Fluvial processes in a forested anastomosing river: Flood partitioning and changing flow patterns

In an effort to further our understanding of multiple channel systems, this paper presents data on the flood response of channels in one of the last wooded, semi-natural anastomosing systems in Europe. The Gearagh, Ireland, is characterized by hundreds of small islands separated by interconnected channels of low slope. These include channels that cross islands at right angles to the main flow and blind anabranching channels. Islands are relatively stable and wooded, with evidence of division by channel erosion and growth by in-channel sedimentation. Four active zone cross-profiles were surveyed, each containing between seven and 13 channels. Velocities were measured in several channels before and during two separate floods. From these observations channels have been categorised into three types: fast (shallow and trapezoidal); slow (deep and more irregular); and flood channels. During the floods, interchannel flows were caused by variations in water surface elevations due to backing-up behind debris dams, and it is suggested that this is the origin of the anomalous cross-island channels and one cause of island division. Another potential cause of island division, blind anabranching channels, is the result of concentrated bank scour between root masses. Biotic components such as debris dams, tree root masses and tree-throw pits play a key role in the partitioning of flow, and cause variations in channel velocities and the overbank velocity distribution. The implications of these observations for channel pattern maintenance are briefly discussed.     

Geochemical variations within a laminated evaporite deposit: evidence for brine composition during formation of the Permian Castile Formation, Texas and New Mexico, USA

The Upper Permian Castile Formation of the Delaware Basin in northwest Texas and New Mexico consists of up to 600 m of evaporites and is subdivided into units of anhydrite overlain by halite. The Castile Formation has commonly been interpreted as a deep-water, deep-basin deposit in which sediments were laid down in several hundred metres of water or brine. Recent textural observations within anhydrite units, in which the thick-bedded anhydrite horizons have been interpreted as being of shallow-water origin, have challenged this assumption. This geochemical study of the oldest anhydrite unit in the Castile Formation (the Anhydrite 1 Member) attempts to resolve some of the problems regarding brine depth and evolution in the basin. The Anhydrite 1 Member has been subdivided into five major cycles on the basis of the distribution of stratigraphic units of thick-bedded anhydrite.

Stable isotopic analyses of sulphur from anhydrite, and oxygen and carbon from calcite show that the basin waters were chemically homogeneous during precipitation of anhydrite, and do not indicate any significant input of meteoric, continental-derived waters. Throughout the section studied progressive enrichment of ¹⁸O upwards within cored intervals indicates continuous evaporation of the water body. Carbon isotopes appear to indicate fluctuations in organic activity within the cycles. Trace elemental analyses of Fe, Mg, Sr, Mn, Al, Ba, Zn, Pb and Cu from the sulphate fraction of the samples show a very high variability. There is a distinct increase in trace elemental abundances at the tops of cycles which may indicate variations in precipitation kinetics. Analyses of texturally defined cycles show that up-core trends for many of the trace elements correlate with changes in δ¹⁸O, indicating a progressive increase in the influence of evaporation. In addition, cyclical variations in trace elemental composition indicate changes in basin conditions with around a 350-year cyclicity. These changes are independent of δ¹⁸O values. The geochemical data do not provide conclusive proof of water depth during deposition of the Castile Formation. The data are interpreted as reflecting small-scale changes in conditions of deposition, despite the fact that water input remained essentially constant in terms of chemical composition.     

Worldwide photometry and lightcurve observations of 1 Ceres during the 1975–1976 apparition

We present 19 lightcurves of asteroid 1 Ceres obtained during a global campaign in 1975–1976. The synodic period is 0.37812 ± 0.00004 day. The mean absolute V magnitude is 3.61 ± 0.03 and the phase coefficient is 0.40 ± 0.001 mag/deg. The U-B and B-V phase coefficients are +0.0015 ± 0.0007 and +0.0006 ± 0.0003 mag/deg, respectively. The colors at zero phase are B-V = +0.70 ± 0.01 and U-B = +0.41 ± 0.01.     

Diagenetic evolution of the Carnian Wetterstein platforms of the Eastern Alps

The carbonate platforms of the Wetterstein Formation of the Eastern Alps (Drau Range and Northern Calcareous Alps) show a distinct facies zonation of reefs and lagoons. While some lagoonal areas were episodically emerged and formed lagoonal islands, others remained permanently flooded. The scale of near surface, meteoric or marine diagenesis was related to this lagoonal topography. At shallow burial depth, cementation was dominated by altered marine solutions, which additionally caused recrystallization of metastable constituents of the sediment and earlier marine cements (high magnesian calcite, aragonite) connected with a carbon and oxygen isotopic change to more negative values. Deeper burial cementation shows a succession with two types of saddle dolomite and three types of blocky calcite. Carbon and oxygen isotopic values of these cements show a trend towards more negative values from the first to the last generation, in the following succession: clear saddle dolomite—zoned blocky calcite—cloudy saddle dolomite—post-corrosion blocky calcite—replacive blocky calcite. Fluid inclusion studies of the carbonate cements are interpreted to indicate a deeper burial temperature development that first increases from 175 to 317°C, followed by a temperature decrease to 163–260°C, and subsequent increase up to 316°C, whereby the samples of the Drau Range always show the lowest values. Calculations of the isotopic composition of the water, from which the carbonate cements were precipitated, yielded positive δ¹⁸O values from 6.66 to 17.81%o (SMOW), which are characteristic for formation and/or metamorphic waters. Also, the isotopic compositions of the palaeofluids probably changed during deeper burial diagenesis, following the temperature development.     

Application of enterococci antibiotic resistance patterns for contamination source identification at Huntington Beach,California

Huntington Beach, California, one of the most popular surfing spots in the world, is plagued by sporadic, elevated levels of fecal bacteria. To assist with pollution source identification, we analyzed antibiotic resistance patterns (ARPs) of enterococci from four known sources (bird feces, urban runoff, coastal marsh sediment and sewage effluent from local sanitation district) and one unknown source (seawater) using seven antibiotics at four concentrations each. Of 2491 enterococci tested, all were resistant to at least one antibiotic at some level. Discriminant analysis indicated that the average correct classification rates for bird feces and urban runoff sources were above 80%. Sewage effluent contained mixed fecal sources. Sixty-four percent of the sewage isolates classified with the sewage category, while the other 35% of isolates were assigned evenly across the other three categories. When enterococci isolated from the seawater were classified using the known ARP database, it was evident that bird feces were the source of surf zone contamination on some days while the coastal salt marsh and sewage plume may have impacted the surf zone water quality to various degrees during other times.     

Performance characteristics and calibration of the ENDECO pulseddissolved oxygen type 1125 system

The initial response pattern for a conventional two-electrode, membrane-type dissolved-oxygen probe connected to an ENDECO model 1125 dissolved-oxygen sensor controller is presented. The controller implements a chronoamperometric technique and involves application of the polarizing potential as a pulse. The pulse duration confines the diffusion boundary within the internal electrolyte and the membrane. The time required for readout stabilization is attributed to the establishment of an equilibrium involving diffusion of reactant and product of the electrochemical reaction. A procedure for minimizing the role of membrane stretch in establishing the equilibrium time is discussed. Data obtained on changing the pulse repetition interval are presented in support of the establishment of an equilibrium condition. Sensor response over a 32-day period is noted. Calibration curve data demonstrate the linearity of response with varying oxygen concentrations. Response time data indicate attainment of better than 99% of full deflection within three minutes of a change in oxygen concentration