Geochemical and Mineralogical Studies of the Mylonite Xenoliths and Monzogranite Rocks at Wadi Abu Rusheid,South Eastern Desert,Egypt: Insights on the Genesis of Mineralization

Abu Rusheid area lie in the south of the Eastern Desert of Egypt and comprises (1) ophiolitic mélange, consisting of ultramafic rocks and layered metagabbros in metasedimentary matrix (2) cataclastic group, consisting of protomylonites, mylonites, ultramylonites and silicified ultramylonites (3) monzogranites (4) pegmatite pockets, quartz veins and post-granite dykes. Focus on the monzogranites and the xenoliths of mylonite rocks from the geochemical and mineralogical points of view introduces a new view about the genesis of the related mineralization. Geochemically, the monzogranites have a metaluminous character and were crystallized under moderate water-vapor pressure around 3 kb and temperatures of 750–800°C. The monzogranites are altered along strike-slip faults exhibiting propylitic, with slightly sodic metasomatism and record high radioactive measurements. The average uranium and thorium (U and Th) contents in fresh monzogranites, mylonite xenolith and altered monzogranites are (7.3, 21.20), (40.36, 94.82), (60.34 and 347.88 ppm), respectively. These high radioactivities are attributed to the presence of kasolite, uranothorite, cerite, fluorite, zircon, apatite and columbite. The mylonite xenolith is higher in radioactivity than the surrounding fresh monzogranites, reflecting U and Th enrichment before emplacement of the monzogranites, then the latter were subjected to right lateral strike-slip faulting with producing hydrothermal solution rich in Th and U.     

Gravity contributions to the understanding of salt tectonics from the Jebel Cheid area (dome zone, Northern Tunisia)

Detailed gravity measurements integrated with geological data were computed to constrain the mechanisms that were active during the emplacement of the Triassic evaporite-bearing folds of Jebel Cheid from the salt-dome zone in the Atlassic region. The gravity analysis consists in mapping the contrasting gravity responses: complete Bouguer anomaly, residual anomaly and derivative maps; the main results display a positive amplitude gravity anomaly as the response of Triassic evaporite bodies and important NE–SW-trending features at the boundaries between the Triassic outcrops and their enveloping strata. In contrast with gravity calculations of a salt dome structure usually resulting in negative gravity anomaly models, the Jebel Cheid clearly expresses a positive gravity anomaly; furthermore, this result is supported by synthetic gravity interpretation.     

A New Inner Heliosphere Proton Parameter Dataset from the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Helios</Emphasis> Mission

In the near future, Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter will provide the first comprehensive in-situ measurements of the solar wind in the inner heliosphere since the Helios mission in the 1970s. We describe a reprocessing of the original Helios ion distribution functions to provide reliable and reproducible data to characterise the proton core population of the solar wind in the inner heliosphere. A systematic fitting of bi-Maxwellian distribution functions was performed to the raw Helios ion distribution function data to extract the proton core number density, velocity, and temperatures parallel and perpendicular to the magnetic field. We present radial trends of these derived proton parameters, forming a benchmark to which new measurements in the inner heliosphere will be compared. The new dataset has been made openly available for other researchers to use, along with the source code used to generate it.     

Impact of Lithofacies and Structures on the Hydrogeochemistry of the Lower Miocene Aquifer at Moghra Oasis,North Western Desert,Egypt

Natural Resources Research - The Moghra Oasis is one of the major Egyptian desert-reclamation projects. Understanding the hydrochemistry of the Moghra aquifer is an onus to properly plan and manage...     

Analytic signal approach and its applicability in environmental magnetic investigations

We investigate the analytic signal method and its applicability in obtaining source locations of compact environmental magnetic objects. Previous investigations have shown that, for two-dimensional magnetic sources, the shape and location of the maxima of the amplitude of the analytic signal (AAS) are independent of the magnetization direction. In this study, we show that the shape of the AAS over magnetic dipole or sphere source is dependent on the direction of magnetization and, consequently, the maxima of the AAS are not always located directly over the dipolar sources. Maximum shift in the horizontal location is obtained for magnetic inclination of 30°. The shifts of the maxima are a function of the source-to-observation distance and they can be up to 30% of the distance. We also present a method of estimating the depths of compact magnetic objects based on the ratio of the AAS of the magnetic anomaly to the AAS of the vertical gradient of the magnetic anomaly. The estimated depths are independent of the magnetization direction. With the help of magnetic anomalies over environmental targets of buried steel drums, we show that the depths can be reliably estimated in most cases. Therefore, the analytic signal approach can be useful in estimating source locations of compact magnetic objects. However, horizontal locations of the targets derived from the maximum values of the AAS must be verified using other techniques.     

WIND observations of coherent electrostatic waves in the solar wind

The time domain sampler (TDS) experiment on WIND measures electric and magnetic wave forms with a sampling rate which reaches 120 000 points per second. We analyse here observations made in the solar wind near the Lagrange point L1. In the range of frequencies above the proton plasma frequency f_pi and smaller than or of the order of the electron plasma frequency f_pe, TDS observed three kinds of electrostatic (e.s.) waves: coherent wave packets of Langmuir waves with frequencies f ≃ f_pe, coherent wave packets with frequencies in the ion acoustic range f_pi ≥ f ≥ f_pe, and more or less isolated non-sinusoidal spikes lasting less than 1 ms. We confirm that the observed frequency of the low frequency (LF) ion acoustic wave packets is dominated by the Doppler effect: the wavelengths are short, 10 to 50 electron Debye lengths λ_D. The electric field in the isolated electrostatic structures (IES) and in the LF wave packets is more or less aligned with the solar wind magnetic field. Across the IES, which have a spatial width of the order of ≃25_D, there is a small but finite electric potential drop, implying an average electric field generally directed away from the Sun. The IES wave forms, which have not been previously reported in the solar wind, are similar, although with a smaller amplitude, to the weak double layers observed in the auroral regions, and to the electrostatic solitary waves observed in other regions in the magnetosphere. We have also studied the solar wind conditions which favour the occurrence of the three kinds of waves: all these e.s. waves are observed more or less continuously in the whole solar wind (except in the densest regions where a parasite prevents the TDS observations). The type (wave packet or IES) of the observed LF waves is mainly determined by the proton temperature and by the direction of the magnetic field, which themselves depend on the latitude of WIND with respect to the heliospheric current sheet.     

Investigating the complex structural integrity of the Zeit Bay Field,Gulf of Suez,Egypt, using interpretation of 3D seismic reflection data

Zeit Bay Field is one of the most important oil-bearing fields in the Gulf of Suez, Egypt, producing oil from the fractured basement rocks. Due to the complex structural setting of the area and the classical exploration concept that was based mainly on 2D seismic survey data, the area suffered from limited hydrocarbon interest for several years. During this time, most of the drilled wells hit structural highs and resulted in several dry holes. The present study is based on the interpretation of more recently acquired 3D seismic survey data as, matched with the available well logs, used to understand the complex structural setting of the Zeit Bay Field and provide insight into the entrapment style of the implied hydrocarbons. Several selected seismic cross sections were constructed, to extract subsurface geologic information, using available seismic profiles and wells. In addition, structure contour maps (isochronous maps, converted to depth maps) were constructed for the peaks of the basement, Nubian Sandstone, Kareem and Belayim Formations. Folds (anticlines and synclines) and faults (dip-slip) are identified on these maps, both individually and in groups, giving rise to step-like belts, as well as graben and horst blocks.     

Diagnostic study of spring dusty days over the southwest region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Arabian Journal of Geosciences - Three classes of dust over the southwest region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were classified based on both the values and distribution of the TOMS Aerosol Index....     

Investigation of groundwater mineralization in the Hammamet–Nabeul unconfined aquifer,north-eastern Tunisia: geochemical and isotopic approach

Detailed hydrogeochemical and isotopic data of groundwaters from the Hammamet–Nabeul unconfined aquifer are used to provide a better understanding of the natural and anthropogenic processes that control the groundwater mineralization as well as the sources of different groundwater bodies. It has been demonstrated that groundwaters, which show Na–Cl and Ca–SO₄–Cl water facies, are mainly influenced by the dissolution of evaporates, the dedolomitization and the cation-exchange process; and supplementary by anthropogenic process in relation with return flow of irrigation waters. The isotopic signatures permit to classify the studied groundwaters into two different groups. Non-evaporated groundwaters that are characterized by depleted δ ¹⁸O and δ ²H contents highlighting the importance of modern recharge at higher altitude. Evaporated groundwaters with enriched contents reflecting the significance infiltration of return flow irrigation waters. Tritium data in the studied groundwaters lend support to the existence of pre-1950 and post-1960 recharge. Carbon-14 activities in shallow wells that provide evidence to the large contamination by organic ¹⁴C corroborate the recent origin of the groundwaters in the study area.     

Groundwater management based on GIS techniques, chemical indicators and vulnerability to seawater intrusion modelling: application to the Mahdia–Ksour Essaf aquifer, Tunisia

In arid and semi-arid countries worldwide, conflicts between human development activities and conservation of groundwater resources are widespread and attract many public debates. This research aims to propose groundwater management alternatives for a coastal aquifer by studying its vulnerability and in particularly the risk of seawater intrusion. An additional objective is to propose some agricultural policies aimed to conserve groundwater resources in Mahdia and Ksour Essaf. Intensive groundwater mining, for irrigation and for water drinking, has caused an overexploitation of the water resources. In addition, the degradation of water quality, caused by septic tanks and intensive agricultural activities, has given rise to notable crucial state of the groundwater resources. With the aim of tackling the groundwater degradation problem, integration into a common platform of vulnerability assessment, seawater intrusion modelling and hydrochemical analysis is proposed. This platform can considerably reflect the water resources state in order to propose some solutions reducing the contamination of the Mahdia–Ksour Essaf aquifer. The groundwater management alternatives, proposed in this study, were prepared within a geographical information system.