Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology Commons^™

An Understanding Of Factors Controlling Isotopic Ratios Of Wine As A Potential Surrogate Of Past Precipitation, Eric Alan Caldwell

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Precipitation, vapor water, ground water, soil water, grape berry and grape leaf water, grape must, and vintage wines were collected from northern California for stable isotopic analysis. An understanding of factors controlling isotopic ratios of wine allows evaluation of wine as a surrogate of past precipitation. Stable isotopic compositions of grape berry waters collected at Charles Krug Winery in Napa Valley. CA range from -31 to -17 per mil in 8D and +7.2 to +15.3 per mil in 8180, and plot along a transpiration line of slope 2. 7. Grape leaf waters range from -25 to +5 per mil in …

1995, Spatial And Temporal Variability Of Late Neogene Equatorial Pacific Carbonate, T. K. Hagelberg, Nicklas G. Pisias, Larry A. Mayer, N. J. Shackleton, Alan C. Mix

Affiliate Scholarship

High-resolution, continuous records of GRAPE wet bulk density (a carbonate proxy) from Ocean Drilling Program Leg 138 provide one the opportunity for a detailed study of eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean carbonate sedimentation during the last 6 m.y. The transect of sites drilled spans both latitude and longitude in the eastern equatorial Pacific from 90° to 110°W and from 5°S to 10°N. Two modes of variability are resolved through the use of Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) analysis. In the presence of large tectonic and climatic boundary condition changes over the last 6 m.y., the dominant mode of spatial variability in carbonate …

Seismic Stratigraphy Of The Eastern Equatorial Pacific Ocean: Paleoceanographic Implications, Stephen F. Bloomer, Larry A. Mayer, Ted C. Moore Jr

Affiliate Scholarship

The collection of Leg 138 well-log and shipboard physical-property data, in conjunction with high-resolution seismic profiles, provides an opportunity to understand the paleoceanographic significance of seismic reflectors and to gain insight into the paleoceanographic evolution of the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. A series of eight reflectors or reflector packages were traced between two transects connecting five Leg 138 sites. By generating synthetic seismograms at each of these sites and comparing these to the field records, the origin of these seismic reflectors was determined in terms of physical-property variations and other core measurements. In particular, these reflectors were usually associated with …

Paleoceanography Of The Eastern Equatorial Pacific During The Neogene: Synthesis Of Leg 138 Drilling Results, Nicklas G. Pisias, Larry A. Mayer, Alan C. Mix

Affiliate Scholarship

The primary objective of Leg 138 was to provide detailed information about the ocean's response to global climate change during the Neogene. Two north-south transects were drilled (95° and 110°W) within the region of equatorial divergence-driven upwelling (and thus high accumulation rates and resolution) and spanning the major equatorial ocean current boundaries (and thus recording a high-amplitude signal of the response of the sediment to climatically and/or tectonically driven changes in ocean circulation). The Neogene is marked by a number of well-known climatic and tectonic events (the closing of the Isthmus of Panama, the onset of North Atlantic Deep Water …

Geomorphic And Geochemical Evidence For The Source Of Sand In The Algodones Dunes, Colorado Desert, Southeastern California, Daniel R. Muhs, Charles A. Bush, Scott D. Cowherd, Shannon Mahan

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The Algodones dunes of southeastern California comprise one of the largest active dune fields in the United States. The source of sand of the Algodones dunes is controversial, and the source of stabilized aeolian sand in the adjacent East Mesa area has not been investigated at all. We used mineralogical compositions and trace element concentrations to ascertain the most likely source of sand for these active and stabilized dunes. Results indicate that alluvium derived from the San Bernardino Mountains, which enters the Salton trough to the northwest of the dune fields, and alluvium derived from the Chocolate Mountains, which is …

Bermuda Solution Pipe Soils: A Geochemical Evaluation Of Eolian Parent Materials, Stanley R. Herwitz, Daniel R. Muhs

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Solution pipes found in the Quaternary eolian and marine carbonates of Bermuda are filled with reddish to reddish-brown soil material. The bulk of the soil is composed of clay and silt-sized quartz and aluminosilicate clay minerals. The carbonates are of high purity and, therefore, are not likely to have been the parent material. Previous workers have hypothesized that Saharan dust may have been the soil parent material. The fine-grained component of loess from the Mississippi River Valley of North America also could have contributed. Paleoclimate models indicate that both North Africa and North America could have been important source areas …

Evidence Of Active Dune Sand On The Great Plains In The 19th Century From Accounts Of Early Explorers, Daniel R. Muhs, Vance T. Holliday

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Eolian sand is extensive over the Great Plains of North America, but is at present mostly stabilized by vegetation. Accounts published by early explorers, however, indicate that at least parts of dune fields in Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, and Texas were active in the 19th century. Based on an index of dune mobility and a regional tree-ring record, the probable causes for these periods of greater eolian activity are droughts, accompanied by higher temperatures, which greatly lowered the precipitationto- evapotranspiration ratio and diminished the cover of stabilizing vegetation. In addition, observations by several explorers, and previous historical studies, indicate …

Carbonate Deposition, Pyramid Lake Subbasin, Nevada: 2. Lake Levels And Polar Jet Stream Positions Reconstructed From Radiocarbon Ages And Elevations Of Carbonates (Tufas) Deposited In The Lahontan Basin, Larry Benson, Michaele Kashgarian, Meyer Rubin

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Most of the tufas in the Pyramid Lake subbasin were deposited within the last 35,000 yr, including most of the mound tufas that border the existing lake. Many of the older tufas (> 21,000 yr B.P.) contained in the mounds were formed in association with ground-water discharge. The radiocarbon (¹⁴C) ages of the older tufas represent maximum estimates of the time of their formation. Lake Lahontan experienced large and abrupt rises in level at ~ 22,000, 15,000, and 11,000 yr B.P. and three abrupt recessions in level at ~ 16,000, 13,600, and 10,000 yr B.P. The lake-level rises …

Land Management Report For The Kent River Catchment, Sue Kelly

Natural resources published reports

The Kent River Catchment is located in the South-West of Western Australia, approximately between latitudes 34° 15' and 35° 10' South and longitudes 116° 45" and 117° 50° East. The north-eastern boundary of the catchment stretches to the Albany Highway at Tenterden, and from there the catchment curves towards Rocky Gully before continuing to the South Coast (Figure 1.1.1). The catchment is located within the Shires of Cranbrook, Plantagenet and Denmark.

The Kent River Catchment is part of Basin 604, which is the Water Authority descriptor for the Kent, Bow and Kordabup River catchments collectively. Basin 604 has a total …

Geochemical Evidence Of Saharan Dust Parent Material For Soils Developed On Quaternary Limestones Of Caribbean And Western Atlantic Islands, Daniel R. Muhs, Charles A. Bush, Kathleen C. Stewart, Tracy R. Rowland, Russell C. Crittenden

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Most previous workers have regarded the insoluble residues of high-purity Quatemary limestones (coral reefs and oolites) as the most important parent material for well-developed, clay-rich soils on Caribbean and western Atlantic islands, but this genetic mechanism requires unreasonable amounts of limestone solution in Quatemary time. Other possible parent materials from external sources are volcanic ash from the Lesser Antilles island arc and Saharan dust carried across the Atlantic Ocean on the northeast trade winds. Soils on Quatemary coral terraces and carbonate eolianites on Barbados, Jamaica, the Florida Keys (United States), and New Providence Island (Bahamas) were studied to determine which, …

The Dinoflagellate Flora Of The Late Oligocene - Early Miocene Old Church Formation Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain, Alan P. Hoffmeister

OES Theses and Dissertations

The Old Church Formation contains the only presently known exposed Oligocene sediments in the North American mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain. Some ambiguity concerning the exact age of the Old Church Formation exists because it may include both Oligocene and Miocene sediments. Two outcrops and four cores containing the Old Church Formation were examined for dinoflagellates to determine the composition of the dinoflagellate flora in the Old Church Formation, the age of the Old Church Formation as indicated by this flora, general depositional environment of the Old Church Formation and correlative relationships of the Old Church Formation with other Coastal Plain units. …

Stable Isotopes Of Oxygen And Hydrogen In The Truckee River-Pyramid Lake Surface-Water System, 2. A Predictive Model Of Δ18O And Δ2H In Pyramid Lake, S. W. Hostetler, Larry Benson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

A physically based model of variations in δ¹⁸O and δ²H in Pyramid Lake is presented. For inputs, the model uses measurements of liquid water inflows and outflows and their associated isotopic compositions and a set of meteorological data (radiative fluxes, air temperature, relative humidity, and windspced). The model simulates change of lake volume, thermal and isotopic stratification, evaporation, and the isotopic composition of evaporation. A validation of the model for 1987-1989 and 1991 indicates that it can reproduce measured intra- and interannual variations of δ¹⁸O and δ²H. Three applications of the model …

Stable Isotopes Of Oxygen And Hydrogen In The Truckee River-Pyramid Lake Surface-Water System. 1. Data Analysis And Extraction Of Paleoclimatic Information, Larry Benson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The δ¹⁸O content of streamflow discharge entering Pyramid Lake is a simple mixture of isotopically enriched Lake Tahoe discharge and isotopically depleted snowmelt. The δ¹⁸O value of Pyramid Lake water varies continuously, as isotopically depleted water evaporates from the epilimnion and isotopically depicted water enters the lake as streamflow discharge and on-lake precipitation. In a normal water year, the δ¹⁸O of Pyramid Lake surface water varies seasonally because the components of the hydrologic balance in the Pyramid Lake system are seasonally shifted. The problem of isotopic and thermal heterogeneity can be minimized by analyzing …

Stable Isotopes Of Oxygen And Hydrogen In The Truckee River-Pyramid Lake Surface-Water System, 3: Source Of Water Vapor Overlying Pyramid Lake, Larry Benson, J. W. C. White

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

During 1988 and 1989, a series of water-vapor extractions were conducted in the Pyramid Lake basin to determine the source of moisture that overlies the lake. Calculations of the isotopic and water-vapor balances were made from isotopic and meteorological data from the Pyramid Lake and Reno, Nevada, areas. The results indicate that in the warm season, most of the moisture that overlies the lake is derived from evaporation as opposed to advected moisture. Isotopic fluxes at the lake surface can be approximated by climatic data from the lake site, which simplifies the calculation of this input in numerical simulations of …

Periodic And Homoclinic Orbits In A Toy Climate Model, M. Toner, A. D. Kirwan Jr.

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

A two dimensional system of autonomous nonlinear ordinary differential equations models glacier growth and temperature changes on an idealized planet. We apply standard perturbative techniques from dynamical systems theory to study small amplitude periodic orbits about a constant equilibrium. The equations are put in cononical form and the local phase space topology is examined. Maximum and minimum periods of oscillation are obtained and related to the radius of the orbit. An adjacent equilibrium is shown to have saddle character and the inflowing and outflowing manifolds of this saddle are studied using numerical integration. The inflowing manifolds show the region of …

Probable Glacial Climatic Conditions In Source Areas During Deposition Of Parts Of The Ash Hollow Formation, Ogallala Group (Late Tertiary), Of Western Nebraska, Patricia E. Helland, Robert F. Diffendal Jr.

Robert F. Diffendal, Jr., Publications

Evidence of the climatic conditions in the mountain sediment source areas for the late Tertiary Ash Hollow Formation of the Ogallala Group in western Nebraska has been sought in an SEM (scanning electron microscope) study of surface features on detrital quartz grains from these deposits. The following lines of indirect evidence raised the possibility of glacial conditions: uplift of up to 3500 m in the source areas, paleohydrologic parameters indicative of a transport system analogous to the modern North Saskatchewan River, and possible cold climate surface features on cobbles from the deposits. SEM analysis shows that five of the nine …

Acoustic Properties Of Fine‐Grained Sediments From Emerald Basin: Toward An Inversion For Physical Properties Using The Biot–Stoll Model, Robert C. Courtney, Larry A. Mayer

Affiliate Scholarship

Acoustic data from two long cores, comprising marine clays and silts taken from Emerald Basin off Nova Scotia, are presented. High‐resolution measurements of compressional wavevelocity,attenuation, and power law exponent are made using ultrasonic frequencies between 100 to 1000 kHz. The observed values of the frequency dependence of attenuation suggest that a nonconstant Q mechanism is needed to explain these data, and Biot–Stoll theory is used to model the experimental results. An inversion scheme is used to constrain physical parameters in the Biot–Stoll dispersion relation. The inversion shows that there is a restricted range of permeability and grain size. By assigning …

Paleobathymetric Interpretation Of Pleistocene Sediments In The South Padre Island Area, Northwestern Gulf Of Mexico, Using Benthic Foraminiferal Morphology, Karen Ianthe Kruebbe-Belwood

OES Theses and Dissertations

This study tested the validity of using intraspecific variation in benthic foraminifera as a means for determining Pleistocene paleobathymetry. Canonical variate analysis was used as a means for determining visually undetectable but statistically significant differences in the morphology of selected species. Two species, Cassidulina subglobosa and Uvigerina peregrina, were collected from Pleistocene well cuttings from the northwest Gulf of Mexico. The canonical analysis involved comparing the intraspecific variation of these Pleistocene species to their counterparts occurring in the modern Gulf of Mexico, where intraspecific variation was previously analyzed and found to be sufficient to allow detection of bathymetric differences …

Calculation Of Acoustic Parameters By A Filter-Correlation Method, Robert C. Courtney, Larry A. Mayer

Affiliate Scholarship

This paper presents the filter correlation method, a technique for extracting consistent and accurate estimates of attenuation parameters from acoustic waveform data. The method minimizes problems associated with short time windows and multipath secondary arrivals. The method comprises two stages: a causal passband filter stage followed by a cross-correlation step. The results of the filter-correlation estimator are compared to those of the spectral difference approach for short time series with and without a secondary multipath arrival. Preliminary analyses of acoustic data collected on cored marine silts and clays show the attenuation properties of these materials cannot be described by a …

Seismic Stratigraphy Of The Ontong Java Plateau, David Mosher, Larry A. Mayer, Tom H. Shipley, Edward L. Winterer, Rick A. Hagen, Janice C. Marsters, Frank Bassinot, Roy H. Wilkens, Mitchell Lyle

Affiliate Scholarship

The Ontong Java Plateau, a large, deep-water carbonate plateau in the western equatorial Pacific, is an ideal location for studying responses of carbonate sedimentation to the effects of changing paleoceanographic conditions. These carbonate responses are often reflected in the physical properties of the sediment, which in turn control the appearance of seismic reflection profiles. Seismic stratigraphy analyses, correlating eight reflector horizons to each drill site, have been conducted in an attempt to map stratigraphic data. Accurate correlation of seismic stratigraphic data to drilling results requires conversion of traveltime to depth in meters. Synthetic seismogram models, using shipboard physical properties data, …

Laboratory And Well-Log Velocity And Density Measurements From The Ontong Java Plateau: New In-Situ Corrections To Laboratory Data For Pelagic Carbonates, Jozsef Urmos, Roy H. Wilkens, Frank Bassinot, Mitchell Lyle, Janice C. Masters, Larry A. Mayer, David Mosher

Affiliate Scholarship

During Ocean Drilling Program Leg 130, sonic velocity and bulk density/porosity well logs were measured in five separate holes drilled through the sequence of pelagic carbonate oozes, chalks, and limestones that comprise the thick, continuous sedimentary cover on the Ontong Java Plateau. An internally consistent and continuous suite of shipboard laboratory velocity and sediment physical properties measurements were made from the top of each hole down through the entire logged interval. Because of the high quality of the data, extensive overlap of 500 m or more between the log and laboratory measurements at each hole, and the homogeneous nature of …

Variations Of Porosity In Calcareous Sediments From The Ontong Java Plateau, Frank Bassinot, Janice C. Marsters, Larry A. Mayer, Roy H. Wilkens

Affiliate Scholarship

Based on index properties measurements made on board the JOIDES Resolution, we studied porosity changes with depth in the fairly homogeneous deep-sea calcareous sediments cored during Ocean Drilling Program Leg 130 on the Ontong Java Plateau. Using Leg 130 data, we present evidence that the rate of porosity decrease with burial in calcareous oozes and chalks is related to the depth of deposition and thus probably depends on the "conditioning" of calcareous sediments by winnowing or dissolution processes during the time of deposition. The ooze-to-chalk transition is not clearly reflected in porosity profiles. In the ooze-chalk sections studied (the upper …

Climatic Cyclicity At Site 806; The Grape Record, Larry A. Mayer, Eystein Jansen, Jan Backman, Toshiaki Takayama

Affiliate Scholarship

We used the continuous saturated bulk density records collected by the gamma-ray attenuation porosity evaluator (GRAPE) at Ocean Drilling Program Site 806 on the top of the Ontong Java Plateau to evaluate the continuity of the recovered cores and to splice together a complete section from the multiple holes drilled at the site (for the upper 165 m, this is equivalent to approximately 0-5 Ma). The lack of offset in core breaks (between the 9.5-m-long, successive cores) from hole to hole made splicing difficult, and the results are not unambiguous. The composite section was converted to a time series by …

Evolution Of Pliocene Climate Cyclicity At Hole 806b (5-2 Ma); Oxygen Isotope Record, Eystein Jansen, Larry A. Mayer, Jan Backman, R. Mark Leckie, Toshiaki Takayama

Affiliate Scholarship

A detailed Pliocene oxygen isotope record from the Ontong Java Plateau, based on measurements of the surface-dwelling planktonic foraminifer Globigerinoides sacculifer, was produced for the period from 5 to 2 Ma. The record documents major long and short-term climate changes. The results show periods of enhanced ice volume at 4.6 to 4.3 Ma and after 2.85 Ma, a long-term warming trend from 4.1 to 3.7 Ma, and a distinct cooling trend that was initiated at 3.5 Ma and progressed through the initiation of large-scale Northern Hemisphere glaciation after 2.85 Ma (according to the time scale of Shackleton and others proposed …

Detailed Stratigraphic Correlation Of The Neogene Sedimentary Sequences On The Ontong Java Plateau By Well Logging; Odp Sites 803, 805, 806, 807, And Dsdp Site 586, Mitchell Lyle, Roy H. Wilkens, Larry A. Mayer

Affiliate Scholarship

We used well logs, in some cases combined with shipboard physical properties measurements to make more complete profiles and to correlate between sites on the Ontong Java Plateau. By comparing sediment bulk density, velocity, and resistivity logs from adjacent holes at the same site, we showed that even subtle features of the well logs are reproducible and are caused by variations in sedimentation. With only minor amounts of biostratigraphic information, we could readily correlate these sedimentary features across the entire top of the Ontong Java Plateau, demonstrating that for most of the Neogene the top of the plateau is a …

Velocity Anisotropy In Calcareous Sediments From Leg 130, Ontong Java Plateau, Frank Bassinot, Janice C. Marsters, Larry A. Mayer, Roy H. Wilkens

Affiliate Scholarship

During Leg 130, an intensive program of P-wave velocity measurements was conducted on calcareous sediments of varying induration (ranging from ooze to limestone) that cover the Ontong Java Plateau (west equatorial Pacific). The high quantity and quality of shipboard acoustical property measurements seemed to be particularly appropriate for gaining a better understanding of acoustic anisotropy in calcareous sediments. Major results can be summarized as follows: 1. In calcareous oozes, acoustic anisotropy exists even at shallow depths of burial. Values are low, ranging from -0.5% to 3.5% and averaging 1.2%. Anisotropy profiles are affected by coring disturbances, but they still roughly …

Downhole Logging As A Paeoceanographic Tool On Ocean Drilling Program Leg 138: Interface Between High-Resolution Stratigraphy And Regional Syntheses, Mitchell Lyle, Larry A. Mayer, Nicklas G. Pisias, T. K. Hagelberg, Kathleen A. Dadey, Stephen F. Bloomer, Shipboard Scientific Party

Affiliate Scholarship

On Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 138, standard shipboard procedures were modified to allow for the real-time monitoring of several laboratory core-scanning systems that provide centimeter-scale measurements of saturated bulk density, magnetic susceptibility and digital color reflectance. These continuous, high-resolution data sets were used to ensure the proper offset of multiple holes and to splice together complete sedimentary sections. Typically, the spliced, continuous sediment sections were found to be about 10% longer than the section drilled, as measured by the length of the drill string. While the source of this elongation is not yet fully understood, it must be compensated …

Gis Characterization Of Beaver Watershed, H. D. Scott, J. M. Mckimmey

Arkansas Water Resources Center Technical Reports

Beaver Reservoir watershed is located in Northwest Arkansas including portions of Madison, Washington, Benton, Carroll, Franklin and Crawford counties. This watershed is important to the Northwest Arkansas region because it supplies most of the drinking water for the major towns and cities, and several rural water systems. The watershed consists of 308,971 ha with elevations ranging from approximately 341 m to 731 m above mean sea level. It includes the Springfield Plateau and the Boston Mountains provinces within the Ozark Plateau physiographic region. There are approximately 581 km of streams, 532 km of shore line, and 3712 km of roads …

Marine Sediment Classification Using The Chirp Sonar, Lester R. Leblanc, Larry A. Mayer, Manuel Rufino, Steven G. Schock, John King

Affiliate Scholarship

The chirpsonar is a calibrated wideband digital FMsonar that provides quantitative, high‐resolution, low‐noise subbottom data. In addition, it generates an acoustic pulse with special frequency domain weighting that provides nearly constant resolution with depth. The chirpsonar was developed with the objective of remote acoustic classification of seafloor sediments. In addition to producing high‐resolution images, the calibrated digitally recorded data are processed to estimate surficial reflection coefficients as well as a complete sediment acoustic impulse profile. In this paper, surficial sediments in Narragansett Bay, RI are used to provide ground truth for an acoustic model. Quantitative acoustic returns from the chirpsonar …

Seabeam And Seismic Reflection Surveys On The Ontong Java Plateau, Larry A. Mayer, Tom H. Shipley, Edward L. Winterer, David Mosher, Rick A. Hagen

Affiliate Scholarship

No abstract provided.