Astrometric investigation with the Tautenburg Schmidt telescope

The observations and the plate reduction technique for the determination of positions and absolute proper motions which is used in Potsdam are described. Recent results have shown that an accuracy of about 0 _. 1 for positions and 0 _. ⁷ cent _. ^–1 for proper motions can be achieved both for bright (8^m–12^m) and faint (16^m–18^m) stars. Three astrometric programmes using the Tautenburg plates are presented.     

Investigation of the stable isotope fractionation in speleothems with laboratory experiments

Many speleothems show evidence for calcite precipitation under disequilibrium conditions. To improve the understanding of these kinetic processes, several laboratory experiments were performed to study the fractionation of stable oxygen and carbon isotopes during the precipitation of calcite. Carbonate was precipitated under controlled conditions from both a body of standing water (beaker experiments) and a solution flowing along a channel (channel experiments) at a relative humidity of 100%. Slow degassing of CO₂, simulated by the beaker experiments, results in δ¹⁸O values in equilibrium with the solution. In contrast, the δ¹³C values show a significant enrichment, inversely proportional to the height of the solution in the beakers. Fast degassing of CO₂, simulated by the channel experiments, showed an enrichment of both δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O and a slope of Δδ¹³C/Δδ¹⁸O of 1.4±0.6. These results represent experimental evidence for the Hendy effect, which is manifested in (i) a progressive increase in δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C away from the growth axis and (ii) a positive correlation between δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C along a single growth layer of a stalagmite.     

Crustal structure of the Eastern Alps along the TRANSALP profile from wide-angle seismic tomography

The objective of the TRANSALP project is an investigation of the Eastern Alps with regard to their deep structure and dynamic evolution. The core of the project is a 340-km-long seismic profile at 12°E between Munich and Venice. This paper deals with the P-wave velocity distribution as derived from active source travel time tomography. Our database consists of Vibroseis and explosion seismic travel times recorded at up to 100 seismological stations distributed in a 30-km-wide corridor along the profile. In order to derive a velocity and reflector model, we simultaneously inverted refractions and reflections using a derivative of a damped least squares approach for local earthquake tomography. 8000 travel time picks from dense Vibroseis recordings provide the basis for high resolution in the upper crust. Explosion seismic wide-angle reflection travel times constrain both deeper crustal velocities and structure of the crust–mantle boundary with low resolution. In the resulting model, the Adriatic crust shows significantly higher P-wave velocities than the European crust. The European Moho is dipping south at an angle of 7°. The Adriatic Moho dips north with a gentle inclination at shallower depths. This geometry suggests S-directed subduction. Azimuthal variations of the first-break velocities as well as observations of shear wave splitting reveal strong anisotropy in the Tauern Window. We explain this finding by foliations and laminations generated by lateral extrusion. Based on the P-wave model we also localized almost 100 local earthquakes recorded during the 2-month acquisition campaign in 1999. Seismicity patterns in the North seem related to the Inn valley shear zone, and to thrusting of Austroalpine units over European basement. The alignment of deep seismicity in the Trento-Vicenza region with the top of the Adriatic lower crust corroborates the suggestion of a deep thrust fault in the Southern Alps.     

Permanent Scatterers for landslide investigations: outcomes from the ESA-SLAM project

Within the SLAM project (Service for Landslide Monitoring), launched in 2003 by the European Space Agency (ESA) the Permanent Scatterers (PS) technique, a multi-image interferometric approach, coupled with the interpretation of aerial-photos and optical satellite images, was carried out for landslide investigations. The PS analysis was applied at a regional scale as support for landslide inventory mapping and at local scale for the monitoring of single well-known slope movements. For the integration of the PS measurements within a landslide inventory the Arno river basin (Italy) was chosen as test site for the presence of a high number of mass movements (to date about 300 areas at high landslide risk and more than 27,000 individual landslides mapped by the institutional authorities). About 350 SAR images have been interferometrically processed by means of the PS technique, with the detection of about 600,000 PS. The use of optical images contributed spatial meaning to the point-wise information provided by the PS, making it easier to identify terrain features related to slope instability and the landslide boundaries. Here we describe the employed methodology and its impact in the updating of a preexisting landslide inventory. 6.8% of the total number of landslides were characterized by ground displacement measurements from the PS: 6.1% of already mapped landslides and 0.8% of new unstable areas detected through the PS analysis. Moreover, most of the PS are located in urban areas, showing that the proposed methodology is suitable for landslide mapping in areas with a quite high density of urbanization, but that over vegetated areas it still suffers from the limitations induced by the current space-borne SAR missions (e.g. temporal de-correlation). On the other hand, the use of InSAR for the monitoring of single slow landslides threatening built-up areas has provided satisfactory results, allowing the measurement of superficial deformations with high accuracy on the landslide sectors characterized by a good radar reflectivity and coherence.     

Redetermination of the transformation enthalpies of the xanthoconite–proustite, pyrostilpnite–pyrargyrite and trechmannite–smithite phase transitions

 We report here refined values of the transformation enthalpy for xanthoconite to proustite (54.81 kJ/mol) and pyrostilpnite to pyrargyrite (40.32 kJ/mol). Additionally, the enthalpy for the transformation of trechmannite to smithite (5.82 kJ/mol) has been determined. The refinement was possible by taking into account a previously unknown dependence of electrochemical signals on the amount of substance undergoing the reduction process. Received December 21, 1995/Revised, accepted June 29, 1996     

Regional and temporal changes in epizoobiontic bryozoan-communities of Flustra foliacea (Linnaeus, 1758) and implications for North Sea ecology

Until recently, bryozoans have not been used as indicators for changes in bottom communities or climate control in the North Sea Basin, despite a 200-year history of bryozoan collecting. The epizoobiontic bryozoan fauna of Flustra foliacea (Linnaeus, 1758) was analysed on 51 sample stations kept in four German museums. The samples cover the entire North Sea and different time periods (1776–2008, mainly the period of 1904/1905 compared to 1980–87). Cluster analysis shows a differentiation into a northern and a southern North Sea assemblage. The northern assemblage is characterized by Amphiblestrum flemingii (Busk, 1854), Callopora dumerilii (Audouin, 1826) and Tricellaria ternata (Ellis & Solander, 1786), while the southern North Sea is characterized by Electra pilosa (Linnaeus, 1767), Crisia eburnea (Linnaeus, 1758) and Plagioecia patina (Lamarck, 1816). Spatial separation approximately follows the 50 m depth contour. The temporal distribution patterns of bryozoans are discussed in terms of NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) and temperature variations.     

Predicting seiche hazard for coastal harbours along the northern and western coasts of France

Natural Hazards - Long-period waves propagating inside harbours can lead to the generation of seiche that can affect and significantly disrupt port operations. This study is based on the analysis...     

Density profiles and luminosity functions of the globular clusters M3 and M92

Tautenburg Schmidt plates with the globular clusters M3 and M92 were measured on the APM facility in Cambridge, mainly for astrometric purposes. The data were used to derive the radial density profiles and the luminosity functions of these clusters. There is a good agreement of our results with formerly ones derived by other authors. In both clusters effects of mass segregation are observed.