Precise Stellar Radial Velocities of an M Dwarf with a Michelson Interferometer and a Medium-resolution Near-infrared Spectrograph

Precise near-infrared radial velocimetry enables efficient detection and transit verification of low-mass extrasolar planets orbiting M dwarf hosts, which are faint for visible-wavelength radial velocity surveys. The TripleSpec Exoplanet Discovery Instrument, or TEDI, is the combination of a variable-delay Michelson interferometer and a medium-resolution (R=2700) near-infrared spectrograph on the Palomar 200" Hale Telescope. We used TEDI to monitor GJ 699, a nearby mid-M dwarf, over 11 nights spread across 3 months. Analysis of 106 independent observations reveals a root-mean-square precision of less than 37 m/s for 5 minutes of integration time. This performance is within a factor of 2 of our expected photon-limited precision. We further decompose the residuals into a 33 m/s white noise component, and a 15 m/s systematic noise component, which we identify as likely due to contamination by telluric absorption lines. With further development this technique holds promise for broad implementation on medium-resolution near-infrared spectrographs to search for low-mass exoplanets orbiting M dwarfs, and to verify low-mass transit candidates.Comment: 55 pages and 13 figures in aastex format. Accepted by PAS

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Water-Resources Investigations Report 83-4016

From purpose and scope: This report discusses the ground-water systems and the interpretation of test results in the water-bearing zones above and below the proposed facility, Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in Los Medanos

Theological issues

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsevents/1578/thumbnail.jp

Sandia Corporation Report SAND86-0611

From abstract: Drillhole DOE-2 was drilled to investigate a structural depression marked by the downward displacement of stratigraphic markers in the Salado Formation ~ 2 mi north of the center of the WIPP site. This depression was named informally after the shallow borehole FC-92 in which the structure was described. The presence of the depression was confirmed by drilling

Geohydrology of the proposed waste isolation pilot plant site, Los Medaños area, southeastern New Mexico /

Bibliography: p. 80-87.Mode of access: Internet

Results of hydrologic tests and water-chemistry analyses, wells H-5A, H-5B, and H-5C, at the proposed waste isolation pilot plant site, southeastern New Mexico /

"February 1982."Bibliography: p. 35.Final.Mode of access: Internet