Microbially mediated carbonates in the Holocene deposits from Sarliève, a small ancient lake of the French Massif Central, testify to the evolution of a restricted environment

Both the mineralogy and facies of lacustrine bio‐induced carbonates are controlled largely by hydrological factors that are highly dependent upon climatic influence. As such they are useful tools in characterizing ancient lake environments. In this way, the study of the sedimentary record from the small ancient Sarliève Lake (Limagne, Massif Central, France) aims to reconstruct the hydrological evolution during the Holocene, using petrographical, mineralogical and geochemical analyses. The fine‐grained marls, mainly calcitic, display numerous layers rich in pristine Ca‐dolomite, with small amounts of aragonite, which are clearly autochthonous. As these minerals are rather unusual in the temperate climatic context of western Europe, the question arises about their forming conditions, and therefore that of the lacustrine environment. Ca‐dolomite prevails at the base of the sequence as a massive dolomicrite layer and, in the middle part, it builds up most of the numerous laminae closely associated with organic matter. Scanning electron microscope observations reveal the abundance of tiny crystals (tens to hundreds of nanometres) mainly organized as microspheres looking like cocci or bacilli. Such a facies is interpreted as resulting from the fossilization of benthic microbial communities by dolomite precipitation following organic matter consumption and extracellular polymeric substance degradation. These microbial dolomites were precipitated in a saline environment, as a consequence of excess evaporation from the system, as is also suggested by their positive ?¹⁸O values. The facies sequence expresses the following evolution: (i) saline pan, i.e. endorheic stage with a perennial lowstand in lake level (Boreal to early Atlantic periods); (ii) large fluctuations in lake level with sporadic freshening of the system (Atlantic); (iii) open lake stage (sub‐boreal); and (iv) anthropogenic drainage (sub‐Atlantic).     

The Solubility of Sulphur in Hydrous Rhyolitic Melts

Experiments performed at 2 kbar, in the temperature range 800–1000°C,with fO₂ between NNO–2·3 and NNO+2·9 (whereNNO is the nickel–nickel oxide buffer), and varying amountsof sulphur added to hydrous metaluminous rhyolite bulk compositions,were used to constrain the solubility of sulphur in rhyolitemelts. The results show that fS₂ exerts a dominant control onthe sulphur solubility in hydrous silicate melts and that, dependingon fO₂, a rhyolitic melt can reach sulphur contents close to1000 ppm at high fS₂. At fO₂ below NNO+1, the addition of ironto a sulphur-bearing rhyolite magma produces massive crystallizationof pyrrhotite and does not enhance the sulphur solubility ofthe melt. For a given fO₂, the melt-sulphur-content increaseswith fS₂. For fixed fO₂ and fS₂, temperature exerts a positivecontrol on sulphur solubilities, at least for fO₂ below NNO+1.The mole fraction of dissolved sulphur exhibits essentiallylinear dependence on fH₂S at low fO₂ and, although the experimentalevidence is less clear, on fSO₂ at high fO₂. The minimum insulphur solubility corresponds to the redox range where bothfH₂S and fSO₂ are approximately equal. A thermodynamic modelof sulphur solubility in hydrous rhyolite melts is derived assumingthat total dissolved sulphur results from the additive effectsof H₂S and SO₂ dissolution reactions. The model reproduces wellthe minimum of sulphur solubility at around NNO+1, in additionto the variation of the sulphide to sulphate ratio with fO₂.A simple empirical model of sulphur solubility in rhyoliticmelts is derived, and shows good correspondence between modeland observations for high-silica rhyolites. KEY WORDS: sulphur; solubility; rhyolite; thermodynamics; fO₂; fS₂     

Little Ice Age advance and retreat sediment budgets for an outlet glacier in western Norway

Burki, V., Hansen, L., Fredin, O., Andersen, T. A., Beylich, A. A., Jaboyedoff, M., Larsen, E. & Tønnesen, J.‐ F. 2009: Little Ice Age advance and retreat sediment budgets for an outlet glacier in western Norway. Boreas, Vol. 39, pp. 551–566. 10.1111/j.1502‐3885.2009.00133.x. ISSN 0300‐9483 Bødalsbreen is an outlet glacier of the Jostedalsbreen Ice Field in western Norway. Nine moraine ridges formed during and after the maximum extent of the Little Ice Age (LIA). The stratigraphy of proglacial sediments in the Bødalen basin inside the LIA moraines is examined, and corresponding sediment volumes are calculated based on georadar surveys and seismic profiling. The total erosion rates (e_tot) by the glacier are determined for the periods AD 1650–1930 and AD 1930–2005 as 0.8 ± 0.4 mm/yr and 0.7 ± 0.3 mm/yr, respectively. These rates are based on the total amount of sediment delivered to the glacier margin. The values are almost one order of magnitude higher than total erosion rates previously calculated for Norwegian glaciers. This is explained by the large amount of pre‐existing sediment that was recycled by Bødalsbreen. Thus, the total erosion rate must be considered as a composite of eroded bedrock and of removed pre‐existing sediments. The total erosion rate is likely to vary with time owing to a decreasing volume of easily erodible, unconsolidated sediment and till under the glacier. A slight increase in the subglacial bedrock erosion is expected owing to the gradually increasing bedrock surface area exposed to subglacial erosion.     

Phosphatization of calcium carbonate in phosphorites: microstructure and importance

Fabrics of phosphatized calcium carbonate particles in various phosphorites have been studied using scanning electron microscopy coupled with X-ray dispersive microanalysis. Replacement of calcium carbonate by apatite has been observed in bivalve shell fragments and in foraminiferal tests; replacement proceeds at constant volume with excellent preservation of the original microtextures. In some deposits, replacement of carbonate by apatite is the main phosphogenic process. However, in general, the process seems to be far less important than might be believed purely on the basis of thin section observations. In many phosphorites, internal or external apatite moulds of bioclasts are common, including very small particles such as coccoliths in phosphatized chalks. Apatite precipitation was typically followed by carbonate dissolution. Later apatite precipitation within the dissolution voids may produce partial or total phosphate pseudomorphs of the original carbonate grain. In these examples direct replacement of carbonate by phosphate cannot be demonstrated.     

Petrology,chemistry, and isotopic compositions of the lunar highland regolith breccia Dar al Gani 262

Abstract— Lunar meteorite Dar al Gani 262 (DG 262)—found in the Libyan part of the Sahara—is a mature, anorthositic regolith breccia with highland affinities. The origin from the Moon is undoubtedly indicated by its bulk chemical composition; radionuclide concentrations; noble gas, N, and O isotopic compositions; and petrographic features. Dar al Gani 262 is a typical anorthositic highland breccia similar in mineralogy and chemical composition to Queen Alexandra Range (QUE) 93069. About 52 vol% of the studied thin sections of Dar al Gani 262 consist of fine-grained(100 μm) constituents, and 48 vol% is mineral and lithic clasts and impact-melt veins. The most abundant clast types are feldspathic fine-grained to microporphyritic crystalline melt breccias (50.2 vol%; includes recrystallized melt breccias), whereas mafic crystalline melt breccias are extremely rare (1.4 vol%). Granulitic lithologies are 12.8 vol%, intragranularly recrystallized anorthosites and cataclastic anorthosites are 8.8 and 8.2 vol%, respectively, and (devitrified) glasses are 2.7 vol%. Impact-melt veins (5.5 vol% of the whole thin sections) cutting across the entire thin section were probably formed subsequent to the lithification process of the bulk rock at pressures below 20 GPa, because the bulk rock never experienced a higher peak shock pressure. Mafic crystalline melt breccias are very rare in Dar al Gani 262 and are similar in abundance to those in QUE 93069. The extremely low abundance of mafic components and the bulk composition may constrain possible areas of the Moon from which the breccia was derived. The source area of Dar al Gani 262 must be a highland terrain lacking significant mafic impact melts or mare components. On the basis of radionuclide activities, an irradiation position of DG 262 on the Moon at a depth of 55–85 g/cm³and a maximum transit time to Earth <0.15 Ma is suggested. Dar al Gani 262 contains high concentrations of solar-wind-implanted noble gases. The isotopic abundance ratio ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar < 3 is characteristic of lunar soils. The terrestrial weathering of DG 262 is reflected by the occurrence of fractures filled with calcite and by high concentrations of Ca, Ba, Cs, Br, and As. There is also a large amount of terrestrial C and some N in the sample, which was released at low temperatures during stepped heating. High concentrations of Ni, Co, and Ir indicate a significant meteoritic component in the lunar surface regolith from which DG 262 was derived.     

Flood forecasting with a watershed model: a new method of parameter updating

Abstract

Flood forecasting is of prime importance when it comes to reducing the possible number of lives lost to storm-induced floods. Because rainfall-runoff models are far from being perfect, hydrologists need to continuously update outputs from the rainfall-runoff model they use, in order to adapt to the actual emergency situation. This paper introduces a new updating procedure that can be combined with conceptual rainfall-runoff models for flood forecasting purposes. Conceptual models are highly nonlinear and cannot easily accommodate theoretically optimal methods such as Kalman filtering. Most methods developed so far mainly update the states of the system, i.e. the contents of the reservoirs involved in the rainfall-runoff model. The new parameter updating method proves to be superior to a standard error correction method on four watersheds whose floods can cause damage to the greater Paris area. Moreover, further developments of the approach are possible, especially along the idea of combining parameter updating with assimilation of additional data such as soil moisture data from field measurements and/or from remote sensing.