Experimental data on the speciation of sulfur as a function of oxygen fugacity in basaltic melts

The speciation of sulfur as a function of oxygen fugacity was calculated in glasses of basaltic composition saturated experimentally with either sulfide or sulfate phases. The experiments were conducted on mixtures of synthetic and natural materials equilibrated at 1300 °C and 1 GPa in a piston-cylinder apparatus. Sulfur speciation was calculated by measuring the peak shift of the sulfur Kα radiation relative to a sulfide standard, whereas oxygen fugacity was calculated from the composition of olivine and spinel present in the assemblages. The results are consistent with sulfur being present as sulfite (S⁴⁺) in addition to sulfate (S⁶⁺) in oxidized melts. Therefore, sulfur speciation derived from SKα peak shifts should be seen as ”sulfate mole fraction equivalents“ (X(S⁶⁺)_eq.). Using the data available, an empiric function:

X(S6+)_eq.=0.86/(1+exp(2.89−2.23ΔFMQ))     

Low‐frequency modulation and trend of the relationship between ENSO and precipitation along the northern to centre Peruvian Pacific coast

The relationship between El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and precipitation along the Peruvian Pacific coast is investigated over 1964–2011 on the basis of a variety of indices accounting for the different types of El Niño events and atmospheric and oceanographic manifestations of the interannual variability in the tropical Pacific. We show the existence of fluctuations in the ENSO/precipitation relationship at decadal timescales that are associated with the ENSO property changes over the recent decades. Several indices are considered in order to discriminate the influence of the two types of El Niño, namely, the eastern Pacific El Niño and the central Pacific El Niño, as well as the influence of large‐scale atmospheric variability associated to the Madden and Julian Oscillation, and of regional oceanic conditions. Three main periods are identified that correspond to the interleave periods between the main climatic transitions over 1964–2011, i.e. the shifts of the 1970s and the 2000s, over which ENSO experiences significant changes in its characteristics. We show that the relationship between ENSO and precipitation along the western coast of Peru has experienced significant decadal change. Whereas El Niño events before 2000 lead to increased precipitation, in the 2000s, ENSO is associated to drier conditions. This is due to the change in the main ENSO pattern after 2000 that is associated to cooler oceanic conditions off Peru during warm events (i.e. central Pacific El Niño). Our analysis also indicates that the two extreme El Niño events of 1982/1983 and 1997/1998 have overshadowed actual trends in the relationship between interannual variability in the tropical Pacific and precipitation along the coast of Peru. Overall, our study stresses on the complexity of the hydrological cycle on the western side of the Andes with regard to its relationship with the interannual to decadal variability in the tropical Pacific. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Exploring the time geography of public transport networks with the gtfs2gps package

Journal of Geographical Systems - The creation of the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) in the mid-2000s provided a new data format for cities to organize and share digital information on...     

Relative risk assessment of cruise ships biosolids disposal alternatives

A relative risk assessment of biosolids disposal alternatives for cruise ships is presented in this paper. The area of study encompasses islands and marine waters of the Caribbean Sea. The objective was to evaluate relative human health and ecological risks of (a) dewatering/incineration, (b) landing the solids for disposal, considering that in some countries land-disposed solids might be discharged in the near-shore environment untreated, and (c) deep ocean disposal. Input to the Bayesian assessment consisted of professional judgment based on available literature and modeling information, data on constituent concentrations in cruise ship biosolids, and simulations of constituent concentrations in Caribbean waters assuming ocean disposal. Results indicate that human health and ecological risks associated with land disposal and shallow ocean disposal are higher than those of the deep ocean disposal and incineration. For incineration, predicted ecological impacts were lower relative to deep ocean disposal before considering potential impacts of carbon emissions.     

Assessment of site-effects using acceleration time series. Application to São Sebastião volcanic crater

The Azores archipelago is located at the North America, Eurasia and Africa triple junction and shows seismicity and volcanism typical of an active plate boundary. Terceira Island has been affected by several damaging earthquakes being the 1980 January 1st event (M=7.2) the strongest in Azores during the last century.     

Complex size-dependent habitat associations in potamodromous fish species

Knowledge of the distribution of species life stages at multiple spatial scales is fundamental to both a proper assessment of species management and conservation programmes and the ability to predict the consequences of human disturbances for river systems. The habitat requirements of three native cyprinid species—the Iberian barbel Barbus bocagei Steindachner, the Iberian straight-mouth nase Pseudochondrostoma polylepis (Steindachner), and the Northern straight-mouth nase Pseudochondrostoma duriense (Coelho)—were examined at 174 undisturbed or minimally disturbed sites in 8 river catchments across western Iberia, by modelling occurrence and counts of species life stages at two spatial scales—large (regional) and instream (local)—using hurdle models. All the life stages of the barbel showed a negative association with upstream high-gradient river reaches, whereas juvenile P. duriense favoured such areas. Stream width and openness were negatively related with the occurrence of juvenile and small adult barbel, but not with large adults. Juvenile nase, on the other hand, were found to be mainly confined to fast-flowing habitats with high instream cover and coarser substrata. Advanced life stages of the barbel were mainly associated with the “pure” regional and shared components, whereas the purely local attributes accounted for much of the model variation among nases, in particular juveniles, and juvenile barbel. The results of this study are useful for setting or refining management goals, and highlight the need to separately consider life stages when performing conservation-related studies of species distribution.     

Identification of magnetic minerals related to hydrocarbon authigenesis in venezuelan oil fields using an alternative decomposition of isothermal remanence curves

In this work we try to better characterise the shallow magnetic signature of hydrocarbon microseepage in oil fields from eastern and western Venezuela. To get a better insight of the processes involved, we attempt to find out the main magnetic phases responsible for the observed oil-related shallow magnetic anomalies. In this way, a new and alternative numerical approach to decompose Isothermal Remagnetization (IRM) curves is introduced. The method is based on a Direct Signal Analysis (DSA) of the IRM curve in order to identify the number and type of magnetic components. Representative wells from western (La Victoria) and eastern (San Joaquín) Venezuelan fields are studied. The DSA approach, together with rock magnetic experimental results, indicates that in the well from western Venezuela the main magnetic mineralogy associated to hydrocarbon microseepage is magnetite. Conversely, in the well from eastern Venezuela, these MS anomalies are mainly caused by the presence of Fe-sulphides (i.e. greigite). These results support the hypothesis of two different authigenic processes. For the well at the western field, we propose that a net electron transfer from the organic matter, degraded by hydrocarbon gas leakage, should occur precipitating Fe(II) magnetic minerals (e.g. magnetite). On the other hand, in the well of the eastern field, high concentrations of H2S at shallow levels, might allow the formation of secondary Fe-sulphides.     

Triterpenols in mangrove sediments as a proxy for organic matter derived from the red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle)

Mangroves are the dominant type of vegetation along many tropical coasts. Organic matter (OM) derived from mangrove leaf litter and root material is stored in sediments and is a major contributor to the amount and chemical composition of sedimentary OM. A set of organic biomarkers in sediments was applied as a palaeo-indicator for the Holocene dynamics of a mangrove Estuary (Rio Caeté, Pará, Brazil). Six sediment cores were collected perpendicular to the present coast line and analysed for triterpenols and sitosterol. The influence of microbial biomarker degradation was implemented from a previous study. Biomarker profiles were validated with pollen data and multivariate statistics to test whether these compounds were suitable indicators for the palaeo-vegetation. Sediments deposited up to 2 Ma BP showed biomarker assemblages similar to those of recent surface sediment. In two cores, the biomarker composition revealed a transition from marsh to mangrove vegetation. Taraxerol, germanicol and β-amyrin provided the most significant chemotaxonomical information and, especially in combination, served as reliable proxies for OM from Rhizophora mangle in northern Brazil. The maximum age of the mangrove system ranged between 1000 and 5100 yr depending on the topographic elevation of the drilling location.     

Discrimination of coastal wetland environments in the Amazon region based on multi-polarized L-band airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar imagery

This study assessed the use of multi-polarized L-band images for the identification of coastal wetland environments in the Amazon coast region of northern Brazil. Data were acquired with a SAR R99B sensor from the Amazon Surveillance System (SIVAM) on board a Brazilian Air Force jet. Flights took place in the framework of the 2005 MAPSAR simulation campaign, a German-Brazilian feasibility study focusing on a L-band SAR satellite. Information retrieval was based on the recognition of the interaction between a radar signal and shallow-water morphology in intertidal areas, coastal dunes, mangroves, marshes and the coastal plateau. Regarding the performance of polarizations, VV was superior for recognizing intertidal area morphology under low spring tide conditions; HH for mapping coastal environments covered with forest and scrub vegetation such as mangrove and vegetated dunes, and HV was suitable for distinguishing transition zones between mangroves and coastal plateau. The statistical results for the classification maps expressed by kappa index and general accuracy were 83.3% and 0.734 for the multi-polarized color composition (R-HH, G-HV, B-VV), 80.7% and 0.694% for HH, 79.7% and 0.673% for VV, and 77.9% and 0.645% for HV amplitude image. The results indicate that use of multi-polarized L-band SAR is a valuable source of information aiming at the identification and discrimination of distinct geomorphic targets in tropical wetlands.