Soil,landuse and land evaluation studies of Patna area Bihar

The soil and landuse surveys have been conducted in Patna area, Bihar, using aerial photos of 1:25,000 scale. Three major systems, Ganges Gandak and interfluvial plain, have been identified in the area. These were further sub-divided into levees plains and channels etc. The soils were classified according to Soil axonomy. The major land use of the area is cultivation (62.2%) (Upland, lowland and wet land crops) plantation (1.8%) habitation (16.0%), water bodies (8.8%), barren lands (9.4%) and miscellaneous (1.8%). The soils of the area have been evaluated for different land utilization types-upland crops, lowland crops, and habitation. For paddy 75.:%, upland crops 8.2% and for habitation 57%, area was found suitable.     

Non-cosmogenic lithium-6 in iron meteorites

A neutron activation method is used to measure⁶Li via the reaction⁶Li(n, α)³H in iron meteorites. It is found that most⁶Li occurs in non-metallic inclusions which can be separated by dissolution of the metal in 4 M H₂SO₄. The non-magnetic portion of such a residue has as high as 0.9 ppm⁶Li, while in the bulk sample⁶Li ranges from 0.02 to 10 ppb. Average⁶Li contents (ppb) for various classes are IA, 1.8; IIAB, 1.6; and IIIA, 0.4. Cosmic-ray-produced⁶Li is generally much smaller than the native⁶Li.     

Geochemistry and magnetostratigraphy of deccan flows at Anjar, Kutch

Chemical analysis of nine Deccan flow basalts at Anjar, Kutch, western India, indicates that all, except the uppermost flow F-9, are alkaline. In their major and trace element composition, the alkali basalts resemble Ocean island basalts (OIB). Similarities of many diagnostic trace element ratios (e.g. Sm/Nd, Ba/Nb,Y/Nb and Zr/Nb) are similar to those found in the Réunion Island basalts. The uppermost basalt is tholeiitic and chemically resembles the least contaminated Deccan basalt (Ambenali type). The Anjar basalts have iridium concentration ranging between 2 and 178 pg/g. Some of these values are higher by about an order of magnitude compared to the Ir concentration in other basalts of the Deccan. A synthesis of chemical, palaeomagnetic and geochronologic data enables us to construct a chemical and magnetic stratigraphy for these flows. The three flows below the iridium enriched intertrappean bed (IT III) show normal magnetic polarity whereas all except one of the upper basalts show reversed magnetic polarity. The sequence seems to have started in polarity zones 31N and probably continued up to 28R or 27R. The results presented here support the view that Deccan volcanism in Kutch occurred on a time span of a few million years.     

High iridium concentration of alkaline rocks of Deccan and implications to K/T boundary

We report here an unusually high concentration of iridium in some alkali basalts and alkaline rocks of Deccan region having an age of about 65Ma, similar to the age of the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. The alkali basalts of Anjar, in the western periphery of Deccan province, have iridium concentration as high as 178pg/g whereas the alkaline rocks and basalts associated with the Amba Dongar carbonatite complex have concentrations ranging between 8 and 80 pg/g. Some of these values are more than an order of magnitude higher than the concentration in the tholeiitic basalts of Deccan, indicating the significance of alkaline magmatism in the iridium inventory at the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. Despite higher concentration, their contribution to the global inventory of iridium in the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary clays remains small. The concentration of iridium in fluorites from Amba Dongar was found to be <30 pg/g indicating that iridium is not incorporated during their formation in hydrothermal activity.     

Lead-210 sedimentation in Lake Ontario

The sedimentation rates and diffusive sediment mixing coefficients at several Lake Ontario locations have been derived from measurements of unsupported²¹⁰Pb profiles in sediment cores. The values of mixing coefficients obtained in the present study are significantly lower than those obtained previously through an analysis of porosity profiles. The present estimates, however, are consistent with the rather well-preserved pollutant profiles at some of these locations. It is observed that the more realistic value of the mixing coefficient, obtained by inclusion of the sedimentation rate parameter, follows the sign opposite to that for the constant obtained by regression analysis of the porosity data. Further work is required to delineate this apparent relationship between two important physical characteristics of deposited sediments.Analysis of available suspended sediment data shows that Niagara River supplies about 1.8 million tonnes of sediment annually to Lake Ontario. This value is significantly lower than that (4.6 mt/yr) used previously in constructing sediment and pollutant budgets for Lake Ontario. From the presently derived sedimentation rate and suspended solid discharge estimates, an average value of 441 km² (range 220-938 km²) is obtained for the minimum area of Lake Ontario over which the Niagara River-supplied fine sediment is deposited.     

Mapping runoff generating areas using AGNPS-VSA model

ABSTRACT

In humid regions, surface runoff is often generated by saturation-excess runoff mechanisms from relatively small variable source areas (VSAs). However, the majority of the current hydrologic models are based on infiltration-excess mechanisms. In this study, the AGricultural Non-Point Source Pollution (AGNPS) model was used to integrate the VSA concept using topographic wetness index (TWI). Both the original and AGNPS-VSA models were evaluated for a small agricultural field in Ontario, Canada. The results indicate that the AGNPS-VSA model performed better than original model. The AGNPS-VSA model predicted that only the saturated portion of the field with higher TWI values produced runoff, whereas the original AGNPS model showed uniform hydrologic response from the entire field. The results of this study are important for accurately mapping the locations of VSAs. This new model could be a powerful tool in identifying critical source areas for applying targeted best management practices to minimize pollutant loads to receiving waters.     

Coda Q in the Kachchh Basin, Western India Using Aftershocks of the Bhuj Earthquake of January 26, 2001

Q_C-estimates of Kachchh Basin in western India have been obtained in a high frequency range from 1.5 to 24.0 Hz using the aftershock data of Bhuj earthquake of January 26, 2001 recorded within an epicentral distance of 80 km. The decay of coda waves of 30 sec window from 186 seismograms has been analysed in four lapse time windows, adopting the single backscattering model. The study shows that Q_c is a function of frequency and increases as frequency increases. The frequency dependent Q_c relations obtained for four lapse-time windows are: Q_c=82 f^1.17 (20–50 sec), Q_c=106 f^1.11 (30–60 sec), Q_c=126f^1.03 (40–70 sec) and Q_c=122f^1.02 (50–80 sec). These empirical relations represent the average attenuation properties of a zone covering the surface area of about 11,000, 20,000, 28,000 and 38,000 square km and a depth extent of about 60, 80, 95, 110 km, respectively. With increasing window length, the degree of frequency dependence, n, decreases marginally from 1.17 to 1.02, whereas Q₀ increases significantly from 82 to 122. At lower frequencies up to 6 Hz, Q_c⁻¹ of Kachchh Basin is in agreement with other regions of the world, whereas at higher frequencies from 12 to 24 Hz it is found to be low.     

Interpretations of new features of time domain electric-field structures in the auroral acceleration region

Possible theoretical interpretations of the various nonlinear electric-field structures in the auroral acceleration region are provided.     

Lithium in tektites and natural glasses

Lithium concentrations in various tektites and natural glass samples have been determined using RNAA. For most tektites Li abundances range from 40 to 60 ppm, with the exception of bediasites (23 ppm). In other natural glasses of presumed impact origin, the Li values are considerably lower (6–11 ppm). It is suggested that the Li concentrations reflect mostly the original abundance of this element in parent materials. A terrestrial origin for tektites is supported by the Li range overlap between tektites and sedimentary rocks     

Trace fossils from the late cretaceous Lameta Formation,Jabalpur area,Madhya Pradesh: Paleoenvironmental implications

In Jabalpur area about 18 m to 45 m thick Lameta Formation is stratigraphically divisible into five lithounits namely, Green Sandstone, Lower Limestone, Mottled Nodular Beds, Upper Limestone and Upper Sandstone. Having differentiated lithofacies constitution and here grouped as facies associations, these units are intensively burrowed and sparingly fossiliferous. Ichnogenera including Arenicolites, Calycraterion, Fucusopsis, Laevicyclus, Macanopsis, Ophiomorpha, Paleomeandron, Rhizocorallium, Stipsellus, Thalassinoides and Zoophycos are recovered from the Lower Limestone, Mottled Nodular Beds and Upper Limestone associations of the Lameta Formation of Jabalpur area.Among these, Arenicolites, Calycraterion, Laevicyclus, Ophiomorpha, Rhizocorallium, Stipsellus and Thalassinoides belong to mixed Skolithos and Cruziana ichnofacies and indicate sandy backshore to sublittoral condition of deposition. Additionally rhyzocretes, some times chertified, are also present in different parts of the Lameta Formation. Ichnofacies assemblage supported by sedimentological information suggests that the Lameta Formation of Jabalpur area was deposited in coastal marine settings where sediments were subaerially exposed intermittently.