Shallow seismicity, triggered seismicity, and ambient noise tomography at the long-dormant Uturuncu Volcano, Bolivia

Using a network of 15 seismometers around the inflating Uturuncu Volcano from April 2009 to 2010, we find an average rate of about three local volcano-tectonic earthquakes per day, and swarms of 5–60 events a few times per month with local magnitudes ranging from −1.2 to 3.7. The earthquake depths are near sea level, more than 10 km above the geodetically inferred inflation source and the Altiplano Puna Magma Body. The Mw 8.8 Maule earthquake on 27 February 2010 triggered hundreds of earthquakes at Uturuncu with the onset of the Love and Rayleigh waves and again with the passage of the X2/X3 overtone phases of Rayleigh waves. This is one of the first incidences in which triggering has been observed from multiple surface wave trains. The earthquakes are oriented NW–SE similar to the regional faults and lineaments. The b value of the catalog is 0.49, consistent with a tectonic origin of the earthquakes. We perform ambient noise tomography using Love wave cross-correlations to image a low-velocity zone at 1.9 to 3.9 km depth below the surface centered slightly north of the summit. The low velocities are perhaps related to the hydrothermal system and the low-velocity zone is spatially correlated with earthquake locations. The earthquake rate appears to vary with time—a seismic deployment from 1996 to 1997 reveals 1–5 earthquakes per day, whereas 60 events/day were seen during 5 days using one seismometer in 2003. However, differences in analysis methods and magnitudes of completeness do not allow direct comparison of these seismicity rates. The rate of seismic activity at Uturuncu is higher than at other well-monitored inflating volcanoes during periods of repose. The frequent swarms and triggered earthquakes suggest the hydrothermal system is metastable.     

The effects of wildfires on the magnetic properties of soils in the Everglades

We present results of a rock‐magnetic study of soils that were affected by wildfires that burned portions of the Everglades in the Spring of 2008. Soils at sites that were extensively burned exhibit a pronounced surface magnetic enhancement effect with magnetizations of surface samples up to 16 times greater than that observed at depth (>7 cm) at these sites. The increase in magnetization results from an increased abundance of a low‐coercivity phase (maghemite) that occurs at the expense of the abundance of a high‐coercivity phase (goethite). These results indicate that fire‐induced heating caused goethite in the surface soils to convert into a more magnetic, low‐coercivity phase, such as maghemite. Goethite is an excellent adsorber of phosphorus, and therefore we hypothesize that the destruction of goethite as a result of burning may have important implications for phosphorus cycling in the Everglades ecosystem. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mobility of arsenic in a Bangladesh aquifer: Inferences from geochemical profiles, leaching data, and mineralogical characterization

Aquifer geochemistry was characterized at a field site in the Munshiganj district of Bangladesh where the groundwater is severely contaminated by As. Vertical profiles of aqueous and solid phase parameters were measured in a sandy deep aquifer (depth >150 m) below a thick confining clay (119 to 150 m), a sandy upper aquifer (3.5 to 119 m) above this confining layer, and a surficial clay layer (<3.5 m). In the deep aquifer and near the top of the upper aquifer, aqueous As levels are low (<10 μg/L), but aqueous As approaches a maximum of 640 μg/L at a depth of 30 to 40 m and falls to 58 μg/L near the base (107 m) of the upper aquifer. In contrast, solid phase As concentrations are uniformly low, rarely exceeding 2 μg/g in the two sandy aquifers and never exceeding 10 μg/g in the clay layers. Solid phase As is also similarly distributed among a variety of reservoirs in the deep and upper aquifer, including adsorbed As, As coprecipitated in solids leachable by mild acids and reductants, and As incorporated in silicates and other more recalcitrant phases. One notable difference among depths is that sorbed As loads, considered with respect to solid phase Fe extractable with 1 N HCl, 0.2 M oxalic acid, and a 0.5 M Ti(III)-citrate-EDTA solution, appear to be at capacity at depths where aqueous As is highest; this suggests that sorption limitations may, in part, explain the aqueous As depth profile at this site. Competition for sorption sites by silicate, phosphate, and carbonate oxyanions appear to sustain elevated aqueous As levels in the upper aquifer. Furthermore, geochemical profiles are consistent with the hypothesis that past or ongoing reductive dissolution of Fe(III) oxyhydroxides acts synergistically with competitive sorption to maintain elevated dissolved As levels in the upper aquifer. Microprobe data indicate substantial spatial comapping between As and Fe in both the upper and deep aquifer sediments, and microscopic observations reveal ubiquitous Fe coatings on most solid phases, including quartz, feldspars, and aluminosilicates. Extraction results and XRD analysis of density/magnetic separates suggest that these coatings may comprise predominantly Fe(II) and mixed valence Fe solids, although the presence of Fe(III) oxyhydroxides can not be ruled out. These data suggest As release may continue to be linked to dissolution processes targeting Fe, or Fe-rich, phases in these aquifers.     

Late Pleistocene (Last Interglacial) terrace deposits, Bahia Coyote, Baja California Sur, México

Late Pleistocene age terrace deposits are exposed in the narrow cliffed coastal plain of Bahia Coyote, Baja California Sur, resting unconformably on the lagoonal-shallow water volcaniclastics of the early Miocene Cerro Colorado Member of the El Cien Formation. The terrace is dissected by widely spaced arroyos and partically covered by alluvial fans in the inner and central areas. The marine deposits vary in thickness from 0.5 to 10 m and were laid down in pre-existing erosional channels and depressions in the Pleistocene landscape. The sequence begins with a cobble conglomerate with oyster shells, overlain by poorly bedded molluscan-rich bioclastic sands and coral rubble, beds of massive Porites in growth position and coral-rhodolith sands and marls. Beach sands and gravels and coastal dunes cap the sequence.Samples of Porites panamensis selected for U/Th dating are well-preserved aragonite (>95%). Preliminary results yield U/Th ages of 109–209 ka but the corals have initial δ ²³⁴U values in excess of modern seawater values. This indicates open-system behavior and uncertainty associated with the ages. A corrected age for the top of the massive Porites unit suggests that the corals grew during the last interglacial, marine isotope stage (MIS) 5e sea level high stand.Assuming global sea level during MIS 5e was ca. 4–5 m above present-day sea level (McCulloch and Esat, 2000) and the growth position of the corals was 1–5 m below sea level, the terraces have been uplifted between 12 and 25 m (12–15 cm/kyr). This is consistent with other terrace-based uplift rates for the central Baja California peninsula, north of the La Paz fault.     

A hypothesis on the locations of lunar gas venting

Both lunar transient phenomena and ²²²Rn/²¹⁰Po anomalies observed by Apollo-15 and -16 orbital alpha spectrometers display preferences for certain kinds of locations: rims of circular maria and craters with central peaks and/or dark floors. If these classes of observations are due to lunar gas venting, why are these types of locations preferred? The hypothesis offered is that these are locations at which cracks or channels exist extending deep enough into the moon to tap lunar volatile reservoirs. Possible channels include circumferential cracks around circular maria, old lava tubes for dark-floor and volcanic central peak craters, and shattered subsurface rock structure for impact central peak craters.     

Winter Cyclones and Circulation Patterns on the Western Great Lakes

The climatology of winter cyclones crossing the western Great Lakes was investigated. Data concerning storm strength, place of origin, and surface and 500 mb level synoptic characteristics were obtained from the months of October through February, 1955–1976, for 469 cyclones. November cyclones had the lowest mean pressure and strongest pressure gradient of the 5 months examined, but cyclonic frequencies were greatest in December and January. In all months, cyclones originating in the southwestern United States were significantly deeper than storms of northern origins, and these cyclones crossed the western Lakes most frequently in November. In November, cyclogenesis in the southwest was related to departures of the observed flow from the mean monthly mid-tropospheric circulation with trough development over the west. Yearly variations in the number of severe November cyclones were related to differences of mean monthly 500 mb flow.     

Evidence for the silicate source of relict soils on the Edwards Plateau, central Texas

Relict soils provide insights into Quaternary soil formation and erosion on the Edwards Plateau of central Texas and into soil-forming processes in karst terranes. Late Quaternary climate-driven soil erosion produced a mosaic of thick and thin soils on the Edwards Plateau landscape. Thick soils on uplands of the Edwards Plateau are interpreted to be relicts of a formerly more extensive soil cover that was eroded during the late Pleistocene to middle Holocene. The relict, thick soils are silicate-rich and most commonly overlie the relatively silicate-poor Cretaceous Edwards Limestone, which supports the idea that the thick soils did not form from weathering of the underlying limestone. Other potential sources of silicates for the relict soils include dust, alluvial sediments, and the Del Rio Clay, a stratigraphically higher but locally eroded clay-rich unit. Here we investigate the geographic distribution, texture, clay-sized mineralogy, rare earth element geochemistry, and neodymium isotope composition of the relict soils. We have found that the relict, thick soils are deeply weathered soils that occur dominantly over the Edwards Limestone and have a high clay content and a neodymium isotope composition that is similar to that of the Del Rio Clay. Thus, we propose that in situ weathering of the Del Rio Clay, along with partial weathering of the upper portion of the underlying Edwards Limestone produced thick chert- and clay-rich soils over resistant limestone. In areas like the Edwards Plateau, where pure limestones are interbedded with clay-rich strata, the overlying clay-rich strata must be considered as a possible silicate source to soils on pure limestone bedrock.     

Interfacial energy effects and the evolution of pore size distributions during quartz precipitation in sandstone

Pore size is usually thought to control the rate of crystal growth in porous geological media by determining the ratio of mineral surface area to fluid volume. However, theory suggests that in micron-scale to nanometer scale pores, interfacial energy (surface energy) effects can also become important. Interfacial energy typically increases the solubility of very small crystals growing in tiny pores, and when the fluid is close to equilibrium - as is often the case in geological systems - mineral precipitation could occur in relatively large pores, while in very small adjacent pores crystal growth might be suppressed. Such a mechanism would effectively restrict the reactive surface area of the porous medium, thereby reducing the bulk reaction rate. We investigated the pore size distributions in naturally cemented sandstone adjacent to an isolated stylolite and found that quartz precipitation was inhibited in pores smaller than 10 μm in diameter. Furthermore, we demonstrate that kinetic formulations which assume constant solubility cannot reproduce the observed pore size patterns in mineralized samples; by contrast, excellent fits with the data are obtained when interfacial energy effects are taken into account. Reaction rates in geological media determined in field studies can be orders of magnitude lower than those measured in laboratory experiments, and we propose that reduced reaction rates in porous media with micron and submicron-scale porosity could account for much of the apparent paradox.     

Coronal images from the 1984 solar eclipse

We present digitized photographs of the white-light solar corona taken during the total solar eclipse of 22–23 November, 1984, on both calibrated black-and-white film and on color film. Conditions on site in Hula, Papua New Guinea, were exceptionally clear. The color image was used to produce an isophotal map of the inner corona, from which a flattening coefficient of 0.23 was measured. The black-and-white image was enhanced through a digital radial filter. Our images are the best processed images available from the 1984 eclipse and so provide important data for synoptic observations.