Pleistocene fluvial sediments,palaeontology and archaeology of the upper River Thames at Latton,Wiltshire, England

Pleistocene fluvial sediments of the Northmoor Member of the Upper Thames Formation exposed at Latton, Wiltshire, record episodic deposition close to the Churn–Thames confluence possibly spanning the interval from Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 7 to 2. The sequence is dominated by gravel facies, indicating deposition by a high‐energy, gravel‐bed river. A number of fine‐grained organic sediment bodies within the sequence have yielded palaeoenvironmental and biostratigraphical data from Mollusca, Coleoptera, vertebrates, pollen and plant macrofossils. The basal deposit (Facies Association A) contains faunal material indicating temperate conditions. Most of the palaeontological evidence including a distinctive small form of mammoth (Mammuthus cf. trogontherii), together with the U‐series age estimate of >147.4 ± 20 kyr suggest correlation with MIS 7. The overlying deposits (Facies Associations B and C) represent deposition under a range of climatic conditions. Two fine‐grained organic deposits occurred within Association B; one (Association Ba) in the northern part of the pit as a channel fill and the other (Association Bb) in its southern part as a scour‐fill deposit. The coleopteran assemblages from Ba, indicate that it accumulated under temperate oceanic conditions, while Bb, which also yielded a radiocarbon age estimate of 39 560 ± 780 ¹⁴C yr BP, was formed under much colder and more continental climatic conditions. The sequence is considered to represent deposition within an alluvial fan formed at the Churn–Thames confluence; a depositional scenario which may account for the juxtaposition of sediments and fossils of widely differing age within the same altitudinal range. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Lowland rainforest response to hydrological changes during the last 1500 years in Gabon, Western Equatorial Africa

Pollen and δ¹³C_TOM data obtained from two contrasting lake sequences (Lakes Kamalété and Nguène), located 200 km apart in the lowland rainforest of Gabon, provide complementary local and regional 1500-yr records of high resolution (15–30 yr) vegetation change. A combination of aquatic, semi-aquatic and terrestrial pollen showed in both records that the tropical rainforest increased during periods of high rainfall and decreased during drought intervals. The strong fluctuations of water balance at decadal scale during the “Medieval Warm Period” ( 1100–800 cal yr BP) coincided with a noticeable increase in shade-intolerant taxa, indicating recurring rainforest canopy disturbance. The δ¹³C_TOM signal showed high-amplitude variations in both records, which positively correlates with the rainforest dynamics and local vegetation changes. The similar trends in both the pollen and the δ¹³C_TOM signals between these sites demonstrate the regional broadly synchronous timing of shifting hydrological conditions. The largely positive co-variation between strong fluctuations of hydrological conditions and changes in rainforest structure and composition indicate that regional climatic change is probably the driving force for major rainforest dynamics in Gabon. Any significant anthropogenic impact on vegetation has not been clearly identified, and this issue still needs to be resolved independently by obtaining detailed archeological records across the interval 1400–800 BP, which currently seem to be extremely rare or not easily available.     

巴彦浩特断裂北段晚第四纪活动特征及其区域地震构造意义

巴彦浩特断裂位于阿拉善地块与鄂尔多斯地块相互作用的边界构造带上,其晚第四纪活动特征和古地震数据对全面理解贺兰山周边区域地震构造和地震危险性具有重要意义,为此在研究相对薄弱的巴彦浩特断裂北段开展了断错地貌和古地震槽探研究。观测显示巴彦浩特断裂阿拉善左旗以北段以右旋走滑活动为主兼具逆倾滑,断层西盘相对抬升,在浅表形成半正花状构造组合。年代（56.28±4.04）~（82.2±5.78）ka的冲洪积地貌面上冲沟断错137 m,并在东侧形成断塞塘地貌,估计断层右旋走滑速率为1.67~2.43 mm/a。探槽揭示了3次具有显著地表逆倾滑破裂的强震事件,时间分别为（56.28±4.04）~（55.33±3.04）、（32.79±2.22）~（13.76±1.1）、（13.76±1.1）~（7.86±0.43）ka,逆倾滑量分别为0.44、0.35、0.29 m。与前人在巴彦浩特断裂南段的古地震研究进行对比,可知这3次古地震可能仅为部分事件记录。结合已有研究成果建立了贺兰山周边区域地震构造模型,贺兰山西侧右旋走滑的巴彦浩特断裂强震发震能力不容忽视,贺兰山两侧盆地不同性质断裂系共同构成了阿拉善地块与鄂尔多斯地块的活动边界构造带。     

鄂尔多斯北缘断裂托克托段晚第四纪活动特征

鄂尔多斯北缘断裂作为河套断陷带和鄂尔多斯地块的边界断裂,研究其晚第四纪活动特征,对于科学评价黄河流域内蒙古河套段的地震危险性具有重要意义。本文利用野外地质调查、微地貌测量、浅层人工地震勘探及钻孔联合剖面探测相结合的方法,综合地层年代样品测试结果,确定了该断裂托克托段的准确位置和最新活动特征。研究结果表明,鄂尔多斯北缘断裂托克托段沿线构造地貌不发育,推测断裂的最新活动可能尚未达到地表,地表的地貌陡坎应为河流侵蚀成因。断裂在深、浅地震反射剖面上表现为“Ｙ”字形的张性断裂系,主断裂倾向北,分支断裂倾向南,整体上陡下缓,具有多个地堑式分布的特点。跨断裂钻孔联合剖面上显示,单个分支断裂的同震垂直位移量为2～2.5 m,最新活动时代为43.5～70 ka。鄂尔多斯北缘断裂是一条晚更新世活动的深大断裂,具有一定的地震危险性。     

ESR/U-series chronology of the Neanderthal occupation layers at Galería de las Estatuas (Sierra de Atapuerca,Spain)

The Galería de las Estatuas is a Mousterian site located within the Cueva Mayor-Cueva del Silo karstic system at the Sierra de Atapuerca (Burgos, Spain). This site is characterised by an important Upper Pleistocene stratigraphic sequence in which a large number of lithic artefacts exhibiting clear Mousterian affinities and a rich assemblage of faunal remains have been found.Additionally, this site has yielded a foot phalanx of a clear Neanderthal affinities and its sediment has yielded Neanderthal mitochondrial and nuclear DNA.Two test pits, GE-I and GE-II, have been excavated since 2008 which have been divided in 5 and 2 lithostratigraphical units, respectively. A minimum age of 45 ka cal BP for this site was obtained by radiocarbon dating in GE-II. This chronology was refined using single-grain Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL: 80–112 ka in GE-I and 70–79 ka in GE-II) and single-grain thermally transferred OSL (TT-OSL). Although in all case TT-OSL ages were systematically older than their single-grain counterparts. The detrital sequence is sealed by a flowstone whose base is dated to 53.7 ± 3.5 ka cal BP using U-series dating.In order to better constrain the age of this site, nine herbivorous teeth were collected from the whole sedimentary sequence to be dated by the ESR/U-series dating method though only seven provided modelled ages. Six of them were collected from levels 2 to 5 of the GE-I test pit while the last tooth was taken from level 2 of the GE-II test pit. Our results, ranging between 80 and 110 ka, are in agreement with those obtained by single grain TT-OSL and suggest that the sedimentological levels containing Mousterian lithic artefacts and faunal and human remains began to be deposited during the second part of the MIS5. These results fill a temporal gap in the chronology of the Atapuerca sites for which no contemporary MIS5 date was obtained until recently.     

Multi-method pIRIR dating of sedimentary sequences at the southern edge of the Gurbantunggut Desert,NW China and its palaeoenvironmental implications

The Gurbantunggut Desert is the second-largest desert in China, located in the westerly-dominated region of north-western China. Previous understanding of palaeoclimate of this desert was mostly based on lake and loess records from the Junggar Basin and Tian Shan Mountains, whilst direct dating of sedimentary records from the desert was very limited. This study applies high-resolution post-infrared infrared stimulated luminescence (pIRIR) dating to three sedimentary profiles at the southern edge of the Gurbantunggut Desert, which contain aeolian sand and water-lain sediments, recording palaeoenvironmental changes at the desert margin since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Different pIRIR dating procedures were applied for samples with different ages. For Holocene-aged samples, a single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) pIRIR procedure based on a three-stepped pIRIR measurement at 110 °C, 140 °C and 170 °C was used, and a standard growth curve (SGC) procedure yields an equivalent dose (D_e) similar to that of the full-SAR procedure; thus, is applicable for accelerating D_e measurement. For samples much older than the Holocene, a multi-aliquot regenerative-dose (MAR) pIRIR procedure based on a three-stepped pIRIR measurement at 150 °C, 200 °C and 250 °C was found to be the optimal dating procedure, because a SAR procedure would yield underestimated ages due to uncorrected initial sensitivity change. pIRIR dating results of the investigated profiles reveal a substantial sand accumulation during the LGM, an intensification of aeolian deposition at ∼12 ka and a wetter depositional environment at ∼10–8 ka. A rapid fluvial deposition is dated at ∼20–19 ka, corresponding to the deglaciation period. The sedimentary records from the desert margin show some correlation with lake and loess records in the same region and suggest a complex response of the desert environment to different climatic factors.     

Geochronology and Geochemistry of Late Triassic Intrusive Rocks in the Xiuyan Area,Liaodong Peninsula,Eastern North China Craton: Petrogenesis and Implications for Lithospheric Thinning

The timing and mechanisms of lithospheric thinning and destruction of the North China Craton (NCC) remain controversial, and the overall geodynamics of the process are poorly understood. This paper documents Late Triassic igneous rocks including monzogranite, gabbro, and diorite from the Xiuyan District on the Liaodong Peninsula in the eastern NCC, which have LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb ages of 229.0 ± 0.4 Ma, 216.2 ± 0.9 Ma, and 210.6 ± 2.0 Ma, respectively. Monzogranite shows high-SiO2 adakite affinity, negative εHf(t) values (?20.6 to ?17.9), and old TDM2 ages (3.53–3.29 Ga), suggesting that their parental magma was derived from thickened Paleoarchean mafic lower crust and minor mantle materials that were also involved their generation. Gabbro is ultrapotassic, strongly enriched in LREEs and LILEs, depleted in HFSEs, and has evolved zircon Hf isotopes with negative εHf of ?10.04 to ?5.85 and old TDM2 ages (2.59–2.22 Ga). These are diagnostic signatures of a crustal component, but their high contents of MgO, Cr, Co, Ni indicate that the primary magma originated from enriched mantle. Diorite is enriched in LILEs and LREEs, depleted in HFSEs (with negative Nb, Ta, and Ti anomalies), and contains negative εHf(t) values (?13.64 to ?11.01). Compared with the gabbro, the diorite is relatively enriched in Nb, Ta and HREEs, and also contains younger TDM2 ages (2.11–1.94 Ga), suggesting that the diorite was formed by mixing between ancient lower crust-derived felsic magmas and asthenospheric mantle-derived magmas. Field observations, geochronology, geochemistry, and zircon Lu-Hf isotopes indicate that Late Triassic magmatism and tectonic activity resulted from deep subduction of the Yangtze Craton beneath the NCC in the Xiuyan area. This phase of tectonic activity was completed in the eastern NCC by the Late Triassic (216 Ma), and was subsequently followed by lithospheric thinning that began in the Late Triassic.     

山西新太古界柏芝岩组条带状铁建造中的菱铁矿:成因机制与古环境意义

菱铁矿是前寒武纪条带状铁建造(BIF)中重要的矿物组分和古海洋信息载体,但它可能具有原生、早期成岩和晚期成岩多种成因,这在一定程度上限制了其在古海洋条件分析中的应用。虽然前人对菱铁矿开展了广泛的地球化学分析,但在岩相学研究方面相对薄弱。为进一步揭示BIF中菱铁矿的成因机制,以山西代县羊角沟矿区新太古界柏芝岩组的BIF为研究对象,开展了系统的岩相学工作。研究表明,该BIF主要由厘米级交互的富铁与富硅条带构成,其中普遍缺少水体扰动沉积构造,偶见交错层理和风暴碎屑,表明主要沉积于风暴浪基面之下。菱铁矿的主要产出形式有3种:(1)亚毫米级条带,其内"悬浮"有风暴成因碎屑颗粒,具有水柱或沉积物/水界面的原生成因特征;(2)在富铁条带中的晶体间隙充填,可能为早期成岩成因;(3)富硅条带中存在绿泥石层间脉状充填或截切石英和铁白云石的脉体,具有晚期成岩成因。原生菱铁矿的产出,表明新太古代在风暴浪基面之下的海水强烈缺氧、富铁并具有低硫酸盐浓度的特征。尽管原生菱铁矿条带的产出表明菱铁矿具有反映海洋化学条件的潜力,但多种成因菱铁矿的同时产出,也要求在应用菱铁矿分析古海洋条件时应当分组构进行。     

黑龙江省东部晚三叠世-中侏罗世硅质岩地球化学特征及形成环境

黑龙江省东部那丹哈达增生杂岩主要由晚三叠世-中侏罗世含放射虫硅质岩组成,并夹有镁铁-超镁铁质杂岩和晚古生代浅海沉积岩.对黑龙江省东部石场、勤得利和胜利农场地区硅质岩分析显示,样品Al₂O₃、TiO₂、CaO、Al₂O₃/（Al₂O₃+TFe₂O₃）及ΣREE整体上偏低,具有较高的SiO₂含量,为纯硅质岩.结合Al-Fe-Mn三角图和K₂O/Na₂O值,表明该地区硅质岩的形成过程与海底热液作用无关.元素判别图解及地球化学特征揭示,黑龙江东部三个地区的硅质岩形成于大陆坡及边缘海环境.     

Late Cretaceous‐Cenozoic Multi‐Stage Denudation at the Western Ordos Block: Constraints by the Apatite Fission Track Dating on the Langshan

The apatite fission track dating of samples from the Dabashan(i.e., the Langshan in the northeastern Alxa Block) by the laser ablation method and their thermal history modeling of AFT ages are conducted in this study. The obtained results and lines of geological evidence in the study region indicate that the Langshan has experienced complicated tectonic-thermal events during the the Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic. Firstly, it experienced a tectonic-thermal event in the Late Cretaceous(~90–70 Ma). The event had little relation with the oblique subduction of the Izanagi Plate along the eastern Eurasian Plate, but was related to the Neo-Tethys subduction and compression between the Lhasa Block and Qiangtang Block. Secondly, it underwent the dextral slip faulting in the Eocene(~50–45 Ma). The strike slip fault may develop in the same tectonic setting as sinistral slip faults in southern Mongolia and thrusts in West Qinling to the southwest Ordos Block in the same period, which is the remote far-field response to the India-Eurasia collision. Thirdly, the tectonic thermal event existed in the late Cenozoic(since ~10 Ma), thermal modeling shows that several samples began their denudation from upper region of partial annealing zone(PAZ), and the denudation may have a great relationship with the growth of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau to the northeast. In addition, the AFT ages of Langshan indicate that the main body of the Langshan may be an upper part of fossil PAZ of the Late Cretaceous(~70 Ma). The fossil PAZ were destroyed and deformed by tectonic events repeatedly in the Cenozoic along with the denudation.