Dynamics of magma mixing and degassing recorded in plagioclase at Stromboli (Aeolian Archipelago,Italy)

Crystal-rich materials (scoriae and lava flows) emitted during the 1985–2000 activity of Stromboli were taken into consideration for systematic study of bulk rock/matrix glass chemistry and in particular for the study of chemical and textural zoning of plagioclase, the most abundant mineral phase. Over the considered time period, bulk rock composition remained fairly constant in both major (SiO₂ 49.2–50.9 wt% and K₂O 1.96–2.18 wt%) and trace elements. The quite constant chemistry of matrix glasses also indicates that the degree of crystallization of magma was maintained at around 50 vol%. Plagioclase ranges in composition between An₆₂ and An₈₈ and is characterized by alternating, <10–100 m thick, bytownitic and labradoritic concentric layers, although the dominant and representative plagioclase of scoriae is An_68. The labradoritic layers (An_62–70) show small-scale (1–5 µm), oscillatory zoning, are free of inclusions, and appear to record episodes of slow crystal growth in equilibrium with a degassed liquid having the composition of the matrix glass. In contrast the bytownitic layers (An₇₀-An₈₈) are patchy zoned, show sieve structure with abundant micrometric glass inclusions and voids, and are attributed to rapid crystal growth.A key to understanding the origin of bytownitic layers can be retrieved from the texture and composition of the coronas of plagioclase xenocrysts, inherited from crystal-rich magma, in nearly aphyric pumice which are erupted during more energetic events and represent a deep, volatile-rich, HK-basaltic magma. They show a continuum from fine-sieve to evident skeletal texture from the inner to the outer part of the corona associated with normal compositional zoning from An₉₀ to An₇₅. In the light of these observations, we propose that input of H₂O-rich melt blobs, and their mixing with the residing magma, causes partial dissolution of the labradoritic layers followed by the growth of bytownitic composition whose sieve texture attests of rapid crystallization occurring under undercooling conditions mainly induced by degassing. As a whole, the zoning of plagioclase in the scoriae records successive and discrete intrusions of volatile-rich magma blobs, its degassing and mixing with the resident degassed magma at shallow level.Editorial responsibility: T.L. GroveAn erratum to this article can be found at     

Spatial drought reconstructions for central High Asia based on tree rings

Spatial reconstructions of drought for central High Asia based on a tree-ring network are presented. Drought patterns for central High Asia are classified into western and eastern modes of variability. Tree-ring based reconstructions of the Palmer drought severity index (PDSI) are presented for both the western central High Asia drought mode (1587–2005), and for the eastern central High Asia mode (1660–2005). Both reconstructions, generated using a principal component regression method, show an increased variability in recent decades. The wettest epoch for both reconstructions occurred from the 1940s to the 1950s. The most extreme reconstructed drought for western central High Asia was from the 1640s to the 1650s, coinciding with the collapse of the Chinese Ming Dynasty. The eastern central High Asia reconstruction has shown a distinct tendency towards drier conditions since the 1980s. Our spatial reconstructions agree well with previous reconstructions that fall within each mode, while there is no significant correlation between the two spatial reconstructions.     

A predator–prey model for moon-triggered clumping in Saturn’s rings

UVIS occultation data show clumping in Saturn’s F ring and at the B ring outer edge, indicating aggregation and disaggregation at these locations that are perturbed by Prometheus and by Mimas. The inferred timescales range from hours to months. Occultation profiles of the edge show wide variability, indicating perturbations by local mass aggregations. Structure near the B ring edge is seen in power spectral analysis at scales 200–2000 m. Similar structure is also seen at the strongest density waves, with significance increasing with resonance strength. For the B ring outer edge, the strongest structure is seen at longitudes 90° and 270° relative to Mimas. This indicates a direct relation between the moon and the ring clumping. We propose that the collective behavior of the ring particles resembles a predator–prey system: the mean aggregate size is the prey, which feeds the velocity dispersion; conversely, increasing dispersion breaks up the aggregates. Moons may trigger clumping by streamline crowding, which reduces the relative velocity, leading to more aggregation and more clumping. Disaggregation may follow from disruptive collisions or tidal shedding as the clumps stir the relative velocity. For realistic values of the parameters this yields a limit cycle behavior, as for the ecology of foxes and hares or the “boom-bust” economic cycle. Solving for the long-term behavior of this forced system gives a periodic response at the perturbing frequency, with a phase lag roughly consistent with the UVIS occultation measurements. We conclude that the agitation by the moons in the F ring and at the B ring outer edge drives aggregation and disaggregation in the forcing frame. This agitation of the ring material may also allow fortuitous formation of solid objects from the temporary clumps, via stochastic processes like compaction, adhesion, sintering or reorganization that drives the denser parts of the aggregate to the center or ejects the lighter elements. Any of these more persistent objects would then orbit at the Kepler rate. We would also expect the formation of clumps and some more permanent objects at the other perturbed regions in the rings… including satellite resonances, shepherded ring edges, and near embedded objects like Pan and Daphnis (where the aggregation/disaggregation cycles are forced similar to Prometheus forcing of the F ring).     

Classification of F ring features observed in Cassini UVIS occultations

The Cassini Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS) has detected 27 statistically significant features in 101 occultations by Saturn’s F ring since July 2004. This work nearly doubles the number of features reported by Esposito et al. (Esposito, L.W. et al. [2008]. Icarus 194, 278–289). As the number of statistically significant features has grown, it has become useful to classify them for the purposes of cataloging. We define three classes: Moonlet, Icicle, and Core, which visually classify the shapes of features seen to date in the occultation profiles of Saturn’s F ring. Two features fall into the Moonlet class. Each is opaque in its occultation, which makes them candidates for solid objects. A majority of features are classified as Icicles, which partially block stellar signal for 22 m to just over 3.7 km along the radial expanse of the occultation. The density enhancements responsible for such signal attenuations are likely due to transient clumping of material, evidence that aggregations of material are ubiquitous in the F ring. Finally, the variety of core region shapes displays how even the general shape of the F ring is ever-changing. The core region of the F ring (typically ～10 km wide) usually has a smooth U-shape to it, but the core region takes the shape of Ws and Vs in some occultation profiles. Our lengthy observing campaign reveals that Icicles are likely transient clumps, moonlets are possible solid objects, and cores show the variety of F ring morphology. We suggest that icicles may evolve into moonlets, which are an order of magnitude less abundant.     

Holocene vegetation dynamics and hydrological variability in forested peatlands of the Clay Belt,eastern Canada,reconstructed using a palaeoecological approach

Forested peatlands are widespread in boreal regions of Canada, and these ecosystems, which are major terrestrial carbon sinks, are undergoing significant transformations linked to climate change, fires and human activities. This study targets millennial‐scale vegetation dynamics and related hydrological variability in forested peatlands of the Clay Belt south of James Bay, eastern Canada, using palaeoecological data. Changes in peatland vegetation communities were reconstructed using plant macrofossil analyses, and variations in water‐table depths were inferred using testate amoeba analyses. High‐resolution analyses of macroscopic charcoal >0.5 mm were used to reconstruct local fire history. Our data showed two successional pathways towards the development of present‐day forested peatlands influenced by autogenic processes such as vertical peat growth and related drying, and allogenic factors such as the occurrence of local fires. The oldest documented peatland initiated in a wet rich fen around 8000 cal. a BP shortly after land emergence and transformed into a drier forested bog rapidly after peat inception that persisted over millennia. In the second site, peat started to accumulate from ~5200 cal. a BP over a mesic coniferous forest that shifted into a wet forested peatland following a fire that partially consumed the organic layer ~4600 cal. a BP. The charcoal records show that fires rarely occurred in these peatlands, but they have favoured the process of forest paludification and influenced successional trajectories over millennia. The macrofossil data suggest that Picea mariana (black spruce) persisted on the peatlands throughout their development, although there were periods of more open canopy due to local fires in some cases. This study brings new understanding on the natural variability of boreal forested peatlands which may help predict their response to future changes in climate, fire regimes and anthropogenic disturbances.     

Applying VGI to collaborative research in the humanities: the case of ARTL@S

ABSTRACT

Using Artl@s as an example of a project that relies on volunteered geographic information (VGI), this article examines the specific challenges that exist, beyond those frequently discussed in general VGI systems (e.g., participants’ motivation and data quality control) in regard to sharing research data in humanities: (1) most data from the humanities is qualitative and collected from multiple data sources which are often inconsistent and unmappable; (2) data is usually interconnected with multiple relationships among different tables which creates challenges for both mapping and query functionality; (3) data is both geographical and historical. Consequently addresses that no longer exist have to be geolocated and visualized on historical basemaps and spaces must be represented diachronically; (4) the design of web map application needs to balance both sophisticated research requirements and a user-friendly interface; (5) finally contributors expect their data to be cited or acknowledged when used in other studies and users need metadata and citation information in order to reuse and repurpose datasets.

In this article, we discuss how Artl@s, a project which developed a georeferenced historical database of exhibition catalogues, addresses these challenges. Artl@s provides a case study for VGI adoption by digital humanities scholars for research data sharing, as it offers features, such as flexible batch data contribution, interrelated spatial query, automatic geolocalization of historical addresses, and data citation mechanisms.     

Stable isotopes and trace elements in modern ostracod shells: implications for reconstructing past environments on the Tibetan Plateau,China

Stable isotopes and trace elements in ostracod shells have been used widely in paleolimnological investigations of past lake hydrochemistry and climate because they provide insights into past water balance and solute evolution of lakes. Regional differences in lake characteristics and species-specific element fractionation, however, do not permit generalization of results from other regions or ostracod species to the southern Tibetan Plateau, in part because most common taxa from the southern Tibetan Plateau are endemic to the area. This study evaluated relations between present-day environmental conditions and the geochemical composition of modern ostracod shells from the southern Tibetan Plateau, to assess the suitability of using shell chemistry to infer hydrological conditions. We studied nine lakes and their catchments, located along a west–east transect in the south-central part of the Tibetan Plateau. Stable oxygen and carbon isotope values and trace element concentrations in recent shells from the four most abundant ostracod species (Leucocytherella sinensis, ?Leucocythere dorsotuberosa, Limnocythere inopinata, Tonnacypris gyirongensis) were measured, together with hydrochemical properties of host waters at the time of sampling. Results revealed significant between-species differences in stable isotope fractionation and trace element incorporation into shell calcite. Stable oxygen and carbon isotope values of ostracod shells were correlated significantly with the stable isotope composition of the respective water body \( \left( {\updelta^{18} {\text{O}}_{{{\text{H}}_{ 2} {\text{O}}}} \,{\text{and }}\updelta^{13} {\text{C}}_{{{\text{H}}_{ 2} {\text{O}}}} } \right) \), reflecting salinity and productivity, respectively. Offsets between δ¹⁸O_shell and δ¹³C_shell and inorganic calcite, the latter representing isotopic equilibrium, suggest shell formation of T. gyirongensis during spring melt. L. sinensis reproduces throughout the monsoon season until September and shows several consecutive generations, and L. inopinata molts to the adult stage after the monsoon season in August/September. The influence of pore water δ¹³C was displayed by L. inopinata, suggesting shell calcification within the sediment. Mg/Ca_shell is primarily influenced by water Mg/Ca ratios and salinity and confirms the use of this shell ratio as a proxy for precipitation-evaporation balance and lake level. In addition, Sr/Ca and Ba/Ca can be used to infer changes in salinity, at least in closed-basin lakes with calcite saturation. Observed effects of water Sr/Ca and salinity on Sr/Ca incorporation are biased by the presence of aragonite precipitation in the lakes, which removes bioavailable Sr from the host water, resulting in low Sr/Ca_shell values. Changes in carbonate mineralogy affect the bioavailability of trace elements, a process that should be considered in paleoclimate reconstructions. Oxygen isotopes and Mg/Ca_shell ratios were unaffected by water temperature. Positive correlations among Fe/Ca, Mn/Ca and U/Ca in ostracod shells, and their negative correlation with δ¹³C, which reflects organic matter decay, show the potential to infer changes in redox conditions that can be used to reconstruct past oxygen supply to bottom waters and thus past water-circulation changes within lakes. The intensity of microbial activity, associated with organic matter decomposition, can be inferred from U/Ca ratios in ostracod shells. These findings highlight the value of fossil ostracod records in lake deposits for inferring paleoenvironmental conditions on the southern Tibetan Plateau.     

Quantitative elemental mapping of granulite-facies monazite: Textural insights and implications for petrochronology

Texturally complex monazite grains contained in two granulite-facies pelitic migmatites from southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada, were mapped by laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (using spot sizes ≤5 µm) to quantitatively determine the spatial variation in trace element chemistry (with up to 1,883 analyses per grain). The maps highlight the chemical complexity of monazite grains that have experienced multiple episodes of growth, resorption and chemical modification by dissolution–precipitation during high-grade metamorphism. Following detailed chemical characterization of monazite compositional zones, a related U–Pb data set is re-interpreted, allowing petrologically significant ages to be extracted from a continuum of concordant data. Synthesis of these data with pseudosection modelling of prograde and peak conditions allows for the temporal evolution of monazite trace element chemistry to be placed in the context of the evolving P–T conditions and major phase assemblage. This approach enables a critical evaluation of three commonly used petrochronological indicators: linking Y to garnet abundance, the Eu anomaly to feldspar content and Th/U to anatectic processes. Europium anomalies and Th/U behave in a relatively systematic fashion, suggesting that they are reliable petrochronological witnesses. However, Y systematics are variable, both within domains interpreted to have grown in a single event, between grains interpreted to be part of the same age population, and between samples that experienced similar metamorphic conditions and mineral assemblages. These observations caution against generalized petrological interpretations on the basis of Y content, as it suggests Y concentrations in monazite are controlled by domainal equilibria. The results reveal a c. 45 Myr interval between prograde metamorphism and retrograde melt crystallization in the study area, emphasizing the long-lived nature of heat flow in high-grade metamorphic terranes. Such long timescales of metamorphism would be assisted by the growth, retention and dominance of high-Th suprasolidus monazite, as observed in this study, contributing to the radiogenic heating budget of mid- to lower-crustal environments. Careful characterization of monazite grains suggests that continuum-style U–Pb data sets can be decoded to provide insights into the duration of metamorphic processes.     

Chemical Procedures for Rhenium Extraction from Geological Samples: Optimising the Anion Resin Bead Clean‐up Step

Rhenium–osmium geochronometry for samples with low Re and complex matrices requires improved Re extraction methods. Here, we investigate plausible controls on efficiency and efficacy of Re extraction during our anion resin bead purification. Four different protocols are compared, each isolating a single variable to test. Rhenium concentrations for solutions at each step of each protocol document differences in chemical recovery/yield. The negative‐thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (N‐TIMS) signal intensity serves as a proxy for Re yield and purity. These data document correlations between the N‐TIMS signal intensity and (a) the duration of anion resin bead conditioning prior to loading with Re‐bearing solution, and (b) both duration and strength of nitric acid used during rinsing of the Re‐loaded anion resin bead. The optimal protocol improved Re signal intensity around fourteen times compared with our current Re extraction protocol, an aggregate of 2.4 times improvement in chemical recovery (yield) and 5.8 times improvement in emission efficiency (purity). Repeated N‐TIMS isotopic measurements on our in‐house Re standard solution (1407) verify that our optimal protocol‐3 does not fractionate Re isotopes. The improved anion resin bead method considerably lowers the Re detection limit and allows Re‐Os isotopic analysis of picogram‐level Re hosted in geological samples with complex matrices.