Evolution of a trench-slope basin within the Cascadia subduction margin: the Neogene Humboldt Basin, California

The Neogene Humboldt (Eel River) Basin is located along the north-eastern margin of the Pacific Ocean within the Cascadia subduction zone. This sedimentary basin originated near the base of the accretionary prism in post-Eocene time. Subduction processes since that time have elevated strata in the south-eastern portion of the basin above sea level. High-resolution chronostratigraphic data from the onshore portion of the Humboldt Basin enable correlation of time-equivalent lithofacies across the palaeomargin, reconstruction of slope-basin evolution, and preliminary delineation of climatic and tectonic influence on lithological variation. Emergent basin fill is divided into five lithofacies which clearly document shoaling of the inner trench slope from deep-water environments in early Miocene time to paralic environments in Pleistocene time. The oldest strata consist of hemipelagic mudstones and minor debris-flow breccias deposited in a deep-water setting during elevated sea level. These strata are overlain by glauconite-rich, fine-grained turbidites which heralded an increasing influx of terrigenous detritus. Water depths shoaled earlier in the eastern basin area as the palaeoshoreline prograded seaward. Turbidite deposition ceased in the eastern basin area at about 2-2 Ma, whereas 22 km to the west, turbidite deposition continued until about 1-8 Ma. Lithofacies at the western study site change abruptly across a middle Pleistocene unconformity from outer shelf to paralic deposits. In the east, a more complete Pleistocene section records transition from outer to inner shelf, beach and fluvial environments. The Humboldt Basin lithofacies sequence is overprinted by eustatic control of sediment source. Comparison of sediment character with palaeoceanographic conditions indicates dominance of hemipelagic facies during periods of elevated sea level in the middle Miocene and early Pliocene when depocentres were isolated from terrigenous sediment. Glauconite-rich facies were mobilized from an upper slope setting following these periods of elevated sea level and redeposited in a deep-marine environment. Pleistocene shoreline lithofacies display glacio-esutatic control of depositional environment by recording several cycles of nearshore to fluvial progressions. General models of accretionary prism behaviour and trench-slope basin evolution are compatible with the overall coarsening-upward lithofacies sequence filling the Humboldt Basin. Early structural barriers precluded deposition of terrigenous material except from locally derived debris flows; subsequent shoaling and burial of deactivated thrust-folds enabled turbidity flows to reach the basin floor. However, late-stage tectonism apparently controlled the onset of coarse-grained deposition in this sequence. Significant sand-rich turbidite deposition began in the middle Pliocene, synchronous with tectonic uplift of the southern basin margin. Conversely, cessation of turbidite deposition in the eastern basin area in latest Pliocene time was synchronous with growth of anticlinal structures which again blocked widespread dispersal of turbidity flows. This middle Pliocene to Holocene period of crustal shortening is synchronous with continued reduction in spreading rate along the southern Juan de Fuca ridge, and probably reflects partial coupling between the subducting lithosphere and the overlying accretionary prism.     

The first field-based descriptions of pumping-induced saltwater intrusion and upconing

Development of the ideas about the equilibrium between freshwater and saline water has received considerable attention in the literature, but little has been written so far about the earliest scientific works about well salinization. Based on a review of the literature from the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century, this historical note explores how insights into groundwater abstraction and saltwater intrusion developed, and examples of the earliest field studies are provided. Fundamental research was driven by the need for increasing water supply, but the progress of science did not lead to sustainable management practices everywhere. Research outcomes were shared between scientists of different countries, marking the beginning of coastal hydrogeology as a scientific specialization in the first decade of the 20th century.     

Evidence for a small,high-Z,iron-like solar core

Radial and nonradial oscillation equations without and with the gravitation perturbation (with and without the Cowling approximation, CA) are solved numerically using the profile from a more accurate high-Z core (HZC) solar model. This more accurate HZC model was generated with the CRAY X-MP/48 supercomputer at the San Diego Supercomputer Center. Frequencies of oscillation in the five-min band (5MB) and frequencies with period near 160 min are presented in tables and plotted in echelle diagrams. The model was generated by integrating the stellar structure equations from the center to he surface, as done in Rouse (1964), using a maximum space step, ;x _m = 5 × 10^–4, decreasing to 10^–6 in the hydrogenionization zone just below the photosphere. Two subsets of space mesh points are used to calculate the oscillation frequencies, viz., one with a maximum space step of 5 × 10^–3, decreasing to 10^–6 with a total of 621 points (mesh 5I) and the other with a maximum space step of 2 × 10^–3, with a total of 867 points (mesh 5J).With the surface boundary condition applied at x = 1.0, the l – 1 degree nonradial frequencies with CA and the l-degree frequencies without CA are in very good agreement with the frequency spacings for observed frequencies of oscillation labeled l = 1 to 5, but with the l – 1 frequencies with CA about 10 Hz or so less than the observations and the l frequencies without CA about 10 Hz or so greater than the observations. And for the Duvall and Harvey (1983) observations labeled l = 10 and l = 20, the l = 9 and l = 19 nonradial solutions with CA agree to about 5 Hz or less with the observations. Considering from the two preceeding papers in this series that increasing the density in the outer envelope and photosphere will increase the 5MB frequencies and applying the outer boundary condition at x > 1.0 will decrease the 5MB frequencies, the net affects of such changes could move one or the other set of frequencies closer to the observations — or require a slightly different model structure to obtain accurate agreements with the values of the observed frequencies throughout the 5MB.In either case, it is concluded that the first-order, radially-symmetric structure of the model outside the HZC is close to the structure of the real Sun. This is of fundamental importance because a real gas adiabatic temperature gradient (Rouse, 1964, 1971) is used in the outer convective region without free parameters.Other aspects of agreements and differences between radial and nonradial solutions, with CA and without CA are discussed. In particular, the l = 4, 6, 8, and 9 g-mode solutions with CA indicate that the observed 160.01 min period may be a common l-mode period of oscillation. More research is proposed.     

Detection and extraction of signals from the epoch of reionization using higher-order one-point statistics

Detecting redshifted 21-cm emission from neutral hydrogen in the early Universe promises to give direct constraints on the epoch of reionization (EoR). It will, though, be very challenging to extract the cosmological signal (CS) from foregrounds and noise which are orders of magnitude larger. Fortunately, the signal has some characteristics which differentiate it from the foregrounds and noise, and we suggest that using the correct statistics may tease out signatures of reionization. We generate mock data cubes simulating the output of the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) EoR experiment. These cubes combine realistic models for Galactic and extragalactic foregrounds and the noise with three different simulations of the CS. We fit out the foregrounds, which are smooth in the frequency direction, to produce residual images in each frequency band. We denoise these images and study the skewness of the one-point distribution in the images as a function of frequency. We find that, under sufficiently optimistic assumptions, we can recover the main features of the redshift evolution of the skewness in the 21-cm signal. We argue that some of these features – such as a dip at the onset of reionization, followed by a rise towards its later stages – may be generic, and give us a promising route to a statistical detection of reionization.     

Implications of CO2 global warming on great lakes ice cover

Statistical ice cover models were used to project daily mean basin ice cover and annual ice cover duration for Lakes Superior and Erie. Models were applied to a 1951–80 base period and to three 30-year steady double carbon dioxide (2 × CO₂) scenarios produced by the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL), the Goddard Institute of Space Studies (GISS), and the Oregon State University (OSU) general circulation models. Ice cover estimates were made for the West, Central, and East Basins of Lake Erie and for the West, East, and Whitefish Bay Basins of Lake Superior. Average ice cover duration for the 1951– 80 base period ranged from 13 to 16 weeks for individual lake basins. Reductions in average ice cover duration under the three 2 × CO₂ scenarios for individual lake basins ranged from 5 to 12 weeks for the OSU scenario, 8 to 13 weeks for the GISS scenario, and 11 to 13 weeks for GFDL scenario. Winters without ice formation become common for Lake Superior under the GFDL scenario and under all three 2 × CO₂ scenarios for the Central and East Basins of Lake Erie. During an average 2 × CO₂ winter, ice cover would be limited to the shallow areas of Lakes Erie and Superior. Because of uncertainties in the ice cover models, the results given here represent only a first approximation and are likely to represent an upper limit of the extent and duration of ice cover under the climate change projected by the three 2 × CO₂scenarios. Notwithstanding these limitations, ice cover projected by the 2 × CO₂ scenarios provides a preliminary assessment of the potential sensitivity of the Great Lakes ice cover to global warming. Potential environmental and socioeconomic impacts of a 2 × CO₂ warming include year-round navigation, change in abundance of some fish species in the Great Lakes, discontinuation or reduction of winter recreational activities, and an increase in winter lake evaporation.     

Influence of climate factors on spatial distribution of Texas cattle breeds

This paper investigates the spatial distribution of cattle breeders in Texas to quantify how climate factors influence cattle breed selection. A multivariate probit model is employed to examine the county-level binary choices of Bos taurus, Bos indicus and composite breeds derived from cattle breed association membership data. The estimation results suggest that summer heat stress is a significant factor for breed selection: positive for Bos indicus and negative for Bos taurus and composite breeds, with the average marginal effects on breed membership probability being 9.7 %, ?26.5 % and ?7.9 %, respectively. The intensity of the summer heat impacts can lead to noteworthy changes in spatial distributions of Texas cattle breeds in the event of climate change.     

Acoustic studies of zooplankton in the Sea of Japan and Eastern Arctic

We present the results of sound scattering studies to estimate the distribution and dynamics of zooplankton in the upper sea layer under various conditions. The measurements of the sound scattering coefficients were carried out over different pathways during the ship motion and at individual stations at frequencies of 100–250 kHz. The studies were carried out in 2004–2014 in the Sea of Japan and in 2013 in the Eastern Arctic seas. The studies of sound scattering were performed simultaneously with net catches of plankton in situ. These data allowed us to study the details of correlation between the sound scattering coefficient and zooplankton concentration. The studies revealed significantly stronger sound scattering in the Eastern Arctic, which is related to the greater concentration of zooplankton, the migration of which differs strongly from the migration of plankton in the warm seas.     

Grain‐scale pressure variations and chemical equilibrium in high‐grade metamorphic rocks

In the classical view of metamorphic microstructures, fast viscous relaxation (and so constant pressure) is assumed, with diffusion being the limiting factor in equilibration. This contribution is focused on the only other possible scenario – fast diffusion and slow viscous relaxation – and brings an alternative interpretation of microstructures typical of high‐grade metamorphic rocks. In contrast to the pressure vessel mechanical model applied to pressure variation associated with coesite inclusions in various host minerals, a multi‐anvil mechanical model is proposed in which strong single crystals and weak grain boundaries can maintain pressure variation at geological time‐scales in a polycrystalline material. In such a mechanical context, exsolution lamellae in feldspar are used to show that feldspar can sustain large differential stresses (>10 kbar) at geological time‐scales. Furthermore, it is argued that the existence of grain‐scale pressure gradients combined with diffusional equilibrium may explain chemical zoning preserved in reaction rims. Assuming zero net flux across the microstructure, an equilibrium thermodynamic method is introduced for inferring pressure variation corresponding to the chemical zoning. This new barometric method is applied to plagioclase rims around kyanite in felsic granulite (Bohemian Massif, Czech Republic), yielding a grain‐scale pressure variation of 8 kbar. In this approach, kinetic factors are not invoked to account for mineral composition zoning preserved in rocks metamorphosed at high grade.