Late Cretaceous rift-related upwelling and melting of the Trindade starting mantle plume head beneath western Brazil

High mantle potential temperatures and local extension, associated with the Late-Cretaceous impact of the Trindade mantle plume, produced substantial widespread and voluminous magmatism around the northern half of the Paraná sedimentary basin. Our previous studies have shown that, above the central and eastern portions of the postulated impact zone where lithosphere extension is minimal, heat conducted by the plume caused large-scale melting of the more fusible parts of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle beneath the margin of the São Francisco craton and the surrounding Brasilía mobile belt. Here we combine geochemical data and field evidence from the Poxoreu Igneous Province, western Brazil to show how more intense lithospheric extension above the western margin of the postulated impact zone permitted greater upwelling and melting of the Trindade plume than further east. Laser ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age determinations indicate that rift-related basaltic magmas of the Poxoreu Igneous Province were emplaced at ? 84 Ma. Our detailed geochemical study of the mafic magmas shows that the parental melts underwent polybaric crystal fractionation within the crust prior to final emplacement. Furthermore, some magmas (quartz-normative) appear to have assimilated upper crust whereas others (nepheline- and hypersthene-normative) appear to have been unaffected by open-system crustal magma chamber processes. Incompatible trace element ratios (e.g. chondrite-normalised La/Nb?=?1) and isotopic ratios (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr?=?0.704 and ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd?=?0.51274) of the Hy-normative basalts resemble those of oceanic islands (OIB). We therefore propose that these “OIB-like” magmas were predominantly derived from convecting-mantle-source melts (i.e. Trindade mantle plume). Inverse modelling of rare-earth element (REE) abundances suggests that the initial melts were predominantly generated within the depth range of ?80–100 km, in mantle with a potential temperature of ?1500 °C.     

Pollution history and recovery of a boreal lake exposed to a heavy bleached pulping effluent load

We examined the effects of heavy pulp mill discharges on the Lake Lievestuoreenjärvi ecosystem and the later recovery of diatom and chironomid communities from age-dated short core samples. Beginning in 1927 the lake received a heavy effluent load from a sulphite pulp mill. Except for the recession during the Second World War and the temporary closure of the mill from 1967 to 1971, the industrial load, containing large quantities of nutrients, organic matter and toxic compounds, increased continuously. In the early 1980s, laboratory documents were falsified by the directors of the mill and the systematic illegal effluent overload led to a collapse of the whole lake ecosystem. In 1985, the outdated plant was finally closed down. Based on the assessment of chemical properties and biological remains of the sediment, we distinguished five developmental phases in the ecological state of the lake. In the pre-industrial phase, the pelagic and profundal benthic communities were dominated by species preferring ultraoligotrophic or oligotrophic lakes. Concomitant with the increasing discharge and deposition of chlorine compounds, resin acids, and mercury, as well as strong acidity and hypolimnetic and epilimnetic anoxia, the ecological status changed in a short period from excellent to bad. Finally, in the early 1960s, the majority of the lake was virtually dead and the aquatic life survived only in the uppermost littoral zone. Since 1985, a fast recovery in the water quality has led to a strong, but temporary eutrophy in pelagic communities. The main peak of eutrophication was caused by the invasion of a species new to the lake,Aulacoseira granulata var.angustissima. Later, the pelagic communities shifted towards oligotrophy, but the original, pre-industrial status has not been re-established. The profundal benthic communities have not achieved the pre-industrial structure, but at present indicate mesotrophy.     

Das Korrespondenzprinzip in der Kosmologie. II. Klassische und relativistische Darstellungen der Weltmodelle

According to the equivalence between the FRIEDMANN equation of relativistic cosmology and the condition for the time-independence H = o of the HAMILTON ian H of an isotropic particle-system in the NEWTON ian mechanics (which equivalence is proved in the part I of our paper) we construct the corresponding classical HAMILTON ians to the relativistic world-models. Each cosmological model which is resulting from a physically meaningful gravitation theory must give a FRIEDMANN equation as the cosmological formulation of the time-independence condition of the energy H for the corresponding NEWTON ian N-particle system. In general relativity, EINSTEIN's field equations are including EINSTEIN's strong principle of equivalence and are giving the constance f = o and M = o of the gravitation-number f and of the mass M of the universe additional to FRIEDMANN's equation. – In special relativity, we have fM = o and this MILNE -universe is possessing a NEWTON ian and a general relativistic interpretation, too. – However, if the postulate together with the “cosmological principle” other principles about the world structure, too (p. e. MACH'S or DIRAC'S principle or the “perfect cosmological principle” by the steady-state cosmology), then EINSTEIN'S weak principle of equivalence can be fulfilled, only. In these world models the gravity-mass fM becomes a function of the cosmic time t [d/dt(fM) ± o] and this variability of fM is compatible with the constance H = o of the energy H of the NEWTON ian particle-system. For flat three-dimensional cosmological spaces (with H = Ḣ = o) a creation of rest-mass (M > o) is possible. This creation is the pecularity of the steady-state cosmos (with M > o, f = o) and of JORDAN'S cosmos (with M > o, f < o). The MACH -EINSTEIN -doctrine about the perfect determination of the inertia and of the space-time-metric by the cosmic gravitation is founded on the substitution of the NEWTON ian HAMILTON ian by a GAUSS -RIEMANN ian gravitation potential U^*(r_AB' v_AB) (TREDER 1972). Therefore, the FRIEDMANN equation for a universe with MACH'S principle is resulting from the analytical expression of the time-independence of this RIEMANNian potential U* = 0. In the case of such MACH-EINSTEIN's-Universes EINSTEIN'S condition 3fM = c8r between the mass A4 and the radius Y of the universe is valid additional to FRIEDMANN'S equation. For these universes, the EINSTEIN condition determinates the instantaneous value of the gravitation-number f. - The explicite form of the conditions H = o or h' = o gives the equation of motion for the cosmic fundamental particles with attraction and repulsion forces, generally.