Past major tsunamis and the level of tsunami risk on the Aitape coast of Papua New Guinea

Natural Hazards - This paper reports the results of an investigation into past major tsunamis on the Aitape coast of Papua New Guinea. The investigation was mounted to gather information to help...     

Syn-eruptive chaotic breccia on Kos, Greece, associated with an energetic pyroclastic flow

The climax of the Kos Plateau Tuff (KPT) eruption (eastern Aegean, Greece) generated a highly energetic, coarse-grained, lithic-rich, pyroclastic flow. In most places on Kos, the deposit from this event is an ignimbrite (ignimbrite El) that comprises a basal, coarse-grained, lithic breccia and overlying pumiceous part, above a planar, strongly erosional lower contact. However, along the northern coast of central Kos, "normal" ignimbrite El overlies a hummocky, 6-m-thick layer of chaotic breccia comprising mingled-to-pervasively mixed ignimbrite El and unconsolidated sediment. The surface morphology of the chaotic breccia and its internal texture resemble those of a debris-avalanche deposit, but the breccia is neither proximal nor downcurrent of steep topography. The lower part of the chaotic breccia comprises distinct domains of unconsolidated sediment or lower KPT units that are deformed and/or mingled with pumiceous ignimbrite. The upper part is dominated by a matrix of mingled-to-pervasively mixed ignimbrite and sediment that contains sediment domains as large as 2-10 m in diameter. Such large intact allochthonous domains are best preserved at the top of the chaotic breccia and form the hummocks. The chaotic breccia formed synchronously with the passage of a highly energetic pyroclastic flow where it traversed wet, unconsolidated sediment. Shear-induced liquification, together with possible ground shaking associated with the eruption, probably caused failure. Part of the unconsolidated substrate and basal part of ignimbrite El were dislodged and resedimented a short distance (tens to hundreds of metres) downcurrent. The lower part records deformation and disintegration of the substrate induced by the overriding, shearing flow. Mingling and deformation of the poorly consolidated material occurred as a result of within-flow lateral shear. Attenuated worm burrows within the sediment domains, and pinch-and-swell and flame structures within the mingled domains, preserve evidence of shear in the lower part. The upper part was transported downcurrent above a zone of shear failure. Internal heterogeneities in physical properties resulted in variable strain rates causing some domains to be pervasively mixed while others remained intact. Intact large unconsolidated domains at the top were transported mostly above the zone of shearing.     

What it takes to make a planet

What lay behind the decision to reclassify Pluto as a "dwarf planet" at August's IAU General Assembly in Prague?     

Eyewitness Accounts of the Impact of the 1998 Aitape Tsunami, and of Other Tsunamis in Living Memory, in the Region from Jayapura, Indonesia, to Vanimo, Papua New Guinea

Field investigations in 1999 confirmed that the tsunami that struck the Aitape coast of Papua New Guinea on 17 July, 1998 caused damage at points as far as 230 km to the west-northwest, particularly at locations where the coast is indented. Eyewitnesses saw the sea withdraw (in most cases), then surge to levels around 2 m higher than normal in a series of three waves. In some cases the time of arrival of the waves is known approximately by reference to the onset of darkness and to felt earthquakes. Seiche waves followed in some bays, notably in Yos Sudarso Bay, Indonesia, where waves persisted for 3–5 days. Damage was caused by the backwash from the waves. Bodies presumed to be those of Aitape victims were seen floating at sea off Jayapura five days after the tsunami. We record the recollections of people in the Yos Sudarso Bay area who experienced a number of tsunamis in the past 60 years; people that we interviewed on the Papua New Guinea side of the border recollected few or none.     

Infrared observations of gravitational lensing in Abell 2219 with CIRSI

We present the first detection of a gravitational depletion signal at near-infrared wavelengths, based on deep panoramic images of the cluster Abell 2219 ( z =0.22) taken with the Cambridge Infrared Survey Instrument (CIRSI) at the prime focus of the 4.2-m William Herschel Telescope. Infrared studies of gravitational depletion offer a number of advantages over similar techniques applied at optical wavelengths, and can provide reliable total masses for intermediate-redshift clusters. Using the maximum-likelihood technique developed by Schneider, King & Erben, we detect the gravitational depletion at the 3 confidence level. By modelling the mass distribution as a singular isothermal sphere and ignoring the uncertainty in the unlensed number counts, we find an Einstein radius of (66 per cent confidence limit). This corresponds to a projected velocity dispersion of _v 800 km s¹, in agreement with constraints from strongly lensed features. For a Navarro, Frenk & White mass model, the radial dependence observed indicates a best-fitting halo scalelength of 125 h ¹ kpc. We investigate the uncertainties arising from the observed fluctuations in the unlensed number counts, and show that clustering is the dominant source of error. We extend the maximum-likelihood method to include the effect of incompleteness, and discuss the prospects of further systematic studies of lensing in the near-infrared band.     

Ecophysiological differences between vesicomyid species and metabolic capabilities of their symbionts influence distribution patterns of the deep‐sea clams

This study provides an analysis of vesicomyid bivalve–symbiont community distribution across cold seep and hydrothermal vent areas in the Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California, Mexico). Using a combination of morphological and molecular approaches including fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH), and electronic microscopy observations, vesicomyid clam species and their associated symbionts were characterized and results were analyzed in light of geochemical conditions and other on‐site observations. A greater diversity of vesicomyids was found at cold seep areas, where three different species were present (Phreagena soyoae [syn. kilmeri], Archivesica gigas, and Calyptogena pacifica). In contrast, A. gigas was the only species sampled across the hydrothermal vent area. The same haplotype of A. gigas was found in both hydrothermal vent and cold seep areas, highlighting possible contemporary exchanges among neighboring vents and seeps. In either ecosystem, molecular characterization of the symbionts confirmed the specificity between symbionts and hosts and supported the hypothesis of a predominantly vertical transmission. In addition, patterns of clams could reflect potential niche preferences for each species. The occurrence of numerous traces of vesicomyid movements on sediments in the sites colonized by A. gigas seemed to indicate that this species might have a better ability to move. Furthermore, variation in gill sulfur content could reveal a higher plasticity and sulfur storage capacity in A. gigas. Thus, the distribution of vesicomyid species across the chemosynthetic areas of the Guaymas Basin could be explained by differences in biological traits of the vesicomyid species that would allow A. gigas to more easily exploit transient and punctual sources of available sulfide than P. soyoae.     

Partially melted lithic megablocks in the Yardea Dacite, Gawler Range Volcanics, Australia: implications for eruption and emplacement mechanisms

 Lithic megablocks ranging from <1 to 50 m in diameter occur in the Yardea Dacite, a widespread (12,000 km²), thick (>200 m) felsic volcanic unit in the Mesoproterozoic Gawler Range Volcanic Province (GRV) of South Australia. Throughout its vast extent, the Yardea Dacite shows typical lava-like features, in that it is massive, columnar jointed and evenly porphyritic with 30–40% crystals in a spherulitic and granophyric groundmass. In addition, flow banding is present at many locations. The megablocks are abundant at two sites 50 km apart, but isolated megablocks and smaller (<6 cm) lithic clasts are also scattered throughout the unit. At both sites the megablocks are matrix supported, non-graded, randomly oriented and show no evidence of being confined to a particular stratigraphic level in the dacite. The most abundant and largest megablocks are granitoids derived from older basement and from early-crystallised plutons of the Hiltaba Suite, which is broadly coeval and comagmatic with the GRV. The granitoid megablocks have been partially melted, most likely prior to eruption when resident in the thermal aureole of the Yardea Dacite magma chamber. The lithic megablock occurrences are unlike coarse pyroclastic breccias but are similar in distribution and abundance to xenoliths in lavas, consistent with the lava-like character of the host dacite. Using reasonable estimates of megablock density, magma density and magma viscosity, we show that the rise rate of the dacitic magma exceeded the settling velocity of the megablocks, implying that they could have been entrained and erupted effusively. All but the largest and least-melted megablocks would have remained suspended or else settled very slowly in the dacitic lava during outflow. The rapid rate of magma withdrawal required to produce such an extensive felsic sheet could have also triggered disintegration of the thermally stressed wallrock surrounding the magma chamber, dislodging megablocks that were later entrained and effusively erupted. Received: 11 November 1998 / Accepted: 18 April 1999     

Averaging on the motion of a fast revolving body. Application to the stability study of a planetary system

Exploring the global dynamics of a planetary system involves computing integrations for an entire subset of its parameter space. This becomes time-consuming in presence of a planet close to the central star, and in practice this planet will be very often omitted. We derive for this problem an averaged Hamiltonian and the associated equations of motion that allow us to include the average interaction of the fast planet. We demonstrate the application of these equations in the case of the μ Arae system where the ratio of the two fastest periods exceeds 30. In this case, the effect of the inner planet is limited because the planet’s mass is one order of magnitude below the other planetary masses. When the inner planet is massive, considering its averaged interaction with the rest of the system becomes even more crucial.     

Investigation into the petrogenesis of Apollo 14 high-Al basaltic melts through crystal stratigraphy of plagioclase

The petrogenesis of Apollo 14 high-Al basaltic melts was studied using crystal stratigraphy, which involves textural (crystal size distributions — CSDs) and chemical analyses (electron microprobe and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry). The samples studied here include pristine basalt 14072 and basaltic clasts from breccia 14321, and impact-generated crystalline samples 14073, 14276 and 14310. Plagioclase was the focus of this study because of its relatively high modal abundances and because it was on the liquidus for much of the melt cooling histories. Plagioclase crystals were analyzed (core-to-rim compositions where possible) to test and refine petrogenetic models based upon whole-rock compositions (Groups A, B, and C designations) and to investigate basalt 14072 and impact-melt crystallization. Textural studies have shown that each basalt group has distinctive plagioclase CSDs, which are in turn distinctive from those of the impact melts. Evolution of the individual basaltic melts was studied by comparing the equilibrium-melt compositions (calculated from plagioclase compositions using relevant partition coefficients) to fractional crystallization (FC) and assimilation and fractional crystallization (AFC) models. Petrogenetic modeling of trace elements in Group A basalts revealed that petrogenesis continued beyond 40% total crystallization required to model whole-rock compositions, and that there were open-system processes that affected the magma during plagioclase crystallization. Petrogenetic modeling of pristine high-Al basalts (14072 and Groups A, B and C) using trace elements shows that the equilibrium-melt compositions do not fall on a single AFC or FC trajectory. This is consistent with fluctuating degrees of assimilation (i.e., variable r-values) and/or variable assimilant compositions during petrogenesis. Petrogenetic modeling reveals that the impact melts experienced only closed-system fractional crystallization. This work demonstrates the importance of crystal stratigraphy in revealing the intricacies of lunar basalt petrogenesis.     

Improving the Representation of the Nocturnal Near-Neutral Surface Layer in the Urban Environment with a Mesoscale Atmospheric Model

A new approach to improve the representation of surface processes in the Global Environmental Multiscale (GEM) atmospheric model associated with the exchanges between the urban canopy and the atmosphere is presented. Effects of the urban canopy on the evolution of surface-layer wind, temperature, moisture, and turbulence are directly parametrized in order to allow realistic interactions between the canopy elements (i.e., roofs, roads, and walls) and the atmosphere at GEM’s multiple vertical levels that are positioned inside the canopy. Surface energy budgets as implemented in the Town Energy Balance (TEB) scheme have been used to determine temperatures of the urban canopy elements for the proposed multilayer scheme. Performance of the multilayer scheme is compared against standard implementations of the TEB scheme for one nighttime intensive observation period of the Joint Urban 2003 experiment held in Oklahoma City, USA. Although the new approach is found to have a negligible impact on urban surface-layer wind profiles, it improves the prediction of near-neutral nocturnal profiles of potential temperature close to the surface. The urban heat island effect is simulated with a better accuracy by the multilayer approach. The horizontal temperature gradient across the central business district of the city along the direction of flow is also reasonably well captured by the proposed scheme.