Multistage melt impregnation in Tethyan oceanic mantle: Petrochemical constraints from channelized melt flow in the Naga Hills Ophiolite

Ophiolitic sequences obducted onto continental margins allow field based observations coupled with petrochemical interrogations of upper mantle lithologies thereby aiding evaluation of compositional heterogeneity of oceanic mantle, depletion-enrichment events and geodynamic conditions governing oceanic lithosphere formation. The Naga Hills Ophiolite (NHO) suite preserves a segment of the Neotethyan oceanic lithosphere encompassing a package of mantle and crustal lithologies. This paper for the first time reports the occurrence of melt flow channels traversing the mantle section near Molen of the NHO and presents a comprehensive study involving chromite-spinel chemistry, bulk rock major, trace and PGE geochemistry to understand the petrogenesis and evolution in a geodynamic transition from mid oceanic ridge (MOR) to suprasubduction zone (SSZ). The spinel chemistry of peridotitic melt channels depicts both MOR-type and SSZ signatures underlining a transitional tectonic frame. Chromite chemistry and high Al₂O₃/TiO₂ ranging from 15.98–35.70 in concurrence with low CaO/Al₂O₃ ranging from 0.03–0.53; and chondrite normalised LREE > MREE < HREE patterns confirm the influx of boninitic melts into the refractory mantle. The boninitic signature shared by melt channels and host rock invokes a geochemical and geodynamic transition from anhydrous melting of depleted mantle to hydrated fluid flux melting resulting in boninitic melts, that subsequently impregnate and refertilise the fore arc mantle wedge in a SSZ regime at the nascent stage of subduction. The high Ba/Nb, Ba/Th, and Ba/La for the studied peridotites highlight the influx of subduction derived fluids in the supra subduction mantle. Further higher Zr/Hf and Nd/Hf with respect to primitive mantle values in concurrence with lower Nb/Ta suggest progressive refertilisation due to fluid- and melt-driven metasomatism of the refractory fore arc mantle wedge. The chondrite normalised PGE patterns suggest positive Ir and Ru anomalies stipulating the source to be refractory while enriched Pt and Pd underpins the mobilisation of these elements by subduction derived fluids and melts. The elevated abundances of PPGEs than IPGEs as cited by PPGE/IPGE > 1; and Pd/Pt avg. 0.85 for melt channels and 0.84 for host peridotites indicate fluid-fluxed metasomatism of fore arc mantle wedge with a S-undersaturated trend coupled with boninitic affinity. The mineral, trace, REE and PGE chemistry collectively emphasizes that the mantle peridotites of the NHO formed in a transitional geodynamic tectonic setting caused by fore arc extension during subduction initiation followed by rejuvenation by subduction derived fluids and boninitic melts, which typically are of the SSZ tectonic regime. The harzburgitic melt channels and host rock are refractory in nature, reflecting multiple episodes of melt extraction of about 5–15% and ~10–20% respectively from a spinel peridotite mantle source. The occurrences of these melt channels indicate segregation and percolation of melt through porous and channelized network in upper mantle peridotites.     

Tree ring width variations over western Himalaya in India and its linkage with heat and aridity indices

Tree ring chronologies from different sites of western Himalaya have been carried out in relation to rainfall, temperature, palmer drought severity index, and heat and aridity indices of the region. The first principal component which was developed using the multi-sites chronologies of Himalaya has explained 50% common variance is positively correlated with rainfall, aridity and palmer drought severity index and negatively with temperature and heat index during spring season (February–May). The existence of strong correlation indicates that heat and aridity indices over the region might be one of the important climatic parameters which play the significant role in tree growth process. Particularly, heat index’s influence over the region indicated larger impact on annual ring width patterns than temperature.     

Extension and magmatism in the Cerocahui basin,northern Sierra Madre Occidental,western Chihuahua,Mexico

The Sierra Madre Occidental of northwestern Mexico is the biggest silicic large igneous province of the Cenozoic, yet very little is known about its geology due to difficulties of access to much of this region. This study presents geologic maps and two new U-Pb zircon laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry ages from the Cerocahui basin, a previously unmapped and undated ~25 km-long by ~12 km-wide half-graben along the western edge of the relatively unextended core of the northern Sierra Madre Occidental silicic large igneous province. Five stratigraphic units are defined in the study area: (1) undated welded to non-welded silicic ignimbrites that underlie the rocks of the Cerocahui basin, likely correlative to Oligocene-age ignimbrites to the east and west; (2) the ca. 27.5–26 Ma Bahuichivo volcanics, comprising mafic-intermediate lavas and subvolcanic intrusions in the Cerocahui basin; (3) alluvial fan deposits and interbedded distal non-welded silicic ignimbrites of the Cerocahui clastic unit; (4) basalt lavas erupted into the Cerocahui basin following alluvial deposition; and (5) silicic hypabyssal intrusions emplaced along the eastern margin of the basin and to a lesser degree within the basin deposits.

The main geologic structures in the Cerocahui basin and surrounding region are NNW-trending normal faults, with the basin bounded on the east by the syndepositional W-dipping Bahuichivo–Bachamichi and Pañales faults. Evidence of syndepositional extension in the half-graben (e.g. fanning dips, unconformities, coarsening of clastic deposits toward basin-bounding faults) indicates that normal faulting was active during deposition in the Cerocahui basin (Bahuichivo volcanics, Cerocahui clastic unit, and basalt lavas), and may have been active earlier based on regional correlations.

The rocks in the Cerocahui basin and adjacent areas record: (1) the eruption of silicic outflow ignimbrite sheets, likely erupted from caldera sources to the east during the early Oligocene pulse of the mid-Cenozoic ignimbrite flare-up, mostly prior to synextensional deposition in the Cerocahui basin (pre-27.5 Ma); (2) synextensional late Oligocene mafic-intermediate composition magmatism and alluvial fan sedimentation (ca. 27.5–24.5 Ma), which occurred during the lull between the Early Oligocene and early Miocene pulses of the ignimbrite flare-up; and (3) post-extensional emplacement of silicic hypabyssal intrusions along pre-existing normal faults, likely during the early Miocene pulse of the ignimbrite flare-up (younger than ca. 24.5 Ma). The timing of extensional faulting and magmatism in the Cerocahui basin and surrounding area generally coincides with previous models of regional-scale middle Eocene to early Miocene southwestward migration of active volcanism and crustal extension in the northern Sierra Madre Occidental controlled by post-late Eocene (ca. 40 Ma) rollback/fallback of the subducted Farallon slab.     

Distribution and origin of nitrate in groundwater in an urban and suburban aquifer in Mar del Plata,Argentina

The impact of urbanization on groundwater quality is of special concern for water managers dealing with the provision of drinking water to large urban centers. Nitrate is one of the most common contaminants found in urban aquifers. This paper presents a case study aiming at evaluating the distribution and sources of nitrate in an urban aquifer in the city of Mar del Plata, Argentina. Four study zones under different land uses, including a pristine, a semi-rural, an intermediate, and an urban area, were evaluated as a part of this study. The three latter zones are linked by the groundwater flow system. The average nitrate concentration in the pristine area is 6.7 mg/L as nitrate and is over the permissible level of 50 mg/L for drinking water in the other areas. In the semi-rural area it ranges from 39.2 to 107.1 mg/L with an average value of 38.2 mg/L and the nitrate concentration tends to decrease in the intermediate zone to an average value of 38.2 mg/L; however, values above 60 mg/L are also observed there. Then the nitrate concentration in the urban area water is higher than that in the intermediate zonewater ranging from 48.2 to 100.3 mg/L with an average value of 67.3 mg/L. Data on the stable isotopes 15N and 18O in nitrate show that the main sources of nitrate in the study area are manure associated to agriculture uses and cesspools in the semi-rural area, and leakage of the sewage distribution network in the urban area, respectively. This is supported by a previous study which found that 20 % of the water flooding many underground structures in the city came from leakage of the sewage network. No evidence of nitrate attenuation by denitrification was found in the groundwater. This study has shown that aquifers in urban areas can be affected by agricultural activity in the upstream areas and leakage of the sewage network in the urban area.     

Spatio-temporal evaluation of event detection and measurement coherence among satellite rainfall products for ensembled dataset generation

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - Selection of a best suited satellite-based gridded rainfall product (SGRP) is challenging due to their significant variations at spatial and temporal scale....     

Leaching behavior of lignite fly ash with shake and column tests

The maximum concentration of the majority of the trace metals in the leachates from shake and column test of lignite fly ash (LFA) was within the prescribed limits; however, total dissolved solids, total hardness, cations and anions (except K⁺), being above the prescribed limits, may lead to the increase in the hardness and salinity in the soil on the disposal of LFA. Present generation of huge amount of fly ash from thermal power plants (TPPs) is a big challenge concerning contamination of soil, crop produce and surface and ground water bodies due to the presence of some of the toxic trace metals in it. The leaching behavior of alkaline LFA (pH, 10.94), from TPP of Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC), India, was investigated by shake and column tests using water and sodium acetate buffer. The leaching of trace metals from LFA was governed by their concentrations, association with the ash particles, leaching duration and pH of the leachate (most influencing parameter). The leaching of metals followed the order: buffer column > aqueous column > aqueous shake > buffer shake test.     

Temperature of Solar Prominences Obtained with the Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph on the 1.6 m New Solar Telescope at the Big Bear Solar Observatory

We observed solar prominences with the Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph (FISS) at the Big Bear Solar Observatory on 30 June 2010 and 15 August 2011. To determine the temperature of the prominence material, we applied a nonlinear least-squares fitting of the radiative transfer model. From the Doppler broadening of the Hα and Ca ii lines, we determined the temperature and nonthermal velocity separately. The ranges of temperature and nonthermal velocity were 4000?–?20?000 K and 4?–?11 km?s^?1. We also found that the temperature varied much from point to point within one prominence.