The distribution of inselbergs and their relationship to geomorphological, structural and lithological controls in Southern Zimbabwe

The gneissic-granitic basement of southern Zimbabwe is characterized by a wide variety of inselbergs, preferentially developed on the granitoid rocks. However, there are significant differences in the frequency of inselbergs and most inselbergs occur in the younger granitoid rocks, particularly in rocks with microcline as the dominant K-feldspar, but their distribution is not uniform. Completely isolated inselbergs are rare and most inselbergs are arranged in clusters or are associated with plateaus or they occur as the detached ends of spurs and ridges.Chemical and mineralogical investigations indicate significant differences in the composition of the older and younger granitoid rocks. The latter are characterized by a higher content of alkali feldspars and a lower content of plagioclase and mafic minerals.The influences of texture, fabric and fracture characteristics on the resistance of the rocks vary. In the southern part of the study area the majority of rock domes is associated with porphyritic granites and fine-grained granites, whilst inselbergs of the large batholith complexes in the northern part of the study area show virtually no relationships to the grain-size of the rocks.Thin-sections analysis indicate, that the rocks of the terrains with a higher density of inselbergs are characterized by an intense intergrowth of minerals and a higher number of contacts between quartz and alkali feldspars. Particularly in the case of the porphyritic granites the influence of texture on the frequency of rock domes is linked with two factors. These are a high content of microcline minerals that have filled the interstices of the surrounding mineral framework and enclosed the surrounding minerals. Overgrowths and replacement micro-structures indicate a long lasting crystallization, which appears to be responsible for a lower density of cooling fractures. Enclosure of the more vulnerable minerals in the more resistant microcline megacrysts retards the loosening of the rock constituents.The marked differences in the lithological and structural characteristics of the various granitoid rocks influence the weathering behaviour of the rocks and illustrate that the divergent weathering characteristics of the rocks are strongly dependent on lithological and structural factors.     

Australian Rock Coasts: review and prospects

Studies of Australian rock coasts (except carbonate reefs) are reviewed and considered in view of recent process and morphological studies. The unique nature of the Australian coast, its geographical distribution and relative stability mean that it is a productive environment in which to research fundamental questions concerning rock coasts. Future research directions are identified, specifically in the areas of processes, morphology and modelling.     

Localized Weathering: Implications for Theoretical and Applied Studies

In situ quantification of localized weathering processes on basalt flows in New Mexico and Hawaii demonstrates that small‐area factors can be more important than other more readily observable factors. Further, it demonstrates that the factorial concept of the Pope Boundary‐Layer weathering model is partially solvable, that organic weathering can accentuate glass weathering (with implications for climate models and storage of nuclear waste), and that silica coatings are not a simple solution for the preservation of stone monuments. Enhancement of glass weathering by lichens on the McCartys flow, El Malpais National Monument, New Mexico, remains restricted to a half‐millimeter directly underneath the lichen‐covered surface. In contrast, although the inorganic rock coating of silica glaze reduces weathering directly underneath the coating by up to nine times rates found in uncoated locales, silica glaze can almost double variability in weathering along its margins.     

Osmium isotope geochemistry in the Mackenzie River basin

The Cenozoic marine osmium isotope record is largely driven by changes in the continental input. We aid its interpretation by supplying direct measurements of present day riverine Os in known geological and environmental settings. We analyzed Os concentrations and isotopic ratios in the dissolved, suspended, and bed materials of the Mackenzie River in Canada and smaller rivers draining the Western Cordillera into the Pacific Ocean. Rhenium content was measured for suspended and bed materials to provide further constraint. Dissolved ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os ratios range from 0.74 to 4.5 and are controlled to first order by age and lithology of the bedrock. The rivers draining Jurassic volcanic rocks are unradiogenic, as low as 0.74, and those draining the Precambrian Canadian Shield are radiogenic, as high as 3.5. The headwaters of the Mackenzie left bank tributaries draining metamorphic carbonates in the Eastern Cordillera and Paleozoic black and gray shales in the Transition zone and the Interior Platform are especially radiogenic (3.0-4.5) with relatively high concentrations of Os. These latter rivers are responsible for the Mackenzie being above world average in Os concentration and yield (mol Os/km²/year) as well as in ¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁸Os. The dissolved load is more radiogenic than the suspended or bed loads and constitutes a significant fraction of total fluvial Os.     

Cavernous weathering,dynamical instability and self‐organization

Cavernous weathering may be conceptualized as a self‐reinforcing process, characterized by positive feedback within the weathering system. A morphometric study of caverns in the Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada, USA, demonstrates the applicability of a dynamically unstable, or conditionally unstable, model of cavernous weathering systems. Outcrop surfaces displaying caverns tend to show increasing fragmentation of the surface in the early stages of cavernous weathering, succeeded by convergent evolution of the surface in which caverns tend to grow and coalesce. A paradoxical relationship exists between the weathering system output at the scale of individual forms and the outcrop scale: caverns tend toward minimum interior surface area by developing a spheroidal form, yet the outcrop surface tends toward maximum exposed surface area by increasing the degree of fragmentation of the surface. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Geochronological evidence for pervasive Miocene weathering,Minas Gerais,Brazil

⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar laser incremental‐heating analyses of 22 individual grains of supergene cryptomelane from three weathering pro?les, up to 400 km apart, in the Rio Doce valley and Barbacena regions at Minas Gerais, Brazil, show that the formation of weathering pro?les in these regions is contemporaneous, suggesting a strong weathering event in the Middle to Late Miocene (10–8 Ma). The preservation of these Miocene samples at or near the present surface suggests that either erosion rates have been very low in the region since the Miocene or that a much thicker weathering mantle was present in the region originally. Assuming a constant thickness of weathering pro?les in the region throughout the Tertiary, we may calculate weathering front propagation rates of 4–8 m Myr^?1 during the past 10 Ma. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

中间参考面静校正技术及应用效果

常规静校正方法是先做低降速带校正，再做从高速层顶界面到统一基准面的校正。当高速层顶界面起伏剧烈和高速层速度横向变化较大时，这种静校正计算方法就不能很好解决静校正问题。中间参考面静校正技术是在静校正计算时，在高速层顶界面之下引入一个圆滑的参考面，这样可以在低降速带校正的基础上进一步提高静校正精度，确保成像效果和构造精度。该项技术在中国西部复杂地表区推广应用后取得了良好的效果。本文系统介绍了中间参考面的意义、应用条件及参数的选取，同时展示了部分典型效果对比资料。     

龙羊峡谷更新世以来气候演变特征及其对拉西瓦水电站坝区花岗岩风化作用的影响

龙羊峡谷为黄河上游水电富矿河谷段，拉西瓦水电站位于龙羊峡谷出口地段，研究龙羊峡谷更新世以来气候演变特征对于探讨拉西瓦水电站坝区自然环境发展演化与工程岩体地质过程浅表生改造均有重要意义。本文在简述了龙羊峡谷形成史之后，通过分析树木年轮法、植物孢粉法、同位素法等所获取的资料，总结了更新世以来龙羊峡地区气候演变特征。分析认为龙羊峡地区更新世以来气候以旱寒为主，这种气候特征对于拉西瓦水电站坝区花岗岩风化作用的影响主要存在于两个方面：温度变化及由此带来的冰劈作用。     

Recycling and chemical weathering in tectonically controlled Mesozoic–Cenozoic basins of New Zealand

Sedimentation in molasse basins is controlled by tectonics, however, recycling and chemical weathering play a critical role in the compositional evolution of a sedimentary succession. The Cretaceous to Pliocene molasse deposits of Central Otago, New Zealand are excellent examples of tectonically related deposits that were governed by the effects of chemical weathering and recycling. Preserved in fault-controlled basins floored by flysch deposits of the Otago Schist, the clastic successions contain ubiquitous unconformities and lithofacies consistent with alluvial, fluvial and lacustrine depositional settings. Textural analysis of Central Otago sandstones establishes a general quartz enrichment and increased mixing of angular and well-rounded quartz varieties up-section, consistent with a history of sediment recycling. Rare earth element (REE) patterns, which reflect upper crustal compositions, are similar for the flysch-type Otago Schist (Permian–Early Cretaceous), a palaeo-weathering profile, and the overlying molasse deposits. The development of quartz arenites is also consistent with high degrees of chemical weathering, and erosion of the schist basement, which contains numerous quartz veins. Although recycling has occurred, SiO₂ and TiO₂ do not consistently show a negative correlation over time. This reflects erosion of previously deposited quartz-rich sediment and the Otago weathering profile, which produced an inverse stratigraphy. CIA values range from 52 for lithic-rich, coarse-grained sandstones and polymictic conglomerate matrices, to 93 for coarse-grained to pebble-rich quartz arenites. Individual samples were split into finer- and coarser-grained pairs (<2·5φ and 2·5 to −1φ) and were analysed separately. The results show that finer-grained samples contain higher REE abundances and less SiO₂, but the coarser-grained Miocene–Pliocene samples have higher CIA values than their finer-grained counterparts. These coarse-grained deposits are quartz-rich and plot erratically on tectonic discrimination diagrams, implying that using SiO₂-poor samples is more reliable for geochemical analysis. Overall, the petrographic and geochemical results indicate that the main factors controlling the composition of the Central Otago molasse deposits were source composition, chemical weathering and recycling. Studies of this nature can be conducted in Archaean tectonically controlled molasse basins that are affected by similar allocyclic factors.     

Tropical chemical weathering of hillslope deposits and bedrock source in the Aburrá Valley, northern Colombian Andes

Tropical chemical weathering produces extensive lateritization and formation of deep weathering profiles. Both processes are fundamental to landscape evolution and slope instability. The Aburrá Valley of the northern Colombian Andes is characterized by tropical conditions. The valley slopes are mostly covered by hillslope deposits originating from four basement rock suites which comprise contrasting granitoid, volcanic–sedimentary, ophiolitic, and metamorphic sources, respectively. Tropical chemical weathering of the Aburrá hillslope deposits and their respective bedrock were examined using X-ray fluorescence and X-ray diffraction analysis, to document and quantify their chemical weathering profiles, compositions, and mineralogical properties. The Chemical Index of Alteration (CIA), loss on ignition (LOI), and the Mobiles index (Imob) were used to quantify the degree of weathering of hillslope deposits and bedrock source. Weathering trends were analyzed using A–CN–K and A–CNK–FM diagrams. The material mantling the slopes in the Aburrá Valley records an intense weathering history. Chemical weathering is characterized by increased development of clay minerals (kaolinite, halloysite) and iron and aluminum sesquioxides. Lateritization characterizes the final stage of the weathering profiles. Concentrations of CaO, Na₂O, K₂O decrease markedly in the weathering products compared to the fresh bedrock source, whereas concentrations of Al₂O₃, Fe₂O₃, and MgO increase significantly. CIA ratios of matrix slope deposits derived from all four sources near 100, whereas those of boulder slope deposits and saprolites are lower, but exceed source rock values. Different A–CN–K weathering paths are evident for each lithotype, validating the correlation established between the hillslope deposits and their various parents. Chemical weathering indices in some samples are strongly influenced by the presence of sesquioxides, as reflected by high LOI, anomalously low CIA, and varying enrichment trends on the A–CNK–FM diagrams. Consequently, different chemical indices based on different criteria need to be combined to obtain best results, as illustrated here by the combination of LOI, CIA, and Imob. The overall results suggest that tropical conditions have dominated for a long time in the northern Colombian Andes, leading to uniformly high weathering indices in matrix slope deposits irrespective of parent lithotype. Prolonged warm and humid conditions could thus be responsible for the weathering and remobilization of extensive old hillslope deposits during the Quaternary. However, in addition to the influence of climatic factors, tectonism has also undoubtedly influenced slope evolution in the Aburrá Valley.