Petrologic Evolution of Anorthoclase Phonolite Lavas at Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica

Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica, is an active, intraplate,alkaline volcano. The strongly undersaturated sodic lavas rangefrom basanite to anorthoclase phonolite, and are termed theErebus lineage (EL). The lavas are porphyritic with olivine(Fo₈₈–51), clinopyroxene (Wo₄₅–53En₃₆–41Fs₈–30),opaque oxides (Usp₃₁–76), feldspar (An₇₂–11), andapatite. Rare earth element (REE) contents increase only slightlywith increasing differentiation compared with other incompatibleelements. The light REE are enriched (La_N/Yb_N= 14–20)and there are no significant Eu anomalies. ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr is uniformand low ({small tilde} 0.7030) throughout the EL, suggestingderivation of the basanites from a depleted asthenospheric mantlesource, and lack of significant crustal contamination duringfractionation of the basanite. Regular geochemical trends indicatethat the EL evolved from the basanites by fractional crystallization.Major element mass balance calculations and trace element modelsshow that fractionation of 16% olivine, 52% clinopyroxene, 14%Fe-Ti oxides, 11% feldspar, 3% nepheline, and 3% apatite froma basanite parent leaves 23.5% anorthoclase phonolite. Minor volumes of less undersaturated, more iron-rich benmoreite,phonolite, and trachyte are termed the enriched iron series(EFS). The trachytes have ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr of 0.704, higher than otherEFS and EL rocks, and they probably evolved by a combined assimilation-fractionalcrystallization process. The large volume of phonolite at Mt. Erebus requires significantbasanite production. This occurs by low degrees of partial meltingin a mantle plume (here termed the Erebus plume) rising at arate of about 6 cm/yr.     

New interpretations of Great Salt Lake ooids and of ancient non-skeletal carbonate mineralogy

Earlier interpretations of textural alteration affecting Great Salt Lake ooids have greatly influenced concepts of ooid diagenesis. Scanning electron microscope study shows, however, that the coarse radial aragonite rays are depositional, that no recrystallization of pellet cores has occurred, and that Great Salt Lake ooids have not suffered noticeable diagenesis. As suggested by Kahle (1974), radial texture in ancient calcitic ooids is probably mainly original, not diagenetic. Retention of such fine textures has been attributed to organic matter (since found to be equivalent in modern skeletal and non-skeletal grains) or to paramorphic replacement (proposed for non-skeletal grains whose original aragonite mineralogy was only inferred from modern analogs). Pleistocene ooids known to have been aragonite alter like aragonite shells to coarse neomorphic calcite, often with aragonite relics. The striking uniformity of that coarse texture in neomorphic calcite replacing known skeletal aragonites throughout the geologic record has been noted for over 100 years. In contrast, Mississippian ooids retain fine texture as do calcite layers of coexisting gastropods, but unlike the strongly altered aragonite layers of these same gastropods. Therefore, inferences of original aragonitic mineralogy of ancient non-skeletal carbonate grains (including muds) which are now calcite but retain fine texture appear unwarranted, as do assumptions of differential diagenetic behaviour of ancient aragonitic skeletal and non-skeletal grains. Accordingly, modern depositional environments of marine ooids and carbonate muds must be rejected as chemically unrepresentative of comparable ancient environments. It is inferred that ancient non-skeletal carbonates were originally predominantly or exclusively calcite because of an earlier lower oceanic Mg/Ca ratio (<2/1) which altered progressively to values favouring aragonite (modern Mg/Ca value = 5/1). Major influencing factors are: selective removal of calcium by planktonic foraminifers and coccolithophorids since Jurassic-Cretaceous time and by abundant younger, Mg-poor aragonite skeletons and an erratic trend toward decreasing dolomite formation (decreasing removal of oceanic Mg). The change to aragonite dominance over calcite for non-skeletal carbonates was probably during early to middle Cenozoic time.     

Absolute Calibration of the Jason-1 Altimeter Using UK Tide Gauges

This article describes an “absolute” calibration of Jason-1 (J-1) altimeter sea surface height bias using a method developed for TOPEX/Poseidon (T/P) bias determination reported previously. The method makes use of U.K. tide gauges equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers to measure sea surface heights at the same time, and in the same geocentric reference frame, as Jason-1 altimetric heights recorded in the nearby ocean. The main time-dependent components of the observed altimeter-minus-gauge height-difference time series are due to the slightly different ocean tides at the gauge and in the ocean. The main harmonic coefficients of the tide differences are calculated from analysis of the copious TOPEX data set and then applied to the determination of T, P, and J-1 bias in turn. Datum connections between the tide gauge and altimetric sea surface heights are made by means of precise, local geoid differences from the EGG97 model. By these means, we have estimated Jason-1 altimeter bias determined from Geophysical Data Record (GDR) data for cycles 1–61 to be 12.9 cm, with an accuracy estimated to be approximately 3 cm on the basis of our earlier work. This J-1 bias value is in close agreement with those determined by other groups, which provides a further confirmation of the validity of our method and of its potential for application in other parts of the world where suitable tide gauge, GPS, and geoid information exist.     

WAVELENGTH SELECTION IN MULTICOMPONENT NEAR-INFRARED CALIBRATION

Modern scanning(near-)infrared reflectance/absorption(NIR)spectroscopes measure the absorptions orreflectances at a sequence of around 1000 wavelengths.Training data may consist of 10-100 carefullydesigned sample mixtures for which the true composition of the mixture is either known by formulationor accurately determined by wet chemistry.In future one wishes to predict the true composition fromthe spectrum.In this paper we compare a simple wavelength selection approach with methods whichretain all the wavelengths.It offers a powerful yet simple technique for choosing those wavelengths thatare specific to each pure component as against the other components(including the medium)for thevarying compositions.In the presence of a defined range of ingredients it thus chooses wavelengths whichare highly selective for each particular component.It has the added advantage of selecting wavelengthswhich are little effected by interaction effects and consequent non-linearities.The calibration data used consist of 125 observations of three sugars,each varying at five levels in afull 5~3 design.The validation set consists of 21 further samples specially selected to have compositionsoutside the range of the training sample.The selection methods perform much better on this predictionset than methods which retain all the wavelengths,700 in this case.The leave-one-out cross-validationinternal to the calibration data would point to the opposite finding and suggests that such cross-validations may be overly flattering to techniques such as partial least squares and may encourageoverfitting.After selection,simple straightforward least squares methods may be used,eschewing theneed for‘shrinkage’methods such as partial least squares or ridge regression.     

SIMPLE An inductive modelling and mapping tool for spatially-oriented data

Abstract

An inductive learning capability has been interfaced to a computerized geographical modelling package. The capabilities of the integrated system, called SIMPLE, are described. The use of the system to model and map the distribution of kangaroo populations is briefly described.     

The Fremont Butte,Washington Co., Colorado,Meteorite

Abstract The Fremont Butte meteorite was found near Fremont Butte, Colorado, in 1963. A single individual was found weighing 6.6 kg. It is an olivine-hypersthene or L group chondrite showing brecciation and a small number of well formed chondrules and olivine phenocrysts.     

New evidence for polyphase metamorphism of glaucophane schist and eclogite exotic blocks in the Franciscan Complex, California and Oregon

ABSTRACT The early metamorphic history of high-grade exotic blocks in the Franciscan Complex may be more complicated than previously supposed. The different assemblages of high-grade glaucophane schist, eclogite, amphibolite and hornblende schist are commonly considered to have formed at the same time from essentially unmetamorphosed oceanic crust. However, new textural and mineralogical data presented here suggest that high-grade glaucophane schist and eclogite have replaced an earlier epidote-amphibolite facies assemblage that is identical to the primary assemblages in many of the hornblende-rich blocks. At least some of the hornblende-rich blocks may therefore be well-preserved remnants of the earlier metamorphism. Comparison of the mineral assemblages and element partitioning in the mixed-assemblage blocks suggests that the glaucophane schist and eclogite metamorphism took place at slightly lower temperatures but at the same or higher pressures than the earlier, hornblende-forming stage.