An Example of Consequent Mantle Metasomatism in Peridotite Inclusions from Nunivak Island, Alaska

Many of the coarse-grained peridotite inclusions in basanitesfrom Nunivak Island, Alaska, contain amphibole and a smallerfraction also contain phlogopite and apatite. All of these peridotiteshave light REE/heavy REE abundance ratios greater than chondritesand many have abundances of K, Rb, Sr, Ba and light REE whichexceed estimates for primitive mantle. On the basis of mineraltextures and compositions we infer that the clinopyroxene, amphibole,phlogopite and apatite equilibrated with a metasomatic fluid.Isotopic (Sr and Nd) ratios and parent-daughter abundance datafor the coarse-grained peridotites constrain the age of themetasomatism to be less than 200 million years. Associated amphibole pyroxenite inclusions are not metasomatized;these inclusions probably formed as crystal segregates froman alkalic magma. Both pyroxenites and coarse-grained peridotitesare isotopically similar to basalts from Nunivak Island. Usingthese data, we propose a model in which the metasomatized peridotiteswere wallrocks located adjacent to the pyroxenites, and thatmetasomatism of these peridotites was caused by the infiltrationof a residual silicate melt or volatile-rich fluid derived fromthe parental magma of the pyroxenites; i.e. the metasomatismwas a consequence of basaltic magmatism. Furthermore, the parentalmagma of the pyroxenites was probably petrogenetically relatedto the Nunivak volcanism. REE modelling of fluids in equilibriumwith clinopyroxenes from the coarse-grained peridotites is consistentwith this model.     

Hf Isotope Evidence for a Miocene Change in the Kerguelen Mantle Plume Composition

We report high-precision multiple collector inductively coupledplasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) analyses of Hf isotopiccompositions for 39 Kerguelen Archipelago volcanic rocks thatadd a new perspective to the temporal evolution of the Kerguelenmantle plume. Samples cover the entire range of chemical andSr, Nd and Pb isotopic variations reported for the archipelago,and vary in age from 29 to 0·1 Ma. Their Hf isotopiccompositions show the largest variation for an individual oceanicisland and     

Chironomid-based Lateglacial climatic reconstruction for southeast Scotland

This paper presents the first chironomid-based climatic reconstruction for the UK Lateglacial, obtained from a lake basin in southeast Scotland, Whitrig Bog. Comparison of chironomid, lithological, geochemical, and pollen data reveals a marked vegetation lag behind the warming following deglaciation; warm-water chironomid taxa (e.g. chironomus) had replaced cold-water chironomid taxa (e.g. Paracladius) prior to the arrival of shrubs and trees and when local soils were still poorly developed. In addition to clear evidence for the Younger Dryas Stadial, chironomid data also reveal two short-term cold episodes that punctuate the Lateglacial Interstadial, both of which are also reflected in pollen and lithological data as reversals from open birch scrub/woodland to open herbaceous tundra coinciding with inwash of minerogenic matter into the basin. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Transport and accumulation of actinide elements in the near-shore environment: field and modelling studies

Nuclear facilities in coastal locations often discharge low‐level liquid wastes into the sea and the radioisotopes in these discharges are of interest both in assessing possible environmental impacts and as tracers for coastal processes. The distributions of a range of artificial radionuclides, derived from the authorized discharges from British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) Sellafield, have been determined in the sediments of an intertidal salt marsh in the Esk Estuary, Cumbria, UK. Where published discharge histories exist (for ¹³⁷Cs, ²³⁸Pu, ^239,240Pu and ²⁴¹Am), the sediment core‐profile distributions of these radionuclides have been compared with the releases from Sellafield, and consistent values of the accumulation rate (0·226 ± 0·007 g cm^?2 yr^?1) are obtained. A quantitative model has been developed, describing association of radionuclides with suspended particulate material, which is then accumulated and mixed in an offshore mud patch before resuspension and deposition in the salt marsh. The model has been used to describe radionuclide distributions observed in both the mud patch and the salt marsh, and to identify isotopes for which post‐depositional remobilization or solution transport from the discharge point are important. The behaviour of the commonly studied isotopes (¹³⁷Cs, ²³⁸Pu, ^239,240Pu and ²⁴¹Am) is similar to that observed at this and other nearby locations. The activation product isotope ²³⁶U is enhanced in these sediments over the natural baseline by four to eight orders of magnitude, and the results suggest that Sellafield‐derived uranium is comparably mobile to ¹³⁷Cs in these sediments although the processes governing the behaviour of these two elements may be different. In situ production of ²⁴¹Am by decay of its ²⁴¹Pu parent has generated only 17% of the current sediment inventory of this isotope, insufficient to account for the increase over the last 20–25 years, and suggesting that the input material for these sediments is preferentially enriched in Am relative to Pu during transport from the offshore mud patch. The discharge history of ²⁴⁴Cm, which is unknown, has also been reconstructed from the sediment profile and the model.     

Saturation limiters for water vapour advection schemes: impact on orographic precipitation

A common fault of atmospheric general circulation models (AGCMs) is an overestimation of orographic precipitation. One basic reason is that water vapour advection schemes do not use information about the local temperature. When water vapour is advected from a warm grid point to a colder one, supersaturation may occur on the way, and the water vapour advected may partly precipitate before reaching the latter. This process is particularly important when moisture is advected upward mountain slopes along terrain‐following coordinates. Not taking it in account, i.e., letting all the moisture reach the colder point, leads to artificial drying of the windward valleys and foothills, and to overestimation of rainfall over summits and plateaux. This spurious behaviour is amplified by the resulting biases in the circulation, due to misplacement of the moisture convergence. It is a general bias, although its magnitude may be reduced, for instance when σ-coordinates are replaced by hybrid coordinates, or increased by highly diffusive schemes such as the upstream finite differencing. A simple way of correcting this bias is to test the advected water vapour with respect to saturation values, and redistribute it accordingly over the grid points found along the advecting path. This method is tested on a finite difference model using σ-coordinates and an upstream advection scheme. The effect on the distribution of moisture and rainfall is dramatic: precipitation is displaced from summits and plateaux to slopes and foothills, leading to much more realistic patterns, in particular for the Indian and Amazonian monsoons.     

The Lithospheric Mantle beneath Continental Margins: Melting and Melt-Rock Reaction in Canadian Cordillera Xenoliths

Seven alkali basalt centers in the southern Canadian Cordilleracontain mantle xenolith suites that comprise spinel Cr-diopsideperidotites, spinel augite-bearing wehrlites and orthopyroxene-poorlherzolites, and minor pyroxenites. The Cr-diopside peridotitesappear to be residues of the extraction of Mg-rich basalts byup to 15% partial melting (median 5–10%) of a pyrolite-likesource in the spinel stability field. The xenoliths are similarto other mantle xenolith suites derived from beneath convergentcontinental margins, but are less depleted, less oxidized, andhave lower spinel mg-number than peridotites found in fore-arcsettings. Their dominant high field strength element depletedcharacter, however, is typical of arc lavas, and may suggestthat fluids or melts circulating through the Canadian Cordilleralithosphere were subduction related. Modeling using MELTS isconsistent with the augite-bearing xenoliths being formed byinteraction between crystallizing alkaline melts and peridotite.Assimilation–fractional crystallization modeling suggeststhat the trace element patterns of liquids in equilibrium withthe augite xenoliths may represent the initial melts that reactedwith the peridotite. Moreover, the compositions of these meltsare similar to those of some glasses observed in the mantlexenoliths. Melt–rock interaction may thus be a viablemechanism for the formation of Si- and alkali-rich glass inperidotites. KEY WORDS: Canadian Cordillera; mantle xenolith; peridotite; wehrlite; melt–rock reaction     

Evaluation of High-Resolution WRF Model Simulations of Surface Wind over the West Coast of India

This paper presents results from a statistical validation of the hindcasts of surface wind by a high-reso-ution-mesoscale atmospheric numerical model Advanced Research WRF （ARW3.3）, which is set up to force the operational coastal ocean forecast system at Indian Na- tional Centre for Ocean Information Services （INCOIS）. Evaluation is carried out based on comparisons of day-3 forecasts of surface wind with in situ and remote-sensing data. The results show that the model predicts the surface wind fields fairly accurately over the west coast of India, with high skill in predicting the surface wind during the pre-monsoon season. The model predicts the diurnal variability of the surface wind with reasonable accuracy. The model simulates the land-sea breeze cycle in the coastal region realistically, which is very clearly observed during the northeast monsoon and pre-monsoon season and is less prominent during the southwest monsoon season.     

OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM: A MILITARY GEOGRAPHICAL PERSPECTIVE*

ABSTRACT. The war in Iraq has spanned the full spectrum of military operations: intense combat, stability‐and‐support operations, and peacetime activities. Regardless of their nature and relative intensity, military operations are shaped by the characteristics of the military operating environment. Consequently, the scale, tempo, and complexity of any type of military endeavor are linked to the physical and cultural landscapes of the region in which it is conducted. Military geographers use geographical information, tools, and techniques to examine those links. Iraq's operating environment is studied to identify the relevant components of its physical and human geography. This military geographical examination of Iraq tells us a great deal about how the physical and cultural environment have influenced the war, as well as how the complexity of its human landscape continues to affect the postwar rebuilding of the country.     

Towards a framework for learning with GIS: The case of Urban World, a hypermap learning environment based on GIS

Off-the-shelf GIS toolboxes are inadequate for pedagogic purposes. Urban World , an Arc View application, attempts to address this shortcoming by including special features designed to foster student progress towards a better understanding of urban environments. This paper provides context for the Urban World system in an active, authentic learning environment for students of urban geography and planning at junior and senior levels in undergraduate curricula at universities in the United States. The paper describes the rationale for, and implementation of, several components of Urban World : a special graphid user interface; productivity tools for facilitating the acquisition of practical skills of mapping and spatial analysis; tools for accessing, undertaking, and submitting homework assignments in a paper-less class; and various devices for assisting students to undertake spatial reasoning. GIS are Seen as an enabling technology for improving understanding by means of engaging students in empirical analysis. Spatial problem solvers and decision makers reach sound conclusions by employing reasoning skills applied to well-formed databases; scientific research makcs progress with sound reasoning of many types. The effective teaching and learning about the geography of our world requires a strong foundation of spatid reasoning.     

Attenuation characteristics of peak acceleration in North China and comparison with those in the eastern part of North America

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