Impactites of the Haughton impact structure,Devon Island,Canadian High Arctic

Abstract— Contrary to the previous interpretation of a single allochthonous impactite lithology, combined field, optical, and analytical scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies have revealed the presence of a series of impactites at the Haughton impact structure. In the crater interior, there is a consistent upward sequence from parautochthonous target rocks overlain by parautochthonous lithic (monomict) breccias, through allochthonous lithic (polymict) breccia, into pale grey allochthonous impact melt breccias. The groundmass of the pale grey impact melt breccias consists of microcrystalline calcite, silicate impact melt glass, and anhydrite. Analytical data and microtextures indicate that these phases represent a series of impact‐generated melts that were molten at the time of, and following, deposition. Impact melt glass clasts are present in approximately half of the samples studied. Consideration of the groundmass phases and impact glass clasts reveal that impactites of the crater interior contain shock‐melted sedimentary material from depths of >920 to <1880 m in the pre‐impact target sequence. Two principal impactites have been recognized in the near‐surface crater rim region of Haughton. Pale yellow‐brown allochthonous impact melt breccias and megablocks are overlain by pale grey allochthonous impact melt breccias. The former are derived from depths of >200 to <760 m and are interpreted as remnants of the continuous ejecta blanket. The pale grey impact melt breccias, although similar to the impact melt breccias of the crater interior, are more carbonate‐rich and do not appear to have incorporated clasts from the crystalline basement. Thus, the spatial distribution of the crater‐fill impactites at Haughton, the stratigraphic succession from target rocks to allochthonous impactites, the recognition of large volumes of impact melt breccias, and their probable original volume are all analogous to characteristics of coherent impact melt layers in comparatively sized structures formed in crystalline targets.     

Application Of Organic Geochemistry To Detect Signatures Of Organic Matter In The Haughton Impact Structure

Abstract— Organic geochemistry applied to samples of bedrock and surface sediment from the Haughton impact structure detects a range of signatures representing the impact event and the transfer of organic matter from the crater bedrock to its erosion products. The bedrock dolomite contains hydrocarbon‐bearing fluid inclusions which were incorporated before the impact event. Comparison of biomarker data from the hydrocarbons in samples inside and outside of the crater show the thermal signature of an impact. The occurrence of hydrocarbon inclusions in hydrothermal mineral samples shows that organic matter was mobilized and migrated in the immediate aftermath of the impact. The hydrocarbon signature was then transferred from bedrock to the crater‐fill lacustrine deposits and present‐day sediments in the crater, including wind‐blown detritus in snow/ice. Separate signatures are detected from modern microbial life in crater rock and sediment samples. Signatures in Haughton crater samples are readily detectable because they include hydrocarbons generated by the burial of organic matter. This type of organic matter is not expected in crater samples on other planets, but the Haughton data show that, using very high resolution detection of organic compounds, any signature of primitive life in the crater rocks could be transferred to surface detritus and so extend the sampling medium.     

Designing a Military Event Gazetteer: The Case of Parachute Operations During the French Indochina War

The study of landscapes is an important area of research in critical military geography. Historical military campaigns themselves are violent events that occur within the context of a landscape. Although the actual events are transitory, they can leave behind a tangible record in the landscape and a memory that will be interpreted by present and future generations. Many small-scale individual operations might leave no lasting imprint on the physical landscape and are only remembered in the experience of those who participated. For these less well-known events, such as operations in colonial conflicts, their existence lies in the textual documents of memoirs, military records, and literature on the history of the associated conflicts. This study explores possible methods for designing and constructing a military event gazetteer for organizing information regarding such military operations. Parachute operations during the French Indochina War were chosen for this analysis because of the role these operations played in the counterinsurgency actions of that conflict. Using the methods developed in this study, it is proposed that through a series of military event gazetteers related to colonial wars of independence, a broader understanding of the military (or violence) aspects of the counterinsurgency strategies used in these conflicts might be achieved.     

Mantle peridotite in newly discovered far-inland subduction complex,southwest Arizona: initial report

The latest Cretaceous to early Palaeogene Orocopia Schist and related units are generally considered a low-angle subduction complex that underlies much of southern California and Arizona. A recently discovered exposure of Orocopia Schist at Cemetery Ridge west of Phoenix, Arizona, lies exceptionally far inland from the continental margin. Unexpectedly, this body of Orocopia Schist contains numerous blocks, as large as ~300 m, of variably serpentinized mantle peridotite. These are unique; elsewhere in the Orocopia and related schists, peridotite is rare and completely serpentinized. Peridotite and metaperidotite at Cemetery Ridge are of three principal types: (1) serpentinite and tremolite serpentinite, derived from dunite; (2) partially serpentinized harzburgite and olivine orthopyroxenite (collectively, harzburgite); and (3) granoblastic or schistose metasomatic rocks, derived from serpentinite, made largely of actinolite, calcic plagioclase, hercynite, and chlorite. In the serpentinite, paucity of relict olivine, relatively abundant magnetite (5%), and elevated Fe³⁺/Fe indicate advanced serpentinization. Harzburgite contains abundant orthopyroxene, only slightly serpentinized, and minor to moderate (1–15%) relict olivine. Mantle tectonite fabric is locally preserved. Several petrographic and geochemical characteristics of the peridotite at Cemetery Ridge are ambiguously similar to either abyssal or mantle-wedge (suprasubduction) peridotites and serpentinites. Least ambiguous are orthopyroxene compositions. Orthopyroxene is distinctively depleted in Al₂O₃, Cr₂O₃, and CaO, indicating mantle-wedge affinities. Initial interpretation of field and petrologic data suggests that the peridotite blocks in the Orocopia Schist subduction complex at Cemetery Ridge may be derived from the leading corner or edge of a mantle wedge, presumably in (pre-San Andreas fault) southwest California. However, derivation from a subducting plate is not precluded.     

Incorporating spatial variation in housing attribute prices: a comparison of geographically weighted regression and the spatial expansion method

Hedonic house price models typically impose a constant price structure on housing characteristics throughout an entire market area. However, there is increasing evidence that the marginal prices of many important attributes vary over space, especially within large markets. In this paper, we compare two approaches to examine spatial heterogeneity in housing attribute prices within the Tucson, Arizona housing market: the spatial expansion method and geographically weighted regression (GWR). Our results provide strong evidence that the marginal price of key housing characteristics varies over space. GWR outperforms the spatial expansion method in terms of explanatory power and predictive accuracy.