Use of Cu isotopes to distinguish primary and secondary Cu mineralization in the Ca?ariaco Norte porphyry copper deposit, Northern Peru

A significant proportion of the copper in the Ca?ariaco Norte porphyry copper deposit in northern Peru occurs in chalcocite and covellite-rich veins and disseminations that exist from the surface to depths greater than 1?km. The overall range of Cu isotopic ratios of 42 mineral separates from Ca?ariaco varies from ?8.42 to 0.61?‰, with near-surface chalcocite and Fe oxides having isotopically depleted values compared to chalcocite, covellite, and chalcopyrite from deeper levels. The majority (34 of 36) of measured Cu sulfides have a typical hypogene copper isotope composition of δ⁶⁵Cu?=?0.18?±?0.38?‰, with no enriched isotopic signature existing in the Ca?ariaco Norte sulfide data. Thus, the copper isotope data indicate that most of the chalcocite and covellite formed from high-temperature hypogene mineralization processes and that only a minor portion of the deposit is enriched by supergene processes. The nonexistence of an enriched δ⁶⁵Cu reservoir suggest the presence of an undiscovered lateral/exotic Cu occurrence that enriched ⁶⁵Cu that remained in solution during weathering. Regardless of the cause, the comparative analysis of the Cu isotope dataset reveals that little exploration potential for an extensive supergene enrichment blanket exists because the weathering history at Ca?ariaco Norte was not conducive to preservation of enriched Cu at depth beneath the leach cap.     

Multi-source Classification Using Artificial Neural Network in a Rugged Terrain

Abstract

This study advocates the use of GIS and remote sensing technologies to establish urban evolution maps and assess the impact of urbanization on agricultural areas over the last three decades. The target area is the city of Béni‐Mellal, located in central Morocco. The methodology adopted makes use of panchromatic SPOT images to survey the urban areas during the 1980s and 1990s. Available topographic maps provided the information for the 1970s. Maps and statistics of land use and urban growth for Béni Mellal were established after manually classifying images on a per-polygon basis and digitizing topographic maps using GIS capabilities. The results show an increase in dense urban area by 980.7 ha from the 1970s to the 1990s. This increase occurred at the expense of forests (24.7 ha), plantations (752.3 ha), rangeland (113.4 ha), non‐irrigated land (69.7 ha), and irrigated land (20.6 ha). During this period, scattered urban areas, predominantly suburbs, increased by 755.9 ha to the detriment of forests (14.9 ha), plantations (109.8 ha), rangeland (138.9 ha), non‐irrigated land(400.5 ha), and irrigated land (91.9 ha). These cartographic and statistic results are efficient decision‐making tools for protecting agricultural land and planning urban and suburban areas.     

The transition region and coronal explorer

The Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE) satellite, launched 2 April 1998, is a NASA Small Explorer (SMEX) that images the solar photosphere, transition region and corona with unprecedented spatial resolution and temporal continuity. To provide continuous coverage of solar phenomena, TRACE is located in a sun-synchronous polar orbit. The ∼700 Mbytes of data which are collected daily are made available for unrestricted use within a few days of observation. The instrument features a 30-cm Cassegrain telescope with a field of view of 8.5×.5 arc min and a spatial resolution of 1 arc sec (0.5 arc sec pixels). TRACE contains multilayer optics and a lumogen-coated CCD detector to record three EUV wavelengths and several UV wavelengths. It observes plasmas at selected temperatures from 6000 K to 10 MK with a typical temporal resolution of less than 1 min.     

Simulation of extreme water levels in response to tropical cyclones along the Indian coast: a climate change perspective

Natural Hazards - Indian coasts are often influenced by life-threatening water levels caused by tropical cyclones. To have a better long-term planning for the coastal districts due to tropical...     

Shallow groundwater in a middle mountain catchment of Nepal: quantity and quality issues

The use of shallow groundwater in middle mountain catchments of Nepal is a recent development. It was only in early 1998 that a number of dug wells had been constructed in the Jhikhu Khola catchment. But their numbers are rapidly increasing. While it seems to be a good way of accessing additional water resources both for domestic (current) and agricultural purposes (future), it is very important that the groundwater resources are not overexploited. Current dug wells are used to abstract groundwater, which is seasonally being recharged by the abundant monsoon rainfall. The water levels responded rapidly to the rainfall and differed according to the location of the well. The water quality parameters indicated that the water of most of the wells was not suitable for drinking purposes without prior treatment. Microbiological contamination is of particular concern, in addition to the high nitrate and phosphate levels. Some wells show elevated turbidity levels, indicating that there is an interaction between the muddy surface water and the water in the well.     

Role of environment and hydrography in determining the picoplankton community structure of Sagami Bay,Japan

Seasonal variations in the picoplankton community were investigated from June 2002 to March 2004 within the photic zone of Sagami Bay, Japan. The study area was mostly dominated by coastal waters during the warm period (mixed layer water temperature ≥ 18°C). During the cold period (mixed layer water temperature ≤ 18°C), the water mass was characterized by low temperature and high saline waters indicative of the North Pacific Subtropical Mode Water (NPSTMW). Occasionally, a third type of water mass characterized by high temperature and low saline properties was observed, which could be evidence of the intrusion of warm Kuroshio waters. Synechococcus was the dominant picophytoplankton (5−28 × 10¹¹ cells m⁻²) followed by Prochlorococcus (1−5 × 10¹¹ cells m⁻²) and picoeukaryotes during the warm period. Heterotrophic bacteria dominated the picoplankton community throughout the year, especially in the warm period. During the Kuroshio Current advection, cyanobacterial abundance was high whereas that of picoeukaryotes and heterotrophic bacteria was low. During the cold period, homogeneously distributed, lower picophytoplankton cell densities were observed. The dominance of Synechococcus in the warm period reflects the importance of high temperature, low salinity and high Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) on its distribution. Cyanobacterial and heterotrophic bacterial abundance showed a positive correlation with temperature. Prochlorococcus and picoeukaryotes showed a positive correlation with nutrients. Picoeukaryotes were the major contributors to the picophytoplankton carbon biomass. The annual picophytoplankton contribution to the photosynthetic biomass was 32 ± 4%. These observations suggest that the environmental conditions, combined with the seasonal variability in the source of the water mass, determines the community structure of picoplankton, which contributes substantially to the phytoplankton biomass and can play a very important role in the food web dynamics of Sagami Bay.     

Care and Global Migration in the Nursing Profession: a north Indian perspective

ABSTRACT

Globalisation, supply–demand dynamics, uneven development, enhanced connectivity including the better flow of information, communication and the reduced cost of travel have encouraged the global integration of nursing labour markets. Developed regions of the world have attracted internationally educated nurses (IENs) because of growing healthcare needs. India, along with the Philippines, has become a key supplier of nurses in the global economy. Traditionally the supply of nurses was heavily regionalised in south India, especially Kerala, but of late Punjab, in north India, has played an increasing role in nurse training and migration as the profession has become more respected and more international. This paper uses survey and interview data to detail the recent interest in nursing as a channel for independent female international migration from Punjab, and to examine how migratory ambitions have developed over the last decade in parallel with the changing status of nursing as an internationally respected profession. We identify growing interest in international migration for nursing students and their increased intention to pursue employment opportunities in Australia and New Zealand. This research highlights how nursing and care migration are increasingly structured by international circuits of training and employment, and how such circuits alter migrant and occupational geographies on the ground in sending regions.     

Soil erosion modeling of a Himalayan watershed using RS and GIS

Employing the remote sensing (RS) and geographical information system (GIS), an assessment of sediment yield from Dikrong river basin of Arunachal Pradesh (India) has been presented in this paper. For prediction of soil erosion, the Morgan-Morgan and Finney (MMF) model and the universal soil loss equation (USLE) have been utilized at a spatial grid scale of 100 m × 100 m, an operational unit. The average annual soil loss from the Dikrong river basin is estimated as 75.66 and 57.06 t ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ using MMF and USLE models, respectively. The watershed area falling under the identified very high, severe, and very severe zones of soil erosion need immediate attention for soil conservation.     

Late Archean Cu-Au-Mo mineralization at Gameleira and Serra Verde, Carajàs Mineral Province, Brazil: constraints from Re-Os molybdenite ages

New Re-Os molybdenite ages provide constraints on the timing of Late Archean Cu-Au-Mo mineralization in the northern Carajás Mineral Province. Molybdenite from the Gameleira iron oxide Cu-Au-Mo deposit yielded an age of 2,614±14 Ma. This age overlaps within its analytical error with Re-Os ages of molybdenite from the Serra Verde Cu-Au-Mo vein deposit (2,609±13 Ma) and from the nearby small Garimpo Fernando gold mining operation (2,592±13 and 2,602±13 Ma), which is probably related to the latter. The geochronological data imply that the hydrothermal Cu-Au-Mo mineralization in these three deposits was epigenetic and coincides with a regional tectonic regime changing from dextral transtension and clastic sedimentation at 2.7–2.6 Ga to sinistral transpression and inversion at 2.6 Ga. Previously reported stable isotope and microthermometric data are compatible with a magmatic affiliation of the Cu-Au-Mo ores at Gameleira and Serra Verde. A genetic relationship of mineralization may therefore exist with 2.56–2.76 Ga Archean alkaline granitoids or with 2.6–2.7 calc-alkaline to tholeiitic volcanic-arc type magmatism.Editorial handling: F. Tornos     

Geochemical,mineralogical and Re-Os isotopic constraints on the origin of Tethyan oceanic mantle and crustal rocks from the Central Pontides,northern Turkey

Mineralogy and Petrology - Chromite, ultramafic and mafic rocks from Eldivan, Yapraklı, Ayli Dağ, Küre, Elekdağ and Kızılırmak in northern Turkey have been...