桂西南凭祥火山岩年代学、地球化学及Hf同位素研究——对古特提斯洋最晚北向俯冲事件的启示

华南西南缘凭祥地区位于特提斯构造域东端,华南与印支陆块碰撞缝合带的北部,该区出露的三叠纪中酸性火山岩是古特提斯洋俯冲过程中在华南陆块边缘形成的大陆弧产物,这些火山岩同时携带的大量来自华南陆块基底的捕获锆石为华南陆块的构造热事件研究将提供重要的信息。对凭祥地区三叠系北泗组英安岩进行了同位素年代学、地球化学及锆石Hf同位素研究,获得了一个英安岩样品的加权平均年龄为（227.8±1）Ma,这些英安岩具有高SiO₂、K₂O含量,极低的MgO、MnO和CaO含量,富集大离子亲石元素（Rb、Ba、Th和U）和亏损高场强元素（Nb、Ta）的特点,显示了典型的岛弧岩浆作用特征,代表古特提斯洋向北俯冲至华南陆块之下形成的大陆弧产物。其余两个英安岩样品中的70粒锆石主要为来自华南陆块基底的捕获锆石,其年龄数据变化区间较大,为1010~231 Ma,这些捕获锆石U-Pb年龄频谱分布主要集中在四个区间:11010~800 Ma（峰值900 Ma）,其锆石的ε_Hf（t）值为4.5~15.1,响应扬子和华夏陆块之间聚合-裂解-再聚合的构造演化事件,反应了其幔源岩浆的广泛参与;2720~620 Ma（峰值680 Ma）响应南华纪已拼合的扬子-华夏陆块的再次发生裂解;3490~400 Ma（峰值450 Ma）,其锆石的ε_Hf（t）值为2.2~-7.8,响应华南早古生代加里东运动有关的壳-幔相互作用岩浆事件;4280~230 Ma（峰值250 Ma）,其锆石ε_Hf（t）值为-13.6~-16.5,地壳模式年龄为2.3~2.1 Ga,代表了印支与华南陆块之间古特提斯洋俯冲闭合的岩浆事件。文章的研究结果揭示了凭祥北泗组英安岩与华南陆块的亲缘性,其结晶年龄限定了华南与印支陆块之间的古特提斯洋俯冲结束、陆-陆开始碰撞的最晚时限为中-晚三叠纪。      

Cetacean research in the southern African subregion: a review of previous studies and current knowledge

Cetacean research, in terms of the number of papers, and areas for which data are available, has expanded considerably in the southern African subregion in the past decade, especially in the South-West Indian Ocean. We review cetacean research within this subregion from the 1800s to the present to provide an overview of findings, investigate trends and identify knowledge gaps. Data are presented separately for large whales (those subject to commercial whaling) and smaller cetaceans, and are separated by era and ocean basin. Over 550 peer-reviewed papers and books were identified relating to research on cetaceans within the subregion. More than half (284) have been produced since 1990 and 193 relate specifically to South African waters. The most-studied species are those that are most accessible due to their coastal distributions (southern right whale Eubalaena australis: 45 papers, humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae: 31 papers, killer whales Orcinus orca: 27 papers, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin Tursiops aduncus: 30 papers, Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin Sousa chinensis (plumbea form): 25 papers) and/or were hunted commercially (sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus: 25 papers). Identified conservation concerns vary throughout the subregion, but include bycatch and directed hunts, oil and gas development, ecotourism activities, shifts in prey resources, and noise and chemical pollution. The inshore stocks of Bryde's whales Balaenoptera edeni, the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin and the Atlantic humpback dolphin S. teuszii were identified as the populations of highest conservation concern, although there are considerable knowledge gaps relating to deep-water species and almost no data (even on species occurrence) are available for several areas and countries.     

Seasonal variation of atmospheric dimethylsulfide at Amsterdam Island in the southern Indian Ocean

Daily measurements of atmospheric concentrations of dimethylsulfide (DMS) were carried out for two years in a marine site at remote area: the Amsterdam Island (37°50S–77°31E) located in the southern Indian Ocean. DMS concentrations were also measured in seawater. A seasonal variation is observed for both DMS in the atmosphere and in the sea-surface. The monthly averages of DMS concentrations in the surface coastal seawater and in the atmosphere ranged, respectively, from 0.3 to 2.0 nmol l^-1 and from 1.4 to 11.3 nmol m^-3 (34 to 274 pptv), with the highest values in summer. The monthly variation of sea-to-air flux of DMS from the southern Indian Ocean ranges from 0.7 to 4.4 mol m^-2 d^-1. A factor of 2.3 is observed between summer and winter with mean DMS fluxes of 3.0 and 1.3 mol m^-2 d^-1, respectively.     

Model simulations of carbon sequestration in the northwest Pacific by patch fertilization

Iron fertilization of nutrient-rich surface waters of the ocean is one possible way to help slow the rising levels of atmospheric CO₂ by sequestering it in the oceans via biological carbon export. Here, I use an ocean general circulation model to simulate a patch of nutrient depletion in the subpolar northwest Pacific under various scenarios. Model results confirm that surface fertilization is an inefficient way to sequester carbon from the atmosphere (Gnanadesikan et al., 2003), since only about 20% of the exported carbon comes initially from the atmosphere. Fertilization reduces future production and thus CO₂ uptake by utilizing nutrients that would otherwise be available later. Effectively, this can be considered as leakage when compared to a control run. This “effective” leakage and the actual leakage of sequestered CO₂ cause a significant, rapid decrease in carbon retention (only 30–45% retained after 10 years and less than 20% after 50 years). This contrasts markedly with the almost 100% retention efficiency for the same duration using the same model, when carbon is disposed directly into the northwest Pacific (Matsumoto and Mignone, 2005). As a consequence, the economic effectiveness of patch fertilization is poor in two limiting cases of the future price path of carbon. Sequestered carbon in patch fertilization is lost to the atmosphere at increasingly remote places as time passes, which would make monitoring exceedingly difficult. If all organic carbon from one-time fertilization reached the ocean bottom and remineralized there, acidification would be about −0.05 pH unit with O₂ depletion about −20 μmol kg⁻¹. These anomalies are probably too small to seriously threaten deep sea biota, but they are underestimated in the model because of its large grid size. The results from this study offer little to advocate purposeful surface fertilization as a serious means to address the anthropogenic carbon problem.     

A note on the deflection of a baroclinic current by a continental shelf

The deflection, at a step-shelf fronted coast, of a constant potential vorticity current in a reduced-gravity, inviscid model ocean is studied theoretically. The step shelf, with a depth smaller than the reservoir depth, forces the uplifting of the approaching current and causes water column foreshortening, leading to relative vorticity generation that enhances current deflection to the right (facing the coast). As a consequence, in comparison to the case of a vertical wall coast, the proportion of the transport to the right is increased. For normal incidence for a shelf-depth/reservoir-depth ratio of 0.3 and shelf width to deformation radius ratio of 1.5, more than 90% of the approaching current transport goes to the right and less than 10% to the left. In addition, the (barotropic) dynamic pressure at the coast is low to the right and high to the left (with the highest pressure at the stagnation point). In the vertical wall case, the wall pressures on the flank are equal. For oblique incidence from the left, the deflection to the left is drastically reduced. In fact, there is practically no steady-state flow diverted to the left (less than 2%) when the approach angle is greater than 60° to the left of normal. In the vertical wall case, the same angle would have to be 90° for the flow to the left to vanish, namely only when the approach current is parallel to the coast to the right.     

岩石圈—软流圈物质循环促进大陆增生的新方式

大陆动力学研究地球内能量和物质的运动和伴随的信息传播,上地幔中的软流圈是地球内部的物质运动的关键部位之一。由于观测的技术方法少,人类对软流圈内部的地质作用过程所知甚少。在青藏高原,过去地震波三维层析成像的分辨率不高,难以对地壳上地幔构造进行准确的定位。我们收集和整理了地方地震台的数字化观测数据,使地震体波三维层析成像的准确度大大提高,为解决软流圈的地质构造准确成像提供了新的可能性。根据地震体波三维层析的成像结果,在古特提斯洋和特提斯洋俯冲板块前沿的软流圈底部410 km间断面上方,存在反映古大洋俯冲板块的高速体,它们在青藏高原、苏鲁和伊朗都有出现。清晰和稳定的高波速异常的位置表明,特提斯洋俯冲板块现在已经拆沉在软流圈的底部,古特提斯洋俯冲板块也可能曾经拆沉在软流圈的底部。对比青藏高原和苏鲁的地壳上地幔波速结构推测,拆沉造成软流圈中的轻元素物质上涌,进入大陆岩石圈,造成岩浆活动。上涌还使碰撞造山带地壳厚度减小,而岩石圈厚度增加。大约100 Ma后,俯冲下去的大洋残块会被软流圈物质磨蚀交代,使岩石圈厚度增加, 形成大陆下方的大陆根,造成大陆克拉通化和体积增生。大洋板块俯冲后在软流圈拆沉是岩石圈—软流圈物质循环的一种重要方式,对软流圈中物质均衡和体积稳定也起重要作用。     

北极航线战略利益争夺的博弈态势与中国对策

北极航线包括东北航线、西北航线与北冰洋中央的穿极航线。作为联结亚欧最短的航运线路,北极航线独有的战略地位与潜在开发价值已吸引北极域内外国家的关注并对北极区域作出战略倾斜,北极航线由此成为各国战略利益争夺的前线阵地。虽然北极航线由于其自身地缘特征实际为北极航线沿线国家所掌控,但航线自身的公共属性决定了其战略价值的“外溢”,北极域外国家在北极航线同样具有重要的国家利益。北极航线目前存在国际规则不成体系、国内法与国际规则相冲突等矛盾,俄罗斯与加拿大将东北航线与西北航线“内水化”是造成国内外规则冲突的根本因素。中国作为北半球航运大国,北极航线的开通将进一步推动我国进出口贸易以及保障我国石油能源安全储备,对我国具有重大战略意义。由此,提升北极航运的参与度,以“负责任大国”形象与北极国家合作的方式参与北极事务以维护本国航运利益,进而推动北极航运治理规则体系的完善,是适合现实参与北极航线实践的中国对策。     

Pb, Sr AND Nd-ISOTOPIC COMPOSITIONS OF PALEO AND NEO-TETHYAN OCEANIC CRUSTS IN THE EASTERN TETHYAN DOMAIN: IMPLICATION FOR THE INDIAN OCEAN-TYPE ISOTOPIC SIGNATURE

Pb, Sr AND Nd-ISOTOPIC COMPOSITIONS OF PALEO AND NEO-TETHYAN OCEANIC CRUSTS IN THE EASTERN TETHYAN DOMAIN: IMPLICATION FOR THE INDIAN OCEAN-TYPE ISOTOPIC SIGNATURE     

Geochronology and geochemistry of Permo-Triassic sandstones in eastern Jilin Province (NE China): Implications for final closure of the Paleo-Asian Ocean

In the eastern part of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) in northeastern (NE) China, scattered outcrops of molasse deposits mark the ending of an orogeny and are crucial for understanding the evolution of the Paleo-Asian Ocean (PAO). However, the timing of tectonic events and the relationships among these strata remain controversial. To better constrain these geologic events, a comprehensive study of the detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology and geochemistry of the sandstones of the Kaishantun (KST) Formation and Kedao (KD) Group in eastern Jilin Province, NE China, was conducted. The KST Formation is traditionally considered a molasse deposit. The sandstones display low CIA, PIA and high ICV values and low Th/U and Rb/Sr ratios, which suggest that the rocks were derived from an immature intermediate-felsic igneous source and experienced a simple sedimentary recycling history with relatively weak chemical weathering. LA-ICP-MS U-Pb dating of detrital zircons from two samples of the KST Formation yields ages of 748–252 Ma, suggesting that the KST Formation was deposited between 254.5 Ma and 252 Ma in Late Permian. The zircons were mainly derived from the continental northern part of the North China Craton (NCC). In contrast, the U-Pb dating of detrital zircons from five samples of the KD Group yields ages of 2611–230 Ma, suggesting that the KD samples were deposited in the Early to Middle Triassic (ca. 248–233 Ma). The detrital zircon ages for the KD samples can be divided into groups with peaks at 2.5 Ga, 1.8 Ga, 800–1000 Ma, 500 Ma and 440–360 Ma, which suggest that the samples were derived from bidirectional provenances in the Jiamusi-Khanka Block and the NCC. These new data, combined with previously published results, suggest that at least three orogenic events occurred in central-eastern Jilin Province during the Early Permian (270–262 Ma), Early Triassic (254–248 Ma) and Middle–Late Triassic (242–227 Ma). The final closure of the PAO occurred during 242–227 Ma in the Middle–Late Triassic along the Changchun-Yanji suture zone. The detrital zircon geochronological data clearly record plate convergence and the scissor-like closure of the PAO in the eastern CAOB.