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At least 1,063 records · Page 59
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1988

Accretion rate of extraterrestrial matter: Iridium deposited over the last 70 million years

In order to quantify the accretion rate of extraterrestrial matter during the Cenozoic, Ir concentrations were measured in a continuous series of 450 samples across most of the length of piston core LL44-GPC3. LL44-GPC3 is a 25-meter-long, large-diameter piston core of abyssal clay from the central North Pacific. This core contains a nearly continuous record of sedimentation over the last 70 Ma, as this site migrated from a region near the Equator in the late Cretaceous to its present position north of Hawaii. The first-cut survey across the core is nearing completion, and all of the conclusions of the earlier study, in which was reported the concentrations of Ir, Co, and Sb across 9 meters of this core, remain unchanged. The only strongly enhanced Ir concentrations occur at the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) boundary and outside the K-T boundary Ir correlates well with Co, a terrestrial element which is largely present in hydrogenous ferromanganese oxide precipitates from seawater. Concentrations of both elements appear to be inversely correlated with the sedimentation rate. Although the K-T Ir anomaly is unique in magnitude in this core, there are several small bumps in the Ir profile which may reflect smaller accretionary events. The most promising Ir enhancement was observed in a 30 cm section approximately 1 m below the K-T boundary. Preliminary data suggest deposition of an excess across this interval at a time estimate to be approximate 1 Ma before the K-T impact event, but there is insufficient evidence at present to prove that this reflects enhanced accretion of extraterrestrial matter. A detailed model is being prepared of the chemical record of sedimentation in this core using a combined database of 39 elements in approximately 450 samples across the Cenozoic. Preliminary working model indicates that the only sedimentary sources which contribute significantly to the Ir budget in this core are the hydrogenous precipitates and extraterrestrial particulates.

Kyte, Frank T.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Impact production of NO and reduced species

It has recently been suggested that a reported spike in seawater (87)Sr/(86)Sr at the K-T boundary is the signature of an impact-generated acid deluge. However, the amount of acid required is implausibly large. Some about 3 x 10 to the 15th power moles of Sr must be weathered from silicates to produce the inferred Sr spike. The amount of acid required is at least 100 and probably 1000 times greater. Production of 3 x 10 to the 18th power moles of NO is clearly untenable. The atmosphere presently contains only 1.4 x 10 to the 20th power moles of N-sub 2 and 3.8 x 10 to the 19th power moles of O sub 2 If the entire atmosphere were shocked to 2000 K and cooled within a second, the total NO produced would be about 3 x 10 to the 18th power moles. This is obviously unrealistic. A (still to short) cooling time of 10th to the 3rd power sec reduces NO production by an order of magnitude. In passing, we note that if the entire atmosphere had in fact been shocked to 2000 K, acid rain would have been the least of a dinosaur's problems. Acid rain as a mechanism poses poses other difficulties. Recently deposited carbonates would have been most susceptable to acid attack. The researchers' preferred explanation is simply increased continental erosion following ecological trauma, coupled with enchanced levels of CO-sub 2.

Zahnle, K.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Numerical simulations of the profile properties of undeformed first-year sea ice during the growth season

A model is presented for estimating salinity profiles for the first-year sea ice during the growth season, in which ice growth equations were coupled with salt entrapment and brine drainage relations to obtain the relationship between the initial ice salinity and the ice-growth velocity and seawater salinity, as well as the subsequent drainage of brine from the ice. The results obtained were found to be in reasonable agreement with field observations in that they showed characteristic C-shaped profiles similar to natural profiles. The average ice salinity values were also in reasonable agreement with field data. The predicted ice property profiles give composite plate properties that are significantly different from bulk property estimates that would result by assuming that sea ice could be represented as a homogeneous plate.

Cox, G. F. N.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Ozone budgets from the Dynamics and Chemistry of Marine Stratocumulus experiment

Measurements from the Dynamics and Chemistry of marine Stratocumulus experiment have been used to study components of the regional ozone budget. The surface destruction rate is determined by eddy correlation of ozone and vertical velocity measured by a low-flying aircraft. Significant variability is found in the measured surface resistance; it is partially correlated with friction velocity but appears to have other controlling influences as well. The mean resistance is 4190 s/m which is higher (slower destruction) than most previous estimates for seawater. Flux and mean measurements throughout the marine boundary layer are used to estimate the net rate of in situ photochemical production/destruction of ozone. Averaged over the flights, ozone concentration is found to be near steady state, and a net of photochemical destruction of 0.02-0.07 ng/cu m per sec is diagnosed. This is an important confirmation of photochemical model results for the remote marine boundary layer. Ozone vertical distributions above the boundary layer show a strongly layered structure with very sharp gradients. These distributions are possibly related to the stratospheric ozone source.

Kawa, S. R.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Evolution of ore deposits on terrestrial planets

Ore deposits on terrestrial planets materialized after core formation, mantle evolution, crustal development, interactions of surface rocks with the hydrosphere and atmosphere, and, where life exists on a planet, the involvement of biological activity. Core formation removed most of the siderophilic and chalcophilic elements, leaving mantles depleted in many of the strategic and noble metals relative to their chondritic abundances. Basaltic magma derived from partial melting of the mantle transported to the surface several metals contained in immiscible silicate and sulfide melts. Magmatic ore deposits were formed during cooling, fractional crystallization and density stratification from the basaltic melts. Such ore deposits found in earth's Archean rocks were probably generated during early histories of all terrestrial planets and may be the only types of igneous ores on Mars. Where plate tectonic activity was prevalent on a terrestrial planet, temporal evolution of ore deposits took place. Repetitive episodes of subduction modified the chemical compositions of the crust and upper mantles, leading to porphyry copper and molybdenum ores in calc-alkaline igneous rocks and granite-hosted tin and tungsten deposits. Such plate tectonic-induced mineralization in relatively young igneous rocks on earth may also have produced hydrothermal ore deposits on Venus in addition to the massive sulfide and cumulate chromite ores associated with Venusian mafic igneous rock. Sedimentary ore deposits resulting from mechanical and chemical weathering in reducing atmospheres in Archean earth included placer deposits (e.g., uraninite, gold, pyrite ores). Chromite, ilmenite, and other dense unreactive minerals could also be present on channel floors and in valley networks on Mars, while banded iron formations might underlie the Martian northern plains regions. As oxygen evolved in earth's atmosphere, so too did oxide ores. By analogy, gossans above sulfide ores probably occur on Mars, but not submarine ferromanganese nodules and crusts which have precipitated in oxygenated seawater on earth.

Burns, R. G.↗
NASA NTRS1992

In Vivo and in Vitro Chlorophyll-a and Pheophytin-a Concentration Measurements by Laser Fluorometry

Discussed here is the application of a laser fluorescent technique in in vivo and in vitro phyto- and zooplankton analysis involving popular lasers, an impulse YAG laser (lambda = 532 nm) and a steady state He-Cd (lambda = 440 nm). The YAG laser is widely used in laser remote sensing of seawater photoplankton in situ mode, but here we give special attention to its use in the precise estimation of phytoplankton pigments using laser induced fluorescence. The He-Cd laser is a novice in this field and, we believe, very promising. Our methods enable one to detect, in viro, chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration in the water probe up to 10 nanograms per liter, and to measure, in vitro, Chl-a and pheophytin-a (Ph-a) concentrations in acetone extracts of phyto- and zooplankton up to 1 nanogram per liter.

Demidov, A. A.↗
NASA NTRS1992

What determines the volume of the oceans?

The volume of earth's oceans may be determined by a dynamic mechanism involving exchange of water between the crust and the mantle. Fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges are currently submerged to a depth at which the pressure is close to the critical pressure for seawater. This ensures optimal convective heat transport and, hence, maximal penetration of hydrothermal circulation along the ridge axes. The oceanic crust is hydrated to a depth of a kilometer or more and can therefore carry a substantial flux of water to the upper mantle when it is subducted. The current ingassing rate of water by this process is probably at least sufficient to balance the outgassing rate. If the oceans were shallower, as they may have been in the distant past, convective heat transport would be reduced and the depth of hydrothermal penetration and crustal hydration would decrease. Outgassing would exceed ingassing and ocean volume would increase. The system is self-stabilizing as long as the depth of the oceans does not exceed its present value. This mechanism could explain why continental freeboard has remained approximately constant since the Archean despite probable increases in continental area.

Kasting, James F.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Light scattering by marine heterotrophic bacteria

Mie theory is applied to estimate scattering by polydispersions of marine heterotrophic bacteria, and a simple expression is derived for the bacterial scattering coefficient. The error incurred in deriving bacterial optical properties by use of the van de Hulst approximations is computed. The scattering properties of natural bacterial assemblages in three marine environments, Georges Bank, Northeast Channel, and Sargasso Sea, are assessed by applying Mie theory to field data on bacterial size and abundance. Results are used to examine the potential contribution of bacteria to the scattering properties of seawater. The utility of using pigment data to predict the magnitude of scattering by bacteria is discussed.

Ulloa, Osvaldo↗
NASA NTRS1992

Variations in the methanesulfonate to sulfate molar ratio in submicrometer marine aerosol particles over the south Pacific Ocean

Seawater concentrations of dimethylsulfide (DMS) and atmospheric concentrations of DMS, sulfur dioxide, methanesulfonate (MSA), and non-sea-salt (nss) sulfate were measured over the eastern Pacific Ocean between 105 deg and 110 deg W from 20 deg N to 60 deg S during February and March 1989. Although the samples collected in the Southern Hemisphere appear to be of marine origin, no significant correlation was found between the latitudinal distributions of DMS, SO2, MSA, and nss SO4(2-). However, an inverse correlation was found between atmospheric temperature and the MSA to nss SO4(2-) molar ratio in submicrometer aerosol particles with a decrease in temperature corresponding to an increase in the molar ratio. Although this trend is consistent with laboratory results indicating the favored production of MSA at lower temperatures, it is contrary to Southern Hemisphere baseline station data. This suggests either a decrease in the supply of DMS relative to nonmarine sources of nss SO4(2-) at the baseline stations in winter or additional mechanisms that affect the relative production of MSA and nss SO4(2-).

Bates, Timothy S.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Macrofossil records of West Antarctic Ice Sheet retreat during the Holocene

Marine macrofossils in emerged beaches around Antarctica represent a geochemical framework for interpreting meltwater signatures associated with variations in the adjacent ice sheet margins during the last 10,000 years. In particular, mollusc species provide ideal experimental templates for assessing hydrochemical variations in Antarctic coastal marine environments because of their excellent preservation, high abundances, circumpolar distributions, and carbonate shells, which incorporate trace elements and stable isotopes. Modern samples of the bivalve Adamussium colbecki, which were collected across a depth gradient in the vicinity of a glacial meltwater stream in West McMurdo Sound, revealed shell trace element concentrations that were significantly higher above 10 meters because of their exposure to meltwater runoff. This meltwater signature also was reflected by the shell oxygen isotopic composition, which was in equilibrium with the ambient seawater, as demonstrated by the overlap between the predicted and actual O-(delta-18)sub w values. These modern samples provide analogs for interpreting the geochemical records in their fossils, which were based solely on molluscan fossils, complement the above geochemical data by suggesting that the rate of beach emergence fluctuated around Antarctica during the mid-Holocene. Paleoenvironmental analysis of macrofossils from emerged beaches represents a new direction in Antarctic research that can be used to assess changes in the margins of the ice sheets since the Last Glacial Maximum. The resolution of these analyses will be enhanced by collaborations that are developing with scientists who are conducting comparable studies in other coastal regions around the continent.

Berkman, Paul Arthur↗
NASA NTRS1992

Ocean interactions with the base of Amery Ice Shelf, Antarctica

Using a two-dimensional ocean themohaline circulation model, we varied the cavity shape beneath Amery Ice Shelf in an attempt to reproduce the 150-m-thick marine ice layer observed at the 'G1' ice core site. Most simulations caused melting rates which decrease the ice thickness by as much as 400 m between grounding line and G1, but produce only minor accumulation at the ice core site and closer to the ice front. Changes in the sea floor and ice topographies revealed a high sensitivity of the basal mass balance to water column thickness near the grounding line, to submarine sills, and to discontinuities in ice thickness. Model results showed temperature/salinity gradients similar to observations from beneath other ice shelves where ice is melting into seawater. Modeled outflow characteristics at the ice front are in general agreement with oceanographic data from Prydz Bay. We concur with Morgan's inference that the G1 core may have been taken in a basal crevasse filled with marine ice. This ice is formed from water cooled by ocean/ice shelf interactions along the interior ice shelf base.

Hellmer, Hartmut H.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Bromoalkane production by Antarctic ice algae

Ice microalgae, collected from the underside of annual sea ice in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, were found to contain and release to seawater a number of brominated hydrocarbons. These included bromoform, dibromomethane, mixed bromochloromethanes, and methyl bromide. Atmospheric measurements in the McMurdo Sound vicinity revealed the presence of bromoform and methyl bromide in the lower atmosphere, with lowest concentrations inland, further indicating that biogenic activity in the Sound is a source of organic bromine gases to the Antarctic atmosphere. This may have important implications for boundary layer chemistry in Antarctica. In the Arctic, the presence of bromoform has been linked to loss of surface ozone in the spring. We report here preliminary evidence for similar surface ozone loss at McMurdo Station.

Sturges, W. T.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Emissions of sulfur gases from marine and freshwater wetlands of the Florida Everglades - Rates and extrapolation using remote sensing

Rates of emissions of the biogenic sulfur (S) gases carbonyl sulfide (COS), methyl mercaptan (MSH), dimethyl sulfide (DMS), and carbon disulfide (CS2) were measured in a variety of marine and freshwater wetland habitats in the Florida Everglades during a short duration period in October using dynamic chambers, cryotrapping techniques, and gas chromatography. The most rapid emissions of over 500 nmol/sq m/h occurred in red mangrove-dominated sites that were adjacent to open seawater and contained numerous crab burrows. Poorly drained red mangrove sites exhibited lower fluxes of about 60 nmol/sq m/h, which were similar to fluxes from the black mangrove areas which dominated the marine-influenced wetland sites in the Everglades. DMS was the dominant organo-S gas emitted especially in the freshwater areas. Spectral data from a scene from the Landsat TM were used to map habitats in the Everglades. Six vegetation categories were delineated using geographical information system software and S gas emissions were extrapolated for the entire Everglades National Park. The black mangrove-dominated areas accounted for the largest portion of S gas emissions to the area. The large area extent of the saw grass communities accounted for about 24 percent of the total S emissions.

Hines, Mark E.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Methyl halide production associated with kelp

Methyl halides (MeX) are important trace constituents of the atmosphere because they, mostly MeCl, have a major impact on the atmospheric ozone layer. Also, MeCl may account for 5 pct. of the total Cl budget and MeI may have a central role in the biogeochemical cycling of iodine. High MeI concentrations were found in seawater from kelp beds and it has been suggested that MeI is produced by kelps and that MeI and MeBr along with numerous other halocarbons were released by non-kelp marine macroalgae. The objective was to determine if kelps (and other seaweeds) are sources of MeX and to assess their contribution to the estimated global source strength (EGSS) of MeX. Although the production of MeX appears to be associated with kelp, microbes involved with kelp degradation also produce MeX. Microbial MeX production may be of global significance. The microbial MeX production potential, assuming annual kelp production equals kelp degradation and 100 pct. conversion of kelp halides to MeX, is approx. 2 x the EGSS. This is not achieved but indicates that microbial production of MeX may be of global significance.

Dastoor, Minoo N.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Chemical weathering on Mars: Rate of oxidation of iron dissolved in brines

Salts believed to occur in Martian regolith imply that brines occur on Mars, which may have facilitated the oxidation of dissolved Fe(2+) ions after they were released during chemical weathering of basaltic ferromagnesian silicate and iron sulfide minerals. Calculations show that the rate of oxidation of Fe(2+) ions at -35 C in a 6M chloride-sulfate brine that might exist on Mars is about 10(exp 6) times slower that the oxidation rate of iron in ice-cold terrestrial seawater.

Burns, Roger G.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Emissions of sulfur gases from marine and freshwater wetlands of the Florida Everglades: Rates and extrapolation using remote sensing

Rates of emissions of the biogenic sulfur (S) gases carbonyl sulfide (COS), methyl mercaptan (MSH), dimethyl sulfide (DMS), and carbon disulfide (CS2) were measured in a variety of marine and freshwater wetland habitats in the Florida Everglades during a short duration period in October using dynamic chambers, cryotrapping techniques, and gas chromatography. The most rapid emissions of greater than 500 nmol/m(sup -2)h(sup -1) occurred in red mangrove-dominated sites that were adjacent to open seawater and contained numerous crab burrows. Poorly drained red mangrove sites exhibited lower fluxes of approximately 60 nmol/m(sup -2)h(sup -1) which were similar to fluxes from the black mangrove areas which dominated the marine-influenced wetland sites in the Everglades. DMS was the dominant organo-S gas emitted especially in the freshwater areas. Spectral data from a scene from the Landsat thematic mapper were used to map habitats in the Everglades. Six vegetation categories were delineated using geographical information system software and S gas emission were extrapolated for the entire Everglades National Park. The black mangrove-dominated areas accounted for the largest portion of S gas emissions to the area. The large area extent of the saw grass communities (42 percent) accounted for approximately 24 percent of the total S emissions.

Hines, Mark E.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Development of a unique polyurethane primer/topcoat

USBI Company, a Division of Pratt & Whitney Government Engines and Space Propulsion, is involved in corrosion and environmental research and development activities both at their headquarters in Huntsville, Alabama and their Florida Operations at Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The programs involve the development of environmentally compatible materials that improve the corrosion protection of expensive Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB) that are part of the Space Shuttle systems developed and managed by Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Coatings For Industry, a paint manufacturer in Souderton, PA helped formulate and produce the first lot of BOOSTERCOAT paint. High strength aluminum aerospace flight hardware exposed to harsh seacoast environments and seawater immersion presently uses high volatile organic compound (VOC) chromated and lead bearing primers and epoxy topcoats for corrosion protection. Epoxy paint tends to be brittle and has relatively low ultraviolet (UV) exposure resistance. A unique, environmentally compatible, non-leaded/non-chromated, low VOC polyurethane single coat (primer/topcoat) trade named BOOSTERCOAT has been developed for excellent corrosion protection, flexibility, adhesion, chemical and solvent resistance properties. This report will discuss the development of BOOSTERCOAT and the potential opportunities for commercial use in the energy, transportation, chemical, maritime, structural fields.

Novak, Howard L.↗
NASA NTRS1994

SeaWiFS technical report series. Volume 21: The heritage of SeaWiFS. A retrospective on the CZCS NIMBUS Experiment Team (NET) program

The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) mission is based on the scientific heritage of the Coastal Zone Color Scanner (CZCS), a proof-of-concept instrument carried on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) NIMBUS-7 environmental satellite for the purpose of measuring upwelling radiance from the ocean surface. The CZCS mission provided the first observations of ocean color from space, and over the mission lifetime of 1978-1986, allowed oceanographers an initial opportunity to observe the variable patterns of global biological productivity. One of the key elements of the CZCS mission was the formation of the CZCS NIMBUS Experiment Team (NET), a group of optical physicists and biological oceanographers. The CZCS NET was designated to validate the accuracy of the CZCS radiometric measurements and to connect the instrument's measurements to standard measures of oceanic biological productivity and optical seawater clarity. In the period following the cessation of CZCS observations, some of the insight and experience gained by the CZCS NET activity has dissipated as several proposed follow-on sensors failed to achieve active status. The Sea WiFS mission will be the first dedicated orbital successor to CZCS it in turn precedes observations by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) of the Earth Observing System (EOS). Since the CZCS NET experience is an important model for Sea WiFS and MODIS surface truth efforts, this document is intended to provide a comprehensive review of the validation of oceanographic data for the first orbital ocean color sensor mission. This document also summarizes the history of the CZCS NET activities. The references listed in the Bibliography are a listing of published scientific research which relied upon the CZCS BET algorithms, or research which was conducted on the basis of CZCS mission elements.

Acker, James G.↗