Ground motion characteristics and shaking damage of the 11th March 2011 M w9.0 Great East Japan earthquake

A catastrophic M _w9.0 earthquake and subsequent giant tsunami struck the Tōhoku and Kanto regions of Japan on 11th March 2011, causing tremendous casualties, massive damage to structures and infrastructure, and huge economic loss. This event has revealed weakness and vulnerability of urban cities and modern society in Japan, which were thought to be one of the most earthquake-prepared nations in the world. Nevertheless, recorded ground motion data from this event offer invaluable information and opportunity; their unique features include very strong short-period spectral content, long duration, and effects due to local asperities as well as direction of rupture/wave propagation. Aiming at gaining useful experience from this tragic event, Earthquake Engineering Field Investigation Team (EEFIT) organised and dispatched a team to the Tōhoku region of Japan. During the EEFIT mission, ground shaking damage surveys were conducted in Sendai, Shirakawa, and Sukagawa, where the Japan Meteorological Agency intensity of 6+ was observed and instrumentally recorded ground motion data were available. The damage survey results identify the key factors for severe shaking damage, such as insufficient lateral reinforcement and detailing in structural columns from structural capacity viewpoint and rich spectral content of ground shaking in the intermediate vibration period range from seismic demand viewpoint. Importantly, inclusion of several ground motion parameters, such as nonlinear structural response, in shaking damage surveys, can improve the correlation of observed ground motion with shaking damage and therefore enhance existing indicators of potential damage.     

A primitive dark inclusion with radiation‐damaged silicates in the Ningqiang carbonaceous chondrite

Abstract— A petrologic and TEM study of a remarkable dark inclusion (DI) in the Ningqiang CV3 chondrite reveals that it is a mixture of highly primitive solar nebula materials. The DI contains two lithologies. The first, lithology A, contains micron‐sized olivine and pyroxene grains rimmed by amorphous materials with compositions similar to the underlying crystalline grains. The second, lithology B, appears to preserve the mineralogy of lithology A before formation of the amorphous rims. Overall, the Ningqiang DI appears to record the following processes: 1) formation (condensation and Fe‐enrichment) of olivine crystals in the nebula with compositions of Fo_42–62; 2) irradiation, resulting in amorphitization of the olivine and pyroxene to varying degrees; 3) partial annealing, resulting in formation of fairly large, euhedral olivine and pyroxene grains with remnant amorphous sharply‐bounded rims; 4) in some cases, prolonged annealing, resulting in the formation of microcrystalline olivine or pyroxene rims. The latter annealing would have been a natural consequence of irradiation near the critical temperature for olivine; and 5) mixture of the above materials (lithology A) with nebular condensate high‐Ca pyroxene and olivine, which escaped nebular processing, to become lithology B. We suggest that the amorphous rims in lithology A formed in an energetic solar event such as a bi‐polar outflow or FU‐orionis flare.     

基于远场参考的超低频(ULF)地震地磁数据处理——以2003年1月日本茨城县5.1级地震为例

野外观测和室内试验表明,地震孕育和发生过程中可能产生电磁信号。地震电磁现象在防震减灾中具有潜在的应用价值,已成为21世纪国内外地学研究热点之一。由于地震电磁信号较弱,通常混杂于空间场源信号及人文噪音中,不易在观测数据中提取出来。以2003年1月日本茨城县5.1级地震为例,探讨远场参考在超低频(ULF)地震地磁数据处理中的应用,进而检测震前局部磁场异常。在此基础上,讨论远场参考法的优势及可能存在的不足。分析结果表明,2003年1月日本茨城县5.1级地震发生前存在局部磁场异常,验证了远场参考方法的有效性,相关成果可为地震地磁数据处理提供有益参考。     

A Transit of Venus Possibly Misinterpreted as an Unaided-Eye Sunspot Observation in China on 9 December 1874

Solar Physics - Large sunspots can be observed with the unaided eye under suitable atmospheric seeing conditions. Such observations are of particular value because the frequency of their appearance...     

Clinopyroxene-perovskite phase transition of FeGeO3 under high pressure and room temperature

In order to confirm the possible existence of FeGeO₃ perovskite, we have performed in situ X-ray diffraction measurements of FeGeO₃ clinopyroxene at pressures up to 40 GPa at room temperature. The transition of FeGeO₃ clinopyroxene into orthorhombic perovskite is observed at about 33GPa. The cell parameters of FeGeO₃ perovskite are a=4.93(2) Å, b=5.06(6) Å, c=6.66(3) Å and V=166(3) ų at 40 GPa. On release of pressure, the perovskite phase transformed into lithium niobate structure. The previously reported decomposition process of clino-pyroxene into Fe₂GeO₄ (spinel)+GeO₂ (rutile) or FeO (wüstite) +GeO₂ (rutile) was not observed. This shows that the transition of pyroxene to perovskite is kinetically accessible compared to the decomposition processes under low-temperature pressurization.     

Grain size dependence of far-infrared extinction spectra of amorphous fine grains

The far-infrared extinction spectra of fused silica grains with the size range from 1.8 m to 60 Å were measured. The spectra depend clearly on the grain size. For large grain sizes (from 1.8 m to 400 Å) the spectra show almost the ^–2 dependence ( is the wavelength), which resembles that of the bulk material. For fine grains (70 and 60 Å) the spectra are less steep, the wavelength dependence being ^–1. This grain size dependence of extinction spectra agrees essentially with the prediction of Seki and Yamamoto.     

Osmium isotope ratios of PGM grains associated with the Freetown Layered Complex,Sierra Leone,and their origin

Osmium isotope ratios for two types of platinum group mineral (PGM) nuggets of eluvial (residual) origin, associated with the Freetown Layered Gabbro Complex, were determined in-situ using an ion microprobe. The values for erlichmanite nuggets are 1.08. Those for PGM inclusions in Pt–Fe alloy nuggets are higher, ranging from 1.2 to 2.1. Ratios of¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁶Os vary between the nuggets, but they are consistent within individual nuggest. The data suggest early formation of the erlichmanite nuggets, prior to a postulated substantial contribution of crustal Os. The Pt–Fe alloy nuggets, on the other hand, were formed later in a residual melt which was contaminated by crustal Os due to the assimilation (<10%) or the gaseous/fluid transport of Os from Archaean host rocks into the magma. The lack of systematic mineralogical and chemical changes of the Complex and extensive granulitization in the adjacent host rocks and xenoliths may favor the latter process.The lack of high¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁶Os ratios, consistent¹⁸⁷Os/¹⁸⁶Os values within individual nuggets and their textures and mineralogy suggest that the studied PGM nuggets were not formed during lateritization or in low-temperature depositional environments.     

Spatial Heterogeneity in Distributions of Chlorophyll a Derivatives in the Subarctic North Pacific during Summer

The distribution of chlorophyll a derivatives was examined in samples collected from the subarctic North Pacific during July to September 1997. Pheophorbide a, pheophytin a and pyropheophorbide a as determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) were the major derivatives recorded. The distribution patterns of chlorophyll a and its derivatives showed a strong vertical and horizontal heterogeneity. Patches with high concentration of derivatives seemed to be associated with high concentration of chlorophyll a. A clear east-west gradient was observed in both chlorophyll a and pheophorbide a integrated from the surface to 100 m depth with significantly higher amounts of both the pigments in the Western Subarctic Gyre and in the Bering Sea than in the Alaskan Gyre. In contrast, no apparent gradient was observed in the integrated pyropheophorbide a and pheophytin a. Grazing experiments conducted with the copepod (Neocalanus cristatus) and salp (Cyclosalpa bakeri) fed on five species of phytoplankton cultures, showed a marked difference in the composition of the derivatives in their fecal pellets. Pyropheophorbide a was dominant in the copepod fecal pellet regardless of the phytoplankton species fed on. In the salp, however, pheophytin a and pheophorbide a were found in the fecal pellets, the relative concentrations varying with the algal food. Spatial heterogeneity in the distribution of the derivatives is considered to reflect local variations in dominant herbivorous processes.     

Myctophid fishes of the genusMyctophum (myctophidae) in the pacific and Indian oceans

The key to the nine species:M. nitidulum Garman,M. aurolaternatum Garman,M. spinosum (Steindachner),M. asperum Richardson,M. obtusirostrum Tåning,M. orientale (Gilbert),M. phengodes (Lütken),M. selenoides Wisner andM. brachygnathum (Bleeker), was prepared for the genusMyctophum, typical surface migrating myctophid fishes, from the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The three species ofM. cuvieri (Castelnau),M. indicus (Day),M. novaeseelandidae (Steindachner) were excluded from the present key, since they have not been reported since they were originally described.M. lychnobium Bolin formsM. spinosumlychnobium complex and was also excluded. The systematic accounts were given for seven species.     

A simple fractionation method for determination of phosphorus components in phytoplankton: Application to natural populations of phytoplankton in summer surface waters of Tokyo Bay

A simple procedure for fractionation of phosphorus components in natural populations of phytoplankton has been developed. By a combination of a trichloroacetic acid (TCA) extraction, a hot dilute acid treatment, a charcoal treatment and an organic solvent extraction, cellular phosphorus was divided into orthophosphate, nucleotide phosphorus, sugar phosphates, acid-soluble polyphosphates, lipid phosphorus, nucleic acid phosphorus, acid-insoluble polyphosphates, and residual phosphorus. The recovery of phosphorus was 94±5%. This technique was applied to natural populations of phytoplankton in summer surface waters of Tokyo Bay. Nucleic acid phosphorus and orthophosphate were most abundant, and accounted for 30 to 50% of total phytoplankton phosphorus. The nucleic acid phosphorus was proportional to the biomass of phytoplankton, irrespective of ambient nutrient concentrations. The orthophosphate showed the largest change in association with the change in cellular phosphorus content as well as in ambient phosphate. The orthophosphate serves as a phosphorus reserve in the natural populations of phytoplankton in summer surface waters of Tokyo Bay whereSkeletonema costatum was dominant. Acid-insoluble polyphosphates tended to increase when ambient concentration of phosphate was high, but their amounts were almost one order of magnitude lower than that of orthophosphate.