bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
New product: New turbidity meter
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Kahl Scientific Instrument Corporation has released the Kahlsico 269WA150 turbidity meter, a device that digitally indicates the transparency of water or air over a base line between 1 and 100 cm and measures turbid and clear media.

The instrument is especially useful for in situ instantaneous water quality determinations of such parameters as siltification, suspended sewage or other solids, plankton layering, and geologic effects of underwater clouds (ocean turbidity currents). The optical track allows proper alignment of the movable watertight light source and photodetector housings, which are designed to assure watertight seals to depths of 100 meters.
Burke Maxey
Authors: Cochran Gilbert , Cooper Nate , Fenske Paul , Fordham John , Mifflin Martin , Schulke Dale
Published: October 2011

George B. Maxey died on February 6. At age 59, Burke's death was untimely and unexpected. Those of us who knew him well, loved him and respected him and will sorely miss his valued counsel, knowledge, and judgment. Burke was a brilliant man who inspired as well as stimulated many because of his outspoken and forthright manner. Burke was also a man of great compassion with a heart as big as his native state of Montana. If it were possible at all, Burke would always find a way to help someone in need, whether it was gas money home for a student, finding a job, or cutting bureaucratic red tape.
President's page: Is JGR expensive?
Authors: Kaula William M.
Published: October 2011

The main reason for a scientific society is communication among scientists. There are two principal mechanisms for this communication: meetings and journals. Thus essential to the effectiveness of a society is not only the vigor of its meetings but the strength of its journals.

While in meetings the AGU dominates basic geophysics and space physics, it does not do so to the same extent in journals. For some subject areas there are significant competitive publications. Such competition is healthy: pluralism of institutions is important to the vigor of science, as it is for any activity, by affording alternate outlets for differing points of view, by testing various ways of doing things, and by keeping alert those who run the institutions. However, in times when there is simultaneously a leveling off or a decline in support of basic research and an inflation in costs (as for most technical activities, out‐running the cost‐of‐living index), particular attention to the competitive position of AGU journals is needed.
New ASTM subcommittee organized
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

American Society for Testing and Materials Committee D‐18 on Soil and Rock for Engineering Purposes has organized a new Subcommittee D‐18.14 on Soil and Rock Pollution. The new subcommittee held its first meeting in February in Bethesda, Maryland, during the winter meeting of Committee D‐18.

The ASTM Subcommittee on Soil and Rock Pollution will develop standards for definitions, recommended practices, and test methods related to the processes by which the soil and rock interact with a wide variety of liquid wastes or leachates from solid wastes. Also to be considered will be pollution of land areas and surface water bodies as a result of erosion of soils or of solid wastes and the sampling and testing of solid wastes, many of which have soillike characteristics. Because the liquid wastes or leachates from solid wastes may percolate from some surface disposal source down through the unsaturated soil or rock and may be retained in that zone or may reach the water table and pollute the groundwater as well, the activities of Subcommittee D‐19 on Water and of the new D‐18 Subcommittee on Soil and Rock Pollution will be closely coordinated. To achieve this coordination, Adrian Pelzner (U.S. Forest Service, Washington, D.C.) has been designated as liaison from Committee D‐18 to Committee D‐19. Subcommittee D‐18.14 also will coordinate their activities closely with other D‐18 subcommittees, especially D‐18.04 on Hydrologic Properties and D‐18.06 on Physico‐Chemical Properties.
State of stress in the lithosphere
Authors: Riecker Robert E.
Published: October 2011

The development of stress in rocks … is a fundamental problem, the solution of which is essential to our general understanding of geodynamics. Regional stress measurements … are crucial for the determination of the driving mechanisms of global tectonics. Equally important is the use of rock stress information in the study of such classical geologic processes as igneous intrusion, faulting, and the mechanics of hydrologic systems. In addition, knowledge of rock stress can be applied directly to such immediately practical applications as earthquake prediction and control, ground control in areas of mining and underground excavations, design of subsurface structures, and dam stability; indeed, it has been in conjunction with such applications that most existing stress measurement methods have been developed. [Shoemaker, 1975]
K. E. Bullen Lecture and Student Prize established
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The University of Sydney plans to commemorate the distinguished work of K. E. Bullen with an annual or biennial K. E. Bullen Lecture, on seismology or another topic in applied mathematics. Tax‐deductible contributions to the K. E. Bullen Commemorative Fund are invited from individuals and institutions throughout the world. It is also hoped that the fund will support an annual student prize to be awarded to the outstanding student in Applied Mathematics IV Honours.
Arctic environmental studies keep up with expansion
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Environmental research efforts are keeping steady pace with economic and technological expansion in the Arctic. Among the new Arctic environmental projects is a 5‐year survey of the continental shelf of the Bering Sea. Under the auspices of the National Science Foundation's Division of Polar Programs, the Probes (Processes and Resources of the Bering Sea Shelf) program concentrates on a 26,000‐km2 area of the Bering Sea Shelf that includes one of the world's largest marine populations and one of the largest bird populations per unit area.

The 53% of the Bering Sea that is continental slope and shelf is one of the world's best examples of a region where fish, birds, and mammals reproduce rapidly. This has puzzled some biologists because there do not seem to be enough smaller organisms to support the upper segments of the food chain.
USGS's hazards warning role
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The U.S. Geological Survey issued a statement defining its responsibilities for issuing warnings of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, mudslides, and other geologic hazards exclusive of floods (Federal Register, April 12, 1977). The statement describes the present capability of the USGS for advance recognition of various kinds of geologic hazards and the procedures proposed to carry out the agency's hazard warning responsibilities. It also spells out a proposed policy for the USGS to issue provisional ‘hazard notices’ if geologic conditions are identified that could be hazardous to life or property. The statement emphasizes that ‘the present capability of scientists to predict hazardous events varies greatly as to the type of event and as to knowledge of its time, place, and magnitude of effects.’
Earth‐space environment data available
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

A continuous and precise track of magnetic field changes over the western hemisphere is available from the Space Environment Services Center in Boulder, Colorado. The satellite‐supported magnetometer network uses specially designed magnetometers deployed at more than 25 strategic and remote sites in Alaska, Canada, Brazil, and several islands in the Pacific Ocean. Data from the devices are ‘sensed’ by instruments aboard two NOAA satellites of the Goes series and transmitted back to Boulder to be available in near real time.

The heart of the magnetometer system is a small magnetic field sensor located in a nonmagnetic housing. Information from this sensor is processed by a microcomputer system located some distance away in a small shelter.
DOE tests new equipment to study lightning
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The Department of Energy (DOE) Lightning Protection Program to improve methods for predicting the performance of power distribution systems in lightning storms began recently with the installation of instruments on electric power lines in Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Sarasota, Florida.

The instruments are designed to measure and record information on the surge of electric current in power distribution lines and other equipment struck by lightning. If the initial tests are successful, plans call for at least 400 similar devices to be installed on utility systems across the country over the next few years.
Use of seismic design provisions assessed
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

New buildings may soon incorporate seismic design criteria developed by the Center for Building Technology of the National Bureau of Standards (NBS). The design criteria reflect the current state of the art in earthquake engineering in a form adaptable for implementation by standards organizations, model code groups, federal agencies, and other regulatory groups.

The National Science Foundation and NBS are now planning how such criteria can best be adopted around the nation.
Distant galaxy has starry halo
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Radio observations of the galaxy NGC 4565 indicated the presence of some unseen matter, but it required a new light‐measuring instrument to resolve the matter into a spherical halo composed of billions of previously unseen stars. Dennis J. Hegyi, a University of Michigan (UM) physicist, reports that this halo surrounding the galaxy, which is 80 million light years from earth, appears to be massive, possibly containing more matter than what had been thought to be in t he spiral galaxy itself. If this is characteristic of other galaxies, he said, the halos might contain enough matter to stop the present expansion of the universe.

‘A fundamental question,’ Hegyi said, ‘is whether there is enough matter in the universe to stop the expansion. I t is generally believed that the visible portions of galaxies studied from photographs do not contain enough matter. But it is also generally believed that there could be a considerable amount of matter in forms which do not radiate much visible light and which, consequently, would be difficult to detect.’
Norpax winter experiment nears completion
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Norpax, the North Pacific Experiment, is finishing a pilot experiment to determine the optimal observational strategy to be used for a large oceanographic research effort during the FGGE (First Garp Global Experiment.)

In the current effort a transequatorial shuttle experiment is being conducted between Hawaii and Tahiti to study the low‐frequency dynamics of the equatorial circulation system. The relations between flow, thermal structure, and sea surface topography are of particular interest in designing a suitable system to monitor the changes of the equatorial current system over long periods. The project is directed by Klaus Wyrtki of the University of Hawaii and includes several individual but closely coordinated programs.
Cocorp Rio Grande Rift data available
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The second phase of obtaining deep reflection data in the Rio Grande Rift area of New Mexico in the vicinity of Socorro, New Mexico, has been completed, and the data are available. A total of 128 km of lines were run, including an east‐west line spanning the rift in the neighborhood of Bernardo, New Mexico. A 48‐channel MDS‐VIII recording system with data sampling at 8‐ms intervals was used. Station intervals were 134 m, with 32 geophones per station arranged in‐line with 70% overlap. A variable spatial distribution of the 32 equal sensitivity geophones was employed. The source array consisted of five vibrators operated in‐line and spaced at 27‐m intervals, moving through 16 stages at 8.9‐m intervals at each station. The summed output of the 16 stages comprised a record, and 24‐fold stacking resulted. The vibrator pilot signal was a 10‐ to 32‐Hz linear upsweep of 25‐s duration, and the recording duration was 50 s.
International meeting proposed on integrated use of water sources
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

A round table meeting, held in Denver in October 1977, brought together specialists from Italy, Spain, and the United States in a collaborative engineering‐scientific discussion of integrated use of multiple sources of water. This joint government/academic round table recommended that an international conference on this subject be organized.
New format for marine geophysical data described
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

A new exchange format for marine geophysical data has been developed by a special task force convened by a workshop of the Solar‐Terrestrial Data Center.
NASA restructures weather and climate research effort
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center recently reorganized its weather and climate research activity into a Laboratory for Atmospheric Sciences (LAS) under the direction of David Atlas. Other key personnel appointments include William R. Bandeen, Associate Chief of the Laboratory; John S. Theon, Assistant Chief for Operations; Milton Halem, Head, Modeling and Simulation Facility; Donald F. Heath, Head, Upper Atmosphere Branch; and Vincent V. Salomonson, Head, Hydrospheric Sciences Branch.
Supersonic flame jet blasts through Ross Ice Shelf
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

An ice‐melting rocket‐type drill called a supersonic flame jet finally allowed antarctic researchers to lower a television camera beneath the Ross Ice Shelf. The 8‐m‐long drill took a little more than 9 hours to burn through the ice shelf, not quite 2 m from the first hole that had been squeezed shut by the ice pressure.

The final hole that let cameras and equipment through the ice shelf to the 200 m of water below it had an average diameter of more than 45 cm and a minimum of almost 28 cm. Scientists reported finding fish and other ‘signs of life in the form of tracks, trails, and burrows.’ They plan to use nets and traps to try to catch some of the sea life from this frigid, lightless world.
Sites for geodetic surveys to be selected
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The National Geodetic Survey of the National Ocean Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has established a Geodynamics Group to maximize the benefits available from basic survey data and to respond to the increasing demands for such data made by the geodynamics community. Personnel of the National Geodetic Survey will perform the surveying at selected sites of geodynamic interest that are proposed by academic scientists. The survey data will be made available to the academic community in addition to other geodetic data that are currently available.

Letter proposals for surveys of particular sites should be submitted by academic researchers to the Chairman, Office of Earth Sciences, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences Building, 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20418. The proposals should be submitted by August 1, since work will be scheduled to begin after October 1.
NBS Technique pinpoints particulate identity
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

A new instrumentation technique used by Edgar S. Etz and Gregory S. Rosasco at the National Bureau of Standards successfully identified the particulates emitted by oil‐fired power plants. Such detailed molecular identification is needed to assess the effect of pollutants on people and the environment. Since previous data on the chemical properties of fly ash are largely limited to the elemental composition of bulk samples of particulates collected in the stack and in the plume of power plants, the NBS molecular identifications are of great interest.

The NBS unique laser‐Raman microprobe is designed for spectroscopic analysis of microparticles. Single particles, supported by a suitable substrate, are moved into the focal point of a laser beam (utilizing any one of several ‘excitation’ frequencies in the visible region of the spectrum), and the light scattered by the sample is analyzed for its spectral content. The scattered light contains the Raman spectrum of the particle which is diagnostic of molecular and crystal vibrations in the solid. Particles composed of a broad range of inorganic compounds, organic solids, and polymers show the normal Raman effect and can therefore be identified as to principal molecular constituents.
Kitt Peak Spectrograph confirms new star
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Using a rapid‐scanning Fourier transform spectrometer with the 4‐m telescope, scientists from the Kitt Peak National Observatory recently identified the infrared source in the constellation Orion as a newly formed star, probably one of the youngest ever found. Estimating that this star began its life within the past few thousand years, Donald N . B. Hall and his KPNO colleagues report observations showing the object as a B‐class star in its very earliest stages of evolution. The region in which the new star was detected has been studied closely for over a decade after E. E. Becklin and G. Neugebauer discovered the infrared source. Because stars are born deep within opaque clouds of dust and gas, their formative stages are generally hidden from optical observations.
Caltech engineers shake earth dam in quake study
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Earthquake engineers at the California Institute of Technology recently used large motor‐driven weights to shake the Santa Felicia Dam, an earth dam in the Santa Clara Valley. The infinitesimally small, controlled vibrations should help engineers learn more about the dam's response to earthquakes. Such results will then be helpful in developing better methods of testing dams for earthquake resistance and in designing more earthquake‐resistant dams.

The Santa Felicia Dam, owned by the United Water Conservation District, was chosen for the experiment because the scientists already have data on how the dam behaved during two California earthquakes: the magnitude 6.5 San Fernando earthquake of 1971 and the magnitude 4.7 earthquake of 1976. ‘This dam is unique in that it was both subjected to strong shaking during these earthquakes and equipped with motion sensors that yielded data on how the dam responded to the shaking,’ Caltech's Ronald F. Scott said.
SEAN Report
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The following geophysical and meteoritic events were reported by the Scientific Event Alert Network (SEAN) , Smithsonian Institution, NHB Stop 129, Washington, D.C. 20560.

Volcanic Events

Two lava flows at Fuego (Guatemala), the first at this volcano since 1966, were initially seen from the air on February 9. The flows were extruded from two new 30‐m‐diameter vents near the summit crater, site of intermittent pyroclastic activity since September 11. Hot debris slides from the toes of the lava flows traveled more than 3 km down the southwest flank. On February 24 the rate of lava flow extrusion appeared to be increasing, and all three vents were observed in simultaneous activity. Lava fountaining was interspersed with dark ash explosions at the two new vents while a continuous stream of fine ash and gases was emitted from the summit crater.
Summary of the International Conference on Experimental Trace Element Geochemistry
Authors: Drake Michael J. , Holloway John R.John R.
Published: October 2011

It has been apparent for at least the last decade that the abundance patterns observed for groups of trace elements in igneous rocks contain much potential information about both the source region and the evolutionary history of the rocks. The primary tool used to interpret trace element patterns is the distribution coefficient D, a numerical value specifying the ratio of the concentration of an element in one phase (e.g., plagioclase) to another phase (e.g., magma). At the present time, nearly all of the D values used in model calculations come from analyses of phenocryst‐matrix pairs in volcanic rocks. However, the application of phenocryst/matrix partition coefficients to some problems in igneous petrogenesis may be highly inappropriate because of problems of mineral separation, because of disequilibrium between mineral and groundmass, and because such important variables as pressure, temperature, and oxygen partial pressure are not well known for the analyzed samples.
The future of International Cooperation in Geophysics for the benefit of whom?
Authors: Stewart A. I.
Published: October 2011

In recent years the structure of the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU) and the actions of many ICSU bodies have increasingly come under criticism from governments, scientific academies, and individual scientists. National committees are taking a hard look at the benefits of adhering to nongovernmental organizations, and threats of withdrawal are being voiced here and there. The worldwide wave of nationalism and/or isolationism, the wave of anti‐intellectualism sweeping through many countries, and the frightening turn to introspection and to irrational beliefs of the young generation in many countries all have had an impact on government and politics that in my view seriously imperils the future of international cooperation in scientific research. Those of us scientists who feel a social responsibility and accountability to our fellow men and women cannot remain indifferent.
Quake predictions seen as federal responsibility
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Recent studies of public response to earthquake hazard have turned up a paradox. While the opportunity to take precautions increases roughly in proportion to the length of the warning period, the propensity of the public to take precautions may decrease correspondingly.

This is one of several conclusions of a recent survey article in California Geology (vol. 30, no. 12, pp. 278–280, 1977) by E. L. Jackson, University of Alberta, entitled ‘Public Response to Earthquake Hazard.’ There is also, he reports, a preference for crisis response, taking ‘avoidance action’ at the time of an earthquake. Although people who had already sustained severe earthquake damages were more likely to take precautionary measures, there was still an overwhelming feeling that preparing for future earthquakes is a governmental responsibility. Jackson says, ‘These findings indicate a need to examine the role of current government policy in shaping the public's behavior.’
SEAN Report
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Volcán Fuego (Guatemala) has been active since September 11, 1977, and emission of black to gray ash continued through March. No direct observations of the lava flows described in May EOS, page 454, were available, but incandescence in the summit area was seen during the evening of February 26 and before dawn on March 30. After daybreak on March 30, the most vigorous pyroclastic activity of the month produced as ash cloud 2300 m high, substantial ashfall on the upper north flank, and a hot avalanche which flowed down a canyon on the east flank. Occasional felt seismicity continued.
The Aardvark Phenomenon
Authors: Stewart A. I. , Roederer Juan G.
Published: October 2011

The prejudice against scientists whose names fall late in the alphabet, exposed in these pages by C. T. Russell (see March Eos , p. 118; September 1977, p. 871), is most alarming. However, for Russell at least there exists a remedy more elegant than Aardvark's, if slightly less effective. He can simply invert his name to Russell T. Christopher.
Large fuel reservoir in deep‐Earth crust?
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

‘The large variety of phenomena that take place before, during, and after major earthquakes all suggest that combustible gases are usually present at such times in large amounts/Thomas Gold of Corneirs Center for Radiophysics and Space Research told a planetology session at the 1978 AGU Spring Meeting in Miami Beach.

Building on this idea, Gold suggested that the interior of the earth may contain huge amounts of natural gas—mostly methane—left there since the time the earth formed. In support of this idea, Gold explained how his present study indicates that the classic mechanism of carbon dioxide leakage from volcanoes through geologic time cannot account for the composition of the atmosphere that we now have.
SEAN Report
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The following geophysical and meteoritic events were reported by the Scientific Event Alert Network (SEAN), Smithsonian Institution, NHB Stop 129, Washington, D.C. 20560.

Volcanic Events

An eruption from four new vents on the southeast flank of Mount Etna (Sicily) began on April 29. Lava flows had traveled about 3 km into the Valle del Bove by the morning of May 3, and explosive activity ejected bombs to 300 m above the largest of the vents, building a 50‐m cone. Explosions had declined by early May 3, but vigorous lava effusion continued. Frequent brief eruptions from Etna have occurred since July 1977, but all have originated from vents on the Northeast Crater cone (see October (p. 959) and November (p. 1030) 1977 Eos and February (p. 78), March (p. 128), and June (p. 532) 1978 Eos) . The last southeast flank eruption occurred April 5 to June 12, 1971, destroying the Etna Observatory.
Effects of urbanization and industrialization on the hydrological regime and on water quality
Authors: Stallings Eugene A.
Published: October 2011

About 180 engineers and scientists from 27 countries attended the International Symposium on the Effects of Urbanization and Industrialization on the Hydrological Regime and on Water Quality. The symposium was held at Amsterdam, the Netherlands, October 2–7, 1977. The symposium was convened by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (Unesco) and organized by Unesco and the Netherlands National Committee for the International Hydrological Programme in cooperation with the International Association of Hydrological Sciences.

The 64 technical papers for the symposium covered three themes. The first theme dealt with the effects of urbanization and industrialization on the hydrological regime, the second concentrated on the effect of urbanization and industrialization on water quality, and the third centered on water policy as a factor in urbanization and industrialization. Each theme was broken into sessions comprising 4–8 papers. Each session was followed by a discussion period in which the speakers responded to questions raised by the audience. These questions and answers were recorded and presented to the technical secretary. The symposium focused within the framework of project 7 of the International Hydrological Programme and is related to the Workshop on Socioeconomic Aspects of Urban Hydrology held at Lund, Sweden, in November 1976. Following the symposium, the Workshop on the Impact of Urbanization and Industrialization on Regional and National Water Planning and Management was convened at the Netherlands, October 10–13, 1977. Participation in the workshop was by invitation only.
Joint Air‐Sea Interaction Experiment performed
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Through mid‐September of this year, 14 ships and 4 aircraft are participating in an air‐sea interaction experiment 400 km to the west of Scotland. The experiment, which is sponsored by the Royal Society, and is a component of Garp, has as its main aims (1) to observe and distinguish between the physical processes causing mixing in the atmospheric and oceanic boundary layers and relate them to mean properties of the layers and (2) to examine and quantify aspects of the momentum and heat budgets in the atmospheric and oceanic boundary layers and the fluxes across and between them.

Over 50 teams of investigators from 9 countries are contributing. Atmospheric measurements include intensive periods of hourly LO‐CATE radiosonde flights from three ships around a 200‐km triangle, turbulent flux measurements from aircraft and two tethered ballons, and numerous surface observations from ships and buoys. Thirty‐five mooring systems will be deployed, 10 of them within a 4‐km square centered at 59°N, 12½°W. Intensive measurements of the oceanic surface layers will be made in an area within 50 km of this point using fixed, towed, drifting, and profiling instrumentation. There will be ‘ground truth’ to the newly launched Seasat satellite.
Mean sea level volume completed
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level, housed within the Institute of Oceanographic Sciences at Bidston on Merseyside, is charged with task of collating mean sea level data from all known tide gauge stations on a worldwide scale. This information has been published in a number of volumes, the first of which appeared in 1940. By the late 1960s several of the earlier publications were out of print, and the opportunity was taken to review the entire method of data publication.

The most serious single criticism of the original system stemmed from the common practice of relating sea level to a national fundamental reference point remote from the station. The difficulties of transferring levels across great distances with high precision are well known, and in consequence the problems of geodesy become confused with those of oceanography. The recommendation therefore was to strive to achieve homogeneous data series in which the datum for sea level at a station is referred to a local Tide Gauge Bench Mark and to ensure that this relationship is maintained. In this way the movements of sea level with respect to the bench mark on the one hand and the repeated definition of the height of that bench mark within a leveling network on the other hand became the responsibility of separate disciplines. On this basis it was agreed that the total mean sea level data bank should be reviewed, revised, and republished.
Business Meetings
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The Annual Business Meeting of the Union was called to order by President Maxwell at 1:30 p.m., April 18, 1978, in the Napoleon Room at the Deauville Hotel, Miami Beach. Thirty five members were present to hear a summary of the actions of the Council, introductions of the new officers of the Union and sections, and a brief talk by President‐Elect Cox on some of his plans for continuing to strengthen the Union during the next biennium.

Highlights of the Council are as follows:

1. The Congressional Science Fellowship is to be continued for the third consecutive year (1979–1980).

2. AGU will continue its $8000 contribution to the American Geological Institute Minority Scholarship Program. This contribution is about ⅙ of the total AGI Program.
Solar Polar Mission
Authors: Maxwell Arthur E.
Published: October 2011

The following letter was sent to Senators William Proxmire, Charles McC. Mathias, Jr., Harrison H. Schmitt, and Adlai E. Stevenson and to Congressmen Edward P. Boland, Lawrence Coughlin, Don Fuqua, and Larry Winn, Jr. The position taken by AGU was recommended by the Solar‐Planetary Relationships Section.

The Solar Polar Mission represents the culmination of many years of planning and study. If flown, it will provide us with our first global survey of the structure and workings of the outer layers of the sun. Not only will the information obtained provide knowledge of the sun, but also it will enable us to understand the influence of the sun on earth. The study is of potential practical value. Mounting evidence suggests that changes in solar activity, which are manifestations of changes in the surface layers of the sun, are strongly correlated with our climate.
Molecular hydrogen found in another galaxy
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Rodger I. Thompson and several of his University of Arizona colleagues have found molecular hydrogen in a galaxy 60 million light years from earth and have confirmed the existence of large amounts of cosmic dust thought to be the source of enormous amounts of infrared radiation coming from that galaxy.

Thompson, Marcia Lebofsky, and George Rieke observed molecular hydrogen in the galaxy designated NGC 1068, one of the most famous of the Syefert galaxies characterized by spiral arms and a small very bright nucleus.
Ocean dynamics data available
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Accurate all‐weather information concerning globally distributed sea state, wind speed, and Gulf Stream velocity and position data are now available through the near‐real time Ocean Dynamics Information System of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). A computer‐ maintained data file can be reached with a standard telephone remote terminal setup.

The Ocean Dynamics Information System provides data from the Geos 3 satellite. An iterative technique has been developed for the fitting of an average narrow‐pulse radar altimeter return wave form from Geos 3 with a four‐parameter function derived from fundamental microwave rough scattering theory.
HCMM satellite takes Earth's temperature
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

NASA's Heat Capacity Mapping Mission (HCMM) experimental satellite should be making snow measurements easier this winter. Although snowfield areas have been monitored for a number of years by Landsat and other satellites, HCMM's improved temperature measurements will be a great help in calculating the time and rate of snowmelt.

HCMM's unique day‐night measurement sequence permits readings of temperature ranges associated with solar heating during the day and with radiative cooling at night. Its heat capacity mapping radiometer uses two channels to acquire visible and nearinfrared images in the daytime and thermal infrared images in both day and night cycles.
‘AGU and the body politic’
Authors: McLemore Ethel Ward
Published: October 2011

Regarding President Cox's article (September 1978 EOS, page 835):

AGU membership and services have always been ‘accessible’ to women. Some of us have been members and recipients of benefits therefrom for more years than most present male members. Nonetheless, except for the challenging support of a few civilized members who have also been leaders in AGU, in our daily work and association with male colleagues we have been made to feel unwelcome, unwanted, intrusive, and downright inferior. This attitude has been doubly reinforced in AGU publications and AGU efforts to acquire and retain for members taxpayer (female and male) money for the support of male geophysicists. All protestations to the contrary, such efforts have of necessity been political. We love our work, and thanks to millions of less fortunate humans who pay the bill, we are allowed to pursue it in relative comfort.
Alternative energy food top OTA priorities
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Thirty‐two major issues facing society and the U.S. Congress have been ranked into a preliminary list of priorities for analysis by the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), Congress's scientific foresight agency.

In discussing the list, OTA director Russell W. Peterson explained some of the criteria used to develop it. They include the impact of the issue on the quality of life of future generations, the requirement that it involve the impact of new or existing technology, the utility of the study as an aid to Congressional decision making, and the appropriateness of OTA's undertaking the study rather than one of the other Congressional support agencies.
SCOR directory of scientists/engineers
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR) Working Group 56, Equatorial Upwelling Processes, is assembling a directory of scientists and engineers interested in the physical and biological processes of upwelling occurring within the upper ocean in the region between 15°N and 15°S. If your interests are primarily related to biological aspects of equatorial upwelling, please send your name, affiliation, and address to Richard T. Barber, Chairman, SCOR WG 56 Biological Panel, Duke University Marine Laboratory, Beaufort, North Carolina 28516.
Direct measure off solar impact on weather
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The cover photograph and the one on this page detail the auroral effects of electron showers. The aurorae displayed over the northern polar regions were photographed on three orbits of the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F2 satellites on December 2, 1977, the day selected by the International Magnetosphere Study for intensive study.

The colored spectra superimposed vertically over the aurora represent measurements of the Bremsstrahlung X rays caused by the precipitating electron showers. The higher the intensity, the higher the vertical rise of the spectra. These X rays are being successfully measured for the first time by a new DMSP sensor developed by the Aerospace Corporation. Paul F. Mizera of Aerospace Corporation displayed these unusual photographs as part of his paper, ‘The Auroral Regions During December 2,1977,’ presented at the 1978 Fall Meeting.
Time: In full measure
Authors: Katzmann Raphael G.
Published: October 2011

Cosmochronology, geochronology, and the neutrino crisis were the component parts of a symposium at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge on April 13, 1978. The meeting was sponsored by the College of Engineering in conjunction with the departments of Geology and Physics, and its purpose was to examine current knowledge in the determination of time, from the cosmic scale to the microscopic. The College of Engineering, surely an unusual sponsor of a program of this type, was interested in the methods of establishing the age of geologic formations as part of solving the engineering problems of providing permanent containment of radioactive and other noxious, nonradioactive wastes and in determining the long‐term stability of formations underlying dam sites or potential nuclearfueled steam‐electric generating plants. One of the surprises of the meeting was that each speaker was unaware of any conceptual or observational discrepancies in any area other than his own.
Atmospheric Chemistry Workshop
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

A recent National Science Foundation sponsored workshop on atmospheric chemistry brought together more than 100 chemists, meteorologists, dynamicists, modelers, and mathematicians from universities, government laboratories, private corporations, and foreign institutions to share their knowledge and experience.

Jack Winchester, Florida State University, commented on the unusual workshop: ‘The chemists here have a tendency to think of the atmosphere as an inert carrier for several interesting chemicals, while the meteorologists tend to think of the atmosphere in terms of large‐scale weather—winds and waves in which chemicals are only incidental. Of course, we're both wrong, which is why this workshop has served a good purpose in getting us to share our knowledge…We can't keep sweeping up after each new kind of pollution. We have to understand the problems that exist and that might exist, and to do that, we have to understand the chemistry of the atmosphere,’ he concluded.
Sabbatical year as a congressional science fellow
Authors: Haimes Yacov Y.
Published: October 2011

Probably my most illuminating experience on the Hill as the American Geophysical Union Congressional Science Fellow has been in understanding how the Congress and the federal government work. The continuous interface with government agencies at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as with congressional subcommittees and congressmen, constitutes the daily classroom setting for the Congressional Science Fellow. Familiar words and terms often used in Systems Engineering, such as ‘legal, institutional, social and political considerations and constraints,’ now carry much deeper connotations. They are not merely theoretical or abstract terms, but rather very real ones that can be associated with my discussions with congressmen and representatives of federal, state, and local agencies.
NSF new geophysical and environmental program
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The National Science Foundation has formed a new program for applied research in all the geophysical sciences—earth, oceanographic, and atmospheric. This program is located in the Applied Research Division of the Directorate for Applied Science and Research Applications (ASRA). The objective of the Division of Applied Research is to provide an improved scientific understanding of a range of technical, social, economic, and policy problems and to increase the rate of technological innovation growing out of significant discoveries in various fields of science and engineering.

The program for Applied Geophysical and Environmental Sciences will support research to accelerate the rate of technological innovations based on advances in the atmospheric, oceanographic, and earth sciences. This includes, but is not limited to, new or unique methods of exploring for terrestrial or seabed resources as well as techniques for improving the extraction of resources and mineral processing. Ideas that investigators have for the applied research in the geophysical sciences may be discussed with the program manager prior to submittal or submitted as a proposal. Preliminary proposals are not accepted. Proposals should be in the format described in Guidelines for Preparation of Unsolicited Proposals—ASRA, NSF Publication 78–46. Copies of the guidelines may be obtained from the National Science Foundation, Washington, D.C. 20550.
1978 Fall Meeting Report
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The 1978 Fall Meeting was held December 4–8 in San Francisco, California, at the Jack Tar and Holiday Inn‐Golden Gateway hotels. Approximately 1400 papers were presented. Total registration was 2225, of whom 1504 were members, 302 were students, and 419 were nonmembers.

The meeting program and the abstracts of papers were published in the December 1978 issue of EOS, pages 1042–1234. This report includes program changes and postdeadline and revised abstracts.
Horton Award to H.W. Shen
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The 1978 Horton Award was presented to Professor H. W. Shen by Hydrology Section President Leo R. Beard at the Fall AGU Meeting in San Francisco. Shen was selected by a committee consisting of John Bredehoeft, Chairman, Chao‐Lin Chiu, John Dracup, Willem Brutsaert, and James Wallis.

Shen received his Ph.D. under the guidance of H. A. Einstein at Berkeley. He has published extensively during his 14 years at Colorado State University and has contributed significantly to basic research and to the transfer of knowledge between researchers and practicing engineers through the organization of several successful institutes and the publication of reference books. He has been a very prolific contributor in sedimentation. His basic contributions are in the application of stochastic processes to sediment transport and the application of fluid mechanics principles to flow resistance and scour around piers.
Irene Carswell Peden: A vignette
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Irene Carswell Peden is Professor of Electrical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle. She is an educator and radio scientist, who has investigated electromagnetic properties of the polar ionosphere and ice cap at very low frequencies in Antarctica on National Science Foundation grants from the mid‐sixties to 1973. In November 1970 she worked on a field program at Byrd VLF substation; this made her the first American woman engineer or scientist to live and work in the interior of the Antarctic continent (80°S, 120°W).

In 1973 she became Associate Dean of the College of Engineering, with administrative responsibility for college relations, comprising such diverse areas as continuing education, college publications, highschool relations, cooperative education, the engineering development fund, and affirmative action in the College of Engineering. Concluding that although college relations work was interesting, it would not be a satisfying long‐range career, she returned to her academic department in 1977 and resumed her position as Professor of Electrical Engineering.
Fram I
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Fram I, a multinational scientific ice floe station, was established March 11, 1979, 330 miles f r om the North Pole at 84°24.6′N, 06°30.9′W. It is expected the station will be occupied by approximately 16 scientists for about 2 months.

Fram I is a U.S. station with participation by Danish scientists through the Commission for Scientific Research in Greenland, Norwegian scientists through the Norwegian Polar Institute, and U. S. scientists through Lamont‐Doherty Geological Observatory under contract to the Office of Naval Research. The Bedford Institute of Oceanography serves as the Canadian focal point. In the U.S., logistic arrangements are being coordinated by the Polar Research Center, University of Washington, under contract to the Office of Naval Research.
In defense of the bar
Authors: Morse S. A.
Published: October 2011

The bar and kilobar are units of pressure ideally suited to earth sciences and to teaching. The bar is about equal to the atmosphere, a pressure commonly experienced and readily understood by people; millibars and kilobars and megabars are convenient and easily understood multiples. The bar (105 pascals) is a perfectly legitimate secondary unit in the SI. It is very convenient for thermochemical calculations (see Robie et al., U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin, p. 1452, 1978). Then why, oh why do my colleagues, otherwise not famous for their abstemiousness, flee the bar and embrace the pascal? Now a mbar becomes a cPa, or a certified public accountant; a bar, 0.1 MPa; a kbar, 100 MPa or 0.1 GPa; and a Mbar, 100 GPa. Who can relate to these? I'd rather fight than switch.
Protection for whistle blowers
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

The Committee on Scientific Freedom and Responsibility of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has identified eight public laws which include sections that prohibit adverse actions by employers against employees who assist in carrying out the regulatory purpose of the legislation, for instance, by notifying responsible officials of legal violations or possible hazards regulated by the laws.
Comments on: Why do i not accept plate tectonics?
Authors: Şengör A. M. C. , Burke Kevin
Published: October 2011

Our emphasis has not been on citing detailed evidence that shows the weakness of Beloussov's position because we believe that such evidence is both ample and familiar. Rather we draw attention to what we see as his philosophical attitude and historical perspective. Beloussov's position, we conclude, derives from those of the German masters of contractional tectonics. Long before the advent of plate tectonics the inadequacies of this approach had been recognized and its place taken by hypotheses involving large‐scale continental displacements in the writing of such tectonicians as Suess, Argand, and duToit.
Pumping triggers “slow” fault
Authors: Anonymous
Published: October 2011

Groundwater pumping has triggered recent slow movement of the earth along a fault midway between Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona and has produced a 10‐mi‐long, 1‐ft‐high scarp (bump or ridge), according to a new U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior, report.

Thomas L. Holzer, of the USGS Western Region Center, Menlo Park, California, and author of the report, said that although the earth has been moving slowly since 1961 and has proven troublesome for highway and railroad maintenance, the movement has not triggered earthquakes.