Reconstructing basin evolution from sedimentary thickness; the importance of palaeobathymetric control, with reference to the North Sea

Abstract The structural evolution of a basin cannot be reconstructed from sedimentary thicknesses alone without data on palaeobathymetry. Two classes of geological horizons, are defined, profiles and traces. Profiles are time-lines and bound depositional units. Traces were formed at a known water depth and contain implicit palaeobathymetric data.
Rock units bounded by traces are diachronous lithostratigraphic units, and the thicknesses of such units are controlled directly by subsidence, while the thicknesses of profile-bounded units may be unaffected by the subsidence or even the palaeotopography of the basin.
Dating fault movement from thickness variations in profile-bounded units is difficult without prior knowledge of the palaeobathymetry, and it is impossible to distinguish between synsedimentary fault movement and onlap to a pre-existing fault scarp from thickness alone.
Reconstruction of the basin history of the North Sea is difficult due to the lack of trace-bounded units in the post-Jurassic. The validity of previously published studies depends largely on the quality and quantity of palaeobathymetric data included. An alternative basin history is proposed based on the few trace-bounded units in the North Viking Graben. This includes rifting episodes in the Triassic and Late Jurassic, and a period of uplift in the Palaeocene.     

On a vibronic origin for the diffuse band spectrum

Duley (1982) has proposed that many of the diffuse interstellar bands in the wavelength interval 677 nm>λ>542 nm arise from vibronic transitions of Cr³⁺ ions in MgO grains. No explanation has been offered for the fact that as many as 85 of the possible 108 transitions of this system have not been observed in the interstellar medium. Moreover, the relative intensities of the diffuse bands which are observed appear to be inconsistent with their assignment. We therefore conclude that this model is not consistent with the observations.     

Studies of proton-irradiated cometary-type ice mixtures

Radiation synthesis has been proposed as a mechanism for changing the nature of the outer few meters of ice in a comet stored 4.6 billion years in the Oort cloud and may explain some of the differences observed between new and more evolved comets. Cometary-type ice mixtures were studied in a laboratory experiment designed to approximately simulate the expected temperature, pressure, and radiation environment of the interstellar Oort cloud region. The 2.5- to 15-μm infrared absorption features of thin ice films were analyzed near 20°K before and after 1 MeV proton irradiation. Various ice mixtures included the molecules H₂O, NH₃, CH₄, N₂, C₃H₈, CO, and CO₂. All experiments confirm the synthesis of new molecular species in solid phase mixtures at 20°K. The synthesized molecules, identified by their infrared signatures, are C₂H₆, CO₂, CO, N₂O, NO, and CH₄ (weak). Synthesized molecules, identified by gas chromatographic (GC) analysis of the volatile fraction of the warmed irradiated ice mixture, are C₂H₄ or C₂H₆, and C₃H₈. When CH₄ is present in the irradiated ice mixture, long-chained volatile hydrocarbons and CO₂ are synthesized along with high-molecular-weight carbon compounds present in the room temperature residue. Irradiated mixtures containing CO and H₂O synthesize CO₂ and those CO₂ and H₂O synthesize CO. Due to radiation synthesis, ～1% of the ice was converted into a nonvolatile residue containing complicated carbon compounds not present in blank samples. These results suggest that irrespective of the composition of newly accreted comets, initial molecular abundances can be altered and new species created as a result of radiation synthesis. Irradiated mixtures exhibited thermoluminescence and pressure enhancements during warming; these phenomena suggest irradiation synthesis of reactive species. Ourbursts in new comets resulting from similar radiation induced exothermic activity would be expected to occur beginning at distances of the order of 100 AU.     

Some aspects of condensation in clouds

Several general features of nucleation characteristics of low density cosmic clouds are discussed. These are: (1) tendency for metastable condensates to form, (2) non-occurrence of nominal refractory molecule in the gas, (3) a strong temperature dependence of condensation at relatively low temperatures, and (4) significant vibrational disequilibrium in cosmic clouds. These support previous analyses by the author which indicate that equilibrium calculations have restricted applicability. A kinetic treatment of condensation is required for cosmic grains and the possibility of formulating such an analysis is pointed out.Invited contribution to the Proceedings of a Workshop onThermodynamics and Kinetics of Dust Formation in the Space Medium, held at the Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, 6–8 September, 1978.     

Solar wind interaction with Comet Bennett (1969i)

This paper examines the relations between the solar-wind and Comet Bennett during the period March 23 to April 5, 1970. A large kink was observed in the ion tail of the comet on April 4, but no solar-wind stream was observed in the ecliptic plane which could have caused the kink. Thus, either there was no correlation between the solar wind at the Earth and that at Comet Bennett (which was 40° above the ecliptic) or the kink was caused by something other than a high-speed stream. The fine structure visible in photographs of the kink favors the second of these alternatives. It is shown that a shock probably passed through Comet Bennett on March 31, but no effect was seen in photographs of the comet. A stream preceded by another shock and a large abrupt change in momentum flux might have intercepted the comet between March 24 and March 28, but again no effect was seen in photographs of the Comet. In view of these results, one must seriously consider the possibility that a large, abrupt change in momentum flux of the solar-wind (such as that at a shock wave or ahead of a stream) is neither necessary nor sufficient to cause a large kink in a comet tail.On leave from Institute für Astrophysik Technische Universität Berlin West Germany.     

On the Generation and Propagation of Shock Waves From Apollo Rockets at Orbital Altitudes

Summary Acoustic signals from Apollo rockets at orbital altitude (188 km) appear to be explainable with the assumption that the exhaust plume serves as a conical body of large cross-section moving supersonically with the rocket. The presence of the surface signal (1.3 Hz and higher) implies that propagation in the upper atmosphere occurred as an N -wave shock cone without the strong attenuation to which an acoustic wave or even a saw-toothed (shocked) wave of similar frequency would be subjected. The shock cone does not attenuate because energy is continually re-supplied along the shock cone from the vehicle and its plume acting as a piston. Calculated overpressures do not reduce to acoustic amplitudes until the wave is below 40 km where acoustic attenuation becomes negligible.     

Seasonal patterns of production in the sandy-beach amphipod Haustorius canadensis

The Haustorius canadensis population at Long Sands beach in southern Maine was studied over a period of 45 months. The length-weight relationship was examined over 24 months; it showed no difference due to either sex or month. Caloric content of the population displayed a seasonal cycle around a mean of 18·381 KJ gm⁻¹ dry weight, peaking in mid to late summer. The increment summation, instantaneous growth, removal summation and size-frequency methods of calculating production were used and the results compared. The increment summation and instantaneous growth methods provided the best estimates of production, averaging 98·1 gm m⁻¹ y⁻¹ and 100·2 gm m⁻¹ y⁻¹, respectively. The annual production to mean biomass ratio averaged 1·48. The population exhibited strong peaks of production; the four summer months accounting for 4·65 times the production during the remainder of the year. Most of the production was due to one-year-old individuals.     

Implications of weak near-term climate policies on long-term mitigation pathways

While the international community has agreed on the long-term target of limiting global warming to no more than 2 °C above pre-industrial levels, only a few concrete climate policies and measures to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have been implemented. We use a set of three global integrated assessment models to analyze the implications of current climate policies on long-term mitigation targets. We define a weak-policy baseline scenario, which extrapolates the current policy environment by assuming that the global climate regime remains fragmented and that emission reduction efforts remain unambitious in most of the world’s regions. These scenarios clearly fall short of limiting warming to 2 °C. We investigate the cost and achievability of the stabilization of atmospheric GHG concentrations at 450 ppm CO₂e by 2100, if countries follow the weak policy pathway until 2020 or 2030 before pursuing the long-term mitigation target with global cooperative action. We find that after a deferral of ambitious action the 450 ppm CO₂e is only achievable with a radical up-scaling of efforts after target adoption. This has severe effects on transformation pathways and exacerbates the challenges of climate stabilization, in particular for a delay of cooperative action until 2030. Specifically, reaching the target with weak near-term action implies (a) faster and more aggressive transformations of energy systems in the medium term, (b) more stranded investments in fossil-based capacities, (c) higher long-term mitigation costs and carbon prices and (d) stronger transitional economic impacts, rendering the political feasibility of such pathways questionable.     

A note on the composition and structure of interstellar grains

Gürtleret al. (1981) argue that SiO could not be the material responsible for the interstellar 10 micron feature as had been proposed by Duleyet al. (1979). While Millar (1982) has quite successfully refuted the arguments of Gürtleret al. (1981), we present here some additional considerations which indicate that the model of Duleyet al. (1979) requires appreciable modification to be consistent with recent experimental results.     

Relationship of concretions and chlorite-muscovite porphyroblasts to the development of domainal cleavage in low-grade metamorphic deformed rocks from north-central Wales,Great Britain

Spaced or domainal cleavage is widespread in deformed rocks of low metamorphic grade. This study presents evidence on the origin of spaced cleavage in deformed pelites from Silurian turbidite sequences in north-central Wales. The variable development of cleavage folia is related to the presence of concretions, which served to concentrate strain effects of well-developed cleavage folia in the matrix in some zones and to produce ‘strain shadows’ (few or no cleavage folia) in others. Compositional differences between matrix, narrow transition zones, and concretions also influenced the development of cleavage folia. Chlorite-muscovite porphyroblast growth was initiated before cleavage formation, but its further growth and development took place during cleavage formation. The relationship of cleavage to the concretions and to the chlorite-muscovite porphyroblasts indicates that cleavage developed in a matrix that must have been in an advanced state of lithification (anchimetamorphic to lowermost greenschist facies of metamorphism) and not during soft-sediment deformation.