Eastern Periphery Research Articles

Hydroclimate variability in the Madagascar and Southeast African summer monsoons at the Mid- to Late-Holocene transition

The 4.2 ka event at the Mid- to Late-Holocene transition is often regarded as one of the largest and best documented abrupt climate disturbances of the Holocene. The event is most clearly manifested in the Mediterranean and Middle East as a regional dry anomaly beginning abruptly at 4.26 kyr BP and extending until 3.97 kyr BP. Yet the impacts of this regional drought are often extended to other regions and sometimes globally. In particular, the nature and spatial extent of the 4.2 ka event in the tropics have not been established. Here, we present a new stalagmite stable isotope record from Anjohikely, northwest Madagascar. Growing between 5.22 and 2.00 kyr BP, stalagmite AK1 shows a hiatus between 4.31 and 3.93 kyr BP (±40 and ± 35 yrs), replicating a hiatus in another stalagmite from nearby Anjohibe, and therefore indicating a significant drying at the Mid- to Late-Holocene transition. This result is the opposite to wet conditions at the 8.2 ka event, suggesting fundamentally different forcing mechanisms. Dry conditions are also recorded in sediment cores in Lake Malawi, Lake Masoko and the Tatos Basin on Mauritius, also in the southeast African monsoon domain. However, no notable event is recorded at the northern (equatorial East Africa) and eastern (Rodrigues) peripheries of the monsoon domain, while a wet event is recorded in sediment cores at Lake Muzi and Mkhuze Delta to the south. The spatial pattern is largely consistent with the modern rainfall anomaly pattern associated a with weak Mozambique Channel Trough and a northerly austral summer Intertropical Convergence Zone position. Within age error, the observed peak climate anomalies overlap with the 4.2 ka event. However regional hydrological change consistently begins earlier than a 4.26 kyr BP event onset. Gradual hydrological change frequently begins around 4.5 kyr BP, raising doubt as to whether any coherent regional hydrological change is merely coincident with the 4.2 ka event or part of a global climatic anomaly.

A cold high-pressure system over North China hinders the southward migration of Mythimna separata in autumn

BackgroundIn warm regions or seasons of the year, the planetary boundary layer is occupied by a huge variety and quantity of insects, but the southward migration of insects (in East Asia) in autumn is still poorly understood.MethodsWe collated daily catches of the oriental armyworm (Mythimna separata) moth from 20 searchlight traps from 2014 to 2017 in China. In order to explore the autumn migratory connectivity of M. separata in East China, we analyzed the autumn climate and simulated the autumn migration process of moths.ResultsThe results confirmed that northward moth migration in spring and summer under the East Asian monsoon system can bring rapid population growth. However, slow southerly wind (blowing towards the north) prevailed over the major summer breeding area in North China (33°–40° N) due to a cold high-pressure system located there, and this severely disrupts the autumn ‘return’ migration of this pest. Less than 8% of moths from the summer breeding area successfully migrated back to their winter-breeding region, resulting in a sharp decline of the population abundance in autumn. As northerly winds (blowing towards the south) predominate at the eastern periphery of a high-pressure system, the westward movement of the high-pressure system leads to more northerlies over North China, increasing the numbers of moths migrating southward successfully. Therefore, an outbreak year of M. separata larvae was associated with a more westward position of the high-pressure system during the previous autumn.ConclusionThese results indicate that the southward migration in autumn is crucial for sustaining pest populations of M. separata, and the position of the cold high-pressure system in September is a key environmental driver of the population size in the next year. This study indicates that the autumn migration of insects in East China is more complex than previously recognized, and that the meteorological conditions in autumn are an important driver of migratory insects’ seasonal and interannual population dynamics.

Variability in the minimum temperature over two centuries in the overlap region between the fringe of the Asian westerly region and the temperate continental-monsoon climate transition zone.

The overlap region between the eastern fringe of the Asian westerly region and the temperate continental-monsoon climate transition zone is sensitive to climate changes and is characterized by fragile ecosystems. Uncovering the long-term historical climate variability patterns in this region is necessary. A standardized tree-ring width chronology was constructed based on the tree-ring samples collected from four representative tree species in four typical areas in the overlap region, and the 203- to 343-year annual mean minimum temperature series in the overlap region were reconstructed. The reconstructed series overlapped well with extreme climate events and low-temperature periods recorded in historical data. Therefore, the reconstructed model is stable and reliable. As suggested by the reconstructed series, the annual average minimum temperature in the overlap region changes sharply from east to west, and the periodicity change in the overlap region shows a trend of gradually weakening from the east and west ends to the middle. In the nineteenth century, the high-latitude area was in the high-temperature period, and the entire overlap region experienced significant low-temperature periods lasting 20-45years until the 1950s. The western part had an earlier low-temperature period start time, a longer cooling duration, and a slower cooling rate than the central part. The overlap region experienced a significant warming period in approximately the last half-century, with temperatures increasing faster in the western and eastern parts than in the central part. The temperature variability in the overlap region was more intense in the last two centuries, with shorter periodicities and a larger proportion of cold periods. The central and western parts of the Asian westerly region, the mid- to high-latitude regions of the transition zone, and the overlap region experienced significant low-temperature periods or drastic cooling trends (the Little Ice Age) in the first half of the nineteenth century and significant warming trends afterwards due to global warming. The influences of these changes may have been exacerbated by the westerly circulation. The results of this study provide new insights into the use of dendroclimatology to extract temperature series in the Asian westerly region and the transition zone and a reference for research on global climate change.

Striving for normality: Agency, citizen participation and intergroup belonging on the urban periphery of Helsinki

This article examines how the inhabitants of a culturally diverse suburban estate in Finland strive for meaningful encounters in their lives. The focus is on Kontula, a residential working-class district on the eastern periphery of Helsinki, which has become a powerful symbol of the ills of contemporary urbanity—poverty and social problems, as well as rootlessness and the failed integration of the immigrant populations—in the vernacular geography and media representations of the city. I studied how everyday mobility in an increasingly segregated city is related to a range of qualities of sociocultural encounters, both within the immediate neighbourhood and across other urban areas. I argue that for many marginalised inhabitants, agency predominantly emphasises striving for normality, not a challenge to the system. This is why it is so rarely recognised. Themes such as common decency, meaningful activity and equal encounter are much more typical aims of everyday practises than those focussing on changing the conditions. The contexts explored range from the familiar and neighbourly surroundings characterised by high degree of cultural intimacy and effortlessness to spaces with unfamiliar expectations and very different cultural codes. How do people living on the stigmatised periphery establish sense of belonging in a segregated city? How is it possible retain a sense of decency and dignity in unpredictable circumstances? During my long-term ethnographic fieldwork in the area, I concentrated on the qualities of encounters and senses of agency. These are interweaved with the inhabitants' everyday life, realised in their movement across the city and vary considerably in different contexts, reproducing the quotidian urbanity of Helsinki.

On the importance of wind generated waves in embayments with complex orographic features – A South African case study

The current study explores the importance of local ocean-atmosphere interactions in modelling wave records in embayments surrounded by significant orographic features and semi-sheltered against swell waves. The numerical code Simulating WAves in the Nearshore (SWAN) was employed for this purpose. False Bay and Table Bay, both located adjacent to the Cape Peninsula in South Africa, were used as case studies due to their geographical location and significance at the southern tip of Africa, their proximity to each other and their surrounding orography. Various combinations of atmospheric forcing were investigated (e.g. various atmospheric forcing horizontal resolutions) to distill the importance of remotely originating swell and locally generated wind waves on both peripheries of False Bay and within Table Bay. Generally, both embayments require high resolution, spatially varying wind forcing to capture the effects of the complex orography. The waves on the western periphery of False Bay and Table Bay are mainly generated by local spatially varying winds, while the waves on the eastern periphery of False Bay are mainly the incoming swell. Results are presented via statistical correlations with measured data, time-series comparisons, wind roses and wave field difference plots.

Importance of local non-fossil sources to carbonaceous aerosols at the eastern fringe of the Tibetan Plateau, China: Δ14C and δ13C evidences

Carbonaceous particles are an important radiative forcing agent in the atmosphere, with large temporal and spatial variations in their concentrations and compositions, especially in remote regions. This study reported the Δ14C and δ13C of total carbon (TC) and water-insoluble particulate carbon (IPC) of the total suspended particles (TSP) and PM2.5 at a remote site of the eastern Tibetan Plateau (TP), a region that is influenced by heavy air pollution from Southwest China. The average organic carbon and elemental carbon concentrations of TSP samples in this study were 3.20 ± 2.38 μg m−3 and 0.68 ± 0.67 μg m−3, respectively, with low and high values in summer and winter, respectively. The fossil fuel contributions of TC in TSP and PM2.5 samples were 18.91 ± 7.22% and 23.13 ± 12.52%, respectively, both of which were far lower than that in Southwest China, indicating the importance of non-fossil contributions from local sources. The δ13C of TC in TSP samples of the study site was −27.06 ± 0.96‰, which is between the values of long-range transported sources (e.g., Southwest China) and local biomass combustion emissions. Therefore, despite the contribution from the long-range transport of particles, aerosols emitted from local biomass combustion also have an important influence on carbonaceous particles at the study site. The findings of this work can be applied to other remote sites on the eastern TP and should be considered in related research in the future.

Spatial and temporal dynamics of gully erosion in anthropogenically modified forest and forest‐steppe landscapes of the European part of Russia

AbstractGully erosion is a major soil degradation process on arable land. Therefore, it is important to better understand the spatial and temporal patterns of this linear erosion process, considering the impacts of land use and climate change. The main objective of this study was to analyse the spatial and temporal patterns of permanent gully development in a study area of 123 300 km2 located in the eastern periphery of the European boreal zone (southern taiga, mixed and deciduous forests and forest‐steppe). In this study, visual interpretation of remote sensing data is used to detect changes in permanent gully channel length and density for each river basin between 1950/1970 and 2017/2021. Currently, 22 688 permanent gullies have been identified in the study area, their average length being 64 m, with the total gully network length reaching 1450.3 km. The average density of the gully network for 2017/2021 is 16 m km−2; the maximum value reaching 471 m km−2. During the period under study (c. 50 years), there was a widespread reduction in gully density by 184 m km−2 on average (i.e. from 100–500 m km−2 in 1950/1970 to <10 m km−2 in 2017/2021). Linear and areal channel changes were determined for 304 active gullies over the 2009/2016 period. The average linear gully growth rate during this period is 0.6 m year−1, whereas the areal growth rate is 28 m2 year−1. There is a clear reduction of gully erosion in the study area. Analysis of the gully network density in relation to land use changes (i.e. cultivated, forest and pasture area) did not reveal any significant relationship. It is concluded that the reduction of gully density in the study area is caused by the natural evolution of these linear erosion forms and their transformation into balkas (i.e. small, dry, flat‐bottomed valleys).

Transformation and risk assessment of the East Kolkata Wetlands (India) using fuzzy MCDM method and geospatial technology

The East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW) is located on the eastern periphery of the city of Kolkata and extends up to the Bidyadhari-Matla River confluence. It is a Ramsar Site and acts as an absorber basin for a large number of contaminants drained from Kolkata. Agricultural lands, sewage-fed fisheries, garbage dumping fields, horticulture, and built-up areas are included in this protected area, that covers approximately 125 km2. It reveals that climate change reduces the variety of wetland ecosystem services and increases socio-economic vulnerability and economic stress. The human encroachment, reclamation of land for agriculture, aquaculture, and urban expansion in and around Kolkata has recently adversely threatened the EKW. The remotely sensed data, socio-economic data, and responses of inhabitants have been used to analyse the EKW’s risk and vulnerability. We employed geospatial analysis by using the Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method using nine risk factors. An in-depth analysis of the EKW using geospatial techniques and the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) helped to understand the EKW transformations through vulnerability and risk analysis. The results show that the transformation of the wetland to aquaculture, eutrophication and pollution, road proximity, waste dumping, population density, and growth are the main factors for the deteriorating health, quality, and environment of the EKW. It also reveals that quantitative and qualitative evaluations of ecosystem services, wetland degradation, transformation, and cause-effect rapport should be periodically assessed using scientific methods like FAHP, RS, GIS to formulate resilient, integrated plans and strategy for the sustainable management of the EKW.

Nearly five decades of changing shoreline mobility along the densely developed Lagos barrier-lagoon coast of Nigeria: A remote sensing approach

Lagos is the old capital and largest port city in Nigeria. There are increased ecological and environmental problems around this coastal area with fast-growing industrialization and a population of 14 million in 2020. In this study, we utilized satellite images to study the shoreline evolution of Lagos Lagoon Barrier coast, Nigeria from 1973 to 2019. The Lagos Lagoon Barrier coast is divided into three sections: Section I (Marginal Lagos), section II (Eko Atlantic City), and section III (Lekki peninsula). Section I coast was stable compared to other sections with around 77% of the section experiencing erosion with the averaging rate of −1.73 m/yr, and the remaining 23% accreting at the rate of +0.57 m/yr throughout the study period. Around 92% of Section II was eroded at the rate of −3.59 m/yr, and 8% of this section accreting at the rate of +4.46 m/yr from 1973 to 2008, with a serious erosion rate of −11.79 m/yr from 1986 to 1999. After the Eko Atlantic City project from 2008 to 2019, Section II experienced advancement up to +92.16 m/yr (53%) and a retreat of up to −6.50 m/yr (47%). Along section III, erosion dominates with around 90% of this section being eroded at the averaging rate of −3.55 m/yr with only 10% accreting at the averaging rate of +1.10 m/yr for the study period. Along the westernmost edge of section III, intense erosion up to +7.10 m/yr dominates and continues eastward of Victoria Island from 2012 to 2019. Furthermore, we recorded shoreline erosion up to −11 m/yr along the Ibeju-Lekki axis and Lagos Free Trade Zone (eastern fringe of section III) from 1999 to 2012.Extrapolating the responsible factors for the shoreline fluctuations along the Lagos Lagoon Barrier coast, this study has identified a combined impact of sea-level rise, limited sediment supplied by longshore current from adjacent rivers due to construction of dams along the several tributaries in the Bight of Benin, hard coastal engineering procedure such as the Eko Atlantic City (section II) and Lekki deep seaport projects, and intensified population along the coastline to have contributed to the erosion feature observed along the study area. Moreover, this study has revealed that Eko Atlantic City may have contributed to the eroding coast along section III. Our final deduction shows that section I is dominated by natural shoreline change patterns and therefore primarily responded to the effect of sea-level rise. Section III is influenced by both natural and human forces while section II is influenced by human intervention through coastal protection as a result of reverse-engineering the effect of climate change and sea-level rise. Conclusively, this study has recommended that current coastal management policies and plans in Lagos State need to be reconsidered and revised to ensure the sustainable use of the coastal zone.

Sensitivity analysis of input ground motion on surface motion parameters in high seismic regions: a case of Bhutan Himalaya

Abstract. Historical earthquakes demonstrate that strong motion characteristics and local soil condition, when coupled, significantly influence seismic site response. Interestingly, most of the Himalayan earthquakes depicted anomalous behavior per the site conditions historically. Being one of the most active seismic regions on earth, the eastern fringe of the Himalaya has observed many devastating earthquakes together with non-uniform damage scenarios. To quantify such anomalies, we evaluate surface motion parameters for a soft soil deposit located in the city of Phuentsholing in western Bhutan. Using one-dimensional site response analysis, the sensitivity of ground motion variation is estimated. This study accounts for the earthquakes of moment magnitudes 6.6 to 7.5 with a wide variation in peak ground acceleration (PGA). To dissect the characteristics of six inputted ground motions on eight local ground conditions, a sensitivity analysis is performed statistically. The statistical correlation of the response datasets and the linear regression model of the bedrock outcrop and the surface motion spectral acceleration along the stratified depth are examined to quantify the variation in surface motion parameters. The results highlight that the strong motions with PGA greater than 0.34 g demonstrate greater sensitivity, leading to some anomalies in response parameters, especially amplification. Similar results were obtained for the low PGA range (<0.1 g).

Constructing “Russian civilisation”: A critical introduction to the National Atlas of Russia (publ. 2004–2008)

ABSTRACT This paper presents a critical analysis of the Russian National Atlas (2004–2008), the presentation of which is based on the tradition of the Soviet school of complex atlas production, and which is the first (and so far only) Soviet and post-Soviet Russian national atlas. Following the critical cartography approach, this paper deconstructs the atlas’ structure and the range of presented maps to decode the construction of the national spatial identity and the imposed “cartographic silences”. The paper shows how the presented maps and texts aligns with the overarching image of the Russian State as strong military state, and reveals the colonial narratives toward its Northern and Eastern peripheries.

The change in the grammatical category of the copula in North-Eastern Neo-Aramaic

AbstractNorth-Eastern Neo-Aramaic (NENA), which is a subgroup of dialects of vernacular Neo-Aramaic, exhibits considerable internal diversity. In this paper, I describe the diversity that exists in the form of the copula in this subgroup. The paradigms of the copula in the various dialects exhibit different degrees of convergence with verbal inflection. There is an areal progression in verbalization from the western periphery to the eastern periphery. The incipient verbalization of the copula can be correlated with semantic properties of the subject and the clause that would be expected typologically to be most compatible with verbal predicates. Close correlations, however, can be identified with the distribution of pronominal and verbal inflections of copulas in the languages with which the NENA dialects have been in contact in the region. It is likely, therefore, that the realization of the internal potential verbalization of the NENA copula was induced by language contact.

The monitoring of diet and habitat preferences indicates competitive effect of exotic Ictalurus nebulosus on native fish under food-limited conditions

Due to the increasing globalization and ongoing introduction of exotic species, native species are confronted with competitors with unknown outcomes. Catfish Ictalurus nebulosus Le Sueur, 1819 is native to eastern regions of North America. The species was introduced to some European countries, including Poland, in the 1880s for hobby and farming purposes, and it is currently present in freshwater bodies of almost the whole Europe. In this study, stomach content analyses were used to study food and habitat partitioning between catfish and native fish coexisting in a nutrient-poor lake. The results suggest strong competition between catfish and native perch, resulting in the dominance structure of fish untypical for nutrient-poor lakes. Moreover, catfish, which are opportunistic food generalists, displayed a very narrow food niche and selectively foraged on the most nutritional food items. This may suggest that the foraging opportunity of catfish undoubtedly supports the spreading of this species among various habitats, but catfish may become specialists when colonizing some ecosystems. In the context of the current expansion of catfish towards the eastern periphery of Europe, monitoring of its population sizes, trophic niches and effects on lower trophic levels are essential for the management and mitigation of its potential impacts on invaded freshwater ecosystems in Europe.

Evolution of warm season intense rainfall in Yaan against a cold-anomaly background

This study investigates the rainfall characteristics during intense rainfall over Yaan against a cold-anomaly background, aiming to refine the understanding of different kinds of rainfall events across complex terrain. Hourly rain gauge records, ERA5 reanalysis data and the black body temperature of cloud tops derived from FY-2E were used. The results show that against a cold-anomaly background, the regional rainfall events (RREs) in Yaan exhibit west-to-east propagation, which is different from the north-to-south evolution of warm RREs. The middle and upper troposphere is dominated by a negative geopotential height anomaly corresponding to the cold anomaly. The cyclonic circulation at the higher level associated with the negative geopotential height anomaly bends the high-level jet to the south, forming a divergent zone over the Tibetan Plateau (TP) and guiding mid-level systems to move eastward. The cyclonic circulation at the mid-level produces a wind shear zone over the TP, generating anomalous vorticity that continuously moves eastward and develops to influence the rainfall over Yaan. The cold Yaan RREs are closely related to the TP low-pressure systems (both vortex and shearline). The anomalous vorticity over the TP can influence the local vortex over the eastern periphery of the TP at a distance mainly by the horizontal advection of anomalous vorticity by the mean flow and then enhance the local vortex mainly by anomalous convergence when it moves near Yaan.

Pre-collisional crustal evolution of the European Variscan periphery: Constraints from detrital zircon U–Pb ages and Hf isotopic record in the Precambrian metasedimentary basement of the Brunovistulian Domain

In this study, U–Pb ages and Hf isotopic composition of detrital zircons from the Precambrian metasedimentary autochthon of the Brunovistulian Domain in the eastern Bohemian Massif were investigated to understand the pre-collisional evolution of the eastern periphery of the European Variscan belt. Detrital zircons of the Tonian sequences have mostly Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic ages (c. 2.1–0.9 Ga) and are interpreted as detritus derived from the basement of either Baltica or Amazonia. The mostly positive εHf(t) values (–4 to + 16) indicate a juvenile nature of their magma sources with minor older crustal components. In contrast, the Ediacaran sequences contain dominantly Neoproterozoic zircons (c. 600 Ma) and only rare Paleo- and Mesoproterozoic ages indicate that they were sourced from the adjacent Neoproterozoic magmatic arc with very limited input of recycled cratonic detritus. The large spread of εHf(t) values (–15 to + 13) of the Neoproterozoic zircons suggests significant mixing of mantle-derived magmas with mature crustal material, typical of large continental magmatic arc systems. The zircon age patterns of the Ediacaran sequences, characterized by a dominance of the late Neoproterozoic zircons and limited Mesoproterozoic zircons, are nearly identical to those from the Teplá–Barrandian Unit and Moldanubian Zone, pointing to their similar sources. We consider such age populations as a record of sources actually exposed at the time of deposition, rather than the real provenance signature of the continental basement. The change in detrital zircon U–Pb age and Hf record of the Brunovistulian Domain took place between the early and late Neoproteorozoic, and probably reflects the plate-tectonic reconfiguration from the Rodinia formation/break-up to the evolution of the Gondwana or Baltica active margins. Our data challenge the main arguments for an existence of the Rheic oceanic suture between the Brunovistulian Domain and Moldanubian Zone and allow for an alternative pre-collisional model of the Bohemian Massif as a single Neoproterozoic crustal domain.

Frontiers of Civilization in the Age of Mass Migration from Eastern Europe

Abstract Between the 1870s and 1914, tens of thousands of peasants left Austria-Hungary’s easternmost provinces of Galicia and Bukovina, heading for the Americas. This article places this episode in the context of contemporary global labour migrations while also emphasizing the distinctive characteristics of this mass exodus. Unlike most migrants around the world, Galicians and Bukovinans emigrated overseas rather than internally; their destinations included the United States, Canada, Brazil and Argentina. By moving, the migrants transformed from objects of Austria’s ‘civilizing mission’ in its eastern borderlands into vehicles for multiple, competing imperial expansion and civilizing projects overseas. From an obstacle to Austria’s ambitions to modernize its eastern periphery, the peasant migrants turned into a disputed resource, simultaneously expanding and threatening Austria’s sovereignty. Paradoxically, because they were less economically developed and more peripheral than their counterparts elsewhere in the empire, Galicians and Bukovinans were more sensitive to shifts in global labour markets than to the policies imposed by their own state officials.

The wages of reconstruction – the EU’s new budget and the public service staff shortage crisis on the EU’s eastern periphery

The wages of reconstruction – the EU’s new budget and the public service staff shortage crisis on the EU’s eastern periphery

Controls of marine shale gas accumulation in the eastern periphery of the Sichuan Basin, South China

This study examines the mechanisms that most influenced the accumulation of shale gas deposits of the Lower Cambrian Niutitang, Upper Ordovician Wufeng, and Lower Silurian Longmaxi formations of the eastern periphery of the Sichuan Basin. Abundant organic matter (OM) (2.0–5.0 wt%), appropriate thermal maturity (solid bitumen reflectance = 2.5–3.5%), and favorable kerogen types highlight the especially excellent hydrocarbon generation potential of the lower member of the Niutitang Formation and the Wufeng Formation. The development of pores hosted by OM particles and the presence of authigenic quartz account for the elevated porosity (3–5%) of these deposits and their adsorption capacity in the range of 1.5–2.5 m3/t. Strong top and base seals and a pressure coefficient (ratio of reservoir pressure to hydrostatic column pressure) greater than 1.4 of Wufeng Formation shale favor gas preservation in these deposits. However, poor associated sealing lithologies, an excessively high uplift amplitude (> 6900 m), and low pressure coefficient (< 1.0) account for diminished gas preservation in the lower member of Niutitang Formation. The low OM abundance and porosity of the upper member of Niutitang Formation and the Longmaxi Formation are more suggestive of a cap rock than a source or reservoir rock.

СУДЕБНАЯ РЕФОРМА ПЕТРА ВЕЛИКОГО В КОНТЕКСТЕ АДМИНИСТРАТИВНЫХ ПРЕОБРАЗОВАНИЙ (1717–1727)

The judicial reform occupies a special place among other transformations of Peter the Great. Some researchers call it the first attempt to “separate the trial from the administration”. Other scholars believe that the judicial reforms of the first quarter of the 18th century cannot be separated from the management reforms, since the changes in the court and administration were closely related to each other and had common ideological foundations expressed in the works of cameralists. The article is devoted to the analysis of the judicial reform of 1717–1727. The study focuses on the exploration of the organization of the court and “lower” tribunals, originally represented by provincial and city courts. The author characterizes the locations of court and provincial tribunals and considers the main reasons for the creation (or not creation) of judicial districts in provinces. In addition, attention is drawn to the peculiarities of the formation of judicial districts of city judges and judicial commissioners. As a result of the analysis of legal acts and documents of the court’s office, the author concluded that the second provincial reform had a strong influence on the implementation of the judicial reform. Despite the attempts of the Judicial Collegium to distribute judges evenly across the country, judicial transformations spread from the center (St. Petersburg and Moscow) to the southern and eastern periphery. In some cases, the determination of the composition of judges and their placement in judicial districts was inconsistent, which predetermined the partial and then full return of judicial powers to local administrators.

ГЕОЛОГИЧЕСКАЯ ПОЗИЦИЯ, МИНЕРАЛЫ РЕДКИХ И БЛАГОРОДНЫХ МЕТАЛЛОВ В РУДАХ МЕДНО-НИКЕЛЕВОГО МЕСТОРОЖДЕНИЯ КУН-МАНЬЁ (ЮГО-ВОСТОЧНОЕ ОБРАМЛЕНИЕ СИБИРСКОЙ ПЛАТФОРМЫ)

In this paper we present new data on geology of the Kun-Manie copper-nickel-PGE sulfide deposit of the Kun-Manie ore field located on the eastern periphery of the Pristanovoy orogen in the southeast of the Siberian Platform, as well as a detailed description of ores and basic minerals and the distribution of PGE mineralization in ores of the deposit. The ore bodies are spatially associated with sills of the Late Paleoproterozoic Kun-Manie gabbronorite-websterite-lherzolite complex of 1.76–1.69 Ga. It has been established that the outlines of disseminated Cu-Ni ores and ore-bearing sills of mafic-ultramafic rocks match almost exactly. Breccia and massive ores are confined to schists of the upper and lower parts of the ore shoots. Patchy disseminated and vein-disseminated mineralization is concentrated in zones of ductile deformation and along contacts between rock layers of different competence. The main ore minerals are pyrrhotite, pentlandite and chalcopyrite; less common are pyrite, marcasite, cubanite, bornite, chalcocite, sulfoarsenides (gersdorfite, glaucodot), arsenides (nicolite) and tellurides (melonite) of nickel. Magnetite and ilmenite occur in small amount. PGE mineralization is represented by arsenides (sperrylite), sulfoarsenides (irarsite, holingworthite), tellurides (Pd-melonite, merenskite, kotulskite), and tellurobismuthides (moncheite, michenerite). Arsenides, sulfoarsenides and tellurides of PGE, Ni, Ag and Bi, native gold and silver were found in vein-disseminated, patchy disseminated and breccia Cu-Ni ores. The concentration of a considerable part of the main sulfide minerals and the productivity of PGE mineralization are assumed to be due not only to complex processes of magmatic differentiation, but also to sulfurization of magma differentiates in zones of ductile (tectonic) deformation under the influence of recrystallized fluids. The productivity of PGE mineralization characteristically increases with increasing fluid concentrations of S, As, Te, Bi, and Sb.