bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Antarctic ice shrinkage
Authors: Greathouse Lee
Published: October 2011

Is the West Antarctic ice sheet disintegrating, threatening to raise the worldwide level of the ocean with disastrous effect? Charles R. Bentley, chairman of the Glaciology Committee of the Polar Research Board, National Research Council, posed the question and gave a personal answer, at a recent meeting of the Antarctican Society, in Washington, D.C. Bentley has long researched the Antarctic, beginning with a 2‐year tour during the International Geophysical Year (1957–1958).

West Antarctica is the subject of interest because the ice cover there rests on bedrock as much as 2000 m below sea level, and this ‘marine’ glacier, unlike the ice over of East Antarctica, may be affected by changes in sea level. West and East Antarctica (divided along the Transantarctic Mountains) are as different as New Guinea and Australia, according to Bentley. East Antarctica exhibits continental characteristics, including a thick crust and mountain ranges; much of West Antarctica is underwater and dotted with active volcanic features.
Seismic data available
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Multichannel seismic reflection data are available on the Northern Mississippi Embayment (containing the New Madrid Fault Zone) and the Appalachian Overthrust. In the New Madrid region, about 280 km of common depth point profiles were produced over an area that takes in southeastern Missouri, northeastern Arkansas, and northwestern Tennessee. About 130 km of profiles of the Appalachian region in Tennessee and North Carolina were produced.

Inquiries for or about the New Madrid data should be made to National Geophysical and Solar‐Terrestrial Data Center, Code D62, NOAA/EDIS, Boulder, Colorado 80303; for the Appalachian data: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, EDIS/NGSDC, 325 Broadway, Boulder Colorado 80303.
Lightning maps reveal makeup of storm
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

The clearest picture yet of the electrical activity that evolved from a tornado‐producing thunderstorm shows that cloud‐to‐ground lightning hugged the leading edge of the storm center and became active only after the tornado died off.

This data has been gained from a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study of last spring's major tornado in Lawton, Oklahoma. The storm was one of 11 produced when an intense squall line formed in northern Texas and central Oklahoma. The severe storm activity on April 10, 1979, killed 54 persons in Lawton, and in Wichita Falls and Vernon, Texas.
NOAA's undersea research program
Authors: Greathouse Lee
Published: October 2011

Regional underwater laboratories that are operated in conjunction with academic institutions will better meet the needs of future underwater research than one large mobile laboratory that i s equipped with the most sophisticated equipment, a newly released National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report concludes.

The report, ‘The Undersea Research Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,’ outlines the development of the agency's plans for marine scientific studies in the 1980's. NOAA defines ‘undersea research’ as marine research that requires ‘observational and manipulative tasks using man directly in the sea and extensions of his capabilities through use of submersibles, undersea facilities, and remotely controlled vehicles.’ In 1975, NOAA came to the conclusion that more sophisticated equipment and facilities would be needed to cover rapidly expanding fields of research, especially studies on the protection and use of ocean resources.
Statistical proof vs. statistical motivation
Authors: Schatten Kenneth H.
Published: October 2011

Ralph Shapiro (EOS, 61, January 1, 1980) reviews the book, Sun, Weather and Climate by J. R. Herman and R. A. Goldberg. In part he does this well, providing positive as well as negative comments about the book. For example, he states ‘the book is useful in supplying some of the background physics for the interacting disciplines…’ He also says it suffers from a ‘lack of critical assessment.’ Nevertheless, much of his review is influenced by his own judgment of the field and may have been written as a platform to criticize this field of research. Scattered throughout the review are bold statements, such as ‘This notion [improved weather and climate prediction via the use of solar variability] is simplistic and indefensible.’ Shapiro, as an expert meteorologist and statistician, certainly has a right to critique the field, but his statements often go beyond those desired in a book review.
NASA radar experiment discovers Mayan canals
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

Extensive Mayan‐built irrigation canals, hidden for more than 1,000 years beneath dense rain forest in Guatemala, have been revealed by a new radar system developed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The radar's unveiling of the ancient canal systems, dug by the Maya between 250 B.C. and 900 A.D. in Guatemala and the neighboring country of Belize, may answer a question that has long puzzled archeologists: How did the Maya, whose population numbered between 2 to 3 million citizens, feed their people?

The canals were recently found in images taken during an early test (1977–1978) of the new radar from an aircraft over the cloud‐covered jungles of Guatemala and Belize—once the center of the Mayan empire. The new radar (called SAR for synthetic aperture radar) can penetrate clouds and provides higher resolution for comparable antenna than other radars. It has been developed by NASA and the military. JPL's version was originally designed to penetrate the dense cloud cover of Venus and provide maplike images of the planet's hidden surface.
Names proposed for newly identified features on venus
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

Based on data returned by Pioneer Venus, scientists are beginning to identify major features on the cloud‐shrouded planet and are working with an international nomenclature group to name them after mythical goddesses.

The orbiting spacecraft now has mapped a belt of terrain that extends completely around the planet, except for a narrow strip of 38° which is currently being filled. The spacecraft radar mapper instrument measures terrain from 75° north latitude to 63° south latitude. Pioneer is mapping 83% of Venus' total surface.
Voyagers move toward Saturn
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

The launching of the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecrafts in the summer of 1977, followed by their encounters with Jupiter and its satellites last March and July, are now major episodes in the history of planetary exploration. For Voyager though, the trip into space is not over—the encounters with Saturn are next in line for exploration.
Earth's Saturnlike ring
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

A ring similar to those surrounding Saturn today may have existed around Earth 34 million years ago, according to John A. O'Keefe of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. He calculates that the ring, composed of tektites (glass meteorites), lasted one to several million years. The shadow of the rings on Earth's surface caused dramatic climatic changes in the temperate zones.

The sudden climatic change 34 million years ago has been known to geologists for many years as the terminal Eocene event. This change is considered to be the most profound climatic event to have occurred during the entire Tertiary period, between 65 million and 2 million years ago.
NASA's solar flare “hotline” service
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

A ‘hotline,’ designed to inform the public of solar flares erupting on the sun during this year's peak cycle of activity, has been inaugurated at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The ‘Solar Max’ hotline service is being provided jointly by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through the latter's Space Environment Services Center in Boulder, Colorado.
Ocean crustal dynamics program
Authors: Hussong Donald
Published: October 2011

The Joint Oceanographic Institutions, Inc. (JOI), commissioned a panel of active researchers in marine geology and geophysics to consider the goals of their field in the 1980's. In 1979 the panel, called the Ocean Crustal Dynamics Planning Committee (OCDPC), convened a series of eight workshops in which experts from academia, industry, and government research units met and debated portions of the research effort in detail. Their reports have been distilled into an Ocean Crustal Dynamics (OCD) program.

The committee was concerned with several specific questions: (1) What is the composition and mineralogical make‐up of the ocean crust? How does this composition vary in space and time? (2) What processes are involved in the formation and evolution of oceanic crust? (3) What is the nature and origin of the boundary between the lithosphere and asthenosphere? (4) What is the driving mechanism of plate tectonics? (5) What type of plate interactions occur at active boundaries? (6) What are the nature and evolutionary development of rifted (passive) ocean‐continent boundaries? (7) What is the relationship between plate tectonics and the geochemical and thermal balance of the lithosphere?
New co‐editor of GRL
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Douglas G. Torr, 40, of Logan, Utah, became editor of Geophysical Research Letters for the disciplines of atmospheric and space science as of January 1, 1980. He is currently professor of physics at Utah State University, where he is involved primarily in NASA‐and NSF‐funded programs to study the upper atmosphere. His interests range from magnetosphere‐ionosphere coupling to the chemistry and dynamics of the stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere.

Torr is principal investigator on two NASA experiments designed to study the effects of trace constituents on the atmosphere by satellite remote sensing techniques. He is also principal investigator on an NSF‐funded experiment to conduct similar measurements from the ground. He is co‐investigator on several Spacelab experiments, including the Imaging Spectrometric Observatory for Spacelab 1 and the High‐Resolution Doppler Imager, which will measure atmospheric winds.
Proposed change in the AGU bylaws
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

On May 22, 1980, the AGU Council approved for the first time a change in Bylaw 22. In accordance with Article 12b of the Statutes, proposed amendments to the Bylaws must be published in an AGU publication of general circulation no less than 30 days prior to the second consideration by the Council. The current Bylaw 22 is shown below in its entirety, followed by the Council's recommended change.

The General Secretary, in accordance with the instructions of the Council of the Union, shall sign checks on the accounts of the American Geophysical Union and shall provide a surety bond in a sum set by the Council of the Union and at the expense of the Union, for funds of the Union under his control. If the General Secretary is absent or incapacitated, the President or, if he is absent or incapacitated, the President‐elect, shall sign checks against the Union accounts. The General Secretary may delegate the authority to sign checks against the accounts of the Union. The President, the President‐elect, and others with the authority to sign checks shall furnish surety bonds in the same manner and amount as the General Secretary.
24‐channel seismograph introduced
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

A 24‐channel signal‐enhancement seismograph that incorporates a cathode ray tube (CRT) display, stacking memory, and an electrosensitive plotter has been introduced by EG&G GeoMetrics in Sunnyvale, California, a subsidiary of EG&G in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
Voyager 1 encounter with Saturn
Authors: Briggs Geoffrey
Published: October 2011

Since August 22, the Voyager 1 spacecraft has been making regular observations of Saturn as part of its encounter activities, which climax on Wednesday, November 12, when the spacecraft makes a close encounter with Titan and subsequently with Saturn. During the several days around‘closest approach,’ all of the 10 instruments onboard Voyager will be making intensive observations. The imaging investigation is the principal data gatherer until the close approach. Pictures of Saturn were taken at approximately 2‐hour intervals at five different longitudes and using five different colored filters. On October 24 the range to Saturn diminished, so that four‐frame mosaics were required to cover the planet and its rings. From these, time‐lapse movies similar to those made of Jupiter in 1979 will be assembled. Saturn does not, however, present the same colorful complex subject as Jupiter. Although some atmospheric features have been identified, and a general banded structure is evident, the planet seems to have a uniform upper cloud deck. It remains to be seen how much structure can ultimately be discovered.
And that's the way it was...
Authors: Shore Barbara T.
Published: October 2011

Vigorous geophysical exploration programs to locate petroleum, natural gas, and coal will be high priority for the next 30 years if the recommendations of a National Academy of Science committee are followed. NAS's Committee on Nuclear and Alternative Energy Systems (Conaes) published its 4‐year, $4.1‐million report, ‘Energy in Transition: 1985–2010,’ in March 1980 (EOS, 2/19/80).…The American Geological Institute, the Bureau de Rechérches Geologiques et Minteres, and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique agreed to pool their resources to compile a common geological bibliographic data base (8/5/80) In 1979, the Journal of Geophysical Research and Water Resources Research together contained over 10,000 pages, more than 30% above the previous high for a single year…. The last total solar eclipse visible in North America this century occurred February 26, 1979 (2/13/79)…. The oldest organisms yet discovered were probably advanced enough on the evolutionary scale to have manufactured their own food. The microorganisms were discovered in the Warrawoona group of western Australia (8/12/80) AGU celebrated its 60th anniversary at the 1979 Spring Meeting in Washington, D.C., May 28–June 1. …The Zurich Relative Sunspot Numbers, one of the oldest continuous series of astronomical data, will cease to be collected at the end of 1980 (4/15/80).
SPR survey results
Authors: Ness Norman F.
Published: October 2011

In reviewing our responsibilities as newly elected officers of the SPR section, we decided to survey the membership on a number of issues connected primarily with the annual meetings. This seemed to be a good approach to obtain a consensus of the SPR section regarding this aspect of its activities. This idea was strongly supported by the executive director of the AGU, Fred Spilhaus, and his staff, who placed our SPR questionnaire in the August 26 issue of Eos with a due date for return by September 22. An early survey of the membership revealed that many members had not noticed the initial appearance of the questionnaire in Eos, and so a repeat appearance was arranged for September 9.
NOAA awards for recent postdoctorals
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Six grants were awarded to recent postdoctoral scientists by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to support on‐campus research in atmospheric and ocean sciences and fisheries. Two of the six projects relate directly to geophysical research.

The recipients will establish a visiting relationship with a NOAA laboratory or facility, according to the Office of University Affairs. The six research projects were chosen from 36 proposals. Announcements for the next round of awards are expected to appear in the Federal Register in January.
Galileo's trial to reopen
Authors: Shore Barbara T.
Published: October 2011

he Roman Catholic Church appears ready to admit officially that the earth is not the center of the universe. After a 347‐year ‘hiatus,’ the church will reopen the heresy trial of the astronomer Galileo, who was persecuted for mathematically proving that the earth moves around the sun. The decision to reopen the trial was made by Pope John Paul II.

Although Copernicus first postulated that the earth was not the center of the universe, it was Galileo who provided the mathematical proof. Galileo avoided the Inquisition's death sentence by renouncing his conclusions.
Voyager experiments outlined
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

Although the data from the Voyager 1 Saturn encounter has been relayed back to Earth, and Voyager is on its way toward Uranus, planetologists, meteorologists, tectonophysicists, and other geophysicists will be sifting through the information for months.

Here's a summary of the primary experiments and their objectives.
Remote sensing and hydrology
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

Recommendations made in 1974 to the National Academy of Sciences on applications of remote sensing to hydrology research ‘remain valid but mostly unmet,’ concludes a panel of the National Research Council's Space Applications Board. Included with the findings of the Panel on Water Resources are recommendations for research priorities for the 1980's.

Some progress has been made in remote‐sensing applications to hydrology, the panel notes. It cites as examples Landsat, Seasat, the Heat Capacity Mapper, and the Landsat‐D. However, the application has been too slow, according to the panel.
Weather predictions on target
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The western third of the United States will be warmer and dryer than normal this winter, according to Jerome Namias, a meteorologist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography's Climate Research Group. However, the East coast will be colder and wetter than normal, he predicted. These predictions, made early in December, have proven correct through the beginning of January.

‘Indications point to colder than normal temperatures over the eastern half of the nation and also over the Southwest from New Mexico through Oklahoma and Texas, and warmer than normal temperatures over the western third of the nation,’ said Namias, a principal investigator for Scripps' North Pacific Experiment (Norpax). Florida will probably experience near‐normal temperatures.
Geophysicists
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Philip S. Justus has joined the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as a staff geologist in the Geosciences Branch, Division of Engineering, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, which is based in Bethesda, Maryland.

Delia Laura has been appointed chief of the U.S. Geological Survey's Office of International Hydrology. She had been the assistant chief of that office since July 1979.
Pacific Northwest regional AGU meeting
Authors: Hyndman Roy
Published: October 2011

The 27th Annual Pacific Northwest Regional American Geophysical Union Meeting, held September 25 and 26, 1980, was hosted by the Pacific Geoscience Centre at the Institute of Ocean Sciences, near Victoria, British Columbia. A total of 79 papers was presented to the 150 registrants in six general sessions: seismology; electromagnetic induction; general geophysics; volcanology; hydrology; and oceanography, and in three special symposia: ‘The Queen Charlotte‐Fairweather fault system and other active faults of the Pacific Northwest’; ‘Coastal circulation in the northeast Pacific’; and ‘Studies of the eruption of Mount St. Helens.’
NACOA vacancies filled
Authors: Richman Barbara T.
Published: October 2011

Six scientists were recently appointed to the President's National Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmospheres (NACOA) as part of the committee's normal rotation, according to Steven Anastasion, executive director. Two of the six positions were reappointments.

The committee, consisting of 18 scientists not working in the government, advises the executive and legislative branches on federal programs dealing with the oceans and atmosphere. Each member serves for 3 years; six positions become vacant each year as part of the rotation system.
1980 Fall Meeting Report
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

About 2430 participants registered for the 1980 Fall Meeting, the largest attendance yet at a Fall Meeting; 1659 papers were presented.

The special session on the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, presented by Robert L. Christiansen, and the one on the Voyager I encounter with Saturn both drew close to 1500 attendees.
Water quality tested in Kentucky coalfields
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The Kentucky Geological Survey received a $1.1 million grant to collect information on groundwater quality and quantity in the eastern Kentucky coalfields. The funding extends a 1‐year, $211,000 grant from the U.S. Geological Survey.

Water will be sampled continuously from between 40 and 50 core holes or wells, each drilled to an average depth of 120 meters. Quality and levels of the water are the main concern of the monitoring. By using standard submersible pumps, researchers will also be able to test each well's potential to supply water to industry and municipalities, according to Jon Kiefer, project coordinator.
Antarctic Meteorite Symposium
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

The Sixth Antarctic Meteorite Symposium was held in Tokyo, Japan, February 19 and 20. Sponsored by the National Institute of Polar Research, the symposium brought Japanese scientists together with several Americans and two Chinese to discuss current research on meteorites, emphasizing research on meteorites collected in Antarctica. The symposium, now an annual event, owes its origin to the recent success of Japanese polar scientists in collecting large numbers of meteorite specimens in the Yamato Mountains, a program now successfully emulated by U.S. parties to the Allan Hills and adjacent regions.

Forty‐seven papers were delivered orally, primarily in Japanese (the abstract volume was printed in English), on subjects that included location, field collection, and curation of specimens (6); classification and description of meteorites from Yamato Mountains and Allan Hills (14); mineralogical and petrological studies (8); chemical and isotopic studies (8); exposure ages and terrestrial ages of Antarctic meteorites (3); magnetic and other physical properties (5); and Chinese meteorites (3).
Geophysical events
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Mount St. Helens Volcano, Cascade Range, southern Washington, USA (46.20°N, 122.18° W). All times are local (GMT‐8 h). March eruptive activity from Mt. St. Helens was limited to occasional emission of small steam clouds, at least one of which contained ash. However, significant deformation was measured within the crater, and there was a slight increase in volcanic seismicity during the second half of March. Geologists announced that another eruptive episode was likely if the deformation and seismic trends continued, but none had occurred by SEAN's April 8 press time.

The U.S. Geological Survey‐University of Washington seismic net recorded 15 bursts of seismicity in March and five more bursts during the first 6 days of April. In the past, similar signals have often been correlated with episodes of steam emission, but because of poor weather, correlations with only two such episodes could be confirmed in March: a minor puff on March 9 at 1549, and a steam cloud containing some ash on March 27 at 1441. Newly fallen ash (made up of reworked dome material) observed NE of the volcano March 25 may have been ejected during a burst of seismicity the previous day.
Pluto revisited
Authors: Chapman C. R. , Mozer Forrest , Ichiye Takachi , Nelson James Hugh
Published: October 2011

A. J. Dessler and C. T. Russell (Eos, Forum, October 28, 1980) are behind the times. Pluto already disappeared into Never‐Neverland and has returned again! Dessler and Russell committed several blunders in their analysis that were further obfuscated by their failure to adhere to such fundamental AGU standards as showing error bars and publishing references.

Nevertheless, I have unearthed an old, dusty issue of Science, wherein one finds that Ash et al. [1971] report a value for Pluto's mass that probably accounts for the third last data point in Dessler and Russell's graph. But Ash et al.'s value reflects their assumption that the density is 3 gm/cm3. They actually measured a negative mass.
Report to council—May 24, 1981
Authors: Droessler Earl G. , Whitten Charles A.
Published: October 2011

President J. Tuzo Wilson launched the 5‐year financial appeal, known as AGU‐GIFT, at the Council meeting in San Francisco last December. Wilson appointed Earl Droessler and Charles Whitten to serve as cochairmen of a steering committee under the general guidance of the AGU At that Council meeting, Wilson asked Whitten to present the general strategy for the campaign.
Equal opportunities committee
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

To encourage women, minorities, and other groups currently underrepresented in science and engineering, the National Science Foundation created, at the request of Congress, the Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Technology. Appointments to that committee were recently announced.
Dallas Peck selected for USGS
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

Volcanologist Dallas Peck has been chosen by the Reagan administration to be the next director of the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Peck, chief geologist of the USGS since 1977, is a past president of AGU's section on Volcanology, Geochemistry and Petrology. If the Senate approves Reagan's choice, Peck will become the 11th director of the USGS, succeeding H. William Menard, who resigned in January. Doyle G. Frederick, associate director, has been serving as acting director.

Dallas Peck is highly regarded throughout the Survey. His field studies include notable work in the Cascades of western Oregon, in the Sierra Nevada batholith, and at the Lava Lakes in Hawaii. He has been involved with geological projects in Alaska as well as with numerous studies in the U.S. related to geothermal and volcanic energy sources.
More Fulbright opportunities
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Six Fulbright awards are available for research, in any field, to be performed in Africa for 3 to 9 months between September 1982 and September 1983. Also available are 21 awards for research in India, in any field, for which the grant duration is 2 to 10 months during the 1982–83 academic year. Application deadline for all awards is August 1, 1981.

An announcement booklet, ‘Fulbright Lecturing and Research Abroad, 1982‐83,’ includes terms of award, requirements, and selection criteria.
AGU Awards
Authors: Drake Charles L. , Oliver Jack
Published: October 2011

Walter Bucher was a true student of the earth. He began as a zoologist, turned to paleontology in graduate school, and became interested in structural geology through studies of deformed fossils in the Alps. His book, Deformation of the Earth's Crust, first published in the 1930s, was a heroic attempt to find order in the structure of the globe. He has a long association with the American Geophysical Union and was its president from 1950–1953.

Jack Oliver was a student of Walter Bucher at Columbia, and perhaps some of Walter's versatility rubbed off on him. Jack began his geophysical career in the atmosphere, tried the oceans but found them too unstable, and tested the Arctic ice before settling on the solid earth. Although he is claimed by the seismologists as one of their own, he has always maintained a strong interest in the crustal rocks and their structure in addition to his interest in their elastic properties.
Low‐gravity materials processing
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

The concept of growing crystals and of doing biological studies in the low‐gravity space environment assumes that the absence of most, or all, of the influences of the earth's gravitational field on chemical and biological reactions is an important factor—at least important enough to justify costly testing.

One normally thinks of the effects of the gravitational field as being like the effects of any othef field, electric or magnetic, on a thermodynamic process. In the simplest terms, there is work done as parts of a system travel through a gravitational field; a more exact statement would be that the free energy of a system, and hence the state of equilibrium, depends on the position within a gravitational field. The thermodynamic effects of the earth's gravitational field (the equation for the changes in free energy caused by differences in position within the field) are subtle but could be important in chemical and biological processes.
Symposium on Qinghai‐Xizang (Tibet) Plateau—Beijing (Peking), China
Authors: Celâl Şengör A. M.
Published: October 2011

Academia Sinica arranged an historic conference, including a field excursion, on the Qinghai‐Xizang (Tibet) plateau. It took place May 25th through June 14, 1980. Some 80 scientists from 18 foreign countries, representing such diverse fields as anthropology, biology, geography, geology, geophysics, high‐altitude physiology, and meteorology, were invited to participate in this multidisciplinary international meeting—the first of its kind in the People's Republic of China. They exchanged information and opinions with some 240 Chinese scientists. Although the conference covered a wide range of topics, there was a strong predominance of solid earth sciences (nearly 70% of the papers presented), which is the emphasis of this report.
Geophysicists
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Elected as members of the National Academy of Sciences at the 118th annual meeting are John C. Crowell, professor of geology at the University of California at Santa Barbara; Donald M. Hunten, professor of planetary sciences, University of Arizona; Champ B. Tanner, professor in the soil science department at the University of Wisconsin at Madison; and Hugh P. Taylor, Jr., professor in the department of physics and astronomy at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Marine science and the Law of the Sea
Authors: Ross David A.
Published: October 2011

Articles about the Law of the Sea Conference and its implications are certainly not among the most popular literature for marine scientists. Unfortunately, however, this conference and the Draft Convention it is now considering may have more impact on marine science than any of our recent discoveries and hypotheses.

The present law of the sea negotiations (more correctly called the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS III) officially started in 1973. Over 150 countries are involved in what is easily the most complex series of negotiations ever conducted. Among the important issues are freedom of navigation for military and commercial vessels, environmental protection, resource access and control, and many legal aspects as well as procedures governing marine science in about 40 percent of the ocean. How these meetings evolved, pros and cons of the major issues, and negotiating techniques are discussed elsewhere [see, for example, Darman, 1979; Kronmiller, 1979; Breaux, 1979; Aldrich, 1980; Richardson, 1980].
56th Coloquium of the International Astronomical Union
Authors: Gaposchkin E. M.
Published: October 2011

Geodesy, geophysics, astronomy, and astrophysics are all exploiting the unprecedented progress in the accuracy of metric measurements made from space and the earth's surface. Measurements of polar motion and earth rotation, crustal deformation and displacement, satellite and planetarymotion, and the positions of stars and quasars are all being refined. These new measurements are providing information on plate tectonics and earth dynamics, the earth's variable rotation, the evolution of the moon and planets, the scale of the solar system and the universe, and the local space‐time metric. A common requirement of all these investigations is the necessity of a well‐defined coordinate system (or systems) to which all relevant observations, theories, and models can be referred and which can be used as a basis for discussion. In view of the widespreaduse and interdisciplinary implications of these observations, there is a need for the definition, practical realization, and international acceptance of a suitable coordinatesystem (or systems) to facilitate such work. The need, the scope of the issues, and the nontriviality of the problem is evidenced by the numerous specialized symposia organizedduring the past dozen years: Stressa [Markowitz and Guinot, 1968], Morioka [Melchior and Yumi, 1972; Yumi, 1971], Torun [Koaczek and Weiffenbach, 1974], Columbus [Mueller, 1975, 1978], Kiev [Federov et al, 1980], San Fernando [McCarthy and Pilkington, 1979], and recently, Warsaw [Gaposchkin and Ko/aczek, 1981]. The Warsaw meeting (September 8–12, 1980) is the subject of this review.
Digitized Snow and Ice Cover Data Base now available
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The NOAA/NESS Northern Hemisphere Weekly Snow and Ice Cover Charts have now been digitized for the period 1966–1980 and put on computer‐compatible tape. The digitizing grid consists of an 89×89 element matrix covering the entire northern hemisphere. The latitude and longitude center point and the true surface area of each grid box are stored in the data archive. A grid box that is 50% or more snow and/or ice covered is considered to be completely covered. The land and water geography are also stored in the data archive.
Dynamics Explorer now operational
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

The two Dynamics Explorer satellites, launched from the Western Test Range at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California into separate polar orbits, are now fully operational (see EOS, 86, p. 633, August 25). Although the spacecraft did not achieve the planned orbit because of a short burn of the second stage in the Delta launch vehicle, the scientific instruments aboard both satellites are operating. NASA expects that all major scientific objectives of the mission will be achieved.

The lower orbiting DE‐2 obtained science data for 12 days after its instruments became operational in late August. Science operations were resumed September 4 after the spacecraft had been repositioned 180° to permit proper instrument cooling. This maneuver must be performed every 6 months, owing to the spacecraft's attitudinal relationship to the sun.
1981 Water year: Dry streams
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

More than three fourths of the nation—stretching in a broad band from California east through the Great Plains and blanketing the southeast—experienced a dry ‘water year,’ according to the U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior.

USGS hydrologists said that over the past 12 months, streamflow averaged well below normal—within the lowest 25% of record—in all or parts of 39 states. Over 60% of the key USGS index gaging stations across the country showed well below normal average streamflow for the water year.
Hydrology manpower
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The number of people qualified in groundwater studies ‘must more than double over the next 10 years’ if the United States is serious about dealing with groundwater contamination, according to David W. Miller, senior vice president at Geraghty & Miller, Inc., consulting groundwater geologists and hydrologists based in Syosset, N.Y.

Between 3500 and 5000 people are involved in developing and protecting groundwater resources, he told a groundwater‐protection seminar earlier this month. ‘That number must grow to between 10,000 and 15,000 people if federal, state and local governments, industry, and the public are serious about minimizing the types of activities that took place in the past and taking constructive steps toward protecting groundwater resources for the future,’ Miller said.
Minority participation in Earth sciences
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The U.S. Geological Survey recently appointed Ann Nefcy as coordinator of the Minority Participation in the Earth Sciences (MPES) Program for the Central Region, which encompasses Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, the Dakotas, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. In the past, the USGS has assisted in the establishment of earth science programs and the strengthening of existing programs at colleges and universities with substantial minority enrollments. In addition, MPES assists young students who aspire to careers in earth sciences.

AGU members in the Central Region who are interested in learning about MPES are urged to contact Nefcy at the USGS, Box 25046, MS 101, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225 (telephone: 303‐234‐4472).
Solar telescope at NCAR
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Is the sun's diameter shrinking? If so, by how much?

To answer these questions, Timothy Brown at the High Altitude Observatory of the National Center for Atmospheric Research began 2 years ago to build a solar telescope that would measure, with high accuracy, the diameter of the sun. Completed in August and now in operation, the telescope consists of a series of reflecting mirrors that project the sun's image on an array of light sensors which record both the horizontal and the vertical solar diameter. Individual detectors measure the edge of the sun from about 7 min before to about 7 min after solar noon.
Chapman Conference on Generation of the Oceanic Lithosphere
Authors: Presnall D. C. , Hales A. L. , Frey F. A.
Published: October 2011

On April 6–10, 1981, the Chapman conference on Generation of the Oceanic Lithosphere was held at Airlie House, Warrenton, Virginia. It was convened by D.C. Presnall, A.L. Hales (both at the University of Texas at Dallas), and F.A. Frey (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). The purpose of the conference was to bring together scientists with diverse specialties to develop a better understanding of the constraints imposed by geophysics, geochemistry, petrology, and tectonics on processes of oceanic lithosphere generation. Sessions were held on the nature of the crust and upper mantle at spreading centers; trace elements and isotopes; experimental petrology; magma chamber dynamics, melt migration, and mantle flow; slow versus fast spreading ridges; Atlantic spreading centers; Pacific spreading centers; and hydrothermal activity, metasomatism, and metamorphism. Fifty‐four oral papers and 47 poster papers were presented. One hundred twenty‐eight scientists attended from Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, France, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, United Kingdom, United States, and the USSR.
8th EGS General Assembly
Authors: Storetvedt Karsten M. , Lund Carl‐Erik
Published: October 2011

The eighth meeting of the European Geophysical Society took place at the University of Uppsala, Sweden, August 24–29, 1981. As most of the previous assemblies of the Society had been held in Central Europe, involving relatively short journeys for the great majority of participants, we were anxious to see what effect a venue on the ‘outskirts’ of Europe would have on the participation and scientific input to the 1981 meeting. Furthermore, the IAGA Assembly, which was held in Edinburgh 2 weeks before the EGS meeting, would naturally reduce the contribution from fields like ionospheric/magnetospheric physics and paleomagnetism. Under these circumstances a total of 348 registered participants must be regarded as reasonably good. The 261 papers presented were organized into 13 symposia, one workshop, and two general sessions.
Trends in snow and ice research
Authors: Barry Roger G.
Published: October 2011

Snow and ice phenomena, commonly referred to under the generic heading of the cryosphere, include snow cover and avalanches, sea and freshwater ice, glaciers, ice sheets, and ground ice. Seasonally, snow and ice are prominent features of the terrestrial environment. Together they occupy 15% of the earth's surface in January, at a time when Antarctic sea ice is near its minimum extent. In July, when northern hemisphere snow cover is largely absent, the total area is just under 9%. In contrast, permanent ice is relatively insignificant in extent. Table 1 shows that the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets plus smaller ice caps and glaciers account for just under 10% of the land surface. In volumetric terms, however, these ice masses contain the equivalent of a 77‐m rise in world sea level. During the Last Glacial Maximum, about 18,000 years ago, when ice covered nearly all of Canada and much of northwestern Europe, world sea level was lowered by at least 120 m, and perhaps as much as 180 m, because of the increased volume of water locked up in the augmented ice masses.
Earth Science Ph.D.'s increasing
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The number of doctorates awarded by United States universities in fiscal 1980 in the earth, environmental, and marine sciences (EEMS) rose slightly over 1978s figure, while the total number of doctorates awarded in all fields slipped, according to a recent report by the National Research Council's Commission on Human Resources. Solid‐earth geophysicists and oceanographers together constituted nearly 25% of the 628 EEMS doctorates conferred in 1980; 10% went to women and nearly 13% went to foreign students with temporary visas.

Doctorates awarded in the U.S. in all fields grew steadily from 1960 to 1973, then decreased during the following 5 years; 1979 saw a slight rise, but the trend toward fewer doctorates continued in 1980 when the number of doctorates slid 0.8% to 30,892, according to the ‘Summary Report: 1980 Doctorate Recipients from United States Universities.’ Meanwhile, the number of EEMS doctorates has risen steadily since 1962, with the exception of a 3% dip between 1976 and 1978.
New water year has wet start
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Streamflow during October, the first month of the 1982 water year, was in the normal range over most of the country, but well‐below normal streamflow still persists in the Southeast, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The water year used by hydrologists runs from October 1 of any calendar year to September 30 of the following calendar year, and it is designed to roughly follow the growing season and to begin and end during a period of generally low streamflow.
Magnetic monopoles redux
Authors: Garland G. D. , Schatten Kenneth H.
Published: October 2011

In connection with the most interesting note by J. C. Cain (Eos, September 22, 1981) on the possibility that g00 does not vanish, it is worth remembering that the suggestion of searching for a nonzero value goes back to Gauss, considerably before Vestine (and Dirac!). In his Allgemeine Theorie des Erdmagnetismus (1839), Gauss wrote:

The question remains whether or not a detectable surplus of one or other kind of ‘fluid’ (i.e., magnetic pole) exists in an isolated magnetic body…
Luxuriant life on the Galápagos seafloor
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

Marine life found unexpectedly in 1977 in the vicinity of hydrothermal vents along the Galápagos Rift has proven to be of considerable interest because of newly discovered growth mechanisms. Among the life forms observed were giant tube worms, clams, mussels, and plantlike animals. If the sizes alone were beyond belief, the hostility of the living environment—noxious, hydrogen sulfide‐rich warm pockets—appeared bizarre. Even though life at depths of 2.5 km on the seafloor is known normally to be sparse in comparison with shallow‐water biological systems, the heated water pockets seem to account for the localized contradictions. What was difficult to explain was the toxic environment and the apparent lack of nutrients. Furthermore, the tube worms had no mouths, not even digestive systems. Recent reports in Science (November 20, 1981), and by the Smithsonian Institution (Research Reports), describe findings on bivalves studied at the hydrothermal vents and tube worms returned to the laboratory by the U.S. Navy research submersible Alvin. The growth rates are among the highest known for deep‐sea life. The way the deep seafloor marine life are understood to ‘eat’ (absorb nutrients would be a better description) involves mechanisms never observed before that breakdown hydrogen sulfide with bacteria.
Computers more capable, less costly
Authors: Bell Peter M.
Published: October 2011

During the past four decades of computer development, diminishing size of the integrated circuit has led to exponential increases in the capability of semiconductor chips and a steady decrease in the costs of computing. The size reduction of circuit components has resulted in a series of problems of an ultimate limit decrease and in the introduction of natural smallness barriers involving quantum effects. Techniques for fabricating microminiature chips are size limited for similar reasons. There is a marked increase in research being done in submicrometer dimension circuitry. Recently, Cornell University dedicated a new multimillion dollar building to be headquarters for the National Research and Resource Facility for Submicron Structures.
Earth sciences grants
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

As part of a 4‐year, $5‐million program by the Atlantic Richfield Foundation, 14 departments at 10 universities will receive grants to support doctoral students and junior faculty in geology and geophysics. The Atlantic Richfield Foundation will provide a total of 40 grants of $125,000 each to specific departments at 30 universities (10 universities will receive two grants each).

For each grant, $25,000 will be applied annually for 4 years for fellowship support of outstanding doctoral students selected by the department receiving the grant. The fellowships are intended to encourage greater interest in teaching careers. The other $25,000 of the grant will be for the support of junior faculty. The funds are to be supplied at the discretion of the receiving department and are primarily for salary supplements and summer stipends or for new equipment and laboratory expenses.
American and Soviet expedition into the Southern Ocean sea ice in October and November 1981
Authors: Gordon A. L. , Sarukhanyan E. I.
Published: October 2011

At the end of the austral winter, the Southern Ocean sea ice covers over 20 million square kilometers of ocean, an area larger than Antarctica. In November the ice begins to melt rapidly, retreating to only 20% of winter value by February. The basis of our understanding of the complex Southern Ocean is data obtained during the ice‐free period; yet, it is in the ice‐covered state, where the data base is essentially zero, that many significant events are believed to take place. Direct observations within the ice cover are limited to ships inadvertently locked in the ice, notably the Weddell Sea experience of the Deutschland in 1912, to coastal observations at Antarctic stations, and to a few year‐long bottom‐moored current meter deployments below the winter ice: in total, a very small data set that is restricted to a few types of measurements. It is likely that the extensive winter ice cover surrounding Antarctica represents the largest segment of the world ocean without a fundamental data set.
More statements of candidates for section president‐elect
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Oceanography, as a field and as a section, has over the last decade consisted of a disparate assemblage of interests united mainly by a generally academic orientation and a reliance upon the availability of ships for research. The field seems to be in a time of substantial if not profound change. The part of the change that commands most attention and concern is the evidence of shortages that are appearing. One shortage is that of the number of well‐prepared graduate students, the root of the traditional academic system, entering the field. Another is the threat of a substantially diminished research vessel fleet.