The Glaciochemistry of Snowpits from Quelccaya Ice Cap, Peru, 1982

We present glaciochemical data from a pilot study of two snow-pits from Quelccaya ice cap, Peruvian Andes. These are the first samples to be analyzed from Quelccaya for nitrate and sulfate by ion chromatography (IC), for nitrate-plus-nitrite, reactive silicate and reactive iron by colorimetry, and for sodium by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The 3 m pits used in this study represent a one year record of mass accumulation and the 29 samples collected provide the first glaciochemical data from this area which can be compared with glaciochemical studies from other locations. Reactive iron, reactive silicate and sodium, and the profiles of \u3e0.63µm microparticles from Thompson and others (1984) are coincident, suggesting that transport and deposition into this area of each species are controlled by similar processes. The common source is probably local, resulting from crustaI weathering. In general, the reactive silicate values are lower than those observed in other alpine glacier ice. The highest sulfate and nitrate values were observed in the upper few centimeters of the snow-pit. Most of the sulfate concentrations were less than 3 µM and are similar to values obtained for fresh surface snows from Bolivia (Stallard and Edmond 1981). Since biological gaseous emissions are thought to be the major source of sulfur and nitrogen to the atmosphere over the Amazon basin, the sulfate and nitrate fluctuations may be due to seasonal biological input and/or seasonal shifts in wind direction bringing material to Quelccaya. With only one exception, the colorimetric nitrate-plus-nitrite data were higher than the IC nitrate data. Unfortunately, the IC analyses were conducted 81 d after the colorimetric analyses. The difference between the two data sets could be attributable to the following; (I) the colorimetric technique may yield erroneously high results as suggested for polar ice by Herron (1982), (2) the IC technique yields erroneously low results due, in part, to the possible exclusion of nitrite concentrations, and/or (3) nitrite was lost via biological removal during the 81 d period before the IC analyses. If the IC data are correct, the mean nitrate value is O.4 µM (n = 29). This value is similar to those reported from pre-industrial aged polar ice (Herron 1982). If the colorimetric mean value (1.1 µM) is correct, it is similar to colorimetrically determined values from other high-elevation alpine ice (Lyons and Mayewski 1983)

Glaciochemical Studies and Estimated Net Mass Balances for Rennick Glacier Area, Antarctica

Two snow and ice cores from the Rennick Glacier area, Antarctica (study area center point lat 71° 15\u27 S, long 162° 30\u27 E) were analyzed for the chemical species: chloride, sodium, reactive silicate, sulfate and nitrate. Core E1O (6.35 m) was taken from Evans Névé, a large accumulation basin at the head of Rennick Glacier. Core M1 (4.35 m) was extracted from the accumulation zone on the central plateau of the Morozumi Range, a small mountain massif bordering Rennick Glacier. Cores E1O and M1 span the time periods from 1929 to 1981 and from 1971 to 1981, respectively, as dated using seasonal variations in chloride (E10) and sulfate (M1) concentrations. An estimated net balance of 50 kg m-2 a-1 was derived for site E10 and of 182 kg m- 2 a-I for site Ml. The difference in net mass balance may be explained by elevational differences (M1 1400 m a.s.l., E1O 2305 m a.s.l .). Recent (1973 to 1980) increases in sodium, silicate and sulfate at site E1O may be linked to decreases in Antarctic pack-ice extent (Kukla and Gavin 1981) for the same period

Observation of Higgs boson production in association with a top quark pair at the LHC with the ATLAS detector

The observation of Higgs boson production in association with a top quark pair (tt H¯ ), based on the analysis of proton–proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider, is presented. Using data corresponding to integrated luminosities of up to 79.8 fb−1, and considering Higgs boson decays into b¯ b, W W ∗, τ +τ −, γγ , and Z Z∗, the observed significance is 5.8 standard deviations, compared to an expectation of 4.9 standard deviations. Combined with the tt H¯ searches using a dataset corresponding to integrated luminosities of 4.5 fb−1 at 7 TeV and 20.3 fb−1 at 8 TeV, the observed (expected) significance is 6.3 (5.1) standard deviations. Assuming Standard Model branching fractions, the total tt H¯ production cross section at 13 TeV is measured to be 670 ± 90 (stat.) +110 −100 (syst.) fb, in agreement with the Standard Model prediction

Search for the rare decay B-0 ->tau(+)tau(-) at BABAR

We present the results of a search for the decay B-0 ->tau(+)tau(-) in a data sample of (232 +/- 3)x10(6) Upsilon(4S)-> BB decays using the BABAR detector. Certain extensions of the standard model predict measurable levels of this otherwise rare decay. We reconstruct fully one neutral B meson and seek evidence for the signal decay in the rest of the event. We find no evidence for signal events and obtain B(B-0 ->tau(+)tau(-))< 4.1x10(-3) at the 90% confidence level