Widespread syn-eruptive volcaniclastic deposits in the Pleistocenic basins of South-Western Calabria

Since late Tortonian, depositional sequences developed along the Southern Calabrian forearc, inside the half-graben depressions of the Mesima-Gioia Tauro and Reggio Calabria basins. In these basins volcaniclastic sedimentation took place during lower to middle Pleistocene. Volcaniclastic deposits consist of isolated pumice swarms, ash layers and thick successions of lapilli and ash.     

Trophic ecology of the Patagonian skate, Bathyraja macloviana, on the Argentine continental shelf

When this article was originally published     

A methodological approach for estimating turbidity in a river

During the operations of purging and disposal of sediments of a reservoir it is necessary to know the values of turbidity in the river downstream in natural condition,in the absence of dams or river training works.The paper shows that under these conditions the ratio of the average values of sediment discharge to the annual maximum value of water discharge is a function of the average annual turbidity.Turbidity can be considered as representative synthetic index of the climatic conditions,the lithological features and the land cover of the basin,and the geometric characteristics of the river network.The proposed relationship of sediment discharge as a function of water discharge were validated on the basis of data collected from different Italian regions that have very different morphological,geo-lithological and rainfall features and that are characterised by a basin area changing between a few dozen and thousands of square kilometres.The results can be considered satisfying.     

The 1669 eruption at Mount Etna: chronology,petrology and geochemistry,with inferences on the magma sources and ascent mechanisms

 Analysis of the petrochemical characters of the 1669 Etnean lavas shows that they can be grouped into two sets: SET1 lavas were erupted from 11 to 20 March and are more primitive in composition than SET2, erupted later until the end of activity. Both sets may be interpreted as the result of crystallization under different conditions of two primary magmas which are compositionally slightly distinct and which fractionate different volumetric proportions of minerals. To explain why more mafic lavas (SET1) were erupted earlier than more acid ones (SET2), we argue that new deeper magma rose up into a reservoir where residing magma was fractionating. Density calculations demonstrate that new magma is less dense and may originate a plume, rapidly rising through the residing magma which is cooler and more volatile-depleted than the new magma. Calculations of uprise velocity assuming laminar flow are consistent with this hypothesis. Received: 20 November 1995 / Accepted: 2 August 1996     

Glacial Cirques in the Southern Side of the Cantabrian Mountains of Southwestern Europe

A total of 156 glacial cirques located on two different areas in the Cantabrian Mountains (NW Spain) were identified and measured in order to continue and expand the study of these large‐scale erosional forms in European mountains. Environmental variables that may explain cirque distribution (altitude, aspect and lithology), and their most important morphometric features (area, length (L), width (W), headwall height (H), and L/W, L/H and W/H indices), are analysed. Statistical analysis has been applied as indicators of contrast (ANOVA) and association (correlation and regression). Conglomerate analysis (CLUSTER) has been used to discriminate cirque groups based on their morphometric variables. Results show that cirques occur at lower altitudes in the Upper Sil River basin area than in the Montaña Central area due to a lower former equilibrium line altitude (ELA) position. In the Upper Sil River basin, environmental variables appear to have had a strong influence on the location and size of cirques: the largest cirques are located in quartzite rocks at elevations above 2000 m and face N or NE. In Montaña Central, the influence of these factors was more limited as a consequence of higher geological structure control. Cirque sizes generally are modest compared with cirques present in other mountain ranges globally, most likely due to shorter glacial occupancy in the Cantabrian Mountains.     

Freshwater sediment quality in Spain

This study was carried out to evaluate sediment pollution related to trace elements such as Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Hg, As and Cr and eight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in 127 sites located in 85 rivers in Spain. Sediment samples were classified according to similar chemical characteristics by means of statistical multivariate techniques (principal component analysis, PCA) and artificial neural networks such as self-organizing maps (SOM). Sediment sample classification provided by PCA was not as useful as the one provided by the SOM, revealing itself as a powerful tool to be incorporated in the first steps of sediment quality assessments. The use of sediment quality guidelines such as the mean-probable effects concentration quotient (m-PECQ) predicted sediment quality and gave an overall view of sediment pollution throughout Spain. Most of the samples (118 out of 127) showed m-PECQ values below 0.5 highlighting their relative low potential risk to cause adverse effects on the benthic fauna. However, some samples presented m-PECQ values higher than 0.5 suggesting a clear potential risk to these fauna. Besides, unusual high concentrations of trace elements and PAHs were related to the human activities carried out near each sampling point.     

Age constraints to the relationships between magmatism, metamorphism and tectonism in the Aracena metamorphic belt, southern Spain

 The Aracena metamorphic belt (AMB), southwest Iberian peninsula, is characterized by the following geological elements: (a) a high-temperature/low-pressure (HT/LP) metamorphic belt a few kilometres wide and more than 200 km long; (b) a linear belt of oceanic amphibolites with a low-pressure inverted metamorphic gradient; (c) crustal-scale ductile shear zones; and (d) mafic, noritic intrusions of high-Mg andesite (boninite) composition. The relationships between these elements led to the proposal of a model of ridge subduction for this sector of the Hercynian belt of Europe. This interpretation is supported by the age relationships displayed between the main rock units considered representative of the main tectonic and petrological processes responsible for the geological elements mentioned previously. The results of a geochronological study (Ar–Ar, Rb–Sr and Sm–Nd) clearly support a Late Paleozoic tectonic evolution at an active continental margin. The time evolution of the metamorphism in the oceanic domain, ranging from 342.6±0.6 Ma in the west to 328.4±1.2 Ma in the east, over a distance of 70 km along the metamorphic belt, support a tectonic model of triple-junction migration responsible for the creation at depth of a slab-free window with decisive consequences for the thermal evolution of the region. The origin of the linear metamorphic belt of HT/LP regime may be explained by the migration along a continental margin of a punctual thermal anomaly induced by the creation of a triple-junction at the continental margin. Received: 9 March 1998 / Accepted: 9 December 1998     

Variation in nitrate uptake and denitrification rates across a salinity gradient in Mediterranean semiarid streams

Streams are significant locations for nitrate (NO₃ ^?) processing within landscapes. This is especially important in dry climates given the limited water availability for biological processes elsewhere. In arid and semiarid regions, many streams are naturally saline. Elevated salinity can constrain the structure and function of aquatic organisms, which is expected to increase worldwide being associated to global warming. We investigated whole-reach NO₃ ^? uptake and denitrification in nine semiarid streams of variable water salinity (i.e. from freshwater to hyposaline) to test if NO₃ ^? processing would decrease with increasing salinity. We used pulse additions and Tracer Addition for Spiraling Curve Characterization (TASCC) to measure whole-reach uptake of added NO₃ ^?, and the acetylene block technique to measure sediment denitrification. TASCC results showed that only five of nine streams were able to retain added NO₃ ^?. Of these five retentive streams, four were saline; however, salinity did not control significantly the variation in whole-reach NO₃ ^? uptake observed across streams. Other measured environmental variables such as streambed NH₄ ⁺ and organic carbon availability were better at explaining this variation. Denitrification was detected in all streams except one and its variation across streams was also independent of salinity. Although denitrification rates tended to be high, their contribution to whole-reach NO₃ ^? uptake was insignificant (≤2.16 %). Alternative pathways, heterotrophic assimilation and/or dissimilatory NO₃ ^? reduction to NH₄ ⁺, were probably responsible for most whole-reach NO₃ ^? uptake. Together, our results highlight that the function of streams in controlling external NO₃ ^? inputs is highly variable and salinity does not apparently constrain this role.     

Corona Satellite Pictures for Archaeological Studies: A Review and Application to the Lost Forbidden City of the Han–Wei Dynasties

This paper provides a state of the art of the use of declassified satellite Corona for archaeological application and deals with the use of historical archives of Corona and aerial photographs for detecting ancient hidden cultural relics that may be completely lost in the modern landscape veiled by current land uses and land covers. Geospatial analysis is adopted to identify, extract and map the subtle archaeological features and cultural landscape of the lost Han–Wei Forbidden City in the Henan Province (China). It was one of the most important cities of ancient China, served as the capital for a long period, from the Eastern Zhou (2600 BP, Zhou Dynasty) to the Eastern Han and Wei Dynasties (1900–1500 BP). Outputs from our investigations clearly provided evidence of numerous buried structures of potential archaeological interest that were compared with historical documentation and excavations carried out in the area. The geospatial analysis, applied both to aerial photograph and to Corona pictures, enabled us to discover a number of unknown sub-palaces and structures, thus providing new insights for this important archaeological area.