New insights on the origin of troctolites from the breakaway area of the Godzilla Megamullion (Parece Vela back‐arc basin): The role of melt‐mantle interaction on the composition of the lower crust

The troctolites and olivine‐gabbros from the Dive 6 K‐1147 represent the most primitive gabbroic rocks collected at the Godzilla Megamullion, a giant oceanic core complex formed at an extinct spreading segment of the Parece Vela back‐arc basin (Philippine Sea). Previous investigations have shown that these rocks have textural and major elements mineral compositions consistent with a formation through multistage interaction between mantle‐derived melts and a pre‐existing ultramafic matrix. New investigations on trace element mineral compositions basically agree with this hypothesis. Clinopyroxenes and plagioclase have incompatible element signatures similar to that of typical‐MORB. However, the clinopyroxenes show very high Cr contents (similar to those of mantle clinopyroxene) and rim having sharply higher Zr/REE ratios with respect to the core. These features are in contrast with an evolution constrained by fractional crystallization processes, and suggest that the clinopyroxene compositions are controlled by melt‐rock interaction processes. The plagioclase anorthite versus clinopyroxene Mg#[Mg/(Mg + Fe^Tot)] correlation of the Dive 6 K‐1147 rocks shows a trend much steeper than those depicted by other oceanic gabbroic sections. Using a thermodynamic model, we show that this trend is reproducible by fractionation of melts assimilating 1 g of mantle peridotite per 1 °C of cooling. This model predicts the early crystallization of high Mg# clinopyroxene, consistent with our petrological observation. The melt‐peridotite interaction process produces Na‐rich melts causing the crystallization of plagioclase with low anorthite component, typically characterizing the evolved gabbros from Godzilla Megamullion.     

Silicate‐oxide mineral chemistry of mafic–ultramafic rocks as an indicator of the roots of an island arc: The Chilas Complex,Kohistan (Pakistan)

The Chilas Complex is a major lower crustal component of the Cretaceous Kohistan island arc and one of the largest exposed slices of arc magma chamber in the world. Covering more than 8000 km², it reaches a current tectonic width of around 40 km. It was emplaced at 85 Ma during rifting of the arc soon after the collision of the arc with the Karakoram plate. Over 85% of the Complex comprises homogeneous, olivine‐free gabbronorite and subordinate orthopyroxene–quartz diorite association (MGNA), which contains bodies of up to 30 km² of ultramafic–mafic–anorthositic association (UMAA) rocks. Primary cumulate textures, igneous layering, and sedimentary structures are well preserved in layered parts of the UMAA in spite of pervasive granulite facies metamorphism. Mineral analyses show that the UMAA is characterized by more magnesian and more aluminous pyroxene and more calcic plagioclase than those in the MGNA. High modal abundances of orthopyroxene, magnetite and ilmenite (in MGNA), general Mg–Fe–Al spatial variations, and an MFA plot of whole‐rock analyses suggest a calc‐alkaline origin for the Complex. Projection of the pyroxene compositions on the Wo–En–Fs face is akin to those of pyroxenes from island arcs gabbros. The presence of highly calcic plagioclase and hornblende in UMAA is indicative of hydrous parental arc magma. The complex may be a product of two‐stage partial melting of a rising mantle diaper. The MGNA rocks represent the earlier phase melting, whereas the UMAA magma resulted from the melting of the same source depleted by the extraction of the earlier melt phase. Some of the massive peridotites in the UMAA may either be cumulates or represent metasomatized and remobilized upper mantle. The Chilas Complex shows similarities with many other (supra)subduction‐related mafic–ultramafic complexes worldwide.     

The Godzilla Megamullion,the largest oceanic core complex on the earth: a historical review

The Godzilla Megamullion is the largest known oceanic core complex (OCC) on the Earth, located in the Parece Vela Basin in the Philippine Sea. In this article, the history of Godzilla Megamullion study is reviewed for the first time, dividing it into three major phases: (i) the early studies done before Japan's extended continental shelf survey program; (ii) the studies during Japan's extended continental shelf survey program that discovered the OCC; and (iii) the studies by the post‐discovery cruises. The early studies included an interpretation of US nautical chart of the southwestern Pacific and the site surveys for Deep Sea Drilling Project cruises (DSDP Legs 6, 31 and 59). The early studies recognized the presence of the Parece Vela Rift, the extinct spreading axis of the Parece Vela Basin, and established the currently accepted model that the Philippine Sea evolved with eastward progression of backarc spreading and arc migration. The modern understanding of the Parece Vela Basin comes from Japan's extended continental shelf survey program. The program revealed the ultramafic petrology as well as a two‐stage evolution model of the basin. Following these results, the discovery of the Godzilla Megamullion was made in 2001. The studies by the post‐discovery cruises further revealed important characteristics of the OCC, such as the presence of abundant plagioclase‐bearing peridotite and the systematic temporal changes in both deformation microstructures and composition of plagioclase and amphibole in gabbroic mylonites and ultramylonites. Zircon U–Pb ages of gabboric and leucocratic rocks indicate that the terminal phase of Parece Vela Basin spreading was with a significant decline in spreading rate and asymmetry accompanying formation of the Godzilla Megamullion. The estimated denudation rate of the OCC was approximately 2.5 cm/yr; significantly slower than the previous estimate based on poorly constrained magnetic data.     

Genetic algorithm for fitting a mixed Bingham distribution to 3D orientations: a tool for the statistical and paleostress analyses of fracture orientations

The clustering of fracture orientations is important for tectonic studies and for geotechnical engineering. In this study, a real‐coded genetic algorithm was adopted to fitting a mixed Bingham distribution to orientation data by maximizing the log‐likelihood function of the distribution. The maximization is a difficult problem, because the function has multimodality and singularity. It was found that the algorithm was effective for this problem. Given the orientations of dilational fractures, the present method determines not only the stress axes and stress ratio of each of the fracture groups but also the maximum non‐dimensionalized fluid pressure at the time of their formation. In addition, the software calculates the 95 % error ellipses of the concentration axes. The present method found that the orientations of ore veins of the Akenobe Mine, SW Japan, should be partitioned into three clusters. It is shown that two of the groups had distinctive Zn and Sn contents, and that the ore fluids had overpressures only slightly greater than the minimum principal stress at the time of the deposition of Zn‐ and Sn‐rich veins.     

A new Lower Triassic (Induan) Jerus Limestone locality in northwest Pahang,Peninsular Malaysia: Conodont fauna,depositional and tectonic settings

Limestones exposed north of Raub, Pahang, Malaysia, and sandwiched between the Bentong‐Raub Suture Zone and the westernmost margin of the Sukhothai Arc terrane, yield a late Dienerian (late Induan) conodont fauna. The co‐occurrence of Neospathodus dieneri Sweet (morphotypes 1, 2 and 3) and Neospathodus pakistanensis Sweet represents the Neospathodus dieneri morphotype 3 sub‐zone of the Neospathodus dieneri Zone. The sampled limestones are interpreted as the northwards extension of the Jerus Limestone which crops out near Cheroh and Jerus villages, significantly extending the known outcrop of the Jerus Limestone northwards. The Jerus Limestone is interpreted as hemipelagic and formed in a foredeep or forearc setting on top of the accretionary complex formed by eastwards subduction of the Palaeo‐Tethys during the Lower to Middle Triassic.     

Isolated Archosaur teeth from the green sandstone capping the Coralline Limestone (Bagh Group) of the Narmada valley: Evidence for the presence of pre‐Late to Late Maastrichtian abelisaurids in India

Recent field prospecting in the Cretaceous sequences of the lower Narmada valley has led to the discovery of three isolated archosaur teeth from the upper part of marine Cretaceous rocks of the Bagh Group. The specimens were recovered by surface prospecting from an oyster‐bearing green sandstone bed occurring at the top of the Coralline Limestone (Coniacian) from a site near Phutibawri village, Dhar District, Madhya Pradesh, India. Of the three teeth recovered from this horizon, two are identified with abelisaurid dinosaurs and the third one with an indeterminate crocodile. The abelisaurid teeth conform to the premaxillary and maxillary tooth morphology of Majungasaurus and Indosuchus. Earlier reports of abelisaurid dinosaurs from India are from the Upper Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) Lameta Group of Jabalpur, Pisdura (Central India) and Balasinor (Western India) and Upper Cretaceous (Late Maastrichtian) Kallamedu Formation (South India). As no associated age diagnostic fossils are found, the specimens described here are considered to represent pre‐Late to Late Maastrichtian age based on the known ages of the underlying and overlying formations. The new finds, therefore, document stratigraphically the oldest occurrence of abelisaurid dinosaurs known from the Indian subcontinent.     

基于高斯曲线拟合-FFT方法的南海风场反演

海面风场是海洋学的基本参量,获取海面风场对了解海洋的物理过程以及海洋与大气之间的相互作用至关重要。宽阔的海域面积及复杂的海面状况通常使南海海面上的风场信息很难被及时获取。ENVISAT ASAR是一种全天候全天时监测海面的微波雷达传感器,可实时获取海面风场数据。本文基于已有ASAR数据对南海海面风场进行反演实验,首先将结合高斯曲线拟合的FFT风向反演方法应用于南海风向反演,并参考Cross-Calibrated Multi-Platform （CCMP）风场数据去除180o方向模糊获得海面风向。然后,将高斯曲线拟合-FFT风向与传统的峰值-FFT风向进行对比,最后将准确率较高的高斯曲线拟合-FFT风向分别输入CMOD4模型和CMOD5模型获得海面风速大小。实验结果与CCMP参考数据的比较结果表明,在风条纹不明显的情况下,利用结合高斯曲线的FFT风向反演方法和CMOD4模型风速反演方法可有效地进行南海海面风场反演。该成果对利用SAR数据实时获取南海大面积海面风场信息,尤其是观测点缺乏海域的风场信息,具有重要的指导意义。     

川中地区上三叠统须四段砂体成因及对油气运移影响分析

川中地区上三叠统须四段砂体沉积过程中,由于构造活动强弱的变化,导致物源供应速率与可容纳空间增长之间关系的变化,须四段厚层砂体自下而上由水退式、加积式和水进式3种不同成因类型的砂组纵向叠合而成.水退式砂组主要由高能削截式河道、削截式河口坝和远砂坝组成,加积式砂组主要包括冲蚀下切式河道和高能削截式河道,水进式砂组主要包括低能河道、低能削截式河道、完整式河口坝和下缺式河口坝.不同砂组中砂体类型不同,颗粒大小分异不同,水动力强弱的差异,不同成因砂体间形成了不同的成岩相和储集相,加积式砂组以绿泥石衬边和溶蚀成岩相为主,物性好,为好的储集体;水进式砂组由压实和胶结相为主,物性较差;水退式砂组中溶蚀相和胶结相发育,物性较好,为中等的储集体.须四段三种成因砂组中,加积式砂组中发育高能削截式河道,形成了在平面上广泛分布的高能水道,砂体厚度大,延伸长,发育有利的成岩相,物性较好,为油气的富集提供了足够的空间;同时加积式砂组与水退式砂组呈沉积不整合相接触,呈现相嵌关系,对天然气的运移起到通道作用,加积砂组向上的水进式砂组容易发生储层致密化,形成有利的盖层,使加积式砂组发育区成为川中天然气富集的有利部位.     

藏南日喀则地区白垩纪泥岩、页岩有机质丰度及其油气地质意义

对藏南发育完整的、厚度巨大的海相白垩纪地层中的暗色泥、页岩开展了有机质丰度研究。综合分析结果表明：该区泥、页岩中残余有机碳含量在0.05％~1.1％之间,平均值约为0.42％,其中下白垩统约为0.531％,上白垩统约为0.265％,有机碳平均含量变化特征与该区的古地理格局及海平面升降有关。氯仿沥青‘A’含量在0.0009％~0.0072％之间,平均含量约为0.0040％。有机碳与氯仿沥青‘A’最大值与最小值之比分别为22和8。有机碳与氯仿沥青‘A’这种弱负相关性与两者遭受剧烈的地表风化作用、强烈的紫外线照射和高程度有机质热演化后的损失量有关,后者远大于前者。白垩系残余有机碳含量大于0.6％的中等—好生油岩样10件,占样品总数的27％,下白垩统样品9件,占样品总数的24.3％,上白垩统样品1件,占样品总数的2.7％,表明来自北喜马拉雅地区东山组和康马—隆子地区甲不拉组的早白垩世泥、页岩为该区主要的有效生油岩。     

A grain-size record from Beijing region in Northern China: Late Quaternary paleoclimate oscillation in response to global change

Numerous samples taken from one core at the Beijing plain were utilized to characterize the paleoclimatic configuration of the study area and its possible relation to global control since the last interglaciation. We presented here a detailed grain-size record for the full length of Late Pleistocene, along with the optical simulated luminescence (OSL) dating. Our findings revealed that Late Pleistocene of the study area started approximately at 110 ka B.P. represented by the thick sediments of 31 m in Changping depression. Four sedimentary cycles were outlined in the core during Late Pleistocene, corresponding to marine isotope stage (MIS) 5 to 2. Controlled by regional geology and global climatic setting, eight paleoclimatic periods were identified simultaneously in the study area on the time scale of 10⁴ year, with the warm and moist climate being found at 110 — 96, 92 — 76, 67 — 56, and 28 — 18 ka B.P.. The climatic instabilities on a millennial scale in Late Pleistocene were characterized largely by the occurrence of 6 strong Heinrich events shown by comparatively coarse groups. These variations correlate well with those documented in the GRIP Greenland and in the Northern Atlantic Ocean, though more complex features may exist on the long time scale.