Fluid composition and evolution in coesite-bearing rocks (Dora-Maira massif,Western Alps): implications for element recycling during subduction

Fluid inclusions and F, Cl concentration of hydrous minerals were analysed in the coesite-pyrope quartzite, the interlayered jadeite quartzite and their country-rock gneiss from the Dora-Maira massif using a combination of microthermometry, Raman spectrometry, synchrotron X-ray microfiuorescence and electron microprobe analysis. Three populations of fluid inclusions were recognized texturally and can be related to distinct metamorphic stages. A low-salinity aqueous fluid occurs in the retrogressed country gneiss and as late secondary inclusions in jadeite quartzite and chloritized pyrope. An earlier secondary population is found in matrix quartz of the jadeite- and pyro-pe-quartzites. This population can be related to the early decompression and so to incipient breakdown of garnet into phlogopite-bearing assemblages. The inclusion fluid is highly saline (up to 84 wt% equivalent NaCl) and contains Na, Ca, Fe, Cu and Zn as major cations. In pyrope quartzite, additional K was found in these brines, which locally coexist with CO₂-rich inclusions. The oldest fluid inclusions are preserved in kyanite grains included in fresh pyrope and in pyrope itself. In pyrope, all inclusions have decrepitated and contain magnesite, an Mg-phosphate, sheet-silicate(s), a chloride and an opaque phase, with no fluid preser ved. In contrast, the kyanite inclusions in pyrope preserve primary H₂O-CO₂ low-salinity fluid inclusions, probably owing to the low compressibility of the kyanite inclusions and host garnet. In spite of in-situ re-equilibration, these inclusions can be interpreted as relics of the dehydration fluid that attended pyrope growth. These correlations between textural and chemical fluid inclusion data and metamorphic stages are consistent with the fluid composition calculated from the halogen content of different generations of phlogopite and biotite. The preservation of different fluid compositions, both in time and space, is evidence for local control and possibly origin of the fluids, in agreement with isotopic data. These results, in particular the absence of CO₂ in the jadeite quartzite, are best interpreted in terms of a fluid-melt system evolution. With increasing metamorphism, partitioning of H₂O, Na, Ca, Fe and heavy metals into melt (jadeite quartzite) and Mg, Na/K, F, CO₂ and P(?) into a residual aqueous fluid can account for depletion in Na, Ca and Fe of the pyrope quartzite. During the retrograde path, a _{H 2 O} rose as melt crystallized, generating the two populations of hypersaline and water-rich fluids that were highly reactive to pyrope. The process of fluid-melt interaction envisioned here coupled with models of melt extraction in subduction zones provides an attractive opportunity for the instantaneous ( < 1 Ma) and selective transport of elements between a downgoing slab and the overlying mantle wedge.     

Luminescence dating of ice‐marginal deposits in northern Germany: evidence for repeated glaciations during the Middle Pleistocene (MIS 12 to MIS 6)

The exact number, extent and chronology of the Middle Pleistocene Elsterian and Saalian glaciations in northern Central Europe are still controversial. This study presents new luminescence data from Middle Pleistocene ice‐marginal deposits in northern Germany, giving evidence for repeated glaciations during the Middle Pleistocene (MIS 12 to MIS 6). The study area is located in the Leine valley south of the North German Lowlands. The data set includes digital elevation models, high‐resolution shear wave seismic profiles, outcrop and borehole data integrated into a 3D subsurface model to reconstruct the bedrock relief surface. For numerical age determination, we performed luminescence dating on 12 ice‐marginal and two fluvial samples. Luminescence ages of ice‐marginal deposits point to at least two ice advances during MIS 12 and MIS 10 with ages ranging from 461±34 to 421±25 ka and from 376±27 to 337±21 ka. The bedrock relief model and different generations of striations indicate that the older ice advance came from the north and the younger one from the northeast. During rapid ice‐margin retreat, subglacial overdeepenings were filled with glaciolacustrine deposits, partly rich in re‐worked Tertiary lignite and amber. During MIS 8 and MIS 6, the study area may have been affected by two ice advances. Luminescence ages of glaciolacustrine delta deposits point to a deposition during MIS 8 or early MIS 6, and late MIS 6 (250±20 to 161±10 ka). The maximum extent of both the Elsterian (MIS 12 and MIS 10) and Saalian glaciations (MIS 8? and MIS 6) approximately reached the same position in the Leine valley and was probably controlled by the formation of deep proglacial lakes in front of the ice sheets, preventing a further southward advance.     

The complex X-ray spectrum of the isolated neutron star RBS1223

We present a first analysis of a deep X-ray spectrum of the isolated neutron star RBS1223 obtained with XMM-Newton. Spectral data from four new monitoring observations in 2005/2006 were combined with archival observations obtained in 2003 and 2004 to form a spin-phase averaged spectrum containing 290 000 EPIC-pn photons. This spectrum shows higher complexity than its predecessors, and can be parameterised with two Gaussian absorption lines superimposed on a blackbody. The line centers, E ₂≃2E ₁, could be regarded as supporting the cyclotron interpretation of the absorption features in a field B∼4×10¹³ G. The flux ratio of those lines does not support this interpretation. Hence, either feature might be of truly atomic origin.      

WASP-1b and WASP-2b: two new transiting exoplanets detected with SuperWASP and SOPHIE

We have detected low-amplitude radial-velocity variations in two stars, USNO-B1.0 1219–0005465 (GSC  02265–00107 = WASP–1  ) and USNO-B1.0 0964–0543604 (GSC  00522–01199 = WASP–2  ). Both stars were identified as being likely host stars of transiting exoplanets in the 2004 SuperWASP wide-field transit survey. Using the newly commissioned radial-velocity spectrograph SOPHIE at the Observatoire de Haute-Provence, we found that both objects exhibit reflex orbital radial-velocity variations with amplitudes characteristic of planetary-mass companions and in-phase with the photometric orbits. Line-bisector studies rule out faint blended binaries as the cause of either the radial-velocity variations or the transits. We perform preliminary spectral analyses of the host stars, which together with their radial-velocity variations and fits to the transit light curves yield estimates of the planetary masses and radii. WASP-1b and WASP-2b have orbital periods of 2.52 and 2.15 d, respectively. Given mass estimates for their F7V and K1V primaries, we derive planet masses 0.80–0.98 and 0.81–0.95 times that of Jupiter, respectively. WASP-1b appears to have an inflated radius of at least 1.33 R _Jup, whereas WASP-2b has a radius in the range 0.65–1.26 R _Jup.     

A rainfall‐runoff model parameterized from GIS and runoff data

A guiding principle in hydrological modelling should be to keep the number of calibration parameters to a minimum. A reduced number of parameters to be calibrated, while maintaining the accuracy and detail required by modern hydrological models, will reduce parameter and model structure uncertainty and improve model diagnostics. In this study, the dynamics of runoff are derived from the distribution of distances from points in the catchments to the nearest stream. This distribution is unique for each catchment and can be determined from a geographical information system. The distribution of distances, will, when a celerity of (subsurface) flow is introduced, provide a distribution of travel times, or a unit hydrograph (UH). For spatially varying levels of saturation deficit, we have different celerities and, hence, different UHs. Runoff is derived from the superposition of the different UHs. This study shows how celerities can be estimated if we assume that recession events represent the combined UHs for different levels of saturation deficit. A new soil moisture routine which estimates saturated and unsaturated volumes of subsurface water and with only one parameter to calibrate is included in the new model. The performance of the new model is compared with that of the Swedish HBV model and is found to perform equally well for eight Norwegian catchments although the number of parameters to be calibrated in the module concerning soil moisture and runoff dynamics is reduced from seven in the HBV model to one in the new model. It is also shown that the new model has a more realistic representation of the subsurface hydrology. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High-pressure behaviour along the jadeite NaAlSi2O6–aegirine NaFeSi2O6 solid solution up to 10 GPa

The volume variation as a function of pressure along the jadeite–aegirine solid solution was determined at room temperature up to pressures between 6.5 and 9.7 GPa by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The unit-cell volumes collected at room pressure for the different compositions indicate a slight deviation from linearity along the join. The pressure–volume data have been fitted using a third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state (BM3-EoS). The bulk modulus, K _T0, varies from 134.0(7) GPa for pure jadeite to 116.1(5) GPa for pure aegirine. Its evolution with composition along the join is not linear and can be described by the following second order polynomial:

Glacial stratigraphy of East and Central Jutland

Glaciostratigraphic investigations at one key locality (Haldum), 9 major and about 160 minor localities in East and Central Jutland, Denmark, together with laboratory work, have led to the establishment of a stratigraphy consisting of 10 till units, usually separated by meltwater deposits. The stratigraphy is in some degree supported by thermoluminescence datings. The complete sequence includes one till unit with associated meltwater deposits of Menapian age, three till units with intercalated meltwater deposits of Elsterian age, marine sediments deposited during the Holsteininan, and three till units with intercalated of Elsterian age, marine sediments deposited during the Holsteinian, and three till units with intercalated glaciofluvial sedimants of Saalian age. Eemian deposits are present above this level, and the whole sequence is capped by till and meltwater deposits related to three glacial advances during the Weichselian.     

Thermal evolution of an extensional detachment as constrained by organic metamorphic data and thermal modeling: Graz Paleozoic Nappe Complex (Eastern Alps)

Following Early Cretaceous nappe stacking, the Eastern Alps were affected by late-orogenic extension during the Late Cretaceous. In the eastern segment of this range, a Late Cretaceous detachment separates a very low- to low-grade metamorphic cover (Graz Paleozoic Nappe Complex, GPNC) above a low- to high-grade metamorphic basement. Synchronously, the Kainach Gosau Basin (KGB) collapsed and subsided on top of the section.Metamorphism of organic material within this section has been investigated using vitrinite reflectance data and Raman spectra of extracted carbonaceous material. In the southern part of the GPNC, vitrinite reflectance indicates a decrease in organic maturity towards the stratigraphic youngest unit. The remaining part of the GPNC is characterized by an aureole of elevated vitrinite reflectance values and Raman R2 ratios that parallels the margins of the GPNC. Vitrinite reflectance in the KGB shows a steep coalification gradient and increases significantly towards the western basin margin. The observed stratigraphic trend in the southern GPNC is a result of deep Paleozoic to Early Cretaceous burial. This maturity pattern was overprinted along the margins by advective heat and convective fluids during Late Cretaceous to Paleogene exhumation of basement rocks.During shearing, the fault zone was heated up to ca. 500 °C. This overprint is explained by a two-dimensional thermal model with a ramp-flat fault geometry and a slip rate of 1 to 1.5 cm/year during 5 Ma fault movement. The collapse basin above the detachment subsided in a thermal regime which was characterized by relaxing isotherms.     

Diversity in volunteered geographic information: comparing OpenStreetMap and Wikimapia in Jerusalem

While the term “volunteered geographic information” (VGI) has become a buzzword in debates on the geoweb, online cartography and digital geoinformation, the scope and reach of VGI remains underexplored. Drawing on literature on social implications of VGI, this article, firstly, explores differences between VGI initiatives at the example of a comparative case study on social biases within data of OSM and Wikimapia in the fragmented social setting of Jerusalem, Israel. The results of this analysis turn out to be highly contradictive between both projects, which challenges widely accepted assumptions on the imprint of social inequalities and digital divides on VGI. This observation guides, secondly, a discussion of diversity within the category of VGI. Arguing that mapping communities, data formats and knowledge types behind VGI are extremely dissimilar, the paper proceeds by questioning the consistency and utility of VGI as a category. Seeking for a more comprehensive typology of VGI, Edney’s notion of cartographic modes will be presented as an approach towards a more contextualized understanding of VGI projects by embracing their underlying cultural, social and technical relations. Consequently, the paper suggests empirical research on the cartographic modes of a broad series of VGI projects through qualitative and quantitative methods alike.