A simple model accounting for the uptake,transport, and deposition of wind‐eroded mineral particles in the hyperarid coastal Atacama Desert of northern Chile

As previously observed in marine sediments collected downwind of African or South American continental sources, recent studies of sediment cores collected at the bottom of Mejillones Bay in north Chile (23°S) show a laminated structure in which the amount of particles of aeolian origin and their size create significant differences between the layers. This suggests inter‐annual to inter‐decadal variations in the strength of the local southerly winds responsible for (1) the erosion of the adjacent hyperarid surface of the Mejillones Pampa, and (2) the subsequent transport of the eroded particles towards the bay. A simple model accounting for the vertical uptake, transport, and deposition of the particles initially set into motion by wind at the surface of the pampa is proposed. This model, which could be adapted to other locations, assumes that the initial rate of (vertical) uptake is proportional to the (horizontal) saltation flux quantified by means of White's equation, that particles are lifted to a height (H), increasing with the magnitude of turbulence, and that sedimentation progressively removes the coarsest particles from the air column as it moves towards the bay. In this model, the proportionality constant (A) linking the vertical flux of particles with the horizontal flux, and the injection height (H) control the magnitude and size distribution of the deposition flux in the bay. Their values are determined using the wind speed measured over the pampa and the size distribution of particles collected in sediment traps deployed in the bay as constraints. After calibration, the model is used to assess the sensitivity of the deposition flux to the wind intensity variations. The possibility of performing such quantitative studies is necessary for interpreting precisely the variability of the aeolian material in the sediment cores collected at the bottom of Mejillones Bay. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The age and composition of the pre-Cenozoic basement of the Jalisco Block: implications for and relation to the Guerrero composite terrane

The Jalisco Block is thought to be part of the Guerrero terrane, but the nature and age of the underlying crystalline basement are largely unknown. We have collected a suite of schists, granitoids, and weakly metamorphosed marine sediments from various parts of the Jalisco Block including Atenguillo and Ameca, Mascota and San Sebastián, Cuale, Puerto Vallarta, Punta Mita, Yelapa, and Tomatlán. The schists range in age from 135 to 161 Ma, with many exhibiting Proterozoic and Phanerozoic zircon ages. The granitoids range in age from 65 to 90 Ma, and are calc-alkaline compositionally—similar to granitoids from the Puerto Vallarta and Los Cabos batholiths. The Jalisco granitoids also experienced similar uplift rates to granitoids from the regions to the north and south of the Jalisco Block. The marine sediments yield a maximum depositional age of 131 Ma, and also contain a significant zircon population with ages extending back to the Archean. Granitoids from this study define two age groups, even after the effects of thermal resetting and different closure temperatures are considered. The 66.8-Ma silicic ash flow tuff near Union de Tula significantly expands the extent of this Cretaceous–Paleocene age ash flow tuff unit within the Jalisco Block, and we propose calling the unit “Carmichael silicic ash flow tuff volcanic succession” in honor of Ian Carmichael. The ages of the basement schists in the Jalisco Block fully overlap with the ages of terranes of continental Mexico, and other parts of the Guerrero terrane in the south, confirming the autochthonous origin of the Jalisco Block rather than exotic arc or allochthonous origin. Geologic data, in combination with geochronologic and oxygen isotopic data, suggest the evolution of SW Mexico with an early 200–1,200-Ma passive margin, followed by steep subduction in a continental arc setting at 160–165 Ma, then shallower subduction by 135 Ma, and finally, emplacement of granitoids at 65–90 Ma.     

Using semivariogram parameter uncertainty in hydrogeological applications

Geostatistical estimation (kriging) and geostatistical simulation are routinely used in ground water hydrology for optimal spatial interpolation and Monte Carlo risk assessment, respectively. Both techniques are based on a model of spatial variability (semivariogram or covariance) that generally is not known but must be inferred from the experimental data. Where the number of experimental data is small (say, several tens), as is not unusual in ground water hydrology, the model fitted to the empirical semivariogram entails considerable uncertainty. If all the practical results are based on this unique fitted model, the final results will be biased. We propose that, instead of using a unique semivariogram model, the full range of models that are inside a given confidence region should be used, and the weight that each semivariogram model has on the final result should depend on its plausibility. The first task, then, is to evaluate the uncertainty of the model, which can be efficiently done by using maximum likelihood inference. The second task is to use the range of plausible models in applications and to show the effect observed on the final results. This procedure is put forth here with kriging and simulation applications, where the uncertainty in semivariogram parameters is propagated into the final results (e.g., the prediction of ground water head). A case study using log-transmissivity data from the Vega de Granada aquifer, in southern Spain, is given to illustrate the methodology.     

Magnetostratigraphy of mid-Cretaceous limestones from the Sierra Madre of northeastern Mexico

We present the results of a palaeomagnetic study of four mid-Cretaceous limestone sections exposed in northeastern Mexico. The limestones are weakly magnetized and exhibit two- to three-component magnetizations. These magnetization components appear to be carried by both a sulphide mineral and a magnetite-titanomagnetite mineral. The sulphide mineral carries a reverse polarity overprint that often makes it difficult to isolate definitively the higher-unblocking-temperature component. The high-unblocking-temperature component is well defined in the upper portion of the Santa Rosa Canyon section and in the Cienega del Toro section and passes the fold test. The characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) inclinations agree well with predicted mid-Cretaceous inclinations for these sites, although the declinations differ by more than 100°. The relative rotation between these two sites probably occurred as the thrust sheets were emplaced during Laramide deformation. At two of the sections, namely Cienega del Toro and the overturned Los Chorros sections, only normal polarity directions are observed. The La Boca Canyon and Santa Rosa Canyon sections exhibit zones of both normal and reverse polarity magnetization. Correlation of these polarity zones with the geomagnetic polarity timescale provides a time framework for lithostratigraphic and palaeoceanographic studies of these sections.     

Petrology of pumices of April 1993 eruption of Lascar (Atacama, Chile)

Lascar Volcano (Atacama, Chile) erupted on 18–20 April 1993. Several sub-Plinian explosions occurred, and some were mushroom-shaped. The highest column rose up to 23 km. Ash clouds crossed South America eastwards. Dacite pumice falls made of blocks and ashes were deposited on the flanks of the volcano as a result of collapsed columns. The pumice contains phenocrysts of plagioclase, enstatite, augite, biotite, magnetite and ilmenite and small crystals of apatite. The 1992 previous andesite dome inside the crater was destroyed. Banded blocks resulting from mingling of the dacitic pumice and andesite from the dome are found in the pumice flow. Both the lava dome and the pumice are representative of the Lascar high-K magma unit. Dacitic pumice is a product of crystal fractionation of the andesitic magma.     

A warm-season comparison of WRF coupled to the CLM4.0, Noah-MP,and Bucket hydrology land surface schemes over the central USA

In climate modeling studies, there is a need to choose a suitable land surface model (LSM) while adhering to available resources. In this study, the viability of three LSM options (Community Land Model version 4.0 [CLM4.0], Noah-MP, and the five-layer thermal diffusion [Bucket] scheme) in the Weather Research and Forecasting model version 3.6 (WRF3.6) was examined for the warm season in a domain centered on the central USA. Model output was compared to Parameter-elevation Relationships on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM) data, a gridded observational dataset including mean monthly temperature and total monthly precipitation. Model output temperature, precipitation, latent heat (LH) flux, sensible heat (SH) flux, and soil water content (SWC) were compared to observations from sites in the Central and Southern Great Plains region. An overall warm bias was found in CLM4.0 and Noah-MP, with a cool bias of larger magnitude in the Bucket model. These three LSMs produced similar patterns of wet and dry biases. Model output of SWC and LH/SH fluxes were compared to observations, and did not show a consistent bias. Both sophisticated LSMs appear to be viable options for simulating the effects of land use change in the central USA.