Study of the erosion rates in the upper Maracujá Basin (Quadrilátero Ferrífero/MG,Brazil) by the in situ produced cosmogenic 10Be method

The present work quantifies the erosive processes in the two main substrates (schists–phyllites and granites–gneisses) of the upper Maracujá Basin in the Quadrilátero Ferrífero/MG, Brazil, a region of semi‐humid tropical climate. Two measuring methods of concentration were used: (i) in situ produced ¹⁰Be in quartz veins (surface erosion rates) and (ii) ¹⁰Be in fluvial sediments (basin erosion rates). The results confirm that (i) erosion tends to be more aggressive close to the headwaters than in the lower parts of the basin and (ii) the region is now affected by dissection. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ophiolite emplacement by strike-slip tectonics between the Pontide Zone and the Sakarya Zone in northwestern Anatolia, Turkey

Northwestern Anatolia contains three main tectonic units: (a) the Pontide Zone in the north which consists mainly of the Gstanbul-Zonguldak Unit in the west and the BallLda<-Küre Unit in the east; (b) the Sakarya Zone (or Continent) in the south, which is juxtaposed against the Pontide Zone due to the closure of Paleo-Tethys prior to Late Jurassic time; and (c) the Armutlu-OvacLk Zone which appears to represent a tectonic mixture of both zones. These three major tectonic zones are presently bounded by the two branches of the North Anatolian Transform Fault. The two tectonic contacts follow older tectonic lineaments (the Western Pontide Fault) which formed during the development of the Armutlu-OvacLk Zone. Since the earliest Cretaceous, an overall extensional regime dominated the region. A transpressional tectonic regime of Coniacian/Santonian to Campanian age caused the welding of the Gstanbul-Zonguldak Unit to the Sakarya Zone by an oblique collision. In the Late Campanian, a transtensional tectonic regime developed, forming a new basin within the amalgamated tectonic mosaic. The different tectonic regimes in the region were caused by activity of the Western Pontide Fault. Most of the ophiolites within the Armutlu-OvacLk Zone belong to the Paleo-Tethyan and/or pre-Ordovician ophiolitic core of the Gstanbul-Zonguldak Unit. The Late Cretaceous ophiolites in the eastern parts of the Armutlu-OvacLk Zone were transported from Neo-Tethyan ophiolites farther east by left-lateral strike-slip faults along the Western Pontide Fault. There is insufficient evidence to indicate the presence of an ocean (Intra-Pontide Ocean) between the Gstanbul-Zonguldak Unit and the Sakarya Zone during Late Cretaceous time.     

Spatiotemporal changes in cadmium contamination in the Seine estuary (France)

Cadmium (Cd) is among the major contaminants in the Seine estuary. In the biota, the RNO (Réseau National d’Observation, the French Mussel-Watch) has shown that Cd concentrations in mussels living at the mouth of the estuary are related to changes in inputs to this area of phosphogypsum, a calcium sulphate that is a by-product of the phosphoric acid naturally enriched with Cd. In the water column, Cd concentrations at several key estuary sites show a very marked trend toward decreased contamination in the particles as well as in the dissolved phase. The behavior of Cd in the estuary has been studied between 1991 and 1998 in the framework of the scientific program Seine-Aval. This program has highlighted punctual Cd inputs in the estuarine water column. The partition of Cd between the dissolved and the particulate phase, previously described in various estuaries, is characterized by an intense phenomenon of solubilization in the mixing zone freshwater-seawater, but the colloidal Cd fraction remains low along the whole salinity gradient, about 5% to 10% of the apparent dissolved fraction. Although the decrease of inputs induced a fall of Cd concentrations in the water column, laboratory experiments show that the estuarine particles are far from being exhausted in Cd. Despite continuous efforts to reduce the urban and industrial inputs into the estuarine and coastal waters, the Seine estuary still remains very contaminated by Cd.     

The volcano of Capelinhos (Azores), the solar activity and the earth-tide

Bulletin of Volcanology - Correlations on the eruptive behaviour of the volcano of Capelinhos (Fayal island) in 1957–58, with (a) solar activity, and (b) earth-tide amplitudes, by way of a...     

The submarine volcano of Capelinhos and the tectonics of the Azores

Bulletin of Volcanology - In another paper of the author, a picture of the tectonics of the Azores was presented. The morphological analysis showed evidence of a folded and faulted structure and...     

Ondes de surface

Résumé Le but de ce mémoire est de démontrer quelques nouvelles propriétés générales d'une classe de fonctions (les ondes de surface) très importante par son rôle en physique et en géophysique.On commence par la démontration d'un théoréme fondamental qui établit l'identité de l'ensemble des ondes de surface et de l'ensemble des fonctions pour lesquelles, à tout instantt ₀ et en tout pointA ₀ de leur domaine d'existence, on peut écrire une proportionnalité entre intervalles de temps (situés, en général asymétriquement, de part et d'autre det ₀) et rayons des domaines circulaires centrés enA ₀, telle que les moyennes temporelles et spatiales correspondantes soient égales. Ce théorème permet d'écrire, en termes finis, la solution des équations aux dérivées partielles de toute onde de surface.On applique ensuite les résultats généraux: 1° à la variation diurne de la pression lce qui permet de voir que ce phénomène peut être considéré comme une onde de surface et donne la loi fondamentale en cos³ ( latitude) pour l'amplitude de l'onde semidiurne progressive]; 2° aux ondes de variation de la pression synoptique. Pour ces ondes de variation on établit les relations qui existent entre leurs paramètres caractéristiques et on détermine finalement leur configuration théorique.

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Summary The aim of this paper is to give the proof of some new general properties of a class of functions (the surface waves) which is very important in physics and geophysics.We first give the proof of a fundamental theorem establishing the identity of the set of all surface waves and the set of functions for which, at any momentt ₀ and at any pointA ₀ of their domain, there exists a proportionality between time intervals comprisingt ₀ (asymmetrically, in the general case) and the radius of the circular domains centered onA ₀, such that the corresponding temporal and spatial means are equal. This theorem allows to write in finite terms the solution of the partial differential equations of any surface wave.The general results are then applied: 1° to the diurnal pressure variation, showing that this phenomenon can be considered as a surface wave and giving the fundamental law cos³ ( latitude) for the amplitude of the progressive or travelling 12-hourly wave; 2° to the waves of the synoptic pressure variations. For these waves the relations between their characteristic parameters is first established and finally their theoretical spatial configuration or pattern is deduced.

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Communication faite le 23 Avril 1957 à la Cinquième Assemblée de la «Società Italiana di Geofisica e Meteorologia» (Genova, 23–25 Avril 1957).     

Relations entre le creusement et le comblement des perturbations et leur déplacement

Résumé On commence par définir le creusement et le comblement d'une fonctionp(, t) du tempst et des points (, ) d'une surface régulière fermée en se donnant, sur cette surface, un vecteur vitesse d'advection ou de transfert tangent à . Le creusement (ou le comblement) est la variation dep sur les particules fictives se déplaçant constamment et partout à la vitesse , A chaque vecteur et pour un mêmep(, ,t) correspond naturellement une fonction creusementC (, ,t) admissible a priori; mais une condition analytique très générale (l'intégrale du creusement sur toute la surface fermée du champ est nulle à chaque instant), à laquelle satisfont les fonctions de perturbation sur les surfaces géopotentielles, permet de restreindre beaucoup la généralité des vecteurs d'advection admissibles a priori et conduit à des vecteurs de la forme: , oùT est un scalaire régulier, () une fonction régulière de la latitude , le vecteur unitaire des verticales ascendantes etR/2 une constante. Ces vecteurs sont donc une généralisation naturelle des vitesses géostrophiques attachées à tout scalaire régulier. Dans le cas oùp(, ,t) est la perturbation de la pression sur la surface du géoïde, le vecteur d'advection par rapport auquel on doit définir le creusement est précisément une vitesse géostrophique: on a alors ()=sin etT un certain champ bien défini de température moyenne.On déduit ensuite une formule générale de géométrie et de cinématique différentielles reliant la vitesse de déplacement d'un centre ou d'un col d'un champp(, ,t) à son champ de creusementC (, ,t) et au vecteur d'advection correspondant. Cette formule peut être transformée et prend la forme d'une relation générale entre le creusement (ou le comblement) d'un centre ou d'un col et la vitesse de son déplacement, sans que le vecteur d'advection intervienne explicitement. On analyse alors les conséquences de ces formules dans les cas suivants: 1^o) perturbations circulaires dans le voisinage du centre; 2^o) perturbations ayant, dans le voisinage du centre, un axe de symétrie normal ou tangent à la vitesse du centre; 3^o) évolution normale des cyclones tropicaux.Finalement, on examine les relations qui existent entre le creusement ou le comblement d'un champ, le vecteur d'advection et la configuration des iso-lignes du champ dans le voisinage d'un centre.Ces considérations permettent d'expliquer plusieurs propriétés bien connues du comportement des perturbations dans différentes régions.

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Summary The deepening and filling (development) of a functionp(, ,t) of the timet and the points (, ) of a regular closed surface is first of all defined, in respect to a given advection or transfer velocity field tangent to , as the variation ofp on any fictitious particle moving constantly and everywhere with the velocity . For a givenp(, ,t) and to any there corresponds a well defined development fieldC (, ,t). All theseC fields are a priori admissible, but a very general analytical condition of the perturbation fields in synoptic meteorology (the integral of the development fieldC (, ,t) on any geopotential surface vanishes at any moment), leads to an important restriction to advection vectors of the form: , whereT is any regular scalar, () any regular function of latitude, the unit vector of the ascending verticals andR/2 a constant. These vectors are a natural generalisation of the geostrophic velocities attached to any regular scalar. Whenp(, ,t) is the pressure perturbation at sea level, its development must be defined in respect to a geostrophic advection vector belonging to the above defined class of vectors with ()=sin andT a well defined mean temperature field.A general formula of the differential geometry and kinematics ofp(, ,t) is then derived, giving the velocity of any centre and col of ap(, ,t) as a function of the advection vector and the corresponding development fieldC (, ,t). This formula can be transformed and takes the form of a general relation between the deepening (and filling) of a centre (or a col) of ap(, ,t) and its displament velocity, the advection vector appearing no more explicitly. A detailed analysis of the consequences of these formulae is then given for the following cases: 1^o) circular perturbations in the vicinity of a centre; 2^o) perturbations having, in the vicinity of a centre, an axis of symmetry normal or tangent to the velocity of the centre; 3^o) normal evolution of the tropical cyclones.Finally, the relations between the developmentC (, ,t) of a fieldp(, ,t), the advection velocity vector and the configuration of the iso-lines in the vicinity of a centre are analysed.These theoretical results give a rational explanation of several well known properties of the behaviour of the perturbations in different geographical regions.

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Communication à la 2ème Assemblée de la «Società Italiana di Geofisica e Meteorologia» (Gênes, 23–25 Avril 1954).