The COVID-19 pandemic and global environmental change: Emerging research needs

The outbreak of COVID-19 raised numerous questions on the interactions between the occurrence of new infections, the environment, climate and health. The European Union requested the H2020 HERA project which aims at setting priorities in research on environment, climate and health, to identify relevant research needs regarding Covid-19. The emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 appears to be related to urbanization, habitat destruction, live animal trade, intensive livestock farming and global travel. The contribution of climate and air pollution requires additional studies. Importantly, the severity of COVID-19 depends on the interactions between the viral infection, ageing and chronic diseases such as metabolic, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and obesity which are themselves influenced by environmental stressors. The mechanisms of these interactions deserve additional scrutiny. Both the pandemic and the social response to the disease have elicited an array of behavioural and societal changes that may remain long after the pandemic and that may have long term health effects including on mental health. Recovery plans are currently being discussed or implemented and the environmental and health impacts of those plans are not clearly foreseen. Clearly, COVID-19 will have a long-lasting impact on the environmental health field and will open new research perspectives and policy needs.     

Geological setting and timing of the Chah Zard breccia-hosted epithermal gold–silver deposit in the Tethyan belt of Iran

The breccia-hosted epithermal gold–silver deposit of Chah Zard is located within a high-K, calc-alkaline andesitic to rhyolitic volcanic complex in the central part of the Urumieh-Dokhtar Magmatic Arc (UDMA), west central Iran. The total measured resource for Chah Zard is ∼2.5 million tonnes of ore at 12.7 g/t Ag and 1.7 g/t Au (28.6 t Ag, 3.8 t Au), making it one of the largest epithermal gold deposits in Iran. Magmatic and hydrothermal activity was associated with local extensional tectonics in a strike-slip regime formed in transtensional structures of the Dehshir-Baft strike-slip fault system. The host rocks of the volcanic complex consist of Eocene sedimentary and volcanic rocks covered by Miocene sedimentary rocks. LA-ICP–MS U–Pb zircon geochronology yields a mean age of 6.2 ± 0.2 Ma for magmatic activity at Chah Zard. This age represents the maximum age of mineralization and may indicate a previously unrecognized mineralization event in the UDMA. Breccias and veins formed during and after the waning stages of explosive brecciation events due to shallow emplacement of rhyolite porphyry. Detailed systematic mapping leads to the recognition of three distinct breccia bodies: volcaniclastic breccia with a dominantly clastic matrix; gray polymict breccia with a greater proportion of hydrothermal cement; and mixed monomict to polymict breccia with clay matrix. The polymictic breccias generated bulk-mineable ore, whereas the volcaniclastic breccia is relatively impermeable and largely barren. Precious metals occur with sulfide and sulfosalt minerals as disseminations, as well as in the veins and breccia cements. There is a progression from pyrite-dominated (stage 1) to pyrite-base metal sulfide and sulfosalt-dominated (stages 2 and 3) to base metal sulfide-dominated (stage 4) breccias and veins. Hydrothermal alteration and deposition of gangue minerals progressed from illite-quartz to quartz-adularia, carbonate, and finally gypsum-dominated assemblages. Free gold occurs in stages 2 and 4, principally intergrown with pyrite, quartz, chalcopyrite, galena, sphalerite, and Ag-rich tennantite–tetrahedrite, and also as inclusions in pyrite. High Rb/Sr ratios in ore-grade zones are closely related to sericite and adularia alteration. Positive correlations of Au and Ag with Cu, As, Pb, Zn, Sb, and Cd in epithermal veins and breccias suggest that all these elements are related to the same mineralization event.     

A fast GIS-based risk assessment for tephra fallout: the example of Cotopaxi volcano, Ecuador-Part II: vulnerability and risk assessment

In order to develop efficient strategies for risk mitigation and emergency management, planners require the assessment of both the expected hazard (frequency and magnitude) and the vulnerability of exposed elements. This paper presents a GIS-based methodology to produce qualitative to semi-qualitative thematic risk assessments for tephra fallout around explosive volcanoes, designed to operate with datasets of variable precision and resolution depending on data availability. Due to the constant increase in population density around volcanoes and to the wide dispersal of tephra from volcanic plumes, a large range of threats, such as roof collapses, damage to crops, blockage of vital lifelines and health problems, concern even remote communities. To address these issues, we have assessed the vulnerability and the risk levels for five themes relevant to tephra fallout: (1) social, (2) economic, (3) environmental, (4) physical and (5) territorial. Risk and vulnerability indices for each theme are averaged to the fourth level of administrative unit (parroquia, parish). In a companion paper, Biass and Bonadonna (this volume) present a probabilistic hazard assessment for tephra fallout at Cotopaxi volcano (Ecuador) using the advection-diffusion model TEPHRA2, which is based on field investigations and a global eruption database (Global Volcanism Program, GVP). The scope of this paper is to present a new approach to risk assessment specifically designed for tephra fallout, based on a comprehensive hazard assessment of Cotopaxi volcano. Our results show that an eruption of moderate magnitude (i.e. VEI 4) would result in the possible collapse of ??9,000 houses in the two parishes located close to the volcano. Our study also reveals a high risk on agriculture, closely linked to the economic sector, and a possible accessibility problem in case of an eruption of any size, as tephra is likely to affect the only major road running from Quito to Latacunga (Panamerican Highway). As a result, this method fits into the ongoing effort to better characterize and evaluate volcanic risk, and more specifically the risk associated with tephra fallout. Although this methodology relies on some assumptions, it can serve as a rapid and efficient starting point for further investigations of the risk level around explosive volcanoes.     

Evolutionary unification in composite active galactic nuclei

In this paper, we present an evolutionary unification scenario, involving supermassive black holes (SMBHs) and starbursts (SBs) with outflow (OF), that seems capable of explaining most of the observational properties (of at least part) of active galactic nuclei (AGN).
The scenario includes a nuclear/circumnuclear SB closely associated with the AGN where the narrow-line region (NLR), broad-line region (BLR) and broad absorption line (BAL) region are produced in part by the OF process with shells and in compact supernova remnants (cSNRs).
The OF process in BAL quasi-stellar objects (QSOs) with extreme infrared (IR) and Fe  ii emission is studied. In addition, the Fe  ii problem regarding the BLR of AGN is analysed. The correlations between the BAL, IR emission, Fe  ii intensity and the intrinsic properties of the AGN are not clearly understood. We suggest here that the behaviour of the BAL, IR and Fe  ii emission in AGN can be understood within an evolutionary and composite model for AGN.
In our model, strong BAL systems and Fe  ii emission are present (and intense) in young IR objects. Parameters like the BALs, IR emission, Fe  ii /Hβ intensity ratio, Fe  ii equivalent width (EW), broad-line width, [O  iii ]λ5007-Å intensity and width, NLR size, X-ray spectral slope in radio quiet (RQ) AGN plus lobe separation, and lobe to core intensity ratio in radio loud (RL) AGN are proposed to be fundamentally time-dependent variables inside time-scales of the order of 10⁸ yr. Orientation/obscuration effects take the role of a second parameter providing the segregation between Seyfert 1/Seyfert 2 galaxies (Sy1/Sy2) and broad-/narrow-line radio galaxies (BLRG/NLRG).     

High-resolution fjord sediment record of a receding glacier with growing intermediate proglacial lake (Steffen Fjord,Chilean Patagonia)

Proglacial lakes are effective sediment traps but their impact on the reliability of downstream sediment records to reconstruct glacier variability remains unclear. Here, we investigate the sedimentary signature of the recent recession of Steffen Glacier (Chilean Patagonia, 47°S) in downstream fjord sediments, with a focus on identifying the trapping (decreased downstream sediment yield) and filtering (removal of coarse particles) effectiveness of a growing intermediate proglacial lake. Four sediment cores were collected along a 14 km longitudinal transect in Steffen Fjord and the sediment physical and chemical properties were compared with aerial imagery at high temporal resolution. The caesium-137 (¹³⁷Cs) chronology of the most distal core and sediment trap data suggest that sediment accumulation in the fjord remained relatively stable through time, despite the accelerating glacier recession and the growth of Steffen proglacial lake. This is in contrast with many studies that indicate a decrease in sediment yield during proglacial lake expansion. It implies that the increase in sediment export due to accelerating meltwater production may be balanced by the sediment trapping effect of the growing proglacial lake. The fjord sediments show a slight fining upward accompanied by a marked decrease in flood-induced grain-size peaks, most likely due to the increasing filtering and dampening effect of the expanding proglacial lake. Our findings show that the filtering effect of the proglacial lake reached a threshold in 1985, when the lake attained an area of 2.02 km². The additional 5 km of glacier recession during the following 32 years did not have any significant impact on downstream sedimentation. This study confirms that proglacial lakes act as sediment traps but it indicates that (1) the trapping effect can be outpaced by accelerating glacier recession and (2) the filtering effect becomes stable once the lake attains a certain critical size. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Water structure at hematite-water interfaces

The atomic-level structure of water at mineral surfaces is an important controlling factor in interfacial reactions such as foreign ion incorporation, crystal growth and dissolution, and redox reactions. Molecular dynamics simulations with four different models based on interatomic potentials have been carried out to determine the atomic-level structure of three hematite-water interfaces. In addition, for each of the three surfaces, different terminations or protonation schemes were considered. The availability of surface X-ray scattering data for the surfaces considered here allowed for an extensive comparison with experimental data. Qualitatively, with the exception of one termination with one model, all models predict the correct arrangement of water molecules at the interface. Quantitatively, the agreement with experimental positions, distances, and layer occupancies is good to excellent, especially given the range of values reported in published experimental studies. Therefore, this study provides further evidence that interatomic potential models can be used to reliably predict the structure of mineral-water interfaces. In addition, molecular simulations are a valuable source of information to complement surface X-ray scattering experiments owing to their ability to directly determine the position of hydrogen atoms and to yield three-dimensional predicted structures at no added cost, as demonstrated in this work. Indeed, the molecular dynamics trajectories were analyzed to determine the surface structural controls on the interfacial water structure. Each of the three surface functional groups present at the surfaces considered in this work, namely, triply-coordinated oxo, doubly-coordinated hydroxo, and singly-coordinated aquo groups, was found to form similar hydrogen bond configurations with adsorbed water molecules at all surfaces. Oxo groups accept long-lasting and linear hydrogen bonds from adsorbed water molecules; hydroxo groups can form hydrogen bonds with other surface functional groups as well as with adsorbed water molecules; and aquo groups normally only donate hydrogen bonds to other surface groups or adsorbed water molecules. Additionally, the majority of adsorbed water molecules were found to adopt multiple configurations and orientations. This information was used to evaluate three-dimensional structural models of the interfaces, which were previously derived experimentally from one-dimensional electron density profiles and steric considerations.     

Photometric correction and in-flight calibration of Chang’ E-1 Interference Imaging Spectrometer (IIM) data

The main objective of this study is to develop a new photometric correction that is suitable for global Chang’ E-1 (CE-1) Interference Imaging Spectrometer (IIM) data. We considered two improvements in the accuracy of the photometric correction: (1) classifying the whole Moon’s surface into four classes (very bright rays, mature highlands, low FeO basalts, and high FeO basalts) based on the FeO contents; (2) decoupling the combined effects of the solar photometry and the detector responsivity along the cross-track. The results showed that our decoupling method could correct the non-uniformity of detector response but retain the cross-track photometry. Based on these in-flight calibrated data, spectrally continuous photometric functions of the four classes were obtained. By eliminating the contamination from highlands ejecta and low FeO basalts, the opposition surge of the high FeO maria was evident for the first time. The amplitude and width of the opposition surge presents wavelength dependence, which suggests that shadow hiding is the mechanism responsible for the opposition surge. A global lunar reflectance map whose boundaries between adjacent orbits are invisible was generated using the new four-type photometric functions. The quality of the global mosaic and the consistency of the reflectance spectra of the same area obtained in different orbits indicate the effectiveness of our photometric correction method. Although our method was specifically applied to the IIM data, the photometric correction method and the parameter values derived in this study is expected to be suitable for other optical instruments.     

Ultraprecise age and formation temperature of the Australasian tektites constrained by 40Ar/39Ar analyses

The Australasian tektites are quench melt glass ejecta particles distributed over the Asian, Australian, and Antarctic regions, the source crater of which is currently elusive. New ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age data from four tektites: one each from Thailand, China, Vietnam, and Australia measured using three different instruments from two different laboratories and combined with published ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar data yield a weighted mean age of 788.1 ± 2.8 ka (±3.0 ka, including all sources of uncertainties) (P = 0.54). This age is five times more precise compared to previous results thanks, in part, to the multicollection capabilities of the ARGUS VI noble gas mass spectrometer, which allows an improvement of almost fourfold on a single plateau age measurement. Diffusion experiments on tektites combined with synthetic age spectra and Monte Carlo diffusion models suggest that the minimum temperature of formation of the Thai tektite is between 2350 °C and 3950 °C, hence a strict minimum value of 2350 °C.