If a significant source of NaO₂or Na₂O were supplied by the surface and mixed rapidly upward, then oxygen liberated in the chemical reactions which also liberate free Na would provide an additional source of O₂. Fast eddy mixing will enhance the transport of molecular sodium species to the exobase, in addition to increasing the vertical transport rate of ions. Ions produced in the atmosphere will be accelerated by the reduced corotation electric field penetrating the atmosphere. These ions experience collisions with the neutral gas, leading to enhanced vertical ion diffusion. The dominant ion, Na⁺, is lost primarily by charge exchange with Na₂O and/or Na₂S in the lower atmosphere and by diffusion through the ionopause in the upper atmosphere. The atmospheric column abundance of SO, O₂, and the upper atmosphere escape rates of Na, S, O, and molecular sodium species are all strong functions of the eddy mixing rate. Most atmospheric escape, including that of molecular sodium species, probably occurs from the low density “background” SO₂atmosphere, while a localized high density “volcanic” SO₂atmosphere can yield an ionosphere consistent with that detected by the Pioneer 10 spacecraft.     

Saturn's rings: Particle composition and size distribution as constrained by observations at microwave wavelengths: II. Radio interferometric observations

The sizes, composition, and number of particles comprising the rings of Saturn may be meaningfully constrained by a combination of radar- and radio-astronomical observations. In a previous paper, we have discussed constraints obtained from radar observations. In this paper, we discuss the constraints imposed by complementary “passive” radio observations at similar wavelengths. First, we present theoretical models of the brightness of Saturn's rings at microwave wavelengths (0.34–21.0 cm), including both intrinsic ring emission and diffuse scattering by the rings of the planetary emission. The models are accurate simulations of the behavior of realistic ring particles and are parameterized only by particle composition and size distribution, and ring optical depth. Second, we have reanalyzed several previously existing sets of interferometric observations of the Saturn system at 0.83-, 3.71-, 6.0-, 11.1-, and 21.0-cm wavelengths. These observations all have spatial resolution sufficient to resolve the rings and planetary disk, and most have resolution sufficient to resolve the ring-occulted region of the disk as well. Using our ring models and a realistic model of the planetary brightness distribution, we are able to establish improved constraints on the properties of the rings. In particular, we find that: (a) the maximum optical depth in the rings is ～ 1.5 ± 0.3 referred to visible wavelengths; (b) a significant decrease in ring optical depth from λ3.7 to λ21.0 cm allows us to rule out the possibility that more than ～30% of the cross section of the rings is composed of particles larger than a meter or so; this assertion is essentially independent of uncertainties in particle adsorption coefficient; and (c) the ring particles cannot be primarily of silicate composition, independently of particle size, and the particles cannot be primarily smaller than ～0.1 cm, independently of composition.     

Effects of temperature and sliding rate on frictional strength of granite

Layers of artificial granite gouge have been deformed on saw-cut granite surfaces inclined 30° to the sample axes. Samples were deformed at a constant confining pressure of 250 MPa and temperatures of 22 to 845°C. The velocity dependence of the steady-state coefficient of friction (^ss) was determined by comparing sliding strengths at different sliding rates. The results of these measurements are consistent with those reported bySolberg andByerlee (1984) at room temperature andStesky (1975) between 300 and 400°C. Stesky found that the slip-rate dependence of (^ss) increased above 400°C. In the present study, however, the velocity dependence of (^ss) was nearly independent of temperature.     

External nutrient sources,internal nutrient pools,and phytoplankton production in Chesapeake Bay

External nutrient loadings, internal nutrient pools, and phytoplankton production were examined for three major subsystems of the Chesapeake Bay Estuary—the upper Mainstem, the Patuxent Estuary, and the 01 Potomac Estuary—during 1985–1989. The atomic nitrogen to phosphorus ratios (TN:TP) of total loads to the 01 Mainstem, Patuxent, and the Potomac were 51, 29 and 35, respectively. Most of these loads entered at the head of the estuaries from riverine sources and major wastewater treatment plants. Approximately 7–16% for the nitrogen load entered the head of each estuary as particulate matter in contrast to 48–69% for phosphorus. This difference is hypothesized to favor a greater loss of phosphorus than nitrogen through sedimentation and burial. This process could be important in driving estuarine nitrogen to phosphorus ratios above those of inputs. Water column TN: TP ratios in the tidal fresh, oligohaline, and mesohaline salinity zones of each estuary ranged from 56 to 82 in the Mainstem, 27 to 48 in the Patuxent, and 72 to 126 in the Potomac. A major storm event in the Potomac watershed was shown to greatly increase the particulate fraction of nitrogen and phosphorus and lower the TN:TP in the river-borne loads. The load during the month that contained this storm (November 1985) accounted for 11% of the nitrogen and 31% of the phosphorus that was delivered to the estuary by the Potomac River during the entire 60-month period examined here. Within the Mainstem estuary, salinity dilution plots revealed strong net sources of ammonium and phosphate in the oligohaline to upper mesohaline region, indicating that these areas were sites of considerable internal recycling of nutrients to surface waters. The sedimentation of particulate nutrient loads in the upper reaches of the estuary is probably a major source of these recycled nutrients. A net sink of nitrate was indicated during summer. A combination of inputs and these internal recycling processes caused dissolved inorganic N to P ratios to approach 16:1 in the mesohaline zone of the Mainstem during late summer; this ratio was much higher at other times and in the lower salinity zones. Phytoplankton biomass in the mesohaline Mainstem reached a peak in spring and was relatively constant throughout the other seasons. Productivity was highest in spring and summer, accounting for approximately 33% and 44%, respectively, of the total annual productivity in this region. In the Patuxent and Potomac, the TN:TP ratios of external loads documented here are 2–4 times higher than those observed over the previous two decades. These changes are attributed to point-source phosphorus controls and the likelihood that nitrogen-rich nonpoint source inputs, including contributions from the atmosphere, have increased. These higher N:P ratios relative to Redfield proportions (16:1) now suggest a greater overall potential for phosphorus-limitation rather than nitrogen-limitation of phytoplankton in the areas studied.     

Mathematical Modeling and Computer-Aided Manufacturing of Rough Surfaces for Experimental Study of Seafloor Scattering

Diverse aspects of stochastic processes, time-series analysis, fractal geometry, and manufacturing technology are brought together to provide a unified theoretical framework for the mathematical characterization and physical fabrication of scale-model representations of the rough ocean bottom. These scale models can be used to validate the predictions of interface-scattering theories, particularly those relating to the dependence of scattering strength on roughness parameters. In acoustical oceanography, rough surfaces are conventionally described in terms of power-spectral density (PSD) or fractal dimension. Here, recently developed concepts describing modified power-law PSD and approximately self-affine stochastic fractals are used to account for issues of finite sample size and finite manufacturing resolution. The large- and small- bandwidth restrictions that these issues inherently impose are related to their effects on the properties of surfaces as characterized both mathematically and by visual observation. This development provides the groundwork for numerical generation of surfaces, using spectral methods, and their physical manufacture, using computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) techniques. Effects of the spectral method of numerical generation on the statistics of generated topography are detailed. A manufacturing technique using a computer numerically controlled (CNC) milling machine is discussed and topography-specific guidelines for accurate manufacture of rough surfaces are prescribed.     

On the thermal evolution of the terrestrial planets

Physical and chemical constraints for such different planetary objects as the Earth, the Moon and meteorite parent bodies can best be satisfied by thermal history models having high initial temperatures. On the basis of thermal calculations it is suggested that the evolution of the other terrestrial planets (Mars, Venus and Mercury) was also characterized by high initial temperatures. Under these conditions, melting and, consequently, fractionation would set in at an early stage. Because of the resulting redistribution of the long-lived radioactive heat sources and the concentration of these elements in the surface layers, large-scale differentiation could be achieved by partial melting.Paper presented at the Lunar Science Institute Conference on Geophysical and Geochemical Exploration of the Moon and Planets, January 10–12, 1973.     

Models of the formation of the solar nebula

Models of the collapse of a protostellar cloud and the formation of the solar nebula reveal that the size of the nebula produced will be the larger of $\text{R}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>CF</mtext>}}\text{≡ J}{}^2\text{/k}{}^2\text{GM}{}^3\text{and}\text{R}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>V</mtext>}}\text{≡ (GMv/2c}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>c</mtext>}}{}^3\text{)}\text{1}\text{2}$ (where J, M, and c_s are the total angular momentum, total mass, and sound speed of the protosetellar material; G is the gravitational constant; k is a number of order unity; and v is the effective viscosity in the nebula). From this result it can be deduced that low-mass nebulas are produced if P ≡ (R_V/R_CF)² ? 1; “massive” nebulas result if P ? 1. Gravitational instabilities are expected to be important for the evolution of P ? 1 nebulas. The value of J distinguishes most current models of the solar nebula, since P ∝ J^?4. Analytic expressions for the surface density, nebular mass flux, and photospheric temperature distributions during the formation stage are presented for some simple models that illustrate the general properties of growing protostellar disks. It does not yet seem possible to rule out either P ? 1 or P < 1 for the solar nebula, but observed or possible heterogeneities in composition and angular-momentum orientation favor P < 1 models.     

The photometric method of detecting other planetary systems

The photometric method detects planets orbiting other stars by searching for the reduction in the light flux or the change in the color of the stellar flux that occurs when a planet transits a star. A transit by Jupiter or Saturn would reduce the stellar flux by approximately 1% while a transit by Uranus or Neptune would reduce the stellar flux by 0.1%. A highly characteristic color change with an amplitude approximately 0.1 of that for the flux reduction would also accompany the transit and could be used to verify that the source of the flux reduction was a planetary transit rather than some other phenomenon. Although the precision required to detect major planets is already available with state-of-the-art photometers, the detection of terrestrial-sized planets would require a precision substantially greater than the state-of-the-art and a spaceborne platform to avoid the effects of variations in sky transparency and scintillation. Because the probability is so small of observing a planetary transit during a single observation of a randomly chosen star, the search program must be designed to continuously monitor hundreds or thousands of stars. The most promising approach is to search for large planets with a photometric system that has a single-measurement precision of 0.1%. If it is assumed that large planets will have long-period orbits, and that each star has an average of one large planet, then approximately 10⁴ stars must be monitored continuously. To monitor such a large groups of stars simultaneously while maintaining the required photometric precision, a detector array coupled by a fiber-optic bundle to the focal plane of a moderate aperture (≈ 1 m), wide field of view (≈50°) telescope is required. Based on the stated assumptions, a detection rate of one planet per year of observation appears possible.     

Viscous solutions of the two-fluid solar wind equations

The two-fluid equations describing the ideal, steady, viscous solar wind are examined, and supersonic solutions are sought in which the electron and ion temperatures vary as inverse powers of the radial distance from the Sun. Just two solutions are found, and these are analogous to those found by Whang et al. (1966) and Dahlberg (1970) in one-fluid theory.