VERA Geodetic Activities

This report briefly describes the geodetic activities of VERA in the year 2012. The regular geodetic observations are carried out both in K- and S/X-bands. The frequency of regular observations is three times a month-twice for the VERA internal observations in K-band. The networks of the S/X sessions are JADE of GSI and IVS-T2. The raw data of the T2 and JADE sessions are electronically transferred to the Bonn, Haystack, and GSI correlators via Internet. Gravimetric observations are carried out at the VERA stations. An SG was installed at Mizusawa and placed in the vicinity of the VERA antenna in order to monitor vertical displacement at the end of 2008, and the observations continued throughout the year. Also at the VERA-Ishigakijima station, continuous operation of the SG started in 2012. The crustal movements generated by the 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tohoku continued during 2012, and displacement of the VERA-Mizusawa position by post-seismic creeping continued

Large eddy simulation of turbulent flows around bluff bodies in overlaid grid systems

ABSTRACT LES of turbulent flow around a circular cylinder at Re=10000, with or without numerical viscosity due to third-order upwind scheme, are carried out. Considerable differences are shown in the wake structures and pressure and velocity distributions between both models

Installation of the superconducting gravimeter CT(#043) at Syowa Station, Antarctica

During the wintering period of the 44th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE-44: February 2003 to January 2004), a new superconducting gravimeter CT(#043) with a cryocooler was installed and tested to replace the former TT70(#016) at Syowa Station, Antarctica. The CT(#043) has design sensitivity of 1nGal (1×10^(-11)m/s^2) to study the Earth\u27s dynamics in tidal and longer-period bands. A new type of diaphragm was used to effectively isolate the vibration from the refrigerator cold-head and to prevent solid air contamination from entering the Dewar. A real-time remote monitoring system including a Web camera for diagnostics from Japan has also been installed

Effects of horizontal acceleration on the superconducting gravimeter CT #036 at Ishigakijima, Japan

In the gravity sensor of a superconducting gravimeter, a superconducting sphere as a test mass is levitated in a magnetic field. Such a sensor is susceptible to applied horizontal as well as vertical acceleration, because the translational degrees of freedom of the mass are not perfectly limited to the vertical direction. In the case of the superconducting gravimeter CT #036 installed at Ishigakijima, Japan, horizontal ground acceleration excited by the movements of a nearby VLBI antenna induces systematic step noise within the gravity recordings. We investigate this effect in terms of the static and dynamic properties of the gravity sensor using data from a collocated seismometer. It is shown that this effect can be effectively modeled by the coupling between the horizontal and vertical components in the gravity sensor. It is also found that the mechanical eigenfrequency for horizontal translation of the levitating sphere is approximately 3 Hz

Definite ECRS diagnosis with systemic steroid

According to JESREC criteria, definite eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS) is postoperatively diagnosed based on over 70 eosinophils in high power magnification fields of the resected nasal polyps in patients with probable ECRS. Preoperative systemic administration with steroid is a standard practice, because it reduced intraoperative bleeding during endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) in patients with ECRS. However, it was recently reported that systemic administration with steroid decreased the number of eosinophils in the nasal polyps, leading to a false negative diagnosis of definite ECRS. To overcome the risk, we have adopted short-term pre-operative systemic administration with low-dose of steroid and examined if our steroid administration makes a false-negative diagnosis. We performed a retrospective chart review of 42 patients with probable ECRS. Eleven patients were administered with 0.5 mg of bethametasone for 7 days before ESS, and other 31 patients were not administered. The average number of eosinophils in nasal polyps in patients who were administered with steroid was 188 ± 167, which was not different from 199 ± 149 in the patients who were not administered. These findings suggest that short-term preoperative administration with low-dose of steroid has few risk of a false-negative diagnosis of definite ECRS

Optical Studies of Lyotropic Liquid Crystaline Phases in Lipids : II. Potassium Caprate -Water System

光学顕微鏡によって，カプリン酸カリウムと水の系の示す，リオトロピック液晶の性質を調べた。 観測された相として，ミドル相，ニート相，粘性等方相の3相があった。カプリン酸カリウムと水の系の相図は，一般の石けんと水の系とよく似た形をしていることがわかった。 リオトロピック液晶の成長の機構を，乾燥法によって観察した。その結果，ニート相の成長パターンは，我々が前回モノグリセライドと水の系の研究で報告したような，球晶ニートと「あわ」の回りのニー卜層が，その成長の初期段階の特徴的パターンであることが確かめられた。ミドル相成長の様相は，ニー卜相とは異なり，むしろ固体結晶の成長パターンに類似している。The lyotropic liquid crystalline phases of the potassium caprate-water system have been investigated by means of a polarizing microscope. Three typical phases of lyotropic liquid crystal were observed in the binary mixture of potassium caprate and water，as being respectively a neat phase，a viscous isotropic phase and a middle phase. The phase diagram of the potassium caprate-water system shows the same form as the other soap-water systems qualitatively， for example the potassium palmitate-water system. The liquid crystal growth experiments for both the neat phase and the middle phase were performed by the drying method. As for the neat phase，it was confirmed that the spherulytic neat and the neat layer around the bubble are the characteristic patterns of the earlier stage of the growth. This was reported by us in the study of the monoglyceride-water system. The growth patterns of the middle phase grown from the isotropic solution differ from those of the neat phase but resemble those of the "solid" crystal

Optical Studies of Lyotropic Mesophases in Lipids : I. Monoglyceride-Water System

モノグリセライドとH2Oの2成分系がつくるリオトロピック液晶を,偏光顕微鏡を使って観察した。その結果,ニート相,粘性等方相そして逆ミドル相の3相が安定相として確認され,相転移は粘性等方相と他の2相とのあいだで可逆であることがわかった。リオトロピック液晶成長の様子も観察された。The lyotropic liquid crystalline phases of the monopalmitin-H2O system have been investigated by means of a polarizing microscope. As a result, the three stable phases of the monoglyceried-H2O system were observed, as being respectively the neat phase, the reversed middle phase and the viscous isotropic phase. It is concluded that the phase transitions both from the viscous isotropic phase to the neat phase and from the viscous isotropic phase to the reversed middle phase are reversible processes. This is contrary to Wilton et al's result for the phase diagram of the monostearin-H2O system. The patterns of the lyotropic liquid crystal growth were observed in relation to those of the smectic liquid crystal. Their growth mechanism is discussed too.本論文の一部は,日本物理学会第30会年会(京都,1975)で著者らによって発表されたものである