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Earth and environmental sciences cover all planetary and Earth science aspects, including solid Earth processes, development of Earth, environmental issues, ecology, marine and freshwater systems, as well as the human interaction with these systems.
Earth and Environmental Sciences
The study of shock-metamorphic features of the Zagami meteorite revealed pseudotachylite-like melt veins with inhomogeneous chemistry and schlieren structure of silica-glass and alkali feldspar melt glass. The feldspar occurs as diaplectic glass in the interstitial area indicating short-time (few seconds) quenching of shock pressure during the impact event, with post-shock annealing. At several locations, apatite needles were identified, which are formed by fluids (cold water with dissolved ions) after the crystallization of cumulate magmatic minerals. Phosphates also could form in impact melts due to circulation of fluids after the impact event. The other signature for the high shock temperature is the presence of Ca–Ti-rich pyroxenes and titanomagnetite, which indicate temperature above 1,200 °C. The formation of silica-rich melt in interstitial area has two scenarios: (a) fractional melting of the Martian crust or (b) formation by pseudotachylite-like impact melting. According to textural observations (schlieren pattern), we propose an impact origin of the large amount of silica-rich melt in this meteorite. Pseudotachylite-like textures were mentioned earlier in terrestrial impact craters; however, we first propose them to form in a Martian meteorite based on their similarity of texture with terrestrial pseudotachylites.
With the intent of making data acquisition for fractal geometry-based discrete fracture network (DFN) modeling time-efficient and automatized, a new method was established. For the automation of data retrieval from the images of the studied surfaces, a series of image-processing operations and MATLAB algorithms have been developed. The method allows the retrieval of more than 1,000 fracture-length data/cm2 of one sample in several minutes. This methodology tends to be a useful tool in studies of fracture network geometries. DFN models of a supposed excavated and/or environmental damage zone, designed with the use of data supplied by the above method, are presented in this work as an example.
Most cities in the world have experienced major developments in the past 20–25 years. However, research has showed that the development aspect of these cities has led to a decrease in green areas. This paper aims to assess the spatiotemporal variations of urban green areas during the period 1990–2015 with special regard to city of Erbil. The study uses a mix of fuzzy functions, linear spectral mixture analysis, and maximum likelihood classification for the classification of Landsat imagery from 1990 to 2015 to extract the four main classes of land use, namely agricultural land, vacant land, built-up land, and green vegetation. Both the classification approaches used in this research produced excellent and reliable results, as an overall accuracy of more than 80% was able to be obtained. The spatiotemporal analysis of land use within the city of Erbil shows a series of major changes between 1990 and 2015. Therefore, the results of the spatiotemporal evolution of urban greenness assessment in the Erbil region can be used both for spatial planning purposes and as an urban greenness assessment method in dry climate areas.
The past decade has seen a great number of studies dealing with magmatic water contents and how these could be retrieved by the nominally anhydrous minerals’ (NAMs) trace structural hydroxyl (water) contents. Constraints have been made to magmatic hygrometry with clinopyroxene and plagioclase. Although results suggest that the method is more flexible and reliable than melt inclusion studies, they also indicate that the trace hydroxyl contents could still be overprinted by syn- and post-eruptive processes. Clinopyroxenes can hold more structural hydroxyl than plagioclases. A comprehensive review is presented with the inclusion of all published results so far to compile the available pieces of information. As a case study, micro-FTIR measurements are made of a representative set of plagioclase phenocrysts from the Börzsöny Mts. (Carpathian–Pannonian Region). The samples were selected to represent the progress of the volcanic activity in time and space, considering the petrologic and geochemical evolution of volcanic products in well-defined volcanostratigraphic positions. The syn- and post-eruptive cooling rate seems to have the greatest effect on water retention. This means that the systematic investigation of water in volcanic phenocrysts can contribute to distinguish the slowly and rapidly cooling parts of the volcanostratigraphic units.
The aim of this study is to identify the milestones of landscape evolution around the Ecse Mound (Karcag-Kunmadaras, Hortobágy National Park, Hungary) in the Holocene period by sedimentological and malacological analysis of strata underneath and within the body of the kurgan concerned, including that of the same characteristics of the artificially piled layers. An undisturbed core drilling was carried out and the sedimentological properties of both the mound and of the substrate baserock were revealed, analysis of which has been supported by three radiocarbon (AMS) measurements. The baserock formation during the last phase of the Ice Age, Middle and Upper Pleniglacial, and Late Glacial phases was followed by soil development in the Holocene, while the mound was constructed in two phases at the end of the Copper Age by the communities of the Pit Grave (Yamna or Ochre Grave) Culture. By publishing these preliminary data, it is also intended to draw attention to the need of focused research efforts by standardized methodology in kurgan research, in order to make the results of different studies consistent and comparable.
Many river banks throughout the world are prone to landslides; therefore, serious efforts are made to develop landslide early warning systems. This study presents a method by which the stability changes of the river banks can be continuously monitored; necessary measures can be taken in time to reduce the damage. The method was tested in Dunaszekcső (Hungary), where the high loess bank of the River Danube has been intensively moving since 2007. The tilts of the high bank were measured by two borehole tiltmeters. The connection between tilt values and the river- and groundwater-level variations was investigated by multivariable and moving window regression analyses on the basis of a 6-year-long observation from 2011 to 2016. The results show that increasing regression coefficients mean decreasing stability of the high river bank, so the developed method can be used for continuous supervision of the high bank stability. The method is also suitable for studying the causes of motion processes. Investigations showed clearly that the effect of groundwater table variations is two orders of magnitude higher than the water-level variations of the River Danube. In addition to the erosion of the river, various small tilts of the stable and unstable parts also contribute to the arising of new cracks in the stable part, decreasing its width.
The Úrkút manganese ore deposit (Transdanubian Range, Hungary) is one of the largest manganese accumulations to be formed during the Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event. In the past 60 years, the area was investigated intensively. The core storage facility of the manganese mine had more than 20,000 sample pieces. Most of these samples have never been investigated. During this study, which is the first widespread clay mineral study in the footwall of the Úrkút manganese ore deposit, we investigated 40 samples from seven boreholes (footwall rocks, black/gray shales below and above the first ore bed, and manganese carbonate ores). Although previous studies assumed that smectite is associated only with the ore beds, our research revealed its appearance in the footwall (Pliensbachian) as well. Simultaneously, tripoli (the local name of completely bleached chert) can also be found in the footwall. Based on the investigated samples, a sharp geochemical difference was detected between Pliensbachian and Toarcian sediments. In this paper, we try to trace the relationship between the smectite content of the footwall and the ore bed and compare these results with the observed geochemical changes. Based on the new data, we assume that the ore accumulation was caused by a flow system (upwelling-controlled ore formation).
A WRB diagnosztikai elemeit és a felszínborítási adatokat kombinálva a talajokat ért antropogén hatás mértéke szerint négy csoportot alkottunk: 1. nincs talaj, 2. antropogén eredetű talaj, 3. természetes talaj, de lényeges antropogén bélyegekkel, illetve 4. természetes talaj. A négy csoport valamelyikéhez egyértelműen hozzárendelhető a felszínborítási osztályok mindegyike. Az általunk kidolgozott módszer segítségével értékeltük Magyarország talajtakarójának természetességét. Az ország területének 2%-án nem számolhatunk a FAO által definiált értelemben talaj létével, 6%-án antropogén talajok várhatók (Anthrosol, vagy Technosol), 66%-án a természetes talajok antropogén átalakítottsága eléri a WRB diagnosztikai határértékeit, és mindössze 26% azon talajok aránya, amelyekben antropogén hatások a diagnosztikában nem jelennek meg, azaz természetes vagy természetközeli állapotúként értékelhetők. Talajtípusok tekintetében legnagyobb mértékű emberi hatással a csernozjomok, réti és öntés talajok esetében számolhatunk, míg természetközeli állapotú talajok legnagyobb kiterjedésben a kőzethatású és váztalajokon maradtak fenn. A területi különbségek is jelentősek: míg legnagyobb arányban a Hajdúságon és a Körös-Maros közén találunk antropogén hatásokkal érintett talajokat, addig a természetközeli állapotú talajok aránya az Északi-középhegység egyes hegyvidéki területein a legnagyobb.
Módszerünk csak becslésre alkalmas, mégis jó áttekintést ad a hazai talajok antropogén átalakítottságának mértékéről, az emberi tevékenység, mint hatodik talajképző tényező jelentőségéről, intenzitásának térbeli eloszlásáról, amely a hazai talajtani adottságoknak egy eddig kevéssé vizsgált aspektusa.
A talajok szélerózióval szembeni érzékenységének egyik gyakran használt mérőszáma az erodálhatósági faktor, amelynek mérését többféle módszerrel is el lehet végezni. Mivel e mérőszám hazai használhatóságának vizsgálata eddig még nem történt meg, ezért munkánk alapvető célja annak megválaszolása volt, hogy hazai talajok esetében mennyire használható ez az érték, valamint, hogy a vizsgált talajtulajdonságok milyen mértékben és milyen irányban hatnak az EF-index értékének változására. Vizsgáltuk továbbá azt is, hogy az amerikai talajokra kidolgozott, az EF- index becslését lehetővé tevő egyenlet adaptálható-e hazai talajok esetén.
Az EF-index meghatározásához szitarázó gépet, a kapott adatok feldolgozásához, valamint a vizsgált paraméterek közötti kapcsolatok feltárásához statisztikai módszereket használtunk.
A mérések eredményei alapján elmondhatjuk, hogy a vizsgált nyírségi talajminták kb. 50%-a az erősen veszélyeztetett kategóriába tartozik. Az EF értékét legerőteljesebben a talajok mechanikai összetétele, kisebb mértékben pedig a szervesanyag- és CaCO3-tartalma befolyásolta. A kapcsolat minden esetben szignifikáns volt.
Elemzéseinkkel az is kimutatható volt, hogy a vizsgált nyírségi talajok esetében a FRYREAR et al., által kidolgozott egyenlet nem alkalmas arra, hogy kielégítően becsülje a talajokra jellemző EF- index értékét.
