High resolution mapping of Earth tide response based on GPS data in Japan

We observe the Earth tidal fields at diurnal and semi-diurnal periods using Kinematic Precise Point Positioning (KPPP) GPS analysis. Our KPPP GPS solutions compare well with super-conducting gravimeter (SG) observations and a theoretical Earth tidal model, that includes both ocean tide loading model and body tides. We make a high resolution map of the observed Earth tidal response fields using the Japanese GEONET GPS network which consists of 1200 sites. We find that: (1) the average phase of GPS data lags 0.11 ± 0.04° from our theoretical Earth tidal model, (2) the average amplitude ratio between GPS and the theoretical Earth tidal model is 1.007 ± 0.003, (3) the amplitude in the Kyushu district is about 1.0–1.5 ± 0.3% larger than in the Hokkaido district, and (4) the amplitude at the Japan Sea side is about 0.5 ± 0.2% larger than that at the Pacific Ocean side. These results suggest that we may be able to place constraints on Earth structure using GPS-derived tidal information.     

Systematic errors between VLBI and GPS precipitable water vapor estimations from 5-year co-located measurements

Space geodetic techniques (e.g., Global Positioning System, GPS and very long baseline interference, VLBI) have been widely used to determine the precipitable water vapor (PWV) for meteorology and climatology, which was verified by comparing with co-located independent technique observations. However, most of these comparisons have been conducted using only short-time spanning observations at several stations. The goal of this study is to identify and quantify the systematic errors between VLBI and GPS PWV estimates using a 5-year (2002–2007), PWV data set constructed from co-located measurements and radiosonde data as well. It has found systematic errors between VLBI and GPS PWV estimations from comparisons with long-term co-located GPS measurements. The total mean VLBI PWVs are systematically smaller than GPS estimates with 0.8–2.2 mm for all sites, but can be as much as 15–30%. The subdiurnal PWV variation magnitudes and long-term trends between VLBI and GPS are nearly similar, but the VLBI-derived PWV trends are systematically smaller than GPS estimates with about 0.1±0.02 mm/year. These systematic errors in PWV estimates between VLBI and GPS are probably due to technique own problems, different used elevation angles and co-location separation.     

Global surface mass from a new combination of GRACE,modelled OBP and reprocessed GPS data

Weekly surface loading variations are estimated from a joint least squares inversion of load-induced GPS site displacements, GRACE gravimetry and simulated ocean bottom pressure (OBP) from the finite element sea-ice ocean model (FESOM).In this study, we directly use normal equations derived from reprocessed GPS observations, where station and satellite positions are estimated simultaneously. The OBP weight of the model in the inversion is based on a new error model, obtained from 2 FESOM runs forced with different atmospheric data sets.Our findings indicate that the geocenter motion derived from the inversion is smooth, with non-seasonal RMS values of 1.4, 0.9 and 1.9 mm for the X, Y and Z directions, respectively. The absolute magnitude of the seasonal geocenter motion varies annually between 2 and 4.5 mm. Important hydrological regions such as the Amazon, Australia, South-East Asia and Europe are mostly affected by the geocenter motion, with magnitudes of up to 2 cm, when expressed in equivalent water height.The chosen solar radiation pressure model, used in the GPS processing, has only a marginal effect on the joint inversion results. Using the empirical CODE model slightly increases the annual amplitude of the Z component of the geocenter by 0.8 mm. However, in case of a GPS-only inversion, notable larger differences are found for the annual amplitude and phase estimates when applying the older physical ROCK models. Regardless of the used radiation pressure model the GPS network still exhibits maximum radial expansions in the order of 3 mm (0.45 ppb in terms of scale), which are most likely caused by remaining GPS technique errors.In an additional experiment, we have used the joint inversion solution as a background loading model in the GPS normal equations. The reduced time series, compared to those without a priori loading model, show a consistent decrease in RMS. In terms of the annual height component, 151 of the 189 stations show a reduction of at least 10% in seasonal amplitude.On the ocean floor, we find a positive overall correlation (0.51) of the inversion solution with time series from globally distributed independent bottom pressure recorders.Even after removing a seasonal fit we still find a correlation of 0.45. Furthermore, the geocenter motion has a significant effect on ocean bottom pressure as neglecting it causes the correlation to drop to 0.42.     

Earth tides observed by gravity and GPS in southeastern Alaska

We analyzed gravity data obtained in Juneau and global positioning system (GPS) data obtained from three PBO sites in southeastern Alaska (SE-AK), which are part of a US research facility called ‘EarthScope’, and we compared the obtained tidal amplitudes and phases with those estimated from the predicted tides including both effects of the body tide and ocean tide. Global tide models predict the ocean tides in this region of complex coastline and bathymetry. To improve the accuracy of prediction, we developed a regional ocean tide model in SE-AK.Our comparison results suggest: (1) by taking into account the ocean tide effect, the amplitude differences between the observation and the predicted body tide is remarkably reduced for both the gravity and displacement (e.g. for the M₂ constituent, 8.5–0.3 μGal, and 2.4–0.1 cm at the AB50 GPS site in Juneau in terms of the vector sum of three components of the north–south, east–west and up–down), even though the ocean tide loading is large in SE-AK. (2) We have confirmed the precise point positioning (PPP) method, which was used to extract the tidal signals from the original GPS time series, works well to recover the tidal signals. Although the GPS analysis results still contain noise due to the atmosphere and multipath, we may conclude that the GPS observation surely detects the tidal signals with the sub-centimeter accuracy or better for some of the tidal constituents. (3) In order to increase the accuracy of the tidal prediction in SE-AK, it is indispensable to improve the regional ocean tide model developed in this study, especially for the phase.     

Estimation of the Free Core Nutation parameters from SG data: Sensitivity study and comparative analysis using linearized least-squares and Bayesian methods

The Free Core Nutation (FCN) is investigated with the help of its resonance effect on the tidal amplitudes in Superconducting Gravimeter (SG) records of the GGP network. The FCN resonance parameters are combined in a resonance equation involving the Earth's interior parameters. The sensitivity of the FCN parameters to the diurnal tidal waves demonstrates that the quality factor of the FCN is strongly dependent on the accuracy of the imaginary part estimates of the gravimetric factors close to the resonance. The weak amplitude of Ψ₁ tidal wave on the Earth, which is the closest in frequency to the FCN, in addition to errors in ocean loading correction, explains the poor determination of the quality factor Q from surface gravimetric data. The inversion of tidal gravimetric factors leads to estimates of the period, Q and resonance strength of the FCN. We show that, by inverting log(Q) instead of Q, the results using the least-squares method optimized using the Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm are in agreement with the Bayesian probabilistic results and agree with the results obtained from VLBI nutation data. Finally, a combined inversion of 7 GGP European SG data is performed giving T = 428 ± 3 days and 7762 < Q < 31,989 (90% C.I.). An experimental estimate of the internal pressure Love number is also proposed.     

On the comparison of tidal gravity parameters with tidal models in central Europe

Two accurately calibrated superconducting gravimeters (SGs) provide high quality tidal gravity records in three central European stations: C025 in Vienna and at Conrad observatory (A) and OSG050 in Pecný (CZ). To correct the tidal gravity factors from ocean loading effects we compared the load vectors from different ocean tides models (OTMs) computed with different software: OLFG/OLMP by the Free Ocean Tides Loading Provider (FLP), ICET and NLOADF. Even with the recent OTMs the mass conservation is critical but the methods used to correct the mass imbalance agree within 0.1 nm/s². Although the different software agrees, FLP probably provides more accurate computations as this software has been optimised. For our final computation we used the mean load vector computed by FLP for 8 OTMs (CSR4, NAO99, GOT00, TPX07, FES04, DTU10, EOT11a and HAMTIDE). The corrected tidal factors of the 3 stations agree better than 0.04% in amplitude and 0.02° in phase. Considering the weighted mean of the three stations we get for O1 δ_c = 1.1535 ± 0.0001, for K1 δ_c = 1.1352 ± 0.0003 and for M2 δ_c = 1.1621 ± 0.0003. These values confirm previous ones obtained with 16 European stations. The theoretical body tides model DDW99/NH provides the best agreement for M2 (1.1620) and MATH01/NH for O1 (1.1540) and K1 (1.1350). The largest discrepancy is for O1 (0.05%). The corrected phase α_c does not differ significantly from zero except for K1 and S2. The calibrations of the two SG's are consistent within 0.025% and agree with Strasbourg results within 0.05%.     

Diurnal and semidiurnal atmospheric tides observed by co-located GPS and VLBI measurements

The tropospheric zenith total delay (ZTD) derived from very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) is an important parameter of the atmosphere, reflecting various atmosphere-related processes and variations. In this paper, ZTD time series of the IVS rapid combined tropospheric product (2002–2006) with a 1-h resolution are used for the first time to investigate the diurnal and semidiurnal oscillations. Significant diurnal and semidiurnal variations of ZTD are found at all VLBI stations. The amplitude of the diurnal cycle S₁ is 0.6–1.2 mm at most of the VLBI stations, and the amplitude of the semidiurnal cycle S₂ is 0.2–1.9 mm, which nearly accord with the surface pressure tides S₁/S₂ and co-located GPS estimated S₁/S₂. The results indicate that the S₁ and S₂ behaviors are mainly dominated by the hydrostatic component, namely pressure tides. In general, the semidiurnal S₂ amplitudes are slightly larger than the diurnal S₁. While S₁ shows no clear dependency on site altitude, S₂ has a regular distribution with VLBI site altitude. The results are in accordance with predictions of the classic tidal theory [Chapman, S., Lindzen, R.S., 1970. Atmospheric Tides, Gordon and Breach, New York].     

GPS-derived velocity field of the Iznik-Mekece segment of the North Anatolian Fault Zone

Space-based tectonic studies on the western part of the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) have been conducted over two decades. After the August 17, 1999, Izmit earthquake (M_w = 7.4), this region attracted greater scientific interest, and the collected data became more valuable. The Geodesy Department of the Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute (KOERI) at Bogazici University established three micro-geodetic networks to the east of Akyazi, east of Iznik, and west of Lake Sapanca in the eastern part of the Marmara region; GPS data have been continually collected at these locations since 1994. The NAFZ branches out in the western part of the Marmara region and extends up to the Aegean Sea. Segments of the fault passing through the Marmara Sea are considered active, and this has increased concern regarding imminent earthquakes. Conventional geodetic measurements made between 1990 and 1994 are not sufficient for monitoring small movements. However, GPS has played a very important role in detecting such deformations in the area after 1994. The Iznik network, with 10 points, is bilaterally located on the Iznik-Mekece fault. Six years of GPS data for 2004–2010 collected for the monitoring of crustal deformation showed that the Iznik-Mekece fault segment moves westward at about 22 ± 1 mm/yr with respect to the Eurasia fixed reference frame. The GPS observations show that there is no strain accumulation in the area.     

Global-scale validation of model-based load deformation of the Earth's crust from continental watermass and atmospheric pressure variations using GPS

Temporal mass variations in the continental hydrosphere and in the atmosphere lead to changes in the gravitational potential field that are associated with load-induced deformation of the Earth’s crust. Therefore, models that compute continental water storage and atmospheric pressure can be validated by measured load deformation time series. In this study, water mass variations as computed by the WaterGAP Global Hydrology Model (WGHM) and surface pressure as provided by the reanalysis product of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction describe the hydrological and atmospheric pressure loading, respectively. GPS observations from 14 years at 208 stations world-wide were reprocessed to estimate admittance factors for the associated load deformation time series in order to determine how well the model-based deformation fits to real data. We found that such site-specific scaling factors can be identified separately for water mass and air pressure loading. Regarding water storage variation as computed by WGHM, weighted global mean admittances are 0.74 ± 0.09, 0.66 ± 0.10, 0.90 ± 0.06 for the north, east and vertical component, respectively. For the dominant vertical component, there is a rather good fit to the observed displacements, and, averaged over all sites, WGHM is found to slightly overestimate temporal variations of water storage. For Europe and North America, with a dense GPS network, site-specific admittances show a good spatial coherence. Regarding regional over- or underestimation of WGHM water storage variations, they agree well with GRACE gravity field data. Globally averaged admittance estimates of pre-computed atmospheric loading displacements provided by the Goddard Geodetic VLBI Group were determined to be 0.88 ± 0.04, 0.97 ± 0.08, 1.13 ± 0.01 for the north, east and vertical, respectively. Here, a relatively large discrepancy for the dominant vertical component indicates an underestimation of corresponding loading predictions.     

A comparison of GOCE gravitational models with EGM2008

Four new gravity field models from GOCE, two of them combined with GRACE, are compared here with EGM2008. The objectives are to look into the differences in consecutive ranges of the spherical harmonic expansion globally as well as in selected geographical regions and in the regions of the various data sources used for EGM2008. In general, GOCE is able to contribute to improved global gravity models in the spherical harmonic range between 120 and 200 (and above). The agreement between EGM2008 and the GOCE models is very good in well-surveyed regions such as North America, Europe and Australia, with geoid RMS-differences on the order of 4–6 cm. In other regions, where the surface gravity data available for the development of EGM2008 were poor, such as South America, Africa, South-East Asia or China the RMS-differences are on a level of 30 cm. Here GOCE leads to a significant improvement. These findings are confirmed by the analysis of the areas of the various EGM2008 data sources. In the regions of the so-called “fill-in” data of EGM2008 RMS-geoid height differences are high. In Antarctica GOCE also gives important improvements in terms of spatial resolution and accuracy. In general, the agreement between EGM2008 and the GOCE-models up to degree and order (d/o) 200 is good, with a global (excluding the polar gaps of GOCE orbits, throughout) geoid difference RMS of 11 cm, in the ocean areas 8 cm and 20 cm in the continental areas. GOCE models are better suited for ocean circulation studies because no prior ocean information enters into the data reduction process, as it is the case when deducing gravity anomalies from an altimetric mean sea surface. On the other hand, the good consistency between GOCE-models and EGM2008 in ocean areas very likely indicates that the influence of ocean circulation information on EGM2008 is rather small. The four tested GOCE models behave similarly except at the highest latitudes where GOCE lacks data due to its orbit inclination of 96.5° and some form of regularization which has to be applied.     

Balancing the global oceanic neodymium budget: Evaluating the role of groundwater

The distinctly different, ε_Nd(0) values of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans requires that the residence time of Nd in the ocean (i.e., τ_Nd) be on the order of, or less than, the ocean mixing time of ∼ 500–1500 yr. However, estimates of τ_Nd, based on river influxes, range from 4000 to 15,000 yr, thus exceeding the ocean mixing time. In order to reconcile the oceanic Nd budget and lower the residence time by roughly a factor of 10, an additional, as yet unidentified, and hence “missing Nd flux” to the ocean is necessary. Dissolution of materials deposited on continental margins has previously been proposed as a source of the missing flux. In this contribution, submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) is examined as a possible source of the missing Nd flux. Neodymium concentrations (n = 730) and ε_Nd(0) values (n = 58) for groundwaters were obtained from the literature in order to establish representative groundwater values. Mean groundwater Nd concentrations and ε_Nd(0) values were used along with recent estimates of the terrestrial (freshwater) component of SGD (6% of river discharge on a global basis) to test whether groundwater discharge to the coastal oceans could account for the missing flux. Employing mean Nd concentrations of the compiled data base (i.e., 31.8 nmol/kg for all 730 analyses and 11.3 nmol/kg for 141 groundwater samples from a coastal aquifer), the global, terrestrial-derived SGD flux of Nd is estimated to range between 2.9 × 10⁷ and 8.1 × 10⁷ mol/yr. These estimates are of the same order of magnitude, and within a factor of 2, of the missing Nd flux (i.e., 5.4 × 10⁷ mol/yr). Applying the SGD Nd flux estimates, the global average ε_Nd(0) of SGD is predicted to be − 9.1, which is similar to our estimate for the missing Nd flux (− 9.2), and in agreement with the mean (± S.D.) ε_Nd(0) measured in groundwaters (i.e., ε_Nd(0) = −8.9 ± 4.2). The similarities in the estimated SGD Nd flux and corresponding ε_Nd(0) values to the magnitude and isotope composition of the missing Nd flux are compelling, and suggest that discharge of groundwater to the oceans could account for the missing Nd flux. Future investigations should focus on quantifying the Nd concentrations and isotope compositions of groundwater from coastal aquifers from a variety of coastal settings, as well as the important geochemical reactions that effect Nd concentrations in subterranean estuaries in order to better constrain contributions of SGD to the oceanic Nd budget.     

A coastal three-dimensional water quality model of nitrogen in Jiaozhou Bay linking field experiments with modelling

With anthropogenic changes, the structure and quantity of nitrogen nutrients have changed in coastal ocean, which has dramatically influenced the water quality. Water quality modeling can contribute to the necessary scientific grounding of coastal management. In this paper, some of the dynamic functions and parameters of nitrogen were calibrated based on coastal field experiments covering the dynamic nitrogen processes in Jiaozhou Bay (JZB), including phytoplankton growth, respiration, and mortality; particulate nitrogen degradation; and dissolved organic nitrogen remineralization. The results of the field experiments and box model simulations showed good agreement (RSD = 20% ± 2% and SI = 0.77 ± 0.04). A three-dimensional water quality model of nitrogen (3DWQMN) in JZB was improved and the dynamic parameters were updated according to field experiments. The 3DWQMN was validated based on observed data from 2012 to 2013, with good agreement (RSD = 27 ± 4%, SI = 0.68 ± 0.06, and K = 0.48 ± 0.04), which testifies to the model's credibility.     

Eutrophication and warming-driven green tides (Ulva rigida) are predicted to increase under future climate change scenarios

The incidence and severity of extraordinary macroalgae blooms (green tides) are increasing. Here, climate change (ocean warming and acidification) impacts on life history and biochemical responses of a causative green tide species, Ulva rigida, were investigated under combinations of pH (7.95, 7.55, corresponding to lower and higher pCO₂), temperature (14, 18 °C) and nitrate availability (6 and 150 μmol L^? 1). The higher temperature accelerated the onset and magnitude of gamete settlement. Any two factor combination promoted germination and accelerated growth in young plants. The higher temperature increased reproduction, which increased further in combination with elevated pCO₂ or nitrate. Reproductive success was highest (64.4 ± 5.1%) when the upper limits of all three variables were combined. Biochemically, more protein and lipid but less carbohydrate were synthesized under higher temperature and nitrate conditions. These results suggest that climate change may cause more severe green tides, particularly when eutrophication cannot be effectively controlled.     

On the interpolation of volumetric water content in research catchments

Digital Soil Mapping (DSM) is widely used in the environmental sciences because of its accuracy and efficiency in producing soil maps compared to the traditional soil mapping. Numerous studies have investigated how the sampling density and the interpolation process of data points affect the prediction quality. While, the interpolation process is straight forward for primary attributes such as soil gravimetric water content (θ_g) and soil bulk density (ρ_b), the DSM of volumetric water content (θ_v), the product of θ_g by ρ_b, may either involve direct interpolations of θ_v (approach 1) or independent interpolation of ρ_b and θ_g data points and subsequent multiplication of ρ_b and θ_g maps (approach 2). The main objective of this study was to compare the accuracy of these two mapping approaches for θ_v. A 23 ha grassland catchment in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa was selected for this study. A total of 317 data points were randomly selected and sampled during the dry season in the topsoil (0–0.05 m) for θ_g by ρ_b estimation. Data points were interpolated following approaches 1 and 2, and using inverse distance weighting with 3 or 12 neighboring points (IDW3; IDW12), regular spline with tension (RST) and ordinary kriging (OK). Based on an independent validation set of 70 data points, OK was the best interpolator for ρ_b (mean absolute error, MAE of 0.081 g cm⁻³), while θ_g was best estimated using IDW12 (MAE = 1.697%) and θ_v by IDW3 (MAE = 1.814%). It was found that approach 1 underestimated θ_v. Approach 2 tended to overestimate θ_v, but reduced the prediction bias by an average of 37% and only improved the prediction accuracy by 1.3% compared to approach 1. Such a great benefit of approach 2 (i.e., the subsequent multiplication of interpolated maps of primary variables) was unexpected considering that a higher sampling density (∼14 data point ha⁻¹ in the present study) tends to minimize the differences between interpolations techniques and approaches. In the context of much lower sampling densities, as generally encountered in environmental studies, one can thus expect approach 2 to yield significantly greater accuracy than approach 1. This approach 2 seems promising and can be further tested for DSM of other secondary variables.     

The equivalent dose of different grain size quartz fractions from lakeshore sediments in the arid region of north China

Equivalent dose (D_e) values were measured by using medium aliquots of different grain size quartz fractions of five lakeshore sediments from the arid region of north China. There are two different relationships between D_e values and grain sizes of these five samples. The first relationship is that the D_e values obtained from various grain sizes are in agreement within 1 delta errors. The second relationship is that D_e values are similar to each other for fractions between 125 and 300 μm, while the D_e value of the 63–90 μm fraction is 40～55% smaller than others. For example, the D_e values obtained for sample #3 are 20.15 ± 1.19 Gy, 19.80 ± 0.83 Gy and 20.93 ± 1.06 Gy for fractions of 90–125, 125–150 and 250–300 μm respectively, but are 10.79 ± 0.84 Gy for the 63–90 μm fraction. The second relationship can't be interpreted by previous studies of both dosimetry and heterogeneous bleaching. It is deduced for sample #2, #3 and #6 that fine particles (<90 μm) intruded after the dominant sedimentation. Comparison of OSL ages from different grain size fractions of sample #2 with a radiocarbon age from the same lithologic layer supports that fractions coarser than 125 μm yield more reliable burial ages, while the fraction finer than 90 μm yields underestimated ages for some lakeshore sediments from this arid region.     

OSL-dating the Quaternary landscape evolution in the Vértes Hills forelands (Hungary)

Fluvial, colluvial, and aeolian sediments were dated by optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) on quartz to improve the chronological framework for Quaternary sedimentation and landscape evolution in the forelands of the Vértes Hills (central Hungary). The separated quartz was suitable for age determination based on an OSL SAR protocol. Most samples have asymmetric equivalent dose distributions and OSL ages were calculated by the mean, central, and minimum D_e values. Considering geomorphology and earlier age data from the area, the central D_e values seem most appropriate for age calculation. A fan on the geomorphological level QV in the western foreland of the Vértes Hills was deposited 79–75 (±8) ka ago. In the south-eastern foreland an alluvial fan on level QIIb is at most 42 ± 4 ka old. Fluvial incision and aggradation occurred 16–10 (±1) ka ago on the geomorphic surface QIIa. Loess is 14 ± 1 ka old, and slope sedimentation was active 11–9 (±1) ka ago. Our OSL data demonstrate that in the north-western foreland of the Vértes Hills wind remained an important agent after the last glacial times, into the early Holocene (9–8 ± 1 ka) and was able to accumulate large aeolian dunes.     

Quantities,composition, and sources of beach debris in Korea from the results of nationwide monitoring

This study assessed the levels of marine debris pollution and identified its main sources in Korea. The surveys were bimonthly conducted by NGO leaders and volunteers on 20 beaches from March 2008 to November 2009. The quantities of marine debris were estimated at 480.9 (±267.7) count ⋅ 100 m⁻¹ for number, 86.5 (±78.6) kg ⋅ 100 m⁻¹ for weight, and 0.48 (±0.38) m³ ⋅ 100 m⁻¹ for volume. The level of marine debris pollution on the Korean beaches was comparable to that in the coastal areas of the North Atlantic ocean and South Africa. Plastics and styrofoam occupied the majority of debris composition in terms of number (66.7%) and volume (62.3%). The main sources of debris were fishing activities including commercial fisheries and marine aquaculture (51.3%). Especially styrofoam buoy from aquaculture was the biggest contributor to marine debris pollution on these beaches.     

Oxygen isotope constraints on the origin and differentiation of the Moon

We report new high-precision laser fluorination three-isotope oxygen data for lunar materials. Terrestrial silicates with a range of δ¹⁸O values (− 0.5 to 22.9‰) were analyzed to independently determine the slope of the terrestrial fractionation line (TFL; λ = 0.5259 ± 0.0008; 95% confidence level). This new TFL determination allows direct comparison of lunar oxygen isotope systematics with those of Earth. Values of Δ¹⁷O for Apollo 12, 15, and 17 basalts and Luna 24 soil samples average 0.01‰ and are indistinguishable from the TFL. The δ¹⁸O values of high- and low-Ti lunar basalts are distinct. Average whole-rock δ¹⁸O values for low-Ti lunar basalts from the Apollo 12 (5.72 ± 0.06‰) and Apollo 15 landing sites (5.65 ± 0.12‰) are identical within error and are markedly higher than Apollo 17 high-Ti basalts (5.46 ± 0.11‰). Evolved low-Ti LaPaz mare-basalt meteorite δ¹⁸O values (5.67 ± 0.05‰) are in close agreement with more primitive low-Ti Apollo 12 and 15 mare basalts. Modeling of lunar mare-basalt source composition indicates that the high- and low-Ti mare-basalt mantle reservoirs were in oxygen isotope equilibrium and that variations in δ¹⁸O do not result from fractional crystallization. Instead, these differences are consistent with mineralogically heterogeneous mantle sources for mare basalts, and with lunar magma ocean differentiation models that result in a thick feldspathic crust, an olivine–pyroxene-rich mantle, and late-stage ilmenite-rich zones that were convectively mixed into deeper portions of the lunar mantle. Higher average δ¹⁸O (WR) values of low-Ti basalts compared to terrestrial mid ocean ridge basalts (Δ=0.18‰) suggest a possible oxygen isotopic difference between the terrestrial and lunar mantles. However, calculations of the δ¹⁸O of lunar mantle olivine in this study are only 0.05‰ higher than terrestrial mantle olivine. These observations may have important implications for understanding the formation of the Earth–Moon system.     

Modification of fault slip models of the Mw 9.0 Tohoku Earthquake by far field GPS observations

GPS data from Crustal Movement Observation Network of China (CMONOC) are used to derive far-field co-seismic displacements induced by the M_w 9.0 Tohoku Earthquake. Significant horizontal displacements about 30 mm, 10 mm, and 20 mm were caused by this large event in northeast China, north China, and on the Korean peninsula respectively. Vectors of relatively large horizontal displacements with dominant east components pointed to the epicenter of this earthquake. The east components show an exponential decay with the longitude, which is characteristic of the decay of the co-seismic horizontal displacements associated with earthquakes of thrust rupture. The exponential fit of the east components shows that the influence of the co-seismic displacements can be detected by GPS at a distance of about 3200 km from the epicenter of the earthquake. By considering the capability of the far field displacements for constraining the inversion of the fault slip model of the earthquake, we use spherically stratified Earth models to simulate the co-seismic displacements induced by this event. Using computations and comparisons, we discuss the effects of parameters of layered Earth models on the results of dislocation modeling. Comparisons of the modeled and observed displacements show that far field GPS observations are effective for constraining the fault slip model. The far field horizontal displacements observed by GPS are used to modify the slips and seismic moments of fault slip models. The result of this work is applicable as a reference for other researchers to study seismic source rupture and crustal deformation.     

Determining fault slip distribution of the Chi-Chi Taiwan earthquake with GPS and InSAR data using triangular dislocation elements

The reactivation of the Chelungpu fault triggered the 20 September 1999 Chi-Chi Taiwan earthquake (M_w = 7.6) which caused a 100-km long surface rupture that trends north–south. We reconstruct the fault geometry using 1068 planar triangular dislocation elements that approximate more realistically the curved three-dimensional fault surface. The fault slip distribution is then determined with the observed GPS coseismic displacements as well as interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) data. The results show that our smooth 3D fault slip model has improved the fit to the geodetic data by 44% compared with the previously published inversions. The slip distribution obtained both by inversion of GPS data only and by joint inversion of GPS and InSAR data indicates that notable slips occur on the sub-horizontal décollement at the depth of 6.1–8.9 km.