Magnesium isotopic behavior during the formation of chlorite-rich hydrothermal sediment in the middle Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, H.; Yang, S.; Teng, F. Z.; Cai, D.; Humphris, S. E.

2016-12-01

Chlorite is a common alteration product during water-rock reactions in seafloor hydrothermal systems. This chlorite is commonly characterized by high concentrations of magnesium. However, the source of the Mg and its behavior during hydrothermal alteration have yet to be clarified. Mg isotopes have been used in recent years to investigate a variety of geological processes, including low temperature weathering and metamorphism processes, and Mg cycling in sediments. In this study, we investigate the source of Mg and its behavior in chlorite-rich sediments collected during IODP Expedition 331 from the active hydrothermal Iheya North Knoll field in the middle Okinawa Trough — an intra-continental rift in continental crust. This area is characterized by hemipelagic muds with interbedded thick layers of felsic pumiceous volcanic material. Based on mineralogical, geochemical, and isotopic data, we have previously suggested that the chlorite-rich sediments resulted from hydrothermal alteration of the pumiceous layers at temperatures of 220-300°C. Prior to Mg isotope analysis, all selected samples were pretreated with 1N HCl in order to remove carbonates and other unstable minerals, and measurements were made on both the residues (mainly chlorite) and leachates, as well as on bulk samples. The residues are expected to show higher δ26Mg than the leachates reflecting the Mg isotopic signature of the pumiceous material precursor and provide insight into the behavior of Mg isotopes during the high-temperature hydrothermal processes.

Fe-rich carbonate chimney in Okinawa Trough Implication for Fe-driven Microbial Anaerobic Oxidation of Methane (AMO)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, X.; Guo, Z.

2016-12-01

Marine sediments associated with cold seeps at continental margins discharge substantial amounts of methane. Microbial anaerobic oxidation of methane (AMO) is a key biogeochemical process in these environments, which can trigger the formation of carbonate chimneys within sediments. The exact biogeochemical mechanism of how AMO control the formation of carbonate chimneys and influence their mineralogy and chemistry remains poorly constrained. Here, we use nano-scale secondary ion mass spectrometry to characterize the petrology and geochemistry of methane-derived Fe-rich carbonate chimneys formed between 5-7 Ma in the Northern Okinawa Trough. We find abundant framboid pyrites formed in the authigenic carbonates in the chimneys, indicating a non-Fe limitation sedimentary system. The δ13C values of carbonate (-18.9‰ to -45.9‰, PDB) show their probable origin from a mixing source of biogenic and thermogenic methane. The δ34S values range from -3.9 ± 0.5‰ to 23.2 ± 0.5‰ (VCDT), indicative of a strong exhaustion of sulfates in a local sulfate pool. We proposed that Fe-rich carbonate chimneys formed at the bottom of the sulfate-methane transition zone, beneath which Fe-driven AOM may happen and provide available ferrous for the extensive precipitation of pyrite in carbonate chimneys. The accumulation of reductive Fe in sediments via this process may widely occur in other analogous settings, with important application for Fe and S biogeochemical cycling within deep sediments at continental margins.

Contrasting behavior of tungsten and molybdenum in the Okinawa Trough, the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sohrin, Yoshiki; Matsui, Masakazu; Nakayama, Eiichiro

1999-10-01

By using catalytic current polarography and high-resolution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, W and Mo in seawater were determined in the Okinawa Trough, a backarc rift, and in the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea. Mo was distributed conservatively throughout the study area, and its salinity-normalized concentration was 104 ± 6 nM (n = 105). W was also uniformly distributed south of the Kuroshio Current (56 ± 7 pM, n = 51). Anomalous high concentrations of W (maximum 254 pM) were found in the Iheya Graben in the middle Okinawa Trough (>1000 m depth), which were probably supplied by hydrothermal activity. The concentrations of Mo and W in the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea showed linear correlation with salinity (26 < S < 35). The Mo data can be explained by mixing of seawater and river water of the Changjiang (Mo = 10 nM; Qu et al., 1993). However, the values of W extrapolated to S = 0 were largely different between two cruises (1200 pM in May-June 1987 and 540 pM in June 1994) and much higher than the reported concentrations of 160 pM for world rivers by Turekian (1969) and 30 pM for unpolluted Japanese rivers by Sohrin et al. (1989). Moreover, significantly high W was observed in the bottom water at stations near the Changjiang River estuary and the western Yellow Sea. While these data may suggest that W is released from the anoxic sediments of the continental shelf, we need more data to elucidate the mechanism controlling the distribution of W.

Characteristics of hydrocarbons in sediment core samples from the northern Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Huang, Xin; Chen, Shuai; Zeng, Zhigang; Pu, Xiaoqiang; Hou, Qinghua

2017-02-15

Sediment core samples from the northern Okinawa Trough (OT) were analyzed to determine abundances and distributions of hydrocarbons by gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS). The results show that the n-alkanes in this sediment core conform to a bimodal distribution, and exhibit an odd-to-even predominance of high molecular weights compared to an even-to-odd predominance in low molecular weight n-alkanes with maxima at C 16 and C 18 . The concentrations of bitumen, alkanes and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were higher in samples S10-07 than all others. Three maturity parameters as well as the ratios between parent phenanthrenes (Ps) and methylphenanthrenes (MPs) in samples S10-07 and S10-17 were higher. The distribution and composition of hydrocarbons in sample S10-07 suggest that one, or several, undetected hydrothermal fields may be present in the region of this sediment core. Results also suggest that volcanism may be the main reason for the observed distribution and composition of hydrocarbons in S10-17 sample. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dating of barite and anhydrite in sea-floor hydrothermal deposits in the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taisei, F.; Toyoda, S.; Uchida, A.; Ishibashi, J. I.; Totsuka, S.; Shimada, K.; Nakai, S.

2016-12-01

Dating of submarine hydrothermal activities has been an important issue in the aspect of the ore formation (Urabe, 1995) and biological systems sustained by the chemical species arising from hydrothermal activities (Macdonald et al., 1980). For this purpose, dating methods using radioactive disequilibrium such as U-Th method (e.g. You and Bickle, 1998) for sulfide, 226Ra-210Pb and 228Ra-228Th (e.g. Noguchi et al., 2011), Ra/Ba, and ESR (Electron Spin Resonance) methods for barite (Okumura et al., 2010) have been employed. In this study, firstly, we will report the first successful dating results on anhydrite using 226Ra-210Pb and 228Ra-228Th methods. The anhydrite samples were taken from the Daiyon-Yonaguni knoll field and the Hatoma knoll field and the Iheya North Knoll field of the Okinawa Trough by research cruises operated by JAMSTEC. The anhydrite crystals were physically scratched out of the samples. 226Ra, 228Ra and daughter nuclei were measured in the same samples for the ESR method by the low background gamma ray spectrometry. From the activity ratios, disequilibrium ages were obtained to be about 7.3 years by 226Ra-210Pb method, and to be 0.6-2.5 years by 228Ra-228Th method. Secondly, the ESR ages of barite taken from hydrothermal areas in the Okinawa trough range from 4.1 to 16000 years, filling the age gap of the maximum age, 150 years, of 226Ra-210Pb method and the minimum age, several thousand years of U-Th method, being the most appropriate age range to discuss the evolution of the hydrothermal systems. Interestingly, the 226Ra-210Pb and 228Ra-228Th ages for the same samples are the same or younger than the ESR ages. As for the latter samples, the reason has already been discussed (Uchida et al., 2015) as the deposits had been formed by two or more hydrothermal events. In the present paper, the disequilibrium and ESR ages will be simulated with these multiple hydrothermal events so that the differences in the ages are explained.

Waveform anomaly caused by strong attenuation in the crust and upper mantle in the Okinawa Trough region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Padhy, S.; Furumura, T.; Maeda, T.

2017-12-01

The Okinawa Trough is a young continental back-arc basin located behind the Ryukyu subduction zone in southwestern Japan, where the Philippine Sea Plate dives beneath the trough, resulting in localized mantle upwelling and crustal thinning of the overriding Eurasian Plate. The attenuation structure of the plates and surrounding mantle in this region associated with such complex tectonic environment are poorly documented. Here we present seismological evidence for these features based on the high-resolution waveform analyses and 3D finite difference method (FDM) simulation. We analyzed regional broadband waveforms recorded by F-net (NIED) of in-slab events (M>4, H>100 km). Using band-passed (0.5-8 Hz), mean-squared envelopes, we parameterized coda-decay in terms of rise-time (time from P-arrival to maximum amplitude in P-coda), decay-time (time from maximum amplitude to theoretical S-arrival), and energy-ratio defined as the ratio of energy in P-coda to that in direct P wave. The following key features are observed. First, there is a striking difference in S-excitation along paths traversing and not traversing the trough: events from SW Japan not crossing the trough show clear S waves, while those occurring in the trough show very weak S waves at a station close to the volcanic front. Second, some trough events exhibit spindle-shaped seismograms with strong P-coda excitation, obscuring the development of S waves, at back-arc stations; these waveforms are characterized by high decay-time (>10s) and high energy-ratio (>>1.0), suggesting strong forward scattering along ray paths. Third, some trough events show weak S-excitation characterized by low decay-time (<5s) and low energy-ratio (<1.0) at fore-arc stations, suggesting high intrinsic absorption. To investigate the mechanism of the observed anomalies, we will conduct FDM simulation for a suite of models comprising the key subduction features like localized mantle-upwelling and crustal thinning expected in the

Generation of high-Mg andesites in the Kueishantao volcano, the southernmost part of the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chu, C.; Chung, S.; Shinjo, R.; Wang, S.; Chen, C.

2004-12-01

Kueishantao is an emerged volcanic islet located at the western end of the Southernmost Part of Okinawa Trough (SPOT). The Okinawa Trough, extending from SW Kyushu, Japan to NE Taiwan, is widely regarded as a backarc basin that is built behind the Ryukyu arc-trench system owing to subduction of the Philippine Sea plate underneath the Eurasian plate. The SPOT, however, is not a simple backarc basin but an embryonic rift zone in which early arc volcanism occurs as a result of the Ryukyu subduction (Chung et al., 2000). The Kueishantao is one of such volcanoes thus formed in the SPOT and consists mainly of andesitic lava flows dated to be ˜7000 yr old. In this study, we report whole rock major and trace element, and Sr-Nd-Pb isotope compositions of the Kueishantao andesites. The results indicate that some of the samples have unexpectedly high magnesium, with MgO ≥ 5 wt.% and Mg# > 0.5, relative to their silica contents (SiO2≈ 60 wt.%), which allow them to be coined as high-Mg andesites (HMAs). In the incompatible element variation diagram, these Kueishantao HMAs exhibit enrichments in the large ion lithophile elements and Th, U and Pb, and depletions in the high field strength elements, features typical of arc lavas from the Ryukyu subduction zone as well as convergent margins worldwide. More interestingly, their overall geochemical compositions are very similar to those of the mean continental crust proposed by Rudnick and Fountain (1995). The Kueishantao HMAs have uniform isotope compositions, with low ɛ Nd (-4.3 to -5.0), high Sr (87Sr/86Sr¡Ö≈ 0.706) and Pb (18.75, 15.68 and 39.02 of 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb, respectively) ratios. Such ¡°continental¡± isotopic signatures have led previous workers (Chen et al., 1995) to argue significant crustal contamination as a major petrogenetic process, but our evaluation shows that this simple binary mixing model fails to explain their geochemical and Pb isotope systematics. We propose, instead

First Comparative Analysis of the Community Structures and Carbon Metabolic Pathways of the Bacteria Associated with Alvinocaris longirostris in a Hydrothermal Vent of Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Sun, Qing-Lei; Zeng, Zhi-Gang; Chen, Shuai; Sun, Li

2016-01-01

Alvinocaris longirostris is a species of shrimp existing in the hydrothermal fields of Okinawa Trough. To date the structure and function of the microbial community associated with A. longirostris are essentially unknown. In this study, by employment of the techniques of high through-put sequencing and clone library construction and analysis, we compared for the first time the community structures and metabolic profiles of microbes associated with the gill and gut of A. longirostris in a hydrothermal field of Okinawa Trough. Fourteen phyla were detected in the gill and gut communities, of which 11 phyla were shared by both tissues. Proteobacteria made up a substantial proportion in both tissues, while Firmicutes was abundant only in gut. Although gill and gut communities were similar in bacterial diversities, the bacterial community structures in these two tissues were significantly different. Further, we discovered for the first time the existence in the gill and gut communities of A. longirostris the genes (cbbM and aclB) encoding the key enzymes of Calvin-Benson-Bassham (CBB) cycle and the reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle, and that both cbbM and aclB were significantly more abundant in gill than in gut. Taken together, these results provide the first evidence that at least two carbon fixation pathways are present in both the gill and the gut communities of A. longirostris, and that the communities in different tissues likely differ in autotrophic productivity.

Detailed magnetic and gravity surveys around the hydrothermal area off Kumejima Island in the Mid-Okinawa Trough, southwestern Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitada, K.; Kasaya, T.; Iwamoto, H.; Nogi, Y.

2017-12-01

The Okinawa Trough is an active back-arc basin formed by the rifting associated with extension of the continental margin behind the Ryukyu trench. New hydrothermal sites were recently discovered off Kumejima Island in the Mid-Okinawa Trough and the hydrothermal mineral deposits were identified by seafloor surveys and rock samplings by ROV (e.g., JOGMEC, 2015). In order to characterize the sub-seafloor structures and the spatial distribution of the magmatic activity around the sites, we conducted the dense magnetic, gravity and bathymetric surveys with a line spacing of 0.5 nmi aboard the R/Vs Yokosuka and Kairei, operated by the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) in 2016. The geophysical data collected during the previous cruises in the area by JAMSTEC were additionally used for this study. Magnetic anomaly was calculated by subtracting the IGRF model and the magnetization intensity was estimated by the method of Parker and Huestis (1974). Free-air gravity anomaly was calculated with subtracting the normal gravity field and with corrections of the drift and of the Eötvös effect. Bouguer gravity anomaly was calculated based on the method of Parker (1972). The magnetization intensity and the Bouguer gravity anomaly reveal three characteristics of the hydrothermal area off Kumejima Island: 1) The distribution of magnetization around the hydrothermal sites shows two different types of sub-seafloor magnetic features. One is corresponded to the submarine knolls with a relatively high magnetization of 4 A/M. The other is an ENE-WSW trending magnetization distribution with relatively high and low intensities, which is consistent with the trend of the bathymetric lineament. These features are considered to be formed by magmatism associated with submarine volcanoes and back-arc rifting. 2) The reduced magnetization zone corresponding to the hydrothermal area probably attributes to hydrothermal alteration of the host rock. 3) The hydrothermal

Drilling constraints on bimodal volcanism and subsequent formation of contrasted uppermost crustal compositions at the middle Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamasaki, T.; Takaya, Y.; Mukae, N.; Nagase, T.; Tindell, T.; Totsuka, S.; Uno, Y.; Yonezu, K.; Nozaki, T.; Ishibashi, J. I.; Kumagai, H.; Maeda, L.; Shipboard Scientist, C.

2016-12-01

The Okinawa Trough (OT) is a young and actively spreading back-arc basin, extending behind the Ryukyu arc-trench system in the southeastern margin of the East China Sea. The OT is believed to be in an initial rifting stage (starting from 6-9 Ma), prior to the normal/stable seafloor spreading which constitutes the main stage of back-arc basin formation. Two drilling cruises ‒ the IODP Exp. 331 and SIP CK14-04 D/V Chikyu Cruise (Exp. 907) in 2010 and 2014 ‒ were conducted at the Iheya North Knoll, middle OT. The Iheya North Knoll is a domal volcanic complex consisting of small volcanic bodies. On these cruises, pumiceous gravel and altered rhyolitic rocks, as well as hemi-pelagic sediments, hydrothermal clay and Kuroko-type ores, were recovered from the upper 200 m of the crust. From Feb. 11, 2016 to Mar. 17, 2016, the SIP CK16-01 (Exp. 908) D/V Chikyu cruise was conducted at Iheya North Knoll and the sediment-covered rifting center of the Iheya-Minor Ridge area, middle OT. The Iheya-Minor ridge area is also an active hydrothermal field, located 25 km southeast of the Iheya North Knoll. In this area, basaltic rocks are widely distributed, and drilling has confirmed that the basaltic materials continue to 120 m below the seafloor. From an igneous petrological point of view, the volcanic rocks in the Okinawa Trough are characterized by bimodal basaltic and rhyolitic compositions, with a compositional gap between SiO2 = 56-66 wt%. The origin of the rhyolitic rock has been interpreted as magmatic differentiation of basaltic magma. However, the existence of an active basalt-hosted hydrothermal field in the Iheya-Minor ridge area suggests the presence of hot basaltic rocks at a shallow position in the crust, and reaching recharged seawater at this depth. Furthermore, the composition of felsic rocks just after the compositional gap (SiO2 = 67 wt%) is very similar to that of the minimum melt of a granitic system, and experimental partial melt of hydrous basalt. Therefore

Extremely magnetized abyssal lavas erupted in active back-arc of the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujii, M.; Sato, H.; Okino, K.

2017-12-01

Although high-amplitude of marine magnetic anomalies have been utilized for understanding for seafloor dynamics, the causal link between intensity of natural remanent magnetization and physical and chemical processes of extrusive rocks are still unclear. In addition, we essentially lack rock magnetic data of arc-back-arc lavas, which potentially provide strong constraints for understanding time- and spatial-dependent diversity of lava magnetization including mid-ocean ridge basalts. Here, we present new rock magnetic data of strongly magnetized basaltic rocks, which rank among the most magnetized in known oceanic basaltic rocks, from active back-arc region of the Okinawa Trough. We analyzed 27 non-oxidized (fresh) basaltic rock samples obtained from the active back-arc volcanoes, located at the segment boundary along back-arc rift. Their natural remanent magnetization ranges 7 A/m to >200 A/m, and has clear nonlinear relationship with both magnetic hysteresis signatures and titanomagnetite amount. The strongly magnetized lavas show large contribution of appropriate amount of SD titanomagnetite grains formed in proper crystal growth environments. The high-temperature thermomagnetic experiments demonstrate reversible curves in both heating and cooling with single Curie temperature. The Curie temperature shows up to 480°C for strongly magnetized lavas, which is much higher than that of mid-ocean ridge basalts mainly containing TM60, indicating that rich Fe and low Ti contents of titanomagnetite grains are main magnetic carrier. These observations clearly demonstrate that intensity of natural remanent magnetization is primarily controlled by cooling rate of lavas and ratio of Fe to Ti of titanomagnetite grains as well as bulk iron contents, with important implications towards marine magnetic anomalies and arc-back-arc volcanism.

The Characteristics of Heat Flow in the Ryukyu Trench-Arc-Basin System: Constraints on Thermal Structure and Evolution of the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, L.

2017-12-01

Heat flow is an important constraint to study the thermal structure and evolution in modeling experiments. Based on the surface heat flow map and recent geochemistry results, a 2D transient heat conduction-advection model is used to investigate how the effects of sedimentation rate, magmatic intrusion, extension duration and rate on the surface heat flow distribution of the Okinawa Trough. Surface heat flow distribution map is interpolated based on a data set with 664 measurements in the Ryukyu trench-arc-basin system. The map shows an obviously correspondence between heat flows and tectonic zones, characterized by belts in E-W and blocks in S-N. The heat flow is extremely high and variable in the central Okinawa Trough (COT). The lowest heat values are distributed in the northwest of West Philippine Sea near the Ryukyu Trench. This phenomenon is likely related to increasing hydrothermal circulation of cold water into the upper portion of the incoming plate because of bend-faulting and little sediment coverage. Simulation results show that (1) High sedimentation rate can reduce heat flow by 30-35 % in the southern OT. (2) The sedimentation-corrected heat flow indicates that mantle upwelling occurred in the whole OT. The isotherm of 1000°C reaches to the depth of 19 km in the axil of the COT after 10 Ma. (3) The heat flow can be improved drastically by dyke intrusion along normal faults, but subsequent decreases rapidly about 15% after 0.1 Ma, which indicates the age of dyke intrusion under the Iheya area is younger than 0.5 Ma, and the depth is shallower than 2 km. Moreover, the magma fluid upward migrated along the magma conduits is required for the extremely high heat flow and its Darcy velocity can reach to 9 cm/yr. Based on the distribution of heat flow, we suggest that there is a different evolution model between the central- northern OT and the southern. The time of rifting in the NOT-COT began at 10 Ma with the mean rate of 0.4 cm/yr, while the rifting of

Characteristics of the cultivable bacteria from sediments associated with two deep-sea hydrothermal vents in Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Sun, Qing-lei; Wang, Ming-qing; Sun, Li

2015-12-01

In this study, different culture-dependent methods were used to examine the cultivable heterotrophic bacteria in the sediments associated with two deep-sea hydrothermal vents (named HV1 and HV2) located at Iheya Ridge and Iheya North in Okinawa Trough. The two vents differed in morphology, with HV1 exhibiting diffuse flows while HV2 being a black smoker with a chimney-like structure. A total of 213 isolates were identified by near full-length 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Of these isolates, 128 were from HV1 and 85 were from HV2. The bacterial community structures were, in large parts, similar between HV1 and HV2. Nevertheless, differences between HV1 and HV2 were observed in one phylum, one class, 4 orders, 10 families, and 20 genera. Bioactivity analysis revealed that 25 isolates belonging to 9 different genera exhibited extracellular protease activities, 21 isolates from 11 genera exhibited extracellular lipase activities, and 13 isolates of 8 genera displayed antimicrobial activities. This is the first observation of a large population of bacteria with extracellular bioactivities existing in deep-sea hydrothermal vents. Taken together, the results of this study provide new insights into the characteristics of the cultivable heterotrophic bacteria in deep-sea hydrothermal ecosystems.

Vapor-rich Hydrothermal Fluid Migration Within Pumiceous Sediment in the Iheya North Knoll, Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishibashi, J.; Suzuki, R.; Hamasaki, H.; Yamanaka, T.; Chiba, H.; Tsunogai, U.; Ijiri, A.; Nakagawa, S.; Nunoura, T.; Takai, K.; Kinoshita, M.; Ashi, J.

2007-12-01

The newly developed ROV NSS (Navigable Sampling System) enabled pin-point piston core sampling from the active hydrothermal field. In the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the mid-Okinawa Trough (27°47.5'N, 126°53.8'E, depth = 1000m), animal colonies are observed not only around the central mound structure (named as NBC) which discharges vigrously high temperature (T=311°C) clear fluid, but also as Calyptogena colony at 200m east from the NBC mound and as tube-worm colony at 250m southeast from the NBC mound. During Leg 3 of KY05-14 cruise (R/V Kaiyo of JAMSTEC) in Jan. 2005, fourn piston cores were successfully recovered with length from 65cm to 250cm. Surface sediments from the Calyptogena colony and the tube-worm colony were revealed as mainly composed of pumiceous sediment. Pore fluids from the Calyptogena Field showed unusual chemistry characterized as very low salinity (Cl=420mM), low Mg concentration, significantly lower Na/Cl ratio than seawater and high methane concentration, which suggests contribution of a vapor-rich hydrothermal component migrating within the pumice layer from the activity center. Moreover, decrease of SO4 accompanied by increase of alkalinity is notable even less than one meter depth below the seafloor. In situ sulfate reduction in the surface sediment caused by entrainment of the hydrothermal component would be a source of hydrogen sulfide that supports Calyptogena colony.

Mid-depth sedimentary oxygenation variation in the western Pacific since the last glacial period: geochemical evidence from the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zou, J. J.; Shi, X.; Zhu, A.

2017-12-01

In this study, we investigate a suite of sediment geochemical proxies (total organic carbon and carbonate contents, carbon to nitrogen ratio, aluminum and redox-sensitive elements) to reconstruct the history of sedimentary oxygenation in the northern Okinawa Trough (OT) over the last 50 thousand years (ka). Our data support the presence of oxygen-deficient deep waters during the late deglacial and Preboreal phases (15‒9.5 ka), but oxygenated water column during the Heinrich Stadial 1 (HS1) and the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). In contrast, increased sedimentary oxygenations are evident during the late glacial period and since 8.5 ka. Fluctuations of sedimentary oxygenation were widespread and apparently coherent over the entire North Pacific basin, reflecting broad effects of North Pacific Intermediate Water (NPIW) ventilation and export productivity. Intensified Kuroshio, however, improved the sedimentary oxygenation since 8.5 ka. We found the correspondence between changes in deglacial sedimentary oxygenation in the OT and Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation through the NPIW ventilation. The mechanism behind Atlantic-Pacific ventilation seesaw seems to be attributed to the perturbation of sea ice formation in high latitude North Pacific through atmospheric teleconnection.

Results of Physical Property Measurements Obtained during the CHIKYU Cruise CK16-01 to Hydrothermal Fields of the Middle Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanikawa, W.; Masaki, Y.; Komori, S.; Torimoto, J.; Makio, M.; Ohta, Y.; Nozaki, T.; Ishibashi, J. I.; Kumagai, H.; Maeda, L.; Hamada, Y.

2016-12-01

The middle Okinawa trough, along the Ryukyu-arc on the margin of the western Pacific, fosters several hydrothermal fields. The cruise CK16-01 of D/V CHIKYU targeted the Iheya-North Field and Noho hydrothermal site. More than ten-days extensive coring was carried out with Logging While Drilling (LWD) and deployment of Kuroko cultivation apparatus between February 29th to March 17th2016. Here we present the results of the physical property measurements obtained using Chikyu's on-board laboratory. Cores were sampled among three sites where the seafloor environments were quite different: the Noho site (C9017), a site between the Natsu and Aki sites of the Iheya-North field (C9021), and the Iheya-North Aki site (C9023). Site C9017 was near the center of the hydrothermal activity, and the obtained core was limited 36 m in length and 30 % in the recovery rate. At 70 mbsf (meters below seafloor), the grain density and bulk density of the sediment reached their maxim (3.7 g/m3 and 2.7 g/cm3, respectively), while thermal conductivity reached its lowest value (0.6 W/m·K). Site C9021 yielded a 54 m core, with a core recovery rate of 50 %. Coarse pumiceous layers were found at 68 mbsf, with a hydrothermally altered layer appearing below 68 mbsf. The mean grain density value was 2.4 g/cm3 and was uniform throughout the core. The mean bulk density value of the pumiceous layers was 1.3 g/cm3, and of the hydrothermally altered layer was 2.1 g/cm3. Site C9023 was close to the active hydrothermal chimneys of the Iheya-North Aki site, and yielded 33 m of core with a core recovery rate of 16 %. Massive sulfide layers were found below 48 mbsf with grain density and bulk density values varying between 2.8-4.7 g/cm3 and 1.5-3.9 g/cm3, respectively. Magnetic susceptibility exhibited a high anomaly in a sedimented anhydrite layer found between 95 and 135 mbsf, and a high porosity and low resistivity zone was found below 150 mbsf. Together, these data from drilling cores and onboard

Elemental compositions of crab and snail shells from the Kueishantao hydrothermal field in the southwestern Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeng, Zhigang; Ma, Yao; Wang, Xiaoyuan; Chen, Chen-Tung Arthur; Yin, Xuebo; Zhang, Suping; Zhang, Junlong; Jiang, Wei

2018-04-01

To reveal differences in the behavior of benthic vent animals, and the sources and sinks of biogeochemical and fluid circulations, it is necessary to constrain the chemical characteristics of benthic animals from seafloor hydrothermal fields. We measured the abundances of 27 elements in shells of the crab Xenograpsus testudinatus and the snail Anachis sp., collected from the Kueishantao hydrothermal field (KHF) in the southwestern Okinawa Trough, with the aim of improving our understanding of the compositional variations between individual vent organisms, and the sources of the rare earth elements (REEs) in their shells. The Mn, Hg, and K concentrations in the male X. testudinatus shells are found to be higher than those in female crab shells, whereas the reverse is true for the accumulation of B, implying that the accumulation of K, Mn, Hg, and B in the crab shells is influenced by sex. This is inferred to be a result of the asynchronous molting of the male and female crab shells. Snail shells are found to have higher Ca, Al, Fe, Ni, and Co concentrations than crab shells. This may be attributed to different metal accumulation times. The majority of the light rare earth element (LREE) distribution patterns in the crab and snail shells are similar to those of Kueishantao vent fluids, with the crab and snail shells also exhibiting LREE enrichment, implying that the LREEs contained in crab and snail shells in the KHF are derived from vent fluids.

Rifting Process and Geomorphic Development of the Okinawa Tough, Southwest Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sato, T.; Arai, K.; Inoue, T.; Matsumoto, D.

2012-12-01

The Ryukyu Island Arc extends from Kyushu to Taiwan, a distance of 1,200 km, along the Ryukyu Trench where the Philippine Sea Plate is subducting beneath the Eurasian Plate. The Okinawa Trough, a back arc basin has formed behind the Ryukyu Island Arc in late Pliocene to early Pleistocene. The research cruises of GH11 (from 14 July to 15 August, 2011) and GH12 (from 20 to 30 July, 2012) were carried out around the Okinawa Trough. More than 3,600 miles multi channel high-resolution seismic profiles were acquired during these cruises by the GI-gun (Generator 250 cu inch and Injector 105 cu. inch) systems with 16ch digital streamer cable. As a result, two unconformities and three depositional sequence divided by the unconformities are recognized in the trough. The lower and the midlle sequence are tilted and blocked by many normal faults, on the other hand the upper one is not tilted and shows the pattern of onlap fill. From this result, the upper sequence started to deposit after start of the rifting. Additionally, internal reflection of the upper sequence shows the cyclic activities of the rifting. The position of the rifting axis was revealed based on dip of the normal faults. As a result, rifting axis shows echelon arrangement and the displacement of the faults are varied with the segment of the arrangement. The location of the segment boundaries is correlated with geometrical boundary of the adjacent slope. Steep slope with incised valley is distributed in southwestern part where the displacement of the normal fault is large, on the other hand, gentle slope without incised valley is distributed in northeastern part where the displacement is small. This difference of the displacement strongly controls the geometry of the adjacent slope.

Carboxydobrachium pacificum gen. nov., sp. nov., a new anaerobic, thermophilic, CO-utilizing marine bacterium from Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Sokolova, T G; González, J M; Kostrikina, N A; Chernyh, N A; Tourova, T P; Kato, C; Bonch-Osmolovskaya, E A; Robb, F T

2001-01-01

A new anaerobic, thermophilic, CO-utilizing marine bacterium, strain JMT, was isolated from a submarine hot vent in Okinawa Trough. Cells of strain JMT were non-motile thin straight rods, sometimes branching, with a cell wall of the Gram-positive type, surrounded with an S-layer. Chains of three to five cells were often observed. The isolate grew chemolithotrophically on CO, producing equimolar quantities of H2 and CO2 (according to the equation CO+H2O-->CO2+H2) and organotrophically on peptone, yeast extract, starch, cellobiose, glucose, galactose, fructose and pyruvate, producing H2, acetate and CO2. Growth was observed from 50 to 80 degrees C with an optimum at 70 degrees C. The optimum pH was 6.8-7.1. The optimum concentration of sea salts in the medium was 20.5-25.5 g l(-1). The generation time under optimal conditions was 7.1 h. The DNA G+C content was 33 mol %. Growth of isolate JMT was not inhibited by penicillin, but ampicillin, streptomycin, kanamycin and neomycin completely inhibited growth. The results of 16S rDNA sequence analysis revealed that strain JMT belongs to the Thermoanaerobacter phylogenetic group within the Bacillus-Clostridium subphylum of Gram-positive bacteria but represents a separate branch of this group. On the basis of morphological and physiological features and phylogenetic data, this isolate should be assigned to a new genus, for which the name Carboxydobrachium is proposed. The type species is Carboxydobrachium pacificum; the type strain is JMT (= DSM 12653T).

Magnetic anomalies associated with abundant production of pyrrhotite in a sulfide deposit in the Okinawa Trough, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Honsho, Chie; Yamazaki, Toshitsugu; Ura, Tamaki; Okino, Kyoko; Morozumi, Haruhisa; Ueda, Satoshi

2016-11-01

We report here results from a deep-sea magnetic survey using an autonomous underwater vehicle over the Hakurei hydrothermal site, in the middle Okinawa Trough. Magnetic inversion revealed that the Hakurei site is associated with well-defined high-magnetization zones distributed within a broad low-magnetization zone. Results from rock magnetic measurements, performed on sulfide ore samples obtained by drilling, showed that some samples possessed extremely high natural remanent magnetization (NRM) (as much as 6.8-953.0 A/m), although most of the measured samples had much lower NRM. These high-NRM samples were characterized by high Königsberger ratios (101-103), indicating much larger NRM than induced magnetization, and contained pyrrhotite as the only magnetic mineral. This suggests that NRM carried by pyrrhotite is the source of the observed magnetic anomalies. The wide range of NRM intensity was considered to be due to a highly heterogeneous distribution of pyrrhotite, because pyrrhotite was commonly identified in both the high-NRM and low-NRM samples. Pyrrhotite production may have been occasionally drastically increased, with highly magnetic ores formed as a result. Rapid burial of active vents may result in the creation of an extensive reducing environment under the seafloor, which is favorable to pyrrhotite production, and may also prevent oxidation of pyrrhotite by isolating it from seawater. Because the magnetization intensity of sulfide ores was highly variable, it would not be straightforward to estimate the quantity of ore deposits from the magnetic anomalies. Nevertheless, this study demonstrates the usefulness of magnetic surveys in detecting hydrothermal deposits.

First results from the in-situ temperature measurements by the newly developed downhole tool during the drilling cruise in the hydrothermal fields of the mid-Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitada, K.; Wu, H. Y.; Miyazaki, J.; Akiyama, K.; Nozaki, T.; Ishibashi, J. I.; Kumagai, H.; Maeda, L.

2016-12-01

The Okinawa trough is an active backarc basin behind the Ryukyu subduction zone and exhibits active rifting associated with extension of the continental margin. The temperature measurement in this area is essential for understanding hydrothermal system and hydraulic structure. During the CK16-01 cruise this March, we have conducted the in-situ temperature measurements by the newly developed downhole tool, TRDT (Thermo-Resistant Downhole Thermometer) in hydrothermal fields of the mid-Okinawa Trough. The purpose of this measurement is to investigate the in-situ temperature structure in deep-hot zones and its variation after coring and/or drilling. TRDT was designed by JAMSTEC as a memory downhole tool to measure in-situ borehole temperature under the extreme high temperature environment. First trial was conducted in the CK14-04 cruise by the free fall deployment to reduce the operation time. However, there was no temperature data recorded due to the strong vibration during the operation. After CK14-04 cruise, TRDT was modified to improve the function against vibration and shock. The improved TRDT passed the high temperature, vibration and shock tests to ensure the data acquisition of borehole logging. During the CK16-01 cruise, we have first successfully collected the in-situ temperature data from hydrothermal borehole in the Iheya North Knoll with wireline system. The temperature at depth of 187mbsf continued to increase almost linearly from 220 to 245°C during the 20 minute measurements time. This suggests that the inside borehole was cooled down by pumping seawater through drill pipes during the coring and lowering down the TRDT tool to the bottom hole. The in-situ temperature were extrapolated with exponential curve using nonlinear least squares fitting and the estimated equilibrium temperature was 278°C. To recover the in-situ temperature more precisely, the measurement time should kept as long as possible by considering the temperature rating. The operational

The influence of a subduction component on magmatism in the Okinawa Trough: Evidence from thorium and related trace element ratios

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Kun; Zeng, Zhi-Gang; Chen, Shuai; Zhang, Yu-Xiang; Qi, Hai-Yan; Ma, Yao

2017-09-01

The Okinawa Trough (OT) is a back-arc, initial continental marginal sea basin located behind the Ryukyu Arc-Trench System. Formation and evolution of the OT have been intimately related to subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate (PSP) since the late Miocene; thus, the magma source of the trough has been affected by subduction components, as in the case of other active back-arc basins, including the Lau Basin (LB) and Mariana Trough (MT). We review all the available geochemical data relating to basaltic lavas from the OT and the middle Ryukyu Arc (RA) in this paper in order to determine the influence of the subduction components on the formation of arc and back-arc magmas within this subduction system. The results of this study reveal that the abundances of Th in OT basalts (OTBs) are higher than that in LB (LBBs) and MT basalts (MTBs) due to the mixing of subducted sediments and EMI-like enriched materials. The geochemical characteristics of Th and other trace element ratios indicate that the OTB originated from a more enriched mantle source (compared to N-mid-ocean ridge basalt, N-MORB) and was augmented by subducted sediments. Data show that the magma sources of the south OT (SOT) and middle Ryukyu Arc (MRA) basalts were principally influenced by subducted aqueous fluids and bulk sediments, which were potentially added into magma sources by accretion and underplating. At the same time, the magma sources of the middle OT (MOT) and Kobi-syo and Sekibi-Syo (KBS+SBS) basalts were impacted by subducted aqueous fluids from both altered oceanic crust (AOC) and sediment. The variable geochemical characteristics of these basalts are due to different Wadati-Benioff depths and tectonic environments of formation, while the addition of subducted bulk sediment to SOT and MRA basalts may be due to accretion and underplating, and subsequent to form mélange formation, which would occur partial melting after aqueous fluids are added. The addition of AOC and sediment aqueous fluid

Comparative Single-Cell Genomics of Chloroflexi from the Okinawa Trough Deep-Subsurface Biosphere.

PubMed

Fullerton, Heather; Moyer, Craig L

2016-05-15

Chloroflexi small-subunit (SSU) rRNA gene sequences are frequently recovered from subseafloor environments, but the metabolic potential of the phylum is poorly understood. The phylum Chloroflexi is represented by isolates with diverse metabolic strategies, including anoxic phototrophy, fermentation, and reductive dehalogenation; therefore, function cannot be attributed to these organisms based solely on phylogeny. Single-cell genomics can provide metabolic insights into uncultured organisms, like the deep-subsurface Chloroflexi Nine SSU rRNA gene sequences were identified from single-cell sorts of whole-round core material collected from the Okinawa Trough at Iheya North hydrothermal field as part of Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) expedition 331 (Deep Hot Biosphere). Previous studies of subsurface Chloroflexi single amplified genomes (SAGs) suggested heterotrophic or lithotrophic metabolisms and provided no evidence for growth by reductive dehalogenation. Our nine Chloroflexi SAGs (seven of which are from the order Anaerolineales) indicate that, in addition to genes for the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway, exogenous carbon sources can be actively transported into cells. At least one subunit for pyruvate ferredoxin oxidoreductase was found in four of the Chloroflexi SAGs. This protein can provide a link between the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway and other carbon anabolic pathways. Finally, one of the seven Anaerolineales SAGs contains a distinct reductive dehalogenase homologous (rdhA) gene. Through the use of single amplified genomes (SAGs), we have extended the metabolic potential of an understudied group of subsurface microbes, the Chloroflexi These microbes are frequently detected in the subsurface biosphere, though their metabolic capabilities have remained elusive. In contrast to previously examined Chloroflexi SAGs, our genomes (several are from the order Anaerolineales) were recovered from a hydrothermally driven system and therefore provide a unique window into

Microbial community in a sediment-hosted CO2 lake of the southern Okinawa Trough hydrothermal system

PubMed Central

Inagaki, Fumio; Kuypers, Marcel M. M.; Tsunogai, Urumu; Ishibashi, Jun-ichiro; Nakamura, Ko-ichi; Treude, Tina; Ohkubo, Satoru; Nakaseama, Miwako; Gena, Kaul; Chiba, Hitoshi; Hirayama, Hisako; Nunoura, Takuro; Takai, Ken; Jørgensen, Bo B.; Horikoshi, Koki; Boetius, Antje

2006-01-01

Increasing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are expected to cause climatic change with negative effects on the earth's ecosystems and human society. Consequently, a variety of CO2 disposal options are discussed, including injection into the deep ocean. Because the dissolution of CO2 in seawater will decrease ambient pH considerably, negative consequences for deep-water ecosystems have been predicted. Hence, ecosystems associated with natural CO2 reservoirs in the deep sea, and the dynamics of gaseous, liquid, and solid CO2 in such environments, are of great interest to science and society. We report here a biogeochemical and microbiological characterization of a microbial community inhabiting deep-sea sediments overlying a natural CO2 lake at the Yonaguni Knoll IV hydrothermal field, southern Okinawa Trough. We found high abundances (>109 cm−3) of microbial cells in sediment pavements above the CO2 lake, decreasing to strikingly low cell numbers (107 cm−3) at the liquid CO2/CO2-hydrate interface. The key groups in these sediments were as follows: (i) the anaerobic methanotrophic archaea ANME-2c and the Eel-2 group of Deltaproteobacteria and (ii) sulfur-metabolizing chemolithotrophs within the Gamma- and Epsilonproteobacteria. The detection of functional genes related to one-carbon assimilation and the presence of highly 13C-depleted archaeal and bacterial lipid biomarkers suggest that microorganisms assimilating CO2 and/or CH4 dominate the liquid CO2 and CO2-hydrate-bearing sediments. Clearly, the Yonaguni Knoll is an exceptional natural laboratory for the study of consequences of CO2 disposal as well as of natural CO2 reservoirs as potential microbial habitats on early Earth and other celestial bodies. PMID:16959888

Formation of carbonate pipes in the northern Okinawa Trough linked to strong sulfate exhaustion and iron supply

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, Xiaotong; Guo, Zixiao; Chen, Shun; Sun, Zhilei; Xu, Hengchao; Ta, Kaiwen; Zhang, Jianchao; Zhang, Lijuan; Li, Jiwei; Du, Mengran

2017-05-01

The microbial anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM), a key biogeochemical process that consumes substantial amounts of methane produced in seafloor sediments, can lead to the formation of carbonate deposits at or beneath the sea floor. Although Fe oxide-driven AOM has been identified in cold seep sediments, the exact mode by which it may influence the formation of carbonate deposits remains poorly understood. Here, we characterize the morphology, petrology and geochemistry of a methane-derived Fe-rich carbonate pipe in the northern Okinawa Trough (OT). We detect abundant authigenic pyrites, as well as widespread trace Fe, within microbial mat-like carbonate veins in the pipe. The in situ δ34S values of these pyrites range from -3.9 to 31.6‰ (VCDT), suggesting a strong consumption of seawater sulfate by sulfate-driven AOM at the bottom of sulfate reduction zone. The positive δ56Fe values of pyrite and notable enrichment of Fe in the OT pipe concurrently indicate that the pyrites are primarily derived from Fe oxides in deep sediments. We propose that the Fe-rich carbonate pipe formed at the bottom of sulfate reduction zone, below which Fe-driven AOM, rather than Fe-oxide reduction coupled to organic matter degradation, might be responsible for the abundantly available Fe2+ in the fluids from which pyrites precipitated. The Fe-rich carbonate pipe described in this study probably represents the first fossil example of carbonate deposits linked to Fe-driven AOM. Because Fe-rich carbonate deposits have also been found at other cold seeps worldwide, we infer that similar processes may play an essential role in biogeochemical cycling of sub-seafloor methane and Fe at continental margins.

Deepest and hottest hydrothermal activity in the Okinawa Trough: the Yokosuka site at Yaeyama Knoll

PubMed Central

Miyazaki, Junichi; Kawagucci, Shinsuke; Makabe, Akiko; Takahashi, Ayu; Kitada, Kazuya; Torimoto, Junji; Matsui, Yohei; Tasumi, Eiji; Shibuya, Takazo; Nakamura, Kentaro; Horai, Shunsuke; Sato, Shun; Ishibashi, Jun-ichiro; Kanzaki, Hayato; Nakagawa, Satoshi; Hirai, Miho; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Okino, Kyoko; Watanabe, Hiromi Kayama; Kumagai, Hidenori

2017-01-01

Since the initial discovery of hydrothermal vents in 1977, these ‘extreme’ chemosynthetic systems have been a focus of interdisciplinary research. The Okinawa Trough (OT), located in the semi-enclosed East China Sea between the Eurasian continent and the Ryukyu arc, hosts more than 20 known vent sites but all within a relatively narrow depth range (600–1880 m). Depth is a significant factor in determining fluid temperature and chemistry, as well as biological composition. However, due to the narrow depth range of known sites, the actual influence of depth here has been poorly resolved. Here, the Yokosuka site (2190 m), the first OT vent exceeding 2000 m depth is reported. A highly active hydrothermal vent site centred around four active vent chimneys reaching 364°C in temperature, it is the hottest in the OT. Notable Cl depletion (130 mM) and both high H2 and CH4 concentrations (approx. 10 mM) probably result from subcritical phase separation and thermal decomposition of sedimentary organic matter. Microbiota and fauna were generally similar to other sites in the OT, although with some different characteristics. In terms of microbiota, the H2-rich vent fluids in Neuschwanstein chimney resulted in the dominance of hydrogenotrophic chemolithoautotrophs such as Thioreductor and Desulfobacterium. For fauna, the dominance of the deep-sea mussel Bathymodiolus aduloides is surprising given other nearby vent sites are usually dominated by B. platifrons and/or B. japonicus, and a sponge field in the periphery dominated by Poecilosclerida is unusual for OT vents. Our insights from the Yokosuka site implies that although the distribution of animal species may be linked to depth, the constraint is perhaps not water pressure and resulting chemical properties of the vent fluid but instead physical properties of the surrounding seawater. The potential significance of these preliminary results and prospect for future research on this unique site are discussed

Deepest and hottest hydrothermal activity in the Okinawa Trough: the Yokosuka site at Yaeyama Knoll

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miyazaki, Junichi; Kawagucci, Shinsuke; Makabe, Akiko; Takahashi, Ayu; Kitada, Kazuya; Torimoto, Junji; Matsui, Yohei; Tasumi, Eiji; Shibuya, Takazo; Nakamura, Kentaro; Horai, Shunsuke; Sato, Shun; Ishibashi, Jun-ichiro; Kanzaki, Hayato; Nakagawa, Satoshi; Hirai, Miho; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Okino, Kyoko; Watanabe, Hiromi Kayama; Kumagai, Hidenori; Chen, Chong

2017-12-01

Since the initial discovery of hydrothermal vents in 1977, these `extreme' chemosynthetic systems have been a focus of interdisciplinary research. The Okinawa Trough (OT), located in the semi-enclosed East China Sea between the Eurasian continent and the Ryukyu arc, hosts more than 20 known vent sites but all within a relatively narrow depth range (600-1880 m). Depth is a significant factor in determining fluid temperature and chemistry, as well as biological composition. However, due to the narrow depth range of known sites, the actual influence of depth here has been poorly resolved. Here, the Yokosuka site (2190 m), the first OT vent exceeding 2000 m depth is reported. A highly active hydrothermal vent site centred around four active vent chimneys reaching 364°C in temperature, it is the hottest in the OT. Notable Cl depletion (130 mM) and both high H2 and CH4 concentrations (approx. 10 mM) probably result from subcritical phase separation and thermal decomposition of sedimentary organic matter. Microbiota and fauna were generally similar to other sites in the OT, although with some different characteristics. In terms of microbiota, the H2-rich vent fluids in Neuschwanstein chimney resulted in the dominance of hydrogenotrophic chemolithoautotrophs such as Thioreductor and Desulfobacterium. For fauna, the dominance of the deep-sea mussel Bathymodiolus aduloides is surprising given other nearby vent sites are usually dominated by B. platifrons and/or B. japonicus, and a sponge field in the periphery dominated by Poecilosclerida is unusual for OT vents. Our insights from the Yokosuka site implies that although the distribution of animal species may be linked to depth, the constraint is perhaps not water pressure and resulting chemical properties of the vent fluid but instead physical properties of the surrounding seawater. The potential significance of these preliminary results and prospect for future research on this unique site are discussed.

Structure and clay mineralogy: borehole images, log interpretation and sample analyses at Site C0002 Nankai Trough accretionary prism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jurado, Maria Jose; Schleicher, Anja

2015-04-01

Our research focused on the characterization of fracture and fault structures from the deep Nankai Trough accretionary prism in Japan. Logging Data and cuttings samples from the two most recent International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expeditions 338 and 348 of the NanTroSEIZE project were analyzed by Logging While Drilling (LWD) oriented images, geophysical logs and clay mineralogy. Both expeditions took place at Site C0002, but whereas Hole C0002F (Expedition 338) was drilled down to 2004.5 mbsf, Hole C0002N and C0002P (Expedition 348) reached a depth of 2325.5 mbsf and 3058.8 mbsf respectively. The structural interpretation of borehole imaging data illustrates the deformation within the fractured and faulted sections of the accretionary prism. All drill holes show distinct areas of intense fracturing and faulting within a very clay-dominated lithology. Here, smectite and illite are the most common clay minerals, but the properties and the role they may play in influencing the fractures, faults and folds in the accretionary prism is still not well understood. When comparing clay mineralogy and fracture/fault areas in hole C0002F (Expedition 338), a trend in the abundance of illite and smectite, and in particular the swelling behavior of smectite is recognizable. In general, the log data provided a good correlation with the actual mineralogy and the relative abundance of clay. Ongoing postcruise preliminary research on hole C0002 N and C0002P (Expedition 348) should confirm these results. The relationship between fracture and fault structures and the changes in clay mineralogy could be explained by the deformation of specific areas with different compaction features, fluid-rock interaction processes, but could also be related to beginning diagenetic processes related to depth. Our results show the integration of logging data and cutting sample analyses as a valuable tool for characterization of petrophysical and mineralogical changes of the structures of the

Bacterial communities associated with Shinkaia crosnieri from the Iheya North, Okinawa Trough: Microbial diversity and metabolic potentials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Jian; Zeng, Zhi-gang; Chen, Shuai; Sun, Li

2018-04-01

Shinkaia crosnieri is a galatheid crab endemic to the deep-sea hydrothermal systems in the Okinawa Trough. In this study, we systematically analyzed and compared the diversity and metabolic potentials of the microbial communities in different tissues (setae, gill, and intestine) of S. crosnieri by high-throughput sequencing technology and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Sequence analysis based on the V3-V4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene obtained 408,079 taxon tags, which covered 15 phyla, 22 classes, 32 orders, 42 families, and 25 genera. Overall, the microbial communities in all tissues were dominated by Epsilonproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria, of which Epsilonproteobacteria was the largest class and accounted for 85.24% of the taxon tags. In addition, 20 classes of bacteria were discovered for the first time to be associated with S. crosnieri and no archaea were detected. Comparative analysis showed that (i) bacteria from different tissues fell into different groups by β-diversity analysis, (ii) bacterial communities in intestine were similar to that in gill and much more diverse than that in setae, and the sulfur-oxidizing genus Sulfurovum was markedly enriched in intestine and gill. Furthermore, bacteria potentially involved in methane, nitrogen, and metal metabolisms were detected in all samples. The key genes of aprA/dsrA and pmoA involved in sulfate reducing and methane oxidization, respectively, were detected in the gill and gut communities for the first time, and pmoA was significantly more abundant in gill and setae than in intestine. These results provide the first comparative and relatively complete picture of the diversity and metabolic potentials of the bacteria in different tissues of S. crosnieri. These results also indicate that the composition of the microbial communities in hydrothermal fauna changes with time, suggesting the importance of environmental influence.

ITCZ and ENSO pacing on East Asian winter monsoon variation during the Holocene: Sedimentological evidence from the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Xufeng; Li, Anchun; Wan, Shiming; Jiang, Fuqing; Kao, Shuh Ji; Johnson, Cody

2014-07-01

Deep-sea fan sediments provide an excellent geological archive for paleoenvironment reconstruction. Grain size, clay mineral and elemental (Ti, Fe, Ca) compositions were measured for a core retrieved from a submarine fan in the Okinawa Trough. Varimax-rotated Principal Component Analysis (V-PCA) on time-evolution of grain size spectrum reveals that, since the Holocene, sediment was transported mainly by the benthic nepheloid layer (33%) and upper layers (33%) which is driven by the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM). The intensification of the Kuroshio Current during the Holocene, masks the fluvial signal of the summer monsoon and obstructs clay minerals derived from the Yellow River, a major contributor prior to 12 ka BP. A new grain size index (GSI), which represents the EAWM well, exhibits a negative correlation with the δ18O record in Dongge Cave, China during the Holocene when sea level was relatively steady. This anticorrelation suggests the southward migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). The consistency among our records and rainfall records in Peru, Ti counts in the Cariaco Basin, monsoon records in Oman and the averaged summer insolation pattern at 30°N further support the ITCZ's impact on monsoon systems globally. Cross-Correlation Analyses for GSI and log(Ti/Ca) against δ18O record in Dongge Cave reveal a decoupling between the East Asian winter and summer monsoon during 5500-2500 cal yr BP, with greater complexity in the last 2500 years. This can be attributed to exacerbated ENSO mode fluctuations and possibly anthropogenic interference superimposed on insolation and ITCZ forcing.

ITCZ and ENSO pacing on East Asian winter monsoon variation during the Holocene: Sedimentological evidence from the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Xufeng; Li, Anchun; Wan, Shiming; Kao, Shuhji; Kuhn, Gerhard

2016-04-01

Deep-sea fan sediments provide an excellent geological archive for paleoenvironment reconstruction. Grain size, clay mineral and elemental (Ti, Fe, Ca) compositions were measured for a core retrieved from a submarine fan in the Okinawa Trough. Varimax-rotated Principal Component Analysis (V-PCA) on time-evolution of grain size spectrum reveals that, since the Holocene, sediment was transported mainly by the benthic nepheloid layer (33%) and upper layers (33%) which is driven by the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM). The intensification of the Kuroshio Current during the Holocene, masks the fluvial signal of the summer monsoon and obstructs clay minerals derived from the Yellow River, a major contributor prior to 12 ka BP. A new grain size index (GSI), which represents the EAWM well, exhibits a negative correlation with the δ18O record in Dongge Cave, China during the Holocene when sea level was relatively steady. This anticorrelation suggests the southward migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). The consistency among our records and rainfall records in Peru, Ti counts in the Cariaco Basin, monsoon records in Oman and the averaged summer insolation pattern at 30°N further support the ITCZ's impact on monsoon systems globally. Cross-Correlation Analyses for GSI and log(Ti/Ca) against δ18O record in Dongge Cave reveal a decoupling between the East Asian winter and summer monsoon during 5500-2500 cal yr BP, with greater complexity in the last 2500 years. This can be attributed to exacerbated ENSO mode fluctuations and possibly anthropogenic interference superimposed on insolation and ITCZ forcing.

Spatial variability in recruitment of benthos near drilling sites in the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakamura, Masako; Nakajima, Yuichi; Watanabe, Hiromi Kayama; Sasaki, Takenori; Yamamoto, Hiroyuki; Mitarai, Satoshi

2018-05-01

Due to increasing anthropogenic impacts on deep-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystems, it is essential to understand population structure and maintenance through larval recruitment and recovery of vent faunas after disturbances. In this study, we quantified vent animal recruitment in the Okinawa Trough, in the western Pacific Ocean. This is the first study to investigate recruitment patterns at a man-made hydrothermal vent. Colonization plates were deployed at three sites. Site 1 manifested new hydrothermal shimmering with small chimneys, white bacterial mats, and some alvinocaridid shrimp that arrived after drilling. Site 2 showed no evidence of newly arrived foundation species after drilling, and Site 3 had pre-existing animal communities in the vicinity of the new vent. Twenty-two months after deployment, colonization plates were retrieved and recruited animals were inventoried. Species composition and abundance differed among sites, but relatively high similarity in species composition was observed at Sites 1 and 3, though not at Site 2. Newly established communities on the plates at Sites 1 and 2 (no pre-existing fauna) showed lower species richness and abundance than at Site 3. Differences in abundance and size-frequency distributions of major recruits on the plates (i.e. Lepetodrilus nux, Bathymodiolus spp.) suggest the importance of reproductive and early life-history characteristics in spatial variability of recruitment. Lepetodrilus nux populations established on the plates at Site 1 showed high genetic connectivity. These results illustrate the importance of localized recruitment, which may have a significant impact on sustainability of vent faunal populations, despite the existence of regional metapopulations.

Okinawa, Japan

NASA Image and Video Library

1991-08-11

The southern half of the island of Okinawa, Japan (26.5N, 128.0E) can be seen in this nearly cloud free view. Okinawa is part of the Ryuku Islands which extend from Taiwan northeastward to Kyushu, southernmost of the Japanese Home Islands. The large military base at Kadena, with large runways, is visible near the center of the scene. Kadena is one of several emergency landing sites around the world for the space shuttle.

Marine Subsurface Microbial Communities Across a Hydrothermal Gradient in Okinawa Trough Sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandt, L. D.; Hser Wah Saw, J.; Ettema, T.; House, C. H.

2015-12-01

IODP Expedition 331 to the Okinawa backarc basin provided an opportunity to study the microbial stratigraphy within the sediments surrounding a hydrothermal vent. The Okinawa backarc basin is a sedimented region of the seafloor located on a continental margin, and also hosts a hydrothermal network within the subsurface. Site C0014 within the Iheya North hydrothermal field is located 450 m east of the active vent and has a surface temperature of 5°C with no evidence of hydrothermal alteration within the top 10 meters below sea floor (mbsf). Temperature increases with depth at an estimated rate of 3°C/m and transitions from non-hydrothermal margin sediments to a hydrothermally altered regime below 10 mbsf. In this study, we utilized deep 16S rRNA sequencing of DNA from IODP Expedition 331 Site C0014 sediment horizons in order to assess diversity throughout the sediment column as well as determine the potential limits of the biosphere. Analysis of the amplicon data shows a shift over 15 mbsf from a heterogeneous community of cosmopolitan marine subsurface taxa toward an archaeal-dominated community in the deepest horizons of the predicted biosphere. Notably, the phylum Chloroflexi represents a substantial taxon through most horizons, where it appears to be replaced below 10 mbsf by punctuations of thermophilic and methanotrophic Archaea and Miscellaneous Crenarchaeotic Group abundances. DNA from the aforementioned transition horizons was further analyzed using metagenomic sequencing. Preliminary taxonomic analysis of the metagenomic data agrees well with amplicon data in capturing the shift in relative abundance of Archaea increasing with depth. Additionally, reverse gyrase, a gene found exclusively in hyperthermophilic microorganisms, was recovered only in the metagenome of the deepest horizon. A BLAST search of this protein sequence against the GenBank non-redudnant protein database produced top hits with reverse gyrase from Thermococcus and Pyrococcus, which are

Geochemical Evidence for Recent Hydrothermal Alteration of Marine Sediments in Mid-Okinawa Trough, Southwest Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanaka, A.; Abe, G.; Yamaguchi, K. E.

2014-12-01

Recent studies have shown that submarine hydrothermal system supports diverse microbial life. Bio-essential metals supporting such microbial communities were released from basalts by high-temperature water-rock interaction in deeper part of the oceanic crust and carried by submarine fluid flow. Its total quantity in global hydrothermal settings has been estimated to be on the order of ~1019 g/yr, which is surprisingly on the same order of the total river flows (Urabe et al., 2011). Therefore, it is important to explore how submarine river system works, i.e., to understand mechanism and extent of elemental transport, which should lead to understanding of the roles of hydrothermal circulation in oceanic crust in controlling elemental budget in the global ocean and geochemical conditions to support deep hot biosphere. 　We performed REE analysis of marine sediments influenced by submarine hydrothermal activity in Mid-Okinawa Trough. The sediment samples used in this study are from IODP site at Iheya North region and JADE site at Izena region. The samples show alternation between volcanic and clastic sediments. Hydrothermal fluids of this area contain elevated concentrations of volatile components such as H2, CO2, CH4, NH4+, and H2S, supporting diverse chemoautotrophic microbial community (Nakagawa et al., 2005). The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of hydrothermal activity on the REE signature of the sediments. Chondrite-normalized REE patterns of the samples show relative enrichment of light over heavy REEs, weak positive Ce anomalies, and variable degrees of negative Eu anomalies. The REE patterns suggest the sediments source was mainly basalt, suggesting insignificant input of continental materials. Negative Eu anomalies found in the IODP site become more pronounced with increasing depth, suggesting progressive increase of hydrothermal alteration where Eu was reductively dissolved into fluids by decomposition of feldspars. Contrary, at the JADE site

ESR dating of barite in sea-floor hydrothermal sulfide deposits at Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fujiwara, T.; Toyoda, S.; Uchida, A.; Ishibashi, J.; Nakai, S.; Takamasa, A.

2013-12-01

The temporal change of submarine hydrothermal activities has been an important issue in the aspect of the evolution of hydrothermal systems which is related with ore formation and biological systems sustained by the chemical species arising from hydrothermal activities (Macdonald et al., 1980). With this aspect, Okumura et al. (2010) made the first practical application of ESR (electron spin resonance) dating technique to a sample of submarine hydrothermal barite to obtain preliminary ages, while Kasuya et al. (1991) first pointed out that barite can be used for ESR dating. ESR is a method to observe radicals having unpaired electrons. As natural radiation creates unpaired electrons in minerals, the age is deduced by dividing the natural radiation dose (obtained from the amount of unpaired electrons) by the dose rate which is estimated by the amount of environmental radioactive elements. The samples were taken by the research cruises, NT12-10 and NT11-20 and NT12-06 operated by JAMSTEC from Hatoma, Yoron, Izena, North Iheya, and Yonaguni IV Knolls of Okinawa Trough. The blocks of sulfide deposits were cut into pieces, and about 2.0g was crushed. The samples were soaked in 12M hydrochloric acid, left for approximately 24 hours. Then, 13M nitric acid was added. Finally, after rinsing in distilled water, the sample was filtered and dried. Impurities were removed by handpicking. A X-ray diffraction study was made to confirm that the grains are pure barite. After γ-ray irradiation at Takasaki Advanced Radiation Research Institute, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, they were measured at room temperature with an ESR spectrometer (JES-PX2300) with a microwave power of 1mW, and the magnetic field modulation amplitude of 0.1mT. The equivalent natural radiation doses were obtained from the increase of ESR signal intensity of SO3- by irradiation. The bulk Ra concentration was measured by the low background pure Ge gamma ray spectrometer. Assuming that Ra is populated only in barite

Post-Drilling Changes in Seabed Landscape and Megabenthos in a Deep-Sea Hydrothermal System, the Iheya North Field, Okinawa Trough

PubMed Central

Nakajima, Ryota; Yamamoto, Hiroyuki; Kawagucci, Shinsuke; Takaya, Yutaro; Nozaki, Tatsuo; Chen, Chong; Fujikura, Katsunori; Miwa, Tetsuya; Takai, Ken

2015-01-01

There has been an increasing interest in seafloor exploitation such as mineral mining in deep-sea hydrothermal fields, but the environmental impact of anthropogenic disturbance to the seafloor is poorly known. In this study, the effect of such anthropogenic disturbance by scientific drilling operations (IODP Expedition 331) on seabed landscape and megafaunal habitation was surveyed for over 3 years using remotely operated vehicle video observation in a deep-sea hydrothermal field, the Iheya North field, in the Okinawa Trough. We focused on observations from a particular drilling site (Site C0014) where the most dynamic change of landscape and megafaunal habitation was observed among the drilling sites of IODP Exp. 331. No visible hydrothermal fluid discharge had been observed at the sedimentary seafloor at Site C0014, where Calyptogena clam colonies were known for more than 10 years, before the drilling event. After drilling commenced, the original Calyptogena colonies were completely buried by the drilling deposits. Several months after the drilling, diffusing high-temperature hydrothermal fluid began to discharge from the sedimentary subseafloor in the area of over 20 m from the drill holes, ‘artificially’ creating a new hydrothermal vent habitat. Widespread microbial mats developed on the seafloor with the diffusing hydrothermal fluids and the galatheid crab Shinkaia crosnieri endemic to vents dominated the new vent community. The previously soft, sedimentary seafloor was hardened probably due to barite/gypsum mineralization or silicification, becoming rough and undulated with many fissures after the drilling operation. Although the effects of the drilling operation on seabed landscape and megafaunal composition are probably confined to an area of maximally 30 m from the drill holes, the newly established hydrothermal vent ecosystem has already lasted 2 years and is like to continue to exist until the fluid discharge ceases and thus the ecosystem in the area

Post-drilling changes in seabed landscape and megabenthos in a deep-sea hydrothermal system, the Iheya North field, Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Nakajima, Ryota; Yamamoto, Hiroyuki; Kawagucci, Shinsuke; Takaya, Yutaro; Nozaki, Tatsuo; Chen, Chong; Fujikura, Katsunori; Miwa, Tetsuya; Takai, Ken

2015-01-01

There has been an increasing interest in seafloor exploitation such as mineral mining in deep-sea hydrothermal fields, but the environmental impact of anthropogenic disturbance to the seafloor is poorly known. In this study, the effect of such anthropogenic disturbance by scientific drilling operations (IODP Expedition 331) on seabed landscape and megafaunal habitation was surveyed for over 3 years using remotely operated vehicle video observation in a deep-sea hydrothermal field, the Iheya North field, in the Okinawa Trough. We focused on observations from a particular drilling site (Site C0014) where the most dynamic change of landscape and megafaunal habitation was observed among the drilling sites of IODP Exp. 331. No visible hydrothermal fluid discharge had been observed at the sedimentary seafloor at Site C0014, where Calyptogena clam colonies were known for more than 10 years, before the drilling event. After drilling commenced, the original Calyptogena colonies were completely buried by the drilling deposits. Several months after the drilling, diffusing high-temperature hydrothermal fluid began to discharge from the sedimentary subseafloor in the area of over 20 m from the drill holes, 'artificially' creating a new hydrothermal vent habitat. Widespread microbial mats developed on the seafloor with the diffusing hydrothermal fluids and the galatheid crab Shinkaia crosnieri endemic to vents dominated the new vent community. The previously soft, sedimentary seafloor was hardened probably due to barite/gypsum mineralization or silicification, becoming rough and undulated with many fissures after the drilling operation. Although the effects of the drilling operation on seabed landscape and megafaunal composition are probably confined to an area of maximally 30 m from the drill holes, the newly established hydrothermal vent ecosystem has already lasted 2 years and is like to continue to exist until the fluid discharge ceases and thus the ecosystem in the area has

Structural Imaging around the SMS Deposit by the Multi-Source ZVCS Survey Method in the Izena Hole, Mid-Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tara, K.; Asakawa, E.; Murakami, F.; Tsukahara, H.; Saito, S.; Lee, S.; Katou, M.; Jamali Hondori, E.; Sumi, T.; Kadoshima, K.; Kose, M.

2017-12-01

Seafloor Massive Sulfide (SMS) deposits typically show rugged topography such as abundant chimney structures and sulfide mounds. However, buried SMS deposits are not well studied because of few efficient methods to detect and characterize them. Therefore, we proposed a Zero-offset Vertical Cable Seismic (ZVCS) survey using a Sparker and a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) which was equipped with autonomous hydrophone arrays and a sub-bottom profiler (SBP). Zero-offset shooting and near-bottom recording can acquire high resolution acoustic data that could separate the reflection and scattered wave by vertically towed hydrophone arrays. We conducted the multi-source ZVCS survey in the Hakurei site, where the existence of the exposed and the buried SMS deposits has been reported, in Izena Hole, the Mid-Okinawa Trough, during the exploration cruise JM16-04. We obtained the two source's cross-sections of the buried SMS that enabled us to identify the area from the viewpoint of seismic facies. Buried SMS area is characterized by wavy to subparallel internal configuration and semi-continuously reflections. These features suggest that results from collapse of original sedimentary structure and hydrothermal alteration. Previous our exploration of the entire Izena Hole by the Autonomous Cable Seismic (ACS) were conducted in the JM16-02. Comparison between the ZVCS and ACS results gave us not only structural features in the surrounding area of SMS, but also the hydrothermal system of the Izena Hole. These results suggest that the hydrothermal circulation in the Izena Hole is vertically limited to the fracture zone caused by the depression and the buried SMS occurs in a sedimentary layer in the fracture zone. We conclude that ZVCS and ACS imaging of the shallow sub-seafloor structures will be useful for discussion about the geological background of SMS deposits.

Unanticipated discovery of two rare gastropod molluscs from recently located hydrothermally influenced areas in the Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Chen, Chong; Watanabe, Hiromi Kayama; Miyazaki, Junichi; Kawagucci, Shinsuke

2017-01-01

The deep-sea hydrothermal vent is one of the most 'extreme' environments in the marine realm. Few species are capable of inhabiting such ecosystems, despite extremely high productivity there supported by microbial chemosynthesis, leading to high biomass and low species richness. Although gastropod molluscs are one of the main constituents of megafaunal communities at vent ecosystems, most species belong to several typical families (e.g., Provannidae, Peltospiridae, Lepetodrilidae) specialised and adapted to life at vents. During recent surveys of Okinawa Trough hydrothermal vent systems, two snails atypical of vent ecosystems were unexpectedly found in newly discovered hydrothermally influenced areas. Shell and radular characteristics were used to identify the gastropods morphologically. One species was a vetigastropod, the calliostomatid Tristichotrochus ikukoae (Sakurai, 1994); and the other was a caenogastropod, the muricid Abyssotrophon soyoae (Okutani, 1959). Both gastropods were previously only known from regular non-chemosynthetic deep-sea and very rare-only two definitive published records exist for T. ikukoae and three for A. soyoae . The radula formula of Tristichotrochus ikukoae is accurately reported for the first time and based on that it is returned to genus Otukaia . For both species, barcode sequences of the cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene were obtained and deposited for future references. These new records represent the second record of calliostomatids from vents (third from chemosynthetic ecosystems) and the third record of muricids from vents (tenth from chemosynthetic ecosystems), and extend the distribution of both species to the southwest. Neither family has been recorded at chemosynthetic ecosystems in the western Pacific. Both were from weakly diffuse flow areas not subject to high temperature venting but were nevertheless associated with typical vent-reliant taxa such as Lamellibrachia tubeworms and Bathymodiolus mussels. These new

Unanticipated discovery of two rare gastropod molluscs from recently located hydrothermally influenced areas in the Okinawa Trough

PubMed Central

Watanabe, Hiromi Kayama; Miyazaki, Junichi; Kawagucci, Shinsuke

2017-01-01

Background The deep-sea hydrothermal vent is one of the most ‘extreme’ environments in the marine realm. Few species are capable of inhabiting such ecosystems, despite extremely high productivity there supported by microbial chemosynthesis, leading to high biomass and low species richness. Although gastropod molluscs are one of the main constituents of megafaunal communities at vent ecosystems, most species belong to several typical families (e.g., Provannidae, Peltospiridae, Lepetodrilidae) specialised and adapted to life at vents. Methods During recent surveys of Okinawa Trough hydrothermal vent systems, two snails atypical of vent ecosystems were unexpectedly found in newly discovered hydrothermally influenced areas. Shell and radular characteristics were used to identify the gastropods morphologically. Results One species was a vetigastropod, the calliostomatid Tristichotrochus ikukoae (Sakurai, 1994); and the other was a caenogastropod, the muricid Abyssotrophon soyoae (Okutani, 1959). Both gastropods were previously only known from regular non-chemosynthetic deep-sea and very rare—only two definitive published records exist for T. ikukoae and three for A. soyoae. The radula formula of Tristichotrochus ikukoae is accurately reported for the first time and based on that it is returned to genus Otukaia. For both species, barcode sequences of the cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene were obtained and deposited for future references. Discussion These new records represent the second record of calliostomatids from vents (third from chemosynthetic ecosystems) and the third record of muricids from vents (tenth from chemosynthetic ecosystems), and extend the distribution of both species to the southwest. Neither family has been recorded at chemosynthetic ecosystems in the western Pacific. Both were from weakly diffuse flow areas not subject to high temperature venting but were nevertheless associated with typical vent-reliant taxa such as Lamellibrachia tubeworms

New evidence for Kuroshio inflow and deepwater circulation in the Okinawa Trough, East China Sea: Sedimentary mercury variations over the last 20 kyr

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, Dhongil; Kim, Jihun; Xu, Zhaokai; Jeong, Kapsik; Jung, Hoisoo

2017-06-01

The evolution of the Kuroshio Current (KC) in the Okinawa Trough (OT) has long been of paleoceanographic interest and has been the focus of many investigations because of its large impacts on both the ocean environment and the climate in East Asia. Here we present a new high-resolution mercury (Hg) record from the OT sediments that provides robust evidence for the glacial-interglacial variabilities of KC inflow. The Hg levels are anomalously high in the Holocene deposits, which feature a large and abrupt Hg increase at 9.6 ka and a significant drop at 4.5-3.2 ka. Our observations show that most Hg was derived from seafloor hydrothermal plumes via active lateral transportation. Thus, the generally high Hg levels since 9.6 ka are associated with enhanced basin-wide deepwater circulation triggered by the KC inflow. This driving mechanism for the deposition and widespread of Hg is also evidenced by an abrupt drop in Hg levels during the late Holocene neoglacial cold period ( 5-3 ka) when the KC inflow was temporarily interrupted and deepwater circulation was consequently weak or even absent in the OT. The changes in sedimentary Hg appear to be synchronous with those in other geochemical proxies that suggest that bottom water conditions switched from anoxic to oxic due to increased upwelling from the bottom in tandem with the strengthening KC and reduced freshwater effect since 9.6 ka. This study shows that the hydrothermal Hg is a sensitive and independent tool for the reconstruction of paleodynamics of KC in the OT.

Vertical Cable Seismic (VCS) Survey for SMS exploration in Izena Cauldron, Okinawa-Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asakawa, Eiichi; Murakami, Fumitoshi; Tsukahara, Hitoshi; Mizohata, Shigeharu; Tara, Kenji

2015-04-01

In 2014, the Japanese government started the Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP), which includes 'New-generation Offshore Exploration Techniques' as an area of interest. We proposed the Vertical Cable Seismic (VCS) survey technique for this program, especially for the exploration of Seafloor Massive Sulfides (SMS). VCS is a reflection seismic method that uses hydrophone arrays vertically moored from the seafloor to record acoustic waves generated by various acoustic sources. This method is useful to delineate detailed structures in a spatially-limited area below the seabed in the deep sea where conventional surface seismic is not effective. We have been developing an autonomous VCS system with the financial support of the Japanese government since 2009. We have carried out several VCS surveys and completed our VCS system. Izena Cauldron, Okinawa Trough is one of the most promising SMS areas around Japan. There are two high potential areas, the north and south mound. We carried out the first VCS survey around the north mound in 2011 and the second survey around the south mound in 2013 respectively. The first VCS survey in Izena Cauldron was carried out using a GI gun in September, 2011, with the objective of surveying the large-scale and deeper structure of the hydrothermal system. The water depth was 1,500-1,600m. Four VCS systems were deployed. The shooting lines covered an area of 9 km x 9 km with a shooting interval of about 25m and line spacing of 200m to 400m. In the second survey, we used a high-voltage sparker. The objective is to explore very shallow parts to delineate very thin SMS deposits. The survey area was about 4 km x 4km with a 12.5 m shooting interval and 100m to 200m line spacing. Three VCS systems were deployed in this survey. The result of the first GI gun VCS survey was a 3D PSDM volume of the subsurface structure. It extends 2,000m horizontally and down to 1,500m in depth. Further, by re-processing the data with a

Lebetimonas natsushimae sp. nov., a novel strictly anaerobic, moderately thermophilic chemoautotroph isolated from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent polychaete nest in the Mid-Okinawa Trough.

PubMed

Nagata, Ryousuke; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Tame, Akihiro; Nunoura, Takuro; Muto, Hisashi; Mino, Sayaka; Sawayama, Shigeki; Takai, Ken; Nakagawa, Satoshi

2017-09-01

A moderately thermophilic, strictly anaerobic, chemoautotrophic bacterium, designated strain HS1857 T , was isolated from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent at the Noho site in the Mid-Okinawa Trough. Strain HS1857 T grew between 35 and 63°C (optimum 55°C), in the presence of 10-55gl -1 NaCl (optimum 25gl -1 ), and pH 5.5-7.1 (optimum 6.4). Growth occurred with molecular hydrogen as the electron donor and elemental sulfur, nitrate, or selenate as the electron acceptors. Formate could serve as an alternative electron donor with nitrate as an electron acceptor. During growth with nitrate as the electron acceptor, strain HS1857 T produced ammonium and formed a biofilm. CO 2 was utilized as the sole carbon source. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 33.2mol%. Phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence indicated that strain HS1857 T is a member of the order Nautiliales, showing a sequence similarity of 95.0% with Lebetimonas acidiphila Pd55 T . The fatty acid composition was similar to that of L. acidiphila, which was dominated by C 18:0 (47.0%) and C 18:1 (23.7%). Based on the genomic, chemotaxonomic, phenotypic characteristics, the name Lebetimonas natsushimae sp. nov., is proposed. The type strain is HS1857 T (=NBRC 112478 T =DSM 104102 T ). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Major components of seawater and hydrothermal plumes in the Okinawa Trough, East China Sea, and Yellow Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zeng, Z.; Rong, K.; Chen, C. T. A.; Wang, X.; Qi, H.

2017-12-01

Analyses of the major components of seawater and hydrothermal plumes in hydrothermal fields are essential for an improved understanding of ocean carbonate system, element solubility and redox reactions (e.g., iron and copper). The composition of major components in seawater and hydrothermal plume samples from 118 stations have been investigated in the Okinawa Trough (OT), East China Sea (ECS), and Yellow Sea (YS). At least seven water masses take part in the mixing processes: the Kuroshio water, OT water, ECS water, YS water, Taiwan Strait water, vent fluid and hydrothermal plume water. About 6 - 16 % of the plume water comes from the Kuroshio deep water, 50 - 64% of the hydrothermal plume water comes from the vent fluid in the wet and dry season. In addition, the calculated SHVF (36 and 36.8) and SHPW (35 and 35.8) values are higher than the measured salinity values (34.4) of hydrothermal plumes in the OT. Major elements exhibit linear correlation in seawater (e.g., B3+ and Sr2+) of the OT, the ECS, and the YS. Element ratios (e.g., Sr/Ca, Ca/Cl) in OT water column are similar to that in average seawater, indicating that Sr/Ca and Ca/Cl ratios might be a useful proxy for chemical properties of seawater. Furthermore, from the southern and middle OT to the northern OT, ECS, and YS, the salinity, potential density, Cl/salinity ratio of seawater tend to decrease. The positive correlations between major components (e.g., SO42-, Cl-), physical properties (e.g., salinity, temperature, potential density) and current (velocity) in the seawater column suggests that the physical and chemical properties of seawater in the OT are affected by input of the Kuroshio current. In the Iheya North knoll, Clam, Yonaguni Knoll IV, and Tangyin hydrothermal fields of the OT, anomalous layers of seawater in the water column have higher Ca/SO42-, Mn/Mg ratios and higher optical anomalies than other layers, suggesting that the chemical variations of hydrothermal plumes result in the

Marine Subsurface Microbial Community Shifts Across a Hydrothermal Gradient in Okinawa Trough Sediments

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Sediments within the Okinawa back-arc basin overlay a subsurface hydrothermal network, creating intense temperature gradients with sediment depth and potential limits for microbial diversity. We investigated taxonomic changes across 45 m of recovered core with a temperature gradient of 3°C/m from the dynamic Iheya North Hydrothermal System. The interval transitions sharply from low-temperature marine mud to hydrothermally altered clay at 10 meters below seafloor (mbsf). Here, we present taxonomic results from an analysis of the 16S rRNA gene that support a conceptual model in which common marine subsurface taxa persist into the subsurface, while high temperature adapted archaeal taxa show localized peaks in abundances in the hydrothermal clay horizons. Specifically, the bacterial phylum Chloroflexi accounts for a major proportion of the total microbial community within the upper 10 mbsf, whereas high temperature archaea (Terrestrial Hot Spring Crenarchaeotic Group and methanotrophic archaea) appear in varying local abundances in deeper, hydrothermal clay horizons with higher in situ temperatures (up to 55°C, 15 mbsf). In addition, geochemical evidence suggests that methanotrophy may be occurring in various horizons. There is also relict DNA (i.e., DNA preserved after cell death) that persists in horizons where the conditions suitable for microbial communities have ceased. PMID:28096736

Transformer Efficiency Assessment - Okinawa, Japan

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thomas L. Baldwin; Robert J. Turk; Kurt S. Myers

The US Army Engineering & Support Center, Huntsville (USAESCH), and the US Marine Corps Base (MCB), Okinawa, Japan retained Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to conduct a Transformer Efficiency Assessment of “key” transformers located at multiple military bases in Okinawa, Japan. The purpose of this assessment is to support the Marine Corps Base, Okinawa in evaluating medium voltage distribution transformers for potential efficiency upgrades. The original scope of work included the MCB providing actual transformer nameplate data, manufacturer’s factory test sheets, electrical system data (kWh), demand data (kWd), power factor data, and electricity cost data. Unfortunately, the MCB’s actual data ismore » not available and therefore making it necessary to de-scope the original assessment. Note: Any similar nameplate data, photos of similar transformer nameplates, and basic electrical details from one-line drawings (provided by MCB) are not a replacement for actual load loss test data. It is recommended that load measurements are performed on the high and low sides of transformers to better quantify actual load losses, demand data, and power factor data. We also recommend that actual data, when available, be inserted by MCB Okinawa where assumptions have been made and then the LCC analysis updated. This report covers a generalized assessment of modern U.S. transformers in a three level efficiency category, Low-Level efficiency, Medium-Level efficiency, and High-Level efficiency.« less

Transformer Efficiency Assessment - Okinawa, Japan

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thomas L. Baldwin; Robert J. Turk; Kurt S. Myers

2012-05-01

The US Army Engineering & Support Center, Huntsville (USAESCH), and the US Marine Corps Base (MCB), Okinawa, Japan retained Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to conduct a Transformer Efficiency Assessment of “key” transformers located at multiple military bases in Okinawa, Japan. The purpose of this assessment is to support the Marine Corps Base, Okinawa in evaluating medium voltage distribution transformers for potential efficiency upgrades. The original scope of work included the MCB providing actual transformer nameplate data, manufacturer’s factory test sheets, electrical system data (kWh), demand data (kWd), power factor data, and electricity cost data. Unfortunately, the MCB’s actual data ismore » not available and therefore making it necessary to de-scope the original assessment. Note: Any similar nameplate data, photos of similar transformer nameplates, and basic electrical details from one-line drawings (provided by MCB) are not a replacement for actual load loss test data. It is recommended that load measurements are performed on the high and low sides of transformers to better quantify actual load losses, demand data, and power factor data. We also recommend that actual data, when available, be inserted by MCB Okinawa where assumptions have been made and then the LCC analysis updated. This report covers a generalized assessment of modern U.S. transformers in a three level efficiency category, Low-Level efficiency, Medium-Level efficiency, and High-Level efficiency.« less

Characterization of structures of the Nankai Trough accretionary prism from integrated analyses of LWD log response, resistivity images and clay mineralogy of cuttings: Expedition 338 Site C0002

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jurado, Maria Jose; Schleicher, Anja

2014-05-01

The objective of our research is a detailed characterization of structures on the basis of LWD oriented images and logs,and clay mineralogy of cuttings from Hole C0002F of the Nankai Trough accretionary prism. Our results show an integrated interpretation of structures derived from borehole images, petrophysical characterization on LWD logs and cuttings mineralogy. The geometry of the structure intersected at Hole C0002F has been characterized by the interpretation of oriented borehole resistivity images acquired during IODP Expedition 338. The characterization of structural features, faults and fracture zones is based on a detailed post-cruise interpretation of bedding and fractures on borehole images and also on the analysis of Logging While Drilling (LWD) log response (gamma radioactivity, resistivity and sonic logs). The interpretation and complete characterization of structures (fractures, fracture zones, fault zones, folds) was achieved after detailed shorebased reprocessing of resistivity images, which allowed to enhance bedding and fracture's imaging for geometry and orientation interpretation. In order to characterize distinctive petrophysical properties based on LWD log response, it could be compared with compositional changes derived from cuttings analyses. Cuttings analyses were used to calibrate and to characterize log response and to verify interpretations in terms of changes in composition and texture at fractures and fault zones defined on borehole images. Cuttings were taken routinely every 5 m during Expedition 338, indicating a clay-dominated lithology of silty claystone with interbeds of weakly consolidated, fine sandstones. The main mineralogical components are clay minerals, quartz, feldspar and calcite. Selected cuttings were taken from areas of interest as defined on LWD logs and images. The clay mineralogy was investigated on the <2 micron clay-size fraction, with special focus on smectite and illite minerals. Based on X-ray diffraction

The first microbiological contamination assessment by deep-sea drilling and coring by the D/V Chikyu at the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the Mid-Okinawa Trough (IODP Expedition 331)

PubMed Central

Yanagawa, Katsunori; Nunoura, Takuro; McAllister, Sean M.; Hirai, Miho; Breuker, Anja; Brandt, Leah; House, Christopher H.; Moyer, Craig L.; Birrien, Jean-Louis; Aoike, Kan; Sunamura, Michinari; Urabe, Tetsuro; Mottl, Michael J.; Takai, Ken

2013-01-01

During the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 331 at the Iheya North hydrothermal system in the Mid-Okinawa Trough by the D/V Chikyu, we conducted microbiological contamination tests of the drilling and coring operations. The contamination from the drilling mud fluids was assessed using both perfluorocarbon tracers (PFT) and fluorescent microsphere beads. PFT infiltration was detected from the periphery of almost all whole round cores (WRCs). By contrast, fluorescent microspheres were not detected in hydrothermally active core samples, possibly due to thermal decomposition of the microspheres under high-temperature conditions. Microbial contamination from drilling mud fluids to the core interior subsamples was further characterized by molecular-based evaluation. The microbial 16S rRNA gene phylotype compositions in the drilling mud fluids were mainly composed of sequences of Beta- and Gammaproteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes and not archaeal sequences. The phylotypes that displayed more than 97% similarity to the sequences obtained from the drilling mud fluids were defined as possible contaminants in this study and were detected as minor components of the bacterial phylotype compositions in 13 of 37 core samples. The degree of microbiological contamination was consistent with that determined by the PFT and/or microsphere assessments. This study suggests a constructive approach for evaluation and eliminating microbial contamination during riser-less drilling and coring operations by the D/V Chikyu. PMID:24265628

The first microbiological contamination assessment by deep-sea drilling and coring by the D/V Chikyu at the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the Mid-Okinawa Trough (IODP Expedition 331).

PubMed

Yanagawa, Katsunori; Nunoura, Takuro; McAllister, Sean M; Hirai, Miho; Breuker, Anja; Brandt, Leah; House, Christopher H; Moyer, Craig L; Birrien, Jean-Louis; Aoike, Kan; Sunamura, Michinari; Urabe, Tetsuro; Mottl, Michael J; Takai, Ken

2013-01-01

During the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 331 at the Iheya North hydrothermal system in the Mid-Okinawa Trough by the D/V Chikyu, we conducted microbiological contamination tests of the drilling and coring operations. The contamination from the drilling mud fluids was assessed using both perfluorocarbon tracers (PFT) and fluorescent microsphere beads. PFT infiltration was detected from the periphery of almost all whole round cores (WRCs). By contrast, fluorescent microspheres were not detected in hydrothermally active core samples, possibly due to thermal decomposition of the microspheres under high-temperature conditions. Microbial contamination from drilling mud fluids to the core interior subsamples was further characterized by molecular-based evaluation. The microbial 16S rRNA gene phylotype compositions in the drilling mud fluids were mainly composed of sequences of Beta- and Gammaproteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes and not archaeal sequences. The phylotypes that displayed more than 97% similarity to the sequences obtained from the drilling mud fluids were defined as possible contaminants in this study and were detected as minor components of the bacterial phylotype compositions in 13 of 37 core samples. The degree of microbiological contamination was consistent with that determined by the PFT and/or microsphere assessments. This study suggests a constructive approach for evaluation and eliminating microbial contamination during riser-less drilling and coring operations by the D/V Chikyu.

Association between Helicobacter pylori Virulence Factors and Gastroduodenal Diseases in Okinawa, Japan

PubMed Central

Matsunari, Osamu; Shiota, Seiji; Suzuki, Rumiko; Watada, Masahide; Kinjo, Nagisa; Murakami, Kazunari; Fujioka, Toshio; Kinjo, Fukunori

2012-01-01

The incidence of gastric cancer in Okinawa is lowest in Japan. Some previous reports using small number of strains suggested that the high prevalence of Helicobacter pylori with Western-type cagA in Okinawa compared to other areas in Japan might contribute to the low incidence of gastric cancer. It has still not been confirmed why the prevalence of Western-type cagA strains is high in Okinawa. We examined the association between the virulence factors of H. pylori and gastroduodenal diseases in Okinawa. The genotypes of cagA and vacA of 337 H. pylori strains were determined by PCR and gene sequencing. The genealogy of these Western-type cagA strains in Okinawa was analyzed by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Overall, 86.4% of the strains possessed cagA: 70.3% were East-Asian type and 16.0% were Western type. After adjustment by age and sex, the presence of East-Asian-type cagA/vacA s1m1 genotypes was significantly associated with gastric cancer compared to gastritis (odds ratio = 6.68, 95% confidence interval = 1.73 to 25.8). The structure of Western-type CagA in Okinawa was different from that of typical Western-type CagA found in Western countries. Intriguingly, MLST analysis revealed that the majority of Western-type cagA strains formed individual clusters but not hpEurope. Overall, low prevalence of gastric cancer in Okinawa may result from the high prevalence of non-East-Asian-type cagA strains. The origin of Western-type cagA strains in Okinawa may be different from those of Western countries. PMID:22189111

The Battle of Okinawa, 1945: Final Turning Point in the Pacific.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tzeng, Megan

2000-01-01

Reviews the last major battle of World War II that occurred at Okinawa (Japan) in 1945. Explains why the Battle of Okinawa was the turning point in World War II. Includes two maps in the appendix and an annotated bibliography. (CMK)

Molecular Epidemiological Study of Mumps Epidemics of 2015 in Okinawa, Japan.

PubMed

Kuba, Yumani; Kyan, Hisako; Arakaki, Eri; Takara, Taketoshi; Kato, Takashi; Okano, Sho; Oshiro, Yuko; Kudaka, Jun; Kidokoro, Minoru

2017-05-24

Although major mumps epidemics occurred every 4-5 years in Okinawa Prefecture in Japan, no laboratory diagnoses were conducted. A mumps epidemic started in Okinawa in October 2014, and we collected clinical samples from 31 patients in 4 areas (Hokubu, Nanbu, Miyako, and Yaeyama) from July to December 2015, for virus isolation and RT-PCR, whose positive ratios were 52% and 87%, respectively. Phylogenetic analyses showed that all isolates were classified into genotype G, and with one exception, consisted of 2 subgenotypes, Ge (55.6%) and Gw (40.7%), which have been prominent in Japan recently. One isolate was classified in another lineage, which was detected in Japan for the first time, and was similar to a Hong Kong isolate from 2014. Remarkably, the geographic distributions of the 2 major lineages were separated. The Ge viruses were isolated from the main island of Okinawa and the Yaeyama Islands, whereas the Gw isolates were mainly detected from the Miyako Islands. These results suggest that the Ge and Gw mumps viruses mainly caused the mumps epidemics of 2015 in Okinawa, and that they spread independently in separate regions. This is the first report describing the molecular epidemiology of mumps epidemics in Okinawa Prefecture.

Detection and phylogenetic analysis of hepatitis E viruses from mongooses in Okinawa, Japan.

PubMed

Nidaira, Minoru; Takahashi, Kazuaki; Ogura, Go; Taira, Katsuya; Okano, Shou; Kudaka, Jun; Itokazu, Kiyomasa; Mishiro, Shunji; Nakamura, Masaji

2012-12-01

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection has previously been reported in wild mongooses on Okinawa Island; to date however, only one HEV RNA sequence has been identified in a mongoose. Hence, this study was performed to detect HEV RNA in 209 wild mongooses on Okinawa Island. Six (2.9%) samples tested positive for HEV RNA. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that 6 HEV RNAs belonged to genotype 3 and were classified into groups A and B. In group B, mongoose-derived HEV sequences were very similar to mongoose HEV previously detected on Okinawa Island, as well as to those of a pig. This investigation emphasized the possibility that the mongoose is a reservoir animal for HEV on Okinawa Island.

Designer Troughs

NASA Image and Video Library

2006-06-11

This MOC image shows a wide, flat-floored trough flanked by several smaller, branching troughs in the Olympica Fossae region of Mars. Dark- and intermediate-toned slope streaks -- created by dry avalanches of dust -- occur on the trough walls

Long-term hydrothermal temperature and pressure monitoring equipped with a Kuroko cultivation apparatus on the deep-sea artificial hydrothermal vent at the middle Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masaki, Y.; Nozaki, T.; Saruhashi, T.; Kyo, M.; Sakurai, N.; Yokoyama, T.; Akiyama, K.; Watanabe, M.; Kumagai, H.; Maeda, L.; Kinoshita, M.

2017-12-01

The middle Okinawa Trough, located along the Ryukyu- arc on the margin of the East China Sea, has several active hydrothermal fields. From February to March 2016, Cruise CK16-01 by D/V Chikyu targeted the Iheya-North Knoll and southern flank of the Iheya Minor Ridge to comprehend sub-seafloor geological structure and polymetallic sulfide mineralization. In this cruise, we installed two Kuroko cultivation apparatuses equipped with P/T sensors, flowmeter and load cell to monitor pressure, temperature and flow rate of hydrothermal fluid discharged from the artificial hydrothermal vent together with weight of hydrothermal precipitate. During Cruise KR16-17 in January 2017, two cultivation cells with sensor loggers were successfully recovered by ROV Kaiko MK-IV and R/V Kairei. We report these physical sensor data obtained by more than 10 months monitoring at two deep-sea artificial hydrothermal vents through many first and challenging operations.Hole C9017B at southern flank of the Iheya Minor Ridge (water depth of 1,500 mbsl), fluid temperature was constant ca. 75 ºC for 5 months from the beginning of monitoring. Then temperature gradually decrease to be 40 ºC. In November 2016, temperature and pressure suddenly dropped and quickly recovered due to the disturbance of subseafloor hydrology, induced by another drilling operation at Hole C9017A which is 10.8 meters northeastward from Hole C9017B during Cruise CK16-05. Temperature data exhibit conspicuous periodic 12.4hour cycles and this is attributable to oceanic tidal response. The amplitude of temperature variations increased along with decline of the temperature variations increased along with decline of the temperature. The average flow rate was 67 L/min for 9 hours from the onset of monitoring.Hole C9024A at the Iheya-North Knoll (water depth of 1,050 msl), the maximum temperature reached 308 ºC, which is similar to the maximum value of 311 ºC obtained from the ROV thermometer. The average flow rate was 289 L

Microbial community stratification controlled by the subseafloor fluid flow and geothermal gradient at the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the Mid-Okinawa Trough (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 331).

PubMed

Yanagawa, Katsunori; Breuker, Anja; Schippers, Axel; Nishizawa, Manabu; Ijiri, Akira; Hirai, Miho; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Sunamura, Michinari; Urabe, Tetsuro; Nunoura, Takuro; Takai, Ken

2014-10-01

The impacts of lithologic structure and geothermal gradient on subseafloor microbial communities were investigated at a marginal site of the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the Mid-Okinawa Trough. Subsurface marine sediments composed of hemipelagic muds and volcaniclastic deposits were recovered through a depth of 151 m below the seafloor at site C0017 during Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 331. Microbial communities inferred from 16S rRNA gene clone sequencing in low-temperature hemipelagic sediments were mainly composed of members of the Chloroflexi and deep-sea archaeal group. In contrast, 16S rRNA gene sequences of marine group I Thaumarchaeota dominated the microbial phylotype communities in the coarse-grained pumiceous gravels interbedded between the hemipelagic sediments. Based on the physical properties of sediments such as temperature and permeability, the porewater chemistry, and the microbial phylotype compositions, the shift in the physical properties of the sediments is suggested to induce a potential subseafloor recharging flow of oxygenated seawater in the permeable zone, leading to the generation of variable chemical environments and microbial communities in the subseafloor habitats. In addition, the deepest section of sediments under high-temperature conditions (∼90°C) harbored the sequences of an uncultivated archaeal lineage of hot water crenarchaeotic group IV that may be associated with the high-temperature hydrothermal fluid flow. These results indicate that the subseafloor microbial community compositions and functions at the marginal site of the hydrothermal field are highly affected by the complex fluid flow structure, such as recharging seawater and underlying hydrothermal fluids, coupled with the lithologic transition of sediments. Copyright © 2014, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Microbial Community Stratification Controlled by the Subseafloor Fluid Flow and Geothermal Gradient at the Iheya North Hydrothermal Field in the Mid-Okinawa Trough (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 331)

PubMed Central

Breuker, Anja; Schippers, Axel; Nishizawa, Manabu; Ijiri, Akira; Hirai, Miho; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Sunamura, Michinari; Urabe, Tetsuro; Nunoura, Takuro; Takai, Ken

2014-01-01

The impacts of lithologic structure and geothermal gradient on subseafloor microbial communities were investigated at a marginal site of the Iheya North hydrothermal field in the Mid-Okinawa Trough. Subsurface marine sediments composed of hemipelagic muds and volcaniclastic deposits were recovered through a depth of 151 m below the seafloor at site C0017 during Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 331. Microbial communities inferred from 16S rRNA gene clone sequencing in low-temperature hemipelagic sediments were mainly composed of members of the Chloroflexi and deep-sea archaeal group. In contrast, 16S rRNA gene sequences of marine group I Thaumarchaeota dominated the microbial phylotype communities in the coarse-grained pumiceous gravels interbedded between the hemipelagic sediments. Based on the physical properties of sediments such as temperature and permeability, the porewater chemistry, and the microbial phylotype compositions, the shift in the physical properties of the sediments is suggested to induce a potential subseafloor recharging flow of oxygenated seawater in the permeable zone, leading to the generation of variable chemical environments and microbial communities in the subseafloor habitats. In addition, the deepest section of sediments under high-temperature conditions (∼90°C) harbored the sequences of an uncultivated archaeal lineage of hot water crenarchaeotic group IV that may be associated with the high-temperature hydrothermal fluid flow. These results indicate that the subseafloor microbial community compositions and functions at the marginal site of the hydrothermal field are highly affected by the complex fluid flow structure, such as recharging seawater and underlying hydrothermal fluids, coupled with the lithologic transition of sediments. PMID:25063666

Molecular diversity and distribution pattern of ciliates in sediments from deep-sea hydrothermal vents in the Okinawa Trough and adjacent sea areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Feng; Xu, Kuidong

2016-10-01

In comparison with the macrobenthos and prokaryotes, patterns of diversity and distribution of microbial eukaryotes in deep-sea hydrothermal vents are poorly known. The widely used high-throughput sequencing of 18S rDNA has revealed a high diversity of microeukaryotes yielded from both living organisms and buried DNA in marine sediments. More recently, cDNA surveys have been utilized to uncover the diversity of active organisms. However, both methods have never been used to evaluate the diversity of ciliates in hydrothermal vents. By using high-throughput DNA and cDNA sequencing of 18S rDNA, we evaluated the molecular diversity of ciliates, a representative group of microbial eukaryotes, from the sediments of deep-sea hydrothermal vents in the Okinawa Trough and compared it with that of an adjacent deep-sea area about 15 km away and that of an offshore area of the Yellow Sea about 500 km away. The results of DNA sequencing showed that Spirotrichea and Oligohymenophorea were the most diverse and abundant groups in all the three habitats. The proportion of sequences of Oligohymenophorea was the highest in the hydrothermal vents whereas Spirotrichea was the most diverse group at all three habitats. Plagiopyleans were found only in the hydrothermal vents but with low diversity and abundance. By contrast, the cDNA sequencing showed that Plagiopylea was the most diverse and most abundant group in the hydrothermal vents, followed by Spirotrichea in terms of diversity and Oligohymenophorea in terms of relative abundance. A novel group of ciliates, distinctly separate from the 12 known classes, was detected in the hydrothermal vents, indicating undescribed, possibly highly divergent ciliates may inhabit this environment. Statistical analyses showed that: (i) the three habitats differed significantly from one another in terms of diversity of both the rare and the total ciliate taxa, and; (ii) the adjacent deep sea was more similar to the offshore area than to the

Elemental and Mineralogical Analysis of Silt Fraction from Site U1420, IODP Expedition 341

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salinas, J. K.; Jaeger, J. M.; Penkrot, M. L.

2016-12-01

In southeastern Alaska, the Chugach-St. Elias Mountains - the world's highest coastal mountain range - exhibit extreme topography due to the collision and subduction of the Yakutat microplate beneath the North American plate. The St. Elias orogen is younger than 30 Ma, with mountain building having occurred during a period of enhanced glacial erosion when erosive ice streams delivered sediment into the Gulf of Alaska. Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 341 set out to investigate the relationship between mountain building and glacial dynamics in the Gulf of Alaska. Sediment cores from site U1420 were collected, within the Bering trough, just offshore of the Bering Glacier. Analysis of Bering Trough seismic profiles demonstrates an evolution from tectonically-controlled to depositionally-controlled continental margin strata formation (Worthington et al., 2010). The goal of this study is to investigate the provenance of the silt-sized fraction (15-63 μm) of U1420 sediments across this transition in seismic facies using mineralogy and elemental geochemical analyses. XRD mineralogical analysis shows consistent downhole mineralogy with minor variations in relative peak intensities. Elemental ICP-MS geochemical analysis reveal concentrations of both major and trace elements to be very well constrained, with all major (Al, Ca, Fe, Mg, and Ti) and trace elemental data (Ce, Cr, Ga, La, Rb, Sc, Sr, Th, and Y) only varying downhole by few percent/ppm. Both the consistent downhole mineralogy and elemental data suggest that the provenance of the silt-sized sediment deposited offshore has not changed since initial deposition (<0.7 Ma). Comparison with onshore bedrock geochemistry and surface samples from the modern Gulf of Alaska indicate that U1420 silt is similar in composition to modern regional sediment sources and is a mixture of the different bedrock lithologies within the modern Bering Glacier drainage.

Viewpoint: A Contributory Role of Shell Ginger (Alpinia zerumbet) for Human Longevity in Okinawa, Japan?

PubMed Central

Teschke, Rolf

2018-01-01

The longevity of the population in the Okinawa Islands of Japan has been ascribed to genetic factors and the traditional Okinawa cuisine, which is low in calories and high in plant content. This diet includes shell ginger (Alpinia zerumbet (Pers.) B.L. Burtt & R.M. Sm) of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae). Due to its local popularity, Alpinia zerumbet has become the subject of a good deal of study at the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa. Personal local experience and review of the literature now suggest that culinary shell ginger may contribute to longevity among the population in Okinawa. This is supported by its abundant phytochemical content, with antioxidant and anti-obesity properties. The major bioactive phytochemicals are dihydro-5,6-dehydrokawain (DDK; 80–410 mg g−1 fresh weight), 5,6-dehydrokawain (DK; ≤100 mg g−1), and essential oils, phenols, phenolic acids, and fatty acids (≤150 mg g−1 each). Further, Alpinia zerumbet extends the lifespan in animals by 22.6%. In conclusion, culinary shell ginger may significantly contribute to human longevity in Okinawa. PMID:29385084

Labeatis Trough

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

2 July 2006 This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a portion of a trough cutting across a dust-covered plain in the Labeatis Fossae region of Mars. Boulders derived from the layered exposures near the top of the trough walls are resting on the floor, and in some locations, the sloping sidewalls of the dusty trough.

Location near: 22.1oN, 94.5oW Image width: 3 km (1.9 mi) Illumination from: lower left Season: Northern Spring

International Collaboration and the Management of Linguistic Resources at a Diaspora Festival in Okinawa

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Petrucci, Peter R.; Miyahira, Katsuyuki

2009-01-01

This article uses Jernudd and Neustupny's (1987) theory of language management to address the planning, management and distribution of linguistic resources at the 4th Worldwide Uchinaanchu Festival (WUF), a diaspora festival held in Okinawa, Japan. WUF organizers--from Okinawa and diaspora communities abroad--were concerned with both international…

Rinse trough with improved flow

DOEpatents

O'Hern, Timothy J.; Grasser, Thomas W.

1998-01-01

Novel rinse troughs accomplish thorough uniform rinsing. The troughs are suitable for one or more essentially planar objects having substantially the same shape. The troughs ensure that each surface is rinsed uniformly. The new troughs provide uniform rinse fluid flow over the objects' surfaces to accomplish a more thorough rinse than prior art troughs.

Rinse trough with improved flow

DOEpatents

O`Hern, T.J.; Grasser, T.W.

1998-08-11

Novel rinse troughs accomplish thorough uniform rinsing. The troughs are suitable for one or more essentially planar objects having substantially the same shape. The troughs ensure that each surface is rinsed uniformly. The new troughs provide uniform rinse fluid flow over the objects` surfaces to accomplish a more thorough rinse than prior art troughs. 5 figs.

Quality of Life for Marines on Okinawa.

DTIC Science & Technology

1996-03-01

A comprehensive assessment of Quality of Life (QOL) in the Marine Corps, using a life domain framework, in which were included the domains of...other relatives, income/standard of living, job, and self, was conducted in 1993. This report focuses on data for Okinawa only. Global quality of life was

Directed flow fluid rinse trough

DOEpatents

Kempka, Steven N.; Walters, Robert N.

1996-01-01

Novel rinse troughs accomplish thorough uniform rinsing. The tanks are suitable for one or more essentially planar items having substantially the same shape. The troughs ensure that each surface is rinsed uniformly. The new troughs also require less rinse fluid to accomplish a thorough rinse than prior art troughs.

Directed flow fluid rinse trough

DOEpatents

Kempka, S.N.; Walters, R.N.

1996-07-02

Novel rinse troughs accomplish thorough uniform rinsing. The tanks are suitable for one or more essentially planar items having substantially the same shape. The troughs ensure that each surface is rinsed uniformly. The new troughs also require less rinse fluid to accomplish a thorough rinse than prior art troughs. 9 figs.

Designing Better Water Troughs: Does Trough Color Influence Dairy Cows' Preference?

PubMed

Lemos Teixeira, Dayane; Hötzel, Maria José; Pinheiro Machado Filho, Luiz Carlos; Cazale, José Daniel; Enríquez-Hidalgo, Daniel

2017-01-01

Eighteen lactating dairy cows were used to elucidate their preference for green, grey, or red troughs. The herd was managed under a rotational grazing system with ad-libitum access to water until 11:30 h. For 9 days, all cows were tested individually following the afternoon milking. Cows drank similar quantities, spent a similar amount of time drinking, and took a similar number of sips from the 3 trough colors (p > .05). In 75% of the tests, cows drank more than 95% of the test period from the same trough. Within this time, the percentage of choices did not differ among colors (33.3% green, 39.0% grey, and 27.7% red). When they chose the red trough, cows spent less time drinking (p ≤ .05) and tended to take fewer sips (p = .07), which could suggest a partial aversion to this color. Suboptimal water trough design may have long-term negative effects on both the production and welfare of dairy cattle; however, the results suggest that color does not play a major role in the drinking behavior of dairy cows.

Okinawa, Japan: Geologic Battleground

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waymack, S. W.; Carrington, M. P.; Harpp, K. S.

2005-12-01

One of our main goals as instructors, particularly in introductory courses, is to impart students with an appreciation of how geology has influenced the course of human events. Despite the apparent accessibility of such topics, communicating this in a lively, relevant, and effective way often proves difficult. We use a series of historical events, the Pacific island hopping campaign of WWII, to engage students in an active, guided inquiry exercise to explore how terrain and the underlying geology of an area can shape historical events. Teams of students are assigned the role of planning either the defense or occupation of Okinawa Island, in the Ryukyu arc, in a theoretical version of the 1945 conflict. Students are given a package of information, including geologic and topographic maps, a list of military resources available to them at the time, and some historical background. Students also have access to "reconnaissance" images, 360o digital panoramas of the landscape of Okinawa, keyed to their maps. Each team has a week to plan their strategies and carry out additional research, which they subsequently bring to the table in the form of a written battle plan. With an instructor as arbiter, teams alternate drawing their maneuvers on a map of the island, to which the other team then responds. This continues one move at a time, until the instructor declares a victor. Throughout the exercise, the instructor guides students through analysis of each strategic decision in light of the island's structure and topography, with an emphasis on the appropriate interpretation of the maps. Students soon realize that an understanding of the island's terrain literally meant the difference between life and death for civilians and military participants alike in 1945. The karst landscape of Okinawa posed unique obstacles to both the Japanese and the American forces, including difficult landing sites, networks of natural caves, and sequences of hills aligned perpendicular to the

The light ion trough.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taylor, H. A., Jr.

1972-01-01

A distinct feature of the ion composition results from the OGO-2, 4 and 6 satellites is the light ion trough, wherein the mid-latitude concentrations of H+ and He+ decrease sharply with latitude. In contrast to the 'main trough' in electron density observed primarily as a nightside phenomenon, the light ion trough persists during both day and night. For daytime winter hemisphere conditions and for all seasons during night, the mid-latitude light ion concentration decrease is a pronounced feature. In the dayside summer and equinox hemispheres, the rate of light ion decrease with latitude is comparatively gradual, and the trough boundary is less well defined, particularly for quiet magnetic conditions. In response to magnetic storms, the light ion trough minimum moves equatorward, and deepens, consistent with earlier evidence of the contraction of the plasmasphere in response to storm time enhancements in magnetospheric plasma convection.

Influence of climate on deep-water clastic sedimentation: application of a modern model, Peru-Chile Trough, to an ancient system, Ouachita Trough

USGS Publications Warehouse

Edgar, N. Terence; Cecil, C. Blaine

2003-01-01

Traditionally, an abrupt and massive influx of siliciclastic sediments into an area of deposition has been attributed to tectonic uplift without consideration of the influence of climate or climatic change on rates of weathering, erosion, transportation, and deposition. With few exceptions, fluvial sediment transport is minimal in both extremely arid climates and in perhumid (everwet) climates. Maximum sediment transport occurs in climates characterized by strongly seasonal rainfall, where the effect of vegetation on erosion is minimal. The Peru–Chile trench and Andes Mountain system (P–CT/AMS) of the eastern Pacific Ocean clearly illustrates the effects of climate on rates of weathering, erosion, transport, and deep-sea sedimentation. Terrigenous sediment is virtually absent in the arid belt north of lat. 30° S in the P–CT, but in the belt of seasonal rainfall south of lat. 30° S terrigenous sediment is abundant. Spatial variations in the amount and seasonality of annual precipitation are now generally accepted as the cause for this difference. The spatial variation in sediment supply to the P–CT appears to be an excellent modern analogue for the temporal variation in sediment supply to certain ancient systems, such as the Ouachita Trough in the southern United States. By comparison, during the Ordovician through the early Mississippian, sediment was deposited at very slow rates as the Ouachita Trough moved northward through the southern hemisphere dry belt (lat. 10° S to lat. 30° S). The deposystem approached the tropical humid zone during the Mississippian, coincident with increased coarse clastic sedimentation. By the Middle Pennsylvanian (Atokan), the provenance area and the deposystem moved well into the tropical humid zone, and as much as 8,500 m of mineralogically mature (but texturally immature) quartz sand was introduced and deposited. This increase in clastic sediment deposition traditionally has been attributed solely to tectonic activity

Cut By Troughs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2005-01-01

1 September 2005 This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows an impact crater cut by troughs which formed after the crater formed. The crater and troughs have large windblown ripples on their floors. The ripples, troughs, craters, and other surfaces in this scene have all been mantled by dust. Dark streaks on slopes indicate areas where avalanches of dry dust have occurred. These features are located on Sacra Mena, a large mesa in the Kasei Valles region.

Location near: 25.4oN, 66.8oW Image width: width: 3 km (1.9 mi) Illumination from: lower left Season: Northern Autumn

Okinawa: an exception to the social gradient of life expectancy in Japan.

PubMed

Cockerham, W C; Yamori, Y

2001-01-01

This paper examines why the social gradient of life expectancy does not apply in Japan when Okinawa is considered. The social gradient thesis links differences in longevity to social rank, with people and populations in higher status hierarchical positions having lower mortality and longer life expectancies than those beneath them in the social scale. Japan has been cited as a major example of this thesis in that Japanese life expectancy improved dramatically as Japan rose to the top echelon of nations in economic rank in the late 20th century. Thus it follows that Japan's most affluent and leading prefectures should be the major catalysts behind the nation's rise in life expectancy as well to the number one position in the world. However, this is not the case as life expectancy in Okinawa, Japan's poorest prefecture, exceeds that of Japan as a whole. We find that the social gradient of life expectancy does not apply at the prefectural level and question its validity for geographical areas. We suggest that healthy lifestyles, especially diet and the social support of family and friends, are more important than sense of hierarchy for longevity in Okinawa.

Medical school hotline: A History of the University of Hawai'i Postgraduate Medical Education Program at Okinawa Chubu Hospital, 1966-2012.

PubMed

Maeshiro, Masao; Izutsu, Satoru; Connolly, Kathleen Kihmm

2014-06-01

The University of Hawai'i (UH) has been collaborating with Okinawa Prefectural Chubu Hospital for over 46 years. This collaboration started as a post-World War II effort to increase the physician workforce. At the initiation of the US Army and State Department, the University of Hawai'i was recruited, in cooperation with the government of the Ryukyus and USCAR, to initiate a US style postgraduate clinical training program. The Postgraduate Medical Training Program of University of Hawai'i at Okinawa Chubu Hospital introduced a style of training similar to that in the US by offering a rotating internship. The initial contract had UH establish and run the Postgraduate Medical Training Program of University of Hawaii at Okinawa Central Hospital. After Okinawa's reversion to Japan, under a new contract, UH physicians participated as consultants by providing lectures at "grand rounds" and guidance to faculty, staff, and students. To date, 895 physicians have completed the University of Hawai'i Postgraduate Medical Training Program with 74 currently training. Approximately 662 (74%) of the trainees have remained in Okinawa Prefecture to practice medicine. As a result, the program has enhanced the physician workforce for the islands of Okinawa and neighbor archipelagos of Miyako and Yaeyama Islands.

Solar photovoltaic reflective trough collection structure

DOEpatents

Anderson, Benjamin J.; Sweatt, William C.; Okandan, Murat; Nielson, Gregory N.

2015-11-19

A photovoltaic (PV) solar concentration structure having at least two troughs encapsulated in a rectangular parallelepiped optical plastic structure, with the troughs filled with an optical plastic material, the troughs each having a reflective internal surface and approximately parabolic geometry, and the troughs each including photovoltaic cells situated so that light impinging on the optical plastic material will be concentrated onto the photovoltaic cells. Multiple structures can be connected to provide a solar photovoltaic collection system that provides portable, efficient, low-cost electrical power.

Comparative Analysis of Microbial Communities in Iron-Dominated Flocculent Mats in Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Environments

PubMed Central

Kikuchi, Sakiko; Mitsunobu, Satoshi; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Yamanaka, Toshiro; Toki, Tomohiro; Noguchi, Takuroh; Nakamura, Kentaro; Abe, Mariko; Hirai, Miho; Yamamoto, Masahiro; Uematsu, Katsuyuki; Miyazaki, Junichi; Nunoura, Takuro; Takahashi, Yoshio; Takai, Ken

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT It has been suggested that iron is one of the most important energy sources for photosynthesis-independent microbial ecosystems in the ocean crust. Iron-metabolizing chemolithoautotrophs play a key role as primary producers, but little is known about their distribution and diversity and their ecological role as submarine iron-metabolizing chemolithotrophs, particularly the iron oxidizers. In this study, we investigated the microbial communities in several iron-dominated flocculent mats found in deep-sea hydrothermal fields in the Mariana Volcanic Arc and Trough and the Okinawa Trough by culture-independent molecular techniques and X-ray mineralogical analyses. The abundance and composition of the 16S rRNA gene phylotypes demonstrated the ubiquity of zetaproteobacterial phylotypes in iron-dominated mat communities affected by hydrothermal fluid input. Electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analysis revealed the chemical and mineralogical signatures of biogenic Fe-(oxy)hydroxide species and the potential contribution of Zetaproteobacteria to the in situ generation. These results suggest that putative iron-oxidizing chemolithoautotrophs play a significant ecological role in producing iron-dominated flocculent mats and that they are important for iron and carbon cycles in deep-sea low-temperature hydrothermal environments. IMPORTANCE We report novel aspects of microbiology from iron-dominated flocculent mats in various deep-sea environments. In this study, we examined the relationship between Zetaproteobacteria and iron oxides across several hydrothermally influenced sites in the deep sea. We analyzed iron-dominated mats using culture-independent molecular techniques and X-ray mineralogical analyses. The scanning electron microscopy–energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy SEM-EDS analysis and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analysis revealed chemical and mineralogical signatures of

Comparative Analysis of Microbial Communities in Iron-Dominated Flocculent Mats in Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Environments.

PubMed

Makita, Hiroko; Kikuchi, Sakiko; Mitsunobu, Satoshi; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Yamanaka, Toshiro; Toki, Tomohiro; Noguchi, Takuroh; Nakamura, Kentaro; Abe, Mariko; Hirai, Miho; Yamamoto, Masahiro; Uematsu, Katsuyuki; Miyazaki, Junichi; Nunoura, Takuro; Takahashi, Yoshio; Takai, Ken

2016-10-01

It has been suggested that iron is one of the most important energy sources for photosynthesis-independent microbial ecosystems in the ocean crust. Iron-metabolizing chemolithoautotrophs play a key role as primary producers, but little is known about their distribution and diversity and their ecological role as submarine iron-metabolizing chemolithotrophs, particularly the iron oxidizers. In this study, we investigated the microbial communities in several iron-dominated flocculent mats found in deep-sea hydrothermal fields in the Mariana Volcanic Arc and Trough and the Okinawa Trough by culture-independent molecular techniques and X-ray mineralogical analyses. The abundance and composition of the 16S rRNA gene phylotypes demonstrated the ubiquity of zetaproteobacterial phylotypes in iron-dominated mat communities affected by hydrothermal fluid input. Electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analysis revealed the chemical and mineralogical signatures of biogenic Fe-(oxy)hydroxide species and the potential contribution of Zetaproteobacteria to the in situ generation. These results suggest that putative iron-oxidizing chemolithoautotrophs play a significant ecological role in producing iron-dominated flocculent mats and that they are important for iron and carbon cycles in deep-sea low-temperature hydrothermal environments. We report novel aspects of microbiology from iron-dominated flocculent mats in various deep-sea environments. In this study, we examined the relationship between Zetaproteobacteria and iron oxides across several hydrothermally influenced sites in the deep sea. We analyzed iron-dominated mats using culture-independent molecular techniques and X-ray mineralogical analyses. The scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy SEM-EDS analysis and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analysis revealed chemical and mineralogical signatures of biogenic Fe

Fabrication of trough-shaped solar collectors

DOEpatents

Schertz, William W.

1978-01-01

There is provided a radiant energy concentration and collection device formed of a one-piece thin-walled plastic substrate including a plurality of nonimaging troughs with certain metallized surfaces of the substrate serving as reflective side walls for each trough. The one-piece plastic substrate is provided with a seating surface at the bottom of each trough which conforms to the shape of an energy receiver to be seated therein.

Prehistoric introduction of domestic pigs onto the Okinawa Islands: ancient mitochondrial DNA evidence.

PubMed

Watanobe, Takuma; Ishiguro, Naotaka; Nakano, Masuo; Takamiya, Hiroto; Matsui, Akira; Hongo, Hitomi

2002-08-01

Ancient DNAs of Sus scrofa specimens excavated from archaeological sites on the Okinawa islands were examined to clarify the genetic relationships among prehistoric Sus scrofa, modern wild boars and domestic pigs inhabiting the Ryukyu archipelago, the Japanese islands, and the Asian continent. We extracted remain DNA from 161 bone specimens excavated from 12 archaeological sites on the Okinawa islands and successfully amplified mitochondrial DNA control region fragments from 33 of 161 specimens. Pairwise difference between prehistoric and modern S. scrofa nucleotide sequences showed that haplotypes of the East Asian domestic pig lineage were found from archaeological specimens together with Ryukyu wild boars native to the Ryukyu archipelago. Phylogenetic analysis of 14 ancient sequences (11 haplotypes; 574 bp) indicated that S. scrofa specimens from two Yayoi-Heian sites (Kitahara and Ara shellmiddens) and two Recent Times sites (Wakuta Kiln and Kiyuna sites) are grouped with modern East Asian domestic pigs. Sus scrofa specimens from Shimizu shellmidden (Yayoi-Heian Period) were very closely related to modern Sus scrofa riukiuanus but had a unique nucleotide insertion, indicating that the population is genetically distinct from the lineage of modern Ryukyu wild boars. This genetic evidence suggests that domestic pigs from the Asian continent were introduced to the Okinawa islands in the early Yayoi-Heian period (1700-2000 BP), or earlier.

Evaluation of the trough-type rain gage

Treesearch

Irvin C. Reigner

1964-01-01

Although infrequently used, the trough-type rain gage has been described as aerodynamically the most efficient of gages (Hayes and Kittredge 1949). This applies only to the commercial semicircular eave-gutter type of trough and not to troughs rectangular in cross-section. The latter, as well as the upright cylindrical type of gage, produces greater disturbances in the...

Mineralogy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dyar, M. Darby; Treiman, Allan; Beauchamp, Patricia; Blake, David; Blaney, Diana; Kim, Sun S.; Klingelhoefer, Goestar; Mehall, Greg; Morris, Richard; Ninkov, Zoran;

Are Vancomycin Trough Concentrations Adequate for Optimal Dosing?

PubMed Central

Youn, Gilmer; Jones, Brenda; Jelliffe, Roger W.; Drusano, George L.; Rodvold, Keith A.; Lodise, Thomas P.

2014-01-01

The current vancomycin therapeutic guidelines recommend the use of only trough concentrations to manage the dosing of adults with Staphylococcus aureus infections. Both vancomycin efficacy and toxicity are likely to be related to the area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUC). We assembled richly sampled vancomycin pharmacokinetic data from three studies comprising 47 adults with various levels of renal function. With Pmetrics, the nonparametric population modeling package for R, we compared AUCs estimated from models derived from trough-only and peak-trough depleted versions of the full data set and characterized the relationship between the vancomycin trough concentration and AUC. The trough-only and peak-trough depleted data sets underestimated the true AUCs compared to the full model by a mean (95% confidence interval) of 23% (11 to 33%; P = 0.0001) and 14% (7 to 19%; P < 0.0001), respectively. In contrast, using the full model as a Bayesian prior with trough-only data allowed 97% (93 to 102%; P = 0.23) accurate AUC estimation. On the basis of 5,000 profiles simulated from the full model, among adults with normal renal function and a therapeutic AUC of ≥400 mg · h/liter for an organism for which the vancomycin MIC is 1 mg/liter, approximately 60% are expected to have a trough concentration below the suggested minimum target of 15 mg/liter for serious infections, which could result in needlessly increased doses and a risk of toxicity. Our data indicate that adjustment of vancomycin doses on the basis of trough concentrations without a Bayesian tool results in poor achievement of maximally safe and effective drug exposures in plasma and that many adults can have an adequate vancomycin AUC with a trough concentration of <15 mg/liter. PMID:24165176

Petrochemical and Mineralogical Constraints on the Source and Processes of Uranium Mineralisation in the Granitoids of Zing-Monkin Area, Adamawa Massif, NE Nigeria

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Haruna, I. V., E-mail: vela_hi@yahoo.co.uk; Orazulike, D. M.; Ofulume, A. B.

Zing-Monkin area, located in the northern part of Adamawa Massif, is underlain by extensive exposures of moderately radioactive granodiorites, anatectic migmatites, equigranular granites, porphyritic granites and highly radioactive fine-grained granites with minor pegmatites. Selected major and trace element petrochemical investigations of the rocks show that a progression from granodiorite through migmatite to granites is characterised by depletion of MgO, CaO, Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3,} Sr, Ba, and Zr, and enrichment of SiO{sub 2} and Rb. This trend is associated with uranium enrichment and shows a chemical gradation from the more primitive granodiorite to the more evolved granites. Electron microprobe analysis showsmore » that the uranium is content in uranothorite and in accessories, such as monazite, titanite, apatite, epidote and zircon. Based on petrochemical and mineralogical data, the more differentiated granitoids (e.g., fine-grained granite) bordering the Benue Trough are the immediate source of the uranium prospect in Bima Sandstone within the Trough. Uranium was derived from the granitoids by weathering and erosion. Transportation and subsequent interaction with organic matter within the Bima Sandstone led to precipitation of insoluble secondary uranium minerals in the Benue Trough.« less

Petroleum prospects of Benue trough, Nigeria

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nawachukwu, J.I.

1985-04-01

Exploration activities in the Benue trough have been minimal over the years, mainly because of large petroleum deposits found in the adjoining Niger delta and early gas finds in the Anambra basin, south of the Benue trough. The recent increase in exploration activities in the trough has necessitated a reevaluation of the petroleum potentials of the basin. In this study, the time-temperature index (TTI) method was used to evaluate petroleum prospects of the basin. An increase in geothermal gradient resulted in a decrease in depth to the oil window, with the sediments maturing earlier at higher geothermal gradients. At geothermalmore » gradients of 1.5-1.9/sup 0/F/100 ft (2.73.5/sup 0/C/100 m) and maximum TTI values, the Asu River Group and the Eze-Aku Group of sediments are still within the gas-generating stage. The Awgu Shale and the Nkporo Shale are capable of generating gas at geothermal gradients of 2.3-2.7/sup 0/F/100 ft (4.2-4.9/sup 0/C/100 m). The Benue trough is essentially a gas-condensate basin with little oil. Exploration targets in the basin include both the sub-Santonian and superSantonian sediments, with the Eze-Aku Group, Awgu Shale, and Nkporo Shale being more prospective than the stratigraphically lower Asu River Group. In general, the middle Benue trough is considered to be the most prospective area within the trough because depths to the mature zones are moderate (6,600-13,000 ft; 2-4 km). These depths are variable, decreasing northeastward and increasing southwestward toward the Niger delta.« less

Sedimentary and petrofacies analyses of the Amasiri Sandstone, southern Benue Trough, Nigeria: Implications for depositional environment and tectonic provenance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okoro, A. U.; Igwe, E. O.; Nwajide, C. S.

2016-11-01

This study was undertaken to determine the depositional environment, provenance and tectonic setting for the Turonian Amasiri Sandstone, southern Benue Trough, Nigeria, using lithofacies analysis and re-appraisal of petrography of the sandstones. Local stratigraphy and field relationships show a thick succession of shales alternating with elongate/parallel sandstone ridges extending eastwards from Akpoha to Amasiri through Itigidi and Ugep to Apiapum areas. Lithofacies analysis reveals 9 lithofacies suggestive of storm (mass flow) and tidal shelf processes. These include dark grey to black laminated shale/silty mudstones, bioturbated mudstones, coquinoid limestones, very fine-grained bioturbated sandstones with shell hash/debris in places and limestone rip-up clasts, massive and chaotic sandy conglomerate with rip - up clasts, fine to medium-grained, parallel laminated sandstone, hummocky cross-stratified, massive, medium to coarse-grained sandstones, medium to very coarse-grained, planar cross-bedded sandstone, with clay-draped foresets and Ophiomorpha burrows, and coarse-grained trough cross-bedded sandstone. Petrofacies analysis identifies the sandstones as feldspathic and arkosic arenites. Ternary plot of framework mineralogy indicates derivation from an uplifted continental block related to the nearby Oban Massif and Cameroon Basement Complex.

Trough Coating Solar Cells Without Spillover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heaps, J. D.

1986-01-01

Problem with trough coating of silicon on ceramic - spillover of molten silicon - overcome by combination of redesigned heaters and tiltable trough. Modifications make it possible to coat virtually any length of ceramic with film of solar-cell-grade silicon. Previously, maximum length coated before spillover occurred was 2 inches (5.1 cm).

Situation Report--Hong Kong, Malawi, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Ryukyu Islands (Okinawa), Sabah, Sarawak.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Planned Parenthood Federation, London (England).

Data relating to population and family planning in eight foreign countries are presented in these situation reports. Countries included are Hong Kong, Malawi, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Ryukyu Islands (Okinawa), Sabah, and Sarawak. Information is provided where appropriate and available, under two topics, general background and family planning…

Journal of Mineralogical and Petrological Sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Official journal of Japan Association of Mineralogical Sciences (JAMS), focusing on mineralogical and petrological sciences and their related fields. Journal of Mineralogical and Petrological Sciences (JMPS) is the successor journal to both “Journal of Mineralogy, Petrology and Economic Geology” and “Mineralogical Journal”. Journal of Mineralogical and Petrological Sciences (JMPS) is indexed in the ISI database (Thomson Reuters), the Science Citation Index-Expanded, Current Contents/Physical, Chemical & Earth Sciences, and ISI Alerting Services.

Time-Frequency Variability of Kuroshio Meanders in Tokara Strait

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakamura, H.; Yamashiro, T.; Nishina, A.; Ichikawa, H.

2006-12-01

The Kuroshio path in the northern Okinawa Trough, Japan, located between the continental slope and Tokara Strait, exhibits meandering motions with largest displacements in the East China Sea; these motions have dominant periods in the broad range of 30-90 days. Understanding the dynamic nature of such meanders is crucial to predicting small and large meanders of the Kuroshio path off the south coast of Japan. Previous numerical simulations suggest that the Kuroshio path meanders in the northern Okinawa Trough become nonstationary in variance because of changes in background states of the Kuroshio in the northern Okinawa Trough, but a detailed analysis based on observed data has yet to be performed. The purpose of the present study is to provide a detailed description of the time-frequency variability of Kuroshio path meanders observed in Tokara Strait. Three Kuroshio indicators were subjected to wavelet analysis for the period 1984-2004: the Kuroshio Position Index (KPI) in Tokara Strait, Kuroshio Volume Transport (KVT) in Tokara Strait, and the basal current velocity of the Kuroshio on the continental slope in the northern Okinawa Trough. The 30-90 day variance of the KPI shows a season-fixed nature, with larger amplitudes in the period December-July. The amplitude of the variance in this phenomenon is also modulated by interannual variations, with small variance recorded during 1989-1992, large variance during 1993-1998, and a return to small variance from 1999-2003. This interannual variation is positively correlated with that of the KVT. The largest variance of the KPI during February-April precedes the largest volume transport in April-May by about 1 month, suggesting that eddy vorticity flux strengthens the mean current field. Previous numerical simulations reproduce the recirculation gyre as a cyclonic eddy in the area between the continental slope and Tokara Strait; this gyre is analogous to the northern recirculation gyre associated with the eastward jet

Impacts of Long-Range Transport of Metals from East Asia in Bulk Aerosols Collected at the Okinawa Archipelago, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

A, Sotaro; S, Yuka; I, Moriaki; N, Fumiya; H, Daishi; A, Takemitsu; T, Akira

2010-05-01

Economy of East Asia has been growing rapidly, and atmospheric aerosols discharged from this region have been transported to Japan. Okinawa island is situated approximately 1500 km south of Tokyo, Japan, 2000 km southeast of Beijing, China, and 1000 km of south Korea. Its location in Asian is well suited for studying long-range transport of air pollutants in East Asia because maritime air mass prevails during summer, while continental air mass dominates during fall, winter, and spring. The maritime air mass data can be seen as background and can be compared with continental air mass which has been affected by anthropogenic activities. Therefore, Okinawa region is suitable area for studying impacts of air pollutants from East Asia. We simultaneously collected bulk aerosol samples by using the same type of high volume air samplers at Cape Hedo Atmospheric Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS, Okinawa island), Kume island (ca. 160 km south-west of CHAAMS), and Minami-Daitou island (ca. 320 km south-east of CHAAMS). We determined the concentrations of acid-digested metals using atomic absorption spectrometer and inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). We report and discuss spatial and temporal distribution of metals in the bulk atmospheric aerosols collected at CHAAMS, Kume island and Minami-Daitou island during June, 2008 to June 2009. We also determined 'background' concentration of metals in Okinawa archipelago. We then compare each chemical component among CHAAMS, Kume island and Minami-Daitou island to elucidate the influence of the transport processes and distances from Asian continent on metal concentrations.

Child Development in Okinawa Compared with Tokyo and Denver, and the Implications for Developmental Screening.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ueda, Reiko

1978-01-01

Developmental differences in the Denver Developmental Screening Test items were demonstrated between samples of children from Okinawa (n=615) and Tokyo (n=1171), who were 16 days to 6 years old. Journal availability: see EC 112 661. (Author)

Aeolian sand transport over complex intertidal bar-trough beach topography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anthony, Edward J.; Ruz, Marie-Hélène; Vanhée, Stéphane

2009-04-01

Aeolian sand transport on macrotidal beaches with complex intertidal bar-trough topography (ridge-and-runnel beaches) was assessed from experiments in northern France that involved measurements of wind speed, saltation, surface moisture contents, and rates of sand trapping across surveyed portions of the upper beach profile. Beaches exhibiting intertidal bars and troughs are much more complex, topographically, than simple reflective or dissipative beaches. Furthermore, the intertidal bar-trough morphology commonly exhibits strong cross-shore variations in the moisture contents of the beach surface and in patterns of bedform development. The results of four 30-minute experiments, conducted along topographically surveyed portions of the upper beach-dune toe profile, show that troughs act as extremely efficient sand interceptors, because of their permanently saturated state, which also inhibits sand mobilisation. Troughs, thus, limit or segment the dry fetch during conditions of intermittent saltation. Flow lines, inferred from the wind profiles, suggest that complex interactions at the boundary layer are generated by the bar-trough topography. Troughs systematically appear to be characterised by air expansion, while bar faces generate ramp wind acceleration for onshore winds, and sometimes immediate downwind deceleration for offshore winds. These effects may also contribute to cross-shore variations in the rates of sand trapping. Finally, a simple conceptual model of effective fetch development, integrating the effects of the spring-neap tidal range and of gross bar-trough morphological variability over time, is proposed for bar-trough beaches. The model highlights the key theme of fetch segmentation induced by cross-shore differentiation in the moisture contents of the beach surface hinged on the complex topography of multiple bars and troughs.

Climatology of the winter Red Sea Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Awad, Adel M.; Almazroui, Mansour

2016-12-01

In this study, a new and objective method for detecting the Red Sea Trough (RST) was developed using mean sea level pressure (SLP) data from NCEP/NCAR reanalysis dataset from the winters of 1956 to 2015 to identify the Sudan Low and its trough. Approximately 96% of the winter RSTs were generated near two main sources, South Sudan and southeastern Sudan, and approximately 85% of these troughs were in four of the most outer areas surrounding the northern Red Sea. Moreover, from west to east of the Red Sea, the RST was affected by the relationships between the Siberian High and Azores High. The RST was oriented to the west when the strength of the Siberian High increased and to the east when the strength of the Azores High increased. Furthermore, the synoptic features of the upper level of the RST emphasize the impacts of subtropical anticyclones at 850 hPa on the orientation of the RST, the impacts of the northern cyclone trough and the maximum wind at a pressure level of 250 hPa. The average static stability between 1000 hPa and 500 hPa demonstrated that the RST followed the northern areas of low static stability. The results from previous studies were confirmed by a detailed case study of the RST that extended to its central outermost area. The results of a detailed case study of the short RST indicated that the trough becomes shorter with increasing static stability and that the Azores and Siberian high-pressure systems influence the northern region of the trough while the maximum upper wind shifts south of the climate position.

Technical Manual for the SAM Physical Trough Model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wagner, M. J.; Gilman, P.

2011-06-01

NREL, in conjunction with Sandia National Lab and the U.S Department of Energy, developed the System Advisor Model (SAM) analysis tool for renewable energy system performance and economic analysis. This paper documents the technical background and engineering formulation for one of SAM's two parabolic trough system models in SAM. The Physical Trough model calculates performance relationships based on physical first principles where possible, allowing the modeler to predict electricity production for a wider range of component geometries than is possible in the Empirical Trough model. This document describes the major parabolic trough plant subsystems in detail including the solar field,more » power block, thermal storage, piping, auxiliary heating, and control systems. This model makes use of both existing subsystem performance modeling approaches, and new approaches developed specifically for SAM.« less

Spatial distribution and temporal variation of chemical species in the bulk atmospheric aerosols collected at the Okinawa archipelago, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handa, D.; Somada, Y.; Ijyu, M.; Azechi, S.; Nakaema, F.; Arakaki, T.; Tanahara, A.

2009-12-01

The economic development and population growth in recent Asia have been increasing air pollution. A computer simulation study showed that air pollutants emitted from Asian continent could spread quickly within northern hemisphere. We initiated a study to elucidate the special distribution and chemical characterization of atmospheric aerosols around Okinawa archipelago, Japan. Okinawa Island is situated approximately 1500 km south of Tokyo, Japan, 2000 km southeast of Beijing, China, and 1000 km south of South Korea. Its location in Asia is well suited for studying long-range transport of air pollutants in East Asia because maritime air mass prevails during summer, while continental air mass dominates during fall, winter, and spring. The maritime air mass data can be seen as background and can be compared with continental air masses which have been affected by anthropogenic activities. We simultaneously collected bulk aerosol samples by using the same types of high volume air samplers at Cape Hedo Atmosphere and Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS, Okinawa Island), Kume Island (ca. 160 km south-west of CHAAMS) and Minami-daitou Island (ca. 320 km south-east of CHAAMS). We determined the concentrations of water-soluble anions, cations and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) using ion chromatography, atomic absorption spectrometry, and total organic carbon analyzer, respectively. We report and discuss spatial distribution and temporal variation of chemical species concentrations in bulk atmospheric aerosols collected during July, 2008 to July, 2009. We determine “background” concentration of chemical components in Okinawa archipelago. We then compare each chemical component among CHAAMS, Kume Island and Minami-daito Island to elucidate the influence of the long-range transport of chemical species from Asian continent.

Vancomycin AUC/MIC and Corresponding Troughs in a Pediatric Population

PubMed Central

Lardieri, Allison B.; Heil, Emily L.; Morgan, Jill A.

2017-01-01

OBJECTIVES Adult guidelines suggest an area under the curve/minimum inhibitory concentration (AUC/MIC) > 400 corresponds to a vancomycin trough serum concentration of 15 to 20 mg/L for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections, but obtaining these troughs in children are difficult. The primary objective of this study was to assess the likelihood that 15 mg/kg of vancomycin every 6 hours in a child achieves an AUC/MIC > 400. METHODS This retrospective chart review included pediatric patients >2 months to <18 years with a positive S aureus blood culture and documented MIC who received at least two doses of vancomycin with corresponding trough. Patients were divided into two groups: group 1 initially receiving ≥15 mg/kg every 6 hours, and group 2 initially receiving any other dosing ranges or intervals. AUCs were calculated four times using three pharmacokinetic methods. RESULTS A total of 36 patients with 99 vancomycin trough serum concentrations were assessed. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. For troughs in group 1 (n = 55), the probability of achieving an AUC/MIC > 400 ranged from 16.4% to 90.9% with a median trough concentration of 11.4 mg/L, while in group 2 (n = 44) the probability of achieving AUC/MIC > 400 ranged from 15.9% to 54.5% with mean trough concentration of 9.2 mg/L. The AUC/MICs were not similar between the different pharmacokinetic methods used; however, a trapezoidal equation (Method A) yielded the highest correlation coefficient (r2 = 0.59). When dosing every 6 hours, an AUC/MIC of 400 correlated to a trough serum concentration of 11 mg/L. CONCLUSIONS The probability of achieving an AUC/MIC > 400 using only a trough serum concentration and an MIC with patients receiving 15 mg/kg every 6 hours is variable based on the method used to calculate the AUC. An AUC/MIC of 400 in children correlated to a trough concentration of 11 mg/L using a trapezoidal Method to calculate AUC. PMID:28337080

Vancomycin AUC/MIC and Corresponding Troughs in a Pediatric Population.

PubMed

Kishk, Omayma A; Lardieri, Allison B; Heil, Emily L; Morgan, Jill A

2017-01-01

Adult guidelines suggest an area under the curve/minimum inhibitory concentration (AUC/MIC) > 400 corresponds to a vancomycin trough serum concentration of 15 to 20 mg/L for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections, but obtaining these troughs in children are difficult. The primary objective of this study was to assess the likelihood that 15 mg/kg of vancomycin every 6 hours in a child achieves an AUC/MIC > 400. This retrospective chart review included pediatric patients >2 months to <18 years with a positive S aureus blood culture and documented MIC who received at least two doses of vancomycin with corresponding trough. Patients were divided into two groups: group 1 initially receiving ≥15 mg/kg every 6 hours, and group 2 initially receiving any other dosing ranges or intervals. AUCs were calculated four times using three pharmacokinetic methods. A total of 36 patients with 99 vancomycin trough serum concentrations were assessed. Baseline characteristics were similar between groups. For troughs in group 1 (n = 55), the probability of achieving an AUC/MIC > 400 ranged from 16.4% to 90.9% with a median trough concentration of 11.4 mg/L, while in group 2 (n = 44) the probability of achieving AUC/MIC > 400 ranged from 15.9% to 54.5% with mean trough concentration of 9.2 mg/L. The AUC/MICs were not similar between the different pharmacokinetic methods used; however, a trapezoidal equation (Method A) yielded the highest correlation coefficient (r 2 = 0.59). When dosing every 6 hours, an AUC/MIC of 400 correlated to a trough serum concentration of 11 mg/L. The probability of achieving an AUC/MIC > 400 using only a trough serum concentration and an MIC with patients receiving 15 mg/kg every 6 hours is variable based on the method used to calculate the AUC. An AUC/MIC of 400 in children correlated to a trough concentration of 11 mg/L using a trapezoidal Method to calculate AUC.

The Skaergaard trough layering: sedimentation in a convecting magma chamber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vukmanovic, Z.; Holness, M. B.; Monks, K.; Andersen, J. C. Ø.

2018-05-01

The upper parts of the floor cumulates of the Skaergaard Intrusion, East Greenland, contain abundant features known as troughs. The troughs are gently plunging synformal structures comprising stacks of crescentic modally graded layers with a sharply defined mafic base that grades upward into plagioclase-rich material. The origin of the troughs and layering is contentious, attributed variously to deposition of mineral grains by magmatic currents descending from the nearby walls, or to in situ development by localised recrystallisation during gravitationally-driven compaction. They are characterised by outcrop-scale features such as mineral lineations parallel to the trough axis, evidence of erosion and layer truncation associated with migration of the trough axis, and disruption of layering by syn-magmatic slumping. A detailed microstructural study of the modal trough layers, using electron backscatter diffraction together with geochemical mapping, demonstrates that these rocks do not record evidence for deformation by either dislocation creep or dissolution-reprecipitation. Instead, the troughs are characterised by the alignment of euhedral plagioclase crystals with unmodified primary igneous compositional zoning. We argue that the lineations and foliations are, therefore, a consequence of grain alignment during magmatic flow. Post-accumulation amplification of the modal layering occurred as a result of differential migration of an unmixed immiscible interstitial liquid, with upwards migration of the Si-rich conjugate into the plagioclase-rich upper part of the layers, whereas the Fe-rich immiscible conjugate remained in the mafic base. Both field and microstructure evidence support the origin of the troughs as the sites of repeated deposition from crystal-rich currents descending from the nearby chamber walls.

A V-band wafer probe using ridge-trough waveguide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Godshalk, Edward M.

1991-12-01

A V-band (50-75 GHz) wafer probe is presented. The probe features a type of waveguide developed to allow transition from rectangular waveguide to coplanar waveguide. The waveguide consists of a ridge extending from the upper waveguide wall into a trough in the lower waveguide wall, and is known as the ridge-trough waveguide. A mathematical model is presented that allows important properties of the ridge-trough waveguide, such as the cutoff frequency and characteristic impedance, to be calculated.

Spatial and temporal variations of chemicals in the TSP aerosols simultaneously collected at three islands in Okinawa, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arakaki, Takemitsu; Azechi, Sotaro; Somada, Yuka; Ijyu, Moriaki; Nakaema, Fumiya; Hitomi, Yuya; Handa, Daishi; Oshiro, Yoshito; Miyagi, Youichi; Tsuhako, Ai; Murayama, Hitomi; Higaonna, Yumi; Tanahara, Akira; Itoh, Akihide; Fukushima, Soko; Higashi, Kazuaki; Henza, Yui; Nishikawa, Rin; Shinjo, Hibiki; Wang, Hongyan

2014-11-01

East Asia's rapid economic growth has led to concerns about the emission of air pollutants. We collected total suspended particle (TSP) aerosol samples simultaneously at three islands in Okinawa, Japan, which are downwind of East Asia, during the Asian dust season, to examine the spatial and temporal variations and chemical transformations of major chemicals in the aerosols. Weekly samples were collected from July 2008 to June 2010, and the concentrations of water-soluble cations, anions, and organic carbon (WSOC) were determined (n = 303). Spatial distribution analysis showed that monthly mean concentrations of non-sea-salt (nss)-SO42- in the spring (Asian dust season) decreased with increasing distance from Asia, while the trend for NO3- was less evident, suggesting that chemical transformation affected the long-range transport of certain chemicals. Temporal variation analysis showed that concentrations of nss-SO42-, NO3-, and WSOC during the spring were about 2.0, 2.4, and 1.8 times those in the summer (cleaner air mass from the Pacific Ocean), respectively. This study demonstrated that air pollutants were transported from the Asian continent to the Okinawa islands and affected the air quality in the region. There may also be impacts on ecosystems, because increased concentrations of particulate NO3- could increase nutrient levels around the Okinawa islands.

Evaluation of two prognostic indices for adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma in the subtropical endemic area, Okinawa, Japan.

PubMed

Tamaki, Keita; Morishima, Satoko; Nomura, Shogo; Nishi, Yukiko; Nakachi, Sawako; Kitamura, Sakiko; Uchibori, Sachie; Tomori, Shouhei; Hanashiro, Taeko; Shimabukuro, Natsuki; Tedokon, Iori; Morichika, Kazuho; Taira, Naoya; Tomoyose, Takeaki; Miyagi, Takashi; Karimata, Kaori; Ohama, Masayo; Yamanoha, Atsushi; Tamaki, Kazumitsu; Hayashi, Masaki; Uchihara, Jun-Nosuke; Ohshiro, Kazuiku; Asakura, Yoshitaka; Kuba-Miyara, Megumi; Karube, Kennosuke; Fukushima, Takuya; Masuzaki, Hiroaki

2018-05-17

Aggressive adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) has an extremely poor prognosis and is hyperendemic in Okinawa, Japan. This study evaluated two prognostic indices (PIs) for aggressive ATL, the ATL-PI and Japan Clinical Oncology Group (JCOG)-PI, in a cohort from Okinawa. The PIs were developed using two different Japanese cohorts that included few patients from Okinawa. The endpoint was overall survival (OS). Multivariable Cox regression analyses in the cohort of 433 patients revealed that all seven factors for calculating each PI were statistically significant prognostic predictors. Three-year OS rates for ATL-PI were 35.9% (low-risk, n=66), 10.4% (intermediate-risk, n=256), and 1.6% (high-risk, n=111), and those for JCOG-PI were 22.4% (moderate-risk, n=176) and 5.3% (high-risk, n=257). The JCOG-PI moderate-risk group included both the ATL-PI low- and intermediate-risk groups. ATL-PI more clearly identified the low-risk patient subgroup than JCOG-PI. To evaluate the external validity of the two PIs, we also assessed prognostic discriminability among 159 patients who loosely met the eligibility criteria of a previous clinical trial. Three-year OS rates for ATL-PI were 34.5% (low-risk, n=42), 9.2% (intermediate-risk, n=109), and 12.5% (high-risk, n = 8). Those for JCOG-PI were 22.4% (moderate-risk, n=95) and 7.6% (high-risk, n=64). The low-risk ATL-PI group had a better prognosis than the JCOG-PI moderate-risk group, suggesting that ATL-PI would be more useful than JCOG-PI for establishing and examining novel treatment strategies for ATL patients with a better prognosis. In addition, strongyloidiasis, previously suggested to be associated with ATL-related deaths in Okinawa, was not a prognostic factor in this study. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Gansu Akesai 50MW Molten Salt Trough

Science.gov Websites

project | Concentrating Solar Power | NREL Gansu Akesai 50MW Molten Salt Trough project Status . Technology: Parabolic trough Turbine Capacity: Net: 50.0 MW Gross: 50.0 MW Status: Under development Do you have more information, corrections, or comments? Background Technology: Parabolic trough Status: Under

Discovery of Fracture Networks in the Basal Part of Modern Hydrothermal System in Okinawa Tough, SW Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saito, S.; Yamada, Y.; Sanada, Y.; Kido, Y. N.; Hamada, Y.; Shiraishi, K.; Hsiung, K. H.; Tsuji, T.; Eng, C.; Maeda, L.; Kumagai, H.; Nozaki, T.; Ishibashi, J. I.

2017-12-01

A scientific drilling expedition, CK16-01 was conducted by D/V Chikyu in an active hydrothermal field on the Iheya-North Knoll in Okinawa Trough in February-March, 2016 as a part of "Next-generation Technology for Ocean Resources Survey" of the Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP). During the expedition logging while drilling (LWD) was deployed to uncover the architecture of modern hydrothermal deposits near the seafloor. A downhole sequence of fracture network (stock-work) was discovered by high resolution resistivity images at Site C9023 in the southern part of the knoll. More than 500 structural features were extracted from the borehole images down to 188 meter below the seafloor. Quantitative image analyses were performed and three types of conductive fractures were identified and classified as Generation 1 (G1), Generation 2 (G2), and Generation 3 (G3) based on the crossing or cutting relationship. The average thickness of fractures decrease with generation from G1 (78 mm), G2 (57 mm), to G3 (45 mm). G1 is developed in the entire interval, whereas G2 and G3 are commonly observed in the intervals of lower gamma ray and high resistivity ( 10 ohm-m) at 77-125 m and 167-186 m where sulfide minerals hosted in silicified rocks were observed in recovered core samples. Low angle fractures (<30°) are typically developed in the interval at 120 -125 m, suggesting possible lateral hydrothermal conduits. The quantitative analysis of fracture network based on borehole images shows the detailed formation process of stock-work in the basal part of modern hydrothermal system.

Sedimentation and tectonics of the Sylhet trough, Bangladesh

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, S.Y.; Nur Alam, A.M.

1991-01-01

The Sylhet trough, a sub-basin of the Bengal Basin in northeastern Bangladesh, contains a thick fill (12 to 16 km) of late Mesozoic and Cenozoic strata that record its tectonic evolution. Stratigraphic, sedimentologic, and petrographic data collected from outcrops, cores, well logs, and seismic lines are used to reconstruct the history of this trough. -from Authors

SHARAD Radar investigations into the initiation of spiral troughs on Planum Boreum, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, I. B.; Holt, J. W.

2010-12-01

Recent evidence demonstrates that the prominent spiral troughs of the North Polar Layered Deposits (NPLD) on Mars are not young features, having persisted and evolved during accumulation of more than 500 meters of ice [Smith and Holt, Nature, 2010]. Because of the rich stratigraphy in the NPLD, determining the processes controlling trough formation and evolution is an important step in understanding the history of ice and climate on Mars. Multiple periods of trough initiation are observed in radar data collected by the Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter; however, the mechanism behind trough initiation is still a mystery. Discrete radar reflectors can be associated with the onset of spiral troughs because of their stratigraphic relationships: below the reflectors the troughs do not exist, and above the troughs begin to take shape. To address the question of trough formation we have mapped these reflectors, which are assumed to represent isochrones, in more than 400 SHARAD observations throughout the NPLD. Taken together these represent the surfaces where troughs initiated, i.e. surfaces that lie directly below the first appearance of troughs. When observation geometries are favorable, we find that the onset of each trough rests on a change in slope usually at the base of a buried erosional scarp. The underlying layers end abruptly at the scarps rather than diminish or pinch out with distance, suggesting that the NPLD underwent cap-wide erosion predating trough formation. This surface morphology provides the initial conditions needed to form troughs from the combination of deposition and katabatic winds affected by surface slope. Radar observations indicate that the troughs initiated and evolved with approximately the same wavelength as can be measured today. Thus proposed hypotheses of small bedforms growing into larger wavelength structures is not supported. Locally, the unconformable contact between younger, trough-related material

Source area of the 1858 earthquake swarm in the central Ryukyu Islands revealed by the observations of Father Louis Furet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oda, Takuma; Nakamura, Mamoru

2017-09-01

We estimated the location and magnitude of earthquakes constituting the 1858 earthquake swarm in the central Ryukyu Islands using the felt earthquakes recorded by Father Louis Furet who lived in Naha, Okinawa Island, in the middle of the nineteenth century. First, we estimated the JMA seismic intensity of the earthquakes by interpreting the words used to describe the shaking. Next, using the seismic intensity and shaking duration of the felt earthquakes, we estimated the epicentral distance and magnitude range of three earthquakes in the swarm. The results showed that the epicentral distances of the earthquakes were 20-250 km and that magnitudes ranged between 4.5 and 6.5, with a strong correlation between epicentral distance and magnitude. Since the rumblings accompanying some earthquakes in the swarm were heard from a northward direction, the swarm probably occurred to the north of Naha. The most likely source area for the 1858 swarm is the central Okinawa Trough, where a similar swarm event occurred in 1980. If the 1858 swarm occurred in the central Okinawa Trough, the estimated maximum magnitude would have reached 6-7. In contrast, if the 1858 swarm occurred in the vicinity of Amami Island, which is the second most likely candidate area, it would have produced a cluster of magnitude 7-8 earthquakes.[Figure not available: see fulltext.

Sirenum Fossae Trough

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

[figure removed for brevity, see original site]

The Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) orbits the red planet twelve times each day. The number of pictures that MOC can take varies from orbit to orbit, depending upon whether the data are being stored in MGS's onboard tape recorder for playback at a later time, or whether the data are being sent directly back to Earth via a real-time radio link. More data can be acquired during orbits with real-time downlink.

During real-time orbits, the MOC team often will take a few random or semi-random pictures in between the carefully-selected, hand-targeted images. On rare occasions, one of these random pictures will surprise the MOC team. The picture shown here is an excellent example, because the high resolution view (top) is centered so nicely on a trough and an adjacent, shallow crater that it is as if someone very carefully selected the target for MOC. The high-resolution view covers an area only 1.1 km (0.7 mi) wide by 2.3 km (1.4 mi) long. Hitting a target such as this with such a small image is very difficult to do, on purpose, because there are small uncertainties in the predicted orbit, the maps used to select targets, and the minor adjustments of spacecraft pointing at any given moment. Nevertheless, a very impressive image was received.

The high resolution view crosses one of the troughs of the Sirenum Fossae near 31.2oS, 152.3oW. The context image (above) was acquired at the same time as the high resolution view on July 23, 2000. The small white box shows the location of the high resolution picture. The lines running diagonally across the context image from upper right toward lower left are the Sirenum Fossae troughs, formed by faults that are radial to the volcanic region of Tharsis. Both pictures are illuminated from the upper left. The scene shows part of the martian southern hemisphere nearly autumn.

Pc-5 wave power in the plasmasphere and trough: CRRES observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartinger, M.; Moldwin, M.; Angelopoulos, V.; Takahashi, K.; Singer, H. J.; Anderson, R. R.

2009-12-01

The CRRES (Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite) mission provides an opportunity to study the distribution of MHD wave power in the inner magnetosphere both inside the high-density plasmasphere and in the low-density trough. We present a statistical survey of Pc-5 wave power using CRRES magnetometer and plasma wave data separated into plasmasphere and trough intervals. Using a database of plasmapause crossings, we examined differences in power spectral density between the plasmasphere and trough regions. We found significant differences between the plasmasphere and trough in the radial profiles of Pc-5 wave power. On average, wave power was higher in the trough, but the difference in power depended on magnetic local time. Our study shows that determining the plasmapause location is important for understanding and modeling the MHD wave environment in the Pc-5 frequency band.

Mineralogical Diversity and Geology of Humboldt Crater Derived Using Moon Mineralogy Mapper Data.

PubMed

Martinot, M; Besse, S; Flahaut, J; Quantin-Nataf, C; Lozac'h, L; van Westrenen, W

2018-02-01

Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M 3 ) spectroscopic data and high-resolution imagery data sets were used to study the mineralogy and geology of the 207 km diameter Humboldt crater. Analyses of M 3 data, using a custom-made method for M 3 spectra continuum removal and spectral parameters calculation, reveal multiple pure crystalline plagioclase detections within the Humboldt crater central peak complex, hinting at its crustal origin. However, olivine, spinel, and glass are observed in the crater walls and rims, suggesting these minerals derive from shallower levels than the plagioclase of the central peak complex. High-calcium pyroxenes are detected in association with volcanic deposits emplaced on the crater's floor. Geologic mapping was performed, and the age of Humboldt crater's units was estimated from crater counts. Results suggest that volcanic activity within this floor-fractured crater spanned over a billion years. The felsic mineralogy of the central peak complex region, which presumably excavated deeper material, and the shallow mafic minerals (olivine and spinel) detected in Humboldt crater walls and rim are not in accordance with the general view of the structure of the lunar crust. Our observations can be explained by the presence of a mafic pluton emplaced in the anorthositic crust prior to the Humboldt-forming impact event. Alternatively, the excavation of Australe basin ejecta could explain the observed mineralogical detections. This highlights the importance of detailed combined mineralogical and geological remote sensing studies to assess the heterogeneity of the lunar crust.

Mineralogical Diversity and Geology of Humboldt Crater Derived Using Moon Mineralogy Mapper Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martinot, M.; Besse, S.; Flahaut, J.; Quantin-Nataf, C.; Lozac'h, L.; van Westrenen, W.

2018-02-01

Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) spectroscopic data and high-resolution imagery data sets were used to study the mineralogy and geology of the 207 km diameter Humboldt crater. Analyses of M3 data, using a custom-made method for M3 spectra continuum removal and spectral parameters calculation, reveal multiple pure crystalline plagioclase detections within the Humboldt crater central peak complex, hinting at its crustal origin. However, olivine, spinel, and glass are observed in the crater walls and rims, suggesting these minerals derive from shallower levels than the plagioclase of the central peak complex. High-calcium pyroxenes are detected in association with volcanic deposits emplaced on the crater's floor. Geologic mapping was performed, and the age of Humboldt crater's units was estimated from crater counts. Results suggest that volcanic activity within this floor-fractured crater spanned over a billion years. The felsic mineralogy of the central peak complex region, which presumably excavated deeper material, and the shallow mafic minerals (olivine and spinel) detected in Humboldt crater walls and rim are not in accordance with the general view of the structure of the lunar crust. Our observations can be explained by the presence of a mafic pluton emplaced in the anorthositic crust prior to the Humboldt-forming impact event. Alternatively, the excavation of Australe basin ejecta could explain the observed mineralogical detections. This highlights the importance of detailed combined mineralogical and geological remote sensing studies to assess the heterogeneity of the lunar crust.

Parabolic Trough Collector Cost Update for the System Advisor Model (SAM)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kurup, Parthiv; Turchi, Craig S.

2015-11-01

This report updates the baseline cost for parabolic trough solar fields in the United States within NREL's System Advisor Model (SAM). SAM, available at no cost at https://sam.nrel.gov/, is a performance and financial model designed to facilitate decision making for people involved in the renewable energy industry. SAM is the primary tool used by NREL and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for estimating the performance and cost of concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies and projects. The study performed a bottom-up build and cost estimate for two state-of-the-art parabolic trough designs -- the SkyTrough and the Ultimate Trough. The SkyTroughmore » analysis estimated the potential installed cost for a solar field of 1500 SCAs as $170/m 2 +/- $6/m 2. The investigation found that SkyTrough installed costs were sensitive to factors such as raw aluminum alloy cost and production volume. For example, in the case of the SkyTrough, the installed cost would rise to nearly $210/m 2 if the aluminum alloy cost was $1.70/lb instead of $1.03/lb. Accordingly, one must be aware of fluctuations in the relevant commodities markets to track system cost over time. The estimated installed cost for the Ultimate Trough was only slightly higher at $178/m 2, which includes an assembly facility of $11.6 million amortized over the required production volume. Considering the size and overall cost of a 700 SCA Ultimate Trough solar field, two parallel production lines in a fully covered assembly facility, each with the specific torque box, module and mirror jigs, would be justified for a full CSP plant.« less

Monitoring of seafloor crustal deformation using GPS/Acoustic technique along the Nankai Trough, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yasuda, K.; Tadokoro, K.; Ikuta, R.; Watanabe, T.; Fujii, C.; Matsuhiro, K.; Sayanagi, K.

2014-12-01

Seafloor crustal deformation is crucial for estimating the interplate locking at the shallow subduction zone and has been carried out at subduction margins in Japan, e.g., Japan Trench and Nankai Trough [Sato et al., 2011; Tadokoro et al., 2012]. Iinuma et al. [2012] derived slip distributions during the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake using GPS/Acoustic data and on-land GPS data. The result showed that maximum slip is more than 85 m near the trench axis. The focal area along the Nankai trough extended to the trough axis affected this earthquake by cabinet office, government of Japan. 　We monitored seafloor crustal deformation along the Nankai trough, Japan. Observation regions are at the eastern end of Nankai trough (named Suruga trough) and at the central Nankai trough. We established and monitored by two sites across the trough at each region. In the Suruga trough region, we repeatedly observed from 2005 to 2013. We observed 13 and 14 times at a foot wall side (SNE) and at a hanging wall side (SNW), respectively. We estimated the displacement velocities with relative to the Amurian plate from the result of repeated observation. The estimated displacement velocity vectors at SNE and SNW are 42±8 mm/y to N94±3˚W direction and 39±11 mm/y to N84±9˚W direction, respectively. The directions are the same as those measured at the on-land GPS stations. The magnitudes of velocity vector indicate significant shortening by approximately 4 mm/y between SNW and on-land GPS stations at hanging wall side of the Suruga Trough. This result shows that the plate interface at the northernmost Suruga trough is strongly locked. In the central Nankai trough region, we established new two stations across the central Nankai trough (Both stations are about 15km distance from trough) and observed only three times, August 2013, January 2014, and June 2014. We report the results of monitoring performed in this year.

Weak lensing by galaxy troughs in DES Science Verification data

DOE PAGES

Gruen, D.; Friedrich, O.; Amara, A.; ...

2015-11-29

In this study, we measure the weak lensing shear around galaxy troughs, i.e. the radial alignment of background galaxies relative to underdensities in projections of the foreground galaxy field over a wide range of redshift in Science Verification data from the Dark Energy Survey. Our detection of the shear signal is highly significant (10σ–15σ for the smallest angular scales) for troughs with the redshift range z ϵ [0.2, 0.5] of the projected galaxy field and angular diameters of 10 arcmin…1°. These measurements probe the connection between the galaxy, matter density, and convergence fields. By assuming galaxies are biased tracers ofmore » the matter density with Poissonian noise, we find agreement of our measurements with predictions in a fiducial Λ cold dark matter model. The prediction for the lensing signal on large trough scales is virtually independent of the details of the underlying model for the connection of galaxies and matter. Our comparison of the shear around troughs with that around cylinders with large galaxy counts is consistent with a symmetry between galaxy and matter over- and underdensities. In addition, we measure the two-point angular correlation of troughs with galaxies which, in contrast to the lensing signal, is sensitive to galaxy bias on all scales. The lensing signal of troughs and their clustering with galaxies is therefore a promising probe of the statistical properties of matter underdensities and their connection to the galaxy field.« less

Aeolian Sediment Transport Pathways and Aerodynamics at Troughs on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bourke, Mary C.; Bullard, Joanna E.; Barnouin-Jha, Olivier S.

2004-01-01

Interaction between wind regimes and topography can give rise to complex suites of aeolian landforms. This paper considers aeolian sediment associated wit11 troughs on Mars and identifies a wider range of deposit types than has previously been documented. These include wind streaks, falling dunes, "lateral" dunes, barchan dunes, linear dunes, transverse ridges, sand ramps, climbing dunes, sand streamers, and sand patches. The sediment incorporated into these deposits is supplied by wind streaks and ambient Planitia sources as well as originating within the trough itself, notably from the trough walls and floor. There is also transmission of sediment between dneTsh. e flow dynamics which account for the distribution of aeolian sediment have been modeled using two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics. The model predicts flow separation on the upwind side of the trough followed by reattachment and acceleration at the downwind margin. The inferred patterns of sediment transport compare well with the distribution of aeolian forms. Model data indicate an increase of wind velocity by approx. 30 % at the downwind trough margin. This suggests that the threshold wind speed necessary for sand mobilization on Mars will be more freqentmlye t in these inclined locations.

Proposal for Japanese encephalitis surveillance using captured invasive mongooses under an eradication project on Okinawa Island, Japan.

PubMed

Saito, Mika; Nakata, Katsushi; Nishijima, Taku; Yamashita, Katsuhiro; Saito, Anna; Ogura, Go

2009-06-01

A project to eradicate invasive small Asian mongooses (Herpestes javanicus) is underway to conserve the unique ecosystem of Okinawa Island, Japan. In the present study, we tried to elucidate whether the mongoose is a host of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) and to evaluate the reliability of surveillance of Japanese encephalitis (JE) using this species. Culex tritaeniorhynchus, the main vector mosquito of JEV, feeds on the mongoose. Eighty-five (35.4%) of 240 wild small Asian mongooses captured between 2001 and 2005 had neutralizing antibodies against more than one of four JEV strains. Prevalence rates of JEV antibodies tended to increase with body weight and length of the animals. One of three sentinel mongooses showed a temporal change in antibody titer. These results indicate that the small Asian mongooses on Okinawa Island are sensitive to JEV. From the antibody titers and the locations of capture, the JEV active area was clarified. We propose that surveillance of JE using mongooses captured under the eradication program is reliable.

Origin and late quaternary tectonism of a western Canadian continental shelf trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moslow, Thomas F.; Luternauer, John L.; Rohr, Kristin

1991-08-01

Analyses of high resolution and multi-channel seismic profiles from the central continental shelf of western Canada ascribe a late Quaternary glacial origin to large-scale troughs. Along the margins of Moresby Trough, one of three large-scale cross-shelf bathymetric depressions in Queen Charlotte Sound, seismic profiles within Quaternary sediments show a divergence of reflectors, thickening and folding of seismic units, and concavity of reflectors suggestive of drag. Compactional subsidence, growth faulting, and compaction faulting are also observed. Fault traces commonly terminate below the seabed. Deformation of Quaternary sediments due to faulting is plastic in nature and maximum offset of reflectors is 2.5 m. The observed Quaternary deformation appears to be a product of rapid deposition, loading and subsidence of late Quaternary sediment, which is unrelated to seismic activity. In addition, Quaternary faulting was probably activated by post-glacial loading and isostatic rebound of consolidated Tertiary strata along the margins of continental shelf troughs. The presence of mass movement (slump or debris flow) deposits overlying lithified Tertiary strata along the flanks of Moresby Trough provides the only evidence of seismic activity in the study area. The lack of a mud drape over these deposits implies a late Holocene age for the timing of their emplacement. The Quaternary troughs are incised into Tertiary-aged sedimentary fill of the Queen Charlotte basin. Previous workers had interpreted seafloor escarpments paralleling the trough margins to indicate that the location of Moresby Trough was controlled by renewed or continued activity on Tertiary-aged faults. A multi-channel seismic line across Moresby Trough shows that such an escarpment on the seafloor does not correlate to faults either in the Tertiary basin fill or the underlying basement. Tertiary reflectors are continuous underneath Moresby Trough; the seafloor escarpment is an erosional feature and was

Paleocene Pacific Plate reorganization mirrored in formation of the Suvarov Trough, Manihiki Plateau

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pietsch, Ricarda; Uenzelmann-Neben, Gabriele

2016-10-01

The Suvarov Trough is a graben structure that deviates from the Danger Islands Troughs within the Manihiki Plateau, a Large Igneous Province (LIP) located in the Central Pacific. New high-resolution seismic reflection data provide evidence that the graben formed in two phases during the Paleocene (65-45 Ma). In a first phase extension occurred in southwestward direction, pulling apart the northern part of the Suvarov Trough and a parallel trending unnamed trough. In a second phase a change of extensional force direction occurred from southwest to west-northwest, forming the southern part of the Suvarov Trough that extends onto the High Plateau. The formation of the Suvarov Trough is accompanied by a series of normal fault systems that apparently formed simultaneously. Comparing the seismic results to existing Pacific paleo strain reconstructions, the timing of increased strain and local deformation direction fits well to our findings. We thus suggest that the multiple strike directions of the Suvarov Trough represent an extensional structure that was caused by the major, stepwise Pacific Plate reorganization during the Paleocene.

Studies on physiological responses of residents in Okinawa to a hot environment.

PubMed

Hori, S; Ihzuka, H; Nakamura, M

1976-01-01

In an attempt to reconfirm Kuno's observation that changes in sweating reaction during long-term heat acclimatization differ from those during short-term heat acclimatization, Ohara's sweating test was performed in summer in Okinawa on 37 male subjects, including 19 residents born and raised in Okinawa (group O) and 18 residents born and raised on one of the main Japanese islands (group M). Seasonal variation of adaptability to heat was also studied in some subjects of both groups. Group O showed significantly less sweat loss, lower Na concentration in sweat and a longer latent period for onset of sweating than group M. Group O showed no seasonal variation in sweat loss, while group M showed considerably greater sweat loss in summer than in winter. In both groups, lower Na concentration in sweat, lower rise in rectal temperature and lesser increase in heart rate in summer than in winter were observed. Seasonal difference in physiological responses of group O to heat exposure was less than that of group M. In conclusion, it was assumed that acclimatization to heat of group O had advanced further than that of group M and this was the reason for longer latent period of sweating and lesser sweat loss in group O in spite of the same rise in rectal temperature in both groups. Discussions were carried out to explain how the sweating pattern and mechanism of acclimatization in group O were different from those in group M.

Plasma lead, silicon and titanium concentrations are considerably higher in green sea turtle from the suburban coast than in those from the rural coast in Okinawa, Japan

PubMed Central

TSUKANO, Kenji; SUZUKI, Kazuyuki; NODA, Jun; YANAGISAWA, Makio; KAMEDA, Kazunari; SERA, Koichiro; NISHI, Yasunobu; SHIMAMORI, Toshio; MORIMOTO, Yasuyo; YOKOTA, Hiroshi; ASAKAWA, Mitsuhiko

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the concentration of trace elements in the plasma of sea turtles that inhabited the suburban (Okinawa Main Island, n=8) and the rural coast (Yaeyama Island, n=57) in Okinawa, Japan. Particle induced X-ray emission allowed detection of 20 trace and major elements. The wild sea turtles in the suburban coast in Okinawa were found to have high concentrations of Pb, Si and Ti in the plasma when compared to the rural area but there were no significant changes in the Al, As and Hg concentrations. These results may help to suggest the status of some elements in a marine environment. Further, monitoring the plasma trace and major element status in sea turtles can be used as a bio-monitoring approach by which specific types of elements found here could indicate effects that are related to human activities. PMID:29070764

Patient-reported non-adherence and immunosuppressant trough levels are associated with rejection after renal transplantation.

PubMed

Scheel, Jennifer; Reber, Sandra; Stoessel, Lisa; Waldmann, Elisabeth; Jank, Sabine; Eckardt, Kai-Uwe; Grundmann, Franziska; Vitinius, Frank; de Zwaan, Martina; Bertram, Anna; Erim, Yesim

2017-03-29

Different measures of non-adherence to immunosuppressant (IS) medication have been found to be associated with rejection episodes after successful transplantation. The aim of the current study was to investigate whether graft rejection after renal transplantation is associated with patient-reported IS medication non-adherence and IS trough level variables (IS trough level variability and percentage of sub-therapeutic IS trough levels). Patient-reported non-adherence, IS trough level variability, percentage of sub-therapeutic IS trough levels, and acute biopsy-proven late allograft rejections were assessed in 267 adult renal transplant recipients who were ≥12 months post-transplantation. The rate of rejection was 13.5%. IS trough level variability, percentage of sub-therapeutic IS trough levels as well as patient-reported non-adherence were all significantly and positively associated with rejection, but not with each other. Logistic regression analyses revealed that only the percentage of sub-therapeutic IS trough levels and age at transplantation remained significantly associated with rejection. Particularly, the percentage of sub-therapeutic IS trough levels is associated with acute rejections after kidney transplantation whereas IS trough level variability and patient-reported non-adherence seem to be of subordinate importance. Patient-reported non-adherence and IS trough level variables were not correlated; thus, non-adherence should always be measured in a multi-methodological approach. Further research concerning the best combination of non-adherence measures is needed.

Seasonal variation and solar activity dependence of the quiet-time ionospheric trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishida, T.; Ogawa, Y.; Kadokura, A.; Hiraki, Y.; Häggström, I.

2014-08-01

We have conducted a statistical analysis of the ionospheric F region trough, focusing on its seasonal variation and solar activity dependence under geomagnetically quiet and moderate conditions, using plasma parameter data obtained via Common Program 3 observations performed by the European Incoherent Scatter (EISCAT) radar between 1982 and 2011. We have confirmed that there is a major difference in frictional heating between the high- and low-latitude sides of the EISCAT field of view (FOV) at ~73°0'N-60°5'N (geomagnetic latitude) at an altitude of 325 km, which is associated with trough formation. Our statistical results show that the high-latitude and midlatitude troughs occur on the high- and low-latitude sides of the FOV, respectively. Seasonal variations indicate that dissociative recombination accompanied by frictional heating is a main cause of trough formation in sunlit regions. During summer, therefore, the occurrence rate is maintained at 80-90% in the postmidnight high-latitude region owing to frictional heating by eastward return flow. Solar activity dependence on trough formation indicates that field-aligned currents modulate the occurrence rate of the trough during the winter and equinox seasons. In addition, the trough becomes deeper via dissociative recombination caused by an increased ion temperature with F10.7, at least in the equinox and summer seasons but not in winter.

The Evolution of Japan’s Constitution and Implications for U.S. Forces on Okinawa

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-12-01

9 3. The Pentagon’s Transformation and its Relationship to Japan....14 4. Tailoring Transformation for U.S...primarily on Okinawa. The problem is that both nations cannot gamble the analogous scenario at a national level. This argument should not be looked...Pentagon’s Transformation and its Relationship to Japan Transformation in DoD is not new. However, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield institutionalized

The Effect of Age and Weight on Vancomycin Serum Trough Concentrations in Pediatric Patients

PubMed Central

Madigan, Theresa; Sieve, Ronald M.; Graner, Kevin K.; Banerjee, Ritu

2013-01-01

Background Vancomycin treatment failure has been associated with low serum vancomycin trough concentrations, prompting recommendations to increase the daily doses in adults and children. Despite more aggressive vancomycin dosing, there continues to be significant variability in vancomycin trough concentrations in pediatric patients. Methods To determine if vancomycin trough concentrations in pediatric patients differ by age and weight, we reviewed records of hospitalized patients who received vancomycin between 2008 and 2012. Patients were divided into groups that received vancomycin 40 mg/kg/day (2008 to 2009) or 60 mg/kg/day (2010 to 2012). Vancomycin trough concentrations were compared between groups and within the 60-mg/kg/day group, stratified by patient age and weight. Results After increasing the vancomycin dose from 40 mg/kg/day to 60 mg/kg/day, initial trough concentrations increased significantly in patients younger than 2 and greater than 6 years of age, but not in patients between the ages of 2 and 5 years. In the 60-mg/kg/day group, only 16.7% of patients between 2 and 5 years of age had initial trough concentrations in the therapeutic range (10 mcg/mL to 20 mcg/mL). Initial trough concentrations were therapeutic in a greater proportion of patients ages 6 years to 12 years (38.7%) and 13 years to 18 years (63.0%). Patients between the ages of 13 and 18 had the highest proportion of supratherapeutic initial vancomycin trough concentrations (14.8%). Patients weighing > 50 kg had significantly higher trough concentrations than patients ≤ 50 kg (17.1 mcg/mL vs. 9.3 mcg/mL; p<0.001). Conclusion Although increasing the vancomycin dose from 40 mg/kg/day to 60 mg/kg/day led to a significant increase in vancomycin trough concentrations, a large proportion of patients receiving 60 mg/kg/day of vancomycin had trough concentrations outside of the therapeutic range. Specifically, patients younger than 6 years tend to have low trough concentrations, while

GPS/acoustic Seafloor Geodetic Observations Near the Nankai Trough Axis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tadokoro, K.; Yasuda, K.; Fujii, C.; Watanabe, T.; Nagai, S.

2013-12-01

The GPS/acoustic seafloor geodetic observation system, which uses precise acoustic ranging and kinematic GPS positioning techniques, has been developed as a useful tool for observing seafloor crustal deformations associated with plate convergence and with earthquakes that occurred in ocean area including the 2011 Tohoku-oki Earthquake of Mw 9.0. Our research group installed eight seafloor benchmarks for this observation system in source areas of anticipated major interplate earthquakes along the Nankai Trough, off southwestern Japan. We have performed campaign measurement for 4-8 years until the end of 2012. The error of displacement rate is almost 5 mm/y through the monitoring for more than four years. At the northern-most potion of the Nankai (Suruga) Trough, the observed steady horizontal displacement rate is 45 mm/y toward west. Also no significant velocity difference is observed across the trough, indicating strong interplate locking up to the shallowest segments. On the other hand, site velocities are 40 mm/y in the direction of N75W at the central region of the Nankai trough, 70-90 km landward from the trough axis. Although this result is the strong evidence for interplate locking, with coupling ratios of 60-80% on the basis of the back-slip model, it has no resolution for the interplate locking at the most-shallowest segments whose depths are 0-10 km. In other words, seaward up-dip limit of locked zone is never resolved from the present seafloor benchmark network [Tadokoro et al., 2012] . Large co-seismic slips larger than 40-50 m on the shallowest interplate segment [Ito et al., 2011; Fujii et al., 2011; Iinuma et al., 2012] are the cause of the unexpected high tsunami that has attacked the pacific coasts of the Tohoku region during the Tohoku-oki Earthquake; it is, therefore, essential to understand slip deficit or strain accumulation condition near the trench axis, also for the anticipated mega-thrust earthquake at the Nankai Trough. For this reason, we

Military Emergency Medical Service System Assessment: Application of the National Park Service Needs Assessment and Program Audit to Objectively Evaluate the Military EMS System of Okinawa, Japan.

PubMed

Ross, Elliot M; Harper, Stephen A; Cunningham, Cord; Walrath, Benjamin D; DeMers, Gerard; Kharod, Chetan U

2017-03-01

As part of a Military Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system process improvement initiative, the authors sought to objectively evaluate the U.S. military EMS system for the island of Okinawa. They applied a program evaluation tool currently utilized by the U.S. National Park Service (NPS). A comprehensive needs assessment was conducted to evaluate the current Military EMS system in Okinawa, Japan. The NPS EMS Program Audit Worksheet was used to get an overall "score" of our assessment. After all the data had been collected, a joint committee of Military EMS physicians reviewed the findings and made formal recommendations. From 2011 to 2014, U.S. military EMS on Okinawa averaged 1,345 ± 137 patient transports annually. An advanced life support (ALS) provider would have been dispatched on 558 EMS runs (38%) based on chief complaint in 2014 had they been available. Over 36,000 man-hours were expended during this period to provide National Registry Emergency Medical Technician (EMT)-accredited instruction to certify 141 Navy Corpsman as EMT Basics. The NPS EMS Program Audit Worksheet was used and the program scored a total of 31, suggesting the program is well planned and operating within standards. This evaluation of the Military EMS system on Okinawa using the NPS program assessment and audit worksheet demonstrates the NPS evaluation instruments may offer a useful assessment tool for the evaluation of Military EMS systems. Reprint & Copyright © 2017 Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S.

Skeletal carbonate mineralogy of Scottish bryozoans

PubMed Central

Spencer Jones, Mary; Najorka, Jens; Smith, Abigail M.

2018-01-01

This paper describes the skeletal carbonate mineralogy of 156 bryozoan species collected from Scotland (sourced both from museum collections and from waters around Scotland) and collated from literature. This collection represents 79% of the species which inhabit Scottish waters and is a greater number and proportion of extant species than any previous regional study. The study is also of significance globally where the data augment the growing database of mineralogical analyses and offers first analyses for 26 genera and four families. Specimens were collated through a combination of field sampling and existing collections and were analysed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and micro-XRD to determine wt% MgCO3 in calcite and wt% aragonite. Species distribution data and phylogenetic organisation were applied to understand distributional, taxonomic and phylo-mineralogical patterns. Analysis of the skeletal composition of Scottish bryozoans shows that the group is statistically different from neighbouring Arctic fauna but features a range of mineralogy comparable to other temperate regions. As has been previously reported, cyclostomes feature low Mg in calcite and very little aragonite, whereas cheilostomes show much more variability, including bimineralic species. Scotland is a highly variable region, open to biological and environmental influx from all directions, and bryozoans exhibit this in the wide range of within-species mineralogical variability they present. This plasticity in skeletal composition may be driven by a combination of environmentally-induced phenotypic variation, or physiological factors. A flexible response to environment, as manifested in a wide range of skeletal mineralogy within a species, may be one characteristic of successful invasive bryozoans. PMID:29897916

Skeletal carbonate mineralogy of Scottish bryozoans.

PubMed

Loxton, Jennifer; Spencer Jones, Mary; Najorka, Jens; Smith, Abigail M; Porter, Joanne S

2018-01-01

This paper describes the skeletal carbonate mineralogy of 156 bryozoan species collected from Scotland (sourced both from museum collections and from waters around Scotland) and collated from literature. This collection represents 79% of the species which inhabit Scottish waters and is a greater number and proportion of extant species than any previous regional study. The study is also of significance globally where the data augment the growing database of mineralogical analyses and offers first analyses for 26 genera and four families. Specimens were collated through a combination of field sampling and existing collections and were analysed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and micro-XRD to determine wt% MgCO3 in calcite and wt% aragonite. Species distribution data and phylogenetic organisation were applied to understand distributional, taxonomic and phylo-mineralogical patterns. Analysis of the skeletal composition of Scottish bryozoans shows that the group is statistically different from neighbouring Arctic fauna but features a range of mineralogy comparable to other temperate regions. As has been previously reported, cyclostomes feature low Mg in calcite and very little aragonite, whereas cheilostomes show much more variability, including bimineralic species. Scotland is a highly variable region, open to biological and environmental influx from all directions, and bryozoans exhibit this in the wide range of within-species mineralogical variability they present. This plasticity in skeletal composition may be driven by a combination of environmentally-induced phenotypic variation, or physiological factors. A flexible response to environment, as manifested in a wide range of skeletal mineralogy within a species, may be one characteristic of successful invasive bryozoans.

Concurrent immunomodulator therapy is associated with higher adalimumab trough levels during scheduled maintenance therapy.

PubMed

Bond, Ashley; Dodd, Susanna; Fisher, Gareth; Skouras, Thomas; Subramanian, Sreedhar

2017-02-01

Combination therapy with infliximab and immunomodulators is superior to monotherapy, resulting in better outcomes and higher trough levels of infliximab. The role of concurrent immunomodulatory therapy on adalimumab trough levels has not been adequately investigated. We evaluated the impact of concomitant immunomodulation on adalimumab trough levels in patients on scheduled maintenance therapy. We conducted a prospective observational, cross-sectional study of all inflammatory bowel disease patients on maintenance therapy who had adalimumab trough levels measured between January 2013 and January 2016. Drug level and anti-drug antibody measurements were performed on sera using a solid phase assay. Pairwise comparison of means was used to compare trough levels in patients with and without concomitant immune modulator therapy. In total, 79 patients were included. Twenty-three patients (29.1%) were on weekly dosing whereas 56 (70.9%) were on alternate weeks. Median adalimumab trough levels were comparable in patients with and without clinical remission (6.8 μg/ml (IQR 5.6-8.1) versus 6.7 μg/ml (IQR 3.9-8.1), respectively. Patients with an elevated faecal calprotectin >250 μg/g had lower adalimumab trough levels (median 6.7, IQR 3.9-8) compared to patients with faecal calprotectin <250 μg/g (median 7.7, IQR 6.1-8.1) though this did not achieve statistical significance (p = .062). Median adalimumab trough levels among patients on concurrent immunomodulators was 7.2 μg/ml (IQR 5.7-8.1) compared to those not on concurrent immunomodulator, 6.1 μg/ml (IQR 2.7-7.7, p = .0297). Adalimumab trough levels were significantly higher in patients on concurrent immunomodulators during maintenance therapy. There was a trend towards a lower adalimumab trough level in patients with elevated calprotectin.

Archaeal Diversity and Distribution along Thermal and Geochemical Gradients in Hydrothermal Sediments at the Yonaguni Knoll IV Hydrothermal Field in the Southern Okinawa Trough▿ †

PubMed Central

Nunoura, Takuro; Oida, Hanako; Nakaseama, Miwako; Kosaka, Ayako; Ohkubo, Satoru B.; Kikuchi, Toru; Kazama, Hiromi; Hosoi-Tanabe, Shoko; Nakamura, Ko-ichi; Kinoshita, Masataka; Hirayama, Hisako; Inagaki, Fumio; Tsunogai, Urumu; Ishibashi, Jun-ichiro; Takai, Ken

2010-01-01

A variety of archaeal lineages have been identified using culture-independent molecular phylogenetic surveys of microbial habitats occurring in deep-sea hydrothermal environments such as chimney structures, sediments, vent emissions, and chemosynthetic macrofauna. With the exception of a few taxa, most of these archaea have not yet been cultivated, and their physiological and metabolic traits remain unclear. In this study, phylogenetic diversity and distribution profiles of the archaeal genes encoding small subunit (SSU) rRNA, methyl coenzyme A (CoA) reductase subunit A, and the ammonia monooxygenase large subunit were characterized in hydrothermally influenced sediments at the Yonaguni Knoll IV hydrothermal field in the Southern Okinawa Trough. Sediment cores were collected at distances of 0.5, 2, or 5 m from a vent emission (90°C). A moderate temperature gradient extends both horizontally and vertically (5 to 69°C), indicating the existence of moderate mixing between the hydrothermal fluid and the ambient sediment pore water. The mixing of reductive hot hydrothermal fluid and cold ambient sediment pore water establishes a wide spectrum of physical and chemical conditions in the microbial habitats that were investigated. Under these different physico-chemical conditions, variability in archaeal phylotype composition was observed. The relationship between the physical and chemical parameters and the archaeal phylotype composition provides important insight into the ecophysiological requirements of uncultivated archaeal lineages in deep-sea hydrothermal vent environments, giving clues for approximating culture conditions to be used in future culturing efforts. PMID:20023079

The noon and midnight mid-latitude trough as seen by Ariel 4

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tulunay, Y. K.; Grebowsky, J. M.

1978-01-01

The electron density data returned by the polar orbiting satellites Ariel 3 and Ariel 4 revealed that the midlatitude trough is one of the distinct large-scale features of the ionosphere at about 550 km. Recent work (e.g., Tulunay and Grebowsky, 1975) on the data included the investigation of the temporal development of the latitudinal position of the midlatitude electron density trough at dawn and dusk during the large magnetic storms of May 1967 and May 1972. Model calculations which assumed that the equatorial convection E-field varies in step with the Kp index reproduced on the average the observed behavior. In the present paper, trough observations made at noon and midnight during the period, 12-21 December 1971 which encompassed a relatively large magnetic storm are discussed. In this context, model calculations have been employed as a guide of average approximations of the actual situation in predicting the plasmapause location. It is also shown that the trough observed on the noon passes is not generally plasmapause-related as the nightside troughs are expected to be.

The Ordovician Sebree Trough: An oceanic passage to the Midcontinent United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kolata, Dennis R.; Huff, W.D.; Bergstrom, Stig M.

2001-01-01

The Sebree Trough is a relatively narrow, shale-filled sedimentary feature extending for several hundred kilometers across the Middle and Late Ordovician carbonate platform of the Midcontinent United States. The dark graptolitic shales within the trough stand in contrast to the coeval bryozoan-brachiopod-echinodermrich limestones on the flanking platforms. We infer from regional stratal patterns, thickness and facies trends, and temporal relations established by biostratigraphy and K-bentonite stratigraphy that the Sebree Trough initially began to develop during late Turinian to early Chatfieldian time (Mohawkian Series) as a linear bathymetric depression situated over the failed late Precambrian-Early Cambrian Reelfoot Rift. Rising sea level and positioning of a subtropical convergence zone along the southern margin of Laurentia caused the rift depression to descend into cool, oxygen-poor, phosphate-rich oceanic waters that entered the southern reaches of the rift from the Iapetus Ocean. The trough apparently formed in a system of epicontinental estuarine circulation marked by a density-stratified water column. Trough formation was accompanied by cessation of carbonate sedimentation, deposition of graptolitic shales, development of hardground omission surfaces, substrate erosion, and local phosphogenesis. The carbonate platforms on either side of the trough are dominated by bryozoan-brachiopod-echinoderm grainstones and packstones that were deposited in zones of mixing where cool, nutrient-rich waters encountered warmer shelf waters. Concurrently, lime mudstone and wackestone were deposited shoreward (northern Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan) in warmer, more tropical shallow seas. Coeval upward growth of the flanking carbonate platforms sustained and enhanced development of the trough shale facies. Five widespread diachronous late Mohawkian and Cincinnatian omission surfaces are present in the carbonate facies of the Midcontinent. These surfaces

Molten salt parabolic trough system with synthetic oil preheating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuasa, Minoru; Hino, Koichi

2017-06-01

Molten salt parabolic trough system (MSPT), which can heat the heat transfer fluid (HTF) to 550 °C has a better performance than a synthetic oil parabolic trough system (SOPT), which can heat the HTF to 400 °C or less. The utilization of HTF at higher temperature in the parabolic trough system is able to realize the design of a smaller size of storage tank and higher heat to electricity conversion efficiency. However, with MSPT there is a great amount of heat loss at night so it is necessary to circulate the HTF at a high temperature of about 290 °C in order to prevent solidification. A new MSPT concept with SOPT preheating (MSSOPT) has been developed to reduce the heat loss at night. In this paper, the MSSOPT system, its performance by steady state analysis and annual performance analysis are introduced.

Aerial mulching techniques-trough fire

Treesearch

Robert Faust

2008-01-01

The Trough fire occurred in August 2001 on the Mendocino National Forest of northern California. A burned area emergency rehabilitation team evaluated the fire effects on the watershed. Concerns were soil from the denuded slopes moving into streams affecting fishery values, reservoir sedimentation and storm runoff plugging culverts leading to road wash outs. Past...

Baby Spider: Growth of a Martian Trough Network

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-12-20

This image from NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows the growth of a branching network of troughs carved by thawing carbon dioxide over the span of three Martian years. This process is believed to also form larger radially patterned channel features known as Martian "spiders." The image is one of three taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and included in a report on the first detection of such troughs persisting and growing, from one Mars year to the next. An animation is available at http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21257

Crustal and upper mantle velocity structure of the Salton Trough, southeast California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Parsons, T.; McCarthy, J.

1996-01-01

This paper presents data and modelling results from a crustal and upper mantle wide-angle seismic transect across the Salton Trough region in southeast California. The Salton Trough is a unique part of the Basin and Range province where mid-ocean ridge/transform spreading in the Gulf of California has evolved northward into the continent. In 1992, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted the final leg of the Pacific to Arizona Crustal Experiment (PACE). Two perpendicular models of the crust and upper mantle were fit to wide-angle reflection and refraction travel times, seismic amplitudes, and Bouguer gravity anomalies. The first profile crossed the Salton Trough from the southwest to the northeast, and the second was a strike line that paralleled the Salton Sea along its western edge. We found thin crust (???21-22 km thick) beneath the axis of the Salton Trough (Imperial Valley) and locally thicker crust (???27 km) beneath the Chocolate Mountains to the northeast. We modelled a slight thinning of the crust further to the northeast beneath the Colorado River (???24 km) and subsequent thickening beneath the metamorphic core complex belt northeast of the Colorado River. There is a deep, apparently young basin (???5-6 km unmetamorphosed sediments) beneath the Imperial Valley and a shallower (???2-3 km) basin beneath the Colorado River. A regional 6.9-km/s layer (between ???15-km depth and the Moho) underlies the Salton Trough as well as the Chocolate Mountains where it pinches out at the Moho. This lower crustal layer is spatially associated with a low-velocity (7.6-7.7 km/s) upper mantle. We found that our crustal model is locally compatible with the previously suggested notion that the crust of the Salton Trough has formed almost entirely from magmatism in the lower crust and sedimentation in the upper crust. However, we observe an apparently magmatically emplaced lower crust to the northeast, outside of the Salton Trough, and propose that this layer in part

Altitude Variation of the Plasmapause Signature in the Main Ionospheric Trough

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grebowsky, Joseph M.; Benson, Robert F.; Webb, Phillip A.; Truhlik, Vladimir; Bilitza, Dieter

2009-01-01

The projection of the plasmapause magnetic-field lines to low altitudes, where the light-ion chemistry is dominated by O(+), tends to occur near the minimum electron density in the main (midlatitude) electron density trough at night. With increasing attitude in the trough, where H(+) emerges as the dominant iota on the low-latitude boundary, we have found cases where the plasmapause field lines are located on the sharp low-Latitude side of the trough as expected if this topside ionosphere H(+) distribution varies in step with the plasmapause gradient in the distant plasmasphere. These conclusions are based on near-equatorial crossings of the plasmapause (corresponding to the steep gradient in the dominant species H(+) by the Explorer-45 satellite as determined from electric-field measurements by Maynard and Cauffman in the early 1970s and ISIS-2 ionospheric topside-sounder measurements. The former data have now been converted to digital form and made available at http://nssdcftp.gsfc.nasa.gov. The latter provide samples of nearly coincident observations of ionospheric main trough crossings near the same magnetic-field lines of the Explorer 45-determined equatorial plasmapause. The ISIS-2 vertical electron density profiles are used to infer where the F-region transitions from an O(+) to a H(+) dominated plasma through the main trough boundaries.

Pseudocyclops schminkei (Copepoda, Calanoida, Pseudocyclopidae): a new species from Okinawa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chullasorn, Supawadee; Ferrari, Frank D.; Dahms, Hans-Uwe

2010-03-01

Both genders of Pseudocyclops schminkei n. sp. are described from a pearl fishery aquarium on Zamami Island, Okinawa, Japan; it is the 37th species of the genus. Pseudocyclops schminkei sp. nov. differs from other species of the magnus species group in the shape of the lobes of distal exopodal segment of the male left leg 5, and the morphology of setae on middle and distal exopodal segment of male right swimming leg 2. Aspects of the morphology of P. xiphophorus and P. bilobatus are redescribed, and an unnamed Pseudocyclops sp. from the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, IL, is briefly noted. Females of P. schminkei sp. nov., P. xiphophorus and Pseudocyclops sp. could not be separated from each other with the small number of specimens available in this study for the former two species.

Laser welding on trough panel: 3D body part

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shirai, Masato; Hisano, Hirohiko

2003-03-01

Laser welding for automotive bodies has been introduced mainly by European car manufacturers since more than 10 years ago. Their purposes of laser welding introduction were mainly vehicle performance improvement and lightweight. And laser welding was applied to limited portion where shapes of panels are simple and easy to fit welded flanges. Toyota also has introduced laser welding onto 3 dimensional parts named trough panel since 1999. Our purpose of the introduction was common use of equipment. Trough panel has a complex shape and different shapes in each car type. In order to realize common use of welding equipment, we introduced parts locating equipment which had unique, small & simple jigs fo each car type and NC (Numerical Controlled) locators and air-cooled small laser head developed by ourselves to the trough welding process. Laser welding replaced spot welding and was applied linearly like stitches. Length of laser welding was determined according to comparison with statistic tensile strength and fatigue strength of spot welding.

Draft Genome Sequence of Pseudomonas oceani DSM 100277T, a Deep-Sea Bacterium

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

ABSTRACT Pseudomonas oceani DSM 100277T was isolated from deep seawater in the Okinawa Trough at 1390 m. P. oceani belongs to the Pseudomonas pertucinogena group. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of P. oceani, which has an estimated size of 4.1 Mb and exhibits 3,790 coding sequences, with a G+C content of 59.94 mol%. PMID:29650573

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Yumen 50MW Thermal Oil Trough CSP

Science.gov Websites

project | Concentrating Solar Power | NREL Thermal Oil Trough CSP project Status Date : September 28, 2016 Project Overview Project Name: Yumen 50MW Thermal Oil Trough CSP project Country: China : Thermal Oil Power Block Turbine Capacity (Gross): 50.0 MW Turbine Capacity (Net): 50.0 MW Output Type

Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections associated with ground beef from a U.S. military installation--Okinawa, Japan, February 2004.

PubMed

2005-01-21

In February 2004, the Okinawa Prefectural Chubu Health Center (OCHC) and the Okinawa Prefectural Institute of Health and Environment (OIHE), Japan, investigated three cases of Escherichia coli O157:H7 infection in a Japanese family associated with eating ground beef. Public health officials from multiple agencies in Japan and the United States collaborated on this investigation, which resulted in a voluntary recall of approximately 90,000 pounds of frozen ground beef in the United States and at U.S. military bases in the Far East. This was the first reported instance in which Japanese public health officials identified contaminated, commercially distributed ground beef that was produced in the United States. This report summarizes epidemiologic and laboratory investigations conducted by OCHC and OIHE. The results underscore the importance of using standardized molecular subtyping methods throughout the world to facilitate international public health communication and intervention.

Optimized molten salt receivers for ultimate trough solar fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riffelmann, Klaus-J.; Richert, Timo; Kuckelkorn, Thomas

2016-05-01

Today parabolic trough collectors are the most successful concentrating solar power (CSP) technology. For the next development step new systems with increased operation temperature and new heat transfer fluids (HTF) are currently developed. Although the first power tower projects have successfully been realized, up to now there is no evidence of an all-dominant economic or technical advantage of power tower or parabolic trough. The development of parabolic trough technology towards higher performance and significant cost reduction have led to significant improvements in competitiveness. The use of molten salt instead of synthetic oil as heat transfer fluid will bring down the levelized costs of electricity (LCOE) even further while providing dispatchable energy with high capacity factors. FLABEG has developed the Ultimate TroughTM (UT) collector, jointly with sbp Sonne GmbH and supported by public funds. Due to its validated high optical accuracy, the collector is very suitable to operate efficiently at elevated temperatures up to 550 °C. SCHOTT will drive the key-innovations by introducing the 4th generation solar receiver that addresses the most significant performance and cost improvement measures. The new receivers have been completely redesigned to provide a product platform that is ready for high temperature operation up to 550 °C. Moreover distinct product features have been introduced to reduce costs and risks in solar field assembly and installation. The increased material and design challenges incurred with the high temperature operation have been reflected in sophisticated qualification and validation procedures.

Controls of bioclastic turbidite deposition in eastern Muertos Trough northeast Caribbean Sea

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Forsthoff, G.M.; Holcombe, T.L.

1985-02-01

A study of seismic-reflection profiles and sediment cores establishes regional bathymetric and source area control over the composition, transport, and distribution of turbidites in the eastern Muertos Trough, Bioclastic (carbonate) turbidites dominate the eastern portion of the trough. Analyses of carbon content and sand-sized components suggest that the bioclastic turbidites (characterized by planktonic foraminifera, pteropods, and sponge spicules) are reworked pelagic oozes originally deposited on the outer-shelf and upper-slope areas south of St. Croix and eastern Puerto Rico. The presence of several intrashelf and upper-slope basins prohibits shallow-water carbonate sediments from entering the Muertos Trough. Volcanic rock fragments derived frommore » Puerto Rico are transported to the trough via the Guayanilla Canyon system. Mixing of the volcanic fragments with outer-shelf and upper-slope lutites results in mixed bioclastic-terrigenous turbidites south of central and western Puerto Rico. The paucity of shallow-water carbonate sediments in the trough suggests that the submarine canyons are effective conduits for the rapid transport of volcaniclastic sands across the shelf and thereby prevent extensive mixing with inner- and middle-shelf carbonate sediments. Sediment transport within the trough is primarily axial in an east-west direction. Outer trench-wall fault scarps, south of Guayanilla Canyon, limit the southerly progradation of the trench-wedge facies and deflect incoming gravity flows in a down-axis (westward) direction. Where no faults exist, the trench wedge progrades southward and interfingers with the pelagic sediments of the northern Venezuelan basin.« less

Magnetic anomaly map of the central Cayman Trough, northwestern Caribbean Sea

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dillon, William P.; Edgar, N. Terence; Parson, Lindsay M.; Scanlon, Kathryn M.; Driscoll, George R.; Jacobs, Colin L.

1993-01-01

This is the first large-scale published map of magnetic anomalies in the central Cayman Trough area. Two previously published very small scale maps based on much less data are a regional map (Gough and Heirtzler, 1969) and a map compiled from several tracklines running parallel to the axis of the Cayman Trough (MacDonald and Holcombe, 1978).

Morphological evolution of Jinshan Trough in Hangzhou Bay (China) from 1960 to 2011

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yifei; Xia, Xiaoming; Chen, Shenliang; Jia, Jianjun; Cai, Tinglu

2017-11-01

An extensive system of tidal channels, starting with Jinshan Trough in the east, is located along the north shore of Hangzhou Bay, China. This contribution investigates the morphological evolution of Jinshan Trough by using 17 bathymetric charts from a series covering a period of 51 years from 1960 to 2011. Three stages of evolution during this period are distinguishable based on the morphology and annual mean volume data. The first stage (1960-1987) is characterized by extension of the trough; the second stage (1987-1996) is a relatively stable period with some adjustments in the trough morphology; the third stage (1996-2011) is marked by the processes of erosion and deposition in the beginning of the period and a subsequent slow erosion process. Spatio-temporal variability of the trough was evaluated by using empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis. The first eigenfunction indicates that erosion is the main evolution process and there exists three stages similar to those distinguished from volume variations. The second eigenfunction mainly reflects erosion and deposition in the northwest part of the trough located in the flood tidal current shadow area of the artificial headland in Jinshan. The third eigenfunction mainly reflects annual fluctuations of erosion and deposition in the side slope at the artificial headland in Jinshan. A particularly intense erosion process occurred between 1996 and 1998. The major effects on morphological evolution in Jinshan Trough from 1960 to 2011 were investigated and tentative conclusions were presented. Continuous coastal reclamations in Jinshan had the most pronounced effect on the morphological evolution during the first and the second stages. The storm surge had a pronounced effect on the evolution at the beginning of the third stage.

Analysis of Earthquake Source Spectra in Salton Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, X.; Shearer, P. M.

2009-12-01

Previous studies of the source spectra of small earthquakes in southern California show that average Brune-type stress drops vary among different regions, with particularly low stress drops observed in the Salton Trough (Shearer et al., 2006). The Salton Trough marks the southern end of the San Andreas Fault and is prone to earthquake swarms, some of which are driven by aseismic creep events (Lohman and McGuire, 2007). In order to learn the stress state and understand the physical mechanisms of swarms and slow slip events, we analyze the source spectra of earthquakes in this region. We obtain Southern California Seismic Network (SCSN) waveforms for earthquakes from 1977 to 2009 archived at the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) data center, which includes over 17,000 events. After resampling the data to a uniform 100 Hz sample rate, we compute spectra for both signal and noise windows for each seismogram, and select traces with a P-wave signal-to-noise ratio greater than 5 between 5 Hz and 15 Hz. Using selected displacement spectra, we isolate the source spectra from station terms and path effects using an empirical Green’s function approach. From the corrected source spectra, we compute corner frequencies and estimate moments and stress drops. Finally we analyze spatial and temporal variations in stress drop in the Salton Trough and compare them with studies of swarms and creep events to assess the evolution of faulting and stress in the region. References: Lohman, R. B., and J. J. McGuire (2007), Earthquake swarms driven by aseismic creep in the Salton Trough, California, J. Geophys. Res., 112, B04405, doi:10.1029/2006JB004596 Shearer, P. M., G. A. Prieto, and E. Hauksson (2006), Comprehensive analysis of earthquake source spectra in southern California, J. Geophys. Res., 111, B06303, doi:10.1029/2005JB003979.

The Nova-Canton Trough and the Late Cretaceous evolution of the central Pacific

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joseph, Devorah; Taylor, Brain; Shor, Alexander N.; Yamazaki, Toshitsugu

Free-air gravity anomalies derived from satellite altimetry data show that the major Pacific fracture zones, from the Pau to Marquesas, are co-polar about an Euler pole located at 150.5°W, 34.6°S for the period preceding chron 33 and including a large portion of the Cretaceous Normal Superchron. They also show continuity of the Clipperton Fracture Zone through the Line Islands to the Nova-Canton ridge and trough; this Canton-Clipperton trend is co-polar to the same pole. Sidescan-sonar and bathymetry data in the Nova-Canton Trough region reveal N140°E-striking abyssal hill topography south of the N70°E-striking structures of the Nova-Canton Trough and crustal fabric striking normal to the trough (N160°E) to the north. We conclude that the Nova-Canton Trough is the Middle Cretaceous extension of the Clipperton Fracture Zone. We propose that the anomalous depths (7000-8400 m) of the trough between 167°30'-168°30'W are the result of a complex plate reorganization. Conjugate magnetic anomaly lineations M1-M3 in the Phoenix lineations between the Central Pacific Fracture Zone and the Phoenix Fracture Zone and the absence of lineations younger than anomaly M3 west of the Phoenix Fracture Zone suggest that spreading may have gradually ceased along the Pacific-Phoenix system from west to east. We infer that the remaining active segment of the Pacific-Phoenix spreading system after anomaly M1 time was the easternmost section of the Phoenix lineations. At ˜M0 time, the Pacific-Phoenix spreading axis stretched from lineated bathymetric depressions lying between 180°W and the Phoenix Islands to ˜168°W and included the western deep of the Nova-Canton Trough. We hypothesize that accretion terminated on the Pacific-Phoenix spreading axis shortly after M0 time and that the absence of an M0 isochron in the region between the eastern Phoenix lineations and the Nova-Canton Trough, or along the Nova-Canton Trough itself, may be due to a decrease in spreading rate prior to

Pennsylvanian-Permian tectonism in the Great Basin: The Dry Mountain trough and related basins

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Snyder, W.S.; Spinosa, C.; Gallegos, D.M.

1991-02-01

Pennsylvanian-Permian tectonism affected the continental margin of western North America from the Yukon to the Mojave Desert. Specific signatures of this tectonism include local angular unconformities, regional disconformities, renewed outpouring of clastic debris from a reactivated Antler and related highlands, and development of deeper water basins with anoxic sediments deposited below wave base. The basins formed include Ishbel trough (Canada), the Wood River basin (Idaho), Cassia basin, Ferguson trough, Dry Mountain trough (all Nevada), and unnamed basins in Death Valley-Mojave Desert region. The Dry Mountain trough (DMT) was initiated during early Wolfcampian and received up to 1,200 m of sedimentmore » by the late Leonardian. The lower contact is a regional unconformity with the Ely Limestone, or locally with the Diamond Peak or Vinini formations. Thus, following a period of localized regional uplift that destroyed the Ely basin, portions of the uplifted and exposed shelf subsided creating the Dry Mountain trough. Evidence suggesting a tectonic origin for the DMT includes (1) high subsidence rates (60-140 m/m.y.); (2) renewed influx of coarse clastic debris from the Antler highlands: (3) possible pre-Early Permian folding, thrusting, and tilting within the highlands; and (4) differential subsidence within the Dry Mountain trough, suggesting the existence of independent fault blocks.« less

Vesta Mineralogy: VIR maps Vesta's surface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coradina, A.; DeSanctis, M.; Ammannito, E.; Capaccioni, F.; Capria, T.; Carraro, F.; Cartacci, M.; Filacchione, G.; Fonte, S.; Magni, G.;

Life at the extreme limit: phenotypic characteristics of supercentenarians in Okinawa.

PubMed

Willcox, D Craig; Willcox, Bradley J; Wang, Nien-Chiang; He, Qimei; Rosenbaum, Matthew; Suzuki, Makoto

2008-11-01

As elite representatives of the rapidly increasing "oldest-old" population, centenarians have become an important model population for understanding human aging. However, as we are beginning to understand more about this important phenotype, another demographic group of even more elite survivors is emerging-so-called "supercentenarians" or those who survive 110-plus years. Little is known about these exceptional survivors. We assessed the Okinawa Centenarian Study (OCS) database for all information on supercentenarians. The database includes dates of birth and year of death for all residents of Okinawa 99 years old or older and a yearly geriatric assessment of all centenarians who consented, enabling prospective study of age-related traits. Of 20 potential supercentenarians identified, 15 had agreed to participate in the OCS interview, physical examination, and blood draw. Of these 15, 12 (3 men and 9 women) met our age validation criteria and were accepted as supercentenarians. Phenotypic variables studied include medical and social history, activities of daily living (ADLs), and clinical phenotypes (physiology, hematology, biochemistry, and immunology). Age at death ranged from 110 to 112 years. The majority of supercentenarians had minimal clinically apparent disease until late in life, with cataracts (42%) and fractures (33%) being common and coronary heart disease (8%), stroke (8%), cancer (0%), and diabetes (0%) rare or not evident on clinical examination. Functionally, most supercentenarians were independent in ADLs at age 100 years, and few were institutionalized before the age of 105 years. Most had normal clinical parameters at age 100 years, but by age 105 exhibited multiple clinical markers of frailty coincident with a rapid ADL decline. Supercentenarians displayed an exceptionally healthy aging phenotype where clinically apparent major chronic diseases and disabilities were markedly delayed, often beyond age 100. They had little clinical history of

Pathogenic substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A in SLC26A4 in patients of Okinawa Islands with enlarged vestibular aqueduct syndrome or Pendred syndrome.

PubMed

Ganaha, Akira; Kaname, Tadashi; Yanagi, Kumiko; Naritomi, Kenji; Tono, Tetsuya; Usami, Shin-ichi; Suzuki, Mikio

2013-05-24

Pendred syndrome (PS) and nonsyndromic hearing loss associated with enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA) are caused by SLC26A4 mutations. The Okinawa Islands are the southwestern-most islands of the Japanese archipelago. And ancestral differences have been reported between people from Okinawa Island and those from the main islands of Japan. To confirm the ethnic variation of the spectrum of SLC26A4 mutations, we investigated the frequencies of SLC26A4 mutations and clinical manifestations of patients with EVA or PS living in the Okinawa Islands. We examined 22 patients with EVA or PS from 21 unrelated families in Okinawa Islands. The patient's clinical history, findings of physical and otoscopic examinations, hearing test, and computed tomography (CT) scan of the temporal bones were recorded. To detect mutations, all 21 exons and the exon-intron junctions of SLC26A4 were sequenced for all subjects. Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) for SLC26A4 and calculations using the comparative CT (2(-ΔΔCT)) method were used to determine the pathogenicity associated with gene substitutions. SLC26A4 mutations were identified in 21 of the 22 patients. We found a compound heterozygous mutation for IVS15 + 5G > A/H723R in nine patients (41%), a homozygous substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A in six patients (27%), and homozygous mutation for H723R in five patients (23%). The most prevalent types of SLC26A4 alleles were IVS15 + 5G > A and H723R, which both accounted for 15/22 (68%) of the patients. There were no significant correlations between the types of SLC26A4 mutation and clinical manifestations. Based on qRT-PCR results, expression of SLC26A4 was not identified in patients with the homozygous substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A. The substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A in SLC26A4 was the most common mutation in uniquely found in patients with PS and EVA in Okinawa Islands. This suggested that the spectrum of SLC26A4 mutation differed

The origin of polygonal troughs on the northern plains of Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pechmann, J. C.

1980-05-01

The morphology, distribution, geologic environment and relative age of large-scale polygonal trough systems on Mars are examined. The troughs are steep-walled, flat-floored, sinuous depressions typically 200-800 m wide, 20-120 m deep and spaced 5-10 km apart. The mechanics of formation of tension cracks is reviewed to identify the factors controlling the scale of tension crack systems; special emphasis is placed on thermal cracking in permafrost. It is shown that because of the extremely large scale of the Martian fracture systems, they could not have formed by thermal cracking in permafrost, dessication cracking in sediments or contraction cracking in cooling lava. On the basis of photogeologic evidence and analog studies, it is proposed that polygonal troughs on the northern plains of Mars are grabens.

The mineralogy of global magnetic anomalies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haggerty, S. E. (Principal Investigator)

1984-01-01

Experimental and analytical data on magnetic mineralogy was provided as an aid to the interpretation of magnetic anomaly maps. An integrated program, ranging from the chemistry of materials from 100 or more km depth within the Earth, to an examination of the MAGSAT anomaly maps at about 400 km above the Earth's surface, was undertaken. Within this framework, a detailed picture of the pertinent mineralogical and magnetic relationships for the region of West Africa was provided. Efforts were directed toward: (1) examining the geochemistry, mineralogy, magnetic properties, and phases relations of magnetic oxides and metal alloys in rocks demonstrated to have originated in the lower crust of upper mantle, (2) examining the assumption that these rocks portray the nature of their source regions; and (3) examining the regional geology, tectonics, gravity field and the MAGSAT anomaly maps for West Africa.

A mineralogical instrument for planetary applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blake, David F.; Vaniman, David T.; Bish, David L.

1994-01-01

The mineralogy of a planetary surface can be used to identify the provenance of soil or sediment and reveal the volcanic, metamorphic and/or sedimentological history of a particular region. We have discussed elsewhere the applications and the instrument design of possible X-ray diffraction and X-ray fluorescence (XRD/XRF) devices for the mineralogical characterization of planetary surfaces. In this abstract we evaluate some aspects of sample-detector geometry and sample collection strategies.

Mineralogical conversion of asbestos containing materials

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pulsford, S.K.; Foltz, A.D.; Ek, R.B.

The principal objective of the Technical Task Plan (TTP) is to demonstrate a thermal-chemical mineralogical asbestos conversion unit at the Hanford Site, which converts non-radiological asbestos containing materials (ACMs) into an asbestos-free material. The permanent thermal-chemical mineralogical conversion of ACMs to a non-toxic, non-hazardous, potentially marketable end product should not only significantly reduce the waste stream volumes but terminate the {open_quotes}cradle to grave{close_quotes} ownership liabilities.

Prediction of Vancomycin Dose for Recommended Trough Concentrations in Pediatric Patients With Cystic Fibrosis.

PubMed

Amin, Raid W; Guttmann, Rodney P; Harris, Quianna R; Thomas, Janesha W

2018-05-01

Vancomycin is a key antibiotic used in the treatment of multiple conditions including infections associated with cystic fibrosis and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The present study sought to develop a model based on empirical evidence of optimal vancomycin dose as judged by clinical observations that could accelerate the achievement of desired trough level in children with cystic fibrosis. Transformations of dose and trough were used to arrive at regression models with excellent fit for dose based on weight or age for a target trough. Results of this study indicate that the 2 proposed regression models are robust to changes in age or weight, suggesting that the daily dose on a per-kilogram basis is determined primarily by the desired trough level. The results show that to obtain a vancomycin trough level of 20 μg/mL, a dose of 80 mg/kg/day is needed. This analysis should improve the efficiency of vancomycin usage by reducing the number of titration steps, resulting in improved patient outcome and experience. © 2018, The American College of Clinical Pharmacology.

New sidescan sonar and gravity evidence that the Nova-Canton Trough is a fracture zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joseph, Devorah; Taylor, Brian; Shor, Alexander N.

1992-05-01

A 1990 sidescan sonar survey in the eastern region of the Nova-Canton Trough mapped 138°-striking abyssal-hill fabric trending into 70°-striking trough structures. The location and angle of intersection of the abyssal hills with the eastern Nova-Canton Trough effectively disprove a spreading-center origin of this feature. Free-air gravity anomalies derived from satellite altimetry data show continuity, across the Line Islands, of the Nova-Canton Trough with the Clipperton Fracture Zone. The Canton-Clipperton trend is copolar, about a pole at 30°S, 152°W, with other coeval Pacific-Farallon fracture-zone segments, from the Pau to Marquesas fracture zones. This copolarity leads us to postulate a Pacific-Farallon spreading pattern for the magnetic quiet zone region north and east of the Manihiki Plateau, with the Nova-Canton Trough originating as a transform fault in this system.

The importance of mineralogical input into geometallurgy programs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hoal, K. Olson; Woodhead, J.D.; Smith, Kathleen S.

2013-01-01

Mineralogy is the link between ore formation and ore extraction. It is the most fundamental component of geomet programs, and the most important aspect of a life-of-project approach to mineral resource projects. Understanding orebodies is achieved by understanding the mineralogy and texture of the materials, throughout the process, because minerals hold the information required to unlock the value they contain. Geomet mineralogy programs absolutely require the appropriate expertise and at least three steps of mineral characterisation prior to using semi-automated or other methods: field examination, thorough core logging, and optical microscopy. Economic geological inputs for orebody characterisation are necessary for orebody understanding, and are exemplified by current research in the Zambian Copperbelt, where revised sequence stratigraphy and understanding of alteration, metasomatism and metamorphism can be used to predict topical issues at mine sites. Environmental inputs for sustainability characterisation are demonstrated by recent work on tailings from the Leadville, Colorado, USA area, including linking mineralogy to water quality issues. Risk assessments need to take into account the technical uncertainties around geological variability and mineral extractability, and mineralogy is the only metric that can be used to make this risk contribution.

Stable isotopes in mineralogy

USGS Publications Warehouse

O'Neil, J.R.

1977-01-01

Stable isotope fractionations between minerals are functions of the fundamental vibrational frequencies of the minerals and therefore bear on several topics of mineralogical interest. Isotopic compositions of the elements H, C, O, Si, and S can now be determined routinely in almost any mineral. A summary has been made of both published and new results of laboratory investigations, analyses of natural materials, and theoretical considerations which bear on the importance of temperature, pressure, chemical composition and crystal structure to the isotopic properties of minerals. It is shown that stable isotope studies can sometimes provide evidence for elucidating details of crystal structure and can be a powerful tool for use in tracing the reaction paths of mineralogical reactions. ?? 1977 Springer-Verlag.

Sulfur Mineralogy at the Mars Phoenix Landing Site

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ming, Douglas W.; Morris, R.V.; Golden, D.C.; Sutter, B.; Clark, B.C.; Boynton, W.V.; Hecht, M.H.; Kounaves, S.P.

2009-01-01

The Mars Phoenix Scout mission landed at the northernmost location (approx.68deg N) of any lander or rover on the martian surface. This paper compares the S mineralogy at the Phoenix landing site with S mineralogy of soils studied by previous Mars landers. S-bearing phases were not directly detected by the payload onboard the Phoenix spacecraft. Our objective is to derive the possible mineralogy of S-bearing phases at the Phoenix landing site based upon Phoenix measurements in combination with orbital measurements, terrestrial analog and Martian meteorite studies, and telescopic observations.

The Rome trough and evolution of the Iapetean margin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Walker, D.; Hamilton-Smith, T.; Drahovzal, J.A.

1991-08-01

Recent structural mapping of the Rome trough suggests a complex structure very different from the symmetrical and laterally continuous graben commonly depicted. Early and Middle Cambrian extension in the Rome trough of eastern Kentucky and adjacent areas resulted in a series of alternately facing half-grabens with variable displacement. These half-grabens are bounded by southwest-northeast-trending normal faults (e.g., Kentucky River and Warfield faults), which are laterally continuous only on the order to tens of kilometers. The Rome trough is laterally segmented by north-south-trending faults (e.g., Lexington fault) commonly expressed as flexures in younger rocks (e.g., Burning Springs anticline and Floyd Countymore » channel). Many of these north-south-trending faults have significant left-lateral displacement, and probably represent reactivated thrust faults of the Grenville tectonic front. The Rome trough and the associated Mississippi Valley, Rough Creek, and Birmingham fault systems were initiated during an Early Cambrian shift in sea-floor spreading from the Blue Ridge-Pine Mountain rift to the Ouachita rift along the Alabama-Oklahoma transform fault. These fault systems have been proposed as having originated from extensional stress propagated northward from the Ouachita rift across the transform fault. In the alternate model proposed here, faulting was brittle, extensional failure resulting form subsidence and flexure of the continental margin to the east. Following initiation of sea-floor spreading at the Blue Ridge-Pine Mountain rift in the latest Proterozoic, margin subsidence in the presence of the Alabama-Oklahoma transform boundary and the inherited Grenville tectonic front resulted in this interior cratonic fault system.« less

Improvement Design of Parabolic Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ihsan, S. I.; Safian, M. A. I. M.; Taufek, M. A. M.; Mohiuddin, A. K. M.

2017-03-01

The performance of parabolic trough solar collector (PTSC) has been evaluated using different heat transfer working fluids; namely water and SAE20 W50 engine oil. New and slightly improved PTSC was developed to run the experimental study. Under the meteorological conditions of Malaysia, authors found that PTSC can operate at a higher temperature than water collector but the performance efficiency of collector using engine oil is much lower than the water collector.

O+ trough zones in the polar cap ionosphere-magnetosphere coupling region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horwitz, James; Zeng, Wen; Jaafari, Fajer

Regions of low-density troughs in O+ have been observed at 1 RE altitude in the polar cap ionosphere-magnetosphere region by the Thermal Ion Dynamics Experiment(TIDE) on the POLAR spacecraft. In this presentation, the UT Arlington Dynamic Fluid-Kinetic (DyFK) code is employed to investigate the formation of such O+ density troughs. We utilize convection paths of flux tubes in the high-latitude region as prescribed by an empirical convection model with solar wind inputs to track the evolution of ionospheric plasma transport and in particular O+ densities along these tubes with time/space. The flux tubes are subjected to auroral processes of precipitation and wave-driven ion heating when they pass through the auroral oval, which tends to elevate the plasma densities in these tubes. When the F-regions of such tubes traverse locations where the F-region is in darkness, recombination there causes the higher-altitude regions to drain and the densities to decline throughout. Owing to the varying effects of these processes, significant and low trough-like densities at higher altitudes developed along these flux tubes. The modeled densities near 6000 km altitudes will be compared with multiple POLAR passes featuring POLAR/TIDE-measured O+ densities for inside and outside of such trough regions.

Automated Quantitative Rare Earth Elements Mineralogy by Scanning Electron Microscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sindern, Sven; Meyer, F. Michael

2016-09-01

Increasing industrial demand of rare earth elements (REEs) stems from the central role they play for advanced technologies and the accelerating move away from carbon-based fuels. However, REE production is often hampered by the chemical, mineralogical as well as textural complexity of the ores with a need for better understanding of their salient properties. This is not only essential for in-depth genetic interpretations but also for a robust assessment of ore quality and economic viability. The design of energy and cost-efficient processing of REE ores depends heavily on information about REE element deportment that can be made available employing automated quantitative process mineralogy. Quantitative mineralogy assigns numeric values to compositional and textural properties of mineral matter. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) combined with a suitable software package for acquisition of backscatter electron and X-ray signals, phase assignment and image analysis is one of the most efficient tools for quantitative mineralogy. The four different SEM-based automated quantitative mineralogy systems, i.e. FEI QEMSCAN and MLA, Tescan TIMA and Zeiss Mineralogic Mining, which are commercially available, are briefly characterized. Using examples of quantitative REE mineralogy, this chapter illustrates capabilities and limitations of automated SEM-based systems. Chemical variability of REE minerals and analytical uncertainty can reduce performance of phase assignment. This is shown for the REE phases parisite and synchysite. In another example from a monazite REE deposit, the quantitative mineralogical parameters surface roughness and mineral association derived from image analysis are applied for automated discrimination of apatite formed in a breakdown reaction of monazite and apatite formed by metamorphism prior to monazite breakdown. SEM-based automated mineralogy fulfils all requirements for characterization of complex unconventional REE ores that will become

Draft Genome Sequence of Pseudomonas oceani DSM 100277T, a Deep-Sea Bacterium.

PubMed

García-Valdés, Elena; Gomila, Margarita; Mulet, Magdalena; Lalucat, Jorge

2018-04-12

Pseudomonas oceani DSM 100277 T was isolated from deep seawater in the Okinawa Trough at 1390 m. P. oceani belongs to the Pseudomonas pertucinogena group. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of P. oceani , which has an estimated size of 4.1 Mb and exhibits 3,790 coding sequences, with a G+C content of 59.94 mol%. Copyright © 2018 García-Valdés et al.

OUT Success Stories: Solar Trough Power Plants

DOE R&D Accomplishments Database

Jones, J.

2000-08-01

The Solar Electric Generating System (SEGS) plants use parabolic-trough solar collectors to capture the sun's energy and convert it to heat. The SEGS plants range in capacity from 13.8 to 80 MW, and they were constructed to meet Southern California Edison Company's periods of peak power demand.

NASA Moon Mineralogy Mapper

NASA Image and Video Library

2008-12-17

Different wavelengths of light provide new information about the Orientale Basin region of the moon in a composite image taken by NASA Moon Mineralogy Mapper, a guest instrument aboard the Indian Space Research Organization Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft.

Pathogenic substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A in SLC26A4 in patients of Okinawa Islands with enlarged vestibular aqueduct syndrome or Pendred syndrome

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Pendred syndrome (PS) and nonsyndromic hearing loss associated with enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA) are caused by SLC26A4 mutations. The Okinawa Islands are the southwestern-most islands of the Japanese archipelago. And ancestral differences have been reported between people from Okinawa Island and those from the main islands of Japan. To confirm the ethnic variation of the spectrum of SLC26A4 mutations, we investigated the frequencies of SLC26A4 mutations and clinical manifestations of patients with EVA or PS living in the Okinawa Islands. Methods We examined 22 patients with EVA or PS from 21 unrelated families in Okinawa Islands. The patient’s clinical history, findings of physical and otoscopic examinations, hearing test, and computed tomography (CT) scan of the temporal bones were recorded. To detect mutations, all 21 exons and the exon–intron junctions of SLC26A4 were sequenced for all subjects. Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) for SLC26A4 and calculations using the comparative CT (2−ΔΔCT) method were used to determine the pathogenicity associated with gene substitutions. Results SLC26A4 mutations were identified in 21 of the 22 patients. We found a compound heterozygous mutation for IVS15 + 5G > A/H723R in nine patients (41%), a homozygous substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A in six patients (27%), and homozygous mutation for H723R in five patients (23%). The most prevalent types of SLC26A4 alleles were IVS15 + 5G > A and H723R, which both accounted for 15/22 (68%) of the patients. There were no significant correlations between the types of SLC26A4 mutation and clinical manifestations. Based on qRT-PCR results, expression of SLC26A4 was not identified in patients with the homozygous substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A. Conclusions The substitution of IVS15 + 5G > A in SLC26A4 was the most common mutation in uniquely found in patients with PS and EVA in Okinawa Islands. This suggested that

X-ray Spectroscopy and Magnetism in Mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sainctavit, Philippe; Brice-Profeta, Sandrine; Gaudry, Emilie; Letard, Isabelle; Arrio, Marie-Anne

The objective of this paper is to present the kind of information that can be gained in the field of mineralogy from the use of x-ray magnetic spectroscopies. We review some of the questions that are unsettled and that could benefit from an interdisciplinary approach where magnetism, spectroscopy and mineralogy could be mixed. Most of the attention is focused on iron and some other 3d transition elements. The mineralogy of planetary cores and its relation with known meteorites are exemplified. The various oxide phases in the mantle and the nature of iron in these phases is also underlined. The presence of transition elements in insulating minerals and its relation with macroscopic properties such as the color of gemstones are reviewed. Finally an introduction to paleomagnetism is given with a special attention to nanomaghemites.

The Relationship Between Vancomycin Trough Concentrations and AUC/MIC Ratios in Pediatric Patients: A Qualitative Systematic Review.

PubMed

Tkachuk, Stacey; Collins, Kyle; Ensom, Mary H H

2018-04-01

In adults, the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) divided by the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) is associated with better clinical and bacteriological response to vancomycin in patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus who achieve target AUC/MIC ≥ 400. This target is often extrapolated to pediatric patients despite the lack of similar evidence. The impracticalities of calculating the AUC in practice means vancomycin trough concentrations are used to predict the AUC/MIC. This review aimed to determine the relationship between vancomycin trough concentrations and AUC/MIC in pediatric patients. We searched the MEDLINE and Embase databases, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials using the medical subject heading (MeSH) terms vancomycin and AUC and pediatric* or paediatric*. Articles were included if they were published in English and reported a relationship between vancomycin trough concentrations and AUC/MIC. Of 122 articles retrieved, 11 met the inclusion criteria. One trial reported a relationship between vancomycin trough concentrations, AUC/MIC, and clinical outcomes but was likely underpowered. Five studies found troughs 6-10 mg/l were sufficient to attain an AUC/MIC > 400 in most general hospitalized pediatric patients. One study in patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery found a trough of 18.4 mg/l achieved an AUC/MIC > 400. Two oncology studies reported troughs ≥ 15 mg/l likely attained an AUC/MIC ≥ 400. In critical care patients: one study found a trough of 9 mg/l did not attain the AUC/MIC target; another found 7 mg/l corresponded to an AUC/MIC of 400. Potential vancomycin targets varied based on the population studied but, for general hospitalized pediatric patients, troughs of 6-10 mg/l are likely sufficient to achieve AUC/MIC ≥ 400. For MIC ≥ 2 mg/l, higher troughs are likely necessary to achieve an AUC/MIC ≥ 400. More

Full parabolic trough qualification from prototype to demonstration loop

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Janotte, Nicole; Lüpfert, Eckhard; Pottler, Klaus; Schmitz, Mark

2017-06-01

On the example of the HelioTrough® collector development the full accompanying and supporting qualification program for large-scale parabolic trough collectors for solar thermal power plants is described from prototype to demonstration loop scale. In the evaluation process the actual state and the optimization potential are assessed. This includes the optical and geometrical performance determined by concentrator shape, deformation, assembly quality and local intercept factor values. Furthermore, its mechanical performance in terms of tracking accuracy and torsional stiffness and its thermal system performance on the basis of the overall thermal output and heat loss are evaluated. Demonstration loop tests deliver results of collector modules statistical slope deviation of 1.9 to 2.6 mrad, intercept factor above 98%, peak optical performance of 81.6% and heat loss coefficients from field tests. The benefit of such a closely monitored development lies in prompt feedback on strengths, weaknesses and potential improvements on the new product at any development stage from first module tests until demonstration loop evaluation. The product developer takes advantage of the achieved technical maturity, already before the implementation in a commercial power plant. The well-understood performance characteristics allow the reduction of safety margins making the new HelioTrough collector competitive from the start.

Verification of the modelling of the main ionospheric trough by the Electron Density Assimilative Model (EDAM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, James; Pryse, Eleri; Jackson-Booth, Natasha

2017-04-01

The main ionospheric trough is a large-scale spatial depletion in the ionospheric electron density that commonly separates the auroral and mid-latitude regions. The feature covers several degrees in latitude and is extended in longitude. It exhibits substantial day-to-day variability in both the location of its minimum ionisation density and in its latitudinal structure. Observations from the UK have shown the trough to be a night-time feature, appearing in early evening to the north of the mainland and progressing equatorward during the course of the night. At dawn, photoionisation fills in the feature. Under increasing levels of geomagnetic activity, the trough moves progressively to lower latitudes. Steep gradients on the trough walls and their variability can cause problems for radio applications. EDAM can be used to model the ionosphere at the trough latitudes by assimilating ionospheric observations from this region into the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI). In this study troughs modelled by EDAM, assimilating data for a period from September to December 2002, are presented and are verified by comparisons with independent observations. Measurements of slant total electron content (sTEC) between GPS satellites and forty ground receivers in Europe were assimilated into EDAM to model the ionospheric electron density. The Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) was then calculated through the model, with the values at the longitude of 0.0E considered to obtain statistical characteristics of identified troughs parameters. Comparisons of the parameters with those obtained previously, using transmissions from the satellites of NIMS (Navy Ionospheric Monitoring System) orbiting at altitudes lower than GPS, revealed consistent results. Further support for the EDAM trough was obtained by comparisons of the model with independent GPS measurements. For this a GPS ground station not used in the assimilation was used to observe the sTEC to this "truth" station

Evidence and mechanism of Hurricane Fran-Induced ocean cooling in the Charleston Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Lian; Pietrafesa, L. J.; Bohm, E.; Zhang, C.; Li, X.

Evidence of enhanced sea surface cooling during and following the passage of Hurricane Fran in September 1996 over an oceanic depression located on the ocean margin offshore of Charleston, South Carolina (referred to as the Charleston Trough), [Pietrafesa, 1983] is documented. Approximately 4C° of sea surface temperature (SST) reduction within the Charleston Trough following the passage of Hurricane Fran was estimated based on SST imagery from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) on the NOAA-14 polar orbiting satellite. Simulations using a three-dimensional coastal ocean model indicate that the largest SST reduction occurred within the Charleston Trough. This SST reduction can be explained by oceanic mixing due to storm-induced internal inertia-gravity waves.

The origin and peculiarities of the nigerian benue trough: Another look from recent gravity data obtained from the middle benue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ajayi, C. O.; Ajakaiye, D. E.

1981-12-01

The origin of the Benue trough has been a controversial subject. Previous workers in the area have evolved several theories ranging from a rift, with or without plate tectonic concepts (King, 1950; Wright, 1968, 1970; Burke et al., 1970; Grant, 1971; Olade, 1975) to a geosyncline (Lees, 1952) and a combination of both (Cratchley and Jones, 1965; Offodile, 1976) to explain the origin of the trough. One of the aims of the gravity survey, carried out in the middle Benue and discussed in this paper, was to attempt to resolve some of the problems associated with the origin of the trough as proposed by previous workers and in so doing to explain the geological peculiarities associated with the trough. Interpretations of the gravity data along two north—south profiles in the survey area indicated the existence of a rift, of normal width (about 40 km) buried under the Cretaceous cover and located between the central axis (ridge) of the trough and the northern boundary of the trough. The gravity minimum which occurs south of the central axis of the trough, was also ascribed to another rift. Thus the Benue trough is considered to consist of two parallel rifts separated by the axial ridge which partly explains the abnormal width of the trough. The interpreted models also indicate a low-angle thrust fault, with a small displacement, which may be related to the folding of the sediments in the trough and also to the asymmetry of the trough. Furthermore, the gravity data suggest that oceanic crust might not have reached the ground surface in the Benue trough, as in the Red Sea, before rifting ceased.

Coastal submergence at Ukishima-ga-hara adjacent to the Suruga Trough (eastern Nankai Trough), central Japan, inferred from diatoms and plant macrofossils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sawai, Y.; Momohara, A.

2017-12-01

Five episodic submergence events during the past 3500 years were recognized at the Ukishima-ga-hara lowland, northern coast of Suruga Trough (eastern Nankai Trough). Coastal submergence in this region was originally reported by Osamu Fujiwara and his colleagues (e.g., Fujiwara et al., 2016) based mainly on changes in lithostratigraphy from a peaty layer that abruptly changed to a light-colored mud and results of microfossil analyses (pollen and diatoms from 57 and 13 samples, respectively). They attributed the submergence events to coseismic deformation associated with earthquakes in the Fujikawa-kako fault zone or Suruga Trough. Here I reevaluated the micropaleontology of this area using 200 samples from 15 cores to reconstruct the full history of coastal submergence during the last few thousand years. The submergence events were shown not by lithostratigraphy but clearly by changes in fossil diatom assemblages and plant macrofossils. For example, at about 2.3 m and 3.1 m below the ground surface, while aerophilic diatoms (such as Diadesmis contenta and Diploneis elliptica) dominate the underlying peaty layer, freshwater and brackish planktonic taxa (Aulacoseira and Thalassiosira) abound in the overlying layer. As many as five such changes in diatom assemblages were found in a 8-m core and radiocarbon ages constrain the age of the entire sequence to 3500 yr BP.

Mineralogical and spectral analysis of Vesta's Gegania and Lucaria quadrangles and comparative analysis of their key features

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Longobardo, Andrea; Palomba, Ernesto; De Sanctis, Maria Cristina; Zinzi, Angelo; Scully, Jennifer E. C.; Capaccioni, Fabrizio; Tosi, Federico; Zambon, Francesca; Ammannito, Eleonora; Combe, Jean-Philippe; Raymond, Carol A.; Russell, Cristopher T.

2015-10-01

This work is aimed at developing and interpreting infrared albedo, pyroxene and OH band depths, and pyroxene band center maps of Vesta's Gegania and Lucaria quadrangles, obtained from data provided by the Visible and InfraRed (VIR) mapper spectrometer on board NASA's Dawn spacecraft. The Gegania and Lucaria quadrangles span latitudes from 22°S to 22°N and longitudes from 0°E to 144°E. The mineralogical and spectral maps identify two large-scale units on this area of Vesta, which extend eastwards and westward of about 60°E, respectively. The two regions are not associated to large-scale geological units, which have a latitudinal distribution rather than longitudinal, but are defined by different contents of carbonaceous chondrites (CC): the eastern region, poor in CCs, is brighter and OH-depleted, whereas the western one, rich in CCs, is darker and OH-enriched. A detailed analysis of the small-scale units in these quadrangles is also performed. Almost all the units show the typical correspondence between high albedo, deep pyroxene bands, short band centers and absence of OH and vice versa. Only a few exceptions occur, such as the ejecta from the Aelia crater, where dark and bright materials are intimately mixed. The most characteristic features of these quadrangles are the equatorial troughs and the Lucaria tholus. The equatorial troughs consist of graben, i.e. a depression limited by two conjugate faults. The graben do not present their own spectral signatures, but spectral parameters similar to their surroundings, in agreement to their structural origin. This is observed also in graben outside the Gegania and Lucaria quadrangles. However, it is possible to observe other structural features, such as tectonic grooves, characterized by a changing composition and hence an albedo variation. This result is confirmed not only by mineralogical maps of Vesta, but also by analyzing the VIRTIS-Rosetta observations of Lutetia. The albedo change is instead a typical

Meeting models and mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bridges, John C.

2018-03-01

A new geochemical study shows that short-lived warm and wet episodes during a globally cold early Mars could have formed the clay deposits detected on the Martian surface. This model can reconcile climate models with mineralogical and geomorphological evidence.

Mineralogy: a modern approach to teaching a traditional discipline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, G. W.

2011-12-01

Mineralogy has traditionally been a primary component in undergraduate geoscience curriculum. In recent years, there has been a trend in which mineralogy and petrology have been combined into Earth Materials courses. This is unfortunate as these disciplines each have much to offer students, and content once considered essential is eliminated out of necessity. Mineralogy is still fundamental to students' understanding of the Earth and Earth processes. Using a modern approach to time-honored concepts, I teach a quarter-long Introductory Mineralogy class offered through the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. Student evaluations of this course unequivocally indicate a high degree of learning and interest in the material, confirming that mineralogy continues to be a valuable class into the 21st century. While much of the content remains similar to what has been taught over the last century, my strategy involves a well-balanced approach to old and new. The first third of the course is background including the relevance of mineralogy, crystal chemistry, and crystallography; the second third of the course is systematic mineralogy using the Dana system; the last third of the course is devoted to understanding optical mineralogy, using modern analytical equipment such as XRD and SEM, and learning to use the petrographic microscope. Throughout the quarter, a strong emphasis is placed on the importance of hand-sample identification. Field work, traditionally not emphasized in mineralogy courses, has been re-introduced to the curriculum. I use modern technology to facilitate and support student learning. A lecture-based approach is employed with carefully crafted and organized PowerPoint presentations. PowerPoint lectures can be effective and highly engaging. The key is to ensure that the lectures are not overly reliant on text, instead relying on diagrams, charts, photos, and embedded media such as 3-D animations (ex. to teach

Mineralogy of Eolian Sands at Gale Crater

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Achilles, C. N.; Vaniman, D. T.; Blake, D. F.; Bristow, T. F.; Rampe, E. B.; Ming, D. W.; Chipera, S. J.; Morris, R. V.; Morrison, S. M.; Downs, R. T.;

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - DEWA CSP Trough Project |

Science.gov Websites

: Parabolic trough Turbine Capacity: Net: 600.0 MW Gross: 600.0 MW Status: Under development Start Year: 2020 Ground: 2018 Start Production: 2020 PPA/Tariff Rate: 7.3 US cents per kWh Participants Developer(s): ACWA

Multiscale characteristics of mechanical and mineralogical heterogeneity using nanoindentation and Maps Mineralogy in Mancos Shale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoon, H.; Mook, W. M.; Dewers, T. A.

2017-12-01

Multiscale characteristics of textural and compositional (e.g., clay, cement, organics, etc.) heterogeneity profoundly influence the mechanical properties of shale. In particular, strongly anisotropic (i.e., laminated) heterogeneities are often observed to have a significant influence on hydrological and mechanical properties. In this work, we investigate a sample of the Cretaceous Mancos Shale to explore the importance of lamination, cements, organic content, and the spatial distribution of these characteristics. For compositional and structural characterization, the mineralogical distribution of thin core sample polished by ion-milling is analyzed using QEMSCAN® with MAPS MineralogyTM (developed by FEI Corporoation). Based on mineralogy and organic matter distribution, multi-scale nanoindentation testing was performed to directly link compositional heterogeneity to mechanical properties. With FIB-SEM (3D) and high-magnitude SEM (2D) images, key nanoindentation patterns are analyzed to evaluate elastic and plastic responses. Combined with MAPs Mineralogy data and fine-resolution BSE images, nanoindentation results are explained as a function of compositional and structural heterogeneity. Finite element modeling is used to quantitatively evaluate the link between the heterogeneity and mechanical behavior during nanoindentation. In addition, the spatial distribution of compositional heterogeneity, anisotropic bedding patterns, and mechanical anisotropy are employed as inputs for multiscale brittle fracture simulations using a phase field model. Comparison of experimental and numerical simulations reveal that proper incorporation of additional material information, such as bedding layer thickness and other geometrical attributes of the microstructures, may yield improvements on the numerical predictions of the mesoscale fracture patterns and hence the macroscopic effective toughness. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by

Mineralogy of the Lunar Crust in Spatial Context: First Results from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pieters, C. M.; Boardman, J.; Buratti, B.; Clark, R.; Combe, J-P; Green, R.; Goswami, J. N.; Head, J. W., III; Hicks, M.; Isaacson, P.;

Comparison of the mineralogy of the Boss-Bixby, Missouri copper-iron deposit, and the Olympic Dam copper-uranium-gold deposit, South Australia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brandom, R.T.; Hagni, R.D.; Allen, C.R.

1985-01-01

An ore microscopic examination of 80 polished sections prepared from selected drill core specimens from the Boss-Bixby, Missouri copper-iron deposit has shown that its mineral assemblage is similar to that of the Olympic Dam (Roxby Downs) copper-uranium-gold deposit in South Australia. A comparison with the mineralogy reported for Olympic Dam shows that both deposits contain: 1) the principal minerals, magnetite, hematite, chalcopyrite, and bornite, 2) the cobalt-bearing phases, carrollite and cobaltian pyrite, 3) the titanium oxides, rutile and anatase, 4) smaller amounts of martite, covellite, and electrum, 5) fluorite and carbonates, and 6) some alteration minerals. The deposits also aremore » similar with regard to the sequence of mineral deposition: 1) early oxides, 2) then sulfide minerals, and 3) a final oxide generation. The deposits, however, are dissimilar with regard to their host rock lithologies and structural settings. The Boss-Bixby ores occupy breccia zones within a hydrothermally altered basic intrusive and intruded silicic volcanics, whereas the Olympic Dam ores are contained in sedimentary breccias in a graben or trough. Also, some minerals have been found thus far to occur at only one of the deposits. The similarity of mineralogy in these deposits suggests that they were formed from ore fluids that had some similarities in character and that the St. Francois terrane of Missouri is an important region for further exploration for deposits with this mineral assemblage.« less

Deep drivers of mesoscale circulation in the central Rockall Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sherwin, T. J.; Alyenik, D.; Dumont, E.; Inall, M.

2014-11-01

Mesoscale variability in the central Rockall Trough between about 56 and 58° N has been investigated using a combination of ship-borne, underwater glider and gridded satellite altimeter measurements. Altimeter observations show that mesoscale features such as eddies and large scale circulation cells are ubiquitous phenomena. They have horizontal length scales of order 100 km with vertical scales of over 1000 m and are associated with mean current speeds (over the upper 1000 m) of 15 ± 7 cm s-1. Monthly area averaged surface Eddy Kinetic Energy (EKE) has substantial inter-annual variability, which at times can dominate a mean seasonal signal that varies from a maximum in May (74 cm2 s-2) to a minimum in October (52 cm2 s-2) and has increased gradually since 1992 at about 1.1 cm2 s-2 per year. A five month glider mission in the Trough showed that much of this energy comes from features that are located over 1000 m below the surface in the deep cold waters of the Trough (possibly from eddies associated the North Atlantic Current). The surface currents from altimeters had similar magnitude to the drift currents averaged over 1000 m from the glider in the stratified autumn, but were half the deep water speed during late winter. Although the mesoscale features move in an apparent random manner they may also be quasi-trapped by submarine topography such as seamounts. Occasionally anti-cyclonic and cyclonic cells combine to cause a coherent westward deflection of the European slope current that warms the Rockall side of the Trough. Such deflections contribute to the inter-annual variability in the observed temperature and salinity that are monitored in the upper 800 m of the Trough. By combining glider and altimeter measurements it is shown that altimeter measurements fail to observe a 15 cm s-1 northward flowing slope current on the eastern side and a small persistent southward current on the western side. There is much to be gained from the synergy between satellite

The nature of the crust under Cayman Trough from gravity

USGS Publications Warehouse

ten Brink, Uri S.; Coleman, D.F.; Dillon, William P.

2002-01-01

Considerable crustal thickness variations are inferred along Cayman Trough, a slow-spreading ocean basin in the Caribbean Sea, from modeling of the gravity field. The crust to a distance of 50 km from the spreading center is only 2–3 km thick in agreement with dredge and dive results. Crustal thickness increases to ∼5.5 km at distances between 100 and 430 km west of the spreading center and to 3.5–6 km at distances between 60 and 370 km east of the spreading center. The increase in thickness is interpreted to represent serpentinization of the uppermost mantle lithosphere, rather than a true increase in the volume of accreted ocean crust. Serpentinized peridotite rocks have indeed been dredged from the base of escarpments of oceanic crust rocks in Cayman Trough. Laboratory-measured density and P-wave speed of peridotite with 40–50% serpentine are similar to the observed speed in published refraction results and to the inferred density from the model. Crustal thickness gradually increases to 7–8 km at the far ends of the trough partially in areas where sea floor magnetic anomalies were identified. Basement depth becomes gradually shallower starting 250 km west of the rise and 340 km east of the rise, in contrast to the predicted trend of increasing depth to basement from cooling models of the oceanic lithosphere. The gradual increase in apparent crustal thickness and the shallowing trend of basement depth are interpreted to indicate that the deep distal parts of Cayman Trough are underlain by highly attenuated crust, not by a continuously accreted oceanic crust.

Hydrocarbon prospectivity assessment of the Southern Pattani Trough, Gulf of Thailand

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mountford, N.

The Pattani Trough is an elongate north to south basin in the Gulf of Thailand offshore area that developed from Oligocene times onward. Numerous hydrocarbon discoveries, mainly gas, have been made within the Tertiary stratigraphic section in areas adjacent to the depocenter of the basin, but only dry holes have been drilled on the extreme basin margins and flanking platform areas. The southern Pattani Trough represents a [open quotes]transition zone[close quotes] in terms of potential hydrocarbon prospectivity between the low potential/high exploration risk basin marginal areas, and the high potential/low exploration risk basin marginal area. The development of hydrocarbon accumulationmore » potential within the southern Pattani Trough can be related to a number of major controlling factors. These include structure, which on a regional scale shows a marked influence of tectonic regime on depositional system development, and on a more local scale determines trap development; stratigraphy, which determines reservoir geometry and potential hydrocarbon source rock facies distribution; petrology, which exerts a major control on depth related reservoir quality; overpressure development, which controls local migration pathways for generated hydrocarbons, and locally provides very efficient trap seals; geochemical factors, related to potential source facies distribution, hydrocarbon type; and thermal maturation of the section. The above factors have been combined to define low-, medium-, and high-risk exploration [open quotes]play fairways[close quotes] within the prospectivity transition zone of the southern Pattani Trough.« less

Acoustic Impact of Short-Term Ocean Variability in the Okinawa Trough

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-20

nature run: Generalized Digital Environment Model ( GDEM ) 3.0 climatologyfl], Modular Ocean Data Assimilation System (MODAS) synthetic profiles[2], Navy...potentially preferred for a particular class of applications, and thus a possible source of sound speed for estimates of acoustic transmission. Three, GDEM ...MODAS, and NCODA, are statistical products, and the other three are dynamic forecasts from NCOM. GDEM is a climatology based solely on historical

Simultaneous Sea-Level Oscillations in Japanese Bays Induced by the Tsunami of Nankai-Trough Earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oishi, Y.; Furumura, T.; Imamura, F.; Yamashita, K.; Sugawara, D.

2016-12-01

In this study, we investigate the response of bays to the tsunami of Nankai-trough earthquake based on tsunami simulations and demonstrate the possibility that sea-level oscillation of each bay, which is induced by an incident tsunami, interacts with those of other bays. Several major cities in Japan, including the capital, are located in the bays near the Nankai trough and it is assumed that these cities will be largely affected by the tsunamis caused by recurring large earthquakes at the trough. Therefore, it is very important for these populated cities to understand the mechanism and properties of the tsunami-induced oscillations that continue for a long time in bays to draw up evacuation plans. To investigate the response of bays for various tsunamis that may occur in the Nankai trough area, we distributed the tsunami sources that have the form of a 2-D Gaussian function around the Nankai trough. From simulations with these sources, it was found that strong oscillations of bay water occur when the source is located in the bay itself or when strong oscillations occur in other bays. For example, when the Tosa bay oscillates, the Tokyo bay that is 600 km away from the Tosa bay also oscillates. Among the bays around the Nankai trough, the Suruga bay, the deepest bay in Japan with a 2500-km depth, oscillates more strongly than other bays for most cases. To check the influence of the strong oscillations in the Suruga bay on other bays, we conducted tsunami simulations using a modified topography model in which the Suruga bay is artificially landfilled. As a consequence, the strength of oscillations in the adjacent bays are reduced by 20-30%, suggesting the large influence of the distinguished oscillation of the Suruga bay on these bays. We finally conducted tsunami simulations using the eleven Nankai-trough earthquake scenarios of the Central Disaster Prevention Council (CDPC) of Japan as tsunami sources, and the mutual relation regarding the strengths of

A vacuum tube vee-trough collector for solar heating and air conditioning applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Selcuk, M. K.

1978-01-01

An analysis is conducted of the performance of a vee-trough vacuum tube collector proposed for use in solar heating and cooling applications. The vee-trough reflector is a triangular sectioned, flat surfaced reflector, whose axis is laid in the East-West direction. A vacuum tube receiver placed at the bottom of the vee-trough collects solar heat most efficiently since convection is completely eliminated. Radiation losses are reduced by use of selective coatings on the absorber. Owing to its high temperature capabilities (300-400 F), the proposed scheme could also be used for power generation applications in combination with an organic Rankine conversion system. It is especially recommended for unattended pumping stations since the reflectors only require reversal once every six months.

Optical and mechanical tolerances in hybrid concentrated thermal-PV solar trough.

PubMed

Diaz, Liliana Ruiz; Cocilovo, Byron; Miles, Alexander; Pan, Wei; Blanche, Pierre-Alexandre; Norwood, Robert A

2018-05-14

Hybrid thermal-PV solar trough collectors combine concentrated photovoltaics and concentrated solar power technology to harvest and store solar energy. In this work, the optical and mechanical requirements for optimal efficiency are analyzed using non-sequential ray tracing techniques. The results are used to generate opto-mechanical tolerances that can be compared to those of traditional solar collectors. We also explore ideas on how to relieve tracking tolerances for single-axis solar collectors. The objective is to establish a basis for tolerances required for the fabrication and manufacturing of hybrid solar trough collectors.

Development of sheet-metal parabolic-trough reflector panels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biester, A. W.

1982-06-01

Efforts to develop accurate, durable, and mass producible sheet metal parabolic trough solar collectors and the associated support for the collectors are described. The design considered is similar to an automobile hood, a two-piece sheet metal structure consisting of a formed steel frame or stiffening panel and a smooth contoured skin. The two pieces may be bonded or welded to form a rigid structure, and a reflective surface applied such as a film, glass mirror, or any of the presently utilized materials. The work encompassed material selection, adhesive selection and testing, tool design and fabrication, prototype panel production, and design and development of torque tube assemblies on which the trough is inclined. Results of adhesive bonding studies are given. It is found that high volume technology can be used to produce accurate and structurally sound reflector panels, and one configuration was selected for fabrication in suitable quantities for performance testing.

Mineralogy: A Historical Review.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hazen, Robert M.

1984-01-01

Reviews changing concepts of the origins, properties, and classification of minerals. Emphasis is placed on developments of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, during which time the interwoven advances of chemistry, physics, crystallography, and high-temperature, high-pressure studies transformed mineralogy from a qualitative to a…

Optical analysis of a photovoltaic V-trough system installed in western India.

PubMed

Maiti, Subarna; Sarmah, Nabin; Bapat, Pratap; Mallick, Tapas K

2012-12-20

The low concentrating photovoltaic (PV) system such as a 2× V-trough system can be a promising choice for enhancing the power output from conventional PV panels with the inclusion of thermal management. This system is more attractive when the reflectors are retrofitted to the stationary PV panels installed in a high aspect ratio in the north-south direction and are tracked 12 times a year manually according to preset angles, thus eliminating the need of diurnal expensive tracking. In the present analysis, a V-trough system facing exactly the south direction is considered, where the tilt angle of the PV panels' row is kept constant at 18.34°. The system is installed on the terrace of CSIR-Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute in Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India (21.47 N, 71.15 E). The dimension of the entire PV system is 9.64 m×0.55 m. The V-troughs made of anodized aluminum reflectors (70% specular reflectivity) had the same dimensions. An in-house developed; experimentally validated Monte Carlo ray-trace model was used to study the effect of the angular variation of the reflectors throughout a year for the present assembly. Results of the ray trace for the optimized angles showed the maximum simulated optical efficiency to be 85.9%. The spatial distribution of solar intensity over the 0.55 m dimension of the PV panel due to the V-trough reflectors was also studied for the optimized days in periods that included solstices and equinoxes. The measured solar intensity profiles with and without the V-trough system were used to calculate the actual optical efficiencies for several sunny days in the year, and results were validated with the simulated efficiencies within an average error limit of 10%.

Organic tracers of primary biological aerosol particles at subtropical Okinawa Island in the western North Pacific Rim

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Chunmao; Kawamura, Kimitaka; Kunwar, Bhagawati

2015-06-01

Primary biological aerosol particles (PBAPs) play an important role in affecting atmospheric physical and chemical properties. Aerosol samples were collected at Cape Hedo, Okinawa Island, Japan, from October 2009 to February 2012 and analyzed for five primary saccharides and four sugar alcohols as PBAP tracers. We detected high levels of sucrose in spring when blossoming of plants happens and prolifically emits pollen to the air. Concentrations of glucose, fructose, and trehalose showed levels higher than the other saccharides in spring in 2010. In comparison, primary saccharide levels were mutually comparable in spring, summer, and autumn in 2011, indicating the interannual variability of their local production in subtropical forests, which is driven by local temperature and radiation. High trehalose events were found to be associated with Asian dust outflows, indicating that Asian dust also contributes to PBAPs at Okinawa. Sugar alcohols peaked in summer and correlated with local precipitation and temperature, indicating high microbial activities. Positive matrix factorization analysis confirmed that the PBAPs are mainly derived from local vegetation, pollen, and fungal spores. A higher contribution of PBAP tracers to water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC) was found in summer (14.9%). The annual mean ambient loadings of fungal spores and PBAPs were estimated as 0.49 µg m-3 and 4.12 µg m-3, respectively, using the tracer method. We report, for the first time, year-round biomarkers of PBAP and soil dust and their contributions to WSOC in the subtropical outflow region of the Asian continent.

Castles in the Far East: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Okinawa and Japan Districts 1945-1990

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-10-01

on L Day, April!, 1945, in what was to become the last major battle of World War II. They met with little resistance on the beaches but Okinawa was...facilities and a new handball court, tennis courts and exercise rooms along with larger living quarters. By 1987 several facilities for the F/A-18...completion. was the damage done to Pier Bravo at White Beach . A big chunk of the pier was literally washed away and the remainder of the pier suffered

Seismic stratigraphic architecture of the Disko Bay trough-mouth fan system, West Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hofmann, Julia C.; Knutz, Paul C.

2015-04-01

Spatial and temporal changes of the Greenland Ice Sheet on the continental shelf bordering Baffin Bay remain poorly constrained. Then as now, fast-flowing ice streams and outlet glaciers have played a key role for the mass balance and stability of polar ice sheets. Despite their significance for Greenland Ice Sheet dynamics and evolution, our understanding of their long-term behaviour is limited. The central West Greenland margin is characterized by a broad continental shelf where a series of troughs extend from fjords to the shelf margin, acting as focal points for trough-mouth fan (TMF) accummulations. The sea-ward bulging morphology and abrupt shelf-break of these major depositional systems is generated by prograding depocentres that formed during glacial maxima when ice streams reached the shelf edge, delivering large amounts of subglacial sediment onto the continental slope (Ó Cofaigh et al., 2013). The aim of this study is to unravel the seismic stratigraphic architecture and depositional processes of the Disko Bay TMF, aerially the largest single sedimentary system in West Greenland, using 2D and 3D seismic reflection data, seabed bathymetry and stratigraphic information from exploration well Hellefisk-1. The south-west Disko Bay is intersected by a deep, narrow trough, Egedesminde Dyb, which extends towards the southwest and links to the shallower and broader cross-shelf Disko Trough (maximum water depths of > 1000 m and a trough length of c. 370 km). Another trough-like depression (trough length of c. 120 km) in the northern part of the TMF, indicating a previous position of the ice stream, can be distinguished on the seabed topographic map and the seismic images. The Disko Bay TMF itself extends from the shelf edge down to the abyssal plain (abyssal floor depths of 2000 m) of the southern Baffin Bay. Based on seismic stratigraphic configurations relating to reflection terminations, erosive patterns and seismic facies (Mitchum et al., 1977), the TMF

Mineralogies and source regions of near-Earth asteroids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dunn, Tasha L.; Burbine, Thomas H.; Bottke, William F.; Clark, John P.

2013-01-01

Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) offer insight into a size range of objects that are not easily observed in the main asteroid belt. Previous studies on the diversity of the NEA population have relied primarily on modeling and statistical analysis to determine asteroid compositions. Olivine and pyroxene, the dominant minerals in most asteroids, have characteristic absorption features in the visible and near-infrared (VISNIR) wavelengths that can be used to determine their compositions and abundances. However, formulas previously used for deriving compositions do not work very well for ordinary chondrite assemblages. Because two-thirds of NEAs have ordinary chondrite-like spectral parameters, it is essential to determine accurate mineralogies. Here we determine the band area ratios and Band I centers of 72 NEAs with visible and near-infrared spectra and use new calibrations to derive the mineralogies 47 of these NEAs with ordinary chondrite-like spectral parameters. Our results indicate that the majority of NEAs have LL-chondrite mineralogies. This is consistent with results from previous studies but continues to be in conflict with the population of recovered ordinary chondrites, of which H chondrites are the most abundant. To look for potential correlations between asteroid size, composition, and source region, we use a dynamical model to determine the most probable source region of each NEA. Model results indicate that NEAs with LL chondrite mineralogies appear to be preferentially derived from the ν6 secular resonance. This supports the hypothesis that the Flora family, which lies near the ν6 resonance, is the source of the LL chondrites. With the exception of basaltic achondrites, NEAs with non-chondrite spectral parameters are slightly less likely to be derived from the ν6 resonance than NEAs with chondrite-like mineralogies. The population of NEAs with H, L, and LL chondrite mineralogies does not appear to be influenced by size, which would suggest that ordinary

Microbial Community in the Hydrothermal System at Southern Mariana Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kato, S.; Itahashi, S.; Kakegawa, T.; Utsumi, M.; Maruyama, A.; Ishibashi, J.; Marumo, K.; Urabe, T.; Yamagishi, A.

2004-12-01

There is unique ecosystem around deep-sea hydrothermal area. Living organisms are supported by chemical free energy provided by the hydrothermal water. The ecosystem is expected to be similar to those in early stage of life history on the earth, when photosynthetic organisms have not emerged. In this study, we have analyzed the microbial diversity in the hydrothermal area at southern Mariana trough. In the "Archaean Park Project" supported by special Coordination Fund, four holes were bored and cased by titanium pipes near hydrothermal vents in the southern Mariana trough in 2004. Hydrothermal fluids were collected from these cased holes and natural vents in this area. Microbial cells were collected by filtering the hydrothermal fluid in situ or in the mother sip. Filters were stored at -80C and used for DNA extraction. Chimneys at this area was also collected and stored at -80C. The filters and chimney samples were crushed and DNA was extracted. DNA samples were used for amplification of 16S rDNA fragments by PCR using archaea specific primers and universal primers. The PCR fragments were cloned and sequenced. These PCR clones of different samples will be compared. We will extend our knowledge about microbiological diversity at Southern Mariana trough to compare the results obtained at other area.

Crustal gravitational potential energy change at the convergent plate boundary near Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lo, C.; Hsu, S.

2003-12-01

The Taiwan orogen has formed due to the convergence between the Philippine Sea plate and Eurasian plate. Numerous earthquakes are occurring along the active convergent plate boundary in eastern Taiwan. To the northeast, the Philippine Sea plates is subducting northwards beneath the Ryukyu Arc. To the south, the Eurasian plate is subducting eastwards beneath the Luzon Arc. The plate interaction has caused crustal deformation and produced earthquakes. The earthquakes have caused radial permanent displacement of the crust and have altered the crustal gravitational potential energy. Here we use the earthquake source mechanisms, determined by the Broadband Array in Taiwan for Seismology (BATs) from 1995 to 2003, to calculate the crustal gravitational potential energy (GPE) change and discuss their tectonic implication along the convergent plate boundary. In Ilan Plain, the westernmost Okinawa Trough, it shows a crustal GPE loss. It is related to the crustal subsidence because of the backarc extension of the Okinawa Trough. In contrast, due to the Philippine Sea plate subucting northwards beneath Eurasian Plate, the Ryukyu convergent boundary shows systematic crustal GPE gain. Near Taiwan, the crustal GPE change is gained, indicating the collisional convergence of the Luzon Arc. To the south of Taiwan, along the Luzon Arc the crustal GPE is also gain, representing the initial uplifting of the Taiwan mountain belt.

Modal Mineralogy of Lunar Soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taylor, J.; Martel, L.; Lucey, P. G.; Crites, S. T.; Blake, D. F.

2012-12-01

Modal mineralogy of the lunar regolith is fundamentally important. It varies with the composition of underlying bedrock, extent of addition of materials excavated by impact both local and distant, and small-scale reworking by micrometeorite bombardment, so it contains information about local geological history. Determining modal mineralogy of soils provides vital ground truth to remote sensing studies. Mineralogy can be determined by a variety of techniques that provide complementary information: X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), optical point counting, element mapping by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) or electron microprobe (EMP), and normative calculation from a bulk chemical analysis. SEM and EMP element mapping can be converted into mineral modal abundances in a variety of ways, including defining compositional windows for specific minerals and using image processing techniques. XRD provides direct determination of the phases present, but gives little information about the chemical composition of those phases. We have launched a project to determine the modal mineralogy of over 100 lunar soils from all Apollo sites. The goal is to use this quantitative mineralogy and laboratory and remote reflectance spectra of the same soils to improve our ability to extract quantitative mineralogy from remote sensing data. Samples (< 1mm bulk soils) were dry-sieved and the <150 micron fractions analyzed in a Terra XRD instrument (InXitu, Inc.) using sample sizes of ~35 mg. We reduced the data using Reitveld refinement as implemented by the Jade program (Materials Data, Inc.). Glass abundances were determined by choosing a linear background and fitting a broad Gaussian to the scattering hump above background. Quantitative XRD is well established, but usually requires some calibration, in spite of the sophisticated Reitveld refinement and whole-pattern fitting. We calibrated the instrument by using mixtures of terrestrial minerals and results from the Lunar Sample Characterization

Automated quantitative micro-mineralogical characterization for environmental applications

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, Kathleen S.; Hoal, K.O.; Walton-Day, Katherine; Stammer, J.G.; Pietersen, K.

2013-01-01

Characterization of ore and waste-rock material using automated quantitative micro-mineralogical techniques (e.g., QEMSCAN® and MLA) has the potential to complement traditional acid-base accounting and humidity cell techniques when predicting acid generation and metal release. These characterization techniques, which most commonly are used for metallurgical, mineral-processing, and geometallurgical applications, can be broadly applied throughout the mine-life cycle to include numerous environmental applications. Critical insights into mineral liberation, mineral associations, particle size, particle texture, and mineralogical residence phase(s) of environmentally important elements can be used to anticipate potential environmental challenges. Resources spent on initial characterization result in lower uncertainties of potential environmental impacts and possible cost savings associated with remediation and closure. Examples illustrate mineralogical and textural characterization of fluvial tailings material from the upper Arkansas River in Colorado.

Gas potential of the Rome Trough in Kentucky: Results of recent Cambrian exploration

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Harris, D.C.; Drahovzal, J.A.

1996-09-01

A recent gas discovery in the Rome Trough suggests the need to re-evaluate the deep Cambrian potential of eastern Kentucky. A new phase of Cambrian exploration began in mid-1994 with a new pool discovery by the Carson Associates No. 1 Kazee well in Elliott County, Ky. This well blew out and initially flowed 11 MMcfd of gas from the upper Conasauga Group/Rome Formation at 6,258 to 6,270 feet. After this discovery, a second exploratory well (the Blue Ridge No. 1Greene) was drilled on a separate structure in Elliott County in late 1995. The Blue Ridge well was temporarily abandoned, butmore » had shows of gas and condensate. In early 1996, Carson Associates offset their initial discovery well with the No. 33 Lawson Heirs well. This activity follows a frustrating exploration history in the Rome Trough that is marked by numerous gas and oil shows, but rare commercial production. Only three single-well pools have produced commercial gas from the trough, including the recent Kazee well. Stratigraphic units below the Cambrian-Ordovician Knox Group in the Rome Trough are dramatically thicker than their equivalents on the shelf to the north. The interval in the trough is thought to include rocks as old as Early Cambrian, consisting of a basal sandstone, equivalents of the Shady/Tomstown Dolomite, the Rome Formation, and the Conasauga Formation. Sandstones and fractured shales have been responsible for most of the production to date, but dolostone intervals may also have potential. Limited seismic data indicate possible fan-delta and basin-floor fan deposits that may have reservoir potential.« less

Paleoenvironmental Assessment and Deglacial Chronology of the Onondaga Trough, Onondaga County, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kappel, William M.; Teece, Mark A.

2007-01-01

Introduction The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Onondaga Lake Partnership and Onondaga Environmental Institute, has been studying the hydrogeology of the Onondaga Trough since 2002 to determine the movement and concentration of naturally occurring brine in the glacial valley-fill aquifer. Numerous shallow and deep test holes have been drilled to determine the glacial and water-quality stratigraphy in the Onondaga Trough. Organic materials were recovered from the Onondaga Creek, Ninemile Creek, and Harbor Brook valleys, and from lakebed sediments in Onondaga Lake (fig. 1) and age-dated with carbon-isotope analysis techniques. This report summarizes the carbon-isotope data collected from 1996 through 2006 in the Onondaga Trough. The results of these analyses provide a means to understand the deglaciation of the watershed and the development of the watershed from barren glacial sediment to a forested ecosystem.

Stable interior, showing center aisle, stalls, and feed troughs. View ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Stable interior, showing center aisle, stalls, and feed troughs. View looking southwest - Fort Hill Farm, Stable, West of Staunton (Roanoke) River between Turkey & Caesar's Runs, Clover, Halifax County, VA

Cambrian potential indicated in Kentucky Rome trough

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Harris, D.C.; Drahovzal, J.A.

1996-02-19

This paper reviews recent gas discoveries in the Kentucky Rome trough and the implications for future developments. It reviews the geology and stratigraphy of this structure and identifies the potential zones of production and trapping mechanisms. It provides results from geologic logs and seismic data to provide cross sectional and structural interpretations. Finally it discusses the gas composition of natural gas recovered from the basin.

Mineralogy of the Mercurian Surface

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vander Kaaden, Kathleen E.; McCubbin, Francis M.; Nittler, Larry R.; Peplowski, Patrick N.; Weider, Shoshana Z.; Evans, Larry R.; Frank, Elizabeth A.; McCoy, Timothy

2016-01-01

The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft orbited Mercury for four years until April 2015, revealing its structure, chemical makeup, and compositional diversity. Data from the mission have confirmed that Mercury is a compositional end-member among the terrestrial planets. The X-Ray Spectrometer (XRS) and Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS) on board MESSENGER provided the first detailed geochemical analyses of Mercury's surface. These instruments have been used in conjunction with the Neutron Spectrometer and the Mercury Dual Imaging System to classify numerous geological and geochemical features on the surface of Mercury that were previously unknown. Furthermore, the data have revealed several surprising characteristics about Mercury's surface, including elevated S abundances (up to 4 wt%) and low Fe abundances (less than 2.5 wt%). The S and Fe abundances were used to quantify Mercury's highly reduced state, i.e., between 2.6 and 7.3 log10 units below the Iron-Wustite (IW) buffer. This fO2 is lower than any of the other terrestrial planets in the inner Solar System and has important consequences for the thermal and magmatic evolution of Mercury, its surface mineralogy and geochemistry, and the petrogenesis of the planet's magmas. Although MESSENGER has revealed substantial geochemical diversity across the surface of Mercury, until now, there have been only limited efforts to understand the mineralogical and petrological diversity of the planet. Here we present a systematic and comprehensive study of the potential mineralogical and petrological diversity of Mercury.

Determining the Nature of Late Gunn–Peterson Troughs with Galaxy Surveys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies, Frederick B.; Becker, George D.; Furlanetto, Steven R.

2018-06-01

Recent observations have discovered long (up to ∼110 Mpc/h), opaque Gunn–Peterson troughs in the z ∼ 5.5 Lyα forest, which are challenging to explain with conventional models of the post-reionization intergalactic medium. Here, we demonstrate that observations of the galaxy populations in the vicinity of the deepest troughs can distinguish two competing models for these features: deep voids where the ionizing background is weak due to fluctuations in the mean free path of ionizing photons would show a deficit of galaxies, while residual temperature variations from extended, inhomogeneous reionization would show an overdensity of galaxies. We use large (∼550 Mpc/h) semi-numerical simulations of these competing explanations to predict the galaxy populations in the largest of the known troughs at z ∼ 5.7. We quantify the strong correlation of Lyα effective optical depth and galaxy surface density in both models, and estimate the degree to which realistic surveys can measure such a correlation. While a spectroscopic galaxy survey is ideal, we also show that a relatively inexpensive narrowband survey of Lyα-emitting galaxies is ∼90% likely to distinguish between the competing models.

Mineralogical, geochemical, and magnetic signatures of surface sediments from the Canadian Beaufort Shelf and Amundsen Gulf (Canadian Arctic)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gamboa, Adriana; Montero-Serrano, Jean-Carlos; St-Onge, Guillaume; Rochon, André; Desiage, Pierre-Arnaud

2017-02-01

Mineralogical, geochemical, magnetic, and siliciclastic grain-size signatures of 34 surface sediment samples from the Mackenzie-Beaufort Sea Slope and Amundsen Gulf were studied in order to better constrain the redox status, detrital particle provenance, and sediment dynamics in the western Canadian Arctic. Redox-sensitive elements (Mn, Fe, V, Cr, Zn) indicate that modern sedimentary deposition within the Mackenzie-Beaufort Sea Slope and Amundsen Gulf took place under oxic bottom-water conditions, with more turbulent mixing conditions and thus a well-oxygenated water column prevailing within the Amundsen Gulf. The analytical data obtained, combined with multivariate statistical (notably, principal component and fuzzy c-means clustering analyses) and spatial analyses, allowed the division of the study area into four provinces with distinct sedimentary compositions: (1) the Mackenzie Trough-Canadian Beaufort Shelf with high phyllosilicate-Fe oxide-magnetite and Al-K-Ti-Fe-Cr-V-Zn-P contents; (2) Southwestern Banks Island, characterized by high dolomite-K-feldspar and Ca-Mg-LOI contents; (3) the Central Amundsen Gulf, a transitional zone typified by intermediate phyllosilicate-magnetite-K-feldspar-dolomite and Al-K-Ti-Fe-Mn-V-Zn-Sr-Ca-Mg-LOI contents; and (4) mud volcanoes on the Canadian Beaufort Shelf distinguished by poorly sorted coarse-silt with high quartz-plagioclase-authigenic carbonate and Si-Zr contents, as well as high magnetic susceptibility. Our results also confirm that the present-day sedimentary dynamics on the Canadian Beaufort Shelf is mainly controlled by sediment supply from the Mackenzie River. Overall, these insights provide a basis for future studies using mineralogical, geochemical, and magnetic signatures of Canadian Arctic sediments in order to reconstruct past variations in sediment inputs and transport pathways related to late Quaternary climate and oceanographic changes.

Oblique H.F. radiowave propagation in the main trough region of the ionosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lockwood, M.; Mitchell, V. B.

1980-12-01

The propagation of 7.335 MHz, CW signals over a 5212 km subauroral, west-east path is studied. Measurements and semiempirical predictions are made of the amplitude distributions and Doppler shifts of the received signals. The observed amplitude distribution is fitted with a numerical fading model, yielding the power losses suffered by the signals during propagation via the predominating modes. The mid-latitude trough in the F2 peak ionization density is predicted by a statistical model to be at the latitudes of this path at these times and at low K sub p values; a sharp cut-off in low-power losses at a mean K sub p of 2.75 strongly implicates the trough in the propagation of these signals. It is shown that a simple extension of this model to allow for the trough can reproduce the form of the observed diurnal variation.

Springtime variations of organic and inorganic constituents in submicron aerosols (PM1.0) from Cape Hedo, Okinawa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kunwar, Bhagawati; Torii, K.; Zhu, Chunmao; Fu, Pingqing; Kawamura, Kimitaka

2016-04-01

During the spring season with enhanced Asian outflow, we collected submicron aerosol (PM1.0) samples at Cape Hedo, Okinawa Island in the western North Pacific Rim. We analyzed the filter samples for diacids, oxoacids, pyruvic acid, α-dicarbonyls and fatty acids to better understand the sources and atmospheric processes in the outflow regions of Asian pollutants. Molecular distributions of diacids show a predominance of oxalic acid (C2) followed by malonic (C3) and succinic (C4) acids. Total diacids strongly correlated with secondary source tracers such as SO42- (r = 0.87), NH4+ (0.90) and methanesulfonate (MSA-) (0.84), suggesting that diacids are secondarily formed from their precursor compounds. We also found good correlations among C2, organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) in the Okinawa aerosols, suggesting that diacids are mainly derived from anthropogenic sources. However, a weak correlation of diacids with levoglucosan, a biomass burning tracer, suggests that biomass buring is not the main source of diacids, rather diacids are secondarily formed by photochemical oxidation of organic precursors derived from fossil fuel combustion. We found a strong correlation (r = 0.98) between inorganic nitrogen (NO3-N + NH4-N) and total nitrogen (TN), to which organic nitrogen (ON) contributed 23%. Fatty acids were characterized by even carbon number predominance, suggesting that they are derived from biogenic sources. The higher abundances of short chain fatty acids (C20) further suggest that fatty acids are largely derived from marine phytoplankton during spring bloom.

3D Porosity Estimation of the Nankai Trough Sediments from Core-log-seismic Integration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, J. O.

2015-12-01

The Nankai Trough off southwest Japan is one of the best subduction-zone to study megathrust earthquake fault. Historic, great megathrust earthquakes with a recurrence interval of 100-200 yr have generated strong motion and large tsunamis along the Nankai Trough subduction zone. At the Nankai Trough margin, the Philippine Sea Plate (PSP) is being subducted beneath the Eurasian Plate to the northwest at a convergence rate ~4 cm/yr. The Shikoku Basin, the northern part of the PSP, is estimated to have opened between 25 and 15 Ma by backarc spreading of the Izu-Bonin arc. The >100-km-wide Nankai accretionary wedge, which has developed landward of the trench since the Miocene, mainly consists of offscraped and underplated materials from the trough-fill turbidites and the Shikoku Basin hemipelagic sediments. Particularly, physical properties of the incoming hemipelagic sediments may be critical for seismogenic behavior of the megathrust fault. We have carried out core-log-seismic integration (CLSI) to estimate 3D acoustic impedance and porosity for the incoming sediments in the Nankai Trough. For the CLSI, we used 3D seismic reflection data, P-wave velocity and density data obtained during IODP (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program) Expeditions 322 and 333. We computed acoustic impedance depth profiles for the IODP drilling sites from P-wave velocity and density data. We constructed seismic convolution models with the acoustic impedance profiles and a source wavelet which is extracted from the seismic data, adjusting the seismic models to observed seismic traces with inversion method. As a result, we obtained 3D acoustic impedance volume and then converted it to 3D porosity volume. In general, the 3D porosities show decrease with depth. We found a porosity anomaly zone with alteration of high and low porosities seaward of the trough axis. In this talk, we will show detailed 3D porosity of the incoming sediments, and present implications of the porosity anomaly zone for the

Plasma trough concentrations of darunavir/ritonavir and raltegravir in older patients with HIV-1 infection.

PubMed

Calza, L; Colangeli, V; Magistrelli, E; Bussini, L; Conti, M; Ramazzotti, E; Mancini, R; Viale, P

2017-08-01

The aim of the study was to assess plasma concentrations of darunavir/ritonavir and raltegravir in older patients compared with younger patients with HIV-1 infection. In this observational, open-label study, adult HIV-infected out-patients aged ≤ 40 years (younger patients) or ≥ 60 years (older patients) and treated with tenofovir/emtricitabine plus darunavir/ritonavir (800/100 mg daily) or raltegravir (400 mg twice daily) were asked to participate. The trough concentrations (C trough ) of darunavir/ritonavir and raltegravir were assessed at steady state using a validated high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-tandem mass spectrometry method. A total of 88 HIV-positive patients were enrolled in the study. Forty-six patients were treated with darunavir/ritonavir, and 42 with raltegravir. The geometric mean plasma C trough (coefficient of variation) of raltegravir was comparable between the 19 older and 23 younger subjects: 106 ng/mL (151%) and 94 ng/mL (129%), respectively [geometric mean ratio (GMR) 0.85; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.71-1.57; P = 0.087]. In contrast, the geometric mean plasma C trough of darunavir was significantly higher among the 21 older patients [2209 ng/mL (139%)] than among the 25 younger patients [1876 ng/mL (162%); GMR 1.56; 95% CI: 1.22-1.88; P = 0.004]. Similarly, the geometric mean C trough of ritonavir was significantly higher among older than among younger individuals. The mean plasma C trough of darunavir and ritonavir was significantly higher in older patients than in younger patients with HIV-1 infection, while the mean plasma level of raltegravir was comparable in the two groups. However, both regimens showed good tolerability in both younger and older subjects. © 2017 British HIV Association.

A new TRNSYS component for parabolic trough collector simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drosou, Vassiliki; Valenzuela, Loreto; Dimoudi, Argiro

2018-03-01

This study describes and evaluates a new simulation component for parabolic trough collectors (PTCs). The new simulation component is implemented in the TRNSYS software environment by means of new Type that is suitable for integration into the calculation of a whole concentrating solar thermal plant, in order to evaluate the energy production of a PTC. The main advantage of the new Type is that is derived from experimental data available on efficiency Test Reports, according to the current European and International standards, rather than the theoretical approach considered in the existing parabolic trough component of TRNSYS library. The performance of the new Type has been validated with real experimental data obtained from the DISS solar test loop in Plataforma Solar de Almería, Spain. The paper describes the modelling approach, presents the comparison of simulation results with measurements taken at the DISS facility and evaluates the results.

Mineralogy of Rocks and Sediments at Gale Crater, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Achilles, Cherie; Downs, Robert; Blake, David; Vaniman, David; Ming, Doug; Rampe, Elizabeth; Morris, Dick; Morrison, Shaunna; Treiman, Allan; Chipera, Steve; Yen, Albert; Bristow, Thomas; Craig, Patricia; Hazen, Robert; Crisp, Joy; Grotzinger, John; Des Marias, David; Farmer, Jack; Sarrazin, Philippe; Morookian, John Michael

2017-04-01

The Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, is providing in situ mineralogical, geochemical, and sedimentological assessments of rocks and soils in Gale crater. Since landing in 2012, Curiosity has traveled over 15 km, providing analyses of mudstones and sandstones to build a stratigraphic history of the region. The CheMin X-ray diffraction (XRD) instrument is the first instrument on Mars to provide quantitative mineralogical analyses of drilled powders and scooped sediment based on X-ray crystallography. CheMin identifies and determines mineral abundances and unit-cell parameters of major crystalline phases, and identifies minor phases at abundances >1 wt%. In conjunction with elemental analyses, CheMin-derived crystal chemistry allows for the first calculations of crystalline and amorphous material compositions. These mineralogy, crystal chemistry, and amorphous chemistry datasets are playing central roles in the characterization of Gale crater paleoenvironments. CheMin has analyzed 17 rock and sediment samples. In the first phase of the mission, Curiosity explored the sedimentary units of Aeolis Palus (Bradbury group), including two mudstones from Yellowknife Bay. CheMin analyses of the Yellowknife Bay mudstones identified clay minerals among an overall basaltic mineral assemblage. These mineralogical results, along with imaging and geochemical analyses, were used to characterize an ancient lacustrine setting that is thought to have once been a habitable environment. Following the investigations of the Bradbury group, Curiosity arrived at the lower reaches of Aeolis Mons, commonly called Mt. Sharp. A strategic sample campaign was initiated, drilling bedrock at <25 m elevation intervals in order to compile a comprehensive stratigraphic column of Mt. Sharp sedimentary units. Two formations have been sampled thus far, the lower-most Murray formation and the Stimson formation, which lies unconformably over the Murray. The Stimson formation is a cross

Concentrating Solar Power Projects - Parabolic Trough Projects |

Science.gov Websites

Project Godawari Solar Project Gujarat Solar One Gulang 100MW Thermal Oil Parabolic Trough project Guzmán Kuraymat (ISCC Kuraymat) Kathu Solar Park KaXu Solar One KVK Energy Solar Project La Africana La Dehesa La Power Facility Nevada Solar One (NSO) NOOR I NOOR II Olivenza 1 Orellana Palma del Río I Palma del Río

9 CFR 82.21 - Vehicles, cages, coops, containers, troughs, and other equipment used for infected poultry.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

..., troughs, and other equipment used for infected poultry. 82.21 Section 82.21 Animals and Animal Products... ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS EXOTIC NEWCASTLE DIS- EASE (END) AND CHLAMYDIOSIS Chlamydiosis in Poultry § 82.21 Vehicles, cages, coops, containers, troughs, and other equipment used for...

Evidence for Recent Liquid Water on Mars: Gullies in Sirenum Fossae Trough

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

This mosaic of two Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) images shows about 20 different gullies coming down the south-facing wall of a trough in the Sirenum Fossae/Gorgonum Chaos region of the martian southern hemisphere. Each channel and its associated fan--or apron--of debris appears to have started just below the same hard, resistant layer of bedrock located approximately 100 meters (about 325 feet) below the top of the trough wall. The layer beneath this hard, resistant bedrock is interpreted to be permeable, which allows ground water to percolate through it and--at the location of this trough--seep out onto the martian surface. The channels and aprons only occur on the south-facing slope of this valley created by faults on each side of the trough. The depression is approximately 1.4 km (0.9 mi) across.

The mosaic was constructed from two pictures taken on September 16, 1999, and May 1, 2000. The black line is a gap between the two images that was not covered by MOC. The scene covers an area approximately 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) wide by 4.9 km (3.0 mi) high. Sunlight illuminates the area from the upper left. The image is located near 38.5oS, 171.3oW. MOC high resolution images are taken black-and-white (grayscale); the color seen here has been synthesized from the colors of Mars observed by the MOC wide angle cameras and by the Viking Orbiters in the late 1970s.

Early vedolizumab trough levels predict mucosal healing in inflammatory bowel disease: a multicentre prospective observational study.

PubMed

Yacoub, W; Williet, N; Pouillon, L; Di-Bernado, T; De Carvalho Bittencourt, M; Nancey, S; Lopez, A; Paul, S; Zallot, C; Roblin, X; Peyrin-Biroulet, L

2018-04-01

The correlation between vedolizumab trough levels during induction therapy and mucosal healing remains unknown. To compare early vedolizumab trough levels in patients with and without mucosal healing within the first year after treatment initiation. We prospectively collected vedolizumab trough levels in all inflammatory bowel disease patients at weeks 2, 6 and 14 of vedolizumab treatment in three French referral centres between 1 June 2014 and 31 March 2017. Results of every patient that underwent mucosal assessment by magnetic resonance imaging and/or endoscopy in the first year after treatment initiation were analysed. Median vedolizumab trough levels in the overall population (n = 82) were 27 μg/mL (interquartile range, IQR 21.2-33.8 μg/mL) at week 2, 23 μg/mL (IQR 15-34.5 μg/mL) at week 6 and 10.7 μg/mL (IQR 4.6-20.4 μg/mL) at week 14. Only median vedolizumab trough levels at week 6 differed between patients with and without mucosal healing within the first year after treatment initiation (26.8 vs 15.1 μg/mL, P = 0.035). A cut-off trough level of 18 μg/mL at week 6 predicted mucosal healing within the first year after the start of vedolizumab with an area under the receiver operating curve of 0.735 (95% confidence interval 0.531-0.939). A vedolizumab trough level above 18 μg/mL at week 6 was the only independent variable associated with mucosal healing within the first year of treatment (odds ratio 15.7, 95% confidence interval 2.4-173.0, P = 0.01). Early therapeutic drug monitoring might improve timely detection of vedolizumab-treated patients in need for an intensified dosing regimen. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Structure of the lower crust beneath the Carolina Trough, U.S. Atlantic continental margin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tréhu, Anne M.; Ballard, A.; Dorman, L.M.; Gettrust, J.F.; Klitgord, Kim D.; Schreiner, A.

1989-01-01

Data from three large-offset seismic profiles provide information on the crustal structure beneath the Carolina trough. The profiles, obtained by the U.S. Geological Survey, the Naval Oceanographic Research Development Agency, and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1985, were oriented parallel to the trough and were located (1) seaward of the East Coast Magnetic Anomaly (ECMA), which is generally thought to represent the boundary between oceanic and continental crust; (2) along the axis of the trough between the ECMA and the hinge zone, which is thought to reflect the landward limit of highly stretched and altered transitional crust; and (3) along the Carolina platform landward of the basement hinge zone on crust thought to have been thinned only slightly during rifting. These data constrain the velocity structure of the lower crust and provide evidence for a thick lens of high-velocity (>7.1 km/s) lower crustal material that extends beneath the Carolina trough and the adjacent ocean basin. This lens reaches a maximum thickness of about 13 km beneath the deepest part of the trough, thins to about 5 km seaward of the ECMA, and is either very thin or absent landward of the hinge zone. It is interpreted to represent material that was underplated beneath and/or intruded into the crust during the late stage of continental rifting and that led to an anomalously thick plutonic layer during the early seafloor spreading phase. These data thus support the recent conclusions of White et al. (1987b) and Mutter et al. (1988) that the initiation of seafloor spreading is attended in many, if not most, cases by the generation of an anomalously large volume of melt.

Optimization of woven jute/glass fibre-reinforced polyester hybrid composite solar parabolic trough collector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reddy, K. S.; Singla, Hitesh

2017-07-01

In the present work, structural analysis of 5.77m × 4m woven jute (J)/glass (G) fibre-reinforced polyester hybrid composite solar parabolic trough is carried out based on trough parameters to obtain the minimum RMS local slope deviation, termed as SDx value under gravity loading. The optimization is done by varying parameters viz. direction and size of reinforced conduits, stacking number and sequence of hybrid trough laminate at fibre orientation of Δθ=45° and Δθ=60° amongst the layers at 0° collector angle. The analysis revealed that the configuration in which the conduits are placed in both X and Y directions is preferred over other configurations to scale down the effect of wind loads. Furthermore it has been observed that laminate of the order [0°G/45°G/-45°J/90°J]s undergoes minimum surface deformation amongst all the other configurations at conduit reinforcement in both X and Y directions for a conduit thickness of 0.75 mm and radius of 10 mm and obtains the overall SDx value of 1.3492 mrad. The results shows that proposed trough model is very promising and evolves a cost effective system.

Coincident observations of ionospheric troughs and the equatorial plasmapause

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grebowsky, J. M.; Maynard, N. C.; Tulunay, Y. K.; Lanzerotti, L. J.

1976-01-01

Electron-density observations made in the topside ionosphere by the Ariel 4 and Isis 2 satellites are examined in conjunction with results obtained by Explorer 45 when it traversed the near-equatorial plasmapause with one hour (both UT and MLT) of the Ariel and Isis traversals of the same L coordinate. Both dusk and night observations are analyzed, and an attempt is made to show that depressions in ionospheric electron density occur in the vicinity of the plasmapause field line. It is concluded that the electron distributions observed in the electron-density troughs at 550 km near dusk by Ariel and at 1400 km near midnight by Isis do not always parallel variations in the light-ion distribution inferred from the Explorer plasmapause traversals and that there appears to be no specific feature of the main ionospheric trough which can be used to identify the plasmapause field line except in a statistical sense.

The role of water in the petrogenesis of Marina trough magmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stolper, Edward; Newman, Sally

1994-02-01

Most variations in composition among primitive basalts from the Mariana back-arc trough can be explained by melting mixtures of an N-type mid-ocean ridge basalt (NMORB) mantle source and an H2O rich component, provided the degree of melting is positively and approximately linearly correlated with the proportion of the H2O-rich component in the mixture. We conclude that the degrees of melting by which Mariana trough magmas are generated increase from magmas similar to NMORB, through more H2O-enriched basalts, to 'arc-like' basalts, and that this increase is due to the lowering of the solidus of mantle peridotite that accompanies addition of the H2O-rich component. The H2O-rich component is likely to be ultimately derived from fluid from a subducting slab, but we propose that by the time fluids reach the source regions of Mariana trough basalts, they have interacted with sufficient mantle material that for all but the most incompatible of elements (with respect to fluid-mantle interaction), they are in equilibrium with the mantle. In contrast, fluids added to the source regions of Mariana island-arc magmas have typically interacted with less mantle and thus retain the signature of slab-derived fluids to varying degrees for all but the most compatible elements. Primitive Mariana arc basalts can be generated by melting mixtures of such incompletely exchanged slab-derived fluids and sources similar to NMORB-type mantle sources, but the degrees of melting are typically higher than those of Mariana trough NMORB and the sources have been variably depleted relative to the back-arc sources by previous melt extraction. This depletion may be related to earlier extraction of back-arc basin magmas or may evolve by repeated fluxing of the sources as fluid is continually added to them in the regions of arc magma generation. If fluid with partitioning behavior relative to the solid mantle similar to that deduced for the H2O-rich component involved in the generation of Mariana

"Building" 3D visualization skills in mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaudio, S. J.; Ajoku, C. N.; McCarthy, B. S.; Lambart, S.

2016-12-01

Studying mineralogy is fundamental for understanding the composition and physical behavior of natural materials in terrestrial and extraterrestrial environments. However, some students struggle and ultimately get discouraged with mineralogy course material because they lack well-developed spatial visualization skills that are needed to deal with three-dimensional (3D) objects, such as crystal forms or atomic-scale structures, typically represented in two-dimensional (2D) space. Fortunately, spatial visualization can improve with practice. Our presentation demonstrates a set of experiential learning activities designed to support the development and improvement of spatial visualization skills in mineralogy using commercially available magnetic building tiles, rods, and spheres. These instructional support activities guide students in the creation of 3D models that replicate macroscopic crystal forms and atomic-scale structures in a low-pressure learning environment and at low cost. Students physically manipulate square and triangularly shaped magnetic tiles to build 3D open and closed crystal forms (platonic solids, prisms, pyramids and pinacoids). Prismatic shapes with different closing forms are used to demonstrate the relationship between crystal faces and Miller Indices. Silica tetrahedra and octahedra are constructed out of magnetic rods (bonds) and spheres (oxygen atoms) to illustrate polymerization, connectivity, and the consequences for mineral formulae. In another activity, students practice the identification of symmetry elements and plane lattice types by laying magnetic rods and spheres over wallpaper patterns. The spatial visualization skills developed and improved through our experiential learning activities are critical to the study of mineralogy and many other geology sub-disciplines. We will also present pre- and post- activity assessments that are aligned with explicit learning outcomes.

Strawberry Production in Soilless Substrate Troughs – Plant Growth

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Soilless substrates made of peat moss, coconut coir, perlite, rockwool or bark are pathogen free and they have been used in strawberry production in Europe in troughs or containers. Open field strawberry production in soilless substrate is new to California growers. The objective of this study was t...

Influence of motorization and supermarket-proliferation on the prevalence of type 2 diabetes in the inhabitants of a small town on Okinawa, Japan.

PubMed

Takasu, Nobuyuki; Yogi, Hiroyuki; Takara, Masaki; Higa, Moritake; Kouki, Tsuyoshi; Ohshiro, Yuzuru; Mimura, Goro; Komiya, Ichiro

2007-01-01

Motorization and supermarket-proliferation affect lifestyles. About 15 years ago, Okinawans went to several shops on foot, but now they go to supermarkets by car. The influences of these changes on the prevalence of diabetes are uncertain. OBJECTIVE AND MEASUREMENTS: The influence of motorization and supermarket-proliferation on the prevalence of diabetes was studied in the inhabitants of a town on Okinawa, Japan. Measurements were composed of anthropometry and blood chemistry. Participants were asked where they buy food and daily necessities (several shops or a supermarket) and how they get there (by car or on foot). Serial cross-sectional. Inhabitants of the island of Okinawa were studied. In 1991, 24% went to several shops and 20% to a supermarket. However, in 2004, only 3.1% went to several shops and 83% to a supermarket. In 1991, 55% went to shopping places on foot and 38% by car. However, in 2004, only 14% went on foot and 76% by car. The prevalence of diabetes in Okinawa increased from 4.7% in 1991 to 8.4% in 2004. The prevalence of diabetes correlated positively with the percent of inhabitants going to supermarkets, and those going there by car. In 1991, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes was 4.7% in men and 4.6% in women; no difference was noted between men and women. In 2004, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes increased to 9.2% in men and to 7.5% in women. The increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes from 1991 to 2004 was higher in men than in women. About 15 years ago, Okinawans went to shops on foot, but now they go to supermarkets by car. The prevalence of diabetes is increasing. Motorization and supermarket-proliferation are associated with the increases of the prevalence of diabetes. The increase in diabetes prevalence was higher in men than in women.

Evidence to Support Monitoring of Vedolizumab Trough Concentrations in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Diseases.

PubMed

Dreesen, Erwin; Verstockt, Bram; Bian, Sumin; de Bruyn, Magali; Compernolle, Griet; Tops, Sophie; Noman, Maja; Van Assche, Gert; Ferrante, Marc; Gils, Ann; Vermeire, Séverine

2018-04-25

Trough concentrations of vedolizumab were found to correlate with clinical response in phase 3 studies of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) or Crohn's disease (CD). Nevertheless, there are no solid data to support monitoring of vedolizumab trough concentrations in treated patients. We investigated the correlation between vedolizumab exposure and response in a real-world population and aimed to identify patient factors that affect exposure and response. We performed a retrospective cohort study of 179 consecutive patients (66 with UC and 113 with CD) who began vedolizumab therapy from September 1, 2015, through October 1, 2016, at University Hospitals Leuven, Belgium. Serum concentrations of vedolizumab were measured before all infusions up to week 30. Effectiveness endpoints included endoscopic healing (UC, Mayo endoscopic sub-score ≤1; CD, absence of ulcers), clinical response (physicians' global assessment), and biologic response or remission (based on level of C-reactive protein) and were assessed at week 14 (for patients with UC) and week 22 (for patients with CD). A stepwise forward addition-backward elimination modeling approach was performed to identify factors independently associated with vedolizumab exposure and response. Vedolizumab trough concentrations >30.0 μg/mL at week 2, >24.0 μg/mL at week 6, and >14.0 μg/mL during maintenance therapy associated with a higher probability of attaining the effectiveness endpoints for patients with UC or CD (P < .05). Higher body mass and more severe disease (based on high level of C-reactive protein and low level of albumin and/or hemoglobin) at the start of vedolizumab therapy associated with lower trough concentrations of vedolizumab over the 30-week period and a lower probability of achieving mucosal healing (P < .05). Mucosal healing was achieved in significantly more patients with UC than patients with CD, even though a diagnosis of UC was not an independent predictor of higher vedolizumab trough

Long-term observation of water-soluble chemical components and acid-digested metals in the total suspended particles collected at Okinawa, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handa, D.; Okada, K.; Kuroki, Y.; Nakama, Y.; Nakajima, H.; Somada, Y.; Ijyu, M.; Azechi, S.; Oshiro, Y.; Nakaema, F.; Miyagi, Y.; Arakaki, T.; Tanahara, A.

2011-12-01

The economic growth and population increase in recent Asia have been increasing air pollution. Emission rate of air pollutants from Asia, in particular oxides of nitrogen, surpassed those from North America and Europe and should continue to exceed them for decades. Okinawa Island is situated approximately 1500 km south of Tokyo, Japan, 2000 km southeast of Beijing, China, and 1000 km south of South Korea. Its location is ideal in observing East Asia's air quality because maritime air mass prevails during summer, while continental air mass dominates during fall, winter, and spring. The maritime air mass data can be seen as background clean air and can be compared with continental air masses which have been affected by anthropogenic activities. We collected total suspended particles (TSP) on quartz filters by using a high volume air sampler at the Cape Hedo Atmosphere and Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS), Okinawa, Japan during August 2005 and August 2010. Sampling duration was one week for each sample. We determined the concentrations of water-soluble anions, cations, water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC) and acid-digested metals in TSP samples using ion chromatography, atomic absorption spectrometry, total organic carbon analyzer and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), respectively. Seasonal variation of water-soluble chemical components and acid-digested metals showed that the concentrations were the lowest in summer, higher in fall and winter, and the highest in spring. When air mass came from Asian continent, the concentrations of water-soluble chemical components and acid-digested metals were much higher compared to the other directions, suggesting long-range transport of air pollutants from Asian continent. Also, when the air mass came from Asian continent (75-100% dominant), the mean concentrations of non-sea salt sulfate and nitrate increased ca. 1.8 times and ca. 3.7 times, respectively between 2005 and 2010, and the ratio of nitrate to

Seasonal variation of water-soluble chemical components in the bulk atmospheric aerosols collected at Okinawa Island, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handa, D.; Nakajima, H.; Nakaema, F.; Arakaki, T.; Tanahara, A.

2008-12-01

The economic development and population growth in recent Asia spread air pollution. Emission rate of air pollutants from Asia, in particular oxides of nitrogen, surpassed those from North America and Europe and should continue to exceed them for decades. The study of the air pollution transported from Asian continent has gained a special attention in Japan. Okinawa Island is situated approximately 1500 km south of Tokyo, Japan, 2000 km southeast of Beijing, China, and 1000 km south of South Korea. Its location is ideal in observing East Asian atmospheric aerosols because maritime air mass prevails during summer, while continental air mass dominates during fall, winter, and spring. The maritime air mass data can be seen as background and can be compared with continental air masses which have been affected by anthropogenic activities. In 2005, Cape Hedo Atmosphere and Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS) was established by the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) at the northern tip of Okinawa Island, Japan to monitor the air quality of Asia. Bulk aerosol samples were collected on quartz filters by using a high volume air sampler. Sampling duration was one week for each sample. We determined the concentrations of water-soluble anions, cations and dissolved organic carbon in the bulk aerosols collected at the CHAAMS, using ion chromatography, atomic absorption spectrometry, and total organic carbon analyzer, respectively. Seasonal variation of water-soluble chemical components showed that the concentrations were relatively low in summer, higher in fall and winter, and the highest in spring. When air mass came from Asian Continent, the concentrations of water-soluble chemical components were much higher compared to the other directions.

Moessbauer Mineralogy on the Moon: The Lunar Regolith

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, Richard V.; Korotev, Randy L..; Shelfer, Tad D.; Klingelhoefer, Goestar

1997-01-01

A first-order requirement for spacecraft missions that land on solid planetary objects is instrumentation for mineralogical analyses. For purposes of providing diagnostic information about naturally-occurring materials, the element iron is particularly important because it is abundant and multivalent. Knowledge of the oxidation state of iron and its distribution among iron-bearing mineralogies tightly constrains the types of materials present and provides information about formation and modification (weathering) processes. Because Moessbauer spectroscopy is sensitive to both the valence of iron and its local chemical environment, the technique is unique in providing information about both the relative abundance of iron-bearing phases and oxidation state of the iron. The Moessbauer mineralogy of lunar regolith samples (primarily soils from the Apollo 16 and 17 missions to the Moon) were measured in the laboratory to demonstrate the strength of the technique for in situ mineralogical exploration of the Moon. The regolith samples were modeled as mixtures of five iron-bearing phases: olivine, pyroxene, glass, ilmenite, and metal. Based on differences in relative proportions of iron associated with these phases, volcanic ash regolith can be distinguished from impact-derived regolith, impact-derived soils of different geologic affinity (e.g., highlands, maria) can be distinguished on the basis of their constituent minerals, and soil maturity can be estimated. The total resonant absorption area of the Moessbauer spectrum can be used to estimate total FeO concentrations.

Balancing vancomycin efficacy and nephrotoxicity: should we be aiming for trough or AUC/MIC?

PubMed

Patel, Karisma; Crumby, Ashley S; Maples, Holly D

2015-04-01

Sixty years later, the question that still remains is how to appropriately utilize vancomycin in the pediatric population. The Infectious Diseases Society of America published guidelines in 2011 that provide guidance for dosing and monitoring of vancomycin in adults and pediatrics. However, goal vancomycin trough concentrations of 15-20 μg/mL for invasive infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus were based primarily on adult pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data that achieved an area under the curve to minimum inhibitory concentration ratio (AUC/MIC) of ≥400. Recent pediatric literature shows that vancomycin trough concentrations needed to achieve the target AUC/MIC are different than the adult goal troughs cited in the guidelines. This paper addresses several thoughts, including the role of vancomycin AUC/MIC in dosing strategies and safety monitoring, consistency in laboratory reporting, and future directions for calculating AUC/MIC in pediatrics.

Identification of Risk Factors for Nephrotoxicity in Patients Receiving Extended-Duration, High-Trough Vancomycin Therapy

PubMed Central

Contreiras, Claire; Legal, Michael; Lau, Tim T Y; Thalakada, Rosanne; Shalansky, Stephen; Ensom, Mary H H

2014-01-01

Background: In the past, impurities in vancomycin formulations were thought to contribute to nephrotoxicity. In contrast, when current, purer formulations are dosed at conventional trough levels (i.e., 5–15 mg/L), the incidence of nephrotoxicity is relatively low. Recent guidelines have recommended targeting higher vancomycin trough levels in treatment of complicated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. Dosing based on these higher trough levels may be associated with nephrotoxicity, so the potential risk factors for vancomycin-associated nephrotoxicity require clearer definition. Objectives: To determine the occurrence of nephrotoxicity in patients receiving more than 7 days of vancomycin therapy with high trough levels (15–20 mg/L) and to identify and evaluate specific risk factors related to development of vancomycin-associated nephrotoxicity (i.e., serum creatinine ≥ 44.2 μmol/L or increase ≥ 50% [i.e., ≥ 26.2 μmol/L] from baseline on 2 consecutive days). Methods: Health care records were reviewed for patients seen at 2 major teaching hospitals between January 2008 and March 2011. Patients who had attained high trough levels of vancomycin were screened for eligibility. Patients with unstable renal function, those undergoing hemodialysis, and those for whom dosage and/or sampling times were unclear were excluded. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify risk factors associated with nephrotoxicity. Univariate variables with p < 0.1 were included in the logistic regression model. Results: Of the 176 patients with high trough levels included in the analysis, 24 (14%) experienced nephrotoxicity. In univariate analysis, admission to a general medicine unit (the setting of care for 16 [67%] of the 24 patients with nephrotoxicity) and extended duration of vancomycin treatment were identified as risk factors for nephrotoxicity (p < 0.1). Other risk factors included gastrointestinal comorbidity (p = 0.056), malignancy

CCD-Based XRD/XRF for Determining Environmental Mineralogy on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vaniman, D. T.; Bish, D. L.; Blake, D. F.; Chipera, S. J.

2000-01-01

Health effects from Martian dusts will be a concern for any manned Mars missions. Nuisance dusts plagued the Apollo astronauts, but dusts of more hazardous mineralogy, in habitats occupied by Mars astronauts weakened by a long-duration mission, may be more than a nuisance. Chemical hazards in Martian regolith attributable to S, Cl, Br, Cd, and Pb are known or strongly suspected to be present, but terrestrial studies of the health effects of dusts indicate that accurate determination of mineralogy is a critical factor in evaluating inhalation hazards. Mineral inhalation hazards such as the Group-I carcinogenic zeolite erionite, which is demonstrated to cause mesothelioma, cannot be identified by chemical analysis alone. Studies of palagonite analogs raise the possibility that erionite may occur on Mars. In addition to health effects concerns, environmental mineralogy has significant importance in resource extraction, groundwater use, and sustained agriculture. The high sulfur and chlorine content of Martian regolith will affect all of these uses, but the nature of mineralogic reservoirs for S and Cl will determine their uptake and concentration in extracted groundwater and in agricultural applications of regolith. Wet chemistry experiments planned for the Mars Environmental Compatibility Assessment (MECA) will define some of the consequences of water/soil interaction, but an understanding of the mineralogic basis for water-rock reactions is needed to understand the mechanisms of reaction and to apply the results of a few experiments to larger scales and different conditions.

SeaMARC II mapping of transform faults in the Cayman Trough, Caribbean Sea

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rosencrantz, Eric; Mann, Paul

1992-01-01

SeaMARC II maps of the southern wall of the Cayman Trough between Honduras and Jamaica show zones of continuous, well-defined fault lineaments adjacent and parallel to the wall, both to the east and west of the Cayman spreading axis. These lineaments mark the present, active traces of transform faults which intersect the southern end of the spreading axis at a triple junction. The Swan Islands transform fault to the west is dominated by two major lineaments that overlap with right-stepping sense across a large push-up ridge beneath the Swan Islands. The fault zone to the east of the axis, named the Walton fault, is more complex, containing multiple fault strands and a large pull-apart structure. The Walton fault links the spreading axis to Jamaican and Hispaniolan strike-slip faults, and it defines the southern boundary of a microplate composed of the eastern Cayman Trough and western Hispaniola. The presence of this microplate raises questions about the veracity of Caribbean plate velocities based primarily on Cayman Trough opening rates.

Some not so obvious reasons to teach optical mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gunter, M. E.

2004-12-01

Hands-on, interactive, critical thinking, interdisciplinary, spiral learning, and 3-D visualization are familiar words in pedagogy, while Becke lines, dispersion staining, grain mounts, sign of elongation, extinction angle, and optical indicatrix are words seldom used in today's geosciences curriculum. However, the teaching of these seemingly rather historical optical methods, and proper training in the use of the polarized (not petrographic) light microscope (PLM), will by themselves lead to improved learning of our students. And this, if for no other reason, might warrant the inclusion of a semester-long optical mineralogy course. However, another $70 billion per year concern in the U.S. also warrants inclusion of optical mineralogy in a geosciences curriculum. That dollar amount (which would be approximately 10% of annual petroleum sales in the U.S.) centers around the cost spent (wasted?) on asbestos litigation in the U.S. Unfortunately, because we no longer teach PLM skills in the geosciences curriculum, many of the microscopists, regulators, and "expert" witnesses involved in the asbestos issue have little or no formal training in mineralogy or optical mineralogy. This, in turn, often leads to formulation of regulations that make little sense (e.g., that quartz, the most abundant mineral species in the earth's crust is now listed as a human carcinogen) and unsolved mineralogical issues (e.g., OSHA deregulated high-aspect ratio amphibole cleavage fragments in 1994 but did not propose a method to distinguish them from amphibole fibers). The current asbestos issues often deal with tremolite contamination in chrysotile or talc. There are simple PLM methods that we could teach whereby thousands of particles could be screened in minutes to find these possible contaminates, whereas electron beam or X-ray diffraction methods require orders of magnitude more time and cost - and this is only one of many examples. Finally, one might also argue that since minerals

Mineral Supertrumps: A New Card Game to Assist Learning of Mineralogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spandler, Carl

2016-01-01

Mineralogy is an essential component of Earth Science education, yet many students struggle to obtain adequate comprehension and knowledge of mineralogy during tertiary (postsecondary) degree programs. The use of educational games can be an effective strategy for science teaching as games provide an active learning environment that enhances…

Long-Range Transport of Perchlorate Observed in the Atmospheric Aerosols Collected at Okinawa Island, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handa, D.; Okada, K.; Kuroki, Y.; Nakama, Y.; Nakajima, H.; Arakaki, T.; Tanahara, A.; Oomori, T.; Miyagi, T.; Kadena, H.; Ishizaki, T.; Nakama, F.

2007-12-01

The study of perchlorate has become quite active in the U.S. in the last several years. Perchlorate has been recognized as a new environmental pollutant and it attracted much attention quickly in the world. The health concern about perchlorate stems from the fact that it displaces iodide in the thyroid gland, while iodine-containing thyroid hormones are essential for proper neural development from the fetal stage through the first years of life. In this study, we determined the concentrations of perchlorate ion present in the atmospheric aerosols collected in Okinawa Island, Japan. We then examined the relationships between the perchlorate concentrations and the environmental parameters and the climatic conditions peculiar to Okinawa. Bulk aerosol samples were collected on quartz filters by using a high volume air sampler at Cape Hedo Atmosphere and Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS). Each sampling duration was one week. The quartz filters with aerosols were stirred with Milli-Q pure water for three hours before perchlorate ion was extracted. The extracted perchlorate ion concentrations were determined by ion chromatography (ICS-2000, DIONEX). The mean perchlorate concentration for the samples collected at CHAAMS was 1.83 ng/m3, and the minimum was 0.18 ng/m3. The samples collected during November 21-27, 2005, January 23-30, 2006 and April 24-01, 2006 had highest perchlorate concentrations. For these three samples, we performed back trajectory analysis, and found that the air mass for the three samples arrived from the Asian continent. A relatively strong correlation (r2 = 0.55) was found between perchlorate and nss-sulfate concentrations for the CHAAMS samples. Furthermore, we analyzed perchlorate in the soils and the fertilizers used for sugar cane farming around the CHAAMS area. The Milli-Q extract of the soil and the fertilizers did not contain any detectable levels of perchlorate ions. Therefore, it was suggested that perchlorate found in the atmospheric

[AIDS control in industry in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan].

PubMed

Shinjo, M; Ariizumi, M; Onga, N; Asato, Y; Azuma, T; Miyazato, T; Uehara, T; Ohno, A

1995-05-01

To see how industry is responding to AIDS, an anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted on member companies (n = 407) of the chamber of commerce with 50 or more employees in three large cities in Okinawa, during February to March, 1994. Responses were obtained from 221. The questionnaire looked at type of industry, number of employees, number of business trips to foreign countries, specialists for health management, AIDS control, attitudes and actions taken toward infected persons and AIDS patients, etc. The main results were as follows; In 73 companies foreign business trips had been made. The rate of appointment of specialists in health management was below 50%. In 80% of the companies, AIDS control was not in place. About 1/2 of the companies responded that there was a need to grapple with AIDS control while 40% of the companies were undecided. The majority of the companies felt that there was no chance of their employees having HIV infection within five or six years. Many companies had no regulations for dealing with employees who are infected with HIV. From the survey, three points were made clear: 1. Industry does not have an adequate plan to deal with AIDS. 2. There is no awareness of a crisis. 3. There is insufficient dissemination of information regarding AIDS. HIV/AIDS is predicted to increase in industries in our country and management will be hard-pressed to deal with the intricate problems that arise. HIV/AIDS is not exclusively an individual problem, but should be the concern of industries and society as well.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Long-term observation of water-soluble chemical components in the bulk atmospheric aerosols collected at Okinawa, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handa, Daishi; Somada, Yuka; Ijyu, Moriaki; Azechi, Sotaro; Nakaema, Fumiya; Arakaki, Takemitsu; Tanahara, Akira

2010-05-01

The economic development and population growth in recent Asia spread air pollution. Emission rate of air pollutants from Asia, in particular oxides of nitrogen, surpassed those from North America and Europe and should continue to exceed them for decades. The study of the long-range transported air pollution from Asian continent has gained a special attention in Japan because of increase in photochemical oxidants in relatively remote islands. Okinawa Island is situated approximately 1500 km south of Tokyo, Japan, 2000 km southeast of Beijing, China, and 1000 km south of South Korea. Its location in Asia is well suited for studying long-range transport of air pollutants in East Asia because maritime air mass prevails during summer, while continental air mass dominates during fall, winter, and spring. The maritime air mass data can be seen as background and can be compared with continental air masses which have been affected by anthropogenic activities. Bulk aerosol samples were collected on quartz filters by using a high volume air sampler. Sampling duration was one week for each sample. We determined the concentrations of water-soluble anions, cations and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the bulk aerosols collected at the Cape Hedo Atmosphere and Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS) using ion chromatography, atomic absorption spectrometry, and total organic carbon analyzer, respectively. We will report water-soluble chemical components data of anions, cations and DOC in bulk atmospheric aerosols collected at CHAAMS during August, 2005 to April, 2010. Seasonal variation of water-soluble chemical components showed that the concentrations were relatively low in summer, higher in fall and winter, and the highest in spring. When air mass came from Asian Continent, the concentrations of water-soluble chemical components were much higher compared to the other directions. In addition, we calculated background concentration of water-soluble chemical components at Okinawa

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of ambient aerosols collected from Okinawa Island in the western North Pacific Rim, an outflow region of Asian dusts and pollutants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kunwar, Bhagawati; Kawamura, Kimitaka; Zhu, Chunmao

2016-04-01

Stable carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) isotope ratios were measured for total carbon (TC) and nitrogen (TN), respectively, in aerosol (TSP) samples collected at Cape Hedo, Okinawa, an outflow region of Asian pollutants, during 2009-2010. The averaged δ13C and δ15N ratios are -22.2‰ and +12.5‰, respectively. The δ13C values are similar in both spring (-22.5‰) and winter (-22.5‰), suggesting the similar sources and/or source regions. We found that δ13C from Okinawa aerosols are ca. 2‰ higher than those reported from Chinese megacities probably due to photochemical aging of organic aerosols. A strong correlation (r = 0.81) was found between nss-Ca and TSP, suggesting that springtime aerosols are influenced from Asian dusts. However, carbonates in the Asian dusts were titrated with acidic species such as sulfuric acid and oxalic acid during atmospheric transport although two samples suggested the presence of remaining carbonate. No correlations were found between δ13C and tracer compounds (levoglucosan, elemental carbon, oxalic acid, and Na+). During winter and spring, coal burning is significant source in China. Based on isotopic mass balance, contribution of coal burning origin particles to total aerosol carbon was estimated as ca. 97% in winter, which is probably associated with the high emissions in China. Contribution of NO3- to TN was on average 45% whereas that of NH4+ was 18%. These results suggest that vehicular exhaust is an important source of TN in Okinawa aerosols. Concentration of water-soluble organic nitrogen (WSON) is higher in summer, suggesting that WSON is more emitted from the ocean in warmer season whereas inorganic nitrogen is more emitted in winter and spring from pollution sources in the Asian continent.

Regional circulation around Heard and McDonald Islands and through the Fawn Trough, central Kerguelen Plateau

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Wijk, Esmee M.; Rintoul, Stephen R.; Ronai, Belinda M.; Williams, Guy D.

2010-05-01

The fine-scale circulation around the Heard and McDonald Islands and through the Fawn Trough, Kerguelen Plateau, is described using data from three high-resolution CTD sections, Argo floats and satellite maps of chlorophyll a, sea surface temperature (SST) and absolute sea surface height (SSH). We confirm that the Polar Front (PF) is split into two branches over the Kerguelen Plateau, with the NPF crossing the north-eastern limits of our survey carrying 25 Sv to the southeast. The SPF was associated with a strong eastward-flowing jet carrying 12 Sv of baroclinic transport through the deepest part of Fawn Trough (relative to the bottom). As the section was terminated midway through the trough this estimate is very likely to be a lower bound for the total transport. We demonstrate that the SPF contributes to the Fawn Trough Current identified by previous studies. After exiting the Fawn Trough, the SPF crossed Chun Spur and continued as a strong north-westward flowing jet along the eastern flank of the Kerguelen Plateau before turning offshore between 50°S and 51.5°S. Measured bottom water temperatures suggest a deep water connection between the northern and southern parts of the eastern Kerguelen Plateau indicating that the deep western boundary current continues at least as far north as 50.5°S. Analysis of satellite altimetry derived SSH streamlines demonstrates a southward shift of both the northern and southern branches of the Polar Front from 1994 to 2004. In the direct vicinity of the Heard and McDonald islands, cool waters of southern origin flow along the Heard Island slope and through the Eastern Trough bringing cold Winter Water (WW) onto the plateau. Complex topography funnels flow through canyons, deepens the mixed layer and increases productivity, resulting in this area being the preferred foraging region for a number of satellite-tracked land-based predators.

Hazard assessment of long-period ground motions for the Nankai Trough earthquakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maeda, T.; Morikawa, N.; Aoi, S.; Fujiwara, H.

2013-12-01

We evaluate a seismic hazard for long-period ground motions associated with the Nankai Trough earthquakes (M8~9) in southwest Japan. Large interplate earthquakes occurring around the Nankai Trough have caused serious damages due to strong ground motions and tsunami; most recent events were in 1944 and 1946. Such large interplate earthquake potentially causes damages to high-rise and large-scale structures due to long-period ground motions (e.g., 1985 Michoacan earthquake in Mexico, 2003 Tokachi-oki earthquake in Japan). The long-period ground motions are amplified particularly on basins. Because major cities along the Nankai Trough have developed on alluvial plains, it is therefore important to evaluate long-period ground motions as well as strong motions and tsunami for the anticipated Nankai Trough earthquakes. The long-period ground motions are evaluated by the finite difference method (FDM) using 'characterized source models' and the 3-D underground structure model. The 'characterized source model' refers to a source model including the source parameters necessary for reproducing the strong ground motions. The parameters are determined based on a 'recipe' for predicting strong ground motion (Earthquake Research Committee (ERC), 2009). We construct various source models (~100 scenarios) giving the various case of source parameters such as source region, asperity configuration, and hypocenter location. Each source region is determined by 'the long-term evaluation of earthquakes in the Nankai Trough' published by ERC. The asperity configuration and hypocenter location control the rupture directivity effects. These parameters are important because our preliminary simulations are strongly affected by the rupture directivity. We apply the system called GMS (Ground Motion Simulator) for simulating the seismic wave propagation based on 3-D FDM scheme using discontinuous grids (Aoi and Fujiwara, 1999) to our study. The grid spacing for the shallow region is 200 m and

Geochemical and mineralogical data for soils of the conterminous United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, David B.; Cannon, William F.; Woodruff, Laurel G.; Solano, Federico; Kilburn, James E.; Fey, David L.

2013-01-01

In 2007, the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a low-density (1 site per 1,600 square kilometers, 4,857 sites) geochemical and mineralogical survey of soils of the conterminous United States as part of the North American Soil Geochemical Landscapes Project. Sampling and analytical protocols were developed at a workshop in 2003, and pilot studies were conducted from 2004 to 2007 to test and refine these recommended protocols. The final sampling protocol for the national-scale survey included, at each site, a sample from a depth of 0 to 5 centimeters, a composite of the soil A horizon, and a deeper sample from the soil C horizon or, if the top of the C horizon was at a depth greater than 1 meter, from a depth of approximately 80–100 centimeters. The <2-millimeter fraction of each sample was analyzed for a suite of 45 major and trace elements by methods that yield the total or near-total elemental content. The major mineralogical components in the samples from the soil A and C horizons were determined by a quantitative X-ray diffraction method using Rietveld refinement. Sampling in the conterminous United States was completed in 2010, with chemical and mineralogical analyses completed in May 2013. The resulting dataset provides an estimate of the abundance and spatial distribution of chemical elements and minerals in soils of the conterminous United States and represents a baseline for soil geochemistry and mineralogy against which future changes may be recognized and quantified. This report (1) describes the sampling, sample preparation, and analytical methods used; (2) gives details of the quality control protocols used to monitor the quality of chemical and mineralogical analyses over approximately six years; and (3) makes available the soil geochemical and mineralogical data in downloadable tables.

Mineralogical, Spectral, and Compositional Changes During Heating of Hydrous Carbonaceous Chondrites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nakamura, T.; Matsuoka, M.; Yamashita, S.; Sato, Y.; Mogi, K.; Enokido, Y.; Nakata, A.; Okumura, S.; Furukawa, Y.; Zolensky, M.

2017-01-01

Hydrous carbonaceous chondrites experienced hydration and subsequent dehydration by heating, which resulted in a variety of mineralogical and spectral features [e. g., 1-6]. The degree of heating is classified according to heating stage (HS) II to IV based on mineralogy of phyllosilicates [2], because they change, with elevating temperature, to poorly crystal-line phases and subsequently to aggregates of small secondary anhydrous silicates of mainly olivine. Heating of hydrous carbonaceous chondrites also causes spectral changes and volatile loss [3-6]. Experimental heating of Murchison CM chondrite showed flattening of whole visible-near infrared spectra, especially weakening of the 3µm band strength [1, 4, 7]. In order to understand mineralogical, spectral, and compositional changes during heating of hydrous carbonaceous chondrites, we have carried out systematic investigation of mineralogy, reflectance spectra, and volatile composition of hydrated and dehydrated carbonaceous chondrites as well as experimentally-heated hydrous carbonaceous chondrites. In addition, we investigated reflectance spectra of tochilinite that is a major phase of CM chondrites and has a low dehydration temperature (250degC).

Heat Loss Testing of Schott's 2008 PTR70 Parabolic Trough Receiver

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Burkholder, Frank; Kutscher, Chuck

2009-05-01

Two Schott 2008 model year PTR70 HCEs were tested on NREL's heat loss test stand from 100 - 500 deg C in 50 deg C increments. Absorber emittance was determined from the laboratory testing so that the performance of the HCEs could be modeled in a parabolic trough collector. Collector/HCE simulation results for many different field operation conditions were used to create heat loss correlationcoefficients for Excelergy and SAM. SAM estimates that the decreased emittance of the 2008 PTR70 will decrease the LCOE for parabolic trough power plants by 0.5 cents/kWh and increase the electricity generated by 5% relative tomore » previous PTR70s. These conclusions assume that the 2008 PTR70 is supplied at the same cost and with the same optical performance as earlier PTR70 models.« less

Are Vancomycin Trough Concentrations of 15 to 20 mg/L Associated With Increased Attainment of an AUC/MIC ≥ 400 in Patients With Presumed MRSA Infection?

PubMed

Hale, Cory M; Seabury, Robert W; Steele, Jeffrey M; Darko, William; Miller, Christopher D

2017-06-01

To determine whether there is an association between higher vancomycin trough concentrations and attainment of a calculated area under the concentration-time curve (AUC)/minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ≥400. A retrospective analysis was conducted among vancomycin-treated adult patients with a positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) culture. Attainment of a calculated AUC/MIC ≥400 was compared between patients with troughs in the reference range of 15 to 20 mg/L and those with troughs in the following ranges: <10, 10 to 14.9, and >20 mg/L. Nephrotoxicity was assessed as a secondary outcome based on corrected average vancomycin troughs over 10 days of treatment. Overall, 226 patients were reviewed and 100 included. Relative to troughs ≥10, patients with vancomycin troughs <10 mg/L were 73% less likely to attain an AUC/MIC ≥400 (odds ratio [OR] 0.27, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.01-0.75). No difference was found in the attainment of an AUC/MIC ≥400 in patients with troughs of 10 to 14.9 mg/L and >20 mg/L when compared to patients with troughs of 15 to 20 mg/L. The mean corrected average vancomycin trough was higher in patients developing nephrotoxicity compared to those who did not (19.5 vs 14.5 mg/L, P < .001). Achieving vancomycin serum trough concentrations of 15 to 20 mg/L did not result in an increased attainment of the AUC/MIC target relative to troughs of 10 to 14.9 mg/L but may increase nephrotoxicity risk.

Skeletal mineralogy of newly settling Acropora millepora (Scleractinia) coral recruits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clode, P. L.; Lema, K.; Saunders, M.; Weiner, S.

2011-03-01

Knowledge of skeletogenesis in scleractinian corals is central to reconstructing past ocean and climate histories, assessing and counteracting future climate and ocean acidification impacts upon coral reefs, and determining the taxonomy and evolutionary path of the Scleractinia. To better understand skeletogenesis and mineralogy in extant scleractinian corals, we have investigated the nature of the initial calcium carbonate skeleton deposited by newly settling coral recruits. Settling Acropora millepora larvae were sampled daily for 10 days from initial attachment, and the carbonate mineralogy of their newly deposited skeletons was investigated. Bulk analyses using Raman and infrared spectroscopic methods revealed that the skeletons were predominantly comprised of aragonite, with no evidence of calcite or an amorphous precursor phase, although presence of the latter cannot be discounted. Sensitive selected area electron diffraction analyses of sub-micron areas of skeletal regions further consolidated these data. These findings help to address the uncertainty surrounding reported differences in carbonate mineralogy between larval and adult extant coral skeletons by indicating that skeletons of new coral recruits share the same aragonitic mineralogy as those of their mature counterparts. In this respect, we can expect that skeletogenesis in both larval and mature growth stages of scleractinian corals will be similarly affected by ocean acidification and predicted environmental changes.

Variations in the Fe mineralogy of bright Martian soil

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murchie, Scott; Mustard, John; Erard, Stephane; Geissler, Paul; Singer, Robert

1993-01-01

Bright regions on Mars are interpreted as 'soil' derived by chemical alteration of crustal rocks, whose main pigmentary component is ferric oxide or oxyhydroxide. The mineralogy and mineralogic variability of ferric iron are important evidence for the evolution of Martian soil: mineralogy of ferric phases is sensitive to chemical conditions in their genetic environments, and the spatial distributions of different ferric phases would record a history of both chemical environments and physical mixing. Reflectance spectroscopic studies provide several types of evidence that discriminate possible pigmentary phases, including the position of a crystal field absorption near 0.9 microns and position and strengths of absorptions in the UV-visible wavelength region. Recent telescopic spectra and laboratory measurements of Mars soil analogs suggest that spectral features of bright soil can be explained based on a single pigmentary phase, hematite (alpha-Fe2O3), occurring in both 'nanophase' and more crystalline forms. Here we report on a systematic investigation of Martian bright regions using ISM imaging spectrometer data, in which we examined spatial variations in the position and shape of the approximately 0.9 microns absorption. We found both local and regional heterogeneities that indicate differences in Fe mineralogy. These results demonstrate that bright soils do not represent a single lithology that has been homogenized by eolian mixing, and suggest that weathering of soils in different geologic settings has followed different physical and chemical pathways.

Mineralogical Results from the Mars Science Laboratory Rover Curiosity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blake, David Frederick.

2017-01-01

NASA's CheMin instrument, the first X-ray Diffractometer flown in space, has been operating on Mars for nearly five years. CheMin was first to establish the quantitative mineralogy of the Mars global soil (1). The instrument was next used to determine the mineralogy of a 3.7 billion year old lacustrine mudstone, a result that, together with findings from other instruments on the MSL Curiosity rover, documented the first habitable environment found on another planet (2). The mineralogy of this mudstone from an ancient playa lake was also used to derive the maximum concentration of CO2 in the early Mars atmosphere, a surprisingly low value that calls into question the current theory that CO2 greenhouse warming was responsible for the warm and wet environment of early Mars. CheMin later identified the mineral tridymite, indicative of silica-rich volcanism, in mudstones of the Murray formation on Mt. Sharp. This discovery challenges the paradigm of Mars as a basaltic planet and ushers in a new chapter of comparative terrestrial planetology (3). CheMin is now being used to systematically sample the sedimentary layers that comprise the lower strata of Mt. Sharp, a 5,000 meter sequence of sedimentary rock laid down in what was once a crater lake, characterizing isochemical sediments that through their changing mineralogy, document the oxidation and drying out of the Mars in early Hesperian time.

NREL, SPI Solar and Trimark Optimize Parabolic Trough Receiver Performance

Science.gov Websites

(CSP) plants. Photo of parabolic trough receiver equipment in a laboratory Photo by Dennis Schroeder Receivers in CSP plants take a lot of abuse, from dramatic temperature changes to numerous mechanical conditions can lead to big improvements in the overall efficiency of CSP plants

Tectonic controls of a backarc trough-fill turbidite system: The Pliocene Tamugigawa Formation in the Niigata Shin'etsu inverted rift basin, Northern Fossa Magna, central Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takano, Osamu; Tateishi, Masaaki; Endo, Masataka

2005-05-01

The Pliocene Tamugigawa Formation in the Niigata-Shin'etsu inverted rift basin, Northern Fossa Magna, located in the junction zone of the NE and SW Japan arcs, demonstrates a trough-fill turbidite system, which is topographically controlled in depositional style and shows notable contrasts in depositional architecture from sandy radial-fan-type turbidite systems. The Tamugigawa trough-fill turbidite system shows an elongated morphology parallel to the basin extent and facies associations consisting of trough-fill, lateral-supply and trough-side elements. The trough-fill elements comprise thick-bedded sheet sandstone and sheet-flow turbidite associations, which show sheet-like sedimentation configuration, instead of depositional lobes, without distinct upward fining and coarsening successions. The lateral-supply elements form an intra-trough small fan along a lateral sediment-supply system into the troughs, and consist mainly of coarser-grained distributary-channel fills and sheet sandstones. The trough-side elements consist of slope-mudstone and spillover associations, which were deposited on the structural highs beside the troughs. The Tamugigawa trough-fill turbidites were deposited through three phases: (a) initial ponding stage with thick, sheet sandstones provided by the lateral-supply system, (b) main filling stage with sheet-flow turbidites provided by the longitudinal supply system, and (c) filled-up stage characterized by minor-scale channel-levee systems. Basin-wide tectono-sedimentary studies reveal that the trough-fill turbidites were characteristically formed during the compressional-stress-field stage related to basin inversion. The compressional stress induced basin-floor syndepositional folding and coarse clastic supply from the uplifted provenance, resulting in topographically restricted turbidite deposition within the troughs. In contrast, turbidites of the post-rift stage, prior to basin inversion, show no topographical control because of the

The mineralogy of ordinary chondrites and implications for asteroid spectrophotometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcsween, Harry Y., Jr.; Bennett, Marvin E., III; Jarosewich, Eugene

1991-01-01

Published data from bulk chemical analyses of 94 ordinary chondrites are compiled in a table of normative mineralogy and discussed in detail. Significant variations in olivine, pyroxene, and metal abundance ratios are found within each chondrite class and attributed to redox processes superimposed on initial differences in metal/silicate ratios. The use of the diagrams constructed here to predict the mineralogic characteristics of asteroids on the basis of spectrophotometric observations is suggested.

Hydrogen Isotope Geochemistry of Mariana Trough Lavas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oleary, J.; Kitchen, N.; Eiler, J.

2002-12-01

Basaltic lavas from the Marianas trough vary in water content from values similar to mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORBs) to ten times those values. These variations plausibly reflect addition of subducted water to the mantle wedge, but must also reflect variations in extent of melting and crystallization-differentiation. We report hydrogen isotope data for 18 samples of lavas from the Mariana trough; these measurements, when combined with other geochemical data, constrain the relative proportions of subducted vs. 'primitive' water in their mantle sources. Previous measurements of the hydrogen isotope composition of Mariana trough lavas [1] found a correlation between dD and measured water content, consistent with two-component mixing between water in the ambient MORB source and water from the subducted slab, but include only four samples, only two of which have known major and minor element geochemistry. Our purpose is to confirm this result and expand it to include a more representative sampling. Our measurements made use of a recently developed technique for on-line stepped heating, water reduction and hydrogen isotope mass spectrometry [2]. This method is appropriate for relatively small samples of basaltic glass (ca. 100 μg to 1 mg) and up to 10 analyses can be performed per day. Its principle advantages for our purposes are that it can be applied to even small or glass-poor samples and it is fast enough to permit replication of all data and analysis of relatively large numbers of standards. Hydrogen isotope compositions of Mariana trough lavas vary between -74 per mil and -34 per mil (SMOW); this compares with a range of -46 to -32 per mil for related lavas in [1] and is similar to the previously observed range for back-arc-basin basalts generally (-70 to -32 per mil). Two-thirds of our sample suite span a small range in dD (-40+/-4 ). We suggest this average is the most representative value for back arc basin basalts measured to-date. Our data are inconsistent

Exploring Unconventional Hydrocarbons in the Makó Trough, Pannonian basin, Hungary: Results and Challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horvath, Anita; Bada, Gabor; Szafian, Peter; Sztano, Orsolya; Law, Ben; Wallis, Rod

2010-05-01

The latest phase exploration in the Makó Trough, which commenced a few years ago, has focused on the utilization of unconventional hydrocarbons. Accumulations are regarded as "unconventional" when they cannot be produced economically except by means of some sort of stimulation, usually hydraulic fracturing. The model we have developed for the evaluation of the hydrocarbon potential indicates a significant gas accumulation in the area of the Makó Trough. The tally of the distinctive attributes of the hydrocarbon system and the combined analysis of the available geological data led to the conclusion that the Makó Trough represents an area of active basin-centered gas accumulation (BCGA), with very significant perspective reserves. In a BCGA, hydrocarbons do not accumulate conventionally, in structural or stratigraphic traps, but rather in cells. Due to the geological setting of the Makó Trough, the hydrocarbon cell here forms a relatively continuous zone marked by considerable internal lithological and petrophysical variability. The most prolific parts, called sweet spots, possess a reservoir potential higher than the average. The identification of these sweet spots constitutes one of the most important, and quite possibly the most challenging task of the entire exploration project. The hemipelagic Endrőd Formation, which acts as the source rock, contains organic-rich marls in a depth delimited by the 170-230 °C isotherms. These marls constitute the still active hydrocarbon "kitchen" of the BCGA in the Makó Trough. The top and bottom boundaries of the cell essentially coincide with the turbidites of the Szolnok Formation and the top of the pre-Neogene basement, respectively. In light of the fact that pressure, temperature, and maturity tests have produced rather similar results in a number of wells in the area, we have reason to believe that the extension of the Makó Trough's BCGA is of regional dimensions (>1000 km2). The thickness and lateral extension of

Small mammals in oak woodlands in the Puget Trough, Washington.

Treesearch

S.M. Wilson; A.B. Carey

2001-01-01

We surveyed the 22 largest sites dominated by Oregon white oaks on the Fort Lewis Military Reservation, Washington, to determine small-mammal community structure and population abundances. Study areas were in the Puget Trough physiographic province and western hemlock vegetation zone. Most oak communities were ecotonal between prairie and Douglas-fir forest. Small...

Morphotectonics of the central Muertos thrust belt and Muertos Trough (northeastern Caribbean)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Granja, Bruna J.L.; ten Brink, Uri S.; Carbó-Gorosabel, Andrés; Muñoz-Martín, A.; Gomez, Ballesteros M.

2009-01-01

Multibeam bathymetry data acquired during the 2005 Spanish R/V Hesp??rides cruise and reprocessed multichannel seismic profiles provide the basis for the analysis of the morphology and deformation in the central Muertos Trough and Muertos thrust belt. The Muertos Trough is an elongated basin developed where the Venezuelan Basin crust is thrusted under the Muertos fold-and-thrust belt. Structural variations along the Muertos Trough are suggested to be a consequence of the overburden of the asymmetrical thrust belt and by the variable nature of the Venezuelan Basin crust along the margin. The insular slope can be divided into three east-west trending slope provinces with high lateral variability which correspond to different accretion stages: 1) The lower slope is composed of an active sequence of imbricate thrust slices and closed fold axes, which form short and narrow accretionary ridges and elongated slope basins; 2) The middle slope shows a less active imbricate structure resulting in lower superficial deformation and bigger slope basins; 3) The upper slope comprises the talus region and extended terraces burying an island arc basement and an inactive imbricate structure. The talus region is characterized by a dense drainage network that transports turbidite flows from the islands and their surrounding carbonate platform areas to the slope basins and sometimes to the trough. In the survey area the accommodation of the ongoing east-west differential motion between the Hispaniola and the Puerto Rico-Virgin Islands blocks takes place by means of diffuse deformation. The asymmetrical development of the thrust belt is not related to the geological conditions in the foreland, but rather may be caused by variations in the geometry and movement of the backstop. The map-view curves of the thrust belt and the symmetry of the recesses suggest a main north-south convergence along the Muertos margin. The western end of the Investigator Fault Zone comprises a broad band of

The Valencia trough and the origin of the western Mediterranean basins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vegas, R.

1992-03-01

Evolutionary models for the Valencia trough must be necessarily related to the Neogene-Present geodynamics of the western Mediterranean basins. All these basins occupy new space created in the wake of the westward translation of the Alboran block and the counter-clockwise rotation of the Corso-Sardinian block. This escape-tectonics, microplate dispersal, model can account for the co-existence and progressive migration of compressional and extensional strain fields within the Africa-Europe broad zone of convergence. In this escape-tectonics model, the Valencia trough has resulted in a complex evolution which includes: (1) latest Oligocene-Early Miocene rifting along the Catalan-Valencian margin due to the opening of the Gulf of Lions; (2) almost simultaneous, Early Miocene, transpressive thrusting in the Balearic margin related to the initiation of displacement of the Alboran block; and (3) Late Miocene generalized extension as a consequence of the opening of the South Balearic basin.

Thermal Infrared Spectroscopy and Modeled Mineralogy of Fine-Grained Mineral Mixtures: Implications for Martian Surface Mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rampe, E. B.; Kraft, M. D.; Sharp, T. G.; Michalski, J. R.

2006-12-01

Spectral data suggest that the Martian surface may be chemically altered. However, TES data show evidence for abundant primary glass, and Mini-TES data from MER Spirit in the Columbia Hills identify primary basaltic glass in rocks that are believed to be altered (Haskin et al., 2005, Ming et al., 2006, Wang et al., 2006). Debate over whether the primary glass identified spectrally may be interpreted as alteration products, such as clay minerals and/or amorphous silica coatings (Wyatt and McSween, 2002, Kraft et al., 2003), has focused on their spectral similarities (Koeppen and Hamilton, 2005). We suggest that some of the putative primary glass may be due to nonlinear spectral mixing of primary and secondary phases. We created physical mixtures made up of a primary phase (augite, andesine, or a 50:50 weight percent mixture of augite and andesine) and a secondary phase (montmorillonite clay or amorphous silica in 2.5, 5, 10, and 20 weight percent abundances) to test how secondary phases affect primary mineral thermal infrared spectra and modeled mineralogies. We found that the presence of small to moderate amounts of secondary material strongly affect modeled mineralogies, cause the false identification of primary glass in abundances as high as 40 volume percent, and report modeled plagioclase to pyroxene ratios that differ from actual ratios in the mixtures. These results are important for the surface mineralogy of Mars because surface type two (ST2), which may be altered, has the highest modeled plagioclase to pyroxene ratio. The presence of alteration material on Mars may cause the false identification or overestimation of primary glass in TES and Mini-TES data and may cause incorrect modeling of primary phases on Mars.

Mineralogical maturity in dunefields of North America, Africa and Australia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Muhs, D.R.

2004-01-01

Studies of dunefields in central and western North America show that mineralogical maturity can provide new insights into the origin and evolution of aeolian sand bodies. Many of the world's great sand seas in Africa, Asia and Australia are quartz-dominated and thus can be considered to be mineralogically mature. The Algodones (California) and Parker (Arizona) dunes in the southwestern United States are also mature, but have inherited a high degree of mineralogical maturity from quartz-rich sedimentary rocks drained by the Colorado River. In Libya, sediments of the Zallaf sand sea, which are almost pure quartz, may have originated in a similar fashion. The Fort Morgan (Colorado) and Casper (Wyoming) dunefields in the central Great Plains of North America, and the Namib sand sea of southern Africa have an intermediate degree of mineralogical maturity because their sources are large rivers that drained both unweathered plutonic and metamorphic rocks and mature sedimentary rocks. Mojave Desert dunefields in the southwestern United States are quite immature because they are in basins adjacent to plutonic rocks that were their sources. Other dunefields in the Great Plains of North America (those in Nebraska and Texas) are more mature than any possible source sediments and therefore reflect mineralogical evolution over time. Such changes in composition can occur because of either of two opposing long-term states of the dunefield. In one state, dunes are stable for long periods of time and chemical weathering depletes feldspars and other weatherable minerals in the sediment body. In the other state, which is most likely for the Great Plains, abrasion and ballistic impacts deplete the carbonate minerals and feldspars because the dunes are active for longer periods than they are stable. ?? 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Tufts submarine fan: turbidity-current gateway to Escanaba Trough

USGS Publications Warehouse

Reid, Jane A.; Normark, William R.

2003-01-01

Turbidity-current overflow from Cascadia Channel near its western exit from the Blanco Fracture Zone has formed the Tufts submarine fan, which extends more than 350 km south on the Pacific Plate to the Mendocino Fracture Zone. For this study, available 3.5-kHz high-resolution and airgun seismic-reflection data, long-range side-scan sonar images, and sediment core data are used to define the growth pattern of the fan. Tufts fan deposits have smoothed and filled in the linear ridge-and-valley relief over an area exceeding 23,000 km2 on the west flank of the Gorda Ridge. The southernmost part of the fan is represented by a thick (as much as 500 m) sequence of turbidite deposits ponded along more than 100 km of the northern flank of the Mendocino Fracture Zone. Growth of the Tufts fan now permits turbidity-current overflow from Cascadia Channel to reach the Escanaba Trough, a deep rift valley along the southern axis of the Gorda Ridge. Scientific drilling during both the Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) and the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) provided evidence that the 500-m-thick sediment fill of Escanaba Trough is dominantly sandy turbidites. Radiocarbon dating of the sediment at ODP Site 1037 showed that deposition of most of the upper 120 m of fill was coincident with Lake Missoula floods and that the provenance of the fill is from the eastern Columbia River drainage basin. The Lake Missoula flood discharge with its entrained sediment continued flowing downslope upon reaching the ocean as hyperpycnally generated turbidity currents. These huge turbidity currents followed the Cascadia Channel to reach the Pacific Plate, where overbank flow provided a significant volume of sediment on Tufts fan and in Escanaba Trough. Tufts fan and Tufts Abyssal Plain to the west probably received turbidite sediment from the Cascadia margin during much of the Pleistocene.

On purpose simulation model for molten salt CSP parabolic trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caranese, Carlo; Matino, Francesca; Maccari, Augusto

2017-06-01

The utilization of computer codes and simulation software is one of the fundamental aspects for the development of any kind of technology and, in particular, in CSP sector for researchers, energy institutions, EPC and others stakeholders. In that extent, several models for the simulation of CSP plant have been developed with different main objectives (dynamic simulation, productivity analysis, techno economic optimization, etc.), each of which has shown its own validity and suitability. Some of those models have been designed to study several plant configurations taking into account different CSP plant technologies (Parabolic trough, Linear Fresnel, Solar Tower or Dish) and different settings for the heat transfer fluid, the thermal storage systems and for the overall plant operating logic. Due to a lack of direct experience of Molten Salt Parabolic Trough (MSPT) commercial plant operation, most of the simulation tools do not foresee a suitable management of the thermal energy storage logic and of the solar field freeze protection system, but follow standard schemes. ASSALT, Ase Software for SALT csp plants, has been developed to improve MSPT plant's simulations, by exploiting the most correct operational strategies in order to provide more accurate technical and economical results. In particular, ASSALT applies MSPT specific control logics for the electric energy production and delivery strategy as well as the operation modes of the Solar Field in off-normal sunshine condition. With this approach, the estimated plant efficiency is increased and the electricity consumptions required for the plant operation and management is drastically reduced. Here we present a first comparative study on a real case 55 MWe Molten Salt Parabolic Trough CSP plant placed in the Tibetan highlands, using ASSALT and SAM (System Advisor Model), which is a commercially available simulation tool.

Geochemical and mineralogical maps for soils of the conterminous United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, David B.; Cannon, William F.; Woodruff, Laurel G.; Solano, Federico; Ellefsen, Karl J.

2014-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey began sampling in 2007 for a low-density (1 site per 1,600 square kilometers, 4,857 sites) geochemical and mineralogical survey of soils in the conterminous United States as part of the North American Soil Geochemical Landscapes Project. The sampling protocol for the national-scale survey included, at each site, a sample from a depth of 0 to 5 centimeters, a composite of the soil A horizon, and a deeper sample from the soil C horizon or, if the top of the C horizon was at a depth greater than 1 meter, a sample from a depth of approximately 80–100 centimeters. The <2-millimeter fraction of each sample was analyzed for a suite of 45 major and trace elements by methods that yield the total or near-total elemental content. The major mineralogical components in the samples from the soil A and C horizons were determined by a quantitative X-ray diffraction method using Rietveld refinement. Sampling in the conterminous United States was completed in 2010, with chemical and mineralogical analyses completed in May 2013. The resulting data set provides an estimate of the abundance and spatial distribution of chemical elements and minerals in soils of the conterminous United States and represents a baseline for soil geochemistry and mineralogy against which future changes may be recognized and quantified. This report releases geochemical and mineralogical maps along with a histogram, boxplot, and empirical cumulative distribution function plot for each element or mineral.

Mineralogical analysis of the Eos family from near-infrared spectra

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mothé-Diniz, T.; Carvano, J. M.; Bus, S. J.; Duffard, R.; Burbine, T. H.

2008-05-01

The aim of this work is to analyze the mineralogy of the Eos family, which exhibits considerable taxonomic diversity. Its biggest fragment, (221) Eos has previously been associated, through direct spectral comparisons, with such diverse mineralogies as CV/CO and achondrite meteorites [Burbine, T.H., Binzel, R.P., Bus, S.J., Clark, B.E., 2001. Meteorit. Planet. Sci. 36, 245-253; Mothé-Diniz, T., Carvano, J.M., 2005. Astron. Astrophys. 174, 54-80]. In order to perform such analysis we obtained spectra of 30 family members in the 0.8-2.5 μm range, and used three different methods of mineralogical inference: direct spectral comparison with meteorites, intimate mixing using Hapke's theory, and fitting absorption features with the MGM. Although the direct comparison failed to yield good matches—the best candidates being R-chondrites—both mixing model and MGM analysis suggest that the bulk of the family is dominated by forsteritic ( Fa) olivine, with a minor component of orthopyroxene. This composition can be compatible with what would be expected from the partial differentiation of a parent-body with an original composition similar to ordinary chondrites, which probably formed and differentiated closer to the Sun than the present location of the family. A CK-like composition is also possible, from the inferred mineralogy, as well as from the similarities of the spectra in the NIR.

Volcanism and massive sulfide formation at a sedimented spreading center, Escanaba Trough, Gorda Ridge, northeast Pacific.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morton, J.L.; Holmes, M.L.; Koski, R.A.

1987-01-01

Seismic-reflection profiles over the sediment-filled Escanaba Trough at the southern Gorda Ridge reveal a series of volcanic centers that pierce the sediment. The volcanic edifices are 3 to 6 km in diameter and are spaced at 15 to 20 km intervals along the axis of the trough. Composition and form of sulfide samples obtained from the bank suggest significant interaction between hydrothermal fluids and sediment at depth, and deposition of sulfide within the sediment pile.-from Authors

Geologic evolution of the Kastel trough and its implications on the Adiyaman oil fields, SE Turkey

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Coskun, Bu.

1990-05-01

Oil field developments of the Adiyaman area one of the main oil producing zones in southeast Turkey, have been highly influenced by geologic evolution of the Kastel trough which is situated in front of the suture zone between the Arabian and Anatolian plates. The Upper Cretaceous movements created many paleostructural trends in the Kastel trough where important dolomitic and porous reservoirs exist. The most important tectonic event, which appeared during the Upper Cretaceous movements, is the accumulation of the Kocali-Karadut ophiolitic complex, advancing from the north to the south in the Kastel trough, where heavy materials caused formation of amore » structural model favoring generation and migration and entrapment of oil in the reservoir rocks. Due to the presence of the Kocali-Karadut complex in the Kastel trough the following zones have been distinguished. (1) North Uplift Area. Situated under the allochthonous units, many thrust and reverse faults characterize this zone. The presence of paleohighs, where primary dolomites develop, allows the appearance of some oil fields in the region. This is the main future exploration zone in southeast Turkey. (2) Accumulation Area. Advancing from the north to the south, the allochthonous Kocali-Karadut complex filled the Kastel trough creating a deep graben whose flanks present generally normal faults. (3) Structural Belt. Important paleohighs constitute an exploration trend in this zone where dolomitic and porous carbonates contain actual oil fields. (4) South Accumulation Area. Distant from the Arabian-Anatolian suture zone, regional tectonics and sedimentology show this zone remained deeply buried during geologic time; good source rocks were deposited during the Cretaceous. (5) South Uplift Area. This area corresponds to the northern flank of the huge regional Mardin high in southeast Turkey where new oil fields have been discovered.« less

Geophysical and Geochemical Signatures Associated with Mantle Fluids Beneath an Active Shear Zone, Southwest Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Umeda, K.; Asamori, K.; Sueoka, S.; Tamura, H.; Shimizu, M.

2014-12-01

In 1997, the Kagoshima earthquake doublet, consisting of two closely associated Mw ~ 6 strike-slip events, five km and 48 days apart, has occurred in southwest Japan. The location is where an E-W trending discontinuity along 32°N latitude on southern Kyushu Island is clearly defined in GPS velocities, indicating the presence of a highly active left-lateral shear zone. However, there have not been any obvious indications of active faulting at the surface prior to the earthquake doublet, which could be associated with this shear zone. Three-dimensional inversion of magnetotelluric sounding data obtained in the source region of the earthquake doublet reveals a near-vertical conductive zone with a width of 20 km, extending down to the base of the crust and perhaps into the upper mantle toward the Okinawa trough. The prominent conductor corresponds to the western part of the active shear zone. Elevated 3He/4He ratios in groundwaters sampled from hot spring and drinking water wells suggest the emission of mantle-derived helium from the seismic source region. The geophysical and geochemical observations are significant indications that the invasion of mantle fluids into the crust, driven by upwelling asthenosphere from the Okinawa trough, triggers the notable left-lateral shearing in the zone in the present-day subduction system. In addition, the existence of aqueous fluids in and below the seismogenic layer could change the strength of the zones, and alter the local stress regime, resulting in the occurrence of the 1997 earthquake doublet.

Alignment method for parabolic trough solar concentrators

DOEpatents

Diver, Richard B [Albuquerque, NM

2010-02-23

A Theoretical Overlay Photographic (TOP) alignment method uses the overlay of a theoretical projected image of a perfectly aligned concentrator on a photographic image of the concentrator to align the mirror facets of a parabolic trough solar concentrator. The alignment method is practical and straightforward, and inherently aligns the mirror facets to the receiver. When integrated with clinometer measurements for which gravity and mechanical drag effects have been accounted for and which are made in a manner and location consistent with the alignment method, all of the mirrors on a common drive can be aligned and optimized for any concentrator orientation.

Interseismic Coupling-Based Earthquake and Tsunami Scenarios for the Nankai Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baranes, H.; Woodruff, J. D.; Loveless, J. P.; Hyodo, M.

2018-04-01

Theoretical modeling and investigations of recent subduction zone earthquakes show that geodetic estimates of interseismic coupling and the spatial distribution of coseismic rupture are correlated. However, the utility of contemporary coupling in guiding construction of rupture scenarios has not been evaluated on the world's most hazardous faults. Here we demonstrate methods for scaling coupling to slip to create rupture models for southwestern Japan's Nankai Trough. Results show that coupling-based models produce distributions of ground surface deformation and tsunami inundation that are similar to historical and geologic records of the largest known Nankai earthquake in CE 1707 and to an independent, quasi-dynamic rupture model. Notably, these models and records all support focused subsidence around western Shikoku that makes the region particularly vulnerable to flooding. Results imply that contemporary coupling mirrors the slip distribution of a full-margin, 1707-type rupture, and Global Positioning System measurements of surface motion are connected with the trough's physical characteristics.

Chemical and mineralogical heterogeneities of weathered igneous profiles: implications for landslide investigations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duzgoren-Aydin, N. S.; Aydin, A.

2006-05-01

Landslides in tropical and sub-tropical regions are generally associated with weathered rock profiles which often possess chemical and mineralogical heterogeneities at material- and mineral-scales. Such heterogeneities reach a climax by the occurrences of oxyhydroxide- and clay-rich zones. Weakness and low permeability of these zones makes them ideal for the development of slip zones along which landslides take place. This paper describes the nature and distribution of chemical and mineralogical heterogeneities within weathered profiles developed from felsic igneous rocks in Hong Kong. It sets out the use of integrated geochemical and mineralogical studies to improve understanding of the development of critical heterogeneities and hence to predict their types and presence in a given weathered profile.

Investigating the reasons of variability in Si IV and C IV broad absorption line troughs of quasars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stathopoulos, Dimitrios; Lyratzi, Evangelia; Danezis, Emmanuel; Antoniou, Antonios; Tzimeas, Dimitrios

2017-09-01

In this paper we analyze the C IV and Si IV broad absorption troughs of two BALQSOs (J101056.69+355833.3, J114548.38+393746.6) to the individual components they consist of. By analyzing a BAL trough to its components we have the advantage to study the variations of the individual absorbing systems in the line of sight and not just the variations of the whole absorption trough or the variations of selected portions of BAL troughs exhibiting changes. We find that the velocity shifts and FWHMs (Full Width at Half Maximum) of the individual components do not vary between an interval of six years. All variable components show changes in the optical depths at line centers which are manifested as variations in the EW (Equivalent Width) of the components. In both BALQSOs, over corresponding velocities, Si IV has higher incidence of variability than C IV. From our analysis, evidence is in favour of different covering fractions between C IV and Si IV. Finally, although most of our results favour the crossing cloud scenario as the cause of variability, there is also strong piece of evidence indicating changing ionization as the source of variability. Thus, a mixed situation where both physical mechanisms contribute to BAL variability is the most possible scenario.

Contrasting modes of rifting: The Benue Trough and Cameroon Volcanic Line, West Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okereke, C. S.

1988-08-01

The Benue trough of west Africa is commonly believed to be a rift feature that originated in the Cretaceous at about the time that Africa and South America began to separate. Bouguer gravity and available geological data in the trough indicate that its formation was probably the result of regional horizontal stresses in the lithosphere, causing crustal extension and surface subsidence. By contrast, the data for the adjoining Cameroon volcanic line suggests that the associated tensional stresses relate to mantle upwarp causing thinning of the lithosphere and regional crustal uplift similar to that associated with the Kenya rift. Thus the association of passive and active rifts seen in the Afro-Arabia rift system is also a feature of the Cretaceous rift system in west Africa.

Evaluation of Assimilative SST Forecasts in the Okinawa Trough and Gulf of Mexico

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-12-06

Ruth H. Preller, 7300 Socurily, Code -- 1231 Office of 1008.3 ADOR/Director NCST E. R. Franchi , 7000 Public Affairs (Unclassified/ Unlimited Only...E. R. Franchi , 7000 Pubii<: Aifaini iiJneia5s;ii$(iF. · - Unlimited Only), Code 7030•4 0 ·-5 -J·z_...operational global ocean model GOFS 2.6. The SST level 2 data assimilated in these studies is provided by NAVOCEANO and introduced into NCODA via its OCNQC

A trough for improved SFG spectroscopy of lipid monolayers.

PubMed

Franz, Johannes; van Zadel, Marc-Jan; Weidner, Tobias

2017-05-01

Lipid monolayers are indispensable model systems for biological membranes. The main advantage over bilayer model systems is that the surface pressure within the layer can be directly and reliably controlled. The sensitive interplay between surface pressure and temperature determines the molecular order within a model membrane and consequently determines the membrane phase behavior. The lipid phase is of crucial importance for a range of membrane functions such as protein interactions and membrane permeability. A very reliable method to probe the structure of lipid monolayers is sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy. Not only is SFG extremely surface sensitive but it can also directly access critical parameters such as lipid order and orientation, and it can provide valuable information about protein interactions along with interfacial hydration. However, recent studies have shown that temperature gradients caused by high power laser beams perturb the lipid layers and potentially obscure the spectroscopic results. Here we demonstrate how the local heating problem can be effectively reduced by spatially distributing the laser pulses on the sample surface using a translating Langmuir trough for SFG experiments at lipid monolayers. The efficiency of the trough is illustrated by the detection of enhanced molecular order due to reduced heat load.

A trough for improved SFG spectroscopy of lipid monolayers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franz, Johannes; van Zadel, Marc-Jan; Weidner, Tobias

2017-05-01

Lipid monolayers are indispensable model systems for biological membranes. The main advantage over bilayer model systems is that the surface pressure within the layer can be directly and reliably controlled. The sensitive interplay between surface pressure and temperature determines the molecular order within a model membrane and consequently determines the membrane phase behavior. The lipid phase is of crucial importance for a range of membrane functions such as protein interactions and membrane permeability. A very reliable method to probe the structure of lipid monolayers is sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy. Not only is SFG extremely surface sensitive but it can also directly access critical parameters such as lipid order and orientation, and it can provide valuable information about protein interactions along with interfacial hydration. However, recent studies have shown that temperature gradients caused by high power laser beams perturb the lipid layers and potentially obscure the spectroscopic results. Here we demonstrate how the local heating problem can be effectively reduced by spatially distributing the laser pulses on the sample surface using a translating Langmuir trough for SFG experiments at lipid monolayers. The efficiency of the trough is illustrated by the detection of enhanced molecular order due to reduced heat load.

Towards to Resilience Science -Research on the Nankai trough seismogenic zone-

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaneda, Yoshiyuki; Shiraki, Wataru; Fujisawa, Kazuhito; Tokozakura, Eiji

2017-04-01

For the last few decades, many destructive earthquakes and tsunamis occurred in the world. Based on lessons learnt from 2004 Sumatra Earthquake/Tsunamis, 2010 Chilean Earthquake/Tsunami and 2011 East Japan Earthquake/Tsunami, we recognized the importance of real time monitoring on Earthquakes and Tsunamis for disaster mitigation. Recently, Kumamoto Earthquake occurred in 2006. This destructive Earthquake indicated that multi strong motions including pre shock and main shock generated severe earthquake damages buildings. Furthermore, we recognize recovers/ revivals are very important and difficult. In Tohoku area damaged by large tsunamis, recovers/revivals have been under progressing after over 5 years passed after the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake. Therefore, we have to prepare the pre plan before next destructive disasters such as the Nankai trough mega thrust earthquake. As one of disaster countermeasures, we would like to propose that Disaster Mitigation Science. This disaster mitigation science is including engineering, science, medicine and social science such as sociology, informatics, law, literature, art, psychology etc. For Urgent evacuations, there are some kinds of real time monitoring system such as Dart buoy and ocean floor network. Especially, the real time monitoring system using multi kinds of sensors such as the accelerometer, broadband seismometer, pressure gauge, difference pressure gauge, hydrophone and thermometer is indispensable for Earthquakes/ Tsunamis monitoring. Furthermore, using multi kind of sensors, we can analyze and estimate broadband crustal activities around mega thrust earthquake seismogenic zones. Therefore, we deployed DONET1 and DONET2 which are dense ocean floor networks around the Nankai trough Southwestern Japan. We will explain about Resilience Science and real time monitoring systems around the Nankai trough seismogenic zone.

Spatial and temporal behavior and acute ecotoxicological effects of Tributyltin (TBT) on coral reef and adjacent ecosystems around Okinawa Island, Japan.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheikh, M. A.; Higuchi, T.; Imo, T. S.; Fujimura, H.; Oomori, T.

2007-12-01

Spatial and temporal behavior of the tributyl tin (TBT) were investigated in the coastal areas around Okinawa Island, Japan. A seasonal monitoring study was conducted between February and October 2006. The effects of TBT on the carbon metabolisms (net production and calcification) on the intact coral-alga association Galaxea fascicularis were also investigated. Mean concentration of TBT (2.45 ng/L) found in the Manko estuary waters have exceeded some international permissible targets of waters quality guideline for TBT (1ng/L). The sediments in Manko estuary sediments can be considered lightly contaminated (0-20 ng/g dw) and Okukubi estuary as uncontaminated (below 3ng/g dw) with TBT. The seasonal concentration pattern of TBT at the Manko estuary was autumn > spring > summer > winter. The acute ecotoxicological results show that the photosynthesis rate and calcification rate were significantly reduced by 78 % and 72 % relative to the control (ANOVA, p<0.001) when corals were exposed to 5000 ng/LTBT, respectively. No significant effects (ANOVA, p>0.05) were observed when corals were exposed to 1000 ng/LTBT. The present study reports the occurrence and continuous input of TBT in the coastal areas around Okinawa Island, even 16 years after legal restriction of TBT usage in coastal waters was implemented by the Japanese Environmental Authorities. However, the nominal sensitive concentration of TBT that causes alteration of carbon metabolisms of coral within 96 hrs exposure are much higher than those recently found in the coral reef waters and adjacent ecosystems.

A fixed tilt solar collector employing reversible vee-trough reflectors and vacuum tube receivers for solar heating and cooling systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Selcuk, M. K.

1977-01-01

The usefulness of vee-trough concentrators in improving the efficiency and reducing the cost of collectors assembled from evacuated tube receivers was studied in the vee-trough/vacuum tube collector (VTVTC) project. The VTVTC was analyzed rigorously and various mathematical models were developed to calculate the optical performance of the vee-trough concentrator and the thermal performance of the evacuated tube receiver. A test bed was constructed to verify the mathematical analyses and compare reflectors made out of glass, Alzak and aluminized FEP Teflon. Tests were run at temperatures ranging from 95 to 180 C. Vee-trough collector efficiencies of 35 to 40% were observed at an operating temperature of about 175 C. Test results compared well with the calculated values. Predicted daily useful heat collection and efficiency values are presented for a year's duration of operation temperatures ranging from 65 to 230 C. Estimated collector costs and resulting thermal energy costs are presented. Analytical and experimental results are discussed along with a complete economic evaluation.

Structural characteristics around the frontal thrust along the Nankai Trough revealed by bathymetric and seismic reflection survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamashita, M.; Nakanishi, A.; Moore, G. F.; Kodaira, S.; Nakamura, Y.; Miura, S.; Kaneda, Y.

2016-12-01

Great earthquakes with tsunamis with recurrence intervals of 100-200 years have occurred along the Nankai Trough near central Japan where the Shikoku Basin is subducting with thick sediments on the Philippine Sea plate. To predict the exact height of the tsunami on the coast region generated by these large ruptures, it is important to estimate the vertical deformation that occurs on the seaward end of the rupture area. Recent drilling results have also yielded evidence not only of splay faults that generate tsunamigenic rupture, but also new evidence of tsunamigenic rupture along the frontal thrust at the trench axis in the Nankai Trough. In order to understand the deformation around the frontal thrust at the trench axis, we conducted a dense high-resolution seismic reflection survey with 10-20 km spacing over 1500 km of line length during 2013 and 2014. Clear seismic reflection images of frontal thrusts in the accretionary prism and subducting Shikoku Basin, image deformation along the trench axis between off Muroto Cape and off Ashizuri Cape. The cumulative displacement along the frontal thrust and second thrust are measured from picked distinct reflectors in depth-converted profiles. The average value of cumulative displacement of the frontal thrust is more than 100 m within 2 km depth beneath the seafloor. The location of highest displacement of 300 m displacement agree with the seaward end of slip distribution of the 1946 Nankai event calculated by numerical simulations. We also evaluate the seaward structure for understanding the future rupture distribution. The protothrust zone (PTZ) consisting of many incipient thrusts is identifiable in the portion of trough-fill sediments seaward of the frontal thrust. In order to emphasize the characteristics of frontal thrust and PTZ, we construct the detailed relief image for focusing on the lineated slope of the PTZ at the trough axis. Although our surveys covered a part of Nankai seismogenic zone, it is important to

Skeletal mineralogy of coral recruits under high temperature and pCO2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foster, T.; Clode, P. L.

2015-08-01

Aragonite, which is the polymorph of CaCO3 precipitated by modern corals during skeletal formation, has a higher solubility than the more stable polymorph calcite. This higher solubility leaves animals that produce aragonitic skeletons more vulnerable to anthropogenic ocean acidification. It is therefore, important to determine whether scleractinian corals have the plasticity to adapt and produce calcite in their skeletons in response to changing environmental conditions. Both high pCO2 and lower Mg / Ca ratios in seawater are thought to have driven changes in the skeletal mineralogy of major marine calcifiers in the past ∼540 myr. Experimentally reduced Mg / Ca ratios in ambient seawater have been shown to induce some calcite precipitation in both adult and newly settled modern corals, however, the impact of high pCO2 on the mineralogy of recruits is unknown. Here we determined the skeletal mineralogy of one-month old Acropora spicifera coral recruits grown under high temperature (+3 °C) and pCO2 (∼900 μatm) conditions, using X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. We found that newly settled coral recruits produced entirely aragonitic skeletons regardless of the treatment. Our results show that elevated pCO2 alone is unlikely to drive changes in the skeletal mineralogy of young corals. Not having an ability to switch from aragonite to calcite precipitation may leave corals and ultimately coral reef ecosystems more susceptible to predicted ocean acidification. An important area for prospective research would be to investigate the combined impact of high pCO2 and reduced Mg / Ca ratio on coral skeletal mineralogy.

A Critical Analysis of Changing Radon Concentration Patterns on Gyokusen-dou Cave in Okinawa Island

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanahara, A.; Iha, H.

2009-04-01

Radon concentrations were measured at 1 hour intervals for a year in Gyokuse-dou Cave, Okinawa Island. An apparatus for continuous radon monitoring connected to a data logger was installed in a large chamber of the cave along the tour route for visitors. Radon concentration ranged from 8000 Bq/m3 in the summer to 100 Bq/m3 in the winter. Seasonal changes in radon concentration correlate with difference between outside and inside air densities. The same effect seems to occur in a short time period. However, changing radon concentration pattern does not synchronize with air density difference pattern in the sites. The results of statistical treatment show that the outside air takes about 8-18 hours to reach the measuring point of radon in the Cave. The average airflow velocity from the site to the exit was estimated to be about 0.52-0.23 m/min. During the summer, the south wind blowing into the cave also affects the radon concentration.

Geochemical and mineralogical methods of prospecting for mineral deposits

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fersman, A. Ye; Borovik, S. A.; Gorshkov, G.V.; Popov, S.D.; Sosedko, A.F.; Hartsock, Lydia; Pierce, A.P.

1952-01-01

Fersman's book "Geochemical and mineralogical methods of prospecting for mineral deposits" (Geokhimicheskiye i mineralogicheskiye metody poiskov poleznykh iskopayemykh) covers all petrographic, mineralogical, and geochemical techniques that are used either directly or indirectly in mineral exploration. Chapter IV is of particular interest because it describes certain geochemical methods and principles that have not been widely applied outside of the Soviet Union. The original contained a number of photographs that have been omitted; the titles of the photographs are given in the body of the text. Wherever possible, bibliographic references have been checked, and the full titles given. References given in footnotes in the original have been collected and added at the end of each section as a bibliography.

Tertiary sedimentary history and structure of the Valencia trough (western Mediterranean)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maillard, A.; Mauffret, A.; Watts, A. B.; Torné, M.; Pascal, G.; Buhl, P.; Pinet, B.

1992-03-01

We present here main results of the Common Depth Point (CDP) data acquired during the Valsis 2 Cruise in 1988 in the Valencia trough. The profiles are tied in with industrial well data and this correlation allows the sedimentary and structural history of the region to be deduced. The Valsis Cruise seismic profiles have been supplemented by a very dense grid of industrial seismic lines and these data permit us to establish an accurate depth to basement map. The formation of the initial grabens, coeval with those of the Gulf of Lions, is related to the Early Miocene opening of the northwestern Mediterranean basin and the Barcelona graben is filled by the same sedimentary layers, including evaporites, as that of the Provençal region. Nevertheless, the Valencia-Catalan grabens have been reactivated by young extensional tectonics which could be a consequence of the convergence of Africa relative to Europe. The Valencia trough is segmented by transfer faults which trend NW-SE. These faults, which have a more accentuated structural expression than the Valencia and Catalonia grabens, may act as transform faults separating the individual Balearic Islands. The transfer faults are in strike with volcanic ridges which have been sampled during the DSDP Leg 13. The dense seismic grid allows us to delineate several widespread volcanic features in the Valencia trough which have been active from the Early Miocene to the Pleistocene. However, we note that the volcanic features are mainly Miocene in age whereas the recent volcanism is restricted to a narrow zone (Columbretes Islands). The compressional tectonics which deformed the Balearic Islands does not appear to extend far towards the North. We delineate the compressional front north of Ibiza, but we failed to determine any thrust or fold north of Mallorca, whereas an extensional tectonics is evident.

Size Distributions and Formation Pathways of Organic and Inorganic Constituents in Spring Aerosols from Okinawa Island in the Western North Pacific Rim: An Outflow Region of Asian Dusts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deshmukh, D. K.; Lazaar, M.; Kawamura, K.; Kunwar, B.; Tachibana, E.; Boreddy, S. K. R.

2015-12-01

Size-segregated aerosols (9-stages) were collected at Okinawa Island in the western North Pacific Rim in spring 2008. The samples were analyzed for diacids (C2-C12), ω-oxoacids (ωC2-ωC9), a-dicarbonyls (C2-C3), organic carbon (OC), water-soluble OC (WSOC) and major ions to understand the sources and atmospheric processes in the outflow region of Asian pollutants. The molecular distribution of diacids showed the predominance of oxalic acid (C2) followed by malonic and succinic acids in all the size-segregated aerosols. ω-Oxoacids showed the predominance of glyoxylic acid (ωC2) whereas glyoxal (Gly) was more abundant than methylglyoxal in all the sizes. The abundant presence of sulfate as well as phthalic and adipic acids in Okinawa aerosols suggested a significant contribution of anthropogenic sources in East Asia via long-range atmospheric transport. Diacids (C2-C5), ωC2 and Gly as well as WSOC and OC peaked at 0.65-1.1 µm in fine mode whereas azelaic (C9) and 9-oxononanoic (ωC9) acids peaked at 3.3-4.7 µm in coarse mode. Sulfate and ammonium are enriched in fine mode whereas sodium and chloride are in coarse mode. An important mechanism for the formation of these organic species in Okinawa aerosols is probably gas phase oxidation of VOCs and subsequent in-cloud processing during long-range transport. Their characteristics size distribution implies that fine particles enriched with these organic and inorganic species could act as CCN to develop the cloud cover over the western North Pacific. The major peak of C9 and ωC9 on coarse mode suggest that they are produced by photooxidation of unsaturated fatty acids mainly derived from phytoplankton via heterogeneous reactions on sea spray particles. This study demonstrates that anthropogenic aerosols emitted from East Asia have significant influence on the compositions of organic and inorganic aerosols in the western North Pacific Rim.

Impact of ABCB1, ABCG2, and CYP3A5 polymorphisms on plasma trough concentrations of apixaban in Japanese patients with atrial fibrillation.

PubMed

Ueshima, Satoshi; Hira, Daiki; Fujii, Ryo; Kimura, Yuuma; Tomitsuka, Chiho; Yamane, Takuya; Tabuchi, Yohei; Ozawa, Tomoya; Itoh, Hideki; Horie, Minoru; Terada, Tomohiro; Katsura, Toshiya

2017-09-01

During anticoagulant therapy, major bleeding is one of the most severe adverse effects. This study aimed to evaluate the relationships between ABCB1, ABCG2, and CYP3A5 polymorphisms and plasma trough concentrations of apixaban, a direct inhibitor of coagulation factor X. A total of 70 plasma concentrations of apixaban from 44 Japanese patients with atrial fibrillation were analyzed. In these analyses, the plasma trough concentration/dose (C/D) ratio of apixaban was used as a pharmacokinetic index and all data were stratified according to the presence of ABCB1 (ABCB1 1236C>T, 2677G>T/A, and 3435C>T), ABCG2 (ABCG2 421C>A), and CYP3A5 (CYP3A5*3) polymorphisms. Influences of various clinical laboratory parameters (age, serum creatinine, estimated glomerular filtration rate, aspartate amino transferase, and alanine amino transferase) on the plasma trough C/D ratio of apixaban were included in analyses. Although no ABCB1 polymorphisms affected the plasma trough C/D ratio of apixaban, the plasma trough C/D ratio of apixaban was significantly higher in patients with the ABCG2 421A/A genotype than in patients with the ABCG2 421C/C genotype (P<0.01). The plasma trough C/D ratio of apixaban in patients with CYP3A5*1/*3 or *3/*3 genotypes was also significantly higher than that in patients with the CYP3A5*1/*1 genotype (P<0.05). Furthermore, the plasma trough C/D ratio of apixaban decreased with increased estimated glomerular filtration rate. These results indicate that ABCG2 421A/A and CYP3A5*3 genotypes and renal function are considered potential factors affecting trough concentrations of apixaban.

Crustal Structure in the Southern Rockall Trough from Satellite Gravity Data: Evidence for Sea-floor Spreading

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chappell, A.; Kusznir, N. J.

2005-05-01

The southern Rockall Trough south of 57 N has previously been interpreted as either an intra-continental rift floored with highly extended continental crust, or a failed oceanic rift formed by Cretaceous sea floor spreading. Satellite gravity, bathymetry data and seismic estimates of sediment thickness are used to derive crustal basement thickness for the southern Rockall Trough and adjacent regions using a gravity inversion method incorporating a correction for the large negative thermal gravity component present in oceanic and stretched continental lithosphere. The marine Bouguer anomaly, derived from satellite free air gravity (Sandwell & Smith 1997) and Gebco 2003 bathymetry data, is inverted using the method of Oldenberg (1974), incorporating an iteratively applied thermal anomaly correction, to give Moho depth. For oceanic crust the thermal anomaly correction is calculated using isochron ages (Muller et al. 1997) and for continental crust from the beta stretching factors resulting from gravity derived crustal basement thickness and an assumed rift age. When sediment thickness and volcanic addition are assumed to be zero, the resulting upper bound of crustal thickness from the gravity inversion is as little as 10 km in the southern Rockall Trough. A segmented axial thickening of the crust at the centre of the Rockall Trough is predicted, between the Barra volcanic ridge and the Anton Dohrn seamount and is interpreted as having a volcanic origin. Inclusion of a sediment thickness correction in the gravity inversion further reduces predicted crustal thickness. A pseudo-sediment-thickness map has been constructed from the available wide-angle data and incorporated in the gravity inversion. The addition of up to 5.5 km of sediment in the gravity inversion reduces the upper bound of crustal thickness to less than 3 km in some locations. The segmented axial thickening and thin crust shown by the gravity inversion, the lack of intra-basinal faulting, and the volcanic

Healthcare-associated Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia in Children: Evidence for Reverse Vancomycin Creep and Impact of Vancomycin Trough Values on Outcome.

PubMed

McNeil, J Chase; Kok, Eric Y; Forbes, Andrea R; Lamberth, Linda; Hulten, Kristina G; Vallejo, Jesus G; Mason, Edward O; Kaplan, Sheldon L

2016-03-01

Elevated vancomycin minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) in Staphylococcus aureus have been associated with worse clinical outcomes in adults. For invasive meticillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) infections in adults, the Infectious Diseases Society of America recommends targeting vancomycin serum trough concentrations between 15 and 20 μg/mL. We evaluated trends in vancomycin MICs from healthcare-associated (HCA) S. aureus bacteremia isolates in children in addition to correlating vancomycin serum trough levels with clinical outcomes. Patients and isolates were identified from a prospective S. aureus surveillance study at Texas Children's Hospital (TCH). HCA S. aureus bacteremia isolates from 2003 to 2013 were selected. Vancomycin MICs by E-test were determined and medical records were reviewed. Acute kidney injury (AKI) was defined as doubling of the baseline serum creatinine. Three hundred forty-one isolates met inclusion criteria. We observed a reverse vancomycin creep among MRSA isolates in the study period with a decline in the proportion of isolates with vancomycin MIC ≥ 2 μg/mL (from 32.7% to 5.6%; P < 0.001). However, the proportion of MSSA isolates with MIC ≥ 2 μg/mL increased (from 2.9% to 9%; P = 0.04). Among patients who had vancomycin troughs performed, there was no difference in duration of bacteremia or fever with vancomycin trough >15 versus <15 μg/mL. A vancomycin trough >15 μg/mL was, however, an independent risk factor for AKI. Vancomycin MICs are shifting among HCA S. aureus bacteremia isolates with significant differences between MRSA and MSSA at TCH. Higher vancomycin troughs did not improve outcomes in pediatric HCA S. aureus bacteremia but were associated with increased nephrotoxicity. Further studies are needed to better understand optimal management of children with S. aureus bacteremia.

Healthcare-associated Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia in children: Evidence for reverse vancomycin creep and impact of vancomycin trough levels on outcome

PubMed Central

McNeil, J Chase; Kok, Eric Y; Forbes, Andrea; Lamberth, Linda; Hulten, Kristina G; Vallejo, Jesus G; Mason, Edward O; Kaplan, Sheldon L

2015-01-01

Introduction Elevated vancomycin MICs in S. aureus have been associated with worse clinical outcomes in adults. For invasive MRSA infections in adults, the IDSA recommends targeting vancomycin serum trough concentrations between 15–20 μg/ml. We evaluated trends in vancomycin MICs from healthcare-associated S. aureus bacteremia isolates in children in addition to correlating vancomycin serum trough levels with clinical outcomes. Methods Patients and isolates were identified from a prospective S. aureus surveillance study at Texas Children's Hospital (TCH). Healthcare-associated S. aureus bacteremia isolates from 2003–2013 were selected. Vancomycin MICs by E-test were determined and medical records were reviewed. Acute kidney injury (AKI) was defined as doubling of the baseline serum creatinine. Results 341 isolates met inclusion criteria. We observed a reverse vancomycin creep among MRSA isolates in the study period with a decline in the proportion of isolates with vancomycin MIC ≥ 2 μg/ml (from 32.7% to 5.6%, p<0.001). However, the proportion of MSSA isolates with MIC ≥ 2 μg/ml increased (from 2.9% to 9%, p=0.04). Among patients who had vancomycin troughs performed, there was no difference in duration of bacteremia or fever with vancomycin trough >15 μg/ml vs. < 15 μg/ml. A vancomycin trough > 15 μg/ml was, however, an independent risk factor for AKI. Conclusions Vancomycin MICs are shifting among healthcare-associated S. aureus bacteremia isolates with significant differences between MRSA and MSSA at TCH. Higher vancomycin troughs did not improve outcomes in pediatric healthcare-associated S. aureus bacteremia but were associated with increased nephrotoxicity. Further studies are needed to better understand optimal management of children with S. aureus bacteremia. PMID:26646549

Increased water contamination and grow-out Pekin duck mortality when raised with water troughs compared to pin-metered water lines using a United States management system

PubMed Central

Schenk, A.; Porter, A. L.; Alenciks, E.; Frazier, K.; Best, A. A.; Fraley, S. M.; Fraley, G. S.

2016-01-01

Controversy has developed as to whether or not pin-metered water lines or water troughs are more appropriate for Pekin ducks. We hypothesized that water troughs would show improved duck body conditions and environmental quality compared to pin-metered water lines. To test this hypothesis, we housed ducks in 2 barns, one with water lines and one with water troughs. Water troughs were constructed to meet RSPCA guidelines for number and density of ducks and with recently described verandas. Ducks were divided into 4 pens per barn (n = 1,000 ducks/pen). The study was then repeated (n = 8 pens per water source) in a cross-over design so the barns each contained the opposite water source to the first experiment. We scored the ducks’ body condition using an established scoring rubric and analyzed using SAS Proc GLM-Mix as binomial data. Ducks housed with water troughs showed higher (thus worse condition; P < 0.001) scores for eyes, nostrils, feather quality, feather cleanliness, and foot pads. We also compared water condition, water quality, and duck mortality using a Student t test for both water sources each week. We found that the water troughs showed higher iron (P < 0.001), nitrites (P < 0.001), pH (P < 0.01), and bacterial growth (P < 0.001). The bacterial growth was shown to have higher (P < 0.001) E. coli, coliforms, and Staphylococcus in the water troughs. Water lines typically showed no bacterial growth in culture-based assays. Ducks housed with water troughs used greater (P = 0.001) volumes of water compared to ducks housed with water lines. Ducks with water troughs also showed a greater percent (P = 0.008) mortality at all ages compared to ducks with water lines. These data suggest that water troughs may not be beneficial for duck welfare and could adversely impact both environment and duck or human health. PMID:26769272

Increased water contamination and grow-out Pekin duck mortality when raised with water troughs compared to pin-metered water lines using a United States management system.

PubMed

Schenk, A; Porter, A L; Alenciks, E; Frazier, K; Best, A A; Fraley, S M; Fraley, G S

2016-04-01

Controversy has developed as to whether or not pin-metered water lines or water troughs are more appropriate for Pekin ducks. We hypothesized that water troughs would show improved duck body conditions and environmental quality compared to pin-metered water lines. To test this hypothesis, we housed ducks in 2 barns, one with water lines and one with water troughs. Water troughs were constructed to meet RSPCA guidelines for number and density of ducks and with recently described verandas. Ducks were divided into 4 pens per barn (n=1,000 ducks/pen). The study was then repeated (n=8 pens per water source) in a cross-over design so the barns each contained the opposite water source to the first experiment. We scored the ducks' body condition using an established scoring rubric and analyzed using SAS Proc GLM-Mix as binomial data. Ducks housed with water troughs showed higher (thus worse condition; P<0.001) scores for eyes, nostrils, feather quality, feather cleanliness, and foot pads. We also compared water condition, water quality, and duck mortality using a Student t test for both water sources each week. We found that the water troughs showed higher iron (P<0.001), nitrites (P<0.001), pH (P<0.01), and bacterial growth (P<0.001). The bacterial growth was shown to have higher (P<0.001)E. coli, coliforms, and Staphylococcusin the water troughs. Water lines typically showed no bacterial growth in culture-based assays. Ducks housed with water troughs used greater (P=0.001) volumes of water compared to ducks housed with water lines. Ducks with water troughs also showed a greater percent (P=0.008) mortality at all ages compared to ducks with water lines. These data suggest that water troughs may not be beneficial for duck welfare and could adversely impact both environment and duck or human health. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Poultry Science Association.

The mineralogy and formation processes of Mars soil

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Banin, Amos

1992-01-01

The mineralogical nature of Mars soil is far from being understood, nor are the formation time and weathering processes known. Quantitatively, the two major mineral-forming elements in Mars soil are silicon and iron, constituting 44 and 19 percent of the soils as SiO4 and Fe2O3, respectively. The silicate phases have been studied only briefly, mostly because of their limited spectral fingerprinting in the VIS and NIR. Much attention was given to the iron minerals in the soil, due to their pronounced absorption in the VIS and NIR, making them easily detectable by telescopic observations. The available information on Mars soil mineralogy, mostly obtained by remote sensing, is reviewed, and it is hypothesized that it leads to the suggestion that nanophase short-range-order (amorphous) phases of the silicates and iron oxides abound in the soil.

Correlating Mineralogy and Amino Acid Contents of Milligram-Scale Murchison Carbonaceous Chondrite Samples

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burton, Aaron, S.; Berger, Eve L.; Locke, Darren R.; Elsila, Jamie E.; Glavin, Daniel P.; Dworkin, Jason P.

2015-01-01

Amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, have been found to be indigenous in most of the carbonaceous chondrite groups. The abundances of amino acids, as well as their structural, enantiomeric and isotopic compositions differ significantly among meteorites of different groups and petrologic types. This suggests that there is a link between parent-body conditions, mineralogy and the synthesis and preservation of amino acids (and likely other organic molecules). However, elucidating specific causes for the observed differences in amino acid composition has proven extremely challenging because samples analyzed for amino acids are typically much larger ((is) approximately 100 mg powders) than the scale at which meteorite heterogeneity is observed (sub mm-scale differences, (is) approximately 1-mg or smaller samples). Thus, the effects of differences in mineralogy on amino acid abundances could not be easily discerned. Recent advances in the sensitivity of instrumentation have made possible the analysis of smaller samples for amino acids, enabling a new approach to investigate the link between mineralogical con-text and amino acid compositions/abundances in meteorites. Through coordinated mineral separation, mineral characterization and highly sensitive amino acid analyses, we have performed preliminary investigations into the relationship between meteorite mineralogy and amino acid composition. By linking amino acid data to mineralogy, we have started to identify amino acid-bearing mineral phases in different carbonaceous meteorites. The methodology and results of analyses performed on the Murchison meteorite are presented here.

Sediment composition and texture of Pleistocene deep-sea turbidites in the eastern Nankai Trough gas hydrate field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egawa, K.; Nishimura, O.; Izumi, S.; Ito, T.; Konno, Y.; Yoneda, J.; Jin, Y.; Kida, M.; Suzuki, K.; Nakatsuka, Y.; Nagao, J.

2013-12-01

In the 2012 JOGMEC/JAPEX pressure coring operation, we collected a totally 60-m-long core sample from the interval of gas hydrate concentration zone at the planned site of the world's first offshore production test of natural gas hydrates in the eastern Nankai Trough area. In this contribution, the cored sediments were sedimentologically, mineralogically, and paleontologically analyzed to know sediment composition and texture of reservoir formation, which are known to provide useful geological information to discuss sedimentation, diagenesis, and permeability. The targeted interval belongs to a Middle Pleistocene deep-sea turbidite sequence distributed around the Daini Atsumi Knoll, east of the Kumano forearc basin, and consists of the lower (thick sand-dominant), middle (thin-bedded sand-and-mud alteration), and upper (mud-dominant) formations in ascending order. X-ray powder diffraction analysis and scanning electron microscopic observation revealed that pore space in turbidite sands is commonly filled with clay fractions (mostly phyllosilicates) in the lower formation. Such a pore filling of clay fractions is reflected in particle size distribution showing high standard deviation and clay content, and thus is expected to have an impact on permeability. There is the older Pliocene to Early Pleistocene fossil coccolith record in the middle formation, indicating sediment reworking probably induced by submarine landslide. The coexistence of authigenic siderite and framboidal pyrite in the middle formation strongly suggests anoxic microbial activity under methane oxidation and sulfide reduction conditions at least before the hydrate cementation. This contribution was financially supported by the Research Consortium for Methane Hydrate Resources in Japan (MH21 Research Consortium) planned by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).

Skeletal mineralogy of coral recruits under high temperature and pCO2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Foster, T.; Clode, P. L.

2016-03-01

Aragonite, which is the polymorph of CaCO3 precipitated by modern corals during skeletal formation, has a higher solubility than the more stable polymorph calcite. This higher solubility may leave animals that produce aragonitic skeletons more vulnerable to anthropogenic ocean acidification. It is therefore important to determine whether scleractinian corals have the plasticity to adapt and produce calcite in their skeletons in response to changing environmental conditions. Both high pCO2 and lower Mg / Ca ratios in seawater are thought to have driven changes in the skeletal mineralogy of major marine calcifiers in the past ˜ 540 Ma. Experimentally reduced Mg / Ca ratios in ambient seawater have been shown to induce some calcite precipitation in both adult and newly settled modern corals; however, the impact of high pCO2 on the mineralogy of recruits is unknown. Here we determined the skeletal mineralogy of 1-month-old Acropora spicifera coral recruits grown under high temperature (+3 °C) and pCO2 (˜ 900 µatm) conditions, using X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. We found that newly settled coral recruits produced entirely aragonitic skeletons regardless of the treatment. Our results show that elevated pCO2 alone is unlikely to drive changes in the skeletal mineralogy of young corals. Not having an ability to switch from aragonite to calcite precipitation may leave corals and ultimately coral reef ecosystems more susceptible to predicted ocean acidification. An important area for prospective research would be the investigation of the combined impact of high pCO2 and reduced Mg / Ca ratio on coral skeletal mineralogy.

Interplate locking derived from seafloor geodetic measurement at the shallow subduction zone of the northernmost Suruga Trough, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yasuda, K.; Tadokoro, K.; Ikuta, R.; Watanabe, T.; Nagai, S.; Sayanagi, K.

2013-12-01

Observation of seafloor crustal deformation is crucial for megathrust earthquake because most of the focal areas are located below seafloor. Seafloor crustal deformation can be observed GPS/Acoustic technique, and this technique has been carried out at subduction margins in Japan, e.g., Japan Trench, Suruga Trough, and Nankai Trough. At the present, the accuracy of seafloor positioning is one to several centimeters for each epoch. Velocity vectors at seafloor site are estimated through repeated observations. Co- and post- seismic slip distribution and interseismic deformation are estimated from results of seafloor geodetic measurement (e.g., Iinuma et al., 2012; Tadokoro et al., 2012). We repeatedly observed seafloor crustal deformations at two sites across the Suruga Trough from 2005 to investigate interplate locking condition at the focal area of the anticipated megathrust, Tokai, earthquake. We observed 12 and 16 times at an east site of the Suruga Trough (SNE) and at an west site of the Suruga Trough (SNW), respectively. We reinstalled seafloor benchmarks at both sites because of run out of batteries in 2012. We calculated and removed the bias between the old and new seafloor benchmarks. Furthermore, we evaluated two type of analysis. One is Fixed triangular configuration Analysis (FTA). When we determine the seafloor benchmark position, we fix the triangular configuration of seafloor units averaging all the measurements to improve trade-off relation between seafloor benchmark position and sound speed structure. Sound speed structure is assumed to be horizontal layered structure. The other one is Fixed Triangle and Gradient structure of sound speed structure (FTGA). We fixed triangular configuration same as FTA. Sound speed structure is assumed to have gradient structure. Comparing FTA with FTGA, the RMS of horizontal position analyzed through FTA is smaller than that through FTGA at SNE site. On the other hand, the RMS of horizontal position analyzed through

Cycling of sulfur in subduction zones: The geochemistry of sulfur in the Mariana Island Arc and back-arc trough

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alt, J.C.; Shanks, Wayne C.; Jackson, M.C.

1993-01-01

The sulfur contents and sulfur isotopic compositions of 24 glassy submarine volcanics from the Mariana Island Arc and back-arc Mariana Trough were determined in order to investigate the hypothesis that subducted seawater sulfur (??34S = 21???) is recycled through arc volcanism. Our results for sulfur are similar to those for subaerial arc volcanics: Mariana Arc glasses are enriched in 34S (??34S = up to 10.3???, mean = 3.8???) and depleted in S (20-290 ppm, mean = 100 ppm) relative to MORB (850 ppm S, ??34S = 0.1 ?? 0.5???). The back-arc trough basalts contain 200-930 ppm S and have ??34S values of 1.1 ?? 0.5???, which overlap those for the arc and MORB. The low sulfur contents of the arc and some of the trough glasses are attributed to (1) early loss of small amounts of sulfur through separation of immiscible sulfide and (2) later vapor-melt equilibrium control of sulfur contents and loss of sulfur in a vapor phase from sulfide-undersaturated melts near the minimum in sulfur solubility at f{hook}O2 ??? NNO (nickel-nickel oxide). Although these processes removed sulfur from the melts their effects on the sulfur isotopic compositions of the melts were minimal. Positive trends of ??34S with 87Sr 86Sr, LILE and LREE contents of the arc volcanics are consistent with a metasomatic seawater sulfur component in the depleted sub-arc mantle source. The lack of a 34S-rich slab signature in the trough lavas may be attributed to equilibration of metasomatic fluid with mantle material along the longer pathway from the slab to the source of the trough volcanics. Sulfur is likely to have been transported into the mantle wedge by metasomatic fluid derived from subducted sediments and pore fluids. Gases extracted from vesicles in arc and back-arc samples are predominantly H2O, with minor CO2 and traces of H2S and SO2. CO2 in the arc and back-arc rocks has ??13C values of -2.1 to -13.1???, similar to MORB. These data suggest that degassing of CO2 could explain the slightly lower

Preliminary report, cruises L1-86-NC and L2-86-NC, Escanaba Trough, Gorda Ridge

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morton, J.L.; Normark, W.R.; Ross, Stephanie L.; Koski, R.A.; Holmes, M.L.; Shanks, Wayne C.; Zierenberg, R.A.; Lyle, M.W.; Benninger, L.M.

1987-01-01

Eight large (up to 200 m across) and many small massive sulfide deposits were photographed and sampled at the sediment-covered Escanaba Trough, southern Gorda Ridge, during S.P. Lee cruises L1-86-NC and L2-86-NC in 1986. The deposits are associated with two volcanic edifices within the sedimentary fill along the axis of Escanaba Trough. The sulfide and other hydrothermal minerals are deposited on the seafloor as well as within the sedimentary section. High concentrations of Pb and As in some of the sulfide samples indicates significant interaction between hydrothermal fluids and sediment at depth.

Mineralogic Model (MM3.0) Analysis Model Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

C. Lum

2002-02-12

The purpose of this report is to document the Mineralogic Model (MM), Version 3.0 (MM3.0) with regard to data input, modeling methods, assumptions, uncertainties, limitations and validation of the model results, qualification status of the model, and the differences between Version 3.0 and previous versions. A three-dimensional (3-D) Mineralogic Model was developed for Yucca Mountain to support the analyses of hydrologic properties, radionuclide transport, mineral health hazards, repository performance, and repository design. Version 3.0 of the MM was developed from mineralogic data obtained from borehole samples. It consists of matrix mineral abundances as a function of x (easting), y (northing),more » and z (elevation), referenced to the stratigraphic framework defined in Version 3.1 of the Geologic Framework Model (GFM). The MM was developed specifically for incorporation into the 3-D Integrated Site Model (ISM). The MM enables project personnel to obtain calculated mineral abundances at any position, within any region, or within any stratigraphic unit in the model area. The significance of the MM for key aspects of site characterization and performance assessment is explained in the following subsections. This work was conducted in accordance with the Development Plan for the MM (CRWMS M&O 2000). The planning document for this Rev. 00, ICN 02 of this AMR is Technical Work Plan, TWP-NBS-GS-000003, Technical Work Plan for the Integrated Site Model, Process Model Report, Revision 01 (CRWMS M&O 2000). The purpose of this ICN is to record changes in the classification of input status by the resolution of the use of TBV software and data in this report. Constraints and limitations of the MM are discussed in the appropriate sections that follow. The MM is one component of the ISM, which has been developed to provide a consistent volumetric portrayal of the rock layers, rock properties, and mineralogy of the Yucca Mountain site. The ISM consists of three components

Evaluating the Relationship between Vancomycin Trough Concentration and 24-Hour Area under the Concentration-Time Curve in Neonates.

PubMed

Tseng, Sheng-Hsuan; Lim, Chuan Poh; Chen, Qi; Tang, Cheng Cai; Kong, Sing Teang; Ho, Paul Chi-Lui

2018-04-01

Bacterial sepsis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in neonates, especially those involving methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Guidelines by the Infectious Diseases Society of America recommend the vancomycin 24-h area under the concentration-time curve to MIC ratio (AUC 24 /MIC) of >400 as the best predictor of successful treatment against MRSA infections when the MIC is ≤1 mg/liter. The relationship between steady-state vancomycin trough concentrations and AUC 24 values (mg·h/liter) has not been studied in an Asian neonatal population. We conducted a retrospective chart review in Singapore hospitals and collected patient characteristics and therapeutic drug monitoring data from neonates on vancomycin therapy over a 5-year period. A one-compartment population pharmacokinetic model was built from the collected data, internally validated, and then used to assess the relationship between steady-state trough concentrations and AUC 24 A Monte Carlo simulation sensitivity analysis was also conducted. A total of 76 neonates with 429 vancomycin concentrations were included for analysis. Median (interquartile range) was 30 weeks (28 to 36 weeks) for postmenstrual age (PMA) and 1,043 g (811 to 1,919 g) for weight at the initiation of treatment. Vancomycin clearance was predicted by weight, PMA, and serum creatinine. For MRSA isolates with a vancomycin MIC of ≤1, our major finding was that the minimum steady-state trough concentration range predictive of achieving an AUC 24 /MIC of >400 was 8 to 8.9 mg/liter. Steady-state troughs within 15 to 20 mg/liter are unlikely to be necessary to achieve an AUC 24 /MIC of >400, whereas troughs within 10 to 14.9 mg/liter may be more appropriate. Copyright © 2018 American Society for Microbiology.

Martian Surface Mineralogy from Rovers with Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, Richard V.

2016-01-01

Beginning in 2004, NASA has landed three well-instrumented rovers on the equatorial martian surface. The Spirit rover landed in Gusev crater in early January, 2004, and the Opportunity rover landed on the opposite side of Mars at Meridian Planum 21 days later. The Curiosity rover landed in Gale crater to the west of Gusev crater in August, 2012. Both Opportunity and Curiosity are currently operational. The twin rovers Spirit and Opportunity carried Mossbauer spectrometers to determine the oxidation state of iron and its mineralogical composition. The Curiosity rover has an X-ray diffraction instrument for identification and quantification of crystalline materials including clay minerals. Instrument suites on all three rovers are capable of distinguishing primary rock-forming minerals like olivine, pyroxene and magnetite and products of aqueous alteration in including amorphous iron oxides, hematite, goethite, sulfates, and clay minerals. The oxidation state of iron ranges from that typical for unweathered rocks and soils to nearly completely oxidized (weathered) rocks and soils as products of aqueous and acid-sulfate alteration. The in situ rover mineralogy also serves as ground-truth for orbital observations, and orbital mineralogical inferences are used for evaluating and planning rover exploration.

Asynchronous marine-terrestrial signals of the last deglacial warming in East Asia associated with low- and high-latitude climate changes.

PubMed

Xu, Deke; Lu, Houyuan; Wu, Naiqin; Liu, Zhenxia; Li, Tiegang; Shen, Caiming; Wang, Luo

2013-06-11

A high-resolution multiproxy record, including pollen, foraminifera, and alkenone paleothermometry, obtained from a single core (DG9603) from the Okinawa Trough, East China Sea (ECS), provided unambiguous evidence for asynchronous climate change between the land and ocean over the past 40 ka. On land, the deglacial stage was characterized by rapid warming, as reflected by paleovegetation, and it began ca. 15 kaBP, consistent with the timing of the last deglacial warming in Greenland. However, sea surface temperature estimates from foraminifera and alkenone paleothermometry increased around 20-19 kaBP, as in the Western Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP). Sea surface temperatures in the Okinawa Trough were influenced mainly by heat transport from the tropical western Pacific Ocean by the Kuroshio Current, but the epicontinental vegetation of the ECS was influenced by atmospheric circulation linked to the northern high-latitude climate. Asynchronous terrestrial and marine signals of the last deglacial warming in East Asia were thus clearly related to ocean currents and atmospheric circulation. We argue that (i) early warming seawater of the WPWP, driven by low-latitude insolation and trade winds, moved northward via the Kuroshio Current and triggered marine warming along the ECS around 20-19 kaBP similar to that in the WPWP, and (ii) an almost complete shutdown of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation ca. 18-15 kaBP was associated with cold Heinrich stadial-1 and delayed terrestrial warming during the last deglacial warming until ca. 15 kaBP at northern high latitudes, and hence in East Asia. Terrestrial deglacial warming therefore lagged behind marine changes by ca. 3-4 ka.

Asynchronous marine-terrestrial signals of the last deglacial warming in East Asia associated with low- and high-latitude climate changes

PubMed Central

Xu, Deke; Lu, Houyuan; Wu, Naiqin; Liu, Zhenxia; Li, Tiegang; Shen, Caiming; Wang, Luo

2013-01-01

A high-resolution multiproxy record, including pollen, foraminifera, and alkenone paleothermometry, obtained from a single core (DG9603) from the Okinawa Trough, East China Sea (ECS), provided unambiguous evidence for asynchronous climate change between the land and ocean over the past 40 ka. On land, the deglacial stage was characterized by rapid warming, as reflected by paleovegetation, and it began ca. 15 kaBP, consistent with the timing of the last deglacial warming in Greenland. However, sea surface temperature estimates from foraminifera and alkenone paleothermometry increased around 20–19 kaBP, as in the Western Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP). Sea surface temperatures in the Okinawa Trough were influenced mainly by heat transport from the tropical western Pacific Ocean by the Kuroshio Current, but the epicontinental vegetation of the ECS was influenced by atmospheric circulation linked to the northern high-latitude climate. Asynchronous terrestrial and marine signals of the last deglacial warming in East Asia were thus clearly related to ocean currents and atmospheric circulation. We argue that (i) early warming seawater of the WPWP, driven by low-latitude insolation and trade winds, moved northward via the Kuroshio Current and triggered marine warming along the ECS around 20–19 kaBP similar to that in the WPWP, and (ii) an almost complete shutdown of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation ca. 18–15 kaBP was associated with cold Heinrich stadial-1 and delayed terrestrial warming during the last deglacial warming until ca. 15 kaBP at northern high latitudes, and hence in East Asia. Terrestrial deglacial warming therefore lagged behind marine changes by ca. 3–4 ka. PMID:23720306

Incorporating Environmental and Sustainability Issues into the Curriculum in a Mineralogy Class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, G. W.

2013-12-01

A traditional curriculum in mineralogy addresses classic subject matter such as crystal chemistry, crystallography, systematic mineralogy and optical mineralogy. This is entirely reasonable and appropriate, as these time-honored aspects of mineralogy are fundamental to students' understanding of Earth Materials; they are also important building blocks for an understanding of other geologic disciplines such as petrology, structural geology, and sedimentology. Due to the impressive breadth and amount of subject material that is covered in most mineralogy courses, time constraints do not allow instructors to branch out into more contemporary subjects. In our increasingly technologically-advanced (and crowded) modern society, issues pertaining to the environment and sustainability are at the forefront of scientific thought. In many introductory physical geoscience courses these issues are addressed and incorporated into the curriculum, thereby giving students valuable scientific background in modern environmental issues. However, in upper division classes (such as mineralogy) there is little time or motivation for instructors to add new content or to connect the course content with current environmental or societal concerns, even though there may be significant and meaningful opportunities to do so throughout the quarter or semester. Consequently, many students' understanding of environmental issues remains at an introductory or cursory level. In my mineralogy class at the University of California San Diego (UCSD), I teach a traditional curriculum with a modern approach that uses dynamic lectures, makes use of multimedia, and also utilizes current best teaching practices. As a department, we have recently made an increased effort to educate our students about environmental issues. Accordingly, I have integrated environmental and sustainability topics (when they are pertinent) into the curriculum as a regular component of the course. These topics typically relate to how

Empirical Model of the Location of the Main Ionospheric Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deminov, M. G.; Shubin, V. N.

2018-05-01

The empirical model of the location of the main ionospheric trough (MIT) is developed based on an analysis of data from CHAMP satellite measured at the altitudes of 350-450 km during 2000-2007; the model is presented in the form of the analytical dependence of the invariant latitude of the trough minimum Φm on the magnetic local time (MLT), the geomagnetic activity, and the geographical longitude for the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The time-weighted average index Kp(τ), the coefficient of which τ = 0.6 is determined by the requirement of the model minimum deviation from experimental data, is used as an indicator of geomagnetic activity. The model has no limitations, either in local time or geomagnetic activity. However, the initial set of MIT minima mainly contains data dealing with an interval of 16-08 MLT for Kp(τ) < 6; therefore, the model is rather qualitative outside this interval. It is also established that (a) the use of solar local time (SLT) instead of MLT increases the model error no more than by 5-10%; (b) the amplitude of the longitudinal effect at the latitude of MIT minimum in geomagnetic (invariant) coordinates is ten times lower than that in geographical coordinates.

Teaching Introductory Mineralogy With the GeoWall

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, C. D.; Haymon, R. M.

2003-12-01

Mineralogy, like many topics in Earth Sciences, contains inherently three-dimensional topics that are difficult to teach. Concepts such as crystal symmetry and forms, Miller indices, the polymerization of silica tetrahedra and resulting structures of silicate mineral groups, and the interaction of light and minerals are particularly difficult. Two-dimensional diagrams are limited in their effectiveness, and physical models, while effective, are expensive and do not work as well in large class settings. The GeoWall system brings the effectiveness of physical models to the large classroom. In Fall 2003, we will integrate the GeoWall into our introductory mineralogy classes at UCSB using a combination of commercial software, atomic structure models available on the web, and custom content created in-house. The commercial software SHAPE (www.shapesoftware.com) allows users to build and display crystal shapes and their symmetry. Though not designed for the GeoWall, the software's stereopair display mode works perfectly on the system. Using the Chime web browser plug-in (www.mdl.com), computer models of silicate minerals available from the Virtual Museum of Minerals and Molecules (www.soils.umn.eduvirtual_museum) provide an interactive display of silicate mineral structure that illustrates the tetrahedral framework. Again, while not developed for the GeoWall, the Chime plug-in works seamlessly with the GeoWall hardware. 3-D GeoWall images that display light paths through minerals, and reveal relationships between crystal symmetry and optical indicatrix properties, have been developed in-house using a combination of SHAPE and 3D modeling software. The 3-D GeoWall images should convey in an instant these difficult concepts that students historically have struggled to visualize. Initial assessment of the GeoWall's effectiveness as a mineralogy teaching aid at UCSB in Fall 2003 will come from the instructor's impressions and by comparing test scores with classes from

Hydrogeologic Appraisal of the Valley-Fill Aquifer in the Port Jervis Trough, Sullivan and Ulster Counties, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Reynolds, Richard J.

2007-01-01

The nature and extent of valley-fill aquifers in the Port Jervis Trough was evaluated for a 16 mile section of this valley from the Orange-Sullivan County line near Westbrookville to the village of Napanoch in Ulster County as part of the U.S. Geological Survey's Detailed Aquifer Mapping Program in New York State. The principal aquifer in the Port Jervis Trough is a 50 feet thick outwash aquifer that extends from the Phillipsport Moraine near Summitville, southward through the study area to Port Jervis, N.Y. Previous studies had estimated as much as 500 feet of saturated drift in parts of the Trough, but new well data show that much of the valley fill consists of fine-grained lacustrine sediments. Drillers' logs show that the outwash aquifer south of Summitville is underlain by as much as 275 feet of lacustrine silt and clay. North of the Phillipsport Moraine, three large glaciolacustrine deltas that were built into Glacial Lake Wawarsing provide some local and discontinuous confined aquifers through their coarser bottomset beds. Elsewhere in the Trough, collapsed and buried portions of kame deltas and terraces provide local confined aquifers. The outwash aquifer appears to be very transmissive, as evidenced by the high specific capacity of 130 gallons per minute per foot [(gal/min)/ft] of a commercial test well screened in the aquifer.

Geohydrology of the stratified-drift aquifer system in the lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough, Tompkins County, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, Todd S.; Karig, Daniel E.

2010-01-01

In 2002, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Tompkins County Planning Department began a series of studies of the stratified-drift aquifers in Tompkins County to provide geohydrologic data for planners to develop a strategy to manage and protect their water resources. This aquifer study in lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough is the second in a series of aquifer studies in Tompkins County. The study area is within the northern area of the Appalachian Plateau and extends about 9 miles from the boundary between Tompkins County and Tioga County in the south to just south of the City of Ithaca in the north. In lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough, confined sand and gravel aquifers comprise the major water-bearing units while less extensive unconfined units form minor aquifers. About 600 people who live in lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek trough rely on groundwater from the stratified-drift aquifer system. In addition, water is used by non-permanent residents such as staff at commercial facilities. The estimated total groundwater withdrawn for domestic use is about 45,000 gallons per day (gal/d) or 0.07 cubic foot per second (ft3/s) based on an average water use of 75 gal/d per person for self-supplied water systems in New York. Scouring of bedrock in the preglacial lower Sixmile Creek and Willseyville Creek valleys by glaciers and subglacial meltwaters truncated hillside spurs, formed U-shaped, transverse valley profiles, smoothed valley walls, and deepened the valleys by as much as 300 feet (ft), forming a continuous trough. The unconsolidated deposits in the study area consist mostly of glacial drift, both unstratified drift (till) and stratified drift (laminated lake, deltaic, and glaciofluvial sediments), as well as some post-glacial stratified sediments (lake-bottom sediments that were deposited in reservoirs, peat and muck that were deposited in wetlands, and alluvium deposited by streams). Multiple advances and

Mineralogy of an active eolian sediment from the Namib dune, Gale crater, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Achilles, C. N.; Downs, R. T.; Ming, D. W.; Rampe, E. B.; Morris, R. V.; Treiman, A. H.; Morrison, S. M.; Blake, D. F.; Vaniman, D. T.; Ewing, R. C.; Chipera, S. J.; Yen, A. S.; Bristow, T. F.; Ehlmann, B. L.; Gellert, R.; Hazen, R. M.; Fendrich, K. V.; Craig, P. I.; Grotzinger, J. P.; Des Marais, D. J.; Farmer, J. D.; Sarrazin, P. C.; Morookian, J. M.

2017-11-01

The Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, is using a comprehensive scientific payload to explore rocks and soils in Gale crater, Mars. Recent investigations of the Bagnold Dune Field provided the first in situ assessment of an active dune on Mars. The Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) X-ray diffraction instrument on Curiosity performed quantitative mineralogical analyses of the <150 μm size fraction of the Namib dune at a location called Gobabeb. Gobabeb is dominated by basaltic minerals. Plagioclase, Fo56 olivine, and two Ca-Mg-Fe pyroxenes account for the majority of crystalline phases along with minor magnetite, quartz, hematite, and anhydrite. In addition to the crystalline phases, a minimum 42 wt % of the Gobabeb sample is X-ray amorphous. Mineralogical analysis of the Gobabeb data set provides insights into the origin(s) and geologic history of the dune material and offers an important opportunity for ground truth of orbital observations. CheMin's analysis of the mineralogy and phase chemistry of modern and ancient Gale crater dune fields, together with other measurements by Curiosity's science payload, provides new insights into present and past eolian processes on Mars.

DETAIL VIEW OF CLASSIFIER, TAILINGS LAUNDER TROUGH, LINE SHAFTS, AND ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

DETAIL VIEW OF CLASSIFIER, TAILINGS LAUNDER TROUGH, LINE SHAFTS, AND CONCENTRATION TABLES, LOOKING SOUTHWEST. SLURRY EXITING THE BALL MILL WAS COLLECTED IN AN AMALGAMATION BOX (MISSING) FROM THE END OF THE MILL, AND INTRODUCED INTO THE CLASSIFIER. THE TAILINGS LAUDER IS ON THE GROUND AT LOWER RIGHT. THE LINE SHAFTING ABOVE PROVIDED POWER TO THE CONCENTRATION TABLES BELOW AT CENTER RIGHT. - Gold Hill Mill, Warm Spring Canyon Road, Death Valley Junction, Inyo County, CA

Processing of copper converter slag for metals reclamation: Part II: mineralogical study.

PubMed

Deng, Tong; Ling, Yunhan

2004-10-01

Chemical and mineralogical characterizations of a copper converter slag, and its products obtained by curing with strong sulphuric acid and leaching with hot water, were carried out using ore microscopy, scanning electronic microscopy with energy dispersive spectrometry, wave-length dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, X-ray diffractometry and chemical phase analysis, which provided necessary information to develop a new process for treating such slag and further understanding of the chemical and mineralogical changes in the process.

Novel method to assess antiretroviral target trough concentrations using in vitro susceptibility data.

PubMed

Acosta, Edward P; Limoli, Kay L; Trinh, Lan; Parkin, Neil T; King, Jennifer R; Weidler, Jodi M; Ofotokun, Ighovwerha; Petropoulos, Christos J

2012-11-01

Durable suppression of HIV-1 replication requires the establishment of antiretroviral drug concentrations that exceed the susceptibility of the virus strain(s) infecting the patient. Minimum plasma drug concentrations (C(trough)) are correlated with response, but determination of target C(trough) values is hindered by a paucity of in vivo concentration-response data. In the absence of these data, in vitro susceptibility measurements, adjusted for serum protein binding, can provide estimations of suppressive in vivo drug concentrations. We derived serum protein binding correction factors (PBCF) for protease inhibitors, nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, and an integrase inhibitor by measuring the effect of a range of human serum concentrations on in vitro drug susceptibility measured with the PhenoSense HIV assay. PBCFs corresponding to 100% HS were extrapolated using linear regression and ranged from 1.4 for nevirapine to 77 for nelfinavir. Using the mean 95% inhibitory concentration (IC(95)) for ≥1,200 drug-susceptible viruses, we calculated protein-bound IC(95) (PBIC(95)) values. PBIC(95) values were concordant with the minimum effective C(trough) values that were established in well-designed pharmacodynamic studies (e.g., indinavir, saquinavir, and amprenavir). In other cases, the PBIC(95) values were notably lower (e.g., darunavir, efavirenz, and nevirapine) or higher (nelfinavir and etravirine) than existing target recommendations. The establishment of PBIC(95) values as described here provides a convenient and standardized approach for estimation of the minimum drug exposure that is required to maintain viral suppression and prevent the emergence of drug-resistant variants, particularly when in vivo concentration-response relationships are lacking.

Mineralogical Approaches to Sourcing Pipes and Figurines from the Eastern Woodlands, U.S.A.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wisseman, S.U.; Moore, D.M.; Hughes, R.E.; Hynes, M.R.; Emerson, T.E.

2002-01-01

Provenance studies of stone artifacts often rely heavily upon chemical techniques such as neutron activation analysis. However, stone specimens with very similar chemical composition can have different mineralogies (distinctive crystalline structures as well as variations within the same mineral) that are not revealed by multielemental techniques. Because mineralogical techniques are often cheap and usually nondestructive, beginning with mineralogy allows the researcher to gain valuable information and then to be selective about how many samples are submitted for expensive and somewhat destructive chemical analysis, thus conserving both valuable samples and funds. Our University of Illinois team of archaeologists and geologists employs Portable Infrared Mineral Analyzer (PIMA) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Sequential acid dissolution/XRD/Inductively coupled plasma (SAD-XRD-ICP) analyses. Two case studies of Hopewellian pipes and Mississippian figurines illustrate this mineralogical approach. The results for both studies identify sources relatively close to the sites where the artifacts were recovered: Sterling, Illinois (rather than Ohio) for the (Hopewell) pipes and Missouri (rather than Arkansas or Oklahoma) for the Cahokia figurines. ?? 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Mineralogy of Comet Wild 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zolensky, Michael

2007-01-01

The nature of cometary solids is of fundamental importance to our understanding of the early solar nebula and protoplanetary history. Samples of Comet Wild 2, provided by the Stardust Mission, have now been examined in terrestrial labs for two years, and are very surprising! Here we describe mainly the critical phases olivine, pyroxene and Fe-Ni sulfides in Wild 2 grains, as a guide to the general mineralogy of the returned comet samples.

Cycling of sulfur in subduction zones: The geochemistry of sulfur in the Mariana Island Arc and back-arc trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alt, Jeffrey C.; Shanks, Wayne C., III; Jackson, Michael C.

1993-10-01

The sulfur contents and sulfur isotopic compositions of 24 glassy submarine volcanics from the Mariana Island Arc and back-arc Mariana Trough were determined in order to investigate the hypothesis that subducted seawater sulfur (delta S-34 = 21 parts per thousand) is recycled through arc volcanism. Our results for sulfur are similar to those for subaerial arc volcanics: Mariana Arc glasses are enriched in S-34(delta S-34 = up to 10.3 parts per thousand, mean = 3.8 parts per thousand) and depleted in S(20-290 ppm, mean = 100 ppm) relative to mid ocean ridge basalt (MORB)(850 ppm S, delta S-34 = 0.1 +/- 0.5 parts per thousand). The bac-arc trough basalts contain 200-930 ppm S and have delta S-34 values of 1.1 +/- 0.5 parts per thousand, which overlap those for the arc and MORB. The low sulfur contents of the arc and some of the trough glasses are attributed to (1) early loss of small amounts of sulfur through separation of immiscible sulfide and (2) later vapor-melt equilibrium control of sulfur contents and loss of sulfur in a vapor phase from sulfide-undersaturated melts near the minimum in sulfur solubility at fO2 is approximately equal to NNO (nickel-nickel oxide). Although these processes removed sulfur from the melts their effects on the sulfur isotopic compositions of the melts were minimal. Positive trends of delta S-34 with Sr-87/Sr-86 large ion lithophile element (LILE) and Light rare earth elements (LREE) contents of the arc volcanics are consistent with a metasomatic seawater sulfur component in the depleted sub-arc mantle source. The lack of a S-34-rich slab signature in the trough lavas may be attributed to equilibration of metasomatic fluid with mantle material along the longer pathway from the slab to the source of the trough volcanics. Sulfur is likely to have been transported into the mantle wedge by metasomatic fluid derived from subducted sediments and pore fluids. Gases extracted from vesicles in arc and back-arc samples are predominantly H2O

Assessment of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources in the Hanoi Trough, Vietnam, 2017

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schenk, Christopher J.; Tennyson, Marilyn E.; Mercier, Tracey J.; Woodall, Cheryl A.; Le, Phuong A.; Klett, Timothy R.; Finn, Thomas M.; Leathers-Miller, Heidi M.; Gaswirth, Stephanie B.; Marra, Kristen R.

2018-02-13

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean undiscovered, technically recoverable continuous resources of 52 million barrels of oil and 591 billion cubic feet of gas in the Hanoi Trough of Vietnam.

Mineralogy and Microstructures of Shock-Induced Melt Veins in Chondrites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sharp, Thomas G.

2000-01-01

The applicability of phase equilibrium data to the interpretation of shock-induced melt veins can only be tested by a detailed study of melt- vein mineralogy to see how high-pressure assemblages vary as a function of shock conditions inferred from other indicators. We have used transmission electron microscopy (TEM), analytical electron microscopy (AEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron microprobe analysis (EMA) and optical petrography to characterize the mineralogy, microstructures, and compositions of melt veins and associated high-pressure minerals in shocked chondrites and SNC meteorites. In the processes, we have gained a better understanding of what melt veining can tell us about shock conditions and we have discovered new mineral phases in chondritic and SNC meteorites.

Asteroid surface materials - Mineralogical characterizations and cosmological implications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaffey, M. J.; Mccord, T. B.

1977-01-01

The theoretical basis for the interpretation of diagnostic spectral features is examined and previous characterizations of asteroid surface materials are considered. A summary is provided of results reported by Gaffey and McCord (1977) who have utilized the most sophisticated interpretive techniques available to interpret the spectral reflectance data of about 65 asteroids for mineralogic and petrologic information. Cosmological implications related to the study of asteroid surface materials are also considered, taking into account source bodies for the meteorites, postaccretionary thermal history, significant factors of asteroid thermal history, and the Apollo and Amor asteroids. It is found that the asteroids exhibit surface materials made up of assemblages of meteoritic minerals. The relative abundance of meteorite types reaching the earth's surface is very different from the population of mineralogic types on asteroid surfaces. The earth-crossing or -approaching asteroids apparently derive from a restricted source region or population which is very strongly depleted in the C2-like assemblages that dominate the belt as a whole.

Characterizing the Mineralogy of Potential Lunar Landing Sites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pieters, Carle; Head, James W., III; Mustard, Jack; Boardman, Joe; Buratti, Bonnie; Clark, Roger; Green, Rob; Head, James W, III; McCord, Thomas B.; Mustard, Jack;

Mineralogy Considerations for 2003 MER Site Selection and the Importance for Astrobiology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bishop, J. L.

2001-01-01

Much of the discussion of site selection on Mars is based on interesting images of the surface combined with safety issues. I argue that the two rovers should be sent to mineralogically distinct regions. Compositional information is still poorly constrained on Mars; however, the instruments on the 2003 Mars Exploration Rovers (MERs) will provide a unique opportunity for detailed characterization including mineral identification. There is strong motivation for sending one rover to a "typical" region on Mars to be used as a ground truth for the Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES), while the other rover should be sent to a site where water and chemical alteration are likely to have occurred. Determining the mineralogy of the Martian surface material provides information about the past and present environments on Mars which are an integral aspect of whether or not Mars was suitable for the origin of life. Understanding the mineralogy of terrestrial samples from potentially Mars-like environments is essential to this effort.

Two new methods used to simulate the circumferential solar flux density concentrated on the absorber of a parabolic trough solar collector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Minghuan; Wang, Zhifeng; Sun, Feihu

2016-05-01

The optical efficiencies of a solar trough concentrator are important to the whole thermal performance of the solar collector, and the outer surface of the tube absorber is a key interface of energy flux. So it is necessary to simulate and analyze the concentrated solar flux density distributions on the tube absorber of a parabolic trough solar collector for various sun beam incident angles, with main optical errors considered. Since the solar trough concentrators are linear focusing, it is much of interest to investigate the solar flux density distribution on the cross-section profile of the tube absorber, rather than the flux density distribution along the focal line direction. Although a few integral approaches based on the "solar cone" concept were developed to compute the concentrated flux density for some simple trough concentrator geometries, all those integral approaches needed special integration routines, meanwhile, the optical parameters and geometrical properties of collectors also couldn't be changed conveniently. Flexible Monte Carlo ray trace (MCRT) methods are widely used to simulate the more accurate concentrated flux density distribution for compound parabolic solar trough concentrators, while generally they are quite time consuming. In this paper, we first mainly introduce a new backward ray tracing (BRT) method combined with the lumped effective solar cone, to simulate the cross-section flux density on the region of interest of the tube absorber. For BRT, bundles of rays are launched at absorber-surface points of interest, directly go through the glass cover of the absorber, strike on the uniformly sampled mirror segment centers in the close-related surface region of the parabolic reflector, and then direct to the effective solar cone around the incident sun beam direction after the virtual backward reflection. All the optical errors are convoluted into the effective solar cone. The brightness distribution of the effective solar cone is supposed

Withdrawal of immunomodulators after co-treatment does not reduce trough level of infliximab in patients with Crohn's disease.

PubMed

Drobne, David; Bossuyt, Peter; Breynaert, Christine; Cattaert, Tom; Vande Casteele, Niels; Compernolle, Griet; Jürgens, Matthias; Ferrante, Marc; Ballet, Vera; Wollants, Willem-Jan; Cleynen, Isabelle; Van Steen, Kristel; Gils, Ann; Rutgeerts, Paul; Vermeire, Severine; Van Assche, Gert

2015-03-01

The addition of immunomodulators increases the efficacy of maintenance therapy with infliximab for up to 1 year in patients with Crohn's disease who have not been previously treated with immunomodulators. However, there are questions about the effect of withdrawing immunomodulator therapy from these patients. We studied the effects of treatment with infliximab and immunomodulators (co-treatment) and then immunomodulator withdrawal on long-term outcomes of patients, as well as trough levels of infliximab and formation of anti-infliximab antibodies (ATI). In a retrospective study with the median follow-up period of 34 months (interquartile range, 19-58 months), we analyzed data from 223 patients treated for Crohn's disease between May 1999 and December 2010 at the University Hospitals, Leuven, Belgium (65 received infliximab monotherapy, 158 received infliximab and an immunomodulator). Trough levels of infliximab and levels of ATI were measured in blood samples collected from 117 patients throughout co-treatment, as well as the time of immunomodulator withdrawal and after withdrawal. Patients receiving co-treatment had higher trough levels of infliximab (adjusted mean increase, 1.44-fold) than those receiving infliximab monotherapy (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07-1.92; P = .02). A smaller percentage of patients receiving co-treatment developed ATI (35 of 158, 22%) than those receiving infliximab monotherapy (25 of 65, 38%; P = .01). Among co-treated patients, levels of infliximab remained stable after immunomodulators were withdrawn (before: 3.2 μg/mL; 95% CI, 1.6-5.8 μg/mL and after: 3.7 μg/mL; 95% CI, 1.3-6.3 μg/mL; P = .70). After withdrawal of immunomodulators, 45 of 117 patients (38%) required increasing doses of infliximab, and 21 of 117 (18%) discontinued infliximab. At the time of immunomodulator withdrawal, trough levels of infliximab and C-reactive protein were most strongly associated with response to infliximab thereafter. In a retrospective

High H2O/Ce of K-rich MORB from Lena Trough and Gakkel Ridge, Arctic Ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snow, J. E.; Feig, S. T.

2014-12-01

Lena Trough in the Arctic ocean is the oblique spreading continuation of Gakkel Ridge through the Fram Strait (eg Snow et al. 2011). Extreme trace element and isotopic compositions seen in Lena Trough basalt appear to be the enriched end member dominating the geochemistry of the Western Volcanic Zone of the Western Gakkel Ridge as traced by Pb isotopes, K2O/TiO2, Ba/Nb and other isotopic, major and trace element indicators of mixing (Nauret et al., 2011). This is in contrast to neighboring Gakkel Ridge which has been spreading for 50-60 million years. Basalts from Lena Trough also show a pure MORB noble gas signature (Nauret et al., 2010) and peridotites show no evidence of ancient components in their Os isotopes (Lassiter, et al., in press). The major and trace element compositions of the basalts, however are very distinct from MORB, being far more potassic than all but a single locality on the SW Indian Ridge. We determined H2O and trace element composiitions of a suite of 17 basalt glasses from the Central Lena Trough (CLT) and the Gakkel Western Volcanic Zone, including many of those previously analyzed by Nauret et al. (2012). The Western Gakkel glasses have high H2O/Ce for MORB (>300) suggesting a water rich source consistent with the idea that the northernmost Atlantic mantle is enriched in water (Michael et al., 1995). They are within the range of Eastern Gakkel host glasses determined by Wanless et al, 2013. The Lena Trough (CLT) glasses are very rich in water for MORB (>1% H2O) and are among the highest H2O/Ce (>400) ever measured in MORB aside from melt inclusions in olivine. Mantle melting dynamics and melt evolution cannot account for the H2O/Ce variations in MORB, as these elements have similar behavior during melting and crustal evolution. Interestingly, the H2O/K2O ratios in the basalts are only around 1. This is because the K2O levels in the CLT glasses are very high as well relative to REE. The absolutely linear relationship between H2O and K2O

Performance and Simulation of a Stand-alone Parabolic Trough Solar Thermal Power Plant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohammad, S. T.; Al-Kayiem, H. H.; Assadi, M. K.; Gilani, S. I. U. H.; Khlief, A. K.

2018-05-01

In this paper, a Simulink® Thermolib Model has been established for simulation performance evaluation of Stand-alone Parabolic Trough Solar Thermal Power Plant in Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia. This paper proposes a design of 1.2 kW parabolic trough power plant. The model is capable to predict temperatures at any system outlet in the plant, as well as the power output produced. The conditions that are taken into account as input to the model are: local solar radiation and ambient temperatures, which have been measured during the year. Other parameters that have been input to the model are the collector’s sizes, location in terms of latitude and altitude. Lastly, the results are presented in graphical manner to describe the analysed variations of various outputs of the solar fields obtained, and help to predict the performance of the plant. The developed model allows an initial evaluation of the viability and technical feasibility of any similar solar thermal power plant.

Gas Forming a V-Shape Aluminum Sheet into a Trough of Saddle-Contour

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Shyong; Lan, Hsien-Chin; Lee, Jye; Wang, Jian-Yih; Huang, J. C.; Chu, Chun Lin

2012-11-01

A sheet metal trough of aluminum alloys is manufactured by gas-forming process at 500 °C. The product with slope walls is of ~1.2 m long and ~260 mm opening width, comprising two conical sinks at two ends. The depth of one sink apex is ~350 mm, which results in the depth/width ratio reaching 1.4. To form such a complex shape with high aspect ratio, a pre-form of V-shape groove is prepared prior to the gas-forming work. When this double concave trough is turned upside down, the convex contour resembles the back of a twin hump camel. The formability of this configuration depends on the gas pressurization rate profile, the working temperature, material's micro-structure, as well as pre-form design. The latter point is demonstrated by comparing two aluminum alloys, AA5182 and SP5083, with nearly same compositions but very different grain sizes.

The Salton Seismic Imaging Project (SSIP): Rift Processes and Earthquake Hazards in the Salton Trough (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hole, J. A.; Stock, J. M.; Fuis, G. S.; Rymer, M. J.; Murphy, J. M.; Sickler, R. R.; Criley, C. J.; Goldman, M.; Catchings, R. D.; Ricketts, J. W.; Gonzalez-Fernandez, A.; Driscoll, N.; Kent, G.; Harding, A. J.; Klemperer, S. L.

2009-12-01

The Salton Seismic Imaging Project (SSIP) and coordinated projects will acquire seismic data in and across the Salton Trough in southern California and northern Mexico, including the Coachella, Imperial, and Mexicali Valleys. These projects address both rifting processes at the northern end of the Gulf of California extensional province and earthquake hazards at the southern end of the San Andreas Fault system. In the central Salton Trough, North American lithosphere appears to have been rifted completely apart. Based primarily on a 1979 seismic refraction project, the 20-22 km thick crust is apparently composed entirely of new crust added by magmatism from below and sedimentation from above. The new data will constrain the style of continental breakup, the role and mode of magmatism, the effects of rapid Colorado River sedimentation upon extension and magmatism, and the partitioning of oblique extension. The southernmost San Andreas Fault is considered at high risk of producing a large damaging earthquake, yet structures of the fault and adjacent basins are poorly constrained. To improve hazard models, SSIP will image the geometry of the San Andreas and Imperial Faults, structure of sedimentary basins in the Salton Trough, and three-dimensional seismic velocity of the crust and uppermost mantle. SSIP and collaborating projects have been funded by several different programs at NSF and the USGS. These projects include seven lines of land refraction and low-fold reflection data, airguns and OBS data in the Salton Sea, coordinated fieldwork for onshore-offshore and 3-D data, and a densely sampled line of broadband stations across the trough. Fieldwork is tentatively scheduled for 2010. Preliminary work in 2009 included calibration shots in the Imperial Valley that quantified strong ground motion and proved lack of harm to agricultural irrigation tile drains from explosive shots. Piggyback and complementary studies are encouraged.

[Successful cyclosporine treatment in 2 patients with refractory CIDP, involving monitoring of both AUC(0-4h) and trough levels].

PubMed

Takeuchi, Akiko; Shirai, Shinichi; Horiuchi, Kazuhiro; Takahashi, Ikuko; Matsushima, Masaaki; Hirotani, Makoto; Kano, Takahiro; Yabe, Ichiro; Matumoto, Akihisa; Sasaki, Hidenao

2012-01-01

Cyclosporine A (CYA) treatment has been reported to be probably useful for patients with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP) that is resistant to conventional treatment. Although several studies have shown that appropriate area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) monitoring of CYA levels results in improved outcomes for refractory nephrotic syndrome patients, the importance of using AUC analysis for CIDP remains unclear. In this study, we measured both trough and AUC from 0 to 4 h (AUC(0-4 h)) levels of CYA in 2 patients with CIDP and compared the findings for the clinical parameters. On the basis of the CYA dosing recommendations for patients with nephrotic syndrome, we used a CYA concentration of 150 ng/ml for the trough level and an AUC(0-4 h) value of 2,500 ng/(ml·h). Patient 1 showed a significant increase in grip strength and a prolonged remission period. Patient 2 showed improvement in the modified Rankin scale and manual muscle test (MMT) scores. Monitoring both AUC(0-4 h) and trough levels of CYA seems to be a better option than monitoring the trough level alone because it leads to improved estimation of the efficacy and safety of CYA treatment in the case of CIDP patients.

A simple model of the effects of the mid-latitude total ion trough in the bottomside F layer on HF radiowave propagation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lockwood, M.

1981-06-01

Observations of the amplitudes and Doppler shifts of received HF radio waves are compared with model predictions made using a two-dimensional ray-tracing program. The signals are propagated over a sub-auroral path, which is shown to lie along the latitudes of the mid-latitude trough at times of low geomagnetic activity. Generalizing the predictions to include a simple model of the trough in the density and height of the F2 peak enables the explanation of the anomalous observed diurnal variations. The behavior of received amplitude, Doppler shift, and signal-to-noise ratio as a function of the K sub p index value, the time of day, and the season (in 17 months of continuous recording) is found to agree closely with that predicted using the statistical position of the trough as deduced from 8 years of Alouette satellite soundings. The variation in the times of the observation of large signal amplitudes with the K sub p value and the complete absence of such amplitudes when it exceeds 2.75 are two features that implicate the trough in these effects.

Ramp sedimentation in the Dinantian limestones of the Shannon Trough, Co. Limerick, Ireland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Somerville, Ian D.; Strogen, Peter

1992-08-01

During the late Chadian and Arundian (Lower Carboniferous), an extensive carbonate ramp (Limerick Ramp) developed over County Limerick, southwest Ireland, dipping northwestwards. Three distinct facies can be recognised corresponding to position on this ramp: inner, mid- and outer ramp. The inner ramp facies of oolitic and crinoidal grainstones (Herbertstown Limestone Formation) in east Limerick formed a major shoal behind which peritidal limestones were deposited. The mid-ramp facies of muddy bioclastic limestones and shales (Cooperhill facies) in north Limerick formed between fairweather and storm wave bases. The outer ramp (basinal) facies of mudstones and thin graded resedimented limestones (Rathkeale Beds) in west Limerick developed below storm wave base when fine terrigenous input was high. Later in the Arundian there was progradation of the nearshore oolitic and crinoidal grainstones over the mid-ramp facies. By the Holkerian, the deep-water basinal facies in west Limerick was buried beneath mid-ramp facies (Durnish Limestone). The initiation of the Limerick Ramp is closely related to the formation of the Shannon Trough. In the late Courceyan, accelerated subsidence in the Shannon area during deposition of Waulsortian facies marked the onset of a sag phase. Following a quiescent period in early Chadian, subsidence was renewed in the late Chadian and Arundian, when major facies changes occurred on the ramp. Comparison of the Shannon Trough with the Dublin Basin shows that in the latter, tectonic events in the Chadian and Arundian, particularly syn-sedimentary faulting, created a sharp division between platform and basinal sedimentation. Such tectonic influence is not recognised in the Shannon Trough. Here differential subsidence and eustatic sea-level changes led to more permanent ramp existence, modified only by westwards progradation.

Main Ionospheric Trough and Equatorial Ionization Anomaly During Substorms With the Different UT Onset Moments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klimenko, M. V.; Klimenko, V. V.; Bryukhanov, V. V.

2007-05-01

In the given work the numerical calculation results of ionospheric effects of four modeling substorms which have begun in 00, 06, 12 and 18 UT are presented. Calculations are executed on the basis of Global Self-consistent Model of the Thermosphere, Ionosphere and Protonosphere (GSM TIP), developed in WD IZMIRAN, added by the new block of calculation of electric fields in the ionosphere of the Earth for vernal equinox conditions in the minimum of solar activity. In calculations we considered superposition of magnetospheric convection electric field (at set potential differences through polar caps and field aligned currents of the second zone with taking into account of particle precipitation) and dynamo field generated by thermospheric winds without taking into account the tides. It is shown, that in the given statement of problem the substorms cause strong positive disturbances in F-region of ionosphere in night sector. Negative disturbances are much less and arise, mainly, at night in the middle and low latitudes. During substorms longitudinal extent of main ionospheric trough increases. The substorm beginning in 18 UT, causes negative disturbances in high latitudes except for a southern polar cap. Besides there is "stratification" of the main ionospheric trough. As a result in southern hemisphere the additional high-latitude trough which is absent in quiet conditions is formed. "Stratification" of the main ionospheric trough occurs in northern hemisphere at 6 hours after the beginning of the substorm. These "stratifications" are consequence non-stationary magnetospheric convection. Distinction between these events consists that "stratification" in a southern hemisphere occurs in active phase of substorm, and in northern hemisphere in recovery phase. During a substorm beginning in 00 UT, foF2 increases in all northern polar cap. Positive disturbances of foF2 in the equatorial anomaly region cause all presented substorms, except for a substorm beginning in 18 UT

Remote In-Situ Quantitative Mineralogical Analysis Using XRD/XRF

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blake, D. F.; Bish, D.; Vaniman, D.; Chipera, S.; Sarrazin, P.; Collins, S. A.; Elliott, S. T.

2001-01-01

X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) is the most direct and accurate method for determining mineralogy. The CHEMIN XRD/XRF instrument has shown promising results on a variety of mineral and rock samples. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Last deglaciation of the Svalbard/Barents Sea Ice Sheet - a swath bathymetric and sub-bottom seismic study from the Kveithola Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rebesco, Michele; Liu, Yanguang; Camerlenghi, Angelo; Winsborrow, Monica; Sverre Laberg, Jan; Caburlotto, Andrea; Diviacco, Paolo; Accettella, Daniela; Sauli, Chiara; Wardell, Nigel

2010-05-01

Kveithola Trough, an E-W trending cross-shelf glacial trough in the NW Barents Sea, was surveyed for the first time during the EGLACOM cruise between 8th July and 4th August 2008 on board R/V OGS-Explora. EGLACOM (Evolution of a GLacial Arctic COntinental Margin: the southern Svalbard ice stream-dominated sedimentary system) project is the Italian contribution to the International Polar Year (IPY) Activity 367 (Neogene ice streams and sedimentary processes on high- latitude continental margins - NICE STREAMS). Such IPY activity included as well the Spanish SVAIS 2008 cruise on board BIO Hesperides. EGLACOM data acquisition, focused on the Storfjorden Fan and Kveithola Trough, included a multi-channel seismic (MCS) reflection survey and the simultaneous collection of swath bathymetry and sub-bottom CHIRP profiles. Swath bathymetry in the Kveithola Trough shows that the seafloor is characterized by E-W trending mega-scale glacial lineations (MSGL). These include large-scale ridges about 2 km wide and 15 m high as well as smaller grooves about 100 m wide and a few metres deep. Such MSGL record the fast flow of an ice stream draining the Svalbard/Barents Sea Ice Sheet (SBSIS) during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). MSGL are overprinted by transverse sediment ridges about 15 km apart which give rise to a staircase long profile of the trough. Such transverse ridges are interpreted as grounding-zone wedges (GZW) formed by deposition of unconsolidated, saturated subglacial till during ice stream retreat. Sub-bottom (CHIRP) and multi-channel reflection seismic data show that the morphology is controlled by stacked sets of lensoidal transparent units (tills) overlain by a draping glaciomarine unit up to over 15 m thick. Formed during temporary stillstands in grounding-zone position before complete deglaciation, GZW ridges are diagnostic of episodic retreat. Our data allow the reconstruction of deglaciation in the Spitsbergen Bank area, with each stage during deglaciation

Arsenic in New England: Mineralogical and geochemical studies of sources and enrichment pathways

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ayuso, Robert A.; Foley, Nora K.

2003-01-01

Detailed mineralogical, geochemical and radiogenic isotopic studies of iron-sulfide and secondary iron oxy-hydroxide minerals in natural bedrock in coastal Maine and New Hampshire test the link between arsenic-rich sulfide minerals in bedrock and secondary oxy-hydroxide minerals. Samples were selected from over 70 bedrock localities, including 22 within the regionally extensive and sulfide-mineral-rich Penobscot Formation and 10 associated with mineral deposits from coastal New Hampshire and Maine, and coupled with data from drill core collected at several sites including areas where well waters contain anomalous As abundances (e.g., Northport, ME). The data were used to establish a diversity of primary and secondary mineralogical hosts for arsenic in bedrock of this part of New England. The studies show that bedrock mineralogy is critical to contributing arsenic to groundwater and suggest a number of mineralogical pathways for arsenic that define weathering processes. The studies show that lead isotopic compositions of the sulfides and iron oxy-hydroxides overlap and establish a genetic link between the sulfides and secondary minerals. The data and interpretive results were presented at Arsenic in New England -- A multidisciplinary Scientific Conference, Manchester, New Hampshire, May 29-31, 2002, sponsored by the New Hampshire Consortium on Arsenic, are available in abstract and poster (full size = 84 by 36 inch sheet) formats.

Low-dose factor VIII infusion in Chinese adult haemophilia A patients: pharmacokinetics evidence that daily infusion results in higher trough level than with every-other-day infusion with similar factor VIII consumption.

PubMed

Hua, B; Lee, A; Fan, L; Li, K; Zhang, Y; Poon, M-C; Zhao, Y

2017-05-01

Pharmacokinetics (PK) modelling suggests improvement of trough levels are achieved by using more frequent infusion strategy. However, no clinical study data exists to confirm or quantify improvement in trough level, particularly for low-dose prophylaxis in patients with haemophilia A. To provide evidence that low dose daily (ED) prophylaxis can increase trough levels without increasing FVIII consumption compared to every-other-day (EOD) infusion. A cross-over study on 5 IU kg -1 FVIII daily vs. 10 IU kg -1 EOD infusions, each for 14 days was conducted at the PUMCH-HTC. On the ED schedule, trough (immediate prior to infusion), and peak FVIII:C levels (30 min after infusion) were measured on days 1-5; and trough levels alone on days 7, 9, 11 and 13. For the EOD schedule, troughs, peaks and 4-h postinfusion were measured on day 1; troughs and peaks on days 3, 5, and 7; troughs alone on days 9, 11 and 13 and 24-h postinfusion on days 2, 4 and 6. FVIII inhibitors were assessed on days 0 and 14 during both infusion schedules. Six patients were enrolled. PK evidence showed that daily prophylaxis achieved higher (~2 times) steady-state FVIII trough levels compared to EOD with the same total factor consumption. The daily prophylaxis had good acceptability among patients and reduced chronic pain in the joints in some patients. Our PK study shows low-dose factor VIII daily infusion results in higher trough level than with EOD infusion with similar factor VIII consumption in Chinese adult haemophilia A patients. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Observational and Data Reduction Techniques to Optimize Mineralogical Characterizations of Asteroid Surface Materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaffey, M. J.

2003-01-01

Mineralogy is the key to determining the compositional history of the asteroids and to determining the genetic relationships between the asteroids and meteorites. The most sophisticated remote mineralogical characterizations involve the quantitative extraction of specific diagnostic parameters from reflectance spectra and the use of quantitative interpretive calibrations to determine the presence, abundance and/or composition of mineral phases in a surface material. Although this approach is potentially subject to systematic errors, it provides the only consistent set of asteroid surface material characterizations.

The chemistry and mineralogy of Mars soil and dust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Banin, A.

1991-01-01

A single geological unit consisting of fine, apparently weathered soil material is covering large portions of the surface of Mars. This soil material has been thoroughly homogenized by global dust storms and it is plausible to assume that Mars dust is strongly correlated with it. The chemical-elemental composition of the soil was directly measured by the Viking Landers. Positive detection of Si, Al, Fe, Mg, Ca, Ti, S, Cl, and Br was achieved. Analyses of the SNC meteorites, a group of meteorites that has been suggested to be ejected Martian rocks, supply additional elemental-concentration data, broadening considerably the chemical data-base on the surface materials. A composition model for Mars soil, giving selected average elemental concentrations of major and trace elements, was recently suggested. It was constructed by combining the Viking Lander data, the SNC meteorite analyses, and other analyses. The mineralogy of the surface materials on Mars has not been directly measured yet. By use of various indirect approaches, including chemical correspondence to the surface analyses, spectral analogies, simulations of Viking Lander experiments, analyses of the SNC meteorites and various modeling efforts, the mineralogical composition was constrained to some extent. No direct analyses of soil reactivity have been done yet. Indirect evidence, mostly from the Viking biology experimental results, suggests that the soil probably has a slightly acidic reaction and is generally oxidized. Unambiguous identification of the Mars soil minerals by direct mineralogical analyses, and non-disturbed or in-situ measurements of the soil's reactivity, are of primary importance in future Mars research.

Geochemistry and Mineralogy of Western Australian Salt Lake Sediments: Implications for Meridiani Planum on Mars.

PubMed

Ruecker, A; Schröder, C; Byrne, J; Weigold, P; Behrens, S; Kappler, A

2016-07-01

Hypersaline lakes are characteristic for Western Australia and display a rare combination of geochemical and mineralogical properties that make these lakes potential analogues for past conditions on Mars. In our study, we focused on the geochemistry and mineralogy of Lake Orr and Lake Whurr. While both lakes are poor in organic carbon (<1%), the sediments' pH values differ and range from 3.8 to 4.8 in Lake Orr and from 5.4 to 6.3 in Lake Whurr sediments. Lake Whurr sediments were dominated by orange and red sediment zones in which the main Fe minerals were identified as hematite, goethite, and tentatively jarosite and pyrite. Lake Orr was dominated by brownish and blackish sediments where the main Fe minerals were goethite and another paramagnetic Fe(III)-phase that could not be identified. Furthermore, a likely secondary Fe(II)-phase was observed in Lake Orr sediments. The mineralogy of these two salt lakes in the sampling area is strongly influenced by events such as flooding, evaporation, and desiccation, processes that explain at least to some extent the observed differences between Lake Orr and Lake Whurr. The iron mineralogy of Lake Whurr sediments and the high salinity make this lake a suitable analogue for Meridiani Planum on Mars, and in particular the tentative identification of pyrite in Lake Whurr sediments has implications for the interpretation of the Fe mineralogy of Meridiani Planum sediments. Western Australia-Salt lakes-Jarosite-Hematite-Pyrite-Mars analogue. Astrobiology 16, 525-538.

Oblique Northeastward Lateral Extrusion of a Crustal Block in North-central Taiwan: a Mechanism for Syn-tectonic Extension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gourley, J. R.; Byrne, T.

2005-12-01

An integrated data set of earthquake locations (Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau), focal mechanisms from the Broadband Array of Taiwan Seismicity (BATS), GPS velocities and geologic data are combined to constrain the geometry and kinematics of a crustal block within the metamorphic basement of Taiwan's northeastern Central Range. The active block is bounded by two parallel seismic zones that accommodate uplift and northeastward oblique lateral extrusion. The western shear zone is a region that dips vertically to steeply west and projects generally to the western boundary between the Slate Belt and pre-Tertiary metamorphic basement. BATS focal mechanisms consistently show east-side-up, left-lateral normal displacements. Late-stage geologic structures published previously show left-lateral faulting followed by east-west extension. The eastern shear zone dips vertically to steeply west and projects to the eastern boundary of the metamorphic basement, which correlates with the eastern mountain front in this area. BATS focal mechanisms show west-side-up reverse displacements. The kinematics of these two zones define a crustal scale block that is interpreted to be moving up and northeast towards the Okinawa Trough. The extrusion of this crustal block may be driven in part by the topographic difference between the Central Range and the Okinawa Trough, as well as by the active collision between the Philippine Sea Plate and the Eurasian basement high. This proposed northeastern lateral extrusion mirrors the active lateral extrusion in southwestern Taiwan which is observed on the southern side of the Eurasian basement high collision. The involvement of the basement high in the collision and adjacent regions appears to be an important factor in understanding local structural variations in the arc-continent collision and should be considered in both forward and reverse modeling of Taiwan deformation.

Exploring geothermal structures in the Ilan Plain, Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Chien-Ying; Shih, Ruey-Chan; Chung, Chen-Tung; Huang, Ming-Zi; Kuo, Hsuan-Yu

2017-04-01

The Ilan Plain in northeast Taiwan is located at the southwestern tip of the Okinawa Trough, which extends westward into the Taiwan orogeny. The Ilan Plain covered by thick sediments is clipped by the Hsuehshan Range in the northern side and the Central Range in the southern side. High geothermal gradients with plenteous hot springs of this area may result from igneous intrusion associated with the back-arc spreading of the Okinawa Trough. In this study, we use reflection seismic survey to explore underground structures in the whole Ilan Plain, especially in SanShin, Wujie, and Lize area. We aim to find the relationship between underground structures and geothermal forming mechanism. The research uses reflection seismic survey to investigate the high geothermal gradient area with two mini-vibrators and 240-channel system. The total length of seismic lines is more than 30 kilometers. The results show that alluvial sediments covering the area about 400 600 meters thick and then thin out to the west in SanShin area. In SanShin , the Taiyaqiao anticline in Hsuehshan Range has entered the plain area and is bounded by the Zhuoshui fault (south) and the Zailian fault (north). In Wujie and Lize , Zhuoshui fault cut through a strong reflector which is the top of the gravel layer near the bottom of the alluvial layer, while the SanShin fault seems to cut near very shallow strata. These two faults are a strike-slip fault with a bit of normal fault component distributing over a range of 600 meters. In Ilan Plain, the geothermal forming mechanism is controlled by anticlines and faults. The hydrothermal solution which migrates upward along these anticline or fault zones to the shallow part causing high geothermal gradients in these areas.

Resolving the fault systems with the magnetotelluric method in the western Ilan plain of NE Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, P. Y.; Chen, C. S.

2017-12-01

In the study we attempt to use the magnetotelluric (MT) surveys to delineate the basement topography of the western part of the Ilan plain. The triangular plain is located on the extension part of the Okinawa Trough, and is thought to be a subsidence basin bounded by the Hsueshan Range in the north and the Central Range in the south. The basement of the basin is composed of Tertiary metamorphic rocks such as argillites and slates. The recent extension of the Okinawa Trough started from approximately 0.1 Ma and involved ENE- and WSW-trending normal faults that may extended into the Ilan plain area. However, high sedimentation rates as well as the frequent human activities have resulted in unconsolidated sediments with a thickness of over 100 meters, and caused the difficulties in observing the surface traces of the active faults in the area. Hence we deployed about 70 MT stations across the southwestern tip of the triangular plain. We also tried to resolve the subsurface faults the relief variations of the basement with the inverted resistivity images, since the saturated sediments are relatively conductive and the consolidated rocks are resistive. With the inverted MT images, we found that there are a series of N-S trending horsts and grabens in addition to the ENE-WSW normal fault systems. The ENE-WSW trending faults are dipping mainly toward the north in our study area in the western tip of the Ilan plain. The preliminary results suggest that a younger N-S trending normal fault system may modify the relief of the basement in the recent stage after the activation of the ENE-WSW normal faults. The findings of the MT resistivity images provide new information to further review the tectonic explanations of the region in the future.

Mineralogical Studies Related to Endemic Diseases in Rural P. R. China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Belkin, H. E.; Zheng, B.; Finkelman, R. B.

2003-12-01

Domestic combustion of coal for heating and cooking is mostly confined to the world's developing countries and probably involves about 1 billion persons in China, India, Indonesia, and Africa. Various endemic diseases affecting millions of people involving arsenic, selenium, and fluorine poisoning have been associated with domestic coal combustion in rural China. We have investigated the relationship between mineralized coals (and stone coals) and disease occurrences in Guizhou and Hubei Provinces. The mineralogy of the coals has been studied by a wide variety of techniques, including optical petrography, scanning electron microscopy, electron microprobe analysis, ion probe, Synchrotron XANES-EXAFS, and Raman spectroscopy. Arsenic enrichment (up to 3 weight percent) in Upper Permian Longtan Formation coals, southwestern Guizhou Province, occurs in both 3+ and 5+ valence states. Arsenic occurs in arsenopyrite, pyrite, Al-phosphate, scorodite, Fe-oxides, and as an organically-bound species. Fluorine poisoning, much more widespread than arsenic-poisoning, is related to burning F-rich coals and F-rich clays as admixtures. Mineralogical and chemical analysis suggests that the clays contain the fluorine probably substituting for the hydroxyl group. Localized selenium poisoning in Hubei Province is related to Se-rich stone coals. The selenium occurs as a native element and in rare mandarinoite. In these three cases, knowledge of the paragenesis and mineralogy of the element enrichment in coal was vital to help understand and mitigate the endemic diseases. For the situation concerning arsenic and selenium poisoning, suspect coals have been identified and mining from these deposits has been curtailed. Fluorine has been a much more difficult problem for the local public health officials as both the coal and clay in the burning admixture can contain high fluorine. Regional geochemical and mineralogical studies will help to define coal and clay with low fluorine, suitable for

Laboratory simulation of hydrothermal petroleum formation from sediment in Escanaba Trough, offshore from northern California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kvenvolden, K.A.; Rapp, J.B.; Hostettler, F.D.; Rosenbauer, R.J.

1994-01-01

Petroleum associated with sulfide-rich sediment is present in Escanaba Trough at the southern end of the Gorda Ridge spreading axis offshore from northern California within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the U.S. This location and occurrence are important for evaluation of the mineral and energy resource potential of the seafloor under U.S. jurisdiction. In Escanaba Trough, petroleum is believed to be formed by hydrothermal processes acting on mainly terrigenous organic material in Quaternary, river-derived sediment. To attempt to simulate these processes in the laboratory, portions of a Pleistocene gray-green mud, obtained from ??? 1.5 m below the seafloor at a water depth of ??? 3250 m in Escanaba Trough, were heated in the presence of water in four hydrous-pyrolysis experiments conducted at temperatures ranging from 250 to 350??C and at a pressure of 350 bar for 1.0-4.5 days. Distributions of n-alkanes, isoprenoid hydrocarbons, triterpanes, and steranes in the heated samples were compared with those in a sample of hydrothermal petroleum from the same area. Mud samples heated for less than 4.5 days at less than 350??C show changes in some, but not all, molecular marker ratios of organic compounds that are consistent with those expected during hydrothermal petroleum formation. Our results suggest that the organic matter in this type of sediment serves as one possible source for some of the compounds found in the hydrothermal petroleum. ?? 1994.

Mineralogy of Mare Serenitatis on the near side of the Moon based on Chandrayaan-1 Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaur, Prabhjot; Bhattacharya, Satadru; Chauhan, Prakash; Ajai; Kiran Kumar, A. S.

2013-01-01

Spectral analysis of Mare Serenitatis has been carried out using Chandrayaan-1 Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) data in order to map the compositional diversity of the basaltic units that exist in the basin. Mare Serenitatis is characterized by multiple basaltic flows of different ages indicating a prolonged volcanism subsequent to the basin formation event. Reflectance spectra of fresh craters from the Mare Serenitatis have been analyzed to study the nature and location of the spectral absorption features around 1- and 2-μm respectively, arising due to the electronic charge transition of Fe2+ in the crystal lattice of pyroxenes and/or olivine. Chandrayaan-1 M3 data have been utilized to obtain an Integrated Band Depth (IBD) mosaic of the Serenitatis basin. Based on the spectral variations observed in the IBD mosaic, 13 spectral units have been mapped in the Mare Serenitatis. In the present study, we have also derived spectral band parameters, namely, band center, band strength, band area and band area ratio from the M3 data to study the mineralogical and compositional variations amongst the basaltic units of the studied basin. On the basis of spectral band parameter analysis, the pyroxene compositions of the basaltic units have been determined, which vary from low to intermediate end of the high-Ca pyroxene and probably represent a sub-calcic to calcic augite compositional range. Detailed spectral analyses reveal little variations in the mafic mineralogy of the mare basalts in terms of pyroxene chemistry. The uniformity in pyroxene composition across the basaltic units of Mare Serenitatis, therefore, suggest a probably stable basaltic source region, which might not have experienced large-scale fractionation during the prolonged volcanism that resulted in filling of the large Serenitatis basin.

Chemical and Mineralogical Characterization of a Hematite-bearing Ridge on Mauna Kea, Hawaii: A Potential Mineralogical Process Analog for the Mount Sharp Hematite Ridge

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Graff, T. G.; Morris, R. V.; Ming, D. W.; Hamilton, J. C.; Adams, M.; Fraeman, A. A.; Arvidson, R. E.; Catalano, J. G.; Mertzman, S. A.

2014-01-01

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover Curiosity landed in Gale Crater in August 2012 and is currently roving towards the layered central mound known as Mount Sharp [1]. Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) hyperspectral data indicate Mount Sharp contains an 5 km stratigraphic sequence including Fe-Mg smectites, hematite, and hydrated sulfates in the lower layers separated by an unconformity from the overlying anhydrous strata [1,2,3]. Hematite was initially detected in CRISM data to occur in the lower sulfate layers on the north side of the mound [2]. [3] further mapped a distinct hematite detection occurring as part of a 200 m wide ridge that extends 6.5 km NE-SW, approximately parallel with the base of Mount Sharp. It is likely a target for in-situ analyses by Curiosity. We document here the occurrence of a stratum of hematite-bearing breccia that is exposed on the Puu Poliahu cinder cone near the summit of Mauna Kea volcano (Hawaii) (Fig.1). The stratum is more resistant to weathering than surrounding material, giving it the appearance of a ridge. The Mauna Kea hematite ridge is thus arguably a potential terrestrial mineralogical and process analog for the Gale Crater hematite ridge. We are acquiring a variety of chemical and mineralogical data on the Mauna Kea samples, with a focus on the chemical and mineralogical information already available or planned for the Gale hematite ridge.

Palaeogeographic implications of the Messinian surface in the Valencia trough, northwestern Mediterranean Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Escutia, C.; Maldonado, A.

1992-03-01

Sparker (3000 J and 8000 J) and multichannel seismic reflection profiles across the Valencia trough show a Messinian unconformity incised by numerous valleys. The main feature of this surface is a large valley that generally underlies the present Valencia valley and is deeply entrenched into the Miocene deposits. The size of this palaeo-valley ranges from 0.5 km wide and 15-100 m deep at its western end, to 1.6-2.8 km wide and 200-250 m deep downstream. An important tributary system is observed, with a main canyon (6-8 km wide and 150-200 m deep) draining the Ebro margin, as well as many other smaller valleys draining the Catalan and Balearic margins. Downstream, other tributaries underlie the present canyons of the Catalan margin. The location of the tributary system is controlled by the Early Miocene rift structures. The relief of the Messinian surface is affected by post-Miocene deformation that results from salt diapirism, extensional faulting and related volcanism. Late Neogene to Quaternary volcanic edifices cut the Messinian surface and coincide with large residual magnetic anomalies. Lower Pliocene to Quaternary salt diapirism in the abyssal plain north of Menorca has created a series of structural highs. Between these highs are deep interdiapiric troughs or basins that have become sediment depocentres during the Plio-Quaternary. The complex network of erosional valleys from the Valencia trough continental margin demonstrates that the valley system in the basin was not related to the refilling of the Mediterranean, but to the Iberian and Balearic margin palaeodrainage that developed during the Messinian desiccation. The presence of at least three erosional unconformities suggests that there were alternating periods of flooding and retreat of Atlantic water during Messinian time. The Messinian subaerial margin with erosional valleys contrasts sharply with the Pliocene-Quaternary marine margin with progradational turbidite systems.

LCOE reduction potential of parabolic trough and solar tower CSP technology until 2025

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dieckmann, Simon; Dersch, Jürgen; Giuliano, Stefano; Puppe, Michael; Lüpfert, Eckhard; Hennecke, Klaus; Pitz-Paal, Robert; Taylor, Michael; Ralon, Pablo

2017-06-01

Concentrating Solar Power (CSP), with an installed capacity of 4.9 GW by 2015, is a young technology compared to other renewable power generation technologies. A limited number of plants and installed capacity in a small challenging market environment make reliable and transparent cost data for CSP difficult to obtain. The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the DLR German Aerospace Center gathered and evaluated available cost data from various sources for this publication in order to yield transparent, reliable and up-to-date cost data for a set of reference parabolic trough and solar tower plants in the year 2015 [1]. Each component of the power plant is analyzed for future technical innovations and cost reduction potential based on current R&D activities, ongoing commercial developments and growth in market scale. The derived levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for 2015 and 2025 are finally contrasted with published power purchase agreements (PPA) of the NOOR II+III power plants in Morocco. At 7.5% weighted average cost of capital (WACC) and 25 years economic life time, the levelized costs of electricity for plants with 7.5 (trough) respectively 9 (tower) full-load hours thermal storage capacity decrease from 14-15 -ct/kWh today to 9-10 -ct/kWh by 2025 for both technologies at direct normal irradiation of 2500 kWh/(m².a). The capacity factor increases from 41.1% to 44.6% for troughs and from 45.5% to 49.0% for towers. Financing conditions are a major cost driver and offer potential for further cost reduction with the maturity of the technology and low interest rates (6-7 - ct/kWh for 2% WACC at 2500 kWh/(m2.a) in 2025).

Harmonization of standards for parabolic trough collector testing in solar thermal power plants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sallaberry, Fabienne; Valenzuela, Loreto; Palacin, Luis G.; Leon, Javier; Fischer, Stephan; Bohren, Andreas

2017-06-01

The technology of parabolic trough collectors (PTC) is used widely in concentrating Solar Power (CSP) plants worldwide. However this type of large-size collectors cannot be officially tested by an accredited laboratory and certified by an accredited certification body so far, as there is no standard adapted to its particularity, and the current published standard for solar thermal collectors are not completely applicable to them. Recently some standardization committees have been working on this technology. This paper aims to give a summary of the standardized testing methodology of large-size PTC for CSP plants, giving the physical model chosen for modeling the thermal performance of the collector in the new revision of standard ISO 9806 and the points still to be improved in the standard draft IEC 62862-3-2. In this paper, a summary of the testing validation performed on one parabolic trough collector installed in one of the test facilities at the Plataforma Solar de Almería (PSA) with this new model is also presented.

Constraints on mantle melt geometries from body wave attenuation in the Salton Trough and Snake River Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byrnes, J. S.; Bezada, M.

2017-12-01

Melt can be retained in the mantle at triple junctions between grain boundaries, be spread in thin films along two-grain boundaries, or be organized by shear into elongate melt-rich bands. Which of these geometries is most prevalent is unknown. This ambiguity makes the interpretation of anomalous seismic velocities and quality factors difficult, since different geometries would result in different mechanical effects. Here, we compare observations of seismic attenuation beneath the Salton Trough and the Snake River Plain; two regions where the presence of melt has been inferred. The results suggest that seismic attenuation is diagnostic of melt geometry. We measure the relative attenuation of P waves from deep focus earthquakes using a time-domain method. Even though the two regions are underlain by comparably strong low-velocity anomalies, their attenuation signature is very different. The upper mantle beneath the Salton Trough is sufficiently attenuating that the presence of melt must lower Qp, while attenuation beneath the Snake River Plain is not anomalous with respect to surrounding regions. These seemingly contradictory results can be reconciled if different melt geometries characterize each region. SKS splitting from the Salton Trough suggests that melt is organized into melt-rich bands, while this is not the case for the Snake River Plain. We infer that beneath the Snake River Plain melt is retained at triple junctions between grain boundaries, a geometry that is not predicted to cause seismic attenuation. More elongate geometries beneath the Salton Trough may cause seismic attenuation via the melt-squirt mechanism. In light of these results, we conclude that prior observations of low seismic velocities with somewhat high quality factors beneath the East Pacific Rise and Southern California suggest that melt does not organize into elongate bands across much of the asthenosphere.

Quantitative x-ray diffraction mineralogy of Los Angeles basin core samples

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hein, James R.; McIntyre, Brandie R.; Edwards, Brian D.; Lakota, Orion I.

2006-01-01

This report contains X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of mineralogy for 81 sediment samples from cores taken from three drill holes in the Los Angeles Basin in 2000-2001. We analyzed 26 samples from Pier F core, 29 from Pier C core, and 26 from the Webster core. These three sites provide an offshore-onshore record across the Southern California coastal zone. This report is designed to be a data repository; these data will be used in further studies, including geochemical modeling as part of the CABRILLO project. Summary tables quantify the major mineral groups, whereas detailed mineralogy is presented in three appendices. The rationale, methodology, and techniques are described in the following paper.

Impact of Serum Vancomycin Trough Levels in the Treatment of Central Nervous System Shunt Infections Caused by Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci.

PubMed

Gibson, Ashley; Kaplan, Sheldon L; Vallejo, Jesus G

2018-04-26

Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) are a common cause of pediatric ventricular shunt infections. The Infectious Diseases Society of America recommends vancomycin serum troughs of 15-20 µg/mL when treating CoNS shunt infections in adult patients. We report a series of pediatric cases of CoNS shunt infections in which clinical cure was obtained with troughs < 15 µg/mL. These findings question the relevance of this recommendation in pediatric patients. © 2018 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Computer modeling of the mineralogy of the Martian surface, as modified by aqueous alteration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zolensky, M. E.; Bourcier, W. L.; Gooding, J. L.

1988-01-01

Mineralogical constraints can be placed on the Martian surface by assuming chemical equilibria among the surface rocks, atmosphere and hypothesized percolating groundwater. A study was made of possible Martian surface mineralogy, as modified by the action of aqueous alteration, using the EQ3/6 computer codes. These codes calculate gas fugacities, aqueous speciation, ionic strength, pH, Eh and concentration and degree of mineral saturation for complex aqueous systems. Thus, these codes are also able to consider mineralogical solid solutions. These codes are able to predict the likely alteration phases which will occur as the result of weathering on the Martian surface. Knowledge of the stability conditions of these phases will then assist in the definition of the specifications for the sample canister of the proposed Martian sample return mission. The model and its results are discussed.

The Tethys Rifting of the Valencia Trough Basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viñas, Marina; Ranero, César R.; Cameselle, Alejandra L.

2017-04-01

The western Mediterranean submarine realm is composed of several basin inferred to be formed by a common geodynamic process: upper plate extension during slab rollback of a retreating subduction zone. Although the time evolution of the geometry of the trenches is debated, all models assume that basins opened sequentially from NW (Gulf of Lions) towards the SE (Ligurian-Provençal and later Tyrrhenian basins) and SW (Valencia Trough and later Algerian-South Balearic and Alboran Basin) as trenches migrated. Basin opening history is key to reconstruct kinematics of slab retreat preferred in each model. However, the deep structure of basins is inadequately known due to the paucity of modern wide-angle and multichannel reflection seismic studies across entire systems, and absence of deep drilling in the deep-water regions of the basins, as a result, much of the opening evolution is inferred from indirect evidence. In the Valencia Trough Basin (VTB), drilling and vintage seismic data provide good knowledge of the shallow geology of the basin. However, crustal-scale information across the entire VTB has been limited to two studies (Figure 1): One in the late 80's (Valsis experiment) with three Expanded Spread Profiles that yielded local 1D velocity/depth models used to constrain 2D gravity modeling, and a few multichannel seismic profiles along the Iberian shelf and across segments of the basin. A second study in the early 90's (ESCI experiment) collected a low-resolution deep-penetration multichannel seismic reflection profile across the basin and a coincident wide-angle seismic line with numerous land stations in Iberia but a handful of widely-spaced Ocean Bottom Seismometers. In the absence of modern detailed crustal structure, the origin and evolution of the VTB is still debated. Industry multichannel seismic reflection profiles cover the SW segment of the VTB. This is a region where the basin sea floor is comparatively shallower and has numerous industry wells

Petrology of the axial ridge of the Mariana Trough backarc spreading center

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hawkins, J. W.; Lonsdale, P. F.; Macdougall, J. D.; Volpe, A. M.

1990-10-01

The axial ridge of the Mariana Trough backarc basin, between 17°40'N and 18°30'N rises as much as 1 km above the floor of a 10-15 km wide rift valley. Physiographic segmentation, with minor ridge offsets and overlaps, coincides with a petrologic segmentation seen in trace element and isotope chemistry. Analyses of 239 glass and 40 aphyric basalt samples, collected with ALVIN and by dredging, show that the axial ridge is formed largely of (olivine) hypersthene-normative tholeiitic basalt. About half of these are enriched in both LIL elements and volatiles, but are depleted in HFS elements like other rocks found throughout much of the Mariana Trough. The LIL enrichments distinguish these rocks from N-MORB even though Nd and Sr isotope ratios indicate that much of the crust formed from a source similar to that for N-MORB. In addition to LIL-enriched basalt there is LIL depleted basalts even more closely resembling N-MORB in major and trace elements as well as Sr, Nd and Pb isotopes. Both basalt varieties have higher Al and lower total Fe than MORB at equivalent Mg level. Mg# ranges from relatively "primitive" (e.g. Mg# 65-70) to more highly fractionated (e.g. Mg# 45-50). Highest parts of the axial ridge are capped by pinnacles with elongated pillows of basaltic andesite (e.g. 52-56%) SiO 2. These are due to extreme fractional crystallization of basalts forming the axial ridge. Active hydrothermal vents with chimneys and mats of opaline silica, barite, sphalerite and lesser amounts of pyrite, chalcopyrite and galena formed near these silicic rocks. The vents are surrounded by distinctive vent animals, polychaete worms, crabs and barnacles. Isotope data indicate that the Mariana Trough crust was derived from a heterogeneous source including mantle resembling the MORB-source and an "arc-source" component. The latter was depleted in HFS elements in previous melting events and later modified by addition of H 2O and LIL elements.

Chemistry and Mineralogy of Antarctica Dry Valley Soils: Implications for Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Quinn, J. E.; Golden, D. C.; Graff, T. G.; Ming, D. W.; Morris, R. V.; Douglas, S.; Kounaves, S. P.; McKay, C. P.; Tamppari, L, K.; Smith, P. H.;

Forearc sedimentation in Terraba Trough, Costa Rica, Central America

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yuan, P.B.; Lowe, D.R.

1987-05-01

Sedimentary rocks of Terraba Trough, Costa Rica, were deposited in a forearc basin developed at an ocean-ocean convergent boundary. The basin developed in the middle to late Eocene when the Farallon plate began its subduction beneath the Caribbean plate. Shallow-water carbonates of the Brito Formation were deposited on shoals of basement blocks. These were surrounded by deeper marine areas in which volcaniclastics and carbonate debris accumulated. The Brito Formation consists of algal-foraminiferal packstone to grainstone, rudstone, and rare wackestone formed in fore-slope, carbonate buildup, and open platform environments in a warm, tropical sea. The Eocene Brito Formation is overlain bymore » rocks of the upper Oligocene Rio Claro Member of the Terraba Formation. It is composed of rhodolite and bioclastic grainstone deposited in shallow water. A combination of little subsidence, mild volcanism, and possible erosion at about 30 Ma during a global drop of sea level may be responsible for the absence of lower Oligocene rocks in the study area. After the deposition of the Rio Claro Member, the area subsided rapidly to become a trough possibly deeper than 2000 m. Sedimentation took place in deep water from sediment gravity flows. In the early to early middle Miocene, coarser sediments and thicker sand units containing coal fragments became more abundant, suggesting that the basin was gradually filled. This study indicates that the timing and degree of subsidence of the fore-arc basin and the vertical variation in lithology are closely related to the variation in convergence rate between lithospheric plates in this part of Central America and the eastern Pacific.« less

Asteroid surface mineralogy: Evidence from earth-based telescope observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mccord, T. B.

1978-01-01

The interpretation of asteroid reflectance spectrophotometry in terms of mineralogical types gives inferred mineral assemblages for about 60 asteroids. Asteroid surface materials are compared with similar materials that make up many meteorites. The absence of asteroids with spectra that match identically the ordinary chondrites is noted.

Tetrodotoxin and Its Analogues in the Pufferfish Arothron hispidus and A. nigropunctatus from the Solomon Islands: A Comparison of Their Toxin Profiles with the Same Species from Okinawa, Japan

PubMed Central

Gorapava Puilingi, Clyde; Kudo, Yuta; Cho, Yuko; Konoki, Keiichi; Yotsu-Yamashita, Mari

2015-01-01

Pufferfish poisoning has not been well documented in the South Pacific, although fish and other seafood are sources of protein in these island nations. In this study, tetrodotoxin (TTX) and its analogues in each organ of the pufferfish Arothron hispidus and A. nigropunctatus collected in the Solomon Islands were investigated using high resolution LC-MS. The toxin profiles of the same two species of pufferfish from Okinawa, Japan were also examined for comparison. TTXs concentrations were higher in the skin of both species from both regions, and relatively lower in the liver, ovary, testis, stomach, intestine, and flesh. Due to higher TTX concentrations (51.0 and 28.7 µg/g at highest) detected in the skin of the two species from the Solomon Islands (saxitoxin was <0.02 µg/g), these species should be banned from consumption. Similar results were obtained from fish collected in Okinawa, Japan: TTX in the skin of A. hispidus and A. nigropunctatus were 12.7 and 255 µg/g, respectively, at highest, and saxitoxin was also detected in the skin (2.80 µg/g at highest) and ovary of A. hispidus. TTX, 5,6,11-trideoxyTTX (with its 4-epi form), and its anhydro forms were the most abundant, and 11-oxoTTX was commonly detected in the skin. PMID:26343722

Mineralogy and pore water chemistry of a boiler ash from a MSW fluidized-bed incinerator.

PubMed

Bodénan, F; Guyonnet, D; Piantone, P; Blanc, P

2010-07-01

This paper presents an investigation of the mineralogy and pore water chemistry of a boiler ash sampled from a municipal solid waste fluidized-bed incinerator, subject to 18 months of dynamic leaching in a large percolation column experiment. A particular focus is on the redox behaviour of Cr(VI) in relation to metal aluminium Al(0), as chromium may represent an environmental or health hazard. The leaching behaviour and interaction between Cr(VI) and Al(0) are interpreted on the basis of mineralogical evolutions observed over the 18-month period and of saturation indices calculated with the geochemical code PhreeqC and reviewed thermodynamic data. Results of mineralogical analyses show in particular the alteration of mineral phases during leaching (e.g. quartz and metal aluminium grains), while geochemical calculations suggest equilibria of percolating fluids with respect to specific mineral phases (e.g. monohydrocalcite and aluminium hydroxide). The combination of leaching data on a large scale and mineralogical analyses document the coupled leaching behaviour of aluminium and chromium, with chromium appearing in the pore fluids in its hexavalent and mobile state once metal aluminium is no longer available for chromium reduction. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analysis, development and testing of a fixed tilt solar collector employing reversible Vee-Trough reflectors and vacuum tube receivers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Selcuk, M. K.

1979-01-01

The Vee-Trough/Vacuum Tube Collector (VTVTC) aimed to improve the efficiency and reduce the cost of collectors assembled from evacuated tube receivers. The VTVTC was analyzed rigorously and a mathematical model was developed to calculate the optical performance of the vee-trough concentrator and the thermal performance of the evacuated tube receiver. A test bed was constructed to verify the mathematical analyses and compare reflectors made out of glass, Alzak and aluminized GEB Teflon. Tests were run at temperatures ranging from 95 to 180 C during the months of April, May, June, July and August 1977. Vee-trough collector efficiencies of 35-40 per cent were observed at an operating temperature of about 175 C. Test results compared well with the calculated values. Test data covering a complete day are presented for selected dates throughout the test season. Predicted daily useful heat collection and efficiency values are presented for a year's duration at operation temperatures ranging from 65 to 230 C. Estimated collector costs and resulting thermal energy costs are presented. Analytical and experimental results are discussed along with an economic evaluation.

Sand and clay mineralogy of sal forest soils of the Doon Siwalik Himalayas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukesh; Manhas, R. K.; Tripathi, A. K.; Raina, A. K.; Gupta, M. K.; Kamboj, S. K.

2011-02-01

The peteromineralogical characterization of the soil was carried out for the 12 soil profiles exposed in the Shorea robusta dominated forests of the Siwalik forest division, Dehradun. The quartz was observed as the dominating light mineral fraction (64-80%) in all the profiles studied. Biotite, hornblende, zircon, tourmaline, rutile and opaques comprising of iron minerals constituted the heavy mineral fraction (20%). The mineralogy of both the sand and clay fractions revealed a mixed mineralogy. The clay minerals in the order of their dominance were vermiculite, illite, kaolinite and mixed layer minerals. The presence of vermiculite and illite in appreciable quantities indicates that these were synthesized from the K-rich soil solution, as orthoclase and micas were present in significant quantities in the sand minerals. The mineral suites identified in the study shows that the geological, climatological and topographical factors of the region collectively played a dominant role in their formation and transformation. After critical appraisal of the results, it may be deduced that the mineralogical composition, physicochemical properties and total elemental analysis of the soils do not show any deficiency of the bases and other plant nutrients in general. The inherent fertility of the soil is good as indicated by the sand and clay mineralogy of the soil and the biotite and feldspar together with the mica is an important source of nutrients for the vegetation in the soils of the Doon valley.

Plagioclase mineralogy of olivine alkaline basalt

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffer, J. M.

1973-01-01

A geological and mineralogical study of the Potrillo volcanics is reported. The investigation consisted first of field mapping to establish and identify the different rock types and volcanic features in order to determine the geological history. Next, samples were collected and analyzed petrographically to determine suitable rocks from the various stratigraphic units for study of plagioclase. Samples selected for further study were crushed and the plagioclase extracted for the determination of composition and structural state. These results were then related to the petrology and crystallization of the basalt.

Thermal and chemical variations of the Nigerian Benue trough lead-zinc-barite-fluorite deposits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ogundipe, Ibukun Emmanuel

2017-08-01

The Benue trough is an intra-continental rift initiated in the Cretaceous during the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean. Lead-zinc-barite-fluorite mineralization occurs along the 600 km axis of the trough in three discrete sub-basins which coincide with the lower, middle and upper mineral districts of the Benue Valley. Lithologically these sub-basins are dominated by black carbonaceous shale in the Lower Benue, platform carbonates in the Middle Benue and sandstones in the Upper Benue. Micro-thermometric analysis of fluid inclusions in sphalerite, fluorite, barite and quartz have shown that each mineral district has its own unique thermal and chemical imprint. For example, the temperature can be bracketed between 109 °C and 160 °C for lower Benue, 89 °C-144 °C for the Middle Benue and 176 °C-254 °C for the Upper Benue. Chemical differentiation also exists between each mineral district with the Lower Benue having 22 wt % equivalent NaCl while the Middle and Upper Benue have 18 and 16 wt % equivalent NaCl respectively. This study shows that inter-district thermal and chemical variations exist between the ore-stage sulfide and post-sulfide gangue minerals of the entire Benue Valley. Similarly, intra-district thermal and chemical variations have also been observed among all the paragenetic minerals of each district. The thermal variations may be as a result of variations in the geothermal gradient accompanying continental rifting from one district to the other. The variations in the chemistry between the Lower Benue and the Upper Benue paragenic minerals may be as a result of the distinct lithological differences across the Benue Trough.

Post-early cretaceous landform evolution along the western margin of the banca~nnia trough, western nsw

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gibson, D.L.

2000-01-01

Previously undated post-Devonian sediments outcropping north of Fowlers Gap station near the western margin of the Bancannia Trough are shown by plant macro- and microfossil determinations to be of Early Cretaceous (most likely Neocomian and/or Aptian) age, and thus part of the Eromanga Basin. They are assigned to the previously defined Telephone Creek Formation. Study of the structural configuration of this unit and the unconformably underlying Devonian rocks suggests that the gross landscape architecture of the area results from post-Early Cretaceous monoclinal folding along blind faults at the western margin of the trough, combined with the effects of differential erosion. This study shows that, while landscape evolution in the area has been dynamic, the major changes that have occurred are on a geological rather than human timescale.

Geophysical identification and geological Implications of the Southern Alaska Magnetic Trough

USGS Publications Warehouse

Saltus, R.W.; Hudson, T.L.; Wilson, Frederic H.

2003-01-01

The southern Alaska magnetic trough (SAMT) is one of the fundamental, crustal-scale, magnetic features of Alaska. It is readily recognized on 10 km upward-continued aeromagnetic maps of the state. The arcuate SAMT ranges from 30 to 100 km wide and extends in two separate segments along the southern Alaska margin for about 1200 km onshore (from near the Alaska/Canada border at about 60 degrees north latitude to the Bering Sea) and may continue an additional 500 km or more offshore (in the southern Bering Sea). The SAMT is bordered to the south by the southern Alaska magnetic high (SAMH) produced by strongly magnetic crust and to the north by a magnetically quiet zone that reflects weakly magnetic interior Alaska crust. Geophysically, the SAMT is more than just the north-side dipole low associated with the SAMH. Several modes of analysis, including examination of magnetic potential (pseudogravity) and profile modeling, indicate that the source of this magnetic trough is a discrete, crustal-scale body. Geologically, the western portion of the SAMT coincides to a large degree with collapsed Mesozoic Kahiltna flysch basin. This poster presents our geophysical evidence for the extent and geometry of this magnetic feature as well as initial geological synthesis and combined geologic/geophysical modeling to examine the implications of this feature for the broad scale tectonic framework of southern Alaska.

Moessbauer Spectroscopy for Lunar Resource Assessment: Measurement of Mineralogy and Soil Maturity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, R. V.; Agresti, D. G.; Shelfer, T. D.; Pimperl, M. M.; Shen, M.-H.; Gibson, M. A.; Wills, E. L.

1992-01-01

First-order assessment of lunar soil as a resource includes measurement of its mineralogy and maturity. Soils in which the mineral ilmenite is present in high concentrations are desirable feedstock for the production of oxygen at a lunar base. The maturity of lunar soils is a measure of their relative residence time in the upper 1 mm of the lunar surface. Increasing maturity implies increasing load of solar wind species (e.g., N, H, and He-3), decreasing mean grain size, and increasing glass content. All these physicochemical properties that vary in a regular way with maturity are important parameters for assessing lunar soil as a resource. For example, He-3 can be extracted and potentially used for nuclear fusion. A commonly used index for lunar soil maturity is I(sub s)/FeO, which is the concentration of fine-grained metal determined by ferromagnetic resonance (I(sub s)) normalized to the total iron content (as FeO). I(sub s)/FeO has been measured for virtually every soil returned by the Apollo and Luna missions to the Moon. Because the technique is sensitive to both oxidation state and mineralogy, iron Moessbauer spectroscopy (FeMS) is a viable technique for in situ lunar resource assessment. Its utility for mineralogy is apparent from examination of published FeMS data for lunar samples. From the data published, it can be inferred that FeMS data can also be used to determine soil maturity. The use of FeMS to determine mineralogy and maturity and progress on development of a FeMS instrument for lunar surface use are discussed.

Mineralogy and Oxygen Isotope Compositions of an Unusual Hibonite-Perovskite Refractory Inclusion from Allende

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keller, L. P.; Snead, C.; Rahman, Z.; McKeegan, K. D.

2012-01-01

Hibonite-rich Ca- and Al-rich inclusions (CAIs) are among the earliest formed solids that condensed in the early nebula. We discovered an unusual refractory inclusion from the Allende CV3 chondrite (SHAL) containing an approx 500 micron long single crystal of hibonite and co-existing coarse-grained perovskite. The mineralogy and petrography of SHAL show strong similarities to some FUN inclusions, especially HAL. Here we report on the mineralogy, petrography, mineral chemistry and oxygen isotopic compositions in SHAL.

Tea Consumption and Lung Cancer Risk: A Case‐Control Study in Okinawa, Japan

PubMed Central

Wakai, Kenji; Genka, Keiichiro; Ohmine, Keisho; Kawamura, Takashi; Tamakoshi, Akiko; Aoki, Rie; Senda, Masayo; Hayashi, Yutaka; Nagao, Keiichi; Fukutna, Seigo; Aoki, Kunio

1995-01-01

To disclose the relationship between tea consumption and lung cancer risk, we analyzed the data from a case‐control study conducted in Okinawa, Japan from 1988 to 1991. The analysis, based on 333 cases and 666 age‐, sex‐ and residence‐matched controls, provided the following major findings, (a) The greater the intake of Okinawan tea (a partially fermented tea), the smaller the risk, particularly in women. For females, the odds ratios (and 95% confidence intervals) for those who consumed 1‐4, 5‐9, and 10 cups or more of Okinawan tea every day, relative to non‐daily tea drinkers, were 0.77 (0.28‐2.13), 0.77 (0.26‐2.25) and 0.38 (0.12‐1.18), respectively (trend: P=0.032). The corresponding odds ratios for males were 0.85 (0.46‐1.55), 0.85 (0.46‐1.56) and 0.57 (0.31‐1.06) (trend: P=0.053). (b) The risk reduction by Okinawan tea consumption was detected mainly in squamous cell carcinoma. Daily tea consumption significantly decreased the risk of squamous cell carcinoma in males and females, the odds ratios being 0.50 (95% confidence interval 0.27‐0.93) and 0.08 (0.01‐0.68), respectively. These findings suggest a protective effect of tea consumption against lung cancer in humans. PMID:8567392

Strategies and Technologies for In Situ Mineralogical Investigations on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marshall, J. R.; Bratton, C.; Koppel, L.; Hecht, M.; Metzger, E.

1999-01-01

Surface landers on Mars (Viking and Pathfinder) have not revealed satisfying answers to the mineralogy and lithology of the planet's surface. In part, this results from their prime directives: Viking focused on exobiology, Pathfinder focused on technology demonstration. The analytical instruments on board the landers made admirable attempts to extract the mineralogy and geology of Mars, as did countless modeling efforts after the missions. Here we suggest a framework for elucidating martian, or any other planetary geology, through an approach that defines (a) type of information required, (b) explorational strategy harmonious with acquisition of these data, (c) interpretation approach to the data, (d) compatible mission architecture, (e) instrumentation for interrogating rocks and soil. (a) Data required: The composition of a planet is ordered at scales ranging from molecules to minerals to rocks, and from geological units to provinces to planetary-scale systems. The largest ordering that in situ compositional instruments can attempt to interrogate is rock type "aggregate" information. This is what the geologist attempts to identify first. From this, mineralogy can be either directly seen or inferred. From mineralogy can be determined elemental abundances and perhaps the state of the compounds as being crystalline or amorphous. Knowledge of rock type and mineralogy is critical for elucidating geologic process. Mars landers acquired extremely valuable elemental data, but attempted to move from elements to aggregates, but this can only be done by making many assumptions and sometimes giant leaps of faith. Data we believe essential are elements, minerals, degree of ordering of compounds, and the aggregate or rock type that these materials compose. (b) Explorational strategy: A lander should function as a surrogate geologist. Of the total landscape, a geologist sees much, but gives detailed attention to an infinitesimally small amount of what is seen. To acquire

Mineralogy and Elemental Composition of Wind Drift Soil at Rocknest, Gale Crater

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blake, D. F.; Bish, D. L.; Morris, R. V.; Downs, R. T.; Trieman, A. H.; Morrison, S. M.; Chipera, S. J.; Ming, D. W.; Yen, A. S.; Vaniman, D. T.;

Movement of fluids in the Nankai Trough area: Insights from 129I and halogen distributions along the IODP NanTroSEIZE transect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tomaru, Hitoshi; Fehn, Udo

2015-01-01

Halogen concentrations and 129I/I ratios were determined in pore waters from the Nankai Trough subduction system, collected during IODP Expeditions 315, 316, 322, and 333 along the NanTroSEIZE transect. The transect allowed the first direct comparison of iodine results across an active subduction system, from subducting oceanic sediments to the accretionary prism, and the overlying forearc basin. In contrast to the other halogens (Cl and Br) iodine concentrations show large variations within and among the cores at all sites landward of the trough, I concentrations increase rapidly with depth and reach values several orders of magnitude higher than those in seawater, but are only slightly higher than seawater values at the seaward sites. Methane concentrations follow a similar pattern. Host sediments of the fluids are younger than 7 Ma in all the cores, but the ages of iodine in pore waters at the landward sites reach values beyond 30 Ma. In contrast, iodine seaward of the trough is in isotopic equilibrium with the host sediments, resulting in very similar iodine and sediment ages. The distribution of iodine concentrations and ages indicates that iodine at the landward sites has been transported there in aqueous fluids, probably together with methane, from old formations in the upper plate. The specific fluid pathways potentially were influenced by features such as the megasplay fault in the prism or the décollement. The results demonstrate large-scale transport of fluids carrying iodine and other compounds such as methane from old layers in the upper plate to surface locations landward of the Nankai Trough, while separate, but only local hydrologic processes occur in the marine sediments moving toward the trough.

Mineralogy of Huygens Basin, Mars: A Transect of Noachian Highlands Crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seelos, K. D.; Ackiss, S. E.; Seelos, F. P.; McBeck, J. A.; Buczkowski, D. L.; Hash, C. D.; Viviano, C. E.; Murchie, S. L.

2018-06-01

Huygens crater represents a unique probe of the Noachain crust in the Hellas rim region. We have identified four mineralogic units within a morphologic context to understand the ancient martian highlands.

Bioleaching of two different genetic types of chalcopyrite and their comparative mineralogical assessment.

PubMed

Deng, Sha; Gu, Guohua; Ji, Jing; Xu, Baoke

2018-02-01

The bioleaching of two different genetic types of chalcopyrite by the moderate thermophile Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans was investigated by leaching behaviors elucidation and their comparative mineralogical assessment. The leaching experiment showed that the skarn-type chalcopyrite (STC) revealed a much faster leaching rate with 33.34% copper extracted finally, while only 23.53% copper was bioleached for the porphyry-type chalcopyrite (PTC). The mineralogical properties were analyzed by XRD, SEM, XPS, and Fermi energy calculation. XRD indicated that the unit cell volume of STC was a little larger than that of PTC. SEM indicated that the surface of STC had more steps and ridges. XPS spectra showed that Cu(I) was the dominant species of copper on the surfaces of the two chalcopyrite samples, and STC had much more copper with lower Cu 2p 3/2 binding energy. Additionally, the Fermi energy of STC was much higher than that of PTC. These mineralogical differences were in good agreement with the bioleaching behaviors of chalcopyrite. This study will provide some new information for evaluating the oxidation kinetics of chalcopyrite.

Mineralogy of Rock Flour in Glaciated Volcanic Terrains: An Analog for a Cold and Icy Early Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rampe, E. B.; Horgan, B.; Scudder, N.; Smith, R. J.; Rutledge, A. M.

2017-01-01

Geomorphological and mineralogical data from early Martian surfaces indicate liquid water was present on ancient Mars. The relative surface temperatures, however, remain a subject of debate. Was early Mars warm and wet or cold and icy with punctuated periods of warmth and ice melt? By characterizing the mineralogy and geochemistry of modern icy mafic terrains on Earth, we can search for these characteristics in early Martian terrains to better constrain the early Martian climate. Here, we describe the mineralogy of glacial flour in a modern glaciated volcanic terrain in Oregon, USA. We are particularly interested in secondary phases that form in these environments, and we hypothesize that poorly crystalline phases may preferentially form in these terrains because of the low temperatures and the seasonality of melt water production. A description of the mineralogy of the moraines, the composition of the amorphous materials, and the geochemistry of the glacial melt waters are presented elsewhere. Glacial flour is made up of silt- and clay-sized particles that form from the physical weathering of rock underlying a wet-based glacier as the glacier slides over it. Flour is usually transported from underneath a glacier by melt water streams. The geochemistry of glacial melt water streams has been studied extensively and has been used to infer weathering reactions within glacial systems. However, the mineralogy of these environments, especially on mafic volcanic terrains, is not well studied. Rock flour is a ubiquitous physical weathering product in glaciated terrains and, therefore, affects microbial habitats, stream and lake chemistry, and chemical weathering processes. and by studying the mineralogy of glacial flour, we can better understand geochemical and microbiological processes in subglacial and proglacial terrains.

Early to middle Jurassic salt in Baltimore Canyon trough

USGS Publications Warehouse

McKinney, B. Ann; Lee, Myung W.; Agena, Warren F.; Poag, C. Wylie

2005-01-01

A pervasive, moderately deep (5-6 s two-way traveltime), high-amplitude reflection is traced on multichannel seismic sections over an approximately 7500 km² area of Baltimore Canyon Trough. The layer associated with the reflection is about 25 km wide, about 60 m thick in the center, and thins monotonically laterally, though asymmetrically, at the edges. Geophysical characteristics are compatible with an interpretation of this negative-polarity reflector as a salt lens deposited on the top of a synrift evaporite sequence. However, alternative interpretations of the layer as gas-saturated sediments, an overpressured shale, or a weathered igneous intrusion are also worthy of consideration.Geophysical analyses were made on three wavelet- and true-amplitude processed multichannel seismic dip lines. The lens-shaped layer demarked by the reflection has a velocity of 4.4 km/s; the lens lies within strata having velocities of 5.3 to 5.7 km/s. A trough marking the onset of the lens has an amplitude that is 10 to 20 db greater than reflections from the encasing layers and an apparent reflection coefficient of -0.24. Using amplitude versus offset analysis methods, we determined that observed reflection coefficients, though variable, decrease consistently with respect to increasing offset. Linear inversion yields a low density, about 2.2 g/cc. Integration of one of the true-amplitude-processed lines and one-dimensional modeling of the layer provide data on the impedance contrast and interference patterns that further reinforce the salt lens interpretation.The thin, horizontal salt lens was probably deposited or precipitated during the Jurassic in a shallow, narrow (peripheral) rift basin, as rifting progressed down the North Atlantic margin. Unlike thicker deposits in other areas that deformed and flowed, often into diapir structures, this thin lens has remained relatively undisturbed since deposition.

Mineralogical impact on long-term patterns of soil nitrogen and phosphorus enzyme activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mikutta, Robert; Turner, Stephanie; Meyer-Stüve, Sandra; Guggenberger, Georg; Dohrmann, Reiner; Schippers, Axel

2014-05-01

Soil chronosequences provide a unique opportunity to study microbial activity over time in mineralogical diverse soils of different ages. The main objective of this study was to test the effect of mineralogical properties, nutrient and organic matter availability over whole soil pro-files on the abundance and activity of the microbial communities. We focused on microbio-logical processes involved in nitrogen and phosphorus cycling at the 120,000-year Franz Josef soil chronosequence. Microbial abundances (microbial biomass and total cell counts) and enzyme activities (protease, urease, aminopeptidase, and phosphatase) were determined and related to nutrient contents and mineralogical soil properties. Both, microbial abundances and enzyme activities decreased with soil depth at all sites. In the organic layers, microbial biomass and the activities of N-hydrolyzing enzymes showed their maximum at the intermediate-aged sites, corresponding to a high aboveground biomass. In contrast, the phosphatase activity increased with site age. The activities of N-hydrolyzing enzymes were positively correlated with total carbon and nitrogen contents, whereas the phosphatase activity was negatively correlated with the phosphorus content. In the mineral soil, the enzyme activities were generally low, thus reflecting the presence of strongly sorbing minerals. Sub-strate-normalized enzyme activities correlated negatively to clay content as well as poorly crystalline Al and Fe oxyhydroxides, supporting the view that the evolution of reactive sec-ondary mineral phases alters the activity of the microbial communities by constraining sub-strate availability. Our data suggest a strong mineralogical influence on nutrient cycling par-ticularly in subsoil environments.

Ocean chemistry controls trends in foraminiferal mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Nooijer, Lennart; van Dijk, Inge; Reichart, Gert-Jan

2014-05-01

Foraminifera are unicellular marine protists of which many produce a calcium carbonate shell of either aragonite or calcite. Since they are responsible for a large part of open ocean calcium carbonate precipitation, it is necessary to understand their response to changes in ocean chemistry. On geological time scales, the ratio of Mg over Ca in seawater played an important role in controlling marine aragonite versus calcite mineralogy. Here we reconstructed occurrences of aragonite and low- and high-Mg calcite producing foraminifera through the Phanerozoic. We discovered a two-step impact of seawater chemistry and mass extinction events on the evolution of foraminifera. Seawater Mg to Ca ratios favor production of either calcite, or of high magnesium carbonate and aragonite shells. However, mass extinction events controlled the timing of shifts in dominance from one mineralogy to the other. This observation suggests that ongoing ocean acidification may have important consequences for foraminiferal calcification. Although reduced carbonate saturation state increases dissolution rates of high-Mg calcite and aragonite compared to low-Mg calcite, the current high Mg/Ca of the ocean kinetically favors precipitation of high-Mg calcite and aragonite. Contrary to the differential effects of dissolution, we argue that ongoing ocean acidification is likely to particularly impact calcite producers (e.g. planktonic foraminifera, coccolithophores) compared to those precipitating high-Mg calcite and aragonite (e.g. corals).

Sensitivity analysis on the effect of key parameters on the performance of parabolic trough solar collectors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muhlen, Luis S. W.; Najafi, Behzad; Rinaldi, Fabio; Marchesi, Renzo

2014-04-01

Solar troughs are amongst the most commonly used technologies for collecting solar thermal energy and any attempt to increase the performance of these systems is welcomed. In the present study a parabolic solar trough is simulated using a one dimensional finite element model in which the energy balances for the fluid, the absorber and the envelope in each element are performed. The developed model is then validated using the available experimental data . A sensitivity analysis is performed in the next step in order to study the effect of changing the type of the working fluid and the corresponding Reynolds number on the overall performance of the system. The potential improvement due to the addition of a shield on the upper half of the annulus and enhancing the convection coefficient of the heat transfer fluid is also studied.

A new species of Labidocera (Copepoda, Calanoida, Pontellidae) collected from Okinawa, southwestern Japan, with establishment of five Indo-West Pacific species groups in the L.detruncata species complex.

PubMed

Hirabayashi, Takeshi; Ohtsuka, Susumu

2014-01-01

Labidocerachuraumi sp. n. is described from Okinawa, southwestern Japan. The female of the new species differs from other congeners in genital compound somite with right postero-lateral and left antero-lateral processes. The male is distinguished from other congeners by the structure of the fifth leg. This new species is assigned to a newly proposed species group, the Labidoceramadurae species group, within the Labidoceradetruncata species complex. In this species complex five Indo-West Pacific species groups are recognized (cervi, detruncata, gangetica, madurae, and pavo) and defined on the basis of difference in sexual dimorphism.

Mineralogy of the Martian Surface: Crustal Composition to Surface Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mustard, John F.

1999-01-01

Over the course of this award we have: 1) Completed and published the results of a study of the effects of hyperfine particles on reflectance spectra of olivine and quartz, which included the development of scattering codes. Research has also progressed in the analysis of the effects of fine particle sizes on clay spectra. 2) Completed the analysis of the mineralogy of dark regions, showed the insitu compositions are highly correlated to the SNC meteorites, and determined that the martian mantle was depleted in aluminum prior to 2-3 GA ago; Studies of the mineralogic heterogeneity of surficial materials on Mars have also been conducted. and 3) Performed initial work on the study of the physical and chemical processes likely to form and modify duricrust. This includes assessments of erosion rates, solubility and transport of iron in soil environments, and models of pedogenic crust formation.

The postglacial Stuoragurra Fault, North Norway - A textural and mineralogical study.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roaldset, E.

2012-04-01

The postglacial Stuoragurra Fault, North Norway - A textural and mineralogical study Elen Roaldset(1), Mari Åm (2), and Oddleiv Olesen(3) 1) Natural History Museum, University of Oslo, P.O.Box 1172 Blindern, 0318 Oslo, Norway 2) Statoil R &D, P. O. Box 2470, 7005 Trondheim, Norway 3) Norwegian Geological Survey, P.O.Box 6315 Sluppen, 7491 Trondheim, Norway The Stuoragurra Fault is part of the Lapland province of postglacial faults and was identified in 1983 during a colloborative project between the Geological Surveys of Finland Norway and Sweden. The Stuoragurra Fault is an 80 km long fault zone which contains three main segments of eastward dipping faults (30-55 deg.) with up to 10 m of reverse displacement and a 7 m high escarpment. It cross-cuts glaciofluvial deposits and consequently being younger than 10.000 years. The postglacial fault segments follow to a large extent older fault zones represented by lithified breccias and diabases of Proterozoic age. In this paper we will present textural and mineralogical study of a 135 m continous core drilled across the fault zone. The investigation methods include quality assessments by rock quality designation methods (RQD and Q- methods), textural and petrological descriptions visually and by thin section microscopy, and mineralogical analysis by X-ray diffraction. Special attention is drawn to neoformed and/or degraded minerals like clay minerals and iron oxides/hydroxides. The quality assessments of the cored material reflect the degree of rock deformation and fragmentation and show the quality of the bedrock generally to be of very poor (about 60%) to poor quality" (25%) The main minerals in the fresh rock are quarts, feldspar, mica and iron oxides (magnetite and ilmenite). Throughout the cored borehole products of weathering have formed on fissures, fractures and in strongly deformed, gravelly, zones. The neoformed minerals include kaolinite, smectite, and vermiculite, as well as goethite. The mineralogical

Multi-Scale Peak and Trough Detection Optimised for Periodic and Quasi-Periodic Neuroscience Data.

PubMed

Bishop, Steven M; Ercole, Ari

2018-01-01

The reliable detection of peaks and troughs in physiological signals is essential to many investigative techniques in medicine and computational biology. Analysis of the intracranial pressure (ICP) waveform is a particular challenge due to multi-scale features, a changing morphology over time and signal-to-noise limitations. Here we present an efficient peak and trough detection algorithm that extends the scalogram approach of Scholkmann et al., and results in greatly improved algorithm runtime performance. Our improved algorithm (modified Scholkmann) was developed and analysed in MATLAB R2015b. Synthesised waveforms (periodic, quasi-periodic and chirp sinusoids) were degraded with white Gaussian noise to achieve signal-to-noise ratios down to 5 dB and were used to compare the performance of the original Scholkmann and modified Scholkmann algorithms. The modified Scholkmann algorithm has false-positive (0%) and false-negative (0%) detection rates identical to the original Scholkmann when applied to our test suite. Actual compute time for a 200-run Monte Carlo simulation over a multicomponent noisy test signal was 40.96 ± 0.020 s (mean ± 95%CI) for the original Scholkmann and 1.81 ± 0.003 s (mean ± 95%CI) for the modified Scholkmann, demonstrating the expected improvement in runtime complexity from [Formula: see text] to [Formula: see text]. The accurate interpretation of waveform data to identify peaks and troughs is crucial in signal parameterisation, feature extraction and waveform identification tasks. Modification of a standard scalogram technique has produced a robust algorithm with linear computational complexity that is particularly suited to the challenges presented by large, noisy physiological datasets. The algorithm is optimised through a single parameter and can identify sub-waveform features with minimal additional overhead, and is easily adapted to run in real time on commodity hardware.

Mineralogy of Interplanetary Dust Particles from the Comet Giacobini-Zinner Dust Stream Collections

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nakamura-Messenger, K.; Messenger, S.; Westphal, A. J.; Palma, R. L.

2015-01-01

The Draconoid meteor shower, originating from comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, is a low-velocity Earth-crossing dust stream that had a peak anticipated flux on Oct. 8, 2012. In response to this prediction, NASA performed dedicated stratospheric dust collections to target interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) from this comet stream on Oct 15-17, 2012 [3]. Twelve dust particles from this targeted collection were allocated to our coordinated analysis team for studies of noble gas (Univ. Minnesota, Minnesota State Univ.), SXRF and Fe-XANES (SSL Berkeley) and mineralogy/isotopes (JSC). Here we report a mineralogical study of 3 IDPs from the Draconoid collection..

Quaternary Turbidite Sedimentation in the Moresby Trough, Preliminary Observations from the Papua New Guinea S2S Study Area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bentley, S. J.; Muhammad, Z.; Dickens, J.; Droxler, A.; Peterson, L.; Opdyke, B.

2004-12-01

Multicores and jumbo piston cores were collected from the Moresby Trough from the R/V Melville in March-April 204 to study patterns of off-shelf sediment flux from the Gulf of Papua to the deep sea over Pleistocene-Holocene timescales. The Moresby Trough represents the primary deep-sea sediment conduit linking the Source to Sink Gulf of Papua study area to the north with the Coral Sea Basin to the south. Core locations were navigated from the surface using dynamic positioning and multibeam bathymetric mosaics collected during the cruise. Selected cores have been analyzed using a multi-sensor core logger, X-radiography, granulometry, and Pb-210 geochronology. Most piston cores collected from the Moresby Trough contain abundant mafic sandy turbidites overlain by fine-grained hemipelagic deposits 1-2 m thick. X-radiographs of multicores reveal mostly bioturbated hemipelagics. However, one core, MV25-0403-24MC, was collected from the axis of a primary channel, and contains at least two fine-grained turbidites within the upper 0.5 m of sediment. The uppermost turbidite contains low but uniform activities of excess Pb-210, and may have been 15-20 cm thick at the time of deposition (i.e., before subsequent disruption by bioturbation), based on fabric and radiochemical evidence. Application of a simple box-model for physical mixing (i.e., during the flow) and subsequent decay suggests that the uppermost turbidite was deposited 70-120 years before present. Bioturbation has since reworked about 60% of the bed, suggesting that such beds will only escape destruction by bioturbation if they are > 10 cm thick, and are deposited more frequently than once per century. Based on these observations, we suggest that gravity flows are presently active in the Moresby trough, and may account for a significant fraction of the hemipelagic drape present in channel systems. However, fabric evidence for these thin, fine-grained beds may be obscured by subsequent bioturbation. Also, at some

Mineralogical Characterization of Copper Slag from Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chun, Tiejun; Ning, Chao; Long, Hongming; Li, Jiaxin; Yang, Jialong

2016-09-01

In this paper, the mineralogical characterization of typical copper slag supplied by the Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group China was performed based on x-ray fluorescence, x-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy. The results show that the dominant phases of the slag are fayalite, glassy substance and magnetite. The minor accessory phases consist of copper matte, metallic copper and other complex lead and zinc minerals. The contents of iron, copper, lead and zinc in copper slag are 40.21%, 0.79%, 0.24%, and 2.80%, respectively. The mineralogy of copper slag indicates that these valuable elements are difficult to recover by beneficiation processes due to the complicated occurrences. Instead, the pyro-metallurgical processes appear promising in recovering the valuable metals from copper slag.

A fixed collector employing reversible vee-trough concentrator and a vacuum tube receiver for high temperature solar energy systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Selcuk, M. K.

1976-01-01

A solar heat collection system employing non-tracking reflectors integrated with a fixed vacuum tube receiver which achieves modest year-round concentration (about 2) of the sunlight at low capital costs is discussed. The axis of the vee-trough reflector lies in a east-west direction and requires reversal of the reflector surfaces only twice a year without disturbing the receiver tubes and associated plumbing. It collects most of the diffuse flux. The vacuum tube receiver with selective absorber has no convection losses while radiation and conduction losses are minimal. Significant cost reductions are offered since the vee-trough can be fabricated from inexpensive polished or plastic reflector laminated sheet metal covering 2/3 of the collection area, and only about 1/3 of the area is covered with the more expensive vacuum tube receivers. Thermal and economic performance of the vee-trough vacuum tube system, year-round variation of the concentration factor, incident flux, useful heat per unit area at various operation temperatures and energy cost estimates are presented. The electrical energy cost is estimated to be 77 mills/kWh, and the system construction cost is estimated to be $1140/kWe.

Current status of the western gray squirrel population in the Puget Trough, Washington.

Treesearch

R. Bayrakci; A.B. Carey; T.M. Wilson

2001-01-01

The Puget Trough population of Washington’s state-threatened western gray squirrel is centered in Oregon white oak ecotones adjacent to conifer forests and prairies on the Fort Lewis Military Reservation. Our goal was to determine the current status of western gray squirrels in this region. In 1998, we found five western gray squirrels in 538 hours of foot surveys in...

Seafloor glacial geomorphology in a cross shelf trough: insights into the deglaciation of the Melville Bay Ice Stream

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Newton, Andrew; Huuse, Mads

2016-04-01

Compared to other glaciated margins such as offshore mid-Norway and Svalbard, the Greenland continental shelf has, until recently, been the subject of only a limited amount of academic and industry research. This has been mainly due to the difficulty and expense of obtaining data in such harsh and operationally complex settings. Climate amelioration and technological advance has, particularly in recent years, allowed both academics and industry to substantially increase data collection across the many glaciated continental shelves in the Northern Hemisphere. Baffin Bay has been one of the primary regions of interest for the hydrocarbon industry which has sought to operate in the frontier basins offshore Greenland. As a result of these industry operations, a large database of geophysical and geological data has been collected. Some of this data has been made available to glacial scientists and provides a unique opportunity to investigate the seafloor geomorphology for regions where the majority of previous work has been hypothetical rather than grounded in geological evidence. In the work presented here we present a landform record offshore NW Greenland in the Melville Bay cross-shelf trough. This is one of the largest troughs on the entire Greenland shelf and measures up to 140 km in width. Shallow-marine cores collected in the coastal part of the trough show bedrock of Miocene age and indicate that a significant cover has likely been removed from the shelf by ice streams operating through the Late Cenozoic. This material has then been deposited at the shelf edge as a trough mouth fan. Using multibeam and seismic reflection data a large number of glacial landforms are observed and mapped in the trough. These include mega-scale glacial lineations, grounding-zone wedges, iceberg scours, and iceberg grounding pits. These landforms are used to reconstruct the ice dynamics of the Melville Bugt Ice Stream at the last glacial maximum and during its deglaciation. The

Parabolic trough solar collector

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Eaton, J.H.

1985-01-15

A parabolic trough solar collector using reflective flexible materials is disclosed. A parabolic cylinder mirror is formed by stretching a flexible reflecting material between two parabolic end formers. The formers are held in place by a spreader bar. The resulting mirror is made to track the sun, focusing the sun's rays on a receiver tube. The ends of the reflective material are attached by glue or other suitable means to attachment straps. The flexible mirror is then attached to the formers. The attachment straps are mounted in brackets and tensioned by tightening associated nuts on the ends of the attachmentmore » straps. This serves both to stretch the flexible material orthogonal to the receiver tube and to hold the flexible material on the formers. The flexible mirror is stretched in the direction of the receiver tube by adjusting tensioning nuts. If materials with matching coefficients of expansion for temperature and humidity have been chosen, for example, aluminum foil for the flexible mirror and aluminum for the spreader bar, the mirror will stay in adjustment through temperature and humidity excursions. With dissimilar materials, e.g., aluminized mylar or other polymeric material and steel, spacers can be replaced with springs to maintain proper adjustment. The spreader bar cross section is chosen to be in the optic shadow of the receiver tube when tracking and not to intercept rays of the sun that would otherwise reach the receiver tube. This invention can also be used to make non-parabolic mirrors for other apparatus and applications.« less

Comprehensive analysis of earthquake source spectra and swarms in the Salton Trough, California

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, X.; Shearer, P. M.

2011-09-01

We study earthquakes within California's Salton Trough from 1981 to 2009 from a precisely relocated catalog. We process the seismic waveforms to isolate source spectra, station spectra and travel-time dependent spectra. The results suggest an average P wave Q of 340, agreeing with previous results indicating relatively high attenuation in the Salton Trough. Stress drops estimated from the source spectra using an empirical Green's function (EGF) method reveal large scatter among individual events but a low median stress drop of 0.56 MPa for the region. The distribution of stress drop after applying a spatial-median filter indicates lower stress drops near geothermal sites. We explore the relationships between seismicity, stress drops and geothermal injection activities. Seismicity within the Salton Trough shows strong spatial clustering, with 20 distinct earthquake swarms with at least 50 events. They can be separated into early-Mmax and late-Mmax groups based on the normalized occurrence time of their largest event. These swarms generally have a low skew value of moment release history, ranging from -9 to 3.0. The major temporal difference between the two groups is the excess of seismicity and an inverse power law increase of seismicity before the largest event for the late-Mmax group. All swarms exhibit spatial migration of seismicity at a statistical significance greater than 85%. A weighted L1-norm inversion of linear migration parameters yields migration velocities from 0.008 to 0.8 km/hour. To explore the influence of fluid injection in geothermal sites, we also model the migration behavior with the diffusion equation, and obtain a hydraulic diffusion coefficient of approximately 0.25 m2/s for the Salton Sea geothermal site, which is within the range of expected values for a typical geothermal reservoir. The swarms with migration velocities over 0.1 km/hour cannot be explained by the diffusion curve, rather, their velocity is consistent with the propagation

Mineralogical and Geochemical Trends in a Fluviolacustrine Sequence in Gale Crater, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rampe, E.; Ming, D.; Morris, R.; Blake, D.; Vaniman, D.; Bristow, T.; Chipera, S.; Yen, A.; Grotzinger, J.; DesMarais, D.

2016-01-01

The Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, landed at Gale crater in August 2012 and has been investigating a sequence of dominantly fluviolacustrine sediments deposited 3.6-3.2 billion years ago. Curiosity collects quantitative mineralogical data with the CheMin XRD/XRF instrument and quantitative chemical data with the APXS and ChemCam instruments. These datasets show stratigraphic mineralogical and geochemical variability that suggest a complex aqueous history. The Murray Formation, primarily composed of fine-laminated mudstone, has been studied in detail since the arrival at the Pahrump Hills in September 2014. CheMin data from four samples show variable amounts of iron oxides, phyllosilicates, sulfates, amorphous and crystalline silica, and mafic silicate minerals. Geochemical data throughout the section show that there is significant variability in Zn, Ni, and Mn concentrations. Mineralogical and geochemical trends with stratigraphy suggest one of possibly several aqueous episodes involved alteration in an open system under acidic pH, though other working hypotheses may explain these and other trends. Data from the Murray Formation contrast with those collected from the Sheepbed mudstone located approximately 60 meters below the base of the Murray Formation, which showed evidence for diagenesis in a closed system at circumneutral pH. Ca-sulfates filled late-stage veins in both mudstones.

First columbellid species (Gastropoda: Buccinoidea) from deep-sea hydrothermal vents, discovered in Okinawa Trough, Japan.

PubMed

Chen, Chong; Watanabe, Hiromi Kayama; Araya, Juan Francisco

2017-12-12

The molluscan diversity of deep-sea chemosynthetic ecosystems in Japan has been in general well documented with about 80 described species, of which over half are gastropods (Sasaki et al. 2005; Fujikura et al. 2012; Sasaki et al. 2016). Recently, however, a number of novel hydrothermal vent sites were discovered in the area using multibeam echo-sounding (Nakamura et al. 2015), providing opportunities for new discoveries. As a part of ongoing studies documenting the biodiversity of such sites, we present the first record of Columbellidae from hydrothermal vents, with a new species recovered from Natsu and Aki sites, in the Iheya North hydrothermal field (for map and background on the vent field see Nakamura et al. 2015).

The solonetzic process in surface soils and buried paleosols and its reflection in the mineralogical soil memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chizhikova, N. P.; Kovda, I. V.; Borisov, A. V.; Shishlina, N. I.

2009-10-01

The development of the solonetzic process in paleosols buried under kurgans and in the modern surface soils has been studied on the basis of the analysis of the clay (<1 µm) fraction. The revealed changes in the textural differentiation of the soils and the mineralogical composition of the clay fraction during 4500 years are assessed from the viewpoint of the “memory“ of the solid-phase soil components. The mineralogical characteristics show that the solonetzic process in the modern background soil is more developed. The mineralogical approach allows us to reveal the long-term changes in the soil status; it is less useful for studying the effect of short-term bioclimatic fluctuations. In the latter case, more labile soil characteristics should be used. The mineralogical method, combined with other methods, becomes more informative upon the study of soil chronosequences. Our studies have shown that the data on the clay minerals in the buried paleosols may contain specific information useful for paleoreconstructions that is not provided by other methods.

The Composition of 433 Eros: A Mineralogical-Chemical Synthesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McCoy, T. J.; Gaffey, M.; Bell, J. F., III; Boynton, W. V.; Burbine, T. H.; Chapman, C. R.; Cheng, A.; Clark, P. E.; Evans, L. G.; Gorenstein, P.

2001-01-01

We report on an effort with the Near-Infrared Spectrometer/Multi-Spectral Imager (NIS/MSI) and X-ray/Gamma-ray Spectrometer (XGRS) teams to synthesize our data sets to constrain the relationship between Eros and meteorites; the mineralogy, abundances and compositions of Eros; and the processes that formed Eros. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Application of Tablet PCs to Lecture Demonstrations on Optical Mineralogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoisch, Thomas D.; Austin, Barbara A.; Newell, Shawn L.; Manone, Mark F.

2010-01-01

Learning optical mineralogy requires students to integrate a complex theory with microscope manipulations and image interpretation. To assist student learning, we performed lecture demonstrations during which digital photomicrographs were taken and delivered to students using Tablet PCs, whereupon they were imported into note-taking software and…

Models as an Aid to Courses in Crystallography and Mineralogy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brady, K. T.

1983-01-01

Three models used in teaching crystallography/mineralogy at the University of Technology (Papua, New Guinea) are described. These include stereographic projection model, optical indicatrix models for Istropic/Anisotropic minerals, and model showing effect of anisotropic minerals under crossed polars. Photographs of the models are also included.…

Mineralogy of interplanetary dust particles from the 'olivine' infrared class

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Christoffersen, R.; Buseck, P. R.

1986-01-01

Analytical electron microscopy observations establish that olivine is abundant and the predominant silicate phase in three interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) from the 'olivine' infrared spectra category. Two of the particles have microstructures resembling those of most nonhydrous chondritic IDPs, consisting of micron to submicron grains together with a matrix composed of amorphous carbonaceous material and sub-500 A grains. In addition to olivine these particles respectively contain enstatite and magnetite, and pentlandite plus Ca-rich clinopyroxene. The third IDP consists mostly of olivine and pyrrhotite with little or no matrix material. Olivine grains in this particle contain prominent solar-flare ion tracks with densities corresponding to a space-exposure age between 1000 to 100,000 years. Although the three particles have olivine-rich mineralogies in common, other aspects of their mineralogies and microstructures suggest that they experienced different formation histories. The differences between the particles indicate that the olivine infrared spectral category is a diverse collection of IDPs that probably incorporates several genetic groups.

Hydrogeology of the Tully Trough in Southern Onondaga County and Northern Cortland County, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kappel, William M.; Miller, Todd S.

2003-01-01

A trough valley near Tully, N.Y. was formed by the same glacial processes that formed the Finger Lake valleys to the west. Glacial ice eroded a preglacial bedrock divide along the northern rim of the Allegheny Plateau and deepened a preglacial valley to form a trough valley. Subsequent meltwater issuing from the ice transported and deposited large amounts of sediment which partly filled the trough. The Tully trough contains three distinct segments—the West Branch valley of the southward-flowing Tioughnioga River in the south, the Valley Heads Moraine near Tully, and the Tully valley of the northward-flowing Onondaga Creek in the north.The West Branch valley segment south of the moraine contains a two-aquifer system—a surficial unconfined sand and gravel aquifer and a confined basal sand and gravel aquifer that rests on bedrock, separated by a thick, fine-grained glaciolacustrine fine sand, silt, and clay unit. Water quality in the surficial aquifer is generally good, although it is typically hard. Water in the basal, confined aquifer is more mineralized and yields less water to wells than the surficial aquifer.The Valley Heads Moraine near Tully consists of layers of sand and gravel, fine sand, silt, clay, and till. The land surface contains many kettle-hole lakes, ponds, wetlands, and dry depressions. The moraine contains several aquifers, some of which are discontinuous. Water quality in the shallow aquifers is generally good, although hard. Water quality in the deep aquifer is generally good, although slightly mineralized by water discharging upward from shale.The Tully valley segment north of the moraine has a confined basal sand-and-gravel aquifer that is overlain by a thick layer of lacustrine silt and clay in the southern part of the valley and becomes interlayered with sand and some fine gravel in the northern part. Most homeowners obtain their water supply from streams or springs along the valley walls or from wells. Water from wells completed in

Assessment of bioavailability of iron delivered to marine phytoplankton in different mineralogical forms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ammar, Rawaa; Delmelle, Pierre; Journet, Emilie

2017-04-01

Iron (Fe) is an essential element in cellular biochemical processes and its availability in the surface ocean limits phytoplankton-mediated fixation of C, i.e. the biological pump. In vast regions of the open ocean, atmospheric deposition of Fe-bearing continental dust and volcanic ash to the surface ocean acts as an important source of bioavailable Fe to phytoplankton. The capacity of dust and ash to alleviate Fe limitation is usually discussed in terms of Fe solubility, which has been shown to be controlled by speciation/mineralogy. However, little information exists on the relationship between Fe bioavailability and Fe speciation/mineralogy in dust and ash. In this study, Fe-bearing materials of known mineralogy, including three volcanic ash samples from different eruptions (Eyjafjallajökull 2010, Chaitén 2008 and Tungurahua 2012), two continental dust specimens (Douz and Banizoumbou) and three Fe-bearing minerals (illite/smectite, ferrihydrite, and goethite) were added to Fe-stressed cultures of Dunaliella tertiolecta, a marine algae commonly found in high-nutrient, low chlorophyll waters. Photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll content and cell population growth were measured at regular intervals during 168 h after Fe addition. Our results indicate that all the tested Fe-bearing materials induced a similar biological response; and were able to alleviate Fe stress in D. tertiolecta within 2 h from the beginning of the experiment and to induce cell growth up to 168 h. This unexpected finding contrasts with the traditional view that Fe speciation/mineralogy in dust and ash plays a key role in governing Fe bioavailability to phytoplankton. Supplementary measurements on the fractional solubility of Fe in dust and ash will be presented.

Metabolic Syndrome and Cognitive Decline Among the Oldest Old in Okinawa: In Search of a Mechanism. The KOCOA Project

PubMed Central

Todoriki, Hidemi; Higashiuesato, Yasushi; Yasura, Shotoku; Willcox, D. Craig; Ohya, Yusuke; Willcox, Bradley J.; Dodge, Hiroko H.

2012-01-01

The study aim was to test whether the metabolic syndrome or its components predicted cognitive decline among persons aged 80 years and older (mean 85.0 years). Participants were members of the “Keys to Optimal Cognitive Aging Project,” a prospective cohort study in Okinawa, Japan. Metabolic syndrome was assessed at baseline. Cognitive functions were assessed annually for up to 3 years. One hundred and forty-eight participants completed at least one follow-up with 101 participating in all three assessments and 47 participating in two of the three assessments. The mean and median duration of follow-up were 1.8 and 2 years, respectively. Metabolic syndrome and four components were not associated with decline in global and executive cognitive functions. However, high glycosylated hemoglobin was associated with decline in memory function at the second follow-up. Our study supports accumulating evidence that the positive association between metabolic syndrome and cognitive function might not hold for the oldest old. PMID:22016359

Effect of Basicity on Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) Slag Solidification Microstructure and Mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Chunwei; Guo, Muxing; Pandelaers, Lieven; Blanpain, Bart; Huang, Shuigen

Slag valorization in added value construction applications can contribute substantially to the sustainability of steel industry. The present work aims to investigate the crystallization behavior of a typical industrial Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) slag (CaO-FeOx-SiO2-based slag) by varying the basicity through hot stage engineering. A sample of industry Basic Oxygen Slag (BOF) was mixed with different quantities of silica (SiO2) to modify basicity. The effect of basicity on solidification microstructure and mineralogy was studied. The results suggest that the mineralogy of the solidified slag can be manipulated to enhance its suitability as raw material for construction applications.

Learning Activities for an Undergraduate Mineralogy/Petrology Course-"I Am/We Are."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodell, Philip C.

2001-01-01

Introduces an entry level mineralogy/igneous petrology course designed for undergraduate students and presents a series of learning activities based on individual and cooperative learning. Includes 18 references. (Author/YDS)

Mineralogical Changes in a Predominantly Fluviolacustrine Succession at Gale Crater, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rampe, E. B.; Ming, D. W.; Grotzinger. J. P.; Bristow, T. F.; Blake, D. F.; Vaniman, D. T.; Chipera, S. J.; Gellert, R.; Morris, R. V.; Morrison, S. M.

2017-01-01

The Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover landed in Gale crater in August 2012 to investigate the strata of lower Aeolis Mons (i.e., Mount Sharp) and characterize their depositional and diagenetic environments. Visible/short-wave infrared spectra from orbit of these strata show variations in phyllosilicate, sulfate, and Fe-oxide minerals, suggesting these units record environmental changes that occurred during the early Hesperian. Curiosity has traversed over 15 km and has climbed through Approx. 200 m of stratigraphic section, made up of predominantly fluviolacustrine (i.e., the Bradbury group and the Murray formation) and aeolian (i.e., the Stimson formation) units. Multiple geochemical and mineralogical instruments are onboard Curiosity to study these ancient rocks, including the Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument, which is an X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence spectrometer, and the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS).

The Variability of Transverse Aeolian Ripples in Troughs on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bourke, M. C.; Wilson, S.A.; Zimbelman, J. R.

2003-01-01

A precursory glance at MGS images of the surface of Mars show an abundance of aeolian transverse ridges. These ridges are located in a variety of geological terrains. Zimbelman and Wilson have separated the small-scale aeolian features of Syrtis Major into six categories: ripples associated with obstacles, ripple bands, ripple fields, ripple patches, isolated ripple patches and ripples associated with dunes. This paper focuses on one of these categories, that of ripple bands which tend to accumulate within linear troughs. As the origin of these features is still being studied (i.e. ripples versus dunes), we refer to them simply as transverse aeolian ridges.

Environmental mineralogy - Understanding element behavior in ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Gordon E., Jr.; Calas, Georges

2011-02-01

Environmental Mineralogy has developed over the past decade in response to the recognition that minerals are linked in many important ways with the global ecosystem. Minerals are the main repositories of the chemical elements in Earth's crust and thus are the main sources of elements needed for the development of civilization, contaminant and pollutant elements that impact global and local ecosystems, and elements that are essential plant nutrients. These elements are released from minerals through natural processes, such as chemical weathering, and anthropogenic activities, such as mining and energy production, agriculture and industrial activities, and careless waste disposal. Minerals also play key roles in the biogeochemical cycling of the elements, sequestering elements and releasing them as the primary minerals in crustal rocks undergo various structural and compositional transformations in response to physical, chemical, and biological processes that produce secondary minerals and soils. These processes have resulted in the release of toxic elements such as arsenic in groundwater aquifers, which is having a major impact on the health of millions of people in South and Southeast Asia. The interfaces between mineral surfaces and aqueous solutions are the locations of most chemical reactions that control the composition of the natural environment, including the composition of natural waters. The nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mining to the disposition of high-level nuclear waste, is also intimately related to minerals. A fundamental understanding of these processes requires molecular-scale information about minerals, their bulk structures and properties such as solubility, their surfaces, and their interactions with aqueous solutions, atmospheric and soil gases, natural organic matter, and biological organisms. Gaining this understanding is further complicated by the presence of natural, incidental, and manufactured nanoparticles in the environment, which are

Mineralogical controls on aluminum and magnesium in uranium mill tailings: Key Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada.

PubMed

Gomez, M A; Hendry, M J; Koshinsky, J; Essilfie-Dughan, J; Paikaray, S; Chen, J

2013-07-16

The mineralogy and evolution of Al and Mg in U mill tailings are poorly understood. Elemental analyses (ICP-MS) of both solid and aqueous phases show that precipitation of large masses of secondary Al and Mg mineral phases occurs throughout the raffinate neutralization process (pH 1-11) at the Key Lake U mill, Saskatchewan, Canada. Data from a suite of analytical methods (ICP-MS, EMPA, laboratory- and synchrotron-based XRD, ATR-IR, Raman, TEM, EDX, ED) and equilibrium thermodynamic modeling showed that nanoparticle-sized, spongy, porous, Mg-Al hydrotalcite is the dominant mineralogical control on Al and Mg in the neutralized raffinate (pH ≥ 6.7). The presence of this secondary Mg-Al hydrotalcite in mineral samples of both fresh and 15-year-old tailings indicates that the Mg-Al hydrotalcite is geochemically stable, even after >16 years in the oxic tailings body. Data shows an association between the Mg-Al hydrotalcite and both As and Ni and point to this Mg-Al hydrotalcite exerting a mineralogical control on the solubility of these contaminants.

Sources of Minor and Rare-Earth Elements in Hydrothermal Edifices of Near-Continental Rifts with Sedimentary Cover: Evidence from the Guaymas Basin, Southern Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lein, A. Yu.; Dara, O. M.; Bogdanova, O. Yu.; Novikov, G. V.; Ulyanova, N. V.; Lisitsyn, A. P.

2018-03-01

The mineralogy and geochemistry of a fragment of an active hydrothermal edifice from the Hydrothermal Hill of the Southern Trough valley of the Guaymas Basin in the Gulf of California were studied. The sample was collected from a depth of 1995 m by the Pisces manned submersible on cruise 12 of the R/V Akademik Mstislav Keldysh, Institute of Oceanology, Russian Academy of Sciences. The fragment and the edifice itself consists of two accrete pipes: ore (pyrrhotite) and barren (carbonate) combined in a single edifice by an outer barite-opal zone. The ore edifice is located in the rift zone of the Guaymas Basin with a thick sedimentary cover and is depleted in metals in comparison with ores from rift zones of the open ocean, which are not blocked by sedimentary deposits. This is explained by loss of metals at the boundary between hot sills and sedimentary rocks and by the processes of interaction of hydrothermal solutions with sedimentary deposits. The sedimentary series faciitates long-term preservation of endogenous heat and the ore formation process. Ore edifices of the Guaymas Basin are mostly composed of pyrrhotite, have a specific set of major elements, microelements and REEs, and contain naphthenic hydrocarbons. They may be search signs of hidden polymetallic deposits, considered to be the roots of ore occurrences localized under the surface of the bottom in young active rifts with high spreading and sedimentation rates, i.e., in near-continental areas of rifts of the humid zone with avalanche sedimentation.

Detailed description of oil shale organic and mineralogical heterogeneity via fourier transform infrared mircoscopy

USGS Publications Warehouse

Washburn, Kathryn E.; Birdwell, Justin E.; Foster, Michael; Gutierrez, Fernando

2015-01-01

Mineralogical and geochemical information on reservoir and source rocks is necessary to assess and produce from petroleum systems. The standard methods in the petroleum industry for obtaining these properties are bulk measurements on homogenized, generally crushed, and pulverized rock samples and can take from hours to days to perform. New methods using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy have been developed to more rapidly obtain information on mineralogy and geochemistry. However, these methods are also typically performed on bulk, homogenized samples. We present a new approach to rock sample characterization incorporating multivariate analysis and FTIR microscopy to provide non-destructive, spatially resolved mineralogy and geochemistry on whole rock samples. We are able to predict bulk mineralogy and organic carbon content within the same margin of error as standard characterization techniques, including X-ray diffraction (XRD) and total organic carbon (TOC) analysis. Validation of the method was performed using two oil shale samples from the Green River Formation in the Piceance Basin with differing sedimentary structures. One sample represents laminated Green River oil shales, and the other is representative of oil shale breccia. The FTIR microscopy results on the oil shales agree with XRD and LECO TOC data from the homogenized samples but also give additional detail regarding sample heterogeneity by providing information on the distribution of mineral phases and organic content. While measurements for this study were performed on oil shales, the method could also be applied to other geological samples, such as other mudrocks, complex carbonates, and soils.

Strain Accumulation Estimated from Seafloor Crustal Deformation at the Nankai Trough, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tadokoro, K.; Watanabe, T.; Nagai, S.; Ikuta, R.; Okuda, T.; Kenji, Y.; Sakata, T.

2012-12-01

Our research has developed an observation system for seafloor crustal deformation composed of the kinematic GPS and acoustic ranging techniques [Tadokoro et al., 2006; Ikuta et al., 2008]. We monitored crustal deformation at the Nankai Trough, Japan, where the Philippine Sea Plate subducts beneath the Amurian Plate. The convergence rate is predicted at 60 mm/y in the N59W direction by the Euler vector of REVEL [Sella et al., 2002]. We installed three monitoring sites (named KMN, KMS, and KME) on the seafloor at depths of about 1920-2030 m. The sites KMN and KMS are installed perpendicular to the trough axis with a spacing of 20 km; the site KME is 50 km from KMN and KMS in the direction parallel to the trough axis. The monitoring was started in 2004, 2005, and 2008 at KMS, KMN, and KME, respectively. The numbers of measurements are 16, 20, and 5 times at KMN, KMS, and KME, respectively. We obtained 3-7 years averaged horizontal site velocities within ITRF2000 adopting a robust estimation method with Tukey's biweight function to the time series of site position measured until the end of 2011. Substituting the synthetic rigid block motions of the Amurian Plate from the velocities within ITRF2000, we obtained the following site velocities with respect to the Amurian Plate [Tadokoro et al., 2012]: KMN 41±4 mm/y, N77±7W KMS 43±5 mm/y, N80±6W KME 42±5 mm/y, N80±7W In contrast, the on-land GPS horizontal velocities along the coast is 23-33 mm/y toward N74-80W. The present observational results show: (1) the velocity vectors are all the same length and direction, which indicates no internal deformation in this region; (2) the back-slip model predicts that the plate interface beneath the region is uniformly locked with coupling ratios of 60-80 %, indicating strain accumulation that will be released during the anticipated mega-thrust Tonankai earthquake; and (3) the directions of site velocities differ from that of convergence vector by 20 degrees, which is affected by

Multivariate analysis of the geochemistry and mineralogy of soils along two continental-scale transects in North America

USGS Publications Warehouse

Drew, L.J.; Grunsky, E.C.; Sutphin, D.M.; Woodruff, L.G.

2010-01-01

Soils collected in 2004 along two North American continental-scale transects were subjected to geochemical and mineralogical analyses. In previous interpretations of these analyses, data were expressed in weight percent and parts per million, and thus were subject to the effect of the constant-sum phenomenon. In a new approach to the data, this effect was removed by using centered log-ratio transformations to 'open' the mineralogical and geochemical arrays. Multivariate analyses, including principal component and linear discriminant analyses, of the centered log-ratio data reveal the effects of soil-forming processes, including soil parent material, weathering, and soil age, at the continental-scale of the data arrays that were not readily apparent in the more conventionally presented data. Linear discriminant analysis of the data arrays indicates that the majority of the soil samples collected along the transects can be more successfully classified with Level 1 ecological regional-scale classification by the soil geochemistry than soil mineralogy. A primary objective of this study is to discover and describe, in a parsimonious way, geochemical processes that are both independent and inter-dependent and manifested through compositional data including estimates of the elements and corresponding mineralogy. ?? 2010.

Design of a Field Raised-Bed Trough System using Soilless Substrates for Strawberry Production in California

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

There are a number of approaches for producing strawberry fruit on a commercial scale without fumigants. One possible approach is to grow strawberries using raised-bed troughs filled with non soil based substrate media. Field trials were conducted using peat, perlite, coir, rice hull, and a redwoo...

A new species of Labidocera (Copepoda, Calanoida, Pontellidae) collected from Okinawa, southwestern Japan, with establishment of five Indo-West Pacific species groups in the L. detruncata species complex

PubMed Central

Hirabayashi, Takeshi; Ohtsuka, Susumu

2014-01-01

Abstract Labidocera churaumi sp. n. is described from Okinawa, southwestern Japan. The female of the new species differs from other congeners in genital compound somite with right postero-lateral and left antero-lateral processes. The male is distinguished from other congeners by the structure of the fifth leg. This new species is assigned to a newly proposed species group, the Labidocera madurae species group, within the Labidocera detruncata species complex. In this species complex five Indo-West Pacific species groups are recognized (cervi, detruncata, gangetica, madurae, and pavo) and defined on the basis of difference in sexual dimorphism. PMID:25349514

Local X-ray Computed Tomography Imaging for Mineralogical and Pore Characterization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mills, G.; Willson, C. S.

2015-12-01

Sample size, material properties and image resolution are all tradeoffs that must be considered when imaging porous media samples with X-ray computed tomography. In many natural and engineered samples, pore and throat sizes span several orders of magnitude and are often correlated with the material composition. Local tomography is a nondestructive technique that images a subvolume, within a larger specimen, at high resolution and uses low-resolution tomography data from the larger specimen to reduce reconstruction error. The high-resolution, subvolume data can be used to extract important fine-scale properties but, due to the additional noise associated with the truncated dataset, it makes segmentation of different materials and mineral phases a challenge. The low-resolution data of a larger specimen is typically of much higher-quality making material characterization much easier. In addition, the imaging of a larger domain, allows for mm-scale bulk properties and heterogeneities to be determined. In this research, a 7 mm diameter and ~15 mm in length sandstone core was scanned twice. The first scan was performed to cover the entire diameter and length of the specimen at an image voxel resolution of 4.1 μm. The second scan was performed on a subvolume, ~1.3 mm in length and ~2.1 mm in diameter, at an image voxel resolution of 1.08 μm. After image processing and segmentation, the pore network structure and mineralogical features were extracted from the low-resolution dataset. Due to the noise in the truncated high-resolution dataset, several image processing approaches were applied prior to image segmentation and extraction of the pore network structure and mineralogy. Results from the different truncated tomography segmented data sets are compared to each other to evaluate the potential of each approach in identifying the different solid phases from the original 16 bit data set. The truncated tomography segmented data sets were also compared to the whole

Relating Optical Properties of Dusts to their Mineralogical and Physical Interrelationships

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engelbrecht, J. P.; Moosmuller, H.; Jayanty, R. K. M.; Casuccio, G.; Pincock, S. L.

2015-12-01

The purpose of the project was to provide information on the mineralogical, chemical and physical interrelationships of re-suspended mineral dust samples collected as grab samples from global dust sources. Surface soil samples were collected from about 65 desert sites, including the southwestern USA (12), Mali (3), Chad (3), Morocco (1), Canary Islands (8), Cape Verde (1), Djibouti (1), Afghanistan (3), Iraq (6), Kuwait (5), Qatar (1), UAE (1), Serbia (3), China (5), Namibia (3), Botswana (4), Australia (3), and Chile (1). The < 38 μm sieved fraction of each sample was re-suspended in an entrainment chamber, from which the airborne mineral dust could be monitored, sampled and analyzed. Instruments integrated into the entrainment facility included two PM10 and two PM2.5 filter samplers, a beta attenuation gauge for the continuous measurement of PM10 and PM2.5particulate mass fractions, an aerodynamic particle size (APS) analyzer, and a three wavelength (405, 532, 781nm) photoacoustic resonator with integrating reciprocal nephelometer for monitoring absorption and scattering coefficients during the dust re-suspension process. Filter sample media included Teflon® membrane and quartz fiber filters for chemical analysis (71 species), and Nuclepore® filters for individual particle analysis by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The < 38 μm sieved fractions were also analyzed by X-ray diffraction for their mineral content while the > 38 μm, < 125 μm soil fractions were mineralogically characterized by optical microscopy. We will be presenting results on the optical measurements, also showing the relationship between single scattering albedo (SSA) at three different wavelengths, and chemical as well as mineralogical content and interdependencies of the entrained dust samples. Examples showing the relationships between the single scattering albedos of airborne dusts, and iron (Fe) in hematite, goethite, and clay minerals (montmorillonite, illite, palygorskite), will

Nebula Models of Non-Equilibrium Mineralogy: Wark-Lovering Rims

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cuzzi, J. N.; Petaev, M.; Krot, A. N.

2005-01-01

Introduction: The meteorite record contains several examples of minerals that would not persist if allowed to come to equilibrium with a cooling gas of solar composition. This includes all minerals in CAIs and AOAs. Their survival is generally ascribed to physical removal of the object from the gas (isolation into a large parent object, or ejection by a stellar wind), but could also result from outward radial diffusion into cooler regions, which we discuss here. Accretion of CAIs into planetesimals has also been relied on to preserve them against loss into the sun. However, this suggestion faces several objections. Simple outward diffusion in turbulence has recently been modeled in some detail, and can preserve CAIs against loss into the sun [2]. Naturally, outward radial diffusion in turbulence is slower than immediate ejection by a stellar wind, which occurs on an orbital timescale. Here we ask whether these different transport mechanisms can be distinguished by nonequilibrium mineralogy, which provides a sort of clock. Our application here is to one aspect of CAI mineralogy - the Wark-Lovering rims (WLR); even more specifically, to alteration of one layer in the WLR sequence from melilite (Mel) to anorthite (An).

Mineralogy of Galvanic Corrosion By-products in Domestic Drinking Water Pipes

EPA Science Inventory

This study presents the results of a visual and mineralogical characterization of scales developed over long time periods at galvanically coupled lead-brass and lead-copper pipe joints from several different drinking water distribution systems. The long-term exposure aspect of t...

Calprotectin and TNF trough serum levels identify power Doppler ultrasound synovitis in rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis patients in remission or with low disease activity.

PubMed

Inciarte-Mundo, José; Ramirez, Julio; Hernández, Maria Victoria; Ruiz-Esquide, Virginia; Cuervo, Andrea; Cabrera-Villalba, Sonia Raquel; Pascal, Mariona; Yagüe, Jordi; Cañete, Juan D; Sanmarti, Raimon

2016-07-08

Serum levels of calprotectin, a major S100 leucocyte protein, are associated with disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients. Higher drug trough serum levels are associated with good response in patients treated with tumour necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi). Power Doppler ultrasound (PDUS) synovitis is predictive of flare and progression of structural damage in patients in clinical remission. The purpose of this study was to analyse the accuracy of calprotectin and TNFi trough serum levels in detecting PDUS synovitis in RA and PsA patients in clinical remission or with low disease activity who were receiving TNFi. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 92 patients (42 with RA, 50 with PsA) receiving adalimumab (ADA), etanercept (ETN) or infliximab who were in remission or had low disease activity (28-joint Disease Activity Score based on erythrocyte sedimentation rate <3.2). Associations of calprotectin, TNFi trough serum levels and acute phase reactants with PDUS synovitis were assessed using correlation and linear regression analyses. The accuracy and discriminatory capacity in detecting PDUS synovitis was assessed using ROC curves. PDUS synovitis was found in 62.4 % of RA patients and 32 % of PsA patients. Both RA and PsA patients with PDUS synovitis had higher calprotectin levels and lower TNFi trough serum levels. Calprotectin positively correlated with ultrasound scores (all r coefficients >0.50 in RA). Calprotectin correlated with the PDUS synovitis score in patients treated with ADA and ETN. Using PDUS synovitis (yes or no) as the reference variable, calprotectin had an AUC of 0.826. The best cut-off was ≥1.66 μg/ml, with a likelihood ratio of 2.77. C-reactive protein (AUC 0.673) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (AUC 0.731) had a lower discriminatory capacity. TNFi trough serum levels were significantly associated with PDUS synovitis (OR 0.67, 95 % CI 0.52-0.85, p < 0.001) but their accuracy (AUC <0

Influence of trough versus pasture feeding on average daily gain and carcass characteristics in ruminants: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Agastin, A; Sauvant, D; Naves, M; Boval, M

2014-03-01

Quantitative meta-analysis was run on 108 publications featuring 116 experiments and 399 treatments dealing with the effect of trough or pasture feeding environment (FE) on ruminant performances. The objective was to compare the effect of trough or pasture FE on ADG, diet OM digestibility (OMD), various carcass characteristics, and the interaction between FE and complementation modalities. Live weight was adjusted to compare results between species. Results showed that trough-fed animals had higher ADG (+17.89%; P < 0.001), hot carcass yield (HYield; + 2.47%; P < 0.001) and carcass fat content (+ 24.87%; P < 0.001) than pasture-fed animals but lower carcass muscle and bone percentages (-1.60% [P = 0.010] and -7.63% [P = 0.003], respectively). Feeding environment had no effect on diet OMD (P = 0.818), but the number of observations was low. After considering the addition or not of concentrate in the diet (addiCO), FE effect persisted on ADG (P = 0.024) and carcass fat content (P = 0.027) but not on HYield (P = 0.078) or muscle and bone percentages (P = 0.119 and P = 0.581, respectively). After considering the nature of the concentrate (natCO), FE effect persisted on ADG (P < 0.001) and HYield (P = 0.004). Considering the percentage of concentrate in the diet (PCO) erased FE effect on ADG (P = 0.891) and HYield (P = 0.128). In contrast, considering the quantity of concentrate(QCO) erased FE effect on ADG (P = 0.084) but not on HYield (P = 0.006) or on carcass fat and muscle contents (P = 0.040 and P = 0.040, respectively) although the FE effect on carcass bone content persisted (P = 0.550). Animal species and physiological stage had no effect on any of the variables studied (P > 0.05) but experiment did (P ≤ 0.001). The increase in ADG was positively correlated to HYield in cattle (P = 0.002) and small ruminants (P = 0.003) and positively linked to carcass fat content (P = 0.007) but not carcass muscle content, which actually decreased (P = 0.001). Overall, this

An integrated view of the chemistry and mineralogy of martian soils

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yen, A. S.; Gellert, Ralf; Schroder, C.; Morris, R.V.; Bell, J.F.; Knudson, A.T.; Clark, B. C.; Ming, D. W.; Crisp, J.A.; Arvidson, R. E.; Blaney, D.; Brückner, J.; Christensen, P.R.; DesMarais, D.J.; De Souza, P.A.; Economou, T.E.; Ghosh, A.; Hahn, B.C.; Herkenhoff, K. E.; Haskin, L.A.; Hurowitz, J.A.; Joliff, B.L.; Johnson, J. R.; Klingelhofer, G.; Madsen, M.B.; McLennan, S.M.; McSween, H.Y.; Richter, L.; Rieder, R.; Rodionov, D.; Soderblom, L.; Squyres, S. W.; Tosca, N.J.; Wang, A.; Wyatt, M.; Zipfel, J.

2005-01-01

The mineralogical and elemental compositions of the martian soil are indicators of chemical and physical weathering processes. Using data from the Mars Exploration Rovers, we show that bright dust deposits on opposite sides of the planet are part of a global unit and not dominated by the composition of local rocks. Dark soil deposits at both sites have similar basaltic mineralogies, and could reflect either a global component or the general similarity in the compositions of the rocks from which they were derived. Increased levels of bromine are consistent with mobilization of soluble salts by thin films of liquid water, but the presence of olivine in analysed soil samples indicates that the extent of aqueous alteration of soils has been limited. Nickel abundances are enhanced at the immediate surface and indicate that the upper few millimetres of soil could contain up to one per cent meteoritic material.

Novel second-stage solar concentrator for parabolic troughs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collares-Pereira, Manuel; Mendes, Joao F.

1995-08-01

Conventional parabolic troughs can be combined with second stage concentrators (SSC), to increase temperature and pressure inside the absorber, making possible the direct production of steam, improving substantially the overall system efficiency and leading to a new generation of distributed solar power plants. To attain this objective, research is needed at the optical, thermodynamic, system control, and engineering levels. In what concerns the receiver of such a system, different practical solutions have been proposed recently and in the past for the geometry of the second stage concentrator: CPC type and others. In this work we discuss these solutions and we propose a new one, 100% efficient in energy collection while reaching a total concentration ratio which is almost 65% of the thermodynamic limit. This SSC has an asymmetric elliptical geometry, rendering possible a smooth solution for the reflectors while maintaining a reasonable size for the receiver.

Deciphering mineralogical changes and carbonation development during hydration and ageing of a consolidated ternary blended cement paste

PubMed Central

Grangeon, Sylvain; De Nolf, Wout; Harker, Nicholas; Boulahya, Faiza; Bourbon, Xavier

2018-01-01

To understand the main properties of cement, a ubiquitous material, a sound description of its chemistry and mineralogy, including its reactivity in aggressive environments and its mechanical properties, is vital. In particular, the porosity distribution and associated sample carbonation, both of which affect cement’s properties and durability, should be quantified accurately, and their kinetics and mechanisms of formation known both in detail and in situ. However, traditional methods of cement mineralogy analysis (e.g. chemical mapping) involve sample preparation (e.g. slicing) that can be destructive and/or expose cement to the atmosphere, leading to preparation artefacts (e.g. dehydration). In addition, the kinetics of mineralogical development during hydration, and associated porosity development, cannot be examined. To circumvent these issues, X-ray diffraction computed tomography (XRD-CT) has been used. This allowed the mineralogy of ternary blended cement composed of clinker, fly ash and blast furnace slag to be deciphered. Consistent with previous results obtained for both powdered samples and dilute systems, it was possible, using a consolidated cement paste (with a water-to-solid ratio akin to that used in civil engineering), to determine that the mineralogy consists of alite (only detected in the in situ hydration experiment), calcite, calcium silicate hydrates (C-S-H), ettringite, mullite, portlandite, and an amorphous fraction of unreacted slag and fly ash. Mineralogical evolution during the first hydration steps indicated fast ferrite reactivity. Insights were also gained into how the cement porosity evolves over time and into associated spatially and time-resolved carbonation mechanisms. It was observed that macroporosity developed in less than 30 h of hydration, with pore sizes reaching about 100–150 µm in width. Carbonation was not observed for this time scale, but was found to affect the first 100 µm of cement located around macropores

Halite Brine in the Onondaga Trough near Syracuse, New York: Characterization and Simulation of Variable-Density Flow

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yager, Richard M.; Kappel, William M.; Plummer, Niel

2007-01-01

Halite brine (saturation ranging from 45 to 80 percent) lies within glacial-drift deposits that fill the Onondaga Trough, a 40-km long bedrock valley deepened by Pleistocene ice near Syracuse, N.Y. The most concentrated brine occupies the northern end of the trough, more than 15 kilometers (km) beyond the northern limit of halite beds in the Silurian Salina Group, the assumed source of salt. The chemical composition of the brine and its radiocarbon age estimated from geochemical modeling with NETPATH suggest that the brine formed through dissolution of halite by glacial melt water, and later mixed with saline bedrock water about 16,500 years ago. Transient variable-density flow simulations were conducted with SEAWAT to assess current (2005) ground-water flow conditions within the glacial drift. A transient three-dimensional (3D) model using a grid spacing of 100 meters (m) and maximum layer spacing of 30 m was used to simulate a 215-year period from 1790 to 2005. The model was calibrated to observations of water levels, chloride concentrations, and discharges of water and chloride. The model produced an acceptable match to the measured data and provided a reasonable representation of the density distribution within the brine pool. The simulated mass of chloride in storage declined steadily during the 215-year period; however, the decline was mainly due to dispersion, which is probably overestimated because of the large layer spacing. Model results suggest that saline water from waste-disposal operations associated with a chemical plant has migrated beneath the western shore of Onondaga Lake. Two-dimensional (2D) cross-sectional models of the aquifer system within the Onondaga Trough were prepared to test the plausibility of a hypothesis that the brine was derived from a relict source of halite that was dissolved by glacial melt water. The 2D models used parameter estimates obtained with the calibrated 3D model. Model results indicated the brine could have migrated

Tularosa Basin Play Fairway Analysis: Weights of Evidence; Mineralogy, and Temperature Anomaly Maps

DOE Data Explorer

Adam Brandt

2015-11-15

This submission has two shapefiles and a tiff image. The weights of evidence analysis was applied to data representing heat of the earth and fracture permeability using training sites around the Southwest; this is shown in the tiff image. A shapefile of surface temperature anomalies was derived from the statistical analysis of Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) thermal infrared data which had been converted to surface temperatures; these anomalies have not been field checked. The second shapefile shows outcrop mineralogy which originally mapped by the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, and supplemented with mineralogic information related to rock fracability risk for EGS. Further metadata can be found within each file.

Depositional evolution of the Melville Bay trough-mouth fan, NW Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knutz, Paul; Gregersen, Ulrik

2015-04-01

The continental margin of NW Greenland bordering northern Baffin Bay is characterized by major sediment accumulations, known as Trough-Mouth Fans (TMF). The fan depocentres represent intense sediment dispersal at the terminus of ice streams that during cold climate periods provided major drainage routes of the northern Greenland Ice Sheet into Baffin Bay. The imprint of paleo-icestreams is seen by erosional troughs crossing a >250 km broad shelf region, which caps a series of sedimentary basins containing thick Mesozoic-Tertiary strata packages. This presentation provides an overview of the seismic stratigraphic division, depositional architecture and examples of seismic facies of the Melville Bay TMF using a 5-10 km grid of industry-quality 2D seismic data (TGS). The focus will primarily be on the inception and early stage of glacial fan development. Comparing the present-day topography with the regional geology shows that the paleo-icestreams exploited the Cenozoic infill of former rift basins that are more conducive to erosion than the adjoining ridges and structural highs. The TMF sequence is constructed by a series of progradational seismic units that represent successive steps in location of ice stream terminus and associated depocenters. The slope fronts of the prograding units show abundant signatures of sediment instability and mass-wasting but evidence of along-slope current-driven processes is also recognized presumably linked to interglacial sea level high-stands. The topset of each unit is characterized by planar erosion that merges landward into hummocky positive geometries with low internal reflectivity. These features are generally interpreted as subglacial landforms, e.g. terminal moraines and ice-contact deposits, associated with grounding zone wedges. Unlike the most recent TMF units deposited in front of the present trough, the oldest glacigenic units have built out from a Neogene sediment prism that forms the core of modern shallow-water banks

Hydrothermally-induced changes in mineralogy and magnetic properties of oxidized A-type granites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nédélec, Anne; Trindade, Ricardo; Peschler, Anne; Archanjo, Carlos; Macouin, Mélina; Poitrasson, Franck; Bouchez, Jean-Luc

2015-01-01

The changes in magnetic mineralogy due to the hydrothermal alteration of A-type granitic rocks have been thoroughly investigated in samples from the granite of Tana (Corsica, France), and compared with other A-type granites: Meruoca (NE Brazil), Bushveld (South Africa), Mount Scott (Wichita Mountains, Oklahoma, USA) and the stratoid hypersolvus granites of Madagascar. The altered red-colored samples and their non-altered equivalents were magnetically characterized by means of magnetic susceptibility measurements, hysteresis loops, remanent coercivity spectra, and Lowrie test. It is shown that hydrothermalization in magnetite-bearing granites is related to the formation of fine-grained magnetite and hematite, and to coeval depletion in the content of primary low-coercive coarse-grained magnetite. These mineralogical changes give typical rock magnetic signatures, namely lower susceptibility magnitudes and anisotropy degrees, prolate AMS (anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility) fabrics and increased coercivities. Optical microscopy and SEM (scanning electronic microscopy) images suggest that the orientation of the secondary magnetic minerals is related to fluid-pathways and micro-fractures formed during the hydrothermal event and therefore may be unrelated to magma emplacement and crystallization fabrics. Changes in magnetic mineralogy and grain-size distribution have also to be considered for any paleomagnetic and iron isotope studies in granites.

Mineralogical Plasticity Acts as a Compensatory Mechanism to the Impacts of Ocean Acidification.

PubMed

Leung, Jonathan Y S; Russell, Bayden D; Connell, Sean D

2017-03-07

Calcifying organisms are considered particularly susceptible to the future impacts of ocean acidification (OA), but recent evidence suggests that they may be able to maintain calcification and overall fitness. The underlying mechanism remains unclear but may be attributed to mineralogical plasticity, which modifies the energetic cost of calcification. To test the hypothesis that mineralogical plasticity enables the maintenance of shell growth and functionality under OA conditions, we assessed the biological performance of a gastropod (respiration rate, feeding rate, somatic growth, and shell growth of Austrocochlea constricta) and analyzed its shell mechanical and geochemical properties (shell hardness, elastic modulus, amorphous calcium carbonate, calcite to aragonite ratio, and magnesium to calcium ratio). Despite minor metabolic depression and no increase in feeding rate, shell growth was faster under OA conditions, probably due to increased precipitation of calcite and trade-offs against inner shell density. In addition, the resulting shell was functionally suitable for increasingly "corrosive" oceans, i.e., harder and less soluble shells. We conclude that mineralogical plasticity may act as a compensatory mechanism to maintain overall performance of calcifying organisms under OA conditions and could be a cornerstone of calcifying organisms to acclimate to and maintain their ecological functions in acidifying oceans.

Late Miocene to Pleistocene Mineralogy of ODP Site 1146

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnold, E. M.

2001-12-01

ODP Site 1146 (19° 27.40'N, 116° 16.37'E, 2092 m depth) was drilled on the continental slope of the South China Sea. A composite section, comprised of three stratigraphic units, extends down to 640 mcd. Unit 1 is late Pliocene to Pleistocene nannofossil clay (0 - 243 mcd); Unit 2, middle Miocene to Late Pliocene foraminifera - nannofossil - clay mixed sediment (243 - 553 mcd); Unit 3, early to middle Miocene nannofossil clay (553 - 642 mcd). This study reports the < 2 μ m mineralogy from the late Miocene through early Pleistocene. Samples were analyzed at approximately 1.5 m intervals from 150 to 225 mcd, and 1 m intervals from 225 to 440 mcd, with an age resolution of ~25 ka and ~35 ka, respectively. Illite, chlorite, quartz and plagioclase concentrations decrease with increasing depth through Unit 1. Kaolinite and calcite concentrations increase with depth, while smectite values are constant in this unit. Illite, quartz and plagioclase show high variability in Unit 1 compared with the underlying Unit 2. Unit 2 has more uniform sediment composition, with constant illite, chlorite, and quartz concentrations. Kaolinite concentration increases with depth, following a drop in concentration across the Unit 1/2 boundary. Plagioclase concentration shows a small, steady decrease throughout this unit. Smectite concentration does not change across the Unit 1/2 boundary, decreases to a steady low value from 310 - 400 mcd, and increases again towards the bottom. The mineralogy of sediments recovered at Site 1146 suggest a classic pattern of source region aridification from the middle Pliocene through the Pleistocene, indicated in Unit 1 mineralogy as a decrease in kaolinite with decreasing depth, concomitant with an increase in quartz, plagioclase, illite and chlorite. The mineral variability in this interval suggests glacial - interglacial control of the terrigenous sedimentation. The sediment sources and source area weathering regimes were relatively constant throughout

Mineralogical, Chemical, and Optical Interrelationships of Airborne Mineral Dusts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engelbrecht, J. P.; Moosmuller, H.; Pincock, S. L.; Jayanty, R. K. M.; Casuccio, G.

2014-12-01

The purpose of the project was to provide information on the mineralogical, chemical and physical interrelationships of re-suspended mineral dust samples collected as grab samples from global dust sources. Surface soil samples were collected from about 65 desert sites, including the southwestern USA (12), Mali (3), Chad (3), Morocco (1), Canary Islands (8), Cape Verde (1), Djibouti (1), Afghanistan (3), Iraq (6), Kuwait (5), Qatar (1), UAE (1), Serbia (3), China (5), Namibia (3), Botswana (4), Australia (3), and Chile (1). The < 38 μm sieved fraction of each sample was re-suspended in an entrainment chamber, from which the airborne mineral dust could be monitored, sampled and analyzed. Instruments integrated into the entrainment facility included two PM10 and two PM2.5 filter samplers, a beta attenuation gauge for the continuous measurement of PM10 and PM2.5 particulate mass fractions, an aerodynamic particle size (APS) analyzer, and a three wavelength (405, 532, 781nm) photoacoustic resonator with integrating reciprocal nephelometer for monitoring absorption and scattering coefficients during the dust re-suspension process. Filter sample media included Teflon® membrane and quartz fiber filters for chemical analysis (71 species), and Nuclepore® filters for individual particle analysis by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The < 38 μm sieved fractions were also analyzed by X-ray diffraction for their mineral content while the > 38 μm, < 125 μm soil fractions were mineralogically characterized by optical microscopy. We will be presenting results on the optical measurements, also showing the relationship between single scattering albedo (SSA) at three different wavelengths, and chemical as well as mineralogical content and interdependencies of the entrained dust samples. Examples showing the relationships between the single scattering albedos of airborne dusts, and iron (Fe) in hematite, goethite, and clay minerals (montmorillonite, illite, palygorskite), will

Mineralogy and composition of concentric layers within a manganese nodule from the North Pacific Ocean

USGS Publications Warehouse

Piper, D.Z.; Williamson, M.E.

1981-01-01

The minor-element composition of concentric layers within a single ferromanganese nodule from the eastern North Pacific exhibits strong correlations with Fe and Mn contents but appears to be independent of pronounced mineralogic variations. On the basis of these correlations, the elemental composition of individual layers apparently is controlled by the relative contribution of two sources: seawater, and interstitial water of associated sediment. In contrast, the mineralogy of the nodule, consisting of birnessite in the outer few layers and todorokite in the inner layers, is considered to be a function of nodule diagenesis. ?? 1981.

Mineralogy and evolution of the surface of Mars: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chevrier, V.; Mathé, P. E.

2007-02-01

We review the mineralogy of the surface of Mars, using data from various sources, including in situ characterisations performed by landers, remote observations from orbit, and studies of the SNC meteorites. We also discuss the possible alteration processes and the factor controlling them, and try to relate the mineralogical observations to the chemical evolution of the surface materials on Mars in order to identify the dominant process(es). Then we try to describe a possible chemical and mineralogical evolution of the surface materials, resulting from weathering driven by the abundance and activity of water. Even if weathering is the dominant process responsible for the surface evolution, all observations suggest that it is strongly affected locally in time and space by various other processes including hydrothermalism, volcanism, evaporites, meteoritic impacts and aeolian erosion. Nevertheless, the observed phases on the surface of Mars globally depend on the evolution of the weathering conditions. This hypothesis, if confirmed, could give a new view of the evolution of the martian surface, roughly in three steps. The first would correspond to clay-type weathering process in the Noachian, under a probable thick H 2O/CO 2-rich atmosphere. Then, during the Hesperian when water became scarcer and its activity sporadic, linked to volcanic activity, sulfate-type acidic weathering process would have been predominant. The third period would be like today, a very slow weathering by strongly oxidising agents (H 2O 2, O 2) in cold and dry conditions, through solid-gas or solid-films of water resulting frost-thaw and/or acid fog. This would favour poorly crystalline phases, mainly iron (oxy) hydroxides. But in this scenario many questions remain about the transition between these processes, and about the factors affecting the evolution of the weathering process.

Mineralogical characterization of A-type asteroid (1951) Lick

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de León, J.; Duffard, R.; Licandro, J.; Lazzaro, D.

2004-07-01

We have obtained visible and near-infrared reflectance spectra of asteroid (1951) Lick. According to its spectral characteristics in the visible region, this object has been classified as an A-type asteroid by Bus & Binzel (\\cite{bus2002b}). Here we present a mineralogical analysis of the reflectance spectrum obtained for this object. We compute several parameters that are extracted from the spectrum of the asteroid and that give relevant information about its mineralogical composition, using the method defined by Gaffey et al. (\\cite{gaffey1993}). We also present results obtained through the fit to the absorption band associated to the pressence of olivine using the Modified Gaussian Model (MGM) method developed by Sunshine et al. (\\cite{sunshi1990}). Our results indicate that (1951) Lick is an almost pure olivine. The composition of olivine on the surface of Lick is estimated to be about Fo90±10 (low-iron content). Based on observations made with the Nordic Optical Telescope, operated on the island of La Palma jointly by Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, and on observations made with the Italian Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG) operated on the island of La Palma by the Centro Galileo Galilei of the INAF (Instituto Nazionale di Astrofisica), both telescopes located at the Spanish ``Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos'' of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias.

Second Generation Novel High Temperature Commercial Receiver & Low Cost High Performance Mirror Collector for Parabolic Solar Trough

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stettenheim, Joel

Norwich Technologies (NT) is developing a disruptively superior solar field for trough concentrating solar power (CSP). Troughs are the leading CSP technology (85% of installed capacity), being highly deployable and similar to photovoltaic (PV) systems for siting. NT has developed the SunTrap receiver, a disruptive alternative to vacuum-tube concentrating solar power (CSP) receivers, a market currently dominated by the Schott PTR-70. The SunTrap receiver will (1) operate at higher temperature (T) by using an insulated, recessed radiation-collection system to overcome the energy losses that plague vacuum-tube receivers at high T, (2) decrease acquisition costs via simpler structure, and (3) dramaticallymore » increase reliability by eliminating vacuum. It offers comparable optical efficiency with thermal loss reduction from ≥ 26% (at presently standard T) to ≥ 55% (at high T), lower acquisition costs, and near-zero O&M costs.« less

Mineralogical and chemical variability of fluvial sediments 2. Suspended-load silt (Ganga-Brahmaputra, Bangladesh)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garzanti, Eduardo; Andó, Sergio; France-Lanord, Christian; Censi, Paolo; Vignola, Pietro; Galy, Valier; Lupker, Maarten

2011-02-01

Sediments carried in suspension represent a fundamental part of fluvial transport. Nonetheless, largely because of technical problems, they have been hitherto widely neglected in provenance studies. In order to determine with maximum possible precision the mineralogy of suspended load collected in vertical profiles from water surface to channel bottom of Rivers Ganga and Brahmaputra, we combined Raman spectroscopy with traditional heavy-mineral and X-ray diffraction analyses, carried out separately on low-density and dense fractions of all significant size classes in each sample (multiple-window approach). Suspended load resulted to be a ternary mixture of dominant silt enriched in phyllosilicates, subordinate clay largely derived from weathered floodplains, and sand mainly produced by physical erosion and mechanical grinding during transport in Himalayan streams. Sediment concentration and grain size increase steadily with water depth. Whereas absolute concentration of clay associated with Fe-oxyhydroxides and organic matter is almost depth-invariant, regular mineralogical and consequently chemical changes from shallow to deep load result from marked increase of faster-settling, coarser, denser, or more spherical grains toward the bed. Such steady intersample compositional variability can be modeled as a mixture of clay, silt and sand modes with distinct mineralogical and chemical composition. With classical formulas describing sediment transport by turbulent diffusion, absolute and relative concentrations can be predicted at any depth for each textural mode and each detrital component. Based on assumptions on average chemistry of detrital minerals and empirical formulas to calculate their settling velocities, the suspension-sorting model successfully reproduces mineralogy and chemistry of suspended load at different depths. Principal outputs include assessment of contributions by each detrital mineral to the chemical budget, and calibration of dense minerals too

Association Between Low Trough Levels of Vedolizumab During Induction Therapy for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases and Need for Additional Doses Within 6 Months.

PubMed

Williet, Nicolas; Boschetti, Gilles; Fovet, Marion; Di Bernado, Thomas; Claudez, Pierre; Del Tedesco, Emilie; Jarlot, Camille; Rinaldi, Leslie; Berger, Anne; Phelip, Jean-Marc; Flourie, Bernard; Nancey, Stéphane; Paul, Stéphane; Roblin, Xavier

2017-11-01

We investigated whether serum trough levels of vedolizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody against integrin α4β7, during the induction phase of treatment can determine whether patients will need additional doses (optimization of therapy) within the first 6 months. We conducted an observational study of 47 consecutive patients with Crohn's disease (CD; n = 31) or ulcerative colitis (UC; n = 16) who had not responded to 2 previous treatment regimens with antagonists of tumor necrosis factor and were starting therapy with vedolizumab at 2 hospitals in France, from June 2014 through April 2016. All patients were given a 300-mg infusion of vedolizumab at the start of the study, Week 2, Week 6, and then every 8 weeks; patients were also given corticosteroids during the first 4-6 weeks. Patients not in remission at Week 6 were given additional doses of vedolizumab at Week 10 and then every 4 weeks (extended therapy or optimization). Remission at Week 6 of treatment was defined as CD activity score below 150 points for patients with CD and a partial Mayo Clinic score of <3 points, without concomitant corticosteroids, for patients with UC. Blood samples were collected each week and serum levels of vedolizumab and antibodies against vedolizumab were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Median trough levels of vedolizumab and interquartile ranges were compared using the nonparametric Mann-Whitney test. The primary objective was to determine whether trough levels of vedolizumab measured during the first 6 weeks of induction therapy associated with the need for extended treatment within the first 6 months. Based on response to therapy at Week 6, extended treatment was required for 30 of the 47 patients (23 patients with CD and 7 patients with UC). At Week 2, trough levels of vedolizumab for patients selected for extended treatment were 23.0 μg/mL (interquartile range, 14.0-37.0 μg/mL), compared with 42.5 μg/mL in patients who did not receive extended

2001 Mars Odyssey: Geologic Questions for Global Geochemical and Mineralogical Mapping

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Saunders, R. S.; Meyer, M. A.

2001-01-01

2001 Mars Odyssey has three experiments. GRS will map the surface elemental composition. MARIE will characterize the Mars radiation environment for risk to humans. THEMIS will map the mineralogy and morphology with a camera and thermal IR imaging. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

Nonimaging secondary concentrators for large rim angle parabolic troughs with tubular absorbers.

PubMed

Ries, H; Spirkl, W

1996-05-01

For parabolic trough solar collectors with tubular absorbers, we design new tailored secondary concentrators. The design is applicable for any rim angle of a parabolic reflector. With the secondary, the concentration can be increased by a factor of more than 2 with a compact secondary reflector consisting of a single piece, even for the important case of a rim angle of 90 deg. The parabolic reflector can be used without changes; the reduced absorber is still tubular but smaller than the original absorber and slightly displaced toward the primary.

Mineralogy and composition of the oceanic mantle

USGS Publications Warehouse

Putirka, Keith; Ryerson, F.J.; Perfit, Michael; Ridley, W. Ian

2011-01-01

The mineralogy of the oceanic basalt source region is examined by testing whether a peridotite mineralogy can yield observed whole-rock and olivine compositions from (1) the Hawaiian Islands, our type example of a mantle plume, and (2) the Siqueiros Transform, which provides primitive samples of normal mid-ocean ridge basalt. New olivine compositional data from phase 2 of the Hawaii Scientific Drilling Project (HSDP2) show that higher Ni-in-olivine at the Hawaiian Islands is due to higher temperatures (T) of melt generation and processing (by c. 300°C) related to the Hawaiian mantle plume. DNi is low at high T, so parental Hawaiian basalts are enriched in NiO. When Hawaiian (picritic) parental magmas are transported to shallow depths, olivine precipitation occurs at lower temperatures, where DNi is high, leading to high Ni-in-olivine. Similarly, variations in Mn and Fe/Mn ratios in olivines are explained by contrasts in the temperatures of magma processing. Using the most mafic rocks to delimit Siqueiros and Hawaiian Co and Ni contents in parental magmas and mantle source compositions also shows that both suites can be derived from natural peridotites, but are inconsistent with partial melting of natural pyroxenites. Whole-rock compositions at Hawaii and Siqueiros are also matched by partial melting experiments conducted on peridotite bulk compositions. Hawaiian whole-rocks have elevated FeO contents compared with Siqueiros, which can be explained if Hawaiian parental magmas are generated from peridotite at 4-5 GPa, in contrast to pressures of slightly greater than 1 GPa for melt generation at Siqueiros; these pressures are consistent with olivine thermometry, as described in an earlier paper. SiO2-enriched Koolau compositions are reproduced if high-Fe Hawaiian parental magmas re-equilibrate at 1-1·5 GPa. Peridotite partial melts from experimental studies also reproduce the CaO and Al2O3 contents of Hawaiian (and Siqueiros) whole-rocks. Hawaiian magmas have TiO2

Carbon abundances, major element chemistry, and mineralogy of hydrated interplanetary dust particles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keller, L. P.; Thomas, K. L.; Mckay, D. S.

1993-01-01

Hydrated interplanetary dust particles (IDP's) comprise a major fraction of the interplanetary dust particles collected in the stratosphere. While much is known about the mineralogy and chemistry of hydrated IDP's, little is known about the C abundance in this class of IDP's, the nature of the C-bearing phases, and how the C abundance is related to other physical properties of hydrated IDP's. Bulk compositional data (including C and O) for 11 hydrated IDP's that were subsequently examined by the transition electron microscopy (TEM) to determine their mineralogy and mineral chemistry are reported. Our analysis indicates that these hydrated IDP's are strongly enriched in C relative to the most C-rich meteorites. The average abundance of C in these hydrated IDP's is 4X CI chondrite values. The bulk compositions (including C and O) of 11 hydrated IDP's were determined by thin-window, energy-dispersive x ray (EDX) spectroscopy of the uncoated IDP's on Be substrates in the scanning electron microscopy (SEM). As a check on our C measurements, one of the IDP's (L2006H5) was embedded in glassy S, and microtome thin sections were prepared and placed onto Be substrates. Thin-film EDX analyses of multiple thin sections of L2006H5 show good agreement with the bulk value determined in the SEM. Following EDX analysis, the mineralogy and mineral chemistry of each IDP was determined by analyzing ultramicrotome thin sections in a TEM equipped with an EDX spectrometer.

Synthesis of Carbonate-Based Micro/Nanoscale Particles With Controlled Morphology and Mineralogy

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-01

patterns were obtained using a Panalytical X’Pert Pro diffractometer using iron-filtered cobalt radiation, and analyzed using Panalytical X’Pert...develop composites by hydrothermal recrystallization of metastable phases. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Aragonite Calcite Calcium carbonate Dopant Mineralogy

Comparisons of Mineralogy Between Cumulate Eucrites and Lunar Meteorites Possibly from the Farside Anorsothitic Crust

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Takeda, H.; Yamaguchi, A.; Hiroi, T.; Nyquist, L. E.; Shih, C.-Y.; Ohtake, M.; Karouji, Y.; Kobayashi, S.

2011-01-01

Anorthosites composed of nearly pure anorthite (PAN) at many locations in the farside highlands have been observed by the Kaguya multiband imager and spectral profiler [1]. Mineralogical studies of lunar meteorites of the Dhofar 489 group [2,3] and Yamato (Y-) 86032 [4], all possibly from the farside highlands, showed some aspects of the farside crust. Nyquist et al. [5] performed Sm-Nd and Ar-Ar studies of pristine ferroan anorthosites (FANs) of the returned Apollo samples and of Dhofar 908 and 489, and discussed implications for lunar crustal history. Nyquist et al. [6] reported initial results of a combined mineralogical/chronological study of the Yamato (Y-) 980318 cumulate eucrite with a conventional Sm-Nd age of 4567 24 Ma and suggested that all eucrites, including cumulate eucrites, crystallized from parental magmas within a short interval following differentiation of their parent body, and most eucrites participated in an event or events in the time interval 4400- 4560 Ma in which many isotopic systems were partially reset. During the foregoing studies, we recognized that variations in mineralogy and chronology of lunar anorthosites are more complex than those of the crustal materials of the HED parent body. In this study, we compared the mineralogies and reflectance spectra of the cumulate eucrites, Y-980433 and 980318, to those of the Dhofar 307 lunar meteorite of the Dhofar 489 group [2]. Here we consider information from these samples to gain a better understanding of the feldspathic farside highlands and the Vesta-like body.

Hydrothermal mineralogy of core from geothermal drill holes at Newberry Volcano, Oregon

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bargar, Keith E.; Keith, Terry E.

1999-01-01

Hydrothermal mineralogy studies of specimens collected from nine geothermal drill holes suggest that, at the locations and depths drilled, past temperatures have been hottest (exceeding 300?C) near ring fractures on the south and west sides of Newberry Volcano.

Seasonal Variations of Low Molecular Weight Dicarboxylic Acids in Atmospheric Aerosols at Okinawa Islands, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakaema, F.; Handa, D.; Tanahara, A.; Arakaki, T.

2009-04-01

Low molecular weight dicarboxylic acids are major fraction of water soluble organic compounds in the atmospheric aerosols. Recently, economy of East Asia grows up remarkably, and atmospheric aerosols discharged from this area have been transported to Japan. In this study, we collected aerosol at Cape Hedo (CH) and University of the Ryukyus(UR), and studied the distribution and origin of low molecule dicarboxylic acid. Aerosols were collected on a quartz filter with a high volume air sampler. Low molecular weight dicarboxylic acids extracted by pure water were derivatized to dibutyl esters by reactions with BF3/butanol and were measured by GC-FID. In many samples, oxalic acid showed the highest concentration. Concentration of oxalic acid, malonic acid, succinic acid and malic acid were strongly correlated between the two sampling sites. Oxalic acid occupied on the average 83% and 76% of all the dicarboxylic acid measured for CH samples and UR samples. It is suggested that the aerosols in Okinawa were affected by secondary photochemical reactions, not by the primary emissions from local sources. The seasonal variation of the dicarboxylic acids concentrations in CH and UR showed higher in spring and fall, and a lower in summer. From the back trajectory analysis, dicarboxylic acids concentrations showed higher when an air mass came from East Asia area, and showed lower when it came from Pacific Ocean.

Detailed Mineralogy and Petrology of Intermediate Martian Lherzolitic Shergottite Northwest Africa 6342

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kizovski, T. V.; Tait, K. T.

2017-07-01

NWA 6342 is a 35.5 g lherzolitic shergottite that was found in Algeria in 2010. The purpose of this work is to complete a detailed mineralogical, petrological, and geochemical analysis of NWA 6342 and compare it to other lherzolitic sherogottites.

Case study of a central-station grid-intertie photovoltaic system with V-trough concentration

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Freilich, J.; Gordon, J.M.

1991-01-01

This presentation is a cast study of an installed, central-station (no storage), utility-intertie photovoltaic (PV) system in Sede Boqer, Israel (latitude 30.9{degree}N). The nominally 12 kW peak PV system is comprised of 189 polycrystalline silicon modules mounted on inexpensive, one-axis north-south horizontal trackers with V-trough mirrors for optical boost. The power conditioning unit operates at a fixed voltage rather than at maximum power point (MPP). The primary task in analyzing the installed system was to investigate the cause of measured power output significantly below the design predictions of the installers, and to recommend system design modifications. Subsequent tasks included themore » quantitative assessment of fixed-voltage operation and of the energetic value of V-trough concentration and one-axis tracking for this system. Sample results show: (1) fixed-voltage operation at the best fixed voltage (BFV) can achieve around 96% of the yearly energy of MPP operation; (2) the sensitivity of the yearly energy delivery to the selection of fixed voltage and its marked asymmetry about the BFV; (3) the influences of inverter current constraints on yearly energy delivery and BFV; and (4) how the separate effects of tracking and optical concentration increase yearly energy delivery.« less

Performance Evaluation of a Nanofluid-Based Direct Absorption Solar Collector with Parabolic Trough Concentrator

PubMed Central

Xu, Guoying; Chen, Wei; Deng, Shiming; Zhang, Xiaosong; Zhao, Sainan

2015-01-01

Application of solar collectors for hot water supply, space heating, and cooling plays a significant role in reducing building energy consumption. For conventional solar collectors, solar radiation is absorbed by spectral selective coating on the collectors’ tube/plate wall. The poor durability of the coating can lead to an increased manufacturing cost and unreliability for a solar collector operated at a higher temperature. Therefore, a novel nanofluid-based direct absorption solar collector (NDASC) employing uncoated collector tubes has been proposed, and its operating characteristics for medium-temperature solar collection were theoretically and experimentally studied in this paper. CuO/oil nanofluid was prepared and used as working fluid of the NDASC. The heat-transfer mechanism of the NDASC with parabolic trough concentrator was theoretically evaluated and compared with a conventional indirect absorption solar collector (IASC). The theoretical analysis results suggested that the fluid’s temperature distribution in the NDASC was much more uniform than that in the IASC, and an enhanced collection efficiency could be achieved for the NDASC operated within a preferred working temperature range. To demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed NDASC, experimental performances of an NDASC and an IASC with the same parabolic trough concentrator were furthermore evaluated and comparatively discussed. PMID:28347112

Performance Evaluation of a Nanofluid-Based Direct Absorption Solar Collector with Parabolic Trough Concentrator.

PubMed

Xu, Guoying; Chen, Wei; Deng, Shiming; Zhang, Xiaosong; Zhao, Sainan

2015-12-04

Application of solar collectors for hot water supply, space heating, and cooling plays a significant role in reducing building energy consumption. For conventional solar collectors, solar radiation is absorbed by spectral selective coating on the collectors' tube/plate wall. The poor durability of the coating can lead to an increased manufacturing cost and unreliability for a solar collector operated at a higher temperature. Therefore, a novel nanofluid-based direct absorption solar collector (NDASC) employing uncoated collector tubes has been proposed, and its operating characteristics for medium-temperature solar collection were theoretically and experimentally studied in this paper. CuO/oil nanofluid was prepared and used as working fluid of the NDASC. The heat-transfer mechanism of the NDASC with parabolic trough concentrator was theoretically evaluated and compared with a conventional indirect absorption solar collector (IASC). The theoretical analysis results suggested that the fluid's temperature distribution in the NDASC was much more uniform than that in the IASC, and an enhanced collection efficiency could be achieved for the NDASC operated within a preferred working temperature range. To demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed NDASC, experimental performances of an NDASC and an IASC with the same parabolic trough concentrator were furthermore evaluated and comparatively discussed.

Spatial and temporal distribution of pore gas concentrations during mainstream large-scale trough composting in China.

PubMed

Zeng, Jianfei; Shen, Xiuli; Sun, Xiaoxi; Liu, Ning; Han, Lujia; Huang, Guangqun

2018-05-01

With the advantages of high treatment capacity and low operational cost, large-scale trough composting has become one of the mainstream composting patterns in composting plants in China. This study measured concentrations of O 2 , CO 2 , CH 4 and NH 3 on-site to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of pore gas concentrations during mainstream large-scale trough composting in China. The results showed that the temperature in the center of the pile was obviously higher than that in the side of the pile. Pore O 2 concentration rapidly decreased and maintained <5% (in volume) for 38 days or more in both the center and side of the pile and effective O 2 diffusion occurred at most in every two contiguous layers. Pore CO 2 and CH 4 concentrations at each measurement point were positively correlated (0.436 ≤ r ≤ 0.570, P < 0.01) and the concentrations in the side of the pile were obviously lower than those in the center. The top layer exhibited highest pore O 2 concentration and lowest CO 2 and CH 4 concentrations, and the bottom layer was on the contrary. No significant differences in pore NH 3 concentrations between different layers or between different measurement points in the same layer were found. Therefore, mixing the center and the side of the pile when mechanical turning and adjusting the height of the pile according to the physical properties of bulking agents are suggested to optimize the oxygen distribution and promote the composting process during large-scale trough composting when the pile was naturally aerated, which will contribute to improving the current undesirable atmosphere environment in China. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Entamoeba marina n. sp.; a New Species of Entamoeba Isolated from Tidal Flat Sediment of Iriomote Island, Okinawa, Japan.

PubMed

Shiratori, Takashi; Ishida, Ken-Ichiro

2016-05-01

The genus Entamoeba includes anaerobic lobose amoebae, most of which are parasites of various vertebrates and invertebrates. We report a new Entamoeba species, E. marina n. sp. that was isolated from a sample of tidal flat sediment collected at Iriomote Island, Okinawa, Japan. Trophozoites of E. marina were 12.8-32.1 μm in length and 6.8-15.9 μm in width, whereas the cysts were 8.9-15.8 μm in diam. and contained four nuclei. The E. marina cells contained a rounded nucleus with a small centric karyosome and uniformly arranged peripheral chromatin. Although E. marina is morphologically indistinguishable from other tetranucleated cyst-forming Entamoeba species, E. marina can be distinguished from them based on the combination of molecular phylogenetic analyses using SSU rDNA gene and the difference of collection sites. Therefore, we propose E. marina as a new species of the genus Entamoeba. © 2015 The Author(s) Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology © 2015 International Society of Protistologists.

Metabolically active microbial communities in marine sediment under high-CO2 and low-pH extremes

PubMed Central

Yanagawa, Katsunori; Morono, Yuki; de Beer, Dirk; Haeckel, Matthias; Sunamura, Michinari; Futagami, Taiki; Hoshino, Tatsuhiko; Terada, Takeshi; Nakamura, Ko-ichi; Urabe, Tetsuro; Rehder, Gregor; Boetius, Antje; Inagaki, Fumio

2013-01-01

Sediment-hosting hydrothermal systems in the Okinawa Trough maintain a large amount of liquid, supercritical and hydrate phases of CO2 in the seabed. The emission of CO2 may critically impact the geochemical, geophysical and ecological characteristics of the deep-sea sedimentary environment. So far it remains unclear whether microbial communities that have been detected in such high-CO2 and low-pH habitats are metabolically active, and if so, what the biogeochemical and ecological consequences for the environment are. In this study, RNA-based molecular approaches and radioactive tracer-based respiration rate assays were combined to study the density, diversity and metabolic activity of microbial communities in CO2-seep sediment at the Yonaguni Knoll IV hydrothermal field of the southern Okinawa Trough. In general, the number of microbes decreased sharply with increasing sediment depth and CO2 concentration. Phylogenetic analyses of community structure using reverse-transcribed 16S ribosomal RNA showed that the active microbial community became less diverse with increasing sediment depth and CO2 concentration, indicating that microbial activity and community structure are sensitive to CO2 venting. Analyses of RNA-based pyrosequences and catalyzed reporter deposition-fluorescence in situ hybridization data revealed that members of the SEEP-SRB2 group within the Deltaproteobacteria and anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME-2a and -2c) were confined to the top seafloor, and active archaea were not detected in deeper sediments (13–30 cm in depth) characterized by high CO2. Measurement of the potential sulfate reduction rate at pH conditions of 3–9 with and without methane in the headspace indicated that acidophilic sulfate reduction possibly occurs in the presence of methane, even at very low pH of 3. These results suggest that some members of the anaerobic methanotrophs and sulfate reducers can adapt to the CO2-seep sedimentary environment; however, CO2 and p

Monitoring interseismic activity on the Ilan Plain (NE Taiwan) using Small Baseline PS-InSAR, GPS and leveling measurements: partitioning from arc-continent collision and backarc extension

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, Zhe; Hu, Jyr-Ching; Wang, Erchie; Li, Yongsheng; Yang, Yinghui; Wang, Pei-Ling

2018-01-01

The Ilan Plain, located in Northeast Taiwan, represents a transition zone between oblique collision (between the Luzon Arc and the Eurasian Plate) and backarc extension (the Okinawa Trough). The mechanism for this abrupt transition from arc-continent collision to backarc extension remains uncertain. We used Global Positioning System (GPS), leveling and multi-interferogram Small Baseline Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (SBAS-PSI) data to monitor the interseismic activity in the basin. A common reference site was selected for the data sets. The horizontal component of GPS and the vertical measurements of the leveling data were converted to line-of-sight (LOS) data and compared with the SBAS-PSI data. The comparison shows that the entire Ilan Plain is undergoing rapid subsidence at a maximum rate of -11 ± 2 mm yr-1 in the LOS direction. We speculate that vertical deformation and anthropogenic activity may play important roles in this deformation. We also performed a joint inversion modeling that combined both the DInSAR and strong motion data to constrain the source model of the 2005 Ilan earthquake. The best-fitting model predicts that the Sansing fault caused the 2005 Ilan earthquake. The observed transtensional deformation is dominated by the normal faulting with a minor left-lateral strike-slip motion. We compared our SBAS-PSI results with the short-term (2005-2009) groundwater level changes. The results indicate that although pumping-induced surface subsidence cannot be excluded, tectonic deformation, including rapid southward movement of the Ryukyu arc and backarc extension of the Okinawa Trough, characterizes the opening of the Ilan Plain. Furthermore, a series of normal and left-lateral strike-slip transtensional faults, including the Choshui and Sansing faults, form a bookshelf-like structure that accommodates the extension of the plain. Although situated in a region of complex structural interactions, the Ilan Plain is primarily controlled by extension

Association of the clinical efficacy of vancomycin with the novel pharmacokinetic parameter area under the trough level (AUTL) in elderly patients with hospital-acquired pneumonia.

PubMed

Fukumori, S; Tsuji, Y; Mizoguchi, A; Kasai, H; Ishibashi, T; Iwamura, N; To, H

2016-08-01

The pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic parameter that best predicts the efficacy of vancomycin is the ratio of the area under the concentration versus time curve (AUC) to the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). A 24-h AUC (AUC24 )/MIC ratio ≥ 400 was recommended in an American consensus review, but vancomycin treatment occasionally fails despite maintenance of AUC24 /MIC ≥ 400. We evaluated the association between clinical efficacy of vancomycin and two novel pharmacokinetic parameters, the 'area under the trough level' (AUTL) and the 'area above the trough level' (AATL), in hospitalized elderly patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) pneumonia. The subjects were hospitalized elderly patients who were administered vancomycin for treatment of MRSA pneumonia between 2006 and 2012 at Sasebo Chuo Hospital (Nagasaki, Japan). Pharmacokinetic parameters of vancomycin were estimated for each patient by Bayesian analysis using population pharmacokinetic parameters for Japanese patients. Based on the patient-specific parameters thus obtained, AUC24 values were calculated as the vancomycin dosage divided by vancomycin clearance. AUTL was calculated as the trough serum concentration multiplied by 24 h, whereas AATL was calculated by subtracting AUTL from AUC24 . Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that efficacy of vancomycin was more strongly associated with AUTL than AUC24 . The optimal cut-off value of AUTL was 331 μg∙h/mL, which means that the optimal cut-off value of the trough serum concentration was 13·8 μg/mL. Efficacy of vancomycin was associated with AUTL, a novel pharmacokinetic parameter. Determining the target AUTL or trough concentration may enhance the efficacy of vancomycin therapy in elderly patients with MRSA pneumonia. Given that nephrotoxicity may increase with a Ctrough in excess of 15 μg/mL, this level should ideally not be exceeded. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Two new nematodes from the Iriomote cat, Prionailurus iriomotensis, from Okinawa: Uncinaria (Uncinaria) maya n. sp. (Ancylostomatoidea) and Molineus springsmithi yayeyamanus n. subsp. (Trichostrongyloidea).

PubMed

Hasegawa, H

1989-12-01

Uncinaria (Uncinaria) maya n. sp. (Nematoda: Ancylostomatidae) and Molineus springsmithi yayeyamanus n. subsp. (Nematoda: Molineidae) are described from the Iriomote cat, Prionailurus iriomotensis, on Iriomote Island, Okinawa, Japan. Uncinaria (U.) maya resembles Uncinaria (Uncinaria) felidis Maplestone, 1939, from Prionailurus bengalensis of India but is distinguished in that the body is much smaller, the ventral rays are set closely with the lateral rays, and the externolateral ray is much shorter than other laterals. Molineus springsmithi yayeyamanus differs from Molineus springsmithi springsmithi Inglis and Ogden, 1965, from Prionailurus bengalensis horsfieldi of East Nepal in that the body is much longer, whereas the esophagus is somewhat shorter and the spicules are divided more distally. Presence of the closely related nematodes in both the Iriomote cat and P. bengalensis suggests a close evolutionary relationship of the 2 hosts.

Mineralogy, early marine diagenesis, and the chemistry of shallow-water carbonate sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Higgins, J. A.; Blättler, C. L.; Lundstrom, E. A.; Santiago-Ramos, D. P.; Akhtar, A. A.; Crüger Ahm, A.-S.; Bialik, O.; Holmden, C.; Bradbury, H.; Murray, S. T.; Swart, P. K.

2018-01-01

Shallow-water carbonate sediments constitute the bulk of sedimentary carbonates in the geologic record and are widely used archives of Earth's chemical and climatic history. One of the main limitations in interpreting the geochemistry of ancient carbonate sediments is the potential for post-depositional diagenetic alteration. In this study, we use paired measurements of calcium (44Ca/40Ca or δ44Ca) and magnesium (26Mg/24Mg or δ26Mg) isotope ratios in sedimentary carbonates and associated pore-fluids as a tool to understand the mineralogical and diagenetic history of Neogene shallow-water carbonate sediments from the Bahamas and southwest Australia. We find that the Ca and Mg isotopic composition of bulk carbonate sediments at these sites exhibits systematic stratigraphic variability that is related to both mineralogy and early marine diagenesis. The observed variability in bulk sediment Ca isotopes is best explained by changes in the extent and style of early marine diagenesis from one where the composition of the diagenetic carbonate mineral is determined by the chemistry of the fluid (fluid-buffered) to one where the composition of the diagenetic carbonate mineral is determined by the chemistry of the precursor sediment (sediment-buffered). Our results indicate that this process, together with variations in carbonate mineralogy (aragonite, calcite, and dolomite), plays a fundamental and underappreciated role in determining the regional and global stratigraphic expressions of geochemical tracers (δ13C, δ18O, major, minor, and trace elements) in shallow-water carbonate sediments in the geologic record. Our results also provide evidence that a large shallow-water carbonate sink that is enriched in 44Ca can explain the mismatch between the δ44/40Ca value of rivers and deep-sea carbonate sediments and call into question the hypothesis that the δ44/40Ca value of seawater depends on the mineralogy of primary carbonate precipitations (e.g. 'aragonite seas' and

Tracking Changes in Iron Mineralogy Through Time in Gale Crater and Terrestrial Analogues

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheppard, R.; Milliken, R.; Russell, J. M.

2017-12-01

Iron and other redox-sensitive elements measured in ancient mudstones of Gale Crater, Mars by the Curiosity rover can provide information on past climate and interactions between water and the early atmosphere. Preserved ferrous mineralogy can constrain lake bottom water conditions and potentially the relative position of the oxycline and/or shoreline through the stratigraphic section. Multiple oxidation states in a given assemblage may also indicate a potential energy source for microbes. The X-ray amorphous fraction of all rocks measured in Gale Crater to date is also enigmatic: it can constitute up to 50 wt% of the sediment but the precise composition and formation conditions are unknown. Features similar to those in the martian mudstones are seen in sediments from the terrestrial redox-stratified Lake Towuti, including alternating ferrous and ferric mineralogy and an abundant Fe-rich X-ray amorphous phase. To constrain conditions in the water column and early diagenetic processes, we present trends in chemistry and mineralogy for sediment acquired from soils in the mafic/ultramafic catchment and lake bottom/core samples. The soils contain high abundances of crystalline Fe-oxides (e.g. magnetite, goethite, hematite), whereas sediment from the very surface of the lake bottom maintain high Fe but not in crystalline form based on XRD. This suggests Fe is being rapidly cycled to form amorphous phases after entering the lake. Sequential extractions to isolate highly reactive iron (e.g. ferrihydrite) will be used to confirm the relative abundance of poorly crystalline phases in catchment versus lake sediment. Sediments from a 150 m core representing 1 Myr lake history also maintain high Fe content and distinct alternating bands of red and green sediment, but there are no crystalline Fe-oxides discernible in XRD data. The process(es) and timescale for this switching is not yet known, but understanding the conditions that allow ferrous vs. ferric iron to form, and what

Mineralogy, petrology and chemistry of ANT-suite rocks from the lunar highlands

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prinz, M.; Keil, K.

1977-01-01

Anorthositic-noritic-troctolitic (ANT) rocks are the oldest and most abundant rocks of the lunar surface, and comprise about 90% of the suite of the lunar highlands. Consideration is given to the mineralogy, petrology, bulk chemistry, and origin of ANT-suite rocks. Problems associated in classifying and labeling lunar highland rocks because of textural complexities occurring from impact modifications are discussed. The mineralogy of ANT-suite rocks, dominated by plagioclase, olivine and pyrozene, and containing various minor minerals, is outlined. The petrology of ANT-suite rocks is reviewed along with the major element bulk composition of these rocks, noting that they are extremely depleted in K2O and P2O5. Various models describing the origin of ANT-suite rocks are summarized, and it is suggested that this origin involves a parental liquid of high-alumina basalt with low Fe/Fe+Mg.

Revisiting Parabolic Trough Concentrators for Industrial Process Heat in the United States

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Turchi, Craig S.; Kurup, Parthiv; Zhu, Guangdong

After significant interest in the 1970s, but relatively few deployments, the use of concentrating solar collectors for thermal applications, including enhanced oil recovery, desalination, and industrial process heat (IPH), is again increasing in global interest. In particular, recent advances in collector design and manufacturing have led to reduced cost per square meter of aperture area. In this study, analysis of a modern parabolic trough that is suited for use in small solar IPH (SIPH) applications predicts that the installed solar field cost can be as low as $170/m2. A slightly higher cost of $200/m2 is estimated for facilities typical ofmore » a SIPH plant size. Full project costs will include additional costs for contingency, piping and heat exchanger interface, and project indirect costs. The cost for solar-generated heat by SIPH is quantified by defining the levelized cost of heat (LCOH). California offers a favorable environment for SIPH given its good insolation, gas prices typically higher than the national average, and policies promoting solar-thermal deployment. Given historically low gas prices, competing with natural gas remains the primary challenge to deployment. However, this study finds that the solar LCOH for many regions in California is lower than the LCOH from natural gas, using a representative installed solar hardware price and the average price for industrial natural gas in California. Lastly, modification are in progress to the parabolic trough model within NREL's System Advisor Model (SAM) to allow users to more easily predict performance for these steam-generation applications.« less

Interior trough deposits on Mars: Subice volcanoes?

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chapman, M.G.; Tanaka, K.L.

2001-01-01

Widespread, several-kilometer-thick successions of layered deposits occur as mounds that partly fill the troughs or chasmata that compose the Valles Marineris on Mars. Like terrestrial subice volcanoes, the layered deposits occur in a volcano-tectonic setting within basins that may have held ponded water or ice. On the basis of their dimensions, morphologies, and associated catastrophic floods and other geologic events as shown in Viking and new Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) data sets, we suggest that the interior deposits are volcanic in origin and possibly generated by subice eruptions. A tuya origin for the mounds can explain the lack of external sediment, mound heights that can rival the plateau, local flat-topped mesas, morphologically distinct mounds of different ages, horizontal to steep dips, fine-grained materials, indications of rare volcanic vents and lava flows, and spectral composition. The extremely diverse layering of west Candor Chasma and possible volcanic cones in Melas may have formed by related subaerial eruptions. Consistent with the suggestion that interior deposits are eroding out of the wall rock, some deposits could have been erupted from sites along the walls.

Accurate relocation of seismicity along the North Aegean Trough and its relation to active tectonics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Konstantinou, K. I.

2017-10-01

The tectonics of northern Aegean are affected by the westward push of Anatolia and the gravitational spreading of the Aegean lithosphere that promote transtensional deformation in the area. This regime is also responsible for the creation of a series of pull-apart basins, collectively known as the North Aegean Trough. This work accurately relocates a total of 2300 earthquakes that were recorded along the North Aegean Trough during 2011-2016 by stations of the Hellenic Unified Seismic Network (HUSN) and strong-motion sensors. Absolute locations for these events were obtained using a nonlinear probabilistic algorithm and utilizing a minimum 1D velocity model with station corrections. The hypocentral depth distribution of these events shows a peak at 8 km diminishing gradually down to 20 km. A systematic overestimation of hypocentral depths is observed in the routine locations provided by the National Observatory of Athens where the majority of events appear to be deeper than 15 km. In order to obtain more accurate relative locations these events were relocated using the double-difference method. A total of 1693 events were finally relocated with horizontal and vertical uncertainties that do not exceed 0.11 km and 0.22 km respectively. Well-defined clusters of seismicity can be observed along the Saros and Sporades basins as well as the Kassandra and Sithonia peninsulas. These clusters either occur along the well-known NE-SW strike-slip faults bounding the basins, or along normal faults whose strike is perpendicular to the regional minimum stress axis. Locking depth along the North Aegean Trough is found to be remarkably stable between 13 and 17 km. This is likely a consequence of simultaneous reduction along the SW direction of heat flow (from 89 to 51 mW/m2) and strain rate (from 600 to 50 nstrain/yr) whose opposite effects are canceled out, precluding any sharp changes in locking depth.

Sirolimus and tacrolimus trough concentrations and dose requirements after kidney transplantation in relation to CYP3A5 and MDR1 polymorphisms and steroids.

PubMed

Mourad, Michel; Mourad, Georges; Wallemacq, Pierre; Garrigue, Valérie; Van Bellingen, Christophe; Van Kerckhove, Valérie; De Meyer, Martine; Malaise, Jacques; Eddour, Djamila Chaib; Lison, Dominique; Squifflet, Jean Paul; Haufroid, Vincent

2005-10-15

CYP3A5 and MDR1 polymorphisms have been shown to influence tacrolimus blood concentrations and dose requirements. The aim is to determine whether these polymorphisms also affect sirolimus trough concentrations and dose requirements after kidney transplantation. Eighty-five renal transplant recipients receiving sirolimus were included. Twenty-four were treated with a combined sirolimus-tacrolimus regimen. Eighty-one patients received steroids. Sirolimus and tacrolimus were adjusted to a target therapeutic window. CYP3A5 (intron 3) and MDR1 (exons 12, 21, 26) genotypes were correlated to the adjusted trough concentrations and dose requirements for both sirolimus and tacrolimus. There were no significant correlation between adjusted sirolimus trough concentrations or dose requirements and genetic polymorphisms. In a multiple regression model, adjusted-prednisone dose was involved with a positive or negative effect when considering sirolimus dose requirements or adjusted concentrations, respectively. In the subgroup of patients treated by tacrolimus and sirolimus, adjusted tacrolimus doses were higher in patients carrying at least one CYP3A5 *1 allele (median 0.083 vs. 0.035 mg/kg for CYP3A5*3/*3 patients, P<0.05). Adjusted-prednisolone dose and CYP3A5 polymorphism explained up to 61% of the variability in tacrolimus dose requirements. Unlike tacrolimus, sirolimus adjusted trough concentrations and dose requirements seem not affected by CYP3A5 and MDR1 polymorphisms. Adjusted-prednisone dose has a significant impact on tacrolimus and sirolimus dose requirements.

Bulk mineralogy of the NE Syrtis and Jezero crater regions of Mars derived through thermal infrared spectral analyses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salvatore, M. R.; Goudge, T. A.; Bramble, M. S.; Edwards, C. S.; Bandfield, J. L.; Amador, E. S.; Mustard, J. F.; Christensen, P. R.

2018-02-01

We investigated the area to the northwest of the Isidis impact basin (hereby referred to as "NW Isidis") using thermal infrared emission datasets to characterize and quantify bulk surface mineralogy throughout this region. This area is home to Jezero crater and the watershed associated with its two deltaic deposits in addition to NE Syrtis and the strong and diverse visible/near-infrared spectral signatures observed in well-exposed stratigraphic sections. The spectral signatures throughout this region show a diversity of primary and secondary surface mineralogies, including olivine, pyroxene, smectite clays, sulfates, and carbonates. While previous thermal infrared investigations have sought to characterize individual mineral groups within this region, none have systematically assessed bulk surface mineralogy and related these observations to visible/near-infrared studies. We utilize an iterative spectral unmixing method to statistically evaluate our linear thermal infrared spectral unmixing models to derive surface mineralogy. All relevant primary and secondary phases identified in visible/near-infrared studies are included in the unmixing models and their modeled spectral contributions are discussed in detail. While the stratigraphy and compositional diversity observed in visible/near-infrared spectra are much better exposed and more diverse than most other regions of Mars, our thermal infrared analyses suggest the dominance of basaltic compositions with less observed variability in the amount and diversity of alteration phases. These results help to constrain the mineralogical context of these previously reported visible/near-infrared spectral identifications. The results are also discussed in the context of future in situ investigations, as the NW Isidis region has long been promoted as a region of paleoenvironmental interest on Mars.

Time Resolved Raman and Fluorescence Spectrometer for Planetary Mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blacksberg, Jordana; Rossman, George

2010-05-01

Raman spectroscopy is a prime candidate for the next generation of planetary instruments, as it addresses the primary goal of mineralogical analysis which is structure and composition. It does not require sample preparation and provides unique mineral fingerprints, even for mixed phase samples. However, large fluorescence return from many mineral samples under visible light excitation can seriously compromise the quality of the spectra or even render Raman spectra unattainable. Fluorescence interference is likely to be a problem on Mars and is evident in Raman spectra of Martian Meteorites[1]. Our approach uses time resolution for elimination of fluorescence from Raman spectra, allowing for traditional visible laser excitation (532 nm). Since Raman occurs instantaneously with the laser pulse and fluorescence lifetimes vary from nsec to msec depending on the mineral, it is possible to separate them out in time. Complementary information can also be obtained simultaneously using the time resolved fluorescence data. The Simultaneous Spectral Temporal Adaptive Raman Spectrometer (SSTARS) is a planetary instrument under development at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, capable of time-resolved in situ Raman and fluorescence spectroscopy. A streak camera and pulsed miniature microchip laser provide psec scale time resolution. Our ability to observe the complete time evolution of Raman and fluorescence in minerals provides a foundation for design of pulsed Raman and fluorescence spectrometers in diverse planetary environments. We will discuss the SSTARS instrument design and performance capability. We will also present time-resolved pulsed Raman spectra collected from a relevant set of minerals selected using available data on Mars mineralogy[2]. Of particular interest are minerals resulting from aqueous alteration on Mars. For comparison, we will present Raman spectra obtained using a commercial continuous wave (CW) green (514 nm) Raman system. In many cases using a CW laser

Cobbles in Troughs Between Meridiani Ripples

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

As NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity continues to traverse from 'Erebus Crater' toward 'Victoria Crater,' the rover navigates along exposures of bedrock between large, wind-blown ripples. Along the way, scientists have been studying fields of cobbles that sometimes appear on trough floors between ripples. They have also been studying the banding patterns seen in large ripples.

This view, obtained by Opportunity's panoramic camera on the rover's 802nd Martian day (sol) of exploration (April 27, 2006), is a mosaic spanning about 30 degrees. It shows a field of cobbles nestled among wind-driven ripples that are about 20 centimeters (8 inches) high.

The origin of cobble fields like this one is unknown. The cobbles may be a lag of coarser material left behind from one or more soil deposits whose finer particles have blown away. The cobbles may be eroded fragments of meteoritic material, secondary ejecta of Mars rock thrown here from craters elsewhere on the surface, weathering remnants of locally-derived bedrock, or a mixture of these. Scientists will use the panoramic camera's multiple filters to study the rock types, variability and origins of the cobbles.

This is an approximately true-color rendering that combines separate images taken through the panoramic camera's 753-nanometer, 535-nanometer and 432-nanometer filters.

Characterization of raw and burnt oil shale from Dotternhausen: Petrographical and mineralogical evolution with temperature

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thiéry, Vincent, E-mail: vincent.thiery@mines-douai.fr; Université de Lille; Bourdot, Alexandra, E-mail: alexandra.bourdot@gmail.com

The Toarcian Posidonia shale from Dotternhausen, Germany, is quarried and burnt in a fluidized bed reactor to produce electricity. The combustion residue, namely burnt oil shale (BOS), is used in the adjacent cement work as an additive in blended cements. The starting material is a typical laminated oil shale with an organic matter content ranging from 6 to 18%. Mineral matter consists principally of quartz, feldspar, pyrite and clays. After calcination in the range, the resulting product, burnt oil shale, keeps the macroscopic layered texture however with different mineralogy (anhydrite, lime, iron oxides) and the formation of an amorphous phase.more » This one, studied under STEM, reveals a typical texture of incipient partial melting due to a long retention time (ca. 30 min) and quenching. An in-situ high temperature X-ray diffraction (HTXRD) allowed studying precisely the mineralogical changes associated with the temperature increase. - Highlights: • We present oil shale/burnt oil shale characterization. • The Posidonia Shale is burnt in a fluidized bed. • Mineralogical evolution with temperature is complex. • The burnt oil shale is used in composite cements.« less

Mineralogy and cooling history of magnesian lunar granulite 67415

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Takeda, Hiroshi; Miyamoto, Masamichi

1993-01-01

Apollo granulite 67415 was investigated by mineralogical techniques to gain better understanding of cooling histories of lunar granulities. Cooling rates were estimated from chemical zoning of olivines in magnesian granulitic clasts by computer simulation of diffusion processes. The cooling rate of 10 deg C/yr obtained is compatible with a model of the granulite formation, in which the impact deposit was cooled from high temperature or annealed, at the depth of about 25 m beneath the surface.

Facies analysis, depositional environments and paleoclimate of the Cretaceous Bima Formation in the Gongola Sub - Basin, Northern Benue Trough, NE Nigeria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shettima, B.; Abubakar, M. B.; Kuku, A.; Haruna, A. I.

2018-01-01

Facies analysis of the Cretaceous Bima Formation in the Gongola Sub -basin of the Northern Benue Trough northeastern Nigeria indicated that the Lower Bima Member is composed of alluvial fan and braided river facies associations. The alluvial fan depositional environment dominantly consists of debris flow facies that commonly occur as matrix supported conglomerate. This facies is locally associated with grain supported conglomerate and mudstone facies, representing sieve channel and mud flow deposits respectively, and these deposits may account for the proximal alluvial fan region of the Lower Bima Member. The distal fan facies were represented by gravel-bed braided river system of probably Scot - type model. This grade into sandy braided river systems with well developed floodplains facies, forming probably at the lowermost portion of the alluvial fan depositional gradient, where it inter-fingers with basinal facies. In the Middle Bima Member, the facies architecture is dominantly suggestive of deep perennial sand-bed braided river system with thickly developed amalgamated trough crossbedded sandstone facies fining to mudstone. Couplets of shallow channels are also locally common, attesting to the varying topography of the basin. The Upper Bima Member is characterized by shallow perennial sand-bed braided river system composed of successive succession of planar and trough crossbedded sandstone facies associations, and shallower channels of the flashy ephemeral sheetflood sand - bed river systems defined by interbedded succession of small scale trough crossbedded sandstone facies and parallel laminated sandstone facies. The overall stacking pattern of the facies succession of the Bima Formation in the Gongola Sub - basin is generally thinning and fining upwards cycles, indicating scarp retreat and deposition in a relatively passive margin setting. Dominance of kaolinite in the clay mineral fraction of the Bima Formation points to predominance of humid sub - tropical

Ground Truth Mineralogy vs. Orbital Observations at the Bagnold Dune Field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Achilles, C. N.; Downs, R. T.; Ming, D. W.; Rampe, E. B.; Morris, R. V.; Treiman, A. H.; Morrison, S. M.; Blake, D. F.; Vaniman, D. T.; Bristow, T. F.

2017-01-01

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover, Curiosity, is analyzing rock and sediments in Gale crater to provide in situ sedimentological, geochemical, and mineralogical assessments of the crater's geologic history. Curiosity's recent traverse through an active, basaltic eolian deposit, informally named the Bagnold Dunes, provided the opportunity for a multi-instrument investigation of the dune field.

Study on the surfactants present in atmospheric aerosols collected in the Okinawa Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamegawa, A.; Kasaba, T.; Shimabukuro, W.; Arakaki, T.

2017-12-01

The main constituent of atmospheric aerosols is organic substances, which occupy 20 to 70% of the mass. Organic matters in the aerosols contain organic acids, protein and humic acid, which behave similar to surfactants. Since surfactants contain both hydrophobic and hydrophilic functional groups in the molecule, they can play important roles in cloud formation and can affect climate change, but detailed mechanisms and magnitude are not well understood. In addition, surfactants can cause asthma, allergy, dry eye and so on. In this study, our aim is to characterize surfactants in the aerosols collected in different seasons in Okinawa, Japan. Atmospheric aerosols were collected at Cape Hedo Atmosphere and Aerosol Monitoring Station (CHAAMS) during Sep. 2013 and July 2014. Surfactants in the environment are comprised of artificially synthesized compounds and naturally derived organics so we only differentiate them into anionic and cationic surfactants. Colorimetric methods were used to determine the concentrations of anionic surfactants as methylene blue active substance (MBAS). Cationic surfactants were also measured by colorimetric method as disulfine blue active substance (DBAS) and showed always below detection limit. Thus, we only discuss anionic surfactants measured as MBAS. Water soluble organic carbon (WSOC) and metal concentrations were also measured for the same aerosol samples. Concentrations of MBAS in the studied samples were 2-3 times higher in spring, fall and winter than those collected in summer. MBAS concentration in the aerosols showed strong correlation with sulfate ion and WSOC, and slightly weaker correlation with nss-sulfate ion. Among the metals, only sodium ion showed a relatively strong correlation with MBAS concentrations. It is suggested that the anionic surfactants in the studied aerosols are mainly derived from marine sources.

Air-borne shape measurement of parabolic trough collector fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prahl, Christoph; Röger, Marc; Hilgert, Christoph

2017-06-01

The optical and thermal efficiency of parabolic trough collector solar fields is dependent on the performance and assembly accuracy of its components such as the concentrator and absorber. For the purpose of optical inspection/approval, yield analysis, localization of low performing areas, and optimization of the solar field, it is essential to create a complete view of the optical properties of the field. Existing optical measurement tools are based on ground based cameras, facing restriction concerning speed, volume and automation. QFly is an airborne qualification system which provides holistic and accurate information on geometrical, optical, and thermal properties of the entire solar field. It consists of an unmanned aerial vehicle, cameras and related software for flight path planning, data acquisition and evaluation. This article presents recent advances of the QFly measurement system and proposes a methodology on holistic qualification of the complete solar field with minimum impact on plant operation.

Contents and composition of organic matter in subsurface soils affected by land use and soil mineralogy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellerbrock, Ruth H.; Kaiser, Michael

2010-05-01

Land use and mineralogy affect the ability of surface as well as subsurface soils to sequester organic carbon and their contribution to mitigate the greenhouse effect. This study aimed to investigate the long-term impact of land use (i.e., arable and forest) and soil mineralogy on contents and composition of soil organic matter (SOM) from subsurface soils. Seven soils different in mineralogy (Albic and Haplic Luvisol, Colluvic and Haplic Regosol, Haplic and Vertic Cambisol, Haplic Stagnosol) were selected within Germany. Soil samples were taken from forest and adjacent arable sites. First, particulate and water soluble organic matter were separated from the subsurface soil samples. From the remaining solid residues the OM(PY) fractions were separated, analyzed for its OC content (OCPY) and characterized by FTIR spectroscopy. For the arable subsurface soils multiple regression analyses indicate significant positive relationships between the soil organic carbon contents and the contents of i) exchangeable Ca and oxalate soluble Fe, and Alox contents. Further for the neutral arable subsurface soils the contents OCPY weighted by its C=O contents were found to be related to the contents of Ca indicating interactions between OM(PY) and Ca cations. For the forest subsurface soils (pH <5) the OCPY contents were positively related with the contents of Na-pyrophosphate soluble Fe and Al. For the acidic forest subsurface soils such findings indicate interactions between OM(PY) and Fe3+ and Al3+ cations. The effects of land use and soil mineralogy on contents and composition of SOM and OM(PY) will be discussed.

Longitudinal Differences in the Low-latitude Ionosphere and in the Ionospheric Variability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goncharenko, L. P.; Zhang, S.; Liu, H.; Tsugawa, T.; Batista, I. S.; Reinisch, B. W.

2017-12-01

Analysis of longitudinal differences in ionospheric parameters can illuminate variety of mechanisms responsible for ionospheric variability. In this study, we aim to 1) quantitatively describe major features of longitudinal differences in peak electron density in the low-latitude ionosphere; 2) examine differences in ionospheric variability at different longitude sectors, and 3) illustrate longitudinal differences in ionospheric response to a large disturbance event, sudden stratospheric warming of 2016. We examine NmF2 observations by a network of ionosondes in the American (30-80W) and Asian (110-170E) longitudinal sectors. Selected instruments are located in the vicinity of EIA troughs (Jicamarca, Sao Luis, Guam, Kwajalein), northern and southern crests of EIA (Boa Vista, Tucuman, Cachoeira Paulista, Okinawa), and beyond EIA crests (Ramey, Yamagawa, Kokubunji). To examine main ionospheric features at each location, we use long-term datasets collected at each site to construct empirical models that describe variations in NmF2 as a function of local time, season, solar flux, and geomagnetic activity. This set of empirical models can be used to accurately describe background ionospheric behavior and serve as a set of observational benchmarks for global circulation models. It reveals, for example, higher NmF2 in the EIA trough in the Asian sector as compared to the American sector. Further, we quantitatively describe variability in NmF2 as a difference between local observations and local empirical model, and find that American sector's EIA trough has overall higher variability that maximizes for all local times during wintertime, while Asian sector trough variability does not change significantly with season. Additionally, local empirical models are used to isolate ionospheric features resulting from dynamical disturbances of different origin (e.g. geomagnetic storms, convective activity, sudden stratospheric warming events, etc.). We illustrate this approach with

Mineralogy of ash of some American coals: variations with temperature and source

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mitchell, R.S.; Gluskoter, H.J.

1976-01-01

Ten samples of mineral-matter residue were obtained by the radio-frequency low-temperature ashing of subbituminous and bituminous coals. The low-temperature ash samples were then heated progressively from 400 ??C to 1400 ??C at 100 ??C intervals. Mineral phases present at each temperature interval were determined by X-ray diffraction analyses. The minerals originally present in the coals (quartz, kaolinite, illite, pyrite, calcite, gypsum, dolomite, and sphalerite) were all altered to higher temperature phases. Several of these phases, including kaolinite, metakaolinite, mullite, anhydrite, and anorthite, were found only in limited temperature ranges. Therefore the temperature of formation of the ashes in which they occur may be determined. Mineralogical differences were observed between coal samples from the Rocky Mountain Province, the Illinois Basin, and the Appalachians; and as a result of these mineralogical differences, different high-temperature phases resulted as the samples were heated. However, regional generalizations cannot be made until a greater number of samples have been studied. ?? 1976.

Tombs, tunnels, and terraces a cultural resources survey of a former ammunition supply point in Okinawa, Japan

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Verhaaren, B. T.; Levenson, J. B.; Komine, G.

2000-02-09

U.S. forces serving at military bases on foreign soil are obligated to act as good stewards of the cultural and natural resources under their control. However, cultural resources management presents special challenges at U.S. bases in other countries where cultural properties laws differ in emphasis and detail from those in the United States and issues of land ownership and occupancy are not always clear. Where status of forces agreements (SOFAs) exist, environmental governing standards bridge the gap between U.S. and host nation cultural priorities. In Japan, the Department of Defense Japan Environmental Governing Standards (JEGS) fill this function. Under Criteriamore » 12-4.2 and 12-4.3 of the JEGS, U.S. Forces Japan commit themselves to inventory and protect cultural properties found on the lands they control or use. Cultural properties include archaeological sites, tombs, historic buildings, and shrines. Natural monuments, such as landscape features or plant and animal species, may also be designated as cultural properties. As part of this commitment, in February 1999 a cultural resources inventory was conducted in Area 1, part of Kadena Air Base (AB), Okinawa, Japan. Area 1, the former U.S. army Ammunition Supply Point 1, is currently used primarily for training exercises and recreational paint ball.« less

Tectonic controls on deposition of Middle Jurassic strata in a retroarc foreland basin, Utah-Idaho trough, western interior, United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bjerrum, Christian J.; Dorsey, Rebecca J.

1995-08-01

An electronic supplement of this material may be obtained on a diskette or Anonymous FTP from KOSMOS.AGU.ORG. (LOGIN to AGU's FTP account using ANONYMOUS as the username and GUEST as the password. Go to the right directory by typing CD APEND. Type LS to see what files are available. Type GET and the name of the file to get it. Finally, type EXIT to leave the system.) (Paper 95TC01448, Tectonic controls on deposition of Middle Jurassic strata in a retroarc foreland basin, Utah-Idaho trough, western interior, United States, Christian J. Bjerrum and Rebecca J. Dorsey). Diskette may be ordered from American Geophysical Union, 2000 Florida Avenue, N. W., Washington, DC 20009; $15.00. Payment must accompany order. A thick succession of Jurassic nonmarine and marine sedimentary rocks is exposed in a large area from northern Arizona to eastern Idaho and western Wyoming. These sediments accumulated in the Utah-Idaho trough, a deep elongate cratonal basin whose origin has recently been debated. Detailed stratigraphic analysis, subsidence analysis, and first-order flexural modeling of these deposits (this study) provide new insights into the timing and mechanisms of subsidence in the Utah-Idaho trough. Lower and Middle Jurassic strata are divided into six unconformity-bounded sequences. In contrast to the overall uniform thickness of Lower Jurassic sequences (1 and 2), Middle Jurassic strata (sequences 3 through 6) consist of distinctly westward thickening sedimentary packages in which basal shallow marine deposits onlap eastward onto bounding unconformities. Basal strata of sequences 3 through 6 pass upward into widespread progradational continental deposits that are truncated progressively toward the east (cratonward) by the next unconformity. Decompacted total subsidence curves show that the rate of subsidence in most sections increased sharply at the end of sequence 2 time (J-2 unconformity; ˜170 Ma). This is interpreted to record the onset of Middle Jurassic deposition

Mineralogical and chemical characteristics of some natural jarosites

USGS Publications Warehouse

Desborough, G.A.; Smith, K.S.; Lowers, H.A.; Swayze, G.A.; Hammarstrom, J.M.; Diehl, S.F.; Leinz, R.W.; Driscoll, R.L.

2010-01-01

This paper presents a detailed study of the mineralogical, microscopic, thermal, and spectral characteristics of jarosite and natrojarosite minerals. Systematic mineralogic and chemical examination of a suite of 32 natural stoichiometric jarosite and natrojarosite samples from diverse supergene and hydrothermal environments indicates that there is only limited solid solution between Na and K at low temperatures, which suggests the presence of a solvus in the jarosite-natrojarosite system at temperatures below about 140 ??C. The samples examined in this study consist of either end members or coexisting end-member pairs of jarosite and natrojarosite. Quantitative electron-probe microanalysis data for several natural hydrothermal samples show only end-member compositions for individual grains or zones, and no detectable alkali-site deficiencies, which indicates that there is no hydronium substitution within the analytical uncertainty of the method. In addition, there is no evidence of Fe deficiencies in the natural hydrothermal samples. Hydronium-bearing jarosite was detected in only one relatively young supergene sample suggesting that terrestrial hydronium-bearing jarosites generally are unstable over geologic timescales. Unit-cell parameters of the 20 natural stoichiometric jarosites and 12 natural stoichiometric natrojarosites examined in this study have distinct and narrow ranges in the a- and c-cell dimensions. There is no overlap of these parameters at the 1?? level for the two end-member compositions. Several hydrothermal samples consist of fine-scale (2-10 ??m) intimate intergrowths of jarosite and natrojarosite, which could have resulted from solid-state diffusion segregation or growth zoning due to variations in the Na/K activity ratio of hydrothermal solutions.

Mineralogy of Fluvio-Lacustrine Sediments Investigated by Curiosity during the Prime Mission: Implications for Diagenesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rampe, E. B.; Morris, R. V.; Bish, D. L.; Vaniman, D. T.; Bristow, T.; Chipera, S.; Blake, D. F.; Ming, D. W.; Farmer, J.; Morrison, S. M.; Treiman, A. H.; Achilles, C.; Crisp, J.; Des Marais, D. J.; Downs, R. T.; Morookian, J. M.; Sarrazin, P.; Spanovich, N.; Yen, A.

2014-12-01

The Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity investigated sedimentary rocks that were deposited in a diversity of fluvio-lacustrine settings. The entire science payload was employed to characterize the mineralogy and chemistry of the Sheepbed mudstone at Yellowknife Bay and the Windjana sandstone at the Kimberley. Data from the CheMin instrument, a transmission X-ray diffractometer, were used to determine the quantitative mineralogy of both samples. The Sheepbed mudstone contains detrital basaltic minerals, calcium sulfates, iron oxides or hydroxides, iron sulfides, trioctahedral smectite, and amorphous material. The mineral assemblage and chemical data from APXS suggest that the trioctahedral smectite and magnetite formed authigenically as a result of alteration of olivine. The apparent lack of higher-grade phyllosilicates (e.g., illite and chlorite) and the presence of anhydrite indicate diagenesis at ~50-80 ºC. The mineralogy of the Windjana sandstone is different than the Sheepbed mudstone. Windjana contains significant abundances of K-feldspar, low- and high-Ca pyroxenes, magnetite, phyllosilicates, and amorphous material. At least two distinct phyllosilicate phases exist: a 10 Å phase and a component that is expanded with a peak at ~11.8 Å. The identity of the expanded phase is currently unknown, but could be a smectite with interlayer H2O, and the 10 Å phase could be illite or collapsed smectite. Further work is necessary to characterize the phyllosilicates, but the presence of illite could suggest that Windjana experienced burial diagenesis. Candidates for the cementing agents include fine-grained phyllosilicates, Fe-oxides, and/or amorphous material. Interpretations of CheMin data from the Windjana sandstone are ongoing at the time of writing, but we will present an estimate of the composition of the amorphous material from mass balance calculations using the APXS bulk chemistry and quantitative mineralogy from CheMin.

Mineralogy of Fluvio-Lacustrine Sediments Investigated by Curiosity During the Prime Mission: Implications for Diagenesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rampe, Elizabeth B.; Morris, R. V.; Bish, D. L.; Vaniman, D. T.; Bristow, T. F.; Chipera, S. J.; Blake, D. F.; Ming, D. W.; Farmer, J. D.; Morrison, S. M.;

The effects of thick sediment upon continental breakup: seismic imaging and thermal modeling of the Salton Trough, southern California

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, L.; Hole, J. A.; Lowell, R. P.; Stock, J. M.; Fuis, G. S.; Driscoll, N. W.; Kell, A. M.; Kent, G. M.; Harding, A. J.; Gonzalez-Fernandez, A.; Lázaro-Mancilla, O.

2015-12-01

Continental rifting ultimately creates a deep accommodation space for sediment. When a major river flows into a late-stage rift, thick deltaic sediment can change the thermal regime and alter the mechanisms of extension and continental breakup. The Salton Trough, the northernmost rift segment of the Gulf of California plate boundary, has experienced the same extension as the rest of the Gulf, but is filled to sea level by sediment from the Colorado River. Unlike the southern Gulf, seafloor spreading has not initiated. Instead, seismicity, high heat flow, and minor volcanoes attest to ongoing rifting of thin, transitional crust. Recently acquired controlled-source seismic refraction and wide-angle reflection data in the Salton Trough provide constraints upon crustal architecture and active rift processes. The crust in the central Salton Trough is only 17-18 km thick, with a strongly layered but relatively one-dimensional structure for ~100 km in the direction of plate motion. The upper crust includes 2-4 km of Colorado River sediment. Crystalline rock below the sediment is interpreted to be similar sediment metamorphosed by the high heat flow and geothermal activity. Meta-sediment extends to at least 9 km depth. A 4-5 km thick layer in the middle crust is either additional meta-sediment or stretched pre-existing continental crust. The lowermost 4-5 km of the crust is rift-related mafic magmatic intrusion or underplating from partial melting in the hot upper mantle. North American lithosphere in the Salton Trough has been almost or completely rifted apart. The gap has been filled by ~100 km of new transitional crust created by magmatism from below and sedimentation from above. These processes create strong lithologic, thermal, and rheologic layering. While heat flow in the rift is very high, rapid sedimentation cools the upper crust as compared to a linear geotherm. Brittle extension occurs within new meta-sedimentary rock. The lower crust, in comparison, is

A review of Andasol 3 and perspective for parabolic trough CSP plants in South Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dinter, Frank; Möller, Lucas

2016-05-01

Andasol 3 is a 50 MW parabolic trough concentrating solar power plant with thermal energy storage in Andalusia, southern Spain. Having started operating in 2011 as one of the first plants of its kind in Spain it has been followed by more than 50 in the country since. For the reason that CSP plants with storage have the potential to compete against fossil fuel fired plants much better than any other renewable energy source a long-term review of such a plant operating on a commercial scale is needed. With data at hand documenting Andasol 3's operation over the course of one year between July 2013 and June 2014 we intend to provide such a review. We calculated the plants overall efficiency, its capacity factor, the gross energy generation as well as auxiliary powers on a monthly basis to reflect upon its overall performance. It was also looked at the benefits caused by the thermal energy storage and especially how steadily and reliably the plant was able to operate. With basic background information about physical, geographical and meteorological aspects influencing the solar resource, its variation and a CSP plant's performance a qualitative estimation for a parabolic trough plant located in South Africa was made.

Surface chemistry and mineralogy. [of planet Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Banin, A.; Clark, B. C.; Waenke, H.

1992-01-01

The accumulated knowledge on the chemistry and mineralogy of Martian surface materials is reviewed. Pertinent information obtained by direct analyses of the soil on Mars by the Viking Landers, by remote sensing of Mars from flyby and orbiting spacecraft, by telescopic observations from earth, and through detailed analyses of the SNC meteorites presumed to be Martian rocks are summarized and analyzed. A compositional model for Mars soil, giving selected average elemental concentrations of major and trace elements, is suggested. It is proposed that the fine surface materials on Mars are a multicomponent mixture of weathered and nonweathered minerals. Smectite clays, silicate mineraloids similar to palagonite, and scapolite are suggested as possible major candidate components among the weathered minerals.

Heavy precipitation episodes in the Western Mediterranean : Use of a semi-Lagrangian advection model for the fine-scale description of upper-level troughs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gauthier, N.; Claud, C.; Funatsu, B. M.; Chaboureau, J.-P.; Argence, S.; Lambert, D.; Richard, E.; Hauchecorne, A.; Arbogast, P.; Maynard, K.

2009-09-01

Heavy precipitation events over the Mediterranean Sea are generally associated with upper-level troughs. The mesoscale structures of such troughs are however not well reproduced by the atmospheric analyses due to inappropriate spatial resolution. We propose here to use a semi-Lagrangian advection model called MIMOSA (Modélisation Isentrope du transport Méso-échelle de l'Ozone Stratosphérique par Advection) initially developed to describe stratospheric filaments, to calculate fine-scale Potential Vorticity (PV) fields on isentropic surfaces near the tropopause. After a description of MIMOSA, we will focus on the model-generated PV fields for several high impact weather cases that occurred over the Western Mediterreanean Sea. We will demonstrate the ability of MIMOSA to resolve fine scale structures of upper-level troughs considering the Algiers' flash flood, which occurred on November 2001, and then a heavy precipitation event over southeast France on the 5-6 September 2005. Finally, with a PV inversion method, we will show the impact of the fine scales PV structures as depicted by MIMOSA to improve the numerical simulation of a « hurricane » that hit Italy in September 2006, both in terms of surface pressure and precipitation forecasts.

Mineralogical Mapping in the Cuprite Mining District, Nevada

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goetz, A. F. H.; Srivastava, V.

1985-01-01

The airborne imaging spectrometer (AIS) has provided for the first time, the possibility to map mineralogical constituents in the Earth's surface and thus has enormously increased the value of remote-sensing data as a tool in the solution of geologic problems. The question addressed with AIS at Cuprite was how well could the mineral components at the surface of a hydrothermal alteration zone be detected, identified and mapped? The question was answered positively and is discussed. A relatively rare mineral, buddingtonie, that could not have been detected by conventional means, was discovered and mapped by the use of AIS.

Mineralogy of Layered Outcrops at Mawrth Vallis and Implications for Early Aqueous Geochemistry on Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bishop, J. L.; Gross, C.; Rampe, E. B.; Wray, J. J.; Parente, M.; Horgan, B.; Loizeau, D.; Viviano-Beck, C. E.; Clark, R. N.; Seelos, F. P.;