origin timing and temperature of secondary calcite silica mineral formation at yucca mountain nevada the origin of secondary calcite silica minerals in primary and secondary porosity of the host miocene tuffs at yucca mountain has been hotly debated during the last decade proponents of a high level nuclear waste repository beneath yucca mountain have interpreted the secondary minerals to have formed from cool descending meteoric fluids in the vadose zone critics citing the presence of two phase fluid inclusions argued that the minerals could only have formed in the phreatic zone from ascending hydrothermal fluids understanding the origin temperature and timing of these minerals is critical in characterizing geologically recent fluid flux at the site and has significant implications to whether waste should be stored at yucca mountain petrographic and paragenetic studies of 155 samples collected from the exploratory studies facility esf and repository block cross drift ecrb tunnels indicate that heterogeneously distributed calcite with lesser chalcedony quartz opal and fluorite comprise the oldest secondary minerals these are typically overgrown by intermediate aged calcite often exhibiting distinctive bladed habits the youngest event recorded across the site is the deposition of mg enriched up to 1 wt and depleted growth zoned calcite intergrown with u enriched opal the cyclical variation in mg enrichment and depletion is probably related to climate changes that have occurred during the last few million years the distribution of secondary minerals is consistent with precipitation in the vadose zone fluid inclusion petrography of sections from the 155 samples determined that 96 of the fluid inclusion assemblages fias contained liquid only inclusions that formed at ambient temperatures 35 c however 50 of the samples n 78 contained relatively rare fia that contain both liquid only and liquid plus vapor inclusions herein termed two phase fias that formed at temperatures above 35 c virtually all of these two phase fias occur in paragenetically old calcite rare two phase inclusion assemblages were also observed in early fluorite and quartz and early intermediate calcite homogenization temperatures trapping temperatures across yucca mountain are generally 45 to 60 c but higher temperatures reaching 83 c were recorded in calcite from the north portal and ramp of the esf cooler temperatures of 35 to 45 c were recorded in the intensely fractured zone multiple populations of two phase fias from lithophysal cavities in the esf and ecrb cross drift indicate early fluid cooling with time from temperatures 45 c in early calcite to 35 to 45 c in paragenetically younger calcite freezing point depressions range from 0 2 to 1 6 c indicating trapping of a low salinity fluid the majority of intermediate calcite and all outermost mg enriched calcite contains rare all liquid inclusions and formed from ambient temperature 35 c fluids carbon and oxygen isotope data reveal a consistent trend of decreasing 13 c from 9 5 to 8 5 and increasing 18 o from 5 2 to 22 1 values from paragenetically early calcite to mg enriched growth zoned calcite depleted d values 131 to 90 of inclusion fluids from intermediate and the youngest mg enriched calcite indicate derivation from surface meteoric fluids recalculation of 18 oh2o values of 12 to 10 is consistent with derivation from paleometeoric fluids results of integrated u pb dating opal and chalcedony and fluid inclusion microthermometry indicate that two phase fias that trapped fluids of 50 c are older than 6 29 0 30 ma two phase fias in parage netically later calcite which formed from fluids of 35 to 45 c are older than 5 32 0 02 ma there is no evidence for trapping of fluids with elevated temperatures during the past 5 32 my the youngest mg enriched calcite intergrown with opal began to precipitate between about 1 9 to 2 9 ma and has continued to precipitate within the past half million years the presence of liquid only inclusions and the consistent occurrence of mg enriched calcite and opal as the youngest event indicate a minor but chemically distinct ambient temperature 35 c fluid flux during the past 2 to 3 my copyright 2003 elsevier science ltd

uranium series dating of pedogenic silica and carbonate crater flat nevada a 230th 234u 238u dating study on pedogenic silica carbonate clast rinds and matrix laminae from alluvium in crater flat nevada was conducted using small sample thermal ionization mass spectrometry tims analyses on a large suite of samples though the 232th content of these soils is not particularly low mostly 0 1 9 ppm the high u content of the silica component mostly 4 26 ppm makes them particularly suitable for 230th u dating on single 10 to 200 mg totally digested samples using tims we observed that 1 both micro within rind and macro stratigraphic mappable deposit order of the 230th u ages were preserved in all cases 2 back calculated initial 234u 238u fall in a restricted range typically 1 67 0 19 so that 234u 238u ages with errors of about 100 kyr 2 could be reliably determined for the oldest 400 to 1000 ka rinds and 3 though 13 of the samples were 350 ka only three showed evidence for an open system history even though the sensitivity of such old samples to isotopic disruption is very high an attempt to use leach residue techniques to separate pedogenic from detrital u and th failed yielding corrupt 230th u ages we conclude that 230th u ages determined from totally dissolved multiple sub mm size subsamples provide more reliable estimates of soil chronology than methods employing larger samples chemical enhancement of 238u 232th or isochrons

prolonged residence times for the youngest rhyolites associated with long valley caldera 230th 238u ion microprobe dating of young zircons abstract we describe a new ion microprobe method for dating magmatic zircon growth that is based on in situ measurement of the magnitude of238u 230th disequilibrium our results support independent inferences that zircon can remain suspended for long periods 100 ka in the convecting potions of the magma from which it crystallizes because the crystallization ages date when the magma cooled to its zircon saturation temperature even when the zircons have long magmatic residence times 238u 230th zircon dating can be used to constrain the thermochemical evolution of silicic magmas 238u 230th ages have been determined for individual zircons from rhyolites associated with the long valley magmatic system of eastern california the samples are from deer mountain an 115 3 ka low silica moat rhyolite and from the coarsely porphyritic low silica rhyolite of south deadman dome one of the 0 6 ka inyo domes previous investigations have suggested that the two lavas were derived from the same magma reservoir a few of the zircon model ages calculated with respect to the isotopic characteristics of the whole rocks are within error of that for eruption of the deer mountain rhyolite however the majority of zircons from both lavas cluster around an age of 230 ka this common interval of zircon nucleation and growth for petrologically similar lavas suggests that the younger inyo dome lava may have tapped the same magma body from which the deer mountain rhyolite erupted more than 100 ka before on the other hand most of the zircon model ages are younger than previous episodes of silicic volcanism in the long valley caldera suggesting that the rhyolites may have been generated during development of a silicic upper crustal magma chamber in the western portion of long valley caldera zircon saturation temperatures for the rhyolites studied 795 810 c are the same as those obtained from coexisting fe ti oxides 809 4 c showing that the magma cooled to

impact of halite dissolution subsidence on quaternary fluvial terrace development case study of the huerva river ebro basin ne spain abstract this paper analyses the control of evaporite dissolution subsidence on the evolution of the lower 30 km long reach of the huerva river up to its confluence with the ebro river in the study area the huerva river flows across different interfingered lithofacies of the subhorizontally lying ebro basin fill 1 shales and sandstones upstream of cadrete 2 evaporites dominated by gypsum between cadrete and cuarte 3 gypsum with glauberite and halite units in the subsurface downstream of cuarte the halite shows a marked downvalley increase in thickness twelve terrace levels and seven pediment levels correlative to some of the terraces have been mapped in the studied area upstream of cadrete the terrace deposits with a relatively constant thickness less than 4 m and overlying unsoluble bedrock remain undeformed between cadrete and cuarte the deposits of some terraces show local thickening 60 m thick terrace alluvium that fills a 5 km long trough generated by synsedimentary subsidence phenomena caused primarily by the interstratal dissolution of halite the older terraces t1 to t4 show slight thickening 18 m and locally truncate paleocollapse structures ascribed to the interstratal karstification of halite beds the intermediate terraces t5 to t7 correspond to degradation surfaces that grade downstream of cuarte into aggradation flights underlain by the abruptly thickened deposits that fill this 5 km long dissolution trough subsidence migrated episodically downstream during the generation of these terraces and the subsidence aggradation rate was probably large enough to induce a base level drop and knickpoint migration upstream generating strath terraces with convergent longitudinal profiles the sedimentological changes that show the thickened terrace deposits in the subsidence area high proportion of overbank fines 60 including palustrine facies gravel channels with lower width depth ratio multiple fining upward cycles decrease in the calibre of the channel gravels indicate a change in the channel pattern from braided to meandering due to the lowering of the valley slope in the reach affected by subsidence some of the anomalous features of the lower terraces t8 to t12 attributable to dissolution subsidence include 1 steepening of the t8 terrace profile 2 change of the t10 terrace from degradational to aggradational downstream cuarte and 3 thickening recorded beneath the t11 terrace surface

geometry and distribution of regional joint sets in a non homogeneous stress field case study in the ebro basin spain abstract three regional joint sets striking n s e w and wnw ese affect the tertiary rocks of the central ebro basin from analysis of their chronological relationships and spatial distribution it is concluded that they correspond to two different tectonic events the n s set oldest and the e w set younger are present in the southern and central sectors while the wnw ese joint set predominates in the northern one the n s joints propagated in response to joint normal and fluid loads under an intraplate stress field with shmax oriented near n s related to forces caused by the convergence of africa iberia and europe and rifting at the valencia trough during the sedimentary infilling of the basin these joints are only present in the southern part of the area the e w joint set in the southern central sector records the same fracturing event as the wnw ese set does in the northern one its orientation was modified by the presence of the older n s set in the south which perturbed the regional stress field the younger wnw ese and e w joint sets are interpreted as unloading joints these propagated as a consequence of flexural uplift and exhumation related to isostatic rebound at the pyrenees and the ebro foreland basin a numerical approach is used to explain the inhomogeneous distribution of the n s joint set in terms of their absence being controlled by the depth of the water table at the time of their formation

chemical element imaging for speleothem geochemistry application to a uranium bearing corallite with aragonite diagenesis to opal eastern siberia russia abstract two complementary image based microanalysis methods digital autoradiography of radioactive elements and x ray fluorescence microspectroscopy micro xrf were used to study the geochemistry of a speleothem from eastern siberia our objective was to show the interest of these micro chemical methods to investigate the distribution of u and some other elements as ca sr and si in speleothems the sample studied was a corallite concretion that formed slowly by the precipitation of minerals from moisture that had condensed underground polished sections of the sample revealed alternating laminas of gray calcite and white aragonite the concretion which is older than 400 kyr u th tims showed no signs of detrital contamination 230 th 232 th 10 000 digital autoradiography and xrf analyses indicated exceptionally high uranium contents ranging from 3 10 to more than 1300 g g 1 in different areas of the sample element maps for calcium ca uranium u strontium sr and silicon si showed inverse correlations between ca and u and between ca and si but there is a strong correlation between si and u under the optical microscope the low ca appears as corrosion voids which were found to contain uranium enriched amorphous silica replacing areas of aragonite and in some cases calcite this postgenetic amorphous and uraniferous silica is composed of two kinds of opal opal a formed by large microspheres of 30 40 m in diameter and a gray opal ct with irregular lepispheres this late opal dated around 385 412 kyr is probably due to a special volcanic event formed by uraniferous glass ashes easily soluble by meteoric waters as suggested by the presence of volcanic suite in the fine fraction of the opal opal precipitated after speleothem crystallization by evaporation or cryogenic supersaturation the study of this exceptional concretion shows the value of direct chemical imaging methods as they easily revealed the presence and distribution of u in the concretion and allowed an unusual case of opal diagenesis in a carbonate speleothem to be described given the value of speleothems as geo chronometers and recorders of environmental changes at different time scales from season to isotopic stage this methodology opens new perspectives in understanding the geochemical system and consequently the validity of radiometric datings u th and u pb especially in speleothem samples

geomorphology and natural hazards in karst areas a review 1 introductionsince human beings started to colonise the world slowly migrat ing in multiple directions from the african rift and ultimatelyreaching the southernmost territories of the americas they haveinteracted with the natural environment using its resources and suf fering from its hazardous processes survival of mankind was possiblethanks to its ability to adapt to an ever changing environment and itscapability to learn and communicate the new ndings from the ear liest times geomorphic features and processes were an essential partof social survival crozier et al 2011 in karst terrains caves wereused as shelters as well as burial and sacred places playing an instru mental role in the day to day struggle for survival especially duringthe ice ages fig 1 spectacular karst landmarks such as big cave en trances blue karst springs deep collapse sinkholes cenotes or rockarches just to name a few have often become part of the naturaland supernatural heritage of our ancestors in prehistoric times the human impact on the karst environmentwas very limited like the probability of properties and people beingdamaged by karst processes e g subsidence ooding both impactsandhazardsinkarstterrainshaveincreaseddramaticallyover thelasttwo centuries along with the exponential increase in population andour capability to modify the natural environment largely related tothe economic and technological development of the societies an in creasing number of scientists consider that humans are nowadaysthe most effective geomorphic agent and a prime factor in landscapeevolution zalasiewicz et al 2010 price et al 2011 in fact the for mal de nition of the anthropocene as a new epoch of the geologicaltime scale characterised by a signi cant and global human impact onthe earth s ecosystems is being debated at the present time around25 of the earth s population lives on or nearby karst areas ford andwilliams 2007 and the increasing exploitation of karst resources such as water and building material is leading to severe environmen tal impacts and unsustainable situations drew and hotzl 1999 gunn 2004 unfortunately the number of karst areas affected bywater pollution landscape degradation and other impacts is growingveryrapidly additionally thedamagecausedbyhazardouskarstpro cesses especially subsidence sinkholes beck 2003 waltham et al 2005 gutierrez et al 2008a will most likely keep on increasing exposed human elements augment and anthropogenic changes inthe karst systems frequently result in hazard enhancement karstgeomorphologists and hydrologists can play a decisive role in pre venting natural disasters in karst areas particularly those inducedby human activities dams with leakage and sinkhole problems milanovic 2000 cooper and gutierrez 2011 mines and tunnelsaffected by ooding and subsidence li and zhou 1999 autin 2002 casagrandeet al 2005 luchaetal 2008 high speedrailwaysbuilt in sinkhole prone areas guerrero et al 2008 or developmentof sinkholes at huge rates induced by lake level yechieli et al 2006 or water table sprynskyy et al 2009 declines the importance of properly managing karst areas and mitigatingthe detrimental effects caused by human activities on these inherentlysensitive environments has been boosted by a series of conferencesand projects since the early 1990s ford 1993 williams 1993 pariseet al 2008 2009 raising public awareness on the need to protectour endangered natural resources especially in developed countries has promoted the production of karst speci c environmental impactassessments veni 1999 recently severalapproacheshavebeenpro posedtoassessthedegreeofhuman induceddisturbanceinkarstareas van beynen and townsend 2005 calo and parise 2006 de waele 2009 north et al 2009 although these studies are essential for apropermanagementofthekarstresources theymaybefutileifnotfol lowed by adequate administrative decisions and regulations 2 karst geomorphology2 1 karst processeskarst is characterised by the predominance of rock dissolution overmechanical erosion and is typical of present temperate cold andwarm and tropical environments ford and williams 2007 in karstterrains surface and subsurface geomorphology and hydrology arelargely governed by dissolution of carbonate and or evaporite rocks in the most classical common situation surface waters acidi ed byco

rise and fall of late pleistocene pluvial lakes in response to reduced evaporation and precipitation evidence from lake surprise california widespread late pleistocene lake systems of the basin and range province indicate substantially greater moisture availability during glacial periods relative to modern times but the climatic factors that drive changes in lake levels are poorly constrained to better constrain these climatic forcing factors we present a new lacustrine paleoclimate record and precipitation estimates for lake surprise a closed basin lake in northeastern california we combine a detailed analysis of lake hydrography and constitutive relationships describing the water balance to determine the influence of precipitation evaporation temperature and seasonal insolation on past lake levels at its maximum extent during the last deglaciation lake surprise covered 1366 km 2 36 of the terminally draining surprise valley watershed using paired radiocarbon and 230 th u analyses we dated shoreline tufa deposits from wave cut lake terraces in surprise valley california to determine the hydrography of the most recent lake cycle this new lake hydrograph places the highest lake level 176 m above the present day playa at 15 19 0 18 calibrated ka 14 c age this significantly postdates the last glacial maximum lgm when lake surprise stood at only moderate levels 65 99 m above modern playa similar to nearby lake lahontan to evaluate the climatic factors associated with lake level changes we use an oxygen isotope mass balance model combined with an analysis of predictions from the paleoclimate model intercomparison project 3 pmip3 climate model ensemble our isotope mass balance model predicts minimal precipitation increases of only 2 18 during the lgm relative to modern compared to an 75 increase in precipitation during the 15 19 ka highstand lgm pmip3 climate model simulations corroborate these findings simulating an average precipitation increase of only 6 5 relative to modern accompanied by a 28 decrease in total evaporation driven by a 7 c decrease in mean annual temperature lgm pmip3 climate model simulations also suggest a seasonal decoupling of runoff and precipitation with peak runoff shifting to the late spring early summer from the late winter early spring our coupled analyses suggest that moderate lake levels during the lgm were a result of reduced evaporation driven by reduced summer insolation and temperatures not by increased precipitation reduced evaporation primed basin and range lake systems particularly smaller isolated basins such as surprise valley to respond rapidly to increased precipitation during late heinrich stadial 1 hs1 post lgm highstands were potentially driven by increased rainfall during hs1 brought by latitudinally extensive and strengthened midlatitude westerly storm tracks the effects of which are recorded in the region9s lacustrine and glacial records these results suggest that seasonal insolation and reduced temperatures have been underinvestigated as long term drivers of moisture availability in the western united states

thermal properties and thermal structure in the deep water coalbed basin off the shimokita peninsula japan abstract heat transport properties are significant parameters that affect geothermal processes in deep sedimentary basins we measured the thermal properties of deep sediment core samples to a depth of approximately 2500 m below sea floor mbsf whereas most previous studies have only presented data 1 k 1 and calcite cemented sandstone siltstone exhibits the highest conductivity of approximately 3 wm 1 k 1 the other thermal properties are also influenced by the porosity and lithological contrast the correlation between thermal conductivity and porosity is explained by the mixed law model of the geometric mean the one dimensional temperature depth profile at site c0020 estimated from measured thermal conductivity reveals a regression of the thermal gradient with depth and the surface heat flow of 30 mwm 2 which is consistent with the heat flow data near this site was evaluated the obtained results suggest that the linear geothermal gradient estimated from the average thermal conductivity value at shallow sediment materials could overestimate the temperature at greater depths and underestimate the heat flow

improved spatial resolution for u series dating of opal at yucca mountain nevada usa using ion microprobe and microdigestion methods two novel methods of in situ isotope analysis ion microprobe and microdigestion were used for 230th u and 234u 238u dating of finely laminated opal hemispheres formed in unsaturated felsic tuff at yucca mountain nevada proposed site for a high level radioactive waste repository both methods allow analysis of layers as many as several orders of magnitude thinner than standard methods using total hemisphere digestion that were reported previously average growth rates calculated from data at this improved spatial resolution verified that opal grew at extremely slow rates over the last million years growth rates of 0 58 and 0 69 mm m y were obtained for the outer 305 and 740 m of two opal hemispheres analyzed by ion microprobe and 0 68 mm m y for the outer 22 m of one of these same hemispheres analyzed by sequential microdigestion these pleistocene growth rates are 2 to 10 times slower than those calculated for older secondary calcite and silica mineral coatings deposited over the last 5 to 10 m y dated by the u pb method and may reflect differences between miocene and pleistocene seepage flux the microdigestion data also imply that opal growth rates may have varied over the last 40 k y these data are the first indication that growth rates and associated seepage in the proposed repository horizon may correlate with changes in late pleistocene climate involving faster growth during wetter cooler climates glacial maximum slower growth during transition climates and no growth during the most arid climate modern data collected at this refined spatial scale may lead to a better understanding of the hydrologic variability expected within the thick unsaturated zone at yucca mountain over the time scale of interest for radioactive waste isolation

reconstructing thermal properties of firn at summit greenland from a temperature profile time series we have constrained the value for thermal diffusivity of near surface snow and firn at summit station greenland using a fourier type analysis applied to hourly temperature measurements collected from eight thermistors in a closed off air filled borehole between may 2004 and july 2008 an implicit finite difference method suggests that a bulk diffusivity of 25 3m2 a 1 is the most reasonable for representing macroscale heat transport in the top 30 m of firn and snow this value represents an average diffusivity and in a conduction only model generates temperature series whose phase shifts with depth most closely match those of the summit borehole data rms difference between measurements and model output is 6 days this bulk value derived numerically and corroborated analytically is useful over large tracts of the greenland ice sheet where density and microstructure are unknown

assessing sinkhole activity in the ebro valley mantled evaporite karst using advanced dinsar abstract sinkholes in karst areas may cause subsidence damage in transportation infrastructures demolition of buildings and even the loss of human lives when they occur in a catastrophic way differential interferometry dinsar is a promising technology for detecting and characterizing sinkholes as well as for reducing the associated risk when combined with other sources of data such as a sinkhole inventory in this work the usefulness of insar techniques and data for sinkhole risk management has been analyzed through the comparison of three dinsar derived velocity maps with a comprehensive sinkhole inventory in the ebro valley ne spain the dinsar maps have contributed to improve the sinkhole inventory in different ways 1 detection of non inventoried sinkholes 2 revision of sinkhole areas previously classified as inactive as active and 3 refinement of underestimated sinkhole boundaries the obtained results suggest that dinsar products are suitable for analyzing active dissolution induced subsidence the application of these techniques may help in recognizing and better characterizing previously unknown karst subsidence problems and in preventing personal and property losses however the analysis reveals that the available dinsar maps combined overlook about 70 of the previously mapped active sinkholes mainly due to decorrelation

paleoflood records from sinkholes using an example from the ebro river floodplain northeastern spain 53 pags 10 figs the definitive version is available at https www cambridge org core journals quaternary research

glauberite halite association of the zaragoza gypsum formation lower miocene ebro basin ne spain glauberite is the most common mineral in the ancient sodium sulphate deposits in the mediterranean region although its origin primary or diagenetic continues to be a matter of debate a number of glauberite deposits of oligocene miocene age in spain display facies characteristics of sedimentologic significance in particular those in which a glauberite halite association is predominant in this context a log study of four boreholes in the zaragoza gypsum formation lower miocene ebro basin ne spain was carried out two glauberite halite lithofacies associations a and b are distinguished association a is composed of bedded cloudy halite and minor amounts of massive and clastic glauberite association b is made up of laminated to thin bedded clear macrocrystalline massive clastic and contorted lithofacies of glauberite and small amounts of bedded cloudy halite transparent glauberite cemented by clear halite as well as normal graded and reverse graded glauberite textures are common this type of transparent glauberite is interpreted as a primary subaqueous precipitate gypsum thenardite or mirabilite are absent in the two associations the depositional environment is interpreted as a shallow perennial saline lake system in which chloride brines association a and sulphate chloride brines association b are developed the geochemical study of halite crystals bromine contents and fluid inclusion compositions demonstrates that conditions for co precipitation of halite and glauberite or for precipitation of na sulphates mirabilite thenardite were never fulfilled in the saline lake system

potential effects of alpha recoil on uranium series dating of calcrete abstract evaluation of paleosol ages in the vicinity of yucca mountain nevada at the time the site of a proposed high level nuclear waste repository is important for fault displacement hazard assessment uranium series isotope data were obtained for surface and subsurface calcrete samples from trenches and boreholes in midway valley nevada adjacent to yucca mountain 230 th u ages of 33 surface samples range from 1 3 to 423 thousand years ka and the back calculated 234 u 238 u initial activity ratios ar are relatively constant with a mean value of 1 54 0 15 1 which is consistent with the closed system behavior subsurface calcrete samples are too old to be dated by the 230 th u method u pb data for post pedogenic botryoidal opal from a subsurface calcrete sample show that these subsurface calcrete samples are older than 1 65 million years ma old enough to have attained secular equilibrium had their u th systems remained closed however subsurface calcrete samples show u series disequilibrium indicating open system behavior of 238 u daughter isotopes in contrast with the surface calcrete where open system behavior is not evident data for 21 subsurface calcrete samples yielded calculable 234 u 238 u model ages ranging from 130 to 1875 ka assuming an initial ar of 1 54 0 15 the mean value calculated for the surface calcrete samples a simple model describing continuous recoil loss predicts that the 234 u 238 u and 230 th 238 u ars reach steady state values 2 ma after calcrete formation potential effects of open system behavior on 230 th u ages and initial 234 u 238 u ars for younger surface calcrete were estimated using data for old subsurface calcrete samples with the 234 u loss and assuming that the total time of water rock interaction is the only difference between these soils the difference between the conventional closed system and open system ages may exceed errors of the calculated conventional ages for samples older than 250 ka but is negligible for younger soils

large landslides associated with a diapiric fold in canelles reservoir spanish pyrenees detailed geological geomorphological mapping trenching and electrical resistivity imaging abstract detailed geomorphological geological mapping in canelles reservoir the spanish pyrenees reveals the presence of several large landslides overlooked in previous cartographic works one of the slope movements designated as the canelles landslide corresponds to a 40 10 6 m 3 translational landslide reactivated in 2006 by a severe decline in the reservoir water level the geomorphic features mapped in the upper part of the canelles landslide including surface ruptures corroborated by electrical resistivity imaging and trenching indicate multiple displacement episodes previous to the 2006 human induced event consistently the stratigraphic and structural relationships observed in a trench record at least two displacement events older and larger in magnitude than the 2006 reactivation the oldest recorded event occurred in the 6th to 7th centuries and the second in 1262 1679 yr ad this latter episode might be correlative to the 1373 ribagorza earthquake m w 6 2 which caused the reactivation of a landslide and the consequent destruction of a village in the adjacent valley the available data indicate that over more than one millennium the kinematics of the landslide has been characterised by discrete small displacement episodes these data together with the available literature on rapid rockslides do not concur with the acceleration predicted by modelling in a previous investigation which foresees a speed of 16 m s 1 despite the low average dip of the sliding surface 9 10 this case study illustrates that the trenching technique may provide valuable practical information on the past behaviour of landslides covering a much broader time span than instrumental and historical records

temperature measurements and heat transfer in near surface snow at the south pole to study near surface heat flow on the antarctic ice sheet snow temperatures were measured at south pole station to a depth of 3 m at 15 min intervals during most of 1992 solar heating and water vapor transport were negligible during the 6 month winter as was inter grain net thermal radiation leaving conduction as the dominant heat transport mechanism the rate of temperature change at depth over 15 min intervals was smaller than that at the surface by one order of magnitude at 20 cm depth and two orders of magnitude at 1 m depth a finite difference model with conduction as the only heat transfer mechanism and measured temperatures as the upper and lower boundary conditions was applied to foursets of three thermistors each the thermal conductivity was estimated as that which minimized the difference between modeled and measured 15 min changes in temperatures at the center thermistor the thermal conductivity obtained at shallow depths above 40 cm was lower than that given by existing parameterizations based on density probably because the snow grains were freshly deposited cold and poorly bonded a model using only vertical conduction explains on average 87 ofthe observed 15 min temperature changes at less than 60 cm depth and 92 below 60 cm the difference between modeled andmeasured temperature changes decreased with depth the discrepancies between model and observation correlated more strongly with the air snow temperature difference than with the product of that difference with the square of the wind speed suggesting that the residual errors are due more to non vertical conduction and to sub grid scale variabilis of the conductivity than to windpumping the residual heating rate not explained by the model of vertical conduction exceeds 0 2 w m 3 only in the top 60 cm of the near surface snow

a record of uranium series transport at nopal i sierra pena blanca mexico implications for natural uranium deposits and radioactive waste repositories abstract studies of uranium series u series disequilibria within and around ore deposits provide valuable information on the extent and timing of actinide mobility via mineral fluid interaction over a range of spatial and temporal scales such information is useful in studies of analogs of high level nuclear waste repositories as well as for mining and mineral extraction sites locations of previous nuclear weapons testing and legacy nuclear waste contamination in this study we present isotope dilution mass spectrometry u series measurements for fracture fill materials hematite goethite kaolinite calcite dolomite and quartz from one such analog the nopal i uranium ore deposit situated at pena blanca in the chihuahua region of northern mexico the ore deposit is located in fractured unsaturated volcanic tuff and fracture fill materials from surface fractures as well as fractures in a vertical drill core have been analyzed high uranium concentrations in the fracture fill materials between 12 and 7700 ppm indicate uranium mobility and transport from the deposit uranium concentrations generally decrease with horizontal distance away from the deposit but in this deposit there is no trend with depth below the surface isotopic activity ratios 238u 234u 230th 232th linear age trends and u th pa model ages indicate an actinide mobility evolution that can be characterized as complex and varied there is evidence of both open and closed system behavior for uranium depending on both sample and time scale the 234u 238u activity ratios indicate u mobility from 1 2 0 2 ma in the last 0 2 ma there is isotopic evidence for some u mobility but mostly u immobility in almost all cases the th pa radionuclides studied here have been immobile for the past 200 ka radium appears to have been recently 0 1 8 ka mobile due to ongoing fluid flow in the fractures overall the mainly closed system behavior for u th pa over the past 200 ka provides an indicator of the geochemical immobility of these actinides over time scales relevant for potential nuclear waste repositories situated in fractured unsaturated tuff

the schwartzwalder uranium deposit ii age of uranium mineralization and lead isotope constraints on genesis u pb isotope analyses of ores from the schwartzwalder uranium mine colorado show that these ores have high amounts of initial common pb and that the initial pb was both variable and relatively radiogenic in its pb isotope ratios 206 pb 204 pb 26 30 as a result the only useful approach to dating these ores is with u pb isochrons and even so some means of dealing with the variable initial pb isotope ratios is required because the common pb in these ores was apparently derived from sources of similar age and th u the observed 208 pb 204 pb of these th free ores can be used either to identify sample suites with similar initial pb isotope ratios or to normalize for the variable initial pb isotope ratios the resulting u pb isochrons indicate an age of mineralization for both illinois vein and titan vein ores of 69 3 or 1 1 m y suggesting that the deposit was formed during the earliest stages of laramide uplift and under at least 3 km of phanerozoic cover the initial pb isotope systematics of the ores show that the metals in the schwartzwalder ores were derived from source s of 1 730 or 130 m y age with a th u of 2 2 or 0 2 and 238 u 204 pb of 30 to 60 these restrictions on the source s of the metals rule out the possibility that the deposit could have been formed by remobilization of a proterozoic uranium deposit and both the 69 3 m y age of the ores and their initial pb isotope ratios preclude any contribution of metals to the deposit by younger volcanics such as those in the denver formation

mass spectrometric 230th 234u 238u dating of the devils hole calcite vein the devils hole calcite vein contains a long term climatic record but requires accurate chronologic control for its interpretation mass spectrometric u series ages for samples from core dh 11 yielded 230 th ages with precisions ranging from less than 1 000 years 2 for samples younger than 140 ka thousands of years ago to less than 50 000 years for the oldest samples 566 ka the 234 u 238 u ages could be determined to a precision of 20 000 years for all ages calcite accumulated continuously from 566 ka until 60 ka at an average rate of 0 7 millimeter per 10 3 years the precise agreement between replicte analyses and the concordance of the 230 th 238 u 234 u 238 u ages for the oldest samples indicate that the dh 11 samples were closed systems and validate the dating technique in general

natural radionuclide mobility and its influence on u th pb dating of secondary minerals from the unsaturated zone at yucca mountain nevada abstract extreme u and pb isotope variations produced by disequilibrium in decay chains of 238u and 232th are found in calcite opal chalcedony and mn oxides occurring as secondary mineral coatings in the unsaturated zone at yucca mountain nevada these very slowly growing minerals mm my 1 contain excess 206pb and 208pb formed from excesses of intermediate daughter isotopes and cannot be used as reliable 206pb 238u geochronometers the presence of excess intermediate daughter isotopes does not appreciably affect 207pb 235u ages of u enriched opal chalcedony which are interpreted as mineral formation ages opal and calcite from outer younger portions of coatings have 230th u ages from 94 6 3 7 to 361 3 9 8 ka and initial 234u 238u activity ratios ar from 4 351 0 070 to 7 02 0 12 which indicate 234u enrichment from percolating water present day 234u 238u ar is 1 in opal chalcedony from older portions of the coatings the 207pb 235u ages of opal chalcedony samples range from 0 1329 0 0080 to 9 10 0 21 ma increase with microstratigraphic depth and define slow long term average growth rates of about 1 2 2 0 mm my 1 in good agreement with previous results measured 234u 238u ar in mn oxides which pre date the oldest calcite and opal chalcedony range from 0 939 0 006 to 2 091 0 006 and are 1 in most samples the range of 87sr 86sr ratios 0 71156 0 71280 in mn oxides overlaps that in the late calcite these data indicate that mn oxides exchange u and sr with percolating water and cannot be used as a reliable dating tool in the u poor calcite samples measured 206pb 207pb ratios have a wide range do not correlate with ba concentration as would be expected if excess ra was present and reach a value of about 1400 the highest ever reported for natural pb calcite intergrown with opal contains excesses of both 206pb and 207pb derived from rn diffusion and from direct recoil from u rich opal calcite from coatings devoid of opal chalcedony contains 206pb and 208pb excesses but no appreciable 207pb excesses observed pb isotope anomalies in calcite are explained by rn produced excess pb the rn emanation may strongly affect 206pb 238u ages of slow growing u poor calcite but should be negligible for dating fast growing u enriched speleothem calcite

206pb 230th 234u 238u and 207pb 235u geochronology of quaternary opal yucca mountain nevada abstract u th pb isotopic systems have been studied in submillimeter thick outermost layers of quaternary opal occurring in calcite silica fracture and cavity coatings within tertiary tuffs at yucca mountain nevada usa these coatings preserve a record of paleohydrologic conditions at this site which is being evaluated as a potential high level nuclear waste repository the opal precipitated from groundwater is variably enriched in 234u measured 234u 238u activity ratio 1 124 6 179 and has high u 30 313 ppm low th 0 008 3 7 ppm and low common pb concentrations measured 206pb 204pb up to 11 370 it has been demonstrated that the laboratory acid treatment used in this study to clean sample surfaces and to remove adherent calcite did not disturb u th pb isotopic systems in opal the opal ages calculated from 206pb 238u and 207pb 235u ratios display strong reverse discordance because of excess radiogenic 206pb derived from the elevated initial 234u the data are best interpreted using projections of a new four dimensional concordia diagram defined by 206pb 238u 207pb 235u 234u 238uactivity and 230th 238uactivity ages and initial 234u 238u activity ratios have been calculated using different projections of this diagram and tested for concordance the data are discordant that is observed 207pb 235u ages of 170 32 2 to 1772 40 ka are systematically older than 230th u ages of 34 1 0 6 to 452 32 ka the age discordance is not a result of migration of uranium and its decay products under the open system conditions but a consequence of noninstantaneous growth of opal combined u pb and 230th u ages support the model of slow mineral deposition at the rates of millimeters per million years resulting in layering on a scale too fine for mechanical sampling in this case u pb ages provide more accurate estimates of the average age for mixed multiage samples than 230th u ages because ages based on shorter lived isotopes are nonlinearly biased by younger mineral additions use of the combined u th pb technique to date yucca mountain quaternary opals significantly extends the age range beyond that of the 230th u dating method and shows that selected fracture pathways in the unsaturated zone felsic tuffs of yucca mountain have been active throughout the quaternary

paleotransport of lanthanides and strontium recorded in calcite compositions from tuffs at yucca mountain nevada usa secondary calcite occurs in both saturated and unsaturated hydrologic zones sz and uz respectively in the tuffs at yucca mountain nevada usa in the upper uz the major constituents of the calcite crystal structure c o have surface origins at greater depth there is a barren zone straddling the water table where calcite is rare and mixing of surface and subsurface sources may occur deep in the sz distinctive mn calcites reflect deep sources including ca released as analcime or albite formed and carbonates derived from underlying paleozoic rocks in the uz and in the barren zone above the deep mn calcites variations in calcite lanthanide chemistry can be used to distinguish rhyolitic from quartz latitic sources lanthanide ratios and sr contents of calcites record the chemical evolution of waters flowing through the uz and upper sz variations in calcite chemistry in the uz and in the barren zone show that 1 sr which is readily exchanged with clays or zeolites is essentially removed from some flowpaths that are in contact with these minerals and 2 traces of mn oxides found in the tuffs have a significant effect on groundwater chemistry in the uz and in the barren zone by removing almost all ce from solution evidenced by characteristic ce depletions in calcite throughout this zone extreme ce removal may be a result of ce oxidation ce 3 ce 4 at the surfaces of some mn oxides particularly rancieite higher sr contents and lack of ce depletions in the deeper mn calcites reflect different ages origins and transport systems the calcite record of lanthanide and sr transport in the uz shows that minor minerals clays and zeolites and even trace minerals mn oxides will affect the compositions of groundwaters that flow over distances greater than a few tens of meters

stability charts for predicting sinkholes in weakly cemented sand over karst limestone forty nine physical models of sinkhole development were constructed and tested using a geotechnical centrifuge to replicate full scale sinkhole development in the small models the soil profile studied was weakly cemented sand overlying cavities in karst limestone with uncemented sand over the cemented sand layer in half the models in configurations with no uncemented soil overburden the parameters critical to predicting failure were the unit weight of the cemented sand c the thickness of the cemented sand overlying the karst cavity hc the true cohesion of the weakly cemented sand c and the diameter of the underlying karst cavity d brittle collapse of the cemented soil into the underlying cavity took one of two forms depending on geometry when hc d was less than or equal to 0 25 the plug of soil that fell into the cavity penetrated through the full thickness of the cemented layer leaving an open hole when hc d was greater than or equal to 0 31 the plug of soil that fell into the cavity did not penetrate through the full thickness of the cemented layer but left behind a stable arch a dimensionless stability chart was developed based on model results relating chc c and hc d at failure that chart can be used to predict the onset of failure extrapolating to configurations and soil cementation strengths not specifically tested in this research a study was also made of the influence of uncemented sand overburden on hastening sinkhole development for configurations with ratios of hc d less than or equal to 0 25 the thickness of the uncemented overburden was varied at the brink of sinkhole development there was significant arching within the uncemented sand and the influence of the overburden on hastening sinkhole failure was much less than the full geostatic overburden the maximum uncemented overburden pressure bearing down on the breakthrough plug never exceeded the weight of a cone of sand of diameter d and height 1 25d where d equals the diameter of the top of that inclined plug

investigation of a large collapse sinkhole affecting a multi storey building by means of geophysics and the trenching technique zaragoza city ne spain an active sinkhole around 100 m long has been investigated in the city of zaragoza ne spain subsidence activity on this depression including the sudden occurrence of a collapse sinkhole 5 m across led to the abandonment of a factory in the 1990s at the present time a building with 100 flats and shallow pad foundations partially built on the sinkhole is affected by rapid differential settlement the development of the sinkhole results from the karstification of the halite and glauberite bearing bedrock and the sagging and collapse of the overlying bedrock and alluvium more than 30 m thick gpr and electrical resistivity profiles have provided information on the distribution and geometry of the subsidence structure the application of the trenching technique and geochronological methods ams and osl dating has allowed us to infer objective and practical data on the sinkhole including 1 limits of the subsidence structure 2 subsidence mechanisms 3 cumulative subsidence 408 cm 4 subsidence rates on specific failure planes 1 8 cm year 5 episodic displacement regime of some fault planes the available information indicates that the progressive deformation recorded in the building will continue and might be punctuated by events of more rapid displacement this work illustrates the practicality of the trenching technique for the study of sinkholes in mantled karst areas

transport of 234u in the opalinus clay on centimetre to decimetre scales the opalinus clay formation in north switzerland is a potential host rock for a deep underground radioactive waste repository the distribution of u 238 u 234 and th 230 was studied in rock samples of the opalinus clay from an exploratory borehole at benken canton of zurich using mc icp ms the aim of u 234 was to assess the in situ long term migration behaviour in this rock very low hydraulic conductivities of the opalinus clay reducing potential of the pore water and its chemical equilibrium with the host rock are expected to render both u 238 and th 230 immobile if u is heterogeneously distributed in the opalinus clay gradients in the supply of u 234 from the rock matrix to the pore water by the decay of u 238 will be established diffusive redistribution separates u 234 from its immobile parent u 238 resulting in bulk rock u 234 u 238 activity disequilibria these may provide a means of estimating the mobility of u 234 in the rock if the diffusion rate of u 234 is significant compared to its decay rate sampling was carried out on two scales drilling of cm spaced samples from the drill core was done to study mobility over short distances and elucidate possible small scale lithological control homogenized 25 cm long portions of a 2 m long drill core section were prepared to provide information on transport over a longer distance variations in u and or th content on the cm scale between clays and carbonate sandy layers are revealed by beta scanning which shows that the dominant clay is richer in both elements samples were digested using aqua regia followed by total hf dissolution yielding two fractions in all studied samples u was found to be concentrated in the hf digestion fraction it has a high u th ratio and a study by sem eds points to sub mu m up to several mu m in size zircon grains as the main u rich phase this fraction consistently has u 234 u 238 activity ratios below unity the minute zircon grains constitute the major reservoir of u in the rock and act as constant rate suppliers of u 234 into the rock matrix and the pore water the aqua regia leach fraction was found to be enriched in th and complementary to the hf fraction having u 234 u 238 activity ratios above unity it is believed that these u activity ratios reflect the surplus of having u 234 delivered from the zircon grains some cm spaced samples show bulk rock u 234 u 238 activity ratios that are markedly out of equilibrium in most of them a striking negative correlation between the total u content and the bulk rock u 234 u 238 activity ratios is observed this is interpreted to indicate net u 234 transfer from regions of higher supply of u 234 towards those of lower supply which is in most cases equivalent to transfer from clayey towards carbonate sandy portions of the rock in contrast the 25 cm averaged samples all have uniform bulk rock u 234 u 238 activity ratios in equilibrium indicating u immobility in the last 1 1 5 ma on this spatial scale it is concluded that the small scale lithological variations which govern u spatial distribution in the opalinus clay are the major factor determining u 234 in situ supply rates regulating its diffusive fluxes and controlling the observed bulk rock u 234 u 238 activity ratios a simple box model is presented to simulate the measured bulk rock u 234 u 238 activity ratios and to give an additional insight into the studied system c 2008 elsevier ltd all rights reserved

subsidence rates and urban damages in alluvial dolines of the central ebro basin ne spain in the central ebro basin alluvial dolines develop on quaternary materials overlying neogene evaporites this process is very active analysing aerial photographs of different years important differences can be observed since the 1970s when the urbanisation of the area took place karst processes have damaged many buildings and infrastructures from the dates of construction and the repair of a number of buildings and pavements we calculate subsidence rates 12 120 mm year moreover we decided to monitor for around 4 years three dolines developed on urban areas to determine their subsidence behaviour a water level device with an error of 2 3 mm was utilised for this purpose the subsidence rates so obtained are 64 5 39 and 21 mm year which fit with the previous data from repaired zones

paleosubsidence and active subsidence due to evaporite dissolution in the zaragoza area huerva river valley ne spain processes spatial distribution and protection measures for transport routes abstract the lowest 17 km long reach of the huerva river valley down to its confluence with the ebro river in zaragoza city flows across salt bearing evaporites of the ebro tertiary basin ne spain upstream the horizontally lying miocene evaporites are interfingered with non soluble distal alluvial fan facies shales and sandstones the proportion of soluble facies in the huerva river valley increases in a downstream direction towards the basin depocenter on the basis of the type and magnitude of the paleosubsidence features the valley has been divided into four reaches along reach i undeformed terrace deposits less than 4 m thick rest on insoluble detrital bedrock in reaches ii and iii dissolution at the alluvium bedrock boundary has generated local thickening deformation and paleocollapse structures which only affect the alluvial mantle in reach iv terrace deposits thicken to over 60 m resulting from a large scale synsedimentary subsidence in this sector subsidence locally affects to both the alluvium and the underlying bedrock this indicates that dissolution acts at the rockhead beneath the alluvial cover alluvial karst and within the evaporitic substratum interstratal karst the development of an intraevaporitic karst in reach iv is attributed to gypsum and salt dissolution irregular terrace gravel bodies gravel pockets embedded in a fine grained matrix associated with paleocollapse structures have been interpreted as liquefaction fluidization structures resulting from ground acceleration and suction induced by catastrophic collapses subsidence is currently active in the region affecting areas with a thin alluvial cover in reaches iii and iv the low subsidence activity in most of zaragoza city is explained by the presence of thickened around 50 m and indurated alluvial deposits in the surrounding area numerous buildings in cadrete and santa fe villages have been severely damaged by subsidence natural and human induced subsidence favours the development of slope movements in the gypsum scarp overlooking cadrete village several transport routes including the imperial canal irrigation canal and the recently completed madrid barcelona high speed railway are affected by human induced sinkholes the paleocollapse structures exposed in the trenches of this railway and a ring road under construction point to hazardous locations underlain by cavities and collapse structures where special protection measures should be applied rigid structures are recommended beneath the high speed railway with sufficient strength to span the larger sinkholes with no deformation electronic monitoring devices linked to a warning system can detect subtle subsidence induced deformations in carriageways or railways this research demonstrates that the study of the paleokarst helps to understand the processes involved in the present day subsidence phenomena and their general spatial distribution

limited hydrologic response to pleistocene climate change in deep vadose zones yucca mountain nevada abstract understanding the movement of water through thick vadose zones especially on time scales encompassing long term climate change is increasingly important as societies utilize semi arid environments for both water resources and sites viewed as favorable for long term disposal or storage of hazardous waste hydrologic responses to pleistocene climate change within a deep vadose zone in the eastern mojave desert at yucca mountain nevada were evaluated by uranium series dating of finely layered hyalitic opal using secondary ion mass spectrometry opal is present within cm thick secondary hydrogenic mineral crusts coating floors of lithophysal cavities in fractured volcanic rocks at depths of 200 to 300 m below land surface uranium concentrations in opal fluctuate systematically between 5 and 550 g g age calibrated profiles of uranium concentration correlate with regional climate records over the last 300 000 years and produce time series spectral peaks that have distinct periodicities of 100 and 41 ka consistent with planetary orbital parameters these results indicate that the chemical compositions of percolating solutions varied in response to near surface climate driven processes however slow micrometers per thousand years relatively uniform growth rates of secondary opal and calcite deposition spanning several glacial interglacial climate cycles imply that water fluxes in the deep vadose zone remained low and generally buffered from the large fluctuations in available surface moisture during different climates

a link between microwave extinction length firn thermal diffusivity and accumulation rate in west antarctica 1 the relationship between time series of physical surface temperature and microwave brightness temperature of polar firn depends both on the physical properties of the firn and the surface temperature history in perennially dry firn this relationship is well characterized by a timescale referred to as the extinction diffusion time which is the ratio of the microwave extinction length squared to the firn thermal diffusivity the extinction diffusion time is calculated over antarctica from 1982 to 1999 by comparing thermal infrared observations of physical surface temperature from the advanced very high resolution radiometer avhrr with passive microwave brightness temperatures measured by the scanning multichannel microwave radiometer smmr and special senor microwave imager ssm i independent estimates of accumulation rate are derived both from ice cores and from spatially extensive ground and airborne radar echo sounding lines the extinction diffusion time is found to vary linearly with accumulation rate from approximately 10 to 50 cm yr ice equivalent over a large area in west antarctica although this simple relationship does not appear to hold at very low or very high accumulation rates these results suggest that the extinction diffusion time holds promise as a viable proxy for accumulation rate variability on polar ice sheets

sinkholes and caves related to evaporite dissolution in a stratigraphically and structurally complex setting fluvia valley eastern spanish pyrenees geological geomorphological and environmental implications abstract evaporite karst and sinkhole development is analysed in a geologically complex area of ne spain including four evaporite units with different characteristics and affected by compressional and extensional tectonic structures the exposed paleosinkholes including remarkable early pleistocene paleontological sites provide valuable information on the subsidence mechanisms and reveal the significant role played by interstratal karstification in the area these gravitational deformation structures including hectometre scale bending folds and oversteepened normal faults strongly suggest that the present day compressional regime inferred in previous studies may be largely based on the analysis of non tectonic structures two gypsum caves ca 1 km long show that passages with restricted cross sectional area may produce large breccia pipes and sinkholes thanks to the removal of breakdown boulders by high competence episodic floods moreover the upward progression of cave ceilings by paragenesis and condensation dissolution contributes to increase the probability of sinkhole occurrence an inventory of 135 sinkholes together with their geological and geomorphological context has been developed this data base has been used to infer several properties of the sinkholes with practical implications a magnitude and frequency scaling relationship spatial distribution patterns dominant controlling factors and risk implications

episodic caldera volcanism in the miocene southwestern nevada volcanic field revised stratigraphic framework 40ar 39ar geochronology and implications for magmatism and extension the middle miocene southwestern nevada volcanic field swnvf is a classic example of a silicic multicaldera volcanic field in the great basin more than six major calderas formed between 15 and 7 5 ma the central swnvf caldera cluster consists of the overlapping silent canyon caldera complex the claim canyon caldera and the timber mountain caldera complex active from 14 to 11 5 ma and centered on topographic timber mountain locations of calderas older than the claim canyon caldera source of the tiva canyon tuff are uncertain except where verified by drilling younger peralkaline calderas black mountain and stonewall mountain formed northwest of the central swnvf caldera cluster we summarize major revisions of the swnvf stratigraphy that provide for correlation of lava flows and small volume tuffs with the widespread outflow sheets of the swnvf new laser fusion 40 ar 39 ar isotopic ages are used to refine and revise the timing of eruptive activity in the swnvf the use of high sensitivity mass spectrometry allowed analysis of submilligram sized samples with analytical uncertainties of 0 3 1 permitting resolution of age differences as small as 0 07 ma these results confirm the revised stratigraphic succession and document a pattern of episodic volcanism in the swnvf major caldera episodes belted range crater flat paintbrush timber mountain and thirsty canyon groups erupted widespread ash flow sheets within 100 300 k y time spans and pre and post caldera lavas erupted within 100 300 k y of the associated ash flows peak volcanism in the swnvf occurred during eruption of the paintbrush and timber mountain groups when over 4500 km 3 of metaluminous magma was erupted in two episodes within 1 35 m y separated by a 750 k y magmatic gap peralkaline and metaluminous magmatism in the swnvf overlapped in time and space the peralkaline tub spring and grouse canyon tuffs erupted early and the peralkaline thirsty canyon group tuffs and stonewall flat tuff erupted late in the history of the swnvf flanking the central volumetrically dominant peak of metaluminous volcanism magma chemistry transitional between peralkaline and metaluminous magmas is indicated by petrographic and chemical data particularly in the overlapping grouse canyon and area 20 calderas of the silent canyon caldera complex volcanism in the swnvf coincided with the miocene peak of extensional deformation in adjoining parts of the great basin although regional extension was concurrent with volcanism it was at a minimum in the central area of the swnvf where synvolcanic faulting was dominated by intra caldera deformation significant stratal tilting and paleomagnetically determined dextral shear affected the southwestern margin of the swnvf between the paint brush and timber mountain caldera episodes larger magnitude detachment faulting in the bullfrog hills southwest of the central swnvf caldera cluster followed the climactic timber mountain caldera episode postvolcanic normal faulting was substantial to the north east and south of the central swnvf caldera cluster but the central area of peak volcanic activity remained relatively unextended in postvolcanic time volcanism and extension in the swnvf area were broadly concurrent but swnvf area were broadly concurrent but in detail they were episodic in time and not coincident in space

ages and stable isotope compositions of secondary calcite and opal in drill cores from tertiary volcanic rocks of the yucca mountain area nevada stable isotope compositions of fracture and cavity filling calcite from the unsaturated zone of three drill cores at yucca mountain tertiary volcanic complex indicate that the water from which the minerals precipitated was probably meteoric in origin a decrease in 18 o in the calcite with depth is interpreted as being due to the increase in temperature in drill holes corresponding to an estimated average geothermal gradient of 34 per kilometer a few of the calcite samples and all of the opal samples yielded uranium series ages older than 400 000 yr although most of the calcite samples yielded ages between 26 000 and 310 000 yr the stable isotope and uranium series dates from precipitated calcite and opal of this reconnaissance study suggest a complex history of fluid movement through the volcanic pile and episodes of fracture filling predominantly from meteoric water during at least the past 400 000 yr

gypsum karstification in the middle miocene fatha formation mosul area northern iraq abstract karstified middle miocene sediments are widely exposed in northern iraq particularly in the area surrounding the city of mosul the unit is dominated by gypsum and exposed in thirteen anticlinal structures within the investigated area of about 1600 square kilometers synclines though containing the same sequence are not karstified due to a quaternary cover karst features were located from air photos over 4000 were recorded the smallest detectable being two meters in diameter the majority are sinkholes dolines developed in gypsum and manifested in the overlying collapsing limestone they are singular in lines or clusters shafts and karren are fewer in number and are usually developed in uncovered gypsum sinkholes are visibly located along fractures and at fracture intersections over gently inclined limestone beds overlying the gypsum two karst systems were identified an active and recent system characteristic of all the anticlinal structures and an older pleistocene fossil karst system characteristic of alan ishkaft albu saif and hammam structures the fossil karst system is preserved on remnant elevated old land surfaces and produces characteristic tight undulations in the limestone due to collapse inwards in sinkholes and elongated tunnels formed along a series of sinkholes the fracture study of anticlinal structures reveals that the mean fracture density per area ranges between 4 and 8 km km 2 and shows a unimodal character for most of the structures however the distribution of karst in relation to fractures is bimodal for at least half of the structures with mean values ranging from 4 5 to 11 km km 2 the fractures in the anticlines are thought to have formed due to folding but some are associated with major lineaments cross cutting the structures which is reflected in the bimodality and the crude unimodal fracture karst distribution karst features are related to the general fracture pattern but are more localized in densely fractured areas karst areas were also found to correlate with lower slope gradient and lower drainage density

dating volcanic and related sediments by luminescence methods a review abstract applications of luminescence dating of geological materials have undergone extensive development and refinement since 1974 when wintle first attempted to date volcanic lava using thermoluminescence tl today luminescence techniques are potentially highly useful methods for dating volcanic and related materials and events over timescales ranging from 10 2 to 10 6 years while luminescence approaches generally do not possess the precision afforded by techniques such as 40 ar 39 ar and 14 c methods they offer a useful alternative approach with advantages in terms of age range and scope of material although the application of luminescence methods has in some cases been successfully described a comprehensive study outlining and defining protocols for routine luminescence dating of volcanic materials has not been forthcoming this review surveys previous attempts to develop luminescence techniques to date volcanic products and discusses the state of knowledge of the luminescence behaviour of the four principal materials currently used for luminescence dating of volcanic events particular attention is paid to the red luminescence emissions primarily because of previous successes in using red thermoluminescence rtl of quartz and feldspar for dating volcanic products for which the upper age limit may extend beyond a million years proposals are made for future research directions these include technological developments in the measurement of optically stimulated red luminescence the systematic characterization of rtl and optically stimulated red luminescence as key luminescence parameters in volcanic quartz feldspar glass and polymineral sample fractions and optimization of luminescence dating methods to define a comprehensive protocol for routine dating of volcanic materials

opal as a u pb geochronometer search for a standard we report structural geochemical and tims u th pb and u series isotopic data for several samples of precious and common opal which we tested as potential standards for ion microprobe and la icpms isotopic studies the precious opals are low in u contain high concentration of common pb and are not suitable for u pb age determinations in contrast all studied samples of common opal are enriched in uranium and contain sufficiently radiogenic pb for precise calculations of 206pb 238u and 207pb 235u dates complications in the u pb systematics are due to the presence of ubiquitous unsupported 206pb probably derived from initial excess 234u and possibly other intermediate products of 238u decay elevated concentrations and possibly anomalous isotopic composition of initial pb in some of the opals and the presence of two opal generations of different ages in one of the samples despite these imperfections two out of five studied common opals are acceptable as u pb and u series standards at least in the interim the data obtained in this study can be used to guide further search for a better opal standard

thermal conductivity and heat transfer through the snow on the ice of the beaufort sea 1 eighty nine point measurements of the thermal conductivity ks of the snow on the sea ice of the beaufort sea were made using a heated needle probe average values ranged from 0 078 w m 1 k 1 for new snow to 0 290 w m 1 k 1 for an ubiquitous wind slab ks increased with increasing density consistent with published equations but could also be reliably estimated from the metamorphic state of the snow using measured values of ks and snow stratigraphy the average bulk value for the full snowpack was 0 14 w m 1 k 1 in contrast ks inferred from ice growth and temperature gradients in the snow was 0 33 w m 1 k 1 the mismatch arises in part because the second estimate is based on measurements from an aggregate scale that includes enhanced heat flow due to two and three dimensional snow and ice geometry a finite element model suggests that the complex geometry produces areas of concentrated heat loss at the snow surface these hot spots however increase the apparent conductivity only by a factor of 1 4 not enough to fully explain the mismatch nonconductive heat transfer mechanisms like natural and forced air convection may also be operating in the snowpack though the ubiquitous presence of low permeability wind slabs potentially limits their effectiveness the relative contributions of effects due to snow and ice geometric and nonconductive processes within the snowpack remain uncertain

the origin typology spatial distribution and detrimental effects of the sinkholes developed in the alluvial evaporite karst of the ebro river valley downstream of zaragoza city ne spain three types of sinkhole have been mapped in a 50 km2 stretch of the ebro river valley downstream of zaragoza large collapse sinkholes large shallow subsidence depressions and small cover collapse sinkholes the sinkholes relate to the karstification of evaporitic bedrock that wedges out abruptly downstream giving way to a shale substratum twenty three collapse sinkholes up to 50 m in diameter by 6 m deep and commonly hosting saline ponds have been identified in the floodplain they have been attributed to the upward stoping of dissolutional cavities formed within the evaporitic bedrock by rising groundwater flows twenty four large shallow subsidence depressions were mapped in the floodplain these may reach 850 m in length and were formed by structurally controlled interstratal karstification of soluble beds halite or glauberite and gypsum by rising groundwater flow and the progressive settlement of the overlying bedrock and overburden sediments a total of 447 small cover collapse or dropout sinkholes have been recognized in a perched alluvial level along the southern margin of the valley these sinkholes result from the upward propagation of voids through the alluvial mantle caused by the downward migration of detrital sediments into dissolutional voids the majority of these sinkholes commonly 1 5 2 m in diameter are induced by human activities over the karstic bedrock there is a significant increase in sinkhole density downstream this is interpreted as being a result of the evaporitic bedrock wedging out and the convergence of the groundwater flow lines in the karstic aquifer the collapse sinkholes in this area locally with a probability of occurrence higher than 140 sinkholes km2 year cause substantial damage to the linear infrastructures buildings and agriculture and they might eventually cause the loss of human lives copyright 2006 john wiley sons ltd

u pb ages of secondary silica at yucca mountain nevada implications for the paleohydrology of the unsaturated zone abstract uranium th and pb isotopes were analyzed in layers of opal and chalcedony from individual mm to cm thick calcite and silica coatings at yucca mountain nevada usa a site that is being evaluated for a potential high level nuclear waste repository these calcite and silica coatings on fractures and in lithophysal cavities in miocene age tuffs in the unsaturated zone uz precipitated from descending water and record a long history of percolation through the uz opal and chalcedony have high concentrations of u 10 to 780 ppm and low concentrations of common pb as indicated by large values of 206pb 204pb up to 53 806 thus making them suitable for u pb age determinations interpretations of u pb isotope systems in opal samples at yucca mountain are complicated by the incorporation of excess 234u at the time of mineral formation resulting in reverse discordance of u pb ages however the 207pb 235u ages are much less affected by deviation from initial secular equilibrium and provide reliable ages of most silica deposits between 0 6 and 9 8 ma for chalcedony subsamples showing normal age discordance these ages may represent minimum times of deposition typically 207pb 235u ages are consistent with the microstratigraphy in the mineral coating samples such that the youngest ages are for subsamples from outer layers intermediate ages are from inner layers and oldest ages are from innermost layers 234u and 230th in most silica layers deeper in the coatings are in secular equilibrium with 238u which is consistent with their old age and closed system behavior during the past 0 5 ma the ages for subsamples of silica layers from different microstratigraphic positions in individual calcite and silica coating samples collected from lithophysal cavities in the welded part of the topopah spring tuff yield slow long term average growth rates of 1 to 5 mm ma these data imply that the deeper parts of the uz at yucca mountain maintained long term hydrologic stability over the past 10 ma despite significant climate variations u pb ages for subsamples of silica layers from different microstratigraphic positions in individual calcite and silica coating samples collected from fractures in the shallower part of the uz welded part of the overlying tiva canyon tuff indicate larger long term average growth rates up to 23 mm ma and an absence of recently deposited materials ages of outermost layers are 3 5 ma these differences between the characteristics of the coatings for samples from the shallower and deeper parts of the uz may indicate that the nonwelded tuffs ptn located between the welded parts of the tiva canyon and topopah spring tuffs play an important role in moderating uz flow

environmental hazard analysis of a gypsum karst depression area with geophysical methods a case study in sivas turkey in the study area the geophysical properties of gypsum and filling materials karst structures that developed in gypsum and groundwater level were investigated according to the results of geophysical studies it was thought that the depression and dissolution weathering areas in the karst could be completely or partially filled with water air gypsum particles and one several or all of the alluvial units it was determined that resistivity and s wave velocity average 10 263 14 412 m average 655 m s and resistivity and s wave velocity of lsvz in the gypsum surfaced far from the source were lower 91 3 m 585 m s compared to the gypsum bedrock therefore it was observed that the resistivities and seismic velocities of the gypsum in the surfaced area were higher compared to the depression area the results were associated with karst as the main reason for dissolutions and depressions because the water draining leaking spreading from the water source progressed by creating low resistivity areas in the permeable filling material and the groundwater was near the surface therefore karst structures will probably continue to develop in this area and natural hazards may occur in the future

uranium thorium protactinium dating systematics abstract with precise 234u 230th and 231pa data available 230th and 231pa ages can now be tested rigorously for concordancy if the material is not concordant the isotopic characteristics of this material may be examined in some detail here models similar to those used to describe the u pb system are evaluated for use in u th pa studies for the case in which initial 230th and 231pa concentrations are effectively zero the systematics of concordia plots in relation to models of variation in 234u episodic u loss or gain continuous u loss or gain and continuous 234u 230th and 231pa gain or loss are considered for the case in which initial u concentration is significant for example in many carbonate deposits we also examine linear u uptake models for the case in which initial u concentration is effectively zero for example in teeth and bones such models should prove useful in interpreting data from materials that have behaved as open systems in particular these models may help constrain the nature of diagenetic processes and in some situations it may be possible to determine or constrain true ages with materials that have behaved as open systems

a review and comparison of fracture mineral investigations and their application to radioactive waste disposal abstract a compilation and comparison of fracture mineral studies from the canadian and fennoscandian shields and the french massif central shows many similarities indicating larger external control over fracture mineral deposition with different rock types exerting local controls the sites investigated represent a wide range of geological settings and host rock types ranging from felsic intrusive and extrusives to ultramafic intrusives and volcanics that span an age range from 2 5 to 0 36 ga typical fracture minerals found at canadian shield sites include calcite quartz chlorite and clays and these do not appear to be dependant on age erosional depth or geological environment the fennoscandian shield has a much larger variety of fracture filling minerals with epidote zeolites prehnite fluorite pyrrhotite fe oxides serpentine graphite magnesite and barite in addition to the minerals typically found at canadian shield sites the major control on fracture mineral type is most likely variations in rock type and fluid chemistry and temperature the c and o isotopic range of calcite is very similar among sites late stage hydrothermal calcite with strongly depleted 18o values is common at many sites all of the sites have calcite with 18o isotopic values in the range of 5 to 20 pdb indicative of formation from meteoric water or basinal brines that have undergone varying degrees of water rock interaction one canadian and a few swedish sites have calcite in the shallower portion of the rock that shows isotopic evidence of dissolution and re precipitation in equilibrium with the present day waters there are some striking similarities in fluid inclusion data among sites most sites have an elevated temperature 100 300 c low salinity group of fluid inclusions within the nacl h2o system and a lower temperature 50 150 c higher salinity group of fluid inclusions within the nacl cacl2 h2o system fluid inclusion density plots show some evidence of simple cooling but most sites show two or more fluids were responsible for calcite formation the origin of most of these fluids was magmatic hydrothermal or meteoric water that had undergone varying degrees of water rock interaction but basinal brines and seawater were also possible sources several techniques and methods have been used to further characterize calcites strontium isotopes and rare earth elements can be useful to recognize different families of calcite uranium th dating has found many old calcites beyond the useful range of the technique but also some relatively young calcites that may be related to interglacial periods where fluid inclusion data exists formation temperatures were not consistent with a glacial water origin crush and leach experiments with ion and gas chromatography and thermal ion mass spectrometry have characterized inclusion fluids but special care must be used to ensure only one generation is sampled at a time cathodoluminescence and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectrometry has been useful in identifying multiple fluid generations within single calcite samples laser ablation and raman spectrometry are additional techniques that are useful in determining individual fluid inclusion chemistry and isotopes

identification prediction and mitigation of sinkhole hazards in evaporite karst areas sinkholes usually have a higher probability of occurrence and a greater genetic diversity in evaporite terrains than in carbonate karst areas this is because evaporites have a higher solubility and commonly a lower mechanical strength subsidence damage resulting from evaporite dissolution generates substantial losses throughout the world but the causes are only well understood in a few areas to deal with these hazards a phased approach is needed for sinkhole identification investigation prediction and mitigation identification techniques include field surveys and geomorphological mapping combined with accounts from local people and historical sources detailed sinkhole maps can be constructed from sequential historical maps recent topographical maps and digital elevation models dems complemented with building damage surveying remote sensing and high resolution geodetic surveys on a more detailed level information from exposed paleosubsidence features paleokarst speleological explorations geophysical investigations trenching dating techniques and boreholes may help in investigating dissolution and subsidence features information on the hydrogeological pathways including caves springs and swallow holes are particularly important especially when corroborated by tracer tests these diverse data sources make a valuable database the karst inventory from this dataset sinkhole susceptibility zonations relative probability may be produced based on the spatial distribution of the features and good knowledge of the local geology sinkhole distribution can be investigated by spatial distribution analysis techniques including studies of preferential elongation alignment and nearest neighbor analysis more objective susceptibility models may be obtained by analyzing the statistical relationships between the known sinkholes and the conditioning factors chronological information on sinkhole formation is required to estimate the probability of occurrence of sinkholes number of sinkholes km2 year such spatial and temporal predictions frequently derived from limited records and based on the assumption that past sinkhole activity may be extrapolated to the future are non corroborated hypotheses validation methods allow us to assess the predictive capability of the susceptibility maps and to transform them into probability maps avoiding the most hazardous areas by preventive planning is the safest strategy for development in sinkhole prone areas corrective measures could be applied to reduce the dissolution activity and subsidence processes a more practical solution for safe development is to reduce the vulnerability of the structures by using subsidence proof designs

evaluating and comparing methods of sinkhole susceptibility mapping in the ebro valley evaporite karst ne spain abstract multiple sinkhole susceptibility models have been generated in three study areas of the ebro valley evaporite karst ne spain applying different methods nearest neighbour distance sinkhole density heuristic scoring system and probabilistic analysis for each sinkhole type separately cover collapse sinkholes cover and bedrock collapse sinkholes and cover and bedrock sagging sinkholes the quantitative and independent evaluation of the predictive capability of the models reveals that 1 the most reliable susceptibility models are those derived from the nearest neighbour distance and sinkhole density these models can be generated in a simple and rapid way from detailed geomorphological maps 2 the reliability of the nearest neighbour distance and density models is conditioned by the degree of clustering of the sinkholes consequently the karst areas in which sinkholes show a higher clustering are a priori more favourable for predicting new occurrences 3 the predictive capability of the best models obtained in this research is significantly higher 12 5 82 5 than that of the heuristic sinkhole susceptibility model incorporated into the general urban plan for the municipality of zaragoza although the probabilistic approach provides lower quality results than the methods based on sinkhole proximity and density it helps to identify the most significant factors and select the most effective mitigation strategies and may be applied to model susceptibility in different future scenarios

a genetic classification of sinkholes illustrated from evaporite paleokarst exposures in spain this contribution analyses the processes involved in the generation of sinkholes from the study of paleokarst features exposed in four spanish tertiary basins bedrock strata are subhorizontal evaporites and in three of the basins they include halite and glauberite in the subsurface our studies suggest that formation of dolines in these areas results from a wider range of subsidence processes than those included in the most recently published sinkhole classifications a new genetic classification of sinkholes applicable to both carbonate and evaporite karst areas is thus proposed with the exception of solution dolines it defines the main sinkhole types by use of two terms that refer to the material affected by downward gravitational movements cover bedrock or caprock and the main type of process involved collapse suffosion or sagging sinkholes that result from the combination of several subsidence processes and affect more than one type of material are described by combinations of the different terms with the dominant material or process followed by the secondary one e g bedrock sagging and collapse sinkhole the mechanism of collapse includes any brittle gravitational deformation of cover and bedrock material such as upward stoping of cavities by roof failure development of well defined failure planes and rock brecciation suffosion is the downward migration of cover deposits through dissolutional conduits accompanied with ductile settling sagging is the ductile flexure of sediments caused by differential corrosional lowering of the rockhead or interstratal karstification of the soluble bedrock the paleokarsts we analysed suggest that the sagging mechanism not included in previous genetic classifications plays an important role in the generation of sinkholes in evaporites moreover collapse processes are more significant in extent and rate in areas underlain by evaporites than in carbonate karst primarily due to the greater solubility of the evaporites and the lower mechanical strength and ductile rheology of gypsum and salt rocks

geological and environmental implications of the evaporite karst in spain in spain evaporite outcrops cover approximately 7 of the total area of the country most of the evaporitic formations are made up of ca sulfates gypsum anhydrite or ca sulfates and halite certain paleogene marine evaporites also contain k mg chlorides and some tertiary continental formations bear substantial amounts of na sulfates in the subsurface glauberite and thenardite mesozoic evaporitic formations commonly wedge out towards the ground surface passing into condensed sequences and dissolution collapse breccias some of these highly porous breccias constitute major regional aquifers in several areas interstratal karstification of the evaporites has given rise to gravitational deformations such as basin structures monoclines and collapse structures covering several square kilometers that record a cumulative subsidence in excess of 200 m teruel and calatayud grabens a widespread consequence of evaporite dissolution processes in spain is the hydrochemical degradation of surface waters some of the largest and most outstanding lake systems from an environmental perspective occur in karstic depressions developed in evaporitic formations fuente de piedra gallocanta bujaraloz and banolas lakes sinkhole activity is a major geohazard in several evaporite karst areas the sinkhole risk has a particularly high impact in sectors where tertiary evaporites are overlain by quaternary alluvial aquifers calatayud zaragoza and madrid areas some of the detrimental effects of subsidence include severe damage to historical monuments calatayud the demolition of a whole village puilatos or the derailment of a freight train zaragoza area the deepest gypsum caves are found in triassic diapiric structures el sumidor cave 210 m deep and the longest ones are developed in horizontally lying neogene sequences sorbas caves and estremera maze cave the cardona diapir hosts salt caves up to 4 300 m long whose genesis is related to flooding of mine galleries caused by the interception of a phreatic conduit the main anthropogenic impacts on the endokarstic systems are related to the disposal of wastewaters and the destruction of caves by quarrying the fluvial valleys that cross tertiary evaporitic outcrops commonly show peculiar geological characteristics related to dissolution induced synsedimentary subsidence phenomena 1 thickened alluvium filling dissolution basins up to several tens of kilometers long and more than 100 m deep the largest thickenings are found in areas where the bedrock contains halite and glauberite 2 superimposed alluvial units locally bounded by angular unconformities 3 abundant deformational structures and paleosinkholes related to the rockhead and or interstratal karstification of the substratum these fluvial valleys typically are flanked by a prominent gypsum escarpment rock falls favored by the dissolutional enlargement of joints derived from these scarps are the type of mass movement which has caused the highest number of casualties in spain

reconstructing the geochronological evolution of large landslides by means of the trenching technique in the yesa reservoir spanish pyrenees abstract detailed geomorphological mapping has revealed that the slopes upstream of the yesa dam are affected by several flysch landslides the largest landslides correspond to la refaya rotational slide 11 million m3 situated just upstream of the spillway and el vertedero translational slide 6 million m3 located 1 5 km upstream of the dam a portion of el vertedero landslide 3 million m3 was reactivated in 2006 due to overloading caused by an earth heap a higher earth dam will be built on the downstream side of the existing gravity concrete dam to raise the maximum water level of the reservoir by 23 m the retrodeformation analysis of the deposits exposed in two trenches excavated in the upper part of these landslides together with the obtained absolute ages c14 and osl have provided information on the kinematics and evolution of these slope movements the main findings derived from the 45 m long trench dug in the closed depression developed at the foot of the head scarp of la refaya landslide include 1 the landslide is older than 12 ka and has undergone a cumulative rotation higher than 17 yielding a mean rotation rate of about 1 4 millennium 2 most of the rotation 14 occurred before 5 8 ka and according to the trench stratigraphy the kinematics of the landslide has been dominated by progressive displacement no evidence of catastrophic reactivation has been found the 45 m long trench excavated across the scarp and bench situated at the head of the non reactivated portion of el vertedero translational slide reveals that 1 the landslide is older than 38 ka 2 the trenched portion has undergone at least one reactivation subsequent to 20 ka and has remained inactive for a long time as suggested by the highly degraded bedrock scarp with a slope of 18 compared to the 60 dip of the underlying failure plane based on this study corrective measures with an estimated cost of 11 5 million euros have been designed for this slope the investigation illustrates the usefulness and cost effectiveness of the trenching technique allied with geochronological methods to obtain information on the precise limits age failure mechanism kinematics progressive vs episodic displacement movement rate and chronological evolution of landslides

systematics of u th disequilibrium in calcrete profiles lessons from southwest india pedogenic carbonates calcretes have often been proposed as possible markers of the pedogenetic processes in soils under semi arid climate however precise chronological constraints on their formation are required in order to investigate the climatic and paleo environmental conditions that prevailed during and after their formation and to improve our understanding of the physical and chemical conditions that promoted their development and preservation moreover these authigenic calcium carbonate precipitates provide us with an interesting test of the u th radioactive disequilibrium dating method the reliability of which has been demonstrated extensively in aragonitic corals and calcitic continental speleothems but which remains much more questionable in highly porous chemically and mineralogically complex media such as soil profiles we report here 238u 234u 230th radioactive disequilibrium analyses measured by thermo ionization mass spectrometry in calcretes from two sites in southwest india since calcretes are impure carbonates mixed with various amounts of parent rock and weathered minerals all ages must be computed using the isochron technique involving the extraction of several coeval subsamples from the same soil horizon and u th analyses after total dissolution tsd method in order to correct for the detrital component 232th is usually used as index of the detrital contamination and the isochron age is derived from the isotopic composition 230th 238u 234u 238u of the pure authigenic carbonate end member of the mixing line our results show that each set of samples taken from decimetric blocks is characterized by a well defined isochron line in a 3 d osmond diagram 232th 238u 230th 238u 234u 238u the regression lines obtained for most of the samples show probabilities of fit satisfying the mathematical assumptions of the isochron model in most cases 0 05 and mean square weighted deviations mswd values around 1 the compositions of the end members are highly variable between the different isochrons both for the carbonate phase indicating various ages of cristallisation and for the detrital phase indicating various origins and compositions notably our data demonstrate that the detrital component is in all cases out of secular equilibrium by contrast with the standard paradigm of dirty carbonate dating which is based on the assumption of average continental crust th u elemental ratio and secular equilibrium values of the 230th 238u and 234u 238u ratios at the first site coimbatore we obtain u th ages between 304 38 ka and 44 2 9 ka 2 from the base to the top of the profile these suggest discontinuous precipitation of the different facies in good agreement with micromorphological observations at the second study site gundlupet the carbonate nodules sampled from two different profiles yield consistent ages of 200 ka which suggests that precipitation of nodular carbonate occurred across the entire pediment toposequence during a single event surprisingly in mere contradiction with the standard model of impure carbonate dating two puzzling samples display vertical isochrons i e variable 232th 238u without any variation of the 230th 238u and 234u 238u ratios such patterns require extremely high 232th 238u ratios in an as yet unidentified detrital phase taken at face value these results suggest that no clear correlation can be inferred between the precipitation of these pedogenic carbonates and major orbitally driven climate variations recorded in other archives during the last glacial interglacial cycles

thermal history of the unsaturated zone at yucca mountain nevada usa abstract secondary calcite silica and minor amounts of fluorite deposited in fractures and cavities record the chemistry temperatures and timing of past fluid movement in the unsaturated zone at yucca mountain nevada the proposed site of a high level radioactive waste repository the distribution and geochemistry of these deposits are consistent with low temperature precipitation from meteoric waters that infiltrated at the surface and percolated down through the unsaturated zone however the discovery of fluid inclusions in calcite with homogenization temperatures th up to 80 c was construed by some scientists as strong evidence for hydrothermal deposition this paper reports the results of investigations to test the hypothesis of hydrothermal deposition and to determine the temperature and timing of secondary mineral deposition mineral precipitation temperatures in the unsaturated zone are estimated from calcite and fluorite hosted fluid inclusions and calcite 18o values and depositional timing is constrained by the 207pb 235u ages of chalcedony or opal in the deposits fluid inclusion th from 50 samples of calcite and four samples of fluorite range from 35 to 90 c calcite 18o values range from 0 to 22 smow but most fall between 12 and 20 the highest th and the lowest 18o values are found in the older calcite calcite th and 18o values indicate that most calcite precipitated from water with 18o values between 13 and 7 similar to modern meteoric waters twenty two 207pb 235u ages of chalcedony or opal that generally postdate elevated depositional temperatures range from 9 5 to 1 9 ma new and published 207pb 235u and 230th uages coupled with the th values and estimates of temperature from calcite 18o values indicate that maximum unsaturated zone temperatures probably predate 10 ma and that the unsaturated zone had cooled to near present day temperatures 24 26 c at a depth of 250 m by 2 4 ma the evidence of elevated temperatures persisting in ash flow tuffs adjacent to parent calderas for as much as 8 ma is a new finding but consistent with thermal modeling simulations using the heat code demonstrate that prolonged cooling of the unsaturated zone is consistent with magmatic heat inputs and deep seated sub water table hydrothermal activity generated by the large magma body 8 km to the north that produced the 15 11 ma ash flows and ash falls that make up yucca mountain the evidence discussed in this and preceding papers strongly supports unsaturated zone deposition of the secondary minerals from descending meteoric waters although depositional temperatures reflect conductive and possibly vapor phase convective heating of the unsaturated zone related to regional magmatic sources until perhaps 6 ma depositional conditions similar to the present day unsaturated zone have prevailed for at least the past 2 4 ma

230th u dating of surficial deposits using the ion microprobe shrimp rg a microstratigraphic perspective abstract we used the sensitive high resolution ion microprobe reverse geometry shrimp rg to date pedogenic opal using the 230 th u system due to the high spatial resolution of an ion microprobe typically 30 m regions of pure opal within a sample can be targeted and detrital material can be avoided in addition because the technique is non destructive the sample can be preserved for other types of analyses including electron microprobe or other stable isotope or trace element ion microprobe measurements the technique is limited to material with u concentrations greater than 50 ppm however the high spatial resolution small sample requirements and the ability to avoid detrital material make this technique a suitable technique for dating many pleistocene deposits formed in semi arid environments to determine the versatility of the method samples from several different deposits were analyzed including silica rich pebble coatings from pedogenic carbonate horizons a siliceous sinter deposit and opaline silica deposited as a spring mound u concentrations for 30 m diameter spots ranged from 50 to 1000 ppm in these types of materials the 230 th 232 th activity ratios also ranged from 100 to 10 6 eliminating the need for detrital th corrections that reduce the precision of traditional u th ages for many milligram and larger sized samples in pedogenic material layers of high u opal ca 500 ppm are commonly juxtaposed next to layers of calcite with much lower u concentrations 1 2 ppm if these types of samples are not analyzed using a technique with the appropriate spatial resolution the ages may be strongly biased towards the age of the opal comparison with standard tims thermal ionization mass spectrometry measurements from separate microdrilled samples suggests that although the analytical precision of the ion microprobe shrimp rg measurements is less than tims the high spatial resolution results in better accuracy in the age determination for finely layered or complex deposits the ion microprobe approach also may be useful for pre screening samples to determine the age and degree of post depositional alteration analyzing finely layered samples or samples with complex growth histories and obtaining simultaneous measurements of trace elements

the thermal conductivity of seasonal snow twenty seven studies on the thermal conductivity of snow k eff have been published since 1886 combined they comprise 354 values of k eff and have been used to derive over 13 regression equation and predicting k eff vs density due to large and largely undocumented differences in measurement methods and accuracy sample temperature and snow type it is not possible to know what part of the variability in this data set is the result of snow microstructure we present a new data set containing 488 measurements for which the temperature type and measurement accuracy are known a quadratic equation where is in g cm 3 and k eff is in w m 1 k 1 can be fit to the new data r 2 0 79 a logarithmic expression can also be used the first regression is better when estimating values beyond the limits of the data the second when estimating values for low density snow within the data set snow types resulting from kinetic growth show density independent behavior rounded grain and wind blown snow show strong density dependence the new data set has a higher mean value of density but a lower mean value of thermal conductivity than the old set this shift is attributed to differences in snow types and sample temperatures in the sets using both data sets we show that there are well defined limits to the geometric configurations that natural seasonal snow can take

subsidence hazard avoidance based on geomorphological mapping in the ebro river valley mantled evaporite karst terrain ne spain in the valley of the ebro river to the southeast of the city of zaragoza ne spain the dissolution of evaporite sediments gypsum halite and na sulphates which underlie alluvial deposits gives rise to numerous sinkholes these sinkholes are a potential hazard to human safety particularly where they develop in a catastrophic way even slow developing sinkholes are problematic as they damage urban and agricultural infrastructure necessitating costly repairs and vigilant maintenance to assist in developing avoidance strategies for these hazards the factors controlling sinkhole occurrence have been assessed using geomorphological maps produced from aerial photographs for 1956 and 1981 important controls on sinkhole development are found to include underlying geological structure manifest in preferred orientations of sinkholes on the azimuths n130 150e and n30 40e and the presence of glauberite in the groundwater flow path which apparently promotes accelerated gypsum dissolution perhaps surprisingly alluvium thickness does not appear to significantly correlate with the density of sinkholes on the floodplain in this area the maps for 1956 and 1981 reveal that both human activity and natural processes can serve to obscure the true density of sinkhole development for instance a large number of sinkholes which were conspicuous in 1956 have since been back filled by farmers in the most fluvially active zone of the ebro valley the meander belt the relatively low density of sinkholes compared with adjoining zones suggests that subsidence is being masked by morpho sedimentary dynamic processes aggradation and erosion careful geomorphological mapping for different time periods yields a much more accurate impression of the frequency of sinkhole development than would be gained from surveying currently visible sinkholes in the area of interest

natural convection in the subarctic snow cover the purpose of this study was to determine if air convects in a natural snow cover to detect convection the temperature field in the subarctic snow cover in fairbanks alaska was measured hourly during three winters 1984 1987 using an array of thermistors which were suspended on threads and allowed to be buried by snowfall the results indicate that convection occurred sporadically in 1984 1985 and almost continuously in 1985 1986 and 1986 1987 the evidence was 1 simultaneous warming and cooling at different locations in a horizontal plane in the snow and 2 horizontal temperature gradients of up to 16 c m 1 during the winter warm and cold zones developed in the snow and remained relatively fixed in space we interpret these zones to be the result of a diffuse plumelike convection pattern linked to spatial variations in the temperature of the snow soil interface air flow was inferred to have been primarily horizontal near the base of the snow and vertical elsewhere calculated flow speeds were of the order of 0 2 mm s 1 with a maximum value of 2 mm s 1 the convective circulation was time dependent with perturbations such as high wind or rapid changes in air temperature triggering periods when horizontal temperature gradients were strongest suggesting that these were also periods when the air flow was fastest the coincidence of depth hoar crystals with horizontal c axes and the horizontal flow lines at the base of the snow suggests that convection may have affected crystal growth directions

microstructural change around a needle probe to measure thermal conductivity of snow the thermal conductivity of snow determines to a large extent ground heat flux and snow metamorphism one common method of measuring the thermal conductivity of snow is with a needle probe we measured the microstructural changes in the snow around a typical needle using micro computed tomography the insertion of the needle probe caused structural changes up to a radial distance of 0 5 1 mm using a commercial needle probe with short 30 s heating time we measured thermal conductivity values in snow that were 50 lower than the conductivity measured using a calibrated guarded hot plate apparatus numerically simulated time temperature curves with an introduced air gap that simulated the needle damage reproduced the observed needle probe results well confirming that poor contact resistance between the needle and the snow will lead to measurement discrepancies and a large bias while most measurements in snow have been done using a long heating time and are not subject to this error the thermal conductivity of snow measured with needle probes with short measurement times should be avoided this same effect is probably observed in other brittle and highly porous materials a condition that may not be widely appreciated

geomorphology of the tertiary gypsum formations in the ebro depression spain abstract this paper reviews the current knowledge of the mainly karstic geomorphological features developed in the evaporitic formations of the ebro depression northern spain special emphasis is given to the recently published and unpublished scientific advances the gypsum formations of tertiary age have an extensive outcrop area within the ebro depression here their morphogenesis is controlled mainly by processes of surface and subsurface dissolution acting on the gypsum outstanding landforms in the gypsum terrain include saline lakes developed in flat bottom dolines saladas other characteristic morphologies include karren and gypsum domes which occur on a decimetre scale where the gypsum is covered by quaternary alluvial deposits the karstification processes are especially intense and cause subsidence phenomena karstic subsidence affects stream terraces mantled pediments and infilled valleys which in the region are called vales dissolution induced synsedimentary subsidence has produced interesting geological features which include significant thickening and deformation of the alluvial deposits in contrast to the rapid removal of gypsum by dissolution the amount of gypsum removed by erosion is low water erosion studies carried out on gypsiferous slopes of the ebro depression indicate that the sediment yield ranges from 0 59 to 7 82 t ha year this low yield results from the high infiltration capacity of the soils subsidence caused by gypsum dissolution has important socio economic consequences in the ebro depression the active alluvial karstification of the gypsum causes numerous sinkholes that are harmful to linear structures roads railway lines irrigation channels buildings and agricultural land unforeseen catastrophic subsidence also puts human lives at risk the benefits of such terrains include thickened alluvial deposits which act as valuable water reservoirs and which form excellent sources of aggregates fluvial valleys in this gypsiferous terrain commonly show an asymmetrical geometry with prominent gypsum scarps at one side these gypsum scarps are affected by numerous landslides these slope movements are hazardous may dam rivers and cause flooding of the alluvial plains

fossil spring deposits in the southern great basin and their implications for changes in water table levels near yucca mountain nevada during quaternary time fossil spring deposits are common in the southern great basin and their distribution provides important constraints on the hydrologic response of the regional water table to climate change this information is crucial because the proposed high level nuclear waste repository at yucca mountain will be located 200 400 m above the modern water table water tables will rise in response to a future return to glacial climates but the magnitude of the change and the consequences for radionuclide travel times and overall repository integrity are key uncertainties increased recharge during past pluvial periods in the spring mountains and sheep range caused water tables to rise and ground water to discharge over broad expanses of the las vegas valley system and in nearby pahrump sandy and coyote springs valleys in contrast other valleys in the region contain only small areas of pleistocene discharge resulting from local damming of ground water by faults that cut valley alluvium in these instances which include the valley wells area and piute and northern coyote springs valleys smaller ranges such as the clark and new york mountains supplied the moisture the change in water table levels since the last full glacial period varies between and within valleys from as little as 10 m in several areas to 95 m in the coyote springs valley at yucca mountain the water table has probably changed by 115 m in response to climate change the spring deposits and the mollusk faunas found with them often misinterpreted as lacustrine in origin share many essential features with active spring systems in northeast nevada deposits associated with discharge mainly consist of pale brown silt and sand that is entrapped by dense stands of phreatophytes covering valley bottoms when water tables are high pale green mud containing a mix of aquatic semiaquatic and moist terrestrial mollusks accumulates in wet meadows and marshes associated directly with spring discharge the record in subbasins of the las vegas valley system is dominated by late wisconsin age sediments although pond sediments and alluvium belonging to at least one older pre wisconsin pluvial period are also locally exposed deposits from two even earlier episodes of spring discharge both of which also occurred during rancholabrean time 10 to 450 ka are exposed in the pahrump chicago piute and coyote springs valleys and in the valley wells the records from the pahrump and coyote springs valleys are especially well exposed and likely extend back to at least early pleistocene time

hidden sinkholes and karst cavities in the travertine plateau of a highly populated geothermal seismic territory tivoli central italy abstract sinkholes and other karst structures in settled carbonate lands can be a significant source of hazard for humans and human works acque albule the study area of this work is a plio pleistocene basin near rome central italy superficially filled by a large and thick deposit of late pleistocene thermogene travertine human activities blanket large portions of the flat territory covering most evidence from geological surface processes and potentially inducing scientists and public officials to underestimate some natural hazards including those connected with sinkholes to contribute to the proper assessment of these hazards a geomorphologic study of the basin was performed using digital elevation models dems recent aerial photographs and field surveys historical material such as old aerial photographs and past geomorphologic studies both pre dating the most part of quarrying and village building was also used together with memories of the elderly population this preliminary study pointed out the presence of numerous potentially active sinkholes that are at present largely masked by either quarrying or overbuilding where this first study pointed out the apparent absence of sinkholes in areas characterized by high density of buildings a detailed subsurface study was performed using properly calibrated electrical resistivity tomography ert and dynamic penetration measurements dpsh together with some borehole logs made available from the local municipality this second study highlighted the presence of sinkholes and caves that are this time substantially hidden to the resolution of standard methods and materials such as aerial photographs dems and field surveys active sinkhole subsidence in the acque albule basin may explain at least in part the frequent damages that affect numerous buildings in the area the main conclusion from this study is that the mitigation of sinkhole hazard in highly populated areas has to pass through a thorough search of hidden sinkholes that can be masked by the anthropocenic molding and blanketing of the territory for these purposes data from historical pre anthropocene documents as well as where possible subsurface investigations are fundamental

structure specific surface area and thermal conductivity of the snowpack around barrow alaska the structure of the snowpack near barrow was studied in march april 2009 verticalprofiles of density specific surface area ssa and thermal conductivity were measuredon tundra lakes and landfast ice the average thickness was 41 cm on tundra and 21 cmon fast ice layers observed were diamond dust or recent wind drifts on top overlayingwind slabs occasional faceted crystals and melt freeze crusts and basal depth hoar layers thetoplayerhadassabetween45and224m

u pb rb sr and u series isotope geochemistry of rocks and fracture minerals from the chalk river laboratories site grenville province ontario canada abstract as part of the geologic waste management facility feasibility study atomic energy of canada ltd aecl is evaluating the suitability of the chalk river laboratories crl site in ontario situated in crystalline rock of the southwestern grenville province for the possible development of an underground repository for low and intermediate level nuclear waste this paper presents petrographic and trace element analyses u pb zircon dating results and rb sr u pb and u series isotopic analyses of gneissic drill core samples from the deep crg series characterization boreholes at the crl site the main rock types intersected in the boreholes include hornblende biotite pyroxene gneisses of granitic to granodioritic composition leucocratic granitic gneisses with sparse mafic minerals and garnet bearing gneisses with variable amounts of biotite and or hornblende the trace element data for whole rock samples plot in the fields of within plate syn collision and volcanic arc type granites in discrimination diagrams used for the tectonic interpretation of granitic rocks zircons separated from biotite gneiss and metagranite samples yielded shrimp rg u pb ages of 1472 14 2 and 1045 6 ma respectively in very good agreement with widespread early mesoproterozoic plutonic ages and ottawan orogeny ages in the central gneiss belt the rb sr u pb and pb pb whole rock errorchron apparent ages of most of the crl gneiss samples are consistent with zircon u pb age and do not indicate substantial large scale preferential element mobility during superimposed metamorphic and water rock interaction processes this may confirm the integrity of the rock mass which is a positive attribute for a potential nuclear waste repository most 234 u 238 u activity ratios ar in whole rock samples are within errors of the secular equilibrium value of one indicating that the rocks have not experienced any appreciable u loss or gain within the past 1 ma however 234 u 238 u ar in fracture mineral samples collected down to borehole lengths of about 740 m deviate from the secular equilibrium value and 234 u 238 u model ages calculated for fracture mineral samples showing excess 234 u range from 593 to 1415 ka thus providing evidence of fracture flow in the associated bedrock during the past 1 5 ma rare earth element patterns are variable in fracture filling calcites and fe oxides hydroxides but are similar to those observed in associated whole rock samples the observed ce anomalies are very small ce n ce n 1 do not vary with depth and therefore do not contain evidence that the studied fracture minerals precipitated from oxidizing waters at the conceptual depth of a repository

susceptibility mapping of instability related to shallow mining cavities in a built up environment anthropogenic activities and urbanization frequently spread over areas underlain by unstable karst ground or man made cavities leading to potential risk situations for buildings infrastructure and population the roof of the cavities may rapidly propagate upwards eventually resulting in progressive ground settlement and or sudden collapse these processes are frequently accelerated or triggered by various human activities e g overloading water recharge water table decline in this paper the susceptibility to instability of artificial cavity networks under an urban area in apulia region southern italy was assessed and evaluated here there is dense network of underground quarries excavated for the extraction of massive calcarenite for building and ornamental stone that are currently affected by severe instability problems identifying the zones of the cavities most prone to instability is of great practical importance susceptibility models have been developed analyzing the statistical relationships between the cavity sections with evidence of instability and a number of predisposing factors mainly related to the 3d geometry of the voids roof thickness and the presence of overloads the models produced by the discriminant analysis and the logistic regression approaches were independently and quantitatively evaluated through the construction of roc curves although the two models are characterized by different input data treatment as the logistic regression allows using continuous and discrete variables or any combination of both types even if they do not have a normal distribution the roc curves highlighted for both methods a satisfactory congruence between the model results and the observed data consequently from the model performance analysis the two models were evaluated comparable in terms of result reliability the methodology should be considered as a general first level analysis for near surface underground cavities aimed at identifying critical cave sectors that can be the focus of more detailed analyses especially those associated with sensitive zone related to the presence of buildings roads and frequent presence of human activity

planning for gypsum geohazards in lithuania and england the rapid underground dissolution of gypsum and the evolution of the gypsum karst in lithuania and england results in subsidence problems which can make construction difficult the natural dissolution yields sulphate rich groundwater of poor quality and the karst is susceptible to the rapid transmission of pollutants in the north of lithuania gypsum karst is developed in devonian gypsum here the towns of birai pasvalys and the surrounding countryside suffer subsidence and some buildings have been damaged the majority of the potable water in these areas is derived from groundwater extracted from sandstone sequences that underlie the gypsum in lithuania conservation measures have been introduced to control agriculture and prevent pollution of the gypsum karst these measures include environmentally friendly farming restrictions on land use and exclusion zones around subsidence hollows in england subsidence caused by the dissolution of permian gypsum has caused severe problems in the vicinity of the town of ripon numerous buildings have been damaged and new sites are difficult to develop here formal planning regulations have recently been introduced to help to protect against the worst effects of subsidence resulting from gypsum dissolution

ten million years of activity within the eastern california shear zone from u pb dating of fault zone opal abstract reconstructions of long term fault activity are essential for understanding both the mechanisms controlling fault behavior and accurate earthquake hazard assessments increasing evidence for temporal variations in strain accumulation suggests non uniform strain rates over a range of historic to geologic timescales the paucity of long term records of fault activity has limited our ability to resolve these variations we present a method for constraining long term fault activity based on u pb dating of fault related opal from secondary fault segments within the eastern california shear zone ecsz the presence of sheared and breccia cemented opaline silica within well exposed faults at near surface conditions suggest that opal formation is associated with high magnitude earthquakes capable of surface rupture 6 m temporal constraints from massive and sheared syntectonic opal n 74 on related secondary faults from this study provide new insights on the timing of fault initiation reactivation and longevity the oldest dates obtained indicate that ecsz activity commenced at or before 10 ma multiple deformation events dated within a single structure on episodically deposited and sheared opal up to six generations demonstrate that fault reactivation occurred over 105 yr timescales 0 7 0 1 myr relative probabilities of dated deformation events can be used to evaluate changes in fault activity in the past 2 5 ma n 60 this analysis indicates enhanced fault activity starting at 2 ma and peaking around 1 ma possibly due to fault interactions and distribution of deformation between the ecsz and the san andreas fault

sims analyses of minor and trace element distributions in fracture calcite from yucca mountain nevada usa abstract fracture lining calcite samples from yucca mountain nevada obtained as part of the extensive vertical sampling in studies of this site as a potential high level waste repository have been characterized according to microbeam scale 25 30 m trace and minor element chemistry and cathodoluminescent zonation patterns as bulk chemical analyses are limited in spatial resolution and are subject to contamination by intergrown phases a technique for analysis by secondary ion mass spectrometry sims of minor mn fe sr and trace ree elements in calcite was developed and applied to eighteen calcite samples from four boreholes and one trench sims analyses of ree in calcite and dolomite have been shown to be quantitative to abundances bulk chemical signatures noted by vaniman 1994 allowed correlation of minor and trace element signatures in yucca mountain calcite with location of calcite precipitation saturated vs unsaturated zone for example upper unsaturated zone calcite exhibits pronounced negative ce and eu anomalies not observed in calcite collected below in the deep unsaturated zone these chemical distinctions served as fingerprints which were applied to growth zones in order to examine temporal changes in calcite crystallization histories analyses of such fine scale zonal variations are unattainable using bulk analytical techniques in addition lree particularly ce scavenging of calcite precipitating solutions by manganese oxide phases is discussed as the mechanism for ce depletion in unsaturated zone calcite

uranium series disequilibrium in tuffs from yucca mountain nevada as evidence of pore fluid flow over the last million years abstract samples of tuff from boreholes drilled into fault zones in the exploratory studies facility esf and relatively unfractured rock of the cross drift tunnels at yucca mountain nevada have been analysed by u series methods this work is part of a project to verify the finding of fast flow paths through the tuff to esf level indicated by the presence of bomb 36cl in pore fluids secular radioactive equilibrium in the u decay series i e when the radioactivity ratios 234u 238u 230th 234u and 226ra 230th all equal 1 00 might be expected if the tuff samples have not experienced radionuclide loss due to rock water interaction occurring within the last million years however most fractured and unfractured samples were found to have a small deficiency of 234u weighted mean 234u 238u 0 95 0 01 and a small excess of 230th weighted mean 230th 234u 1 10 0 02 the 226ra 230th ratios are close to secular equilibrium weighted mean 0 94 0 07 these data indicate that 234u has been removed from the rock samples in the last 350 ka probably by pore fluids within the precision of the measurement it would appear that 226ra has not been mobilized and removed from the tuff although there may be some localised 226ra redistribution as suggested by a few ratio values that are significantly different from 1 0 because both fractured and unfractured tuffs show approximately the same deficiency of 234u this indicates that pore fluids are moving equally through fractured and unfractured rock more importantly fractured rock appears not to be a dominant pathway for groundwater flow otherwise the ratio would be more strongly affected and the th and ra isotopic ratios would likely also show disequilibrium application of a simple mass balance model suggests that surface infiltration rate is over an order of magnitude greater than the rate indicated by other infiltration models and that residence time of pore fluids at esf level is about 400 a processes of u sorption precipitation and re solution are believed to be occurring and would account for these anomalous results but have not been included in the model despite the difficulties the u series data suggest that fractured rock specifically the sundance and drill hole wash faults are not preferred flow paths for groundwater flowing through the topopah spring tuff and by implication rapid flow within 50 a from the surface to the level of the esf is improbable

impacts of an accumulation hiatus on the physical properties of firn at a low accumulation polar site 1 recent field investigations of a megadune region of east antarctica provide evidence that differences in grain size thermal conductivity and permeability across a megadune profile are due to spatial accumulation variability in the absence of significant microclimate variations the megadunes are low amplitude 2 8 m long wavelength 2 5 km bands with perceptible but low accumulation less than 40 mm water equivalent weq yr 1 and accumulation hiatus within several kilometers proximity as determined by remote sensing surface feature classification and ground penetrating radar profiling our hypothesis that accumulation rate impacts the extent of temperature gradient driven metamorphic growth in low accumulation rate sites is supported by measurements of various firn physical properties relatively small differences in accumulation rate less than 40 mm weq yr 1 result in large differences in physical properties including grain size thermal conductivity and permeability which are apparent in satellite based microwave data from both passive and active sensors the differences in physical snow structure between low accumulation areas and accumulation hiatus areas in the near surface are sufficiently distinct that evidence of past accumulation hiatus should be observable in the physical and chemical properties of an ice core record

uranium isotopes in soils as a proxy for past infiltration and precipitation across the western united states the intermittent presence of large pleistocene lakes in the southwestern interior of north america a region that is now a semi arid desert suggests repeated oscillations between profoundly different climatic conditions the origin of these shifts is still unresolved due to inconsistencies in existing climate proxy data for example pollen lake levels and oxygen isotopes in speleothems to resolve the inconsistencies in the water balance over the last 10 to 60 kyr we use uranium isotopic variations in secondary soil minerals to quantify net infiltration and precipitation along a north south transect in western north america we show that winter infiltration increased by 30 to 100 percent and precipitation by a lesser amount in the valleys of the great basin and mojave deserts between 60 and 26 ka this increase in infiltration and precipitation preceded the last glacial maximum lgm and the timing of most lake highstands in the region by 5 to 10 kyr respectively suggesting a possible last precipitation maximum lpm that coincided with a minimum in winter insolation subsequent decreases in infiltration and precipitation after the lgm can be reconciled with the timing of lake highstands if colder summer temperatures due to a minimum in summer insolation reduced lake evaporation the soil records combined with a range of proxy data suggest that seasonal insolation is the long term driver for large shifts in both precipitation and surface water variability in the region

consequences of slow growth for 230th u dating of quaternary opals yucca mountain nv usa thermal ionization mass spectrometry and data are reported for uranium rich opals coating fractures and cavities within the silicic tuffs forming yucca mountain nv the potential site of a high level radioactive waste repository high uranium concentrations up to 207 ppm and extremely high activity ratios up to about 106 make microsamples of these opals suitable for precise dating conventional ages range from 40 to greater than 600 ka and initial activity ratios between 1 03 and 8 2 isotopic evidence indicates that the opals have not experienced uranium mobility however wide variations in apparent ages and initial ratios for separate subsamples of the same outermost mineral surfaces positive correlation between ages and sample weights and negative correlation between ages and calculated initial are inconsistent with the assumption that all minerals in a given subsample was deposited instantaneously the data are more consistent with a conceptual model of continuous deposition where secondary mineral growth has occurred at a constant slow rate up to the present this model assumes that individual subsamples represent mixtures of older and younger material and that calculations using the resulting isotope ratios reflect an average age ages calculated using the continuous deposition model for opals imply average mineral growth rates of less than 5 mm m y the model of continuous deposition also predicts discordance between ages obtained using different radiometric methods for the same subsample differences in half lives will result in younger apparent ages for the shorter lived isotope due to the greater influence of younger materials continuously added to mineral surfaces discordant and u pb ages obtained from outermost mineral surfaces at yucca mountain support this model

ion probe u pb dating of authigenic and detrital opal from neogene quaternary alluvium abstract knowing depositional ages of alluvial fans is essential for many tectonic paleoclimatic and geomorphic studies in arid environments the use of u pb dating on secondary silica to establish the age of neogene quaternary clastic sediments was tested on samples of authigenic and detrital opal and chalcedony from depths of 25 to 53 m in boreholes at midway valley nevada dating of authigenic opal present as rinds on rock clasts and in calcite silica cements establishes minimum ages of alluvium deposition dating of detrital opal or chalcedony derived from the source volcanic rocks gives the maximum age of sediment deposition materials analyzed included 12 samples of authigenic opal one sample of fracture coating opal from bedrock one sample of detrital opal and two samples of detrital chalcedony uranium lead isotope data were obtained by both thermal ionization mass spectrometry and ion microprobe uranium concentrations ranged from tens to hundreds of g g relatively large u pb allowed calculation of 206 pb 238 u ages that ranged from 1 64 0 36 2 to 6 16 0 50 ma for authigenic opal and from 8 34 0 28 to 11 2 1 3 ma for detrital opal chalcedony three samples with the most radiogenic pb isotope compositions also allowed calculation of 207 pb 235 u ages which were concordant with 206 pb 238 u ages from the same samples these results indicate that basin development at midway valley was initiated between about 8 and 6 ma and that the basin was filled at long term average deposition rates of less than 1 cm ka because alluvium in midway valley was derived from adjacent highlands at yucca mountain the low rates of deposition determined in this study may imply a slow rate of erosion of yucca mountain volcanic strata underlying the basin are offset by a number of buried faults to a greater degree than the relatively smooth sloping bedrock alluvium contact these geologic relations indicate that movement on most faults ceased prior to erosional planation and burial therefore ages of the authigenic opal from basal alluvium indicate that the last movement on buried faults was older than about 6 ma

uranium series chronology and environmental applications of speleothems an increasing number of scientists recognize the value of speleothems1 as often extremely well preserved archives of information about past climate vegetation hydrology sea level nuclide migration water rock interaction landscape evolution tectonics and human action well constrained data are required to document past changes reconstruct past patterns and predict future responses of the earth system at a wide range of spatial and temporal scales speleothems are particularly useful in this regard because they can be found in many locations of the globe sampled at high resolution and reliably dated using high precision uranium series techniques speleothems are bodies of mineral material formed in caves as the result of chemical precipitation from groundwater flowing or dripping in a cave most speleothems are composed of calcite formed by slow degassing of co2 from supersaturated groundwater but aragonite and gypsum forms are also common particularly near cave entrances where evaporative effects are important a host of different speleothem types decorate the walls ceilings and floors of caves and their mineralogy and morphology is a function of fluid flow and chemistry of waters feeding a particular location as well as the ambient conditions temperature chemistry light in the air or water filled void subaerial forms include the familiar stalagmites stalactites draperies flowstones subaqueous forms include rimstone pools rafts mammillary calcite wall coatings and dog tooth spar for an extensive review of the types of speleothem that have been observed see hill and forti 1997 speleothems are used in a multitude of ways to explore past environmental conditions perhaps the most fundamental of which is their very presence or absence deposition of speleothems relies on sufficient water supply and soil co2 to enable dissolution and transport of reactants in the vadose zone to underlying caves in arid or glacial times conditions may not have been favorable for speleothem formation

experimental analysis of snow micropenetrometer smp cone penetration in homogeneous snow layers the cone penetration test cpt is widely used to determine in situ soil and snow characteristics and stratigraphy for avalanche forecasting knowledge about snow stratigraphy is of crucial import

geochemistry of rock units at the potential repository level yucca mountain nevada the compositional variability of the phenocryst poor member of the 12 8 million year topopah spring tuff at the potential repository level was assessed by duplicate analysis of 20 core samples from the cross drift at yucca mountain nevada previous analyses of outcrop and core samples of the topopah spring tuff showed that the phenocryst poor rhyolite which includes both lithophysal and nonlithophysal zones is relatively uniform in composition analyses of rock samples from the cross drift the first from the actual potential repository block also indicate the chemical homogeneity of this unit excluding localized deposits of vapor phase minerals and low temperature calcite and opal in fractures cavities and faults the possible influence of vapor phase minerals and calcite and opal coatings on rock composition at a scale sufficiently large to incorporate these heterogeneously distributed deposits was evaluated and is considered to be relatively minor therefore the composition of the phenocryst poor member of the topopah spring tuff is considered to be adequately represented by the analyses of samples from the cross drift the mean composition as represented by the 10 most abundant oxides in weight percent or grams per hundred grams is sio sub 2 76 29 al sub 2 o sub 3 12 55 feo 0 14 fe sub 2 o sub 3 0 97 mgo 0 13 cao 0 50 na sub 2 o 3 52 k sub 2 o 4 83 tio sub 2 0 11 and mno 0 07

some remarks on u th mineral ages from igneous rocks with prolonged crystallisation histories abstract mineral isochron dating is a frequently used geochronological tool one of its assumptions is that the minerals grow over a time period that is small compared to the half life of the radiogenic isotope system used in recent years increasing analytical precision has promoted the use of the short lived u series isotope system in order to date young crystallisation events three whole rock zircon u th isochrons from the 26 5 ka oruanui eruption in the taupo volcanic zone new zealand yield pre eruptive model ages of 5 5 0 8 ka 9 7 1 7 ka and 12 3 0 8 ka for the sub 63 m 63 125 m and 125 250 m zircon size fractions respectively this suggests that in this case the assumption of instantaneous crystal growth breaks down instead the u th data may be explained by continuous zircon growth over a period of 90 ka however cathodoluminescence shows that crystals are typically composed of an euhedral core surrounded by a sector zoned euhedral rim and the u th data can also be modelled by mixing an older 27 ka model age population of zircon crystals with a young zircon rim that formed shortly prior to eruption of the oruanui rhyolite this indicates that detailed petrographic studies are critical for deciphering the histories of prolonged crystallisation in the magmatic environment it is concluded that conventional u series mineral isochrons may underestimate the age of the onset of crystallisation by more than an order of magnitude in future microanalytical techniques will lead to significant advances in the understanding of crystallisation processes and timescales

u pb shrimp dating of uraniferous opals abstract u pb and u series analyses of four u rich opal samples using sensitive high resolution ion microprobe shrimp demonstrate the potential of this technique for the dating of opals with ages ranging from several tens of thousand years to millions of years the major advantages of the technique compared to the conventional thermal ionisation mass spectrometry tims are the high spatial resolution 20 m the ability to analyse in situ all isotopes required to determine both u pb and u series ages and a relatively short analysis time which allows obtaining a growth rate of opal as a result of a single shrimp session there are two major limitations to this method determined by both current level of development of ion probes and understanding of ion sputtering processes first sufficient secondary ion beam intensities can only be obtained for opal samples with u concentrations in excess of 20 g g however this restriction still permits dating of a large variety of opals second u pb ratios in all analyses drifted with time and were only weakly correlated with changes in other ratios such as u uo this drift which is difficult to correct for remains the main factor currently limiting the precision and accuracy of the u pb shrimp opal ages nevertheless an assumption of similar behaviour of standard and unknown opals under similar analytical conditions allowed successful determination of ages with precisions of 10 for the samples investigated in this study shrimp based u series and u pb ages are consistent with tims dating results of the same materials and known geological timeframes

river response to quaternary subsidence due to evaporite solution gallego river ebro basin spain abstract the stream terrace evolution of the gallego river during the quaternary was controlled by both climatic change and subsidence quaternary terrace deposits overlying tertiary clay and limestone are between 2 and 5 m thick whereas above evaporite formations the alluvial deposits may be as much as 110 m thick chronologically the first period of alluvial thickening involved the stream terraces t2 105 m above the present thalweg t3 95 m and t4 85 m which have been dated by paleomagnetic reversals as matuyama pre 780 000 the second subsidence period affected the deposits of the stream terrace t9 30 dated as brunhes post 780 000 in both thickening periods the subsidence was due to solution of the underlying evaporite formations halite and gypsum presumably during intervals of high water flow in the proposed model the valley subsidence was balanced by stream aggradation maintaining the river equilibrium profile the subsidence recorded in the alluvial deposits shows a complex spatial and temporal evolutionary pattern and total subsidence was assumed to be equal to the alluvial thickening for each subsidence period reaching up to 165 and 25 m respectively

geomorphological and sedimentological features in quaternary fluvial systems affected by solution induced subsidence ebro basin ne spain abstract the quaternary evolution and the morpho sedimentary features of some of the most important rivers in spain ebro and tagus rivers among others have been controlled by subsidence due to alluvial karstification of the evaporitic bedrock the subsidence mechanism may range from catastrophic collapse to slow sagging of the alluvium by passive bending in the ebro basin the mechanisms and processes involved in karstic subsidence were studied through the analysis of present day closed depressions as well as through old subsidence depressions palaeocollapses and solution induced basins and associated deformations recorded in the quaternary alluvial sediments the gallego ebro river system is presented as a case study of channel adjustments and geomorphic and sedimentary evolution of fluvial systems in dissolution induced subsidence areas in this fluvial system evaporite dissolution during particular quaternary time intervals namely early and middle pleistocene have lead to the development of a solution induced basin approximately 30 km long by 8 km wide filled by quaternary deposits with a total thickness in excess of 190 m the main river response to balance the subsidence in the alluvial plain was aggradation in the central reach of the subsiding area and degradation both in the upstream reach and in the valley sides where alluvial fans and covered pediments may prograde over the fluvial sediments the main sinking areas are recognized in the sedimentary record by anomalous thickenings in the alluvial deposits and fine grained sediments deposited in backswamp and ponded areas

234u 238u evidence for local recharge and patterns of ground water flow in the vicinity of yucca mountain nevada usa uranium concentrations and 234u 238u ratios in saturated zone and perched ground water were used to investigate hydrologic flow and downgradient dilution and dispersion in the vicinity of yucca mountain a potential high level radioactive waste disposal site the u data were obtained by thermal ionization mass spectrometry on more than 280 samples from the death valley regional flow system large variations in both u concentrations commonly 0 6 10 g l 1 and 234u 238u activity ratios commonly 1 5 6 are present on both local and regional scales however ground water with 234u 238u activity ratios from 7 up to 8 06 is restricted largely to samples from yucca mountain data from ground water in the tertiary volcanic and quaternary alluvial aquifers at and adjacent to yucca mountain plot in 3 distinct fields of reciprocal u concentration versus 234u 238u activity ratio correlated to different geographic areas ground water to the west of yucca mountain has large u concentrations and moderate 234u 238u whereas ground water to the east in the fortymile flow system has similar 234u 238u but distinctly smaller u concentrations ground water beneath the central part of yucca mountain has intermediate u concentrations but distinctive 234u 238u activity ratios of about 7 8 perched water from the lower part of the unsaturated zone at yucca mountain has similarly large values of 234u 238u these u data imply that the tertiary volcanic aquifer beneath the central part of yucca mountain is isolated from north south regional flow the similarity of 234u 238u in both saturated and unsaturated zone ground water at yucca mountain further indicates that saturated zone ground water beneath yucca mountain is dominated by local recharge rather than regional flow the distinctive 234u 238u signatures also provide a natural tracer of downgradient flow elevated 234u 238u in ground water from two water supply wells east of yucca mountain are interpreted as the result of induced flow from 40 a of ground water withdrawal elevated 234u 238u in a borehole south of yucca mountain is interpreted as evidence that natural downgradient flow is more likely to follow southerly paths in the structurally anisotropic tertiary volcanic aquifer where it becomes diluted by regional flow in the fortymile system