Metamorphic phase relations in orthopyroxene-bearing granitoids: implication for high-pressure metamorphism and prograde melting in the continental crust

In this work, the factors controlling the formation and preservation of high-pressure mineral assemblages in the metamorphosed orthopyroxene-bearing metagranitoids of the Sandmata Complex, Aravalli-Delhi Mobile Belt (ADMB), northwestern India have been modelled. The rocks range in composition from farsundite through quartz mangerite to opdalite, and with varying K₂O, Ca/(Ca + Na)_rock and FeO_tot + MgO contents. A two stage metamorphic evolution has been recorded in these rocks.
An early hydration event stabilized biotite with or without epidote at the expense of magmatic orthopyroxene and plagioclase. Subsequent high-pressure granulite facies metamorphism (∼15 kbar, ∼800 °C) of these hydrated rocks produced two rock types with contrasting mineralogy and textures. In the non-migmatitic metagranitoids, spectacular garnet ± K-feldspar ± quartz corona was formed around reacting biotite, plagioclase, quartz and/or pyroxene. In contrast, biotite ± epidote melting produced migmatites, containing porphyroblastic garnet incongruent solids and leucosomes.
Applying NCKFMASHTO T–M (H₂O) and P–T pseudosection modelling techniques, it is demonstrated that the differential response of these magmatic rocks to high-pressure metamorphism is primarily controlled by the scale of initial hydration. Rocks, which were pervasively hydrated, produced garnetiferous migmatites, while for limited hydration, the same metamorphism formed sub-solidus garnet-bearing coronae. Based on the sequence of mineral assemblage evolution and the mineral compositional zoning features in the two metagranitoids, a clockwise metamorphic P–T path is constrained for the high-pressure metamorphic event. The finding has major implications in formulating geodynamic model of crustal amalgamation in the ADMB.     

Use of multi‐platform,multi‐temporal remote‐sensing data for calibration of a distributed hydrological model: an application in the Arno basin,Italy

Images from satellite platforms are a valid aid in order to obtain distributed information about hydrological surface states and parameters needed in calibration and validation of the water balance and flood forecasting. Remotely sensed data are easily available on large areas and with a frequency compatible with land cover changes. In this paper, remotely sensed images from different types of sensor have been utilized as a support to the calibration of the distributed hydrological model MOBIDIC, currently used in the experimental system of flood forecasting of the Arno River Basin Authority. Six radar images from ERS‐2 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors (three for summer 2002 and three for spring–summer 2003) have been utilized and a relationship between soil saturation indexes and backscatter coefficient from SAR images has been investigated. Analysis has been performed only on pixels with meagre or no vegetation cover, in order to legitimize the assumption that water content of the soil is the main variable that influences the backscatter coefficient. Such pixels have been obtained by considering vegetation indexes (NDVI) and land cover maps produced by optical sensors (Landsat‐ETM). In order to calibrate the soil moisture model based on information provided by SAR images, an optimization algorithm has been utilized to minimize the regression error between saturation indexes from model and SAR data and error between measured and modelled discharge flows. Utilizing this procedure, model parameters that rule soil moisture fluxes have been calibrated, obtaining not only a good match with remotely sensed data, but also an enhancement of model performance in flow prediction with respect to a previous calibration with river discharge data only. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A multi‐level parallelized substructuring‐frontal solution for coupled thermo/hydro/mechanical problems in unsaturated soil

This paper proposes a multi‐level parallelized substructuring–frontal combined algorithm for the analysis of the problem of thermo/hydraulic/mechanical behaviour of unsaturated soil. Temperature, displacement, pore water pressure and pore air pressure are treated as the primary variables in a non‐linear analysis. Details are given firstly of the substructuring–frontal combined approach. The incorporation of the algorithm in a multi‐level parallel strategy is then discussed. The parallel processing can thus be carried out at different substructural levels. The method thus developed impacts, in a positive way, on both computer storage requirement and execution time. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The tidal stripping of satellites

We present an improved analytic calculation for the tidal radius of satellites and test our results against N -body simulations.
The tidal radius in general depends upon four factors: the potential of the host galaxy, the potential of the satellite, the orbit of the satellite and the orbit of the star within the satellite . We demonstrate that this last point is critical and suggest using three tidal radii to cover the range of orbits of stars within the satellite. In this way we show explicitly that prograde star orbits will be more easily stripped than radial orbits; while radial orbits are more easily stripped than retrograde ones. This result has previously been established by several authors numerically, but can now be understood analytically. For point mass, power-law (which includes the isothermal sphere), and a restricted class of split power-law potentials our solution is fully analytic. For more general potentials, we provide an equation which may be rapidly solved numerically.
Over short times (≲1–2 Gyr ∼1 satellite orbit), we find excellent agreement between our analytic and numerical models. Over longer times, star orbits within the satellite are transformed by the tidal field of the host galaxy. In a Hubble time, this causes a convergence of the three limiting tidal radii towards the prograde stripping radius. Beyond the prograde stripping radius, the velocity dispersion will be tangentially anisotropic.     

Elastic solutions for stresses in a transversely isotropic half‐space subjected to three‐dimensional buried parabolic rectangular loads

In many areas of engineering practice, applied loads are not uniformly distributed but often concentrated towards the centre of a foundation. Thus, loads are more realistically depicted as distributed as linearly varying or as parabola of revolution. Solutions for stresses in a transversely isotropic half‐space caused by concave and convex parabolic loads that act on a rectangle have not been derived. This work proposes analytical solutions for stresses in a transversely isotropic half‐space, induced by three‐dimensional, buried, linearly varying/uniform/parabolic rectangular loads. Load types include an upwardly and a downwardly linearly varying load, a uniform load, a concave and a convex parabolic load, all distributed over a rectangular area. These solutions are obtained by integrating the point load solutions in a Cartesian co‐ordinate system for a transversely isotropic half‐space. The buried depth, the dimensions of the loaded area, the type and degree of material anisotropy and the loading type for transversely isotropic half‐spaces influence the proposed solutions. An illustrative example is presented to elucidate the effect of the dimensions of the loaded area, the type and degree of rock anisotropy, and the type of loading on the vertical stress in the isotropic/transversely isotropic rocks subjected to a linearly varying/uniform/parabolic rectangular load. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Progress in Earthquake Science and Technology in China: Review and Prospects (Ⅰ)

In the article the author looks back the hard development course and great progress in earth quake science and technology in China during the last near a half of century and expounds the following 3 aspects: (1) The strong desire of the whole society to mitigate seismic disasters and reduce the effect of earthquakes on social-economic live is a great driving force to push forward the development of earthquake science and technology in China; (2) To better ensure people‘ s life and property, sustainable economic development, and social stability is an essential purpose to drive the development of earthquake science and technology in China; and (3) To insist on the dialectical connection of setup of technical system for seismic monitoring with the scientific research of earthquakes and to better handle the relation between crucial task, current scientif ic level, and the feasibility are the important principles to advance the earthquake science and technology in China. Some success and many setbacks in earthquake disaster mitigation consistently enrich our knowledge regarding the complexity of the conditions for earthquake occurrence and the process of earthquake preparation, promote the reconstruction and modernization of technical system for earthquake monitoring, and deepen the scientific research of earthquakes. During the last 5 years, the improvement and modernization of technical system for earthquake monitoring have clearly provided the technical support to study and practice of earthquake prediction and pre caution, give prominence to key problems and broaden the field of scientific research of earth quakes. These have enabled us to get some new recognition of the conditions for earthquake oc currence and process of earthquake preparation, characteristics of seismic disaster, and mecha nism for earthquake generation in China‘s continent. The progress we have made not only en courages us to enhance the effectiveness of earthquake disaster mitigation, but also provides a basis for accelerating further development of earthquake science and technology in China in the new century, especially in the 10th five-year plan. Based on the history reviewed, the author sets forth a general requirement for develop ment of earthquake science and technology in China and brings out 10 aspects to be stressed and strengthened at present and in the future. These are: upgrade and setup of the network of digitized seismic observation; upgrade and setup of the network for observation of seismic pre cursors; setup of the network for observation of strong motion; setup of the laboratories for ex periment on seismic regime; establishment of technical system for seismic information, emer gency command and urgent rescue; research on short-term and imminent earthquake predic tion; research on intermediate- and long-term earthquake prediction; research on attenuation of seismic ground motion, mechanism for seismic disaster, and control on seismic disaster; ba sic research fields related to seismology and geoscience. We expect that these efforts will signifi cantly elevate the level of earthquake science and technology in China to the advanced interna tional level, improve theories, techniques, and methods for earthquake precaution and predic tion, and enhance the effectiveness of earthquake disaster mitigation.