Strong variation in weathering of layered rock maintains hillslope‐scale strength under high precipitation

The evolution of volcanic landscapes and their landslide potential are both dependent upon the weathering of layered volcanic rock sequences. We characterize critical zone structure using shallow seismic V_p and V_s profiles and vertical exposures of rock across a basaltic climosequence on Kohala peninsula, Hawai’i, and exploit the dramatic gradient in mean annual precipitation (MAP) across the peninsula as a proxy for weathering intensity. Seismic velocity increases rapidly with depth and the velocity–depth gradient is uniform across three sites with 500–600 mm/yr MAP, where the transition to unaltered bedrock occurs at a depth of 4 to 10 m. In contrast, velocity increases with depth less rapidly at wetter sites, but this gradient remains constant across increasing MAP from 1000 to 3000 mm/yr and the transition to unaltered bedrock is near the maximum depth of investigation (15–25 m). In detail, the profiles of seismic velocity and of weathering at wet sites are nowhere monotonic functions of depth. The uniform average velocity gradient and the greater depths of low velocities may be explained by the averaging of velocities over intercalated highly weathered sites with less weathered layers at sites where MAP > 1000 mm/yr. Hence, the main effect of climate is not the progressive deepening of a near‐surface altered layer, but rather the rapid weathering of high permeability zones within rock subjected to precipitation greater than ~1000 mm/yr. Although weathering suggests mechanical weakening, the nearly horizontal orientation of alternating weathered and unweathered horizons with respect to topography also plays a role in the slope stability of these heterogeneous rock masses. We speculate that where steep, rapidly evolving hillslopes exist, the sub‐horizontal orientation of weak/strong horizons allows such sites to remain nearly as strong as their less weathered counterparts at drier sites, as is exemplified by the 50°–60° slopes maintained in the amphitheater canyons on the northwest flank of the island. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An extreme wave event in eastern Yucatán,Mexico: Evidence of a palaeotsunami event during the Mayan times

The Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, has typically been considered a tectonically stable region with little significant seismic activity. The region though, is one that is regularly affected by hurricanes. A detailed survey of ca 100 km of the eastern Yucatán and Cozumel coast identified the presence of ridges containing individual boulders measuring >1 m in length. The boulder ridges reach 5 m in height and their origin is associated with extreme wave event activity. Previously modelled tsunami waves from known seismically active zones in the region (Muertos Thrust Belt and South Caribbean Deformed Belt) are not of sufficient scale in the area of the Yucatán Peninsula to have produced the boulder ridges recorded in this study. The occurrence of hurricanes in this region is more common, but two of the most destructive (Hurricane Gilbert 1988 and Hurricane Wilma 2005) produced coastal waves too small to have created the ridges recorded here. In this paper, a new tsunami model with a source area located on the Motagua/Swan Island Fault System has been generated that indicates a tsunami event may have caused the extreme wave events that resulted in the deposition of the boulder ridges.     

Assessing and correcting the effects of the chemical weathering of potsherds: A case study using soft-paste porcelain wasters from the Longton Hall (Staffordshire) factory site

Unglazed soft-paste porcelain wasters from the Longton Hall factory site are variably depleted (75–80 rel %) in CaO relative to comparatively insoluble components (e.g., Al₂O₃, TiO₂) due to the dissolution of wollastonite (CaSiO₃, a pyroxenoid) by subsurface water. The degree of desilicification is variable (0–45 rel % SiO₂). Petrographic data and element-abundance plots suggest that these were the principal effects of the chemical weathering process in most samples. The preferential dissolution of a single phase in the unglazed Longton Hall sherds permits the semiquantitative “reversal” of weathering phenomena. Alteration effects can be corrected using porosity–volume data to constrain the amount of wollastonite originally present in the weathered sherds. The original compositions of the unglazed wasters are bracketed by arithmetically “adding back” the missing pyroxenoid components according to two endmember assumptions concerning element mobility: (1) the total leaching of wollastonite components and (2) the preferential leaching of wollastonite-derived CaO. These calculations—particularly the latter—yield results that compare favourably with the compositions of relatively unaltered (wollastonite-bearing), glazed samples from the Longton Hall site. Given the potential susceptibility of archaeological ceramics to chemical weathering, it would seem prudent that these phenomena be carefully assessed, and corrected where possible, so that analytical data for these artifacts can be judiciously interpreted. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

A physical model of the high-frequency seismic signal generated by debris flows

We propose a physical model for the high-frequency (>1 Hz) spectral distribution of seismic power generated by debris flows. The modeled debris flow is assumed to have four regions where the impact rate and impulses are controlled by different mechanisms: the flow body, a coarser-grained snout, a snout lip where particles fall from the snout on the bed, and a dilute front composed of saltating particles. We calculate the seismic power produced by this impact model in two end-member scenarios, a thin-flow and thick-flow limit, which assume that the ratio of grain sizes to flow thicknesses are either near unity or much less than unity. The thin-flow limit is more appropriate for boulder-rich flows that are most likely to generate large seismic signals. As a flow passes a seismic station, the rise phase of the seismic amplitude is generated primarily by the snout while the decay phase is generated first by the snout and then the main flow body. The lip and saltating front generate a negligible seismic signal. When ground properties are known, seismic power depends most strongly on both particle diameter and average flow speed cubed, and also depends on length and width of the flow. The effective particle diameter for producing seismic power is substantially higher than the median grain size and close to the 73rd percentile for a realistic grain size distribution. We discuss how the model can be used to estimate effective particle diameter and average flow speed from an integrated measure of seismic power. © 2019 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. © 2019 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Earth mantle conductivity beneath the Ukrainian territory

Studia Geophysica et Geodaetica - Magnetovariation methods, which are applicable to study the mantle conductivity, require long lasting registration of natural magnetic field variations. Such data...     

Dissolved organic carbon in permafrost regions: A review

A large quantity of organic carbon(C) is stored in northern and elevational permafrost regions. A portion of this large terrestrial organic C pool will be transferred by water into soil solution(～0.4 Pg C yr~(-1))(1 Pg=10~(15) g), rivers (～0.06 Pg C yr~(-1)),wetlands, lakes, and oceans. The lateral transport of dissolved organic carbon(DOC) is the primary pathway, impacting river biogeochemistry and ecosystems. However, climate warming will substantially alter the lateral C shifts in permafrost regions.Vegetation, permafrost, precipitation, soil humidity and temperature, and microbial activities, among many other environmental factors, will shift substantially under a warming climate. It remains uncertain as to what extent the lateral C cycle is responding,and will respond, to climate change. This paper reviews recent studies on terrestrial origins of DOC, biodegradability, transfer pathways, and modelling, and on how to forecast of DOC fluxes in permafrost regions under a warming climate, as well as the potential anthropogenic impacts on DOC in permafrost regions. It is concluded that:(1) surface organic layer, permafrost soils,and vegetation leachates are the main DOC sources, with about 4.72 Pg C DOC stored in the topsoil at depths of 0–1 m in permafrost regions;(2) in-stream DOC concentrations vary spatially and temporally to a relatively small extent (1–60 mg C L~(-1)) and annual export varies from 0.1–10 g C m~(-2) yr~(-1);(3) biodegradability of DOC from the thawing permafrost can be as high as 71%, with a median at 52%;(4) DOC flux is controlled by multiple factors, mainly including vegetation, soil properties,permafrost occurrence, river discharge and other related environmental factors, and(5) many statistical and process-based models have been developed, but model predictions are inconsistent with observational results largely dependent on the individual watershed characteristics and future discharge trends. Thus, it is still difficult to predict how future lateral C flux will respond to climate change, but changes in the DOC regimes in individual catchments can be predicted with a reasonable reliability. It is advised that sampling protocols and preservation and analysis methods should be standardized, and analytical techniques at molecular scales and numerical modeling on thermokarsting processes should be prioritized.     

Innovative Environmental Tracer Techniques for Evaluating Sources of Spring Discharge from a Carbonate Aquifer Bisected by a River

Littlefield Springs discharge about 1.6 m³/s along a 10‐km reach of the Virgin River in northwestern Arizona. Understanding their source is important for salinity control in the Colorado River Basin. Environmental tracers suggest that Littlefield Springs are a mixture of older groundwater from the regional Great Basin carbonate aquifer and modern (post‐1950s) seepage from the Virgin River. While corrected ¹⁴C apparent ages range from 1 to 9 ka, large amounts of nucleogenic ⁴He and low ³He/⁴He ratios suggest that the carbonate aquifer component is likely even older Pleistocene recharge. Modeled infiltration of precipitation, hydrogeologic cross sections, and hydraulic gradients all indicate recharge to the carbonate aquifer likely occurs in the Clover and Bull Valley Mountains along the northern part of the watershed, rather than in the nearby Virgin Mountains. This high‐altitude recharge is supported by relatively cool noble‐gas recharge temperatures and isotopically depleted δ²H and δ¹⁸O. Excess (crustal) SF₆ and ⁴He precluded dating of the modern component of water from Littlefield Springs using SF₆ and ³H/³He methods. Assuming a lumped‐parameter model with a binary mixture of two piston‐flow components, Cl^?/Br^?, Cl^?/F^?, δ²H, and CFCs indicate the mixture is about 60% Virgin River water and 40% groundwater from the carbonate aquifer, with an approximately 30‐year groundwater travel time for Virgin River seepage to re‐emerge at Littlefield Springs. This suggests that removal of high‐salinity sources upstream of the Virgin River Gorge would reduce the salinity of water discharging from Littlefield Springs into the Virgin River within a few decades.