Venus: density of upper atmosphere from measurements of drag on pioneer orbiter.

Measurements of the changes in orbital period of the Pioneer Venus orbiter have yielded estimates of the density of the upper atmosphere of Venus at altitudes in the range from 150 to 200 kilometers. At the lower limit of this range, the density on the dayside of the terminator exhibits a temporal variation of amplitude near 4 x 10(-14) gram per cubic centimeter aboult a mean of approximately 1.4 x 10(-13) gram per cubic centimeter. The variation appears oscillatory, with a 4- to 5-day period, but barely one cycle was observed. The density on the nightside of the terminator, sampled inthe same 150-kilometer altitude range, fluctuates about a smaller mean of approximately 4 x 10(-14) gram per cubic centimeter. The density between the altitudes of 150 and 200 kilometers, sampled only on the dayside of the terminator, imply a scale height of between 15 and 20 kilometers. The interpretation of this estimate is uncertain, however, in view of the measurements at the different altitudes having been made at different times and, hence, at different values of solar phase.

Europa's differentiated internal structure: inferences from four Galileo encounters.

Radio Doppler data from four encounters of the Galileo spacecraft with the jovian moon Europa have been used to refine models of Europa's interior. Europa is most likely differentiated into a metallic core surrounded by a rock mantle and a water ice-liquid outer shell, but the data cannot eliminate the possibility of a uniform mixture of dense silicate and metal beneath the water ice-liquid shell. The size of a metallic core is uncertain because of its unknown composition, but it could be as large as about 50 percent of Europa's radius. The thickness of Europa's outer shell of water ice-liquid must lie in the range of about 80 to 170 kilometers.

Distribution of rock, metals, and ices in Callisto.

Radio Doppler data from a single encounter (C3) of the Galileo spacecraft with Callisto, the outermost Galilean moon of Jupiter, indicated that Callisto was probably undifferentiated. Now, similar data from a second encounter (C9) corroborate this conclusion, but more accurate data from a third encounter (C10) indicate that the rock and ice within Callisto have partially, but not completely, separated. Callisto may be differentiated into a rock-metal core less than 25 percent of Callisto's radius, an outer layer of clean ice less than 350 km thick, and a middle layer of mixed rock and ice. Models in which ice and rock are mixed all the way to the center of Callisto are also consistent with the data.

Episodes of particle ejection from the surface of the active asteroid (101955) Bennu.

Active asteroids are those that show evidence of ongoing mass loss. We report repeated instances of particle ejection from the surface of (101955) Bennu, demonstrating that it is an active asteroid. The ejection events were imaged by the OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security-Regolith Explorer) spacecraft. For the three largest observed events, we estimated the ejected particle velocities and sizes, event times, source regions, and energies. We also determined the trajectories and photometric properties of several gravitationally bound particles that orbited temporarily in the Bennu environment. We consider multiple hypotheses for the mechanisms that lead to particle ejection for the largest events, including rotational disruption, electrostatic lofting, ice sublimation, phyllosilicate dehydration, meteoroid impacts, thermal stress fracturing, and secondary impacts.

A nurse-run business to improve health care for nursing home residents.

The costs of health care for the rapidly growing segment of our population over age 75 are staggering. EverCare is a nurse-run business that seeks to improve cost-effectiveness and quality of health care for nursing home residents enrolled in a health maintenance organization.

The gravity field and interior structure of Enceladus.

The small and active Saturnian moon Enceladus is one of the primary targets of the Cassini mission. We determined the quadrupole gravity field of Enceladus and its hemispherical asymmetry using Doppler data from three spacecraft flybys. Our results indicate the presence of a negative mass anomaly in the south-polar region, largely compensated by a positive subsurface anomaly compatible with the presence of a regional subsurface sea at depths of 30 to 40 kilometers and extending up to south latitudes of about 50°. The estimated values for the largest quadrupole harmonic coefficients (10(6)J2 = 5435.2 ± 34.9, 10(6)C22 = 1549.8 ± 15.6, 1σ) and their ratio (J2/C22 = 3.51 ± 0.05) indicate that the body deviates mildly from hydrostatic equilibrium. The moment of inertia is around 0.335MR(2), where M is the mass and R is the radius, suggesting a differentiated body with a low-density core.

Cassini Imaging Science: initial results on Saturn's rings and small satellites.

Images acquired of Saturn's rings and small moons by the Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) during the first 9 months of Cassini operations at Saturn have produced many new findings. These include new saturnian moons; refined orbits of new and previously known moons; narrow diffuse rings in the F-ring region and embedded in gaps within the main rings; exceptionally fine-scale ring structure in moderate- to high-optical depth regions; new estimates for the masses of ring-region moons, as well as ring particle properties in the Cassini division, derived from the analysis of linear density waves; ring particle albedos in select ring regions; and never-before-seen phenomena within the rings.

Cassini Imaging Science: initial results on Phoebe and Iapetus.

The Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem acquired high-resolution imaging data on the outer Saturnian moon, Phoebe, during Cassini's close flyby on 11 June 2004 and on Iapetus during a flyby on 31 December 2004. Phoebe has a heavily cratered and ancient surface, shows evidence of ice near the surface, has distinct layering of different materials, and has a mean density that is indicative of an ice-rock mixture. Iapetus's dark leading side (Cassini Regio) is ancient, heavily cratered terrain bisected by an equatorial ridge system that reaches 20 kilometers relief. Local albedo variations within and bordering Cassini Regio suggest mass wasting of ballistically deposited material, the origin of which remains unknown.

Cassini Imaging Science: initial results on Saturn's atmosphere.

The Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) began observing Saturn in early February 2004. From analysis of cloud motions through early October 2004, we report vertical wind shear in Saturn's equatorial jet and a maximum wind speed of approximately 375 meters per second, a value that differs from both Hubble Space Telescope and Voyager values. We also report a particularly active narrow southern mid-latitude region in which dark ovals are observed both to merge with each other and to arise from the eruptions of large, bright storms. Bright storm eruptions are correlated with Saturn's electrostatic discharges, which are thought to originate from lightning.

Use of the Consistency Check in the Vector Verification Method.

The consistency check is a type of frequency check in which full use is made of the space group symmetry. It is designed for application to a symmetry map, to a tentative atom map, to the results of superpositions, or to any pseudoelectron-density map. Like the frequency check, its purpose is to aid in the analysis of one of the above maps by assigning a relative weight (relative weight equals the number of other peaks that the given peak is consistent with) to the peaks in these maps. To determine the relative weight, each peak in the map is compared with each of the others to see if it is consistent. Two peaks are considered consistent with each other, if and only if, the set of unique vectors between the two is present in the Patterson map. The method is equivalent to doing a full set of symmetry superpositions at each peak in a symmetry map or a tentative atom map; counting the number of points in the resulting map; and outputting this number at the initial peak position. No assumptions other than that for space group symmetry are required to apply the consistency check to a symmetry map. The resulting map, which has been calculated in a routine fashion directly from the Patterson map, may then be conveniently used as the starting point for the structure analysis of an unknown compound.

Biological screening of monoclonal antibodies.

A method was developed to screen hybridomas secreting immunoglobulin to cell surface receptors by observing the ability of antibodies to inhibit cell attachment and survival. The model used to develop the screening procedure involved mouse hybridomas secreting monoclonal IgG to human epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptors. Conditioned medium from these hybridomas inhibited the attachment and subsequent growth of human foreskin fibroblasts unless excess EGF was added to the cultures. This procedure allows for the selection of hybridomas producing increased levels of immunoglobulin.