Intraspecific cleaning by juvenile Cape white seabream Diplodus capensis (Sparidae) off eastern South Africa

Juveniles of the Cape white seabream Diplodus capensis were observed cleaning adult conspecifics in a large tidepool off Sodwana Bay, South Africa. Although nine other tropical fish species were present and interacted with a nearby pair of Labroides cleaner wrasses, only adults of D. capensis posed for and were cleaned by the D. capensis juveniles. Such cleaning interactions have not been reported previously for this species or among marine fishes off South Africa, and thus add to the growing list of facultative cleaners globally.     

Mineralogy,petrology, chronology,and exposure history of the Chelyabinsk meteorite and parent body

Three masses of the Chelyabinsk meteorite have been studied with a wide range of analytical techniques to understand the mineralogical variation and thermal history of the Chelyabinsk parent body. The samples exhibit little to no postentry oxidation via Mössbauer and Raman spectroscopy indicating their fresh character, but despite the rapid collection and care of handling some low levels of terrestrial contamination did nonetheless result. Detailed studies show three distinct lithologies, indicative of a genomict breccia. A light‐colored lithology is LL5 material that has experienced thermal metamorphism and subsequent shock at levels near S4. The second lithology is a shock‐darkened LL5 material in which the darkening is caused by melt and metal‐troilite veins along grain boundaries. The third lithology is an impact melt breccia that formed at high temperatures (~1600 °C), and it experienced rapid cooling and degassing of S₂ gas. Portions of light and dark lithologies from Chel‐101, and the impact melt breccias (Chel‐102 and Chel‐103) were prepared and analyzed for Rb‐Sr, Sm‐Nd, and Ar‐Ar dating. When combined with results from other studies and chronometers, at least eight impact events (e.g., ~4.53 Ga, ~4.45 Ga, ~3.73 Ga, ~2.81 Ga, ~1.46 Ga, ~852 Ma, ~312 Ma, and ~27 Ma) are clearly identified for Chelyabinsk, indicating a complex history of impacts and heating events. Finally, noble gases yield young cosmic ray exposure ages, near 1 Ma. These young ages, together with the absence of measurable cosmogenic derived Sm and Cr, indicate that Chelyabinsk may have been derived from a recent breakup event on an NEO of LL chondrite composition.     

Noble gas contents of shergottites and implications for the Martian origin of SNC meteorites

Isotopic concentrations of the noble gases have been measured in several different phases of Elephant Moraine A79001 and in whole rock samples of Zagami and Allan Hills A77005, three meteorites which belong to the rare group of SNC achondrites that may have originated from the planet Mars. Shocked phases of EETA79001 contain a trapped Ar, Kr, and Xe component characterized by ${}^{84}\text{Kr}{}^{132}\text{Xe}$ ～15, ${}^{40}\text{Ar}{}^{36}\text{Ar}\text{> 2000}$, ${}^{129}\text{Xe}{}^{132}\text{Xe ≥ 2}$, and ${}^4\text{He}{}^{40}\text{Ar}\text{≤ 0.1}$. These elemental and isotopic ratios are unlike those for any other noble gas component except analyses of the Martian atmosphere made by Viking spacecraft. The isotopic composition of the trapped Kr shows an approximate 1% per mass unit enrichment of lighter isotopes compared to terrestrial Kr, and the traped Xe may show either a fission component or a fractionated enrichment of heavier isotopes compared to terrestrial Xe. It is hypothesized that these gases represent a portion of the Martian atmosphere which was shock-implanted into EETA79001, and that they constitute direct evidence of a Martian origin for the shergottite meteorites. Cosmic ray-produced gases in the eight known SNC meteorites form three distinct groups with exposure ages of ～11 MY (Chassigny and the nakhlites), ～2.6 MY (Shergotty, Zagami, and ALHA77005), and ～0.5 MY (EETA79001). These ages suggest three distinct events and cannot have been produced by irradiation for a common time under greatly different shielding. Comparison of cosmogenic ${}^3\text{He}{}^{21}\text{Ne}$ measured in EETA79001 with two independent models for the production of this ratio as a function of shielding indicates that this meteorite was irradiated in space as a relatively small object. If the SNC meteorites were ejected from Mars ～ 180 My ago, the shock age of the shergottites, they must have been relatively large objects (>6 meters diameter) which experienced at least three space collisions to initiate cosmic ray exposure. Ejection from Mars by three events at the times of initiation of cosmic ray exposure would permit the ejected objects to have been much smaller (<1 meter diameter), but would require three such events on 1.3 Gy Martian terraine in the past ～10 MY and would not explain the common 180 MY shock age seen in all four shergottites.     

Chronology and petrogenesis of young achondrites,Shergotty, Zagami,and ALHA77005: late magmatism on a geologically active planet

A study was undertaken to determine the chronology, petrogenesis and relationships among the shergottites, Shergotty and Zagami and the unique achondrite ALHA77005. These meteorites are the product of a variety of complex processes.Petrogenesis: Chondrite-normalized abundance patterns of Shergotty and Zagami are very similar and show pronounced depletions of both the light REE (La-Nd) and heavy REE (Dy-Lu) relative to Sm-Gd. These characteristic depletions are even more pronounced for ALHA77005. The light REE depletion is qualitatively consistent with the presence of cumulus pyroxene and/or olivine in these meteorites, but trace element models show that the parental magmas of all three meteorites were probably also light REE depleted. Both trace element model calculations and combined Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd isotopic systematics show that the meteorites could not have been co-magmatic nor can ALHA77005 be representative of the source material of the shergottites. Light REE depletion of the parental magmas also implies light REE depletion of the source material. The Sm-Nd systematics of the shergottites require a time-averaged sub-chondritic (light REE enriched) Sm-Nd ratio since 4.6 AE ago. The Sm-Nd systematics of ALHA77005 permit a time-averaged super-chondritic (light REE depleted) Sm/Nd ratio if its crystallization age is less than T_ICE = 0.72 AE.Chronology. Rb-Sr internal isochrons for all three meteorites and a Sm-Nd internal isochron for Zagami are concordant at ~ 180 Myr. ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar plateau ages of Shergotty and Zagami maskelynite are ~250–260 Myr. These ages apparently reflect resetting of these isotopic systems by shock metamorphism which converted the feldspar to maskelynite. The concordance of these ages suggests a single shock event during which the meteorites were in close physical proximity. The time of this event is most precisely given by the Rb-Sr age of 180 ± 4 Myr for Zagami.The crystallization ages of the meteorites were not precisely determined. Extreme upper limits are determined by Sm-Nd model ages relative to an eucrite initial ${}^{143}\text{Nd}{}^{144}\text{Nd = 0.505835}$ at 4.6 AE ago. These model ages for Shergotty, Zagami and ALHA77005 are 3600, 3500 and 2850 Myr, respectively. The Sm-Nd whole rock age of 1340 ± 60 Myr for the three meteorites gives the crystallization age if the Sm/Nd ratios of the precursor materials were always the same. We consider this 1340 Myr age as a “best estimate” upper limit. “Best estimate” lower limits for Shergotty and Zagami are taken from the average ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar ages of 1200 and 900 Myr of pyroxene separates. The average ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar age of a whole rock sample of ALHA77005 was 1600 Myr and can be partitioned between a low temperature (feldspar) phase and a high temperature (olivine + pyroxene + inclusions) “phase”. The average apparent ³⁹Ar-⁴⁰Ar age of the low temperature phase is ~1050 Myr, which is chosen as the “best estimate” lower limit to the age. The crystallization ages of Shergotty, Zagami and ALHA77005 probably lie within the ranges of 1200–1300, 900–1300 and 1000–1300 Myr, respectively. The Rb-Sr whole rock age of 4400 ± 400 Myr and single-stage BABI model ages of ~4800–5100 Myr are interpreted as reflecting differentiation of the parent body at ~4600 Myr ago.The complex geochemical and isotopic evolution recorded by these meteorites suggests a geologically active parent body capable of sustaining melting at two or more epochs in its history.     

Thermal release characteristics of spallogenic He,Ne, and Ar from the Carbo iron meteorite

The thermal release patterns of He, Ne and Ar from samples of the Carbo iron meteorite show that virtually no fractionation of³He,⁴He,²¹Ne and³⁸Ar occurs. Thus, conclusions about iron meteorites based on measured noble gas ratios will be unaffected by gas loss, and measurement of these ratios cannot yield information about possible loss. Further, noble gas loss cannot explain the abnormal elemental and isotopic patterns observed in some iron meteorites, notably hexahedrites.     

Chemical features of the Luna 16 regolith sample

The Luna 16 regolith sample differs from Apollo 11, 12 and 14 regolith and basalt samples by having smaller negative Eu and Sr anomalies and nearly chondritic Eu/Sm and Eu/Sr ratios although the overall REE, Ba, Sr and U concentrations are 25 to 45 times chondrites. Major element data, in particular FeO vs. Al₂O₃, show that the Luna 16 regolith sample is composed of materials that follow a quantitatively different Fe/Al variation than do Apollo 11, 12, 14 and 15 samples. The small Eu and Sr anomalies and the displaced Fe/Al variation are two chemical features unique to the Luna 16 regolith sample. The Luna 16 regolith sample can contain little if any of the rock types abundant at Apollo sites, thus indicating that the unique chemical features are typical of local or nearby materials and indicate a separate petrogenetic province for major component rock types of the Luna 16 regolith.     

Primordial non-Gaussianity from LAMOST surveys

The primordial non-Gaussianity (PNG) in the matter density perturbation is a very powerful probe of the physics of the very early Universe. The local PNG can induce a distinct scale-dependent bias on the large scale structure distribution of galaxies and quasars, which could be used for constraining it. We study the detection limits of PNG from the surveys of the LAMOST telescope. The cases of the main galaxy survey, the luminous red galaxy (LRG) survey, and the quasar survey of dif- ferent magnitude limits...     

Advancing process‐based watershed hydrological research using near‐surface geophysics: a vision for,and review of,electrical and magnetic geophysical methods

We want to develop a dialogue between geophysicists and hydrologists interested in synergistically advancing process based watershed research. We identify recent advances in geophysical instrumentation, and provide a vision for the use of electrical and magnetic geophysical instrumentation in watershed scale hydrology. The focus of the paper is to identify instrumentation that could significantly advance this vision for geophysics and hydrology during the next 3–5 years. We acknowledge that this is one of a number of possible ways forward and seek only to offer a relatively narrow and achievable vision. The vision focuses on the measurement of geological structure and identification of flow paths using electrical and magnetic methods. The paper identifies instruments, provides examples of their use, and describes how synergy between measurement and modelling could be achieved. Of specific interest are the airborne systems that can cover large areas and are appropriate for watershed studies. Although airborne geophysics has been around for some time, only in the last few years have systems designed exclusively for hydrological applications begun to emerge. These systems, such as airborne electromagnetic (EM) and transient electromagnetic (TEM), could revolutionize hydrogeological interpretations. Our vision centers on developing nested and cross scale electrical and magnetic measurements that can be used to construct a three‐dimensional (3D) electrical or magnetic model of the subsurface in watersheds. The methodological framework assumes a ‘top down’ approach using airborne methods to identify the large scale, dominant architecture of the subsurface. We recognize that the integration of geophysical measurement methods, and data, into watershed process characterization and modelling can only be achieved through dialogue. Especially, through the development of partnerships between geophysicists and hydrologists, partnerships that explore how the application of geophysics can answer critical hydrological science questions, and conversely provide an understanding of the limitations of geophysical measurements and interpretation. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Neodymium,strontium and chromium isotopic studies of the LEW86010 and Angra dos Reis meteorites and the chronology of the angrite parent body

Abstract— Neodymium, strontium, and chromium isotopic studies of the LEW86010 angrite established its absolute age and the formation interval between its crystallization and condensation of Allende CAIs from the solar nebula. Pyroxene and phosphate were found to contain ～98% of its Sm and Nd inventory. A conventional ¹⁴⁷Sm-¹⁴³Nd isochron yielded an age of 4.53 ± 0.04 Ga (2 σ) and ?¹⁴³ _Nd = 0.45 ± 1.1. An ¹⁴⁶Sm-¹⁴²Nd isochron gives initial ¹⁴⁶Sm/¹⁴⁴Sm = 0.0076 ± 0.0009 and ?¹⁴³ _Nd = ?2.5 ± 0.4. The Rb-Sr analyses give initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (I⁸⁷_Sr) = 0.698972 ± 8 and 0.698970 ± 18 for LEW and ADOR, respectively, relative to ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr = 0.71025 for NBS987. The difference, ΔI⁸⁷_Sr, between I⁸⁷_Sr for the angrites and literature values for Allende CAIs, corresponds to ～9 Ma of growth in a solar nebula with a CI chondrite value of ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr = 0.91, or ～5 Ma in a nebula with solar photospheric ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr = 1.51. Excess ⁵³Cr from extinct ⁵³Mn (t1/2 = 3.7 Ma) in LEW86010 corresponds to initial ⁵³Mn/⁵⁵Mn = 1.44 ± 0.07 × 10^?6 and closure to Cr isotopic homogenization 18.2 ± 1.7 Ma after formation of Allende inclusions, assuming initial ⁵³Mn/⁵⁵Mn = 4.4 ± 1.0 × 10^?5 for the inclusions as previously reported by the Paris group (Birck and Allegre, 1988). The ¹⁴⁶Sm/¹⁴⁴Sm value found for LEW86010 corresponds to solar system initial (¹⁴⁶Sm/¹⁴⁴Sm)_o = 0.0080 ± 0.0009 for crystallization 8 Ma after Allende, the difference between Pb-Pb ages of angrites and Allende, or 0.0086 ± 0.0009 for crystallization 18 Ma after Allende, using the Mn-Cr formation interval. The isotopic data are discussed in the context of a model in which an undifferentiated “chondritic” parent body formed from the solar nebula ～2 Ma after Allende CAIs and subsequently underwent differentiation accompanied by loss of volatiles. Parent bodies with Rb/Sr similar to that of CI, CM, or CO chondrites could satisfy the Cr and Sr isotopic systematics. If the angrite parent body had Rb/Sr similar to that of CV meteorites, it would have to form slightly later, ～2.6 Ma after the CAIs, to satisfy the Sr and Cr isotopic systematics.