Three-year investigations into sperm whale-fall ecosystems in Japan

We report the first study of sperm whale‐fall ecosystems, based on mass sinking of whale carcasses at shelf depths in the northwest Pacific. We conducted three observations over a 2‐year period on replicate sperm‐whale carcasses implanted at depths of 219–254 m off the southern part of Japan from July 2003 to August 2005. The study was made possible by a mass stranding of sperm whales in January 2002, and the subsequent sinking of 12 carcasses in the waters off Cape Nomamisaki. Dense aggregations of unique chemosynthesis‐based fauna had formed around the whale carcasses after 18 months (July 2003). The mytilid mussel Adipicola pacifica was the most abundant macrofaunal species and covered most of the exposed bone surfaces. The general composition of the fauna was similar to that of deep‐water reducing habitats, but none of the species appearing in this study has been found at hydrothermal vents, cold seeps or deep‐water whale falls. A new species of lancelet, which was the first record of the subphylum Cephalochordata from reducing environments, a new species of Osedax; a rarely encountered benthic ctenophore, and a rare gastropod species were discovered at this sperm whale‐fall site. Benthic communities were similar across all the carcasses studied, although the body sizes of the whales were very different. The succession of epifaunal communities was relatively rapid and the sulphophilic stage was considerably shorter than that of other known whale falls.     

Unusual Behavior of the Kuroshio Current System from Winter 1996 to Summer 1997 Revealed by ADEOS-OCTS and Other Data (Continued): A Study from Broad External Conditions with Bottom Topography

In the previous paper (Toba and Murakami, 1998) we reported on an unusual path of the Kuroshio Current System, which occurred in April 1997 (April 1997 event), using the Ocean Color and Temperature Scanner (OCTS) data of the Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS). The April 1997 event was characterized by the flow of the Kuroshio along the western slope (northward) and the eastern slope (southward) of the Izu-Ogasawara Ridge, a very southerly turning point at about 32°N, followed by a straight northward path up to 37°N of the Kuroshio Extension along the eastern flank of the Izu-Ogasawara and the Japan Trenches. Overlaying of depth contours on ADEOS-OCTS chlorophyll-a images at the April 1997 event demonstrates the bottom topography effects on the current paths. A new finding based on TOPEX/Poseidon altimeter data is that the sea-surface gradient across the Kuroshio/Kuroshio Extension diminished greatly in the sea area southeast of the central Japan, as a very temporary phenomenon prior to this event. This temporary diminishing of the upper-ocean current velocity might have caused a stronger bottom effect along the Izu-Ogasawara Ridge, and over the Izu-Ogasawara Trench disclosed a weak background, barotropic trench-flank current pattern, which existed otherwise independently of the Kuroshio Extension. The very southerly path of the Kuroshio Extension from winter 1996 to autumn 1998 corresponded, with a time lag of about 1.5 years, to the previous La Niña tendency with weaker North Equatorial Current. The April 1997 event occurred in accordance with its extreme condition.     

热液合成板状高结晶度三八面体蒙脱石

在热液条件下合成了板状的和高度结晶的三八面体蒙脱石。用淬冷玻璃与脱水的钠基蒙脱石分别在(a)500°C,100MPa下1天和11天;(b)300°C,100MPa下7天的条件下进行反应。产物的结晶度和颗粒大小取决于初始玻璃的化学组成,合成温度和热液改性的时间。XRD尖锐的峰和一定相对湿度下水合作用证明了产物结构的高度有序和大尺寸。透射电镜也被用来表征产物颗粒尺寸。通过改变初始材料的化学成分,产物的颗粒大小可以在10nm到几个微米之间变化。有序度最高和尺寸最大的产物是在500°C,100MPa的条件下用Na0.33(Mg1.83Al0.67)Si4O11成分的玻璃反应…     

Evaluation of tsunami impacts on shallow marine sediments: An example from the tsunami caused by the 2003 Tokachi-oki earthquake, northern Japan

A combined approach of field geology and numerical simulation was conducted for evaluating the tsunami impacts on the shelf sediments. The 2003 Tokachi-oki earthquake, M 8.0, that occurred on 25 September 2003 off southeastern Hokkaido, northern Japan, generated a locally destructive tsunami. Maximum run-up height of the tsunami waves reached 4 m above sea level. In order to estimate the tsunami impacts on shallow marine sediments, we compared pre- and post-tsunami marine sediments in water depths of 38–112 m in terms of grain size, sedimentary structure, and microfossil content. Decreases of fine fractions, especially finer than very fine sand, which led to coarsen the mean grain size, were detected in the inner shelf of the northern part of the study area. Foraminiferal assemblages also changed in the coarsened sediments. On the other hand, the other shelf sediments largely unchanged or slightly fined. We also simulated the tsunami wave velocity and direction, and grain size entrained by the modeled tsunami. The numerical simulation resulted in that the 2003 tsunami could transport very fine sand in water depths shallower than 45–95 m at the northern part of the study area. This is comparable with the actual grain-size changes after the tsunami had passed. However, some storms and tidal currents might also be possible to stir the surface sediments after the pre-tsunami survey, so we could not conclude that the grain-size changes had been caused only by the tsunami. Nevertheless, a combined approach of sampling and modeling was powerful for estimating the tsunami impacts under the sea.     

Ion Chromatographic Determination of Fluorine and Chlorine in Silicate Rocks Following Alkaline Fusion

A simple and accurate method to determine fluorine and chlorine contents in small amounts (∼ 30 mg) in rock has been developed using ion chromatography after extraction by alkaline fusion. Powdered sample was mixed with sodium carbonate and zinc oxide at a mass ratio of 1:3:1, and was fused in an electric furnace at 900 °C for 30-40 minutes. An aqueous solution obtained by dissolving the fused silicate rock was diluted to the appropriate concentration of sodium carbonate (< ∼ 24 mmol l^-1) to minimise the tailing effect on F^- during ion chromatography caused by the large amount of carbonate species originating from the flux. Fluorine and chlorine contents were then determined by a standard additions method. Based on the relative standard deviation of the backgrounds, detection limits of both fluorine and chlorine were ∼ 4 μg g^-1, when 30 mg test portions were fused and diluted by a factor of 1200. We also report new fluorine and chlorine contents in nine GSJ (Geological Survey of Japan) reference materials, including peridotite (JP-1), granite (JG-1a), basalts (JB-1b, 2 and 3), andesites (JA-1 and 2) and rhyolites (JR-1 and 2). Fluorine and chlorine contents in the reference materials in this study were consistent with previously reported values. Reproducibilities were < 10 % for samples with F and Cl concentrations of > 20 μg g-1 and < 20 % with F and Cl < 20 μg g^-1.     

地球物理学方法在区分多年冻土区咸水层和淡水融化层中的应用

Direct current resistivity and ground penetrating radar surveys were employed to obtain the value of the resistivity and dielectric constant in the brine near the Barrow, Alaska. The geophysical surveys were undertaken together with the permafrost drilling program for the measuring of the ground temperature regime and for the core sampling. The sampled cores were measured for their physical and chemical properties in the laboratory under different temperature conditions (-60 to 20 ℃). Laboratory results support field observations and led to the development of a technique for distinguishing freshwater taliks and brine layers in permafrost. These methods were also employed in freshwater taliks near Council,Alaska. The electrical resistivity is a powerful and sensitive parameter for brine detection. However, the resistivity is a less sensitive indicator of the soil type or water content under highly saline conditions.High frequency dielectric constant is an ideal second parameter for the indication of the soil type, liquid water content and other physical properties. The imaginary part of the dielectric constant and resistivity have a significant dependence upon salinity, i.e. upon freezing temperature. The ground temperature regime and the freezing point of the brine layer are important parameters for studying the electric properties of permafrost terrain.     

Kuroko and Hydrocarbon Deposits from Northern Honshu,Japan: A Possible Common Hydrothermal/Magmatic Origin?

Abstract. Northern Honshu is the most important area for mineral and oil resources in Japan. Many kuroko deposits and oil and gas fields are distributed in two belts along the northeast Japan arc, the kuroko metal‐belt on the Pacific side and the oil‐belt on the Sea of Japan side. The kuroko deposits are located mainly in the Green Tuff strata which formed as a result of submarine vol‐canism during the late Miocene and Pliocene. Most of the source rocks of the oil and gas deposits formed at the same time as the kuroko deposits and some of them are located in reservoirs of hydrothermally‐altered volcanic rocks in the Green Tuff region. There is general agreement that the kuroko deposits formed as a result of submarine hydrothermal and magmatic activity whereas almost all petroleum geologists and geochemists consider that hydrocarbon deposits were generated independently of such activity. Since the discovery of hydrothermally‐generated petroleum in the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California, however, it is clear that petroleum can be formed almost instantaneously in terrestrial and submarine hydrothermal areas. The paleo‐northeastern Sea of Japan is therefore considered to be a potential area for hydrothermal petroleum generation because thick organic‐rich sediments overlie an active submarine volcanic area. Several lines of geological and geochemical evidence suggest the possibility of hydrothermally‐enhanced maturation of organic matter and the contribution of magmatic activity to the formation of these deposits. Although most of the oil and gas in northern Honshu has been generated conventionally as a consequence of the high geothermal gradients there, it appears that some of the oil and gas fields may have formed as a result of extensive hydrothermal and magmatic activity during the late Miocene to Pliocene. Because of the much steeper angle of the faults in the vicinity of the Hokuroku basin than in the Akita basin, the magmatic contribution to the kuroko mineralization would have been far greater than to the oil and gas deposits of the Niigata and Akita basins. We therefore propose a strong relationship between metal and oil and gas generation in northern Honshu based on the structure and tectonics of the northern Honshu arc‐backarc system.