49 research outputs found

    Cell cycle implication on nitrogen acquisition and synchronization in ıt Thalassiosira weissflogii (Bacillariophyta)

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    International audienceThe Michaelis-Menten model of nitrogen (N) acquisition, originally used to represent the effect of nutrient concentration on the phytoplankton uptake rate, is inadequate when other factors show temporal variations. Literature generally links diurnal oscillations of N acquisition to a response of the physiological status of microalgae to photon flux density (PFD) and substrate availability. This work describes how the cell cycle also constitutes a significant determinant of N acquisition and, when appropriate, assesses the impact of this property at the macroscopic level. For this purpose, we carried out continuous culture experiments with the diatom Thalassiosira weissflogii (Grunow) G. Fryxell & Hasle exposed to various conditions of light and N supply. The results revealed that a decrease in N acquisition occurred when a significant proportion of the population was in mitosis. This observation suggests that N acquisition is incompatible with mitosis and therefore that its acquisition rate is not constant during the cell cycle. In addition, environmental conditions, such as light and nutrient supply disrupt the cell cycle at the level of the individual cell, which impacts synchrony of the population

    InSight: Single Station Broadband Seismology for Probing Mars' Interior

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    InSight is a proposed Discovery mission which will deliver a lander containing geophysical instrumentation, including a heat flow probe and a seismometer package, to Mars. The aim of this mission is to perform, for the first time, an in-situ investigation of the interior of a truly Earth- like planet other than our own, with the goal of understanding the formation and evolution of terrestrial planets through investigation of the interior structure and processes of Mars

    High-resolution imaging of the Pyrenees and Massif Central from the data of the PYROPE and IBERARRAY portable array deployments

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    International audienceThe lithospheric structures beneath the Pyrenees, which holds the key to settle long-standing controversies regarding the opening of the Bay of Biscay and the formation of the Pyrenees, are still poorly known. The temporary PYROPE and IBERARRAY experiments have recently filled a strong deficit of seismological stations in this part of western Europe, offering a new and unique opportunity to image crustal and mantle structures with unprecedented resolution. Here we report the results of the first tomographic study of the Pyrenees relying on this rich data set. The important aspects of our tomographic study are the precision of both absolute and relative traveltime measurements obtained by a nonlinear simulated annealing waveform fit and the detailed crustal model that has been constructed to compute accurate crustal corrections. Beneath the Massif Central, the most prominent feature is a widespread slow anomaly that reflects a strong thermal anomaly resulting from the thinning of the lithosphere and upwelling of the asthenosphere. Our tomographic images clearly exclude scenarios involving subduction of oceanic lithosphere beneath the Pyrenees. In contrast, they reveal the segmentation of lithospheric structures, mainly by two major lithospheric faults, the Toulouse fault in the central Pyrenees and the Pamplona fault in the western Pyrenees. These inherited Hercynian faults were reactivated during the Cretaceous rifting of the Aquitaine and Iberian margins and during the Cenozoic Alpine convergence. Therefore, the Pyrenees can be seen as resulting from the tectonic inversion of a segmented continental rift that was buried by subduction beneath the European plate

    Atmospheric Science with InSight

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    International audienceIn November 2018, for the first time a dedicated geophysical station, the InSight lander, will be deployed on the surface of Mars. Along with the two main geophysical packages, the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS) and the Heat-Flow and Physical Properties Package (HP3), the InSight lander holds a highly sensitive pressure sensor (PS) and the Temperature and Winds for InSight (TWINS) instrument, both of which (along with the InSight FluxGate (IFG) Magnetometer) form the Auxiliary Sensor Payload Suite (APSS). Associated with the RADiometer (RAD) instrument which will measure the surface brightness temperature, and the Instrument Deployment Camera (IDC) which will be used to quantify atmospheric opacity, this will make InSight capable to act as a meteorological station at the surface of Mars. While probing the internal structure of Mars is the primary scientific goal of the mission, atmospheric science remains a key science objective for InSight. InSight has the potential to provide a more continuous and higher-frequency record of pressure, air temperature and winds at the surface of Mars than previous in situ missions. In the paper, key results from multiscale meteorological modeling, from Global Climate Models to Large-Eddy Simulations, are described as a reference for future studies based on the InSight measurements during operations. We summarize the capabilities of InSight for atmospheric observations, from profiling during Entry, Descent and Landing to surface measurements (pressure, temperature, winds, angular momentum), and the plans for how InSight’s sensors will be used during operations, as well as possible synergies with orbital observations. In a dedicated section, we describe the seismic impact of atmospheric phenomena (from the point of view of both “noise” to be decorrelated from the seismic signal and “signal” to provide information on atmospheric processes). We discuss in this framework Planetary Boundary Layer turbulence, with a focus on convective vortices and dust devils, gravity waves (with idealized modeling), and large-scale circulations. Our paper also presents possible new, exploratory, studies with the InSight instrumentation: surface layer scaling and exploration of the Monin-Obukhov model, aeolian surface changes and saltation / lifing studies, and monitoring of secular pressure changes. The InSight mission will be instrumental in broadening the knowledge of the Martian atmosphere, with a unique set of measurements from the surface of Mars

    Pre-mission InSights on the Interior of Mars

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    Abstract The Interior exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy, and Heat Trans- port (InSight) Mission will focus on Mars’ interior structure and evolution. The basic structure of crust, mantle, and core form soon after accretion. Understanding the early differentiation process on Mars and how it relates to bulk composition is key to improving our understanding of this process on rocky bodies in our solar system, as well as in other solar systems. Current knowledge of differentiation derives largely from the layers observed via seismology on the Moon. However, the Moon’s much smaller diameter make it a poor analog with respect to interior pressure and phase changes. In this paper we review the current knowledge of the thickness of the crust, the diameter and state of the core, seismic attenuation, heat flow, and interior composition. InSight will conduct the first seismic and heat flow measurements of Mars, as well as more precise geodesy. These data reduce uncertainty in crustal thickness, core size and state, heat flow, seismic activity and meteorite impact rates by a factor of 3–10× relative to previous estimates. Based on modeling of seismic wave propagation, we can further constrain interior temperature, composition, and the location of phase changes. By combining heat flow and a well constrained value of crustal thickness, we can estimate the distribution of heat producing elements between the crust and mantle. All of these quantities are key inputs to models of interior convection and thermal evolution that predict the processes that control subsurface temperature, rates of volcanism, plume distribution and stability, and convective state. Collectively these factors offer strong controls on the overall evolution of the geology and habitability of Mars

    Structure tri-dimensionnelle du Manteau superieur sous l'Ocean Atlantique d'apres l'Etude des Ondes de Rayleigh longue periode

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    SIGLEINIST T 73305 / INIST-CNRS - Institut de l'Information Scientifique et TechniqueFRFranc

    Approche numérique du couplage par effets de marée entre transferts thermiques internes et évolution orbitale des corps planétaires

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    Les effets de marée qui ont lieu au sein de certains corps du Système Solaire et probablement dans un grand nombre des planètes extrasolaires détectées jusqu à présent associent la friction visqueuse produite par la déformation cyclique de leurs enveloppes internes et éventuellement externes (atmosphère et océans) à une modification de leurs paramètres orbitaux. La dissipation d énergie de marée étant fortement dépendante de la rhéologie et donc de la température, il existe naturellement un couplage entre ces effets et les transferts de chaleur au sein des corps planétaires. Cette thèse a été dédiée à la construction d un modèle numérique permettant de simuler de manière cohérente la convection thermique dans un manteau planétaire compressible, à viscosité variable et soumis à un chauffage de marée hétérogène, ainsi que l évolution orbitale du corps. Les équations de conservation pour la dynamique du manteau sont traitées via une méthode en volumes finis dans la géométrie bidimensionnelle d anneau sphérique ; cette dernière permet d approximer des transferts thermiques tridimensionnels sphériques en gardant des temps de calcul raisonnables. En particulier, un solveur mécanique multigrille et un schéma à haute résolution pour l advection de la chaleur ont été implémentés. La dissipation de marée qui influence l évolution orbitale est ensuite évaluée via une solution semi-analytique dérivée au cours de ce travail. Deux applications préliminaires sont présentées pour examiner, d une part, l influence de la compressibilité dans le traitement du problème de convection couplée avec la dissipation de marée et, d autre part, l effet de ce couplage sur l évolution orbitale.Tidal effects that occur in some objects of the Solar System, and probably in a great part of the extrasolar planets detected so far, associate the viscous friction induced by the periodic deformation of their internal, possibly external layers (atmosphere and oceans), to a change of their orbital parameters. Since tidal dissipation strongly depends on rheology, hence on temperature, there is a natural coupling between these effects and heat transfer inside planetary bodies. This thesis was devoted to the building of a numerical model that self-consistently simulates thermal convection in a compressible mantle with variable viscosity and subjected to heterogeneous tidal heating, and the orbital evolution of the body. Conservation equations for mantle dynamics are treated by a finite volume method based on the bi-dimensional spherical annulus geometry; this approach approximates three-dimensional heat transfer while keeping moderate computational time. In particular, a multigrid mechanical solver and a high resolution advection scheme for the heat equation were implemented. The dissipation of tidal energy, which influences orbital evolution, is then computed through a semi-analytical solution derived during this work. Two preliminary applications are presented to investigate, on one hand the influence of compressibility in the treatment of the convection problem coupled with tidal dissipation and, on the other hand the effect of this coupling on orbital evolution.NANTES-BU Sciences (441092104) / SudocSudocFranceF
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