Robust multivariate procedures applied to the interpretation of atypical individuals of a Cretaceous foraminifer

Robust multivariate statistical methods are applied to samples of the Cretaceous bolivinid foraminifer Afrobolivina afra, in which individuals from microspheric and megalospheric generations dominate, but which also contain some pseudo-megalospheric specimens. Pseudo-megalospheric tests may cause values which are atypical in the statistical sense but which are fully normal biologically. Other atypical values derive from crushed specimens, microspheric individuals and unusual normal megalospheres with exceptionally wide shells and pointed last chambers. A wrongly punched specimen was also found by the procedure. The method employed here consists of plotting the generalized statistical distances calculated from robust estimates of means and of covariances against the quantiles of a Gaussian distribution; the presence of an atypical observation(s) is readily exposed by its departure from the main trend of the plot.     

Isotopic and textural discrimination between hypogene,ancient supergene,and modern sulfates at the Questa mine,New Mexico

Chemical and mineralogical changes due to pyrite weathering are of interest with respect to understanding long-term physical stability of mine rock piles at the Questa mine, New Mexico. The ability to discriminate between ancient and modern processes is important for establishing the extent of modern weathering within the piles. Initial inventories of sulfur minerals and representative isotope compositions in rocks from orebodies, the hydrothermal alteration zones associated with orebodies, hydrothermal alteration scars, and mine rock piles were determined. Ore body sulfides have δ³⁴S_CDT of 0 ± 4‰, typical for sulfides formed by magmatic processes in stockwork Mo systems. Pyrite from alteration scars has a wide range of δ³⁴S values from 0.0‰ to −13.6‰. Sulfate from the ore body has markedly positive δ³⁴S (5–10‰) accompanied by positive δ¹⁸OSO₄${\delta }^{18}{\text{O}}_{{\text{SO}}_4}$ values (6–15‰) reflecting equilibrium formation from magmatic fluids. Sulfates from alteration scars have δ³⁴S values over a broad range, similar to alteration scar pyrites, from −10.6‰ to 0‰ and δ¹⁸OSO₄${\delta }^{18}{\text{O}}_{{\text{SO}}_4}$ of 0 ± 3‰. Sulfates with fine grained, delicate, and euhedral mineral habits suggesting recent formation within the mine rock piles, have δ³⁴S values similar to orebody pyrite and alteration scars but more negative δ¹⁸OSO₄${\delta }^{18}{\text{O}}_{{\text{SO}}_4}$ values (−3‰ to −10‰). Sulfates from all three sources occur in these piles, and their stable isotope values have proven useful in differentiating them and their environments of formation (i.e., hypogene, ancient supergene, and recent weathering). Correlating the isotopic compositions with textures allows petrographic assessment for the origins of sulfate minerals in the rock piles, but this must be applied with caution because some sulfate mineral recycling has occurred.     

Anisotropic elastic full‐waveform inversion of walkaway vertical seismic profiling data from the Arabian Gulf

Borehole seismic addresses the need for high‐resolution images and elastic parameters of the subsurface. Full‐waveform inversion of vertical seismic profile data is a promising technology with the potential to recover quantitative information about elastic properties of the medium. Full‐waveform inversion has the capability to process the entire wavefield and to address the wave propagation effects contained in the borehole data—multi‐component measurements; anisotropic effects; compressional and shear waves; and transmitted, converted, and reflected waves and multiples. Full‐waveform inversion, therefore, has the potential to provide a more accurate result compared with conventional processing methods. We present a feasibility study with results of the application of high‐frequency (up to 60 Hz) anisotropic elastic full‐waveform inversion to a walkaway vertical seismic profile data from the Arabian Gulf. Full‐waveform inversion has reproduced the majority of the wave events and recovered a geologically plausible layered model with physically meaningful values of the medium.     

Turbidite deposition and the development of canyons through time on an intermittently glaciated continental margin: The Bonanza Canyon system,offshore eastern Canada

Bonanza Canyon is a complex canyon system on the slope from the intermittently glaciated Grand Bank on the south side of Orphan Basin. A 3D seismic reflection volume, 2D high-resolution seismic reflection profiles and ten piston cores were acquired to study the evolution of this canyon system in relation to glacial processes on the continental shelf and the effects of different types of turbidity currents on the development of deep water channels. Mapped reflector surfaces from the 3D seismic volume show that the Bonanza Canyons developed in a depression created by a large submarine slide of middle Pleistocene age, coincident with the onset of glacigenic debris flows entering western Orphan Basin. Two 3–5 km wide, flat-floored channels were cut into the resulting mass-transport deposit and resemble catastrophic glacial meltwater channels elsewhere on the margin. Both channels subsequently aggraded. The eastern channel A became narrower but maintained a sandy channel floor. The western channel, B, heads at a spur on the continental slope and appears to have been rather passively draped by muds and minor sands that have built 1500-m wave length sediment waves.Muddy turbidites recorded by piston cores in the channel and on the inter-channel ridges are restricted to marine isotope stage (MIS) 2 and were deposited from thick, sheet-like, and sluggish turbidity current derived from western Orphan Basin that resulted in aggradation of the channels and inter-channel ridges. Sandy turbidites in channels and on inner levees were deposited throughout MIS 2–3 and were restricted to the channels, locally causing erosion. Some coincide with Heinrich events. Channels with well-developed distributaries on the upper slope more readily trap the sediments on Grand Bank to form sandy turbidity currents. Channel B dominated by muddy turbidity currents has wide and relatively smooth floor whereas channel A dominated by sandy turbidity currents has a sharp geometry.     

Glaciation of a mixed-phase boundary layer cloud at a coastal arctic site as depicted in continuous lidar measurements

The dynamic seeding and glaciation of a mixed-phase cloud by ice crystals injected from above at Ny Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway is described using continuous lidar measurements and thermodynamic data. Glaciation of this cloud was caused by ice crystal growth and sedimentation due to the preferential differences in saturation vapor pressure over ice versus liquid water and riming. The lidar data suggest that precipitation reached the ground for nearly 4 h as a result. The symbiosis between ice and liquid water hydrometeor presence in the polar troposphere is unique. Thermal perturbations and airmass fluctuations influence microphysical cloud characteristics and radiative balance, which makes the otherwise pristine region sensitive to lower-latitude anthropogenic and biogenic influences and a focal point for observing indirect effects and their influence on climate change. The development of lidar technologies capable of continuous and autonomous measurements is yielding important datasets to study unique atmospheric phenomena.     

Distributed velocity method of solving the convective-dispersion equation: 1. Introduction,mathematical theory,and numerical implementation

This is the first part of a two-part paper presenting a new method for treating convective-dispersive transport. The motivation for developing this technique arises from the demands of performing a risk assessment for a nuclear waste repository. These demands include computational efficiency over a relatively large range of Peclet numbers, the ability to handle chains of decaying radionuclides with rather extreme contrasts in both solution velocities and half lives, and the ability to treat leach- or solubility-limited sources. To the extent it has been tested to date, the distributed velocity method (DVM) appears to satisfy these demands. This part contains an overall introduction and presents the mathematical theory, numerical implementation, and example results.     

Swath bathymetry with GLORIA

For many years, GLORIA has been producing sonar images of the deep ocean floor. In the mid-1980's, the SeaMARC II system came to prominence producing depth values as well as sonar images. The basic method compares the phases of the signals returning from the seafloor to two rows of transducers. The phase differences are converted into angles of arrival and together with the arrival times converted into range and depth values. This capability has now been added to the GLORIA system. The fact that GLORIA uses a 2s FM pulse means the backscattered reverberation can come from a strip of seafloor up to 1.5 km wide. To accommodate this, overlapping complex FFT's are used to produce a time-frequency matrix for the returning signals. In this matrix, a constant range feature appears as a diagonal. Phases are then calculated using a least-mean-squares estimate along diagonals. The main source of error and bias is due to surface reflection, and this is taken into account. The GLORIA swath bathymetry system was tested on two cruises and it was possible to produce depth contours with a good level of confidence. The total swath width was over eight water depths and would have been greater with a more favorable velocity profile. Comparison with other bathymetry data (such as multibeam systems) showed excellent correlation, having a standard deviation of only 4% of total water depth     

Zircon Ce4+/Ce3+ ratios and ages for Yulong ore-bearing porphyries in eastern Tibet

Yulong ore-bearing porphyries, along the northwestern extension of the Red River–Ailao Shan fault system in eastern Tibet, consist of five porphyry deposits, containing a total of more than 8 million tons of copper resources. U–Th–Pb laser inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry dating of zircon shows that the porphyries were emplaced in Early Tertiary (41.2–36.9 Ma), covering a period of ∼4.3 Ma, with formation ages decreasing systematically from northwest to southeast. The start of porphyry magmatism coincided with the onset of transpressional movement along the Red River–Ailao Shan fault system, implying a close link between these two events. Age sequence in intrusions can be plausibly explained by assuming that a region of melting in the lower northwestern plate moved southeasternward along the Tuoba–Mangkang fault relative to the upper plate. Zircon grains from the Yulong ore-bearing porphyries have higher Ce⁴⁺/Ce³⁺ than those from barren porphyries in the region. This suggests that the ore-bearing porphyries crystallized from a relatively oxidized magma, which has important implications for future ore exploration in the region and other Cu deposits in convergent margin environments in general.     

Seismic hazard model for loss estimation and risk management in Taiwan

We developed a seismic hazard model for Taiwan that integrates all available tectonic, seismicity, and seismic hazard information in the region to provide risk managers and engineers with a model they can use to estimate earthquake losses and manage seismic risk in Taiwan. The seismic hazard model is composed of two major components: a seismotectonic model and a ground-shaking model. The seismotectonic model incorporates earthquakes that are expected to occur on the Ryukyu and Manila subduction zones, on the intermediate-depth Wadati-Benioff seismicity zones, on the active crustal faults, and within seismotectonic provinces. The active crustal faults include the Chelungpu fault zone, the source of the damaging M_W 7.6 Chi-Chi earthquake, and the Huangchi-Hsiaoyukeng fault zone that forms the western boundary of the Taipei Basin. The ground-shaking model uses both US, worldwide, and Taiwanese attenuation relations to provide robust estimates of peak ground acceleration and response spectral acceleration on a reference site condition for shallow crustal and subduction zone earthquakes. The ground shaking for other site conditions is obtained by applying a nonlinear soil-amplification factor defined in terms of the average shear-wave velocity in the top 30 m of the soil profile, consistent with the methodology used in the current US and proposed Taiwan building codes.