An updated hydrocarbon photochemical model for the Jovian atmosphere from the troposphere through the homopause: A prelude to Galileo

A photochemical model for the atmosphere of Jupiter, including 1-D vertical eddy diffusive transport, was developed. It extends from the upper troposphere through the homopause. The hydrocarbon chemistry involves species containing up to four carbon atoms (and polyynes through C8H2). The calculations show that a large fraction of photochemical carbon may be contained in molecules with more than two carbon atoms. At the tropopause, C2H6 is the major photochemical species and C2H2, C3H8, and C4H10 are of comparable abundance and down from C2H6 by a factor of ten. These species may be detectable with the mass spectrometer of the Galileo Probe. The vertical distributions of the photochemical species are sensitive to the magnitude of eddy diffusive mixing in the troposphere and stratosphere and the details of the interface region

Chemical dynamics of triacetylene formation and implications to the synthesis of polyynes in Titan's atmosphere

For the last four decades, the role of polyynes such as diacetylene (HCCCCH) and triacetylene (HCCCCCCH) in the chemical evolution of the atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan has been a subject of vigorous research. These polyacetylenes are thought to serve as an UV radiation shield in planetary environments; thus, acting as prebiotic ozone, and are considered as important constituents of the visible haze layers on Titan. However, the underlying chemical processes that initiate the formation and control the growth of polyynes have been the least understood to date. Here, we present a combined experimental, theoretical, and modeling study on the synthesis of the polyyne triacetylene (HCCCCCCH) via the bimolecular gas phase reaction of the ethynyl radical (CCH) with diacetylene (HCCCCH). This elementary reaction is rapid, has no entrance barrier, and yields the triacetylene molecule via indirect scattering dynamics through complex formation in a single collision event. Photochemical models of Titan's atmosphere imply that triacetylene may serve as a building block to synthesize even more complex polyynes such as tetraacetylene (HCCCCCCCCH)

Immigració i integració

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The Discovery of Argon in Comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp)

On 30.14 March 1997 we observed the EUV spectrum of the bright comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) at the time of its perihelion, using our EUVS sounding rocket telescope/spectrometer. The spectra reveal the presence H Ly beta, O+, and, most notably, Argon. Modelling of the retrieved Ar production rates indicates that comet Hale-Bopp is enriched in Ar relative to cosmogonic expectations. This in turn indicates that Hale-Bopp's deep interior has never been exposed to the 35-40 K temperatures necessary to deplete the comet's primordial argon supply.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures. ApJ, 545, in press (2000

Vortex Imaging in the pi-Band of Magnesium Diboride

We report scanning tunneling spectroscopy imaging of the vortex lattice in single crystalline MgB2. By tunneling parallel to the c-axis, a single superconducting gap (Delta = 2.2 meV) associated with the pi-band is observed. The vortices in the pi-band have a large core size compared to estimates based on Hc2, and show an absence of localized states in the core. Furthermore, superconductivity between the vortices is rapidly suppressed by an applied field. These results suggest that superconductivity in the pi-band is, at least partially, induced by the intrinsically superconducting sigma-band.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Jupiter's X-ray and EUV auroras monitored by Chandra, XXM-Newton, and Hisaki satellite

Jupiter's X-ray auroral emission in the polar cap region results from particles which have undergone strong field-aligned acceleration into the ionosphere. The origin of precipitating ions and electrons and the time variability in the X-ray emission are essential to uncover the driving mechanism for the high-energy acceleration. The magnetospheric location of the source field line where the X-ray is generated is likely affected by the solar wind variability. However, these essential characteristics are still unknown because the long-term monitoring of the X-rays and contemporaneous solar wind variability has not been carried out. In April 2014, the first long-term multiwavelength monitoring of Jupiter's X-ray and EUV auroral emissions was made by the Chandra X-ray Observatory, XMM-Newton, and Hisaki satellite. We find that the X-ray count rates are positively correlated with the solar wind velocity and insignificantly with the dynamic pressure. Based on the magnetic field mapping model, a half of the X-ray auroral region was found to be open to the interplanetary space. The other half of the X-ray auroral source region is magnetically connected with the prenoon to postdusk sector in the outermost region of the magnetosphere, where the Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability, magnetopause reconnection, and quasiperiodic particle injection potentially take place. We speculate that the high-energy auroral acceleration is associated with the KH instability and/or magnetopause reconnection. This association is expected to also occur in many other space plasma environments such as Saturn and other magnetized rotators

Quantifying macrodetritus fluxes from a small temperate estuary

Empirical measurements of estuary-to-coast material fluxes usually exclude the fraction of primary production that is exported as macrodetritus (marine plant litter), potentially leaving a gap in our understanding of the role of estuaries as outwelling systems. To address this gap, we sampled water and suspended material seasonally from the mouth of Pepe Inlet, Tairua Estuary, New Zealand. From samples collected hourly over 24 h, we calculated the lateral tidal fluxes (import, export, net flux) of macrodetritus, particulate and dissolved forms of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). Annually, the inlet was a net exporter of N and P (5145 and 362 kg respectively). However, macrodetritus accounted for 87%). Nevertheless, seasonal pulses in the source and supply of macrodetritus may have consequences for the temporal scales over which this resource subsidy affects receiving ecosystems (e.g. intertidal sandflats). These mensurative investigations are useful to inform estuarine nutrient budgets that quantify the ecosystem services provided by temperate estuaries (e.g. contribution to fisheries food webs)