Cluster analysis of a regional-scale soil geochemical dataset in northern California

A regional-scale soil geochemical study was conducted within a 22,000 km² area in northern California including the Sierra Nevada, Sacramento Valley, and northern Coast Range. Over 1300 soil samples were chemically analyzed for 42 elements. The distribution of distinct groups of elements demonstrates the interplay of geologic, hydrologic, geomorphologic and anthropogenic factors; however, it is difficult to fully appreciate the complexity of geochemical transport and weathering processes on a landscape-scale in an area of very complex geology with such a large dataset containing more than 40 variables. To examine the data from a perspective of multi-element groupings, cluster analyses were applied to the dataset. The analysis identified several groups of elements whose spatial patterns could be related to specific geologic sources.     

Measuring erosion rates on exposed limestone residuum using erosion pins: a 10-year record

Abstract

Erosion rates in residual limestone soils in a humid climate were measured for 10 years at one site, and for 4 years at another site, using erosion pins. Erosion pins were placed in gully floors and on convex divides between adjacent gullies, on abandoned land where vegetation had been removed. We measured an average erosion rate of 20 mm yr^?1 over 10 years at one site and only 5 mm yr^?1 over 4 years at another site where chert gravel was common on the surface. The 10-year average erosion rate of divides (26 mm yr^?1) was significantly greater than the average erosion rate of gullies (14 mm yr^?1), suggesting control by different processes, some of which may be seasonal. In winter, it was observed that frost action produced a thin layer of loose soil on the surface of divides. In summer, a hardpan developed on divides, as the soil loosened by winter frosts was transported to gullies, likely by rainsplash or dry ravel. The diffusive processes of frost action, rainsplash, and dry ravel appear to shape the convex divides in this study. Down-cutting of gullies requires channelized flow produced by intense rainfall, which is more common in summer for this location.     

Diatom-based models for inferring past water chemistry in western Ugandan crater lakes

Diatom surface sediment samples and corresponding water chemistry were collected from 56 lakes across a natural conductivity gradient in western Uganda (reflecting a regional climatic gradient of effective moisture) to explore factors controlling diatom distribution. Here we develop a regional training set from these crater lakes to test the hypothesis that this approach, by providing more appropriate and closer analogues, can improve the accuracy of palaeo-conductivity reconstructions, and so environmental inferences in these lake systems compared to larger training sets. We compare this output to models based on larger, but geographically and limnologically diverse training sets, using the European Diatom Database Initiative (EDDI) database. The relationships between water chemistry and diatom distributions were explored using canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and partial CCA. Variance partitioning indicated that conductivity accounted for a significant and independent portion of this variation. A transfer function was developed for conductivity (r _jack ² ?=?0.74). Prediction errors, estimated using jack-knifing, are low for the conductivity model (0.256 log₁₀ units). The resulting model was applied to a sedimentary sequence from Lake Kasenda, western Uganda. Comparison of conductivity reconstructions using the Ugandan crater lake training set and the East Africa training set (EDDI) highlighted a number of differences in the optima of key diatom taxa, which lead to differences in reconstructed values and could lead to misinterpretation of the fossil record. This study highlights issues of how far transfer functions based on continental-scale lake datasets such as the EDDI pan-African models should be used and the benefits that may be obtained from regional training sets.     

Photogrammetric Reverse Engineering of the "Angel of the North"

The Department of Geomatics and the Regional Centre for Innovation in Engineering Design in the University of Newcastle upon Tyne collaborated in a project to produce precise measurements for use in the fabrication of the body of the "Angel of the North" sculpture. This 20 m high edifice, by the sculptor Antony Gormley, is located adjacent to the A1(M) in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear.
This paper reviews the photogrammetric reverse engineering work carried out on a 1:10 scale plaster maquette of the "Angel of the North", which is a life-size model of the sculptor's body without any arms. The three dimensional measurements of the maquette, made by analytical photogrammetric techniques, were then processed to produce a fully functional three dimensional CAD model from which the dimensions needed by the fabricating company, Hartlepool Steel Fabrications Ltd., could be extracted. Additionally, the VirtuoZo digital photogrammetric software package was used to investigate the potential of automated measurement for this type of work and the results were compared with those obtained analytically.     

Evolution of undercut slopes on abandoned incised meanders in the Eastern Highland Rim of Tennessee, USA

Field surveys, location-for-time reasoning, and computer modeling were used to study the evolution of slopes on valley walls of abandoned bedrock meanders on the Eastern Highland Rim, Tennessee. Hillslopes on the undercut slopes of cutoff incised meanders were ordered as to relative age by the height of their meander floors above the modern stream level. The assumption is that the undercut slope is actively eroded by the stream until abandonment of the meander, at which time the slope begins to evolve to a different form. More-advanced stages of evolution occur on walls of higher meanders that were abandoned earlier. The most rapid change in this initial form is the elimination of a free face, which occurs soon after the meander is abandoned. In addition, the hillslopes associated with even the lowest (youngest) cutoff meanders show somewhat gentler overall gradients than the actively undercut slopes. Hillslopes associated with meanders 3 to about 20 m above modern stream level maintain straight segments with angles showing only a slight decrease from the 36–38° associated with the lowest cutoffs; overall angles decrease, however, as the straight segment becomes shorter. The oldest slopes, those on cutoffs 30 m or greater above modern stream level, have developed into convex–concave slopes with maximum slopes of 15°.A hillslope evolution model based on previously published algorithms was used to simulate the transition of actively undercut hillslopes into hillslopes on abandoned meanders. Hillslope modeling is particularly useful in this setting. If the valley incision rate is known, an age can be estimated for the cutoff and hence for the hillslope. Alternatively, if hillslope process rates are known, a model age obtained for the hillslope can be used to estimate an incision rate. Even where both incision rates and hillslope process rates are poorly constrained, as in the present setting, modeling allows assumptions about specific rates to be evaluated by determining their implications for other rates. For example, for three cutoff meanders along one stream, best-fit criteria were used to select process rates for the model. Model ages of hillslopes were then obtained and compared with those calculated from a valley-incision rate measured elsewhere in the same physiographic province. For two of the hillslopes, model ages were found to be much younger than those calculated from the incision rate. In order to make the two ages agree, unreasonably low process rates had to be used in the model, thus implying that the incision rate probably underestimates the actual incision rate in this valley.Experimentation with heights of initial profiles, again using best-fit criteria, suggests that since abandonment of the highest cutoff, the plateau has been downwasting at a rate about one-fourth that of the valley incision rate, a finding in agreement with published rates of chemical denudation in the area.     

Spatial Variation of “Non-Rainfall” Water Input and the Effect of Mechanical Soil Crusts on Input and Evaporation

“Non-rainfall” water is important to the soil water balance and ecology of arid ecosystems. A component of this “non-rainfall” water in the Namib Desert, fog, exhibits spatial variation implying variability in composition and significance of each vector (dew, fog, vapour adsorption) to ecology at different locations. The composition of “non -rainfall” water input directly into soil was investigated at two sites in the Central Namib Desert, Kleinberg and Gobabeb. Results showed spatial variation in composition between the sites, although vapour adsorption dominated input at both sites. Fog contributed more to total “non rainfall” atmospheric water closer to the coast (Kleinberg) compared to further inland (Gobabeb) but was lower than expected at both sites. Absolute values of fog input at both sites showed the opposite trend, Kleinberg 0.38?mm per night compared to Gobabeb 8.7?mm per night. This difference was attributed to the development of a mechanical crust on the soil surface at Kleinberg, which resulted in a significant reduction of vapour adsorption compared to Gobabeb. The crust also led to a significant reduction in evaporation from the sample at Kleinberg compared to the one at Gobabeb. Ecological differences between the two sites can be attributed to the development of the soil crust on the sample at Kleinberg and not on the sample at Gobabeb.     

The evolution of tidal creek networks,mary river,northern Australia

Tidal creek networks have in 50 years extended over 30 km inland across the coastal plains of the Mary River in northern Australia, invading freshwater wetlands and destroying the associated vegetation. The networks have grown at an exponential rate through a combination of main channel extension and tributary development, with concomitant widening of the creeks. A large tidal range, very small elevational differences over the plains, and the availability of preexisting channel lines (notably in the form of palaeochannels) have been major factors contributing to the rapid rate of expansion. Close parallels exist between these networks and terrestrial networks as regards modes of growth and planimetric properties. A channel is initiated when the diffuse flow of a seepage zone becomes concentrated through localized scour. Subsequent development is characterized by the rapid extension of long first-order channels, with most tributary addition occurring later. Model tests suggest that branching was more likely on exterior links in the early stages but that exterior and interior link branching became more equally likely through time. Although the headward limits of the main creeks seem to have been reached, tributary infilling will continue to progress upstream. Only in the most downstream parts is a stable drainage density being approached. The networks not only satisfy the laws of drainage network composition and the basic postulates of the random model but also depart from topologic randomness in similar ways to terrestrial networks. Both topologic and length properties have changed during evolution but largely at the link rather than network scale. The close correspondence with terrestrial networks may be due to the low relief and the relatively unconstrained nature of growth in which availability of space was the main determining factor.     

Geochemistry of a sediment push-core from the Lucky Strike hydrothermal field,Mid-Atlantic Ridge

Hydrothermal sediment mineralogy and geochemistry can provide insights into seafloor mineralization processes and changes through time. We report a geochemical investigation of a short (22 cm) near-vent hydrothermal metalliferous sediment core from the Lucky Strike site (LS), on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR). The sediment was collected from the base of an active white smoker vent and comprises pure hydrothermal precipitates, mainly chalcopyrite, sphalerite, pyrite and barite, with negligible detrital and biogenic inputs. Geochemically, the core is enriched in elements derived from high-temperature hydrothermalism (Fe, Cu, Zn and Ba) and depleted in elements derived from low-temperature hydrothermalism (Mn), and metasomatism (Mg). The U/Fe content ratio is elevated, particularly in the deeper parts of the core, consistent with uptake from seawater associated with sulphide alteration. Rare earth elements (REE) concentrations are low and chondrite-normalized patterns are characteristic of high-temperature vent fluids with an enrichment in light REE and a pronounced positive Eu anomaly. A stronger positive Eu anomaly associated with higher La_n/Sm_n at the core top is controlled by barite precipitation. The hydrothermal influence on the REE decreases downcore with some evidence for a stronger seawater influence at depth. Nd isotopes also exhibit an increased detrital/seawater influence downcore. Pb isotope ratios are uniform and plot on the Northern Hemisphere Reference Line in a small domain defined by LS basalts and exhibit no detrital or seawater influence. Lucky Strike sediments are derived from high-temperature mineralization and are overprinted by a weak seawater–sediment interaction when compared with other Atlantic hydrothermal sites such as TAG. The larger seawater input and/or a larger detrital contribution in deeper layers can be explained by variable hydrothermal activity during sediment formation, suggesting different pulses in activity of the LS hydrothermal system.     

EFFECT OF HILLSLOPE ANGLE AND SUBSTRATE ON TREE TILT,AND DENUDATION OF HILLSLOPES BY TREE FALL

Although the question of whether tilted trees indicate hillslope instability has been discussed by previous authors, few systematic measurements have been made. In Giles County, Virginia, tree-tilt measurements were made on 30 trees at each of seven sites. Sites included topographic noses, side slopes, boulder streams, and talus, with slope angles ranging from 6° to 39°. Trees on steep boulder streams are tilted more than those on noses or side slopes with comparable slope angles, but this difference could result from a difference in tree types. On one very steep (39°) fine-grained talus, however, tilt of all types of trees is great, the average tilt from the vertical being 29.1°. Tilt at this location probably reflects slope instability, although evidence suggests that this instability is not simple creep. In a second study, calculations were made of the importance of tree fall for hillslope erosion. The volumes of all tree-fall pits within a 4-hectare area on a steep shale nose were measured, and, using assumptions of previous workers, an erosion rate of 13 mm/1000 yr was calculated. This value is an order of magnitude lower than one value reported previously.