Earthquakes in Switzerland and surrounding regions during 2006     

Manfred Baer  Nicolas Deichmann  Jochen Braunmiller  John Clinton  Stephan Husen  Donat Fäh  Domenico Giardini  Philipp Kästli  Urs Kradolfer  Stefan Wiemer 《Swiss Journal of Geoscience》2007,100(3):517-528

This report of the Swiss Seismological Service summarizes the seismic activity in Switzerland and surrounding regions during 2006. During this period, 572 earthquakes and 91 quarry blasts were detected and located in the region under consideration. Of these earthquakes, two occurred in conjunction with the construction of the new Gotthard railway tunnel and 165 were induced artificially by the stimulation of a proposed geothermal reservoir beneath the city of Basel. With 20 events with M _L ≥ 2.5, five of which were artificially induced, the seismic activity in the year 2006 was far below the average over the previous 31 years. Nevertheless, six events were felt by the public, most prominently the strongest of the induced Basel events (M _L 3.4), which caused some non-structural building damage. Noteworthy are also the two earthquakes near Cortaillod (M _L 3.2), on the shore of Lake Neuchatel, and in Val Mora (M _L 3.5), between the Engadin and Val Müstair, as well as the 42 aftershocks of the M _L 4.9 Vallorcine earthquake, between Martigny and Chamonix, of September 2005. Editorial handling: Stefan Bucher  相似文献   

Garnet reequilibration and growth in the eclogite facies and geodynamical evolution near peak metamorphic conditions     

Hugues Raimbourg  Bruno Goffé  Laurent Jolivet 《Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology》2007,153(1):1-28

Caledonian eclogite-facies metamorphism partially reworking Grenvillian granulite-facies anorthosite allows us to study the processes of garnet reequilibration at high pressure and to reconstruct the evolution of the unit near metamorphic peak conditions. Our results indicate that eclogite-facies metamorphism happened in two successive phases: first, inherited granulitic garnet was fractured and reequilibrated from their boundaries (crystal or fracture rims); then eclogite-facies minerals were crystallised in the fractures as overgrowths on inherited garnets. The reequilibration of inherited garnets is achieved through Fe²⁺Mg⁻¹ exchange, whereas eclogite-facies garnets crystallised during the subsequent phase are notably richer in Ca than un- and re-equilibrated granulitic garnet. Pseudosection construction shows that this lack in Ca reequilibration cannot be related to variations in thermodynamic conditions (a _H2O, reacting system composition) between the two phases. From the compilation of the available data, the reequilibration of granulitic garnet seems to be controlled by the inefficient intra- and inter-granular transport properties of Ca compared to Fe²⁺ and Mg. While these kinetic factors confine garnet reequilibration to Fe²⁺Mg⁻¹ exchange, the extent of reequilibration along this exchange vector is controlled by partitioning with adjacent omphacite. On the contrary to the diffusional reequilibration of granulitic garnet that lasted for several My according to our modelling of the diffusional relaxation, the strong compositional gradients between eclogite-facies and reequilibrated garnets, which are almost unaffected by diffusional reequilibration, provide evidence that rapid exhumation followed the crystallisation of eclogite-facies minerals. We propose that the movement reversal itself, from burial to exhumation, and associated deformation and fluid flow, triggered this crystallisation event. The resulting evolution near metamorphic peak conditions is therefore strongly asymmetrical: on the one hand, the prograde diffusional relaxation profiles indicate slow movement during the last stages of burial, whereas the unaffected retrograde overgrowth indicates fast exhumation rates.  相似文献   

Tethyan-to-boreal correlation in the Kimmeridgian using high-resolution sequence stratigraphy (Vocontian Basin,Swiss Jura,Boulonnais, Dorset)     

C. Colombié  N. Rameil 《International Journal of Earth Sciences》2007,96(3):567-591

Ammonite biostratigraphy plays a central role in the definition of Jurassic stratigraphy. Nevertheless, the strong provincialism of European ammonite species during the Kimmeridgian is a long-standing problem in correlation attempts between the boreal and Tethyan faunal realms. Moreover, the sequence-stratigraphic interpretations for northern and southern Europe given in the Jurassic chronostratigraphic chart of Hardenbol et al. in SEPM Publ. 60 (chart) (1998) are different. The present study aims to resolve this correlation problem in order to better understand the connections between the boreal and the Tethyan realms during the Kimmeridgian. A sedimentological and high-resolution sequence-stratigraphic interpretation is presented for two unpublished sections (Cras d’Hermont and Roche de Mars) in the northern Swiss Jura, where recently discovered ammonites display both boreal and Tethyan influences. Then, these sections are correlated with the same time interval in the central Swiss Jura and Vocontian Basin, which belong to the Tethyan realm. Lastly, a long-distance transect is constructed between the Vocontian Basin, Swiss Jura, northern France, and southern England, the last two areas being part of the sub-boreal realm. The main results of this work are that: (1) third-order depositional sequences, and also higher-frequency sequences, can be correlated from the Tethyan to the boreal realm; (2) the sequence-stratigraphic interpretation given by Hardenbol et al. in SEPM Publ 60 (chart) (1998) for northern Europe seems to be accurate and agrees with the sequence-stratigraphic framework established in the Swiss Jura; (3) the Late Kimmeridgian of the Swiss Jura displays boreal influences; (4) integrated high-resolution sequence-stratigraphic and cyclostratigraphic studies are a valuable approach for bridging the correlation gap between northern and southern Europe.  相似文献   

Factors Controlling Sulfide Geochemistry in Sub-tropical Estuarine and Bay Sediments     

John W. Morse  Heather Thomson  David W. Finneran 《Aquatic Geochemistry》2007,13(2):143-156

The primary factors that control the concentration of total reduced (inorganic) sulfide in coastal sediments are believed to be the availability of reactive iron, dissolved sulfate and metabolizable organic carbon. We selected nine sites in shallow (<3 m), close to sub-tropical, estuaries and bays along the central Texas coast that represented a range in sediment grain size (a proxy for reactive iron), salinity (a proxy for dissolved sulfate), and total organic carbon (a proxy for metabolizable organic carbon). Based on these parameters a prediction was made of which factor was likely to control total reduced sulfide at each site and what the relative total reduced sulfide concentration was likely to be. To test the prediction, the sediments were analyzed for total reduced sulfide, acid volatile sulfide, and citrate dithionate-extractable, HCl-extractable and total Fe in the solid phase. Using solid-state gold–mercury amalgam microelectrodes and voltammetry, we determined pore water depth profiles of Fe(II) and ΣH₂S and presence or absence of FeS_(aq). At five of the nine sites the calculated degree of sufildization of citrate dithionite-reactive-iron was close to or greater than 1 indicating that rapidly reactive iron was probably the limiting factor for iron sulfide mineral formation. At one site (salinity = 0.9) dissolved Fe(II) was high, ΣH₂S was undetectable and the total reduced sulfide concentration was low indicating sulfate limitation. At the last three sites a low degree of sulfidization and modest total reduced (inorganic) sulfide concentrations appeared to be the result of a limited supply of metabolizable organic carbon. Fe(II)–S(-II) clusters (FeS_(aq)) were undetectable in 10 out of 12 bay sediment profiles where ΣH₂S was close to or below detection limits, but was observed in all other porewater profiles. Acid volatile sulfide, but not total reduced sulfide, was well correlated with total organic carbon and ranged from being undetectable in some cores to representing a major portion of total reduced sulfide in other cores. Although predicted controls on total reduced sulfide were good for very low salinity water or sandy sediments, they were only right about half the time for the other sediments. The likely reasons for the wrong predictions are the poor correlation of total organic carbon with grain size and differing fractions of metabolizable organic carbon in different sedimentary environments. Differences in sediment accumulation rates may also play a role, but these are difficult to determine in this region where hurricanes often resuspend and move sediments. This study demonstrates the need to examine more complex and often difficult to determine parameters in anoxic “normal marine” sediments if we are to understand what controls the concentration and distribution of sulfides.  相似文献   

Compaction localization in the Earth and the laboratory: state of the research and research directions   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：1  

David Holcomb  John W. Rudnicki  Kathleen A. Issen  Kurt Sternlof 《Acta Geotechnica》2007,2(1):1-15

Localized compaction in porous rocks is a recently recognized phenomenon that has been shown to reduce permeability dramatically. Consequently, the phenomenon is relevant to a variety of technologies involving fluid injection or withdrawal. This article summarizes current understanding of localized compaction and impediments to further progress. The article is based on discussions at a small workshop on localized compaction sponsored by the Office of Science, U. S. Department of Energy.  相似文献   

A spatial perspective for predicting enrollment in a regional pharmacy school     

Ke Chen  Jason Kennedy  John M. Kovacs  Chunhua Zhang 《GeoJournal》2007,70(2-3):133-143

Having the ability to predict enrollment is an important task for any school’s recruiting team. The purpose of this study was to identify significant factors that can be used to predict the spatial distribution of enrollments. As a case study, we used East Tennessee State University (ETSU) pharmacy school, a regional pharmacy school located in the Appalachian Mountains. Through the application of a negative binomial regression model, we found that the most important indicators of enrollment volume for the ETSU pharmacy school were Euclidean distance, probability (based on competing pharmacy schools’ prestige, driving distance between schools and home and tuition costs), and the natural barrier of the Appalachian Mountains. Using these factors, together with other control variables, we successfully predicted the spatial distribution of enrollments for ETSU pharmacy school. Interestingly, gender also surfaced as a variable for predicting the pharmacy school’s enrollment. We found female students are more sensitive to the geographic proximity of home to school.  相似文献   

Spatially discontinuous modern sedimentation in Georgian Bay, Huron Basin, Great Lakes     

Francine M. G. McCarthy  John H. McAndrews  Steve M. Blasco  Sarah H. Tiffin 《Journal of Paleolimnology》2007,37(3):453-470

High-resolution seismic reflection profile data show that the modern sediment cover (over the last 150 years) in Georgian Bay is thin and spatially discontinuous. Sediments rich in ragweed pollen, largely derived from siltation linked to land clearing and European settlement, form a thin, discontinuous veneer on the lakebed. Much of the lakebed consists of exposed sediments deposited during the late glacial or early postglacial. Accumulation rates of modern sediments range from < 0 mm/year (net erosion) to ∼3.2 mm/year, often within a few hundred metres spatially. These rates are much lower than those reported for the main basin of Lake Huron and the other Great Lakes, and are attributed to the low sediment supply. Only a few small rivers flow into Georgian Bay, and most of the basin is surrounded by bedrock of Precambrian gneiss and granite to the east, and Silurian dolostone, limestone and shale to the west. Thick deposits of Pleistocene drift, found on the Georgian Bay shoreline only between Meaford and Port Severn, are the main sediment source for the entire basin at present. Holocene to modern sediments are even absent from some deep basins of Georgian Bay. These findings have implications for the ultimate fate of anthropogenic contaminants in Georgian Bay. While microfossil assemblages in the ragweed-rich sediments record increased eutrophication over the last 150 years, most pollutants generated in the Georgian Bay catchment are not accumulating on the lakebed and are probably exported from the Bay.  相似文献   

Paleolimnological reconstructions of Rouyn-Noranda lakes within the zone of influence of the Horne Smelter,Québec,Canada     

Aruna S. Dixit  S. Alpay  Sushil S. Dixit  John P. Smol 《Journal of Paleolimnology》2007,38(2):209-226

Diatoms were identified and enumerated from a surface sediment calibration set of 50 lakes in northwestern Québec. The relationship between species composition and environmental variables was examined using canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). Forward selection and Monte Carlo permutation tests in CCA indicated that diatom species distributions in the data set are most strongly correlated to lakewater pH. A strong (r ² _boot = 0.83) weighted averaging calibration model, that includes bootstrapped error estimates, was developed for inferring past lakewater pH. Using this model, temporal changes in pH were reconstructed for two kettle lakes, Lac de la Pépinière and Lac Perron. Based on limnological data, both the study lakes were expected to have recently acidified due to increased acidic precipitation and increases in anthropogenic metal loading. However, our long-term pH inference data indicate that these lakes were naturally acidic during pre-industrial times. Nonetheless, the rate of acidification, particularly in Lac de la Pépinière, has accelerated in the last ∼75 years. These long-term pH records developed for the dilute lakes in northwestern Québec suggest that the region has received increased atmospheric pollutants from the nearby Horne smelter in Rouyn-Noranda. The pH inference profiles are markedly different from many other paleolimnological studies in acid-sensitive regions of Canada that have become acidic primarily as a result of industrial activities. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi: ) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.  相似文献   

Response of littoral chironomid communities and organic matter to late glacial lake—level,vegetation and climate changes at Lago dell’Accesa (Tuscany,Italy)     

Laurent Millet  Boris Vannière  Valérie Verneaux  Michel Magny  Jean Robert Disnar  Fatima Laggoun-Défarge  Anne Véronique Walter-Simonnet  Gilles Bossuet  Elena Ortu  Jacques-Louis de Beaulieu 《Journal of Paleolimnology》2007,38(4):525-539

This study focuses on the response of lacustrine littoral chironomid communities to late glacial changes in limnological, environmental and climate conditions in the Mediterranean context. Late glacial chironomid (Diptera: Chironomidae) assemblages, organic petrography and geochemistry were analysed in a sediment core from the littoral zone of Lago dell’Accesa (Tuscany, Italy), where the lake-level fluctuations and the vegetation history have been previously reconstructed. Comparison of the chironomid stratigraphy to other proxies (pollen assemblages, organic petrography and geochemistry, lake-level) and regional climate reconstruction suggested the predominant influence of lake-level changes on the littoral chironomid fauna. The main lowering events that occurred during the Oldest and the Younger Dryas were followed by higher proportions of taxa typical of littoral habitats. A complementary study of organic matter suggested the indirect impact of lake-level on the chironomids through changes in humic status and habitat characteristics, such as the type of substrate and aquatic macrophyte development. Several chironomid taxa, such as Glyptotendipes, Microtendipes and Cricotopus type patens, were identified as possible indicators of low lake-level in the late glacial records. Nevertheless, this study suggested that parallel analyses of organic matter and chironomid assemblages may be needed to circumvent misinterpretation of littoral chironomid assemblage stratigraphy. There was a weak response of the chironomid assemblages to small lake-level lowerings that corresponded to the Older Dryas and Preboreal oscillations. A higher level of determination, e.g. to the species group level, may be necessary to increase the sensibility of the indicators to lake-level changes.  相似文献   

EARL JELLICOE KBE DSO MC FRS     

John  Selborne 《The Geographical journal》2007,173(2):186-187

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