Characterization of the Mefjell plutonic complex from the Sør Rondane Mountains, East Antarctica: Implications for the petrogenesis of Pan-African plutonic rocks of East Gondwanaland

Abstract The Mefjell plutonic complex consists of 500–550‐Ma Pan‐African plutonic rocks, which intrude into the Precambrian crystalline basement in the Sør Rondane Mountains, East Antarctica, and forms part of the Sør Rondane Suture Zone. The complex comprises syenitic and granitic (mostly monzogranitic) rocks, and is characterized by the presence of iron‐rich hydrous mafic minerals and primary ilmenite, both of which imply its formation at high temperature and under low oxygen fugacity conditions. The syenitic rocks are metaluminous, and are high in alkalis, K₂O/Na₂O, Al₂O₃, FeO_t/(FeO_t + MgO) (0.88–0.98), K/Rb (800–1000), Ga (18–28 p.p.m.), Zr (up to 2100 p.p.m.) and Ba. They also have a low Mg? (Mg/[Mg + Fe²⁺]), Rb, Sr, Nb, Y and F, low to moderate light rare earth element (LREE)/heavy rare earth element (HREE) ratios and positive Eu anomalies in their rare earth element (REE) patterns. The granitic rocks are metaluminous to peraluminous, and have a high Rb content, high Sr/Ba and LREE/HREE ratios, low K/Rb and negative Eu anomalies. Most of the syenitic and granitic rocks have Y/Nb ratios greater than 1.2, and are depleted in Nb, Ti and Sr on the primitive mantle‐normalized spider diagrams, indicating a crustal origin with subduction zone signatures. We interpret both the syenitic and granitic rocks to be derived from an iron‐rich lower crustal source by dehydration melting induced by the heat of mantle‐derived basaltic intrusion, after which they then underwent limited fractional crystallization. The Mefjell plutonic complex has a high Zr content and tectonic discrimination diagram signatures indicative of normal A‐type granitic rocks. Both rock suites may have been generated under the same postorogenic tectonic setting. The Mefjell syenitic rocks are chemically comparable to charnockites in the Gjelsvikjella and western Mühlig‐Hofmannfjella areas of East Antarctica, whereas the granitic rocks are comparable to aluminous A‐type granitic rocks in South India, which were emplaced during formation and evolution of the Gondwanaland supercontinent.     

Formation of Distinct Granitic Magma Batches by Partial Melting of Hybrid Lower Crust in the Izu Arc Collision Zone, Central Japan

The Miocene Kofu Granitic Complex (KGC) occurs in the Izu CollisionZone where the Izu–Bonin–Mariana (IBM) arc has beencolliding with the Honshu arc since the middle Miocene. TheKGC includes rocks ranging in compositions from biotite-bearinggranite (the Shosenkyo and Mizugaki plutons), and hornblende–biotite-bearinggranodiorite, tonalite, quartz-diorite, and granite (the Shiodaira,Sanpo, Hirose and Sasago plutons), to hornblende-bearing tonaliteand trondhjemite (the Ashigawa–Tonogi pluton), indicatingthat it was constructed from multiple intrusions of magma withdifferent bulk chemistry. The Sr-isotopic compositions correctedto sensitive high-resolution ion microprobe (SHRIMP) zirconages (SrI) suggest that the primary magmas of each pluton wereformed by anatexis of mixed lower crustal sources involvingboth juvenile basalt of the IBM arc and Shimanto sedimentaryrocks of the Honshu arc. After the primary magmas had formed,the individual plutons evolved by crystal fractionation processeswithout significant crustal assimilation or additional mantlecontribution. SHRIMP zircon U–Pb ages in the KGC rangefrom 16·8 to 10·6 Ma and overlap the resumptionof magmatic activity in the IBM and Honshu arcs at c. 17 Maand the onset of IBM arc–Honshu arc collision at c. 15Ma. The age of the granite plutons is closely related to theepisodic activity of arc magmatism and distinct granitic magmabatches could be formed by lower crustal anatexis induced byintrusion of underplated mantle-derived arc magmas. Based onpressures determined with the Al-in-hornblende geobarometer,the KGC magmas intruded into the middle crust. Thus, the KGCcould represent an example of the middle-crust layer indicatedthroughout the IBM arc by 6·0–6·5 km/s seismicvelocities. This granitic middle-crust layer acted buoyantlyduring the IBM arc–Honshu arc collision, leading to accretionof buoyant IBM arc middle crust to the Honshu arc. KEY WORDS: arc–arc collision; crustal anatexis; granite; Izu–Bonin–Mariana (IBM) arc; Izu Collision Zone     

Internal architecture and mobility of tidal sand ridges in the East China Sea

On the basis of bathymetric and seismic data and data from piston cores collected by the Chinese–French marine geology and geophysics investigation of 1996, we discuss the internal architecture and mobility of tidal sand ridges in the East China Sea (ECS). We characterized the sand ridges on the middle to outer shelf of the ECS as tide-dominated sand ridges with southwest dipping beds, indicating that the regional net sediment transport is toward the southwest. As the sand ridges gradually migrate toward the southwest, new sand ridges are continually replacing old ones, and several generations of sand ridges have developed in the study area.     

Long-term high-frequency measurements of dibromomethane in the atmosphere at algae-rich and algae-poor coastal sites

Dibromomethane (CH₂Br₂), a natural stratospheric ozone depleting substance, is mostly emitted from the ocean, but the relative importance of coastal (or macroalgae) and open ocean emissions is unknown. We made long-term high-frequency measurements of CH₂Br₂ concentrations at two remote coastal sites in Japan, on the subtropical Hateruma Island (poor in macroalgae) and at Cape Ochiishi (rich in macroalgae). CH₂Br₂ concentrations at Hateruma showed prominent seasonal variation, being lower in summer (around 0.94 ppt) than in winter (around 1.23 ppt). In contrast, CH₂Br₂ concentrations at Ochiishi were highly variable, often exceeding 2 ppt in the summer but with minimum baseline concentrations close to those from Hateruma; in the winter the concentrations were almost constant at about 1.3 ppt. Analysis of the data suggested that (1) emissions from macroalgae were not likely to extend offshore, but instead were localized near the shore, (2) strong macroalgal emissions of CH₂Br₂ were almost limited to the summer, but it was not reflected in the seasonality of the baseline concentrations of CH₂Br₂ in the atmosphere, and therefore (3) macroalgal or coastal emissions of CH₂Br₂ in the temperate zone might have a rather limited contribution to the global CH₂Br₂ sources. These findings are especially important for the understanding of the tropospheric and stratospheric bromine budget.     

Light utilization efficiency of phytoplankton in the Western Subarctic Gyre of the North Pacific during summer

We investigated the water-column light utilization efficiency (Ψ) of phytoplankton photosynthesis in the Western Subarctic Gyre (WSG) of the North Pacific during summer 2008. The Ψ values (0.64–1.86 g C [g Chl a]^?1 [mol photon]^?1 m²) obtained were observed to increase significantly with decreasing daily photosynthetic available radiation (PAR) and were generally higher than those of previous studies, not only from the subarctic Pacific but also from the world’s oceans. To examine the effect of iron availability on Ψ in the WSG, Ψ values were estimated from the data of two in situ iron fertilization experiments: the Subarctic Pacific Iron Experiment for Ecosystem Dynamics Study I (SEEDS-I) and II (SEEDS-II). We found that iron availability did not affect Ψ values. Overall, this study revealed that Ψ values changed remarkably in the WSG during the summer, and that higher values were found at the stations where moderate PAR levels (ca. 10–30 mol photons m^?2 day^?1) were observed and where autotrophic flagellates predominated in the phytoplankton assemblages.     

Palynological evidence for late Holocene environmental change on the Gimhae fluvial plain,Southern Korean peninsula: Reconstructing the rise and fall of Golden Crown Gaya State

This paper presents the results of detailed studies of palynomorphs recovered from two cores collected near the Yeanri burial mound on the Gimhae fluvial plain. Two local pollen zones were recognized on the basis of variations in the palynofloral assemblage: a lower Pollen Zone I, dominated by a Pinus‐Quercus assemblage, and an upper Pollen Zone II, dominated by a Pinus‐Quercus‐Gramineae assemblage. The palynological and molluscan analyses indicate that the depositional environments changed from a lower intertidal flat of a shallow bay environment to an upper intertidal flat in a shallow bay (before 1280 ± 110 ¹⁴C yr B.P.), and finally to a fluvial plain similar to that of today. This environmental change may have resulted from uplift along the Yangsan Fault. Afterward, the exposed area was modified by human activities, as indicated by a sudden increase in grassland herbaceous pollen grains. The loss of this bay likely had a dramatic effect on the Golden Crown Gaya State (3rd–7th centuries A.D.), which used it as a major port for regional trade, and may explain why it eventually merged with the Shilla State. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.