Earthquakes in Switzerland and surrounding regions during 2006

This report of the Swiss Seismological Service summarizes the seismic activity in Switzerland and surrounding regions during 2006. During this period, 572 earthquakes and 91 quarry blasts were detected and located in the region under consideration. Of these earthquakes, two occurred in conjunction with the construction of the new Gotthard railway tunnel and 165 were induced artificially by the stimulation of a proposed geothermal reservoir beneath the city of Basel. With 20 events with M _L ≥ 2.5, five of which were artificially induced, the seismic activity in the year 2006 was far below the average over the previous 31 years. Nevertheless, six events were felt by the public, most prominently the strongest of the induced Basel events (M _L 3.4), which caused some non-structural building damage. Noteworthy are also the two earthquakes near Cortaillod (M _L 3.2), on the shore of Lake Neuchatel, and in Val Mora (M _L 3.5), between the Engadin and Val Müstair, as well as the 42 aftershocks of the M _L 4.9 Vallorcine earthquake, between Martigny and Chamonix, of September 2005. Editorial handling: Stefan Bucher     

Transport and deposition of suspended particles in saturated porous media: hydrodynamic effect

A laboratory study was undertaken to determine the transport and deposition rate of suspended particles in columns of saturated porous media (gravel and glass beads), where the porous media were subjected to steady-state flow. Silt particles with a mode of 14 μm diameter (used as the suspended particles) and fluorescein (as the conservative tracer) were injected into the columns in short pulses. The breakthrough curves were competently described with the analytical solution of a convection–dispersion equation with a first-order deposition rate. The experiments were performed using different flow rates. The suspended particle size distribution, the porous media, and the flow rates themselves were the main factors retained in this study to investigate the mechanisms governing the transport and deposition kinetics in detail. The results showed the existence of a flow rate, beyond which suspended particles travel faster than the conservative tracer. A decrease of the deposition rate of suspended particles beyond a critical flow velocity was also observed. Such behaviour led to consideration of the couple hydrodynamic-gravity forces at high flow rates. As the hydrodynamic force increases, particle deposition rates are reduced due to the effect of hydrodynamic forces inhibiting the deposition.     

Environmental controls on clay mineralogy of an Early Jurassic mudrock (Blue Lias Formation,southern England)

We present a dataset including clay mineralogy, gamma-ray spectrometry, organic matter content and magnetic susceptibility of the Hettangian to lowest Sinemurian successions of Dorset and Somerset, southern UK (Blue Lias Formation, Bristol Channel and Wessex basins). In both areas, the clay assemblages comprise predominantly detrital illite, kaolinite and illite/smectite mixed layers. Clays probably originated from the erosion of the Hercynian massifs, the relative proportions of kaolinite and illite being modulated by arid-humid climatic fluctuations. The organic matter (OM) content (types II to IV) ranges up to 12% in both areas. A clear stratigraphical trend in clay mineral assemblages is apparent in Somerset, whereas in Dorset sharp contrasts between adjacent horizons and a greater dilution by carbonate mask the long-term evolution. Correlations between both areas based on similar vertical trends in clay mineral abundance support the suggestion of a hiatus within the angulata Zone of the Dorset succession. As expected, the kaolinite/illite ratio correlates with the Th/K ratio deduced from gamma-ray spectrometry. However, significant departures from the correlation occur in OM-rich intervals, suggesting that Th may be partly adsorbed on to OM particles. Surprisingly, high magnetic susceptibility correlates with abundant kaolinite, not with Fe-rich clays, indicating either that kaolinite is accompanied by a soil-inherited magnetisable phase (possibly iron oxide) or that illite-rich rocks are more strongly diluted by carbonate than are kaolinite-rich strata.     

Single GPS receiver time-relative positioning with loop misclosure corrections

Time-relative positioning makes use of observations taken at two different epochs and stations with a single global positioning system (GPS) receiver to determine the position of the unknown station with respect to the known station. The limitation of this method is the degradation over time of the positioning accuracy due to the temporal variation of GPS errors (ionospheric delay, satellite clock corrections, satellite ephemerides, and tropospheric delay). The impact of these errors is significantly reduced by adding to the one-way move from the known to the unknown station, a back move to the known station. A loop misclosure is computed from the coordinates obtained at the known station at the beginning and at the end of the loop, and is used to correct the coordinates of the unknown station. The field tests, presented in this paper, show that using the loop misclosure corrections, time-relative positioning accuracy can be improved by about 60% when using single frequency data, and by about 40% with dual frequency data. For a 4-min processing interval (an 8-min loop) and a 95% probability level, errors remain under 20 cm for the horizontal components and 36 cm for the vertical component with single frequency data; and under 11 cm for the horizontal components and 29 cm for the vertical component with dual frequency data.     

Brest sea level record: a time series construction back to the early eighteenth century

The completeness and the accuracy of the Brest sea level time series dating from 1807 make it suitable for long-term sea level trend studies. New data sets were recently discovered in the form of handwritten tabulations, including several decades of the eighteenth century. Sea level observations have been made in Brest since 1679. This paper presents the historical data sets which have been assembled so far. These data sets span approximately 300 years and together constitute the longest, near-continuous set of sea level information in France. However, an important question arises: Can we relate the past and the present-day records? We partially provide an answer to this question by analysing the documents of several historical libraries with the tidal data using a ‘data archaeology’ approach advocated by Woodworth (Geophys Res Lett 26:1589–1592, 1999b). A second question arises concerning the accuracy of such records. Careful editing was undertaken by examining the residuals between tidal predictions and observations. It proved useful to remove the worst effects of timing errors, in particular the sundial correction to be applied prior to August 1, 1714. A refined correction based on sundial literature [Savoie, La gnomique, Editions Les Belles Lettres, Paris, 2001] is proposed, which eliminates the systematic offsets seen in the discrepancies in timing of the sea level measurements. The tidal analysis has also shown that shallow-water tidal harmonics at Brest causes a systematic difference of 0.023 m between mean sea level (MSL) and mean tide level (MTL). Thus, MTL should not be mixed with the time series of MSL because of this systematic offset. The study of the trends in MTL and MSL however indicates that MTL can be used as a proxy for MSL. Three linear trend periods are distinguished in the Brest MTL time series over the period 1807–2004. Our results support the recent findings of Holgate and Woodworth (Geophys Res Lett) of an enhanced coastal sea level rise during the last decade compared to the global estimations of about 1.8 mm/year over longer periods (Douglas, J Geophys Res 96:6981–6992, 1991). The onset of the relatively large global sea level trends observed in the twentieth century is an important question in the science of climate change. Our findings point out to an ‘inflexion point’ at around 1890, which is remarkably close to that in 1880 found in the Liverpool record by Woodworth (Geophys Res Lett 26:1589–1592, 1999b).     

A computer simulation study of natural silicate melts. Part I: Low pressure properties

In implementing into a molecular dynamics simulation code a simple interionic potential developed to describe the nine component system K₂O-Na₂O-CaO-MgO-FeO-Fe₂O₃-Al₂O₃-TiO₂-SiO₂ (KNCMFATS), it has been possible to reproduce satisfactorily a number of thermodynamic, structural and transport properties of a representative set of natural silicate melts. An important conclusion reached in this study is the good transferability of the potential from felsic to ultramafic compositions although this transferability becomes less accurate with high silica contents (rhyolitic composition and beyond) and with very iron-rich silicates (e.g. fayalite). A key feature of the simulation is to make the link between macroscopic properties of the melt and its microscopic structure and dynamics. We thus obtain a relationship between the molar volume of the melt, the number of network modifiers and the oxygen coordination number. The simulation also allows one to quantify the coordination environment around the cations as function of the melt composition. Furthermore, the electrical conductivity of the high temperature liquid is investigated.     

Analysis of rock drainage and cooling experiments for underground cryogenic LNG storage

Hydrogeological monitoring was conducted around a pilot cavern for underground cryogenic LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) storage. The monitoring was mainly focused on the operation of a drainage and recharge system. After the operation of the drainage system commenced, the drainage rate decreased rapidly in the initial stages and then decreased gradually. Hydrogeological monitoring revealed that the rock drainage system operated effectively. During drainage, the water table was maintained below the cavern roof. The recharge for ice-ring formation was performed in two phases. The first phase involved the cessation of pumping in downward-drainage holes and the second involved the closure of upward boreholes. Since the water table was maintained below the cavern roof, artificial recharge was planned at first. However, it was not implemented due to heavy rainfall in the recharge stage. On the basis of hydrogeological monitoring and hydraulic tests, it was found that the fractures above the roof and on the right wall of the pilot cavern mainly affected seepage into the cavern and thermal variation due to the storage of liquid nitrogen. Thermal variation was examined by the thermometers installed around the pilot cavern. The cooling and thawing processes reveal the characteristics of thermal distribution in the rock and the 0 °C isotherm. The cooling phase lasted for six months, and the 0 °C isotherm progressed in time after the injection of liquid nitrogen into the cavern. The isotherm propagated up to about 4 m from the floor and the sidewall of the cavern and about 3 m from the cavern roof. The cooling rate of the rock mass above the cavern roof was lower than that of the other cavern sides due to the gaseous space in the upper part of the containment. The fractures were analyzed and considered for thermal modeling. A two-dimensional finite element analysis was performed to compare the field monitoring at the pilot cavern. The numerical modeling shows the distance between the ice ring and heat transfer pattern of the fractures around the pilot cavern. The propagation of the measured and calculated 0 °C isotherm reveals that the water-conveying joint on the right wall might affect thermal propagation through a thermal pipe.     

On the Correlation between Convective Plume Updrafts and Downdrafts,Lidar Reflectivity and Depolarization Ratio

We question the correlation between vertical velocity (w) on the one hand and the occurrence of convective plumes in lidar reflectivity (i.e. range corrected backscatter signal Pz ²) and depolarization ratio (Δ) on the other hand in the convective boundary layer (CBL). Thermal vertical motion is directly investigated using vertical velocities measured by a ground-based Doppler lidar operating at 2 μm. This lidar provides also simultaneous measurements of lidar reflectivity. In addition, a second lidar 200 m away provides reflectivities at 0.53 and 1 μm and depolarization ratio at 0.53 μm. The time series from the two lidars are analyzed in terms of linear correlation coefficient (ρ). The main result is that the plume-like structures provided by lidar reflectivity within the CBL as well as the CBL height are not a clear signature of updrafts. It is shown that the lidar reflectivity within the CBL is frequently anti-correlated (ρ (w, Pz ² )) with the vertical velocity. On the contrary, the correlation coefficient between the depolarization ratio and the vertical velocity ρ (w, Δ ) is always positive, showing that the depolarization ratio is a fair tracer of updrafts. The importance of relative humidity on the correlation coefficient is discussed. An erratum to this article can be found at     

Climate extremes in Loess of China coupled with the strength of deep-water formation in the North Atlantic

The loess-paleosol sequences of the last 1.2 Ma in China have recorded two kinds of climate extremes: the strongly developed S4, S5-1 and S5-3 soils (corresponding to the marine δ¹⁸O stages 11, 13, and 15, respectively) as evidence of three episodes of great warmth and two coarse-grained loess units (L9 and L15, corresponding to the marine δ¹⁸O stages 22, 23, 24 and 38, respectively) which indicate severest glacial conditions. The climatic and geographical significance of these events are still unclear, and their cause remains a puzzle.Paleopedological, geochemical and magnetic susceptibility data from three loess sections (Xifeng, Changwu and Weinan) suggest that the S4, S5-1 and S5-3 soils were formed under sub-tropical semi-humid climates with a tentatively estimated mean annual temperature (MAT) of at least 4–6°C higher and a mean annual precipitation (MAP) of 200–300 mm higher than for the present-day, indicating a much strengthened summer monsoon. The annual rainfall was particularly accentuated for the southern-most part of the Loess Plateau, suggesting that the monsoon rain belt (the contact of the monsoonal northward warm-humid air mass with the dry-cold southward one) might have stood at the southern part of the Plateau for a relatively long period each year. The loess units L9 and L15 were deposited under semi-desertic environments with a tentatively estimated MAT and MAP of only about 1.5–3°C and 150–250 mm, indicating a much strengthened winter monsoon, and that the summer monsoon front could rarely penetrate into the Loess Plateau region.Correlation with marine carbon isotope records suggests that these climate extremes have large regional, even global, significance rather than being local phenomena in China. They match the periods with greatest/smallest Atlantic–Pacific δ¹³C gradients, respectively, indicating their relationships with the strength of Deep Water (NADW) production in the North Atlantic. These results suggest that the monsoon climate in the Loess Plateau region was significantly linked with the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation on timescales of 10⁴ years.