Oxygen isotope composition of annually banded modern and mid-Holocene travertine and evidence of paleomonsoon floods, Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA

Holocene and modern travertine formed in spring-fed Havasu Creek of the Grand Canyon, Arizona, was studied to determine the factors governing its oxygen-isotope composition. Analysis of substrate-grown travertine indicates that calculated calcite-formation temperatures compare favorably with measured water temperatures, and include silt-rich laminae deposited by monsoon-driven floods. Ancient spring-pool travertine is dated by U-series at 7380 ± 110 yr and consists of 14 travertine-silt couplets of probable annual deposition. One hundred eighty high-resolution δ¹⁸O analyses of this mid-Holocene sample average −11.0‰ PDB. The average value for modern travertine is 0.5‰ lower, perhaps because mid-Holocene temperature was higher or there was proportionally greater summer recharge. δ¹⁸O cyclicity in the mid-Holocene travertine has average amplitude of 1.9 ± 0.5‰ PDB, slightly less than the inferred modern-day annual temperature range of Havasu Creek. The annual temperature range might have been reduced during the 14-yr interval compared to present, although other non-temperature factors could account for the muted annual variation. Silt-rich laminae within isotopically lower calcite in the modern and mid-Holocene travertine verifies the seasonal resolution of both samples, and suggests that similar temperature-precipitation conditions, as well as monsoon-generated summer floods, prevailed in the mid-Holocene as they do throughout the Grand Canyon region today.     

雅鲁藏布江大峡谷的形成

通过对雅鲁藏布大峡谷流域地貌形成响应时间域的定量估算,大峡谷与上游河道特征的对比,以及大峡谷入口处河湖阶地的沉积分析和定年研究,结合构造研究的新进展和数值地貌分析成果,系统论证了雅鲁藏布大峡谷的形成。研究结果表明,现今的雅鲁藏布大峡谷与大峡谷上游的河道在大峡谷形成之前分属不同的河流体系,大约在距今30ka BP前后,原属于帕隆藏布江水系支流的扎曲—直白河段因溯源侵蚀,袭夺了位于现今直白河段上游的古雅鲁藏布江水系,使得此前向南经南伊沟（纳伊普曲）流出高原的古雅鲁藏布江与帕隆藏布江合二为一,雅鲁藏布大峡谷得以贯通和强烈的侵蚀下切,形成现今著名的大峡谷和大拐弯式样的流域结构。     

50,000 years of vegetation and climate history on the Colorado Plateau, Utah and Arizona, USA

Sixty packrat middens were collected in Canyonlands and Grand Canyon National Parks, and these series include sites north of areas that produced previous detailed series from the Colorado Plateau. The exceptionally long time series obtained from each of three sites (> 48,000 ¹⁴C yr BP to present) include some of the oldest middens yet discovered. Most middens contain a typical late-Wisconsinan glaciation mixture of mesic and xeric taxa, evidence that plant species responded to climate change by range adjustments of elevational distribution based on individual criteria. Differences in elevational range from today for trees and shrubs ranged from no apparent change to as much as 1200 m difference. The oldest middens from Canyonlands NP, however, differ in containing strictly xeric assemblages, including middens incorporating needles of Arizona single-leaf pinyon, far north of its current distribution. Similar-aged middens from the eastern end of Grand Canyon NP contain plants more typical of glacial climates, but also contain fossils of one-seed juniper near its current northern limit in Arizona. Holocene middens reveal the development of modern vegetation assemblages on the Colorado Plateau, recording departures of mesic taxa from low elevation sites, and the arrival of modern dominant components much later.     

Paleomagnetism of Middle Proterozoic mafic intrusions and Upper Proterozoic (Nankoweap) red beds from the Lower Grand Canyon Supergroup, Arizona

Paleomagnetic data from lavas and dikes of the Unkar igneous suite (16 sites) and sedimentary rocks of the Nankoweap Formation (7 sites), Grand Canyon Supergroup (GCSG), Arizona, provide two primary paleomagnetic poles for Laurentia for the latest Middle Proterozoic (ca. 1090 Ma) at 32°N, 185°E (dp=6.8°, DM=9.3°) and early Late Proterozoic (ca. 850–900 Ma) at 10°S, 163°E (dp=3.5°, DM=7.0°). A new ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age determination from an Unkar dike gives an interpreted intrusion age of about 1090 Ma, similar to previously reported geochronologic data for the Cardenas Basalts and associated intrusions. The paleomagnetic data show no evidence of any younger, middle Late Proterozoic tectonothermal event such as has been revealed in previous geochronologic studies of the Unkar igneous suite. The pole position for the Unkar Group Cardenas Basalts and related intrusions is in good agreement with other ca. 1100 Ma paleomagnetic poles from the Keweenawan midcontinent rift deposits and other SW Laurentia diabase intrusions. The close agreement in age and position of the Unkar intrusion (UI) pole with poles derived from rift related rocks from elsewhere in Laurentia indicates that mafic magmatism was essentially synchronous and widespread throughout Laurentia at ca. 1100 Ma, suggesting a large-scale continental magmatic event. The pole position for the Nankoweap Formation, which plots south of the Unkar mafic rocks, is consistent with a younger age of deposition, at about 900 to 850 Ma, than had previously been proposed. Consequently, the inferred 200 Ma difference in age between the Cardenas Basalts and overlying Nankoweap Formation provides evidence for a third major unconformity within the Grand Canyon sequence.     

Middle‐Late Pleistocene Glacial Lakes in the Grand Canyon of the Tsangpo River,Tibet

Many moraines formed between Daduka and Chibai in the Tsangpo River valley since Middle Pleistocene. A prominent set of lacustrine and alluvial terraces on the valley margin along both the Tsangpo and Nyang Rivers formed during Quaternary glacial epoch demonstrate lakes were created by damming of the river. Research was conducted on the geological environment, contained sediments, spatial distribution, timing, and formation and destruction of these paleolakes. The lacustrine sediments 14C (10537±268 aBP at Linzhi Brick and Tile Factory, 22510±580 aBP and 13925±204 aBP at Bengga, 21096±1466 aBP at Yusong) and a series of ESR (electron spin resonance) ages at Linzhi town and previous data by other experts, paleolakes persisted for 691~505 kaBP middle Pleistocene ice age, 75–40 kaBP the early stage of last glacier, 27–8 kaBP Last Glacier Maximum (LGM), existence time of lakes gradually shorten represents glacial scale and dam moraine supply potential gradually cut down, paleolakes and dam scale also gradually diminished. This article calculated the average lacustrine sedimentary rate of Gega paleolake in LGM was 12.5 mm/a, demonstrates Mount Namjagbarwa uplifted strongly at the same time, the sedimentary rate of Gega paleolake is more larger than that of enclosed lakes of plateau inland shows the climatic variation of Mount Namjagbarwa is more larger and plateau margin uplifted more quicker than plateau inland. This article analyzed formation and decay cause about the Zelunglung glacier on the west flank of Mount Namjagbarwa got into the Tsangpo River valley and blocked it for tectonic and climatic factors. There is a site of blocking the valley from Gega to Chibai. This article according to moraines and lacustrine sediments yielded paleolakes scale: the lowest lake base altitude 2850 m, the highest lake surface altitude 3585 m, 3240 m and 3180 m, area 2885 km2, 820 km2 and 810 km2, lake maximum depth of 735 m, 390 m and 330 m. We disclose the reason that previous experts discovered there were different age moraines dividing line of altitude 3180 m at the entrance of the Tsangpo Grand Canyon is dammed lake erosive decay under altitude 3180 m moraines in the last glacier era covering moraines in the early ice age of late Pleistocene, top 3180 m in the last glacier moraine remained because ancient dammed lakes didn’t erode it under 3180 m moraines in the early ice age of late Pleistocene exposed. The reason of the top elevation 3585 m moraines in the middle Pleistocene ice age likes that of altitude 3180 m. There were three times dammed lakes by glacier blocking the Tsangpo River during Quaternary glacial period. During other glacial and interglacial period the Zelunglung glacier often extended the valley but moraine supplemental speed of the dam was smaller than that of fluvial erosion and moraine movement, dam quickly disappeared and didn’t form stable lake.     

Effect of advective mass transfer on field scale fluid and solute movement: Field and modeling studies at a waste disposal site in fractured rock at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee, USA

Advective mass transfer is a pore scale mass-transfer process that affects fluid and solute movement between pore domains such as fracture and matrix in a structured porous medium. Mechanistically similar to advection in the advection-dispersion of solutes in non-structured porous medium, it redistributes solutes by moving solute and solvent simultaneously between pore domains. While there is much research on diffusive mass transfer that is often referred to as matrix diffusion, there is a lack of information and study for advective mass transfer in the literature. The objective of this research is to study the effects of advective mass transfer on fluid and solute movement between pore domains. First, field hydraulic measurements at a waste disposal site in fractured rock at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Tennessee, USA, are used to calibrate a fracture-matrix, two-pore-domain groundwater flow model. Latin-hypercube sensitivity analysis suggests that the uncertainty of the calibrated model parameters is small and the calibrated flow model is nearly the optimal. Fracture spacing thus obtained is used to calculate diffusive mass transfer coefficients. The individual effects of advective and diffusive mass transfer on solute movement are then quantitatively evaluated. The calculations indicate that pore structure conceptual models may significantly affect the role of advective mass transfer in field and pore-scale mass transfer. In the particular ORNL field site and with a fracture-matrix pore structure model, contribution of advective mass transfer to solute mass movement is about three to eight orders of magnitude smaller than that of diffusive mass transfer.

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Resumen La transferencia de masa advectiva es un proceso de transferencia de masa en escala intersticial que afecta el movimiento de fluido y soluto entre ámbitos porosos tal como fractura y matriz en un medio estructurado poroso. Este proceso, mecánicamente similar a la advección en la dispersión-advección de solutos de medios porosos no estructurados, redistribuye los solutos mediante el movimiento simultáneo de soluto y solvente entre ámbitos porosos. Mientras que existe bastante investigación en transferencia difusiva de masa que frecuentemente se conoce como difusión en matriz, existe falta de información y estudio de transferencia advectiva de masa en la literatura. El objetivo de esta investigación es estudiar los efectos de la transferencia advectiva de masa en el movimiento de fluido y soluto entre ámbitos porosos. Primero se utilizaron mediciones hidráulicas de campo en un sitio de depósito de residuos en roca fracturada en el Laboratorio Nacional Oak Ridge (ORNL), Tennessee, USA, para calibrar un modelo de flujo de agua subterránea de ámbito de dos poros fractura-matriz. Análisis de sensitividad hipercúbico-latino sugieren que la incertidumbre de los parámetros del modelo calibrado es pequeña y que el modelo de flujo calibrado es aproximadamente el óptimo. El espaciamiento de fracturas así obtenido se utiliza para calcular los coeficientes de transferencia de masa difusiva. Luego se evalúa cuantitativamente los efectos individuales de transferencia de masa advectiva y difusiva en el movimiento de soluto. Los cálculos indican que los modelos conceptuales de estructura porosa pueden afectar significativamente el papel de transferencia de masa advectiva en escalas de campo e intersticial de transferencia de masa. En el sitio de campo específico ORNL y con un modelo de estructura porosa de matriz-fractura, la contribución de transferencia de masa advectiva al movimiento de masa soluto es aproximadamente tres a ocho órdenes de magnitud más pequeño que la contribución por transferencia de masa difusiva.

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Résumé Résumé Le transfert advectif de masse est un processus de transfert de masse à léchelle du pore qui affecte les mouvements du fluide et du soluté entre les différents domaines de pores, tel les fractures et la matrice dans un milieu poreux structuré. Mécaniquement similaire à ladvection dans le concept advection-dispersion de solutés dans les milieux non structurés, ce transfert redistribue les solutés simultanément avec le fluide entre les différents domaines poreux. Alors que de nombreuses recherches portent sur les transferts de masse par diffusion, se référant généralement à une diffusion par la matrice, il y a un grand manquement dinformations et détudes sur les transferts de masse par advection dans la littérature. Lobjectif de cette recherche est détudier leffet du transfert advectif de masse de fluide et de soluté entre les différents domaines poreux. Premièrement, les mesures hydrauliques de terrain sur la décharge en milieu fracturé du laboratoire national dOak Ridge ORNL, Tennessee, USA, sont utilisées pour calibrer un modèle hydrogéologique à double porosité fracture-matrice. Lanalyse de sensibilité latin-hypercube suggère que lincertitude sur les paramètres du modèle est faible et que le calibrage est pratiquement optimal. Lespace de fracture résultant permet de calculer les coefficients de transfert de masse par diffusion. Les effets individuels de ladvection et de la diffusion sur les mouvements de solutés sont dés lors évalués. Les calculs indiquent que le modèle conceptuel de la structure des pores peuvent significativement affectés le rôle du transfert advectif de masse à léchelle du pore et du terrain. Dans le cas du site de lORNL et avec un modèle structuré fracture-matrice, la contribution de ladvection au transfert de masse est de lordre de trois-huitième du transfert de masse par diffusion.