Paleolatitudes of the Kerguelen hotspot: new paleomagnetic results and dynamic modeling

The Kerguelen Plateau, a Large Igneous Province in the southern Indian Ocean, was formed as a product of the Kerguelen hotspot in several eruptive phases during the last 120 Myr. We obtained new paleolatitudes for the central and northern Kerguelen Plateau from paleomagnetic investigations on basalts, which were drilled during ODP Leg 183 to the Kerguelen Plateau-Broken Ridge. The paleolatitudes coincide with paleolatitudes from previous investigations at the Kerguelen Plateau and Ninetyeast Ridge (the track of the Kerguelen hotspot) and indicate a difference between paleolatitudes and present position at 49°S of the Kerguelen hotspot. We show that true polar wander, the global motion between the mantle and the rotation axis, cannot explain this difference in latitudes. We present numerical model results of plume conduit motion in a large-scale mantle flow and the resulting surface hotspot motion. A large number of models all predict southward motion between 3° and 10° for the Kerguelen hotspot during the last 100 Myr, which is consistent with our paleomagnetic results.     

Mantle flow patterns at the Neyriz Paleo-spreading center, Iran

The mantle peridotites of Neyriz record two successive episodes of plastic deformations; the first one related to the igneous accretion of the lithosphere and the second one developed during the first stage of the emplacement of the peridotites. These two events have been distinguished on the basis of microstructural criteria. The diapiric pattern, particularly relevant to the mantle process beneath spreading ridges, features vertical flow lines and elliptic flow plane trajectories in a pipe and extends along the ridge axis about 5 km. These structures rotate to horizontal and diverge in every direction in a narrow transition zone, a few hundred meters thick, below the Moho discontinuity. Such a diapiric pattern has been recognized in a few places along the Neyriz paleo-ridge. A large amount of magma passed through these mantle diapirs that were probably the main zones feeding the overlying magma chamber. The most common pattern features very regular structures over several kilometers along the strike of the paleo-ridge: the flow plane dips away from the ridge axis, and the flow line is parallel to the spreading direction. This flow pattern is frozen during the gradual accretion of the lithospheric mantle away from the ridge in a steady-state spreading regime. A shear-sense inversion at just below the Moho is commonly observed, pointing to forced asthenospheric flow. The reconstructed orientation of the Neyriz paleo-spreading center is 105°, compatible with the geometry and orientation of harzburgite foliations and lineations and sheeted dikes.     

3D shear-wave velocity structure of the Eifel plume, Germany

The Quaternary Eifel volcanic fields, situated on the Rhenish Massif in Germany, are the focus of a major interdisciplinary project. The aim is a detailed study of the crustal and mantle structure of the intraplate volcanic fields and their deep origin. Recent results from a teleseismic P-wave tomography study reveal a deep low-velocity structure which we infer to be a plume in the upper mantle underneath the volcanic area [J.R.R. Ritter et al., Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 186 (2001) 7-14]. Here we present a travel-time investigation of 5038 teleseismic shear-wave arrivals in the same region. First, the transverse (T) and radial (R) component travel-time residuals are treated separately to identify possible effects of seismic anisotropy. A comparison of 2044 T- and 2994 R-component residuals demonstrates that anisotropy does not cause any first-order travel-time effects. The data sets reveal a deep-seated low-velocity anomaly beneath the volcanic region, causing a delay for teleseismic shear waves of about 3 s. Using 3773 combined R- and T-component residuals, an isotropic non-linear inversion is calculated. The tomographic images reveal a prominent S-wave velocity reduction in the upper mantle underneath the Eifel region. The anomaly extends down to at least 400 km depth. The velocity contrast to the surrounding mantle is depth-dependent (from −5% at 31-100 km depth to at least −1% at 400 km depth). At about 170-240 km depth the anomaly is nearly absent. The resolution of the data is sufficient to recover the described features, however the anomaly in the lower asthenosphere is underestimated due to smearing and damping. The main anomaly is similar to the P-wave model except the latter lacks the ‘hole’ near 200 km depth, and both are consistent with an upper mantle plume structure. For plausible anhydrous plume material in the uppermost 100 km of the mantle, an excess temperature as great as 200-300 K is estimated from the seismic anomaly. However, 1% partial melt reduces the required temperature anomaly to about 100 K. The temperature anomaly associated with the deeper part of the plume (250 to about 450 km depth) is at least 70 K. However, this estimate is quite uncertain, because the amplitude of the shear-wave anomaly may be larger than the modelled one. Another possibility is water in the upwelling material. The gap at 170-240 km depth could arise from an increase of the shear modulus caused by dehydration processes which would not affect P-wave velocities as much. An interaction of temperature and compositional variations, including melt and possibly water, makes it difficult to differentiate quantitatively between the causes of the deep-seated low-velocity anomaly.     

A model of equilibrium bed topography for meander bends with erodible banks

Channel curvature produces secondary currents and a transverse sloping channel bed, along which the depth increases towards the outer bank. As a result deep pools tend to form adjacent to the outer bank, promoting bank collapse. The interaction of sediment grains with the primary and secondary flow and the transverse sloping bed also causes meanders to move different grain sizes in different proportions and directions, resulting in a consistent sorting pattern. Several models have been developed to describe this process, but they all have the potential to over‐predict pool depth because they cannot account for the influence of erodible banks. In reality, bank collapse might lead to the development of a wider, shallower cross‐section and any resulting flow depth discrepancy can bias associated predictions of flow, sediment transport, and grain‐size sorting. While bed topography, sediment transport and grain sorting in bends will partly be controlled by the sedimentary characteristics of the bank materials, the magnitude of this effect has not previously been explored. This paper reports the development of a model of flow, sediment transport, grain‐size sorting, and bed topography for river bends with erodible banks. The model is tested via intercomparison of predicted and observed bed topography in one low‐energy (5·3 W m^?2 specific stream power) and one high‐energy (43·4 W m^?2) study reach, namely the River South Esk in Scotland and Goodwin Creek in Mississippi, respectively. Model predictions of bed topography are found to be satisfactory, at least close to the apices of bends. Finally, the model is used in sensitivity analyses that provide insight into the influence of bank erodibility on equilibrium meander morphology and associated patterns of grain‐size sorting. The sensitivity of meander response to bank cohesion is found to increase as a function of the available stream power within the two study bends. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

中国西南及邻区上地幔P波三维速度结构/

利用ISC报告以及中国和NEIC基本测震台网报告中的80974条P波初至到时资料（地震数为7053，台站数为165，且地震和台站都分布在研究区内），对中国西南及邻区（北纬10～36、东经70～110）的深至400km的上地幔三维速度结构进行了研究，分辨率达22．初步结果表明:①研究区速度的横向不均匀性，虽随深度增加而减弱，但至400km深度时仍很明显；②在北纬16和24的纵剖面上，可以看到与印度板块向东和欧亚板块相碰撞挤压相对应的速度结构，以及印度板块与欧亚板块速度结构的差异．在东经90的纵剖面上，与印度板块向北俯冲到欧亚板块（青藏高原）之下相对应的速度结构也比较明显；③在90ｋｍ深度的横剖面上，由缅甸的密支那至越南的洞海的低速条带，可能与红河断裂带有关；④ 提出并使用了能够更为准确直观地描述分辨率好坏的图示方法．      

流动成像测井研究进展

流动成像测井属于对非均匀介质动态的非线性测量，通过对油气井内多相流体信息的投影扫描和反演处理，实时成像显示流体分布及流动状况，国外研制的电导法，电容法仪器采用电导探针或电容元件构成阵列测量探头，分别利用油气与水的导电特性和介电特性差异辨识井内流体，对流动截面的测量局限于个别点上，已在水平井中见到应用效果，但对物场信息投影测量的数据量和分辨率未能满足成像要求。我国提出的电磁法采用环状阵列电极构成测量探头，综合利用油气与水的导电和介电特性差异辨识井内流体，可以测量获得多相流体流动截面的清晰图像，为研究开发全新的流动成像测井系统奠定了良好基础。     

Contrasting rifted margin styles south of Greenland: implications for mantle plume dynamics

We present new and reprocessed seismic reflection data from the area where the southeast and southwest Greenland margins intersected to form a triple junction south of Greenland in the early Tertiary. During breakup at 56 Ma, thick igneous crust was accreted along the entire 1300-km-long southeast Greenland margin from the Greenland Iceland Ridge to, and possibly 100 km beyond, the triple junction into the Labrador Sea. However, highly extended and thin crust 250 km to the west of the triple junction suggests that magmatically starved crustal formation occurred on the southwest Greenland margin at the same time. Thus, a transition from a volcanic to a non-volcanic margin over only 100–200 km is observed. Magmatism related to the impact of the Iceland plume below the North Atlantic around 61 Ma is known from central-west and southeast Greenland. The new seismic data also suggest the presence of a small volcanic plateau of similar age close to the triple junction. The extent of initial plume-related volcanism inferred from these observations is explained by a model of lateral flow of plume material that is guided by relief at the base of the lithosphere. Plume mantle is channelled to great distances provided that significant melting does not take place. Melting causes cooling and dehydration of the plume mantle. The associated viscosity increase acts against lateral flow and restricts plume material to its point of entry into an actively spreading rift. We further suggest that thick Archaean lithosphere blocked direct flow of plume material into the magma-starved southwest Greenland margin while the plume was free to flow into the central west and east Greenland margins. The model is consistent with a plume layer that is only moderately hotter, 100–200°C, than ambient mantle temperature, and has a thickness comparable to lithospheric thickness variations, 50–100 km. Lithospheric architecture, the timing of continental rifting and viscosity changes due to melting of the plume material are therefore critical parameters for understanding the distribution of magmatism.     

Efficient methods for solving water flow in variably saturated soils under prescribed flux infiltration

The non-linear solvers in numerical solutions of water flow in variably saturated soils are prone to convergence difficulties. Many aspects can give rise to such difficulties and in this paper we address the gravity term and the prescribed-flux boundary in the Picard iteration. The problem of the gravity term in the Picard iteration is iteration-to-iteration oscillation as the gravity term is treated, by analogy with the time-step advance technique, ‘explicitly’ in the iteration. The proposed method for the gravity term is an improvement of the ‘implicit’ approach of Zhang and Ewen [Water Resour. Res. 36 (2000) 2777] by extending it to heterogeneous soil and approximating the inter-nodal hydraulic conductivity in the diffusive term and the gravity term with the same scheme. The prescribed-flux boundary in traditional methods also gives rise to iteration-to-iteration oscillation because there is no feedback to the flux in the solution at the new iteration. To reduce such oscillation, a new method is proposed to provide such a feedback to the flux. Comparison with traditional Picard and Newton iteration methods for a wide range of problems show that a combination of these two proposed methods greatly improves the stability and consequently the computational efficiency, making the use of small time step and/or under-relaxation solely for convergence unnecessary.     

不同损失条件下的泥石流预报模型

泥石流预报是泥石流减灾的重要手段之一，然而泥石流形成的复杂性使泥石流预报准确度低，误报和漏报率较高。泥石流误报和漏报都会造成损失，但二者造成的损失有很大的差别。为了减少泥石流误报或漏报造成的损失，应当考虑两种错报造成损失的不同。根据使总平均损失达到最小的原则，建立了不同损失条件下的泥石流预报模型，并将该模型应用到云南东川蒋家沟。     

泥石流多发干旱河谷区植被恢复研究

云南东北部东川小江流域的干旱河谷土地退化十分严重，土地表层的砾石含量已超过60％，有机质含量、全氮、有效氮、有效磷、有效钾的含量相对于残存燥红土明显下降。草坡是当地的主要植被类型，并未起到防治土地退化的应有作用。以合欢（Leucaena glauca)、马桑（Coriaria sinica)种植为主的恢复方式对土地的恢复有明显的改善作用。高密度的乔木树种合欢的种植使林下的草本物种的数量和组成发生了极大变化，较耐荫的植物占据了林分下层，且物种数量较草坡减少，群落多样性指数降低。三种马桑种植方式下，不但原有的草坡群落的物种仍有大量的生存空间，而且为一些新物种创造了生存环境，从而使物种的种类较原有草坡地增加，提高了群落的多样性指数。合欢种植的生物量最高，对解决当地薪柴严重短缺意义重大，马桑种植在增加灌木层生物量的同时，并未改变草坡的物种组成，还可兼顾解决当地的饲草和放牧，应大力推广。