Dust supply from river floodplains: the case of the lower Huang He (Yellow River) recorded in a loess–palaeosol sequence from the Mangshan Plateau

The Mangshan Plateau is located on the south bank of the Huang He (Yellow River) just west of the city of Zhengzhou, well outside the Loess Plateau in central China. Mixing models of the grain‐size data indicate that the loess deposits are mixtures of three loess components. Comparison of the mixing model with existing models established for a series of loess–palaeosol sequences from the Loess Plateau indicates that the Mangshan loess has been supplied from a proximal dust source, the Huang He floodplain, during major dust outbreaks. The high accumulation rates, the composition of the loess components, and especially the high proportions of a sandy loess component support this. Owing to the exceptionally high accumulation rates, the Mangshan grain size, magnetic susceptibility and carbonate records provide a high‐resolution archive of environmental and climate change. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Upper Pleistocene to Holocene sediments on the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa (Italy)

The island of Lampedusa lies on the northern edge of the African continental shelf, but during some Quaternary marine lowstands it was joined to the African continent. The study and dating of the aeolian, alluvial, detrital sediments, calcareous crusts and speleothems have established that the climatic–environmental variations recorded on the island can be related chronologically to those known for northern Libya, Tunisia and the Italian peninsula. During the Last Glacial Maximum, phases of Saharan dust accumulation on Lampedusa occurred, and were coeval with dust accumulation in crater lakes and on high mountains in central‐southern Italy, and with phases of glacial advance in the Apennines and in the Alps. During the late Holocene, accumulation of Saharan dust on Lampedusa occurred but there was little accumulation of dust on the northern side of the Mediterranean Sea. With the new data from Lampedusa, it is possible to envisage two different scenarios of atmospheric circulation relating to the Last Glacial Maximum and to the late Holocene. During the Last Glacial Maximum, southerly atmospheric circulation brought rainfall to the southern slopes of the Alps and to the Apennines. During the late Holocene, a prevalent westerly atmospheric circulation became established in the northern Mediterranean. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

安徽宣城地区中晚更新世风成堆积与环境变迁

通过对宣城向阳中晚更新世沉积剖面的综合研究,认为该剖面与中国北方同时代的黄土—古土壤剖面相比较,虽然长江下游以南地区中晚更新世多个冰期中风成堆积的单层厚度与累积厚度,亦即风成物质的沉积通量与沉积速率均比北方黄土区要小,但它们所反映的气候与环境的变化具有明显的可比性。     

黄、渤海海岸风沙地貌类型及其分布规律和发育模式

于１９９０－１９９４年，对黄，渤海海岸风沙地貌，风沙沉积，风沙灾害和土地沙漠化现象进行详细的外业调查，测量和填图，在此基础上，利用ＧＩＳ技术原理，对海岸岗沙地貌进行系统的分类研究，对海岸风沙地貌分布规律和发育模式进行较深入的探讨，结果表明，研究区风沙地貌，风沙灾害和土地沙漠化现象主要分布在冬，春季气候干旱，风力强而持久，砂源丰富的渤海海岸和山东半岛半岸的砂质海岸地区，海岸沙丘和风成砂地总面积达７０     

沿海与内陆地下卤水对比分析

分析对比我国滨海与内陆地下卤水的分布、成因及其水文地球化学特征，指出不同成因的地下卤水具有不同的水质．     

国外海岸沙丘形成与演化的研究

自20世纪80年代以来，国外对海岸沙丘的研究已从主要对其地貌形态的研究转向海岸海丘与海岸变迁尤其是全球变化关系的研究上，海岸沙丘形成与演化的研究倍受关注，进行了大量研究并取得了一定的研究成果。这里介绍了国外在海岸沙丘形成与演化研究方面的主要进展及其成果，并以此探讨了国内今后开展海岸沙丘形成与演化研究的主要方向与问题。     

风力对内陆浅水水域磷水平的影响

本文通过对平度市大泽山水库(面积约0.5平方公里,平均水深约1.5米)的实地观测,研究了风力对内陆浅水水域磷水平的影响。结果表明,影响程度取决于风速、风力作用时间、水深以及风力作用前磷水平的高低等因素。就大泽山水库而言,风速大于2.5米/秒的风力可引起各种形态磷的明显增加。不过对磷酸盐磷来说,如果浓度本来就较高,风力作用下当有大量沉积物颗粒泛起时,会对PO_4~≡产生吸附,因而可能导致水中游离磷酸盐磷含量下降。鉴于此,作者建议对内陆浅水水域进行磷水平调查时应考虑风力的作用。     

The gawler ranges,South Australia: an unusual volcanic massif

The volcanic residuals of the Gawler Ranges together form an extensive massif that in its gross morphology differs markedly from most exposures of silicic volcanic rocks. The upland developed in two stages, the first involving differential fracture‐controlled subsurface weathering, the second the stripping of the regolith. As a result, an irregular weathering front was exposed, with domical projections prominent. These bornhardts are etch forms, and they are of considerable antiquity.

The differential weathering of the rock mass reflects the exploitation of various fracture systems by shallow groundwaters. Orthogonal fracture systems at various scales, sheet fractures and columnar joints control the morphology of the bornhardts in gross and in detail.

The exploitation of the structural base, which was established in the Middle Protero‐zoic, probably took place throughout the Late Proterozoic and the Palaeozoic, though only minor remnants of the Proterozoic land surface remain. The major landscape features developed during the Mesozoic. The weathering which initiated the bornhardts occurred in the Jurassic or earlier Mesozoic, and the landforms were exposed in Late Cretaceous to Early Tertiary times.

Though structural forms dominate the present landscape, some major and some minor landforms are best explained in terms of climatic changes of the later Cainozoic. The palaeodrainage system, established under humid conditions by the Early Tertiary, was alluviated during the Cainozoic arid phases, and salinas were formed. The sand dunes of the region also reflect this aridity.     

青藏高原腹地湖泊沉积对第四纪晚期古季风变化的响应

通过对青藏高原腹地的综合科学考察和对中心钻孔岩芯剖面的最新研究,用层序地层学与年代地层学和气候地层学相结合的方法,分辨出可可西里地区湖泊沉积记录(孔深7.25 m)的第四纪晚期距今3万余年以来的古气候变化,沉积物磁化率等因子综合表征的高原古季风变化是波动发展的,发生在仙女木期地质环境事件中的季风活动具有强烈暴发的特点,是高原季风发展中的突变事件,而且地表热点效应对其起到了激发作用。综合分析的研究成果表明,它的变化频谱与激变因子及其运行机制是伴随着青藏高原地质效应的演变而发展的,为研究第四纪冰消期以来的气候变化提供了新的信息。     

中国西北内陆盆地水分垂直循环及其生态学意义

中国西北内陆盆地中的地下水系统,对维系其浅表水分、热量、盐分均衡以及地表的生态平衡、土壤的资源属性和局部地域气候相对稳定性具有不可或缺的调节作用,这种调节作用是通过饱和带水、包气带水(土壤水)、近地表大汽水和植物体内水("四水")之间的垂直循环来实现的.目前的相关研究主要侧重于地下水与地表植被类型间对应关系的统计分析,较少涉及水分运移的机制;而以水分垂直循环的动力学机制为研究对象的SPAC系统(土壤-植物-大气连续体),则对地下水的重视程度不够,且存在着尺度转换的困难,更为完整的应该是GSPAC系统(地下水-土壤-植物-大气连续体).干旱区内陆盆地地下水生态效应的研究需要开展以下的工作:"四水"垂直循环的动力学过程与机制研究,尤其是饱水带-包气带界面水、汽、热转化过程的研究;人类活动影响下地下水系统演化特征的研究,它不仅是实现水分垂直循环研究的最终目的——水资源合理开发利用的中间环节,更是将"四水"垂直循环这一微观水文循环过程与区域水文循环过程相结合,实现尺度转化的关键所在.