Destruction of Sun-grazing comet C/2011 N3 (SOHO) within the low solar corona

Observations of comets in Sun-grazing orbits that survive solar insolation long enough to penetrate into the Sun's inner corona provide information on the solar atmosphere and magnetic field as well as on the makeup of the comet. On 6 July 2011, the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) observed the demise of comet C/2011 N3 (SOHO) within the low solar corona in five wavelength bands in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV). The comet penetrated to within 0.146 solar radius (~100,000 kilometers) of the solar surface before its EUV signal disappeared. Before that, material released into the coma--at first seen in absorption--formed a variable EUV-bright tail. During the final 10 minutes of observation by SDO's Atmospheric Imaging Assembly, ~6 × 10(8) to 6 × 10(10) grams of total mass was lost (corresponding to an effective nucleus diameter of ~10 to 50 meters), as estimated from the tail's deceleration due to interaction with the surrounding coronal material; the EUV absorption by the comet and the brightness of the tail suggest that the mass was at the high end of this range. These observations provide evidence that the nucleus had broken up into a family of fragments, resulting in accelerated sublimation in the Sun's intense radiation field.     

Water production of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) observed with the SWAN instrument

The SWAN (Solar Wind ANisotropies) Lyman-alpha all-sky camera on the SOHO spacecraft observed the hydrogen coma of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) from the end of May through mid-August 2000. A systematic set of water-production rates was obtained for this well-documented event of complete fragmentation of a cometary nucleus. The observations indicate that the lower limit for the sunlit surface area of the nucleus was about 1 square kilometer before the fragmentation and that the amount of water released throughout the observing period was 3.3 x 10(9) kilograms. Evidence suggests that the activity of the comet was dominated by successive fragmentation. There were four major outbursts, occurring about every 16 days. The 21 July event led to the complete fragmentation and sublimation of what remained of the nucleus, producing the last 3 x 10(8) kilograms of water. A model where the fragment size distribution follows the power law N(R) approximately R-(2.7), where N and R are the number and radius of fragments, reproduces the observed dissipation. This distribution possibly reflects the internal structure of the nucleus.     

Comet yanaka (1988r): a new class of carbon-poor comet

As part of a program to determine the chemical composition of a sample population of comets, a very unusual comet, Yanaka (1988r), was observed in January 1989. Although the comet showed the usual emissions of Ol and NH(2), it did not display any hint of C(2) or CN emission. The comet is depleted in C(2) by at least a factor of 100 and in CN by a factor of 25 relative to typical comets. If comets originate from interstellar clouds, Yanaka (1988r) could be an interloper from a cloud of different composition. If Yanaka (1988r) was formed within our solar system, the solar nebula was less uniform than assumed by most present models of formation.     

Volatile-rich lunar soil: evidence of possible cometary impact

A subsurface Apollo 16 soil, 61221, is much richer in volatile compounds than soils from any other locations or sites as shown by thermal analysis-gas release measurements. A weight loss of 0.03 percent during the interval 175 degrees to 350 degrees C was associated with the release of water, carbon dioxide, methane, hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen, and minor amounts of hydrocarbons and other species. These volatile components may have been brought to this site by a comet, which may have formed North Ray crater.     

Radar detection of the nucleus and coma of comet hyakutake

Radar observations of comet Hyakutake (C/1996 B2) made at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California have detected echoes from the nucleus and from large grains in the inner coma. The nucleus of this bright comet was estimated to be only 2 to 3 kilometers in diameter. Models of the coma echo indicate backscatter from porous, centimeter-size grains ejected anisotropically at velocities of tens of meters per second. The radar observations suggest that a comet's activity may be a poor indicator of its size and provide evidence that large grains constitute an important component of the mass loss from a typical active comet.     

Spitzer spectral observations of the deep impact ejecta

Spitzer Space Telescope imaging spectrometer observations of comet 9P/Tempel 1 during the Deep Impact encounter returned detailed, highly structured, 5- to 35-micrometer spectra of the ejecta. Emission signatures due to amorphous and crystalline silicates, amorphous carbon, carbonates, phyllosilicates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, water gas and ice, and sulfides were found. Good agreement is seen between the ejecta spectra and the material emitted from comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) and the circumstellar material around the young stellar object HD100546. The atomic abundance of the observed material is consistent with solar and C1 chondritic abundances, and the dust-to-gas ratio was determined to be greater than or equal to 1.3. The presence of the observed mix of materials requires efficient methods of annealing amorphous silicates and mixing of high- and low-temperature phases over large distances in the early protosolar nebula.     

Isotopic compositions of cometary matter returned by Stardust

Hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotopic compositions are heterogeneous among comet 81P/Wild 2 particle fragments; however, extreme isotopic anomalies are rare, indicating that the comet is not a pristine aggregate of presolar materials. Nonterrestrial nitrogen and neon isotope ratios suggest that indigenous organic matter and highly volatile materials were successfully collected. Except for a single (17)O-enriched circumstellar stardust grain, silicate and oxide minerals have oxygen isotopic compositions consistent with solar system origin. One refractory grain is (16)O-enriched, like refractory inclusions in meteorites, suggesting that Wild 2 contains material formed at high temperature in the inner solar system and transported to the Kuiper belt before comet accretion.     

Laboratory simulation of charge exchange-produced X-ray emission from comets

In laboratory experiments using the engineering spare microcalorimeter detector from the ASTRO-E satellite mission, we recorded the x-ray emission of highly charged ions of carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, which simulates charge exchange reactions between heavy ions in the solar wind and neutral gases in cometary comae. The spectra are complex and do not readily match predictions. We developed a charge exchange emission model that successfully reproduces the soft x-ray spectrum of comet Linear C/1999 S4, observed with the Chandra X-ray Observatory.     

稻田土壤氧化态有机碳组分变化及其与甲烷排放的关联性

稻田土壤有机碳是甲烷排放的关键底物之一,不同研究者由于采取的有机碳研究方法不同而得出稻田甲烷排放与土壤有机碳关系的结论不一。为明确影响稻田甲烷排放的土壤有机碳组分,设计了稻田施用不同外源有机碳(稻草还田、鸡粪和猪粪)的田间试验,对稻田甲烷排放和土壤有机碳组分的动态变化及其关联性进行监测和分析。结果表明,猪粪处理的甲烷排放与化肥处理无显著差异,而鸡粪和稻草2个处理的甲烷排放分别比化肥增加1.67倍(P<0.05),2.69倍(P<0.05);甲烷排放量与土壤易氧化有机碳含量显示相同顺序:稻草>鸡粪>猪粪>化肥;通径分析表明,土壤易氧化有机碳组分1(被33 mmol/L KMnO₄氧化的有机碳)与甲烷排放直接相关,其他有机碳组分仅通过组分1间接作用于水稻生育后期甲烷排放,且排放量较低。由此推断,易氧化有机碳组分1是甲烷排放的主要底物,通过有效措施降低肥源中易氧化态有机碳组分1是减排甲烷的关键技术之一。     

Weak northern and strong tropical land carbon uptake from vertical profiles of atmospheric CO2

Measurements of midday vertical atmospheric CO2 distributions reveal annual-mean vertical CO2 gradients that are inconsistent with atmospheric models that estimate a large transfer of terrestrial carbon from tropical to northern latitudes. The three models that most closely reproduce the observed annual-mean vertical CO2 gradients estimate weaker northern uptake of -1.5 petagrams of carbon per year (Pg C year(-1)) and weaker tropical emission of +0.1 Pg C year(-1) compared with previous consensus estimates of -2.4 and +1.8 Pg C year(-1), respectively. This suggests that northern terrestrial uptake of industrial CO2 emissions plays a smaller role than previously thought and that, after subtracting land-use emissions, tropical ecosystems may currently be strong sinks for CO2.     

Carbynes in meteorites: detection, low-temperature origin, and implications for interstellar molecules

Carbon from the Allende meteorite is not graphite but carbyne (triply bonded elemental carbon), inasmuch as on heating to 250 degrees to 330 degrees C it releases mainly triply bonded fragments: -(C identical withC)(n),- with n = 1 to 5, and -(C identical withC)(n)-CN, with n = 1 to 3. Although carbynes have been known to form only by condensation of carbon vapor above 2600 K or by explosive shock of > 600 kilobars, it is found that they also form metastably by the reaction 2CO --> CO(2) + C (solid) at 300 degrees to 400 degrees C in the presence of a chromite catalyst. Such low-temperature formation by surface catalysis may be the dominant source of carbynes on the earth and in meteorites, and a major source of interstellar carbynes and cyanopolyacetylenes.     

Impact features on Stardust: implications for comet 81P/Wild 2 dust

Particles emanating from comet 81P/Wild 2 collided with the Stardust spacecraft at 6.1 kilometers per second, producing hypervelocity impact features on the collector surfaces that were returned to Earth. The morphologies of these surprisingly diverse features were created by particles varying from dense mineral grains to loosely bound, polymineralic aggregates ranging from tens of nanometers to hundreds of micrometers in size. The cumulative size distribution of Wild 2 dust is shallower than that of comet Halley, yet steeper than that of comet Grigg-Skjellerup.     

Water, hydrogen, deuterium, carbon, carbon-13, and oxygen-18 content of selected lunar material

The water content of the breccia is 150 to 455 ppm, with a deltaD from-580 to -870 per mil. Hydrogen gas content is 40 to 53 ppm with a deltaD of -830 to -970 per mil. The CO(2) is 290 to 418 ppm with delta (13)C = + 2.3 to + 5.1 per mil and delta(18)O = 14.2 to 19.1 per mil. Non-CO(2) carbon is 22 to 100 ppm, delta(13)C = -6.4 to -23.2 per mil. Lunar dust is 810 ppm H(2)O (D = 80 ppm) and 188 ppm total carbon(delta(13)C = -17.6 per mil). The (18)O analyses of whole rocks range from 5.8 to 6.2 per mil. The temperature of crystallization of type B rocks is 1100 degrees to 1300 degrees C, based on the oxygen isotope fractionation between coexisting plagioclase and ilmenite.     

Evidence for chain molecules enriched in carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen in comet halley

In situ measurements of the composition and spatial distribution of heavy thermal positive ions in the coma of comet Halley were made with the heavy-ion analyzer RPA2-PICCA aboard the Giotto spacecraft. Above 50 atomic mass units an ordered series of mass peaks centered at 61, 75, 91, and 105 atomic mass units were observed. Each peak appears to be composed of three or more closely spaced masses. The abundances decrease and the dissociation rates increase smoothly with increasing mass. These observations suggest the presence of chain molecules that are enriched in carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen, such as polyoxymethylene (polymerized formaldehyde), in comet Halley.     

Carbon monoxide and nitric oxide consumption in polluted air: the carbon monoxide-hydroperoxyl reaction

A recent laboratory measurement of the ratio of the rate constant for the reaction CO + HO (2) --> C0(2) + OH relative to that for H + HO(2) --> 2OH indicates that the former reaction is probably faster than CO + OH --> CO(2) + H. On this basis a simple analysis is given showing that the calculated lifetime of nitric oxide in polluted atmospheres would be appreciably longer than that estimated on the assumption that the carbon monoxide-hydroperoxyl reaction may be neglected. A fast carbon monoxide-hydroperoxyl reaction implies that the cyclic consumption of carbon monoxide (an atmospheric sink) could occur even with no nitric oxide present.     

HST and VLT investigations of the fragments of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR)

At least 16 fragments were detected in images of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) taken on 5 August 2000 with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and on 6 August with the Very Large Telescope (VLT). Photometric analysis of the fragments indicates that the largest ones have effective spherical diameters of about 100 meters, which implies that the total mass in the observed fragments was about 2 x 10(9) kilograms. The comet's dust tail, which was the most prominent optical feature in August, was produced during a major fragmentation event, whose activity peaked on UT 22.8 +/- 0.2 July 2000. The mass of small particles (diameters less than about 230 micrometers) in the tail was about 4 x 10(8) kilograms, which is comparable to the mass contained in a large fragment and to the total mass lost from water sublimation after 21 July 2000 (about 3 x 10(8) kilograms). HST spectroscopic observations during 5 and 6 July 2000 demonstrate that the nucleus contained little carbon monoxide ice (ratio of carbon monoxide to water is less than or equal to 0.4%), which suggests that this volatile species did not play a role in the fragmentation of C/1999 S4 (LINEAR).     

Carbon, carbides, and methane in an apollo 12 sample

Total carbon in the Apollo 12 sample 12023 fines was 110 micrograms per gram of sample with a carbon isotopic abundance delta(13)C (relative to the Pee Dee belemnite standard) of +12 per mil. Hydrolysis of the fines with deuterium chloride yielded undeuterated methane along with deuterated hydrocarbons, thus confirming the presence of 7 to 21 micrograms of carbon per gram of sample as carbide and about 2 micrograms of carbon per gram of sample as indigenous methane. After vacuum pyrolysis of the fines to 1100 degrees C the following gases were detected in the relative abundance: carbon monoxide carbon dioxide methane. Variations of the delta(13)C value with the pyrolysis temperature indicated the presence of carbon with more than one range of isotopic values. The observed delta(13)C value of +14 per mil for lunar carbide is much higher than that of carbide in meteorites. These results suggest that lunar carbide is either indigenous to the moon or a meteoritic contribution that has been highly fractionated isotopically.     

Organogenic elements and compounds in surface samples from the sea of tranquillity

Organogenic elements, mainly carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur are present in the particulate material and in a breccia rock from Tranquillity Base in amounts ranging from 5 to 4200 parts per million. The major compounds of carbon released by heating are carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide; the former predominates. Small amounts of other compounds of carbon have also been observed. Sulfur can be released as hydrogen sulfide by treatment with acid. The carbon isotopic delta(13L)C values are definitely nonterrestrial (+ 13 to + 18.5 per mil).     

外加碳氮对不同有机碳土壤N2O和CO2排放的影响

以两种有机碳含量不同的土壤为对象,采用室内培养试验方法,研究了外加可溶性碳氮对黄棕壤(高有机碳含量)和紫色土(低有机碳含量)N₂O、CO₂排放的影响。试验设置五种处理分别为:对照(CK),低氮(LN),高氮(HN),低氮配施碳(LNC)和高氮配施碳(HNC).结果表明,土壤有机碳含量较高的黄棕壤各处理N₂O与CO₂排放均高于紫色土。与对照相比,单施氮肥显着促进了两种土壤N₂O排放,紫色土HN处理N₂O排放最高,而黄棕壤LN处理最高;与单施氮肥相比,LNC和HNC处理均显着降低了紫色土N₂O排放,而黄棕壤仅LNC处理N₂O排放显着降低。外源碳的输入显着提高了两种土壤CO₂排放,但单施氮肥对CO₂排放影响不明显。黄棕壤N₂O排放通量与CO₂排放通量呈极显着正相关,而紫色土N₂O排放通量与CO₂排放通量没有相关关系。上述结果说明,外加可溶性碳氮源对土壤呼吸及硝化-反硝化强度有一定的激发效应。     

响应面法优化蓝藻溶藻菌CZBC1发酵培养工艺

[目的]优化蓝藻溶藻菌——蜡样芽孢杆菌CZBC1的发酵培养工艺,为蓝藻溶藻菌制剂的工业化发酵生产提供技术支持.[方法]通过单因素试验筛选适合蜡样芽孢杆菌CZBC1生长的最适碳源和氮源,在单因素试验的基础上,采用中心组合试验设计(CCD)确定关键因子的最佳数量水平,并以Desig-Expert 8.0.5进行回归分析,通过响应面分析获得CZBC1的最佳发酵培养工艺参数.[结果]蜡样芽孢杆菌CZBC1的最佳碳源、氮源分别为麸皮+糖蜜(1:1)和酵母膏.以麸皮+糖蜜用量(A)、酵母膏用量(B)、pH(C)、培养时间(D)为因素变量,CZBC1芽孢数(lgN)为响应值,拟合得到二次多元回归方程为lgN=8.5019-0.2222A+0.0998B-0.1292C+0.3801D+0.2194AB-0.1133AC+0.1350AD+0.2049BC-0.0651BD+0.0638CD-0.1260A2-0.3152B2-0.0380C2-0.2533D2,其中,碳源(麸皮+糖蜜)用量与氮源(酵母膏)用量的交互作用、碳源用量与pH的交互作用、碳源用量与培养时间的交互作用、氮源用量与pH的交互作用对CZBC1芽孢数的影响均达极显著水平(P<0.01,下同).响应面分析优化得到的蜡样芽孢杆菌CZBC1最佳发酵培养参数:麸皮+糖蜜6.84 g/L,酵母膏3.36 g/L,pH 6.50,培养时间42 h.此条件下,CZBC1芽孢数的实际值为5.75×108 CFU/mL,与理论值(5.90×108 CFU/mL)间无显著差异(P>0.05),但极显著高于优化前采用营养肉汤发酵培养的芽孢数(1.28×107 CFU/mL).[结论]采用响应面法优化得出蜡样芽孢杆菌CZBC1最佳发酵培养工艺能有效提高菌株的芽孢数量,且模型拟合效果较好,可用于指导蓝藻溶藻菌制剂的工业化发酵生产.