Geological map of Potter Peninsula (King George Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctic Peninsula)

We present here a new geological map of Potter Peninsula (King George Island, South Shetland Islands). Like on adjacent Barton Peninsula, the morphology on Potter Peninsula is predominantly characterized by a glacial landscape with abrasion platforms offshore, in parts steep cliffs along the coast, and a rather smooth, hilly countryside in the interior. Potter Peninsula forms part of the downthrown Warszawa Block. The volcanic sequence cropping out here belongs to the King George Island Supergroup, with an observed local minimum thickness of approx. 90 m (Kraus 2005). The most prominent morphological feature is Three Brothers Hill (196 m), a well known andesitic plug showing conspicuous columnar jointing. It marks the final stage of activity of a Paleogene volcano, whose eruption products (lava flows and pyroclastic rocks), together with hypabyssal intrusions related to the volcanism, make up most of the lithology observed on Potter Peninsula (Kraus 2005). The Three Brothers Hill volcanic complex is eroded down to its deepest levels. Thus, the stratigraphically deepest units from the initial phase of volcanic activity are cropping out in some parts (Kraus & del Valle, in Wienke et al. 2008). The lithology on Potter Peninsula comprises lava flows (~50%), pyroclastic rocks (ash-fallout, pyroclastic flow deposits, volcanic breccia and agglomerates, ~30%) and hypabyssal intrusions (dykes, sills and small subvolcanic intrusive bodies, ~20%). 40Ar/39Ar datings carried out on magmatic dykes from Potter Peninsula indicate a short, but intense intrusive event during the Lutetian (Kraus et al. 2007).

Old-lore miscellany of Orkney, Shetland, Caitness and Sutherland.

Viking Society for Northern Research.

Sketches and stories of Scotland and the Scotch, and Shetland and the Shetlanders.

Mode of access: Internet.

The general grievances and oppression of the isles of Orkney and Shetland /

Part II (p. 99-112) deals with the scat, or ancient land-tax levied in the Shetland Islands.

An American in Iceland. An account of its scenery, people and history. With a description of its millennial celebration in August, 1874; with notes on the Orkney, Shetland, and Faroe islands, and the great eruption of 1875.

Mode of access: Internet.

The Shetland pony.

Mode of access: Internet.

Geochemistry, fatty acid content and phylogenetic affiliation of soil samples from Livingston Island, South Shetland Archipelago, Antarctica

Microorganisms inhabit very different soil habitats in the ice-free areas of Antarctica, playing a major role in nutrient cycling in cold environments. We studied the soil characteristics and the dominant bacterial composition from nine different soil profiles located on Livingston Island (maritime Antarctica). The total carbon (TC) and total nitrogen (TN) values were high for the vegetated soils, decreasing with depth, whereas the values for the mineral soils were generally low. Soil pH was more acidic for moss-covered soils and neutral to alkaline for mineral soils. Numbers of culturable heterotrophic bacteria were higher at vegetated sites, but significant numbers were also detectable in carbon-depleted soils. Patterns of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) revealed a highly heterogeneous picture throughout the soil profiles. Subsequent sequencing of DGGE bands revealed in total 252 sequences that could be assigned to 114 operational taxonomic units, showing the dominance of members of the Bacteroidetes and Acidobacteria. The results of phospholipid fatty acid analysis showed a lack of unsaturated fatty acids for most of the samples. Samples with a prevalence of unsaturated over saturated fatty acids were restricted to several surface samples. Statistical analysis showed that the dominant soil bacterial community composition is most affected by TC and TN contents and soil physical factors such as grain size and moisture, but not pH. Keywords

Regional Magma Plumbing and emplacement mechanisms of the Faroe-Shetland Sill Complex : Implications for magma transport and petroleum systems within sedimentary basins

Peer reviewed

Regional Magma Plumbing and emplacement mechanisms of the Faroe-Shetland Sill Complex : Implications for magma transport and petroleum systems within sedimentary basins

Peer reviewed

Posterior Probability Modeling and Image Classification for Archaeological Site Prospection: Building a Survey Efficacy Model for Identifying Neolithic Felsite Workshops in the Shetland Islands

The application of custom classification techniques and posterior probability modeling (PPM) using Worldview-2 multispectral imagery to archaeological field survey is presented in this paper. Research is focused on the identification of Neolithic felsite stone tool workshops in the North Mavine region of the Shetland Islands in Northern Scotland. Sample data from known workshops surveyed using differential GPS are used alongside known non-sites to train a linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classifier based on a combination of datasets including Worldview-2 bands, band difference ratios (BDR) and topographical derivatives. Principal components analysis is further used to test and reduce dimensionality caused by redundant datasets. Probability models were generated by LDA using principal components and tested with sites identified through geological field survey. Testing shows the prospective ability of this technique and significance between 0.05 and 0.01, and gain statistics between 0.90 and 0.94, higher than those obtained using maximum likelihood and random forest classifiers. Results suggest that this approach is best suited to relatively homogenous site types, and performs better with correlated data sources. Finally, by combining posterior probability models and least-cost analysis, a survey least-cost efficacy model is generated showing the utility of such approaches to archaeological field survey.

Caracterização 3D de movimentos de massa em terrenos com permafrost nas Ilhas Shetland do Sul (1956 - 2010) através de detecção remota, na banda do visível

Dissertação de Mestrado, Geomática, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve, 2015

The Importance of Revenue Sharing for the Local Economic Impacts of a Renewable Energy Project: A Social Accounting Matrix Approach

As demand for electricity from renewable energy sources grows, there is increasing interest, and public and financial support, for local communities to become involved in the development of renewable energy projects. In the UK, “Community Benefit” payments are the most common financial link between renewable energy projects and local communities. These are “goodwill” payments from the project developer for the community to spend as it wishes. However, if an ownership stake in the renewable energy project were possible, receipts to the local community would potentially be considerably higher. The local economic impacts of these receipts are difficult to quantify using traditional Input-Output techniques, but can be more appropriately handled within a Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) framework where income flows between agents can be traced in detail. We use a SAM for the Shetland Islands to evaluate the potential local economic and employment impact of a large onshore wind energy project proposed for the Islands. Sensitivity analysis is used to show how the local impact varies with: the level of Community Benefit payments; the portion of intermediate inputs being sourced from within the local economy; and the level of any local community ownership of the project. By a substantial margin, local ownership confers the greatest economic impacts for the local community.

Slope processes in changing permafrost environments: a geomorphological and sedimentological approach

Estudi realitzat a partir d’una estada al Centro de Estudos Geograficos de la Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal, entre 2011 i 2012. En aquest grup he desenvolupat la meva recerca focalitzada en ambients polars en presència de permafrost, concretament centrada en l’extrem nord-occidental de la Península Antàrtica (Shetland del Sud) i a l’Alt Àrtic (Svalvard). Ambdós àrees han registrat un augment de temperatura molt significatiu les darreres dècades. La meva recerca ha contemplat l’anàlisi de registres sedimentaris (lacustres, eòlics, vessant) i la monitorització de processos geomorfològics actuals a fi efecte d’entendre la dinàmica ambiental present i passada (i.e. clima). Amb aquesta finalitat he realitzat tres campanyes de treball de camp a l’Antàrtida i dues a l’Àrtic. El posterior treball de laboratori i d’oficina està propiciant nombroses publicacions que donen fe dels èxits assolits. A més, cal enfatitzar altres activitats desenvolupades durant la BP-A: coneixement de com organitzar i gestionar una campanya antàrtica, docència universitària, participació en comitès, associacions i tribunals de tesis doctorals, organització i participació en nombroses conferències, treball de camp en noves àrees d’estudi, referee per revistes internacionals, etc. Tanmateix, la concessió del projecte de recerca HOLOANTAR, del qual en sóc l’Investigador Responsable, ha estat l’èxit més important d’aquesta estada. Aquest projecte m’està conferint la capacitat de gestionar i integrar la recerca de 16 investigadors de diferents nacionalitats des d’una perspectiva multidisciplinar. Tothora, cal remarcar que no s’ha assolit un dels èxits que pretenia el meu projecte de BP-A: la transferència del bagatge i coneixement adquirit al sistema de recerca català. Malgrat haver presentat la meva candidatura per un contracte BP-B per tal que aquest background après a l’estranger revertís a Catalunya, el procés de selecció emprat en la convocatòria ho ha impedit i m’obliga a continuar la meva recerca a l’estranger.

Interferometría SAR en las islas Shetlend del Sur: modelo numérico de elevaciones de la Isla Decepción

La interferometría con imágenes de radar de apertura sintética (SAR: Synthetic Aperture Radar) desde satélite es una técnica que permite obtener información altimétrica del relieve terrestre, siendo especialmente útil en áreas remotas. Este trabajo muestra una aplicación de esta técnica en las islas Shetland del Sur (Antártida). Para ello se han utilizado imágenes SAR obtenidas por los satélites ERS (European Remote Sensing) de la Agencia Espacial Europea (ESA: European Space Agency) y un proceso interferométrico desarrollado entre el Departament de Geodinàmica i Geofísica de la Universitat de Barcelona y el Institut Cartogràfic de Catalunya.

Caracterización geológica de la región de enlace entre la Cuenca de Bransfield y la Dorsal Sur de Scotia (Antártida)

La Dorsal Sur de Scotia (DSS) constituye une frontera de placas transformante con sentido senestral, que limita las placas de Scotia, al norte, y Antártica, al sur. Durante la campaña de geología y geofísica marinas 'Scotia 92', realizada en Febrero de 1992 a bordo del BIO Hespérides, se ha estudiado su extremo occidental y sectores próximos a la Cuenca de Bransfield, entre el margen nor-occidental de la Península Antártica y las islas Shetland del Sur, Elefante y Orcadas del Sur. Al norte y sur de la DSS se desarrollan las cuencas de Scotia y de Powell, respectivamente. Los datos de sísmica de multicanal, magnetismo y gravimetna obtenidos muestran caracteristicas diferenciales entre ambas cuencas. La morfoestructura de la DSS, formada por dos crestas paralelas separadas por una profunda depresión axial, ha sido recubierta mediante perfilaje de multihaz con el sistema SIMRAD EM-12 en una área de 50 x 100 km. La batimetría resultante ha permitido reconocer en detalle las caracteristicas de una depresión de más de 5.300 m de profundidad y de 10 a 30 km de anchura, bautizada como Fosa Hespérides. En ella se aprecia la existencia de dos famílias de lineaciones, la primera de dirección E-W y paralela al límite de placas, y la segunda de dirección NW-SE. La primera acomodaría el movimiento cizallante regional mientras que la segunda estaría asociada con una componente extensional probablemente relacionada con la dirección de la Cuenca de Bransfield. La forma romboédrica de la fosa está determinada por la interacción de ambas famílias de lineaciones. Teniendo en cuenta que el límite de placas transcurre entre las dos crestas, interpretamos la Fosa Hespérides como una cuenca de pull-apart desarrollada como consecuencia del movimiento de cizalla a lo largo de la DSS.