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USGS2010

Infrasonic harmonic tremor and degassing bursts from Halema'uma'u Crater, Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii

The formation, evolution, collapse, and subsequent resurrection of a vent within Halema'uma'u Crater, Kilauea Volcano, produced energetic and varied degassing signals recorded by a nearby infrasound array between 2008 and early 2009. After 25 years of quiescence, a vent-clearing explosive burst on 19 March 2008 produced a clear, complex acoustic signal. Near-continuous harmonic infrasonic tremor followed this burst until 4 December 2008, when a period of decreased degassing occurred. The tremor spectra suggest volume oscillation and reverberation of a shallow gas-filled cavity beneath the vent. The dominant tremor peak can be sustained through Helmholtz oscillations of the cavity, while the secondary tremor peak and overtones are interpreted assuming acoustic resonance. The dominant tremor frequency matches the oscillation frequency of the gas emanating from the vent observed by video. Tremor spectra and power are also correlated with cavity geometry and dynamics, with the cavity depth estimated at ~219 m and volume ~3 x 10 6 m 3 in November 2008. Over 21 varied degassing bursts were observed with extended burst durations and frequency content consistent with a transient release of gas exciting the cavity into resonance. Correlation of infrasound with seismicity suggests an open system connecting the atmosphere to the seismic excitation process at depth. Numerous degassing bursts produced very long period (0.03-0.1 Hz) infrasound, the first recorded at Kilauea, indicative of long-duration atmospheric accelerations. Kilauea infrasound appears controlled by the exsolution of gas from the magma, and the interaction of this gas with the conduits and cavities confining it.

Hawai'i↗

USGS2012

Water-soluble material on aerosols collected within volcanic eruption clouds

In February and March of 1978, filter samplers mounted on an aircraft were used to collect the aerosol fraction of the eruption clouds from three active Guatemalan volcanoes (Fuego, Pacaya, and Santiaguito). The samples were collected on Teflon (Fluoropore) filters with a nominal pore diameter of 0.5μm. The mass of air sampled by the filters ranged from 0.15 to 6.6 kg. The particulate material collected consisted of fragments of angular silicate ash and droplets of what is interpreted as dilute H 2 SO 4 and HCl. After collection of the samples, each filter was rinsed with 60 ml of distilled-deionized water. Splits of each extract were centrifuged to remove particles greater than or equal to 0.1 μm in diameter, acidified, and analyzed for B, Ba, Be, Ca, Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Na, Pb, Si, Sr, V, and Zn by inductively coupled plasma—optical emission spectroscopy. Separate splits were analyzed for F and Cl by specific-ion-electrode methods and for U by a fission track technique. The elements dissolved in the aqueous extracts represent components of water-soluble material either formed directly in the eruption cloud or derived from interaction of ash particles and aerosol components of the plume. Calculations of enrichment factors, based upon concentration ratios, showed the elements most enriched in the extracts relative to bulk ash composition were Cd, Cu, V, F, Cl, Zn, and Pb. These elements represent a subset (with the addition of Cl and F) of elements previously reported enriched in atmospheric aerosols in remote regions as well as in volcanic areas. This suggests that some of the enriched elements were widely dispersed as volatile halides emitted from a volcanic source.

Journal of Geophysical Research - Oceans↗

USGS2024

Source, migration pathways, and atmospheric release of geologic methane associated with the complex permafrost regimes of the outer Mackenzie River Delta, Arctic, Canada

Sources and fluxes of methane to the atmosphere from permafrost are significant but poorly constrained in global climate models. We present data collected from the variable permafrost setting of the outer Mackenzie River Delta, including observations of aquatic methane seepage, core determinations of in situ methane occurrence and seep gas isotope geochemistry. The sources and locations of in situ geologic methane occurrence and aquatic and atmospheric gas release appear to be controlled by the regional geology and permafrost conditions. Where permafrost is >250 m thick, thermogenic gas deposits at depth are isolated by laterally continuous, low permeability ice-bearing sediments with few through-going thawed taliks. Thus, the observed in situ methane and aquatic gas seepage appears to be dominated by microbial methane. In contrast, where permafrost is <80 m thick, taliks are more likely to be through-going, providing permeable conduits from depth and migration pathways for both thermogenic and biogenic gas. Continuous annual fluid sampling of two lakes and a river channel documents aquatic methane flux from microbial sources, more deeply buried thermogenic sources, and mixtures of both. Using estimates of in situ methane concentration from deep core samples and observations of in situ free gas occurrences, we conclude that the reservoir of in situ geologic methane within ice bonded permafrost is substantial and that this methane is presently migrating with ongoing atmospheric release. It is our assessment that the permafrost setting, and processes described are sensitive to future climate change as the permafrost warms.

Mackenzie River Delta↗

USGS2014

Differential response of carbon fluxes to climate in three peatland ecosystems that vary in the presence and stability of permafrost

Changes in vegetation and soil properties following permafrost degradation and thermokarst development in peatlands may cause changes in net carbon storage. To better understand these dynamics, we established three sites in Alaska that vary in permafrost regime, including a black spruce peat plateau forest with stable permafrost, an internal collapse scar bog formed as a result of thermokarst, and a rich fen without permafrost. Measurements include year-round eddy covariance estimates of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), water, and energy fluxes, associated environmental variables, and methane (CH 4 ) fluxes at the collapse scar bog. The ecosystems all acted as net sinks of CO 2 in 2011 and 2012, when air temperature and precipitation remained near long-term means. In 2013, under a late snowmelt and late leaf out followed by a hot, dry summer, the permafrost forest and collapse scar bog were sources of CO 2 . In this same year, CO 2 uptake in the fen increased, largely because summer inundation from groundwater inputs suppressed ecosystem respiration. CO 2 exchange in the permafrost forest and collapse scar bog was sensitive to warm air temperatures, with 0.5 g C m −2 lost each day when maximum air temperature was very warm (≥29°C). The bog lost 4981 ± 300 mg CH 4 m −2 between April and September 2013, indicating that this ecosystem acted as a significant source of both CO 2 and CH 4 to the atmosphere in 2013. These results suggest that boreal peatland responses to warming and drying, both of which are expected to occur in a changing climate, will depend on permafrost regime.

Alaska↗

USGS2006

Effects of permafrost melting on CO2 and CH4 exchange of a poorly drained black spruce lowland

[1] Permafrost melting is occurring in areas of the boreal forest region where large amounts of carbon (C) are stored in organic soils. We measured soil respiration, net CO 2 flux, and net CH 4 flux during May–September 2003 and March 2004 in a black spruce lowland in interior Alaska to better understand how permafrost thaw in poorly drained landscapes affects land‐atmosphere CO 2 and CH 4 exchange. Sites included peat soils underlain by permafrost at ∼0.4 m depth (permafrost plateau, PP), four thermokarst wetlands (TW) having no permafrost in the upper 2.2 m, and peat soils bordering the thermokarst wetlands having permafrost at ∼0.5 m depth (thermokarst edges, TE). Soil respiration rates were not significantly different among the sites, and 5‐cm soil temperature explained 50–91% of the seasonal variability in soil respiration within the sites. Groundcover vegetation photosynthesis (calculated as net CO 2 minus soil respiration) was significantly different among the sites (TW > TE > PP), which can be partly attributed to the difference in photosynthetically active radiation reaching the ground at each site type. Methane emission rates were 15 to 28 times greater from TW than from TE and PP. We modeled annual soil respiration and groundcover vegetation photosynthesis using soil temperature and radiation data, and CH 4 flux by linear interpolation. We estimated all sites as net C gas sources to the atmosphere (not including tree CO 2 uptake at PP and TE), although the ranges in estimates when accounting for errors were large enough that TE and TW may have been net C sinks.

Journal of Geophysical Research G: Biogeosciences↗

USGS2000

Mars south polar spring and summer behavior observed by TES: seasonal cap evolution controlled by frost grain size

Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) observations of the recession phase of Mars' south polar cap are used to quantitatively map this recession in both thermal and visual appearance. Geographically nonuniform behavior interior to the cap is characterized by defining several small regions which exemplify the range of behavior. For most of the cap, while temperatures remain near the CO 2 frost point, albedos slowly increase with the seasonal rise of the Sun, then drop rapidly as frost patches disappear over a period of ∼20 days. A “Cryptic” region remains dark and mottled throughout its cold period. TES observations are compared with first-order theoretical spectra of solid CO 2 frost with admixtures of dust and H 2 O. The TES spectra indicate that the Cryptic region has much larger grained solid CO 2 than the rest of the cap and that the solid CO 2 here may be in the form of a slab. The Mountains of Mitchel remain cold and bright well after other areas at comparable latitude, apparently as a result of unusually small size of the CO 2 frost grains; we found little evidence for a significant presence of H 2 O. Although CO 2 grain size may be the major difference between these regions, incorporated dust is also required to match the observations; a self-cleaning process carries away the smaller dust grains. Comparisons with Viking observations indicate little difference in the seasonal cycle 12 Martian years later. The observed radiation balance indicates CO 2 sublimation budgets of up to 1250 kg m −2 . Regional atmospheric dust is common; localized dust clouds are seen near the edge of the cap prior to the onset of a regional dust storm and interior to the cap during the storm.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS2014

The birth and death of transverse aeolian ridges on Mars

Transverse aeolian ridges (TARs) are small bright windblown deposits found throughout the Martian tropics that stand a few meters tall and are spaced a few tens of meters apart. The origin of these features remains mysterious more than 20 years after their discovery on Mars. This paper presents a new hypothesis, that some of the TARs could be indurated dust deposits emplaced millions of years ago during periods of higher axial obliquity. It suggests that these TARs are primary depositional bed forms that accumulated in place from dust carried by the winds in suspension, perhaps in a manner comparable to antidunes on Earth, and were subsequently indurated and eroded to their current states by eons of sandblasting. It points out examples of modern dust drifts and dune‐like features that appear to have been recently formed by dust accumulating directly onto the surface from atmospheric suspension. It shows how these pristine dust deposits could evolve to explain the range of morphologies of the TARs. Finally, it explains how the known properties of many TARs are consistent with this hypothesis, including their composition, thermal behavior, and distribution.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS2008

High resolution imaging science experiment (HiRISE) images of volcanic terrains from the first 6 months of the Mars reconnaissance orbiter primary science phase

In the first 6 months of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's Primary Science Phase, the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera has returned images sampling the diversity of volcanic terrains on Mars. While many of these features were noted in earlier imaging, they are now seen with unprecedented clarity. We find that some volcanic vents produced predominantly effusive products while others generated mostly pyroclastics. Flood lavas were emplaced in both turbulent and gentle eruptions, producing roofed channels and inflation features. However, many areas on Mars are too heavily mantled to allow meter-scale volcanic features to be discerned. In particular, the major volcanic edifices are extensively mantled, though it is possible that some of the mantle is pyroclastic material rather than atmospheric dust. Support imaging by the Context Imager (CTX) and topographic information derived from stereo imaging are both invaluable in interpreting the HiRISE data.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS2000

Geochemical evidence for a magmatic CO 2 degassing event at Mammoth Mountain, California, September-December 1997

Recent time series soil CO 2 concentration data from monitoring stations in the vicinity of Mammoth Mountain, California, reveal strong evidence for a magmatic degassing event during the fall of 1997 lasting more than 2 months. Two sensors at Horseshoe Lake first recorded the episode on September 23, 1997, followed 10 days later by a sensor on the north flank of Mammoth Mountain. Direct degassing from shallow intruding magma seems an implausible cause of the degassing event, since the gas released at Horseshoe Lake continued to be cold and barren of other magmatic gases, except for He. We suggest that an increase in compressional strain on the area south of Mammoth Mountain driven by movement of major fault blocks in Long Valley caldera may have triggered an episode of increased degassing by squeezing additional accumulated CO 2 from a shallow gas reservoir to the surface along faults and other structures where it could be detected by the CO 2 monitoring network. Recharge of the gas reservoir by CO 2 emanating from the deep intrusions that probably triggered deep long-period earthquakes may also have contributed to the degassing event. The nature of CO 2 discharge at the soil-air interface is influenced by the porous character of High Sierra soils and by meteorological processes. Solar insolation is the primary source of energy for the Earth atmosphere and plays a significant role in most diurnal processes at the Earth surface. Data from this study suggest that external forcing due largely to local orographic winds influences the fine structure of the recorded CO 2 signals.

California↗

USGS2012

Television observations from Surveyor 3

A total of 6315 pictures were taken by the television camera on Surveyor 3 after the lunar landing. These pictures have provided much new information about the location of the landing site on the moon, the detailed topographic and geologic characteristics of the lunar surface, and the appearance of the earth as seen from the moon, both during eclipse of the sun and during partial direct illumination by the sun. Surveyor 3 landed in a subdued crater slightly more than 200 meters in diameter, which has a low rounded rim and is about 15 meters deep. The spacecraft is situated on the east wall of the crater, about half way between the center of the crater and the rim crest. The spacecraft is inclined 14.7° ± 1.0° toward the west. The selenographic coordinates of the landing site are 2.94°S latitude, 23.34°W longitude, relative to selenodetic control adopted by the Aeronautical Chart and Information Center. Small morphologic elements of the landing site include small craters, linear ridges and troughs, and fragmental debris. The craters and fragmental debris resemble those observed at the Surveyor 1 landing site, both in distribution of shape and in distribution of size. Most of the craters in Surveyor 1 and 3 pictures are inferred to be of impact origin. Their size-frequency distribution corresponds to the distribution that would be produced by repetitive bombardment by meteoroids, a bombardment sufficiently prolonged that the crater population has reached a steady state or has come to equilibrium. Some of the craters observed at the Surveyor 3 landing site are inferred to be of secondary impact origin, and some probably have been formed either by subsidence or by drainage of fragmental debris into cracks or fissures in the subsurface. Fragmental debris at the landing site is inferred to have been derived primarily by the same process of repetitive bombardment that produced the majority of craters. The inferred volumetric size-frequency distribution of fragments, derived from the observed size distribution of fragments on the surface, is similar to the distribution that would be produced by repetitive bombardment of coherent rocks by meteoroids with a mass-frequency distribution like that found from observed meteors and recovered meteorites on earth. Two prominent strewn fields of blocky debris were observed around two craters, 13 and 15 meters across, at the Surveyor 3 site. The 13-meter crater has a sharp raised rim, and the 15-meter crater has a more subdued rounded rim. The blocks associated with the subdued crater have twice as high a mean roundness as the blocks associated with the raised-rim crater, and they are much more deeply buried. The size-frequency distribution function for the fragments in each of the strewn fields of blocks resembles the size-frequency distribution for fragments ejected by impacts in strong rock, such as Meteor Crater, Arizona. Most of the fragments at the surface of the Surveyor 3 landing site are evidently part of a layer of fragmental material of low cohesion that is at least 1 meter thick along the upper parts of the wall of the crater in which Surveyor 3 landed and may be much thicker near the center of the crater. The evidence from the Surveyor 3 pictures suggests that this layer of debris, or regolith, is subject to downslope creep or mass movement. Creep is probably caused by seismic shaking, due mainly to near and far impact events and perhaps due partly to internal lunar seismicity. Disturbances of the lunar surface produced by Surveyor 3, like those produced by Surveyor 1, exposed material at depths of a few centimeters or less that was darker than the material at the surface. The albedo of the fine-grained fragmental debris is probably 20 to 30% lower at depths of only a fraction of a millimeter than it is at the optically observed surface. All coarse fragments protruding above the general level of the surface have a higher albedo than the fine-grained matrix of the surface. These general photometric relationships can be explained if it is assumed that the surfaces of the particles in the shallow lunar subsurface tend to become coated with a dark substance; the term proposed for this hypothetical substance is ‘lunar varnish’ On the protruding surface of blocks and coarse fragments the lunar varnish is scrubbed off by the processes that cause rounding. The exposed surfaces of fine particles on the lunar surface are similarly affected, but, because they are mixed relatively rapidly with particles just beneath the surface, the process is incomplete and the fine-grained material exposed at the lunar surface, therefore, has a lower albedo than blocks and other large fragments. Coating of particles by lunar varnish evidently takes place just beneath the surface. The estimated normal luminance factor (normal albedo) of an undisturbed part of the lunar surface next to footpad 2 of the Surveyor 3 spacecraft is 8.5%. An area of the lunar surface disturbed by the surface sampler has an estimated normal luminance factor of 6.6%, and fine-grained material placed on footpad 2 by the surface sampler has an estimated normal luminance factor of 7.6%. The errors in all these estimates may be as high as 25% because of uncertainties of correction required for light scattered from the camera mirror. Preliminary search for color differences, by color reconstitution methods, revealed no determinable differences in color among various coarse blocks, the fine-grained matrix of the surface, or fine-grained material disturbed by the surface sampler. Surveyor 3 pictures of the eclipse of the sun by the earth revealed a bright region in the refraction halo surrounding the earth, which was correlated with the position of the sun, and a series of bright beads that occurred over regions of the earth largely clear of clouds. Clouds tend to occult the refracted rays of the sun, most of which pass through the lower part of the atmosphere at the limb; the beads occurred in the depressions in the optical silhouette of the earth. Preliminary reduction of the color of the refracted light showed that the brightest region, near the position of the sun, exhibited a correlated color temperature close to 4800°K. The color temperature tended to be lower for light that followed paths of greater atmospheric absorption. Preliminary analysis of Surveyor 3 pictures of the partly illuminated earth revealed colors similar to the colors recorded from orbit by the Mercury and Gemini astronauts.

Journal of Geophysical Research↗

USGS1999

Soil-like deposits observed by Sojourner, the Pathfinder rover

Most of the soil-like materials at the Pathfinder landing site behave like moderately dense soils on Earth with friction angles near 34°-39° and are called cloddy deposits. Cloddy deposits appear to be poorly sorted with dust-sized to granule-sized mineral or rock grains; they may contain pebbles, small rock fragments, and clods. Thin deposits of porous, compressible drifts with friction angles near 26°-28° are also present. Drifts are fine grained. Cohesions of both types of deposits are small. There may be indurated soil-like deposits and/or coated or crusted rocks. Cloddy deposits may be fluvial sediments of the Ares-Tiu floods, but other origins, such as ejecta from nearby impact craters, should be considered. Drifts are probably dusts that settled from the Martian atmosphere. Remote-sensing signatures of the deposits inferred from rover observations are consistent with those observed from orbit and Earth.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS2022

Evidence for fluctuating wind in shaping an ancient Martian dune field: The Stimson formation at the Greenheugh pediment, Gale crater

Temporal fluctuations of wind strength and direction can influence aeolian bedform morphology and orientation, which can be encoded into the architecture of aeolian deposits. These strata represent a direct record of atmospheric processes and can be used to understand ancient Martian atmospheric processes as well as those on Earth. The strata can: give insight to ancient atmospheric circulation, how the atmosphere evolved in response to global changes in habitability, and how ancient processes differ from modern processes. The Stimson formation at the Greenheugh pediment (Gale crater) records evidence of fluctuating wind across multiple temporal scales. The strata can be subdivided into three intervals–Gleann Beag, Ladder, and Edinburgh intervals. Internally, the intervals record changes of dune morphology and orientation, correlatable to wind fluctuations at multiple temporal scales. The basal Gleann Beag interval comprises compound cross-strata, deposited by oblique compound dunes. These dunes record a bimodal wind regime, resulting in net sediment transport toward the north. The Ladder interval records a reversal of sediment transport to the south, where straight-crested simple-dunes shaped by a seasonally variable winds formed. Finally, the Edinburgh interval records sediment transport to the west, where a unimodal wind formed sinuous-crested simple dunes. These observations demonstrate active and variable atmospheric circulation in Gale crater during the accumulation of the Stimson dune field, at multiple temporal scales from seasonally driven winds to much longer time-frames, during the Hesperian. These observations can be used to further understand ancient atmospheric conditions and processes, at a high temporal resolution on Mars.

Journal of Geophysical Research - Planets↗

USGS2012

Tholeiitic‐alkalic transition at subglacial volcanoes, Tuya region, British Columbia, Canada

Ash Mountain, South Tuya, and Tuya Butte are three small basaltic volcanoes in the Stikine volcanic belt of northern British Columbia. The volcanoes rise 700, 500, and 400 m above their bases and are about 3.2, 1.6, and 2.6 km 3 in volume, respectively. They began eruptive activity under several hundred meters of overlying glacial ice, or water in an ice‐impounded lake, and undegassed pillow lava was erupted and forms the bases of all three. Later, as the vents grew into shallow water, explosive phreatomagmatic activity erupted partly degassed glassy tuffs. Finally, when the volcano emerged through the surface of the ice or water (or the water was drained), degassed subaerial lava flows were erupted and were converted to assemblages of foreset‐bedded pillow breccia and pillow lava when subaerial flows crossed a shoreline and flowed into meltwater lakes. The undegassed subglacial pillow base of Ash Mountain is overlain by partly degassed pillows and hyaloclastite tuff cut by dikes; at South Tuya the pillow base is overlain by hyaloclastite tuffs and lenses of pillow lava; at Tuya Butte the pillow base is overlain by foreset‐bedded pillow lava, pillow breccias, and hyaloclastite tuffs, which in turn are overlain by subaerial lava flows composing a small shield volcano. The undegassed basal subglacial pillow lava of the three volcanoes contain 0.10 ± 0.01 wt % sulfur and ∼0.5 wt % H 2 O. The overlying partly degassed assemblages contain 0.06 ± 0.02% sulfur and ∼0.2% H 2 O at Ash Mountain, 0.07±0.01% sulfur at South Tuya, and 0.03±0.01% sulfur at Tuya Butte. The differences in the degree of degassing can be related to the nature of eruption and quenching and the distance of flow of the subaerial lava. When the volcanoes switched from subglacial to shallow water or subaerial eruptions, as shown by change to more explosive activity and then to subaerial lava flows (and by a marked reduction of sulfur in volcanic glass), the magma shifted from tholeiitic to alkalic composition. This transition occurs at each of the three volcanoes. The tholeiitic and alkalic magmas cannot be related by shallow crystal fractionation and apparently originated by differing degrees of deep melting at a mantle source. Prior to eruption the tholeiitic melts overlay alkalic melts in shallow chambers underlying each of the volcanoes because of their lower density and were, therefore, the first to erupt under subglacial conditions. As the volcano grew through the ice (or ice‐impounded water), the volcanic conduit vented to the atmosphere, producing a partial depressurization of the conduit and the subsurface chamber. This sudden reduction in confining pressure caused enhanced vesiculation of volatile saturated melts, particularly of the more volatile‐rich alkalic melts, causing them to rise to the top of the chamber and erupt.

British Columbia↗

USGS2006

Active dust devils in Gusev crater, Mars: Observations from the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit

A full dust devil "season" was observed from Spirit from 10 March 2005 (sol 421, first active dust devil observed) to 12 December 2005 (sol 691, last dust devil seen); this corresponds to the period Ls 173.2?? to 339.5??, or the southern spring and summer on Mars. Thermal Emission Spectrometer data suggest a correlation between high surface temperatures and a positive thermal gradient with active dust devils in Gusev and that Spirit landed in the waning stages of a dust devil season as temperatures decreased. 533 active dust devils were observed, enabling new characterizations; they ranged in diameter from 2 to 276 m, with most in the range of 10-20 m in diameter, and occurred from about 0930 to 1630 hours local true solar time (with the maximum forming around 1300 hours) and a peak occurrence in southern late spring (Ls ??? 250??). Horizontal speeds of the dust devils ranged from <1 to 21 m/s, while vertical wind speeds within the dust devils ranged from 0.2 to 8.8 m/s. These data, when combined with estimates of the dust content within the dust devils, yield dust fluxes of 3.95 ?? 10-9 to 4.59-4 kg/m2/s. Analysis of the dust devil frequency distribution over the inferred dust devil zone within Gusev crater yields ???50 active dust devils/km2/sol, suggesting a dust loading into the atmosphere of ???19 kg/km2/sol. This value is less than one tenth the estimates by Cantor et al. (2001) for regional dust storms on Mars. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS2003

Shallow soil CO2 flow along the San Andreas and Calaveras Faults, California

We evaluate a comprehensive soil CO2 survey along the San Andreas fault (SAF) in Parkfield, and the Calaveras fault (CF) in Hollister, California, in the context of spatial and temporal variability, origin, and transport of CO2 in fractured terrain. CO2 efflux was measured within grids with portable instrumentation and continously with meteorological parameters at a fixed station, in both faulted and unfaulted areas. Spatial and temporal variability of surface CO2 effluxes was observed to be higher at faulted SAF and CF sites, relative to comparable background areas. However, ??13C (-23.3 to - 16.4???) and ??14C (75.5 to 94.4???) values of soil CO2 in both faulted and unfaulted areas are indicative of biogenic CO2, even though CO2 effluxes in faulted areas reached values as high as 428 g m-2 d-1. Profiles of soil CO2 concentration as a function of depth were measured at multiple sites within SAF and CF grids and repeatedly at two locations at the SAF grid. Many of these profiles suggest a surprisingly high component of advective CO2 flow. Spectral and correlation analysis of SAF CO2 efflux and meteorological parameter time series indicates that effects of wind speed variations on atmospheric air flow though fractures modulate surface efflux of biogenic CO2. The resulting areal patterns in CO2 effluxes could be erroneously attributed to a deep gas source in the absence of isotopic data, a problem that must be addressed in fault zone soil gas studies.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗

USGS2022

Atmospheric river storm flooding influences tidal marsh elevation building processes

Disturbances are a key component of ecological processes in coastal ecosystems. Investigating factors that affect tidal marsh accretion and elevation change is important, largely due to accelerating sea-level rise and the ecological and economic value of wetlands. Sediment accumulation rates, elevation change, and flooding were examined at five marshes along a riverine-tidal gradient in the northern San Francisco Bay-Delta, California, USA during an Atmospheric River storm event in 2017 using Surface Elevation Tables (SETs), feldspar marker horizons (MH), and continuous water-level sensors. Our results showed that localized marsh flooding increased during the storm event, but not evenly across sites. Marsh surface elevation increased the most at the tidal freshwater marsh site in response to the storms, with an average surface elevation gain of 45.6 ± 13.1 mm, and the least at a tidal saline marsh with an average surface elevation gain of 4.0 ± 1.2 mm. A marsh located on the large embayment did not exhibit an immediate response to the storm but had a surface elevation gain of 21.5 ± 13.7 mm 6 months after the storm. During the storm period, marsh distance to the bay was the strongest predictor of elevation change, followed by SET-MH elevations. Conversely, during non-storm periods, SET-MH elevation was a relatively strong predictor of elevation change. Atmospheric Rivers appear to be a major factor affecting short-term spatial and temporal variability in flooding and sedimentation rates in tidal marsh systems. Incorporating information about storms into monitoring could increase our understanding of how episodic storms can impact marshes.

Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences↗

USGS2008

MGS-TES thermal inertia study of the Arsia Mons Caldera

Temperatures of the Arsia Mons caldera floor and two nearby control areas were obtained by the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES). These observations revealed that the Arsia Mons caldera floor exhibits thermal behavior different from the surrounding Tharsis region when compared with thermal models. Our technique compares modeled and observed data to determine best fit values of thermal inertia, layer depth, and albedo. Best fit modeled values are accurate in the two control regions, but those in the Arsia Mons' caldera are consistently either up to 15 K warmer than afternoon observations, or have albedo values that are more than two standard deviations higher than the observed mean. Models of both homogeneous and layered (such as dust over bedrock) cases were compared, with layered-cases indicating a surface layer at least thick enough to insulate itself from diurnal effects of an underlying substrate material. Because best fit models of the caldera floor poorly match observations, it is likely that the caldera floor experiences some physical process not incorporated into our thermal model. Even on Mars, Arsia Mons is an extreme environment where CO2 condenses upon the caldera floor every night, diurnal temperatures range each day by a factor of nearly 2, and annual average atmospheric pressure is only around one millibar. Here, we explore several possibilities that may explain the poor modeled fits to caldera floor and conclude that temperature dependent thermal conductivity may cause thermal inertia to vary diurnally, and this effect may be exaggerated by presence of water-ice clouds, which occur frequently above Arsia Mons.

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets↗

USGS2021

Carbon fluxes and microbial activities from boreal peatlands experiencing permafrost thaw

Permafrost thaw in northern ecosystems may cause large quantities of carbon (C) to move from soil to atmospheric pools. Because soil microbial communities play a critical role in regulating C fluxes from soils, we examined microbial activity and greenhouse gas production soon after permafrost thaw and ground collapse (into collapse-scar bogs), relative to the permafrost plateau or older thaw features. Using multiple field and laboratory-based assays at a field site in interior Alaska, we show that the youngest collapse-scar bog had the highest CH 4 production potential from soil incubations, and, based upon temporal changes in porewater concentrations and 13 C-CH 4 and 13 C-CO 2 , had greater summer in situ rates of respiration, methanogenesis, and surface CH 4 oxidation. These patterns could be explained by greater C and N availability in the young bog, while alternative terminal electron accepting processes did not play a significant role. Field diffusive CH 4 fluxes from the young bog were 4.1 times greater in the shoulder season and 1.7–7.2 times greater in winter relative to older bogs, but not during summer. Greater relative CH 4 flux rates in the shoulder season and winter could be due to reduced CH 4 oxidation relative to summer, magnifying the importance of differences in production. Both the permafrost plateau and collapse-scar bogs were sources of C to the atmosphere due in large part to winter C fluxes. In collapse scar bogs, winter is a critical period when differences in thermokarst age translates to differences in surface fluxes.

Alaska↗