Time-dependent photoionization opacities in dense gamma-ray burst environments

The recent detection of a transient absorption feature in the X-ray prompt emission of GRB 990705 showed the importance of such observations in the understanding of gamma-ray bursts and their progenitors. We investigate the time dependence of photoionization edges during the prompt emission of bursts in different environments. We show that their variability can be used to infer the density and geometry of the surrounding medium, giving important clues to unveil the nature of the burst progenitor.     

A focal plane detector design for a wide-band Laue-lens telescope

The energy range above 60 keV is important for the study of many open problems in high energy astrophysics such as the role of Inverse Compton with respect to synchrotron or thermal processes in GRBs, non thermal mechanisms in SNR, the study of the high energy cut-offs in AGN spectra, and the detection of nuclear and annihilation lines. Recently the development of high energy Laue lenses with broad energy bandpasses from 60 to 600keV have been proposed for a Hard X ray focusing Telescope (HAXTEL) in order to study the X-ray continuum of celestial sources. The required focal plane detector should have high detection efficiency over the entire operative range, a spatial resolution of about 1mm, an energy resolution of a few keV at 500keV and a sensitivity to linear polarization. We describe a possible configuration of the focal plane detector based on several CdTe/CZT pixelated layers stacked together to achieve the required detection efficiency at high energy. Each layer can operate both as a separate position sensitive detector and polarimeter or work with other layers to increase the overall photopeak efficiency. Each layer has a hexagonal shape in order to minimize the detector surface required to cover the lens field of view. The pixels would have the same geometry so as to provide the best coupling with the lens point spread function and to increase the symmetry for polarimetric studies.     

What type was SN 1987A?

A comparison is made of the light and colour curves of the SN 1987A in the first 280 days with the mean properties of type II supernovae. The conclusion is that even though it has H lines, and was not a typical type II supernova, but a peculiar object from a photometric point of view. The implications for inclusion of SN 1987A in the context of the usual Minkowski-Zwicky classification are explicitly discussed.     

Iron oxidation state in the Fe‐rich layer and silica matrix of Libyan Desert Glass: A high‐resolution XANES study

Abstract— Libyan Desert Glass (LDG) is an enigmatic type of glass that occurs in western Egypt in the Libyan Desert. Fairly convincing evidence exists to show that it formed by impact, although the source crater is currently unknown. Some rare samples present dark‐colored streaks with variable amounts of Fe, and they are supposed to contain a meteoritic component. We have studied the iron local environment in an LDG sample by means of Fe K‐edge highresolution X‐ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy to obtain quantitative data on the Fe oxidation state and coordination number in both the Fe‐poor matrix and Fe‐rich layers. The pre‐edge peak of the high‐resolution XANES spectra of the sample studied displays small but reproducible variations between Fe‐poor matrix and Fe‐rich layers, which is indicative of significant changes in the Fe oxidation state and coordination number. Comparison with previously obtained data for a very low‐Fe sample shows that, while iron is virtually all trivalent and in tetrahedral coordination (^[4]Fe³⁺) in the low‐Fe sample, the sample containing the Fe‐rich layers display a mixture of tetra‐coordinated trivalent iron (^[4]Fe³⁺) and penta‐coordinated divalent iron (^[5]Fe²⁺), with the Fe in the Fe‐rich layer being more reduced than the matrix. From these data, we conclude the following: a) the significant differences in the Fe oxidation state between LDG and tektites, together with the wide intra‐sample variations in the Fe‐oxidation state, confirm that LDG is an impact glass and not a tektite‐like glass; b) the higher Fe content, coupled with the more reduced state of the Fe, in the Fe‐rich layers suggests that some or most of the Fe in these layers may be directly derived from the meteoritic projectile and that it is not of terrestrial origin.     

Notes on Hori Method for Canonical Systems

In this paper a slightly different approach is proposed for the process of determining the functions S _m and H _m ^* of the algorithm of the canonical version of Hori method. This process will be referred to as integration theory of the mth order equation of the method. It will be shown that the ordinary differential equation with an auxiliary parameter t ^* as independent variable, introduced through Hori auxiliary system, can be replaced by a partial differential equation in the time t. In this way, the mth order equation of the algorithm assumes a form very similar to the one of other perturbation methods. In virtue of this new approach of the integration theory for Hori method, Lagrange's variational equations introduced by Sessin are revised. As an example, the Duffing equation is solved through this new approach.     

Baryon loading and the Weibel instability in gamma-ray bursts

The dynamics of two counter-streaming electron–positron–ion unmagnetized plasma shells with zero net charge is analysed in the context of magnetic field generation in gamma-ray burst internal shocks due to the Weibel instability. The effects of large thermal motion of plasma particles, arbitrary mixture of plasma species and space charge effects are taken into account. We show that, although thermal effects slow down the instability, baryon loading leads to a non-negligible growth rate even for large temperatures and different shell velocities, thus guaranteeing the robustness and the occurrence of the Weibel instability for a wide range of scenarios.     

Impact of lightning on organic matter-rich soils: influence of soil grain size and organic matter content on underground fires

A detailed study was carried out on a piece of land that had been struck by lightning during the violent rainstorm that raged over the Island of S?o Miguel (Azores Archipelago) in late October 2006. Temperature and gas measurements (CO₂, CO, H₂S and CH₄) were performed in four study trenches, dug in an area of ∼3 m², where an underground fire had been initiated by the impact with a lightning stroke, followed by the emission of a column of gases and smoke. The soil under study was originally a well-pedogenized about 80 cm thick bed, made of volcanic clayey to silty tephra fallouts and contained 5.5–9.7% of organic matter. The underground fire was monitored for one week and revealed a peak release of 404 ppm CO and 3.4% CO₂ originating from a horizon located about 45 cm under the soil surface. Measurements of temperature, performed one week after the impact, indicated a maximum value of 326°C inside the soil, while 516.5°C were measured on the surface of a lava block interred about 20 cm under the surface. Subsequently, a stratigraphic and sedimentologic study proved the role of the grain-size of the soil and of the organic matter content of the different horizons of the impact area, in determining the ratio between anoxic/oxidised combustion conditions and in the progress of the process itself. It was also noticed that combustion was not total all over in the soil bed and that the process had slightly migrated toward SW during the observation period. The combustion process went on for about ten days, in spite of several other violent rainstorms, until it was artificially extinguished through the excavations made to obtain study trenches. This particular circumstance evidenced the potential natural hazard represented by this kind of atmospheric event, especially in a land where the volcanic nature of the soil may easily mislead inexperienced observers and, consequently, delay proper action.     

The Agulhas Ridge, South Atlantic: The Peculiar Structure of a Fracture Zone

The Agulhas Ridge is a prominent topographic feature that parallels the Agulhas-Falkland Fracture Zone (AFFZ). Seismic reflection and wide angle/refraction data have led to the classification of this feature as a transverse ridge. Changes in spreading rate and direction associated with ridge jumps, combined with asymmetric spreading within the Agulhas Basin, modified the stress field across the fracture zone. Moreover, passing the Agulhas Ridge’s location between 80 and 69 Ma, the Bouvet and Shona Hotspots may have supplied excess material to this part of the AFFZ thus altering the ridge’s structure. The low crustal velocities and overthickened crust of the northern Agulhas Ridge segment indicate a possible continental affinity that suggests it may be formed by a small continental sliver, which was severed off the Maurice Ewing Bank during the opening of the South Atlantic. In early Oligocene times the Agulhas Ridge was tectono-magmatically reactivated, as documented by the presence of basement highs disturbing and disrupting the sedimentary column in the Cape Basin. We consider the Discovery Hotspot, which distributes plume material southwards across the AAFZ, as a source for the magmatic material.     

Tying seismic data to geologic information from core data: an example from ODP Leg 177

The integration of seismic data with core data should provide ground-truth to a structural interpretation of seismic data. The main difficulty in such an integration effort is the correct translation of physical property measurements on cores to a form which can be used in seismostratigraphic interpretation. In the absence of down-hole well data and check-shots, required knowledge of the velocity structure at the drilling locations can be obtained directly from measurements of the physical properties of core samples. This involves upscaling of the data from physical properties of cores to the sample interval used in the seismic data. In the present study, three of the seven drill-sites of ODP (Ocean Drilling Program) Leg 177 in 1997/1998, located on the Agulhas Ridge in the south-eastern Atlantic (sites 1088–1090), were connected with eight seismic profiles. Physical properties data measured on the cores from the various holes at each site were combined to create a single continuous log and used to construct synthetic seismograms. The synthetics generally show a good agreement with real seismic data in terms of amplitude and waveform. Some reflections in these generated traces may have a time-shift due to sections with incomplete or spurious P-wave velocity measurements in the ODP datasets. The main reflectors identified in the real seismic data correspond to hiatuses or periods of reduced sedimentation rates, and correlate well with density variations. One particular hiatus, clearly observable in the real seismic data, was not unequivocally identifiable in the various types of core data, and tying core data to seismic data can confirm its existence in the core data, showing the benefit of including seismic data in an interpretation of core log data. On the other hand, core data provide a calibration tool for the geological timescale of seismic data and information about the lithology, needed in the interpretation of seismic data.     

An analysis of 3.5 kHz acoustic reflections and sediment physical properties

Near-bottom normal incidence acoustic reflection data and sediment physical property data are used to study the relationships between acoustic reflections and sediment physical properties. A pinger-hydrophone experiment was performed to obtain the necessary acoustic reflection data. In addition, a standard piston core was retrieved in the acoustic survey area for physical property analysis. The piston core was sampled and 13 properties were measured at 55 locations within the top 12 m of the core. Correlation studies amongst the sediment physical properties resulted in the following strong correlations: acoustic impedance ($\text{Z}$) and porosity ($\text{N}$), (0.96); water content ($\text{WC}$) and $\text{Z}$, (0.95); bulk density ($\text{BD}$) and $\text{Z}$, (0.99).The empirical orthonormal function (EOF) method was employed for acoustic signal analysis. This method assumes no a-priori models of the sediment or causality. The EOF method reduced the acoustic data to 8 functions that contained 97.6% of the sample variance. The EOFs were subsequently analysed by using cepstrum analysis which reveals time delay information and enhances detecting zones of reflectivity. The result of the sediment physical property and cepstrum analysis indicates that zones of reflectivity are essentially zones of relatively high acoustic impedance, low porosity, and low phi (high mean grain size).