The ＂CO2-rich gas vents＂ of Mt. Amiata volcano （Tuscany, Central Italy）： Geochemistry,genetic mechanism and hazard evaluation

Mt. Amiata （Southern Tuscany, Central Italy） is an extinct Quaternary volcano located in an area still marked by high heat-flow that is caused by deep seated （6-10 km） hot masses related to Pliocene magmatic activity. The anomalous geothermal gradient gives rise, within the Mesozoic limestone formation （Tuscan series）, to geothermal systems that fed the Ca-SO4 thermal springs characterizing this area. Besides of thermal fluids, several cold, dry CO2-rich gas emissions seep out on the NE flank of the volcano. These gas vents mostly consist of large sub-circular craters at variable depth and diameter （5-15 m and 10-50 m, respectively）, and represent a serious hazard for the local population, as testified by the several asphyxia casualties that have been repeatedly occurred within these morphological depressions. In this work, the chemical and isotopic compositions of the Mt. Amiata ＂CO2-rich gas vents＂ and the estimation of both the CO2 flux from the soil and the CO2 distribution in air of their surroundings, has been carried out in order to： （1） assess the origin of gases, （2） recognize the mechanism of formation for these gas emissions and their relationship with local tectonics, and （3） to evaluate the CO2 hazard in the high flux emanations. The chemical composition of the gases is largely dominated by CO2 （up to 98 % by vol） and shows relatively high concentrations of N2, CH4 and H2S （up to 1.1%, 0.9% and 3.9 % by vol, respectively）. These features, coupled with the carbon and nitrogen isotopic signatures, suggest that the origin of the main gas compounds may be related to the contribution of deep （i.e., thermometamorphic processes on carbonate formations for CO2） and shallow （i.e. thermal decomposition of organic material for CH4, N2 and H2S） sources.     

HP–LT Variscan metamorphism in the Cubito-Moura schists (Ossa-Morena Zone, southern Iberia)

Multi-equilibrium thermobarometry shows that low-grade metapelites (Cubito-Moura schists) from the Ossa–Morena Zone underwent HP–LT metamorphism from 340–370 °C at 1.0–0.9 GPa to 400–450 °C at 0.8–0.7 GPa. These HP–LT equilibriums were reached by parageneses including white K mica, chlorite and chloritoid, which define the earliest schistosity (S₁) in these rocks. The main foliation in the schists is a crenulation cleavage (S₂), which developed during decompression from 0.8–0.7 to 0.4–0.3 GPa at increasing temperatures from 400–450 °C to 440–465 °C. Fe³⁺ in chlorite decreased greatly during prograde metamorphism from molar fractions of 0.4 determined in syn-S₁ chlorites down to 0.1 in syn-S₂ chlorites. These new data add to previous findings of eclogites in the Moura schists indicating that a pile of allochtonous rocks situated next to the Beja-Acebuches oceanic amphibolites underwent HP–LT metamorphism during the Variscan orogeny. To cite this article: G. Booth-Rea et al., C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

Mais comment s'écoule donc un glacier ? Aperçu historique

Ice and snow have often helped physicists understand the world. On the contrary it has taken them a very long time to understand the flow of the glaciers. Naturalists only began to take an interest in glaciers at the beginning of the 19th century during the last phase of glacier advances. When the glacier flow from the upslope direction became obvious, it was then necessary to understand how it flowed. It was only in 1840, the year of the Antarctica ice sheet discovery by Dumont d'Urville, that two books laid the basis for the future field of glaciology: one by Agassiz on the ice age and glaciers, the other one by canon Rendu on glacier theory. During the 19th century, ice flow theories, adopted by most of the leading scientists, were based on melting/refreezing processes. Even though the word ‘fluid’ was first used in 1773 to describe ice, more the 130 years would have to go by before the laws of fluid mechanics were applied to ice. Even now, the parameter of Glen's law, which is used by glaciologists to model ice deformation, can take a very wide range of values, so that no unique ice flow law has yet been defined. To cite this article: F. Rémy, L. Testut, C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

Water temperature behaviour in the River Loire since 1976 and 1881

Analysis of monthly mean river temperatures, recorded on an hourly basis in the middle reaches of the Loire since 1976, allows reconstruction by multiple linear regression of the annual, spring and summer water temperatures from equivalent information on air temperatures and river discharge. Since 1881, the average annual and summer temperatures of the Loire have risen by approximately 0.8?°C, this increase accelerating since the late 1980s due to the rise in air temperature and also to lower discharge rates. In addition, the thermal regime in the Orleans to Blois reach is considerably affected by the inflow of groundwater from the Calcaires de Beauce aquifer, as shown by the summer energy balance. To cite this article: F. Moatar, J. Gailhard, C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

Sur les anomalies structurales de l'anticlinal de l'oued Bahloul de Tunisie : héritage tectonique et plissement cisaillant de couverture

The Oued Bahloul structure exists in the central Atlas of Tunisia. This structure is oriented N70 and it shows a very particular geometry characterized by: (i) an important disharmony between the northern and the southern flanks; (ii) a dissymmetry between the east and the west parts of the structure; (iii) several gaps and progressive unconformities present in the Cretaceous and Eocene series.Three major tectonic directions characterize this structure: (i) the N120 appears in the western part of the anticline; (ii) some north–south faults distinguish the oriental part; (iii) the strike fault, which is confirmed by seismic data, affects the central part of this anticline. To cite this article: A. Saadi et al., C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

Total gaseous mercury emissions from mercury-enriched soil in Guizhou, China

Guizhou is located in the Circum-Pacific Global Mercuriferous Belt, and mercury concentrations in soil in this area are enriched. In-situ total gaseous mercury （TGM） exchange fluxes between air and soil surface were intensively measured at four sampling sites in Guiyang from 21 May to 16 June, 2003, and five sites in the Lanmuchang mercury mining area in December 2002 and May 2003, respectively. The in-situ Hg flux measurement was conducted with a dynamic flux chamber （DFC） of quartz. Overall, net emissions were obtained from all sampling sites. Soil mercury concentration and solar radiation have been proved to be the two most important parameters to control mercury emissions from soil. Meanwhile, rain events can enhance mercury emission rate significantly.     

Elastic properties of granulite facies rocks of Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu, India

Compressional and shear wave velocities and attenuation measurements have been carried out in some of the borehole samples of acidic, basic and intermediate granulites of Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu, India. The results have been obtained at ambient conditions using ‘time-of-flight’ pulse transmission technique at 1.0 MHz frequency. The results show linear relationships between velocity and density, and velocity and attenuation properties of the rocks. The acidic granulites show lower velocities and higher attenuation than the intermediate and basic granulites. The average values of the Poisson’s ratio of acidic, intermediate and basic granulites have been found to be 0.210, 0.241 and 0.279 respectively. The variations in velocities and attenuation in these low porosity crystalline rocks are found to be strongly influenced by their mineral composition. The laboratory velocity data (extrapolated to high pressure) of the present study and the published field velocity data from deep seismic sounding studies indicate that these granulite facies rocks may belong to mid-crustal depths only.     

青藏高原植物形态和解剖适应性研究进展

与低海拔地区相比，青藏高原的太阳辐射、水分条件、氧分压、气温等环境条件都有明显差异，青藏高原的植物在细胞壁厚度、栅栏细胞层数、通气组织大小、异细胞数量和分布、表皮附属物类型等方面与低海拔地区的相比也有较大的不同。综述了在青藏高原特殊的生态条件下，植物在形态和解剖方面的适应性表现，分析了该领域目前的研究特点和存在的一些问题，并在全球环境变化背景下，对其发展前景进行了展望，指出了未来的发展趋势。