Earth Sciences Commons^™

U-Pb Zircon Shrimp Ages, Geochemical And Sr-Nd Isotopic Compositions Of The Early Cretaceous I-Type Sarıosman Pluton, Eastern Pontides, Ne Turkey, Abdullah Kaygusuz, Bin Chen, Zafer Aslan, Wolfgang Siebel, Cüneyt Şen

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The petrogenesis and U-Pb SHRIMP zircon ages of the Late Cretaceous Sarıosman pluton in the Eastern Pontides is investigated by means of whole-rock Sr-Nd isotope data with field, petrographic and whole-rock geochemical studies. The bulk of the I-type Sarıosman pluton consists of biotite-hornblende monzogranite, with minor quantities of porphyritic hornblende-biotite monzogranite. The biotite-hornblende monzogranite contains a number of mafic microgranular enclaves (MMEs) of quartz monzodiorite composition. U-Pb zircon sensitive high-resolution ion microprobe dating (SHRIMP) dates the magma emplacement age of the biotite-hornblende monzogranite at 82.7±1.5 Ma. The rocks of the pluton show high-K calc-alkaline, metaluminous to slightly peraluminous characteristics, and …

Subduction-Related Eocene Shoshonites From The Cenozoic Urumieh-Dokhrat Magmatic Arc (Qaleh-Khargooshi Area, West Of The Yazd Province, Iran), Ghodrat Torabi

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The fifth phase of Eocene volcanism in the central part of the Urumieh-Dokhtar magmatic arc (UDMA), comprises lavas with shoshonitic characteristics, ranging from trachybasalt to trachydacite. In shoshonites of the Qaleh-Khargooshi area, leucite changes to analcime, analcime to albite, sanidine to albite and anorthoclase, and clinopyroxene to albite. These reactions, together with other field, petrographic and geochemical features, are evidence of an original absarokitic magma which was changing to generate the different rock units. The parental magma of these shoshonites was produced by a low degree of partial melting from a metasomatized enriched mantle source. During the ascent of shoshonitic …

Provenance Studies Of Volcanic Clasts From The Santa Fe Group, San Luis Basin, Colorado: A Guide To Tectonic Evolution, Corine Kay Armstrong

LSU Master's Theses

Volcanic clasts at the base of the Tertiary Santa Fe Group of the San Luis Basin (SLB), a major extensional feature of the northern Rio Grande Rift, provide evidence for the direction of sediment transport and timing of regional tectonic events. A combination of clast whole rock geochemistry (major and trace element), mineral chemistry (amphibole, biotite, pyroxene and feldspar) and geochronology (40Ar/39Ar of amphibole and biotite and U-Pb of zircons) is used to constrain the possible source scenarios. Several potential sources with requisite geochemical and geochronological information exist for the Santa Fe Group volcanic clasts including rocks from Spanish Peaks …

Phytoplankton Productivity Across Prairie Saline Lakes Of The Great Plains (Usa): A Step Toward Deciphering Patterns Through Lake Classification Models, Courtney R. Sahm, Jasmine E. Saros, Sherilyn C. Fritz, Christopher L. Osburn, David M. Reineke

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Abstract: We investigated patterns of primary production across prairie saline lakes in the central and northern Great Plains of the United States. Based on comparative lake sampling in 2004, seasonal predictors of algal primary productivity were identified within subsets of similar lakes using a combination of Akaike's information criterion (AIC) and classification and regression trees (CART). These models indicated complex patterns of nutrient limitation by nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and iron (Fe) within different lake groups. Nutrient enrichment assays (control, + Fe, + N, + P, + N + P) were performed in spring and summer of 2006 to determine …

Benthic Faunal Assemblages Of The Holocene Sediments From The Southwest Black Sea Shelf, Demet Ongan, Oya Algan, Sevi̇nç Kapan Yeşi̇lyurt, Ati̇ke Nazi̇k, Mustafa Ergi̇n, Christ Eastoe

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Benthic faunal content (benthic foraminifera, mollusca and ostracoda) of sediment cores from the SW Black Sea shelf were examined. Based on the vertical distribution of abundance and diversity of the benthic fauna, three benthic assemblages were distinguished. These assemblages are BF1, BF2 and BF3, and reflect the changes in bottom water from the termination of the Neoeuxinian period to present. BF1 displays high abundance and diversity in the surroundings of the Bosporus channel, diminishing in the shelf sediments further away from the channel. In the Mid-Shelf and Outer Shelf, it displays low abundance and low diversity. BF1 which started to …

Empirical Attenuation Relationships For Western Anatolia, Turkey, Ni̇hal Akyol, Özlem Karagöz

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Seismic hazard studies have become progressively more important for earthquake engineering applications in western Anatolia, which contains one of the world’s best examples of a rapidly extending intra-continental tectonic regime. A two-stage regression analysis was applied to peak ground acceleration and 5%-damped spectral acceleration values of 168 recordings from 49 earthquakes in order to develop empirical attenuation relationships which can be used to predict ground motion for western Anatolia. Moment magnitudes for earthquakes range between 4.0 and 6.4 while the hypocentral distances range between 15 and 200 km in our dataset. Site classifications, as one of the predictor variables for …

Atmospheric Soluble Dust Records From A Tibetan Ice Core: Possible Climate Proxies And Teleconnection With The Pacific Decadal Oscillation, B. Grigholm, P. A. Mayewski, S. Kang, Y. Zhang, Susan Kaspari, S. B. Sneed, Q. Zhang

Geological Sciences Faculty Scholarship

In autumn 2005, a joint expedition between the University of Maine and the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research recovered three ice cores from Guoqu Glacier (33°34′37.8″N, 91°10′35.3″E, 5720 m above sea level) on the northern side of Mt. Geladaindong, central Tibetan Plateau. Isotopes (δ¹⁸O), major soluble ions (Na⁺, K⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, Cl⁻, NO₃⁻, SO₄²⁻), and radionuclide (β‐activity) measurements from one of the cores revealed a 70‐year record (1935–2005). Statistical analysis of major ion time series suggests that atmospheric soluble …

A Geochemical Paleoecological Analysis Of Miocene Mammalian Mega Fauna Of Fort Polk, Louisiana, Travis Lamar Atwood

LSU Master's Theses

Through a combination of vertebrate paleontology and geochemistry much can be discovered about the environments about the past. Fort Polk’s vertebrate fossil sites are important because they reflect a time when the Antarctic ice cap was just beginning to form during the middle Miocene cooling period just after the middle Miocene Climatic Optimum (~15Ma). This study tested the hypothesis that Miocene seasonality will be preserved in the isotopic geochemistry of terrestrial vertebrate remains at central North American Gulf Coastal sites. Geochemistry was used to understand fossil diagenesis, faunal communities and paleoenvironments. Fort Polk, LA sites range in age from 13.5 …

Remote Measurements Of Thundercloud Electrostatic Fields, Joseph R. Dwyer, Martin A. Uman, Hamid K. Rassoul

Aerospace, Physics, and Space Science Faculty Publications

Analytical and numerical models of the radio frequency emissions produced by relativistic runaway electron avalanches initiated by cosmic ray extensive air showers are presented. It is found that single-point measurements of the distant electromagnetic fields allow the remote determination of the electrostatic field in the runaway electron avalanche region. For instance, it is possible to use ground-based and/or remote airborne measurements of the radio frequency pulses from the runaway electron avalanches to map the magnitudes and directions of the electrostatic field within a thundercloud for regions with electric fields above the runaway avalanche threshold. Such measurements, which are difficult to …

Western Australian Natural Resource Management Plan 09, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Natural resources published reports

The purpose of the State Natural Resource Management [NRM] Plan is to communicate the direction for sustainably managing Western Australia's natural resources.

This direction has been informed by previous initiatives such as the 'Decade of Landcare', several programs focused on salinity, the Western Australian State Sustainability Strategy (2009), and more recently a report commissioned by the State entitled The delivery of Natural Resources Management in Western Australia - a review (2006), which recommended preparation of an NRM Plan. The review noted that the most important issue for the State to clarify first was the outcome it seeks rather than how …

Landscapes And Soils Of The Merredin District, D N. Sawkins, Department Of Agriculture And Food

Bulletins 4000 -

The publication aims to provide readers with the principles underlying the formation of local landscapes and soils, and the ability to identify landscapes and their associated soils.

Soil Acidity : A Guide For Wa Farmers And Consultants, Chris Gazey, Stephen Davies

Bulletins 4000 -

Soil acidity: a guide for WA farmers and consultants provides all the necessary information for effective management and understanding of soil acidity in a user-friendly handbook including many examples, diagrams and photographs.

Land Resources Series No 21 - Tambellup-Borden Area Land Resources Survey, Angela Stuart-Street, Rohan Marold

Natural resources published reports

AGDEX 526

Land Resources Series No. 21

This report presents results from soil-landscape mapping at a scale of 1: 100,000 in the Tambellup- Borden area of Western Australia. It is accompanied by a soil-landscape map covering almost 511,000 hectares.

Most of the survey occurs within the upper Frankland-Gordon, Kent, North Stirlings Basin and upper reaches of the Pallinup and Kalgan River catchments. The survey falls within the Katanning and Albany Department of Agriculture and Food advisory districts.

Seventeen soil-landscape systems have been identified and are represented on the map on the accompanying CD-ROM. These systems have been further divided into …

Do Laminated Sediment-Gravity-Flow Deposits On The Antarctic Peninsula Continental Shelf Record Ice Sheet Grounding Events?, Vincent Clyde Adams

LSU Master's Theses

Barker and Camerlenghi (2002) proposed that drifts on the continental rise of the Antarctic Peninsula may record a high-resolution record of ice-sheet expansions on the adjacent continental shelf. In their view, laminated sediments were deposited during glacial periods, whereas during interglacial periods, sediment supply to drifts was negligible. As a consequence of low sediment supply, the tops of laminated sequences were bioturbated. Therefore, a bioturbated-laiminated couplet should represent a complete glacial cycle. Bioturbated and laminated (B-L) sediment couplets were compiled from cores at two drift sites obtained from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 178 Sites 1095, 1096, and 1101. If …

Role Of Shelf Morphology In Grounding-Line Stability: A Numerical Approach, Rhonika Robinson

LSU Master's Theses

The main concern of this study is to discover how the transition from a shallow to an overdeepened, foredeepened shelf might affect grounding-line translation of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS). Deep shelves permit a larger influx of relatively warm Circumpolar Deep Water (CDW), which melts the ice at grounding lines, and thereby, create a potentially unstable situation in which ice retreat may accelerate. Numerical analysis of the responses of marine ice sheets on various shelf profiles confirmed that a change in shelf morphology changes ice sheet dynamics. Ice sheet retreat on an overdeepened, foredeepened shelf is, at least, 3 …

Glacial Deposits, Vol. 37, 2008-2009, Department Of Geography-Geology

Glacial Deposits

Newsletter of the Department of Geography-Geology

Holocene Evolution And Avulsion History Of The Lower Mississippi River, Yazoo Basin, Ms, Eric Prokocki

LSU Master's Theses

Optically stimulated luminescence dates coupled with paleohydrological estimations from lower Mississippi River (LMR) meander belts within the Yazoo Basin, MS provide new insight into the geochronological and hydrologic history of the LMR throughout the Holocene period. According to OSL dates, there are only three temporally equivalent LMR meandering river regime sediment packages, and not five as previously assumed from past geochronological research initiatives within the lower Mississippi Valley (LMV). The three geochronological sediment packages from oldest to youngest are thus represented by the following LMR meander belts: Early Holocene Chronostratigraphic Package – ca. 9.19 to 8.07 ka represented by the …

Environmental Influences On The Mobility And Speciation Of Arsenic In The Geothermal Waters Of El Tatio Geyser Field, Chile, Lindsey R. Johnson

LSU Master's Theses

El Tatio geyser field, northern Chile, impacts regional water quality, policy, and agricultural commerce due to the geothermal waters containing high concentrations of naturally-occurring arsenic (As). In the circumneutral pH, non-sulfidic thermal waters at El Tatio, dissolved arsenite [As(III)] dominates geyser discharge water upstream, but dissolved arsenate [As(V)] dominates downstream. Microbial mats and sediments were analyzed for changes in As speciation using X-ray spectroscopy methods, such as XANES and EXAFS at both the As and Fe K-edges, combined with ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and molecular genetics, to understand As cycling. The sediments and microbial mats were dominated by As(V) speciated as both …

Source(S) Of Salinity In The Mississippi River Alluvial Aquifer, Iberville Parish, Louisiana, Stephanie Erin Welch

LSU Master's Theses

The Mississippi River Alluvial Aquifer extends from Southern Illinois to the mouth of the Mississippi and is comprised of fluvial sands and gravels of Late Pleistocene age. Several areas of the aquifer in Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana are affected by elevated levels of salinity. One such area occurs in Iberville Parish, LA, where the aquifer is 150-240 m in thickness and is capped by 23-38 m of clay. Recharge of the aquifer from the Mississippi River on the east is fresh, but salinity is high in the western portions of the aquifer and chloride levels are as high as 1,000 …

Calculating The Volume Of The May 18, 1980 Eruption Of Mount St. Helens, Dâvid Nuñez Wickham

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

The May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens created a massive amount of sediment and debris, thought to be as much as 5.5 billion cubic yards. This sediment causes infill of river stretches and collects along levees protecting southwest Washington State. The sediment must be removed to ensure these areas do not flood. The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE) is tasked with flood protection for southwest Washington State and the levees protecting the cities of Castle Rock, Lexington, Kelso, and Longview. The Sediment Retention Dam, opened in 1989 is able to filter out larger particulate but fine grain …

Setting Targets For Resource Condition In Yilliminning Catchment, Leon Van Wyk, Gregory Paul Raper

Resource management technical reports

No abstract provided.

Desert Varnish As An Indicator Of Modern-Day Air Pollution In Southern Nevada, Piotr Nowinski

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Rock varnish, often called desert varnish, is a slow-growing, manganese-rich coating that accumulates on exposed rock surfaces. The mechanism of varnish formation is not fully understood, however, most authors agree that varnishes derive their components from the atmosphere. The main goal of this study was to demonstrate the potential use of desert varnish as a passive environmental monitor of present and past atmospheric pollution. Analysis of varnishes is a new field that can potentially provide records of pre-anthropogenic levels of atmospheric metals and other environmental pollutants. To evaluate the potential of desert varnish as an environmental monitoring tool, the following …

Measuring The Permeability Of Open-Framework Gravel, James Thomas Ferreira Jr.

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Open-framework gravel has permeability, k, above the measurement range of most conventional constant-head permeameters used in laboratories. Here I addressed the challenge of measuring such high k by using a permeameter long enough that the differences in head across it were on the order of 10-3 m and therefore measurable. I collected data over the range from linear-laminar flow to non-linear, non-Darcian flow. In doing so, I verified that k was measured under Darcian flow. I measured k between 4,000 and 100,000 Darcies among experiments using different sediments.

Bench-Scale Conversion Of Carbon Dioxide To A Hydrocarbon Fuel, Melissa L. Kennedy

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

There is a growing concern about the effects of global warming that many believe is anthropogenically caused. As such, scientists are trying to uncover a viable alternative fuel source and establish a way to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. A potential solution that addresses both of these aspects would be to capture atmospheric carbon dioxide and convert it into a natural gas, in particular methane, which could be used as an energy source. A laboratory-scale experiment using 6 160 mL microcosms (3 with anaerobic wetland soil and 3 relatively soil free) and 2 7.2 L bioreactors was conducted to learn …

A Morphometric Analysis Of The Highly Variable Clypeasteroid, Periarchus Lyelli, Lauren Elizabeth Williamson

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The Late Eocene echinoid, Periarchus lyelli (Conrad, 1834), known for its wide geographic range, high abundance, and specific stratigraphic range, is an ideal example of a guide fossil. However, due to its highly variable test morphology, many have questioned if, in fact, this sand dollar is actually two or three distinct species that have been misclassified. A preliminary study on this subject has been performed on specimens from Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina (Williamson, 2006), showing significant separation in test shapes. Continuing previous research, this study analyzes the test shapes of P. lyelli over its entire North American geographic …

Using Morphometrics, Phylogenetic Systematics And Parsimony Analysis To Gain Insight Into The Evolutionary Affinities Of The Calymenidae Trilobita, Alex J. Chestnut

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The most common trilobite in the Silurian carbonates of Ohio - especially the Springfield Dolomite - is a species that has been assigned to at least five genera over the past 100 years. This trilobite has been variously referred to as Calymene celebra, Apocalymene celebra, Flexicalymene celebra, Gravicalymene celebra, and Sthenarocalymene celebra. Reexamination of the species "Calymene" celebra through parsimony and morphometric analysis was conducted to properly place this calymenid species within the correct genus. What compounds the confusion is that the characters used to seperate the genera within the family Calymenidae, and therefore create the basis for the argument …

Interannual Variations In The Opening Date Of The Prudhoe Bay Shipping Season: Links To Atmospheric And Surface Conditions, Sheldon D. Drobot, James A. Maslanik, Mark R. Anderson

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

This paper examines interannual variability in the opening date for the Prudhoe Bay shipping season (1953-2005), considers how variations in antecedent sea-ice and atmospheric conditions influence the opening date, and then develops a forecasting technique to predict whether the opening date will be early, normal, or late. Analysis of antecedent sea ice and atmospheric conditions indicates that there are significant differences in the Bering Sea ice cover as early as February in years preceding early versus late opening dates. In particular, prior to early opening years, the sea-ice cover in the southern Bering Sea is reduced in February, and as …

Evolution Of The Cretaceous Calcareous Nanofossil Genus Eiffellithus And Its Biostratigraphic Significance, Jamie L. Shamrock, David K. Watkins

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

The calcareous nanofossil genus Eiffellithus is an important taxon of mid- to Upper Cretaceous marine sediments in biostratigraphy and paleoceanography. The definition of species within Eiffellithus have been both broadly interpreted and variably applied by nanofossil workers. This is particularly true for the Eiffellithus eximius plexus. While the taxonomy of mid-Cretaceous Eiffellithus species has recently been well-defined, the remaining 35 m.y. history of the genus has not been closely examined. Our investigation of Cenomanian to Maastrichtian sediments from the Western Interior Seaway, Gulf of Mexico, and Western Atlantic gives rise to six new species of Eiffellithus that can be reliably …

Geochemistry Of The Middle Miocene Collision-Related Yamadaği ( Eastern Anatolia) Calc-Alkaline Volcanics, Turkey, Taner Eki̇ci̇, Musa Alpaslan, Osman Parlak, Ali̇ Uçurum

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Major, trace element and K-Ar age determinations are reported for a suite from the Yamadağı volcanics in the Eastern Anatolia. The exposed rocks mainly consist of medium-potassium calc-alkaline basaltic andesites, andesites and dacites. Petrographical data exhibit disequilibrium mineral textures, such as resorption of the ferromagnesian phases, clinopyroxene-mantled orthopyroxene, and sieve-textured plagioclases. The Yamadağı volcanics have a calk-alkaline character, and trace element characteristics exhibit that the volcanics resemble subduction zone volcanics and/or volcanics assimilated by continental crust. K/Ar age determinations show that the Yamadağı volcanics were formed during the 12 ± 0.5 - 15 ± 0.5 Ma time interval. Geochemical characteristics …

Pidoplitchkoviella Terricola – An Interesting Fungus From The Domica Cave (Slovakia), Alena Nováková

International Journal of Speleology

The microfungus Pidoplitchkoviella terricola – until now it was known only as Kirilenko´s specimen isolated from Quercus robur rhizosphere in Ukraine - was found in earthworm casts in the Domica Cave, NP Slovak Karst, Slovakia. A description and microphotographs of this strain are provided in this article.