Crystallization of quartz dioritic magmas at 2 and 1 kbar: experimental results

Crystallization experiments were performed on quartz diorite (~55 wt.% SiO₂, 3.1–8.4 wt.% MgO) from the G?siniec Intrusion (Bohemian Massif, SW Poland) at 1?2 kbar, 750–850°C, various mole fractions of water and with fO₂ buffered by the NNO buffer. The two natural quartz diorites (leucocratic poikilitic quartz diorite - ‘LPD’ and melanocratic quartz diorite - ‘MD’) differ in whole rock and mineral composition with MD being richer in MgO and poorer in CaO than LPD, probably due to accumulation of mafic minerals or melt removal in MD. LPD represents melt composition and is used to reconstruct crystallization conditions in the G?siniec Intrusion. The crystallization history of LPD magma, deduced from experimental and natural mineral compositions, includes a higher pressure stage probably followed by emplacement at ~2 kbar of partly crystallized magma at temperatures ~850?800°C and quick cooling. The mineral assemblage present in LPD requires water contents in the magma of at least 5 wt% and oxygen fugacity below that controlled by the NNO buffer. The compositions of mafic minerals in the MD composition were equilibrated at temperatures below 775°C and at subsolidus conditions. The equilibration was probably due to the reaction between water-rich, oxidizing residual melt and the cumulatic-restitic mineral assemblage. MD is characterized by occurrence of the euhedral cummingtonite and increasing anorthite content in the rims of plagioclase. A similar reaction was reproduced experimentally in both LPD and MD compositions indicating that cummingtonite may be a late magmatic phase in quartz dioritic systems, crystallizing very close to solidus and only from water saturated magma.     

Subarctic Pacific evidence for a glacial deepening of the oceanic respired carbon pool

Measurements of benthic foraminiferal cadmium:calcium (Cd/Ca) have indicated that the glacial–interglacial change in deep North Pacific phosphate (PO₄) concentration was minimal, which has been taken by some workers as a sign that the biological pump did not store more carbon in the deep glacial ocean. Here we present sedimentary redox-sensitive trace metal records from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 882 (NW subarctic Pacific, water depth 3244 m) to make inferences about changes in deep North Pacific oxygenation – and thus respired carbon storage – over the past 150,000 yr. These observations are complemented with biogenic barium and opal measurements as indicators for past organic carbon export to separate the influences of deep-water oxygen concentration and sedimentary organic carbon respiration on the redox state of the sediment. Our results suggest that the deep subarctic Pacific water mass was depleted in oxygen during glacial maxima, though it was not anoxic. We reconcile our results with the existing benthic foraminiferal Cd/Ca by invoking a decrease in the fraction of the deep ocean nutrient inventory that was preformed, rather than remineralized. This change would have corresponded to an increase in the deep Pacific storage of respired carbon, which would have lowered atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) by sequestering CO₂ away from the atmosphere and by increasing ocean alkalinity through a transient dissolution event in the deep sea. The magnitude of change in preformed nutrients suggested by the North Pacific data would have accounted for a majority of the observed decrease in glacial atmospheric pCO₂.     

Marcel Bertrand et „l'orogenèse programmée“

Résumé Marcel Bertrand (1847–1907) est surtout connu pour avoir été le promoteur de la tectonique des grandes nappes alpines. Le présent article entend attirer l'attention sur un aspect moins souvent abordé de son oeuvre. En passant en revue et comparant, de façon à la fois méthodique et empirique, les données alors disponibles, il découvre une homologie frappante entre les suites d'évènements qui ont abouti à la formation des grandes chaînes de montagnes successives de l'Europe. Chacune a ses gneiss, son «Flysch fin» précoce, son «Flysch grossier» tardif externe et enfin ses grès rouges (molasses); de même, pour l'histoire magmatique et même métallogénique (roches vertes précoces, puis granite, «porphyres» et enfin laves basiques post-tectoniques). Il est donc clair que Marcel Bertrand a été le véritable initiateur (se gardant de tout dogmatisme), du modèle «programmé» de l'orogenèse, en général attribué à Hans Stille et ses é mules. D'un point de vue historique, on peut voir dans sa conception de l'orogenèse une synthèse réconciliant plusieurs théories jusque là antagonistes: l'étagement des grandes formations universelles de Werner devient le produit régionalement hétérochrone des cycles de transformation de Hutton; et les soulèvements successifs catastrophiques d'Elie de Beaumont sont retraduits en termes lyelliens, processus lents et graduels, néanmoins récurrents et ordonnés.

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Marcel Bertrand (1847–1907) is best known for his trail-blazing recognition of the great nappes. The present paper draws attention to a lesser known side of his work: through a methodical, empirical review of the available data, Marcel Bertrand brought to light a striking similarity in the sequence of events which led to the formation of each of the successive mountain chains of Europe. Each has its own gneisses, early fine Flysch, later coarse external Flysch, and late red sandstone; and also the same magmatic (and even metallogenic) suite (early greenstones, then granite, porphyries, and finally post-tectonic basic lavas). Thus it appears that Marcel Bertrand was the real originator (avoiding any dogmatization) of the programmed model of orogeny commonly ascribed to Hans Stille and his followers. From a historical point of view, one may see in this conception of mountain building a conciliatory synthesis between some major antagonistic theories: the Wernerian universal formations become heterochronous products of the Huttonian cycle; and the catastrophic successive orogenies of Elie de Beaumont actually amount to slow, gradual, Lyellian processes, nonetheless orderly and recurrent.

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Zusammenfassung Marcel Bertrand ist besonders als der Entdecker der großen Alpinen Überschiebungen bekannt. Hier wird eine weniger bekannte Seite seines Werkes erwähnt: er hat klargemacht, daß die verschiedenen europäischen Gebirgsketten eine parallele und strukturierte Geschichte haben (sedimentär, magamatisch, metallogenisch). Eine objektive Zusammenstellung der tatsächlichen Kenntnisse zeigt, daß jedes Orogen seine Gneise, seinen feinen Flysch in dem zentralen Trog, seinen groben Flysch am Rand und sein Rotliegendes als Späterscheinung hat. In jedem Fall erkennt man die Anwesenheit von basischen Gesteinen als Früherscheinungen, von Graniten, dann von Porphyren und am Ende von posttektonischen, basischen Gesteinen. Hier kann man das von H. Stille und seinen Nachfolgern entwickelte Schema erkennen, das aber hier bei M. Bertrand rein empirisch bleibt. Vom historischen Standpunkt her ist es möglich, das Werk von M. Bertrand als die Synthese, die Zusammenfassung verschiedener, bis dahin antagonistisch gestellter Strömungen zu betrachten: der Wernersche, stufenartige, theoretische Bau wird zur heterochronen Folge des Huttonschen Zyklus; die nacheinander sich entwikkelnden katastrophalen Orogenesen von Elie de Beaumont werden, wie bei Lyell, langsam aber dennoch strukturiert und wiederkehrend.

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Technetium-99 content in some marine organisms collected near La Hague,France

Analyses for ⁹⁹Tc in some marine biological samples taken near the outlet of the low level radioactive effluent pipeline of the nuclear reprocessing plant of La Hague, France, gave positive results. From 500 to 3500 pCi kg^?1 wet weight of ⁹⁹Tc were observed in brown algae; Fucus sp. appeared to be a good indicator of this long-lived radionuclide in a marine environment.     

Simulations of an isolated two-dimensional thunderstorm: Sensitivity to cloud droplet size and the presence of graupel

Cloud Resolving Models (CRMs) which are used increasingly to make operational forecasts, employ Bulk Microphysics Schemes (BMSs) to describe cloud microphysical processes. In this study two BMSs are employed in a new Nonhydrostatic σ-coordinate Model to perform two hour simulations of convection initiated by a warm bubble, using a horizontal grid resolution of 500 m. Different configurations of the two BMSs are applied, to test the effects of the presence of graupel with one scheme (2-configurations) and of changing the cloud droplet sizes in the second scheme (4-configurations), on the simulation of idealised thunderstorms. Maximum updrafts in all the simulations are similar over the first 40 minutes, but start to differ beyond this point. The first scheme simulates the development of a second convective cell that is triggered by the cold pool that develops from the outflow of the first storm. The cold pool is more intense in the simulation with graupel because of melting of graupel particles, which results in relatively large raindrops, decreases the temperature through latent heat absorption, causing stronger downdrafts, which all contribute to the formation of a more intense cold pool. The second scheme simulates the development of a second cell in two of its configurations, while two other configurations do not simulate the redevelopment. Two configurations that simulate the secondary redevelopment produce a slightly stronger cold pool just before redevelopment. Our results show that small differences in the microphysics formulations result in simulations of storm dynamics that diverge, possibly due nonlinearities in the model.     

Relations between stellar mass and electron temperature-based metallicity for star-forming galaxies in a wide mass range

We select 947 star-forming galaxies from SDSS-DR7 with [O III]λ4363emission lines detected at a signal-to-noise ratio larger than 5σ. Their electron temperatures and direct oxygen abundances are then determined. We compare the results from different methods. t2, the electron temperature in the low ionization region, estimated from t3, that in the high ionization region, is compared using three analysis relations between t2- t3. These show obvious differences, which result in some different ionic oxygen abundances. The results of t3, t2, O++/H+and O+/H+derived by using methods from IRAF and literature are also compared. The ionic abundances O++/H+are higher than O+/H+for most cases. The different oxygen abundances derived from Teand the strong-line ratios show a clear discrepancy, which is more obvious following increasing stellar mass and strong-line ratio R23. The sample of galaxies from SDSS with detected [O III]λ4363 have lower metallicites and higher star formation rates, so they may not be typical representatives of the whole population of galaxies. Adopting data objects from Andrews Martini, Liang et al. and Lee et al. data, we derive new relations of stellar mass and metallicity for star-forming galaxies in a much wider stellar mass range: from 106 M to 1011 M.     

Summer air temperature,reconstructions from the last glacial stage based on rodents from the site Taillis-des-Coteaux (Vienne), Western France

The oxygen isotope composition of phosphate from tooth enamel of rodents (δ¹⁸O_p) constitutes a valuable proxy to reconstruct past air temperatures in continental environments. This method has been applied to rodent dental remains from three genera, Arvicola sp., Microtus sp. and Dicrostonyx sp., coming from Taillis-des-Coteaux, Vienne, France. This archaeological site contains an exceptionally preserved sedimentary sequence spanning almost the whole Upper Palaeolithic, including seven stratigraphic layers dated from 35 to 17 cal ka BP. The abundant presence of rodent remains offers the opportunity to quantify the climatic fluctuations coeval of the various stages of human occupation of the site. Differences between δ¹⁸O_p values of Arvicola sp. and Microtus sp. teeth are interpreted as the result of heterochrony in tooth formation as well as differences in ecology. Mean δ¹⁸O_p values of Microtus sp. are preferentially used to reconstruct summer air temperatures, which range from 16.0 ± 3.7 to 19.1 ± 3.1°C throughout the sedimentary sequence; however, the highest variability is observed during the last glacial maximum.     

Iron Distribution in Size‐Resolved Aerosols Generated by UV‐Femtosecond Laser Ablation: Influence of Cell Geometry and Implications for In Situ Isotopic Determination by LA‐MC‐ICP‐MS

The influence of ablation cell geometry (Frames single‐ and HelEx two‐volume cells) and laser wavelength (198 and 266 nm) on aerosols produced by femtosecond laser ablation (fs‐LA) were evaluated. Morphologies, iron mass distribution (IMD) and ⁵⁶Fe/⁵⁴Fe ratios of particles generated from magnetite, pyrite, haematite and siderite were studied. The following two morphologies were identified: spherules (10–200 nm) and agglomerates (5–10 nm). Similarity in IMD and ablation rate at 198 and 266 nm indicates similar ablation mechanisms. ⁵⁶Fe/⁵⁴Fe ratios increased with aerodynamic particle size as a result of kinetic fractionation during laser plasma plume expansion, cooling and aerosol condensation. The HelEx cell produces smaller particles with a larger range of ⁵⁶Fe/⁵⁴Fe ratios (1.85‰) than particles from the Frames cell (1.16‰), but the bulk aerosol matches the bulk substrate for both cells, demonstrating stoichiometric fs‐LA sampling. IMD differences are the result of faster wash out of the HelEx cell allowing less time for agglomeration of small, low‐δ ⁵⁶Fe particles with larger, high‐δ ⁵⁶Fe particles in the cell. Even with a shorter ablation time, half the total Fe ion intensity, and half the ablation volume, the HelEx cell produced Fe isotope determinations for magnetite that were as precise as the Frames cell, even when the latter included an aerosol‐homogenising mixing chamber. The HelEx cell delivered a more constant stream of small particles to the ICP, producing a more stable Fe ion signal (0.7% vs. 1.5% RSE for ⁵⁶Fe in a forty‐cycle single analysis), constant instrumental mass bias and thus a more precise measurement.     

The bi-decadal rainfall cycle,Southern Annular Mode and tropical cyclones over the Limpopo River Basin,southern Africa

The association between bi-decadal rainfall variability over southern Africa and the rainfall contributed by tropical cyclonic systems from the Southwest Indian Ocean (SWIO) provides a potential means towards understanding decadal-scale variability over parts of the region. A multi-decadal period is considered, focusing on the anomalous tropospheric patterns that induced a particularly wet 8-year long sub-period over the Limpopo River Basin. The wet sub-period was also characterized by a larger contribution to rainfall by tropical cyclones and depressions. The findings suggest that a broadening of the Hadley circulation underpinned by an anomalous anticyclonic pattern to the east of southern Africa altered tropospheric steering flow, relative vorticity and moisture contents spatially during the sub-period of 8 years. These circulation modulations induced enhanced potential for tropical systems from the SWIO to cause precipitation over the Limpopo River Basin. The same patterns are also conducive to increasing rainfall over the larger subcontinent, therefore explaining the positive association in the bi-decadal rainfall cycle and rainfall contributed by tropical cyclonic systems from the SWIO. An overview of regional circulation anomlies during alternating near-decadal wet and dry epochs is given. The regional circulation anomalies are also explained in hemispheric context, specifically in relation to the Southern Annular Mode, towards understanding variation over other parts of the Southern Hemisphere at this time scale.