Low pressure and desiccation effects on methanogens: Implications for life on Mars     

Timothy A. Kral  Travis S. Altheide  Adrienne E. Lueders  Andrew C. Schuerger 《Planetary and Space Science》2011,59(2-3):264-270

Conditions on the surface of Mars would appear to be too hostile for life as we know it. But the subsurface is another matter. If liquid water is present, even intermittently, life forms present would at least be protected from the lethal radiation bombarding the surface. However, life would have to contend with variations in pressure and possibly extended periods of desiccation. The research reported here involves both active metabolism (methanogenesis) at 400 and 50 mbar of pressure, pressures that would be found in the near subsurface of Mars, and survival following desiccation at both 1 bar (a pressure that would be found in the Martian subsurface) and 6 mbar (the lowest pressure at the surface and very near subsurface). The three methanogens tested for active metabolism, Methanothermobacter wolfeii, Methanosarcina barkeri and Methanobacterium formicicum, all demonstrated methane production at both 400 and 50 mbar on JSC Mars-1, a Mars soil simulant. Methane production at 50 mbar was much reduced compared to that at 400 mbar, most likely due to the greater stress at the lower pressure. In desiccation survival experiments, M. barkeri had survived 330 days of desiccation at 1 bar, while M. wolfeii and M. formicicum survived 180 and 120 days, respectively. Methanococcus maripaludis did not survive desiccation at all at 1 bar. At 6 mbar, M. wolfeii, M. barkeri and M. formicicum survived 120 days of desiccation while M. maripaludis survived 60 days. These results along with results from previous research would seem to indicate that there is no reason that methanogens could not inhabit the subsurface of Mars.  相似文献   

H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O storage capacity of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene from 10 to 13 GPa: consequences for dehydration melting above the transition zone   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Travis?J.?TennerEmail author  Marc?M.?Hirschmann  Anthony?C.?Withers  Paola?Ardia 《Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology》2012,163(2):297-316

The onset of hydrous partial melting in the mantle above the transition zone is dictated by the H₂O storage capacity of peridotite, which is defined as the maximum concentration that the solid assemblage can store at P and T without stabilizing a hydrous fluid or melt. H₂O storage capacities of minerals in simple systems do not adequately constrain the peridotite water storage capacity because simpler systems do not account for enhanced hydrous melt stability and reduced H₂O activity facilitated by the additional components of multiply saturated peridotite. In this study, we determine peridotite-saturated olivine and pyroxene water storage capacities at 10–13 GPa and 1,350–1,450°C by employing layered experiments, in which the bottom ~2/3 of the capsule consists of hydrated KLB-1 oxide analog peridotite and the top ~1/3 of the capsule is a nearly monomineralic layer of hydrated Mg# 89.6 olivine. This method facilitates the growth of ~200-μm olivine crystals, as well as accessory low-Ca pyroxenes up to ~50 μm in diameter. The presence of small amounts of hydrous melt ensures that crystalline phases have maximal H₂O contents possible, while in equilibrium with the full peridotite assemblage (melt + ol + pyx + gt). At 12 GPa, olivine and pyroxene water storage capacities decrease from ~1,000 to 650 ppm, and ~1,400 to 1,100 ppm, respectively, as temperature increases from 1,350 to 1,450°C. Combining our results with those from a companion study at 5–8 GPa (Ardia et al., in prep.) at 1,450°C, the olivine water storage capacity increases linearly with increasing pressure and is defined by the relation C_{\textH2 \textO}^\textolivine ( \textppm ) = 57.6( ±16 ) ×P( \textGPa ) - 169( ±18 ). C_{{{\text{H}}_{2} {\text{O}}}}^{\text{olivine}} \left( {\text{ppm}} \right) = 57.6\left( { \pm 16} \right) \times P\left( {\text{GPa}} \right) - 169\left( { \pm 18} \right). Adjustment of this trend for small increases in temperature along the mantle geotherm, combined with experimental determinations of D_{\textH2 \textO}^{\textpyx/olivine} D_{{{\text{H}}_{2} {\text{O}}}}^{\text{pyx/olivine}} from this study and estimates of D_{\textH2 \textO}^{\textgt/\textolivine} D_{{{\text{H}}_{2} {\text{O}}}}^{{{\text{gt}}/{\text{olivine}}}} , allows for estimation of peridotite H₂O storage capacity, which is 440 ± 200 ppm at 400 km. This suggests that MORB source upper mantle, which contains 50–200 ppm bulk H₂O, is not wet enough to incite a global melt layer above the 410-km discontinuity. However, OIB source mantle and residues of subducted slabs, which contain 300–1,000 ppm bulk H₂O, can exceed the peridotite H₂O storage capacity and incite localized hydrous partial melting in the deep upper mantle. Experimentally determined values of D_{\textH2 \textO}^{\textpyx/\textolivine} D_{{{\text{H}}_{2} {\text{O}}}}^{{{\text{pyx}}/{\text{olivine}}}} at 10–13 GPa have a narrow range of 1.35 ± 0.13, meaning that olivine is probably the most important host of H₂O in the deep upper mantle. The increase in hydration of olivine with depth in the upper mantle may have significant influence on viscosity and other transport properties.  相似文献   

Erratum to: H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O storage capacity of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene from 10 to 13 GPa: consequences for dehydration melting above the transition zone     

Travis?J.?TennerEmail author  Marc?M.?Hirschmann  Anthony?C.?Withers  Paola?Ardia 《Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology》2012,163(2):317-318

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Macrophytes Increase Spatial Patchiness of Fluvial Sedimentary Records and Effect Temporal Particulate Nutrient Storage     

MARCUS?SCHULZEmail author  BJ?RN?GüCKER 《Aquatic Geochemistry》2005,11(1):89-107

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Absorption and scattering of light by small particles: By Craig F. Bohren and Donald R. Huffman,Wiley, New York, 1983. 530 pp., $49.95.     

Larry D. Travis 《Icarus》1984,60(3):721-722

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Red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) reproduction and seedling colonization after hurricane charley: Comparisons of Charlotte Harbor and Tampa Bay     

C. Edward Proffitt  Eric C. Milbrandt  Steven E. Travis 《Estuaries and Coasts》2006,29(6):972-978

Reproductive aspects of life history are known to be important in recovery following disturbance in many plant species although this has not been well studied in mangroves. Hurricane Charley devastated large areas of mangroves in Charlotte Harbor, Florida, in August 2004. We surveyed 6 forests in Charlotte Harbor (2002, 2003, and 2005) and 16 in Tampa Bay, Florida (2001, 2002, 2003, and 2005) for total numbers of reproducing trees and trees heterozygotic for albinism that produce both normal and albino propagules. Tree size (estimated height and diameter at breast height) was also recorded for sentinel heterozygotic trees. Total number of reproducing trees km⁻¹ was used as an index of reproductive output of the population, and deviation from the 3∶1 (normal:albino propagules) ratio on heterozygotic trees expected with 100% selfing was used to estimate outcrossing. Numbers ofRhizophora mangle reproducing trees km⁻¹ of shoreline in Charlotte Harbor were reduced by an order of magnitude following Hurricane Charley, while numbers of reproducing trees in Tampa Bay were similar to those of previous years. Reduced reproduction in Charlotte Harbor was accompanied by fewer new recruits in plots on Sanibel and Captiva Islands. Numbers of new recruits after the storm also tended to be fewer in plots where canopy loss was greater. More new recruits occurred in sites that had higher densities of pre-stormRhizophora seedlings and greater relative dominance byRhizophora. Outcrossing of sentinel trees was 2.5 times greater, in Charlotte Harbor (mean site⁻¹=33.6±6.7%; with 17% of forest sites completely selfing) than in Tampa Bay (mean site⁻¹=13.4±4.7%; with 40% of sites completely selfing), although the implications for seedling recruitment of this difference are not known.  相似文献   

2-D seismic trenching of colluvial wedges and faults     

David Sheley  Travis Crosby  Min Zhou  Jamie Giacoma  Jianhua Yu  Ruiqing He  Gerard T. Schuster   《Tectonophysics》2003,368(1-4):51

Images of the depth and shape of colluvial wedges by 3-D travel time tomography can be valuable in estimating the past history of ancient earthquakes and assessing the earthquake hazard of a fault. Unfortunately, 3-D seismic surveys can be both costly and time consuming. In this paper, we report our first successful results of detecting the shapes and depths of colluvial wedges with 2-D travel time tomography. The locations of the colluvial wedges are along the Oquirrh fault and the Salt Lake City segment of the Wasatch fault. We also report that the tomogram from one of our 2-D surveys suggests the possibility of detecting multiple colluvial wedges at depth. Using both reflection and tomographic images at another site clearly reveals the presence of a known shallow fault and the contact between native soil and recent fill. Our results suggest the synergistic use of both seismic tomography and reflection imaging, we denote as seismic trenching, as a means of detecting shallow colluvial wedges and faults. Seismic trenching has the potential to significantly expand the lateral extent and depth of investigation of paleoseismology.  相似文献   

Debiased Orbital and Absolute Magnitude Distribution of the Near-Earth Objects     

William F. Bottke Jr.Alessandro Morbidelli  Robert JedickeJean-Marc Petit  Harold F. LevisonPatrick Michel  Travis S. Metcalfe 《Icarus》2002,156(2):399-433

The orbital and absolute magnitude distribution of the near-Earth objects (NEOs) is difficult to compute, partly because only a modest fraction of the entire NEO population has been discovered so far, but also because the known NEOs are biased by complicated observational selection effects. To circumvent these problems, we created a model NEO population which was fit to known NEOs discovered or accidentally rediscovered by Spacewatch. Our method was to numerically integrate thousands of test particles from five source regions that we believe provide most NEOs to the inner Solar System. Four of these source regions are in or adjacent to the main asteroid belt, while the fifth one is associated with the transneptunian disk. The nearly isotropic comets, which include the Halley-type comets and the long-period comets, were not included in our model. Test bodies from our source regions that passed into the NEO region (perihelia q<1.3 AU and aphelia Q≥0.983 AU) were tracked until they were eliminated by striking the Sun or a planet or were ejected out of the inner Solar System. These integrations were used to create five residence time probability distributions in semimajor axis, eccentricity, and inclination space (one for each source). These distributions show where NEOs from a given source are statistically most likely to be located. Combining these five residence time probability distributions with an NEO absolute magnitude distribution computed from previous work and a probability function representing the observational biases associated with the Spacewatch NEO survey, we produced an NEO model population that could be fit to 138 NEOs discovered or accidentally rediscovered by Spacewatch. By testing a range of possible source combinations, a best-fit NEO model was computed which (i) provided the debiased orbital and absolute magnitude distributions for the NEO population and (ii) indicated the relative importance of each NEO source region.Our best-fit model is consistent with 960±120 NEOs having H<18 and a<7.4 AU. Approximately 44% (as of December 2000) have been found so far. The limits on this estimate are conditional, since our model does not include nearly isotropic comets. Nearly isotropic comets are generally restricted to a Tisserand parameter (with respect to Jupiter) of T<2, such that few are believed to have a<7.4 AU. Our computed NEO orbital distribution, which is valid for bodies as faint as H<22, indicates that the Amor, Apollo, and Aten populations contain 32±1%, 62±1%, and 6±1% of the NEO population, respectively. We estimate that the population of objects completely inside Earth's orbit (IEOs) arising from our source regions is 2% the size of the NEO population. This value does not include the putative Vulcanoid population located inside Mercury's orbit. Overall, our model predicts that ∼61% of the NEO population comes from the inner main belt (a<2.5 AU), ∼24% comes from the central main belt (2.5<a<2.8 AU), ∼8% comes from the outer main belt (a>2.8 AU), and ∼6% comes from the Jupiter-family comet region (2<T?3). The steady-state population in each NEO source region, as well as the influx rates needed to replenish each region, were calculated as a by-product of our method. The population of extinct comets in the Jupiter-family comet region was also computed.  相似文献   

Factors Influencing the Development of Rangeland Fire Protection Associations: Exploring Fire Mitigation Programs for Rural,Resource-Based Communities     

Amanda M. Stasiewicz  Travis B. Paveglio 《社会与自然资源》2017,30(5):627-641

Increases in wildfire frequency and extent in rangelands pose a growing threat to private property and ecosystem health. The state of Idaho, USA, recently promoted rangeland fire protection associations (RFPAs)—nonprofit organizations of local citizens who contribute to firefighting efforts on public rangelands—as one way to mitigate rangeland wildfire risk. This study used in-depth interviews with RFPA members and land management professionals to explore the local circumstances that influenced the establishment and functioning of one RFPA. Results indicate that intergenerational ties to “working the land,” existing reciprocity among neighbors, a culture of self-reliance, and informal social networks all contributed to RFPA formation and functioning. Interaction between RFPA members and professionals improved their relationships and promoted shared understandings about wildfire response. We conclude by discussing conditions that might enable or inhibit RFPAs in other areas and how our findings advance research on adapting mitigation programs to local context.  相似文献   

Melting of a Hydrous Mantle: III. Phase Relations of Garnet Websterite+H2O at High Pressures and Temperatures     

MYSEN  BJ?RN O.; BOETTCHER  A. L. 《Journal of Petrology》1976,17(1):1-14

A garnet websterite nodule from the Honolulu volcanic series,Oahu, Hawaii, has been melted in the presence of nearly pureH₂O. The solidus is intermediate between that of peridotiteand gabbro. The curve displays a temperature minimum around20 kb reflecting the breakdown of plagioclase. The Iiquidusis between 1130 ?C and 1150 ?C between 10 and 20 kb vapor pressure.Amphibole (pargasitic hornblende) has an extensive stabilityfield, reaching a maximum temperature about 20 ?C below thegarnet websterite liquidus at 15 kb and a maximum pressure of27.5 kb at 950 ?C. The amphibole-out curve intersects the soliduswith a positive slope. Liquids formed by partial melting of garnet websterite are quartz-normativewithin the stability field of amphibole, but become olivine-normative(tholeiitic) with increasing temperature. Amphibole and clinopyroxeneare enriched in Tschermak's molecule at higher temperatures,pargasite content of amphibole increases with increasing pressure. A garnet websterite-rich upper mantle containing modal olivineyields quartz-normative (13–16 per cent), aluminous (21–4wt. per cent A1₂O₃) melts at 17 P 10 kb and in the presenceof nearly pure H₂O. However, the presence of amphibole controlsthe liquid composition, a situation not found for liquids formedfrom wet peridotite. In contrast to many basalt liquids, liquidof garnet websterite composition cannot fractionate to andesiteby precipitation of amphibole, as amphibole is not a liquidusphase.  相似文献