The abundance of ammonium in the granites of central Spain,and the behaviour of the ammonium ion during anatexis and fractional crystallization

Summary The granites of the Sistema Central Espanol are richer in ammonium than those of most other regions, and have a mean NH₄ ⁺ content of 84 ppm (range = 1–243 ppm). Among the possible causes for the high level of ammonium, a high proportion of organic-rich pelitic protolith and reducing conditions during anatexis are considered to be the most significant. The behaviour of the ammonium ion during magmatic differentiation is discussed by reference to its distribution in the Pedrobernardo layered intrusion: ammonium is depleted in the final liquid fraction, but there is no relative fractionation of NH₄ ⁺ and K⁺. The depletion of the melt in NH₄ ⁺ during crystallization is attributed to its removal by biotite and to a lesser extent by K-feldspar. The behaviour of the ammonium ion during anatexis is discussed with reference to the Peña Negra migmatite complex. It is shown that large amounts of NH₄ ⁺ are present in these high grade metamorphic rocks, and that NH₄ ⁺ is preferentially partitioned into the restite fraction during partial melting. These relationships are attributed to the preferential incorporation of NH₄ ⁺ into potassic host minerals in the order: biotite > muscovite > K-feldspar.

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Ammonium in Zentralspanischen Graniten, und das Verhalten des Ammonium-Ions während Anatexis und fraktionierter Kristallisation

Zusammenfassung Die Granite des Sistema Central Espanol sind reicher an Ammonium als die der meisten anderen Regionen, und haben einen durchschnittlichen NH₄ ⁺ Gehalt von 84 ppm (von 1-243 ppm). Der hohe Ammoniumgehalt könme auf einen hohen Anteil peiitischer Ausgangsgesteine, die reich an organischen Material sind, and auf reduzierende Bedingungen während der Anatexis zurückgehen. Das Verhalten des Ammonium-Ions während magmatischer Differentiation wind in Hinblick seiner Verteilung in der geschichteten Intrusion von Pedrobernardo diskutiert: Ammonium ist in der finalen Schmelzfraktion angereichert, aber es gibt keine relative Fraktionierung von NH₄ ⁺ and K⁺. Die Verarmung der Schmelze an NH₄ ⁺ wahrend der Kristallisation geht darauf zurück, daß NH₄ ⁺ von Biotit and in einem geringen Ausmaß von K-Feldspat aufgenommen wird. Das Verhalten des Ammonium-Ions während der Anatexis wird am Peña Negra Migmatit-Komplex diskutiert. Es zeigt rich, daß große Mengen von NH₄ ⁺ in diesen hochgradig metamorphen Gesteinen vorkommen, and das NH₄ ⁺ während teilweiser Aufschmelzung vorzugsweise in der Restit-Fraktion angereichert wird. Diese Beziehungen gehen auf die vorzugsweise Aufnahme von NH₄ ⁺ in Kali-führenden Gastmineralen zurück, and zwar in folgender Ordnung: Biotit > Muskovit > K-Feldspat.

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With 5 Figures     

New U–Pb isotopic data for detrital zircons from metasedimentary sequences of northwestern Taimyr

This work presents the U–Pb (LA–ICP–MS) data of detrital zircons from metasedimentary sequences of northwestern Taimyr. An analysis of the youngest populations of detrital zircons testifies to the wide distribution of Cambrian sequences in the study area, but not Precambrian sequences as was considered earlier, and the need for a substantial revision of the stratigraphic scheme of this area. The detrital zircon age distribution shows that the Timan margin of the Baltic paleocontinent was a major provenance area of the Cambrian sediments in northern and northwestern Taimyr, as well as the coeval sediments of the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago.     

Geodynamic interpretation of the earthquake distribution in the kermadec subduction zone

Summary The morphology of the Wadati-Benioff zone in the Kermadec region, based on the distribution of 1100 earthquake foci, verified the existence of an intermediate aseismic gap and its relation to active andesitic volcanism, and the non-uniformity of subduction due to the hampering effect of the main structural features of the subducting Pacific plate. Two cycles of the recently active subduction in the Tonga-Kermadec island arc were found.     

Detection of blends in the vicinity of Zeeman lines

High resolution spectrograms taken in polarized light have revealed the presence of significant blending within the profiles of some important Zeeman multiplets of a large umbra. Wavelength and equivalent width of each depictable blend have been derived from the corrected spectrograms and some preliminary identifications have been made.     

“Pure” supernovae and accelerated expansion of the Universe

A special class of type Ia supernovae that is not subject to ordinary and additional intragalactic gray absorption and chemical evolution has been identified. Analysis of the Hubble diagrams constructed for these supernovae confirms the accelerated expansion of the Universe irrespective of the chemical evolution and possible gray absorption in galaxies.     

Theoretical investigation of large-amplitude waves in granular soils

A theoretical investigation of plane waves in granular soils is presented. Dynamic equations are derived with the use of the hypoplasticity theory for granular materials. For numerical calculations the material parameters of Karlsruhe sand are used. Wave speeds as slopes of characteristics of the dynamic equations are calculated for various stresses and densities. It is shown that under certain conditions the dynamic equations lose hyperbolicity and the initial boundary value problem thus becomes ill-posed. Two types of ill-posedness are found, known as flutter ill-posedness and stationary discontinuity. The latter is shown to arise at higher shear stress than the former. A comparison is made between dynamic ill-posedness and stability of static equilibrium. With the use of the second-order work stability criterion it is found that the dynamic equations lose hyperbolicity when the static equilibrium under a dead load is still stable. Numerical solutions to the problem of propagation of boundary disturbance in a half-space are obtained. Owing to dilatancy and contractancy of the granular material, a purely transverse disturbance induces a longitudinal component of velocity in the wave, and vice versa.     

Water Quality Estimation Based on the Structural Analysis of Diatomic Complexes

Two types of plots characterizing the undisturbed structure of the biotopic spectrum of diatom algae are recognized. The first of them has a hyperbolic form and the second is a sigmoid curve (normal distribution). It was shown that, under adverse external impact, both types of plots change their shape and the extent of their distortion reflects the general level of anthropogenic load on this water body or its part. The proposed method of graphical comparison was developed for lakes of Kola Peninsula. Later it was successfully used in the biomonitoring of watercourses of the Volga–Akhtuba interfluve area (Astrakhan Province) and in paleoenvironmental reconstruction for Galichskoe Lake (Kostroma Province).     

Hyperspectral mapping of alteration assemblages within a hydrothermal vug at the Haughton impact structure,Canada

Meteorite impacts on Earth and Mars can generate hydrothermal systems that alter the primary mineralogies of rocks and provide suitable environments for microbial colonization. We investigate a calcite–marcasite‐bearing vug at the ~23 km diameter Haughton impact structure, Devon Island, Nunavut, Canada, using imaging spectroscopy of the outcrop in the field (0.65–1.1 μm) and samples in the laboratory (0.4–2.5 μm), point spectroscopy (0.35–2.5 μm), major element chemistry, and X‐ray diffraction analyses. The mineral assemblages mapped at the outcrop include marcasite; marcasite with minor gypsum and jarosite; fibroferrite and copiapite with minor gypsum and melanterite; gypsum, Fe³⁺ oxides, and jarosite; and calcite, gypsum, clay, microcline, and quartz. Hyperspectral mapping of alteration phases shows spatial patterns that illuminate changes in alteration conditions and formation of specific mineral phases. Marcasite formed from the postimpact hydrothermal system under reducing conditions, while subsequent weathering oxidized the marcasite at low temperatures and water/rock ratios. The acidic fluids resulting from the oxidation collected on flat‐lying portions of the outcrop, precipitating fibroferrite + copiapite. That assemblage then likely dissolved, and the changing chemistry and pH resulting from interaction with the calcite‐rich host rock formed gypsum‐bearing red coatings. These results have implications for understanding water–rock interactions and habitabilities at this site and on Mars.     

Pulsar velocities

Radio pulsars have long been established as having high velocities that are probably produced in the violence of their formation in Supernovae (Gunn & Ostriker 1970; Lyne, Anderson & Salter 1982). Three recent developments have resulted in a reassessment of their velocities: the adoption of a new distance scale (Taylor & Cordes 1993), many new determinations of proper motion (Harrison, Lyne & Anderson 1993; Bailes et al. 1989; Fomalont et al. 1992) and the realisation (Harrison & Lyne 1993) that estimates of speeds derived from scintillation measurements were systematically low by about a factor of 2. Taking into account a strong selection effect that makes the observed velocities unrepresentative of those acquired at birth, it seems that the mean space velocity of pulsars at birth is 450 ± 90 km s^-1 (Lyne and Lorimer 1994), about a factor of 3 greater than earlier estimates. The general migration from the Galactic plane is consistent with birth in the supernova of massive Population I stars. An outstanding question is how such velocities are produced in the kinetics of supernova collapse. This large increase in birth velocity is likely to have a major impact upon our understanding of the retention of neutron stars in binary systems, globular clusters and the Galaxy as it exceeds or is comparable with all their escape velocities. The rapid spatial separation of fast and slow pulsars will have a profound effect upon calculations of the galactic population and birth rate, both of which have been underestimated in the past. Furthermore, the distribution of dead neutron stars will be more isotropic and may better match the distribution of the gamma-ray burst sources. A small number of pulsars are at a large distance from the Galactic plane, but moving towards it. The most likely origin of these objects lies in OB runaway stars.     

Observations of photometric profiles of two planetary nebulae

It is noted that the Abel integral of a Gaussian function is a Gaussian function. This special property is used in order to develop an analytic method for studying photometric profile in Planetary Nebulae. Monochromatic observations have been made at the Haute-Provence Observatory using the RCA-CCD (320×512 pixels) mounted at theF/6 Newtonian focus of the 1.2 m telescope. Among the observed nebulae, two of them (NGC 6778 and NGC 7354) are regular enough to test the photometric profile method. The nebular emissivity per volume unit is then obtained for H⁺ and O⁺⁺ ions.