The origin of large varioles in flow-banded pillow lava from the Hooggenoeg Complex,Barberton Greenstone Belt,South Africa

Exceptionally well-preserved pillowed and massive phenocryst-free metabasaltic lava flows in the uppermost part of the Palaeoarchaean Hooggenoeg Complex of the Barberton Greenstone Belt exhibit both flow banding and large leucocratic varioles. The flow banding is defined by blebs and bands of pale and dark green metabasalt and was the result of mingling of two types of basalt (Robins et al. in Bull Volcanol 72:579–592, 2010a). Varioles occur exclusively in the dark chlorite-, MgO- and FeO-rich metabasalt. Varioles are absent in the outermost rinds of pillows and increase in both abundance and size towards the centres of pillows. In the central parts of some pillows, they impinge to form homogeneous pale patches, bands or almost homogenous cores. Individual varioles consist essentially of radially orientated or outwardly branching dendritic crystals of albite. Many varioles exhibit concentric zones and finer-grained rims. Some varioles seem to have grown around tiny vesicles and vesicles appear to have been trapped in others between a core and a finer-grained rim. The matrix surrounding the ocelli contains acicular pseudomorphs of actinolite and chlorite after chain-like, skeletal Ca-rich pyroxenes that are partly overgrown by the margins of varioles. Varioles are enriched in the chemical constituents of feldspar but contain concentrations of immobile TiO₂, Cr, Zr and REE that are similar to the host metabasalts. The shape, distribution, texture and composition of the varioles exclude liquid immiscibility and support an origin by spherulitic crystallisation of plagioclase from severely undercooled basalt melt and glass. Nucleation of plagioclase was strongly inhibited and took place on vesicles, on the bases of drainage cavities and along early fractures. Eruption in deep water and retention of relatively high concentrations of volatiles in the melt may be the principal cause of spherulitic crystallisation in the interiors of pillows rather than only in their margins as in younger submarine flows.     

Stratigraphy of the Cenomanian–Turonian Oceanic Anoxic Event OAE2 in shallow shelf sequences of NE Egypt

Two shallow water late Cenomanian to early Turonian sequences of NE Egypt have been investigated to evaluate the response to OAE2. Age control based on calcareous nannoplankton, planktic foraminifera and ammonite biostratigraphies integrated with δ¹³C stratigraphy is relatively good despite low diversity and sporadic occurrences. Planktic and benthic foraminiferal faunas are characterized by dysoxic, brackish and mesotrophic conditions, as indicated by low species diversity, low oxygen and low salinity tolerant planktic and benthic species, along with oyster-rich limestone layers. In these subtidal to inner neritic environments the OAE2 δ¹³C excursion appears comparable and coeval to that of open marine environments. However, in contrast to open marine environments where anoxic conditions begin after the first δ¹³C peak and end at or near the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary, in shallow coastal environments anoxic conditions do not appear until the early Turonian. This delay in anoxia appears to be related to the sea-level transgression that reached its maximum in the early Turonian, as observed in shallow water sections from Egypt to Morocco.     

The Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) 4-dimensional variational data assimilation systems: Part II - Performance and application to the California Current System

The Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) 4-dimensional variational (4D-Var) data assimilation systems have been systematically applied to the mesoscale circulation environment of the California Current to demonstrate the performance and practical utility of the various components of ROMS 4D-Var. In particular, we present a comparison of three approaches to 4D-Var, namely: the primal formulation of the incremental strong constraint approach; the dual formulation “physical-space statistical analysis system”; and the dual formulation indirect representer approach. In agreement with theoretical considerations all three approaches converge to the same ocean circulation estimate when using the same observations and prior information. However, the rate of convergence of the dual formulation was found to be inferior to that of the primal formulation. Other aspects of the 4D-Var performance that relate to the use of multiple outer-loops, preconditioning, and the weak constraint are also explored. A systematic evaluation of the impact of the various components of the 4D-Var control vector (i.e. the initial conditions, surface forcing and open boundary conditions) is also presented. It is shown that correcting for uncertainties in the model initial conditions exerts the largest influence on the ability of the model to fit the available observations. Various important diagnostics of 4D-Var are also examined, including estimates of the posterior error, the information content of the observation array, and innovation-based consistency checks on the prior error assumptions. Using these diagnostic tools, we find that more than 90% of the observations assimilated into the model provide redundant information. This is a symptom of the large percentage of satellite data that are used and to some extent the nature of the data processing employed. This is the second in a series of three papers describing the ROMS 4D-Var systems.     

Encounter norms, social carrying capacity indicators, and standards of quality at a marine protected area

This article examines visitors’ normative acceptance of encounters with boats at a marine protected area and the extent that the number of boats, size of boats, and size of boat on which individuals were traveling influences these encounter norms. Data were obtained from a survey of 439 people visiting Molokini Shoal Marine Life Conservation District in Hawai’i, and photographs depicting four levels of boat use and three proportions of boat size measured encounter norms. Number of boats most strongly influenced encounter norms, boat size was less influential, and the size of boats on which respondents were traveling had little influence. Visitors wanted fewer boats at this site and a majority would not accept encountering more than 15 or 16 boats at one time. When the impact of boat size was considered, they would not accept encountering more than 12 large boats to 17 small boats. Implications for future research and managing standards of quality and social carrying capacity indicators at this marine protected area are discussed.     

Reconstructing recent sedimentation in two urbanised coastal lagoons (NSW,Australia) using radioisotopes and geochemistry

In this study, we combined grain size and geochemical analyses with radioisotope analysis of lead-210 (²¹⁰Pb), caesium-137 (¹³⁷Cs) and radiocarbon (¹⁴C) ages to reconstruct the sedimentation history of two urbanised coastal lagoons in south-east Australia. Towradgi and Fairy Lagoons were both found to exhibit slow initial sedimentation of less than 1 mm year⁻¹ prior to anthropogenic influences. Land clearing in the catchments increased runoff and erosion in the creeks feeding into the estuaries, and has resulted in progradation of fluvial material into the estuarine systems with a marked increase in sedimentation to between 2 and 7 mm year⁻¹. The upper 20–50 cm of the sediment column in both lagoons contained elevated concentrations of heavy metals such as Pb, Cu, Ni and Zn. This pollution trend was found to be consistent with the history of industrialisation and urbanisation in the region, which expanded rapidly post World War 2. The total metal concentrations were consistent with other urbanised/industrialised estuaries around the world. Despite the fairly disturbed nature of these coastal lagoons, the use of ²¹⁰Pb, ¹³⁷Cs and ¹⁴C dating in combination with bulk geochemical analyses allowed detailed reconstruction of sedimentation history.     

Distinguishing lower and upper crustal processes in magmas erupted during the buildup to the 7.7 ka climactic eruption of Mount Mazama, Crater Lake, Oregon, using 238U–230Th disequilibria

Uranium-series isotope ratios determined for 35 volcanic rocks and 4 glass separates erupted from ~36 to 4.8 ka at Mt. Mazama, Crater Lake, Oregon, identify both ²³⁰Th-excess and ²³⁸U-excess components. U–Th isotope compositions cover a wide range, exceeding those previously measured for the Cascade arc. Age-corrected (²³⁰Th/²³²Th) and (²³⁸U/²³²Th) activity ratios range from 1.113 to 1.464 and from 0.878 to 1.572 (44.4 % ²³⁰Th-excess to 8.8 % ²³⁸U-excess), respectively. The most distinctive aspect of the data set is the contrast in U–Th isotope ratios between low and high Sr (LSr, HSr) components that have been previously identified in products of the 7.7 ka caldera-forming climactic eruption and preclimactic rhyodacite lavas. The LSr component exclusively contains ²³⁸U-excess, but the HSr component, as well as more primitive lavas, are marked by ²³⁰Th-excess. ²³⁰Th-excesses such as those recorded at Mt. Mazama are commonly observed in the Cascades. Melting models suggest that high ²³⁰Th-excesses observed in the more primitive lavas evolved through mixing of a mantle melt with a partial melt of a mafic lower crustal composition that contained garnet in the residuum that was produced through dehydration melting of amphibolite that was initially garnet free. Dehydration melting in the lower crust offers a solution to the “hot-slab paradox” of the Cascades, where low volatile contents are predicted due to high slab temperatures, yet higher water contents than expected have been documented in erupted lavas. The ²³⁸U-excess observed at Mt. Mazama is rare in Cascade lavas, but occurs in more than half of the samples analyzed in this study. Traditionally, ²³⁸U-excess in arc magmas is interpreted to reflect slab fluid fluxing. Indeed, ²³⁸U-excess in arcs is common and likely masks ²³⁰Th-excess resulting from lower crustal interaction. Isotopic and trace element data, however, suggest a relatively minor role for slab fluid fluxing in the Cascades. We propose that ²³⁸U-excess reflects melting and assimilation of young, hydrothermally altered upper crust. The processes related to generating ²³⁸U-excess are likely important features at Mt. Mazama that accompanied development of a large-scale silicic magma chamber that led to the caldera-forming eruption.     

Neighborhood covenants and restrictions: an examination of fit

Covenants and restrictions (C&Rs) have increased in popularity in recent decades, being commonly applied in new residential developments. Despite the fact that developers are more commonly writing C&Rs for their developments, little research has investigated how well C&Rs actually fit the preferences of residents. Recognizing this gap in the literature, this paper examines the fit of neighborhood C&Rs with resident preferences in Porter County, Indiana, a growing suburban/exurban place in the Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area. The researcher conducted in-depth interviews with 51 residents to ascertain how well C&Rs fit resident preferences. The majority of interviewees stated that C&Rs match resident preferences because they believed that C&Rs promoted subdivision tidiness and worked to support property values. The minority view was that C&Rs do not fit because they are too strict and residents do not obey C&Rs. Interviewees who perceived a fit were more likely to have a lower level of engagement with C&Rs and were more likely to live in developments with no C&R enforcement attempts by the homeowners’ association (HOA). The results suggest the particular content of C&Rs does not seem to fit resident preference; rather the fact that C&Rs are not enforced fits resident preference. Seemingly, residents are content being unaware of the C&Rs, then they do not know if someone is breaking the rules or not. This may imply that residents would not want to have C&Rs in the first place.