High resolution bathymetric survey on the NW slope of Walvis Ridge, offshore Namibia

Expedition 17/1 of the German research vessel R/V MARIA S. MERIAN, carried out geophysical surveys and experiments between November and December 2010 in the area around Walvis Ridge, Southeast Atlantic Ocean. Among the data collected, a high-resolution bathymetric dataset aquired on the northwestern slope of the ridge offers some important preliminary insights into the tectonic evolution of the ridge and the adjoining lower continental slopes and ocean basin. The NE-SW trending Walvis Ridge has a trapezoid shape and is likely built up by thick sequences of plateau basalts, with top of basement rocks inclined to the south. Sediments are almost absent on the NW side of the ridge, preserving a fascinating mountainscape formed early in the tectonic history, most probably on-land. This interpretation is supported by clear denudational features, like steep cliffs up to 150 m high, and deeply incised valleys, defining paleo-drainages. Isolated, flat-topped guyots seaward of the ocean-continent boundary attest to a later history of wave abrasion and progressive subsidence of Walvis Ridge

H.E.S.S. discovery of very-high-energy gamma-ray emission of PKS 1440-389

Blazars are the most abundant class of known extragalactic very-high-energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) gamma-ray sources. However, one of the biggest difficulties in investigating their VHE emission resides in their limited number, since less than 60 of them are known by now. In this contribution we report on H.E.S.S. observations of the BL Lac object PKS 1440-389. This source has been selected as target for H.E.S.S. based on its high-energy gamma-ray properties measured by Fermi-LAT. The extrapolation of this bright, hard-spectrum gamma-ray blazar into the VHE regime made a detection on a relatively short time scale very likely, despite its uncertain redshift. H.E.S.S. observations were carried out with the 4-telescope array from February to May 2012 and resulted in a clear detection of the source. Contemporaneous multi-wavelength data are used to construct the spectral energy distribution of PKS 1440-389 which can be described by a simple one-zone synchrotron-self Compton model.Comment: In Proceedings of the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC2015), The Hague, The Netherland

Periodicities in the emplacement of large igneous provinces through the Phanerozoic: Relations to ocean chemistry and marine biodiversity evolution

AbstractLarge igneous provinces (LIPs) are considered a relevant cause for mass extinctions of marine life throughout Earth’s history. Their flood basalts and associated intrusions can cause significant release of SO4 and CO2 and consequently, cause major environmental disruptions. Here, we reconstruct the long-term periodic pattern of LIP emplacement and its impact on ocean chemistry and biodiversity from δ34Ssulfate of the last 520 Ma under particular consideration of the preservation limits of LIP records. A combination of cross-wavelet and other time-series analysis methods has been applied to quantify a potential chain of linkage between LIP emplacement periodicity, geochemical changes and the Phanerozoic marine genera record. We suggest a mantle plume cyclicity represented by LIP volumes (V) of V=−(350–770)×103km3sin(2πt/170Ma)+(300–650)×103km3sin(2πt/64.5Ma+2.3) for t=time in Ma. A shift from the 64.5Ma to a weaker ∼28–35Ma LIP cyclicity during the Jurassic contributes together with probably independent changes in the marine sulfur cycle to less ocean anoxia, and a general stabilization of ocean chemistry and increasing marine biodiversity throughout the last ∼135Ma. The LIP cycle pattern is coherent with marine biodiversity fluctuations corresponding to a reduction of marine biodiversity of ∼120genera/Ma at ∼600×103km3 LIP eruption volume. The 62–65Ma LIP cycle pattern as well as excursion in δ34Ssulfate and marine genera reduction suggest a not-yet identified found LIP event at ∼440–450Ma

Observations of the Crab Nebula with H.E.S.S. Phase II

The High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) phase I instrument was an array of four $100\,\mathrm{m}^2$ mirror area Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) that has very successfully mapped the sky at photon energies above $\sim 100\,$GeV. Recently, a $600\,\mathrm{m}^2$ telescope was added to the centre of the existing array, which can be operated either in standalone mode or jointly with the four smaller telescopes. The large telescope lowers the energy threshold for gamma-ray observations to several tens of GeV, making the array sensitive at energies where the Fermi-LAT instrument runs out of statistics. At the same time, the new telescope makes the H.E.S.S. phase II instrument. This is the first hybrid IACT array, as it operates telescopes of different size (and hence different trigger rates) and different field of view. In this contribution we present results of H.E.S.S. phase II observations of the Crab Nebula, compare them to earlier observations, and evaluate the performance of the new instrument with Monte Carlo simulations.Comment: In Proceedings of the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC2015), The Hague, The Netherland

Detection and Imaging of Defects Especially Materials with Small UT Transducers Using Broad-Band Holography

Since conventional single frequency acoustical holography provides only poor axial resolution, this concept was improved with the multifrequency holography to enhance the imaging quality. This leads to long data acquisition times because of the need to measure each frequency. A further step towards a fast imaging system with good spatial resolution is broadband holography. Here, one illuminates the object with broadband signals in a single measurement procedure