The ‘Polish Solnhofen’: a long‐awaited alternative?

Here we briefly report on the discovery of a new Fossil‐Lagerstätte locality, Owadów‐Brzezinki quarry (central Poland), which exposes Late Jurassic (Late Tithonian) carbonate sediments with an extremely fossiliferous horizon of lithographic‐type limestones. Numerous specimens of horseshoe crabs were found in association with an enormously rich assemblage of the soft‐shelled bivalves Corbulomima obscura and Mesosaccella sp., the remains of various fishes and marine reptiles, rare ammonites, crustaceans, land insects and pterosaurs. The uniqueness of this new locality lies in its very close stratigraphical relationship to one of the most famous Fossil‐Lagerstätte localities in the world—Solnhofen, in southern Germany, with approximately 2 Ma separating them. Marine and terrestrial creatures lived and died during the Late Jurassic both at Solnhofen (Hybonotum Zone) and in another area (Owadów‐Brzezinki quarry, Zarajskensis Subzone), under closely related environmental conditions. The small palaeogeographical distance separating these two locations enables, for the first time, an effective palaeobiological test of the pace of evolutionary speciation amongst different groups of organisms.     

State-of-the-art overview of the Loess Palaeolithic of Poland

In Poland, loess mainly occurs in the southern part of the country, in the Polish Uplands, and on the northern foreland of the Sudetes and the Carpathians. Most of these sediments come from the time of the last glaciation–the Vistulian (Weichselian) glaciation. Thin covers of loess from the penultimate glaciation have been preserved in Upper Silesia. Only a few sites from the Middle Palaeolithic remain in the loess. In the eastern part of Poland loess creates profiles several metres high. Discoveries in this zone represent the cultural sequence from the transition from the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic. We know more traces of various cultures from the Upper Palaeolithic exist. The study attempts to synchronise profiles from selected archaeological open-air sites, outlines of the history of research on loess sites, and attempts to explain terminological and conceptual issues. The issue of loess in the cave site profiles will not be discussed in the article.     

Time‐scale of deformation and intertectonic phases revealed by P–T–D–t relationships in the orogenic middle crust of the Orlica‐Śnieżnik Dome,Polish/Czech Central Sudetes

A section of the orogenic middle crust (Orlica‐?nie?nik Dome, Polish/Czech Central Sudetes) was examined to constrain the duration and significance of deformation (D) and intertectonic (I) phases. In the studied metasedimentary synform, three deformation events produced an initial subhorizontal foliation S1 (D₁), a subsequent subvertical foliation S2 (D₂) and a late subhorizontal axial planar cleavage S3 (D₃). The synform was intruded by pre‐, syn‐ and post‐D₂ granitoid sheets. Crystallization–deformation relationships in mica schist samples document I_1–2 garnet–staurolite growth, syn‐D₂ staurolite breakdown to garnet–biotite–sillimanite/andalusite, I_2–3 cordierite blastesis and late‐D₃ chlorite growth. Garnet porphyroblasts show a linear Mn–Ca decrease from the core to the inner rim, a zone of alternating Ca–Y‐ and P‐rich annuli in the inner rim, and a Ca‐poor outer rim. The Ca–Y‐rich annuli probably reflect the occurrence of the allanite‐to‐monazite transition at conditions of the staurolite isograd, whereas the Ca‐poor outer rim is ascribed to staurolite demise. The reconstructed P–T path, obtained by modelling the stability of parageneses and garnet zoning, documents near‐isobaric heating from ~4 kbar/485 °C to ~4.75 kbar/575 °C during I_1–2. This was followed by a progression to 4–5 kbar/580–625 °C and a subsequent pressure decrease to 3–4 kbar during D₂. Pressure decrease below 3 kbar is ascribed to I_2–3, whereas cooling below ~500 °C occurred during D₃. In the dated mica schist sample, garnet rims show strong Lu enrichment, oscillatory Lu zoning and a slight Ca increase. These features are also related to allanite breakdown coeval with staurolite appearance. As Lu‐rich garnet rims dominate the Lu–Hf budget, the 344 ± 3 Ma isochron age is ascribed to garnet crystallization at staurolite grade, near the end of I_1–2. For the dated sample of amphibole–biotite granitoid sheet, a Pb–Pb single zircon evaporation age of 353 ± 1 Ma is related to the onset of plutonic activity. The results suggest a possible Devonian age for D₁, and a Carboniferous burial‐exhumation cycle in mid‐crustal rocks that is broadly coeval with the exhumation of neighbouring HP rocks during D₂. In the light of published ages, a succession of telescoping stages with time spans decreasing from c. 10 to 2–3 Ma is proposed. The initially long period of tectonic quiescence (I_1–2 phase, c. 10 Ma) inferred in the middle crust contrasts with contemporaneous deformation at deeper levels and points to decoupled P–T–D histories within the orogenic wedge. An elevated gradient of ~30 °C km^?1 and assumed high heating rates of c. 20 °C Ma^?1 are explained by the protracted intrusion of granitoid sheets, with or without deformation, whereas fast vertical movements (2–3 Ma, D₂ phase) in the crust require the activity of deformation phases.     

A necessary voice: Climate change and lived experiences of youth in Rigolet,Nunatsiavut, Canada

Globally, youth voices and their experiences, observations, and perceptions about climatic and environmental change and variability are relatively absent in the published literature to date. To address this gap, the goal of this research was to explore the observations and perceptions of climate change held by youth (12–25 years old) in the Inuit community of Rigolet, Nunatsiavut, Canada. Twenty in-depth interviews were conducted with youth in Rigolet to gather data about climatic and environmental changes young people have observed, and the subsequent impacts of these changes on their lives, culture, and community. Youth reported observing and experiencing climatic and environmental changes throughout their lives, with reported impacts falling within five main themes: changing travel conditions and access to hunting; challenges to Inuit culture; a concern for Elder and senior well-being; strong climate-related emotional responses; and youth-identified potential adaptation strategies. More broadly, this research demonstrated that young people have valuable knowledge and perspectives to offer. In particular, researchers, community leaders, and policy makers are encouraged to meaningfully engage youth as crucial stakeholders in future climate change work, research, dialogue, and policy.     

Peering inside the peak ring of the Chicxulub Impact Crater—its nature and formation mechanism

The IODP‐ICDP Expedition 364 drilled into the Chicxulub crater, peering inside its well‐preserved peak ring. The borehole penetrated a sequence of post‐impact carbonates and a unit of suevites and clast‐poor impact melt rock at the top of the peak ring. Beneath this sequence, basement rocks cut by pre‐impact and impact dykes, with breccias and melt, were encountered at shallow depths. The basement rocks are fractured, shocked and uplifted, consistent with dynamic collapse, uplift and long‐distance transport of weakened material during collapse of the transient cavity and final crater formation.     

Stable sulfur and oxygen isotope ratios of the Świętokrzyski National Park spring waters generated by natural and anthropogenic factors (south-central Poland)

This paper presents the results of an isotopic study of spring waters in ?wi?tokrzyski (Holy Cross Mountain) National Park (?NP), south-central Poland. The δ³⁴S_V-CDT and δ¹⁸O_V-SMOW of soluble sulfates (n = 40) varied from 0.5‰ to 18.1‰ and from 3.5‰ to 12.2‰, respectively. The average δ³⁴S values are closely similar to those of rainwater, soils and rocks (comprising scattered pyrite). This suggests that soluble sulfates in the springs originated from mixing of recent and historic deposition, sulfates derived from pyrite oxidation, and CS-mineralization in soils and debris. An additional anthropogenic sulfur input (inorganic fertilizer) occurs in the water of spring S-61 located in the ?wi?tokrzyski National Park buffer zone. The δ¹⁸O_V-SMOW of spring waters (n = 4) were in the range of −10.6‰ to −10.2‰ indicating that they are derived from vadose groundwater in ?NP. This was the first isotope study of spring waters in the national parks of Poland. It enabled the determination of sulfur pathways and discrimination between natural and anthropogenic sources of this element in a relatively pristine area.     

Strontium isotope systematics of mixing groundwater and oil-field brine at Goose Lake in northeastern Montana,USA

Groundwater, surface water, and soil in the Goose Lake oil field in northeastern Montana have been affected by Cl⁻-rich oil-field brines during long-term petroleum production. Ongoing multidisciplinary geochemical and geophysical studies have identified the degree and local extent of interaction between brine and groundwater. Fourteen samples representing groundwater, surface water, and brine were collected for Sr isotope analyses to evaluate the usefulness of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr in detecting small amounts of brine. Differences in Sr concentrations and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr are optimal at this site for the experiment. Strontium concentrations range from 0.13 to 36.9 mg/L, and corresponding ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values range from 0.71097 to 0.70828. The local brine has 168 mg/L Sr and a ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr value of 0.70802. Mixing relationships are evident in the data set and illustrate the sensitivity of Sr in detecting small amounts of brine in groundwater. The location of data points on a Sr isotope-concentration plot is readily explained by an evaporation-mixing model. The model is supported by the variation in concentrations of most of the other solutes.     

A continuous multi-millennial record of surficial bivalve mollusk shells from the São Paulo Bight,Brazilian shelf

To evaluate the potential of using surficial shell accumulations for paleoenvironmental studies, an extensive time series of individually dated specimens of the marine infaunal bivalve mollusk Semele casali was assembled using amino acid racemization (AAR) ratios (n = 270) calibrated against radiocarbon ages (n = 32). The shells were collected from surface sediments at multiple sites across a sediment-starved shelf in the shallow sub-tropical São Paulo Bight (São Paulo State, Brazil). The resulting ¹⁴C-calibrated AAR time series, one of the largest AAR datasets compiled to date, ranges from modern to 10,307 cal yr BP, is right skewed, and represents a remarkably complete time series: the completeness of the Holocene record is 66% at 250-yr binning resolution and 81% at 500-yr binning resolution. Extensive time-averaging is observed for all sites across the sampled bathymetric range indicating long water depth-invariant survival of carbonate shells at the sediment surface with low net sedimentation rates. Benthic organisms collected from active depositional surfaces can provide multi-millennial time series of biomineral records and serve as a source of geochemical proxy data for reconstructing environmental and climatic trends throughout the Holocene at centennial resolution. Surface sediments can contain time-rich shell accumulations that record the entire Holocene, not just the present.     

Changes of water level in the Eemian palaeolake at Imbramowice (SW Poland) based on isotopic and cladoceran data

Isotopic and cladoceran investigations of Eemian (MIS 5e) lake sediments from Imbramowice, SW Poland, allow us to reconstruct the environmental conditions, especially changes of water level and trophic status, during the early and middle Eemian Interglaciation. We analyzed the sediments from 6.5 to 11.0 m depth in a core provided by Mamakowa (1989). The upper 6.5 m had insufficient carbonates and cladoceran contents for analyses. The analyzed section consists of sandy and organic silts at the bottom, followed by gyttja characterized by increasing CaCO₃ content. Measured δ¹⁸O values oscillate from ca. - 9 to - 4‰ and δ¹³C from - 3.5 to above + 6‰. Based on stable isotope analyses of carbonates, we define and characterize eight isotopic horizons (Is). We identify 26 taxa of subfossil Cladocera and seven zones (CLZ) of faunal development. Probably the greatest depth of the lake occurred with pollen zone E2; shallowing then took place. During pollen zones E2-E3, gradual warming is observed and expressed through a positive trend in both δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C values. Pollen zone E4 is characterized by frequent changes of water level. During the Eemian Interglaciation, excluding the initial phase of lake evolution, the lake was meso-eutrophic and eutrophic with high phytoplankton productivity.