Glendonite — Indikatoren des polarmarinen Ablagerungsmilieus

Zusammenfassung Glendonite sind Pseudomorphosen von überwiegend Calcit (in mehreren Generationen) nach Thenardit (Na₂SO₄). Die meistens sternförmigen Kristallaggregate von Walnuß- bis Faustgröße bildeten sich im unterkühlten Meereswasser (cold salinity currents) in oder auf der oberen Lage des Meeresbodens. Sie sind an marine Tonsteine gebunden und kommen in ihrem Verbreitungsgebiet in großer Zahl vor. Rezente Glendonite treten nur im Arktischen Ozean und seinen Nebenmeeren (Weißes Meer) auf. Fossile gibt es in Perm und Kreide Australiens (permisches Vereisungsgebiet) und in den jeweils hohen Breiten der Nordhalbkugel im Domerium, mittleren Jura, Valangin, Ober-Apt/Unter-Alb, Oligozän/Miozän und Pleistozän/Holozän. Für diese Zeiten ist eine erhebliche Abkühlung zu postulieren.Beim Vergleich mit den entsprechenden Schichtenfolgen Mitteleuropas fällt auf, daß in den Zeiten der Glendonit-Vorkommen der arktischen Gebiete im borealen Europa dunkle Tonsteine abgelagert wurden. In Zeiten starker Kalksedimentation (Ober-Oxford, Kimmeridge, Ober-Kreide) und arider oder subtropischer Klimate in Mitteleuropa (Tithon: Münder Mergel-Fazies und Berrias: Wealden-Fazies) fehlen Glendonite auch im hohen Norden.Alle diese Befunde verweisen auf ausgeprägte, langfristige Klimaschwankungen vom Lias ab. Zur Zeit der kälteren Phasen müssen in den hohen Breiten mit den heutigen Verhältnissen vergleichbare polare Klimate geherrscht haben.

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Glendonites are pseudomorphs of mainly calcite (in several generations) after Thenardit (Na₂SO₄). The crystal aggregates are preponderantly star shaped and range in size between walnut and fist dimensions. They were formed by cold salinity currents in the uppermost layer of the ocean floor. They are restricted to marine shales and mudstones and occur in great quantities in their area of distribution. Recent glendonites are known only from the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas (e. g. the White Sea). Fossil glendonites occur in the Permian and Cretaceous of Australia (Permian area of glaciation) and in high latitudes of the Northern hemisphere in the Domerian, middle Jurassic, Valanginian, late Aptian — early Albian, Oligocene — Miocene, and Pleistocene — Holocene. For these periods a considerable cooling has to be postulated.If the sediments of these periods are compared with the corresponding ones of central Europe it is obvious that in those periods during which glendonites were formed in high latitudes dark shales were deposited in the boreal part of Europe. In periods of high lime accumulation (Upper Oxfordian, Kimmeridgian, Upper Cretaceous) and arid or subtropical climates in central Europe (e. g. the Münder Mergel facies of the Tithonian and the Purbeck and Wealden facies of the Berriasian) glendonites are absent from the high latitudes.All these observations point to intensive and long term variations of climate from the early Jurassic on. During the cold phases, comparable polar climates must have predominated in the high latitudes as exist today.

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Résumé Les glendonites sont des pseudomorphoses, principalement de calcite (en plusieurs générations), de thénardite (Na₂SO₄). Les agrégats, le plus souvent de forme radiée, de la taille d'une noix à celle du poing, se sont formés dans de l'eau marine surrefroidie (»courants de salinité froide«) dans la couches supérieure des fonds marins ou à sa surface. Ils sont liés à des argiles marines et se présentent en grande quantité dans leur aire d'extension. Les glendonites récentes se rencontrent seulement dans l'Océan arctique et dans les mers annexes (Mer blanche). Elles existent à l'état fossile dans le Permien et le Crétacique de l'Australie (région de la glaciation permienne) et dans les hautes latitudes de l'époque de l'hémisphère nord dans le Domérien, le Jurassique moyen, le Valanginien, l'Aptien supérieur/inférieur, l'Oligocène/Miocène, et le Pleistocène/Holocène. Pour ces périodes il y a lieu de postuler un net refroidissement.Par comparaison avec les séries correspondantes de l'Europe centrale, il apparaît que des argiles foncées ont été déposées, lors des occurrences de Glendonites des régions arctique, dans l'Europe boréale. Lors de sédimentations calcaires intenses (Oxfordien supérieur, Kimméridgien, Crétacique supérieur) et dans les climats arides ou subtropicaux dans l'Europe centrale (Tithonique: facies marneux de Münder, et Berriasien: facies wealdien) les glendonites sont absentes également dans les hautes latitudes septentrionales.Toutes ces occurrences indiquent des modifications climatiques bien marquées, de longue durée à partir du Lias. Au moment des phases plus froides, il a dû régner dans les hautes latitudes un climat polaire comparable à celui de nos jours.

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Biogeochemical ocean-atmosphere transfers in the Arabian Sea

Transfers of some important biogenic atmospheric constituents, carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), molecular nitrogen (N₂), nitrous oxide (N₂O), nitrate , ammonia (NH₃), methylamines (MAs) and dimethylsulphide (DMS), across the air–sea interface are investigated using published data generated mostly during the Arabian Sea Process Study (1992–1997) of the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS). The most important contribution of the region to biogeochemical fluxes is through the production of N₂ and N₂O facilitated by an acute, mid-water deficiency of dissolved oxygen (O₂); emissions of these gases to the atmosphere from the Arabian Sea are globally significant. For the other constituents, especially CO₂, even though the surface concentrations and atmospheric fluxes exhibit extremely large variations both in space and time, arising from the unique physical forcing and associated biogeochemical environment, the overall significance in terms of their global fluxes is not much because of the relatively small area of the Arabian Sea. Distribution and air–sea exchanges of some of these constituents are likely to be greatly influenced by alterations of the subsurface O₂ field forced by human-induced eutrophication and/or modifications to the regional hydrography.     

Ethnic minorities and marginality in the Pamirian Knot: survival of Wakhi and Kirghiz in a harsh environment and global contexts

This paper challenges the thesis that mountain areas are regions of refuge. The refuge concept attributes irrelevant exchange and limited communication to isolated mountain habitats which mainly depend on production for home consumption. In contrast, it is shown that exchange relations in all walks of life have been affected not only recently but for nearly two centuries in Central Asia, although the continued importance of subsistence strategies in the agricultural sector can be observed. The Pamirian Knot provides the mountainous interface between South and Central Asia for case studies of two ethnic communities – Wakhi mountain farmers and Kirghiz pastoralists – in order to exemplify socio-political developments in similar mountain environments. Examples are presented from Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and the People's Republic of China. The territories have been separated since the late nineteenth century by international boundaries conceived as the result of the imperial 'Great Game'. Emphasis is placed on developments in the livestock sector and it is shown that adaptation to changing socio-political frameworks has affected the livelihood strategies of nomads and mountain farmers alike.     

Ti site occupancy in zircon

Ti site occupancy in zircon (ZrSiO₄) is fundamental to thermobarometry because substitution mechanisms control Ti content-temperature relations. Here we describe the results of three independent methods used to demonstrate that Ti substitutes for Si and not Zr in zircon. Zircon grains were synthesized from oxide powders held in a Na₂WO₄ flux at 1 bar and 1300 °C. Zircon grains equilibrated with rutile + cristobalite show Ti contents (1201 ppm) nearly half that of zircon grains equilibrated with srilankite ((Ti,Zr)O₂) + tetragonal zirconia (2640 ppm). The lower Ti content of zircon grains produced at silica-saturated conditions indicates that Ti substitution predominately occurs on the Si site. Moreover, the higher Ti contents of silica-saturated experiments at 1 bar (1201 ppm), relative to those at 1 GPa (457 ppm, Ferry and Watson, 2007), indicates a substantial pressure effect on Ti solubility in zircon. Measured Ti K-α edge X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) spectra of synthetic zircon grains show energies and normalized intensities akin to those seen among tetrahedrally coordinated Ti-bearing standard minerals, strongly suggesting that Ti occupies the Si site. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirm that Ti substitution is most likely to occur on the Si site and predict a Ti-O bond length of 1.797 Å (compared to an average of 2.160 Å for substitution on the Zr site), in excellent agreement with X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS) spectra of experimentally grown zircon grains which indicate a value of 1.76(1) Å. The software FEFF 8.4 was used to simulate XANES spectra from the defect structures determined by DFT for Ti substituting on both the Si and Zr sites. The predicted spectrum for Ti on the Si site reproduces all the key features of the experimental zircon spectra, whereas Ti on the Zr site is markedly different. All applied methods confirm that Ti substitutes for Si in zircon. Consequently, the Ti content of zircon at a given pressure is not only a function of temperature, but will increase with decreasing silica activity. Because elements that activate or quench cathodoluminescence (CL) in zircon are incorporated into the Zr site, a decoupling of CL from Ti contents - incorporated on the Si site in zircon is expected. This hypothesis has been verified by a systematic CL-trace element study of natural and experimental zircon.     

Late Quaternary vegetation,climate and fire dynamics inferred from the El Tiro record in the southeastern Ecuadorian Andes

In order to study the stability and dynamics of mountain rainforest and paramo ecosystems, including the biodiversity of these ecosystems, the Holocene and late Pleistocene climate and fire variability, and human impact in the southeastern Ecuadorian Andes, we present a high‐resolution pollen record from El Tiro Pass (2810 m elevation), Podocarpus National Park. Palaeoenvironmental changes, investigated by pollen, spores and charcoal analysis, inferred from a 127 cm long core spanning the last ca. 21 000 cal. yr BP, indicate that grass‐paramo was the main vegetation type at the El Tiro Pass during the late Pleistocene period. The grass‐paramo was rich in Poaceae, Plantago rigida and Plantago australis, reflecting cold and moist climatic conditions. During the early Holocene, from 11 200 to 8900 cal. yr BP, subparamo and upper mountain rainforest vegetation expanded slightly, indicating a slow warming of climatic conditions during this period. From 8900 to 3300 cal. yr BP an upper mountain rainforest developed at the study site, indicated by an increase in Hedyosmun, Podocarpaceae, Myrsine and Ilex. This suggests a warmer climate than the present day at this elevation. The modern subparamo vegetation became established since 3300 cal. yr BP at El Tiro Pass. Fires, probably anthropogenic origin, were very rare during the late Pleistocene but became frequent after 8000 cal. yr BP. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

UNFCCC before and after Paris – what's necessary for an effective climate regime?

What can reasonably be expected from the UNFCCC process and the climate conference in Paris 2015? To achieve transformative change, prevailing unsustainable routines embedded in socio-economic systems have to be translated into new and sustainable ones. This article conceptualizes the UNFCCC and the associated policy processes as a catalyst for this translation by applying a structurational regime model. This model provides an analytical distinction of rules (norms and shared meaning) and resources (economic resources as well as authoritative and allocative power) and allows us to conceptualize agency on various levels, including beyond nation states. The analysis concludes that the UNFCCC's narrow focus on emission targets, which essentially is a focus on resources, has proven ineffective. In addition, the static division of industrialized and developing countries in the Convention's annexes and the consensus-based decision-making rules have impeded ambitious climate protection. The article concludes that the UNFCCC is much better equipped to provide rules for climate protection activities and should consciously expand this feature to improve its impact.

Policy relevance

The international community is negotiating a new global climate agreement, to be adopted at the Conference of the Parties (COP 21) in December 2015 in Paris and to be applicable from 2020. This article analyses the successes and limitations the UNFCCC has had so far in combating climate change and it develops recommendations on how to enhance efforts within and beyond the framework of the Convention. From our analysis we derive two main recommendations for an effective and structurationally balanced treaty: First, multidimensional mitigation contributions going beyond emission targets could strongly improve countries’ abilities to tailor their contributions around national political discourses. Second, the UNFCCC regime should be complemented with another treaty outside of the UNFCCC framework. This ‘Alliance of the Ambitious’ would allow the pioneers of climate protection to move ahead and enjoy the benefits of cooperation. The dynamics generated through such a club approach could be fed back into the UNFCCC, leading to increased ambition by others in future commitment cycles.     

Hyperspectral boundary detection based on the Busyness Multiple Correlation Edge Detector and Alternating Vector Field Convolution snakes

Active contours, or snakes, are broadly used to detect linear features such as edges. However, they are often restricted in the delineation of regions of interest within the hyperspectral domain. In this paper, a new approach is presented, referred to as “Busyness Multiple Correlation Edge Detector”, that enables hyperspectral boundary detection using active contours such as “Alternating Vector Field Convolution” snakes. The combination of “Alternating Vector Field Convolution” snakes with the “Busyness Multiple Correlation Edge Detector” opens a broad set of applications by concurrent high convergence quality and speed. Furthermore, specific snake initialisations are tested. A series of examples are used to both demonstrate the approach and underline the benefits of the new methods.     

Niederschlagsstrukturen von Zyklonen in Nordamerika

Zusammenfassung Durch Auswertung der stündlichen Niederschlagsmessungen von 1500 Stationen in den USA werden die Ausbreitungsformen und die zeitlichen Intensitätsvariationen der Niederschläge von 32 nordamerikanischen Zyklonen während der Jahre 1949 und 1950 untersucht. Es ergibt sich, daß im Durchschnitt die Niederschlagsgebiete dieser Zyklonen ihre größere Fläche und Ergiebigkeit links von der Zugbahn des Zentrums haben. Ein geschlossener Ausläufer des Niederschlagsgebietes wird auf der linken Seite des Tiefs herumgeführt. Die Fronten und ihre Niederschläge haben keinen verbindlichen Zusammenhang mit dem eigentlichen Niederschlagsgebiet der Zyklone.Es wird der Aufbau des Zyklonenteils links von der Zugbahn des Zentrums diskutiert und zur Deutung werden für die Luftmassen in diesem Teil erhebliche Aufgleitvorgänge gefordert. Durch theoretische Betrachtungen und den Nachweis der Wahrscheinlichkeit anderer Hebungsursachen in diesem Teil der Zyklone wird diese Vorstellung unterstützt.Die Niederschlagsintensität erfährt bei Durchzug des Zyklonenkerns starke Variationen mit charakteristischen Merkmalen, die zum Teil ausgeprägte Erhaltungstendenz zeigen. Zur Deutung dieser Ergebnisse wird die Existenz von Wellenzügen innerhalb der Grenzfläche als wahrscheinlich angesehen.

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Summary By evaluating the hourly measurements of the precipitations of 1500 stations in the USA, the forms of extension and the time variations of intensity of the precipitations of 32 North American cyclones during the years 1949 and 1950 are examined. It results that on an average the precipitation areas of these cyclones have their larger surface and yield to the left of the way of the centres. A closed spur of the precipitation area is led around to the left of the low pressure. The fronts and their precipitations have no direct connection to the real precipitation area of the cyclones.The structure of the cyclone part left to the way of the centre is discussed, and for the explanation considerable upslide phenomenons are requested for the air masses in this part. By theoretic consideration and the proof of probability of other elevation moments in this part of the cyclones this conception is supported.The precipitation intensity gets, when the cyclone core passes, strong variations with characteristics partly showing a pronounced tendency of persistence. For the explanation of these results the existence of wave trains within the boundary surface of the air masses is considered to be probable.

     

On the possibility of inferring the inter-planetary sector structure from daily variations of geomagnetic ap indices

The linear Bartels ap indices, which by definition should have no average U.T. variations, show in fact two different average U.T. variations if the data is divided into two groups according to the two Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) polarities. These differences are found to be similar for all seasons and activity ranges. Correlating the ap variations of individual days to the average ap variations for days with interplanetary away and toward polarities, a simple but objective precept of calculations is given to infer the IMF sector structure with a success rate of 73% of the days for the years 1963–1973. The same method is employed to infer the IMF sector structure since 1932, and the results are compared to the sector structure inferred from polar cap magnetograms. Some known features of solar sector fields, e.g. the heliographic latitude dependence of the dominant polarity, are also found in the polarity classification based on ap variations, whereas the significant higher geomagnetic activity during intervals of toward polarity before 1963, which was found in the sector structure inferred from polar cap magnetograms, is not observed.