Stable isotope study of the Archaean rocks of the Vredefort impact structure,central Kaapvaal Craton,South Africa

The Vredefort dome in the Kaapvaal Craton was formed as a result of the impact of a large meteorite at 2.02 Ga. The central core of Archaean granitic basement rocks is surrounded by a collar of uplifted and overturned strata of the Witwatersrand Supergroup, exposing a substantial depth section of the Archaean crust. Orthogneisses of the core show little variation in whole-rock δ ¹⁸O value, with the majority being between 8 and 10‰, with a mean of 9.2‰ (n = 35). Quartz and feldspar have per mil differences that are consistent with O-isotope equilibrium at high temperatures, suggesting minimal interaction with fluids during subsequent cooling. These data refute previous suggestions that the Outer Granite Gneiss (OGG) and Inlandsee Leucogranofels (ILG) of the core represent middle and lower crust, respectively. Granulite-facies greenstone remnants from the ILG have δ ¹⁸O values that are on average 1.5‰ higher than the ILG host rocks and are unlikely, therefore, to represent the residuum from the partial melting event that formed the host rock. Witwatersrand Supergroup sedimentary rocks of the collar, which were metamorphosed at greenschist-to amphibolite-facies conditions, generally have lower δ ¹⁸O values than the core rocks with a mean value for metapelites of 7.7‰ (n = 45). Overall, through an ∼20 km thick section of crust, there is a general increase in whole-rock δ ¹⁸O value with increasing depth. This is the reverse of what is normal in the crust, largely because the collar rocks have δ ¹⁸O values that are unusually low in comparison with metamorphosed sedimentary rocks worldwide. The collar rocks have δD values ranging from −35 to −115‰ (average −62‰, n = 29), which are consistent with interaction with water of meteoric origin, having a δD of about −25 to −45‰. We suggest that fluid movement through the collar rocks was enhanced by impact-induced secondary permeability in the dome structure. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Provenance of Holocene beach sand in the Western Iberian margin: the use of the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test for the deciphering of sediment recycling in a modern coastal system

Detrital zircons from Holocene beach sand and igneous zircons from the Cretaceous syenite forming Cape Sines (Western Iberian margin) were dated using laser ablation – inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry. The U–Pb ages obtained were used for comparison with previous radiometric data from Carboniferous greywacke, Pliocene–Pleistocene sand and Cretaceous syenite forming the sea cliff at Cape Sines and the contiguous coast. New U–Pb dating of igneous morphologically simple and complex zircons from the syenite of the Sines pluton suggests that the history of zircon crystallization was more extensive (ca 87 to 74 Ma), in contrast to the findings of previous geochronology studies (ca 76 to 74 Ma). The U–Pb ages obtained in Holocene sand revealed a wide interval, ranging from the Cretaceous to the Archean, with predominance of Cretaceous (37%), Palaeozoic (35%) and Neoproterozoic (19%) detrital‐zircon ages. The paucity of round to sub‐rounded grains seems to indicate a short transportation history for most of the Cretaceous zircons (ca 95 to 73 Ma) which are more abundant in the beach sand that was sampled south of Cape Sines. Comparative analysis using the Kolmogorov–Smirnov statistical method, analysing sub‐populations separately, suggests that the zircon populations of the Carboniferous and Cretaceous rocks forming the sea cliff were reproduced faithfully in Quaternary sand, indicating sediment recycling. The similarity of the pre‐Cretaceous ages (>ca 280 Ma) of detrital zircons found in Holocene sand, as compared with Carboniferous greywacke and Pliocene–Pleistocene sand, provides support for the hypothesis that detritus was reworked into the beach from older sedimentary rocks exposed along the sea cliff. The largest percentage of Cretaceous zircons (<ca 95 Ma) found in Holocene sand, as compared with Pliocene–Pleistocene sand (secondary recycled source), suggests that the Sines pluton was the one of the primary sources that became progressively more exposed to erosion during Quaternary uplift. This work highlights the application of the Kolmogorov–Smirnov method in comparison of zircon age populations used to identify provenance and sediment recycling in modern and ancient detrital sedimentary sequences.     

Measurement of wind parameters and heat flux with the sensitron Doppler SODAR

The authors present the results of a comparison of wind parameters and heat flux inferred from Doppler SODAR (Sensitron/Sweden) with direct measurements using an acoustic anemometer (Kaijo-Denki, DAT 300) and a platinum wire thermometer. Rather important are the results of a calibration method for c _t ² from measurements of temperature standard deviation, and of an underestimation of the wind speed by Doppler SODAR. An operational means to calculate the flux of sensible heat on the basis of SODAR measurements is studied.     

Synthetic spectra of simulated terrestrial atmospheres containing possible biomarker gases.

NASA's proposed Terrestrial Planet Finder, a space-based interferometer, will eventually allow spectroscopic analyses of the atmospheres of extrasolar planets. Such analyses would provide information about the existence of life on these planets. One strategy in the search for life is to look for evidence of O3 (and hence O2) in a planet's atmosphere; another is to look for gases that might be present in an atmosphere analogous to that of the inhabited early Earth. In order to investigate these possibilities, we have calculated synthetic spectra for several hypothetical terrestrial-type atmospheres. The model atmospheres represent four different scenarios. The first two, representing inhabited terrestrial planets, are an Earth-like atmosphere containing variable amounts of oxygen and an early Earth-type atmosphere containing methane. In addition, two cases representing Mars-like and early Venus-like atmospheres were evaluated, to provide possible "false positive" spectra. The calculated spectra suggest that ozone could be detected by an instrument like Terrestrial Planet Finder if the O2 concentration in the planet's atmosphere is > or = 200 ppm, or 10(-3) times the present atmospheric level. Methane should be observable on an early-Earth type planet if it is present in concentrations of 100 ppm or more. Methane has both biogenic and abiogenic sources, but concentrations exceeding 1000 ppm, or 0.1% by volume, would be difficult to produce from abiogenic sources alone. High methane concentrations in a planet's atmosphere are therefore another potential indicator for extraterrestrial life.     

Complex formation in the ternary system Mg(II)-CO2-H2O

The carbonato and hydrogencarbonato complexes of Mg²⁺ were investigated at 25 and 50° in solutions of the constant ClO₄^? molality (3 M) consisting preponderantly of NaClO₄. The experimental data could be explained assuming the following equilibria: Mg²⁺ + CO_2B + H₂O ag MgHCO⁺₃ + H⁺, $\text{log}{}^1\text{β}{}_1\text{= ?7.64}{}_4\text{± 0.01}{}_7\text{(25°), ?7.46}{}_2\text{± 0.01}{}_1\text{(50°)}$, Mg²⁺ + 2 CO_2g + 2 H₂Oag Mg(HCO₃)⁰₂ ± 2 H⁺, $\text{log}{}^1\text{β}{}_2\text{= ?15.00 ± 0.14 (25°)}$, ?15.37 ± 0.39 (50°), Mg²⁺ + CO_2g + H₂Oag MgCO⁰₃ + 2 H⁺, $\text{log}{}^1\text{k}{}_1\text{= ?15.64 ± 0.06 (25°)}$,?15.23 ± 0.02 (50°), with the assumption γ_MgCO3⁰ = γ_Mg(HCO3)⁰2, ΔG⁰(I = 0) for the reaction MgCO⁰₃ + CO_2g + H₂O = Mg(HCO₃)⁰₂ was estimated to be ?3.9₁ ± 0.8₆ and 0.6 ± 2.4 kJ/mol at 25 and 50°C, respectively. The abundance of carbonate linked Mg(II) species in fresh water systems is discussed.     

The provenance of northern Kalahari Basin sediments and growth history of the southern Congo Craton reconstructed by U–Pb ages of zircons from recent river sands

The southern Congo Craton is widely overlain by Meso- to Cenozoic sediments of the northern Kalahari Basin, which hamper any correlation of basement units. The latter are represented by the Archaean Angola and Kasai Blocks, while the southern cratonic margin is framed by several Meso- to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts. For provenance analysis of the sedimentary cover and reconstruction of the main zircon-forming events, we studied zircons from recent sediments of the largest rivers at the southern margin of the Congo Craton. U–Pb zircon ages suggest a major amount of the sediments to originate from E Lufilian and Kibaran Belts, while input from the S Damara Belt seems to increase to the W. Ages related to the Angola Block were only noticed in the westernmost parts of the working area, which is not in accordance with the SE-trending drainage pattern, proposed to have been onset during the Cretaceous. Thus, it is assumed that the Meso- to Cenozoic sedimentary cover extended further west than today prior to the Mesozoic to Neogene uplift of the Angola Block and that subsequent erosion exhumed the basement stepwise from west to east. A recurrent destabilisation of the southern margin of the Congo Craton at ~2.7, 1.9, 1.0 and 0.6 Ga is supposed to be represented by major peaks in the age distribution pattern of the total amount of concordant zircons. This is in accordance with similar studies in adjacent areas. Additionally, the obtained data fit well to several hypothesised major events during the supercontinent cycle.     

Paleoecological investigation of recent lake acidification in the northern Great Lakes states

Paleoecological analyses of sediments from nine northern Great Lakes states (NGLS) lakes reveal small pH changes in seven of these lakes since 1860, four of these being declines. The largest diatom-inferred (DI) pH declines of 0.5 pH units were found in Brown L. and Denton L., Wisconsin. Two other lakes with suspected total alkalinity declines (based on an acidification model and on historical water chemistry, respectively), McNearney L., Michigan, and Camp 12 L., Wisconsin, have not acidified recently according to diatom-inference techniques. Many of the observed trends of increasing pH are coincident with logging; floristic composition of diatom assemblages also changed coincident with fisheries manipulations in some lakes, but these floristic trends did not affect DI pH. Sediment core profiles of Pb, S, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons provide a record of atmospheric deposition of fossil fuel combustion products beginning around the turn of the century; onset is later and accumulation rates are smaller than for other northeastern study regions of the Paleoecological Investigation of Recent Lake Acidification (PIRLA) Project. The response of diatom species to lakewater pH in the NGLS region is very strong and similar to response in other regions. Overall, there is little paleoecological evidence that acidic deposition has caused significant acidification of lakes in the NGLS region.This is the twelfth of a series of papers to be published by this journal which is a contribution of the Paleoecological Investigation of Recent Lake Acidification (PIRLA) project. Drs. D.F. Charles and D.R. Whitehead are guest editors for this series.     

Stability of two-dimensional pre-flare structures

Several theoretical approaches to the problem of the onset of solar flares identify the point of onset as a ‘critical’ point, where the solution curve turns back. In other theories, a flare occurs at a conventional transition from stability to instability. The present paper provides stability results relevant for both types of approaches. Restricting the discussion to two-dimensional configurations (e.g. models for two-ribbon flares) stability is discussed in the framework of ideal magnetohydrodynamics, resistive magnetohydrodynamics and Vlasov theory. In most (but not all) cases the perturbation modes considered are restricted to two spatial dimensions in the same sense as the equilibrium. Several rather general criteria for stability of the lower part of the solution curve (‘minimal solutions’) are derived. Our results provide support to the concept of flare onset at a critical point.