Ventifacts on Earth and Mars: Analytical, field, and laboratory studies supporting sand abrasion and windward feature development

Terrestrial ventifacts – rocks that have been abraded by windblown particles – are found in desert, periglacial, and coastal environments. On Mars, their abundance suggests that aeolian abrasion is one of the most significant erosional processes on the planet. There are several conflicting viewpoints concerning the efficacy of potential abrasive agents, principally sand and dust, and the relationships between wind direction and ventifact form. Our research, supported by a review of the literature, shows that sand, rather than dust or other materials, is the principle abrasive agent on Earth and Mars. Relative to dust, sand delivers about 1000× the energy onto rock surfaces on a per particle basis. Even multiple dust collisions will do little or no damage because the stress field from the impact is much smaller than the spacing of microflaws in the rock. The abrasion profiles of terrestrial ventifacts are consistent with a kinetic energy flux due to saltating sand, not airborne dust. Furthermore, Scanning Electron Microscope images reveal surfaces that are fractured and cleaved by sand grain impact. With respect to their distribution, ventifacts are found in regions that contain sand or did so in the past, but are not found where only dust activity occurs. Contrary to some published reports, our evidence from field studies, analytical models, and wind tunnel and other experiments indicates that windward, not leeward, abrasion is responsible for facet development and feature formation (pits, flutes, and grooves). Leeward abrasion is confined to fluvial conditions, in which the high viscosity and density of water are able to entrain sand-size material in vortices. Therefore, ventifacts and abraded terrain provide an unambiguous proxy for the direction of the highest velocity winds, and can be used to reconstruct palaeowind flow.     

Spatial distribution of lead and lead isotopes in soil B-horizon, forest-floor humus, grass (Avenella flexuosa) and spruce (Picea abies) needles across the Czech Republic

Lead concentrations were determined in samples of soil B-horizon (N = 258), forest-floor humus (O-horizon, N = 259), grass (Avenella flexuosa, N = 251) and spruce (Picea abies, N = 253) needles (2nd year) collected at the same locations evenly spread over the territory of the Czech Republic at an average density of 1 site/300 km². Median Pb concentrations differ widely in the four materials: soil B-horizon: 27 mg/kg (3.3-220 mg/kg), humus: 78 mg/kg (19-1863 mg/kg), grass: 0.37 mg/kg (0.08-8 mg/kg) and spruce needles: 0.23 mg/kg (0.07-3 mg/kg). In the Pb distribution maps for humus, grass and spruce a number of well-known Pb-contamination sources are indicated by unusually high concentrations (e.g., the Pb smelter at Pribram, the metallurgical industry in the NE of the Czech Republic and along the Polish border, as well as the metallurgical industry in Upper Silesia and Europe’s largest coal-fired power plant at Bogatynia, Poland). The ratio ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb was determined in all four materials. The median value of the ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb isotope ratio in the soil B-horizon is 1.184 (variation: 1.145-1.337). In both humus and grass the median value for the ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb isotope ratio is 1.162 (variation: 1.130-1.182), in spruce needles the median ratio is 1.159 (variation: 1.116-1.186). In humus, grass and spruce needles the known contamination sources are all marked by higher ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb isotope ratios in the maps. Furthermore, the soil B-horizon, humus, grass and spruce needles show distinctly different spatial distribution patterns of the ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb isotope ratios. The B-horizon does not provide a viable background value for metal concentrations in the O-horizon or plant materials. None of the maps provides evidence for the importance of traffic-related emissions for the observed isotope ratios at the scale of the Czech Republic.     

Basic hydrology,limnology, and meteorology of modern Lake El’gygytgyn,Siberia

A survey of the modern physical setting of Lake El’gygytgyn, northeastern Siberia, is presented here to facilitate interpretation of a 250,000-year climate record derived from sediment cores from the lake bottom. The lake lies inside a meteorite impact crater that is approximately 18 km in diameter, with a total watershed area of 293 km², 110 km² of which is lake surface. The only surface water entering the lake comes from the approximately 50 streams draining from within the crater rim; a numbering system for these inlet streams is adopted to facilitate scientific discussion. We created a digital elevation model for the watershed and used it to create hypsometries, channel networks, and drainage area statistics for each of the inlet streams. Many of the streams enter shallow lagoons dammed by gravel berms at the lakeshore; these lagoons may play a significant role in the thermal and biological dynamics of the lake due to their higher water temperatures (>6°C). The lake itself is approximately 12 km wide and 175 m deep, with a volume of 14.1 km³. Water temperature within a column of water near the center of this oligotrophic, monomictic lake never exceeded 4°C over a 2.5 year record, though the shallow shelves (<10 m) surrounding the lake can reach 5°C in summer. Though thermally stratified in winter, the water appears completely mixed shortly after lake ice breakup in July. Mean annual air temperature measured about 200 m from the lake was −10.3°C in 2002, and an unshielded rain gage there recorded 70 mm of rain in summer of 2002. End of winter snow water equivalent on the lake was approximately 110 mm in May 2002. Analysis of NCEP reanalysis air temperatures (1948–2002) reveals that the 8 warmest years and 10 warmest winters have occurred since 1989, with the number of days below −30°C dropping from a pre-1989 mean of 35 to near 0 in recent years. The crater region is windy as well as cold, with hourly wind speeds exceeding 13.4 m s⁻¹ (30 mph) typically at least once each month and 17.8 m s⁻¹ (40 mph) in winter months, with only a few calm days per month; wind may also play an important role in controlling the modern shape of the lake. Numerous lines of evidence suggest that the physical hydrology and limnology of the lake has changed substantially over the past 3.6 million years, and some of the implications of these changes on paleoclimate reconstructions are discussed. This is the second in a series of eleven papers published in this special issue dedicated to initial studies of El'gygytgyn Crater Lake and its catchment in NE Russia. Julie Brigham-Grette, Martin Melles, Pavel Minyuk were guest editors of this special issue.     

Using additional roughness to characterize erosion control treatment effectiveness in roadside ditch lines

Forest roadside ditch lines capture and redirect road runoff and typically have erosion control treatments installed therein. Existing methods used to determine the effectiveness of roadside ditch line erosion control treatments estimate fixed fractional reductions in sediment yield. However, fixed fractional reductions do not describe dependence on any measurable physical property of treatment, climate, and the environment. Here, we use additional flow roughness induced by erosion control treatments as a metric that can be used as the basis of estimating treatment effectiveness in varying contexts. We investigate its utility in small-scale field experiments in western Washington. We measured the physical characteristics of each ditch (e.g., shape, soil texture, and slope) and flow velocities and sediment concentrations for each treatment under multiple experimental discharges. We then used the concept of shear stress partitioning to relate sediment yield from the ditch line erosion treatments to grain shear stress, which is a function of flow roughness (Manning's n) of the respective treatment. We found that (1) a given erosion control treatment produced consistent Manning's n values across multiple replications and sites, with a bare ditch (no treatment) yielding the lowest roughness (n = 0.05) and a densely wattled ditch yielding the highest roughness (n = 0.75); (2) sediment load and calculated grain shear stress data yielded a single positive relationship when data from each experiment were combined, which suggests the effect of additional roughness on grain shear stress is a main driver in the reduction of ditch line sediment load; and (3) in our dataset, fractional erosion reduction had a variable and nonlinear sensitivity to low flow rates (99% of observed flows) for lower roughnesses. Our results demonstrate how additional flow roughness can be used as a general metric to help evaluate the effectiveness of ditch line erosion control treatments for a variety of physical conditions.     

Response of a Lake Michigan coastal lake to anthropogenic catchment disturbance

A paleolimnological investigation of post-European sediments in a Lake Michigan coastal lake was used to examine the response of Lower Herring Lake to anthropogenic impacts and its role as a processor of watershed inputs. We also compare the timing of this response with that of Lake Michigan to examine the role of marginal lakes as early warning indicators of potential changes in the larger connected system and their role in buffering Lake Michigan against anthropogenic changes through biotic interactions and material trapping. Sediment geochemistry, siliceous microfossils and nutrient-related morphological changes in diatoms, identified three major trophic periods in the recent history of the lake. During deforestation and early settlement (pre-1845–1920), lake response to catchment disturbances results in localized increases in diatom abundances with minor changes in existing communities. In this early phase of disturbance, Lower Herring Lake acts as a sediment sink and a biological processor of nutrient inputs. During low-lake levels of the 1930s, the lake goes through a transitional period characterized by increased primary productivity and a major shift in diatom communities. Post-World War II (late 1940s–1989) anthropogenic disturbances push Lower Herring Lake to a new state and a permanent change in diatom community structure dominated by Cyclotella comensis. The dominance of planktonic summer diatom species associated with the deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM) is attributed to epilimnetic nutrient depletion. Declining Si:P ratios are inferred from increased sediment storage of biogenic silica and morphological changes in the silica content of Aulacoseira ambigua and Stephanodiscus niagarae. Beginning in the late 1940s, Lower Herring Lake functions as a biogeochemical processor of catchment inputs and a carbon, nutrient and silica sink. Microfossil response to increased nutrients and increased storage of biogenic silica in Lower Herring Lake and other regional embayments occur approximately 20–25 years earlier than in a nearby Lake Michigan site. Results from this study provide evidence for the role of marginal lakes and bays as nutrient buffering systems, delaying the impact of anthropogenic activities on the larger Lake Michigan system.     

Faculty Reappointment,Tenure, and Promotion: Barriers for Women

Women faculty continue to experience academe differently than male faculty. A review of recent literature indicates that women's representation on university faculties has advanced slowly; women are less likely to be tenured or promoted compared to male faculty; and women faculty earn less than their male colleagues. A recurring theme is that the intellectual and social isolation of women faculty affects their research productivity. Gender stereotypes held by colleagues, departmental and college administrators, and students also contribute to the difficulties women face in the reappointment, tenure, and promotion process. A personal perspective on the reappointment process is provided in order to illustrate how isolation and naïvete regarding the social structure of academe can affect a woman's career advancement. The benefits of greater representation of women on university faculties are reviewed, and departmental and college administrators are reminded of the important role they play in ensuring future gender‐balanced faculties.     

Intelligent Transportation Systems and Travel Behavior in Connecticut

In the past decade, there has been significant investment in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) technologies that provide information to both en‐route and pre‐trip travelers. However, there is no definitive evidence that en‐route travelers actually use the information and alter their travel patterns. Previous research employed surveys that relied on motorists' written or spoken responses to questions involving travel information and hypothetical roadway scenarios. This research examines travel behavior on freeways equipped with ITS technologies in Connecticut using collected real‐time traffic count data from the diversionary roadways. Results find that more travel is occurring on the diversionary routes during periods of variable message sign (VMS) messages than during equivalent periods having no messages, indicating a motorist travel response to these messages.     

Earthquake-induced burial of archaeological sites along the southern Washington coast about A.D. 1700

Although inhabited by thousands of people when first reached by Europeans, the Pacific coast of southern Washington has little recognized evidence of prehistoric human occupation. This apparent contradiction may be explained partly by geologic evidence for coastal submergence during prehistoric earthquakes on the Cascadia subduction zone. Recently discovered archaeological sites, exposed in the banks of two tidal streams, show evidence for earthquake-induced submergence and consequent burial by intertidal mud about A.D. 1700. We surmise that, because of prehistoric earthquakes, other archaeological sites may now lie hidden beneath the surfaces of modern tidelands. Such burial of archaeological sites raises questions about the estimation of prehistoric human population densities along coasts subject to earthquake-induced submergence. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.