Pollen and fragments of plant tissue in core samples from the Greenland Ice Cap

Investigation of two Late-Wisconsin and two sub-recent core samples from the Greenland Ice Cap has shown the presence ol determinable pollen, wood fragments and other plant remains in the ice.     

Leucogranites from the Eastern Part of the South Mountain Batholith, Nova Scotia

The South Mountain Batholith is a peraluminous granitic complexranging in composition from biotite granodiorite to muscovite-topaz‘leucogranite’. Leucogranitic rocks (with generally<2% biotite) form a minor part ({small tilde}1•5%) ofthe batholith, and are of two types: (1) ‘associated leucogranites’occurring as relatively small zones in fine-grained leucomonzogranites;and (2) ‘independent leucogranites’ forming generallylarger bodies having no particular spatial association withother rock types. Mean chemical compositions of these two typesof leucogranite are as follows (associated, independent): Na₂O(3•46,3•83),K₂O(4•40,4•09),andP₂O₅ (0•26, 0•45)in wt.%;Li(149, 281), F(1199, 2712),Rb (393, 725), U (7•4, 4•4), Nb (12•8, 23•4),Ta (2•9, 7•1), and Zr (52, 31) in ppm. Rare earthelements also differ between the two types (associated, independent):REE (34•1 ppm, 19•9 ppm); and in the degree and variabilityof heavy REE fractionation (Gd_N/Yb_N=4•62•2, 2•00•7).In addition, associated leucogranite has REE compositions similarto those of its host rocks. Mean ¹⁸O values (associated +ll•21•2,independent +ll•40•5; relative to SMOW) are comparablewith the mean for the entire South Mountain Batholith (+l0•80•7).Radiometric dating (⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar on muscovite) shows that bothtypes of leucogranite have identical ages of 3723 Ma, equivalentto ages determined by other techniques for granodiorite andmonzogranite samples elsewhere in the batholith. Field relationsand geochemistry suggest that the associated leucogranite resultsfrom an open-system interaction between a fluid and its hostleucomonzogranite, whereas the independent leucogranite bodiesare discrete intrusions of highly fractionated melts that underwentclosed-system, late-magmatic to post-magmatic fluid alteration.Where mineralized, the associated leucogranite characteristicallyhosts greisen-type or disseminated polymetallic mineralization,whereas the independent leucogranite hosts pegmatitic or disseminatedpolymetallic mineralization.     

Stable Isotope Evidence for the Role of Diffusion, Infiltration, and Local Structure on Contact Metamorphism of Calc-Silicate Rocks at Noth Peak, Utah

The effects of infiltration, diffusion, and local structureon the contact metamorphism of the Cambrian Weeks Formation,a calcareous argillite located in western Utah, were examinedusing stable isotope systematics and mineral mass-balance considerations.The emplacement of the Jurassic Notch Peak granitic stock resultedin metamorphism characterized with increasing proximity to theintrusion by phlogopite, diopside, and wollastonite isograds.The isograds are generally concentric around the stock, withdiopside and wollastonite isograds {small tilde}600 and 400m from the contact, respectively, but are deflected near a pre-intrusionfault where the wollastonite isograd is 1. 5 km from the contact.Where the isograds are concentric, the wollastonite isogradmarks an isotopic front with whole-rock ¹⁸O values approachingthe 9.5% value of the stock. In contrast, the ¹⁸O values inthe unmetamorphosed to diopside-grade rocks range from 16.3to 20.2%. Near the fault the isotopic front extends throughthe diopside zone, suggesting that the fault was a major conduitfor magmatic water. Water—rock ratios for the diopside- and wollastonite-gradesamples determined from mineralogic mass balance are nearlyone order of magnitude larger than ‘one-box’ closed-systemratios determined from shifts in stable isotope ratios. Chromatographicmodels for isotopic exchange and propagation of isograds showthat one-dimensional infiltration of magmatic water throughpore spaces would lead to an isotopic front at 50 m from thestock and the wollastonite isograd would be only 8 km from thestock. These distances are significantly smaller than observed.It is suggested that most of the magmatic water flowed throughfractures or thin permeable layers, with the extent of isotopicexchange between the magmatic water in these conduits and theadjacent rocks being controlled by the extent of reaction progressin the rocks. Considerations of CO₂—H₂O interdiffusivitiesin fluids indicate that removal of CO₂ from the reaction frontstoward the intrusion or the fault was sufficiently rapid tocontrol the geometry of the isograds.     

Cosmogenic radionuclide dating indicates ice‐sheet configuration during MIS 2 on Nordaustlandet,Svalbard

Hormes, A., Akçar, N. & Kubik, P. W. 2011: Cosmogenic radionuclide dating indicates ice‐sheet configuration during MIS 2 on Nordaustlandet, Svalbard. Boreas, 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2011.00215.x. ISSN 0300‐9483.0300‐9843 Glacial geological field surveys, aerial image interpretation and cosmogenic radionuclide (CRN) dating allowed us to reconstruct the ice‐sheet configuration on Nordaustlandet, the northernmost island of the European sector on the margin of the Arctic Ocean. The timing of deglaciation was investigated by determining the ²⁶Al and ¹⁰Be ages of glacially scoured bedrock, weathered periglacial blockfields and glacial erratic boulders. Only ¹⁰Be ages were useful for our interpretations, because of unresolved analytical problems with ²⁶Al. Fjords and lowlands on Nordaustlandet yielded Late Weichselian ¹⁰Be ages, indicating that actively erosive ice streams scoured the coastal fjord bathymetry during marine isotope stage (MIS) 2. In Murchisonfjorden, ground‐truthed air‐photograph interpretation and ¹⁰Be ages of boulders indicated a cold‐based glacier ice cover during MIS 2 on higher plateaus. ¹⁰Be ages and lithological studies of erratic boulders on higher and interior plateaus of Prins Oscars Land (>200–230 m a.s.l.) suggest that the Mid‐Weichselian glaciation (MIS 4) might have been more extensive than that during MIS 2.     

QUANTIFYING SEDIMENT TRANSPORT PROCESSES IN PERIGLACIAL MOUNTAIN ENVIRONMENTS AT A CATCHMENT SCALE USING GEOMORPHIC PROCESS UNITS

The research record on the quantification of sediment transport processes in periglacial mountain environments in Scandinavia dates back to the 1950s. A wide range of measurements is available, especially from the Kärkevagge region of northern Sweden. Within this paper satellite image analysis and tools provided by geographic information systems (GIS) are exploited in order to extend and improve this research and to complement geophysical methods. The processes of interest include mass movements such as solifluction, slope wash, dirty avalanches and rock- and boulder falls. Geomorphic process units have been derived in order to allow quantification via GIS techniques at a catchment scale. Mass movement rates based on existing field measurements are employed in the budget calculations. In the Kärkevagge catchment, 80% of the area can be identified either as a source area for sediments or as a zone where sediments are deposited. The overall budget for the slopes beneath the rockwalls in the Kärkevagge is approximately 680 t a⁻¹ whilst about 150 t a⁻¹ are transported into the fluvial system.     

LAKE-ICE BLISTERS, TERRA NOVA BAY AREA, NORTHERN VICTORIA LAND, ANTARCTICA

Ice blisters, typically 0.2–0.8 m high and 5–20 m long, develop annually on perennially frozen lakes in Northern Victoria Land. They are believed to be caused by hydrostatic pressures generated through progressive freezing of solute-rich water beneath the lake-ice cover during winter. Lake-ice blisters in the study area differfrom icing blisters described from the northern hemisphere. The latter are caused by hydraulic pressures and are found at locations such as river beds or spring sites on sloping terrain. The Antarctic lake-ice blisters reflect the occurrence of dry-based perennially frozen lakes with high salt contents in an extremely cold and arid environment.     

SPATIAL ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN LONGEST-LASTING WINTER SNOW COVER AND COLD REGION LANDFORMS IN THE HIGH DRAKENSBERG, SOUTHERN AFRICA

Although snow is known to influence landform genesis and distribution, the spatial associations between snow and landforms within particular cold regions has received limited research attention. We present a case study from the high Drakensberg of southern Africa, comparing the contemporary spatial pattern of longest-lasting cold-season snow patches with the distribution patterns of active and relic cold region landforms. Two 30 m resolution sets of TM images dated 3 and 19 August 1990 and a DEM were used to demonstrate the geographic trends of snow patch depletion during late winter. Geomorphological phenomena with known coordinates were then incorporated into the GIS. The spatial distribution of several periglacial land-forms (earth hummocks, stone-/turf-banked lobes, block deposits, large sorted patterned ground) coincides with topographic positions that limit snow accumulation. However, the strong spatial association between longest-lasting snow patches and palaeo-moraines implies substantial snow accumulation at some high altitude south-facing sites during the last glacial cycle.     

PLANT COLONIZATION IN CONDESA NIVATION HOLLOW, SIERRA DE GUADARRAMA (SPANISH CENTRAL SYSTEM)

The purpose of this study was to determine plant distribution at a nivation hollow located in a Mediterranean high mountain area and to analyse the effects of snow cover, wind exposure, proximity to moisture and the characteristics of the substrate on the vegetation. We analyse these factors and interpret concurrent effects due to recent climate change.
The nivation hollow, called Ventisquero de la Condesa, is located at 2258 m a.s.l., 40°47'10"N and 3°58'35"W, in the Sierra de Guadarrama (Madrid, Spain). We established 579 small sample plots in the study area, and grouped them into 29 transects where snow duration, wind exposure, availability of meltwater, geomorphologic instability and surface rockiness were examined directly and indirectly. The types of plants and the number of individuals per species were registered for each plot to establish ecological affinities among the 28 distinguishable species. Six showed the highest level of chionophily while nine showed the lowest adaptation to snow cover duration. A statistical study incorporating other variables applied in the research revealed that wind exposure, moisture capture and the intensity of geomorphologic dynamics have a highly significant correlation with nivation, while surface rockiness is a virtually independent factor. Due to environmental changes caused by recent global warming, several plant species, especially adapted to survival in snow conditions, coexist in the hollow with saxicolous plants that have invaded the site from adjacent grass and shrublands.