Continental degassing of helium in an active tectonic setting (northern Italy): the role of seismicity

In order to investigate the variability of helium degassing in continental regions, its release from rocks and emission into the atmosphere, here we studied the degassing of volatiles in a seismically active region of northern Italy (MwMAX = 6) at the Nirano-Regnano mud volcanic system. The emitted gases in the study area are CH4–dominated and it is the carrier for helium (He) transfer through the crust. Carbon and He isotopes unequivocally indicate that crustal-derived fluids dominate these systems. An high-resolution 3-dimensional reconstruction of the gas reservoirs feeding the observed gas emissions at the surface permits to estimate the amount of He stored in the natural reservoirs. Our study demonstrated that the in-situ production of 4He in the crust and a long-lasting diffusion through the crust are not the main processes that rule the He degassing in the region. Furthermore, we demonstrated that micro-fracturation due to the field of stress that generates the local seismicity increases the release of He from the rocks and can sustain the excess of He in the natural reservoirs respect to the steady-state diffusive degassing. These results prove that (1) the transport of volatiles through the crust can be episodic as function of rock deformation and seismicity and (2) He can be used to highlight changes in the stress field and related earthquakes

Test of the τ-model of Bose–Einstein correlations and reconstruction of the source function in hadronic Z-boson decay at LEP

Bose–Einstein correlations of pairs of identical charged pions produced in hadronic Z decays are analyzed in terms of various parametrizations. A good description is achieved using a Lévy stable distribution in conjunction with a model where a particle’s momentum is correlated with its space–time point of production, the τ-model. Using this description and the measured rapidity and transverse momentum distributions, the space–time evolution of particle emission in two-jet events is reconstructed. However, the elongation of the particle emission region previously observed is not accommodated in the τ-model, and this is investigated using an ad hoc modification

Coastal Groundwater Bodies Modelling Using Geophysical Surveys: The Reconstruction of the Geometry of Alluvial Plains in the North-Eastern Sicily (Italy)

The integration of various geophysical methodologies is considered a fundamental tool for accurately reconstructing the extent and shape of a groundwater body and for estimating the physical parameters that characterize it. This is often essential for the management of water resources in areas affected by geological and environmental hazards. This work aims to reconstruct the pattern and extent of two groundwater bodies, located in the coastal sectors of the North-Eastern Sicily, through the integrated analysis and interpretation of several geoelectrical, seismic and geological data. These are the Sant’Agata-Capo D’Orlando (SCGWB) and the Barcelona-Milazzo (BMGWB) Groundwater Bodies, located at the two ends of the northern sector of the Peloritani geological complex. These two studied coastal plains represent densely populated and industrialized areas, in which the quantity and quality of the groundwater bodies are under constant threat. At first, the resistivity models of the two groundwater bodies were realized through the inversion of a dataset of Vertical Electrical Soundings (VES), constrained by stratigraphic well logs data and other geophysical data. The 3D resistivity models obtained by spatially interpolating 1D inverse VES models have allowed for an initial recognition of the distribution of groundwater, as well as a rough geological framework of the subsoil. Subsequently, these models were implemented by integrating results from active and passive seismic data to determine the seismic P and S wave velocities of the main lithotypes. Simultaneous acquisition and interpretation of seismic and electrical tomographies along identical profiles allowed to determine the specific values of seismic velocity, electrical resistivity and chargeability of the alluvial sediments, and to use these values to constrain the HVSR inversion. All this allowed us to recognize the areal extension and thickness of the various lithotypes in the two investigated areas and, finally, to define the depth and the morphology of the base of the groundwater bodies and the thickness of the filling deposits

Measurement of the shadowing of high-energy cosmic rays by the Moon: A search for TeV-energy antiprotons

The shadowing of high-energy cosmic rays by the Moon has been observed with a significance of 9.4 standard deviations with the L3 + C muon spectrometer at CERN. A significant effect of the Earth magnetic field is observed. Since no event deficit on the east side of the Moon has been observed, an upper limit at 90% confidence level on the antiproton to proton ratio of 0.11 is obtained for primary energies around 1 TeV

Geophysical Constraints to Reconstructing the Geometry of a Shallow Groundwater Body in Caronia (Sicily)

The characterization of a groundwater body involves the construction of a conceptual model that constitutes the base knowledge for monitoring programs, hydrogeological risk assessment, and correct management of water resources. In particular, a detailed geological and geophysical approach was applied to define the alluvial Caronia Groundwater Body (CGWB) and to reconstruct a hydrogeological flow model. The analysis of the CGWB, located in north-eastern Sicily, was initially approached through a reanalysis of previous stratigraphic (boreholes) and geophysical (vertical electrical soundings and seismic refraction profiles) data, subsequently integrated by new seismic acquisitions, such as Multichannel Analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) and horizontal-to-vertical seismic ratio (HVSR). The analysis and reinterpretation of geoelectrical data allowed the construction of a preliminary 3D resistivity model. This initial modeling was subsequently integrated by a geophysical data campaign in order to define the depth of the bottom of the shallow CGWB and the thickness of alluvial deposits. Finally, a preliminary mathematical model flow was generated in order to reconstruct the dynamics of underground water. The results show that integration of multidisciplinary data represent an indispensable tool for the characterization of complex physical systems

Study of the solar anisotropy of cosmic ray primaries of about 200 GeV energy with the L3+C muon detector

Context. Primary cosmic rays experience multiple deflections in the non-uniform galactic and heliospheric magnetic fields which may generate anisotropies. Aims. A study of anisotropies in the energy range between 100 and 500 GeV is performed. This energy range is not yet well explored. Methods. The L3 detector at the CERN electron-positron collider, LEP, is used for a study of the angular distribution of atmospheric muons with energies above 20 GeV. This distribution is used to investigate the isotropy of the time-dependent intensity of the primary cosmic-ray flux with a Fourier analysis. Results. A small deviation from isotropy at energies around 200 GeV is observed for the second harmonics at the solar frequency. No sidereal anisotropy is found at a level above 10-4. The measurements were performed in the years 1999 and 2000

Helium and carbon isotopes in thermal waters of the Jalisco block, Mexico

The Jalisco block is a geologically and tectonically complex part of western Mexico. It is considered a distinct crustal unit bounded toward the mainland by rifting and toward the Pacific ocean by the SW section of the Mid-America trench, a contact between the subducting Rivera plate and the continent. On the basis of chemical, helium, and carbon isotopic analyses of 37 groups of thermal springs widely distributed over the Jalisco block, several major tectonic environments can be distinguished. The highest R= 3He/4He ratios with R/Ra (Ra being the atmospheric 3He/4He ratio) approaching MORB values were observed along the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) and within the Colima volcanic complex. For springs in the inner part of the block and close to the Pacific coast, including submarine springs at Punta de Mita, typical values were much lower, with R/Ra down to 0.4. A negative correlation between 3He/4He and δ13C of CO2 is suggested to be the result of coupling between radiogenic He and CO2 formed by oxidation of organic-rich sediments. C/3He ratios vary from ~109 for TMVB, typical for volatiles released from the mantle, to > 1011 thus suggesting a substantial addition of carbon from the crust

Inclusive charged hadron production in two-photon collisions at LEP

Inclusive charged hadron production, e+e−→e+e−h±X, is studied using 414 pb^(−1) of data collected at LEP with the L3 detector at centre-of-mass energies between 189 and 202 GeV. Single particle inclusive differential cross sections are measured as a function of the particle transverse momentum, pt, and pseudo-rapidity, η. For pt⩽1.5 GeV, the data are well described by an exponential, typical of soft hadronic processes. For higher pt, the onset of perturbative QCD processes is observed. The π± production cross section for pt>5 GeV is much higher than the NLO QCD predictions