YEAR IN REVIEW 2000: EARTH-AND-SPACE-SCIENCES

Geology and Geochemistry The biosphere, an integral part of Earth's geologic and geochemical cycles, exists in a delicate balance with the environment. The intimate relationship between Geology, Mineralogy and Human Welfare was summarized by Joseph V. Smith (University of Chicago) in his opening paper of the 1999 Proceedings of a Colloquium of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. Emerging chemical microscopes using neutrons, synchrotron X-rays, and electrons are revolutionizing the study of mineral surfaces, fluids, and microbes with many applications to agriculture and soils, trace elements and food quality, the hazards of toxic elements and asbestos, and the formation of ore deposits. Papers in the Proceedings also dealt with advances in the recovery of petroleum from geologic reservoirs and the application of geochemical dating of clay minerals to the prediction of oil yields. As human society expands its dominion over Earth, using natural geologic resources, it is increasingly threatened by the destructive power of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, landslides, floods, and storms. The natural geologic processes become hazards. The following review includes three completely different situations in which natural hazards have impinged on the development of life and its structures: at the present time both for human society and the oases of life on the ocean floor and more than 3.8 billion years ago for the beginning of life. The World Disasters Report 1999, published by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, stated that 1998 was the worst year on record for natural disasters, which together resulted in 25 million refugees. The impact of natural disasters was further illustrated in 1999 by the devastating earthquakes in Turkey, Greece, and Taiwan, as well as by the road-clogging evacuation of some two million people from the east coast of the United States as Hurricane Floyd approached. The results of a five-year study to evaluate methods for reducing the social and economic costs of natural hazards were published in 1999 by the U.S. National Science Foundation Engineering Directorate. Dennis Mileti (University of Colorado at Boulder), the study's principal investigator, concluded that a basic philosophical change was required for sustainable hazard mitigation, which would involve rethinking society's relationship to the physical environment, as well as requiring more interdisciplinary study of hazards. Highlighting this need was the fact that of the 10 most costly natural disasters in the United States, 7 had occurred since 1989. A Decade City project for 200009 was proposed in 1999 by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior to enhance the understanding of, prediction of, and methods of coping with natural hazards. The project took an interdisciplinary approach involving geologic, geophysical, hydrologic, and atmospheric sciences. The proposal, which was made to the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics, called for each IUGG member nation to nominate an urban centre to be the focus of study. Sustainability and vulnerability issues would be jointly examined by geologists, engineers, urban planners, social scientists, and educators. This proposal followed the successful Decade Volcano Project, which included Mt. Vesuvius in Italy. The geology, geochemistry, and geophysics of this high-risk volcano had been intensely studied in the hope that the next major eruption could be predicted in sufficient time for orderly evacuation of the population. If this effort was successful, the hope was that the tragedies that befell Pompeii and Herculaneum might be averted and the next major eruption of Vesuvius could be predicted in time for an orderly evacuation of the city of Naples and the three million people at risknot an easy task. Volcanic eruptions also threaten the development of life associated with the hydrothermal vents on the seafloor. The chemical exchanges between ocean water and oceanic crust provide the heat and nutrients required for the formation of microbial mats, but associated lava flows destroy them, as described by Robert Embley and Edward Baker of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in their 1999 report of some results from the 1998 interdisciplinary expedition to the Axial Volcano on the Juan de Fuca Ridge (west of Oregon and Washington). The Canadian Remotely Operated Vehicle for Ocean Science (ROPOS) dives facilitated a careful exploration of the new eruption site with a scanning sonar for detailed mapping, and a variety of tools for in situ temperature and chemical measurements. An intense microbial bloom accompanied the recent eruption. At one location, dead tube worms and clams were found partially buried by the lava; elsewhere, older vent communities survived beyond the limit of the new eruption. It was intended to continue in situ sampling, high-resolution mapping, and continuous monitoring of the hydrothermal systems in this region over several years. Mapping of the ocean floor was accomplished by remote sensing from ships, and from submersible vessels. ROPOS was so successful that the unmanned systems developed during the past decade as an alternative to manned submersibles were identified as the harbinger for future deep ocean expeditions. The early Earth environment was bombarded by meteorites, and evidence for the existence of life in some of the oldest rocks raised the question of whether the development of life was disrupted by the explosive impacts. Greenland's Isua greenstone belt (IGB) comprises the oldest rocks of their type. Peter W.U. Appel (Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland) and Stephen Moorbath (University of Oxford) described in 1999 a revitalized effort to decipher the origin of life on Earth through a geologic and geochemical study of these rocks in the new Isua Multidisciplinary Research Project. The geology indicated an environment of volcanic centers surrounded by shore lines, passing to deeper water. Geochemical analyses provided rock ages of 3.75 to 3.7 gigayears (a gigayear is 1 billion years). In some minerals carbon isotope ratios suggested (but did not prove) that the carbon is a chemofossilchemical remnants of very early life. The oldest known cellular fossils found in rocks elsewhere are 3.43.5 gigayears old. The Moonand presumably Earth alsowas subjected to major impacts from meteorites until about 3.8 gigayears ago, indicating that early life had 50 million to 100 million years free of meteorite bombardment in which to develop. Some minerals have inner cores with older ages of 3.853.87 gigayears, which overlapped with the lunar meteorite impacts and raised the question of whether life developed even earlier, during lunar-style impacts. The critical age relationships, as well as the search for chemofossils, requires detailed, reliable geologic remapping of the whole area, together with the most advanced geochemical laboratory measurements. The need for more detailed maps was indicated above in connection with young ocean floor and old rocks. A geologic map is the storehouse of information for interpretation of geologic history and processes. The images of the Earth's surface obtained since the first Landsat satellite was launched in 1972 revolutionized mapping on a global scale. The successful launch on April 15, 1999, of Landsat 7 with its improved capabilities was expected to enhance world mapping even further. Maps constructed by individuals at ground level had long been prepared on a variety of scales and could be located within the remotely sensed images. New, rapidly evolving digital technologies were replacing the traditional techniques for high resolution geologic mapping. It could soon be possible to complete real-time analysis and three-dimensional visualization using accurate, portable instruments at reasonable cost. Carlos Aiken and colleagues (University of Texas, Dallas) described procedures using a digital camera, a laser gun, a portable computer, the Geographical Information System (GIS), and the Global Positioning System (GPS). The laser gun could locate points or trace features on the ground, which are converted into three-dimensional visualizations by GIS. Standard mapping of features such as strike and dip of bedding and faults, thickness of beds, and geologic contacts can be converted into computer images within seconds. The images could be globally referenced with GPS and integrated with stored digital maps and images. Stephen M. Stanley and Lawrence A. Hardie (Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md.) correlated variations in the mineralogy of oceanic fossils with changes in the chemistry of seawater, which in turn is controlled by rates of divergence of tectonic plates at seafloor- spreading centres. Carbonate mineral cements that precipitate from seawater in marine sediments oscillated on a time scale of 100 million to 200 million-year time between low-magnesian calcite and aragonite with high-magnesian calcite. These cements are ascribed to calcite seas or aragonite seas, respectively. In the laboratory, brines precipitating calcite can be made to precipitate aragonite by increasing the ratio of magnesium (Mg) to calcium (Ca) in solution. Minor changes in the hot solutions emerging from hydrothermal vents at seafloor-spreading centres may change the Mg to Ca ratio of ocean water sufficiently to cause the oscillation between calcite and aragonite precipitation. Fast spreading rates lower the Mg to Ca ratio of brines. The new investigation detected the same oscillation in the mineralogy of some marine fossils, in particular the carbonates of the reef-building organisms, and the voluminous chalk deposits. The deposition of massive chalk from calcareous nannoplankton during Late Cretaceous time (about 100 to 65 million years) had been a puzzle, but it could now be explained because it coincided with an interval when the Mg to Ca ratio in seawater was at its lowest level during the past 500 million years. The White Cliffs of Dover in England were caused by an increase in the rate of mantle convection and seafloor spreading. Peter John Wyllie Geophysics The Alpide Belt, one of three major seismic belts of the Earth, stretches from its western terminus in the Atlantic Ocean, through the Iberian Peninsula and the northern Mediterranean Sea, Turkey, Armenia, northern Iran, the Himalayas, and finally down through Myanmar (Burma) to the East Indies. One of its most active segments is the North Anatolian Fault, extending from the Aegean Sea across northern Turkey into Armenia. Cities and villages have been clustered in this zone since Neolithic timesand the record of seismic devastation is a long one. On Aug. 17, 1999, a catastrophic earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4 occurred near the Turkish cities of Izmit and Golcuk. The surface rupture was nearly 64 km (40 mi) in length, and the maximum permanent horizontal ground displacement was 2.7 m (9 ft) in length. This event caused the total collapse of hundreds of buildings in the provinces of Istanbul, Kocaeli, and Sakarya. Thousands were rescued from the rubble by local and international teams; still, these numbers were small when compared with the numbers of dead and missing. In such disasters the final tallies might never be absolute, but the official figures stated that there were at least 12,000 dead, 33,000 injured, and many thousands missing. A large aftershock occurred on September 13. Although there was only an average level of global seismic activity in late 1998 and throughout 1999, there were an exceptional number of earthquakes that caused fatalities and destruction. A major (magnitude-7.8) quake struck Indonesian islands in the Ceram Sea on Nov. 29, 1998. It left 34 people dead and 89 injured on Mangole and 7 dead and 18 injured at Manado, Sulawesi. At least 512 houses were destroyed, and 760 more were severely damaged. On Sept. 21, 1999, an earthquake of magnitude 7.6 occurred in the county of Nan-t'ou in central Taiwan (about 145 km south of Taipei), leaving thousands dead and causing extensive damage. Hundreds of the deaths occurred in the nearby county of T'ai-chung. Although damage in Taipei was relatively light, the collapse of a 12-story hotel trapped at least 60 people. The official totals overall were more than 2,250 dead and thousands injured. This earthquake was the most destructive to hit the island since 1935. Three other earthquakes in 1999 exceeded a magnitude of 7.0, but they occurred in remote areas and caused little damage. More than 1,500 lives were lost in 20 smaller earthquakes, however. Among them was a magnitude-6.2 earthquake on January 25 that rocked the Colombian cities of Armenia, Calarca, and Pereira. This event caused 1,185 deaths, left 700 people missing and presumed dead, and injured 4,750. Some 5060% of the homes in the region were destroyed, and 250,000 people were left homeless. An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 occurred in Afghanistan on February 11, leaving as many as 70 people dead and hundreds injured. Another earthquake occurred at Xizang on the China-India border on March 29. This magnitude-6.6 event caused the death of at least 100 people, injured 394, and destroyed more than 21,000 homes. A magnitude-5.9 earthquake struck Athens on September 7, with a death toll that exceeded 120. Volcanoes also attracted attention. In January 1998 a swarm of earthquakes was detected near the summit of Axial, a submarine volcano on the Juan de Fuca Ridgea very active seafloor feature some 500 km (300 mi) off the coast of Washington and Oregon. Within a day, the volcano erupted and formed a megaplume. A team of scientists from the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Seattle, Wash., soon arrived on-site to study this phenomenon, which since its discovery in 1986 ha been observed by researchers only eight times. Megaplumes are created when superheated water erupts from the upper fissures of an underwater volcano. Rising several thousand metres into the much cooler ocean, the water forms a distinct disk-shaped mass. These features can have a diameter of 20 km (12 mi) and may persist as coherent water parcels through voyages of hundreds of kilometres. The influence of the Coriolis force can cause a megaplume to spin at rates from 2 to 6 m (6 to 20 ft) per minute. Current studies were directed at discovering the generating mechanism for the plumes, their mineral content, the life-forms they carry, and their effect on the ocean through which they travel. Plans were being made to install a long-term-monitoring network on the seafloor at the Axial Volcano comprising an array of sensors connected to transmission buoys at the surface and linked to communication satellites. (See also Geology and Geochemistry above.) Recent satellite altimetry maps of the seafloor at the eastern end of the Samoan islands showed a small hill-like rise, and recent seismic activity suggested that volcanic activity was occurring. Examining the site with multibeam sonar, scientists from the Woods Hole (Mass.) Oceanographic Institute discovered a new volcano. Named Fa'afafine, the newcomer was 4,300 m (14,000 ft) high and had a base diameter of 35 km (22 mi). Preliminary analysis of dredged material indicated that an eruption had recently occurred. The investigators concluded that the Samoan islands were a hot-spot chain and that Fa'afafine marked the current location of the hot spot. Studies of ancient climates showed that the Earth had been warming for five million years prior to the event known as the Late Paleocene Thermal Maximum (LPTM), which began 55 million years ago. The long warming resulted in a dramatic decrease in oceanic ventilation due to a lack of cold, dense surface waters, which would sink and thereby carry oxygen into deeper waters. Eventually the oxygen supply became inadequate to support many species of foraminifera (one-celled organisms), and they became extinct. These organisms were at the base of the food chain, and their extinction reverberated through the entire marine ecosystem. Effects of the prolonged warming extended to Antarctica, which became ice-free and perhaps even forested. Antarctic sea-surface temperatures were 18 C (32.4 F) higher than at present. A marine geologist at the University of North Carolina suggested that the additional surge of heat during the LPTM was triggered by a gigantic volcanic eruption. Supporting evidence came from sediment cores collected in the western Caribbean Basin as part of the Ocean Drilling Program. This eruption was thought to have been massive enough to alter global atmosphere and produce the 10,000-year temperature spike of the LPTM. Whatever its cause, it was significant that the LPTM coincided with a spectacular increase in the numbers of mammalian fossils, including primates. The Continental Scientific Drilling Program completed an exploratory well in the Long Valley Caldera in California. The well, which was drilled to a depth of 2,977 m (9,767 ft), was to be fitted with instruments to monitor seismic activity. In March 1999 a deep hole was started by the Hawaii Scientific Drilling Project near Hilo, Hawaii. It would eventually reach a depth of 4,500 m (about 15,000 ft); one of the project's objectives was to help determine the origin of the Hawaiian Islands. Rutlage J. Brazee Meteorology and Climate The year 1999 was characterized by abnormally active weather patterns and occasional extreme events, triggered by colder-than-normal sea-surface temperatures across the eastern and central Equatorial Pacific Ocean. This event, known as La Nia (see Map), was usually associated with below-normal sea-level pressure and increased storminess over Indonesia and northern Australia, with opposite conditions prevailing across the eastern tropical Pacific. Reduced wind shear favoured an unusually active hurricane season (JuneNovember) for the Caribbean and Atlantic basins. Wintry weather dominated the central and eastern United States during the first half of January. More than 127 cm (50 in) of snow buried Buffalo, N.Y., and more than 50 cm (20 in) paralyzed Chicago. Youngstown, Ohio, received a record-breaking 94 cm (37 in) of snow during January, and the 147-cm (58-in) total snowfall in Erie, Pa., was the second highest on record. In late February a powerful northeaster dumped almost 60 cm (2 ft) of snow on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Meanwhile, record-breaking cold gripped Alaska, setting an all-time low of 48 C (54 F) at Denali National Park and Preserve in central Alaska on February 5. Record February lows were also established at Galena and Fairbanks. In mid-January unusual outbreaks of tornadoes claimed lives in Arkansas and Tennessee, and heavy rains triggered flooding in parts of the Midwest, the Southeast, and the mid-Atlantic states. A deadly outbreak of more than 70 tornadoes ravaged the Great Plains on May 34, with intense F5 tornadoes (winds estimated in excess of 418 km/h ) striking Bridge Creek and Moore, Okla. On July 8 a torrential downpour drenched Las Vegas, Nev., with 33 mm (1.3 in) of rain falling in just one hour; two persons died as a result. The first killer tornado in Utah history struck downtown Salt Lake City on August 11 and claimed at least one life. Abnormally dry weather dominated the eastern United States for much of 1999. For the 12-month period from August 1998 through July 1999, Maryland experienced its driest period, and Virginia, West Virginia, and New York experienced their second driest period. The dryness along the East Coast abruptly ended as the remnants of Hurricanes Dennis and Floyd brought heavy rains and strong, gusty winds during September. Unfortunately, rain from Floyd caused significant flooding, particularly in North Carolina. The hurricane triggered the evacuation of more than two million people from coastal areas of Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas. During the first four months of 1999, unusually wet weather prevailed across much of northern South America from the coast of Peru eastward to the eastern tip of Brazil. Subsequently, very dry conditions overspread northern Venezuela and the southern Caribbean. Torrential rains drenched the Crdoba and La Pampa provinces of central Argentina in late April. Between 203 and 508 mm (8 and 20 in) of rain doused east-central South America during June and July. Above-normal precipitation dominated the Alpine region during January and February. Heavy February snowfalls in the Alps caused numerous avalanches, closed many roads, and stranded thousands of individuals. Heavy rains in mid-May combined with melting snow to cause severe flooding that triggered landslides, forced numerous evacuations, and killed several people. One month later up to 102 mm (4 in) of rain in a week resulted in major flooding across much of Hungary, Slovakia, and southern Poland. Two brutal storms lashed Western and Southern Europe in the last week of the year. Dryness across Kenya and Tanzania persisted into 1999, with less than 20 mm (0.8 in) of rain during January. Dryness returned to Ethiopia and northern Kenya during March and dominated the region through June. In sharp contrast, heavy rain drenched Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe during the first six weeks of the year, with short-term moisture surpluses persisting through April. Meanwhile, the rainy season was delayed in the sub-Saharan Sahel region. Scattered showers progressed northward from the Gulf of Guinea coast during July. Abundant precipitation (up to 762 mm ) soaked much of east-central Asia during March and April, with the heaviest amounts reported in east-central China and southern Japan. During the middle of May, Tropical Cyclone 02A battered southern Pakistan with heavy rains and strong, gusty winds, killing as many as 1,000 persons and leaving some 50,000 homeless. Frequent heavy thunderstorms drenched much of southeastern Asia during much of the year. Frequent thunderstorms, with torrential rains, soaked the Philippines, Indonesia, and northern Australia as 1999 began. Malaysia and Indonesia accumulated precipitation excesses of up to 406 mm (16 in) during January and February. Farther south, heavy thunderstorms (up to 178 mm of rain in one week in mid-February) saturated the coasts of eastern New South Wales and southeastern Queensland and caused significant flooding. During March and April, Tropical Storm Vance and Tropical Cyclone Gwenda brought heavy rains, strong winds, and excessive cloudiness to the state of Western Australia, where significant damage was reported at some locations. Heavy rains returned to east-central Australia in June and July, and moisture surpluses of 102482 mm (419 in) along the immediate coast resulted. John J. Kelly, Jr.