THE EVOLUTION OF SMALL LAKE BASINS IN THE GOBI DESERT IN MONGOLIA

In order to investigate pluvial lakes in the Gobi two places were selected for field studies: Khongoryn Els in South­ and Mongol Els in West­Mongolia. In the eastern and central parts of Khongoryn Els two small endorheic basins,Bayan Tukhem and Khongoryn Gol depressions were studied. Pluvial lake deposits and beach ridges both supposedly mid­Holocene in age give evidence of a 9m and a 15m deep freshwater lake,respectively. Today both depressions are nearly dried out and exposed to wind deflation. A different situation was found at Uujin Sair river valley which cuts through the dune field at its lowest and narrowest(3km)part. Here,a 22.5m thick fossil accumulation of at least 20 layers of fine sand(dune sand)alternating with silt(fluvial playa sediment)was exposed and OSL dated. 12 dates ranging between 14ka and 17ka reveal the accumulation as Late Glacial which correlates well with the aridity at that time reported for Central Asia by several authors. Interpreting the dates it seems obvious that the whole sediment was quickly deposited in a period of about 16ka,and shortly after dissected by the Uujin Sair during a similar short time due to increasing humidity of the climate. Another situation was found at the eastern rim of Mongol Els. Two rivers,Shurgiyn Gol and Zavran Gol are impinging here on the high dunes which have damed both rivers in the past. A younger,shallow lake existed during mid­Holocene(14C­dated to some 5.5ka)and a large,17m deep lake(14C－dated to some 39ka)probably during stage 4.Expected OSL dates will hopefully support this hypothesis. Anyhow,the palaeogeography of the dune field was different from today; it moved eastward daming the large river Shurgiyn Gol.     

Rock glaciers in the northern Japanese Alps: palaeoenvironmental implications since the Late Glacial

In order to determine the palaeoclimatic and palaeo‐permafrost conditions in the northern Japanese Alps in central Japan, the ages of rock glaciers were investigated by relative age dating techniques such as weathering‐rind thickness and Schmidt hammer measurements. The results of the relative age dating suggest that the formation of the investigated rock glaciers may have started during the early phase of the Late Glacial or around the onset of the Holocene. The lower limit of current discontinuous permafrost in the northern Japanese Alps, which is indicated by the terminus of the lowest active/inactive rock glacier, lies at 2530 m a.s.l., while that of discontinuous permafrost during the Late Glacial or early phase of the Holocene, which is indicated by the terminus of the lowest relict rock glacier, lies at 2220 m a.s.l. Therefore, the lower limit of discontinuous permafrost during these periods would have been at least about 300 m lower than that of the current discontinuous permafrost. Climatic and geomorphological conditions during the Late Glacial led to a change in the environment from a glacial environment to a periglacial (permafrost) environment in the current alpine zone of the northern Japanese Alps. A large number of cirques were deglaciated and several of them were occupied by active rock glaciers around the onset of the Holocene. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

水下扇岩相特征及形成机制

20世纪50年代初期以来，沉积物重力流研究得到沉积学家们的广泛重视，特别是自60年代末期,与沉积物重力流密切相关的水下扇研究成为沉积学领域的热点。通过对国内外大量沉积物重力流及水下扇研究成果的总结，结合我国中新生代陆相断陷盆地水下扇发育的特点，将水下扇的组成岩相划分为基质支撑砾岩相，颗粒支撑砾岩相，砾质砂岩相，块状砂岩相，经典浊积岩相。水下扇的形成机制系重力流成因。内扇以杂基支撑，颗粒支撑砾岩组合为特征；中扇以砾质砂岩、块状砂岩组合为特征；外扇以CDE序及DE序经典浊积岩发育为特征。     

Holocene glaciation of the central Sierra Nevada,California

Sediment cores from two bedrock-dammed lakes in North Fork Big Pine Creek, Sierra Nevada, California, preserve the most detailed and complete record of Holocene glaciation yet recovered in the region. The lakes are fed by outwash from the Palisade Glacier, the largest (～1.3 km²) and presumably longest-lived glacier in the range, and capture essentially all of the rock flour it produces. Distinct late-Holocene (Matthes) and late-Pleistocene (Recess Peak) moraines lie between the modern glacier and the lakes. The lakes have therefore received continuous sedimentation from the basin since the retreat of the Tioga glacier (Last Glacial Maximum) and capture rock flour related to all post-LGM advances. A total of eight long cores (up to 5.5 m sediment depth) and one short surface sediment short core preserve a coherent record of fluctuating rock flour flux to the lakes through the Holocene. Age constraints on rock flour spikes in First and Second lakes based on 31 14C-dated macrofossils indicate Holocene glaciation began ～3200 cal yr B P, followed by a possible glacier maximum at ～2800 cal yr B P and four distinct glacier maxima at ～2200, ～1600, ～700 and ～250-170 cal yr. B.P., the most recent maximum being the largest.Reconstruction of the equilibrium-line altitudes (ELA) associated with each distinct advance recorded in the moraines (Recess Peak, Matthes, and modern) indicates ELA depressions (relative to modern) of ～250 m and 90 m for Recess Peak and Matthes advances, respectively. These differences represent decreases in summer temperatures of 1.7–2.8 °C (Recess Peak) and 0.2–2° (Matthes), and increases in winter precipitation of 22-34 cm snow water equivalent (s.w.e.) (Recess Peak) and 3-26 cm s.w.e. (Matthes) compared to modern conditions. Although small, these changes are significant and similar to those noted in the Cascade Range to the north, and represent a significant departure from historical climate trends in the region.     

全新世长江泥沙堆积的时空分布及通量估算

利用长江中下游、河口及口外、浙-闽沿岸陆架6个主要沉积盆地的40个晚第四纪钻孔及其年代学数据和长江口外、陆架的浅地层剖面,计算了全新世不同阶段各沉积盆地的沉积速率,并进行了近7 000年来泥沙堆积通量的估算。研究发现全新世早期距今10 000年至8 000年间长江口下切古河谷是长江泥沙的主要堆积中心,沉积速率可高达15m/ka。随着海平面上升,全新世中期长江中下游也成为长江泥沙的重要沉积盆地,其中江汉盆地的沉积速率可达10m/ka。近2 000年来,口外、陆架的堆积呈明显增加趋势,反映长江中下游盆地和河口可容空间日益减小。根据沉积速率估算,距今7 000年来长江中下游堆积泥沙约13 074×108 t,同期水下三角洲和陆架的泥沙堆积量约为9 470×108 t。研究还发现全新世以来有两个异常低沉积速率时期：距今8000-7 000年期间上述各沉积盆地沉积速率均显著低,未见长江泥沙的沉积中心; 距今4 000-2 000 年期间长江口呈现低沉积速率。 这两次异常的原因推测与海平面、气候波动事件密切相关。     

Lateglacial to Holocene relative sea‐level changes in the Stykkishólmur area,northern Snæfellsnes,Iceland

Comparatively little research has been undertaken on relative sea‐level (RSL) change in western Iceland. This paper presents the results of diatom, tephrochronological and radiocarbon analyses on six isolation basins and two coastal lowland sediment cores from the Stykkishólmur area, northern Snæfellsnes, western Iceland. The analyses provide a reconstruction of Lateglacial to mid‐Holocene RSL changes in the region. The marine limit is measured to 65–69 m above sea level (asl), with formation being estimated at 13.5 cal ka BP. RSL fall initially occurred rapidly following marine limit formation, until ca. 12.6 cal ka BP, when the rate of RSL fall decreased. RSL fell below present in the Stykkishólmur area during the early Holocene (by ca. 10 cal ka BP). The rates of RSL change noted in the Stykkishólmur area demonstrate lesser ice thicknesses in Snæfellsnes than Vestfirðir during the Younger Dryas, when viewed in the regional context. Consequently, the data provide an insight into patterns of glacio‐isostatic adjustment surrounding Breiðafjörður, a hypothesized major ice stream at the Last Glacial Maximum.     

南海南、北大陆边缘盆地烃源岩热演化差异及成因分析

对横跨南海南、北共轭大陆边缘的两条骨干剖面所经过的沉积盆地烃源岩热演化进行模拟,分析了南、北陆缘盆地烃源岩热演化差异。结果表明,南海南部陆缘盆地生烃门限整体比北部陆缘盆地的生烃门限浅,南部陆缘盆地生烃门限整体在2 200~2 300 m之间,中新统烃源岩基本已进入生烃门限;北部陆缘盆地生烃门限整体位于2 500~2 600 m之间,渐新统及其以下烃源岩进入生烃门限。南海南、北陆缘盆地生烃门限的规律性与南海现今热流分布南高北低、西高东低的整体趋势相对应,高热流有利于烃源岩的成熟与生烃,因此热流值高的区域对应生烃门限较浅。造成南、北陆缘主力烃源岩的热演化程度差异的主要原因可能是由南海扩张及古南海俯冲引起的地温场变化所引起。     

Late Quaternary denudation of the Alps,valley and lake fillings and modern river loads

Erosional denudation of the Alps and their role as sediment source underwent major changes throughout the Quaternary, by repeated glaciation and deglaciation. The sediment fluxes of 16 major Alpine drainage basins were quantified by determining the sediment volumes which have been trapped in valleys and lake basins. These became sedimentologically closed after the last glacier retreat around 17 000 cal. BP. The sediment volumes distributed over their provenance areas yield mean mechanical denudation rates between 250 to 1060 mm ka^–1. In contrast, modern denudation rates, derived from river loads and delta surveys, range from 30 to 360 mm ka^–1. Relief, such as mean elevation and slope, turned out to be the primary control of both modern and Late Glacial mechanical denudation. Rock types seem to be responsible for some scatter of the data, but their role is masked by other factors. Modern denudation rates increase with higher proportions of bare rocks and glaciated area, but decrease with forest cover. An area-weighted extrapolation of the studied drainage basins to the entire Alps on the basis of major morphotectonic zones yields a mean denudation rate of 620 mm ka^–1 over the last 17 000 years. This rate clearly exceeds the modern rate of 125 mm ka^–1. Lake sediments and palaeoclimatic reconstructions confirm that the sediment yield of the Alps reached a maximum during deglaciation when large masses of unconsolidated materials were available, vegetation was scarse, and transport capacities were high. During the early Holocene sediment yield declined to a minimum before some climate deterioration and human activities again accelerated erosional processes. Assuming a denudation rate in the early Holocene half of the modern one, the Late Glacial denudation rates must have been in the order of 1100 to 2900 mm ka^–1. Consequently, denudation rates during a glacial/interglacial cycle probably varied by a factor of 14, which lies well within the range of other studies in central Europe, Scandinavia and North America. From large scale sediment budgets of perialpine sedimentary basins the overall denudation rate of the Alps during the Quaternary has been c. 400 mm ka^–1, i.e. about one third lower than the estimate for the last 17000 years. This can be well explained by the outstanding role which deglaciation played in the time span studied here.     

Late Glacial-Holocene sequence of Lake Saint-Point (Jura Mountains, France): Detrital inputs as records of climate change and anthropic impact

A sediment sequence (SP05, 12.5 m long) was taken from the deep zone of Lake Saint-Point (850 m a.s.l.). Sedimentological analyses highlight two main contrasted periods of sedimentation: the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM)/Late Glacial characterized by high silicates and quartz contents the Holocene dominated by the carbonated fraction. At the beginning of the Holocene (11 400 years cal. BP), silicates fraction flux abruptly decreased. The shift between the Late Glacial and the Holocene periods may be explained by forest development in the catchment. From 10 200 to 6800 years cal. BP, silicates and detrital carbonate fractions remained stable before they progressively increased steady till 5000 years cal. BP. Both increases cannot be totally attributed to an anthropic impact since pollen data indicate continuous anthropic activities only dated back from 3000 years cal. BP. They thus resulted from a dominant climatic control. From 5000 years cal. BP, silicates content still increased while detrital carbonates input became steady due to a change in pedogenetic processes affecting the catchment. During the last millennium, silicates and detrital carbonate decreased, probably due to pastureland development.     

The Pleistocene Cape Kidnappers section in New Zealand: orbitally forced controls on active margin sedimentation?

High sedimentation rates in Pleistocene active margin basins can provide a very detailed record of tectonic and climatic controls on sediment preservation. A 500 m thick, Pleistocene rock section exposed in northeastern North Island of New Zealand (Kidnappers Group), provides the opportunity to discuss these controls. The section is composed of conglomerate, sandstones, siltstones and minor shales, interbedded with tephra layers. The sediments were deposited in alluvial to shallow marine environments and preserved in stacks of depositional units decimetres to hundreds of metres thick as a result of base‐level changes through time. The correlation of base‐level changes in the section with the deep sea oxygen isotope stratigraphy shows that the sequences at 10 m and 80 m scales can correlate, respectively, to the 20 and 100 kyr changes in eustatic sea‐level, but that the 80‐m‐thick sequences correlate also to changes in tectonic uplift rates. A major change in the stratigraphical architecture occurs at the Mid‐Pleistocene Transition (MPT) when the 40 kyr ice volume variations shifted to a dominant 100 kyr variation. This change includes an increase in the amplitude of the shifts in depositional environments and an overall simplification of the stacking pattern of the depositional units through the MPT. This study illustrates that active margin basins can record orbitally forced sedimentary cycles and points to a possible leading influence of eustasy on the pattern of sediment preservation in tectonically active areas. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stratigraphic architecture and infill history of a deglaciated bedrock valley based on georadar, seismic profiling and drilling

The sediment fill of a silled bedrock valley in Western Norway has been investigated with respect to stratigraphy and infill history using a combination of mapping, georadar, seismic profiling and drilling. A small outlet glacier occupies the head of the valley that displays a stepwise down-valley profile and terminates in a lake at 29 m above sea-level. The valley is surrounded by high, steep bedrock slopes and is characterized by a series of filled basins each limited by sills of bedrock or moraine accumulations. Till, glacial outwash and/or rockslide deposits fill in the lower half of the two larger basins. (Fan) delta deposits fringed by the deposits of alluvial fans and colluvial cones dominate the upper fill of most basins. (Fan) delta deposits interfinger downstream with lake sediments in the larger basins and fluvial deposits comprise the top fill. The overall infill pattern was controlled by deglaciation as well as basin size and shape. An overall decreasing sediment supply following deglaciation is shown in the fill of a larger basin down-valley, whereas a recently increasing sediment supply during glacier growth is reflected primarily in an upstream basin. Only the lowermost basin was exposed to a sea-level drop from 75 m above sea-level to the present lake level associated with incision and river migration. This observation is in contrast to the basins above marine influence where incision has been limited due to fixed downstream sills resulting in insignificant erosion except for some fan-head entrenchment. It follows that the fills of these small valley basins display progradational and aggradational trends of deposition and paraglacial reworking has been limited. Additionally, the study demonstrates that georadar profiling, combined with other methods, is very useful for comprehensive investigation of valley basins.     

Implications of Color and Lightness Characteristics for Lithostratigraphy of Bottom Sediments from the Chukchi Plateau,Arctic Ocean

Marine sediment cores from the Chukchi Plateau are used to demonstrate the efficiency of digital photographic determination of sediment color and lightness, supplemented with the statistically processed data on sediment composition, for lithostratigraphy and paleoreconstructions. Several clusters were established that correspond to brown and gray sediment layers, carbonate-rich beige interlayers and specific segments of unclear lamination and/or lens-like intercalation of brownish and grayish beds. Correlation of the studied cores with other sediment cores from the region with well-established stratigraphy revealed good correspondence (though with certain specific features) to the conventional model of the Late Pleistocene–Holocene sediment accumulation in the offshore Arctic Ocean beyond shelf areas with clearly defined glacial–interglacial cyclicity. It was shown that enhanced red-color component corresponds to the enrichment of the interglacial brown sediment layers with manganese and accompanying elements. Glacial gray layers with enhanced green-color component are enriched in iron, as well as rubidium, vanadium, titanium and yttrium and bear evidence for considerable diagenetic transformations. Blue-color component is related to the high calcium content (carbonate rock fragments) in the carbonate-rich interlayers accumulated during the periods of active disintegration of continental ice sheets and iceberg-rafting of terrigenous lithic fragments. Intermediate values of the studied parameters are likely indicative of specific sedimentation environments.     

Erosion of the Laurentide region of North America by glacial and glaciofluvial processes

Collection of seismic reflection data from continental margins and ocean basins surrounding North America makes it possible to estimate the amount of material eroded from the area formerly covered by Laurentide ice sheets since major glaciation began in North America. A minimum estimate is made of 1.62 × 10⁶ km³, or an average 120 m of rock physically eroded from the Laurentide region. This figure is an order of magnitude higher than earlier estimates based on the volume of glacial drift, Cenozoic marine sediments, and modern sediment loads of rivers. Most of the sediment produced during Laurentide glaciation has already been transported to the oceans. The importance of continental glaciation as a geomorphic agency in North America may have to be reevaluated. Evidence from sedimentation rates in ocean basins surrounding Greenland and Antarctica suggests that sediment production, sediment transport, and possibly denudation by permanent ice caps may be substantially lower than by periodic ice caps, such as the Laurentide. Low rates of sediment survival from the time of the Permo-Carboniferous and Precambrian glaciations suggest that predominance of marine deposition during some glacial epochs results in shorter lived sediment because of preferential tectonism and cycling of oceanic crust versus continental crust.     

云南省东北部拱王山第四纪冰川遗迹研究

云南省东北部的拱王山海拔３１００ｍ以上的山地发生过第四纪冰川作用，典型的冰川遗迹集中分布在轿子山峰附近和妖精塘－牛洞坪两个地区，遗存的冰川地貌主要有冰斗，冰蚀岩盆和侧碛堤。根据冰川地貌的组合特征，以及它们生成的先后顺序，将拱王山第四纪冰川作用划分为末次冰期的倒数第二期冰期。     

台湾峡谷HD133和HD77柱状样的沉积构成和发育背景

分别对南海东北部台湾峡谷内水深3 280 m的HD133和峡谷外水深3 378 m的HD77重力活塞柱状样进行了沉积物粒度、古生物和碳酸钙含量分析,利用AMS14C同位素测年和沉积速率初步认定是属于MIS3a以来的沉积。按沉积物粒度和碳酸钙含量可将两支柱状样划分为3套沉积层段:上部层段1和下部层段3均以粉砂质黏土为主,夹薄层粉砂,深水底栖有孔虫含量高,碳酸钙低于10%,代表受重力流作用较弱的正常深海沉积;中部层段2发育一套以中-细粒为主的厚砂层,含大量浅水底栖有孔虫,碳酸钙含量可高达60%,AMS14C测年出现倒置现象,表明主要为浅水重力流沉积。柱状样的沉积构成响应同期海平面变化,特别表现在深水砂层沉积的两大控制因素:在时间上,低海平面时期大量浅水和陆源碎屑物质直接输送到陆坡之下的深水区,形成富砂的层段2;在空间上,峡谷水道是重力流的物质输送通道,地形优势使得重力流携带物优先在水道中发生沉积,造成HD133柱的含砂量明显高于HD77柱状样。     

Carbonate and organic carbon content changes over last 20 ka in the Southeastern Arabian Sea: Paleoceanographic implications

Two Gravity cores (AAS 38-4 and AAS 38-5) recovered from the eastern Arabian Sea were analyzed for calcium carbonate (CaCO₃), organic carbon, aluminium (Al) and titanium (Ti) in order to understand the calcium carbonate and terrigenous fluctuations during the Holocene and Last Glacial Period. High CaCO₃ and low Al and Ti during the Holocene, and low CaCO₃ and high Al and Ti during the Last Glacial Period suggest that CaCO₃ content in these two cores appears to be controlled by the dilution of terrigenous material. The supply of terrigenous material to the core sites was higher during the Last Glacial Period than in the Holocene. Organic carbon values were lower (<2%) during the Holocene and higher (>2%) during the Last Glacial Period in core AAS 38-4; but the opposite was found in core AAS 38-5. This inconsistent pattern of organic carbon changes in the two cores studied indicates that the distribution of organic carbon in the eastern Arabian Sea is controlled not only by the supply of organic matter from the water column but also by sediment texture and dilution of sediment components.     

Numerical simulation of a stratigraphic model

A multi-lithology diffusive stratigraphic model is considered, which simulates at large scales in space and time the infill of sedimentary basins governed by the interaction between tectonics displacements, eustatic variations, sediment supply, and sediment transport laws. The model accounts for the mass conservation of each sediment lithology resulting in a mixed parabolic, hyperbolic system of partial differential equations (PDEs) for the lithology concentrations and the sediment thickness. It also takes into account a limit on the rock alteration velocity modeled as a unilaterality constraint. To obtain a robust, fast, and accurate simulation, fully and semi-implicit finite volume discre tization schemes are derived for which the existence of stable solutions is proved. Then, the set of nonlinear equations is solved using a Newton algorithm adapted to the unilaterality constraint, and preconditioning strategies are defined for the solution of the linear system at each Newton iteration. They are based on an algebraic approximate decoupling of the sediment thickness and the concentration variables as well as on a proper preconditioning of each variable. These algorithms are studied and compared in terms of robustness, scalability, and efficiency on two real basin test cases.     

PALEOGENE(?) DEPOSYSTEMS AND BASIN EVOLUTION IN THE EASTERN TIBETAN PLATEAU: NANGQIAN AND XIALAXIU BASINS

PALEOGENE(?) DEPOSYSTEMS AND BASIN EVOLUTION IN THE EASTERN TIBETAN PLATEAU: NANGQIAN AND XIALAXIU BASINS     

末次盛冰期以来长江下关-栖霞山段下切深度及沉积旋回

选择长江下关-栖霞山段作为研究河段,搜集了南京长江大桥、四桥附近的76个钻孔资料.根据地质钻孔资料,绘制南京长江大桥和长江四桥附近长江古河槽地质剖面.在拟建长江四桥附近的4个钻孔采集了沉积物样品,在-59.33 m深度上河床相沉积物的年代为(14 682±110)a BP,据此判断位于该沉积层下部的上一期沉积旋回应形成...     

中国古生界海相烃源岩生烃潜力评价标准与方法

中国古生界海相高、过成熟烃源岩原始生烃潜力评价问题是一个没有解决的老问题,至今没有可靠的评价方法与统一评价标准。低成熟元古宇—古生界海相泥岩/页岩与碳酸盐岩地球化学分析揭示,由于有机质组成不同,不同时代烃源岩的有机碳含量与热解生烃潜力之间存在着不同的线性关系。按照岩石热解生烃潜力来衡量,泥岩/页岩与碳酸盐岩作为有效烃源岩的有机质丰度下限没有本质区别,其有机碳含量必须大于0.5%;对于元古宇-下古生界海相烃源岩,达到中等生烃潜力的有机碳含量必须大于0.75%,好烃源岩的有机碳含量必须大于1.5%,很好烃源岩的有机碳含量大于2%,有机碳含量大于4%的属于极好的烃源岩;上古生界海相泥岩各级烃源岩相应的有机碳界线值高于下古生界泥岩。按照低成熟元古宇—古生界烃源岩有机碳含量与热解生烃潜力之间的关系方程,由有机碳含量基本上可以定量评价高、过成熟的元古宇—古生界烃源岩的原始生烃潜力。