Microbial hydrocarbon gases in the Witwatersrand Basin, South Africa: Implications for the deep biosphere     

J.A Ward  D.P Moser  G Lacrampe-Couloume  M Davidson  B Mislowack  T.C Onstott 《Geochimica et cosmochimica acta》2004,68(15):3239-3250

In this study, compositions and δ¹³C and δ²H isotopic values of hydrocarbon gases from 5 mines in the Witwatersrand basin, South Africa, support the widespread occurrence of microbially produced methane in millions of years-old fissure waters. The presence of microbial methane is, to a large extent, controlled by the geologic formations in which the gases are found. Samples from the Witwatersand Supergroup have the largest microbial component based on δ¹³C and δ²H signatures and CH₄/C₂+ values. Based on mixing between a microbial CH₄ component and a more ¹³C-enriched and ²H-depleted C₂+-rich end member, conservative estimates of the % contribution of microbial CH₄ to the gas samples range from >90% microbial CH₄ at Beatrix, Masimong, and Merriespruit, to between 5 and 80% microbial CH₄ at Evander, and <18% microbial CH₄ at Kloof. The Witwatersrand basin’s history of thermal alteration of organic-rich ancient sedimentary units suggests a thermogenic origin for this ¹³C-enriched end member. Alternatively, the potential for an abiogenic origin similar to hydrocarbon gases produced by water-rock interaction at other Precambrian Shield mines is discussed. Microbial methane is predominantly found in paleo-meteoric fissure waters with δ¹⁸O and δ²H values that fall on the meteoric waterline, and have temperatures between 30 to 40°C. In contrast, fissure waters with a larger component of nonmicrobial hydrocarbon gases show a trend towards more enriched δ¹⁸O and δ²H values that fall well above the meteoric waterline, and temperatures of 45 to 60°C. The enrichment in ¹⁸O and ²H in these samples, and their high salinity, are similar to the isotopic and compositional characteristics of saline groundwaters and brines produced by water-rock interaction at Precambrian Shield sites elsewhere. The reported 100 Ma ages of fissure waters from the Witwatersrand and Ventersdorp formations suggest that these microbial hydrocarbon gases are the product of in situ methanogenic communities in the deep subsurface of the Witswaterand basin. Small subunit ribosomal RNA genes were amplified using archaeal-specific primer sets from DNA extracts derived from several of these waters. Fissure waters with a high proportion of microbial methane also contained sequences resembling those of known methanogens.  相似文献   

Paraxial ray methods in inhomogeneous anisotropic media: Initial conditions     

Vlastislav Červený  Tijmen Jan Moser 《Studia Geophysica et Geodaetica》2009,53(2):199-214

Paraxial ray methods have found broad applications in the seismic ray method and in numerical modelling and interpretation of high-frequency seismic wave fields propagating in inhomogeneous, isotropic or anisotropic structures. The basic procedure in paraxial ray methods consists in dynamic ray tracing. We derive the initial conditions for dynamic ray equations in Cartesian coordinates, for rays initiated at three types of initial manifolds given in a three-dimensional medium: 1) curved surfaces (surface source), 2) isolated points (point source), and 3) curved, planar and non-planar lines (line source). These initial conditions are very general, valid for homogeneous or inhomogeneous, isotropic or anisotropic media, and for both a constant and a variable initial travel time along the initial manifold. The results presented in the paper considerably extend the possible applications of the paraxial ray method.  相似文献   

Multifocusing revisited ‐ inhomogeneous media and curved interfaces*     

Evgeny Landa  Shemer Keydar  Tijmen Jan Moser 《Geophysical Prospecting》2010,58(6):925-938

We review the multifocusing method for traveltime moveout approximation of multicoverage seismic data. Multifocusing constructs the moveout based on two notional spherical waves at each source and receiver point, respectively. These two waves are mutually related by a focusing quantity. We clarify the role of this focusing quantity and emphasize that it is a function of the source and receiver location, rather than a fixed parameter for a given multicoverage gather. The focusing function can be designed to make the traveltime moveout exact in certain generic cases that have practical importance in seismic processing and interpretation. The case of a plane dipping reflector (planar multifocusing) has been the subject of all publications so far. We show that the focusing function can be generalized to other surfaces, most importantly to the spherical reflector (spherical multifocusing). At the same time, the generalization implies a simplification of the multifocusing method. The exact traveltime moveout on spherical surfaces is a very versatile and robust formula, which is valid for a wide range of offsets and locations of source and receiver, even on rugged topography. In two‐dimensional surveys, it depends on the same three parameters that are commonly used in planar multifocusing and the common‐reflection surface (CRS) stack method: the radii of curvature of the normal and normal‐incidence‐point waves and the emergence angle. In three dimensions the exact traveltime moveout on spherical surfaces depends on only one additional parameter, the inclination of the plane containing the source, receiver and reflection point. Comparison of the planar and spherical multifocusing with the CRS moveout expression for a range of reflectors with increasing curvature shows that the planar multifocusing can be remarkably accurate but the CRS becomes increasingly inaccurate. This can be attributed to the fact that the CRS formula is based on a Taylor expansion, whereas the multifocusing formulae are double‐square root formulae. As a result, planar and spherical multifocusing are better suited to model the moveout of diffracted waves.  相似文献   

Accretionary mixing of a eucrite impactor and the regolith of the L chondrite parent body     

Brendt C. Hyde  Kimberly T. Tait  Desmond E. Moser  Douglas Rumble  Michelle S. Thompson 《Meteoritics & planetary science》2020,55(1):20-35

Northwest Africa (NWA) 869 is the largest sample of chondritic regolith breccia, making it an ideal source for research on accretionary processes and primordial chemical mixing. One such process can be seen in detail through the first identification of a eucrite impactor clast in an L chondrite breccia. The ~7 mm diameter clast has oxygen isotope compositions (Δ¹⁷O = ?0.240, ?0.258‰) and pigeonite and augite compositions typical for eucrites, but with high areal abundance of silica (9.5%) and ilmenite (1.5%). The rim around the clast is a mixture of breccia and igneous phases, the latter due to either impactor‐triggered melting or later metamorphism. The rim has an oxygen isotope composition falling on a mixing line between known eucrite and L chondrite compositions (Δ¹⁷O = 0.326‰) and, coincidentally, on the Mars fractionation line. Pyroxene grains from the melt component in the rim have compositions that fall on a mixing line between the average eucrite pyroxene composition and equilibrated L chondrite composition. The margins of chondritic olivine crystal clasts in the rim are enriched in Fe as a result of diffusion from the Fe‐rich melt and suggest cooling on the scale of hours. The textures and chemical mixing observed provide evidence for an unconsolidated L chondrite target material, differing from the current state of NWA 869 material. The heterogeneity of oxygen isotope and chemical signatures at this small length scale serve as a cautionary note when extrapolating from small volumes of materials to deduce planetesimal source characteristics.  相似文献   

Petrography and composition of Martian regolith breccia meteorite Northwest Africa 7475          下载免费PDF全文

Axel Wittmann  Randy L. Korotev  Bradley L. Jolliff  Anthony J. Irving  Desmond E. Moser  Ivan Barker  Douglas Rumble III 《Meteoritics & planetary science》2015,50(2):326-352

The Northwest Africa (NWA) 7475 meteorite is one of the several stones of paired regolith breccias from Mars based on petrography, oxygen isotope, mineral compositions, and bulk rock compositions. Its inventory of lithic clasts is dominated by vitrophyre impact melts that were emplaced while they were still molten. Other clast types include crystallized impact melt rocks, evolved plutonic rocks, possible basalts, contact metamorphosed rocks, and siltstones. Impact spherules and vitrophyre shards record airborne transport, and accreted dust rims were sintered on most clasts, presumably during residence in an ejecta plume. The clast assemblage records at least three impact events, one that formed an impact melt sheet on Mars ≤4.4 Ga ago, a second that assembled NWA 7475 from impactites associated with the impact melt sheet at 1.7–1.4 Ga, and a third that launched NWA 7475 from Mars ~5 Ma ago. Mildly shocked pyroxene and plagioclase constrain shock metamorphic conditions during launch to >5 and <15 GPa. The mild postshock‐heating that resulted from these shock pressures would have been insufficient to sterilize this water‐bearing lithology during launch. Magnetite, maghemite, and pyrite are likely products of secondary alteration on Mars. Textural relationships suggest that calcium‐carbonate and goethite are probably of terrestrial origin, yet trace element chemistry indicates relatively low terrestrial alteration. Comparison of Mars Odyssey gamma‐ray spectrometer data with the Fe and Th abundances of NWA 7475 points to a provenance in the ancient southern highlands of Mars. Gratteri crater, with an age of ~5 Ma and an apparent diameter of 6.9 km, marks one possible launch site of NWA 7475.  相似文献   

Continuum modelling of dynamic behaviour and fragmentation of quasi‐brittle materials: application to rock fragmentation by blasting     

A. Rouabhi  M. Tijani  P. Moser  D. Goetz 《国际地质力学数值与分析法杂志》2005,29(7):729-749

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Teleseismic Delay Times In A 3-D Earth and A New Look At the S Discrepancy     

Guust Nolet  Tijmen-Jan Moser 《Geophysical Journal International》1993,114(1):185-195

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Dr. Evamaria Koch (1961–2014)     

Dorothee Moll  Paul Kotterba  Lena von Nordheim  Patrick Polte 《Estuaries and Coasts》2018,41(1):1-12

During their spring migration, Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) populations in the Baltic Sea rely on shallow transitional waters, such as estuaries, bays, and lagoons for spawning. Such inshore spawning grounds are ecologically important by providing suitable substrates for demersal egg deposition. These habitats are often highly impacted by multiple anthropogenic threats. Decades of eutrophication have caused a decline in depth distribution of submerged aquatic vegetation, the main herring spawning substrate in the Baltic Sea. Nowadays, spawning beds are limited to the shallow littoral zone (≤3 m depth). Accordingly, macrophytes are increasingly exposed to mechanic forcing due to storm-induced wave action. Generally, reproductive success and year class strength of the Western Baltic herring population is strongly determined by the survival of early life stages such as eggs and larvae in local nursery areas. However, explicit mechanisms by which local stressors might affect overall recruitment are currently not well understood. Hypothesizing that aquatic vegetation limited by water depth causes high herring egg mortality due to increased exposure to storm-induced hydrodynamics, we performed a combination of field studies investigating the impact of storm events on herring egg loss. Results of an egg loss experiment revealed a total egg loss of 29% in one single spawning bed during a storm event within the spawning season and the quantification of eggs attached to macrophyte litter on the shoreline emphasize the potential for regional weather extremes such as storm events to act as influential stressors for herring reproduction.  相似文献   

Multi-technique investigation reveals new mineral, chemical, and textural heterogeneity in the Tagish Lake C2 chondrite     

M.R.M. Izawa  R.L. Flemming  P.J.A. McCausland  G. Southam  D.E Moser  I.R. Barker 《Planetary and Space Science》2010,58(10):1347-449

The Tagish Lake meteorite, an ungrouped C2 chondrite that is related to CI and CM chondrites, is a heterogeneous accretionary breccia with several distinct lithologies that, in bulk, are thought to represent the first known sample of a primitive carbonaceous D-type asteroid. Textural and chemical zoning of clasts and matrix have been little studied and promise additional insight into early solar system processes in both the solar nebula and on the Tagish Lake parent asteroid. We have examined an intact 2.9 g fragment and two polished thin sections from the spring 2000 (non-pristine) Tagish Lake collection to ascertain the major mineralogy and textures of notable features such as chondrules, amoeboid olivine aggregates (AOAs), inclusions, clasts, matrix, and fusion crust. We designed three stages of analysis for this friable meteorite: an initial, non-destructive in situ reconnaissance by μXRD to document meteorite mineralogy and textures and to identify features of interest, followed by spatially correlated μXRD, SEM-EDX and colour SEM-CL analysis of polished thin sections to fully understand mineralogy and the record of texture development, and finally higher resolution SEM-BSE mapping to document smaller scale relationships.Our analyses reveal several previously unreported or poorly characterized features: (1) distinctive colour cathodoluminescence (CL) zoning in relict CAI spinel, in chondrule and AOA forsterite, and in calcite nodules occurring throughout the Tagish Lake matrix. Forsterite frequently shows CL colour and intensity zonation that does not correspond with major or minor element differences resolvable with EPMA, indicating a trace element and/or structural CL-activation mechanism for the zonation that is likely of secondary origin; (2) an irregular inclusion dominated by magnesioaluminate spinel, dolomite, and phyllosilicates with traces of a Ca, Ti oxide phase (likely perovskite) interpreted to be a relict CAI; (3) variable preservation of mesostasis glass in porphyritic olivine chondrules. We anticipate that our multi-technique methodology, particularly non-destructive μXRD, can be successfully applied to other rare and friable materials such as the pristine Tagish Lake fragments.  相似文献   

Stable isotope profiles (Ca,O, C) through modern brachiopod shells of T. septentrionalis and G. vitreus: Implications for calcium isotope paleo-ocean chemistry     

Katja von Allmen  Thomas F. Nägler  Thomas Pettke  Dorothee Hippler  Erika Griesshaber  Alan Logan  Anton Eisenhauer  Elias Samankassou 《Chemical Geology》2010,269(3-4):210-219

Brachiopod shells are widely used as an archive to reconstruct elemental and isotopic composition of seawater. Studies, focused on oxygen and carbon isotopes over the last decades, are increasingly extending to the emerging calcium isotope system. To date, only little attention has been paid to test the reliability of fossil brachiopods on their modern counterparts.In this context, the present study investigates two modern brachiopods, Terebratulina septentrionalis (eastern Canada, 5–30 m depth, 7.1 °C seasonal temperature variation, two-layer shell) and Gryphus vitreus (northern Mediterranean, 200 m depth, constant all-year round temperature, three-layer shell). Both species were sampled along the ontogenetic growth direction and calcium, oxygen, and carbon isotopes as well as elemental concentration were measured. Calcium isotopes were analyzed on TIMS. The elemental composition was analyzed by LA-ICP-MS and ICP-AES.The results indicate an intra-specimen δ^44/40Ca variation ranging from 0.16 to 0.33‰, pointing to a fairly homogenous distribution of calcium isotopes in brachiopod shells. However, in the light of the suggested 0.7‰ increase in calcium isotopes over the Phanerozoic such intra-specimen variations constrain ocean reconstruction. δ^44/40Ca values of T. septentrionalis do not seem to be affected by growth rate. Calcium isotopic values of G. vitreus are heavy in the central part of the shell and trend towards lighter values in peripheral areas approaching the maximum isotopic composition of T. septentrionalis. The maximum inter-species δ^44/40Ca difference of 0.62‰ between T. septentrionalis and G. vitreus indicates that care should be taken when using different taxa, species with different strontium content or brachiopods with specialized shell structure, such as G. vitreus, for ocean water reconstruction in terms of Ca isotopic composition. T. septentrionalis may record Ca isotopic fractionation related to seasonal seawater temperature variations in its shell but this is difficult to resolve at the current analytical precision. Average δ¹⁸O-derived temperatures of the two investigated species are close to on-site measured temperatures.  相似文献