Geology Today最新文献

{"title":"The threatened karst of the Great Western Lakes, Ireland","authors":"Michael J. Simms,&nbsp;Matthew A. Parkes","doi":"10.1111/gto.12407","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12407","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Limestone is a notoriously leaky rock. In many areas that are underlain by limestone, surface rivers are few and disjointed. They disappear into sinks only to reappear, sometimes many kilometres away, at springs. It is not an environment in which lakes are typically found. Some 40 percent of Ireland is underlain by limestone, yet the Irish lowlands are scattered with countless lakes, large and small. In many the limestone beneath is effectively sealed by a cover of glacial till; others have formed where hollows descend below a shallow water table. Around the shores of many, exposed limestone bedrock and boulders support a range of peculiar etched features that are virtually confined to this lakeshore environment.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 5","pages":"185-189"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79717941","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Travertine cascades","authors":"Tony Waltham","doi":"10.1111/gto.12406","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12406","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Travertine is widespread in karst terrains, and less so elsewhere, and some of its varieties constitute spectacular landforms, many of which become popular visitor sites for geologists and non-geologists alike. Among the many forms of travertine, barrages are the most spectacular, especially where they still have streams or rivers cascading over them. Carbonate travertine is polygenetic, both chemical and organic, and both karstic and geothermal, with a full range of sites between those extremes.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 5","pages":"175-184"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89710376","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Minerals explained 62","authors":"Kent Brooks","doi":"10.1111/gto.12404","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12404","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Eudialyte is a mineral unfamiliar to most people. This is likely to change in the near future, as this mineral is of increasing economic importance. Eudialyte is now known to be one of a group that has grown in number to a remarkable extent in recent years, and eudialytes are index minerals for a specific category of igneous rocks and are repositories for elements, such as the rare earths, which have become increasingly critical to modern technology. The eudialyte group now comprises about 50 members of which about 29 members are fully recognized, and exploitation of eudialyte group minerals will soon be a reality. The mineral's name comes from Greek: Eu διάλυτος, meaning ‘well decomposable’—a reference to the fact that, unlike the highly refractory zircon (the common source of zirconium), eudialyte is soluble in common acids, making it relatively cheap to work.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 4","pages":"156-160"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78114766","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mendrisio, Château-d'Oex and Sargans geological maps of Switzerland: free online data viewer and downloads","authors":"David A. G. Nowell","doi":"10.1111/gto.12403","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12403","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The Swiss continue to publish highly detailed 1:25 000 geological maps and memoirs, coupled with informative cross sections. They are presented in attractive plastic wallets with a geological time scale on their back including stage names for deciphering partly abbreviated keys in whichever regional language. Swisstopo has also put free downloads of all their geological maps online, including out of print editions. This makes economic sense, given publication represents a small fraction of the overall costs incurred in surveying each sheet. In addition, they have developed an easy-to-use online data viewer where different layers of cartographic information can be selected and mixed together to produce bespoke, ready-to-print pdf downloads complete with a scale bar. Though, unlike digital data, which may become corrupted, printed material can survive for centuries. The first sheets in this national atlas were published in 1930, and so when their coverage is finally completed within roughly the next decade, policy makers would be wise to start resurveying older editions to keep them up to standard. In this way, Switzerland can maintain enough geologists familiar with regional ground conditions, to provide impartial advice about the impact of climate change on fragile environments vulnerable to flooding, landslides, melting permafrost and other potential geological hazards. Plus, enhancing water supply management, natural resources, radioactive waste disposal, carbon capture and storage, and planning new developments and infrastructure like their futuristic trans-alpine railway tunnels.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 4","pages":"147-155"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91277013","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A beachcomber's bonanza, or just another Micraster?","authors":"Stephen K. Donovan","doi":"10.1111/gto.12402","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12402","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The beach is where the ancient, in the shape of diverse erratics, meets the present in the shape of corrosion, encrusting shells and invertebrate borings. Many of us have favourite beach walks, repeated whenever possible, and educating us in the common and rare clasts that might be encountered in such an ever-changing environment. After over 12 years of patrolling the coast of north Norfolk, in eastern England, I found a common Chalk echinoid—so why am I excited?</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 4","pages":"143-146"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"91476918","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Planetary geology: an historical and philosophical overview","authors":"Hely Cristian Branco,&nbsp;Fernando Mancini","doi":"10.1111/gto.12401","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12401","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The use of geological interpretations to better understand features that are observed outside the Earth defines what is known as planetary geology. It is a highly multi-disciplinary field, using concepts from many areas of human knowledge to better understand the many objects of the Universe. Interpretations tend to be based on analogue models, created from observations made on the Earth and extrapolated to the many geological contexts of other celestial bodies. It is assumed that these models can always be used, as long as corrections considering differences in properties such as temperature, mass, atmospheric, crustal and mantel composition, amongst others, are made. In most cases, such correlations are possible, requiring minor to no significant modifications. However, a reasonable number of extra-terrestrial features cannot be explained using the Earth as the unique comparison ground, requiring the use of other analogues as a basis, or even the creation of models and theories from scratch. Here, we present an overview of planetary geology: what it is, the limits of its application, the current state of the art and the meaning of this line of research in the era in which we live, where the exploration of other objects of the Solar System is a reality.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 4","pages":"134-142"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79340577","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Geodigest","authors":"","doi":"10.1111/gto.12400","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12400","url":null,"abstract":"The Tonga underwater volcano that erupted in January 2022, covering the island nation in ash, is still surprisingly intact, scientists have said (Holly Bancroft, The Independent, 23 May 2022). The 15 January eruption (Fig. 1) was as powerful as the 1883 Krakatoa eruption in Indonesia and triggered a tsunami, which swept through Tonga and caused widespread damage to buildings. A New Zealand-led team of scientists have been mapping the underwater volcano and discovered that it has not changed much following the eruption, the BBC reported. The expedition leader, marine geologist Kevin Mackay, said he was taken aback by the data that his team had recovered. ‘Given the violence of the eruption on 15 January, I’d expected the edifice to either have collapsed or been blown apart, and this is not the case’, he told the BBC. ‘While the volcano appeared intact, the seafloor showed some dramatic effects of the eruption’. The scientists found that, though the flanks of the volcano were devoid of marine life, fish and mussels were living on other seamounts. Malcolm Clark, a fisheries expert, said that this showed the ‘resilience of animal populations in the region’. The team will be using a robot boat to examine the volcano. They are taking the precaution because it appears to still be active. The eruption of this volcano, named Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai, has baffled scientists. Researchers are finding it hard to explain why the volcano sent a cloud to such extreme heights, but emitted less ash than would be expected. Volcanologist Nico Fournier, said: ‘It just basically rips the BandAid on our lack of understanding of what’s happening under water’.","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 4","pages":"122-133"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-08-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78515170","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"James Hutton's concept of time: that of Leibniz, not Newton","authors":"Roger D. K. Thomas","doi":"10.1111/gto.12389","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12389","url":null,"abstract":"<p>It is well known that James Hutton's approach to the study of what would later be known as Earth science was significantly influenced by the work of Isaac Newton. But it is hardly appreciated, except perhaps in continental Europe, that Gottfried Leibniz had as much or greater influence on Hutton's ‘natural philosophy’ and even his methods of research and analysis. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the shaping of Hutton's understanding of the nature of time itself.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 3","pages":"108-111"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89768712","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The lost titan of Cauvery","authors":"Saurabh Pal,&nbsp;Krishnan Ayyasami","doi":"10.1111/gto.12390","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12390","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In 1987, authors P. Yadagiri and K. Ayyasami described a giant dinosaur, <i>Bruhathkayosaurus matleyi</i>, from the Late Cretaceous beds of the Cauvery Basin, India. Unfortunately, the fossil remains of this giant had disintegrated into dust before they reached the repository, making <i>B. matleyi</i> a dubious species. Gigantism is one of the many characteristic features of dinosaurs that grab public attention, and there is much fossil evidence that suggests gigantism was not limited to any specific group of dinosaurs. Nevertheless, this characteristic feature was very advanced and extensive among sauropod dinosaurs, which belonged to a group of long necked herbivorous dinosaurs. Sauropods evolved from basal saurischian dinosaurs about 200 Ma and survived until the K/Pg (Cretaceous–Palaeogene) mass extinction event, about 66 Ma. By the Late Jurassic period, many colossal size sauropods had evolved, such as <i>Supersaurus</i>, <i>Diplodocus</i>, <i>Barosaurus</i>, etc. but together with other Diplodocidae, they went extinct by the end of the Late Jurassic. During the Cretaceous, a new clade of sauropod dinosaurs evolved, the Titanosauria. The Titanosauria diversified into various genera, and in terms of size, they ranged from a 6-m-long <i>Magyarosaurus</i>, to the 35-m-long <i>Argentinosaurus</i>. Most of these giant titanosaurs, including <i>Argentinosaurus</i>, alongside <i>Patagotitan</i>, <i>Dreadnoughtus</i>, <i>Puertasaurus</i>, and <i>Futalognkosaurus</i>, are known from South America, making this continent truly a ‘land of giants’ during the Cretaceous. However, the latest discoveries of this group indicate that supersized titanosaurs were not just restricted to South America, with <i>Paralititan</i> from Africa and <i>Australotitan</i> from Australia. Loss of the fossil remains of <i>B. matleyi</i> has raised not only questions upon the validity of the species, but also questions the notion that any supersized dinosaur lived in India. Here we critically review pieces of evidence in support of supersize dinosaur remains from Southern India.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 3","pages":"112-116"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88577417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The 2021 eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcanic ridge on La Palma, Canary Islands","authors":"Juan C. Carracedo,&nbsp;Valentin R. Troll,&nbsp;James M. D. Day,&nbsp;Harri Geiger,&nbsp;Meritxell Aulinas,&nbsp;Vicente Soler,&nbsp;Frances M. Deegan,&nbsp;Francisco J. Perez-Torrado,&nbsp;Guillem Gisbert,&nbsp;Esteban Gazel,&nbsp;Alejandro Rodriguez-Gonzalez,&nbsp;Helena Albert","doi":"10.1111/gto.12388","DOIUrl":"10.1111/gto.12388","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Almost exactly half a century after the eruption of the Teneguía Volcano on La Palma (26 October to 28 November 1971), a new eruption occurred on the island and lasted for 85 days from 19 September until 13 December 2021. This new eruption opened a volcanic vent complex on the western flank of the Cumbre Vieja rift zone, the N-S elongated polygenetic volcanic ridge that has developed on La Palma over the last <i>c</i>. 125 ka. The Cumbre Vieja ridge is the volcanically active region of the island and the most active one of the Canary Islands, hosting half of all the historically recorded eruptive events in the archipelago. The 2021 La Palma eruption has seen no direct loss of human life, thanks to efficient early detection and sensible management of the volcanic crisis by the authorities, but more than 2800 buildings and almost 1000 hectares of plantations and farmland were affected by lava flows and pyroclastic deposits. Satellite surveillance enabled accurate mapping of the progressive buildup of the extensive and complex basaltic lava field, which together with monitoring of gas emissions informed the timely evacuation of local populations from affected areas. Lava flows that reached the sea constructed an extensive system of lava deltas and platforms, similar to events during earlier historical eruptions such as in 1712, 1949 and 1971. Long-term challenges in the aftermath of the eruption include protection of drainage systems from potential redistribution of tephra during high rainfall events, the use of the large surplus quantities of ash in reconstruction of buildings and in agriculture, and the crucial concerns of where and how rebuilding should and could occur in the aftermath of the eruption. Finally, there remain strong financial concerns over insurance for properties consumed or damaged by the eruption in the light of future volcanic hazards from the Cumbre Vieja volcanic ridge.</p>","PeriodicalId":100581,"journal":{"name":"Geology Today","volume":"38 3","pages":"94-107"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78578246","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}