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Description / Table of Contents: The 14th International Symposium for the Advancement of Boundary Layer Remote Sensing (ISARS 2008) addresses acoustical, optical and microwave techniques to probe the lower part of the atmosphere. The symposium focuses on the physical basis of remote sensing techniques and new instruments. A theme for the conference is also various applications of remote sensing, this year with special emphasis on wind energy. ISARS is an informal association of scientists from all over the world which organizes a symposium every second year. While the abbreviation ISARS has remained unchanged since the start in Calgary 1981, the words have changed from International Symposium on Acoustic Remote Sensing and Associated Techniques of the Atmosphere and Oceans because other techniques than the acoustic have become important for boundary layer remote sensing. Specifically lasers for remote wind sensing are developing rapidly. By the end of each symposium the chairman of the next has been elected. So far the symposia have taken place in different countries each time with different chairs. The scientific organizing committee, which consists mainly of chair persons of previous symposia, maintains the continuity of themes and of the organization in general. After the last symposium held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, many of the papers appeared in revised and improved form in a special issue of Meteorologische Zeitschrift. A similar special issue is also planned to follow ISARS 2008. I wish to express my gratitude to the scientific organizing committee for valuable advice and to the local organizing committee for all their effort with the conference papers and the conference itself. Jakob Mann, Conference Chair

Description / Table of Contents: This volume of IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science presents a selection of papers that were given at the 24th Conference of the Danube Countries. Within the framework of the International Hydrological Program IHP of UNESCO. Since 1961 the Danube countries have successfully co-operated in organizing conferences on Hydrological Forecasting and Hydrological Water Management Issues. The 24th Conference of the Danube Countries took place between 2-4 June 2008 in Bled, Slovenia and was organized by the National Committee of Slovenia for the International Hydrological Program of UNESCO, under the auspices of the President of Republic of Slovenia. It was organized jointly by the Slovenian National Commission for UNESCO and the Environmental Agency of the Republic of Slovenia, under the support of UNESCO, WMO, and IAHS...

Description / Table of Contents: The publication of this volume occurs at the one-hundredth anniversary of 1905, which has been called the annus mirabilus because it was the year of a number of enormous scientific advances. Among them are four papers by Albert Einstein explaining (among other things) Brownian motion, the photoelectric effect, the special theory of relativity, and the equation E = mc2. Also of significance in 1905 was the first application of another major advance in physics, which dramatically changed the fields of Earth and planetary science. In March of 1905 (and published the following year), Ernest Rutherford presented the following in the Silliman Lectures at Yale: "The helium observed in the radioactive minerals is almost certainly due to its production from the radium and other radioactive substances contained therein. If the rate of production of helium from known weights of the different radioelements were experimentally known, it should thus be possible to determine the interval required for the production of the amount of helium observed in radioactive minerals, or, in other words, to determine the age of the mineral." Rutherford E (1906) Radioactive Transformations. Charles Scriber's Sons, NY Thus radioisotopic geochronology was born, almost immediately shattering centuries of speculative conjectures and estimates and laying the foundation for establishment of the geologic timescale, the age of the Earth and meteorites, and a quantitative understanding of the rates of processes ranging from nebular condensation to Quaternary glaciations. There is an important subplot to the historical development of radioisotopic dating over the last hundred years, which, ironically, arises directly from the subsequent history of the U-He dating method Rutherford described in 1905. Almost as soon as radioisotopic dating was invented, it was recognized that the U-He [or later the (U-Th)/He method], provided ages that were often far younger than those allowed by stratigraphic correlations or other techniques such as U/Pb dating. Clearly, as R.J. Strutt noted in 1910, He ages only provided "minimum values, because helium leaks out from the mineral, to what extent it is impossible to say" (Strutt, 1910, Proc Roy Soc Lond, Ser A 84:379-388). For several decades most attention was diverted to U/Pb and other techniques better suited to measurement of crystallization ages and establishment of the geologic timescale. Gradually it became clear that other radioisotopic systems such as K/Ar and later fission-track also provided ages that were clearly younger than formation ages. In 1910 it may have been impossible to say the extent to which He (or most other elements) leaked out of minerals, but eventually a growing understanding of thermally-activated diffusion and annealing began to shed light on the significance of such ages. The recognition that some systems can provide cooling, rather than formation, ages, was gradual and diachronous across radioisotopic systems. Most of the heavy lifting in this regard was accomplished by researchers working on the interpretation of K/Ar and fission-track ages. Ironically, Rutherford¹s He-based radioisotopic system was one of the last to be quantitatively interpreted as a thermochronometer, and has been added to K/Ar (including 40Ar/39Ar) and fission-track methods as important for constraining the medium- to low-temperature thermal histories of rocks and minerals. Thermochronology has had a slow and sometimes fitful maturation from what were once troubling age discrepancies and poorly-understood open-system behaviors, into a powerful branch of geochronology applied by Earth scientists from diverse fields. Cooling ages, coupled with quantitative understanding of crystal-scale kinetic phenomena and crustal- or landscape-scale interpretational models now provide an enormous range of insights into tectonics, geomorphology, and subjects of other fields. At the same time, blossoming of lower temperature thermochronometric approaches has inspired new perspectives into the detailed behavior of higher temperature systems that previously may have been primarily used for establishing formation ages. Increased recognition of the importance of thermal histories, combined with improved analytical precision, has motivated progress in understanding the thermochronologic behavior of U/Pb, Sm/Nd, Lu/Hf, and other systems in a wide range of minerals, filling out the temperature range accessible by thermochronologic approaches. Thus the maturation of low- and medium-temperature thermochronology has led to a fuller understanding of the significance of radioisotopic ages in general, and to one degree or another has permeated most of geochronology. Except in rare cases, the goal of thermochronology is not thermal histories themselves, but rather the geologic processes responsible for them. Thermochronometers are now routinely used for quantifying exhumation histories (tectonic or erosional), magmatism, or landscape evolution. As thermochronology has matured, so have model and interpretational approaches used to convert thermal histories into these more useful geologic histories. Low-temperature thermochronology has been especially important in this regard, as knowledge of thermal processes in the uppermost few kilometers of the crust require consideration of coupled interactions of tectonic, geodynamic, and surface processes. Exciting new developments in these fields in turn drive improved thermochronologic methods and innovative sampling approaches.

Description / Table of Contents: Medical Mineralogy and Geochemistry is an emergent, highly interdisciplinary field of study. The disciplines of mineralogy and geochemistry are integral components of cross-disciplinary investigations that aim to understand the interactions between geomaterials and humans as well as the normal and pathological formation of inorganic solid precipitates in vivo. Research strategies and methods include but are not limited to: stability and solubility studies of earth materials and biomaterials in biofluids or their proxies (i.e., equilibrium thermodynamic studies), kinetic studies of pertinent reactions under conditions relevant to the human body, molecular modeling studies, and geospatial and statistical studies aimed at evaluating environmental factors as causes for activating certain chronic diseases in genetically predisposed individuals or populations. Despite its importance, the area of Medical Mineralogy and Geochemistry has received limited attention by scientists, administrators, and the public. The objectives of this volume are to highlight some of the existing research opportunities and challenges, and to invigorate exchange of ideas between mineralogists and geochemists working on medical problems and medical scientists working on problems involving geomaterials and biominerals. Examples presented in this volume (Table of contents below) include the effects of inhaled dust particles in the lung (Huang et al. 2006; Schoonen et al. 2006), biomineralization of bones and teeth (Glimcher et al. 2006), the formation of kidney-stones, the calcification of arteries, the speciation exposure pathways and pathological effects of heavy metal contaminants (Reeder et al. 2006; Plumlee et al. 2006), the transport and fate of prions and pathological viruses in the environment (Schramm et al. 2006), the possible environmental-genetic link in the occurrence of neurodegenerative diseases (Perl and Moalem 2006), the design of biocompatible, bioactive ceramics for use as orthopaedic and dental implants and related tissue engineering applications (Cerruti and Sahai 2006) and the use of oxide-encapsulated living cells for the development of biosensors (Livage and Coradin 2006).

Description / Table of Contents: Minerals are intrinsically resistant to the processes that homogenize silicate liquids—their compositions thus yield an archive of volcanic and magmatic processes that are invisible at the whole rock scale. New experiments, and recent advances in micro-analytical techniques open a new realm of detail regarding the mineralogical record; this volume summarizes some of this progress. The alliance of the sub-fields reviewed in this volume bear upon fundamental issues of volcanology: At what depths are eruptions triggered, and over what time scales? Where and why do magmas coalesce before ascent? If magmas stagnate for thousands of years, what forces are responsible for initiating final ascent, or the degassing processes that accelerate upward motion? To the extent that we can answer these questions, we move towards formulating tests of mechanistic models of volcanic eruptions (e.g., Wilson, 1980; Slezin, 2003; Scandone et al., 2007), and hypotheses of the tectonic controls on magma transport (e.g., ten Brink and Brocher, 1987; Takada, 1994; Putirka and Busby, 2007). Our goal, in part, is to review how minerals can be used to understand volcanic systems and the processes that shape them; we also hope that this work will spur new and integrated studies of volcanic systems. Our review begins by tracing the origins of mineral grains, and methods to estimate pressures (P) and temperatures (T) of crystallization. Hammer shows how "dynamic" experiments (conducted with varying P or T) yield important insights into crystal growth. Chapters by Putirka, Anderson, and Blundy and Cashman review various igneous geothermometers and geobarometers and introduce new calibrations. Among these chapters are many familiar models involving olivine, amphibole, feldspar, pyroxene, and spinel. Blundy and Cashman introduce new methods based on phase equilibria, and in another chapter, Hansteen and Klügel review P estimation based on densities of entrapped fluids and appropriate equations of state. Rutherford's chapter returns to the issue of disequilibrium, with a review of methods to estimate magma ascent rates, and a summary of results. Our volume then moves to a review of melt inclusions. Kent shows how pre-mixed magma compositions can be preserved as inclusions, providing a window into pre-eruptive conditions. Métrich and Wallace review the volatile contents in basaltic melt inclusions and "magma degassing paths". Such methods rely upon vapor saturation pressures, which are derived from experimentally calibrated models. Chapters by Moore and Blundy and Cashman test two of the most important models, by Newman and Lowenstern (2002) (VolatileCalc) and Papale et al. (2006). Moore provides a guide to the appropriate use of these models, and their respective errors. The next four chapters document insights obtained from isotopic studies and diffusion profiles. Ramos and Tepley review developments of micro-analytical isotope measurements, which now have the potential to elucidate even the most cryptic of open system behaviors. Cooper and Reid examine the time scales for such processes through U-series age dating techniques, and Bindeman reviews oxygen isotopes and their uses as tracers of both magmas and crystals. Costa then reviews yet another means to estimate the rates of magmatic processes, using mineral diffusion profiles, with important implications for magma processing. In the next two chapters, Streck reviews an array of imaging methods and mineral textures, and their potential for disentangling mixed magmas, and Armienti takes a new look at the analysis of crystal size distributions (CSD), with applications to Mt. Etna. Our volume concludes with a chapter by Bachmann and Bergantz summarizing compositional zonations and a review of the thermal and compositional forces that drive open system behavior. Finally, descriptions of many of the most common analytical approaches are also reviewed within these chapters. Analytical topics include: secondary ion mass spectrometry (Blundy and Cashman; Kent); electron microprobe (Blundy and Cashman; Kent; Métrich and Wallace; laser ablation ICP-MS (Kent; Ramos and Tepley); Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (Moore; Métrich and Wallace); microsampling and isotope mass spectrometry (Ramos and Tepley); U-series measurement techniques (Cooper and Reid); Nomarski differential interference contrasts (Streck); micro-Raman spectroscopy (Métrich and Wallace); back-scattered electron microscopy, and cathodoluminescence (Blundy and Cashman). As noted, our hope is that integrated studies can bring us closer to understanding how volcanic systems evolve and why eruptions occur. Our primary goal is to review how minerals can be used to understand volcanic systems; we also hope that this review might spur new and integrated studies of volcanic systems.

Description / Table of Contents: Chapter 1. Significant ages—An introduction to petrochronology by Martin Engi, Pierre Lanari, Matthew J. Kohn, p. 1-12 --- Chapter 2. Phase relations, reaction sequences and petrochronology by Chris Yakymchuk, Chris Clark, Richard W. White, p. 13-54 --- Chapter 3. Local bulk composition effects on metamorphic mineral assemblages by Pierre Lanari and Martin Engi, p. 55-102 --- Chapter 4. Diffusion: Obstacles and opportunities in petrochronology by Matthew J. Kohn and Sarah c. Penniston–Dorland, p. 103-152 --- Chapter 5. Electron microprobe petrochronology by Michael L. Williams, Michael J. Jercinovic, Kevin H. Mahan, and Gregory Dumond, p. 153-182 --- Chapter 6. Petrochronology by laser–ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry by Andrew R. C. Kylander–Clark, p. 183-198 --- Chapter 7. Secondary ionization mass spectrometry analysis in petrochronology by Axel K. Schmitt and Jorge A. Vazquez, p. 199-230 --- Chapter 8. Petrochronology and TIMS by Blair Schoene and Ethan F. Baxter, p. 231-260 --- Chapter 9. Zircon: The metamorphic mineral by Daniela Rubatto, p. 261-296 --- Chapter 10. Petrochronology of zircon and baddeleyite in igneous rocks: Reconstructing magmatic processes at high temporal resolution by Urs Schaltegger and Jishua H. F. L. Davies, p. 297-328 --- Chapter 11. Hadean zircon petrochronology by T. Mark Harrison, Elizabeth A. Bell, and Patrick Boehnke, p. 329-364 --- Chapter 12. Petrochronology based on REE–minerals: monazite, allanite, xenotime, apatite by Martin Engi, p. 365-418 --- Chapter 13. Titanite petrochronology by Matthew J. Kohn, p. 419-442 --- Chapter 14. Petrology and geochronology of rutile by Thomas Zack and Ellen Kooijman, p. 443-468 --- Chapter 15. Garnet: A rock-forminf mineral petrochronometer by E. F. Baxter, M. J. Caddick, p. 469-534 --- Chapter 16. Chronometry and speedometry of magmatic processes using chemical diffusion in olivine, plagioclase and pyroxenes by Ralf Dohmen, Kathrin Faak, and Jon D. Blundy, p. 535-575

Description / Table of Contents: As geomicrobiologists, we seek to understand how some of nature's most complex systems work, yet the very complexity we seek to understand has placed many of the insights out of reach. Recent advances in cultivation methodologies, the development of ultrahigh throughput DNA sequencing capabilities, and new methods to assay gene expression and protein function open the way for rapid progress. In the eight years since the first Geomicrobiology volume (Geomicrobiology: Interactions between microbes and minerals; volume 35 in this series) we have transformed into scientists working hand in hand with biochemists, molecular biologists, genome scientists, analytical chemists, and even physicists to reveal the most fundamental molecular-scale underpinnings of biogeochemical systems. Through synthesis achieved by integration of diverse perspectives, skills, and interests, we have begun to learn how organisms mediate chemical transformations, the ways in which the environment determines the architecture of microbial communities, and the interplay between evolution and selection that shapes the biodiversity of the planet. This volume presents chapters written by leaders in the rapidly maturing field we refer to as molecular geomicrobiology. Most of them are relatively young researchers who share their approaches and insights and provide pointers to exciting areas ripe for new advances. This volume ties together themes common to environmental microbiology, earth science, and astrobiology. The resesarch presented here, the associated short course, and the volume production were supported by funding from many sources, notably the Mineralogical Society of America, the Geochemical Society, the US Department of Energy Chemical Sciences Program and the NASA Astrobiology Institute.

Description / Table of Contents: Over 25 years ago, Volume 9 of Reviews in Mineralogy: Amphiboles and Other Hydrous Pyriboles seemed to contain all that was possible to know about this group of fascinating minerals. The subsequent twenty-five years have shown that this assessment was wrong: Nature was keeping a lot in reserve, and has since revealed considerable new complexity in the constitution and behavior of amphiboles. Some of the advances in knowledge have been due to the use of new experimental techniques, some have been due to the investigation of hitherto neglected rock-types, and some have been due to the development of new ideas. The identification and systematic investigation of variable LLE (Light Lithophile Elements), particularly Li and H, led to the identification of several new amphibole species and the recognition that variable Li and H play an important role in chemical variations in amphiboles from both igneous and metamorphic parageneses. In turn, this work drove the development of microbeam SIMS to analyze LLE in amphiboles. Detailed mineralogical work on metasyenites showed hitherto unexpected solid-solution between Na and Li at the M(4) site in monoclinic amphiboles, a discovery that has upset the current scheme of amphibole classification and nomenclature and initiated new efforts in this direction. Systematic and well-planned synthesis of amphiboles, combined with careful spectroscopy, has greatly furthered our understanding of cation and anion order in amphiboles. The use of bond-valence theory to predict patterns of SRO (Short-Range Order) in amphiboles, and use of these predictions to understand the infrared spectra of well-characterized synthetic-amphibole solid-solutions, has shown that SRO is a major feature of the amphibole structure, and has resulted in major advances in our understanding of SRO in minerals. There has been significant progress relating changes in amphibole composition and cation ordering to petrogenetic conditions and trace-element behavior. Work on the nature of fibrous amphiboles and their toxicity and persistence in living organisms has emphasized the importance of accurate mineralogical characterization in environmental and health-related problems. The current volume has taken a different approach from previous volumes concerned with major groups of rock-forming minerals. Some of the contents have previously been organized by the investigative technique or groups of similar techniques: crystal-structure refinement, spectroscopy, TEM etc. Here, we have taken an approach that focuses on aspects of amphiboles rather than experimental techniques: crystal chemistry, new compositions, long-range order, short-range order etc., and all experimental results germane to these topics are discussed in each chapter. The intent of this approach is to focus on amphiboles, and to emphasize that many techniques are necessary to fully understand each aspect of the amphiboles and their behavior in both natural and industrial processes.

Description / Table of Contents: Earth is a water planet. Oceans of liquid water dominate the surface processes of the planet. On the surface, water controls weathering as well as transport and deposition of sediments. Liquid water is necessary for life. In the interior, water fluxes melting and controls the solid-state viscosity of the convecting mantle and so controls volcanism and tectonics. Oceans cover more than 70% of the surface but make up only about 0.025% of the planet's mass. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the cosmos, but in the bulk Earth, it is one of the most poorly constrained chemical compositional variables. Almost all of the nominally anhydrous minerals that compose the Earth's crust and mantle can incorporate measurable amounts of hydrogen. Because these are minerals that contain oxygen as the principal anion, the major incorporation mechanism is as hydroxyl, OH-, and the chemical component is equivalent to water, H2O. Although the hydrogen proton can be considered a monovalent cation, it does not occupy same structural position as a typical cation in a mineral structure, but rather forms a hydrogen bond with the oxygens on the edge of the coordination polyhedron. The amount incorporated is thus quite sensitive to pressure and the amount of H that can be incorporated in these phases generally increases with pressure and sometimes with temperature. Hydrogen solubility in nominally anhydrous minerals is thus much more sensitive to temperature and pressure than that of other elements. Because the mass of rock in the mantle is so large relative to ocean mass, the amount that is incorporated the nominally anhydrous phases of the interior may constitute the largest reservoir of water in the planet. Understanding the behavior and chemistry of hydrogen in minerals at the atomic scale is thus central to understanding the geology of the planet. There have been significant recent advances in the detection, measurement, and location of H in the nominally anhydrous silicate and oxide minerals that compose the planet. There have also been advances in experimental methods for measurement of H diffusion and the effects of H on the phase boundaries and physical properties whereby the presence of H in the interior may be inferred from seismic or other geophysical studies. It is the objective of this volume to consolidate these advances with reviews of recent research in the geochemistry and mineral physics of hydrogen in the principal mineral phases of the Earth's crust and mantle.

Description / Table of Contents: Fluids rich in water, carbon and sulfur species and a variety of dissolved salts are a ubiquitous transport medium for heat and matter in the Earth’s interior. Fluid transport through the upper mantle and crust controls the origin of magmatism above subduction zones and results in natural risks of explosive volcanism. Fluids passing through rocks affect the chemical and heat budget of the global oceans, and can be utilized as a source of geothermal energy on land. Fluid transport is a key to the formation and the practical utilization of natural resources, from the origin of hydrothermal mineral deposits, through the exploitation of gaseous and liquid hydrocarbons as sources of energy and essential raw materials, to the subsurface storage of waste materials such as CO2. Different sources of fluids and variable paths of recycling volatile components from the hydrosphere and atmosphere through the solid interior of the Earth lead to a broad range of fluid compositions, from aqueous liquids and gases through water-rich silicate or salt melts to carbon-rich endmember compositions. Different rock regimes in the crust and mantle generate characteristic ranges of fluid composition, which depending on pressure, temperature and composition are miscible to greatly variable degrees. For example, aqueous liquids and vapors are increasingly miscible at elevated pressure and temperature. The degree of this miscibility is, however, greatly influenced by the presence of additional carbonic or salt components. A wide range of fluid–fluid interactions results from this partial miscibility of crustal fluids. Vastly different chemical and physical properties of variably miscible fluids, combined with fluid flow from one pressure – temperature regime to another, therefore have major consequences for the chemical and physical evolution of the crust and mantle. Several recent textbooks and review articles have addressed the role and diverse aspects of fluids in crustal processes. However, immiscibility of fluids and the associated phenomena of m ultiphase fluid flow are generally dealt with only in subsections with respect to specific environments and aspects of fluid mediated processes. This volume of Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry attempts to fill this gap and to explicitly focus on the role that co-existing fluids play in the diverse geologic environments. It brings together the previously somewhat detached literature on fluid–fluid interactions in continental, volcanic, submarine and subduction zone environments. It emphasizes that fluid mixing and unmixing are widespread processes that may occur in all geologic environments of the entire crust and upper mantle. Despite different P-T conditions, the fundamental processes are analogous in the different settings.