Oxygen isotopes from Chinese caves: records not of monsoon rainfall but of circulation regime

Oxygen isotope variations in Chinese stalagmites have been widely interpreted as a record of the amount of East Asian summer monsoonal rainfall. This interpretation infers decreasing monsoonal rainfall from the mid‐Holocene and large, dipolar rainfall oscillations within glaciations. However, the speleothem δ¹⁸O variations conflict with independent palaeoclimate proxies (cave δ¹³C, loess/palaeosol magnetic properties, δ¹³C alkanes), which indicate no systematic decline in rainfall from the mid‐Holocene, and no glacial rainfall maxima. Using mass balance calculations (which incorporate seasonality effects in both δ¹⁸O concentration and amount of precipitation), we demonstrate that the cave δ¹⁸O variations cannot be accounted for by summer rainfall changes, or rainfall seasonality or winter cooling, but instead reflect changes in moisture source. A possible driver of the δ¹⁸O variations in Chinese stalagmites is precessional forcing of inter‐hemispheric temperature gradients, and resultant shifts in the position and intensity of the subtropical pressure cells. Through such forcing, Indian monsoon‐sourced δ¹⁸O may have dominated at times of high boreal summer insolation, and local Pacific‐sourced moisture at low insolation. Suppression of summer monsoonal rainfall during glacial stages may reflect diminished sea and land surface temperatures and the radiative impacts of increased regional dust fluxes. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Nd–Sr isotopic constraint to the formation of metatexite and diatexite migmatites,Higo metamorphic terrane,central Kyushu,Japan

ABSTRACT

Metatexite and diatexite migmatites are widely distributed within the upper amphibolite and granulite-facies zones of the Higo low-P/high-T metamorphic terrane. Here we report Nd–Sr isotopic and whole rock composition data from an outcrop in the highest-grade part of the granulite-facies zone, in which diatexite occurs as a 3 m-thick layer between 2 m-thick layers of stromatic-structured metatexite within pelitic gneiss. The metatexite has Nd–Sr isotopes and whole rock compositions similar to those of the gneiss, but the diatexite shows the reverse. The diatexite has a higher ε_Nd(t) and ¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd ratio (ε_Nd(t) = ?0.5; ¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.1636) than the gneiss (ε_Nd(t) = ?2.1; ¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.1287) and metatexite (ε_Nd(t) = ?3.1; ¹⁴⁷Sm/¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.1188). The (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_initial and ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr of the diatexite ((⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_initial = 0.70568; ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr = 0.416) are lower than those of the gneiss ((⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_initial = 0.70857; ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr = 1.13) and metatexite ((⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_initial = 0.70792; ⁸⁷Rb/⁸⁶Sr = 1.11). The metatexite and gneiss show enrichment of Th and depletion of P and Eu and have a similar chondrite-normalized REE pattern, which shows steep LREE–MREE-enriched and gently declining HREE patterns and negative Eu anomalies, whereas the diatexite shows enrichment of Sr and depletion of Th and Y, and exhibits gently declining LREE and steeply declining HREE pattern and weak Eu depletion. The metatexite migmatite is interpreted to have formed by in situ partial melting in which the melt did not migrate from the source, whereas the diatexite migmatite included an externally derived melt with a juvenile component. The Cretaceous high-temperature metamorphism of the Higo metamorphic terrane is interpreted to reflect emplacement of mantle-derived basalts under a volcanic arc along the eastern margin of the Eurasian continent, and mass transfer and advection of heat via hybrid silicic melts from the lower crust.     

浅析四川汶川索桥滑坡稳定性及治理措施

根据工程地质测绘及勘探成果资料,在对四川汶川县索桥滑坡产生的成因机理和破坏模式进行分析判断的基础上,对两个潜在滑移面在不同的工况下的稳定性进行了分析评价,确定岩土交界面为最危险滑面.在此前提下对边坡发展趋势及激发诱因进行科学预测,认为在暴雨或余震等诱发下边坡极有可能失稳,并有针对性的制定了应急防治与永久根治的综合治理方案.     

云南两次局地暴雨过程水汽输送特征分析

采用常规观测资料、NCEP再分析资料,结合数值试验,对2012年5月24日和2015年9月27日云南两次局地暴雨过程水汽输送特征进行分析。结果表明：（1）两次过程主要受副热带高压影响,强降雨及其水汽输送伴随副热带高压西伸而中断,“5.24”过程动力条件主要由天气尺度系统提供,“9.27”过程动力条件主要为地形抬升作用;（2）两次过程水汽源地均为孟加拉湾、南海、西太平洋,“5.24”过程以西南路径水汽输送为主,输送距离较远,“9.27”过程以东南路径水汽输送为主,输送距离较短,局地特征更显著;（3）“9.27”过程水汽通量及最大雨量值均高于“5.24”过程,水汽通量与强降雨相关性较好,对强降雨具有一定指示意义;（4）两次过程水汽输送均集中在600hPa以下层,以经向偏南水汽输送为主,水汽输送增强时间较强降雨开始时间提前48～72h;（5）数值模拟结果与常规分析一致,同时可显示水汽垂直输送特征,低层以偏南路径为主,中层西南路径增多,中层以上出现偏西路径,存在沿西风带来自印度半岛及青藏高原的水汽贡献。     

FAST射电望远镜天文轨迹规划

针对我国500 m球面射电望远镜天线(FAST),提出了一体化天文轨迹规划;给出了详细的数学模型及推导分析。相对于当前采用的FAST轨迹规划,该方法使得馈源位置和反射面位置的控制误差可以相互补偿。指出当馈源系统和反射面系统具有相同的测控延迟误差时,并不影响FAST天线的性能。     

Nontectonic signals in reprocessed continuous GPS position time series of CMONOC

The nearly nine-year continuous GPS data collected since 1 March 1999 from the Crustal Motion Observation Network of China(CMONOC) were consistently analyzed.Most of the nonlinear movements in the cumulative position time series pro-duced by CMONOC data center disappeared;and more accurate vertical terms and tectonic signals were extracted.Displacements caused by atmospheric pressure loading,nontidal ocean loading,soil moisture mass loading,and snow cover mass loading using the National Centers for Environmental Prediction(NCEP) Reanalysis I/II models and Estimation of the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean(ECCO) data can explain most of the vertical annual terms at many stations,while only parts can be explained at Lhasa and southern coastal sites,indicating that there are some deformation mechanisms that are still unknown or not modeled accurately.The remarkable differences in vertical position time series for short-baseline sites reveal that GPS stations can be greatly affected by lo-cal factors;and attention should be paid when explaining observed GPS velocity vectors.     

长江流域夏季气温变化型及其成因Ⅰ：年际变化与遥相关

采用中国气象局整编的气温资料、NCEP/NCAR再分析资料、哈得来月平均海温资料以及CPC(NOAA)指数,分析了长江流域夏季气温的变化型及其成因.结果表明:长江中下游地区夏季气温呈现出全区一致、南北反相以及东西反相3种分布型,且这3种分布型分别是中国同号气温异常变化、南北反号气温异常以及东西反号气温异常分布背景下的局部反映.上述这3种气温异常型具有显著的年际和年代际变化特征,其中在年际尺度上具有2-5年的周期,反映出在年代际背景下的年际变化;在年际尺度上,3种异常型分别对应不同特点的环流型,并且高度场在长江中下游地区上空的垂直分布均呈准正压结构;3种异常型对应的环流型的维持分别与来自大西洋穿越极区的波列,由地中海沿亚洲急流东传的波列以及北半球环状模有关.同时,全区一致型和南北反相型与P-J型波列联系紧密,其中南北反相型与该波列联系更为紧密;全区一致型与Nino3海温指数呈负相关关系,其中超前一季的负相关最大.南北反相型与Nino3海温指数超前2季相关最高,与Nino4海温指数同时相关最高.东西反相型则与Nino3海温指数同时相关最高,与Nino4海温指数超前3季相关最高.这些结果可为进一步认识长江流域夏季气温变化规律和极端天气气候事件的预测提供线索.     

Contemporary 14C radiocarbon levels of oxygenated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (O-PBDEs) isolated in sponge-cyanobacteria associations

Considerable debate surrounds the sources of oxygenated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (O-PBDEs) in wildlife as to whether they are naturally produced or result from anthropogenic industrial activities. Natural radiocarbon (¹⁴C) abundance has proven to be a powerful tool to address this problem as recently biosynthesized compounds contain contemporary (i.e. modern) amounts of atmospheric radiocarbon; whereas industrial chemicals, mostly produced from fossil fuels, contain no detectable ¹⁴C. However, few compounds isolated from organisms have been analyzed for their radiocarbon content. To provide a baseline, we analyzed the ¹⁴C content of four O-PBDEs. These compounds, 6-OH-BDE47, 2′-OH-BDE68, 2′,6-diOH-BDE159, and a recently identified compound, 2′-MeO-6-OH-BDE120, were isolated from the tropical marine sponges Dysidea granulosa and Lendenfeldia dendyi. The modern radiocarbon content of their chemical structures (i.e. diphenyl ethers, C₁₂H₂₂O) indicates that they are naturally produced. This adds to a growing baseline on, at least, the sources of these unusual compounds.     

Bi‐directional coupled tuned mass dampers for the seismic response control of two‐way asymmetric‐plan buildings

This paper proposes bi‐directional coupled tuned mass dampers (BiCTMDs) for the seismic response control of two‐way asymmetric‐plan buildings subjected to bi‐directional ground motions. The proposed BiCTMD was developed from the three‐degree‐of‐freedom modal system, which represents the vibration mode of a two‐way asymmetric‐plan building. The performance of the proposed BiCTMD for the seismic response control of elastic two‐way asymmetric‐plan buildings was verified by investigating the reductions of the amplitudes of the associated frequency response functions. In addition, the investigation showed that the proposed BiCTMD is effective in reducing the seismic damage of inelastic asymmetric‐plan buildings. Therefore, the BiCTMD is an effective approach for the seismic response control of both elastic and inelastic two‐way asymmetric‐plan buildings. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigating Correlations and Variations of Air Pollutant Concentrations under Conditions of Rapid Industrialization – Kocaeli (1987–2009)

In this study, it was aimed to characterize temporal variations of air pollutants for determining contribution to pollution episodes and to obtain correlations between these pollutants. With this aim we used data analysis for measured sulfur dioxide (SO₂), particulate matter (PM, black fume and PM10), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), ozone (O₃), carbon monoxide (CO), methane (CH₄), and non‐methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) recorded in Kocaeli, one of the most industrilizated cities of Turkey. Pollutant concentrations were the results of continuous and semi‐automatic measurements. Semi‐automatic measurements of SO₂ and PM (black fume) were enclosing period from 1987 to 2008 whereas continuous monitoring of all pollutants included years of 2007–2009. In the first stage of the study daily, monthly, annual, and seasonal variations of pollution were researched. Annual average concentrations were compared with limits set by Air Quality Protection Regulation (AQPR), Air Quality Evaluation and Management Regulation (AQEMR), World Health Organization (WHO), European Union (EU), and National Ambient Air Quality Standards (USEPA). In the following stage relationships between pollutants such as NO₂–O₃, NO_x–CO, NO_x–NMHC, and NO_x–SO₂ were investigated and correlation coefficients were determined as 0.87, 0.56, 0.51, and 0.69, respectively. R² values of regression models developed from these correlations were 0.78, 0.56, 0.34, and 0.72, respectively. Vehicle density of the traffic was evaluated with NO_x–O₃ emissions and decrease was seen in NO_x emissions due to decreasing vehicle density at weekends whereas O₃ concentrations increased. These correlations enable prediction of the parameters that cannot be measured which is important for providing improvement in early warning systems.