2060 Chiron back to a minimum of brightness

The results of photometric observations of comet/asteroid 2060 Chiron at the Observatório do Pico dos Dias (Brazil-OPD) and the Observatoire de Haute-Provence (France-OHP) during 1994 and 1995 are presented. The analysis of the data shows a decrease of 2060 Chiron brightness from its peak values of 1988–1991. The absolute magnitude, H_v, varies from a maximum of 6.6 in February 1994 up to a minimum of 6.8 in June 1995. Therefore 2060 Chiron is back to a minimum of activity close to that of 1983–1985. The slope parameter G is found to be G = 0.71 ± 0.15. It is suggested that the H-G magnitude system, generally adopted to present 2060 Chiron brightness, is not the most appropriate due to the cometary activity of this object.     

The importance of bioturbation to continental slope sediment structure and benthic processes off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina

Even though the continental slope off Cape Hatteras has sediment accumulation rates on the order of 1 cm/year, large areas of soft sediment are intensively reworked by infaunal organisms. Primary sedimentary structures have been completely replaced with biogenic structures. Surface sedimentary structures are dominated by the bioturbational activities of a deep burrowing infauna (to at least 30 cm). The layer actively mixed by the benthos, as evidenced by sediment profile and X-ray images, is estimated to range from 5 to 20 cm, with the residence time for particles within the surface mixed layer ranging from about 4.5 to 18 years. The biological mixing parameter (G) ranges from 0.4 to 5.5, which indicates moderate to strong biological mixing relative to accumulation and strata formation. Bioturbation contributes to the dynamic forces affecting the surface sediments by decreasing compaction of sediment layers and dilating sediment fabrics by sediment mixing, and introducing large water-filled burrows and voids to subsurface sediments. The sediment profile images captured numerous subsurface feeding voids, and worms in the process of making deep burrows, many of which extended below the 5 to 10 cm average depth of the apparent color redoxpotential discontinuity layer. High rates of accumulation of organic-rich sediment lead to high standing stocks of benthos and intensive feeding/burrowing activity that result in organic rich stratagraphic sequences that are thoroughly mixed. Cape Hatteras is a apparent focusing point for the transport of shallow water sediments to the deep sea. Sediments across other areas of the continental slope just 100's of kilometers south of Cape Hatteras are not as thoroughly mixed or biologically active.     

Foraminifera from the continental slope off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina

The recent benthic meiofaunal foraminiferal assemblage from the continental slope (590-2 003 m) off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina exhibits high species richness and evenness, moderate diversity values, and lacks numerically dominant species. The preserved planktic assemblage has relatively low species richness, high evenness, low diversity, and a few numerically dominant species. Approximately 9% of the benthic species are those that typically live within continental shelf depth ranges. The benthic assemblage abundances and diversities do not follow depth patterns or geophysical characteristics. No biogeographic boundary can be described within the study area for meiofaunal foraminifera. Oxygen limitation does not appear to be a factor affecting the benthos of the North Carolina continental slope based upon the community structure of the benthic foraminifera, if total assemblage is assumed to reflect the recently living community. The high carbonate content of sediments in the area may be explained by foraminiferal tests. Within the study area, the foraminiferal assemblages are uniform, and probably reflect relative consistency of primary environmental variables as well as dynamic downslope transport and high influx of material from the water column in the vicinity where the Gulf Stream and the Western Boundary Undercurrent cross.     

An analysis of the time scales of variability in centuries-long enso-sensitive records in the last 1000 years

We document the characteristic time scales of variability for seven climate indices whose time-dependent behavior is sensitive to some aspect of the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The ENSO sensitivity arises from the location of these long-term records on the periphery of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Three of the indices are derived principally from historical sources, three others consist of tree-ring reconstructions (one of summer temperature, and the other two of winter rainfall), and one is an annual record of oxygen isotopic composition for a high-elevation glacier in Peru. Five of the seven indices sample at least portions of the Medieval Warm Period (~ A.D. 950 to 1250).Time series spectral analysis was used to identify the major time scales of variability among the different indices. We focus on two principal time scales: a high frequency band (~ 2–10 yr), which comprises most of the variability found in the modern record of ENSO activity, and a low frequency band to highlight variations on decadal to century time scales (11 <P < 150 yr). This last spectral band contains variability on time scales that are of general interest with respect to possible changes in large-scale air-sea exchanges. A technique called evolutive spectral analysis (ESA) is used to ascertain how stable each spectral peak is in time. Coherence and phase spectra are also calculated among the different indices over each full common period, and following a 91-yr window through time to examine whether the relationships change.In general, spectral power on time scales of ~ 2–6 yr is statistically significant and persists throughout most of the time intervals sampled by the different indices. Assuming that the ENSO phenomenon is the source of much of the variability at these time scales, this indicates that ENSO has been an important part of interannual climatic variations over broad areas of the circum-Pacific region throughout the last millennium. Significant coherence values were found for El Niño and reconstructed Sierra Nevada winter precipitation at ~ 2–4 yr throughout much of their common record (late 1500s to present) and between 6 and 7 yr from the mid-18th to the early 20th century.At decadal time scales each record generally tends to exhibit significant spectral power over different periods at different times. Both the Quelccaya Ice Cap ¹⁸O series and the Quinn El Niño event record exhibit significant spectral power over frequencies ~ 35 to 45 yr; however, there is low coherence between these two series at those frequencies over their common record. The Sierra Nevada winter rainfall reconstruction exhibits consistently strong variability at periods of ~ 30–60 yr.     

X-ray imaging of three flares during the impulsive phase

The impulsive phases of three flares that occurred on April 10, May 21, and November 5, 1980 are discussed. Observations were obtained with the Hard X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (HXIS) and other instruments aboard SMM, and have been supplemented with Hα data and magnetograms. The flares show hard X-ray brightenings (16–30 keV) at widely separated locations that spatially coincide with bright Hα patches. The bulk of the soft X-ray emission (3.5–5.5 keV) originates from in between the hard X-ray brightenings. The latter are located at different sides of the neutral line and start to brighten simultaneously to within the time resolution of HXIS. Concluded is that:

1. The bright hard X-ray patches coincide with the footpoints of loops.
2. The hard X-ray emission from the footpoints is most likely thick target emission from fast electrons moving downward into the dense chromosphere.
3. The density of the loops along which the beam electrons propagate to the footpoints is restricted to a narrow range (10⁹ < n < 2 × 10¹⁰ cm^-3), determined by the instability threshold of the return current and the condition that the mean free path of the fast electrons should be larger than the length of the loop.
4. For the November 5 flare it seems likely that the acceleration source is located at the merging point of two loops near one of the footpoints.

It is found that the total flare energy is always larger than the total energy residing in the beam electrons. However, it is also estimated that at the time of the peak of the impulsive hard X-ray emission a large fraction (at least 20%) of the dissipated flare power has to go into electron acceleration. The explanation of such a high acceleration efficiency remains a major theoretical problem.     

Spatial and temporal evolution of soft and hard X-ray emission in a solar flare

We study the spatial and temporal characteristics of the 3.5 to 30.0 keV emission in a solar flare on April 10, 1980. The data were obtained by the Hard X-ray Imaging Spectrometer aboard the Solar Maximum Mission Satellite. It is complemented in our analysis with data from other instruments on the same spacecraft, in particular that of the Hard X-ray Burst Spectrometer.Key results of our investigation are: (a) Continuous energy release is needed to substain the increase of the emission through the rising phase of the flare, before and after the impulsive phase in hard X-rays. The energy release is characterized by the production of hot (5 × 10⁷ T 1.5 × 10⁸ K) thermal regions within the flare loop structures. (b) The observational parameters characterizing the impulsive burst show that it is most likely associated with non-thermal processes (particle acceleration). (c) The continuous energy release is associated with strong chromospheric evaporation, as evidenced in the spectral line behavior determined from the Bent Crystal Spectrometer data. Both processes seem to stop just before flare maximum, and the subsequent evolution is most likely governed by the radiative cooling of the flare plasma.     

Microstructural evolution of the Seridó Belt, NE-Brazil: the effect of two tectonic events on development of c-axis preferred orientation in quartz

The polyphase evolution of the Seridó Belt (NE-Brazil) includes D₁ crust formation at 2.3–2.1 Ga, D₂ thrust tectonics at 1.9 Ga and crustal reworking by D₃ strike-slip shear zones at 600 Ma. Microstructural investigations within mylonites associated with D₂ and D₃ events were used to constrain the tectono-thermal evolution of the belt. D₂ shear zones commenced at deeper crustal levels and high amphibolite facies conditions (600–650 °C) through grain boundary migration, subgrain rotation and operation of quartz c-prism slip. Continued shearing and exhumation of the terrain forced the re-equilibration of high-T fabrics and the switching of slip systems from c-prism to positive and negative a-rhombs. During D₃, enhancement of ductility by dissipation of heat that came from syn-D₃ granites developed wide belts of amphibolite facies mylonites. Continued shearing, uplift and cooling of the region induced D₃ shear zones to act in ductile-brittle regimes, marked by fracturing and development of thinner belts of greenschist facies mylonites. During this event, switching from a-prism to a-basal slip indicates a thermal path from 600 to 350 °C. Therefore, microstructures and quartz c-axis fabrics in polydeformed rocks from the Seridó Belt preserve the record of two major events, which includes contrasting deformation mechanisms and thermal paths.     

Low-order stabilized finite element for the full Biot formulation in soil mechanics at finite strain

This article presents a novel finite element formulation for the Biot equation using low-order elements. Additionally, an extra degree of freedom is introduced to treat the volumetric locking steaming from the effective response of the medium; its balance equation is also stabilized. The accuracy of the proposed formulation is demonstrated by means of numerical analyses.