Geologische Konsequenzen einer Erdentstehung auf kaltem Wege

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Lo strato base dell'atmosfera come determinante il clima delle Alpi

Zusammenfassung Die gewöhnlichen klimatologischen Betrachtungen insbesondere diejenigen mit Hilfe von Klimakarten beziehen sich auf das Makroklima der Erde. Als Extrem steht das Mikroklima in der üblichen Definition gegenüber. Die von beiden Betrachtungen behandelten Räume sind grössenordnungsmässig so verschieden, dass es zweckmässig ist, zwischen die genannten Klimabereiche noch das Mesoklima einzuschalten. Der Gültigkeitsbereich für die vorgenennten Begriffe wird für das Klima der Hochgebirge besprochen. Die Gebirgsatmosphäre wird als Gegenstand des Makroklimas anzusehen sein. Die Atmosphären der Berghänge und der Täler sind dagegen als Gegenstand des Mesoklimas anzusehen. 1) Die Schneedecke in den Hochgebirgen ist von besonderer Empfindlichkeit gegenüber der vertikalen Verteilung der Temperatur, daher ist die durchschnittliche Lage der Peplopause von entscheidender Bedeutung für die Andauer der Schneedecke in Hochgebirgen. 2) Die Peplopause ist entscheidend für die Vertikalgliederung der unteren Schichten der freien Atmosphäre, sie ist in ähnlicher Weise entscheidend für die Verteikalgliederung im Makroklima der Hochgebirge. Dies lässt sich durch die vertikale Verteilung der relativen Feuchtigkeit besonders deutlich zeigen. 3) Der Charakter der Grundschicht im Bereich der Gebirgsatmosphäre ist beispielsweise entscheidend für die Ausbildung der Gewitter in Hochgebirgen. 4) Die tiefsten Minimatemperaturen in Mitteleuropa wurden auf der Gestettneralm bei Lunz in Niederösterreich beobachtet. Neben den besonderen lokalen Verhältnissen war die Lage der Station oberhalb der Peplopause massgebend. 5) Der Temperaturgegensatz zwischen freier Atmosphäre und Berggipfeln ist verschieden für die Grundschicht einerseits und für die Peplopause und die darüberliegenden Schichten andrerseit. 6) Der Einfluss der Massenerhebungen auf die Gebirgsatmosphäre ist nach neueren Untersuchungen nicht mehr in einer thermischen Begünstigung zu sehen. Dass im Innern des Alpenmassivs Waldgrenze und alpine Schneegrenze höher liegen als in den Randzonen muss auf besondere Verhältnisse im Makroklima des Gebirges zurückgeführt werden und hier wird wiederum die durchschnittliche Lage der Peplopause von Einfluss sein.     

Der Feldspatbasalt des „Hohen Hagen” bei Dransfeld

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Eiskeile in Sanden bei Dülmen (Westfalen)

Zusammenfassung Bei Eiskeilen mit Sandfüllung in einem sandigen Sediment sind die Erscheinungsbilder von der Häufigkeit des Aufspringens des Bodens und der Sandführung der Schmelzwässer abhängig. Die ursprüngliche Form bei solchen Eiskeilen ist nur in den Teilen erhalten, wo die Schichten des Nebengesteins ungestört an den Eiskeil herantreten. Materialunterschiede des Nebengesteins und der Füllung der Eiskeile müssen bei Rückschlüssen aus der Breite der Eiskeile verschiedener Gegenden auf klimatische Gegebenheiten berücksichtigt werden.     

Synthetic seismograms ofP-waves propagating in solid wedges with free boundaries

A numerical method for the synthesis of seismograms for body wave propagation in solid wedges is presented. The method is based on the superposition of multiple reflections arising from the entrance of a plane primary wave. Therefore the method is restricted to those domains in time-space where no diffracted waves from the wedge axis occur. In spite of this restriction, the dispersion of body waves in wedges can well be studied by this method. Seismograms have been synthesized which show the dispersion of a primary,p-signal propagating in a solid 10°- and a 5°-wedge with free boundaries. For wedge anlges less than 10° the signal from (as distinguished from the wave front) suddently decreases its velocity from that in the infinite medium to about that of the plate wave as the signal approaches the wedge axis. A decrease of the dominant period of the interference signal occurs simultaneously in this transition zone. These observations are concordant with previous seismic model studies [1]. Particle motion diagrams disclose elliptical polarization of the interference signal in the neighboorhood of the wedge axis which changes its sense from prograde to retrograde on passing through the transition zone. This paper has been submitted for publication to Geophysics. It will appear, in Vol. 31 (1966).     

Potential forest fire danger over Northern Eurasia: Changes during the 20th century

Significant climatic changes over Northern Eurasia during the 20th century have been reflected in numerous variables of economic, social, and ecological interest, including the natural frequency of forest fires. For the former USSR, we are now using the Global Daily Climatology Network and a new Global Synoptic Data Network archive, GSDN, created jointly by U.S. National Climatic Data Center and Russian Research Institute for Hydrometeorological Information. Data from these archives (approximately 1500 of them having sufficiently long meteorological time series suitable for participation in our analyses) are employed to estimate systematic changes in indices used in the United States and Russia to assess potential forest fire danger. We use four indices: (1) Keetch–Byram Drought Index, (KBDI; this index was developed and widely used in the United States); (2) Nesterov, (3) Modified Nesterov, and (4) Zhdanko Indices (these indices were developed and widely used in Russia). Analyses show that after calibration, time series of the days with increased potential forest fire danger constructed using each of these three indices (a) are well correlated and (b) deliver similar conclusions about systematic changes in the weather conditions conducive to forest fires. Specifically, over the Eastern half of Northern Eurasia (Siberia and the Russian Far East) statistically significant increases in indices that characterize the weather conditions conducive to forest fires were found. These areas coincide with the areas of most significant warming during the past several decades south of the Arctic Circle. West of the Ural Mountains, the same indices show a steady decrease in the frequency of “dry weather summer days” during the past 60 yr. This study is corroborated with available statistics of forest fires and with observed changes in drought statistics in agricultural regions of Northern Eurasia.     

Early Cretaceous (late Berriasian to early Aptian) palaeoceanographic change along the northwestern Tethyan margin (Vocontian Trough,southeastern France): δ13C, δ18O and Sr-isotope belemnite and whole-rock records

Stable carbon, oxygen, and strontium isotope records were obtained from uppermost Hauterivian to lowermost Aptian belemnite rostra, which were collected in well-dated sections from the Vocontian Trough (southeastern France). This data set complements previously published belemnite-isotope records from the uppermost Berriasian-Hauterivian interval from the same basin. The belemnite carbon and oxygen isotope record is compared to the carbonate bulk-rock isotope record from the same sections, and from additional Italian sections. With regards to their long-term trends, both belemnite and whole-rock δ¹⁸O records are well correlated, except for the uppermost Hauterivian-lower Barremian interval, within which they deviate. This discrepancy is interpreted to be linked to the latest Hauterivian Faraoni oceanic anoxic event and its early Barremian aftermath. The Faraoni level is characterized by enhanced sea-water stratification, probably induced by the onset of a warmer and more humid climate along the northern Tethyan margin. The early Barremian was characterized by stronger vertical sea-water mixing reflected by a decrease in density contrast between sea-surface and deeper waters. The belemnite oxygen isotope record shows a more stable evolution with smaller fluctuations than its bulk-rock counterpart, which indicates that deeper water masses were not as much subjected to density fluctuations as sea-surface water. The comparison of belemnite and bulk-rock carbon isotope records allows observing the impact of regional influence exerted by platform carbonate ooze shedding on the carbon cycle. Discrepancies in the two records are observed during time of photozoan carbonate platform growth. The strontium isotopic record shows a gradual increase from the uppermost Berriasian to the uppermost lower Barremian followed by a rapid decrease until the uppermost Barremian and a renewed small increase within the lowermost Aptian. The major inflection point in the uppermost lower Barremian appears to predate the onset in the formation of the Ontong-Java volcanic plateau.     

THE MARBLE BEACHES OF TUSCANY*

ABSTRACT. Beach‐nourishment operations designed to replace sediment lost through erosion change the identity and meaning of coastal landscapes. Seven beaches in Tuscany, nourished with marble‐quarry waste, reveal how an industrial byproduct is naturalized by particle rounding and sorting and can become a positive symbol of human‐altered nature. The marble was placed on formerly sandy beaches, resulting in different grain size and color of sediments, beach morphology, and value for human use. The abrasion rate of marble makes the nourished beaches unsatisfactory when viewed solely as protection structures, but the rapid particle rounding and aesthetic appeal of marble increase the acceptability of the beaches for recreation.     

Chandra constraints on the thermal conduction in the intracluster plasma of A2142

In this Letter, we use the recent Chandra observation of Abell 2142 reported by Markevitch et al. to put constraints on thermal conduction in the intracluster plasma. We show that the observed sharp temperature gradient requires that classical conductivity has to be reduced at least by a factor of between 250 and 2500. The result provides a direct constraint on an important physical process relevant to the gas in the cores of clusters of galaxies.