Evaluation of the horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) seismic method to determine sediment thickness in the vicinity of the South Well Field, Franklin County, OH

USGS Publications Warehouse

Haefner, Ralph J.; Sheets, Rodney A.; Andrews, Robert E.

2011-01-01

The horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) seismic method involves analyzing measurements of ambient seismic noise in three dimensions to determine the fundamental site resonance frequency. Resonance is excited by the interaction of surface waves (Rayleigh and Love) and body waves (vertically incident shear) with the high-contrast aconstic impedance boundary at the bedrock-sediment interface. Measurements were made to determine the method's utility for estimating thickness of unconsolidated glacial sediments at 18 locations at the South Well Field, Franklin County, OH, and at six locations in Pickaway County where sediment thickness was already known. Measurements also were made near a high-capacity production well (with pumping on and off) and near a highway and a limestone quarry to examine changes in resonance frequencies over a 20-hour period. Although the regression relation for resonance frequency and sediment thickness had a relatively low [r.sup.2] (0.322), estimates of sediment thickness were, on average, within 14 percent of known thicknesses. Resonance frequencies for pumping on and pumping off were identical, although the amplitude of the peak was nearly double under pumping conditions. Resonance frequency for the 20-hour period did not change, but the amplitude of the peak changed considerably, with a maximum amplitude in the early afternoon and minimum in the very early morning hours. Clay layers within unconsolidated sediments may influence resonance frequency and the resulting regression equation, resulting in underestimation of sediment thickness; however, despite this and other complicating factors, hydrogeologists should consider this method when thickness data are needed for unconsolidated sediments.

Evaluation of the horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) seismic method to determine sediment thickness in the vicinity of the south well field, Franklin county, OH

USGS Publications Warehouse

Haefner, R.J.; Sheets, R.A.; Andrews, R.E.

2010-01-01

The horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) seismic method involves analyzing measurements of ambient seismic noise in three dimensions to determine the fundamental site resonance frequency. Resonance is excited by the interaction of surface waves (Rayleigh and Love) and body waves (vertically incident shear) with the high-contrast acoustic impedance boundary at the bedrock-sediment interface. Measurements were made to determine the method's utility for estimating thickness of unconsolidated glacial sediments at 18 locations at the South Well Field, Franklin County, OH, and at six locations in Pickaway County where sediment thickness was already known. Measurements also were made near a high-capacity production well (with pumping on and off ) and near a highway and a limestone quarry to examine changes in resonance frequencies over a 20-hour period. Although the regression relation for resonance frequency and sediment thickness had a relatively low r 2(0.322), estimates of sediment thickness were, on average, within 14 percent of known thicknesses. Resonance frequencies for pumping on and pumping off were identical, although the amplitude of the peak was nearly double under pumping conditions. Resonance frequency for the 20-hour period did not change, but the amplitude of the peak changed considerably, with a maximum amplitude in the early afternoon and minimum in the very early morning hours. Clay layers within unconsolidated sediments may influence resonance frequency and the resulting regression equation, resulting in underestimation of sediment thickness; however, despite this and other complicating factors, hydrogeologists should consider this method when thickness data are needed for unconsolidated sediments. ?? 2011 by The Ohio Academy of Science. All Rights Reserved.

Lateral variation in crustal and mantle structure in Bay of Bengal based on surface wave data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Amit; Mukhopadhyay, Sagarika; Kumar, Naresh; Baidya, P. R.

2018-01-01

Surface waves generated by earthquakes that occurred near Sumatra, Andaman-Nicobar Island chain and Sunda arc are used to estimate crustal and upper mantle S wave velocity structure of Bay of Bengal. Records of these seismic events at various stations located along the eastern coast of India and a few stations in the north eastern part of India are selected for such analysis. These stations lie within regional distance of the selected earthquakes. The selected events are shallow focused with magnitude greater than 5.5. Data of 65, 37, 36, 53 and 36 events recorded at Shillong, Bokaro, Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Trivandrum stations respectively are used for this purpose. The ray paths from the earthquake source to the recording stations cover different parts of the Bay of Bengal. Multiple Filtering Technique (MFT) is applied to compute the group velocities of surface waves from the available data. The dispersion curves thus obtained for this data set are within the period range of 15-120 s. Joint inversion of Rayleigh and Love wave group velocity is carried out to obtain the subsurface information in terms of variation of S wave velocity with depth. The estimated S wave velocity at a given depth and layer thickness can be considered to be an average value for the entire path covered by the corresponding ray paths. However, we observe variation in the value of S wave velocity and layer thickness from data recorded at different stations, indicating lateral variation in these two parameters. Thick deposition of sediments is observed along the paths followed by surface waves to Shillong and Bokaro stations. Sediment thickness keeps on decreasing as the surface wave paths move further south. Based on velocity variation the sedimentary layer is further divided in to three parts; on top lay unconsolidated sediment, underlain by consolidated sediment. Below this lies a layer which we consider as meta-sediments. The thickness and velocity of these layers decrease from north to south. The crustal material has higher velocity at the southern part compared to that at the northern part of Bay of Bengal indicating that it changes from more oceanic type in the southern part of the Bay to more continental type to its north. Both Moho and lithosphere - asthenosphere boundary (LAB) dips gently towards north. Thicknesses of both lithosphere and asthenosphere also increase in the same direction. The mantle structure shows complex variation from south to north indicating possible effect of repeated changes in type of tectonic activity in the Bay of Bengal.

Hydrologic and geologic factors affecting land subsidence near Eloy, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Epstein, V.J.

1987-01-01

At an extensometer site near Eloy, Arizona, 1.09 m of land subsidence caused by groundwater withdrawal were measured by leveling in 1965-83. The extensometer, which partially penetrates the compressible sediments, recorded 0.82 m of compaction during the same period. By use of a one-dimensional model, cumulative daily compaction values were simulated to within an average of 0.0038 m of the actual values. Land subsidence was simulated to within an average of 0.011 m using the same model in conjunction with geohydrologic data of the sediments below the extensometer. A highly compressible clay layer that is 24.38 m thick was partially penetrated by the extensometer. The simulation indicated that the layer was driving compaction and land subsidence linearly with respect to time, despite the presence of other compacting layers. Because of its thickness and compressibility, this layer can be expected to continue to compact after applied vertical stresses have stopped increasing and other layers have stopped compacting. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the compressibility of fine-grained sediments (expressed as specific storage) is one of the factors to which compact is most sensitive. Preconsolidation stress and hydraulic conductivity also affect land subsidence near Eloy, Arizona. (Author 's abstract)

Generation of net sediment transport by velocity skewness in oscillatory sheet flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Xin; Li, Yong; Chen, Genfa; Wang, Fujun; Tang, Xuelin

2018-01-01

This study utilizes a qualitative approach and a two-phase numerical model to investigate net sediment transport caused by velocity skewness beneath oscillatory sheet flow and current. The qualitative approach is derived based on the pseudo-laminar approximation of boundary layer velocity and exponential approximation of concentration. The two-phase model can obtain well the instantaneous erosion depth, sediment flux, boundary layer thickness, and sediment transport rate. It can especially illustrate the difference between positive and negative flow stages caused by velocity skewness, which is considerably important in determining the net boundary layer flow and sediment transport direction. The two-phase model also explains the effect of sediment diameter and phase-lag to sediment transport by comparing the instantaneous-type formulas to better illustrate velocity skewness effect. In previous studies about sheet flow transport in pure velocity-skewed flows, net sediment transport is only attributed to the phase-lag effect. In the present study with the qualitative approach and two-phase model, phase-lag effect is shown important but not sufficient for the net sediment transport beneath pure velocity-skewed flow and current, while the asymmetric wave boundary layer development between positive and negative flow stages also contributes to the sediment transport.

Detailed seismic velocity of the incoming subducting sediments in the 2004 great Sumatra earthquake rupture zone from full waveform inversion of long offset seismic data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qin, Yanfang; Singh, Satish C.

2017-04-01

The nature of incoming sediments defines the locking mechanism on the megathrust, and the development and evolution of the accretionary wedge. Here we present results from seismic full waveform inversion of 12 km long offset seismic reflection data within the trench in the 2004 Sumatra earthquake rupture zone area that provide detailed quantitative information on the incoming oceanic sediments and the trench-fill sediments. The thickness of sediments in this area is 3-4 km, and P wave velocity is as much as 4.5 km/s just above the oceanic crust, suggesting the presence of silica-rich highly compacted and lithified sediments leading to a strong coupling up to the subduction front. We also find an 70-80 m thick low-velocity layer, capped by a high-velocity layer, at 0.8 km above the subducting plate. This low-velocity layer, previously identified as high-amplitude negative polarity reflection, could have porosity of up to 30% containing overpressured fluids, which could act as a protodécollement seaward from the accretionary prism and décollement beneath the forearc. This weak protodécollement combined with the high-velocity indurated sediments above the basement possibly facilitated the rupture propagating up to the front during the 2004 earthquake and enhancing the tsunami. We also find another low-velocity layer within the sediments that may act as a secondary décollement observed offshore central Sumatra, forming bivergent pop-up structures and acting as a conveyer belt in preserving these pop-up structures in the forearc region.

Estimation of soft sediment thickness in Kuala Lumpur based on microtremor observation data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiew, Chang Chyau; Cheah, Yi Ben; Tan, Chin Guan; Lau, Tze Liang

2017-10-01

Seismic site effect is one of the major concerns in earthquake engineering. Soft ground tends to amplify the seismic wave in surficial geological layers. The determination of soft ground thickness on the surface layers of the earth is an important input for seismic hazard assessment. This paper presents an easy and convenient approach to estimate the soft sediment thickness at the site using microtremor observation technique. A total number of 133 survey points were conducted in selected sites around Kuala Lumpur area using a microtremor measuring instrument, but only 103 survey points contributed to the seismic microzonation and sediment thickness plots. The bedrock of Kuala Lumpur area is formed by Kenny Hill Formation, limestone, granite, and the Hawthornden Schist; however, the thickness of surface soft ground formed by alluvial deposits, mine tailings, and residual soils remains unknown. Hence, the predominant frequency of the ground in each site was determined based on Nakamura method. A total number of 14 sites with known depth to bedrock from the supply of geotechnical reports in the study area were determined. An empirical correlation was developed to relate the ground predominant frequency and soft ground thickness. This correlation may contribute to local soil underlying the subsurface of Kuala Lumpur area. The finding provides an important relationship for engineers to estimate the soft ground thickness in Kuala Lumpur area based on the dynamic characteristics of the ground measured from microtremor observation.

Magnetic signatures of Heinrich-like detrital layers in the Quaternary of the North Atlantic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Channell, J. E. T.; Hodell, D. A.

2013-05-01

Magnetic parameters are useful for distinguishing North Atlantic Heinrich-like detrital layers from background sediments. Here we compare magnetic properties with XRF scanning data back to 700 ka and 1.3 Ma at IODP Sites U1302-U1303 and U1308, respectively. Multi-domain magnetite, with grain sizes >20 µm, is characteristic of both Ca- and Si-rich detrital layers, as defined by XRF core scanning, confirming the contribution of ice rafting. Reflectance spectra and magnetic parameters distinguish Ca- and Si-rich IRD layers due the presence of high coercivity hematite in Si-rich layers. Heinrich layer 6 (H6) at Site U1302-U1303 is unlike other detrital layers, being marked by a 45-cm thick homogeneous cream-colored clay layer underlain by a thin (5-cm) graded coarse-sand. Comparison of Site U1302/03 and Site U1308 detrital layers implies a dominant Laurentide source for both Ca- and Si-rich detrital layers. At Site U1308, low benthic δ13C values during stadials are in-step with magnetic grain-size coarsening associated with Si-rich detrital layers back to 1.3 Ma, indicating a link between deep-sea ventilation and ice rafting. The surface-sediment tan-colored oxic layer (~2 m thick at Site U1308) yields magnetic hysteresis ratios that are offset from the single-domain to multi-domain (SD-MD) magnetite mixing-line in hysteresis-ratio diagrams. This offset is attributed to maghemite grain-coatings, that form on magnetite in surface sediment, and undergo dissolution as they pass through the oxic/anoxic boundary.

Compaction and sedimentary basin analysis on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gabasova, Leila R.; Kite, Edwin S.

2018-03-01

Many of the sedimentary basins of Mars show patterns of faults and off-horizontal layers that, if correctly understood, could serve as a key to basin history. Sediment compaction is a possible cause of these patterns. We quantified the possible role of differential sediment compaction for two Martian sedimentary basins: the sediment fill of Gunjur crater (which shows concentric graben), and the sediment fill of Gale crater (which shows outward-dipping layers). We assume that basement topography for these craters is similar to the present-day topography of complex craters that lack sediment infill. For Gunjur, we find that differential compaction produces maximum strains consistent with the locations of observed graben. For Gale, we were able to approximately reproduce the observed layer orientations measured from orbiter image-based digital terrain models, but only with a >3 km-thick donut-shaped past overburden. It is not immediately obvious what geologic processes could produce this shape.

The formation process of the flood type lamina in the Lake Mokoto, Hokkaido, Japan.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seto, K.; Katsuki, K.; Takeshi, S.

2017-12-01

In the coastal area of the Sea of Okhotsk in the east part of Hokkaido located to subarctic zone, many brackish-water lakes are distributed. Lake Mokoto consist of organic mud with the lamination. The 09Mk-1C core at 2009. In the soft X-ray photograph, the cyclic lamina set is observed. The cyclic lamina set consists of low- and high-density lamina. According to the meteorological data in Abashiri region, the annually precipitation is high from August to September. Probably, the cyclic lamina set is formed by seasonal change of precipitation. In August 2016, it showed a precipitation of 425 mm which is about 4 times the average precipitation. In February 2017, the 10 cm class short core (17Mk-4SC core) was collected and the flood lamina was observed. Six layers showing different color were observed in top 6.5 cm. The first, third and fifth layers from the top are relatively light in color (L*value=17). The second, fourth and sixth layers are relatively dark in color (L*value=8). Thickness of the first to fourth layers is about 5 mm, but the thickness of the fifth layer reaches 4 cm. According to the observation of the soft X-ray photograph, the third and fifth layers were high-density lamina, and the others were low-density lamina. Because these layers were not observed in the 15Mk-3C core collected in March 2015, they were deposited after that. It is estimated that the third layer showing the high-density lamina is the sediment of the flood event in August 2016. This is supported by the fact that the total organic carbon (TOC) and total sulfur (TS) contents are diluted and the C/N ratio is relatively high value. Because this lamina is remarkable, it will be used as a future key bed. On the other hand, the fifth layer showing the high-density is a very thick. In this layer, the TS content is diluted and the C/N ratio is high, but the TOC content shows the highest value. This suggests that sediments with high TOC content flowed out from Mokoto River Basin. It has been reported that a large-scale artificial sediment discharge occurred in agricultural lands in the basin. This sediment was probably deposited at the downstream Lake Mokoto. It is suggested that a remarkable event layer is formed by sediment discharge due to slope collapse in basin.

Scaling oxygen microprofiles at the sediment interface of deep stratified waters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwefel, Robert; Hondzo, Miki; Wüest, Alfred; Bouffard, Damien

2017-02-01

Dissolved oxygen microprofiles at the sediment-water interface of Lake Geneva were measured concurrently with velocities 0.25 to 2 m above the sediment. The measurements and scaling analyses indicate dissolved oxygen fluctuations and turbulent fluxes in exceedance of molecular diffusion in the proximity of the sediment-water interface. The measurements allowed the parameterization of the turbulent diffusion as a function of the dimensionless height above the sediment and the turbulence above the sediment-water interface. Turbulent diffusion depended strongly on the friction velocity and differed from formulations reported in the literature that are based on concepts of turbulent and developed wall-bounded flows. The dissolved oxygen microprofiles and proposed parameterization of turbulent diffusion enable a foundation for the similarity scaling of oxygen microprofiles in proximity to the sediment. The proposed scaling allows the estimation of diffusive boundary layer thickness, oxygen flux, and oxygen microprofile distribution in the near-sediment boundary layer.

Discharge of water and sediment from ice-streams on the southeastern Laurentide Ice Sheet during Heinrich events: timing and magnitude

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rashid, H.; Piper, D.

2017-12-01

Several ice-streams on the southeastern sector of the Laurentide Ice Sheet discharged icebergs, meltwater, and fine-grained sediments into the North Atlantic during Heinrich (H) events. The principal contribution was through Hudson Strait, which is the only source clearly identified in H ice-rafted layers in the central North Atlantic. The role of direct supply of meltwater in modifying the Atlantic meridional circulation generally has been regarded as secondary. The relative chronology of discharge in different ice-streams is poorly known. Here, we re-assess these questions using continental margin cores constrained by high-resolution seismic profiles and multibeam bathymetry data. Relative importance of ice streams likely scales with cross-sectional area of their erosional troughs. On that basis, the Hudson Strait ice stream was twice as large as that in the Laurentian Channel and 3-4 times larger than smaller troughs. Several ice streams supplied petrographically and geochemically distinct sediment including black shales from Cumberland Sound, limestone and dolomite in particular proportions from Frobisher Bay and Hudson Strait, and red sandstones and shales ± carbonates from NE Newfoundland and Laurentian Channel. In several cases, detrital carbonate H layers derived predominantly from Hudson Strait are preceded by enhanced IRD deposition from smaller ice streams, e.g. deposits from Cumberland Sound on the Labrador slope, from NE Newfoundland in Orphan Basin, and from Laurentian Channel on the Nova Scotian margin. Gravel petrology indicates that Hudson Strait sources make up >90% of the ice-rafted component of distal H layers. H layers proximal to the Hudson Strait ice-streams are 4 to 12 meters thick compared to a few centimeters thick seaward of the Trinity Trough and Laurentian ice-streams, comparable to the thickness of the North Atlantic. This underscores the great importance of meltwater and suspended sediment close to ice stream outlets. Morphological features and plume deposits show that meltwater becomes much more abundant in more southerly ice streams and some local plume deposits contribute to the thickness of H layers. The contribution of freshwater from melting icebergs and from direct meltwater discharge are approximately similar during H events.

The effects of post-accretion sedimentation on the magnetization of oceanic crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dyment, J.; Granot, R.

2016-12-01

The presence of marine magnetic anomalies related to seafloor spreading is often considered a key evidence to locate the continent-ocean boundary (COB) at passive margins. Conversely, thermal demagnetization is also advocated to explain the poor shape of such oceanic anomalies under thick sedimentary cover. To investigate the effects of post-accretion sedimentation on marine magnetic anomalies, we focus our study on two conjugate regions of the southern South Atlantic Ocean (Anomalies M4 to M0) that, although formed at the same time and along the same spreading segments, reveal contrasting characters. The anomalies exhibit strong amplitudes (>400 nT) and a well-marked shape off South Africa, where the sediments are less than 3 km-thick, but become weaker ( 200 nT) and much smoother off northern Argentina, where the sedimentary cover is thicker than 5 km. We interpret this observation as reflecting thermal demagnetization of the extrusive layer and its low Curie temperature titanomagnetite. We perform a series of thermo-magnetic models (Dyment and Arkani-Hamed, Geophys. J. Int., 1995, modified to include the sedimentary cover) to simulate the acquisition and loss of remanent magnetization in the oceanic lithosphere. We assume that most of the sediments accumulated shortly after crustal accretion. We investigate a range of possible thermal demagnetization temperatures for the extrusive layer and find that 200°C to 280ºC best explains the observations, in reasonable agreement with Curie temperatures of titanomagnetite, suggesting that most of the extrusive layer may be demagnetized under sediments thicker than 5 km. Thermal demagnetization should therefore be considered while interpreting marine magnetic anomalies for the age and nature of the crust (i.e., continental versus oceanic) in regions with thick sedimentary cover.

Temporal variations in supraglacial debris distribution on Baltoro Glacier, Karakoram between 2001 and 2012

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gibson, Morgan J.; Glasser, Neil F.; Quincey, Duncan J.; Mayer, Christoph; Rowan, Ann V.; Irvine-Fynn, Tristram D. L.

2017-10-01

Distribution of supraglacial debris in a glacier system varies spatially and temporally due to differing rates of debris input, transport and deposition. Supraglacial debris distribution governs the thickness of a supraglacial debris layer, an important control on the amount of ablation that occurs under such a debris layer. Characterising supraglacial debris layer thickness on a glacier is therefore key to calculating ablation across a glacier surface. The spatial pattern of debris thickness on Baltoro Glacier has previously been calculated for one discrete point in time (2004) using satellite thermal data and an empirically based relationship between supraglacial debris layer thickness and debris surface temperature identified in the field. Here, the same empirically based relationship was applied to two further datasets (2001, 2012) to calculate debris layer thickness across Baltoro Glacier for three discrete points over an 11-year period (2001, 2004, 2012). Surface velocity and sediment flux were also calculated, as well as debris thickness change between periods. Using these outputs, alongside geomorphological maps of Baltoro Glacier produced for 2001, 2004 and 2012, spatiotemporal changes in debris distribution for a sub-decadal timescale were investigated. Sediment flux remained constant throughout the 11-year period. The greatest changes in debris thickness occurred along medial moraines, the locations of mass movement deposition and areas of interaction between tributary glaciers and the main glacier tongue. The study confirms the occurrence of spatiotemporal changes in supraglacial debris layer thickness on sub-decadal timescales, independent of variation in surface velocity. Instead, variation in rates of debris distribution are primarily attributed to frequency and magnitude of mass movement events over decadal timescales, with climate, regional uplift and erosion rates expected to control debris inputs over centurial to millennial timescales. Inclusion of such spatiotemporal variations in debris thickness in distributed surface energy balance models would increase the accuracy of calculated ablation, leading to a more accurate simulation of glacier mass balance through time, and greater precision in quantification of the response of debris-covered glaciers to climatic change.

Salt tectonics in an experimental turbiditic tank

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sellier, Nicolas; Vendeville, Bruno

2010-05-01

We modelled the effect of the deposition of clastic sediments wedges along passive margin by combining two different experimental approaches. The first approach, which uses flume experiments in order to model turbiditic transport and deposition, had focused, so far mainly on the stratigraphic architecture and flow properties. But most experiments have not accounted for the impact of syndepositional deformation. The second approach is the classic tectonic modelling (sand-box experiments) is aimed essentially at understanding deformation, for example the deformation of a sediment wedge deposited onto a mobile salt layer. However, with this approach, the sediment transport processes are crudely modelled by adding each sediment layer uniformly, regardless of the potential influence of the sea-floor bathymetry on the depositional pattern. We designed a new tectono-stratigraphic modelling tank, which combines modelling of the turbiditic transport and deposition, and salt-related deformation driven by sediment loading. The set-up comprises a channel connected to a main water tank. A deformation box is placed at the mouth of the channel, on the base of the tank. The base of the box can be filled with various kinds of substrates either rigid (sand) or viscous (silicone polymer, simulating mobile salt layer having varying length and thickness). A mixture of fine-grained powder and water is maintained in suspension in a container, and then released and channelled toward the basin, generating an analogue of basin-floor fans or lobes. We investigated the effect of depositing several consecutive turbiditic lobes on the deformation of the salt body and its overburden. The dynamics of experimental turbidity currents lead to deposits whose thickness varied gradually laterally: the lobe is thick in the proximal region and thins progressively distally, thus creating a very gentle regional surface slope. As the fan grows by episodic deposition of successive turbiditic lobes, the model deforms spontaneously by vertical collapse and lateral spreading of the entire overburden. We conducted a series of systematic experiments varying the length and thickness of the salt body, as well as the sediment input and nature.

Formation and preservation of greigite (Fe3S4) in a thick sediment layer from the central South Yellow Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Jianxing; Mei, Xi; Shi, Xuefa; Liu, Qingsong; Liu, Yanguang; Ge, Shulan

2018-04-01

Sediments from continental shelves are sensitive to changes in both oceanic and terrestrial conditions, and, therefore, magnetic minerals in such sediments are affected strongly by depositional and diagenetic processes. Here, we investigated systematically an N-S transect of three sediment cores from the central South Yellow Sea (SYS) muddy area. Magnetic data indicate the presence of a horizontally distributed thick greigite-bearing layer. From an age model based on published magnetostratigraphy, accelerator mass spectrometry 14C dating ages, sedimentary characteristics and foraminiferal analysis, this layer was deposited within marine isotope stages (MIS) 17-13, following an enhanced sulphidic period over MIS 21-19 when the YS Warm Current and the associated YS Cold Water Mass were strong and where underlying sediments have higher total organic carbon, total sulphur and trace element molybdenum contents. Trace element cadmium enrichment in the greigite-bearing layers is documented for the first time, which indicates that weakly sulphidic (i.e. with trace levels of free H2S) conditions existed before greigite formed in a sulphidic environment during early diagenesis. It also indicates that subsequent conditions free of oxygen and H2S after greigite formation are more favourable for its preservation. We propose that organic matter supply was controlled over an extended period by moderate primary productivity. The combined effects of palaeoclimate and local tectonic subsidence were crucial for the formation and preservation of the identified greigite. In brief, our study improves understanding of the formation and preservation mechanisms of greigite in continental shelf sediments and reveals mid-Pleistocene palaeoenvironmental changes in the SYS.

Detrital illite crystals identified from crystallite thickness measurements in siliciclastic sediments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Aldega, L.; Eberl, D.D.

2005-01-01

Illite crystals in siliciclastic sediments are heterogeneous assemblages of detrital material coming from various source rocks and, at paleotemperatures >70 ??C, of superimposed diagenetic modification in the parent sediment. We distinguished the relative proportions of 2M1 detrital illite and possible diagenetic 1Md + 1M illite by a combined analysis of crystal-size distribution and illite polytype quantification. We found that the proportions of 1Md + 1M and 2M1 illite could be determined from crystallite thickness measurements (BWA method, using the MudMaster program) by unmixing measured crystallite thickness distributions using theoretical and calculated log-normal and/or asymptotic distributions. The end-member components that we used to unmix the measured distributions were three asymptotic-shaped distributions (assumed to be the diagenetic component of the mixture, the 1Md + 1M polytypes) calculated using the Galoper program (Phase A was simulated using 500 crystals per cycle of nucleation and growth, Phase B = 333/cycle, and Phase C = 250/ cycle), and one theoretical log-normal distribution (Phase D, assumed to approximate the detrital 2M1 component of the mixture). In addition, quantitative polytype analysis was carried out using the RockJock software for comparison. The two techniques gave comparable results (r2 = 0.93), which indicates that the unmixing method permits one to calculate the proportion of illite polytypes and, therefore, the proportion of 2M1 detrital illite, from crystallite thickness measurements. The overall illite crystallite thicknesses in the samples were found to be a function of the relative proportions of thick 2M1 and thin 1Md + 1M illite. The percentage of illite layers in I-S mixed layers correlates with the mean crystallite thickness of the 1Md + 1M polytypes, indicating that these polytypes, rather than the 2M1 polytype, participate in I-S mixed layering.

Extreme Events on a Low-Gradient River and Delta: Evidence for Sediment Mass Movements on the Subaqueous Delta and a Mechanism for Creating Hyperpycnal Flow onto the Shelf

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dellapenna, T. M.; Carlin, J. A.; Williams, J. R.

2016-02-01

The Brazos River empties into the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) forming a wave-influenced, muddy, subaqueous delta (SAD). Recent research in the estuarine reach of the river and on the SAD, however, found evidence for significant mass wasting of the delta-front and potential evidence of hyperpycnal flow, a processes typically associated with higher gradient and higher sediment yield rivers. The study used high-resolution geophysics on the SAD and water-column profiling in the lower river to investigate the transfer to and fate of fluvial sediment on the shelf. The SAD side scan mosaic combined with core data reveal that the eastern portion was dominated by exposed relict, consolidated sediment; an erosional scarp along the upper shoreface; and a thinning of the Holocene strata immediately downslope of the scarp. Holocene strata thickness increases into deeper water. These features suggest sediment mass wasting on the delta front. After rapidly prograding during the early and mid 20th century, reductions in sediment load due anthropogenic influences, and a shift in the primary depocenter lead to erosion on these abandoned portions of the delta. During an elevated fluvial discharge event, a >1 m thick fluid mud layer was found along a 6 km span of the river 2 km upstream from the mouth. The river's salt wedge was shown to inhibit sediment export from the river to the GOM, and facilitate deposition of mud in the lower river. We believe that the mud layer in the lower river builds during moderate and low discharge periods and remobilized during increased discharge, potentially resulting in hyperpyncnal flow to the shelf. We observed suspended sediment concentrations up to 100 g/l in the fluid mud layer during this event. While our observations did not capture the transition from fluid mud to hyperpycnal flow, we believe that with persistent increased discharge the fluid mud layer could transition to hyperpycnal flow.

Correlation of the oldest Toba Tuff to sediments in the central Indian Ocean Basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pattan, J. N.; Shyam Prasad, M.; Babu, E. V. S. S. K.

2010-08-01

We have identified an ash layer in association with Australasian microtektites of ˜0.77 Ma old in two sediment cores which are ˜450 km apart in the central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB). Morphology and chemical composition of glass shards and associated microtektites have been used to trace their provenance. In ODP site 758 from Ninetyeast Ridge, ash layer-D (13 cm thick, 0.73-0.75 Ma) and layer-E (5 cm thick, 0.77-0.78 Ma) were previously correlated to the oldest Toba Tuff (OTT) eruptions of the Toba caldera, Sumatra. In this investigation, we found tephra ˜3100 km to the southwest of Toba caldera that is chemically identical to layer D of ODP site 758 and ash in the South China Sea correlated to the OTT. Layer E is not present in the CIOB or other ocean basins. The occurrence of tephra correlating to layer D suggests a widespread distribution of OTT tephra (˜3.6 × 107 km2), an ash volume of at least ˜1800 km3, a total OTT volume of 2300 km3, and classification of the OTT eruption as a super-eruption.

Stochastic Modelling of the Hydraulic Anisotropy of Ash Impoundment Sediment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slávik, Ivan

2017-12-01

In the case reported here the impoundments of a 400 MW coal heated power plant with an annual production of about 1.5 million tons of fuel ash are of the cross-valley type, operated by the simple and cheap „upstream method”. The aim of the research was to determine overall and local values of the permeability in horizontal as well as in vertical direction and the anisotropy of the thin-layered sedimented ash. The coal ashes are hydraulically transported through pipelines in form of a slurry and periodically floated on the beach of the impoundment. The ashes are deposited in the form of a thin-layered sediment, with random alternation of layers with a coarser or finer granularity. The ash impoundment sediment is anthropogenic sediment with horizontally laminated texture. Therefore, the sediment is anisotropic from the viewpoint of water seepage. The knowledge of the permeability and the seepage anisotropy of the sediment is a basic requirement for the design of an appropriate dewatering system. The seepage anisotropy of the ash sediment has been checked by means of stochastic modelling, based on the correlation between the effective grain diameter and the coefficient of permeability of the ash: the effective grain diameter and the thickness of individual layers have been proposed to be random events.

Collection, processing, and interpretation of ground-penetrating radar data to determine sediment thickness at selected locations in Deep Creek Lake, Garrett County, Maryland, 2007

USGS Publications Warehouse

Banks, William S.L.; Johnson, Carole D.

2011-01-01

This investigation focused on selected regions of the study area, particularly in the coves where sediment accumulations were presumed to be thickest. GPR was the most useful tool for interpreting sediment thickness, especially in these shallow coves. The radar profiles were interpreted for two surfaces of interest-the water bottom, which was defined as the "2007 horizon," and the interface between Lake sediments and the original Lake bottom, which was defined as the "1925 horizon"-corresponding to the year the Lake was impounded. The ground-penetrating radar data were interpreted on the basis of characteristics of the reflectors. The sediments that had accumulated in the impounded Lake were characterized by laminated, parallel reflections, whereas the subsurface below the original Lake bottom was characterized by more discontinuous and chaotic reflections, often with diffractions indicating cobbles or boulders. The reflectors were picked manually along the water bottom and along the interface between the Lake sediments and the pre-Lake sediments. A simple graphic approach was used to convert traveltimes to depth through water and depth through saturated sediments using velocities of the soundwaves through the water and the saturated sediments. Nineteen cross sections were processed and interpreted in 9 coves around Deep Creek Lake, and the difference between the 2007 horizon and the 1925 horizon was examined. In most areas, GPR data indicate a layer of sediment between 1 and 7 feet thick. When multiple cross sections from a single cove were compared, the cross sections indicated that sediment thickness decreased toward the center of the Lake.

Identification and assessment of groundwater flow and storage components of the relict Schöneben Rock Glacier, Niedere Tauern Range, Eastern Alps (Austria)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winkler, Gerfried; Wagner, Thomas; Pauritsch, Marcus; Birk, Steffen; Kellerer-Pirklbauer, Andreas; Benischke, Ralf; Leis, Albrecht; Morawetz, Rainer; Schreilechner, Marcellus G.; Hergarten, Stefan

2016-06-01

More than 2,600 relict rock glaciers are known in the Austrian Alps but the knowledge of their hydraulic properties is severely limited. The relict Schöneben Rock Glacier (Niedere Tauern Range, Austria), with an extension of 0.17 km2, was investigated based on spring data (2006-2014) and seismic refraction survey. Spring-discharge hydrographs and natural and artificial tracer data suggest a heterogeneous aquifer with a layered internal structure for the relict rock glacier. The discharge behavior exhibits a fast and a delayed flow component. The spring discharge responds to recharge events within a few hours but a mean residence time of several months can also be observed. The internal structure of the rock glacier (up to several tens of meters thick) consists of: an upper blocky layer with a few meters of thickness, which lacks fine-grained sediments; a main middle layer with coarse and finer-grained sediments, allowing for fast flow; and an approximately 10-m-thick basal till layer as the main aquifer body responsible for the base flow. The base-flow component is controlled by (fine) sandy to silty sediments with low hydraulic conductivity and high storage capacity, exhibiting a difference in hydraulic conductivity to the upper layer of about three orders of magnitude. The high storage capacity of relict rock glaciers has an impact on water resources management in alpine catchments and potentially regulates the risk of natural hazards such as floods and related debris flows. Thus, the results highlight the importance of such aquifer systems in alpine catchments.

Evidence for decreasing South Asian summer monsoon in the past 160 years from varved sediment in Lake Xinluhai, Tibetan Plateau

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chu, Guoqiang; Sun, Qing; Yang, Ke; Li, Aiguo; Yu, Xiaohan; Xu, Tao; Yan, Fen; Wang, Hua; Liu, Meimei; Wang, Xiaohua; Xie, Manman; Lin, Yuan; Liu, Qiang

2011-01-01

We report glacial varves in the sediment of Lake Xinluhai, Tibetan Plateau. Independent data of 137Cs and 210Pb indicate that these are annually deposited varves. Varves appear as rhythmic units of light-colored silt layer capped by a dark clay layer under microscope. Varve thickness in Lake Xinluhai is sensitive to precipitation because sediment accumulation is strongly affected by monsoon rainfall in the area. A general decreasing trend can be observed in the varve thickness over the past 160 years. Spectral analyses of the varve record are dominated by cycles which are similar to ENSO periodicities. It implies that the decreasing trend of the South Asia monsoon may be linking with ENSO. Spatially, the decreasing trend can be observed across different proxy records in the south of the Tibetan Plateau. Although arguments still remain for the dynamic mechanisms and spatial rainfall difference, the South Asian summer monsoon could be weakened due to rising temperatures.

Calculation of Suspended Sediment Transport by Combined Wave-Current Flows.

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-11-01

Anderson, and Silberg (1985) presented a model that had an eddy viscosity and boundary layer thickness that varied in time. The reference concentration was...sediment model. This model, along with that of Fredsoe, Anderson, and Silberg (1985), are the only two models that account for both the sediment and the...ignores any correlation between the periodic components of the velocity and the concentration. Even in the model of Fredsoe, Anderson, and Silberg (1985

The metal oxide fraction of pelagic sediment in the equatorial North Pacific Ocean: A source of metals in ferromanganese nodules

USGS Publications Warehouse

Piper, D.Z.

1988-01-01

Pelagic sediment recovered at DOMES Site A in the equatorial North Pacific (151??W, 9?? 15???N) consists of a surface homogeneous layer, approximately 10 cm thick, overlying a strongly mottled layer that is lighter in color. The radiolarian composition of both units is Quaternary. In areas where this sediment was only a few centimeters thick, the underlying sediment was early Tertiary. Clay mineralogy and major oxide composition of the two Quaternary sediments are uniform. Their similarity to continental shale suggests that the sediment has a terrigenous source. Clay mineralogy and major oxide composition of the Tertiary sediment also are uniform, although they differ markedly from the Quarternary sediment. In contrast to the major oxides, concentrations of Mn, Co, Cu, and Ni soluble in hydroxylamine hydrochlorideacetic acid are strongly different in the surface and subsurface Quaternary sediment. Mn and Ni exhibit pronounced depletions in the subsurface sediment, Ni slightly more than Mn. Cu is also depleted in the subsurface sediment, but less than Mn. It is also depleted in the subsurface Tertiary sediment, whereas the Mn concentration remains high. Concentration of Co relative to Mn increases into the subsurface Quaternary sediment to a constant Co:Mn ratio of 3 ?? 10-2. The trivalent REE (the REE exclusive of Ce) and Fe exhibit little down-core variation. Distribution of elements in these sediments is closely related to their concentration in associated surface ferromanganese nodules. The nodules are of two distinct types: those from the area where the Quaternary sediment is relatively thick have ??-MnO2 as the dominant manganese mineral. The ratios of Ni:Mn, Cu:Mn, and Fe:Mn in these nodules approximate the corresponding ratios of the soluble fraction of surface sediment. Todorokite is the dominant mineral of nodules recovered from areas where the Quaternary sediment is thin. Relatively high Cu/Mn, Ni/Mn, and low Fe/Mn ratios of these nodules mirror differences between the soluble fraction of surface and subsurface Quaternary sediment. These compositional trends of sediment and nodules at DOMES Site A reflect a diagenetic origin for the todorokite nodules and a predominantly hydrogenous origin for the ??-MnO2 nodules. ?? 1988.

Mechanical Controls on Halokinesis in Layered Evaporite Sequences: Insights from 2D Geomechanical Forward Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goteti, Rajesh; Agar, Susan M.; Brown, John P.; Ball, Philip; Zuhlke, Rainer

2017-04-01

Mechanical stratification in LES (Layered Evaporate Sequences) can have a distinct impact on structural and depositional styles in rifted margin salt tectonics. The bulk mechanical response of an LES under geological loading is dependent, among other factors, on the relative proportions of salt and sediment, salt mobility and sedimentation rate. To assess the interactions among the aforementioned factors in a physically consistent manner, we present 2D, large-strain finite element models of an LES salt minibasin and diapirs. Loading from the deposition of alternating salt and sediment layers (i.e., LES), gravity and a prescribed geothermal gradient provide the driving force for halokinesis in the models. To accurately capture the mechanical impact of stratification within the modeled LES, salt is assigned a temperature-dependent visco-plastic rheology, whereas the sediments are assigned a non-associative cap-plasticity model that supports both compaction and shear localization. Perturbations in the initial salt-sediment interface are used to initiate the salt diapirs. Model results suggest that active diapirism in the basal halite layer initiates when the pressure at the base of the incipient salt diapir exceeds that beneath the minibasin. Vertical growth of the diapir is also accompanied by its lateral expansion at higher structural levels where it preferentially intrudes the adjacent pre- and syn-kinematic salt layers. This pressure pumping of deeper salt into shallow salt layers, can result in rapid thickness changes between successive sediment layers within the LES. Caution needs to be exercised as such thickness changes observed in seismic images may not be entirely due to the shifting of depocenters but also due to the lateral pumping of salt within the LES. The presence of salt layers at multiple structural levels decouples the deformation between successive clastic layers resulting in disharmomic folding with contrasting strain histories in the sedimentary stringers. A significant proportion of the bulk deviatoric strain is preferentially partitioned into the salt layers. Effective plastic shear strains within the sediment stringers generally remain low in the minibasin but can be significantly higher with attendant intense folding near the diapirs. In non-LES systems, the shape of a salt diapir is often used as indicator of relative rates of salt supply and sedimentation over geological time. However our models suggest that this rule-of-thumb may not apply in LES where the shape of the salt diapir is a function of the mechanical properties of the salt layers at various structural levels in addition to the relative rates of salt supply and sedimentation. Imaging challenges in LES may preclude placing strong constraints on structural timing based on interpretation of interfaces between the stringers and the salt diapir. In such situations, geomechanical forward modeling can be a useful tool in placing physics-based quantitative constraints on the timing of LES structures.

The Effects of Rapid Sedimentation upon Continental Breakup: Kinematic and Thermal Modeling of the Salton Trough, Southern California, Based upon Recent Seismic Images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, L.; Hole, J. A.; Lowell, R. P.; Stock, J. M.; Fuis, G. S.

2016-12-01

The Salton Seismic Imaging Project (SSIP) illuminated crustal and upper mantle structure of the Salton Trough, the northern-most rift segment of the Gulf of California plate boundary. The crust is 17-18 km thick and homogeneous for 100 km in the plate motion direction. New crust is being created by distributed rift magmatism, Colorado River sedimentation, and metamorphism of the sediment. A 5 km thick pre-existing crustal layer may still exist. The crust has not broken apart to enable initiation of seafloor spreading. A one-dimensional time-dependent kinematic and thermal model was developed to simulate these observations. We assume that all crustal layers are stretched uniformly during extension. Distributed mafic magmatism and sedimentation are added simultaneously to compensate for the crustal thinning. The ratio of magmatism to sedimentation is constrained by the seismic observations. Heat is transported by thermal conduction and by advection due to stretching of the crust. A constant temperature boundary at the Moho is used to represent partial melting in the upper mantle. Assuming a constant plate motion rate, the zone of active rifting extends linearly with time. The crustal thickness and internal structure also evolve with time. The model constraints are the observed seismic structure and heat flow. The model rapidly reaches quasi-steady state, and could continue for many millions of years. The observed seismic structure and heat flow are reproduced after 3 Myr. The yield strength profile calculated from lithology and model temperature indicates that ductile deformation in the middle and lower crust dominates the crustal rheology. Rapid sedimentation delays crustal breakup and the initiation of seafloor spreading by maintaining the thickness of the crust and keeping it predominantly ductile. This process probably occurs wherever a large river flows into an active rift driven by far-field extension. It may have built passive margins in many locations globally, such as the Gulf of Mexico. This type of passive margin consists of mostly new crust created by magmatism and metamorphism of sediment. Along such margins, metamorphosed sediment could be misinterpreted as stretched pre-existing continental crust.

Strong Deformation of the Thick Electric Double Layer around a Charged Particle during Sedimentation or Electrophoresis.

PubMed

Khair, Aditya S

2018-01-23

The deformation of the electric double layer around a charged colloidal particle during sedimentation or electrophoresis in a binary, symmetric electrolyte is studied. The surface potential of the particle is assumed to be small compared to the thermal voltage scale. Additionally, the Debye length is assumed to be large compared to the particle size. These assumptions enable a linearization of the electrokinetic equations. The particle appears as a point charge in this thick-double-layer limit; the distribution of charge in the diffuse cloud surrounding it is determined by a balance of advection due to the particle motion, Brownian diffusion of ions, and electrostatic screening of the particle by the cloud. The ability of advection to deform the charge cloud from its equilibrium state is parametrized by a Péclet number, Pe. For weak advection (Pe ≪ 1), the cloud is only slightly deformed. In contrast, the cloud can be completely stripped from the particle at Pe ≫ 1; consequently, electrokinetic effects on the particle motion vanish in this regime. Therefore, in sedimentation the drag limits to Stokes' law for an uncharged particle as Pe → ∞. Likewise, the particle velocity for electrophoresis approaches Huckel's result. The strongly deformed cloud at large Pe is predicted to generate a concomitant increase in the sedimentation field in a dilute settling suspension.

The use of Ground Penetrating Radar in coastal research, archeaological investigations, lake studies, peat layer measurments and applied research in Estonia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vilumaa, Kadri; Tõnisson, Hannes; Orviku, Kaarel

2014-05-01

Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is mainly used for scientific research in coastal geology in the Institute of Ecology at Tallinn University. We currently use SIR-3000 radar with 100, 270 , 300 and 500 MHz antennae. Our main targets have been detecting the thickness of soil and sand layers and finding out the layers in coastal sediments which reflect extreme storm events. Our GPR studies in various settings have suggested that the internal structures of the ridge-dune complexes are dominated by numerous layers dipping in various directions. Such information helps us to reconstruct and understand prevailing processes during their formation (e.g. seaward dipping lamination in coastal ridge-dune complexes indicating cross-shore and wave-induced transport of the sediments). Currently, we are trying to elaborate methodology for distinguishing the differences between aeolian and wave transported sediments by using GPR. However, paludified landscapes (often covered by water), very rough surface (numerous bushes and soft surface), moderate micro topography has slowed this process significantly. Moreover, we have been able to use GPR during the winter period (applied on ice or snow) and compare the quality of our results with the measurements taken during the summer period. We have found that smooth surface (in winter) helps detecting very strong signal differences (border between different sediment types - sand, peat, silt, etc.) but reduces the quality of the signal to the level where the detection of sedimentation patterns within one material (e.g. tilted layers in sand) is difficult. We have carried out several other science-related studies using GPR. These studies include determining the thickness of peat layer in bogs (to calculate the volume of accumulated peat or to find most suitable locations for coring), measuring the thickness of mud and gyttja layer in lakes (to find most suitable locations for coring, reconstructing initial water level of the lake or calculating the volume of stored carbon in the lake). Additionally, we have done several archaeology-related research including the search of buried city walls and caves (Tallinn old town), buried Viking ship (Saaremaa Island) and several other archaeological objects. We have also done some applied studies including the search of underground power cables, heating pipes, melioration systems, ammunition warehouses (from World War II) and buried ammunition from the military training fields. Aknowledgement: The authors acknowledge COST for funding Action TU1208 'Civil Engineering Applications of Ground Penetrating Radar', supporting part of this work.

Gravity anomalies and associated tectonic features over the Indian Peninsular Shield and adjoining ocean basins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, D. C.; Arora, K.; Tiwari, V. M.

2004-02-01

A combined gravity map over the Indian Peninsular Shield (IPS) and adjoining oceans brings out well the inter-relationships between the older tectonic features of the continent and the adjoining younger oceanic features. The NW-SE, NE-SW and N-S Precambrian trends of the IPS are reflected in the structural trends of the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal suggesting their probable reactivation. The Simple Bouguer anomaly map shows consistent increase in gravity value from the continent to the deep ocean basins, which is attributed to isostatic compensation due to variations in the crustal thickness. A crustal density model computed along a profile across this region suggests a thick crust of 35-40 km under the continent, which reduces to 22/20-24 km under the Bay of Bengal with thick sediments of 8-10 km underlain by crustal layers of density 2720 and 2900/2840 kg/m 3. Large crustal thickness and trends of the gravity anomalies may suggest a transitional crust in the Bay of Bengal up to 150-200 km from the east coast. The crustal thickness under the Laxmi ridge and east of it in the Arabian Sea is 20 and 14 km, respectively, with 5-6 km thick Tertiary and Mesozoic sediments separated by a thin layer of Deccan Trap. Crustal layers of densities 2750 and 2950 kg/m 3 underlie sediments. The crustal density model in this part of the Arabian Sea (east of Laxmi ridge) and the structural trends similar to the Indian Peninsular Shield suggest a continent-ocean transitional crust (COTC). The COTC may represent down dropped and submerged parts of the Indian crust evolved at the time of break-up along the west coast of India and passage of Reunion hotspot over India during late Cretaceous. The crustal model under this part also shows an underplated lower crust and a low density upper mantle, extending over the continent across the west coast of India, which appears to be related to the Deccan volcanism. The crustal thickness under the western Arabian Sea (west of the Laxmi ridge) reduces to 8-9 km with crustal layers of densities 2650 and 2870 kg/m 3 representing an oceanic crust.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Holliday, V.; Parks, J.M.

The turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum) community has a significant influence on sedimentation in Florida Bay, but the roles other processes may play in the buildup of mud bank and spit sediments are poorly understood. Samples from cores taken from Ramshorn Spit and Ramshorn Shoal were classified into 4 basic types on the basis of particle size distribution, organic content, and faunal assemblages. In order of increasing volumetric importance they are: (1) very thin, discontinuous shelly packstones, representing overbank or storm deposits; (2) thin, continuous basal shelly packstones, the initial marine deposit on the Pleistocene bedrock surface; (3) muddy wackestones, ofmore » variable thickness, deposited in the presence of a seagrass community; (4) very thick, faintly laminated fine mudstones, with very sparse fauna, representing weak current-transported sediments settling out of suspension. Discriminant function analysis confirms the classifications and shows that these sediment layers are indeed correlatable between cores. Interpretation of the core logs from Ramshorn Spit indicates a definite change in stratigraphy southwestward from the spit and bank junction to the tip of the spit itself. The different sediment layers show a small but significant inclination to the southwest. Throughout its depositional history, Ramshorn Spit seems to have been actively accreting outward into the surrounding lake by means of a current-transported fine mud fraction. After settling out at the growing tip of the spit, the sediments are subsequently stabilized at some later time by a turtle-grass cover.« less

Modeling of Grain Size Distribution of Tsunami Sand Deposits in V-shaped Valley of Numanohama During the 2011 Tohoku Tsunami

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gusman, A. R.; Satake, K.; Goto, T.; Takahashi, T.

2016-12-01

Estimating tsunami amplitude from tsunami sand deposit has been a challenge. The grain size distribution of tsunami sand deposit may have correlation with tsunami inundation process, and further with its source characteristics. In order to test this hypothesis, we need a tsunami sediment transport model that can accurately estimate grain size distribution of tsunami deposit. Here, we built and validate a tsunami sediment transport model that can simulate grain size distribution. Our numerical model has three layers which are suspended load layer, active bed layer, and parent bed layer. The two bed layers contain information about the grain size distribution. This numerical model can handle a wide range of grain sizes from 0.063 (4 ϕ) to 5.657 mm (-2.5 ϕ). We apply the numerical model to simulate the sedimentation process during the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Numanohama, Iwate prefecture, Japan. The grain size distributions at 15 sample points along a 900 m transect from the beach are used to validate the tsunami sediment transport model. The tsunami deposits are dominated by coarse sand with diameter of 0.5 - 1 mm and their thickness are up to 25 cm. Our tsunami model can well reproduce the observed tsunami run-ups that are ranged from 16 to 34 m along the steep valley in Numanohama. The shapes of the simulated grain size distributions at many sample points located within 300 m from the shoreline are similar to the observations. The differences between observed and simulated peak of grain size distributions are less than 1 ϕ. Our result also shows that the simulated sand thickness distribution along the transect is consistent with the observation.

Seasonal climate variability in historical and prehistorical times deduced from varved lake sediments: Calibration of records from Lakes Woseriner See and Tiefer See

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Czymzik, Markus; Kienel, Ulrike; Dreibrodt, Stefan; Brauer, Achim

2013-04-01

Societies are susceptible to the effects of even short-term climate variations on water supply, health, and agricultural productivity. However, understanding of human-climate interactions is limited due to the lack of high-resolution climate records in space and time. Varved lake sediments provide long time-series of seasonal climate variability directly from populated areas that can be compared to historical and archeological records. Calibration against meteorological data enables process-based insights into sediment deposition within the lake that can be extrapolated into the past using transfer functions. Lakes Woseriner See (53°40'N/12°2'E; 37 m asl.) and Tiefer See (53°23'N/13°97'E, 65 m asl.) in northeastern Germany are located only 35 km apart. Situated within the former settlement areas, the lakes are well suited for studying climate influences on society related to the Neolithic Funnelbeaker culture or the Slavic colonization. Sub-recent annual laminations allow to establish climate proxy data-series at seasonal resolution that can be calibrated against the long meteorological record from the nearby City of Schwerin. Seasonal climate proxy data-series covering the last 90 years have been obtained from short sediment cores applying a combination of microfacies analyses, X-ray fluorescence scanning (µ-XRF), and varve counting. Main sediment microfacies in both lakes are endogenic calcite varves comprising calcite and organic layer couplets of varying thickness, diatom layers, and dispersed detrital grains. Calibration against meteorological data indicates that variations in sediment layer thickness and composition are not stationary through time but influenced by inter-annual variations in meteorological conditions.

A large-scale field trial of thin-layer capping of PCDD/F-contaminated sediments: Sediment-to-water fluxes up to 5 years post-amendment.

PubMed

Cornelissen, Gerard; Schaanning, Morten; Gunnarsson, Jonas S; Eek, Espen

2016-04-01

The longer-term effect (3-5 y) of thin-layer capping on in situ sediment-to-surface water fluxes was monitored in a large-scale field experiment in the polychlorinated dibenzodioxin and dibenzofuran (PCDD/F) contaminated Grenlandfjords, Norway (4 trial plots of 10,000 to 40,000 m(2) at 30 to 100 m water depth). Active caps (designed thickness 2.5 cm) were established in 2 fjords, consisting of dredged clean clay amended with powdered activated carbon (PAC) from anthracite. These active caps were compared to 2 nonactive caps in one of the fjords (designed thickness 5 cm) consisting of either clay only (i.e., without PAC) or crushed limestone. Sediment-to-water PCDD/F fluxes were measured in situ using diffusion chambers. An earlier study showed that during the first 2 years after thin-layer capping, flux reductions relative to noncapped reference fields were more extensive at the fields capped with nonactive caps (70%-90%) than at the ones with PAC-containing caps (50%-60%). However, the present work shows that between 3 and 5 years after thin-layer capping, this trend was reversed and cap effectiveness in reducing fluxes was increasing to 80% to 90% for the PAC caps, whereas cap effectiveness of the nonactive caps decreased to 20% to 60%. The increasing effectiveness over time of PAC-containing "active" caps is explained by a combination of slow sediment-to-PAC mass transfer of PCDD/Fs and bioturbation by benthic organisms. The decreasing effectiveness of "nonactive" limestone and clay caps is explained by deposition of contaminated particles on top of the caps. The present field data indicate that the capping efficiency of thin active caps (i.e., enriched with PAC) can improve over time as a result of slow diffusive PCDD/F transfer from sediment to PAC particles and better mixing of the PAC by bioturbation. © 2015 SETAC.

Lithospheric strength and its relationship to the elastic and seismogenic layer thickness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watts, A. B.; Burov, E. B.

2003-08-01

Plate flexure is a phenomenon that describes how the lithosphere responds to long-term (>105 yr) geological loads. By comparing the flexure in the vicinity of ice, volcano, and sediment loads to predictions based on simple plate models it has been possible to estimate the effective elastic thickness of the lithosphere, Te. In the oceans, Te is the range 2-50 km and is determined mainly by plate and load age. The continents, in contrast, are characterised by Te values of up to 80 km and greater. Rheological considerations based on data from experimental rock mechanics suggest that Te reflects the integrated brittle, elastic and ductile strength of the lithosphere. Te differs, therefore, from the seismogenic layer thickness, Ts, which is indicative of the depth to which anelastic deformation occurs as unstable frictional sliding. Despite differences in their time scales, Te and Ts are similar in the oceans where loading reduces the initial mechanical thickness to values that generally coincide with the thickness of the brittle layer. They differ, however, in continents, which, unlike oceans, are characterised by a multi-layer rheology. As a result, Te≫Ts in cratons, many convergent zones, and some rifts. Most rifts, however, are characterised by a low Te that has been variously attributed to a young thermal age of the rifted lithosphere, thinning and heating at the time of rifting, and yielding due to post-rift sediment loading. Irrespective of their origin, the Wilson cycle makes it possible for low values to be inherited by foreland basins which, in turn, helps explain why similarities between Te and Ts extend beyond rifts into other tectonic regions such as orogenic belts and, occasionally, the cratons themselves.

A computational investigation of the interstitial flow induced by a variably thick blanket of very fine sand covering a coarse sand bed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bartzke, Gerhard; Huhn, Katrin; Bryan, Karin R.

2017-10-01

Blanketed sediment beds can have different bed mobility characteristics relative to those of beds composed of uniform grain-size distribution. Most of the processes that affect bed mobility act in the direct vicinity of the bed or even within the bed itself. To simulate the general conditions of analogue experiments, a high-resolution three-dimensional numerical `flume tank' model was developed using a coupled finite difference method flow model and a discrete element method particle model. The method was applied to investigate the physical processes within blanketed sediment beds under the influence of varying flow velocities. Four suites of simulations, in which a matrix of uniform large grains (600 μm) was blanketed by variably thick layers of small particles (80 μm; blanket layer thickness approx. 80, 350, 500 and 700 μm), were carried out. All beds were subjected to five predefined flow velocities ( U 1-5=10-30 cm/s). The fluid profiles, relative particle distances and porosity changes within the bed were determined for each configuration. The data show that, as the thickness of the blanket layer increases, increasingly more small particles accumulate in the indentations between the larger particles closest to the surface. This results in decreased porosity and reduced flow into the bed. In addition, with increasing blanket layer thickness, an increasingly larger number of smaller particles are forced into the pore spaces between the larger particles, causing further reduction in porosity. This ultimately causes the interstitial flow, which would normally allow entrainment of particles in the deeper parts of the bed, to decrease to such an extent that the bed is stabilized.

In-situ falling-head test for hydraulic conductivity: Evaluation in layered sediments of an analysis derived for homogenous sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burnette, Matthew C.; Genereux, David P.; Birgand, François

2016-08-01

The hydraulic conductivity (K) of streambeds is a critical variable controlling interaction of groundwater and surface water. The Hvorslev analysis for estimating K from falling-head test data has been widely used since the 1950s, but its performance in layered sandy sediments common in streams and lakes has not previously been examined. Our numerical simulations and laboratory experiments show that the Hvorslev analysis yields accurate K values in both homogenous sediment (for which the analysis was originally derived) and layered deposits with low-K sand over high-K sand. K from the Hvorslev analysis deviated significantly from true K only when two conditions were present together: (1) high-K sand was present over low-K sand, and (2) the bottom of the permeameter in which K was measured was at or very near the interface between high-K and low-K. When this combination of conditions exists, simulation and laboratory sand tank results show that in-situ Hvorslev K underestimates the true K of the sediment within a permeameter, because the falling-head test is affected by low-K sediment outside of (below the bottom of) the permeameter. In simulation results, the maximum underestimation (occurring when the bottom of the permeameter was at the interface of high K over low K) was by a factor of 0.91, 0.59, and 0.12 when the high-K to low-K ratio was 2, 10, and 100, respectively. In laboratory sand tank experiments, the underestimation was by a factor of about 0.83 when the high-K to low-K ratio was 2.3. Also, this underestimation of K by the Hvorslev analysis was about the same whether the underlying low-K layer was 2 cm or 174 cm thick (1% or 87% of the domain thickness). Numerical model simulations were useful in the interpretation of in-situ field K profiles at streambed sites with layering; specifically, scaling the model results to the maximum measured K at the top of the field K profiles helped constrain the likely ratio of high K to low K at field locations with layered heterogeneity. Vertical K values are important in field studies of groundwater-surface water interaction, and the Hvorslev analysis can be a useful tool, even in layered media, when applied carefully.

Relationship between the parent material and the soil, in plain and mountainous areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerek, Barbara; Kuti, Laszlo; Dobos, Timea; Vatai, Jozsef; Szentpetery, Ildiko

2013-04-01

One of the most important tasks of the soil is the nutrition of plants. This function is determinated by those parts of the geological media on what is the soil situated and from what the soil was formed (those two can be different). Soil can be formed definitely just from sediment, so it is more proper to speak about parent material than parent rock. Soil forming sediment is defined as the loose sediment on the surface, which is the upper layer of near-surface rocks in flat and hilly regions, and it is the upper layer of the sediment-ensemble situated on the undisturbed bedrock in mountainous areas. Considering its origin, these sediments could be autochthon or allochton. Soil forming is determinated, besides other factors (climate, elevation, vegetation, etc.), by the parent material, which has a crucial influence on the type, quality and fertility of soils through its mineral composition, physical and chemical characteristics. Agrogeological processes happen in the superficial loose sediments in mountainous areas, but the underlying solid rock (where on the surface or close to it, there is solid rock), has an effect on them. The plain and hilly regions covered by thick loose sediment and the areas build up by solid rock and covered with thinner loose sediment in mountainous areas should be searched separately. In plain areas the near-surface formations have to be studied as a whole down to the saturated zone, but at least to 10 m. In regions of mountain and mountain fronts, the thickness, the composition and genetics of the young unconsolidated sediments situated above the older solid rocks have a vital importance, and also the relations among the soils, soil forming sediments and the base rocks have to be understood.

Measurement and Modeling of Ecosystem Risk and Recovery for In Situ Treatment of Contaminated Sediments. Phase 3

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-08-01

boundary layer and xPE is the PE thickness (cm). For passive samplers deployed in the sediment bed , the HOC uptake kinetics is also a function of...in sediment beds using performance reference compounds (PRCs) (Adams, Lohmann et al. 2007, Tomaszewski and Luthy 2008, Fernandez, MacFarlane et al...version program was tested for user-friendliness as well as performance. Any reported bugs were fixed, and suggestions on the user-friendliness were

Treatment of ice cover and other thin elastic layers with the parabolic equation method.

PubMed

Collins, Michael D

2015-03-01

The parabolic equation method is extended to handle problems involving ice cover and other thin elastic layers. Parabolic equation solutions are based on rational approximations that are designed using accuracy constraints to ensure that the propagating modes are handled properly and stability constrains to ensure that the non-propagating modes are annihilated. The non-propagating modes are especially problematic for problems involving thin elastic layers. It is demonstrated that stable results may be obtained for such problems by using rotated rational approximations [Milinazzo, Zala, and Brooke, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 101, 760-766 (1997)] and generalizations of these approximations. The approach is applied to problems involving ice cover with variable thickness and sediment layers that taper to zero thickness.

In-situ geotechnical investigation of sediment dynamics over `The Bar', Raglan, New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stark, N.; Greer, D.; Phillips, D. J.; Borrero, J. C.; Harrison, S.; Kopf, A.

2010-12-01

The geotechnical characteristics of surficial sediments on a highly mobile, N-S-oriented ebb tidal shoal (‘The Bar’) near the entrance to Whaingaroa Harbour, in Raglan, NZ, were investigated using the dynamic penetrometer Nimrod, which is suitable for deployments in areas characterized by strong currents and active wave climate common to this site. Vertical sediment strength, based upon penetrometer deceleration and a quasi-static bearing capacity equivalent, was profiled at 23 positions along as well as in the vicinity of ‘The Bar’ during slack water. Recently deposited or loose sediment was detected as a top layer of lower sediment strength (quasi-static bearing capacity equivalent [qs. bc.] < 10 kPa) over a stiff substratum (mean maximum qs. bs. ~ 105 kPa), and quantified (thickness: 0 - 7 cm) indicating areas of sediment accumulation and areas of sediment erosion. These results were correlated to mean current velocities and directions predicted by ASR Ltd.’s Whaingaroa Harbour Model. In relation to sediment dynamics, ‘The Bar’ area can be divided into different zones: (i) the channel connecting ‘The Bar’ to the harbor, (ii) the southern arm, (iii) the mid-section, (iv) the northern arm, and (v, vi) the northern and southern wings covering the area between ‘The Bar’ and the shore. The channel is characterized by high current velocities (up to 1.7 m/s) along the W-E-axis, suggesting strong sediment erosion and no (re-)deposition. However, despite the high mean current velocities, the penetrometer results hint at sediment deposition. This is most likely explained by the deep trench in the channel that could trap sediment. Comparing the northern and the southern wing, the currents follow the bathymetry and coastline alignment and are mirrored at the W-E-axis, but the mean current velocities are higher at the southern wing (northern wing: up to 0.4 m/s; southern wing: up to 0.6 m/s). The penetrometer results suggest strong sediment erosion on the southern wing (qs. bc. up to 155 kPa, top layer thickness ~ 2 cm), and show no evidence of sediment remobilization on the northern wing (no layering). On the northern and southern arms, low currents (~ 0.3 m/s) with very mixed directions were predicted. In front (west) of the most southern corner an area of strong sediment accumulation was localized following the penetrometer results (top layer thickness: 7 cm). This leads to the hypothesis that in the ebb-shoal system at Whaingaroa Harbour, mobile sediment is mainly transported via the southern wing of the ‘The Bar’ potentially leading to an increase of sediment erosion in this area due to effects like sanding. Sediment deposition might occur in the trench of the channel as well as in the vicinity of the southernmost portion of the sandbar. This matches observations according to which the southern arm shifted about 220 m whereas the northern arm only moved 20 m within one year. The in-situ penetrometer as well as the numerical results compare favorably with observations of ‘The Bar’s morphology. Both methods provide valuable insights which enhance our understanding of the sediment dynamics in this area.

Low-Temperature Alteration of the Seafloor: Impacts on Ocean Chemistry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coogan, Laurence A.; Gillis, Kathryn M.

2018-05-01

Over 50% of Earth is covered by oceanic crust, the uppermost portion of which is a high-permeability layer of basaltic lavas through which seawater continuously circulates. Fluid flow is driven by heat lost from the oceanic lithosphere; the global fluid flux is dependent on plate creation rates and the thickness and distribution of overlying sediment, which acts as a low-permeability layer impeding seawater access to the crust. Fluid-rock reactions in the crust, and global chemical fluxes, depend on the average temperature in the aquifer, the fluid flux, and the composition of seawater. The average temperature in the aquifer depends largely on bottom water temperature and, to a lesser extent, on the average seafloor sediment thickness. Feedbacks between off-axis chemical fluxes and their controls may play an important role in modulating ocean chemistry and planetary climate on long timescales, but more work is needed to quantify these feedbacks.

Estimating crustal thickness using SsPmp in regions covered by low-velocity sediments: Imaging the Moho beneath the Southeastern Suture of the Appalachian Margin Experiment (SESAME) array, SE Atlantic Coastal Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parker, E. Horry, Jr.; Hawman, Robert B.; Fischer, Karen M.; Wagner, Lara S.

2016-09-01

Deconvolved waveforms for two earthquakes (Mw: 6.0 and 5.8) show clear postcritical SsPmp arrivals for broadband stations deployed across the coastal plain of Georgia, allowing mapping of crustal thickness in spite of strong reverberations generated by low-velocity sediments. Precritical SsPmp arrivals are also identified. For a basement in which velocity increases linearly with depth, a bootstrapped grid search suggests an average basement velocity of 6.5 ± 0.1 km/s and basement thickness of 29.8 ± 2.0 km. Corresponding normal-incidence Moho two-way times (including sediments) are 10.6 ± 0.6 s, consistent with times for events interpreted as Moho reflections on coincident active-source reflection profiles. Modeling of an underplated mafic layer (Vp = 7.2-7.4 km/s) using travel time constraints from SsPmp data and vertical-incidence Moho reflection times yields a total basement thickness of 30-35 km and average basement velocity of 6.35-6.65 km/s for an underplate thickness of 0-15 km.

Resistivity profiling for mapping gravel layers that may control contaminant migration at the Amargosa Desert Research Site, Nevada

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lucius, Jeffrey E.; Abraham, Jared D.; Burton, Bethany L.

2008-01-01

Gaseous contaminants, including CFC 113, chloroform, and tritiated compounds, move preferentially in unsaturated subsurface gravel layers away from disposal trenches at a closed low-level radioactive waste-disposal facility in the Amargosa Desert about 17 kilometers south of Beatty, Nevada. Two distinct gravel layers are involved in contaminant transport: a thin, shallow layer between about 0.5 and 2.2 meters below the surface and a layer of variable thickness between about 15 and 30 meters below land surface. From 2003 to 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey used multielectrode DC and AC resistivity surveys to map these gravel layers. Previous core sampling indicates the fine-grained sediments generally have higher water content than the gravel layers or the sediments near the surface. The relatively higher electrical resistivity of the dry gravel layers, compared to that of the surrounding finer sediments, makes the gravel readily mappable using electrical resistivity profiling. The upper gravel layer is not easily distinguished from the very dry, fine-grained deposits at the surface. Two-dimensional resistivity models, however, clearly identify the resistive lower gravel layer, which is continuous near the facility except to the southeast. Multielectrode resistivity surveys provide a practical noninvasive method to image hydrogeologic features in the arid environment of the Amargosa Desert.

Benthic nepheloid layers in the Gulf of Maine and Alexandrium cyst inventories

PubMed Central

Pilskaln, C.H.; Hayashi, K.; Keafer, B.A.; Anderson, D.M.; McGillicuddy, D.J.

2014-01-01

Cysts residing in benthic nepheloid layers (BNLs) documented in the Gulf of Maine have been proposed as a possible source of inoculum for annual blooms of a toxic dinoflagellate in the region. Herein we present a spatially extensive data set of the distribution and thickness of benthic nepheloid layers in the Gulf of Maine and the abundance and inventories of suspended Alexandrium fundyense cysts within these near-bottom layers. BNLs are pervasive throughout the gulf and adjacent Bay of Fundy with maximum layer thicknesses of 50–60 m observed. Mean BNL thickness is 30 m in the eastern gulf and Bay of Fundy, and 20 m in the western gulf. Cyst densities in the near-bottom particle resuspension layers varied by three orders of magnitude across the gulf with maxima of 105 cysts m−3. An important interconnection of elevated BNL cyst densities is observed between the Bay of Fundy, the Maine Coastal Current and the south-central region of the gulf. BNL cyst inventories estimated for the eastern and western gulf are each on the order of 1015 cysts, whereas the BNL inventory in the Bay of Fundy is on the order of 1016 . Although BNL cyst inventories in the eastern and western gulf are 1–2 orders of magnitude smaller than the abundance of cysts in the upper 1 cm of sediment in those regions, BNL and sediment-bound cyst inventories are comparable in the Bay of Fundy. The existence of widespread BNLs containing substantial cyst inventories indicates that these near-bottom layers represent an important source of germinating A. fundyense cysts in the region. PMID:25419055

Benthic nepheloid layers in the Gulf of Maine and Alexandrium cyst inventories.

PubMed

Pilskaln, C H; Hayashi, K; Keafer, B A; Anderson, D M; McGillicuddy, D J

2014-05-01

Cysts residing in benthic nepheloid layers (BNLs) documented in the Gulf of Maine have been proposed as a possible source of inoculum for annual blooms of a toxic dinoflagellate in the region. Herein we present a spatially extensive data set of the distribution and thickness of benthic nepheloid layers in the Gulf of Maine and the abundance and inventories of suspended Alexandrium fundyense cysts within these near-bottom layers. BNLs are pervasive throughout the gulf and adjacent Bay of Fundy with maximum layer thicknesses of 50-60 m observed. Mean BNL thickness is 30 m in the eastern gulf and Bay of Fundy, and 20 m in the western gulf. Cyst densities in the near-bottom particle resuspension layers varied by three orders of magnitude across the gulf with maxima of 10 5 cysts m -3 . An important interconnection of elevated BNL cyst densities is observed between the Bay of Fundy, the Maine Coastal Current and the south-central region of the gulf. BNL cyst inventories estimated for the eastern and western gulf are each on the order of 10 15 cysts, whereas the BNL inventory in the Bay of Fundy is on the order of 10 16 . Although BNL cyst inventories in the eastern and western gulf are 1-2 orders of magnitude smaller than the abundance of cysts in the upper 1 cm of sediment in those regions, BNL and sediment-bound cyst inventories are comparable in the Bay of Fundy. The existence of widespread BNLs containing substantial cyst inventories indicates that these near-bottom layers represent an important source of germinating A. fundyense cysts in the region.

Origin and evolution of the layered deposits in the Valles Marineris, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nedell, Susan S.; Squyres, Steven W.; Andersen, David W.

1987-01-01

Four hypotheses are discussed concerning the origin of the layered deposits in the Martian Valles Marineris, whose individual thicknesses range from about 70 to 300 m. The hypothesized processes are: (1) aeolian deposition; (2) deposition of remnants of the material constituting the canyon walls; (3) deposition of volcanic eruptions; and (4) deposition in standing bodies of water. The last process is chosen as most consistent with the rhythm and lateral continuity of the layers, as well as their great thickness and stratigraphic relationship with other units in the canyons. Attention is given to ways in which the sediments could have entered an ice-covered lake; several geologically feasible mechanisms are identified.

Floodplain sediment from a 100-year-recurrence flood in 2005 of the Ping River in northern Thailand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wood, S. H.; Ziegler, A. D.

2008-07-01

The tropical storm, floodwater, and the floodplain-sediment layer of a 100-year recurrence flood are examined to better understand characteristics of large monsoon floods on medium-sized rivers in northern Thailand. Storms producing large floods in northern Thailand occur early or late in the summer rainy season (May October). These storms are associated with tropical depressions evolving from typhoons in the South China Sea that travel westward across the Indochina Peninsula. In late September, 2005, the tropical depression from Typhoon Damrey swept across northern Thailand delivering 100 200 mm/day at stations in mountainous areas. Peak flow from the 6355-km2 drainage area of the Ping River upstream of the city of Chiang Mai was 867 m3s-1 (river-gage of height 4.93 m) and flow greater than 600 m3s-1 lasted for 2.5 days. Parts of the city of Chiang Mai and some parts of the floodplain in the intermontane Chiang Mai basin were flooded up to 1-km distant from the main channel. Suspended-sediment concentrations in the floodwater were measured and estimated to be 1000 1300 mg l-1. The mass of dry sediment (32.4 kg m-2), measured over a 0.32-km2 area of the floodplain is relatively high compared to reports from European and North American river floods. Average wet sediment thickness over the area was 3.3 cm. Sediment thicker than 8 cm covered 16 per cent of the area, and sediment thicker than 4 cm covered 44 per cent of the area. High suspended-sediment concentration in the floodwater, flow to the floodplain through a gap in the levee afforded by the mouth of a tributary stream as well as flow over levees, and floodwater depths of 1.2 m explain the relatively large amount of sediment in the measured area. Grain-size analyses and examination of the flood layer showed about 15-cm thickness of massive fine-sandy silt on the levee within 15-m of the main channel, sediment thicker than 6 cm within 200 m of the main channel containing a basal coarse silt, and massive clayey silt beyond 200 m. The massive clayey silt would not be discernable as a separate layer in section of similar deposits. The fine-sand content of the levee sediment and the basal coarse silt of sediment within 200 m of the main channel are sedimentological features that may be useful in identifying flood layers in a stratigraphic section of floodplain deposits.

Regional-scale input of dispersed and discrete volcanic ash to the Izu-Bonin and Mariana subduction zones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scudder, Rachel P.; Murray, Richard W.; Schindlbeck, Julie C.; Kutterolf, Steffen; Hauff, Folkmar; McKinley, Claire C.

2014-11-01

We have geochemically and statistically characterized bulk marine sediment and ash layers at Ocean Drilling Program Site 1149 (Izu-Bonin Arc) and Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 52 (Mariana Arc), and have quantified that multiple dispersed ash sources collectively comprise ˜30-35% of the hemipelagic sediment mass entering the Izu-Bonin-Mariana subduction system. Multivariate statistical analyses indicate that the bulk sediment at Site 1149 is a mixture of Chinese Loess, a second compositionally distinct eolian source, a dispersed mafic ash, and a dispersed felsic ash. We interpret the source of these ashes as, respectively, being basalt from the Izu-Bonin Front Arc (IBFA) and rhyolite from the Honshu Arc. Sr-, Nd-, and Pb isotopic analyses of the bulk sediment are consistent with the chemical/statistical-based interpretations. Comparison of the mass accumulation rate of the dispersed ash component to discrete ash layer parameters (thickness, sedimentation rate, and number of layers) suggests that eruption frequency, rather than eruption size, drives the dispersed ash record. At Site 52, the geochemistry and statistical modeling indicates that Chinese Loess, IBFA, dispersed BNN (boninite from Izu-Bonin), and a dispersed felsic ash of unknown origin are the sources. At Site 1149, the ash layers and the dispersed ash are compositionally coupled, whereas at Site 52 they are decoupled in that there are no boninite layers, yet boninite is dispersed within the sediment. Changes in the volcanic and eolian inputs through time indicate strong arc-related and climate-related controls.

Quasi-two-layer morphodynamic model for bedload-dominated problems: bed slope-induced morphological diffusion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maldonado, Sergio; Borthwick, Alistair G. L.

2018-02-01

We derive a two-layer depth-averaged model of sediment transport and morphological evolution for application to bedload-dominated problems. The near-bed transport region is represented by the lower (bedload) layer which has an arbitrarily constant, vanishing thickness (of approx. 10 times the sediment particle diameter), and whose average sediment concentration is free to vary. Sediment is allowed to enter the upper layer, and hence the total load may also be simulated, provided that concentrations of suspended sediment remain low. The model conforms with established theories of bedload, and is validated satisfactorily against empirical expressions for sediment transport rates and the morphodynamic experiment of a migrating mining pit by Lee et al. (1993 J. Hydraul. Eng. 119, 64-80 (doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9429(1993)119:1(64))). Investigation into the effect of a local bed gradient on bedload leads to derivation of an analytical, physically meaningful expression for morphological diffusion induced by a non-zero local bed slope. Incorporation of the proposed morphological diffusion into a conventional morphodynamic model (defined as a coupling between the shallow water equations, Exner equation and an empirical formula for bedload) improves model predictions when applied to the evolution of a mining pit, without the need either to resort to special numerical treatment of the equations or to use additional tuning parameters.

Quasi-two-layer morphodynamic model for bedload-dominated problems: bed slope-induced morphological diffusion.

PubMed

Maldonado, Sergio; Borthwick, Alistair G L

2018-02-01

We derive a two-layer depth-averaged model of sediment transport and morphological evolution for application to bedload-dominated problems. The near-bed transport region is represented by the lower (bedload) layer which has an arbitrarily constant, vanishing thickness (of approx. 10 times the sediment particle diameter), and whose average sediment concentration is free to vary. Sediment is allowed to enter the upper layer, and hence the total load may also be simulated, provided that concentrations of suspended sediment remain low. The model conforms with established theories of bedload, and is validated satisfactorily against empirical expressions for sediment transport rates and the morphodynamic experiment of a migrating mining pit by Lee et al. (1993 J. Hydraul. Eng. 119 , 64-80 (doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9429(1993)119:1(64))). Investigation into the effect of a local bed gradient on bedload leads to derivation of an analytical, physically meaningful expression for morphological diffusion induced by a non-zero local bed slope. Incorporation of the proposed morphological diffusion into a conventional morphodynamic model (defined as a coupling between the shallow water equations, Exner equation and an empirical formula for bedload) improves model predictions when applied to the evolution of a mining pit, without the need either to resort to special numerical treatment of the equations or to use additional tuning parameters.

A Simplified Analytic Investigation of the Riverside Effects of Sediment Diversions

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-01

demonstrated that the river bed consists of a sand layer of variable thickness, underlain by erosion resistant strata (either relict glacial deposits...following analysis. Simplifications and Initial Conditions. Consider a river modeled as a wide rectangular channel of constant width (Figure 1). The...CHETN-VII-13 September 2013 14  Short term effects include the redistribution of sediment by erosion upstream of the diversion to deposition

New relationship between fundamental site frequency and thickness of soft sediments from seismic ambient noise

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abd el-aal, Abd el-aziz Khairy

2018-05-01

In this contribution, new relationship between the fundamental site frequency and the thickness of soft sediments is obtained for many sites in Egypt. The Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio ("H/V") technique (known as Nakamura technique) can be used as a robust tool to determine the thickness of soft sediments layers overlaying bedrock from observations and measurements of seismic ambient noise data. In Egypt, numerous seismic ambient noise measurements have been conducted in several areas to determine the dynamic properties of soft soil for engineering purposes. At each site in each studied area, the fundamental site frequency was accurately estimated from the main peak in the spectral ratio between the horizontal and vertical component. Consequently, an extensive database of microtremor measurements, well logging data, and shallow seismic refraction data have been configured and assembled for the studied areas. New formula between fundamental site frequency (f 0 ) and thickness of soft sediments (h) is established. The new formula has been validated and compared with other formulas of earlier scientists, and the results indicate that the calculated depth and geometry of the bedrock surface using new formula are in a good agreement with well logs data and previously published seismic refraction surveys in the investigated sites.

Downdip and along-strike variations in the properties of the Alaska megathrust from active-source seismic imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shillington, D. J.; Becel, A.; Nedimovic, M. R.; Li, J.; Kuehn, H.; Webb, S. C.; Abers, G. A.; Keranen, K. M.; Saffer, D. M.

2014-12-01

Downdip and along-strike changes in slip behavior at subduction zones are often attributed to changes in the properties of the megathrust. Here we review information on the subduction megathrust offshore of the Alaska Peninsula from MCS reflection and wide-angle seismic data acquired in 2011 during the Alaska Langseth Experiment to Understand the megaThrust (ALEUT) program, and compare them with constraints from other data and experiments. This region encompasses the full spectrum of coupling: 1) the weakly coupled Shumagin Gap; 2) the Semidi segment, which last ruptured in the 1938 M8.2 event, appears to be locked at present, and 3) the western Kodiak asperity, which marked the western extent of the 1964 M9.2 rupture and also appears to be locked. Our data reveal substantial along-strike variations in incoming sediment thickness and plate structure and along-strike and downdip variations in megathrust reflection characteristics. Over 1 km of sediment is observed on the incoming oceanic plate in the Semidi segment prior to subduction, and a relatively thick and continuous layer interpreted as subducted sediment can be imaged at the plate boundary here up to ~50 km from the trench . In the Shumagin Gap, where the incoming sediment section is half as thick and more pervasively faulted at the outer rise, a subducting sediment layer is also observed but it is thinner, less continuous and is not observed to continue as far from the trench. ,Although the Semidi segment is capable of producing great earthquakes, the comparatively thick sediment here may contribute to the relative paucity of seismicity compared with adjacent segments. At greater depths, simple and bright reflections are generally observed at depths of ~12-25 km, ~40-100 km from the trench, within the center of the estimated locked zone. The character changes where the megathrust appears to intersect the forearc mantle wedge to a wide (~2 km thick), bright band of reflections and may arise from a change in deformation style, distribution of fluids, and/or plate boundary properties. Although the overall patterns in reflection characteristics are consistent between profiles across different segments, this transition in reflection characteristics occurs at larger distances from the trench within the Semidi segment than in the Shumagin Gap.

Formation of Multi-Layer Structures in Bi3Pb7 Intermetallic Compounds under an Ultra-High Gravitational Field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mashimo, T.; Iguchi, Y.; Bagum, R.; Sano, T.; Sakata, O.; Ono, M.; Okayasu, S.

2008-02-01

Ultra-high gravitational field (Mega-gravity field) can promote sedimentation of atoms (diffusion) even in solids, and is expected to form a compositionally-graded structure and/or nonequilibrium phase in multi-component condensed matter. We had achieved sedimentation of substitutional solute atoms in miscible systems (Bi-Sb, In-Pb, etc.). In this study, a mega-gravity experiment at high temperature was performed on a thin-plate sample (0.7 mm in thickness) of the intermetallic compound Bi3Pb7. A visible four-layer structure was produced, which exhibited different microscopic structures. In the lowest-gravity region layer, Bi phase appeared. In the mid layers, a compositionally-graded structure was formed, with differences observed in the powder X-ray diffraction patterns. Such a multi-layer structure is expected to exhibit unique physical properties such as superconductivity.

Methane Concentrations and Biogeochemistry in Lake Sediments from Stordalen Mire, Sub-Arctic Sweden

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Halloran, M.; DeStasio, J.; Erickson, L.; Johnson, J. E.; Varner, R. K.; Setera, J.; Prado, M. F.; Wik, M.; Crill, P. M.

2013-12-01

Lake sediments are an important global carbon sink of both allochthonous and autochthonous inputs. However, lakes are also known to emit carbon in gaseous form, most often as methane (CH4) or carbon dioxide (CO2), which are potent greenhouse gases. As northern latitudes warm, it is increasingly important to understand these gases and the sediments that store them. In July of 2013 we took 48 cores at 16 sites throughout three lakes surrounding a mire underlain by degrading permafrost in sub-arctic Sweden. The goal was to characterize the sedimentology and geochemistry of the lake sediments to better understand the production, distribution, and flux of CO2 and CH4 from these lakes. Villasjön is a shallow lake less than 1.5 meters deep, Mellan Harrsjön has a maximum depth of 7 meters and is stream-fed, and Inre Harrsjön has a maximum depth of 5 meters and is connected to Mellan Harrsjön. Published radiocarbon dates suggest that all three lakes formed approximately 3400 years ago. At each sample site, we retrieved 2 to 4 cores from the lake bottom, approximately 40-80 cm in length. The cores were sub-sampled for measurements of bulk TOC, TC, TN, TS, and CaCO3 (by difference) using a CHNS Elemental Analyzer, and grain size using a laser particle size analyzer. Headspace CO2 and CH4 by gas chromatography and infrared gas analysis (IRGA) yielded production rates and CH4 sediment concentrations. Dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) from porewater extractions were analyzed using IRGA and stable carbon isotopes of DIC were analyzed via a Quantum Cascade Laser. The recovered sediments in the cores from all three lakes were composed of three layers: an upper layer of organic rich sediment (30-40 cm thick), a middle transition layer of mixed organic and lithogenic materials (5-10 cm thick), and a deep layer of grey lithogenic clay with less organic carbon (of variable thickness). Preliminary results from the 12 Villasjön sites indicate that CH4 is present and produced from the organic-rich layer in the upper 20-40 cm of the sediment. TOC values in this lake range from <1 to 44 wt. %. The TOC maximum (approximately 20-40 wt. %) consistently occurred at the same depth as the methane maximum, centered at ~20 cm. A TOC minimum zone (approximately 0-5 wt. %) occurs from 35-80 cm. Particle size distributions in this lake are dominated by silt and sand size fractions (>4 um). Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) concentrations varied, but the maximum always occurred in the upper 20 cm of the core. Core sites with known high lake surface methane fluxes from bubble trap measurements also show high methane concentrations in the sediment, high DIC concentrations in the pore fluids, and δ 13C signatures of CO2 ranging from 0 to 10, consistent with methanogenesis. Similar results are expected from the integration of pending sediment methane profiles with these data from the other two lakes: Mellan Harrsjön and Inre Harrsjön. Future work, including 14C dating, microbial community profiling, and δ13C signatures of CH4 will yield more insight into the biogeochemical mechanisms that regulate sediment methane distributions. 13C isotopes of methane and DIC should indicate if methane consumption through AOM or diffusion is controlling its distribution.

Characterisation of the wall-slip during extrusion of heavy-clay products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kocserha, I.; Gömze, A. L.; Kulkov, S.; Kalatur, E.; Buyakova, S. P.; Géber, R.; Buzimov, A. Y.

2017-01-01

During extrusion through the extrusion die, heavy-clay compounds are usually show plug flow with extensive slip at the wall of the die. In this study, the viscosity and the thickness of the slip layer were investigated. For the examination a brick-clay from Malyi (Hungary) deposit was applied as a raw material. The clay was characterised by XRPD, BET, SEM and granulometry. As the slip layer consists of suspension of the fine clay fraction so the clay minerals content of the clay (d<2µm) was separated by the help of sedimentation. The viscosity of suspension with different water content was measured by means of rotational viscosimeter. The thickness of the slip layer was calculated from the measured viscosity and other data obtained from an earlier study with capillary rheometer. The calculated thickness value showed a tendency to reach a limit value by increasing the extrusion speed.

Occurrence of Quaternary turbidite deposits in the central South China Sea: Response to global sea-level changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Z.; Zhang, X.; Christophe, C.; Peleo-Alampay, A.; Guballa, J. D. S.; Li, P.; Liu, C.

2016-12-01

Terrigenous turbidite layers frequently occur at the upper 150-m-thick sedimentary sequence of Hole U1431D (15º22.54'N, 117 º00.00'E, 4240.5 m water depth), International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 349, near the relict spreading ridge in the central South China Sea. This study implies visual statistics combined with grain size, clay mineralogy, and Nd-Sr isotope analyses to reconstruct the occurrence of these turbidite layers. The age-model of combined calcareous nannofossils, planktonic foraminifers, and paleomagnetism suggests that the sedimentary sequence spans the entire Quaternary with an age of 2.6 Ma at the depth of 150 mcd below the seafloor. Our results show that the turbidite deposits are dominated by silt with sandy silt and silty clay, poorly sorted, and grading upward with erosion base. The occurrence of turbidite layers are highly frequent with about 3.06 layers per meter and an average thickness of 14.64 cm per layer above 96 mcd ( 1.6 Ma), while the lower part turbudite layers are less frequently developed with 1.16 layers per meter and an average thickness of 5.67 cm. Provenance analysis indicates that Taiwan, about 900 km northward to the studied site, is the major source for these terrigenous sediments, implying the long run-out turbidity current activity over the very low-gradient deep-sea plain of the South China Sea. The frequency of the turbidite layer occurrence is well correlated to the Quaternary global sea-level change history, with the high frequency occurred during the lower sea-level stands. Our study suggests that the glacial-interglacial-scale sea-level change has controlled terrigenous sediment input from Taiwan and the northern shelf of the South China Sea during the Quaternary. The increase of turbidite layer frequency since 1.6 Ma in the central South China Sea could be triggered by the enlarged amplitude of sea-level change.

Offshore gas hydrate sample database with an overview and preliminary analysis

USGS Publications Warehouse

Booth, James S.; Rowe, Mary M.; Fisher, Kathleen M.

1996-01-01

Synopsis -- A database of offshore gas hydrate samples was constructed from published observations and measurements. More than 90 samples from 15 distinct regions are represented in 13 data categories. This database has permitted preliminary description of gas hydrate (chiefly methane hydrate) tendencies and associations with respect to their geological environment. Gas hydrates have been recovered from offshore sediment worldwide and from total depths (water depth plus subseabed depth) ranging from 500 m to nearly 6,000 m. Samples have come from subbottom depths ranging from 0 to 400 m. Various physiographic provinces are represented in the data set including second order landforms such as continental margins and deep-sea trenches, and third order forms such as submarine canyons, continental slopes, continental margin ridges and intraslope basins. There is a clear association between fault zones and other manifestations of local, tectonic-related processes, and hydrate-bearing sediment. Samples of gas hydrate frequently consist of individual grains or particles. These types of hydrates are often further described as inclusions or disseminated in the sediment. Moreover, hydrates occur as a cement, as nodules, or as layers (mostly laminae) or in veins. The preponderance of hydrates that could be characterized as 2- dimensional (planar) were associated with fine sediment, either as intercalated layers or in fractures. Hydrate cements were commonly associated with coarser sediment. Hydrates have been found in association with grain sizes ranging from clay through gravel. More hydrates are associated with the more abundant finer-grained sediment than with coarser sediment, and many were discovered in the presence of both fine (silt and clay) and coarse sediment. The thickness of hydrate zones (i. e., sections of hydrate-bearing sediment) varies from a few centimeters to as much as 30 m. In contrast, the thickness of layers of pure hydrate or the dimensions of individual hydrate grains were most often characterized in terms of millimeters or centimeters, although a pure hydrate layer discovered in the Middle America Trench off Guatemala was as much as 3-4-m-thick. The data suggest that grains, or thin veins or laminae of pure gas hydrate may be ubiquitous in many hydrate zones but that typically they may only comprise a minor component of the thicker zones. In more than 80 percent of the hydrate samples the methane was of biogenic origin. The methane in the remainder was either classified as (or may be at least part) thermogenic. Each site where thermogenic gas was identified is characterized by faults or other manifestions of a dynamic geological environment (e.g., diapirs, mud volcanoes, gas seeps). Every sample in the database came from within the zone of theoretical methane hydrate stability, as determined on the basis of assumed regional pressure and temperature gradients. Most show that they were situated --- expressed in terms of depth --- well above the phase boundary and about 70% of the samples were located more than 100 m above the assumed regional position of that boundary. The calculated subseabed positions of the phase boundaries and the BSRs (bottom simulating reflector) are essentially identical. This may be taken as general corroboration of the regional phase boundary calculations and the concept of the BSR. Three provocative aspects of marine gas hydrates have been disclosed by the database: gas hydrates are frequently situated at much shallower subseabed depths than the assumed contemporary position of the regional phase boundary hydrates are often found in areas typified by faults or other indicators of a dynamic geological environment zones of gas hydrate-bearing sediment tend to be tens of centimeters to tens of meters thick but the hydrate within the thicker zones tends to be only a minor constituent. Whether existing as dispersed particles, cements, or pure layers or vein

Basement structures over Rio Grande Rise from gravity inversion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Constantino, Renata Regina; Hackspacher, Peter Christian; de Souza, Iata Anderson; Lima Costa, Iago Sousa

2017-04-01

The basement depth in the Rio Grande Rise (RGR), South Atlantic, is estimated from combining gravity data obtained from satellite altimetry, marine surveys, bathymetry, sediment thickness and crustal thickness information. We formulate a crustal model of the region by inverse gravity modeling. The effect of the sediment layer is evaluated using the global sediment thickness model of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and fitting the sediment compaction model to observed density values from Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) reports. The Global Relief Model ETOPO1 and constraining data from seismic interpretation on crustal thickness are integrated in the inversion process. The modeled Moho depth values vary between 6 and 27 km over the area, being thicker under the RGR and also in the direction of São Paulo Plateau. The inversion for the gravity-equivalent basement topography is applied to gravity residual data, which is free from the gravity effect of sediments and from the gravity effect of the estimated Moho interface. We find several short-wavelengths structures not present in the bathymetry data. Our model shows a rift crossing the entire Rio Grande Rise deeper than previously presented in literature, with depths up to 5 km in the East Rio Grande Rise (ERGR) and deeper in the West Rio Grande Rise (WRGR), reaching 6.4 km. An interesting NS structure that goes from 34°S and extends through de São Paulo Ridge may be related to the South Atlantic Opening and could reveal an extinct spreading center.

Joint inversions of three types of electromagnetic data explicitly constrained by seismic observations: results from the central Okavango Delta, Botswana

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalscheuer, Thomas; Blake, Sarah; Podgorski, Joel E.; Wagner, Frederic; Green, Alan G.; Maurer, Hansruedi; Jones, Alan G.; Muller, Mark; Ntibinyane, Ongkopotse; Tshoso, Gomotsang

2015-09-01

The Okavango Delta of northern Botswana is one of the world's largest inland deltas or megafans. To obtain information on the character of sediments and basement depths, audiomagnetotelluric (AMT), controlled-source audiomagnetotelluric (CSAMT) and central-loop transient electromagnetic (TEM) data were collected on the largest island within the delta. The data were inverted individually and jointly for 1-D models of electric resistivity. Distortion effects in the AMT and CSAMT data were accounted for by including galvanic distortion tensors as free parameters in the inversions. By employing Marquardt-Levenberg inversion, we found that a 3-layer model comprising a resistive layer overlying sequentially a conductive layer and a deeper resistive layer was sufficient to explain all of the electromagnetic data. However, the top of the basal resistive layer from electromagnetic-only inversions was much shallower than the well-determined basement depth observed in high-quality seismic reflection images and seismic refraction velocity tomograms. To resolve this discrepancy, we jointly inverted the electromagnetic data for 4-layer models by including seismic depths to an interface between sedimentary units and to basement as explicit a priori constraints. We have also estimated the interconnected porosities, clay contents and pore-fluid resistivities of the sedimentary units from their electrical resistivities and seismic P-wave velocities using appropriate petrophysical models. In the interpretation of our preferred model, a shallow ˜40 m thick freshwater sandy aquifer with 85-100 Ωm resistivity, 10-32 per cent interconnected porosity and <13 per cent clay content overlies a 105-115 m thick conductive sequence of clay and intercalated salt-water-saturated sands with 15-20 Ωm total resistivity, 1-27 per cent interconnected porosity and 15-60 per cent clay content. A third ˜60 m thick sandy layer with 40-50 Ωm resistivity, 10-33 per cent interconnected porosity and <15 per cent clay content is underlain by the basement with 3200-4000 Ωm total resistivity. According to an interpretation of helicopter TEM data that cover the entire Okavango Delta and borehole logs, the second and third layers may represent lacustrine sediments from Paleo Lake Makgadikgadi and a moderately resistive freshwater aquifer comprising sediments of the recently proposed Paleo Okavango Megafan, respectively.

Verification of flux measurements made with in situ benthic chambers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devol, Allan H.

1987-06-01

Exchange of solutes between the sediments and overlying water was measured in situ at two locations where the overlying waters were devoid of dissolved oxygen (Skan Bay, Alaska and the Tres Marias depression on the Mexican continental shelf). Measurements were made with a tripod capable of collecting eight sequential samples for analysis of dissolved gases and ions. The tripod also permitted tracer injection and the retrieval of sediments underlying the flux chambers. Because of the absence of oxygen, sediments from these areas did not contain benthic faunal populations, and it was possible to compare the benthic fluxes measured with the tripod with those calculated from pore water profiles. For solutes for which exchange was not limited by resistance in the diffuse sublayer (alkalinity, Si(OH) 4+, NH 4+, and PO 43-), tje 11 tirpod-measured fluxes agreed with those calculated from pore water gradients to within 25%. Benthic boundary layer thickness within the chambers as calculated from the initial rate of radiotracer uptake (tritiated water) varied from 405 to 605 μm in stirred chambers. Measured rates of NO 3- uptake were concordant with a boundary layer thickness of 600 μm.

Instrument Correction and Dynamic Site Profile Validation at the Central United States Seismic Observatory, New Madrid Seismic Zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brengman, C.; Woolery, E. W.; Wang, Z.; Carpenter, S.

2016-12-01

The Central United States Seismic Observatory (CUSSO) is a vertical seismic array located in southwestern Kentucky within the New Madrid seismic zone. It is intended to describe the effects of local geology, including thick sediment overburden, on seismic-wave propagation, particularly strong-motion. The three-borehole array at CUSSO is composed of seismic sensors placed on the surface, and in the bedrock at various depths within the 585 m thick sediment overburden. The array's deep borehole provided a unique opportunity in the northern Mississippi embayment for the direct geological description and geophysical measurement of the complete late Cretaceous-Quaternary sediment column. A seven layer, intra-sediment velocity model is interpreted from the complex, inhomogeneous stratigraphy. The S- and P-wave sediment velocities range between 160 and 875 m/s and between 1000 and 2300 m/s, respectively, with bedrock velocities of 1452 and 3775 m/s, respectively. Cross-correlation and direct comparisons were used to filter out the instrument response and determine the instrument orientation, making CUSSO data ready for analysis, and making CUSSO a viable calibration site for other free-field sensors in the area. The corrected bedrock motions were numerically propagated through the CUSSO soil profile (transfer function) and compared, in terms of both peak acceleration and amplitude spectra, to the recorded surface observations. Initial observations reveal a complex spectral mix of amplification and de-amplification across the array, indicating the site effect in this deep sediment setting is not simply generated by the shallowest layers.

Anthropogenic sediments and soils of tells of the Balkans and Anatolia: Composition, genesis, and relationships with the history of landscape and human occupation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sedov, S. N.; Aleksandrovskii, A. L.; Benz, M.; Balabina, V. I.; Mishina, T. N.; Shishkov, V. A.; Şahin, F.; Özkaya, V.

2017-04-01

Soils and sediments composing Tell Körtik Tepe (Epipaleolithic, Turkey) and Tell Yunatsite (Chalcolithic (Eneolithic), Bulgaria) have been studied with the aim to gain a better insight into their microfabrics, determine the composition of anthropogenic artifacts, and, on this basis, to analyze similarities and distinctions between these objects and the modern soils of urban areas. The methods of micromorphology, scanning electron microscopy with an energy dispersive X-ray microanalyzer, X-ray fluorometry, and other techniques to determine the chemical and physical properties of the soils and sediments have been applied. Two paleosols have been identified in Tell Yunatsite with a total thickness of 9 m: the paleosol buried under the tell and the paleosol in its middle part. Sediments of Tell Körtik Tepe have a total thickness of up to 5 m; their accumulation began at the end of Pleistocene over the surface of buried paleosol. The cultural layer of the tells consists of construction debris mainly represented by a mixture of clay and sand and of domestic wastes with the high content of phosphorus. The major source of phosphorus is calcium phosphate (apatite) of bone tissues. The abundance of various anthropogenic materials in the sediments is clearly seen in thin sections. Even in the paleosols developed within the cultural layer (the mid-profile paleosol in Tell Yunatsite), the amount of microinclusions of bone fragments, charcoal, and burnt clay (ceramics) is very high. Micromorphological data indicate that up to 50% of the layered material filling an Epipaleolithic construction in Tell Körtik Tepe consists of the anthropogenic inclusions: bone fragments, charcoal, etc. The features of pedogenic transformation are present in the sediments. Such sediments can be classified as synlithogenic soils similar to the modern Urbic Technosols. It is shown that the formation of paleosols and sediments of Tell Körtik Tepe took place under extreme environmental conditions—arid climate of the latest Pleistocene climate cooling phase (the Younger Dryas, Tell Körtik Tepe)—and intensive anthropogenic loads (tells Körtik Tepe and Yunatsite).

Utilizing Time Domain Reflectometry on monitoring bedload in a mountain stream

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miyata, S.; Fujita, M.

2015-12-01

Understanding bedload transport processes in steep mountain streams is essential for disaster mitigation as well as predicting reservoir capacity and restoration of river ecosystem. Despite various monitoring methods proposed previously, precise bedload monitoring in steep streams still remains difficulty. This study aimed to develop a bedload monitoring system by continuous measurement of thickness and porosity of sediment under water that can be applicable to retention basins and pools in steep streams. When a probe of TDR (Time Domain Reflectometry) measurement system is inserted as to penetrate two adjacent layers with different dielectric constants, analysis of TDR waveform enables us to determine position of the layer boundary and ratio of materials in the layer. Methodology of analyzing observed TDR waveforms were established based on results of a series of column experiment, in which a single TDR probe with length of 40 cm was installed in a column filled with water and, then, sand was supplied gradually. Flume experiment was performed to apply the TDR system on monitoring sediment volume under flowing water conditions. Eight probes with lengths of 27 cm were distributed equally in a model retention basin (i.e., container), into which water and bedload were flowed from a connected flume. The model retention basin was weighed by a load cell and the sediment volume was calculated. A semi-automatic waveform analysis was developed to calculate continuously thicknesses and porosities of the sediment at the eight probes. Relative errors of sediment volume and bedload (=time differential of the volume) were 13 % at maximum, suggesting that the TDR system proposed in this study with multiple probes is applicable to bedload monitoring in retention basins of steep streams. Combination of this system and other indirect bedload monitoring method (e.g., geophone) potentially make a breakthrough for understanding sediment transport processes in steep mountain streams.

Assessing the Potential for Sediment Gravity-Driven Underflows at the Currently Active Mouth of the Huanghe Delta

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mullane, M.; Kumpf, L. L.; Kineke, G. C.

2017-12-01

The Huanghe (Yellow River), once known for extremely high suspended-sediment concentrations (SSCs) that could produce hyperpycnal plumes (10s of g/l), has experienced a dramatic reduction in sediment load following the construction of several reservoirs, namely the Xiaolangdi reservoir completed in 1999. Except for managed flushing events, SSC in the lower river is now on the order of 1 g/l or less. Adaptations of the Chezy equation for gravity-driven transport show that dominant parameters driving hyperpycnal underflows include concentration (and therefore density), thickness of a sediment-laden layer and bed slope. The objectives of this research were to assess the potential for gravity-driven underflows given modern conditions at the active river mouth. Multiple shore-normal transects were conducted during research cruises in mid-July of 2016 and 2017 using a Knudsen dual-frequency echosounder to collect bathymetric data and to document the potential presence of fluid mud layers. An instrumented profiling tripod equipped with a CTD, optical backscatterance sensor and in-situ pump system were used to sample water column parameters. SSCs were determined from near-bottom and surface water samples. Echosounder data were analyzed for bed slopes at the delta-front and differences in depth of return for the two frequencies (50 and 200 kHz), which could indicate fluid muds. Bathymetric data analysis yielded bed slope measurements near or above threshold values to produce gravity-driven underflows (0.46°). The maximum observed thickness of a potential fluid mud layer was 0.7 m, and the highest sampled near-bed SSCs were nearly 14 g/l for both field campaigns. These results indicate that the modern delta maintains potential for sediment gravity-driven underflows, even during ambient conditions prior to maximum summer discharge. These results will inform future work quantitatively comparing the contributions of all sediment dispersal mechanisms near the active Huanghe delta environment, including advection of the buoyant river plume and wave resuspension and transport by tidal currents.

Crustal velocity structure across the Main Ethiopian Rift: results from two-dimensional wide-angle seismic modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mackenzie, G. D.; Thybo, H.; Maguire, P. K. H.

2005-09-01

We present the results of velocity modelling of a recently acquired wide-angle seismic reflection/refraction profile across the Main Ethiopian Rift. The models show a continental type of crust with significant asymmetry between the two sides of the rift. A 2- to 5-km-thick layer of sedimentary and volcanic sequences is modelled across the entire region. This is underlain by a 40- to 45-km-thick crust with a c. 15-km-thick high-velocity lowest crustal layer beneath the western plateau. This layer is absent from the eastern side, where the crust is 35 km thick beneath the sediments. We interpret this layer as underplated material associated with the Oligocene flood basalts of the region with possible subsequent addition by recent magmatic events. Slight crustal thinning is observed beneath the rift, where Pn velocities indicate the presence of hot mantle rocks containing partial melt. Beneath the rift axis, the velocities of the upper crustal layers are 5-10 per cent higher than outside the rift, which we interpret as resulting from mafic intrusions that can be associated with magmatic centres observed in the rift valley. Variations in seismic reflectivity suggest the presence of layering in the lower crust beneath the rift, possibly indicating the presence of sills, as well as some layering in the proposed underplated body.

Deposits of Large-scale Mass Movements in the Sediments of Hallstätter See (Austria) - Recurrent Natural Hazards at a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lauterbach, S.; Strasser, M.; Tjallingii, R.; Kowarik, K.; Reschreiter, H.; Spatl, C.; Brauer, A.

2017-12-01

The cultural importance of underground salt mining in Hallstatt (Austria), which is documented since the Middle Bronze Age, has been recognized already 20 years ago by assigning the status of a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site to the Hallstatt area, particularly because of the wealth of archaeological artefacts from the Early Iron Age. Local mining activity is well documented for prehistoric times and known to have been repeatedly affected by large-scale mass movements, for example at the end of the Bronze Age and during the Late Iron Age. In contrast, evidence of mining activity between the 5th and late 13th century AD is scarce, which could be related to socio-economic changes but also to continued mass movement activity, possibly biasing the archaeological record. Within the present study, a 15.63-m-long 14C-dated sediment core from Hallstätter See has been investigated with respect to the deposits of large-scale mass movements. Most of the lake sediment sequence consists of cm- to sub-mm-scale laminated carbonate mud with frequently intercalated small-scale turbidites, reflecting seasonally variable detrital input from the tributaries, but two major event layers clearly stand out. The upper one comprises a 2.45-m-thick basal mass transport deposit (containing folded laminated sediments, homogenized sediments with liquefaction structures, and coarse gravel) and an overlying 1.45-m-thick co-genetic turbidite. From the lower event layer only the topmost part of the turbiditic sequence with a (minimum) thickness of 1.49 m was recovered. Based on their sedimentological characteristics, both event layers are interpreted as the subaqueous continuation of large-scale mass movements, which occurred at ca. 1050 and 2300 cal. years BP and possibly originated from the rock walls along the western lake shore where also the salt mining area is located. This indicates that mass movement activity not only threatened prehistoric salt mining, but occurred also repeatedly during the Common Era, possibly explaining the lack of archaeological evidence of mining activity between the 5th and late 13th century AD. However, a direct spatial and temporal relationship between documented mass movements in the mining area and those recorded in the lake sediments cannot be proven at present and requires further investigations.

Historic mass movements recorded in the sediments of Hallstätter See (Upper Austria) - natural hazards at a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lauterbach, Stefan; Strasser, Michael; Tjallingii, Rik; Spötl, Christoph; Brauer, Achim

2017-04-01

Human activity associated with salt mining in Hallstatt (Upper Austria) can be traced back to the Neolithic and underground salt mining in the area is documented since the Middle Bronze Age. The cultural importance of this salt mining and the wealth of archaeological artefacts - particularly from the epoch of the Early Iron Age, for which Hallstatt became the eponym - has been recognized already 20 years ago by assigning the status of a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site to the Hallstatt area. Mining activity is well documented for prehistoric times and known to have been repeatedly affected by large mass movements, destroying mining facilities, for example, at the end of the Bronze Age and during the Late Iron Age. In contrast, evidence of mining activity in the Common Era until the late 13th century AD is scarce, which could be related to socio-economic changes as well as mass movement activity, possibly biasing the archaeological record. Within a project aiming at reconstructing past flood activity of the Traun River, a major tributary of the Danube, a ca. 16-m-long sediment core has been recovered from Hallstätter See. The sediments are continuously cm- to sub-mm-scale laminated, reflecting seasonally variable detrital input by the Traun River and the smaller tributaries. However, an outstanding feature of the sediment record are two meter-scale event layers. The upper one is characterized by a basal mass-transport deposit of 2.50 m thickness, containing folded laminated sediments, homogeneous sediments with liquefaction structures and large stones of up to 4 cm in diameter, which is overlain by a co-genetic turbidite of 1.50 m thickness. From the lower event layer only the topmost part of the turbiditic sequence was recovered, revealing a (minimum) thickness of 1.50 m. Based on their sedimentological characteristics, both event layers are interpreted as the subaqueous continuation of large-scale mass movements, which occurred during the last 2000 years and likely originated from the Plassen Massif where the Hallstatt salt mining area is located. This indicates that past mass movement activity not only threatened prehistoric salt mining, but repeatedly occurred during the Common Era, which could possibly explain the lack of archaeological evidence for mining activity between the Late Iron Age and the late 13th century AD.

Sedimentary record of sub-glacial outburst floods at Laurentian Fan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leng, Wei; von Dobeneck, Tilo

2016-04-01

Large-scale glacial meltwater discharge could be widely recognized off the eastern Canadian continental margin. At Laurentian Fan, sub-glacial outburst floods eroded Permian-Carboniferous redbeds at Gulf of St. Lawrence and then delivered the reddish sediments by Laurentian Channel. Sedimentary record from four gravity cores (GeoB18514-2, 18515-1, 18516-2 and 18517-1) at the SW slope of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland revealed the major depositional processes since Heinrich event 2 (ca. 22 ka). In the cores, the upper thick Holocene olive-grey silty mud units overly IRD-rich Heinrich 1 layer, five reddish units are distinguished in the lower part. Reddish units get proportionally thinner along the SW slope at higher and more distal positions; instead, separating olive-grey layers get thicker with height and distance. Reddish and olive grey units have sharp boundaries and no signs of erosion. Mean grain size changes abruptly from coarse in grey layers to fine in reddish layers, terrigenous elements (as Al, K, Ti, Fe) and clays (Al/Si) are highly elevated in reddish layers and low in Heinrich layers, which are instead enriched in detrital continental carbonates. Both Heinrich layers and reddish layers have enhanced magnetic susceptibility, but Heinrich layer have higher ferromagnetic (SIRM) content (mafic rocks), while reddish layers have more hematite (HIRM). These five reddish layers differ from event to event, which seems to reflect different mixing ratios of event-related and background sedimentation. This mixing will allow estimating event-specific sedimentation rates. Using mixing ratio combined with 14C dating data could contribute to estimate the sedimentation rate and duration of outburst floods, which could help to build ice sheet retreat history and find the connection with paleoclimate changes.

The occurrence of extreme events a tsunami and storm deposit in Chilcatay formation, Ica, Peru.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poma Porras, O. A.; Cayo, R., Jr.; Casas, N.; Figueroa, F.

2016-12-01

The Chilcatay Formation (Oligocene to middle Miocene) south of Peru is in the Pisco Basin contains a thick sequence of Cenozoic sediments that record at least three marine transgressions characterized by successions of fine sandstones, siltstones, and diatomaceous mudstones. The sequence records certain facies that are typical of high-energy events, including extreme storms, tsunamis and earthquakes. The studied deposit is characterized by the presence of two layers of varying thickness. The lower layer, which is in markedly erosive contact with the underlying layer, is a very coarse-grained sandstone, highly sorted and with subrounded to subangular grains. The thickness varies laterally from one to 50 cm. The top layer, which is 40-60 cm thick and exposed for approximately 200 m, consists of a dense matrix of coarse-grained size fragments of molluscs (oysters), barnacles, and lithoclasts. The biogenic matrix contains many igneous (gabbro, granite) and metamorphic cobbles and boulders, and lithic tuffs, clusters of barnacles, and fragments consisting of vermetid gastropods reefs. The abundant igneous and metamorphic cobbles and boulders are rounded and subrounded, with a larger diameter between 3 and 140 cm, and occurring at a density of 3-8 clasts by square meter. The lithic tuffs are subrounded, have an ovoid morphology and a greater diameter between 1 and 44 cm. All these clasts occur scattered and 'floating' in the bioclastic matrix. The characteristics of the studied layer suggest that it was deposited by an extreme event that eroded the area between shoreface and backshore redepositing the materials and leaving a chaotic facies distribution with cobbles and boulders of different lithology. The large waves caused heavy erosion of the sediments in the shallow seafloor and the basement, mixing the biogenic and lithogenic clasts. The large size of these clasts suggests that such an event may have been a tsunami.

ELSA flood stack for MIS 2-3 from dry maar lakestructure Auel (Eifel/Germany)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunck, Heiko; Sirocko, Frank

2015-04-01

Lacustrine sediments are very sensitive to natural and anthropogenically enviromental changes. Thus, lake sediments are excellent climate archives and can be used for reconstructions of past precipitation and flood events. However, until now, there is no continous flood record for the entire last 60 000 years for Central Europe. The present study reconstructs paleo floods from event layers in the sediment, of dry maar lakestructure Auel (Eifel). This silted up basin has an inflow by a local stream. Accordingly the sedimentation rate is directly linked to runoff activity. The bioturbation was low so that event layers become visible, but varves are not preserved. The maar site is near to the town of Gerolstein in the Eifel; the core AU2 was drilled in the ELSA (Eifel Laminated Sediment archive) project and is 123m long. AU2 has the highest sedimentation rate of all ELSA cores, due to abundant fluvial input. The Eifel area is well suited to approximate Central European weather, because modern water level gauge data from Eifel rivers correlate with respective data from the Rhine (Wernli and Pfahl, 2009). Due to the high inflow into the maar, Auel has the highest number of botanical macro remains of all ELSA cores. These specific conditions explain why only in AU2 all 21 Greenland interstadials can be observed in the abundance of wood remains and the organic carbon concentration. In a final stratigraphic step the time series of Corg was tuned to the Greenland ice core chronology to link the central European landscape evolution directly to the Greenland climate curve (Svensson et al., 2008). Combined sedimentological, paleobotanical and geochemical data received from AU2 builds the foundation of the 14C based chronology. The synchronisation of the record with other cores is controlled by tephra time markers and pollen. Both are used to align the main cores of the ELSA project and construct an integrated age model for the last 220 000 years [b2k] (Förster and Sirocko, 2014). To study the past flood events in detail, 10 cm long thin sections were analyzed to distinguish flood layers from distal turbidites. Turbidites have a continuous grain size gradation; the grains size profile of flood events is in contrast characterized by several grain size maxima over the entire layer thickness. A flood event over several days shows numerous peaks of intense discharge, which lead to a discontinuous grain size gradient. The thickness of each flood layer was measured for the classification of the event intensity. As a consequence, 88 flood layers over 7.5 mm thickness were detected. Our time-series represents the first highly-resolved chronology for flood events from 60 000 years until present times and indicates variable periodicities of flood activity linked to predominant climatic development. The fore main sections of all flood layers are: 44 000 - 45 500, 30 000 - 37 000, 20 000 - 22 500 and 11 000 - 17 000 years [b2k].

A method for the division of the conglomerate depositional cycle under Milankovitch cycles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Panpan; Fang, Nianqiao; Li, Cunlei; Liu, Jianmei

2017-06-01

The conglomerate layer at the upper section of the 4th member of the Shahejie formation ({{{{S}}}4}{{u}}) of the Yongan district at the Donying depression is a well-developed sedimentation of several periods. It lacks stable muddy layers and sophisticated classification of the sedimentation periods and the proportion of sedimentary layering in each period has long been a difficult task for geologists. In addressing this problem, this paper attempts to introduce the theory of climatic cycles driven by astronomical periods from astronomical stratigraphy on the basis of the characteristics of the sedimentation under the turbidity current in the region of study. Through studying the conditions for the formation of the conglomerate layer and the factors of control, we pinpoint the formation of the layer in chronology and differentiate the cycle interface and correlation in the same formation period. Milankovitch analysis is conducted on the sedimentation of the conglomerate layer in the region of study to determine if the stratigraphy cycle of the region is primarily controlled by the eccentricity cycle and calculate MSC1 and MSC2 thicknesses of 189.3 m and 78.05 m, respectively. Milankovitch theory is the primary tool used in the analysis, in conjunction with petrographic analysis. The stratum at the {{{{S}}}4}{{u}} is classified into four IV-grade sequences and 11 V-grade sequences. The information on the dominant cycle frequency is used for wave filtering of the well logs and to determine the significant Milankovitch wave log. With the data from this curve, we may compare the stratigraphy cycle with the characteristics of the standard cycle and classify and compare the sedimentation periods of the conglomerate layers in further detail.

Shifts among Eukaryota, Bacteria, and Archaea define the vertical organization of a lake sediment.

PubMed

Wurzbacher, Christian; Fuchs, Andrea; Attermeyer, Katrin; Frindte, Katharina; Grossart, Hans-Peter; Hupfer, Michael; Casper, Peter; Monaghan, Michael T

2017-04-08

Lake sediments harbor diverse microbial communities that cycle carbon and nutrients while being constantly colonized and potentially buried by organic matter sinking from the water column. The interaction of activity and burial remained largely unexplored in aquatic sediments. We aimed to relate taxonomic composition to sediment biogeochemical parameters, test whether community turnover with depth resulted from taxonomic replacement or from richness effects, and to provide a basic model for the vertical community structure in sediments. We analyzed four replicate sediment cores taken from 30-m depth in oligo-mesotrophic Lake Stechlin in northern Germany. Each 30-cm core spanned ca. 170 years of sediment accumulation according to 137 Cs dating and was sectioned into layers 1-4 cm thick. We examined a full suite of biogeochemical parameters and used DNA metabarcoding to examine community composition of microbial Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukaryota. Community β-diversity indicated nearly complete turnover within the uppermost 30 cm. We observed a pronounced shift from Eukaryota- and Bacteria-dominated upper layers (<5 cm) to Bacteria-dominated intermediate layers (5-14 cm) and to deep layers (>14 cm) dominated by enigmatic Archaea that typically occur in deep-sea sediments. Taxonomic replacement was the prevalent mechanism in structuring the community composition and was linked to parameters indicative of microbial activity (e.g., CO 2 and CH 4 concentration, bacterial protein production). Richness loss played a lesser role but was linked to conservative parameters (e.g., C, N, P) indicative of past conditions. By including all three domains, we were able to directly link the exponential decay of eukaryotes with the active sediment microbial community. The dominance of Archaea in deeper layers confirms earlier findings from marine systems and establishes freshwater sediments as a potential low-energy environment, similar to deep sea sediments. We propose a general model of sediment structure and function based on microbial characteristics and burial processes. An upper "replacement horizon" is dominated by rapid taxonomic turnover with depth, high microbial activity, and biotic interactions. A lower "depauperate horizon" is characterized by low taxonomic richness, more stable "low-energy" conditions, and a dominance of enigmatic Archaea.

Sedimentary Facies and Stratigraphy of the Changjiang (Yangtze River) Delta

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dalrymple, R. W.; Zhang, X.; Lin, C. M.

2017-12-01

A disproportionate number of the world's largest deltas are tide-dominated or strongly tide-influenced, in part because the low gradient of these rivers allows the tide to penetrate far inland, generating strong tidal currents at the river mouth. These deltas also tend to be mud-dominated because a significant fraction of the bedload is trapped farther inland. Despite their great importance as sediment depo-centers, as analogues for ancient sedimentary successions, and as areas of intense human occupation, they are the most poorly understood coastal system. The Changjiang (Yangtze River), the 4th largest river in the world in terms of sediment discharge, is one such tide-dominated system, with a mean tidal range of 2.7 m and tidal-current speeds of 1 m/s at its mouth. It shows a fairly typical series of low-relief channels and bars in the mouth-bar area and passes seaward and down-drift into a coastal mud belt that extends 800 km to the south of the river mouth. The deposits from both the transgressive-phase and modern delta are all dominated by mud, except for the fluvial-channel deposits that are clean sand. Channel-floor deposits in areas with appreciable tidal influence contain abundant fluid-mud layers (1-3 cm thick), intercalated with relatively coarse sand; such mud layers show evidence of tidal cyclicity. The overlying tidal-bar deposits commonly become sandier upward because of the upward loss of fluid-mud layers. The tidal channels and bars that characterize the mouth-bar and delta-front area are dominated by randomly organized structureless mud layers, 5-30 cm thick, that are interpreted to be storm-generated fluid-mud deposits. These mud layers become less abundant upward, generating upward-sanding successions. These facies are very similar to those seen in the Amazon and Fly River deltas, suggesting that this is a common motif, and indicating the importance of fluid mud in the dynamics of such systems. Facies proximality can be determined by careful comparison of sand-size trends, tidal mud-layer thicknesses (relative to the turbidity maximum) and the abundance of wave-generated fluid-mud layers. Application of these concepts shows that the transgressive phase of the delta consists of three retrogradationally stacked parasequences, each 7-15 m thick, overlain by the 40 m-thick highstand delta.

Holocene flood stack from three Eifel maar lakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunck, Heiko; Sirocko, Frank

2015-04-01

Lacustrine sediments are very sensitive to natural and anthropogenically enviromental changes. Thus, lake sediments are excellent climate archives and can be used for reconstructions of past precipitation and flood events. However, we extend our flood record for MIS 2/3 to the entire Holocene up to recent years to get a complete flood stack for the last 60 000 years. The present study reconstructs paleo floods from event layers in the sediment, of Schalkenmehren Maar (SM3), Ulmen Maar (UM1) and Holzmaar (HM1) combined with recent gauge time-series. All three maar lakes has an inflow by a local stream. Accordingly the sedimentation rate is directly linked to runoff activity and the bioturbation was low so that event layers become visible, but varves are only preserved in lake Holzmaar. The maar sites are situated in the Eifel near to the town of Daun and were drilled in the ELSA (Eifel Laminated Sediment archive) project. The Eifel area is well suited to approximate Central European weather, because modern water level gauge data from Eifel rivers correlate with respective data from the Rhine (Wernli and Pfahl, 2009). Combined sedimentological, paleobotanical and geochemical data received from SM3, UM1 and HM1 builds the foundation of the 14C based chronology. The synchronisation of the record is controlled by tephra time markers and pollen. Both are used to align the main cores of the ELSA project and construct an integrated age model for the last 220 000 years [b2k] (Förster and Sirocko, 2014). For the extension of our MIS 2/3 flood stack we used the Laacher See Tephra (10 900 BC) as marker for the correlation with the Holocene cores. To study the flood events in detail, 10 cm long thin sections were used to distinguish flood layers from distal turbidites. Turbidites have a continuous grain size gradation; the grains size profile of flood events is in contrast characterized by several grain size maxima over the entire layer thickness. A flood event over several days shows numerous peaks of intense discharge, which lead to a discontinuous grain size gradient. The thickness of each flood layer was measured for the classification of the event intensity. As a consequence, 118 flood layers over 7.5 mm thickness were detected in all 3 cores. Flood layers in the interval 10 900 BC up to 4000 BC are not as clearly visible in Holzmaar or Schalkenmehrener Maar as during the later Holocene (when humans cultivated the landscape) but visible flood layers are regularly observed in the record from Ulmen. The Flood layers from 4000 BC up to now are most common in the medieval and Roman sections of the cores; the major events have occurred at 1342 AD, 800 BC and 2100 BC. Our time-series represents the first highly-resolved chronology for flood events from 60 000 years until present times and indicates variable periodicities of flood activity linked to predominant climatic and anthropogenic development.

Linking basin-scale and pore-scale gas hydrate distribution patterns in diffusion-dominated marine hydrate systems: DIFFUSION-DRIVEN HYDRATE GROWTH IN SANDS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nole, Michael; Daigle, Hugh; Cook, Ann E.

The goal of this study is to computationally determine the potential distribution patterns of diffusion-driven methane hydrate accumulations in coarse-grained marine sediments. Diffusion of dissolved methane in marine gas hydrate systems has been proposed as a potential transport mechanism through which large concentrations of hydrate can preferentially accumulate in coarse-grained sediments over geologic time. Using one-dimensional compositional reservoir simulations, we examine hydrate distribution patterns at the scale of individual sand layers (1 to 20 m thick) that are deposited between microbially active fine-grained material buried through the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ). We then extrapolate to two- dimensional and basin-scalemore » three-dimensional simulations, where we model dipping sands and multilayered systems. We find that properties of a sand layer including pore size distribution, layer thickness, dip, and proximity to other layers in multilayered systems all exert control on diffusive methane fluxes toward and within a sand, which in turn impact the distribution of hydrate throughout a sand unit. In all of these simulations, we incorporate data on physical properties and sand layer geometries from the Terrebonne Basin gas hydrate system in the Gulf of Mexico. We demonstrate that diffusion can generate high hydrate saturations (upward of 90%) at the edges of thin sands at shallow depths within the GHSZ, but that it is ineffective at producing high hydrate saturations throughout thick (greater than 10 m) sands buried deep within the GHSZ. As a result, we find that hydrate in fine-grained material can preserve high hydrate saturations in nearby thin sands with burial.« less

Linking basin-scale and pore-scale gas hydrate distribution patterns in diffusion-dominated marine hydrate systems: DIFFUSION-DRIVEN HYDRATE GROWTH IN SANDS

DOE PAGES

Nole, Michael; Daigle, Hugh; Cook, Ann E.; ...

2017-02-01

The goal of this study is to computationally determine the potential distribution patterns of diffusion-driven methane hydrate accumulations in coarse-grained marine sediments. Diffusion of dissolved methane in marine gas hydrate systems has been proposed as a potential transport mechanism through which large concentrations of hydrate can preferentially accumulate in coarse-grained sediments over geologic time. Using one-dimensional compositional reservoir simulations, we examine hydrate distribution patterns at the scale of individual sand layers (1 to 20 m thick) that are deposited between microbially active fine-grained material buried through the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ). We then extrapolate to two- dimensional and basin-scalemore » three-dimensional simulations, where we model dipping sands and multilayered systems. We find that properties of a sand layer including pore size distribution, layer thickness, dip, and proximity to other layers in multilayered systems all exert control on diffusive methane fluxes toward and within a sand, which in turn impact the distribution of hydrate throughout a sand unit. In all of these simulations, we incorporate data on physical properties and sand layer geometries from the Terrebonne Basin gas hydrate system in the Gulf of Mexico. We demonstrate that diffusion can generate high hydrate saturations (upward of 90%) at the edges of thin sands at shallow depths within the GHSZ, but that it is ineffective at producing high hydrate saturations throughout thick (greater than 10 m) sands buried deep within the GHSZ. As a result, we find that hydrate in fine-grained material can preserve high hydrate saturations in nearby thin sands with burial.« less

Large-scale experimental observations of sheet flow on a sandbar under skewed-asymmetric waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mieras, Ryan S.; Puleo, Jack A.; Anderson, Dylan; Cox, Daniel T.; Hsu, Tian-Jian

2017-06-01

A novel large wave flume experiment was conducted on a fixed, barred beach with a sediment pit on the sandbar, allowing for the isolation of small-scale bed response to large-scale forcing. Concurrent measurements of instantaneous sheet layer sediment concentration profiles and near-bed velocity profiles were obtained on a sandbar for the first time. Two sediment distributions were used with median grain diameters, d50, of 0.17 and 0.27 mm. Sheet flow occurred primarily under wave crests, where sheet thickness increased with increasing wave height. A proportionality constant, Λ, was used to relate maximum Shields parameter to maximum sheet thickness (normalized by d50), with bed shear stress computed using the quadratic drag law. An enhanced sheet layer thickness was apparent for the smaller sediment experiments (Λ = 18.7), when directly compared to closed-conduit oscillatory flow tunnel data (Λ = 10.6). However, Λ varied significantly (5 < Λ < 31) depending on the procedure used to estimate grain roughness, ks, and wave friction factor, fw. Three models for ks were compared (keeping the model for fw fixed): constant ks = 2.5d50, and two expressions dependent on flow intensity, derived from steady and oscillatory sheet flow experiments. Values of ks/d50 varied by two orders of magnitude and exhibited an inverse relationship with Λ, where Λ ˜ 30 for ks/d50 of O(1) while Λ ˜ 5 for ks/d50 of O(100). Two expressions for fw were also tested (with the steady flow-based model for ks), yielding a difference of 69% (Λ ˜ 13 versus Λ ˜ 22).

Crustal Structure of Iraq from Receiver Functions and Surface Wave Dispersion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gok, R; Mahdi, H; Al-Shukri, H

2006-08-31

We report the crustal structure of Iraq, located in the northeastern Arabian plate, estimated by joint inversion of P-wave receiver functions and surface wave group velocity dispersion. Receiver functions were computed from teleseismic recordings at two temporary broadband seismic stations in Mosul (MSL) and Baghdad (BHD), separated by approximately 360 km. Group velocity dispersion curves at the sites were derived from continental-scale tomography of Pasyanos (2006). The inversion results show that the crustal thicknesses are 39 km at MSL and 43 km at BHD. Both sites reveal low velocity surface layers consistent with sedimentary thickness of about 3 km atmore » station MSL and 7 km at BHD, agreeing well with the existing models. Ignoring the sediments, the crustal velocities and thicknesses are remarkably similar between the two stations, suggesting that the crustal structure of the proto-Arabian Platform in northern Iraq was uniform before subsidence and deposition of the sediments in the Cenozoic. Deeper low velocity sediments at BHD are expected to result in higher ground motions for earthquakes.« less

Annually laminated lake sediments as recorders of flood events: evidence from combining monitoring and calibration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kämpf, Lucas; Brauer, Achim; Mueller, Philip; Güntner, Andreas; Merz, Bruno

2015-04-01

The relation of changing climate and the occurrence of strong flood events has been controversially debated over the last years. One major limitation in this respect is the temporal extension of instrumental flood time series, rarely exceeding 50-100 years, which is too short to reflect the full range of natural climate variability in a region. Therefore, geoarchives are increasingly explored as natural flood recorders far beyond the range of instrumental flood time series. Annually laminated (varved) lake sediments provide particularly valuable archives since (i) lakes form ideal traps in the landscape continuously recording sediment flux from the catchment and (ii) individual flood events are recorded as detrital layers and can be dated with seasonal precision by varve counting. Despite the great potential of varved lake sediments for reconstructing long flood time series, there are still some confinements with respect to their interpretation due to a lack in understanding processes controlling the formation of detrital layers. For this purpose, we investigated the formation of detrital flood layers in Lake Mondsee (Upper Austria) in great detail by monitoring flood-related sediment flux and comparing detrital layers in sub-recent sediments with river runoff data. Sediment flux at the lake bottom was trapped over a three-year period (2011-2013) at two locations in Lake Mondsee, one located 0.9 km off the main inflow (proximal) and one in a more distal position at a distance of 2.8 km. The monitoring data include 26 floods of different amplitude (max. hourly discharge=10-110 cbm/s) which triggered variable fluxes of catchment sediment to the lake floor (4-760 g/(sqm*d)). The comparison of runoff and sediment data revealed empiric runoff thresholds for triggering significant detrital sediment influx to the proximal (20 cbm/s) and distal lake basin (30 cbm/s) and an exponential relation between runoff amplitude and the amount of deposited sediment. A succession of 20 sub-millimetre to maximum 8 mm thick flood-triggered detrital layers, deposited between 1976 and 2005, was detected in two varved surface sediment cores from the same locations as the sediment traps. Calibration of the detrital layer record with river runoff data revealed empirical thresholds for flood layer deposition. These thresholds are higher than those for trapped sediment flux but, similarly to the trap results, increasing from the proximal (50-60 cbm/s; daily mean=40 cbm/s) to the distal lake basin (80 cbm/s, 2 days>40 cbm/s). Three flood events above the threshold for detrital layer formation in the proximal and one in the distal lake basin were also recorded in the monitoring period. These events resulted in exceptional sediment transfer to the lake of more than 400 g/sqm at both sites, which is therefore interpreted as the minimum sediment amount for producing a visible detrital layer.

Are the Element Budget and the Occurrence of Polymetallic Nodules influenced by Fluids Circulating through the Oceanic Crust or/and Sediments?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heller, C.; Kuhn, T.

2016-12-01

Hydrothermal fluids can extract significant amounts of heat from oceanic lithosphere by lateral fluid flow through permeable basaltic crust of an age of up to 65 Ma. Fluid recharge and discharge occur at basement outcrops in between impermeable pelagic sediments. Recharge of oxic seawater causes upward oxygen diffusion into sediments overlying the permeable basalt in areas proximal to recharge sites. It is suggested that this oxygen have a strong impact on sediments and Mn nodules during fluid exposure time. The aim of this study is to investigate if and how fluid flow through oceanic crust influence the distribution and element budget of the Mn nodules. For that purpose, Mn nodules were examined which were collected during the research cruise SO240 in the equatorial NE Pacific at sites with and without faults in the upper basement and overlying sediments. Faults are thought to be preferred fluid pathways. Nodules were found on the sediment surface as well as in the sediment and consist of different nm- to µm-thick, dense and porous layers. The geochemical composition of bulk nodules and single nodule layers were determined by XRF, ICP-MS/OES and by high resolution analyses with EMPA and LA-ICP-MS. Dense layers have low Mn/Fe ratios (<4) and high concentrations of Co, Zr and REY, while porous layers are characterized by high Mn/Fe ratios (> 10) and high Ni+Cu and Li concentrations (Koschinsky et al., 2010; Kuhn et al., 2010). The different compositions depends on different formation processes of the layers. Dense layers are formed by element precipitation from oxygen rich seawater and/or pore water and are called hydrogenetic, while porous layers were formed by precipitation from almost oxygen-free (suboxic) pore water (Burns & Burns, 1978; Glasby, 2006) and are called diagenetic (Halbach et al., 1988). Preliminary results show that there are significant differences between the geochemical composition of nodules grown at sediment surface and those found within sediments. Compared to surface nodules, buried nodules are enriched in Co and W, but has lower concentration of Mo, Ba, Zn, Li. Distribution of Rare Earth Elements (REY) are also different. Especially, the element distribution in the bulk samples and the single layers of the buried nodules could be used to find a possible influence of circulating fluids on nodule formation.

Middle Pleistocene infill of Hinkley Valley by Mojave River sediment and associated lake sediment: Depositional architecture and deformation by strike-slip faults

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, David; Haddon, Elizabeth; Langenheim, Victoria; Cyr, Andrew J.; Wan, Elmira; Walkup, Laura; Starratt, Scott W.

2018-01-01

Hinkley Valley in the Mojave Desert, near Barstow about 140 km northeast of Los Angeles and midway between Victorville Valley and the Lake Manix basin, contains a thick sedimentary sequence delivered by the Mojave River. Our study of sediment cores drilled in the valley indicates that Hinkley Valley was probably a closed playa basin with stream inflow from four directions prior to Mojave River inflow. The Mojave River deposited thick and laterally extensive clastic wedges originating from the southern valley that rapidly filled much of Hinkley Valley. Sedimentary facies representing braided stream, wetland, delta, and lacustrine depositional environments all are found in the basin fill; in some places, the sequence is greater than 74 m (245 ft) thick. The sediment is dated in part by the presence of the ~631 ka Lava Creek B ash bed low in the section, and thus represents sediment deposition after Victorville basin was overtopped by sediment and before the Manix basin began to be filled. Evidently, upstream Victorville basin filled with sediment by about 650 ka, causing the ancestral Mojave River to spill to the Harper and Hinkley basins, and later to Manix basin.Initial river sediment overran wetland deposits in many places in southern Hinkley Valley, indicating a rapidly encroaching river system. These sediments were succeeded by a widespread lake (“blue” clay) that includes the Lava Creek B ash bed. Above the lake sediment lies a thick section of interlayered stream sediment, delta and nearshore lake sediment, mudflat and/or playa sediment, and minor lake sediment. This stratigraphic architecture is found throughout the valley, and positions of lake sediment layers indicate a successive northward progression in the closed basin. A thin overlapping sequence at the north end of the valley contains evidence for a younger late Pleistocene lake episode. This late lake episode, and bracketing braided stream deposits of the Mojave River, indicate that the river avulsed through the valley, rather than continuing toward Lake Manix, during the late Pleistocene. Two dextral strike-slip fault zones, the Lockhart and the Mt. General, fold and displace the distinctive stratigraphic units, as well as surficial late Pleistocene and Holocene deposits. The sedimentary architecture and the two fault zones provide a framework for evaluating groundwater flow in Hinkley Valley.

Development of low-ash, planar peat swamps in an alluvial-plain setting: The no. 5 Block beds (westphalian D) of southern West Virginia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Staub, J.R.; Richards, B.K.

1993-07-01

Coals from the No. 5 Block coal beds (Westphalian D) of the central Appalachian basin are noted for their blocky, dull character and their low ash and low sulfur content. The beds are multiple benched, with rock partings separating benches. Individual benches have limited lateral extent and, where thick, are dominated by bright, high-ash coal at the base and dull, low-ash coal in the upper parts. The duller coals contain more exinite-group and inertinite-group macerals than the brighter coals. These coal beds are encased in sandstone units dominated by fining-upward sequences. The overall depositional setting is an alluvial-plain environment withmore » northwest-flowing channels spaced approximately 20 km apart. The channels were flanked by clastic swamps about 7 km wide. Low-ash peat accumulated in areas of the flood plain most distant from the channels. These peat-accumulating swamps were about 8 km across. In a few instances low-frequency flood events introduced fine siliciclastic sediment into the peat swamps, depositing a thin layer of sediment on top of the peat. This sediment layer is thicker where the underlying coal is the thickest. These thick coal areas are topographically lower than surrounding coal areas. This relationship between coal thickness, parting thickness, and topography indicates that these peat swamps were planar at the time of deposition. Individual coal benches contain abundant preserved cellular tissue (telocollinite, semifusinite, and fusinite) at most locations, suggesting that robust vegetation was widespread in the swamps and that the morphology was planar. The high concentrations of exinite-group an inertinite-group macerals in the upper parts of benches resulted from selective decomposition and oxidation of the peat in subaerial and aquatic planar-swamp environments.« less

In Situ Sedimentological Evidence for Climate Change in Early Mars Provided by the Curiosity Rover in Gale Crater

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heydari, Ezat; Fairen, Alberto G.

2016-10-01

The Striated formation is one of the rock units that was deposited in Gale crater, Mars, during the Late Noachian to Hesperian time (4.2 to 3.6 billion years ago). It crops out for 3 km along the Curiosity's traverse. The Striated formation strikes N65○E and has a depositional dip of 10○ - 20○ to SE. It consists of 500 m to 1000 m of highly rhythmic layers each 1 m to 4 m in thickness. Study of MAHLI and MastCam images provided by the Curiosity Rover indicates that layers form fining-upward cycles consisting of thick-bedded to massive conglomerate at the base that grades upward to thinly bedded conglomerate, then to pebbly sandstone, and topped by laminated, fine grained sandstone. Layers show slump folds, soft sediment deformation, and cross-beddings.The highly rhythmic occurrence and the fining-upward grain size characteristic indicate that each layer within the Striated formation is a coarse-grained turbidite: a type of rock that forms when sediments move down-hill by gravity-driven turbidity flows and deposit in deep waters. We propose that turbidite layers of the Striated formation are related to delivery of sediments to Gale crater by megafloods through its northern rim. Upon entering Gale crater, sediments moved down-hill and deposited as turbidite layers when the crater may have been filled to the rim with water. About 1000 to 3000 turbidite layers are present suggesting the occurrences of as many megafloods during hothouse climatic intervals when Mars was warmer than the Present and had plenty of liquid water. Floods were generated by one or a combination of the following processes: (1) torrential rain along the margins of Mars's Northern Ocean, 500 km to 1000 km to the north, (2) rapid melting of ice in highland areas, and (3) tsunamis formed by impacts on the Northern Ocean. Cold and/or dry climate of icehouse intervals may have followed each warming episode. Mars's climate forcing mechanism and periodicities of climate change are not clear at this point. However, the highly regular and rhythmic nature of turbidite layers point to an orbital triggering mechanism, possibly driven by changes in obliquity.

Stability of fenbendazole suspensions for veterinary use. Correlation between zeta potential and sedimentation.

PubMed

Arias, José L; López-Viota, Margarita; Clares, Beatriz; Ruiz, Ma Adolfina

2008-08-07

In this paper we have carried out a detailed investigation of the stability and redispersibility characteristics of fenbendazole aqueous suspensions, through a thermodynamic and electrokinetic characterization, considering the effect of both pH and ionic strength. The hydrophobic character of the drug, and the surface charge and electrical double-layer thickness play an essential role in the stability of the system, hence the need for a full characterization of fenbendazole. It was found that the drug suspensions displays "delayed" or "hindered" sedimentation, determined by their hydrophobic character and their low zeta potential (indicating a small electrokinetic charge on the particles). The electrostatic repulsion between the particles is responsible for the low sedimentation volume and poor redispersibility of the drug. However, only low concentrations of AlCl(3) induced a significant effect on both the zeta potential and stability of the drug, leading to a "free-layered" sedimentation and a very easy redispersion which could be of great interest in the design of an oral pharmaceutical dosage form for veterinary.

The September 16, 2015 Illapel Tsunami - Sedimentology of tsunami deposits at the beaches of La Serena and Coquimbo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahlburg, H.; Nentwig, V.; Kreutzer, M.

2016-12-01

On September 16, 2015, a Mw 8.3 earthquake occurred off the coast of Central Chile, 46 km west of the town of Illapel, the hypocenter was at a depth of 8.7 km in the transition zone from the Chilean flat slab to the central Chilean steep slab subduction geometry, and near the intersection of the Juan Fernandez Ridge with the South America plate. The quake caused a tsunami registered which at Coquimbo and La Serena (c. 30°S) attained wave heights of 4.5 m leading to flooding and destruction of infrastructure. Maximum inundation distance was c. 700 m in Coquimbo Bay with minor flooding at the beaches of La Serena to the N. Tsunami deposits are usually the only observable evidence of past events. In view of a limited preservation potential, it is of paramount importance to undertake detailed studies in the wake of actual events. We report initial field data of a sedimentological post-tsunami field survey undertaken in October 2015. The most comprehensive sedimentological record of this tsunami is preserved at Playa Los Fuertes in La Serena. Along a 30 m long trench perpendicular to the coast we observed a laminated package of tsunami deposits. Above an erosive basal unconformity with an amplitude of up to 50 cm the deposit consists of 6 layers of variable thickness, ranging between dark laminae a few millimeters thick and rich in heavy minerals, and lighter colored sand layers up to 15 cm thick. The sediments are moderately well to well sorted, unimodal with modes between 1.3 and 2.0 Φ (medium sand). Cross-beds in the lower four layers indicate deposition from tsunami inflow, cross bedding in the penultimate layer records outflow. Water escape through small sand volcanoes was coeval to formation of the overlying sediment layer by traction deposition. This simultaneity is indicated by sand issued from the lower layer which has been preserved as a thin plume deformed in the downcurrent, i.e. landward, direction in the newly forming upper layer. Other sectors of the sediment show sand diapirs intruding up to 15 cm into the overlying tsunami deposit. The assemblage of laminae, layers and sedimentary structures indicates that the deposit records at least 4 events of tsunami inflow and one outflow event. Intervening layers without directional structures cannot be assigned unequivocally to either inflow or outflow deposition.

An experimental study of the role of particle diffusive convection on the residence time of volcanic ash clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deal, E.; Carazzo, G.; Jellinek, M.

2013-12-01

The longevity of volcanic ash clouds generated by explosive volcanic plumes is difficult to predict. Diffusive convective instabilities leading to the production of internal layering are known to affect the stability and longevity of these clouds, but the detailed mechanisms controlling particle dynamics and sedimentation are poorly understood. We present results from a series of analog experiments reproducing diffusive convection in a 2D (Hele-Shaw) geometry, which allow us to constrain conditions for layer formation, sedimentation regime and cloud residence time as a function of only the source conditions. We inject a turbulent particle-laden jet sideways into a tank containing a basal layer of salt water and an upper layer of fresh water, which ultimately spreads as a gravity current. After the injection is stopped, particles in suspension settle through the cloud to form particle boundary layers (PBL) at the cloud base. We vary the initial particle concentration of the plume and the injection velocity over a wide range of conditions to identify and characterize distinct regimes of sedimentation. Our experiments show that convective instabilities driven as a result of differing diffusivities of salt and particles lead to periodic layering over a wide range of conditions expected in nature. The flux of particles from layered clouds and the thicknesses of the layers are understood using classical theory for double diffusive convection adjusted for the hydrodynamic diffusion of particles. Although diffusive convection increases sedimentation rates for the smallest particles (<30 μm) its overall effect is to extend the cloud residence time to several hours by maintaining larger particles in suspension within the layers, which is several orders of magnitude longer than expected when considering individual settling rates.

Characteristics of earthquake-induced turbidites in Beppu Bay, southwest Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamada, K.; Takemura, K.; Kuwae, M.; Ikehara, K.; Yamamoto, M.

2015-12-01

Beppu Bay is located at the western end of the arc-bisecting dextral fault (Median Tectonic Line) associated with the northwestward subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate. According to Itoh et al. (1998) and Itoh et al. (2014), the process of formation of the bay was divided into two stages. The older stage (5 to 1.5 Ma) was dominated by a northward-inclined half-graben, while a pull-apart stress resulting from the right-stepping of the MTL developed during the younger stage (1.5 Ma to present in particular, 0.7 Ma to present), so seamless sediments were clearly preserved in the bay. Recently, Kuwae et al. (2012) revealed that the hemipelagic sediments accompanied with some event layers (18 major event layers (> 1 cm thick) and 55 minor event layers (< 1 cm thick)) were deposited. The core was well dated based on AMS 14C ages of 42 bivalves. In this study, we investigated the lithology of the event layers to understand how the layers were deposited. As a result, major event layers are classified into five types based on difference in the grain composition and facies: turbidites (type A-C), tephras (type D), and others (type E). Type A (4 layers) is thick event layers with a basal sand division, middle laminated silt division, and upper clay division. Relatively heavy particles, such as minerals, are concentrated in the basal division with clear erosion. Type B (7 layers) is similar to type A, but lack the basal division. Type C (5 layers) is almost the same as type B, but contains gypsum. Type D (2 layers) consists of a large amount of volcanic glass without bottom erosion. Type E (1 layer) is different from all other types and distinguishes by black color coarse particles and relatively high magnetic susceptibility. In particular, type A event layers are deposited in 334, 617, 1685, and 1893 cal. yrs BP using our age-depth model. The deposition age of an event layer corresponds to Keicho-Bungo historical earthquake occurred in 354 cal. yrs BP (Usami, 1996). The ages of other three layers are also not inconsistent with the ages of three fault events estimated by previous on-fault studies (Oita Prefecture, 2001; Chida et al., 2004). We thus concluded that the type A event layers were likely induced by earthquakes.

Effective control of modified palygorskite to NH4+-N release from sediment.

PubMed

Chen, Lei; Zheng, Tianyuan; Zhang, Junjie; Liu, Jie; Zheng, Xilai

2014-01-01

Sediment capping is an in situ treatment technology that can effectively restrain nutrient and pollutant release from the sediment in lakes and reservoirs. Research on sediment capping has focused on the search for effective, non-polluting and affordable capping materials. The efficiency and mechanism of sediment capping with modified palygorskite in preventing sediment ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N) release to surface water were investigated through a series of batch and sediment capping experiments. Purified palygorskite and different types of modified palygorskite (i.e. heated, acid-modified and NaCI-modified palygorskite) were used in this investigation. Factors affecting control efficiency, including the temperature, thickness and grain size of the capping layer, were also analysed. The batch tests showed that the adsorption of NH4+-N on modified palygorskite achieved an equilibration in the initial 45 min, and the adsorption isotherm followed the Freundlich equation. Sediment capping experiments showed that compared with non-capped condition, covering the sediment with modified palygorskite and sand both inhibited NH4+-N release to the overlying water. Given its excellent chemical stability and strong adsorption, heated palygorskite, which has a NH4+-N release inhibition ratio of 41.3%, is a more effective sediment capping material compared with sand. The controlling effectiveness of the modified palygorskite increases with thicker capping layer, lower temperature and smaller grain size of the capping material.

Oceanographic controls over sediment water content: northern Bermuda rise

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Baker, M.; Laine, E.P.

1985-01-01

Cores taken from the plateaus of Northern Bermuda Rise show that the region is underlain at depths of 1-5 m by a 1-3 m thick layer of hemipelagic lutites with anomalously high water contents. The lack of visually apparent textural and lithological changes in this extremely fine grained sediment rule out these common causes for variation in water content. The water content averages 175% within this layer and 100% immediately above and below it. This is an increase of 9.5% in porosity. The high water content sediment is confined to a period between 12 and 16 ka. Current work onmore » the mineralogy of the sediments which comprise this layer suggest two oceanographic factors that may have influenced its formation. A meltwater spike associated with deglaciation may have altered the ecological conditions above the thermocline sufficiently to promote the increased production of radiolaria, resulting in the deposition of silica enriched sediment on the sea floor. A combination of textural and perhaps chemical factors caused by the silica enrichment may have influenced the increase in water content. Intensified bottom currents at this time also may have eroded smectite rich sediments from exposures of Neogene age and deposited them on the plateaus. An increase in smectite would increase the water content due to the extremely fine grain size and the chemistry of the clay. Thus, the lateral continuity and isochroniety of this layer, combined with its mineralogical characteristics suggests that oceanographic changes can influence water content and perhaps other geotechnical properties on a regional scale.« less

Turbidity currents with equilibrium basal driving layers: a mechanism for long-runout turbidity currents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luchi, R.; Balachandar, S.; Seminara, G.; Parker, G.

2017-12-01

Turbidity currents in lakes and oceans involve leveed channels that document coherent runouts of 100's and up to 1000's of km. They do so without dissipating themselves via excess entrainment of ambient water. It is generally known that currents associated with stable stratification, such as thermohaline underflows, undergo dissipation as they entrain ambient water. Here we ask why some continuous turbidity currents do not follow this tendency, as they can run out extremely long distances while maintaining their coherency. A current that becomes ever thicker downstream due to ambient water entrainment cannot select the scales necessary to maintain a coherent, slowly-varying channel depth and width over 1000 km. It has been assumed that a turbidity current may tend to a state with a densimetric Froude so low that ambient water entrainment is largely suppressed. Here, we show that such an argument is a case of special pleading. Instead, suspended sediment 'fights back' against upward mixing through its fall velocity; the water may be entrained, but the sediment need not follow. We use a formulation capturing the flow vertical structure to show the conditions under which a turbidity current can asymptotically partition itself into two layers. The lower 'driving layer' approaches an asymptotic state with invariant flow thickness, velocity profile and suspended sediment concentration profile when traversing a constant bed slope under bypass conditions. This thickness provides a scale for channel characteristics. The upper 'driven layer' continues to entrain ambient water, but the concentration there becomes ever more dilute, and the layer ultimately has no interaction with near-bed processes (and by implication bed morphology). This partition is a likely candidate for the mechanism by which the driving layer is able to run out long distances, maintaining coherence and keeping confined, over repeated flow events, within a leveed subaqueous channel of its own creation.

Middle Miocene Rosarito Beach Formation, northwest Baja California, Mexico

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ledesma-Vasquez, J.

1988-03-01

The Rosarito Beach Formation was deposited on the continental borderland adjacent to the Peninsular Range province. This formation provides an insight to the paleo-oceanographic characteristics that are representative of marine sediments. The La Mision Member consists largely of basalts more than 150 m thick, which thin to the east. There are no pillow lavas or water-laid textures associated with this member. The Los Indios Member, which overlies the La Mision, consists of a wide variety of volcaniclastic marine sediments (tuffs, lapilli tuffs, tuffaceous sandstones) and 4-m thick diatomaceous layers. Basalts were emplaced through a series of fissures in the Mesozoicmore » basement while the area was uplifted to the west. At the same time, the coastline receded to the east. The basalt flows that comprise the La Mision Member and the overlying pyroclastics were deposited at the same time that the coastline was moving east and the entire area was being faulted, building horst and graben structures (continental borderland). The diatomaceous sediments were deposited on this new shallow area associated with upwelling and an oxygen minimum layer, and were reinforced by the presence of grabens, which acted as silled basins. The silicic microfossils indicate a mixed environment of outer and inner shelves on a shallow platform no deeper than 200 m.« less

A combined model for Sediment TRansport In Coastal Hazard Events (GeoClaw-STRICHE): Theoretical formulation and validation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, H.; Weiss, R.

2016-12-01

GeoClaw-STRICHE is designed for simulating the physical impacts of tsunami as it relates to erosion, transport and deposition. GeoClaw-STRICHE comprises GeoClaw for the hydrodynamics and the sediment transport model we refer to as STRICHE, which includes an advection diffusion equation as well as bed-updating. Multiple grain sizes and sediment layers are added into GeoClaw-STRICHE to simulate grain-size distribution and add the capability to develop grain-size trends from bottom to the top of a simulated deposit as well as along the inundation. Unlike previous models based on empirical equations or sediment concentration gradient, the standard Van Leer method is applied to calculate sediment flux. We tested and verified GeoClaw-STRICHE with flume experiment by Johnson et al. (2016) and data from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Kuala Meurisi as published in Apotsos et al. (2011). The comparison with experimental data shows GeoClaw-STRICHE's capability to simulate sediment thickness and grain-size distribution in experimental conditions, which builds confidence that sediment transport is correctly predicted by this model. The comparison with the data from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami reveals that the pattern of sediment thickness is well predicted and is of similar quality, if not better than the established computational models such as Delft3D.

Application of electrical and electromagnetic depth sounding in highly conductive sediments: The concept of vertical electrical anisotropy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Köhler, A.; Bahr, K.

2010-12-01

“Nördlinger Ries” is a meteorite crater in the Bavarian ‘Alb’ of Germany that was formed 15 million years ago, and subsequently filled with salty water. Evaporation resulted in an approximately 300 meter thick layer of young, highly conductive sediments. Audio-frequency Magnetotelluric (AMT) and geoelectric depth sounding (VES) techniques were used to analyze the electrical properties of these sediments. The apparent resistivities measured by the two methods are different, which can be explained by vertical electrical anisotropy (horizontal layering). Applying a joint forward modelling technique with resistivity variations found by a Monte Carlo method results in a best fit model containing a large number of layers, while separate inversions of the two data sets yield 3-layer models. Comparisons of the coefficient of anisotropy with drilling core samples demonstrate the reliability of the results. One difficulty of the AMT method is the low signal-to-noise ratio, because of the source’s deadband. Some suggestions for an “intelligent” processing are presented. Kerch (this session) is employing the result of the integrated conductivity as an input for 3D modelling of collected MT data.

Experimental Investigation of Terminal Fans Prograding on a Salt Substrate: 3-d Physical Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chatmas, E.; Kim, W.

2015-12-01

Interactions between geologic features and a mobile substrate layer are present in several passive margin locations throughout the world. Deformation of a substrate layer is primarily due to differential loading of sediment and results in complexities within the morphology and subsequently the stratigraphic record. By using simplified scaled tank experiments, we investigated the relationship between substrate deformation and fan evolution in a fluvial-dump-wind-redistribution setting. In this system, sediment is being eroded from a mountain range and creating terminal fans; fluvial channels form off of the fan body and the deposited fluvial sediment is the source for an aeolian dune field. Several past experimental studies have focused on how deltas and dunes are affected on when deposited on a salt substrate, however terminal fans and channel formation off of fans have not been thoroughly investigated. The current experiments focused on which variables are the most significant in controlling fan growth, channel initiation and channel behavior on the salt substrate. Our experimental basin is 120 cm long, 60 cm wide and 30 cm tall. The materials used for a suite of five experiments involved a polymer polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as the deformable substrate analog and 100-μm quartz sand. By isolating certain variables such as substrate thickness, basin slope and sediment discharge we are able to see how terminal fans and channels are affected in different settings. The experimental results show that 1) increase in substrate thickness increased the amount of subsidence around the fan body, limiting sediment transport to channels off of the toe of the fan, 2) a higher basin slope increased the number of channels formed and increased sinuosity and width variations of channels over distance, and 3) a higher sediment discharge rate on a thin substrate allowed for the farthest downstream fan deposits. Preliminary results show that channel behavior and fan morphology is strongly dependent on substrate thickness and basin slope directly influences channel geometry. These findings will also be compared to the Mojave River Wash located in southern California off the San Bernardino Mountains near Zzyzx, CA to further understand the dynamics of terminal fans on a mobile substrate.

The large-scale distribution and internal geometry of the fall 2000 Po River flood deposit: Evidence from digital X-radiography

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wheatcroft, R.A.; Stevens, A.W.; Hunt, L.M.; Milligan, T.G.

2006-01-01

Event-response coring on the Po River prodelta (northern Adriatic Sea) coupled with shipboard digital X-radiography, resistivity profiling, and grain-size analyses permitted documentation of the initial distribution and physical properties of the October 2000 flood deposit. The digital X-radiography system comprises a constant-potential X-ray source and an amorphous silicon imager with an active area of 29??42 cm and 12-bit depth resolution. Objective image segmentation algorithms based on bulk density (brightness), layer contacts (edge detection) and small-scale texture (fabric) were used to identify the flood deposit. Results indicate that the deposit formed in water depths of 6-29 m immediately adjacent to the three main distributary mouths of the Po (Pila, Tolle and Gnocca/Goro). Maximal thickness was 36 cm at a 20-m site off the main mouth (Pila), but many other sites hadthicknesses >20 cm. The Po flood deposit has a complex internal stratigraphy, with multiple layers, a diverse suite of physical sedimentary structures (e.g., laminations, ripple cross bedding, lenticular bedding, soft-sediment deformation structures), and dramatic changes in grain size that imply rapid deposition and fluctuations in energy during emplacement. Based on the flood deposit volume and well-constrained measurements of deposit bulk density the mass of the flood deposit was estimated to be 16??109 kg, which is about two-thirds of the estimated suspended sediment load delivered by the river during the event. The locus of deposition, overall thickness, and stratigraphic complexity of the flood deposit can best be explained by the relatively long sediment throughput times of the Po River, whereby sediment is delivered to the ocean during a range of conditions (i.e., the storm responsible for the precipitation is long gone), the majority of which are reflective of the fair-weather condition. Sediment is therefore deposited proximal to the river mouths, where it can form thick, but stratigraphically complex deposits. In contrast, floods of small rivers such as the Eel (northern California) are coupled to storm conditions, which lead to high levels of sediment dispersion. ?? 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Transient electromagnetic study of basin fill sediments in the Upper San Pedro Basin, Mexico

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bultman, M.W.; Gray, F.

2011-01-01

The Upper San Pedro River Basin in Mexico and the United States is an important riparian corridor that is coming under increasing pressure from growing populations and the associated increase in groundwater withdrawal. Several studies have produced three-dimensional maps of the basin fill sediments in the US portion of the basin but little work has been done in the Mexican portion of the basin. Here, the results of a ground-based transient electromagnetic (TEM) survey in the Upper San Pedro Basin, Mexico are presented. These basin fill sediments are characterized by a 10-40 m deep unsaturated surficial zone which is composed primarily of sands and gravels. In the central portion of the basin this unsaturated zone is usually underlain by a shallow clay layer 20-50 m thick. Beneath this may be more clay, as is usually the case near the San Pedro River, or interbedded sand, silt, and clay to a depth of 200-250 m. As you move away from the river, the upper clay layer disappears and the amount of sand in the sediments increases. At 1-2 km away from the river, sands can occupy up to 50% of the upper 200-250 m of the sediment fill. Below this, clays are always present except where bedrock highs are observed. This lower clay layer begins at a depth of about 200 m in the central portion of the basin (250 m or more at distances greater than 1-2 km from the river) and extends to the bottom of most profiles to depths of 400 m. While the depth of the top of this lower clay layer is probably accurate, its thickness observed in the models may be overestimated due to the relatively low magnetic moment of the TEM system used in this study. The inversion routine used for interpretation is based on a one-dimensional geologic model. This is a layer based model that is isotropic in both the x and y directions. Several survey soundings did not meet this requirement which invalidates the inversion process and the resulting interpretation at these locations. The results from these locations were rejected. ?? 2011 Springer-Verlag (outside the USA).

Late Quaternary distal tephra-fall deposits in lacustrine sediments, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

de Fontaine, C.S.; Kaufman, D.S.; Scott, Anderson R.; Werner, A.; Waythomas, C.F.; Brown, T.A.

2007-01-01

Tephra-fall deposits from Cook Inlet volcanoes were detected in sediment cores from Tustumena and Paradox Lakes, Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, using magnetic susceptibility and petrography. The ages of tephra layers were estimated using 21 14C ages on macrofossils. Tephras layers are typically fine, gray ash, 1-5??mm thick, and composed of varying proportions of glass shards, pumice, and glass-coated phenocrysts. Of the two lakes, Paradox Lake contained a higher frequency of tephra (0.8 tephra/100 yr; 109 over the 13,200-yr record). The unusually large number of tephra in this lake relative to others previously studied in the area is attributed to the lake's physiography, sedimentology, and limnology. The frequency of ash fall was not constant through the Holocene. In Paradox Lake, tephra layers are absent between ca. 800-2200, 3800-4800, and 9000-10,300??cal yr BP, despite continuously layered lacustrine sediment. In contrast, between 5000 and 9000??cal yr BP, an average of 1.7 tephra layers are present per 100 yr. The peak period of tephra fall (7000-9000??cal yr BP; 2.6 tephra/100 yr) in Paradox Lake is consistent with the increase in volcanism between 7000 and 9000 yr ago recorded in the Greenland ice cores. ?? 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sedimentation in a Submarine Seamount Apron at Site U1431, International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 349, South China Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dadd, K. A.; Clift, P. D.; Hyun, S.; Jiang, T.; Liu, Z.

2014-12-01

International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 349 Site U1431 is located near the relict spreading ridge in the East Subbasin of the South China Sea. Holes at this site were drilled close to seamounts and intersected the volcaniclastic apron. Volcaniclastic breccia and sandstone at Site U1431 are dated as late middle Miocene to early late Miocene (~8-13 Ma), suggesting a 5 m.y. duration of seamount volcanism. The apron is approximately 200 m thick and is sandwiched between non-volcaniclastic units that represent the background sedimentation. These comprise dark greenish gray clay, silt, and nannofossil ooze interpreted as turbidite and hemipelagic deposits that accumulated at abyssal water depths. At its base, the seamount sequence begins with dark greenish gray sandstone, siltstone, and claystone in upward fining sequences interpreted as turbidites intercalated with minor intervals of volcaniclastic breccia. Upsection the number and thickness of breccia layers increases with some beds up to 4.8 m and possibly 14.5 m thick. The breccia is typically massive, ungraded, and poorly sorted with angular to subangular basaltic clasts, as well as minor reworked subrounded calcareous mudstone, mudstone, and sandstone clasts. Basaltic clasts include nonvesicular aphyric basalt, sparsely vesicular aphyric basalt, highly vesicular aphyric basalt, and nonvesicular glassy basalt. Mudstone clasts are clay rich and contain foraminifer fossils. The matrix comprises up to 40% of the breccia beds and is a mix of clay, finer grained altered basalt clasts, and mafic vitroclasts with rare foraminifer fossils. Some layers have calcite cement between clasts. Volcaniclastic sandstone and claystone cycles interbedded with the breccia layers have current ripples and parallel laminations indicative of high-energy flow conditions during sedimentation. The breccia beds were most likely deposited as a series of debris flows or grain flows. This interpretation is supported by their massive structure, poor sorting, and reverse-graded bases. The upper part of the apron grades back into the background clay, silt and nannofossil ooze sedimentation with minor volcaniclastic sand and silt.

Lateral evolution of the deep crustal structure of the Lesser Antilles Island arc from wide-angle seismic modelling.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klingelhoefer, F.; Laurencin, M.; Marcaillou, B.; Graindorge, D.; Evain, M.; Lebrun, J. F.

2016-12-01

One of the goals of the Antithesis cruises (2013 and 2016) was investigating the deep structure of the Lesser Antilles subduction zone in order to: 1) constrain the possible along-strike variations of deep margin structures and slab geometry, 2) assess the nature of the crust and 3) discuss the potential impact of these structures on seismic hazard. Four combined wide-angle and multichannel seismic profiles were acquired between Barbuda and the Virgin Islands using 66 ocean bottom seismometers, a 4.5 km digital streamer and a 7200 cu inch seismic source. Along every line, we performed forward modelling of the wide-angle seismic data, gravity models and synthetic data calculations. The 5-7-km-thick subducting Atlantic oceanic plate is modelled with a single layer along every profile. The sedimentary prism fill is globally thin with maximal 5 km thick and 20-30 km wide. The 18-km-thick Caribbean crust is subdivided in 2 or 3 layers interpreted, from top to bottom, as following. A 2 to 4 km thick upper layer with velocity ranging from 2.5 to 3.5 km/s possibly consists of consolidate sediments or a carbonate platform. The underlying 4 to 6 km thick layer, with velocity ranging from 4.7 to 6.15 km/s might correspond to volcanic products. The lower 15 km thick lower crustal layer shows velocity up to 7.4 km/s, typical of basal velocities in oceanic crust. The structure and velocity model is thus closely consistent with a possibly overthickened oceanic crust. Our southernmost model, offshore of Barbuda, reveal a general crust structure and slab geometry which appear very to those described South of Guadeloupe along a line proposed by Kopp et al. (2011). It suggests an overall homogeneity for these structural features within the central segment of the Lesser Antilles (Martinique - Antigua). When the overall structure of the Caribbean plate is stable, the deep structure of the frontal margin and slab geometry is evolving from south to north. The wideness and thickness of the prism decrease toward the north as a consequence of the presence of blocking ridges and less sediment inputs. Frontal bending of the slab is also decreasing toward the north leading to a less steep slab within the first 30 kilometers as a consequence of increasing obliquity of subduction in the northern Antilles. This phenomena may increase the wideness of a seismogenic zone?

Geophysical imaging of the lacustrine sediments deposited in the La Calderilla Volcanic Caldera (Gran Canaria Island, Spain) for paleoclimate research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Himi, Mahjoub; Rodríguez-González, Alejandro; Criado, Constantino; Tapias, Josefina C.; Ravazzi, Cesare; Pérez-Torrado, Francisco; Casas, Albert

2016-04-01

The discovery of well-preserved maar structures is important not only for studying the eruptive activity and formation of volcanoes, but also for paleoclimate research, since laminated maar lake sediments may contain very detailed archives of climate and environmental history. Maars are a singular type of volcanic structure generated by explosive phreatomagmatic eruptions as a result of interaction between rising magma and groundwater. This kind of structures are characterised by circular craters, often filled with water and/or lacustrine sediments and surrounded by a ring of pyroclastic deposits.Recently a borehole was drilled at the bottom of La Calderilla volcanic complex which penetrated about 8.7 m in its sedimentary sequence and paleobotanical study has supplied the first evidence of paleoenvironmental evolution during the Holocene on the Gran Canaria Island. This survey, however, did not penetrate into the substrate because the total thickness of the sedimentary fill was unknown. Since the age of formation of La Calderilla volcanic complex based on K/Ar dating is about 85,000 years (Upper Pleistocene), the possibility of its sedimentary fill extends beyond of the Holocene is extremely attractive, since, for example, there are few paleoenvironmental data regarding how much the last glaciation that affected the Canary Islands. In these circumstances, the knowledge of the total thickness of the lacustrine sediments is crucial to design a deeper borehole in the next future. Therefore, the subsurface characterisation provided by geophysics is essential for determining thickness and geometry of the sedimentary filling. Multielectrode ERT method was used to obtain five 2-D resistivity cross-sections into La Calderilla volcanic caldera. An Iris Syscal Pro resistivity system with 48 electrodes connected to a 94 m long cable (2m electrode spacing) in Wenner-Schlumberger configuration for an investigation depth of about 20 m. Data quality (q <2 %).was assessed by averaging or stacking several measurements. Also, very low contact resistances were found because of the high moisture of the soils and the special design of the stainless steel electrodes directly in contact with the multicore cable (R values <3 kΩ). Current injected was automatically adjusted by the system to optimize the input voltage and to ensure the best signal-to-noise ratio. All inverted ERT cross-sections show typical three layer models with very high resistivity contrast. The upper layer with intermediate to high resistivity values (1000 Ω.m to 2500 Ω.m) thin and quit heterogeneous can be correlated with the recent coarse deposits. An intermediate low resistivity layer (200 Ω.m to 400 Ω.m) with a thickness increasing to the NW where reach more than 14 meters and that can be associated to the laminated lacustrine sediments. A lower layer of very high resistivity (> 8000 Ω.m) that can be associated with be volcanic rocks that were the basement of the lake. Sedimentation rate is certainly not homogeneous. A very high rate has been obtained from the first four meters, giving all ages around 2,200 years. Nevertheless, for the rest of the geological log the sedimentation rate is lower and in our opinion more realistic: about 0.5 m for 1,000 years. Extrapolating this rate up to 14 m, the oldest age of lacustrine sedimentary record should be about 19,000 years, far away from the 85,000 years of the formation of La Calderilla volcanic complex following K/Ar dating.

In Situ, High-Resolution Profiles of Labile Metals in Sediments of Lake Taihu

PubMed Central

Wang, Dan; Gong, Mengdan; Li, Yangyang; Xu, Lv; Wang, Yan; Jing, Rui; Ding, Shiming; Zhang, Chaosheng

2016-01-01

Characterizing labile metal distribution and biogeochemical behavior in sediments is crucial for understanding their contamination characteristics in lakes, for which in situ, high-resolution data is scare. The diffusive gradient in thin films (DGT) technique was used in-situ at five sites across Lake Taihu in the Yangtze River delta in China to characterize the distribution and mobility of eight labile metals (Fe, Mn, Zn, Ni, Cu, Pb, Co and Cd) in sediments at a 3 mm spatial resolution. The results showed a great spatial heterogeneity in the distributions of redox-sensitive labile Fe, Mn and Co in sediments, while other metals had much less marked structure, except for downward decreases of labile Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu in the surface sediment layers. Similar distributions were found between labile Mn and Co and among labile Ni, Cu and Zn, reflecting a close link between their geochemical behaviors. The relative mobility, defined as the ratio of metals accumulated by DGT to the total contents in a volume of sediments with a thickness of 10 mm close to the surface of DGT probe, was the greatest for Mn and Cd, followed by Zn, Ni, Cu and Co, while Pb and Fe had the lowest mobility; this order generally agreed with that defined by the modified BCR approach. Further analyses showed that the downward increases of pH values in surface sediment layer may decrease the lability of Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu as detected by DGT, while the remobilization of redox-insensitive metals in deep sediment layer may relate to Mn cycling through sulphide coprecipitation, reflected by several corresponding minima between these metals and Mn. These in situ data provided the possibility for a deep insight into the mechanisms involved in the remobilization of metals in freshwater sediments. PMID:27608033

Paper plant effluent revisited-southern Lake Champlain, Vermont and New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Haupt, R.S.; Folger, D.W.

1993-01-01

We used geologic and geochemical techniques to document the change with time of the distribution and concentration of contaminated bottom sediments in southern Lake Champlain near an International Paper Company plant. Our work, initiated in 1972, was expanded on behalf of Vermont citizens in a class-action suit against the International Paper Company. To update our 1972-1973 results, we collected nine cores in 1988 upstream and downstream from the paper plant effluent diffuser. Water content, volatile solids, organic carbon, and three ratios, Al/Si, Cl/Si, and S/Si, in addition to megascopic and microscopic observations, were evaluated to identify and trace the distribution of effluent and to measure the thickness of sediment affected by or containing components of effluent. Analyses were carried out on samples from the cores as well as from effluent collected directly from the plant's waste treatment facility. In 1973, two years after the plant opened, we cored near the diffuser; sediment contaminated with effluent was 4.5 cm thick. In 1988, in the same area, sediment contaminated with effluent was 17 cm thick. In 15 years, water content increased from 72 to 85 percent, volatile solids from 7 to 20 percent, and organic carbon from 2 to 12 percent. Cl/Si and S/Si were high only near the diffuser and were zero elsewhere. In the area of the diffuser, contaminated sediment appears to be accumulating at a rate of about 1 cm/yr. At a control location 22 km upstream (south) from the plant, the top, poorly consoli-dated layer was only 1 cm or less thick both in 1973 and in 1988. The class-action suit was settled in favor of the plaintiffs for $5 million. ?? 1993 Springer-Verlag.

Mass-physical properties of surficial sediments on the Rhoˆne continental margin: implications for the nepheloid benthic layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chassefiere, Bernard

1990-09-01

Mass-physical properties of the surficial (upper 5 m) sediments on the Gulf of Lions continental margin were analysed, from more than 100 short (1 m) and longer (5 m) cores obtained during several cruises. Data include water content, unit weight, Atterberg limits (liquid limit, plastic limit, plasticity index), shear strength and compression index, and are used to determine: first, the mass property distribution, according to the main parameters influencing mass-physical properties; the relationships between these properties and the nepheloid layer on the shelf. The shoreline (lagoons) and inner shelf are characterized by low density and shear strength and high water content deposits, due to electrochemical flocculation of the sediment. The outer shelf is blanketed by higher density and shear strength and lower water content deposits generated by normal settling of suspended particles. On the inner shelf, during river peak discharges, a short-term thin bottom layer of "yogurt-like" [ FASS (1985) Geomarine Letters, 4, 147-152; FASS (1986) Continental Shelf Research, 6, 189-208] fluid-mud (unit weight lower than 1.3 mg m -3) is supplied, by a bottom nepheloid layer. During stormy periods, this "yogurt-like" layer (about 10 cm thick) partly disappears by resuspension of suspended particulate matter; this is advected, in the bottom nepheloid layer, over the shelf and the canyons within the upper slope.

In-situ Geotechnical Investigation of Arctic Nearshore Zone Sediments, Herschel Island, Yukon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stark, N.; Quinn, B.; Radosavljevic, B.; Lantuit, H.

2016-02-01

The Arctic is currently undergoing rapid changes with regard to ice coverage, permafrost retreat and coastal erosion. In addition to hydrodynamic processes, the sediments in the Arctic nearshore zone are affected by potential variations in freeze-thaw cycles, as well as an increase of abundant suspended sediment introduced by active retrogressive thaw slumps and increased river discharge. During the YUKON14 expedition to Herschel Island, Yukon, in-situ geotechnical testing of nearshore zone sediments was conducted using a portable free fall penetrometer. The research goals were mapping of sediment types, identification of surficial sediment stratification related to recent sediment remobilization or deposition processes, and the investigation of the soil mechanical characteristics of the uppermost seabed surface in the nearshore zone. Approximately 200 sites were tested using the portable free fall penetrometer, and five different geotechnical signatures identified and grouped. Most locations were characterized by a soft sediment top layer that exhibited a noticeably lower sediment strength than the underlying sediment. The results were correlated to existing sediment grain size records and a sediment type interpretation based on side scan sonar backscatter information. Strong spatial variations in sediment type and stiffness were observed, as well as in abundance and thickness of a top layer of very soft and loose sediment. It was attempted to relate the geotechnical signature to site-specific hydrodynamic energy, morphology, and vicinity to thaw slumps. The results will contribute to a detailed investigation of Arctic coastal erosion in the region, and the investigation of the role of geotechnical parameters for Arctic coastal erosion.

Spilled oil and infaunal activity - Modification of burrowing behavior and redistribution of oil

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clifton, H.E.; Kvenvolden, K.A.; Rapp, J.B.

1984-01-01

A series of experiments in Willapa Bay, Washington, indicates the degree to which the presence of spilled oil modifies the burrowing behavior of infauna and the extent to which the animals redistribute oil into intertidal sediment. Small amounts of North Slope crude oil introduced at low tide directly into burrow openings (mostly made by the crustacean Callianassa) resulted in a limited and temporary reduction in the number of burrow openings. In contrast, a layer of oil-saturated sand 1 cm thick buried about 5 cm below the sediment surface sharply reduced the number of burrow openings. After a year, the few new burrows penetrated only the margins of the experimental plot, and bioturbation below the buried oil-saturated sand layer declined dramatically. The experiments suggest that small amounts of oil temporarily stranded by tides in themselves have no long-range effect on burrowing behavior. The fauna, however, are capable of introducing measurable amounts of oil into the subsurface, where it is retained long after the rest of the stranded oil had washed away. A buried layer of oil-saturated sand greatly reduces infaunal activity; the oil presents an effective barrier that can persist for years. The oil incorporated into the sediment from burrow openings showed evidence of degradation after 7 months. In contrast the layer of buried oil remained essentially undergraded after a period of two years, even though oil in lower concentrations above the layer was degraded after a period of one year. This variation in degree of degradation of the buried oil, as well as the heterogeneity of oil distribution wherever the oil has been incorporated from the surface, emphasises the importance of careful sampling in any attempt to locate or monitor the presence of spilled oil in the substrate.In a series of experiments in Willapa Bay, Washington, small amounts of North Slope crude oil introduced at low tide directly into burrow openings resulted in a limited and temporary reduction in the number of burrow openings. In contrast, a layer of oil-saturated sand 1 cm thick buried about 5 cm below the sediment surface sharply reduced the number of burrow openings. After a year, the few new burrows penetrated only the margins of the experimental plot, and bioturbation below the buried oil-saturated sand layer declined dramatically. The experiments suggest that small amounts of oil temporarily stranded by tides in themselves have no long-range effect on burrowing behavior. The oil incorporated into the sediment from burrow openings showed evidence of degradation after 17 months. In contrast, the layer of buried oil remained essentially undegraded after a period of two years. Refs.

Geomicrobiology of Fe-rich crusts in Lake Superior sediment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dittrich, M.; Monreau, L.; Quazi, S.; Raoof, B.; Chesnyuk, A.; Katsev, S.; Fulthorpe, R.

2012-04-01

The limnological puzzles of Lake Superior are increasingly attracting scientists, and very little is known about the sediments and their associated microflora. The sediments are organic poor (less than 5%C) and the lake is deep oligotrophic, with water temperatures at the bottom around 3C. Previous studies reveal Fe-rich layers in the sediments at multiple loccations around the lake. The origin and mechanisms of formation of this layer remain unknown. In this study we investigated geochemical and microbiological processes that may lead to the formation of a two cm thick iron layer about 10 cm below the sediment surface. Sediment cores from two stations (EM, 230m water depth and ED, 310m water depth) in the East Basin were used. We monitored oxygen and pH depth profiles with microsensors, porewater and sediment solid matter were analyzed for nutrient and metal contents. Furthermore, phosphorus and iron sequantial extractions of sediment cores have been perfomed. The total cell count was determined using DAPI epifluoresence microscopy. DNA was extracted from the sediment samples and 16S ribosonal RNA amplicons were analyzed with denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). For a more in depth analysis, DNA samples from 8-10 cm and 10-12 cm were sent to the Research and Testing Lab (Texas) for pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons amplified using barcoded universal primers 27f-519r. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) images from the iron layer 10-12cm show filaments that were encrusted with spheres ca. 20 nm in diameter. SEM observations of thin sections also indicate the presence of very fine particles showing various morphologies. Analyses of the deposit material by SEM and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) indicate that bacteria cells surfaces served as nucleation surfaces for Fe-oxide formation. EDS line-scans through bacterial cells covered with precipitates reveal phosphorus and carbon peaks at interface between cell surface and Fe-particles. The cluster analysis performed on the DGGE separation of ribosomal RNA gene fragments revealed that the two iron layers were not highly similar to each other. We obtained a total of 26,062 16S rRNA gene sequence reads from the two iron layers and the layers directly above them, which were clustered into operational taxonomic units sharing 80% similarity or more. 64-70% of these clusters could not be classified below the phylum level. While the 8-10 cm sediment layers were dominated (46.5% of reads) by relatives of Paenisporosarcina, the iron layers contained far fewer gram positive organisms, far more proteobacteria, and an a high proportion of Nitrospira species which show relatively high similarity to organisms found in an iron II rich seep.

Non-halide sediments from the Loule diapir salt mine: characterization and environmental significance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ribeiro, Carlos; Terrinha, Pedro; Andrade, Alexandre; Fonseca, Bruno; Caetano, Miguel; Neres, Marta; Font, Eric; Mirão, José; Dias, Cristina; Rosado, Lúcia; Maurer, Anne-France; Manhita, Ana

2017-04-01

The sedimentary record of the Mesozoic Algarve Basin (south Portugal) spans from the Triassic to the Lower Cretaceous. Following the initial phase of Pangaea breakup and the related continental sedimentation during the Triassic, the sedimentation evolved through transitional (Triassic-Jurassic transition) to marine (Jurassic) environments. During the Hettangian a thick sequence of evaporites deposited in the basin. Most of the occurrences of these deposits have undetermined volumes, due to the post depositional diapiric movements. At the central Algarve, under the town of Loulé, a salt wall of up to > 1 km across, > 3 km in length and > 2 km in height has been exploited for the chemical industry (Loulé Diapir - LD). Most of the sediments that constitute LD are halides (> 99% halite), the exception being a package of non-halide sediments, constituted by carbonates (dolomite and magnesite) and sulphates (anhydrite) in various proportions with a maximum thickness of 3 meters. This package has a distinctive mesoscopic aspect of three layers of approximately the same thickness, different colours and primary sedimentary structures: black-brow-grey, from bottom to top. The sediments of this package were studied with a multidisciplinary approach aiming their mineralogical and chemical characterization, the determination of the organic matter content and origin, as well as the characterization and understanding of the chemical processes that occurred during the emplacement and compression of the LD: (i) X-ray diffraction for the determination of the mineral phases present and semi-quantification using the RIR-Reference Intensity Ratio method; (ii) micro analysis of the mineralogical samples by Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled to Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy; (iii) REE content determination by ICP-MS; (iv) determination of the carbon content by CHN Elemental analysis; (v) determination of the organic matter content by elemental analysis and their composition by pyrolysis-GC-MS; (vi) determination of the carbon and nitrogen stable isotopic ratios of the organic matter; (vii) anisotropy of the magnetic susceptibility to study it emplacement mode. The LD is deformed by a set of shear-zones and thrusts formed during the Cenozoic Alpine compression that are underlined by the presence of a fine grained, non-halide material, whose nature and characterization was also done, using the same analytical methods. The preliminary mineralogical and geochemical results show a clear pattern in the evolution of the environmental conditions of the sedimentation with influence on the availability of the dissolved cations. The three of the sediment package showed distinct organic carbon content reaching 4.42% in the black horizon, five times the values found in the adjacent layers. By using the rare earth elements as geochemical tracers of sediment provenance, shale normalised profiles suggest that sediment particles from the three layers have the same origin. However, the non-halide sediments retained in the shear zones showed a different profile with an increase of MREE and a positive Eu anomaly. This work was done in the scope of the MEDSALT - Uncovering the Mediterranean salt giant, COST action CA15103.

Fault propagation and climatic control of sedimentation on the Ghoubbet Rift Floor: insights from the Tadjouraden cruise in the western Gulf of Aden

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Audin, L.; Manighetti, I.; Tapponnier, P.; Métivier, F.; Jacques, E.; Huchon, P.

2001-02-01

A detailed geophysical survey of the Ghoubbet Al Kharab (Djibouti) clarifies the small-scale morphology of the last submerged rift segment of the propagating Aden ridge before it enters the Afar depression. The bathymetry reveals a system of antithetic normal faults striking N130°E, roughly aligned with those active along the Asal rift. The 3.5kHz sub-bottom profiler shows how the faults cut distinct layers within the recent, up to 60m thick, sediment cover on the floor of the basin. A large volcanic structure, in the centre of the basin, the `Ghoubbet' volcano, separates two sedimentary flats. The organization of volcanism and the planform of faulting, with en echelon subrifts along the entire Asal-Ghoubbet rift, appear to confirm the westward propagation of this segment of the plate boundary. Faults throughout the rift have been active continuously for the last 8400yr, but certain sediment layers show different offsets. The varying offsets of these layers, dated from cores previously retrieved in the southern basin, imply Holocene vertical slip rates of 0.3-1.4mmyr-1 and indicate a major decrease in sedimentation rate after about 6000yr BP, and a redistribution of sediments in the deepest troughs during the period that preceded that change.

Computation on free gas seepage and associated seabed pockmark formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, Z.; Cathles, Lawrence M.; Chen, D. F.; Wu, N. Y.

2010-03-01

Seabed pockmarks formed by seepage of subsurface fluids are very commonly located in areas where gas is present in near-surface sediments. Especially, they are widely observed on the seafloor at hydrate regions around the world. In this paper we consider that capillary sealing is the crucial mechanism for gas entrapment, gas escape, and pockmark formation. In the hydrate system, free gas is trapped beneath the hydrate layer. The gas overpressure increases as the gas accumulates beneath the hydrate. the hydrate layer is a capillary seal. Capillary seals have the property that they fail completely when the gas pressure reaches the point that they are invaded by gas. The release of gas is thus episodic and sudden. We imagine in our model that when it occurs the venting gas will push the overlying water upward at increasingly higher velocities as the gas pipe approaches the seafloor. As the water velocity increases, the near surface sediments will become quick at a depth that is a function of the thickness of free gas column under the hydrate seal and the depth of hydrate seal, leaving a pockmark on the seafloor. The model shows that at least a 22-m-thick free gas layer beneath the hydrate at Blake Ridge is needed to form the 4-m-deep pockmark at the seabed.

Evidence for gassy sediments on the inner shelf of SE Korea from geoacoustic properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gorgas, Thomas J.; Kim, Gil Y.; Park, Soo C.; Wilkens, Roy H.; Kim, Dae C.; Lee, Gwang H.; Seo, Young K.

2003-05-01

The inner shelf of SE Korea is characterized by an up to 40 m thick blanket of soft sediments often characterized by acoustic turbidity (AT). This AT is caused by a layer of sub-surface gas, which prohibits the identification of geological structures below that gas layer. Sound speeds were measured directly in these sediments using the Acoustic Lance (AL) in both mid- and late-September 1999. In situ sound speeds obtained in mid-September varied between 1400 and 1550 m/s, and thus did not confirm the presence of gas within the top 3.5 m of the seafloor. However, signal waveforms suggested that a gassy layer might have been just below the depth penetrated by the Lance. In late-September, on the other hand, two sites showed an abrupt decrease in signal amplitudes and in sound speed (less than 800 m/s) at depths as shallow as 2 m below seafloor, indicating the presence of free gas bubbles. Piston-cored sediments were retrieved at the same sites in February 1999. X-radiographs of some of the cores revealed numerous microcracks caused by the expansion of gas bubbles during core retrieval. In contrast to in situ acoustic data, ultrasonic sound speeds acquired in the laboratory in May 1999 on those cores did not differentiate convincingly between gas-bearing and gas-free sediments. Our measurements on the SE Korean shelf with the AL provide new data on the in situ acoustic behavior of gassy sediments and the sediments that overlie them in zones of AT.

Imaging Reservoir Siltation and Quaternary Stratigraphy Beneath the Mactaquac Headpond by Acoustic and Ground Penetrating Radar Sub-bottom Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grace, M.; Butler, K. E.; Peter, S.; Yamazaki, G.; Haralampides, K.

2016-12-01

The Mactaquac Hydroelectric Generating Station, located on the Saint John River in New Brunswick, Canada, is approaching the end of its life due to deterioration of the concrete structures. As part of an aquatic ecosystem study, designed to support a decision on the future of the dam, sediment in the headpond, extending 80 km upriver, is being examined. The focus of this sub-study lies in (i) mapping the thickness of sediments that have accumulated since inundation in 1968, and (ii) imaging the deeper glacial and post-glacial stratigraphy. Acoustic sub-bottom profiling surveys were completed during 2014 and 2015. An initial 3.5 kHz chirp sonar survey proved ineffective, lacking in both resolution and depth of the penetration. A follow-up survey employing a boomer-based "Seistec" sediment profiler provided better results, resolving sediment layers as thin as 12 cm, and yielding coherent reflections from the deeper Quaternary sediments. Post-inundation sediments in the lowermost 25 km of the headpond, between the dam and Bear Island, are interpreted to average 26 cm in thickness with the thickest deposits (up to 65 cm) in deep water areas overlying the pre-inundation riverbed west of Snowshoe Island, and south and east of Bear Island. A recent coring program confirmed the presence of silty sediment and showed good correlation with the Seistec thickness estimates. In the 15 km stretch upriver of Bear Island to Nackawic, the presence of gas in the uppermost sediments severely limits sub-bottom penetration and our ability to interpret sediment thicknesses. Profiles acquired in the uppermost 40 km reach of the headpond, extending to Woodstock, show a strong, positive water bottom reflection and little to no sub-bottom penetration, indicating the absence of soft post-inundation sediment. Deeper reflections observed within 5 km of the dam reveal a buried channel cut into glacial till, extending up to 20 m below the water bottom. Channel fill includes a finely laminated unit interpreted to be glaciolacustrine clay-silt and a possible esker - similar to stratigraphy found 20 - 30 km downriver at Fredericton. Future plans include a small scale survey in late summer, 2016 to evaluate the suitability of waterborne ground penetrating radar (GPR) profiling as an alternative to acoustic profiling in areas of gas-charged sediment.

Erosion and sedimentation from the 17 July, 1998 Papua New Guinea tsunami

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gelfenbaum, G.; Jaffe, B.

2003-01-01

This paper describes erosion and sedimentation associated with the 17 July 1998 Papua New Guinea tsunami. Observed within two months of the tsunami, distinct deposits of a layer averaging 8-cm thick of gray sand rested on a brown muddy soil. In most cases the sand is normally graded, with more coarse sand near the base and fine sand at the top. In some cases the deposit contains rip-up clasts of muddy soil and in some locations it has a mud cap. Detailed measurements of coastal topography, tsunami flow height and direction indicators, and deposit thickness were made in the field, and samples of the deposit were collected for grain-size analysis in the laboratory. Four shore-normal transects were examined in detail to assess the shore-normal and along shore distribution of the tsunami deposit. Near the shoreline, the tsunami eroded approximately 10-25 cm of sand from the beach and berm. The sandy layer deposited by the tsunami began 50-150 m inland from the shoreline and extended across the coastal plain to within about 40 m of the limit of inundation; a total distance of up to 750 m from the beach. As much as 2/3 of the sand in the deposit originated from offshore. Across most of the coastal plain the deposit thickness and mean grain size varied little. In the along-shore direction the deposit thickness varied with the tsunami wave height; both largest near the entrance to Sissano Lagoon.

Proximal Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary impact deposits in the Caribbean

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hildebrand, Alan R.; Boynton, Willam V.

1990-01-01

Trace element, isotopic, and mineralogic studies indicate that the proposed impact at the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary occurred in an ocean basin, although a minor component of continental material is required. The size and abundance of shocked minerals and the restricted geographic occurrence of the ejecta layer and impact-wave deposits suggest an impact between the Americas. Coarse boundary sediments at sites 151 and 153 in the Colombian Basin and 5- to 450-meter-thick boundary sediments in Cuba may be deposits of a giant wave produced by a nearby oceanic impact.

Chemical gradients in sediment cores from an EPA reference site off the Farallon Islands - Assessing chemical indicators of dredged material disposal in the deep sea

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bothner, Michael H.; Gill, P.W.; Boothman, W.S.; Taylor, B.B.; Karl, Herman A.

1998-01-01

Heavy metal and organic contaminants have been determined in undisturbed sediment cores from the US Environmental Protection Agency reference site for dredged material on the continental slope off San Francisco. As expected, the concentrations are significantly lower than toxic effects guidelines, but concentrations of PCBs, PAHs, Hg, Pb, and Clostridium perfringens (a bacterium spore found in sewage) were nearly two or more times greater in the surface sediments than in intervals deeper in the cores. These observations indicate the usefulness of measuring concentration gradients in sediments at the San Francisco deep ocean disposal site (SF-DODS) where a thin (0.5 cm thick) layer of dredged material has been observed beyond the boundary. This thin layer has not been chemically characterized by the common practice of homogenizing over the top 10 cm. An estimated 300 million cubic yards of dredged material from San Francisco Bay are expected to be discharged at the SF-DODS site during the next 50 years. Detailed depth analysis of sediment cores would add significant new information about the fate and effects of dredged material in the deep sea.

Cryolithozone of Western Arctic shelf of Russia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kholmyanskii, Mikhail; Vladimirov, Maksim; Snopova, Ekaterina; Kartashev, Aleksandr

2017-04-01

We propose a new original version of the structure of the cryolithozone of west Arctic seas of Russia. In contrast to variants of construction of sections and maps based on thermodynamic modeling, the authors have used electrometric, seismic, and thermal data including their own profile measurements by near-field transient electromagnetic technique and seismic profile observations by reflection method. As a result, we defined the spatial characteristics of cryolithozone and managed to differentiate it to several layers, different both in structure and formation time. We confirmed once again that the spatial boundary of cryolithozone, type and thickness of permafrost, chilled rocks and thawed ground are primarily determined by tectonic and oceanographic regimes of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent land in different geological epochs. Permafrost formed on the land in times of cold weather, turn to submarine during flooding and overlap, in the case of the sea transgression, by marine sediments accumulating in the period of warming. We have been able to establish a clear link between the permafrost thickness and the geomorphological structure of the area. This can be explained by the distribution of thermodynamic flows that change the temperature state of previously formed permafrost rocks. Formation in the outer parts of the shelf which took place at ancient conversion stage can be characterized by the structure: • permafrost table - consists of rocks, where the sea water with a temperature below 0 °C has replaced the melted ice; • middle horizon - composed of undisturbed rocks, and the rocks chilled through the lower sieving underlay; As a result of the interpretation and analysis of all the available data, the authors created a map of types of cryolithozone of the Western Arctic shelf of Russia. The following distribution areas are marked on the map: • single-layer cryolithozone (composed of sediments upper Pleistocene and Holocene); • monosyllabic relict permafrost; • two-layer relict permafrost; • three-layered cryolithozone (composed of Holocene rocks and two-layer relict mainly from permafrost rocks); • three-layer cryolithozone (composed of Holocene rocks and two-layer relict mainly from chilled rocks); • post-cryogenic thawed sediments.

Mantle Noble Gas Contents Controlled by Subduction of Serpentinite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krantz, J. A.; Parman, S. W.; Kelley, S. P.; Smye, A.; Jackson, C.

2017-12-01

Geochemical analyses of exhumed subduction zone material1, well gases2, MORB, and OIBs3 indicate that noble gases are being recycled from the surface of the earth into the mantle. However, the path taken by these noble gases is unclear. To estimate the distribution and quantity of Ar, Kr, and Xe in subducting slabs, a model consisting of layers of sediments, altered oceanic crust (AOC), and serpentinite (hydrously altered mantle) has been developed. The noble gas contents of sediments and AOC were calculated using the least air-like and most gas-rich analyses from natural systems4,5, while serpentinite was modelled using both data from natural systems1 and experimentally determined solubilities. Layer thicknesses were assessed over a range of values: 1 to 12 km of sediments, 5 to 9 km of AOC, and 1 to 30 km of serpentinite. In all cases, the serpentinite layer contains at least an order of magnitude more Ar and Kr than the other layers. For realistic layer thicknesses (1 km of sediments, 6 km of AOC, and 3 km of serpentinite), Xe is distributed roughly equally between the three layers. By incorporating global subduction rates6, fluxes of the heavy noble gases into the mantle have been calculated as 4 · 1012 mol/Ma for 36Ar, 6 · 1011 mol/Ma for 84Kr, and 8 · 109 mol/Ma for 130Xe. These fluxes are equivalent to the total 84Kr and 130Xe contents of the depleted and bulk mantle over 1 and 10 Ma7. Similarly, the flux of 36Ar is equivalent over 1 and 100 Ma. Since the Kr and Xe have not been completely overprinted by recycling, the large majority of subducted noble gases must escape in the subduction zone. However, even the small amounts that are subducted deeper have affected the mantle as measured in both MORB and OIBs. 1. Kendrick, M.A. et al., Nature Geoscience, 4, 807-812, 2011 2. Holland, G. and Ballentine, C.J., Nature, 441, 186-191, 2006 3. Parai, R. and Mukhopadhyay, S., G3, 16, 719-735, 2015 4. Matsuda, J. and Nagao, K., Geochemical Journal, 20, 71-80, 1986 5. Chavrit, D. et al., GCA, 183, 106-124, 2016 6. Hacker, B.R., G3, 9, 1-24,2008 7. Marty, B., EPSL, 313-314, 56-66, 2012

Sedimentation in the central segment of the Aleutian Trench: Sources, transport, and depositional style

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stevenson, A.J.; Scholl, D.W.; Vallier, T.L.

1990-05-01

The central segment of the Aleutian Trench (162{degree}W to 175{degree}E) is an intraoceanic subduction zone that contains an anomalously thick sedimentary fill (4 km maximum). The fill is an arcward-thickening and slightly tilted wedge of sediment characterized acoustically by laterally continuous, closely spaced, parallel reflectors. These relations are indicative of turbidite deposition. The trench floor and reflection horizons are planar, showing no evidence of an axial channel or any transverse fan bodies. Cores of surface sediment recover turbidite layers, implying that sediment transport and deposition occur via diffuse, sheetlike, fine-grained turbidite flows that occupy the full width of the trench.more » The mineralogy of Holocene trench sediments document a mixture of island-arc (dominant) and continental source terranes. GLORIA side-scan sonar images reveal a westward-flowing axial trench channel that conducts sediment to the eastern margin of the central segment, where channelized flow cases. Much of the sediment transported in this channel is derived from glaciated drainages surrounding the Gulf of Alaska which empty into the eastern trench segment via deep-sea channel systems (Surveyor and others) and submarine canyons (Hinchinbrook and others). Insular sediment transport is more difficult to define. GLORIA images show the efficiency with which the actively growing accretionary wedge impounds sediment that manages to cross a broad fore-arc terrace. It is likely that island-arc sediment reaches the trench either directly via air fall, via recycling of the accretionary prism, or via overtopping of the accretionary ridges by the upper parts of thick turbidite flows.« less

The ELSA - Flood - Stack: A reconstruction from the laminated sediments of Eifel Maar structures during the last 60 000 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunck, Heiko; Sirocko, Frank; Albert, Johannes

2016-04-01

Lake sediments are excellent climate archives and can be used for reconstructions of past precipitation and flood events. However, until now, there is no continous flood record for the entire last 60 000 years for Central Europe. This study reconstructs the history of the main flood events in central Europe from event layers in sediment cores from Holocene Eifel maar lakes and Pleistocene dry maar structures. The cores were drilled in the Eifel region of western Germany. All maars have an inflow by a local stream and the largest flood events and associated suspension injections are nicely visible in the sediment. The specific sedimentation conditions explain the unique possibility to detect all 18 Greenland Interstadials in the total carbon concentration of the analysed maars. The allocation of the core material to all Greenland Interstadials and Stadials enables the exact climatic interpretation of the flood frequency. The stratigraphical concept leads to a classification of Landscape Evolution Zones in the Eifel region, which reconstruct the vegetation and the climate change (Sirocko et al., 2015). This classification is used to discuss the flood event succession concerning environmental changes. To study the past flood events in detail, 10 cm long thin sections were sedimentological and geochemical analysed to distinguish flood layers from turbidites and slumps. Turbidites have a continuous grain size gradation; the grains size profile of flood events is in contrast characterized by several grain size maxima over the entire layer thickness. A flood event over several days shows numerous peaks of intense discharge, which lead to a discontinuous grain size gradient. As a consequence, 233 flood layers over 7.5 mm thickness were detected. The main flood stages are from: 0 - 4000, 11 500 - 17 500, 23 000 - 24 000, 29 000 - 35 000 and 44 000 - 44 500 b2k (Brunck et al., 2015). Our time-series from the Eifel represents the first highly-resolved chronology for flood events from 60 000 years until present times and indicates variable periodicities of flood activity linked to predominant climatic and anthropogenic development. It turns out that low vegetation coverage related to Greenland Stadial phases or anthropogenic impact is the main cause for the development of flood layers in maar sediments, while precipitation plays only a secondary role. References Brunck, H., Albert, J., Sirocko, F., 2015 (in press). The ELSA - Flood - Stack: A reconstruction from the laminated sediments of Eifel Maar structures during the last 60 000 years. Global and Planetary Change, Elsevier. Sirocko, F., Knapp, H., Dreher, F., Förster, M., Albert, J., Brunck, H., Veres, D., Dietrich, S., Zech, M., Hambach, U., Röhner, M., Rudert, S., Schwibus, K., Adams, C., Sigl, P., 2015 (in press). The ELSA-Vegetation-Stack: Reconstruction of Landscape Evolution Zones (LEZ) from laminated Eifel maar sediments of the last 60 000 years. Global and Planetary Change, Elsevier.

Sedimentary Characteristics of Marine Events from se Coast of India: Case Studies of 2004 Tsunami and 2013 Phailin Cyclone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karthikeyan, A.

2015-12-01

The 2004 Indian Tsunami has deposited a varied layer of sand sheets along the coast which depends upon on the coastal topography. Recognition Tsunami deposits were clearly observed as the sand sheets were laid over the soil which is distinctly different due to differences in the weathering and presence of organic material of vegetation. To understand the preservation potential of 2004 tsunami deposits we were studied a transect profile with seven pits sediments along Thiruvengadu coast , Nagapattinam. The study reveals that presence of sand sheets preserved a mínimum of 10 cm thickness to máximum of 22 cm and the distance is 300 from HTL. From the present study six sedimentary layers were identfied which are (a) Top sediments deposited after IOT, (b). Tsunami sand sheets (c) Silty sand (d). Erosional base and top (e) Silty sand (d) Lagoonal sediments. The 2013 Phailin cyclon with wind speed of 220 kmph which was remnant cyclonic circulation from south china; it had major impact on geomorphology and sedimentology of odisha coast. At rushikulya river mouth, Ganjam district, cyclone had produced washover sand sheets as described in eyewitness along the river mouth of both north and south bar. The study reveals that the washover sand sheets provides the inundation of the water level, and characteristics of sediments where storm deposit has a highly variable grain-size distribution with a marked coarsening at its landward extent, is better sorted, coarser, and has a sharp, non-erosional lower contact associated with buried vegetation and soil. Also, the thickness of cyclone deposits are about 5 cm with the distance from coast 80 m, heavy mineral percentage ranges between 9 % to 75% for entire pit and sandsheets lateral extent are about 45 m. The presence of the laminations and alternate layers of heavy minerals are indicative of the complexity of sedimentation on the coast. The recent marine event Phailin cylcone deposits and 2004 tsunami deposits characteristic and its preservations potential are helpful to identify the paleo tsunami sediment characteristics the along east coast of India. The present study can be used as the background for distinguishing the tsunami and cyclone sediments. Keywords: 2004 Tsunami preservation, 2013 phailin cylcone, sedimentology, Topography.

Time averaging and stratigraphic disorder of molluscan assemblages in the Holocene sediments in the NE Adriatic (Piran)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tomasovych, Adam; Gallmetzer, Ivo; Haselmair, Alexandra; Kaufman, Darrell S.; Zuschin, Martin

2016-04-01

Stratigraphic changes in temporal resolution of fossil assemblages and the degree of their stratigraphic mixing in the Holocene deposits are of high importance in paleoecology, conservation paleobiology and paleoclimatology. However, few studies quantified downcore changes in time averaging and in stratigraphic disorder on the basis of dating of multiple shells occurring in individual stratigraphic layers. Here, we investigate downcore changes in frequency distribution of postmortem ages of the infaunal bivalve Gouldia minima in two, ~150 cm-thick piston cores (separated by more than 1 km) in the northern Adriatic Sea, close to the Slovenian city Piran at a depth of 24 m. We use radiocarbon-calibrated amino acid racemization to obtain postmortem ages of 564 shells, and quantify age-frequency distributions in 4-5 cm-thick stratigraphic intervals (with 20-30 specimens sampled per interval). Inter-quartile range for individual 4-5 cm-thick layers varies between 850 and 1,700 years, and range encompassing 95% of age data varies between 2,000 and 5,000 years in both cores. The uppermost sediments (20 cm) are age-homogenized and show that median age of shells is ~700-800 years. The interval between 20 and 90 cm shows a gradual increase in median age from ~2,000 to ~5,000 years, with maximum age ranging to ~8,000 years. However, the lowermost parts of both cores show a significant disorder, with median age of 3,100-3,300 years. This temporal disorder implies that many shells were displaced vertically by ~1 m. Absolute and proportional abundance of the bivalve Gouldia minima strongly increases towards the top of the both cores. We hypothesize that such increase in abundance, when coupled with depth-declining reworking, can explain stratigraphic disorder because numerically abundant young shells from the top of the core were more likely buried to larger sediment depths than less frequent shells at intermediate sediment depths.

Inference of lithologic distributions in an alluvial aquifer using airborne transient electromagnetic surveys

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dickinson, Jesse; Pool, D.R.; Groom, R.W.; Davis, L.J.

2010-01-01

An airborne transient electromagnetic (TEM) survey was completed in the Upper San Pedro Basin in southeastern Arizona to map resistivity distributions within the alluvial aquifer. This investigation evaluated the utility of 1D vertical resistivity models of the TEM data to infer lithologic distributions in an alluvial aquifer. Comparisons of the resistivity values and layers in the 1D resistivity models of airborne TEM data to 1D resistivity models of ground TEM data, borehole resistivity logs, and lithologic descriptions in drill logs indicated that the airborne TEM identified thick conductive fine-grained sediments that result in semiconfined groundwater conditions. One-dimensional models of ground-based TEM surveys and subsurface lithology at three sites were used to determine starting models and constraints to invert airborne TEM data using a constrained Marquardt-styleunderparameterized method. A maximum structural resolution of six layers underlain by a half-space was determined from the resistivity structure of the 1D models of the ground TEM data. The 1D resistivity models of the airborne TEM data compared well with the control data to depths of approximately 100 m in areas of thick conductive silt and clay and to depths of 200 m in areas of resistive sand and gravel. Comparison of a 3D interpolation of the 1D resistivity models to drill logs indicated resistive (mean of 65 ohm-m ) coarse-grained sediments along basin margins and conductive (mean of 8 ohm-m ) fine-grained sediments at the basin center. Extents of hydrologically significant thick silt and clay were well mapped by the 1D resistivity models of airborne TEM data. Areas of uncertain lithology remain below conductive fine-grained sediments where the 1D resistivity structure is not resolved: in areas where multiple lithologies have similar resistivity values and in areas of high salinity.

Geologic Storage at the Basin Scale: Region-Based Basin Modeling, Powder River Basin (PRB), NE Wyoming and SE Montana

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Melick, J. J.; Gardner, M. H.

2008-12-01

Carbon capture and storage from the over 2000 power plants is estimated at 3-5 GT/yr, which requires large- scale geologic storage of greenhouse gasses in sedimentary basins. Unfortunately, determination of basin scale storage capacity is currently based on oversimplified geologic models that are difficult to validate. Simplification involves reducing the number of geologic parameters incorporated into the model, modeling with large grid cells, and treatment of subsurface reservoirs as homogeneous media. The latter problem reflects the focus of current models on fluid and/or fluid-rock interactions rather than fluid movement and migration pathways. For example, homogeneous models over emphasize fluid behavior, like the buoyancy of super-critical CO2, and hence overestimate leakage rates. Fluid mixing and fluid-rock interactions cannot be assessed with models that only investigate these reactions at a human time scale. Preliminary and conservative estimates of the total pore volume for the PRB suggest 200 GT of supercritical CO2 can be stored in this typical onshore sedimentary basin. The connected pore volume (CPV) however is not included in this estimate. Geological characterization of the CPV relates subsurface storage units to the most prolific reservoir classes (RCs). The CPV, number of well penetrations, supercritical storage area, and potential leakage pathways characterize each RC. Within each RC, a hierarchy of stratigraphic cycles is populated with stationary sedimentation regions that control rock property distributions by correlating environment of deposition (EOD) to CPV. The degree to which CPV varies between RCs depends on the geology and attendant heterogeneity retained in the fluid flow model. Region-based modeling of the PRB incorporates 28000 wells correlated across a 70,000 Km2 area, 2 km thick on average. Within this basin, five of the most productive RCs were identified from production history and placed in a fourfold stratigraphic framework (second- through fourth-order cycles). Within the small- scale 4th-order sequences (30-150-m thick, 16 total), sedimentation regions, each corresponding to an EOD, are defined by thickness, lithology and core-calibrated well-log patterns. This talk illustrates the workflow by focusing on one of the 16 layers in the basin-scale model. Isopach maps from this sample layer conform to depositional patterns confirmed through definition of five core-calibrated, well-log defined sedimentation regions. Lithology distributions also conform to thickness trends in nearshore deltas, but not in offshore regions, where sand-rich and sheet-like, but thin-bedded sandstones are flanked by mud-rich intervals of equivalent thickness. These maps represent sedimentation patterns confined by basal erosional sequence boundary and basin-wide bentonite, yet containing up to seven high-frequency sequence boundaries. To illustrate over simplification problems in this same layer, a 14000 km2 sample area is 600 km3 and using standard averaging methods, which are considered to be geologic in origin, the CPV is 16 km3. However, averaging increases connectivity with high CPV more uniformly distributed; significantly, the key mud belt region separating nearshore from offshore sandstones is not represented. Region-based modeling of this layer yields 13 km3 (110 Bbl). Furthermore, significant vertical leakage may exist from the 20000 well penetrations and faults and fractures along the western basin margin. This example illustrates the importance of accurately characterizing heterogeneity and distributing CPV using sedimentation regions.

Sedimentary organic matter distributions, burrowing activity, and biogeochemical cycling: Natural patterns and experimental artifacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michaud, Emma; Aller, Robert, C.; Stora, Georges

2010-11-01

The coupling between biogenic reworking activity and reactive organic matter patterns within deposits is poorly understood and often ignored. In this study, we examined how common experimental treatments of sediment affect the burrowing behavior of the polychaete Nephtys incisa and how these effects may interact with reactive organic matter distributions to alter diagenetic transport - reaction balances. Sediment and animals were recovered from a subtidal site in central Long Island Sound, USA. The upper 15 cm of the sediment was sectioned into sub-intervals, and each interval separately sieved and homogenized. Three initial distributions of sediment and organic substrate reactivity were setup in a series of microcosms: (1) a reconstituted natural pattern with surface-derived sediment overlying sediment obtained from progressively deeper material to a depth of 15 cm (Natural); (2) a 15 cm thick sediment layer composed only of surface-derived sediment (Rich); and (3) a 15 cm thick layer composed of uniformally mixed sediment from the original 15 cm sediment profile (Averaged). The two last treatments are comparable to that used in microcosms in many previous studies of bioturbation and interspecific functional interaction experiments. Sediment grain size distributions were 97.5% silt-clay and showed no depth dependent patterns. Sediment porosity gradients were slightly altered by the treatments. Nepthys were reintroduced and aquariums were X-rayed regularly over 5 months to visualize and quantify spatial and temporal dynamics of burrows. The burrowing behaviour of adult populations having similar total biovolume, biomass, abundance, and individual sizes differed substantially as a function of treatment. Burrows in sediment with natural property gradients were much shallower and less dense than those in microcosms with altered gradients. The burrow volume/biovolume ratio was also lower in the substrate with natural organic reactivity gradients. Variation in food resources or in sediment mechanical properties associated with treatments, the latter in part coupled to remineralization processes such as exopolymer production, may explain the burrowing responses. In addition to demonstrating how species may respond to physical sedimentation events (substrate homogenization) and patterns of reactive organic matter redistribution, these experiments suggest that infaunal species interactions in microcosms, including the absolute and relative fluxes of remineralized solutes, may be subject to artifacts depending on exactly how sediments are introduced experimentally. Nonlocal transport and cylinder microenvironment transport - reaction models readily demonstrate how the multiple interactions between burrowing patterns and remineralization rate distributions can alter relative flux balances, decomposition pathways, and time to steady state.

Gas Hydrate Petroleum System Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collett, T. S.

2012-12-01

In a gas hydrate petroleum system, the individual factors that contribute to the formation of gas hydrate accumulations, such as (1) gas hydrate pressure-temperature stability conditions, (2) gas source, (3) gas migration, and (4) the growth of the gas hydrate in suitable host sediment can identified and quantified. The study of know and inferred gas hydrate accumulations reveal the occurrence of concentrated gas hydrate is mostly controlled by the presence of fractures and/or coarser grained sediments. Field studies have concluded that hydrate grows preferentially in coarse-grained sediments because lower capillary pressures in these sediments permit the migration of gas and nucleation of hydrate. Due to the relatively distal nature of the deep marine geologic settings, the overall abundance of sand within the shallow geologic section is usually low. However, drilling projects in the offshore of Japan, Korea, and in the Gulf of Mexico has revealed the occurrence of significant hydrate-bearing sand reservoirs. The 1999/2000 Japan Nankai Trough drilling confirmed occurrence of hydrate-bearing sand-rich intervals (interpreted as turbidite fan deposits). Gas hydrate was determined to fill the pore spaces in these deposits, reaching saturations up to 80% in some layers. A multi-well drilling program titled "METI Toaki-oki to Kumano-nada" also identified sand-rich reservoirs with pore-filling hydrate. The recovered hydrate-bearing sand layers were described as very-fine- to fine-grained turbidite sand layers measuring from several centimeters up to a meter thick. However, the gross thickness of the hydrate-bearing sand layers were up to 50 m. In 2010, the Republic of Korea conducted the Second Ulleung Basin Gas Hydrate (UBGH2) Drilling Expedition. Seismic data clearly showed the development of a thick, potential basin wide, sedimentary sections characterized by mostly debris flows. The downhole LWD logs and core data from Site UBGH2-5 reveal that each debris flows is characterized by basal silt- to sand-rich clay dominated stratigraphic units. The upper most debris flow at Site UBGH2-5 extends into the overlying gas hydrate stability zone and IR core scans indicate that this section contains some amount of gas hydrate. The UBGH2 LWD and coring program also confirmed the occurrence of numerous volcaniclastic and siliciclastic sand reservoirs that were deposited as part of local to basin-wide turbidite events. Gas hydrate saturations within the turbidite sands ranged between 60-80 percent. In 2009, the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Joint Industry Project (JIP) drilled seven wells at three sites, finding gas hydrate at high concentration in sands in four wells, with suspected gas hydrate at low to moderate saturations in two other wells. In the northern GOM, high sedimentation rates in conjunction with salt tectonism, has promoted the formation of complex seafloor topography. As a result, coarse-grained deposition can occur as gravity-driven sedimentation traversing the slope within intra-slope "ponded" accommodation spaces.

Evaluation of a pumping test of the Snake River Plain aquifer using axial-flow numerical modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, Gary S.; Frederick, David B.; Cosgrove, Donna M.

2002-06-01

The Snake River Plain aquifer in southeast Idaho is hosted in a thick sequence of layered basalts and interbedded sediments. The degree to which the layering impedes vertical flow has not been well understood, yet is a feature that may exert a substantial control on the movement of contaminants. An axial-flow numerical model, RADFLOW, was calibrated to pumping test data collected by a straddle-packer system deployed at 23 depth intervals in four observation wells to evaluate conceptual models and estimate properties of the Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory. A delayed water-table response observed in intervals beneath a sediment interbed was best reproduced with a three-layer simulation. The results demonstrate the hydraulic significance of this interbed as a semi-confining layer. Vertical hydraulic conductivity of the sediment interbed was estimated to be about three orders of magnitude less than vertical hydraulic conductivity of the lower basalt and upper basalt units. The numerical model was capable of representing aquifer conceptual models that could not be represented with any single analytical technique. The model proved to be a useful tool for evaluating alternative conceptual models and estimating aquifer properties in this application.

Deciphering Depositional Signals in the Bed-Scale Stratigraphic Record of Submarine Channels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sylvester, Z.; Covault, J. A.

2017-12-01

Submarine channels are important conduits of sediment transfer from rivers and shallow-marine settings into the deep sea. As such, the stratigraphic record of submarine-channel systems can store signals of past climate- and other environmental changes in their upstream sediment-source areas. This record is highly fragmented as channels are primarily locations of sediment bypass; channelized turbidity currents are likely to leave a more complete record in areas away from and above the thalweg. However, the link between the thick-bedded axial channel deposits that record a small number of flows and the much larger number of thin-bedded turbidites forming terrace- and levee deposits is poorly understood. We have developed a relatively simple two-dimensional model that, given a number of input flow parameters (mean velocity, grain size, duration of deposition, flow thickness), predicts the thickness and composition of the turbidite that is left behind in the channel and in the overbank areas. The model is based on a Rouse-type suspended sediment concentration profile and the Garcia-Parker entrainment function. In the vertical direction, turbidites tend to rapidly become thinner and finer-grained with height above thalweg, due to decreasing concentration. High near-thalweg concentrations result in thick axial beds. However, an increase in flow velocity can result in high entrainment and no deposition at the bottom of the channel, yet a thin layer of sand and mud is still deposited higher up on the channel bank. If channel thalwegs are largely in a bypass condition, relatively minor velocity fluctuations result in a few occasionally preserved thick beds in the axis, and numerous thin turbidites - and a more complete record - on the channel banks. We use near-seafloor data from the Niger Delta slope and an optimization algorithm to show how our model can be used to invert for likely flow parameters and match the bed thickness and grain size of 100 turbidites observed in a core taken from a slope channel terrace.

Shallow velocity structure of the Alaska Peninsula subduction zone and implications for controls on seismic behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, J.; Shillington, D. J.; Becel, A.; Nedimovic, M. R.; Kuehn, H.; Webb, S. C.; Abers, G. A.; Keranen, K. M.; Saffer, D. M.

2014-12-01

Downdip and along-strike variations in the seismic behavior of subduction zone megathrust faults are thought to be strongly controlled by changes in the material properties along the plate boundary. Roughness and hydration of the incoming plate, fluid pressure and lithology in the subducting sediment channel are likely to control the distribution of shallower rupture. Here, we focus on the subduction zone offshore of the Alaska Peninsula. In 2011, the ALEUT program acquired deep penetration multichannel seismic (MCS) reflection and ocean bottom seismometer (OBS) data across the apparently freely sliding Shumagin Gap, the locked Semidi segment that last ruptured in 1938 M8.2 earthquake, and the locked western Kodiak asperity, which ruptured in the 1964 M9.2 earthquake. Seismic reflection data from the ALEUT cruise reveal significant variability in the thickness of sediment on the incoming plate and entering the trench, and the roughness and degree of hydration of the incoming plate. Oceanic crust entering the trench in the Shumagin gap is rugged with extensive faults and only a thin layer of sediment (<0.5 km thick). Farther east in the Semidi segment, the subducting plate has a smoother surface with thicker sediments (~1 km thick) and less faulting/hydration. To better constrain the properties of the accretionary prism and shallow part of the plate boundary, we are undertaking travel time tomography using reflection/refraction phases in OBS and MCS data, and constraints on the interface geometry from MCS images to estimate the detailed shallow velocity structure, with particular focus on properties within the shallow subduction channel. We observe refractions and reflections in OBS data from the shallow part of the subduction zone in both the Shumagin Gap and Semidi segment, including reflections off the top and base of what appears to be a layer of subducting sediment, which can be used for this work. We plan to present initial models of the shallow part of the subduction zone from both segments and discuss comparisons between the two.

Pleistocene ice-rich yedoma in Interior Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanevskiy, M. Z.; Shur, Y.; Jorgenson, T. T.; Sturm, M.; Bjella, K.; Bray, M.; Harden, J. W.; Dillon, M.; Fortier, D.; O'Donnell, J.

2011-12-01

Yedoma, or the ice-rich syngenetic permafrost with large ice wedges, widely occurs in parts of Alaska that were unglaciated during the last glaciation including Interior Alaska, Foothills of Brooks Range and Seward Peninsula. A thick layer of syngenetic permafrost was formed by simultaneous accumulation of silt and upward permafrost aggradation. Until recently, yedoma has been studied mainly in Russia. In Interior Alaska, we have studied yedoma at several field sites (Erickson Creek area, Boot Lake area, and several sites around Fairbanks, including well-known CRREL Permafrost tunnel). All these locations are characterized by thick sequences of ice-rich silt with large ice wedges up to 30 m deep. Our study in the CRREL Permafrost tunnel and surrounding area revealed a yedoma section up to 18 m thick, whose formation began about 40,000 yr BP. The volume of wedge-ice (about 10-15%) is not very big in comparison with other yedoma sites (typically more than 30%), but soils between ice wedges are extremely ice-rich - an average value of gravimetric moisture content of undisturbed yedoma silt with micro-cryostructures is about 130%. Numerous bodies of thermokarst-cave ice were detected in the tunnel. Geotechnical investigations along the Dalton Highway near Livengood (Erickson Creek area) provided opportunities for studies of yedoma cores from deep boreholes. The radiocarbon age of sediments varies from 20,000 to 45,000 yr BP. Most of soils in the area are extremely ice-rich. Thickness of ice-rich silt varies from 10 m to more than 26 m, and volume of wedge-ice reaches 35-45%. Soil between ice wedges has mainly micro-cryostructures and average gravimetric moisture content from 80% to 100%. Our studies have shown that the top part of yedoma in many locations was affected by deep thawing during the Holocene, which resulted in formation of the layer of thawed and refrozen soils up to 6 m thick on top of yedoma deposits. Thawing of the upper permafrost could be related to climate changes during Holocene or to wildfires, or both. The ice-poor layer of thawed and refrozen sediments (gravimetric moisture content usually does not exceed 40%) was encountered in many boreholes below the thin ice-rich intermediate layer (gravimetric moisture content usually exceeds 100%). These two layers separate ice wedges from the active layer and protect them from further thawing. Such structure of the upper permafrost at different yedoma sites of Interior Alaska can explain a relatively rare occurrence of surface features related to yedoma degradation such as thermokarst mounds and erosional gullies developed along ice wedges.

Insights on the first peopling of Europe from magnetostratigraphy of the Pleistocene lithic tool-bearing Kozarnika cave sediments, Bulgaria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monesi, E.; Muttoni, G.; Sirakov, N.; Kent, D. V.; Guadelli, J. L.; Scardia, G.; Zerboni, A.; Ferrara, E.

2017-12-01

We present a new sedimentological profile and a magnetostratigraphy of the tool-bearing Kozarnika cave sediments from Bulgaria. Modal analysis of cave infilling sedimentary texture indicates that most of the layers are produced by reworked wind-blown sediment (loess). We found evidence for a relatively thick and well defined normal magnetic polarity in the upper-middle part of the section interpreted as a record of the Brunhes Chron, followed downsection by reverse polarity directions. The Brunhes-Matuyama boundary (0.78 Ma) is placed in the upper part of Layer 13 Lower. The lowermost levels with Lower Paleolithic tools are close to - or possibly straddling the - Brunhes-Matuyama boundary. Our results are in substantial agreement with the age of onset of loess deposition in the Danube valley, which occurred shortly before the Brunhes-Matuyama boundary. Moreover, our data fit well with the hypothesis that hominins first entered Europe across a Danube-Po migration conduit during the late Early Pleistocene.

Unconsolidated sediments at the bottom of Lake Vostok from seismic data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Filina, I.; Lukin, V.; Masolov, V.; Blankenship, D.

2007-01-01

Seismic soundings of Lake Vostok have been performed by the Polar Marine Geological Research Expedition in collaboration with the Russian Antarctic Expedition since the early 1990s. The seismograms recorded show at least two relatively closely spaced reflections associated with the lake bottom. These were initially interpreted as boundaries of a layer of unconsolidated sediments at the bottom of the lake. A more recent interpretation suggests that the observed reflections are side echoes from the rough lake bottom, and that there are no unconsolidated sediments at the bottom of the lake. The major goal of this paper is to reveal the nature of those reflections by testing three hypotheses of their origin. The results show that some of the reflections, but not all of them, are consistent with the hypothesis of a non-flat lake bottom along the source-receiver line (2D case). The reflections were also evaluated as side echoes from an adjacent sloping interface, but these tests implied unreasonably steep slopes (at least 8 degrees) at the lake bottom. The hypothesis that is the most compatible with seismic data is the presence of a widespread layer of unconsolidated sediments at the bottom of Lake Vostok. The modeling suggests the presence of a two hundred meter thick sedimentary layer with a seismic velocity of 1700 -1900 m/sec in the southern and middle parts of the lake. The sedimentary layer thickens in the northern basin to ~350 m

Numerical modelling of the role of salt in continental collision: An application to the southeast Zagros fold-and-thrust belt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghazian, Reza Khabbaz; Buiter, Susanne J. H.

2014-09-01

The Zagros fold-and-thrust belt formed in the collision of Arabia with Central Iran. Its sedimentary sequence is characterised by the presence of several weak layers that may control the style of folding and thrusting. We use 2-D thermo-mechanical models to investigate the role of salt in the southeast Zagros fold-and-thrust belt. We constrain the crustal and lithospheric thickness, sedimentary stratification, convergence velocity, and thermal structure of the models from available geological and geophysical data. We find that the thick basal layer of Hormuz salt in models on the scale of the upper-mantle decouples the overlying sediments from the basement and localises deformation in the sediments by trench-verging shear bands. In the collision stage of the models, basement dips with + 1° towards the trench. Including the basal Hormuz salt improves the fit of predicted topography to observed topography. We use the kinematic results and thermal structure of this large-scale model as the initial conditions of a series of upper-crustal-scale models. These models aim to investigate the effects of basal and intervening weak layers, salt strength, basal dip, and lateral salt distribution on deformation style of the simply folded Zagros. Our results show that in addition to the Hormuz salt at the base of the sedimentary cover, at least one intervening weak layer is required to initiate fold-dominated deformation in the southeast Zagros. We find that an upper-crustal-scale model, with a basal and three internal weak layers with viscosities between 5 × 1018 and 1019 Pa s, and a basement that dips + 1° towards the trench, best reproduces present-day topography and the regular folding of the sedimentary layers of the simply folded Zagros.

Testing short-range migration of microbial methane as a hydrate formation mechanism: Results from Andaman Sea and Kumano Basin drill sites and global implications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malinverno, Alberto; Goldberg, David S.

2015-07-01

Methane gas hydrates in marine sediments often concentrate in coarse-grained layers surrounded by fine-grained marine muds that are hydrate-free. Methane in these hydrate deposits is typically microbial, and must have migrated from its source as the coarse-grained sediments contain little or no organic matter. In "long-range" migration, fluid flow through permeable layers transports methane from deeper sources into the gas hydrate stability zone (GHSZ). In "short-range" migration, microbial methane is generated within the GHSZ in fine-grained sediments, where small pore sizes inhibit hydrate formation. Dissolved methane can then diffuse into adjacent sand layers, where pore size does not restrict hydrate formation and hydrates can accumulate. Short-range migration has been used to explain hydrate accumulations in sand layers observed in drill sites on the northern Cascadia margin and in the Gulf of Mexico. Here we test the feasibility of short-range migration in two additional locations, where gas hydrates have been found in coarse-grained volcanic ash layers (Site NGHP-01-17, Andaman Sea, Indian Ocean) and turbidite sand beds (Site IODP-C0002, Kumano forearc basin, Nankai Trough, western Pacific). We apply reaction-transport modeling to calculate dissolved methane concentration and gas hydrate amounts resulting from microbial methane generated within the GHSZ. Model results show that short-range migration of microbial methane can explain the overall amounts of methane hydrate observed at the two sites. Short-range migration has been shown to be feasible in diverse margin environments and is likely to be a widespread methane transport mechanism in gas hydrate systems. It only requires a small amount of organic carbon and sediment sequences consisting of thin coarse-grained layers that can concentrate microbial methane generated within thick fine-grained sediment beds; these conditions are common along continental margins around the globe.

Low ash, planar peat swamp development in an alluvial plain setting: The No. 5 block beds of southern West Virginia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Staub, J.R.; Richards, B.K.

1992-01-01

Coals from the No. 5 Block beds (Westphalian D) are noted for their low ash and sulfur content. Beds are multiple benched, with rock partings separating individual benches. Benches have limited continuity and, where thick are dominated by bright, high ash coal at the base and dull, low ash coal in their upper portions. The duller coals contain more exinite and inertinite group macerals than the brighter coals. The depositional setting is an alluvial plain environment with channel systems separated by distances of about 20 km. The channel systems were flanked by clastic swamps for distances of up to 7more » km or more on either side. Areas of flood plain most distant from the channels were sites where peat accumulated and these zones were about 8 km across. High energy, low frequency flood events introduced fine grained sediment into the peat swamps resulting in thin layers of sediment being deposited on top of the peat. These sediment layers are thicker in areas where the underlying coal is the thickest. These thick coal areas are topographically negative. This relationship between coal and parting thickness and topography indicates that these peat swamps were low-lying or planar. Individual coal benches contain abundant amounts of preserved cellular tissue (telocollinite, semifusinite, fusinite) at most locations indicating that woody arborescent like vegetation was widespread in the swamps suggesting a planar morphology. The high concentrations of exinite and inertinite group macerals found in the upper portions of individual benches resulted from decomposition and oxidation of the peat in subaerial to aquatic planar swamp environments.« less

Heterogeneous distribution of pelagic sediments incoming the Japan Trench possibly controlling slip propagation on shallow plate boundary fault

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamaguchi, A.; Nakamura, Y.; Fukuchi, R.; Kurano, H.; Ikehara, K.; Kanamatsu, T.; Arai, K.; Usami, K.; Ashi, J.

2017-12-01

Catastrophic tsunami of the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake was triggered by large coseismic slip reached to the Japan Trench axis (e.g. Fujiwara et al., 2011, Science; Kodaira et al., 2012, Nature Geoscience). Results of the IODP Expedition 343 (JFAST) suggest that small friction of smectite-rich pelagic clay caused slip propagation on shallow plate boundary fault (Ujiie et al., 2013, Science; Kameda et al., 2015, Geology; Moore et al., 2015, Geosphere). On the other hand, JAMSTEC high-resolution seismic profiles show that incoming sediments have large heterogeneities in thicknesses, and two areas of extremely thin sediments on the Pacific Plate (thickness less than 100 m) were found at around 39°N (Nakamura et al., AGU 2017, this session). To reconcile whether the smectite-rich pelagic clay even exists in these areas, we sampled surface sediments during the R/V Shinsei Maru KS-15-3 cruise. Seven piston cores were retrieved from seaward trench slope, horst, graben, and graben edge. Core lithologies are mainly diatomaceous ooze/clay including tephra layers, not resemble to pelagic clays discovered in JFAST. Ages of tephra layers were estimated by correlating mineral assemblages and refractive indices of volcanic glasses to Japanese widespread tephras. Averaged sedimentation rates of seaward trench slope, horst, graben, and graben edge are estimated to be 25-30, 6.5-20, 45, 0.9 cm/kyr, respectively. These sedimentation rates imply that sediments on seaward trench slope and horst have been deposited in the last 160-500 kyr, suggesting that entire pelagic sediments, including smectite-rich pelagic clay, have been removed by some reasons in the last 0.5 million years. Possible reason for such modification of sediment is near-trench igneous activity known as petit-spot volcanism (Hirano et al., 2006, Science). The lack of smectite-rich pelagic clay near 39°N of the Japan Trench is consistent with results of tsunami inversions proposing shallow large coseismic slip propagated to 39°N and stopped northward (Koketsu et al., 2011, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett.; Satake et al., 2013, Bull. Seism. Soc. Am.). In the off-Sanriku Japan Trench, slip propagation is likely to be controlled by frictional property of incoming sediments, and sediment disappearance due to petit-spot volcanism may affect rupture area segmentation.

Sedimentation of oil-derived material to the seabed is an unrecognized fate for oil derived from natural seepage.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joye, S. B.

2016-02-01

The fate of oil derived from natural seepage in the marine environment is poorly constrained. In the aftermath of the 2010 BP/Macondo oil well blowout, sedimentation of oil-containing material to the seafloor was an important fate for discharged oil. Though the amount of oil accounted for by sedimentation processes remains poorly constrained, sedimentation is now considered an important fate of oil during large open water spills that generate extensive surface slicks. In the Gulf of Mexico, vigorous natural oil seeps generate extensive, sometimes thick, surface slicks. In the case of highly active seeps, these surface oil slicks persist at the sea surface over the seep site a majority of the time. We investigated the fate of oil released through natural seepage and the potential for the sedimentation of surface-slick derived oil at two vigorous hydrocarbon seeps in the Gulf of Mexico, Green Canyon block 600 and block 767. Hydrocarbon analyses were performed on samples collected from oil vents at the seafloor, in surface slicks, and in sediments cores apparently containing sedimented oil. Sediment cores collected from both of these active seep sites away from known oil vents contained distinct (1-3 cm thick) layers that were brown in coloration and which displayed distinct sedimentology compared to deeper strata. The oil fingerprint was also different, suggesting this material was not the result of weathering during transit through the sediment column. Available data suggest that sedimentation of weathered oil also occurs at vigorous natural seeps. Detailed studies of the weathered oil sedimentation process at natural seeps will help reveal the mechanisms driving this phenomena and are important for understanding the fate of oil released during accidental discharges and spills.

Search for continuous paleoclimatic record in Holocene lacustrine sediments from Lake District, Chile (40°S)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bertrand, S.; Fagel, N.

2003-04-01

Our aim is to reconstruct a continuous Holocene climatic evolution related to ENSO variability in southern Chile. We focus on the sedimentary infilling of two glacial lakes from the Lake District Area (38-40°S). The preliminar sedimentological analysis must allow to define the key-site and the best palaeoclimatic proxies. This area, at the foothill of the Cordillera de Los Andes, has been affected by an intense Quaternary volcanic activity and by several historical earthquakes (e.g., Valdivia 1960). After preliminary seismic investigation, four cores were recovered in two lakes selected at the two ends of a N-S transect. (1) Icalma lake (12 km2, 38°S) is located in the Cordillera de Los Andes at an elevation of 1150m and results of the infilling of a glacial umbilic. The two 8m sediment cores consist of an alternation of laminated silts and volcanic layers. The sedimentary record is strongly disturbed by numerous seismic or volcanic events. The cumulated volcanogenic-derived material represents up to 50 % of the core length. In particular, the cores record at -4.50m a pumice layer widespread in the watershed and dated at 2900 yr BP. One core contains pluricentrimetric layers of wood accumulation. They could be due to earthquake impact on the vegetational cover in the watershed. An ubiquitous 6cm-thick slump described at -40 cm may be related with the 1960 Valdivia earthquake. (2) On Puyehue lake (164 km2, 40°S, elevation 185 m), two cores (7 and 11m) have been collected in both underflow and interflow sites. The interflow site (PUII) shows a very well laminated sediment, with only small disturbances due to volcanic and seismic activities. This core will be the key-site for the paleoclimatic study. The second core (PUI) is very rich in organic matter. The sediment is strongly destratified by numerous gas bubbles (methane). These characteristics are due to the dense vegetational cover in the watershed and to the core location near the delta of the main river. This preliminary study emphasizes the influence of geodynamic conditions on sedimentology of lacustrine deposits in a geodynamically active region. The contribution of the punctual tectonic and volcanic-derived layers to sediment thickness must be taken into account before calculation of the age-depth model.

Authigenic Carbonate Fans from Lower Jurassic Marine Shales (Alberta, Canada)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martindale, R. C.; Them, T. R., II; Gill, B. C.; Knoll, A. H.

2016-12-01

Authigenic aragonite seafloor fans are a common occurrence in Archean and Paleoproterozoic carbonates, as well as Neoproterozoic cap carbonates. Similar carbonate fans are rare in Phanerozoic strata, with the exception of two mass extinction events; during the Permo-Triassic and Triassic-Jurassic boundaries, carbonate fans formed at the sediment-water interface and within the sediment, respectively. These crystal fans have been linked to carbon cycle perturbations at the end of the Permian and Triassic periods driven by rapid flood volcanism. The Early Jurassic Toarcian Ocean Anoxic Event (T-OAE) is also correlated with the emplacement of a large igneous province, but biological consequences were more modest. We have identified broadly comparable fibrous calcite layers (2-10 cm thick) in Pliensbachian-Toarcian cores from Alberta, Canada. This work focuses on the geochemical and petrographic description of these fans and surrounding sediment in the context of the T-OAE. At the macroscale, carbonates exhibit a fan-like (occasionally cone-in-cone) structure and displace the sediment around them as they grew. At the microscale, the carbonate crystals (pseudomorphs of aragonite) often initiate on condensed horizons or shells. Although they grow in multiple directions (growth within the sediment), the predominant crystal growth direction is towards the sediment-water interface. Resedimentation of broken fans is evidence that crystal growth was penecontemporaneous with sedimentation. The carbon isotope composition of the fans (transects up bladed crystals) and elemental abundances within the layers support shallow subsurface, microbially mediated growth. The resemblance of these Early Jurassic fibrous calcite layers to those found at the end-Triassic and their paucity in the Phanerozoic record suggest that analogous processes occurred at both events. Nevertheless, the Pliensbachian-Toarcian carbonate fans occur at multiple horizons and while some are within the T-OAE, others are significantly above and below the event. The formation of these authigenic layers cannot be driven exclusively by the geochemical and paleoenvironmental changes during the T-OAE. Therefore, a new model of formation for the Early Jurassic carbonate fans is required.

Identifying the Jaramillo Subchron in cave sediments using ESR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pares, J. M.; Moreno, D.; Duval, M.

2017-12-01

The Jaramillo Subchron is represented by marine isotope stages 31 to 28, a period that embodies a fundamental shift in the Earth's climate known as the Early-Middle Pleistocene transition (EMPT). Also, this time interval is a critical period in human evolution and therefore identifying the Jaramillo provides an invaluable timeline. The correlation of magnetic chrons to the GPTS in sediments is typically hampered by the lack of a tie-point, as radiometric methods are rarely appropriate. In this study we combine Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) results from quartz grains, and paleomagnetism to identify the Jaramillo Subchron in cave sediments that include artifact-bearing layers. The ESR age estimate is basically derived from the determination of the equivalent dose, which is the laboratory estimate of the total dose absorbed by the sample since the ESR signal has been last reset to zero by sunlight exposure, and the dose rate, which is an estimation of the mean dose annually absorbed by the sample. The magnetostratigraphic study, based on more than 140 specimens over 20 meters-thick sedimentary sequence, results in three major reversals, which are interpreted from top to bottom as the Matuyama-Brunhes boundary and the Jaramillo Subchron. Both sediments and speleothems generally carry stable remanent magnetization directions mostly residing in magnetite, as supported by progressive alternating field (AF) demagnetization and rock magnetism. ESR dating on quartz grains from an 80 cm-thick stratigraphic layer that displays normal polarity gives an age of 0.84±0.12 Ma, consistent within the error with the current ages of the Jaramillo Subchron. Documenting the Jaramillo in fossiliferous sediments is important because it saw the EMPT and associated faunal turnover, as well as the expansion of hominins outside Africa. Also, this study highlights the potential of ESR dating on quartz grains from cave sediments to interpret magnetostratigraphic records.

Paleoseismic events inferred from marine seismogenic turbidites of the eastern Nankai Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okutsu, N.; Ashi, J.; Omura, A.; Yamaguchi, A.; Suganuma, Y.; Kanamatsu, T.; Murayama, M.

2016-12-01

Paleoseismology using marine seismogenic turbidites is a developing field especially in subduction margins. However, very fine-grained turbidites are difficult to distinguish from hemipelagic mud. The primary focus of this study is to understand the characteristics of the muddy turbidites. The second focus is to discuss the muddy turbidites distributions and their ages from a longer sediment core, and understand the paleoseismic records of eastern Nankai Trough, Japan. The samples used in this study include multiple cores and a piston core which were collected from the sedimentary basin southwest off Kii Peninsula during the R/V Shinsei Maru KS-14-8 cruise. The sampling site is located at the ENE-WSW elongated basin between the accretionary prism and the forearc basin off Kumano without terrestrial sediment supply. The basin exhibits a terminal basin that captures all sediments supplied from outside. From the multiple core samples, the Cs-137 and Pb- 210 concentration distribution indicates that the muddy sediment layer in the upper 17 cm was formed from the 2004 off the Kii Peninsula earthquake. Visual observation and X-ray CT scans were conducted alongside other measurements for anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS), paleomagnetism, rock magnetism, electrical resistivity, and X-ray fluorescence core scanning (XRF). Muddy seismogenic turbidites associated with the 2004 off the Kii Peninsula earthquake have thick homogeneous clay layer above the silty lamination. The magnetic susceptibility decreases upwards in the lamination. This specific feature is thought to have formed as the muddy turbiditity current slowly decelerated and slowly settled down the slope. From the results of XRF core scanning, Ca and Fe have a peak at basement of turbidites, and decrease upwards. Ca is thought to correspond to amount of the foraminiferas. In piston core, we observed the same sedimentary and magnetic characteristics as the multiple cores. Based on stratigraphic information from volcanic ash and radiocarbon age of the foraminifera, intercalation pattern of muddy turbidite layers almost consistent with the known past earthquake recurrence times in the Nankai subduction margin. Reversed age recognized beneath the thick turbidite layer suggests reworking of landslide deposits probably due to the strong shaking.

Timing of Neogene Manganese Deposit Formation in the Paleo-Japan Sea, northeast Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ito, T.; Orihashi, Y.; Yanagisawa, Y.; Sakai, S.; Motoyama, I.; Kamikuri, S. I.; Komuro, K.; Suzuki, K.

2017-12-01

The generation ages of the two Neogene manganese deposits in northeast Japan were determined by diatom and radiolarian biostratigraphic analyses and zircon U-Pb dating. The manganese deposits analyzed were from the Kitaichi and Maruyama mines in the Fukaura district, northeast Japan. Manganese oxide layers of 0.5 m (Kitaichi) and 1.5 m (Maruyama) in thickness were predominantly composed of todorokite and occur conformably within volcanogenic sediments, which stratigraphically had correlated to middle Miocene in previous studies. The ages of the manganese oxide layers were 12.4 Ma. There was no time gap between the Kitaichi and the Maruyama manganese oxide layers, between the manganese oxide layer and the underlying tuffaceous sandstone in the Kitaichi mine, or within the manganese oxide layer of ca. 1.5 m thickness in the Maruyama mine. On the other hand, the overlying tuffaceous sandstone was dated at 4.5 Ma. The results suggest that the manganese oxide layers were formed immediately after the deposition of the tuffaceous sandstone at 12.4 Ma and that the restricted supply of volcanogenic and/or other detrital matter had kept for a long time (ca. 7 m.y.). The timing of the manganese deposit generation, 12.4 Ma, is identical to the age of the base of the Onnagawa Stage on the Nishikurosawa Stage in the Neogene stratotype section on the Japan Sea side, northeast Japan. And this is equivalent to the age of the start of diatom blooming. Paleogeographically, the manganese oxide deposition happened in a shallower area on a paleo-hill or a small island surrounded by stagnant mid to deep basins with diatom and organically carbon-rich, laminated, and fine-grained mud. It is highly probable that upwelling of mid to deep water rich in both dissolved manganese and nutrients is the trigger for the manganese deposit generation in shallower areas and the deposition of diatomaceous sediments in mid and deep basins. Eustatic regression might be the reason for the short-term formation of manganese deposits in shallower areas compared to continuous sedimentation ( several million years) of diatomaceous and organic carbon-rich mud in the surrounding mid to deep basins.

Hydrology of the solid waste burial ground as related to potential migration of radionuclides, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barraclough, Jack T.; Robertson, J.B.; Janzer, V.J.; Saindon, L.G.

1976-01-01

A study was made (1970-1974) to evaluate the geohydrologic and geochemical controls on subsurface migration of radionuclides from pits and trenches in the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) solid waste burial ground and to determine the existence and extent of radionuclide migration from the burial ground. A total of about 1,700 sediment, rock, and water samples were collected from 10 observation wells drilled in and near the burial ground of Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, formerly the National Reactor Testing Station (NRTS). Within the burial ground area, the subsurface rocks are composed principally of basalt. Wind- and water-deposited sediments occur at the surface and in beds between the thicker basalt zones. Two principal sediment beds occur at about 110 feet and 240 feet below the land surface. The average thickness of the surficial sedimentary layer is about 15 feet while that of the two principal subsurface layers is 13 and 14 feet, respectively. The water table in the aquifer beneath the burial ground is at a depth of about 580 feet. Fission, activation, and transuranic elements were detected in some of the samples from the 110- and 240-foot sedimentary layers. (Woodard-USGS)

MODFLOW Ground-Water Model - User Guide to the Subsidence and Aquifer-System Compaction Package (SUB-WT) for Water-Table Aquifers

USGS Publications Warehouse

Leake, S.A.; Galloway, D.L.

2007-01-01

A new computer program was developed to simulate vertical compaction in models of regional ground-water flow. The program simulates ground-water storage changes and compaction in discontinuous interbeds or in extensive confining units, accounting for stress-dependent changes in storage properties. The new program is a package for MODFLOW, the U.S. Geological Survey modular finite-difference ground-water flow model. Several features of the program make it useful for application in shallow, unconfined flow systems. Geostatic stress can be treated as a function of water-table elevation, and compaction is a function of computed changes in effective stress at the bottom of a model layer. Thickness of compressible sediments in an unconfined model layer can vary in proportion to saturated thickness.

CRUST1.0: An Updated Global Model of Earth's Crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laske, G.; Masters, G.; Ma, Z.; Pasyanos, M. E.

2012-04-01

We present an updated global model of Earth's crustal structure. The new model, CRUST1.0, serves as starting model in a more comprehensive effort to compile a global model of Earth's crust and lithosphere, LITHO1.0. CRUST1.0 is defined on a 1-degree grid and is based on a new database of crustal thickness data from active source seismic studies as well as from receiver function studies. In areas where such constraints are still missing, for example in Antarctica, crustal thicknesses are estimated using gravity constraints. The compilation of the new crustal model initially follows the philosophy of the widely used crustal model CRUST2.0 (Bassin et al., 2000; http://igppweb.ucsd.edu/~gabi/crust2.html). Crustal types representing properties in the crystalline crust are assigned according to basement age or tectonic setting. The classification of the latter loosely follows that of an updated map by Artemieva and Mooney (2001) (http://www.lithosphere.info). Statistical averages of crustal properties in each of these crustal types are extrapolated to areas with no local seismic or gravity constraint. In each 1-degree cell, boundary depth, compressional and shear velocity as well as density is given for 8 layers: water, ice, 3-layer sediment cover and upper, middle and lower crystalline crust. Topography, bathymetry and ice cover are taken from ETOPO1. The sediment cover is essentially that of our sediment model (Laske and Masters, 1997; http://igppweb.ucsd.edu/~sediment.html), with several near-coastal updates. In the sediment cover and the crystalline crust, updated scaling relationships are used to assign compressional and shear velocity as well as density. In an initial step toward LITHO1.0, the model is then validated against our new global group velocity maps for Rayleigh and Love waves, particularly at frequencies between 30 and 40 mHz. CRUST1.0 is then adjusted in areas of extreme misfit where we suspect deficiencies in the crustal model. These currently include some near-coastal areas with thick sediment cover and several larger orogenic belts. Some remaining discrepancies, such as in backarc basins, may result from variations in the deeper uppermost mantle and remain unchanged in CRUST1.0 but will likely be modified in LITHO1.0. CRUST1.0 is available for download.

ICDP Project DeepCHALLA: Reconstructing 250,000 Years of Climate Change and Environmental History on the East African Equator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wolff, C.; Verschuren, D.; Van Daele, M. E.; Waldmann, N.; Meyer, I.; Lane, C. S.; Van der Meeren, T.; Ombori, T.; Kasanzu, C.; Olago, D.

2017-12-01

Sediments on the bottom of Lake Challa, a 92-m deep crater lake on the border of Kenya and Tanzania near Mt. Kilimanjaro, contain a uniquely long and continuous record of past climate and environmental change in easternmost equatorial Africa. Supported in part by the International Continental Scientific Drilling Programme (ICDP), the DeepCHALLA project has now recovered this sediment record down to 214.8 m below the lake floor, with 100% recovery of the uppermost 121.3 m (the last 160 kyr BP) and ca.85% recovery of the older part of the sequence, down to the lowermost distinct reflector identified in seismic stratigraphy. This acoustic basement represents a ca.2-m thick layer of coarsely laminated, diatom-rich organic mud mixed with volcanic sand and silt deposited 250 kyr ago, overlying an estimated 20-30 m of unsampled lacustrine deposits representing the earliest phase of lake development. Down-hole logging produced profiles of in-situ sediment composition that confer an absolute depth- scale to both the recovered cores and the seismic stratigraphy. An estimated 74% of the recovered sequence is finely laminated (varved), and continuously so over the upper 72.3 m (the last 90 kyr). All other sections display at least cm-scale lamination, demonstrating persistence of a tranquil, profundal depositional environment throughout lake history. The sequence is interrupted only by 32 visible tephra layers 2 to 9 mm thick; and by several dozen fine-grained turbidites up to 108 cm thick, most of which are clearly bracketed between a non-erosive base and a diatom-laden cap. Tie points between sediment markers and the corresponding seismic reflectors support a preliminary age model inferring a near-constant rate of sediment accumulation over at least the last glacial cycle (140 kyr BP to present). This great time span combined with the exquisite temporal resolution of the Lake Challa sediments provides great opportunities to study past tropical climate dynamics at both short (inter-annual to decadal) and long (glacial-interglacial) time scales; and to assess the multi-faceted impact of this climate change on the region's freshwater resources, the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems, and the history of the African landscape in which modern humans (our species, Homo sapiens) originally evolved and have lived ever since.

Formation of lacustrine plains in west-central Alaska as a result of permafrost degradation and aggradation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanevskiy, M. Z.; Jorgenson, M. T.; Shur, Y.; O'Donnell, J.; Harden, J. W.; Fortier, D.

2012-12-01

Perennially frozen lacustrine sediments containing a large amount of ground ice comprise a significant part of the upper permafrost of the lowlands of west-central Alaska, including Koyukuk Flats and Innoko Flats. Study sites are located in the discontinuous permafrost zone, where permafrost was encountered mainly within uplifted peat plateaus. The upper part of studied sections is formed by frozen peat up to 3 m thick underlain by lacustrine silt, which is mostly ice-rich. Cryogenic structure of lacustrine sediments at different sites has common features: (1) prevalence of layered, braided, and reticulate cryostructures; (2) high variability in the ice content of sediments; (3) high density and low water content of soil aggregates separated by ice lenses. Volume of visible ice in silt reaches at places 40% and more. The thickness of ice lenses generally varies from 1 to 5 cm and occasionally reaches 10 cm. Remnants of peat plateaus are surrounded by unfrozen bogs and fens, formed as a result of thawing and settling of ice-rich lacustrine silt. Modern thermokarst scars initially form at places where ice-rich silt is not protected by a thick layer of organic material. Further development of thermokarst bogs includes lateral enlargement of thaw bulbs and collapsing of the margins of peat plateaus. Lacustrine silt within taliks is covered by woody peat accumulated under forests during the stage of permafrost plateau formation and then by aquatic sphagnum peat accumulated in taliks after collapse. We relate the formation of ice-rich lacustrine sediments to development of lake thermokarst, which affected ice-rich silty yedoma deposits during the transition from Pleistocene to Holocene. Terrain development in lacustrine lowlands of west-central Alaska includes five stages related to permafrost aggradation and degradation from the late Pleistocene to the present time: 1) formation of the ice-rich syngenetic permafrost (yedoma) during the late Pleistocene; 2) yedoma degradation in the yearly Holocene and formation of thaw lakes; 3) complete yedoma degradation under thaw lakes and refreezing of thawed sediments at elevated areas; 4) peat accumulation and freezing of sediments in thaw lake basins; and 5) new cycle of thermokarst and formation of taliks under thaw lakes, bogs and fens. Stages of terrain development of lacustrine lowlands since the Late Pleistocene

Determination of Soft Lithology Causes The Land Subsidence in Coastal Semarang City by Resistivity Methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Widada, Sugeng; Saputra, Sidhi; Hariadi

2018-02-01

Semarang City is located in the northern coastal plain of Java which is geologically composed of alluvial deposits. The process of the sediment diagenesis has caused a land subsidence. On the other hand, the development of the industrial, service, education and housing sectors has increased the number of building significantly. The number of building makes the pressure of land surface increased, and finally, this also increased the rate of land subsidence. The drilling data indicates that not all layers of lithology are soft layers supporting the land subsidence. However, vertical distribution of the soft layer is still unclear. This study used Resistivity method to map out the soft zone layers of lithology. Schlumberger electrode configuration with sounding system method was selected to find a good vertical resolution and maximum depth. The results showed that the lithology layer with resistivity less than 3 ohm is a layer of clay and sandy clay that has the low bearing capacity so easily compressed by pressure load. A high land subsidence is happening in the thick soft layer. The thickness of that layer is smaller toward the direction of avoiding the beach. The improvement of the bearing capacity of this layer is expected to be a solution to the problem of land subsidence.

The crustal thickness of West Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaput, J.; Aster, R. C.; Huerta, A.; Sun, X.; Lloyd, A.; Wiens, D.; Nyblade, A.; Anandakrishnan, S.; Winberry, J. P.; Wilson, T.

2014-01-01

P-to-S receiver functions (PRFs) from the Polar Earth Observing Network (POLENET) GPS and seismic leg of POLENET spanning West Antarctica and the Transantarctic Mountains deployment of seismographic stations provide new estimates of crustal thickness across West Antarctica, including the West Antarctic Rift System (WARS), Marie Byrd Land (MBL) dome, and the Transantarctic Mountains (TAM) margin. We show that complications arising from ice sheet multiples can be effectively managed and further information concerning low-velocity subglacial sediment thickness may be determined, via top-down utilization of synthetic receiver function models. We combine shallow structure constraints with the response of deeper layers using a regularized Markov chain Monte Carlo methodology to constrain bulk crustal properties. Crustal thickness estimates range from 17.0±4 km at Fishtail Point in the western WARS to 45±5 km at Lonewolf Nunataks in the TAM. Symmetric regions of crustal thinning observed in a transect deployment across the West Antarctic Ice Sheet correlate with deep subice basins, consistent with pure shear crustal necking under past localized extension. Subglacial sediment deposit thicknesses generally correlate with trough/dome expectations, with the thickest inferred subice low-velocity sediment estimated as ˜0.4 km within the Bentley Subglacial Trench. Inverted PRFs from this study and other published crustal estimates are combined with ambient noise surface wave constraints to generate a crustal thickness map for West Antarctica south of 75°S. Observations are consistent with isostatic crustal compensation across the central WARS but indicate significant mantle compensation across the TAM, Ellsworth Block, MBL dome, and eastern and western sectors of thinnest WARS crust, consistent with low density and likely dynamic, low-viscosity high-temperature mantle.

The Record of Tsunamis and Storms in a Coastal Mangrove Pond, NW Puerto Rico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaffe, B. E.; Buckley, M. L.; Watt, S. G.; Moya, J. C.; Richmond, B. M.; Gelfenbaum, G. R.; La Selle, S.

2017-12-01

The written record of tsunamis in the Caribbean extends back over 500 years, yet, is incomplete. In particular, it is not known whether great earthquakes or submarine landslides near the Puerto Rico Trench have generated large tsunamis that impact the north coast of Puerto Rico. We cored a coastal mangrove pond in NW Puerto Rico to search for tsunami deposits. The pond extends from 150 to 350 m from the shoreline, and is 0.5 m above sea level. The area between the pond and the ocean presently has a high of 3 m above sea level, but had dunes up to 10 m high before they were mined for sand beginning in the 1960s. Pond sediments are predominately mud or mangrove peat and contain prominent sand layers. At the sediment surface, a tabular sandy overwash deposit up to 40 cm thick extends inland approximately 30 m from the pond's seaward edge and abruptly ends. This sand layer contains no evidence of vertical grading and was likely formed by one or more recent hurricanes, which with the removal of coastal dunes in the 1960s are able to flood the pond. In contrast, underlying the overwash deposit and mangrove peat at a depth of approximately 60 cm is a thin (1 - 7 cm thick) sand layer extending to the landward limit of the pond. This layer has features of a tsunami deposit, including suspension grading, which is a specific type of normal grading where the entire grain-size distribution shifts to finer sizes upward that is created when sediment settles out of suspension as a high-speed flow wanes, an erosive basal contact, and an organic cap. In addition, couplets or triplets of sand inter-layered with mud are present within the thin sandy layer at some locations. Alternation of sand and mud layers at this scale is a signature of series of tsunami waves. Radiocarbon dates from organic material above and below the thin sand layer constrain deposition as occurring sometime from 1446 to 1919 AD. We present the features of the coastal mangrove pond deposits and evaluate whether these deposits could be correlated with an extreme wave overwash that left a deposit on Anegada, BVI, sometime between 1200 and 1480 AD, which would support a great Puerto Rico Trench earthquake and tsunami about 600 years ago.

Process Study of Sorted Patterns on Arctic Soils

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-03-01

thick layer of a coarse mixture of beach sediments . INSTRUMENTATION Based on our past work we were able to design instrumentation that...Washburn, A.L., 1980. Geocryologv: a Survey of Periglacial Processes and Environments, 406 pp., John Wiley and Sons, New York. 17 PUBLICATIONS...38 pages. Submitted for inclusion in Periglacial Geomorphology. Proceedings of the 1991 Binghampton Geomorphology Symposium, to be

Chesapeake Bay impact structure: Morphology, crater fill, and relevance for impact structures on Mars

USGS Publications Warehouse

Horton, J. Wright; Ormo, J.; Powars, D.S.; Gohn, G.S.

2006-01-01

The late Eocene Chesapeake Bay impact structure (CBIS) on the Atlantic margin of Virginia is one of the largest and best-preserved "wet-target" craters on Earth. It provides an accessible analog for studying impact processes in layered and wet targets on volatile-rich planets. The CBIS formed in a layered target of water, weak clastic sediments, and hard crystalline rock. The buried structure consists of a deep, filled central crater, 38 km in width, surrounded by a shallower brim known as the annular trough. The annular trough formed partly by collapse of weak sediments, which expanded the structure to ???85 km in diameter. Such extensive collapse, in addition to excavation processes, can explain the "inverted sombrero" morphology observed at some craters in layered targets. The distribution of crater-fill materials i n the CBIS is related to the morphology. Suevitic breccia, including pre-resurge fallback deposits, is found in the central crater. Impact-modified sediments, formed by fluidization and collapse of water-saturated sand and silt-clay, occur in the annular trough. Allogenic sediment-clast breccia, interpreted as ocean-resurge deposits, overlies the other impactites and covers the entire crater beneath a blanket of postimpact sediments. The formation of chaotic terrains on Mars is attributed to collapse due to the release of volatiles from thick layered deposits. Some flat-floored rimless depressions with chaotic infill in these terrains are impact craters that expanded by collapse farther than expected for similar-sized complex craters in solid targets. Studies of crater materials in the CBIS provide insights into processes of crater expansion on Mars and their links to volatiles. ?? The Meteoritical Society, 2006.

Continuous and Episodic Modern Sediment Accumulation on Monterey Fan: Evidence from Ddt, 137Cs and Excess 210Pb

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gwiazda, R.; Paull, C. K.; Alexander, C. R.; Ussler, W.

2012-12-01

The mode and magnitude of fine-grained sediment accumulation on the Monterey Fan off the California central coast was investigated using pesticide concentrations and radioactive tracer profiles in sediment cores. DDT is a man-made pesticide that was used extensively in central California between 1945 and 1970. As such, its presence in marine sediments is a telltale sign of a modern sedimentation age. DDT and its metabolites, DDE and DDD, (collectively referred to as DDTr) were measured in fifty-five ~20cm-long sediment cores collected from the surface of the Monterey Fan up to 250 km to the south and 210 km to the west of the Monterey Canyon head, and in four transects across the Monterey Canyon channel at maximum water depths of 3160, 3380, 3580, and 3880 meters. Profiles of excess 210Pb (210Pbxs) and 137Cs were measured in 5 cores from the Fan to estimate recent sedimentation rates. Detectable levels of DDTr were observed in all but one of these cores, with DDTr concentrations characteristically highest at the surface and decreasing with depth. The area-normalized and depth-integrated DDTr content measured in all the cores in the Fan and in the deepest two channel transects was geographically fairly homogenous, with no statistical relationship between DDTr inventory and distance from the main channel crossing the Fan. The total sediment mass deposited on the Fan over the last 60 years, inferred from the total inventory of DDTr present in the area surveyed, is consistent with the amount of sediment delivered by the Salinas River over the same time period. 210Pbxs activities are fairly homogeneous within an uppermost layer of variable thickness (4.6-8cm) and decrease exponentially below it, but these exponential decreases are often interrupted by horizons with constant or increased 210Pbxs activity. Moreover, the coexistence of variable DDTr concentrations with homogeneous 210Pbxs activities in the top sediment indicates that the uniformity of 210Pbxs is not due primarily to bioturbation but rather the result of deposition of thick layers with constant 210Pbxs. These data indicate that fine-grained sedimentation on the Monterrey Fan appears to have a dual modality consisting of sustained slow accumulation at a modest rate during quiescent periods interrupted by episodes of rapid accumulation during discrete events. Median sedimentation rates during quiescent periods are 0.07 cm yr-1, but over the 110 year period of detectable 210Pbxs, which includes both slow continuous sedimentation and rapid accumulation events, the median overall sedimentation rate, calculated from the deepest detectable 210Pbxs samples, is 0.19 cm yr-1. On a per mass basis, sedimentation on the Fan has been equally divided between periods of continual slow accumulation and episodes of fast accumulation. The rapidly deposited layers on the Monterey Fan are inferred to result from the injection of fluvial sediments onto the Fan during episodic and exceptionally large floods of the Salinas River.

Using XRF Geochemical Data to Differentiate Storm Event Deposits in a Backbarrier Lake in Coastal Louisiana

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dietz, M.; Liu, K. B.; Bianchette, T. A.; Yao, Q.; McCloskey, T.

2016-12-01

Hurricanes Gustav and Ike consecutively impacted coastal Louisiana in 2008 and generated significant storm surges. Three sediment cores taken from Bay Champagne, a coastal backbarrier lake near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, clearly show a deposition layer of clastic sediment up to 17 cm thick attributable to these two storms. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis indicates that the two storm events can be distinguished from one another based on contrasting geochemical profiles. The bottom layer, presumably deposited by Hurricane Gustav, has high concentrations of S, Cl, Ca, and Sr, suggesting a strong marine influence. The top layer, presumably attributed to Hurricane Ike, has high concentrations of Ti, Mn, Fe and Zn, indicative of material of terrestrial origin. The elemental concentration profiles suggest that the storm deposits in each core were deposited through two distinct hydrological processes: a storm surge -driven marine intrusion during Hurricane Gustav, followed by intensive freshwater flooding during Hurricane Ike. Using these deposits as modern analogs, this technique could be applied to characterize older storm layers in the sedimentary record and potentially provide information about their respective depositional mechanisms.

Effects of shallow-layer reverberation on measurement of teleseismic P-wave travel times for ocean bottom seismograph data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Obayashi, Masayuki; Ishihara, Yasushi; Suetsugu, Daisuke

2017-03-01

We conducted synthetic experiments to evaluate the effects of shallow-layer reverberation in oceanic regions on P-wave travel times measured by waveform cross-correlation. Time shift due to waveform distortion by the reverberation was estimated as a function of period. Reverberations in the crystalline crust advance the P-waves by a frequency-independent time shift of about 0.3 s in oceans. Sediment does not affect the time shifts in the mid-ocean regions, but effects as large as -0.8 s or more occur where sediment thickness is greater than 600 m for periods longer than 15 s. The water layer causes time delays (+0.3 s) in the relatively shallow (<3500 m) water region for periods longer than 20 s. The time shift may influence mantle images obtained if the reverberation effects are not accounted for in seismic tomography. We propose a simple method to correct relative P-wave travel times at two sites for shallow-layer reverberation by the cross-convolution of the crustal responses at the two sites. [Figure not available: see fulltext. Caption: .

Drilling, construction, geophysical log data, and lithologic log for boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho

USGS Publications Warehouse

Twining, Brian V.; Hodges, Mary K.V.; Schusler, Kyle; Mudge, Christopher

2017-07-27

Starting in 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, drilled and constructed boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A for stratigraphic framework analyses and long-term groundwater monitoring of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory in southeast Idaho. Borehole USGS 142 initially was cored to collect rock and sediment core, then re-drilled to complete construction as a screened water-level monitoring well. Borehole USGS 142A was drilled and constructed as a monitoring well after construction problems with borehole USGS 142 prevented access to upper 100 feet (ft) of the aquifer. Boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A are separated by about 30 ft and have similar geology and hydrologic characteristics. Groundwater was first measured near 530 feet below land surface (ft BLS) at both borehole locations. Water levels measured through piezometers, separated by almost 1,200 ft, in borehole USGS 142 indicate upward hydraulic gradients at this location. Following construction and data collection, screened water-level access lines were placed in boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A to allow for recurring water level measurements.Borehole USGS 142 was cored continuously, starting at the first basalt contact (about 4.9 ft BLS) to a depth of 1,880 ft BLS. Excluding surface sediment, recovery of basalt, rhyolite, and sediment core at borehole USGS 142 was approximately 89 percent or 1,666 ft of total core recovered. Based on visual inspection of core and geophysical data, material examined from 4.9 to 1,880 ft BLS in borehole USGS 142 consists of approximately 45 basalt flows, 16 significant sediment and (or) sedimentary rock layers, and rhyolite welded tuff. Rhyolite was encountered at approximately 1,396 ft BLS. Sediment layers comprise a large percentage of the borehole between 739 and 1,396 ft BLS with grain sizes ranging from clay and silt to cobble size. Sedimentary rock layers had calcite cement. Basalt flows ranged in thickness from about 2 to 100 ft and varied from highly fractured to dense, and ranged from massive to diktytaxitic to scoriaceous, in texture.Geophysical logs were collected on completion of drilling at boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A. Geophysical logs were examined with available core material to describe basalt, sediment and sedimentary rock layers, and rhyolite. Natural gamma logs were used to confirm sediment layer thickness and location; neutron logs were used to examine basalt flow units and changes in hydrogen content; gamma-gamma density logs were used to describe general changes in rock properties; and temperature logs were used to understand hydraulic gradients for deeper sections of borehole USGS 142. Gyroscopic deviation was measured to record deviation from true vertical at all depths in boreholes USGS 142 and USGS 142A.

Airborne thickness and freeboard measurements over the McMurdo Ice Shelf, Antarctica, and implications for ice density

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rack, Wolfgang; Haas, Christian; Langhorne, Pat J.

2013-11-01

We present airborne measurements to investigate the thickness of the western McMurdo Ice Shelf in the western Ross Sea, Antarctica. Because of basal accretion of marine ice and brine intrusions conventional radar systems are limited in detecting the ice thickness in this area. In November 2009, we used a helicopter-borne laser and electromagnetic induction sounder (EM bird) to measure several thickness and freeboard profiles across the ice shelf. The maximum electromagnetically detectable ice thickness was about 55 m. Assuming hydrostatic equilibrium, the simultaneous measurement of ice freeboard and thickness was used to derive bulk ice densities ranging from 800 to 975 kg m-3. Densities higher than those of pure ice can be largely explained by the abundance of sediments accumulated at the surface and present within the ice shelf, and are likely to a smaller extent related to the overestimation of ice thickness by the electromagnetic induction measurement related to the presence of a subice platelet layer. The equivalent thickness of debris at a density of 2800 kg m-3 is found to be up to about 2 m thick. A subice platelet layer below the ice shelf, similar to what is observed in front of the ice shelf below the sea ice, is likely to exist in areas of highest thickness. The thickness and density distribution reflects a picture of areas of basal freezing and supercooled Ice Shelf Water emerging from below the central ice shelf cavity into McMurdo Sound.

An Eulerian two-phase model for steady sheet flow using large-eddy simulation methodology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Zhen; Hsu, Tian-Jian; Chauchat, Julien

2018-01-01

A three-dimensional Eulerian two-phase flow model for sediment transport in sheet flow conditions is presented. To resolve turbulence and turbulence-sediment interactions, the large-eddy simulation approach is adopted. Specifically, a dynamic Smagorinsky closure is used for the subgrid fluid and sediment stresses, while the subgrid contribution to the drag force is included using a drift velocity model with a similar dynamic procedure. The contribution of sediment stresses due to intergranular interactions is modeled by the kinetic theory of granular flow at low to intermediate sediment concentration, while at high sediment concentration of enduring contact, a phenomenological closure for particle pressure and frictional viscosity is used. The model is validated with a comprehensive high-resolution dataset of unidirectional steady sheet flow (Revil-Baudard et al., 2015, Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 767, 1-30). At a particle Stokes number of about 10, simulation results indicate a reduced von Kármán coefficient of κ ≈ 0.215 obtained from the fluid velocity profile. A fluid turbulence kinetic energy budget analysis further indicates that the drag-induced turbulence dissipation rate is significant in the sheet flow layer, while in the dilute transport layer, the pressure work plays a similar role as the buoyancy dissipation, which is typically used in the single-phase stratified flow formulation. The present model also reproduces the sheet layer thickness and mobile bed roughness similar to measured data. However, the resulting mobile bed roughness is more than two times larger than that predicted by the empirical formulae. Further analysis suggests that through intermittent turbulent motions near the bed, the resolved sediment Reynolds stress plays a major role in the enhancement of mobile bed roughness. Our analysis on near-bed intermittency also suggests that the turbulent ejection motions are highly correlated with the upward sediment suspension flux, while the turbulent sweep events are mostly associated with the downward sediment deposition flux.

An interpretation of carbon and sulfur relationships in Black Sea sediments as indicators of environments of deposition

USGS Publications Warehouse

Leventhal, J.S.

1983-01-01

Syngenetic iron sulfides in sediments are formed from dissolved sulfide resulting from sulfate reduction and catabolism of organic matter by anaerobic bacteria. It has been shown that in recent marine sediments deposited below oxygenated waters there is a constant relationship between reduced sulfur and organic carbon which is generally independent of the environment of deposition. Reexamination of data from recent sediments from euxinic marine environments (e.g., the Black Sea) also shows a linear relationship between carbon and sulfur, but the slope is variable and the line intercepts the S axis at a value between 1 and 2 percent S. It is proposed that the positive S intercept is due to watercolumn microbial reduction of sulfate using metabolizable small organic molecules and the sulfide formed is precipitated and accumulates at the sediment-water interface. The variation in slope and intercept of the C to S plots for several cores and for different stratigraphic zones for the Black Sea can be interpreted in relation to thickness of the aqueous sulfide layer or thinness of the oxygen containing layer and to deposition rate, but also may be influenced by availability of iron, and perhaps the type of organic matter (Leventhal, 1979). ?? 1983.

Sediment morpho-dynamics induced by a swirl-flow: an experimental study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonzalez-Vera, Alfredo; Duran-Matute, Matias; van Heijst, Gertjan

2016-11-01

This research focuses on a detailed experimental study of the effect of a swirl-flow over a sediment bed in a cylindrical domain. Experiments were performed in a water-filled cylindrical rotating tank with a bottom layer of translucent polystyrene particles acting as a sediment bed. The experiments started by slowly spinning the tank up until the fluid had reached a solid-body rotation at a selected rotation speed (Ωi). Once this state was reached, a swirl-flow was generated by spinning-down the system to a lower rotation rate (Ωf). Under the flow's influence, particles from the bed were displaced, which changed the bed morphology, and under certain conditions, pattern formation was observed. Changes in the bed height distribution were measured by utilizing a Light Attenuation Technique (LAT). For this purpose, the particle layer was illuminated from below. Images of the transmitted light distribution provided quantitative information about the local thickness of the sediment bed. The experiments revealed a few characteristic regimes corresponding to sediment displacement, pattern formation and the occurrence of particle pick-up. Such regimes depend on both the Reynolds (Re) and Rossby (Ro) numbers. This research is funded by CONACYT (Mexico) through the Ph.D. Grant (383903) and NWO (the Netherlands) through the VENI Grant (863.13.022).

Constraints on the Lithospheric Strength at Volcanic Rifted Margins from the Geometry of Seaward Dipping Reflectors Using Analytic and Numerical Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, X.; Buck, W. R.

2017-12-01

Seaward dipping reflectors (SDRs) are found at many rifted margins. Drilling indicates SDRs are interbedded layers of basalts and sediments. Multi-channel seismic reflection data show SDRs with various width (2 100 km), thickness (1 15 km) and dip angles (0 30). Recent studies use analytic thin plate models (AtPM) to describe plate deflections under volcanic loads. They reproduce a wide range of SDRs structures without detachment faulting. These models assume that the solidified dikes provide downward loads at the rifting center. Meanwhile, erupted lava flows and sediments fill in the flexural depression and further load the lithosphere. Because the strength of the lithosphere controls the amount and wavelength of bending, the geometries of SDRs provide a window into the strength of the lithosphere during continental rifting. We attempt to provide a quantitative mapping between the SDR geometry and the lithospheric strength and thickness during rifting. To do this, we first derive analytic solutions to two observables that are functions of effective elastic thickness (Te). One observable (Xf) is the horizontal distance for SDRs to evolve from flat layers to the maximum bent layers. Another observable is the ratio between the thickness and the tangent of the maximum slope of SDRs at Xf. We then extend the AtPM to numerical thin plate models (NtPM) with spatially restricted lava flows. AtPM and NtPM show a stable and small relative difference in terms of the two observables with different values of Te. This provides a mapping of Te between NtPM and AtPM models. We also employ a fully two-dimensional thermal-mechanical treatment with elasto-visco-plastic rheology to simulate SDRs formation. These models show that brittle yielding due to bending can reduce the Te of the lithosphere by as much as 50% of the actual brittle lithospheric thickness. Quantification of effects of plastic deformation on bending allow us to use Te to link SDRs geometries to brittle lithospheric thickness. From published seismic reflection data, we obtain a global map of Te at volcanic rifted margins that ranges from 2 12 km using the AtPM and NtPM mapping. The corresponding brittle lithospheric thickness ranges from 6 20 km. In addition, preliminary results show Te increases along a given margin with distance away from a Large Igneous Province.

The influence of buried nodules on the mobility of metals in deep sea sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heller, Christina; Kuhn, Thomas

2017-04-01

Hydrothermal fluids can extract significant amounts of heat from oceanic lithosphere by lateral fluid flow through permeable basaltic crust of an age of up to 65 Ma. Fluid recharge and discharge occur at basement outcrops in between impermeable pelagic deep sea sediments. Recharge of oxic seawater causes upward oxygen diffusion into sediments overlying the permeable basalt in areas proximal to recharge sites. It is suggested that this oxygen has a strong impact on sediments and Mn-nodules during fluid exposure time. The aim of this study is to investigate if/how fluid flow through oceanic crust influence the distribution and element budget of Mn-nodules. Nodules occur widespread at the seafloor of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) in the equatorial North Pacific and were analyzed in many studies worldwide. Nodules buried in the deep sea sediments could be found only rarely (von Stackelberg, 1997, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 119: 153-176). High resolution side-scan sonar recordings (unpublished Data BGR Hannover) indicate that there exist a coherent layer of nodules buried in the sediments of the working area. During the expedition SO 240/FLUM nodules were found on the sediment surface in 4200 to 4300 m water depth as well as in the sediment down to 985 cm below seafloor. In general, nodules consist of different nm- to µm-thick, dense and porous layers. The geochemical composition of bulk nodules and single nodule layers were determined by XRF, ICP-MS/OES, XRD and by high resolution analyses with electron microprobe and LA-ICP-MS. Dense layers have low Mn/Fe ratios (<4) and high concentrations of Co, Zr and REY, while porous layers are characterized by high Mn/Fe ratios (> 10) and high Ni+Cu and Li concentrations. The different compositions depend on different formation processes of the layers. They were formed by metal precipitation from oxic (hydrogenetic) and suboxic (diagenetic) bottom-near seawater and/or pore water (Wegorzewski and Kuhn, 2014, Mar. Geol. 357, 123-138). Preliminary results show that there are significant differences between the geochemical composition of nodules grown at sediment surface and those found within sediments. Compared to surface nodules, buried nodules are enriched in Co and W, but have lower concentration of Mo, Ba, Zn and Li. The distribution of Rare Earth Elements and Y(REY) is also different. Furthermore, the locations of the buried manganese nodules correlates with increased contents of Mn, Co and other elements in the suboxic pore water. It seems that the hydrogenetic layers of the buried nodules were dissolved and/ or recrystallized due to diagenetic processes in the sediment. As a result, a new Fe-rich layer type was formed, with Mn being released into the pore water and/or being used to form todorokite in the nodules. The mineralogical analyses of surface and buried nodules support this assumption. Until now, it couldńt be proven that the hydrothermal fluid flow in the basalts underneath the sediments has an influence on the nodule geochemistry.

Modeled tephra ages from lake sediments, base of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schiff, C J; Kaufman, D S; Wallace, K L

2007-02-25

A 5.6-m-long lake sediment core from Bear Lake, Alaska, located 22 km southeast of Redoubt Volcano, contains 67 tephra layers deposited over the last 8750 cal yr, comprising 15% of the total thickness of recovered sediment. Using 12 AMS {sup 14}C ages, along with the {sup 137}Cs and {sup 210}Pb activities of recent sediment, we evaluated different models to determine the age-depth relation of sediment, and to determine the age of each tephra deposit. The age model is based on a cubic smooth spline function that was passed through the adjusted tephra-free depth of each dated layer. The estimated agemore » uncertainty of the 67 tephras averages {+-} 105 yr (1{sigma}). Tephra-fall frequency at Bear Lake was among the highest during the past 500 yr, with eight tephras deposited compared to an average of 3.7 per 500 yr over the last 8500 yr. Other periods of increased tephra fall occurred 2500-3500, 4500-5000, and 7000-7500 cal yr. Our record suggests that Bear Lake experienced extended periods (1000-2000 yr) of increased tephra fall separated by shorter periods (500-1000 yr) of apparent quiescence. The Bear Lake sediment core affords the most comprehensive tephrochronology from the base of the Redoubt Volcano to date, with an average tephra-fall frequency of once every 130 yr.« less

An ultra-high resolution last deglacial marine sediment records of the Northwest Atlantic Ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rashid, H.; Piper, D.; Marche, B.; Vermooten, M.; Lazar, K.; Brockway, B.

2016-12-01

Lack of high sedimentation rate records of past changes pertaining to the late Pleistocene Laurentide ice-sheet (LIS) dynamics has prevented efforts to differentiate the various forcings in modulating abrupt climate changes. Here, we present an ultra-high resolution sediment record spanning approximately 1,500 km of the Eastern Canadian continental margin. The new record comprises four sediment cores which were collected from the northwest Labrador Sea (i.e., Saglek Bank) to southwestern Flemish Pass to the southeast Grand Banks in outer shelf and slope settings. Fifty new 14C-accelerator mass spectrometric dates were obtained to construct the stratigraphy. The total sediment thickness of the new record is 41 m covering the past 26 ka with 1.58/ka mean sediment rate, the highest sediment rate ever reported from the Northwest Atlantic Ocean for this time interval. Further, the temporal resolution of the record varies from a couple of decades to centuries depending on the time interval. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) data in conjunction with physical properties of sediments and petrology allowed us to distinguish sediment delivered by major ice-streams of the LIS namely the Hudson Strait, Hopedale Saddle, and Cumberland Sound ice streams. Heinrich layers 1 and 2 are well identified by their Labrador Sea specific characteristics. The so-called Younger Dryas equivalent Heinrich layer H0 was identified in these cores but the timing of onset of H0 has an offset by nearly 1,000 years with that of the 12.9 ka, suggesting that the YD event was not initiated by the Hudson Strait compared to other Heinrich events.

Importance of the colmation layer in the transport and removal of cyanobacteria, viruses, and dissolved organic carbon during natural lake-bank filtration

USGS Publications Warehouse

Harvey, Ronald W.; Metge, David W.; LeBlanc, Denis R.; Underwood, Jennifer C.; Aiken, George R.; Butler, Kenna D.; McCobb, Timothy D.; Jasperse, Jay

2015-01-01

This study focused on the importance of the colmation layer in the removal of cyanobacteria, viruses, and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) during natural bank filtration. Injection-and-recovery studies were performed at two shallow (0.5 m deep), sandy, near-shore sites at the southern end of Ashumet Pond, a waste-impacted, kettle pond on Cape Cod, MA, that is subject to periodic blooms of cyanobacteria and continuously recharges a sole-source drinking-water aquifer. The experiment involved assessing the transport behaviors of bromide (conservative tracer), Synechococcus sp. IU625 (cyanobacterium, 2.6 ± 0.2 µm), AS-1 (tailed cyanophage, 110 nm long), MS2 (coliphage, 26 nm diameter), and carboxylate-modified microspheres (1.7 µm diameter) introduced to the colmation layer using a bag-and-barrel (Lee-type) seepage meter. The injectate constituents were tracked as they were advected across the pond water–groundwater interface and through the underlying aquifer sediments under natural-gradient conditions past push-point samplers placed at ∼30-cm intervals along a 1.2-m-long, diagonally downward flow path. More than 99% of the microspheres, IU625, MS2, AS-1, and ∼44% of the pond DOC were removed in the colmation layer (upper 25 cm of poorly sorted bottom sediments) at two test locations characterized by dissimilar seepage rates (1.7 vs. 0.26 m d−1). Retention profiles in recovered core material indicated that >82% of the attached IU625 were in the top 3 cm of bottom sediments. The colmation layer was also responsible for rapid changes in the character of the DOC and was more effective (by three orders of magnitude) at removing microspheres than was the underlying 20-cm-thick segment of sediment.

Geostatistical Modeling of Sediment Abundance in a Heterogeneous Basalt Aquifer at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho

USGS Publications Warehouse

Welhan, John A.; Farabaugh, Renee L.; Merrick, Melissa J.; Anderson, Steven R.

2007-01-01

The spatial distribution of sediment in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer was evaluated and modeled to improve the parameterization of hydraulic conductivity (K) for a subregional-scale ground-water flow model being developed by the U.S. Geological Survey. The aquifer is hosted within a layered series of permeable basalts within which intercalated beds of fine-grained sediment constitute local confining units. These sediments have K values as much as six orders of magnitude lower than the most permeable basalt, and previous flow-model calibrations have shown that hydraulic conductivity is sensitive to the proportion of intercalated sediment. Stratigraphic data in the form of sediment thicknesses from 333 boreholes in and around the Idaho National Laboratory were evaluated as grouped subsets of lithologic units (composite units) corresponding to their relative time-stratigraphic position. The results indicate that median sediment abundances of the stratigraphic units below the water table are statistically invariant (stationary) in a spatial sense and provide evidence of stationarity across geologic time, as well. Based on these results, the borehole data were kriged as two-dimensional spatial data sets representing the sediment content of the layers that discretize the ground-water flow model in the uppermost 300 feet of the aquifer. Multiple indicator kriging (mIK) was used to model the geographic distribution of median sediment abundance within each layer by defining the local cumulative frequency distribution (CFD) of sediment via indicator variograms defined at multiple thresholds. The mIK approach is superior to ordinary kriging because it provides a statistically best estimate of sediment abundance (the local median) drawn from the distribution of local borehole data, independent of any assumption of normality. A methodology is proposed for delineating and constraining the assignment of hydraulic conductivity zones for parameter estimation, based on the locally estimated CFDs and relative kriging uncertainty. A kriging-based methodology improves the spatial resolution of hydraulic property zones that can be considered during parameter estimation and should improve calibration performance and sensitivity by more accurately reflecting the nuances of sediment distribution within the aquifer.

Using Radar and Seismic Methods for the Determination of Ice Column Properties and Basal Conditions at Jakobshavn Isbrae and the NEEM Drill Site

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Velez Gonzalez, Jose A.

The development of preferred crystal orientation fabrics (COF) within the ice column can have a strong influence on the flow behavior of an ice sheet or glacier. Typically, COF information comes from ice cores. Observations of anisotropic seismic wave propagation and backscatter variation as a function of antenna orientation in GPR measurements have been proposed as methods to detect COF. For this investigation I evaluate the effectiveness of the GPR and seismic methods to detect COF by conducting a seismic and GPR experiment at the North Greenland Eemian Ice Drilling facility (NEEM) ice core location, where COF data is available. The seismic experiment was conducted 6.5 km North West of the NEEM facility and consisted of three multi-offset seismic gathers. The results of the anisotropy analysis conducted at NEEM yielded mean c-axes distributed over a conical region of I angle of 30 to 32 degrees. No internal ice reflectors were imaged. Direct COF measurements collected in the ice core are in agreement with the results from the seismic anisotropy analysis. The GPR experiment covered an area of 100 km2 and consisted of parallel, perpendicular, oblique and circular (radius: 35 m) acquisition patterns. Results show evidence for COF for the entire 100 km2 area. Furthermore, for the first time it was possible to image three different COF (random, disk and single maxima) and their respective transition zones. The interpretation of the GPR experiment showed a strong correlation with the ice core measurements. Glacier basal drag is also an important, and difficult to predict, property that influences glacier flow. For this investigation I re-processed a 10 km-long high-resolution reflection seismic line at Jakobshavn Isbrae, Greenland, using an iterative velocity determination approach for optimizing sub-glacier imaging. The resultant line imaged a sub-glacier sediment layer ranging in thickness between 35 and 200 meters. I interpret three distinct seismic facies based on the geometry of the reflectors as a basal till layer, accreted sediments and re-worked till. The basal till and accreted sediments vary in thickness between 4 and 93 meters and are thought to be water-saturated actively-deforming sub-glacier sediments. A polarity reversal observed at one location along the ice-sediment interface suggests the presence of water saturated sediments or water ponding 2-4 m thick spanning approximately 240 m across. Using information from the seismic line (bed geometry, ice thickness, till thickness) as well as information available for the area of study (ice surface elevation and ice flow velocity) we evaluate the effect of sub-glacier sediment viscosity on the basal drag using a linearly viscous model and the assumption of a deforming bed. Basal drag values estimated for the study area fall within the range of physically acceptable values. However, the analysis revealed that the assumption of a deforming bed might not be compatible for the area of study given the presence of water at the ice/bed interface.

Late Miocene fossils from shallow marine sediments in Brunei Darussalam: systematics, palaeoenvironment and ecology.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roslim, Amajida; Briguglio, Antonino; Kocsis, László; Ćorić, Stjepan; Razak, Hazirah

2016-04-01

The geology of Brunei Darussalam is fascinating but difficult to approach: rainforests and heavy precipitation tend to erode and smoothen the landscape limiting rocks exposure, whereas abundant constructions sites and active quarries allow the creation of short time available outcrop, which have to be immediately sampled. The stratigraphy of Brunei Darussalam comprises mainly Neogene sediments deposited in a wave to tide dominated shallow marine environment in a pure siliciclastic system. Thick and heavily bioturbated sandstone layers alternate to claystone beds which occasionally yield an extraordinary abundance and diversity of fossils. The sandstones, when not bioturbated, are commonly characterized by a large variety of sedimentary structures (e.g., ripple marks, planar laminations and cross beddings). In this study, we investigate the sediments and the fossil assemblages to record the palaeoenvironmental evolution of the shallow marine environment during the late Miocene, in terms of sea level change, chemostratigraphy and sedimentation rate. The study area is one of the best in terms of accessibility, extension, abundance and preservation of fossils; it is located in the region -'Bukit Ambug' (Ambug Hill), Tutong District. The fossils fauna collected encompasses mollusks, decapods, otoliths, shark and ray teeth, amber, foraminifera and coccolithophorids. In this investigation, sediment samples were taken along a section which measures 62.5 meters. A thick clay layer of 9 meters was sampled each 30 cm to investigate microfossils occurrences. Each sample was treated in peroxide and then sieved trough 63 μm, 150μm, 250μm, 450μm, 600μm, 1mm and 2mm sieves. Results point on the changes in biodiversity of foraminifera along the different horizons collected reflecting sea level changes and sediment production. The most abundant taxa identified are Pseoudorotalia schroeteriana, Ampistegina lessonii, Elphidium advenum, Quinqueloculina sp., Bolivina sp., Globigerina sp. Coccolithophorids assemblage recovered from one horizon dates the sediment to the biozone NN11a due to the presence of Discoaster berggrenii and D. quinqueramus, which are both also warm water indicators. The absence of Amaurolithus primus reduces the stratigraphic range to the uppermost Tortonian only (˜7.5-8 Ma).

Heavy metal distributions in Peru Basin surface sediments in relation to historic, present and disturbed redox environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koschinsky, Andrea

Heavy metal distributions in deep-sea surface sediments and pore water profiles from five areas in the Peru Basin were investigated with respect to the redox environment and diagenetic processes in these areas. The 10-20-cm-thick Mn oxide-rich and minor metal-rich top layer is underlain by an increase in dissolved Mn and Ni concentrations resulting from the reduction of the MnO 2 phase below the oxic zone. The mobilised associated metals like Co, Zn and Cu are partly immobilised by sorption on clay, organic or Fe compounds in the post-oxic environment. Enrichment of dissolved Cu, Zn, Ni, Co, Pb, Cd, Fe and V within the upper 1-5 cm of the oxic zone can be attributed to the degradation of organic matter. In a core from one area at around 22-25 cm depth, striking enrichments of these metals in dissolved and solid forms were observed. Offset distributions between oxygen penetration and Mn reduction and the thickness of the Mn oxide-rich layer indicate fluctuations of the Mn redox boundary on a short-term time scale. Within the objectives of the German ATESEPP research programme, the effect of an industrial impact such as manganese nodule mining on the heavy metal cycle in the surface sediment was considered. If the oxic surface were to be removed or disturbed, oxygen would penetrate deep into the formerly suboxic sediment and precipitate Mn 2+ and metals like Ni and Co which are preferably scavenged by MnO 2. The solid enrichments of Cd, V, and other metals formed in post-oxic environments would move downward with the new redox boundary until a new equilibrium between oxygen diffusion and consumption is reached.

OESbathy version 1.0: a method for reconstructing ocean bathymetry with generalized continental shelf-slope-rise structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goswami, A.; Olson, P. L.; Hinnov, L. A.; Gnanadesikan, A.

2015-09-01

We present a method for reconstructing global ocean bathymetry that combines a standard plate cooling model for the oceanic lithosphere based on the age of the oceanic crust, global oceanic sediment thicknesses, plus generalized shelf-slope-rise structures calibrated at modern active and passive continental margins. Our motivation is to develop a methodology for reconstructing ocean bathymetry in the geologic past that includes heterogeneous continental margins in addition to abyssal ocean floor. First, the plate cooling model is applied to maps of ocean crustal age to calculate depth to basement. To the depth to basement we add an isostatically adjusted, multicomponent sediment layer constrained by sediment thickness in the modern oceans and marginal seas. A three-parameter continental shelf-slope-rise structure completes the bathymetry reconstruction, extending from the ocean crust to the coastlines. Parameters of the shelf-slope-rise structures at active and passive margins are determined from modern ocean bathymetry at locations where a complete history of seafloor spreading is preserved. This includes the coastal regions of the North, South, and central Atlantic, the Southern Ocean between Australia and Antarctica, and the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of South America. The final products are global maps at 0.1° × 0.1° resolution of depth to basement, ocean bathymetry with an isostatically adjusted multicomponent sediment layer, and ocean bathymetry with reconstructed continental shelf-slope-rise structures. Our reconstructed bathymetry agrees with the measured ETOPO1 bathymetry at most passive margins, including the east coast of North America, north coast of the Arabian Sea, and northeast and southeast coasts of South America. There is disagreement at margins with anomalous continental shelf-slope-rise structures, such as around the Arctic Ocean, the Falkland Islands, and Indonesia.

Influence of a thin veneer of low-hydraulic-conductivity sediment on modelled exchange between river water and groundwater in response to induced infiltration

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rosenberry, Donald O.; Healy, Richard W.

2012-01-01

A thin layer of fine-grained sediment commonly is deposited at the sediment–water interface of streams and rivers during low-flow conditions, and may hinder exchange at the sediment–water interface similar to that observed at many riverbank-filtration (RBF) sites. Results from a numerical groundwater-flow model indicate that a low-permeability veneer reduces the contribution of river water to a pumping well in a riparian aquifer to various degrees, depending on simulated hydraulic gradients, hydrogeological properties, and pumping conditions. Seepage of river water is reduced by 5–10% when a 2-cm thick, low-permeability veneer is present on the bed surface. Increasing thickness of the low-permeability layer to 0·1 m has little effect on distribution of seepage or percentage contribution from the river to the pumping well. A three-orders-of-magnitude reduction in hydraulic conductivity of the veneer is required to reduce seepage from the river to the extent typically associated with clogging at RBF sites. This degree of reduction is much larger than field-measured values that were on the order of a factor of 20–25. Over 90% of seepage occurs within 12 m of the shoreline closest to the pumping well for most simulations. Virtually no seepage occurs through the thalweg near the shoreline opposite the pumping well, although no low-permeability sediment was simulated for the thalweg. These results are relevant to natural settings that favour formation of a substantial, low-permeability sediment veneer, as well as central-pivot irrigation systems, and municipal water supplies where river seepage is induced via pumping wells

The Effect of Hurricane Lili on the Distribution of Organic Matter in the Inner Louisiana Shelf (Gulf of Mexico, USA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clinton, R.; Goni, M. A.; Gisewhite, R.; Monacci, N.; Gordon, E.; Allison, M.; Kineke, G.

2004-12-01

Suspended particles and surface sediments were collected from the inner shelf of the Louisiana central coast following the passage of Hurricane Lili. The elemental and stable isotopic data of these samples were compared to those determined prior to the hurricane. A week after the storm passage, turbidity levels and total suspended sediment concentrations were not that different from pre-storm values, suggesting most of the suspended sediments must have settled soon after the storm passage. Particulate organic carbon (POC) concentrations ranged from 0.1 mg/L to over 2.0 mg/L, with the highest concentrations measured near the seabed and in the inshore portions of the study area. In these locations, suspended particles displayed high POC/Chlorophyll ratios (POC/Chl of 400 to 4,000) and relatively elevated POC/particulate nitrogen ratios (POC/PN of 10 to 14) that indicated their source was locally resuspended seabed sediments. Relatively low POC/Chl (~200) and POC:PN (~7) ratios consistent with significant contributions from phytoplankton were measured only in the surface waters of the most offshore locations. Post hurricane sediment deposition resulted in a storm layer that ranged from 0.5 to 19 cm in thickness. The storm layer was generally composed of silty clays with a coarser, somewhat sandy 1-2 cm basal layer. These storm deposits were characterized by relatively high SA and OC contents. Similarities in the characteristics of the organic matter before and after reinforce the hypothesis that the source of the storm deposits was the finer fraction of locally resuspended seabed sediments, with little evidence for allochthonous land-derived inputs.

Natural remananent magnetization acquisition through sediment mixing: theory and implications for relative paleointensity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egli, Ramon; Zhao, Xiangyu

2015-04-01

We present a general theory on the acquisition of natural remanent magnetizations (NRM) in sediment under the influence of (a) magnetic torques, (b) randomizing torques (e.g. from bioturbation), and (c) torques resulting from interaction forces between remanence carriers and other particles. Dynamic equilibrium between (a) and (b) in the water column and sediment-water interface produce a detrital remanent magnetization (DRM), while much stronger randomizing forces occur in the mixed layer of sediment due to bioturbation forces. These generate a so-called mixing remanent magnetization (MRM), which is stabilized by interaction forces. During the time required to cross the mixed layer, DRM is lost and MRM is acquired at a rate that depends on bioturbation intensity. Both processes are governed by the same MRM lock-in function. The final NRM intensity is controlled mainly by a single parameter defined as the product of rotational diffusion constant and mixed layer thickness, divided by the sedimentation rate. This parameter defines three regimes: (1) slow mixing, leading to DRM preservation and insignificant MRM acquisition, (2) fast mixing with MRM acquisition and full randomization of the original DRM, and (3) intermediate mixing. Because the acquisition efficiency of DRM is expectedly larger than that of a MRM, MRM is particularly sensitive to the mixing rate in case of intermediate regimes, and generates variable NRM acquisition efficiencies. Our model explains (1) lock-in delays that can be matched with empirical reconstructions from paleomagnetic records, (2) the existence of small lock-in depths leading to DRM preservation, (3) NRM acquisition efficiencies of magnetofossil-rich sediments, and (4) relative paleointensity artifacts reported in some recent studies.

Surface sediment remobilization triggered by earthquakes in the Nankai forearc region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okutsu, N.; Ashi, J.; Yamaguchi, A.; Irino, T.; Ikehara, K.; Kanamatsu, T.; Suganuma, Y.; Murayama, M.

2017-12-01

Submarine landslides triggered by earthquakes generate turbidity currents (e.g. Piper et al., 1988; 1999). Recently several studies report that the remobilization of the surface sediment triggered by earthquakes can also generate turbidity currents. However, studies that proposed such process are still limited (e.g. Ikehara et al., 2016; Mchugh et al., 2016; Moernaut et al., 2017). The purpose of this study is to examine those sedimentary processes in the Nankai forearc region, SW Japan using sedimentary records. We collected 46 cm-long multiple core (MC01) and a 6.7 m-long piston core (PC03) from the small basin during the R/V Shinsei Maru KS-14-8 cruise. The small confined basin, which is our study site, block the paths of direct sediment supply from river-submarine canyon system. The sampling site is located at the ENE-WSW elongated basin between the accretionary prism and the forearc basin off Kumano without direct sediment supply from river-submarine canyon system. The basin exhibits a confined basin that captures almost of sediments supplied from outside. Core samples are mainly composed of silty clay or very fine sand. Cs-137 measurement conducted on a MC01 core shows constantly high value at the upper 17 cm section and no detection below it. Moreover, the sedimentary structure is similar to fine-grained turbidite described by Stow and Shanmgam (1980), we interpret the upper 17 cm of MC01 as muddy turbidite. Grain size distribution and magnetic susceptibility also agree to this interpretation. Rapid sediment deposition after 1950 is assumed and the most likely event is the 2004 off Kii peninsula earthquakes (Mw=6.6-7.4). By calculation from extent of provenance area, which are estimated by paleocurrent analysis and bathymetric map, and thickness of turbidite layer we conclude that surface 1 cm of slope sediments may be remobilized by the 2004 earthquakes. Muddy turbidites are also identified in a PC03 core. The radiocarbon age gap of 170 years obtained around 2 mbsf of PC03 core also indicates similar sedimentary process. However, we also obtained large age gap in a thick turbidite layer, indicating remobilization of deeper sediments by landslide. Our results revealed that the studied basin recorded various scales and styles of sediment remobilizations by earthquake shakings.

Natural remanent magnetization acquisition in bioturbated sediment: General theory and implications for relative paleointensity reconstructions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egli, R.; Zhao, X.

2015-04-01

We present a general theory for the acquisition of natural remanent magnetizations (NRM) in sediment under the influence of (a) magnetic torques, (b) randomizing torques, and (c) torques resulting from interaction forces. Dynamic equilibrium between (a) and (b) in the water column and at the sediment-water interface generates a detrital remanent magnetization (DRM), while much stronger randomizing torques may be provided by bioturbation inside the mixed layer. These generate a so-called mixed remanent magnetization (MRM), which is stabilized by mechanical interaction forces. During the time required to cross the surface mixed layer, DRM is lost and MRM is acquired at a rate that depends on bioturbation intensity. Both processes are governed by a MRM lock-in function. The final NRM intensity is controlled mainly by a single parameter γ that is defined as the product of rotational diffusion and mixed-layer thickness, divided by sedimentation rate. This parameter defines three regimes: (1) slow mixing (γ < 0.2) leading to DRM preservation and insignificant MRM acquisition, (2) fast mixing (γ > 10) with MRM acquisition and full DRM randomization, and (3) intermediate mixing. Because the acquisition efficiency of DRM is larger than that of MRM, NRM intensity is particularly sensitive to γ in case of mixed regimes, generating variable NRM acquisition efficiencies. This model explains (1) lock-in delays that can be matched with empirical reconstructions from paleomagnetic records, (2) the existence of small lock-in depths that lead to DRM preservation, (3) specific NRM acquisition efficiencies of magnetofossil-rich sediments, and (4) some relative paleointensity artifacts.

Coastal geomorphic conditions and styles of storm surge washover deposits from Southern Thailand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Phantuwongraj, Sumet; Choowong, Montri; Nanayama, Futoshi; Hisada, Ken-Ichiro; Charusiri, Punya; Chutakositkanon, Vichai; Pailoplee, Santi; Chabangbon, Akkaneewut

2013-06-01

The characteristics of tropical storm washover deposits laid down during the years 2007 to 2011 along the southern peninsular coast of the Gulf of Thailand (GOT) were described in relation to their different geomorphic conditions, including perched fan, washover terrace and sheetwash lineations preserved behind the beach zone within 100 m of the shoreline. As a result, washover terrace and sheetwash lineations were found where the beach configuration was uniform and promoted an unconfined flow. Non-uniform beach configurations that promoted a confined flow resulted in a perched fan deposit. Washover sediments were differentiated into two types based on sedimentary characteristics, including (i) a thick-bedded sand of multiple reverse grading layers and (ii) a medium-bedded sand of multiple normal grading layers. In the case of thick-bedded washover deposits, the internal sedimentary structures were characterized by the presence of sub-horizontal bedding, reverse grading, lamination, foreset bedding and wavy bedding, whereas, horizontal bedding, normal grading, and dunes were the dominant structures in the medium-bedded washover sand. Rip-up clasts were rare and recognized only in the washover deposits in the bottom unit, which reflects the condition when a mud supply was available. All washover successions were found in the landward inclined-bedding with a basal sharp contact. A high elevated beach ridge associated with a large swale at the backshore proved suitable for a thick-bedded washover type, whereas a small beach ridge with uniformly flat backshore topography promoted a medium-bedded washover sediment.

210Pb, 137Cs and 7Be in the sediments of coastal lakes on the polish coast: Implications for sedimentary processes.

PubMed

Woszczyk, Michał; Poręba, Grzegorz; Malinowski, Łukasz

2017-04-01

In this study we combined radioisotopes ( 210 Pb, 137 Cs and 7 Be) and hydrodynamic modeling to investigate sedimentary processes in three coastal lakes on the Polish Baltic coast. The research aimed at establishing the depth of sediment mixing and its effects on sediment geochemistry as well as showing the relationship between lake water salinity and radionuclide distribution in the sediment cores. We established that the intensity of mixing displayed appreciable variability throughout the lakes and the thickness of sediment mixing layer was between <2 and 22 cm. The mixing was primarily due to wind-induced waves. The vertical mixing was shown to shift sulfidation of the sediments towards deeper layers. We found that the distributions of radioisotopes, 137 Cs in particular, in the sediment cores from coastal lakes were strongly affected by the early diagenetic processes, which caused diffusive migration of radionuclides. The inventories of 210 Pb ex and 137 Cs in the lakes were positively related to salinity. The high inventories of both isotopes (3.2-10.9 kBq ·m -2 for 210 Pb ex and 3.0-6.0 kBq·m -2 for 137 Cs) in coastal lakes were explained by enhanced sedimentation within estuarine mixing zone and delivery of "additional" 210 Pb and 137 Cs to the lakes during saltwater ingressions. The results of this study have implications for the paleolimnology, sedimentology and biogeochemistry of coastal lakes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Northern Victoria Land (western Ross Sea-Antarctica): inner shelf fine sedimentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Colizza, E.; Finocchiaro, F.; Ivaldi, R.; Pittà, A.; Tolotti, R.; Brambati, A.

2003-04-01

The Holocene sedimentation conditions are represented, in the western Ross Sea, by diatomaceous ooze in the uppermost part of sedimentary sequences, while diamicton deposited during Last Glacial Maximum are the basal unit of most cores. Thick layer (> 2 m) of diatomaceous ooze were sampled in the northern Joides Basin and into Granite Harbour. In Drygalski Ice Tongue area and along the coasts of northern Victoria Land, prevails coarse sedimentation, due to seaward flowing of large outlet glacier that drain the Transantarctic Mountain. During 1998-99 and 2001-02 PNRA antarctic cruises, favourable sea ice conditions, has allowed to sample inner shelf area, both in Wood Bay and south of Drygalski ice tongue (Nordenskjold basin). In both sites fine laminated diatomaceous mud are present. Preliminary seismostratigraphy and sedimentological data are here reported. This is the first note of new sites of fine sedimentation in the Ross Sea inner shelf.

Ground penetrating radar study of a thickness of biogenic sediments in the vicinity of the Czechowskie Lake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lamparski, Piotr

2014-05-01

The paper present results of investigations, which have made on a biogenic plain in the north-east part of the vicinity of the Czechowskie Lake. The basin of Lake Czechowskie occupies a deep depression located in the immediate hinterland of the maximum range of the Pomeranian Phase ice sheet in the northern part of Poland (Błaszkiewicz 2005). Drillings carried out within the peat plain in the western part of the lake basin indicate that there are relatively diversified lake sediments of up to 12 m in thickness. The ground penetrating radar profiling method (GPR) was used to determine a thickness of biogenic sediments. To tests was used GSS'I SIR SYSTEM-2000™ radar device with two antennae - the high resolution 400 MHz central frequency - for shallow prospecting of the subsurface layers and the low resolution 35 MHz - for determining the shape of the mineral bedrock. Overall, 33 GPR profiles was made all in all more than 3000 meters along and crosswise the longer axis of the biogenic plain. The range of radar penetration was set to 200 ns for 400 MHz antenna and 600 ns for the 35 MHz one, what is the equivalent respectively 4 m and 12,5 m in depth of biogenic sediments thickness. Horizontal scaling was made by GSSI survey wheel device. The thickness of biogenic sediments recognized by GPR reaches 10 meters only using 35 MHz antenna. In the case of the 400 MHz antenna, relatively high conductivity water-saturated peat and gyttia did not allow for the achievement of greater thickness than 3-4 meters testing. In a large part of the profiles was able to see the shape of the mineral bedrock in the form of a former lake basin. Also observed elevations and thresholds in the bedrock. Depth of the mineral deposits forming former lake bottom was confirmed by drillings. This study is a contribution to the Virtual Institute of Integrated Climate and Landscape Evolution Analysis -ICLEA- of the Helmholtz Association. References: Błaszkiewicz M, 2005. Późnoglacjalna i wczesnoholoceńska ewolucja obniżeń jeziornych na Pojezierzu Kociewskim (wschodnia część Pomorza). (Late Glacial and early Holocene evolution of the lake basins in the Kociewskie Lakeland - eastern part of the Pomeranian Lakeland). Prace Geograficzne, 201.

Salt flow direction and velocity during subsalt normal faulting and syn-kinematic sedimentation—implications from analytical calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warsitzka, M.; Kukowski, N.; Kley, J.

2018-04-01

Salt flow induced by subsalt normal faulting is mainly controlled by tilting of the salt layer, the amount of differential loading due to syn-kinematic deposition, and tectonic shearing at the top or the base of the salt layer. Our study addresses the first two mechanisms and aims to examine salt flow patterns above a continuously moving subsalt normal fault and beneath a syn-kinematic minibasin. In such a setting, salt either tends to flow down towards the basin centre driven by its own weight or is squeezed up towards the footwall side owing to loading differences between the minibasin and the region above the footwall block. Applying isostatic balancing in analytical models, we calculated the steady-state flow velocity in a salt layer. This procedure gives insights into (1) the minimum vertical offset required for upward flow to occur, (2) the magnitude of the flow velocity, and (3) the average density of the supra-salt cover layer at the point at which upward flow starts. In a sensitivity study, we examined how the point of flow reversal and the velocity patterns are influenced by changes of the salt and cover layer thickness, the geometry of the cover flexure, the dip of the subsalt fault, compaction parameters of the supra-salt cover, the salt viscosity and the salt density. Our model results reveal that in most geological scenarios, salt flow above a continuously displacing subsalt normal fault goes through an early phase of downward flow. At sufficiently high fault offset in the range of 700-2600 m, salt is later squeezed upward towards the footwall side. This flow reversal occurs at smaller vertical fault displacement, if the thickness of the pre-kinematic layer is larger, the sedimentation rate of the syn-kinematic cover is higher, the compaction coefficient of cover sediments (i.e. the density increase with depth) is larger or the average density of the salt is lower. Other geometrical parameters such as the width of the cover monocline, the dip of the basement fault or the thickness of the salt layer have no significant influence on the point of reversal, but modify the velocity of the salt flow.

Mapping beneath the seafloor: AUV sub-bottom profilers, sediment thickness and resource potential

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeo, I. A.; Vardy, M. E.; Holwell, D.; North, L.; Murton, B. J.

2017-12-01

Most AUV seafloor exploration focuses primarily on collecting high-resolution bathymetric and backscatter data in order to identify and map features of interest. Sub-bottom profiler data provides an essential third dimension that can illuminate not only the thickness of overlying sediment packets, but also the scale and tectonic setting of surface features. In this study we present results of high-resolution sub-bottom profiler surveys of Tropic Seamount, a 3000m tall, 40km wide, flat-topped gyot located 400km south of the Canary Islands. We show how the application of AUV derived sub-bottom profiler data can be used to assess the thickness and extent of ferromanganese crusts covering the summit and underlying thin pelagic sediment cover. Bespoke chirp signals at two altitudes were used to increase the likelihood of resolving thin (tens of cm) layers of crust. Drill cores were obtained from an ROV and used to constrain and calibrate the profiler data. The cores show variable crustal thicknesses of zero to 14 cm of FeMn crustal cover over a partially phosphoritised, vuggy, often poorly lithified limestone basement. Initial measurements of sound velocities suggest differences between the limestone basement and the crust of only a few hundred meters per second. Sub-cores, drilled from large samples collected during the cruise were analysed in the NOC Acoustic Pulse Tube and with X-Ray Computer Tomography to better understand how variations in lithology, crustal thickness, surface texture and internal structure affect the returning geoacoustic signal. We discuss the pros and cons of different surveying patterns, altitudes and chirps, the relative usefulness of sub-bottom profiler data in different environments, and the value added by sub-bottom profiler surveying as opposed to bathymetric surveying alone.

Holocene Paleolimnological Records from Thule, Northwestern Greenland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corbett, L.; Osterberg, E. C.; Kelly, M. A.; Axford, Y.

2012-12-01

Assessing Holocene climatic and environmental variability around the margin of the Greenland Ice Sheet provides important information against which to compare ice sheet margin fluctuations. Here, we report preliminary results from ongoing research in northwestern Greenland. We present records of physical properties of lake sediments and use these to make inferences about the evolution of the lake and its surroundings over the latter half of the Holocene. We collected two sediment cores, 90 and 72 cm in length, from a small (surface area ~0.3 km2), shallow (maximum depth ~4.5 m) lake at 76°33'40''N 68°26'31''W near Thule Air Base in July 2012. The length of the cores was limited by the length of the core barrel and does not reflect the total thickness of sediment in the lake. The lake is situated within the glacial limit and likely formed subsequent to deglaciation of the region during early Holocene time. No glaciers exist within the lake's catchment today; the primary modern source of sediment is a perennial inflow from the west. We developed a preliminary depth-age model using radiocarbon ages of terrestrial organic macrofossils. Thus far, we have analyzed the sediments for magnetic susceptibility and loss-on-ignition. A radiocarbon age of 6069 ± 90 cal yr BP at the base of the core indicates that the sediments preserve a continuous record of middle to late Holocene conditions. The top of both cores consists of a thick (~12 cm) layer of dark gray unlaminated sediments, while the rest of the material in both cores is lighter brown to olive, finely laminated sediment. The upper layer is characterized by low water content (<25%), low loss-on-ignition (<5%), and high magnetic susceptibility (~150-250 x10-6). Conversely, the laminated sediments beneath have higher water content (~40-50%), higher loss-on-ignition (~5-10%), and much lower magnetic susceptibility (<50 x10-6). We hypothesize that the upper, less organic unit may represent a single event in the lake's recent history. We are refining the depth-age model with more radiocarbon ages, measuring grain size and carbon to nitrogen ratios of the sediments, and evaluating possible linkages between the sediment physical properties and precipitation as recorded by annual accumulation in ice cores in northwestern Greenland and Arctic Canada. This project will provide a foundation for future work in Thule investigating Holocene fluctuations of local ice cap and ice sheet margin positions.

Determining the influential depth for surface reflectance of sediment by BRDF measurements.

PubMed

Zhang, H; Voss, K; Reid, R

2003-10-20

We measure the Bi-directional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) of ooid sand layers with three particle size distributions (0.5-1mm, 0.25-0.5mm and 0.125-0.25mm) and layer thicknesses on a reflecting mirror to determine the influential depth in the optical region at wavelengths of 658 nm (red), 570 nm (green) and 457 nm (blue). The hemispherical reflectance (albedo) was used as an indicator of BRDF changes between different layers. Measurements are carried out on both dry and water wetted grains. The results indicate that for both dry and wet and all size distributions, the influential depth is at most 2mm.

Research of Houjiayao Unit in North China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ji, Y.

2012-12-01

"Houjiayao Group" is the standard stratigraphic unit of late Pleistocene in northern China, which was created by Jia Lanpo and Wei Qi during their research on Houjiayao site. Based on the mammal, ancient human fossils and Paleolithic features, "Houjiayao Group" was thought as late Pleistocene sediments. "Houjiayao Group" was defined as late Pleistocene stratigraphic units. However, the problems of the age of "Houjiayao Group", stratigraphic division and other issues, have not yet been well resolved. These issues include: the differences of age-dating results, the unclear comparison between stratigraphic units and regional contrast, the uncertain relationship between "Houjiayao Group" and "Nihewan Layer ", and so on. Houjiayao site which located in the southeast of Houjiayao village in Dongjingji town Yangyuan County, Hebei province of China, is a very important paleolithic site. But some researches show that Houjiayao site is located at the 3th terrace of Liyigou valley and there are many opinions about the age of Houjiayao site, which varies from 20-500 thousand years. Combined with former research results and many research methods, our study was mainly focused on the key problems existing in the study of "Houjiayao Group". Through the use of sequence stratigraphy, chronostratigraphy, biostratigraphy and other theoretical methods, stratigraphic section was studied in the late Pleistocene stratigraphy and sedimentary environment. Through environmental indicators and the age-dating tests, the evolution of ancient geography and environment were identified elementarily. After analyzing informations of this area, geomorphologic investigation and stratum comparation in and around Houjiayao site were done. Houjiayao site is located on the west bank of Liyigou river, which has a tributary named Black Stone River. Two or three layers of volcanic materials were found in this area, those sediments are from a buried paleovolcano in upstream of Black Stone River. The volcanic material layers played an important role in the track of stratum, especially the lower strata. Heights of volcanic sediments become lower south of paleovolcano along the Liyigou River and Black Stone River. The stratum in Houjiayao site shows that the sand-clayey silt-silty clay sediments which are more than 6 meters thick have river sediments characters and they are covered on the culture layers. Culture layers were formed by river and lake. Among the cultural layers, there were two sub-clay layers weak pedogenesis. There is an unconformity sedimentary sequence between the culture layers and the underlying yellow-green lacustrine strata (Nihewan layer). Some volcanic sediments with the K-Ar ages between 0.4-0.5Ma were found in the gray-green Nihewan formation under the culture layers. In general, detailed stratum surveys of this area have not been done before, so this work provided the Lithostratigraphic information for the area research. And with this work, we get the conclusion that Houjiayao site is not located on the 3th terrace of Liyigou valley, and its sediment is one part of Nihewan layers with the age of late Pleistocene.

Was the extreme and wide-spread marine oil-snow sedimentation and flocculent accumulation (MOSSFA) event during the Deepwater Horizon blow-out unique?

PubMed

Vonk, Sophie M; Hollander, David J; Murk, AlberTinka J

2015-11-15

During the Deepwater Horizon blowout, thick layers of oiled material were deposited on the deep seafloor. This large scale benthic concentration of oil is suggested to have occurred via the process of Marine Oil Snow Sedimentation and Flocculent Accumulation (MOSSFA). This meta-analysis investigates whether MOSSFA occurred in other large oil spills and identifies the main drivers of oil sedimentation. MOSSFA was found to have occurred during the IXTOC I blowout and possibly during the Santa Barbara blowout. Unfortunately, benthic effects were not sufficiently studied for the 52 spills we reviewed. However, based on the current understanding of drivers involved, we conclude that MOSSFA and related benthic contamination may be widespread. We suggest to collect and analyze sediment cores at specific spill locations, as improved understanding of the MOSSFA process will allow better informed spill responses in the future, taking into account possible massive oil sedimentation and smothering of (deep) benthic ecosystems. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Badenian planktonic foraminifera as climate proxies at the southern margin of the Central Paratethys (Ugljevik, Bosnia and Herzegovina)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Theobalt, D.; Mandic, O.

2012-04-01

Badenian transgression is well exposed in the open coal pit Bogutovo Selo near Ugljevik in NE Bosnia and Herzegovina, located at the southern margin of the Pannonian Basin. Middle Miocene marine sediments superpose Late Oligocene lignite bearing lacustrine deposits. The studied succession is about 62 m thick and includes the uppermost part of the lake deposits, comprising clays, sands and coal seams, followed by marine sediments. These consist mainly of gray marls, which show some intercalations of thin, dark clay layers, volcanic ash layers and fossiliferous beds as well as carbonate bodies of different thicknesses. The presence of Orbulina suturalis allows a biostratigraphic correlation of the marine transgression horizon with the upper part of the Lower Badenian. 28 planktonic foraminiferal assemblages were investigated using quantitative analysis to evaluate the climate development during the initial marine flooding by the Paratethys Sea. Further on the samples were statistically treated to find out if there are significant differences in assemblages from the marine sediments deposited before and after the initial Serravallian cooling event coinciding with the onset of the Middle Badenian (Wielician) Salinity Crisis. 17 planktonic foraminiferal species were grouped by their palaeoclimatic significance into cool (Globigerina bulloides, G. praebulloides, G. diplostoma, G. concinna, G. tarchanensis, G. falconensis, Turborotalita quinqueloba), temperate (Globorotalia bykovae, G. transsylvanica, G. peripheroronda, Globoturborotalita woodi), warm-temperate (Globigerinella regularis, Tenuitellinata angustiumbilicata) and warm indicators (Globigerinoides trilobus, G. quadrilobatus, Orbulina suturalis, Globoquadrina cf. altispira). The counts were performed mainly on generic level. Upper Lower Badenian (Upper Lagenidae Zone) is represented in the marly succession in the lower part of the section, where the foraminiferal assemblages indicate warmer conditions with high percentages of warm water indicators. A distinct cooling is shown in the uppermost passage of the lower part, which is followed by a 13 m thick carbonate platform of Wielician age. This transition corresponds to the gradual shift from Greenhouse into Icehouse climate after the late Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum. The superposing marly deposits of the late Wielician age (Earliest Serravallian) contain planktonic foraminiferal assemblages that indicate cooler conditions. The general percentage of cool water indicators is much higher than in the lower Badenian sediments.

Paleo-environments of Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene Foreland-Basin Deposits in the Western Foothills of South-Central Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiu, Tzu-Hsuan; Tien-Shun Lin, Andrew; Chi, Wen-Rong; Wang, Shih-Wei

2017-04-01

Lithofacies and paleo-environmental analyses of the Pliocene-Pleistocene deposits of Taiwan provide a framework to understand the stratigraphic development of foreland basin to the west of the orogenic belt. In this study, we performed lithofacies analyses and biostratigraphic studies on calcareous nannofossils in two areas in south-central Taiwan, the Jhuoshuei River, and the Hushan Reservoir, respectively. The studied lithostratigraphic units are the Chinshui Shale, the Cholan Formation, and the Toukoshan Formation, in an ascending order, with a total stratigraphic thickness more than 3500 m in central Taiwan. Sixteen lithofacies and four lithofacies associations are identified, pertaining to tide-dominated deltaic systems bordering a shallow marine setting in the foreland basin. A few wide-spread layers of thickly-bedded sandstones featuring ball-and-pillow structures are interpreted as resulting from earthquake shaking (i.e., seismites). In addition, the vertical facies change shows a coarsening and shallowing-upward succession, indicating the gradually filling up of the foreland basin by sediment progradation. The progradation is interpreted to result from westward migrating orogenic belt and an increase in sediment supply. The top 2000-m thick foreland succession (i.e., the uppermost part of the Cholan Formation, and the Toukoshan Formation) is dominantly fluvial deposits with occasional intercalations of shoreface sediments, indicating an extremely rapid and balanced rate of basin subsidence and sediment supply for the past 1.5 Ma. Vertebrate fossils of deer and elephants are identified in the upper Cholan Formation deposited in coastal to fluvial settings. Keywords: Pliocene-Pleistocene Epoch, lithofacies, foreland basin, Taiwan

Geology and geologic history of the Moscow-Pullman basin, Idaho and Washington, from late Grande Ronde to late Saddle Mountains time

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bush, John H; Garwood, Dean L; Dunlap, Pamela

2016-01-01

The Moscow-Pullman basin, located on the eastern margin of the Columbia River flood basalt province, consists of a subsurface mosaic of interlayered Miocene sediments and lava flows of the Imnaha, Grande Ronde, Wanapum, and Saddle Mountains Basalts of the Columbia River Basalt Group. This sequence is ~1800 ft (550 m) thick in the east around Moscow, Idaho, and exceeds 2300 ft (700 m) in the west at Pullman, Washington. Most flows entered from the west into a topographic low, partially surrounded by steep mountainous terrain. These flows caused a rapid rise in base level and deposition of immature sediments. This field guide focuses on the upper Grande Ronde Basalt, Wanapum Basalt, and sediments of the Latah Formation.Late Grande Ronde flows terminated midway into the basin to begin the formation of a topographic high that now separates a thick sediment wedge of the Vantage Member to the east of the high from a thin layer to the west. Disrupted by lava flows, streams were pushed from a west-flowing direction to a north-northwest orientation and drained the basin through a gap between steptoes toward Palouse, Washington. Emplacement of the Roza flow of the Wanapum Basalt against the western side of the topographic high was instrumental in this process, plugging west-flowing drainages and increasing deposition of Vantage sediments east of the high. The overlying basalt of Lolo covered both the Roza flow and Vantage sediments, blocking all drainages, and was in turn covered by sediments interlayered with local Saddle Mountains Basalt flows. Reestablishment of west-flowing drainages has been slow.The uppermost Grande Ronde, the Vantage, and the Wanapum contain what is known as the upper aquifer. The water supply is controlled, in part, by thickness, composition, and distribution of the Vantage sediments. A buried channel of the Vantage likely connects the upper aquifer to Palouse, Washington, outside the basin. This field guide locates outcrops; relates them to stratigraphic well data; outlines paleogeographic basin evolution from late Grande Ronde to the present time; and notes structures, basin margin differences, and features that influence upper aquifer water supply.

Using lake sediments from Buarvatnet to reconstruct multiple episodic events found at Folgefonn Peninsula, Norway

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roethe, T.; Bakke, J.; Støren, E.

2016-12-01

Here we present work in progress from Buarvatnet at the Folgefonn Peninsula, located on the west coast of Norway. Earlier work from Buarvatnet indicated several distinct spikes in the Silica count rates, detected by the ITRAX surface XRF-scanner. However, the process behind these distinct spikes was not understood. The arrival of high-resolution and innovative instruments at EARTHLAB, in particular the computed tomography (CT) scanner and grain Morphometer, have the potential to get a process-based understanding of these distinct layers and unravel the frequency and timing of such events. Multiple sediment cores were retrieved using a modified piston corer and a Uwitech corer from Buarvatnet. The sediments have been analysed using a multi-proxy approach and the analyses included magnetic properties, loss-on-ignition, dry bulk density, grain size/shape, geochemical analysis (XRF scanning) and CT-scanning. Accurate age-control will be achieved through 210Pb dating of the top-most sediments and 14C dating of terrestrial macrofossils. The lithostratigraphy of the 3.6 m long master sediment core from Buarvatnet is divided into three distinct units. The lower most unit ( 87 cm) is massive with fine-grained greyish sediments, most likely representing the deglaciation of the area. A 224 cm long unit is found above, characterised as dark brown gyttja with multiple thin layers (sub-mm to cm thick) of fine grained sediments. Also in this unit is two distinct sub-units showing a finer upwards sequence. At top, a gradual transition from dark brown gyttja to grey fine-grained sediments is found in the upper-most 19 cm of the sediment core. In total 16 distinct layers is found in the gyttja sequence, including the two sub-units, based on the lithostratigraphy and the prelimnary results from the magnetic, physical and geochemical properties. A preliminary hypothesis is that these distinct layers are due to outburst floods from a glacier-dammed lake upstream from Buarvatnet. In such a scenario, a bedrock threshold dams the meltwater from the retreating glacier and an outburst flood is triggered when the glacier calves or advances into the lake. Understanding the processes behind the multiple events is therefore important in order to highlight the potential hazards in rapid outburst floods in a warming world.

Possible Origin of High-Amplitude Reflection Packages (HARPs) in the Canada Basin, Arctic Ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lebedeva-Ivanova, Nina; Hutchinson, Deborah; Shimeld, John; Chian, Deping; Hart, Patrick; Jackson, Ruth; Saltus, Richard; Mosher, David

2013-04-01

The Canada Basin (CB) of the Arctic Ocean is a semi-enclosed ocean basin surrounded by the Alaskan and Canadian margins to the south and east, the Alpha-Mendeleev Large Igneous Province (AMLIP) to the north and the subsided continental Chukchi Borderland (ChB) to the west. During 2007-2011, US-Canada expeditions collected ~15,000 km multichannel seismic data and sonobuoy reflection and refraction seismic data with average spacing of ~80 km mostly over the CB and AMLIP. High-amplitude reflective packages (HARPs) underlie the mostly flat-lying sediments of CB. Although HARPs are discontinuous in the central CB, they become more continuous toward ChB and AMLIP. HARPs are often the most reflective events in the seismic section, exceeding even the seafloor reflection. Only rarely are reflections seen beneath HARPs. Where best developed, HARPs are ~100-300 ms TWTT, consisting of several high-amplitude wavelets with a pronounced narrow frequency band within the limits of ~10-30 Hz. This character of HARPs is consistent with patterns produced by constructive interference of thin beds (Widess, 1973). Forward modeling of sonobuoy data, synthetic tests, and frequency analysis of the tuning effect suggest that HARPs are composed of a series of alternating high- and low-velocity layers. The high-velocity layers are ~100-200 m thick with P-velocities of ~3.5-4.5 km/s. The low-velocity layers are about half as thick with velocities of ~2-3 km/s. A broad range of possible interpretations of rock composition exists from these velocities, e.g. sandstone and interbedded shale (Prince Patrick Island, Harrison and Brent, 2005); or tholeiitic basalts flows and sediments (Voring volcanic margin, Olanke and Eldholm, 1994); or sills and sediments (Newfoundland margin, Peron-Pinvidic et all, 2010). HARP can be associated with several origins. In the central and southern CB, where oceanic spreading is interpreted, HARPs are discontinuous among high-relief, but otherwise low-amplitude reflections interpreted to be large basement blocks. These discontinuous HARPs, associated with basement, are presumed synchronous with the seafloor spreading event that opened CB. Further north, near AMLIP, HARPs are more continuous over 10s of km, suggesting an origin associated with magmatism of AMLIP. In several areas in northern CB, HARPs have a shingled, en-echelon character, suggestive of sills intruding younger (i.e., post-rift) sediments. These relations suggest that HARPs are associated with basalts (flows and sills) interbedded with or separated by thinner sediment layers. Although the deep sediments and basement of CB are unsampled, seismic stratigraphic relationships suggest HARPs are of at least two ages: one associated with rifting/seafloor spreading (~125 Ma?) and a younger one associated with a post-rift magmatic pulse on AMLIP (~90-80 Ma?).

Modeled tephra ages from lake sediments, base of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schiff, C.J.; Kaufman, D.S.; Wallace, K.L.; Werner, A.; Ku, T.-L.; Brown, T.A.

2008-01-01

A 5.6-m-long lake sediment core from Bear Lake, Alaska, located 22 km southeast of Redoubt Volcano, contains 67 tephra layers deposited over the last 8750 cal yr, comprising 15% of the total thickness of recovered sediment. Using 12 AMS 14C ages, along with the 137Cs and 210Pb activities of recent sediment, we evaluated different models to determine the age-depth relation of the core, and to determine the age of each tephra deposit. The selected age model is based on a mixed-effect regression that was passed through the adjusted tephra-free depth of each dated layer. The estimated age uncertainty of the 67 tephras averages ??105 yr (95% confidence intervals). Tephra-fall frequency at Bear Lake was among the highest during the past 500 yr, with eight tephras deposited compared to an average of 3.7/500 yr over the last 8500 yr. Other periods of increased tephra fall occurred 2500-3500, 4500-5000, and 7000-7500 cal yr. Our record suggests that Bear Lake experienced extended periods (1000-2000 yr) of increased tephra fall separated by shorter periods (500-1000 yr) of apparent quiescence. The Bear Lake sediment core affords the most comprehensive tephrochronology from the base of the Redoubt Volcano to date, with an average tephra-fall frequency of one every 130 yr. ?? 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

IODP Expedition 351 Izu-Bonin-Mariana Arc Origins: Preliminary Results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishizuka, O.; Arculus, R. J.; Bogus, K.

2014-12-01

Understanding how subduction zones initiate and continental crust forms in intraoceanic arcs requires knowledge of the inception and evolution of a representative intraoceanic arc, such as the Izu-Bonin-Mariana (IBM) Arc system. This can be obtained by exploring regions adjacent to an arc, where unequivocal pre-arc crust overlain by undisturbed arc-derived materials exists. IODP Exp. 351 (June-July 2014) specifically targeted evidence for the earliest evolution of the IBM system following inception. Site U1438 (4711 m water depth) is located in the Amami Sankaku Basin (ASB), west of the Kyushu-Palau Ridge (KPR), a paleo-IBM arc. Primary objectives of Exp. 351 were: 1) determine the nature of the crust and mantle pre-existing the IBM arc; 2) identify and model the process of subduction initiation and initial arc crust formation; 3) determine the compositional evolution of the IBM arc during the Paleogene; 4) establish geophysical properties of the ASB. Seismic reflection profiles indicate a ~1.3 km thick sediment layer overlying ~5.5 km thick igneous crust, presumed to be oceanic. This igneous crust seemed likely to be the basement of the IBM arc. Four holes were cored at Site U1438 spanning the entire sediment section and into basement. The cored interval comprises 5 units: uppermost Unit I is hemipelagic sediment with intercalated ash layers, presumably recording explosive volcanism mainly from the Ryukyu and Kyushu arcs; Units II and III host a series of volcaniclastic gravity-flow deposits, likely recording the magmatic history of the IBM Arc from arc initiation until 25 Ma; Siliceous pelagic sediment (Unit IV) underlies these deposits with minimal coarse-grained sediment input and may pre-date arc initiation. Sediment-basement contact occurs at 1461 mbsf. A basaltic lava flow section dominantly composed of plagioclase and clinopyroxene with rare chilled margins continues to the bottom of the Site (1611 mbsf). The expedition successfully recovered pre-IBM Arc basement, a volcanic and geologic record spanning pre-Arc, Arc initiation to remnant Arc stages, which permits testing for subduction initiation and subsequent Arc evolution.

Millennial-scale record of overwash deposits preserved within lagoon sediments from the Arabian Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griffis, A. M.; Jessica, P.; Reinhardt, E. G.; Kosciuch, T. J.; Kovacs, S. E.; Hoffmann, G.

2017-12-01

Coastlines along the Arabian Sea are susceptible to tsunami-related inundation due to their proximity to the Makran Subduction Zone (MSZ). This subduction zone has seen decades of low intensity events, but has historically produced large tsunamigenic-earthquakes that have impacted the 100 million people living along the Arabian Sea. One major problem in assessing the seismic risk of the MSZ is that the historical record of events are spatially and temporally limited and rely heavily on eye witness accounts. This hinders our ability to forecast the potential magnitude and recurrence intervals of earthquakes and tsunamis that can be expected in the future. Sediments deposited by paleotsunamis are useful as they expand the decadal record of events to include millennial timescales that more accurately capture the full range of magnitudes and recurrence intervals. On November 28, 1945 a 8.1 Mw earthquake originating from the MSZ generated a tsunami inundating coastlines along the Arabian Sea with wave heights up to 13m. At Sur, a small village on the northeastern coastline of Oman, the tsunami deposited a laterally continuous shell-rich layer within a 12 km2 lagoon. This layer contained distinctive taphonomic assemblages of foraminifera and bivalves. Below the 1945 shelly deposit at Sur Lagoon, seven anomalous sand layers were found preserved within fine-grained lagoonal sediment. These layers of medium-coarse sands range in thickness from 5 to 35 cm and are separated by sandy-mud sediment. Grain size analysis shows that these anomalously coarse layers are followed by an abrupt return to lagoonal mud. The sand layers have features consistent with the 1945 tsunami deposit such as fining upward trends, sharp basal contact, and marine foraminifera (e.g., Amphistegina sp., planktics). In contrast, the surrounding lagoon deposits are generally massive, finer in grain size, and contain foraminiferal species typically found in shallow quiescent coastal environments (e.g., Ammonia tepida, miliolids). We have attributed these seven marine sand layers to tsunami overwash deposition. Preliminary radiocarbon dating of articulated bivalve shells establish a late Holocene age range for the tsunami sand layers with ongoing analyses further constraining timings leading to assessing relative magnitudes of past events.

Environmental magnetic methods for detecting and mapping contaminated sediments in lakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boyce, J. I.

2009-05-01

The remediation of contaminated sediments is an urgent environmental priority in the Great Lakes and requires detailed mapping of impacted sediment layer thickness, areal distribution and pollutant levels. Magnetic property measurements of sediment cores from two heavily polluted basins in Lake Ontario (Hamilton Harbour, Frenchman's Bay) show that concentrations of hydrocarbons (PAH) and a number of heavy metals (Pb, As, Ni, Cu, Cr, Zn, Cd, Fe) are strongly correlated with magnetic susceptibility. The magnetic susceptibility contrast between the contaminated sediment and underlying 'pre-colonial' sediments is sufficient to generate a total field anomaly (ca. 2-20 nT) that can be measured with a magnetometer towed above the lake bed. Systematic magnetic surveying (550 line km) of Hamilton Harbour using a towed marine magnetometer clearly identifies a number of well-defined magnetic anomalies that coincide with known accumulations of contaminated lake sediment. When calibrated against in-situ magnetic property measurements, the modeled apparent susceptibility from magnetic survey results can be used to classify the relative contaminant impact levels. The results demonstrate the potential of magnetic property measurements for rapid reconnaissance mapping of large areas of bottom contamination prior to detailed coring and sediment remediation.

Nearshore sediment thickness, Fire Island, New York

USGS Publications Warehouse

Locker, Stanley D.; Miselis, Jennifer L.; Buster, Noreen A.; Hapke, Cheryl J.; Wadman, Heidi M.; McNinch, Jesse E.; Forde, Arnell S.; Stalk, Chelsea A.

2017-04-03

Investigations of coastal change at Fire Island, New York (N.Y.), sought to characterize sediment budgets and determine geologic framework controls on coastal processes. Nearshore sediment thickness is critical for assessing coastal system sediment availability, but it is largely unquantified due to the difficulty of conducting geological or geophysical surveys across the nearshore. This study used an amphibious vessel to acquire chirp subbottom profiles. These profiles were used to characterize nearshore geology and provide an assessment of nearshore sediment volume. Two resulting sediment-thickness maps are provided: total Holocene sediment thickness and the thickness of the active shoreface. The Holocene sediment section represents deposition above the maximum flooding surface that is related to the most recent marine transgression. The active shoreface section is the uppermost Holocene sediment, which is interpreted to represent the portion of the shoreface thought to contribute to present and future coastal behavior. The sediment distribution patterns correspond to previously defined zones of erosion, accretion, and stability along the island, demonstrating the importance of sediment availability in the coastal response to storms and seasonal variability. The eastern zone has a thin nearshore sediment thickness, except for an ebb-tidal deposit at the wilderness breach caused by Hurricane Sandy. Thicker sediment is found along a central zone that includes shoreface-attached sand ridges, which is consistent with a stable or accretional coastline in this area. The thickest overall Holocene section is found in the western zone of the study, where a thicker lower section of Holocene sediment appears related to the westward migration of Fire Island Inlet over several hundred years.

Gas hydrate characterization from a 3D seismic dataset in the deepwater eastern Gulf of Mexico

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McConnell, Daniel; Haneberg, William C.

Seismic stratigraphic features are delineated using principal component analysis of the band limited data at potential gas hydrate sands, and compared and calibrated with spectral decomposition thickness to constrain thickness in the absence of well control. Layers in the abyssal fan sediments are thinner than can be resolved with 50 Hz seismic and thus comprise composite thin-bed reflections. Amplitude vs frequency analysis are used to indicate gas and gas hydrate reflections. Synthetic seismic wedge models show that with 50Hz seismic data, a 40% saturation of a Plio Pleistocene GoM sand in the hydrate stability zone with no subjacent gas canmore » produce a phase change (negative to positive) with a strong correlation between amplitude and hydrate saturation. The synthetic seismic response is more complicated if the gas hydrate filled sediments overlie gassy sediments. Hydrate (or gas) saturation in thin beds enhances the amplitude response and can be used to estimate saturation. Gas hydrate saturation from rock physics, amplitude, and frequency analysis is compared to saturation derived from inversion at several interpreted gas hydrate accumulations in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.« less

Using tsunami deposits to determine the maximum depth of benthic burrowing

PubMed Central

Shirai, Kotaro; Murakami-Sugihara, Naoko

2017-01-01

The maximum depth of sediment biomixing is directly related to the vertical extent of post-depositional environmental alteration in the sediment; consequently, it is important to determine the maximum burrowing depth. This study examined the maximum depth of bioturbation in a natural marine environment in Funakoshi Bay, northeastern Japan, using observations of bioturbation structures developed in an event layer (tsunami deposits of the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake) and measurements of the radioactive cesium concentrations in this layer. The observations revealed that the depth of bioturbation (i.e., the thickness of the biomixing layer) ranged between 11 and 22 cm, and varied among the sampling sites. In contrast, the radioactive cesium concentrations showed that the processing of radioactive cesium in coastal environments may include other pathways in addition to bioturbation. The data also revealed the nature of the bioturbation by the heart urchin Echinocardium cordatum (Echinoidea: Loveniidae), which is one of the important ecosystem engineers in seafloor environments. The maximum burrowing depth of E. cordatum in Funakoshi Bay was 22 cm from the seafloor surface. PMID:28854254

Using tsunami deposits to determine the maximum depth of benthic burrowing.

PubMed

Seike, Koji; Shirai, Kotaro; Murakami-Sugihara, Naoko

2017-01-01

The maximum depth of sediment biomixing is directly related to the vertical extent of post-depositional environmental alteration in the sediment; consequently, it is important to determine the maximum burrowing depth. This study examined the maximum depth of bioturbation in a natural marine environment in Funakoshi Bay, northeastern Japan, using observations of bioturbation structures developed in an event layer (tsunami deposits of the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake) and measurements of the radioactive cesium concentrations in this layer. The observations revealed that the depth of bioturbation (i.e., the thickness of the biomixing layer) ranged between 11 and 22 cm, and varied among the sampling sites. In contrast, the radioactive cesium concentrations showed that the processing of radioactive cesium in coastal environments may include other pathways in addition to bioturbation. The data also revealed the nature of the bioturbation by the heart urchin Echinocardium cordatum (Echinoidea: Loveniidae), which is one of the important ecosystem engineers in seafloor environments. The maximum burrowing depth of E. cordatum in Funakoshi Bay was 22 cm from the seafloor surface.

IODP Expedition 351 Lithostratigraphy: Volcaniclastic Record of Izu-Bonin-Mariana (IBM) Arc Initiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barth, A. P.; Brandl, P. A.; Li, H.; Hickey-Vargas, R.; Jiang, F.; Kanayama, K.; Kusano, Y.; Marsaglia, K. M.; McCarthy, A.; Meffre, S.; Savov, I. P.; Tepley, F. J., III; Yogodzinski, G. M.

2014-12-01

The destruction of lithospheric plates by subduction is a fundamentally important process leading to arc magmatism and the creation of continental crust, yet subduction initiation and early magmatic arc evolution remain poorly understood. For many arc systems, onset of arc volcanism and early evolution are obscured by metamorphism or the record is deeply buried; however, initial products of arc systems may be preserved in forearc and backarc sedimentary records. IODP Expedition 351 recovered this history from the dispersed ash and pyroclast record in the proximal rear-arc of the northern IBM system west of the Kyushu-Palau Ridge. Drilling at Site U1438 in the Amami Sankaku Basin recovered a thick volcaniclastic record of subduction initiation and the early evolution of the Izu-Bonin Arc. A 160-m thick section of Neogene sediment overlies 1.3 kilometers of Paleogene volcaniclastic rocks with andesitic average composition; this volcaniclastic section was deposited on mafic volcanic basement rocks. The thin upper sediment layer is primarily terrigenous, biogenic and volcaniclastic mud and ooze with interspersed ash layers. The underlying Eocene to Oligocene volcaniclastic rocks are 33% tuffaceous mudstone, 61% tuffaceous sandstone, and 6% conglomerate with volcanic and rare sedimentary clasts commonly up to pebble and rarely to cobble size. The clastic section is characterized by repetitive conglomerate and sandstone-dominated intervals with intervening mudstone-dominated intervals, reflecting waxing and waning of coarse arc-derived sediment inputs through time. Volcanic lithic clasts in sandstones and conglomerates range from basalt to rhyolite in composition and include well-preserved pumice, reflecting a lithologically diverse and compositionally variable arc volcanic source.

Scaling relationships between bed load volumes, transport distances, and stream power in steep mountain channels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, Johannes M.; Turowski, Jens M.; Rickenmann, Dieter; Hegglin, Ramon; Arrigo, Sabrina; Mao, Luca; Kirchner, James W.

2014-03-01

Bed load transport during storm events is both an agent of geomorphic change and a significant natural hazard in mountain regions. Thus, predicting bed load transport is a central challenge in fluvial geomorphology and natural hazard risk assessment. Bed load transport during storm events depends on the width and depth of bed scour, as well as the transport distances of individual sediment grains. We traced individual gravels in two steep mountain streams, the Erlenbach (Switzerland) and Rio Cordon (Italy), using magnetic and radio frequency identification tags, and measured their bed load transport rates using calibrated geophone bed load sensors in the Erlenbach and a bed load trap in the Rio Cordon. Tracer transport distances and bed load volumes exhibited approximate power law scaling with both the peak stream power and the cumulative stream energy of individual hydrologic events. Bed load volumes scaled much more steeply with peak stream power and cumulative stream energy than tracer transport distances did, and bed load volumes scaled as roughly the third power of transport distances. These observations imply that large bed load transport events become large primarily by scouring the bed deeper and wider, and only secondarily by transporting the mobilized sediment farther. Using the sediment continuity equation, we can estimate the mean effective thickness of the actively transported layer, averaged over the entire channel width and the duration of individual flow events. This active layer thickness also followed approximate power law scaling with peak stream power and cumulative stream energy and ranged up to 0.57 m in the Erlenbach, broadly consistent with independent measurements.

Seismic surface-wave prospecting methods for sinkhole hazard assessment along the Dead Sea shoreline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ezersky, M.; Bodet, L.; Al-Zoubi, A.; Camerlynck, C.; Dhemaied, A.; Galibert, P.-Y.; Keydar, S.

2012-04-01

The Dead Sea's coastal areas have been dramatically hit by sinkholes occurrences since around 1990 and there is an obvious potential for further collapse beneath main highways, agricultural lands and other populated places. The sinkhole hazard in this area threatens human lives and compromise future economic developments. The understanding of such phenomenon is consequently of great importance in the development of protective solutions. Several geological and geophysical studies tend to show that evaporite karsts, caused by slow salt dissolution, are linked to the mechanism of sinkhole formation along both Israel and Jordan shorelines. The continuous drop of the Dead Sea level, at a rate of 1m/yr during the past decade, is generally proposed as the main triggering factor. The water table lowering induces the desaturation of shallow sediments overlying buried cavities in 10 to 30 meters thick salt layers, at depths from 25 to 50 meters. Both the timing and location of sinkholes suggest that: (1) the salt weakens as result of increasing fresh water circulation, thus enhancing the karstification process; (2) sinkholes appear to be related to the decompaction of the sediments above karstified zones. The location, depth, thickness and weakening of salt layers along the Dead Sea shorelines, as well as the thickness and mechanical properties of the upper sedimentary deposits, are thus considered as controlling factors of this ongoing process. Pressure-wave seismic methods are typically used to study sinkhole developments in this area. P-wave refraction and reflection methods are very useful to delineate the salt layers and to determine the thickness of overlying sediments. But the knowledge of shear-wave velocities (Vs) should add valuable insights on their mechanical properties, more particularly when the groundwater level plays an important role in the process. However, from a practical point of view, the measurement of Vs remains delicate because of well-known shear waves generation and picking issues in shear-wave refraction seismic methods. As an alternative, indirect estimation of Vs can then be proposed thanks to surface-wave dispersion measurements and inversion, an emerging seismic prospecting method for near-surface engineering and environment applications. Surface-wave prospecting methods have thus been proposed to address the sinkholes development processes along the Dead Sea shorelines. Two approaches have been used: (1) Vs mapping has been performed to discriminate soft and hard zones within salt layers, after calibration of inverted Vs near boreholes. Preliminarily, soft zones, associated with karstified salt, were characterized by Vs values lower than 1000 m/s, whereas hard zones presented values greater than 1400 m/s (will be specified during following studies); (2) roll along acquisition and dispersion stacking has been performed to achieve multi-modal dispersion measurements along linear profiles. Inverted pseudo-2D Vs sections presented low Vs anomalies in the vicinity of existing sinkholes and made it possible to detect loose sediment associated with potential sinkholes occurrences. Acknowledgements This publication was made possible through support provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and MERC Program under terms of Award No M27-050.

Terminal zone glacial sediment transfer at a temperate overdeepened glacier system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swift, D. A.; Cook, S. J.; Graham, D. J.; Midgley, N. G.; Fallick, A. E.; Storrar, R.; Toubes Rodrigo, M.; Evans, D. J. A.

2018-01-01

Continuity of sediment transfer through glacial systems is essential to maintain subglacial bedrock erosion, yet transfer at temperate glaciers with overdeepened beds, where subglacial fluvial sediment transport should be greatly limited by adverse slopes, remains poorly understood. Complex multiple transfer processes in temperate overdeepened systems has been indicated by the presence of large frontal moraine systems, supraglacial debris of mixed transport origin, thick basal ice sequences, and englacial thrusts and eskers. At Svínafellsjökull, thrusts comprising decimetre-thick debris-rich bands of stratified facies ice of basal origin, with a coarser size distribution and higher clast content than that observed in basal ice layers, contribute substantially to the transfer of subglacial material in the terminal zone. Entrainment and transfer of material occurs by simple shear along the upper surface of bands and by strain-induced deformation of stratified and firnified glacier ice below. Thrust material includes rounded and well-rounded clasts that are also striated, indicating that fluvial bedload is deposited as subglacial channels approach the overdeepening and then entrained along thrusts. Substantial transfer also occurs within basal ice, with facies type and debris content dependent on the hydrological connectedness of the adverse slope. A process model of transfer at glaciers with terminal overdeepenings is proposed, in which the geometry of the overdeepening influences spatial patterns of ice deformation, hydrology, and basal ice formation. We conclude that the significance of thrusting in maintaining sediment transfer continuity has likely been overlooked by glacier sediment budgets and glacial landscape evolution studies.

Elementary theory of bed-sediment entrainment by debris flows and avalanches

USGS Publications Warehouse

Iverson, Richard M.

2012-01-01

Analyses of mass and momentum exchange between a debris flow or avalanche and an underlying sediment layer aid interpretations and predictions of bed-sediment entrainment rates. A preliminary analysis assesses the behavior of a Coulomb slide block that entrains bed material as it descends a uniform slope. The analysis demonstrates that the block's momentum can grow unstably, even in the presence of limited entrainment efficiency. A more-detailed, depth-integrated continuum analysis of interacting, deformable bodies identifies mechanical controls on entrainment efficiency, and shows that entrainment rates satisfy a jump condition that involves shear-traction and velocity discontinuities at the flow-bed boundary. Explicit predictions of the entrainment rateEresult from making reasonable assumptions about flow velocity profiles and boundary shear tractions. For Coulomb-friction tractions, predicted entrainment rates are sensitive to pore fluid pressures that develop in bed sediment as it is overridden. In the simplest scenario the bed sediment liquefies completely, and the entrainment-rate equation reduces toE = 2μ1gh1 cos θ(1 − λ1)/ , where θ is the slope angle, μ1 is the flow's Coulomb friction coefficient, h1 is its thickness, λ1 is its degree of liquefaction, and is its depth-averaged velocity. For values ofλ1ranging from 0.5 to 0.8, this equation predicts entrainment rates consistent with rates of 0.05 to 0.1 m/s measured in large-scale debris-flow experiments in which wet sediment beds liquefied almost completely. The propensity for bed liquefaction depends on several factors, including sediment porosity, permeability, and thickness, and rates of compression and shear deformation that occur when beds are overridden.

Investigating redox processes under diffusive and advective flow conditions using a coupled omics and synchrotron approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kemner, K. M.; Boyanov, M.; Flynn, T. M.; O'Loughlin, E. J.; Antonopoulos, D. A.; Kelly, S.; Skinner, K.; Mishra, B.; Brooks, S. C.; Watson, D. B.; Wu, W. M.

2015-12-01

FeIII- and SO42--reducing microorganisms and the mineral phases they produce have profound implications for many processes in aquatic and terrestrial systems. In addition, many of these microbially-catalysed geochemical transformations are highly dependent upon introduction of reactants via advective and diffusive hydrological transport. We have characterized microbial communities from a set of static microcosms to test the effect of ethanol diffusion and sulfate concentration on UVI-contaminated sediment. The spatial distribution, valence states, and speciation of both U and Fe were monitored in situ throughout the experiment by synchrotron x-ray absorption spectroscopy, in parallel with solution measurements of pH and the concentrations of sulfate, ethanol, and organic acids. After reaction initiation, a ~1-cm thick layer of sediment near the sediment-water (S-W) interface became visibly dark. Fe XANES spectra of the layer were consistent with the formation of FeS. Over the 4 year duration of the experiment, U LIII-edge XANES indicated reduction of U, first in the dark layer and then throughout the sediment. Next, the microcosms were disassembled and samples were taken from the overlying water and different sediment regions. We extracted DNA and characterized the microbial community by sequencing 16S rRNA gene amplicons with the Illumina MiSeq platform and found that the community evolved from its originally homogeneous composition, becoming significantly spatially heterogeneous. We have also developed an x-ray accessible column to probe elemental transformations as they occur along the flow path in a porous medium with the purpose of refining reactive transport models (RTMs) that describe coupled physical and biogeochemical processes in environmental systems. The elemental distribution dynamics and the RTMs of the redox driven processes within them will be presented.

Benchscale Assessment of the Efficacy of a Reactive Core Mat to Isolate PAH-spiked Aquatic Sediments.

PubMed

Meric, Dogus; Barbuto, Sara; Sheahan, Thomas C; Shine, James P; Alshawabkeh, Akram N

2014-01-01

This paper describes the results of a benchscale testing program to assess the efficacy of a reactive core mat (RCM) for short term isolation and partial remediation of contaminated, subaqueous sediments. The 1.25 cm thick RCM (with a core reactive material such as organoclay with filtering layers on top and bottom) is placed on the sediment, and approximately 7.5 - 10 cm of overlying soil is placed on the RCM for stability and protection. A set of experiments were conducted to measure the sorption characteristics of the mat core (organoclay) and sediment used in the experiments, and to determine the fate of semi-volatile organic contaminants and non-reactive tracers through the sediment and reactive mat. The experimental study was conducted on naphthalene-spiked Neponset River (Milton, MA) sediment. The results show nonlinear sorption behavior for organoclay, with sorption capacity increasing with increasing naphthalene concentration. Neponset River sediment showed a notably high sorption capacity, likely due to the relatively high organic carbon fraction (14%). The fate and transport experiments demonstrated the short term efficiency of the reactive mat to capture the contamination that is associated with the post-capping period during which the highest consolidation-induced advective flux occurs, driving solid particles, pore fluid and soluble contaminants toward the reactive mat. The goal of the mat placement is to provide a physical filtering and chemically reactive layer to isolate contamination from the overlying water column. An important finding is that because of the high sorption capacity of the Neponset River sediment, the physical filtering capability of the mat is as critical as its chemical reactive capacity.

Results of analyses performed on soil adjacent to penetrators emplaced into sediments at McCook, Nebraska, January 1976. [simulated penetration into wind-deposited sediments on Martian plains

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Blanchard, M.; Bunch, T.; Davis, A.; Kyte, F.; Shade, H.; Erlichman, J.; Polkowski, G.

1977-01-01

During 1976 several penetrators (full and 0.58 scale) were dropped into a test site McCook, Nebraska. The McCook site was selected because it simulated penetration into wind-deposited sediments (silts and sands) on Martian plains. The physical and chemical modifications found in the sediment after the penetrators' impact are described. Laboratory analyses have shown mineralogical and elemental changes are produced in the sediment next to the penetrator. Optical microscopy studies of material next to the skin of the penetrator revealed a layer of glassy material about 75 microns thick. Elemental analysis of a 0-1-mm layer of sediment next to the penetrator revealed increased concentrations for Cr, Fe, Ni, Mo, and reduced concentrations for Mg, Al Si, P, K, and Ca. The Cr, Fe, Ni, and Mo were in fragments abraded from the penetrator. Mineralogical changes occurring in the sediment next to the penetrator included the introduction of micron-size grains of alpha iron and several hydrated iron oxide minerals. The newly formed silicate minerals include metastable phases of silica (cristobalite, lechatelierite, and opal). The glassy material was mostly opal which formed when the host minerals (mica, calcite, and clay) decomposed. In summary, contaminants introduced by the penetrator occur up to 2 mm away from the penetrator's skin. Although volatile elements do migrate and new minerals are formed during the destruction of host minerals in the sediment, no changes were observed beyond the 2-mm distance. The analyses indicate 0.58-scale penetrators do effectively simulate full-scale testing for soil modification effects.

To what extent can intracrater layered deposits that lack clear sedimentary textures be used to infer depositional environments?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cadieux, Sarah B.; Kah, Linda C.

2015-03-01

Craters within Arabia Terra, Mars, contain hundreds of meters of layered strata showing systematic alternation between slope- and cliff-forming units, suggesting either rhythmic deposition of distinct lithologies or similar lithologies that experienced differential cementation. On Earth, rhythmically deposited strata can be examined in terms of stratal packaging, wherein the interplay of tectonics, sediment deposition, and base level (i.e., the position above which sediment accumulation is expected to be temporary) result in changes in the amount of space available for sediment accumulation. These predictable patterns of sediment deposition can be used to infer changes in basin accommodation regardless of the mechanism of deposition (e.g. fluvial, lacustrine, or aeolian). Here, we analyze sedimentary deposits from three craters (Becquerel Crater, Danielson Crater, Crater A) in Arabia Terra. Each crater contains layered deposits that are clearly observed in orbital images. Although orbital images are insufficient to specifically determine the origin of sedimentary deposits, depositional couplets can be interpreted in terms of potential accommodation space available for deposition, and changes in the distribution of couplet thickness through stratigraphy can be interpreted in terms of changing base level and the production of new accommodation space. Differences in stratal packaging in these three craters suggest varying relationships between sedimentary influx, sedimentary base level, and concomitant changes in accommodation space. Previous groundwater upwelling models hypothesize that layered sedimentary deposits were deposited under warm climate conditions of early Mars. Here, we use observed stacking patterns to propose a model for deposition under cold climate conditions, wherein episodic melting of ground ice could raise local base level, stabilize sediment deposition, and result in differential cementation of accumulated strata. Such analysis demonstrates that a first-order understanding of sedimentary deposition and accumulation-despite a lack of textural information that inhibits interpretation of depositional mechanism-can provide insight into potentially changeable depositional conditions of early Mars.

Geology and biology of Oceanographer submarine canyon.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Valentine, P.C.; Uzmann, J.R.; Cooper, R.A.

1980-01-01

Santonian beds more than 100 m thick are the oldest rocks collected from the canyon. Quaternary silty clay veneers the canyon walls in many places and is commonly burrowed by benthic organisms that cause extensive erosion of the canyon walls, especially in the depth zone (100-1300 m) inhabited by the crabs Geryon and Cancer. Bioerosion is minimal on high, near-vertical cliffs of sedimentary rock, in areas of continual sediment movement, and where the sea floor is paved by gravel. A thin layer of rippled, unconsolidated silt and sand is commonly present on the canyon walls and in the axis. Shelf sediments are transported from Georges Bank over the E rim and in the Canyon by the SW drift and storm currents; tidal currents and internal waves move the sediment downcanyon along the walls and axis.- from Authors

Linear stability analysis of particle-laden hypopycnal plumes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farenzena, Bruno Avila; Silvestrini, Jorge Hugo

2017-12-01

Gravity-driven riverine outflows are responsible for carrying sediments to the coastal waters. The turbulent mixing in these flows is associated with shear and gravitational instabilities such as Kelvin-Helmholtz, Holmboe, and Rayleigh-Taylor. Results from temporal linear stability analysis of a two-layer stratified flow are presented, investigating the behavior of settling particles and mixing region thickness on the flow stability in the presence of ambient shear. The particles are considered suspended in the transport fluid, and its sedimentation is modeled with a constant valued settling velocity. Three scenarios, regarding the mixing region thickness, were identified: the poorly mixed environment, the strong mixed environment, and intermediate scenario. It was observed that Kelvin-Helmholtz and settling convection modes are the two fastest growing modes depending on the particles settling velocity and the total Richardson number. The second scenario presents a modified Rayleigh-Taylor instability, which is the dominant mode. The third case can have Kelvin-Helmholtz, settling convection, and modified Rayleigh-Taylor modes as the fastest growing mode depending on the combination of parameters.

Martian crater degradation by eolian processes: Analogy with the Rio Cuarto Crater Field, Argentina

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grant, J. A.; Schultz, P. H.

1993-01-01

Numerous degraded and rimless craters occur across broad areas of the Martian surface that are mantled by thick, unconformable deposits. These regions include Arabia, Mesogaea, Electris, Tempe, the interior and surface to the northwest of Isidis Basin, southern Ismenius Lacus, and the polar layered terrains. Occurrence of the deposits and low regional thermal inertias indicate that at least some accumulated fine-grained sediment (effective particle diameters of 0.1-0.5 mm or coarse silt to medium sand) to a thickness of 100's to 1000's of meters. Most unconformable deposits experienced some eolian modification that may be recent in some locales. Despite the presence of these deposits, simple eolian deposition appears incapable of creating the numerous degraded and rimless craters occurring within their limits. Nevertheless, terrestrial analyses of the Rio Cuario craters formed into loessoid deposits demonstrates that eolian redistribution of fine-grained sediment in and around craters produces degraded morphologies that are analogous to some found in mantled regions on Mars.

Physical subdivision and description of the water-bearing sediments of the Santa Clara Valley, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wentworth, Carl M.; Jachens, Robert C.; Williams, Robert A.; Tinsley, John C.; Hanson, Randall T.

2015-01-01

Maps and cross sections show the elevations of cycle boundaries and the underlying bedrock surface, the varying thicknesses of the cycles and of their fine tops and coarse bottoms, and the aggregate thickness of coarse layers in those bottom intervals. Coarse sediment is more abundant toward some parts of the basin margin and in the southern part of the basin. Cycle boundary surfaces are relatively smooth, and their shapes are consistent with having been intercycle topographic surfaces. The underlying bedrock surface has a relief of more than 1,200 feet and deepens toward the center of the basin and the west edge of the fault-bounded Evergreen Basin, which is concealed beneath the east side of the Quaternary basin. The absence of consistent abrupt changes in thicknesses or boundary elevations across the basin or in cross section indicates that the interior of the basin is largely unfaulted, with the Silver Creek strand of the San Andreas system at the west edge of the Evergreen Basin being the sole exception. The east and west margins of the Santa Clara Basin, in contrast, are marked by reverse and thrust fault systems.

Prokaryotic algae associated with Australian proterozoic stromatolites.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Licari, G. R.; Cloud, P.

1972-01-01

The most favorable sites in which to study the associations between stromatolites and the algae responsible for them are places where a variety of stromatolites of possibly early diagenetic or primary silica occupy a layer of substantial thickness of little metamorphosed ancient sediments. One such place is in northwestern Queensland, Australia. Five cases of association between stromatolites and blue-green algal nannofossils were observed within a 100-m sequence of carbonate rocks in that area.

Geostatistical mapping of effluent-affected sediment distribution on the Palos Verdes shelf

USGS Publications Warehouse

Murray, C.J.; Lee, H.J.; Hampton, M.A.

2002-01-01

Geostatistical techniques were used to study the spatial continuity of the thickness of effluent-affected sediment in the offshore Palos Verdes Margin area. The thickness data were measured directly from cores and indirectly from high-frequency subbottom profiles collected over the Palos Verdes Margin. Strong spatial continuity of the sediment thickness data was identified, with a maximum range of correlation in excess of 1.4 km. The spatial correlation showed a marked anisotropy, and was more than twice as continuous in the alongshore direction as in the cross-shelf direction. Sequential indicator simulation employing models fit to the thickness data variograms was used to map the distribution of the sediment, and to quantify the uncertainty in those estimates. A strong correlation between sediment thickness data and measurements of the mass of the contaminant p,p???-DDE per unit area was identified. A calibration based on the bivariate distribution of the thickness and p,p???-DDE data was applied using Markov-Bayes indicator simulation to extend the geostatistical study and map the contamination levels in the sediment. Integrating the map grids produced by the geostatistical study of the two variables indicated that 7.8 million m3 of effluent-affected sediment exist in the map area, containing approximately 61-72 Mg (metric tons) of p,p???-DDE. Most of the contaminated sediment (about 85% of the sediment and 89% of the p,p???-DDE) occurs in water depths < 100 m. The geostatistical study also indicated that the samples available for mapping are well distributed and the uncertainty of the estimates of the thickness and contamination level of the sediments is lowest in areas where the contaminated sediment is most prevalent. ?? 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Investigating the influence of lithologic heterogeneity on gas hydrate formation and methane recycling at the base of the gas hydrate stability zone in channelized systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daigle, H.; Nole, M.; Cook, A.; Malinverno, A.

2017-12-01

In marine environments, gas hydrate preferentially accumulates in coarse-grained sediments. At the meso- to micro-scale, however, hydrate distribution in these coarse-grained units is often heterogeneous. We employ a methane hydrate reservoir simulator coupling heat and mass transfer as well as capillary effects to investigate how capillary controls on methane solubility affect gas and hydrate accumulations in reservoirs characterized by graded bedding and alternating sequences of coarse-grained sands and fine-grained silt and clay. Simulations bury a channelized reservoir unit encased in homogeneous, fine-grained material characterized by small pores (150 nm) and low permeability ( 1 md in the absence of hydrate). Pore sizes within each reservoir bed between vary between coarse sand and fine silt. Sands have a median pore size of 35 microns and a lognormal pore size distribution. We also investigate how the amount of labile organic carbon (LOC) affects hydrate growth due to microbial methanogenesis within the sediments. In a diffusion-dominated system, methane movies into reservoir layers along spatial gradients in dissolved methane concentration. Hydrate grows in such a way as to minimize these concentration gradients by accumulating slower in finer-grained reservoir layers and faster in coarser-grained layers. Channelized, fining-upwards sediment bodies accumulate hydrate first along their outer surfaces and thence inward from top to bottom. If LOC is present in thin beds within the channel, higher saturations of hydrate will be distributed more homogeneously throughout the unit. When buried beneath the GHSZ, gas recycling can occur only if enough hydrate is present to form a connected gas phase upon dissociation. Simulations indicate that this is difficult to achieve for diffusion-dominated systems, especially those with thick GHSZs and/or small amounts of LOC. However, capillary-driven fracturing behavior may be more prevalent in settings with thick GHSZs.

Investigating the influence of lithologic heterogeneity on gas hydrate formation and methane recycling at the base of the gas hydrate stability zone in channelized systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Daigle, Hugh; Nole, Michael; Cook, Ann

In marine environments, gas hydrate preferentially accumulates in coarse-grained sediments. At the meso- to micro-scale, however, hydrate distribution in these coarse-grained units is often heterogeneous. We employ a methane hydrate reservoir simulator coupling heat and mass transfer as well as capillary effects to investigate how capillary controls on methane solubility affect gas and hydrate accumulations in reservoirs characterized by graded bedding and alternating sequences of coarse-grained sands and fine-grained silt and clay. Simulations bury a channelized reservoir unit encased in homogeneous, fine-grained material characterized by small pores (150 nm) and low permeability (~1 md in the absence of hydrate). Poremore » sizes within each reservoir bed between vary between coarse sand and fine silt. Sands have a median pore size of 35 microns and a lognormal pore size distribution. We also investigate how the amount of labile organic carbon (LOC) affects hydrate growth due to microbial methanogenesis within the sediments. In a diffusion-dominated system, methane movies into reservoir layers along spatial gradients in dissolved methane concentration. Hydrate grows in such a way as to minimize these concentration gradients by accumulating slower in finer-grained reservoir layers and faster in coarser-grained layers. Channelized, fining-upwards sediment bodies accumulate hydrate first along their outer surfaces and thence inward from top to bottom. If LOC is present in thin beds within the channel, higher saturations of hydrate will be distributed more homogeneously throughout the unit. When buried beneath the GHSZ, gas recycling can occur only if enough hydrate is present to form a connected gas phase upon dissociation. Simulations indicate that this is difficult to achieve for diffusion-dominated systems, especially those with thick GHSZs and/or small amounts of LOC. However, capillary-driven fracturing behavior may be more prevalent in settings with thick GHSZs.« less

Uppermost impact fallback layer in the Bosumtwi crater (Ghana): Mineralogy, geochemistry, and comparison with Ivory Coast tektites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koeberl, Christian; Brandstätter, Franz; Glass, Billy P.; Hecht, Lutz; Mader, Dieter; Reimold, Wolf Uwe

In 2004, an International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) drilling project at the Bosumtwi impact crater, Ghana (10.5 km in diameter, 1.07 Myr old), was performed to study the sediments that fill the lake as well as the underlying impactites. In one (LB-05) of 16 cores drilled into the lake sediments, the zone between the impact breccias and the post-impact sediments was penetrated, preserving the final, fine-grained impact fallback layer. This ~30 cm thick layer contains in the top 10 cm “accretionary” lapilli, microtektite-like glass spherules, and shocked quartz grains. Glass particles -- mostly of splash form less than 1 mm size -- make up the bulk of the grains (~70-78% by number) in the coarser size fraction (>125 μm) of the top of the fallback layer. About one-third of all quartz grains in the uppermost part of the layer are shocked, with planar deformation features (PDFs); almost half of these grains are highly shocked, with 3 or more sets of PDFs. K-feldspar grains also occur and some show shock deformation. The abundance of shocked quartz grains and the average shock level as indicated by the number of sets of PDFs, for both quartz and K-feldspar, decrease with depth into the layer. The well-preserved glass spherules and fragments are chemically rather homogeneous within each particle, and also show relatively small variations between the various particles. On average, the composition of the fallback spherules from core LB-5B is very similar to the composition of Ivory Coast tektites and microtektites, with the exception of CaO contents, which are about 1.5 to 2 times higher in the fallback spherules. This is a rare case in which the uppermost fallback layer and the transition to the post-impact sediments has been preserved in an impact structure; its presence indicates that the impactite sequence at Bosumtwi is complete and that Bosumtwi is a very well-preserved impact crater.

Estimating accumulation rates and physical properties of sediment behind a dam: Englebright Lake, Yuba River, northern California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Snyder, Noah P.; Rubin, David M.; Alpers, Charles N.; Childs, Jonathan R.; Curtis, Jennifer A.; Flint, Lorraine E.; Wright, Scott A.

2004-01-01

Studies of reservoir sedimentation are vital to understanding scientific and management issues related to watershed sediment budgets, depositional processes, reservoir operations, and dam decommissioning. Here we quantify the mass, organic content, and grain-size distribution of a reservoir deposit in northern California by two methods of extrapolating measurements of sediment physical properties from cores to the entire volume of impounded material. Englebright Dam, completed in 1940, is located on the Yuba River in the Sierra Nevada foothills. A research program is underway to assess the feasibility of introducing wild anadromous fish species to the river upstream of the dam. Possible management scenarios include removing or lowering the dam, which could cause downstream transport of stored sediment. In 2001 the volume of sediments deposited behind Englebright Dam occupied 25.5% of the original reservoir capacity. The physical properties of this deposit were calculated using data from a coring campaign that sampled the entire reservoir sediment thickness (6–32 m) at six locations in the downstream ∼3/4 of the reservoir. As a result, the sediment in the downstream part of the reservoir is well characterized, but in the coarse, upstream part of the reservoir, only surficial sediments were sampled, so calculations there are more uncertain. Extrapolation from one-dimensional vertical sections of sediment sampled in cores to entire three-dimensional volumes of the reservoir deposit is accomplished via two methods, using assumptions of variable and constant layer thickness. Overall, the two extrapolation methods yield nearly identical estimates of the mass of the reservoir deposit of ∼26 × 106 metric tons (t) of material, of which 64.7–68.5% is sand and gravel. Over the 61 year reservoir history this corresponds to a maximum basin-wide sediment yield of ∼340 t/km2/yr, assuming no contribution from upstream parts of the watershed impounded by other dams. The uncertainties and limitations of the estimates of overall sediment quantities are discussed. Implications for watershed management and future reservoir sedimentation studies are also presented.

Importance of the Colmation Layer in the Transport and Removal of Cyanobacteria, Viruses, and Dissolved Organic Carbon during Natural Lake-Bank Filtration.

PubMed

Harvey, Ronald W; Metge, David W; LeBlanc, Denis R; Underwood, Jen; Aiken, George R; Butler, Kenna; McCobb, Timothy D; Jasperse, Jay

2015-09-01

This study focused on the importance of the colmation layer in the removal of cyanobacteria, viruses, and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) during natural bank filtration. Injection-and-recovery studies were performed at two shallow (0.5 m deep), sandy, near-shore sites at the southern end of Ashumet Pond, a waste-impacted, kettle pond on Cape Cod, MA, that is subject to periodic blooms of cyanobacteria and continuously recharges a sole-source drinking-water aquifer. The experiment involved assessing the transport behaviors of bromide (conservative tracer), sp. IU625 (cyanobacterium, 2.6 ± 0.2 µm), AS-1 (tailed cyanophage, 110 nm long), MS2 (coliphage, 26 nm diameter), and carboxylate-modified microspheres (1.7 µm diameter) introduced to the colmation layer using a bag-and-barrel (Lee-type) seepage meter. The injectate constituents were tracked as they were advected across the pond water-groundwater interface and through the underlying aquifer sediments under natural-gradient conditions past push-point samplers placed at ∼30-cm intervals along a 1.2-m-long, diagonally downward flow path. More than 99% of the microspheres, IU625, MS2, AS-1, and ∼44% of the pond DOC were removed in the colmation layer (upper 25 cm of poorly sorted bottom sediments) at two test locations characterized by dissimilar seepage rates (1.7 vs. 0.26 m d). Retention profiles in recovered core material indicated that >82% of the attached IU625 were in the top 3 cm of bottom sediments. The colmation layer was also responsible for rapid changes in the character of the DOC and was more effective (by three orders of magnitude) at removing microspheres than was the underlying 20-cm-thick segment of sediment. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Seismic evidence of Messinian salt in opposite margins of West Mediterranean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mocnik, Arianna; Camerlenghi, Angelo; Del Ben, Anna; Geletti, Riccardo; Wardell, Nigel; Zgur, Fabrizio

2015-04-01

The post drift Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC) affected the whole Mediterranean basin, with deposition of evaporitic sequences in the deep basins, in the lower continental slopes, and in several shallower marginal basins; usually, in the continental margins, the MSC originated noticeable erosional truncations that locally cause important hiatuses in the pre-Messinian sequences, covered by the Plio-Quaternary sediments. In this work we focus on the MSC seismic signature of two new seismic datasets acquired in 2010 (West Sardinia offshore) and in 2012 (within the Eurofleet project SALTFLU in the South Balearic continental margin and the northern Algero abyssal plain). The "Messinian trilogy" recognized in the West-Mediterranean abyssal plain, is characterized by different seismic facies: the Lower evaporite Unit (LU), the salt Mobile Unit (MU) and the Upper evaporite mainly gypsiferous Unit (UU). Both seismic datasets show the presence of the Messinian trilogy also if the LU is not always clearly interpretable due to the strong seismic signal absorption by the halite layers; the salt thickness of the MU is similar in both the basins as also the thickness and stratigraphy of the UU. The Upper Unit (UU) is made up of a well reflecting package of about 10 reflectors, partially deformed by salt tectonic and characterized by a thin transparent layer that we interpreted as salt sequence inner the shallower part of the UU. Below the stratified UU, the MU exhibits a transparent layer in the deep basin and also on the foot of the slope, where a negative reflector, related to the high interval velocity of salt, marks its base. The halokinetic processes are not homogeneously distributed in the region, forming a great number of diapirs on the foot of the slope (due to the pression of the slided sediments) and giant domes toward the deep basin (due to the higher thickness of the Plio-quaternary sediments). This distribution seems to be related to the amount of salt and of the sedimentary cover. During the MSC the margins of the West Mediterranean Sea seem to be involved in some tectonic events probably connected to reactivation of normal faults and to the fast variation of the water load related to sea level fluctuations. The absence of calibrating boreholes in the deep Mediterranean basins and the hard penetration of seismic energy below the evaporitic layers, represent a limit for the knowledge of the geological evolution of the basins; the interpretation of the presented datasets could be a contribution to the comprehension of the evaporitic deposition and early-stage salt deformation during the MSC in the Mediterranean sea.

Spaced planar laminations formed by repetitive basal erosion and resurgence to high-sedimentation-rate regime: new insight from a bedform-like structures and laterally continuous exposures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishihara, Yoshiro; Yuri, Onishi; Tsuda, Keisuke; Yokokawa, Miwa

2017-04-01

Spaced planar laminations (SPL), or so-called traction carpet deposits, are frequently observed in deposits of sediment gravity flows. Several sedimentation models for a succession of inversely graded units have been suggested from field observations and flume experiments. The formation of the inversely graded unit could be summarized as follows: (1) abrupt sedimentation on freezing of an inversely graded layer, or (2) interruptions in flow causing a freezing of an inversely graded layer at the most basal part of flow. In either case, traction carpets as a bed load overlying the erosive boundary at the base of flow are required. Although some descriptions have reported SPLs forming antidune bedform-like structures and the association of SPLs with structureless massive deposits have not been clearly explained. In this study, we suggest a novel model of SPL formation by repetition of basal erosion and resurgence to high-sedimentation rates, based on detail examinations of SPLs both showing bedform-like structures and lateral extents of hundreds of meters. SPLs were investigated in the Mio-Pliocene Kiyosumi Formation in central Japan and the Miocene Aoshima Formation in southwest Japan. In a turbidite in the Kiyosumi Formation, SPLs show three mound-like structures, suggesting antidune bedforms with wavelengths of about 6 to 7 m. On the upcurrent flanks, SPLs show lenticular cross laminations or pinching out of units; those units do not show clear inverse grading. Rip-up mud clasts and relatively high-angle imbrications are also observed. On the other hand, SPLs on the downcurrent flanks show relatively clear inverse grading and transition downcurrent into a massive structureless bed. In the Aoshima Formation, SPLs with ca. 1 cm unit thickness continue approximately 50 m along a palaeocurrent direction without changes in thickness. These SPLs gradually transition upward into a massive structureless unit. From the observations described above, in addition to descriptions from previous studies, it is suggested that SPLs comprising mound-like bedforms exhibit erosive conditions in the upcurrent flanks and depositional conditions in the downcurrent flanks, whereas SPLs on flat sea-floor extensively maintain their structure. Also, massive structureless beds are observed when erosion did not occur. These facts indicate that SPLs are strongly associated with an erosional process at the base of sediment gravity flows under a supercritical flow condition. The formation of SPLs does not necessary require a traction carpet and they may reflect basal erosion with a lag deposit of fine-grained particles, followed by resurgence to conditions of high sedimentation rates and massive structureless bed deposition. Repetitions of inversely graded units could occur when basal shear stresses are changed by fluctuations of flow depth, such as internal waves in a sediment gravity flow. This model can explain the concurrence of massive structureless beds with SPLs and examples of bedform-like structures without a unit thickness control.

A three-dimensional geophysical model of the crust in the Barents Sea region: Model construction and basement characterization

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ritzmann, O.; Maercklin, N.; Inge, Faleide J.; Bungum, H.; Mooney, W.D.; Detweiler, S.T.

2007-01-01

BARENTS50, a new 3-D geophysical model of the crust in the Barents Sea Region has been developed by the University of Oslo, NORSAR and the U.S. Geological Survey. The target region comprises northern Norway and Finland, parts of the Kola Peninsula and the East European lowlands. Novaya Zemlya, the Kara Sea and Franz-Josef Land terminate the region to the east, while the Norwegian-Greenland Sea marks the western boundary. In total, 680 1-D seismic velocity profiles were compiled, mostly by sampling 2-D seismic velocity transects, from seismic refraction profiles. Seismic reflection data in the western Barents Sea were further used for density modelling and subsequent density-to-velocity conversion. Velocities from these profiles were binned into two sedimentary and three crystalline crustal layers. The first step of the compilation comprised the layer-wise interpolation of the velocities and thicknesses. Within the different geological provinces of the study region, linear relationships between the thickness of the sedimentary rocks and the thickness of the remaining crystalline crust are observed. We therefore, used the separately compiled (area-wide) sediment thickness data to adjust the total crystalline crustal thickness according to the total sedimentary thickness where no constraints from 1-D velocity profiles existed. The BARENTS50 model is based on an equidistant hexagonal grid with a node spacing of 50 km. The P-wave velocity model was used for gravity modelling to obtain 3-D density structure. A better fit to the observed gravity was achieved using a grid search algorithm which focussed on the density contrast of the sediment-basement interface. An improvement compared to older geophysical models is the high resolution of 50 km. Velocity transects through the 3-D model illustrate geological features of the European Arctic. The possible petrology of the crystalline basement in western and eastern Barents Sea is discussed on the basis of the observed seismic velocity structure. The BARENTS50 model is available at http://www.norsar.no/seismology/barents3d/. ?? 2007 The Authors Journal compilation ?? 2007 RAS.

Tephra layers from Holocene lake sediments of the Sulmona Basin, central Italy: implications for volcanic activity in Peninsular Italy and tephrostratigraphy in the central Mediterranean area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giaccio, B.; Messina, P.; Sposato, A.; Voltaggio, M.; Zanchetta, G.; Galadini, F.; Gori, S.; Santacroce, R.

2009-12-01

We present a new tephrostratigraphic record from the Holocene lake sediments of the Sulmona basin, central Italy. The Holocene succession is represented by whitish calcareous mud that is divided into two units, SUL2 (ca 32 m thick) and SUL1 (ca 8 m thick), for a total thickness of ca 40 m. These units correspond to the youngest two out of six sedimentary cycles recognised in the Sulmona basin that are related to the lake sedimentation since the Middle Pleistocene. Height concordant U series age determinations and additional chronological data constrain the whole Holocene succession to between ca 8000 and 1000 yrs BP. This includes a sedimentary hiatus that separates the SUL2 and SUL1 units, which is roughly dated between <2800 and ca 2000 yrs BP. A total of 31 and 6 tephra layers were identified within the SUL2 and SUL1 units, respectively. However, only 28 tephra layers yielded fresh micro-pumices or glass shards suitable for chemical analyses using a microprobe wavelength dispersive spectrometer. Chronological and compositional constraints suggest that 27 ash layers probably derive from the Mt. Somma-Vesuvius Holocene volcanic activity, and one to the Ischia Island eruption of the Cannavale tephra (2920 ± 450 cal yrs BP). The 27 ash layers compatible with Mt. Somma-Vesuvius activity are clustered in three different time intervals: from ca 2000 to >1000; from 3600 to 3100; and from 7600 to 4700 yrs BP. The first, youngest cluster, comprises six layers and correlates with the intense explosive activity of Mt. Somma-Vesuvius that occurred after the prominent AD 79 Pompeii eruption, but only the near-Plinian event of AD 472 has been tentatively recognised. The intermediate cluster (3600-3100 yrs BP) starts with tephra that chemically and chronologically matches the products from the "Pomici di Avellino" eruption (ca 3800 ± 200 yrs BP). This is followed by eight further layers, where the glasses exhibit chemical features that are similar in composition to the products from the so-called "Protohistoric" or AP eruptions; however, only the distal equivalents of three AP events (AP3, AP4 and AP6) are tentatively designated. Finally, the early cluster (7600-4700 yrs BP) comprises 12 layers that contain evidence of a surprising, previously unrecognised, activity of the Mt. Somma-Vesuvius volcano during its supposed period of quiescence, between the major Plinian "Pomici di Mercato" (ca 9000 yrs BP) and "Pomici di Avellino" eruptions. Alternatively, since at present there is no evidence of a similar significant activity in the proximal area of this well-known volcano, a hitherto unknown origin of these tephras cannot be role out. The results of the present study provide new data that enrich our previous knowledge of the Holocene tephrostratigraphy and tephrochronology in central Italy, and a new model for the recent explosive activity of the Peninsular Italy volcanoes and the dispersal of the related pyroclastic deposits.

A deterministic (non-stochastic) low frequency method for geoacoustic inversion.

PubMed

Tolstoy, A

2010-06-01

It is well known that multiple frequency sources are necessary for accurate geoacoustic inversion. This paper presents an inversion method which uses the low frequency (LF) spectrum only to estimate bottom properties even in the presence of expected errors in source location, phone depths, and ocean sound-speed profiles. Matched field processing (MFP) along a vertical array is used. The LF method first conducts an exhaustive search of the (five) parameter search space (sediment thickness, sound-speed at the top of the sediment layer, the sediment layer sound-speed gradient, the half-space sound-speed, and water depth) at 25 Hz and continues by retaining only the high MFP value parameter combinations. Next, frequency is slowly increased while again retaining only the high value combinations. At each stage of the process, only those parameter combinations which give high MFP values at all previous LF predictions are considered (an ever shrinking set). It is important to note that a complete search of each relevant parameter space seems to be necessary not only at multiple (sequential) frequencies but also at multiple ranges in order to eliminate sidelobes, i.e., false solutions. Even so, there are no mathematical guarantees that one final, unique "solution" will be found.

Notable increases in nutrient concentrations in a shallow lake during seasonal ice growth.

PubMed

Fang, Yang; Changyou, Li; Leppäranta, Matti; Xiaonghong, Shi; Shengnan, Zhao; Chengfu, Zhang

2016-12-01

Nutrients may be eliminated from ice when liquid water is freezing, resulting in enhanced concentrations in the unfrozen water. The nutrients diluted from the ice may contribute to accumulated concentrations in sediment during winter and an increased risk of algae blooms during the following spring and summer. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of ice cover on nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations in the water and sediment of a shallow lake, through an examination of Ulansuhai Lake, northern China, from the period of open water to ice season in 2011-2013. The N and P concentrations were between two and five times higher, and between two and eight times higher, than in unfrozen lakes, respectively. As the ice thickness grew, contents of total N and total P showed C-shaped profiles in the ice, and were lower in the middle layer and higher in the bottom and surface layers. Most of the nutrients were released from the ice to liquid water. The results confirm that ice can cause the nutrient concentrations in water and sediment during winter to increase dramatically, thereby significantly impacting on processes in the water environment of shallow lakes.

High resolution analysis of northern Patagonia lake sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jarvis, S. W.; Croudace, I. W.; Langdon, P. G.; Rindby, A.

2009-04-01

Sediment cores covering the period from the last glacial maximum through the Holocene to the present have been collected from sites in the Chacubuco valley, southern Chile (around 47°08'S, 72°25'W, to the east of the North Patagonian Icecap). Cores were taken from five lakes and one recently dried lake bed. Short cores (0.2 to 0.5m), covering approximately the last two hundred years, were taken from all the lakes. Additionally, long sequences were obtained from one of the lakes and from the dried lake bed, the latter sequence extending back to the last glacial maximum as indicated by thick clay at the base. Each of the lakes are small-medium sized and are open systems situated at 300-1000m above sea level. The shorter cores comprise predominantly clastic gyttja but show a number of distinct changes in colour and chemical composition that suggest major environmental changes over the period of sediment accumulation. This is also reflected in variations in the loss on ignition of samples from the cores and in elemental profiles produced by scanning the cores with the Itrax micro-XRF corescanner at 200μm resolution. The long sequence from the dried lake bed has very low organic content glacial clay at the base, interpreted as last glacial maximum basal clay following determination in the field that this layer exceeded 2m in thickness. Similar sediments occur within a stratigraphically discrete section of approximately 14cm and may relate to a stadial event. The latter section also shows a drop in organic content and appears to be glacial clay incorporating some coarse sandy components indicative of detrital input from the catchment. The second long sequence, from a carbonate lake, includes two mineral layers indicating increased detrital input from the catchment. The deeper and thicker of these layers appears similar to the 14cm layer in the first long sequence, while the upper layer comprises a fine grain size indicative of rock flour and hence also of glacial activity in the catchment. Variation of elemental composition of these ‘glacial' layers is also clear from the Itrax data. It therefore appears that there have been significant reglaciation events in the catchment since the last glacial maximum. Many cores contain tephra layers, identified both visually and from the Itrax scans. Some of these have been confirmed as volcanic ash from the 1991 eruption of Mt Hudson, which at 45°54'S, 72°58'W is the southern-most volcano in the Chilean Andes and only 140km from the study area. Further work is underway to confirm and identify the source and age of other suspected tephra layers. Sediment accumulation rates in the upper parts of the cores are of the order of 1mm/yr (as determined by lead-210, caesium-137 dating and the 1991 Hudson tephra). Given XRF scan resolutions of up to 200μm there is thus the potential for investigation of sub-annual variability. Funding has been obtained to determine carbon-14 dates for the lower parts of the longer cores. The reproducibility and accuracy of the Itrax data has been validated using conventional WD-XRF spectrometry and the work presented will also include geochemical interpretation of the XRF data and comparison with recorded and proxy-inferred climate data for the region.

Unexpected spontaneous ignition of Late Glacial sediments from the palaeolake Wukenfurche (NE Germany)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dräger, Nadine; Brademann, Brian; Theuerkauf, Martin; Wulf, Sabine; Tjallingii, Rik; Słowiński, Michał; Schlaak, Norbert; Błaszkiewicz, Mirosław; Brauer, Achim

2015-04-01

A new finely laminated sediment archive has been recovered from the palaeolake Wukenfurche, NE Germany, comprising the last Glacial to Interglacial transition. The site is located within the Eberswalde ice-marginal valley and south of the terminal moraine that was formed during the Pomeranian phase of the Weichselian glaciation. Two sediment cores were obtained from the presently swampy area in July 2014. From these individual profiles a 14.7 m long continuous composite profile has been compiled by correlation of distinct marker layers. Glacial sand deposits covered by basal peat are found at the base of the cores. A visible volcanic ash layer 6 cm above the transition from basal peat into the overlaying finely laminated lake sediments corresponds most likely to the late Allerød Laacher See Tephra (LST). Preliminary counting on core photographs of the 3.5 m thick package of reddish and black alternating laminae above the LST yields a total of ca. 2500 layer couplets. Further micro-facies analyses on large-scale thin sections will be applied to test if these couplets are of annual origin (i.e. varves). Standard preparation for large-scale thin sections involves freeze-drying (for 48 hours) of 10 cm-long sediment slabs stored in aluminum boxes. Immediately after releasing the vacuum of the freeze-dryer chamber we observed an unexpected spontaneous combustion of the sediment from a particular interval of the profile. The exothermic combustion process lasted for approximately 10 to 20 minutes during which temperatures of up to 350°C have been measured with an infrared camera. Preliminary results suggest that oxidation of iron sulfides contributes to the observed reaction. To our knowledge this is the first time that such spontaneous combustion of lake sediments after freeze-drying has been observed. Details of the combustion process and sediment characteristics will be provided. This study is a contribution to the Virtual Institute of Integrated Climate and Landscape Evolution Analysis -ICLEA- of the Helmholtz Association, grant number VH-VI-415.

Terrestrial Sediments of the Earth: Development of a Global Unconsolidated Sediments Map Database (GUM)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Börker, J.; Hartmann, J.; Amann, T.; Romero-Mujalli, G.

2018-04-01

Mapped unconsolidated sediments cover half of the global land surface. They are of considerable importance for many Earth surface processes like weathering, hydrological fluxes or biogeochemical cycles. Ignoring their characteristics or spatial extent may lead to misinterpretations in Earth System studies. Therefore, a new Global Unconsolidated Sediments Map database (GUM) was compiled, using regional maps specifically representing unconsolidated and quaternary sediments. The new GUM database provides insights into the regional distribution of unconsolidated sediments and their properties. The GUM comprises 911,551 polygons and describes not only sediment types and subtypes, but also parameters like grain size, mineralogy, age and thickness where available. Previous global lithological maps or databases lacked detail for reported unconsolidated sediment areas or missed large areas, and reported a global coverage of 25 to 30%, considering the ice-free land area. Here, alluvial sediments cover about 23% of the mapped total ice-free area, followed by aeolian sediments (˜21%), glacial sediments (˜20%), and colluvial sediments (˜16%). A specific focus during the creation of the database was on the distribution of loess deposits, since loess is highly reactive and relevant to understand geochemical cycles related to dust deposition and weathering processes. An additional layer compiling pyroclastic sediment is added, which merges consolidated and unconsolidated pyroclastic sediments. The compilation shows latitudinal abundances of sediment types related to climate of the past. The GUM database is available at the PANGAEA database (https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.884822).

Fabrication and Characterization of Functionally Graded Cathodes for Solid Oxide Fuel Cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simonet, J.; Kapelski, G.; Bouvard, D.

2008-02-01

Solid oxide fuel cells are multi-layered designed. The most prevalent structure is an anode supported cell with a thick porous layer of nickel oxide NiO and yttrium stabilized zirconia (YSZ) composite acting as an anode, a thin dense layer of YSZ as an electrolyte, a composite thin porous layer of lanthanum strontium manganate LSM and YSZ and a current collector layer of porous LSM. Regular operating temperature is 1000 °C. The industrial development requires designing cathodes with acceptable electrochemical and mechanical properties at a lower temperature, typically between 700 and 800 °C. A solution consists in designing composite bulk cathodes with more numerous electro-chemical reaction sites. This requirement could be met by grading the composition of the cathode in increasing the YSZ volume fraction near the electrolyte and the LSM volume fraction near the current collector layer so that the repartition of reaction sites and the interfacial adhesion between the cathode and electrolyte layers are optimal. The fabrication of graded composite cathode has been investigated using a sedimentation process that consists of preparing a suspension containing the powder mixture and allowing the particles to fall by gravity upon a substrate. Different composite cathodes with continuous composition gradient have been obtained by sedimentation of LSM and YSZ powder mixture upon a dense YSZ substrate and subsequent firing. Their compositions and microstructures have been analysed with Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Electron Dispersive Spectrometry (EDS).

Topography of the South Polar Cap and Layered Deposits of Mars: Viking Stereo Grametry at Regional and Local Scales

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schenk, P.; Moore, J.; Stoker, C.

1998-01-01

Layered deposits and residual polar caps on Mars may record the deposition of ice and sediment modulated by periodic climate change. Topographic information relating to layer thicknesses, erosional processes, and formation of dark spirals within these deposits has been sparce or unreliable until the arrival of MOLA in orbit in September 1997. To assist in evaluating these terrains prior to launch and to assess formation and erosion processes in the polar deposits, we have assembled Viking stereo mosaics of the region and have produced the first reliable DEM models of the south polar deposits using automated stereogrammetry tools. Here we report our preliminary topographic results, pending final image pointing updates. The maximum total thickness of the layered deposits in the south polar region is 2.5 km. The thick layered deposits consist of a series of megaterraces. Each terrace is several tens of kilometers wide and is flat or slopes very gently toward the pole. These terraces step downward from a central plateau near the south pole. Terraces are bounded by relatively steep scarps 100-500 meters high that face toward the equator. These scarps correspond to the pattern of dark spirals observed within the residual cap in southern summer, and are interpreted as ice or frost-free surfaces warmed by solar insolation. Several tongue-shaped troughs, with rounded cirquelike heads, are observed near the margins of the deposit. These troughs are 300-600 meters in deep and may be similar to troughs observed in the northern polar deposit.

The SPACE 1.0 model: a Landlab component for 2-D calculation of sediment transport, bedrock erosion, and landscape evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shobe, Charles M.; Tucker, Gregory E.; Barnhart, Katherine R.

2017-12-01

Models of landscape evolution by river erosion are often either transport-limited (sediment is always available but may or may not be transportable) or detachment-limited (sediment must be detached from the bed but is then always transportable). While several models incorporate elements of, or transition between, transport-limited and detachment-limited behavior, most require that either sediment or bedrock, but not both, are eroded at any given time. Modeling landscape evolution over large spatial and temporal scales requires a model that can (1) transition freely between transport-limited and detachment-limited behavior, (2) simultaneously treat sediment transport and bedrock erosion, and (3) run in 2-D over large grids and be coupled with other surface process models. We present SPACE (stream power with alluvium conservation and entrainment) 1.0, a new model for simultaneous evolution of an alluvium layer and a bedrock bed based on conservation of sediment mass both on the bed and in the water column. The model treats sediment transport and bedrock erosion simultaneously, embracing the reality that many rivers (even those commonly defined as bedrock rivers) flow over a partially alluviated bed. SPACE improves on previous models of bedrock-alluvial rivers by explicitly calculating sediment erosion and deposition rather than relying on a flux-divergence (Exner) approach. The SPACE model is a component of the Landlab modeling toolkit, a Python-language library used to create models of Earth surface processes. Landlab allows efficient coupling between the SPACE model and components simulating basin hydrology, hillslope evolution, weathering, lithospheric flexure, and other surface processes. Here, we first derive the governing equations of the SPACE model from existing sediment transport and bedrock erosion formulations and explore the behavior of local analytical solutions for sediment flux and alluvium thickness. We derive steady-state analytical solutions for channel slope, alluvium thickness, and sediment flux, and show that SPACE matches predicted behavior in detachment-limited, transport-limited, and mixed conditions. We provide an example of landscape evolution modeling in which SPACE is coupled with hillslope diffusion, and demonstrate that SPACE provides an effective framework for simultaneously modeling 2-D sediment transport and bedrock erosion.

Geologic columns for the ICDP-USGS Eyreville A and B cores, Chesapeake Bay impact structure: Sediment-clast breccias, 1096 to 444 m depth

USGS Publications Warehouse

Edwards, L.E.; Powars, D.S.; Gohn, G.S.; Dypvik, H.

2009-01-01

The Eyreville A and B cores, recovered from the "moat" of the Chesapeake Bay impact structure, provide a thick section of sediment-clast breccias and minor stratified sediments from 1095.74 to 443.90 m. This paper discusses the components of these breccias, presents a geologic column and descriptive lithologic framework for them, and formalizes the Exmore Formation. From 1095.74 to ??867 m, the cores consist of nonmarine sediment boulders and sand (rare blocks up to 15.3 m intersected diameter). A sharp contact in both cores at ??867 m marks the lowest clayey, silty, glauconitic quartz sand that constitutes the base of the Exmore Formation and its lower diamicton member. Here, material derived from the upper sediment target layers, as well as some impact ejecta, occurs. The block-dominated member of the Exmore Formation, from ??855-618.23 m, consists of nonmarine sediment blocks and boulders (up to 45.5 m) that are juxtaposed complexly. Blocks of oxidized clay are an important component. Above 618.23 m, which is the base of the informal upper diamicton member of the Exmore Formation, the glauconitic matrix is a consistent component in diamicton layers between nonmarine sediment clasts that decrease in size upward in the section. Crystalline-rock clasts are not randomly distributed but rather form local concentrations. The upper part of the Exmore Formation consists of crudely fining-upward sandy packages capped by laminated silt and clay. The overlap interval of Eyreville A and B (940-??760 m) allows recognition of local similarities and differences in the breccias. ?? 2009 The Geological Society of America.

Design and evaluation of a high sensitivity spiral TDR scour sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Quan; (Bill Yu, Xiong

2015-08-01

Bridge scour accounts for more than half of the reported bridge failures in the United States. Scour monitoring technology based on time domain reflectometry (TDR) features the advantages of being automatic and inexpensive. The senior author’s team has developed a few generations of a TDR bridge scour monitoring system, which have succeeded in both laboratory and field evaluations. In this study, an innovative spiral TDR sensor is proposed to further improve the sensitivity of the TDR sensor in scour detection. The spiral TDR sensor is made of a parallel copper wire waveguide wrapped around a mounting rod. By using a spiral path for the waveguide, the TDR sensor achieves higher sensitivity than the traditional straight TDR probes due to longer travel distance of the electromagnetic (EM) wave per unit length in the spiral probe versus traditional probe. The performance of the new TDR spiral scour sensor is validated by calibration with liquids with known dielectric constant and wet soils. Laboratory simulated scour-refilling experiments are performed to evaluate the performance of the new spiral probe in detecting the sediment-water interface and therefore the scour-refill process. The tests results indicate that scour depth variation of less than 2 cm can be easily detected by this new spiral sensor. A theory is developed based on the dielectric mixing model to simplify the TDR signal analyses for scour depth detection. The sediment layer thickness (directly related to scour depth) varies linearly with the square root of the bulk dielectric constant of the water-sediment mixture measured by the spiral TDR probe, which matches the results of theoretical prediction. The estimated sediment layer thickness and therefore scour depth from the spiral TDR sensor agrees very well with that by direct physical measurement. The spiral TDR sensor is four times more sensitive than a traditional straight TDR probe.

OESbathy version 1.0: a method for reconstructing ocean bathymetry with realistic continental shelf-slope-rise structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goswami, A.; Olson, P. L.; Hinnov, L. A.; Gnanadesikan, A.

2015-04-01

We present a method for reconstructing global ocean bathymetry that uses a plate cooling model for the oceanic lithosphere, the age distribution of the oceanic crust, global oceanic sediment thicknesses, plus shelf-slope-rise structures calibrated at modern active and passive continental margins. Our motivation is to reconstruct realistic ocean bathymetry based on parameterized relationships of present-day variables that can be applied to global oceans in the geologic past, and to isolate locations where anomalous processes such as mantle convection may affect bathymetry. Parameters of the plate cooling model are combined with ocean crustal age to calculate depth-to-basement. To the depth-to-basement we add an isostatically adjusted, multicomponent sediment layer, constrained by sediment thickness in the modern oceans and marginal seas. A continental shelf-slope-rise structure completes the bathymetry reconstruction, extending from the ocean crust to the coastlines. Shelf-slope-rise structures at active and passive margins are parameterized using modern ocean bathymetry at locations where a complete history of seafloor spreading is preserved. This includes the coastal regions of the North, South, and Central Atlantic Ocean, the Southern Ocean between Australia and Antarctica, and the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of South America. The final products are global maps at 0.1° × 0.1° resolution of depth-to-basement, ocean bathymetry with an isostatically adjusted, multicomponent sediment layer, and ocean bathymetry with reconstructed continental shelf-slope-rise structures. Our reconstructed bathymetry agrees with the measured ETOPO1 bathymetry at most passive margins, including the east coast of North America, north coast of the Arabian Sea, and northeast and southeast coasts of South America. There is disagreement at margins with anomalous continental shelf-slope-rise structures, such as around the Arctic Ocean, the Falkland Islands, and Indonesia.

Fire beneath the ice

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Monastersky, R.

1993-02-13

A volcano discovered six years ago by researchers Blankenship and Bell under Antarctica poses questions about a potential climatic catastrophe. The researchers claim that the volcano is still active, erupting occasionally and growing. A circular depression on the surface of the ice sheet has ice flowing into it and is used to provide a portrait of the heat source. The volcano is on a critical transition zone within West Antarctica with fast flowing ice streams directly downhill. Work by Blankenship shows that a soft layer of water-logged sediments called till provide the lubricating layer on the underside of the icemore » streams. Volcanos may provide the source of this till. The ice streams buffer the thick interior ice from the ocean and no one know what will happen if the ice streams continue to shorten. These researchers believe their results indicate that the stability of West Antarctica ultimately depends less on the current climate than on the location of heat and sediments under the ice and the legacy of past climatic changes.« less

Changes in Depositional Setting Reflect Rising Sealevel in Latest Holocene Sediments of the Hudson River

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slagle, A.; Carbotte, S. M.; Ryan, W. B.; Bell, R.; Nitsche, F. O.; McHugh, C. M.

2002-12-01

An extensive database of geophysical and sampling data in the Hudson River has been obtained in ten study areas between the New York Harbor and the Troy Dam. These data include bathymetry, bank-to-bank coverage of side-looking sonar imagery, subbottom reflection profiles, sediment cores and grabs. Geophysical properties, including gamma density, magnetic susceptibility and P-wave velocity, have been measured in a 9.3 m Vibracore (SD-30) from the near-channel tidal flats of the Tappan Zee area. Three distinct sedimentary facies have been identified, based on changes in physical properties, lithology and seismic reflections. Facies 1 is an oyster-rich unit with unstratified sediments and high sound velocities, and is found in the upper 1.5 m of core SD-30. Chirp subbottom data, which provide reflectors down to approximately 4 m depth, show a distinct horizon at 1.5 m, supporting the change seen in physical property data and lithology at this depth. A unit characterized by laminated sediments, interbedded with homogeneous layers and coquina layers, is identified as Facies 2 and is found between 1.5 and 6.1 m. This facies has high magnetic susceptibility and the appearance of discrete density cycles. The oldest unit, Facies 3, extends from 6.1 m to the base of the core at 9.3 m. It is made up of oyster-rich, unbedded sediments and thick coquina layers, and is characterized by low magnetic susceptibility. Radiocarbon dating of oysters and bivalves indicates that the different facies in SD-30 correspond to different sedimentation rates, with highest values occurring during deposition of Facies 2. The facies changes and variations in sedimentation rates are attributed to an evolving depositional environment in the tidal flats of the Tappan Zee area due to rising sealevel. Extrapolating from nearby cores that penetrate deeper into the sedimentary record, Facies 3 sits above post-glacial fluvial sands and represents the transition from a fresh to more brackish environment, suitable for development of oyster beds. The laminated sediments of Facies 2 are attributed to infilling of the tidal flats during a rapid rise in sealevel. The lack of laminated sediments and low sedimentation rates of Facies 1 are attributed to the modern wave-base dominated depositional setting in the Tappan Zee area.

Carbon release by off-axis magmatism in a young sedimented spreading centre

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lizarralde, Daniel; Soule, S. Adam; Seewald, Jeff S.; Proskurowski, Giora

2011-01-01

Continental rifting creates narrow ocean basins, where coastal ocean upwelling results in high biological productivity and organic-rich sedimentation. In addition, topographic gradients promote silicate weathering, which consumes atmospheric CO2 (ref. 1). The carbon flux associated with these processes has led to the suggestion that rifting may cool the atmosphere, leading in some cases to glaciation and even a snowball Earth scenario. Guaymas basin, within the Gulf of California, is a young spreading system where new igneous crust is formed beneath a layer of organic-rich sediment that is 1-2kmthick. Here we present seismic data from Guaymas basin that image recent, basin-wide magmatic intrusions into sediments; sonar backscatter and seafloor photographs that indicate numerous, broadly distributed chemosynthetic seafloor biological communities, and geochemical analyses of water samples suggesting that the methane that supports these communities is derived from magma-driven thermogenic alteration of sediments. Our results suggest that active shallow magmatism releases carbon from sediments up to 50km away from the plate boundary. This is a much larger area than the less than 5km found at unsedimented mid-ocean ridges, and than previously recognized. We conclude that thick sediments may promote broad magmatism, reducing the efficiency of natural carbon sequestration within young sedimented rifts.

Geoacoustic Characterization of the Mud Drape at the New England Mud Patch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reed, A. H.

2016-02-01

The New England Mud Patch is an extensive deposit of fine-grained sediments that extends from an area south of Cape Cod, MA to south of Montauk Point Long Island, NY out on the continental shelf in water depths of 60 to 90 meters. The mud patch has a remarkable accumulation of up to a 13 meter thick sequence of mud that overlays a transgressive surface of Pleistocene Age and then thins out on the periphery where surficial sediments convert from mud to sand and sand/gravel. The deposit likely accumulated in this region due to the coalescing of shelf currents that had oppositional flow. This work focuses on a section of the mud patch that is centered over the thickest portion of mud and extends east-west for 30 km and north south for 10 km. Gravity cores were collected throughout this region and the cores penetrated the upper 2-4 m of mud at 28 different sites with multiple cores collected in several locations. The mud thickness in these regions exceeded the core barrel length, therefore the cores did not penetrate into the basal sand sediment layer, a relict transgressional horizon, which displays prominently in the acoustic data for this selected region. These cores were evaluated for compressional sound speed (averaging 1480 m/s) and density (1580 kg/m3) and found to be largely homogeneous and similar throughout the study area. The largest source of inhomogeneity was due to dispersed shell hash and disarticulated bivalves, but these inclusions represent minor components in the total sediment volume. The overlying sediment that characterizes the New England Mud Patch can be readily classified as mud, silty mud, or sandy-silty mud. This fine-grained sediment deposit reflects upon the low-energy nature of the hydrodynamics within this region.

Burrow-generated false facies and phantom sequences

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wanless, H.R.; Tagett, M.

Callianassa (=Ophiomorpha) and other burrowers deeply rework shallow marine sequences. Through in-situ reworking, they create false sedimentary facies and stratigraphic sequences. Callianassa's key to effectiveness is that it expels sand and mud from burrow excavations but concentrates coarse material at the base of the burrow complex. Coarse material can be derived by falling into the burrow entrance, by reworking the existing sediment sequence, or by a combination of both. Examples come from shallow marine carbonate environments of south Florida and the Turks and Caicos Islands, British West Indies. Many mudbanks in south Florida are formed as stacks of layered mudstonemore » units 20-100 cm thick. Between events, seagrasses may recolonize, and a burrowing benthic community may repopulate the substrate. The layered mudstone beneath older areas of mudbank flats can gradually be converted to a bioturbated skeletal wackestone by the deep burrowing community. Burrowing also causes mixing of faunal assemblages. On Caicos Bank, an extensive carbonate tidal flat (3-4 m thick) is slowly being transgressed. About 1 m of tidal-flat sequence is eroded at the shoreline. The remaining 2-3 m could be preserved as part of the transgressive sequence. Callianassa burrowing, however, quickly reworks the sequence, replacing tidal-flat sands and muds with marine peloidal and skeletal sediment. Within 100 m of the shoreline, the only evidence of the tidal-flat sequence is a concentration of high-spired gastropods in Calliannassa burrows at the base of the Holocene sequence and a few patches of tidal-flat sediment that burrowers missed. What looks like a basal transgressive lag is in fact a biogenic concentrate from in-situ reworking of a now phantom sequence.« less

Sub-basalt Imaging of Hydrocarbon-Bearing Mesozoic Sediments Using Ray-Trace Inversion of First-Arrival Seismic Data and Elastic Finite-Difference Full-Wave Modeling Along Sinor-Valod Profile of Deccan Syneclise, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Talukdar, Karabi; Behera, Laxmidhar

2018-03-01

Imaging below the basalt for hydrocarbon exploration is a global problem because of poor penetration and significant loss of seismic energy due to scattering, attenuation, absorption and mode-conversion when the seismic waves encounter a highly heterogeneous and rugose basalt layer. The conventional (short offset) seismic data acquisition, processing and modeling techniques adopted by the oil industry generally fails to image hydrocarbon-bearing sub-trappean Mesozoic sediments hidden below the basalt and is considered as a serious problem for hydrocarbon exploration in the world. To overcome this difficulty of sub-basalt imaging, we have generated dense synthetic seismic data with the help of elastic finite-difference full-wave modeling using staggered-grid scheme for the model derived from ray-trace inversion using sparse wide-angle seismic data acquired along Sinor-Valod profile in the Deccan Volcanic Province of India. The full-wave synthetic seismic data generated have been processed and imaged using conventional seismic data processing technique with Kirchhoff pre-stack time and depth migrations. The seismic image obtained correlates with all the structural features of the model obtained through ray-trace inversion of wide-angle seismic data, validating the effectiveness of robust elastic finite-difference full-wave modeling approach for imaging below thick basalts. Using the full-wave modeling also allows us to decipher small-scale heterogeneities imposed in the model as a measure of the rugose basalt interfaces, which could not be dealt with ray-trace inversion. Furthermore, we were able to accurately image thin low-velocity hydrocarbon-bearing Mesozoic sediments sandwiched between and hidden below two thick sequences of high-velocity basalt layers lying above the basement.

Statistical comparison of methods for estimating sediment thickness from Horizontal-to-Vertical Spectral Ratio (HVSR) seismic methods: An example from Tylerville, Connecticut, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, Carole D.; Lane, John W.

2016-01-01

Determining sediment thickness and delineating bedrock topography are important for assessing groundwater availability and characterizing contamination sites. In recent years, the horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) seismic method has emerged as a non-invasive, cost-effective approach for estimating the thickness of unconsolidated sediments above bedrock. Using a three-component seismometer, this method uses the ratio of the average horizontal- and vertical-component amplitude spectrums to produce a spectral ratio curve with a peak at the fundamental resonance frequency. The HVSR method produces clear and repeatable resonance frequency peaks when there is a sharp contrast (>2:1) in acoustic impedance at the sediment/bedrock boundary. Given the resonant frequency, sediment thickness can be determined either by (1) using an estimate of average local sediment shear-wave velocity or by (2) application of a power-law regression equation developed from resonance frequency observations at sites with a range of known depths to bedrock. Two frequently asked questions about the HVSR method are (1) how accurate are the sediment thickness estimates? and (2) how much do sediment thickness/bedrock depth estimates change when using different published regression equations? This paper compares and contrasts different approaches for generating HVSR depth estimates, through analysis of HVSR data acquired in the vicinity of Tylerville, Connecticut, USA.

Fluvial landscapes evolution in the Gangkou River basin of southern Taiwan: Evidence from the sediment cores

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Jia-Hong; Chyi, Shyh-Jeng; Yen, Jiun-Yee; Lin, Li-Hung; Yen, I.-Chin; Yu, Neng-Ti; Ho, Lih-Der; Jen, Chia-Hung

2017-04-01

The Gangkou River basin is the largest basin in the eastern Hengchun Peninsula of Taiwan. Its main river length is 31km and the basin area is 102sq. km. The width of the active channel is relatively narrow, but the valley from the middle to downstream is remarkably wide, indicating a feature of underfit stream. We drilled two sediment cores in the downstream area, including a 30m core (core-A) from a higher terrace, which is 14m above mean sea level, and a 20m core (core-B) from a lower terrace, which is 4m above mean sea level. Most of the sediments in the core-A are mud, which represents the flood plain facies, and 14C dates in the core-A range from 11ka to 7ka BP. Furthermore, the sediment layers reveal signals of marine events at the core depths of 5m to 11m by X-ray fluorescence. In the core-B, there is an erosional surface at the core depth of 5m. The age of the fluvial gravel layer above the erosional surface is about 0.4ka BP, and the mud layer top the surface is about 8.5ka BP. The preliminary results show that (1) as the tectonic uplift rate induced by the marine terraces around the basin is 1.0 to 2.5 mm/yr, and the accumulation rate of the mud layer in the basin is 6.7 to 8.7 mm/yr, the sediments infilling (more than 30-meters-thick) in the downstream area of the basin should be the results of the lower tectonic uplifting and the higher post-glacial sea level rise and; (2) the marine sediment layer with 14C dates of 7.5ka to 8.5ka BP is very likely the remain of the maximum flooding surface (MFS) in the early Holocene. These results indicate that the fluvial landscapes evolution of the basin was controlled by the sea-level; (3) the erosional surface in the core-B indicates the Gangkou River continuously erode the infilling sediments from 7ka to 0.4ka BP. Previous studies show that the sea-level around Taiwan gradually declined from its high stand since 6ka, we proposed that the continuous erosion was probably the results of tectonic uplifting and eustatic sea-level fall.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhao Hanqing; Fu Zhiguo; Lu Xiaoguang

Guided by the sedimentation theory and knowledge of modern and ancient fluvial deposition and utilizing the abundant information of sedimentary series, microfacies type and petrophysical parameters from well logging curves of close spaced thousands of wells located in a large area. A new method for establishing detailed sedimentation and permeability distribution models for fluvial reservoirs have been developed successfully. This study aimed at the geometry and internal architecture of sandbodies, in accordance to their hierarchical levels of heterogeneity and building up sedimentation and permeability distribution models of fluvial reservoirs, describing the reservoir heterogeneity on the light of the river sedimentarymore » rules. The results and methods obtained in outcrop and modem sedimentation studies have successfully supported the study. Taking advantage of this method, the major producing layers (PI{sub 1-2}), which have been considered as heterogeneous and thick fluvial reservoirs extending widely in lateral are researched in detail. These layers are subdivided into single sedimentary units vertically and the microfacies are identified horizontally. Furthermore, a complex system is recognized according to their hierarchical levels from large to small, meander belt, single channel sandbody, meander scroll, point bar, and lateral accretion bodies of point bar. The achieved results improved the description of areal distribution of point bar sandbodies, provide an accurate and detailed framework model for establishing high resolution predicting model. By using geostatistic technique, it also plays an important role in searching for enriched zone of residual oil distribution.« less

Subaqueous Sediment Remobilization and Development of Syndepositional Deformational Structures on Mars: A Kinematic Approach from the Noachian Terby Crater

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sarkar, R.; Das, P.; Basu Sarbadhikari, A.

2017-12-01

A 2 km thick layered sequence within the Noachian Terby crater ( 174 km diameter, 28.0°S - 74.0°E), located at the Northern rim of Hellas basin, has been re-classified here into three major categories, i.e. mega-slump, debris flows, and turbidites based on sedimentation process. A wide spectrum of deformation structures, such as large scale isoclinal moderately inclined fold, pinch and swells, disharmonic folds, sediment loading structure, normal faults and thrust duplexes, suggest that amplitude of the syndepositional deformation spanned from hydroplastic to brittle domains. These structures provide ample evidences of sediment remobilization in Terby. The dominance of such mass-flow deposits in different stratigraphic horizons indicates that the basin was reactivated in frequent intervals during the filling process. However, an undeformed thinning-up sequence of beds, well exhibited at the basinal-lows, identified as ponded/confined turbidites, indicates that the basin experienced a stable bathymetric condition at the up-dip areas of the mega-slumps. An overall enrichment of phyllosilicates and scarcity of large boulders at the basin margins indicates that the provenance materials were deposited under stable and low-energy condition before being transported and re-deposited within the crater during the Terby impact. We presume that the inter-crater layered terrain of Hellas acted as a provenance of Terby's mass-transport deposits.

Shallow groundwater investigation using time-domain electromagnetic (TEM) method at Itay El-Baroud, Nile Delta, Egypt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaaban, H.; El-Qady, G.; Al-Sayed, E.; Ghazala, H.; Taha, A. I.

2016-12-01

The Nile Delta is one of the oldest known ancient delta, largest and most important depositional complex in the Mediterranean sedimentary basin. Furthermore, it is a unique site in Egypt that is suitable for accumulation and preservation of the Quaternary sediments. In this work we applied time-domain electromagnetic (TEM) method to investigate the Quaternary sediments sequence as well as detecting the groundwater aquifer in the area of study. A suite of 232 TEM sounding at 43 stations were carried out using a ;SIROTEM MK-3; time-domain electromagnetic system. A simple coincident loop configuration, in which the same loop transmits and receives signals, was employed with loop side length of 25 m. The 1-D modeling technique was applied to estimate the depth and the apparent resistivity of the interpreted geoelectrical data. Based on the interpretation of the acquired geophysical data, four geoelectric cross-sections were constructed. These sections show that the Upper Quaternary sequence consists of three geoelectric layers. The Holocene Nile mud is separated into two layers: the agricultural root zone (Layer 1) and thick water saturated mud (Layer 2). The Upper Pleistocene sandy aquifer (Layer 3) is very complicated non-linear boundary. This aquifer is the most important unit since it is considered as the main water bearing unit in the study area.

Rock-avalanche and ocean-resurge deposits in the late Eocene Chesapeake Bay impact structure: Evidence from the ICDP-USGS Eyreville cores, Virginia, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gohn, G.S.; Powars, D.S.; Dypvik, H.; Edwards, L.E.

2009-01-01

An unusually thick section of sedimentary breccias dominated by target-sediment clasts is a distinctive feature of the late Eocene Chesapeake Bay impact structure. A cored 1766-m-deep section recovered from the central part of this marine-target structure by the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP)-U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) drilling project contains 678 m of these breccias and associated sediments and an intervening 275-m-thick granite slab. Two sedimentary breccia units consist almost entirely of Cretaceous nonmarine sediments derived from the lower part of the target sediment layer. These sediments are present as coherent clasts and as autoclastic matrix between the clasts. Primary (Cretaceous) sedimentary structures are well preserved in some clasts, and liquefaction and fluidization structures produced at the site of deposition occur in the clasts and matrix. These sedimentary breccias are interpreted as one or more rock avalanches from the upper part of the transient-cavity wall. The little-deformed, unshocked granite slab probably was transported as part of an extremely large slide or avalanche. Water-saturated Cretaceous quartz sand below the slab was transported into the seafloor crater prior to, or concurrently with, the granite slab. Two sedimentary breccia units consist of polymict diamictons that contain cobbles, boulders, and blocks of Cretaceous nonmarine target sediments and less common shocked-rock and melt ejecta in an unsorted, unstratified, muddy, fossiliferous, glauconitic quartz matrix. Much of the matrix material was derived from Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene marine target sediments. These units are interpreted as the deposits of debris flows initiated by the resurge of ocean water into the seafloor crater. Interlayering of avalanche and debris-flow units indicates a partial temporal overlap of the earlier avalanche and later resurge processes. A thin unit of stratified turbidite deposits and overlying laminated fine-grained deposits at the top of the section represents the transition to normal shelf sedimentation. ?? 2009 The Geological Society of America.

Nature and Role of Subducting Sediments on the Megathrust and Forearc Evolution in the 2004 Great Sumatra Earthquake Rupture Zone: Results from Full Waveform Inversion of Long Offset Seismic Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, S. C.; Qin, Y.

2015-12-01

On active accretionary margins, the nature of incoming sediments defines the locking mechanism on the megathrust, and the development and evolution of the accretionary wedge. Drilling is the most direct method to characterise the nature of these sediments, but the drilling is very expensive, and provide information at only a few locations. In north Sumatra, an IODP drilling is programmed to take place in July-August 2016. We have performed seismic full waveform inversion of 12 km long offset seismic reflection data acquired by WesternGeco in 2006 over a 35 km zone near the subduction front in the 2004 earthquake rupture zone area that provide detailed quantitative information on the characteristics of the incoming sediments. We first downward continue the surface streamer data to the seafloor, which removes the effect of deep water (~5 km) and brings out the refraction arrivals as the first arrivals. We carry out travel time tomography, and then performed full waveform inversion of seismic refraction data followed by the full waveform inversion of reflection data providing detailed (10-20 m) velocity structure. The sediments in this area are 3-5 km thick where the P-wave velocity increases from 1.6 km/s near the seafloor to more than 4.5 km/s above the oceanic crust. The high velocity of sediments above the basement suggests that the sediments are highly compacted, strengthened the coupling near the subduction front, which might have been responsible for 2004 earthquake rupture propagation up to the subduction front, enhancing the tsunami. We also find several thin velocity layers within the sediments, which might be due to high pore-pressure fluid or free gas. These layers might be responsible for the formation of pseudo-decollement within the forearc sediments that acts as a conveyer belt between highly compacted subducting lower sediments and accreted sediments above. The presence of well intact sediments on the accretionary prism supports this interpretation. Our results provide first hand information about the sediments properties, which will be ground toothed by drilling.

Hydroclimatic variability in the Levant during the early last glacial (∼ 117-75 ka) derived from micro-facies analyses of deep Dead Sea sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neugebauer, I.; Schwab, M. J.; Waldmann, N. D.; Tjallingii, R.; Frank, U.; Hadzhiivanova, E.; Naumann, R.; Taha, N.; Agnon, A.; Enzel, Y.; Brauer, A.

2015-08-01

The new sediment record from the deep Dead Sea basin (ICDP core 5017-1) provides a unique archive for hydroclimatic variability in the Levant. Here, we present high-resolution sediment facies analysis and elemental composition by μXRF scanning of core 5017-1 to trace lake levels and responses of the regional hydroclimatology during the time interval from ca 117-75 ka, i.e. the transition between the last interglacial and the onset of the last glaciation. We distinguished six major micro-facies types and interpreted these and their alterations in the core in terms of relative lake level changes. The two end-member facies for highest and lowest lake levels are (a) up to several meters thick, greenish sediments of alternating aragonite and detrital marl laminae (aad) and (b) thick halite facies, respectively. Intermediate lake levels are characterised by detrital marls with varying amounts of aragonite, gypsum or halite, reflecting lower-amplitude, shorter-term variability. Two intervals of pronounced lake level drops occurred at ∼110-108 ± 5 and ∼93-87 ± 7 ka. They likely coincide with stadial conditions in the central Mediterranean (Melisey I and II pollen zones in Monticchio) and low global sea levels during MIS 5d and 5b. However, our data do not support the current hypothesis of an almost complete desiccation of the Dead Sea during the earlier of these lake level low stands based on a recovered gravel layer. Based on new petrographic analyses, we propose that, although it was a low stand, this well-sorted gravel layer may be a vestige of a thick turbidite that has been washed out during drilling rather than an in-situ beach deposit. Two intervals of higher lake stands at ∼108-93 ± 6 and ∼87-75 ± 7 ka correspond to interstadial conditions in the central Mediterranean, i.e. pollen zones St. Germain I and II in Monticchio, and GI 24 + 23 and 21 in Greenland, as well as to sapropels S4 and S3 in the Mediterranean Sea. These apparent correlations suggest a close link of the climate in the Levant to North Atlantic and Mediterranean climates during the time of the build-up of Northern Hemisphere ice shields in the early last glacial period.

Conceptual and numerical models of the glacial aquifer system north of Aberdeen, South Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Marini, Katrina A.; Hoogestraat, Galen K.; Aurand, Katherine R.; Putnam, Larry D.

2012-01-01

This U.S. Geological Survey report documents a conceptual and numerical model of the glacial aquifer system north of Aberdeen, South Dakota, that can be used to evaluate and manage the city of Aberdeen's water resources. The glacial aquifer system in the model area includes the Elm, Middle James, and Deep James aquifers, with intervening confining units composed of glacial till. The Elm aquifer ranged in thickness from less than 1 to about 95 feet (ft), with an average thickness of about 24 ft; the Middle James aquifer ranged in thickness from less than 1 to 91 ft, with an average thickness of 13 ft; and the Deep James aquifer ranged in thickness from less than 1 to 165 ft, with an average thickness of 23 ft. The confining units between the aquifers consisted of glacial till and ranged in thickness from 0 to 280 ft. The general direction of groundwater flow in the Elm aquifer in the model area was from northwest to southeast following the topography. Groundwater flow in the Middle James aquifer was to the southeast. Sparse data indicated a fairly flat potentiometric surface for the Deep James aquifer. Horizontal hydraulic conductivity for the Elm aquifer determined from aquifer tests ranged from 97 to 418 feet per day (ft/d), and a confined storage coefficient was determined to be 2.4x10-5. Estimates of the vertical hydraulic conductivity of the sediments separating the Elm River from the Elm aquifer, determined from the analysis of temperature gradients, ranged from 0.14 to 2.48 ft/d. Average annual precipitation in the model area was 19.6 inches per year (in/yr), and agriculture was the primary land use. Recharge to the Elm aquifer was by infiltration of precipitation through overlying outwash, lake sediments, and glacial till. The annual recharge for the model area, calculated by using a soil-water-balance method for water year (WY) 1975-2009, ranged from 0.028 inch in WY 1980 to 4.52 inches in WY 1986, with a mean of 1.56 inches. The annual potential evapotranspiration, calculated in soil-water-balance analysis, ranged from 21.8 inches in WY 1983 to 27.0 inches in WY 1985, with a mean of 24.6 inches. Water use from the glacial aquifer system primarily was from the Elm aquifer for irrigation, municipal, and suburban water supplies, and the annual rate ranged from 1.0 to 2.4 cubic feet per second (ft3/s). The MODFLOW-2005 numerical model represented the Elm aquifer, the Middle James aquifer, and the Deep James aquifer with model layers 1-3 respectively separated by confining layers 1-2 respectively. Groundwater flow was simulated with 75 stress periods beginning October 1, 1974, and ending September 30, 2009. Model grid spacing was 200 by 200 ft and boundaries were represented by specified-head boundaries and no-flow boundaries. The model used parameter estimation that focused on minimizing the difference between 954 observed and simulated hydraulic heads for 135 wells. Calibrated mean horizontal hydraulic conductivity values for model layers 1-3 were 94, 41, and 30 ft/d respectively. Vertical hydraulic conductivity values for confining layers 1 and 2 were 0.0002 and 0.0003 ft/d, respectively. Calibrated specific yield for model layer 1was 0.1 and specific storage ranged from 0.0003 to 0.0005 per foot. Calibrated mean recharge rates ranged from 2.5 in/yr where glacial till thickness was less than 10 ft to 0.8 in/yr where glacial till thickness was greater than 30 ft. Calibrated mean annual evapotranspiration rate was 8.8 in/yr. Simulated net streamflow gain from model layer 1 was 3.1 ft3/s.

Using Kettle Lake Records to Date and Interpret Holocene Ash Deposition in Upper Cook Inlet, Anchorage, AK

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Werner, A.; Kathan, K. M.; Kaufman, D. S.; Hancock, J. R.; Waythomas, C. F.; Wallace, K. L.

2004-12-01

Fourteen sediment cores recovered from three kettle lakes (Goose, Little Campbell and Lorraine) near Anchorage, AK were used to document and date Holocene volcanic ash deposition in the upper Cook Inlet area. Small lakes (<0.5 km2) with small (<1.5 km2), low relief (<50 m), and well-vegetated drainage areas were selected in order to minimize ash remobilization by mass wasting and fluvial processes. The resulting stratigraphic records are interpreted as primary terpha-fall stratigraphies. Relative to the surrounding lacustrine sediments, the ash layers exhibit low organic-matter content (as determined by loss-on-ignition, LOI), high magnetic susceptibility (MS), increased density (X-radiographs), and bubble-wall glass shards. Some ash layers are up to 1 cm thick (macrotephra) consisting of pure glass, some occur as light bands, while others (microtephra) can only be located using non-visual techniques (MS, LOI and X-radiography). The thinnest microtephras observed occur either as discrete (1 mm) layers or diffuse laminations composed of tephra mixed with ambient lake sediment. Forty-five AMS C-14 dates on terrestrial macro fossils were used to constrain sedimentation-rate models for the cores, and to assign absolute ages to ash units. Comparison of inferred tephra ages corroborates our intra and inter basin stratigraphic correlations (+/- 200 yrs) based on physical and MS stratigraphy. Ten out of 12 macrotephras can be confidently correlated among all three lakes, whereas, two of the prominent tephras occur in one basin but not in the others. This suggests subtle differences in ash plume extents or differences in tephra preservation between lakes. A total of 24 Holocene ash units (12 macro and 12 micro) have been recognized and dated in the Anchorage area, suggesting an ash-fall frequency of about 2.4/1000 yrs. By comparison, historical records suggest more frequent ash-fall events (120/1000 yrs). Our data indicate that, either the ash layers are not consistently preserved in the kettle basins, or more likely, these records lack the resolution to differentiate closely spaced ash-fall events. Core top stratigraphies support the latter interpretation: The 10-12 historically observed ash-fall events are represented by two diffuse zones in the upper 15 cm of the cores. As such, ash records from small kettle lakes should be regarded as conservative statements of ash deposition. Further, ash plumes can have narrow geographic distributions and ash-fall thicknesses can change markedly over short distances. Therefore distal ash-fall stratigraphies underestimate eruption frequencies.

Synimpact-postimpact transition inside Chesapeake Bay crater

USGS Publications Warehouse

Poag, Claude (Wylie)

2002-01-01

The transition from synimpact to postimpact sedimentation inside Chesapeake Bay impact crater began with accumulation of fallout debris, the final synimpact deposit. Evi dence of a synimpact fallout layer at this site comes from the presence of unusual, millimeter- scale, pyrite microstructures at the top of the Exmore crater-fill breccia. The porous geometry of the pyrite microstructures indicates that they originally were part of a more extensive pyrite lattice that encompassed a layer of millimeter-scale glass microspherules—fallout melt particles produced by the bolide impact. Above this microspherule layer is the initial postimpact deposit, a laminated clay-silt-sand unit, 19 cm thick. This laminated unit is a dead zone, which contains abundant stratigraphically mixed and diagenetically altered or impact-altered microfossils (foraminifera, calcareous nannofossils, dinoflagellates, ostracodes), but no evidence of indigenous biota. By extrapolation of sediment- accumulation rates, I estimate that conditions unfavorable to microbiota persisted for as little as <1 k.y. to 10 k.y. after the bolide impact. Subsequently, an abrupt improvement of the late Eocene paleoenvironment allowed species-rich assemblages of foraminifera, ostracodes, dinoflagellates, radiolarians, and calcareous nannoplankton to quickly reoccupy the crater basin, as documented in the first sample of the Chickahominy Formation above the dead zone.

Synimpact-postimpact transition inside Chesapeake Bay crater

USGS Publications Warehouse

Poag, C.W.

2002-01-01

The transition from synimpact to postimpact sedimentation inside Chesapeake Bay impact crater began with accumulation of fallout debris, the final synimpact deposit. Evidence of a synimpact fallout layer at this site comes from the presence of unusual, millimeter-scale, pyrite microstructures at the top of the Exmore crater-fill breccia. The porous geometry of the pyrite microstructures indicates that they originally were part of a more extensive pyrite lattice that encompassed a layer of millimeter-scale glass microspherules-fallout melt particles produced by the bolide impact. Above this microspherule layer is the initial postimpact deposit, a laminated clay-silt-sand unit, 19 cm thick. This laminated unit is a dead zone, which contains abundant stratigraphically mixed and diagenetically altered or impact-altered microfossils (foraminifera, calcareous nannofossils, dinoflagellates, ostracodes), but no evidence of indigenous biota. By extrapolation of sediment-accumulation rates, I estimate that conditions unfavorable to microbiota persisted for as little as <1 k.y. to 10 k.y. after the bolide impact. Subsequently, an abrupt improvement of the late Eocene paleoenvironment allowed species-rich assemblages of foraminifera, ostracodes, dinoflagellates, radiolarians, and calcareous nannoplankton to quickly reoccupy the crater basin, as documented in the first sample of the Chickahominy Formation above the dead zone.

Layered Outcrops of Far West Candor Chasma

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

[figure removed for brevity, see original site]

Images from Mariner 9 in 1972 revealed that some of the mesas and mounds found within the chasms of the martian 'Grand Canyon'--the Valles Marineris--have layers in them. Speculations as to the origin of these interior layered materials ranged from volcanic ash deposits to sediments laid down in lakes that could have partially filled the Vallis Marineris troughs, much as lakes now occupy portions of the rift valleys of eastern Africa. The proposal that the Valles Marineris once hosted deep martian lakes led to additional speculation as to the prospects for finding fossil evidence of martian life.

Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) images have ten or more times better resolution than the Mariner 9 and Viking orbiter images taken in the 1970s. MOC images have indeed confirmed the presence of layered outcrops within the Valles Marineris. They have also shown places previously not suspected to have layered rock, and they have shown that these materials might not have formed in the Valles Marineris, but were instead deposited in craters that were subsequently buried long before the chasms opened up (see discussion below). The layered rock is now visible because of faulting and erosion.

The high resolution picture shown here (B, above right) was the first image received by MOC scientists that began to hint at a larger story of layered sedimentary rock on Mars. The picture shows a 1.5 km by 2.9 km (0.9 mi by 1.8 mi) area in far southwestern Candor Chasma (A, above left) that was--based on Mariner 9 and Viking orbiter images--not previously expected to exhibit layers. The MOC image reveals that the floor of western Candor Chasma at this location is indeed layered. What is most striking about the picture is the large number and uniformity of the layers, or beds. There are over 100 beds in this area, and each has about the same thickness (estimated to be about 10 meters (11 yards) thick). Each layer has a relatively smooth upper surface, and each is hard enough to form steep cliffs at its margins.

Layers indicate change. The uniform pattern seen here--beds of similar properties and thickness repeated over a hundred times--suggest that the deposition of materials that made the layers was interrupted at regular or episodic intervals. Patterns like this, when found on Earth, usually indicate the presence of sediment deposited in dynamic, energetic, underwater environments. On Mars, these same patterns could very well indicate that the materials were deposited in a lake or shallow sea. Other MOC images suggest that these layers would not have formed in a lake in Candor Chasma, but instead were deposited in a crater or other basin that existed before Candor Chasma was cut (by faulting and erosion) into the surrounding terrain. However, it is not known for certain that these materials actually formed underwater, for it is possible that there were uniquely Martian processes occurring in the distant past that would mimic the pattern of sedimentation in water. For example, if the early Martian atmosphere was denser than it is today, and if the planet's atmospheric pressure changed on a cyclic basis (as it does today), then perhaps these materials are simply deposits of airborne dust that were later buried and cemented to create cliff-forming rock.

Sunlight illuminates both the wide angle context view and the narrow angle high resolution image from the left/upper left. In both, north is toward the top and east to the right.

Seafloor Morphology And Sediment Discharge Of The Storfjorden And Kveithola Palaeo-Ice Streams (NW Barents Sea) During The Last Deglaciation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Camerlenghi, Angelo; Rebesco, Michele; Pedrosa, Mayte; Demol, Ben; Giulia Lucchi, Renata; Urgeles, Roger; Colmenero-Hidalgo, Elena; Andreassen, Karin; Sverre Laberg, Jan; Winsborrow, Monica

2010-05-01

IPY Activity N. 367 focusing on Neogene ice streams and sedimentary processes on high- latitude continental margins (NICE-STREAMS) resulted in two coordinated cruises on the adjacent Storfjorden and Kveithola trough-mouth fans in the NW Barents Sea: SVAIS Cruise of BIO Hespérides, summer 2007, and EGLACOM Cruise of Cruise R/V OGS-Explora, summer 2008. The objectives were to acquire a high-resolution set of bathymetric, seismic and sediment core data in order to decipher the Neogene architectural development of the glacially-dominated NW Barents Sea continental margin in response to natural climate change. The paleo-ice streams drained ice from southern Spitsbergen, Spitsbergen Bank, and Bear Island. The short distance from the ice source to the calving front produced a short residence time of ice, and therefore a rapid response to climatic changes. In the outer trough of southern Storfjorden, lobate moraines superimpose and are cut by very large linear features attributed to mega-iceberg scours. In the adjacent Kveithola trough, a fresh morphology includes mega-scale glacial lineations overprinted by transverse grounding-zone wedges, diagnostic of episodic ice stream retreat. A 15 m thick glacimarine drape suggests an high post-deglaciation sedimentation rate. Preliminary interpretation suggests that the retreat of the Svalbard/Barents Sea Ice Sheet was highly dynamic and that grounded ice persisted on Spitsbergen Bank for some thousands years after the main Barents Sea deglaciation.The Storfjorden continental slope is divided into three wide lobes. Opposite the two northernmost lobes the slope is dominated by straight gullies in the upper part, and deposition of debris lobes on the mid and lower parts. In contrast, the southernmost lobe is characterized by widespread occurrence of submarine landslides. Sediment failure has accompanied the evolution of the southern Storfjorden and Kveithola margin throughout the Late Neogene, with very large mass transport deposits up to 200 m thick in the early phases of the development of the glacially influenced margin. Conversely, the central and northern parts of the Storfjorden margin have prograded without appreciable episodes of mass failure. Sedimentation has occurred through alternate layering of decimeter-thick glacial debris flows deposits, with laminated and acoustically transparent interglacial sediment drape. Gullies and paleo-gullies incise the glacial debris flows and are covered by the interglacial drape. They are formed early during each deglaciation phase, most likely by the erosive action of short-lived hyperpycnal flows generated by sediment-laden subglacial meltwater discharge. In sediment cores thick finely-laminated sedimentary beds on the upper continental slope of the southern part of the margin indicate preferential deposition by settlement of meltwater sediment plumes. High sedimentation rates of plumites may contribute to the slope instability and suggest that meltwater discharge was focused on the southern Storfjorden and Kveithola paleo-ice streams.

Kinematics and dynamics of salt movement driven by sub-salt normal faulting and supra-salt sediment accumulation - combined analogue experiments and analytical calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warsitzka, Michael; Kukowski, Nina; Kley, Jonas

2017-04-01

In extensional sedimentary basins, the movement of ductile salt is mainly controlled by the vertical displacement of the salt layer, differential loading due to syn-kinematic deposition, and tectonic shearing at the top and the base of the salt layer. During basement normal faulting, salt either tends to flow downward to the basin centre driven by its own weight or it is squeezed upward due to differential loading. In analogue experiments and analytical models, we address the interplay between normal faulting of the sub-salt basement, compaction and density inversion of the supra-salt cover and the kinematic response of the ductile salt layer. The analogue experiments consist of a ductile substratum (silicone putty) beneath a denser cover layer (sand mixture). Both layers are displaced by normal faults mimicked through a downward moving block within the rigid base of the experimental apparatus and the resulting flow patterns in the ductile layer are monitored and analysed. In the computational models using an analytical approximative solution of the Navier-Stokes equation, the steady-state flow velocity in an idealized natural salt layer is calculated in order to evaluate how flow patterns observed in the analogue experiments can be translated to nature. The analytical calculations provide estimations of the prevailing direction and velocity of salt flow above a sub-salt normal fault. The results of both modelling approaches show that under most geological conditions salt moves downwards to the hanging wall side as long as vertical offset and compaction of the cover layer are small. As soon as an effective average density of the cover is exceeded, the direction of the flow velocity reverses and the viscous material is squeezed towards the elevated footwall side. The analytical models reveal that upward flow occurs even if the average density of the overburden does not exceed the density of salt. By testing various scenarios with different layer thicknesses, displacement rate or lithological parameters of the cover, our models suggest that the reversal of material flow usually requires vertical displacements between 700 and 2000 m. The transition from downward to upward flow occurs at smaller fault displacements, if the initial overburden thickness and the overburden density are high and if sedimentation rate keeps pace with the displacement rate of the sub-salt normal fault.

High-resolution well-log derived dielectric properties of gas-hydrate-bearing sediments, Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, Alaska North Slope

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sun, Y.; Goldberg, D.; Collett, T.; Hunter, R.

2011-01-01

A dielectric logging tool, electromagnetic propagation tool (EPT), was deployed in 2007 in the BPXA-DOE-USGS Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well (Mount Elbert Well), North Slope, Alaska. The measured dielectric properties in the Mount Elbert well, combined with density log measurements, result in a vertical high-resolution (cm-scale) estimate of gas hydrate saturation. Two hydrate-bearing sand reservoirs about 20 m thick were identified using the EPT log and exhibited gas-hydrate saturation estimates ranging from 45% to 85%. In hydrate-bearing zones where variation of hole size and oil-based mud invasion are minimal, EPT-based gas hydrate saturation estimates on average agree well with lower vertical resolution estimates from the nuclear magnetic resonance logs; however, saturation and porosity estimates based on EPT logs are not reliable in intervals with substantial variations in borehole diameter and oil-based invasion.EPT log interpretation reveals many thin-bedded layers at various depths, both above and below the thick continuous hydrate occurrences, which range from 30-cm to about 1-m thick. Such thin layers are not indicated in other well logs, or from the visual observation of core, with the exception of the image log recorded by the oil-base microimager. We also observe that EPT dielectric measurements can be used to accurately detect fine-scale changes in lithology and pore fluid properties of hydrate-bearing sediments where variation of hole size is minimal. EPT measurements may thus provide high-resolution in-situ hydrate saturation estimates for comparison and calibration with laboratory analysis. ?? 2010 Elsevier Ltd.

Frequency of event deposits reflecting glacial/interglacial conditions during the last ca. 50,000 years in the south Patagonian maar lake Laguna Potrok Aike, Argentina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kliem, Pierre; Hahn, Annette; Ohlendorf, Christian; Zolitschka, Bernd; Pasado Science Team

2010-05-01

Laguna Potrok Aike is a 100m deep maar lake located in the dry steppe of southern Patagonia. The catchment area of >200km² mainly consists of till from Bella Vista and Río Ciaike Glaciations as well as of alkali-olivine basalts of the Pali Aike Volcanic Field. Today's regional climate is affected by the Southern Hemispheric Westerlies and the rainshadow effect of the north-south striking Andean mountain chain. Since lakes are valuable terrestrial paleoclimate archives, sediments of Laguna Potrok Aike should reflect shifts of mid latitude wind and pressure fields as well as precipitation changes in southeastern South America. Aiming at the reconstruction of past climate, the deep drilling at Laguna Potrok Aike was accomplished in the framework of the ICDP project PASADO during Sept. to Dec. 2008. By correlation of three holes drilled at Site 2 ca. 700 m south of the lake's center, a composite profile of 106.09 mcd (meters composite depth) was established. According to the lowermost 14C-age of aquatic macro remains from 80.6 mcd, the entire record comprises at least 50,000 years. The initial lithological description indicates that 50.74 m (i.e. 47.8%) of the sediment record consists of remobilized sediment (turbidity currents; homogenites; ball and pillow structures, gravel layers, slumps). Such deposits are almost absent in the top 12 mcd, where laminated clays and silts dominate. Correlation with an existing piston core allows a temporal relation to the Holocene. Apart from obviously remobilized deposits Holocene sediments are distinguished from Late Glacial deposits by a lower frequency of coarse silt/fine sand layers within a silt/clay matrix. Frequency and thickness of remobilized deposits increase with sediment depth. Most reworked sections are composed of three units: (1) a dark, coarse and fining upward base overlain by (2) a homogeneous layer of silt and (3) clay capped by a relatively thin light colored clay layer. Such sequences were often described as homogenites from marine sediments but are only rarely known from lakes. In the record from Laguna Potrok Aike thickest homogenites reach up to 3 m in thickness. In contrast, turbidites are characterized by a fining-upward pattern of the entire sequence. Homogenites in lake and marine sediments are generally regarded as representing a record for regional seismicity or tsunami activity. Since homogenites are not only triggered by seismotectonic activity and no such deposits are represented in the Holocene sediments of Laguna Potrok Aike, we hypothesize that homogenite generation could be linked to different climate conditions during glacial times. Reasons for this climate link may be (1) higher clastic input through the main tributary or (2) an extremely low lake level. The first option could be the result of more intense geomorphodynamic processes in the catchment area than today due to periglacial conditions with permafrost, forcing precipitation and melt water to run off superficially. Evidence for permafrost conditions in this region until the end of the last glacial is given by an OSL-dated sand wedge in the catchment area (19.1 ± 1.4ka). The latter explanation is supported by the occurrence of coarse gravel at the bases of some homogenites as well as by one chaotic gravel-dominated unit between 87 and 89 mcd, considering that the distal core is located 1.8 km from the main tributary.

Frequent but hidden eruptions of Adatara and Bandai volcanoes during the last 50,000 years unraveled by volcanic damlake sediments, northeast Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kataoka, Kyoko; Nagahashi, Yoshitaka

2017-04-01

Adatara and Bandai volcanoes in the northeast Japan are very close to each other ( 18 km). Bandai volcano is well known for a large-scale debris avalanche following the phreatic eruption in AD1888 that took more than 400 fatalities. Eruptive history consists of at least 6 more debris avalanche events, 3 more phreatic eruptions, 6 lava flows, and 4 Vulcanian/sub-Plinian eruptions during the last 50,000 years revealed by subaerial proximal deposits. Whereas, the eruptive history of Adatara volcano comprises 6 Vulcanian and 5 phreatic eruptions during the last 10,000 years. The most recent eruption occurred in AD1899-1900. The studied sedimentary core (INW2012) was drilled out from Lake Inawashiro-ko, the largest dammed lake in Japan, that was formed by the 50 ka Okinajima debris avalanche event at Bandai volcano. The lake is 94 m deep, and drilling site is located at the central part of the lake ( 90 m deep). In the 28 m long core sequence, in contrast to background lake sediments deposited under a deep offshore environment, very frequent (70) intercalations of event layers are recognized. Eight types of event layers can be recognized: 1) gray muddy layer (Gm), 2) gray sandy layer (Gs), 3) brown muddy layer (Bm), 4) brown sandy layer (Bs), 5) olive-gray muddy layer, 6) pale-brown sandy layer, and 7) yellow sandy layer, and 8) 2011 earthquake-induced turbidite, based on the characteristics of sedimentary facies, petrography, grainsize, mineral assemblages (XRD) and vertical variation of chemistry (micro-XRF). There are many tephra-fall layers but most of them are extra-basinal origin, i.e., of other volcanoes than Adatara and Bandai. Gm is usually a few millimeters to centimeters thick, blue-gray color, homogenized, and finer than background sediments. Gs is accompanied with coarser subunits and thicker than Gm. Especially, Gm/Gs contain pyrite, sulfate minerals and smectite, and are characterized by high sulfur contents. Bm and Bs are 1 to 6 cm thick and are normally graded with a sharp erosive base. Fresh glass shards and organic material are commonly present. The gray units (Gm/Gs) can be correlated with muddy lahars (cohesive debris flows/mudflows) in the Sukawa River catchment of Adatara volcano. High-sulfur contents indicate syn- or post-eruptive lahars in relation with phreatic eruptions or degradation of hydrothermally altered source rocks nearby the crater. The brown units (Bm/Bs) are thicker than those of gray units that suggest more proximal origin. The fresh glass shards and chemistry of those shards in brown units are unlikely to be reworking of pre-existing old tephra deposits, and therefore the events are attributed to magmatic eruption-fed density currents from Bandai. Since depositional rates of background lake sediments are stable, the frequent eruption-related events both from Adatara and Bandai volcanoes can be well dated. These event deposits reveal unknown eruptive history of Adatara and Bandai as they were more active during the last 50,000 years than previously known. Appropriate evaluation for small-scale but high frequent eruptions and their risk assessments are necessary for Inawashiro Town (15,000 population) located at the foot/downstream of the volcanoes.

Fine-Scale Layering of Mars Polar Deposits and Signatures of Ice Content in Nonpolar Material From Multiband SHARAD Data Processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campbell, Bruce A.; Morgan, Gareth A.

2018-02-01

The variation of Shallow Radar (SHARAD) echo strength with frequency reveals material dielectric losses and polar layer properties. Loss tangents for Elysium and Amazonis Planitiae deposits are consistent with volcanic flows and sediments, while the Medusae Fossae Formation, lineated valley fill, and lobate debris aprons have low losses consistent with a major component of water ice. Mantling materials in Arcadia and Utopia Planitiae have higher losses, suggesting they are not dominated by ice over large fractions of their thickness. In Gemina Lingula, there are frequent deviations from a simple dependence of loss on depth. Within reflector packets, the brightest reflectors are often different among the frequency subbands, and there are cases of reflectors that occur in only the high- or low-frequency echoes. Many polar radar reflections must arise from multiple thin interfaces, or single deposits of appropriate thickness, that display resonant scattering behaviors. Reflector properties may be linked to climate-controlled polar dust deposition.

Seismic imaging of gas hydrates in the northernmost South China sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Tan K.; Yang, Ben Jhong; Deng, Jia-Ming; Lee, Chao-Shing; Liu, Char-Shine

2010-03-01

Horizon velocity analysis and pre-stack depth migration of seismic profiles collected by R/V Maurice Ewing in 1995 across the accretionary prism off SW Taiwan and along the continental slope of the northernmost South China Sea were implemented for identifying gas hydrates. Similarly, a survey of 32 ocean-bottom seismometers (OBS), with a spacing of about 500 m, was conducted for exploring gas hydrates on the accretionary prism off SW Taiwan in April 2006. Travel times of head wave, refraction, reflection and converted shear wave identified from the hydrophone, vertical and horizontal components of these OBS data were applied for imaging P-wave velocity and Poisson’s ratio of hydrate-bearing sediments. In the accretionary prism off SW Taiwan, we found hydrate-bearing sediment, with a thickness of about 100-200 m, a relatively high P-wave velocity of 1.87-2.04 km/s and a relatively low Poisson’s ratio of 0.445-0.455, below anticlinal ridges near imbricate emergent thrusts in the drainage system of the Penghu and Kaoping Canyons. Free-gas layer, with a thickness of about 30-120 m, a relatively low P-wave velocity of 1.4-1.8 km/s and a relatively high Poisson’s ratio (0.47-0.48), was also observed below most of the bottom-simulating reflectors (BSR). Subsequently, based on rock physics of the three-phase effective medium, we evaluated the hydrate saturation of about 12-30% and the free-gas saturation of about 1-4%. The highest saturation (30% and 4%) of gas hydrates is found below anticlines due to N-S trending thrust-bounded folds and NE-SW thrusting and strike-slip ramps in the lower slope of the accretionary prism. We suggest that fluid may have migrated through the relay-fault array due to decollement folding and gas hydrates have been trapped in anticlines formed by the basement rises along the thrust faults. In contrast, in the rifted continental margin of the northernmost South China Sea, P-wave velocities of 1.9-2.2 km/s and 1.3-1.6 km/s, and thicknesses of about 50-200 m and 100-200 m, respectively, for a hydrate layer and a free-gas layer were imaged below the remnant and erosional ridges in the upper continental slope. High P-wave velocity of hydrate-bearing sediment below erosional ridges may also indicate high saturation of hydrates there. Normal faults due to rifting in the South China continental crust may have provided conduits for gas migration below the erosional ridges where P-wave velocity of hydrate-bearing sediment in the passive continental margin of the northernmost South China Sea is greater than that in the active accretionary prism off SW Taiwan.

The fluid dynamics of a basaltic magma chamber replenished by influx of hot, dense ultrabasic magma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huppert, Herbert E.; Sparks, R. Stephen J.

1981-09-01

This paper describes a fluid dynamical investigation of the influx of hot, dense ultrabasic magma into a reservoir containing lighter, fractionated basaltic magma. This situation is compared with that which develops when hot salty water is introduced under cold fresh water. Theoretical and empirical models for salt/water systems are adapted to develop a model for magmatic systems. A feature of the model is that the ultrabasic melt does not immediately mix with the basalt, but spreads out over the floor of the chamber, forming an independent layer. A non-turbulent interface forms between this layer and the overlying magma layer across which heat and mass are transferred by the process of molecular diffusion. Both layers convect vigorously as heat is transferred to the upper layer at a rate which greatly exceeds the heat lost to the surrounding country rock. The convection continues until the two layers have almost the same temperature. The compositions of the layers remain distinct due to the low diffusivity of mass compared to heat. The temperatures of the layers as functions of time and their cooling rate depend on their viscosities, their thermal properties, the density difference between the layers and their thicknesses. For a layer of ultrabasic melt (18% MgO) a few tens of metres thick at the base of a basaltic (10% MgO) magma chamber a few kilometres thick, the temperature of the layers will become nearly identical over a period of between a few months and a few years. During this time the turbulent convective velocities in the ultrabasic layer are far larger than the settling velocity of olivines which crystallise within the layer during cooling. Olivines only settle after the two layers have nearly reached thermal equilibrium. At this stage residual basaltic melt segregates as the olivines sediment in the lower layer. Depending on its density, the released basalt can either mix convectively with the overlying basalt layer, or can continue as a separate layer. The model provides an explanation for large-scale cyclic layering in basic and ultrabasic intrusions. The model also suggests reasons for the restriction of erupted basaltic liquids to compositions with MgO<10% and the formation of some quench textures in layered igneous rocks.

Crustal Structure and Subsidence of the Williston Basin: Evidence from Receiver Function Stacking and Gravity Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, J.; Liu, K. H.; Yu, Y.; Mickus, K. L.; Gao, S. S.

2017-12-01

The Williston Basin of the northcentral United States and southern Canada is a typical intracratonic sag basin, with nearly continuous subsidence from the Cambrian to the Jurassic. A number of contrasting models on the subsidence mechanism of this approximately circular basin have been proposed. While in principle 3D variations of crustal thickness, layering, and Poisson's ratio can provide essential constraints on the models, thick layers of Phanerozoic sediment with up to 4.5 km thickness prevented reliable determinations of those crustal properties using active or passive source seismic techniques. Specifically, the strong reverberations of teleseismic P-to-S converted waves (a.k.a. receiver functions or RFs) from the Moho and intracrustal interfaces in the loose sedimentary layer can severely contaminate the RFs. Here we use RFs recorded by about 200 USArray and other stations in the Williston Basin and adjacent areas to obtain spatial distributions of the crustal properties. We have found that virtually all of the RFs recorded by stations in the Basin contain strong reverberations, which are effectively removed using a recently developed deconvolution-based filter (Yu et al., 2015, DOI: 10.1002/2014JB011610). A "double Moho" structure is clearly imaged beneath the Basin. The top interface has a depth of about 40 km beneath the Basin, and shallows gradually toward the east from the depocenter. It joins with the Moho beneath the western margin of the Superior Craton, where the crust is about 30 km thick. The bottom interface has a depth of 55 km beneath the Wyoming Craton, and deepens to about 70 km beneath the depocenter. Based on preliminary results of H-k stacking and gravity modeling, we interpret the layer between the two interfaces as a high density, probably eclogized layer. Continuous eclogitization from the Cambrian to the Jurassic resulted in the previously observed rates of subsidence being nearly linear rather than exponential.

Characterisation of anti-erosive properties of nanocomposite coatings by the methods of sclerometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kudryakov, O. V.; Varavka, V. N.; Ilyasov, V. V.

2017-05-01

Results of research of coatings of the different metal-ceramics systems are given. Coatings were received by ion-plasma sedimentation in vacuum in the form of multilayered composite material, which had a thickness of layers within nanometric range. Selection of composite systems is determined by applied research problem - namely designing of the anti-erosive coatings durable in the condition of drop impingement impacts. For this purpose the sclerometric studies, the bench erosive tests and optimization of the obtained data were done.

Identification of deep subaqueous co-seismic scarps through specific coeval sedimentation in Lesser Antilles: implication for seismic hazard

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beck, C.; Reyss, J.-L.; Leclerc, F.; Moreno, E.; Feuillet, N.; Barrier, L.; Beauducel, F.; Boudon, G.; Clément, V.; Deplus, C.; Gallou, N.; Lebrun, J.-F.; Le Friant, A.; Nercessian, A.; Paterne, M.; Pichot, T.; Vidal, C.

2012-05-01

During the GWADASEIS cruise (Lesser Antilles volcanic arc, February-March 2009) a very high resolution (VHR) seismic-reflection survey was performed in order to constrain Late Quaternary to Present faulting. The profiles we obtained evidence frequent "ponding" of reworked sediments in the deepest areas, similar to the deposition of Mediterranean "homogenites". These bodies are acoustically transparent (few ms t.w.t. thick) and are often deposited on the hanging walls of dominantly normal faults, at the base of scarps. Their thickness appears sufficient to compensate (i.e. bury) co-seismic scarps between successive earthquakes, resulting in a flat and horizontal sea floor through time. In a selected area (offshore Montserrat and Nevis islands), piston coring (4 to 7 m long) was dedicated to a sedimentological analysis of the most recent of these particular layers. It corresponds to non-stratified homogenous calcareous silty sand (reworked calcareous plankton and minor volcanoclastics). This layer can be up to 2 m thick, and overlies fine-grained hemipelagites. The upper centimeters of the latter represent the normal RedOx water/sediment interface. 210Pb and 137Cs activities lack in the massive sands, while a normal profile of unsupported 210Pb decrease is observed in the hemipelagite below, together with a 137Cs peak corresponding to the Atmospheric Nuclear Experiments (1962). The RedOx level was thus capped by a recent instantaneous major sedimentary event considered as post-1970 AD; candidate seismic events to explain this sedimentary deposits are either the 16 March 1985 earthquake or the 8 October 1974 one (Mw = 6.3 and Mw = 7.4, respectively). This leads to consider that the syntectonic sedimentation in this area is not continuous but results from accumulation of thick homogenites deposited after the earthquakes (as observed in the following weeks after Haiti January 2010 event, McHugh et al., 2011). The existence of such deposits suggests that, in the area of study, vertical throw likely results from cumulated effects of separated earthquakes rather than from aseismic creep. Examination of VHR profiles shows that all major co-seismic offsets are recorded in the fault growth sequence and that co-seismic offsets can be precisely estimated. By using a sedimentation rate deduced from 210Pb decrease curve (0.5 mm yr-1) and taking into account minor reworking events detected in cores, we show that the Redonda system may have been responsible for five >M6 events during the last 34 000 yr. The approach presented in this work differs from fault activity analyses using displaced sets of isochronous surfaces and postulating co-seismic offsets. Combining VHR seismic imagery and coring we can decipher co-seismic vs. slow continuous displacement, and thus actually estimate the amplitude and the time distribution of major co-seismic offsets.

Crustal shear velocity structure in the Southern Lau Basin constrained by seafloor compliance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zha, Yang; Webb, Spahr C.

2016-05-01

Seafloor morphology and crustal structure vary significantly in the Lau back-arc basin, which contains regions of island arc formation, rifting, and seafloor spreading. We analyze seafloor compliance: deformation under long period ocean wave forcing, at 30 ocean bottom seismometers to constrain crustal shear wave velocity structure along and across the Eastern Lau Spreading Center (ELSC). Velocity models obtained through Monte Carlo inversion of compliance data show systematic variation of crustal structure in the basin. Sediment thicknesses range from zero thickness at the ridge axis to 1400 m near the volcanic arc. Sediment thickness increases faster to the east than to the west of the ELSC, suggesting a more abundant source of sediment near the active arc volcanoes. Along the ELSC, upper crustal velocities increase from the south to the north where the ridge has migrated farther away from the volcanic arc front. Along the axial ELSC, compliance analysis did not detect a crustal low-velocity body, indicating less melt in the ELSC crustal accretion zone compared to the fast spreading East Pacific Rise. Average upper crust shear velocities for the older ELSC crust produced when the ridge was near the volcanic arc are 0.5-0.8 km/s slower than crust produced at the present-day northern ELSC, consistent with a more porous extrusive layer. Crust in the western Lau Basin, which although thought to have been produced through extension and rifting of old arc crust, is found to have upper crustal velocities similar to older oceanic crust produced at the ELSC.

Crustal Thickness Beneath Libya and the Origin of Partial Melt Beneath AS Sawda Volcanic Province From Receiver Function Constraints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lemnifi, Awad A.; Elshaafi, Abdelsalam; Browning, John; Aouad, Nassib S.; El Ebaidi, Saad K.; Liu, Kelly K.; Gudmundsson, Agust

2017-12-01

This study investigates crustal thickness and properties within the Libyan region. Results obtained from 15 seismic stations belonging to the Libyan Center for Remote Sensing and Space Science are reported, in addition to 3 seismic stations publically available, using receiver functions. The results show crustal thicknesses ranging from 24 km to 36 km (with uncertainties ranging between ±0.10 km and ±0.90 km). More specifically, crustal thickness ranges from 32 km to 36 km in the southern portion of the Libyan territory then becomes thinner, between 24 km and 30 km, in the coastal areas of Libya and thinnest, between 24 km and 28 km, in the Sirt Basin. The observed high Vp/Vs value of 1.91 at one station located at the AS Sawda Volcanic Province in central Libya indicates the presence of either partial melt or an abnormally warm area. This finding suggests that magma reservoirs beneath the Libyan territory may still be partially molten and active, thereby posing significant earthquake and volcanic risks. The hypothesis of an active magma source is further demonstrated though the presence of asthenospheric upwelling and extension of the Sirt Basin. This study provides a new calculation of unconsolidated sediment layers by using the arrival time of the P to S converted phases. The results show sediments thicknesses of 0.4 km to 3.7 km, with the Vp/Vs values ranging from 2.2 to 4.8. The variations in crustal thickness throughout the region are correlated with surface elevation and Bouguer gravity anomalies, which suggest that they are isostatically compensated.

Sheet flow measurements on a surf-zone sandbar under shoaling and breaking waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mieras, R.; Puleo, J. A.; Cox, D. T.; Anderson, D. L.; Kim, Y.; Hsu, T. J.

2016-02-01

A large-scale experiment to quantify sheet flow processes over a sandbar under varying levels of wave steepness was conducted in the wave flume at Oregon State University's O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory. A fixed profile was constructed with concrete slabs anchored to the flume side walls, with the exception of the sandbar crest, where a steel pit was installed and filled with well-sorted sediment (d50 0.17 mm). This hybrid approach allowed for the isolation of small-scale bed response to large-scale wave forcing over the sandbar, where an array of sensors was positioned to measure hydrodynamic forcing and sediment response. Near-bed (< 3 cm above the bed) velocities were estimated using Nortek Vectrino-II profiling velocimeters, while sheet layer sediment concentration profiles (volumetric concentrations > 0.08 m3/m3) were approximated using Conductivity Concentration Profilers. Test conditions consisted of a regular wave train with incident wave heights for individual runs ranging from 0.4 m to 0.6 m and incident wave periods from 5 s to 9 s, encompassing a variety of skewed and asymmetric wave shapes across the shoaling and breaking regimes. Ensemble-averaged sediment concentration profiles exhibit considerable variation across the different conditions. The largest variation in sheet layer thickness occurs beneath the wave crest, ranging from 30 grain diameters for 5 sec, 0.4 m waves, up to 80 grain diameters for 7 sec, 0.6 m waves. Furthermore, the initiation and duration of sheet flow relative to the wave period differs for each condition set. It is likely that more than one mechanism plays a role in determining the aforementioned sheet layer characteristics. In the present work, we focus on the relative magnitude and phase of the near-bed flow acceleration and shear stress in determining the characteristics of the sheet layer.

Comparing horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratios with sediment-to-bedrock spectral ratios in a region with a thin layer of unconsolidated sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schleicher, L.; Pratt, T. L.

2017-12-01

Underlying sediment can amplify ground motions during earthquakes, making site response estimates key components in seismic evaluations for building infrastructure. The horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) method, using either earthquake signals or ambient noise as input, is an appealing method for estimating site response because it uses only a single seismic station rather than requiring two or more seismometers traditionally used to compute a horizontal sediment-to-bedrock spectral ratio (SBSR). A number of studies have had mixed results when comparing the accuracy of the HVSR versus SBSR methods for identifying the frequencies and amplitudes of the primary resonance peaks. Many of these studies have been carried out in areas of complex geology, such as basins with structures that can introduce 3D effects. Here we assess the effectiveness of the HVSR method by a comparison with the SBSR method and models of transfer functions in an area dominated by a flat and thin, unconsolidated sediment layer over bedrock, which should be an ideal setting for using the HVSR method. In this preliminary study, we analyze teleseismic and regional earthquake recordings from a temporary seismometer array deployed throughout Washington, DC, which is underlain by a wedge of 0 to 270 m thick layer of unconsolidated Atlantic Coastal Plain sedimentary strata. At most sites, we find a close match in the amplitudes and frequencies of large resonance peaks in horizontal ground motions at frequencies of 0.7 to 5 Hz in site response estimates using the HVSR and SBSR methods. Amplitudes of the HVSRs tend to be slightly lower than SBSRs at 3 Hz and less, but the amplitudes of the fundamental resonance peaks often match closely. The results suggest that the HVSR method could be a successful approach to consider for computing site response estimates in areas of simple shallow geology consisting of thin sedimentary layers with a strong reflector at the underlying bedrock surface. [This publication represents the views of the authors and does not necessarily represent the views of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board.

The Effect of Bioturbation on Relative Paleointenstiy Records

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egli, R.; Zhao, X.; Gilder, S. A.

2015-12-01

Bioturbation is one of the key factors affecting the acquisition of a natural remanent magnetization (NRM) in sediments featuring a top mixed layer. In this case, a rotational diffusion process controls the acquisition timing, which is described in terms of a lock-in function, and NRM intensity. In general terms, NRM acquisition by rotational diffusion is described by a Smoluchowski-Debye differential equation, which yields analytical solutions describing how an initially acquired depositional remanent magnetization (DRM) is progressively replaced by a post-depositional remanent magnetization (PDRM) [Egli and Mao, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst. 16, 995-1016, 2015]. These solutions in turn support the calculation of lock-in functions. Results are controlled by the following parameters: (1) a rotation diffusivity constant γ = 2DrL/ω, where Dr is the rotational diffusion coefficient, L the thickness of the mixed layer, and ω the sedimentation rate, and (2) the ratio between magnetic aligning torques τm = mB and the torques τp associated with mechanical interactions between sediment particles and with the action of perturbing forces. The PDRM acquisition rate and the extent of DRM replacement is controlled by γ, while PDRM intensity is a Langevin function of τm/ τp. Associated lock-in functions range from a constant (NRM is acquired only at the sediment surface) to the classical lock-in function starting below the mixed layer, though intermediate situations where PDRM is partially acquired in the mixed layer. This model has been confirmed by redeposition experiments performed with fresh sediment containing living microorganisms. Redeposition experiments show that the intensity of bioturbation-driven PDRMs can reach ~50% of the originally acquired DRM. Our model has profound consequences for the evaluation of relative paleointensity records, where variations can be driven by changes of the depositional environment. While this knowledge is not new, we provide for the first time a key for understanding, in a quantitative manner, how the NRM acquisition efficiency is controlled by bioturbation. A combination of proxies leading to estimates of the bioturbation activity might provide a new path for improving the reliability of relative paleointensity records.

Two-dimensional basement modeling of central loop transient electromagnetic data from the central Azraq basin area, Jordan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yogeshwar, P.; Tezkan, B.

2017-01-01

Thick sedimentary sequences are deposited in the central area of the Azraq basin in Jordan consisting mostly of hyper-saline clay and various evaporates. These sediment successions form the 10 km × 10 km large Azraq mudflat and are promising archives for a palaeoclimatical reconstruction. Besides palaeoclimatical research, the Azraq area is of tremendous importance to Jordan due to groundwater and mineral resources. The heavy exploitation of groundwater has lead to a drastic decline of the water table and drying out of the former Azraq Oasis. Two 7 and 5 km long transects were investigated from the periphery of the mudflat across its center using a total of 150 central loop transient electromagnetic (TEM) soundings. The scope of the survey was to detect the thickness of sedimentary deposits along both transects and to provide a basis for future drilling activities. We derive a two-dimensional model which can explain the TEM data for all soundings along each profile simultaneously. Previously uncertain depths of geological boundaries were determined along both transects. Particularly the thickness of the deposited mudflat sediments was identified and ranges from 40 m towards the periphery down to approximately 130 m at the deepest location. Besides that, the depth and lateral extent of a buried basalt layer was identified. In the basin center the groundwater is hyper-saline. The lateral extent of the saline water body was determined precisely along both transects. In order to investigate the detectability of the basement below the high conductive mudflat sediments an elaborate two-dimensional modeling study was performed. Both, the resistivity and depth of the basement were varied systematically. The basement resistivity cannot be determined precisely in most zones and may range roughly between 1 and 100 Ωm without deteriorating the misfit. In contrast to that, the depth down to the basement is detected accurately in most zones and along both transects. Varying the depth of the basement or removing it completely results in a poor data fitting and, therefore, proves its significance. From the modeling study we derived bounds for the resistivity and depth of the base layer as a measure of their uncertainty.

Modeling of sedimentation and resuspension processes induced by intensive internal gravity waves in the coastal water systems with the use of the advection-diffusion equation for sediment concentration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rouvinskaya, Ekaterina; Kurkin, Andrey; Kurkina, Oxana

2017-04-01

Intensive internal gravity waves influence bottom topography in the coastal zone. They induce substantial flows in the bottom layer that are essential for the formation of suspension and for the sediment transport. It is necessary to develop a mathematical model to predict the state of the seabed near the coastline to assess and ensure safety during the building and operation of the hydraulic engineering constructions. There are many models which are used to predict the impact of storm waves on the sediment transport processes. Such models for the impact of the tsunami waves are also actively developing. In recent years, the influence of intense internal waves on the sedimentation processes is also of a special interest. In this study we adapt one of such models, that is based on the advection-diffusion equation and allows to study processes of resuspension under the influence of internal gravity waves in the coastal zone, for solving the specific practical problems. During the numerical simulation precomputed velocity values are substituted in the advection - diffusion equation for sediment concentration at each time step and each node of the computational grid. Velocity values are obtained by the simulation of the internal waves' dynamics by using the IGW Research software package for numerical integration of fully nonlinear two-dimensional (vertical plane) system of equations of hydrodynamics of inviscid incompressible stratified fluid in the Boussinesq approximation bearing in mind the impact of barotropic tide. It is necessary to set the initial velocity and density distribution in the computational domain, bottom topography, as well as the value of the Coriolis parameter and, if necessary, the parameters of the tidal wave to carry out numerical calculations in the software package IGW Research. To initialize the background conditions of the numerical model we used data records obtained in the summer in the southern part of the shelf zone of Sakhalin Island from 1999 to 2003, provided by SakhNIRO, Russia. The process of assimilation of field data with numerical model is described in detail in our previous studies. It has been shown that process of suspension formation is quite intense for the investigated condition. Concentration of suspended particles significantly increases during the tide, especially on naturally uneven bottom relief as well as on the right boundary of the computational domain (near shoreline). Pronounced nepheloid layer is produced. Its thickness is about 5.6 m. At the phase of low tide, the process of suspension sediment production stops, and suspended particles are beginning to settle because of the small vertical velocities. Thickness of nepheloid layer is actively reduced. Obviously, this should lead to a change in the bottom relief. The presented results of research were obtained with the support of the Russian President's scholarship for young scientists and graduate students SP-2311.2016.5.

Crustal Stretching Style and Lower Crust Flow of the South China Sea Northern Margin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bai, Y.; Dong, D.; Runlin, D.

2017-12-01

There is a controversy about crustal stretching style of the South China Sea (SCS) northern margin mainly due to considerable uncertainty of stretching factor estimation, for example, as much as 40% of upper crust extension (Walsh et al., 1991) would be lost by seismic profiles due to poor resolution. To discover and understand crustal stretching style and lower crustal flow on the whole, we map the Moho and Conrad geometries based on gravity inversion constrained by deep seismic profiles, then according to the assumption of upper and lower crust initial thickness, upper and lower crust stretching factors are estimated. According to the comparison between upper and lower crust stretching factors, the SCS northern margin could be segmented into three parts, (1) sediment basins where upper crust is stretched more than lower crust, (2) COT regions where lower crust is stretched more than upper crust, (3) other regions where the two layers have similar stretching factors. Stretching factor map shows that lower crust flow happened in both of COT and sediment basin regions where upper crust decouples with lower crust due to high temperature. Pressure contrast by sediment loading in basins and erosion in sediment-source regions will lead to lower crust flow away from sediment sink to source. Decoupled and fractured upper crust is stretched further by sediment loading and the following compensation would result in relatively thick lower crust than upper crust. In COT regions with thin sediment coverage, low-viscosity lower crust is easier to thin in extensional environment, also the lower crust tends to flow away induced by magma upwelling. Therefore, continental crust on the margin is not stretching in a constant way but varies with the tectonic setting changes. This work is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41506055, 41476042) and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities China (No.17CX02003A).

[Sediment transport characteristics at different erosion stages for non-hardened roads of the Shenfu Coalfield, west China].

PubMed

Guo, Ming-ming; Wang, Wen-long; Li, Jian-ming; Huang, Peng-fei; Zhu, Bao-cai; Wang, Zhen; Luo, Ting

2015-02-01

Non-hardened roads formed in the production of the Shenfu Coalfield have a unique condition of underlying surface. The road surface is composed of a regolith layer with a certain thickness resulted from long-term rolling and thus, is characterized by weakened anti-scourabilty and anti-erodibility. In contrast, soil layer below the regolith has a higher bulk density and anti-erodibility. The processes of soil erosion on the non-hardened roads exhibit some differences under rainfall condition. The process of sediment transport and the relationship between sediment transport rate and erosion factors at different erosion stages were studied on non-hardened roads with slope degrees ranging from 3° to 12° (3°, 6°, 9°, 12°) by a field experiment under artificial rainfall. Results showed that the first peak of sediment transport on the regolith surface was observed at the sheet erosion stage. Sheet erosion occurred only at 3° slope degree, with an average variation coefficient of 0.07 for sediment transport rate. Rills in every testing began to develop at slope degrees of 6° to 12° about 15 min after runoff initiation. At the sheet erosion stage, the process of sediment transport fluctuated considerably at rainfall intensities of > 1.5 mm · min(-1), but the differences in its variation were little at the three slope degrees, with average variation coefficients of 0.20, 0.19 and 0.16, respectively. Rainfall intensity had a more significant impact on sediment transport rate than slope degree. The process of sediment transport at the rill erosion stage fluctuated, but the fluctuation was obviously smaller than that at the sheet erosion stage, with average variation coefficients of 0.05, 0.09 and 0.10 at the three slope degrees. Many wide and shallow rills evolved at the rill erosion stage. The sediment transport rate could be well predicted by a power function of rainfall intensity and slope degree at the sheet and rill erosion stages. The stable sediment transport rate for all the tests was linearly related to runoff rate and sediment concentration.

Lost Impacts (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schultz, P. H.; Stickle, A. M.

2009-12-01

The absence of a clearly identified crater (or craters) for the proposed YDB impact has raised questions concerning the reality of such an event. Geologic studies have identified impact deposits well before recognizing a causative crater (e.g., Chicxulub and Chesapeake Bay); some have yet to be discovered (e.g., Australasian tektite strewnfields). The absence of a crater, therefore, cannot be used as an argument against the reality of the YDB impact (and its possible consequences). The study here addresses how a large on-land impact during the late Pleistocene or early Holocene could avoid easy detection today. It does not argue the case for a YDB impact, since such evidence must come from the rock record. During the late Pleistocene, the receding Laurentide ice sheet still covered a significant portion of Canada. While a large (1km) body impacting vertically (90°) would penetrate such a low-impedance ice layer and excavate the substrate, an oblique impact couples more of its energy into the surface layer, thereby partially shielding the substrate. Three approaches address the effectiveness of this flak-jacket effect. First, hypervelocity impact experiments at the NASA Ames Vertical Gun Range investigated the effectiveness of low-impedance layers of different thicknesses for mitigating substrate damage. Second, selected experiments were compared with hydrocode models (see Stickle and Schultz, this volume) and extended to large scales. Third, comparisons were made with relict craters found in eroding sediment and ice covers on Mars. Oblique impacts (30 degrees) into soft particulates (no. 24 sand) covering a solid substrate (aluminum) have no effect on the final crater diameter for layer thicknesses exceeding a projectile diameter and result in only plastic deformation in the substrate. In contrast, a vertical impact requires a surface layer at least 3 times the projectile diameter to achieve the same diameter (with significant substrate damage). Oblique impacts into ice and plasticene layers over clear acrylic blocks allow assessing internal damage. These experiments reveal that low-impedance surface layers approaching 1 to 2 projectile diameters effectively shield the substrate from shock damage for impact angles less than 30 degrees. Missing craters (and relict crater roots) within ice-rich deposits on Mars illustrate the rapid erasure the impact record. Numerous small pedestal craters (crater diameter < 5km) occur at high latitudes and reflect the cyclic expansion and disappearance of polar ice/dust deposits up to 0.5 km thick. Much larger examples (> 50km), however, occur at low latitudes but are localized in certain regions where even thicker deposits (locally >2km) have been removed, uncovering a preserved Noachian landscape. Crater statistics further document this missing cratering record. Thick Pleistocene ice sheets on Earth would have played a similar role for the removal of terrestrial cratering record. We calculate that a crater as large as 15km in diameter formed by an oblique impact could have been effectively erased, except for dispersed ejecta containing shocked impactor relicts and a disturbed substrate. While plausible, evidence for specific missing events (e.g., the proposed YB impact) must be found in still-preserved ice layers and sediments.

Transitional Benthic Boundary Layers and their Influence on Nutrient Flux in Tidal Estuaries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koetje, K. M.; Foster, D. L.; Lippmann, T. C.; Kalnejais, L. H.

2016-12-01

Quantifying the coupled physical and geochemical processes in the fluid-sediment interface is critical to managing coastal resources. This is of particular importance during times of enhanced hydrodynamic forcing where extreme tide or wind events can have a significant impact on water quality. A combination of field and laboratory experiments were used to examine the relationship between large-scale fluid shear stresses and geochemical fluxes at the fluid-sediment interface in the Great Bay Estuary, New Hampshire. Sediment geochemical measurements paired with flow field observations along estuary-wide transects over several tidal cycles provide nutrient load estimates that can be scaled to represent the whole Bay. Three-dimensional flow field measurements collected using a maneuverable personal watercraft were used to determine the spatial and temporal variability of the shear stress throughout the Bay. High-resolution bottom boundary layer dynamics were observed using a suite of acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) in order to improve the accuracy of diffusive flux estimates by directly measuring the thickness of the benthic boundary layer. Over the 2.5 m tidal range and at water depths ranging from 0.3 m to 1.5 m at mean lower low water, peak mean flows ranged from 0.2 m/s to 1 m/s at the sampling sites. The dominant contribution of hydrodynamic forcing to the Bay is due to tidal flows, which are largely unidirectional during flood tide. Sediment grain size analysis characterized the bed at sampling sites as fine-grained sandy mud (d50 = 47 μm). Sampling during typical tidal flow conditions, a smooth turbulent flow field was observed and the threshold of motion was not exceeded. Along with sediment characterization, porosity profiles and erosion chamber experiments were used to characterize nutrient release. This host of data provides shear stress estimates that can constrain nutrient loads under variable hydrodynamic conditions.

Aleutian basin oceanic crust

USGS Publications Warehouse

Christeson, Gail L.; Barth, Ginger A.

2015-01-01

We present two-dimensional P-wave velocity structure along two wide-angle ocean bottom seismometer profiles from the Aleutian basin in the Bering Sea. The basement here is commonly considered to be trapped oceanic crust, yet there is a change in orientation of magnetic lineations and gravity features within the basin that might reflect later processes. Line 1 extends ∼225 km from southwest to northeast, while Line 2 extends ∼225 km from northwest to southeast and crosses the observed change in magnetic lineation orientation. Velocities of the sediment layer increase from 2.0 km/s at the seafloor to 3.0–3.4 km/s just above basement, crustal velocities increase from 5.1–5.6 km/s at the top of basement to 7.0–7.1 km/s at the base of the crust, and upper mantle velocities are 8.1–8.2 km/s. Average sediment thickness is 3.8–3.9 km for both profiles. Crustal thickness varies from 6.2 to 9.6 km, with average thickness of 7.2 km on Line 1 and 8.8 km on Line 2. There is no clear change in crustal structure associated with a change in orientation of magnetic lineations and gravity features. The velocity structure is consistent with that of normal or thickened oceanic crust. The observed increase in crustal thickness from west to east is interpreted as reflecting an increase in melt supply during crustal formation.

Assessment of shallow methane (CH4) gas using stable carbon and hydrogen isotopes in the sediments of the Gunsan Basin, eastern-central Yellow Sea, off the southwest of Korea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, J. H.; Jeong, K. S.; Woo, H. J.; Kang, J.; Tsunogai, U.

2016-12-01

In the Gunsan Basin, eastern-central Yellow Sea (YS), gas seepages were observed from the uppermost sedimentary layer charged locally with gases that are important indicators of marine resources, environmental changes, and geo-hazards. Methane (CH4) among the gases is the most abundant organic compound in the Earth's atmosphere, where it acts as a greenhouse gas and thus has implications for global climate change. Headspace CH4 was determined in surface and core sediments in order to understand the C- and H- isotopes signatures in the Gunsan Basin that were collected onboard R/V Onnuri and Eardo in 2013 to 2015. The surface sediments contain 0.2 to 16.9 µM CH4 that are mostly produced by microbial fermentation of organic materials in shallow depth, as indicated by the light values of δ13CCH4 (-70.2 -50.7‰ VPDB). CH4 is actively seeping mainly in the western central part of the Gunsan Basin where the underlying sedimentary layers are thick and heavily faulted. In the cores, CH4 is concentrated 1 to 20 μM through the core depths without any relationships to grain size, organic matter contents. Largely different from those, δ13CCH4 ranges in -62.0 -18.0‰ VPDB (δ2DCH4 range in -296.0 -144.0‰ VSMOW), that is, strongly mixed CH4 of thermogenic and biogenic origins in the core sediments. The CH4 flux at the sediment-water interface (SWI) using Fick's first law of diffusion was calculated 2 29 µM·m-2·day-1 (12 µM·m-2·day-1 on the average) by a careful examination of methane distribution within the uppermost 10 cm sediment layer of 8 box cores. It seems that CH4 flux into the water layer in the Gunsan Basin is less significant than other seep areas such as of the Black Sea, Gulf of Mexico, the Bohai Sea. However, detailed and repeated CH4 observation is needed in the Gunsan Basin, as suggested by temporarily but active gas seepage in a wide regional scale.

New insights into the paleolake sequence of Baumkirchen (Austria): multiple lake phases and a minor ice advance during MIS 4?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barrett, Samuel; Starnberger, Reinhard; Spötl, Christoph; Brauer, Achim; Tjallingii, Rik; Dulski, Peter; Abfalterer, Christof

2015-04-01

The sequence of pre-LGM lacustrine sediments at Baumkirchen (Austria) provides a key record in Alpine Quaternary stratigraphy. These sediments from within the boundary of the Alps potentially provide unique insights into the regional paleoclimate. Recent drilling revealed at least ~250m (the base was not reached) of almost entirely mm- to cm-scale lacustrine sediments. The laminated sediments are comprised of alternations between clayey silt and event layers of medium silt to fine sand. The sequence is interrupted only by a short section of gravel supported in an unlaminated clay-rich matrix. Optically stimulated luminescence dating identifies two distinct sequences: the upper sequence spanning mid-late Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 (~33 to ~45 ka BP), agreeing with existing calibrated radiocarbon ages, and the lower section dating to MIS 4 (~59 to ~73 ka BP). Whether the hiatus is an erosional unconformity, or if the sequences represent two separate lake phases is unclear. Although the precise location of the hiatus is hard to identify, the gravel-rich section lies at the very top of the lower sequence. Pebbles in these gravels are largely angular and contain a significant proportion of non-local, regional lithologies. Such gravels are absent in the remainder of the entire 250 m-thick sequence and hence suggest a unique event rather than e.g. an interfingering local delta gravel foresets with the basin sediments. The gravels are therefore likely to be ice-rafted debris from icebergs from nearby glaciers calving into the lake. This therefore represents the first sedimentological evidence of a MIS 4 ice advance in the Eastern Alps. X-ray fluorescence analysis (ITRAX core scanning) of event layers indicates a strong change in the geochemical composition from generally K, Zr and Ti-rich layers in the upper sequence to mainly Ca and/or Si-rich layers in the lower sequence. X-ray diffraction analysis shows the Ca and Si signals to be controlled by carbonate (both calcite and dolomite) and quartz, respectively. This suggests a change in dominant sediment source and may indicate a change in catchment or paleolake configuration, re-raising the long outstanding question of how the lake or lakes were dammed.

Lithostratigraphie, sédimentologie et évolution de deux bassins molassiques intramontagneux de la chaine Pan-Africaine: la Série pourprée de l'Ahnet, Nord-Ouest du Hoggar, Algérie

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ait-Kaci Ahmed, Ali; Moussine-Pouchkine, Alexis

The study of two of the intermontane molassic basins of the 'Série pourprée de l'Ahnet' shows that they developed independently both in time and space. The characteristics of their thick sedimentary infillings are quite different. The Ouallen basin is filled by essentially fine-grained sediments which were deposited in continental then marine or lacustrine environments; these sediments thicen from east to west. The In Semmen basin is characterised by coarser sediments which were deposited from south to north, in alluvial fan, fluvial, deltaic and slope environments. This basin is also characterised by an episode of carbonate sedimentation leading to the formation of a remarkable thin layer of carbonate, covering the entire sedimentary area, and perhaps related to a volcanic rhyolitic event. The history of the two basins is also marked by obvious tectonic events simultaneous with the sedimentation and related to the recurrent faulting of major Pan-African faults. These led to the formation of very coarse fanglomerates located near the fault scarps, and are probably responsible for the shape and the evolution of the basins.

Late Quaternary palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of sediment drift accumulation in the Malta Graben (central Mediterranean Sea)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferraro, Serena; Sulli, Attilio; Di Stefano, Enrico; Giaramita, Luigi; Incarbona, Alessandro; Graham Mortyn, P.; Sprovieri, Mario; Sprovieri, Rodolfo; Tonielli, Renato; Vallefuoco, Mattia; Zizzo, Elisabetta; Tranchida, Giorgio

2018-06-01

The Malta Graben is a deep tectonic depression in the Sicily Channel, bounded by NW-SE normal faults and filled by thick Pliocene-Quaternary deposits. A previous analysis of a giant piston core (LC09) from the Malta Graben had revealed a wide range of sedimentary features (carbonate turbidites, bioturbated mud and scours), although the chronostratigraphic constraint of the stacking pattern has remained elusive. After establishing a reliable chronological framework based on seven radiocarbon dates for a shorter core from the Malta Graben (ANSIC03-735), a down-core analysis of planktonic foraminifer and coccolith abundance, stable isotopes and sediment grain size was carried out. Since the last glacial maximum, palaeoenvironmental conditions (surface fertility and deep chlorophyll maximum during the last glacial and the Younger Dryas; warm and oligotrophic water masses, with a deep nutricline and intense winter mixing during the Holocene) as well as selected calcareous plankton taxa trends and peaks seem to be similar to those reported for other central and western Mediterranean sites, possibly in spite of a unique response of these areas to late Quaternary climatic fluctuations. Four distinct layers, each tens of centimetres thick, are barren of foraminifers but not of coccoliths. Morphobathymetric data as well as new high-resolution and high-penetration seismic profiles show that prolonged contouritic activity has persisted on the western side of the Malta Graben. It is thus likely that layers barren of foraminifers are due to the overflow of fine-grained (clayey) material beyond drift channel dikes.

Late Quaternary palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of sediment drift accumulation in the Malta Graben (central Mediterranean Sea)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferraro, Serena; Sulli, Attilio; Di Stefano, Enrico; Giaramita, Luigi; Incarbona, Alessandro; Graham Mortyn, P.; Sprovieri, Mario; Sprovieri, Rodolfo; Tonielli, Renato; Vallefuoco, Mattia; Zizzo, Elisabetta; Tranchida, Giorgio

2018-03-01

The Malta Graben is a deep tectonic depression in the Sicily Channel, bounded by NW-SE normal faults and filled by thick Pliocene-Quaternary deposits. A previous analysis of a giant piston core (LC09) from the Malta Graben had revealed a wide range of sedimentary features (carbonate turbidites, bioturbated mud and scours), although the chronostratigraphic constraint of the stacking pattern has remained elusive. After establishing a reliable chronological framework based on seven radiocarbon dates for a shorter core from the Malta Graben (ANSIC03-735), a down-core analysis of planktonic foraminifer and coccolith abundance, stable isotopes and sediment grain size was carried out. Since the last glacial maximum, palaeoenvironmental conditions (surface fertility and deep chlorophyll maximum during the last glacial and the Younger Dryas; warm and oligotrophic water masses, with a deep nutricline and intense winter mixing during the Holocene) as well as selected calcareous plankton taxa trends and peaks seem to be similar to those reported for other central and western Mediterranean sites, possibly in spite of a unique response of these areas to late Quaternary climatic fluctuations. Four distinct layers, each tens of centimetres thick, are barren of foraminifers but not of coccoliths. Morphobathymetric data as well as new high-resolution and high-penetration seismic profiles show that prolonged contouritic activity has persisted on the western side of the Malta Graben. It is thus likely that layers barren of foraminifers are due to the overflow of fine-grained (clayey) material beyond drift channel dikes.

Magnesium isotopic behavior during the formation of chlorite-rich hydrothermal sediment in the middle Okinawa Trough

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, H.; Yang, S.; Teng, F. Z.; Cai, D.; Humphris, S. E.

2016-12-01

Chlorite is a common alteration product during water-rock reactions in seafloor hydrothermal systems. This chlorite is commonly characterized by high concentrations of magnesium. However, the source of the Mg and its behavior during hydrothermal alteration have yet to be clarified. Mg isotopes have been used in recent years to investigate a variety of geological processes, including low temperature weathering and metamorphism processes, and Mg cycling in sediments. In this study, we investigate the source of Mg and its behavior in chlorite-rich sediments collected during IODP Expedition 331 from the active hydrothermal Iheya North Knoll field in the middle Okinawa Trough — an intra-continental rift in continental crust. This area is characterized by hemipelagic muds with interbedded thick layers of felsic pumiceous volcanic material. Based on mineralogical, geochemical, and isotopic data, we have previously suggested that the chlorite-rich sediments resulted from hydrothermal alteration of the pumiceous layers at temperatures of 220-300°C. Prior to Mg isotope analysis, all selected samples were pretreated with 1N HCl in order to remove carbonates and other unstable minerals, and measurements were made on both the residues (mainly chlorite) and leachates, as well as on bulk samples. The residues are expected to show higher δ26Mg than the leachates reflecting the Mg isotopic signature of the pumiceous material precursor and provide insight into the behavior of Mg isotopes during the high-temperature hydrothermal processes.

Formation of Hydro-acoustic Waves in Dissipative Coupled Weakly Compressible Fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdolali, A.; Kirby, J. T., Jr.; Bellotti, G.

2014-12-01

Recent advances in deep sea measurement technology provide an increasing opportunity to detect and interpret hydro-acoustic waves as a component in improved Tsunami Early Warning Systems (TEWS). For the idealized case of a homogeneous water column above a moving but otherwise rigid bottom (in terms of assessing acoustic wave interaction), the description of the infinite family of acoustic modes is characterized by local water depth at source area; i.e. the period of the first acoustic mode is given by four times the required time for sound to travel from the seabed to the surface. Spreading off from earthquake zone, the dominant spectrum is filtered and enriched by seamounts and barriers. This study focuses on the characteristics of hydro-acoustic waves generated by sudden sea bottom motion in a weakly compressible fluid coupled with an underlying sedimentary layer, where the added complexity of the sediment layer rheology leads to both the lowering of dominant spectral peaks and wave attenuation across the full spectrum. To overcome the computational difficulties of three-dimensional models, we derive a depth integrated equation valid for varying water depth and sediment thickness. Damping behavior of the two layered system is initially taken into account by introducing the viscosity of fluid-like sedimentary layer. We show that low frequency pressure waves which are precursor components of tsunamis contain information of seafloor motion.

ENSO-Type Signals Recorded in the Late Cretaceous Laminated Sediments of Songliao Basin, Northeast China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, E.; Wang, C.; Hinnov, L. A.; Wu, H.

2014-12-01

The quasi-periodic, ca. 2-7 year El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon globally influences the inter-annual variability of temperature and precipitation. Global warming may increase the frequency of extreme ENSO events. Although the Cretaceous plate tectonic configuration was different from today, the sedimentary record suggests that ENSO-type oscillations had existed at the time of Cretaceous greenhouse conditions. Cored Cretaceous lacustrine sediments from the Songliao Basin in Northeast China (SK-1 cores from the International Continental Drilling Program) potentially offer a partially varved record of Cretaceous paleoclimate. Fourteen polished thin sections from the depth interval 1096.12-1096.53 m with an age of 84.4 Ma were analyzed by optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). ImageJ software was applied to extract gray scale curves from optical images at pixel resolution. We tracked minimum values of the gray scale curves to estimate the thickness of each lamina. Five sedimentary structures were recognized: flaser bedding, wavy bedding, lenticular bedding, horizontal bedding, and massive layers. The mean layer thicknesses with different sedimentary structures range from 116 to 162mm, very close to the mean sedimentation rate estimated for this sampled interval, 135mm/year, indicating that the layers bounded by pure clay lamina with the minimum gray values are varves. SEM images indicate that a varve is composed, in succession, of one lamina rich in coarse silt, one lamina rich in fine silt, one clay-rich lamina with some silt, and one clay-rich lamina. This suggests that a Cretaceous year featured four distinct depositional seasons, two of which were rainy and the others were lacking precipitation. Spectral analysis of extended intervals of the tuned gray scale curve indicates the presence of inter-annual periodicities of 2.2-2.7 yr, 3.5-6.1 year, and 10.1-14.5 year consistent with those of modern ENSO cycles and solar cycles, as well as those recognized in the Cretaceous Arctic and Marca Shale of California.

Sedimentological Properties of Natural Gas Hydrates-Bearing Sands in the Nankai Trough and Mallik Areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uchida, T.; Tsuji, T.; Waseda, A.

2009-12-01

The Nankai Trough parallels the Japanese Island, where extensive BSRs have been interpreted from seismic reflection records. High resolution seismic surveys have definitely indicated gas hydrate distributions, and drilling the MITI Nankai Trough wells in 2000 and the METI Tokai-oki to Kumano-nada wells in 2004 have revealed subsurface gas hydrate in the eastern part of Nankai Trough. In 1998 and 2002 Mallik wells were drilled at Mackenzie Delta in the Canadian Arctic that also clarified the characteristics of gas hydrate-dominant sandy layers at depths from 890 to 1110 m beneath the permafrost zone. During the field operations, the LWD and wire-line well log data were continuously obtained and plenty of gas hydrate-bearing sand cores were recovered. Subsequence sedimentological and geochemical analyses performed on those core samples revealed the crucial geologic controls on the formation and preservation of natural gas hydrate in sediments. Pore-space gas hydrates reside in sandy sediments mostly filling intergranular porosity. Pore waters chloride anomalies, core temperature depression and core observations on visible gas hydrates confirm the presence of pore-space gas hydrates within moderate to thick sandy layers, typically 10 cm to a meter thick. Sediment porosities and pore-size distributions were obtained by mercury porosimetry, which indicate that porosities of gas hydrate-bearing sandy strata are approximately 45 %. According to grain size distribution curves, gas hydrate is dominant in fine- to very fine-grained sandy strata. Gas hydrate saturations are typically up to 80 % in pore volume throughout most of the hydrate-dominant sandy layers, which are estimated by well log analyses as well as pore water chloride anomalies. It is necessary for investigating subsurface fluid flow behaviors to evaluate both porosity and permeability of gas hydrate-bearing sandy sediments, and the measurements of water permeability for them indicated that highly saturated sands should have permeability of 1 x 10-15 to 5 x 10-15 m2 (1 to 5 millidarcies). Most of gas hydrates fill the intergranular pore systems of sandy layers, which are derived from the sedimentary facies such as channels and crevasse splay/levee deposits. It is remarked that those sandy strata are usually composed of arenite sands with matrix-free intergranular pore systems. Gas hydrates are less frequently found in fine-grained sediments such as siltstone and mudstone from overbank deposits. Methane gas accumulation and original pore space large enough to occur within host sediments may be required for forming highly saturated gas hydrate in pore system. The distribution of a porous and coarser-grained host rock should be one of the important factors to control the occurrence of gas hydrate, as well as physicochemical conditions. This appears to be a similar mode for conventional oil and gas accumulations, and this knowledge is important to predicting the location of other hydrate deposits and their eventual energy resource. This study was performed as a part of the MH21 Research Consortium on methane hydrate in Japan.

Sediment Dispersal Within Poverty Bay, Offshore of the Waipaoa River, New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harris, C. K.; Bever, A. J.; McNinch, J. E.

2006-12-01

Transport processes change drastically as sediment crosses the boundary between land and sea. As such, developing conceptual or predictive models of transport and deposition for the shoreline and inner continental shelf is critical to understanding source-to-sink sedimentary systems. In shallow coastal areas, sediment dispersal results from both dilute suspensions driven by energetic waves and current shear stresses, and by gravitationally driven flows of fluid muds. The Waipaoa River, on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, delivers approximately 15 million tons per year of sediment to Poverty Bay, a small embayment with water depth less than about 25 m. Instruments deployed during the winter storm season of 2006 captured periods of high discharge from the Waipaoa River that were typically associated with energetic waves and winds from the southeast. During these times, instruments deployed at 9 and 14 m water depths recorded high turbidity. Currents measured in Poverty Bay were correlated with wind velocities, but also showed prolonged periods of offshore flow within the bottom boundary layer. Sediment texture throughout much of Poverty Bay is muddy, and thick deposits have occurred during the Holocene, as evidenced by sub-bottom seismics. Short-lived radioisotopes such as ^7Be have not been found on Poverty Bay sediments during our field work, though depocenters have been identified using ^7Be on the continental shelf. This may imply that muds exist there as ephemeral and spatially patchy deposits that may bypass Poverty Bay. Bypassing mechanisms may include offshore dispersal by dilute suspended sediment, and downslope transport of fluid muds. Energetic waves may resuspend sediment, which is then transported out of Poverty Bay by ambient ocean currents. Alternatively, fluid muds may form and transport material downslope and offshore to the continental shelf. Because of the high sediment loads of the Waipaoa River, these fluid muds may be formed by hyperpycnal river flows upon entering Poverty Bay. They may also be produced by frontal systems that focus newly delivered sediments, or within fluid muds confined to the thin near-bed wave boundary layer.

Sedimentological and Micropaleontological Characteristics of the 2015 Hurricane Joaquin Deposit and their Implications for Long-Term Records of Storms and Tsunamis Impacting the Caribbean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kosciuch, T. J.; Pilarczyk, J.; Reinhardt, E. G.; Mauviel, A.; Aucoin, C. D.

2017-12-01

The uncertainty of extreme wave events in the Caribbean was highlighted in October 2015 when Hurricane Joaquin tracked through, or near, several islands (e.g., Bahamas, Haiti, Turks and Caicos) as a Category 4 storm. The short observational record of landfalling hurricanes is insufficient in preparing many of these islands for such a rare, intense storm. Examining the sediments deposited by recent landfalling hurricanes assists the understanding of the long-term spatial and temporal variations in storm frequency and intensity. However, the interpretation of prehistoric hurricane deposits in the Caribbean is complicated by the possibility of tsunami deposits (e.g., Puerto Rico Trench, 1755 Lisbon Tsunami), which are similar in composition and difficult to differentiate from storm sediments. To circumvent this problem, we describe the microfossil and sedimentary characteristics of a modern storm analogue, the Hurricane Joaquin deposit, from San Salvador Island in the Bahamas and use it as a basis for interpreting a series of 10 anomalous sand deposits found in a coastal pond. San Salvador is a small (160 km2) island in the Bahamas with a history of landfalling hurricanes and tsunamis. On 4 October 2015, Hurricane Joaquin came within 7 km of San Salvador, inundating most of its coastline and depositing two distinct layers: a sand layer and a boulder layer. The sand layer was 12 to 104 cm thick, extended 135 m inland, and consisted of fine to medium sand. The sand layer contained high abundances of foraminifera, including Homotrema rubra, a foraminifer that lives on the reef and is detached by large waves. The presence of well-preserved fragments of Homotrema within the Joaquin deposit suggests transport from the reef and rapid burial. The boulder layer included large clasts (30 to 200 cm in length) that were imbricated perpendicular to the shoreline and extended 135 m inland. The boulder layer was more laterally extensive (1020 m) than the sand layer (110 m). The anomalous sand layers in the coastal pond cores shared many similarities with the Joaquin sand layer; they sharply overlie organic-rich sediment and contain abundant well-preserved Homotrema fragments. Further foraminiferal analysis on the older sand layers in the cores will aid in determining the relative intensity of hurricanes that have impacted San Salvador.

Syn- and post-sedimentary controls on clay mineral assemblages in a tectonically active basin, Andean Argentinean foreland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Do Campo, Margarita; Nieto, Fernando; del Papa, Cecilia; Hongn, Fernando

2014-07-01

In the northern part of the Calchaquí Valley (NW Argentina), Palaeogene Andean foreland sediments are represented by a 1400-metre-thick continental succession (QLC: Quebrada de Los Colorados Formation) consisting of claystones, siltstones, sandstones, and conglomerates representing sedimentation in fluvial-alluvial plains and alluvial fan settings. To understand the main syn- and postsedimentary variables controlling the clay mineral assemblages of this succession, we have studied the fine-grained clastic sediments by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy, along with a detailed sedimentary facies analysis, for two representative sections. In the northern section, the whole succession was sampled and analysed by XRD, whereas in the second section, a control point 15 km to the south, only the basal levels were analysed. The XRD study revealed a strong contrast in clay mineral assemblages between these two sections as well as with sections in the central Calchaquí Valley studied previously. In the northernmost part of the study area, a complete evolution from smectite at the top to R3 illite/smectite mixed-layers plus authigenic kaolinite at the bottom, through R1-type mixed-layers in between, has been recognized, indicating the attainment of late diagenesis. In contrast, the clay mineral assemblages of equivalent foreland sediments cropping out only 15 km to the south contain abundant smectite and micas, subordinate kaolinite and chlorite, and no I/S mixed-layers to the bottom of the sequence. Early diagenetic conditions were also inferred in a previous study for equivalent sediments of the QLC Formation cropping out to the south, in the central Calchaquí Valley, as smectite occurs in basal strata. Burial depths of approximately 3000 m were estimated for the QLC Formation in the central and northern Calchaquí Valley; in addition, an intermediate to slightly low geothermal gradient can be considered likely for both areas as foreland basins are regarded as hypothermal basins. Consequently, the attainment of late diagenesis in the northernmost study area cannot be explained by significant differences in burial depth nor in geothermal gradient in relation to the section 15 km to the south nor with the central Calchaquí Valley. The formation of R3 mixed-layer I/S and authigenic kaolinite in the northern study area was most likely controlled by the circulation of hot, deep fluids along the reverse faults that bounded the Calchaquí valley. These faults were active during the Cenozoic, as evidenced by the syndepositional deformation features preserved in the studied sediments. Stress could also have been a driving force in burial diagenesis at the R3 mixed-layer I/S stage in these young continental sediments.

The Characteristics of Turbidite Beds of Southwest Ryukyu Trench Floor: A new Approach From the X-ray Fluorescence Core Scanning Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsiung, K. H.; Kanamatsu, T.; Ikehara, K.; Usami, K.; Saito, S.; Murayama, M.

2017-12-01

The southwest Ryukyu Trench near Taiwan is an ideal place for source-to-sink studies based on the distinctive sediment transport route between the terrestrial sediment source in Taiwan and the marine sink in the Ryukyu Trench. Using the bathymetric and seismic reflection data, we develop a sediment transport routes for understanding the ultimate sink of the southwest Ryukyu Trench floor. The southwest Ryukyu Trench floor can be regarded as the most distal depositional basin and isolated from the Ryukyu forearc basins. In addition, part of sediment from the proximal sources of the Ryukyu Islands and Yaeyama accretionary prism could be transported to the trench floor. We collected the piston core, PC04, from the southwest Ryukyu Trench floor of 6,147 m water depth in 3.23 m core length from cruise KR15-18, 2015. The coring site locates behind the natural levee of an obvious channel in the Ryukyu trench floor. The PC04 is composed of gray silty clay interbedded with numerous silt layers. Most of the silt layers are less than 2 cm in thickness. Based upon the core observation, X-ray fluorescence core scanning analysis and 14C age determinations, thirty-seven individual and thin beds were determined as turbidites. The results of X-ray fluorescence core scanning analysis provide continuous and high-resolution (1.0 mm of each point) assessment of relative change in the elemental ratios. Ca/Fe is a proxy for the terrigenous component of the sediment, indicating the High Ca and low Fe of each turbidite layers. Zr/Rb ratios of the marine sediments commonly used in the reflection of the original grain size variation. A large part of deep-sea turbidite beds are characterized by high Ca/Fe and Zr/Rb ratio values. These turbidite beds can be linked spatially over a distance of ˜200 km via submarine canyons within the Taiwan orogen. However, it is difficult to be linked temporally to certain events.

Development of a Shallow Decollement Along the South-Central Chile Margin from 2D Seismic Reflection Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olsen, K.; Bangs, N. L.; Arnulf, A. F.; Trehu, A. M.; Contreras Reyes, E.

2017-12-01

In January and February, 2017, we acquired approximately 5,000 km of deep-penetrating 2D seismic reflection data along the Chile trench between 30° - 44°S as a part of the 2017 Crustal Examination from Valdivia to Illapel to Characterize Huge Earthquakes (CEVICHE) project, on the R/V Langseth. We used a 6,600 in3 airgun source to shoot every 50 m and recorded shots on a 15,100 m, 1212 channel streamer. This survey targeted the structure of this subduction zone across the slip regions of the 2015 Illapel (Mw 8.3), the 2010 Maule (Mw 8.8), and 1960 Valdivia (Mw 9.5) earthquakes. Two dip lines between 37.5°S and 39°S, within the overlapping slip areas of the Maule and Valdivia earthquakes, show a range in the style of initial thrust faulting at the deformation front. At 37.5°S, just south of the Arauco Peninsula, protothrusts at the deformation front are typical of many well-sedimented trench sections in subduction zones worldwide. Here we observe incipient landward-dipping thrusts consisting of 15 faults with typical horizontal spacing of 750 m that can be seen to extend down through the entire 2.5 km thick sediment sequence to the top of the subducting ocean crust. Some form conjugate fault pairs, but all have small offsets of 10-50 m. These thrusts appear to sole into a proto-decollement located just above the top of the ocean crust; however, farther landward beneath the lower slope, a thick, 2.5 km, sequence of layered sediment can be traced > 20 km into the subduction zone. The position of the primary decollement appears to be located near the top of the trench sediment sequence, well above the proto-decollement, allowing subduction of the entire trench sequence. A second line at 39°S across the deformation front shows no frontal thrusts or apparent deformation within the 1.5 km thick section of trench sediment. All of the incoming sediment appears to be subducting beneath a stable decollement that we can image near the top of the trench sediment sequence. The decollement along the northern line may be currently stepping down and transitioning from minimal accretion, typical of this segment of the Chile margin, to accretion of the entire trench section. Alternatively, the initial deformation at the toe may cease and allow slip to shift upward to the shallow decollement and continue to subduct the entire trench sediment section.

Liquefaction features interpreted as seismites in the Pleistocene fluvio-lacustrine deposits of the Neuquén Basin (Northern Patagonia)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moretti, M.; Ronchi, A.

2011-04-01

Superbly exposed soft-sediment deformation structures in Pleistocene fluvio-lacustrine deposits along the southern border of the depression area called Bajo de Añelo (Departamento de Añelo, Neuquén Basin) have been analysed. In the study area, five stratigraphic sections were measured in detail: facies distributions and stacking patterns show that these sediments result from the interaction between fluvial and lacustrine systems, represented by cross-bedded and rippled strata, and varved deposits. The lateral extent of the deformation is some hundred metres and the deformed bed involves the lower-mid part of the 30-metre-thick succession. Deformation affects about 1.5 m of coarse-grained sand, fine-grained sand and rare gravel alternations. The base and top of the deformed layer are defined by planar surfaces: undeformed beds of similar thickness, lithology and facies to the deformed layer occur above and below. Deformation is represented by a complex vertical succession of disturbed layers: each layer shows a general load-structure morphology. It can be described as a multilayered unstable density gradient system: in each bed a partial gravitational re-adjustment occurred after liquefaction. Unequal loading related to lateral variation of both bed thickness and grain packing and porosity is a probable additional driving force that can be described in the undeformed beds. Trigger mechanism recognition for the observed liquefaction features can be based on the study of the geometry of deformed beds and on facies analysis results. Two key factors drive our interpretation: (1) the occurrence of undeformed beds below and above the deformed bed; (2) deformed and undeformed beds showing the same sedimentological features. These field data allow us to exclude the action of internal erosive and/or sedimentary processes (such as overloading, wave action, etc.) as possible trigger agents for liquefaction since deformation is totally absent in beds with similar sedimentary features. Furthermore, each internal erosive and/or sedimentary process can be discussed and easily excluded by analysing its specific signature in the geological record. Having excluded every possible internal trigger (autokinetic processes), the observed liquefaction effects can reasonably be interpreted as seismically induced (allokinetic trigger). From this point of view, this deformed bed is an important record of seismic activity in this sector of the Neuquén Basin during the Pleistocene.

Interplay between spatially explicit sediment sourcing, hierarchical river-network structure, and in-channel bed material sediment transport and storage dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Czuba, Jonathan A.; Foufoula-Georgiou, Efi; Gran, Karen B.; Belmont, Patrick; Wilcock, Peter R.

2017-05-01

Understanding how sediment moves along source to sink pathways through watersheds—from hillslopes to channels and in and out of floodplains—is a fundamental problem in geomorphology. We contribute to advancing this understanding by modeling the transport and in-channel storage dynamics of bed material sediment on a river network over a 600 year time period. Specifically, we present spatiotemporal changes in bed sediment thickness along an entire river network to elucidate how river networks organize and process sediment supply. We apply our model to sand transport in the agricultural Greater Blue Earth River Basin in Minnesota. By casting the arrival of sediment to links of the network as a Poisson process, we derive analytically (under supply-limited conditions) the time-averaged probability distribution function of bed sediment thickness for each link of the river network for any spatial distribution of inputs. Under transport-limited conditions, the analytical assumptions of the Poisson arrival process are violated (due to in-channel storage dynamics) where we find large fluctuations and periodicity in the time series of bed sediment thickness. The time series of bed sediment thickness is the result of dynamics on a network in propagating, altering, and amalgamating sediment inputs in sometimes unexpected ways. One key insight gleaned from the model is that there can be a small fraction of reaches with relatively low-transport capacity within a nonequilibrium river network acting as "bottlenecks" that control sediment to downstream reaches, whereby fluctuations in bed elevation can dissociate from signals in sediment supply.

Anatomy and dynamics of a floodplain, Powder River, Montana, U.S.A.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pizzuto, J.E.; Moody, J.A.; Meade, R.H.

2008-01-01

Centimeter-scale measurements on several Powder River floodplains provide insights into the nature of overbank depositional processes that created the floodplains; during a 20-year period after a major flood in 1978. Rising stages initially entered across a sill at the downriver end of the floodplains. Later, as stages continued to rise, water entered the floodplains through distinct low saddles along natural levees. The annual maximum depth of water over the levee crest averaged 0.19 in from 1983 through 1996, and the estimated flow velocities were approximately 0.15 m s-1. Water ponded in the floodplain trough, a topographic low between the natural levee and the pre-flood riverbank, and mud settled as thin layers of nearly constant thickness. Mud layers alternated with sand layers, which were relatively thick near the channel. Together, these beds created a distinctive natural levee. In some locations, individual flood deposits began as a thin mud layer that gradually coarsened upwards to medium-grained sand. Coarsening-upwards sequences form initially as mud because only the uppermost layers of water in the channel supply the first overbank flows, which are rich in mud but starved of sand. At successively higher stages, fine sands and then medium sands increase in concentration in the floodwater and are deposited as fine- and medium-sand layers overlying the initial mud layer. Theoretical predictions from mathematical models of sediment transport by advection and diffusion indicate that these processes acting alone are unlikely to create the observed sand layers of nearly uniform thickness that extend across much of the floodplain. We infer that other transport processes, notably bedload transport, must be important along Powder River. Even with the centimeter-scale measurements of floodplain deposits, daily hydraulic data, and precise annual surface topographic surveys, we were unable to determine any clear correspondence between the gauged flow record of overbank floods and the depositional layers mapped in the floodplain. These results provide a detailed example of floodplain deposits and depositional processes that should prove useful for interpreting natural levee deposits in a variety of geologic settings. Copyright ?? 2008, SEPM (Society for Sedimentary Geology).

Measurement of sediment and crustal thickness corrected RDA for 2D profiles at rifted continental margins: Applications to the Iberian, Gulf of Aden and S Angolan margins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cowie, Leanne; Kusznir, Nick

2014-05-01

Subsidence analysis of sedimentary basins and rifted continental margins requires a correction for the anomalous uplift or subsidence arising from mantle dynamic topography. Whilst different global model predictions of mantle dynamic topography may give a broadly similar pattern at long wavelengths, they differ substantially in the predicted amplitude and at shorter wavelengths. As a consequence the accuracy of predicted mantle dynamic topography is not sufficiently good to provide corrections for subsidence analysis. Measurements of present day anomalous subsidence, which we attribute to mantle dynamic topography, have been made for three rifted continental margins; offshore Iberia, the Gulf of Aden and southern Angola. We determine residual depth anomaly (RDA), corrected for sediment loading and crustal thickness variation for 2D profiles running from unequivocal oceanic crust across the continental ocean boundary onto thinned continental crust. Residual depth anomalies (RDA), corrected for sediment loading using flexural backstripping and decompaction, have been calculated by comparing observed and age predicted oceanic bathymetries at these margins. Age predicted bathymetric anomalies have been calculated using the thermal plate model predictions from Crosby & McKenzie (2009). Non-zero sediment corrected RDAs may result from anomalous oceanic crustal thickness with respect to the global average or from anomalous uplift or subsidence. Gravity anomaly inversion incorporating a lithosphere thermal gravity anomaly correction and sediment thickness from 2D seismic reflection data has been used to determine Moho depth, calibrated using seismic refraction, and oceanic crustal basement thickness. Crustal basement thicknesses derived from gravity inversion together with Airy isostasy have been used to correct for variations of crustal thickness from a standard oceanic thickness of 7km. The 2D profiles of RDA corrected for both sediment loading and non-standard crustal thickness provide a measurement of anomalous uplift or subsidence which we attribute to mantle dynamic topography. We compare our sediment and crustal thickness corrected RDA analysis results with published predictions of mantle dynamic topography from global models.

Stratigraphic Evolution of Brazos-Trinity Basin IV, Western Gulf of Mexico: Preliminary Results of IODP Expedition 308

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pirmez, C.; Behrmann, J.; Flemings, P. B.; John, C.

2005-12-01

IODP Expedition 308 drilled three sites across Brazos-Trinity Basin IV, at the terminal end of a system of four salt-withdrawal intra-slope basins offshore Texas. A 175 m thick succession of sand-rich turbidite fans, mass-transport deposits and hemipelagic sediments was deposited within the last ~120 ka in Basin IV, as recorded at Site U1320. Pre-fan deposits dating back to MIS 6 form a conformable succession of laminated and bioturbated clays, deposited from distal turbidity currents and/or river plumes. The pre-fan succession is capped by a hemipelagic clay interpreted to represent the high stand of sea level during MIS 5e. The basal turbidite deposits in the basin are mud-rich, with the exception of the very first turbidity currents to enter the basin. This initial pulse, possibly derived from failure of older shelf edge deposits, accumulated an ~8 m thick sand-rich interval. A pause in turbidity current influx lasted 30 to 40 kyrs, beginning a few thousand years before ash layer Y8 dated at 84 ka and the Emiliana huxleyi acme. During MIS 3 to MIS 2 sand-rich fans containing 5-25 m thick packets of very fine to lower medium sand beds accumulated up to 130 m of sediments. A 2-3 m thick microfossil-rich clay marks the end of turbidity current influx into the basin during the Holocene. The sedimentary record of Brazos-Trinity Basin IV shows that the accumulation of turbidites in the terminal end of this source to sink depositional system reflects a complex interaction between the availability of material and the initiation of flows at the source near the shelf edge, the interaction of turbidity currents with complex slope topography, and the effects of salt tectonics and flow processes on modifying this topography. The initial results indicate that sealevel changes alone cannot explain the sedimentation patterns observed in the basin.

Comparison of Physical Properties of Marine and Arctic Gas-Hydrate-Bearing Deposits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winters, W. J.; Walker, M.; Collett, T. S.; Bryant, S. L.; Novosel, I.; Wilcox-Cline, R.; Bing, J.; Gomes, M. L.

2009-12-01

Gas hydrate (GH) occurs in both marine settings and in arctic environments within a wide variety of sediment types. Grain-size analyses from both environments indicate that intrinsic host-sediment properties have a strong influence on gas-hydrate distribution and morphologic characteristics. Depending on the amount formed or dissociated, gas hydrate can significantly change in situ sediment acoustic, mechanical, and hydraulic properties. The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Dept. of Energy, BP Expl.-Alaska, Nat. GH Prog. of India, Canadian Geological Survey, Int. Ocean Drilling Program, Japan Oil Gas and Metals Nat. Corp., Japan Pet. Expl. Co., Int. Marine Past Global Changes Study (IMAGES) program, and Paleoceanography of the Atlantic and Geochemistry (PAGE) program, determined physical properties from marine and arctic sediments and their relation to the presence of GH. At two arctic sites, the Mount Elbert well on the Alaskan North Slope and the Mallik wells on the Mackenzie Delta, NWT, >10-m thick gas-hydrate-bearing (GHB) sandy deposits are capped by finer-grained sediments that may reduce gas migration. In the Mount Elbert well, average median grain sizes (MGS) for the two thickest GHB deposits are 65 and 60 µm. Finer-grained (average MGS of 9 and 28 µm) sediments have plug permeabilities that are 300 and 14 times smaller than underlying GHB sediment. Average MGS of GHB sediment from the Mallik 2L well is ~ 111 µm, compared to overlying sediment with an average MGS of ~ 32 µm. Gas hydrate morphology in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) and offshore India is substantially more complex than in the arctic, and is related to pervasive, although not exclusive, finer-grained deposits. Massive, several-cm thick, GH layers were recovered in piston cores in the northern GOM, in sediment with little visible lithologic variability (average MGS ~ 0.8 µm). In wells off the east coast of India, GH was present in sand-rich, fractured clay, and reservoirs with both characteristics. Maximum MGS measured on more than 1200 samples was 46 µm, but the average MGS for 14 wells varied from 5 to 10 µm. At Site 10, in the Krishna-Godavari Basin, GH was observed in several morphologic configurations, including complex high-angle planar and rotational veins, solid nodules, and disseminated, in sediment with average MGS of 5 µm, liquid limits between 70 and 98, and plastic limits between 33 and 49. Sediment in a 692-m deep well drilled off the Andaman Islands sporadically hosted disseminated GH in thin coarser-grained ash beds and ash-rich zones. Average and maximum MGS in this well is 6 and 17 µm, respectively. To date, sandy GH reservoirs (with some exceptions, e.g., Nankai Trough) are typically associated with the arctic. However, the presence of thick offshore sand-rich GHB reservoirs is the subject of current investigations, such as by the Gulf of Mexico Joint Industry Project (JIP).

Distal Impact Ejecta from the Gulf of Carpentaria: Have We Found Cometary Fragments as Part of the Ejecta Suite?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodriguez, L. E.; Abbott, D. H.; Breger, D.

2011-12-01

Analysis using light microscopy, analytical scanning electron microscopy, and measurements of the magnetic susceptibility of five sediment cores (MD 28-MD 32) from the Gulf of Carpentaria have revealed that each has had an impact layer less than a centimeter (10s to 100s of micrometers) thick prior to bioturbation. The present stratigraphic thickness of the impact layer (result of bioturbation) within every core was determined based on whether or not we had observed at least one of the following impact ejecta: FeNiCrCl (a recent discovery), metallic spherules (some of which consisted of Fe and Ni), or chlorinated hydrocarbon; the highest peak of magnetic susceptibility correlated with the highest concentration of impact ejecta. We used modeling of the magnetic susceptibility of a hematite-calcium carbonate mixture to constrain the minimum thickness of the impact ejecta layer (prior to bioturbation). Until recently we had been unaware that the red, glassy, semi-spherules we found within the impact layer were in fact FeNiCrCl. Nickel is not abundant within the Earth's crust, thus it is highly likely that these fragments are cometary debris from an impact event within the Gulf of Carpentaria. Furthermore, SEM analysis has confirmed that the chlorinated hydrocarbon was not PVC contamination from the coring process; with such high levels of chlorine the results strongly suggest that the material was a by product of a marine water impact event. In addition, by using impact modeling we deduced that the observed impact ejecta layer could not have been transported via an impact generated tsunami. The model also predicts that the layer could have been produced by a cometary impact event (average velocity 51 km/s) that would have produced the 12 km crater at the site of the Tabban crater candidate.

First results of the palaeogeographical research in Limyra and its environs (SW-Turkey)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stock, Friederieke; Uncu, Levent; Seyer, Martin; Brückner, Helmut

2017-04-01

Geoarchaeological research in and around ancient cities of Asia Minor is an important tool for reconstructing the palaeogeography of their environs. An intensive geoarchaeological research project has started 2015 in the framework of a cooperation between the Austrian Archaeological Institute (ÖAI) and the University of Cologne (Brückner et al., 2016). 21 sediment cores were carried out in the ancient city of Limyra and its environs since 2015 and analysed with a multi-proxy approach (geochemical, sedimentological and microfaunal methods). The main goals of the project are to reconstruct (i) the environment, especially during the Classical to Late Roman periods; (ii) the geohydrological situation; (iii) the thickness of the settlement layers; (iv) the maximum extension of the former lake; to reveal (vi) the earthquake chronology and (vii) the spatio-temporal shifts in the coastline. First results show that the middle and eastern part of the city had been built on top of former lake sediments. Peat layers (so-called "floating peats") are intercalated and represent the starting siltation process. The reactivated lake phases, expressed in the rapid transitions from peat to lake strata, may be explained by earthquakes with co-seismic subsidence. Then follow fluvial sands with a fining-upward sequence (gravel at the base, overlain sands and alluvia). The strata provide information about shifting river channels. Anthropogenic layers form the top part of the core; they partly consolidated a swampy environment (core-filling limestone layers). In drill cores located between the eastern and the western city, pebbles and edged stones with artifacts follow on top of lake sediments and sands (littoral). The stones seem to have been intentionally deposited; people may have settled at the lake shore. The peat layer on top may represent the changing hydrology and co-seismic subsidence. The drill cores outside the city area confirm the sediment sequence: on top of limnic follow by a fluvial facies (fining-upward sequence, sands, alluvium). Lim 20, carried out close to the present coast reveals homogenous sands overlying the fluvial ones. The stratigraphy most likely represents the uppermost layers of a beach barrier which is overlain by dunes. Thus, the explanation that the origin of the lake was a lagoon is the most probable one.

Geochemistry and microbiology at gas hydrate and mud volcano sites in the black sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drews, M.; Schmaljohann, R.; Wallmann, K.

2003-04-01

We present geochemical and microbiological results which were obtained from sediments at gas hydrate and mud volcano sites in the Sorokin Trough (northern Black Sea, south east of the Crimean peninsula) at water depths of about 1800 to 2100 m during the METEOR cruise 52-1. The surface near sub-bottom accumulations of gas hydrates (occuring at depths of several meters or less beneath the sea floor) in the Black Sea are associated with numerous mud volcanos. At stations we investigated gas hydrates occurred below 10 cm to 100 cm with a significant influence on the sediment biochemistry. Analyses revealed high methane concentrations, anoxic and sulfidic conditions, a steep sulfate gradient, carbonate precipitation, and high anaerobic methane oxidation rates. In proximity of the so called Odessa mud volcano one investigated sampling station showed maximum methane oxidation rates in the depth horizon of a firm 2 cm thick carbonate crust layer, adhered to by a bacterial mat. This observation is taken to indicate that the bacteria are causing or mediating the crust formation by their anaerobic methane oxidation metabolism. The station was further characterised by two layers of gas hydrate fragments and lenses below 1 m depth. A 2 to 4 cm thick carbonate crust with attached bacterial mat from a Yalta mud vulcano sample (2124 m water depth) was investigated under the scanning electron microscope. The stiff gelatinous mat showed a dense and morphologically uniform population of rod shaped bacteria with only a few nests of coccoid cells. Purified mat material exhibited anaerobic methane oxidation activity. These mats resemble the type previously found in the shallow NW methane seep area of the Black Sea, where it covers carbonate chimneys. Samples from two sites atop the summit of the active but flat-topped Dvurechenskii mud volcano were characterised by very high methane oxidation rates (up to 563 nmol/cm3/d) at the sediment surface. Strong pore water gradients of chloride, bromide, ammonium, methane, and temperature proved the existence of a rich upward flow of warm fluids from the deeper sediment. At both stations no carbonate crusts or bacterial mats were found. The lack of hemipelagic sediments and at the same time abundance of mud breccia gives ample evidence of the recency of the mud flow.

Ice shelf structure derived from dispersion curve analysis of ambient seismic noise, Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diez, A.; Bromirski, P. D.; Gerstoft, P.; Stephen, R. A.; Anthony, R. E.; Aster, R. C.; Cai, C.; Nyblade, A.; Wiens, D. A.

2016-05-01

An L-configured, three-component short period seismic array was deployed on the Ross Ice Shelf, Antarctica during November 2014. Polarization analysis of ambient noise data from these stations shows linearly polarized waves for frequency bands between 0.2 and 2 Hz. A spectral peak at about 1.6 Hz is interpreted as the resonance frequency of the water column and is used to estimate the water layer thickness below the ice shelf. The frequency band from 4 to 18 Hz is dominated by Rayleigh and Love waves propagating from the north that, based on daily temporal variations, we conclude were generated by field camp activity. Frequency-slowness plots were calculated using beamforming. Resulting Love and Rayleigh wave dispersion curves were inverted for the shear wave velocity profile within the firn and ice to ˜150 m depth. The derived density profile allows estimation of the pore close-off depth and the firn-air content thickness. Separate inversions of Rayleigh and Love wave dispersion curves give different shear wave velocity profiles within the firn. We attribute this difference to an effective anisotropy due to fine layering. The layered structure of firn, ice, water and the seafloor results in a characteristic dispersion curve below 7 Hz. Forward modelling the observed Rayleigh wave dispersion curves using representative firn, ice, water and sediment structures indicates that Rayleigh waves are observed when wavelengths are long enough to span the distance from the ice shelf surface to the seafloor. The forward modelling shows that analysis of seismic data from an ice shelf provides the possibility of resolving ice shelf thickness, water column thickness and the physical properties of the ice shelf and underlying seafloor using passive-source seismic data.

Sedimentary processes on the Storfjorden trough-mouth fan during last deglaciation phase: the role of subglacial meltwater plumes on continental margin sedimentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lucchi, Renata G.; Camerlenghi, Angelo; Colmenero-Hidalgo, Elena; Sierro, Francisco J.; Bárcena, Maria Angeles; Flores, José-Abel; Urgeles, Roger; Macrı, Patrizia; Sagnotti, Leonardo; Caburlotto, Andrea

2010-05-01

The continental margin of the Southern Storfjorden trough-mouth fan was investigated within the SVAIS project (BIO Hesperides cruise, August 2007) as a Spanish contribution to IPY Activity N. 367 (Neogene ice streams and sedimentary processes on high- latitude continental margins - NICE STREAMS). The objectives were to investigate the glacially-dominated late-Neogene-Quaternary sedimentary architecture of the NW Barents Sea continental margin and reconstruct its sedimentary system in response to natural climate change. The paleo-ice streams in Storfjorden had a small catchment area draining ice from the southern Spitsbergen and Bear Island. The short distance from the ice source to the calving front produced a short residence time of ice, and therefore a rapid response to climatic changes. Here ground truthing recovered the last few thousands years sedimentary sequence thought to represent last deglaciation phase. Detailed palaeostratigraphic investigations together with paleomagnetic and rock magnetic analyses and AMS dating define the constraints for high-resolution inter-core correlation and dating. Most of the cores contain at the base gravity-mass deposits including debris flows and over-consolidated glacigenic diamicton. Mass deposits are overlain by an oxidized interval originated at the release and sink of fresh, cold and oxygenated melt-waters at the inception of the deglaciation phase. On the upper slope the oxidized interval is overlain by several meters of finely-stratified sediments composed of sandy-silt layers cyclically recurring within finer-grained laminated silty-clay sediments. Textural and compositional analyses suggest preferential deposition by settling from meltwater sediment-laden plumes (plumites) occurred during deglaciation with coarser layers representing episodes of subglacial meltwater discharge (glacial hyperpycnal flows) accompanying the ice streams retreat. The laminated sequence is truncated at uppermost part by a more recent gravity-mass deposit that possibly removed part of the younger sequence. In the deeper part of the slope the plumites consist of crudely laminated, terrigenous and almost barren sediments. Here the sedimentary sequence is topped by intensively bioturbated, bioclasts-bearing silty-clays representing the most recent interglacial sedimentation. On the continental shelf, the upper sedimentary sequence contains dispersed cm-thick bivalve's shells suggesting an oxygenated and nutrient-rich environment (interglacial) overlaying an interval of terrigenous, barren sediments (deglaciation). Here the short core's length suggests the presence of stiffer/coarser sediments at the base that could not be sampled. The seismic stratigraphy indicates that the slope is formed by alternating debris flow deposits and layered sediments corresponding into our cores to the fast-deposited, low-density, terrigenous plumites. Bathymetric and seismic data revealed the presence of widespread submarine landslides restricted to the southernmost part of Storfjorden continental slope. Geotechnical investigation are in progress in order to understand if such layered deposits can act on the slope as a possible preferential weak horizon favoring sediment failure.

Nepheloid Layers: Origin and Development In A Narrow Continental Shelf (nw Portugal)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oliveira, A.; Vitorino, J.; Rodrigues, A.; Jouanneau, J. M.; Weber, O.; Dias, J. A.

A general hydrographic, nephelometric and sedimentological surveying of the NW Portuguese continental shelf and slope was undertaken, under winter and spring con- ditions in order to elaborate a conceptual model of suspended sediments (nepheloid layer) dynamics. Two major situations were found: 1) Spring/Summer - with northerly winds (upwelling) and low energetic wave regime that favour the deposition of sedi- ments. The northerly winds promote offshore transport in the surface nepheloid layer (SNL) and the establishment of a seasonal thermocline allow the expansion of the SNL to the west. The SNL can reach or even cross the shelf-break (50 km from coastline). Particulate organic carbon (POC) content in this layer highlights the higher contribution of biogenic particles (average concentration of 22%); 2) Winter, with southerly winds (downwelling) and high energetic wave regime that favour mid- shelf sediments resuspension and offshore transport in the bottom nepheloid layer (BNL). In the shelf-break the BNL detached to form intermediate nepheloid layers (INL). The SNL is restricted to the inner shelf. The effect of southerly winds gener- ates shoreward Ekman transport and detains the offshore westward extension of this layer even during high river run-off periods. The POC content indicates a dominance of litogenic particles in suspension (average concentration of 8%). Over the mid- and inner-shelf the dominant resuspension mechanism is associated with surface waves (Vitorino et al., 2002). Estimates based on wave measurements at mid-shelf (86m depth) suggested that, in winter, the wave shear velocity frequently exceeds 1 cm/s, assumed as the critical shear velocity for the resuspension of the fine grained sedi- ments (34m) of the bottom cover. Storm events, such as the one observed in November 1996 easily increase the wave shear velocities over 3 cm/s, leading to the increase of the BNL thickness (20-30m) (Vitorino et al., 2002; Oliveira et al., 2002). Low-frequency currents (periods longer than about 2 days) and internal waves can also lead to the resuspension of fine bottom sediments. Shelf morphology (outer shelf re- lieves and Porto submarine canyon) and sedimentary cover can also affect both spatial and vertical development of BNL.

Crustal structure beneath northeast India inferred from receiver function modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Borah, Kajaljyoti; Bora, Dipok K.; Goyal, Ayush; Kumar, Raju

2016-09-01

We estimated crustal shear velocity structure beneath ten broadband seismic stations of northeast India, by using H-Vp/Vs stacking method and a non-linear direct search approach, Neighbourhood Algorithm (NA) technique followed by joint inversion of Rayleigh wave group velocity and receiver function, calculated from teleseismic earthquakes data. Results show significant variations of thickness, shear velocities (Vs) and Vp/Vs ratio in the crust of the study region. The inverted shear wave velocity models show crustal thickness variations of 32-36 km in Shillong Plateau (North), 36-40 in Assam Valley and ∼44 km in Lesser Himalaya (South). Average Vp/Vs ratio in Shillong Plateau is less (1.73-1.77) compared to Assam Valley and Lesser Himalaya (∼1.80). Average crustal shear velocity beneath the study region varies from 3.4 to 3.5 km/s. Sediment structure beneath Shillong Plateau and Assam Valley shows 1-2 km thick sediment layer with low Vs (2.5-2.9 km/s) and high Vp/Vs ratio (1.8-2.1), while it is observed to be of greater thickness (4 km) with similar Vs and high Vp/Vs (∼2.5) in RUP (Lesser Himalaya). Both Shillong Plateau and Assam Valley show thick upper and middle crust (10-20 km), and thin (4-9 km) lower crust. Average Vp/Vs ratio in Assam Valley and Shillong Plateau suggest that the crust is felsic-to-intermediate and intermediate-to-mafic beneath Shillong Plateau and Assam Valley, respectively. Results show that lower crust rocks beneath the Shillong Plateau and Assam Valley lies between mafic granulite and mafic garnet granulite.

Soil sealing and vesicular layer formation as initial structure development and its effect on infiltration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badorreck, A.; Gerke, H. H.; Weller, U.; Vontobel, P.

2009-04-01

In the Lusatia mining district (NE-Germany) an artificial catchment was constructed to study initial ecosystem development and runoff generation. As a key process in this early stage, we investigate the surface structure dynamics as it strongly influences erosion, infiltration, matter dynamics, and vegetation establishment. The presented work focuses on observations of soil pore structure formation at the surface at five sites in the catchment and in an adjacent "younger" area composed of comparable sediments. Moreover we've conducted infiltration experiments in the lab and field to relate the soil pore structure to the hydraulic properties. The surface soil was sampled in cylindrical rings (10 cm³) down to 2 cm depth from which bulk density profiles were obtained using X-ray computed tomography (CT) (at UFZ- Halle, Germany) with a resolution of 0.084 mm. The influence of structure on infiltration was investigated using neutron radiography (at the NEUTRA facility of the Paul-Scherrer-Institut, Villigen, Switzerland) to visualise two-dimensional (2D) infiltration patterns. The slab-type samples were equilibrated to different initial water contents and then exposed to drip irrigation (to simulate rainfall) while a series of neutron radiographs were taken. In addition, field measurements with a miniature tension infiltrometer were conduced. The micro-tomographies exhibit formation of surface sealing whose thickness and intensity vary with silt and clay content. The CT images show several coarser- and finer-textured micro-layers at the sample surfaces that were formed as a consequence of repeated washing in of finer particles in underlying coarser sediment. In micro-depressions, the uppermost layers consist of sorted fine sand and silt due to wind erosion. Similar as for desert pavements, a vesicular pore structure developed in these sediments on top, but also scattered in fine sand- and silt-enriched micro-layers. The infiltration rates were severely affected by the surface crusts; however, the rates were independent of the vesicular pore layer.

Depth-to-basement, sediment-thickness, and bathymetry data for the deep-sea basins offshore of Washington, Oregon, and California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wong, Florence L.; Grim, Muriel S.

2015-01-01

Contours and derivative raster files of depth-to-basement, sediment-thickness, and bathymetry data for the area offshore of Washington, Oregon, and California are provided here as GIS-ready shapefiles and GeoTIFF files. The data were used to generate paper maps in 1992 and 1993 from 1984 surveys of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone by the U.S. Geological Survey for depth to basement and sediment thickness, and from older data for the bathymetry.

Hydroclimatic variability in the Levant during the early last glacial (˜ 117-75 ka) derived from micro-facies analyses of deep Dead Sea sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neugebauer, I.; Schwab, M. J.; Waldmann, N. D.; Tjallingii, R.; Frank, U.; Hadzhiivanova, E.; Naumann, R.; Taha, N.; Agnon, A.; Enzel, Y.; Brauer, A.

2016-01-01

The new sediment record from the deep Dead Sea basin (ICDP core 5017-1) provides a unique archive for hydroclimatic variability in the Levant. Here, we present high-resolution sediment facies analysis and elemental composition by micro-X-ray fluorescence (µXRF) scanning of core 5017-1 to trace lake levels and responses of the regional hydroclimatology during the time interval from ca. 117 to 75 ka, i.e. the transition between the last interglacial and the onset of the last glaciation. We distinguished six major micro-facies types and interpreted these and their alterations in the core in terms of relative lake level changes. The two end-member facies for highest and lowest lake levels are (a) up to several metres thick, greenish sediments of alternating aragonite and detrital marl laminae (aad) and (b) thick halite facies, respectively. Intermediate lake levels are characterised by detrital marls with varying amounts of aragonite, gypsum or halite, reflecting lower-amplitude, shorter-term variability. Two intervals of pronounced lake level drops occurred at ˜ 110-108 ± 5 and ˜ 93-87 ± 7 ka. They likely coincide with stadial conditions in the central Mediterranean (Melisey I and II pollen zones in Monticchio) and low global sea levels during Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5d and 5b. However, our data do not support the current hypothesis of an almost complete desiccation of the Dead Sea during the earlier of these lake level low stands based on a recovered gravel layer. Based on new petrographic analyses, we propose that, although it was a low stand, this well-sorted gravel layer may be a vestige of a thick turbidite that has been washed out during drilling rather than an in situ beach deposit. Two intervals of higher lake stands at ˜ 108-93 ± 6 and ˜ 87-75 ± 7 ka correspond to interstadial conditions in the central Mediterranean, i.e. pollen zones St. Germain I and II in Monticchio, and Greenland interstadials (GI) 24+23 and 21 in Greenland, as well as to sapropels S4 and S3 in the Mediterranean Sea. These apparent correlations suggest a close link of the climate in the Levant to North Atlantic and Mediterranean climates during the time of the build-up of Northern Hemisphere ice shields in the early last glacial period.

Characterization of a complex near-surface structure using well logging and passive seismic measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benjumea, Beatriz; Macau, Albert; Gabàs, Anna; Figueras, Sara

2016-04-01

We combine geophysical well logging and passive seismic measurements to characterize the near-surface geology of an area located in Hontomin, Burgos (Spain). This area has some near-surface challenges for a geophysical study. The irregular topography is characterized by limestone outcrops and unconsolidated sediments areas. Additionally, the near-surface geology includes an upper layer of pure limestones overlying marly limestones and marls (Upper Cretaceous). These materials lie on top of Low Cretaceous siliciclastic sediments (sandstones, clays, gravels). In any case, a layer with reduced velocity is expected. The geophysical data sets used in this study include sonic and gamma-ray logs at two boreholes and passive seismic measurements: three arrays and 224 seismic stations for applying the horizontal-to-vertical amplitude spectra ratio method (H/V). Well-logging data define two significant changes in the P-wave-velocity log within the Upper Cretaceous layer and one more at the Upper to Lower Cretaceous contact. This technique has also been used for refining the geological interpretation. The passive seismic measurements provide a map of sediment thickness with a maximum of around 40 m and shear-wave velocity profiles from the array technique. A comparison between seismic velocity coming from well logging and array measurements defines the resolution limits of the passive seismic techniques and helps it to be interpreted. This study shows how these low-cost techniques can provide useful information about near-surface complexity that could be used for designing a geophysical field survey or for seismic processing steps such as statics or imaging.

Site-dependent proxy response to climate change during the last 140 years observed in varved lake sediments in Northern Poland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ott, Florian; Kramkowski, Mateusz; Wulf, Sabine; Plessen, Birgit; Serb, Johanna; Tjallingii, Rik; Schwab, Markus; Słowiński, Michał; Brykała, Dariusz; Tyszkowski, Sebastian; Putyrskaya, Victoria; Appelt, Oona; Błaszkiewicz, Mirosław; Brauer, Achim

2017-04-01

This accurate dating and chronological correlation using crypto-tephras provide a powerful way to compare the varved sediment records of the lakes Głęboczek (JG), Czechowskie (JC) and Jelonek (JEL) (north-central Poland). For the last 140 years, high-resolution varve micro-facies analyses (seasonal layer composition and thickness) and µ-XRF element scanning as well as bulk geochemical analyses (TOC, CaCO3) at sub-decadal to decadal resolution were conducted for all three records. Varve chronologies have been independently established by means of annual layer counting. 137Cs activity concentration measurements confirmed the varve chronology from JC. The Askja AD1875 tephra has been used to synchronize the records. A comparison of sediment data with monthly temperature data from Koszalin since 1870 and daily temperature data from Chojnice since 1951 revealed different responses of lake deposition to recent temperature change. Varves are well-preserved over the entire 140 years only in the sediments of JG, while in the JC record two faintly varved intervals are intercalated and in JEL two non-varved intervals occur at the base and top of the profile. These differences likely are due to variations in lake characteristics. Climate changes at the demise of the Little Ice Age and the recent warming since the 1980s are expressed in varve micro-facies, CaCO3 and TOC contents in the three lakes with different response times and amplitudes. This allows us to discuss the role of local parameters like lake size, bathymetry and water depth in transferring climate change signals into lake sediment records. This study is a contribution to the Virtual Institute of Integrated Climate and Landscape Evolution Analyses - ICLEA - of the Helmholtz Association, grant number VH-VI-415.

The Role of Authigenic Volcanic Ash in Marine Sediment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scudder, R.; McKinley, C. C.; Thomas, D. J.; Murray, R. W.

2016-12-01

Marine sediments are a fundamental archive of the history of weathering and erosion, biological productivity, volcanic activity, patterns of deep-water formation and circulation, and a multitude of other earth, ocean, and atmosphere processes. In particular, the record and consequences of volcanic eruptions have long fascinated humanity. Volcanic ash layers are often visually stunning, and can have thicknesses of 10s of cm or more. While the ash layer records are of great importance by themselves, we are missing a key piece of information-that of the very fined grained size fractions. Dispersed ash is the very fine grained-component that has either been mixed into the bulk sediment by bioturbation, or is deposited from subaqueous eruptions, erosion of terrestrial deposits, general input during time periods of elevated global volcanism, or other mechanisms, plays an important role in the marine sediment. The presence of dispersed ash in the marine record has previously been relatively over-looked as it is difficult to identify petrographically due to its commonly extremely fine grain size and/or alteration to authigenic clay. The dispersed ash, either altered or unaltered, is extremely difficult to differentiate from detrital/terrigenous/authigenic clay, as they are all "aluminosilicates". Here we apply a combined geochemical, isotopic, and statistical technique that enables us to resolve volcanic from detrital terrigenous inputs at DSDP/ODP/IODP sites from both the Brazil Margin and the Northwest Pacific Oceans. Incorporating the combined geochemical/statistical techniques with radiogenic isotope records allows us to address paleoceanographic questions in addition to studies of the effect of sediment fluxes on carbon cycling, the relationship between volcanic ash and biological productivity of the open ocean and nutrient availability for subseafloor microbial life.

The effect of Hurricane Lili on the distribution of organic matter along the inner Louisiana shelf (Gulf of Mexico, USA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goñi, Miguel A.; Gordon, Elizabeth S.; Monacci, Natalie M.; Clinton, Rebecca; Gisewhite, Rachel; Allison, Mead A.; Kineke, Gail

2006-11-01

On October 3, 2002 Hurricane Lili made landfall on a previously studied region of the inner Louisiana shelf as a Category 2 storm with winds over 160 km/h. A week after the hurricane, major impacts of the storm were not evident in the water column except for the lower than expected inshore salinities (˜12 psu) for this time of year, which was characterized by low river discharge. Turbidity profiles were typical of those measured during previous investigations with suspended sediment concentrations >75 mg/L at inshore stations and <50 mg/L in surface waters and offshore. The implication is that the sediments resuspended during the hurricane settled soon after the storm passage. Water column particulate organic carbon (POC) concentrations ranged from 0.1 to over 2.0 mg/L, with the highest concentrations measured near the seabed and in the inshore portions of the study area. Suspended particles were characterized by low organic matter content (%POC of 0.5-2 wt%), low chlorophyll:POC ratios (Chl:POC<4 mg/g) and moderately elevated POC:particulate nitrogen ratios (POC:PN of 10-14 mol/mol), all suggesting their source was locally resuspended seabed sediment rather than from algal biomass or land-derived vascular plant detritus. Post hurricane sediment deposition throughout the study area resulted in a storm layer that ranged from <0.5 to 20 cm in thickness. In most locations sediment accumulation ranged from 3 to 10 cm. The storm deposits were generally composed of silty clays with a coarser, somewhat sandy 1-2 cm basal layer. Surface sediments from the storm layer were characterized by relatively high mineral surface areas (SA of 30-50 m 2/g) and elevated OC contents (%OC of 1.0-2.0%). The dispersal of fine sediments following the hurricane resulted in marked changes in the SA and %OC values of surface sediments from offshore locations, which prior to the storm contained coarser, organic-poor particles (SA of 5-15 m 2/g and %OC of 0.2-0.6%). The OC:SA and OC:N ratios of storm layer sediments ranged from 0.4 to 0.6 mg OC/m 2 and from 10 to 12 mol/mol, respectively, and were comparable to those measured in surface sediments prior to the hurricane. Such similarities in the composition of the organic matter reinforce the idea that the source of the storm deposits was the finer fraction of resuspended seabed sediments, with little evidence for inputs from local land-derived sources or autochthonous algal production. Overall, the magnitude of sediment and organic matter deposition on the seabed after the storm greatly exceeded the annual inputs from the Atchafalaya River and coastal primary production. The combined effects of hurricane-driven erosion and post-storm deposition represent a major perturbation to the benthic community of the region, which is already subject to these types of disturbances due to the combined effects of peaks in river discharge and the passage of storm fronts.

The September 16, 2015 Illapel Tsunami - Sedimentology of tsunami deposits at the beaches of La Serena and Coquimbo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahlburg, Heinrich; Nentwig, Vanessa; Matthias, Kreutzer

2016-04-01

On September 16, 2015, at 7:54 pm local time, an earthquake with Mw 8.3 occurred off the coast of Central Chile, 46 km west of the town of Illapel. Its hypocenter was located at a depth of 8.7 km in the transition zone from the Chilean flat slab to the central Chilean steep slab subduction geometry, and near the intersection of the Juan Fernandez Ridge with the South America plate. The quake caused a predominantly minor tsunami between Caldera (c. 27°S) and Los Vilos (c. 32°S). Only at Coquimbo and La Serena (c. 30°S) did the tsunami attain large wave heights on the order of 4.5 m leading to flooding and destruction of infrastructure. Maximum inundation distance was c. 700 m at Playa Changa, Coquimbo Bay. Minor flooding occurred along the northward adjacent beaches of La Serena reaching inundation distances of up to 150 m. Tsunami deposits are usually the only observable evidence of past events. To understand how tsunami deposits form and are preserved, and how they can be identified in the geological record, it is of paramount importance to undertake detailed studies in the wake of actual events. Here we report initial field data of a sedimentological post-tsunami field survey undertaken in October 2015. The most comprehensive and instructive sedimentological record of the September 16, 2015 tsunami is preserved at Playa Los Fuertes in La Serena. Along a 30 m long trench perpendicular to the coast we observed a laminated package of tsunami deposits of varying thickness. The deposits have an erosive basal unconformity with an amplitude of at least 10 cm. The preserved deposit thickness varies between 10 an 50 cm. The deposit consists of 7 layers of variable thickness, ranging between dark laminae a few millimeters thick and rich in heavy minerals, and lighter colored sand layers up to 15 cm thick. Grain size distributions are moderately well to well sorted and unimodal with modes between 1.3 and 2.0 Φ (medium sand). A c. 10 cm thick laminated layer in the central part of the vertical section includes mildly trough-shaped crossbeds indicating landward flow, a c. 5 cm thick layer 10 cm below the top in the interior part of the trench contains planar cross beds formed by outflow currents. Water escape occur as small sand diapirs and volcanoes within the final deposit. Water escape through small volcanoes appears to have been coeval to formation of the overlying layer by traction deposition as sand issuing from the lower layer has been preserved as a thin plume deformed in the downcurrent, i.e. landward, direction in the newly forming upper layer. Other sectors of the sediment show sand diapirs intruding up to 15 cm into the overlying tsunami deposit. The assemblage of laminae, layers and sedimentary structures indicates that the deposit records at least two events of tsunami inflow indicated by crossbeds and deformed sand volcano plumes, and one outflow event. Intervening layers without directional structures can not be assigned unequivocally to either inflow or outflow deposition.

ACEX: A First Look at Arctic Ocean Cenozoic History

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moran, K.; Backman, J.

2004-12-01

The first Integrated Ocean Drilling Program mission specificplatform expedition (ACEX - Arctic Coring Expedition) drilled and recovered core from five holes at four sites through Cenozoic sediments draping the crest of the Lomonosov Ridge in the central Arctic Ocean. Coring continued into the underlying Cretaceous sedimentary bedrock. Sites are located only a few nautical miles apart along a single seismic line (AWI-91090), showing an identical and coherent Cenozoic seismostratigraphy. Preliminary results from shipboard investigations of core-catcher-based bio- and lithostratigraphy, pore water analyses and core logger data describe a thick (~160 m) middle Miocene through Pleistocene sequence that shows large amplitude, cyclic variability in the density, magnetic susceptibility and acoustic velocity of the sediments. Sediments are largely carbonate free. Pleistocene sedimentation rates are close to 3 cm/ka, whereas Pliocene sediments are by-and-large missing. A sharp change in physical properties at ~200 m defines the transition into a 200+ m thick Paleogene sequence that is initially dominated by large numbers of dinoflagellate cysts. The early Miocene, Oligocene and late Eocene appear to be largely missing in a hiatus. However, a 32 m thick interval separates the overlying middle Miocene from the underlying middle Eocene and presumably preserves some of the early Neogene and late Paleogene sections. Dinoflagellate cysts, diatoms, ebridians and silicoflagellates are common to abundant in the middle Eocene section, which bottoms in a spectacular layer showing massive occurrences of glochidia and massulae (megaspores) of the freshwater hydropterid fern Azolla (duckweed) at the early/middle Eocene boundary (~306 m), suggesting strongly reduced surface water salinity or perhaps even a brief episode of fresh water conditions at the surface. Biosilica is not present prior to the late early Eocene (~320 m). The (sub-) tropical dinoflagellate species Apectodinium augustum occurs abundantly at around 380m in pyrite-rich mudstones, indicating that the Paleocene/Eocene boundary and the associated Carbon Isotope Excursion (CIE) interval were recovered, and that the Arctic Ocean experienced surface temperatures on the order of 20°C during the Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). Benthic foraminifers indicate that the early Eocene through latest Paleocene sediments were deposited in shallow-marine, neritic to inner neritic, environments. The mudstone of late Paleocene age rests unconformably on Campanian marine sands, sandstone and mudstone.

Early diagenesis and trace element accumulation in North American Arctic margin sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuzyk, Zou Zou A.; Gobeil, Charles; Goñi, Miguel A.; Macdonald, Robie W.

2017-04-01

Concentrations of redox-sensitive elements (S, Mn, Mo, U, Cd, Re) were analyzed in a set of 27 sediment cores collected along the North American Arctic margin (NAAM) from the North Bering Sea to Davis Strait via the Canadian Archipelago. Sedimentary distributions and accumulation rates of the elements were used to evaluate early diagenesis in sediments along this section and to estimate the importance of this margin as a sink for key elements in the polar and global oceans. Distributions of Mn, total S and reduced inorganic S demonstrated that diagenetic conditions and thus sedimentary carbon turnover in the NAAM is organized regionally: undetectable or very thin layers (<0.5 cm) of surface Mn enrichment occurred in the Bering-Chukchi shelves; thin layers (1-5 cm) of surface Mn enrichment occurred in Barrow Canyon and Lancaster Sound; and thick layers (5-20 cm) of surface Mn enrichment occurred in the Beaufort Shelf, Canadian Archipelago, and Davis Strait. Inventories of authigenic S below the Mn-rich layer decreased about fivefold from Bering-Chukchi shelf and Barrow Canyon to Lancaster Sound and more than ten-fold from Bering-Chukchi shelf to Beaufort Shelf, Canadian Archipelago and Davis Strait. The Mn, total S and reduced inorganic S distributions imply strong organic carbon (OC) flux and metabolism in the Bering-Chukchi shelves, lower aerobic OC metabolism in Barrow Canyon and Lancaster Sound, and deep O2 penetration and much lower OC metabolism in the Beaufort Shelf, Canadian Archipelago, and Davis Strait. Accumulation rates of authigenic S, Mo, Cd, Re, and U displayed marked spatial variability along the NAAM reflecting the range in sedimentary redox conditions. Strong relationships between the accumulation rates and vertical carbon flux, estimated from regional primary production values and water depth at the coring sites, indicate that the primary driver in the regional patterns is the supply of labile carbon to the seabed. Thus, high primary production combined with a shallow water column (average 64 m) leads to high rates of authigenic trace element accumulation in sediments from the Bering-Chukchi shelves. High to moderate primary production combined with deep water (average 610 m) leads to moderate rates of authigenic trace element accumulation in sediments from Lancaster Sound. Low to very low primary production combined with moderate water depths (average 380 m) leads to low rates of authigenic trace element accumulation in sediments in the Beaufort Shelf, Davis Strait and Canadian Archipelago. Authigenic Mo accumulation rates show a significant relationship with vascular plant input to the sediments, implying that terrestrial organic matter contributes significantly to metabolism in Arctic margin sediments. Our results suggest that the broad and shallow shelf of the Chukchi Sea, which has high productivity sustained by imported nutrients, contributes disproportionately to global biogeochemical cycles.

Holocene sedimentary processes in the Gemlik Gulf: a transtensional basin on the middle Strand of the North Anatolian Fault, Sea of Marmara

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Özmaral, A.; Çagatay, M. N.; Imren, C.; Gasperini, L.; Henry, P.

2012-04-01

Gemlik Gulf is an oval-shaped transtensional basin with a maximum depth of 113 m, located on the middle strand of the North Anatolian Fault (NAF) in the eastern part of the Sea of Marmara (SOM). During the last glacial period until the Holocene marine transgression about 12 ka BP, the sea level was below the Çanakkale (Dardanelles) Strait's bedrock sill depth of -85 m, and the Gemlik Basin became a lake isolated lake from the rest of the Sea of Marmara "Lake" and the global ocean. The high resolution seismic profiles and the multi- beam bathymetric map of the basin show that the basin is characterized by NW-SE trending transtensional oblique faults, delta lobes of the Büyükdere (Kocadere) to the east and an erosional surface below an up to 15 m-thick Holocene mud drape. The Holocene mud drape was studied in up to 9.5 m-long gravity-piston and 0.84 m-long sediment/water interface cores located at -105 to -113 m in the basin's depocentre. The Holocene mud consists mainly of plastic gray green marine clayey mud that includes thick-red brown clay layers and a laminated organic-rich, dark olive green sapropel in the lower part, which was previously dated at 11.6-6.4 14Ckyr (uncalib) BP. Multi-proxy analyses of the Holocene mud drape in the sediment cores were carried out using Multisensor Core Logger, XRF Core Scanner equipped with digital X-Ray radiography, and laser particle size analyzer. Seismic-core correlation was made using seismic data of the chirp profiles at the core locations and the synthetic seismograms generated using the MSCL P-wave velocity and gamma density measurements. The long piston-gravity cores include five 20 to 100 mm-thick "red brown mud layers" in the top 2.5 m of the core. These layers have a sharp basal boundary and gradational upper boundary. The red brown layers consist of 55-75% clay-size material with an average grain size of 3-4 µm, and have relatively a high magnetic susceptibility. They are enriched in K, Fe, Ti and Zr that are the proxy of detrital mineral input, and depleted in Ca, Br, Fe and Mn. Manganese shows a sharp enrichment immediately below the base of the red brown layers. All these features strongly suggest that the red layers represent the distal edges mass flow deposits, possibly sourced from the delta to the east. The distinct Mn enrichments below the base of the red brown layers represent the diagenetic enrichment at the oxic/anoxic boundary near the seafloor, which was later covered by the mass flow deposit. C-14 and radionuclide datings of the mass flow layers and investigation of their possible relation to the past earthquakes are under progress.

Macular Choroidal Small-Vessel Layer, Sattler's Layer and Haller's Layer Thicknesses: The Beijing Eye Study.

PubMed

Zhao, Jing; Wang, Ya Xing; Zhang, Qi; Wei, Wen Bin; Xu, Liang; Jonas, Jost B

2018-03-13

To study macular choroidal layer thickness, 3187 study participants from the population-based Beijing Eye Study underwent spectral-domain optical coherence tomography with enhanced depth imaging for thickness measurements of the macular small-vessel layer, including the choriocapillaris, medium-sized choroidal vessel layer (Sattler's layer) and large choroidal vessel layer (Haller's layer). In multivariate analysis, greater thickness of all three choroidal layers was associated (all P < 0.05) with higher prevalence of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) (except for geographic atrophy), while it was not significantly (all P > 0.05) associated with the prevalence of open-angle glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy. There was a tendency (0.07 > P > 0.02) toward thinner choroidal layers in chronic angle-closure glaucoma. The ratio of small-vessel layer thickness to total choroidal thickness increased (P < 0.001; multivariate analysis) with older age and longer axial length, while the ratios of Sattler's layer and Haller's layer thickness to total choroidal thickness decreased. A higher ratio of small-vessel layer thickness to total choroidal thickness was significantly associated with a lower prevalence of AMD (early type, intermediate type, late geographic type). Axial elongation-associated and aging-associated choroidal thinning affected Haller's and Sattler's layers more markedly than the small-vessel layer. Non-exudative and exudative AMD, except for geographic atrophy, was associated with slightly increased choroidal thickness.

Ferric Iron Precipitation in the Nagahama Bay, Satsuma Iwo-Jima Island, Kagoshima

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nagata, T.; Kiyokawa, S.; Ikehara, M.; Oguri, K.; Goto, S.; Ito, T.; Yamaguchi, K. E.; Ueshiba, T.

2010-12-01

Satsuma-Iwojima island is active volcanic island and 6 x 3 km in size, located 38km south of Kyushu island, Japan. The reddish brown water along the coast of the Iwo-dake volcano at the center of the island formed by neutralization through mixing of shallow hydrothermal fluid and seawater. The reddish brown water contains reddish ferrihydrite (Fe3+) that is derived from oxidation of Fe2+ from acidic hot spring (Shikaura and Tazaki, 2001). In the Nagahama Bay with its opening to the south, red-colored Fe-rich water is affected by tidal current, but sedimentation of the ferric hydroxide is confirmed to occur in the ocean bottom (Ninomiya and Kiyokawa, 2009). Here we focus other lines of evidence from long term observations and meteorological records as important factor to form thick iron rich sediments. Meteorological and stationary observations: We used weather record in the Satsuma Iwo-jima and cross-checked with stationary observations, which enabled us to observe color changes of the surface of Nagahama Bay. It was made clear that north wind condition in the Nagahama Bay resulted in changes of the color of its surface, from red to green, by intrusion of ocean water coming from outside. Long term temperature monitoring: The temperature of seawater in the Nagahama Bay fluctuated synchronically with the air temperature. But that of hot spring water rather remained constant regardless of the seasonal change. We observed that seawater temperature in the Nagahama Bay is low at high tide and high at low tide, and the rage of temperature change is maximum at the spring tide and minimum at the neap tide. In other words, the amount of discharge of hot spring and that of seawater inflow vary inversely. Core sample: In the Nagahama Bay, iron rich sediments that is more than 1 m thick were identified. The core sample shows lithology as following; upper part, 10-20cm thick, formed loose Fe-rich deposit, lower portion formed alteration of weakly consolidated Fe-rich orange-colored mud, the organic-rich black mud and volcanic ash layers. The basal part has distinctive pink ash layer, which was identified as 1997 volcanic activity. Therefore, the core samples have records of the past 12 years and show average deposition rate of 8cm/year. Sediment trap: There accumulated 7.5cm-thick materials, dominated by ferrihydrite, during the 82 days experiment (2009/July/12~Oct./03). Sedimentation rate is 2.8cm/month (33.3cm/year). Estimated deposition rate of the core sample is 8cm/year. These differences suggest that about three-forth of Fe-hydroxide formed the Nagahama Bay would have been flashed to the open ocean by tidal and storm effects. These lines of evidence suggest that neap tide supports relatively quiet and has enough supply of hot spring into seawater and south wind works as a cap. The fine-grained iron Fe-hydroxide in the Nagahama Bay is provided and deposited at neap tide and south wind condition.

Acoustic wave in a suspension of magnetic nanoparticle with sodium oleate coating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Józefczak, A.; Hornowski, T.; Závišová, V.; Skumiel, A.; Kubovčíková, M.; Timko, M.

2014-03-01

The ultrasonic propagation in the water-based magnetic fluid with doubled layered surfactant shell was studied. The measurements were carried out both in the presence as well as in the absence of the external magnetic field. The thickness of the surfactant shell was evaluated by comparing the mean size of magnetic grain extracted from magnetization curve with the mean hydrodynamic diameter obtained from differential centrifugal sedimentation method. The thickness of surfactant shell was used to estimate volume fraction of the particle aggregates consisted of magnetite grain and surfactant layer. From the ultrasonic velocity measurements in the absence of the applied magnetic field, the adiabatic compressibility of the particle aggregates was determined. In the external magnetic field, the magnetic fluid studied in this article becomes acoustically anisotropic, i.e., velocity and attenuation of the ultrasonic wave depend on the angle between the wave vector and the direction of the magnetic field. The results of the ultrasonic measurements in the external magnetic field were compared with the hydrodynamic theory of Ovchinnikov and Sokolov (velocity) and with the internal chain dynamics model of Shliomis, Mond and Morozov (attenuation).

Acoustic wave in a suspension of magnetic nanoparticle with sodium oleate coating.

PubMed

Józefczak, A; Hornowski, T; Závišová, V; Skumiel, A; Kubovčíková, M; Timko, M

2014-01-01

The ultrasonic propagation in the water-based magnetic fluid with doubled layered surfactant shell was studied. The measurements were carried out both in the presence as well as in the absence of the external magnetic field. The thickness of the surfactant shell was evaluated by comparing the mean size of magnetic grain extracted from magnetization curve with the mean hydrodynamic diameter obtained from differential centrifugal sedimentation method. The thickness of surfactant shell was used to estimate volume fraction of the particle aggregates consisted of magnetite grain and surfactant layer. From the ultrasonic velocity measurements in the absence of the applied magnetic field, the adiabatic compressibility of the particle aggregates was determined. In the external magnetic field, the magnetic fluid studied in this article becomes acoustically anisotropic, i.e., velocity and attenuation of the ultrasonic wave depend on the angle between the wave vector and the direction of the magnetic field. The results of the ultrasonic measurements in the external magnetic field were compared with the hydrodynamic theory of Ovchinnikov and Sokolov (velocity) and with the internal chain dynamics model of Shliomis, Mond and Morozov (attenuation).

Sediment Resuspension and Deposition on Seagrass Leaves Impedes Internal Plant Aeration and Promotes Phytotoxic H2S Intrusion.

PubMed

Brodersen, Kasper E; Hammer, Kathrine J; Schrameyer, Verena; Floytrup, Anja; Rasheed, Michael A; Ralph, Peter J; Kühl, Michael; Pedersen, Ole

2017-01-01

HIGHLIGHTS: Sedimentation of fine sediment particles onto seagrass leaves severely hampers the plants' performance in both light and darkness, due to inadequate internal plant aeration and intrusion of phytotoxic H 2 S. Anthropogenic activities leading to sediment re-suspension can have adverse effects on adjacent seagrass meadows, owing to reduced light availability and the settling of suspended particles onto seagrass leaves potentially impeding gas exchange with the surrounding water. We used microsensors to determine O 2 fluxes and diffusive boundary layer (DBL) thickness on leaves of the seagrass Zostera muelleri with and without fine sediment particles, and combined these laboratory measurements with in situ microsensor measurements of tissue O 2 and H 2 S concentrations. Net photosynthesis rates in leaves with fine sediment particles were down to ~20% of controls without particles, and the compensation photon irradiance increased from a span of 20-53 to 109-145 μmol photons m -2 s -1 . An ~2.5-fold thicker DBL around leaves with fine sediment particles impeded O 2 influx into the leaves during darkness. In situ leaf meristematic O 2 concentrations of plants exposed to fine sediment particles were lower than in control plants and exhibited long time periods of complete meristematic anoxia during night-time. Insufficient internal aeration resulted in H 2 S intrusion into the leaf meristematic tissues when exposed to sediment resuspension even at relatively high night-time water-column O 2 concentrations. Fine sediment particles that settle on seagrass leaves thus negatively affect internal tissue aeration and thereby the plants' resilience against H 2 S intrusion.

Integrating surface and borehole geophysics in ground water studies - an example using electromagnetic soundings in south Florida

USGS Publications Warehouse

Paillet, Frederick; Hite, Laura; Carlson, Matthew

1999-01-01

Time domain surface electromagnetic soundings, borehole induction logs, and other borehole logging techniques are used to construct a realistic model for the shallow subsurface hydraulic properties of unconsolidated sediments in south Florida. Induction logs are used to calibrate surface induction soundings in units of pore water salinity by correlating water sample specific electrical conductivity with the electrical conductivity of the formation over the sampled interval for a two‐layered aquifer model. Geophysical logs are also used to show that a constant conductivity layer model is appropriate for the south Florida study. Several physically independent log measurements are used to quantify the dependence of formation electrical conductivity on such parameters as salinity, permeability, and clay mineral fraction. The combined interpretation of electromagnetic soundings and induction logs was verified by logging three validation boreholes, confirming quantitative estimates of formation conductivity and thickness in the upper model layer, and qualitative estimates of conductivity in the lower model layer.

Isotope analyses of the lake sediments in the Plitvice Lakes, Croatia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horvatinčić, Nada; Sironić, Andreja; Barešić, Jadranka; Bronić, Ines Krajcar; Nikolov, Jovana; Todorović, Nataša; Hansman, Jan; Krmar, Miodrag

2014-10-01

The analyses of radioactive isotopes 14C, 137Cs and 210Pb, and stable isotope 13C were performed in the sediment cores, top 40 cm, taken in 2011 from karst lakes Prošće and Kozjak in the Plitvice Lakes National Park, central Croatia. Frozen sediment cores were cut into 1 cm thick layers and dried. 14C activity in both carbonate and organic fractions was measured using accelerator mass spectrometry technique with graphite synthesis. 137Cs, 210Pb, 214Pb and 214Bi were measured by low level gamma spectrometry method on ORTECHPGe detector with the efficiency of 32%. Distribution of 14C activity from both lakes showed increase of the 14C activity in the top 10-12 cm in both carbonate and organic fractions as a response to thermonuclear bomb-produced 14C in the atmosphere in the sixties of the 20th century. Anthropogenically produced 137Cs was also observed in sediment profiles. Sedimentation rates for both lake sediments were estimated based on the unsupported 210Pb activity. Different 14C activity of the carbonate fraction (63-80 pMC, percent of modern carbon) and organic fraction (82-93 pMC) is the result of geochemical and biological processes of the sediment precipitation in the lake waters. This is also confirmed by the δ 13 C values of both fractions. Carbon isotope composition, a 14 C and δ 13 C, was compared with the lake sediments from the same lakes collected in 1989 and 2003.

Thickness of surficial sediment at and near the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Anderson, S.R.; Liszewski, M.J.; Ackerman, D.J.

1996-06-01

Thickness of surficial sediment was determined from natural-gamma logs in 333 wells at and near the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory in eastern Idaho to provide reconnaissance data for future site-characterization studies. Surficial sediment, which is defined as the unconsolidated clay, silt, sand, and gravel that overlie the uppermost basalt flow at each well, ranges in thickness from 0 feet in seven wells drilled through basalt outcrops east of the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant to 313 feet in well Site 14 southeast of the Big Lost River sinks. Surficial sediment includes alluvial, lacustrine, eolian, and colluvial deposits that generally accumulated duringmore » the past 200 thousand years. Additional thickness data, not included in this report, are available from numerous auger holes and foundation borings at and near most facilities.« less

The origin and distribution of subbottom sediments in southern Lake Champlain.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Freeman-Lynde, R. P.; Hutchinson, D.R.; Folger, D.W.; Wiley, B.H.; Hewett, M.J.

1980-01-01

3 units, correlatable with recent Lake Champlain, late-glacial marine Champlain Sea, and proglacial Lake Vermont sediments, have been identified from seismic reflection profiles and 8 piston cores. Lake Vermont deposits are nonfossiliferous and range from thin to absent nearshore and on bedrock highs to more than 126 m thick near Split Rock Point. Champlain Sea sediments contain marine foraminifers and ostracodes and are fairly uniform in thickness (20-30 m). Recent Lake Champlain sediments range in thickness from 0 to 25 m. Average sedimentation rates for Lake Vermont are considerably higher (4-8 cm/yr) than those for the Champlain Sea (0.8-1.2 cm/yr) and Lake Champlain (0.14-0.15 cm/yr). Bedrock, till, and deltaic and alluvial deposits were also identified.- from Authors

Sediment Accretion During Horst and Graben Subduction associated with the Tohoku Oki M9 Earthquake, Northern Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moore, J. C.; Chester, F. M.

2015-12-01

The stratigraphic sequence within the frontal accretionary prism of the Japan Trench, the site of large slip during the Tohoku earthquake, is unique due to horst and graben subduction. Boreholes at IODP Site C0019, penetrating the toe of the Tohoku accretionary prism, document a younger over older intraprism thrust contact with a 9 Ma age gap across the basal plate boundary fault. The anomalously young (Quaternary to Pliocene), fault-bounded sediment package is 130 m thick, of a total of 820 m of sediment above the plate boundary fault. In contrast, typical accretionary prism structure consists of stacked sediment packages on imbricate faults above the basal decollement resulting in an overall increase in age downward. Site C0019 penetrates the prism directly above a horst of the subducting Pacific oceanic crust. Here the plate-boundary fault consists of a thin, weak smectitic pelagic clay that is probably the principal slip surface of ~50 m offset in the 2011 Tohoku earthquake. The fault continues seaward deepening off the seaward edge of the horst and beneath the sediment fill of the adjacent graben, dying out at the landward base of the next incoming horst. The plate boundary fault and its splays in the graben form a narrow-taper protoprism and a small sedimentary basin of trench fill marking the seaward edge of the upper plate. The modern fault and sediment distributions within the graben are used to motivate a viable model for the presence of anomalously young sediments directly above the plate boundary fault. In this model sediments in the trench are thrust over the incoming horst by propagation of the plate boundary thrust up the landward-dipping fault of the incoming horst and along the smectitic clay layer to emplace Quaternary and Pliocene trench deposits directly on top of the incoming horst. These young deposits are in turn overlain by sediments 9 Ma or older that have been transported out of the graben along imbricate faults associated with the necessary increase in the taper of the prism above the graben. The Quaternary to Pliocene units thicken due to internal deformation accounting for the 130 m thickness now observed over the plate boundary fault at Site C0019. Conversely emplacement of very young sediment directly above a basal detachment would be unexpected in accretionary prisms subducting smoother oceanic crust.

An evaluation of factors influencing pore pressure in accretionary complexes: Implications for taper angle and wedge mechanics

USGS Publications Warehouse

Saffer, D.M.; Bekins, B.A.

2006-01-01

At many subduction zones, accretionary complexes form as sediment is off-scraped from the subducting plate. Mechanical models that treat accretionary complexes as critically tapered wedges of sediment demonstrate that pore pressure controls their taper angle by modifying basal and internal shear strength. Here, we combine a numerical model of groundwater flow with critical taper theory to quantify the effects of sediment and de??collement permeability, sediment thickness, sediment partitioning between accretion and underthrusting, and plate convergence rate on steady state pore pressure. Our results show that pore pressure in accretionary wedges can be viewed as a dynamically maintained response to factors which drive pore pressure (source terms) and those that limit flow (permeability and drainage path length). We find that sediment permeability and incoming sediment thickness are the most important factors, whereas fault permeability and the partitioning of sediment have a small effect. For our base case model scenario, as sediment permeability is increased, pore pressure decreases from near-lithostatic to hydrostatic values and allows stable taper angles to increase from ??? 2.5?? to 8??-12.5??. With increased sediment thickness in our models (from 100 to 8000 m), increased pore pressure drives a decrease in stable taper angle from 8.4??-12.5?? to 15?? to <4??) with increased sediment thickness (from <1 to 7 km). One key implication is that hydrologic properties may strongly influence the strength of the crust in a wide range of geologic settings. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

Global Ocean Sedimentation Patterns: Plate Tectonic History Versus Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goswami, A.; Reynolds, E.; Olson, P.; Hinnov, L. A.; Gnanadesikan, A.

2014-12-01

Global sediment data (Whittaker et al., 2013) and carbonate content data (Archer, 1996) allows examination of ocean sedimentation evolution with respect to age of the underlying ocean crust (Müller et al., 2008). From these data, we construct time series of ocean sediment thickness and carbonate deposition rate for the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian ocean basins for the past 120 Ma. These time series are unique to each basin and reflect an integrated response to plate tectonics and climate change. The goal is to parameterize ocean sedimentation tied to crustal age for paleoclimate studies. For each basin, total sediment thickness and carbonate deposition rate from 0.1 x 0.1 degree cells are binned according to basement crustal age; area-corrected moments (mean, variance, etc.) are calculated for each bin. Segmented linear fits identify trends in present-day carbonate deposition rates and changes in ocean sedimentation from 0 to 120 Ma. In the North and South Atlantic and Indian oceans, mean sediment thickness versus crustal age is well represented by three linear segments, with the slope of each segment increasing with increasing crustal age. However, the transition age between linear segments varies among the three basins. In contrast, mean sediment thickness in the North and South Pacific oceans are numerically smaller and well represented by two linear segments with slopes that decrease with increasing crustal age. These opposing trends are more consistent with the plate tectonic history of each basin being the controlling factor in sedimentation rates, rather than climate change. Unlike total sediment thickness, carbonate deposition rates decrease smoothly with crustal age in all basins, with the primary controls being ocean chemistry and water column depth.References: Archer, D., 1996, Global Biogeochem. Cycles 10, 159-174.Müller, R.D., et al., 2008, Science, 319, 1357-1362.Whittaker, J., et al., 2013, Geochem., Geophys., Geosyst. DOI: 10.1002/ggge.20181

The Varve Record of Puyehue Lake (Meridional Chile), AD 1412-2002 .

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boes, X.; Arnaud, F.; Fagel, N.

2004-12-01

Puyehue Lake is located in the Southern Volcanic Zone of Chile (Southern Lake District, 40°S). This monomictic lake is under the influence of the oceanic winter polar front (WPF) and constitutes a powerful sedimentary archive for paleoenvironmental reconstruction. The underflow (PUI) and interflow (PUII) coring sites were selected by a high resolution seismic survey (RUG). The sedimentation is driven by the annual blooms of diatoms in association with thermal lake cycles. For each site, one short core (50-60 cm) is analyzed by continuous cover of thin sections for varve counting and chronology for the AD 1412-2002 time window. The varve chronology is constrained by 210Pb,137Cs sedimentation rate estimates, and by the AD 1960 Valdivia'seismite. The sediment laminations are especially emphasized by the continuous grey-scale measurements from thin sections. Detrital clayey material characterizes the dark levels, and biogenic diatom mud defines the light levels. Varve counting is derived from the occurrence of light layers, i.e. formed at the end of winter after nutrient turn-over. In both cores, the grey-scale is influenced by instantaneous tephra layers related to the regional volcanic activity (Puyehue and Cordon Caulle volcanoes). For instance, in PUII, we identify major historical eruptions (AD 1921, 1837, 1790, 1564, and 1544) in accordance with the varve age model. In addition, we measure the total varve thickness. Lower than 500 µm until AD 1780, the varve thickness gradually increases by a factor of four in PUII. The first period suggests a decrease of lake productivity, in agreement with a cooling. The age fits with the end of Little Ice Age in Southern America. Between AD 1780-2002, the thicker varves could be driven by a reinforcement of the WPF since the 19e century. Our local observations require further investigations to be extrapolated over regional or global scale.

Holocene earthquake-triggered turbidites from the Saguenay (Eastern Canada) and Reloncavi (Chilean margin) fjords

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

St-Onge, Guillaume; Chapron, Emmanuel; Mulsow, Sandor; Salas, Marcos; Debret, Maxime; Foucher, Anthony; Mulder, Thierry; Desmet, Marc; Costa, Pedro; Ghaleb, Bassam; Locat, Jacques

2013-04-01

Fjords are unique archives of climatic and environmental changes, but also of natural hazards. They can preserve thick sedimentary sequences deposited under very high sediment accumulation rates, making them ideally suited to record historical and pre-historical sedimentological events such as major landslides, floods or earthquakes. In fact, by carefully characterizing and dating the sediments and by comparing the basin fill seismic stratigraphy and sedimentary records with historical events, it is possible to "calibrate" recent rapidly deposited layers such as turbidites with a trigger mechanism and extend these observations further back in time by using seismic reflection profiles and longer sediment cores. Here, we will compare earthquake-triggered turbidites in fjords from the Southern and Northern Hemispheres: the Saguenay (Eastern Canada) and Reloncavi fjords (southern Chilean margin). In both settings, we will first look at basin fill geometries and at the sedimentological properties of historical events before extending the records further back in time. In both fjords, several turbidites were associated with large magnitude historic and pre-historic earthquakes including the 1663 AD (M>7) earthquake in the Saguenay Fjord, and the 1960 (M 9.5), 1837 (M~8) and 1575 AD major Chilean subduction earthquakes in the Reloncavi Fjord. In addition, a sand layer with sea urchin fragments and the exoscopic characteristics typical of a tsunami deposit was observed immediately above the turbidite associated with the 1575 AD earthquake in the Reloncavi Fjord and supports both the chronology and the large magnitude of that historic earthquake. In both fjords, as well as in other recently recognized earthquake-triggered turbidites, the decimeter-to meter-thick normally-graded turbidites are characterized by a homogeneous, but slightly fining upward tail. Finally, new radiocarbon results will be presented and indicate that at least 19 earthquake-triggered turbidites were recorded in the Reloncavi Fjord during the last 7500 cal BP.

Origin and fate of methane in the Eastern Tropical North Pacific oxygen minimum zone.

PubMed

Chronopoulou, Panagiota-Myrsini; Shelley, Felicity; Pritchard, William J; Maanoja, Susanna T; Trimmer, Mark

2017-06-01

Oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) contain the largest pools of oceanic methane but its origin and fate are poorly understood. High-resolution (<15 m) water column profiles revealed a 300 m thick layer of elevated methane (20-105 nM) in the anoxic core of the largest OMZ, the Eastern Tropical North Pacific. Sediment core incubations identified a clear benthic methane source where the OMZ meets the continental shelf, between 350 and 650 m, with the flux reflecting the concentration of methane in the overlying anoxic water. Further incubations characterised a methanogenic potential in the presence of both porewater sulphate and nitrate of up to 88 nmol g -1 day -1 in the sediment surface layer. In these methane-producing sediments, the majority (85%) of methyl coenzyme M reductase alpha subunit (mcrA) gene sequences clustered with Methanosarcinaceae (⩾96% similarity to Methanococcoides sp.), a family capable of performing non-competitive methanogenesis. Incubations with 13 C-CH 4 showed potential for both aerobic and anaerobic methane oxidation in the waters within and above the OMZ. Both aerobic and anaerobic methane oxidation is corroborated by the presence of particulate methane monooxygenase (pmoA) gene sequences, related to type I methanotrophs and the lineage of Candidatus Methylomirabilis oxyfera, known to perform nitrite-dependent anaerobic methane oxidation (N-DAMO), respectively.

Origin and fate of methane in the Eastern Tropical North Pacific oxygen minimum zone

PubMed Central

Chronopoulou, Panagiota-Myrsini; Shelley, Felicity; Pritchard, William J; Maanoja, Susanna T; Trimmer, Mark

2017-01-01

Oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) contain the largest pools of oceanic methane but its origin and fate are poorly understood. High-resolution (<15 m) water column profiles revealed a 300 m thick layer of elevated methane (20–105 nM) in the anoxic core of the largest OMZ, the Eastern Tropical North Pacific. Sediment core incubations identified a clear benthic methane source where the OMZ meets the continental shelf, between 350 and 650 m, with the flux reflecting the concentration of methane in the overlying anoxic water. Further incubations characterised a methanogenic potential in the presence of both porewater sulphate and nitrate of up to 88 nmol g−1day−1 in the sediment surface layer. In these methane-producing sediments, the majority (85%) of methyl coenzyme M reductase alpha subunit (mcrA) gene sequences clustered with Methanosarcinaceae (⩾96% similarity to Methanococcoides sp.), a family capable of performing non-competitive methanogenesis. Incubations with 13C-CH4 showed potential for both aerobic and anaerobic methane oxidation in the waters within and above the OMZ. Both aerobic and anaerobic methane oxidation is corroborated by the presence of particulate methane monooxygenase (pmoA) gene sequences, related to type I methanotrophs and the lineage of Candidatus Methylomirabilis oxyfera, known to perform nitrite-dependent anaerobic methane oxidation (N-DAMO), respectively. PMID:28244978

Estimated sediment thickness, quality, and toxicity to benthic organisms in selected impoundments in Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Breault, Robert F.; Sorenson, Jason R.; Weiskel, Peter K.

2013-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey and the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, Division of Ecological Restoration, collaborated to collect baseline information on the quantity and quality of sediment impounded behind selected dams in Massachusetts, including sediment thickness and the occurrence of contaminants potentially toxic to benthic organisms. The thicknesses of impounded sediments were measured, and cores of sediment were collected from 32 impoundments in 2004 and 2005. Cores were chemically analyzed, and concentrations of 32 inorganic elements and 108 organic compounds were quantified. Sediment thicknesses varied considerably among the 32 impoundments, with an average thickness of 3.7 feet. Estimated volumes also varied greatly, ranging from 100,000 cubic feet to 81 million cubic feet. Concentrations of toxic contaminants as well as the number of contaminants detected above analytical quantification levels (also known as laboratory reporting levels) varied greatly among sampling locations. Based on measured contaminant concentrations and comparison to published screening thresholds, bottom sediments were predicted to be toxic to bottom-dwelling (benthic) organisms in slightly under 30 percent of the impoundments sampled. Statistically significant relations were found between several of the contaminants and individual indicators of urban land use and industrial activity in the upstream drainage areas of the impoundments. However, models developed to estimate contaminant concentrations at unsampled sites from upstream landscape characteristics had low predictive power, consistent with the long and complex land-use history that is typical of many drainage areas in Massachusetts.

Intercalibration of benthic flux chambers I. Accuracy of flux measurements and influence of chamber hydrodynamics [review article

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tengberg, A.; Stahl, H.; Gust, G.; Müller, V.; Arning, U.; Andersson, H.; Hall, P. O. J.

2004-01-01

The hydrodynamic properties and the capability to measure sediment-water solute fluxes, at assumed steady state conditions, were compared for three radically different benthic chamber designs: the “Microcosm”, the “Mississippi” and the “Göteborg” chambers. The hydrodynamic properties were characterized by mounting a PVC bottom in each chamber and measuring mixing time, diffusive boundary layer thickness (DBL thickness) shear velocity (u ∗) , and total pressure created by the water mixing. The Microcosm had the most even distribution of DBL thickness and u ∗, but the highest differential pressure at high water mixing rates. The Mississippi chamber had low differential pressures at high u ∗. The Göteborg chamber was in between the two others regarding these properties. DBL thickness and u ∗ were found to correlate according to the following empirical formula: DBL=76.18(u ∗) -0.933. Multiple flux incubations with replicates of each of the chamber types were carried out on homogenized, macrofauna-free sediments in four tanks. The degree of homogeneity was determined by calculating solute fluxes (of oxygen, silicate, phosphate and ammonium) from porewater profiles and by sampling for porosity, organic carbon and meiofauna. All these results, except meiofauna, indicated that there were no significant horizontal variations within the sediment in any of the parallel incubation experiments. The statistical evaluations also suggested that the occasional variations in meiofauna abundance did not have any influence on the measured solute fluxes. Forty-three microelectrode profiles of oxygen in the DBL and porewater were evaluated with four different procedures to calculate diffusive fluxes. The procedure presented by Berg, Risgaard-Petersen and Rysgaard, 1989 [Limnol. Oceanogr. 43, 1500] was found to be superior because of its ability to fit measured profiles accurately, and because it takes into consideration vertical zonation with different oxygen consumption rates in the sediment. During the flux incubations, the mixing in the chambers was replicated ranging from slow mixing to just noticeable sediment resuspension. In the “hydrodynamic characterizations” these mixing rates corresponded to average DBL thickness from 120 to 550 μm, to u ∗ from 0.12 to 0.68 cm/s, and to differential pressures from 0-3 Pa. Although not directly transferable, since the incubations were done on a “real” sediment with a rougher surface while in the characterizations a PVC plate simulated the sediments surface, these data give ideas about the prevailing hydrodynamic condition in the chambers during the incubations. The variations in water mixing did not generate statistically significant differences between the chamber types for any of the measured fluxes of oxygen or nutrients. Consequently it can be concluded that, for these non-permeable sediments and so long as appropriate water mixing (within the ranges given above) is maintained, the type of stirring mechanism and chamber design used were not critical for the magnitude of the measured fluxes. The average measured oxygen flux was 11.2 ± 2.7 (from 40 incubations), while the diffusive flux calculated (from 43 profiles using the Berg et al., 1989 [Limnol. Oceanogr. 43, 1500] procedure) was 11.1 ± 3.0 mmol m -2 day -1. This strongly suggests that accurate oxygen flux measurements were obtained with the three types of benthic chambers used and that the oxygen uptake is diffusive.

Pleistocene environments and glacial history of the northern North Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reinardy, Benedict; Hjelstuen, Berit; Petter Sejrup, Hans; Augedal, Hans; Jørstad, Arild

2017-04-01

Based on new geochronological and lithological data combined with analyses of 3D seismic data, the Pliocene-Pleistocene development of the central northern North Sea has been investigated. At the start of the Plio-Pleistocene Transition the study area was dominated by a deltaic, shallow marine or tidal depositional environment with sediments mainly sourced from the west with a local provenance. Directly above the base Quaternary a 60 m thick layer of mud-rich sediments of glacimarine origin were deposited at a rate of 12 cm/ka between 2-1.5 Ma and up to 80 cm/ka between 1.5 - 1.2 Ma possibly reflecting glacial ice advancing to the Norwegian coastline. The high rate of deposition in the Early Pleistocene occurred immediately before the initiation of the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream at 1.1 Ma. Following this, a large part of the sediment input from Fennoscandia seems to have been directed away from the study area to the shelf break. At the start of the Mid Pleistocene Transition (MPT), subaerial conditions allowed the formation of a >50 km long fluvial channel across the study area draining water from the east to the south west. The earliest evidence of grounded ice in the investigated area comes from mega scale glacial lineations formed during the MPT, at or just after 1.2 Ma. Following this, a regional unconformity was formed by one or more grounded ice advances across the study area possibly during or directly after the MPT and likely marks the boundary between the Early and Mid Pleistocene glacimarine sediments. The Mid to Late Pleistocene stratigraphy is dominated by glacimarine sediments and tills and is associated with multiple generations of tunnel valleys observed within the seismic data. A high shear strength till containing chalk clasts transported from the west and/or south of the study area was likely deposited during MIS6 and may have been more conducive to tunnel valley formation in comparison to lower shear strength tills deposited by later ice advances. A thick till unit overlain by a sand layer in the study area was deposited by grounded ice during the Last Glacial Maximum and subsequent drainage of an ice dammed lake in the southern North Sea during the last deglaciation (MIS2) of the study area. This study shows that much of the Quaternary age sediments within the northern North Sea were deposited relatively rapidly during short periods of time probably leaving significant hiatuses within the stratigraphic record. This finding has implications for previous studies that use a chronological framework assuming a relatively continuous sedimentation rate and record for the Early Pleistocene within the North Sea.

Cryofacies evidences of a Yedoma (?) development during the last glacial maximum in Yukon (Canada) along the current Alaska border

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stephani, E.; Fortier, D.; Shur, Y.

2012-12-01

In some areas that remained unglaciated during the Late Pleistocene, inorganic and organic sedimentation supported syngenetic upward permafrost development and the creation of so-called yedoma deposits (Ice Complex). This type of periglacial deposit is usually very ice-rich and is highly unstable upon thawing. As this deposit thaws, the landscape goes from a carbon sink to a carbon and inorganic sediment source. This carbon can be released into the environment or transformed to CH4. Yedoma deposits have been extensively studied in Russia and more recently in Alaska. However, very few studies have focused on yedomas of Yukon. With the objective to provide regional information on yedoma distribution in North America, we present here preliminary field evidences of a yedoma deposit near Beaver Creek, close to current Alaska border. 28 boreholes were core-drilled, and cores were described and analyzed in the laboratory. Well-developed microlenticular cryostructures in silt and numerous small rootlets are typical of yedoma deposit. Tiny ice lenses are formed in fine-grained sediment by cryosuction and rootlets gets incorporated into the permafrost as the table rises syngenetically in response to surface sedimentation. During sedimentary accumulation, when sedimentation slows down, peat layers can be formed at the surface. This change in material properties often lead to the development of belt-like cryostructures (thick ice lenses separated by reticulate ice veins). At Beaver Creek, the microlenticular and belt-like cryofacies with rootlets (typical of syngenetic ice-rich yedoma) were abundant in Units 2A and 2C. The average ice content of Units 2A and 2C was respectively 91 % and 109 %, and the organic matter content (loss on ignition) was 6 % and 8 %. Significant thaw strain was measured in Units 2A (50%) and 2C (35%). Interestingly Unit 2B was very ice-poor (gravimetric ice content: 47 %, thaw strain: 9 %) and showed only porous cryostructure (interstitial ice) in silt (3 % organic matter). This was interpreted as ice-rich fine-grained soils that thawed, drained, and refroze afterward. This ice-poor layer with sediment deformations (e.g. fold, fault, diapir) is called 'taberal deposit' in the Russian literature. This layer can be observed in yedoma deposit in areas which were affected by permafrost degradation. Yedoma deposits are usually characterized by the presence of tall and wide ice wedges. These wedges form continuously as the permafrost table rises in response to surface sedimentation and their size is thus a function of sedimentation rate and time. In our study, we observed ice wedges at least 8 m tall (tip of the wedge > maximum coring depth). The bottom of the ice wedges was located in lodgement till (> 11 m below surface). This deposit was covered by woody peat deposit up to 4.9 m thick and was thus interpreted to be older than MIS 3. We propose that frost cracking first occurred in the peat and the underlying diamicton after the last interglacial and that upward syngenetic ice wedge growth followed silt accumulation over thousands of years sometimes during the last glacial period. The top of the ice wedges were located at about 2.5 m depth in Unit 2B. This indicates that ice wedge growth was interrupted by an episode of permafrost degradation and resumed afterward during accumulation of unit 2A.

Ancient Lavas in Shenandoah National Park near Luray, Virginia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Reed, John Calvin

1969-01-01

In the Blue Ridge Province of northern Virginia, Maryland, and southern Pennsylvania, Lower Cambrian beds are underlain by a thick sequence of greenstone and interbedded sedimentary rocks known as the Catoctin Formation. An area near Luray, Va., was studied to determine the thickness of the formation, its relationship to overlying and underlying rocks, and the original nature of the lavas from which the Catoctin greenstone was derived. There the Catoctin Formation lies unconformably on granitic rocks. Its basal sedimentary layer ranges from a few inches to 150 feet in thickness and contains pebbles of underlying basement rocks. The erosion surface beneath the Catoctin is irregular, and in several places, hills as much as 1,000 feet high were buried beneath the Catoctin lavas. No important time break is indicated between the deposition of the Catoctin Formation and the overlying Cambrian sediments. The original Catoctin lavas were basaltic and were probably normal plateau basalts. Columnar joints, amygdules, sedimentary dikes, flow breccias low-dipping primary joints, and other primary structures are well preserved.

Gas hydrate reservoirs and gas migration mechanisms in the Terrebonne Basin, Gulf of Mexico

DOE PAGES

Hillman, Jess I. T.; Cook, Ann E.; Daigle, Hugh; ...

2017-07-27

Here, the interactions of microbial methane generation in fine-grained clay-rich sediments, methane migration, and gas hydrate accumulation in coarse-grained, sand-rich sediments are not yet fully understood. The Terrebonne Basin in the northern Gulf of Mexico provides an ideal setting to investigate the migration of methane resulting in the formation of hydrate in thin sand units interbedded with fractured muds. Using 3D seismic and well log data, we have identified several previously unidentified hydrate bearing units in the Terrebonne Basin. Two units are >100 m- thick fine-grained clay-rich units where gas hydrate occurs in near-vertical fractures. In some locations, these fine-grainedmore » units lack fracture features, and they contain 1-4-m thick hydrate bearing-sands. In addition, several other thin sand units were identified that contain gas hydrate, including one sand that was intersected by a well at the location of a discontinuous bottom-simulating reflector. Using correlation of well log data to seismic data, we have mapped and described these new units in detail across the extent of the available data, allowing us to determine the variation of seismic amplitudes and investigate the distribution of free gas and/or hydrate. We present several potential source-reservoir scenarios between the thick fractured mud units and thin hydrate bearing sands. We observe that hydrate preferentially forms within thin sand layers rather than fractures when sands are present in larger marine mud units. Based on regional mapping showing the patchy lateral extent of the thin sand layers, we propose that diffusive methane migration or short-migration of microbially generated methane from the marine mud units led to the formation of hydrate in these thin sands, as discontinuous sands would not be conducive to long-range migration of methane from deeper reservoirs.« less

Gas hydrate reservoirs and gas migration mechanisms in the Terrebonne Basin, Gulf of Mexico

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hillman, Jess I. T.; Cook, Ann E.; Daigle, Hugh

Here, the interactions of microbial methane generation in fine-grained clay-rich sediments, methane migration, and gas hydrate accumulation in coarse-grained, sand-rich sediments are not yet fully understood. The Terrebonne Basin in the northern Gulf of Mexico provides an ideal setting to investigate the migration of methane resulting in the formation of hydrate in thin sand units interbedded with fractured muds. Using 3D seismic and well log data, we have identified several previously unidentified hydrate bearing units in the Terrebonne Basin. Two units are >100 m- thick fine-grained clay-rich units where gas hydrate occurs in near-vertical fractures. In some locations, these fine-grainedmore » units lack fracture features, and they contain 1-4-m thick hydrate bearing-sands. In addition, several other thin sand units were identified that contain gas hydrate, including one sand that was intersected by a well at the location of a discontinuous bottom-simulating reflector. Using correlation of well log data to seismic data, we have mapped and described these new units in detail across the extent of the available data, allowing us to determine the variation of seismic amplitudes and investigate the distribution of free gas and/or hydrate. We present several potential source-reservoir scenarios between the thick fractured mud units and thin hydrate bearing sands. We observe that hydrate preferentially forms within thin sand layers rather than fractures when sands are present in larger marine mud units. Based on regional mapping showing the patchy lateral extent of the thin sand layers, we propose that diffusive methane migration or short-migration of microbially generated methane from the marine mud units led to the formation of hydrate in these thin sands, as discontinuous sands would not be conducive to long-range migration of methane from deeper reservoirs.« less

Exploring how organic matter controls structural transformations in natural aquatic nanocolloidal dispersions.

PubMed

King, Stephen M; Jarvie, Helen P

2012-07-03

The response of the dispersion nanostructure of surface river bed sediment to the controlled removal and readdition of natural organic matter (NOM), in the absence and presence of background electrolyte, was examined using the technique of small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). Partial NOM removal induced aggregation of the mineral particles, but more extensive NOM removal restored colloidal stability. When peat humic acid (PHA) was added to a NOM-deficient sediment concentration-related structural transformations were observed: at 255 mg/L PHA aggregation of the nanocolloid was actually enhanced, but at 380 mg/L PHA disaggregation and colloidal stability were promoted. The addition of 2 mM CaCl(2) induced mild aggregation in the native sediment but not in sediments with added PHA, suggesting that the native NOM and the PHA respond differently to changes in ionic strength. A first attempt at using SANS to directly characterize the thickness and coverage of an adsorbed PHA layer in a natural nanocolloid is also presented. The results are discussed in the context of a hierarchical aquatic colloidal nanostructure, and the implications for contemporary studies of the role of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in sustaining the transport of colloidal iron in upland catchments.

Stratigraphy and paleoenvironment of Miocene phosphatic rocks in the East San Francisco Bay region, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hill, James M.

1979-01-01

A stratigraphic study of the Monterey Group in the East San Francisco Bay Region, California, indicates that a depositional basin began to subside in early to middle Miocene time. The Miocene sea transgressed from the west or southwest, and the area subsided to a possible water depth of 500 to 2,500 m. The Monterey Group within the study area is a time-transgressive sequence of six sandstone and shale formations. Stratigraphic cycles of interbedded sandstone and shale formations are related to the amount of terrigenous sediment input into the basin as well as the depositional environment. During periods of low terrigenous sedimentation, biogenetic sedimentation in the form of diatomite layers were interbedded with hemipelagic muds and thin turbidite sands. These diatom-rich sediments were probably deposited within the upper bathyal zone (180 to 500 m) and, during lithification, diagenetically altered to form siliceous shales and cherts. As terrigenous sedimentation increased, probably due to periodic uplift east of the study area, biogenetic sedimentation was masked until finer grained sediment at a lower rate of deposition reoccurred. As the basin filled and a higher energy environment prevailed; coarse-grained sediment was again deposited until a lower energy environment resumed. Three types of inorganic phosphate are present within the study area: nodular, Pelletal, and pebbles of sandy phosphatic mudstone. The nodular phosphate is associated with the siliceous shale formations and formed within diatomite layers before compaction and lithification. The other two types of phosphate are found within the sandstone formations and probably originated in a shallower, higher energy environment than the siliceous shales. Faulting was active during middle to late Miocene time. The change in stratigraphic thickness across the Mission fault is 350 m which may approximate the vertical (?) displacement along this fault. This displacement took place in middle to upper Miocene time and apparently caused erosion of the upper formations of the Monterey Group on the west side of the Mission fault before the Briones Formation was deposited in late Miocene time. Depositional thinning of the Monterey Group in the southern portion of the study area may imply that the Hayward and Calaveras faults were also active at this time.

Visualization of soil structure and pore structure modifications by pioneering ground beetles (Cicindelidae) in surface sediments of an artificial catchment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badorreck, Annika; Gerke, Horst H.; Weller, Ulrich; Vontobel, Peter

2010-05-01

An artificial catchment was constructed to study initial soil and ecosystem development. As a key process, the pore structure dynamics in the soil at the surface strongly influences erosion, infiltration, matter dynamics, and vegetation establishment. Little is known, however, about the first macropore formation in the very early stage. This presentation focuses on observations of soil pore geometry and its effect on water flow at the surface comparing samples from three sites in the catchment and in an adjacent "younger" site composed of comparable sediments. The surface soil was sampled in cylindrical plastic rings (10 cm³) down to 2 cm depth in three replicates each site and six where caves from pioneering ground-dwelling beetles Cicindelidae were found. The samples were scanned with micro-X-ray computed tomography (at UFZ-Halle, Germany) with a resolution of 0.084 mm. The infiltration dynamics were visualized with neutronradiography (at Paul-Scherer-Institute, Switzerland) on slab-type soil samples in 2D. The micro-tomographies exhibit formation of surface sealing whose thickness and intensity vary with silt and clay content. The CT images show several coarser- and finer-textured micro-layers at the sample surfaces that were formed as a consequence of repeated washing in of finer particles in underlying coarser sediment. In micro-depressions, the uppermost layers consist of sorted fine sand and silt due to wind erosion. Similar as for desert pavements, a vesicular pore structure developed in these sediments on top, but also scattered in fine sand- and silt-enriched micro-layers. The ground-dwelling activity of Cicindelidae beetles greatly modifies the soil structure through forming caves in the first centimetres of the soil. Older collapsed caves, which form isolated pores within mixed zones, were also found. The infiltration rates were severely affected both, by surface crusts and activity of ground-dwelling beetles. The observations demonstrate relatively high abiotic and biotic dynamics of soil pore structure in the soil surface even during the very early development stages. The structure formation has potentially great effects on changing runoff and infiltration by forming sealing layers or preferential flow paths.

Mechanical modeling and characteristic study for the adhesive contact of elastic layered media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yuyan; Wang, Xiaoli; Tu, Qiaoan; Sun, Jianjun; Ma, Chenbo

2017-11-01

This paper investigates the adhesive contact between a smooth rigid sphere and a smooth elastic layered medium with different layer thicknesses, layer-to-substrate elastic modulus ratios and adhesion energy ratios. A numerical model is established by combining elastic responses of the contact system and an equation of equivalent adhesive contact pressure which is derived based on the Hamaker summation method and the Lennard-Jones intermolecular potential law. Simulation results for hard layer cases demonstrate that variation trends of the pull-off force with the layer thickness and elastic modulus ratio are complex. On one hand, when the elastic modulus ratio increases, the pull-off force decreases at smaller layer thicknesses, decreases at first and then increases at middle layer thicknesses, while increases monotonously at larger layer thicknesses. On the other hand, the pull-off force decreases at first and then increases with the increase in the layer thickness. Furthermore, a critical layer thickness above which the introduction of hard layer cannot reduce adhesion and an optimum layer thickness under which the pull-off force reaches a minimum are found. Both the critical and optimum layer thicknesses become larger with an increase in the Tabor parameter, while they tend to decrease with the increase in the elastic modulus ratio. In addition, the pull-off force increases sublinearly with the adhesion energy ratio if the layer thickness and elastic modulus ratio are fixed.

New Interpretations of the Rayn Anticlines in the Arabian Basin Inferred from Gravity Modelling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

AlMogren, S. M.; Mukhopadhyay, M.

2014-12-01

The Ryan Anticlines comprise of a regularly-spaced set of super-giant anticlines oriented NNW, developed due to E-W compression in the Arabian Basin. Most prominent of these being: the Ghawar Anticline, followed by the Summan, Khurais Anticlines and Qatar Arch. Gravity anomaly is largely characteristic for both Ryan Anticlines and its smaller size version the Jinadriah Anticline in the Riyadh Salt Basin. It displays a bipolar gravity field - a zone of gravity high running along the fold axis that is flanked by asymmetric gravity lows. Available structural models commonly infer structural uplift for the median gravity high but ignore the flanking lows. Here we interpret the bipolar gravity anomaly due primarily to such anticline structures, while, the flanking gravity lows are due to greater sediment thickness largely compacted and deformed over the basement depressions. Further complexities are created due to the salt layer and its migration at the lower horizons of sediment strata. Such diagnostic gravity anomaly pattern is taken here as an evidence for basement tectonics due to prevailing crustal dynamics in the Arabian Basin. Density inversion provides details on the subsurface density variation due to the folding and structural configuration for the sediment layers, including the salt layer, affected by basement deformation. This interpretation is largely supported by gravity forward and inversion models given in the present study what is partly constrained by the available seismic, MT and deep resistivity lines and surface geologic mapping. Most of the oil-gas fields in this part of the Arabian Basin are further known for salt diapirism. In this study the gravity interpretation help in identification of salt diapirism directly overlying the basement is firstly given here for Jinadriah Anticline; that is next extended to a regional geologic cross-section traversing the Ryan Anticlines to infer probable subsurface continuation of salt diapirs directly overlying the metamorphosed basement, sediment deformation pattern skirting the anticlines as well as their relationship of faulting to basement tectonics.

Lake Challa (Kenya/Tanzania) sediments, a varved climate archive of environmental variability in equatorial East Africa of the last 25.000 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wolff, C.; Haug, G.; Plessen, B.; Kristen, I.; Verschuren, D.; Participants, C.

2008-12-01

Recently, an increasing number of climate records from low-latitude regions underscore the importance of tropical atmospheric processes in the global climate system. Nevertheless, the regional synchrony of temperature and humidity variations, as well as teleconnecting mechanisms between high and low latitudes are still poorly understood. The EuroCLIMATE project CHALLACEA aims to provide a continuous high- resolution multi-proxy record of temperature and moisture-balance variability in equatorial East Africa from the Last Glacial Maximum (25 ka BP) to the present. Lake Challa is a crater lake located about 40 km east of Mt. Kilimanjaro at an altitude of 880 m a.s.l. It is a freshwater lake whose water column is stratified during most of the year. It is fed by subsurface inflow which derives mainly from percolation of precipitation falling in the montane forest zone higher up the mountain. Within the lake form lacustrine deposits which predominantly consist of autochthonous components (carbonate, biogenic silica, organic matter). The present study focuses on microfacies analyses and isotope measurements. Fine laminations are preserved over wide parts of a 22 m long sediment profile. Microfacies analyses reveal that the light/dark couplets represent true calcite varves. The darker layers contain organic matter and endogenic calcite. Sediment trap studies show that these layers form during the warm season (Nov to Mar) when water temperatures are high and the lake is biological productive. The light layers consist predominantly of diatom frustules. They accumulate in the sediment trap between June and October. By counting and measuring the thickness of the varves on thin sections, we establish a varve record that currently covers the last 1500 years. Stable isotope analyses on bulk carbonates will complement this record and give further insights into the hydrological variability of the region and enhance our knowledge of climate change in the highly sensitive climate region of the Mt. Kilimanjaro area.

Asteroid impact vs. Deccan eruptions: The origin of low magnetic susceptibility beds below the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abrajevitch, Alexandra; Font, Eric; Florindo, Fabio; Roberts, Andrew P.

2015-11-01

The respective roles of an asteroid impact and Deccan Traps eruptions in biotic changes at the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary are still debated. In many shallow marine sediments from around the world, the K-Pg boundary is marked by a distinct clay layer that is often underlain by a several decimeter-thick low susceptibility zone. A previous study of the Gubbio section, Italy (Lowrie et al., 1990), attributed low magnetization intensity in this interval to post-depositional dissolution of ferrimagnetic minerals. Dissolution was thought to be a consequence of downward infiltration of reducing waters that resulted from rapid accumulation of organic matter produced by mass extinctions after the K-Pg event. We compare the magnetic properties of sediments from the Gubbio section with those of the Bidart section in southern France. The two sections are similar in their carbonate lithology and the presence of a boundary clay and low susceptibility zone. When compared to background Cretaceous sediments, the low susceptibility zone in both sections is marked by an absence of biogenic magnetite, a decrease in total ferrimagnetic mineral content, and a preferential loss of magnetite with respect to hematite - features that are consistent with reductive dissolution. However, unlike the Gubbio section, where the low susceptibility zone starts immediately below the boundary clay, the low susceptibility zone and the clay layer at Bidart are separated by a ∼4-cm carbonate interval that contains abundant biogenic magnetite. Such separation casts doubt on a causal link between the impact and sediment bleaching. More likely, the low susceptibility layer marks a different environmental event that preceded the impact. An episode of increased atmospheric and oceanic acidity associated with Deccan Traps volcanism that occurred well before the K-Pg impact is argued here to account for the distinct magnetic properties of the low susceptibility intervals.

Sediments from the Boxing Day tsunami on the coasts of southeastern India and Kenya

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiss, R.; Bahlburg, H.

2006-12-01

On the Boxing Day 2004, the world community experienced a catastrophic tsunami in the Indian Ocean and could also saw how unprepared and unaware countries along the Indian ocean were. Beyond the tragedy of the tremendous loss of lives, the result of this event is an opportunity to study a global tsunami (mega-tsunami) in many regards. Here, we report on tsunami sediments left behind on beaches at the coast of Tamil Nadu (India) and on beaches between Malindi and Lamu (Kenya). Characteristic debris accumulations on the beach surface at Tamil Nadu (India) showed the impact of three tsunami waves. In this area, the tsunami climbed ~5 m up the beach; the last traces of a tsunami wave were found ~580 m away from the shoreline. Palm trees indicated an overland flow depth of 3.5 m, ~50 m from the shoreline. The tsunami deposits were up to 30 cm thick. They had an erosional base to the underlying soil and pre-tsunami beach deposits and were made up of moderately well- to well-sorted coarse and medium sand. The sand sheet thins inland, but without a decrease in grain size. Three distinct layers could be identified within the tsunami deposit. The lower one occasionally displayed cross-bedding with foresets dipping landward indicating deposition during run-up. The two upper layers were graded or parallel-laminated without indicators of flow directions. The boundaries between the different layers were marked by dark laminae, rich in heavy minerals. Also, the presence of benthic foraminifera indicates entrainment of sediment into the water column by the incoming tsunami wave in water depths less than 30 m. On beaches between Malindi and Lamu, Kenya, the traces of only one tsunami wave could be found, which attained a run-up height of about 3 m and traveled ~35 m inland with respect to the tidal stage at tsunami impact. The tsunami sediments consist of one layer of fine sand and are predominantly composed of heavy minerals supplied to the sea by nearby rivers. A slight fining-inland trend could be identified in the thinning- inland sand layer. Benthic foraminifera also indicate an entrainment of sediment by the incoming tsunami wave in a water depth less than 30 m, however there are indications that sediment might be entrained in a water depth of 80 m. The fact that only one sand layer occurs in Kenya as opposed to three at Tamil Nadu might lead to the conclusion that only one wave approached the Kenyan coast. This interpretation is misleading because the Kenyan coast is several thousand kilometers away from source area of the tsunami; the non-linear behavior of the incoming tsunami waves, especially the interaction with the nearby reef, may have resulted in the discovered sedimentologic evidence of the tsunami impact on the Kenyan coast.

Trace metal in sediment from a deep-sea floor of Makassar Strait

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Budianto, F.; Lestari

2018-02-01

Makassar Strait is located in the entrance of Indonesian Through Flow (ITF). However, the geochemistry of metals in sediment within Makassar Strait remains unexplored. The aim of this study was to measure the concentration of metals in sediment and to assess the sediment quality based on those metals concentrations. The sediment was collected from 632-4730 m in depth using giant piston corer on R/V Baruna Jaya VIII in December 2014. In each observation point, three layers of sediment were sub-sampled from the core i.e. surface layer (0-5 cm), middle layer (45-55 cm) and bottom layer. The metals were analyzed using acid digestion procedure followed by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The result indicated that the metal has spatially insignificant differences in sediment and the increase of metal concentration by depth was noticed. The Enrichment factor presented as no enrichment to minor enrichment of metal in sediment.

Exploring Regolith Depth and Cycling on Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fassett, C.; Needham, D. H.; Watters, W. A.; Hundal, C.

2017-12-01

Regolith or loose sediment is ubiquitous on the surface of Mars, but our understanding of how this fragmental layer forms and evolves with time is limited. In particular, how regolith thickness varies spatially on Mars is not well known. A common perspective is to start from the canonical model for lunar regolith, which is not unreasonable, given that both Mars and the Moon are heavily cratered surfaces. However, this lunar-like paradigm is not supported by observations of Mars from recent missions. On Mars, bedrock exposures are more common and bedrock is generally closer to the surface than on the Moon, and the processes modifying the regolith differ substantially on the two bodies. Moreover, boulders on the Moon have much shorter lifetimes than on Mars, so boulders are much less common on the lunar surface. The sediment transport processes infilling craters differs dramatically on these two bodies as well. On Mars, fine-grained sediment is efficiently transported (advectively) by wind and trapped in craters rapidly after they form. Lateral transport of lunar regolith is comparatively inefficient and dominated by slow impact-driven (diffusive) transport of regolith. The goal of this contribution is to discuss observational constraints on Mars' regolith depth, and to place observations into a model for Mars landform evolution and regolith cycle. Our operating hypothesis is that the inter-crater surface on Mars is comparatively starved of fine-grained sediment (compared to the Moon), because transport and trapping of fines in craters out-competes physical weathering. Moreover, thick sedimentary bodies on Mars often get (weakly) cemented and lithified due to interactions with fluids, even in the most recent, Amazonian epoch. This is consistent with what is observed at the MER and MSL landing sites and what is known from the SNC meteorites.

The thermal environment of Cascadia Basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, H. Paul; Hautala, Susan L.; Bjorklund, Tor A.

2012-07-01

Located adjacent to the NE Pacific convergent boundary, Cascadia Basin has a global impact well beyond its small geographic size. Composed of young oceanic crust formed at the Juan de Fuca Ridge, igneous rocks underlying the basin are partially insulated from cooling of their initial heat of formation by a thick layer of pelagic and turbidite sediments derived from the adjacent North American margin. The igneous seafloor is eventually consumed at the Cascadia subduction zone, where interactions between the approaching oceanic crust and the North American continental margin are partially controlled by the thermal environment. Within Cascadia Basin, basement topographic relief varies dramatically, and sediments have a wide range of thickness and physical properties. This variation produces regional differences in heat flow and basement temperatures for seafloor even of similar age. Previous studies proposed a north-south thermal gradient within Cascadia Basin, with high geothermal flux and crustal temperatures measured in the heavily sedimented northern portion near Vancouver Island and lower than average heat flux and basement temperatures predicted for the central and southern portions of the basin. If confirmed, this prediction has implications for processes associated with the Cascadia subduction zone, including the location of the "locked zone" of the megathrust fault. Although existing archival geophysical data in the central and southern basin are sparse, nonuniformly distributed, and derived from a wide range of historical sources, a substantial N-S geothermal gradient appears to be confirmed by our present compilation of combined water column and heat flow measurements.

Naturally weathered feldspar surfaces in the Navajo Sandstone aquifer, Black Mesa, Arizona: Electron microscopic characterization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Chen; Veblen, David R.; Blum, Alex E.; Chipera, Stephen J.

2006-09-01

Naturally weathered feldspar surfaces in the Jurassic Navajo Sandstone at Black Mesa, Arizona, was characterized with high-resolution transmission and analytical electron microscope (HRTEM-AEM) and field emission gun scanning electron microscope (FEG-SEM). Here, we report the first HRTEM observation of a 10-nm thick amorphous layer on naturally weathered K-feldspar in currently slightly alkaline groundwater. The amorphous layer is probably deficient in K and enriched in Si. In addition to the amorphous layer, the feldspar surfaces are also partially coated with tightly adhered kaolin platelets. Outside of the kaolin coatings, feldspar grains are covered with a continuous 3-5 μm thick layer of authigenic smectite, which also coats quartz and other sediment grains. Authigenic K-feldspar overgrowth and etch pits were also found on feldspar grains. These characteristics of the aged feldspar surfaces accentuate the differences in reactivity between the freshly ground feldspar powders used in laboratory experiments and feldspar grains in natural systems, and may partially contribute to the commonly observed apparent laboratory-field dissolution rate discrepancy. At Black Mesa, feldspars in the Navajo Sandstone are dissolving at ˜10 5 times slower than laboratory rate at comparable temperature and pH under far from equilibrium condition. The tightly adhered kaolin platelets reduce the feldspar reactive surface area, and the authigenic K-feldspar overgrowth reduces the feldspar reactivity. However, the continuous smectite coating layer does not appear to constitute a diffusion barrier. The exact role of the amorphous layer on feldspar dissolution kinetics depends on the origin of the layer (leached layer versus re-precipitated silica), which is uncertain at present. However, the nanometer thin layer can be detected only with HRTEM, and thus our study raises the possibility of its wide occurrence in geological systems. Rate laws and proposed mechanisms should consider the possibility of this amorphous layer on feldspar surface.

Naturally weathered feldspar surfaces in the Navajo Sandstone aquifer, Black Mesa, Arizona: Electron microscopic characterization

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zhu, Chen; Veblen, D.R.; Blum, A.E.; Chipera, S.J.

2006-01-01

Naturally weathered feldspar surfaces in the Jurassic Navajo Sandstone at Black Mesa, Arizona, was characterized with high-resolution transmission and analytical electron microscope (HRTEM-AEM) and field emission gun scanning electron microscope (FEG-SEM). Here, we report the first HRTEM observation of a 10-nm thick amorphous layer on naturally weathered K-feldspar in currently slightly alkaline groundwater. The amorphous layer is probably deficient in K and enriched in Si. In addition to the amorphous layer, the feldspar surfaces are also partially coated with tightly adhered kaolin platelets. Outside of the kaolin coatings, feldspar grains are covered with a continuous 3-5 ??m thick layer of authigenic smectite, which also coats quartz and other sediment grains. Authigenic K-feldspar overgrowth and etch pits were also found on feldspar grains. These characteristics of the aged feldspar surfaces accentuate the differences in reactivity between the freshly ground feldspar powders used in laboratory experiments and feldspar grains in natural systems, and may partially contribute to the commonly observed apparent laboratory-field dissolution rate discrepancy. At Black Mesa, feldspars in the Navajo Sandstone are dissolving at ???105 times slower than laboratory rate at comparable temperature and pH under far from equilibrium condition. The tightly adhered kaolin platelets reduce the feldspar reactive surface area, and the authigenic K-feldspar overgrowth reduces the feldspar reactivity. However, the continuous smectite coating layer does not appear to constitute a diffusion barrier. The exact role of the amorphous layer on feldspar dissolution kinetics depends on the origin of the layer (leached layer versus re-precipitated silica), which is uncertain at present. However, the nanometer thin layer can be detected only with HRTEM, and thus our study raises the possibility of its wide occurrence in geological systems. Rate laws and proposed mechanisms should consider the possibility of this amorphous layer on feldspar surface. ?? 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sedimentation History of Halfway Creek Marsh, Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, Wisconsin, 1846-2006

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fitzpatrick, Faith A.; Knox, James C.; Schubauer-Berigan, Joseph P.

2007-01-01

The history of overbank sedimentation in the vicinity of Halfway Creek Marsh near La Crosse, Wis., was examined during 2005?06 by the U.S. Geological Survey and University of Wisconsin?Madison as part of a broader study of sediment and nutrient loadings to the Upper Mississippi River bottomlands by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Geological Survey. Historical sedimentation patterns and rates were interpreted from field-scale topographic surveys and sediment cores collected from the marsh and upstream flood plains. Historical maps and aerial photographs were used to establish the timing of disturbances and to document changes in channel patterns after Euro-American settlement (post 1846). Episodic overbank sedimentation patterns and rates were linked to watershed agricultural activity, large floods, artificial levee construction, channel alterations, and dam failures over the past 160 years. These forces affected sedimentation on and between levees, the development of alluvial fans and flood-plain splays, and the general pattern of flood-plain sedimentation through the upper and lower marsh. Historical overbank deposits, episodically deposited after about 1860, are as much as 6 feet thick in the upper marsh and as much as 4 feet thick in the lower marsh, representing a total volume of approximately 1.8 million cubic yards. These stratified deposits consist of multiple layers of silt and clay, very fine to fine sand, and some medium to very coarse sand. Coarse-grained deposits are associated with flood-plain splays caused by breaches in artificial levees during large floods. Estimated sedimentation rates were highest from 1919 to 1936 [26,890 cubic yards per year (yd3/yr)] and exceeded by about 30 times the 1846?85 rate of 920 yd3/yr and exceeded by 7 times the 1994?2006 rate of 3,740 yd3/yr. The 1994?2006 sedimentation rate was the lowest since Euro-American settlement, but natural levees along the 1994?2006 channel of Halfway Creek through the lower marsh continued to form and are currently (2006) about 1 foot higher than the surrounding marsh. Natural levee building in the lower marsh from 1994?2006 was accentuated by the lack of overbank sediment storage in the upper marsh. The historical storage of sediment in the upper and lower marsh affects modern streamflow and sediment transport processes of Halfway Creek and Sand Lake Coulee through the marsh, and it also affects marsh vegetation and wildlife habitat. Results from this investigation will help improve the understanding of how past overbank sedimentation patterns continue to influence modern and future water quality, sediment transport, nutrient loads, and water-related resources in riparian habitats common to the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.

Climate change on Mars and the formation of gullies, lobate debris aprons, and softened craters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parsons, Reid Allen

Recent data acquired from spacecraft missions has bettered our understanding of the nature and distribution of ice- and water-related features formed during recent periods of climate change on Mars. Numerical modeling of physical processes constrained by these newly acquired observations is an important tool with which hypotheses relating to the Martian climate can be tested. This work describes the development and implementation of a set of these models focused on the formation of a few young, ice- and water-related features. The subjects of this research are gullies, lobate debris aprons (LDAs), and craters with subdued topography known as "softened" craters. Flow of liquid water and ice over and/or within the Martian surface has been invoked in the formation of these features. Quantifying processes such as fluvial erosion and ice deformation using laboratory experiments is a Rosetta stone with which we can read into the climate history of Mars that is written on its surface. We test the hypothesis that sediment transport on gully slopes occurs via fluvial transport processes by developing a numerical sediment transport model based on steep flume experiments performed by Smart [1984]. At 20° slopes, channels 1 m deep by 8m wide and 0.1 m deep by 3 m wide transport a sediment volume equal to the alcove volume of 6 x 105 m3 in 10 hours and 40 days, respectively, under constant flow conditions. Snowpack melting cannot produce the water discharge rates necessary for fluvial sediment transport, unless long-term (kyr) storage of the resulting meltwater occurs. If these volumes of water are discharged as groundwater, the required aquifer thicknesses and aquifer drawdown lengths would be unrealistically large for a single discharge event. More plausibly, the water volume required by the fluvial transport model could be discharged in ˜ 10 episodes for an aquifer 30 m thick, with a recurrence interval similar to that of Martian obliquity cycles (˜0.1 My). Radar observations in the Deuteronilus Mensae region by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have constrained the thickness and dust concentration found within mid-latitude ice deposits, providing an opportunity to more accurately estimate the rheology of the ice within lobate debris aprons based on their apparent age of 100 My. We developed a numerical model simulating ice flow under Martian conditions using results from ice deformation experiments, theory of ice grain growth based on terrestrial ice cores, and observational constraints from radar profiles and laser altimetry. We find that an ice temperature of 205 K, an ice grain size of 5 mm, and a flat subsurface slope give reasonable ages for many LDAs in the northern mid-latitudes of Mars. Assuming that the ice grain size is limited by the grain boundary pinning effect of incorporated dust, these results limit the dust volume concentration to less than 4%. However, assuming all LDAs were emplaced by a single event, we find that there is no single combination of grain size, temperature, and subsurface slope which can give realistic ages for all LDAs, suggesting that some or all of these variables are spatially heterogeneous. Based on our model we conclude that the majority of northern mid-latitude LDAs are composed of clean (≤ 4vol%), coarse (≥ 1 mm) grained ice, but regional differences in either the amount of dust mixed in with the ice, or in the presence of a basal slope below the LDA ice must be invoked. Alternatively, the ice temperature and/or timing of ice deposition may vary significantly between different mid-latitude regions. The presence of an extensive ice-rich layer in the near subsurface of the Martian regolith could result in viscous creep responsible for softening of craters at middle and high latitudes. The temperature of ground ice will vary both temporally and spatially due, respectively, to changes in Mars' obliquity and due to the slope effect on the effective angle of insolation. Numerical simulations of viscous creep indicate that these temperature variations cause the pole-facing slopes of craters to be systematically steeper than those of equator-facing slopes. Crater slopes should be most asymmetric between 25° and 400 latitude, depending on the thickness of the creeping layer. On the basis of the lack of any systematic slope asymmetry observed in the craters, we can place a conservative upper limit of ˜ 150 m on the thickness of the ice-rich creeping layer assuming a volumetric dust content of ≤ 70% and an exponentially decreasing regolith porosity with depth. If the creeping layer contains relatively clean ice, then the thickness of ice-rich material is limited to ˜ 100 m or less. The observations also suggest that the thickness of this creeping layer is reduced by ˜ 30% toward the equator. These results imply a global ice-rich regolith water volume of <˜ 10 7 km3, comparable to that proposed for a modest-sized northern plains ocean.

Late Pliocene-Pleistocene environments and glacial history of the northern North Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reinardy, Benedict T. I.; Hjelstuen, Berit O.; Sejrup, Hans Petter; Augedal, Hans; Jørstad, Arild

2017-02-01

Based on new geochronological (amino acids and Sr-isotopes) and lithological data combined with analyses of 3D seismic data, the Pliocene-Pleistocene development of the central northern North Sea has been investigated. At the start of the Plio-Pleistocene Transition the study area was dominated by a deltaic, shallow marine or tidal depositional environment with sediments mainly sourced from the west. These sand-rich sediments include green glauconitic grains that belong to the Utsira Sand with a local provenance. Directly above the base Quaternary (R2) a 60 m thick layer of mud-rich sediments of glacimarine origin were deposited at a rate of ∼12 cm/ka between ∼2-1.5 Ma and up to 80 cm/ka between 1.5 and 1.2 Ma possibly reflecting glacial ice advancing to the Norwegian coastline. The high rate of deposition in the Early Pleistocene occurred immediately before the initiation of the Norwegian Channel Ice Stream at ∼1.1 Ma. Following this, a large part of the sediment input from Fennoscandia seems to have been directed away from the study area to the shelf break. At the start of the Mid Pleistocene Transition (MPT), subaerial conditions allowed the formation of a >50 km long fluvial channel across the study area draining water from the east to the south west. The earliest evidence of grounded ice in the investigated area comes from mega scale glacial lineations formed during the MPT, at or just after ∼1.2 Ma. Following this, a regional unconformity (R4) was formed by one or more grounded ice advances across the study area possibly during or directly after the MPT and likely marks the boundary between the Early and Mid Pleistocene glacimarine sediments. The Mid to Late Pleistocene stratigraphy is dominated by glacimarine sediments and tills and is associated with multiple generations of tunnel valleys observed within the seismic data. A high shear strength till containing chalk clasts transported from the west and/or south of the study area was likely deposited during MIS6 and may have been more conducive to tunnel valley formation in comparison to lower shear strength tills deposited by later ice advances. A thick till unit overlain by a sand layer in the study area was deposited by grounded ice during the Last Glacial Maximum and subsequent drainage of an ice dammed lake in the southern North Sea during the last deglaciation (MIS2) of the study area. This study shows that much of the Quaternary age sediments within the northern North Sea were deposited relatively rapidly during short periods of time probably leaving significant hiatuses within the stratigraphic record. This finding has implications for previous studies that use a chronological framework assuming a relatively continuous sedimentation rate and record for the Early Pleistocene within the North Sea.

Using a network of core samples to explore hydroclimatic proxy relationships within the sediments of an alpine, glacier-fed lake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hodder, Kyle; Suchan, Jared

2015-04-01

Spatial and temporal variability of recent lacustrine sedimentation rates are examined for glacier-fed Mud Lake, in the Monashee Mountains of British Columbia. Clastic varve sequences in alpine, glacier-fed environments have been linked elsewhere with temperature (summer, annual), precipitation (autumn, total snowpack), and runoff (glacial, floods), and the use of varved sediments as hydroclimatic proxies is well-developed from single, but rarely multiple, core samples. In this study, a network of sediment cores (n=63) were extracted using a dense grid-sampling scheme within the 2.5 km2 distal lake basin to assess varve thickness spatially, and through time. A radioisotope profile, sediment traps and repeated coring among multiple years were used to calibrate varve-years with calendar years. Measurements of varve thickness, and sub-annual laminae thickness, were collated among cores and spanned the period 1919 - 2013 AD. The resulting five-dimensional dataset (easting, northing, depth, varve/sub-laminae thickness, time) provides a unique opportunity to explore lacustrine sedimentation. Two clear trends emerge: a general down-lake trend in thickness among most years, which is punctuated by atypical years in which thicker varves appeared in only specific portions of the lake. In the latter case, thick varves appeared either (a) along the north (right-hand) side of the lake where inflow 'hugs' the shoreline, or (b) in the deepest, distal portion of the basin. In both cases, however, atypical varves of type (a) or (b) only punctuate the general down-lake trend in thickness that develops during most years. The clear implication is that sedimentation patterns, and rates, can (but do not always) differ between years and between points in Mud Lake: there is no 'single optimum' site for a core sample. To illustrate the potential consequences on hydroclimate proxy/inference, we show how the statistical relationships between hydroclimatic records and varve thickness vary spatially. Our hydroclimatic dataset includes homogenized local climatic data available from the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC) since 1929 (temperature, precipitation, snow course), and discharge data from a river into which Mud Lake drains available from the Water Survey of Canada (WSC) since 1915. Our results show that varve records from different positions within the same lake reveal statistical relationships of markedly differing strength, and differing type, with the same hydroclimatic dataset. We conclude that (1) varve thickness is a key indicator in a hydroclimatic proxy context, but an adjunct consideration should include (2) how varve thickness varies spatially within the basin; varve thickness at a single site is an inconsistent indicator of basin-wide thickness in some years. Our findings do not complicate the use of varved sediments as hydroclimatic proxies, but highlight that a core network can yield potentially greater insight into a range of hydroclimatic processes in comparison with one, or few, core samples.

GPR studies over the tsunami affected Karaikal beach, Tamil Nadu, south India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loveson, V. J.; Gujar, A. R.; Barnwal, R.; Khare, Richa; Rajamanickam, G. V.

2014-08-01

In this study, results of GPR profiling related to mapping of subsurface sedimentary layers at tsunami affected Karaikal beach are presented . A 400 MHz antenna was used for profiling along 262 m stretch of transect from beach to backshore areas with penetration of about 2.0 m depth (50 ns two-way travel time). The velocity analysis was carried out to estimate the depth information along the GPR profile. Based on the significant changes in the reflection amplitude, three different zones are marked and the upper zone is noticed with less moisture compared to other two (saturated) zones. The water table is noticed to vary from 0.5 to 0.75 m depth (12-15 ns) as moving away from the coastline. Buried erosional surface is observed at 1.5 m depth (40-42 ns), which represents the limit up to which the extreme event acted upon. In other words, it is the depth to which the tsunami sediments have been piled up to about 1.5 m thickness. Three field test pits were made along the transect and sedimentary sequences were recorded. The sand layers, especially, heavy mineral layers, recorded in the test pits indicate a positive correlation with the amplitude and velocity changes in the GPR profile. Such interpretation seems to be difficult in the middle zone due to its water saturation condition. But it is fairly clear in the lower zone located just below the erosional surface where the strata is comparatively more compact. The inferences from the GPR profile thus provide a lucid insight to the subsurface sediment sequences of the tsunami sediments in the Karaikal beach.

Sediment Resuspension and Deposition on Seagrass Leaves Impedes Internal Plant Aeration and Promotes Phytotoxic H2S Intrusion

PubMed Central

Brodersen, Kasper E.; Hammer, Kathrine J.; Schrameyer, Verena; Floytrup, Anja; Rasheed, Michael A.; Ralph, Peter J.; Kühl, Michael; Pedersen, Ole

2017-01-01

HIGHLIGHTS: Sedimentation of fine sediment particles onto seagrass leaves severely hampers the plants' performance in both light and darkness, due to inadequate internal plant aeration and intrusion of phytotoxic H2S. Anthropogenic activities leading to sediment re-suspension can have adverse effects on adjacent seagrass meadows, owing to reduced light availability and the settling of suspended particles onto seagrass leaves potentially impeding gas exchange with the surrounding water. We used microsensors to determine O2 fluxes and diffusive boundary layer (DBL) thickness on leaves of the seagrass Zostera muelleri with and without fine sediment particles, and combined these laboratory measurements with in situ microsensor measurements of tissue O2 and H2S concentrations. Net photosynthesis rates in leaves with fine sediment particles were down to ~20% of controls without particles, and the compensation photon irradiance increased from a span of 20–53 to 109–145 μmol photons m−2 s−1. An ~2.5-fold thicker DBL around leaves with fine sediment particles impeded O2 influx into the leaves during darkness. In situ leaf meristematic O2 concentrations of plants exposed to fine sediment particles were lower than in control plants and exhibited long time periods of complete meristematic anoxia during night-time. Insufficient internal aeration resulted in H2S intrusion into the leaf meristematic tissues when exposed to sediment resuspension even at relatively high night-time water-column O2 concentrations. Fine sediment particles that settle on seagrass leaves thus negatively affect internal tissue aeration and thereby the plants' resilience against H2S intrusion. PMID:28536583

Increased sediment oxygen flux in lakes and reservoirs: The impact of hypolimnetic oxygenation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bierlein, Kevin A.; Rezvani, Maryam; Socolofsky, Scott A.; Bryant, Lee D.; Wüest, Alfred; Little, John C.

2017-06-01

Hypolimnetic oxygenation is an increasingly common lake management strategy for mitigating hypoxia/anoxia and associated deleterious effects on water quality. A common effect of oxygenation is increased oxygen consumption in the hypolimnion and predicting the magnitude of this increase is the crux of effective oxygenation system design. Simultaneous measurements of sediment oxygen flux (JO2) and turbulence in the bottom boundary layer of two oxygenated lakes were used to investigate the impact of oxygenation on JO2. Oxygenation increased JO2 in both lakes by increasing the bulk oxygen concentration, which in turn steepens the diffusive gradient across the diffusive boundary layer. At high flow rates, the diffusive boundary layer thickness decreased as well. A transect along one of the lakes showed JO2 to be spatially quite variable, with near-field and far-field JO2 differing by a factor of 4. Using these in situ measurements, physical models of interfacial flux were compared to microprofile-derived JO2 to determine which models adequately predict JO2 in oxygenated lakes. Models based on friction velocity, turbulence dissipation rate, and the integral scale of turbulence agreed with microprofile-derived JO2 in both lakes. These models could potentially be used to predict oxygenation-induced oxygen flux and improve oxygenation system design methods for a broad range of reservoir systems.

Physical conditions at the base of a fast moving antarctic ice stream.

PubMed

Engelhardt, H; Humphrey, N; Kamb, B; Fahnestock, M

1990-04-06

Boreholes drilled to the bottom of ice stream B in the West Antarctic Ice Sheet reveal that the base of the ice stream is at the melting point and the basal water pressure is within about 1.6 bars of the ice overburden pressure. These conditions allow the rapid ice streaming motion to occur by basal sliding or by shear deformation of unconsolidated sediments that underlie the ice in a layer at least 2 meters thick. The mechanics of ice streaming plays a role in the response of the ice sheet to climatic change.

Stratigraphic Mapping of Intra-Crater Layered Deposits in Arabia Terra from High-Resolution Imaging and Stereo Topography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Annex, A. M.; Lewis, K. W.; Edwards, C. S.

2017-12-01

The Arabia Terra region of Mars, located in the mid-latitudes, hosts a number of crater basins with exposed sedimentary layers and buttes. Our work builds upon previous studies of these sites that suggest that the layers are formed of weakly lithified aeolian material with quasi-periodic expressions explained by changes in planetary orbital elements during formation (Lewis and Aharonson, 2014; Cadieux and Kah, 2015; Stack et al., 2013). In an effort to better understand differences in lateral continuity of these layers, both between and within basins, an extensive mapping effort was conducted on several sites in Arabia Terra with HiRISE stereo targets. Digital terrain models produced using the Ames Stereo Pipeline were mapped to derive bedding plane positions and orientations for each stratum using linear regression. Bed thicknesses were derived from differences in dip-corrected elevation between successive strata. Our study includes additional independent mapping within craters analyzed in previous studies, and expands mapping of these deposits to several new craters in the region unique to this effort. Our sample size in this study is large, including over 700 individually measured strata from multiple sections within each crater. Although bed thicknesses are generally tightly distributed around 12 meters, any changes within a sequence could represent variations in either the dominant forcing factors controlling deposition and/or changes in sedimentation rate. If craters contain correlative sequences, these types of changes could serve as marker horizons across the region with further mapping.

Using SOTEM Method to Detect BIF Bodies Buried Under Very Thick and Conductive Quaternary Sediments, Huoqiu Deposit, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Weiying; Xue, Guoqiang; Khan, Muhammad Younis; Li, Hai

2017-03-01

Huoqiu iron deposit is a typical Precambrian banded iron-formation (BIF) field which is located in the North China Craton (NCC). To detect the deep ore bodies around Dawangzhuang Village in Yingshang County, north of the Huoqiu deposit field, electromagnetic methods were tested. As the ore bodies are buried under very thick conductive Quaternary sediments, the use of EM methods is a great challenge. Short-offset transient electromagnetic method (SOTEM) was applied in the area as we wanted to test due to its detection depth and resolution. A 2D model was first built according to the geology information and magnetic measurement results. Then, 2D forward and 1D inversion were carried out using FDTD and Occam's algorithm, respectively. The synthetic modeling results helped us with the survey design and interpretation. Two 1400-m-long survey lines with offset of 500 and 1000 m were laid perpendicular to the BIF's strike, and the transmitting parameters were selected by a test measurement at the vicinity of a local village. Finally, the structure of survey area and BIF bodies were determined based on the 1D inversion results of real data, and showed a consistency with the subsequent drill results. Our application of SOTEM in detecting hidden BIF buried under very thick conductive layer has shown that the method is capable of penetrating great depth more than 1000 m even in a very conductive environment and will be an effective tool for deep resources investigation.

Compilation of 3D global conductivity model of the Earth for space weather applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alekseev, Dmitry; Kuvshinov, Alexey; Palshin, Nikolay

2015-07-01

We have compiled a global three-dimensional (3D) conductivity model of the Earth with an ultimate goal to be used for realistic simulation of geomagnetically induced currents (GIC), posing a potential threat to man-made electric systems. Bearing in mind the intrinsic frequency range of the most intense disturbances (magnetospheric substorms) with typical periods ranging from a few minutes to a few hours, the compiled 3D model represents the structure in depth range of 0-100 km, including seawater, sediments, earth crust, and partly the lithosphere/asthenosphere. More explicitly, the model consists of a series of spherical layers, whose vertical and lateral boundaries are established based on available data. To compile a model, global maps of bathymetry, sediment thickness, and upper and lower crust thicknesses as well as lithosphere thickness are utilized. All maps are re-interpolated on a common grid of 0.25×0.25 degree lateral spacing. Once the geometry of different structures is specified, each element of the structure is assigned either a certain conductivity value or conductivity versus depth distribution, according to available laboratory data and conversion laws. A numerical formalism developed for compilation of the model, allows for its further refinement by incorporation of regional 3D conductivity distributions inferred from the real electromagnetic data. So far we included into our model four regional conductivity models, available from recent publications, namely, surface conductance model of Russia, and 3D conductivity models of Fennoscandia, Australia, and northwest of the United States.

Accumulation rate and mixing of shelf sediments in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lewis, R.C.; Coale, K.H.; Edwards, B.D.; Marot, M.; Douglas, J.N.; Burton, E.J.

2002-01-01

The distribution of excess 210Pb in 31 sediment cores was used to determine modern (last 100 yr) mass accumulation rates and the depth of sediment mixing on the continental shelf between Pacifica and Monterey, California, USA. Apparent mass accumulation rates average 0.27 g cm-2 yr-1 and range from 0.42 g cm-2 yr-1 to 0.12 g cm-2 yr-1. Accumulation rates were highest at mid-shelf water depths (60-100 m) adjacent to major rivers and near the head of the Ascension submarine canyon. Cores from water depths of less than 65 m had low, uniform 210Pb activity profiles and sandy textures. The uppermost 5-13 cm of 15 cores had uniform 210Pb activity profiles above a region of steadily decreasing 210Pb activity. This phenomenon was attributed to sediment mixing. The thickness of this upper layer of uniform 210Pb activity decreased southward from 13 cm, west of Pacifica, to less than 5 cm, near Monterey Canyon. This southward decrease may be attributed to shallower bioturbation in the southern study area. Integrated excess 210Pb activities were generally higher where sedimentation rates were high. They were also higher with increasing distance from major rivers. Thus, sedimentation rate alone does not explain the distribution of integrated excess 210Pb in this study area. Excess 210Pb in the seafloor is controlled by other factors such as sediment texture, the atmospheric deposition rate of 210Pb, and the residence time of sediment particles in the water column. ?? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Facies implications of Trichichnus and Chondrites in turbidites and hemipelagites, Marnoso-arenacea Formation (Miocene), northern Apennines, Italy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McBride, E.F.; Picard, M.D.

Trichichnus, a thread-like burrow possibly the work of sipunculan worms, is widespread in Bouma E (turbidite claystone) and H (hemipelagic claystone) layers and some thin turbidite sandstone beds in basin-plain and outer fan-lobe deposits of the Marnoso-arenacea Formation. Trichichnus closely resembles that described elsewhere in chalk and marlstone, although the burrows are smaller (mean diameter=0.13 mm) and burrow curvature is tighter. Trichichnus fills are darker than the host claystone because of high organic content and disseminated pyrite. Any distinctive internal structure of the burrow wall or fill was destroyed by pyrite growth. Trichichnus is most abundant in Bouma E layers,more » where burrow spacing ranges from 0.4 to 50 cm and burrows extend to depths of 160 cm. The Trichichnus maker commonly burrowed vertically down through E and D layers (clay and silt) and then horizontally on top of C layers (sand). The burrows also vertically penetrate Bouma C sandstone layers up to 6 cm thick, but they are rare in beds thicker than 3 cm. They are less abundant or not well displayed in H layers where Chondrites predominates. Trichichnus overprints Chondrites. Following deposition of the Contessa megaturbidite, which exceeds 9 m in thickness, the sediment surface was repopulated chiefly by Trichichnus and Chondrites producers. Trichichnus extends 160 cm below the top of the Contessa, whereas Chondrites extend only to 64 cm. This suggests a greater tolerance of Trichichnus makers to low in situ oxygen levels. The near absence of laminations in the E division of the Contessa megabed may be the result of Trichichnus burrows that were not pyritized and which lack textural identity.« less

Structural characterization of terrestrial microbial Mn oxides from Pinal Creek, AZ

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bargar, J.R.; Fuller, C.C.; Marcus, M.A.; Brearley, A.J.; Perez De la Rosa, M.; Webb, S.M.; Caldwell, W.A.

2009-01-01

The microbial catalysis of Mn(II) oxidation is believed to be a dominant source of abundant sorption- and redox-active Mn oxides in marine, freshwater, and subsurface aquatic environments. In spite of their importance, environmental oxides of known biogenic origin have generally not been characterized in detail from a structural perspective. Hyporheic zone Mn oxide grain coatings at Pinal Creek, Arizona, a metals-contaminated stream, have been identified as being dominantly microbial in origin and are well studied from bulk chemistry and contaminant hydrology perspectives. This site thus presents an excellent opportunity to study the structures of terrestrial microbial Mn oxides in detail. XRD and EXAFS measurements performed in this study indicate that the hydrated Pinal Creek Mn oxide grain coatings are layer-type Mn oxides with dominantly hexagonal or pseudo-hexagonal layer symmetry. XRD and TEM measurements suggest the oxides to be nanoparticulate plates with average dimensions on the order of 11 nm thick ?? 35 nm diameter, but with individual particles exhibiting thickness as small as a single layer and sheets as wide as 500 nm. The hydrated oxides exhibit a 10-?? basal-plane spacing and turbostratic disorder. EXAFS analyses suggest the oxides contain layer Mn(IV) site vacancy defects, and layer Mn(III) is inferred to be present, as deduced from Jahn-Teller distortion of the local structure. The physical geometry and structural details of the coatings suggest formation within microbial biofilms. The biogenic Mn oxides are stable with respect to transformation into thermodynamically more stable phases over a time scale of at least 5 months. The nanoparticulate layered structural motif, also observed in pure culture laboratory studies, appears to be characteristic of biogenic Mn oxides and may explain the common occurrence of this mineral habit in soils and sediments. ?? 2008 Elsevier Ltd.

Submarine paleoseismology of the northern Hikurangi subduction margin of New Zealand as deduced from Turbidite record since 16 ka

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pouderoux, Hugo; Proust, Jean-Noël; Lamarche, Geoffroy

2014-01-01

Paleoseismic studies seek to characterise the signature of pre-historical earthquakes by deriving quantitative information from the geological record such as the source, magnitude and recurrence of moderate to large earthquakes. In this study, we provide a ˜16,000 yr-long paleo-earthquake record of the 200 km-long northern Hikurangi Margin, New Zealand, using cm-thick deep-sea turbidites identified in sediment cores. Cores were collected in strategic locations across the margin within three distinct morphological re-entrants - the Poverty, Ruatoria and Matakaoa re-entrants. The turbidite facies vary from muddy to sandy with evidence for rare hyperpycnites interbedded with hemipelagites and tephra. We use the Oxal probabilistic software to model the age of each turbidite, using the sedimentation rate of hemipelagite deduced from well-dated tephra layers and radiocarbon ages measurements on planktonic foraminifera.

The geological record of prehistorical tsunami at a coastal area of Beppu Bay in eastern Kyushu, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamada, M.; Fujino, S.; Chiba, T.; Shinozaki, T.; Okuwaki, R.; Takeda, D.

2015-12-01

Tsunamis are typically generated by plate-boundary ruptures at subduction zones, but also vertical displacement associated with intraplate earthquakes. Historical written records documented that coasts of Beppu Bay, eastern Kyushu, Japan was devastated by a tsunami associated with the AD 1596 Keicho-Bungo earthquake (M7.0). It is considered that the earthquake occurred at submarine active faults in the bay. The aim of this study is to unravel the occurrence age and source of tsunamis that struck the coast of the bay in prehistorical ages. This study may also make a contribution to the understanding of tsunami-generating system at submarine active faults. We conducted a coring survey at paddy fields along the north coast of the bay. The 10 cm thick muddy sand layer with a few granules (hereinafter, sand layer), bounded by sharp contacts, was evident in the 1.7 m long sediment core taken at 700 m from the shoreline. Plant materials obtained from mud above the sand layer was dated to 1880-2000 cal. yr BP. Sharp contacts between sand and surrounding muds imply that the sand layer is formed by a sudden event. Existence of mud clast in the sand layer indicates erosion of surface mud. There were no brackish-marine diatoms in surrounding mud, but they accounted for 5-6% of the total within the sand layer, indicating that the sand grains were sourced at least in part from brackish-marine environment. Mean grain size/sorting of the sand layer and beach sand were 2.31/0.94 and 2.03/0.41 phi. The difference in sorting probably suggests that the sand layer partly contains the onshore sediments eroded in inundation process. Additional coring surveys would clarify the distribution of prehistorical tsunami deposits and source of past tsunamis.

Deposition of sedimentary organic matter in black shale facies indicated by the geochemistry and petrography of high-resolution samples, blake nose, western North Atlantic

USGS Publications Warehouse

Barker, C.E.; Pawlewicz, M.; Cobabe, E.A.

2001-01-01

A transect of three holes drilled across the Blake Nose, western North Atlantic Ocean, retrieved cores of black shale facies related to the Albian Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAE) lb and ld. Sedimentary organic matter (SOM) recovered from Ocean Drilling Program Hole 1049A from the eastern end of the transect showed that before black shale facies deposition organic matter preservation was a Type III-IV SOM. Petrography reveals that this SOM is composed mostly of degraded algal debris, amorphous SOM and a minor component of Type III-IV terrestrial SOM, mostly detroinertinite. When black shale facies deposition commenced, the geochemical character of the SOM changed from a relatively oxygen-rich Type III-IV to relatively hydrogen-rich Type II. Petrography, biomarker and organic carbon isotopic data indicate marine and terrestrial SOM sources that do not appear to change during the transition from light-grey calcareous ooze to the black shale facies. Black shale subfacies layers alternate from laminated to homogeneous. Some of the laminated and the poorly laminated to homogeneous layers are organic carbon and hydrogen rich as well, suggesting that at least two SOM depositional processes are influencing the black shale facies. The laminated beds reflect deposition in a low sedimentation rate (6m Ma-1) environment with SOM derived mostly from gravity settling from the overlying water into sometimes dysoxic bottom water. The source of this high hydrogen content SOM is problematic because before black shale deposition, the marine SOM supplied to the site is geochemically a Type III-IV. A clue to the source of the H-rich SOM may be the interlayering of relatively homogeneous ooze layers that have a widely variable SOM content and quality. These relatively thick, sometimes subtly graded, sediment layers are thought to be deposited from a Type II SOM-enriched sediment suspension generated by turbidities or direct turbidite deposition.

Preferential flow, diffuse flow, and perching in an interbedded fractured-rock unsaturated zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nimmo, John R.; Creasey, Kaitlyn M.; Perkins, Kim S.; Mirus, Benjamin B.

2017-03-01

Layers of strong geologic contrast within the unsaturated zone can control recharge and contaminant transport to underlying aquifers. Slow diffuse flow in certain geologic layers, and rapid preferential flow in others, complicates the prediction of vertical and lateral fluxes. A simple model is presented, designed to use limited geological site information to predict these critical subsurface processes in response to a sustained infiltration source. The model is developed and tested using site-specific information from the Idaho National Laboratory in the Eastern Snake River Plain (ESRP), USA, where there are natural and anthropogenic sources of high-volume infiltration from floods, spills, leaks, wastewater disposal, retention ponds, and hydrologic field experiments. The thick unsaturated zone overlying the ESRP aquifer is a good example of a sharply stratified unsaturated zone. Sedimentary interbeds are interspersed between massive and fractured basalt units. The combination of surficial sediments, basalts, and interbeds determines the water fluxes through the variably saturated subsurface. Interbeds are generally less conductive, sometimes causing perched water to collect above them. The model successfully predicts the volume and extent of perching and approximates vertical travel times during events that generate high fluxes from the land surface. These developments are applicable to sites having a thick, geologically complex unsaturated zone of substantial thickness in which preferential and diffuse flow, and perching of percolated water, are important to contaminant transport or aquifer recharge.

Preferential flow, diffuse flow, and perching in an interbedded fractured-rock unsaturated zone

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nimmo, John R.; Creasey, Kaitlyn M; Perkins, Kimberlie; Mirus, Benjamin B.

2017-01-01

Layers of strong geologic contrast within the unsaturated zone can control recharge and contaminant transport to underlying aquifers. Slow diffuse flow in certain geologic layers, and rapid preferential flow in others, complicates the prediction of vertical and lateral fluxes. A simple model is presented, designed to use limited geological site information to predict these critical subsurface processes in response to a sustained infiltration source. The model is developed and tested using site-specific information from the Idaho National Laboratory in the Eastern Snake River Plain (ESRP), USA, where there are natural and anthropogenic sources of high-volume infiltration from floods, spills, leaks, wastewater disposal, retention ponds, and hydrologic field experiments. The thick unsaturated zone overlying the ESRP aquifer is a good example of a sharply stratified unsaturated zone. Sedimentary interbeds are interspersed between massive and fractured basalt units. The combination of surficial sediments, basalts, and interbeds determines the water fluxes through the variably saturated subsurface. Interbeds are generally less conductive, sometimes causing perched water to collect above them. The model successfully predicts the volume and extent of perching and approximates vertical travel times during events that generate high fluxes from the land surface. These developments are applicable to sites having a thick, geologically complex unsaturated zone of substantial thickness in which preferential and diffuse flow, and perching of percolated water, are important to contaminant transport or aquifer recharge.

Delineation of groundwater development potential zones in parts of marginal Ganga Alluvial Plain in South Bihar, Eastern India.

PubMed

Saha, Dipankar; Dhar, Y R; Vittala, S S

2010-06-01

A part of the Gangetic Alluvial Plain covering 2,228 km(2), in the state of Bihar, is studied for demarcating groundwater development potential zones. The area is mainly agrarian and experiencing intensive groundwater draft to the tune of 0.12 million cubic metre per square kilometres per year from the Quaternary marginal alluvial deposits, unconformably overlain northerly sloping Precambrian bedrock. Multiparametric data on groundwater comprising water level, hydraulic gradient (pre- and post-monsoon), aquifer thickness, permeability, suitability of groundwater for drinking and irrigation and groundwater resources vs. draft are spatially analysed and integrated on a Geographical Information System platform to generate thematic layers. By integrating these layers, three zones have been delineated based on groundwater development potential. It is inferred that about 48% of the area covering northern part has high development potential, while medium and low development potential category covers 41% of the area. Further increase in groundwater extraction is not recommended for an area of 173 km(2), affected by over-exploitation. The replenishable groundwater resource available for further extraction has been estimated. The development potential enhances towards north with increase in thickness of sediments. Local deviations are due to variation of-(1) cumulative thickness of aquifers, (2) deeper water level resulting from localised heavy groundwater extraction and (3) aquifer permeability.

Hydrogeologic framework of the middle San Pedro watershed, southeastern Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dickinson, Jesse; Kennedy, Jeffrey R.; Pool, D.R.; Cordova, Jeffrey T.; Parker, John T.; Macy, J.P.; Thomas, Blakemore

2010-01-01

Water managers in rural Arizona are under increasing pressure to provide sustainable supplies of water despite rapid population growth and demands for environmental protection. This report describes the results of a study of the hydrogeologic framework of the middle San Pedro watershed. The components of this report include: (1) a description of the geologic setting and depositional history of basin fill sediments that form the primary aquifer system, (2) updated bedrock altitudes underlying basin fill sediments calculated using a subsurface density model of gravity data, (3) delineation of hydrogeologic units in the basin fill using lithologic descriptions in driller's logs and models of airborne electrical resistivity data, (4) a digital three-dimensional (3D) hydrogeologic framework model (HFM) that represents spatial extents and thicknesses of the hydrogeologic units (HGUs), and (5) description of the hydrologic properties of the HGUs. The lithologic interpretations based on geophysical data and unit thickness and extent of the HGUs included in the HFM define potential configurations of hydraulic zones and parameters that can be incorporated in groundwater-flow models. The hydrogeologic framework comprises permeable and impermeable stratigraphic units: (1) bedrock, (2) sedimentary rocks predating basin-and-range deformation, (3) lower basin fill, (4) upper basin fill, and (5) stream alluvium. The bedrock unit includes Proterozoic to Cretaceous crystalline rocks, sedimentary rocks, and limestone that are relatively impermeable and poor aquifers, except for saturated portions of limestone. The pre-basin-and-range sediments underlie the lower basin fill but are relatively impermeable owing to cementation. However, they may be an important water-bearing unit where fractured. Alluvium of the lower basin fill, the main water-bearing unit, was deposited in the structural trough between the uplifted ridges of bedrock and (or) pre-basin-and-range sediments. Alluvium of the upper basin fill may be more permeable than the lower basin fill, but it is generally unsaturated in the study area. The lower basin fill stratigraphic unit was delineated into three HGUs on the basis of lithologic descriptions in driller?s logs and one-dimensional (1D) electrical models of airborne transient electromagnetic (TEM) surveys. The interbedded lower basin fill (ILBF) HGU represents an upper sequence having resistivity values between 5 and 40 ohm-m identified as interbedded sand, gravel, and clay in driller?s logs. Below this upper sequence, fine-grained lower basin fill (FLBF) HGU represents a thick silt and clay sequence having resistivity values between 5 and 20 ohm-m. Within the coarse-grained lower basin fill (CLBF) HGU, which underlies the silt and clay of the FLBF, the resistivity values on logs and 1D models increase to several hundred ohm-m and are highly variable within sand and gravel layers. These sequences match distinct resistivity and lithologic layers identified by geophysical logs in the adjacent Sierra Vista subwatershed, suggesting that these sequences are laterally continuous within both the Benson and Sierra Vista subwatersheds in the Upper San Pedro Basin. A subsurface density model based on gravity data was constructed to identify the top of bedrock and structures that may affect regional groundwater flow. The subsurface density model contains six layers having uniform density values, which are assigned on the basis of geophysical logs. The density values for the layers range between 1.65 g/cm3 for unsaturated sediments near the land surface and 2.67 g/cm3 for bedrock. Major features include three subbasins within the study area, the Huachuca City subbasin, the Tombstone subbasin, and the Benson subbasin, which have no expression in surface topography or lithology. Bedrock altitudes from the subsurface density model defined top altitudes of the bedrock HGU. The HFM includes the following HGUs in ascending stratigr

Source and sink of fluid in pelagic siliceous sediments along a cold subduction plate boundary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamaguchi, Asuka; Hina, Shoko; Hamada, Yohei; Kameda, Jun; Hamahashi, Mari; Kuwatani, Tatsu; Shimizu, Mayuko; Kimura, Gaku

2016-08-01

Subduction zones where old oceanic plate underthrusting occurs are characterized by thick pelagic sediments originating from planktonic ooze as well as cold thermal conditions. For a better understanding of dehydration from pelagic sediments and fluid behavior, which would play a key role in controlling the dynamics in the shallow portion of the subduction zone, as observed in the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, we investigate cherts in a Jurassic accretionary complex in Japan. The microstructure and microchemistry of these cherts indicate dissolution of SiO2 from a pressure solution seam and precipitation of SiO2 to the ;white chert layer,; which would act as a fluid conduit. The amount of water necessary to precipitate SiO2 in the white chert is 102 times larger than that produced by compaction and silica/clay diagenesis. Other fluid sources, such as hydrated oceanic crust or oceanic mantle, are necessary to account for this discrepancy in the fluid budget. A large amount of external fluid likely contributed to rising pore pressure along cold plate boundaries.

Deep Structures of The Angola Margin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moulin, M.; Contrucci, I.; Olivet, J.-L.; Aslanian, D.; Géli, L.; Sibuet, J.-C.

1 Ifremer Centre de Brest, DRO/Géosciences Marines, B.P. 70, 29280 Plouzané cedex (France) mmoulin@ifremer.fr/Fax : 33 2 98 22 45 49 2 Université de Bretagne Occidentale, Institut Universitaire Europeen de la Mer, Place Nicolas Copernic, 29280 Plouzane (France) 3 Total Fina Elf, DGEP/GSR/PN -GEOLOGIE, 2,place de la Coupole-La Defense 6, 92078 Paris la Defense Cedex Deep reflection and refraction seismic data were collected in April 2000 on the West African margin, offshore Angola, within the framework of the Zaiango Joint Project, conducted by Ifremer and Total Fina Elf Production. Vertical multichannel reflection seismic data generated by a « single-bubble » air gun array array (Avedik et al., 1993) were recorded on a 4.5 km long, digital streamer, while refraction and wide angle reflection seismic data were acquired on OBSs (Ocean Bottom Seismometers). Despite the complexity of the margin (5 s TWT of sediment, salt tectonics), the combination of seismic reflection and refraction methods results in an image and a velocity model of the ground structures below the Aptian salt layer. Three large seismic units appear in the reflection seismic section from the deep part on the margin under the base of salt. The upper seismic unit is layered with reflectors parallel to the base of the salt ; it represents unstructured sediments, filling a basin. The middle unit is seismically transparent. The lower unit is characterized by highly energetic reflectors. According to the OBS refraction data, these two units correspond to the continental crust and the base of the high energetic unit corresponds to the Moho. The margin appears to be divided in 3 domains, from east to west : i) a domain with an unthinned, 30 km thick, continental crust ; ii) a domain located between the hinge line and the foot of the continental slope, where the crust thins sharply, from 30 km to less than 7 km, this domain is underlain by an anormal layer with velocities comprising between 7,2 and 7,4 km/s. The maximum thickness of this layer is located where the crust shows the strongest thinning at the foot of the continental slope ; and iii) a transitional domain, 160 km wide, with an average crustal thickness of 6 km. Moreover, no tilted blocks nor detachment faults are observed on the reflection seismic sections. The consequences of these observations on the models of crustal thinning classically used in the litterature are examined. Avedik, F., V. Renard, J-P. Allenou, B. Morvan, "Single bubble" air gun for deep exploration, Geophysics, 58, 366-382, 1993.

Impacts of age and sex on retinal layer thicknesses measured by spectral domain optical coherence tomography with Spectralis.

PubMed

Nieves-Moreno, María; Martínez-de-la-Casa, José M; Morales-Fernández, Laura; Sánchez-Jean, Rubén; Sáenz-Francés, Federico; García-Feijoó, Julián

2018-01-01

To examine differences in individual retinal layer thicknesses measured by spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) (Spectralis®) produced with age and according to sex. Cross-sectional, observational study. The study was conducted in 297 eyes of 297 healthy subjects aged 18 to 87 years. In one randomly selected eye of each participant the volume and mean thicknesses of the different macular layers were measured by SD-OCT using the instrument's macular segmentation software. Volume and mean thickness of macular retinal nerve fiber layer (mRNFL), ganglion cell layer (GCL), inner plexiform layer (IPL), inner nuclear layer (INL), outer plexiform layer (OPL), outer nuclear layer (ONL), retinal pigmentary epithelium (RPE) and photoreceptor layer (PR). Retinal thickness was reduced by 0.24 μm for every one year of age. Age adjusted linear regression analysis revealed mean GCL, IPL, ONL and PR thickness reductions and a mean OPL thickness increase with age. Women had significantly lower mean GCL, IPL, INL, ONL and PR thicknesses and volumes and a significantly greater mRNFL volume than men. The thickness of most retinal layers varies both with age and according to sex. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine the rate of layer thinning produced with age.

Non-destructive prediction of enteric coating layer thickness and drug dissolution rate by near-infrared spectroscopy and X-ray computed tomography.

PubMed

Ariyasu, Aoi; Hattori, Yusuke; Otsuka, Makoto

2017-06-15

The coating layer thickness of enteric-coated tablets is a key factor that determines the drug dissolution rate from the tablet. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) enables non-destructive and quick measurement of the coating layer thickness, and thus allows the investigation of the relation between enteric coating layer thickness and drug dissolution rate. Two marketed products of aspirin enteric-coated tablets were used in this study, and the correlation between the predicted coating layer thickness and the obtained drug dissolution rate was investigated. Our results showed correlation for one product; the drug dissolution rate decreased with the increase in enteric coating layer thickness, whereas, there was no correlation for the other product. Additional examination of the distribution of coating layer thickness by X-ray computed tomography (CT) showed homogenous distribution of coating layer thickness for the former product, whereas the latter product exhibited heterogeneous distribution within the tablet, as well as inconsistent trend in the thickness distribution between the tablets. It was suggested that this heterogeneity and inconsistent trend in layer thickness distribution contributed to the absence of correlation between the layer thickness of the face and side regions of the tablets, which resulted in the loss of correlation between the coating layer thickness and drug dissolution rate. Therefore, the predictability of drug dissolution rate from enteric-coated tablets depended on the homogeneity of the coating layer thickness. In addition, the importance of micro analysis, X-ray CT in this study, was suggested even if the macro analysis, NIRS in this study, are finally applied for the measurement. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Basement structures over Rio Grande Rise from gravity inversion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Constantino, Renata; Hackspacker, Peter Christian; Anderson de Souza, Iata; Sousa Lima Costa, Iago

2017-04-01

In this study, we show that from satellite-derived gravity field, bathymetry and sediment thicknesses, it is possible to give a 3-D model of the basement over oceanic areas, and for this purpose, we have chosen the Rio Grande Rise, in South Atlantic Ocean, to build a gravity-equivalent basement topography. The advantages of the method applied in this study are manifold: does not depend directly on reflection seismic data; can be applied quickly and with fewer costs for acquiring and interpreting the data; and as the main result, presents the physical surface below the sedimentary layer, which may be different from the acoustic basement. We evaluated the gravity effect of the sediments using the global sediment thickness model of NOAA, fitting a sediment compaction model to observed density values from Deep Sea Drilling Program (DSDP) reports. The Global Relief Model ETOPO1 and constraining data from seismic interpretation on crustal thickness are integrated in the gravity inversion procedure. The modeled Moho depth values vary between 6 to 27 km over the area, being thicker under the Rio Grande Rise and also in the direction of São Paulo Plateau. The inversion for the gravity-equivalent basement topography is applied for a gravity residual data, which is free from the gravity effect of sediments and from the gravity effect of the estimated Moho interface. A description of the basement depth over Rio Grande Rise area is unprecedented in the literature, however, our results could be compared to in situ data, provided by DSDP, and a small difference of only 9 m between our basement depth and leg 516 F was found. Our model shows a rift crossing the entire Rio Grande Rise deeper than previously presented in literature, with depths up to 5 km in the East Rio Grande Rise (ERGR) and deeper in the West Rio Grande Rise (WRGR), reaching 6.4 km. We find several short-wavelengths structures not present in the bathymetry data. Seamounts, guyots and fracture zones are much more clearly defined in the basement than in the bathymetric model. An interesting NS structure that goes from 34S and extends through de São Paulo Ridge is interpreted in the basement model, and we propose that this feature can be related to the South Atlantic opening, revealing an extinct spreading center.

Geological Impacts and Sedimentary Record of the February 27, 2010, Chile Tsunami-La Trinchera to Concepcion

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morton, Robert A.; Buckley, Mark L.; Gelfenbaum, Guy; Richmond, Bruce M.; Cecioni, Adriano; Artal, Osvaldo; Hoffmann, Constanza; Perez, Felipe

2010-01-01

The February 27, 2010, Chilean tsunami substantially altered the coastal landscape and left a permanent depositional record that may be preserved at many locales along the central coast of Chile. From April 24 to May 2, 2010, a team of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and Chilean scientists examined the geological impacts of the tsunami at five sites along a 200-km segment of coast centered on the earthquake epicenter. Significant observations include: (1) substantial tsunami-induced erosion and deposition (+/- 1 m) on the coastal plain; (2) erosion from return flow, inundation scour around the bases of trees, and widespread planation of the land surface; (3) tsunami sand deposits at all sites that extended to near the limit of inundation except at one site; (4) evidence of multiple strong onshore waves that arrived at different times and from different directions; (5) vegetation height and density controlled the thickness of tsunami deposits at one site, (6) the abundance of layers of plane-parallel stratification in some deposits and the presence of large bedforms at one site indicated at least some of the sediment was transported as bed load and not as suspended load; (7) shoreward transport of mud boulders and rock cobbles where they were available; and (8) the maximum tsunami inundation distance (2.35 km) was up an alluvial valley. Most of the tsunami deposits were less than 25 cm thick, which is consistent with tsunami-deposit thicknesses found elsewhere (for example, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Sumatra, Sri Lanka). Exceptions were the thick tsunami deposits near the mouths of Rio Huenchullami (La Trinchera) and Rio Maule (Constitucion), where the sediment supply was abundant. The substantial vertical erosion of the coastal plain at Constitucion

Coupled Northern Hemisphere permafrost-ice-sheet evolution over the last glacial cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Willeit, M.; Ganopolski, A.

2015-09-01

Permafrost influences a number of processes which are relevant for local and global climate. For example, it is well known that permafrost plays an important role in global carbon and methane cycles. Less is known about the interaction between permafrost and ice sheets. In this study a permafrost module is included in the Earth system model CLIMBER-2, and the coupled Northern Hemisphere (NH) permafrost-ice-sheet evolution over the last glacial cycle is explored. The model performs generally well at reproducing present-day permafrost extent and thickness. Modeled permafrost thickness is sensitive to the values of ground porosity, thermal conductivity and geothermal heat flux. Permafrost extent at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) agrees well with reconstructions and previous modeling estimates. Present-day permafrost thickness is far from equilibrium over deep permafrost regions. Over central Siberia and the Arctic Archipelago permafrost is presently up to 200-500 m thicker than it would be at equilibrium. In these areas, present-day permafrost depth strongly depends on the past climate history and simulations indicate that deep permafrost has a memory of surface temperature variations going back to at least 800 ka. Over the last glacial cycle permafrost has a relatively modest impact on simulated NH ice sheet volume except at LGM, when including permafrost increases ice volume by about 15 m sea level equivalent in our model. This is explained by a delayed melting of the ice base from below by the geothermal heat flux when the ice sheet sits on a porous sediment layer and permafrost has to be melted first. Permafrost affects ice sheet dynamics only when ice extends over areas covered by thick sediments, which is the case at LGM.

The Northeast Greenland Shelf - Evidence of the existence of a pronounced salt-province

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitz, T.; Jokat, W.

2003-04-01

The Northeast Greenland shelf (NEGS) is the part of the continental margin of east Greenland located between the Jan Mayen Fracture Zone at about 72°N in the south and the Spitzbergen Fracture Zone at 81°N in the north. The eastern boundary, at the shelf edge, is the approximate position of the boundary between continental and oceanic crust and the western boundary is the coastline of Greenland. The shelf has a N-S orientation, is about 1000 km long, and between 125 km (southern part) and 380 km (at 78°N) wide. Based on present data the NEGS can be subdivided into a southern part influenced by Tertiary tectonism and volcanism (approx. 72°N to 75°N) and a northern, nonvolcanic, part (approx. 75°N to 81°N). Today the sedimentary history, stratigraphy, structure and origin of the basement below the sedimentary shelf south of 74°N are reasonable known, but only sparse information exists about the northern part of the shelf. Until 1990 there weren't any seismic lines north of 74°N, and all interpretations of stratigraphy and basin structures of the northern part of the NEGS were based on aeromagnetic data. During the last decade, the first seismic lines were shot over the northern part of the shelf to give more detailed information about sediment thickness, stratigraphy, and the structure of the sedimentary shelf. The area under investigation lies on the nonvolcanic northern part of the shelf between 78°30'N and 81°N. The sea floor topography indicates some submarine banks with water depth as shallow as 30 m, which are separated by valleys up to 500 m deep. These valleys were formed through erosion processes caused by cyclic movements of big grounded glacier tongues during the last ice-ages with a maximum expansion during the Wisconsin-Weichselian glaciation. During two scientific expeditions with the German research icebreaker Polarstern in 1997 and 1999, more than 1100 km of multichannel seismic data were collected. The cruise tracks during seismic measurement were diverted by heavy ice. The seismic equipment consisted of a 64-channel streamer (1600m long), 14 sonobuoys for data acquisition and an airgun cluster with a total volume of 24l (8 VLF airguns) as seismic source. Analysis of the results shows an upper sediment layer of 600 to 1000 m thickness with apparent velocities between 2.5 and 3.8 km/s. A second layer of up to 4600 m thickness has apparent velocities between 4.2 and 5.2 km/s. The sediment thickness increases towards the continental slope. The NEGS appears to be a glacial shaped shelf with intense eroded and compacted sediments near the sea floor which are caused by the cyclic advancement and retreat of the Greenland Ice Sheet. These compacted sediments generate the unusually high apparent velocities right under the sea floor. The seismic records from the shelf are heavily superimposed by sea floor multiples which are due to the overcompacted and very hard sea floor. The seismic reflection lines indicate sedimentary structures which we interpret as a province of salt domes, salt ridges and salt walls which reaches more than 90 km further north than mentioned by Escher and Pulvertaft in 1995. Negative anomalies in the shipborne gravity data as well as satellite measurements from over the NEGS support this interpretation.

Thickness of Santa Fe Group sediments in the Espanola Basin south of Santa Fe, New Mexico, as estimated from aeromagnetic data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Phillips, Jeffrey D.; Grauch, V.J.S.

2004-01-01

In the southern Espa?ola basin south of Santa Fe, New Mexico, weakly magnetic Santa Fe Group sediments of Oligocene to Pleistocene age, which represent the primary aquifers for the region, are locally underlain by moderately to strongly magnetic igneous and volcaniclastic rocks of Oligocene age. Where this relationship exists, the thickness of Santa Fe Group sediments, and thus the maximum thickness of the aquifers, can be estimated from quantitative analysis of high-resolution aeromagnetic data. These thickness estimates provide guidance for characterizing the ground-water resources in between scattered water wells in this area of rapid urban development and declining water supplies. This report presents one such analysis based on the two-step extended Euler method for estimating depth to magnetic sources. The results show the general form of a north-trending synclinal basin located between the Cerrillos Hills and Eldorado with northward thickening of Santa Fe Group sediments. The increase in thickness is gradual from the erosional edge on the south to a U-shaped Santa Fe embayment hinge line, north of which sediments thicken much more dramatically. Along the north-south basin axis, Santa Fe Group sediments thicken from 300 feet (91 meters) at the hinge line near latitude 35o32'30'N to 2,000 feet (610 meters) at the Cerrillos Road interchange at Interstate 25, north of latitude 35o36'N. The depth analysis indicates that, superimposed on this general synclinal form, there are many local areas where the Santa Fe Group sediments may be thickened by a few hundred feet, presumably due to erosional relief on the underlying Oligocene volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks. Some larger areas of greater apparent thickening occur where the presence of magnetic rocks directly underlying the Santa Fe Group is uncertain. Where magnetic rocks are absent beneath the Santa Fe Group, the thickness cannot be estimated from the aeromagnetic data.

Performance Analysis of GaN Capping Layer Thickness on GaN/AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors.

PubMed

Sharma, N; Periasamy, C; Chaturvedi, N

2018-07-01

In this paper, we present an investigation of the impact of GaN capping layer and AlGaN layer thickness on the two-dimensional (2D)-electron mobility and the carrier concentration which was formed close to the AlGaN/GaN buffer layer for Al0.25Ga0.75N/GaN and GaN/Al0.25Ga0.75N/GaN heterostructures deposited on sapphire substrates. The results of our analysis clearly indicate that expanding the GaN capping layer thickness from 1 nm to 100 nm prompts an increment in the electron concentration at hetero interface. As consequence of which drain current was additionally increments with GaN cap layer thicknesses, and eventually saturates at approximately 1.85 A/mm for capping layer thickness greater than 40 nm. Interestingly, for the same structure, the 2D-electron mobility, decrease monotonically with GaN capping layer thickness, and saturate at approximately 830 cm2/Vs for capping layer thickness greater than 50 nm. A device with a GaN cap layer didn't exhibit gate leakage current. Furthermore, it was observed that the carrier concentration was first decrease 1.03 × 1019/cm3 to 6.65 × 1018/cm3 with AlGaN Layer thickness from 5 to 10 nm and after that it increases with the AlGaN layer thickness from 10 to 30 nm. The same trend was followed for electric field distributions. Electron mobility decreases monotonically with AlGaN layer thickness. Highest electron mobility 1354 cm2/Vs were recorded for the AlGaN layer thickness of 5 nm. Results obtained are in good agreement with published experimental data.

New Progress on Radiocarbon Geochronology in Southern Lake Tanganyika (East Africa)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McGlue, M. M.; Soreghan, M. J.

2017-12-01

Our limnogeological research in Lake Tanganyika focuses on elucidating the patterns of sediment accumulation on deepwater horsts, outer platforms, and littoral environments in the lake's southern basin ( 6-8°S latitude). Here, we present new radiocarbon (14C) dates from high-quality surface sediment cores, in order to make comparisons with previously published age models, to address the presence and spatiotemporal variability of a reservoir effect, and to constrain sedimentation rates and facies at sites that may be important targets for future scientific drilling. Plant macrofossils are rare in deepwater sediment cores, so charcoal and bulk organic matter have been the primary materials used for dating. On the Kavala Island Ridge (KIR) horst, initial core descriptions revealed variations in laminae presence, thickness, and chemistry. Sediment cores from the KIR at 172m water depth consist of thickly laminated diatom oozes. Charcoal from the bases of these cores returned median ages of 2.1-2.2 cal ka, suggesting linear accumulation rates on the order of 0.51 mm/yr. By contrast, a core from 420 m water depth on the KIR exhibited very thin laminations and diatom layers were much less prominent. Charcoal at the base of this core produced a median age of 8.1 cal ka, suggesting a linear accumulation rate of 0.11 mm/yr. These initial results suggest that sedimentation rates may vary considerably over sublacustrine horst blocks. We will test this initial discovery with additional sedimentation rate information from the Kalya and Nitiri horsts. In addition, we report new 14C dates made on both dead and live-collected shells of the endemic gastropod Neothauma tanganyicense. These shells form vast accumulations along shallow-water platforms of the lake and form an important substrate for a number of other endemic species. The discovery of living snails in southern Lake Tanganyika may allow for the development of a species-specific reservoir correction. A limited N. tanganyicense shell 14C dataset from the lake's northern basin exhibits time averaged over the past 1600 cal yrs; results from this project will begin to address spatial variability in time averaging, and therefore improve our understanding of shell bed formation and the extent to which anthropogenic sedimentation is impacting shell bed persistence.

Gas-controlled seafloor doming on Opouawe Bank, offshore New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koch, Stephanie; Berndt, Christian; Bialas, Joerg; Haeckel, Matthias; Crutchley, Gareth; Papenberg, Cord; Klaeschen, Dirk; Greinert, Jens

2015-04-01

The process of gas accumulation and subsequent sediment doming appears to be a precursory process in the development of methane seep sites on Opouawe Bank and might be a common characteristic for gas seeps in general. Seabed domes appear as unimpressive topographic highs with diameters ranging from 10-1000 m and exhibit small vertical displacements and layer thickness in comparison to their width. The dome-like uplift of the sediments results from an increase in pore pressure caused by gas accumulation in near-seabed sediments. In this context sediment doming is widely discussed to be a precursor of pockmark formation. Our results suggest that by breaching of domed seafloor sediments a new seep site can develop and contrary to ongoing discussion does not necessarily lead to the formation of pockmarks. There are clear differences in individual gas migration structures that indicate a progression through different evolutionary stages, which range from channeled gas flow and associated seismic blanking, to gas trapping beneath relatively low-permeability horizons, and finally overpressure accumulation and doming. We present high resolution sub-bottom profiler (Parasound) and 2D multichannel seismic data from Opouawe Bank, an accretionary ridge at the Hikurangi Margin, offshore New Zealand's North Island. Beneath this bank, methane migrates along stratigraphic pathways from a maximum source depth of 1500-2100 mbsf (meter below seafloor) towards active cold seeps at the seafloor. We show that, in the shallow sediment of the upper 100 mbsf, this primary migration mechanism changes into a process of gas accumulation leading to sediment doming. Modeling the height of the gas column necessary to create different dome geometries, shows that doming due to gas accumulation is feasible and consistent with field observations. The well-stratified, sub-horizontal strata that exist beneath Opouawe Bank provide favorable conditions for this type of seep development because shallow sub-vertical gas migration is forced to traverse sedimentary layering in the absence of faults that might otherwise have provided more efficient gas migration pathways. Thus, gas has to generate its own migration pathways through the progressive process of doming and breaking through the strata. The data from offshore New Zealand document that shallow sediment doming does not have to be associated with seafloor pockmarks and that models in which fluid migration through soft sediments necessarily culminates in pockmark formations are not applicable everywhere.

Updated Reference Model for Heat Generation in the Lithosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wipperfurth, S. A.; Sramek, O.; Roskovec, B.; Mantovani, F.; McDonough, W. F.

2017-12-01

Models integrating geophysics and geochemistry allow for characterization of the Earth's heat budget and geochemical evolution. Global lithospheric geophysical models are now constrained by surface and body wave data and are classified into several unique tectonic types. Global lithospheric geochemical models have evolved from petrological characterization of layers to a combination of petrologic and seismic constraints. Because of these advances regarding our knowledge of the lithosphere, it is necessary to create an updated chemical and physical reference model. We are developing a global lithospheric reference model based on LITHO1.0 (segmented into 1°lon x 1°lat x 9-layers) and seismological-geochemical relationships. Uncertainty assignments and correlations are assessed for its physical attributes, including layer thickness, Vp and Vs, and density. This approach yields uncertainties for the masses of the crust and lithospheric mantle. Heat producing element abundances (HPE: U, Th, and K) are ascribed to each volume element. These chemical attributes are based upon the composition of subducting sediment (sediment layers), composition of surface rocks (upper crust), a combination of petrologic and seismic correlations (middle and lower crust), and a compilation of xenolith data (lithospheric mantle). The HPE abundances are correlated within each voxel, but not vertically between layers. Efforts to provide correlation of abundances horizontally between each voxel are discussed. These models are used further to critically evaluate the bulk lithosphere heat production in the continents and the oceans. Cross-checks between our model and results from: 1) heat flux (Artemieva, 2006; Davies, 2013; Cammarano and Guerri, 2017), 2) gravity (Reguzzoni and Sampietro, 2015), and 3) geochemical and petrological models (Rudnick and Gao, 2014; Hacker et al. 2015) are performed.

Characteristics and habitat of deep vs. shallow slow slip events

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wipperfurth, S. A.; Sramek, O.; Roskovec, B.; Mantovani, F.; McDonough, W. F.

2016-12-01

Models integrating geophysics and geochemistry allow for characterization of the Earth's heat budget and geochemical evolution. Global lithospheric geophysical models are now constrained by surface and body wave data and are classified into several unique tectonic types. Global lithospheric geochemical models have evolved from petrological characterization of layers to a combination of petrologic and seismic constraints. Because of these advances regarding our knowledge of the lithosphere, it is necessary to create an updated chemical and physical reference model. We are developing a global lithospheric reference model based on LITHO1.0 (segmented into 1°lon x 1°lat x 9-layers) and seismological-geochemical relationships. Uncertainty assignments and correlations are assessed for its physical attributes, including layer thickness, Vp and Vs, and density. This approach yields uncertainties for the masses of the crust and lithospheric mantle. Heat producing element abundances (HPE: U, Th, and K) are ascribed to each volume element. These chemical attributes are based upon the composition of subducting sediment (sediment layers), composition of surface rocks (upper crust), a combination of petrologic and seismic correlations (middle and lower crust), and a compilation of xenolith data (lithospheric mantle). The HPE abundances are correlated within each voxel, but not vertically between layers. Efforts to provide correlation of abundances horizontally between each voxel are discussed. These models are used further to critically evaluate the bulk lithosphere heat production in the continents and the oceans. Cross-checks between our model and results from: 1) heat flux (Artemieva, 2006; Davies, 2013; Cammarano and Guerri, 2017), 2) gravity (Reguzzoni and Sampietro, 2015), and 3) geochemical and petrological models (Rudnick and Gao, 2014; Hacker et al. 2015) are performed.

Mg/Ca of planktonic foraminifer Pulleniatina obliquiloculata as a thermocline temperature proxy: results from sediment trap experiments in the equatorial Pacific

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sagawa, T.; Saito, T.; Irino, T.

2017-12-01

Multi-species approach of planktonic foraminiferal Mg/Ca thermometry has been applied to marine sediments to reconstruct past change of the upper ocean thermal structure. Depth of thermocline and thickness of mixed layer depth in the western equatorial Pacific are of particular interest in terms of the relationship between global climate and ocean heat content in that region. One of questions arising from this approach is which species and calibration are suitable for reconstructing thermocline temperature variations in the past. Knowledge about depth habitat and response of shell Mg/Ca to temperature change is essential to answer this question. Sediment trap experiment has great advantages that allow evaluating seasonal and inter-annual variation of depth habitat of planktonic foraminifera in natural environment. In this study, we analyzed stable isotopes and Mg/Ca of Pulleniatina obliquiloculata collected by two sediment traps moored on the equator in the western and central Pacific during 1999-2002. We estimated habitat depth by comparing the calcification temperature, which is calculated from oxygen isotope, and instrumental data collected by moored buoys in the studied region. The estimated habitat depth of P. obliquiloculata is 100-150 m, which corresponds to the upper thermocline in this region. The habitat depth in western site (175E) is slightly deeper than central Pacific site (160W), probably reflecting thicker mixed layer and deeper thermocline in the western site. Although relationship between Mg/Ca and δ18O-derived calcification temperature is not statistically significant, Mg/Ca values give reasonable temperatures for the upper thermocline when calculated using calibration of Anand et al. (2003). The results of this study confirms the potential of P. obliquiloculata Mg/Ca as a thermocline temperature proxy.

In situ pore-pressure evolution during dynamic CPT measurements in soft sediments of the western Baltic Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seifert, Annedore; Stegmann, Sylvia; Mörz, Tobias; Lange, Matthias; Wever, Thomas; Kopf, Achim

2008-08-01

We present in situ strength and pore-pressure measurements from 57 dynamic cone penetration tests in sediments of Mecklenburg ( n = 51), Eckernförde ( n = 2) and Gelting ( n = 4) bays, western Baltic Sea, characterised by thick mud layers and partially free microbial gas resulting from the degradation of organic material. In Mecklenburg and Eckernförde bays, sediment sampling by nine gravity cores served sedimentological characterisation, analyses of geotechnical properties, and laboratory shear tests. At selected localities, high-resolution echo-sounder profiles were acquired. Our aim was to deploy a dynamic cone penetrometer (CPT) to infer sediment shear strength and cohesion of the sea bottom as a function of fluid saturation. The results show very variable changes in pore pressure and sediment strength during the CPT deployments. The majority of the CPT measurements ( n = 54) show initially negative pore-pressure values during penetration, and a delayed response towards positive pressures thereafter. This so-called type B pore-pressure signal was recorded in all three bays, and is typically found in soft muds with high water contents and undrained shear strengths of 1.6-6.4 kPa. The type B signal is further affected by displacement of sediment and fluid upon penetration of the lance, skin effects during dynamic profiling, enhanced consolidation and strength of individual horizons, the presence of free gas, and a dilatory response of the sediment. In Mecklenburg Bay, the remaining small number of CPT measurements ( n = 3) show a well-defined peak in both pore pressure and cone resistance during penetration, i.e. an initial marked increase which is followed by exponential pore-pressure decay during dissipation. This so-called type A pore-pressure signal is associated with normally consolidated mud, with indurated clay layers showing significantly higher undrained shear strength (up to 19 kPa). In Eckernförde and Gelting bays pore-pressure response type B is exclusively found, while in Mecklenburg Bay types A and B were detected. Despite the striking similarities in incremental density increase and shear strength behaviour with depth, gas occurrence and subtle variations in the coarse-grained fraction cause distinct pore-pressure curves. Gaseous muds interbedded with silty and sandy layers are most common in the three bays, and the potential effect of free gas (i.e. undersaturated pore space) on in situ strength has to be explored further.

Seismic Structure of India from Regional Waveform Matching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaur, V.; Maggi, A.; Priestley, K.; Rai, S.

2003-12-01

We use a neighborhood adaptive grid search procedure and reflectivity synthetics to model regional distance range (500-2000~km) seismograms recorded in India and to determine the variation in the crust and uppermost mantle structure across the subcontinent. The portions of the regional waveform which are most influenced by the crust and uppermost mantle structure are the 10-100~s period Pnl and fundamental mode surface waves. We use the adaptive grid search algorithm to match both portions of the seismogram simultaneously. This procedure results in a family of 1-D path average crust and upper mantle velocity and attenuation models whose propagation characteristics closely match those of the real Earth. Our data set currently consist of ˜20 seismograms whose propagation paths are primarily confined to the Ganges Basin in north India and the East Dharwar Craton of south India. The East Dharwar Craton has a simple and uniform structure consisting of a 36+/-2 km thick two layer crust, and an uppermost mantle with a sub-Moho velocity of 4.5~km/s. The structure of northern India is more complicated, with pronounced low velocities in the upper crustal layer due to the large sediment thicknesses in the Ganges basin.

Functional trait responses to sediment deposition reduce macrofauna-mediated ecosystem functioning in an estuarine mudflat

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mestdagh, Sebastiaan; Bagaço, Leila; Braeckman, Ulrike; Ysebaert, Tom; De Smet, Bart; Moens, Tom; Van Colen, Carl

2018-05-01

Human activities, among which dredging and land use change in river basins, are altering estuarine ecosystems. These activities may result in changes in sedimentary processes, affecting biodiversity of sediment macrofauna. As macrofauna controls sediment chemistry and fluxes of energy and matter between water column and sediment, changes in the structure of macrobenthic communities could affect the functioning of an entire ecosystem. We assessed the impact of sediment deposition on intertidal macrobenthic communities and on rates of an important ecosystem function, i.e. sediment community oxygen consumption (SCOC). An experiment was performed with undisturbed sediment samples from the Scheldt river estuary (SW Netherlands). The samples were subjected to four sedimentation regimes: one control and three with a deposited sediment layer of 1, 2 or 5 cm. Oxygen consumption was measured during incubation at ambient temperature. Luminophores applied at the surface, and a seawater-bromide mixture, served as tracers for bioturbation and bio-irrigation, respectively. After incubation, the macrofauna was extracted, identified, and counted and then classified into functional groups based on motility and sediment reworking capacity. Total macrofaunal densities dropped already under the thinnest deposits. The most affected fauna were surficial and low-motility animals, occurring at high densities in the control. Their mortality resulted in a drop in SCOC, which decreased steadily with increasing deposit thickness, while bio-irrigation and bioturbation activity showed increases in the lower sediment deposition regimes but decreases in the more extreme treatments. The initial increased activity likely counteracted the effects of the drop in low-motility, surficial fauna densities, resulting in a steady rather than sudden fall in oxygen consumption. We conclude that the functional identity in terms of motility and sediment reworking can be crucial in our understanding of the regulation of ecosystem functioning and the impact of habitat alterations such as sediment deposition.

Hadal disturbance and radionuclide profiles at the deepest Japan Trench, northeastern Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oguri, Kazumasa; Kawamura, Kiichiro; Sakaguchi, Arito; Toyofuku, Takashi; Kasaya, Takafumi; Murayama, Masafumi; Glud, Ronnie; Fujikura, Katsunori; Kitazato, Hiroshi

2013-04-01

Four months after the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake, we carried out a video survey and collected sediment core collection from the hadal region (~7,600 m water depth) of the Japan Trench using an autonomous instrument. Fine material remained suspended at ~50 m above the seabed presumably induced by turbidities released during the central earthquake and the following aftershocks. Elevated levels of Cs-137 (T1/2=30 y) and excess Pb-210 (T1/2=22.3 y) concentrations suggested that 30 cm thick sediment layer had accumulated at the trench base (7,553 m) after the mainshock. However, no Cs-134 (T1/2=2 y) fallout from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear disaster was detected. In contract, inspection of a nearby sediment site (7,261 m) 4.9 km away from the central trench site revealed fewer disturbances as reflected by a recent deposition of only 4 cm sediment, but here we encountered recent Cs-134 fallouts from the top 0-1 cm depth. We propose that the apparent lack of Cs-134 in the central trench is coursed by settlement of turbidites containing Cs-137 from past atmospheric fallout and higher excess Pb-210. The fast transport of the Cs-134 to the hadal slope sediment is presumably induced by enhanced scavenging and the vertical transport associated to an intensified diatom blooming occurring just at the time of the Fukushima disaster.

Geochemical properties and environmental impacts of seven Campanian tephra layers deposited between 40 and 38 ka BP in the varved lake sediments of Lago Grande di Monticchio, southern Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wutke, Kristina; Wulf, Sabine; Tomlinson, Emma L.; Hardiman, Mark; Dulski, Peter; Luterbacher, Jürg; Brauer, Achim

2015-06-01

We present the results of new tephrostratigraphical and environmental impact studies of the 40-38 ka varved sediment section of Lago Grande di Monticchio (southern Italy). The sediments in this time zone are correlated with the Heinrich H4-stadial that occurred between Greenland Interstadials GI-9 and GI-8, and include the widespread Campanian Ignimbrite (CI, 39.3 ka) as a thick tephra layer in the middle of the H4 stadial. The CI in the Monticchio record is overlain by the Schiava tephra from Vesuvius, c. 1240 varve-years younger than the CI, and preceded by four tephras from small-scale eruptions of the Phlegrean Fields and by an Ischia-derived tephra. The four Phlegrean Field-derived tephras were deposited 600 varve-years or fewer prior to the deposition of the CI and show very similar major, minor, and trace element glass compositions to those of the CI. This close similarity in composition and age could compromise the accurate linking and synchronisation of palaeoenvironmental records in the central Mediterranean area. Microfacies analyses and μ-XRF core scanning were used to characterise primary and secondary depositional features of all seven tephra layers and to evaluate environmental and ecological responses after tephra deposition. Higher concentrations of tephra-derived material (mainly glass shards and pumices) in primary and reworked layers were detected by elevated K-counts in μ-XRF elemental core scans. Reworked tephra derives mainly from in-washing from the littoral zone and the catchment and occurs within five to 30 years, and up to 1240 varve years, after the deposition of thinner (1-5 mm) and thicker (5-230 mm) tephra fallout deposits, respectively. An obvious response of diatom population growth directly after the primary tephra deposition was observed for the thicker tephra layers (>1 mm) during the first 1-8 years after deposition of the primary deposit indicating that the additional input of potential nutrients (glass shards) temporarily affected the ecological lake system.

A Study on Benthic Foraminifera Assemblages in the Upper Slope off Southwest Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeh, Jen-Chu; Lin, Andrew T.; Chien, Chih-Wei

2016-04-01

This study attempts to establish the spatial distribution of benthic foraminifera in the upper accretionary wedge off SW Taiwan. A few box cores (each core up to 49 cm thick) are retrieved onboard R/V Ocean Researcher I during 1092 cruise in 2014 at water depths ranging from 1,135 to 1,586 m lying in between the Good Weather Ridge and the Yuan-An Ridge. Analyses on grain size reveal that the sediment size ranges from clay to silt for all sites with the exception of YT1 site, where a small percentage of fine sand (< 20%) is found to distribute evenly in a 32 cm-thick box core. Core images from X-radiographs show some layers of foraminifera ooze and rare traces of bioturbation. Age of sedimentation is obtained by using 210Pb dating method. The 210Pb concentration profile decays exponentially down core, indicating sedimentation from suspension. The measured sedimentation rate ranges from 0.47 to 2.4 mm/yr. Site YT1 has the lowest sedimentation rate (around 0.47 mm/yr), leading to high abundance of individual benthic foraminiferal species. Living foraminiferal individuals were distinguished from dead assemblages by Rose Bengal staining method during the cruise. Our results show that the dominant living species of all studied cores is Chilostomella oolina, with subsidiary occurrences of Bulimina aculeata, Bolivinita quadrilateral, and Lenticulina spp. etc. Cluster analysis suggests that the forams have similar spatial distribution pattern at all studied sites, indicating uniform and stable hemipelagic sedimentation. Analyses of dead assemblages reveal a remarkable decrease in the abundance of Bulimina and Uvigerina for the last 100 years at YT-2 site, with increasing abundance of Chilostomella. This indicates that the water masses may have turned from suboxic to dysoxic conditions since c. 100 year ago. This is the first study to report the living benthic foraminifera distribution in water depths up to c. 1,600 m off SW Taiwan, providing a basis for future studies. Keywords: benthic foraminifera, upper slope, Taiwan

Towards a Detailed Seismic Structure of the Valley of Mexico's Xochimilco Lake Zone.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rabade, S.; Sanchez-Sanchez, J.; Ayala Hernandez, M.; Macias, M. A.; Aguilar Calderon, L. A.; Alcántara, L.; Almora Mata, D.; Castro Parra, G.; Delgado, R.; Leonardo Suárez, M.; Molina Avila, I.; Mora, A.; Perez-Yanez, C.; Ruiz, A. L.; Sandoval, H.; Torres Noguez, M.; Vazquez Larquet, R.; Velasco Miranda, J. M.; Aguirre, J.; Ramirez-Guzmán, L.

2017-12-01

Six centuries of gradual, intentional sediment filling in the Xochimilco Lake Zone have drastically reduced the size of the lake. The basin structure and the lake's clay limits and thickness are poorly constrained, and yet, essential to explain the city's anomalous ground motion. Therefore, we conducted an experiment to define the 3D velocity model of Mexico's capital; the CDMX-E3D. The initial phase involved the deployment of a moving set of 18-broadband stations with an interstation distance of 500m over a period of 19 weeks. We collected the data and analyzed the results for the Xochimilco Lake Zone using H/V Spectral Ratios (Nakamura, 1989), which provided an improved fundamental period map of the region. Results show that periods in the former lake zone have larger variability than values previously estimated. In order to obtain group velocity maps at different periods, we estimated Green's functions from ambient noise cross-correlations following standard methodologies to invert Rayleigh wave travel times (Bensen et al., 2007). Preliminary result show very low-velocity zones (100 m/s) and thick sediment layers in most of the former Xochimilco Lake area. This Project was funded by the Secretaria de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación (SECITI) of Mexico City. Project SECITI/073/2016.

Exploring geothermal structures in the Ilan Plain, Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Chien-Ying; Shih, Ruey-Chan; Chung, Chen-Tung; Huang, Ming-Zi; Kuo, Hsuan-Yu

2017-04-01

The Ilan Plain in northeast Taiwan is located at the southwestern tip of the Okinawa Trough, which extends westward into the Taiwan orogeny. The Ilan Plain covered by thick sediments is clipped by the Hsuehshan Range in the northern side and the Central Range in the southern side. High geothermal gradients with plenteous hot springs of this area may result from igneous intrusion associated with the back-arc spreading of the Okinawa Trough. In this study, we use reflection seismic survey to explore underground structures in the whole Ilan Plain, especially in SanShin, Wujie, and Lize area. We aim to find the relationship between underground structures and geothermal forming mechanism. The research uses reflection seismic survey to investigate the high geothermal gradient area with two mini-vibrators and 240-channel system. The total length of seismic lines is more than 30 kilometers. The results show that alluvial sediments covering the area about 400 600 meters thick and then thin out to the west in SanShin area. In SanShin , the Taiyaqiao anticline in Hsuehshan Range has entered the plain area and is bounded by the Zhuoshui fault (south) and the Zailian fault (north). In Wujie and Lize , Zhuoshui fault cut through a strong reflector which is the top of the gravel layer near the bottom of the alluvial layer, while the SanShin fault seems to cut near very shallow strata. These two faults are a strike-slip fault with a bit of normal fault component distributing over a range of 600 meters. In Ilan Plain, the geothermal forming mechanism is controlled by anticlines and faults. The hydrothermal solution which migrates upward along these anticline or fault zones to the shallow part causing high geothermal gradients in these areas.

Spatial distribution of sediment storage types and quantification of valley fill deposits in an alpine basin, Reintal, Bavarian Alps, Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schrott, Lothar; Hufschmidt, Gabi; Hankammer, Martin; Hoffmann, Thomas; Dikau, Richard

2003-09-01

Spatial patterns of sediment storage types and associated volumes using a novel approach for quantifying valley fill deposits are presented for a small alpine catchment (17 km 2) in the Bavarian Alps. The different sediment storage types were analysed with respect to geomorphic coupling and sediment flux activity. The most landforms in the valley in terms of surface area were found to be talus slopes (sheets and cones) followed by rockfall deposits and alluvial fans and plains. More than two-thirds of the talus slopes are relict landforms, completely decoupled from the geomorphic system. Notable sediment transport is limited to avalanche tracks, debris flows, and along floodplains. Sediment volumes were calculated using a combination of polynomial functions of cross sections, seismic refraction, and GIS modelling. A total of, 66 seismic refraction profiles were carried out throughout the valley for a more precise determination of sediment thicknesses and to check the bedrock data generated from geomorphometric analysis. We calculated the overall sediment volume of the valley fill deposits to be 0.07 km 3. This corresponds to a mean sediment thickness of 23.3 m. The seismic refraction data showed that large floodplains and sedimentation areas, which have been developed through damming effects from large rockfalls, are in general characterised by shallow sediment thicknesses (<20 m). By contrast, the thickness of several talus slopes is more than twice as much. For some locations (e.g., narrow sections of valley), the polynomial-generated cross sections resulted in overestimations of up to one order of magnitude; whereas in sections with a moderate valley shape, the modelled cross sections are in good accordance with the obtained seismic data. For the quantification of valley fill deposits, a combined application of bedrock data derived from polynomials and geophysical prospecting is highly recommended.

Study on of Seepage Flow Velocity in Sand Layer Profile as Affected by Water Depth and Slope Gradience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Z.; Chen, X.

2017-12-01

BACKGROUND: The subsurface water flow velocity is of great significance in understanding the hydrodynamic characteristics of soil seepage and the influence of interaction between seepage flow and surface runoff on the soil erosion and sediment transport process. OBJECTIVE: To propose a visualized method and equipment for determining the seepage flow velocity and measuring the actual flow velocity and Darcy velocity as well as the relationship between them.METHOD: A transparent organic glass tank is used as the test soil tank, the white river sand is used as the seepage test material and the fluorescent dye is used as the indicator for tracing water flow, so as to determine the thickness and velocity of water flow in a visualized way. Water is supplied at the same flow rate (0.84 L h-1) to the three parts with an interval of 1m at the bottom of the soil tank and the pore water velocity and the thickness of each water layer are determined under four gradient conditions. The Darcy velocity of each layer is calculated according to the water supply flow and the discharge section area. The effective discharge flow pore is estimated according to the moisture content and porosity and then the relationship between Darcy velocity and the measured velocity is calculated based on the water supply flow and the water layer thickness, and finally the correctness of the calculation results is verified. RESULTS: According to the velocity calculation results, Darcy velocity increases significantly with the increase of gradient; in the sand layer profile, the flow velocity of pore water at different depths increases with the increase of gradient; under the condition of the same gradient, the lower sand layer has the maximum flow velocity of pore water. The air-filled porosity of sand layer determines the proportional relationship between Darcy velocity and pore flow velocity. CONCLUSIONS: The actual flow velocity and Darcy velocity can be measured by a visualized method and the relationship between Darcy velocity and pore velocity can be expressed well by the air-filled porosity of sand layer. The flow velocity measurement and test method adopted in the research is effective and feasible. IMPLICATIONS: The visualized flow velocity measurement method can be applied to simulate and measure the characteristics of subsurface water flow in the soil.

Satellite monitoring of sea surface pollution

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fielder, G.; Telfer, D. J. (Principal Investigator)

1979-01-01

The author has identified the following significant results. Image processing techniques developed are well adapted to the exploration and isolation of local areas which exhibit small temperature differences between themselves and their surroundings. In the worst case of imagery of small areal extent of sea surface having no coastal boundary in the area, there is yet no method of distinguishing unambiguously an oil spill from fog, cloud, the effect produced by shallow sediments, or the effects of naturally occuring thermal fronts. In the case of uniform slicks of liquid North Sea oil in still air, laboratory simulation experiments show that, for oil thicknesses in excess of 1 or 2 mm, there is, under equilibrium conditions, little dependence of oil surface temperature on the thickness of the oil layer. The surface temperature of oil is consistently higher than that of water, the difference being about 1 K at low values of relative humidity, but tending to increase as the relative humidity increases.

Sedimentary characteristics of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Ban Talae Nok, southwestern Ranong province, Thailand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monecke, K.; Beitel, J.; Moran, K.; Moore, A.

2006-12-01

Ban Talae Nok, a village on the Andaman shoreline of Thailand, was hit by the December 26, 2004, tsunami with wave heights up to ~13 meters. Eyewitnesses reported the passage of four to five waves with the second being the largest, followed by the third and fourth waves. The tsunami flooded an area with open grassy fields, small cashew nut plantations and a wetland within a local swale. The wave stopped against hills ~500 m from the shoreline, where watermarks still indicate a flow depth of approximately 1 m. Erosion at the beach is marked by a ~30 cm high scarp cutting a former gravelly beach trail ~60 m inshore of the present shoreline. Deposition of tsunami sand started behind the former beach trail at 80 m inshore. The tsunami deposit changes significantly in thickness and composition along a flow parallel transect that was measured and sampled within this study. The most seaward deposit is about 10 cm thick and consists of three distinct layers that show internal as well as overall normal grading from coarse sand into fine sand. The coarse base contains gravels from the old beach trail and shell fragments. Locally, cross stratification is visible at the top. Farther landward the deposit thins and only one normally graded layer is visible. Behind a small ridge where the wetland begins, the tsunami sediments again reveal three normally graded layers with shell- rich, medium-coarse sand grading into brown-gray mud, probably eroded from the wetland. This deposit thins farther inland from ~30 cm to 8 cm and consists of only one layer. The thickest deposit along the transect is 125 cm thick and can be found in a low at the landward end of the wetland. It consists of normally graded coarse to fine sand with rip-up clasts at the base and climbing ripples in the middle of the deposit section. In the adjacent grassy field the deposit is up to 40 cm thick and consists of medium to coarse sand with shell fragments grading into fine to medium sands, which continue to the foot of the hills.

Alterations in Retinal Layer Thickness and Reflectance at Different Stages of Diabetic Retinopathy by En Face Optical Coherence Tomography

PubMed Central

Wanek, Justin; Blair, Norman P.; Chau, Felix Y.; Lim, Jennifer I.; Leiderman, Yannek I.; Shahidi, Mahnaz

2016-01-01

Purpose This article reports a method for en face optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging and quantitative assessment of alterations in both thickness and reflectance of individual retinal layers at different stages of diabetic retinopathy (DR). Methods High-density OCT raster volume scans were acquired in 29 diabetic subjects divided into no DR (NDR) or non-proliferative DR (NPDR) groups and 22 control subjects (CNTL). A customized image segmentation method identified eight retinal layer interfaces and generated en face thickness maps and reflectance images for nerve fiber layer (NFL), ganglion cell and inner plexiform layers (GCLIPL), inner nuclear layer (INL), outer plexiform layer (OPL), outer nuclear layer (ONL), photoreceptor outer segment layer (OSL), and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Mean thickness and intensity values were calculated in nine macular subfields for each retinal layer. Results En face thickness maps and reflectance images of retinal layers in CNTL subjects corresponded to normal retinal anatomy. Total retinal thickness correlated negatively with age in nasal subfields (R ≤−0.31; P ≤ 0.03, N = 51). In NDR subjects, NFL and OPL thickness were decreased (P = 0.05), and ONL thickness was increased (P = 0.04) compared to CNTL. In NPDR subjects, GCLIPL thickness was increased in perifoveal subfields (P < 0.05) and INL intensity was higher in all macular subfields (P = 0.04) compared to CNTL. Conclusions Depth and spatially resolved retinal thickness and reflectance measurements are potential biomarkers for assessment and monitoring of DR. PMID:27409491

Methane Hydrate Formation in Thick Sand Reservoirs: Long-range Gas Transport or Short-range Methane Diffusion?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

You, K.; Flemings, P. B.

2016-12-01

We developed two 2-D numerical models to simulate hydrate formation by long range methane gas transport and short-range methane diffusion. We interpret that methane hydrates in thick sands are most likely formed by long range gas transport where methane gas is transported upward into the hydrate stability zone (HSZ) under buoyancy and locally forms hydrate to its stability limit. In short-range methane diffusion, methane is generated locally by biodegradation of organic matter in mud and diffused into bounding sands where it forms hydrate. We could not simulate enough methane transport by diffusion to account for its observed concentration in thick sands. In our models, we include the capillary effect on dissolved methane solubility and on the hydrate phase boundary, sedimentation and different compaction in sand and mud, fracture generation as well as the fully coupled multiphase flow and multicomponent transport. We apply our models to a 12 meter-thick hydrate-bearing sand layer at Walker Ridge 313, Northern Gulf of Mexico. With the long-range gas transport, hydrate saturation is greater than 90% and salinity is increased from seawater to about 8 wt.% through the entire sand. With short-range diffusion, hydrate saturation is more than 90% at the sand base and is less than 10% in the overlying section; salinity is close to seawater when sand is deposited to 800 meter below seafloor by short-range methane diffusion. With short-range diffusion, the amount of hydrate formed is much less than that interpreted from the well log data. Two transient gas layers separated by a hydrate layer are formed from short-range diffusion caused by capillary effect. This could be interpreted as a double bottom simulating reflector. This study provides further insights into different hydrate formation mechanisms, and could serve as a base to confirm the hydrate formation mechanism in fields.

Northwest African Continental Margin: History of sediment accumulation, landslide deposits, and hiatuses as revealed by drilling the Madeira Abyssal Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weaver, P. P. E.

2003-03-01

ODP drill sites in the Madeira Abyssal Plain reveal sequences of organic-rich turbidites derived from the northwest African margin, in which each turbidite has a volume of tens to hundreds of cubic kilometers. The frequency of turbidite emplacement has been combined with core and seismic data to show the volume of redeposited sediment. The basin began to fill about 22 Ma with numerous small turbidites, up to 100 per million years, each with volumes of a few cubic kilometers. The total volume of turbidites deposited increased between 16 and 11 Ma, as did their individual volumes, and then declined to 7 Ma. At 7 Ma, there was a dramatic increase in the amount of turbidite input to 768 km3/Myr and a rise in the average volume of each unit to 59 km3. These high values have been maintained to the present day. The variations in the amount of redeposited sediment most likely reflect the rates of sedimentation on the northwest African margin since high sedimentation leads to oversteepening of the slopes and eventual mass wasting. The dramatic changes at about 7 Ma may be due to a large increase in upwelling off northwest Africa caused by circulation changes associated with increased glaciation of the poles. Up to 20% of sediment may be remobilized by landslides, with each event leaving a hiatus. Each of these hiatuses extends over an average area of ˜4800 km2 and represents removal of sediment layers several tens of meters thick and of several hundred thousand years duration.

Effect of layer thickness on the elution of bulk-fill composite components.

PubMed

Rothmund, Lena; Reichl, Franz-Xaver; Hickel, Reinhard; Styllou, Panorea; Styllou, Marianthi; Kehe, Kai; Yang, Yang; Högg, Christof

2017-01-01

An increment layering technique in a thickness of 2mm or less has been the standard to sufficiently convert (co)monomers. Bulk fill resin composites were developed to accelerate the restoration process by enabling up to 4mm thick increments to be cured in a single step. The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of layer thickness on the elution of components from bulk fill composites. The composites ELS Bulk fill, SDR Bulk fill and Venus Bulkfill were polymerized according to the instruction of the manufacturers. For each composite three groups with four samples each (n=4) were prepared: (1) samples with a layer thickness of 2mm; (2) samples with a layer thickness of 4mm and (3) samples with a layer thickness of 6mm. The samples were eluted in methanol and water for 24h and 7 d. The eluates were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). A total of 11 different elutable substances have been identified from the investigated composites. Following methacrylates showed an increase of elution at a higher layer thickness: TEGDMA (SDR Bulk fill, Venus Bulk fill), EGDMA (Venus Bulk fill). There was no significant difference in the elution of HEMA regarding the layer thickness. The highest concentration of TEGDMA was 146μg/mL for SDR Bulk fill at a layer thickness of 6mm after 7 d in water. The highest HEMA concentration measured at 108μg/mL was detected in the methanol eluate of Venus Bulk fill after 7 d with a layer thickness of 6mm. A layer thickness of 4mm or more can lead to an increased elution of some bulk fill components, compared to the elution at a layer thickness of 2mm. Copyright © 2016 The Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bioturbation delays attenuation of DDT by clean sediment cap but promotes sequestration by thin-layered activated carbon.

PubMed

Lin, Diana; Cho, Yeo-Myoung; Werner, David; Luthy, Richard G

2014-01-21

The effects of bioturbation on the performance of attenuation by sediment deposition and activated carbon to reduce risks from DDT-contaminated sediment were assessed for DDT sediment-water flux, biouptake, and passive sampler (PE) uptake in microcosm experiments with a freshwater worm, Lumbriculus variegatus. A thin-layer of clean sediment (0.5 cm) did not reduce the DDT flux when bioturbation was present, while a thin (0.3 cm) AC cap was still capable of reducing the DDT flux by 94%. Bioturbation promoted AC sequestration by reducing the 28-day DDT biouptake (66%) and DDT uptake into PE (>99%) compared to controls. Bioturbation further promoted AC-sediment contact by mixing AC particles into underlying sediment layers, reducing PE uptake (55%) in sediment compared to the AC cap without bioturbation. To account for the observed effects from bioturbation, a mass transfer model together with a biodynamic model were developed to simulate DDT flux and biouptake, respectively, and models confirmed experimental results. Both experimental measurements and modeling predictions imply that thin-layer activated carbon placement on sediment is effective in reducing the risks from contaminated sediments in the presence of bioturbation, while natural attenuation process by clean sediment deposition may be delayed by bioturbation.

Correlation of aeolian sediment transport measured by sand traps and fluorescent tracers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cabrera, Laura L.; Alonso, Ignacio

2010-03-01

Two different methods, fluorescent tracers and vertical sand traps, were simultaneously used to carry out an aeolian sediment transport study designed to test the goodness of fluorescent tracers in aeolian environments. Field experiments were performed in a nebkha field close to Famara beach at Lanzarote Island (Canary Islands, Spain) in a sector where the dunes were between 0.5 and 0.8 m height and 1-2 m wide and the vegetal cover was approximately 22%. In this dune field the sediment supply comes from Famara beach and is blown by trade winds toward the south, where the vegetation acts as natural sediment traps. Wind data were obtained by means of four Aanderaa wind speed sensors and one Aanderaa vane, all them distributed in a vertical array from 0.1 to 4 m height for 27 h. The average velocity at 1 m height during the experiment was 5.26 m s - 1 with the wind direction from the north. The tracer was under wind influence for 90 min at midday. During this period two series of sand traps (T1 and T2) N, S, E and W oriented were used. Resultant transport rates were 0.0131 and 0.0184 kg m - 1 min - 1 respectively. Tracer collection was performed with a sticky tape to sample only surface sediments. Tagged grains were visually counted under UV light. The transport rate was computed from the centroid displacement, that moved 0.875 m southwards, and the depth of the active layer considered was the size of one single grain. Taking into account these data the transport rate was 0.0072 kg m - 1 min - 1 . The discrepancy in results between both methods is related to several factors, such as the thickness of the active layer and the grain size difference between the tagged and the native material.

North Pond: a natural observatory for sub-seafloor oxidant supply and metabolic reactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ziebis, Wiebke; Ferdelman, Timothy; McManus, James; Muratli, Jesse; Picard, Aude; Schmidt-Schierhorn, Friederike; Stephan, Sebastian; Villinger, Heinrich; Edwards, Katrina J.

2010-05-01

Evidence of upward transport of oxidants from basaltic aquifers to deeply buried sediments has raised questions on microbial respiration and energy cycling within the deep biosphere. Sediment ponds that occur over a vast area of sea floor on the flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge maybe ideal observatories to study the role of unsuspected sources of oxidants for sub-seafloor microbial life. The western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, at 22°45'N is characterized by depressions filled with sediment and surrounded by high relief topography of 7 Ma old basement. The largest depressions are 5 km to 20 km wide and sediment thickness varies but can reach 400 m (Langseth et al. 1992). They are believed to overly recharge zones for the venting of fluids that takes place locally through unsedimented young ocean crust. If we consider the sediments as boundaries overlying the hydrologically active crustal environment, then using profiles of bioactive compounds measured through the sediment layer with the goal to extract information on transport and reactions is an obvious approach to understanding the implications of subsurface transport of oxidants on metabolic activity. Recently obtained deep oxygen profiles obtained during a site survey expedition in February/March of 2009 onboard RV Maria S. Merian to North Pond, one of the larger (70 square km) and best studied sediment ponds, provided proof of this principal. North Pond is the site of the proposed IODP Expedition "677 Mid-Atlantic Microbiology". Investigations included heat-flow, single-channel seismic and bathymetry surveys, as well as gravity coring. Oxygen measurements and pore water sampling (25 cm depth intervals) were performed directly on intact sediment cores, which were subsequently sampled for microbiological analyses, as well as for incubation experiments to test for autotrophic and heterotrophic microbial activity. The entire sediment column down to > 8 m sediment depth contained oxygen. In the central part of the sediment pond oxygen decreased continuously with depth, indicating an active aerobic microbial community, while nitrate concentrations increased. In contrast, along the northern and western rims of North Pond, oxygen concentrations remained surprisingly constant with depth at values around 170 µM. In addition, at 3 locations along the north shore oxygen profiles indicated an upward supply of oxygen from the underlying basaltic basement. Pore water nutrient profiles and incubation experiments confirmed active microbial communities throughout the sediment layer, as well as the influence of upward transport of oxidants on microbial processes in deeply buried sediments. Langseth, M.G., K. Becker, R.P. Von Herzen, and P. Schultheiss. 1992. Heat and fluid flow through sediments on the western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge: A hydrogeological study of North Pond. Geophys. Res. Lett. 19: 517-520.

Deep mantle roots and continental hypsometry: implications for whole-Earth elemental cycling, long-term climate, and the Cambrian explosion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, C. T.

2016-12-01

Most of Earth's continents today are above sea level, but the presence of thick packages of ancient sediments on top of the stable cores of continents indicates that continents must have been submerged at least once in their past. Elevations of continents are controlled by the interplay between crustal thickness, mantle root thickness and the temperature of the ambient convecting mantle. The history of a continent begins with mountain building through magmatic or tectonic crustal thickening, during which exhumation of deep-seated igneous and metamorphic rocks are highest. Mountain building is followed by a long interval of subsidence as a result of continued, but decreasing erosion and thermal relaxation, the latter in the form of a growing thermal boundary layer. Subsidence is manifest first as a boring interval in which no sedimentary record is preserved, followed by continent-scale submergence wherein sediments are deposited directly on deep-seated igneous/metamorphic basement, generating a major disconformity. The terminal resting elevation of a mature continent, however, is defined by the temperature of the ambient convecting mantle: below sea level when the mantle is hot and above sea level when the mantle is cold. Using thermobarometric constraints on secular cooling of Earth's mantle, our results suggest that Earth, for most of its history, must have been a water world, with regions of land confined to narrow orogenic belts and oceans characterized by deep basins and shallow continental seas, the latter serving as repositories of sediments and key redox-sensitive biological nutrients, such as phosphorous. Cooling of the Earth led to the gradual and irreversible rise of the continents, culminating in rapid emergence, through fits and starts and possible instabilities in climate, between 500-1000 Ma. Such emergence fundamentally altered marine biogeochemical cycling, continental weathering and the global hydrologic cycle, defining the backdrop for the Cambrian explosion, the largest biological diversification event in Earth's history.

The eruption history of the quaternary Eifel volcanic fields: Implications from the ELSA - Tephra - Stack

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Förster, Michael; Sirocko, Frank

2015-04-01

Numerous tephra layers occur in maar sediments in the quaternary Eifel volcanic fields. The sediments were systematically drilled and cored since 1998 by the Eifel Laminated Sediment Archive project (ELSA) (Sirocko et al. 2013). These maar sediments are laminated and the tephra is easily recognizeable by a coarser grain size. Additionaly, tephra layers appear dark grey to black in color. The ashes were sieved to a fraction of 250 - 100 µm and sorted into grains of: reddish and greyish sandstone, quartz, amphibole, pyroxene, scoria and pumice, sanidine, leucite and biotite. A minimum of 100 grains for each tephra layer were used for a sediment petrographic tephra characterisation (SPTC). The grain counts resemble the vol. -% of each grain species. Three types of tephra could be identified by their distinctive grain pattern: (1) phreatomagmatic tephra, rich in basement rocks like greyish/reddish sandstone and quartz. (2) Strombolian tephra, rich in scoria and mafic minerals like pyroxene. (3) evolved tephra, rich in sanidine and pumice. 16 drill-cores, covering the last 500 000 years have been examined. Younger cores were dated by 14C ages and older cores by optical stimulated luminescence. Independently from this datings, the drill-cores were cross-correlated by pollen and the occurences of specific marker-tephra layers, comprising characteristic grain-types. These marker-tephra layers are especially thick and of evolved composition with a significant abundance of sanidine and pumice. The most prominent tephra layers of this type are the Laacher See tephra, dated to 12 900 b2k by Zolitschka (1998), the 40Ar/39Ar dated tephra layers of Dümpelmaar, Glees and Hüttenberg, dated to 116 000 b2k, 151 000 b2k and 215 000 b2k by van den Bogaard & Schmincke (1990), van den Bogaard et al. (1989). These datings set the time-frame for the eruption-phases of the quaternary Eifel Volcanic Fields. Our study refines these findings and shows that phases of activity are very periodically, peaking at 450 000 to 500 000, 140 000, 100 000 and 50 000 b2k in the West Eifel Volcanic Field and 400 000, 200 000, 150 000 and 12 900 b2k in the East Eifel Volcanic Field. These phases are seperated by long dormant intervals and cluster around times of climate and sea level changes. The youngest phase of intense activity in the West Eifel Volcanic Field occured from ~60 000 to 27 800 b2k. All young maar volcanoes with open maar lakes like the Pulvermaar, Meerfelder Maar and Dauner Maar Group erupted in this cluster. Only one maar postdates this interval of increased activity, the 11 000 b2k Ulmener Maar. References Sirocko, F., Dietrich, S., Veres, D., Grootes, P. M., Schaber-Mohr, K., Seelos, K., Nadeau, M.-J., Kromer, B., Rothacker, L., Röhner, M., Krbetschek, M., Appleby, P., Hambach, U., Rolf, C., Sudo, M., & Grim, S. (2013). Multi-proxy dating of Holocene maar lakes and Pleistocene dry maar sediments in the Eifel, Germany. Quaternary Science Reviews, 62, 56-76. van den Bogaard, P., Hall, C. M., Schmincke, H. U., & York, D. (1989). Precise single-grain 40Ar/39 Ar dating of a cold to warm climate transition in Central Europe. Nature 342, 523 - 525 van den Bogaard, P. & Schmincke, H. U. (1990). Die Entwicklungsgeschichte des Mittelrheinraumes und die Eruptionsgeschichte des Osteifel-Vulkanfeldes. Rheingeschichte zwischen Mosel und Maas. deuqua-Führer, 1, 166-190. Zolitschka, B. (1998). A 14,000 year sediment yield record from western Germany based on annually laminated lake sediments. Geomorphology, 22(1), 1-17.

Predicting Sediment Thickness on Vanished Ocean Crust Since 200 Ma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dutkiewicz, A.; Müller, R. D.; Wang, X.; O'Callaghan, S.; Cannon, J.; Wright, N. M.

2017-12-01

Tracing sedimentation through time on existing and vanished seafloor is imperative for constraining long-term eustasy and for calculating volumes of subducted deep-sea sediments that contribute to global geochemical cycles. We present regression algorithms that incorporate the age of the ocean crust and the mean distance to the nearest passive margin to predict sediment thicknesses and long-term decompacted sedimentation rates since 200 Ma. The mean sediment thickness decreases from ˜220 m at 200 Ma to a minimum of ˜140 m at 130 Ma, reflecting the replacement of old Panthalassic ocean floor with young sediment-poor mid-ocean ridges, followed by an increase to ˜365 m at present-day. This increase reflects the accumulation of sediments on ageing abyssal plains proximal to passive margins, coupled with a decrease in the mean distance of any parcel of ocean crust to the nearest passive margin by over 700 km, and a doubling of the total passive margin length at present-day. Mean long-term sedimentation rates increase from ˜0.5 cm/ky at 160 Ma to over 0.8 cm/ky today, caused by enhanced terrigenous sediment influx along lengthened passive margins, superimposed by the onset of ocean-wide carbonate sedimentation. Our predictive algorithms, coupled to a plate tectonic model, provide a framework for constraining the seafloor sediment-driven eustatic sea-level component, which has grown from ˜80 to 210 m since 120 Ma. This implies a long-term sea-level rise component of 130 m, partly counteracting the contemporaneous increase in ocean basin depth due to progressive crustal ageing.

Modern Deposition Rates and Patterns of Carbon Burial in Southern Fiordland, New Zealand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramirez, M. T.; Allison, M. A.; Vetter, L.; Cui, X.; Bianchi, T. S.; Smith, R. W.; Savage, C.; Schüller, S.

2016-02-01

Fjords have been recognized as a hotspot of organic carbon burial, as they accumulate a disproportionate quantity of organic carbon given their areal extent in comparison to other marine settings. However, organic carbon is buried in context with other biogenic and mineral sediments, so localized sedimentation processes play a critical role in determining rates of organic carbon burial. Therefore, it is important to assess the local sources and processes responsible for depositing inorganic sediment as a control on the burial of organic carbon. Here we evaluate three fjords in southern New Zealand that are not glaciated, with a sedimentary system that is dominantly controlled by terrigenous input at fjord heads, reworking of sediments over fjord-mouth sills, and landslide events from the steep fjord walls. Sediment cores were collected throughout the three southernmost fjord systems of Fiordland, New Zealand, and analyzed to determine sedimentary fabric, mass accumulation rates, and organic carbon content. Sediment mass accumulation rates from 210Pb geochronology range up to 500 mg/cm2/yr in proximal and distal areas of the fjords, with lower rates (below 200 mg/cm2/yr) in medial reaches, where terrestrial and marine sediment input is minimal. X-radiographs and 210Pb downcore activity trends show evidence of both mass wasting and surface-sediment bioturbation operating throughout the fjords. Percent organic carbon displays a negative correlation with mass accumulation rate and thickness of the sediment surface mixed layer. Rates of organic carbon accumulation ranged from 3.97 to 21.59 mg/cm2/yr, with a mean of 13.41 mg/cm2/yr. Organic carbon accumulation rates are dependent on the sediment accumulation rate and the percent organic carbon of the sediment. Our results highlight the importance of spatial variability in sedimentation processes and rates within fjords when evaluating organic carbon burial in these systems.

The Sudbury impact layer in the paleoproterozoiciron ranges of northern Michigan, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cannon, W.F.; Schulz, K.J.; Horton, J. Wright; King, David A.

2010-01-01

A layer of breccia that contains fragments of impact ejecta has been found at 10 sites in the Paleoproterozoic iron ranges of northern Michigan, in the Lake Superior region of the United States. Radiometric age constraints from events predating and postdating deposition of the breccia are ca. 1875 Ma and 1830 Ma. The major bolide impact that occurred at 1850 Ma at Sudbury, Ontario, 500–700 km east of these sites, is the likely causative event. The Michigan sites described here, along with previously described sites in Minnesota and Ontario, define an extensive ejecta-bearing deposit throughout the Paleoproterozoic iron ranges of the Lake Superior region that we refer to as the Sudbury impact layer. The layer at the sites in Michigan exhibits a range of thicknesses, lithologic characters, and sedimentary settings. The diversity of rock types and internal stratigraphic details of the layer imply that several different processes of transport and deposition are represented, but the detailed investigations needed to document them are incomplete. Many of the sites had been described and interpreted previously as products of common terrestrial processes, but the presence of relict shock-induced planar deformation features in quartz indicates that the breccia layer is in fact the product of an extraterrestrial impact. At most localities, this layer also contains relict fragments of altered devitrified glass and/or accretionary lapilli. One immediate use of the impact layer is as an ultraprecise time line that ties together the well-known stratigraphic sequences of the various geographically separated iron ranges, the correlation of which has remained controversial for many decades. The Sudbury impact layer most commonly lies at a horizon that records a significant change in the character of sediments across the region. The impact layer marks the end of a major period of banded iron formation deposition that was succeeded by deposition of fine clastic rocks, commonly black shales. The impact may have produced regional, if not global, changes in the environment that resulted in this widespread synchronous change in sedimentation style.

Part 2: Sedimentary geology of the Valles, Marineris, Mars and Antarctic dry valley lakes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nedell, Susan S.

1987-01-01

Detailed mapping of the layered deposits in the Valles Marineris, Mars from high-resolution Viking orbiter images revealed that they from plateaus of rhythmically layered material whose bases are in the lowest elevations of the canyon floors, and whose tops are within a few hundred meters in elevation of the surrounding plateaus. Four hypotheses for the origin of the layered deposits were considered: that they are eolian deposits; that they are remnants of the same material as the canyon walls; that they are explosive volcanic deposits; or that they were deposited in standing bodies of water. There are serious morphologic objections to each of the first three. The deposition of the layered deposits in standing bodies of water best explains their lateral continuity, horizontality, great thickness, rhythmic nature, and stratigraphic relationships with other units within the canyons. The Martian climatic history indicated that any ancient lakes were ice covered. Two methods for transporting sediment through a cover of ice on a martian lake appear to be feasible. Based on the presently available data, along with the theoretical calculations presented, it appears most likely that the layered deposits in the Valles Marineris were laid down in standing bodies of water.

Contribution of Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility (AMS) to reconstruct flooding characteristics of a 4220 BP tsunami from a thick unconsolidated structureless deposit (Banda Aceh, Sumatra)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wassmer, Patrick; Gomez, Christopher; Iskandasyah, T. Yan W. M.; Lavigne, Franck; Sartohadi, Junun

2015-07-01

One of the main concerns of deciphering tsunami sedimentary records along seashore is to link the emplaced layers with marine high energy events. Based on a combination of morphologic features, sedimentary figures, grain size characteristics, fossils content, microfossils assemblages, geochemical elements, heavy minerals presence; it is, in principle, possible to relate the sedimentary record to a tsunami event. However, experience shows that sometimes, in reason of a lack of any visible sedimentary features, it is hard to decide between a storm and a tsunami origin. To solve this issue, the authors have used the Anisotropy of Magnetic Susceptibility (AMS) to evidence the sediment fabric. The validity of the method for reconstructing flow direction has been proved when applied on sediments in the aftermath of a tsunami event, for which the behaviour was well documented (2004 IOT). We present herein an application of this method for a 56 cm thick paleo-deposit dated 4220 BP laying under the soil covered by the 2004 IOT, SE of Banda Aceh, North Sumatra. We analysed this homogenous deposit, lacking of any visible structure, using methods of classic sedimentology to confirm the occurrence of a high energy event. We then applied AMS technique that allowed the reconstruction of flow characteristics during sediment emplacement. We show that all the sequence was emplaced by uprush phases and that the local topography played a role on the re-orientation of a part of the uprush flow, creating strong reverse current. This particular behaviour was reported by eyewitnesses during the 2004 IOT event.

Can sea level rise cause large submarine landslides on continental slopes?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urlaub, Morelia

2014-05-01

Submarine landslides are one of the volumetrically most important sediment transport processes at continental margins. Moreover, these landslides are a major geohazard as they can cause damaging tsunamis and destroy seabed infrastructure. Due to their inaccessibility our understanding of what causes these landslides is limited and based on hypotheses that are difficult to test. Some of the largest submarine landslides, such as the Storegga Slide off Norway, occurred during times of eustatic sea level rise. It has been suggested that this global sea level rise was implicated in triggering of the landslides by causing an increase in excess pore pressure in the subseafloor. However, in a homogeneous slope a change in the thickness of the overlying water mass is not expected to affect its stability, as only the hydrostatic pressure component will change, whereas pore pressures in excess of hydrostatic will remain unaltered. Whether sufficiently rapid sea level rise, aided by rather impermeable sediment and complex layering, could cause excess pore pressures that may destabilise a continental slope is more difficult to answer and has not yet been tested. I use Finite Element Modelling to explore and quantify the direct effect of changes in the thickness of the overlying water mass on the stability of a generic sediment column with different stratigraphic conditions and hydro-mechanical properties. The results show that the direct effect of sea level rise on continental slope stability is minimal. Nevertheless, sea level rise may foster other processes, such as lithospheric stress changes resulting in increased seismicity, that could potentially cause large submarine landslides on continental slopes.

Sediment Coring of the Proglacial Lake Donguz-Orun (northern Caucasus, Russia)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alexandrin, Mikhail; Solomina, Olga; Kalugin, Ivan; Darin, Andrey; Nesje, Atle

2014-05-01

So far, no high-resolution reconstructions of climate and glacier variations based on lake sediment properties are available in Caucasus Mountains. In other presently glaciated regions this approach is proved to be very useful for this purpose (e.g. Nesje et al., 2001, 2011; Bakke, 2005, Nesje, 2009) In this paper we report the first results of the sediment coring of Donguz-Orun Lake (N 43°13'26", E 42°29'35") situated in the upper reaches of Donguz-Orun-Kyol, a tributary of Baksan river in the Elbrus region of Northern Caucasus, a typical proglacial lake dammed by a lateral moraine deposited by the Donguz-Orun Glacier. It is a drainage lake with several inflowing glacial streams and effluent river Donguz-Orun. The surface area is around 105 000 m2 with a water volume of 465 000m3. The average water depth is around 4.5 m, with a maximum water depth of 14 m. The deepest part is found close to the moraine dam in the narrow northern part of the lake. This is normally consistent with this type of glacial lake systems. An intensive gravitational drift of the moraine material towards the lake is observed. These non-rounded moraine boulders constitute a significant part of the lakebed. Lacustrine sediments are present though. The coring campaign from Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences (August 2012) used a modified piston corer with a 110 mm-diameter plastic tube (Nesje, 1992) mounted on the inflatable catamaran to obtain lake sediments from Lake Donguz-Orun. A 28-cm long core was retrieved from a water depth of around 7 m. The sediments consist of regularly laminated, fine beige clay, with several interlayers of sand. The coring process appeared to be challenging due to the stiffness of clay, which led to extreme bending of the sediment layers in the basal part of the core. The original thickness of the sediments was obviously higher than observed in the core. In order to clarify the recent history of the Donguz-Orun glacier, we used lichenometry and dendrochronology for dating its lateral and terminal moraines. The upper part of the core (0-170 mm) was scanned applying X-ray fluorescent microanalysis using synchrotron radiation and sampled for dating using 137Cs and 210Pb. The assumption that the sediment stratification represents annual layering (spring flood) is generally confirmed with correlation of the Rb/Sr-ratio (that supposedly marks grain-size variations in the sediments) curve and the image of the sediment core. Calculations of Rb/Sr peaks or visual layers yield an accumulation rate of around 2 mm/yr. Analogous results (1.73 mm/yr) are derived from 137Cs-dating. With this high accumulation rate, the sediment core of Lake Donguz-Orun represents an important source of information for high-resolution reconstructions of climatic parameters and glacier variations of the region. The research project of Mikhail Alexandrin is supported by grant# 227470/F11 issued by The Research Council of Norway.

Finite element modeling of self-potential signals over conduits and fractures in covered karst terrain Peter Bumpus and Sarah Kruse

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bumpus, P. B.; Kruse, S. E.

2013-12-01

A year of continuous monitoring with two grids of 12-15 electrodes each measured self-potential (SP) over two small covered-karst conduits in Tampa, Florida. Positive and negative SP anomalies episodically manifested over conduits, suggesting that conduit flow is dynamic, not static. Various SP flow regimes in the conduits are postulated: flow in the conduit is faster than through surrounding surficial sediment, flow in the conduit is slower than through surrounding sediment, and conduit flow rates match those through the surrounding sediments. It is further postulated that conduits change permeability with inflow and washing out of sediment, especially associated with rain events. Numerical simulations of the postulated flow regimes were run with 2D simulations using the Comsol finite element modeling code. Simulations show that each regime produces different SP patterns. Models simulate the Tampa field setting in which a 1-2 meter-thick high permeability sand layer overlies a low-permeability clay-rich layer. A funnel-shaped conduit breaches both layers. In the models, when the permeability of the conduit sands is equal to surrounding surficial sands, a small (several mV) negative anomaly manifests locally at the conduit. This negative anomaly can be explained as the result of the depression of the SPS surface (the first sediment surface with a change in conductance or streaming potential coefficient) in the conduit. However a permeability difference of as little as 5 to 20 percent between conduit and background can cause an SP anomaly of tens to several hundred millivolts, either positive or negative. When the permeability is higher in the conduit than the surficial sands, lateral flow into the conduit within the sand layer and through the conduit to the underlying aquifer are both high, and the SP signal over the conduit is positive. This may contradict the concept exemplified in other studies that downward flow creates a negative anomaly. In our case the positive voltage is the result of high lateral flow toward a high flux conduit. As a result, the horizontal dimension of the conduit plays a role in whether a positive or negative anomaly is observed locally near the surface, depending on the degree to which the terminus of the inward lateral flow affects voltage over the conduit center. When the conduit has lower permeability than surrounding surficial sediment, models show that the SP anomaly is negative. In this case lateral flow is small to a low-flux conduit and there is little build-up of positive SP to overcome the negative potential associated with the SPS trough.

Tide-driven fluid mud transport in the Ems estuary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Becker, Marius; Maushake, Christian; Winter, Christian

2014-05-01

The Ems estuary, located at the border between The Netherlands and Germany, experienced a significant change of the hydrodynamic regime during the past decades, as a result of extensive river engineering. With the net sediment transport now being flood-oriented, suspended sediment concentrations have increased dramatically, inducing siltation and formation of fluid mud layers, which, in turn, influence hydraulic flow properties, such as turbulence and the apparent bed roughness. Here, the process-based understanding of fluid mud is essential to model and predict mud accumulation, not only regarding the anthropogenic impact, but also in view of the expected changes of environmental boundary conditions, i.e., sea level rise. In the recent past, substantial progress has been made concerning the understanding of estuarine circulation and influence of tidal asymmetry on upstream sediment accumulation. While associated sediment transport formulations have been implemented in the framework of numerical modelling systems, in-situ data of fluid mud are scarce. This study presents results on tide-driven fluid mud dynamics, measured during four tidal cycles aside the navigation channel in the Ems estuary. Lutoclines, i.e., strong vertical density gradients, were detected by sediment echo sounder (SES). Acoustic Doppler current profiles (ADCP) of different acoustic frequencies were used to determine hydrodynamic parameters and the vertical distribution of suspended sediment concentrations in the upper part of the water column. These continuous profiling measurements were complemented by CTD, ADV, and OBS casts. SES and ADCP profiles show cycles of fluid mud entrainment during accelerating flow, and subsequent settling, and the reformation of a lutocline during decelerating flow and slack water. Significant differences are revealed between flood and ebb phase. Highest entrainment rates are measured at the beginning of the flood phase, associated with strong current shear and rapid vertical mixing, inducing the highest instantaneous suspended sediment flux measured during the tidal cycle. During decelerating flood currents a lutocline is again established at a certain distance above the consolidated river bed. During slack water after the flood phase the concentration gradient increases and the thickness of the fluid mud layer below is constant, also during a significant part of the ebb phase. As water depth decreases during ebb, entrainment occurs only at the upper part of the fluid mud layer. The suspended sediment flux is low compared to the flood phase. These observations are further elaborated using turbulence parameters obtained from ADV and ADCP, explaining the difference between ebb and flood concerning the vertical location of the maximum concentration gradient. This study is funded through DFG-Research Center / Excellence Cluster "The Ocean in the Earth System". The Senckenberg Institute and the Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute are acknowledged for technical support.

Delineating the Groundwater Recharge Zone in the Pingtung Plan , Taiwan with Electrical Resistivity Surveys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, C.; Chang, P.; Chang, L.; Chen, J.; Huang, C.

2012-12-01

In this study we used the two-dimensional electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) method, as well as the core records of monitoring wells to help determine the groundwater recharge zone in Pingtung plain in southwestern Taiwan. Pingtung fluvial plain is one of the major groundwater resources in Taiwan which is composed of several alluvial fans deriving from the uplifted mountain area to the east and north of the plain. The thick gravel layer constitutes the main recharge area of the upper alluvial fans and the conductive clay sediments dominate most of the lower fans. With the core records, we found that, the gravel layers have higher resistivity (mostly over 200 Ohm-m) and the resistivities of the clayey layers are low (about 1~10 Ohm-m). Therefore with the resistivity surveys we can have more confidences for determining the boundary of the groundwater recharge area in the area in-between the monitoring wells. In the past two years, we have finished 24 two-dimensional electrical resistivity imaging profile lines from Meinong to Fangliao, the lines are oriented in the east-west direction, and each line was about 400 meters long. With the inverted results, we are able to characterize two major alluvial systems and their recharge zones in the Pingtung fluvial plain. The resistivities we measured almost are consistent to the core records of monitoring wells except for the Wanluan site, which shows thick gravel layer in the drilling records but has low resistivity in the nearby resistivity survey. A reasonable explanation is that the electrical resistivity is sensitive to clayey materials with lower resistivities. The intercalated clay within the gravel layers is not shown in the churn drilling records.

The Role of Glaciation in Slope Instability of Arctic Trough Mouth Fans: An Example of the NW Barents Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urgeles, R.; Llopart, J.; Lucchi, R.; Rebesco, M.; Brückner, N. W.; Rüther, D. C.; Lantzsch, H.

2017-12-01

Submarine slope instability plays a major role in the development of Arctic Trough Mouth Fans (TMFs). TMFs consist of an alternation of rapidly deposited glacigenic debris flows and a sequence of well-layered plumites and hemipelagic sediments. In this sedimentary context, shallow geophysical data and core samples indicate that there is a specific timing (i.e. shortly after the deglaciation phase) for the occurrence of slope failures. High mean sedimentation rates during glacial maxima of up to 18 kg m-2 yr-1 likely allow excess pore pressure to develop in the water rich plumites and hemipelagic sediments deposited in the previous deglacial period, particularly where such plumites attain a significant thickness. Basin numerical models considering the effect of (1) sediment physical properties, (2) polar margin architecture and (3) ice stream sediment dispersal patterns on resulting stresses, fluid flow and slope failure initiation of the Storfjorden Trough Mouth Fan, NW Barents Sea, show that during glacial maxima, ice streams and rapid accumulation of glacigenic debris flows on the slope induce pore pressure build-up in continental shelf/upper slope sediments. The overpressure developed during glacial maxima remains during the deglacial phase. This overpressure combined with downslope stratification of high water content and low shear strength deglacial/interglacial sediments results in a significant decrease in the factor of safety of the upper slope sediments. The position of the submarine landslides in the stratigraphic record suggest, however, that such excess pore pressure is not enough to trigger the slope failures and indicate that earthquakes related to isostatic rebound are likely involved in the final activation.

Sediment entrainment by debris flows: In situ measurements from the headwaters of a steep catchment

USGS Publications Warehouse

McCoy, S.W.; Kean, Jason W.; Coe, Jeffrey A.; Tucker, G.E.; Staley, Dennis M.; Wasklewicz, T.A.

2012-01-01

Debris flows can dramatically increase their volume, and hence their destructive potential, by entraining sediment. Yet quantitative constraints on rates and mechanics of sediment entrainment by debris flows are limited. Using an in situ sensor network in the headwaters of a natural catchment we measured flow and bed properties during six erosive debris-flow events. Despite similar flow properties and thicknesses of bed sediment entrained across all events, time-averaged entrainment rates were significantly faster for bed sediment that was saturated prior to flow arrival compared with rates for sediment that was dry. Bed sediment was entrained from the sediment-surface downward in a progressive fashion and occurred during passage of dense granular fronts as well as water-rich, inter-surge flow.En massefailure of bed sediment along the sediment-bedrock interface was never observed. Large-magnitude, high-frequency fluctuations in total normal basal stress were dissipated within the upper 5 cm of bed sediment. Within this near surface layer, concomitant fluctuations in Coulomb frictional resistance are expected, irrespective of the influence of pore fluid pressure or fluctuations in shear stress. If the near-surface sediment was wet as it was overridden by a flow, additional large-magnitude, high-frequency pore pressure fluctuations were measured in the near-surface bed sediment. These pore pressure fluctuations propagated to depth at subsonic rates and in a diffusive manner. The depth to which large excess pore pressures propagated was typically less than 10 cm, but scaled as (D/fi)0.5, in which D is the hydraulic diffusivity and fi is the frequency of a particular pore pressure fluctuation. Shallow penetration depths of granular-normal-stress fluctuations and excess pore pressures demonstrate that only near-surface bed sediment experiences the full dynamic range of effective-stress fluctuations, and as a result, can be more easily entrained than deeper sediment. These data provide robust tests for mechanical models of entrainment and demonstrate that a debris flow over wet bed sediment will be larger than the same flow over dry bed sediment.

Changes in Macular Retinal Layers and Peripapillary Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness after 577-nm Pattern Scanning Laser in Patients with Diabetic Retinopathy

PubMed Central

Shin, Ji Soo

2017-01-01

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the changes in thickness of each macular retinal layer, the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), and central macular thickness (CMT) after 577-nm pattern scanning laser (PASCAL) photocoagulation in patients with diabetic retinopathy. Methods This retrospective study included 33 eyes with diabetic retinopathy that underwent 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation. Each retinal layer thickness, peripapillary RNFL thickness, and CMT were measured by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography before 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation, as well as at 1, 6, and 12 months after 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation. Computerized intraretinal segmentation of optical coherence tomography was performed to identify the thickness of each retinal layer. Results The average thickness of the RNFL, ganglion cell layer, inner plexiform layer, inner nuclear layer, inner retinal layer, and CMT at each follow-up increased significantly from baseline (p < 0.001), whereas that of the retinal pigment epithelium at each follow-up decreased significantly from baseline (p < 0.001). The average thickness of the peripapillary RNFL increased significantly at one month (p < 0.001). This thickness subsequently recovered to 7.48 µm, and there were no significant changes at six or 12 months compared to baseline (p > 0.05). Conclusions Each macular retinal layer and CMT had a tendency to increase for one year after 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation, whereas the average thickness of retinal pigment epithelium decreased at one-year follow-up compared to the baseline. Although an increase in peripapillary RNFL thickness was observed one month after 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation, there were no significant changes at the one-year follow-up compared to the baseline. PMID:29022292

Changes in Macular Retinal Layers and Peripapillary Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness after 577-nm Pattern Scanning Laser in Patients with Diabetic Retinopathy.

PubMed

Shin, Ji Soo; Lee, Young Hoon

2017-12-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the changes in thickness of each macular retinal layer, the peripapillary retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL), and central macular thickness (CMT) after 577-nm pattern scanning laser (PASCAL) photocoagulation in patients with diabetic retinopathy. This retrospective study included 33 eyes with diabetic retinopathy that underwent 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation. Each retinal layer thickness, peripapillary RNFL thickness, and CMT were measured by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography before 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation, as well as at 1, 6, and 12 months after 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation. Computerized intraretinal segmentation of optical coherence tomography was performed to identify the thickness of each retinal layer. The average thickness of the RNFL, ganglion cell layer, inner plexiform layer, inner nuclear layer, inner retinal layer, and CMT at each follow-up increased significantly from baseline (p < 0.001), whereas that of the retinal pigment epithelium at each follow-up decreased significantly from baseline (p < 0.001). The average thickness of the peripapillary RNFL increased significantly at one month (p < 0.001). This thickness subsequently recovered to 7.48 μm, and there were no significant changes at six or 12 months compared to baseline (p > 0.05). Each macular retinal layer and CMT had a tendency to increase for one year after 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation, whereas the average thickness of retinal pigment epithelium decreased at one-year follow-up compared to the baseline. Although an increase in peripapillary RNFL thickness was observed one month after 577-nm PASCAL photocoagulation, there were no significant changes at the one-year follow-up compared to the baseline. © 2017 The Korean Ophthalmological Society

First-order control of syntectonic sedimentation on crustal-scale structure of mountain belts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erdős, Zoltán.; Huismans, Ritske S.; van der Beek, Peter

2015-07-01

The first-order characteristics of collisional mountain belts and the potential feedback with surface processes are predicted by critical taper theory. While the feedback between erosion and mountain belt structure has been fairly extensively studied, less attention has been given to the potential role of synorogenic deposition. For thin-skinned fold-and-thrust belts, recent studies indicate a strong control of syntectonic deposition on structure, as sedimentation tends to stabilize the thin-skinned wedge. However, the factors controlling basement deformation below fold-and-thrust belts, as evident, for example, in the Zagros Mountains or in the Swiss Alps, remain largely unknown. Previous work has suggested that such variations in orogenic structure may be explained by the thermotectonic "age" of the deforming lithosphere and hence its rheology. Here we demonstrate that sediment loading of the foreland basin area provides an additional control and may explain the variable basement involvement in orogenic belts. When examining the role of sedimentation, we identify two end-members: (1) sediment-starved orogenic systems with thick-skinned basement deformation in an axial orogenic core and thin-skinned deformation in the bordering forelands and (2) sediment-loaded orogens with thick packages of synorogenic deposits, derived from the axial basement zone, deposited on the surrounding foreland fold-and-thrust belts, and characterized by basement deformation below the foreland. Using high-resolution thermomechanical models, we demonstrate a strong feedback between deposition and crustal-scale thick-skinned deformation. Our results show that the loading effects of syntectonic sediments lead to long crustal-scale thrust sheets beneath the orogenic foreland and explain the contrasting characteristics of sediment-starved and sediment-loaded orogens, showing for the first time how both thin- and thick-skinned crustal deformations are linked to sediment deposition in these orogenic systems. We show that the observed model behavior is consistent with observations from a number of natural orogenic systems.

Paleopedological research of the dynamics alteration in environment of the Lover Volga region in the last macrocycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bagrova, Svetlana; Makeev, Alexander; Rusakov, Alexey; Yanina, Tatiana; Kurbanov, Redzhep

2017-04-01

Caspian Sea reflects in its development global climate changes, glacial-interglacial rhythms in Russian plains and mountain areas. It is stratigraphic region for drawing up a single stratigraphic and paleogeographic plan of the Upper Pleistocene of Northern Eurasia. To date, accumulated a considerable amount of material on the Quaternary history of Ponto-Caspian, based on stratigraphic, paleogeographic and geomorphological studies. However, paleopedological work in the region have been starting for the first time. Studying paleopedology in soil-sediment thickness have paramount importance, as they can reliably break down the steps of the surface on which stabilization was carried out paedogenesis with further sedimentation, and allow us to trace the stages of evolution of the environment of the region. The site (Srednyaya Akhtuba) located on the left bank of the Akhtuba River, 20 km from the Volzhsky city, the upper part of Lower Volga region. This marine terrace represented by 6 paedogenetic levels, including 7 soils (MIS1-MIS5) (Yanina, 2014) separated by sediments (precipitation) of different structure and genesis. The upper part of the section (0-150 cm) presented by a typical for the dry steppe area soil Kastanzem (WRB, 2014) (MIS1). Parent rock material is a great pack (>1m) of the Caspian marine sediments, represented by a series of layers of chocolate clays (MIS2) with interbedding of sands. Lower, is a pack (520-670 cm), formed during Atelian regression of the Caspian Sea (MIS3-MIS4), presented by one well-developed soil with truncated humus horizon and two loessic layers with signs of soil formation (rhizolithes, manganese nodule, cryogenesis structure and etc) MIS3 stage. The lower part of Atel-Ahtuba strata (910-1530 cm) is presented by carbonate loess without noticeable pedogenetic transformation. From a depth of 1530 cm begins thick layer of loess-soil series, presented by MIS5a-e Mezin pedocomplex, dedicated to the Late Khazar-Girkan transgression, with three well-preserved soils. The upper soil, Gleyic Phaeozem, has accretionary humus horizon (about 1 m), many krotovinas, and network of frost wedges 40-50 cm. Wedges start in the overlying Atel-Akhtuba loess layer indicating the beginning of the last glacial cycle (MIS4). The middle soil, Gleyic Chernozem, has first 5 cm humus horizon intermixed with Bg horizon of the upper soil (welded paleosol). Until the middle of the profile (1740 cm) are the end of the loess permafrost wedges. Gleyic features are due to seasonal overflooding. The lower soil of Mezin pedocomplex (MIS5e), Mollic Calcic Gleysol, formed in loess sediments accumulated during penultimate glaciation (MIS6) and has reworked upper boundary (10-13 cm), well-defined humus horizon with gley process. Three soils of Mezin pedocomplex have common features: semi terrestrial genesis with gleyic features due to long-term seasonal overflooding; well developed humus horizons and complex assemblage of carbonate neoformations, formed under steppe environment. Pedogenetic horizons serve as good stratigraphic markers that will help to correlate late Pleistocene soil-sedimentary sequences of the whole Caspian-Azov-Black sea region, East European Plain and link it with global stratigraphic schemes. Detailed analytical and further field studies are required to reveal further pedogenetic response to environmental changes in the area. Research was supported by Russian Science Foundation, project 14-17-00705

A geoarchaeological perspective on the rise and fall of the ancient capital of Anuradhapura (Sri Lanka)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bebermeier, Wiebke; Kohlmeyer, Kay; Meister, Julia; Reimann, Tony; Wagalawatta, Thusitha; Schütt, Brigitta

2016-04-01

Anuradhapura, the ancient capital of the Ceylonese kings (4th century BCE - 11th century CE) is located in the north-central Dry Zone of Sri Lanka. Covering an area of c. 40 km² Anuradhapura is one of the key sites for the development of an urban civilisation in South Asia. The settlement history of Anuradhapura can be traced back to the beginnings of the Protohistoric Iron Age (c. 900-500 BCE). During its existence, the centre of the ancient capital, the so-called Citadel, accumulated c. 10 meters of cultural sediments. Although archaeological research dated back to the beginning of the 20th century, none of the numerous excavations succeeded to extract an undisturbed archaeological sequence covering all periods of the city history. The objective of the presented study is to reconstruct natural surface processes, which went along with the formation and abandonment of the Citadel; possibly even triggering it. Based on sediment analysis (bulk parameters, magnetic susceptibility and mineralogical composition) and the application of dating techniques (radiocarbon, OSL) environmental conditions during and after the abandonment of the Citadel were reconstructed. The results reveal information about four phases of the city history: i) Lower Early Historic Period (500-250 BCE), ii) Mid-Early Historic Period (250-0 BCE), iii) the end of the Anuradhapura period (11th century CE) and iv) after its abandonment (after the 11th century CE). In the first phase mainly wattle and daub constructions characterise the architecture of the site. The facies of correlate sediment layers point to eolian and fluvial facies with intercalated occupation layers. It is concluded, that these layer reflect a typical mix of natural processes and processes induced by humans as typical for rural settlements. With the beginning of the 1st century BCE human made terraces seem to build the base for stone and brick constructions in order to protect them from surface runoff during the rainy seasons. Between the beginning of the Common Era and the 10th century CE the archaeological and sedimentological records show a sequence of backfilled pit horizons. This can be explained by vivid construction activities as well as deterioration, which must have occurred in the Citadel. Thick layers of levelled debris of collapsed buildings and extracted building material give witness of these activities. The last phase is represented by fluvial deposits, dated to 920 - 1290 CE (end of the Anuradhapura period), intersecting the sediment layers of the already described phases. The deposition of this fluvial layer can be explained as follows: During heavy precipitation events streets were destroyed by surface runoff. Consequently the fluvial deposits (well sorted sands, with sherd and brick fragments up to 5 cm Ø) are correlate sediments of these runoff events. It is concluded, that with the abandonment of the city and the cessation of maintenance measures the infrastructure decayed, accelerated by severe runoff-events during the rainy-season.

Understanding Kendal aquifer system: a baseline analysis for sustainable water management proposal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lukman, A.; Aryanto, M. D.; Pramudito, A.; Andhika, A.; Irawan, D. E.

2017-07-01

North coast of Java has been grown as the center of economic activities and major connectivity hub for Sumatra and Bali. Sustainable water management must support such role. One of the basis is to understand the baseline of groundwater occurrences and potential. However the complex alluvium aquiver system has not been well-understood. A geoelectric measurements were performed to determine which rock layer has a good potential as groundwater aquifers in the northern coast of Kaliwungu Regency, Kendal District, Central Java province. Total of 10 vertical electrical sounding (VES) points has been performed, using a Schlumberger configuration with the current electrode spacing (AB/2) varies between 200 - 300 m and the potential difference electrode spacing (MN/2) varies between 0.5 to 20 m with depths target ranging between 150 - 200 m. Geoelectrical data processing is done using Ip2win software which generates resistivity value, thickness and depth of subsurface rock layers. Based on the correlation between resistivity value with regional geology, hydrogeology and local well data, we identify three aquifer layers. The first layer is silty clay with resistivity values vary between 0 - 10 ohm.m, then the second layer is tuffaceous claystone with resistivity value between 10 - 60 ohm.m. Both layers serve as impermeable layer. The third layer is sandy tuff with resistivity value between 60 - 100 ohm.m which serves as a confined aquifer layer located at 70 - 100 m below surface. Its thickness is vary between 70 to 110 m. The aquifer layer is a mixing of volcanic and alluvium sediment, which is a member of Damar Formation. The stratification of the aquifer system may change in short distance and depth. This natural setting prevent us to make a long continuous correlation between layers. Aquifer discharge is estimated between 5 - 71 L/s with the potential deep well locations lies in the west and southeast part of the study area. These hydrogeological settings should be used as the main starting point in managing water supply in this area.

Surficial geology and distribution of post-impoundment sediment of the western part of Lake Mead based on a sidescan sonar and high-resolution seismic-reflection survey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Twichell, David C.; Cross, VeeAnn A.; Rudin, Mark J.; Parolski, Kenneth F.

1999-01-01

Sidescan sonar imagery and high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles were collected in Las Vegas Bay and Boulder Basin of Lake Mead to determine the surficial geology as well as the distribution and thickness of sediment that has accumulated in these areas of the lake since the completion of Hoover Dam in 1935 (Gould, 1951). Results indicate that the accumulation of post-impoundment sediment is restricted to the original Colorado River bed which runs down the axis of Boulder Basin from Boulder Canyon to Hoover Dam, and the old Las Vegas Creek bed that bisects Las Vegas Bay. The sediment cover along the original Colorado River bed is continuous and is typically greater than 10-m thick throughout much of its length with the thickness in some areas exceeding 35 meters. The flat-lying nature of the deposits suggests that they are the result of turbidity currents that flow the length of the lake. The sediment cover in Las Vegas Bay is much thinner (rarely exceeding 2 m in thickness) and more discontinuous. The source for these sediments presumably is Las Vegas Wash and a series of other ephemeral washes that empty into this part of the lake. The presence of sediments along the entire length of the Las Vegas Creek bed suggests that turbidity currents probably are active here as well, and that sediment has been transported from these streams at least 10 km down the axis of this valley to where it enters Boulder Basin. Alluvial deposits and rock outcrops are still exposed on large parts of the lake floor.

Increased Power in Sediment Microbial Fuel Cell: Facilitated Mass Transfer via a Water-Layer Anode Embedded in Sediment.

PubMed

Lee, Yoo Seok; An, Junyeong; Kim, Bongkyu; Park, HyunJun; Kim, Jisu; Chang, In Seop

2015-01-01

We report a methodology for enhancing the mass transfer at the anode electrode of sediment microbial fuel cells (SMFCs), by employing a fabric baffle to create a separate water-layer for installing the anode electrode in sediment. The maximum power in an SMFC with the anode installed in the separate water-layer (SMFC-wFB) was improved by factor of 6.6 compared to an SMFC having the anode embedded in the sediment (SMFC-woFB). The maximum current density in the SMFC-wFB was also 3.9 times higher (220.46 mA/m2) than for the SMFC-woFB. We found that the increased performance in the SMFC-wFB was due to the improved mass transfer rate of organic matter obtained by employing the water-layer during anode installation in the sediment layer. Acetate injection tests revealed that the SMFC-wFB could be applied to natural water bodies in which there is frequent organic contamination, based on the acetate flux from the cathode to the anode.

Cloud layer thicknesses from a combination of surface and upper-air observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poore, Kirk D.; Wang, Junhong; Rossow, William B.

1995-01-01

Cloud layer thicknesses are derived from base and top altitudes by combining 14 years (1975-1988) of surface and upper-air observations at 63 sites in the Northern Hemisphere. Rawinsonde observations are employed to determine the locations of cloud-layer top and base by testing for dewpoint temperature depressions below some threshold value. Surface observations serve as quality checks on the rawinsonde-determined cloud properties and provide cloud amount and cloud-type information. The dataset provides layer-cloud amount, cloud type, high, middle, or low height classes, cloud-top heights, base heights and layer thicknesses, covering a range of latitudes from 0 deg to 80 deg N. All data comes from land sites: 34 are located in continental interiors, 14 are near coasts, and 15 are on islands. The uncertainties in the derived cloud properties are discussed. For clouds classified by low-, mid-, and high-top altitudes, there are strong latitudinal and seasonal variations in the layer thickness only for high clouds. High-cloud layer thickness increases with latitude and exhibits different seasonal variations in different latitude zones: in summer, high-cloud layer thickness is a maximum in the Tropics but a minimum at high latitudes. For clouds classified into three types by base altitude or into six standard morphological types, latitudinal and seasonal variations in layer thickness are very small. The thickness of the clear surface layer decreases with latitude and reaches a summer minimum in the Tropics and summer maximum at higher latitudes over land, but does not vary much over the ocean. Tropical clouds occur in three base-altitude groups and the layer thickness of each group increases linearly with top altitude. Extratropical clouds exhibit two groups, one with layer thickness proportional to their cloud-top altitude and one with small (less than or equal to 1000 m) layer thickness independent of cloud-top altitude.

Characteristics of the near-bottom suspended sediment field over the continental shelf off northern California based on optical attenuation measurements during STRESS and SMILE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trowbridge, J. H.; Butman, B.; Limeburner, R.

1994-08-01

Time-series measurements of current velocity, optical attenuation and surface wave intensity obtained during the Sediment Transport Events on Shelves and Slopes (STRESS) experiments, combined with shipboard measurements of conductivity, temperature and optical attenuation obtained during the Shelf Mixed Layer Experiment (SMILE), provide a description of the sediment concentration field over the central and outer shelf off northern California. The questions addressed are: (1) existence and characteristics of bottom nepheloid layers and their relationship to bottom mixed layers; (2) characteristics of temporal fluctuations in sediment concentration and their relationship to waves and currents; (3) spatial scales over which suspended sediment concentrations vary horizontally; and (4) vertical distribution of suspended sediment.

Reconstructing recent volcanic histories from high-resolution AUV sidescan sonar imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeo, I. A.

2016-12-01

Detecting high-resolution differences in age between young basaltic lava flows on the seafloor is notoriously difficult. However, using sediment thickness as a proxy for age it is possible to derive information on spatial extents, surface morphologies and lava flow age simultaneously using high-resolution sidescan sonar imagery. Ground truthing of this new method on cruise POS502 (July 2016) using photogrammetry from ROV cameras has provided constraints on the method allowing the detailed morphological changes and sediment cover thicknesses to be calibrated to produce reliable, quantitative ages for individual flow units. Sediment thickness is shown to be the primary controlling factor in backscatter intensity in most cases, although sediment redistribution by different flow morphologies can also affect the recorded reflection amplitudes. Seafloor lava flows were found to be very morphologically complicated on small scales, which may explain their relative unimportance when amplitude values are averaged over several tens of meters.

Restoring marsh elevation in a rapidly subsiding salt marsh by thin-layer deposition of dredged material

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ford, M.A.; Cahoon, D.R.; Lynch, J.C.

1999-01-01

Thin-layer deposition of dredged material on coastal marsh by means of high-pressure spray dredging (Jet-Spray??2) technology has been proposed as a mechanism to minimize wetland impacts associated with traditional bucket dredging technologies and to restore soil elevations in deteriorated marshes of the Mississippi River delta. The impact of spray dredging on vegetated marsh and adjacent shallow-water habitat (formerly vegetated marsh that deteriorated to open water) was evaluated in a 0.5-ha Spartina alterniflora-dominated salt marsh in coastal Louisiana. The thickness of dredged sediment deposits was determined from artificial soil marker horizons and soil elevation change was determined from sedimentation-erosion tables (SET) established prior to spraying in both sprayed and reference marshes. The vertical accretion and elevation change measurements were made simultaneously to allow for calculation of shallow (~5 m depth) subsidence (accretion minus elevation change). Measurements made immediately following spraying in July 1996 revealed that stems of S. alterniflora were knocked down by the force of the spray and covered with 23 mm of dredged material. Stems of S. alterniflora soon recovered, and by July 1997 the percent cover of S. alterniflora had increased three-fold over pre-project conditions. Thus, the layer of dredged material was thin enough to allow for survival of the S. alterniflora plants, with no subsequent colonization by plant species typical of higher marsh zones. By February 1998, 62 mm of vertical accretion accumulated at this site, and little indication of disturbance was noted. Although not statistically significant, soil elevation change was greater than accretion on average at both the spray and reference marshes, suggesting that subsurface expansion caused by increased root biomass production and/or pore water storage influence elevation in this marsh region. In the adjacent shallow water pond, 129 mm of sediment was deposited in July 1996 as a result of spraying, and despite initial shallow subsidence and continual erosion through February 1998, water bottom elevation was raised sufficiently to allow S. alterniflora to invade via rhizome growth from the adjacent marsh. Hence, thin-layer deposition of dredged material at this site was effective at restoring and maintaining marsh elevation after 1.5 years. However, if the open water sediment deposits are not soon completely stabilized via further vegetative colonization, erosion may eventually lower elevations to the level where emergent vegetation cannot persist.

Coeval gravity-driven and thick-skinned extensional tectonics in the mid-Cretaceous of the western Pyrenees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bodego, Arantxa; Agirrezabala, Luis M.

2010-05-01

The Mesozoic Basque-Cantabrian Basin in the western Pyrenees constitutes a peri-cratonic basin originated by rifting related to the Cretaceous opening of the Bay of Biscay. During the mid-Cretaceous the basin experienced important extensional/transtensional tectonics, which controlled the deposition of thick sedimentary successions. Many extensional structures have been documented in the basin but their thin-skinned/thick-skinned character is an unresolved question. In this field-based study, we characterize contemporaneous thin-skinned and thick-skinned deformations that took place during the filling of the mid-Cretaceous Lasarte sub-basin, located in the northeastern margin of the Basque-Cantabrian Basin (western Pyrenees). Most of these extensional structures and associated growth strata are preserved and allow us to characterize and date different deformation phases. Moreover, verticalization and overturning of the successions during Tertiary compression allow mapping the geometry of the extensional structures at depth. The Lasarte sub-basin constitutes a triangular sag bordered by three major basement-involved faults, which trend N, E and NE, respectively. These trends, common in the Variscan fault pattern of Pyrenees, suggest that they are old faults reactivated during the mid-Cretaceous extension. Stratigraphy of the area shows very thin to absent Aptian-Albian (and older) deposits above the upward border blocks, whereas on the downward blocks (sub-basin interior) contemporaneous thick successions were deposited (up to 1500 m). The sub-basin fill is composed of different sedimentary systems (from alluvial to siliciclastic and carbonate platforms) affected by syndepositional extensional faults (and related folds). These faults die out in a southwestward dipping (~4°) detachment layer composed of Triassic evaporites and clays. A NE-SW cross-section of the sub-basin shows NW- to N-trending six planar and two listric extensional faults and associated folds, which define a horst and graben system. Rollovers (unfaulted and faulted), hangingwall synclines and central domes are present in the hangingwalls of both listric and planar faults. Also, a fault-propagation fold, a forced fold and a roller have been interpreted. Synkinematic depositional systems and sediment-filled fissures are parallel to the NW- to N-trending tectonic structures. Based on the trend of tectonic structures, the orientation of sediment-filled fissures and the paleocurrent pattern of growth strata, a thin-skinned NE-SW to E-W extension has been deduced for the interior of the Lasarte sub-basin. Both the coincidence between the directions of extension and dip of the detachment layer and the characteristics of the deformation suggest a thin-skinned gravity-driven extensional tectonics caused by the dip of the detachment layer. Recorded extensional deformation event in the Lasarte sub-basin is contemporaneous with and would have been triggered by the extreme crustal thinning and mantle exhumation processes documented recently in both the Basque-Cantabrian Basin and the Pyrenees.

Cyanobacteria/Foraminifera Association from Anoxic/Dysoxic Beds of the Agua Nueva Formation (Upper Cretaceous - Cenomanian/Turonian) at Xilitla, San Luis Potosi, Central Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blanco-Piñón, A.; Maurrasse, F. J.; Rojas-León, A.; Duque-Botero, F.

2008-05-01

The Agua Nueva Formation in the vicinity of Xilitla, State of San Luis Potosí, Central Mexico, consists of interbedded brown shale (Grayish orange 10YR 7/4 to Moderate yellowish brown 10YR 5/4) and dark-gray fossiliferous limestone (Bluish gray 5B 6/1 to Dark bluish gray 5B 4/1), varying between 10 and 20 cm in thickness. The sequence also includes 2 to 4 cm- thick intermittent bentonite layers (Moderate greenish yellow 10Y 7/4, to dark greenish yellow 10Y 6/6 and Light olive 10Y 5/4). At the field scale, shaly intervals show no apparent internal structures, whereas most limestone beds show primary lamination at the millimeter scale (1-2 mm), and intermittent layers of black chert of about 5 cm thick. Pyrite is present as disseminated crystals and as 2 cm-thick layers. Bioturbation or macrobenthic organisms other than inoceramids do not occur in the Agua Nueva Formation at Xilitla. Unusual macrofossils are present only in limestone strata, and consist of well- preserved diverse genera of fishes such as sharks, Ptychodus sp. and teleosteans, Rhynchodercetis sp., Tselfatia sp., Goulmimichthys sp., and scales of Ichtyodectiformes, as well as ammonites and inoceramids (Blanco et al., 2006). The presence of Inoceramus (Mytyloides) labiatus (Maldonado-Koederll, 1956) indicates an Early Turonian age for the sequence. Total carbonate content (CaCO3 = TIC) varies between 62 and 94% in the Limestone beds, which yield Total Organic Carbon (TOC) from 0.4% to 2.5%; the shale intervals contain TIC values consistently lower than 33% and TOC lower than 0.8% Microscopically the limestone beds vary from mudstone to packstone composed essentially of coccoid cyanobacteria similar to coeval deposits in northeastern Mexico, Coahuila State, at Parras de La Fuente (Duque- Botero 2006). Similarly, the microspheroids are spherical to sub-spherical, and occur as isolated elements or aggregates forming series of chains of parallel-packed light lamina 1-2 mm thick. Filamentous cyanobacteria (> 1 mm in length) are also present oriented parallel to stratification. In addition to filamentous and coccoid cyanobacteria, the limestone beds contain rare benthic foraminifera, common planktic foraminifera, heterohelicids, Rotalipora spp., Rotalipora cf cushmani, Whiteinella spp, W. praehelvetica, which indicate a time interval from the latest Cenomanian to the earliest Turonian. Lithological, paleontological and microfacies data thus indicate that the sediments accumulated in open-marine to semi-restricted platform environments, under low-energy conditions. Primary lamination, pyrite and excellent degree of preservation of fishes, suggest that low oxygen concentration lead to the formation of anoxic/dysoxic conditions during the accumulation of these exceptional deposits, which are coeval with the worldwide development of OAE-2. Planktonic foraminifera and fishes indicate oxygenated conditions in the photic zone, but dysoxic/anoxic conditions near the bottom, which is consistent with the presence of inoceramids and the absence of bioturbation in the sediment.

Dust and Ice Deposition in the Martian Geologic Record

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tanaka, K.L.

2000-01-01

The polar layered deposits of Mars demonstrate that thick accumulations of dust and ice deposits can develop on the planet if environmental conditions are favorable. These deposits appear to be hundreds of millions of years old, and other deposits of similar size but of greater age in nonpolar regions may have formed by similar processes. Possible relict dust deposits include, from oldest to youngest: Noachian intercrater materials, including Arabia mantle deposits, Noachian to Early Hesperian south polar pitted deposits, Early Hesperian Hellas and Argyre basin deposits, Late Hesperian Electris deposits, and the Amazonian Medusae Fossae Formation. These deposits typically are hundreds of meters to a couple kilometers thick and cover upward of a million or more square kilometers. The apparent persistence of dust sedimentation at the south pole back to the Early Hesperian or earlier and the early growth of Tharsis during the Late Noachian and perhaps earlier indicates that extensive polar wandering is unlikely following the Middle Noachian. A scenario for the overall history of dust and perhaps ice deposition on Mars includes widespread, voluminous accumulations perhaps planetwide during the Noachian as impacts, volcanism, and surface processes generated large amounts of dust; the Arabia deposits may have formed as ice availability and dust accumulation waned. During the Early Hesperian, thick dust sedimentation became restricted to the south pole and the deep Hellas and Argyre basins; the north polar sedimentary record prior to the Amazonian is largely obscured. Deposits at Electris and Medusae Fossae may have resulted from local sources of fine-grained material - perhaps volcanic eruptions.

Horizontal to vertical spectral ratio measurements in Port-au-Prince (Haiti) area damaged by the 2010 Haiti earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Navarro, M.; Enomoto, T.; Benito, B.; Belizaire, D.; Navarro, D.; García-Jerez, A.; Dorfeuille, J.

2013-05-01

In order to evaluate ground shaking characteristics due to surface soil layers in the urban area of Port-au-Prince, short-period ambient noise observation has been performed approximately in a 500x500m grid. The HVSR method was applied to this set of 36 ambient noise measurement points to determine a distribution map of soil predominant periods. This map reveals a general increasing trend in the period values, from the Miocene conglomerates in the northern and southern parts of the town to the central and western zones formed of Pleistocene and Holocene alluvial deposits respectively, where the shallow geological materials that cover the basement increase in thickness. Shorter predominant periods (less than 0.3 s) were found in mountainous and neighbouring zones, where the thickness of sediments is smaller whereas longer periods (greater than 0.5 s) appear in Holocene alluvial fans, where the thickness of sediments is larger. The shallow shear-wave velocity structure have been estimated by means of inversion of Rayleigh wave dispersion data obtained from vertical-component array records of ambient noise. The measurements were carried out at one open space located in Holocene alluvial deposits, using 3 regular pentagonal arrays with 5, 10 and 20m respectively. Reliable dispersion curves were retrieved for frequencies between 4.0 and 14 Hz, with phase velocity values ranging from 420m/s down to 270 m/s. Finally, the average shear-wave velocity of the upper 30 m (VS30) was inverted for characterization of this geological unit.

Legacy sediment storage in New England river valleys: anthropogenic processes in a postglacial landscape

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Snyder, N. P.; Johnson, K. M.; Waltner, M.; Hopkins, A. J.; Dow, S.; Ames, E.; Merritts, D. J.; Walter, R. C.; Rahnis, M. A.

2016-12-01

Walter and Merritts (2008, and subsequent papers) show that legacy sediment associated with deposition in millponds is a common feature in river valleys of the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont region, with 1-5 m of fine sand and silt overlying Holocene soil and Pleistocene periglacial deposits. For this project, we seek to test the hypothesis that these field relationships are seen in New England, a formerly glaciated region with similar history and intensity of forest clearing and milldam construction during the 17-19th centuries. We study three watersheds, using field observations of bank stratigraphy, radiocarbon dating, and mapping of terraces and floodplains using lidar digital elevation models and other GIS datasets. The 68 km2 South River watershed in western Massachusetts exhibits the most extensive evidence for legacy sediment storage. We visited 17 historic dam sites in the watershed and found field evidence for fine sand and silt legacy sediment storage at 14, up to 2.2 m thick. In the 558 km2 Sheepscot River watershed in coastal Maine, we visited 12 historic dam sites, and found likely legacy sediment at six, up to 2.3 m thick. In the 171 km2 upper Charles River watershed in eastern Massachusetts, we investigated 14 dam sites, and found legacy sediment at two, up to 1.8 m thick. Stratigraphically, we identified the base of legacy sediment from a change in grain size to gravel at most sites, or to Pleistocene marine clay at some Sheepscot River sites. In the Sheepscot River, we observed cut timbers underlying historic sediment at several locations, likely associated with sawmill activities. Only at the Charles River were we able to radiocarbon date the underlying gravel (1281-1391 calibrated CE). At no site did we find a buried Holocene soil, in contrast to the field relations commonly observed in the Mid-Atlantic region. This may indicate that the New England sites have eroded to the pre-historic river bed, not floodplain surfaces. We attribute the variation in thickness and presence of legacy sediment at the New England sites to the existence or absence of upstream sediment supply in the form of thick (>5 m) glacial deposits. Of the three study watersheds, the South River has the most extensive glacial sediments, having been occupied by one or more ice-dammed lakes during the late Pleistocene, and the most legacy sediment storage.

An application of sedimentation simulation in Tahe oilfield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tingting, He; Lei, Zhao; Xin, Tan; Dongxu, He

2017-12-01

The braided river delta develops in Triassic low oil formation in the block 9 of Tahe oilfield, but its sedimentation evolution process is unclear. By using sedimentation simulation technology, sedimentation process and distribution of braided river delta are studied based on the geological parameters including sequence stratigraphic division, initial sedimentation environment, relative lake level change and accommodation change, source supply and sedimentary transport pattern. The simulation result shows that the error rate between strata thickness of simulation and actual strata thickness is small, and the single well analysis result of simulation is highly consistent with the actual analysis, which can prove that the model is reliable. The study area belongs to braided river delta retrogradation evolution process, which provides favorable basis for fine reservoir description and prediction.

Reconstructing the Glacial Cycle of the Last 150 ka in the Southern Bay of Bengal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holmes, B.; Dekens, P.; Weber, M. E.; Lantzsch, H.; Reilly, B. T.; Das, S. K.; Martos, Y. M.; Williams, T.

2017-12-01

The Himalayas and resulting monsoonal climate provide the source and mechanism for sediment deposition in the Bay of Bengal. Sediments from the distal Bengal Fan collected during IODP expedition 354, with the exception the westernmost Site U1454, show a several meter thick, hemipelagic top layer representing the Late Quaternary. This interval has abundant foraminifera throughout and therefore presents a unique opportunity to reconstruct oceanographic conditions, alongside records of terrestrial climate variability. We reconstructed oceanographic conditions at IODP site U1452 (8°N, 87°E, 3671 m water depth), in the southern Bay of Bengal. The age model was constructed by tuning the core's sediment lightness, L*, to the EDML ice core. The Toba Ash 1 (73.7 ka) is an additional constraint leading to an age model with a total of 35 tie points. We sampled the top 3.5 m of sediment at 2 cm resolution, and picked between 8 to 30 tests of the mixed surface layer planktonic foraminifera G. sacculifer from each sample. The tests were cracked open between two glass plates and the sample was homogenized before being split into separate aliquots for d18O and Mg/Ca analysis. Mg/Ca data range from 2.5 to 4.1 mmol/mol and show a SST change of 2-4°C between glacial and interglacial times. The δ18O data range from -2.63 to 0.17‰. The data shows the shift from the cooler glacial period into the warming interglacial period at 15 ka ending the LGM. The apparent late timing of the deglaciation in the record could be an artifact of lower resolution of the δ18O data (compared to the benthic stack). It is also possible the offset in the timing is due to the age model limitations and the assumption of linear sedimentation rates between tie points. We will further explore the age model implications by measuring d18O on benthic foraminifera where available in the sediment core. In collaboration with scientists from IODP Expedition 354, this data can be used to examine the link between tropical ocean conditions, monsoon strength, and glacial cycles.

Sedimentological characteristics of lake sediment of the Lake Jelonek (North Poland)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kramkowski, Mateusz; Filbrandt-Czaja, Anna; Ott, Florian; Słowiński, Michał; Tjallingii, Rik; Błaszkiewicz, Mirosław; Brauer, Achim

2016-04-01

Lake Jelonek is located in Northern Poland (53°45'58N, 18°23'30E). The lake is surrounded by forest, covers an area of 19,9 ha and has a maximum depth of 13,8 m. In 2013 and 2014 three overlapping and parallel series of long sediment cores JEL14-A-(1445 cm), JEL14-B-(1430 cm), JEL14-C-(1435 cm) and seven short gravity cores JEL13 (K1-K7) have been recovered from the deepest part of the lake. A continuous composite profile JEL14 covering 1426 cm has been established by correlation based on 28 distinct macroscopic marker layers. The sediment sequence can be divided into 15 (I-XV) lithological units. These units comprise biochemical calcite varves, homogeneous calcite-rich gyttja, homogeneous organic-diatomaceous gyttja, and sandy layers. The chronology established so far is based on 14 AMS 14C dates from terrestrial plant remains and tephrochronology (Askja AD-1875) and covers the interval from the Younger Dryas to present times. Based on the chronology and sedimentological characteristics the composite profile has been correlated to a previous core from which a detailed pollen diagram had been established (Filbrandt-Czaja 2009). Here we present initial results from thin section analyses for two intervals from the new composite record JEL14, (I) the uppermost 0-256 cm and (II) the interval from 768-1296 cm. Intercalated between these two varved interval is a thick section (512 cm) of homogeneous organic-ditomaceous sediments. We present varve micro-facies data in combination with μ-XRF element scanning for comprehensive reconstruction of the sedimentation processes in Lake Jelonek. Preliminary varve counting reveals that the uppermost 256 cm varved sediments comprise ca 925 years (2008-1083 AD), while the lower floating varve interval covers the time period from 1850 - 10500 cal a BP. This study is a contribution to the Virtual Institute of Integrated Climate and Landscape Evolution Analysis -ICLEA- of the Helmholtz Association; grant number VH-VI-415. References: Filbrandt-Czaja, A. 2009: Studia nad historią szaty roślinnej i krajobrazu Borów Tucholskich. pp. Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika.

Giant magnetoresistance (GMR) behavior of electrodeposited NiFe/Cu multilayers: Dependence of non-magnetic and magnetic layer thicknesses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuru, Hilal; Kockar, Hakan; Alper, Mursel

2017-12-01

Giant magnetoresistance (GMR) behavior in electrodeposited NiFe/Cu multilayers was investigated as a function of non-magnetic (Cu) and ferromagnetic (NiFe) layer thicknesses, respectively. Prior to the GMR analysis, structural and magnetic analyses of the multilayers were also studied. The elemental analysis of the multilayers indicated that the Cu and Ni content in the multilayers increase with increasing Cu and NiFe layer thickness, respectively. The structural studies by X-ray diffraction revealed that all multilayers have face centred cubic structure with preferred (1 1 0) crystal orientation as their substrates. The magnetic properties studied with the vibrating sample magnetometer showed that the magnetizations of the samples are significantly affected by the layer thicknesses. Saturation magnetisation, Ms increases from 45 to 225 emu/cm3 with increasing NiFe layer thickness. The increase in the Ni content of the multilayers with a small Fe content causes an increase in the Ms. And, the coercivities ranging from 2 to 24 Oe are between the soft and hard magnetic properties. Also, the magnetic easy axis of the multilayers was found to be in the film plane. Magnetoresistance measurements showed that all multilayers exhibited the GMR behavior. The GMR magnitude increases with increasing Cu layer thickness and reaches its maximum value of 10% at the Cu layer thickness of 1 nm, then it decreases. And similarly, the GMR magnitude increases and reaches highest value of pure GMR (10%) for the NiFe layer thickness of 3 nm, and beyond this point GMR decreases with increasing NiFe layer thickness. Some small component of the anisotropic magnetoresistance was also observed at thin Cu and thick NiFe layer thicknesses. It is seen that the highest GMR values up to 10% were obtained in electrodeposited NiFe/Cu multilayers up to now. The structural, magnetic and magnetoresistance properties of the NiFe/Cu were reported via the variations of the thicknesses of Cu and NiFe layers with stressing the role of layer thicknesses on the high GMR behavior.

Zone compensated multilayer laue lens and apparatus and method of fabricating the same

DOEpatents

Conley, Raymond P.; Liu, Chian Qian; Macrander, Albert T.; Yan, Hanfei; Maser, Jorg; Kang, Hyon Chol; Stephenson, Gregory Brian

2015-07-14

A multilayer Laue Lens includes a compensation layer formed in between a first multilayer section and a second multilayer section. Each of the first and second multilayer sections includes a plurality of alternating layers made of a pair of different materials. Also, the thickness of layers of the first multilayer section is monotonically increased so that a layer adjacent the substrate has a minimum thickness, and the thickness of layers of the second multilayer section is monotonically decreased so that a layer adjacent the compensation layer has a maximum thickness. In particular, the compensation layer of the multilayer Laue lens has an in-plane thickness gradient laterally offset by 90.degree. as compared to other layers in the first and second multilayer sections, thereby eliminating the strict requirement of the placement error.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Uribe, Fernando; Vianco, Paul Thomas; Zender, Gary L.

A study was performed that examined the microstructure and mechanical properties of 63Sn-37Pb (wt.%, Sn-Pb) solder joints made to thick film layers on low-temperature co-fired (LTCC) substrates. The thick film layers were combinations of the Dupont{trademark} 4596 (Au-Pt-Pd) conductor and Dupont{trademark} 5742 (Au) conductor, the latter having been deposited between the 4596 layer and LTCC substrate. Single (1x) and triple (3x) thicknesses of the 4596 layer were evaluated. Three footprint sizes were evaluated of the 5742 thick film. The solder joints exhibited excellent solderability of both the copper (Cu) lead and thick film surface. In all test sample configurations, themore » 5742 thick film prevented side wall cracking of the vias. The pull strengths were in the range of 3.4-4.0 lbs, which were only slightly lower than historical values for alumina (Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}) substrates. General (qualitative) observations: (a) The pull strength was maximized when the total number of thick film layers was between two and three. Fewer that two layers did not develop as strong of a bond at the thick film/LTCC interface; more than three layers and of increased footprint area, developed higher residual stresses at the thick film/LTCC interface and in the underlying LTCC material that weakened the joint. (b) Minimizing the area of the weaker 4596/LTCC interface (e.g., larger 5742 area) improved pull strength. Specific observations: (a) In the presence of vias and the need for the 3x 4596 thick film, the preferred 4596:5742 ratio was 1.0:0.5. (b) For those LTCC components that require the 3x 4596 layer, but do not have vias, it is preferred to refrain from using the 5742 layer. (c) In the absence of vias, the highest strength was realized with a 1x thick 5742 layer, a 1x thick 4596 layer, and a footprint ratio of 1.0:1.0.« less

CRUST 5.1: A global crustal model at 5° x 5°

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mooney, Walter D.; Laske, Gabi; Masters, T. Guy

1998-01-01

We present a new global model for the Earth's crust based on seismic refraction data published in the period 1948–1995 and a detailed compilation of ice and sediment thickness. An extensive compilation of seismic refraction measurements has been used to determine the crustal structure on continents and their margins. Oceanic crust is modeled with both a standard model for normal oceanic crust, and variants for nonstandard regions, such as oceanic plateaus. Our model (CRUST 5.1) consists of 2592 5° × 5° tiles in which the crust and uppermost mantle are described by eight layers: (1) ice, (2) water, (3) soft sediments, (4) hard sediments, (5) crystalline upper, (6) middle, (7) lower crust, and (8) uppermost mantle. Topography and bathymetry are adopted from a standard database (ETOPO-5). Compressional wave velocity in each layer is based on field measurements, and shear wave velocity and density are estimated using recently published empirical Vp- Vs and Vp-density relationships. The crustal model differs from previous models in that (1) the thickness and seismic/density structure of sedimentary basins is accounted for more completely, (2) the velocity structure of unmeasured regions is estimated using statistical averages that are based on a significantly larger database of crustal structure, (3) the compressional wave, shear wave, and density structure have been explicitly specified using newly available constraints from field and laboratory studies. Thus this global crustal model is based on substantially more data than previous models and differs from them in many important respects. A new map of the thickness of the Earth's crust is presented, and we illustrate the application of this model by using it to provide the crustal correction for surface wave phase velocity maps. Love waves at 40 s are dominantly sensitive to crustal structure, and there is a very close correspondence between observed phase velocities at this period and those predicted by CRUST 5.1. We find that the application of crustal corrections to long-period (167 s) Rayleigh waves significantly increases the variance in the phase velocity maps and strengthens the upper mantle velocity anomalies beneath stable continental regions. A simple calculation of crustal isostacy indicates significant lateral variations in upper mantle density. The model CRUST 5.1 provides a complete description of the physical properties of the Earth's crust at a scale of 5° × 5° and can be used for a wide range of seismological and nonseismological problems.

Spectral ellipsometry as a method for characterization of nanosized films with ferromagnetic layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hashim, H.; Singkh, S. P.; Panina, L. V.; Pudonin, F. A.; Sherstnev, I. A.; Podgornaya, S. V.; Shpetnyi, I. A.; Beklemisheva, A. V.

2017-11-01

Nanosized films with ferromagnetic layers are widely used in nanoelectronics, sensor systems and telecommunications. Their properties may strongly differ from those of bulk materials that is on account of interfaces, intermediate layers and diffusion. In the present work, spectral ellipsometry and magnetooptical methods are adapted for characterization of the optical parameters and magnetization processes in two- and three-layer Cr/NiFe, Al/NiFe and Cr(Al)/Ge/NiFe films onto a sitall substrate for various thicknesses of Cr and Al layers. At a layer thickness below 20 nm, the complex refractive coefficients depend pronouncedly on the thickness. In two-layer films, remagnetization changes weakly over a thickness of the top layer, but the coercive force in three-layer films increases by more than twice upon remagnetization, while increasing the top layer thickness from 4 to 20 nm.

Numerical simulations of sand production in interbedded hydrate-bearing sediments during depressurization

USGS Publications Warehouse

Uchida, Shun; Lin, Jeen-Shang; Myshakin, Evgeniy; Seol, Yongkoo; Collett, Timothy S.; Boswell, Ray

2017-01-01

Geomechanical behavior of hydrate-bearing sediments during gas production is complex, involving changes in hydrate-dependent mechanical properties. When interbedded clay layers are present, the complexity is more pronounced because hydrate dissociation tends to occur preferentially in the sediments adjacent to the clay layers due to clay layers acting as a heat source. This would potentially lead to shearing deformation along the sand/clay contacts and may contribute to solid migration, which hindered past field-scale gas production tests. This paper presents a near-wellbore simulation of sand/clay interbedded hydrate-bearing sediments that have been subjected to depressurization and discusses the effect of clay layers on sand production.

Thunder-induced ground motions: 2. Site characterization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Ting-L.; Langston, Charles A.

2009-04-01

Thunder-induced ground motion, near-surface refraction, and Rayleigh wave dispersion measurements were used to constrain near-surface velocity structure at an unconsolidated sediment site. We employed near-surface seismic refraction measurements to first define ranges for site structure parameters. Air-coupled and hammer-generated Rayleigh wave dispersion curves were used to further constrain the site structure by a grid search technique. The acoustic-to-seismic coupling is modeled as an incident plane P wave in a fluid half-space impinging into a solid layered half-space. We found that the infrasound-induced ground motions constrained substrate velocities and the average thickness and velocities of the near-surface layer. The addition of higher-frequency near-surface Rayleigh waves produced tighter constraints on the near-surface velocities. This suggests that natural or controlled airborne pressure sources can be used to investigate the near-surface site structures for earthquake shaking hazard studies.

The effect of bioturbation in pelagic sediments: Lessons from radioactive tracers and planktonic foraminifera in the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steiner, Zvi; Lazar, Boaz; Levi, Shani; Tsroya, Shimon; Pelled, Omer; Bookman, Revital; Erez, Jonathan

2016-12-01

Studies of recent environmental perturbations often rely on data derived from marine sedimentary records. These records are known to imperfectly inscribe the true sequence of events, yet there is large uncertainty regarding the corrections that should be employed to accurately describe the sedimentary history. Here we show in recent records from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea, how events of the abrupt disappearance of the planktonic foraminifer Globigerinoides sacculifer, and episodic deposition of the artificial radionuclide 137Cs, are significantly altered in the sedimentary record compared to their known past timing. Instead of the abrupt disappearance of the foraminifera, we observe a prolonged decline beginning at core depth equivalent to ∼30 y prior to its actual disappearance and continuing for decades past the event. We further observe asymmetric smoothing of the radionuclide peak. Utilization of advection-diffusion-reaction models to reconstruct the original fluxes based on the known absolute timing of the events reveal that it is imperative to use a continuous function to describe bioturbation. Discretization of bioturbation into mixed and unmixed layers significantly shifts the location of the modeled event. When bioturbation is described as a continuously decreasing function of depth, the peak of a very short term event smears asymmetrically but remains in the right depth. When sudden events repeat while the first spike is still mixed with the upper sediment layer, bioturbation unifies adjacent peaks. The united peak appears at an intermediate depth that does not necessarily correlate with the timing of the individual events. In a third case, a long lasting sedimentary event affected by bioturbation, the resulting peak is rather weak compared to the actual event and appears deeper in the sediment column than expected based on the termination of the event. The model clearly shows that abrupt changes can only endure in the record if a thick sediment layer settled on the sediment-water interface at once or if bioturbation rates decreased to very low values for a prolonged period of time. In any other case smearing by bioturbation makes an abrupt event appear to have started shortly before the real timing and end long after its true termination.

Variety and complexity in the mound of sedimentary rock in Gale Crater, Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Edgett, K. S.; Malin, M. C.

2011-12-01

NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, will be used to explore a portion of the lower stratigraphic record of the northwest side of a mound of layered rock ˜5 km thick in the 155 km-diameter Gale Crater. The rock materials are of a sedimentary origin, though the proportions of clastic sediment, tephra, and chemical precipitates are presently unknown. The mound is usually described as having lower and upper units separated by an erosional unconformity. However, some investigators recognize that it is considerably more complex. The stratigraphy displays vertical and lateral complexity; multiple erosional unconformities; filled, buried, interbedded, and exhumed or partly exhumed impact craters; evidence for deposition along the base of the mound followed by retreat of less-resistant rocks and abandonment of erosion-resistant materials shed from the mound; lithified sediments deposited at the mouths of streams that cut mound rock; inversion of intra-canyon stream channel sediment; and widening of canyons. On the northeast side of the mound there are landslide deposits, shed from the mound, that contain large blocks (10s to 100s of m) of layered rock in various orientations. The mound's highest feature does not exhibit layering and has been interpreted by some as being Gale's impact-generated central peak. However, its highest elevation exceeds that of most of the crater rim, an observation inconsistent with central peaks (where they occur at all) in martian craters of diameters similar to Gale. The layered materials that occur highest in the mound are also at elevations that exceed most of the crater rim; these exhibit repeated stratal packages that drape previously-eroded mound topography; they produce boulders as they erode, attesting to their lithified nature and requiring that a lithification process occurred in materials located ≥ 5 km above the deepest part of Gale. The lower mound strata, including the Curiosity field site, are diverse materials; they include strata of differing thickness, erosional expression, and tone. Resistant rocks form cliffs that shed boulders, less resistant rocks form shallow slopes. One relatively thin, dark unit, interpreted to be a marker bed that outcrops at various places across the lower mound (doi:10.1029/2009GL041870), is more resistant to erosion than sub- and superjacent beds and retains many small impact craters. Some of the lower mound rocks are cross-cut by channel or cavern fills; others are cut by reticulated patterns of filled cracks or ridges formed by inversion of these cracks. These reticulated features might be evidence of interaction between the lower mound rocks and groundwater; we anticipate the Curiosity team will find abundant evidence for dissolution and precipitation of minerals in these rock outcrops.

Effects of channel thickness on oxide thin film transistor with double-stacked channel layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Kimoon; Kim, Yong-Hoon; Yoon, Sung-Min; Kim, Jiwan; Oh, Min Suk

2017-11-01

To improve the field effect mobility and control the threshold voltage ( V th ) of oxide thin film transistors (TFTs), we fabricated the oxide TFTs with double-stacked channel layers which consist of thick Zn-Sn-O (ZTO) and very thin In-Zn-O (IZO) layers. We investigated the effects of the thickness of thin conductive layer and the conductivity of thick layer on oxide TFTs with doublestacked channel layer. When we changed the thickness of thin conductive IZO channel layer, the resistivity values were changed. This resistivity of thin channel layer affected on the saturation field effect mobility and the off current of TFTs. In case of the thick ZTO channel layer which was deposited by sputtering in Ar: O2 = 10: 1, the device showed better performances than that which was deposited in Ar: O2 = 1: 1. Our TFTs showed high mobility ( μ FE ) of 40.7 cm2/Vs and V th of 4.3 V. We assumed that high mobility and the controlled V th were caused by thin conductive IZO layer and thick stable ZTO layer. Therefore, this double-stacked channel structure can be very promising way to improve the electrical characteristics of various oxide thin film transistors.

Depositional setting of the Upper Jurassic Hith Anhydrite of the Arabian Gulf: An analog to holocene evaporites of the United Arab Emirates and Lake MacLeod of Western Australia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Alsharhan, A.S.; Kendall, C.G.St.C.

1994-07-01

The Upper Jurassic Hith Anhydrite is a major hydrocarbon seal in the Arabian Gulf region. Outcrops, core samples from the subsurface, and the literature indicate that the Hith Formation is composed mainly of anhydrite. In most locations where a section of the Hith Formation has been measured, this unit contains less than 20% carbonate much of which is in the form of thin laminations. This lack of carbonate, locally thick layers of salt, and the predominance of anhydrite favor a playa for the setting in which this sediment was accumulated. In fact, much of the Hith has the sedimentary characteristicsmore » of the Holocene Lake MacLeod playa of Western Australia, which is dominated by layers of gypsum and halite (what little carbonate that occurs is found in layers at the base of the section). Locally the Hith appears to have accumulated in a sabkha setting, particularly toward central Abu Dhabi where it pinches out into shallow-water, and peritidal carbonate. This sabkha setting is indicated by the interbedded relationship of the Hith anhydrites with these carbonates and the local predominance of horizontally flattened nodules and enterolithic layers of anhydrite. These latter features match some of the characteristic fabrics found in the Holocene coastal sabkhas of the United Arab Emirates. As with the local occurrences in the Hith, the Holocene sabkhas are dominated by carbonates and are divisible into a series of lateral facies belts. These are also expressed as equivalent vertical layers. Traced from seaward to landward, or from the base of the vertical sequence upward, these facies are characterized by (1) algal mat, (2) a layer of a gypsum crystal mush (3) active anhydrite replacement of gypsum (4) anhydrite with no gypsum mush, and (5) recycled eolianite and storm-washover sediments.« less

Huge domain-wall speed variation with respect to ferromagnetic layer thickness in ferromagnetic Pt/Co/TiO2/Pt films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Dae-Yun; Park, Min-Ho; Park, Yong-Keun; Yu, Ji-Sung; Kim, Joo-Sung; Kim, Duck-Ho; Min, Byoung-Chul; Choe, Sug-Bong

2018-02-01

In this study, we investigate the influence of the ferromagnetic layer thickness on the magnetization process. A series of ultrathin Pt/Co/TiO2/Pt films exhibits domain-wall (DW) speed variation of over 100,000 times even under the same magnetic field, depending on the ferromagnetic layer thickness. From the creep-scaling analysis, such significant variation is found to be mainly attributable to the thickness-dependence of the creep-scaling constant in accordance with the creep-scaling theory of the linear proportionality between the creep-scaling constant and the ferromagnetic layer thickness. Therefore, a thinner film shows a faster DW speed. The DW roughness also exhibits sensitive dependence on the ferromagnetic layer thickness: a thinner film shows smoother DW. The present observation provided a guide for an optimal design rule of the ferromagnetic layer thickness for better performance of DW-based devices.

Paleobathymetry from 3-D flexural backstripping: Implementation and application to NW Australia and Liberia passive margins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lovely, Peter; Chauvin, Benjamin; Brennan, Patrick; Laroche, Matt

2015-04-01

Understanding paleobathymetry is important to hydrocarbon explorationists, as it impacts depositional environments, reservoir quality, source rock preservation, hydrocarbon migration pathways, and paleo-stress. At long wavelengths (basin scale), bathymetry is controlled predominantly by isostatic compensation of vertical loads, which include sediment, water and spatial and temporal variations in the thickness and temperature of the crust and lithospheric mantle. Roberts, et al. (2003) present a workflow to account for these loads and derive paleobathymetry by 3-D flexural backstripping. However, to our knowledge, commercially packaged software for flexural backstripping is limited to two dimensions, and 3-D software is limited to Airy isostasy, which does not account for the elastic stiffness of the earth's crust and may, as a result, produce local error of 1km or more. We have developed a 3-D backstripping application that incorporates flexural isostasy, and is implemented in a workflow modeled after Roberts, et al. (2003). The application restores the isostatic components of basin geometry and bathymetry, and may account for the effects of sediment loading (isostasy & compaction), and rift-related subsidence (post- and syn-rift effects of homogeneous or depth-dependent pure-shear stretching models. Effects of dynamic topography, if quantifiable, may be prescribed as a bulk shift after backstripping. Implemented as a plug-in to Gocad, the application is accessible to a broad audience of geoscientists. The flexural isostasy implementation accounts for basin geometry and spatially heterogeneous layer thickness by discretizing each layer as a series of cylindrical loads of varying density and thickness at the nodes of a square grid. The isostatic effect of a single cylindrical load is provided by Brotchie & Silvester (1969) and the effect of multiple loads may be summed linearly. An iterative approach for calculating local water depth accounts for variations in eustatic sea level, allows for emergent topography, and overcomes potential pitfalls associated with the analytical solution for a "filled" basin. We review the numerical implementation of flexural backstripping, and discuss implications, as well as limitations, of paleobathymetric maps for source rock preservation and reservoir presence in two diverse passive margin settings: offshore Liberia and the Northwest Shelf of Australia.

Source to Sink Tectonic Fate of Large Oceanic Turbidite Systems and the Rupturing of Great and Giant Megathrust Earthquakes (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scholl, D. W.; Kirby, S. H.; von Huene, R.

2010-12-01

OCEAN FLOOR OBSERVATIONS: Oceanic turbidite systems accumulate above igneous oceanic crust and are commonly huge in areal and volumetric dimensions. For example, the volume of the Zodiac fan of the Gulf of Alaska is roughly 300,000 cubic km. Other large oceanic systems construct the Amazon cone, flood the Bay of Bengal abyss, and accumulate along trench axes to thickness of 1 to 7 km and lengths of 1000 to 3000 km, e.g., the Aleutian-Alaska, Sumatra-Andaman, Makran, and south central Chile Trenches. THE ROCK RECORD: Despite the large dimensions of oceanic turbidite systems, they are poorly preserved in the rock record. This includes oceanic systems deposited in passive-margin oceans, e.g., the Paleozoic Iapetus and Rheric oceans of the Atlantic realm, This circumstance does not apply to Cretaceous and E. Tertiary rock sequences of the north Pacific rim where oceanic turbidite deposits are preserved as accretionary complexes, e.g., the Catalina-Pelona-Orocopia-Rand schist of California and the Chugach-Kodiak complex of Alaska. These rock bodies are exhumed crustal underplates of once deeply (15-30 km) subducted oceanic turbidite systems. PATH FROM SOURCE TO TECTONIC SINK: The fate of most oceanic turbidite systems is to be removed from the sea floor and, ultimately, destroyed. This circumstance is unavoidable because most of them are deposited on lower plate crust destined for destruction in a subduction zone. During the past 4-5 myr alone a volume of 1-1.5 million cubic km of sediment sourced from the glaciated drainages of the Gulf of Alaska flooded the 3000-km-long Aleutian-Alaska trench axis. A small part of this volume accumulated tectonically as a narrow, 10-30-km wide accretionary frontal prism. But about 80 percent was subducted and entered the subduction channel separating the two plates. The subduction channel, roughly 1 km thick, conveys the trench turbidite deposits landward down dip along the rupturing width of the seismogenic zone. SEISMIC CONSEQUENCE OF THE TECTONIC SINK: Most great (Mw8.0 and larger) and giant (Mw8.5 and larger) megathrust earthquakes rupture along subduction zones fronted by thick sediment-filled (1 km and thicker) trench axes. For example, 75 percent of giant earthquakes broke at these trenches, and all earthquakes exceeding Mw9.0 ruptured adjacent to thickly sedimented trenches (2 km and thicker). Ruff (1989) first suggested that subduction of a thick section of sediment forms a relatively homogenous layer between the upper and lower plates that laterally smoothes the roughness of subducting sea-floor relief and rupture-arresting asperities. This condition favors long trench-parallel rupturing (more than 250 km), the hallmark of all great and giant megathrust earthquakes. In positive feedback, these huge strain-releasing shocks produce strong seafloor motions that trigger the flushing of sediment-charged turbidity currents to the trench axis and adjacent overflow fans. Subduction of these deposits recharges the subduction channel, sustaining conditions favorable to future great and giant megathrust ruptures. [Ruff, L., 1989, Do trench sediments affect great earthquakes occurrence in subduction zones, Pure and Applied Geophysics, v. 129, Nos. 1/2, p. 263-282].

Hydrocarbon pollution in the sediment from the Jarzouna-Bizerte coastal area of Tunisia (Mediterranean Sea).

PubMed

Zrafi-Nouira, I; Khedir-Ghenim, Z; Zrafi, F; Bahri, R; Cheraeif, I; Rouabhia, M; Saidane-Mosbahi, D

2008-06-01

This study investigated the presence and origin of hydrocarbon pollution in industrial waste water sediments found near the Jarzouna (Bizerte, Tunisia) oil refinery. Analyses of surface sediments (layer 1) and deep sediments (layer 2) showed that Total Hydrocarbon (TH) concentrations ranged from 602 +/- 7.638 microg/g in layer-1 to 1270 +/- 2.176 microg/g in layer-2. The results suggest that the deeper the sediment, the higher the level of total hydrocarbon found. The sedimentary Non Aromatic Hydrocarbon (NAH) and Aromatic Hydrocarbon (AH) concentrations ranged from 66.22 +/- 1.516 to 211.82 +/- 10.670 microg/g for NAH, and from 13.84 +/- 0.180 to 115.60 +/- 2.479 microg/g for AH. The high variability of these concentrations was associated with the location of the sediment collection sites. Aliphatic biomarker analysis revealed petroleum contamination close to the refinery rejection site, and biogenic sources further away. Petroleum contamination may be associated with increased industrial activity in the area of Jarzouna-Bizerte in the Mediterranean Sea.

Giant Subaqueous Pyroclastic-Flow Deposits Revealed: Sedimentological Revision of the Holocene Outcrops of Izu-Oshima Island, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hemmi, R.; Yoshida, S.; Nemoto, Y.; Kotake, N.

2010-12-01

The early-to-middle Holocene outcrops of Izu-Oshima island, 100 km SSW of Tokyo, comprise sand- to gravel-size pyroclasts, and exhibit undulating layered structures, with each wavelet typically measuring 5-10 m high. These outcrops were traditionally interpreted as exemplary subaerial "ash-fall" deposits in volcanology textbooks (e.g. Schmincke 2006). Our detailed sedimentological analyses, however, have revealed that it is of pyroclastic density-current origin, the majority of which formed in shallow-marine settings. The present study focuses on the outcrops along the western coast of the Island, where the three-dimensional architecture of the outcrops is superbly exposed, and the existing archaeological framework provides a reliable chronostratigraphic control. The outcrops contain abundant compound bedforms, where small bedforms (dunes/antidunes) occur within the larger bedforms. The compound bedforms exhibit four-fold hierarchy (ranks 1 to 4), and bedforms for each scale display dominantly upstream-accreting geometry. The largest scale (Rank 1) of these bedforms show wavy parallel-bedding geometry (each wavelet typically measuring 5-10 m high and 50-100 m wide). We interpreted the large-scale architecture as sediment waves (gigantic antidunes) similar to the one reported from the shallow-marine deposits associated with AD 79 Mt. Vesuvius eruptions (Milia et al. 2008). Moreover, we have identified crustacean burrows and other trace fossils indicative of a nearshore shallow-marine environment. The pervasive occurrence of these fossils throughout the outcrops and abundant water-escape structures also suggests their subaqueous origin. On the other hand, evidence of subaerial deposition (e.g., paleosols and rootlets) or subaerial reworking (e.g., lahar) is absent, except for some spots on several regional unconformities that divide 10’s-m-thick sediment-wave deposits. On some of these unconformities, ribbon- to fan-shaped lava and/or ancient human-dwelling sites (5.0-7.5 ka) are locally present. These observations suggest that the deposition of the pyroclastic and lava flow occurred near the coastline, with rapid fluctuations of relative sea level. Earlier workers suggested that these outcrops were “subaerial ash-fall” deposits, with each dm-thick layer representing a small eruption that occurred at about 150-year interval from 20 ka to 5 ka, with the total number of eruptions reaching or possibly exceeding 100 (Tazawa 1980). However, we suggest that these layers form several 10’s-m-thick unconformity-bounded units (sediment waves). Together with the abundant shallow-marine trace fossils, we believe that these outcrops are of subaqueous pyroclastic-flow origin, recording less frequent but much bigger catastrophic eruptions than previously thought. Without recognizing the stratal packaging patterns on the 2-D/3-D vertical cross-sections, these outcrops can easily be mistaken for ash-fall deposits, and the magnitude of eruptions can be vastly underestimated.

Geophysical and GIS study of gravel layer on Gyöngyös plain and Kőszeghegyalja, W-Hungary

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szabó, Vera; Kovács, Gabor

2014-05-01

The Western-Hungarian Gravel Cover (WHCG) is located between the Eastern Alps and the Danube Basin, surrounded by the Rába, Ikva, Pinka rivers, Kőszeg-Rechnitz and Sopron Mountains. The extension of the gravelly sediment coverage is approximately 3000 km2, the volume is ~30 million cubicmeter. The layers thickness changes between 5-35 m. My research area is limited to the Gyöngyös Plain which northern side belongs to the Kőszeghegyalja is also the part of the WHGC. The western boundary of this region is the wide, flat valley of the Gyöngyös stream, the northern is the Répce's asimmetric, steep valley. The plain itself has a very low angle, even slope to southeastern direction. The elevation of the plain is 190-260 meter above sea level. The northern side is more fragmented, incised by asimmetric valleys. The hight of this area could form a contiguous flat tilted surface with a consistent slope. The slope conditions of the plain are changing nearby Acsád village, becoming slightly steeper and tilted to east immediately next to a narrow ridge extending northward. This ridge is the eastern boundary of a 2 km wide depression with a steeper northern side flattened to southward. The purpose of my study is to explore the geometry of gravel layer and to infer the processes that could create it. Firstly I made a database from borehole descriptions collected from the research area. This database as basis for interpolated GIS models, show the gravels material properties, extension, distribution of thickness in a large scale depend on a borehole density. I compared these surfaces with Digital Terrain Models with SRTM- and a more detailed model, created from Hungarian National Grid map sheets (1:10 000). Golden Software Surfer and Global Mapper were used to interpolate, represent and interpret these surfaces. The models with the detailed borehole data show a 1-3 meter thick unsorted, unstratified gravel layer with reddish brown coloured clay or brown loam matrix. The gravel material is poorly rounded, 0.5-7 cm quartz, often with red coloured surface. The layer covers the total research area, follows the recent topography. The young alluvial sediment of Gyöngyös can easily be separated, because it has different presence both in geometry and material. In further part of the study was a near-surface geoelectrical resistivity tomography with Wenner-Schlumberger array type. It was carried out on three survey region in order to find out the small-scale disturbances of the gravel layer. Two sections were measured on undisturbed field to compare the results with the borehole datas and the surface models. Based on resistivity the clayey gravel is clearly separated from its loam cover, even though it has relative low apparent resistivity (30-45 ohmm) caused by solid clayey matrix. Another two sections were located across and near the ridge was mentioned above. These sections show deformations affected by tectonic impacts or periglacial frost effects. The last survey region lies on the northern part of the area, the western side of V-shaped valley belongs toKozár-Borzó stream. Three sections run from the top of the plateau level down towards the stream. The resistivity distribution shows cascading sediments mantled by redeposited gravelly material refers to usually periglacial mass-movement as solifluction. To sum the models, results of electrical tomograpy and compared with analogous formation environments, the studied gravel seems to be a periglacial pediment, affected by the freeze-thaw induced processes that produced a nearly flat surface, and the gravelly sediment with clay matrix. The study was supported by Hungarian Scientific Research Fund (OTKA NK83400) and was realized in the frames of TÁMOP 4.2.4.A/2-11-1-2012-0001 high priority "National Excellence Program - Elaborating and Operating an Inland Student and Researcher Personal Support System convergence program" project's scholarship support.

Examining the role of SGD on the nitrogen budget of the fourth largest estuary in the USA, Mobile Bay, Alabama

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dimova, N. T.; Montiel, D.; Lu, Y.; Adyasari, D.

2017-12-01

The present study aims to help understand further the importance of submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) to Mobile Bay, Alabama with respect to associated nitrogen (N-) fluxes. Based on a three-year long study we found that on a large scale, when comparing Mobile River discharge to SGD, during the dry season, the SGD flux is only 2.5% of Mobile River discharge, whereas, during the wet season, this contribution is less than 1%. However, when examining the nitrogen budget of MB, we found that during the dry season, SGD delivers about half of the fluxes to the Bay. Furthermore, we found that the distribution of these SGD-derived inputs along the MB shoreline is very heterogeneous. Shallow geophysical electrical resistivity imaging and multiple sediment cores recovered in the examined areas reveal a rich organic sediment layer (up to 80 cm thick at some locations) which is perhaps responsible for the observed enhanced N-fluxes. Ongoing microbial, DOM and stable isotope sediment examination aim to explain the geochemical processes responsible for the disproportionally large SGD-delivered nitrogen fluxes in the identified impacted coastal areas.

Rapid sedimentation of iron oxyhydroxides in an active hydrothermal shallow semi-enclosed bay at Satsuma Iwo-Jima Island, Kagoshima, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiyokawa, Shoichi; Ueshiba, Takuya

2015-04-01

Hydrothermal activity is common in the fishing port of Nagahama Bay, a small semi-enclosed bay located on the southwest coast of Satsuma Iwo-Jima Island (38 km south of Kyushu Island, Japan). The bay contains red-brown iron oxyhydroxides and thick deposits of sediment. In this work, the high concentration and sedimentation rates of oxyhydroxide in this bay were studied and the sedimentary history was reconstructed. Since dredging work in 1998, a thickness of 1.0-1.5 m of iron oxyhydroxide-rich sediments has accumulated on the floor of the bay. To estimate the volume of iron oxyhydroxide sediments and the amount discharged from hydrothermal vents, sediment traps were operated for several years and 13 sedimentary core samples were collected to reconstruct the 10-year sedimentary history of Nagahama Bay. To confirm the timing of sedimentary events, the core data were compared with meteorological records obtained on the island, and the ages of characteristic key beds were thus identified. The sedimentation rate of iron oxyhydroxide mud was calculated, after correcting for sediment input from other sources. The sediments in the 13 cores from Nagahama Bay consist mainly of iron oxyhydroxide mud, three thick tephra beds, and a topmost thick sandy mud bed. Heavy rainfall events in 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2004-2005 coincide with tephra beds, which were reworked from Iwo-Dake ash deposits to form tephra-rich sediment. Strong typhoon events with gigantic waves transported outer-ocean-floor sediments and supplied quartz, cristobalite, tridymite, and albite sands to Nagahama Bay. These materials were redeposited together with bay sediments as the sandy mud bed. Based on the results from the sediment traps and cores, it is estimated that the iron oxyhydroxide mud accumulated in the bay at the relatively rapid rate of 33.3 cm/year (from traps) and 2.8-4.9 cm/year (from cores). The pore water contents within the sediment trap and core sediments are 73%-82% and 47%-67%, respectively. The estimated production of iron oxyhydroxide for the whole fishing port from trap cores is 142.7-253.3 t/year/5000 m2. From sediment cores, however, the accumulation of iron oxyhydroxide sediments on the sea floor is 39-95 t/year/5000 m2. This finding indicates that the remaining 63%-73% of iron was transported out to sea from Nagahama Bay. Even with a high rate of iron oxyhydroxide production, the sedimentation rate of iron oxyhydroxides in the bay is considerably higher than that observed in modern deep-ocean sediments. This example of rapid and abundant oxyhydroxide sedimentation might provide a modern analog for the formation of iron deposits in the geological record, such as ironstones and banded iron formations.

Acoustic bed velocity and bed load dynamics in a large sand bed river

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gaeuman, D.; Jacobson, R.B.

2006-01-01

Development of a practical technology for rapid quantification of bed load transport in large rivers would represent a revolutionary advance for sediment monitoring and the investigation of fluvial dynamics. Measurement of bed load motion with acoustic Doppler current profiles (ADCPs) has emerged as a promising approach for evaluating bed load transport. However, a better understanding of how ADCP data relate to conditions near the stream bed is necessary to make the method practical for quantitative applications. In this paper, we discuss the response of ADCP bed velocity measurements, defined as the near-bed sediment velocity detected by the instrument's bottom-tracking feature, to changing sediment-transporting conditions in the lower Missouri River. Bed velocity represents a weighted average of backscatter from moving bed load particles and spectral reflections from the immobile bed. The ratio of bed velocity to mean bed load particle velocity depends on the concentration of the particles moving in the bed load layer, the bed load layer thickness, and the backscatter strength from a unit area of moving particles relative to the echo strength from a unit area of unobstructed bed. A model based on existing bed load transport theory predicted measured bed velocities from hydraulic and grain size measurements with reasonable success. Bed velocities become more variable and increase more rapidly with shear stress when the transport stage, defined as the ratio of skin friction to the critical shear stress for particle entrainment, exceeds a threshold of about 17. This transition in bed velocity response appears to be associated with the appearance of longer, flatter bed forms at high transport stages.

Slope failures and timing of turbidity flows north of Puerto Rico

USGS Publications Warehouse

ten Brink, Uri S.; Chaytor, Jason D.

2014-01-01

The submerged carbonate platform north of Puerto Rico terminates in a high (3,000–4,000 m) and in places steep (>45°) slope characterized by numerous landslide scarps including two 30–50 km-wide amphitheater-shaped features. The origin of the steep platform edge and the amphitheaters has been attributed to: (1) catastrophic failure, or (2) localized failures and progressive erosion. Determining which of the two mechanisms has shaped the platform edge is critically important in understanding landslide-generated tsunami hazards in the region. Multibeam bathymetry, seismic reflection profiles, and a suite sediment cores from the Puerto Rico Trench and the slope between the trench and the platform edge were used to test these two hypotheses. Deposits within trench axis and at the base of the slope are predominantly composed of sandy carbonate turbidites and pelagic sediment with inter-fingering of chaotic debris units. Regionally-correlated turbidites within the upper 10 m of the trench sediments were dated between ∼25 and 22 kyrs and ∼18–19 kyrs for the penultimate and most recent events, respectively. Deposits on the slope are laterally discontinuous and vary from thin layers of fragmented carbonate platform material to thick pelagic layers. Large debris blocks or lobes are absent within the near-surface deposits at the trench axis and the base of slope basins. Progressive small-scale scalloping and self-erosion of the carbonate platform and underlying stratigraphy appears to be the most likely mechanism for recent development of the amphitheaters. These smaller scale failures may lead to the generation of tsunamis with local, rather than regional, impact.

Depositional and deformational history of the Franciscan complex, northernmost California

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aalto, K.R.

1990-05-01

Pervasive extensional shear fractures and curvilinear arrays of clay and silt-filled veins in Franciscan Complex melanges and turbidites formed when Franciscan sediments were unlithified. Sandstone dikes both crosscut and follow fractures. Several scales of extensional faulting account for the juxtaposition of turbidites of different facies and/or with varying degrees of stratal disruption, the formation of sandstone lozenges and pinch-and-swell structures, and the formation of scaly foliation within the matrix of melange units. Within turbidites, the upper laminated portions of beds commonly contain abundant listric microfaults and the more massive lower portions of beds contain sediment-filled vein arrays. Veining and faultingmore » occurred concurrently and resulted in differential extension of upper verses lower portions of beds. The finer sediment in veins reflects both cataclasis and filtering in of clay and silt from vein walls. Most Franciscan rocks record an early pervasive, layer-parallel flattening strain, which may be related to the gravitational collapse of late Mesozoic Franciscan inner trench slope sediments that accompanied accretionary prism expansion resulting from underplating. However, some turbidites record noncoaxial extension that resulted from downslope creep of sediments. At Crescent City, sediment creep resulted in oversteepening of the Franciscan inner trench slope, which, in turn, may have triggered large-scale failure of slope materials resulting in the emplacement of the Crescent City olistostrome. The olistostrome crops out for 12 km along the coast, is up to 600 m thick, is in depositional contact with turbidites, and contains chiefly sandstone, greenstone, chert olistoliths up to 200 m across, and zones of slump-folded turbidites.« less

Role of Cu layer thickness on the magnetic anisotropy of pulsed electrodeposited Ni/Cu/Ni tri-layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dhanapal, K.; Prabhu, D.; Gopalan, R.; Narayanan, V.; Stephen, A.

2017-07-01

The Ni/Cu/Ni tri-layer film with different thickness of Cu layer was deposited using pulsed electrodeposition method. The XRD pattern of all the films show the formation of fcc structure of nickel and copper. This shows the orientated growth in the (2 2 0) plane of the layered films as calculated from the relative intensity ratio. The layer formation in the films were observed from cross sectional view using FE-SEM and confirms the decrease in Cu layer thickness with decreasing deposition time. The magnetic anisotropy behaviour was measured using VSM with two different orientations of layered film. This shows that increasing anisotropy energy with decreasing Cu layer thickness and a maximum of  -5.13  ×  104 J m-3 is observed for copper deposited for 1 min. From the K eff.t versus t plot, development of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in the layered system is predicted below 0.38 µm copper layer thickness.

Comparing Production and Placement of Warm-Mix Asphalt to Traditional Hot-Mix Asphalt for Constructing Airfield Pavements

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-08-01

Sasobit® STA 0+35 cross-section layer thicknesses as constructed............................... 36  Figure 50. Evotherm ™ center-line layer thicknesses...as constructed. ................................................ 37  Figure 51. Evotherm ™ STA 0+15 cross-section layer thicknesses as constructed...37  Figure 52. Evotherm ™ STA 0+25 cross-section layer thicknesses as constructed. .......................... 38  Figure 53

Geochemical effects of rapid sedimentation in aquatic systems: Minimal diagenesis and the preservation of historical metal signatures

USGS Publications Warehouse

Callender, E.

2000-01-01

Rapid sedimentation exerts a pronounced influence on early sedimentary diagenesis in that there is insufficient time for a sediment particle to equilibrate in any one sediment layer before that layer may be displaced vertically by another layer. These sedimentation patterns are common in surface-water reservoirs whose sedimentation rates (1-10 cm yr-1) are several orders of magnitude greater than those for natural lakes (0.01-0.5 cm yr-1). Two examples of the effects of rapid sedimentation on geochemical metal signatures are presented here. Interstitial-water data (Fe) from two sites in the Cheyenne River Embayment of Lake Oahe on the Missouri River illustrate the effects of changing sedimentation rates on dissolved species. Rapid burial during high-flow yrs appears to limit early sedimentary diagenesis to aerobic respiration. Solid-phase metal data (Pb) from a site in Pueblo Reservoir on the upper Arkansas River in Colorado appear to record historical releases by flooding of abandoned mine sites upstream in Leadville, Colorado. Interstitial-water ammonia and ferrous Fe data indicate that at least one interval at depth in the sediment where solid metal concentrations peak is a zone of minimal diagenesis. The principal diagenetic reactions that occur in these sediments are aerobic respiration and the reduction of Mn and Fe oxides. Under slower sedimentation conditions, there is sufficient time for particulate organic matter to decompose and create a diagenetic environment where metal oxides may not be stable. The quasi-steady-state interstitial Fe profiles from Tidal Potomac River sediments are an example of such a situation. This occurs primarily because the residence time of particles in the surficial sediment column is long enough to allow benthic organisms and bacteria to perform their metabolic functions. When faster sedimentation prevails, there is less time for these metabolic reactions to occur since the organisms do not occupy a sediment layer for any length of time. Also, the quantity and quality of the organic matter input to the sediment layer is important in that reservoirs often receive more terrestrial organic matter than natural lakes and this terrestrial organic matter is generally more refractory than autochthonous aquatic organic matter.

Study of interlayer coupling between FePt and FeCoB thin films through MgO spacer layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, Sadhana; Kumar, Dileep; Gupta, Mukul; Reddy, V. Raghvendra

2017-05-01

Interlayer exchange coupling between hard-FePt and soft-FeCoB magnetic layers has been studied with increasing thickness of insulator MgO spacer layer in FePt/MgO/FeCoB sandwiched structure. A series of the samples were prepared in identical condition using ion beam sputtering method and characterized for their magnetic and structural properties using magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE) and X-ray reflectivity measurements. The nature of coupling between FePt and FeCoB was found to be ferromagnetic which decreases exponentially with increasing thickness of MgO layer. At very low thickness of MgO layer, both layers were found strongly coupled thus exhibiting coherent magnetization reversal. At higher thickness, both layers were found decoupled and magnetization reversal occurred at different switching fields. Strong coupling at very low thickness is attributed to pin holes in MgO layer which lead to direct coupling whereas on increasing thickness, coupling may arise due to magneto-static interactions.

Metaporous layer to overcome the thickness constraint for broadband sound absorption

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Jieun; Lee, Joong Seok; Kim, Yoon Young, E-mail: yykim@snu.ac.kr

The sound absorption of a porous layer is affected by its thickness, especially in a low-frequency range. If a hard-backed porous layer contains periodical arrangements of rigid partitions that are coordinated parallel and perpendicular to the direction of incoming sound waves, the lower bound of the effective sound absorption can be lowered much more and the overall absorption performance enhanced. The consequence of rigid partitioning in a porous layer is to make the first thickness resonance mode in the layer appear at much lower frequencies compared to that in the original homogeneous porous layer with the same thickness. Moreover, appropriatemore » partitioning yields multiple thickness resonances with higher absorption peaks through impedance matching. The physics of the partitioned porous layer, or the metaporous layer, is theoretically investigated in this study.« less

Numerical Analysis of Ground-Water Flow and Salinity in the Ewa Area, Oahu, Hawaii

USGS Publications Warehouse

Oki, Delwyn S.; Souza, William R.; Bolke, Edward I.; Bauer, Glenn R.

1996-01-01

The coastal plain in the Ewa area of southwestern Oahu, Hawaii, is part of a larger, nearly continuous sedimentary coastal plain along Oahu's southern coast. The coastal sediments are collectively known as caprock because they impede the free discharge of ground water from the underlying volcanic aquifers. The caprock is a layered sedimentary system consisting of interbedded marine and terrestrial sediments of both high and low permeability. Before sugarcane cultivation ended in late 1994, shallow ground water from the upper limestone unit, which is about 60 to 200 feet thick, was used primarily for irrigation of sugarcane. A cross-sectional ground-water flow and transport model was used to evaluate the hydrogeologic controls on the regional flow system in the Ewa area. Controls considered were: (1) overall caprock hydraulic conductivity, (2) stratigraphic variations of hydraulic conductivity in the caprock, and (3) recharge. In addition, the effects of a marina excavation were evaluated. Within the caprock, variations in hydraulic conductivity, caused by caprock stratigraphy or discontinuities of the stratigraphic units, are a major control on the direction of ground-water flow and the distribution of water levels and salinity. Model results also show that a reduction of recharge will result in increased salinity throughout the caprock with the greatest change in the upper limestone layer. In addition, the model indicates that excavation of an ocean marina will lower water levels in the upper limestone layer. Results of cross-sectional modeling confirm the general ground-water flow pattern that would be expected in the layered sedimentary system in the Ewa caprock. Ground-water flow is: (1) predominantly upward in the low-permeability sedimentary units, and (2) predominantly horizontal in the high-permeability sedimentary units.

Depositional history and neotectonics in Great Salt Lake, Utah, from high-resolution seismic stratigraphy

USGS Publications Warehouse

Colman, Steven M.; Kelts, K.R.; Dinter, D.A.

2002-01-01

High-resolution seismic-reflection data from Great Salt Lake show that the basinal sediment sequence is cut by numerous faults with N-S and NE-SW orientations. This faulting shows evidence of varied timing and relative offsets, but includes at least three events totaling about 12 m following the Bonneville phase of the lake (since about 13.5 ka). Several faults displace the uppermost sediments and the lake floor. Bioherm structures are present above some faults, which suggests that the faults served as conduits for sublacustrine discharge of fresh water. A shallow, fault-controlled ridge between Carrington Island and Promontory Point, underlain by a well-cemented pavement, separates the main lake into two basins. The pavement appears to be early Holocene in age and younger sediments lap onto it. Onlap-offlap relationships, reflection truncations, and morphology of the lake floor indicate a low lake, well below the present level, during the early Holocene, during which most of the basin was probably a playa. This low stand is represented by irregular reflections in seismic profiles from the deepest part of the basin. Other prominent reflectors in the profiles are correlated with lithologic changes in sediment cores related to the end of the Bonneville stage of the lake, a thick mirabilite layer in the northern basin, and the Mazama tephra. Reflections below those penetrated by sediment cores document earlier lacustrine cycles. ?? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Potential Sedimentary Evidence of Two Closely Spaced Tsunamis on the West Coast of Aceh, Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monecke, Katrin; Meilianda, Ella; Rushdy, Ibnu; Moena, Abudzar; Yolanda, Irvan P.

2016-04-01

Recent research in the coastal regions of Aceh, Indonesia, an area that was largely affected by the 2004 Sumatra Andaman earthquake and ensuing Indian Ocean tsunami, suggests the possibility that two closely spaced tsunamis occurred at the turn of the 14th to 15th century (Meltzner et al., 2010; Sieh et al., 2015). Here, we present evidence of two buried sand layers in the coastal marshes of West Aceh, possibly representing these penultimate predecessors of the 2004 tsunami. We discovered the sand layers in an until recently inaccessible area of a previously studied beach ridge plain about 15 km North of Meulaboh, West Aceh. Here, the 2004 tsunami left a continuous, typically a few cm thick sand sheet in the coastal hinterland in low-lying swales that accumulate organic-rich deposits and separate the sandy beach ridges. In keeping with the long-term progradation of the coastline, older deposits have to be sought after further inland. Using a hand auger, the buried sand layers were discovered in 3 cores in a flooded and highly vegetated swale in about 1 km distance to the shoreline. The pair of sand layers occurs in 70-100 cm depth and overlies 40-60 cm of dark-brown peat that rests on the basal sand of the beach ridge plain. The lower sand layer is only 1-6 cm thick, whereas the upper layer is consistently thicker, measuring 11-17 cm, with 8-14 cm of peat in between sand sheets. Both layers consist of massive, grey, medium sand and include plant fragments. They show very sharp upper and lower boundaries clearly distinguishing them from the surrounding peat and indicating an abrupt depositional event. A previously developed age model for sediments of this beach ridge plain suggest that this pair of layers could indeed correlate to a nearby buried sand sheet interpreted as tsunamigenic and deposited soon after 1290-1400AD (Monecke et al., 2008). The superb preservation at this new site allows the clear distinction of two depositional events, which, based on a first estimate of sedimentation rates, are separated by only a few decades. Future microfossil and grain size analysis as well as radiocarbon dating are necessary to assertively interpret the origin, depositional characteristics and age of the two sand layers. Meltzner et al. (2010): Coral evidence for earthquake recurrence and an A.D. 1390 - 1455 earthquake cluster at the south end of the 2004 Aceh-Andaman rupture. J. Geophys. Res. 115, B10402. Sieh et al. (2015): Penultimate predecessors of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Aceh, Sumatra: Stratigraphic, archeological and historical evidence. J. Geophys. Res. Solid Earth, 120, 308-325. Monecke et al. (2008): A 1,000-year sedimentary record of tsunami recurrence in northern Sumatra. Nature, 455, 1232-1234.

Establishing a sediment budget in the newly created "Kleine Noordwaard" wetland area in the Rhine-Meuse delta

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Christien van der Deijl, Eveline; van der Perk, Marcel; Middelkoop, Hans

2018-03-01

Many deltas are threatened by accelerated soil subsidence, sea-level rise, increasing river discharge, and sediment starvation. Effective delta restoration and effective river management require a thorough understanding of the mechanisms of sediment deposition, erosion, and their controls. Sediment dynamics has been studied at floodplains and marshes, but little is known about the sediment dynamics and budget of newly created wetlands. Here we take advantage of a recently opened tidal freshwater system to study both the mechanisms and controls of sediment deposition and erosion in newly created wetlands. We quantified both the magnitude and spatial patterns of sedimentation and erosion in a former polder area in which water and sediment have been reintroduced since 2008. Based on terrestrial and bathymetric elevation data, supplemented with field observations of the location and height of cut banks and the thickness of the newly deposited layer of sediment, we determined the sediment budget of the study area for the period 2008-2015. Deposition primarily took place in channels in the central part of the former polder area, whereas channels near the inlet and outlet of the area experienced considerable erosion. In the intertidal area, sand deposition especially takes place at low-lying locations close to the channels. Mud deposition typically occurs further away from the channels, but sediment is in general uniformly distributed over the intertidal area, due to the presence of topographic irregularities and micro-topographic flow paths. Marsh erosion does not significantly contribute to the total sediment budget, because wind wave formation is limited by the length of the fetch. Consecutive measurements of channel bathymetry show a decrease in erosion and deposition rates over time, but the overall results of this study indicate that the area functions as a sediment trap. The total contemporary sediment budget of the study area amounts to 35.7×103 m3 year-1, which corresponds to a net area-averaged deposition rate of 6.1 mm year-1. This is enough to compensate for the actual rates of sea-level rise and soil subsidence in the Netherlands.

Eddy interaction model for turbulent suspension in Reynolds-averaged Euler-Lagrange simulations of steady sheet flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Zhen; Chauchat, Julien; Hsu, Tian-Jian; Calantoni, Joseph

2018-01-01

A Reynolds-averaged Euler-Lagrange sediment transport model (CFDEM-EIM) was developed for steady sheet flow, where the inter-granular interactions were resolved and the flow turbulence was modeled with a low Reynolds number corrected k - ω turbulence closure modified for two-phase flows. To model the effect of turbulence on the sediment suspension, the interaction between the turbulent eddies and particles was simulated with an eddy interaction model (EIM). The EIM was first calibrated with measurements from dilute suspension experiments. We demonstrated that the eddy-interaction model was able to reproduce the well-known Rouse profile for suspended sediment concentration. The model results were found to be sensitive to the choice of the coefficient, C0, associated with the turbulence-sediment interaction time. A value C0 = 3 was suggested to match the measured concentration in the dilute suspension. The calibrated CFDEM-EIM was used to model a steady sheet flow experiment of lightweight coarse particles and yielded reasonable agreements with measured velocity, concentration and turbulence kinetic energy profiles. Further numerical experiments for sheet flow suggested that when C0 was decreased to C0 < 3, the simulation under-predicted the amount of suspended sediment in the dilute region and the Schmidt number is over-predicted (Sc > 1.0). Additional simulations for a range of Shields parameters between 0.3 and 1.2 confirmed that CFDEM-EIM was capable of predicting sediment transport rates similar to empirical formulations. Based on the analysis of sediment transport rate and transport layer thickness, the EIM and the resulting suspended load were shown to be important when the fall parameter is less than 1.25.

Erosion under extreme climatic events in tropical climates : the case of the storm Helena (1963) in the Guadeloupe island (Lesser Antilles Arc)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allemand, P.; Lajeunesse, E.; Devauchelle, O.; Delacourt, C.

2012-04-01

he volume of sediment exported from a tropical watershed is dramatically increased during extreme climatic events, such as storms and tropical cyclones (Dadson et al. 2004; Hilton et al. 2008). Indeed, the exceptionally high rainfall rates reached during these events generate runoff and trigger landslides which accumulate a significant amount of sediments in flooded rivers (Gabet et al., 2004; Lin et al., 2008). We estimate the volume of sediments mobilized by the storm Helena (26 to 28 October 1963) on Basse-Terre Island in the archipelago of Guadeloupe. This is achieved using images acquired by IGN (Institut Géographique National) a few weeks after the storm which produced numerous landslides. All the available images from this campaign have been pseudo-orthorectified and included in a GIS with a Digital Elevation Model with a resolution of 10 m. Two hundred fifty three landslides have been identified and mapped. Most of them are located in the center of the island, where the highest slopes are. The cumulated surface of the landslides is 0.5 km2. Field observations on Basse-Terre show that landslides mobilized the whole regolith layer, which is about 1m thick. Assuming an average landslide thickness of 1m, we find that the total volume of sediment mobilized by the storm Helena is 0.5 km3. The associated denudation averaged over all watersheds affected by landslides is 1.4 mm with a maximum of 5 mm for the watersheds of Vieux-Habitants and Capesterre. The impact of the storm Helena is then discussed with respect to 1) the erosion induced on the Capesterre catchment by the highest flood available in a two years survey record (less than 0.1 mm/y); 2) the long term denudation rate of the major watersheds of Basse-Terre estimated by reconstructing the initial volcanic topography (between 0.1 and 0.4 mm/y).

The formation of giant clastic extrusions at the end of the Messinian Salinity Crisis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirkham, Christopher; Cartwright, Joe; Hermanrud, Christian; Jebsen, Christopher

2018-01-01

This paper documents the discovery of five multi-km scale lensoid bodies that directly overlie the upper surface of the thick (>1 km) Messinian Evaporite sequence. They were identified through the analysis of 3D seismic data from the western Nile Cone. The convergence of the upper and lower bounding reflections of these lensoid bodies, their external and internal reflection configuration, the positive 'depositional' relief at their upper surface, and the stratal relationship with underlying and overlying deposits supports the interpretation that these are giant clastic extrusions. The interpretations combined with the stratal position of these clastic extrusions demonstrate a prior unsuspected link between periods of major environment change and basin hydrodynamics on a plate scale. All five lensoid bodies were extruded onto a single, seismically resolvable marker horizon correlatable with the end of the Messinian Salinity Crisis (Horizon M). It is argued that the source of these clastic extrusions is pre-Messinian in origin, which implies massive sediment remobilisation at depth in the pre-evaporitic succession and intrusion through the thick evaporite layer. We propose that the scale and timing of this dramatic event was primed and triggered by near-lithostatic overpressure in the pre-evaporitic sediments generated through (1) their rapid burial and loading during the Messinian Salinity Crisis and (2) catastrophic re-flooding during its immediate aftermath. The largest of these clastic extrusions has a volume of over c. 116 km3, making it amongst the largest extruded sedimentary bodies described on Earth. The findings extend the understanding of the upper scale of other analogous clastic extrusions such as mud volcanoes and sediment-hosted hydrothermal systems. Following the 2006 eruption of the Lusi sediment-hosted hydrothermal system in Indonesia, an understanding of the upper scale limit of clastic extrusions has even greater societal relevance, in order to increase awareness of the risk posed by the potential size and longevity of future giant clastic extrusions.

Lag and light-transfer characteristics of amorphous selenium photoconductive film with tellurium-doped layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Wug-Dong; Tanioka, Kenkichi

2016-07-01

Amorphous selenium (a-Se) high-gain avalanche rushing amorphous photoconductor (HARP) films have been used for highly sensitive imaging devices. To study a-Se HARP films for a solid-state image sensor, current-voltage, lag, spectral response, and light-transfer characteristics of 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP films are investigated. Also, to clarify a suitable Te-doped a-Se layer thickness in the a-Se photoconductor, we considered the effects of Te-doped layer thickness on the lag, spectral response, and light-transfer characteristics of 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP films. The threshold field, at which avalanche multiplication occurs in the a-Se HARP targets, decreases when the Te-doped layer thickness increases. The lag of 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP targets with Te-doped layers is higher than that of the target without Te doping. The lag of the targets with Te-doped layers is caused by the electrons trapped in the Te-doped layers within the 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP films. From the results of the spectral response measurement of about 15 min, the 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP targets with Te-doped layers of 90 and 120 nm are observed to be unstable owing to the electrons trapped in the Te-doped a-Se layer. From the light-transfer characteristics of 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP targets, as the slope at the operating point of signal current-voltage characteristics in the avalanche mode increases, the γ of the a-Se HARP targets decreases. Considering the effects of dark current on the lag and spectral response characteristics, a Te-doped layer of 60 nm is suitable for 0.4-µm-thick a-Se HARP films.

Lutz's spontaneous sedimentation technique and the paleoparasitological analysis of sambaqui (shell mound) sediments

PubMed Central

Camacho, Morgana; Pessanha, Thaíla; Leles, Daniela; Dutra, Juliana MF; Silva, Rosângela; de Souza, Sheila Mendonça; Araujo, Adauto

2013-01-01

Parasite findings in sambaquis (shell mounds) are scarce. Although the 121 shell mound samples were previously analysed in our laboratory, we only recently obtained the first positive results. In the sambaqui of Guapi, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, paleoparasitological analysis was performed on sediment samples collected from various archaeological layers, including the superficial layer as a control. Eggs of Acanthocephala, Ascaridoidea and Heterakoidea were found in the archaeological layers. We applied various techniques and concluded that Lutz's spontaneous sedimentation technique is effective for concentrating parasite eggs in sambaqui soil for microscopic analysis. PMID:23579793

Lutz's spontaneous sedimentation technique and the paleoparasitological analysis of sambaqui (shell mound) sediments.

PubMed

Camacho, Morgana; Pessanha, Thaíla; Leles, Daniela; Dutra, Juliana M F; Silva, Rosângela; Souza, Sheila Mendonça de; Araujo, Adauto

2013-04-01

Parasite findings in sambaquis (shell mounds) are scarce. Although the 121 shell mound samples were previously analysed in our laboratory, we only recently obtained the first positive results. In the sambaqui of Guapi, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, paleoparasitological analysis was performed on sediment samples collected from various archaeological layers, including the superficial layer as a control. Eggs of Acanthocephala, Ascaridoidea and Heterakoidea were found in the archaeological layers. We applied various techniques and concluded that Lutz's spontaneous sedimentation technique is effective for concentrating parasite eggs in sambaqui soil for microscopic analysis.

Seismic structure of the crust and uppermost mantle of north America and adjacent oceanic basins: A synthesis

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chulick, G.S.; Mooney, W.D.

2002-01-01

We present a new set of contour maps of the seismic structure of North America and the surrounding ocean basins. These maps include the crustal thickness, whole-crustal average P-wave and S-wave velocity, and seismic velocity of the uppermost mantle, that is, Pn and Sn. We found the following: (1) The average thickness of the crust under North America is 36.7 km (standard deviation [s.d.] ??8.4 km), which is 2.5 km thinner than the world average of 39.2 km (s.d. ?? 8.5) for continental crust; (2) Histograms of whole-crustal P- and S-wave velocities for the North American crust are bimodal, with the lower peak occurring for crust without a high-velocity (6.9-7.3 km/sec) lower crustal layer; (3) Regions with anomalously high average crustal P-wave velocities correlate with Precambrian and Paleozoic orogens; low average crustal velocities are correlated with modern extensional regimes; (4) The average Pn velocity beneath North America is 8.03 km/sec (s.d. ?? 0.19 km/sec); (5) the well-known thin crust beneath the western United States extends into northwest Canada; (6) the average P-wave velocity of layer 3 of oceanic crust is 6.61 km/ sec (s.d. ?? 0.47 km/sec). However, the average crustal P-wave velocity under the eastern Pacific seafloor is higher than the western Atlantic seafloor due to the thicker sediment layer on the older Atlantic seafloor.

Relative Translucency of a Multilayered Ultratranslucent Zirconia Material.

PubMed

Shamseddine, Loubna; Majzoub, Zeina

2017-12-01

The aim of this study was to compare the translucency parameter (TP) of ultratranslucent multilayered (UTML) zirconia according to thickness and layer level. Rectangles of UTML zirconia with four layers [dentin layer (DEL), first transitional layer (FTL), second transitional layer (STL), and enamel layer (ENL)] and four different thicknesses (0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1 mm) were milled from blanks. Digital images were taken in a dark studio against white and black backgrounds under simulated daylight illumination and international commission on illumination (CIE) Lab* color values recorded using Photoshop Creative Cloud software. The TP was computed and compared according to thickness and layer level using analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Bonferroni post hoc analysis for multiple comparisons. Significance was set at p < 0.05. In each thickness, TP values were similar between any two layers. The significant effect of thickness on the TP was observed only in the first two layers. In the DEL, translucency was significantly greater at 0.4 mm than all other thicknesses. In the FTL, differences were significant between 0.4 and 0.8 mm and between 0.4 and 1 mm. The investigated zirconia does not seem to show gradational changes in relative translucency from dentin to enamel levels regardless of the thickness used. Thickness affected the TP only in the first two layers with better translu-cency at 0.4 mm. Since relative translucency does not seem to be significantly different between layers, clinicians can modify the apicocoronal positioning of the UTML layers within the restoration according to the desired Chroma without any implications on the clinically perceived translucency. While the thickness of 0.4 mm may be suggested for anterior esthetic veneers because of its higher translucency, the other thicknesses of 0.6 to 1 mm can be used to mask colored abutments in full contour restorations.

Mineral Trends in Early Hesperian Lacustrine Mudstone at Gale Crater, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rampe, E. B.; Ming, D. W.; Grotzinger, J. P.; Morris, R. V.; Blake, D. F.; Vaniman, D. T.; Bristow, T. F.; Morrison, S. M.; Yen, A. S.; Chipera, S. J.;

Non-Uniform Thickness Electroactive Device

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Su, Ji (Inventor); Harrison, Joycelyn S. (Inventor)

2006-01-01

An electroactive device comprises at least two layers of material, wherein at least one layer is an electroactive material and wherein at least one layer is of non-uniform thickness. The device can be produced in various sizes, ranging from large structural actuators to microscale or nanoscale devices. The applied voltage to the device in combination with the non-uniform thickness of at least one of the layers (electroactive and/or non-electroactive) controls the contour of the actuated device. The effective electric field is a mathematical function of the local layer thickness. Therefore, the local strain and the local bending/ torsion curvature are also a mathematical function of the local thickness. Hence the thinnest portion of the actuator offers the largest bending and/or torsion response. Tailoring of the layer thicknesses can enable complex motions to be achieved.

Identification of Sungai Batu Sediment using 2-D Resistivity Imaging and Seismic Refraction Methods for Ancient River Mapping at Kedah, Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andika, F.; Saad, R.; Saidin, M. M.; Muztaza, N. M.; Amsir

2018-04-01

Sungai Batu is an earliest civilization in Southeast Asia with evidenced by the discovery of riverside jetty, iron smelting, and ritual monuments. The evidences can lead to prediction of buried river caused by geological and sedimentation process. This study was conducted to study sediment deposit characteristic and to map thickness of the sediments using 2-D resistivity imaging and seismic refraction for ancient river mapping. A total of thirty, 2-D resistivity and nine seismic survey lines were conducted at the study area. Four of the lines R1-R4 and S1-S4 were correlated and validated with existing on site boreholes BH1-BH4 to identify sediment type and thickness. The validated values applied to the remaining survey lines which no borehole record to map the subsurface of the study area. Based on the results, Sungai Batu area consist of clay with resistivity value of 6.6-25.9 Ω.m and velocity value of 716.9-1606.9 m/s; sandy clay with resistivity value of 6-265.1 Ω.m and velocity value of 1003.6-1901.4 m/s; while shale was identified with resistivity value of >668.6 Ω.m and velocity value of >2051.7 m/s. Boundary between clay/sandy clay with shale was identified with resistivity value of 314 Ω.m and velocity value of 1822 m/s. The integration of the 2-D resistivity and seismic refraction identified that the thickness of Sungai Batu sediment is 0-150 m and Sungai Batu ancient river was successfully map based on thickness of sediment which is >45 m.