Colluvial sedimentation in a hyperarid setting (Atacama Desert,northern Chile): Geomorphic controls and stratigraphic facies variability

Research on colluvial depositional systems has recently emphasized periglacial and high‐altitude settings, and the relations between Quaternary slope stratigraphy and climate change. This article examines the role of variable slope morphology, surface hydrology and microclimate in controlling colluvial sedimentation along a coastal tract of the hyperarid Atacama Desert in northern Chile. Direct accessibility of active surfaces is accompanied by uninterrupted stratigraphic exposures along the base of slopes, allowing direct comparisons between surface processes and the resulting sedimentary record. Four slope sectors are identified, based on differences in morphology and processes over active surfaces. Colluvial sedimentation is controlled by complex interactions of slope gradients and profiles, exposure to dominant winds, and potential runoff pathways, which vary considerably between different sectors. Major differences are evident between these hyperarid deposits and slope sedimentation in periglacial and temperate settings, including the complete absence of pedogenic activity and clay minerals; the volume of aeolian deposits and their role in controlling processes which redistribute sediment downslope, extending colluvial aprons; and the occurrence of runoff processes only where favoured by particular topographic configurations. Depositional surfaces range from steep talus cones, to debris‐flow‐dominated and aeolian‐dominated colluvial aprons, to an aeolian ramp subject to reworking by mass flows and flash floods. Consequently, facies associations and architectures at outcrop are highly variable and highlight the importance of spatial variations in slope morphology and processes in producing distinct, coeval colluvial stratigraphies within a single environmental context. Discrepancies between active processes and the corresponding stratigraphic signatures are also evident in some sectors; for example, preservation of alluvial and aeolian facies in stratigraphic sections does not always reflect the dominant processes over active slopes. Together with the spatial variability in processes and deposits along these slopes, this suggests that caution is required when extracting palaeoenvironmental information from analyses of colluvial successions.     

基于年龄测试的黄庄—高丽营断裂活动性研究

黄庄—高丽营断裂是北京平原区一条重要的活动断裂,在庙城—高丽营段沿线发生地裂缝,造成大量房屋墙体开裂和道路破坏。在西王路村探槽揭示该断裂错断第四系地层,产生地表地裂缝。探糟断裂孢粉年龄测试,该断裂发生年龄大致在13～22ka,仍处于活动状态。     

Ground motions observed during the 15 August 2007 Pisco, Peru, earthquake

A M_w 7.9 earthquake event occurred on 15 August 2007 off the coast of central Peru, 60 km west of the city of Pisco. This event is associated with subduction processes at the interface of the Nazca and South American plates, and was characterised by a complex source mechanism involving rupture on two main asperities, with unilateral rupture propagation to the southeast. The rupture process is clearly reflected in the ground motions recorded during this event, which include two separate episodes of strong shaking. The event triggered 18 accelerographic stations; the recordings are examined in terms of their characteristics and compared to the predictions of ground-motion prediction equations for subduction environments, using the maximum-likelihood-based method of Scherbaum et al. (Bull Seismol Soc Am 94(6):2164–2185, 2004). Additionally, macroseismic observations and damage patterns are examined and discussed in the light of local construction practices, drawing on field observations gathered during the post-earthquake reconnaissance missions.     

Late Cenozoic geomorphologic signal of Andean forearc deformation and tilting associated with the uplift and climate changes of the Southern Atacama Desert (26°S–28°S)

We analyze remarkable examples of the large ( 10,000 km²) and local-scale ( 100 km²) landscape forms related to Late Cenozoic geomorphologic evolution of the Andean forearc region in the Southern Atacama Desert. We also consider the continental sedimentary deposits, so-called “Atacama Gravels”, which are related to the degradation of the landscape during the Neogene. Our analysis integrates 1:50,000 field cartography, Landsat TM images observations,  1:1000 sedimentary logging data, and 50 m horizontal resolution topographic data to reconstruct the Late Cenozoic geomorphologic evolution of this region and discuss the factors that control it, i.e., Miocene aridification of the climate and Neogene Central Andean uplift. We determine that the Precordillera was already formed in the Oligocene and most of the present-day altitude of the Precordillera was reached before that time. Afterward, five episodes of geomorphologic evolution can be differentiated: (1) the development of an Oligocene deep incised drainage system cutting the uplifted Precordillera (up to 2000 m of vertical incision) and connecting it to the Ocean; followed by (2) the infilling of deep incised valleys by up to 400 m of Atacama Gravels. This infill started in the Early Miocene with the development of fluvial deposition and finished in the Middle Miocene with playa and playa lake depositions. We propose that playa-related deposition occurs in an endorheic context related to tectonic activity of the Atacama Fault System and Coastal Cordillera uplift. However, the upward sedimentologic variation in the Atacama Gravels evidences a progressive aridification of the climate. Subsequently, we have identified the effects of the Middle–Upper Miocene slow tectonic deformation: the Neogene Andean uplift is accommodated by a tilting or flexuring of the inner-forearc (Central Depression and Precordillera) related to some hundreds of meters of uplift in the Precordillera. This tilting or flexuring results in (3) the Middle Miocene re-opening of the valley network to the Pacific Ocean. Upper Miocene aridification, from arid to hyperarid, induces alluvial fans backfilling in the Central Depression (4) resulting in up to 50 m of Atacama Gravel deposition. Finally, in response to an increase in the rate of tilting, a new phase of vertical incision (up to 800 m in the Precordillera) allows the development of the canyon that crosses the forearc (5).     

Shear partitioning in the Philippines: Constraints from Philippine Fault and global positioning system data

Abstract The Philippine Fault is a major left-lateral structure formed in an island arc setting. It accommodates a component of the oblique convergence between the Philippine Sea Plate and the Philippine archipelago. This observation is quantified through a series of global positioning satellite experiments between 1991 and 1996. The formation of the Fault marks the onset of a new geodynamic regime in the Philippine region. In the central Philippines, this event corresponds to the creation of a new tectonic boundary separating the Philippine Mobile Belt and the Philippine Sea Plate, following the latter's kinematic reorganization that occurred around 4 Ma ago. During this event, the Philippine Sea Plate changed its relative movement with respect to Eurasia from a northward to a north-westward motion, favoring the formation of a Philippine Fault–Philippine Trench system under a shear partitioning mechanism.     

A simple model accounting for the uptake,transport, and deposition of wind‐eroded mineral particles in the hyperarid coastal Atacama Desert of northern Chile

As previously observed in marine sediments collected downwind of African or South American continental sources, recent studies of sediment cores collected at the bottom of Mejillones Bay in north Chile (23°S) show a laminated structure in which the amount of particles of aeolian origin and their size create significant differences between the layers. This suggests inter‐annual to inter‐decadal variations in the strength of the local southerly winds responsible for (1) the erosion of the adjacent hyperarid surface of the Mejillones Pampa, and (2) the subsequent transport of the eroded particles towards the bay. A simple model accounting for the vertical uptake, transport, and deposition of the particles initially set into motion by wind at the surface of the pampa is proposed. This model, which could be adapted to other locations, assumes that the initial rate of (vertical) uptake is proportional to the (horizontal) saltation flux quantified by means of White's equation, that particles are lifted to a height (H), increasing with the magnitude of turbulence, and that sedimentation progressively removes the coarsest particles from the air column as it moves towards the bay. In this model, the proportionality constant (A) linking the vertical flux of particles with the horizontal flux, and the injection height (H) control the magnitude and size distribution of the deposition flux in the bay. Their values are determined using the wind speed measured over the pampa and the size distribution of particles collected in sediment traps deployed in the bay as constraints. After calibration, the model is used to assess the sensitivity of the deposition flux to the wind intensity variations. The possibility of performing such quantitative studies is necessary for interpreting precisely the variability of the aeolian material in the sediment cores collected at the bottom of Mejillones Bay. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Limnogeology of Laguna Miscanti: evidence for mid to late Holocene moisture changes in the Atacama Altiplano (Northern Chile)

Sedimentological, mineralogical and geochemical analyses of sediment cores from 9 m-deep, saline Laguna Miscanti, Chile (23 ° 44S, 67 °46W, 4140 m a.s.l.) together with high-resolution seismic profiles provide a mid to late Holocene time series of regional environmental change in the Atacama Altiplano constrained by ²¹⁰Pb and conventional ¹⁴C dating. The mid Holocene was the most arid interval since the last glacial maximum, as documented by subaerial exposure and formation of hardgrounds on a playa surface. Extremely low lake levels during the mid Holocene appear consistent with lower effective moisture recorded at other sites along the Altiplano and in the Amazon Basin. Termination of this arid period represented a major shift in the regional environmental dynamics and inaugurated modern atmospheric conditions. The cores show a progressive upward increase in effective moisture interrupted by numerous century-scale drier periods of various intensities and durations that characterize a fluctuating late Holocene climate. In spite of chronological uncertainties, the major environmental changes seem to correlate with the available paleorecords from the region providing a coherent account of effective moisture variability in the tropical highlands of South America.This is the 16th in a series of papers published in this special AMQUA issue. These papers were presented at the 1994 meeting of the American Quaternary Association held 19–22 June, 1994, at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Dr Linda C. K. Shane served as guest for these papers.     

Super-deep CTD measurements in the Izu-Ogasawara trench and a comparison of geostrophic shears with direct measurements

CTD (Conductivity-Temperature-Depth) data at five stations across the Izu-Ogasawara Trench at 34°N were examined. Geostrophic velocity was in accordance with the directly measured currents. Above the trench floor, potential temperature increased at a rate of 0.6 m°C/1000 db from 8000 db to 9417 db, and salinity increased from 8300 db to the bottom. Potential density was almost constant at 7100–8700 db, and it increased to the bottom. Above the eastern and western flanks, inversion of potential density was indicated in the bottom layers with an increase of potential temperature and a decrease of salinity, suggesting geothermal heating and outflow of ground water.     

Deep CTD Casts in the Challenger Deep,Mariana Trench

On 1 December 1992, CTD (conductivity-temperature-depth profiler) casts were made at three stations in a north-south section of the Challenger Deep to examine temperature and salinity profiles. The station in the Challenger Deep was located at 11°22.78′ N and 142°34.95′ E, and the CTD cast was made down to 11197 db or 10877 m, 7 m above the bottom by reeling out titanium cable of 10980 m length. The southern station was located at 11° 14.19′ N and 142°34.79′ E, 16.1 km from the central station, where water depth is 9012 m. CTD was lowered to 7014 db or 6872 m. The northern station was located at 11°31.47′ N and 142° 35.30′ E, 15.9 km from the central station, and CTD was lowered to 8536 db or 8336 m, 10 m above the bottom. Below the thermocline, potential temperature decreased monotonously down to 7300–7500 db beyond a sill depth between 5500 m and 6000 m, or between 5597 db and 6112 db, of the trench. Potential temperature increased from 7500 db to the bottom at a constant rate of 0.9 m°C/1000 db. Salinity increased down to 6020–6320 db, and then stayed almost constant down to around 9000 db. From 9500 db to the bottom, salinity increased up to 34.703 psu at 11197 db. Potential density referred to 8000 db increased monotonously down to about 6200 db, and it was almost constant from 6500 db to 9500 db. Potential density increased from 9500 db in accordance with the salinity increase. Geostrophic flows were calculated from the CTD data at three stations. Below an adopted reference level of 3000 db, the flow was westward in the north of Challenger Deep and eastward in the south, which suggests a cyclonic circulation over the Challenger Deep. Sound speed in Challenger Deep was estimated from the CTD data, and a relation among readout depth of the sonic depth recorder, true depth, and pressure was examined.