Pole-to-pole moisture conditions for the IGY

Summary A study of the mean atmospheric humidity conditions on a planetary scale during the IGY covering the calendar year 1958 is presented. The fields of mean precipitable water content and of the zonal and meridional transports of water vapor are analyzed for the entire globe. Zonally averaged values of the various quantities at several levels are presented in tabular form and compared whenever possible with previous results or indirectly are analyzed on the basis of information obtained from different sources. The structure of these fields is studied and the corresponding implications for the general circulations of the atmosphere are discussed. Finally the zonal water balance for all the globe is discussed and its implications analyzed.     

Stratigraphic and geochemical study of the organic-rich black shales in the Tarcău Nappe of the Moldavidian Domain (Carpathian Chain,Romania)

An integrated stratigraphic analysis has been made of the Tarcău Nappe (Moldavidian Domain, Eastern Romanian Carpathians), coupled with a geochemical study of organic-rich beds. Two Main Sequence Boundaries (Early Oligocene and near to the Oligocene–Aquitanian boundary, respectively) divide the sedimentary record into three depositional sequences. The sedimentation occurred in the central area of a basin supplied by different and opposite sources. The high amount of siliciclastics at the beginning of the Miocene marks the activation of the “foredeep stage”. The successions studied are younger than previously thought and they more accurately date the deformation of the different Miocene phases affecting the Moldavidian Basin. The intervals with black shales identified are related to two main separate anoxic episodes with an age not older than Late Rupelian and not before Late Chattian. The most important organic-rich beds correspond to the Lower Menilites, Bituminous Marls and Lower Dysodilic Shales Members (Interval 2). These constitute a good potential source rock for petroleum, with homogeneous Type II oil-prone organic matter, highly lipidic and thermally immature. The deposition of black shales has been interpreted as occurring within a deep, periodically isolated and tectonically controlled basin.     

Euro-Cordex Regional Projection Models: What Kind of Agreement for Europe?

Mathematical Geosciences - EURO-CORDEX is an international initiative which provides regional climate projections based on multiple dynamical and empirical–statistical downscaling models. The...     

Palaeokarst and rauhwacke development,mountain uplift and subaerial sliding of tectonic sheets (northern Sierra de los Filabres,Betic Cordilleras,Spain)

The rauhwackes near Serón in the northern Sierra de los Filabres (S Spain), previously considered as true tectonic breccias, are reinterpreted on the basis of sedimentological, geomorphological and geometrical evidence as subaerial or nearly subaerial sedimentary deposits. Channel fills, parallel lamination, cross-lamination, graded bedding, sedimentary clastic dykes and other sedimentary structures and features occur in the rauhwacke body. These sedimentary rocks correspond to continental deposits of alluvial and karstic origin deposited over a karstified erosional surface of Nevado–Filabride marbles. Although no fossils have been found in the rauhwackes, a Tortonian age for these rocks is suggested on the basis of structural arguments and lithostratigraphic data from the nearby Almanzora basin. The rauhwackes were buried by slabs of Alpujarride rocks that gravitationally slid over them during the uplifting of the Sierra de los Filabres.     

Resilience and brittleness in the ALERTA RIO system: a field study about the decision-making of forecasters

Natural disasters, particularly those triggered by heavy rainfall, may cause major damage and death. However, if an accurate early warning is issued, the damage can be mitigated. In Latin America and Brazil, characteristics of socioeconomic development often lead to a disorderly growth of cities and, consequently, occupation and irregular construction in risk areas. Therefore, forecasts of heavy rainfall, as well as preventative and mitigatory actions based on meteorological data/alerts, are essential to saving lives and minimizing material loss. An event that would have benefited from such actions is that which occurred in the mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro in January 2011, when over 800 people lost their lives. This work describes the first research initiative on resilience engineering domain in systems to forecast heavy rains in Rio de Janeiro. The results indicate important sources of brittleness in the system that supports the work of meteorologists, mainly related to the technical and organizational framework, and suggests that the main source of resilience in dealing with critical situations is the tacit knowledge of experts.     

On the inclusion of ground-based gravity measurements to the calibration process of a global rainfall-discharge reservoir model: case of the Durzon karst system (Larzac, southern France)

This work examines the relevance of the inclusion of ground-based gravity data in the calibration process of a global rainfall-discharge reservoir model. The analysis is performed for the Durzon karst system (Larzac, France). The first part of the study focuses on the hydrological interpretation of the ground-based gravity measurements. The second part of the study investigates further the information content of the gravity data with respect to water storage dynamics modelling. The gravity-derived information is found unable to either reduce equifinality of the single-objective, discharge-based model calibration process or enhance model performance through assimilation.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Scombroclupea occidentalis</Emphasis> sp. nov. (Clupeiformes,Teleostei) from the Cenomanian (Cretaceous) Plattenkalk deposits of NE Mexico

A new species of the clupeid genus Scombroclupea is described from the Upper Cretaceous (Cenomanian) Plattenkalk locality “Loma la Mula” in Coahuila, northeastern Mexico. The material provides new osteological data for the genus, which clarify its systematic position. The Mexican Scombroclupea points to an occurrence of the genus in the western Tethys and indicates a vicariant event between S. macrophthalma from Lebanon and Croatia and the new species described herein. The analysis of the functional morphology of Scombroclupea supports the reconstruction of an oscillatory locomotion mode in this genus.     

Organisation hydrochimique,biologique et sédimentologique d’un lac intracontinental à peuplements lagunaires : la Birket Karoun (Fayoum,Egypte)

Résumé

La Birket Karoun a été étudiée d’un point de vue biogéologique sur une période de 12 mois. Les données ainsi obtenues, ajoutées à celles de la littérature disponible, permettent de présenter les caractéristiques biogéologiques essentielles de ce bassin original.

Le lac n’est alimenté actuellement que par des eaux continentales issues du système nilotique ce qui entraîne des propriétés hydrochimiques assez différentes des corps d’eau paraliques influencés par la mer. Cependant, les caractéristiques hydrologiques, biologiques et sédimen-taires de la Birket Karoun la classent parmi les écosystèmes de type lagunaire. Il est même possible d’y reconnaître une organisation biogéologique zonale très semblable à celle des lagunes, la partie la plus « marine » (ou la moins confinée) se situant à l’opposé de la zone des apports d’eau douce. Une connexion entre le lac et la mer, actuelle ou passée, étant à peu près exclues, il faut admettre que les eaux continentales concentrées peuvent présenter, dans certains cas, des caractéristiques chimiques et biochimiques presque marines vis-à-vis des êtres vivants.

Dans cette optique, la Birket Karoun apparaît comme un modèle actuel susceptible de fournir une alternative à l’hypothèse d’une « Mer Saharienne » pour rendre compte de l’existence des lacs sahariens pleistocènes à faunes fossiles lagunaires.     

The last deglaciation in the Picos de Europa National Park (Cantabrian Mountains,northern Spain)

A sedimentological and geochemical study of the Lago Enol sequence (Cantabrian Mountains, northern Spain), together with detailed geomorphological mapping, provides a first record of glacier evolution and climate change over the last 40 ka in the Picos de Europa National Park. The Enol glacier retreated from its maximum extent prior to 40 ka BP as demonstrated by the onset of proglacial lacustrine sedimentation in two glaciated depressions: the Comella hollow to the north (before 40 ka BP) and the Lago Enol (before 38 ka BP). These results support previous evidence that the maximum extent of southern European glaciers occurred earlier than in northern Europe. Alternation of homogeneous and laminated proglacial sediments during the glacier retreat illustrate a dynamic glacial evolution during the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 (40–26 ka BP). A slight warming is detected at 26 ka ago with the change from proglacial sediments (in a lake located in contact to the glacier) to glaciolacustrine sedimentation (in a non‐contact or distal lake). Finally, the onset of organic‐rich sediments took place at 18 ka ago. This last transition occurred in two phases, similarly to the North Atlantic Last Termination, suggesting a link between North Atlantic Deep Water formation oscillations and palaeohydrological variability in the Cantabrian Mountains. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.