In a PICL: The sedimentary deposits and facies of perennially ice‐covered lakes

Perennially ice‐covered lakes can have significantly different facies than open‐water lakes because sediment is transported onto the ice, where it accumulates, and sand grains preferentially melt through to be deposited on the lake floor. To characterize the facies in these lakes, sedimentary deposits from five Antarctic perennially ice‐covered lakes were described using lake‐bottom observations, underwater video and images, and sediment cores. One lake was dominated by laminated microbial mats and mud (derived from an abutting glacier), with disseminated sand and rare gravel. The other four lakes were dominated by laminated microbial mats and moderately well to moderately sorted medium to very coarse sand with sparse granules and pebbles; they contained minor interstitial or laminated mud (derived from streams and abutting glaciers). The sand was disseminated or localized in mounds and 1 m to more than 10 m long elongate ridges. Mounds were centimetres to metres in diameter; conical, elongate or round in shape; and isolated or deposited near or on top of one another. Sand layers in the mounds had normal, inverse, or no grading. Nine mixed mud and sand facies were defined for perennially ice‐covered lakes based on the relative proportion of mud to sand and the style of sand deposition. While perennially ice‐covered lake facies overlap with other ice‐influenced lakes and glaciomarine facies, they are characterized by a paucity of grains coarser than granules, a narrow range in sand grain sizes, and inverse grading in the sand mounds. These facies can be used to infer changes in ice cover through time and to identify perennially ice‐covered lakes in the rock record. Ancient perennially ice‐covered lakes are expected on Earth and Mars, and their characterization will provide new insights into past climatic conditions and habitability.     

阿尔金山脉新生代剥露历史——前陆盆地沉积记录

新疆且末县江尕勒萨依盆地位于阿尔金山脉的北西山前,其内连续沉积了中生代一新生代地层。盆地内古新统一始新统为河流相沉积;渐新统至中新统为山麓河流相灰色砾岩和棕色砂岩;上新统为山麓洪积相砾岩夹泥岩;下更新统全为砾岩层。岩性组合特征及其砂岩碎屑、砾石组分变化规律,反映出阿尔金山脉的新生代剥蚀历史：古近纪早、中期,阿尔金山脉的地形高差小,古生界双峰式火山岩首先被剥蚀;至渐新世末一中新世早期,山脉高差加大,基底元古宇开始出露地表被剥蚀;中新世末期,山脉高差进一步加大,剥蚀速率加快;至第四纪早期西域砾岩开始沉积时,地形高差加剧,中、古元古界开始暴露被剥蚀。区域资料分析表明,阿尔金山脉在新生代具有多期次阶段性隆升的特征,存在3期次快速隆升事件：渐新世末一中新世早期、中新世晚期(大约8Ma)和第四纪早期。     

帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘晚新生代构造活动的沉积与重矿物变化响应

帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘晚新生代沉积特征的研究对于理解帕米尔构造带弧形扩展机制具有重要意义。本文通过对帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘的晚新生代沉积地层的沉积特征对比研究和重矿物采样与组份分析,建立了帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘地区的晚新生代沉积联合柱状对比图和重矿物组份变化曲线。研究结果表明,晚新生代沉积与重矿物变化主要记录了帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘的两期构造活动。第一期构造活动发生在安居安组沉积时期,帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘的和什拉甫剖面、英科1井表现为粗碎屑沉积和对应的不稳定重矿物爆发,而南部的甫沙2井中则并未观察到,这一事件可能反映了喀什-叶城走滑系统在和什拉甫剖面附近的中新世构造启动。第二期构造活动发生在阿图什组沉积期间,帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘全区域出现了一套粗碎屑沉积和对应的不稳定重矿物爆发,反映了帕米尔弧形构造带东北缘在上新世以来大规模向北楔入塔里木盆地内部的构造过程。

     

A middle–late Ediacaran volcano‐sedimentary record from the eastern Arabian‐Nubian shield

The Ediacaran Jibalah Group comprises volcano‐sedimentary successions that filled small fault‐bound basins along the NW–SE‐trending Najd fault system in the eastern Arabian‐Nubian Shield. Like several other Jibalah basins, the Antaq basin contains exquisitely preserved sedimentary structures and felsic tuffs, and hence is an excellent candidate for calibrating late Ediacaran Earth history. Shallow‐marine strata from the upper Jibalah Group (Muraykhah Formation) contain a diversity of load structures and intimately related textured organic (microbial) surfaces, along with a fragment of a structure closely resembling an Ediacaran frond fossil and a possible specimen of Aspidella. Interspersed carbonate beds through the Muraykhah Formation record a positive δ¹³C shift from ?6 to 0‰. U‐Pb zircon geochronology indicates a maximum depositional age of ~570 Ma for the upper Jibalah Group, consistent with previous age estimates. Although this age overlaps with that of the upper Huqf Supergroup in nearby Oman, these sequences were deposited in contrasting tectonic settings on opposite sides of the final suture of the East African Orogen.     

阿尔金山新生代隆升历史:来自塔东南若羌凹陷的沉积记录

阿尔金山位于青藏高原北部边缘,在高原隆升和演化过程中扮演着重要的角色。但是,关于它的新生代隆升历史现今仍存在较大的争议。阿尔金山北麓若羌凹陷新生代接受来自山脉的剥蚀物质。因此,凹陷内的沉积特征记录了阿尔金山新生代隆升的重要信息。本文利用石油钻井编录资料及地震剖面,通过对盆地区新生代各个地层之间的接触关系、沉积相组合和沉积速率变化进行研究,结果显示阿尔金山34Ma以来的隆升分为两阶段:第一阶段为34~20.4Ma,持续低速隆升;第二阶段为16Ma至现今,急剧快速隆升。结合前人研究成果,认为渐新世—早中新世,阿尔金断裂作为一个局限在中、下地壳的韧性剪切带造成阿尔金山一带产生大范围的地表隆起,控制了山脉在第一阶段的持续低速隆升;中中新世以来,阿尔金断裂大规模左行走滑,青藏高原北缘主要通过地壳缩短的形式释放应力,控制了山脉在第二阶段的急剧快速隆升。     

The continental record of Ediacaran volcano‐sedimentary successions in southern Brazil and their global implications

The Ediacaran is one of the most important periods on Earth evolution, including the first appearance of soft‐bodied macrofossils, major climatic changes and a supposed rise in free oxygen. In southernmost Brazil, this period is represented by Camaquã Supergroup, including the Bom Jardim Group and the Acampamento Velho Formation, both of which record continental palaeoenvironmental changes in a more than 5000 m thick stratigraphic succession. Age constraints are given by seven Ar‐Ar and U‐Pb determinations on volcanic rocks, which bracket these units between c. 605 and 574 Ma, revealing the best dated and most continuous documented Ediacaran continental succession to date. Depositional systems evolution supports a Phanerozoic‐type glacial context during the last Neoproterozoic glacial event and presents the Picada das Graças Formation (580 ± 3.6 Ma) as the first dated non‐glacial unit coeval to the Gaskiers Formation.     

近70年滇池有机质来源和生产力变化的沉积记录

总有机碳(TOC)、稳定碳同位素(δ¹³C)、岩石热解分析(Rock-Eval)和甾醇生物标志物等有机地球化学指标用于研究滇池过去70年沉积物有机质的来源及水体生产力的变化。C/N、δ¹³C、氢指数(HI)表明滇池沉积物有机质主要为水生来源, 且主要为藻类有机质。初级生产力指标(热解烃峰参数(S2)、HI、δ¹³C)和浮游植物甾醇(菜籽甾醇、甲藻甾醇)含量从2000年以后快速增加, 而从近几年开始增速放缓或开始下降, 说明滇池水体生产力在过去几十年不断上升, 不过在最近得到一定控制, 这与滇池沉积物营养盐的变化趋势相似。对生产力指标和浮游植物甾醇与环境因子如5年移动平均气温(T₅)、总氮(TN)、总磷(TP)进行相关分析, 结果表明滇池生产力变化与环境因子呈现显著的正相关关系, 说明气候变暖和营养盐增加均促进该水域藻类的繁殖; 此外, 多元线性回归分析结果表明, TN是影响滇池生产力变化的主要环境因子。研究结果对探寻水体富营养化过程及影响因子, 并对湖泊管理和水华防治工作提供科学依据。

     

A detrital apatite fission‐track study of the CIROS‐2 sedimentary record: Tracing ice pathways in the Ross Sea area over the last 5 Ma

The Ross Sea is a crucial area to investigate pathways of ice during the Cenozoic as it records the evolution of both the East and West Antarctic Ice Sheets. This work is based on detrital apatite fission track (AFT) data extracted from the sedimentary record of well CIROS‐2, which spans the last 5 Ma. The AFT data show a large range of ages, and most of the grains fit well with two main components that fall between 24 and 42 Ma and between 43 and 70 Ma, whereas the other components are not regularly distributed through the well, thus indicating a mixture of provenance from different areas along the Transantarctic Mountains. As a whole, our work suggests glacial expansion over the McMurdo Sound during the Pliocene, and ice periodically invading and retreating in Pleistocene.     

The sedimentary record of a Mesoproterozoic tsunami from the North China Craton

A layer of Mesoproterozoic tsunami deposits from the North China Craton was recently discovered and investigated in the Xingcheng area, Liaoning Province, China. They occur at the bottom of the Dahongyu Formation of the Changcheng Group (1.8–1.6 Ga). The tsunami deposits are identified based on the analysis of the sedimentary facies. They are markedly different from the normal deposits of shore‐shallow sea siliciclastics, and are characterized by rip‐up clasts, poorly sorted gravels, fining‐upward sequences, redeposited underlying materials, complex sources of underlying strata and erosional bases at the bottom of beds. They are compelling features of tsunamiites when they occur together. During the Mesoproterozoic, the Xingcheng area was in an active tectonic belt, the Yanshan Taphrogenic Trough. The origin of the tsunami was probably triggered by the earthquake, which resulted from the the activities of the Luanxian–Jianchang Fault in early Mesoproterozoic times. The deposition of tsunamiites occurred in a coastal environment and involved several stages, from the origin, propagation, inundation, and deposition to the backwash flow. The geodynamic backgrounds of the tsunami event in the North China Craton are consistent with the breakup event of the Columbia supercontinent in the Mesoproterozoic. Some events, such as tsunamis and volcanism, are all controlled by extensional rift systems and should be recognized as effects of the breakup of the Columbia supercontinent in the North China Craton. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A comparison of the sedimentary records of the 1960 and 2010 great Chilean earthquakes in 17 lakes: Implications for quantitative lacustrine palaeoseismology

Seismically‐induced event deposits embedded in the sedimentary infill of lacustrine basins are highly useful for palaeoseismic reconstructions. Recent, well‐documented, great megathrust earthquakes provide an ideal opportunity to calibrate seismically‐induced event deposits for lakes with different characteristics and located in different settings. This study used 107 short sediment cores to investigate the sedimentary impact of the 1960 M_w 9·5 Valdivia and the 2010 M_w 8·8 Maule earthquakes in 17 lakes in South‐Central Chile (i.e. lakes Negra, Lo Encañado, Aculeo, Vichuquén, Laja, Villarrica, Calafquén, Pullinque, Pellaifa, Panguipulli, Neltume, Riñihue, Ranco, Maihue, Puyehue, Rupanco and Llanquihue). A combination of image analysis, magnetic susceptibility and grain‐size analysis allows identification of five types of seismically‐induced event deposits: (i) mass‐transport deposits; (ii) in situ deformations; (iii) lacustrine turbidites with a composition similar to the hemipelagic background sediments (lacustrine turbidites type 1); (iv) lacustrine turbidites with a composition different from the background sediments (lacustrine turbidites type 2) and (v) megaturbidites. These seismically‐induced event deposits were compared to local seismic intensities of the causative earthquakes, eyewitness reports, post‐earthquake observations, and vegetation and geomorphology of the catchment and the lake. Megaturbidites occur where lake seiches took place. Lacustrine turbidites type 2 can be the result of: (i) local near‐shore mass wasting; (ii) delta collapse; (iii) onshore landslides; (iv) debris flows or mudflows; or (v) fluvial reworking of landslide debris. On the contrary, lacustrine turbidites type 1 are the result of shallow mass wasting on sublacustrine slopes covered by hemipelagic sediments. Due to their more constrained origin, lacustrine turbidites type 1 are the most reliable type of seismically‐induced event deposits in quantitative palaeoseismology, because they are almost exclusively triggered by earthquake shaking. Moreover, they most sensitively record varying seismic shaking intensities. The number of lacustrine turbidites type 1 linearly increases with increasing seismic intensity, starting with no lacustrine turbidites type 1 at intensities between V½ and VI and reaching 100% when intensities are higher than VII½. Combining different types of seismically‐induced event deposits allows the reconstruction of the complete impact of an earthquake.     

Reconstruction of the Holocene climate based on a carbonate sedimentary record from shallow saline Lake Verkhnee Beloe (western Transbaikalia)

We present results of mineralogical and crystallochemical studies of the Holocene carbonate sediments of a small saline lake localized in the Borgoi dry-steppe region, western Transbaikalia. Mg-calcites with a varying Mg content are predominant in the assemblage of endogenic carbonate minerals from bottom sediments. Mathematical modeling of the XRD spectra of carbonates permitted us to identify excess-Ca dolomites, which are an indicator of a shallow (playa) lake. The studies showed that the lacustrine Mg-calcites do not form a continuous series from low- to high-Mg varieties. We discuss the cause of this phenomenon and also consider the existing viewpoints of the structure of low-temperature Mg-calcites and excess-Ca dolomites and their formation conditions in lacustrine sediments. Juxtaposing the carbonate record with the data of lithological analysis, determined stable isotopes (δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C), and distribution of some geochemical indicators of climatic changes, we reconstructed the intricate evolution of Lake Verkhnee Beloe, which was controlled by the regional climate since the postglacial period till the present day.     

The role of diagenetic carbonate concretions in the preservation of the original sedimentary record

The Upper Cretaceous organic rich limestones and marls of the Tarfaya basin of southwest Morocco contain numerous calcite concretions, which formed during early diagenesis. Relative textural similarities are observed both in the concretions and in the host sediments. However, the biological content of the concretions is considerably higher than in the host marls and limestones. Evidence for fossil dissolution in the host marls, and the absence of concretions in some fossil-rich zones, suggest that the difference in fossil abundance between the concretions and host rock is a function of dissolution, rather than preferential precipitation in fossil-rich areas. Consequently, the carbonate concretions appear to represent the 'memory' of the sediment and allow quantification of the original biological components and are potential tools for estimating the original biological material deposited in the soft sediments.     

Post-Variscan sedimentary record of the SW margin of the Bohemian massif: a review

The late-Palaeozoic to Cenozoic stratigraphic and structural record of the southwestern margin of the Bohemian massif and its extension beneath the southward adjacent Molasse basin shows that it is controlled by a system of basement-involving faults which came into evidence during Stephanian– Autunian times and which were subsequently repeatedly reactivated. Thick Permo-Carboniferous clastics accumulated in fault-bounded transtensional basins aligned with the southwestern Bohemian border zone (SWBBZ). Following late-Autunian deformation of these basins, the SWBBZ was overstepped by late-Permian to Late Jurassic platform sediments, reflecting tectonic stability. During the Early Cretaceous the SWBBZ was strongly reactivated, causing disruption and erosion of its Mesozoic sedimentary cover. Sedimentation resumed in the area of the SWBBZ during late Early and Late Cretaceous with clastic influx from the Bohemian massif reflecting gradually increasing tectonic activity along the SWBBZ. During the Late Senonian and Paleocene transpressional deformations resulted in upthrusting of major basement blocks. In the Molasse basin such structures are sealed by transgressive Late Eocene marine strata. Mio-Pliocene uplift of the Bohemian massif, involving mild reactivation of the SWBBZ, is related to the development of the volcano-tectonic Eger zone. The structural configuration of the SWBBZ is largely the result of Late Senonian–Paleocene compressional intraplate tectonics which play a major role in the structural framework of the northern Alpine and Carpathian foreland.     

Evaporites and siliciclastics of the Permian Nippewalla Group of Kansas, USA: a case for non-marine deposition in saline lakes and saline pans

The mid‐Permian Nippewalla Group of Kansas consists of bedded evaporites, red‐bed siliciclastics and grey siliciclastics deposited in a non‐marine environment. Lithologies and sedimentary features indicate lacustrine and aeolian deposition, subaerial exposure and palaeosol formation. Grey siliciclastic mudstones characterized by planar and convolute laminations, ostracods, peloids and plant material represent a freshwater‐brackish perennial lake facies. Bedded anhydrites containing gypsum‐crystal pseudomorphs, clastic anhydrite grains and grey mud drapes and partings suggest deposition in saline lakes. Bedded halites consist of chevron and cumulate crystals, dissolution surfaces and pipes and mudcracked microcrystalline salt crusts, which were deposited in saline pans dominated by flooding, evaporative concentration and desiccation. Chaotic halite, composed of red‐bed mudstone and siltstone with displacive halite crystals, formed in saline mudflats. Red‐bed mudstone and siltstone with little or no displacive halite, but with abundant cracking, root and plant features, suggest deposition in a dry mudflat. Red‐bed sandstone, composed of well‐sorted, well‐rounded quartz grains cemented with halite, indicate aeolian and rare shallow‐water deposition. Most deposition took place in halite‐dominated ephemeral saline lakes surrounded by saline and dry mudflats, sandflats and sand dunes. Evaporation, desiccation, flooding and wind played significant roles in this environment. The Nippewalla Group siliciclastics and evaporites represent an evolution from a perennial lacustrine system to a non‐marine, acidic saline pan system in the mid‐continent of North America. The problem of distinguishing between ancient marine and non‐marine evaporites, as well as recognizing those evaporites deposited in acid settings, with detailed field, core and petrographical study of both evaporite deposits and associated sedimentary rocks has successfully been addressed. In addition, interpretations of mid‐Permian palaeoclimate data in the form of short‐term air temperature proxies within longer‐term wet–dry trends have been made. These data provide a new palaeogeographic and palaeoclimatic model for the mid‐Permian of western Pangaea.     

An 800‐year ultraviolet radiation record inferred from sedimentary pigments in the Ross Sea area,East Antarctica

High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) combined with mass spectrometry (MS) was used to analyse deposited pigments (including chlorophyll a, phaeophytin a, canthaxanthin, echinenone, zeaxanthin, scytonemin and mycosporine‐like amino acids) from two sediment profiles of ponds in the Ross Sea area, East Antarctica. We explored the sources and characteristics of each pigment, reconstructed an 800‐year record of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and total incoming light intensity, and identified the possible factors that may have influenced historical UVR changes in this region. The results indicated at least four UVR peaks during the past 800 years, corresponding to c. AD 1950–2000, 1720–1790, 1560–1630 and 1350–1480, with the intensity from the most recent sediments being the highest. A comparison between the changes in UVR and total incoming light intensity showed similar patterns between AD 1720 and 1830, suggesting that factors controlling the UVR intensity in the Ross Sea area may be related to insolation fluctuation at that time. The two proxies are, however, weakly correlated during other periods. Historically, there is a relationship between the reconstructed UVR and solar activity, but this natural process may be strongly affected by multiple factors, including climate parameter change and anthropogenic activities during the modern times.     

Carbonate sedimentation in shallow saline lakes of Western Transbaikalia: The response to Holocene climate changes

New research results are presented on the processes of carbonate sedimentation in shallow saline lakes of Western Transbaikalia by the example of the Holocene bottom sediments of Sul’fatnoe Lake (the Selenga Dauria). The techniques of X-ray diffractometry (XRD), IR spectroscopy, laser granulometry, and isotope and elemental analyses were used. By means of decomposition the XRD profiles using the Pearson VII function, the carbonate phases were identified and their quantitative ratios were determined. The evolution of the lake basin caused by climate changes in the Holocene was reconstructed by comparing the carbonate record to the concentrations determined for the ¹⁸O and ¹³C stable isotopes and to lithological, geochemical, and palynological data in the dated sedimentary section.     

Climate change during the past 1000 years: a high‐temporal‐resolution multiproxy record from a mire in northern Finland

We present a record of peatland development in relation to climate changes and human activities from the Palomaa mire, a remote site in northern Finland. We used fine‐resolution and continuous sampling to analyse several proxies including pollen (for vegetation on and around the mire), testate amoebae (TA; for mire‐wetness changes), oxygen and carbon isotopes from Sphagnum cellulose (δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C; for humidity and temperature changes), peat‐accumulation rates and peat‐colour changes. In spite of an excellent accumulation model (30 ¹⁴C dates and estimated standard deviation of sample ages <1 year in the most recent part), the potential to determine cause–effect (or lead–lag) relationships between environmental changes and biotic responses is limited by proxy‐specific incorporation processes below the actively growing Sphagnum surface. Nevertheless, what emerges is that mire development was closely related to water‐table changes rather than to summer temperature and that water‐table decreases were associated with increasing peat‐accumulation rates and more abundant mire vegetation. A rapid fen‐to‐bog transition occurred within a few years around AD 1960 when the water table decreased beyond the historical minimum, supporting the notion that mires can rapidly shift into bogs in response to allogenic factors. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.