Record of large, Late Pleistocene outburst floods preserved in Saanich Inlet sediments, Vancouver Island, Canada

Two anomalous, gray, silty clay beds are present in ODP cores collected from Saanich Inlet, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The beds, which date to about 10,500 ¹⁴C yr BP (11,000 calendar years BP), contain Tertiary pollen derived from sedimentary rocks found only in the Fraser Lowland, on the mainland of British Columbia and Washington just east of the Strait of Georgia. Abundant illite-muscovite in the sediments supports a Fraser Lowland provenance.The clay beds are probably distal deposits of huge floods that swept through the Fraser Lowland at the end of the Pleistocene. Muddy overflow plumes from these floods crossed the Strait of Georgia and entered Saanich Inlet, where the sediment settled from suspension and blanketed diatom-rich mud on the fiord floor. The likely source of the floods is Late Pleistocene, ice-dammed lakes in the Fraser and Thompson valleys, which are known to have drained at about the time the floods occurred.     

DRASTIC-Fm: a modified vulnerability mapping method for structurally controlled aquifers in the southern Gulf Islands,British Columbia,Canada

DRASTIC, the methodology for mapping the intrinsic vulnerability of aquifers, is modified to incorporate the structural characteristics of fractured bedrock aquifers. In these aquifers, groundwater flow is predominantly through fractures, with large-scale fracture zones and faults acting as primary conduits for flow at the regional scale. The methodology is applied to the southern Gulf Islands region of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Bedrock geology maps, soil maps, structural measurements, mapped lineaments, water-well information and topographic data, assembled within a comprehensive GIS database, form the basis for assigning traditional DRASTIC indices, while adding the structural indices necessary for capturing the importance of regional structural elements in recharge and well capture zone determinations.     

Early growth of the last Cordilleran ice sheet deduced from glacio-isostatic depression in southwest British Columbia, Canada

Relative sea level at Vancouver, British Columbia rose from below the present datum about 30,000 cal yr B.P. to at least 18 m above sea level 28,000 cal yr B.P. In contrast, eustatic sea level in this interval was at least 85 m lower than at present. The difference in the local and eustatic sea-level positions is attributed to glacio-isostatic depression of the crust in the expanding forefield of the Cordilleran ice sheet during the initial phase of the Fraser Glaciation. Our findings suggest that about 1 km of ice was present in the northern Strait of Georgia 28,000 cal yr B.P., early during the Fraser Glaciation.     

Temporal variation of tropical cyclones in the North Atlantic Basin

A total of 269 tropical storms and hurricanes originated in the North Atlantic basin from 1960–1989. Of these, 76 made landfall on the continental United states. This study divides the 76 tropical storms into their month of formation. Seasonal shifts in the principal areas of tropical cyclone formation over the Atlantic basin have been recognized for many decades. The results of the study suggest that the early and late season tropical cyclones develop in areas which are first affected by the position of the sun, resulting in an increase in water temperatures. These cyclones normally make landfall along the Gulf Coast and usually are of low intensity. Formation areas shift eastward in mid-summer with a slight increase in intensity. By late August and early September, the formation areas have extended to the Cape Verde Islands. These storms tend to strike the east coast of the US and are normally more intense. By the end of the hurricane season, the primary formation area has shifted back to the Gulf of Mexico, with low intensity storms affecting the Gulf Coast.     

Sea-level change and paleogeographic reconstructions,southern Vancouver Island,British Columbia,Canada

Forty-eight new and previously published radiocarbon ages constrain deglacial and postglacial sea levels on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Sea level fell rapidly from its high stand of about +75 m elevation just before 14 000 cal BP (12 000 radiocarbon yrs BP) to below the present shoreline by 13 200 cal BP (11 400 radiocarbon years BP). The sea fell below its present level 1000 years later in the central Strait of Georgia and 2000 years later in the northern Strait of Georgia, reflecting regional differences in ice sheet retreat and downwasting. Direct observations only constrain the low stand to be below ?11 m and above ?40 m. Analysis of the crustal isostatic depression with equations utilizing exponential decay functions appropriate to the Cascadia subduction zone, however, places the low stand at ?30 ± 5 m at about 11 200 cal BP (9800 BP). The inferred low stand for southern Vancouver Island, when compared to the sea-level curve previously derived for the central Strait of Georgia to the northwest, generates differential isostatic depression that is consistent with the expected crustal response between the two regions. Morphologic and sub-bottom features previously interpreted to indicate a low stand of ?50 to ?65 m are re-evaluated and found to be consistent with a low stand of ?30 ± 5 m. Submarine banks in eastern Juan de Fuca Strait were emergent at the time of the low stand, but marine passages persisted between southern Vancouver Island and the mainland. The crustal uplift presently occurring in response to the Late Pleistocene collapse of the southwestern sector of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet amounts to about 0.1 mm/yr. The small glacial isostatic adjustment rate is a consequence of low-viscosity mantle in this tectonically active region.     

Contemporary movements and tectonics on Canada's west coast: A discussion

Evidence from published tidal records and geodetic relevelling data in British Columbia indicates that there is a consistent pattern of contemporary uplift on the outer coast (2 mm/yr) and subsidence on the inner coast (1–2 mm/yr). The zero uplift contour or “hinge-line” runs through Hecate Strait, Georgia Strait and Victoria. This pattern continues southwards into Washington State but is interrupted to the north by considerable uplift in southeastern Alaska.Although glacio-isostatic recovery has dominated vertical movements in the region over the last 10,000 years, the distribution and trend of the observed contemporary movements are not compatible with the pattern to be expected from this source and are most probably tectonic in origin. There is, however, no clear distinction between the movements seen opposite the Queen Charlotte transform margin and the Vancouver Island convergent margin. Comparison with movements observed at other active plate margins show that the pattern is essentially similar to that seen in association with subduction and convergence.The paradox that the vertical movement rates are much too great to explain observed geology and topography may be soluble by assuming that discontinuous lateral shifts of the movement pattern occur on a scale of hundreds of thousands of years.     

Basement of the South China Sea Area: Tracing the Tethyan Realm

The basement of the South China Sea (SCS) and adjacent areas can be divided into six divisions (regions) – Paleozoic Erathem graben-faulted basement division in Beibu Gulf, Paleozoic Erathem strike-slip pull-apart in Yinggehai waters, Paleozoic Erathem faulted-depression in eastern Hainan, Paleozoic Erathem rifted in northern Xisha (Paracel), Paleozoic Erathem strike-slip extending in southern Xisha, and Paleozoic-Mesozoic Erathem extending in Nansha Islands (Spratly) waters. The Pre-Cenozoic basement in the SCS and Yunkai continental area are coeval within the Tethyan tectonic domain in the Pre-Cenozoic Period. They are formed on the background of the Paleo-Tethyan tectonic domain, and are important components of the Eastern Tethyan multi-island-ocean system. Three branches of the Eastern Paleo-Tethys tectonic domain, North Yunkai, North Hainan, and South Hainan sea basins, have evolved into the North Yunkai, North Hainan, and South Hainan suture zones, respectively. This shows a distinctive feature of localization for the Pre-Cenozoic basement. The Qiongnan (i.e. South Hainan) Suture Zone on the northern margin of the South China Sea can be considered the vestige of the principal ocean basin of Paleo-Tethys, and connected with the suture zone of the Longmucuo-Shuanghu belt–Bitu belt –Changning-Menglian-Bentong-Raub belt, the south extension of Bitu-Changning-Menglian–Ching Mai belt–Chanthaburi-Raub-Bentong belt on the west of South China Sea, and with the Lianhua-Taidong suture zone (a fault along the east side of Longitudinal Valley in Taiwan)–Hida LP/HT (low pressure-high temperature) metamorphic belt–Hida-marginal HP/LT metamorphic belt in southwestern Honshu of Japan, on the east of the South China Sea. The Qiongbei (North Hainan) suture zone may eastwards extended along the Wangwu-Wenjiao fault zone, and connects with the Lufeng-Dapu-Zhenghe-Shangyu (Lianhuashan) deep fault zone through the Pearl River Mouth Basin. The Meso-Tethys developed on the south of the South China Sea. The Nansha Trough may be considered the vestige of the northern shelf of the Meso-Tethys. The oceanic crust of the Meso-Tethys has southwards subducted along the subduction-collision-thrust southern margin of the Nansha Trough with a subduction-pole opposite to those of the Yarlung Zangbo-Mytkyina-Bago zone on the west of the South China Sea, and the Meso-Tethyan (e.g. Northern Chichibu Ocean of the Meso-Tethys) suture zone “Butsozo tectonic line” in the outer belt of the Jurassic-Early Cretaceous terrene group in southwest Japan, on the east of the South China Sea.     

Storm surges in the Singapore Strait due to winds in the South China Sea

Among the semi-enclosed basins of the world ocean, the South China Sea (SCS) is unique in its configuration as it lies under the main southwest-northeast pathway of the seasonal monsoons. The northeast (NE) monsoon (November–February) and southwest (SW) monsoon (June–August) dominate the large-scale sea level dynamics of the SCS. Sunda Shelf at the southwest part of SCS tends to amplify Sea Level Anomalies (SLAs) generated by winds over the sea. The entire region, bounded by Gulf of Thailand on the north, Karimata Strait on the south, east cost of Peninsular Malaysia on the west, and break of Sunda Shelf on the east, could experience positive or negative SLAs depending on the wind direction and speed. Strong sea level surges during NE monsoon, if coincide with spring tide, usually lead to coastal floods in the region. To understand the phenomena, we analyzed the wind-driven sea level anomalies focusing on Singapore Strait (SS), laying at the most southwest point of the region. An analysis of Tanjong Pagar tide gauge data in the SS, as well as satellite altimetry and reanalyzed wind in the region, reveals that the wind over central part of SCS is arguably the most important factor determining the observed variability of SLAs at hourly to monthly scales. Climatological SLAs in SS are found to be positive, and of the order of 30 cm during NE monsoon, but negative, and of the order of 20 cm during SW monsoon. The largest anomalies are associated with intensified winds during NE monsoon, with historical highs exceeding 50 cm. At the hourly and daily time-scales, SLA magnitude is correlated with the NE wind speed over central part of SCS with an average time lag of 36–42 h. An exact solution is derived by approximating the elongated SCS shape with one-dimensional two-step channel. The solution is utilized to derive simple model connecting SLAs in SS with the wind speeds over central part of SCS. Due to delay of sea level anomaly in SS with respect to the remote source at SCS, the simplified solutions could be used for storm surge forecast, with a lead time exceeding 1 day.     

Arsenic in volcanic gases

 Total arsenic contents were determined in volcanic gases by analysis of fumarolic condensates collected in the period 1984–1992 from different volcanoes around the world. Arsenic concentrations range from <0.006 to 30 μg/g. The highest values (1.2–30 μg/g) were found at Vulcano, Aeolian Islands (southern Italy). The analytical data show that volcanic gases have a large variability of arsenic contents possibly related to both the different physicochemical features of magma source and rock properties within the volcanic system. Received: 2 October 1996 · Accepted: 29 January 1997     

‘Bond cycles’ recorded in terrestrial Pleistocene sediments of southwestern British Columbia,Canada

Recent data from exposures of terrestrial Pleistocene sediments in the Fraser Lowland of southwestern British Columbia reveal at least two ‘Bond cycles’ within Oxygen Isotope Stage 2. The maximum of the Coquitlam Stade coincides with the timing of Heinrich event H2, the Port Moody Interstade with Dansgaard–Oeschger (D–O) interstade 2, the maximum of the Vashon Stade with H1, and the Fort Langley interval with D–O interstade 1. The Sumas Stade apparently preceded H0 (Younger Dryas) but could have been in response to the same climatic signal. The timing of Sumas advances may be explained by a combination of glacio-isostatic rebound, destabilisation of the ice margin, and rapid movement over a short distance on soft muddy beds of a rising sea floor, thereby leading the timing of North Atlantic events by hundreds of years. In contrast, Coquitlam and Vashon advances were mainly over permeable glaciofluvial sediments and because of this their maxima probably did not precede the timing of H2 and H1. The Port Moody Interstade coincided with the global Last Glacial Maximum, due in part to the moderating effect of moist summer storms in a southward-shifted jet stream that influenced the Fraser Lowland at that time. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Tree-ring-based mass-balance estimates for the past 300 years at Peyto Glacier, Alberta, Canada

Tree rings were used to reconstruct mass balance for Peyto Glacier in the Canadian Rocky Mountains from A.D. 1673 to 1994. Summer balance was reconstructed from tree-ring estimates of summer temperature and precipitation in the Canadian Rockies. Winter balance was derived from tree-ring data from sites bordering the Gulf of Alaska and in western British Columbia. The models for winter and summer balance each explain over 40% of the variance in the appropriate mass-balance series. Over the period 1966-1994 the correlation between the reconstructed and measured net balances is 0.71. Strong positive mass balances are reconstructed for 1695-1720 and 1810-1825, when higher winter precipitation coincided with reduced ablation. Periods of reconstructed positive mass balance precede construction of terminal moraines throughout the Canadian Rockies ca. 1700-1725 and 1825-1850. Positive mass balances in the period 1845-1880 also correspond to intervals of glacier readvance. Mass balances were generally negative between 1760 and 1805. From 1673 to 1883 the mean annual net balance was +70 mm water equivalent per year (w.e./yr.), but it averaged −317 mm w.e./yr from 1884 to 1994. This reconstructed mass balance history provides a continuous record of glacier change that appears regionally representative and consistent with moraine and other proxy climate records.     

Hydrogeodeformation monitoring: prospects of earthquake prediction

The regional hydrogeodeformatics, the new discipline dealing with regional deformation processes and based on hydrogeodeformation (HGD) monitoring methodology, was introduced in Russia in the early 1980s. During the last 30 years, the theoretical principles and HGD methodology were further developed and modified in Russia and some other countries. The HGD field is a combination of short-lived 3D deformation structures which are formed within the lithosphere and have a lifetime ranging from several days to several months. Monitoring of the HGD field within the study area provides a comprehensive picture of deformation changes and transformations occurring in real time. Some important HGD field features and parameters were described and discussed. A combined analysis of these parameters and seismic information was applied to the southwestern part of British Columbia (Canada). The results indicated that British Columbia was the area highly sensitive to global deformations and, as such, should be included in the international HGD monitoring network. Prior to establishing such a network, the existing provincial groundwater monitoring network in British Columbia could be utilized for HGD monitoring and predicting strong earthquakes in the province and the neighboring areas.     

The cause of the Late Cenozoic Northern Hemisphere glaciations: a climate change enigma

The ultimate cause of the onset of glaciations remains elusive, but in the case of northem hemisphere glaciation it is probable that several factors acted in combination. General global cooling resulted from reduction of atmospheric C0₂ by weathering of silicate rocks exposed by erosion of late Cenozoic uplifts. Uplifts in south Asia, southwestern North America and Scandinavia occurred at distances appropriate for the generation of quasi-permanent Rossby waves in the atmosphere. The resulting winds, given suitable moisture sources, were favourable for causing large-scale precipitation at mid-latitudes on the northern continents. Moisture sources were provided by the closure of the Central American isthmus. Gulf Stream flow increased, carrying warm subtropical waters to high latitudes. The Denmark Strait deepened permitting greater outflow of deep water from the Norwegian-Greenland Sea. The relative importance of each of these factors should be investigated by additional atmospheric and ocean climate model sensitivity studies.     

Temporal and Spatial Characteristics of Mesoscale Eddies in the Northern South China Sea: Statistics Analysis Based on Altimeter Data

Mesoscale eddies are active and energetic in the South China Sea (SCS), and play an important role in regulating the multi-scale circulation and mass transportation in the region, especially for those long-lived strong eddies. Using AVISO altimeter data and outermost closed contour sea level anomaly method, this study identified and tracked mesoscale eddies in the northern SCS during 2011-2018, and focused on the temporal and spatial characteristics of mesoscale eddies in recent years. Similarly to previous results in this region, statistical results show that about 8.6 anticyclonic eddies and 4.5 cyclonic eddies (lifetime > 28 days) were born per year. Among them, about 1/3 of the total number are strong eddies (lifetime > 45 days), showing relatively strong dynamic characteristics, such as strong Eddy Kinetic Energy (EKE) and highly nonlinear feature. Statistics also show significant seasonal variability in mesoscale eddies’ birth places, trajectories and distribution of frequency of occurrence. Specifically, anticyclonic eddies mainly form at the north part of Luzon Strait between autumn and winter, and then move southwestward along isobaths. During this period, the largest value of the frequency of occurrence is over 30%. In summer, most of them form in the west off Luzon Island, and then move westward paralleling to latitude lines. In contrast, cyclonic mainly form in the west off Luzon Strait, and then move westward in winter and spring. During this period, the largest value is about 26%. In addition, observation finds that the strong mesoscale eddy pair could generate off the southwest of Taiwan Island. Analysis of the Kuroshio SCS Index (KSI) implies that loop current caused by Kuroshio intrusion is the most important mechanism for the formation of eddy pair.     

Deformation of western Greece during Neogene clockwise rotation and collision with Apulia

Following an Early Miocene phase of N–S extension affecting the entire Hellenides, 50° clockwise rotation affected western Greece. Modern GPS analyses show rapid southwestward motion in southwestern Greece over subducting oceanic lithosphere and no motion in the northwest, where Greece collided with Apulia. We aim to identify the deformation history of western Greece associated with the rotation and the collision with Apulia. The timing of the various phases of deformation is constrained via detailed analysis of vertical motions based on paleobathymetry evolution of sedimentary sequences overlying the evolving structures. The results show that accompanying the onset of rotation, compression was re-established in western Greece in the early Langhian, around 15 Ma. Subsequently, western Greece collided with the Apulian platform, leading in the Late Miocene to a right-lateral strike-slip system running from the Aliakmon Fault Zone in northern Greece via the Kastaniotikos Fault and the Thesprotiko Shear Zone to the Kefallonia Fault Zone, offshore western Greece. NE–SW compression and uplift of the Ionian Islands was accompanied by NE–SW extension in southwestern Greece, associated with faster southwestward motion in the south than in the north. This led in the middle Pliocene (around 3.5 Ma) to collision without further shortening in northwestern Greece. From then onward, NW–SE to N–S extension east of Apulia, and gradually increasing influence of E–W extension in the south accommodated motion of the Hellenides around the Apulian platform. As a result, curved extensional basin systems evolved, including the Gulf of Amvrakikos-Sperchios Basin–Gulf of Evia system and the Gulf of Corinth–Saronic Gulf system.     

Dust pollution caused by an extreme Santa Ana wind event

In arid and semiarid regions from the southwestern USA and vast areas of northwestern Mexico, Santa Ana wind events modify the environment with high temperatures, very low humidity, and dust storms representing a recurrent phenomenon that triggers asthma and other respiratory diseases. While research has emphasized Santa Ana wind effects on the USA side, northwestern Mexico has been less investigated. Numerical modeling of a severe dust storm in November 2018, applying the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled with a chemistry module (WRF-Chem), revealed that erosion, transport, and dust storms extend along the peninsula and the Gulf of California. Santa Ana winds eroded large areas, transported desert conditions to urban zones, causing high dust concentrations and reducing the relative humidity below 10%, deteriorating climatic conditions favorable to wellness. In Tijuana, Mexicali, Ensenada, San Diego, and Los Angeles, PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations (particle matter with diameter below 10 µm and 2.5 µm) reached values over 2000 µg/m3 for PM10, with daily mean concentrations well above national standards, leading to poor air quality and representing a health threat even in short-term exposure. This Santa Ana event transported dust particles several hundreds of kilometers over urban areas, the Gulf of California, and the Pacific Ocean. Severe soil deterioration was simulated within the study area, reaching dust emissions above 700,000 t, including croplands from the northern part of Baja California and Sonora's coastal area.

     

The influence of orbital parameters on the North American Monsoon system during the Last Interglacial Period

The response of summer precipitation in the western United States to climate variability remains a subject of uncertainty. For example, palaeoclimate records indicate the North American Monsoon (NAM) was stronger and spatially more extensive during the Holocene, whereas recent modelling suggests a weakened NAM response to increasing temperatures. These illustrate diverging pictures of the NAM response to warming. Here, we examine summer precipitation in the southwestern US related to Last Interglacial insolation forcing. Using a high-resolution climate model, we find that Eemian insolation forcing results in overall wetter conditions throughout most of the southwestern US, but significantly drier than present conditions over Arizona. The overall wetter conditions are associated with a northward shift of the anticyclonic circulation aloft and increased moisture in the lower and mid-troposphere during the Eemian. Increased advection of Gulf of Mexico moisture is responsible for increasing precipitation in New Mexico and the northern edges of the NAM region. Drier conditions over Arizona are likely related to reduced local convection associated with reduced vertical moisture transport. These results highlight the spatial complexity of the NAM response to increasing radiative forcing and allow a better understanding of monsoon dynamics and variability in response to a warming climate.     

The maximum ice extent on island groups in the Scotia sea,Antarctica

Evidence is presented for a more extensive ice cover over South Georgia, the South Orkney Islands, the South Shetland Islands, and the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Ice extended across the adjacent submarine shelves to a depth of 200 m below present sea level. Troughs cut into the submarine shelves by ice streams or outlet glaciers and ice-scoured features on the shelf areas suggest that the ice caps were warm-based. The South Shetland Islands appear not to have been overrun by continental ice. Geomorphological evidence in two island groups suggests that the maximum ice cover, which was responsible for the bulk of glacial erosion, predates at least one full glaciation. Subsequently there was a marine interval and then a glaciation which overran all of the lowlying peninsulas. The Falkland Islands, only 2° of latitude north of South Georgia, were never covered by an ice cap and supported only a few slightly enlarged cirque glaciers. This suggests that the major oceanographic and atmospheric boundary represented by the Antarctic Convergence, which is presently situated between the Falkland Islands and South Georgia, has remained in a similar position throughout the glacial age. Its position is probably bathymetrically controlled.     

Hg and As soil geochemistry of the meager creek geothermal area

A survey of mercury(Hg and arsenic (As) soil geochemistry involving 696 samples along survey lines and 77 samples in 6 soil profiles was carried out in the Meager Creek Geothermal Area (MCGA), British Columbia. The South Reservoir was delineated by anomalously high Hg and As values and there is remarkable coincidence of the geochemical anomalies with electrical resistivity and shallow thermal anomalies which were defined in previous work. The As results outline three possible geothermally active structures in the South Reservoir. Hg was enriched at depth in soil profiles over the South Reservoir whereas it was enriched in the organic A horizon in soil profiles from outside the South Reservoir. Hg-As results from reconnaissance lines in other parts of MCGA define specific interest areas within broad electrical resistivity anomalies.     

A 1900‐year paleohurricane record from Wassaw Island,Georgia, USA

We present here the first paleotempestology record from Wassaw Island on the Georgia Bight, located in the south Atlantic coast of the United States. In the historical period, the Georgia Bight has experienced less frequent hits by hurricanes than other locations along the US Gulf and Atlantic coasts. The 1900‐year record inferred from the overwash sand layers from a back‐barrier marsh on Wassaw Island suggests that the island was directly struck by major storms on nine occasions during this interval. The Wassaw Island record shows alternating regimes, with periods of increased activity from >2000 a BP until ～1100 a BP, and ～100 a BP until the present, sandwiching a quiet period from ～1100 to 250 a BP. Storm deposits from the most recent active period are perhaps amalgamated, indicating that site‐specific conditions may result in event undercounting and suggests that the relative thickness of sand layers in the sedimentary record is not always indicative of hurricane strength. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.