A hydrothermal deposit from explorer ridge in the northeast Pacific Ocean

Crusts composed of nontronite and ferromanganese oxides were recovered from Explorer Ridge, a spreading ridge segment in the northeastern Pacific Ocean located off the west coast of Canada. The chemical and mineralogical composition of the crusts closely resembles that of the mound-like hydrothermal deposits recently discovered at the FAMOUS site on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and on the Galapagos spreading centre. Compositional anomalies suggest that the crusts are precipitates of hydrothermal vent solutions which were ejected discontinuously and subsequently mixed with seawater.     

极地考察站三维信息系统的设计与实现

对南极考察站三维模型的建立和发布进行研究,深入解析KML文件,提出多个模型组合发布的方法。基于研究成果设计并实现数字极地考察站三维信息系统。     

Developing a long-term monitoring network under uncertain flowpaths

A long-term monitoring well network is developed using complementary and simple approaches in conjunction with a stochastic ground water flow and transport model. The development is illustrated for a case study of a U.S. nuclear testing site (Shoal) that is undergoing environmental restoration. The network design builds on three different, yet complementary, tools for locating the monitoring wells with a main objective of detection monitoring. The first tool is applied to select potential siting horizons where monitoring wells could be located. The second tool is used to place monitoring wells in locations with high success probability. The success here is defined as the detection of migrating stochastic plumes before a certain mass percentage reaches a compliance boundary. The third tool is used to analyze detection efficiency of multiple combinations of three wells. Seventy-six different three-well networks are selected from 20 candidate locations and are evaluated for detection efficiency. From the 76 networks analyzed, 28 attain detection efficiency close to or above 70%. The results of the different analyses provide multiple alternatives for the locations of the three wells, which will become part of the long-term monitoring network at Shoal. A number of combinations are equally good, and the final choice will depend on practical considerations and future agreements between model sponsor and regulators.     

Structure and collapse of three-dimensional magnetic neutral points

Abstract

The structure and collapse of linear three-dimensional magnetic neutral points is studied by varying the four parameters (p, q,j_|,j_⊥ ) that define, in general, the linear field of a neutral point. The effect of these parameters on both the skeleton structure (i.e. the fan and spine) and the actual field line structure of the null is considered. It is found that one current component (j_⊥ ) causes the skeleton structure of the null to fold up from its potential state, whereas the other current component (j _|;) causes the field lines to bend. The two other parameters (p,q) determine the potential structure of the null and cause the null to transform from a three-dimensional null to a two-dimensional null and from a positive (type B) null to a negative (type A) null.

To investigate the collapse of three-dimensional nulls, solutions to the linear, low-β ideal magnetohydrodynamic equations are found. It is found that three-dimensional null points can collapse if the field line foot-points are free and energy can propagate into the system.     

New FTIR spectroscopy data on the composition of the medium of diamond crystallization in metamorphic rocks of the Kokchetav Massif

A representative sample of microdiamonds in calc-silicate and garnet-pyroxene-quartz rocks and gneisses from the cross section of an adit driven at the Kumdy-Kol’ deposit (Northern Kazakhstan) has been analyzed. Microdiamonds from these rocks were studied by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy for the first time. It has been established that nitrogen impurity content (300–3000 ppm) and nitrogen aggregation degree (14–75%) vary widely and do not correlate with each other. The variation is probably due to the uneven distribution of nitrogen in crystals and to their specific internal structures.The results of the study show that in most diamondiferous rocks, diamonds crystallized from a fluid/melt of composition varying between aqueous-carbonate and aqueous-silicate end-members. Spectroscopy studies partly disagree with literature data on individual nanoinclusions in diamonds. The cause of this discrepancy may be the evolution of the fluid/melt during diamond crystallization.     

A radiative-conductive model for the prediction of radiation fog

A conductive-radiative model is used to predict the formation and growth of radiation fog. This is accomplished by solving numerically the heat and mass transport equations in conjunction with an approximate form of the radiative transfer equation. The equations of motion in simplified form are included in the physical system to make use of Blackadar's (1962) formulation of the exchange coefficient of the boundary layer.It is found for a number of hypothetical test cases that the model gives results which appear to represent real physical conditions. One actual situation is tested. Results show that the model reproduces better than qualitatively those parameters which are obtained from routine observations.     

Transformations of mercury, iron, and sulfur during the reductive dissolution of iron oxyhydroxide by sulfide

Methylmercury can accumulate in fish to concentrations unhealthy for humans and other predatory mammals. Most sources of mercury (Hg) emit inorganic species to the environment. Therefore, ecological harm occurs when inorganic Hg is converted to methylmercury. Sulfate- and iron-reducing bacteria (SRB and FeRB) methylate Hg, but the effects of processes involving oxidized and reduced forms of sulfur and iron on the reactivity of Hg, including the propensity of inorganic Hg to be methylated, are poorly understood. Under abiotic conditions, using a laboratory flow reactor, bisulfide (HS⁻) was added at 40 to 250 μM h⁻¹ to 5 g L⁻¹ goethite (α-FeOOH) suspensions to which Hg(II) was adsorbed (30-100 nmol m⁻²) at pH 7.5. Dissolved Hg initially decreased from 10³ or 10⁴ nM (depending on initial conditions) to 10⁻¹ nM, during which the concentration of Hg(II) adsorbed to goethite decreased by 80% and metacinnabar (β-HgS_(s)) formed, based on identification using Hg L_III-edge extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopic analysis. The apparent coordination of oxygens surrounding Hg(II), measured with EXAFS spectroscopy, increased during one flow experiment, suggesting desorption of monodentate-bound Hg(II) while bidentate-bound Hg(II) persisted on the goethite surface. Further sulfidation increased dissolved Hg concentrations by one to two orders of magnitude (0.5 to 10 nM or 30 nM), suggesting that byproducts of bisulfide oxidation and Fe(III) reduction, primarily polysulfide and potentially Fe(II), enhanced the dissolution of β-HgS_(s) and/or desorption of Hg(II). Rapid accumulation of Fe(II) in the solid phase (up to 40 μmol g⁻¹) coincided with faster elevation of dissolved Hg concentrations. Fe(II) served as a proxy for elemental sulfur [S(0)], as S(0) was the dominant bisulfide oxidation product coupled to Fe(III) reduction, based on sulfur K-edge X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy. In one experiment, dissolved Hg concentrations tracked those of all sulfide species [S(-II)]. These results suggest that S(-II) reacted with S(0) to form polysulfide, which then caused the dissolution of β-HgS_(s). A secondary Fe-bearing phase resembling poorly formed green rust was observed in sulfidized solids with scanning electron microscopy, although there was no clear evidence that either surface-bound or mineralized Fe(II) strongly affected Hg speciation. Examination of interrelated processes involving S(-II) and Fe(III) revealed new modes of Hg solubilization previously not considered in Hg reactivity models.     

Tree-Ring δD as an Indicator of Asian Monsoon Intensity

Oxygen and hydrogen isotopic compositions of meteoric water are known to correlate with surface air temperature, except in tropical areas. This relationship has been described using a number of terms corresponding to specific observations, such as latitude, altitude and seasonal effects. However, these temperature effects do not seem to apply to precipitation in monsoonal areas of Asia. Questions have been raised as to whether the isotopic composition of meteoric water can be used to reconstruct paleomonsoon intensity. Tree rings of two modern spruce trees (Picea meyeri) and a 10,000-yr-old timber (Picea jezoensis) were analyzed for hydrogen isotopic composition. On average, the older tree is depleted in deuterium by 45‰ compared to the modern trees. We attribute this isotopic depletion to the strength of summer monsoons, which were more intense in the early Holocene than at present. Although this study is not definitive, it suggests that paleomonsoon intensity can be reconstructed by direct or proxy methods that yield the oxygen or hydrogen isotopic composition of meteoric water.