bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Space exploration: The geophysics of new worlds
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

Spring Meeting Union session U11B, “Space Exploration: The Geophysics of New Worlds,” will give a comprehensive overview of recent planetary research and put into perspective its implications for the solar system. Because the session involves topics ranging from planetary sciences to chemistry to volcanology, it should interest scientists from various disciplines.

In “Mercury 20 Years After Mariner 10,” Bruce Hapke will discuss what is and is not known about Mercury, a planet that is difficult to observe because of its proximity to the Sun. Hapke says that ironically, we know less about Mercury than about Triton, a similarly sized body orbiting distant Neptune. He will also raise questions about the planet's core, whether it is solid or molten, and he will discuss several hypotheses about the composition of its crust.
Undersea research proposals solicited
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

The University of Hawaii's Undersea Research Laboratory, funded by NOAA, is soliciting preproposals for research to be conducted in the Pacific in 1995 using its submersible and/or remotely operated vehicle.

Expected areas of operations are the southern Hawaiian islands; Johnston Island; and the Western Pacific, including Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, and Papua New Guinea. Scientists and engineers at any university or research institution may apply.
Assessing the magnetic reconnection paradigm
Authors: Akasofu S.‐I.
Published: October 2006

The hypothesis of magnetic reconnection was originally proposed as an attempt to explain solar flares. Solar flares dissipate as much as 1029 erg/s in about 30 min, the total consumed energy being ∼1032 erg. Since there was no obvious phenomenon that could be identified as the power supply process, it was assumed that the necessary energy was stored prior to flare onset and was then released and dissipated very rapidly.

Since solar flares tend to occur near complex sunspot groups, it was hypothesized that the necessary energy was stored as magnetic energy. The hypothesis of magnetic reconnection was introduced as the process that spontaneously converts the stored magnetic energy for flare processes. Thus it was hypothesized that to provide as much as 1029 erg/s, the process must also be explosive.
SAR interferometry and surface change detection: Workshop held
Authors: Dixon T.
Published: October 2006

Recent events have brought synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry into vogue—at least in some sectors of the geophysical science community. For one thing, the image of coseismic displacement associated with the Landers earthquake, recently published in Nature [Massonnet et al., 1993], coupled with the recent disastrous Northridge earthquake of January 17,1994, has created interest in the Earth science community about SAR interferometry. In particular, there is widespread appreciation that this technique can make a significant contribution to earthquake studies in California and other technically active regions. Similarly, a recent demonstration that ice stream velocity could be measured directly from space without ground control points using SAR interferometry [Goldstein et al., 1993] has caught the attention of the polar science community. However, many scientists are not familiar with SAR interferometry, and the strengths and limitations of the technique need to be explored.
Turning attention to reservoir surfaces, a neglected area in greenhouse studies
Authors: Kelly Carol A. , Rudd John W. M. , St. Louis Vincent L. , Moore Tim
Published: October 2006

Carol A. Kelly, Department of Microbiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2; John W. M. Rudd, Freshwater Institute, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N6; Vincent L. St. Louis, Department of Microbiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2; Tim Moore, Department of Geography, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2K6

With reservoir construction increasing worldwide since the 1950s, the volume of water retained in these structures today is so great that if they didn't exist, sea level would be 3 cm higher. Despite the 500,000 km2 global area reservoirs comprise—about twice the area of the Laurentian Great Lakes—almost nothing is known about reservoir surfaces as sources or sinks of the “greenhouse” gases carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4).
Experiment evaluates ocean models and data assimiliation in the Gulf Stream
Authors: Willems Robert C. , Glenn S. M. , Crowley M. F. , Malanotte‐Rizzoli P. , Young R. E. , Ezer T. , Mellor G. L. , Arango H. G. , Robinson A. R. , Lai C.‐C. A.
Published: October 2006

Using data sets of known quality as the basis for comparison, a recent experiment explored the Gulf Stream Region at 27°–47°N and 80°–50°W to assess the nowcast/forecast capability of specific ocean models and the impact of data assimilation. Scientists from five universities and the Naval Research Laboratory/Stennis Space Center participated in the Data Assimilation and Model Evaluation Experiment (DAMEÉ‐GSR).

DAMEÉ‐GSR was based on case studies, each successively more complex, and was divided into three phases using case studies (data) from 1987 and 1988. Phase I evaluated models' forecast capability using common initial conditions and comparing model forecast fields with observational data at forecast time over a 2‐week period. Phase II added data assimilation and assessed its impact on forecast capability, using the same case studies as in phase I, and phase III added a 2‐month case study overlapping some periods in Phases I and II.
Ozone recovery?
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

Ozone levels over North America have bounced back to normal levels, according to a study published last month in Geophysical Research Letters. In 1992–1993, ozone levels reportedly dropped to levels up to 15% below what was considered normal—an occurrence that was largely attributed to the eruption of Mount Pinatubo. However, the journal also reports in another study that the overall ozone level continues to decline over populated areas at a rate of 7% in winter and 2.5% in summer on a timescale of decades.
Storms in space: A fictionalized account of “The Big One”
Authors: Freeman John W.
Published: October 2006

This article is intended to illustrate, for a general audience, how solar, interplanetary, and magnetospheric physics are giving birth to the concept of “space weather,” and to remind those of us who do space physics that the fruits of our labors may soon have practical applications that will touch many lives.

The scene is a darkened spacecraft operations control room. Across one wall are TV monitors displaying live pictures. The first monitor carries the Super Bowl. The others display a soap opera, a weather channel, and a Spanish language commentator. Only the sound from the Super Bowl monitor can be heard. The panel behind a long console desk has more monitors; this time containing tables and graphs with data on the status of seven satellites. The night shift operations crew is gathered around the Super Bowl monitor.
Recent directions taken in water, energy, and biogeochemical budgets research
Authors: Lins Harry F.
Published: October 2006

Understanding and predicting global change is a major scientific focus of the late 20th century. Although atmospheric scientists have made substantial progress in developing models that account for many components of the climate system, significant progress is needed in understanding processes associated with the exchange of water, energy, and carbon between terrestrial systems and the atmosphere.

To strengthen terrestrial process research, especially research associated with the interactions of water, energy, gases, nutrients, and vegetation, the U.S. Geological Survey initiated an intensive study of Water, Energy, and Biogeochemical Budgets (WEBB). WEBB is aimed at improving understanding of processes controlling terrestrial water, energy, and biogeochemical fluxes, their interactions, and their relations to climatic variables; and the ability to predict continental water, energy, and biogeochemical budgets over a range of spatial and temporal scales.
Toward establishing an international continental scientific drilling program
Authors: Zoback Mark D. , Emmermann Rolf
Published: October 2006

Geologists, geophysicists, and science administrators from over 25 countries gathered in Potsdam, Germany, from August 30 to Septmeber 1, 1993, to review the scientific rationale for establishing an International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP). Such a program is intended to complement the highly successful Ocean Drilling Program and would operate on a similar scale.

The meeting was convened under the auspices of the Coordinating Committee for Continental Drilling (CC‐4) of the International Lithosphere Program, a joint program of the International Union of Geological Sciences and the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics. The conference was hosted by the recently established GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam (GFZ), a major new Earth science research institution in Potsdam, founded by the German Ministry for Research and Technology.
A letter to the international geophysics community
Authors: Moritz Helmut , Chapman David , Harrison Christopher
Published: October 2006

There will be an oceanography program at the XXI General Assembly of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) next year in Boulder—July 2–14,1995. Recent announcements that the International Association for the Physical Sciences of the Ocean QAPSO) will not meet in Boulder are misleading. The statutes of IUGG, and those of IAPSO, require IAPSO to meet with the six other associations at the time of a Union General Assembly. The IAPSO statutes read in article 5, paragraph 3: “With the concurrence of the Executive Committee of the Union, the Association may arrange General Assemblies and other meetings of its own in the intervals between the General Assemblies of the Union.…” No such request has been made to the IUGG Executive Committee for an IAPSO meeting.
William B. Hanson (1923–1994)
Authors: Heelis Rod
Published: October 2006

On September 11,1994, William B. Hanson died as a result of severe injuries received in a bicycle accident. He is survived by his wife Annelies, three sons, a daughter, two stepdaughters, and six grandchildren. In addition to his excellent research in the field of aeronomy and ionospheric physics, Hanson possessed a love of the outdoors and enjoyed the challenge of athletic competition. He will be remembered fondly by a host of friends and colleagues.
Contributions solicited for Atlas of Marine Glacigenic Features
Authors: Davies Thomas A.
Published: October 2006

A new atlas of seismic images of marine glacigenic features, planned for publication in late 1995, is now being developed by COLDSEIS, an international working group devoted to seismic facies analysis of marine glacigenic sequences. The atlas will show typical examples of seafloor and subseafloor features seen in glacio‐marine environments and serve as a reference for Quaternary scientists, marine geologists, geophysicists, geotechnical engineers, offshore industry professionals, and students. Features of Arctic, Antarctic, and fjord environments for both regions that are now glaciated and those that underwent Pleistocene glaciation will be included.

The atlas will consist of a series of individually authored contributions of brief explanatory text followed by illustrations of both uninterpreted and interpreted data, including seismic sections, side‐scan maps and images, and three‐dimensional data, possibly supplemented by bottom photographs and core data. Multiple views of features as observed by different instruments are of particular interest.
Workshop examines New Zealand volcanic zone
Authors: Simmons S. F. , Bibby H. M. , Houghton B. F. , Cole J. W. , Weaver S. D.
Published: October 2006

Examination of the deeper structure of the central Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ) and the processes of heat and mass transfer associated with this large active silicic volcanic system were the focus of TVZ Workshop '94, held in February 1994 at the Wairakei Research Centre, Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, New Zealand. This multidisciplinary workshop attracted 35 geoscientists, who reviewed current knowledge through oral presentations, field excursions, and small group discussions on controversial issues and new research directions.

Central TVZ is a region of intense Quaternary silicic volcanism created during the rapid extension and thinning of young continental crust. It is part of the 250‐km long TVZ continental arc segment, which marks the southernmost part of the Tonga‐Kermadec‐Hikurangi subduction zone.
Brazil's carbon checkbook
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

The carbon budget in Brazil may well be balanced. Regrowth of secondary forests in Brazil may sequester as much atmospheric carbon as is released from deforestation each year, according to a new study by scientists with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Corvallis, Ore. Recent studies have shown that the deforestation rates overall have been slowing down in Brazil. But the earlier studies mainly focused on gross releases of carbon caused by deforestation in the Amazon basin and generally concluded that there was a net annual loss of carbon. The new study estimates both the CO2‐C emissions from changes in land use and uptake by regrowing forests across Brazil, which are key components of the global carbon cycle. The EPA scientists found that net carbon accumulation was greater than measurements taken in previous years, on the basis of an ERL‐C model of ecosystem carbon storage and flux, a remote sensing vegetation map, and published data on various carbon parameters.
Chapman Conference delves into double‐diffusive convection
Authors: Fernando H. J. S. , Brandt Alan
Published: October 2006

A recent AGU Chapman Conference brought together a variety of research groups to review significant advances made in double‐diffusive convection (DDC) over the past decade. This phenomenon occurs when two or more species of different molecular diffusivities make opposing contributions to a stable density gradient, causing fluid motions to develop even in the absence of external driving forces. If more than two components are involved, it is called multicomponent convection.

In a double‐diffusive (DD) system, if the fluid is unstably stratified with respect to the slowly diffusive solute and vice versa, narrow fingerlike cells may appear, within which fluid particles may rise and sink. This is known as finger convection. When the fluid system is unstable with respect to the faster diffusing species, a series of convecting layers separated by stable interfaces is formed; such interfaces are known as diffusive interfaces. In the decade following the discovery of DDC, linear stability theories for the finger and diffusive cases were developed and laboratory experiments and oceanic observations on DDC phenomenon were reported. Applications in areas such as fluid dynamics, astrophysics, geology, oceanography, limnology, and energy technology were soon realized.
Space tracking system improves accuracy of geodetic measurements
Authors: Lefebvre M. , Escudier P. , Cazenave A. , Biancale R. , Cretaux J. F. , Soudarin L. , Valette J. J.
Published: October 2006

Satellite altimetry is valuable for measuring sea surface topography and global ocean circulation, but only if the satellite's orbit can be computed within a few centimeters. A tracking system called DORIS (Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite) was developed in the early 1990s for this purpose. It provides precise orbit determination and site positioning and overcomes the limitations of previous tracking systems: insufficient measurement precision and incomplete orbit coverage. DORIS' capabilities are not limited to precise orbit determination, however. It can also be used for other geodetic applications, including the measurement of large‐scale tectonic motions.
Yucca eruptus
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

Controversy over the proposed high‐level storage site for radioactive waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, erupted again last week when The New York Times disclosed a private dispute among some federal scientists over whether such a dump might explode. The state of Nevada, among others, has been a long‐time critic of the planned repository, which is to be built by 2010 to house spent fuel rods from the nation's hundred‐some nuclear power plants. The proposal has survived sundry claims about threats to the safety of such a facility in the long haul—ranging from problems with the geology and geophysics of the site to water contamination issues. This new concern is yet to be debunked, however. About a year ago, a duo of physicists from Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico hypothesized that buried wastes could set off a nuclear explosion. To address Charles Bowman's and Francesco Venneri's concerns, lab managers assembled three teams of scientists to study the issue. Yet the teams have been unable to entirely refute the physicists' claims, The Times reports. The solution? More study, say Nevada officials, who called for an independent review of the entire program last week.
The Atmospheric Boundary Layer
Authors: Donner Leo J.
Published: October 2006

Since the atmospheric boundary layer governs the transfer of heat, momentum, water, and chemicals between the Earth and the overlying atmosphere, an adequate representation of its behavior is essential for atmospheric models. Interactions between the boundary layer and processes in the free atmosphere—for example large‐scale advection and cumulus convection—are strong. Atmospheric models that treat these processes in a more advanced mannermust treat the boundary layer commensurately.
New maps of crust off Tasmania expand research possibilities
Authors: Exon N. F. , Hill P. J. , Royer J.‐Y.
Published: October 2006

A mapping exercise southwest of Tasmania in waters beyond the continental shelf (Figure 1) has provided the offshore equivalent of the topographic maps and satellite images that we all take for granted. Although this joint Australian‐French program was conducted mainly to map offshore Australia for strategic reasons, it is proving to be the key to a treasure trove of information about Tasmania's geological history as it gradually separated from land masses to the west, east, and south. The swath‐mapping system employed by the program produced high‐quality maps that can be used to discern fault patterns on the ocean floor. These maps should help geophysicists answer long‐standing questions about the split between Australia and Antarctica and its effects on regional geology. They will also help document climatic change over the last 50 m.y. and define Australia's Legal Continental Shelf in compliance with the United Nation's Law of the Sea Convention, which came into force in late 1994.
Atmospheric Convection
Authors: Donner Leo J.
Published: October 2006

Atmospheric Convection treats its subject matter comprehensively, covering theoretical, observational, and modeling aspects at a level appropriate for graduate students in the atmospheric sciences who have mastered the fundamentals of geophysical fluid dynamics and thermodynamics. The book also serves as a useful reference for scientists concerned with atmospheric convection.
Phipps Morgan receives Macelwane Medal
Authors: Parmentier E. M. , Morgan W. Jason Phipps
Published: October 2006

The James B. Macelwane Medal, given for significant contributions to the geophysical sciences by a young scientist of outstanding ability, was awarded to W. Jason Phipps Morgan. Phipps Morgan was presented with the medal at the AGU Spring Meeting Honors Ceremony May 30, 1995, in Baltimore. The award citation and Phipps Morgan's response are given here.
Science budgets speed through the U.S. House
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

During the spring and summer, the House of Representatives has been racing toward completion of the Fiscal Year 1996 (FY96) federal budget. As political momentum moves toward a balanced budget, spending cuts have become inevitable, and as shown in the accompanying box, the budget process is complex. Currently, two bills affecting funding for geosciences have been finalized by the House, and two—covering NASA and NSF, and NOAA—were being considered late last week.
Mission studies the composition of Earth's middle atmosphere
Authors: Offerman Dirk , Conway Robert R. , White M. Catherine
Published: October 2006

Remote sensing of the middle atmosphere from Earth orbit has provided a wealth of two‐ and three‐dimensional images over the last 15 years. Although these images have been powerful tools for testing chemical‐dynamical models, they lacked high‐horizontal spatial resolution. In contrast, high‐altitude aircraft experiments provided high spatial resolution along the aircraft flight path at the expense of limited area coverage.

The aircraft observations made during the Antarctic and Arctic ozone campaigns proved invaluable in unraveling the respective roles of dynamics and chemistry in the formation of the ozone hole during the austral spring. The importance of high‐resolution easurements is further suggested by the predictions of increasingly detailed three‐dimensional models which show that trace gases are distributed with spatial structures on many scales and that these structures can form clear signatures of specific dynamical activity.
Mission studies Earth's atmosphere and solar input
Authors: Miller Timothy L. , Smith Steven A. , Kaye Jack A.
Published: October 2006

A space shuttle mission has obtained detailed observations of Earth's middle atmosphere and the Sun's input to the Earth system. The ATLAS‐3 mission employed two atmospheric instruments and four solar instruments to collect data during the November 3–14, 1994, flight. All but one of the mission's instruments performed flawlessly.

The first two ATLAS payloads were flown in March 1992 and April 1993. The latest mission was the first to obtain preliminary results in real time. These results included confirmation of dehydration and a dramatic reduction of chlorine‐absorbing nitrogen compounds in the Antarctic polar vortex, surprisingly low concentrations of chlorine nitrate in the polar vortex after the ozone depletion process was complete, and measurements of the absolute solar UV spectrum to within 5%.
Glacial history of East Greenland explored
Authors: Hubberten Hans‐W. , Grobe Hannes , Jokat Wilfried , Melles Martin , Niessen Frank , Stein Ruediger
Published: October 2006

To study the glacial and environmental history of East Greenland dating back to late Quaternary time, the polar research vessel Polarstern took its third cruise to the East Greenland Sea from August 17 to October 6, 1994, where it served as a platform for shipboard investigations and field observations. A variety of techniques were employed: sediment coring and seismic profiling were carried out in the fjords as well as on the continental shelf and slope. And, for the first time, these investigations were supplemented by profiling and coring in periglacial lakes.
Satellites work in tandem to improve accuracy of data
Authors: Traon P. Y. , Gaspar P. , Ogor F. , Dorandeu J.
Published: October 2006

Global observation of the oceans by satellite altimetry entered a new era with the European Space Agency ERS‐1 and U.S./French TOPEX/POSEIDON missions, which were launched in July 1991 and August 1992, respectively. For the first time, two altimetric satellites were flying simultaneously. TOPEX/POSEIDON (TP) is an optimized altimetric mission dedicated to the precise observation of the large‐scale oceanic circulation. ERS‐1 is a multimission satellite. It carries a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), a wind scatterometer, an along‐track scanning radiometer and a radar altimeter.
Solar flares: No “myth”
Authors: Hudson Hugh S.
Published: October 2006

Recently, Jack Gosling published an article titled, “The Flare Myth.” In this article he described a “new paradigm” and argued against the idea of justifying research on solar flares for the sake of their solar‐terrestrial effects. This paper [Gosling, 1993] summarized the case that exists for coronal mass ejections as the direct cause of major magnetic storms. It also reminded us that an interplanetary shock wave—as well as processes in the flare itself—can accelerate particles to high energies, and that the interplanetary shocks themselves are closely associated with coronal mass ejections. These insights had greatly improved our understanding of solar‐terrestrial relationships, and reviewing them was not particularly controversial. However, the title of Gosling's article and the suggestion in it that flare research should in some way “…not be justified…” caused astonishment, especially in view of the fact that much of new knowledge has come from observations of solar flares and theories to explain them. Accordingly, a small controversy developed.
Taking a Look at Introductory Planetary Books
Authors: Cain J. C.
Published: October 2006

Introductory astronomy courses are far more popular with students than their planetary science counterparts. This is not surprising: astronomy instructors have access to several superb texts with color illustrations, while introductory planetary science books struggle to afford even a few pages of color plates. At present the most attractive and current text material for nonscience students remains the planetary chapters in the 1995 editions of Kaler's Astronomy (Harper Collins); Morrison, Wolff, and Fraknoi's Abell's Exploration of the Universe (Saunders College Publishing); and Chaisson and McMillan's Astronomy (Prentice Hall). Even so, the few chapters in each of these texts cannot serve a complete course in planetary science. “Space” remains high on the list of student interest. There should be a good market for well‐written texts for both the nonscience students meeting liberal studies science requirements and science majors interested in planetary geophysics or geology.
Not‐for‐profit status provides benefits, presents challenges
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

AGU was created in 1919 to advance the science of geophysics, the study of Earth and its environment in space. For its first 53 years, AGU was a part of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. In 1972, when the Union broke away to form a separate entity, its organizers agreed to exclusively support activities related to science and education. No profit would be used for other purposes, and particularly not for the benefit of individuals. On the basis of its mission, AGU was granted not‐for‐profit status by the federal government.

To be in this circle of tax‐exempt scientific, educational, charitable, and religious organizations is indeed a privilege that affords significant benefits. AGU receives lower postal rates, the opportunity to receive charitable contributions, exemption from income tax except on unrelated business income, and access to the tax‐exempt bond market.
Outstanding student papers
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

Two presentations in the Ocean Sciences Section were named Outstanding Student Papers at AGU's Spring Meeting in Baltimore, Md.

Walter Borowski, who presented “Gas Hydrates, Methane Inventory, and Sulfate Profiles: Predicting Methane Flux and Gas Hydrate Occurrence From Sulfate Profiles in Piston Cores,” is a doctoral student in geology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill working with Charles K. Paull. Borowski earned undergraduate degrees at Case Western Reserve University in geology and biology, and an MS in geology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. For nine years, he worked as an exploration and production geologist at ARCO Oil and Gas Company. Now his research investigates the effects of gas hydrates on the chemical signatures of pore waters within the continental rise of sediments of the southeastern United States. He will sail as an inorganic geochemist on ODP Leg 164 (Gas Hydrates) later this year.
New map of seafloor mirrors surface
Authors: Carlowicz Michael
Published: October 2006

Over the past few years, a Kiwi fisherman has made a bountiful living casting his nets in an area the experts said did not exist. The New Zealander has long asserted that there are shallows amid the remote and abyssal seas of the South Pacific—shallows that teem with marine life. His echo location instruments, as well as readings taken by a research ship in 1964, had charted depths as shallow as 160 m. But those readings were consistently discounted by ocean floor researchers as improbable.
Omnibus Science R&D Bill passes House
Authors: Carlowicz Michael
Published: October 2006

In a largely symbolic action that presages other initiatives in the management of federal science programs, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed H.R. 2405, the Omnibus Civilian Science Authorization Act of 1995. The immediate future of the bill remains clouded, as the Senate has not yet taken up the measure, and President Bill Clinton has threatened a veto.

In a largely partisan vote—248 to 161— on October 13, the House formally adopted the bill sponsored by Rep. Robert Walker (R‐Pa.) and the leadership of the House Science Committee. H.R. 2405 bundles seven traditionally separate authorization bills for research funding into one broad package. Each of the constituent parts of the omnibus bill has been passed in the House, and those individual authorizations will apply to current science appropriations under consideration by Congress. Those bills establish spending levels for the National Science Foundation (NSF), NASA, the Department of Energy (DOE), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Employing geodesy to study temporal variability at a mid‐ocean ridge
Authors: Spiess Fred N. , Hildebrand John A.
Published: October 2006

This article is one of a series on the Ridge InterDisciplinary Global Experiments (RIDGE) Program. We outline the geodetic portion of the interdisciplinary studies of ridge crest active processes. The first article provided an overview of the program [Detrick and Humphris, 1994] and the second [Forsyth and Chave, 1994] described a major experiment to be conducted in 1995 and 1996 that will investigate the processes supplying magma for the continuous creation of new ocean floor.
Interpreting natural climate signals in ice cores
Authors: Bales Roger C. , Wolff Eric W.
Published: October 2006

Polar ice caps preserve information about atmospheric composition over the past tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of years. They contain a rich history of the Earth's volcanic activity, terrestrial dust sources, sea ice location, terrestrial and marine biological activity, pollution, and atmospheric oxidation capacity. Differences in concentrations of CO2 and CH4 in air extracted from ice of various ages, changes in temperature inferred from d18O in ice, and differences in the dust or acid loading of ice are all used to deduce major changes in the global environment [Oeschger and Langway, 1989]. These temporal patterns of physical properties and chemical species that are recorded in ice offer an opportunity to study the cause and effect relationships of environmental change.
Global Positioning System Network monitors the western Alps
Authors: Chéry J. , Vigny C. , Meyer B. , Ferhat G. , Anzidei M. , Bayer R. , Boloh L. , Briole P. , Deschamps A. , Feigl K. L. , Gamond J. F. , Geiger A. , Jouanne F. , Kasser M. , Lepape M. , Martinod J. , Ménard G. , Ruegg J. C. , Scheubel J. M. , Walch J. J.
Published: October 2006

A high‐precision GPS network was installed in the Western Alps in September 1993 to map the movement of the African and Eurasian plates in the Mediterranean region. The GPS measurements will explain how convergence is distributed in the Western Alps, the largest, highest, and most deformed range in the Alpine collision zone. If a large earthquake strikes the region, the network will also help constrain the dislocation at depth.

Measurements of convergence will be made every five years. Global plate motion models predict a north‐south mean convergence rate of 6 mm/yr between the African and Eurasian plates in the Western Mediterranean region (Figure lb). Most of this deformation is probably accommodated in the active mountain belts: the Pyrenees, Alps, Apennines, and Maghrebids. Deformation in these structures is complex.
Rowland received the Revelle Medal
Authors: Turco Richard P.
Published: October 2006

The Roger Revelle Medal was given to F. Sherwood Rowland for the codiscovery of the threat posed by chlorofluorocarbons to the stratospheric ozone layer and to the preservation of the global ozone shield and protection of human welfare. The Revelle Medal was presented to Rowland at the AGU Spring Meeting Honor Ceremony on May 25, 1994 in Baltimore. The award citation is given here.
Evidence suggests internal triggering of substorms
Authors: Lui Anthony T. Y.
Published: October 2006

A basic question in substorm research is whether the initiation of substorm expansion is due to an internal process or merely a magnetospheric response to an external driver. The answer to this question is important for several reasons. It provides a useful criterion for evaluating proposed substorm models and an important clue for developing a substorm theory. If the external condition for substorm expansion onsets could be clearly identified, our community would be able to predict substorm expansion onsets for use in forecasting space weather. My opinion is that substorm expansion onsets arise from an internal instability. The state of the magnetosphere just before an onset is analogous to a ball on a hill top. The descent of the ball down the hill can be initiated by either the inherent small random fluctuation of the system or by a deliberate external jolt to the system.
Changing weather report on Jupiter
Authors: Carlowicz Michael
Published: October 2006

With two months to further refine their data sets according to corrections in instrument calibrations, principal investigators for the Galileo probe of Jupiter are revising their report on the chemistry and weather of the gas giant.

The composition of Jupiter's upper atmosphere is more Sun‐like than scientists suggested at a January presentation of probe results (Eos, January 30, 1996). A more comprehensive analysis of data from the helium abundance detector—as well as correlation with the neutral mass spectrometer—reveals that the percentage of helium in the Jovian atmosphere is roughly 24%. That figure is significantly higher than the 13.7% announced in January and is quite close to the composition of the Sun.
Stanley Keith Runcorn (1922–1995)
Authors: Opdyke Neil D.
Published: October 2006

The life of Keith Runcorn came to an end when he was murdered by an unknown assailant on December 5, 1995, in his hotel room in San Diego. His many friends sorely missed his presence at the AGU Fall meeting, and his death is difficult to accept.

Over the last 45 years Keith Runcorn was an important and influential member of the geophysical community who made important contributions to debates related to geomagnetism, paleomagnetism, continental drift, the evolution of planetary interiors, lunar magnetism, the changing length of the day, Earth currents, and the excitation of the Chandler wobble. Runcorn actively pursued research in all of these fields, and some of his ideas were often controversial. It would be fair to say that he never avoided controversy; in fact, he enjoyed it.
Dietrich receives Horton Award
Authors: Howard Alan D. , Dietrich William
Published: October 2006

The 1995 Robert E Horton Medal was presented to William Dietrich at the AGU Fall Meeting award ceremony in San Francisco, Calif., on December 13, 1995. The medal is given by the Hydrology Section for contributions over a career, with more weight given to the last 5 years. The award citation and Dietrich's response are given here.

It is with great pleasure that I present William E. Dietrich with the Robert E. Horton Award. Bill's research exemplifies both in subject area and in excellence the precedent of Robert Horton in coupling hydrology and geomorphology to provide a mechanistic explanation for the relationship between process and form in drainage basins.
Global Change Master Directory enhances search for Earth science data
Authors: Olsen Lola
Published: October 2006

The Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) offers an on‐line search and retrieval system for those interested in identifying Earth science data sets for educational and research needs. At the heart of the directory is a database of 3400 Earth science entries.

It includes references to data held at many federal agencies, universities, and foreign countries. Content is updated and software is upgraded continuously by the GCMD staff. Earth science data set descriptions in the GCMD are written in the Directory Interchange Format (DIF). The DIF has gained interagency and international acceptance in documenting directory‐level information for the Earth sciences. New fields have recently been added to bring the DIF into compliance with the Federal Geographic Data Committee's Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata. These additional new fields allow more complete documentation for all data sets, including those held in Geographic Information Systems.
Methane gas hydrate drilled at Blake Ridge
Authors:   ODP Leg 164 Shipboard Scientific Party
Published: October 2006

Gas hydrate is a solid phase of water and low‐molecular‐weight gases, mostly methane, that forms in marine sediments when gas concentrations are adequate, temperature is low, and pressure is high. Although gas hydrate may be a common phase in the shallow geobiosphere, little is known about it because it is unstable under normal surface conditions.

Leg 164 of the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) studied natural gas hydrate in marine sediment at the Blake Ridge on the continental margin off southeastern North America and found that it occupies more than 1% of the sedimentary section from 200 to 450 m below seafloor (mbsf). At the Blake Ridge, free gas is dispersed throughout a region a few hundred meters thick beneath the gas hydrate—bearing zone. Coupled with geophysical data indicating that gas hydrate occurs throughout a laterally extensive portion of the Blake Ridge, the drilling confirmed that these sediments contain enormous amounts of methane.
Is magnetic reconnection intrinsically transient or steady‐state? The Earth's magnetopause as a laboratory
Authors: Onsager T. G. , Elphic R. C.
Published: October 2006

In terms of universality, few physical processes rival magnetic reconnection. It is thought to be responsible for a wide variety of astronomical, solar, and laboratory plasma phenomena. In astrophysics, for example, transient emissions from compact X ray sources in binary systems are thought by some to originate in magnetic reconnection between a neutron star's magnetosphere and the surrounding accretion disk. In solar physics, it has long been thought that magnetic reconnection is at the root of the enormous energy release found in flares, and may also play an important role in causing coronal mass ejections. At the opposite extreme of size scales, laboratory plasma experiments show that magnetic reconnection is important in the stability, and instability, of reverse field pinches, spheromaks and tokamaks.
Colbeck appointed Editor of Water Resources Research
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

Samuel Colbeck will begin a four‐year term as editor of Water Resources Research, beginning January 1,1997. He succeeds George Hornberger of the University of Virginia.

Colbeck has been an active member of AGU, and a Fellow since 1992. Colbeck received AGU's Horton Award in 1980. He is also a participant on several National Academy of Sciences committees, the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS), and the International Glaciological Society. His service ranges from his participation on the Hydrological Section Executive Committee (1992–1993) to his chairmanship of the IAHS' Working Group on Snow Classification, International Commission on Snow and Ice (1986–1990). Most recently, Colbeck chaired the Union's Budget and Finance Committee (1944–1996). He is also a founding member of the American Association of Avalanche Professionals.
Course builds capacity for atmospheric chemistry research in South America
Authors: Jaffe Dan , San Roman Enrique
Published: October 2006

Developing a better understanding of how human activities influence the Earth's natural systems will require cooperation among scientists from around the world. Thus efforts to educate scientists in developing countries must be included in any global change research program. For these reasons, education issues, especially in developing countries, are on the agenda for both the International Geosphere and Biosphere Programme (IGBP) and the International Global Atmospheric Chemistry Project (IGAC).
Magnetotelluric Experiment probes deep physical state of southeastern United States
Authors: Wannamaker Philip E. , Chave Alan D. , Booker John R. , Jones Alan G. , Filloux Jean H. , Ogawa Yasuo , Unsworth Martyn , Tarits Pascal , Evans Rob
Published: October 2006

A combined continental‐oceanic magnetotelluric (MT) transect of the southern Appalachians orogenic belt has been completed that spans nearly 600 km on land and extends over 1000 km offshore beneath the Atlantic Ocean (Figure 1). The study is revealing the long‐term changes in the lithosphere that occur as active subduction regimes degenerate to fossil regimes, and tests the degree to which the latter are modified by subsequent extension. The electrical resistivity structure of active subduction has been examined by several researchers in recent years [Wannamaker and Hohmann, 1991; Jones, 1993], but here is the first thorough examination of a currently passive, former convergent margin.
Opdyke receives the Fleming medal
Authors: Kent Dennis V. , Opdyke Neil
Published: October 2006

Neil D. Opdyke was awarded the John Adam Fleming Medal at the AGU Spring Meeting Honors Ceremony, which was held in Baltimore, May 22, 1996. The Fleming Medal recognizes original research and technical leadership in geomagnetism, atmospheric electricity, aeronomy, and related sciences. Opdyke was particularly acknowledged for his pioneering work in the use of marine sediments to study the Earth's magnetic field, especially with regard to polarity reversals, and the development of magnetic stratigraphy. The citation and Opdyke's response are given here.
The first Martians?
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2006

They are approximately 3.6 billion years old and one‐hundredth the diameter of a human hair–but were they ever alive? The tubular structures shown in this photo from a scanning electron microscope resemble in size and shape some tiny micro fossils found in Earth rocks. That observation, along with chemical signatures of organic molecules and mineral features characteristic of biological activity, suggests to NASA's David McKay and colleagues that they may have found evidence of primitive life on Mars. The research by McKay et al. was scheduled to appear in the August 16 issue of Science, but advance reporting of the findings in several major newspapers and a hastily called NASA press conference thrust the issue into the public consciousness. Many scientists, both skeptical and hopeful, anxiously awaited the formal paper. The image is taken from meteorite ALH84001, a rock found in Antarctica but believed to be of Martian origins. (Photo courtesy of NASA).
New approaches raise questions about future sea level change
Authors: Baltuck Miriam , Dickey Jean , Dixon Tim , Harrison Christopher G. A.
Published: October 2006

Sea level and its rate of change have important long‐ and short‐term social and economic implications because of impacts on low‐lying coastal regions. Our ability to predict the future position of mean sea level and the pattern of spatial and temporal fluctuations around this mean is a good test of our understanding of global climate change. Sea level integrates the effects of several critical aspects of global climate change such as global atmospheric and oceanic temperatures, and the health of large ice sheets near the poles and smaller mountain glaciers at all latitudes. If we can confidently predict neither the likely locations of major coastal flooding next year, nor the height of mean sea level 100 years from now, we have a lot more work to do in understanding processes within and links between the atmosphere‐ocean‐solid Earth system.
Electron temperature in the solar wind at 1 AU
Authors: Newbury J. A.
Published: October 2006

Knowing the total electron temperature of the solar wind is essential when calculating parameters that characterize it (for example, plasma beta and Mach number). Unfortunately, electron temperatures are not always available, and an educated guess must be made. A good rule of thumb is to assume that, at 1 AU, the total electron temperature of the ambient solar wind is a constant value of ∼140,000 K.
Aging of oceanic crust at the Southern East Pacific Rise
Authors: Weigel W. , Grevemeyer I. , Kaul N. , Villinger H. , Lüdmann T. , Wong H. K.
Published: October 2006

The oceanic crust covers almost 57% of the Earth's surface and is created by seafloor spreading at mid‐ocean ridges. Although crustal structure is similar everywhere, seismic experiments near spreading ridges indicate that seismic velocities in the top of the igneous crust are typically much lower than those in mature oceanic crust. While profound differences between juvenile and mature crust have long been recognized, little is known about the relationship between crustal aging and the properties of oceanic crust.

German researchers from the Universities of Hamburg and Bremen explored seafloor created over the last 8 million years at the “super‐fast” spreading East Pacific Rise south of the Garrett Fracture Zone (14–16°S) during a 52‐day marine geophysical survey aboard the R/V Sonne. The seafloor in that area spreads at a rate of 150 mm/yr. The researchers studied age‐dependent trends in the structure and properties of upper oceanic crust; this was the first study in nearly two decades to use an integrated approach to study variations and heat transfer in the upper crustal structure.
Moored instruments weather Arabian Sea monsoons, yield data
Authors: Rudnick Daniel L. , Weller Robert A. , Eriksen Charles C. , Dickey Tommy D. , Marra John , Langdon Christopher
Published: October 2006

An arrav of surface moorings deployed from October 1994 through October 1995 has yielded the first year‐long time series of atmospheric and oceanic variables spanning both monsoons in the Arabian Sea. The observations have revealed the processes responsible for the transfer of momentum, heat, and fresh water across the air‐sea interface, and the influence of the monsoons on the physical and biological systems of the upper ocean.
Joint effort results in first infrared survey of Kamchatka volcanoes
Authors: Pieri D. C. , Khrenov A. P. , Miller T. P. , Zharinov S. E. , Realmuto V. , Abrams M. , Glaze L. S. , Kahle A. B. , Drozhnin V. , Dvigalo V. , Kirianov V. , Abbott E. , Chernobieff S.
Published: October 2006

Scientists from the United States and the former Soviet Union (FSU) have performed a joint airborne infrared imaging survey of active volcanoes on the remote and politically sensitive Kamchatka Peninsula. The temperature map of Bezymyanny Volcano (Figure 1), revealing slow lava dome growth and collapse on the northwestern slope, shows the excellent quality of the images. The collaborative effort, which yielded thermal infrared multispectral scanner (TIMS) images of some of the 29 active volcanoes of the Eastern Range of the Kamchatka Peninsula (see Figure 2) provided new information on the ages, extent, and morphologies of volcanic deposits and quantitative data on thermal flux for active volcanoes and geothermal areas throughout the volcanic range. These data also provided a baseline against which changes caused by future eruptions can be gauged.