Tectonostratigraphic framework and depositional history of the deepwater Ulleung Basin,East Sea/Sea of Japan

The Ulleung Basin, East Sea/Japan Sea, is a Neogene back-arc basin and occupies a tectonically crucial zone under the influence of relative motions between Eurasian, Pacific and Philippine Sea plates. However, the link between tectonics and sedimentation remains poorly understood in the back-arc Ulleung Basin, as it does in many other back-arc basins as well, because of a paucity of seismic data and controversy over the tectonic history of the basin. This paper presents an integrated tectonostratigraphic and sedimentary evolution in the deepwater Ulleung Basin using 2D multichannel seismic reflection data. The sedimentary succession within the deepwater Ulleung Basin is divided into four second-order seismic megasequences (MS1 to MS4). Detailed seismic stratigraphy interpretation of the four megasequences suggests the depositional history of the deepwater Ulleung Basin occurred in four stages, controlled by tectonic movement, volcanism, and sea-level fluctuations. In Stage 1 (late Oligocene through early Miocene), syn-rift sediment supplied to the basin was restricted to the southern base-of-slope, whereas the northern distal part of the basin was dominated by volcanic sills and lava flows derived from initial rifting-related volcanism. In Stage 2 (late early Miocene through middle Miocene), volcanic extrusion occurred through post-rift, chain volcanism in the earliest time, followed by hemipelagic and turbidite sedimentation in a quiescent open marine setting. In Stage 3 (late middle Miocene through late Miocene), compressional activity was predominant throughout the Ulleung Basin, resulting in regional uplift and sub-aerial erosion/denudation of the southern shelf of the basin, which provided enormous volumes of sediment into the basin through mass transport processes. In Stage 4 (early Pliocene through present), although the degree of tectonic stress decreased significantly, mass movement was still generated by sea-level fluctuations as well as compressional tectonic movement, resulting in stacked mass transport deposits along the southern basin margin. We propose a new depositional history model for the deepwater Ulleung Basin and provide a window into understanding how tectonic, volcanic and eustatic interactions control sedimentation in back-arc basins.     

Climatically controlled lacustrine clinoforms: Theory and modelling results

Lacustrine basins and their deposits are good paleoclimate recorders and contain rich energy resources. Shelf-margin clinoforms do exist in deep lacustrine basins, but with striking differences from those in deep marine basins, caused by a correlation between the river-derived sediment supply and the lake level. This study uses empirical relationships to calculate the water and sediment discharge from rivers and coeval lake level during wet–dry cycles at 10 s of ky time scale. Sediment supply and lake-level changes are used for a stratigraphic forward model to understand how lacustrine clinoforms develop under different climate conditions. The results show that both wet and dry cycles can be associated with thick deep-water fan deposits, supporting the existing climate-driven lacustrine model proposed based on field data (e.g. Neogene Pannonian Basin and Eocene Uinta Basin). The wet period with high sediment supply and rising lake level creates the highly aggradational shelf, progradational slope and thick bottomset deposits. This is contrary from marine basin settings where the presence of rising shelf-margin trajectory commonly indicates limited deep-water fan deposits. This work suggests marine-based stratigraphic models cannot be directly applied to lacustrine basins.     

Fostering Environmental Sensitivity by Observing Everyday Environments

This study examined the effects of observing and reflecting on everyday environments in the development of environmental sensitivity, defined as a holistic capability composed of predisposition, knowledge, and behavior subdimensions. We encouraged participants to use diverse sources, such as texts, photographs, and animation, to record their observations and thinking. As a result, the activity in this study was beneficial in enhancing students’ environmental sensitivity. Students’ mean scores on the environmental sensitivity questionnaire improved, and their reflective journals reported increased interest in everyday environments, enhanced knowledge about diverse environmental elements, and strengthened will to act pro-environmentally. The usefulness of the geospatial platform was also reported.     

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...     

Molecular Identification and Expression Analysis of Carbonic Anhydrase VII in Pufferfish (Takifugu rubripes)

Ocean Science Journal - A carbonic anhydrase VII gene, encoding 277 amino acids, was identified in the intestinal tissue of pufferfish (Takifugu rubripes). The translated protein with an 833-bp...     

Temperature-Dependent Bifurcated Seasonal Shift of Phytoplankton Community Composition in the Coastal Water off Southwestern Korea

Ocean Science Journal - Coastal water around the archipelago off southwestern Korea has been bathed in an unprecedented pool of warm water in summer in recent years. Here, we examined phytoplankton...     

A study of coral reef resilience and implications of adaptive management and rehabilitation in Khanh Hoa Province, Vietnam

The Province of Khanh Hoa, Vietnam, is located in the western South China Sea and boasts a shoreline of 385 km and many islands. Previous studies have indicated the extreme diversity and abundance of coral reefs in its waters as compared with other coastal provinces of Vietnam. A study on the resilience of coral reefs against increased surface water temperature and anthropogenic impact is conducted at 19 reef sites in 2015. At each site, a series of parameters (e.g., coral covers, genus diversity, and coral recruitment, substratum heterogeneity, depth, water exchange level, and sediment deposit and water temperature) are measured quantitatively or semi-quantitatively. The measured data are rated based on the relationship between the parameter values and coral susceptibility; the consideration that reef health reflects the biological capability to adapt to environmental changes and the recruitment potential if bleached; and positive or negative influences of physical factors in the mitigation of thermal stress and protecting corals from bleaching. A cumulative analysis enables researchers to divide the studied reefs into four categories based on varying levels of reef health to support resilience, recovery, and vulnerability in the case of increased water temperature. Relevant management interventions for each category and other supporting activities are suggested to enhance management effectiveness and to plan the rehabilitation of coral reefs for biodiversity conservation and touristic development, taking into account the involvement of related stakeholders.     

Radar cross section analysis of marine targets using a combining method of physical optics/geometric optics and a Monte-Carlo simulation

In this paper, the radar cross section of flat plates on ocean surfaces is statistically investigated. A combining method of physical optics and geometric optics is applied to establish an effective backscattering analysis procedure. This method is a high-frequency analysis method originally derived from a simplified Stratton-Chu integral equation, assuming that the radar is far away from the target so that Kirchhoff approximation is valid. A Monte-Carlo simulation method is adopted to statistically analyze the effects of undulated ocean surfaces. The ocean surfaces are randomly generated by Pierson-Moskowitz ocean wave spectrum and a directional distribution function. Numerical investigations are carried out for flat plates, with the same height and width but with different inclined angles, on ocean surfaces of various significant wave heights.     

Effects of flexibility on propulsive force acting on a heaving foil

The hybrid Cartesian/immersed boundary method is applied to simulate effects of flexibility on propulsive force acting on a heaving foil in a viscous flow. Immersed boundary nodes are distributed inside an instantaneous fluid domain. Velocity vector is reconstructed at the immersed boundary node based on an interpolation along a local normal line. Using the staggered/non-staggered grid method, the demand for pressure at boundary nodes is removed. Elastic deformation of the flexible foil is modelled based on the dynamic thin-plate mechanics. The developed code is validated through comparisons with other computations on flow fields around a flapping foil. The generation of the reverse Karman vortex street is investigated. Forces acting on heaving foils are compared for flexible and rigid cases and the increased thrust of the flexible foil is attributed to the deformed configuration near the tip. The flexibility of the heaving foil decreases vertical force and improves propulsion efficiency. The variations of force and deformation are investigated according to bending stiffness of the foil.     

Composition of the phytoplankton pigments in the surface waters along a transect from the Northwestern to the southeastern Pacific Ocean

Multidisciplinary oceanic investigation was undertaken in Aug–Sep. 2003 along a transect from Northwestern (Busan, Korea) to Southeastern Pacific (Talcahuano, Chile) to understand the physical, chemical and biological features in the surface water, and to depict their interaction with the atmosphere. Among the twenty parameters measured, we describe the physical, chemical and biological features. Physico-chemical data were analyzed in conjunction with the geographic position and yielded 7 peculiar surface water masses. The first water mass (28.4°N, 130.8°E to 21.5°N, 139.5°E) was warm and low in phosphate and nitrate content, and high in silicate. The concentration of phytoplankton pigment was one of the lowest. The second (20.4°N, 140.7°E to 2.2°S, 162.9°E) was the warmest and the least saline. Nitrate and phosphate concentration were one of the lowest. Chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration was the lowest among the surface waters. The third (3.4°S, 164.0°E to 14.5°S, 173.3°E) was warm. Nitrate concentration was the lowest. CHL-a, peridinin (Perid), violaxanthin (Viola), zeaxanthin (Zea), chlorophyll-b (Chl b) and β-CAR were abundant. The fourth (18.6°S, 177.5°E to 31.8°S, 123.9°W) was saline and poor in nutrient concentration. The contributions of 19′-butanoyloxyfucoxanthin (But-fuco), 19′-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin (Hex-fuco), and CHL b to CHL a were non-negligible. The fifth (32.4°S, 122.1°W to 33.8°S, 117.2°W) was relatively cold and well oxygenated. Concentration of Fuco, But-fuco, Hex-fuco and Chl b was high. The sixth (34.2°S, 115.4°W to 37.4°S, 92.1°W) was cold, well oxygenated and enriched with phosphate and nitrate. Concentration of phytoplankton pigment was, however, one of the lowest. The seventh, located off the Chilean coast, from 37.2°S, 87.2°W to 36.1°S, 74.1°W was well oxygenated and highly enriched with nitrate and phosphate. Phytoplankton pigments such as Fuco, Perid, But-fico, and Hex-fuco were rich. The 7 surface water masses are partially attributed to Kuroshio Current, North Equatorial Current and North Equatorial Countercurrent, South Equatorial current, South Pacific Subtropical Gyre, South Pacific Current, Subtropical Front and Chilean coastal water. The differences in physicochemical characteristics and the history of the surface water resulted in difference in quantity and composition of the phytoplankton pigment.