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The extinction coefficient of NO2 has been measured in the spectral range from 185 to 410 nm as a function of temperature between 235 and 298 K. In order to correct for the effect of dimer absorption, the extinction coefficient of N2O4 has also been measured. The effect of a decrease in temperature on NO2 absorption is a reduction in the extinction coefficient of approximately 10% in the range from 320 to 380 nm.
Infrared observations of the compact sources and background in the galactic center are used to derive the 1.25-12.5-micron interstellar extinction law. The depth of the interstellar 10-micron silicate absorption feature is derived from observations of the M supergiant IRS 7. The ratio of visual to silicate extinction is found to be 8 + or - 3. From the colors of individual sources and the background, it is concluded that there are no more than 6 mag of visual extinction within the central 3 pc of the galactic center.
Direct physical evidence is presented for an unusual event at exactly the time of extinctions in the planktonic realm. Deep-sea limestones exposed in Italy, Denmark, and New Zealand indicate iridium increases of about 30, 160, and 20 times, respectively, above the background level at precisely the time of the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinctions, 65 million years ago. Reasons are given that this iridium is of extraterrestrial origin, but did not come from a nearby supernova. A hypothesis is set forth which accounts for the extinctions and the iridium observations. One prediction of this hypothesis is verified, that the chemical composition of the boundary clay, which is thought to come from the stratospheric dust, is markedly different from that of clay mixed with the chemically similar Cretaceous and Tertiary limestones.
Calculations have been made on the theoretical extinction of spherical graphite particles from 130 to 3500 nm. It is found that graphite particles of radius near 20 nm can have small (0.5 nm) coatings and still be responsible for the 220 nm peak in the interstellar extinction curve. New calculations also show that the effect of finite particle size is relatively unimportant in determining the extinction of graphite spheres at 220 nm.
This paper discusses the inversion problem for aerosols using the solar extinction method. A series of numerical experiments is described in which solar extinction measurement systems are modeled. A numerical model of a solar extinction measurement system has been coupled with model atmospheres that exhibit fine scale structures to produce numerically generated data signals. These signals were then inverted to study the effect that measurement errors and desired vertical resolution produce in the inverted results. Knowledge o2 the trade off between vertical resolution and the accuracy of inversion aid in the interpretation of the inverted results.
The International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) was used to obtain low resolution absolute ultraviolet energy distributions for the four Trapezium stars Theta(1) Orionis A, B, C, and D, Theta(2) Orionis A and B, HD 147889, and several unreddened standard stars. The observations for Theta(1) Orionis B reveal a peculiar extended object. The measurements for the rest of the stars were used to derive UV extinction curves. The derived curves are very different from the average galactic curve. The curves for the Orion stars all exhibit smaller than normal middle and far-UV extinctions. Although a 2175 A feature is present, its strength, when normalized to E(B-V), is smaller than in the average galactic curve. In contrast, the curve for HD 147889 has a pronounced 2175 A feature followed by smaller than normal extinction for an inverse wavelength between 5 and 7 per micron.
In 1979-80, ultraviolet spectrophotometry of RY Sgr was obtained by the International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) during the star's recovery from its 1977-78 minimum. The wavelength dependence of the extinction of this R Coronae Borealis-type variable was determined by comparison of spectra obtained at different times but with nearly the same pulsational phase. The measured wavelength dependence is compatible with theoretical predictions of extinction by spherical graphite particles having a radius of 0.043 micron and with the extinction observed for amorphorus carbon smoke.
A number of investigations, including those reported by Orth et al. (1981), have provided physical evidence for the impact of an extraterrestrial object on earth 65 million years ago. This time corresponds to the end of the cretaceous period. This impact could, therefore, be responsible for the observed extinction of biological species at the end of the Mesozoic era. Among the species becoming extinct are found also flying and walking dinosaurs, which include all land animals that had masses greater than 25 kg. The present investigation is concerned with a study of the possibilities for the collision of earth with 10 km-size object, and the consequences produced by such a collision. It is found that the penetration of the atmosphere by the bolide creates a temporary hole in the atmosphere. The resulting flow fields can inject melt droplets and finely commuted solid particles into the atmosphere. Short-term effects of heating, followed by dust induced worldwide cooling, may provide several mechanisms for the observed extinction of the species.
A parametric study is presented of the effects of the size distribution and composition of stratospheric aerosols on the value R, the ratio of the extinction of solar radiation at wavelength 0.45 micron to the extinction at wavelength 1.0 micron. The aerosol size distributions under study comprise nine analytical expressions, including most of the stratospheric aerosol models used by investigators. The aerosol compositions considered are the supercooled sulfuric-acid droplets, with different weight percentages of H2SO4 in the aerosol. It is found that whereas R is not very sensitive to either the composition or the radii limits of the stratospheric aerosols under consideration, it is quite sensitive to the value of the variable parameter governing the mode radius of the size distribution of aerosol particles. The results of the parametric study underlie the method proposed here of retrieving the size distribution of aerosol particles in the stratosphere from the experimental results of the extinction of solar radiation at two wavelengths.
The extinction of laminar premixed flames by stretch and radiative loss is studied for the model problem of counterflow opposed-jet combustion by using the matched asymptotic expansion technique for the highly temperature sensitive processes of radiative heat loss and large-activation-energy reaction kinetics. Explicit expressions for the critical Damkoehler number at extinction are derived and the influence of upstream vs downstream heat losses assessed. Results show that stretch exerts a much stronger influence than radiative loss on flame extinction.
Correlations between UV extinction parameters and diffuse band strengths are south, using a data base of 50 stars with recently measured extinction curves. A novel aspect of this study is that the basic dependence of most interstellar parameters on E(B-V) (or, nearly equivalently, on the total hydrogen column density) has been largely canceled out. After this cancellation, a weak correlation is found between the 4430 A diffuse band and the 2175 A extinction feature. No other correlations are found. These results support a molecular origin for the 5780 A and 6284 A bands. It is speculated that the correlation pattern found for the 4430 A band can be explained if this band originates in reactions on disordered grain surfaces.
New IUE observations and available data for O and B stars new Cep OB3 are presented, and extinction curves for the stars are derived. The differences in those curves are examined in detail, showing that while the level of the far-UV extinction differs greatly throughout the region, the shape of the 2175 A bump does not. The different curves form a family which can be parametrized by the strength of the bump per E(B-V). This suggests that some single physical process dominates the modification of the grains in the region. Evidence is presented which indicates that this process is related to the evolution of the grains once they emerge from the Cep OB3 molecular cloud. The practicality of using the strength of the bump per E(B-V) for dereddening stars in a region where the form of the UV extinction differs from place to place is demonstrated.
Lidar and albedo data for a single day on which aerosols increased the surface plus atmospheric albedo above values measured on two surrounding very clean days are presented. The slant-lidar extinction measurement technique used is described along with the equipment and operating procedures. The derivation of optical depths, backscatter-to-extinction ratios, and extinction profiles is addressed, and the use of the lidar-derived optical depths in calculating expected albedo change is considered. Measured and calculated albedo changes are compared, and the results are found to agree within experimental uncertainties.
The four particular classes of premixed flames which are of special interest include freely propagating gaseous flames, burner stabilized premixed gaseous flames, freely propagating particle-cloud flames, and burner stabilized two-phase flames. Associated gravitational effects are related to upward flame propagation, downward flame propagation, and flame propagation in microgravity. The results of theoretical and experimental studies suggest that a comprehensive approach to representation of extinction limits must deal with the full range of existence limits observed for flames. Issues awaiting solution are related to the flammability limits, extinction limit relations, and flame theories for g = 0. Attention is given to theoretical considerations, nonadiabatic features of premixed lycopodium-air flames, and general comments on the extinction conditions for premixed flames.
The behavior of the zonal mean aerosol extinction ratio in the lower stratosphere near 75 deg N and its relationship with the zonal mean temperature during the January-February 1979 stratospheric sudden warming have been investigated based on the satellite sensor SAM II (Stratospheric Aerosol Measurement) and auxiliary meteorological measurements. The results indicate that distinct changes in the zonal mean aerosol extinction ratio occurred during this stratospheric sudden warming. It is also found that horizontal eddy transport due to planetary waves may have played a significant role in determining the distribution of the zonal mean aerosol extinction ratio.
A theoretical analysis is presented to study the extinction characteristics of a diffusion flame near the leading edge of a thin fuel plate in slow, forced convective flows in a microgravity environment. The mathematical model includes two-dimensional Navier-Stokes momentum, energy and species equations with one-step overall chemical reaction using second-order finite rate Arrhenius kinetics. Radiant heat loss on the fuel plate is applied in the model as it is the dominant mechanism for flame extinguishment in the small convective flow regime. A parametric study based on the variation of convective flow velocity, which varies the Damkohler number (Da), and the surface radiant heat loss parameter (S) simultaneously, is given. An extinction limit is found in the regime of slow convective flow when the rate of radiant heat loss from fuel surface outweighs the rate of heat generation due to combustion. The transition from existent envelope flame to extinguishment consists of gradual flame contraction in the opposed flow direction together with flame temperature reduction as the convective flow velocity decreases continuously until the extinction limit is reached. A case of flame structure subjected to surface radiant heat loss is also presented and discussed.
A near-infrared (1.8 to 3.5) microns extinction curve for the Orion molecular cloud is presented. The curve is derived from high-resolution spectra of the Orion H2 source recorded from the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. The data reveal that the Orion extinction law is indistinguishable from a 1/lambda form in the near-infrared, except for strongly enhanced extinction near a wavelength of about 3 microns. The implications of these results, in the context of current interstellar grain models, are discussed.
Observations were obtained at wavelengths from 1.5 to 7.5 microns with beams varying in diameter from 4 to 28 arcsec of infrared hydrogen recombination lines toward the Mon R2 IRS1 H II region. It is found that the data cannot be fitted with the extinction law which characterizes the interstellar medium unless the obscuring matter is clumped on a small scale of not greater than 0.3 arcsec; in which case considerable fluctuations in the amount of extinction on scales smaller than 1 arcsec are expected. The data of Simon et al. (1983) suggest a dip in the extinction about 5 arcsec from the 2-micron and radio continuum peak, and rule out models with uniform dust and clump distributions.