Breaking Criteria for Regular Waves on Gentle Slopes

Nelson pointed out that the wave breaking criterion(H/d)_b for gentle slopes(i<1/100),inwhich H is the wave height and d is the water depth at the breaking point,is smaller than that for beachslopes of i>1/100),i.e.,the value of(H/d)_b for gentle slopes may be smaller than 0.6.Goda indicatedthat the wave breaking criterion given by himself is a result based on theoretical study,so it should be alsocorrect and can be used for gentle beaches,i.e.,the value of(H/d)_b for gentle slopes may be still largerthan 0.7.By use of high order nonlinear wave theory,this problem is analyzed in this study and the reasonwhy there is a large difference between different studies is explained.Moreover,the bottom energy loss dur-ing wave propagation is considered and the critical slope for the absence of wave breaking is also analyzed.     

Atmospheric temperature sounding with the Fourier spectrometer

Preliminary results of a space experiment using the IKFS-2 infrared sounder (Meteor-M2 satellite) showed high-quality of measurements of spectra of the outgoing thermal radiation of the atmosphere–surface system and the adequacy of developed IR radiation atmospheric models in the 15-μm carbon gas absorption band used to recover the vertical profiles of the atmospheric temperature. Outgoing radiation spectra measured by IKFS-2 instruments make it possible to restore vertical temperature profiles with errors close to 1K in most of the 0–30 km high-altitude region, except for the lower troposphere and altitudes above 30 km, where these errors are close to 2–3K.     

A probabilistic performance‐based approach for mitigating the seismic pounding risk between adjacent buildings

Existing design procedures for determining the separation distance between adjacent buildings subjected to seismic pounding risk are based on approximations of the buildings' peak relative displacement. These procedures are characterized by unknown safety levels and thus are not suitable for use within a performance‐based earthquake engineering framework. This paper introduces an innovative reliability‐based methodology for the design of the separation distance between adjacent buildings. The proposed methodology, which is naturally integrated into modern performance‐based design procedures, provides the value of the separation distance corresponding to a target probability of pounding during the design life of the buildings. It recasts the inverse reliability problem of the determination of the design separation distance as a zero‐finding problem and involves the use of analytical techniques in order to evaluate the statistics of the dynamic response of the buildings. Both uncertainty in the seismic intensity and record‐to‐record variability are taken into account. The proposed methodology is applied to several different buildings modeled as linear elastic single‐degree‐of‐freedom (SDOF) and multi‐degree‐of‐freedom (MDOF) systems, as well as SDOF nonlinear hysteretic systems. The design separation distances obtained are compared with the corresponding estimates that are based on several response combination rules suggested in the seismic design codes and in the literature. In contrast to current seismic code design procedures, the newly proposed methodology provides consistent safety levels for different building properties and different seismic hazard conditions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of the geomagnetic induction tensor

The geomagnetic induction tensor is a means of summarizing the response of the earth at a given observing site to a geomagnetic variation source field. In this paper the characteristics of the tensor elements are examined, both generally and for the special cases of one-dimensional and two-dimensional geologic structure. The first-order model is taken of uniform source fields originating external to a semi-infinite half-space. Graphical ways of presenting the information contained in an induction tensor are explored, including ellipses of rotation, polar diagrams, and diagrams analogous to the Mohr circles of elasticity theory. Criteria to distinguish “two-dimensional” data from “three-dimensional” data are established. The advantages of simultaneously recording “normal” and “anomalous” variations are demonstrated in terms of the extra tensor elements which may then be estimated. The most practical way of presenting information from many stations on a map may be by drawing, for each site, arrows which summarize the response in the vertical field and quadrics which summarize the response in the horizontal field.     

Geological interpretation of a deep seismic‐reflection transect across the boundary between the Delamerian and Lachlan Orogens,in the vicinity of the Grampians,western Victoria

A deep seismic‐reflection transect in western Victoria was designed to provide insights into the structural relationship between the Lachlan and the Delamerian Orogens. Three seismic lines were acquired to provide images of the subsurface from west of the Grampians Range to east of the Stawell‐Ararat Fault Zone. The boundary between the Delamerian and Lachlan Orogens is now generally considered to be the Moyston Fault. In the vicinity of the seismic survey, this fault is intruded by a near‐surface granite, but at depth the fault dips to the east, confirming recent field mapping. East of the Moyston Fault, the uppermost crust is very weakly reflective, consisting of short, non‐continuous, west‐dipping reflections. These weak reflections represent rocks of the Lachlan Orogen and are typical of the reflective character seen on other seismic images from elsewhere in the Lachlan Orogen. Within the Lachlan Orogen, the Pleasant Creek Fault is also east dipping and approximately parallel to the Moyston Fault in the plane of the seismic section. Rocks of the Delamerian Orogen in the vicinity of the seismic line occur below surficial cover to the west of the Moyston Fault. Generally, the upper crust is only weakly reflective, but subhorizontal reflections at shallow depths (up to 3 km) represent the Grampians Group. The Escondida Fault appears to stop below the Grampians Group, and has an apparent gentle dip to the east. Farther east, the Golton and Mehuse Faults are also east dipping. The middle to lower crust below the Delamerian Orogen is strongly reflective, with several major antiformal structures in the middle crust. The Moho is a slightly undulating horizon at the base of the highly reflective middle to lower crust at 11–12 s TWT (approximately 35 km depth). Tectonically, the western margin of the Lachlan Orogen has been thrust over the Delamerian Orogen for a distance of at least 25 km, and possibly over 40 km.     

Using Quantitative Textural Analysis to Understand the Emplacement of Shallow-Level Rhyolitic Laccoliths--a Case Study from the Halle Volcanic Complex, Germany

In qualitatively homogeneous magmatic bodies, quantitative texturalanalysis—such as crystal size distribution, modal abundance,and spatial distribution pattern analyses—allows theirinternal heterogeneity to be measured and interpreted. In thisstudy, these methods are applied to samples from a 300 m drillcore through one of the porphyritic rhyolitic laccoliths (Petersbergunit) of the     

Transmission electron microscope texture and crystal chemistry of coexisting ortho- and clinopyroxene in the Antarctic ureilite Frontier Mountain 90054: Implications for thermal history

Abstract— Frontier Mountain (FRO) 90054, from Antarctica, is a rare clino- and orthopyroxene-bearing ureilite with a coarse equigranular oriented texture (grains up to 3 mm); it is classified as a low-shock Ca-rich type. The crystal chemistry of its clinopyroxene (Wo_39.3En_54.6Fs_6.1), orthopyroxene (En_{84 2}Fs₁₁Wo_4.8) and olivine (Fa_12.6Fo_86.9) was investigated by single-crystal x-ray structural refinements and transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations to obtain data on the evolutionary history of the parent body. The M1 octahedron and unit cell volumes of the orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene are consistent with low-pressure crystallization. The closure temperatures for intracrystalline Mg-Fe²⁺ ordering yielded values of 674 °C and 804 °C for opx and 596 °C for cpx, which indicate high-temperature equilibration and fast cooling. Trasmission electron microscope investigations were performed on clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene and pigeonite. The (100) twin lamellae in the clinopyroxene and intergrowth of clino- and orthoenstatite lamellae in orthopyroxene most probably originated by deformation. Exsolution was not observed in any of the phases, which suggests rapid cooling. Analysis by TEM also revealed interstitial Na-rich glass and pigeonite with sharp h + k odd reflections and rare stacking faults parallel to (100). Textural and crystal chemical data, obtained by TEM, indicated rapid cooling that was probably due to fast radiative heat loss as a result of the disintegration of the parent body into small fragments, which subsequently reassembled into a larger body. One or more collisional events caused fine-scale stacking faults and partial melting.     

Soil-water dynamics and tree water uptake in the Sacramento Mountains of New Mexico (USA): a stable isotope study

In the southwestern United States, precipitation in the high mountains is a primary source of groundwater recharge. Precipitation patterns, soil properties and vegetation largely control the rate and timing of groundwater recharge. The interactions between climate, soil and mountain vegetation thus have important implications for the groundwater supply. This study took place in the Sacramento Mountains, which is the recharge area for multiple regional aquifers in southern New Mexico. The stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen were used to determine whether infiltration of precipitation is homogeneously distributed in the soil or whether it is partitioned among soil-water ‘compartments’, from which trees extract water for transpiration as a function of the season. The results indicate that “immobile” or “slow” soil water, which is derived primarily from snowmelt, infiltrates soils in a relatively uniform fashion, filling small pores in the shallow soils. “Mobile” or “fast” soil water, which is mostly associated with summer thunderstorms, infiltrates very quickly through macropores and along preferential flow paths, evading evaporative loss. It was found that throughout the entire year, trees principally use immobile water derived from snowmelt mixed to differing degrees with seasonally available mobile-water sources. The replenishment of these different water pools in soils appears to depend on initial soil-water content, the manner in which the water was introduced to the soil (snowmelt versus intense thunderstorms), and the seasonal variability of the precipitation and evapotranspiration. These results have important implications for the effect of climate change on recharge mechanisms in the Sacramento Mountains.     

Geochemical Characteristics of Gold Polymetallic Deposits as Exemplified by the Laozuoshan Deposit,Heilong jiang,China

From the studies of ore deposit geologic settings,sulfur isotopes,lead isotopes,carbon isotopes and oxygen isotopes,fluid inclusions and petrochemistry in this paper,the authors have drawn a conclusion that the ore-forming hydrothermal solutions are the high-temperature magmatic hydrothermal solutions for the gold ore deposit,and at the same time,the involvemety of crustal materials can not be ruled out .It is the first time that the authors have proposed that the Laozuoshan gold-ploymetallic ore deposit in Heilongjiang Province was formed in the calc-alkaline series environment at the margin of an active continent.