Inventory of thermo-erosional valleys and streams in three ice-rich permafrost lowlands adjacent to the Laptev Sea, with links to maps in ArcGIS format

This dataset provides an inventory of thermo-erosional landforms and streams in three lowland areas underlain by ice-rich permafrost of the Yedoma-type Ice Complex at the Siberian Laptev Sea coast. It consists of two shapefiles per study region: one shapefile for the digitized thermo-erosional landforms and streams, one for the study area extent. Thermo-erosional landforms were manually digitized from topographic maps and satellite data as line features and subsequently analyzed in a Geographic Information System (GIS) using ArcGIS 10.0. The mapping included in particular thermo-erosional gullies and valleys as well as streams and rivers, since development of all of these features potentially involved thermo-erosional processes. For the Cape Mamontov Klyk site, data from Grosse et al. [2006], which had been digitized from 1:100000 topographic map sheets, were clipped to the Ice Complex extent of Cape Mamontov Klyk, which excludes the hill range in the southwest with outcropping bedrock and rocky slope debris, coastal barrens, and a large sandy floodplain area in the southeast. The mapped features (streams, intermittent streams) were then visually compared with panchromatic Landsat-7 ETM+ satellite data (4 August 2000, 15 m spatial resolution) and panchromatic Hexagon data (14 July 1975, 10 m spatial resolution). Smaller valleys and gullies not captured in the maps were subsequently digitized from the satellite data. The criterion for the mapping of linear features as thermo-erosional valleys and gullies was their clear incision into the surface with visible slopes. Thermo-erosional features of the Lena Delta site were mapped on the basis of a Landsat-7 ETM+ image mosaic (2000 and 2001, 30 m ground resolution) [Schneider et al., 2009] and a Hexagon satellite image mosaic (1975, 10 m ground resolution) [G. Grosse, unpublished data] of the Lena River Delta within the extent of the Lena Delta Ice Complex [Morgenstern et al., 2011]. For the Buor Khaya Peninsula, data from Arcos [2012], which had been digitized based on RapidEye satellite data (8 August 2010, 6.5 m ground resolution), were completed for smaller thermo-erosional features using the same RapidEye scene as a mapping basis. The spatial resolution, acquisition date, time of the day, and viewing geometry of the satellite data used may have influenced the identification of thermo-erosional landforms in the images. For Cape Mamontov Klyk and the Lena Delta, thermo-erosional features were digitized using both Hexagon and Landsat data; Hexagon provided higher resolution and Landsat provided the modern extent of features. Allowance of up to decameters was made for the lateral expansion of features between Hexagon and Landsat acquisitions (between 1975 and 2000).

Colored dissolved organic matter (cDOM) absorption measurements in terrestrial water objects of Yamal, Yavai and Gydan Peninsula

The datasets present measurements of cDOM absorption in lakes, rivers and streams of Yamal and Gydan Peninsula area during the summer periods from 2012-2014 and 2016. In summer seasons of 2012 - 2013 water samples was collected during "Yamal-Arctic" Expedition. All of the research areas were located near the coastline of Yamal, Yavay, and Gydan Peninsula and Bely Island. In 2012 water samples from rivers, lakes and streams were taken near New Port, Cape Kamenny and Tambey settlements and in basins (water catchments) of the Sabetta, Seyakha, Yuribey (Baydaratskaya Bay, Gydan Peninsula) and Mongocheyakha rivers. In 2013 water samples from rivers, lakes and streams were taken in the Yavai Peninsula, Yayne Vong bay and in the basins (water catchments) of the Sabetta, Mongocheyakha and Yuribey (Gydan Peninsula) rivers. In 2014 lakes were sampled in the Erkuta River basin, south of Yamal Peninsula. In 2016 lakes and rivers were sampled it the Erkuta River basin and Polar Ural area. cDOM is operationally defined by the chosen filter pore size. Samples have been consistently filtrated through 0.7 µm pore size glas fibre filters. cDOM filtrates have been stored in darkness and have been measured after the expedition using the dual-beam Specord200 laboratory spectrometer (Jena Analytik) at the Otto Schmidt Laboratory OSL, Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia. The OSL cDOM protocol (Heim and Roessler, 2016) prescribes 3 Absorbance (A) measurements per sample from UV to 750 nm against ultra-pure water. The absorption coefficient, a, is calculated by a = 2.303A/L, where L is the pathlength of the cuvette [m], and the factor 2.303 converts log10 to loge. The output of the calculation is a continuous spectrum of a. The cDOM a spectra are used to determine the exponential slope value for specific wavelength ranges, S by fitting the data between min and max wavelength to an exponential function. We provide cDOM absorption coefficients for the wavelengths 254, 260, 350, 375, 400, 412, 440, 443 nm [1/m] and Slope values for three different UV, VIS, wavelength ranges: 275 to 295 nm, 350 to 400 nm, 300 to 500 nm [1/m]. All data were carried out by scientists from Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute and Saint Petersburg State University of Russia during "Yamal-Arctic" expeditions in 2012-2013, RFBR project No 14-04-10065 in 2014, No 14-05-00787 in 2016.

Annotated record and spectrochemical analyses of Mn nodules from Georgia Strait, British Columbia obtained during CNAV Laymore in 1970

A study of the distribution, dispersal and composition of surficial sediments in the Strait of Georgia, B.C., has resulted in the understanding of basic sedimentologic conditions within this area. The Strait of Georgia is: a long, narrow, semi-enclosed basin with a restricted circulation and a single, main, sediment source. The Fraser. River supplies practically all the sediment now being deposited in the Strait of Georgia, the bulk of it during the spring and summer freshet. This river is building a delta into the Strait from the east side near the south end. Ridges of Pleistocene deposits within the Strait and Pleistocene material around the margins, like bedrock exposures, provide local sources of sediment of only minor importance. Rivers and streams other than the Fraser contribute insignificant quantities of sediment to the Strait. Sandy sediments are concentrated in the vicinity of the delta, and in the area to the south and southeast. Mean grain size decreases from the delta toward the northwest along the axis of the Strait, and basinwards from the margins. Silts and clays are deposited in deep water west and north of the delta front, and in deep basins northwest of the delta. Poorly sorted sediments containing a gravel component are located near tidal passes, on the Vancouver Island shelf area, on ridge tops within the Strait, and with sandy sediments at the southeastern end of the study area. The Pleistocene ridges are areas of non-deposition, having at most a thin veneer of modern mud on their crests and upper flanks. The southeastern end of the study area contains a thick wedge of shandy sediment which appears to be part of an earlier delta of the Fraser River. Evidence suggests that it is now a site of active submarine erosion. Sediments throughout the Strait are compositionally extremely similar, with-Pleistocene deposits of the Fraser River drainage basin providing the principal, heterogeneous source. Gravels and coarse sands are composed primarily of lithic fragments, dominantly of dioritic to granodloritlc composition. Sand fractions exhibit increasing simplicity of mineralogy with decreasing grain-size. Quartz, felspar, amphibole and fine-grained lithic fragments are the dominant constituents of the finer sand grades. Coarse and medium silt fractions have compositions similar to the fine sands. Fine silts show an increase in abundance of phyllosilicate material, a feature even more evident in the clay-size fractions on Montmorillonite, illite, chlorite, quartz and feldspar are the main minerals in the coarse clay fraction, with minor mixed-layer clays and kaolinite. The fine clay fraction is dominated by montmorillonite, with lesser amounts of illite and chlorite. The sediments have high base-exchange capacities, related to a considerable content of montmorillonite. Magnesium is present in exchange positions in greater quantity in Georgia Strait sediments than in sediments from the Fraser River, indicating a preferential uptake of this element in the marine environment. Manganese nodules collected from two localities in the Strait imply slow sediment accumulation rates at these sites. Sedimentation rates on and close to the delta, and in the deep basins to the northwest, are high.

Annotated record and chemical composition of ferromanganese concretions and crusts sampled from the lakes and streams of Norway

The main objective of the project was to develop a geochemical method for exploration of ores associated with granitic rocks. Fe and Mn oxidates were sampled in streambeds and lakes from 129 localities in Southeastern Norway. 65 of these localities are situated in the northern Oslo Graben. The samples were examined mineralogically and chemically by a variety of methods. Geochemical maps of the element content in oxidates show regional distribution patterns for several elements. Sampling and analysis of oxidates can be used in exploration for mineralizations such as the Skrukkelia Mo-deposit in the northern Oslo Graben. New anomalies (especially for Zn and W) have been detected. Appendix I contains a description of samples, chemical and mineralogical determinations performed on the samples, backscattered electron image-, X-ray image- and scanning electron image pictures of the oxidate preparates. Appendix II contains spectral plots, point analysis with the microprobe, X-ray diffractograms, analytical results, correlation coefficient matrix, scatterplots, frequency distributions and information on data storage. Appendix III containS maps of the element content in oxidates.

Vegetation community and geochemistry in the Uummannaq District, West Greenland

Beach and salt marsh vegetation of the Uummannaq District, northern West Greenland (c. 70°15' N - 72° N, 49° W - 54° W) was studied 1998 according to the Braun-Blanquet phytosociological approach. Habitat analyses included soil chemistry. Such vegetation locally occurs and is not developed over extensive areas. On gravely stony beaches a Mertensia maritima ssp. maritima community occurs, while a Honckenya peploides var. diffusa community is confined to sandy beaches. The association Honckenyo diffusae-Elymetum mollis Thannh. 1975 is confined to sandy shore walls and low dunes. All vegetation types are assigned to the alliance Honckenyo- Elymion arenariae Tx. 1966, which again is a unit of the order Honckenyo- Elymetalia arenariae Tx. 1966, which is sub ordered to the class Honckenyo-Elymetea arenariae Tx. 1966. On fine sediments along sheltered coasts salt marsh vegetation is locally developed mainly on fiord deltas and outwash plains of small rivers and streams. A distinct zonation pattern in vegetation can be observed from the lower to upper salt marsh: Puccinellietum phryganodis Hadac 1946 association, Caricetum subspathaceae Hadac 1946 association, Caricetum ursinae Hadac 1946 association (all assigned to the alliance Puccinellion phryganodis Hadac 1946) and Festuco-Caricetum glareosae Nordh. 1954 association (assigned to the alliance Armerion maritimae Br.-Bl. et de Leeuw 1936). Both alliances are units of the order Glauco- Puccinellietalia Beeftink et Westhoff in Beeftink 1965, which is assigned to the class Asteretea tripolii Westhoff et Beeftink in Beeftink 1962. TWINSPAN and CCA support the vegetation classification and the CCA with soil chemistry parameters shows that salinity (related to position above MHW) and Ncontent are strongly correlated with the floristical differentiation of the vegetation of the Honckenyo-Elymetea class. In the Asteretea tripolii class, position above MHW (negatively correlated with pH, conductivity and Clcontent) and fresh water supply are likely the main factors, which affect vegetation differentiation. A synoptic survey of vegetation types from Greenland based on published phytosociological tables is presented and distribution of the vegetation types is addressed, just as their position in a circumpolar context. Moreover a Cochlearia groenlandica-Melandrium triflorum community is described as a new vegetation type, occurring on shallow soil on cliffs influenced by salt spray.

Mineralogy of northern Indian Ocean surface sediments and of suspended sediments of Indian rivers (Table 2 and 5)

The solid phases from surface sediments, atmospheric dusts, and rivers of the Indian Ocean environment have been analyzed for their clay minerals and quartz. Such data have been used to delimit the transport paths and sources of the detrital minerals in the oceanic deposits. Diagnostic in distinguishing fluvial and eolian inputs to the northern Indian Ocean is a combination of the clay mineral assemblages and of their geographic distributions. River borne solids are the primary components of the Bay of Bengal deposits. The eastern part receives its continental input through the Ganges-Brahmaputra river system, while drainage of the Indian Peninsula by rivers introduces solids to the western part. The former materials are characterized by high illite and chlorite in the clay mineral assemblages; the latter by montmorillonite. The winds over the Bay bear distinctive dust burdens based upon their directions. However, their contributions to the sediments are insignificant. The eastern sector of the Arabian Sea receives major contributions of continental debris from the rivers and the high montmorillonite levels clearly indicate a source in the Indian Peninsula. The rest of the Sea appears to receive most of its land-derived materials from the north, perhaps the desert regions of northern India and West Pakistan, and they are wind-borne. These materials are also transported to the equatorial regions of the Indian Ocean. A gradient in attapulgite, just north of the equator, may indicate an eolian contribution to the Arabian Sea from the African continent. The halogenated hydrocarbon pesticides were assayed in the southwest monsoon winds and enter the Bay of Bengal at levels of a half ton per month, an amount comparable to those introduced by other wind and river systems to the marine environment.

Benthic freshwater diatom abundance in streams and seepage areas of northern James Ross Island between 2004-2009

Background and aim - The non-marine diatom communities in the Antarctic Region are characterized by a typical species composition, in close relationship with their environment. Despite the growing interest, the diatom flora of James Ross Island is only poorly known. The present paper discusses the diversity of limnoterrestrial diatoms on this island: seepages and streams. Methods - The diatom flora of 53 samples taken on the eastern side of the Ulu peninsula on James Ross Island has been studied using light and scanning electron microscopy. Key results - A total of 69 diatom taxa belonging to 26 genera have been observed. The genera Luticola, Diadesmis, Muelleria and Pinnularia dominated the species composition. The flora shows an interesting mixture of cosmopolitan and Antarctic species containing several species reaching on James Ross Island their most northern distribution in the Antarctic Region. The taxonomical position of one widespread Antarctic species, Psammothidium papilio (D.E.Kellogg, Stuiver, T.B.Kellogg & Denton) Kopalova & Van de Vijver comb. nov., is corrected. Conclusions - The limnoterrestrial diatom flora of James Ross Island has a rather low number of species, of which a large proportion shows a restricted Antarctic distribution.

Assemblages and isotopic signals of modern ostracodes and host waters from Patagonia, Argentine

Ostracode species assemblages and stable oxygen and carbon isotope ratios of living and recent ostracodes, together with delta18O and delta13C_DIC values of host water samples, provide a first data set that characterizes a wide range of modern aquatic environments in the Laguna Cari-Laufquen (41°S, 68 - 69°W) and the Lago Cardiel area (48 - 49°S, 70 - 71°W) in Patagonia, Argentina. This data set will ultimately be used to interpret and calibrate data acquired from lake sediment cores with the goal of reconstructing past climate. Species assemblages and isotope values can be assigned to three groups; (1) springs, seeps and streams, (2) permanent ponds and lakes, and (3) ephemeral ponds and lakes. Springs, seeps and streams are characterized by Darwinula sp., Heterocypris incongruens, Eucypris fontana, Amphicypris nobilis and Ilyocypris ramirezi. Ostracode and water isotope values range between -13 and -5 per mil for oxygen, and between -15 and -3 per mil for carbon. They are the most negative of the entire sample set, reflecting ground water input with little or no evaporative enrichment. Limnocythere patagonica, Eucypris labyrinthica, Limnocythere sp. and Eucypris aff. fontana are typical species of permanent ponds and lakes. Isotope values indicate high degree of evaporation of lake waters relative to feeder springs and streams and range between -7 and +5 per mil for oxygen, and -5 and +4 per mil for carbon. Limnocythere rionegroensis is the dominant species in ephemeral ponds and lakes. These systems display the most enriched isotope values in both ostracodes and host waters, extending from -5 to +7 per mil for oxygen, and from -5 to +6 per mil for carbon. Living ostracodes show a positive offset from equilibrium values of up to 2 per mil for oxygen. Carbon-isotope values are up to 6? more negative than equilibrium values in highly productive pools. Comparison of ostracode and host water isotope signals permits assessment of the life span of the aquatic environments. Valves from dead ostracodes collected from ephemeral ponds and lakes show a wide scatter with each sample providing a snapshot of the seasonal history of the host water. The presence of the stream species Ilyocypris ramirezi and a wide range of ostracode isotope values suggest that ephemeral ponds and lakes are fed by streams during spring run-off and seasonally dry. A temporary character is also indicated by Heterocypris incongruens, a drought-resistant species that occupies most springs and seeps. In addition, Limnocythere rionegroensis has adjusted its reproduction strategies to its environment. Whereas only females were collected in fresh host waters, males were found in ephemeral ponds and lakes with higher solute content. Sexual reproduction seems to be the more successful reproduction strategy in high and variable salinities and seasonal droughts. The temporary character of the aquatic environments shows that the availability of meteoric water controls the life span of host waters and underlines the sensitivity of the area to changes in precipitation.

Physical properties of 39 sediment cores from the Bengal Fan and northeast Indian Ocean

We obtained sediment physical properties and geochemical data from 47 piston and gravity cores located in the Bay of Bengal, to study the complex history of the Late Pleistocene run-off from the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers and its imprint on the Bengal Fan. Grain-size parameters were predicted from core logs of density and velocity to infer sediment transport energy and to distinguish different environments along the 3000-km-long transport path from the delta platform to the lower fan. On the shelf, 27 cores indicate rapidly prograding delta foresets today that contain primarily mud, whereas outer shelf sediment has 25% higher silt contents, indicative of stronger and more stable transport regime, which prevent deposition and expose a Late Pleistocene relic surface. Deposition is currently directed towards the shelf canyon 'Swatch of No Ground', where turbidites are released to the only channel-levee system that is active on the fan during the Holocene. Active growth of the channel-levee system occurred throughout sea-level rise and highstand with a distinct growth phase at the end of the Younger Dryas. Coarse-grained material bypasses the upper fan and upper parts of the middle fan, where particle flow is enhanced as a result of flow-restriction in well-defined channels. Sandier material is deposited mainly as sheet-flow deposits on turbidite-dominated plains at the lower fan. The currently most active part of the fan with 10-40 cm thick turbidites is documented for the central channel including inner levees (e.g., site 40). Site 47 from the lower fan far to the east of the active channel-levee system indicates the end of turbidite sedimentation at 300 ka for that location. That time corresponds to the sea-level lowering during late isotopic stage 9 when sediment supply to the fan increased and led to channel avulsion farther upstream, probably indicating a close relation of climate variability and fan activity. Pelagic deep-sea sites 22 and 28 contain a 630-kyear record of climate response to orbital forcing with dominant 21- and 41-kyear cycles for carbonate and magnetic susceptibility, respectively, pointing to teleconnections of low-latitude monsoonal forcing on the precession band to high-latitude obliquity forcing. Upper slope sites 115, 124, and 126 contain a record of the response to high-frequency climate change in the Dansgaard-Oeschger bands during the last glacial cycle with shared frequencies between 0.75 and 2.5 kyear. Correlation of highs in Bengal Fan physical properties to lows in the d18O record of the GISP2 ice-core suggests that times of greater sediment transport energy in the Bay of Bengal are associated with cooler air temperatures over Greenland. Teleconnections were probably established through moisture and other greenhouse-gas forcing that could have been initiated by instabilities in the methane hydrate reservoir in the oceans.

The distribution of oxygen and nutrients in the Persian Gulf according to observations of R.V. "Meteor" in spring 1965

The Persian Gulf situated in the arid climate region of the northern hemisphere shows special conditions in its hydrochemistry. The high evaporation, the lack of large rivers, and the exclusion of deep water from the Indian Ocean governs the nutrient cycle. At 28 stations in the deeper part of the Persian Gulf (Iran side), in the Strait of Hormuz, and in the Gulf of Oman determinations of dissolved oxygen, dissolved inorganic phosphate, silicate, and pH were carried out. On 4 selected transverse profiles for phosphate, and dissolved oxygen and on 1 length profile for phosphate, silicate, oxygen, and pH the distribution of these components is shown and the in- and outflow is characterized. It is also pointed out that the nutrients on their way into the Persian Gulf are diminished and that temporary replenishment supply from a layer of about 100 m depth in the Indian Ocean follows. On one horizontal map the phosphate distribution in the surface and 30 m layer gives reference to biological activity. One diagram where nitrogen components are plotted against phosphate shows that nitrate is a limiting factor for productivity. O2/PO4-P and PO4-P/S? diagrams enable the different waterbodies and mixed layers to be characterized.