Geochronological constraints on the evolution of the Embu Complex, São Paulo, Brazil

Petrologic and geochronological work was carried out on a roadside outcrop of amphibolite facies orthogneisses near São Lourenço da Serra, about 50 km southwest of São Paulo City. These orthogneisses belong to the Embu Complex, within the Neoproterozoic Brasiliano Orogenic Cycle mobile belts of SE Brazil. The outcrop consists of predominantly foliated biotite tonalites and granodiorites, which were cut by granitic veins and pegmatites prior to final deformation. SHRIMP U/Pb measurements on zircons from one granodioritic–tonalitic gneiss indicate magmatic crystallization of the protolith at 811±13 Ma (MSWD=1.0). Zircons with dates of ca. 2000 and ca. 1000 Ma in this rock are interpreted as inherited from older crust. One zircon analyzed from the gneiss and three zircons from a discordant pegmatitic vein indicate an event at 650–700 Ma, perhaps related to the intrusion of the pegmatites. A regression of Rb–Sr whole rock data for four biotite gneisses yielded an imperfect isochron, giving an apparent age of 821±68 Ma and an elevated initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio of 0.719±0.005. The elevated initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio and the inherited zircons indicate involvement of older crust in the genesis of the gneisses. Rb–Sr feldspar and whole rock pairs yield ca. 560 Ma tielines, giving the time of final cooling below 300–350 °C, and the cessation of medium-grade metamorphism and ductile deformation. These results document a series of tectono-thermal events spanning 250 million years during the Brasiliano Orogenic Cycle. They relate to ca. 800 Ma magmatic arc activity and later allochthonous terrane assembly during closure of the Adamastor Ocean, resulting in the accretion of Western Gondwana.     

Measuring persistence in time series of temperature anomalies

Studies on persistence are important for the clarification of statistical properties of the analyzed time series and for understanding the dynamics of the systems which create these series. In climatology, the analysis of the autocorrelation function has been the main tool to investigate the persistence of a time series. In this paper, we propose to use a more sophisticated econometric instrument. Using this tool, we obtain an estimate of the persistence in global land and ocean and hemispheric temperature time series.     

Contribution of SHRIMP U–Pb zircon geochronology to unravelling the evolution of Brazilian Neoproterozoic fold belts

The South-American continent is constituted of three major geologic–geotectonic entities: the homonym platform (consolidated at the end of the Cambrian), the Andean chain (essentially Meso-Cenozoic) and the Patagonian terrains, affected by tectonism and magmatism through almost all of the Phanerozoic. The platform is constituted by a series of cratonic nuclei (pre-Tonian, fragments of the Rodinia fission) surrounded by a complex fabric of Neoproterozoic structural provinces.     

A new method for specular and diffuse pseudorange multipath error extraction using wavelet analysis

Multipath remains one of the major challenges in Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) positioning because it is considered the dominant source of ranging errors, which can be classified into specular and diffuse types. We present a new method using wavelets to extract the pseudorange multipath in the time domain and breaking it down into the two components. The main idea is an analysis-reconstruction approach based on application of both continuous wavelet transform (CWT) and discrete wavelet transform (DWT). The proposed procedure involves the use of L1 code-minus-carrier (CMC) observable where higher-frequency terms are isolated as residuals. CMC residuals are analyzed by applying the CWT, and we propose the scalogram as a technique for discerning time–frequency variations of the multipath signal. Unlike Fourier transform, the potential of the CWT scalogram for examining the non-stationary and multifrequency nature of the multipath is confirmed as it simultaneously allows fine detection and time localization of the most representative frequencies of the signal. This interpretation of the CWT scalogram is relevant when choosing the levels of reconstruction with DWT, allowing accurate time domain extraction of both the specular and diffuse multipath. The performance and robustness of the method and its boundary applicability are assessed. The experiment was carried out using a receiver of Campania GNSS Network. The results are given in which specular multipath error is achieved using DWT level 7 approximation component and diffuse multipath error is achieved using DWT level 6 denoised detail component.     

Influence of basement structures on the evolution of the major sedimentary basins of Brazil: A case of tectonic heritage

The present study deals with the correlation between the geotectonic features of the basement and the internal structure, shape, geologic evolution, etc. of the major sedimentary basins of the South American platform. The Paraná, Parnaíba and Amazonas basins occupy an area of the order of 3.6 × 10⁶ km², and their sedimentary cratonic sequences were deposited from Silurian to Triassic times. Subsidence rates are estimated around 15 m/Ma in the main depocenters.A geologic study was carried out along the basement features in the surroundings of such basins in order to identify the major structural, geotectonic and geochronological discontinuities. The extension of these basement characteristics towards the interior of the basins are examined. Basement core samples from deep wells were investigated through petrological and geochronological analyses, and pre-existing geophysical and structural maps of those basins were taken again into consideration.It can be concluded that many of the identified basement discontinuities display a direct influence on the depositional history of the basins as well as on their internal subdivisions and external outlines. Basement structures generated during the late Precambrian Brasiliano Cycle turned out to be particularly important.The Paraná and Parnaíba basins are considered to represent cratonic basins, located on rigid lithosphere, tectonically stabilized in the latest Precambrian/early Palaeozoic, and their subsidence is attributed to the establishement of some initial rifted grabens. The Amazonas basin is more complex and includes three large sub-basins with distinct evolutions, each located on a different tectonic segment of the basement.     

Radioactive element distribution in the Archean granulite terrane of Jequié — Bahia,Brazil

The radioactive element distribution in the Archean granulite facies rocks of Jequié, Brazil, has been determined. The K/Rb ratios show a large spread with majority of the values falling within the normal field (K/Rb<300). The Th/U ratios fall into two groups, one group with values in the range of 1.7 to 2.6, whereas the other group show Th/U values greater than 7 (7 to 25). These distributions can be explained on the basis of the presence of accessory minerals apatite and zircon. The relatively high concentrations of the radioactive and other elements in Jequié granulites probably represents the relict primary geochemical character, little modified during metamorphism. The radiogenic heat production data for the area are calculated and using the measured regional heat flow value from nearby area an estimate of the relative thickness of the continental lithosphere is made using the model developed by Oxburgh (1981).     

Perturbations of the Kepler Problem in Global Coordinates: A Program

The present paper is a brief report of how, along the lines of a previous paper, the implementation of the program KEPLER¹, for the numerical integration of the perturbations of the Kepler problem, has been carried out.     

Sr and Nd isotopic geochemistry of the early ultramafic–mafic rocks of the Mako bimodal volcanic belt of the Kedougou–Kenieba inlier (Senegal)

The Mako bimodal volcanic belt of the Kédougou–Kéniéba inlier is composed of volcanic basalts and peridotites interbedded by quartzites and limestones intruded by different generations of granitoïds. The early volcanic episode of the belt is constituted of submarine basalts with peridotite similar to those of the oceanic abyssal plains. It is intruded by the Badon Kakadian TTG?granitic batholite dated around 2200 Ma. The second volcanic phase is constituted of basaltic, andesitic, and felsitic flows exhibit structures of aerial volcanic rocks. It is intruded by granites dated between 2160 and 2070 Ma. The general pattern of trace element variation of submarine volcanic rocks is consistent with those of basalts from oceanic plateaus which are the modern equivalent of the Archean greenstones belts. The Nd and Sr isotopic systematics typical of juvenile material indicates that the source of these igneous rocks is derived from a depleted mantle source. These results are consistent with the idea of a major accretion within the West African Craton occurring at about 2.1 Ga and corresponding to an important process of mantle–oceanic lithosphere differentiation.     

Quantitative morphometric analysis of lakes using GIS: rectangularity R,ellipticity E,orientation O,and the rectangularity vs. ellipticity index,REi

Quantitative measures of polygon shapes and orientation are important elements of geospatial analysis. These kinds of measures are particularly valuable in the case of lakes, where shape and orientation patterns can help identifying the geomorphological agents behind lake formation and evolution. However, the lack of built-in tools in commercial geographic information system (GIS) software packages designed for this kind of analysis has meant that many researchers often must rely on tools and workarounds that are not always accurate. Here, an easy-to-use method to measure rectangularity R, ellipticity E, and orientation O is developed. In addition, a new rectangularity vs. ellipticity index, REi, is defined. Following a step-by-step process, it is shown how these measures and index can be easily calculated using a combination of GIS built-in functions. The identification of shapes and estimation of orientations performed by this method is applied to the case study of the geometric and oriented lakes of the Llanos de Moxos, in the Bolivian Amazon, where shape and orientation have been the two most important elements studied to infer possible formation mechanisms. It is shown that, thanks to these new indexes, shape and orientation patterns are unveiled, which would have been hard to identify otherwise.