Mid‐Weichselian interstadial in Kolari,western Finnish Lapland

Finnish Lapland is known as an area where numerous sites with sediments from Pleistocene glacial and interglacial periods occur. Recent sedimentological observations and dating call for reinterpretation of the record, which shows a complicated Mid‐Weichselian ice‐sheet evolution within the ice‐divide zone. Here, a large, previously unstudied section from a former Hannukainen iron mine was investigated sedimentologically and dated with optically stimulated luminescence (OSL). Ten sedimentary units were identified displaying a variety of depositional environments (glacial, glaciolacustrine, fluvial and aeolian). They are all – except for the lowermost, deeply weathered till – interpreted to be of Mid‐ or Late Weichselian/Holocene age. Five OSL samples from fluvial sediments give ages ranging from 55 to 35 ka, indicating two MIS 3 ice‐free intervals of unknown duration. The Mid‐Weichselian interstadial was interrupted by a re‐advance event, which occurred later than 35 ka and caused glaciotectonic deformation, folding and stacking of older sediments. This new evidence emphasizes the importance of the Kolari area when unravelling the complex Late Pleistocene glacial history of northern Finland and adjacent regions.     

Geostatistical characterization of soil moisture and chloride distribution in deep vadose profiles of the Badain Jaran Desert,Northwestern China

Geostatistical analysis of soil moisture and ion accumulation can provide a deep understanding of aspects of a region’s hydrology such as recharge rates and flow paths. By combining this approach with detrended canonical correspondence analysis, the present study investigated the vertical and spatial variation of soil moisture and chloride (Cl^?) in vadose profiles of megadunes near lakes in the southeastern Badain Jaran Desert, northwestern China. Soil moisture varied vertically within the dune profiles following exponential, logarithmic, or log-normal distributions at different sites as a result of regulation by different local controls. The main local controls for Cl^? concentration were slope and orientation of the dune. Cl^? was not affected by local controls at depths >5 m. Sills of spatial variation in soil moisture and Cl^? in the variogram analysis were highly sensitive to local controls in the top 4 m of the profiles, and the values were three times those at depths >4 m. The lag for soil moisture was insensitive to local controls, and was 50–60 m in the top 4 m of the profiles and 20 m in deeper layers, whereas the lag for Cl^? was about 20 m at all depths. The results demonstrate that understanding recharge rates using factors such as Cl^? accumulation requires a careful survey to ensure that the local controls that regulate these factors are adequately accounted for.     

雪宝顶区块流域钙华形成的生物作用研究

钙华不仅具有重要的景观旅游价值,而且对确定区内碳酸盐沉积特征、环境演化规律及同期环境生物的作用与贡献有重要的研究意义。本文在对比国内外典型钙华特征的基础上,以黄龙和九寨沟为例,对雪宝顶区块流域内钙华的沉积特征、环境化学与生物作用进行阐述,指出了雪宝顶区块流域冷水型钙华的形成与演化是化学沉积-溶解作用、生物沉积与溶蚀作用等共同作用的结果,并受非生物、生物因素影响。在雪宝顶冷水型钙华的形成过程中,微生物协同参与了钙华的沉积与溶蚀过程,通过自身新陈代谢促活动促使使钙离子结晶,并诱导晶型变化;其他生物体如植物、藻类等或以间接的方式促进或加快了钙华形成,或为钙华生长提供模板和体量。     

Methodology of Environmental Standardization for Natural Waters

Doklady Earth Sciences - This paper discusses sources of significant errors that occur in the course of determination of the primary environmental standard for natural waters: the maximum...     

Constructing a Stäckel Model of the Galaxy: Solving the Problem of Whether the Vertical Density Distribution Is Realistic

Astronomy Letters - Techniques for solving the problem of constructing a Stäckel model by generalizing the potential from the equatorial plane to the entire space are considered. The initial...     

Use of a problem-oriented database for statistical analysis of the hydrochemical characteristics of the redox layer of the Black Sea

A problem-oriented database (PODB) was developed for the statistical analysis of the hydrochemical characteristics of the redox layer of the Black Sea. The paper describes the features of the PODB, including the algorithm of interpolation and the location of the levels of the appearance and disappearance of hydrochemical parameters (the so-called onset levels) based on Akima’s spline. The application of the PODB allowed us to obtain a series of biogeochemical estimates, in particular, (1) to reveal the constancy of the vertical gradients of the hydrochemical parameters at selected density levels; (2) to calculate the seasonal variability of the degree of manifestation of the phosphate minimum in the near-shore and open sea areas; and (3) to calculate the interannual variability of the level of the disappearance of the hydrogen sulfide, ammonium, total manganese, and methane, as well as the oxygen content in the cold intermediate layer, and to find out their relations with the climatic variations.     

Causes of rockfalls in Al-Huwayshah area,Yemen

According to topography of Yemen,most areas and villages are located at obligated crest,toe of mountain and under cliffs.Therefore Al-Huwayshah consisting of Tawilah sandstone group is characterized by steep slope reach to 90° in some areas.This area is affected by strong tectonic movements and faults that occurred during the geological epochs.This effect enhances to find out fractures and joints as well as the rocks become brittle and ready to slide depending on the position of area.And there are some frac...