Self-organization of recent rhythmic iron-manganese precipitations in underground mines in the Harz mountains

A recent early diagenetic banded iron-manganese mud has been forming underground in a closed lead-zinc mine for approximately 40 years. The processes leading to the banded structure of the precipitate were studied during a period of 2 years. Therefore, 19 physical and chemical parameters were measured regularly in short intervals. The resulting time series were analysed with respect to the data sets of the monthly chemical analyses of the descendent mine water, the daily rainfall and the mineral content. The results reveal that the precipitated material undergoes internal self-organization due to interaction of redox, colloid-chemical, microbial, electrical and ripening processes, and not exclusively produced by seasonal fluctuations of material input. Thus, the primary banding of the material, caused by externally forced fluctuations of the redox conditions within the mine water, is reorganized after a short time. The finally observed bands are controlled by non-linear coupling of reaction and transport processes within the mud. A genetic model for the banded mineralization was developed and verified by numerical simulation.     

Continental crust under the southern Porcupine Seabight west of Ireland

Two new seismic refraction/wide-angle reflection profiles demonstrate that the crust beneath the southern Porcupine Seabight, out to water depths in excess of 4000 m, is of continental type. They also reveal the rifted margin of the Porcupine basin on its eastern side. Crustal thickness under the Seabight, inclusive of sediments which are up to 6 km thick, decreases from 23 km in the east to about 10 km at a sharp continent-ocean transition in the west.     

Boundary-layer pollutant concentrations over complex terrain

Given the incident profiles of wind velocity and pollutant concentration, we seek to determine the 3-dimensional concentration field of a pollutant upon a region with complex terrain. The analytic solution of the wind velocity in a 3-dimensional boundary-layer model by Walmsley et al. (1980) is utilized as a forcing function in the simplified concentration perturbation equation for a pollutant. The resulting solution applies to an isolated cosine-squared hill in a neutrally stratified boundary-layer flow with a surface type which absorbs the pollutant totally. The solution shows that the concentration perturbation field is organized in accordance with the wind field. In particular, the east-west cross-section is 180° out of phase with the velocity perturbation field. The vertical profiles of the concentration perturbations for selected grid points approach the value of the upper boundary condition very rapidly.     

Effects of an oil spill in outdoor model tidal flat ecosystems

For several reasons the fate and effects of oil pollution are not easily studied in natural ecosystems. Furthermore, the results of laboratory tests cannot easily be extrapolated to natural systems. A logical objective of ecotoxicological research is, therefore, to simulate natural systems in model ecosystem experiments. A one-year feasibility study was carried out with MOdel TIdal Flat ecosystems (MOTIFs), designed to represent tidal flat systems typical of the Wadden Sea and other temperate estuarine areas. During the first 6 months the 4 MOTIFs studied developed very similarly. After this period an oil spill was simulated by exposing two of the four MOTIFs to a floating oil mousse for one week. During this week part of the oil was buried in the sediment by bioturbation. This sediment-bound fraction caused a prolonged exposure of the MOTIFs to oil compounds. Short- and long-term effects resulted in large differences between oil-treated and control MOTIFs. These differences persisted to the end of the experiment, 7 months after the removal of most of the oil.     

The occurrence and distribution of Mo and molybdenite in unaltered peralkaline rhyolites from Pantelleria,Italy

Small hexagonal and triangular platelets of molybdenite (MoS₂), 5 to 25 m in diameter, were identified in phenocrysts and matrix glass of unaltered felsic volcanic rocks from Pantelleria, Italy. The MoS₂ occurs commonly in pantellerites (peralkaline rhyolites), rarely in pantelleritic trachytes, and never in trachytes. The occurrence of euhedral MoS₂ platelets in all phenocryst phases, in matrix glass, and even in some melt inclusions indicates that MoS₂ precipitated directly from the peralkaline melt. Despite MoS₂ saturation, the melt (glass) contains greater than 95% of the Mo in Pantellerian rocks: X-ray fluorescence analyses of 20 whole rocks and separated glasses show that whole rocks consistently contain less Mo than corresponding matrix glasses, the differences being in proportion to phenocryst abundances. The Mo contents increase with differentiation from trachytes (2–12 ppm) to pantellerites (15–25 ppm) and correlate positively with incompatible elements such as Th, Y, and Nb. The Mo concentrations, as determined by secondary ion mass spectrometry, are essentially the same in matrix glasses and melt inclusions, showing that Mo did not partition strongly into a volatile fluid phase during outgassing. The high Mo contents of the pantellerites (relative to metaluminous magmas with 1–5 ppm) may be due to several factors: (1) the enhanced stability of highly charged cations (such as Mo⁶⁺, U⁴⁺, and Zr⁴⁺) in peralkaline melts; (2) the rarity of Fe-Ti oxides and litanite into which Mo might normally partition; (3) reduced volatility of Mo in low fO₂, H₂O-poor (1–2 wt%) peralkaline magmas. Geochemical modeling indicates that the precipitation of MoS₂ can be explained simply by the drop in temperature during magmatic differentiation. The occurrence of MoS₂ in pantellerites may result from their high Mo concentrations and low redox state (Ni/NiO=-2.5) relative to metaluminous magmas, causing them to reach MoS₂ saturation at magmatic temperatures. The apparent absence of MoS₂ microphenocrysts in more oxidized, metaluminous rhyolites may indicate that Mo is dissolved primarily as a hexavalent ion in those magmas.     

Model employers and model cities?: Bangalore’s public sector and the rise of the neoliberal city

Bangalore is held up as a model for how cities, particularly in the global south, should develop in the globalized information age, in which entrepreneurs with new access to international capital fuel service-sector-driven development. Expanding market forces cultivate cities of skilled middle-class workers whose increased consumption generates broad developmental benefits. Now known as the “Silicon Valley of India,” Bangalore was previously the capital of India’s public sector enterprises (PSEs), which laid important groundwork for the city of today, including the IT sector. I show how, by providing access to homeownership along with high wages and benefits tied to secure employment, Bangalore’s PSEs created the foundation for the city today and its middle-class character. The skilled workforce that PSEs created helped the IT sector emerge in the city. By examining this erased history, we see the role of the state in development projects, and consider alternative models for urban change.     

The CM carbonaceous chondrite regolith Diepenveen

A carbonaceous chondrite was recovered immediately after the fall near the village of Diepenveen in the Netherlands on October 27, 1873, but came to light only in 2012. Analysis of sodium and poly‐aromatic hydrocarbon content suggests little contamination from handling. Diepenveen is a regolith breccia with an overall petrology consistent with a CM classification. Unlike most other CM chondrites, the bulk oxygen isotopes are extremely ¹⁶O rich, apparently dominated by the signature of anhydrous minerals, distributed on a steep slope pointing to the domain of intrinsic CM water. A small subset plots closer to the normal CM regime, on a parallel line 2 ‰ lower in δ¹⁷O. Different lithologies in Diepenveen experienced varying levels of aqueous alteration processing, being less aqueously altered at places rather than more heated. The presence of an agglutinate grain and the properties of methanol‐soluble organic compounds point to active impact processing of some of the clasts. Diepenveen belongs to a CM clan with ~5 Ma CRE age, longer than most other CM chondrites, and has a relatively young K‐Ar resetting age of ~1.5 Ga. As a CM chondrite, Diepenveen may be representative of samples soon to be returned from the surface of asteroid (162173) Ryugu by the Hayabusa2 spacecraft.     

Exploring fishing dependence in gulf coast communities

Two unrelated data sources (quantitative secondary data and qualitative primary data) and mixed methodologies (statistical analysis and ethnography) are used to define the concept of, and develop indicators for, fishing dependence. Techniques for integrating differing data sources are developed. Comparisons of the qualitative rankings with the quantitative rankings were, overall, positive and statistically significant. The process used thus confirmed that the indicators were reliable measures for fishing dependence. In terms of external validity and triangulation, the process used was more rigorous than using ethnography “after-the-fact” to ground-truth the quantitative indicators.     

Effect of Emission From the Moon on Remote Sensing of Sea Surface Salinity: An Example With the Aquarius Radiometer

This letter describes the effect of thermal emission from the Moon on remote sensing of sea surface salinity from space. In most cases, radiation from the Moon is negligible; however, at several times during the lunar cycle, it is possible for radiation to be reflected from the Earth's surface into the main beam of the radiometer antennas. The signal in such cases can be important because of the high radiometric accuracy required to monitor salinity. Examples are presented using the Aquarius orbit and antennas for both smooth and rough ocean surfaces.