Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Coseismic formation of eclogite facies cataclasite dykes at Yangkou in the Chinese Su‐Lu UHP metamorphic belt

Eclogite facies cataclasite is recognized at Yangkou in the Chinese Su‐Lu ultrahigh‐P metamorphic belt. The cataclasite dykes (5−15 cm wide) are bounded by mylonite/ultramylonite zones, cutting through unfoliated metagabbro and/or eclogite. The cataclasite veins (generally 2–4 cm wide) are free of mylonite boundary zones, cutting through the foliation of the high‐P host rock. The dykes and veins are dominated by eclogite fragments consisting of debris of omphacite, garnet, quartz, phengite and kyanite, in a matrix of variable amounts of a schist rich in quartz, phengite and kyanite. Garnet clasts in the fragments are welded and overgrown by more Ca‐rich garnet containing mineral inclusions different from those in the garnet cores. The micropoikilitic texture of garnet is typical of eclogitic pseudotachylytes. Crack‐sealing K‐feldspar veinlets in the cataclasite dykes also imply frictional or shock‐induced melting of K‐mica. The modal abundances in the cataclasite and the schist imply that the dykes formed by flow of the omphacite and garnet‐dominated cataclasites into the fractures during seismic faulting, while the lower density minerals (quartz, phengite and kyanite) were largely left in the ultramylonite boundary zones. The dykes have the same composition as their host rocks, except for slightly lower Si and large ion lithophile elements and higher Mg, Ca, Cr, Co and Ni. Chromite, probably spurted from the nearby ultramafic rock, is found as rare particles in the cataclasite fragments. This indicates that material exchange occurred by mechanical mixing between the dykes and the ultramafic rock during seismic faulting. The Cr‐rich eclogite minerals grown on the chromite are evidence for coseismic high‐P crystallization. Short‐lived crystal growth is implied by the fine grain sizes of the eclogite minerals and very limited element diffusion between the garnet clasts and their overgrowths. The fact that the host rocks are more hydrated implies that the dyke formation was not related to fluid infiltration. It appears, therefore, that stress was the key factor inducing the high‐P phase transformation in the dykes. Both stress and temperature were only transiently high in the dykes, which have been metastable since they were formed.
Laboratory and Field Evaluations of Recycled Gypsum as a Stabilizer Agent in Embankment Construction

ABSTRACT Approximately 1.6 million tons of gypsum waste plasterboard are produced annually in Japan. As such, it is essential to find an alternative way to reduce the quantities of this waste material to avoid environmental problems and the high cost of disposal in landfill. This paper describes a case study focused on the use of recycled gypsum, which is derived from gypsum waste plasterboard, to improve the strength of soft clay soil for embankment construction projects taken in consideration environmental impacts. Four different recycled gypsum contents ranging from 0 to 10% was investigated. Two different types of cements—Portland and Furnace slag type B—with a content ranging from 0 to 3% was used to develop solidification for recycled gypsum and improve environmental properties. For this purpose, a series of unconfined compression tests were conducted to evaluate strength performance of treated clay. While a series of environmental tests were conducted to explore the solubility concentration of fluorine, boron, and hexavalent chromium in the untreated and treated soil specimens. Furthermore, hydrogen sulfide and pH were investigated. Results showed that compressive strength and unit weight of treated clay soil increased with the increase of recycled gypsum content. The strength obtained in the field for treated soil with recycled gypsum was found to be greater than that obtained in the laboratory. The early curing days for soil-gypsum mixture had a significant effect on strength performance compared to the later days. The additives of recycled gypsum for tested soil swiftly increased the strength. This is a vital property for improvement embankment trafficability that helps to reduce the construction time and cost. The use of recycled gypsum within the investigated limits had no adverse effect on pH value and hydrogen sulfide gas was found to be less than the standard permitted limits. As well, the solubility concentrations for fluorine, boron, and hexavalent chromium were found within the permitted standard limits in Japan. The curing time had a significant effect on the reduction the release of harmful substance elements investigated. Furnace cement type B had the potential to improve the mechanical and environmental functions for soil-gypsum mixture. It is recommended that Furnace cement type B be used as a solidification agent for soil treated with recycled gypsum because it has low cost and it is more environmentally friendly than Portland cement.
A flume design for the study of slope length effects on runoff

Recent publications from field and simulation studies indicate that runoff per unit area decreases as the length of the slope being observed is increased. This scale effect has been observed and documented for slopes with a uniform infiltration capacity as well as for slopes along which infiltration capacity is variable. This paper presents the design and testing of a laboratory flume for the study of the processes that lead to this scale effect, particularly for the case of slopes covered with crops. The features of the flume include reliable experimental control of soil water content prior to rainfall, high intensity rainfall without erosion, uniform crop growth along the slope, and the option of varying the infiltration rate independently of rainfall and soil characteristics. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Initial analysis of air temperature and related data from the Phoenix MET station and their use in estimating turbulent heat fluxes

[1] Thermocouples at three levels on a I m mast on the deck of the Phoenix Lander provided temperature data throughout the 151 sol Phoenix mission. Air temperatures showed a large diurnal cycle which showed little sol to sol variation, especially over the first 90 sols of the mission. Daytime temperatures at the top (2 m) level typically rose to about 243 K (-30°C) in early afternoon and had large (10°) turbulent fluctuations. These are analyzed and used to estimate heat fluxes. Late afternoon conditions were relatively calm with minimal temperature fluctuations but CFD computations show that heating from the lander deck and instruments have influenced temperatures measured at the lowest level (0.25 m above the deck) on the mast.
Organic carbon and microbial biomass in two soil development chronosequences following glacial retreat

Retreating glaciers successively expose mineral substrate which is colonised within a few years by soil biota, lichens and plants. Two such successions which cover the first five decades after exposure were studied in the Swiss Alps. Sites differed in parent material and precipitation. At each site, five strata of different age were dated by distance from the current glacier gate and records of annual retreat. The proportion of fine material (< 63 μm) differed by a factor of 2 between sites and a factor of 3 within sites. From the youngest to the oldest stratum, plant cover increased from < 5 to > 85% and organic carbon content (Corg) in the bulk material increased by 6 times at the wetter site and by 16 times at the drier site. Even so, partitioning of Corg between particle size fractions 2000 to 63 μm and < 63 μm was the same at both sites (6 : 4), and so was the proportion of microbial C (Cmic) in Corg (5%). Coefficients of variation across all 10 strata studied were only 22% for Corg partitioning and 21% for the proportion of Cmic in Corg. Soil carbon models frequently apply prescribed partitioning factors in simulating organic matter input into soil. Our findings lend support to such an approach.
Spatial dynamics of land cover change in a Euro-Mediterranean catchment (1950–2008)

The Euro-Mediterranean area has experienced widespread land cover change since 1950, but few studies of land cover change explicitly explore spatial constraints on land cover change patterns. The main objective of this study was to analyze the spatial dynamics of land cover change from 1950 to 2008 in a French Mediterranean catchment. Aerial photographs (1950, 1982, and 2008) were screen digitized, and surfaces were classified into five categories: forest, vineyard, grassland, urban, and suburban. Land cover changes were concentrated mainly in the alluvial plain. Although forest remained the dominant land cover in the catchment (>85.0%), it underwent significant swapping with vineyard and grassland. Vineyard decreased (34% of initial loss) while grassland increased (43% of initial). Urban and suburban areas remained minor in the catchment (0.2% in 1950 and 3.0% in 2008), but showed a dramatic relative increase (about 20×). Changes occurred mainly at low altitudes and slopes. Vineyard located near streams was converted mainly to grassland. Built areas were dependent on roads and former built areas for expansion but expanded little near streams due to flooding risks. The rate of change was greater during the latter part of the study (1982–2008) than in the earlier phase (1950–1982).
Fundamental aspects of prolonged electrokinetic flows in kaolinites

Electrokinetic flows include the migration of fluid, chemicals, fine particles, bacteria, and electrons through a soil–fluid–chemical system driven by an externally applied direct-current (d.c.) electric field. The promising potential of electrokinetic remediation of contaminated fine-grained soils has stimulated recent interest in the study of electrokinetic flow processes, in particular the impact of a prolonged application of a d.c. electric field on fine-grained soils. The results of a bench-scale laboratory experimental investigation on some of the fundamental aspects of prolonged electrokinetic flows in kaolinites, including gas generation rates at power electrodes, electrochemical behaviour of the soil–fluid–chemical system, time variation of electric current intensity flowing through the soil, pH gradient development in the soil, effects of reservoir chemistry on electro-osmotic fluid volume flow rate and flow direction through the soil, time variation of electro-osmotic volume flow rate, and energy requirements per unit volume of fluid transported, are presented in this paper. Effects of soil type and pore fluid chemistry on these aspects were also studied.
Tertiary extension in the Old Woman Mountains Area, California: Evidence from apatite fission track analysis

Apatite fission track ages and confined track length distributions from the Old Woman Mountains area, southeastern California, record evidence for periods of rapid cooling during the Late Cretaceous following Mesozoic orogenesis and during Miocene crustal extension. Apatites from the Clipper, Marble, and Turtle Mountains give fission track ages between ∼62 and ∼69 Ma as a result of cooling of these upper crustal rocks after regional Late Cretaceous plutonism and metamorphism. In the Piute Mountains, apatite fission track ages decrease from >70 Ma with mean track lengths of ∼13.5 μm to 14 μm from west to east. Intermediate aged samples from the Piute Mountains have mean track lengths between 11 and 13 μm due to their extended residence in the apatite annealing zone during the early Tertiary. This pattern is the result of 20°–30° of westward tilting of the Piute Mountains block as indicated by the dip of Tertiary strata. The apatite data indicate that tilting occurred after ∼18 Ma and caused rapid cooling of rocks exposed on the eastern side of the mountain range. Knowing the amount of tilting and the apparent paleotemperatures across the Piute Mountains allows us to estimate that the synextensional geothermal gradient was 50° ± 20°C/km. Apatites from the northeastern Old Woman Mountains yield fission track ages of ∼68 Ma with mean track lengths of 13.8 μm. These samples record cooling after batholith emplacement at 73 Ma. In the northwestern Old Woman Mountains, apatite fission track ages decrease to <20 Ma and have mean track lengths ∼15 μm indicating very rapid cooling. We interpret this age pattern to be the result of minor eastward tilting of the Old Woman Mountains block after 18–19 Ma or flexural unroofing of the northwestern Old Woman Mountains due to movement on the Ship Mountains fault. Extension in the Old Woman Mountains area occurred between 19 and 16 Ma, which is coincident with extension in the Colorado River Extensional Corridor and later than major extension in the Mojave Extensional Belt.
Gridded North American monthly snow depth and snow water equivalent for GCM evaluation

Abstract Evaluation of snow cover in GCMs has been hampered by a lack of reliable gridded estimates of snow water equivalent (SWE) at continental scales. In order to address this gap, a snow depth analysis scheme developed by Brasnett (1999) and employed operationally at the Canadian Meteorological Centre (CMC), was applied to generate a 0.3° latitude/longitude grid of monthly mean snow depth and corresponding estimated water equivalent for North America to evaluate GCM snow cover simulations for the Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project II (AMIP II) for the period 1979–96. Approximately 8000 snow depth observations per day were obtained from U.S. cooperative stations and Canadian climate stations for input to the analysis. The first‐guess field used a simple snow accumulation, aging and melt model driven by 6‐hourly values of air temperature and precipitation from the European Centre for Medium‐range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF) ERA‐15 Reanalysis with extensions from the Tropical Ocean Global Atmosphere (TOGA) operational data archive. The gridded snow depth and estimated SWE results agree well with available independent in situ and satellite data over mid‐latitudinal regions of the continent, and the snow depth climatology exhibited several improvements over Foster and Davy (1988). The monthly snow depth and estimated SWE climatologies are available for downloading from the Canadian Cryospheric Information Network (http://www.ccin.ca).
Fabric and texture at Siple Dome, Antarctica

Abstract Preferred c-axis orientations are present in the firn at Siple Dome, West Antarctica, and recrystallization begins as shallow as 200 m depth in ice below –20°C, based on digital analysis of c-axis fabrics, grain-sizes and other characteristics of 52 vertical thin sections prepared in the field from the kilometer-long Siple Dome ice core. The shallowest section analyzed, from 22 m, shows clustering of c axes toward the vertical. By 200 m depth, girdle fabric and other features of recrystallized ice are evident in layers (or regions), separated by layers (regions) of typically finer-grained ice lacking evidence of recrystallization. Ice from about 700–780m depth, which was deposited during the last ice age, is especially fine-grained, with strongly vertical c axes, but deeper ice shows much larger crystals and strong evidence of recrystallization. Azimuthal asymmetry of some c-axis fabrics, trends in grain-size, and other indicators reveal additional information on processes and history of ice flow at Siple Dome.
Chlorofluorocarbons and the ozone layer

The colorless, odorless substances called chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, recently have reemerged at the center of an intense debate - once thought resolved - over scientific uncertainties and the proper balance between environmental protection and economic growth. The chlorofluorocarbon debate has reopened because recent scientific findings have indicated that the compounds pose more of an immediate threat to the environment and human health than was previously believed. While recognizing this threat, industry argues that the cost of further regulation will mean higher prices and therefore decreased US international competitiveness. These conflicting concerns have lead to renewed action both inside and outside government in the US and abroad. This article discusses the problems related to the use of chlorofluorocarbons and their possible effect on the ozone layer in the stratosphere.
Soil conservation practices among Arable Crop Farmers In Enugu – North Agricultural Zone, Nigeria: Implications for Climate Change

The study examined soil conservation practices used by arable crop farmers in Enugu – North agricultural zone of Enugu State. One hundred and twenty randomly selected arable crop farmers were interviewed. Data were analysed by use ofvpercentage and mean score. The study revealed that respondents used organicvmanure (87.5%), planting of cover crops (87.5%), crop rotation (86.7%), mulchingv(85.8%), inorganic manure (76.7%), contour bonds (75.8%), liming (61.7%), andvterracing (60.8%) for soil conservation in the zone. However, organic manure (M=3.32), use of inorganic manure (M= 3.08), crop rotation(M=2.86), and mulching (vM=2.82) were most preferred by the respondents The major reasons indicated forvuse of most soil conservation practices included enhanced productivity, high quality products, long term nutrient value and others. While most of the preferred conservation practices hold great potential for increased production, income for farmers and enhanced food security for the nation, some are implicated as causes of climate change. The more environment friendly and climate change sensitive practices are less popular among the farmers. The paper recommends concerted efforts to promote among farmers the conservation practices that aid mitigation and adaptation to climate change and at the same time enhance production. Researches and a corresponding creation of awareness on the most efficient and environmentally safe way of using practices that contribute to climate change should be intensified, since the pressure on ensuring food security remains a formidable challenge in the nation
Equilibrium moisture content of dead fine fuels of selected central European tree species

Fine fuel moisture content is a key parameter in fire danger and behaviour applications. For modelling purposes, equilibrium moisture content (EMC) curves are an important input parameter. This paper provides EMC data for central European fuels and adds methodological considerations that can be used to improve existing test procedures. Litter samples of Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst. ), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and pedunculate oak (Quercus robur L.) were subjected to three different experiments using conditioning in a climate chamber and above saturated salt solutions. Climate chamber conditioning yielded the best results and can generally be recommended, however saturated salt solutions are able to produce lower relative humidities, which are relevant to forest fire applications as they represent the highest fire danger. Results were within the range of published sorption isotherms for forest fine fuels. A fairly clear gradation was present with higher EMC values in leaf litters than in needle litters. These differences are in accord with values from the literature and suggest general differences in the sorption properties of leaves and needles, which may be caused by differing chemical and physical properties. The influence of temperature on EMC described in the literature could be confirmed.
Paleomagnetism of Mesozoic plutons in the westernmost Coast Complex of British Columbia

The Lower Cretaceous Stephens Island (102 ± 8 Ma) and Captain Cove (109 ± 6 Ma) plutons and the Upper Jurassic Gil Island (136 ± 3 Ma) and Banks Island (144 ± 6 Ma) plutons belong to the western K–Ar age zone of the N 35° W trending Coast plutonic complex southwest of Prince Rupert, B.C. After removal of initial viscous components, AF demagnetization isolates a stable primary remanence at 36 of 49 sites (10 specimens from 5 cores/site) before anhysteretic components are added. All sites have normal polarity which is consistent because their K–Ar ages fall in the predominantly normal Cretaceous and Jurassic Quiet Intervals. The poles for Stephens Island (339° W, 67° N (7°, 10°)), Captain Cove (9° W 72° N (8°, 11°)), and Gil Island (357° N. 70° N (6°, 8°)) lie just north of Britain and are discordant for the North American craton. The tectonic panel including these plutons was tilted during the Upper Cretaceous–Paleocene orogeny as the leading edge of the North American plate overrode the subducting oceanic.
Drivers of decadal variability in the Tasman Sea

In this study, we compare optimally interpolated monthly time series Tasman Sea XBT data and a comprehensive set of ocean data assimilation models forced by atmospheric reanalysis to investigate the stability of the Tasman Sea thermocline and the transport variability of the East Australian Current (EAC), the Tasman Front, and EAC-extension. We find that anomalously weaker EAC transport at 25°S corresponds to an anomalously weaker Tasman Front and anomalously stronger EAC-extension. We further show that, post about 1980 and relative to the previous 30 years, the anomalously weaker EAC transport at 25°S is associated with large-scale changes in the Tasman Sea; specifically stronger stratification above the thermocline, larger thermocline temperature gradients, and enhanced energy conversion. Significant correlations are found between the Maria Island station Sea Surface Temperature (SST) variability and stratification, thermocline temperature gradient, and baroclinic energy conversion suggesting that nonlinear dynamical responses to variability in the basin-scale wind stress curl are important drivers of decadal variability in the Tasman Sea. We further show that the stability of the EAC is linked, via the South Caledonian Jet, to the stability of the pan-basin subtropical South Pacific Ocean “storm track. ”
Lunar composition: A geophysical and petrological synthesis

Lunar compositional constraints are derived on the basis of geophysical data (in particular, the lunar seismic model as revised by Nakamura) and petrological arguments. Only in the case of extreme assumptions can critical aspects of bulk lunar composition be demonstrated to be equivalent to the present-day terrestrial mantle; specifically, the Moon has an Mg number that is too low and an alumina abundance that is too high. Over a broad range of crustal densities the presence of a metallic core at least 150 km in radius is necessary to reconcile the upper mantle lunar seismic model with mass and moment of inertia constraints. A significant seismic discontinuity at 500 km depth may mark the lowest extent of early lunar differentiation, possibly representing a transition between highly fractionated upper mantle and less fractionated, perhaps even primordial, middle/lower mantle.