Structural analysis and interpretation of the surface deformation associated with the Ning’er, Yunnan Province, China M S6.4 earthquake of June 3, 2007

The seismogenic fault and the dynamic mechanism of the Ning’er, Yunnan Province MS6.4 earthquake of June 3, 2007 are studied on the basis of the observation data of the surface fissures, sand blow and water eruption, land-slide and collapse associated with the earthquake, incorporating with the data of geologic structures, focal mecha-nism solutions and aftershock distribution for the earthquake area. The observation of the surface fissures reveals that the Banhai segment of the NW-trending Ning’er fault is dominated by right-lateral strike-slip, while the NNE-trending fault is dominated by left-lateral strike-slip. The seismo-geologic hazards are concentrated mainly within a 330°-extending zone of 13.5 km in length and 4 km in width. The major axis of the isoseismal is also oriented in 330° direction, and the major axis of the seismic intensity VIII area is 13.5 km long. The focal mechanism solutions indicate that the NW-trending nodal plane of the Ning’er MS6.4 earthquake is dominated by right-lateral slip, while the NE-trending nodal plane is dominated by left-lateral slip. The preferred distribution orientation of the aftershocks of MS≥2 is 330°, and the focal depths are within the range of 3~12 km, predominantly within 3~10 km. The distribution of the aftershocks is consistent with the distribution zone of the seismo-geologic hazards. All the above-mentioned data indicate that the Banhai segment of the Ning’er fault is the seismogenic fault of this earthquake. Moreover, the driving force of the Ning’er earthquake is discussed in the light of the active block theory. It is believed that the northward pushing of the Indian plate has caused the eastward slipping of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, which has been transformed into the southeastern-southernward squeezing of the southwest Yunnan region. As a result, the NW-trending faults in the vicinity of the Ning’er area are dominated by right-lateral strike-slip, while the NE-trending faults are dominated by left-lateral strike-slip. This tectonic     

Impact of natural (waves and currents) and anthropogenic (trawl) resuspension on the export of particulate matter to the open ocean: Application to the Gulf of Lion (NW Mediterranean)

Modern sediment deposits on continental margins form a vast reservoir of particulate matter that is regularly affected by resuspension processes. Resuspension by bottom trawling on shelves with strong fishing activity can modify the scale of natural disturbance by waves and currents. Recent field data show that the impact of bottom trawls on fine sediment resuspension per unit surface is comparable with that of the largest storms.     

Discriminating the long distance dispersal of fine ash from sustained columns or near ground ash clouds: The example of the Pomici di Avellino eruption (Somma-Vesuvius,Italy)

Ash samples from tephra layers correlated with the Pomici di Avellino (Avellino Pumice) eruption of Somma-Vesuvius were collected in distal archives and their composition and particle morphology investigated in order to infer their behaviour of transportation and deposition. Differences in composition and particle morphologies were recognised for ash particles belonging to the magmatic Plinian and final phreatomagmatic phases of the eruption. The ash particles were dispersed in opposite directions during the two different phases of the eruption, and these directions are also different from that of coarse-grained fallout deposits. In particular, ash generated during magmatic phase and injected in the atmosphere to form a sustained column shows a prevailing SE dispersion, while ash particles generated during the final phreatomagmatic phase and carried by pyroclastic density currents show a general NW dispersion. These opposite dispersions indicate an ash dispersal influenced by both high and low atmosphere dynamics. In particular, the magmatic ash dispersal was first driven by stratospheric wind towards NE and then the falling particles encountered a variable wind field during their settling, which produced the observed preferential SE dispersal. The wind field encountered by the rising ash clouds that accompanied the pyroclastic density currents of the final phreatomagmatic phase was different with respect to that encountered by the magmatic ash, and produced a NW dispersal. These data demonstrate how ash transportation and deposition are greatly influenced by both high and low atmosphere dynamics. In particular, fine-grained particles transported in ash clouds of small-scale pyroclastic density currents may be dispersed over distances and cover areas comparable with those injected into the stratosphere by Plinian, sustained columns. This is a point not completely addressed by present day mitigation plans in case of renewal of activity at Somma-Vesuvius, and can yield important information also for other volcanoes potentially characterised by explosive activity.     

Hydrochemical dynamics of the “lake–spring” system in the crater of El Chichón volcano (Chiapas,Mexico)

El Chichón volcano (Chiapas, Mexico) erupted violently in March–April 1982, breaching through the former volcano–hydrothermal system. Since then, the 1982 crater has hosted a shallow (1–3.3 m, acidic (pH ∼ 2.2) and warm (∼ 30 °C) crater lake with a strongly varying chemistry (Cl/SO₄ = 0–79 molar ratio). The changes in crater lake chemistry and volume are not systematically related to the seasonal variation of rainfall, but rather to the activity of near-neutral geyser-like springs in the crater (Soap Pool). These Soap Pool springs are the only sources of Cl for the lake. Their geyser-like behaviour with a long-term (months to years) periodicity is due to a specific geometry of the shallow boiling aquifer beneath the lake, which is the remnant of the 1983 Cl-rich (24,000 mg/l) crater lake water. The Soap Pool springs decreased in Cl content over time. The zero-time extrapolation (1982, year of the eruption) approaches the Cl content in the initial crater lake, meanwhile the extrapolation towards the future indicates a zero-Cl content by 2009 ± 1. This particular situation offers the opportunity to calculate mass balance and Cl budget to quantify the lake–spring system in the El Chichón crater. These calculations show that the water balance without the input of SP springs is negative, implying that the lake should disappear during the dry season. The isotopic composition of lake waters (δD and δ¹⁸O) coincide with this crater lake-SP dynamics, reflecting evaporation processes and mixing with SP geyser and meteoric water. Future dome growth, not observed yet in the post-1982 El Chichón crater, may be anticipated by changes in lake chemistry and dynamics.     

World continental modeling for water resources using system dynamics

This research assesses the severity of future water scarcity and its impact on the growth of human civilization through system dynamics modeling of the world at regional level. Six sectors of activities are modeled in each continent to represent the human society. Continental interactions such as migration and trade are also modeled to express the synergy of activities among the various continents. Results of the model simulations from 1960 to 2100 show that water scarcity, unlike other limitations such as nonrenewable resources and persistent pollution, gives severe, detrimental problems within short delays after its occurrence.     

亚热带4种行道树树干表面CO_2释放速率昼夜动态

采用LI-8100土壤碳通量自动测量系统,与自制的树干呼吸观测气室相连,原位观测亚热带春、秋2个季节4种行道树树干呼吸速率及相关环境因子的昼夜动态.结果表明:在秋季土壤水分较低水平下(VWC平均为11.6%),羊蹄甲、香樟树干呼吸速率昼夜动态呈单峰曲线,和温度变化呈极显著指数函数关系,峰值分别出现在17:00和13:00;芒果和高山榕树干呼吸速率昼夜动态单峰不明显,白天与树干温度变化呈极显著指数函数关系,但芒果白天与夜间的树干呼吸速率差异不显著,而高山榕树干呼吸速率夜间显著高于白天,二者出现"白昼抑制"现象.在春季土壤水分较高水平下(VWC平均为22.1%),羊蹄甲、芒果和高山榕树干呼吸速率昼夜动态呈单峰型曲线,峰值分别出现在11:00、15:00和14:00;而香樟树干呼吸速率单峰不明显,4种树种的树干呼吸速率昼夜动态均与温度变化呈极显著指数函数关系.2个季节中,树干温度与树干呼吸的指数函数关系最好,秋季羊蹄甲、芒果和香樟树干呼吸速率对树干昼夜温度变化的Q10值分别为2.04、2.37和2.18,春季羊蹄甲、芒果、香樟和高山榕树干呼吸速率对树干昼夜温度变化的Q10值分别为2.27、2.58、1.90和1.8...     

科尔沁沙质草甸土壤微生物数量的垂直分布及季节动态

通过对中国农牧交错带科尔沁沙质草甸土壤微生物数量的垂直分布及其季节动态的研究分析表明:(1)微生物总数、细菌和放线菌数量均表现出与降雨量同步的季节动态,即6月份较5月份有所减少,7月份增至最多,7月份以后微生物数量逐渐下降,真菌则表现出从5月份到8月份一直增加,9月份开始回落;(2)土壤微生物具有明显的垂直分布差异.细菌和放线菌的垂直分布表现出随土壤深度增加逐渐减少的趋势,真菌数量表层最高,20 cm以下变化不够规律;(3)土壤微生物的层化比率均大于2(5月份放线菌除外);(4)不同土壤生态因子对微生物的影响不同,相同因子对不同微生物类群的影响也不相同.细菌受水分影响较大,真菌与地温的变化趋势相近,放线菌与水热条件的共同作用有关.土壤养分(有机碳和全氮)与微生物数量呈显著的正相关.     

Hydrodynamics and sediment dynamics in the German Bight. A focus on observations and numerical modelling in the East Frisian Wadden Sea

This work deals with analysis of hydrographic observations and results of numerical simulations. The data base includes acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) observations, continuous measurements on data stations and satellite data originating from the medium resolution imaging spectrometer (MERIS) onboard the European Space Agency (ESA) satellite ENVISAT with a spatial resolution of 300 m. Numerical simulations use nested models with horizontal resolutions ranging from 1 km in the German Bight to 200 m in the East Frisian Wadden Sea coupled with a suspended matter transport model. Modern satellite observations have now a comparable horizontal resolution with high-resolution numerical model of the entire area of the East Frisian Wadden Sea allowing to describe and validate new and so far unknown patterns of sediment distribution. The two data sets are consistent and reveal an oscillatory behaviour of sediment pools to the north of the back-barrier basins and clear propagation patterns of tidally driven suspended particulate matter outflow into the North Sea. The good agreement between observations and simulations is convincing evidence that the model simulates the basic dynamics and sediment transport processes, which motivates its further use in hindcasting, as well as in the initial steps towards forecasting circulation and sediment dynamics in the coastal zone.     

地下水超采区承压井水位变化机理探讨

通过研究河北平原区地下水超采区第四系第三承压含水层水位的变化机理,依据上覆地层的荷载效应、非稳定流抽水中弱透水层的释水和越流过程,阐明地下水超采区内地下水位大幅下降的内在规律,为科学合理地提取地震前兆信息提供科学依据。     

The formation of headland/island sandbanks

There are four extensive sandbanks in the vicinity of the Isle of Portland, a headland in the English Channel. The formation and maintenance of the two most prominent of these sandbanks (one on either side of the headland) can largely be explained by net bedload convergence, driven by instantaneous headland eddies generated by tidal flow past the headland. However, there are also two less prominent sandbanks (again, one on either side of the headland), which are not located in zones of bedload convergence. It is suggested here that these latter two sandbanks were formed when the Isle of Portland was isolated from the mainland by a tidal strait. Relative sea-level data and radiocarbon dates indicate that this would have occurred ca. 9–7 ka BP, prior to the closure of the strait by sedimentation. Tidal flow through this strait generated eddy systems in addition to the headland eddies, leading to the formation of associated headland/island sandbanks. At 7 ka BP, sedimentation resulted in closure of the strait, leading to the present-day headland configuration, and subsequent reworking of these now moribund sandbanks formed by the strait. A series of idealised morphological model experiments, parameterised using bedrock depths and glacial isostatic adjustment model output of relative sea level, are here used to simulate this hypothesised sequence of sandbank evolution over the Holocene. The results of the model experiments are corroborated by in situ observations of bedforms and sediment characteristics, and by acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) data applied to predictions of bedload transport over the sandbanks. In addition to demonstrating the mechanism which leads to the formation of sandbanks by tidal flow through a strait, the model results show that upon subsequent closure of such a strait, these sandbanks will no longer be actively maintained, in contrast to sandbanks which are continuously maintained by headland eddies.