Cryospheric hazards and risk perceptions in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park and Buffer Zone,Nepal

Glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) are among the most serious cryospheric hazards for mountain communities. Multiple studies have predicted the potential risks posed by rapidly expanding glacial lakes in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park and Buffer Zone of Nepal. People’s perceptions of such cryospheric hazards can influence their actions, beliefs, and responses to those hazards and associated risks. This study provides a systematic approach that combines household survey data with ethnography to analyze people’s perceptions of GLOF risks and the socioeconomic and cultural factors influencing their perceptions. A statistical logit model of household data showed a significant positive correlation between the perceptions of GLOF risks and livelihood sources, mainly tourism. Risk perceptions are also influenced by spatial proximity to glacial lakes and whether a village is in potential flood zones. The 2016 emergency remediation work implemented in the Imja Tsho (glacial lake) has served as a cognitive fix, especially in the low-lying settlements. Much of uncertainty and confusions related GLOF risks among locals can be attributed to a disconnect between how scientific information is communicated to the local communities and how government climate change policies have been limited to awareness campaigns and emergency remediation efforts. A sustainable partnership of scientists, policymakers, and local communities is urgently needed to build a science-driven, community-based initiative that focuses not just in addressing a single GLOF threat but develops on a comprehensive cryospheric risk management plan and considers opportunities and challenges of tourism in the local climate adaptation policies.

     

Rb/Sr geochronology of granites and gneisses from the Mount Everest region,Nepal Himalaya

Nineteen samples of granites, orthogneisses and paragneisses from the High Himalaya basement nappe(s) of the Mount Everest region have been dated by the Rb/Sr method. The post-metamorphic tourmaline leucogranites of the upper Imja Drangka (Nuptse, Lhotse Glacier) have high initial Sr⁸⁷/Sr⁸⁶ characteristic of an anatectic origin from crustal material. A whole-rock isochron age of 52 m. y. (Early Eocene) has been obtained for the samples from the granite body of Lhotse Glacier; apparently Sr isotopic homogenization was not reached throughout the much larger Nuptse granite. The granite precursor of the migmatitic orthogneisses from the upper Dudh Kosi valley has an age of 550 ± 16 m. y. (whole rock isochron) and a high initial Sr⁸⁷/Sr⁸⁶ ratio indicating its origin from an older basement complex. The Rb/Sr data on paragneisses from the south face of Lhotse do not define an isochron, possibly reflecting isotopic hetero-geneity in the sedimentary protoliths and incomplete homogenization during a late Precambrian metamorphism. All the mineral ages fall in the time span from 15 to 17 m. y. They represent cooling ages reflecting a regional phase of major uplift in the Middle Miocene and post-dating the peak of the Himalayan metamorphism which the data from the Mt. Everest region place in pre-Eocene times.     

Timescales of melt generation and the thermal evolution of the Himalayan metamorphic core,Everest region,eastern Nepal

In the Everest region of the Nepalese Himalaya, ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar and U-Pb geochronology provide evidence for a complex thermal history marked by multiple episodes of granite intrusion. The oldest mobilized melt formed syn-deformational granitic sills that have U-Pb crystallization ages of 21.33±0.03 and 21.80±0.05 Ma. Preserved in these same granites is a record of earlier magmatic crystallization of xenotime, zircon and monazite between ca. 26 Ma and ca. 23 Ma. This pattern of accessory phase crystallization is interpreted to reflect incremental melting and crystallization in the source region of the sills before ultimate melt migration, and provides the earliest evidence for anatexis in the Everest region. The beginning of crustal melting in the Everest region predates the earliest known movement on both the Main Central Thrust and the South Tibetan fault systems, but is temporally associated with the implied pressure decrease between Eohimalayan and Neohimalayan metamorphism.     

P–T–t–D paths of Everest Series schist, Nepal

U(–Th)–Pb geochronology, geothermobarometric estimates and macro‐ and micro‐structural analysis, quantify the pressure–temperature–time–deformation (P–T–t–D) history of Everest Series schist and calcsilicate preserved in the highest structural levels of the Everest region. Pristine staurolite schist from the Everest Series contains garnet with prograde compositional zoning and yields a P–T estimate of 649 ± 21 ° C, 6.2 ± 0.7 kbar. Other samples of the Everest Series contain garnet with prograde zoning and staurolite with cordierite overgrowths that yield a P–T estimate of 607 ± 25 ° C, 2.9 ± 0.6 kbar. The Lhotse detachment (LD) marks the base of the Everest Series. Structurally beneath the LD, within the Greater Himalayan Sequence (GHS), garnet zoning is homogenized, contains resorption rinds and yields peak temperature estimates of ～650 ± 50 ° C. P–T estimates record a decrease in pressure from ～6 to 3 kbar and equivalent temperatures from structurally higher positions in the overlying Everest Series, through the LD and into GHS. This transition is interpreted to result from the juxtaposition of the Everest Series in the hangingwall with the GHS footwall rocks during southward extrusion and decompression along the LD system. An age constraint for movement on the LD is provided by the crystallization age of the Nuptse granite (23.6 ± 0.7 Ma), a body that was emplaced syn‐ to post‐solid‐state fabric development. Microstructural evidence suggests that deformation in the LD progressed from a distributed ductile shear zone into the structurally higher Qomolangma detachment during the final stages of exhumation. When combined with existing geochronological, thermobarometric and structural data from the GHS and Main Central thrust zone, these results form the basis for a more complete model for the P–T–t–D evolution of rocks exposed in the Mount Everest region.     

Variations of existing glaciers in the Southwestern mountain region of Xizang (Tibet)

The SW-mountain region of Xizang in this paper is taken to extend between 27° 10 – 30° 10N / 84° 50–91° 30 E, that is the vast area stretching from the Himalayas to the South Range of Xizang. The author has been in the area many times over 20 years surveying and conducting scientific investigations. In 1984 the author took part in the Sino-German Joint Expedition for further survey and the interpretation of aerial photographs and satellite images of the same area. The paper presents the data collected during this period.     

Emplacement of Himalayan leucogranites by magma injection along giant sill complexes: examples from the Cho Oyu,Gyachung Kang and Everest leucogranites (Nepal Himalaya)

The upper part of the High Himalayan slab in north central Nepal is comprised of a thick layer-parallel sheet of biotite + muscovite + tourmaline ± garnet ± sillimanite ± cordierite leucogranite up to 3–4 km thick and dipping north at 5–20°. These strongly peraluminous magmas were emplaced into high temperature–low-pressure sillimanite and cordierite bearing gneisses, calc-silicates and rare amphibolites which were metamorphosed at temperatures of 600–650°C some time during the Oligocene–early Miocene. Parallel stringers of black xenolithic gneisses within the leucogranites suggest passive magmatic intrusion along fractures parallel to the schistosity in the country rocks. In the mountains of Cho Oyu, Gyachung Kang, Pumori, Lingtren and the base of the Everest massif, these leucogranites form part of a single structural horizon bounded at the top by the Lhotse Detachment, the lower of two N-dipping normal faults of the South Tibetan Detachment (STD) system, and below by the Khumbu Thrust (KT), an out-of-sequence fault which was partly responsible for the uplift, erosion and exhumation of the leucogranites. A model for the emplacement of these leucogranites is proposed, where they represent viscous minimum melts, produced by melting of a pelitic protolith, similar to the underlying sillimanite grade gneisses, through muscovite breakdown, either during fluid-absent melting at <750°C, or fluid-saturated melting at <650°C. These leucogranites may have intruded up to ∼40 km horizontally from their source, but were emplaced by hydraulic fracturing along multiple sills into recently metamorphosed high temperature–low pressure rocks of the middle crust. The entire mid-crustal region where the granites were formed and emplaced was later uplifted along the hangingwall of the Khumbu Thrust, and by the structurally lower Main Central Thrust (MCT) to their present position. The location of the leucogranites at the top of the slab, but never intruding across the STD normal faults and the complete lack of leucogranites further down the slab rule out frictional heating along the MCT as a viable heat source and also rule out diapirism as a viable emplacement mechanism. High radioactivity of the crustal source, percolation of fluid from the migmatitic source into sills and dykes during simple shear, heat focussing due to a large thermal conductivity contrast across the STD, and decompression during active low-angle normal faulting above, are all viable processes to explain leucogranite melting and emplacement.     

Regional representation of glaciers in Chandra Basin region,western Himalaya,India

Hamtah and Chhota Shigri are two nearby, well monitored glaciers of western Himalaya, lying in the same climatic zone and driven by the same climatic conditions. In this study, topographical characteristics of both the glacier have been explored to understand the role of topography in controlling the glacier response. Further, their topographical characteristics and possible response towards climatic variations have been compared with each other and also with that of the other glaciers in the basin to find out the suitability of these two glaciers to be considered as representative of the region. Multi sensor and multi temporal remote sensing data have been used to carry out to fulfill the objectives. It is found that being in the same climatic zone, the mean accumulation area ratio of Chhota Shigri is 54% and Hamtah is 11% between 1980 and 2014. In comparison to Hamtah, Chhota Shigri glacier has a small upslope area, low compactness ratio indicating the ability of the glacier to receive direct precipitation and solar radiation. The analysis revealed that the Chhota Shigri glacier has a closer resemblance with the other glaciers in the region than Hamtah glacier. Also, the topographical settings of Chhota Shigri glacier are suitable for recording and reflecting year-to-year climatic variations.     

Recent geomorphological changes of the middle and lower Calore River (Campania, Southern Italy)

The geomorphological changes experienced by the middle and lower Calore River (Southern Italy) between 1957 and 1998 were investigated. Data derived from field surveys and interpretation of topographic maps and aerial photos were introduced into a geographic information system (GIS) and processed. The results showed that the Calore River underwent a mean narrowing of 66 %, with a peak of 86 %. The channel length increased by approximately 75 m and the sinuosity from 1.311 to 1.314. The extension of fluvial bars reduced by more than 83 %, while their number increased from 151 to 381. Field evidence of riverbed lowering, such as river terraces formed in the considered time span and exhumation of foundations of bridges and flood-walls, were also constantly detected. Due to these channel adjustments, the Calore River morphology changed from transitional to single-thread. These results were coherent with those reported in the pre-existing literature about channel adjustments experienced by many rivers during the twentieth century. They all were explainable with a reduction of the bedload transport; this latter, in turn, is completely in accordance with the environmental changes that affected the Calore River system in the considered period (i.e., damming and/or channelization of the main tributaries, reduction of liquid discharge due to water withdrawals and sediment mining from the riverbed).     

Sedimentological proof and dating of the Early Holocene volcanic eruption of Ulmener Maar (Vulkaneifel,Germany)

A minerogeniclayer occurs in early postglacial organic sediments from five maar lakes (West Eifel Volcanic Field, Germany). The mineralogy and stratigraphic position of this tephra suggests that it is related to the youngest German volcano, Ulmener Maar, nearby. Radiocarbon dating of wood from the base of the Ulmener Maar Tephra at two locations provide ages in agreement with an accelerator mass spectrometer ¹⁴C date for the minerogenic layer from sediments of Lake Holzmaar situated 13 km south-west of Ulmener Maar. The mean radiocarbon age is 9 560 years BP. Dating by varve chronology provides an age of 10017 years VT (varve time in years before 1950) or 10 895 years corrected VT. Based on palynology the Ulmener Maar Tephra was deposited at the end of the Preboreal. High values of natural remnant magnetization intensity, typical of pyroclastic material, confirm that this minerogenic layer differs in composition from other clastic deposits of the sedimentary record. Geochemical analyses reveal increased values of total trace elements for the Laacher See Tephra and Ulmener Maar Tephra. An isopach map based on thickness variations of the Ulmener Maar Tephra at five investigated maar lakes indicates that the tephra was mainly transported to the south west.     

The last glaciers (Loch Lomond Advance) in Snowdonia,N. Wales

Evidence for 35 former cwm glaciers has been mapped in Snowdonia, N. Wales. Glacial limits are based on end moraines, boulder and drift limits, and the down-valley extent of hummocky moraine. Protalus ramparts indicate that at least 16 semi-permanent snow beds down to altitudes of 150 m also existed. Radiocarbon dates and pollen stratigraphy indicate that the glaciers and snow beds belong to the Loch Lomond (Younger Dryas) Stadial. The existence of a large number of ‘Older Series Moraines’ is questionned. Glacier reconstruction and contouring allows calculation of fan line altitudes, and trend surface analysis indicates that they rise from 450 m in the southwest to 700 m in the northeast. It is inferred that mean July temperature at sea-level was around 8·5°C. Two differences between north and south Britain are recognized. Firstly in Snowdonia, as in the Lake District and Southern Uplands, the dominance of southerly air streams appears less than in the Scottish Highlands. Secondly, whereas in the Scottish Highlands, the glaciers appear to have stagnated in situ following initial active retreat, some of those farther south were active during much of the time their margins retreated.     

Lateglacial and Holocene cosmogenic surface exposure age glacial chronology and geomorphological evidence for the presence of cold‐based glaciers at Nevado Sajama,Bolivia

Comparisons of palaeo‐equilibrium line altitudes between the Western and Eastern Cordilleras in the Central Andes are commonly based on the assumption that the tall outermost moraines visible in remotely sensed images of the Western Cordillera date to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). However, field investigation and geomorphic mapping at Nevado Sajama, Bolivia, indicates the tall moraines are relic features with shorter moraines overlying and in some cases extending beyond them. ³⁶Cl exposure ages from the shorter moraines suggest that they date to Lateglacial times ca. 16.9–10.2 ka. Although Lateglacial deposits have been found throughout the Central Andes, the extent of these deposits relative to LGM deposits varies both between the Western and Eastern Cordilleras and north‐to‐south along the Western Cordillera. In the Western Cordillera in the zone of easterly winds, the Lateglacial appears to be the most extensive glacial advance of the last glacial cycle. Geomorphic evidence also suggests that some Lateglacial moraines were deposited by cold‐based ice, a previously unreported finding in the tropical Andes. Retreat from other glacial features occurred at about 7.0–4.4 ka and 4.7–3.3 ka. These are the first directly dated Holocene glacial deposits in the Western Cordillera of Bolivia, and their presence suggests that the mid Holocene may not have been as warm and dry as previously thought. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Radon emanation from giant landslides of Koefels (Tyrol,Austria) and Langtang Himal (Nepal)

The identification of extremely high indoor radon concentrations in the village Umhausen (Tyrol, Austria) initiated a scientific program to get information about the source and distribution of this noble gas. The high concentrations can not be related to U anomalies or large-scale fault zones. The nearby giant landslide of Koefels, with its highly fractured and crushed orthogneisses, are the only possible source of radon, despite the fact that the U and Ra content of the rocks is by no means exceptional. The reasons for the high emanation rates from the landslide are discussed and compared to results gained from a similar examination of the giant landslide of Langtang Himal (Nepal). The exceptional geologic situation in both cases, as well as the spatial distribution of different concentration levels, indicate that both landslides must be considered as the production sites of radon. Independent of the U and Ra contents of the rocks, the most important factors producing high emanation rates are the production of a high active surface area and circulation pathways for Rn-enriched soil air by brittle deformation due to the impact of the landslidemass.     

亚洲东部“大三角”地震构造区的周边和深部动力环境

亚洲东部存在一个巨大的三角形地震构造区域,大体上,喜马拉雅山脉、帕米尔—天山—阿尔泰山—贝加尔和东经105°线是它的3个边界,主要覆盖中国和蒙古国西部众多高原、山脉及山间盆地。三角区内现今构造活动和地震广泛强烈,地壳破碎,显示不均匀的块体边界和块内变形;区外基本上是稳定的刚性陆块,地震很少,变形较弱,处于整体缓慢运动之中。这个宽阔的板内变形区起源于印度、菲律宾海—西太平洋和欧亚三大板块之间的动力作用以及深部地幔流的影响。向北快速运动的印度次大陆已近水平地插入到西藏板块下,沿喜马拉雅弧产生多种运动和变形,并向亚洲内部远距离地扩散。沿东经95°～100°,向北的地壳运动向东和东南方向偏转,阻截了喜马拉雅弧东端的北向运动;而在喜马拉雅弧西端,帕米尔继续向北挤进中亚,受天山—阿尔泰山—贝加尔一线西北側稳定地壳的限制,扩散的变形被中国、蒙古、俄罗斯边境地区一系列EW向和NW向的老断层吸收并在它们的西端终止。菲律宾海—西太平洋向欧亚大陆的消减-俯冲导致沿海沟-岛弧的漫长而狭窄的地震带,但对亚洲大陆的水平挤压较小,未能阻挡亚洲大陆东部向东移动。其部分原因可能是俯冲板片受到来自欧亚大陆下的ES向地幔流的推挤,这个ES向地幔流与来自印度下面的N向地幔流在西藏中部汇合并向东偏转,在大尺度上与GPS观测到的地表移动图像一致。     

Assessment of co-seismic landslide susceptibility using LR and ANCOVA in Barpak region,Nepal

Nepal was affected by a catastrophic earthquake with Mw 7.8 on 25th April, 2015 with its epicenter in the central part of Barpak village. A number of co-seismic landslides were triggered by the main shock of the event and associated aftershocks. Due to the rugged topography and vicinity of the main shock, the village was extremely affected by co-seismic landslides. In total, 59 landslides were identified using Google Earth and were verified during the field survey in Barpak village. Furthermore, 11 conditioning factors, including Peak ground acceleration (PGA), epicenter proximity, fault proximity, geology, slope, elevation, plan curvature, profile curvature, topographic wetness index, drainage proximity and the sediment transport index were selected as independent variables for analysis. In this study, logistic regression (LR) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) models were used and their performance was assessed. Finally, the landslide susceptibility classes were produced and an evaluation of models was done by using receiver operating characteristic curves. The area under the curve for LR and ANCOVA showed 85.38 and 78.4% accuracy, respectively. Based on the overall assessments, the LR model was more accurate than the ANCOVA model for co-seismic landslide prediction in the study area. The result of this study can be used to mitigate landslide-induced hazards and for land-use planning.     

Sedimentological interpretation of high-resolution seismic facies in the Lower Freshwater Molasse (Chattian, western Switzerland)

Two shallow high-resolution seismic reflection profiles acquired across part of the western Molasse Basin near Geneva have been processed and interpreted. Three seismic facies have been identified in the Chattian Lower Freshwater Molasse. They are associated with depositional environments in a sand-bed meandering river setting. A distal floodplain environment, characterized by alternations of thick shales and thin sandstones and by palustrine-lacustrine limestones, is represented by a poorly reflective seismic facies with discontinuous reflections. Thick sand-filled channels generate a highly reflective facies with continuous reflections. Highly re-flective and continuous reflections characterize the third facies, which is generated by shales and thick proximal clastic deposits, indicative of a proximal floodplain environment. This scientific approach leads to applications in subsurface lithological predictions associated with geotechnical and environmental assessments in the densely populated Swiss Plateau where Molasse sediments form a large part of the substrate.     

Evidence of dynamics reversal in tropical estuaries, geomorphological and sedimentological consequences (Salum and Casamance Rivers, Senegal)

South Dakar Senegambian estuaries are subject to an unusual hydrodynamical regime caused by weak or absent run-off. In the Salum delta, each distributary lacks fresh water during most of the year. Only the tidal flows are responsible for geomorphological and sedimentological effects. The current distribution shows a net discharge upstream due to the extensive evaporation and evapotranspiration in mangrove swamps and tidal flats. Consequently the salinity is always higher towards the river than near the sea. A high salinity bottom layer suggests the occurrence of a supersaline wedge of reverse sense to the salt wedge of a normal estuary. Such an inverse pattern is similarly displayed by sedimentological features (double upstream turned spits) and by the external location of the turbidity maximum. A coherent reverse estuary model is suggested from our field observations.     

青海银石山地区巴颜喀拉前陆盆地构造变形特征及动力学机制

银石山地区巴颜喀拉前陆盆地自北而南可分为冬银山倒转褶皱带、丛崭山张公山大型向斜、屏岭银石山断褶带等3个变形特征迥异的构造单元。三叠纪末,巴颜喀拉板块北缘向北消减过程中具"双层汇聚"机制——硬度较大的基底板块仍沿其二叠纪末与昆仑地块间的俯冲分界面向北消减,相对较软的巴颜喀拉三叠系盖层则沿其底面薄弱面剥离,被动向昆仑地块之上仰冲,从而在单剪应力状态下在其北面形成北倒南倾的等斜褶皱(东部)或轴面南倾的斜歪褶皱(西部)。受昆仑地块南缘"东凸西凹"的古构造格局控制,巴颜喀拉板块在向北消减时东部具右旋走滑,使北东面巴颜喀拉山群褶皱枢纽呈北东东向,并导致北部及中部的构造变形具东强西弱的特点。盖层与基底间界面、巴颜喀拉山群三段与四段间界面等为两个主要滑脱剥离面。受其控制,在中部丛崭山张公山一带形成大型向斜,而在南部屏岭银石山地区则形成中小规模连续褶皱。     

沉积学研究在沉积和层控矿床勘查中的作用(代序)

这次贵州省重点矿产资源大精查,不仅要探明精查对象的资源储量,还要开展矿产形成、分布规律研究,为进一步的深部和外围预测奠定基础.贵州省的优势矿产资源,多数是沉积矿产和层控矿产.为了认识并掌握其形成、分布规律,需要深入开展沉积学研究,分析和判别其沉积相和沉积环境.本文以4个案例,说明了沉积学研究在本次优势矿产资源大精查中的...