Glacial rebound of the British Isles—II. A high-resolution, high-precision model

Observations of ice movements across the British Isles and of sea-level changes around the shorelines during Late Devensian time (after about 25 000 yr BP) have been used to establish a high spatial and temporal resolution model for the rebound of Great Britain and associated sea-level change. The sea-level observations include sites within the margins of the former ice sheet as well as observations outside the glaciated regions such that it has been possible to separate unknown earth model parameters from some ice-sheet model parameters in the inversion of the glacio-hydro-isostatic equations. The mantle viscosity profile is approximated by a number of radially symmetric layers representing the lithosphere, the upper mantle as two layers from the base of the lithosphere to the phase transition boundary at 400 km, the transition zone down to 670 km depth, and the lower mantle. No evidence is found to support a strong layering in viscosity above 670 km other than the high-viscosity lithospheric layer. Models with a low-viscosity zone in the upper mantle or models with a marked higher viscosity in the transition zone are less satisfactory than models in which the viscosity is constant from the base of the lithosphere to the 670 km boundary. In contrast, a marked increase in viscosity is required across this latter boundary. The optimum effective parameters for the mantle beneath Great Britain are: a lithospheric thickness of about 65 km, a mantle viscosity above 670 km of about (4-5) 10²⁰ Pa s, and a viscosity below 670 km greater than 4 × 10²¹ Pa s.     

Subsidence and flexure along the Pratt-Welker seamount chain

Chemical and age data led Turner, Jarrard and Forbes to conclude that the origin of the Pratt-Welker seamount chain in the Gulf of Alaska cannot be attributed to a single cause. They argued instead that some seamounts in the chain formed over a hotspot, away from a ridge, while others formed near a ridge. They also noted that the latter group of guyots were generally deeper than the former and they used this observation to predict the origin of the unsampled seamounts in the chain. A second geophysical test of the origin hypothesis is to examine the degree of isostatic compensation of the guyots; seamounts formed near a ridge should be in a state of local isostatic compensation, while seamounts formed away from a ridge should be regionally compensated. This test has been carried out using GEOS 3 and SEASAT altimeter data. The effective flexural rigidity of the lithosphere below all seamounts is found to be less than about 10²⁰ Nm, such that the isostatic state is nearly local, rather than regional. This may be a consequence of all the seamounts having formed on an initially weak lithosphere, of stress relaxation subsequant to their formation away from the ridge, or both. If the seamounts from Giacomini to Durgin formed away from the ridge then these results point to an effective flexural rigidity at the time of loading of about 3 × 10²¹ Nm and to a stress-relaxation time of about 10⁶ years. These values are for an ocean lithosphere that was about 20–22 my old when loaded. Corresponding values for 60 my old lithosphere in the southern Pacific were previously found to be about 3 × 10²² Nm and 5 × 10⁶ years. This comparison suggests that both the initial elastic response and the rate of stress relaxation are functions of the age of the lithosphere. The subsidence of guyots is due to numerous factors including thermal contraction of the seafloor, sediment loading, the flexure of the lithosphere prior to its subduction along the Aleutian Trench and, in view of the above short stress relaxation time, stress relaxation. A principal uncertainty in evaluating the subsidence that has occurred subsequent to the seamount having been eroded to sealevel is the erosion time interval. The comparison of the predicted subsidence with observed depths points to an erosion time constant of the order of 5 my and which is a function of seamount size. The conclusions from the flexure and subsidence analysis as to where the various seamounts formed are in agreement with those of Turner et al. Giacomini, Quinn, Surveyor, Pratt and Durgin formed away from a ridge and are consistent with a fixed hotspot and uniform spreading rate model. The geophysical information for Denson, Davidson and Hodgkins is consistent with the hypothesis that these guyots formed near or on a ridge. The case for Welker seamount is ambiguous, and this guyot may have formed over a second hotspot, located at an intermediate distance between the first and the ridge. The geophysical evidence for Bowie seamount is also ambiguous. Possibly it has a similar source to Welker, suggesting that there may actually be three different origin mechanisms that led to the chain.     

A water-budget approach to restoring a sedge fen affected by diking and ditching

A vast, ground-water-supported sedge fen in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, USA was ditched in the early 1900 s in a failed attempt to promote agriculture. Dikes were later constructed to impound seasonal sheet surface flows for waterfowl management. The US Fish and Wildlife Service, which now manages the wetland as part of Seney National Wildlife Refuge, sought to redirect water flows from impounded C-3 Pool to reduce erosion in downstream Walsh Ditch, reduce ground-water losses into the ditch, and restore sheet flows of surface water to the peatland. A water budget was developed for C-3 Pool, which serves as the central receiving and distribution body for water in the affected wetland. Surface-water inflows and outflows were measured in associated ditches and natural creeks, ground-water flows were estimated using a network of wells and piezometers, and precipitation and evaporation/evapotranspiration components were estimated using local meteorological data. Water budgets for the 1999 springtime peak flow period and the 1999 water year were used to estimate required releases of water from C-3 Pool via outlets other than Walsh Ditch and to guide other restoration activities. Refuge managers subsequently used these results to guide restoration efforts, including construction of earthen dams in Walsh Ditch upslope from the pool to stop surface flow, installation of new water-control structures to redirect surface water to sheet flow and natural creek channels, planning seasonal releases from C-3 Pool to avoid erosion in natural channels, stopping flow in downslope Walsh Ditch to reduce erosion, and using constructed earthen dams and natural beaver dams to flood the ditch channel below C-3 Pool. Interactions between ground water and surface water are critical for maintaining ecosystem processes in many wetlands, and management actions directed at restoring either ground- or surface-water flow patterns often affect both of these components of the water budget. This approach could thus prove useful in guiding restoration efforts in many hydrologically altered and managed wetlands worldwide.     

Diatom paleoecology of Laguna Zoncho,Costa Rica

We analyzed diatoms in a sediment profile from Laguna Zoncho in southern Pacific Costa Rica (lake elevation 1190 m asl, depth 2.6 m, area 0.75 ha) spanning some 3240 cal yr. Diatoms are common in the profile, which we subdivide into three zones. Zone C (3240–1020 cal yr B.P.) is dominated by Staurosira construens var. venter and Aulacoseira spp.; during this time, the lake was dilute and circumneutral. Benthic and acidophilous taxa increase gradually in the upper section of this zone. Zone B (1020–460 cal yr B.P.) almost totally lacks Aulacoseira, and instead is dominated by combinations of Eunotia minor, Encyonema lunatum, Gomphonema gracile, and Pinnularia braunii. Previous pollen and charcoal analysis indicates that this zone falls within the peak of prehistoric agricultural activity at the lake, but diatoms may also reflect climate change. During this period, the lake was likely shallower and more acidic, but not eutrophic. Finally, Zone A (460 cal yr B.P. to AD 1997) begins near a 1.5-cm tephra layer from nearby Volcán Barú; diatom assemblages are dominated by Aulacoseira spp., and suggest deepening of the lake and return to conditions similar to Zone C. This was a time of indigenous population decline and forest recovery in the Zoncho region, probably reflecting the impact of European diseases on the native population, although climate change and impacts of the tephra deposition cannot be wholly discounted.     

The origin and evolution of magmas from the San Pedro-Pellado volcanic complex,S. Chile: multicomponent sources and open system evolution

The San Pedro-Pellado volcanic complex is located at 36° S in the Chilean Andes. The eruptive rocks of the complex record the development and collapse of a caldera, followed by voluminous, largely basaltic andesite, volcanism. At each stage of evolution, crystal fractionation was accompanied by variable degrees of contamination and mixing. Large variations in incompatible element ratios cannot be produced by closed system evolution. Correlations between indices of differentiation and incompatible element ratios, together with high ¹⁸O values, indicate that basaltic andesites have assimilated crust to generate the evolved volcanic rocks at San Pedro-Pellado. Even in the most mafic rocks, however, incompatible element characteristics are variable as a result of source heterogeneity and deep level processes. The restricted ranges in isotope ratios of Sr, Nd and Pb among San Pedro-Pellado rocks are due to the small contrast in isotopic compositions between magma and wallrock. Three source components are recognized as contributing to parental magmas at San Pedro-Pellado. Although the relative contributions of each cannot be quantified, the volumetrically dominant source component is the sub-arc asthenospheric mantle (MORB source). The major source of LILE is thought to be slab-derived fluids which modified the sub-arc mantle. Other incompatible elements may also have been enriched by interaction with the continental lithosphere (mantle and/or lower crust) during ascent.     

The informal Australian city

In recent years, a vibrant literature on urban informality has emerged in urban geography. A key claim of this literature is that informality is not only present in cities in the Global South, and that the concept can be usefully applied to understand important dimensions of urbanisation in cities in the Global North. In this paper, we apply insights from that literature to an examination of informality in Australian cities, as a means of deepening our understanding of changes currently underway in urban governance and politics. Drawing on that literature and our own research into informal practices in Australian cities, we examine the forces that help to produce informality, the diverse forms and agents of informality, the forms of authority that they enact, and their relationship to formal economies, regulations and politics. We use examples of informal housing, informal labour, do-it-yourself music venues, graffiti and its regulation, food foraging, and queer community building in Sydney to illustrate our arguments. We conclude by reflecting on the lessons learnt across these diverse cases for our understanding of urban governance and politics in Australia, and offer an agenda for further research on this issue.     

The <Emphasis Type="Italic">M</Emphasis><Subscript>w</Subscript> 3.1–4.7 earthquakes in the southern Baltic Sea and adjacent areas in 2000, 2001 and 2004

The area south and east of the Baltic Sea has very minor seismic activity. However, occasional events occur as illustrated by four events in recent years, which are analysed in this study: near Wittenburg, Germany, on May 19, 2000, M _w = 3.1, near Rostock, Germany, on July 21, 2001, M _w = 3.4 and in the Kaliningrad area, Russia, two events on September 21, 2004 with M _w = 4.6 and 4.7. Locations, magnitudes (M _L and M _w) and focal mechanisms were determined for the two events in Germany. Synthetic modeling resulted in a well-confined focal depth for the Kaliningrad events. The inversion of macroseismic observations provided simultaneous solutions of the location, focal depth and epicentral intensity. The maximum horizontal compressive stress orientations obtained from focal mechanism solutions, approximately N–S for the two German events and NNW–SSE for the Kaliningrad events, show a good agreement with the regionally oriented crustal stress field.     

A flume experiment to examine underwater sound generation by flowing water

The hydrogeomorphology and ecology of rivers and streams has been subject of intensive research for many decades. However, hydraulically-generated acoustics have been mostly neglected, even though this physical attribute is a robust signal in fluvial ecosystems. Physical generated underwater sound can be used to quantify hydro-geomorphic processes, to differentiate among aquatic habitat types, and it has implications on the behavior of organisms. In this study, acoustic signals were quantified in a flume by varying hydro-geomorphic drivers and the related turbulence and bubble formation. The acoustic signals were recorded using two hydrophones and analyzed using a signal processing software, over 31 third-octave bands (20 Hz–20 kHz), and then combined in 10 octave bands. The analytical method allowed for a major improvement of the signal-to-noise ratio, therefore greatly reducing the uncertainty in our analyses. Water velocity, relative submergence, and flow obstructions were manipulated in the flume and the resultant acoustic signals recorded. Increasing relative submergence ratio and water velocity were important for reaching a turbulence threshold above which distinct sound levels were generated. Increases in water velocity resulted in increased sound levels over a wide range of frequencies. The increases in sound levels due to relative submergence of obstacles were most pronounced in midrange frequencies (125 Hz–2 kHz). Flow obstructions in running waters created turbulence and air bubble formation, which again produced specific sound signatures.