Repeated thermal resetting of phengites in the Mulhacen Complex (Betic Zone, southeastern Spain) shown byAr/Ar step heating and single grain laser probe dating

This study reports the results of the first⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar combined induction furnace and laser probe dating of phengites from the Mulhacen HP/LT metamorphic complex in the Betic Cordilleras, southern Spain. Laser step heating and spot fusion analyses on different halves of a split single grain were made with a continuous laser probe. Spot fusion analysis resulted in ages of about 30–31 Ma in the core and ages as low as 25–26 Ma in the rim. Laser step heating on the other half of the grain gave a spectrum with apparent ages increasing from about 25 Ma to 29.5 Ma. The age spectrum and the decreasing ages towards the rim of the grain may imply that resetting essentially occurred by volume diffusion of radiogenic⁴⁰Ar due to late stage reheating resulting from extensional tectonics. Ages around 30 Ma in the core of the grain are interpreted as minimum estimates of the cooling age of the main tectono-metamorphic phaseD₂.

Induction furnace step heating on phengite separates from mica schists and one gneiss resulted in two types of age spectra. Type I spectra show monotonously rising apparent ages from14.5 ± 1.9 Ma to20.7 ± 0.2 Ma, and in a second sample from16.9 ± 0.7 to29.7 ± 0.2 Ma. Type II spectra are characterized by plateaus of14.4 ± 0.1 Ma (the gneiss sample),17.3 ± 0.1 Ma and17.6 ± 0.1 Ma. Type II spectra show low temperature apparent ages significantly below the plateau age, implying resetting subsequent to initial cooling. Modelling of the age spectra demonstrated that the plateau ages are possibly the result of strong resetting (75–85% of argon loss) of an older isotope system. Total fusion of a number of phengite single grains from marbles taken close to type II mica schists yielded ages of15.4 ± 1.2 Ma and17.0 ± 0.7 Ma. The observed repeated resetting is coeval with major volcanic activity in basins adjacent to the metamorphic ranges, pointing to a resetting by advective fluid transport related to volcanism.     

Water use efficiency in an arid watershed: a case study

Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) becomes increasingly important in arid watersheds, where water resources are scarce and demands are rising under increased population pressure. In this case study, we present the results from the Elqui Valley in Chile, where water resources are shared between agriculture, mining operations, hydropower generation and drinking water for nearby cities. An IWRM model was applied to visualize water resources distribution in the catchment and determine irrigation and water use efficiencies. After calibration with observed surface and groundwater measurements, the model showed large differences in efficiencies between different irrigation sectors. Most notably, irrigation sectors with the highest irrigation security, i.e., higher water rights per hectare, were characterized with lower water use efficiencies. Frequent water deficits were present in sectors downstream of the main reservoir, which was related to limited water rights per hectare, lower irrigation efficiencies and higher water demands due to larger agricultural areas. In subsequent scenario analyses, the model was used to evaluate the impact of improved irrigation and water use efficiencies in these downstream sectors, to confirm an important reduction in water deficits, except for drought years when surface water resources are insufficient. In a third scenario, groundwater resources were allowed to compensate for water deficits, effectively reducing these in most irrigation sectors, especially during droughts. Expansion of the current agricultural area by 37% was evaluated, as a future scenario, and was found to be unsustainable, as aquifer levels are lowered to such levels that make annual recharge insufficient.     

The numerical determination of the eigenfrequencies of a rotating star

A technique for finding the oscillation spectrum of a rotating star based on the solution of two simultaneous ordinary differential equations is described. Results are presented for someg-modes of the polytrope of index 2. It appears that the functional dependence of frequency on rotational velocity is different for different azimuthal wave numbersm.     

The impact of taphonomic processes on interpreting paleoecologic changes in large lake ecosystems: ostracodes in Lakes Tanganyika and Malawi

Nonmarine ostracodes are often used as proxy indicators for the biotic response to climate as well as anthropogenic changes in large lakes. Their large numbers, small size and sensitivities to environmental conditions make them ideal for assessing how organisms respond to environmental perturbations. However, little is known about the various taphonomic processes related to preserving these organisms in the lacustrine fossil record. Without understanding the amount of time averaging associated with these assemblages, any interpretation of their biodiversity and paleoecology may be problematic.To address these issues, we conducted actualistic experiments to determine transport, time-averaging, and the amount of taphonomic bias in ostracode sub-fossil assemblages. Sand transport experiments revealed significant mixing at all sites at shallower depths and significant mixing on rocky substrates but not sandy ones. Comparisons with ostracode material collected along the experimental transects support this model and demonstrate time averaging in both the sandy and rocky substrates. Preservational models were derived from the experimental data and applied to interpreting the paleobiologic record of ostracodes from piston cores in both Lake Tanganyika and Malawi. The core record reveals assemblages that have undergone significant time-averaging, and in the case of Lake Malawi, preservational degradation. In the core examined from Tanganyika, most assemblages resemble the time-averaged experimental model with respect to species richness, percentage of articulated shells and heavy bias towards adult dead individuals. In the Malawi cores, most of the valves were preserved only as internal molds. The taphonomic signature of these samples resemble the time-averaged assemblages of Tanganyika cores, even though carapaces are not often present.Both the experimental and live/dead valve data suggest significant time-averaging and transport, smearing seasonal-yearly data in some environments involved in using ostracodes to assess biotic changes as a result of climate and or anthropogenically-induced environmental change. Ostracode species richness estimates were impacted by time averaging because transport of dead valve material occurs at high percentages in the shallow depths and on the rocky substrates, suggesting that the ostracode death assemblages in these areas will not reflect living populations. In addition, ecologic models based only upon death assemblages will be less resolved than those based upon live assemblages. A time averaging index was derived using the % dead juveniles ratio, as well as sedimentation rate and information on the population dynamics, if known.     

Horizontal Scale of Roughness Variations for Realistic Landscapes

A method is described to infer the horizontal scale of roughness variations from land-use maps, for use in flux aggregation schemes designed to account for sub-grid scale terrain heterogeneity in numerical models of the atmosphere. Based on simple statistical-geometrical considerations, it is shown that this horizontal scale is inversely proportional to edge density, which can be readily derived from high-resolution land-use maps. The method is demonstrated for a highly heterogeneous landscape in northern Belgium, the resulting length scale values approximately ranging between 200 and 1500 m. Finally, the extension towards satellite imagery and coarse land-use data is discussed.     

Modelling of neutral-gas releases into the earth's ionosphere

This paper discusses a mathematical model which is aimed at the interpretation of the effects by injections of chemically active gases into the ionosphere. A study is made of neutral-gas expansion processes as well as of processes associated with the formation of decreased plasma density regions, ionospheric holes. The spatial-temporal distribution of particles released during the transition to the diffusion regime is constructed using an approximate, analytic solution of the Boltzmann equation with the collision integral in the form of BGK, with proper allowance for gravitation and atmospheric inhomogeneity. The investigation of processes associated with the formation of ionospheric holes is carried out using a numerical model of ionosphere-plasmasphere coupling, in which the transfer equations for charged components are integrated along geomagnetic field lines. The purpose of the model is to calculate the electron density and temperature, ion composition and emission of a disturbed region in the 6300 Å line at ionospheric and plasmaspheric heights.