A Rhaetian microvertebrate fauna from Stowey Quarry,Somerset, U.K.

Rhaetian bone beds have been described from many locations in south-west England, around Bristol. One site that has never been reported is Stowey Quarry, some 13?km south of Bristol. This quarry yielded Lias, and revealed thin Rhaetian units in the quarry floor, including two bone beds, the basal Rhaetian bone bed, and a second, higher bone bed, also within the Westbury Formation. The fossil fauna of both includes elements typical of Rhaetian bone beds elsewhere, but showing differences in faunal composition between the two. The basal bone bed yielded more specimens and more species, with three taxa (Sargodon tomicus, Rhomphaiodon minor and Hybodus cloacinus) exclusive to this bed and eleven identified in total. Severnichthys acuminatus accounts for more than 50% of the countable teeth from the basal bone bed, followed by Gyrolepis albertii with 20%, Lissodus minimus with 14% and Rhomphaiodon minor with 9%. The basal bone bed, as ever, is dominated by chondrichthyans, whereas the upper bone bed is dominated by osteichthyans, which form 90% of the non-dental remains. The only unique taxon is Dapedium, and Gyrolepis albertii is the most abundant species with 45% of countable teeth, followed by Severnichthys acuminatus with 38% and Duffinselache holwellensis with 11%. These faunal differences, and the equally good condition of specimens between both samples confirms that the upper bone bed is independent of the basal bone bed, and is not a reworked subsample.     

Erste Ergebnisse der Erprobung des photometrischen Zwillingsreflektors

First measurements of the short time variations of Ap stars with the twin telescope show a nonlinear drift caused by a sensibility of the amplifier depending on temperature. Moreover we found a dependence of the impulse rate on the position of the star image in the diaphragm. Special test measurements with a simple incandescent lamp show that this telescope gives results with an accuracy of ± 0.002 mag after elimination of these effects.     

On the height scale of magnetic fields above sunspots derived from RATAN-600 observations

Model calculations of the S-component are compared with observations of the RATAN-600 telescope at five discrete microwave frequencies referring to active region McMath No. 15974 on May 1, 1979. The spectral variations of source diameter, flux density, and degree of polarization are used to derive the height scale of the magnetic field in accordance with a magnetic dipole distribution under the assumption of advanced temperature and electron density distributions according to most recent EUV observations.     

Shallow-marine massive sandstone sheets as indicators of palaeoseismic liquefaction — An example from the Ordovician shelf of Central Bolivia

The Middle to Upper Ordovician siliciclastic succession in Central Bolivia provides excellent exposures of up to 1 m thick massive sandstone beds produced by liquefaction-induced sediment remobilisation. These fine-grained massive sandstones occur in shallow-marine nearshore facies that were deposited above storm wave base. Vertical to steeply inclined clastic dykes, which penetrate up to 1.5 m of the overlying sediment pile, feed into the basal parts of massive sandstone sheets. These dykes are interpreted as pathways used by liquefied sediment during upward-directed escape from a subsurface horizon. The relatively short lateral spacing of 5 to 25 m between the individual dykes initiated lateral coalescence of ejected individual sediment bodies. As a result, massive sandstone sheets formed and can be traced laterally over several kilometres. While undeformed sandy deposits contain between 5 to 10% dispersed clay the average clay content in massive sandstone sheets is ∼ 15%. The elongated, sometimes S-shaped form of the sandy, laminated fragments reflects squeezing during movement showing that they have been deformed under shear stress during flow. The axis of maximum elongation of the fragments indicates local flow direction. As the massive sandstone sheets are likely the products of seismic shocks they provide the first evidence of tectonic activity in this part of the basin during the Middle to Late Ordovician.     

Solar Microwave Bursts from Electron Populations with a 'Broken’ Energy Spectrum

Usually the gyrosynchrotron emission of microwave bursts from electron populations with a power-law (PL) energy distribution has been considered under the assumption that the spectral index of the distribution is constant over a wide range of energies. Meanwhile, there is strong evidence, in particular from hard X-ray and -ray, but also from cm/mm wavelength radio observations, that in many solar flare events the spectrum of the emitting electrons is characterized by a significant hardening at energies above 100–500 keV. We present some examples of calculated microwave burst spectra at cm/mm wavelengths taking into account the above evidence. It is shown that a break in the energy spectrum of the PL electrons can indeed result in a spectral hardening sometimes observed in microwave bursts at frequencies above 10–30 GHz.