Gold deposits associated with the gabbroic rocks at Tirek area,western Hoggar,Algeria: fluid inclusion study

The Tirek gold deposit hosted in the Archean shield is one of the richest sources of mined gold for Algeria. The deposit is controlled by the East Ouzzal shear zone (EOSZ), a transcurrent N–S lithospheric fault. The EOSZ is a late Pan-African dextral-ductile shear zone separating two contrasting Precambrian domains: the Archean In Ouzzal block to the west (Orthogenesis with subordinate metasediments reworked and granulitized during the ca. 2 Ga Eburnean event) and a middle Proterozoic block to the east involved in the ca. 600 Ma Pan-African event. The auriferous quartz veins are mainly oriented in two directions, N–S veins hosted in mylonitic rocks and NE–SW veins hosted in gabbroic or gneissic bands. The NE–SW veins contain the richest ore. Gold ore is found in a system of veins and lenticular quartz veinlets arranged in anastomosing networks. The hydrothermal alteration associated with these veins is characteristically a carbonate-sericite-albite-pyrite assemblage. Gold is the main metal of economic importance; it is disseminated in the quartz as grains or fibers along microcracks and as microscopic grains in the host rocks. Microthermometric results and Raman laser data from fluid inclusions demonstrate that the ore-forming fluids contained H₂O-CO₂±CH₄ and were low salinity. Homogenization temperatures are commonly 250–310 °C. In the Tirek deposit, the role of the shear zone that hosts the mineralization was to drain the hydrothermal fluid. Interactions between the fluid and the mafic host rocks and CO₂ also contributed to the formation of the hydrothermal gold deposit at Tirek.     

In-situ survey of nanomolar manganese in seawater using an autonomous underwater vehicle around a volcanic crater at Teishi Knoll,Sagami Bay,Japan

We present the results of a chemical survey at a submarine volcano, Teishi Knoll, obtained using a submersible in-situ Mn analyzer (GAMOS) mounted on an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) platform. During this survey, high-resolution data of dissolved Mn were obtained in three dimensions in nearly real time. The AUV enabled continuous detailed observations along a preprogrammed pathway, which could not have been performed with conventional CTD hydrocasts. During this observation, anomalously high dissolved Mn concentrations were obtained within the crater, corresponding to high water temperatures. The anomalies might be a hydrothermal signature due to volcanic activity from the crater.     

Why is Shirase Glacier turning its flow direction eastward?

We applied an image correlation method to Japanese Earth Resources Satellite-1 (JERS-1) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data obtained from 1996 to 1998 to examine flow velocity within Shirase Glacier, Antarctica. From the grounding line to the downstream region of the glacier, the obtained ice-flow velocity was systematically higher on the western streamline than the eastern. The differences between the two streamlines were 0.31 km/a in 1996 and 0.37 km/a in 1998, significantly larger than the error estimate of 0.03 km/a. The direction of ice flow was about 312° at the grounding line and changed to 327° at 10 km, 346° at 20 km and 2° at 30 km downstream from the grounding line. The total accumulated deflection is 50° to the east. Under the assumption of the conservation of ice mass across the glacier, the observed eastward change in flow direction can be explained by an asymmetric deepening of bedrock topography, that is, across the 8 km width of the glacier, the eastern side is 50 m (10%) deeper than the western side. This eastward turning of flow direction appears to be accelerated by tributary inlets, that flow to the north and northeast at 60–75% of the velocity of inlets on the western streamline.     

Short-term variability of Cyg X-1

The short-term X-ray variability distinguishes Cyg X-1, which is the most likely candidate for a black hole, from other X-ray sources. The present status of our knowledge on this short-term variation, mainly from the UHURU, the MIT and the GSFC observations, is reviewed. The nature of impulsive variations which compose the time variation exceeding the statistical fluctuation is discussed. There are indications that the energy spectrum of large pulses is harder than the average spectrum, or that the large pulses are the characteristics of the hard component of the spectrum if it is composed of two, soft and hard, components. Features of the variations may be partly simulated by the superposition of random shot-noise pulses with a fraction of a second duration. However, the autocorrelation analysis and the dynamic spectrum analysis indicate that the correlation lasts for several seconds and in the variation are buried some regularities which exhibit power concentrations in several frequency bands; 0.2–0.3, 0.4–0.5, 0.8, 1.2–1.5 Hz. There are several possible interpretations of these results in terms of; e.g. (a) a mixture of shot-noise pulses with two or more constant durations, (b) the shape of the basic shot-noise pulse, (c) bunching of the pulses, (d) superposition of wave-packets or temporal oscillations. But we have not yet reached any definite understandings in the nature of the variabilities. The substructure of the fluctuations on a time scale of milliseconds suggested by two investigations is also discussed.Paper presented at the COSPAR Symposium on Fast Transients in X- and Gamma-Rays, held at Varna, Bulgaria, 29–31 May, 1975.     

Hydrothermal Alteration Related to Silver Mineralization at the Iwami Silver Deposit,Shimane Prefecture,Japan

The Iwami epithermal silver deposit consists of Ag-Cu veins in a dacitic intrusive body at the deep portion of the Eikyu area, and veinlets with disseminated Ag mineralization in dacitic tuff breccia at a shallow portion of the Fukuishi area. Hydrothermal alteration associated with the silver mineralization is characterized by intense potassium metasomatism with oxidizing conditions. An illite zone occurs around the pathways of uprising fluids in both the Eikyu and Fukuishi areas. It grades laterally into the illite/smectite zone, which is surrounded by a broad smectite zone. Because of boiling, abundant adularia associated with silver mineralization overlaps on the altered tuff breccia in the Fukuishi area. The alteration zoning suggests that the western Eikyu area and the eastern Fukuishi area belong to a single hydrothermal system. The data of fluid inclusion microthermometry indicate that the temperatures range 220–270°C, and salinities range 5–7 wt percent NaCl equivalent for the silver mineralization at the upper portion in the Eikyu area and the lower portion in the Fukuishi area. Radiometric ages for volcanic rocks in the area range from 2.19 to 1.64 Ma, and the dacitic intrusion formed at approximately 1.6 Ma. The silver-dominant mineralizing hydrothermal fluids system was active around 1.44 to 1.07 Ma, which formed the Eikyu Ag-Cu veins at depth, and the Fukuishi Ag ores at the shallower portion.     

Tsunami vulnerability evaluation in the Mentawai islands based on the field survey of the 2010 tsunami

On October 25, 2010, a large earthquake occurred off the coast of the Mentawai islands in Indonesia, generating a tsunami that caused damage to the coastal area of North Pagai, South Pagai, and Sipora islands. Field surveys were conducted soon after the event by several international survey teams, including the authors’. These surveys clarified the tsunami height distribution, the damage that took place, and residents’ awareness of tsunamis in the affected islands. Heights of over 5 m were recorded on the coastal area of the Indian Ocean side of North and South Pagai islands and the south part of Sipora island. In some villages, it was difficult to evacuate immediately after the earthquake because of the lack of routes to higher ground or the presence of rivers. Residents in some villages had taken part in tsunami drills or education; however, not all villages shared awareness of tsunami threats. In the present paper, based on the results of these field surveys, the vulnerability of these islands with regards to future tsunami threats was analyzed. Three important aspects of this tsunami disaster, namely the geographic disadvantage of the islands, the resilience of buildings and other infrastructure, and people’s awareness of tsunamis, are discussed in detail, and corresponding tsunami mitigation strategies are explained.     

Dense gas in normal and active galaxies

Dense molecular medium plays essential roles in galaxies. As demonstrated by the tight and linear correlation between HCN(1–0) and FIR luminosities among star-forming galaxies, from very nearby to high-z ones, the observation of a dense molecular component is indispensable to understand the star formation laws in galaxies. In order to obtain a general picture of the global distributions of dense molecular medium in normal star-forming galaxies, we have conducted an extragalactic CO(3–2) imaging survey of nearby spiral galaxies using the Atacama Submillimeter Telescope Experiment (ASTE). From the survey (ADIoS; ASTE Dense gas Imaging of Star-forming galaxies), CO(3–2) images of M 83 and NGC 986 are presented. Emphasis is placed on the correlation between the CO(3–2)/CO(1–0) ratio and the star formation efficiency in galaxies. In the central regions of some active galaxies, on the other hand, we often find enhanced or overluminous HCN(1–0) emission. The HCN(1–0)/CO(1–0) and HCN(1–0)/HCO⁺(1–0) intensities are often enhanced up to ∼0.2–0.3 and ∼2–3, respectively. Such elevated ratios have never been observed in the nuclear starburst regions. One possible explanation for these high HCN(1–0)/CO(1–0) and HCN(1–0)/HCO⁺(1–0) ratios is X-ray induced chemistry in X-ray dominated regions (XDRs), i.e., the overabundance of the HCN molecule in the X-ray irradiated dense molecular tori. If this view is true, the known tight correlation between HCN(1–0) and the star-formation rate breaks in the vicinity of active nuclei. Although the interpretation of these ratios is still an open question, these ratios have a great potential for a new diagnostic tool for the energy sources of dusty galaxies in the ALMA era because these molecular lines are free from dust extinction.     

Reconstruction of historical nutrient levels in Korean and Japanese coastal areas based on dinoflagellate cyst assemblages

Dinoflagellate cysts acquired from sediment cores were analyzed in order to reconstruct historical nutrient levels in Gamak Bay, Korea and Ariake Bay, Japan. Dinoflagellate cyst assemblages in Gamak Bay were characterized by high proportions of heterotrophic cysts such as Brigantedinium spp., Protoperidinium americanum and Polykrikos cysts, which suggested that nutrients levels may have already been high before 1970s, and then increased further to the hypertrophic conditions of the 1990s. In contrast, dinoflagellate cyst assemblages in Ariake Bay were characterized by high relative abundances of Lingulodinium machaerophorum and Spiniferites spp., which suggested that nutrient levels in Ariake Bay had increased gradually since the mid 1960s, and may have been significantly enhanced by the mid 1980s. Dinoflagellate cyst assemblages reflecting environmental changes in the two bays are contrasting, perhaps due to different nutrient enrichment mechanisms. This suggests that the indicators of nutrient levels encoded in dinoflagellate cyst assemblages may exhibit site-specific information.     

Evaluation of image processing methods for geological interpretation in the different environments in Libya

This study evaluates the use of image processing techniques and methodologies of digital integration of multi-disciplinary geoscientific data to reduce the ambiguity in geological interpretations in different geological environments in Libya. To realize this objective, three areas were selected for this study; Eljufra, an arid environment; the mountainous environment Tarhunah; and the Jifara Plain, a coastal plain environment. Two types of remote sensing data were used in this study: Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) and European Remote Sensing Satellite. The digital elevation model extracted from Shuttle Radar Topography Mission and digital topographic maps scale 1:50,000 were used for remote sensing interpretation. GIS and remote sensing-based methods were used to process and integrate all raster and vector layers data. This study offered dramatic benefits for geological interpretations and provided new insights into the efficiency of image processing methods in different geological environments.     

The Potential of Eleocharis acicularis for Phytoremediation: Case Study at an Abandoned Mine Site

Phytoremediation, a plant‐based and cost‐effective technology for the cleanup of contaminated soil and water, is receiving increasing attention. In this study, the aquatic macrophyte Eleocharis acicularis was examined for its ability to take up multiple heavy metals and its potential application for phytoremediation at an abandoned mining area in Hokkaido, Japan. Elemental concentrations were measured in samples of E. acicularis, water, and soil collected from areas of mine tailing and drainage. The results reveal that Pb, Fe, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Mn accumulation in the plants increased over the course of the experiment, exceeding their initial concentrations by factors of 930, 430, 60, 25, 10, and 6, respectively. The highest concentrations of Fe, Pb, Zn, Mn, Cr, Cu, and Ni within the plants were 59500, 1120, 964, 388, 265, 235, and 47.4 mg/kg dry wt., respectively, for plants growing in mine drainage after 11 months of the experiment. These results indicate that E. acicularis is a hyperaccumulator of Pb. We also found high Si concentrations in E. acicularis (2.08%). It is likely that heavy metals exist in opal‐A within cells of the plant. The bioconcentration factors (BCF: ratio of metal concentration in the plant shoots to that in the soil) obtained for Cr, Cu, Zn, Ni, Mn, and Pb were 3.27, 1.65, 1.29, 1.26, 1.11, and 0.82, respectively. The existence of heavy metals as sulphides is thought to have restricted the metal‐uptake efficiency of E. acicularis at the mine site. The results of this study indicate that E. acicularis shows great potential in the phytoremediation of mine tailing and drainage rich in heavy metals.