Evolution and ecology of influenza A viruses.

Cosmochemistry of the rare earth elements: meteorite studies.

▪ Abstract At luminosities above 1011 , infrared galaxies become the dominant population of extragalactic objects in the local Universe (z ≲ 0.3), being more numerous than optically selected starburst and Seyfert galaxies and quasi-stellar objects at comparable bolometric luminosity. The trigger for the intense infrared emission appears to be the strong interaction/merger of molecular gas-rich spirals, and the bulk of the infrared luminosity for all but the most luminous objects is due to dust heating from an intense starburst within giant molecular clouds. At the highest luminosities (Lir > 1012 ), nearly all objects appear to be advanced mergers powered by a mixture of circumnuclear starburst and active galactic nucleus energy sources, both of which are fueled by an enormous concentration of molecular gas that has been funneled into the merger nucleus. These ultraluminous infrared galaxies may represent an important stage in the formation of quasi-stellar objects and powerful radio galaxies. They may al...

/pdf/luminous-infrared-galaxies-zoi3y3hutv.pdf

Luminous infrared galaxies

We construct size distributions for carbonaceous and silicate grain populations in different regions of the Milky Way, LMC, and SMC. The size distributions include sufficient very small carbonaceous grains (including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecules) to account for the observed infrared and microwave emission from the diffuse interstellar medium. Our distributions reproduce the observed extinction of starlight, which varies depending on the interstellar environment through which the light travels. As shown by Cardelli, Clayton, and Mathis in 1989, these variations can be roughly parameterized by the ratio of visual extinction to reddening, RV. We adopt a fairly simple functional form for the size distribution, characterized by several parameters. We tabulate these parameters for various combinations of values for RV and bC, the C abundance in very small grains. We also find size distributions for the line of sight to HD 210121 and for sight lines in the LMC and SMC. For several size distributions, we evaluate the albedo and scattering asymmetry parameter and present model extinction curves extending beyond the Lyman limit.

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1086/318651/pdf

Dust Grain-Size Distributions and Extinction in the Milky Way, Large Magellanic Cloud, and Small Magellanic Cloud

▪ Abstract This review surveys the observed properties of interstellar dust grains: the wavelength-dependent extinction of starlight, including absorption features, from UV to infrared; optical lum...

https://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/users/reipurth/reviews/draine.pdf

Interstellar dust grains

The diatoms discovered in the Polonnaruwa meteorite are interpreted as originating in comets and the dust in interstellar space. The exceptionally porous structure of the Polonnaruwa meteorite points to it being a recently denuded cometary fragment. Microorganisms that were present in a freeze-dried state within pores and cavities may have survived entry to be added to the terrestrial biosphere.

/pdf/on-the-cometary-origin-of-the-polonnaruwa-meteorite-4qa8ovzmwu.pdf

On the cometary origin of the polonnaruwa meteorite

The prodigious output of dust and CO observed in comet Hale-Bopp at a heliocentric distance of 6.5 AU is strongly suggestive of high-pressure release of material from liquified subsurface domains rather than thermal evaporation from a sunlit patch of frozen CO.

Eruptions of comet Hale-Bopp at 6.5 AU

Solid para hydrogen coated graphite particles expulsion into interstellar medium from star formation regions, considering mantles stability and particles extinction efficiency, albedo and phase function

/pdf/solid-hydrogen-coated-graphite-particles-in-the-interstellar-39iqp8qgrz.pdf

Solid-hydrogen-coated graphite particles in the interstellar medium. i.

The Biological Big Bang: The First Oceans of Primordial Planets at 2-8 Myr Explains Hoyle-Wickramasinghe Cometary Panspermia and a Primordial LUCA

The recent emergence of a form of the Zika virus leading to microencephaly in new-born infants would continue to pose a major Global threat until its ultimate origins are properly understood. We argue that adhering to the obsolete paradigm of closed-box Darwinian evolution is a major obstacle to progress. If the Zika virus escalates unchecked its soma-to-germ line transfer might effectively lead to the emergence of a new human species with a diminished level of cognition.

https://www.longdom.org/open-access/dangers-of-adhering-to-an-obsolete-paradigm-could-zika-virus-lead-to-a-reversal-of-human-evolution-2332-2519-1000147.pdf

N. C. Wickramasinghe

Papers

On the cometary origin of the polonnaruwa meteorite

Eruptions of comet Hale-Bopp at 6.5 AU

Solid-hydrogen-coated graphite particles in the interstellar medium. i.

The Biological Big Bang: The First Oceans of Primordial Planets at 2-8 Myr Explains Hoyle-Wickramasinghe Cometary Panspermia and a Primordial LUCA

Dangers of Adhering to an Obsolete Paradigm: Could Zika Virus Lead to a Reversal of Human Evolution?