Hydrothermal plume mapping as a prospecting tool for seafloor sulfide deposits: a case study at the Zouyu-1 and Zouyu-2 hydrothermal fields in the southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge

Seafloor hydrothermal polymetallic sulfide deposits are a new type of resource, with great potential economic value and good prospect development. This paper discusses turbidity, oxidation–reduction potential, and temperature anomalies of hydrothermal plumes from the Zouyu-1 and Zouyu-2 hydrothermal fields on the southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge. We use the known location of these vent fields and plume data collected in multiple years (2009, 2011, 2013) to demonstrate how real-time plume exploration can be used to locate active vent fields, and thus associated sulfide deposits. Turbidity anomalies can be detected 10 s of km from an active source, but the location precision is no better than a few kilometers because fine-grained particles are quasi-conservative over periods of many days. Temperature and oxidation–reduction potential anomalies provide location precision of a few hundred meters. Temperature anomalies are generally weak and difficult to reliably detect, except by chance encounters of a buoyant plume. Oxidation–reduction potential is highly sensitive (nmol concentrations of reduced hydrothermal chemicals) to discharges of all temperatures and responds immediately to a plume encounter. Real-time surveys using continuous tows of turbidity and oxidation–reduction potential sensors offer the most efficient and precise surface ship exploration presently possible.     

Effects of CO2 on benthic biota: An in situ benthic chamber experiment in Storfjorden (Norway)

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) methods, either sub-seabed or in ocean depths, introduces risk of CO₂ leakage and subsequent interaction with the ecosystem. It is therefore important to obtain information on possible effects of CO₂. In situ CO₂ exposure experiments were carried out twice for 10 days during 2005 using a Benthic Chamber system at 400 m depth in Storfjorden, Norway. pCO₂ in the water above the sediment in the chambers was controlled at approximately 500, 5000 and 20,000 μatm, respectively. This article describes the experiment and the results from measured the biological responses within the chamber sediments. The results show effects of elevated CO₂ concentrations on biological processes such as increased nanobenthos density. Methane production and sulphate reduction was enhanced in the approximately 5000 μatm chamber.     

Testing optically stimulated luminescence dating on sand-sized quartz of deltaic deposits from the Sperchios delta plain,central Greece

This study reports on the first investigation into the potential of luminescence dating to establish a chronological framework for the depositional sequences of the Sperchios delta plain, central Greece. A series of three borehole cores(20 m deep) and two shallow cores(4 m deep), from across the delta plain, were extracted, and samples were collected for luminescence dating. The luminescence ages of sand-sized quartz grains were obtained from small aliquots of quartz, using the Single-Aliquot Regenerative-dose(SAR) protocol.The equivalent dose determination included a series of tests and the selection of the Minimum Age Model(MAM) as the most appropriate statistical model. This made it possible to confirm the applicability of quartz Optically Stimulated Luminescence(OSL) dating to establish absolute chronology for deltaic sediments from the Sperchios delta plain.Testing age results of the five cores showed that the deltaic sediments were deposited during the Holocene.A relatively rapid deposition is implied for the top ~14 m possibly as a result of the deceleration in the rate of the sea-level rise and the transition to terrestrial conditions, while on the deeper parts, the reduced sedimentation rate may indicate a lagoonal or coastal environment.     

On error bounds and initialization in satellite orbit theories

The order of magnitude of the error is investigated for a first-order von Zeipel theory of satellite orbits in an axisymmetric force field, i.e., first-order long period and short-period effects are included along with second order secular rates. The treatment is valid for zero eccentricity and/or inclination. In the case where initial position and velocity vectors are known, the in-track position error over time intervals of order 1/J ₂ is kept at 0(J ₂ ²), like the other position errors and velocity errors, by calibration of the mean motion with the aid of the energy integral. The results are specifically applicable to accuracy comparisons of the Brouwer orbit prediction method with numerical integration. A modified calibration is presented for the general asymmetric force field which includes tesseral harmonics.     

Stable carbon isotope variations in northwest Europe during the last glacial–interglacial transition

Stable carbon isotope data that span part of the last glacial–interglacial transition (ca. 14-9 ka ¹⁴C BP; ca. 15–11 ka cal. BP), and which derive from organ-specific plant macrofossils recovered from two lake sediment profiles in the UK and one in Norway, are compared. The recorded temporal variations show similar trends, which, over a millennial time-scale appear to parallel the main drift in δ¹⁸O as determined for the GRIP ice-core. It is postulated that some smaller scale variations in the δ¹³C profiles may reflect the shorter term oscillations in δ¹⁸O values evident in the GRIP record, although this is less certain. Overall, however, the results suggest that stable carbon isotope measurements based on organ-specific terrestrial plant macrofossils may provide (i) a means for establishing correlations between terrestrial successions and (ii) additional paleoenvironmental information, as the apparent ‘shadowing’ of the GRIP record indicates a common forcing mechanism for both Greenland δ¹⁸O and northwest European δ¹³C variations. From the evidence available we suggest that the recorded δ¹³C variations reflect fluctuations in air temperature and/or changes in water vapour pressure in the atmosphere. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

中国对全球地球观测系统的贡献

进一步认识地球、关注地球发展规律, 保护人类共同家园已成为世界各国政府的共识。共同发展地球观测技术, 提高对地观测能力成为新世纪世界各国的共同要求。2003年发起, 2005年由欧盟组织的地球观测部长级峰会上通过了全球综合地球观测系统(Global Earth Observation System of Systems, GEOSS)十年执行计划, 构成了世界范围内地球观测领域国际科技合作的主流。中国地球观测领域呈现出快速发展的趋势, 并提出了该领域的全球性发展战略, 预示着中国将在国际地球观测领域发挥越来越重要的作用。文章介绍了中国地球观测领域发展现状和趋势, 在分析中国参与全球地球观测领域国际合作现状及目前存在问题的基础上, 提出进一步促进中国参与该领域国际合作, 为中国乃至国际社会发展做出重要贡献的建议。     

Tides in the Tongan Region of the Pacific Ocean

Tidal levels and currents in the Tongan region of the Pacific were simulated using a two-dimensional frequency-domain finite element model. The eight major diurnal and semidiurnal tidal constituents were modeled successfully, using open boundary conditions taken from a global tidal model based on the Topex/Poseidon satellite altimeter. Comparison of model results with observations from the single tide gauge site in the area were later used to adjust the boundary conditions. The validity of omitting horizontal eddy viscosity from the finite element model was checked by running an equivalent finite difference model. The results show that although the submarine Tongan ridge does not appear to trap tidal energy, there are residual tidal currents and possible recirculations which are capable of influencing biological productivity around Tonga. The model results are reduced to a simple method for predicting tidal heights in outlying areas, based only on the tidal calendar for the capital, Nuku'alofa.     

A statistical approach to evaluating distance metrics and analog assignments for pollen records

The modern analog technique typically uses a distance metric to determine the dissimilarity between fossil and modern biological assemblages. Despite this quantitative approach, interpretation of distance metrics is usually qualitative and rules for selection of analogs tend to be ad hoc. We present a statistical tool, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, which provides a framework for identifying analogs from distance metrics. If modern assemblages are placed into groups (e.g., biomes), this method can (1) evaluate the ability of different distance metrics to distinguish among groups, (2) objectively identify thresholds of the distance metric for determining analogs, and (3) compute a likelihood ratio and a Bayesian probability that a modern group is an analog for an unknown (fossil) assemblage. Applied to a set of 1689 modern pollen assemblages from eastern North America classified into eight biomes, ROC analysis confirmed that the squared-chord distance (SCD) outperforms most other distance metrics. The optimal threshold increased when more dissimilar biomes were compared. The probability of an analog vs no-analog result (a likelihood ratio) increased sharply when SCD decreased below the optimal threshold, indicating a nonlinear relationship between SCD and the probability of analog. Probabilities of analog computed for a postglacial pollen record at Tannersville Bog (Pennsylvania, USA) identified transitions between biomes and periods of no analog.     

A comparison of the photospheric and interplanetary magnetic fields during the flight of Mariner IV

The polarity of the interplanetary magnetic field observed by the Mariner IV spacecraft is compared to the polarity of the photospheric magnetic field observed with the solar magnetograph at Mt. Wilson Observatory. Unlike the results obtained from observations during the flight of IMP-I, these polarities are not well correlated when the photospheric polarity is determined from data along a narrow latitudinal strip. It is suggested that the structure of the interplanetary field is often related to major features in the photospheric field that are observed over a broad range of solar latitudes.