Stratigraphical relationships and sedimentary environments of the silurian—early Old Red Sandstone of Pembrokeshire

In Pembrokeshire, northward Hercynian thrusting has brought together Silurian and Old Red Sandstone rocks of widely different stratigraphical and sedimentological successions. Five structurally separate blocks are centred from south to north on Freshwater, Marloes, Winsle, Rosemarket and Haverfordwest.     

Hopane,sterane and n-alkane distributions in shallow sediments hosting high arsenic groundwaters in Cambodia

The presence of elevated As in ground waters exploited for drinking water and irrigation in South-East Asia is causing serious impacts on human health. A key mechanism that causes the mobilization of As in these waters is microbially mediated reductive transformation of As-bearing Fe(III) hydrated oxides and the role of degradable organic matter (OM) in this process is widely recognized. A number of different types of OM that drive As release in these aquifers have been suggested, including petroleum derived hydrocarbons naturally seeping into shallow sediments from deeper thermally mature source rocks. However, the amount of information on the characteristics of the OM in South-East Asian aquifers is limited. Here the organic geochemical analyses of the saturated hydrocarbon fractions and radiocarbon analysis, of two additional sites in SE Asia are reported. The results show that the OM in a given sedimentary horizon likely derives from multiple sources including naturally occurring petroleum. The importance of naturally occurring petroleum as one of the sources was clearly indicated by the n-alkane CPI of approximately 1, the presence of an unresolved complex mixture, and hopane (dominated by 17α(H),21β(H) hopanes) and sterane distribution patterns. The results also indicate that the OM in these aquifers varies tremendously in content, character and potential bioavailability. Furthermore, the presence of petroleum derived OM in sediments at both sites doubles the number of locations where their presence has been observed in association with As-rich, shallow aquifers, suggesting that the role of petroleum derived OM in microbially mediated As release might occur over a wider range of geographical locations than previously thought.     

Palaeomagnetic studies of fold development and propagation in the Pembrokeshire old red Sandstone

The geometry of two folds in lower Devonian Old Red Sandstone in Pembrokeshire, deformed in the Hercynian, has been defined at intermediate stages during their evolution by this preliminary palaeomagnetic study. This is possible because remagnetization appears to have occurred in discrete episodes during deformation and the shape can be reconstructed by restoring the fold limbs to an angle at which the remagnetization directions coincide. The plunge of the folds is shown to vary considerably during evolution, one fold having an early easterly plunge which changed to the present westerly plunge, the other fold having an early plunge which was more steeply to the west than its present attitude. Clockwise rotation of the whole of southern Pembrokeshire by 40° towards the end of, or since, the Hercynian deformation, is indicated by the palaeomagnetic data and a structural model for this is proposed.     

A thin-skinned thrust model for Variscan Pembrokeshire, Wales

The east and west coasts of Pembrokeshire (SW Wales) provide two sections through the Variscan fold and thrust belt. The evolution of these structures is interpreted in terms of a thin-skinned tectonic model. Balanced cross-sections are constructed for the high-level imbricate sequences, and these allow reasonably accurate estimates of shortening to be made. Basement control on structures developed in the Upper Carboniferous cover rocks is minimal, though some thrust ramp positions may be determined by the location of earlier normal faults.The thrust belt may be divided into two parts, according to the depth to the décollement horizon. In the north, imbricate fans developed from a shallow-level detachment (<1 km) which dips gently south. In the southern part, a deeper level of décollement and thicker sedimentary pile gave rise to large-amplitude folds.Shortening is heterogeneous, and both thrust periodicity and fold style are partly determined by rheology. Cumulative tectonic displacement increases to the west across Pembrokeshire, resulting in a net clockwise rotation of about 40°.     

Tampa Bay Coastal Wetlands: Nineteenth to Twentieth Century Tidal Marsh-to-Mangrove Conversion

Currently, mangroves dominate the tidal wetlands of Tampa Bay, Florida, but an examination of historic navigation charts revealed dominance of tidal marshes with a mangrove fringe in the 1870s. This study's objective was to conduct a new assessment of wetland change in Tampa Bay by digitizing nineteenth century topographic and public land surveys and comparing these to modern coastal features at four locations. We differentiate between wetland loss, wetland gain through marine transgression, and a wetland conversion from marsh to mangrove. Wetland loss was greatest at study sites to the east and north. Expansion of the intertidal zone through marine transgression, across adjacent low-lying land, was documented primarily near the mouth of the bay. Generally, the bay-wide marsh-to-mangrove ratio reversed from 86:14 to 25:75 in 125?years. Conversion of marsh to mangrove wetlands averaged 72?% at the four sites, ranging from 52?% at Old Tampa Bay to 95?% at Feather Sound. In addition to latitudinal influences, intact wetlands and areas with greater freshwater influence exhibited a lower rate of marsh-to-mangrove conversion. Two sources for nineteenth century coastal landscape were in close agreement, providing an unprecedented view of historic conditions in Tampa Bay.     

Solution subsidence outliers containing probable Tertiary sediment in north-east Wales

The pale-coloured clays and lignites of presumed Tertiary age from the upper parts of the Mochras borehole (Wood and Woodland 1968) are not the first such materials to be recovered from the existing Welsh landscape. Similar clays and sands, and, occasionally, pebble beds and lignites have been recorded from over twenty localities, preserved beneath Glacial deposits in solution subsidence cavities in the Carboniferous Limestone. The best known such occurrence is the isolated mass at Flimston, Pembrokeshire, which has long been thought to be of Tertiary age (Dixon 1921). The others are scattered along the Carboniferous Limestone outcrop of north Wales between Llandudno in the north-west and Mold in the south-east. Their proximity to each other, and records of fossil remains in some of them suggested that it might be possible to effect a regional stratigraphical correlation. Certainly, whatever their age, they form a critical stratigraphical reference in hypotheses concerning the geomorphological evolution of the Welsh landscape. The Flintshire and Denbighshire occurrences are reviewed in the light of information recorded by Maw (1865 and 1867), Strahan (1890) and others, and information forthcoming from recent excavations and augering is presented. It is concluded that, like the pocket deposits of Derbyshire (with which there are numerous analogous relationships) the north Wales pockets are probably solution subsidence outliers of a sheet of fluvio-lacustrine Tertiary sediments, in part at least 70 m thick, the product of Palaeogene deep weathering, that formerly spread over much of the area of north Wales now occupied by the Alun, Clwyd and Conway catchments.     

Freshwater availability as the constraining factor in the Middle Paleoindian occupation of North‐Central Florida

The locations of reliable surface water exposures during the Middle Paleoindian period (10,800–10,200 ¹⁴C yr B.P.) in north‐central Florida are reconstructed and compared to the concentrations of Middle Paleoindian projectile points. Estimates of water table levels and surface water flow in Florida's karst geology confirm prior climate reconstructions for that time indicating the area was arid and supported a xeric ecology in most upland locales. Surface water flow data from recent extreme droughts and water table estimations are used to identify the areas of highest probability for surface water availability. The distribution of the highest concentrations of Middle Paleoindian points correlates with the areas of highest probability, indicating that scarce surface water sources were the strongest constraint on occupation location during that time. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Electron acceleration in the ionosphere of Io

A mechanism for the acceleration of electrons in the ionosphere of Io due to the moon's motion through the Jovian magnetic field and the presence of Io's ionosphere is considered. Attention is drawn to the important role of the anisotropic conductivity of the ionosphere, which results in the formation of a longitudinal (with respect to the planetary magnetic field) component of the charge-separation electric field. Owing to this anisotropy, the electric field induced by the motion of Io, E_i, produces in Io's ionosphere not only a Pedersen electrical current along E_i but also a Hall current that is approximately perpendicular to the moon's surface in the “upstream” and “downstream” parts of the ionosphere. However, this current cannot be closed through the surface, leading to the formation of a powerful charge-separation field in Io's ionosphere. This field has a component parallel to the magnetic field, with an amplitude comparable to that of the induced electric field. Electron runaway along the magnetic field is also considered, and the occurrence of “active longitudes” and preferred locations for the sources of decametric radio emission in the northern hemisphere of Jupiter are interpreted. The characteristic energies and fluxes of the accelerated electrons injected into Io's flux tube are estimated. The energy of these electron fluxes is sufficient to produce the electromagnetic radiation observed from Io's magnetic tube.     

Deformations resulting from the movements of a shear or tensile fault in an anisotropic half space

Earlier solutions (Bull. Seismol. Soc. Amer. 1985; 75 :1135–1154; Bull. Seismol. Soc. Amer. 1992; 82 :1018–1040) of deformations caused by the movements of a shear or tensile fault in an isotropic half-space for finite rectangular sources of strain nucleus have been extended for a transversely isotropic half-space. Results of integrating previous solutions (Int. J. Numer. Anal. Meth. Geomech. 2001; 25 (10): 1175–1193) of deformations due to a shear or tensile fault in a transversely isotropic half-space for point sources of strain nucleus over the fault plane are presented. In addition, a boundary element (BEM) model (POLY3D:A three-dimensional, polygonal element, displacement discontinuity boundary element computer program with applications to fractures, faults, and cavities in the Earth's crust. M.S. Thesis, Stanford University, Department of Geology, 1993; 62) is given. Different from similar researches (e.g. Thomas), the Akaike's view on Bayesian statistics (Akaike Information Criterion Statistics. D. Reidel Publication: Dordrecht, 1986) is applied for inverting deformations due to a fault to obtain displacement discontinuities on the fault plane. An example is given for checking displacements predicted by proposed analytical expressions. Another example is generated for the use of proposed BEM model. It demonstrates the effectiveness of this model in exploring displacement behaviours of a fault. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A new crinoid from the Mississippian (Early Carboniferous) of South Pembrokeshire,Wales

A new species of cladid crinoid, Hylodecrinus cymrus, is described from the Pembroke Limestone Group (Mississippian, Tournaisian, Courceyan) of West Angle Bay in south Pembrokeshire, Wales. It has a medium bowl‐shaped aboral cup, with strong ridges extending across the basals and radials forming pits at the plate corners. It is most similar to the late Tournaisian H. carinatus (Hall, 1861) of North America but differs in having less strongly cuneate brachials that are longer than wide with more subtle carinae on the aboral side. This specimen represents the first report of this genus from Europe, which most probably migrated from North America. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Traces of volcanic ash from the Mediterranean,Iceland and North America in a Holocene record from south Wales,UK

A tephra record is presented for a sediment core from Llyn Llech Owain, south Wales, spanning the early- to mid-Holocene. Seven cryptotephra deposits are discovered with three thought to correlate with known eruptions and the remaining four considered to represent previously undocumented events. One deposit is suggested to correlate with the ~6.9 cal ka bp Lairg A tephra from Iceland, whereas more distant sources are proposed as the origin for two of the tephra deposits. A peak of colourless shards in early-Holocene sediments is thought to tentatively correlate with the ~9.6 cal ka bp Fondi di Baia tephra (Campi Flegrei) and a second cryptotephra is tentatively correlated with the ~3.6 cal ka bp Aniakchak (CFE) II tephra (Alaska). The Fondi di Baia tephra has never been recorded beyond proximal sites and its discovery in south Wales significantly extends the geographical distribution of ash from this eruption. The remaining four cryptotephra deposits are yet to be correlated with known eruptions, demonstrating that our current understanding of widespread tephra deposits is incomplete. This new tephra record highlights the potential for sites at more southerly and westerly locations in northwest Europe to act as repositories for ash from several volcanic regions.     

A new deep‐water Upper Ordovician (Caradocian) trilobite fauna from south‐west Wales

A deep‐water trilobite fauna has been discovered in the otherwise graptolitic Mydrim Formation near Clarbeston Road, Pembrokeshire, south‐west Wales. Associated graptolites indicate an early Caradocian age. The trilobites comprise three species with eyes reduced or absent, representing an atheloptic assemblage with benthic life habits, which appeared during a short period of relative oxygenation of the Welsh Basin. The trilobite Platycalymene dilatata (Tullberg) is redescribed from the type material from Sweden, and new material from Wales is assigned to this species. Two new species are described in addition. Rorringtonia multisegmentata sp. nov. possesses twelve thoracic segments, which has implications for the classification of the Rorringtoniidae within the Aulacopleuroidea. Trinucleus conollyi sp. nov. differs from T. fimbriatus in the proliferation of the radial sulci. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Multidimensional poverty in slums: an empirical study from urban India

Poverty is the most important metric for determining the nature and sense of wellbeing in a given area. Most economists consider poverty to be an economic criterion for assessing many aspects of human development as well as overall social development; yet, society is multi-faceted in its many forms. To address this pressing societal issue, the current study used the Multidimensional poverty index (MPI). To analyse urban poverty among slum communities, the researchers used the Global MPI of the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative and UNDP (following Alkire and Foster) techniques. Researchers attempted to create a Multidimensional poverty index (MPI) for impoverished households in Purulia's designated slums in this study. In the second phase, the multidimensional poverty of Purulia's urban poor households was assessed based on (a) location, (b) social groupings, and (c) length of stay. Finally, researchers have attempted to identify the factors that contribute to multidimensional poverty. Two indicators, the Head Count Ratio (H) and Intensity of Poverty, have been offered to better explain the nature of MPI (A). Based on slum population density and areal density, eight urban slum areas with 320 households has been taken from 8 selected slums based on Yamane’s methodology from Purulia Municipality's wards. A structured questionnaire, an oral history interview, and a focus group discussion were used as primary data sources, with secondary data acquired from several officially published sources. The study displays a decomposed multidimensional poverty picture in terms of overall condition, socioeconomic groups, and household age, with a quantitative methodology that is transparent. When the locations have been considered, a qualitative approach has been used to determine that the slums closest to the railway track are the most multidimensionally disadvantaged of the eight slums. Furthermore, the schedule caste population has been found to be more deprived across many socioeconomic groups, with Scheduled tribe (ST) households being the most deprived in terms of health on one hand (applied quantitative methodology) and multi-nominal regression (applied qualitative methodology) indicating a mix mode approach. This form of analysis, which combines quantitative and qualitative approaches, can aid stakeholders and policymakers in developing specific poverty-reduction policies at the regional level.

     

2001-2012年新疆融雪型洪水时空分布特征

利用2001-2012年新疆区域内发生的融雪型洪水资料,分析研究了近12 a新疆融雪型洪水时空分布特征.结果表明:新疆融雪型洪水与前一年10月至当年3月新疆全站总累计降水量大小相关,降水量大的年份,对应的融雪型洪水发生次数也多;冬末至夏季融雪型洪水在北疆地区基本上是从西向东、从南向北的先后顺序出现,而在南疆地区的融雪洪水基本上是从西向东、从北向南先后顺序出现.新疆融雪型洪水主要集中出现在春夏季,其中,北疆地区在3月,南疆地区在7月发生较多;伊犁河谷、昌吉、阿勒泰、和田等地区及青河、乌鲁木齐、阿克陶、民丰等市县是新疆融雪型洪水的高发区.     

AMS~(14)C测年揭示的渤海湾沿海低地第Ⅱ海相层年龄(Ⅱ)

在初步获得渤海湾海河南部沿海低地第Ⅱ海相层年龄大于43.5ka BP的基础上,在沧州北部和海河北部的沿海低地又利用6个新的机械钻孔岩心,建立了2条垂直于现代岸线的长剖面。根据沉积物岩性和有孔虫查明了第Ⅱ海侵层在剖面中的空间分布,并获得一组新的AMS~(14)C年龄数据。结果显示,在第Ⅱ海相层中新获得的9个AMS~(14)C年龄同样均大于43.5ka BP。至此,渤海湾3条垂直现代岸线剖面10个钻孔的第Ⅱ海相层的21个AMS~(14)C年龄均大于43.5ka BP,进一步证实了普遍发育于渤海湾沿海低地的第Ⅱ海相层形成于MIS 3阶段早期或MIS 5阶段,而不是前人认为的23~39ka BP。     

Pembrokeshire,South Wales

Unravelling the geology of Pembrokeshire (southwest Wales) has been a rite of passage for British undergraduate students for generations. A favourite destination for an Easter fieldtrip, this complex region contains diverse geology of late Precambrian to Carboniferous age. In the course of a five‐day excursion, a student can uncover evidence for two plate tectonic cycles: the birth of the early Palaeozoic Iapetus Ocean and its death in the Caledonian Orogen, and the reworking of the late Palaeozoic Rheic back‐arc basins on the northern margins of the Variscides. In doing so, there is an opportunity to examine highly variable palaeoenvironments including the deposits of alluvial fans, flood plains, deltas, estuaries, carbonate shelves and deeper marine settings, as well as developing fundamental field skills in geological mapping, structural analysis and sedimentary logging. In this article, I introduce the fascinating story of the geological evolution of Pembrokeshire and describe some of the classic localities useful for basic geological training.     

Seismic interferometry and ambient noise tomography in the British Isles

Traditional methods of imaging the Earth's subsurface using seismic waves require an identifiable, impulsive source of seismic energy, for example an earthquake or explosive source. Naturally occurring, ambient seismic waves form an ever-present source of energy that is conventionally regarded as unusable since it is not impulsive. As such it is generally removed from seismic data and subsequent analysis. A new method known as seismic interferometry can be used to extract useful information about the Earth's subsurface from the ambient noise wavefield. Consequently, seismic interferometry is an important new tool for exploring areas which are otherwise seismically quiescent, such as the British Isles in which there are relatively few strong earthquakes. One of the possible applications of seismic interferometry is ambient noise tomography (ANT). ANT is a way of using interferometry to image subsurface seismic velocity variations using seismic (surface) waves extracted from the background ambient vibrations of the Earth. To date, ANT has been used successfully to image the Earth's crust and upper-mantle on regional and continental scales in many locations and has the power to resolve major geological features such as sedimentary basins and igneous and metamorphic cores. Here we provide a review of seismic interferometry and ANT, and show that the seismic interferometry method works well within the British Isles. We illustrate the usefulness of the method in seismically quiescent areas by presenting the first surface wave group velocity maps of the Scottish Highlands using only ambient seismic noise. These maps show low velocity anomalies in sedimentary basins such as the Moray Firth, and high velocity anomalies in igneous and metamorphic centres such as the Lewisian complex. They also suggest that the Moho shallows from south to north across Scotland which agrees with previous geophysical studies in the region.     

A simulation of New Zealand's climate during the Last Glacial Maximum

New Zealand's climate during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) has been investigated using the United Kingdom Met Office global (HadAM3H) and regional model (HadRM3H). All models were set up according to the glacial conditions as specified by the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project (PMIP), although SSTs and sea-ice were supplied from a set of prior coupled model (HadCM3) runs. The simulated climate of New Zealand during the LGM was mainly compared against a control simulation which was set up for pre-industrial conditions. New Zealand's simulated LGM climate was cooler than today, varying spatially between 2.5 and 4 °C. There was an increase in seasonality in temperature with the seasonal cooling being largest during winter. Excluding the Alpine/Fiordland region, the largest cooling geographically took place in the east of the South Island (ESI). Annual mean precipitation was reduced but there were significant regional and seasonal variations. The main band of precipitation along the West Coast shifted westwards, resulting in a reduction in precipitation over those regions in the Southern Alps that receive the largest amount of precipitation in today's climate. The westerly circulation increased considerably over the North Island and the northern part of the South Island, but did not change much over the rest of the South Island. The stronger westerly wind accentuated the cooling over the western and northern parts of the North Island and it probably reduced the occurrence of incursions of tropical lows over the north of the North Island. The westerly winds were weaker over New Zealand during winter, which appears to be related to enhanced blocking activity during that season. The number and the strength of the southerlies increased, and they were capable of bringing very cold polar air over most of the country. The east of the South Island was affected especially by these cold winds.The simulated cooling during the LGM is not sufficient to limit forest growth. It is proposed here, that together with the general drier and colder conditions, it was the increase in seasonality and extremes of climate that limited the growth of certain vegetation types.     

Paleomagnetic results from the Lower Devonian Llandstadwell Formation,Dyfed, Wales

A paleomagnetic investigation of the Lower Devonian Llandstadwell Formation in southwest Wales has yielded a characteristic direction (declination = 196°, inclination = −5°) that passes a fold test. Comparison of the corresponding virtual geomagnetic pole (334°E, 39°S) to previously published poles for Great Britain indicates that the magnetization is secondary and likely to be of Carboniferous age. No evidence for post-Hercynian rotation of Pembrokeshire is indicated by our data.