The thickness and structural characteristics of the crust across Tibetan plateau from active-sources seismic profiles

The Tibetan plateau as one of the youngest orogen on the Earth was considered as the result of continent-continent collision between the Eurasian and Indian plates.The thickness and structure of the crust beneath Tibetan plateau is essential to understand deformation behavior of the plateau.Active-source seismic profiling is most available geo-physical method for imaging the structure of the continental crust.The results from more than 25 active-sources seismic profiles carried out in the past twenty years ...     

Impact of pond aquaculture effluents on seagrass performance in NE Hainan,tropical China

The impact of pond aquaculture effluents on the distribution and performance of seagrasses was examined in NE Hainan, tropical China. Samples were taken along transects in three back-reef areas with different extent of aquaculture production in their hinterland. High δ¹⁵N in seagrass leaves and epiphytes (6–9‰) similar to values in pond effluents documented aquaculture as dominant nitrogen source in the back-reefs with decreasing impact with distance from shore. Seagrass species abundance, shoot density and biomass were lower and concentrations of nutrients, chlorophyll and suspended matter were higher at nearshore sites with high and moderate pond abundance than at the control site. High epiphyte loads and low δ³⁴S in seagrass leaves suggest temporal shading and sulphide poisoning of the nearshore seagrasses. Observed gradients in environmental parameters and seagrass performance indicate that the distance from the pond outlets and size of the adjacent pond agglomeration are major determinants of seagrass degradation.     

Review of Quantitative Surveys of the Length and Stability of MTBE,TBA, and Benzene Plumes in Groundwater at UST Sites

Quantitative information regarding the length and stability condition of groundwater plumes of benzene, methyl tert‐butyl ether (MTBE), and tert‐butyl alcohol (TBA) has been compiled from thousands of underground storage tank (UST) sites in the United States where gasoline fuel releases have occurred. This paper presents a review and summary of 13 published scientific surveys, of which 10 address benzene and/or MTBE plumes only, and 3 address benzene, MTBE, and TBA plumes. These data show the observed lengths of benzene and MTBE plumes to be relatively consistent among various regions and hydrogeologic settings, with median lengths at a delineation limit of 10 µg/L falling into relatively narrow ranges from 101 to 185 feet for benzene and 110 to 178 feet for MTBE. The observed statistical distributions of MTBE and benzene plumes show the two plume types to be of comparable lengths, with 90th percentile MTBE plume lengths moderately exceeding benzene plume lengths by 16% at a 10‐µg/L delineation limit (400 feet vs. 345 feet) and 25% at a 5‐µg/L delineation limit (530 feet vs. 425 feet). Stability analyses for benzene and MTBE plumes found 94 and 93% of these plumes, respectively, to be in a nonexpanding condition, and over 91% of individual monitoring wells to exhibit nonincreasing concentration trends. Three published studies addressing TBA found TBA plumes to be of comparable length to MTBE and benzene plumes, with 86% of wells in one study showing nonincreasing concentration trends.     

Multiproxy evidence of an early Holocene (8.2 kyr) climate oscillation in central Nova Scotia,Canada

An early Holocene lake sediment record from central Nova Scotia contains a minerogenic oscillation that is closely correlative with the 8.2 kyr event (ca. 8200 cal. yr BP), an event that has not been reported elsewhere in Atlantic Canada. A variety of biological and sedimentological indicators have been examined to characterise autochthonous and allochthonous changes that occurred during this time. The minerogenic upper oscillation (UO, ca. 8400 cal. yr BP) is marked by an increase in the chrysophyte:diatom ratio. Following the oscillation, the diatom community reflects a shift to more productive, less acidic conditions. The pollen record shows no major response to this short‐lived event. Lithostratigraphic analyses indicates that the UO is characterised by an increase in clastic content, magnetic susceptibility and mean sediment grain size, all indicators of changing environmental conditions, most likely the result of regional cooling. The Taylor Lake record adds to a growing body of evidence for a widespread, hemispheric climate oscillation at 8.2 kyr. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Negative effects of blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) presence in eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds in Flensborg fjord,Denmark

The effect of blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) presence in eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds was studied from June 2004 to July 2005 in Flensborg fjord, Denmark. The field experiments were conducted at two stations, one with only Z. marina (Eelgrass station) present and one where M. edulis were present in the Z. marina beds (Mixed station). Zostera marina parameters were measured (growth of leaves, shoot density, leaf length, and nutrient content) in combination with epiphyte cover and sediment parameters (sulphate reduction rates, sediment nutrient fluxes, organic content, C, N and P content) to examine possible positive and negative effects of the mussels on eelgrass performance. The fluxes of ammonium from the sediments were stimulated at all sampling dates at the Mixed station, and possibly stimulated epiphyte growth at this station. Further ¹⁵N signals in epiphytes from the Mixed station suggested that excretion products from the mussels were important nitrogen sources at this station. Sulphate reduction rates were enhanced at the Mixed station and also sediment sulphide concentrations increased under mussel influence, which may have resulted in sulphide toxicity and decreased growth of Z. marina at this station. The study indicates that for Z. marina beds in Flensborg Fjord the effects of M. edulis in seagrass beds are primarily negative, and raises the question whether this leads to negative effects on the stability and expansion of Z. marina beds.     

Distribution and bioturbation effects of the tropical alpheid shrimp Alpheus macellarius in sediments impacted by milkfish farming

The impact of milkfish fish pens on the distribution of the alpheid shrimp Alpheus macellarius was studied in the Bolinao area, Philippines. In addition, the impact of the alpheid shrimp on sediment biogeochemistry, including organic matter mineralization, nutrient and sulfur cycling was compared in sediments affected and unaffected by fish farming. The fish farming activity had negative impact on the distribution of shrimps by reducing the abundance up to 60% in the vicinity of the net pens, and to almost absence inside the net pens. At a farm site abandoned seven month prior to sampling the abundance of shrimps was still low and sediment pools of reduced sulfur high, indicating a slow benthic recovery. The shrimp had large physical impact on the sediments, and the mineralization rates were stimulated by the presence of the shrimp in pristine sediments, whereas the fish farm impacted sites showed high mineralization rates both in sediments with and without the presence of the shrimp suggesting that the organic matter enrichment stimulated the mineralization in these low-organic sediments, whereas the shrimp had less impact. Sulfate reduction rates and in particular pools of sulfides increased in the farm impacted sediments, and sulfate reduction was an important process for organic matter mineralization (>67%) in all sediments. Although the shrimp had minor effect on the organic matter mineralization and nutrient fluxes in the farm impacted sediments, they appeared to increase the oxidation of sulfides by increasing the zone of oxidized surface sediment and thereby improving the sediment conditions for recolonization after fish farming has ceased.     

Isotopic evidence for the magmatic and tectonic histories of the Carolina terrane: implications for stratigraphy and terrane affiliation

Establishing the age and crustal nature of exotic terranes and their underlying basements helps to determine their paleogeographic origin and tectonic histories. We present U–Pb ages of zircons and Sm–Nd whole rock isotopic data for volcanic and plutonic rocks of the Carolina terrane, one of several peri-Gondwanan terranes that were accreted to the margins of the circum-Atlantic continents during the Paleozoic. Volcanism in this subduction-related arc culminated in the eruption of the Morrow Mountain rhyolite, at ca. 540 Ma; thus, magmatism in the Carolina terrane ceased at the beginning of the Cambrian. The presence of inherited zircons and non-juvenile depleted mantle model ages of Carolina slate belt rocks favor a basement that is, at least in part, composed of evolved continental crust. Ages of inherited xenocrystic zircons cluster at ca. 1000, 2100 and 2500 Ma. These ages, in addition to volcanism at ca. 618–540 Ma, correlate best with well-known tectonic events in present-day northern South America. Specifically, the Orinoquian-Sunsas, the Trans-Amazonian and the Central Amazonian orogenic zones are likely candidates for potential basement correlatives to the Carolina terrane. Sm–Nd isotopic signatures vary significantly, but permit assimilation of Orinoquian age (1000 Ma) crust by magmas derived from the depleted mantle in a subduction (arc-related) setting. Our findings are also consistent with proposed correlations between the Carolina terrane and Avalonia which is likewise believed to have formed along the northern margin of present-day South America.     

On the fluid and viscoelastic deformations of the planets

The shape of the Earth and of planets depends on the exciting forces and on the rheology of the medium. From the equilibrium equation, we present the main modelisations of the viscous and inviscid fluids and we essentially describe the characteristics of linear viscoelastic deformations, for the Maxwell viscoelastic model of rheology. We use the elastic, viscoelastic and fluid Love numbers in order to investigate the associated relaxation modes. For these various kinds of rheology of the planets interior, we compute the geoid and the topography induced by an internal mass distribution. Finally, we show the importance of this viscoelastic deformation calculations in the study of the celestial body rotations.     

Blaualgenliteratur aus den Jahren 1967 und 1968 mit Ergänzungen aus den Jahren 1960 bis 1966

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Upper Eocene ejecta of the New Jersey continental margin reveal dynamics of Chesapeake Bay impact

Evidence for the Chesapeake Bay Crater as the source for New Jersey continental margin ejecta is provided by fine-grained tektites and coarse-grained unmelted ejecta. The Upper Eocene ejecta deposit, now demonstrated to be part of the North American strewn field, occurs on the New Jersey continental margin at Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Sites 904 and 903. The mineralogy, major oxide composition of the ejecta materials, and biostratigraphic age of the enclosing sediments link the origin of these ejecta to the recently recognized Chesapeake Bay impact crater, located only 330 km away. Sediments associated with the ejecta provide information about the dynamics of impact events. The 35-cm-thick ejecta-bearing layer can be subdivided into three subunits that indicate a sequence of events. Bottom subunit III documents sediment failure and deposition of gravel-sized fragments, middle subunit II records deposition of abundant sand-sized ejecta by gravity settling, and upper subunit I contains a 12-cm-thick sedimentary deposit containing rare silt-sized tektites and evidence of waning currents. These events are interpreted by linking sediment deposition to seismic ground motion and subsequent tsunami waves triggered by both the Chesapeake Bay impact and slope failures.