Marith C. Reheis

Asian dust events of April 1998

On April 15 and 19, 1998, two intense dust storms were generated over the Gobi desert by springtime low-pressure systems descending from the northwest. The windblown dust was detected and its evolution followed by its yellow color on SeaWiFS satellite images, routine surface-based monitoring, and through serendipitous observations. The April 15 dust cloud was recirculating, and it was removed by a precipitating weather system over east Asia. The April 19 dust cloud crossed the Pacific Ocean in 5 days, subsided to the surface along the mountain ranges between British Columbia and California, and impacted severely the optical and the concentration environments of the region. In east Asia the dust clouds increased the albedo over the cloudless ocean and land by up to 10–20%, but it reduced the near-UV cloud reflectance, causing a yellow coloration of all surfaces. The yellow colored backscattering by the dust eludes a plausible explanation using simple Mie theory with constant refractive index. Over the West Coast the dust layer has increased the spectrally uniform optical depth to about 0.4, reduced the direct solar radiation by 30–40%, doubled the diffuse radiation, and caused a whitish discoloration of the blue sky. On April 29 the average excess surface-level dust aerosol concentration over the valleys of the West Coast was about 20–50 μg/m3 with local peaks >100 μg/m3. The dust mass mean diameter was 2–3 μm, and the dust chemical fingerprints were evident throughout the West Coast and extended to Minnesota. The April 1998 dust event has impacted the surface aerosol concentration 2–4 times more than any other dust event since 1988. The dust events were observed and interpreted by an ad hoc international web-based virtual community. It would be useful to set up a community-supported web-based infrastructure to monitor the global aerosol pattern for such extreme aerosol events, to alert and to inform the interested communities, and to facilitate collaborative analysis for improved air quality and disaster management.

Dust deposition in southern Nevada and California, 1984-1989: Relations to climate, source area, and source lithology

Dust samples collected annually for 5 years from 55 sites in southern Nevada and California provide the first regional source of information on modern rates of dust deposition, grain size, and mineralogical and chemical composition relative to climate and to type and lithology of dust source. The average silt and clay flux (rate of deposition) in southern Nevada and southeastern California ranges from 4.3 to 15.7 g/m2/yr, but in southwestern California the average silt and clay flux is as high as 30 g/m2/yr. The climatic factors that affect dust flux interact with each other and with the factors of source type (playas versus alluvium), source lithology, geographic area, and human disturbance. Average dust flux increases with mean annual temperature but is not correlated to decreases in mean annual precipitation because the regional winds bring dust to relatively wet areas. In contrast, annual dust flux mostly reflects changes in annual precipitation (relative drought) rather than temperature. Although playa and alluvial sources produce about the same amount of dust per unit area, the total volume of dust from the more extensive alluvial sources is much larger. In addition, playa and alluvial sources respond differently to annual changes in precipitation. Most playas produce dust that is richer in soluble salts and carbonate than that from alluvial sources (except carbonate-rich alluvium). Gypsum dust may be produced by the interaction of carbonate dust and anthropogenic or marine sulfates. The dust flux in an arid urbanizing area may be as much as twice that before disturbance but decreases when construction stops. The mineralogic and major-oxide composition of the dust samples indicates that sand and some silt is locally derived and deposited, whereas clay and some silt from different sources can be far-traveled. Dust deposited in the Transverse Ranges of California by the Santa Ana winds appears to be mainly derived from sources to the north and east.

Aeolian Dust in Colorado Plateau Soils: Nutrient Inputs and Recent Change in Source

Aeolian dust (windblown silt and clay) is an important component in arid-land ecosystems because it may contribute to soil formation and furnish essential nutrients. Few geologic surfaces, however, have been characterized with respect to dust-accumulation history and resultant nutrient enrichment. We have developed a combination of methods to identify the presence of aeolian dust in arid regions and to evaluate the roles of this dust in ecosystem processes. Unconsolidated sandy sediment on isolated surfaces in the Canyonlands region of the Colorado Plateau differs greatly in mineralogical and chemical composition from associated bedrock, mainly aeolian sandstone. Detrital magnetite in the surficial deposits produces moderately high values of magnetic susceptibility, but magnetite is absent in nearby bedrock. A component of the surficial deposits must be aeolian to account for the abundance of magnetite, which formed originally in far-distant igneous rocks. Particle-size analysis suggests that the aeolian dust component is typically as much as 20–30%. Dust inputs have enriched the sediments in many elements, including P, Mg, Na, K, and Mo, as well as Ca, at sites where bedrock lacks calcite cement. Soil-surface biologic crusts are effective dust traps that apparently record a change in dust sources over the past several decades. Some of the recently fallen dust may result from human disturbance of land surfaces that are far from the Canyonlands, such as the Mojave Desert. Some land-use practices in the study area have the potential to deplete soil fertility by means of wind-erosion removal of aeolian silt.

The ecology of dust

Wind erosion and associated dust emissions play a fundamental role in many ecological processes and provide important biogeochemical connectivity at scales ranging from individual plants up to the entire globe. Yet, most ecological studies do not explicitly consider dust-driven processes, perhaps because most relevant research on aeolian (wind-driven) processes has been presented in a geosciences rather than an ecological context. To bridge this disciplinary gap, we provide a general overview of the ecological importance of dust, examine complex interactions between wind erosion and ecosystem dynamics from the scale of plants and surrounding space to regional and global scales, and highlight specific examples of how disturbance affects these interactions and their consequences. It is likely that changes in climate and intensification of land use will lead to increased dust production from many drylands. To address these issues, environmental scientists, land managers, and policy makers need to consider wind erosion and dust emissions more explicitly in resource management decisions.

Constraints on present‐day Basin and Range deformation from space geodesy

We use new space geodetic data from very long baseline interferometry and satellite laser ranging combined with other geodetic and geologic data to study contemporary deformation in the Basin and Range province of the western United States. Northwest motion of the central Sierra Nevada block relative to stable North America, a measure of integrated Basin and Range deformation, is 12.1±1.2 mm/yr oriented N38°W±5° (one standard error), in agreement with previous geological estimates within uncertainties. This velocity reflects both east-west extension concentrated in the eastern Basin and Range and north-northwest directed right lateral shear concentrated in the western Basin and Range. Ely, Nevada is moving west at 4.9±1.3 mm/yr relative to stable North America, consistent with dip-slip motion on the north striking Wasatch fault and other north striking normal faults. Comparison with ground-based geodetic data suggests that most of this motion is accommodated within ∼50 km of the Wasatch fault zone. Paleoseismic data for the Wasatch fault zone and slip rates based on seismic energy release in the region both suggest much lower slip rates. The discrepancy may be explained by some combination of additional deformation away from the Wasatch fault itself, aseismic slip, or a seismic rate that is anomalously low with respect to longer time averages. Deformation in the western Basin and Range province is also largely confined to a relatively narrow boundary zone and in our study area is partitioned into the eastern California shear zone, accommodating 10.7±1.6 mm/yr of north-northwest directed right-lateral shear, and a small component (∼1 mm/yr) of west-southwest - east-northeast extension. A slip rate budget for major strike-slip faults in our study area based on a combination of local geodetic or late Quaternary geologic data and the regional space geodetic data suggests the following rates of right-lateral slip: Owens Valley fault zone, 3.9±1.1 mm/yr; Death Valley-Furnace Creek fault zone, 3.3±2.2 mm/yr; White Mountains fault zone in northern Owens Valley, 3.4±1.2 mm/yr; Fish Lake Valley fault zone, 6.2±2.3 mm/yr. In the last few million years the locus of right-lateral shear in the region has shifted west and become more north trending as slip on the northwest striking Death Valley-Furnace Creek fault zone has decreased and is increasingly accommodated on the north-northwest striking Owens Valley fault zone.

Quaternary soils and dust deposition in southern Nevada and California

Eoliandustconstitutesmuchofthepedogenic material in late Pleistocene and Holocene soils of many arid regions of the world.Comparisonofthecompositionsand influx rates of modern dust with the eolian component of dated soils at 24 sites in southern Nevada and California yields informationon(1)thecompositionandinflux rate of dust in late Pleistocene and Holocene soils, (2) paleoclimate and its effects on the genesis of aridic soils, especially with regard to dustfall events, (3) the timing and relative contribution of dust from playa sources versus alluvial sources, and (4) the effects of accumulation of dust in soil horizons. The<2mmfractionsofAandBhorizons of soils formed on gravelly alluvial-fan deposits in the study area are similar to moderndustingrainsize,contentofCaCO3and salt,majoroxides,andclaymineralogy;thus, they are interpreted to consist largely of dust. The major-oxide compositions of the shallow soil horizons are nearly identical to that of the modern dust, but the compositions of progressively deeper horizons approachthatoftheparentmaterial.Theclay mineralogyofmoderndustatagivensiteis similar to that of the Av horizons of nearby Holocene soils but is commonly different from the mineralogies of deeper soil horizonsandoftheAvhorizonsofnearbyPleistocenesoils.Theseresultsareinterpretedto indicate that dust both accumulates and is transformed in Av horizons with time. Changes in soil-accumulation rates provide insights into the interplay of paleoclimate,dustsupply,andsoil-formingprocesses. Modern dust-deposition rates are more than large enough to account for middle and late Holocene soil-accumulation rates at nearly all sites. However, the early Holocene soil-accumulation rates in areas near late Pleistocene pluvial lakes are much higher than modern rates and clearly indicate a dust-deflation and -deposition event that caused rapid formation offine-grained shallow soil horizons on uppermost Pleistocene and lower Holocene deposits. We interpret late Pleistocene soil-accumulation rates to indicate that dust-deposition rates were low during this period but that increased effective moisture during the late Wisconsinan favored translocation of clay andCaCO3fromnearthesurfacetodeeper inthesoilprofile.Pre‐latePleistocenerates are very low in most areas, mainly due to a pedogenic threshold that was crossed when accumulations of silt, clay, and CaCO3 began to inhibit the downward transport of eolian material, but in part due to erosion.

Dust deposition downwind of Owens (dry) Lake, 1991–1994: Preliminary findings

Salt-rich dust derived from the Owens Lake playa is deposited in significant quantities to distances of at least 40 km north and south of the playa. Semiannual measurements from 1991 to 1994 of dust deposition rates (dust flux) and composition 2 m above the ground at seven sites in Owens Valley show that (1) dust in Owens Valley is derived mainly from the playa, although areas closer to the sites can also be sources; (2) south of the playa, dust flux is higher in the winter than in the summer, but north of the playa, dust flux is about the same or slightly lower in the winter; (3) on the playa, interannual variation in dust flux is large (factors of 5–10 during the 3 years), but at downwind sites, the variation is much smaller; (4) the dust typically has total soluble salt content as high as 30%, generally much higher than that of dust elsewhere in southern Nevada and California; and (5) to a distance of at least 40 km south of the playa, soluble salt flux is significantly higher than regional rates. The dust flux measurements indicate that significant quantities of salt-rich dust are probably being added to the soils in the region around Owens Lake playa; these dust additions may affect soil pH and vegetation.

Late Cenozoic history and slip rates of the Fish Lake Valley, Emigrant Peak, and Deep Springs fault zones, Nevada and California

Several well-dated stratigraphic markers permit detailed assessment of the temporal and spatial variation in slip rates along the interconnected faults of the Fish Lake Valley, Emigrant Peak, and Deep Springs fault zones in west-central Nevada and east-central California. Right-lateral motion on the Fish Lake Valley fault zone apparently began ca. 10 Ma (11.9–8.2 Ma). Associated extensional faulting probably began ca. 5 Ma (6.9–4 Ma) and resulted in the opening of Fish Lake Valley and Deep Springs Valley. The long-term lateral-slip rate for the Fish Lake Valley fault zone since about 10 Ma is 5 mm/yr (3–12 mm/yr). Our preferred lateral-slip rate for the central, most active part of the Fish Lake Valley fault zone decreased from about 6 to 3 mm/yr from the late Miocene to the early Pleistocene, increased to about 11 mm/yr during the middle Pleistocene, and decreased to about 4 mm/yr during the late Pleistocene. Extension may account for some of the change in lateral-slip rate during the Pliocene. The large increase in lateral-slip rate during the middle Pleistocene is circumstantially linked to an increase in vertical-slip rates on the Fish Lake Valley and Deep Springs fault zones at about the time of the eruption of the Bishop ash (0.76 Ma). Vertical-slip rates along the three fault zones are also related to fault strike; vertical rates are highest on north-striking faults and approach zero on northwest-striking faults. The long-lived slip history of the Fish Lake Valley fault zone fits a tectonic model in which the Death Valley–Furnace Creek–Fish Lake Valley fault system is integrated with right-lateral shear on faults of the central Walker Lane and the Eastern California shear zone to accommodate part of the Pacific–North American relative plate motion. Our research demonstrates that the Fish Lake Valley fault zone accounts for about half the rate of 10–12 mm/yr of Pacific-North American plate-boundary shear accommodated within the Basin and Range province between about lat 37° and 38°N.

Geochemical evidence for diversity of dust sources in the southwestern United States

Several potential dust sources, including generic sources of sparsely vegetated alluvium, playa deposits, and anthropogenic emissions, as well as the area around Owens Lake, California, affect the composition of modern dust in the southwestern United States. A comparison of geochemical analyses of modern and old (a few thousand years) dust with samples of potential local sources suggests that dusts reflect four primary sources: (1) alluvial sediments (represented by Hf, K, Rb, Zr, and rare-earth elements, (2) playas, most of which produce calcareous dust (Sr, associated with Ca), (3) the area of Owens (dry) Lake, a human-induced playa (As, Ba, Li, Pb, Sb, and Sr), and (4) anthropogenic and/or volcanic emissions (As, Cr, Ni, and Sb). A comparison of dust and source samples with previous analyses shows that Owens (dry) Lake and mining wastes from the adjacent Cerro Gordo mining district are the primary sources of As, Ba, Li, and Pb in dusts from Owens Valley. Decreases in dust contents of As, Ba, and Sb with distance from Owens Valley suggest that dust from southern Owens Valley is being transported at least 400 km to the east. Samples of old dust that accumulated before European settlement are distinctly lower in As, Ba, and Sb abundances relative to modern dust, likely due to modern transport of dust from Owens Valley. Thus, southern Owens Valley appears to be an important, geochemically distinct, point source for regional dust in the southwestern United States.

Kinematics of the Eastern California shear zone: Evidence for slip transfer from Owens and Saline Valley fault zones to Fish Lake Valley fault zone

Late Quaternary slip rates and satellite-based geodetic data for the western Great Basin constrain regional fault-slip distribution and evolution. The geologic slip rate on the Fish Lake Valley fault zone (the northwest extension of the Furnace Creek fault zone) increases northward from about 3 to 5 mm/yr, in agreement with modeled geodetic data. The increase coincides with the intersections of the Deep Springs fault, connected to the Owens Valley fault zone, and of other faults connected to the Saline Valley fault. The combined geologic and geodetic data suggest that (1) the northwest-striking faults of the Eastern California shear zone north of the Garlock fault are connected by north- to northeast-striking normal faults that transfer slip in a series of right steps, and (2) the amount and distribution of slip among the many faults of this broad, complex plate boundary have changed through time.