Discovery of calcium in Mercury's atmosphere

The composition and evolutionary history of Mercury's crust are not well determined. The planet as a whole has been predicted to have a refractory, anhydrous composition: rich in Ca, Al, Mg and Fe, but poor in Na, K, OH, and S. Its atmosphere is believed to be derived in large part from the surface materials. A combination of effects that include impact vaporization (from infalling material), volatile evaporation, photon-stimulated desorption and sputtering releases material from the surface to form the atmosphere. Sodium and potassium have already been observed in Mercury's atmosphere, with abundances that require a volatile-rich crust. The sodium probably results from photon-stimulated desorption, and has a temperature of 1,500 K (ref. 10). Here we report the discovery of calcium in the atmosphere near Mercury's poles. The column density is very low and the temperature is apparently very high (12,000 K). The localized distribution and high temperature, if confirmed, suggest that the atmospheric calcium may arise from surface sputtering by ions, which enter Mercury's auroral zone. The low abundance of atmospheric Ca may indicate that the regolith is rarefied in calcium.     

太阳风离子在月面的反射过程及对月面电场的影响

为探究月表磁异常区对太阳风离子产生反射的原理, 基于嫦娥二号卫星携带太阳风离子探测器的探测数据, 用单粒子模拟法反演太阳风离子运动, 并分析离子入射角和反射角的分布. 实验结果表明： 太阳风离子先被月壤向各方向大范围散射, 再被月面电场向天顶方向加速; 太阳风中, 月面有45~75 V电势, 该正电势对月面反射的太阳风离子有显著影响.     

Terrestrial nitrogen and noble gases in lunar soils

The nitrogen in lunar soils is correlated to the surface and therefore clearly implanted from outside. The straightforward interpretation is that the nitrogen is implanted by the solar wind, but this explanation has difficulties accounting for both the abundance of nitrogen and a variation of the order of 30 per cent in the 15N/14N ratio. Here we propose that most of the nitrogen and some of the other volatile elements in lunar soils may actually have come from the Earth's atmosphere rather than the solar wind. We infer that this hypothesis is quantitatively reasonable if the escape of atmospheric gases, and implantation into lunar soil grains, occurred at a time when the Earth had essentially no geomagnetic field. Thus, evidence preserved in lunar soils might be useful in constraining when the geomagnetic field first appeared. This hypothesis could be tested by examination of lunar farside soils, which should lack the terrestrial component.     

6种城市下垫面热环境效应对比研究

选择6种具有代表性的城市下垫面(沥青路面、水泥路面、荷兰砖地面、草地、嵌草砖地面、大理石地面)作为观测对象,基于热红外成像技术对其地表温度特征进行观测,系统分析不同城市下垫面地表温度的日变化以及季节变化特征,并利用不同下垫面温度的时间标准差、空间标准差及时空数据标准差定量揭示城市不同下垫面地表温度的时空变化特征,对比研究不同下垫面的热环境效应,结果如下。1)不同下垫面地表温度的日变化一般呈先上升后下降的单峰形态,草地地表温度在不同季节的日变化波动差异较大。沥青的地表温度在全年均为最高,对热环境的影响较大;嵌草砖和大理石在全年的温度均较低,对热环境具有较好的缓解作用,且缓解作用在夏季最显著。2)不同下垫面地表日均温度全年均高于大气温度,表明城市下垫面对大气在一年中都有加热作用。3)气温、太阳辐射以及空气相对湿度对下垫面地表温度的影响均较为显著;气温和太阳辐射与下垫面地表温度之间呈正相关关系,对下垫面以增温作用为主;空气相对湿度与下垫面地表温度之间呈负相关关系,对下垫面增温起抑制作用。4)嵌草砖的热环境稳定性较草地和大理石要好;沥青路面的温度变化特征最能代表本研究观测区域下垫面地表温度的时空变化特征。研究结果对了解城市不同下垫面热环境具有一定参考意义,可为缓解城市热环境提供科学依据。     

A non-terrestrial 16O-rich isotopic composition for the protosolar nebula

The discovery in primitive components of meteorites of large oxygen isotopic variations that could not be attributed to mass-dependent fractionation effects has raised a fundamental question: what is the composition of the protosolar gas from which the host grains formed? This composition is probably preserved in the outer layers of the Sun, but the resolution of astronomical spectroscopic measurements is still too poor to be useful for comparison with planetary material. Here we report a precise determination of the oxygen isotopic composition of the solar wind from particles implanted in the outer hundreds of nanometres of metallic grains in the lunar regolith. These layers of the grains are enriched in 16O by >20 +/- 4 per thousand relative to the Earth, Mars and bulk meteorites, which implies the existence in the solar accretion disk of reactions--as yet unknown--that were able to change the 17O/16O and 18O/16O ratios in a way that was not dependent strictly on the mass of the isotope. Photochemical self-shielding of the CO gas irradiated by ultraviolet light may be one of these key processes, because it depends on the abundance of the isotopes, rather than their masses.     

An influence of solar spectral variations on radiative forcing of climate

The thermal structure and composition of the atmosphere is determined fundamentally by the incoming solar irradiance. Radiation at ultraviolet wavelengths dissociates atmospheric molecules, initiating chains of chemical reactions-specifically those producing stratospheric ozone-and providing the major source of heating for the middle atmosphere, while radiation at visible and near-infrared wavelengths mainly reaches and warms the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. Thus the spectral composition of solar radiation is crucial in determining atmospheric structure, as well as surface temperature, and it follows that the response of the atmosphere to variations in solar irradiance depends on the spectrum. Daily measurements of the solar spectrum between 0.2?μm and 2.4?μm, made by the Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM) instrument on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) satellite since April 2004, have revealed that over this declining phase of the solar cycle there was a four to six times larger decline in ultraviolet than would have been predicted on the basis of our previous understanding. This reduction was partially compensated in the total solar output by an increase in radiation at visible wavelengths. Here we show that these spectral changes appear to have led to a significant decline from 2004 to 2007 in stratospheric ozone below an altitude of 45?km, with an increase above this altitude. Our results, simulated with a radiative-photochemical model, are consistent with contemporaneous measurements of ozone from the Aura-MLS satellite, although the short time period makes precise attribution to solar effects difficult. We also show, using the SIM data, that solar radiative forcing of surface climate is out of phase with solar activity. Currently there is insufficient observational evidence to validate the spectral variations observed by SIM, or to fully characterize other solar cycles, but our findings raise the possibility that the effects of solar variability on temperature throughout the atmosphere may be contrary to current expectations.     

2018年深空探测热点回眸

 深空探测指人类航天器离开近地轨道、进入太阳系空间和宇宙空间，对地球以外天体（月球及以远天体）或空间环境开展的科学探测。2018年，国际深空探测叠彩纷呈：中国“嫦娥四号”成功实现国际首次月球背面软着陆并将开展巡视勘察；美国“洞察号”探测器登陆火星；向太阳系空间进发，朝向日心方向，欧洲空间局和日本合作研制的BeipiColombo探测器正飞向水星、美国“帕克号”探测器开启“史诗级”旅行去“触摸太阳”，远离日心方向，“新视野号”成功飞掠柯伊伯带的小行星“天涯海角”、“旅行者2号”突破日球层顶；美国“奥西里斯-REx”和日本“隼鸟2号”顺利抵达各自目标小行星执行采样任务。2018年，月球表面存在水冰、火星发现有机分子、太阳系边际再抵近等发现或突破对于探寻生命起源、太阳系起源和演化，拓展人类知识体系具有重要意义。     

Multiple ionization of atom clusters by intense soft X-rays from a free-electron laser

Intense radiation from lasers has opened up many new areas of research in physics and chemistry, and has revolutionized optical technology. So far, most work in the field of nonlinear processes has been restricted to infrared, visible and ultraviolet light, although progress in the development of X-ray lasers has been made recently. With the advent of a free-electron laser in the soft-X-ray regime below 100 nm wavelength, a new light source is now available for experiments with intense, short-wavelength radiation that could be used to obtain deeper insights into the structure of matter. Other free-electron sources with even shorter wavelengths are planned for the future. Here we present initial results from a study of the interaction of soft X-ray radiation, generated by a free-electron laser, with Xe atoms and clusters. We find that, whereas Xe atoms become only singly ionized by the absorption of single photons, absorption in clusters is strongly enhanced. On average, each atom in large clusters absorbs up to 400 eV, corresponding to 30 photons. We suggest that the clusters are heated up and electrons are emitted after acquiring sufficient energy. The clusters finally disintegrate completely by Coulomb explosion.     

Production of iron nanoparticles by laser irradiation in a simulation of lunar-like space weathering

'Space weathering' is the term applied to the darkening and reddening of planetary surface materials with time, along with the changes to the depths of absorption bands in their optical spectra. It has been invoked to explain the mismatched spectra of lunar rocks and regolith, and between those of asteroids and meteorites. The formation of nanophase iron particles on regolith grains as a result of micrometeorite impacts or irradiation by the solar wind has been proposed as the main cause of the change in the optical properties. But laboratory simulations have not revealed the presence of these particles, although nano-second-pulse laser irradiation did reproduce the optical changes. Here we report observations by transmission electron microscopy of olivine samples subjected to pulse laser irradiation. We find within the amorphous vapour-deposited rims of olivine grains nanophase iron particles similar to those observed in the rims of space-weathered lunar regolith grains. Reduction by hydrogen atoms implanted by the solar wind is therefore not necessary to form the particles. Moreover, the results support the idea that ordinary chondrites came from S-type asteroids, and thereby provides some constraints on the surface exposure ages of those asteroids.     

Manipulation of atoms across a surface at room temperature

Since the realization that the tips of scanning probe microscopes can interact with atoms at surfaces, there has been much interest in the possibility of building or modifying nanostructures or molecules directly from single atoms. Individual large molecules can be positioned on surfaces, and atoms can be transferred controllably between the sample and probe tip. The most complex structures are produced at cryogenic temperatures by sliding atoms across a surface to chosen sites. But there are problems in manipulating atoms laterally at higher temperatures--atoms that are sufficiently well bound to a surface to be stable at higher temperatures require a stronger tip interaction to be moved. This situation differs significantly from the idealized weakly interacting tips of scanning tunnelling or atomic force microscopes. Here we demonstrate that precise positioning of atoms on a copper surface is possible at room temperature. The triggering mechanism for the atomic motion unexpectedly depends on the tunnelling current density, rather than the electric field or proximity of tip and surface.     

The modeling analysis of microwave emission from stratified media of non-uniform lunar cratered terrain surface for Chinese Chang-E 1 observation

In China’s first lunar exploration project,Chang-E 1,the multi-channel (3.0,7.8,19.35,37 GHz) microwave radiometers were aboard the satellite,with the purpose of measuring microwave brightness temperature from lunar surface and surveying the global distribution of lunar regolith layer thickness,and global evaluation of 3He content.To analyze the modeling of microwave radiative transfer from three-layered media of lunar surface,some factors,such as the cratered lunar surface roughness,scattering of regolith particulate medium with temperature profile,are discussed.Based on the statistics of the lunar cratered terrain and using Monte Carlo (MC) method,the cratered lunar surfaces are numerically generated.The triangulated network is utilized to divide the undulated lunar surface into discrete triangle meshes with the size 10 m as a digital surface topography.The reflectivities of each plane mesh are calculated,and the average reflectivity for all MC-realized lunar surfaces is obtained.It is found that under the spatial resolution of 30 km×30 km of Chang-E 1 radiometer observation,the lunar surface can be well modeled as a flat surface.It makes the predominance of the parameters,such as the regolith layer thickness and stratified structures,to be studied.Using the radiative transfer equation of stratified media with dense scatterers,the scattering coefficient of the regolith particulate medium is found negligible,and the emission is mainly governed by the absorptive property of the medium.Brightness temperature of multi-layered media,i.e.lunar soil,regolith layer with temperature profile and underlying rock media,are derived and calculated,and relevant main factors to affect the modeling and emission simulation are analyzed.     

An age-colour relationship for main-belt S-complex asteroids

Asteroid collisions in the main belt eject fragments that may eventually land on Earth as meteorites. It has therefore been a long-standing puzzle in planetary science that laboratory spectra of the most populous class of meteorite (ordinary chondrites, OC) do not match the remotely observed surface spectra of their presumed (S-complex) asteroidal parent bodies. One of the proposed solutions to this perplexing observation is that 'space weathering' modifies the exposed planetary surfaces over time through a variety of processes (such as solar and cosmic ray bombardment, micro-meteorite bombardment, and so on). Space weathering has been observed on lunar samples, in Earth-based laboratory experiments, and there is good evidence from spacecraft data that the process is active on asteroid surfaces. Here, we present a measurement of the rate of space weathering on S-complex main-belt asteroids using a relationship between the ages of asteroid families and their colours. Extrapolating this age-colour relationship to very young ages yields a good match to the colour of freshly cut OC meteorite samples, lending strong support to a genetic relationship between them and the S-complex asteroids.     

Observation of squeezed light from one atom excited with two photons

Single quantum emitters such as atoms are well known as non-classical light sources with reduced noise in the intensity, capable of producing photons one by one at given times. However, the light field emitted by a single atom can exhibit much richer dynamics. A prominent example is the predicted ability of a single atom to produce quadrature-squeezed light, which has fluctuations of amplitude or phase that are below the shot-noise level. However, such squeezing is much more difficult to observe than the emission of single photons. Squeezed beams have been generated using macroscopic and mesoscopic media down to a few tens of atoms, but despite experimental efforts, single-atom squeezing has so far escaped observation. Here we generate squeezed light with a single atom in a high-finesse optical resonator. The strong coupling of the atom to the cavity field induces a genuine quantum mechanical nonlinearity, which is several orders of magnitude larger than in typical macroscopic media. This produces observable quadrature squeezing, with an excitation beam containing on average only two photons per system lifetime. In sharp contrast to the emission of single photons, the squeezed light stems from the quantum coherence of photon pairs emitted from the system. The ability of a single atom to induce strong coherent interactions between propagating photons opens up new perspectives for photonic quantum logic with single emitters.     

Global inventory of Helium-3 in lunar regoliths estimated by a multi-channel microwave radiometer on the Chang-E 1 lunar satellite

Helium-3 (³He) implanted by solar wind in the lunar regolith is a valuable resource because of its potential as a fusion fuel. On the basis of the Apollo regolith samples, a linear relationship between ³He abundance and solar wind flux, optical maturity and TiO₂ content has been presented. China successfully launched its first lunar exploration satellite Chang-E 1 (CE-1) on October 24, 2007. A multi-channeled microwave radiometer was aboard the satellite with the purpose of measuring microwave thermal emission from the lunar surface layer. From the multi-channel brightness temperature (T_b) observed by CE-1, the global distribution of the regolith thickness was inverted from the multi-channel T_b, and was used to evaluate the total amount of ³He per unit area in the lunar regolith. The global inventory of ³He was estimated as being 6.6×10⁸ kg; 3.7×10⁸ kg for the lunar nearside and 2.9×10⁸ kg for the lunar farside.     

Bose-Einstein condensation of photons in an optical microcavity

Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC)-the macroscopic ground-state accumulation of particles with integer spin (bosons) at low temperature and high density-has been observed in several physical systems, including cold atomic gases and solid-state quasiparticles. However, the most omnipresent Bose gas, blackbody radiation (radiation in thermal equilibrium with the cavity walls) does not show this phase transition. In such systems photons have a vanishing chemical potential, meaning that their number is not conserved when the temperature of the photon gas is varied; at low temperatures, photons disappear in the cavity walls instead of occupying the cavity ground state. Theoretical works have considered thermalization processes that conserve photon number (a prerequisite for BEC), involving Compton scattering with a gas of thermal electrons or photon-photon scattering in a nonlinear resonator configuration. Number-conserving thermalization was experimentally observed for a two-dimensional photon gas in a dye-filled optical microcavity, which acts as a 'white-wall' box. Here we report the observation of a Bose-Einstein condensate of photons in this system. The cavity mirrors provide both a confining potential and a non-vanishing effective photon mass, making the system formally equivalent to a two-dimensional gas of trapped, massive bosons. The photons thermalize to the temperature of the dye solution (room temperature) by multiple scattering with the dye molecules. Upon increasing the photon density, we observe the following BEC signatures: the photon energies have a Bose-Einstein distribution with a massively populated ground-state mode on top of a broad thermal wing; the phase transition occurs at the expected photon density and exhibits the predicted dependence on cavity geometry; and the ground-state mode emerges even for a spatially displaced pump spot. The prospects of the observed effects include studies of extremely weakly interacting low-dimensional Bose gases and new coherent ultraviolet sources.     

Nano-SiC薄膜对太阳能电板转换效率影响的研究

采用丝网印刷法在太阳能电板超白玻璃表面制备出不同厚度的Nano-SiC薄膜,研究了Nano-SiC薄膜厚度对光子透过率和户外太阳能电板转换效率的影响。结果表明,经过两层Nano-SiC薄膜处理后,超白玻璃的平均光子透过率提高了12%左右;同时Nano-SiC薄膜可以降低户外太阳能电板转换效率的降低速率,经过两层Nano-SiC薄膜处理后太阳能电板的转换效率降低速率约为未处理时的0.3倍。     

日月食限的计算

日月食的观测对太阳物理学、天文学及其它相关学科的研究有重要意义．然而准确的日月食预报却离不开日月食限的计算．本文研究了日月食计算方法，力求简单易懂，以便于课堂教学和进行科普教育．     

月球探测的进展与我国月球探测的科学目标

在简述月球探测的历程与趋势的基础上,强调当代月球探测的总体目标为：(1)研究月球与地月系的起源和演化,特别是月球大气层与磁场的消失,矿物与岩石的分布和形成环境、月壤和内部层圈结构的形成以及月球演化的历程;(2)探测月球的资源、能源和特殊环境的开发利用及对人类社会长期可持续发展的支撑。我国不载人月球探测划分为绕、落及回三个阶段。为了全球性、整体性重新认识月球,绕月卫星探测的科学目标为获取全月面三维影像,探测14种有用元素的全球分布与丰度,探测月壤厚度并估算^3He资源量以及太阳活动对空间环境的影响。“落”为月球探测器软着陆就位探测和月球车巡视探测,建立月基光学、低频射电和极紫外天文观测平台。“回”为月球探测器软着陆就位探测和取样返回地面。     

Planetary science: constant illumination at the lunar north pole

Images returned by the spacecraft Clementine have been used to produce a quantitative illumination map of the north pole of the Moon, revealing the percentage of time that points on the surface are illuminated during the lunar day. We have used this map to identify areas that are constantly illuminated during a lunar day in summer and which may therefore be in permanent sunlight. All are located on the northern rim of Peary crater, close to the north pole. Permanently sunlit areas represent prime locations for lunar outpost sites as they have abundant solar energy, are relatively benign thermally (when compared with equatorial regions), and are close to permanently shadowed regions that may contain water ice.     

H2在Mg(0001)和M(Sc～Zn)/Mg(0001)表面吸附、脱附性能研究

采用密度泛函方法,对H2在Mg(0001)及掺杂一系列的过渡金属的Mg表面的吸附行为进行了研究.结果表明,H2在Mg(0001),Fe,Co,Cu和Zn掺杂的Mg表面只存在物理吸附;在Sc,Ti,V,Cr,Mn和Ni掺杂的Mg表面时物理吸附和化学吸附都存在.H2在M(Sc～Zn)掺杂Mg表面解离的能垒均低于Mg(0001)表面.解离后的H原子易化学吸附在以下3种邻近的空位:Fe掺杂Mg表面的fcc-hcp1位;Ni掺杂Mg表面的hcp-hcp位;其余掺杂Mg表面的fcc-fcc位.计算结果显示,Ti,V,Cr,Mn,Ni掺杂在Mg表面可有效改善H2的吸附与解离性能.