Authigenic zeolites and their relation to silica diagenesis in ODP Site 661 sediments (Leg 108, Eastern Equatorial Atlantic)

At ODP Site 661 from the continental margin of Northwest Africa, authigenic clinoptilolites were investigated in detail. Based on chemical data, crystal size and shape and their intergrowth with associated mineral phases, two types of clinoptilolite (type A and B) occur representing different diagenetic conditions under which the formation of zeolites took place. Clinoptilolite type A was found in a sediment section comprises numerous hiatuses and stratigraphically condensed sediments and could have been formed during early diagenesis. In contrast, clinoptilolite type B was precipitated in Campanian sediments during later diagenesis, after the transformation from opal-A to opal-CT had taken place. At Site 661, the silica source for the authigenesis of both clinoptilolite types is biogenic opal. Volcanic ash material occurs, but in low amounts and thus is not a prerequisite for the formation of clinoptilolite at Site 661.

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Zusammenfassung In der ODP-Bohrung 661 (Leg 108) vom Kontinentalrand vor Nordwest-Afrika wurden authigene Klinoptilolith-Kristalle mit Hilfe der Rasterelektronenmikroskopie, Röntgendiffraktometrie und Mikrosonde im Detail untersucht. Anhand der Kristallgrößen und -formen, ihren Verwachsungen mit anderen Mineralphasen und ihren chemischen Zusammensetzungen wurden 2 Klinoptilolithtypen (Typ A und B) unterschieden. Typ A wurde in stratigraphisch kondensierten Sedimenten nachgewiesen und könnte im Zuge von frühdiagenetischen Porenwasserreaktionen entstanden sein. Klinoptilolithtyp B, welcher vorwiegend in den campanen Sedimenten der ODP-Bohrung 661 vorkommt, wurde während der späteren Silikatdiagenese nach der Transformation von Opal-A in Opal-CT gebildet. Als Silikatquelle für die Kristallisation beider Klinoptilolithtypen wurden überwiegend biogene Opalskelette benutzt. Vulkanisches Aschenmaterial, welches ebenfalls ein Potential für die Klinoptilolithentstehung bildet, wurde nur in einem Horizont nachgewiesen und hatte keinen wesentlichen Einfluß auf die Klinoptilolithentstehung.

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Résumé Des cristaux de clinoptilolite authigène, provenant du site ODP 661 (marge continentale nord-ouest-africaine), ont fait l'objet d'une étude détaillée par microscopie électronique, diffractométrie X et microsonde. Les données chimiques, la taille et la forme des cristaux ainsi que leur intercroissance avec d'autres phases minérales permettent de distinguer 2 types (A et B) de clinoptinolite, qui correspondent aux conditions diagénétiques différentes dans lesquelles les zéolites se sont formées. La clinoptilolite de type A a été rencontrée dans une succession de sédiments stratigraphiquement condensés; elle pourrait s'être formée au début de la diagenèse. La clinoptilolite de type B, par contre, rencontrée surtout dans les sédiments campaniens a précipité au cours des stades tardifs de la diagenèse, après la transformation de l'opale A en opale CT. Au site 661, la source de silice nécessaire à la formation authigène des deux types de clinoptilolite est constituée par l'opale biogénique. Les cendres volcaniques qui pourraient éventuellement être à l'origine de la formation de clinoptilolite, n'ont été rencontrées que dans un seul horizon et n'ont joué aucun rôle en l'occurence.

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Some assessments of the potential 2 × CO2 climatic effects on water balance components in the eastern mediterranean

General circulation model (GCM) coarse evaluations of the climatological impact in the Eastern Mediterranean due to global doubling of the atmospheric CO₂ concentration were used as input for apreliminary estimation of modifications in local processes affecting the water balance in this region. It is suggested that: (i) in the 2 × CO₂ climate theaverage regional change of precipitation associated with typical mid-winter cyclonic systems is relatively small, however, it is associated with redistribution of the regional rainfall; (ii) in the elevated terrain in the northern part of the region, daytime snowmelt due to warm air advection may be enhanced, as much as 2.8 cm per day; and (iii) transpiration in the coastal area of the Eastern Mediterranean may increase by ~ 13% of its current level in the summer and somewhat more in the winter.     

Oxygen isotope compositions of selected laramide-tertiary granitoid stocks in the Colorado Mineral Belt and their bearing on the origin of climax-type granite-molybdenum systems

Quartz phenocrysts from 31 granitoid stocks in the Colorado Mineral Belt yield ¹⁸O values less than 10.4, with most values between 9.3 and 10.4. An average magmatic value of about 8.5 is suggested. The stocks resemble A-type granites; these data support magma genesis by partial melting of previously depleted, fluorine-enriched, lower crustal granulites, followed by extreme differentiation and volatile evolution in the upper crust.Subsolidus interaction of isotopically light water with stocks has reduced most feldspar and whole rock ¹⁸O values. Unaltered samples from Climax-type molybdenumbearing granites, however, show no greater isotopic disturbance than samples from unmineralized stocks. Although meteoric water certainly played a role in post-mineralization alteration, particularly in feldspars, it is not required during high-temperature mineralization processes. We suggest that slightly low ¹⁸O values in some vein and replacement minerals associated with molybdenum mineralization may have resulted from equilibration with isotopically light magmatic water and/or heavy isotope depletion of the ore fluid by precipitation of earlier phases.Accumulation of sufficient quantities of isotopically light magmatic water to produce measured depletions of ¹⁸O requires extreme chemical stratification in a large magma reservoir. Upward migration of a highly fractionated, volatile-rich magma into a small apical Climax-type diapir, including large scale transport of silica, alkalis, molybdenum, and other vapor soluble elements, may occur with depression of the solidus temperature and reduction of magma viscosity by fluorine. Climax-type granites may provide examples of ¹⁸O depletion in magmatic systems without meteoric water influx.     

Tectonics of the Easter plate

We present a new model for the Easter plate in which rift propagation has resulted in the formation of a rigid plate between the propagating and dying ridges. We use the distribution of earthquakes, eleven new focal mechanisms, and existing bathymetric and magnetic data to describe the tectonics of this area. Both the Easter-Nazca and Easter-Pacific Euler poles are sufficiently close to the Easter plate to cause rapid changes in rates and directions of motion along the boundaries. The east and west boundaries are propagating and dying ridges; the southwest boundary is a slow-spreading ridge and the northern boundary is a complex zone of convergent and transform motion.The Easter plate may reflect the tectonics of rift propagation on a large scale, where rigid plate tectonics requires boundary reorientation. We use simple schematic models to illustrate the general features and processes which occur at plates resulting from large-scale rift propagation.     

Statistical mapping of PM10 concentrations over Western Europe using secondary information from dispersion modeling and MODIS satellite observations

This paper illustrates the use of statistical techniques to standardize ground based measurements of particulate matter (PM10). Concentrations are interpolated over Western Europe using uncertain secondary information from a chemical transport model and of aerosol optical thickness from MODIS satellite observations. A consistent overview of PM10 concentrations over Europe based solely on ground based measurements is complicated by differences between countries. Different monitoring methods are used and calibrations are applied. There also is an inherent limitation to the spatial representativeness of ground based measurements. Validation showed that adding secondary information from either the chemical transport model or the satellite observations improved the PM10 mapping. The URMSE decreased from 5.14 to 4.26 and 4.58, respectively. A combination of both sources of secondary information gave the most accurate and precise predictions, with an URMSE of 3.62. This means that both external sources contain additional information on the spatial distribution of PM10 concentrations and should therefore be preferred.     

Neotectonic faulting and the Late Weichselian shoreline gradients in SW Norway

The Younger Dryas (YD) maximum highstand shoreline in SW Norway has traditionally been considered as being slightly concave, gradually steepening in the direction of uplift. This phenomenon is attributed to geoidal and isostatic effects near the former ice-sheet margin. On the basis of isolation basin data from the region, we have reconstructed this shoreline, and a Bølling-Allerød (B-A) lowstand shoreline, along three profiles in SW Norway. Along all profiles there are shore levels which, within the error limits estimated, cannot be captured by a single straight (or curved) shoreline. The anomalous shore levels occur near major fault zones and are interpreted to reflect differential uplift rates on opposite sides of faults, superimposed on the general glacio-isostatic tilting of the region. The inferred faulting is consistent with observations previously reported as neotectonic ‘claims’ in the region and shed new light on the deformational structures observed in seismic profiles of the fjord sediments. Excluding the anomalous shore levels, a straight shoreline with gradient ca. 1.1 m/km provides the best and most consistent representation of the YD shore levels along the three profiles. The B-A lowstand shoreline is constrained by fewer data points, but is approximately parallel-dipping the highstand shoreline. Our reconstructions imply a less steep YD maximum highstand shoreline compared to previous reconstructions, where gradients up to 1.4 m/km have been inferred. This may imply that the ice load effect on the lithosphere in SW Norway during the YD is less than previously assumed.     

Hydrogeochemical and Geophysical Evaluation of the Recharge Zone of Guarani Aquifer in Municipally of Candelária,Rio Grande do Sul,Brazil

Geotechnical and Geological Engineering - A large part of the Guarani Aquifer is located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil) and additionally possesses a recharge area located in its central...     

GIS-based approach for evaluating a community intrinsic resilience index

Natural Hazards - Community resilience refers to the degree to which a community can survive and recover following a disaster. While resilience itself is well understood, decisions that would...     

The marine 14C age of the Vedde Ash Bed along the west coast of Norway

Articulated molluscs, sea urchins and barnacle fragments close to the Vedde Ash Bed in a shallow marine deposit on the west coast of Norway have been ¹⁴C dated. The weighted mean of four dates from a sediment slice 8 cm thick centred on the Vedde Ash Bed is 10920 ± 24 ¹⁴C yr BP. The most accurate ¹⁴C age of the Vedde Ash from terrestrial plant macrofossils is 10310 ± 50 yr BP. The difference is the ¹⁴C reservoir age for coastal water at the west coast of Norway during the mid‐Younger Dryas and equals 610 ± 55 yr. This is 230 yr older than the reservoir age for the Bølling/Allerød and for the present day in this area. The result supports earlier conclusions of a higher reservoir age for the Younger Dryas in the North Atlantic and Nordic Seas, although our reservoir age of 610 ± 55 yr is a few hundred years younger. This suggests that the ¹⁴C reservoir age at Vedde Ash time may increase from coastal water towards the open North Atlantic and Nordic Seas. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.