Groundwater Resources In Hard Rock; Experiences from The Hvaler Study,Southeastern Norway

Investigations in a newly constructed subsea road tunnel in the Iddefjord granite at Hvaler and test-pumping of boreholes on land indicate that a topographic or geophysical anomaly is no guarantee of a substantially transmissive fracture zone. Many prominent fracture zones appear to have depressed transmissivity due to secondary swelling-clay mineral infillings. No current geophysical technique can adequately distinguish these zones from transmissive ones. Given that siting of boreholes on the basis of geology alone can be unreliable, hydrogeologists should concentrate on quantifying the chances of a successful boring, and optimizing those chances by sensible location, favourable borehole orientation and use of artificial enhancement techniques.     

A methodology for locating the original quarries used for constructing historical buildings: application to Málaga Cathedral, Spain

It is often necessary to locate the original quarry which supplied the stone for a particular historical building. This stones could be used for future restoration work and for testing in the laboratory (artificial aging tests, physical properties determination, control of the efficacy of conservation treatments, etc.). Generally, reviewing historical documentation gives information about the geographical setting of quarries and location of the stones in the monument, but this information needs to be proved by field and laboratory studies. The comparative study of stone from quarries and monuments should basically include the following: (1) mineralogical and petrographical studies; (2) the chemical analysis of major, minor and trace elements; (3)stable isotopes determinations; (4) physical properties of quarry materials and unweathered building stone (water absorption, ultrasound transmission velocity, porosity and porous system, density, bulk density, compressive strength, etc.). This methodology was applied to Málaga Cathedral stones represented in the main façade, towers, and the western zone of the terrace, which, according to historical literature, came from Almayate (Miocene–Pliocene limestones) and Cerro Coronado (Permotriassic sandstone) in Málaga. The conclusion of the comparative study carried out on quarries and building stones was consistent with the information available from the historical documentation.     

Genesis and evolution of the lithospheric mantle beneath the Buffalo Head Terrane, Alberta (Canada)

Mantle xenoliths and xenocrysts were retrieved from three of the 88–86 Ma Buffalo Hills kimberlites (K6, K11, K14) for a reconnaissance study of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM) beneath the Buffalo Head Terrane (Alberta, Canada). The xenoliths include spinel lherzolites, one garnet spinel lherzolite, garnet harzburgites, one sheared garnet lherzolite and pyroxenites. Pyroxenitic and wehrlitic garnet xenocrysts are derived primarily from the shallow mantle and lherzolitic garnet xenocrysts from the deep mantle. Harzburgite with Ca-saturated garnets is concentrated in a layer between 135–165 km depth. Garnet xenocrysts define a model conductive paleogeotherm corresponding to a heat flow of 38–39 mW/m². The sheared garnet lherzolite lies on an inflection of this geotherm and may constrain the depth of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB) beneath this region to ca 180 km depth.

A loss of >20% partial melt is recorded by spinel lherzolites and up to 60% by the garnet harzburgites, which may be related to lithosphere formation. The mantle was subsequently modified during at least two metasomatic events. An older metasomatic event is evident in incompatible-element enrichments in homogeneous equilibrated garnet and clinopyroxene. Silicate melt metasomatism predominated in the deep lithosphere and led to enrichments in the HFSE with minor enrichments in LREE. Metasomatism by small-volume volatile-rich melts, such as carbonatite, appears to have been more important in the shallow lithosphere and led to enrichments in LREE with minor enrichments in HFSE. An intermediate metasomatic style, possibly a signature of volatile-rich silicate melts, is also recognised. These metasomatic styles may be related through modification of a single melt during progressive interaction with the mantle. This metasomatism is suggested to have occurred during Paleoproterozoic rifting of the Buffalo Head Terrane from the neighbouring Rae Province and may be responsible for the evolution of some samples toward unradiogenic Nd and Hf isotopic compositions.

Disturbed Re–Os isotope systematics, evident in implausible model ages, were obtained in situ for sulfides in several spinel lherzolites and suggest that many sulfides are secondary (metasomatic) or mixtures of primary and secondary sulfides. Sulfide in one peridotite has unradiogenic ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os and gives a model age of 1.89±0.38 Ga. This age coincides with the inferred emplacement of mafic sheets in the crust and suggests that the melts parental to the intrusions interacted with the lithospheric mantle.

A younger metasomatic event is indicated by the occurrence of sulfide-rich melt patches, unequilibrated mineral compositions and overgrowths on spinel that are Ti-, Cr- and Fe-rich but Zn-poor. Subsequent cooling is recorded by fine exsolution lamellae in the pyroxenes and by arrested mineral reactions.

If the lithosphere beneath the Buffalo Head Terrane was formed in the Archaean, any unambiguous signatures of this ancient origin may have been obliterated during these multiple events.     

Nanoscale study of As biomineralization in an acid mine drainage system

Spatial and seasonal variations of the oxidation of Fe(II) and As(III) have been previously documented in the Carnoulès (Gard, France) Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) by bulk analyses. These variations may be correlated with the variations in the activity of indigenous As(III)- and Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria living in the As-rich Carnoulès water. The activity of these bacteria indeed plays an important role in the nature and composition of the solid phases that sequester arsenic at this site. In order to better understand the interactions of microbes with Fe and As in the Carnoulès AMD, we combined Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Scanning Transmission X-ray Microscopy (STXM) to collect near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectra at high spatial and energy resolution and to perform high spatial resolution imaging at the 30-50 nm scale. Spectromicroscopy was performed at the C K-edge, Fe L_2,3-edge, and As L_2,3-edge, which allowed us to locate living and/or mineralized bacterial cells and to characterize Fe and As oxidation states in the vicinity of those cells. TEM was used to image the same areas, providing higher resolution images and complementary crystallographic and compositional information through electron diffraction and EDXS analysis. This approach provides unique information on heterogeneous geochemical processes that occur in a complex microbial community in an AMD environment at the micrometer and submicrometer-scale. Bacterial cells in the Carnoulès AMD were frequently associated with mineral precipitates, and a variety of biomineralization patterns were observed. While many mineral precipitates were not associated with bacterial cells, they were associated with pervasive organic carbon. Finally, abundant biomineralized organic vesicles were observed in the Carnoulès AMD. Such vesicles may have been overlooked in highly mineralized extreme environments in the past and may represent an important component in a common biomineralization process in such environments.     

加拿大主要农田作物临界气象指标

根据加拿大主要农田作物生长发育对天气与气候条件的要求、农业气象学与气候学原理以及全球气候变化对农作物生产的影响和发展趋势,选择6个关键性气象因素(极端气温、强降水、强风、冷冻、土壤极端水分和作物生产有效热能条件),开发和评价12个农业气象临界指标(寒潮及热浪天数、日及旬最大降水量、日最大风速、强风天数、无霜期及冰冻期天数、标准降水系数、季节性水分亏缺、作物生长有效积温和累积热能单位).这些指标可供在该国各农产区科学规划和合理发展各类农田作物生产,包括喜暖性和喜凉性一年生草本作物,越冬性二年生及多年生草本及木本作物.该研究还依据该国这三类主要农田作物对临界温度和水分的需求,以及加拿大农田作物生长期和越冬期的天气和气候特征,建立了在任意农业生产年份中各类农田作物生长起始和终止日期的模式.本研究结果能用于指导该国将来在不同农产区适地适时种植适宜的农田作物和高效地经营与管理农场,同时可为农业生产咨询、政策制定和合理决策提供科学依据,也可供其他国家或地区开展类似的科学研究参考.     

The Seasonal Prediction of the Exceptional Yangtze River Rainfall in Summer 2020

During June and July of 2020, the Yangtze River basin suffered from extreme mei-yu rainfall and catastrophic flooding. This study explores the seasonal predictability and associated dynamical causes for this extreme Yangtze River rainfall event, based on forecasts from the Met Office GloSea5 operational forecast system. The forecasts successfully predicted above-average rainfall over the Yangtze River basin, which arose from the successful reproduction of the anomalous western North Pacific subtropical high (WNPSH). Our results indicate that both the Indian Ocean warm sea surface temperature (SST) and local WNP SST gradient were responsible for the westward extension of the WNPSH, and the forecasts captured these tropical signals well. We explore extratropical drivers but find a large model spread among the forecast members regarding the meridional displacements of the East Asian mid-latitude westerly jet (EAJ). The forecast members with an evident southward displacement of the EAJ favored more extreme Yangtze River rainfall. However, the forecast Yangtze River rainfall anomaly was weaker compared to that was observed and no member showed such strong rainfall. In observations, the EAJ displayed an evident acceleration in summer 2020, which could lead to a significant wind convergence in the lower troposphere around the Yangtze River basin, and favor more mei-yu rainfall. The model forecast failed to satisfactorily reproduce these processes. This difference implies that the observed enhancement of the EAJ intensity gave a large boost to the Yangtze River rainfall, hindering a better forecast of the intensity of the event and disaster mitigation.     

Contributions of Fuqing ZHANG to Predictability,Data Assimilation,and Dynamics of High Impact Weather: A Tribute

This article reviews Fuqing ZHANG’s contributions to mesoscale atmospheric science,from research to mentoring to academic service,over his 20-year career.His fundamental scientific contributions on predictability,data assimilation,and dynamics of high impact weather,especially gravity waves and tropical cyclones,are highlighted.His extremely generous efforts to efficiently transmit to the community new scientific knowledge and ideas through mentoring,interacting,workshop organizing,and reviewing are summarized.Special appreciation is given to his tremendous contributions to the development of mesoscale meteorology in China and the education of Chinese graduate students and young scientists.     

Enhancement of the method of summer precipitation forecasting

The physical-synoptic principles of the automated method of summer precipitation forecasting introduced into operational prognostic practice in 2006 by the decree of the Central Methodical Commission of the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring (Roshydromet) are presented. Beside that, improved modifications of this method, which are automatically updated, are shown. Validation of those updates based on observational data collected in 2004 has shown improvement of all major criteria of forecasts efficiency. The performed improvement is based on the more detailed quantitative realization of mechanism of various showers formation (including heavy rainfalls).     

A method of forecasting the heavy convective precipitation zones during the cold season

A method of forecasting the heavy convective precipitation zones is based on the computation of the Q-vector divergence and moist equivalent-potential vorticity in the layer from 925 to 700 hPa. The prognostic fields of meteorological parameters from NWP models in GRIB or GRIB2 codes are used for the computation. Presented are the results of the statistical analysis. The coefficients of linear regression are computed and the working equation for forecasting heavy convective precipitation zones during the cold season is derived. Analyzed are some heavy snowfalls in the central region of the European part of Russia.     

Study of the moist Convective Boundary Layer structure by backscattering lidar

Measurements of the structure of the Convective Boundary Layer (CBL) were made from the ground and from the ARAT aircraft with a backscattering lidar during the preliminary phase of the French project LEANDRE. A numerical model of Mie theory diffusion was used to determine a theoretical profile of the extinction coefficient, as a function of relative humidity. Comparisons between theoretical and measured profiles were made. Good agreement was found, which confirms that the variation of the extinction coefficient in the CBL is primarily controlled by the relative humidity. This paper also presents a detailed analysis of the small-scale structure of the CBL. The normalized length and number of thermals are estimated. Results are in agreement with previousin-situ measurements. An analysis of the bidimensional cross-section of the extinction coefficient shows that this coefficient permits one to retrieve more quantitative information than the range-corrected signal, as the fractions of entrained air and surface-layer air at a given altitude.