Chronology of the Mediterranean sea-level highstand during the Last Interglacial: a critical review of the U/Th-dated deposits

Relative sea-level (RSL) evolution during Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 5 in the Mediterranean basin is still not fully understood despite a plethora of morphological, stratigraphic and geochronological studies carried out on highstand deposits of this area. In this review we assembled a database of 323 U/Th-dated samples (e.g. corals, molluscs, speleothems) which were used to chronologically constrain RSL evolution within MIS 5. The application of strict geochemical criteria to the U/Th samples indicates that only ~33% of data available for the Mediterranean Sea can be considered ‘reliable’. Most of these data (~65%) refer to the MIS 5e highstand, while only ~17% could be related to the MIS 5a. No attribution to MIS 5c can be unequivocally supported. Nevertheless, the resulting framework does not allow us to define a satisfactory RSL trend during the MIS 5e highstand and subsequent MIS 5 substages. Overall, the proposed selection of reliable/unreliable data would be useful for detecting areas where MIS 5 substage attributions are not supported by confident U/Th chronological data and thus the related reconstructions need to be revised. In this regard, the resulting framework calls for a reappraisal and re-examination of the Mediterranean records with advanced geochronological methodologies.     

冰层空气反循环快速钻进方法及冰屑运移研究

空气反循环钻进技术具有钻速快、能耗低、可不提钻连续取心取样、能有效避免积雪层漏失等优点,在冰层钻探中极具应用潜力。本文针对冰层钻探技术特点,提出了双壁钻杆式、双通道高压胶管式和寄生高压胶管式等三种空气反循环冰层钻探技术,分别介绍了其工作原理及特点。基于气力输送和气体钻井基本理论,对冰屑颗粒气体介质中的悬浮速度进行了分析,建立了单颗粒冰屑悬浮、运移方程和冰屑颗粒群悬浮方程,并设计了冰屑悬浮实验台,对冰屑悬浮所需的风速进行了实验测试。理论计算值与实验实测值吻合较好,最大误差约10.91%,可用本文建立的冰屑运动方程来计算实际钻进时携带冰屑所需的风量,为后续在极地实施冰层空气反循环钻进技术提供了依据。     

人类从哪里来？——（4）人类演化与古地理、古环境和古气候变化

详细介绍了8 Ma以来全球气候变化的规律,研究表明地球上主要发生过3次冷气候事件：第一次冷气候事件大约发生在距今7 Ma,一股强烈的干冷气流刮过欧洲大陆,穿越赤道地区直达非洲大陆,使得原始森林开始萎缩,面积的缩小导致古猿与人类发生演化分异;第二次冷气候事件大约发生在距今4.2 Ma,那时干冷气候持续发展,非洲大陆的原始森林进一步萎缩,并逐渐演化为稀树草原,出现了南方猿人和傍人;第三次冷气候事件大约发生在距今2.3 Ma,全球气候变化波动较大,冷-暖气候交替发育,地球上出现了真正意义上的人（人属）,并逐渐演化成现代人。根据目前的研究,人类的起源和演化与古地理、古环境和古气候变化密切相关,人类演化历史大致可分为7个时期：撒海尔猿人—原初猿人时期、地居猿人时期、南方猿人—傍人时期、能人—鲁道夫人时期、匠人—直立人时期、先驱人—海德堡人时期和智人时期。     

三江源区大气可降水量时空特征及其与降水关系

利用1979—2016年欧洲中期天气预报中心(ECMWF) ERA-Interim (1°×1°)再分析资料中的经、纬向水汽通量和大气可降水量(precipitation water vapor,PWV)数据,采用相关性分析、趋势分析法、累积距平、IDW等方法,分析三江源地区PWV与水汽通量的时空分布特征、降水转化率(precipitati-on conversion efficiency,PCE)变化规律。结果表明:过去的38 a,经、纬向多年平均水汽通量分别为50. 2、196. 7 kg·m-1·s^(-1),纬向水汽通量气候倾向率比经向大。南边界为纬向主要水汽输入边界,东边界为经向主要水汽输出边界,纬向水汽输送大于经向输送。多年平均PWV为1998. 3 mm,近38 aPWV呈现微弱增加趋势,1979—1997年,PWV呈下降趋势,1998年后PWV呈增加趋势,同期降水也在增加,说明该时段三江源地区气候转湿。PWV与水汽通量的年际变化趋势和转折年相一致。三江源区多年平均PCE为24. 57%,1989年PCE最高,达32. 76%,各季节平均PCE空间分布与年平均PCE分布一致,均表现出南部、东南部高,西部、东北部低的变化特征,各季节PCE大小差异明显,春季多年平均PCE为15. 92%,夏季25. 67%,秋季21. 01%,冬季仅7. 03%。     

内蒙古东北部地区一次极端降雪过程的水汽输送特征

利用内蒙古呼伦贝尔市常规观测资料和GDAS、NCEP/NCAR再分析资料,采用欧拉方法分析了2016年春季内蒙古东北部地区一次极端暴雪过程的水汽输送及收支特征,利用HYSPLIT模式和聚类分析模拟计算了此次暴雪天气过程的水汽源地、主要水汽输送通道及其对水汽输送的贡献,并与传统的欧拉方法结果进行对比。结果表明:(1)有3支不同源地的水汽流在内蒙古东北部地区交汇,对呼伦贝尔地区暴雪的发生与维持有重要影响;(2)经向和纬向输送为此次暴雪天气的发生提供了充足的水汽,暴雪区水汽主要源于中高层的南边界和随西风气流的西边界;(3)利用HYSPLIT模式模拟发现,在此次暴雪天气过程中水汽主要来源于新地岛以西洋面、日本海以及巴尔喀什湖,且三者贡献率大致相当。     

基于交通网络空间权重的区域经济空间相关分析——以甘肃省为例

在区域经济中,交通是联系地理空间和区域经济活动的纽带,交通的发达程度决定了各地理单元空间相互作用的广度与深度.针对不同交通模式赋以不同的权重,基于最短加权交通网络,提出新的空间权重矩阵构建方法,构建了交通网络空间权重,与各种传统空间权重一起,对比研究甘肃省各县域单元之间的区域经济的空间相关性.研究结果表明,利用交通网络空间权重生成的空间权重矩阵,能更真实地反映区域间实际的空间过程;甘肃省的区域经济具有空间相关性但不显著,核心城市经济外溢现象不明显.     

西气东输管道工程中卫黄河穿越隧道场地工程地质条件评价

西气东输工程中卫黄河穿越隧道长1197.77m,高4.3m,宽5.6m。隧道入口高于黄河水位28m,出口高于黄河水位45m。隧道顶板高程为1130m。位于黄河水下100m。隧道场地围岩为寒武系磨盘井组灰绿色、银灰色浅变质中厚层细粒长石石英砂岩、千枚状板岩、绢云母化千枚岩。围岩为弱风化Ⅲ～Ⅳ类岩石。透水率为4～67Lu,纵波波速为500～3300m.s-1。BQ为300～400。变形模量为6.11～9.22GPa。泊松比（）0.14～0.24。内摩擦角（）为42.1～44.7。地下水为基岩裂隙水。含水层为寒武系浅变质岩,受大气降水渗入补给,单井涌水量为1.0～50m3.d-1。隧道轴线穿越区岩体较完整较破碎,未有全新活动断层。隧道位置选择和开挖深度设计是可行的。施工和长期运营是安全的。     

Sea level induced variations in clay mineral composition in the southwestern South China Sea over the past 17,000 yr

Variations in clay mineral composition of sediment cores from the margin and continental slope of the Sunda Shelf (southern South China Sea, SE Asia) covering the past 17,000 yr reflect changing influences of sediment sources together with clay mineral partitioning processes in shallow waters. We identify the deglacial sea level rise as the principal factor driving these changes. During the late glacial, high values of kaolinite are interpreted to reflect a higher contribution of clays from soils that have formed on the exposed Sunda Shelf and in the southern archipelagos of Indonesia. At this time core sites were located in close proximity to the mouths of the Sunda Shelf palaeo-drainage systems on the emerged shelf (“Sundaland”). The progressive landward displacement of the coastline and breakdown of these vast drainage systems during deglaciation led to a decrease in influence of the kaolinite-rich southern sources. When the coastline had retreated closely to its present-day position in mid-Holocene times, the former dominance of southern sources was replaced by a stronger influence of illite-rich sources (e.g. Borneo). The overriding control of sea level changes on the clay mineral distribution patterns precludes a definite climatic interpretation of clay mineral data in terms of climatic/monsoonal changes in such highly dynamic sedimentary environment.     

Decline of Pseudodiaptomus hessei (Copepoda, Calanoida) in two water bodies located in the Senegal River hydrosystem (West Africa): Hypotheses and perspectives

Pseudodiaptomus hessei is a key species in many water bodies in the Senegal River hydrosystem but it became rare or completely disappeared from two ecosystems (Lake Guiers and Dakar Bango Reservoir; Senegal, West Africa) after major hydrological changes caused by human action, mainly impoundments on the river in 1985, and the opening of a new estuary mouth in 2003. Kâ et al. [Kâ, S., Pagano, M., Ba, N., Bouvy, M., Leboulanger, C., Arfi, R., Thiaw, O.T., Ndour, E.H.M., Corbin, D., Defaye, D., Cuoc, C., Kouassi, E., 2006. Zooplankton distribution related to environmental factors and phytoplankton in a shallow tropical lake (Lake Guiers, Senegal, West Africa). International Review of Hydrobiology 91(5), 389–405] put forward several hypotheses to explain the reasons for this decline: salinity and chemical changes in the water, predation by a cyclopid predator Mesocyclops ogunnus and/or the inhibiting effects of cyanobacteria and/or diatoms (allelopathy). This study assessed these hypotheses by studying the distribution of P. hessei in 13 stations (including the Dakar Bango reservoir and Lake Guiers) in relation to physical, chemical and biological (phyto- and zooplanktons) factors at each station. We produced a distribution pattern for this species in the Senegal River hydrosystem. Rank correlations and principal component analysis showed that P. hessei was not correlated with conductivity but was positively correlated with pH and alkalinity, suggesting chemical effects. The clear association with two filamentous cyanobacteria (Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii and Anabaena sp.) did not appear to support the hypothesis of cyanobacteria inhibition but blooming conditions were never encountered during the study. Negative correlation with diatoms (especially with Fragilaria sp.) suggested that aldehyde producing diatoms had a negative effect. Negative correlations with cyclopids such as Mesocyclops supported the hypothesis of cyclopid predation to explain the decline of P. hessei. This study proposes several lines of research for future studies to test these hypotheses.     

Statistical analysis and forecasts of long-term sandbank evolution at Great Yarmouth, UK

A data-driven model has been developed to analyse the long-term evolution of a sandbank system and to make ensemble predictions in a period of 8 years. The method uses a combination of empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis, (to define spatial and temporal patterns of variability), jack-knife resampling, (to generate an ensemble of EOFs), a causal auto-regression technique, (to extrapolate the temporal eigenfunctions), and straightforward statistical analysis of the resulting ensemble of predictions to determine a ‘forecast’ and associated uncertainty. The methodology has been applied to a very demanding site which includes a curved shoreline and a group of mobile nearshore sandbanks. The site is on the eastern coast of the UK and includes the Great Yarmouth sandbanks and neighbouring shoreline. A sequence of 33 high quality historical survey charts reaching back to 1848 have been used to analyse the patterns and to predict morphological evolution of the sandbank system. The forecasts demonstrate an improved skill relative to an assumption of persistence, but suffer in locations where there are propagating features in the morphology that are not well-described by EOFs.