Timing and pace of ice-sheet withdrawal across the marine–terrestrial transition west of Ireland during the last glaciation

Understanding the pace and drivers of marine-based ice-sheet retreat relies upon the integration of numerical ice-sheet models with observations from contemporary polar ice sheets and well-constrained palaeo-glaciological reconstructions. This paper provides a reconstruction of the retreat of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) from the Atlantic shelf west of Ireland during and following the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). It uses marine-geophysical data and sediment cores dated by radiocarbon, combined with terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide and optically stimulated luminescence dating of onshore ice-marginal landforms, to reconstruct the timing and rate of ice-sheet retreat from the continental shelf and across the adjoining coastline of Ireland, thus including the switch from a marine- to a terrestrially-based ice-sheet margin. Seafloor bathymetric data in the form of moraines and grounding-zone wedges on the continental shelf record an extensive ice sheet west of Ireland during the LGM which advanced to the outer shelf. This interpretation is supported by the presence of dated subglacial tills and overridden glacimarine sediments from across the Porcupine Bank, a westwards extension of the Irish continental shelf. The ice sheet was grounded on the outer shelf at ~26.8 ka cal bp with initial retreat underway by 25.9 ka cal bp. Retreat was not a continuous process but was punctuated by marginal oscillations until ~24.3 ka cal bp. The ice sheet thereafter retreated to the mid-shelf where it formed a large grounding-zone complex at ~23.7 ka cal bp. This retreat occurred in a glacimarine environment. The Aran Islands on the inner continental shelf were ice-free by ~19.5 ka bp and the ice sheet had become largely terrestrially based by 17.3 ka bp. This suggests that the Aran Islands acted to stabilize and slow overall ice-sheet retreat once the BIIS margin had reached the inner shelf. Our results constrain the timing of initial retreat of the BIIS from the outer shelf west of Ireland to the period of minimum global eustatic sea level. Initial retreat was driven, at least in part, by glacio-isostatically induced, high relative sea level. Net rates of ice-sheet retreat across the shelf were slow (62–19 m a⁻¹) and reduced (8 m a⁻¹) as the ice sheet vacated the inner shelf and moved onshore. A picture therefore emerges of an extensive BIIS on the Atlantic shelf west of Ireland, in which early, oscillatory retreat was followed by slow episodic retreat which decelerated further as the ice margin became terrestrially based. More broadly, this demonstrates the importance of localized controls, in particular bed topography, on modulating the retreat of marine-based sectors of ice sheets.     

Occurrence and seasonal variations of algal toxins in water, phytoplankton and shellfish from North Stradbroke Island, Queensland, Australia

A number of marine microalgae are known to produce toxins that can accumulate in shellfish and when eaten, lead to toxic and potentially fatal reactions in humans. This paper reports on the occurrence and seasonal variations of algal toxins in the waters, phytoplankton and shellfish of Southeast Queensland, Australia. These algal toxins include okadaic acid (OA), domoic acid (DA), gymnodimine (GD), pectenotoxin-2 (PTX-2) and pectenotoxin-2-seco acid (PTX-2-SA), which were detected in the sampled shellfish and phytoplankton, via HPLC-MS/MS. Dissolved OA, PTX-2 and GD were also detected in the samples collected from the water column. This was the first occasion that DA and GD have been reported in shellfish, phytoplankton and the water column in Queensland waters. Phytoplankton tows contained both the toxic Dinophysis and Pseudo-nitzschia algae species, and are suspected of being the most likely producers of the OA, PTX-2s and DA found in shellfish of this area. The number of cells, however, did not correlate with the amount of toxins present in either shellfish or phytoplankton. This indicates that toxin production by algae varies with time and the species present and that number of cells alone cannot be used as an indicator for the presence of toxins. The presence of OA and PTX-2s were more frequently seen in the summer, while DA and GD were detected throughout the year and without any obvious seasonal patterns.     

The stable isotopic composition (Cl/Cl) of dissolved chloride in rainwater

The stable isotopic composition of dissolved Cl^-${\text{Cl}}^{-}$ in rainwater was measured from a coastal and an interior location in eastern Canada. At the interior Bonner Lake, Ontario, site the δ³⁷Cl values of dissolved Cl^-${\text{Cl}}^{-}$ in precipitation ranged from −3.5‰ to −1.2‰ (SMOC) with an amount-weighted annual average of −2.3‰. At the coastal site, Bay D’Espoir, Newfoundland, δ³⁷Cl values of dissolved Cl^-${\text{Cl}}^{-}$ values ranged from −3.1‰ to 0.0‰ with an amount-weighted annual average of −1.3‰. These negative δ³⁷Cl values provide evidence that atmospheric HCl is ³⁷Cl depleted, presumably from acidification of sea-salt aerosols. Accordingly, dissolved Cl^-${\text{Cl}}^{-}$ in the headwaters of two montane rivers in Western Canada had similarly depleted δ³⁷Cl values. These results have implications to the interpretation of the isotopic compositions of dissolved Cl^-${\text{Cl}}^{-}$ in surface waters, formation fluids, and groundwaters.     

Soils and geomorphology of the chalk in south-east England

Soil mapping and soil profile studies on the Chalk of south-east England outline the distribution and origin of superficial deposits more clearly than hitherto, and do not support the widely accepted history of landscape development proposed by Wooldridge and Linton (1955). Deposits formed by weathering and periglacial disturbance of a thin cover of basal Tertiary deposits occur on all parts of the dip-slope interfluves, suggesting that the exhumed sub-Tertiary surface, somewhat lowered by dissolution of the Chalk, is much more extensive than supposed by Wooldridge and Linton. The evidence for high Plio-Pleistocene sea levels is reviewed, with particular reference to their limited effect on soils and superficial deposits and on the morphology of the dip-slope. Alternative explanations for the so-called Calabrian marine platform and cliff are considered. Emphasis is placed on periglacial processes in the later Pleistocene denudation of the Chalk, and on the protective role played by the cover of disturbed basal Tertiary sediment.     

Direction of faulting in Pacific earthquakes

Summary For the past several years the Dominion Observatory at Ottawa has been applyingByerly's method to study the direction of faulting in earthquakes, a total of 34 earthquakes having been analysed to date. For all but 3 of these earthquakes the solutions have been based on data supplied by co-operating seismologists through the medium of questionnaires.It is the conclusion of the work to date that transcurrent faulting plays a more important part in tectonic processes than is normally ascribed to it. In the area from Alaska through the British Columbia coast to Seattle only 2 out of 6 earthquakes were predominately transcurrent, but elsewhere transcurrent faulting appears to be the rule. Of 10 earthquakes from the Southwest Pacific, 1 from Japan and 6 from the Kuriles so far analysed, all exhibit transcurrent faulting, for depths of focus ranging from less than normal to 550 km. In the Aleutians 2 of the 3 earthquakes analysed, and in South America 4 of the 5, resulted from transcurrent faults. The group of South American earthquakes included one at 600 km.If subsequent work should continue to give evidence of the importance of transcurrent faulting, existing theories of the earth's failure will have to be modified. Such studies could be speeded up very much if all stations would include data on first motion in their bulletins. A strong plea is made that this should be done.

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Résumé Depuis déjà plusieurs années le Dominion Observatory emploie la méthodeByerly pour étudier la direction des dislocations causées par les trembrements de terre et 34 séismes en tout ont été analysés jusqu'à présent. Pour tous ces tremblements de terre, sauf 3, la solution s'appuie sur des données fournies par des investigateurs de séismes, qui ont collaboré en répondant à des questionnaires.A la lumière des résultats obtenus à date nous pouvons conclure que la faille transversale a joué un rôle plus important dans l'évolution tectonique qu'on ne lui en attribue normalement. Dans la région partant de l'Alaska, passant par la colombie Britannique, et allant jusqu'à Seattle, la faille transversale est prédominante dans seulement 2 des 6 tremblements de terre, cependant qu'ailleurs la faille transversale semble être de règle. Des 10 tremblements de terre survenus dans le sud de l'océan Pacifique, un au Japon et 6 aux îles Kouriles qui ont été analysés, tous demontrent une dislocation horizontale pour des profondeurs de centre variant de moins que la normale jusqu'à 550 km. Dans les Aléoutiennes 2 des 3 séismes analysés et dans l'Amérique du Sud 4 des 5, résultaient de failles transversales. Le centre d'un des tremblements de terre en Amérique du Sud se trouvait à 600 km de profondeur. Si les résultats des traterre vaux subséquents continuent d'augmenter l'importance de la faille transversale, les théories déjà existantes de l'écroulement de la terre devront être modifiées. Cette étude pourrait être sensiblement accélée si les données du mouvement premier des tremblements de terre étaient ajoutées aux Bulletins des stations séismologiques. Nous insistons fortement pour que cette mesure soit adoptéc.

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A paper read at a joint session of the Associations of Seismology, Geodesy and Volcanology of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics, Rome, September 22, 1954.Published by permission of the Deputy Minister, Department of Mines and Technical Surveys, Ottawa, Canada.     

Lahar-Triggering Mechanisms and Hazard at Ruapehu Volcano,New Zealand

Late Holocene volcanic activity at Ruapehu has been characterizedby the generation of small (<10⁵ m³) to very large (>10⁷ m³) lahars and repeated,small to medium (VEI 1-3) tephra-producing eruptions. The Onetapu Formation groupsall lahar deposits that accumulated during the last 2,000 years on the southeastern Ruapehu ring plain. The andesitic tephras are grouped within the Tufa Trig Formation and are intercalated within the laharic sequence. By correlating these two formations with new radiocarbon ages obtained on interbedded paleosols, we reconstruct a detailed volcanic history of Ruapehu for this period.Clast assemblages identified in the laharic sequences record thelithologies of synchronous tephras and rocks within the source region. These assemblages suggest a strong genetic link between the development of Crater Lake, the variation in eruptivestyles, and the production of lahars.Lahar-triggering mechanisms include: (1) flank collapse ofhydrothermally altered and unstable portions of the cone; (2) phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions favoring the generation of snow-rich slurries and hyperconcentrated stream flows; (3) suddenCrater Lake rim collapse, releasing large amounts of water inducing debris flows; and (4) eruptions that generate large volumes of tephra on snow-covered slopes, later remobilized by heavy rain.Two major lahars in the Onetapu sequence had a volume 4 × 10⁷ m³, roughly 1 to 2 orders of magnitude larger than the 1953event leading to the Tangiwai disaster (151 casualties). One of these lahars crossed over a lowinterfluve currently separating the Whangaehu River from a stream feeding the Tongariro River,sometime since peat accumulated between AD 1400 and AD 1660. A repetition of such a large-scaleevent would have devastating consequences on the infrastructure, economy and environment withinthe distal areas of the two catchments. The 1995–1996 eruptions were a timely reminder ofthe hazards posed by the volcano.     

Centrifuge modeling of load-deformation behavior of rocking shallow foundations

Shallow foundations supporting building structures might be loaded well into their nonlinear range during intense earthquake loading. The nonlinearity of the soil may act as an energy dissipation mechanism, potentially reducing shaking demands exerted on the building. This nonlinearity, however, may result in permanent deformations that also cause damage to the building. Five series of tests on a large centrifuge, including 40 models of shear wall footings, were performed to study the nonlinear load-deformation characteristics during cyclic and earthquake loading. Footing dimensions, depth of embedment, wall weight, initial static vertical factor of safety, soil density, and soil type (dry sand and saturated clay) were systematically varied. The moment capacity was not observed to degrade with cycling, but due to the deformed shape of the footing–soil interface and uplift associated with large rotations, stiffness degradation was observed. Permanent deformations beneath the footing continue to accumulate with the number of cycles of loading, though the rate of accumulation of settlement decreases as the footing embeds itself.     

Limnology of Two Antarctic Epishelf Lakes and their Potential to Record Periods of Ice Shelf Loss

George VI Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula and its northern margin marks the southern most latitudinal limit of recent ice shelf retreat. As part of a project to reconstruct the long-term (Holocene) history of George VI Ice Shelf we studied two epishelf lakes impounded by the ice shelf at Ablation Point, on the east coast of Alexander Island. These lakes, Moutonnée and Ablation, are stratified water bodies with a lower marine layer and an upper freshwater layer. To determine if their sediment records could be used to detect past changes in the presence or absence of the ice shelf it was necessary to describe their present-day limnology and sedimentology. We measured water column chemistry and sampled the water column and sediments of the lakes along vertical and horizontal transects. We analysed these samples for diatoms, stable isotopes (δ¹⁸O, δ²H, δ¹³C_DIC, δ¹³C_org), geochemistry (TOC, TN, C/N ratios) and physical sedimentology (grain-size). This was supplemented by chemical and biological reference data from the catchments. Results showed that the water columns of both lakes are nutrient limited and deficient in phytoplankton. Benthic productivity is low and decreases with depth. Comparison of water column chemistry with an earlier survey shows a net increase in the thickness of the freshwater layer in Moutonnée Lake between 1973 and 2001, which could indicate that George VI Ice Shelf has thinned during this period. However, a similar trend was not observed in Ablation Lake (5 km to the north) and an alternative explanation is that the changes are a seasonal phenomena. Data from the surface sediment transects identified a number of proxies that respond to the present day stratification of the water column including diatom species composition, stable isotopes and geochemistry, particularly in Moutonnée Lake. Collectively these data have been used to develop a conceptual model for determining past ice shelf configuration in epishelf lakes. Specifically, periods of past ice shelf loss, and the removal of the ice dam, would see the present stratified epishelf lake replaced by a marine embayment. It is suggested that this change would leave a clear signature in the lake sediment record, notably the deposition of an exclusively marine biological assemblage, increased ice rafted debris and δ¹³C_org values that are indicative of marine derived organic matter. These authors contributed equally to this work