On the development of a seismic source zonation model for seismic hazard assessment in western Saudi Arabia

A new seismic source model has been developed for the western part of the Arabian Peninsula, which has experienced considerable earthquake activity in the historical past and in recent times. The data used for the model include an up-to-date seismic catalog, results of recent studies of Cenozoic faulting in the area, aeromagnetic anomaly and gravity maps, geological maps, and miscellaneous information on volcanic activity. The model includes 18 zones ranging along the Red Sea and the Arabian Peninsula from the Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea in the north to the Gulf of Aden in the south. The seismic source model developed in this study may be considered as one of the basic branches in a logic tree approach for seismic hazard assessment in Saudi Arabia and adjacent territories.     

Anthropogenic structures and the infiltration of natural benthos by invasive ascidians

Anthropogenic habitats such as marinas and docks are focal points for marine invasions, but relatively little is known about the infiltration of nearby natural habitats by these invaders. To address infiltration by four geographically widespread ascidian invaders, we used a two‐step approach: (i) a field survey with equitable sampling in adjacent artificial and natural habitats in British Columbia, Canada, and (ii) a literature review, to infer larger scale patterns across species’ introduced global ranges. Our field survey revealed differential distribution patterns among the four ascidians recorded, with infiltration of natural rocky habitats by two species, Botrylloides violaceus and Botryllus schlosseri. We did not record Didemnum vexillum or Styela clava in natural habitats, though they were both recorded on adjacent artificial structures. Globally, these ascidian species are predominantly found associated with anthropogenic habitats including floating docks, pilings and aquaculture installations, but they have infiltrated natural habitats in some areas of their introduced range. The factors contributing to infiltration of nearby natural benthic habitats remains unclear, but determining which mechanisms are important for encouraging or hindering the establishment and spread of nonindigenous species beyond artificial structures requires survey and experimental work beyond anthropogenic habitats. Such work will aid our understanding of marine introduction dynamics, invasiveness, and associated management implications.     

Diversion of Flooding Rivers to Residual Mining Open Pits

Massive flooding in East Germany in the summer of 2002 was first alleviated, and then exacerbated, by diversion of the river flood waters into residual open pits, the legacy of lignite mining. The pits at first contained the flood waters but, once filled to capacity, leaked precipitously, causing massive flooding in the flat lands around the pits. This article examines the problem of constructing quantitative models for assessments of fill, bypass, and leakage from such floodwater containing pits. Emergency management teams can then generate quickly not only many different scenarios to help with immediate flood control options and fall-back positions, but can also investigate long-term planning that can then be undertaken to estimate better the consequences of permitting such diversion. While the models developed are simple, and are numerically implemented in easy to use spreadsheet format, they have the advantage of guiding directions of flood assessment control and consequent results. The illustrative numerical examples show how one can quickly use such quantitative models to obtain patterns of flooding relevant to situations of sustained, torrential rainfall, and subsequent river overflow.     

Seasonal variability in velocity and ablation of Te Moeka o Tuawe/Fox Glacier, south Westland, New Zealand

Abstract:  Seasonal variations in ablation and surface velocity were investigated on the lower Fox Glacier. Variations occur between summer and winter ablation, with surface velocity also showing marked seasonality. Recent advance has resulted in the glacier gaining around 200 m length since late 2004. Longer term, Fox Glacier appears linked to the Southern Oscillation Index, with positive glacier mass balances associated with negative Southern Oscillation Index (El Niño). An estimated glacier response time of approximately 9–14 years suggests the current terminus advance was linked to mass gains in the mid-1990s. Recent collapses at the terminal face continue to prove a hazard at this busy tourist destination.     

Hydrogeomorphic control on tree growth responses in the Elton area of the Cheshire Saltfield, UK

Increment cores were sampled from oak (Quercus robur) and ash (Fraxinus excelsior) growing at Elton, an area of the Cheshire Saltfield that has experienced significant subsidence and damage to the natural and built environments in the latter part of the twentieth century. Ring-width measurements for Elton trees permitted the construction of one main site chronology (Elton) and four sub chronologies (Elton A, Elton B, Elton C, Elton ASH). Ring-width difference between these and a control chronology identified periods of sustained growth reduction in oak trees commencing in AD 1859/1861, 1886 and 1934. Growth reductions after 1934 are related to watertable draw down caused by brine pumping from a concentration of nine boreholes at Elton, up to 2 km from tree sampling locations. Growth reductions in 1859/1861 and 1886 are likely to be the result of earlier phases of brine pumping in the Wheelock Valley, up to 5 km to the east of Elton, and these reductions correlate well with historic records of subsidence and pumping activity. Cessation of pumping in 1977 led to a lagged growth recovery in oak trees between 1981 and 1986, indicating that an artificial drought had been imposed on the Elton area for a period in excess off 100-y. This research demonstrates a hydrological separation of surface water and groundwater in an area where salt beds are overlain by till and that ring-width records of Q. robur can be used to reconstruct watertable variability and also the spatial impact of solution mining.     

Kinematics of massive stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud

We present radial velocities for 2045 stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), obtained from the 2dF survey by Evans et al. The great majority of these stars are of OBA type, tracing the dynamics of the young stellar population. Dividing the sample into ad hoc 'bar' and 'wing' samples (north and south, respectively, of the line:  δ=−77°50'+[4α]'  , where α is the right ascension in minutes of time) we find that the velocities in the SMC bar show a gradient of 26.3 ± 1.6 km s⁻¹ deg⁻¹ at a position angle of 126°± 4°. The derived gradient in the bar is robust to the adopted line of demarcation between the two samples. The largest redshifts are found in the SMC wing, in which the velocity distribution appears distinct from that in the bar, most probably a consequence of the interaction between the Magellanic Clouds that is predicted to have occurred 0.2 Gyr ago. The mean velocity for all stars in the sample is +172.0 ± 0.2 km s⁻¹ (redshifted by ∼20 km s⁻¹ when compared to published results for older populations), with a velocity dispersion of 30 km s⁻¹.     

The Isheyevo meteorite: Mineralogy,petrology, bulk chemistry,oxygen, nitrogen,carbon isotopic compositions,and 40Ar‐39Ar ages

Abstract— Isheyevo is a metal‐rich carbonaceous chondrite that contains several lithologies with different abundances of Fe,Ni metal (7–90 vol%). The metal‐rich lithologies with 50–60 vol% of Fe,Ni metal are dominant. The metal‐rich and metal‐poor lithologies are most similar to the CB_b and CH carbonaceous chondrites, respectively, providing a potential link between these chondrite groups. All lithologies experienced shock metamorphism of shock stage S4. All consist of similar components—Fe,Ni metal, chondrules, refractory inclusions (Ca, Al‐rich inclusions [CAIs] and amoeboid olivine aggregates [AOAs]), and heavily hydrated lithic clasts—but show differences in their modal abundances, chondrule sizes, and proportions of porphyritic versus non‐porphyritic chondrules. Bulk chemical and oxygen isotopic compositions are in the range of CH and CB chondrites. Bulk nitrogen isotopic composition is highly enriched in ¹⁵N (δ¹⁵N = 1122‰). The magnetic fraction is very similar to the bulk sample in terms of both nitrogen release pattern and isotopic profile; the non‐magnetic fraction contains significantly less heavy N. Carbon released at high temperatures shows a relatively heavy isotope signature. Similarly to CB_b chondrites, ～20% of Fe,Ni‐metal grains in Isheyevo are chemically zoned. Similarly to CH chondrites, some metal grains are Ni‐rich (>20 wt% Ni). In contrast to CB_b and CH chondrites, most metal grains are thermally decomposed into Ni‐rich and Ni‐poor phases. Similar to CH chondrites, chondrules have porphyritic and non‐porphyritic textures and ferromagnesian (type I and II), silica‐rich, and aluminum‐rich bulk compositions. Some of the layered ferromagnesian chondrules are surrounded by ferrous olivine or phyllosilicate rims. Phyllosilicates in chondrule rims are compositionally distinct from those in the hydrated lithic clasts. Similarly to CH chondrites, CAIs are dominated by the hibonite‐, grossite‐, and melilite‐rich types; AOAs are very rare. We infer that Isheyevo is a complex mixture of materials formed by different processes and under different physico‐chemical conditions. Chondrules and refractory inclusions of two populations, metal grains, and heavily hydrated clasts accreted together into the Isheyevo parent asteroid in a region of the protoplanetary disk depleted in fine‐grained dust. Such a scenario is consistent with the presence of solar wind—implanted noble gases in Isheyevo and with its comparatively old K‐Ar age. We cannot exclude that the K‐Ar system was affected by a later collisional event. The cosmic‐ray exposure (CRE) age of Isheyevo determined by cosmogenic ³⁸Ar is ～34 Ma, similar to that of the Bencubbin (CB_a) meteorite.     

Differential UVB‐sensitivities of five New Zealand freshwater zooplankton species

Abstract

The ultraviolet (UV) sensitivity of five species of freshwater zooplankton (three Cladocera, two Copepoda) were investigated. The animals were exposed to varying levels of UV‐radiation in a sunshine‐simulator and the UV doses for 10 and 50% mortality (LD₁₀, LD₅₀) were estimated using a dose‐response model. To place these doses in context they were compared with modelled clear‐sky surface UV irradiances in New Zealand. The cladocerans Daphnia carinata and Ceriodaphnia dubia were sensitive to levels of UVB irradiance of LD₁₀ = 18–25 kJ m^?2 and LD₅₀ = 35–37 kJ m^?2. These sensitivities are consistent with published values for other cladocera. In contrast a third cladoceran, Bosmina meridionalis, exhibited no higher mortality over the full range of the cumulative UVB‐doses used (3–40 kJ m^?2) than controls receiving no UV exposure. The copepod Boeckella delicata showed the highest UV‐sensitivity of all organisms tested (LD10 = 7 kJ m^?2, LD50 = 33 kJ m^?2) whereas for Boeckella triarticulata, which was more heavily pigmented than B. delicata, no UV‐induced mortality was observed. Under natural conditions UV irradiances of up to 100 kJ m^?2 day^?1 can fall on the surface of New Zealand lakes. Although this is attenuated in natural waters, these data suggest that UVB irradiance may be a significant ecological variable to some zooplankton species.     

An addition to the genus Boeckella (Copepoda) in New Zealand

Boeckella minuta is recorded from the Wellington water supply. Salient characteristics are described, and female and male fifth legs are figured.