Transmission electron microscope texture and crystal chemistry of coexisting ortho- and clinopyroxene in the Antarctic ureilite Frontier Mountain 90054: Implications for thermal history

Abstract— Frontier Mountain (FRO) 90054, from Antarctica, is a rare clino- and orthopyroxene-bearing ureilite with a coarse equigranular oriented texture (grains up to 3 mm); it is classified as a low-shock Ca-rich type. The crystal chemistry of its clinopyroxene (Wo_39.3En_54.6Fs_6.1), orthopyroxene (En_{84 2}Fs₁₁Wo_4.8) and olivine (Fa_12.6Fo_86.9) was investigated by single-crystal x-ray structural refinements and transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations to obtain data on the evolutionary history of the parent body. The M1 octahedron and unit cell volumes of the orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene are consistent with low-pressure crystallization. The closure temperatures for intracrystalline Mg-Fe²⁺ ordering yielded values of 674 °C and 804 °C for opx and 596 °C for cpx, which indicate high-temperature equilibration and fast cooling. Trasmission electron microscope investigations were performed on clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene and pigeonite. The (100) twin lamellae in the clinopyroxene and intergrowth of clino- and orthoenstatite lamellae in orthopyroxene most probably originated by deformation. Exsolution was not observed in any of the phases, which suggests rapid cooling. Analysis by TEM also revealed interstitial Na-rich glass and pigeonite with sharp h + k odd reflections and rare stacking faults parallel to (100). Textural and crystal chemical data, obtained by TEM, indicated rapid cooling that was probably due to fast radiative heat loss as a result of the disintegration of the parent body into small fragments, which subsequently reassembled into a larger body. One or more collisional events caused fine-scale stacking faults and partial melting.     

Soil-water dynamics and tree water uptake in the Sacramento Mountains of New Mexico (USA): a stable isotope study

In the southwestern United States, precipitation in the high mountains is a primary source of groundwater recharge. Precipitation patterns, soil properties and vegetation largely control the rate and timing of groundwater recharge. The interactions between climate, soil and mountain vegetation thus have important implications for the groundwater supply. This study took place in the Sacramento Mountains, which is the recharge area for multiple regional aquifers in southern New Mexico. The stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen were used to determine whether infiltration of precipitation is homogeneously distributed in the soil or whether it is partitioned among soil-water ‘compartments’, from which trees extract water for transpiration as a function of the season. The results indicate that “immobile” or “slow” soil water, which is derived primarily from snowmelt, infiltrates soils in a relatively uniform fashion, filling small pores in the shallow soils. “Mobile” or “fast” soil water, which is mostly associated with summer thunderstorms, infiltrates very quickly through macropores and along preferential flow paths, evading evaporative loss. It was found that throughout the entire year, trees principally use immobile water derived from snowmelt mixed to differing degrees with seasonally available mobile-water sources. The replenishment of these different water pools in soils appears to depend on initial soil-water content, the manner in which the water was introduced to the soil (snowmelt versus intense thunderstorms), and the seasonal variability of the precipitation and evapotranspiration. These results have important implications for the effect of climate change on recharge mechanisms in the Sacramento Mountains.     

Regional conductance map of Andaman and Nicobar region

To image the electrical conductivity distribution, fluxgate magnetometers are operated at five sites in Andaman and Nicobar region. Transfer functions are estimated for the period range 8–128 min, from nighttime transient geomagnetic variations, using robust regression analysis. The observed induction arrows in Andaman Islands are found to point towards east despite deep sea located towards its west. This indicates that fore-arc basin (Andaman–Nicobar deep) is more conducting than the region of outer non-volcanic Island arc.Thin sheet model requires the conductance of 10,000–35,000 S (with increase conductivity towards the south) for explaining the observed induction pattern. The observed induction pattern at Andaman–Nicobar stations can be explained in terms of high conducting Cretaceous–Tertiary sediments filling the Andaman–Nicobar deep. High conductivity over Invisible bank has been attributed to the partial melts/volatile fluids derived from the subducting Indian plate that are intruding into the eastern margin of fore-arc basin through the West Andaman Fault (WAF).The induction pattern at Great Nicobar station (Campbell Bay) may be related to the highly conducting sediments filling the Mergui basin along with mafic intrusions. Also crustal transition occurs below the Mergui Terrace at the Malayan coast contributing to the enhanced conductivity anomaly.     

Assessing groundwater storage changes in the Nubian aquifer using GRACE data

Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) level two (L2) data is used in estimating the groundwater storage changes (GWSC) in the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System (NSAS). This set of data consists of spherical harmonics coefficients with specific degree and order. The GRACE data is de-correlated using a sixth degree polynomial in order to reduce the effect of the noise error resulting from the correlation between the spherical harmonics coefficients with the same degree parity. The GRACE estimates of GWSC are smoothed using Gaussian filter with half width of 1000 km. This half width is chosen in order to maximize the correlation between the GRACE estimates of GWSC and previous modeling results of the NSAS. The loss in groundwater storage occurring in each of the four countries sharing the NSAS is calculated to assess the sustainability of using the NSAS as a water resource in each country. The overarching finding in this study is that NSAS is losing its groundwater storage at a very high rate. Also, it is found that Egypt is the fastest in losing its groundwater storage from the NSAS. This loss of groundwater storage in Egypt may not necessarily be resulting from in-country extractions because of the trans-boundary nature of this aquifer. The GRACE-based estimates are found to be close to available data and previous modeling results of the NSAS.     

Linking multi-temporal analysis and community consultation to evaluate the response to the impact of Hurricane Stan in coffee areas of Chiapas,Mexico

This paper analyses the responses related to land use of coffee growers in Chiapas, Mexico to the impact of Hurricane Stan (October 2005). A multi-temporal analysis of the effect on land cover was performed through the combination of unsupervised classification of SPOT multispectral images and visual interpretation of panchromatic images (8 months previous to the hurricane, and 2, 14, and 40 months after the hurricane). The information provided by this geographic analysis was interpreted in light of information gathered though household surveys. Although the hurricane wrecked havoc across the region, the main impact in the study area was in the riparian zones where the extent of the loss experienced in terms of coffee harvest and soil was such that, even 14 months after the event, households with land in those areas were struggling to recover. Nevertheless, after 40 months, the zones that had suffered total soil loss began to support soil and vegetation, indicating the possibility of replanting coffee in those areas. Although the hurricane occurred when the coffee sector was particularly fragile as a result of the preceding several years of poor prices, the impact did not trigger extensive land use change. The surveys showed, however, that people are now more informed of the risk of living and farming on the river margins and are now performing soil conservation practices and planting trees to reduce risk.     

Pressure-temperature and evolution of fluid compositions of Al2SiO5-bearing rocks,Mica Creek,B.C., in light of fluid inclusion data and mineral equilibria

Metamorphosed pelitic rocks from Mica Creek, British Columbia contain sillimanite, kyanite with minor fibrolite and andalusite-bearing quartz pods. Mineral equilibria were used to infer peak P-T conditions and fluid compositions in equilibrium with the solid phases. Fluid inclusions in three schist samples appear to be good indicators of conditions affecting those rocks during and after peak metamorphic conditions. In samples from two localities, fluid inclusions from schist and quartz-rich segregations have densities appropriate to the peak metamorphic conditions. The observed compositions for these fluids (low salinity with 12 mole % dissolved CO₂) agree with calculated values of 0.84 to 0.85, based upon paragonite-quartz-albite-Al₂SiO₅ equilibria. The fluids unmixed as the schists were uplifted and cooled; fluid inclusions trapped during this stage outline a solvus in the CO₂-H₂O-NaCl system. A later influx of fluids containing CH₄ and N₂ accompanied formation of andalusite-bearing plagioclaserich segregations. The restricted association of andalusite-bearing pods and low density fluids suggest a localized but pervasive fluid influx during uplift. Preservation of high density fluid inclusions during uplift and erosion, coupled with evidence for unmixing of H₂O- and CO₂-rich fluids on the solvus, provide constraints on the P-T uplift path.     

Contrasting geochemical signatures on land from the Middle and Late Permian extinction events

The end of the Palaeozoic is marked by two mass‐extinction events during the Middle Permian (Capitanian) and the Late Permian (Changhsingian). Given similarities between the two events in geochemical signatures, such as large magnitude negative δ¹³C anomalies, sedimentological signatures such as claystone breccias, and the approximate contemporaneous emplacement of large igneous provinces, many authors have sought a common causal mechanism. Here, a new high‐resolution continental record of the Capitanian event from Portal Mountain, Antarctica, is compared with previously published Changhsingian records of geochemical signatures of weathering intensity and palaeoclimatic change. Geochemical means of discriminating sedimentary provenance (Ti/Al, U/Th and La/Ce ratios) all indicate a common provenance for the Portal Mountain sediments and associated palaeosols, so changes spanning the Capitanian extinction represent changes in weathering intensity rather than sediment source. Proxies for weathering intensity chemical index of alteration, ?W and rare earth element accumulation all decline across the Capitanian extinction event at Portal Mountain, which is in contrast to the increased weathering recorded globally at the Late Permian extinction. Furthermore, palaeoclimatic proxies are consistent with unchanging or cooler climatic conditions throughout the Capitanian event, which contrasts with Changhsingian records that all indicate a significant syn‐extinction and post‐extinction series of greenhouse warming events. Although both the Capitanian and Changhsingian event records indicate significant redox shifts, palaeosol geochemistry of the Changhsingian event indicates more reducing conditions, whereas the new Capitanian record of reduced trace metal abundances (Cr, Cu, Ni and Ce) indicates more oxidizing conditions. Taken together, the differences in weathering intensity, redox and the lack of evidence for significant climatic change in the new record suggest that the Capitanian mass extinction was not triggered by dyke injection of coal‐beds, as in the Changhsingian extinction, and may instead have been triggered directly by the Emeishan large igneous province or by the interaction of Emeishan basalts with platform carbonates.     

Source(s) and cycling of the nonhydrolyzable organic fraction of oceanic particles

A major fraction of particulate organic carbon (POC) in the deep ocean remains molecularly uncharacterized. In an effort to determine the chemical characteristics and source(s) of sinking POC, we studied a nonhydrolyzable fraction of sinking POC using ¹³C NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectroscopy and analytical pyrolysis. ¹³C NMR spectra and products from analytical pyrolysis of the nonhydrolyzable fraction exhibit a strongly aliphatic character that is distinct from that of bulk POC. The aliphatic nature of this fraction is consistent with its low stable carbon isotope values. We hypothesize that the nonhydrolyzable fraction derives to a significant extent from a refractory component of organisms that selectively accumulates, resulting in its manifestation as a major part of POC sinking to the deep ocean and in underlying sediments.