Chemical weathering of carbonates and silicates in the Han River basin,South Korea

A detailed investigation of the fluvial geochemistry of the Han River system allows to estimate the rates of chemical weathering and the consumption of CO₂. The Han River drains approximately 26,000 km² and is the largest river system in South Korea in terms of both water discharge and total river length. It consists of two major tributaries: the North Han River (NHR) and the South Han River (SHR). Distinct differences in basin lithology (silicate vs. carbonate) between the NHR and SHR provide a good natural laboratory in which to examine weathering processes and the influence of basin geology on water quality. The concentrations of major elements and the Sr isotopic compositions were obtained from 58 samples collected in both summer and winter along the Han River system in both 2000 and 2006. The concentrations of dissolved loads differed considerably between the NHR and SHR; compared with the SHR, the NHR had much lower total dissolved solids (TDS), Sr, and major ion concentrations but a higher Si concentration and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio. A forward model showed that the dissolved loads in the NHR came primarily from silicate weathering (55 ± 11%), with a relatively small portion from carbonates (30 ± 14%), whereas the main contribution to the dissolved loads in the SHR was carbonate weathering (82 ± 3%), with only 11 ± 4% from silicates. These results are consistent with the different lithologies of the two drainage basins: silicate rocks in the NHR versus carbonate rocks in the SHR. Sulfuric acid derived from sulfide dissolution in coal-containing sedimentary strata has played an important role in carbonate weathering in the SHR basin, unlike in the NHR basin. The silicate weathering rate (SWR) was similar between the NHR and SHR basins, but the rate of CO₂ consumption in the SHR basin was lower than in the NHR basin due to an important role of sulfuric acid derived from pyrite oxidation.     

Landslide susceptibility analysis using GIS and artificial neural network

The purpose of this study is to develop landslide susceptibility analysis techniques using an arti?cial neural network and to apply the newly developed techniques to the study area of Yongin in Korea. Landslide locations were identi?ed in the study area from interpretation of aerial photographs, ?eld survey data, and a spatial database of the topography, soil type and timber cover. The landslide‐related factors (slope, curvature, soil texture, soil drainage, soil effective thickness, timber age, and timber diameter) were extracted from the spatial database. Using those factors, landslide susceptibility was analysed by arti?cial neural network methods. The landslide susceptibility index was calculated by the back‐propagation method, which is a type of arti?cial neural network method, and the susceptibility map was made with a geographic information system (GIS) program. The results of the landslide susceptibility analysis were veri?ed using landslide location data. The validation results showed satisfactory agreement between the susceptibility map and the existing data on landslide location. A GIS was used to ef?ciently analyse the vast amount of data, and an arti?cial neural network to be an effective tool to maintain precision and accuracy. The results can be used to reduce hazards associated with landslides and to plan land use and construction. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessing the vegetation canopy influences on wind flow using wind tunnel experiments with artificial plants

Wind erosion causes serious problems and considerable threat in most regions of the world. Vegetation on the ground has an important role in controlling wind erosion by covering soil surface and absorbing wind momentum. A set of wind tunnel experiments was performed to quantitatively examine the effect of canopy structure on wind movement. Artificial plastic vegetations with different porosity and canopy shape were introduced as the model canopy. Normalized roughness length (Z ₀/H) and shear velocity ratio (R) were analyzed as a function of roughness density (λ). Experiments showed that Z ₀/H increases and R decreases as λ reaches a maximum value, λ _max, while the values of Z ₀/H and R showed little change with λ value beyond as λ _max.     

朝鲜半岛古元古代摩天岭群的碎屑锆石U-Pb年龄及其地质意义

克拉通内部活动带变质沉积建造蕴藏了早期超大陆形成中地体聚-散动力学过程的重要信息,碎屑锆石年代学则是揭示这种信息的最佳工具之一。针对华北(中-朝)克拉通最具代表性的古元古代活动带(辽-吉-朝活动带)中巨量沉积建造精细表征方面的空白区域,本文开展了朝鲜半岛检德地区摩天岭群的碎屑锆石年代学研究。SIMS U-Pb定年结果显示,北大川组变火山碎屑岩样品的锆石年龄谱记录了约2.53Ga的主要年龄峰值和约2.19Ga的最年轻峰值,说明北大川组开始沉积的时代应该晚于2.2Ga。南大川组变沉积岩样品碎屑锆石记录的最年轻峰值年龄为约2.02Ga,说明南大川组的沉积时代应该不早于2.02Ga;其锆石年龄谱记录了一个主要年龄峰值区域(2.02~2.18Ga)、一个次要年龄峰值(约2.46Ga)和一些2.78~3.30 Ga的古老年龄,指示其物质源区主要为同区古元古代地质体和邻近地体上的太古宙变质基底。区域对比表明,摩天岭群与中国境内辽吉活动带中的辽河群及集安群/老岭群具有基本一致的碎屑锆石年龄谱,说明它们不仅是同一时代的产物,而且分享类似的物质源区。这些时代一致、物源相近的沉积建造可以为甄别古元古代辽-吉-朝活动带的大地构造属性提供重要参考。与沉积年龄相近的碎屑锆石占据主导的碎屑锆石年龄谱反映了汇聚板块边缘各类盆地的典型特征,而相悖于大部分碎屑锆石年龄远大于地层沉积年龄的裂谷型盆地。     

Quality control methods for KOOS operational sea surface temperature products

Sea surface temperature SST obtained from the initial version of the Korea Operational Oceanographic System(KOOS) SST satellite have low accuracy during summer and daytime. This is attributed to the diurnal warming effect. Error estimation of SST data must be carried out to use the real-time forecasting numerical model of the KOOS. This study suggests two quality control methods for the KOOS SST system. To minimize the diurnal warming effect, SSTs of areas where wind speed is higher than 5 m/s were used. Depending on the wind threshold value, KOOS SST data for August 2014 were reduced by 0.15°C. Errors in SST data are considered to be a combination of random, sampling, and bias errors. To estimate bias error, the standard deviation of bias between KOOS SSTs and climatology SSTs were used. KOOS SST data yielded an analysis error standard deviation value similar to OSTIA and NOAA NCDC(OISST) data. The KOOS SST shows lower random and sampling errors with increasing number of observations using six satellite datasets. In further studies, the proposed quality control methods for the KOOS SST system will be applied through more long-term case studies and comparisons with other SST systems.     

Latitudinal change in benthic foraminiferal fauna by ITCZ movement along the ~131°W transect in the equatorial Pacific Ocean

Modern and fossil benthic foraminifera were examined from nine surface sediments and two piston cores along the ~131°W transect in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. This study was conducted to clarify the biotic response of abyssal benthic foraminifera during the last 220 ka to changes in the seasonal extent of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). The abundance of modern benthic foraminifera was high at stations between the equator and 6°N, whereas it was low at stations north of 6°N, which is generally consistent with the latitudinal CaCO₃ distribution of surface sediments. The northward increase of Epistominella exigua from the equator to ~6°N is similar to the seasonal variations in chlorophyll-a concentrations in the surface water and ITCZ position along ~131°W. This species was more common at core PC5103 (~6°N) than at core PC5101 (~2°N) after ~130 ka, when the Shannon-Wiener diversity (H’) between the two cores started to diverge. Hence, the presentday latitudinal difference in benthic foraminifera (E. exigua and species diversity) between ~2°N and ~6°N along ~131°W has been generally established since ~130 ka. According to the modern relationship between the seasonality of primary production and seasonal ITCZ variations in the northern margin of the ITCZ, the latitudinal divergence of benthic foraminiferal fauna between ~2°N and ~6°N since ~130 ka appear to have been induced by more distinct variations in the seasonal movement of ITCZ.     

Rare earth element fingerprints in Korean coastal bay sediments: Association with provenance discrimination

Rare earth elements (REEs: La-Lu) in surface sediments collected from the mouth and middle tidal flats of Gomso Bay, South Korea, in August 2011 and May 2012 were analyzed to investigate the fine-grained sediment provenance. The upper continental crust (UCC)-normalized light REEs (LREEs: La to Nd) were more enriched than the middle REEs (MREEs: Sm to Dy) and heavy REEs (HREEs: Ho to Lu), resulting in large (La/Yb)_UCC (1.9 ± 0.4) to (Gd/Yb)_UCC (1.4 ± 0.2) ratios. The monthly (La/Yb)_UCC values differed between the mouth and middle tidal flats due to deposition of fine-grained sediments that originated from distant rivers (the Geum and Yeongsan) and the Jujin Stream, located on the southern shore of the inner bay. We observed relative reductions in the (La/Yb)_UCC value and REE content in the sediments from the mouth of the bay compared with those from Jujin Stream sediments. Confined to the middle tidal flat around the KH Line of Jujin Stream, the sediments, most enriched in LREEs but depleted in Eu, were distributed in August as strong Jujin Stream runs. Here, we suggest that an increase in LREE/HREE and decrease in MREE/LREE ratios can be used as a proxy to identify the Jujin Stream provenance in mixed riverine sediments and to trace Jujin Stream sediments within the Gomso Bay tidal flat, especially in the summer rainy season.     

A Review on Marine N2 Fixation: Mechanism,Evolution of Methodologies,Rates, and Future Concerns

Ocean Science Journal - Investigations on marine N2 fixation have gained momentum since 1960s with eventual establishments of relevant methodologies to identify species involved and quantify the...     

Effects of Trichoderma harzianum YC_(459) and soil types on seed germination and seedling growth in rock slope restoration

We carried out experiments with various concentrations of Trichoderma harzianum YC459 in different soil types(forest soil, mixed soil,merchantable soil, and leaf mold soil) to evaluate its effect on seed germination and seedling establishment of four species(Festuca arundinacea Schreb., Dianthus barbatus var. asiaticus Nakai,Lespedeza cyrtobotrya Miq., and Parthenocissus tricuspidata Planch) for rock slope restoration. We also investigated the use of drilled slanted holes on the rock slopes for seedling establishment. The results showed that T. harzianum concentration had significant effects on seed germination, seedling growth, and seedling survival for all the species with different soil types. Seed germination and survival rates peaked at 5% T. harzianum concentration with leaf mold soil and decreased as T. harzianum concentration increased from 5% to 10%. Seedling survival rates of all four species were generally lowest at 0% T. harzianum concentration in all soil types.The height of F. arundinacea and L. cyrtobotrya peaked at 5% T. harzianum concentration whereas that of D. barbatus and P. tricuspidata peaked at 10%T. harzianum concentration. We concluded that 5% T. harzianum concentration with leaf mold soil is appropriate for seed germination and seedling survival rates of most species, thus enhancing seedling establishment. Practical application of the findings of this study will contribute in the vegetation restoration of steep rocks in mountain environments.