Last glacial maximum climate inferences from cosmogenic dating and glacier modeling of the western Uinta ice field, Uinta Mountains, Utah

During the last glacial maximum (LGM), the western Uinta Mountains of northeastern Utah were occupied by the Western Uinta Ice Field. Cosmogenic ¹⁰Be surface-exposure ages from the terminal moraine in the North Fork Provo Valley and paired ²⁶Al and ¹⁰Be ages from striated bedrock at Bald Mountain Pass set limits on the timing of the local LGM. Moraine boulder ages suggest that ice reached its maximum extent by 17.4 ± 0.5 ka (± 2σ). ¹⁰Be and ²⁶Al measurements on striated bedrock from Bald Mountain Pass, situated near the former center of the ice field, yield a mean ²⁶Al/¹⁰Be ratio of 5.7 ± 0.8 and a mean exposure age of 14.0 ± 0.5 ka, which places a minimum-limiting age on when the ice field melted completely. We also applied a mass/energy-balance and ice-flow model to investigate the LGM climate of the western Uinta Mountains. Results suggest that temperatures were likely 5 to 7°C cooler than present and precipitation was 2 to 3.5 times greater than modern, and the western-most glaciers in the range generally received more precipitation when expanding to their maximum extent than glaciers farther east. This scenario is consistent with the hypothesis that precipitation in the western Uintas was enhanced by pluvial Lake Bonneville during the last glaciation.     

Wide—Band Multi—spectral Space for Color Representation

This paper develops a wide-band multi-spectral space for color representation with Aitken PCA al-gorithm. This novel mathematical space using the broad-band spectra matching metod aims at improving the accuracy of color representation as well as reducing costs for processing and storing multi-spectral images.The results show that the space can present our experimental original spectral spaces(i,e.Munsell color matt and DIN-6164 color chips)with high efficiency,and that the spanning space with three eigenvectors can present the original space at more than 98% CSCR,and when 5eigenvectors are used it can cover almost the whole original spaces.     

Impact of accounting for coloured noise in radar altimetry data on a regional quasi-geoid model

We study the impact of an accurate computation and incorporation of coloured noise in radar altimeter data when computing a regional quasi-geoid model using least-squares techniques. Our test area comprises the Southern North Sea including the Netherlands, Belgium, and parts of France, Germany, and the UK. We perform the study by modelling the disturbing potential with spherical radial base functions. To that end, we use the traditional remove-compute-restore procedure with a recent GRACE/GOCE static gravity field model. Apart from radar altimeter data, we use terrestrial, airborne, and shipboard gravity data. Radar altimeter sea surface heights are corrected for the instantaneous dynamic topography and used in the form of along-track quasi-geoid height differences. Noise in these data are estimated using repeat-track and post-fit residual analysis techniques and then modelled as an auto regressive moving average process. Quasi-geoid models are computed with and without taking the modelled coloured noise into account. The difference between them is used as a measure of the impact of coloured noise in radar altimeter along-track quasi-geoid height differences on the estimated quasi-geoid model. The impact strongly depends on the availability of shipboard gravity data. If no such data are available, the impact may attain values exceeding 10 centimetres in particular areas. In case shipboard gravity data are used, the impact is reduced, though it still attains values of several centimetres. We use geometric quasi-geoid heights from GPS/levelling data at height markers as control data to analyse the quality of the quasi-geoid models. The quasi-geoid model computed using a model of the coloured noise in radar altimeter along-track quasi-geoid height differences shows in some areas a significant improvement over a model that assumes white noise in these data. However, the interpretation in other areas remains a challenge due to the limited quality of the control data.     

Coil response inversion for very early time modelling of helicopter‐borne time‐domain electromagnetic data and mapping of near‐surface geological layers

Very early times in the order of 2–3 μs from the end of the turn‐off ramp for time‐domain electromagnetic systems are crucial for obtaining a detailed resolution of the near‐surface geology in the depth interval 0–20 m. For transient electromagnetic systems working in the off time, an electric current is abruptly turned off in a large transmitter loop causing a secondary electromagnetic field to be generated by the eddy currents induced in the ground. Often, however, there is still a residual primary field generated by remaining slowly decaying currents in the transmitter loop. The decay disturbs or biases the earth response data at the very early times. These biased data must be culled, or some specific processing must be applied in order to compensate or remove the residual primary field. As the bias response can be attributed to decaying currents with its time constantly controlled by the geometry of the transmitter loop, we denote it the ‘Coil Response’. The modelling of a helicopter‐borne time‐domain system by an equivalent electronic circuit shows that the time decay of the coil response remains identical whatever the position of the receiver loop, which is confirmed by field measurements. The modelling also shows that the coil response has a theoretical zero location and positioning the receiver coil at the zero location eliminates the coil response completely. However, spatial variations of the coil response around the zero location are not insignificant and even a few cm deformation of the carrier frame will introduce a small coil response. Here we present an approach for subtracting the coil response from the data by measuring it at high altitudes and then including an extra shift factor into the inversion scheme. The scheme is successfully applied to data from the SkyTEM system and enables the use of very early time gates, as early as 2–3 μs from the end of the ramp, or 5–6 μs from the beginning of the ramp. Applied to a large‐scale airborne electromagnetic survey, the coil response compensation provides airborne electromagnetic methods with a hitherto unseen good resolution of shallow geological layers in the depth interval 0–20 m. This is proved by comparing results from the airborne electromagnetic survey to more than 100 km of Electrical Resistivity Tomography measured with 5 m electrode spacing.     

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Beiträge zu Kristallstrukturen vom Olivin-Typ

Zusammenfassung Die Kristallstrukturen von (Mg_0,9Fe_0,1)₂SiO₄, Fe₂SiO₄ und Na₂BeF₄ wurden mit 2-dimensionalen Fourier-Methoden unter Verwendung von photographisch gesammelten Intensitäten verfeinert. In allen gerechneten Projektionen ergaben sichR-Faktoren unter 0,075.Die interatomaren Abstände in allen drei Strukturen stimmen gut mit den Werten aus anderen vergleichbaren und sorgfältig untersuchten Verbindungen überein. Starke Abweichungen von der idealisierten Struktur (Anordnung der Anionen in einer hexagonalen Dichtestpackung) ergeben sich vor allem durch die Verkürzung gemeinsamer Kanten zwischen Koordinationspolyedern. Diese Verzerrungen wirken sich besonders auf die Koordinationsoktaeder aus; insbesondere zeigt das sechsfach koordinierte Kation auf der Symmetrieebene die Tendenz zu einer einseitigen Umgebung. Im (Mg, Fe)₂SiO₄ wurden keine Anzeichen einer geordneten Verteilung von Mg und Fe gefunden.Für die Olivin-Spinell-Umwandlung scheint die Tatsache wichtig zu sein, daß in der Olivinstruktur Häufungen von Kationen auftreten.

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The crystal structures of (Mg_0.9Fe_0,1)₂SiO₄, Fe₂SiO₄ and Na₂BeF₄ have been refined with 2-dimensional Fourier-methods, using photographically recorded intensities. For all projections theR-factors are below 0.075.The interatomic distances in all three structures are in good agreement with the values from other well refined comparable compounds. Strong deviations from the idealized structure (anions in a hexagonal close packing) are caused by the contraction of the common edges between coordination polyhedra. These deformations influence especially the coordination octahedra; thus, the cation in sixfold coordination on the mirror plane shows a certain tendency to a one-sided coordination. No dicisive indications for an ordered distribution of Mg and Fe were found in (Mg, Fe)₂SiO₄.The fect that the olivine structure contains accumulations of cations due to the special linkage of the coordination polyhedra. seems to be of importance for the olivine-spinel transition.

     

The Ohlsbach Plume – Discharge of deep saline water from the crystalline basement of the Black Forest, Germany

 Salt-water discharges from a fault system in the crystalline basement of the Black Forest into the gravel aquifer of the Kinzig River valley near Ohlsbach, upper Rhine River valley, southwestern Germany. The salt water (TDS, 16 g/kg) ascends from a reservoir at  1 3 km depth. Once discharged into the gravel aquifer, the saline deep water mixes with fresh groundwater and is carried along the groundwater flow path to the middle of the Rhine River valley. There, the natural geogene salt-water plume merges with a man-made chloride-rich infiltration zone along the Rhine River. The plume was mapped using (1) chloride data from groundwater observation wells, and (2) resistivity data from geoelectric sounding. Background chloride is about 7 mg/kg. In the central region of the plume, chloride concentration exceeds 200 mg/kg. A continuous area of Cl  1 50 mg/kg is distinguished from the discharge fault to the Rhine River over a distance of 12 km. Resistivities range from  1 50 Ω in uncontaminated regions to <7 Ω in the 700 m-long central region of the plume. A low resistivity plume (7–10 Ω) stretches for  1 7 km into the Rhine River valley. The two plume maps are in good agreement. Received, April 1998 / Revised, November 1998, January 1999 / Accepted, January 1999     

Genesis of the Au–Bi–Cu–As, Cu–Mo ± W, and base–metal Au–Ag mineralization at the Mountain Freegold (Yukon, Canada): constraints from Ar–Ar and Re–Os geochronology and Pb and stable isotope compositions

The genesis of mineralized systems across the Mountain Freegold area, in the Dawson Range Cu–Au?±?Mo Belt of the Tintina Au province was constrained using Pb and stable isotope compositions and Ar–Ar and Re–Os geochronology. Pb isotope compositions of sulfides span a wide compositional range (²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, 18.669–19.861; ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, 38.400–39.238) that overlaps the compositions of the spatially associated igneous rocks, thus indicating a magmatic origin for Pb and probably the other metals. Sulfur isotopic compositions of sulfide minerals are broadly similar and their δ³⁴S (Vienna-Canyon Diablo Troilite (V-CDT)) values range from ?1.4 to 3.6 ‰ consistent with the magmatic range, with the exception of stibnite from a Au–Sb–quartz vein, which has δ³⁴S values between ?8.1 and ?3.1 ‰. The δ³⁴S values of sulfates coexisting with sulfide are between 11.2 and 14.2 ‰; whereas, those from the weathering zone range from 3.7 to 4.3 ‰, indicating supergene sulfates derived from oxidation of hypogene sulfides. The δ¹³C (Vienna Peedee Belemnite (VPDB)) values of carbonate range from ?4.9 to 1.1 ‰ and are higher than magmatic values. The δ¹⁸O (V-SMOW) values of magmatic quartz phenocrysts and magmatic least-altered rocks vary between 6.2 and 10.1 ‰ and between 5.0 and 10.1 ‰, respectively, whereas altered magmatic rocks and hydrothermal minerals (quartz and magnetite) are relatively ¹⁸O-depleted (4.2 to 7.9 ‰ and ?6.3 to 1.5 ‰, respectively). Hydrogen isotope compositions of both least-altered and altered igneous rock samples are D-depleted (from ?133 to ?161 ‰ Vienna-Standard Mean Ocean Water (V-SMOW)), consistent with differential magma degassing and/or post-crystallization exchange between the rocks and meteoric ground water. Zircon from a chlorite-altered dike has a U–Pb crystallization age of 108.7?±?0.4 Ma; whereas, the same sample yielded a whole-rock Ar–Ar plateau age of 76.25?±?0.53 Ma. Likewise, molybdenite Re–Os model ages range from 75.8 to 78.2 Ma, indicating the mineralizing events are genetically related to Late Cretaceous volcano-plutonic intrusions in the area. The molybdenite Re–Os ages difference between the nearby Nucleus (75.9?±?0.3 to 76.2?±?0.3 Ma) and Revenue (77.9?±?0.3 to 78.2?±?0.3 Ma) mineral occurrences suggests an episodic mineralized system with two pulses of hydrothermal fluids separated by at least 2 Ma. This, in combination with geological features suggest the Nucleus deposit represents the apical and younger portion of the Revenue–Nucleus magmatic-hydrothermal system and may suggest an evolution from the porphyry to the epithermal environments.