Storm-induced turbidity currents on a sediment-starved shelf: Insight from direct monitoring and repeat seabed mapping of upslope migrating bedforms

The monitoring of turbidity currents enables accurate internal structure and timing of these flows to be understood. Without monitoring, triggers of turbidity currents often remain hypothetical and are inferred from sedimentary structures of deposits and their age. In this study, the bottom currents within 20 m of the seabed in one of the Pointe-des-Monts (Gulf of St. Lawrence, eastern Canada) submarine canyons were monitored for two consecutive years using Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers. In addition, multibeam bathymetric surveys were carried out during deployment of the Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers and recovery operations. These new surveys, along with previous multibeam surveys carried out over the last decade, revealed that crescentic bedforms have migrated upslope by about 20 to 40 m since 2007, despite the limited supply of sediment on the shelf or river inflow in the region. During the winter of 2017, two turbidity currents with velocities reaching 0·5 m sec⁻¹ and 2·0 m sec⁻¹, respectively, were recorded and were responsible for the rapid (<1 min) upstream migration of crescentic bedforms measured between the autumn surveys of 2016 and 2017. The 200 kg (in water) mooring was also displaced 10 m down-canyon, up the stoss side of a bedform, suggesting that a dense basal layer could be driving the flow during the first minute of the event. Two other weaker turbidity currents with speeds <0·5 m sec⁻¹ occurred, but did not lead to any significant change on the seabed. These four turbidity currents coincided with strong and sustained wind speed >60 km h⁻¹ and higher than normal wave heights. Repeat seabed mapping suggests that the turbidity currents cannot be attributed to a canyon-wall slope failure. Rather, sustained windstorms triggered turbidity currents either by remobilizing limited volumes of sediment on the shelf or by resuspending sediment in the canyon head. Turbidity currents can thus be triggered when the sediment volume available is limited, likely by eroding and incorporating canyon thalweg sediment in the flow, thereby igniting the flow. This process appears to be particularly important for the generation of turbidity currents capable of eroding the lee side of upslope migrating bedforms in sediment-starved environments and might have wider implications for the activity of submarine canyons worldwide. In addition, this study suggests that a large external trigger (in this case storms) is required to initiate turbidity currents in sediment-starved environments, which contrasts with supply-dominated environments where turbidity currents are sometimes recorded without a clear triggering mechanism.     

Multiple mantle sources during island arc magmatism: U–Pb and Hf isotopic evidence from the Kohistan arc complex, Pakistan

ABSTRACT This paper presents high-precision U–Pb ages and initial Hf isotopic compositions of zircon from mafic to felsic rocks of the Kohistan Arc Complex, Pakistan. Three magmatic pulses tapping geochemically different reservoirs are distinguished. Partial melting of mantle with MORB-type isotopic characteristics generated 99–92-Ma-old magmas. Plutonism around 85 Ma tapped a more fertile mantle source, most likely consisting of a >600-Ma-old metasomatically enriched mantle, or of mantle contaminated by an old sedimentary component; 82-Ma-old felsic peraluminous dykes have MORB-type isotopic compositions considered to be inherited from remelting earlier magmas in the deep base of the arc. The isotopic results demonstrate several and rather rapid changes in melt source region during arc development. They also show that there was subordinate continental influence and negligible importance of slab components for the Hf budget during the generation of the Kohistan Arc Complex.     

Continental subduction and exhumation of UHP rocks. Structural and geochronological insights from the Dabieshan (East China)

In the Dabieshan, the available models for exhumation of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) rocks are poorly constrained by structural data. A comprehensive structural and kinematic map and a general cross-section of the Dabieshan including its foreland fold belt and the Northern Dabieshan Domain (Foziling and Luzenguang groups) are presented here. South Dabieshan consists from bottom to top of stacked allochtons: (1) an amphibolite facies gneissic unit, devoid of UHP rocks, interpreted here as the relative autochton; (2) an UHP allochton; (3) a HP rock unit (Susong group) mostly retrogressed into greenschist facies micaschists; (4) a weakly metamorphosed Proterozoic slate and sandstone unit; and (5) an unmetamorphosed Cambrian to Early Triassic sedimentary sequence unconformably covered by Jurassic sandstone. All these units exhibit a polyphase ductile deformation characterized by (i) a NW–SE lineation with a top-to-the-NW shearing, and (ii) a southward refolding of early ductile fabrics.

The Central Dabieshan is a 100-km scale migmatitic dome. Newly discovered eclogite xenoliths in a Cretaceous granitoid dated at 102 Ma by the U–Pb method on titanite demonstrate that migmatization post-dates HP–UHP metamorphism. Ductile faults formed in the subsolidus state coeval to migmatization allow us to characterize the structural pattern of doming. Along the dome margins, migmatite is gneissified under post-solidus conditions and mylonitic–ultramylonitic fabrics commonly develop. The north and west boundaries of the Central Dabieshan metamorphics, i.e. the Xiaotian–Mozitan and Macheng faults, are ductile normal faults formed before Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous. A Cretaceous reworking is recorded by synkinematic plutons.

North of the Xiaotian–Mozitan fault, the North Dabieshan Domain consists of metasediments and orthogneiss (Foziling and Luzenguang groups) metamorphosed under greenschist to amphibolite facies which never experienced UHP metamorphism. A rare N–S-trending lineation with top-to-the-south shearing is dated at 260 Ma by the ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar method on muscovite. This early structure related to compressional tectonics is reworked by top-to-the-north extensional shear bands.

The main deformation of the Dabieshan consists of a NW–SE-stretching lineation which wraps around the migmatitic dome but exhibits a consistently top-to-the-NW sense of shear. The Central Dabieshan is interpreted as an extensional migmatitic dome bounded by an arched, top-to-the-NW, detachment fault. This structure may account for a part of the UHP rock exhumation. However, the abundance of amphibolite restites in the Central Dabieshan migmatites and the scarcity of eclogites (found only in a few places) argue for an early stage of exhumation and retrogression of UHP rocks before migmatization. This event is coeval to the N–S extensional structures described in the North Dabieshan Domain. Recent radiometric dates suggest that early exhumation and subsequent migmatization occurred in Triassic–Liassic times. The main foliation is deformed by north-verging recumbent folds coeval to the south-verging folds of the South Dabieshan Domain. An intense Cretaceous magmatism accounts for thermal resetting of most of the ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dates.

A lithosphere-scale exhumation model, involving continental subduction, synconvergence extension with inversion of southward thrusts into NW-ward normal faults and crustal melting is presented.     

Age and evolution of scheelite-hosting rocks in the Felbertal deposit (Eastern Alps): U-Pb geochronology of zircon and titanite

U-Pb isotope analyses of zircon and titanite extracted from different rocks of the Felbertal scheelite deposit yield the following information: (1) An age of 593±22 Ma (2) is obtained for zircon crystallization in the scheelite-bearing matrix of an eruption breccia in the western ore field. (2) Discordant zircons from an elongated, up to 8 m thick scheelite-rich quartzite body in the eastern ore field give an upper intercept age of 544±5 Ma. This quartzite contains a laminated, fine-grained scheelite mineralization. (3) Zircons from a small granitoid intrusion of the western ore field reveal an age of 336±16 Ma, and concordant titanites document an age of 282±2 Ma for Variscan amphibolite facies metamorphism. Both events, granitoid intrusion and later metamorphism caused ore re-mobilization, including the formation of yellowish fluorescent (molybdo-) scheelite porphyroblasts. (4) For a narrow lamprop-1hyric dike in the western ore field, a concordant titanite age of 283±7 Ma is obtained. This age is identical with the titanites from the amphibolite facies metamorphic intrusion. Tiny scheelite grains were tapped by the dike from pre-existing scheelite mineralizations in the truncated host rocks. (5) Alpine metamorphism at 31±4 Ma did not exceed lowermost amphibolite facies conditions, and it caused scheelite re-mobilization on a minor scale only, producing bluish fluorescent porphyroblasts in quartz veinlets and veins, as well as bluish fluorescent scheelite rims around older scheelite grains. Moreover, crosscutting Alpine fissure fillings show bluish fluorescent, inclusion-free scheelite. (6) The preservation of Variscan titanites, the absence of Alpine titanite growth, and the large degree of Variscan scheelite re-mobilization demonstrate that amphibolite facies metamorphism in the Felbertal area has a Variscan age. This result clearly documents Variscan tectono-metamorphism to be the dominant event, instead of the hitherto surmised Alpine metamorphism. This multi-stage evolution of the Felbertal ore bodies corroborates the view that tungsten deposits are conditioned by several succeeding thermal events, leading to a series of stages that ultimately produce high-grade scheelite concentrations. These high-grade ores predominately occur along shear zones of different age, accompanied by the formation of large volumes of low-grade scheelite mineralizations along host rock foliations and quartz veinlets and veins.     

A chromate-contaminated site in southern Switzerland – Part 1: Site characterization and the use of Cr isotopes to delineate fate and transport

The risk of groundwater contamination by chromate at a former chromite ore processing industrial site in Rivera (Switzerland) was assessed by determining subsoil Cr(VI) concentrations and tracking naturally occurring Cr(VI) reduction with Cr isotopes. Using a hot alkaline extraction procedure, a total Cr(VI) contamination of several 1000 kg was estimated. Jarosite, KFe₃((SO₄)_x(CrO₄)_1−x)₂(OH)₆, and chromatite (CaCrO₄) were identified as Cr(VI) bearing mineral phases using XRD, both limiting groundwater Cr(VI) concentrations. To track assumed Cr(VI) reduction at field scale δ⁵³Cr values of contaminated subsoil samples in addition to groundwater δ⁵³Cr data are used for the first time. The measurements showed a fractionation of groundwater δ⁵³Cr values towards positive values and subsoil δ⁵³Cr towards negative values confirming reduction of soluble Cr(VI) to insoluble Cr(III). Using a Rayleigh fractionation model, a current Cr(VI) reduction efficiency of approximately 31% along a 120 m long flow path was estimated at an average linear groundwater velocity of 3.3 m/d. Groundwater and subsoil δ⁵³Cr values were compared with a site specific Rayleigh fractionation model proposing that subsoil δ⁵³Cr values can possibly be used to track previous higher Cr(VI) reduction efficiency during the period of industrial activity. The findings strongly favor monitored natural attenuation to be part of the required site remediation measures.     

Improving noble gas based paleoclimate reconstruction and groundwater dating using Ne/Ne ratios

The interpretation of noble gas concentrations in groundwater with respect to recharge temperature and fractionated excess gas leads to different results on paleo-climatic conditions and on residence times depending on the choice of the gas partitioning model. Two fractionation models for the gas excess are in use, one assuming partial re-equilibration of groundwater supersaturated by excess air (PR-model, Stute et al., 1995), the other assuming closed-system equilibration of groundwater with entrapped air (CE-model, Aeschbach-Hertig et al., 2000). In the example of the Continental Terminal aquifers in Niger, PR- and CE- model are both consistent with the data on elemental noble gas concentrations (Ne, Ar, Kr, and Xe). Only by including the isotope ratio ²⁰Ne/²²Ne it can be demonstrated that the PR-model has to be rejected and the CE-model should be applied to the data. In dating applications ³He of atmospheric origin (³He_atm) required to calculate ³H-³He water ages is commonly estimated from the Ne excess presuming that gas excess is unfractionated air (UA-model). Including in addition to the Ne concentration the ²⁰Ne/²²Ne ratio and the concentration of Ar enables a rigorous distinction between PR-, CE- and UA-model and a reliable determination of ³He_atm and of ³H-³He water ages.