Paleomagnetic record of a geomagnetic field reversal from late miocene mafic intrusions, southern nevada

Late Miocene (about 8.65 million years ago) mafic intrusions and lava flows along with remagnetized host rocks from Paiute Ridge, southern Nevada, provide a high-quality paleomagnetic record of a geomagnetic field reversal. These rocks yield thermoremanent magnetizations with declinations of 227 degrees to 310 degrees and inclinations of -7 degrees to 49 degrees , defining a reasonably continuous virtual geomagnetic pole path over west-central Pacific longitudes. Conductive cooling estimates for the intrusions suggest that this field transition, and mafic magmatism, lasted only a few hundred years. Because this record comes principally from intrusive rocks, rather than sediments or lavas, it is important in demonstrating the longitudinal confinement of the geomagnetic field during a reversal.     

Pacific geomagnetic secular variation

We have considered several different types of records of long-period geomagnetic secular variation: direct measurements made in geomagnetic observatories; paleomagnetic measurements on Hawaiian lava flows with accurately known ages in the interval 0 to 200 years; paleomagentic measurements on Hawaiian lava flows with loosely determined ages within the interval 200 to 10,000 years ago; and worldwide paleomagnetic measurements of the average geomagnetic angular dispersion recorded in lava flows that formed during the past 0.7 million years. All these magnetic records indicate that, during this time, the nondipole component of the earth's field was lower in the central Pacific than elsewhere, as it is today. This, in turn, indicates that there is some type of inhomogeneity in the lower mantle which is coupled to the earth's core in such a way as to suppress the generation of the nondipole field beneath the central Pacific. With the present incomplete state of knowledge about the processes that give rise to the earth's field, it is uncertain whether undulations in the core-mantle interface or lateral variations in the composition and physical state of the lower mantle are ultimately responsible for the pattern of secular variation seen at the earth's surface.     

Ocean floor spreading: olduvai and gilsa events in the matuyama epoch

The magnetic anomaly usually associated with the Olduvai geomagnetic event (1.96 million years) should probably be associated with the Gilsa event (~ 1.65 million years). The Oldu-vai event can be correlated with a con-sistently appearing minor anomalycalled W. This reassignment gives near-ly uniform spreading rates for sections of the mid-ocean ridge system consid-ere( l here.     

The paleomagnetic field from equatorial deep-sea sediments: axial symmetry and polarity asymmetry

Paleomagnetic data from 89 equatorial deep-sea sediment cores indicate that the configuration of the time-averaged geomagnetic field depends strongly on polarity state but that it remains within 1 degree of axial symmery throughout the Pliocene and Pleistocene (last 5 million years). The relative magnitude of the nondipole field was greater by almost a factor of 2 during reverse than during normal polarity intervals. These results thus support earlier suggestions that there may be a standing (nonreversing) component of the geomagnetic dynamo.     

Magnetic dynamo in the moon: a comparison with the Earth

The assumption that the moon had an internal magnetic field produced in the same way as the geomagnetic field requires that the moon rotated faster than the angular velocity at which it would break up. This suggests that a lunar dynamo is not a tenable explanation for the magnetic remanence observed on the moon.     

Magnetotactic bacteria at the geomagnetic equator

Magnetotactic bacteria are present in fresh water and marine sediments of Fortaleza, Brazil, situated close to the geomagnetic equator. Both South-seeking and North-seeking bacteria are present in roughly equal numbers in the same samples. This observation is consistent with the hypothesis that the vertical component of the geomagnetic field selects the predominant polarity type among magnetotactic bacteria in natural environments.     

South-seeking magnetotactic bacteria in the Northern Hemisphere

Magnetotactic bacteria contain membrane-bound intracellular iron crystals (magnetosomes) and respond to magnetic fields. Polar magnetotactic bacteria in vertical chemical gradients are thought to respond to high oxygen levels by swimming downward into areas with low or no oxygen (toward geomagnetic north in the Northern Hemisphere and geomagnetic south in the Southern Hemisphere). We identified populations of polar magnetotactic bacteria in the Northern Hemisphere that respond to high oxygen levels by swimming toward geomagnetic south, the opposite of all previously reported magnetotactic behavior. The percentage of magnetotactic bacteria with south polarity in the environment is positively correlated with higher redox potential. The coexistence of magnetotactic bacteria with opposing polarities in the same redox environment conflicts with current models of the adaptive value of magnetotaxis.     

Paleomagnetic field reversals and cosmic radiation

Faunal changes observed in association with reversals of the geomagnetic field have been attributed to increased radiation dosages produced by cosmic rays when the field intensity is greatly reduced. However, at currently observed cosmic ray and solar particle intensities, the additional dosages produced at sea level during a period of complete removal of the geomagnetic field are negligible. Furthermore, even complete dumping of the energetic particle in the radiation belts would not give rise to the necessary increased dosages.     

地磁场对广延大气簇射产生的次级带电粒子的偏转效应

用蒙特卡罗模拟的方法研究了在地磁场作用下,广延大气簇射产生的大量次级带电粒子所发生的偏转.研究发现,地磁场对从北方来的次级带电粒子的横向分布的影响比对从南方来的大,导致宇宙线观测阵列的触发效率南高于北,且随天顶角越大这种效应越明显.此外,用一次谐波和二次谐波对大量的模拟数据进行了拟合,给出了此种偏转效应对触发效率的影响程度.     

An Archean Geomagnetic Reversal in the Kaap Valley Pluton, South Africa

The Kaap Valley pluton in South Africa is a tonalite intrusion associated with the Archean Barberton Greenstone Belt. Antipodal paleomagnetic directions determined from the central and marginal parts of the pluton record a geomagnetic reversal that occurred as the pluton cooled. The age of the reversal is constrained by an 40Ar/39Ar plateau age from hornblende at 3214 +/- 4 million years, making it the oldest known reversal. The data presented here suggest that Earth has had a reversing, perhaps dipolar, magnetic field since at least 3.2 billion years ago.     

Lodestone Compass: Chinese or Olmec Primacy?: Multidisciplinary analysis of an Olmec hematite artifact from San Lorenzo, Veracruz, Mexico

Considering the unique morphology (purposefully shaped polished bar with a groove) and composition (magnetic mineral with magnetic moment vector in the floating plane) of M-160, and acknowledging that the Olmec were a sophisticated people who possessed advanced knowledge and skill in working iron ore minerals, I would suggest for consideration that the Early Formative artifact M-160 was probably manufactured and used as what I have called a zeroth-order compass, if not a first-order compass. The data I have presented in this article support this hypothesis, although they are not sufficient to prove it. That M-160 could be used today as a geomagnetically directed pointer is undeniable. The original whole bar may indeed have pointed close to magnetic north-south. The groove functions well as a sighting mark, and the slight angle it makes with the axis of the bar appears to be the result of calibration rather than accident. A negative supporting argument is that M-160 looks utilitarian rather than decorative, and no function for the object other than that of a compass pointer has been suggested by anyone who has examined it critically. Whether such a pointer would have been used to point to something astronomical (zeroth-order compass) or to geomagnetic north-south (first-order compass) is entirely open to speculation. The observation of the family of Olmec site alignments 8 degrees west of north is a curiosity in its own right, and the possibility that these alignments have an astronomical or geomagnetic origin should be explored. I also believe that it is constructive to compare the first millennium Chinese, who used the lodestone compass for geomancy, with the Gulf Coast Olmec since both were agrarian-terrestrial societies. The Olmec's apparent concern with orientation and skillful use of magnetic minerals also stimulates one to draw cross-cultural parallels. The evidence and analysis offered in this article provide a basis for hypotheses of parallel cultural developments in China and the Olmec New World. If the Olmec did discover the geomagnetic orienting properties of lodestone, as did the Han Chinese, it is most reasonable to speculate that they would have used their compass for comparable geomantic purposes. It should, however, be recognized that the Olmec claim, if documented, predates the Chinese discovery of the geomagnetic lodestone compass by more than a millennium. At present, M-160 is a unique artifact and San Lorenzo a unique site: "The first civilized center of Mesoamerica and probably of the New World" (19, p. 89). Further documentation of the Olmec claim must await the discovery of similar artifacts in museums, private collections, or as yet undiscovered Olmec sites. I would welcome communications from anyone possessing information relating to such artifacts. Regardless of shape, purposefully grooved and highly polished specimens of magnetic minerals are of particular interest. It would also be useful for the archeologist excavating Olmec burials and offerings to carefully note their alignments and consider them in a geomantic context. In addition to the discovery of supporting artifacts, establishment of Olmec primacy of the lodestone compass depends on the acquisition of the archeomagnetic data for the Early Formative period. I appeal to archeologists who find good archeomagnetic samples (burned hearths and post-holes) from the Formative periods to convey this information to R. DuBois of the University of Oklahoma. In a few years, the archeomagnetic data should be available for the last three millennia and the possibilities are very exciting.     

Polarity transition records and the geomagnetic dynamo

The Parker-Levy approach to reversals of the geomagnetic field predicts meridional transitional paths of the virtual geomagnetic pole (VGP) which pass either through the site of observation or through its antipode, depending upon the site location and the sense of the polarity transition. Comparison with the most detailed transitional VGP path records presently available gives some indication of the above behavior as predicted by the Parker-Levy model. Discrepancies may be due to complexities in the distribution of cyclonic convection cells in the core not considered in the formal mathematical treatment. The predicted variation in transitional field intensity experienced at any given site also is compatible with several reported transition records.     

Magnetoreception in honeybees

Magnetoreception by honeybees (Apis mellifera) is demonstrated by such activities as comb building and homing orientation, which are affected by the geomagnetic field. In other magnetoreceptive species, iron oxide crystals in the form of magnetite have been shown to be necessary for primary detection of magnetic fields. Here it is shown that trophocytes, which are apparently the only iron granule-containing cells in honeybees, contain super-paramagnetic magnetite. These cells are innervated by the nervous system, which suggests that trophocytes might be primarily responsible for magnetoreception. Electron microscopy also shows cytoskeletal attachments to the iron granule membrane.     

Local geomagnetic events associated with displacements on the san andreas fault

The piezomagnetic properties of rock suggest that a change in subsurface stress will manifest itself as a change in the magnetic susceptibility and remanent magnetization and hence the local geomagnetic field. A differential array of magnetometers has been operating since late 1965 on the San Andreas fault in the search for piezomagnetic signals under conditions involving active fault stress. Local changes in the geomagnetic field have been observed near Hollister, California, some tens of hours preceding the onset of abrupt creep displacement on the San Andreas fault.     

Polarized light cues underlie compass calibration in migratory songbirds

Migratory songbirds use the geomagnetic field, stars, the Sun, and polarized light patterns to determine their migratory direction. To prevent navigational errors, it is necessary to calibrate all of these compass systems to a common reference. We show that migratory Savannah sparrows use polarized light cues from the region of sky near the horizon to recalibrate the magnetic compass at both sunrise and sunset. We suggest that skylight polarization patterns are used to derive an absolute (i.e., geographic) directional system that provides the primary calibration reference for all of the compasses of migratory songbirds.     

Corrected Late Triassic latitudes for continents adjacent to the North Atlantic

We use a method based on a statistical geomagnetic field model to recognize and correct for inclination error in sedimentary rocks from early Mesozoic rift basins in North America, Greenland, and Europe. The congruence of the corrected sedimentary results and independent data from igneous rocks on a regional scale indicates that a geocentric axial dipole field operated in the Late Triassic. The corrected paleolatitudes indicate a faster poleward drift of approximately 0.6 degrees per million years for this part of Pangea and suggest that the equatorial humid belt in the Late Triassic was about as wide as it is today.     

High geomagnetic intensity during the mid-Cretaceous from Thellier analyses of single plagioclase crystals

Recent numerical simulations have yielded the most efficient geodynamo, having the largest dipole intensity when reversal frequency is low. Reliable paleointensity data are limited but heretofore have suggested that reversal frequency and paleointensity are decoupled. We report data from 56 Thellier-Thellier experiments on plagioclase crystals separated from basalts of the Rajmahal Traps (113 to 116 million years old) of India that formed during the Cretaceous Normal Polarity Superchron. These data suggest a time-averaged paleomagnetic dipole moment of 12.5 +/- 1.4 x 10(22) amperes per square meter, three times greater than mean Cenozoic and Early Cretaceous-Late Jurassic dipole moments when geomagnetic reversals were frequent. This result supports a correlation between intervals of low reversal frequency and high geomagnetic field strength.     

40Ar/39Ar Dating of the Brunhes-Matuyama Geomagnetic Field Reversal

Magnetostratigraphic studies are widely used in conjunction with the geomagnetic polarity time scale (GPTS) to date events in the range 0 to 5 million years ago. A critical tie point on the GPTS is the potassium-argon age of the most recent (Brunhes-Matuyama) geomagnetic field reversal. Astronomical values for the forcing frequencies observed in the oxygen isotope record in Ocean Drilling Project site 677 suggest that the age of this last reversal is 780 ka (thousand years ago), whereas the potassium-argon-based estimate is 730 ka. Results from 4039; Ar incremental heating studies on a series of lavas from Maui that straddle the Brunhes-Matuyama reversal give an age of 783 + 11 ka, in agreement with the astronomically derived value. The astronomically based technique appears to be a viable tool for dating young sedimentary sequences.     

中国间接税与直接税的比例关系研究—— IMF政府财政数据支持的解释

利用国际货币基金组织提供的政府财政数据，将世界各国（地区）的税制结构分成六种类型，并对中国间接税比重进行横向比较。结果发现：当前我国基本属于“间接税为主”的税制模式，尽管中国间接税比重在可控范围内，但是已经高于世界经验水平。如果税制结构得不到改善，将逐渐偏离世界发展一般经验规律。在分析影响间接税规模的影响因素基础之上，提出构建与本国经济发展相适应、与宏观经济目标一致的“双主体”税制结构；逐步降低间接税比重、提高直接税比重；提高税收征管水平等政策建议。     

Effect of a near-zero magnetic field on development and flight of oriental armyworm(Mythimna separata)

The geomagnetic field affects all living organisms on the Earth. In this study we investigated the developmental and behavioral effects of rearing Mythimna separata in a near-zero magnetic field(500 n T) compared to the local geomagnetic field(approximately 50 μT). The near-zero magnetic field produced by a Helmholtz coil system significantly lengthened larval and pupal development durations, increased male longevity, and reduced pupal weight, female reproduction, and the relative expression level of the vitellogenin(Vg) gene in newly emerged females. Moreover, the near-zero magnetic field had a considerable negative effect on the mating ratio of M. separata adults. In addition, the moths in the near-zero magnetic field displayed less flight activity late in the night than those in the Earth's normal geomagnetic field, indicating that the flight rhythm of M. separata may be affected by the near-zero magnetic field. Reduction in magnetic field intensity may have negative effects on the development and flight of oriental armyworm, with consequent additional effects on its migration.