a 13 000 year climate record from western tibet although the tibetan plateau is important in influencing the atmospheric circulation of the northern hemisphere1 3 there are only a few continuous palaeoclimate records available and these are limited to the plateau s northeastern margin4 6 here we present a 13 000 yr record from sumxi co western tibet constructed from both lake core and shoreline studies which shows that conditions in the early middle holocene were warmer and wetter than at present these results confirm model predictions of an intensified monsoon over the region at 9 000 yr bp owing to an orbitally induced increase in summer insolation7 8 we also find evidence for warm humid pulses at 12 500 and 10 000 yr bp in phase with the steps of the last deglaciation and for a return to cold dry conditions at 11 10 000 yr bp none of which can be explained by orbital variations the existence of the cold episode confirms that the cooling associated with the younger dry as event occurred in continental china6 9 and provides further evidence of the global nature of this event10

cosmogenic beryllium 10 and neon 21 dating of late pleistocene glaciations in nyalam monsoonal himalayas we present cosmogenic 10be and 21ne chronologies from 21 erratic boulders on three moraine sequences in nyalam county monsoonal himalayas southern margin of the tibetan plateau the surface exposure ages provide evidence for at least two distinct glacial advances during the late stage of the last glacial cycle and for one or more significantly older glaciations the distribution of cosmogenic ages from the three ridges of the old moraine sequence is inconsistent with their stratigraphic order because exposure periods of the erratics prior to deposition on the moraine surface is shown to be small the chronology stratigraphy mismatch suggests that the cosmogenic ages do not date moraine deposition but most likely significant moraine ridge denudation and related boulder exhumation after initial deposition of the moraines during the penultimate glacial cycle or earlier the surface exposure ages based on various currently accepted production rate scaling protocols yield age differences of up to 35 reflecting the poor knowledge of terrestrial cosmogenic production rates at low latitude high altitude sites even within this conservative uncertainty range our results do not yield evidence for late pleistocene glaciations in monsoonal tibet to be asynchronous to those in mid latitudes on both hemispheres there is an urgent need to improve the knowledge of terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide production rates and their scaling to low latitude regions to fully exploit the climate information archived in tropical moraine sequences

radiolytic h2 in continental crust nuclear power for deep subsurface microbial communities 1 h2 is probably the most important substrate for terrestrial subsurface lithoautotrophic microbial communities abiotic h2 generation is an essential component of subsurface ecosystems truly independent of surface photosynthesis here we report that h2 concentrations in fracture water collected from deep siliclastic and volcanic rock units in the witwatersrand basin south africa ranged up to two molar a value far greater than observed in shallow aquifers or marine sediments the high h2 concentrations are consistent with that predicted by radiolytic dissociation of h2o during radioactive decay of u th and k in the host rock and the observed he concentrations none of the other known h2 generating mechanisms can account for such high h2 abundance either because of the positive free energy imposed by the high h2 concentration or ph or because of the absence of required mineral phases the radiolytic h2 is consumed by methanogens and abiotic hydrocarbon synthesis our calculations indicate that radiolytic h2 production is a ubiquitous and virtually limitless source of energy for deep crustal chemolithoautotrophic ecosystems

evidence for bacterially generated hydrocarbon gas in canadian shield and fennoscandian shield rocks hydrocarbon rich gases found in crystalline rocks on the canadian and fennoscandian shields are isotopically and compositionally similar suggesting that such gases are a characteristic feature of precambrian shield rocks gases occure in association with saline groundwaters and brines in pressurized pockets formed by sealed fracture systems within the host rocks when released by drilling activities gas pressures as high as 5000 kpa have been recorded typical gas flow rates for individual boreholes range from 0 25 l min to 4 l min the highest concentrations of ch4 are found in the deepest levels of the boreholes associated with ca na cl and na ca cl brines n2 is the second major component of the gases and with ch4 accounts for up to 80 to 90 vol higher hydrocarbon c2 concentrations range from 1 to 10 vol with c1 c2 c3 ratios from 10 1000 isotopically the gases show a wide range of values overall 13c 57 5 to 41 1 d 245 to 470 but a relatively tight cluster of values within each sampling locality the enonkoski mine methanes are unique with 13c values between 65 4 and 67 3 and d values between 297 and 347 the shield gases are not readily reconcilable with conventional theories of methanogenesis the range of c1 c2 c3 ratios for the shield gases is too low to be consistent with an entirely bacterial origin in addition dch4 values are in general too depleted in the heavy isotope to be produced by thermogenic methanogenesis or by secondary alteration processes such as bacterial oxidation or migration however isotopic and compositional evidence indicates that bacterially derived gas can account for a significant component of the gas at all shield sites conventional bacterial gas accounts for 75 94 vol of the occurrences at enonkoski mine in finland at each of the other shield sites bacterial gas can account for up to 30 50 vol of the total gas accumulation this study and other recent evidence of active bacterial communities in deep hydrogeological environments emphasize the need for more comprehensive investigation of the role of microorganisms in the deep subsurface

methanotrophic activity in carboniferous coalbed rocks abstract carboniferous coalbed rocks originating from the lublin coal basin south east poland were investigated for the presence and activity of aerobic methanotrophic bacteria laboratory studies of samples collected from 914 to 1004 m below earth s surface and performed at 30 c 100 water capacity whc and 10 v v headspace ch 4 revealed microbial methane oxidation which ranged from 0 13 to 0 75 m ch 4 g 1 day 1 methanotrophic activity ma was also investigated as a function of temperature 5 30 c moisture content 25 200 whc and substrate concentration 1 30 v v ch 4 the highest ma was recorded at 30 c 100 whc and 20 ch 4 v v indicating the mesophilic and microaerophilic character of methanotrophic bacteria mb present in the coalbed lack of detectable ma at 5 and 10 c shows narrow temperature tolerance of mb which may result from a long term isolation of the bacterial habitat and stability of thermal conditions in the coalbed cryo sem revealed presence in the investigated rocks of bacteria c a 2 2 5 m long and 0 5 1 m wide and spore like structures 0 5 1 m in diameter these observations were confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization with probes mg705 5 fluoresceine mg84 5 cy3 and ma450 5 cy5 which showed that enrichments in nms medium contain types i and ii mb of similar size identification performed with the use of dna amplification of 16s rrna targeted group specific primers confirmed the presence of bacteria belonging to methylosinus methylomicrobium methylocystis and methylocaldum here we show that coalbed rocks constitute a habitat for diverse mb

pattern of holocene glaciation in the monsoon dominated kosa valley central himalaya uttarakhand india abstract reconstruction based on the geomorphology lateral moraine stratigraphy and limited optical chronology indicate that the monsoon dominated kosa valley experienced four glacial advances during the late glacial to late holocene the oldest and most extensive glaciation which is termed as raj bank stage 1 rbs 1 is represented by the degraded moraine ridge this glaciation remains undated however the chronology of outwash terrace gravel dated to 12 7 1 3 ka indicates that the rbs 1 probably represents the last glacial maximum lgm the second glacial advance rbs 2 is preserved as a curvilinear lateral moraine and is dated to 6 1 0 4 ka the third glacial advance viz rbs 3 is bracketed between 5 0 0 5 and 4 0 0 4 ka following this the glacier receded in pulses that are represented by two distinct recessional moraines rbs 3a and b the forth glacial stage rbs 4 which is dated between 2 2 0 2 and 1 6 0 2 ka shows a pulsating recession and is represented by a prominent recessional moraine rbs 4a whereas presence of unconsolidated poorly defined moraine mounds proximal to the glacier snout are ascribed as neoglacial advance corresponding to the little ice age lia with the limited chronometric data we speculated that the glaciation was driven during the weak to moderate indian summer monsoon ism aided by lowered temperature presence of recessional moraines associated with mid holocene glacial phase indicate that the monsoon dominated glaciers respond sensitively to minor sub millennial scale changes in temperature and precipitation conditions the observations are broadly in accordance with the studies carried out in other monsoon dominated valleys in the central himalaya implying that in ism dominated regions lowered temperature seems to be the major driver of glaciations during the late glacial to late holocene

unravelling abiogenic and biogenic sources of methane in the earth s deep subsurface at four underground sites in precambrian shield rocks in canada and south africa hydrocarbon and hydrogen gases exsolving from saline fracture waters are analyzed for compositional and isotopic signatures dominated by reduced gases such as ch4 h 2 and higher hydrocarbons ethane propane butane the most 13 c enriched methane end members at all four sites show a pattern of carbon and hydrogen isotopic values similar to abiogenic gases produced by water rock interaction that have been identified previously at one site on the precambrian shield in canada the abiogenic nature of these gases was not previously recognized due to mixing with a second methane component produced by microbial processes the microbial methane end member is identified based on carbon and hydrogen isotopic signatures and dna gene amplification pcr data that indicate the presence of methanogens a framework is presented to estimate the relative contribution of abiogenic versus microbial hydrocarbon gases at these sites this approach has important implications for evaluation of potential abiogenic hydrocarbon reservoirs in a wide range of geologic settings including the longstanding controversy concerning the possible contribution of abiogenic gases to economic petroleum hydrocarbon reservoirs the association of high concentrations of h2 with 13 c enriched ch4 end members and h2 depletion in the 13 c depleted methanogenic end members further suggests the possibility that abiogenic gases may support h2 autotrophy linked to methanogenesis in the deep subsurface d 2005 elsevier b v all rights reserved

late quaternary fluvial aggradation and incision in the monsoon dominated alaknanda valley central himalaya uttrakhand india the present study aims to explain the spatial and temporal variability in phases of aggradation incision in response to changes in climate and seismicity during the late quaternary in the alaknanda river valley a major tributary of the river ganges or ganga geomorphology stratigraphy and optical dating of the fluvial sediment reveal that the oldest fluvial landforms preserved in the south of the main central thrust are debris flow terraces developed during the early part of pluvial marine isotopic stage 3 following this a period of accelerated incision erosion owing to an increase in uplift rate and more intense rainfall occurred in the lesser himalaya three phases of valley fill aggradation around 26 3 ka 18 2 ka and 15 1 ka and 8 1 ka occurred in response to changes in monsoon intensity and sediment flux the last phase was regionally extensive and corresponds to a strengthening of the early holocene indian summer monsoon a gradual decline in the monsoon strength after 8 1 ka resulted in reduced fluvial discharge and lower sediment transport capacity of the alaknanda river leading to valley fill incision and the development of terraces the study suggests that fluvial dynamics in the alaknanda valley were modulated by monsoon variability and the role of tectonics was subordinate limited to providing accommodation space and post deposition modification of the fluvial landforms copyright 2010 john wiley sons ltd

bacterial incorporation of relict carbon in the hydrothermal environment of guaymas basin abstract radiocarbon analyses of bulk carbon and individual organic compounds are presented for the hydrothermal environment of the rebecca s roost vent in the southern trough of the guaymas basin hydrothermal field the 14 c values of co 2 and ch 4 in the hottest hydrothermal fluids 317 c are nearly radiocarbon dead 944 and 923 respectively in contrast the 14 c values of sediments and individual fatty acids 418 to 227 obtained from a bacterial mat located south of the vent site are similar to values previously reported for hydrothermal petroleum in this environment and are more depleted in 14 c than overlying waters hydrothermal fluids moving through the sediments appear to supply 14 c of intermediate age to the bacteria this carbon may take the form of or may be supplied by processes similar to the generation of hydrothermal petroleum although the bacterial mat visibly was dominated by beggiatoa spp such mats are known to include numerous other species individual compound data show that preaged carbon is being consumed by the integrated bacterial assemblage values of 13 c and 14 c indicate that petroleum derived carbon is incorporated directly into fresh bacterial biomass subsequently some of this newly synthesized material also is consumed by heterotrophs as eukaryotic sterols from the same sample also have 14 c depleted values 14 c 136 to 110 therefore the entire system may operate as a complex consortium to transform relict carbon back into biomass bacterial consumption of relict carbon occurs despite the ample supply of fresh carbon delivered from the productive overlying water column

deducing the distribution of terminal electron accepting processes in hydrologically diverse groundwater systems the distribution of microbially mediated terminal electron accepting processes teaps was investigated in four hydrologically diverse groundwater systems by considering patterns of electron acceptor nitrate sulfate consumption intermediate product hydrogen h sub 2 concentrations and final product ferrous ion sulfide and methane production in each hydrologic system a determination of predominant teaps could be arrived at but the level of confidence appropriate for each determination differed in a portion of the lacustrine aquifer of the san joaquin valley for example all three indicators sulfate concentrations decreasing h sub 2 concentrations in the 1 2 nmol range and sulfide concentrations increasing along flow paths identified sulfate reduction as the predominant teap leading to a high degree of confidence in the determination in portions of the floridan aquifer and a petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated aquifer sulfate reduction and methanogenesis are indicated by production of sulfide and methane and hydrogen concentrations in the 1 4 nmol and 5 14 nmol range respectively however because electron acceptor consumption could not be documented in these systems less confidence is warranted in the teap determination in the black creek aquifer no pattern of sulfate consumption and sulfide production were observed but h sub 2 concentrations indicated sulfate reduction as the predominant teap in this case more where just a single line of evidence is available the least confidence in the teap diagnosis is justified because this methodology is based on measurable water chemistry parameters and upon the physiology of microbial electron transfer processes it provides a better description of predominant redox processes in groundwater systems than more traditional eh based methods less

hydrochemical baseline condition of groundwater at the mizunami underground research laboratory miu abstract hydrochemical conditions up to depths of 1000 m below ground level around the mizunami underground research laboratory were investigated to construct a baseline condition model describing the undisturbed hydrochemical environment prior to excavation of the underground facilities at mizunami gifu japan groundwater chemistry in this area was classified into a na ca hco 3 type of groundwater in the upper part of sedimentary rock sequence and a na ca cl type of groundwater in the deeper part of the sedimentary rock sequence and basement granite the residence time of the groundwaters was estimated from their 14 c contents to be approximately 9 3 ka in the middle part of the sedimentary rock and older than 50 ka in the deep part of the granite the evolution processes of these groundwaters were inferred to be water rock interactions such as weathering of plagioclase dissolution of marine sulphate sulphide minerals and carbonate minerals in the na ca hco 3 type of groundwater and mixing between low salinity water in the shallow part and higher salinity water in the deeper part of the granite in the na ca cl type of groundwater the source of salinity in the deeper part of the granite was possibly a palaeo hydrothermal water or a fossil seawater that recharged in the miocene subsequently being modified by long term water rock interaction the cl depth trend in granitic groundwater changes at a depth of 400 m below sea level the hydrogeological properties controlling the groundwater flow and or mixing processes such as advection and diffusion were inferred to be different at this depth in the granite this hydrochemical conceptual model is indispensable not only when constructing the numerical model for evaluating the hydrochemical disturbance during construction and operation of the miu facility but also when confirming a hydrogeological model

microbial carbon cycling in oligotrophic regional aquifers near the tono uranium mine japan as inferred from δ13c and δ14c values of in situ phospholipid fatty acids and carbon sources abstract microorganisms are ubiquitous in deep subsurface environments but their role in the global carbon cycle is not well understood the natural abundance 13c and 14c values of microbial membrane phospholipid fatty acids plfas were measured and used to assess the carbon sources of bacteria in sedimentary and granitic groundwaters sampled from three boreholes in the vicinity of the tono uranium mine gifu japan sample storage experiments were performed and drill waters analyzed to characterize potential sources of microbial contamination the most abundant plfa structures in all waters sampled were 16 0 16 1 7c cy17 0 and 18 1 7c a plfa biomarker for type ii methanotrophs 18 1 8c comprised 3 and 18 of total plfas in anoxic sedimentary and granitic waters respectively sampled from the kna 6 borehole the presence of this biomarker was unexpected given that type ii methanotrophs are considered obligate aerobes however a bacterium that grows aerobically with ch4 as the sole energy source and which also produces 56 of its total plfas as 18 1 8c was isolated from both waters providing additional evidence for the presence of type ii methanotrophs the 14c values determined for type ii methanotroph plfas in the sedimentary 861 and granite 867 waters were very similar to the 14c values of dissolved inorganic carbon dic in each water 850 this suggests that type ii methanotrophs ultimately derive all their carbon from inorganic sources whether directly from dic and or from ch4 produced by the reduction of dic in contrast 13c values of type ii plfas in the sedimentary 93 and granite 60 waters indicate that these organisms use different carbon assimilation schemes in each environment despite very similar 13 c ch 4 values 95 for each water the 13cplfa values 28 to 45 of non methanotrophic bacteria in the kna 6 ltl water do not clearly distinguish between heterotrophic and autotrophic metabolisms but 14cplfa values indicate that 65 of total bacteria filtered from the kna 6 ltl water are heterotrophs ancient 14c values 1000 of some plfas suggest that many heterotrophs utilize ancient organic matter perhaps from lignite seams within the sedimentary rocks the more negative range of 13cplfa values determined for the kna 6 granitic water 42 to 66 are likely the result of a microbial ecosystem dominated by chemolithoautotrophy perhaps fuelled by abiogenic h2 results of sample storage experiments showed substantial shifts in microbial community composition and 13cplfa values as much as 5 during 2 4 days of dark refrigerated aseptic storage however water samples collected and immediately filtered back in the lab from freshly drilled msb 2 borehole appeared to maintain the same relative relationships between 13cplfa values for sedimentary and granitic host rocks as observed for samples directly filtered under artesian flow from the kna 6 borehole of the tono uranium mine

carbon 14 study of groundwater in the sedimentary rocks at the tono study site central japan isotopic investigations using 14c of groundwater were carried out to understand the hydraulic conditions in the sedimentary rocks at the tono study site central japan 14c activities of groundwater observed range from 2 to 32 modern carbon pmc measured 14c activities of groundwater are corrected by the isotopic mass balance model based on 14c activities 13c values concentrations of the dissolved inorganic carbon dic and 13c values of non active carbon dissolved into the groundwater from carbonate minerals and organics assuming that the groundwater reservoir is comparable to the piston flow situation the relative 14c ages of groundwaters were calculated from the corrected 14c activity the relative 14c age suggests that the groundwater infiltration from the upper part of the sedimentary rocks to the lower part takes several thousands of years or that the groundwater in the lower part of sedimentary rocks is derived from long distance flow from the surface through the unconformity between the sedimentary rocks and basement granite the flow rate calculated by relative 14c ages shows similar values to those estimated by computer simulation using hydraulic pressure and conductivity data hydraulic conditions at the tono study site inferred from 14c activity agree with those suggested from hydrogeological analyses isotopic approaches using 14c activity can be applied as geochemical evaluation for interpretations from the hydraulic study

geochemical characteristics of the paleogene shales in the dongying depression eastern china abstract fluctuations in lacustrine sedimentary environments significantly affect distributions of organic matter om uranium and other elements in shales in this study a high resolution geochemical record of fluctuations in the paleo depositional environment of a terrestrial lake basin is provided on the basis of extensive samples collected from the member 3 of the paleogene shahejie formation es3 of the niu 38 well in the dongying depression eastern china these samples were tested for total organic carbon toc element concentrations and biomarkers to study the evolution and fluctuation in the depositional environments of an ancient lake basin and associated geochemical response the evolution and fluctuation of the sedimentary environment from a deep lake to a semi deep lake and then to a shallow lake delta were indicated by geochemical response during this evolution the values of toc s1 s2 sr and ts ts tm remarkably decreased whereas those of co ni rb na fe mn fe ca mg and c29 mortane c29 hopane significantly increased the deep lake basin shows depositional fluctuations as indicated by rock lithofacies and their geochemical parameters a close interrelationship was observed among u concentration toc content and inorganic element content uranium concentrations are positively correlated with toc contents ca and sr concentrations and sr ba and ca mg ratios but negatively with k na ba and rb contents and fe ca mg and fe mn ratios the observed increase in u concentration in the lower es3 section is closely related to surface adsorption by clay minerals and om together with some replacements of ca and sr by u in the shales

late pleistocene glacial equilibrium line altitudes in the colorado front range a comparison of methods abstract six methods for approximating late pleistocene pinedale equilibrium line altitudes elas are compared for rapidity of data collection and error rmse from first order trend surfaces using the colorado front range trend surfaces computed from rapidly applied techniques such as glaciation threshold median altitude of small reconstructed glaciers and altitude of lowest cirque floors have relatively high rmses 97 186 m because they are subjectively derived and are based on small glaciers sensitive to microclimatic variability surfaces computed for accumulation area ratios aars and toe to headwall altitude ratios thars of large reconstructed glaciers show that an aar of 0 65 and a thar of 0 40 have the lowest rmses about 80 m and provide the same mean ela estimate about 3160 m as that of the more subjectively derived maximum altitudes of pinedale lateral moraines rmse 149 m second order trend surfaces demonstrate low elas in the latitudinal center of the front range perhaps due to higher winter accumulation there the mountains do not presently reach the ela for large glaciers and small front range cirque glaciers are not comparable to small glaciers existing during pinedale time therefore pleistocene ela depression and consequent temperature depression cannot reliably be ascertained from the calculated ela surfaces

reduction of co2 during serpentinization of olivine at 300 c and 500 bar co 2 reduction processes occurring during experimental serpentinization of olivine at 300 c and 500 bar confirm that ultramafic rocks can play an important role in the generation of abiogenic hydrocarbon gas data reveal that conversion of fe ii in olivine to fe iii in magnetite during serpentinization leads to production of h 2 and conversion of dissolved co 2 to reduced c species including methane ethane propane and an amorphous carbonaceous phase hydrocarbon gases generated in the process fit a schulz flory distribution consistent with catalysis by mineral reactants or products magnetite is inferred to be the catalyst for methanization during serpentinization because it has been previously shown to accelerate fischer tropsch synthesis of methane in industrial applications involving mixtures of h 2 and co 2 the carbonaceous phase was predominantly aliphatic but had a significant aromatic component although this phase should ultimately be converted to hydrocarbon gases and graphite if full thermodynamic equilibrium were established its formation in these experiments indicates that the pathway for reduction of co 2 during serpentinization processes is complex and involves a series of metastable intermediates

w and m type tetrad effects in ree patterns for water rock systems in the tono uranium deposit central japan abstract abundances of rare earth elements plus y ree were determined for granitic rocks tertiary sedimentary rocks and related groundwater in the tono area central japan tetrad effects concave curves in ree patterns were found for these rocks and groundwater samples conjugate m and w types of tetrad effects were simultaneously observed in these specimens which constitute the water rock system the granitic rocks show the m type tetrad effects while the groundwater and the sedimentary rocks exhibit the w type tetrad effects non chondritic y ho ratios were found especially in the groundwater y ho ratios showed larger values than the chondritic value for the samples showing w type tetrad effects and vice versa these results suggest that 1 preference of the groundwater for a w type tetrad effect and larger y ho ratio than chondrite produces an m type tetrad effects and lower y ho ratios in the granitic rocks during weathering processes 2 the w type tetrad effect and larger y ho ratio for the sedimentary rocks is brought about by the fixation of groundwater ree onto the sedimentary rocks the variation of the tetrad effect and y ho ratio was confirmed by laboratory experiments on the leaching of ree from the granitic rocks the w type tetrad effect and large y ho ratio in the u mineralization zone in the sedimentary rocks were also found by sims analysis which is consistent with the w type tetrad effect and larger y ho ratio in the whole rock abundances of the sedimentary rocks disequilibrium of the u series 234 u 238 u analyzed by sims in the u mineralization zone suggests that the u bearing minerals were formed through precipitation from groundwater as it became reducing these results suggest that the ree in the sedimentary rocks were transported by the groundwater from the granitic rocks in the tono area based on this study it is implied that the degree of the tetrad effects and the variation of y ho ratio can be valuable tools to investigate the migration of ree during water rock interactions in natural systems

style and timing of glacial and paraglacial sedimentation in a monsoon influenced high himalayan environment the upper bhagirathi valley garhwal himalaya abstract the gangotri glacier at the source of the ganges river has fluctuated greatly throughout the late quaternary in response to climatic oscillations this has resulted in impressive moraines paraglacial debris flow fans and terraces along the upper stretches of the bhagirathi valley cosmogenic radionuclide crn dating of glacial and paraglacial landforms shows that fans terraces and associated moraines formed approximately synchronously as the landscape readjusted to changing environmental conditions this synchronicity suggests that fan and terrace formation is intimately related to glaciation and that fluctuations in glacial and associated environments during times of climatic instability cause rapid sediment transfer and resedimentation of glacial landforms the crn dates show that all existing glacial and paraglacial landforms in the upper bhagirathi valley formed during the late pleistocene and holocene this demonstrates that in this high mountain environment paraglacial and glacial landforms are eroded and resedimented within about 20 000 years furthermore this testifies to the dynamic nature of glacial environments in monsoon influenced high mountain regions

distribution of the methanotrophic bacteria in the western part of the upper silesian coal basin borynia zofiowka and budryk coal mines abstract in the past decade several research projects were undertaken to examine the relationship between qualitative and quantitative parameters of the coal bed gas and microbial inhabitants of the subsurface environment majority of the studies focused on methanogens due to their potential to improve the yields of methane extracted for industrial use but recently it was found that the coal bearing sediments are also a habitat of the methane oxidizing bacteria these microbiota comprise an important element of the carbon cycle however so far distribution and geochemical controls of their activity were poorly recognized the current study addresses this dearth of knowledge and provide data about distribution of aerobic methane oxidizers in the western part of the upper silesian coal basin one of the most important and prospective mining regions in europe the coal seams investigated nos 358 364 401 405 406 410 413 and 502 were of bashkirian age and located at depths from c a 700 to 1000 m below surface methanotrophic bacteria were ubiquitous with activity ranging from 0 191 to 2 513 m ch 4 g 1 day 1 in the laboratory conditions 30 c 100 water capacity whc and 10 v v ch 4 16s rrna sequences retrieved from the coal bed rocks revealed the presence of a variable methanotrophic community comprising of type i ii and x methanotrophs with the latter being assumed to play a dominant role in subsurface methane oxidation it was assumed that the methanotrophic bacteria present in the carboniferous coal deposits should be further investigated to assess their contribution to the safety of mining operations and due to their potential to be used as a biofilter for methane

quaternary glacial history of nw garhwal central himalayas a first account of the quaternary glacial history is presented for northwest garhwal central himalaya on the basis of sediments and landforms one glacial stage has been recognised this is called the bhagirathi glacial stage when extensive valley glaciers advanced down the bhagirathi valley to jhala 40 5 km from the snout of gangotri glacier the ela depression during this stage was ca 640 m the bhagirathi glacial stage is constrained by optically stimulated luminescence dates of ca 63 ka and 5 ka bp and this glaciation is considered equivalent to the last glaciation elsewhere in the world the maximum extent of ice occurred ca 63 ka bp this however does not correlate with the last glacial maximum for the northern hemisphere ice sheets 20 18 ka bp a series of sharp crested moraines are present between 1 to 3 km beyond the snouts of most of the present glaciers these moraines formed during the mid holocene 5 ka bp termed here the shivling glacial advance small moraines are inset into these and are dated at about 200 to 300 bp the bhujbas glacial advance ca 300 to 200 bp and considered equivalent to the little ice age in other parts of the world ela depressions of between 40 100 m and 20 60 m occurred during the shivling and bhujbas glacial advances respectively since the bhujbas glacial advance there has been progressive retreat of glaciers initially by downwasting and retreat and then by simple retreat this retreat has accelerated during the last few decades impressive paraglacial fans are associated with deglaciation representing very rapid resedimentation during and soon after ice retreat

modeling of residual spheres for subduction zone earthquakes 1 apparent slab penetration signatures in the nw pacific caused by deep diffuse mantle anomalies we have computed focal residual spheres for 145 subduction zone earthquakes along the northwest edge of the pacific using regional and global mantle velocity models from tomographic inversions the mantle models explain much of the observed residual sphere data and to a certain extent suggest the location of mantle velocity heterogeneities which are responsible for various residual sphere patterns for most deep events considered the fast slablike residual sphere anomalies are caused by diffuse heterogeneities mainly of deep lower mantle and receiver mantle origin rather than by an extension of the slab the region immediately below the deepest earthquakes depths of 650 1500 km has an effect usually smaller than or comparable to the effect of other regions of the mantle without a proper account of the teleseismic effect attributing the long wavelength anomalies of the residual sphere to near source slab effects alone or even primarily is not valid the fast bands in many observed residual spheres agree with seismicity trends once the deep mantle and receiver mantle effects are removed these may give the approximate orientation but not the depth extent of near source fast velocities for most deep earthquakes under japan the predominant fast band is subhorizontal rather than near vertical this type feature would be overlooked in conventional residual sphere studies using only steeply diving rays and cosine weighting of the data