Trace fossils from Talchir carbonate concretions,Giridih basin,Jharkhand

The carbonate concretions occurring at the bottom of Talchir fissile shale facies preserved signatures of various trace fossils along with a cast of doubtful organisms and cyanobacterial mat structures. The host shale deposited under glacial melt water fed lacustrine condition. The concretions, formed in poorly oxygenated conditions, are either of syndepositional origin and/or deposited a little below the sediment water interface and were later exhumed to the depositional surface due to erosion of soft mud overlying them. The trace fossils are both megascopic and microscopic in nature. The megascopic trace fossils are identified on the basis of their morphology as Monocraterion and Rhizocorallium. Some of the megascopic structures described remain problematic at present. The microscopic trace fossils are formed due to the activity of marine meiofauna (possibly by nematodes), which, although produced morphologically show similar traces of known larger ichnogeneras but much smaller than them. The discovery of these trace fossils apparently indicate the influx of saline water into a lacustrine domain during the Talchir sedimentation at Giridih basin. Moreover, presence of the above two megascopic trace fossils in the marine lacustrine carbonate concretions may lead researchers to consider their much wider environmental significance than hitherto believed.     

Petrology and geochemistry of LaPaz Icefield 02205: A new unique low-Ti mare-basalt meteorite

LaPaz Icefield 02205 (LAP 02205) is a new low-Ti mare-basalt meteorite that was discovered in the LaPaz Ice Field in Antarctica. This is the first crystalline lunar basalt in the US Antarctic collection and the only 5th unbrecciated mare-basalt meteorite to be discovered to date. The rock has a typical basaltic texture with tabular and elongated pyroxene and plagioclase crystals, and minor olivine grains commonly rimmed by pyroxenes. Core- to rim-zoning in terms of Fe and Mg is present in almost all pyroxene grains. Accessory minerals include ilmenite, chromite, ulvöspinel, troilite, and FeNi metal. This rock is highly enriched in late-stage mesostasis. Free silica is also abundant. In terms of texture and mineralogy, LAP 02205 displays features of low-Ti mare basalts, with similarities to some low-Ti Apollo 12 and Apollo 15 basalts. Whole-rock major- and trace-element compositions confirm the highly fractionated nature of this basalt. The whole-rock REE contents of the meteorite are the highest among all known low-Ti mare basalts. The platinum group element (PGE) contents in LAP are also enriched suggesting the possibility of endogenously enriched source regions or the PGEs generally behaved as incompatible elements during crystal fractionation under low fO₂ conditions. Trace-element contents of mineral grains in LAP 02205 display wide variations, suggesting extensive non-equilibrium crystallization. The REE concentrations in the earliest-formed minerals provide constraints on the composition of the parental liquid, which is similar to the measured whole-rock composition. Crystallization modeling of the LAP 02205 bulk composition yields a reasonable fit between predicted and observed mineral phases and compositions, except for the high-Mg olivine cores, which are observed in the rock but not predicted by the modeling. An isochron age of 2929 ± 150 Ma for phosphate minerals makes this rock one of the youngest lunar basalts known to date. The young age and specific geochemical characteristics of LAP distinguish it from those of most other low-Ti mare basalts. However, the low-Ti mare basalt meteorite, NWA 032, has a similar young age, and the two meteorites also appear to be closely related from some geochemical perspectives and might have originated from similar source regions on the Moon.     

Multi-stage metasomatism of diamondiferous eclogite xenoliths from the Udachnaya kimberlite pipe,Yakutia, Siberia

The primary garnet (pyrope-almandine)-omphacite (Cpx 1, 6.5–7 wt% Na₂O)-sulfide (Fe-Ni-Co mss) assemblage of the two diamondiferous eclogite xenoliths studied (U33/1 and UX/1) experienced two mantle metasomatic events. The metasomatic event I is recorded by the formation of platy phlogopite (~ 10 wt% K₂O), prior to incorporation of the xenoliths in the kimberlite. The bulk of the metasomatic alteration, consisting of spongy-textured clinopyroxene (Cpx 2A, 1–3 wt% Na₂O), coarser-grained clinopyroxene (Cpx 2B, 2–5 wt% Na₂O), pargasitic amphibole (~ 0.8 wt% K₂O; 3–3.5 wt% Na₂O), kelyphite (Cpx 3, mostly <1 wt% Na₂O; and zoned Mg-Fe-Al spinel), sodalite, calcite, K-feldspar, djerfisherite (K_5.95Na_0.02Fe_18.72Ni_2.36Co_0.01Cu_4.08S₂₆Cl ) and a small amount of K-Ca-Fe-Mg glass, is ascribed to the metasomatic event II that occurred also in the upper mantle, but after the xenoliths were incorporated in the kimberlite. A pervasive chloritic alteration (mainly clinochlore + magnetite) that overprints earlier assemblages probably took place in the upper crustal environment. The diamonds are invariably associated with secondary clinopyroxene and chlorite, but the diamonds formed before the entrainment of the xenoliths in the Udachnaya kimberlite.Editorial Responsibility: T.L. Grove     

Response of Sandy Lake in Schirmacher Oasis,East Antarctica to the glacial-interglacial climate shift

Freshwater lakes in Antarctica fluctuate from ice-free state (during austral summer) to ice-cover state (during austral winter). Hence the lakes respond instantly to the seasonal climate of the region. The Antarctic seasons respond sharply to the glacial and interglacial climates and these signatures are archived in the lake sediments. A sediment core from Sandy Lake, a periglacial lake located in Schirmacher Oasis of East Antarctica records distinct changes in grain-size, C, N, C/N ratios (atomic), δ¹³C_OM and δ¹⁵N_OM contents during the last 36 ky. The contents of the sedimentary organic matter (OM) proxies (C_org ~ 0.3 ± 0.2%, C/N ratios ~9 ± 5 and δ¹³C_OM ~?18 ± 6‰) indicate that the OM in this lake sediment is a product of mixing of terrestrial and lacustrine biomass. Distinctly lower contents of C_org (~0.2%) and sand (~50%), low C/N ratios (~8) and depleted δ¹³C_OM (~?20‰) during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM: 32–17 ky BP based on Vostok Temperatures) suggest greater internal (autochthonous) provenance of organic matter and limited terrestrial (allochthonous) inputs probably due to long and intense winters in the Antarctic. Such intense winters might have resulted the lake surface to be ice-covered for most part of the year when the temperatures remained consistently colder than the Holocene temperatures. The denitrification within the lake evident by enriched δ¹⁵N_OM (>10‰) during Antarctic LGM might have resulted from oxygen-limitation within the lake environment caused by insulated lake surface. The gradual increases in δ¹³C_OM, C/N and sand content starting at ~11 ky BP and attaining high values (~?11‰, ~10 and ~80% respectively) at ~6 ky BP together suggest a subtle change in the balance of sources of organic matter between algal and macrophyte/bryophyte nearly 8–9 ky later to the beginning of the deglaciation. Thus the seasonal opening-up of the Sandy Lake similar to the modern pattern started with the establishment of the optimum temperature conditions (i.e., 0 °C anomaly) in the Antarctic, prior to which the lake environment might have remained mostly insulated or closed.     

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987110000356

We have analyzed the July 15,2009,Fiordland earthquake(M_w 7.8),which occurred in the southwestern part of the South Island of New Zealand.This thrust-related earthquake in the southern Fiordland subduction zone is the largest New Zealand earthquake in the past 80 years.We have constrained a rupture model for this earthquake using coseismic offsets derived from the continuous geodetic network(Global Positioning System) of the New Zealand Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences (GNS Science).Our anal...     

KREEPy lunar meteorite Dhofar 287A: A new lunar mare basalt

Abstract— Dhofar 287 (Dho 287) is a new lunar meteorite, found in Oman on January 14, 2001. The main portion of this meteorite (Dho 287A) consists of a mare basalt, while a smaller portion of breccia (Dho 287B) is attached on the side. Dho 287A is only the fourth crystalline mare basalt meteorite found on Earth to date and is the subject of the present study. The basalt consists mainly of phenocrysts of olivine and pyroxene set in a finer‐grained matrix, which is composed of elongated pyroxene and plagioclase crystals radiating from a common nucleii. The majority of olivine and pyroxene grains are zoned, from core to rim, in terms of Fe and Mg. Accessory minerals include ilmenite, chromite, ulvöspinel, troilite, and FeNi metal. Chromite is invariably mantled by ulvöspinel. This rock is unusually rich in late‐stage mesostasis, composed largely of fayalite, Si‐K‐Ba‐rich glass, fluorapatite, and whitlockite. In texture and mineralogy, Dho 287A is a low‐Ti mare basalt, with similarities to Apollo 12 (A‐12) and Apollo 15 (A‐15) basalts. However, all plagioclase is now present as maskelynite, and its composition is atypical for known low‐Ti mare basalts. The Fe to Mn ratios of olivine and pyroxene, the presence of FeNi metal, and the bulk‐rock oxygen isotopic ratios, along with several other petrological features, are evidence for the lunar origin for this meteorite. Whole‐rock composition further confirms the similarity of Dho 287A with A‐12 and A‐15 samples but requires possible KREEP assimilation to account for its rare‐earth‐element (REE) contents. Cooling‐rate estimates, based on Fo zonation in olivine, yield values of 0.2–0.8°C/hr for the lava, typical for the center of a 10–20 m thick flow. The recalculated major‐element concentrations, after removing 10–15% modal olivine, are comparable to typical A‐15 mare basalts. Crystallization modeling of the recalculated Dho 287A bulk‐composition yields a reasonable fit between predicted and observed mineral abundances and compositions.     

M5 model tree application in daily river flow forecasting in Sohu Stream, Turkey

This study investigate the potential of M5 model tree in predicting daily stream flows in Sohu river located within the municipal borders of Ankara, Turkey. The results of the M5 model tree was compared with support vector machines. Both modelling approaches were used to forecast up to 7-day ahead stream flow. A comparison of correlation coefficient and root mean square value indicates that M5 model tree approach works equally well to the SVM for same day discharge prediction. The M5 model tree also works well up to 7-day ahead discharge forecasting in comparison of SVM with this data set. An advantage of using M5 model tree approach is the availability of simple linear models to predict the discharge as well use of less computational time.     

Identification of landslide susceptible villages around Kalsubai region,Western Ghats of Maharashtra using geospatial techniques

Heavy rainfall triggered landslides are on the rise along the Western Ghats making it a matter of priority to identify landslide-prone areas well in advance. The present effort is aimed at identifying landslide susceptible villages (LSV) around the Kalsubai region of Deccan volcanic province (DVP), Maharashtra, India from 8 weighted landslide parameters- rainfall, slope, lithology, land use and land cover (LULC), soil properties, relative relief, aspect and lineament. These parameters were combined with advanced remote sensing (RS) data and processed in geographical information system (GIS) as well as in image processing software, which are an integral part of geospatial techniques. Out of the total 59 villages, the study identified 9 villages are situated in very high, 13 in high, 12 in moderate, 11 in low and 14 in very low risk zones. Our data reveals incessant heavy rains and steep slopes are the dominant factors in triggering landslides, exacerbated by anthropogenic activity prevalent in the study area. The spatial and non-spatial database created will help to take effective steps in preventing and/or mitigating landslide disasters in the study area. The methodology can be applied to identify other landslide prone areas in a cost effective way.     

Petrogenesis of group A eclogites and websterites: evidence from the Obnazhennaya kimberlite,Yakutia

Mantle xenoliths from the Obnazhennaya kimberlite pipe, Yakutia, possess a large range of mineralogical and chemical compositions, from both group A and B eclogites. Major-element contents of the group A eclogites exhibit transitional features between the group B eclogites and peridotite. The Mg# of clinopyroxenes is 0.86–0.94, with 0.60–0.84 for garnets. Differences in concentration of LREEs exist between the Obnazhennaya group A and the well-studied group B eclogites from the Udachnaya kimberlite pipe. In general, garnets in the group A eclogites contain lower LREEs than those from the group B eclogites; however, the trend for clinopyroxene is reversed. High d ¹⁸O (5.46–7.81) values, and the positive Eu anomalies in the garnets and clinopyroxenes (Eu/Eu* 1.2–1.4) demonstrate the involvement of an oceanic crustal component in the formation of the group A eclogites. The group A eclogites formed between 21.0 and 37.6 kbar, and 711 and 923 °C, in a time interval of 1,071–1,237 Ma. An innovative model is proposed to explain the formation of the group A eclogites and websterites. It involves the reaction of a depleted mantle peridotite with TTG and carbonatite melts closely related to the subduction of oceanic crust.     

Multiple-mineral inclusions in diamonds from the Snap Lake/King Lake kimberlite dike, Slave craton, Canada: a trace-element perspective

Multiple inclusions of minerals in diamonds from the Snap Lake/King Lake kimberlites of the southeastern Slave craton in Canada have been analyzed for trace elements to elucidate the petrogenetic history of these inclusions, and of their host diamonds. As observed worldwide, the harzburgitic-garnet diamond inclusions (DIs) possess sinusoidal REE patterns that indicate an early depletion event, followed by metasomatism by LREE-enriched, HREE-depleted fluids. Furthermore, these fluids appear to contain appreciable concentrations of LILE and HFSE, based on the increasing abundances of these elements in the olivine inclusion that occurs at the outer portion of a diamond compared to that near the core. The compositions of these fluids are probably a mixture of hydrous-silicic melt, carbonatitic melt, and brine, similar to the compositions of micro-inclusions in diamonds reported by Navon et al. (2003). Comparison between the compositions of majoritic and normal harzburgitic garnets shows that the former are more depleted in terms of major/minor elements (higher Cr#) but significantly more enriched in the REE (up to 10×). This characteristic may indicate the higher susceptibility for metasomatic enrichment of previously more depleted garnets. Garnets of eclogitic paragenesis show strong LREE-depleted patterns, whereas the coexisting omphacite inclusion has relatively flat light- and middle-REE but depleted HREE. Whole-rock reconstruction from coexisting garnet and omphacite inclusions indicates that the protolith of these inclusions was probably the extrusive section of an oceanic crust, subducted beneath the Slave craton.