Modelling shear waves in OBS data from the Vøring basin (Northern Norway) by 2-D ray-tracing

Three component recordings from an array of five ocean bottom seismographs in the northwestern part of the Vøring basin have been used to obtain a 2-D shear-wave (S-wave) velocity-depth model. The shear waves are identified by means of travel-time differences compared to the compressional (P) waves, and by analyzing their particle motions. The model has been obtained by kinematic (travel-time) ray-tracing modelling of the OBS horizontal components.The shear-wave modelling indicates that mode conversions occur at several high velocity interfaces (sills) in the 4–10 km depth range, previously defined by a compressional-wave velocity-depth model using the same data set.An averageV _p /V _s ratio of 2.1 is inferred for the layers above the uppermost sill, indicative of both poorly consolidated sediments and a low sand/shale ratio. A significant decrease in theV _p /V _s ratio (1.7) below the first sill may in part be atributed to well consolidated sediments, and to a change in lithology to more sandy sediments. This layer is interpreted to lie within the lower Cretaceous sequence. At 5–10 km depthV _p /V _s ratios of 1.85 indicate a lower sand/shale ratio consistent with the expected lithologies. The averageV _p /V _s ratio inferred for the crust is 1.75, which is consistent with values obtained north of Vøring, in the Lofoten area. An eastward thinning of the crystalline basement is supported by the shear-wave modelling.     

Comparison between a Regional and Semi-regional Crustal OBS Model in the Vøring Basin, Mid-Norway Margin

—Semi-regional Ocean Bottom Seismograph (OBS) data acquired in the central and northern part of the Vøring Basin, mid-Norway margin, have been modeled by use of 2-D ray-tracing. The semi-regional model, derived from the study of twenty-five OBSs deployed along a 120-km long profile, is compared with a regional model consisting of five OBSs from the same profile. The semi-regional model is somewhat more detailed than the regional model, due to the considerably closer receiver spacing. The overall geometry and velocity distribution of the two models are remarkably similar, however, proving that the regional procedure with large OBS spacing provides a reliable regional model.¶Intrusions of sills, related to early Tertiary continental rifting and break up, are important at intermediate and deep sedimentary levels (2–10 km below sea floor) in most parts of the area. The semi-regional modeling suggests that one of the deepest sills extends much further east and is substantially thicker (locally more than 500 m) than indicated in the regional model. Another important difference is a high-velocity body within the upper crystalline crust at 11–12 km depth in the NW part of the area, indicating that the closer OBS spacing in the semi-regional modeling allows detection of local intra-crustal intrusions. Local differences are also inferred in the lower crust; at about 20 km depth a structure is inferred within the lower crust from wide-angle reflections. This might suggest that the high-velocity lower crustal layer, interpreted as magmatic underplating, consists of a mixture of underplated/intruded magmatic material and blocks of continental lower crust.     

Heterogeneous structure of western Nankai seismogenic zone deduced by multichannel reflection data and wide-angle seismic data

The 1946 Nankai earthquake (Ms=8.2) at the forearc region of the western Nankai Trough showed slow slip deformation off Cape Muroto, which did not propagate until the western end of the Nankai seismogenic zone. New seismic investigations show a low-velocity layer (LVL) on the subducting oceanic crust in the coseismic area. Two prestack depth-migrated sections show reflectivity events in the clay-rich boundary layer on the oceanic crust. Narrowly spaced imbricated slices develop in the nonrupture area. The reflective boundary layer indicates probably that underplating develops in the nonrupture area rather than the coseismic area. It is suggested that the friction is larger in the nonrupture area than the coseismic area because of the lack of LVL on the oceanic crust, the well developed underplating and the narrowly spaced imbricated thrusts in the nonrupture area. The topographic high of the oceanic crust with about 50 km width and maximum 3 km height is also revealed and is related to bending and thickening of the oceanic crust, the well developed underplating and the narn spaced imbricated thrusts in the nonrupture area. These structural characters may be the reason why the slow slip deformation did not propagate until the western end of the Nankai seismogenic zone and toward the trough side.     

Deformable backstop as seaward end of coseismic slip in the Nankai Trough seismogenic zone

Wide-angle seismic surveys performed in the last decade have clarified the 3-D crustal structure along the Nankai Trough. The geometry and velocity structure of the southwestern Japan subduction zone are now well constrained. Comparing these observations with the rupture distribution of historic great thrust earthquakes, it appears that the coseismic rupture occurred along plate boundaries deeper than the wedge/backstop boundary (the boundary between the Neogene-Quaternary accretionary wedge and the crust forming the backstop). From the view of spatial relationship, both rupture distributions of the last two large events and the crust forming the backstop are considerably retreated from the trough axis in the west and east off the Kii Peninsula. In both areas, seamount or ridge subduction is apparent in seismic results, geomorphological data and geomagnetic data. The landward indentation of the deformable backstop, which corresponds to the crustal block of old accreted sediments, may be formed by seamount subduction according to published results of sandbox modeling. In particular, the subducted seamount may be a structural factor affecting the recession of the crustal block forming the backstop.     

Recent increase of DIC in the western North Pacific

The temporal variation of the total dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) content in the western North Pacific is investigated by comparing the DIC distribution obtained from the data sets of three different periods, the GEOSECS data observed in 1973, the CO₂ dynamics Cruise data observed in 1982, and recent Japanese data sets observed during the early 1990s. The overall feature of the signal of temporal DIC change during 1973 and early 1990s agreed with that of former studies, and did not significantly change with the calculation scheme (the grid-selection method vs. the multiple regression method). The observed increase in DIC among the different time scales showed a good inner consistency, which also indicates the stability of the method used in the DIC change calculation. The apparent rate of increase of the DIC inventory in the upper 1000 m water column, however, differed significantly by the data set used for the calculation: It was 5.6±2.4 g C/m²/year, based on the data comparison between 1982 and the early 1990s, while it became 7.6±2.4 g C/m²/year when based on the data between 1973 and the early 1990s. This result provides us an information about the data-dependency on the former estimation of temporal DIC change.     

Effects of frozen soil and snow cover on cold‐season soil water dynamics in Tokachi,Japan

Despite the potential impact of winter soil water movements in cold regions, relatively few field studies have investigated cold‐season hydrological processes that occur before spring‐onset of snowmelt infiltration. The contribution of soil water fluxes in winter to the annual water balance was evaluated over 5 years of field observations at an agricultural field in Tokachi, Hokkaido, Japan. In two of the winters, soil frost reached a maximum depth of 0·2 m (‘frozen’ winters), whereas soil frost was mostly absent during the remaining three winters (‘unfrozen’ winters). Significant infiltration of winter snowmelt water, to a depth exceeding 1·0 m, occurred during both frozen and unfrozen winters. Such infiltration ranged between 126 and 255 mm, representing 28–51% of total annual soil water fluxes. During frozen winters, a substantial quantity of water (ca 40 mm) was drawn from deeper layers into the 0–0·2 m topsoil layer when this froze. Under such conditions, the progression and regression of the freezing front, regulated by the thickness of snow cover, controlled the quantity of soil water flux below the frozen layer. During unfrozen winters, 13–62 mm of water infiltrated to a depth of 0·2 m, before the spring snowmelt. These results indicate the importance of correctly evaluating winter soil water movement in cold regions. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Flux of low salinity water from Aniva Bay (Sakhalin Island) to the southern Okhotsk Sea

In this study, we examined the relationship between the low salinity water in the shelf region of the southern Okhotsk Sea which was seasonally sampled (0–200 m), and fluxes of low salinity water from Aniva Bay. To express the source of freshwater mixing in the surface layer, we applied normalized total alkalinity (NTA) and stable isotopes of seawater as chemical tracers. NTA-S diagrams indicate that NTA of low salinity water in the upper 30 m layer just off the Soya Warm Current is clearly higher than in the far offshore region in summer and autumn. Using NTA-S regression lines, we could deduce that the low salinity and high NTA water in the upper layer originates from Aniva Bay. For convenience, we defined this water as the Aniva Surface Water (ASW) with values S < 32, NTA > 2450 μmol kg⁻¹. Formation and transport processes of ASW are discussed using historical data. The interaction between the maximum core of high NTA water on the bottom slope of eastern Aniva Bay and an anticyclonic eddy at the mouth of Aniva Bay are concluded to control ASW formation. Upwelling of the Cold Water Belt water at the tip of Cape Krillion is considered to cause ASW outflow from Aniva Bay.     

Topo-stress based probabilistic model for shallow landslide susceptibility zonation in the Nepal Himalaya

While dealing with slope stability issues, determining the state of stress and the relation between driving force and resisting force are the fundamental deterministic steps. Gravitational stresses affect geologic processes and engineering operations in slopes. Considering this fact, a concept of topo-stress evaluation is developed in this research and used to produce a shallow landslide susceptibility map in a model area. The topo-stress introduced in this research refers to the shear stress induced by the gravitational forces on the planes parallel to the ground surface. Weight of the material on a slope and friction angle of the jointed rock mass are the two fundamental parameters that are considered to govern topo-stress in this study. Considering topo-stress as a main factor for initiating shallow landslides, a GIS-based probabilistic model is developed for shallow landslide susceptibility zonation. An ideal terrain in central Nepal is selected as the study area for this purpose. Two event-based shallow landslide inventories are used to predict accuracy of the model, which is found to be more than 78 % for the first event-landslides and more than 76 % for the second event-landslides. It is evident from these prediction rates that the probabilistic topo-stress model proposed in this work is quite acceptable when regional scale shallow landslide susceptibility mapping is practiced, such as in the Himalayan rocky slopes.