Flash flood at Slheimajkull heralds the reawakening of an Icelandic subglacial volcano

An unpredicted sudden outburst flood from Sólheimajökull, Southern Iceland, in July 1999 may herald a major subglacial volcanic eruption beneath Mýrdalsjökull ice cap.     

Probing the submillimetre number counts at f850 μm < 2 mJy

We have conducted a submillimetre mapping survey of faint, gravitationally lensed sources, where we have targeted 12 galaxy clusters and additionally the New Technology Telescope (NTT) Deep Field. The total area surveyed is 71.5 arcmin² in the image plane; correcting for gravitational lensing, the total area surveyed is 40 arcmin² in the source plane for a typical source redshift z ≈ 2.5. In the deepest maps, an image plane depth of 1σ rms ∼0.8 mJy is reached. This survey is the largest survey to date to reach such depths. In total 59 sources were detected, including three multiply imaged sources. The gravitational lensing makes it possible to detect sources with flux density below the blank field confusion limit. The lensing-corrected fluxes range from 0.11 to 19 mJy. After correcting for multiplicity, there are 10 sources with fluxes <2 mJy of which seven have submJy fluxes, doubling the number of such sources known. Number counts are determined below the confusion limit. At 1 mJy, the integrated number count is  ∼10⁴ deg⁻²  , and at 0.5 mJy it is  ∼2 × 10⁴ deg⁻²  . Based on the number counts, at a source plan flux limit of 0.1 mJy, essentially all of the 850-μm background emission has been resolved. The dominant contribution (>50 per cent) to the integrated background arises from sources with fluxes S ₈₅₀ between 0.4 and 2.5 mJy, while the bright sources S ₈₅₀ > 6 mJy contribute only 10 per cent.     

Glacier hydrochemistry, solute provenance, and chemical denudation at a surge-type glacier in Kuannersuit Kuussuat, Disko Island, West Greenland

In 1995–1998, Han 11 km terrestrial surge of Kuannersuit Glacier, an outlet glacier of the largest ice cap on Disko Island, West Greenland, affected the catchment dramatically. In order to estimate solute fluxes and provenances, bulk meltwaters were sampled at the main subglacial outlet during the initial part of the quiescent phase. The hydrochemistry is significantly influenced by a subglacial basaltic weathering regime with absence of carbonate minerals. The results show that marine and aerosol derived solutes have minimal contribution to the total ion content, whereas sequestration of atmospheric CO₂ associated with carbonation of Ca-rich feldspar and reactive volcanic glass is more dominant than previously reported from glacierized catchments. Application of a sampling strategy dividing water samples into four groups to determine the content of dissolved HCO₃⁻ and CO₃²⁻ shows that the cationic equivalent weathering rate range is 683–860 Σmeq⁺ m⁻² a⁻¹ and solute flux ranges between 76 and 98 t km⁻² a⁻¹. The crustal denudation rate is estimated to 26 t km⁻² a⁻¹, and the transient CO₂ drawdown amounts to 8500–13700 kg C km⁻² a⁻¹.     

Glaciological Features in the Initial Quiescent Phase of Kuannersuit Glacier, Greenland

This paper describes glaciological features observed on the surface of the large outlet glacier Kuannersuit Glacier on Disko Island, West Greenland, during its initial quiescent phase after a major surge event occurred in 1995–98 in order to classify the glaciomorphological surge system. Focus is on surge features either associated with active surging such as a propagating surge front and serac formation or formed as a consequence of surging such as looped medial moraines and potholes; and on hydrological features related to the evolution of the glacier drainage system such as the supraglacial routing, moulin types and chasms. A chronological glaciomorphological model of the initial quiescent phase of Kuannersuit Glacier, which can be regarded as representative for large outlet surge‐type glaciers with terrestrial terminal regime and long quiescent phase, is proposed.     

Arsenic in groundwater from mineralised Proterozoic basement rocks of Burkina Faso

This study describes the hydrogeochemistry and distributions of As in groundwater from a newly investigated area of Burkina Faso. Groundwaters have been sampled from hand-pumped boreholes and dug wells close to the town of Ouahigouya in northern Burkina Faso. Although most analysed groundwaters have As concentrations of less than 10 μg L⁻¹, they have a large range from <0.5 to 1630 μg L⁻¹. The highest concentrations are found in borehole waters; all dug wells analysed in this study have As concentrations of <10 μg L⁻¹. Skin disorders (melanosis, keratosis and more rare skin tumour) have been identified among the populations in three villages in northern Burkina Faso, two within the study area. Although detailed epidemiological studies have not been carried out, similarities with documented symptoms in other parts of the world suggest that these are likely to be linked to high concentrations of As in drinking water. The high-As groundwaters observed derive from zones of Au mineralisation in Birimian (Lower Proterozoic) volcano-sedimentary rocks, the Au occurring in vein structures along with quartz and altered sulphide minerals (pyrite, chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite). However, the spatial variability in As concentrations in the mineralised zones is large and the degree of testing both laterally and with depth so far is limited. Hence, concentrations are difficult to predict on a local scale. From available data, the groundwater appears to be mainly oxic and the dissolved As occurs almost entirely as As(V) although concentrations are highest in groundwaters with dissolved-O₂ concentrations <2 mg L⁻¹. The source is likely to be the oxidised sulphide minerals and secondary Fe oxides in the mineralised zones. Positive correlations are observed between dissolved As and both Mo and W which are also believed to be derived from ore minerals and oxides in the mineralised zones. The discovery of high As concentrations in some groundwaters from the Birimian rocks of northern Burkina Faso reiterates the need for reconnaissance surveys in mineralised areas of crystalline basement.     

Separation of residual ocean tide signals in a collinear analysis of Geosat altimetry

The effects of residual ocean tide signals on altimetric mesoscale variability estimates are analyzed in the north east Atlantic region using one year of Geosat Exact Repeat Mission data. The variability is evaluated along collinear tracks and covariance functions are determined. Initial results show that the average variability is about 10 cm. Variability values of 15–20 cm are found between Iceland and the Faeroe Islands and values up to 1/2 m are found near the coast of the UK. Then a procedure for estimation of ocean tide signals combined with the collinear analyses was tested. A separation of the estimated tide residuals associated with M₂, S₂, and N₂ resulted in a significant reduction of the variability. The average variability decreased to 5 cm and the temporal correlations vanished. A reduction of the large variability values from 15–50 cm to 5–10 cm demonstrates that significant residual ocean tide signals can be estimated and removed efficiently in a collinear analysis of the mesoscale ocean variability.     

Studies of an artificially generated electrode effect at ground level

The outdoor experiments, using a metallic grid above the ground surface, have yielded well-defined vertical profiles of the space-charge density. The profiles showed strong evidence for the existence of an electrode effect, which could be named the artificial electrode effect and can serve as a very useful and well-controlled model for the study of atmospheric electric processes in the atmospheric surface layer. The build-up or break-down of an electrode-effect layer occurred in a time of the order of 10 s under the experimental conditions realized. The artificially generated electrode effect is dependent on the electrical field strength supplied, wind speed, turbulent mixing and ion mobilities. Wind speed and ion mobility seem to be the dominant factors, defining space-charge density profiles. A theoretical model for the artificial electrode effect has been developed, taking into account turbulent mixing of charged particles in the air flow with the logarithmic profile of the wind velocity. The numerical analysis of the boundary value problem for the two-dimensional equations for the light ion concentrations has been performed. The model presented shows a qualitative agreement of calculated space-charge profiles with measured ones, and explains the dependence of the artificial electrode effect on the dominant control parameters. The limiting conditions for the developed theory are discussed.Permanent address: Institute of Appl. Physics, 46 Ulyanov St., 603600 Nizhny Novgorod, Russia     

Improved land tenure not the driver of economic development in a Vietnamese community

During the restructuring of the Vietnamese economy in 1986, the Communist party of Vietnam (CPV) took the decision to leave central planning and build a market economy in Vietnam. In order to promote rural development and deal with deforestation, poverty and declining agricultural profitability, the government implemented the forestland allocation policies (FLA) and started a process of decentralization. This research note examines the impact of FLA policies on the agricultural practices of an upland community in central Vietnam and discusses the effects of increased tenure security. It is shown that the promotion of a sedentary production system has altered the sustainability of swidden agriculture leading to declining profitability and that a transition towards new crops and specialized crop cultivation has compensated for the loss. Furthermore, it is argued that the FLA policies have increased the villagers’ incentive to invest, their access to credit and the forest area of the village, but that the CPV has been the main driver of these changes rather than the increased tenure security.     

Applying foraminiferal stratigraphy as a biomarker for heavy metal contamination and mining impact in a fiord in West Greenland

Sulphidic mine waste disposed in marine environments constitutes an environmental risk to aquatic life due to potential uptake and accumulation of heavy metals in biota. Fiord sediments near the former Black Angel Mine in West Greenland are contaminated by lead and zinc as a result of submarine tailings disposal in 1973-1990. In 1999 cores were taken up to 10 km away from the disposal area. Analyses include heavy metals, radiochemical dating (210Pb) and high-resolution foraminiferal stratigraphy. The mining operation resulted in significant changes in the assemblage composition. In addition, up to 20% of the Melonis barleeanus population found in sediment deposited during nearby tailings disposal was deformed compared to a natural background of less than 5%. Throughout cores representing the last 100 years of sedimentation, the total numbers and frequency of morphological abnormalities among M. barleeanus revealed some correlation with heavy metals concentrations (up to r2 = 79%). We conclude that abnormalities among foraminifera may represent a useful biomarker for evaluating trends in the biological impact resulting of submarine tailings disposal as well as long-term environmental impact and subsequent recovery.