Chloritoid-Bearing Mineral Assemblages in High-Pressure Metapelites from the Bughea Complex, Leaota Massif (South Carpathians)

High-Mg chloritoid (X_Mg = 0·40–0·47) andrelatively high-Mg staurolite (X_Mg = 0·25–0·28)coexisting with kyanite and garnet were identified in a mica–garnet-richrock associated with very high-pressure eclogites in the BugheaComplex of the Leaota Massif (South Carpathians). Major andtrace element geochemical data for both fresh eclogites andassociated rocks which represent a metasomatic or retrogradealteration rind of the eclogites, indicate a pelitic precursor.Magnesian chloritoid was found as inclusions in garnet as partof a chloritoid–kyanite–garnet assemblage whichis indicative of high-pressure conditions. The host garnet showsa typically prograde chemical zoning pattern. The chloritoid-bearingassemblage is confined to the inner part of the garnet porphyroblasts,whereas the matrix assemblage in equilibrium with Mg-rich garnetrims has exceeded the thermal stability limit of chloritoid.Pressure–temperature pseudosections for simplified compositionsapproaching the rock bulk-chemistry show a high-pressure fieldfor the identified chloritoid-bearing assemblage in good agreementwith pressure–temperature estimates in the CFMASH andKCFMASH chemical subsystems using analysed mineral compositions.The derived pressure–temperature path is clockwise, indicatingoverprinting during exhumation from 1·8 GPa and 580°Cto 1·15 GPa and 620°C, at a water activity approachinga_H2O = 1. These conditions were attained in a subduction mélangeindicating transient thermal perturbations of a subduction channel. KEY WORDS: high-pressure metapelite; Mg-rich chloritoid; P–T path; P–T pseudosection; very high-pressure eclogite     

Calculating snow-avalanche return period from tree-ring data

The return period is a key element used for snow-avalanche characterization. To calculate the return period, historical data regarding past snow-avalanche activity are required. In mountain areas where past snow avalanches are poorly documented, dendrogeomorphic approaches constitute a reliable method for the reconstruction of past snow avalanches at the temporal scale of living trees. This paper presents an automated method for calculating the snow-avalanche return period using a digital elevation model and the location of the trees disturbed by every reconstructed snow-avalanche occurrence. Unlike the existing method, the method we propose requires neither the calculation of return period for every sampled tree nor the use of interpolation. This new method is based on the determination of spatial extent for every past snow-avalanche occurrence using the upslope area algorithm. The number of past snow-avalanche occurrences is calculated for every pixel of the path. The chronology length is divided by the number of past snow-avalanche occurrences to obtain the return period. In the present paper, both the proposed method and the existing method are applied to calculate the return period for three confined snow-avalanche paths located in Parâng Mountains, part of the Romanian Carpathians. Results are compared and discussed.     

Growth of chloritoid and garnet along a nearly isothermal burial path to 70 km depth: an example from the Bughea Metamorphic Complex,Leaota Massif,South Carpathians

Mineralogy and Petrology - Chloritoid-bearing micaschist occurs in the matrix of a subduction mélange (Bughea Complex) of the Leaota Massif (South Carpathians) containing blocks of...