Transition of eruptive style in an arc–arc collision zone: K–Ar dating of Quaternary monogenetic and polygenetic volcanoes in the Higashi-Izu region, Izu peninsula, Japan

K-Ar ages were measured on Quaternary polygenetic and monogenetic volcanoes in the Higashi-Izu region, Izu peninsula, central Japan, using the unspiked sensitivity method with mass-fractionation correction procedure to investigate when eruptive style changed, whether a hiatus existed between the two types of eruptive activity, and the effect of tectonics on the change in eruptive style. The K-Ar ages range from 0.3-0.08 Ma for monogenetic volcanoes and from 1.8-0.2 Ma for polygenetic volcanoes; thus, no volcanic hiatus was found between the two types of eruptive styles. The transition from polygenetic to monogenetic volcanism occurred during a time of overlap between 0.3 and 0.2 Ma, after collision of the Izu block (the future Izu peninsula) with central Japan, estimated as 1.0-0.8 Ma by previous researchers. Based on the review of several tectonic models of the area, the measured age of transition in eruptive style is interpreted to correspond to the change in the stress field of the Higashi-Izu region.     

An extended theory of equi-risk line for a general release rule

The expression of equi-risk line derived by the authors represents the relationship between discharge capacityy ₀ ^u and storage capacityz ₀ ^u to keep flood frequency under a certain risk level represented by the return periodT, i.e.,z ₀/z ₀ ^u ={(y ₀ ^u –y ₀ ^u )/y ₀ ^u } ^S , wherey ₀ ^u andz ₀ ^u areT-year probability peak discharge and total volume of a hydrograph. The shape parametersS is evaluated in this paper for various release rules of the storage facilities and correlations of durations and peaks of hydrographs. The expression forS is: , whereS ₀ andS are the values ofS forp=0 and , andp is the exponent of a general storage-release relation,q=az' ^p, wherea is the storage constant, andz' andq are the volume of stored water and the corresponding release. The values ofS ₀ andS are expressed in terms of the correlation coefficient of durations and peaks of inflow hydrographs.     

Structural characteristics controlling the seismicity crustal structure of southern Japan Trench fore-arc region, revealed by ocean bottom seismographic data

The Japan Trench is a plate convergent zone where the Pacific Plate is subducting below the Japanese islands. Many earthquakes occur associated with plate convergence, and the hypocenter distribution is variable along the Japan Trench. In order to investigate the detailed structure in the southern Japan Trench and to understand the variation of seismicity around the Japan Trench, a wide-angle seismic survey was conducted in the southern Japan Trench fore-arc region in 1998. Ocean bottom seismometers (15) were deployed on two seismic lines: one parallel to the trench axis and one perpendicular. Velocity structures along two seismic lines were determined by velocity modeling of travel time ray-tracing method. Results from the experiment show that the island arc Moho is 18–20 km in depth and consists of four layers: Tertiary and Cretaceous sedimentary rocks, island arc upper and lower crust. The uppermost mantle of the island arc (mantle wedge) extends to 110 km landward of the trench axis. The P-wave velocity of the mantle wedge is laterally heterogeneous: 7.4 km/s at the tip of the mantle wedge and 7.9 km/s below the coastline. An interplate layer is constrained in the subducting oceanic crust. The thickness of the interplate layer is about 1 km for a velocity of 4 km/s. Interplate layer at the plate boundary may cause weak interplate coupling and low seismicity near the trench axis. Low P-wave velocity mantle wedge is also consistent with weak interplate coupling. Thick interplate layer and heterogeneous P-wave velocity of mantle wedge may be associated with the variation of seismic activity.     

Incorporation rate measurements of <Superscript>10</Superscript>Be, <Superscript>230</Superscript>Th, <Superscript>231</Superscript>Pa,and <Superscript>239,240</Superscript>Pu radionuclides in manganese crust in the Pacific Ocean: A search for extraterrestrial material

In order to estimate the deposition rate of extraterrestrial material onto a manganese crust in a search for supernova debris, we analyzed the contents of ¹⁰Be, ²³⁰Th, ²³¹Pa, and ^239,240Pu in a sample of manganese crust collected from the North Pacific Ocean. On the basis of the depth profile of ¹⁰Be, the growth rate of the manganese crust was determined to be 2.3 mm Myr⁻¹. The uptake rates of ¹⁰Be, ²³⁰Th, and ²³¹Pa onto the manganese crust were estimated to be 0.22–0.44%, 0.11–0.73%, and 1.4–4.5%, respectively, as compared to the deposition rates onto the deep-sea sediments near the sampling station, while that for ^239,240Pu was 0.14% as compared to the total inventory of seawater and sediment column. Assuming that sinking particles represent 0.11–4.5% of the uptake rates, the deposition rate of extraterrestrial material onto the manganese crust was estimated to be 2–800 μg cm⁻²Myr⁻¹ according to the uptake of ¹⁰Be onto the manganese crust. Further, our estimate is similar to the value of 9–90 μg cm^{− 2}Myr⁻¹ obtained using the integrated global production rate of ¹⁰Be and the deposition rate of ¹⁰Be onto the manganese crust.     

Direct ascent to the surface of asthenospheric magma in a region of convex lithospheric flexure

The stress field of oceanic lithosphere controls the distribution of submarine petit-spot volcanoes. However, the eruption sites of these petit-spot volcanoes are considered to be limited to concavely flexed regions of lithosphere off the outer rise. Here, we present new data for a recently identified petit-spot lava field on a convexly flexed section of the lithosphere adjacent to the subduction zone offshore of northeast Japan in an area containing more than 80 volcanoes. This area is marked by strongly alkaline lavas that were erupted on the convexly flexed region. As for the concavely flexed region where the petit-spots previously reported, the base of the lithosphere beneath the eruption sites is under extension, whereas the upper part of the lithosphere is under compression. This change in the stress field, from the lower to upper lithosphere, causes ascending dikes to stall in the mid-lithosphere, leading to metasomatic interaction with the surrounding peridotite. The new geochemical data of rocks and xenocrysts presented in this study indicate that strongly alkaline magmas erupted on the convexly flexed region would have ascended more rapidly through the mid-depth of lithosphere because of the extensional regime of the upper lithosphere and decreasing the degree of metasomatic reaction with the surrounding mantle peridotite. The results indicate that the degree of metasomatism and the compositional variations of petit-spot magmas are controlled mainly by the stress field of the lithosphere.     

东海风应力旋度驱动的21天周期的海底压力变化及其传播

在2015年6月至2017年6月期间,跨越庆良间水道的由2台加载压力传感器的倒置式回声仪（PIES）和5台加载压力传感器和海流计的倒置式回声仪（CPIES）组成的观测断面获得了近2年的海底压力时间序列。该时间序列中存在着显著的21天周期的振荡（P_bot21）,该信号在2016年7月至10月期间尤为强烈。P_bot21与东海陆架上的风应力旋度存在较显著的3天延迟相关,其相关系数达到0.65。本文采用正压海洋模式解释了这一信号的产生、传播以及耗散过程,模式结果显示东海陆架上的风应力旋度驱动产生P_bot21并向琉球岛链传播,而深海上的风应力旋度不能驱动产生这一信号。在陆架上,P_bot21伴随21天周期的风应力旋度由海岸向东南方向传播,但由于摩擦作用,信号在离开风场后几天内即耗散。断面能否观测到P_bot21与陆架上21天周期风应力旋度场的分布相关,长江口东南方向风应力旋度驱动的P_bot21能被观测到,而长江口东北方向产生的P_bot21不能被观测到。     

Distribution of glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers, alkenones and polyunsaturated fatty acids in suspended particulate organic matter in the East China Sea

We investigated the spatial distribution of glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs), alkenones, and polyunsaturated fatty acids in particulate organic matter collected at four sites along a depth transect from the continental shelf to the Okinawa Trough in the East China Sea during the spring bloom in 2008. The maximum alkenone concentration appeared in the top 25?m at all sites and the $ U_{37}^{{{\text{K}}'}} $ values were consistent with in situ water temperatures in the depth interval, suggesting that the alkenones were produced mainly in surface water. At the slope and shelf sites, GDGTs in the water column showed a concentration maximum at 74?C99?m depth, and the $ {\text{TEX}}_{86}^{\text{H}} $ agreed with in situ water temperatures, suggesting the in situ production of GDGTs in the depth interval. The low-salinity surface water above 20?m depth was characterized by low GDGT concentrations and low $ {\text{TEX}}_{86}^{\text{L}} $ -based temperatures, suggesting either the production of GDGTs in winter season or the lateral advection of GDGTs by an eastward current. At the slope and Okinawa Trough sites, TEX₈₆-based temperatures were nearly constant in the water column deeper than 300?m and corresponded to temperatures at the surface and near-surface waters rather than in situ temperatures. This observation is consistent with a hypothesis that Thaumarchaeota cells produced in surface waters are delivered to deeper water and also indicates that the residence time of suspended GDGTs in the deep-water column is large enough to mix the GDGTs produced in different seasons.     

Holocene salinity fluctuations of the East Korean lagoon related to sea level and precipitation changes

Detailed diatom records within core sediments from Maeho Lagoon along the Eastern coast of South Korea revealed that the ecological dynamics of the lagoon during the Holocene were associated with relative sea level and regional precipitation. Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) ¹⁴C dating indicates that sediment accumulation began prior to 8300 cal. year BP, and that the lagoon formed around 8000 cal. year BP. The salinity level of the lagoon increased until 5000 cal. year BP, and then decreased. Long‐term trends in salinity were dependent upon changes in sea level: periods of high salinity in the lagoon were generally coincident with periods of high sea levels along the east coasts of Korea and Japan. On the other hand, multicentennial‐scale fluctuations in diatom assemblages and magnetic susceptibility (MS) suggest that a 400 year fluctuation in salinity was regulated by changes in precipitation in the area of this lagoon. Changes in the westerly jet stream, controlled by variation in solar irradiance, had an important influence on precipitation volume in South Korea, suggesting that the patterns of the westerly jet stream fluctuate on a 400 year cycle.