Cavities in the reefs of the Wenlock Limestone (Mid-Silurian) of Shropshire,England

Studies of the growth attitudes and internal structure of organisms in the Wenlock reefs show that cavities existed during reef growth between knobs of reef builders, between individual reef builders, between the branches of reef builders and within skeletons. Only the well sealed growth cavities escaped fill by particulate sediment on burial. The location and nature of diagenetic cavities are governed by the growth fabric of the reefs. Diagenetic cavities were formed by the dislocation of reef components during compaction and by dissolution of organisms, particularly bryozoans, that neighboured growth cavities.

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Zusammenfassung Studien der Wuchsformen und des inneren Baues von Organismen der Wenlock-Riffe zeigen, daß Hohlräume während des Riffwachstums zwischen einzelnen Riffstöcken, zwischen individuellen Kolonien sowie zwischen dem Gerüst und im Inneren der Skelette von Riffbildnern vorhanden waren. Nur vollkommen abgeschlossene, konstruktive Hohlräume sind während der Sedimentation in den Riffen nicht mit Ablagerungen gefüllt worden. Die Lage und Natur diagenetischer Hohlräume werden von den Wuchsformen der Riffe bestimmt. Hohlräume entstehen während der Diagenese durch Verlagerung von Komponenten im Gefolge von Kompaktion und durch Lösung des organischen Karbonatgerüstes; hier werden besonders Bryozoenskelette aufgelöst, die an bestehende Hohlräume angrenzen.

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Résumé Des études de positions d'accroissement et de structures intérieures des organismes dans les récifs de Wenlock montrent que des cavités existaient pendant l'accroissement du récif entre les bosses des pinacles coralliens, entre les pinacles coralliens individuels, entre les branches des pinacles coralliens et à l'intérieur des squelettes. Seules les cavités tout à fait fermées pendant l'accroissement ne furent pas comblées de sédiments détritiques lors de l'ensevelissement. La situation et la nature des cavités diagénétiques sont gouvernées par la structure des récifs. Des cavités diagénétiques furent formées par la dislocation des parties constituentes du récif pendant le tassement et par la dissolution des organismes, en particulier des bryozoaines qui bordaient les cavités formées pendant l'accroissement.

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Pristinity and petrogenesis of eucrites

New petrography, mineral chemistry, and whole rock major, minor, and trace element abundance data are reported for 29 dominantly unbrecciated basaltic (noncumulate) eucrites and one cumulate eucrite. Among unbrecciated samples, several exhibit shock darkening and impact melt veins, with incomplete preservation of primary textures. There is extensive thermal metamorphism of some eucrites, consistent with prior work. A “pristinity filter” of textural information, siderophile element abundances, and Ni/Co ratios of bulk rocks is used to address whether eucrite samples preserve endogenous refractory geochemical signatures of their asteroid parent body (i.e., Vesta), or could have experienced exogenous impact contamination. Based on these criteria, Cumulus Hills 04049, Elephant Moraine 90020, Grosvenor Range 95533, Pecora Escarpment 91245, and possibly Queen Alexander Range 97053 and Northwest Africa 1923 are pristine eucrites. Eucrite major element compositions and refractory incompatible trace element abundances are minimally affected by metamorphism or impact contamination. Eucrite petrogenesis examined through the lens of these elements is consistent with partial melting of a silicate mantle that experienced prior metal–silicate equilibrium, rather than as melts associated with cumulate diogenites. In the absence of the requirement of a large-scale magma ocean to explain eucrite petrogenesis, the interior structure of Vesta could be more heterogeneous than for larger planetary bodies.     

Ecosystem modelling in the southern Benguela: comparisons of Atlantis,Ecopath with Ecosim,and OSMOSE under fishing scenarios

Ecosystem-based management of marine fisheries requires the use of simulation modelling to investigate the system-level impact of candidate fisheries management strategies. However, testing of fundamental assumptions such as system structure or process formulations is rarely done. In this study, we compare the output of three different ecosystem models (Atlantis, Ecopath with Ecosim, and OSMOSE) applied to the same ecosystem (the southern Benguela), to explore which ecosystem effects of fishing are most sensitive to model uncertainty. We subjected the models to two contrasting fishing pressure scenarios, applying high fishing pressure to either small pelagic fish or to adult hake. We compared the resulting model behaviour at a system level, and also at the level of model groups. We analysed the outputs in terms of various commonly used ecosystem indicators, and found some similarities in the overall behaviour of the models, despite major differences in model formulation and assumptions. Direction of change in system-level indicators was consistent for all models under the hake pressure scenario, although discrepancies emerged under the small-pelagic-fish scenario. Studying biomass response of individual model groups was key to understanding more integrated system-level metrics. All three models are based on existing knowledge of the system, and the convergence of model results increases confidence in the robustness of the model outputs. Points of divergence in the model results suggest important areas of future study. The use of feeding guilds to provide indicators for fish species at an aggregated level was explored, and proved to be an interesting alternative to aggregation by trophic level.     

Characterization of weathering and heterogeneous mineral phase distribution in brachinite Northwest Africa 4872

Terrestrial weathering of hot desert achondrite meteorite finds and heterogeneous phase distributions in meteorites can complicate interpretation of petrological and geochemical information regarding parent‐body processes. For example, understanding the effects of weathering is important for establishing chalcophile and siderophile element distributions within sulfide and metal phases in meteorites. Heterogeneous mineral phase distribution in relatively coarsely grained meteorites can also lead to uncertainties relating to compositional representativeness. Here, we investigate the weathering and high‐density (e.g., sulfide, spinel, Fe‐oxide) phase distribution in sections of ultramafic achondrite meteorite Northwest Africa (NWA) 4872. NWA 4872 is an olivine‐rich brachinite (Fo_{63.6 ± 0.5}) with subsidiary pyroxene (Fs_9.7 ± 0.1Wo_{46.3 ± 0.2}), Cr‐spinel (Cr# = 70.3 ± 1.1), and weathered sulfide and metal. Raman mapping confirms that weathering has redistributed sulfur from primary troilite, resulting in the formation of Fe‐oxide (‐hydroxide) and marcasite (FeS₂). From Raman mapping, NWA 4872 is composed of olivine (89%), Ca‐rich pyroxene (0.4%), and Cr‐spinel (1.1%), with approximately 7% oxidized metal and sulfide and 2.3% marcasite‐dominated sulfide. Microcomputed tomography (micro‐CT) observations reveal high‐density regions, demonstrating heterogeneities in mineral distribution. Precision cutting of the largest high‐density region revealed a single 2 mm Cr‐spinel grain. Despite the weathering in NWA 4872, rare earth element (REE) abundances of pyroxene determined by laser‐ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA‐ICP‐MS) indicate negligible modification of these elements in this mineral phase. The REE abundances of mineral grains in NWA 4872 are consistent with formation of the meteorite as the residuum of the partial melting process that occurred on its parent body. LA‐ICP‐MS analyses of sulfide and alteration products demonstrate the mobility of Re and/or Os; however, highly siderophile element (HSE) abundance patterns remain faithful recorders of processes acting on the brachinite parent body(ies). Detailed study of weathering and phase distribution offers a powerful tool for assessing the effects of low‐temperature alteration and for identifying robust evidence for parent‐body processes.     

An inter-comparison of Arctic synoptic scale storms between four global reanalysis datasets

Climate Dynamics - The Arctic is becoming more accessible as sea ice extent continues to decline, resulting in higher human exposure to Arctic storms. This study compares Arctic storm...     

Differentiating tower karst (fenglin) and cockpit karst (fengcong) using DEM contour,slope, and centroid

The complex geometry of tropical karst landforms poses particular challenges for morphometric analysis, morphological classification and evolutionary assessment. Detailed geomorphological studies of the two most spectacular forms—tower karst (fenglin) and cockpit karst (fengcong)—have employed time consuming and labor intensive field surveys, which have yielded inconclusive and ambiguous results. This paper tests a novel discriminatory approach utilizing contour, slope and centroid derived from the ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model to differentiate between cockpit and tower karst in the Guilin area of southern China. Morphological indices are calculated to compare and contrast geomorphic variations using Object-Based Image Analysis (OBIA). The results suggest that the method provides a feasible means of differentiating between tower and cockpit landforms, and that OBIA offers a fast and semi-automatic way to extract morphological parameters.