SPIRAL Phase A: A Prototype Integral Field Spectrograph for the AAT

We present details of a prototype fiber feed for use on the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) that uses a dedicated fiber-fed medium/high resolution (R > 10000) visible-band spectrograph to give integral field spectroscopy (IFS) of an extended object. A focal reducer couples light from the telescope to the close-packed lenslet array and fiber feed, allowing the spectrograph be used on other telescopes with the change of a single lens. By considering the properties of the fibers in the design of the spectrograph, an efficient design can be realised, and we present the first scientific results of a prototype spectrograph using a fiber feed with 37 spatial elements, namely the detection of Lithium confirming a brown dwarf candidate and IFS of the supernova remnant SN1987A.Comment: 41 pages, 15 figures, 3 tables; accepted by PAS

Automatic speech recognition research at NASA-Ames Research Center

A trainable acoustic pattern recognizer manufactured by Scope Electronics is presented. The voice command system VCS encodes speech by sampling 16 bandpass filters with center frequencies in the range from 200 to 5000 Hz. Variations in speaking rate are compensated for by a compression algorithm that subdivides each utterance into eight subintervals in such a way that the amount of spectral change within each subinterval is the same. The recorded filter values within each subinterval are then reduced to a 15-bit representation, giving a 120-bit encoding for each utterance. The VCS incorporates a simple recognition algorithm that utilizes five training samples of each word in a vocabulary of up to 24 words. The recognition rate of approximately 85 percent correct for untrained speakers and 94 percent correct for trained speakers was not considered adequate for flight systems use. Therefore, the built-in recognition algorithm was disabled, and the VCS was modified to transmit 120-bit encodings to an external computer for recognition

Tricarbonylchlorido(6'7'-dihydro-5’H-spiro[cyclopentane-1,6'-dipyrido-[3,2-d:2',3'-f][1,3]diazepine]-κ2N1,N11)-rhenium(I)

In the title compound, [ReCl(C15H16N4)(CO)3], the ReI ion is coordinated in a distorted octahedral geometry by one Cl atom, two N atoms of the bidentate ligand and three carbonyl groups. The cyclopentane group is orientated in a transoid fashion with respect to the chloride ligand. The dihedral angle between the pryridine rings is 10.91 (12)°. In the crystal, N-H...Cl hydrogen bonds link complex molecules, forming a two-dimensional network parallel to (001)

Tricarbonylchlorido(6’,7’-dihydro-5’H-spiro[cyclohexane-1,6’-dipyrido[3,2-d :2’,3’-f][1,3]diazepine]-κ2N1,N11)rhenium(I)

In the title compound, [ReCl(C16H18N4)(CO)3], the ReI ion is coordinated in a distorted octahedral geometry by one Cl atom, two N atoms of the bidentate ligand and three carbonyl groups. The cyclohexane group is orientated in a transoid fashion with respect to the chloride ligand. In the crystal, N-H...Cl hydrogen bonds link complex molecules, forming a two-dimensional network parallel to (100)

Rayleigh wave dispersion measurements reveal low-velocity zones beneath the new crust in the Gulf of California

Rayleigh wave tomography provides images of the shallow mantle shear wave velocity structure beneath the Gulf of California. Low-velocity zones (LVZs) are found on axis between 26 and 50 km depth beneath the Guaymas Basin but mostly off axis under the other rift basins, with the largest feature underlying the Ballenas Transform Fault. We interpret the broadly distributed LVZs as regions of partial melting in a solid mantle matrix. The pathway for melt migration and focusing is more complex than an axis-centered source aligned above a deeper region of mantle melt and likely reflects the magmatic evolution of rift segments. We also consider the existence of solid lower continental crust in the Gulf north of the Guaymas Basin, where the association of the LVZs with asthenospheric upwelling suggests lateral flow assisted by a heat source. These results provide key constraints for numerical models of mantle upwelling and melt focusing in this young oblique rift

Seismic structure beneath the Gulf of California: a contribution from group velocity measurements

Rayleigh wave group velocity dispersion measurements from local and regional earthquakes are used to interpret the lithospheric structure in the Gulf of California region. We compute group velocity maps for Rayleigh waves from 10 to 150 s using earthquakes recorded by broad-band stations of the Network of Autonomously Recording Seismographs in Baja California and Mexico mainland, UNM in Mexico, BOR, DPP and GOR in southern California and TUC in Arizona. The study area is gridded in 120 longitude cells by 180 latitude cells, with an equal spacing of 10 × 10 km. Assuming that each gridpoint is laterally homogeneous, for each period the tomographic maps are inverted to produce a 3-D lithospheric shear wave velocity model for the region. Near the Gulf of California rift axis, we found three prominent low shear wave velocity regions, which are associated with mantle upwelling near the Cerro Prieto volcanic field, the Ballenas Transform Fault and the East Pacific Rise. Upwelling of the mantle at lithospheric and asthenospheric depths characterizes most of the Gulf. This more detailed finding is new when compared to previous surface wave studies in the region. A low-velocity zone in northcentral Baja at ∼28ºN which extends east–south–eastwards is interpreted as an asthenospheric window. In addition, we also identify a well-defined high-velocity zone in the upper mantle beneath central-western Baja California, which correlates with the previously interpreted location of the stalled Guadalupe and Magdalena microplates. We interpret locations of the fossil slab and slab window in light of the distribution of unique post-subduction volcanic rocks in the Gulf of California and Baja California. We also observe a high-velocity anomaly at 50-km depth extending down to ∼130 km near the southwestern Baja coastline and beneath Baja, which may represent another remnant of the Farallon slab

Localized seismic deformation in the upper mantle revealed by dense seismic arrays

Seismicity along continental transform faults is usually confined to the upper half of the crust, but the Newport-Inglewood fault (NIF), a major fault traversing the Los Angeles basin, is seismically active down to the upper mantle. We use seismic array analysis to illuminate the seismogenic root of the NIF beneath Long Beach, California, and identify seismicity in an actively deforming localized zone penetrating the lithospheric mantle. Deep earthquakes, which are spatially correlated with geochemical evidence of a fluid pathway from the mantle, as well as with a sharp vertical offset in the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary, exhibit narrow size distribution and weak temporal clustering. We attribute these characteristics to a transition from strong to weak interaction regimes in a system of seismic asperities embedded in a ductile fault zone matrix

Detecting the harmonics of oscillations with time-variable frequencies

A method is introduced for the spectral analysis of complex noisy signals containing several frequency components. It enables components that are independent to be distinguished from the harmonics of nonsinusoidal oscillatory processes of lower frequency. The method is based on mutual information and surrogate testing combined with the wavelet transform, and it is applicable to relatively short time series containing frequencies that are time variable. Where the fundamental frequency and harmonics of a process can be identified, the characteristic shape of the corresponding oscillation can be determined, enabling adaptive filtering to remove other components and nonoscillatory noise from the signal. Thus the total bandwidth of the signal can be correctly partitioned and the power associated with each component then can be quantified more accurately. The method is first demonstrated on numerical examples. It is then used to identify the higher harmonics of oscillations in human skin blood flow, both spontaneous and associated with periodic iontophoresis of a vasodilatory agent. The method should be equally relevant to all situations where signals of comparable complexity are encountered, including applications in astrophysics, engineering, and electrical circuits, as well as in other areas of physiology and biology

Development of scenarios for land cover, population density, impervious cover, and conservation in New Hampshire, 2010–2100

Future changes in ecosystem services will depend heavily on changes in land cover and land use, which, in turn, are shaped by human activities. Given the challenges of predicting long-term changes in human behaviors and activities, scenarios provide a framework for simulating the long-term consequences of land-cover change on ecosystem function. As input for process-based models of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystem function, we developed scenarios for land cover, population density, and impervious cover for the state of New Hampshire for 2020–2100. Key drivers of change were identified through information gathered from six sources: historical trends, existing plans relating to New Hampshire’s land-cover future, surveys, existing population scenarios, key informant interviews with diverse stakeholders, and input from subject-matter experts. Scenarios were developed in parallel with information gathering, with details added iteratively as new questions emerged. The final scenarios span a continuum from spatially dispersed development with a low value placed on ecosystem services (Backyard Amenities) to concentrated development with a high value placed on ecosystem services (the Community Amenities family). The Community family includes two population scenarios (Large Community and Small Community), to be combined with two scenarios for land cover (Protection of Wildlands and Promotion of Local Food), producing combinations that bring the total number of scenarios to six. Between Backyard Amenities and Community Amenities is a scenario based on linear extrapolations of current trends (Linear Trends). Custom models were used to simulate decadal change in land cover, population density, and impervious cover. We present raster maps and proportion of impervious cover for HUC10 watersheds under each scenario and discuss the trade-offs of our translation and modeling approach within the context of contemporary scenario projects