Search results for "GEOLOGY"

Testing the use of an image-based technique to measure gully erosion at Sparacia experimental area

2016

The first part of this investigation was aimed at testing the use of a three-dimensional (3D) Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and a quasi-tridimensional (2.5D) Digital Elevation Model (DEM) obtained by a large series of oblique images of eroded channels taken from consumer un-calibrated and non-metric cameras. For two closed earth channels having a different sinuosity the ground measurement of some cross-sections by a profilometer (P) was carried out. The real volume of each channel was also measured by waterproofing it by a plastic film and filling it with a known volume of water. The comparison among the three methods (3D, 2.5D and P) pointed out that a limited underestimation of the total vo…

Methanotrophy in geothermal soils, an overlooked process: The example of Nisyros island (Greece)

2020

Abstract A multidisciplinary field campaign was carried out at Nisyros Island (Greece). Hydrothermal gases were sampled and analysed, and CH4 and CO2 fluxes from the soils were measured with the accumulation chamber method. The sampling area (Lakki plain) covers an area of about 0.08 km2, and includes the main fumarolic areas of Kaminakia, Stefanos, Ramos, Lofos and Phlegeton. Flux values measured at 130 sites range from −3.4 to 1420 mg m−2 d−1 for CH4 and from 0.1 to 383 g m−2 d−1 for CO2. The fumarolic areas show very different CH4 degassing patterns, Kaminakia showing the highest CH4 output values (about 0.8 t a−1 from an area of about 30,000 m2) and Phlegeton the lowest (about 0.01 t a−…

Understanding the Origins of Problem Geomagnetic Storms Associated with "Stealth" Coronal Mass Ejections.

2021

Geomagnetic storms are an important aspect of space weather and can result in significant impacts on space- and ground-based assets. The majority of strong storms are associated with the passage of interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) in the near-Earth environment. In many cases, these ICMEs can be traced back unambiguously to a specific coronal mass ejection (CME) and solar activity on the frontside of the Sun. Hence, predicting the arrival of ICMEs at Earth from routine observations of CMEs and solar activity currently makes a major contribution to the forecasting of geomagnetic storms. However, it is clear that some ICMEs, which may also cause enhanced geomagnetic activity, cann…

Effect of strain rate cycling on microstructures and crystallographic preferred orientation during high-temperature creep

2016

Strain rate histories and strain magnitude are two crucial factors governing the evolution of dynamic recrystallized grain size and crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) in rocks and ice masses. To understand the effect of cyclic variations in strain rate or non-steady-state deformation, we conducted two-dimensional, coaxial plane strain experiments with time-lapse observations from a fabric analyzer. There is a continuous reequilibration of microstructure and CPO development associated with constant and oscillating strain rate cycles. These can be correlated with c -axis small circle distributions, diagnostic of dynamic recrystallization involving new grain nucleation and grain boun…

Ductile strain rate measurements document long-term strain localization in the continental crust

2013

cited By 24; Quantification of strain localization in the continental lithosphere is hindered by the lack of reliable deformation rate measurements in the deep crust. Quartz-strain-rate-metry (QSR) is a convenient tool for performing such measurements once calibrated. We achieve this calibration by identifying the best piezometer-rheological law pairs that yield a strain rate in agreement with that measured on the same outcrop by a more direct method taken as a reference. When applied to two major continental strike-slip shear zones, the Ailao Shan-Red River (ASRR; southwest China) and the Karakorum (northwest India), the calibrated QSR highlights across-strike strain rate variations, from …

Eustasy and sea water Sr composition: application to high-resolution Sr-isotope stratigraphy of Miocene shallow-water carbonates

2007

Oceanic 87 Sr/ 86 Sr-isotope ratios are strongly influenced by rates of silicate weathering and therefore linked not only to glaciation but also to sea-level change. The present study combines analysis of sequence stratigraphy and basin architecture with Sr-isotope stratigraphy in Miocene shallow-water sediments in southern Portugal and Crete (Greece). The common method is to use smoothed global sea water Sr-isotope reference curves but here a different approach is chosen. Instead, measured Sr-isotope curves are correlated with unsmoothed reference curves by identification of similar fluctuations in the order of several 100 kyr. Transgressive intervals are characterized by increasing Sr-iso…

2018

Abstract. Sediments containing gas hydrate dispersed in the pore space are known to show a characteristic seismic anomaly which is a high attenuation along with increasing seismic velocities. Currently, this observation cannot be fully explained albeit squirt-flow type mechanisms on the microscale have been speculated to be the cause. Recent major findings from in situ experiments, using the gas in excess and water in excess formation method, and coupled with high-resolution synchrotron-based X-ray micro-tomography, have revealed the systematic presence of thin water films between the quartz grains and the encrusting hydrate. The data obtained from these experiments underwent an image proce…

Characterisation of the magmatic signature in gas emissions from Turrialba Volcano, Costa Rica

2014

The equilibrium composition of volcanic gases with their magma is often overprinted by interaction with a shallow hydrothermal system. Identifying the magmatic signature of volcanic gases is critical to relate their composition to properties of the magma (temperature, fO2, gas-melt segregation depth). We report measurements of the chemical composition and flux of the major gas species emitted from Turrialba Volcano during March 2013. Measurements were made of two vents in the summit region, one of which opened in 2010 and the other in 2012. We determined an average SO2 flux of 5.2 ± 1.9 kg s-1 using scanning ultraviolet spectroscopy, and molar proportions of H2O, CO2, SO2, HCl, CO and H2 ga…

2019

Abstract. The flow of fluids through porous media such as groundwater flow or magma migration is a key process in geological sciences. Flow is controlled by the permeability of the rock; thus, an accurate determination and prediction of its value is of crucial importance. For this reason, permeability has been measured across different scales. As laboratory measurements exhibit a range of limitations, the numerical prediction of permeability at conditions where laboratory experiments struggle has become an important method to complement laboratory approaches. At high resolutions, this prediction becomes computationally very expensive, which makes it crucial to develop methods that maximize …

2018

Abstract. The orientation and tectonic regime of the observed crustal/lithospheric stress field contribute to our knowledge of different deformation processes occurring within the Earth's crust and lithosphere. In this study, we analyze the influence of the thermal and density structure of the upper mantle on the lithospheric stress field and topography. We use a 3-D lithosphere–asthenosphere numerical model with power-law rheology, coupled to a spectral mantle flow code at 300 km depth. Our results are validated against the World Stress Map 2016 (WSM2016) and the observation-based residual topography. We derive the upper mantle thermal structure from either a heat flow model combined with …