tsunami of december 26 2004 on the southwest coast of india post tsunami geomorphic and sediment characteristics this paper discusses the impact of the december 26 2004 tsunami on the geomorphic features and sediment characteristics along the southwest coast of india the data used include field observations made after the tsunami and the inferences drawn from the satellite imagery taken before and after the tsunami sediment samples collected from the inner shelf beach and estuarine environments were analyzed to understand post tsunami changes in grain size characteristics the tsunami eroded and transported landwards significant volumes of distinct black sands rich in heavy minerals from the shelf onto the beaches of the kerala region and up to 500 m inland of the present coast

evidence for an earthquake and tsunami about 3100 3400 yr ago and other catastrophic saltwater inundations recorded in a coastal lagoon new zealand abstract okupe lagoon is 2 02 masl brackish and ponded behind two boulder banks at the northern end of kapiti island new zealand the sediments of the lagoon provide a record of late holocene environmental changes such as tectonic uplift catastrophic saltwater inundation and vegetation change five main events were identified over a 5300 yr record with a sixth representing a re evaluation of previous work an uplift event of 1 5 3 0 m and an associated tsunami are recorded and are inferred to have been caused by a local fault rupture possibly the northern extension of the wairau fault about 3360 40 yr bp two additional tsunami generated by ruptures of either the ohariu or wellington faults 1290 and 1220 ad respectively and either the wellington or alpine faults 1450 ad have been tentatively proposed two catastrophic saltwater inundations csis have also been identified one possibly a tsunami generated by either the wairarapa fault 500 ad or taupo eruption 190 ad the other about 4780 150 yr bp may relate to a local fault rupture however further work is needed to determine whether these are tsunami or storm surge related and they are therefore designated csis the sixth event is the 1855 tsunami recorded from a raised shore platform to the west of okupe lagoon

tsunami deposits in a lacustrine sequence of the sanriku coast northeast japan abstract lacustrine deposits of the pacific coast of northeast japan consisting mostly of black organic mud contain intercalated thin beds of well sorted medium sand examination of the deposits from a coastal site of sanriku has revealed that sand grains are of marine origin and are fractions of deposits in marshy ponds transported from the littoral environment by a great flooding of seawater the mode of sedimentation shown in the thin beds of sand implies that they were deposited by tsunamis each with a maximum rise of 1 m or more above sea level

deposits flow characteristics and landscape change resulting from the september 2009 south pacific tsunami in the samoan islands the september 29th 2009 tsunami caused widespread coastal modification within the islands of samoa and northern tonga in the south pacific preliminary measurements indicate maximum runup values of around 17 m okal et al 2010 and shore normal inundation distances of up to 620 m jaffe et al 2010 geological field reconnaissance studies were conducted as part of an unesco ioc international tsunami survey team survey within three weeks of the event in order to document the erosion transport and deposition of sediment by the tsunami data collected included a general morphology and geological characteristics of the coast b evidence of tsunami flow inundation flow depth and direction wave height and runup c surficial and subsurface sediment samples including deposit thickness and extent d topographic mapping and e boulder size and location measurements four main types of sedimentary deposits were identified a gravel fields consisting mostly of isolated cobbles and boulders b sand sheets from a few to 25 cm thick c piles of organic mostly vegetation and man made material forming debris ramparts and d surface mud deposits that settled from suspension from standing water in the tsunami aftermath tsunami deposits within the reef system were not widespread however surficial changes to the reefs were observed

diatom biostratigraphy of tsunami deposits examples from the 1998 papua new guinea tsunami abstract distinctive diatom assemblages may be associated with tsunami sediments and may often contrast with the assemblages found within sediments underlying the tsunami deposit as well as those associated with the modern coastal environment sediments associated with the 1998 tsunami that destroyed much of the sissano lagoon area in northern papua new guinea have been investigated surface sediments from three transects across the sediment spit near warapu have been examined for diatom content and preservation the preservation is variable and the data show an often chaotic assemblage that can be attributed to the tsunami waves incorporating and depositing diatoms from distinctive habitat zones during their runup and subsequent backwash the diatoms identified within the warapu sediments indicate an origin from within the inter tidal and offshore area rather than from the beach sand spit complex the sand deposits disclose a high percentage in excess of 75 of broken diatom valves and a predominance of centric circular species due to preferential preservation the study demonstrates that the application of diatom biostratigraphy to modern tsunami deposits can be used in conjunction with other stratigraphical lines of evidence to interpret the source and provenance of historical and palaeo tsunami deposits

recognition of diagnostic criteria for recent and paleo tsunami sediments from sri lanka uncontaminated sediment from the december 26 2004 tsunami in southern sri lanka was collected from a previously empty arrack bottle stacked in a plastic case at an elevation of about 5 m above mean sea level and from several other localities the sediments were analysed for grain size distribution sediment petrography and microfossil assemblages and were compared with storm surge sediment and nearshore sediment the undiluted tsunami sediment is a brownish silty fine sand it is characterized by a particular grain size distribution and an assemblage of planktonic benthic microfossils consisting of foraminifera radiolarians and spicules storm surge and nearshore sediments are better sorted have fewer microfossils more rounded quartz grains and a higher proportion of heavy minerals influenced by references in sri lankan ancient texts to past tsunamis we searched for paleo tsunami sediments in potential locations such as the coastal depressions in borehole samples and well cuttings from soil profiles in the coastal village of peraliya we were able to recognize two paleo tsunami horizons at 30 and 75 cm below the present ground surface each consisting of brownish silty fine sand that remarkably resembled the recently deposited undiluted tsunami sediment

hydrodynamic implications of textural trends in sand deposits of the 2004 tsunami in sri lanka abstract field observations and sediment samples at a coastal plain setting in southeastern sri lanka were used to document the erosional and depositional impacts of the 2004 indian ocean tsunami and to interpret the hydrodynamic processes that produced an extensive sand sheet deposit tsunami deposit thicknesses ranged from 6 to 22 cm with thickness being controlled partly by antecedent topography the deposit was composed of coarse to medium sand organized into plane parallel laminae and a few laminasets vertical textural trends showed an overall but non systematic upward fining and upward thinning of depositional units with an upward increase in heavy mineral laminations at some locations repeated patterns in the vertical textural trends upward fining upward coarsening uniform were used to subdivide and correlate the deposit into five hydro textural stratigraphic units the depositional units were linked to hydrodynamic processes and upcurrent conditions such as rates of sediment supply and composition of the sediment sources vertical changes in grain size distributions recorded the depositional phases associated with flow acceleration initial unsteady pulsating flow relatively stable and uniform flow flow deceleration slack water and return flow or flow redirection study results suggest that vertical textural trends from multiple cross shore sections can be used to interpret complex tsunami flow histories but at the location examined interpretation of the lateral textural trends did not provide a basis for identifying the correct sediment transport pathways because flow near the landward boundary was multidirectional

shallow marine sediment cores record climate variability and earthquake activity off lisbon portugal for the last 2000 years abstract sea surface temperature sst river discharge and biological productivity have been reconstructed from a multi proxy study of a high temporal resolution sedimentary sequence recovered from the tagus deposition center off lisbon portugal for the last 2000 years sst shows 2 c variability on a century scale that allows the identification of the medieval warm period mwp and the little ice age lia high iron fe and fine sediment deposition accompanied by high n alkane concentrations and presence of freshwater diatoms during the lia 1300 1900 ad science 292 2001 662 suggest augmented river discharge whereas higher total alkenone concentrations point to increased river induced productivity during the mwp 550 1300 ad science 292 2001 662 larger mean grain size and low values of magnetic susceptibility and concentrations of fe n alkanes and n alcohols are interpreted to reflect decreased runoff at the same time increased benthic and planktonic foraminifera abundances and presence of upwelling related diatoms point to increased oceanic productivity on the basis of the excellent match found between the negative phases of the north atlantic oscillation nao index and the intensified tagus river discharge observed for the last century it is hypothesized that the increased influx of terrigenous material during the lia reflects a negative nao like state or the occurrence of frequent extreme nao minima during the milder few centuries of the mwp stronger coastal upwelling conditions are attributed to a persistent positive nao like state or the frequent occurrence of extreme nao maxima the peak in magnetic susceptibility centered at 90 cm composite core depth ccd is interpreted as the result of the well known 1755 ad lisbon earthquake the lisbon earthquake and accompanying tsunami are estimated to have caused the loss of 39 cm of sediment 355 years of record most of the lia and the instantaneous deposition of a 19 cm sediment bed

ostracods as tsunami tracers in holocene sequences this review analyses the ostracod record in holocene tsunami deposits using an overview of the 2004 indian ocean tsunami impact on its recent populations and the associated tsunamigenic deposits together with results from numerous investigations of other holocene sequences different features such as the variability of the local assemblages population density species diversity age population structure e g percentages of adults and juvenile stages or taphonomical signatures suggest that these microorganisms may be included amongst the most promising tracers of these high energy events in marshes lakes lagoons or shallow marine areas

chemical signatures of palaeotsunamis a forgotten proxy article i nfo article history a range of diagnostic criteria are required to help identify palaeotsunami deposits although chemical signatures have long been used as indicators of palaeosalinity in sedimentary sequences their use in the studies of palaeotsunami deposits is rarely applied and is yet to be widely recognised the chemical composition of interstitial water in coastal ponds and sedimentary sequences in coastal marshes and lagoons has been used successfullyasanindicatoroftsunamiinundation chemicalsignaturescanalsoprovidecluesaboutthelandward limit of runup of a tsunami beyond the area of sediment deposition like most palaeotsunami proxies however the preservation of chemical signatures varies with environmental conditions

diatom assemblages in tsunami deposits associated with the 2004 indian ocean tsunami at phra thong island thailand abstract diatom assemblages in sandy deposits of the 2004 tsunami at phra thong island thailand may provide clues to flow conditions during the tsunami the tsunami deposits contain one or more beds that fine upward commonly from medium sand to silty very fine sand diatom assemblages of the lowermost portion of the deposit predominantly comprise unbroken beach and subtidal species that live attached to sand grains the dominant taxa shift to marine plankton species in the middle of the bed and to a mix of freshwater brackish and marine species near the top these trends are consistent with expected changes in current velocities of tsunami through time during high current velocities medium sand is deposited only beach and subtidal benthic diatoms attached to sediment can be incorporated into the tsunami deposit high shear velocity keeps finer material including planktonic diatoms in suspension with decreasing current velocities finer material including marine plankton can be deposited finally during the lull between tsunami waves the entrained freshwater brackish and marine species settle out with mud and plant trash low numbers of broken diatoms in the lower medium sand implies rapid entrainment and deposition whilst selective breakage of marine plankton thalassionema nitzschioides and thalassiosira and coscinodiscus spp in the middle portion of the deposit probably results from abrasion in the turbulent current before deposition

expanding the proxy toolkit to help identify past events lessons from the 2004 indian ocean tsunami and the 2009 south pacific tsunami article i nfo some of the proxies used to identify palaeotsunamis are reviewed in light of new findings following the 2004 indian ocean tsunami and the 2009 south pacific tsunami and a revised toolkit provided the new application of anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility ams to the study of tsunami deposits and its usefulness to determine the hydrodynamic conditions during the emplacement of tsunami sequences together with data from grain size analysis are presented the value of chemical proxies as indicators of saltwater inundation associated marine shell and or coral high energy depositional environment and possible contamination is demonstrated and issues of preservation addressed we also provide new findings from detailed studies of heavy minerals new information gathered during the unesco international oceanographic commission ioc international tsunami survey of fine onshore sediments following the 2009 south pacific tsunami is presented and includes grain size chemical diatom and foraminifera data the tsunami deposit varied ranging from fining upward sand layers to thin sand layers overlain by a thick layer of organic debris and or a mud cap grain size characteristics chemical data and microfossil assemblages provide evidence for marine inundation from near shore and changes in flow dynamics during the tsunami

lagoon subsidence and tsunami on the west coast of new zealand abstract sediment core and trench data from a coastal lagoon on the west coast of the south island new zealand are used to investigate evidence for co seismic subsidence and associated tsunami inundation physical data are used to document a salt marsh soil buried 80 cm below the modern sediment surface that is locally covered by a gravelly sand bed the sediment record also contains geochemical and biological diatom and foram evidence for abrupt changes in salinity of lagoon waters that link to subsidence tsunami flooding and to the open versus closed state of the lagoon tidal entrance at the local scale these relationships allow for separation of tsunami evidence from other agents of environmental change in the lagoon we also propose a conceptual connection between these local changes and regional drivers of landscape development most notably major earthquakes and resultant pulses in sediment supply to the coast

archean gold relation to granulite formation or felsic intrusions two current models for archean au deposits appeal to granulitization or magmatic processes but new data reveal that neither of these schemes is viable most tonalitic archean granulites are characterized by primary large ion lithophile element lile depletion and so there is no complementary relation to lile enrichment in au deposits nor are k rb k ba k li k cs and th u systematics of granulites and gold deposits complementary published c isotope systematics and c he flux calculations do not support the model of granulitization by influx of mantle c0 2 nor is the total population of 13 c values of au deposits comparable to mantle co 2 or the granulite c reservoir archean tonalite trondhjemite granodiorite ttg magmas are characterized by uniform 87 sr 86 sr whereas the deposits range between 0 701 and 0 720 and average 13 c ranges between 9 and 0 4 with provinciality of sr o and c isotopic signatures moreover fractionated granites trend to normal k rb but higher rb sr and k ba ratios whereas the gold deposits are characterized by main trend or higher k rb and k ba ratios coupled with little cs li or tl enrichment and scattered rb sr ratios many of the deposits postdate the stocks with which they are associated by 20 to 30 m y the variable sr pb c and o isotope systematics but uniform lile trends reflect equilibration of internally or externally derived fluids with compositionally variable crust at low water rock ratios in transpressive accretionary regimes

contamination of tsunami sediments in a coastal zone inundated by the 26 december 2004 tsunami in thailand tsunami sediments deposited in a coastal zone of thailand by the 26 december 2004 tsunami wave were sampled within 50 days after the event all surface and ground waters in tsunami inundated zone revealed significant salinity at that time the tsunami sediments composed mainly of fine to medium sand contain significantly elevated contents of salts na k ca 2 mg 2 cl and so4 2 in water soluble fraction and of cd cu zn pb in the bioavailable fraction and as in the exchangeable fraction in relation to the reference sample the origin of contaminants is marine as well as litho and anthropogenic the salts and pb zn and cu reveal high correlation to each other and to the mean grain size pore size and porosity serious environmental hazard exists in that region because due to gentle morphology there is a risk of migration of the contaminants into ground waters and food chain

sedimentary fabric on deep sea sediments from kodos area in the eastern pacific abstract an anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility ams study on three sediment cores taken from the korea deep ocean study kodos area in eastern pacific was carried out to understand the relationship between magnetic fabric patterns and paleo depositional conditions of deep sea sediments most ams measurements reveal normal sedimentary fabric patterns indicating a stable sedimentation mode however some intervals show deformed ams patterns magnetic lineation and this anomalous fabric is mainly observed at the boundary where sediment color changes the abrupt change of ams parameters at this boundary provides evidence that the linear fabric was induced by input of intensified bottom currents based on the trend of microfossil occurrences it is interpreted that the discontinuous color boundary was formed by hiatus between tertiary and quaternary age the change of magnetic fabric at the topmost color boundary coincides with the time of prevailed antarctic bottom water aabw activity in this study the ams properties are shown to be useful tools for making inferences concerning the paleoenvironment of abyssal basins

extreme runup from the 17 july 2006 java tsunami 1 the 17 july 2006 magnitude mw 7 8 earthquake off the south coast of western java indonesia generated a tsunami that effected over 300 km of coastline and killed more than 600 people with locally focused runup heights exceeding 20 m this slow earthquake was hardly felt on java and wind waves breaking masked any preceding withdrawal of the water from the shoreline making this tsunami difficult to detect before impact an international tsunami survey team was deployed within one week and the investigation covered more than 600 km of coastline measured tsunami heights and run up distributions were uniform at 5 to 7 m along 200 km of coast however there was a pronounced peak on the south coast of nusa kambangan where the tsunami impact carved a sharp trimline in a forest at elevations up to 21 m and 1 km inland local flow depth exceeded 8 m along the elevated coastal plain between the beach and the hill slope we infer that the focused tsunami and runup heights on the island suggest a possible local submarine slump or mass movement

distinguishing tsunami and storm deposits an example from martinhal sw portugal abstract geological identification of past tsunamis is important for risk assessment studies especially in areas where the historical record is limited or absent the main problem when using the geological evidence is to distinguish between tsunami and storm deposits both are high energy events that may leave marine traces in coastal stratigraphic sequences at martinhal sw portugal both storm surge and tsunami deposits are present at the same site within a single stratigraphic sequence which makes it suitable to study the differences between them excluding variations caused by local factors the tsunami associated with the lisbon earthquake of november 1st 1755 ad had a major impact on the geomorphology and sedimentology of martinhal it breached the barrier and laid down an extensive sheet of sand as described in eyewitness reports besides the tsunami deposit the stratigraphy of martinhal also displays evidence for storm surges that have breached and overtopped the barrier flooding the lowland and leaving sand layers both marine derived flood deposits show similar grain size characteristics and distinctive marine foraminifera the most important differences are the rip up clasts and boulders exclusively found in the tsunami deposit and the landward extent of the tsunami deposit that everywhere exceeds that of the storm deposits identification of both depositional units was only possible using a collection of different data and extensive stratigraphical information from cores as well as trenches

predecessor to new zealand s largest historic trans south pacific tsunami of 1868 ad multiproxy analyses of coastal sediments at cape pattisson chatham island identified evidence of two past tsunamis the most recent event was the 1868 ad tsunami for which there is a wealth of historical evidence we argue that the earlier event is most probably the 1604 ad south american tsunami the chronology for these two events was established using palynological data from the chatham island sediments and historical data from south america it is unlikely that the exposed coastline of cape pattisson preserves evidence of earlier events but given the historical and palaeotsunami records in south america it seems likely that many earlier trans south pacific tsunamis would have struck the chatham islands and possibly mainland new zealand this is the first time that sedimentological evidence for a prehistoric trans south pacific tsunami has been documented in new zealand albeit on an outlying island in the light of the findings on chatham island a reassessment of the new zealand palaeotsunami database indicates that there are several possible 1604 ad deposits on the east coast of both mainland islands further work needs to be done to determine whether these are indeed associated with the 1604 ad event this use of data from a country with a relatively long historical record adds immense value to understanding the timing of palaeotsunamis in countries with shorter records this technique offers an excellent opportunity to evaluate the magnitude and frequency of past trans south pacific tsunamis and to assess the risks posed to individual pacific islands

near simultaneous great earthquakes at tongan megathrust and outer rise in september 2009 the tsunami that struck the samoan and northern tongan islands in september 2009 was preceded by a magnitude 8 earthquake on the outer slope of the oceanic trench where the pacific plate bends as it enters the subduction zone this was initially thought to be the sole source of the tsunami but a more complex picture is emerging two groups report the occurrence of two earthquakes a triggered doublet at nearly the same time and place what is not clear is which triggered the other beavan et al use an analysis of global positioning system station displacements and tsunami models to show that the outer rise earthquake was accompanied possibly triggered by a near simultaneous mega thrust earthquake in the adjacent tonga subduction zone lay et al analyse the available seismic data and their model suggests that the outer rise event triggered megathrust faulting either way this dual strike suggests a mechanism for the occasional large tsunamis generated at the tonga subduction zone on 29 september 2009 a tsunami devastated the samoan and northern tongan islands it is shown here that an unusual earthquake sequence preceded this tsunami a magnitude 8 earthquake in the outer rise intraplate region occurred almost simultaneously with rupture of the shallow subduction interplate interface equivalent to a magnitude 8 earthquake the findings provide information on strain release mechanisms at subduction zones and a possible mechanism for the occasional large tsunamis generated at the tonga subduction zone the earth s largest earthquakes and tsunamis are usually caused by thrust faulting earthquakes on the shallow part of the subduction interface between two tectonic plates where stored elastic energy due to convergence between the plates is rapidly released1 2 the tsunami that devastated the samoan and northern tongan islands on 29 september 2009 was preceded by a globally recorded magnitude 8 normal faulting earthquake in the outer rise region where the pacific plate bends before entering the subduction zone preliminary interpretation suggested that this earthquake was the source of the tsunami3 here we show that the outer rise earthquake was accompanied by a nearly simultaneous rupture of the shallow subduction interface equivalent to a magnitude 8 earthquake that also contributed significantly to the tsunami the subduction interface event was probably a slow earthquake with a rise time of several minutes that triggered the outer rise event several minutes later however we cannot rule out the possibility that the normal fault ruptured first and dynamically triggered the subduction interface event our evidence comes from displacements of global positioning system stations and modelling of tsunami waves recorded by ocean bottom pressure sensors with support from seismic data and tsunami field observations evidence of the subduction earthquake in global seismic data is largely hidden because of the earthquake s slow rise time or because its ground motion is disguised by that of the normal faulting event earthquake doublets where subduction interface events trigger large outer rise earthquakes have been recorded previously4 but this is the first well documented example where the two events occur so closely in time and the triggering event might be a slow earthquake as well as providing information on strain release mechanisms at subduction zones earthquakes such as this provide a possible mechanism for the occasional large tsunamis generated at the tonga subduction zone5 where slip between the plates is predominantly aseismic6

stratigraphic and microfossil evidence for late holocene tsunamis at swantown marsh whidbey island washington abstract four muddy sand sheets occur within a tidal marsh peat at swantown on the west coast of whidbey island washington the two largest sand sheets pinch out about 100 m inland and became thinner and finer grained landward all four sand sheets contain marine microfossils and have internal stratification they record repeated inundation of the marsh over a short time period by distinct pulses of sediment laden ocean water consistent with deposition by a tsunami wave train the layers have been radiocarbon dated to 1160 1350 1400 1700 1810 2060 and 1830 2120 cal yr b p the overlap in age between the two youngest layers and inferred great earthquake events at the cascadia plate boundary some 250 km to the west suggests they were emplaced by tsunamis from this source area the two older layers do not correlate with plate boundary events they may be products of tsunamis caused by earthquakes on local faults in the strait of juan de fuca or by submarine landslides in this area

archaean carbon reservoirs and their relevance to the fluid source for gold deposits it is commonly assumed1 2 that seawater derived carbon in altered volcanic rocks is the only major pre metamorphic carbon in carbonate reservoir in archaean greenstone belts thus carbonates from archaean gold deposits with stable isotope ratios too negative median 13c 3 to have been derived from such carbon 13c usually assumed to be near 0 have been interpreted as being derived from a local felsic magmatic source1 barley and groves3 however recognize two carbonate alteration styles that predate regional metamorphism and gold mineralization in the norseman wiluna greenstone belt of western australia evidence is summarized below these are seafloor alteration and fault controlled regional alteration which as shown below have completely different carbon isotope compositions the latter median 13c 4 8 implies a major juvenile carbon co2 flux from the mantle during greenstone belt evolution and is thus of fundamental importance in itself however here we show why the mere existence of two carbon in carbonate reservoirs and variation in carbon isotope ratios of carbonates between individual gold deposits in one area negate some of the fundamental assumptions used to support magmatic fluid models1

coastal sedimentation associated with the december 12th 1992 tsunami in flores indonesia this paper presents the result of a detailed granulometric investigation of sediments deposited by a modern tsunami the 1992 tsunami in flores indonesia eyewitness accounts indicate that sediments were deposited upon coastal lowlands over wide areas as a result of the tsunami inundation distinctive vertical and lateral variations in particle size composition are characteristic features of the tsunami deposits and these are intimately related to sedimentary processes associated with flood inundation the geomorphological and sedimentary evidence is used here to establish a preliminary model of tsunami sedimentation this information is believed to be of great value in understanding sedimentary processes associated with tsunami flooding and in the interpretation of palaeo tsunami deposits

geochemistry of fluid inclusions from the mcintyre hollinger gold deposit timmins ontario canada type 1 h 2 o co 2 type 2 h 2 o co 2 type 3 ch 4 co 2 h 2 o and type 4 ch 4 fluid inclusions type 1 type 3 and some type 2 inclusions are primary or pseudosecondary in origin whereas type 4 and most type 2 inclusions are secondary the primary or pseudosecondary type 1 and 2 inclusions homogenized at temperatures of 220 degrees to 385 degrees c secondary type 2 inclusions homogenized at 160 degrees to 215 degrees c crushing tests confirm the presence of co 2 in samples with type 1 and 2 inclusions visually estimated x co2 values in type 1 inclusions range from 3 to 24 mole percent with bulk molar volumes of 19 to 28 cm 3 mole mineralizing fluids were at equilibrium with graphite at temperatures of 380 degrees to 480 degrees c and pressures of 1 to 3 kb calculated oxygen fugacities lie near the quartz fayalite magnetite buffer the mineralizing fluids differ compositionally from fluids in other types of ore deposits but resemble fluids derived from metamorphic rocks and deep level felsic intrusions modified journal abstract

particle size distribution analysis of sand sized particles by laser diffraction an experimental investigation of instrument sensitivity and the effects of particle shape laser diffraction is now widely used for particle size distribution analysis of sediments and soils the technique can be very precise and offers advantages of speed and cost over many other methods when used to analyse mixtures of sand silt and clay this study presents the results of an experimental investigation that examined the sensitivity of the beckman coulter ls230 instrument to mixtures of different grain populations and differences in particle shape the instrument was found to have high sensitivity to coarse particles in a finer matrix detection threshold 1 2 but much lower sensitivity to finer particles in a coarser mixture detection threshold 12 17 experiments using near spherical ballotini showed that laser analysis provides very similar values to dry sieving for the mean median and mode but for a range of natural sand samples values for the mean median and mode were offset by 8 21 with an average of ca 15 compared with sieving analysis using a beckman coulter rapidvue instrument which provides both size and shape information provided support for the hypothesis that the differences between laser analysis and sieving are partly attributable to the effects of particle shape however an additional factor is the way in which the laser software interprets the optical diffraction data the software predicts a high degree of log normality in the size distribution such that highly skewed truncated or bimodal samples are poorly represented experiments using sieved fractions of ballotini indicated that even with near perfectly spherical particles the particle size distribution predicted by the laser software includes a relatively large percentage of particles outside the sieve class limits

the use of boulders for characterising past tsunamis lessons from the 2004 indian ocean and 2009 south pacific tsunamis tsunamis are high energy events capable of transporting extremely heavy loads including boulders we compare boulder deposits created by two modern tsunami events the 2004 indian ocean and the 2009 south pacific tsunamis where the boulder sources were in similar topographic settings and for which we have accurate data on the wave characteristics boulder distribution preferential orientation and numerical simulation of boulder transport are discussed a comparison between the impacts of the south pacific and indian ocean tsunamis shows similar characteristics such as limited landward extent and the absence of landward fining differences between the results from modelling and field data are most probably caused by variables such as coastal plain roughness buildings trees microtopography particle shape and boulder collision during transport that are summarised as coefficients in the mathematical models characterising modern events through coarse sediment deposits provides valuable information to help identify and interpret palaeo tsunami imprints on coastal landscapes

discovery of minoan tsunami deposits the hellenic arc is a terrane of extensive quaternary volcanism one of the main centers of explosive eruptions is located on thera santorini and the eruption of the thera volcano in late minoan time 1600 1300 b c is considered to have been the most significant aegean explosive volcanism during the late holocene the last eruptive phase of thera resulted in an enormous submarine caldera which is believed to have produced tsunamis on a large scale evidence suggesting seawater inundation was found previously at some archaeological sites on the coast of crete however the cause of the tsunami and its effects on the area have not been well understood on the aegean sea coast of western turkey didim and fethye and crete gouves we have found traces of tsunami deposits related to the thera eruption the sedimentological consequences and the hydraulics of a thera caused tsunami indicate that the eruption of thera volcano was earlier than the previous estimates and the tsunami did not have disruptive influence on minoan civilization

tsunami and palaeotsunami depositional signatures and their potential value in understanding the late holocene tsunami record in recent years much research on modern and palaeotsunami deposits has been published from these studies a range of signature types has been identified identifying and dating such deposits is an important element in understanding late holocene tsunami hazard and risk however important questions such as do modern and palaeotsunami leave similar or dissimilar traces do tsunami leave the same signatures all around the world or are there significant variations and what is the actual record of tsunami in different parts of the world still remain answering these questions is not an easy task but examining megatsunami flood deposits should shed some light on these questions because such high magnitude events should leave very clear and detailed traces within the coastal landscape the coast of se australia is reported to have been affected by numerous palaeomegatsunami in the late holocene as such the coast of new south wales offers an important natural laboratory to examine in detail deposits associated with such events here we summarize the published characteristics of modern and palaeotsunami deposits globally and within australia we briefly outline the tsunami risk to australia before examining a site called minnamurra point on the coastline of se australia south of sydney that has previously been described as containing evidence for a palaeomegatsunami of an unknown age we describe the results of a detailed coastal survey field stratigraphic investigation and various standard laboratory analyses surprisingly we are unable to replicate the previously reported findings of tsunami deposits whilst we prefer the interpretation that the sequence is an in situ soil the sediment sequence examined contains none of the usually reported lines of evidence to demonstrate tsunami provenance we recognize and discuss the significance and difficulty of identifying tsunami deposits in the field and consider the implications of our findings to the wider debate about the preservation of tsunami deposited sediments

stable isotopic evidence for the involvement of mantle derived fluids in wynad gold mineralization south india major gold deposits of the world are often associated with carbonate alteration halos and co 2 rich fluid inclusions the source and transfer mechanisms of the fluids that concentrate gold within quartz vein systems are topics of debate here we investigate the c o and s stable isotopic composition of co 2 rich fluid inclusions and quartz calcite and sulphide minerals associated with the gold quartz veins from the wynad gold field emplaced within the proterozoic moyar bhavani transcrustal shear system in the granulite facies terrain of southern india optical and microthermometric studies of fluid inclusions in auriferous quartz veins reveal that the dominant fluid is co 2 h 2 o p co 2 0 80 0 90 g cm 3 with high x co 2 0 7 1 0 and low salinity ca 4 5 wt nacl equiv the carbon isotopie composition of co 2 extracted from fluid inclusions by crushing shows a remarkably narrow range of delta 13 c values 4 1 to 5 9 o oxygen isotopie com

the storegga slides evidence from eastern scotland for a possible tsunami abstract the second storegga slide on the continental slope off western norway has been dated at between 8000 and 5000 yrs b p a prominent sand layer in flandrian holocene deposits along the coast of eastern scotland and dated at approximately 7000 yrs b p may have been deposited by a tsunami generated by the slide the altitude and stratigraphy of the layer allow estimates to be made of the magnitude of the earthquake which initiated the slide

archean gold relation to granulite formation and redox zoning in the crust the archean was the principal period for gold mineralization these rocks compose 12 of the exposed crust but have produced more than half of the world9s gold most major lode deposits formed at 2 7 0 2 ga this corresponds to the principal time of crustal thickening and stabilization an essential part of which was formation of granulite the anhydrous refractory base for the crust upward streaming of mantle co 2 along shear zones in the lower crust is one means for dehydrating amphibolite to form granulite and is accompanied by removal of large ion lithophile lil elements to higher crustal levels archean lode gold deposits were formed along major shear zones at intermediate crustal depths they are enclosed by zones of co 2 metasomatism many of them kilometres in extent 13 c data indicate that the co 2 is juvenile some major archean deposits have been shown to have formed from relatively oxidized hydrothermal fluids co 2 streaming with lil element depletion could only have occurred under relatively oxidized conditions that permitted a free co 2 vapor to exist in the lower crust such conditions would also have favored dissolution of gold and associated sulfide and their transfer to the mid crust in a co 2 h 2 o fluid the h 2 o coming from dehydration of amphibolite

tsunami sediments and their foraminiferal assemblages abstract tsunami hazard assessment begins with a compilation of past events that have affected a specific location given the inherent limitations of historical archives the geological record has the potential to provide an independent dataset useful for establishing a richer chronologically deeper time series of past events recent geological studies of tsunami are helping to improve our understanding of the nature and character of tsunami sediments wherever possible geologists should be working to improve the research tool kit available to identify past tsunami events marine foraminifera single celled heterotrophic protists have often been reported as present within tsunami deposited sediments but in reality little information about environmental conditions and by analogy the tsunami that deposited them has been reported even though foraminifera have an enormous capacity to provide meaningful palaeo environmental data here we review what foraminifera are describe their basic form and significance summarise where they have been reported in tsunami sediments and identify what can be learnt from them we review the gaps in our understanding and make recommendations to assist researchers who examine foraminiferal assemblages in order to enhance their use within tsunami geology

use of anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility ams in the study of tsunami deposits application to the 2004 deposits on the eastern coast of banda aceh north sumatra indonesia abstract we studied emplacement dynamics of the december 26 2004 tsunami deposits in artificial shallow ponds and in shallow lagoons along the northern coast of sumatra in banda aceh area successive tsunami waves inundated topographic lows which acted as sediment traps and favored preservation of deposits individual waves led to the deposition of fining upwards sedimentary sequences this multiple normal grading deposit with a thickness ranging from 2 to 80 cm constitutes a site of major interest for the study of the deposits emplaced by a tsunami wave train the main interest lies in the characteristics of the deposits that can be correlated to the behavior of the waves attested by numerous testimonies in this setting we aimed at testing the applicability of the ams anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility technique as a proxy of unconsolidated sediment fabric the combination of this proxy and traditional sedimentary analysis helped reconstructing the hydrodynamic conditions particularly the flow direction prevailing during sedimentation we applied the ams technique on eight sections stretching inland from 1 5 km to 2 2 km from the pre tsunami coastline grain size and ams data from these deposits provide similar and partially complementary information traction dominates in the basal parts of the deposits and occurs mainly for the basal layers of the sequences whereas settling dominates for the upper layers of these sequences the vertical evolution of the ams parameters within the deposits is related to the arrival of the successive waves with variations in the traction and decantation processes during deposition variations of current strength during sedimentation are related to the wave s momentum and to the progressive infill of topographic depressions the vertical change of the fifth coarsest percentile vs the median grain sizes of the deposits suggests strong variations of the energy of the currents and confirms the evolution of the ams parameters in the present study the fabric of the deposits which developed exclusively during the uprush phase of the cycle also allows the reconstruction of flood directions that are both normal and parallel to the shoreline with variations related to flow dynamics mean grain size and local topographic control due to the absence of backwash in between the waves and low velocity of the final backwash information about the sedimentation conditions of the tsunami deposits appears to be better preserved in topographic depressions in areas located remote from the seashore the ams proxy appears to be a promising tool for further studies of recent and paleo tsunami deposits

multi proxy records of regionally sourced tsunamis new zealand abstract a multi proxy study of sediment cores from kaituna bay mimiwhangata in northern new zealand has produced a record of three palaeotsunamis dated to around 6500 cal yr bp 2800 cal yr bp and 1450 ad these events punctuate a coastal palaeoenvironmental history spanning the last 8000 years or more in which the site progressed from a semi open lagoon to a freshwater swamp proxies used included stratigraphy geochemistry palynology diatoms foraminifera geomorphology and a regional palaeotsunami synthesis the identification of tsunamigenic sources for these events is tentative we propose that the two oldest events are associated with a source in the tonga kermadec trench region with the most recent possibly associated with the kuwae caldera collapse in 1452 1453 ad palaeotsunami deposits contemporaneous with the estimated age of the three events identified in this study were used to assist in identifying possible source regions the development of regional and national palaeotsunami databases is in its infancy but as more data become available the ability to determine the source magnitude and frequency of past events will improve this will greatly enhance our understanding of the regional risk from tsunamis

sequence of sedimentation processes caused by the 1992 flores tsunami evidence from babi island sedimentation processes caused by a modern tsunami have been discussed from the point of view of geologic and numerical investigations of the 1992 flores tsunami in indonesia geologic evidence on babi island shows an invasion of two waves of different direction and magnitude which resulted in widespread deposition of marine sand on the north and south southwest shores on the latter coarse and well sorted carbonate sand containing molluscan shells suggests that much more destructive waves swept across the southern coast as compared with the northern coast where the deposit included medium carbonate sand with a silty component a physical explanation for such destructive waves on the southern coast of babi is provided by a numerical simulation of the tsunami generation and propagation the geologic and numerical results indicate that an isolated island surrounded by a circular shoreline or reef edge will be subject to the most destructive waves on the coast on the back side of the island relative to the tsunami source

the gold carbonate association source of co2 and co2 fixation reactions in archaean lode deposits abstract abundant carbonate is a ubiquitous feature of archaean lode gold deposits both in domains of alteration enveloping veins and in rocks enclosing auriferous sediments detailed studies of chemical mass balance in metabasalts progressively altered towards gold bearing quartz carbonate veins disposed within shear zones at yellowknife reveal massive additions of co2 k si and fe accompanying mineralisation with concomitant depletions of na coherent behaviour of al sc zr also v and nb provides a reference for constraining the volume relations during hydrothermal alteration in the peripheral regions of alteration depletions of ca and mg result in overall volume reduction but these elements are added to veins and their immediate alteration envelopes where there is a large positive volume change precious metals together with cr ni cu zn pb rb cd and ba have been added to the veins and altered wall rocks whereas quartz noble metals and other trace elements have been precipitated from hydrothermal fluids solution of ca mg and some fe indigenous to peripheral alteration regions combining with co2 from the mineralising reservoir appears to be the process for forming the abundant ferri dolomite gangue observations of many archaean au deposits reveals that carbonate chemistry reflects the nature of wall rocks with wall rocks donating the bivalent metal cations and hydrothermal fluids the co2 alteration reactions at yellowknife involved hydrolysis of albite accompanied by fixation of kaqueous to produce muscovite with na loss and hydrolysis of chlorite epidote with co2 fixation to form ferri dolomite studies of oxygen isotopes fe 2 fe 2 fe 3 and structure reveal that au quartz and carbonate were precipitated in the presence of fluids of probable metamorphic origin 18 o 8 9 at low redox potential and at ambient temperatures of 400 450 c during episodes of hydrofracturing the abundant co2 and k required for extensive carbonate muscovite replacement alteration could be supplied by fluids released during prograde metamorphism under greenschist or greenschist amphibolite facies conditions where the relative proportion of co 2 h 2 o is in the order of 0 2 to 0 5 and k na 1 given high co2 co in the hydrothermal reservoir these molecules may act as complexing agents for transport of au and other rare elements e g w pd ni cr