Tomographic images of P wave velocity variation at Parkfield, California

Tomographic inversion is applied to delay times from local earthquakes to image three dimensional velocity variations near Parkfield, California. The 25 × 20 square km region is represented by nearly cubic blocks of 0.5 km per side. Arrival times of P waves from 551 local earthquakes, with depths of 0 to 15 km, were used as sources producing 3135 rays covering the target region. The data were recorded on low-noise downhole seismographs. The results of the inversion show correlation with some of the local geological and geophysical features. The correlation of higher-velocity features and seismic activity may indicate that earthquakes are occurring in more competent zones while aseismic slip takes place in zones of lower-velocity, less competent rocks

Audible acoustics from low-magnitude fluid-induced earthquakes in Finland

Earthquakes are frequently accompanied by public reports of audible low-frequency noises. In 2018, public reports of booms or thunder-like noises were linked to induced earthquakes during an Engineered Geothermal System project in the Helsinki Metropolitan area. In response, two microphone arrays were deployed to record and study these acoustic signals while stimulation at the drill site continued. During the 11 day deployment, we find 39 earthquakes accompanied by possible atmospheric acoustic signals. Moment magnitudes of these events ranged from - 0.07 to 1.87 with located depths of 4.8–6.5 km. Analysis of the largest event revealed a broadband frequency content, including in the audible range, and high apparent velocities across the arrays. We conclude that the audible noises were generated by local ground reverberation during the arrival of seismic body waves. The inclusion of acoustic monitoring at future geothermal development projects will be beneficial for studying seismic-to-acoustic coupling during sequences of induced earthquakes

Dust Devil Tracks

Dust devils that leave dark- or light-toned tracks are common on Mars and they can also be found on the Earth’s surface. Dust devil tracks (hereinafter DDTs) are ephemeral surface features with mostly sub-annual lifetimes. Regarding their size, DDT widths can range between ∼1 m and ∼1 km, depending on the diameter of dust devil that created the track, and DDT lengths range from a few tens of meters to several kilometers, limited by the duration and horizontal ground speed of dust devils. DDTs can be classified into three main types based on their morphology and albedo in contrast to their surroundings; all are found on both planets: (a) dark continuous DDTs, (b) dark cycloidal DDTs, and (c) bright DDTs. Dark continuous DDTs are the most common type on Mars. They are characterized by their relatively homogenous and continuous low albedo surface tracks. Based on terrestrial and martian in situ studies, these DDTs most likely form when surficial dust layers are removed to expose larger-grained substrate material (coarse sands of ≥500 μm in diameter). The exposure of larger-grained materials changes the photometric properties of the surface; hence leading to lower albedo tracks because grain size is photometrically inversely proportional to the surface reflectance. However, although not observed so far, compositional differences (i.e., color differences) might also lead to albedo contrasts when dust is removed to expose substrate materials with mineralogical differences. For dark continuous DDTs, albedo drop measurements are around 2.5 % in the wavelength range of 550–850 nm on Mars and around 0.5 % in the wavelength range from 300–1100 nm on Earth. The removal of an equivalent layer thickness around 1 μm is sufficient for the formation of visible dark continuous DDTs on Mars and Earth. The next type of DDTs, dark cycloidal DDTs, are characterized by their low albedo pattern of overlapping scallops. Terrestrial in situ studies imply that they are formed when sand-sized material that is eroded from the outer vortex area of a dust devil is redeposited in annular patterns in the central vortex region. This type of DDT can also be found in on Mars in orbital image data, and although in situ studies are lacking, terrestrial analog studies, laboratory work, and numerical modeling suggest they have the same formation mechanism as those on Earth. Finally, bright DDTs are characterized by their continuous track pattern and high albedo compared to their undisturbed surroundings. They are found on both planets, but to date they have only been analyzed in situ on Earth. Here, the destruction of aggregates of dust, silt and sand by dust devils leads to smooth surfaces in contrast to the undisturbed rough surfaces surrounding the track. The resulting change in photometric properties occurs because the smoother surfaces have a higher reflectance compared to the surrounding rough surface, leading to bright DDTs. On Mars, the destruction of surficial dust-aggregates may also lead to bright DDTs. However, higher reflective surfaces may be produced by other formation mechanisms, such as dust compaction by passing dust devils, as this may also cause changes in photometric properties. On Mars, DDTs in general are found at all elevations and on a global scale, except on the permanent polar caps. DDT maximum areal densities occur during spring and summer in both hemispheres produced by an increase in dust devil activity caused by maximum insolation. Regionally, dust devil densities vary spatially likely controlled by changes in dust cover thicknesses and substrate materials. This variability makes it difficult to infer dust devil activity from DDT frequencies. Furthermore, only a fraction of dust devils leave tracks. However, DDTs can be used as proxies for dust devil lifetimes and wind directions and speeds, and they can also be used to predict lander or rover solar panel clearing events. Overall, the high DDT frequency in many areas on Mars leads to drastic albedo changes that affect large-scale weather patterns

A comprehensive study of fracture patterns and densities in the Geysers geothermal reservoir using microearthquake shear-wave splitting tomography [Quarterly progress report 06/16/1998 - 09/15/1998]

We completed the process of locating events and identifying shear-wave splitting in the mammoth area. A total of 2250 split shear wave observations were recorded in the four month period that our network was in place. Fast polarization direction map in Figure 1 shows that most of the stations in the mammoth area display consistent direction throughout the main field, between 300{degree} azimuth to 0{degree} azimuth. Some exemptions to the consistent crack alignment (fast polarization direction) can be seen in station M19, and some stations display inconsistent trend as can be observed in stations M25, M18, and M07. It is possible that station M19 was misaligned during installment. Figure 2 shows the cumulative rose diagram for all observations with a clear preferred direction. Figure 3 also shows that most of the observations of fast split shear wave are in the same direction and that those observation are distributed throughout the target area. If we treat measurements of polarization direction as a statistical process, same as deep of layer measurement, we can say that in the small area of the station we have aligned cracks. Figures 4 and 5 show results of the crack density inversion assuming regional crack azimuth of 340{degree}. Almost 2000 raypaths were used to perform this tomographic inversion. There is weak dependency of the results on the regional crack direction, but the main areas of high and low crack density are the same. The changes are mainly in the size of the anomalies. Since the amplitudes of those anomalies depend mainly on the damping parameter we use in the inversion, exact regional crack direction is not a critical parameter of the inversion. The map in figure 4 and cross-sections in Figure 5 show two areas of high crack density: one northeast of the Casa Diablo area at depth of 1 to 3 km, and one near the Mammoth airport and station 9 at depth of 2 to 3 km

A comprehensive study of fracture patterns and densities in the Geysers geothermal reservoir using microearthquake shear-wave splitting tomography. [Quarterly progress report 03/16/1998 - 06/15/1998]

We completed the process of identifying shear-wave splitting in the Geyser area. A total of 2700 observations were recorded with about 1700 observations from the 1988 data and about 1000 observations from 1994. Fast polarization direction map in Figure 1 shows that most of the stations in the Geyser area display consistent direction throughout the main field, between 0{degree} azimuth to 40{degree} azimuth. Some exemptions to the consistent crack alignment (fast polarization direction) can be seen in stations 9 and station 3, and also in stations 13 and 14 outside the field. Since the stations are in boreholes it is possible that some of the station orientations, calculated using P-wave arrivals from located events, are erroneous. If we treat measurements of polarization direction as a statistical process, same as deep of layer measurement, we can say that in the small area of the station we have aligned cracks. Figures 2 and 3 show results of the crack density inversion assuming regional crack azimuth of 20{degree}. Almost 2400 raypaths were used to perform this tomographic inversion. There is weak dependency of the results on the regional crack direction, but the main areas of high and low crack density are the same. The changes are mainly in the size of the anomalies. Since the amplitudes of those anomalies depend mainly on the damping parameter we use in the inversion, exact regional crack direction is not a critical parameter of the inversion. The map in figure 2 and cross-sections in Figure 3 show two areas of high crack density at the top 1 km one at station 8 and the other between stations 6 and 5. At greater depth of 1 to 2 km those two area converge to one high crack density anomaly between stations 3, 4, 11, and 10

In vitro membrane penetration of modified peptide nucleic acid (PNA)

Efficient cellular uptake is crucial for the success of any drug directed towards targets inside cells. Peptide nucleic acid (PNA), a DNA analog with a promising potential as a gene-directed drug, has been shown to display slow membrane penetration in cell cultures. We here used liposomes as an in vitro model of cell membranes to investigate the effect on penetration of a PNA molecule colvalently modified with a lipophilic group, an adamantyl moiety. The adamantyl attachment was found to increase the membrane-penetration rate of PNA three-fold, as compared to corresponding unmodified PNA. From the penetration behaviour of a number of small and large molecules we could conclude that passive diffusion is the mechanism for liposome-membrane passage. Flow linear dichroism (LD) of the modified PNA in presence of rod-shaped micelles, together with octanol-water distribution experiments. showed that the adamantyl-modified PNA is amphiphilic; the driving force behind the observed increased membrane-penetration rate appears to be an accumulation of the PNA in the lipid double layer

Contrasts in morphology and deformation offshore Montserrat: New insights from the SEA-CALIPSO marine cruise data

During the December 2007, SEA-CALIPSO experiment we collected seismic reflection profiles offshore of Montserrat. Off the east coast, we imaged deep fans of volcaniclastic debris from three volcanoes progressively active from ∼2 Ma to present. Near-shelf sedimentation rates of 8–9 cm/ka are approximated following cessation of local volcanic activity. The fans were deposited on sediments with apparent dips towards the ESE-trending Montserrat-Havers fault system (MHFS) in southern Montserrat. The MHFS encloses the Soufrière Hills Volcano, has elevated crustal blocks at Roche's Bluff, St. Georges Hill, and Garibaldi Hill, and extends off the west coast. Off the west coast, the N-dip of two faults supports a N-dip interpretation for a major component of MHFS, the Belham Valley fault. We propose that local deformation is affected by stress redistributions consistent with a right-stepping, sinistral en-echelon fault system, but the interplay of transtension and magmatism has resulted in complex and evolving stress regimes