Three-dimensional forward stratigraphic modelling of the sedimentary architecture of meandering-river successions in evolving half-graben rift basins

The spatial organisation of meandering-river deposits varies greatly within the sedimentary fills of rift basins, depending on how differential rates of fault propagation and subsidence interplay with autogenic processes to drive changes in fluvial channel-belt position and rate of migration, avulsion frequency and mechanisms of meander-bend cut off. This set of processes fundamentally influences stacking patterns of the accumulated successions. Quantitative predictions of the spatio-temporal evolution and internal architecture of meandering fluvial deposits in such tectonically active settings remain limited. A numerical forward stratigraphic model—the Point-Bar Sedimentary Architecture Numerical Deduction (PB-SAND)—is applied to examine relationships between differential rates of subsidence and resultant fluvial channel-belt migration, reach avulsion and channel-deposit stacking in active, fault-bounded half-grabens. The model is used to reconstruct and predict the complex morphodynamics of fluvial meanders, their generated channel belts, and the associated lithofacies distributions that accumulate as heterogeneous fluvial successions in rift settings, constrained by data from seismic images and outcrop successions. The 3D modelling outputs are used to explore sedimentary heterogeneity at various spatio-temporal scales. Results show how the connectivity of sand-prone geobodies can be quantified as a function of subsidence rate, which itself decreases both along and away from the basin-bounding fault. In particular, results highlight the spatial variability in the size and connectedness of sand-prone geobodies that is seen in directions perpendicular and parallel to the basin axis, and that arises as a function of the interaction between spatial and temporal variations in rates of accommodation generation and fault-influenced changes in river morphodynamics. The results have applied significance, for example, to both hydrocarbon exploration and assessment of groundwater aquifers. The expected greatest connectivity of fluvial sandbody in a half-graben is primarily determined by the complex interplay between the frequency and rate of subsidence, the style of basin propagation, the rates of migration of channel belts, the frequency of avulsion and the proportion and spatial distribution of variably sand-prone channel and bar deposits.     

Thresholds and Response to Climate Change Forcing: The Water Sector

This paper explores the nature of critical thresholds in the natural and managed water environment, and examines the effect of thresholds on the shape of system response to change. The hydrological system is characterized by the presence of many critical thresholds, where processes change, and climate change will alter the frequency with which these thresholds are passed. The snow/rain threshold is particularly important, and examples in the paper show how the presence of this threshold can lead to very non-linear responses to incremental climate change. The water management system is also characterized by critical thresholds, but in most cases these are expressed in risk terms (a design standard typically has an associated risk of failure). In this context, climate change will alter the risk that design standards are exceeded, and the management threshold relates to the tolerable change in risk. In practice, this will be difficult to define, as changes in risk are difficult to determine because risk estimates are very uncertain. The paper concludes by outlining a risk-based procedure, using multiple scenarios, for estimating the risk of a threshold being crossed, and also indicates how defined critical thresholds can be used to implement an impact-oriented approach to climate change assessment. This approach focuses on the likelihood of encountering challenging circumstances.     

U–Pb zircon ages, geochemical and isotopic compositions of granitoids in Songpan-Garze fold belt, eastern Tibetan Plateau: constraints on petrogenesis and tectonic evolution of the basement

The Songpan-Garze fold belt, located in the eastern part of the Tibetan Plateau, covers a huge triangular area bounded by the Yangtze (South China), the North China and the Tibetan Plateau blocks. In the northeastern part of the Songpan-Garze fold belt, the Yanggon and Maoergai granitoids provide insights into regional tectono-magmatic events, basement nature and tectonic evolution. U–Pb zircon SHRIMP dating shows that the Yanggon and Maoergai granitoids have magmatic crystallization ages of 221 ± 3.8 Ma and 216 ± 5.7 Ma, respectively. Both the granitoids display adakitic geochemical signatures, suggesting that their magma was derived from partial melting of thickened lower crust. Pb–Sr–Nd isotopic compositions for granitoids reveal that there is an unexposed Proterozoic basement in the Songpan-Garze belt, which has an affinity with the Yangtze block. During development of the Paleo-Tethys ocean, the basement of the Songpan-Garze belt would be a peninsula approaching the Paleo-Tethys ocean from the Yangtze block.     

Geology,Alteration, and Mineralization of the Kay Tanda Epithermal Gold Deposit,Lobo, Batangas,Philippines

The Kay Tanda epithermal Au deposit in Lobo, Batangas is one of the Au deposits situated in the Batangas Mineral District in southern Luzon, Philippines. This study aims to document the geological, alteration, and mineralization characteristics and to determine the age of the mineralization, the mechanism of ore deposition, and the hydrothermal fluid characteristics of the Kay Tanda deposit. The geology of Kay Tanda consists of (i) the Talahib Volcanic Sequence, a Middle Miocene dacitic to andesitic volcaniclastic sequence that served as the host rock of the mineralization; (ii) the Balibago Diorite Complex, a cogenetic intrusive complex intruding the Talahib Volcanic Sequence; (iii) the Calatagan Formation, a Late Miocene to Early Pliocene volcanosedimentary formation unconformably overlying the Talahib Volcanic Sequence; (iv) the Dacite Porphyry Intrusives, which intruded the older lithological units; and (v) the Balibago Andesite, a Pliocene postmineralization volcaniclastic unit. K‐Ar dating on illite collected from the alteration haloes around quartz veins demonstrated that the age of mineralization is around 5.9 ± 0.2 to 5.5 ± 0.2 Ma (Late Miocene). Two main styles of mineralization are identified in Kay Tanda. The first style is an early‐stage extensive epithermal mineralization characterized by stratabound Au‐Ag‐bearing quartz stockworks hosted at the shallower levels of the Talahib Volcanic Sequence. The second style is a late‐stage base metal (Zn, Pb, and Cu) epithermal mineralization with local bonanza‐grade Au mineralization hosted in veins and hydrothermal breccias that are intersected at deeper levels of the Talahib Volcanic Sequence and at the shallower levels of the Balibago Intrusive Complex. Paragenetic studies on the mineralization in Kay Tanda defined six stages of mineralization; the first two belong to the first mineralization style, while the last four belong to the second mineralization style. Stage 1 is composed of quartz ± pyrophyllite ± dickite/kaolinite ± diaspore alteration, which is cut by quartz veins. Stage 2 is composed of Au‐Ag‐bearing quartz stockworks associated with pervasive illite ± quartz ± smectite ± kaolinite alteration. Stage 3 is composed of carbonate veins with minor base metal sulfides. Stage 4 is composed of quartz ± adularia ± calcite veins and hydrothermal breccias, hosting the main base metal and bonanza‐grade Au mineralization, and is associated with chlorite‐illite‐quartz alteration. Stage 5 is composed of epidote‐carbonate veins associated with epidote‐calcite‐chlorite alteration. Stage 6 is composed of anhydrite‐gypsum veins with minor base metal mineralization. The alteration assemblage of the deposit evolved from an acidic mineral assemblage caused by the condensation of magmatic volatiles from the Balibago Intrusive Complex into the groundwater to a slightly acidic mineral assemblage caused by the interaction of the host rocks and the circulating hydrothermal waters being heated up by the Dacite Porphyry Intrusives to a near‐neutral pH toward the later parts of the mineralization. Fluid inclusion microthermometry indicates that the temperature of the system started to increase during Stage 1 (T = 220–250°C) and remained at high temperatures (T = 250–290°C) toward Stage 6 due to the continuous intrusion of Dacite Porphyry Intrusives at depth. Salinity slightly decreased toward the later stages due to the contribution of more meteoric waters into the hydrothermal system. Boiling is considered the main mechanism of ore deposition based on the occurrence of rhombic adularia, the heterogeneous trapping of fluid inclusions of variable liquid–vapor ratios, the distribution of homogenization temperatures, and the gas ratios obtained from the quantitative fluid inclusion gas analysis of quartz. Ore mineral assemblage and sulfur fugacity determined from the FeS content of sphalerite at temperatures estimated by fluid inclusion microthermometry indicate that the base metal mineralization at Kay Tanda evolved from a high sulfidation to an intermediate sulfidation condition.     

Anhydrous Partial Melting of a Fertile and Depleted Peridotite from 2 to 30 kb and Application to Basalt Petrogenesis

Reversal experiments have been performed to check the methodof Jaques & Green (1980) to determine equilibrium partialmelts from peridotite compositions. Reversals of the Jaques& Green (1980) calculated equilibrium partial melt (CEPM)compositions have been carried out in two ways: (1) By runningCEPM compositions at original P and T conditions and testingfor multiple saturation in residual phases of the original experiments.(2) By sandwich/mixed experiments using the CEPM compositionplus peridotite (either Hawaiian pyrolite or Tinaquillo lherzolite). The glass (liquid) compositions from the first series of experimentsshow that the CEPM compositions of Jaques & Green (1980)are too olivine-rich. The glass (liquid) compositions from thesecond series of experiments define new olivine+orthopyroxene?clinopyroxenecotectics in a molecular normative tetrahedron. The new cotecticsplot towards the Qz apex of the tetrahedron, away from the cotecticsdefined by the CEPM compositions of Jaques & Green (1980).Partial melt compositions have also been determined at 20 and30 kb, using both the sandwich technique and the approach bymodal analysis and mass balance. The results of the experimental study are used to evaluate thepetrogenesis of mid-ocean ridge basalts, Hawaiian tholentesand primary magmas in intraoceanic convergent margin settings.     

Multivariate Analysis of an LA-ICP-MS Trace Element Dataset for Pyrite

Application of multivariate statistics to trace element datasets is reviewed using 164 multi-element LA-ICP-MS spot analyses of pyrite from the Moonlight epithermal gold prospect, Queensland, Australia. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) is used to demonstrate that classification of pyrite on morphological and other non-numeric factors is geochemically valid. Parallel coordinate plots and correlation cluster analysis using Spearman??s coefficients are used to discover unexpected elemental relationships without making assumptions a priori. Finally, principal component analysis and factor analysis are used to demonstrate the presence of sub-classes of pyrite. Corroborated with geological data, statistical analysis provides evidence for successive generations of hydrothermal fluids, each introducing specific metals, and for partial or complete replacement of different minerals. The data permit reinterpretation of Moonlight as a telescoped system where epithermal-Au (± base metals) is superposed onto early porphyry-Mo mineralization.     

Exploration of tektite formation processes through water and metal content measurements

Abstract– Impact events are a significant surface‐modifying process on solar system objects lacking frequent resurfacing by atmospheric or igneous processes. To better explore the effects of impacts on surface materials, we measured the water and trace element compositions of tektites from Da Lat, Vietnam. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used for water measurements and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was used for trace element measurements. Consistent with previous investigations of tektites, we found that the samples are depleted in volatile metals (e.g., Zn, Pb) as well as in water compared with the average continental crust, although water contents are still extremely high for rocks melted at atmospheric pressure. While Zn and Pb concentrations are linearly correlated with each other, there is no correlation between H₂O and Zn or Pb contents. Combined with water contents of other tektites in the Australasian strewn field, our results demonstrate that the source impact occurred at a wet site in or off the coast of the Indochina peninsula.     

The navigational chart and marine positioning in the 1990s

Abstract

The historical development of positioning in relation to the nautical chart is described. Present nautical charts are largely based on geodetic surveys which date from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This gave rise to the use of many local datums and there has been a need to provide the mariner with information to enable him to transfer his position from one chart to an adjacent one on a different datum. The availability of the Global Positioning System (GPS) and the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84) datum enables positioning on a single worldwide datum to become a reality. The important factors affecting the adoption of WGS84 as the datum for nautical charts—namely, data availability and the practical and political considerations—are discussed.

New developments in the use of nautical charts, the electronic chart display and information systems, and the delineation of international boundaries and territorial limits all give rise to the requirement for improved positional accuracies.

Recent experience in the use of GPS both in the provision of control for shore stations of electronic position‐fixing systems and the provision of position for hydrographic surveys is briefly discussed.     

The Niujiaotang Cd-rich zinc deposit,Duyun, Guizhou province,southwest China: ore genesis and mechanisms of cadmium concentration

The Niujiaotang zinc deposit in southeastern Guizhou, China, is a Mississippi Valley-type Zn deposit within Early Cambrian carbonate rocks. Sphalerite is enriched in cadmium (average 1.4 wt.% Cd), which occurs mostly as isomorphous impurities in the sphalerite lattice. Discrete cadmium minerals (greenockite and otavite) are rare and are found almost exclusively in the oxidation zone of the deposit, probably formed as secondary minerals during weathering–leaching processes. Geochemical data show that the sulfides are enriched in heavy sulfur, with δ³⁴S ranging from +10.0‰ to +32.8‰ (mean +22.5‰). The consistent Pb isotopic compositions in different sulfide minerals are similar to that of Cambrian strata. The ore lead probably came from U- and Th-rich upper crustal rocks, such as the Lower Cambrian Wuxun Formation. The ore fluid is of low-temperature (101°C to 142°C) type, with a Na–Ca–Mg–Cl-dominant composition, and is interpreted as oil-field brine. The data indicate that the metals were mainly derived from the Early Cambrian strata (Qingxudong and Wuxun Formations), whereas sulfur is sourced from sulfate in Cambrian strata or oil-field brines of the Majiang petroleum paleoreservoir. The genetic model for the deposit invokes an Early Cambrian shallow-sea environment on the Yangtze Platform. Zinc and Cd in seawater were concentrated in abundant algae via unknown biological mechanisms, resulting in large amounts of Zn- and Cd-rich algal ooliths. During the Ordovician, concurrent with destruction of the Majiang petroleum paleoreservoir, oil-field brines migrated from the center of the basin to the margin leaching metals from the Cambrian strata. In the Niujiaotang area, preexisting Zn and Cd, particularly in the Qingxudong and Wuxun Formation, were further mobilized by hot brines rising along the Zaolou fault system, forming stratiform and generally conformable Zn–Cd orebodies in reactive carbonate lithologies.