The Multiscale TROPIcal CatchmentS critical zone observatory M-TROPICS dataset III: Hydro-geochemical monitoring of the Mule Hole catchment,south India

Despite the importance of tropical ecosystems for climate regulation, biodiversity, water and nutrient cycles, only a few Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs) are located in the tropics. Among these, most are in humid climates, while very few data exist for semi-arid and sub-humid climates, due to the difficulty of estimating hydro-geochemical balances in catchments with ephemeral streams. We contribute to fill this gap by presenting a meteorological and hydro-geochemical dataset acquired at the Mule Hole catchment (4.1 km²), a pristine dry deciduous forest located in a biosphere reserve in south India. The dataset consists of time series of variables related to (i) meteorology, including rainfall, air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and direction, and global radiation, (ii) hydrology, including water level and discharge at the catchment outlet, (iii) hydrogeology, including manual (monthly) and/or automated (from 15 min to hourly) groundwater levels in nine piezometers and (iv) geochemistry, including suspended sediment content in the stream and chemical composition of rainfall (event based), groundwater (monthly sampling) and stream water (storm events, 15 min to hourly frequency with an automatic sampler). The time series extend from 2003 to 2019. Measurement errors are minimized by frequent calibration of sensors and quality checks, both in the field and in the laboratory. Despite these precautions, several data gaps exist, due to occasional access restriction to the site and instrument destruction by wildlife. Results show that large seasonal and interannual variations of climatic conditions were reflected in the large variations of stream flow and groundwater recharge, as well as in water chemical composition. Notably, they reveal a long-term evolution of groundwater storage, suggesting hydrogeological cycles on a decadal scale. This dataset, alone or in combination with other data, has already allowed to better understand water and element cycling in tropical dry forests, and the role of forest diversity on biogeochemical cycles. As tropical ecosystems are underrepresented by Critical Zone Observatories, we expect this data note to be valuable for the global scientific community.     

The Kuroshio Extension and its recirculation gyres

This paper reports on the strength and structure of the Kuroshio Extension and its recirculation gyres. In the time average, quasi-permanent recirculation gyres are found to the north and south of the Kuroshio Extension jet. The characteristics of these recirculations gyres are determined from the combined observations from the Kuroshio Extension System Study (KESS) field program (June 2004–June 2006) and include current meters, pressure and current recording inverted echo sounders, and subsurface floats. The position and strength of the recirculation gyres simulated by a high-resolution numerical model are found to be consistent with the observations. The circulation pattern that is revealed is of a complex system of multiple recirculation gyres that are embedded in the crests and troughs of the quasi-permanent meanders of the Kuroshio Extension. At the location of the KESS array, the Kuroshio Extension jet and its recirculation gyres transport of about 114 Sv. This represents a 2.7-fold increase in the transport of the current compared to the Kuroshio's transport at Cape Ashizuri before it separates from the coast and flows eastward into the open ocean. This enhancement in the current's transport comes from the development of the flanking recirculation gyres. Estimates from an array of inverted echo sounders and a high-resolution ocean general circulation model are of similar magnitude.     

Oxygen isotope and 26Al‐26Mg systematics of aluminum‐rich chondrules from unequilibrated enstatite chondrites

Abstract— Correlated in situ analyses of the oxygen and magnesium isotopic compositions of aluminum‐rich chondrules from unequilibrated enstatite chondrites were obtained using an ion microprobe. Among eleven aluminum‐rich chondrules and two plagioclase fragments measured for ²⁶Al‐²⁶Mg systematics, only one aluminum‐rich chondrule contains excess ²⁶Mg from the in situ decay of ²⁶Al; the inferred initial ratio (²⁶Al/²⁷Al)_o = (6.8 ± 2.4) × 10^?6 is consistent with ratios observed in chondrules from carbonaceous chondrites and unequilibrated ordinary chondrites. The oxygen isotopic compositions of five aluminum‐rich chondrules and one plagioclase fragment define a line of slope ?0.6 ± 0.1 on a three‐oxygen‐isotope diagram, overlapping the field defined by ferromagnesian chondrules in enstatite chondrites but extending to more ¹⁶O‐rich compositions with a range in δ¹⁸O of about ?12‰. Based on their oxygen isotopic compositions, aluminum‐rich chondrules in unequilibrated enstatite chondrites are probably genetically related to ferromagnesian chondrules and are not simple mixtures of materials from ferromagnesian chondrules and calcium‐aluminum‐rich inclusions (CAIs). Relative to their counterparts from unequilibrated ordinary chondrites, aluminum‐rich chondrules from unequilibrated enstatite chondrites show a narrower oxygen isotopic range and much less resolvable excess ²⁶Mg from the in situ decay of ²⁶Al, probably resulting from higher degrees of equilibration and isotopic exchange during post‐crystallization metamorphism. However, the presence of ²⁶Al‐bearing chondrules within the primitive ordinary, carbonaceous, and now enstatite chondrites suggests that ²⁶Al was at least approximately homogeneously distributed across the chondrite‐forming region.     

Conceptual model of leachate migration in a granular aquifer derived from the integration of multi-source characterization data (St-Lambert,Canada)

Numerical models encompassing source zones and receptors, based on representative conceptual models and accounting for aquifer heterogeneity, are needed to understand contaminant migration and fate; however, aquifer characterization seldom provides the necessary data. This study aimed to develop a workflow for field characterization and data integration, which could: (1) be adapted to the definition of subwatershed-scale aquifer heterogeneity (over 10 km²) and (2) adequately support mass transport model development. The study involved the field investigation of a shallow granular aquifer in a 12-km² subwatershed in Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon, Canada, in which a decommissioned landfill is emitting a leachate plume managed by natural attenuation. Using proven field methods, the characterization sequence was designed to optimize each method in terms of location, scale of acquisition, density and quality. The emphasis was on the acquisition of detailed indirect geophysical data that were integrated with direct hydraulic and geochemical data. This report focuses on the first qualitative and geostatistical data integration steps of the workflow leading to the development of a hydrogeological conceptual model. This is a prerequisite for further integration steps: prediction of hydrofacies and hydraulic conductivity (K), geostatistical simulations of K, studies of geochemical processes and numerical modeling.     

A method to dynamically subdivide parcels in land use change models

Spatial simulation models have become a popular tool in studying land use/land cover (LULC) change. An important, yet largely overlooked process in such models is the land subdivision, which is known to govern LULC change and landscape restructuring to a large extent. To fill this gap, we propose an efficient and straightforward method to simulate dynamic land subdivision in LULC change models. Key features in the proposed method are implementing a hierarchical landscape where adjacent cells of the same LULC type form patches, patches form properties, and properties form the landscape and incorporating real subdivision layouts. Furthermore, we use a queue-based modified flood-fill algorithm to dynamically reset LULC patches following a subdivision. The proposed subdivision method is demonstrated in action using a prototype agent-based LULC model developed for an amenity landscape in Australia. Results show that it is computationally feasible to run the subdivision method even as spatial resolution is increased, thus providing a proven means for spatial simulation models to dynamically split parcel land.     

Denudation intensity and control in the Chinese Tian Shan: new constraints from mass balance on catchment‐alluvial fan systems

Tectonics and climate are usually seen as the main controlling factors of denudation rates, which seem to rise with the tectonic activity and to decrease when the climate becomes drier. However, the low denudation rates observed in semi‐arid to arid contexts are generally measured on orogenic plateaus where the respective influence of the flat relief and the dry climate cannot really be unravelled. The Chinese Tian Shan was chosen as a case study. In the northern piedmont of this mountain range, a series of well‐preserved Quaternary alluvial fans offer the opportunity to perform a mass balance study at the scale of several catchment areas and several hundreds of thousands of years. Based on a geometrical reconstruction of these fans, the volumes of sediments exported out of 10 drainage basins during the Middle–Late Pleistocene (from ～300 to ～12 kyr) and the Holocene (from ～12 kyr to present) have been estimated. From these volumes, an average denudation rate of ～135 m/Myr was determined in the Tian Shan Range for the last 300 kyr. In agreement with other mass balances performed in the same area, the typical denudation intensity of the northern Tian Shan is thus of a few hundred meters per million years at most, regardless of the space and time scales considered. From a comparison with denudation rates in other mountain ranges throughout the world, we suggest that a dry climate can dramatically limit the denudation intensity even in active orogenic systems with a high topographic gradient like the Tian Shan. As a result, the time required to reach equilibrium between denudation and rock uplift in these systems could be extremely long (i.e. of more than several million years). Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effective methods for assessing ecological quality in intertidal soft-sediment habitats

Impacts of anthropogenic pollution on marine ecosystems are being addressed by legislation to protect and restore coastal and transitional waters. A range of biological measures have been investigated for their ability to indicate anthropogenic disturbance in subtidal soft-sediment habitats, but little work to date has focussed in intertidal habitats. This study investigated the sensitivity of communities, individual taxa, diversity indices and biotic indices to nutrient and organic enrichment in intertidal soft-sediment habitats. Variation in macrofaunal communities was more strongly associated with anthropogenic stressors than with natural environmental variation. Two multimetric indices, M-AMBI and IQI, were more closely associated with nutrient and organic pollution than the AMBI and ITI indices. Intertidal monitoring based on existing monitoring tools offers a cost effective alternative to subtidal monitoring and has potential to form the basis for an ecosystem level approach.     

澳大利亚寒武系生物地层研究新进展(英文)

澳大利亚寒武系集中分布在一南北向分布的从澳大利亚的北部、中部直到南澳大利亚克拉通地块上,少量寒武纪地层分布在新南威尔士、维多利亚和塔斯马尼亚。寒武系的底在中澳大利亚的Amadeus盆地出露得最好。下寒武统(大致相当于纽芬兰统和第二统)在澳大利亚北部大多数是不含化石的火山岩,而在澳大利亚中部和南澳大利亚的盆地中,其中最有名的是南澳大利亚的Arrowie和Stansbury盆地则是各种含化石的巨厚沉积序列。澳大利亚的下寒武统没有分阶方案,尽管在生物地层研究上最近取得很大进展,现在可以利用疑源类、遗迹化石、古杯类、三叶虫、腕足类、软体动物和其他小壳化石进行化石带的划分。很长一段时间内澳大利亚中部和北部的Ord-ian阶被认为是中寒武世最早期的,现在证明它可能相当于第二统的全部或者一部分;含化石的中寒武统和芙蓉统(或上寒武统)在Georgina盆地东部发育非常完整,在中澳大利亚、新南威尔士、维多利亚和塔斯马尼亚也可见到,都可以划分到阶。芙蓉统的底大致与Idamean阶的底相当。化石带的建立主要综合考虑球接子三叶虫、多节类三叶虫,自Iverian期晚期起再加上牙形类化石。寒武系的顶大致相当于Warendan阶的底,相关地层在Georgina盆地东部发育得很好。     

Incidence of marine debris and its relationships with benthic features in Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary, Southeast USA

Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary (GRNMS) is an increasingly popular site for recreational fishing and diving in the South Atlantic Bight (SAB). As a result, there has been heightened concern about potential accumulation of marine debris and its consequent effects on sanctuary resources. Field surveys were conducted at GRNMS in 2004 and 2005 to provide a spatially comprehensive characterization of benthic communities and to quantify the distribution and abundance of marine debris in relation to bottom features. The spatial distribution of debris was concentrated in the center of the sanctuary and was most frequently associated with ledges rather than other bottom types. On ledges, the presence and abundance of debris was significantly related to observed boating activity and physiographic features including ledge height, ledge area, and percent cover of benthic organisms. The results from this study will aid managers in optimizing cleanup efforts and long-term monitoring of debris accumulation patterns at GRNMS and other hard bottom areas in the SAB.     

Hydrologic parameters of salt marsh peat

Because of their profound influence on water movement and nutrient cycling in salt marshes, the two key physical properties of hydraulic conductivity and compressibility were studied in the Great Sippewissett Marsh and in the Ebben Creek Marsh in Massachusetts. Hydraulic conductivity was the most variable property: most frequently observed conductivities were of the order of 10^?3 cm s^?1 in both marshes, but extremes ranged from about 10^?1 to 10^?5 cm s^?1. Compressibility was much less variable, and contributed of the order of 10^?3 cm^?1 to the specific storativity of marsh sediment, making compression a major mechanism for changes in water storage in the sediment. Surface sediments frequently exhibited below-average conductivity, in contrast to freshwater bog peats which are usually most conductive at the surface. These measured properties may be applied to estimate the importance of many critical processes, such as the extent of infiltration occurring on the marsh surface, the hydrologic influence of the tidally varying creeks, and the hydrologic response to spring-neap tidal cycles.