Two-feldspar geothermometry: a review and revision for slowly cooled rocks

Recent improvements in the experimental and thermodynamic basis of two-feldspar geothermometry allow one to recover temperatures of coexistence more reliably. Some problems, however, persist: (1) the experimental solvi by Seck (1971a) and Elkins and Grove (1990) differ from each other; (2) it is not known to what extent Na–K–Ca exchange equilibrium is approached; (3) both solvi are probably metastable with regard to Al, Si order; (4) it is difficult to judge how closely high-temperature natural feldspars compare to this situation; (5) the thermodynamic treatment neglects phase transformations; (6) the temperature dependence of the Margules parameters used to model non-ideal mixing behaviour may not be linear; (7) it is not clear which expressions should be used to describe ideal activities. With these caveats in mind we treat the problem of retrograde resetting in high-grade metamorphic rocks that were slowly cooled under essentially dry conditions. Coexisting feldspars from such rocks commonly do not plot on a common isotherm. Thus temperatures derived from such pairs using any of the proposed two-feldspar geothermometers will necessarily be in error. We suggest that the non-equilibrium compositions result from retrograde intercrystalline K–Na exchange. This exchange continues after the plagioclase and alkali feldspar have already become essentially closed systems with respect to Al–Si exchange, which is a prerequisite for (Na,K)–Ca exchange. We use a modified version of the Fuhrman and Lindsley (1988) programme to reverse the K–Na exchange and derive concordant temperatures.     

Combining geographic information system, multicriteria evaluation techniques and fuzzy logic in siting MSW landfills

This study presents a methodology for siting municipal solid waste landfills, coupling geographic information systems (GIS), fuzzy logic, and multicriteria evaluation techniques. Both exclusionary and non-exclusionary criteria are used. Factors, i.e., non-exclusionary criteria, are divided in two distinct groups which do not have the same level of trade off. The first group comprises factors related to the physical environment, which cannot be expressed in terms of monetary cost and, therefore, they do not easily trade off. The second group includes those factors related to human activities, i.e., socioeconomic factors, which can be expressed as financial cost, thus showing a high level of trade off. GIS are used for geographic data acquisition and processing. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is the multicriteria evaluation technique used, enhanced with fuzzy factor standardization. Besides assigning weights to factors through the AHP, control over the level of risk and trade off in the siting process is achieved through a second set of weights, i.e., order weights, applied to factors in each factor group, on a pixel-by-pixel basis, thus taking into account the local site characteristics. The method has been applied to Evros prefecture (NE Greece), an area of approximately 4,000 km². The siting methodology results in two intermediate suitability maps, one related to environmental and the other to socioeconomic criteria. Combination of the two intermediate maps results in the final composite suitability map for landfill siting.     

Active hydrothermal fluids circulation triggering small-scale collapse events: the case of the 2001–2002 fissure in the Lakki Plain (Nisyros Island,Aegean Sea,Greece)

Rip currents are fast moving, offshore flows that have the ability to move even the strongest swimmers into deeper waters. Miami Beach, Florida is one of the most visited beaches in the USA and a sought after destination for citizens and international tourists alike. It is also known to be a rip current “hot spot.” These factors greatly increase the risk of drowning; however, no previous research has focused on beachgoer perception of rip-related risks in South Florida. Over a 12-month period, 203 public surveys were collected to determine the rip current knowledge of beachgoers at Miami Beach based on factors such as swimming ability and frequency of beach visits. The responses were analyzed by constructing a normalized component factor to determine the respondent’s comprehensive knowledge of rips, and multiple regression models were used to assess the net influences of sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics on the responses. A significant proportion of the survey respondents showed insufficient knowledge, indicating they are at risk of drowning in a rip current. Frequent beachgoer’s exposure to the beach environment, maturation, and nativity is identified as the main contributors to knowledge net of other sociodemographic compositions. The most at-risk groups were determined to be young adults, foreign tourists, poor swimmers, and those who infrequently visited the beach. Miami Beach needs to initiate a rip current safety campaign to target these at-risk beachgoers, where interventions beyond familial and educational institutions should be introduced.     

New Hamiltonian expansions adapted to the Trojan problem

A number of studies, referring to the observed Trojan asteroids of various planets in our Solar System, or to hypothetical Trojan bodies in extrasolar planetary systems, have emphasized the importance of so-called secondary resonances in the problem of the long term stability of Trojan motions. Such resonances describe commensurabilities between the fast, synodic, and secular frequency of the Trojan body, and, possibly, additional slow frequencies produced by more than one perturbing bodies. The presence of secondary resonances sculpts the dynamical structure of the phase space. Hence, identifying their location is a relevant task for theoretical studies. In the present paper we combine the methods introduced in two recent papers (Páez and Efthymiopoulos in Celest Mech Dyn Astron 121(2):139, 2015; Páez and Locatelli in MNRAS 453(2):2177, 2015) in order to analytically predict the location of secondary resonances in the Trojan problem. In Páez and Efthymiopoulos (2015), the motion of a Trojan body was studied in the context of the planar Elliptic Restricted Three Body or the planar Restricted Multi-Planet Problem. It was shown that the Hamiltonian admits a generic decomposition \(H=H_b+H_{sec}\). The term \(H_b\), called the basic Hamiltonian, is a model of two degrees of freedom characterizing the short-period and synodic motions of a Trojan body. Also, it yields a constant ‘proper eccentricity’ allowing to define a third secular frequency connected to the body’s perihelion precession. \(H_{sec}\) contains all remaining secular perturbations due to the primary or to additional perturbing bodies. Here, we first investigate up to what extent the decomposition \(H=H_b+H_{sec}\) provides a meaningful model. To this end, we produce numerical examples of surfaces of section under \(H_b\) and compare with those of the full model. We also discuss how secular perturbations alter the dynamics under \(H_b\). Secondly, we explore the normal form approach introduced in Páez and Locatelli (2015) in order to find an ‘averaged over the fast angle’ model derived from \(H_b\), circumventing the problem of the series’ limited convergence due to the collision singularity at the 1:1 MMR. Finally, using this averaged model, we compute semi-analytically the position of the most important secondary resonances and compare the results with those found by numerical stability maps in specific examples. We find a very good agreement between semi-analytical and numerical results in a domain whose border coincides with the transition to large-scale chaotic Trojan motions.     

The Boussinesq problem for soils with bounded non-homogeneity

The response of a compressible continuously non-homogeneous elastic soil to a static vertical point load on its surface is analytically investigated by using classical integral transform techniques and the extended power series method for obtaining the solution in the transform domain. The non-homogeneity is described by means of a depth-function which is non-zero at the surface and bounded at infinity and is capable in modelling both increasing and decreasing soil stiffness with depth. The influence of non-homogeneity on the displacements and stresses at the surface and in the interior is examined over a wide range on the governing parameters. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of torsional stiffness of prestressed concrete box girders and uplift of abutment bearings on seismic performance of bridges

Uplift of certain abutment bearings during earthquake may be utilized as a safety mechanism for the protection of the bridge against excessive stress. For this reason design codes such as Eurocode 8 permit the uplift of such bearings under certain conditions. Uplift of an abutment bearing occurs when the torque at the deck end exceeds a critical value. Therefore the torsional stiffness of the deck, before or after concrete cracking, is an important factor. In this work realistic values for the cracked torsional stiffness of the bridge deck are estimated from a parametric study of typical thin-walled prestressed box girders, based on non-linear analysis of softened space truss models proposed in the literature. Moreover the interaction between bearing uplift and pier flexural response is investigated and recommendations for the seismic design of bridges are proposed, taking into account the possibility of uplift of abutment bearings before or after yielding of the piers.     

Mantle dynamics beneath Greece from SKS and PKS seismic anisotropy study

SKS and PKS splitting parameters were determined in the broader Greek region using data from 45 stations of the Hellenic Unified Seismological Network and the Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute, utilizing teleseismic events that occurred between 2010 and 2017. Data were processed for shear-wave splitting with the Minimum Energy Method that was considered the optimal. The results generally confirm the existence of anisotropic zonation in the Hellenic subduction system, with alternating trench-normal and trench-parallel directions. The zonation is attributed to the upper and lower olivine fabric layers that can, potentially, be present in the subduction zone. At the edges of this zone, two possible toroidal flow cases have been identified, implying the existence of tears that allow the inflow of asthenospheric material in the mantle wedge. The high number of null measurements in the KZN and XOR stations indicates a possible anisotropic transition zone between the fore-arc and back-arc areas. SKS and PKS splitting results are jointly interpreted, given that they yield similar values in most cases.     

Earthquake recurrence models and occurrence probabilities of strong earthquakes in the North Aegean Trough (Greece)

The determination of strong earthquakes’ recurrence time above a predefined magnitude, associated with specific fault segments, is an important component of seismic hazard assessment. The occurrence of these earthquakes is neither periodic nor completely random but often clustered in time. This fact in connection with their limited number, due to shortage of the available catalogs, inhibits a deterministic approach for recurrence time calculation, and for this reason, application of stochastic processes is required. In this study, recurrence time determination in the area of North Aegean Trough (NAT) is developed by the application of time-dependent stochastic models, introducing an elastic rebound motivated concept for individual fault segments located in the study area. For this purpose, all the available information on strong earthquakes (historical and instrumental) with M_w ≥ 6.5 is compiled and examined for magnitude completeness. Two possible starting dates of the catalog are assumed with the same magnitude threshold, M_w ≥ 6.5 and divided into five data sets, according to a new segmentation model for the study area. Three Brownian Passage Time (BPT) models with different levels of aperiodicity are applied and evaluated with the Anderson–Darling test for each segment in both catalog data where possible. The preferable models are then used in order to estimate the occurrence probabilities of M_w ≥ 6.5 shocks on each segment of NAT for the next 10, 20, and 30 years since 01/01/2016. Uncertainties in probability calculations are also estimated using a Monte Carlo procedure. It must be mentioned that the provided results should be treated carefully because of their dependence to the initial assumptions. Such assumptions exhibit large variability and alternative means of these may return different final results.     

Determining the causes for the dramatic recent fall of Lake Prespa (southwest Balkans)

Mediterranean lake–wetland systems are threatened by climate change and intensive human impacts. Individual lake responses to these threats are poorly known but urgently required to steer preservation strategies. The dramatic water-level fall (~8 m since 1987) of Lake Megali Prespa endangers this global biodiversity hotspot and the wider catchment’s water resources. Annual lake fluctuations are found to be strongly related to wet-season (Oct.–Apr.) precipitation variability, which is linked to the North Atlantic Oscillation. The lake primarily adjusts to sustained inflow changes through amending surface evaporation. Cumulative water abstraction since 1951 (~19 × 10⁶ m³/year: ~0.006% of lake volume) explains ~70% of the long-term decrease in surface evaporation; climate variability explains the remainder. Persistent low lake levels after 1995 are caused by water abstraction. Compared to 1952/53–1977/78, the period 1978/79–2003/04 experienced significant decreases in wet-season precipitation, snowfall and discharge; the number of very dry years increased.

EDITOR A. Castellarin; ASSOCIATE EDITOR D. Gerten