Analysis of solutions to the inverse problem on the retrieval of the microstructure of stratospheric aerosol from satellite measurements

A statistical ensemble of microphysical parameters of the background stratospheric aerosol at altitudes of 15 to 30 km is modeled on the basis of experimental data. The aerosol attenuation coefficients (AACs) in the wavelength range 0.38–16.3 μm are calculated for all realizations of the ensemble by algorithms of the Mie theory. Analysis of correlations between the AACs and the microphysical parameters indicate that the AAC correlates most strongly with the total volume V and area S of all particles. The errors of determining the microphysical parameters from AAC measurements are analyzed via the method of linear regression. It is shown that, if the AAC is measured with an error of 5%, the errors of determining both the particle size distribution (PSD) for particles with sizes of 0.4 to 4 μm and the parameter S are an order of magnitude smaller than the prior uncertainty, whereas the error of determining V is two orders of magnitude smaller than the prior uncertainty. Schemes of AAC measurements with the SAGE III, ISAMS, CLAES, HALOE instruments and an IR interferometer in the visible and IR regions are discussed. It is shown that combining the schemes makes it possible to extend the range of particle sizes for which the PSD is retrieved with a satisfactory accuracy and to increase the accuracy of determining S and V substantially and the accuracy of determining the total number of particles N _opt to a lesser extent. Examples of interpreting AAC measurements carried out simultaneously with the SAGE III and HALOE instruments within the same spatial region are presented. A systematic discrepancy between vertical profiles of S and V obtained from SAGE III and HALOE measurements is revealed.     

New Orbit and Estimate of the Mass of the Star 61 Cygni Based on Observations of it in 1819-2019

Astrophysics - This paper is a continuation of our earlier work devoted to determining the orbit and mass of the star 61 Cyg and the changes in the photometric characteristics of its components....     

Geochronology of Alkaline Rocks of the Aryskan Rare Metal Deposit,East Sayan

Doklady Earth Sciences - The temporal relations between alkaline rocks of the Aryskan rare metal (Y, REEs, Nb, Ta) deposit are determined using metamict zircon with high U and Th contents, which...     

Climatic variations of general atmospheric circulation, precipitation and river flow of the territory of Kazakhstan

Methods of calculating the basic hydrological characteristics of a water resource assessment, as well as the planning and management of their long-term use are based upon the concept of stationarity of long-term flow fluctuations. However, data of researches by hydrologists and climatologists clearly indicate that there are long-period changes in the characteristics of precipitation and river flow. This article discusses the variations of annual precipitation and river flow in the Ishim River Basin in Kazakhstan, based on the W, C and E classification developed by G.Y. Vangengeim who analyzed the long-term variability of anomalies by the number of days with some form of atmospheric circulation. From this study, the largest anomaly of the macro-circulation processes was revealed, and a comparative analysis of the number of days with various forms of atmospheric circulation and precipitation anomalies was made. It was demonstrated that the nature of atmospheric circulation depends on the distribution of precipitation; however, precipitation is also highly dependent on local physiographic conditions. The analysis of anomalous precipitation during the maximum number of days of positive anomalies with various forms of atmospheric circulation was also carried out. This study presents some results from the preliminary analysis of annual river flow linked with forms of atmospheric circulation.     

Geochemical aspects of accumulation of macroelements in the subcolloidal fraction of bottom sediments at the Razdol’naya River-Amur Bay cross-section (the Sea of Japan)

The concentration of Si, Al, Mg, K, Ca, Na, Sr, and Ba in the subcolloidal fraction of sediments at the Razdol’naya River-Amur Bay cross-section is determined using the atomic emission spectroscopy method. Computed is the mean content of studied elements in the soil and river bottom sediments (to the mixing zone). Revealed are river bottom sediments with the high concentration of macroelements corresponding to the zone of mixing of fresh river water and salt sea water. It is demonstrated that the additional accumulation of macroelements (Ca, Na, and Sr) in these sediments is associated with the formation of hydroxides of Fe and Mn and processes of sorption (Mg, Ca, Na, K, Sr, and Ba) on clay minerals (hydromica and smectites).     

Geochemistry and petrogenesis of Permian ultramafic-mafic complexes of the Jinping–Song Da rift (southeastern Asia)

The Jinping–Song Da rift structure in the Emeishan Large Igneous Province is composed of Permian high- and low-Ti volcanic and volcanoplutonic ultramafic-mafic associations of different compositions and genesis. High-Ti picrites, picrobasalts, basalts, and dolerites are enriched in LREE and depleted in HREE and show low Al₂O₃/TiO₂ ratios (~4), commensurate ε_Nd(T) values (+0.5 to +1.1), and low (Th/Nb)_PM ratios similar to those of OIB-enriched mantle source. The established geochemical characteristics evidence that the parental melts of these rocks were generated from garnet lherzolite at the depths of garnet stability (~200 to 400 km). Later, high-Mg low-Ti volcanics (komatiites, komatiitic basalts, and basalts) and associating small peridotite-gabbro massifs and komatiite-basalt dikes were produced as a result of ~20% partial melting of depleted water-poor (≤0.03 wt.% H₂O) peridotite substratum from the hottest upper part of mantle plume at relatively shallow depths (100–120 km). The LREE-depleted komatiites and komatiitic basalts are characterized by low (Ce/Yb)_CH values, ¹⁸⁷Re/¹⁸⁸Os = 0.05–1.2, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr = 0.704–0.706, positive ε_Nd(T) values (+3 to +8), γ_Os = –0.5 to +0.9, and strong negative anomalies of Ba, K, and Sr on the spidergrams. The scarcer LREE-enriched komatiites, komatiitic basalts, and basalts vary greatly in chemical composition and values of ε_Nd(t) (+6.4 to –10.2), ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (0.706–0.712), and γ_Os (+14.8 to +56), which is due to the different degrees of crustal contamination of parental magmas. The Rb-Sr isotopic age of basaltic komatiite is 257 ± 24 Ma. The Re-Os age determined by analysis of 12 komatiite samples is 270 ± 21 Ma. These data agree with the age of flood basalts of the Emeishan Large Igneous Province. The komatiite-basalt complex of the Song Da rift is still the only Phanerozoic PGE-Cu-Ni-complex of this composition. The geochemistry of accompanying Cu-Ni-PGE-ores confirms their relationship with komatiite-basaltic magmatism.     

Accumulation of Heavy Metals by Amur Bay Sediments (the Sea of Japan) under the Effect of Biochemical Factors

Water Resources - The average concentrations of elements Fe, Mn, Zn, Pb, Cu, Cr, V, Co, Cd, Ni, As, and Mo in the subcolloidal fraction of bottom sediments were determined in the northern and...