778 research outputs found

    Dust Devil Tracks

    Get PDF
    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

    Pion, kaon, proton and anti-proton transverse momentum distributions from p+p and d+Au collisions at sNN=200\sqrt{s_{NN}} = 200 GeV

    Full text link
    Identified mid-rapidity particle spectra of π±\pi^{\pm}, K±K^{\pm}, and p(pˉ)p(\bar{p}) from 200 GeV p+p and d+Au collisions are reported. A time-of-flight detector based on multi-gap resistive plate chamber technology is used for particle identification. The particle-species dependence of the Cronin effect is observed to be significantly smaller than that at lower energies. The ratio of the nuclear modification factor (RdAuR_{dAu}) between protons (p+pˉ)(p+\bar{p}) and charged hadrons (hh) in the transverse momentum range 1.2<pT<3.01.2<{p_{T}}<3.0 GeV/c is measured to be 1.19±0.051.19\pm0.05(stat)±0.03\pm0.03(syst) in minimum-bias collisions and shows little centrality dependence. The yield ratio of (p+pˉ)/h(p+\bar{p})/h in minimum-bias d+Au collisions is found to be a factor of 2 lower than that in Au+Au collisions, indicating that the Cronin effect alone is not enough to account for the relative baryon enhancement observed in heavy ion collisions at RHIC.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, 1 table. We extended the pion spectra from transverse momentum 1.8 GeV/c to 3. GeV/

    Demonstration of the temporal matter-wave Talbot effect for trapped matter waves

    Get PDF
    We demonstrate the temporal Talbot effect for trapped matter waves using ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. We investigate the phase evolution of an array of essentially non-interacting matter waves and observe matter-wave collapse and revival in the form of a Talbot interference pattern. By using long expansion times, we image momentum space with sub-recoil resolution, allowing us to observe fractional Talbot fringes up to 10th order.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figure

    Kaon Production and Kaon to Pion Ratio in Au+Au Collisions at \snn=130 GeV

    Get PDF
    Mid-rapidity transverse mass spectra and multiplicity densities of charged and neutral kaons are reported for Au+Au collisions at \snn=130 GeV at RHIC. The spectra are exponential in transverse mass, with an inverse slope of about 280 MeV in central collisions. The multiplicity densities for these particles scale with the negative hadron pseudo-rapidity density. The charged kaon to pion ratios are K+/π=0.161±0.002(stat)±0.024(syst)K^+/\pi^- = 0.161 \pm 0.002 {\rm (stat)} \pm 0.024 {\rm (syst)} and K/π=0.146±0.002(stat)±0.022(syst)K^-/\pi^- = 0.146 \pm 0.002 {\rm (stat)} \pm 0.022 {\rm (syst)} for the most central collisions. The K+/πK^+/\pi^- ratio is lower than the same ratio observed at the SPS while the K/πK^-/\pi^- is higher than the SPS result. Both ratios are enhanced by about 50% relative to p+p and pˉ\bar{\rm p}+p collision data at similar energies.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl

    Azimuthal anisotropy and correlations in p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions at 200 GeV

    Full text link
    We present the first measurement of directed flow (v1v_1) at RHIC. v1v_1 is found to be consistent with zero at pseudorapidities η\eta from -1.2 to 1.2, then rises to the level of a couple of percent over the range 2.4<η<42.4 < |\eta| < 4. The latter observation is similar to data from NA49 if the SPS rapidities are shifted by the difference in beam rapidity between RHIC and SPS. Back-to-back jets emitted out-of-plane are found to be suppressed more if compared to those emitted in-plane, which is consistent with {\it jet quenching}. Using the scalar product method, we systematically compared azimuthal correlations from p+p, d+Au and Au+Au collisions. Flow and non-flow from these three different collision systems are discussed.Comment: Quark Matter 2004 proceeding, 4 pages, 3 figure
    corecore