Ocean tide loading (OTL) displacements from global and local grids: comparisons to GPS estimates over the shelf of Brittany, France

In this paper we examine OTL displacements detected by GPS stations of a dedicated campaign and validate ocean tide models. Our area of study is the continental shelf of Brittany and Cotentin in France. Brittany is one of the few places in the world where tides provoke loading displacements of ∼10–12 cm vertically and a few cm horizontally. Ocean tide models suffer from important discrepancies in this region. Seven global and regional ocean tide models were tested: FES2004 corrected for K2, TPXO.7.0, TPXO.6.2, GOT00.2, CSR4.0, NAO.99b and the most recent regional grids of the North East Atlantic (NEA2004). These gridded amplitudes and phases of ocean tides were convolved in order to get the predicted OTL displacements using two different algorithms. Data over a period of 3.5 months of 8 GPS campaign stations located on the north coast of Brittany are used, in order to evaluate the geographical distribution of the OTL effect. We have modified and implemented new algorithms in our GPS software, GINS 7.1. GPS OTL constituents are estimated based on 1-day batch solutions. We compare the observed GPS OTL constituents of M₂, S₂, N₂ and K₁ waves with the selected ocean tide models on global and regional grids. Large phase-lag and amplitude discrepancies over 20° and 1.5 cm in the vertical direction in the semi-diurnal band of M₂ between predictions and GPS/models are detected in the Bay of Mont St-Michel. From a least squares spectral analysis of the GPS time-series, significant harmonic peaks in the integer multiples of the orbital periods of the GPS satellites are observed, indicating the existence of multipath effects in the GPS OTL constituents. The GPS OTL observations agree best with FES2004, NEA2004, GOT00.2 and CSR4.0 tide models.     

Horizontal and vertical components of earthquake ground motions at liquefiable sites

Field observations on ground motions from recent earthquakes imply that current knowledge is limited with regard to relating vertical and horizontal motions at liquefiable sites. This paper describes a study with the purpose of clarifying this emerging issue to some extent. A series of numerical analyses is carried out on a liquefiable soil deposit with a verified, fully coupled, nonlinear procedure. It is shown that the transformation of vertical motions in the deposit differs considerably from the transformation of horizontal motions. Both the amplitude and frequency content of the horizontal motions are strongly dependent on the shaking level or the associated nonlinear soil behavior. The transfer function for vertical motions is however likely to be independent of the intensity of input motions; no reduction in the amplitude occurs even in the case of strong shaking. The results are shown to be in consistence with the laboratory observations on shaking table tests and recent field observations that less nonlinearity exists for vertical motions. It is also shown that the possibility exists for using information on spectral ratios between the horizontal and vertical surface motions to quickly identify in situ soil behavior and liquefaction that are not readily covered by conventional field or laboratory experimentation procedures.     

Observations of the compact group of galaxies Shahbazian 130

Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory and Special Astrophysical Observatory, Academy of Sciences. Translated fromAstrofizika, Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 67–75, July–August, 1991.     

Changing depositional environment revealed from sediment components,west of “Swatch of No Ground”, northern Bay of Bengal

The sediment cores of 20 cm length collected from 31 to 83 m range of water depth from the inner shelf of Bay of Bengal west of “Swatch of No Ground” were analyzed for grain size, organic carbon, total nitrogen, calcium carbonate and clay mineralogy. Grain size analysis revealed that the sediment size decreases from west to east within the study area indicating a possible direction of transport towards east parallel to the coast. The grain size also decreases with increasing water depth, i.e. north to south, indicating sediment contribution to the area of study from Hooghly and other local rivers. In the cores studied, illite was the dominant clay mineral which seems to be a product of glacial weathering under arid conditions with its source being the Himalayan region. The organic carbon content was low in the sediments and was attributed to low plankton production or intense oxidation processes. Low calcium carbonate percentage also supports the view of a low productivity in this region. Organic carbon increases gradually from west to east indicating its association with finer sediments and also indicates transport due to currents which drift the organic carbon away before it settles down within the sediments. Higher values relatively closer to the coast in the eastern side indicate additional contribution from Sunderban mangroves. The C/N ratio obtained indicates mixed source of terrestrial and marine for the organic matter in the sediments. Sedimentation rates available for deltaic plains and shelves off Bangladesh when adopted for the present area revealed that a 20 cm long sediment column was deposited in around 10 years. In most of the cores studied, a change in the trend of sediment components and organic carbon was observed at around 10 cm where grain size increases and organic carbon decreases towards the surface inferring that during the last 5 years, possible floods during NE monsoon or due to melting of ice in Himalaya are responsible for releasing additional water and material which brought a change in hydrodynamic conditions. The surface depletion of organic carbon indicates its dilution by the addition of coarser materials.     

Understanding distribution and abundance of metals with space and time in estuarine mudflat sedimentary environment

Spatial and depth-wise distribution of sediment components, organic carbon and selected metals (Fe, Mn, Al, Ni, Cr, Co, Zn and Pb) is studied across upper and middle tidal flats from lower and middle estuarine regions of Kundalika Estuary, central west coast of India. Silt and clay form the major components in lower and middle estuary, respectively. Sand, silt, clay and organic carbon showed band-type distribution along the estuary. The sediment deposition over the years took place in varying hydrodynamic conditions in lower and middle estuarine regions. Upper flats of the lower estuary represent mud while middle flats of the lower estuary facilitated the deposition of sandy mud. Correlation results indicated the importance of clay and organic carbon in removal and trapping of metals at lower and middle estuary, respectively. Factor analysis indicated that the distribution of metals is largely controlled by Fe–Mn oxyhydroxides and organic carbon. The middle flats of the lower estuary showed an anthropogenic source for Ni, Cr and Co while middle flats of the middle estuary showed a mainly lithogenic source.     

The petrology of the Mt Manypeaks Adamellite and associated high‐grade metamorphic rocks near Albany,Western Australia

The Mt Manypeaks Adamellite is a composite, regionally concordant pluton at least 22 km long and 3 km wide, associated with Precambrian amphibolite facies gneisses of the Albany‐Esperance Block, and situated about 35 km east of Albany, Western Australia. The pluton is surrounded by a granitised aureole, and shows structural and mineralogical harmony with the country rocks. Contacts vary from grada‐tional to sharp. Hence field relations are consistent with syn‐ or late‐kinematic emplacement in the catazone. The normative composition of the pluton corresponds with the thermal trough in the system An‐Ab‐Or‐Q‐H2O at 7 kb PH2O, suggesting an origin involving crystal‐melt equilibria. The pluton is believed to have formed almost in situ by partial anatexis of the country rocks at 700–750°C and a depth of about 25 km during the orogenic episode responsible for regional metamorphism and deformation.     

Analysis of a possible sea floor strain measurement system

Abstract

A logical approach to large area sea floor strain measurement is to use a set of precision acoustic transponders interrogated successively from a large number of different positions by a near‐bottom survey vehicle. Limiting errors in such an approach can be segregated into two classes implying two different scales on which averaging should be carried out. First are those arising from individual travel time and vehicle depth measurements. Second are those associated with imperfect knowledge of the sound propagation speed. The first are essentially independent from one measurement to the next; for the second, statistically independent observations must be separated by the order of 100 m. Several thousand observations of successive travel times to individual transponders would thus be smoothed to produce the equivalent of a smaller number (few hundred) of sets of simultaneous range observations, and then these sets would be used to determine the transponder array geometry. Computer simulations using realistic assumptions show that centimeter‐level accuracy can be achieved over areas several kilometers across.     

Element zoning trends in olivine phenocrysts from a supposed primary high-magnesian andesite: an electron- and ion-microprobe study

Electron and ion-probe microanalysis have been used to obtain zoning profiles for major and trace elements in olivine phenocrysts from a high-magnesian andesite from Shodo-Shima island, southwest Japan. This rock was previously thought to represent undifferentiated, primary magma. Some crystals have unzoned cores, while others show cores which are reversely zoned with respect to Mg/ (Mg+Fe), Ni, Mn and Cr. In addition, some Ni profiles show a normally zoned hump at the most central portions of the reversely zoned crystals. All crystals show normally zoned rims. The Li concentrations are constant throughout the cores of all crystals studied, but rise sharply, by a factor of up to at least six, in the rims. The Ca and Co concentrations are essentially constant throughout all the crystals. Mechanisms for producing the observed zoning profiles are discussed, and it is concluded that the reverse zoning was produced by the introduction of crystals into a less differentiated magma than that in which they grew. The reversely zoned crystals could therefore represent xenocrysts which were introduced into an undifferentiated magma, or phenocrysts introduced into a more primitive magma by a magma mixing process. The Ni profiles are used to estimate the residence time of these crystals in the more primitive magma. The following trace element partition co-efficients have been estimated for the olivine-groundmass system in this rock: D ^Ni=16; D ^Mn=1.1; D ^Co=4.2; D ^Ca =0.02; D ^Ti=0.005; D ^V=0.05; D ^Sc=0.2; D ^Na=0.0002. Studies of trace element zoning will become increasingly important as the new generation of trace element microprobes become available but a larger database of experimentally determined values for trace element partition coefficients and diffusion coefficients in crystals and magmas, and a better understanding of other disequilibrium processes are required to fully exploit the new data.