Elevated marine deposits in Bermuda record a late Quaternary megatsunami

Deposits of coral-bearing, marine shell conglomerate exposed at elevations higher than 20 m above present-day mean sea level (MSL) in Bermuda and the Bahamas have previously been interpreted as relict intertidal deposits formed during marine isotope stage (MIS) I I, ca. 360-420 ka before present. On the strength of this evidence, a sea level highstand more than 20 m higher than present-day MSL was inferred for the MIS I I interglacial, despite a lack of clear supporting evidence in the oxygen-isotope records of deep-sea sediment cores. We have critically re-examined the elevated marine deposits in Bermuda, and find their geological setting, sedimentary relations, and microfaunal assemblages to be inconsistent with intertidal deposition over an extended period. Rather, these deposits, which comprise a poorly sorted mixture of reef, lagoon and shoreline sediments, appear to have been carried tens of meters inside karst caves, presumably by large waves, at some time earlier than ca. 310-360 ka before present (MIS 9-11). We hypothesize that these deposits are the result of a large tsunami during the mid-Pleistocene, in which Bermuda was impacted by a wave set that carried sediments from the surrounding reef platform and nearshore waters over the eolianite atoll. Likely causes for such a megatsunami are the flank collapse of an Atlantic island volcano, such as the roughly synchronous Julan or Orotava submarine landslides in the Canary Islands, or a giant submarine landslide on the Atlantic continental margin. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Two years' cruise off Tierra del Fuego, the Falkland Islands, Patagonia, and in the river Plate; a narrative of life in the southern seas.

Mode of access: Internet.

The night of toil ; or, A familiar account of the labours of the first missionaries in the South Sea Islands /

Mode of access: Internet.

A narrative of missionary enterprises in the South Sea Islands; with remarks upon the natural history of the islands, origin, languages, traditions, and usages of the inhabitants.

Mode of access: Internet.

Missionary voyages among the South Sea islands.

Mainly on the voyages of the ship Duff, of the London Missionary Society. Chapter 14 on the visit of the Vincennes to South Sea in 1829, 1830.

History of the Sandwich Islands : with an account of the American mission established there in 1820. With a supplement, embracing the history of the wonderful displays of God's power in these islands in 1837-1839. Revised by the Committee of Publication of the American Sunday-School Union.

Mode of access: Internet.

Dictionary and grammar of the language of Saʻa and Ulawa, Solomon islands,

Appendices: A brief grammar of Saʻa and Ulawa. The Lord's prayer in twenty languages, as used in the diocese of Melanesia among the islands of the south Pacific. Linguistics in the western Pacific. Melanesia and its people. Historical notes concerning the Melanesian mission. Yachting in Melanesia. The Queensland labor trade. Santa Cruz.

History of the Sandwich Islands, with an account of the American mission established there in 1820.

Mode of access: Internet.

Narrative of a tour through Hawaii, or Owhyhee; with observations on the natural of the Sandwich Islands, and remarks on the manners, customs, traditions, history, and language of the inhabitants.

Mode of access: Internet.

History of the Sandwich Islands / by Sheldon Dibble. --

Mode of access: Internet.

Polynesia: a history of the South Sea Islands, including New Zealand; with narrative of the introduction of Christianity, & c.

Mode of access: Internet.

Basic measurements of radiation from the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) in the years 1992 to 2012, reference list of 6378 datasets

In the framework of the global energy balance, the radiative energy exchanges between Sun, Earth and space are now accurately quantified from new satellite missions. Much less is known about the magnitude of the energy flows within the climate system and at the Earth surface, which cannot be directly measured by satellites. In addition to satellite observations, here we make extensive use of the growing number of surface observations to constrain the global energy balance not only from space, but also from the surface. We combine these observations with the latest modeling efforts performed for the 5th IPCC assessment report to infer best estimates for the global mean surface radiative components. Our analyses favor global mean downward surface solar and thermal radiation values near 185 and 342 Wm**-2, respectively, which are most compatible with surface observations. Combined with an estimated surface absorbed solar radiation and thermal emission of 161 Wm**-2 and 397 Wm**-2, respectively, this leaves 106 Wm**-2 of surface net radiation available for distribution amongst the non-radiative surface energy balance components. The climate models overestimate the downward solar and underestimate the downward thermal radiation, thereby simulating nevertheless an adequate global mean surface net radiation by error compensation. This also suggests that, globally, the simulated surface sensible and latent heat fluxes, around 20 and 85 Wm**-2 on average, state realistic values. The findings of this study are compiled into a new global energy balance diagram, which may be able to reconcile currently disputed inconsistencies between energy and water cycle estimates.

Ordering of Ge islands on Si(001) substrates patterned by nanoindentation

Spatial organization of Ge islands, grown by physical vapor deposition, on prepatterned Si(001) substrates has been investigated. The substrates were patterned prior to Ge deposition by nanoindentation. Characterization of Ge dots is performed by atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The nanoindents act as trapping sites, allowing ripening of Ge islands at those locations during subsequent deposition and diffusion of Ge on the surface. The results show that island ordering is intrinsically linked to the nucleation and growth at indented sites and it strongly depends on pattern parameters.