Compositional variations of olivine from the Jinchuan Ni–Cu sulfide deposit,western China: implications for ore genesis

The Jinchuan Ni–Cu sulfide deposit is hosted by an elongated, olivine-rich ultramafic body that is divided by subvertical strike-slip faults into three segments (central, eastern, and western). The central segment is characterized by concentric enrichments of cumulus olivine crystals and interstitial sulfides (pyrrhotite–pentlandite–chalcopyrite intergrowth), whereas the eastern and western segments are characterized by an increase of sulfides toward the lower contacts. In all segments sulfides are concentrated at the expense of intercumulus silicates. Olivine re-crystallization is found to be associated with actinolite alteration in some samples. The compositional variations of primary olivine from the sulfide-poor samples can be explained by a small degree of olivine crystallization (<5%) from a basaltic magma followed by local re-equilibration of the olivine with up to 30% trapped silicate liquid. In the sulfide-bearing samples the compositions of primary olivine record the results of olivine-sulfide Fe–Ni exchange that occurred after the trapped silicate liquid crystallized. Our olivine data indicate that Ni in the original sulfide liquids increased inward in the central segment and laterally away from the lower contact in the eastern segment. Variations in the compositions of sulfide liquids are thought to result from fractional segregation of immiscible sulfide liquid from a basaltic magma in a staging chamber instead of in situ differentiation. High concentrations of olivine crystals (mostly >50 modal%) and sulfide (averaging ~5 wt%) in the rocks are consistent with the interpretation that the Jinchuan deposit was formed by olivine- and sulfide-laden magma successively ascending through a conduit to a higher, now-eroded, level. Sulfide enrichment toward the center in the central segment and toward the lower contact in the eastern and western segments may have, in part, resulted from flow differentiation and gravitational settling during magma ascent, respectively.Editorial handling: P. Lightfoot     

Preliminary transient heat flow model of the Rio Grande rift in southern New Mexico

A positive gravity anomaly, anomalous seismic structure, and abnormally high reduced heat flow occur in a possible extension of the Rio Grande rift in southern New Mexico. The reduced heat flux is explained by the transient effects of basaltic intrusions with dimensions based on interpretations from gravity and seismic data. Ages of volcanic activity in the rift area are used to determine times of thermal events. The effect of latent heat and sharp boundaries of the reduced heat flow anomaly also restrict modeling. The thermal model consists of three intrusions at the base of the crust at 35 m.y., 10 m.y. and 5 m.y. The initial temperatures of these intrusions would differ from those in the surrounding crust and upper mantle by about +800°C, +800°C, and +600°C, respectively. The 35-m.y. intrusion is consistent with Oligocene volcanism and tectonic activity in southwestern New Mexico. This mass also contributes to the Bouguer gravity high in the rift area, as do the intrusions at 10 and 5 m.y. The intrusions at 10 and 5 m.y. explain the excess reduced flux, with the 5-m.y. pulse accounting for most of the curvature in the sharp boundaries of the anomaly. The idealized model is consistent with late Tertiary andesites, the periods of little extrusive activity, and Pliocene-Quaternary basalts in the rift area.     

Initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios of plutonic and volcanic rocks of the Central Andes between latitudes 26° and 29° south

Initial⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios have been determined for 34 plutonic and volcanic rocks covering the entire age span of magmatic events associated with the Andean orogeny between latitudes 26° and 29° south. The igneous rocks, the majority dated by K/Ar mineral techniques, range in age from Lower Jurassic (190 m.y.) to Quaternary (0.89 m.y.). In addition, initial ratios were determined for three granitoid plutons and one metasediment from the pre-Mesozoic basement which underlies the entire Andean orogen in this transect at shallow depth. The compositions vary from basalt to rhyolite, and from quartz diorite to granodiorite or trondjemite, for the extrusives and intrusives, respectively.Mid-Cretaceous to Quaternary rocks exhibit a systematic west to east increase in mean strontium isotope ratio from 0.7022 to 0.7077, whereas the initial ratios of Jurassic plutons vary from 0.7043 to 0.7059, and do not correlate with age.The existence of unusually low initial ratios (e.g. 0.7022, 0.7023) for several Mesozoic plutonic rocks strongly implies a sub-crustal source for at least some of the Andean magmas. The time-dependent post-Jurassic increase in initial ratio is considered to reflect a systematic change in the composition of partial melts generated in response to the progressive subduction of a lithospheric slab. It is suggested that a systematic change in the locus of melting takes place from along or close to the upper surface of the subduction slab into hanging-wall mantle peridotite as subduction continues.     

Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Network

Information included in this summary is based on more detailed reports published in the Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 31, no. 5, May 2006 (on the Internet at ). Edited by scientists at the Smithsonian, this bulletin includes reports provided by a worldwide network of correspondents. The reports contain the names and contact information for all sources. Please note that these reports are preliminary and subject to change as events are studied in more detail. The Global Volcanism Program welcomes further reports of current volcanism, seismic unrest, monitoring data, and field observations.     

Combined amino acids in Pacific Ocean waters

Filtration and extraction indicate that the bulk of the combined amino acids in Pacific Ocean waters are a constituent of a dissolved component, and that they cannot be efficiently extracted from seawater by the macroreticular XAD-2 resin. In deep waters of the Pacific Ocean, alanine accounts for～60–70% of the combined amino acids, while in surface waters alanine makes up only～30% of the combined amino acid fraction. Serine is present in the combined fraction in surface waters, but is essentially absent in deep waters. These differences in the serine and alanine abundances between surface and deep waters are possibly the result of the dehydration of serine, which produces racemic alanine. Threonine can also undergo dehydration producing racemicα-amino-n-butyric acid, a non-biological amino acid which has been detected in deep waters of the Pacific Ocean. Estimates of the rate of serine and threonine dehydration in the oceans suggest that these reactions may have half-lives at 0°C of less than 100 years. As a consequence of dehydration, the dissolved organic material in which this diagenetic reaction has occurred may have reduced biological degradability.     

Structure and reactivity of zinc sulfide precipitates formed in the presence of sulfate-reducing bacteria

The biologically mediated formation of metal sulfide precipitates in anoxic sediments represents a potentially important mechanism for the sequestration of toxic metals. Current knowledge of the structure and reactivity of these biogenic metal sulfides is scarce, limiting the ability to effectively assess contaminant sequestration in, and remobilization from, these solids. In this study, SO₄-reducing bacteria (Desulfovibrio sp.) were grown for 5 days in a high-SO₄, minimal metal media amended with Zn at either 30 or 300 micromolar. Zinc speciation in the reactor solids was determined using X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and the results compared to spectra of known metal sulfide mineral phases and freshly formed metal sulfides synthesized through purely chemical processes. Biogenically mediated Zn sulfides showed significantly more short range crystallographic order than the abiotically prepared amorphous precipitates. The presence of dissolved Fe²⁺ at similar concentrations did not affect the nature of the Zn precipitates formed. The biogenic ZnS solids were also more resistant to re-oxidation than the chemical precipitates but more soluble than sphalerite mineral samples. These results suggest that Zn sulfides formed in anaerobic sediments are likely to be more resistant to re-oxidation than would be expected based on dissolution of Fe sulfides and/or sediment acid volatile sulfides.     

B-Spline impulse response functions (BIRF) for transient SSI analysis of rigid foundations

This work presents a simplified, yet accurate model of rigid foundation-soil systems for the dynamic analysis of structures including SSI effects. The simplified model is based on closed form solutions that reproduce the characteristic B-spline impulse response functions (BIRF) of 3D continuous soil-foundation systems, as obtained from rigorous boundary element method (BEM) analysis. The proposed simplified model is used within the framework of B-spline impulse response techniques and can be coupled directly to other solution techniques, such as the finite element method (FEM). Validation and application studies demonstrate the accuracy and versatility of the simplified model for the direct time domain solution of dynamic SSI problems involving rigid square surface foundations of any size. The proposed model, although simplified, demonstrates similar high accuracy to that of more rigorous solutions based on domain discretizations.     

Configuration,history and impact of the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream

The Norwegian Channel between Skagerrak, in the southeast, and the continental margin of the northern North Sea, in the northwest, is the result of processes related to repeated ice stream activity through the last 1.1 m yr. In such periods the Skagerrak Trough (700 m deep) has acted as a confluence area for glacial ice from southeastern Norway, southern Sweden and parts of the Baltic. Possibly related to the threshold in the Norwegian Channel off Jæren (250 m deep), the ice stream, on a number of occasions over the last 400 ka, inundated the coastal lowlands and left an imprint of NW‐oriented ice directional features (drumlins, stone orientations in tills and striations). Marine interstadial sediments found up to 200 m a.s.l. on Jæren have been suggested to reflect glacial isostasy related to the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream (NCIS). In the channel itself, the ice stream activity is evidenced by mega‐scale glacial lineations on till surfaces. As a result of subsidence, the most complete sedimentary records of early phases of the NCIS are preserved close to the continental margin in the North Sea Fan region. The strongest evidence for ice stream erosion during the last glacial phase is found in the Skagerrak. On the continental slope the ice stream activity is evidenced by the large North Sea Fan, which is mainly a result of deposition of glacial‐fed debris flows. Northwards of the North Sea Fan, rapid deposition of meltwater plume deposits, possibly related to the NCIS, is detected as far north as the Vøring Plateau. The NCIS system offers a unique possibility to study ice stream related processes and the impact the ice stream development had on open ocean sedimentation and circulation.     

Feature

Several geologists accompanied the army of Napoleon Bonaparte that landed in Egypt in 1798 – indicating that perception of the military value of geology is almost as old as Earth science itself.