Geochemistry, Geochronology and Isotopic Evolution of the Chewore-Rufunsa Terrane, Southern Irumide Belt: a Mesoproterozoic Continental Margin Arc

The southern Irumide Belt (SIB) is an ENE–WSW-trending,late Mesoproterozoic orogenic belt located between the Congo–Tanzania–Bangweulu(CTB) and Kalahari cratons in central southern Africa. It isseparated from the late Mesoproterozoic Irumide Belt (IB) tothe north by Permo-Triassic graben, raising the possibilitythat the younger rifts reactivated a suture between the twobelts that has been rendered cryptic as a result of youngerKaroo cover. Both belts are dominated by calc-alkaline gneisses,but in addition the SIB contains abundant metavolcanic and metasedimentaryrocks. In this study we present detailed geochemical, isotopicand geochronological data for volcanic and plutonic lithologiesfrom the southernmost part of the SIB, the Chewore–RufunsaTerrane. This terrane comprises a wide variety of supracrustalto mid-crustal rocks that have major- and trace-element compositionssimilar to magmas formed in present-day subduction zones. Chondrite-normalizedrare earth element (REE) profiles and whole-rock Sm–Ndisotope compositions indicate that the parental supra-subductionmelts interacted with, and were contaminated by sialic continentalcrust, implying a continental-margin-arc setting. Secondaryionization mass spectrometry dating of magmatic zircon has yieldedcrystallization ages between c. 1095 and 1040 Ma, similar toelsewhere in the SIB. U–Pb dating and in situ Lu–Hfisotopic analyses of abundant xenocrystic zircon extracted fromthe late Mesoproterozoic granitoids indicate that the contaminantcontinental basement was principally Palaeoproterozoic in ageand had a juvenile isotopic signature at the time of its formation.These data are in contrast to those for the IB, which is characterizedby younger, c. 1020 Ma, calc-alkaline gneisses that formed bythe direct recycling of Archaean crust without significant additionof any juvenile material. We suggest that the SIB developedby the subduction of oceanic crust under the margin of an unnamedcontinental mass until ocean closure at c. 1040 Ma. Subsequentcollision between the SIB and the CTB margin led to the cessationof magmatism in the SIB and the initiation of compression andcrustal melting in the IB. KEY WORDS: geochemistry; Mesoproterozoic; SHRIMP zircon U–Pb dating; Sm–Nd isotopes; Southern Irumide Belt     

Modification of the High-Pressure-Type Chromites into the Low- Pressure-Type: Petrological Investigation of the Podiform Chromitites in the Luobusa Ophiolite, Tibet

<正>The podiform chromitites in the Luobusa ophiolite,Southern Tibet,have received much attention because of the presence of ultrahigh-pressure minerals,such as microdiamonds(Bai et al.,1993;Yang et al.,2007;Xu et al.,2009),coesite(Yang et al.,2007)and highly reduced metal phases(Bai et al.,2000;Robinson et al.,2004).The     

柴达木北缘超高压变质带中的岛弧火山岩

青藏高原北部柴北缘发育一套与超高压变质带并行的早古生代岛弧火山岩带,岛弧火山岩以玄武岩类为主,包括一些中酸性岩类,岩石以普遍遭受绿片岩相蚀变为特征,区别于该地区普遍遭受角闪岩相区域变质的元古代的基性火山岩。该早古生代的岛孤火山岩显示三组地球化学特征:①VTG-Ⅰ,岛弧拉斑玄武岩(IAT);②VTG-Ⅱ,高Al次钙碱性-碱性过渡型玄武岩;③VTG-Ⅲ,较N-MORB更亏损的拉斑玄武岩(异常MORB)。研究认为前两组火山岩是成熟岛弧两个发育阶段的特征性产物:洋壳俯冲到陆壳的初用,由俯冲洋壳和地幔楔的部分熔融形成岛弧拉斑玄武岩(IAT),随着俯冲板块的速度加快和岛弧周围地壳的加厚,则形成钙碱性玄武岩(CA)、高Al玄武岩。第三组火山岩形成于弧间盆地,由亏损的地幔楔高度部分熔融形成比N-MORB亏损的的火山岩(异常MORB)。岛弧火山岩的锆石LA-ICP-MS法U-Pb年龄为514.2±8.5 Ma,说明柴北缘在早古生代发生过洋壳向陆壳的俯冲作用。鉴于该地区代表陆-陆俯冲作用的柴北缘超高压变质岩石也是形成于早古生代(494Ma),认为陆-陆俯冲作用发生在洋-陆俯冲作用之后,二者时间和空间相伴随。     

Collapse and fragmentation of rotating magnetized clouds – I. Magnetic flux–spin relation

We discuss the evolution of the magnetic flux density and angular velocity in a molecular cloud core, on the basis of three-dimensional numerical simulations, in which a rotating magnetized cloud fragments and collapses to form a very dense optically thick core of  >5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³  . As the density increases towards the formation of the optically thick core, the magnetic flux density and angular velocity converge towards a single relationship between the two quantities. If the core is magnetically dominated its magnetic flux density approaches  1.5( n /5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³)^1/2 mG  , while if the core is rotationally dominated the angular velocity approaches  2.57 × 10⁻³ ( n /5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³)^1/2 yr⁻¹  , where n is the density of the gas. We also find that the ratio of the angular velocity to the magnetic flux density remains nearly constant until the density exceeds  5 × 10¹⁰ cm⁻³  . Fragmentation of the very dense core and emergence of outflows from fragments will be shown in the subsequent paper.     

Ca isotopic compositions of dolomite, phosphorite and the oldest animal embryo fossils from the Neoproterozoic in Weng'an, South China

Deciphering the drastic changes of surface environment and the emergence of animals after the Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth event are important for understanding the changes of surface environment and its influence on the evolution of life through geologic time. Especially, the emergence of two types of Metazoan animals such as animal embryo fossils, cnidarians or sponges, and Ediacaran fauna in the late Neoproterozoic was one of the critical turning points in the biological evolution.Calcium is one of the essential elements for the growth of most animals. In this study, in order to evaluate the Ca cycles in the Neoproterozoic, we have measured Ca isotopic ratios (⁴⁴Ca/⁴²Ca and ⁴³Ca/⁴²Ca) for phosphorite, dolostone and phosphatic animal embryo fossils with a multiple collector, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (MC-ICP-MS). The resulting ⁴⁴Ca/⁴²Ca ratio defined by the relative deviation from the ratio of NIST SRM915a (δ^44/42Ca_NIST915) for phosphorite and dolostone ranges from 0.83 to 0.95‰, demonstrating that the fractionation between phosphorite/dolostone and seawater was very small. This evidence indicates that at the emergence of the Weng'an biota seawater was deficient in Ca probably due to mass deposition of phosphorite/dolostone and to the beginning of Ca-biomineralization.Three phosphatic animal embryo fossils have lower δ^44/42Ca values than the phosphorite and dolomite, implying that the precursor of the phosphatic embryo fossils was able to fractionate Ca isotopes through Ca-biomineralization, consistent with marine gastropods.     

Minor and trace element incorporation into branching coral Acropora nobilis skeleton

Chemical and isotopic compositions of the Acropora nobilis skeleton were analyzed at various spatial resolutions to investigate the mechanism by which elements are incorporated into the skeleton. Chemical and isotopic profiles along growth axes of axial and radial corallites did not show seasonal variation, with the exception of the δ¹⁸O profile of the axial corallite. Detailed observations of the skeletal structure revealed that the skeletal density increased with distance from the tip because secondarily precipitated aragonite (here called the “infilling” skeleton) filled pore spaces in the “framework” skeleton. Microscale element analyses revealed that main part of the infilling skeleton had lower Mg/Ca and higher Sr/Ca and U/Ca than the framework skeleton. At microscale, Sr/Ca and U/Ca were positively correlated with each other, and negatively correlated with Mg/Ca but only weakly. The results showed that the infilling skeleton differed significantly from the adjacent framework skeleton in terms of not only formation chronology but also chemical composition, and that the bulk composition was influenced by the infilling/framework skeletal ratio. In order to use the Acropora skeleton as a paleoclimate archive, the relationship between environmental factors and the chemical composition of each skeletal component needs to be established.     

Relationship between atmospheric conditions at Dhaka, Bangladesh, and rainfall at Cherrapunjee, India

To improve flood forecasting, the understanding of the atmospheric conditions associated with severe rainfall is crucial. We analysed the atmospheric conditions at Dhaka, Bangladesh, using upper-air soundings. We then compared these conditions with daily rainfall variations at Cherrapunjee, India, which is a main source of floodwater to Bangladesh, and a representative sample of exceptionally heavy rainfall events. The analysis focussed on June and July 2004. June and July are the heaviest rainfall months of the year at Cherrapunjee. July 2004 had the fourth-heaviest monthly rainfall of the past 31 years, and severe floods occurred in Bangladesh. Active rainfall periods at Cherrapunjee corresponded to “breaks” in the Indian monsoon. The monsoon trough was located over the Himalayan foothills, and strong westerly winds dominated up to 7 km at Dhaka. Near-surface wind below 1 km had southerly components, and the wind profile had an Ekman spiral structure. The results suggest that rainfall at Cherrapunjee strongly depends on the near-surface wind speed and wind direction at Dhaka. Lifting of the near-surface southerly airflow by the Meghalaya Plateau is considered to be the main contributor to severe rainfall at Cherrapunjee. High convective available potential energy (CAPE) also contributes to intense rainfall.     

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1674987115000870

Cap Carbonates overlie the Marinoan Snowball Earth-related glacial diamictite,and possibly record the drastic surface environmental change and biological evolution after the Snowball Earth.We conducted on-land drilling from the Liantuo Formation,through the Nantuo,to the lower Doushantuo Formation in the Three Gorges area of South China to collect fresh,continuous samples in the Three Gorges area.We obtained high-resolution chemostratigraphies of δ~(13)C and δ~(18)O values of carbonates from the topmost part of the Nantuo Formation to the Cap Carbonate,in order to decode the detailed surface environmental change in the shallow marine setting.The δ~(13)C chemostratigraphy possesses some unique characteristics:(1) stable δ~(13)C values as a whole,but ubiquitous low δ~(13)C anomalies through the Cap Carbonate,(2) increase of the δ~(13)C values from-3 to +5‰ across the C2/C3 boundary,(3) no δ~(13)C anomaly between the C1 and C2 boundary,and(4) presence of an anomalous high δ~(13)C value(+2.3‰)and a faint positive correlation between δ~(13)C and δ~(18)O values in the C1 unit.Evidence of quite low δ~(13)C anomalies(with a nadir of-41‰),ubiquitous negative δ~(13)C anomalies through the Cap Carbonate,and a high δ~(13)C anomaly accompanied with a faint positive correlation between δ~(13)C and δ~(18)O values in the C1 unit supports decomposition and formation of methane hydrate during Cap Carbonate formation.The drastic increase of δ~(13)C values from the upper C2 to C3 units indicates enhancement of primary productivity and organic carbon burial,possibly due to high continental fluxes after the Snowball Earth event,evidenced by high Sr isotope values.The increase is restricted to the proximal side of the inner shelf in South China,and the timing of the increase of δ~(13)C values of carbonates is earlier at Three Gorges area than any other area,suggesting that the enhancement of primary productivity started in the proximal environment because of higher continental influxes.The increase in oxygen contents of seawater due to the enhanced primary productivity possibly resulted in the emergence of multicellular animals soon after Cap Carbonate deposition.     

Seasonal variability in carbon demand and flux by mesozooplankton communities at subarctic and subtropical sites in the western North Pacific Ocean

We investigated seasonal changes in carbon demand and flux by mesozooplankton communities at subtropical (S1) and subarctic sites (K2) in the western North Pacific Ocean to compare the impact of mesozooplankton communities on the carbon budget in surface and mesopelagic layers. Fecal pellet fluxes were one order higher at K2 than at S1, and seemed to be enhanced by copepod and euphausiid egestion under high chlorophyll a concentrations. The decrease in pellet volume and the lack of any substantial change in shape composition during sink suggest a decline in fecal pellet flux due to coprorhexy and coprophagy. While respiratory and excretory carbon by diel migrants at depth (i.e., active carbon flux) was similar between the two sites, the actively transported carbon exceeded sinking fecal pellets at S1. Mesozooplankton carbon demand in surface and mesopelagic layers was higher at K2 than S1, and an excess of demand to primary production and sinking POC flux was found during some seasons at K2. We propose that this demand was met by supplementary carbon sources such as feeding on protozoans and fecal pellets at the surface and carnivory of migrants at mesopelagic depths.