Abundance and isotopic composition of noble gases in metal and graphite of the Bohumilitz IAB iron meteorite

Abstract— Abundances and isotopic compositions of noble gases in metal and graphite of the Bohumilitz IAB iron meteorite were measured. The abundance ratios of spallogenic components in metal reveal a ³He deficiency which is due to the diffusive loss of parent isotopes, that is, tritium (Tilles, 1963; Schultz, 1967). The diffusive loss likely has been induced by thermal heating by the Sun during cosmic‐ray exposure (～160 Ma; Lavielle et al, 1999). Thermal process such as impact‐induced partial loss may have affected the isotopic composition of spallogenic Ne. The ¹²⁹Xe/¹³¹Xe ratio of cosmogenic components in the metal indicates an enhanced production of epi‐thermal neutrons. The abundance ratios of spallogenic components in the graphite reveal that it contained small amounts of metal and silicates. The isotopic composition of heavy noble gases in graphite itself was obtained from graphite treated with HF/HCl. The isotopic composition of the etched graphite shows that it contains two types of primordial Xe (i.e., Q‐Xe and El Taco Xe). The isotopic heterogeneity preserved in the Bohumilitz graphite indicates that the Bohumilitz graphite did not experience any high‐temperature event and, consequently, must have been emplaced into the metal at subsolidus temperatures. This situation is incompatible with an igneous model as well as the impact melting models for the IAB‐IIICD iron meteorites as proposed by Choi et al. (1995) and Wasson et al (1980).     

Carbon isotope fractionation between graphite and diamond during shock experiments

Abstract— Carbon isotopic compositions were measured for shock‐produced diamond and shocked graphite formed at peak pressures ranging from 37 to 52 GPa. The δ¹³C values of diamonds produced in a sealed container were generally lower than that of the initial graphite. The differences in the carbon isotopic composition between initial graphite and shocked graphite/diamond may reflect kinetic isotopic fractionation during the oxidation of the graphite/diamond and/or analytical artifacts possibly induced by impurities in the samples. The pressure effect on the isotopic fractionations between graphite and diamond can be estimated from the δ¹³C values of impurity‐free diamonds produced using a vented container from which gases, including oxygen, in pore spaces escaped during or after the diamond formation (e.g., 0.039 ± 0.085‰ at a peak pressure of 52 GPa). Any isotopic fractionation induced by shock conversion of graphite to diamond is too small to be detected in natural shock‐induced diamond‐graphite systems related to terrestrial impact cratering processes.     

Distribution of vertical crustal movement rates in the Tohoku district, Japan, predicted by least-squares collocation

Least-squares prediction using an empirically deduced local covariance function was performed to investigate the temporal change in the rates of vertical crustal movements in the Tohoku district, Japan. Levelling data covering an area of approximately 450 × 275 km² observed between 1966 and 1995 were used and the results shown in the form of contour maps. Firstly we derived a covariance function of the rates of vertical crustal movement with a Gaussian form function. We used this function to estimate the spatial distribution of the rates of vertical crustal movements. By the present method, a steady tilt of the Tohoku district to the east, toward the Japan Trench and an areal uplift in the southwestern part were well reproduced. Moreover, a significant temporal change in vertical movement rates is clearly seen. Received: 15 July 1996      

Soil-structure interaction analysis of the Hualien containment model

This paper presents results from forced vibration tests, microtremor observations and earthquake response analysis of a nuclear reactor containment model constructed on stiff soil in Hualien, Taiwan. The dynamic behavior of the soil-structure system is simulated successfully with two numerical models: a sway-rocking model, whose soil parameters are evaluated on the basis of the continuum formulation method, and a finite element model, using the program SASSI with the flexible volume substructuring approach. The dependences of the soil parameters of both models on the amplitudes of the different dynamic excitations are investigated in detail. An original numerical simulation of microtremor is performed. Comparison with results of a previous study involving a rigid tower on a soft soil site in Chiba, Japan is offered.     

High-angle reverse faulting associated with the 1946 Nankaido earthquake

Analysis of vertical crustal deformation data in the southwestern part of Shikoku, southwest Japan, suggests that the Nankaido earthquake of 1946 (M_w = 8.1), which is a principal interplate thrust earthquake, was accompanied by subsidiary faulting on a splay fault adjacent to the coast of Shikoku. Discarding crustal movement resulting from the main thrusting of the Nankaido earthquake, local leveling data are explained by slip on a simple rectangular thrust fault located just offshore of Shikoku. Although it is difficult to constrain the fault location, a possible result is a high-angle thrust dipping landward at an angle of about 70°, with a dislocation of about 1.5 m, and source dimensions of 30 × 13 km along strike and dip. respectively. This result indicates that the fault may be one of the steeply dipping subsidiary faults branching from the main low-angle thrust, as was the case in the Alaska earthquake of 1964. Although several lines of evidence suggest that this faulting occurred as slow aseismic slip, its discrimination from the main seismic event is extremely difficult. This kind of high-angle thrusting just offshore of the coast would play an important role for the formation of the marine terraces during the late Quaternary period.     

Reactions Leading to the Disappearance of Pumpellyite in Low-grade Metamorphic Rocks of the Sanbagawa Metamorphic Belt in Central Shikoku, Japan

The major mineral assemblages of the metabasites of the Omoiji-Nagasawaarea in central Shikoku are hematite+epidote+chlorite+actinolite,riebeckitic actinolite+epidote+chlorite, epidote+chlorite+actinolite,and pumpellyite+epidote+chlorite+actinolite. The constituentminerals are often heterogeneous and assemblages in the fieldof a thin section sometimes do not obey the phase rule, butif grains apparently in non-equilibrium with others are excludedand domains of chemical equilibrium are appropriately chosenthe assemblages approximately obey the phase rule. The stability of hematite, pumpellyite, and epidote associatedwith chlorite and actinolite can be dealt with in terms of aternary system with appropriate excess phases. By fixing theFe²⁺/(Fe²⁺ +Mg) ratio of chlorite, it is dealt with in termsof stability relations in the system Ca₂Al₃Si₃O₁₂(OH)–Ca₂AlFe₂Si₃O₁₂(OH)with excess chlorite, actinolite, quartz, and controlled P_H2O.The maximum and minimum Fe³⁺ contents of epidote in this modelsystem are determined by hematite+epidote+chlorite+actinoliteand pumpellyite+epidote+chlorite+actinolite assemblages. Themaximum Fe³⁺ of the three phase assemblage epidote+chlorite+actinoliteis insensitive to temperature, but the minimum Fe³⁺ contentof epidote is sensitive to temperature and can be used to definethe metamorphic grade by a continuous quantity related to temperature.The phase relations expected for the model system are in goodagreement with the parageneses of the Sanbagawa terrain in centralShikoku and offer an explanation to the rule of Miyashiro &Seki (1958a) that the compositional range of epidote enlargeswith increasing temperature. The model also makes it possibleto estimate semi-quantitatively the temperature range in whichthe assemblage pumpellyite+epidote+chlorite+actinolite is stable.The possible maximum range is about 120 ?C, but the assemblageis stable in metabasite only for about 90 ?C. The higher temperaturelimit of the pumpellyite-actinolite facies defined by the disappearanceof pumpellyite in metabasite corresponds to the temperatureat which epidote with Fe³⁺/(Fe³⁺ +Al) = 0.10 0.15 coexistswith pumpellyite, actinolite, and chlorite. The compositions of epidotes in the metabasites of the Omoiji-Nagasawaarea cluster around Fe³⁺/(Fe³⁺ +Al) = 0.33. The grade of thisarea is close to the lower temperature stability limit of thepumpellyite+epidote+chlorite+actinolite assemblage.     

Geochemical study of arsenic and other trace elements in groundwater and sediments of the Old Brahmaputra River Plain,Bangladesh

The geochemical study of groundwaters and core sediments from the Old Brahmaputra plain of Bangladesh was conducted to investigate the distribution of arsenic and related trace elements. Groundwaters from tube wells are characterized by pH of 6.4–7.4, dissolved oxygen (DO) of 0.8–1.8 mg/l, Ca contents of 5–50 mg/l, and Fe contents of 0.2–12.9 mg/l. Arsenic concentrations ranged from 8 to 251 μg/l, with an average value of 63 μg/l. A strong positive correlation exists between As and Fe (r ² = 0.802; p = 0.001) concentrations in groundwater. The stratigraphic sequences in the cores consist of yellowish silty clays at top, passing downward into grayish to yellowish clays and sands. The uppermost 3 m and lower parts (from 13 to 31 m) of the core sediments are oxidized (average oxidation reduction potential (ORP) +170 and +220 mV, respectively), and the ORP values gradually become negative from 3 to 13 m depths (−35 to −180 mV), indicating that anoxic conditions prevail in the shallow aquifers of the Brahmaputra plain. Age determinations suggest that clay horizons at ~10 m depth were deposited at around 2,000 and 5,000 years BP (¹⁴C ages) during the transgressive phase of sea-level change. Elevated concentrations of As, Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni, Cr, and V are present in the silts and clays, probably due to adsorption onto clay particles. Significant concentrations of As occur in black peat and peaty sediments at depths between 9 and 13 m. A strong positive correlation between As and Fe was found in the sediments, indicating As may be adsorbed onto Fe oxides in aquifer sediments.     

The effect of aerosol representation on cloud microphysical properties in Northeast Asia

This study performed a three-dimensional regional-scale simulation of aerosol and cloud fields using a meso-scale non-hydrostatic model with a bin-based cloud microphysics. The representation of aerosols in the model has been improved to account for more realistic multi-modal size distribution and multiple chemical compositions. Two case studies for shallow stratocumulus over Northeast Asia in March 2005 were conducted with different aerosol conditions to evaluate model performance. Improved condensation nuclei (CN) and cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) are attributable to the newly constructed aerosol size distribution. The simulated results of cloud microphysical properties (cloud droplet effective radius, liquid water path, and optical thickness) with improved CN/CCN number are close to the retrievals from satellite-based observation. The effects of aerosol on the microphysical properties of shallow stratocumulus are investigated by model simulation, in terms of columnar aerosol number concentration. Enhanced aerosol number concentration results in increased liquid water path in humid case, but invariant liquid water path in dry case primarily due to precipitation occurrence. The changes of cloud microphysical properties are more predominant for small aerosol burden than for large aerosol burden with the retarded changes in cloud mass and size due to inactive condensation and collision-coalescence processes. Quantitative evaluation of sensitivity factor between aerosol and cloud microphysical properties indicates a strong aerosol-cloud interaction in Northeast Asian region.     

Influence of Changes in Solar Radiation on Changes of Surface Temperature in China

The long-term trends of total surface solar radiation(SSR),surface diffuse radiation,and surface air temperature were analyzed in this study based on updated 48-yr data from 55 observational stations in China,and then the correlation between SSR and the diurnal temperature range(DTR) was studied.The effect of total solar radiation on surface air temperature in China was investigated on the basis of the above analyses.A strong correlation between SSR and DTR was found for the period 1961-2008 in China.The highest correlation and steepest regression line slope occurred in winter,indicating that the solar radiation effect on DTR was the largest in this season.Clouds and water vapor have strong influences on both SSR and DTR,and hence on their relationship.The largest correlations between SSR and DTR occurred in wintertime in northern China,regardless of all-day(including clear days and cloudy days) or clear-day cases.Our results also showed that radiation arriving at the surface in China decreased significantly during 1961-1989(dimming period),but began to increase during 1990-2008(brightening period),in agreement with previous global studies.The reduction of total SSR offset partially the greenhouse warming during 1961-1989.However,with the increase of SSR after 1990,this offsetting effect vanished;on the contrary,it even made a contribution to the accelerated warming.Nonetheless,the greenhouse warming still played a controlling role because of the increasing of minimum and mean surface temperatures in the whole study period of 1961-2008.We estimated that the greenhouse gases alone may have caused surface temperatures to rise by 0.31-0.46℃(10 yr) 1 during 1961-2008,which is higher than previously estimated.Analysis of the corresponding changes in total solar radiation,diffuse radiation,and total cloud cover indicated that the dimming and brightening phenomena in China were likely attributable to increases in absorptive and scattering aerosols in the atmosphere,respectively.     

Primordial noble gases in a graphite‐metal inclusion from the Canyon Diablo IAB iron meteorite and their implications

Abstract— We have carried out noble gas measurements on graphite from a large graphite‐metal inclusion in Canyon Diablo. The Ne data of the low‐temperature fractions lie on the mixing line between air and the spallogenic component, but those of high temperatures seem to lie on the mixing line between Ne‐HL and the spallogenic component. The Ar isotope data indicate the presence of Q in addition to air, spallogenic component and Ar‐HL. As the elemental concentration of Ne in Q is low, we could not detect the Ne‐Q from the Ne data. On the other hand, we could not observe Xe‐HL in our Xe data. As the Xe concentration and the Xe/Ne ratio in Q is much higher than that in the HL component, it is likely that only the contribution of Q is observed in the Xe data. Xenon isotopic data can be explained as a mixture of Q, air, and “El Taco Xe.” The Canyon Diablo graphite contains both HL and Q, very much like carbonaceous chondrites, retaining the signatures of various primordial noble gas components. This indicates that the graphite was formed in a primitive nebular environment and was not heated to high, igneous temperatures. Furthermore, a large excess of ¹²⁹Xe was observed, which indicates that the graphite was formed at a very early stage of the solar system when ¹²⁹I was still present. The HL/Q ratios in the graphite in Canyon Diablo are lower than those in carbonaceous chondrites, indicating that some thermal metamorphism occurred on the former. We estimated the temperature of the thermal metamorphism to about 500–600 °C from the difference of thermal retentivities of HL and Q. It is also noted that “El Taco Xe” is commonly observed in many IAB iron meteorites, but its presence in carbonaceous chondrites has not yet been established.