Geochemical evidence for magmatic water within Mars from pyroxenes in the Shergotty meteorite

Observations of martian surface morphology have been used to argue that an ancient ocean once existed on Mars. It has been thought that significant quantities of such water could have been supplied to the martian surface through volcanic outgassing, but this suggestion is contradicted by the low magmatic water content that is generally inferred from chemical analyses of igneous martian meteorites. Here, however, we report the distributions of trace elements within pyroxenes of the Shergotty meteorite--a basalt body ejected 175 million years ago from Mars--as well as hydrous and anhydrous crystallization experiments that, together, imply that water contents of pre-eruptive magma on Mars could have been up to 1.8%. We found that in the Shergotty meteorite, the inner cores of pyroxene minerals (which formed at depth in the martian crust) are enriched in soluble trace elements when compared to the outer rims (which crystallized on or near to the martian surface). This implies that water was present in pyroxenes at depth but was largely lost as pyroxenes were carried to the surface during magma ascent. We conclude that ascending magmas possibly delivered significant quantities of water to the martian surface in recent times, reconciling geologic and petrologic constraints on the outgassing history of Mars.     

Helium isotopic evidence for episodic mantle melting and crustal growth

The timing of formation of the Earth's continental crust is the subject of a long-standing debate, with models ranging from early formation with little subsequent growth, to pulsed growth, to steadily increasing growth. But most models do agree that the continental crust was extracted from the mantle by partial melting. If so, such crustal extraction should have left a chemical fingerprint in the isotopic composition of the mantle. The subduction of oceanic crust and subsequent convective mixing, however, seems to have largely erased this record in most mantle isotopic systems (for example, strontium, neodymium and lead). In contrast, helium is not recycled into the mantle because it is volatile and degasses from erupted oceanic basalts. Therefore helium isotopes may potentially preserve a clearer record of mantle depletion than recycled isotopes. Here I show that the spectrum of 4He/3He ratios in ocean island basalts appears to preserve the mantle's depletion history, correlating closely with the ages of proposed continental growth pulses. The correlation independently predicts both the dominant 4He/3He peak found in modern mid-ocean-ridge basalts, as well as estimates of the initial 4He/3He ratio of the Earth. The correspondence between the ages of mantle depletion events and pulses of crustal production implies that the formation of the continental crust was indeed episodic and punctuated by large, potentially global, melting events. The proposed helium isotopic evolution model does not require a primitive, undegassed mantle reservoir, and therefore is consistent with whole mantle convection.     

Geochemical evidence for widespread euxinia in the later Cambrian ocean

Widespread anoxia in the ocean is frequently invoked as a primary driver of mass extinction as well as a long-term inhibitor of evolutionary radiation on early Earth. In recent biogeochemical studies it has been hypothesized that oxygen deficiency was widespread in subsurface water masses of later Cambrian oceans, possibly influencing evolutionary events during this time. Physical evidence of widespread anoxia in Cambrian oceans has remained elusive and thus its potential relationship to the palaeontological record remains largely unexplored. Here we present sulphur isotope records from six globally distributed stratigraphic sections of later Cambrian marine rocks (about 499 million years old). We find a positive sulphur isotope excursion in phase with the Steptoean Positive Carbon Isotope Excursion (SPICE), a large and rapid excursion in the marine carbon isotope record, which is thought to be indicative of a global carbon cycle perturbation. Numerical box modelling of the paired carbon sulphur isotope data indicates that these isotope shifts reflect transient increases in the burial of organic carbon and pyrite sulphur in sediments deposited under large-scale anoxic and sulphidic (euxinic) conditions. Independently, molybdenum abundances in a coeval black shale point convincingly to the transient spread of anoxia. These results identify the SPICE interval as the best characterized ocean anoxic event in the pre-Mesozoic ocean and an extreme example of oxygen deficiency in the later Cambrian ocean. Thus, a redox structure similar to those in Proterozoic oceans may have persisted or returned in the oceans of the early Phanerozoic eon. Indeed, the environmental challenges presented by widespread anoxia may have been a prevalent if not dominant influence on animal evolution in Cambrian oceans.     

Annihilation of ecosystems by large asteroid impacts on the early Earth

Large asteroid impacts produced globally lethal conditions by evaporating large volumes of ocean water on the early Earth. The Earth may have been continuously habitable by ecosystems that did not depend on photosynthesis as early as 4.44 Gyr BP (before present). Only a brief interval after 3.8 Gyr exists between the time when obligate photosynthetic organisms could continuously evolve and the time when the palaeontological record indicates highly evolved photosynthetic ecosystems.     

Re-Os isotopic evidence for a lower crustal origin of massif-type anorthosites

Massif-type anorthosites are large igneous complexes of Proterozoic age. They are almost monomineralic, representing vast accumulations of plagioclase with subordinate pyroxene or olivine and Fe-Ti oxides--the 930-Myr-old Rogaland anorthosite province in southwest Norway represents one of the youngest known expressions of such magmatism. The source of the magma and geodynamic setting of massif-type anorthosites remain long-standing controversies in Precambrian geology, with no consensus existing as to the nature of the parental magmas or whether these magmas primarily originate in the Earth's mantle or crust. At present, massif-type anorthosites are believed to have crystallized from either crustally contaminated mantle-derived melts that have fractionated olivine and pyroxenes at depth or primary aluminous gabbroic to jotunitic melts derived from the lower continental crust. Here we report rhenium and osmium isotopic data from the Rogaland anorthosite province that strongly support a lower crustal source for the parental magmas. There is no evidence of significantly older crust in southwest Scandinavia and models invoking crustal contamination of mantle-derived magmas fail to account for the isotopic data from the Rogaland province. Initial osmium and neodymium isotopic values testify to the melting of mafic source rocks in the lower crust with an age of 1,400-1,550 Myr.     

Geochemical evidence for terrestrial ecosystems 2.6 billion years ago

Microorganisms have flourished in the oceans since at least 3.8 billion years (3.8 Gyr) ago, but it is not at present clear when they first colonized the land. Organic matter in some Au/U-rich conglomerates and ancient soils of 2.3-2.7 Gyr age has been suggested as remnants of terrestrial organisms. Some 2.7-Gyr-old stromatolites have also been suggested as structures created by terrestrial organisms. However, it has been disputed whether this organic matter is indigenous or exogenic, and whether these stromatolites formed in marine or fresh water. Consequently, the oldest undisputed remnants of terrestrial organisms are currently the 1.2-Gyr-old microfossils from Arizona, USA. Unusually carbonaceous ancient soils--palaeosols--have been found in the Mpumalanga Province (Eastern Transvaal) of South Africa. Here we report the occurrences, elemental ratios (C, H, N, P) and isotopic compositions of this organic matter and its host rocks. These data show that the organic matter very probably represents remnants of microbial mats that developed on the soil surface between 2.6 and 2.7 Gyr ago. This places the development of terrestrial biomass more than 1.4 billion years earlier than previously reported.     

Geochemical evidence for efficient aquifer isolation over geological timeframes

Aquitards-layers of rock having low permeability-have been suggested as potential long-term reservoirs for toxic materials such as nuclear or chemical waste. But information about the isolation properties of aquitard layers is essential to evaluate whether they can indeed be used safely as reservoirs. Here we investigate the long-term mobility of groundwaters between two aquifers surrounding an aquitard layer in the eastern recharge area of the Paris basin, France, using helium isotopes as a geochemical tracer. The deeper Trias sandstone aquifer, which lies above the crystalline basement, accumulates radiogenic (4)He and primordial (3)He from large regions of the crust and mantle at rates comparable to the degassing of the whole crust and of mid-ocean ridges. We show that the overlying carbonate Dogger aquifer, which is separated from the Trias aquifer by an aquitard layer consisting of a approximately 600 m succession of shales and clays, is stagnant and has been extremely well isolated from the Trias over the past several million years. This finding, together with previous studies at the centre of the Paris basin, shows that diffusive mass transfer across aquitards is negligible and that cross-formational flow in basins takes place preferentially in faulted areas.     

Dynamic fracture by large extraterrestrial impacts as the origin of shatter cones

A large impact by a comet or meteorite releases an enormous amount of energy, which evaporates, melts and fractures the surrounding rocks. Distinctive features of such impacts are 'shatter cones', deformed rocks characterized by hierarchical striated features. Although such features have been used for decades as unequivocal fingerprints of large-body impacts, the process by which shatter cones form has remained enigmatic. Here we show that the distinctive shatter-cone striations naturally result from nonlinear waves (front waves) that propagate along a fracture front. This explains the observed systematic increase of striation angles with the distance from the impact. Shatter-cone networks, typically spanning many scales, can be understood as hierarchical bifurcations of the fracture front, which is generated by the immense energy flux carried by the initial, impact-generated, shock waves. Our quantitative predictions based on this theory are supported by field measurements at the Kentland and Vredefort impact sites. These measurements indicate that shatter cones near to the impact site were formed by fractures propagating at nearly the Rayleigh wave speed of the host rocks, whereas the furthest shatter cones observed (about 40 km from the impact site) were formed by fronts moving more slowly. These results provide insight into impact dynamics as well as dissipative mechanisms in solids subjected to sudden, extremely intense fluxes of energy.     

Geochemical evidence for the melting of subducting oceanic lithosphere at plate edges

Most island-arc magmatism appears to result from the lowering of the melting point of peridotite within the wedge of mantle above subducting slabs owing to the introduction of fluids from the dehydration of subducting oceanic crust. Volcanic rocks interpreted to contain a component of melt (not just a fluid) from the subducting slab itself are uncommon, but possible examples have been recognized in the Aleutian islands, Baja California, Patagonia and elsewhere. The geochemically distinctive rocks from these areas, termed 'adakites, are often associated with subducting plates that are young and warm, and therefore thought to be more prone to melting. But the subducting lithosphere in some adakite locations (such as the Aleutian islands) appears to be too old and hence too cold to melt. This implies either that our interpretation of adakite geochemistry is incorrect, or that our understanding of the tectonic context of adakites is incomplete. Here we present geochemical data from the Kamchatka peninsula and the Aleutian islands that reaffirms the slab-melt interpretation of adakites, but in the tectonic context of the exposure to mantle flow around the edge of a torn subducting plate. We conclude that adakites are likely to form whenever the edge of a subducting plate is warmed or ablated by mantle flow. The use of adakites as tracers for such plate geometry may improve our understanding of magma genesis and thermal structure in a variety of subduction-zone environments.     

Seismological evidence for mosaic structure of the surface of the Earth's inner core

The transition from the Earth's solid inner core to liquid outer core is the location where the inner core grows and from which compositional convection in the outer core originates. Most seismological models of the Earth describe the inner-core boundary as sharp and simple, although experimental data requiring the presence of a thin transition layer at the bottom of the outer core have been reported. The density jump at the inner-core boundary--an important parameter determining gravitational energy release and constraining the compositional difference between the inner and outer core-is also not well known. Estimates of this density jump obtained using free-oscillation eigenfrequencies give low values of 0.25-1.0 g cm(-3), whereas a method using the amplitude ratio of core-reflected phases yielded values of 0.6-1.8 g cm(-3) (refs 14, 15, 16-17). Here we analyse properties of waves precritically reflected from the Earth's inner core (PKiKP phases) that show significant variability in amplitude, consistent high-frequency content and stable travel times with respect to a standard Earth model. We infer that the data are best explained by a mosaic structure of the inner core's surface. Such a mosaic may be composed of patches in which the transition from solid inner to liquid outer core includes a thin partially liquid layer interspersed with patches containing a sharp transition.     

复杂约束条件下大型油船中剖面结构优化

基于HCSR(散货船、油船协调共同规范)规范描述性要求,同时考虑实际船用钢及型材的规格,以一艘载重量为1.1×105 t的油船为例,研究复杂约束条件下的大型油船中剖面结构优化方法.通过Excel编译目标函数、设计变量与约束条件间的关系,对优化模型进行参数化处理,并通过多学科优化分析软件Isight集成Excel映射数据,分别采取多岛遗传算法、粒子群算法及模拟退火算法,研究不同优化算法对优化结果的影响.结果显示:在复杂约束条件下,算例船中剖面面积分别减小了0.93%,1.02%及1.35%,与基于简单约束的优化结果相比,该方法更加准确有效;模拟退火算法的优化效率更高,结果更优.     

Crystallography: crystallographic evidence for deviating C3b structure

Activation of the protein C3 into C3b in the complement pathway is a crucial step in the complement immune response against pathogenic, immunogenic and apoptotic particles. Ajees et al. describe a crystal structure for C3b that deviates from the one reported by Janssen et al. and by Wiesmann et al.. We have reanalysed the data deposited by Ajees et al. and have discovered features that are inconsistent with the known physical properties of macromolecular structures and their diffraction data. Our findings therefore call into question the crystal structure for C3b reported by Ajees et al..     

合肥盆地南缘油气来源的地球化学示踪

合肥盆地已经发现了多套烃源岩,但有效烃源岩的发育层位仍是合肥盆地未解决的重要问题。文章根据所发现沥青的常规地球化学分析,结合地质研究,推断出可能的烃源岩发育层位是下侏罗统防虎山组或下白垩统黑石渡组;利用沥青和可能源岩抽提物饱和烃及芳烃的分子地球化学对比,确定了下白垩统黑石渡组泥岩是霍山沥青的母源,解决了长期以来合肥盆地是否存在有效烃源岩的问题,证实了下白垩统黑石渡组是合肥盆地的烃源岩,为下一步油气勘探提供了依据。     

大高宽比隔震结构地震反应预测理论

针对大高宽比隔震结构体系,提出了两质点系剪切型简化计算模型、高宽比影响系数的概念和计算式．基于剪切型简化计算模型和高宽比影响系数,建立了大高宽比隔震结构最大加速度反应、隔震层位移反应、上部结构层间剪力等地震反应预测理论．对一栋高宽比为5.01的隔震结构进行了地震反应预测,结果表明本文提出的地震反应预测理论具有较高的计算精度．     

Monitoring crustal deformation by GPS and InSAR in the three gorge area

The on-going Three Gorges Project (TGP) aims to build one of the largest hydropower stations in the world. Previous investigations have concluded that the reservoir is likely to induce medium-to-intense earthquakes. 23 GPS stations have been established to maintain a geodetic and seismological monitoring network around the reservoir to monitor seismicity and crustal deformation, and to facilitate mitigation activities in case an intense earthquake occurs. The velocity of GPS site was derived from 3 repeated GPS surveys. Meanwhile, another effort has been made to investigate the feasibility of application of satellite interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) techniques in detecting crustal deformation possibly caused by impoundment of the Three Gorges Reservoir. It has been made to derive digital elevation models (DEM) using European Remote Sensing (ERS) synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery. Pairs of ERS SAR images in raw format are processed to generate digital elevation models. This effort will help us evaluate the accuracy of the InSAR techniques for further derivation of background deformation patterns and future detection of reservoir-induced crustal deformation in the area. Foundation item: Supported by the Seismological Union Foundation of China (602015), NASA grant of US(NAG5-9065) and Key Project of China Seismological Bureau(95-12-02) Biography: Qiao Xue-jun(1968-), male, Associated professor, research direction: crustal deformation.     

Geochronologic and petrochemical evidence for the genetic link between the Maomaogou nepheline syenites and the Emeishan large igneous province

The Maomaogou nepheline syenite is located at the inner zone of the Emeishan large igneous province and exhibits intrusive contact with the Emeishan basalts. SHRIMP U-Pb dating on zircons from this syenite yields an age of 261.6±4.4 Ma, in agreement with the age of the Panzhihua layered intrusion and the eruption age of the Emeishan basalts as constrained by stratigraphic data. Geochemical data fur-ther suggest that the Maomaogou syenite has a source analogue to the Emeishan basalt, and may have been formed by partial melting of gabbroic cumulates underplated in the lower crust. As s result, tem-poral and spatial relationships and petrogenetic constraints provide evidence for the genetic link be-tween basalts, mafic/ultramafic and intermediate/acidic intrusives in the Panxi area.     

大悬挑屋盖结构的风振控制设计方法

分析了风振条件下大跨度屋盖结构中悬挑竖向位移的控制方法,指出传统的模态应变能法因忽略阻尼器的耗能刚度部分可能产生较大误差,并对此给出了修正方法。推导了附加消能支撑的竖向控制力、等效刚度和等效耗能因子公式。根据上述方法和公式,对一大悬挑屋盖结构进行了风振控制设计。经实例应用说明,笔者提出的风振控制设计方法方便实用。     

大型结构多功能加载试验反力架的研究与设计

为了对大型工程结构或构件进行试验,分析比较了10种反力架形式,最终确定三维空间加载钢结构反力架与钢筋砼反力墙配合使用的形式。经2年的使用检验,反力架具有足够的强度、刚度、稳定性,而且经济实用。