Timing and pace of ice-sheet withdrawal across the marine–terrestrial transition west of Ireland during the last glaciation

Understanding the pace and drivers of marine-based ice-sheet retreat relies upon the integration of numerical ice-sheet models with observations from contemporary polar ice sheets and well-constrained palaeo-glaciological reconstructions. This paper provides a reconstruction of the retreat of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) from the Atlantic shelf west of Ireland during and following the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). It uses marine-geophysical data and sediment cores dated by radiocarbon, combined with terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide and optically stimulated luminescence dating of onshore ice-marginal landforms, to reconstruct the timing and rate of ice-sheet retreat from the continental shelf and across the adjoining coastline of Ireland, thus including the switch from a marine- to a terrestrially-based ice-sheet margin. Seafloor bathymetric data in the form of moraines and grounding-zone wedges on the continental shelf record an extensive ice sheet west of Ireland during the LGM which advanced to the outer shelf. This interpretation is supported by the presence of dated subglacial tills and overridden glacimarine sediments from across the Porcupine Bank, a westwards extension of the Irish continental shelf. The ice sheet was grounded on the outer shelf at ~26.8 ka cal bp with initial retreat underway by 25.9 ka cal bp. Retreat was not a continuous process but was punctuated by marginal oscillations until ~24.3 ka cal bp. The ice sheet thereafter retreated to the mid-shelf where it formed a large grounding-zone complex at ~23.7 ka cal bp. This retreat occurred in a glacimarine environment. The Aran Islands on the inner continental shelf were ice-free by ~19.5 ka bp and the ice sheet had become largely terrestrially based by 17.3 ka bp. This suggests that the Aran Islands acted to stabilize and slow overall ice-sheet retreat once the BIIS margin had reached the inner shelf. Our results constrain the timing of initial retreat of the BIIS from the outer shelf west of Ireland to the period of minimum global eustatic sea level. Initial retreat was driven, at least in part, by glacio-isostatically induced, high relative sea level. Net rates of ice-sheet retreat across the shelf were slow (62–19 m a⁻¹) and reduced (8 m a⁻¹) as the ice sheet vacated the inner shelf and moved onshore. A picture therefore emerges of an extensive BIIS on the Atlantic shelf west of Ireland, in which early, oscillatory retreat was followed by slow episodic retreat which decelerated further as the ice margin became terrestrially based. More broadly, this demonstrates the importance of localized controls, in particular bed topography, on modulating the retreat of marine-based sectors of ice sheets.     

Geochemistry and petrogenesis of the tertiary alkaline volcanic suite of the Labe tectonovolcanic zone,Czech Republic

Summary The Tertiary alkaline, nepheline-normative olivine melanephelinite-basanite-phonolite suite in the Labe tectono-volcanic zone, Czech Republic, displays mineralogical and geochemical features indicative of the presence of products of more than one fractionation series and of more than one parental magma. The Mg- and Ni-rich olivine melanephelinites (ankaratrites), which contain disintegrated lherzolite xenoliths, represent low degree (c. 4%) partial melts of a highly enriched mande source. Many of the abundant basanitic rocks also represent primary or near-primary basaltic melts subject to a small but variable degree Fof olivine fractionation. Other basanites with lower mg-numbers and Mg and Ni contents had a crystallization history involving hornblende and phlogopite.Melaphonolites (tephriphonolites) provide a link between basaltic rocks and phonolites with plagioclase fractionation progressively playing a more significant role. The phonolites represent products of crystallization of highly evolved melts but poor correlation between SiO₂, MgO, CaO, Na₂O and degree of undersaturation as well as between major and trace element contents indicate that a single line of descent cannot have been in operation: the products of different parental magmas showing a wide compositional range that evolved under different conditions of fractionation are represented. A very advanced stage of magma evolution, characterized by the dominance of alkali feldspar fractionation is represented by phonolites that contain the highest Hf, Nb, Rb, Ta, Th, Y, Zr and REE in the whole Tertiary volcanic suite.

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Geochemie und Petrogenese der tertiären alkalischen Vulkanit-Serie der Labe tektonovulkanischen Zone, Tschechische Republik

Zusammenfassung Die tertiäre alkalische Nephelin-normative Olivin Melanephelinit-Basanit-Phonolit Serie in der Labe tektono-vulkanischen Zone, Tschechische Republik, zeigt mineralogische und geochemische Eigenschaften, die auf die Anwesenheit von Produkten von mehr als einer Fraktionierungsserie und von mehr als einem Ausgangsmagma hinweisen. Die Mg- und Ni-reichen Olivin Melanephelinite (Ankaratrite), die umgewandelte LherzolitXenolite enthalten, stellen einen niedrigen Grad (ca. 4%) teilweiser Aufschmelzung einer stark angereicherten Mantelquelle dar. Viele der verbreiteten basanitischen Gesteine stellen auch primäre oder fast-primäre basaltische Schmelzen dar, die in kleinem, aber schwankendem Ausmaß von Olivinfraktionierung betroffen wurden. Andere Basanite mit niedrigen Mg-Zahlen und Mg- und Ni-Gehalten hatten eine Kristallisationsgeschichte in der Hornblende und Phlogopit eine Rolle spielte.Melaphonolite (Tephriphonolite) stellen ein Verbindungsglied zwischen basaltischen Gesteinen und Phonoliten dar, wobei Plagioklas-Fraktionierung eine zunehmend größere Rolle spielt. Phonolite sind Produkte der Kristallisation von Schmelzen, aber die schlechte Korrelation zwischen SiO₂, MgO, CaO, Na₂O und dem Grad der Untersättigung, wie auch zwischen Haupt- und Spurenelementen weist darauf hin, daß eine einzelne Entwicklungslinie nicht in Frage kommt. Die Produkte verschiedener Ausgangsmagmen zeigen ein weites Spektrum verschiedener Zusammensetzung, das sich unter verschiedenen Bedingungen der Fraktionierung entwickelt hat. Ein sehr fortgeschrittenes Stadium der Magmaentwicklung, charakterisiert durch die Vorherrschaft von Alkali-Feldspat-Fraktionierung wird durch Phonolite dargestellt, die die höchsten Gehalte an Hf, Nb, Rb, Ta, Th, Y, Zr und REE in der gesamten tertiären vulkanischen Abfolge führen.

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With 7 Figures     

Discussion on Tunis Soft Soil Sensitivity

In Tunis City, the sensitivity of the marine deposits at shallow depth (z = 0–20 m) varies significantly. The influence of the process of the leaching out of Tunis soft soil on its geotechnical parameters is a focal point in this research. This process leads finally to moderate levels of sensitivity for Tunis clays since it appears to happen in a two steps with increasing sensitivity. The “hard water” leaching out and the dispersive action of organic matter (humus) lead unexpectedly to higher but still moderate level of sensitivity as measured on many Tunis sites. These sensitivity variations result from the combination of leaching out with hard ground water and high content of organic matter. This sensitivity attracted our attention and remains of high interest for the study of the behaviour of the Tunis soft clay.     

Turbidite stacking patterns in salt‐controlled minibasins: Insights from integrated analogue models and numerical fluid flow simulations

The sea floor of intraslope minibasins on passive continental margins plays a significant role in controlling turbidity current pathways and the resulting sediment distribution. To address this, laboratory analogue modelling of intraslope minibasin formation is combined with numerical flow simulations of multi‐event turbidity currents. This approach permits an improved understanding of evolving flow–bathymetry–deposit interactions and the resulting internal stacking patterns of the infills of such minibasins. The bathymetry includes a shelf to slope channel followed by an upper minibasin, which are separated by a confining ridge from two lower minibasins that compares well with analogous bathymetries reported from natural settings. From a wider range of numerical flow experiments, a series of 100 consecutive flows is reported in detail. The turbidity currents are released into the channel and upon reaching the upper minibasin follow a series of stages from short initial ponding, ‘filling and spilling’ and an extended transition to long retrogradational ponding. Upon reaching the upper minibasin floor, the currents undergo a hydraulic jump and therefore much sediment is deposited in the central part of the minibasin and the counterslope. This modifies the bathymetry such that in the fill and spill stage, flow stripping and grain‐size partitioning cause some finer sediment to be transported across the confining ridge into the lower minibasins. Throughout the basin infill process, the sequences retrograde upstream, accompanied by lateral switching into locally formed depressions in the upper minibasin. After the fill and spill stage, significant deposition occurs in the channel where retrograding cyclic steps with wavelengths of 1 to 2 km develop as a function of pulsating flow criticality. These results are at variance with conventional schemes that emphasize sequential downstream minibasin filling through ponding dominated by vertical aggradation. Comparison of these results with published field and experimental examples provides support for the main conclusions.     

Pre-Variscan basement rocks in southern Poland: Where is the southeastern margin of eastern Avalonia (Cadomia)?

Summary Pre-Variscan basement in southern Poland is poorly exposed and thus known mostly from subsurface data. The availability of the latter is reviewed for terrains located between the Sudetes and the East European Platform. In these terrains the following relationships have been documented: Cadomian granitoids capped by Variscan flysch, Palaeozoic platform strata, Palaeozic folded and partly thermally altered successions, and low-grade metamorphic rocks overlain by Middle Cambrian strata. In view of their interrelationships the location of the Avalonia-Baltica suture in southeastern Poland is uncertain.     

o,p′-DDT induction of vitellogenesis and its inhibition by tamoxifen in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

In order to investigate the mechanism by which o,p′-DDT disrupts endocrine functioning of Nile tilapia in vivo, the estrogenicity of o,p′-DDT was investigated in conjunction with 17β-estradiol (E₂) and tamoxifen. Mature, male tilapia were treated intraperitoneally with o,p′-DDT (60 mg/kg, one dose) or E₂ (5 mg/kg, four doses) in the presence or absence of tamoxifen (5 mg/kg, six doses) for 12 days and then plasma vitellogenin (Vtg) (measured as alkaline-labile phosphorous), E₂, and testosterone (T) were measured. Vtg levels were increased dramatically by E₂ (1744±171 μg/ml) and moderately by o,p′-DDT (82±15 μg/ml) compared with controls (23±3.5 μg/ml). Tamoxifen alone had no effect on Vtg production, but inhibited both E₂ and o,p′-DDT stimulated vitellogenesis. T levels were reduced with E₂ administration (1688±383 pg/ml) and declined further with the combined treatment of E₂ and tamoxifen (281±70 pg/ml), compared with controls (6558±1438 pg/ml). Tamoxifen or o,p′-DDT alone did not affect T levels, but their combined treatment did (2069±647 pg/ml). The results of this study suggest that o,p′-DDT is weakly estrogenic in male tilapia, and that this activity may be mediated through the estrogen receptor.     

Search for purines and pyrimidines in the Murchison meteorite

A 1 g interior sample of the Murchison CII meteorite was examined for the presence of purines and pyrimidines by dual-column, ion-exclusion chromatography and ultraviolet spectroscopy. Xanthine, not previously reported in meteorites, was found to be the major purine liberated by extraction with formic acid, with a concentration corresponding to 2.3 μg/g of meteorite. Guanine (0.1 ppm) and hypoxanthine (0.04 ppm) were also tentatively identified. The presence of adenine could not be confirmed. No pyrimidines were detected at concentrations higher than the background level (0.01 ppm) in water, formic acid or strong acid extracts. Silylation of the water extract, however, resulted in the appearance of 4-hydroxypyrimidine, 4-hydroxy-2-methylpyrimidine and 4-hydroxy-6-methylpyrimidine. These compounds are-though to be formed during the silylation procedure from contaminants present in the reagent.     

Mixing of magmas from enriched and depleted mantle sources in the northeast Pacific: West Valley segment,Juan de Fuca Ridge

The 50 km-long West Valley segment of the northern Juan de Fuca Ridge is a young, extension-dominated spreading centre, with volcanic activity concentrated in its southern half. A suite of basalts dredged from the West Valley floor, the adjacent Heck Seamount chain, and a small near-axis cone here named Southwest Seamount, includes a spectrum of geochemical compositions ranging from highly depleted normal (N-) MORB to enriched (E-) MORB. Heck Seamount lavas have chondrite-normalized La/Sm_cn0.3, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.70235–0.70242, and ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=18.22–18.44, requiring a source which is highly depleted in trace elements both at the time of melt generation and over geologic time. The E-MORB from Southwest Seamount have La/Sm_cn1.8, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.70245–0.70260, and ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=18.73–19.15, indicating a more enriched source. Basalts from the West Valley floor have chemical compositions intermediate between these two end-members. As a group, West Valley basalts from a two-component mixing array in element-element and element-isotope plots which is best explained by magma mixing. Evidence for crustal-level magma mixing in some basalts includes mineral-melt chemical and isotopic disequilibrium, but mixing of melts at depth (within the mantle) may also occur. The mantle beneath the northern Juan de Fuca Ridge is modelled as a plum-pudding, with plums of enriched, amphibole-bearing peridotite floating in a depleted matrix (DM). Low degrees of melting preferentially melt the plums, initially removing only the amphibole component and producing alkaline to transitional E-MORB. Higher degrees of melting tap both the plums and the depleted matrix to yield N-MORB. The subtly different isotopic compositions of the E-MORBs compared to the N-MORBs require that any enriched component in the upper mantle was derived from a depleted source. If the enriched component crystallized from fluids with a DM source, the plums could evolve to their more evolved isotopic composition after a period of 1.5–2.0 Ga. Alternatively, the enriched component could have formed recently from fluids with a less-depleted source than DM, such as subducted oceanic crust. A third possibility is that enriched material might be dispersed as plums throughout the upper mantle, transported from depth by mantle plumes.     

Predicting catchment sediment yield in Mediterranean environments: the importance of sediment sources and connectivity in Italian drainage basins

Predicting sediment yield at the catchment scale is one of the main challenges in geomorphologic research. The application of both physics‐based models and regression models has until now not provided very satisfying results for prediction of sediment yield for medium to large sized catchments (c. >50 km²). The explanation for this lies in a combination of the large data requirements of most models and a lack of knowledge to describe all processes and process interactions at the catchment scale. In particular, point sources of sediment (e.g. gullies, mass movements), connectivity and sediment transport remain difficult to describe in most models. From reservoir sedimentation data of 44 Italian catchments, it appeared that there was a (non‐significant) positive relation between catchment area and sediment yield. This is in contrast to what is generally expected from the theory of decreasing sediment delivery rates with increasing catchment area. Furthermore, this positive relation suggests that processes other than upland erosion are responsible for catchment sediment yield. Here we explore the potential of the Factorial Scoring Model (FSM) and the Pacific Southwest Interagency Committee (PSIAC) model to predict sediment yield, and indicate the most important sediment sources. In these models different factors are used to characterize a drainage basin in terms of sensitivity to erosion and connectivity. In both models an index is calculated that is related to sediment yield. The FSM explained between 36 and 61 per cent of the variation in sediment yield, and the PSIAC model between 57 and 62 per cent, depending on the factors used to characterize the catchments. The FSM model performed best based on a factor to describe gullies, lithology, landslides, catchment shape and vegetation. Topography and catchment area did not explain additional variance. In particular, the addition of the landslide factor resulted in a significantly increased model performance. The FSM and PSIAC model both performed better than a spatially distributed model describing water erosion and sediment transport, which was applied to the same catchments but explained only between 20 and 51 per cent of the variation in sediment yield. Model results confirmed the hypothesis that processes other than upland erosion are probably responsible for sediment yield in the Italian catchments. A promising future development of the models is by the use of detailed spatially distributed data to determine the scores, decrease model subjectivity and provide spatially distributed output. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.