摘要:

President Landsberg 's editorial ‘Conversion of Physicists’ (May EOS) is, as he notes, very timely in several respects. Perhaps the closest relationship between physicists and geophysicists in the AGU exists at present in the Section of Solar‐Planetary Relationships. Indeed, personnel conducting planetary and space research in many physics departments in the United States regularly participate in AGU meetings and publish in theJournal of Geophysical Research. The recent (April 1970) establishment of a Division of Cosmic Physics in the American Physical Society at first appeared to be a likely vehicle for establishing closer relationships between physicists and geophysicists in the areas of cosmic rays and planetary ph

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00626-01

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Scientific societies today are wrestling with questions of how to convey better to the public the significance and role of science in modern society. The need, which is so strongly felt today, to make clear the practical importance of science arises from widespread questioning and expressed doubts about the kinds and levels of scientific research that public funds should support, doubts that find tangible expression in shrinking budgets for basic research.This crisis of confidence in science, and in technology as well, comes at a time when their contributions to human progress and welfare have been the most outstanding in human history. There is a wealth of examples from the past to show the tremendous value of science and technology to our country and to the world. A steady increase in health, longevity, and in our standard of living stems directly from the practical use of scientific knowledge. It is confusing, therefore, to scientists who feel justly proud of their work and their substantial contributions to the advancement of mankind, to find their contributions so sorely questioned. There has naturally arisen within the scientific community a series of soulsearching debates and a continuing lament over the sorry plight of science today.

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00627

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

It is often stated that there are three types of theory concerning the origin of the earth‐moon system. I feel that there are serious objections to each of them. They are; (1)Formation of the moon by fission of the earth. This idea has been attractive in the past because of the low density of the moon, which suggests that the moon might be made out of the terrestrial mantle material. However, we now know that the moon is also very much more depleted in the more volatile mantle elements than is the earth, and in my view this would be difficult to reconcile with such a mechanis

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00628

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

In this paper, I shall attempt to show that the Apollo 11 data support the idea that the moon was formed by the breakup of the earth, and that they suggest that after the breakup, the moon went through a heating episode that boiled away most of its mass. I will go on to discuss the possibility that the planets of the solar system might have been formed in a similar way, that is by breakdown of Jupiter‐sized objects rather than by buildup from smaller ones.From the cosmological standpoint, the most interesting results from the Apollo 11 samples were the chemical measurements. To appreciate these, it is necessary to have some idea as to what the chemical measurements should have shown. In other words, if the moon had formed from the primeval materials of the system, what would a chemical analysis have been like? The answer to this question is called the cosmic abundance scheme. In this scheme, hydrogen forms 90% of the material, helium 10%, and the other elements, including the nonvolatile elements, constitute less than 1%. The element abundances have a fixed ratio to one another; that is, there is a definite answer to the question: What was the initial ratio of silicon to iron? A systematic listing of these ratios was first done by Henry Norris Russell in the 1930's. The most recent and useful table is byCameron[1968

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00633

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

I am going to discuss four topics, ranging from celestial mechanics to speculative propositions regarding the early history of the solar system: (1) A new calculation of the orbit evolution of the moon that suggests the capture of the moon as a separate body in tidal interactions with the earth; (2) The consequences of this capture on the earth itself and on its early history; (3) The consequences of the capture on the moon, its thermal history, and its surface features; and (4) Some consequences to the early history of the solar system: the existence of many moon‐like bodies in the inner part of the solar system; the angular momentum of Venus; the origin of Phobos and Deimos.Of the many proposed modes of origin of the moon, some violate physical laws; many are in conflict with observations; all are improbable. Perhaps the least improbable—based on new tidal theory calculations and on the interpretation of lunar surface material data—is capture of the moon as it passed near the earth in adirect(prograde) orbit, shortly after the formation of moon and earth, about 4.5 billion years ago. (Capture of the moon from an initiallyretrogradeorbit that had been proposed some years ago, leads to physically unacceptable consequences.) The effects of capture on the earth would have been cataclysmic, leading to intensive heating of its interior, to volcanism, and to the immediate formation of an atmosphere and hydrosphere. Thus capture of a moon may have given rise to the unique properties of the earth (in the solar system) and to the early evolution of life, about 3.5 billion year

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00637

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

The Florida Institute of Technology is implementing a program leading to a Master's Degree in Bioenvironmental Technology.The program was initiated by the Oceanography and Space Technology departments of F.I.T. in response to recognition by the faculty that the environmental problems confronting public life and industrial development call for persons trained in areas not delineated by the boundaries of classical disciplines, it is intended in this new program to accept people from several disciplines: physical sciences, engineering, and mathematics. Research will form an integral part of the program; this will initially be based on the contract for river surveying that is currently growing into a full‐Hedged estuary and environment study. Efforts to expand the research facilities are underway through collaboration with various local and national agencies. It is anticipated that graduates will be prepared for employment in governmental agencies and industrial organizations concerned with water and air pollution, environmental health, and ecological condition

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00642-01

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

The Laboratory of Atmospheric Science of the National Center for Atmospheric Research has established an Atmospheric Physics Department there.This new department, headed by J. Doyne Sartor, includes four LAS research programs: the Cloud Physics Program, the Ice Physics Program, the Lidar and Nucleation Program, and the Thunderstorm Measurement Program.

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00643-01

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

The United States Naval Oceanographic Office is conducting an airborne geomagnetic survey of ocean areas. The purpose of this program, known as Project MAGNET, is to acquire more accurate and adequate data for the improvement of navigational and world isomagnetic charts. The current flight operations are being conducted as part of the over‐all survey of the world's ocean areas.The survey aircraft, a modified U.S. Navy transport plane, operated by Oceanographic Development Squadron Eight, is equipped with a vector airborne magnetometer and special navigation equipment. The airborne magnetometer measures the intensity and direction of the earth's magnetic field, thereby providing information for charting all elements of the fiel

ISSN:0002-8606    

DOI:10.1029/EO051i009p00644-01

年代:1970

数据来源: WILEY