Pleistocene climatic change in Southern Australia and its effect on speleothem deposition in some Nullarbor caves

Activity ratios of ²³⁴U/²³⁸U, ²³⁰Th/²³⁴U, and ²³⁰Th/²³²Th have been determined for calcite, gypsum and halite speleothems from caves of the Nullarbor Plain, mostly in the area N and NW of Mundrabilla Station, for the purpose of U-series dating. All calcite speleothems contain adequate amounts of uranium for dating, but some show an excess of ²³⁰Th. Stratigraphic relationships indicate that there were at least three phases of calcium carbonate deposition in the Nullarbor caves. The calcite samples, with one possible exception, have ages in excess of ca. 400000 yrs BP. This suggests that no significant amounts of calcium carbonate deposition have taken place during the last 400ka. At present, active deposition of speleothems is restricted almost entirely to gypsum and halite. The only gypsum speleothem dated was found to have a finite age of ca. 185 ka. Six dates on a small halite speleothem containing insect and arachnid remains indicate that it formed rapidly during Holocene time.     

The effects of rock fragments on hydrologic and hydraulic responses along a slope

A model describing the three‐dimensional matrix flow along a slope with rock fragments or impermeable blocks was developed. The model was combined with modified Picard's iteration to ensure mass conservation in the unsaturated flow. We found that rock fragments obstruct water flow along the slope. The groundwater table must be raised to provide a sufficient pore water pressure gradient to facilitate water flow, but higher pore water pressure may induce slope failure. We also conducted a bench‐scale laboratory flume experiment to examine the effects of impermeable blocks on downstream seepage flow. In addition, a numerical experiment was conducted to examine how different arrangements of impermeable blocks affect downstream seepage flow and pore water pressure. This research demonstrated that the hydraulic phenomena were affected when impermeable blocks were present, and pore water pressure increased as the position of impermeable blocks was lowered. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Seasonal and Sub-Seasonal Circulation Anomalies Associated with Persistent Rainy Days in 2018/2019 Winter in Shanghai,China

Shanghai experienced the longest rainy days in 2018/2019 winter since 1988. The physical cause of such an unusual climate condition was investigated through the diagnosis of observational data. From a seasonal perspective, a long persistent rainy winter was often associated with an El Niño condition in the equatorial Pacific. This abnormal oceanic condition induces a remote teleconnection pattern with pronounced low-level southerly anomalies over East China. The wind anomalies transported moisture from tropical oceans and caused persistent rainfall in East Asia. Meanwhile, the local rainfall time series exhibited a strong quasi-biweekly oscillation (QBWO). Three persistent rainy events were identified in the 2018/2019 winter and they all occurred during the active phase of the QBWO. The first two events were associated with a low pressure anomaly west of Shanghai. Southerly anomalies associated with the low pressure system advected high mean moisture into central eastern China, leading to the persistent rainfall there. The third event was associated with a high pressure anomaly in lower troposphere to the east of Shanghai, which induced anomalous southerlies to its west, favoring the occurrence of rainfall in Shanghai. The result suggests the importance of high-frequency variability in affecting seasonal rainfall anomalies.     

基于植被状态指数的全国干旱遥感监测试验研究(Ⅰ)--资料分析与处理部分

在收集处理了了1981～1994年连续504旬的由NOAA AVHRR第1、2通道的反射率计算得的NDVI时间系列数据,以及1980～1994年全国102个固定农气观测站的旬土壤湿度资料(-20cm)和相应测站的田间持水量资料基础上,分析了全国NDVI及植被状态指数VCI的时空变化特征,发现NDVI值随季节(旬)分别表现为“双峰型”和“单峰型”的变化,在第17～27旬之间达到极大值,并与作物生长有关,VCI的变化与NDVI的变化呈相反趋势;对资料因站点的分布和密度以及时序位相等差异可能影响资料代表性的探讨认为：因旱情发展有一个过程,故NDVI、SHI的时空特性应该不会影响其分析结果的代表性。综合分析了资料的时空代表性,为干旱遥感监测模型的建立作准备。     

Alluvial gold in Kalimantan, Indonesia: A colloidal origin?

Extensive placer gold deposits occur in Quaternary palaeochannels in the Ampalit and Cempaga Buang drainage basins near Kasongan, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Broad interfluvial Pleistocene terraces surrounding the drainages also contain significant amounts of placer gold. The “channel” and “terrace” gold deposits together cover an area in excess of 180 km².Exploration for gold at Ampalit followed traditional alluvial methods, and assumed that mechanical and gravitational factors were the principal mechanisms affecting gold accumulation and concentration. Gold was considered to be physically reworked from terraces and redeposited in the present drainage channels or underlying, laterally displaced, palaeochannels. However, a comparison of gold grains from the Ampalit drainage channel and adjacent terraces indicates that gold grains in the drainage channels are possibly of colloidal origin and not mechanically transported to their present domain.The morphology of gold grains from the Ampalit drainage is compared with grains from adjacent terraces, using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The latter procedure allows for nondestructive analysis to give true three dimensional surface topography down to nanometre resolution. Evidence from force microscopy supports a colloidal origin for gold aggregates.The average purity of gold produced from the Ampalit dredging operation is 970 fine (970/1000) and the majority of examined gold grains extracted from beneath the drainage channel have a purity of 998 fine. This unusually high degree of purity suggests a selective dissolution/aggregation mechanism. We propose that gold is transported downward and laterally in groundwater percolating through the terrace sands and gravels to the current drainage as a humic acid-stabilised colloid. As the pregnant groundwater migrates toward the present drainage channels, it encounters a sleep chemical gradient and the colloid aggregates. The aggregation process occurs near clay zones within palaeochannel sands and gravels beneath the present river sediments. Here the colloidal aggregates form small grains (usually <1 mm) of extremely high purity.Today, the inherently unstable gold deposits at Ampalit are in a state of both aggregation and dissolution. Identification of low energy zones, location of point bar lags in palaeo and recent drainage channels, and the extrapolation of areas of low energy are not solely valid as exploration guides for gold accumulation in this environment. Exploration methods that also recognise ground water migration and composition, and the geochemical controls of dissolution and aggregation, will improve the ability to identify ore accumulations, thus contributing to improved economics of mining these deposits.     

A Brine Evolution Model and Mineralogy of Chemical Sediments in a Volcanic Crater,Lake Kitagata,Uganda

Lake Kitagata, Uganda, is a hypersaline crater lake with Na–SO₄–Cl–HCO₃–CO₃ chemistry, high pH and relatively small amounts of SiO₂. EQL/EVP, a brine evaporation equilibrium model (Risacher and Clement 2001), was used to model the major ion chemistry of the evolving brine and the order and masses of chemically precipitated sediments. Chemical sediments in a 1.6-m-long sediment core from Lake Kitagata occur as primary chemical mud (calcite, magadiite [NaSi₇O₁₃(OH)₃·3H₂O], burkeite [Na₆(CO₃)(SO₄)₂]) and as diagenetic intrasediment growths (mirabilite (Na₂SO₄·10H₂O)). Predicted mineral assemblages formed by evaporative concentration were compared with those observed in salt crusts along the shoreline and in the core from the lake center. Most simulations match closely with observed natural assemblages. The dominant inflow water, groundwater, plays a significant role in driving the chemical evolution of Lake Kitagata water and mineral precipitation sequences. Simulated evaporation of Lake Kitagata waters cannot, however, explain the large masses of magadiite found in cores and the formation of burkeite earlier in the evaporation sequence than predicted. The masses and timing of formation of magadiite and burkeite may be explained by past groundwater inflow with higher alkalinity and SiO₂ concentrations than exist today.     

Numerical Modelling of the Anisotropic Mechanical Behaviour of Opalinus Clay at the Laboratory-Scale Using FEM/DEM

The Opalinus Clay (OPA) is an argillaceous rock formation selected to host a deep geologic repository for high-level nuclear waste in Switzerland. It has been shown that the excavation damaged zone (EDZ) in this formation is heavily affected by the anisotropic mechanical response of the material related to the presence of bedding planes. In this context, the purpose of this study is twofold: (i) to illustrate the new developments that have been introduced into the combined finite-discrete element method (FEM/DEM) to model layered materials and (ii) to demonstrate the effectiveness of this new modelling approach in simulating the short-term mechanical response of OPA at the laboratory-scale. A transversely isotropic elastic constitutive law is implemented to account for the anisotropic elastic modulus, while a procedure to incorporate a distribution of preferentially oriented defects is devised to capture the anisotropic strength. Laboratory results of indirect tensile tests and uniaxial compression tests are used to calibrate the numerical model. Emergent strength and deformation properties, together with the simulated damage mechanisms, are shown to be in strong agreement with experimental observations. Subsequently, the calibrated model is validated by investigating the effect of confinement and the influence of the loading angle with respect to the specimen anisotropy. Simulated fracture patterns are discussed in the context of the theory of brittle rock failure and analyzed with reference to the EDZ formation mechanisms observed at the Mont Terri Underground Research Laboratory.     

热带海气相互作用对大气BSISO年际振荡的影响

利用卫星观测OLR资料以及海气耦合数值模拟试验结果,从每年波-频分析结果提取了各种传播模态的强度指数序列,分析了热带北半球夏季季节内振荡(BSISO)各种传播模态的年际变化谱特征,探讨了热带各海区海气相互作用对其影响。主要结果如下:赤道外西传波和印度洋北传波以准2 a为显著振荡周期,赤道东传波、南海北传波和西太平洋北传波则都包含准2 a和准5 a两种周期,南海北传波是5种指数中惟一以准5 a为最主要周期振荡的模态。热带印度洋、西太平洋、东太平洋各海区海气相互作用对各指数准2 a振荡、准5 a振荡既有加强作用,也有削弱作用。各海区比较而言,对赤道东传波准2 a和准5 a振荡、南海北传波准2 a和准5 a振荡起最大加强作用的是西太平洋海区海气相互作用;对赤道外西传波准2 a振荡、西太平洋北传波准2 a和准5 a振荡起最大加强作用的是印度洋海区海气相互作用。