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Jupiter has a long list of oddities. For one thing, it's enormous, containing 70 percent of our solar system's planetary material, yet it is not like the rocky world beneath our feet.
Jupiter is so gassy, it seems more like a star. Jupiter’s atmosphere brews hurricanes twice as wide as Earth itself, monsters that generate 400 mph winds and lightning 100 times brighter than terrestrial bolts. The giant planet also emits a brand of radiation lethal to unprotected humans.
Jupiter's strangest feature, however, may be a 25,000 mile deep soup of exotic fluid sloshing around its interior. It's called liquid metallic hydrogen.
“Here on Earth, hydrogen is a colorless, transparent gas,” says Juno principal investigator Scott Bolton. “But in the core of Jupiter, hydrogen transforms into something bizarre.”
Jupiter is 90 percent hydrogen, with 10 percent helium and a sprinkle of all the other elements. In the gas giant’s outer layers, hydrogen is a gas just like on Earth. As you go deeper, intense atmospheric pressure gradually turns the gas into a dense fluid.
Eventually the pressure becomes so great that it squeezes the electrons out of the hydrogen atoms and the fluid starts to conduct like a metal.
What’s this fluid like?
“Liquid metallic hydrogen has low viscosity, like water, and it's a good electrical and thermal conductor,” said Caltech's David Stevenson, an expert in planet formation, evolution, and structure. “Like a mirror, it reflects light, so if you were immersed in it [here's hoping you never are], you wouldn't be able to see anything.”
Here on Earth, liquid metallic hydrogen has been made in shock wave experiments, but since it doesn't stay in that form it has only been made in tiny quantities for very short periods of time. If researchers are right, Jupiter's core may be filled with oceans of the stuff.
There's so much LMH inside Jupiter that it transforms the planet into an enormous generator. “A deep layer of liquid metallic hydrogen and Jupiter's rapid rotation (about 10 hours) create a magnetic field 450 million miles long – the biggest entity in the solar system,” said Bolton. Jupiter's magnetosphere can produce up to 10 million amps of electric current, with auroras that light up Jupiter’s poles more brightly than any other planet.
Although scientists are fairly sure that liquid metallic hydrogen exists inside Jupiter, they don't know exactly how the big planet's interior is structured.
For instance, where does the hydrogen turn into a conductor? Does Jupiter have a core of heavy elements inside?
Juno's mission is to answer those key questions.
“By mapping Jupiter's magnetic field, gravity field, and atmospheric composition, Juno will tell us a great deal about the make-up of Jupiter's interior,” Bolton said.
It's important to understand this behemoth because it wielded a lot of influence in the solar system's formation.
After the sun took shape out of the solar nebula, Jupiter formed from the majority of leftover material. The state and composition of the material remaining just after the sun formed are preserved in Jupiter.
“It holds the heirloom recipe that made our solar system's first planets,” said Bolton. “And we want it.”
With the Aug. 5 Friday's launch, “Jupiter becomes our lab, Juno our instrument, to unlock the secrets of gas giants,” Bolton said.
And what Juno discovers could be very freakish, indeed.
Dauna Coulter works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
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For the second straight year, the researchers will set sail aboard the U.S. Coast Guard vessel Healy.
What they learn from the data collected during the seven-week cruise will provide an understanding of the extent Arctic Ocean chemistry is changing and detail potential implications for carbonate species – like phytoplankton and shellfish – that are vulnerable to greater ocean acidity.
Ocean acidification is the process by which pH levels of seawater decrease due to the greater amounts of carbon dioxide being absorbed by the oceans from the atmosphere. Currently oceans absorb about one-fourth of the greenhouse gas.
Lower pH levels make water more acidic and lab studies have shown that more acidic waters decrease calcification rates in calcifying organisms, reducing their ability to build shells or skeletons.
These changes, in species ranging from corals to shrimp, have the potential to impact species up and down the food chain.
“The Arctic Ocean is one of the most vulnerable areas for ocean acidification on our planet but there is very little data and understanding about current acidification trends and potential impacts to oceanic food chains in the region,” said US Geological Survey oceanographer Lisa Robbins. “This research should provide us with greater insight into this growing climatic concern.”
Field experiments are currently being run in tropical and temperate environments to determine the extent calcification rates are already changing, but little is known about the chemistry of the Arctic Ocean and whether changes are already having impacts on the innumerable calcifying organisms that inhabit its’ waters.
The research is taking place during the 2011 U.S.-Canada Extended Continental Shelf Survey research expedition; a joint mission between the U.S. Coast Guard, the US Geological Survey, and the Canadian Coast Guard.
During this voyage, the US Geological Survey scientists, along with researchers from the University of South Florida, will collect and analyze water samples using an array of highly specialized instruments including sampling bottles that can collect water from as deep as 3500 meters.
Instruments will also pick up measurements on dissolved oxygen content, conductivity, temperature and depth in the water column.
“Sampling from a variety of environments and depths in the Arctic will provide a robust data set that we can use to compare our techniques as well as give us an overall picture of ocean chemistry changes throughout the water column,” said US Geological Survey oceanographer Kim Yates.
Last year the team spent five weeks on board Healy collecting water samples. This included sampling the Arctic Ocean continuously every two minutes and collecting more than 25,000 data samples.
Preliminary data from 2010 is currently being processed and analyzed for trends and will be published later this year. Data from this summer’s survey will provide further information towards ocean chemistry trends.
“Ocean acidification can have broad global impacts on industry, ecosystems, tourism, and policy, so it is of vital importance to determine trends and whether impacts are already occurring in oceans around the world,” said Robbins.
People interested will be able to track the ocean acidification research team during their voyage in the Arctic on their cruise journal.
Additionally, a slideshow on USGS arctic acidification research that includes photos from last year’s cruise is available online.
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The fire, reported shortly after 4:15 p.m. Thursday, was located in the Clearlake Park area, along Lakeshore and Lower Lakeshore Boulevards and Arrowhead Road.
Battling wind, heavy fuels and the potential for damage to numerous homes, firefighters from around the county converged on the fire.
An estimated two dozen fire units from Cal Fire and all of the counties fire agencies, as well as the California Highway Patrol, Clearlake Police and the Lake County Sheriff's Office, responded to the fire.
Lake County Fire Battalion Chief Charlie Diener said he called for an in county task force, with all local fire agencies in addition to his own agency – Northshore, Lakeport, Kelseyville and South Lake County Fire – responding.
Cal Fire sent a full, five-engine wildland dispatch as well a dozer, plus four aircraft, Diener said. A helicopter made numerous water drops on the fire.
Diener said the Lakeshore incident, as it was called, destroyed three stick-built homes and damaged an outbuilding, with as many as eight homes in immediate danger at its height.
The destroyed homes were located at 13505 Arrowhead, 13530 Lakeshore Blvd. and 13590 Colusa. A structure at 13530 Lower Lakeshore Blvd. was damaged.
Diener said Clearlake hasn't seen a fire that's destroyed as many buildings since about 1992. “It's been quite a while.”
As for the cause, Diener said the Lake County Arson Task Force is investigating the fire.
“We have an idea of the origin but it's still under investigation,” he said.
Residents of the neighborhood, however, offered theories about what started the blaze.
There was a report of three men cutting sheet metal with power saws on Lakeshore Boulevard, throwing a lot of sparks. Once the fire began, the men reportedly jumped into a pickup and sped away. The incident was reported to authorities.
Ed Ross, a resident of Yolo Alley, reported sitting and looking out his front window when he heard a loud explosion.
He said he got up to take a closer look and could see a large, thick black cloud rising from the area near 13510 Lakeshore Blvd.
Ross said he began to gather up his belongings to evacuate and shortly afterward saw a fire engine arrived.
Diener said the wind was between 10 and 15 miles per hour, and was “definitely a factor” in the fire's rapid rate of spread. Other factors included heavy grass and brush, and a very deep slope.
The fire jumped Colusa Street and Lakeshore Boulevard near Lower Lakeshore Boulevard, Diener said.
Diener said “there was a lot of potential” for even more damage had the fire jumped Arrowhead Road, where it could have reached many more homes.
“We were lucky the wind was blowing it away from Arrowhead Road,” said Diener. “If it had jumped there, it would have had a lot of places to run.”
One firefighter suffered an injured ankle, Diener said.
Mop up continued at the scene on Friday, as Konocti Conservation Camp crews worked their way through debris in search of hot spots.
Neighborhood residents who witnessed the fire recounted the experience on Friday.
John Laster, who owns 13505 Arrowhead, had returned from the Bay Area to find his home destroyed.
He said he had received a phone call alerting him to the situation and replied, “Quit kidding around,” because he thought it was a joke.
After seeing the ashes, Laster said, “It really takes the wind out of your sails.”
However, he remained optimistic. The home was fully insured and he said he plans to rebuild everything just as it was and retire to this community that he's lived in for three years.
Keiko Smith, who lives on Arrowhead, saw the large flames from her living room and immediately evacuated to her neighbors' house across Arrowhead.
She said that her neighbor ran to her home and watered everything down for two hours during the fire.
Smith said she couldn't sleep most of the night, but felt better Friday, when she spoke to a company about dealing with possible smoke damage to her home.
Ken Jaffy, another Arrowhead resident, said Friday he felt silly now that he fought the fire with his garden hose, but that was all he could do until he was later overwhelmed by the smoke and driven indoors for fresher air.
Jaffy showed his withered garden plants and melted plastic pots. Recounting the blaze, he admitted being surprised by the volume of noise and heat the fire produced.
“If I were king, I would double the pay of every firefighter in Lake County,” Jaffy said.
Jaffy said he was amazed at the immediate and mass response.
“I really appreciate what they did for us," he said, but added, “My heart really goes out to all who suffered loss.”
The 86-year-old Ross, a Marine during World War II and the Korean War, recalled fighting “wild fires” at Camp Pendleton while training there for each war.
“Those firemen did one helluva job,” Ross said.
Gary McAuley contributed to this report.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Vallejo man was arrested for driving under the influence after a single-vehicle crash on Thursday evening.
David Mills, 58, suffered minor injuries in the crash, which occurred at 6:30 p.m. on Highway 20 east of Cache Creek, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Kory Reynolds.
Mills was driving his 1992 Ford F-150 pickup westbound on Highway 20 at an unknown speed when, for unknown reasons, he allowed his truck to drift off the north shoulder, Reynolds said.
Mills overcorrected, traveled across Highway 20 and exited the south shoulder. Reynolds said the truck traveled down a steep embankment and overturned, coming to rest on its roof on some large boulders.
Northshore Fire and Cal Fire firefighters extricated Mills from his truck, and REACH air ambulance flew him to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, where he was treated for his injuries, as Lake County News has reported.
Reynolds said Mills was arrested later for driving under the influence.
Officer Richard Jensen in handling the investigation.
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Arrested was Juan Martinez Ruiz, 22, according to Lake County Sheriff's public information officer Michelle Gonzalez.
On Monday, Aug. 8, sheriff’s deputies assigned to Special Enforcement Detail were conducting proactive patrols in the Clearlake Oaks area, Gonzalez said.
At approximately 11:15 a.m., deputies stopped a white Chevy pickup truck on Highway 53 near Highway 20 for vehicle code violations. Gonzalez said the driver, later identified as Ruiz, was determined to be unlicensed and subsequently arrested.
A sheriff’s narcotics detection K-9 alerted to the area of the truck’s engine compartment, Gonzalez said. When deputies searched beneath the hood of the truck, they located approximately half a pound of crystal methamphetamine concealed in the engine compartment.
Deputies also seized nearly $1,800 in currency from Ruiz’ person as suspected profits of drug trafficking, Gonzalez said.
Ruiz was transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility and booked on charges of possession of a controlled substance for sales, transportation of a controlled substance, and driving while unlicensed. Ruiz remained in the Lake County Jail early Saturday on a no-bail illegal entry immigration hold, according to jail records.
The Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force can be reached through its anonymous tip line at 707-263-3663.
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The term “absolute discretion” is an oxymoron. Absolute discretion is not absolute; it does not allow the trustee to do whatever he pleases.
Without careful advice from a qualified attorney, a layperson acting as trustee can easily get himself into trouble.
Let us explore what absolute discretion really means.
A trustee with “sole and absolute” discretion is not required to act as a reasonably prudent man would under similar circumstances, but still must act reasonably, in good faith, and not arbitrarily.
That is, the trustee is not held to the objective legal standard that requires acting prudently under the relevant circumstances.
Removing the objective standard thus allows the trustee more freedom to use his independent judgment and to consider a broader range of possible actions.
“Absolute discretion” will justify the trustee’s decision as to the manner in which the trustee has decided in good faith to further the purpose of the trust.
Naturally, a trustee should still consult with professionals to seek professional input; he may decide that it is best to follow professional guidance.
Stated in terms of what absolute discretion does not allow: a trustee with absolute discretion cannot do whatever he pleases but must consider foremost the purpose of the trust, and then exercise his own independent judgment in order to arrive at a good faith decision.
Thus, “absolute discretion” will not protect a trustee who is irresponsible and who fails to exercise absolute discretion reasonably.
A trustee must always take personal responsibility for his actions. Simply following the wishes of a beneficiary without exercising independent judgment, would be irresponsible of a trustee, and may land him in trouble.
Consider, for example, a special needs trust.
The trustee has absolute discretion over whether, when, and how much to distribute for the supplemental care or support of a special needs beneficiary, not otherwise met by government benefits.
Absolute discretion is necessary here to preserve eligibility by preventing certain trust assets from being counted as available resources to the beneficiary.
The trust’s stated purpose is thus to supplement and not to replace needs-based government benefits (such as SSI and Medi-Cal).
The trustee may reasonably decide not to pay for medical services that are covered by Medi-Cal because the trust is not meant to replace government benefits.
In a special needs trust, it is unquestionably wrong for the same trustee to give cash distributions to the special needs beneficiary, because the trust is intended to prevent cash distributions to a person who is unable to manage their own finances.
Doing so would also likely disqualify the beneficiary from government benefits and defeat the trust’s other purpose.
Taking actions that defeat the purpose of the trust is a breach of trust for which the trustee could be held accountable by a beneficiary.
Lastly, a trustee who abuses his absolute discretion can be replaced by the court upon petition by the beneficiary.
Sometimes the trust will even allow for trustee to be removed by a trust protector who is named in the trust as having the authority to replace a poorly performing trustee.
Dennis A. Fordham, attorney (LL.M. tax studies), is a State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law. His office is at 55 First St., Lakeport, California. Dennis can be reached by e-mail at
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