Post-rift stress history of Southwest Japan inferred from early to middle Miocene intrusions and meso-scale faults in the Tajima–Myokensan area

Miocene igneous dikes older and younger than 15 Ma in Southwest Japan are thought to be oriented parallel and perpendicular to the arc, respectively. This difference of orientations was referred to as significant evidence for termination of the opening of the Japan Sea at 15 Ma. The tightest constraint comes from ~60 dikes in the Tajima–Myokensan area, northern Hyogo Prefecture. Here we present orientations of 716 planar intrusive bodies and the directions of 143 meso-scale faults, obtained using the latest stress inversion techniques from the lower to middle Miocene Hokutan Group in the Tajima–Myokensan area. The results contradict the 15 Ma hypothesis for the end of the opening of the Japan Sea. We find that intrusive bodies cannot be separated into two groups by their orientations as reported previously. Rather, the orientations of their poles comprise a horizontal girdle and a vertical cluster. The former indicates NE-SW extensional stress, and the latter NW-SE compression. However, the latter are interpreted as not representative of regional stress, based on common sill intrusions (the formation of which was not influenced by regional stress) in the well-stratified Muraoka Formation resulting in the vertical cluster of pole orientations from which compression was recognized. The results of fault-slip analysis are consistent with the extensional stress. Fission-track and U–Pb ages of zircons were obtained from seven intrusive bodies. These and previously published ages suggest that the area underwent NW-SE extension both before and after 15 Ma. In the main part of Southwest Japan, the weak extension was kept after 16 Ma when intra-arc rifting was terminated. This is consistent with the hypothesis that the Japan Sea continued to open until 13.5 Ma.     

Drop size distribution and kinetic energy load of rainfall events in the highlands of the Central Rift Valley,Ethiopia

Abstract

Knowledge of rainfall characteristics is important for estimating soil erosion in arid areas. We determined basic rainfall characteristics (raindrop size distribution, intensity and kinetic energy), evaluated the erosivity of rainfall events, and established a relationship between rainfall intensity I and volume-specific kinetic energy KE_vol for the Central Rift Valley area of the Ethiopian highlands. We collected raindrops on dyed filter paper and calculated KE_vol and erosivity values for each rainfall event. For most rainfall intensities the median volume drop diameter (D₅₀) was higher than expected, or reported in most studies. Rainfall intensity in the region was not high, with 8% of rain events exceeding 30 mm h^-1. We calculated soil erosion from storm energy and maximum 30-min intensity for soils of different erodibility under conditions of fallow (unprotected soil), steep slope (about 9%) and no cover and management practice on the surface, and determined that 3 MJ mm ha^-1 h^-1 is the threshold erosivity, while erosivity of >7 MJ mm ha^-1 h^-1 could cause substantial erosion in all soil types in the area.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz; Associate Editor Q. Zhang     

Seasonal and spatial variations in the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in a eutrophic brackish lake,Lake Hamana,Japan

The dissolved inorganic carbon and total alkalinity in the surface brackish waters of Lake Hamana were investigated monthly from October 2017 to September 2019 at 14 stations. The partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO₂) in the surface water ranged from 29 to 1476 μatm and was undersaturated for atmospheric CO₂ during the observation periods, although most coastal waters were net source areas because of the large amount of terrestrial organic and inorganic carbon input. Since there was a strong negative correlation between pCO₂ and the dissolved oxygen, seasonal and temporal variations in pCO₂ were mainly derived from phytoplankton activity. The high phytoplankton activity induced by the effluents from sewage treatment plants, which was low in carbon and high in nitrogen. Therefore, in urbanized coastal waters with sewage treatment plants, such as the coastal waters of Japan, there is a possibility of shifting from weaker carbon dioxide source areas to sink areas. However, pCO₂ was oversaturated at the polluted river mouth, especially after high precipitation events due to the large carbon supply.

     

Provenance diversification within an arc‐trench system induced by batholith development: the Cretaceous Japan case

By comparing detrital zircon U–Pb age spectra of coeval fore‐arc and back‐/intra‐arc basin sandstones, we identified the overall distributary pattern of terrigenous clastic material within the Cretaceous arc system of SW Japan. Abundant Proterozoic (c. 1500–2500 Ma) detrital grains from the interior of East Asia are present in the Cretaceous intra‐arc basin. However, after a barrier mountain range formed during batholith emplacement, Proterozoic clastics were rarely transported into the fore‐arc domain. Episodic batholith formation in Pacific‐type orogens likely played a major role in controlling terrigenous supply routes between coeval back‐arc and fore‐arc domains. The Cretaceous orogen in Japan thus provides a good template for analysing the tectono‐sedimentary development of other arc‐related basins.     

Factors controlling nitrogen and dissolved organic carbon exports across timescales in two watersheds with different land uses

Investigating factors controlling the temporal patterns of nitrogen (N) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) exports on the basis of a comparative study of different land uses is beneficial for managing water resources, especially in agricultural watersheds. We focused our research on an agricultural watershed (AW) and a forested watershed (FW) located in the Shibetsu watershed of eastern Hokkaido, Japan, to investigate the temporal patterns of N and DOC exports and factors controlling those patterns at different timescales (inter‐annual, seasonal, and hydrological event scales). Results showed that the annual patterns of N and DOC exports significantly varied over time and were probably controlled by climate. Higher discharge volumes in 2003, a wet year, showed higher N and DOC loadings in both watersheds. However, this process was also regulated by land use associated with N inputs. Higher concentrations and loadings were shown in the agricultural watershed. At the seasonal scale, N and DOC exports in the AW and the FW were more likely controlled by sources associated with land use. The Total N (TN) and Nitrate‐N (NO₃^?‐N) had higher concentrations during snowmelt season in the AW, which may be attributed to manure application in late autumn or early winter in the agricultural watershed. Concentrations of TN, NO₃^?‐N, dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), and DOC showed higher values during the summer rainy season in the FW, related to higher litter decomposition during summer and autumn and the fertilizer application in the agricultural area during summer. Higher DOC concentrations and loadings were observed during the rainy season in the AW, which is probably attributed to higher DOC production related to temperature and microbial activity during summer and autumn in grasslands. Correlations between discharge and concentrations differed during different periods or in different watersheds, suggesting that weather discharge can adequately represent the fact that N export depends on N concentrations, discharge level, and other factors. The differing correlations between N/DOC concentrations and the Si concentration indicated that the N/DOC exports might occur along different flow paths during different periods. During baseflow, the high NO₃^?‐N exports were probably derived from deep groundwater and might have percolated from uplands during hydrological events. During hydrological events, NO₃^?‐N exports may occur along near‐surface flow paths and in deep groundwater, whereas DOC exports could be related to near‐surface flow paths. At the event scale, the relationships between discharge and concentrations of N and DOC were regulated by antecedent soil moisture (shallow groundwater condition) in each watershed. These results indicated that factors controlling N and DOC exports varied at different timescales in the Shibetsu area and that better management of manure application during winter in agricultural lands is urgently needed to control water pollution in streams. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Total locational surplus for facility users distributed continuously along a network

This paper proposes an appropriate index for evaluating the degree to which facilities are desirable to their users under realistic assumptions. We derive an analytical expression for the index and discuss its calculation. Throughout this paper, we make the following three assumptions: (1) the distance from a user to a facility is measured by the shortest path, (2) facility users are continuously distributed along a network, and (3) the choice behavior of the facility users follows the Huff model. Under the third assumption, the index, called the ‘total locational surplus,’ enables us to conduct evaluations based on the concept of consumer surplus in microeconomics. We argue that this index is considered the most reliable among possible indices. First, we express the total locational surplus under our three assumptions as a definite integral. We then express a part of the integrand in the definite integral as an infinite series of exponential functions, which allows us to derive the infinite series expression of the definite integral. The infinite series expression enables us to calculate an approximate value for the total locational surplus using the first several terms of the series. We describe the computational procedure for calculating this approximation and evaluate its time complexity. We also utilize the procedure to evaluate the spatial configuration of some shopping centers in the northern part of Japan.     

A New Aerodynamic Parametrization for Real Urban Surfaces

This study conducted large-eddy simulations (LES) of fully developed turbulent flow within and above explicitly resolved buildings in Tokyo and Nagoya, Japan. The more than 100 LES results, each covering a 1,000 $\times $ 1,000 m $^{2}$ area with 2-m resolution, provide a database of the horizontally-averaged turbulent statistics and surface drag corresponding to various urban morphologies. The vertical profiles of horizontally-averaged wind velocity mostly follow a logarithmic law even for districts with high-rise buildings, allowing estimates of aerodynamic parameters such as displacement height and roughness length using the von Karman constant $=$ 0.4. As an alternative derivation of the aerodynamic parameters, a regression of roughness length and variable Karman constant was also attempted, using a displacement height physically determined as the central height of drag action. Although both the regression methods worked, the former gives larger (smaller) values of displacement height (roughness length) by 20–25 % than the latter. The LES database clearly illustrates the essential difference in bulk flow properties between real urban surfaces and simplified arrays. The vertical profiles of horizontally-averaged momentum flux were influenced by the maximum building height and the standard deviation of building height, as well as conventional geometric parameters such as the average building height, frontal area index, and plane area index. On the basis of these investigations, a new aerodynamic parametrization of roughness length and displacement height in terms of the five geometric parameters described above was empirically proposed. The new parametrizations work well for both real urban morphologies and simplified model geometries.     

Millennial-scale oscillations of the westerly jet path during the last glacial period

It has been established that East Asian summer monsoon intensity varies with Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles, suggesting a connection between the climates of East Asia and the North Atlantic on a millennial timescale. However, the dynamics of such a connection are still unsolved. Here we demonstrate that temporal changes in the provenance of aeolian dust in Japan Sea sediments, which we interpret to reflect changes in the westerly jet path over East Asia, exhibit variations in harmony with Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles. The dominance of dust with a Mongolian Gobi provenance during stadials suggests a westerly jet axis located to the south of the Himalaya–Tibetan Plateau throughout most of the year, whereas the co-dominance of dust from both the Taklimakan Desert and the Mongolian Gobi during interstadials suggests that the westerly jet axis jumped to the north of the Tibetan Plateau at latest in summer. As the shift of the westerly jet axis to the north of the Tibetan Plateau is closely related to the onset of the East Asian summer monsoon, changes of the westerly jet path apparently critically affect the teleconnection between the climates of Asia and North Atlantic on a millennial timescale.