Seismic activity beneath the Nankai trough revealed by DONET ocean-bottom observations

We conducted a detailed investigation of seismic activity from January 2011 to February 2013 along the Nankai trough off the Kii Peninsula, central Japan, by using data obtained from the DONET ocean-bottom observation network. The hypocenters are mostly within the subducting Philippine Sea (PHS) plate, although a few are along the plate boundary or in the sedimentary wedge below the Kumano forearc basin. The seismic activity can be separated into events above and below 20 km depth, which corresponds approximately to the Moho. The hypocenter distributions are distinctly different for these groups. The seismic activity in the oceanic crust can be further separated into three clusters. Most of the seismic activity recorded in our data represents aftershocks of the 2004 off the Kii Peninsula earthquakes (M _JMA = 7.1, 7.4, and 6.5), which occurred in the PHS plate. The hypocenter distribution in the oceanic crust correlates well with the location of the Paleo-Zenisu ridge, which is formed by a chain of seamounts that is subducting beneath the forearc basin. The hypocenters in the uppermost mantle are aligned on a plane dipping to the southeast, consistent with the existence of a thrust fault cutting through the lithosphere of the oceanic plate. The focal mechanisms of the earthquakes show that the axis of compressive stress in the PHS plate is oriented N–S, almost perpendicular to the direction of plate convergence, indicating a complex tectonic regime in this region. These results suggest that intraplate shortening may be occurring in the subducting oceanic plate.     

The self-organizing map,a new approach to apprehend the Madden–Julian Oscillation influence on the intraseasonal variability of rainfall in the southern African region

The Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO) is the major mode of intraseasonal variability (30–60 days) in the tropics, having large rainfall impacts globally, and possibly on southern Africa. However, the latter impact is not well understood and needs to be further explored. The life cycle of the MJO, known to be asymmetric, has been nevertheless analyzed usually through methods constrained by both linearity and orthogonality, such as empirical orthogonal function analysis. Here we explore a non-linear classification method, the self-organizing map (SOM), a type of artificial neural network used to produce a low-dimensional representation of high-dimensional datasets, to capture more accurately the life cycle of the MJO and its global impacts. The classification is applied on intraseasonal anomalies of outgoing longwave radiation within the tropical region over the 1980–2009 period. Using the SOM to describe the MJO is a new approach, complimentary to the usual real-time multivariate MJO index. It efficiently captures this propagative phenomenon and its seasonality, and is shown to provide additional temporal and spatial information on MJO activity. For each node, the subtropical convection is analyzed, with a particular focus on the southern Africa region. Results show that the convection activity over the central tropical Indian Ocean is a key factor influencing the intraseasonal convective activity over the southern African region. Enhanced (suppressed) convection over the central Indian Ocean tends to suppress (enhance) convection over the southern African region with a 10-day lag by modulating the moisture transport.     

Effects of Snowfall on Drifting Snow and Wind Structure Near a Surface

Wind-tunnel and numerical experiments were performed to investigate the effects of snowfall on the wind profile and the development of drifting snow. Wind profiles and mass-flux profiles of drifting snow were measured with and without artificial snowfall over a snow surface within the tunnel. Wind and shear-stress profiles and the impact speeds of the snowflakes during snowfall were also investigated numerically. During snowfall, snowflakes transfer part of their horizontal momentum to the air, which increases the stress close to the snow surface; however, the resultant modifications of the wind profiles are small. Because snowflakes have large momentum, the decomposed snow crystals that result from their collision with a surface can form a saltation layer, even over a hard snow surface where entrainment of the grains from the surface does not occur. Additionally, during snowfall, the threshold friction velocity can be lower than the impact threshold because snowflake fragmentation facilitates snow drifting. The broken crystals contribute to the increase in the number of drifting snow grains, even below the impact threshold.     

The upper-level circulation anomaly over Central Asia and its relationship to the Asian monsoon and mid-latitude wave train in early summer

A large intraseasonal variation in geopotential height over the Central Asia region, where the Asian subtropical jet is located, occurs between May and June, and the most dominant variation has a wave-like distribution. This variation in geopotential height influences precipitation across South and Southeast Asia. In this paper, we use composite analysis to determine the causes of this intraseasonal variation over Central Asia. The wave train propagates from the northern Atlantic Ocean to Central Asia over a period of a week, and generates an anomaly in geopotential height over the region. The tropical disturbance, which is similar to the Madden–Julian oscillation, appears a few days before the maximum of the anticyclonic anomaly over Central Asia, and is accompanied by active convection over the Indian Ocean and suppressed convection over Central America. Results of numerical experiments using a linear baroclinic model show that the active convection over the northern Indian Ocean causes the anticyclonic anomaly over Central Asia. The wave train that extends from the northern Atlantic Ocean to Central Asia is generated by negative thermal forcing over Central America, and the phase distribution of this wave train is similar to that observed in the composite analysis. Central Asia is the region where the effects of the tropics and middle latitudes overlap, and it is an important connection point between the Asian monsoon and middle latitudes.     

Orthopyroxene–cordierite mafic gneiss from the Nomamisaki metamorphic rocks,Southern Kyushu,Japan: Implication for western continuation of the Usuki–Yatsushiro Tectonic Line

We describe an orthopyroxene–cordierite mafic gneiss from the Nomamisaki metamorphic rocks in the Noma Peninsula, southern Kyushu, Japan. The mineral assemblage of the gneiss is orthopyroxene, cordierite, biotite, plagioclase, and ilmenite. Thermometry based on the Fe–Mg exchange reaction between orthopyroxene and biotite yields a peak metamorphic temperature of 680°C. The stability of cordierite relative to garnet, quartz, and sillimanite defines the upper limit of the peak metamorphic pressure as 4.4 kbar. These features indicate that the Nomamisaki metamorphic rocks underwent low‐pressure high‐temperature type metamorphism. Although a chronological problem still remains, the Nomamisaki metamorphic rocks can be regarded as a western continuation of the Higo Belt. The Usuki–Yatsushiro Tectonic Line, which delineates the southern border of the Higo Belt, is therefore located on the east of the Nomamisaki metamorphic rocks in southern Kyushu.     

A water flow model of the active crater lake at Aso volcano,Japan: fluctuations of magmatic gas and groundwater fluxes from the underlying hydrothermal system

The first crater of Nakadake, peak of Aso volcano, Japan, contains a hot water lake that shows interesting variations in water level and temperature. These variations were discovered by precise, continuous observations of the lake independent of precipitation. We developed a numerical model of a hot crater lake and compared with observational data for the period from July 2006 to January 2009. The numerical model revealed seasonal changes in mass flux (75–132 kg/s) and enthalpy (1,840–3,030 kJ/kg) for the fluid supplied to the lake. The relation between the enthalpy and mass flux indicates that the bottom input fluid is a mixture of high- and low-temperature fluids. Assuming a mixture of high-temperature steam at 800°C and liquid water at 100°C, we evaluated the liquid and steam fluxes. The liquid water flux shows a seasonal increase lagging behind the rainy season by 2 months, suggesting that the liquid water is predominantly groundwater. The fluctuation pattern in the flux of the high-temperature steam shows a relation with the amplitude of volcanic tremor, suggesting that heating of the hydrothermal system drives the tremor. Consequently, precise observations of a hot crater lake represent a potential method of monitoring volcanic hydrothermal systems in the shallow parts of the volcanoes.     

Observations of turbulence under weakly and highly stratified conditions in the Ariake Sea

Observations of turbulence, stratification, and mean current were made using a microstructure profiler and an acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) during four cruises at a central location in the Ariake Sea, under weakly and strongly stratified conditions. Continuous measurements of the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), ε, were made. These revealed that frictional bed turbulence with quarterdiurnal variation in the bottom boundary layer (BBL) was one of the most energetic sources of vertical mixing in the sea. Thickness of the BBL was strongly confined by the stable stratification. We investigate a relationship between the BBL height h and the Ozmidov scale. We present a systematic argument that describes the vertical structure and characteristic scales of velocity and turbulence inside the frictional BBL, where the stratification persisted. Considerable deviation of observed vertical shear from the law of the wall indicated a modification of turbulent scales by the stratification. Shear stress calculated from the velocity data using vertical integration of the equation of motion was found to decrease approximately linearly with height. The TKE production rate P, estimated using the shear stress, was highly correlated with the dissipation rate. The buoyancy contribution to TKE balance in the BBL was quantified in terms of the flux Richardson number R _f as R _f?=?0.12.     

Interaction between waves and an array of floating porous circular cylinders

The present study theoretically as well as experimentally investigates the interaction between waves and an array of porous circular cylinders with or without an inner porous plate based on the linear wave theory.To design more effective floating breakwaters,the transmission rate of waves propagating through the array is evaluated.Each cylinder in the array is partly made of porous materials.Specifically,it possesses a porous sidewall and an impermeable bottom.In addition,an inner porous plate is horizontally fixed inside the cylinders.It dissipates the wave more effectively and eliminates the sloshing phenomenon.The approach suggested by Kagemoto and Yue(1986) is adopted to solve the multiple-scatter problem,while a hierarchical interaction theory is adopted to deal with hydrodynamic interactions among a great number of bodies,which efficiently saves computation time.Meanwhile,a series of model tests with an array of porous cylinders is performed in a wave basin to validate the theoretical work and the calculated results.The draft of the cylinders,the location of the inner porous plate,and the spacing between adjacent cylinders are also adjusted to investigate their effects on wave dissipation.     

Horizontal structure of planetary-scale waves at the cloud top of Venus deduced from Galileo SSI images with an improved cloud-tracking technique

An improved cloud tracking method for deriving wind velocities from successive planetary images was developed. The new method incorporates into the traditional cross-correlation method an algorithm that corrects for erroneous cloud motion vectors by re-determining the most plausible correlation peak among all of the local maxima on the correlation surface by comparing each vector with its neighboring vectors. The newly developed method was applied to the Venusian violet images obtained by the Solid State Imaging system (SSI) onboard the Galileo spacecraft during its Venus flyby. Although the results may be biased by the choice of spatial scale of atmospheric features, the cloud tracking is the most practical mean of estimating the wind velocities with extensive spatial and temporal coverage. The two-dimensional distribution of the horizontal wind vector field over 5 days was obtained. It was found from these wind maps that the solar-fixed component in 1990 was similar to that in 1982 obtained by the Pioneer Venus orbiter. The deviation of the instantaneous zonal wind field from the solar-fixed component shows a distinct wavenumber-1 structure in the equatorial region. On the assumption that this structure is a manifestation of an equatorial Kelvin wave, the phase relationship between the zonal wind and the cloud brightness suggests a short photochemical lifetime of the violet absorber. The momentum deposition by this Kelvin wave, which is subject to radiative damping, would induce a westward mean-wind acceleration of ～0.3 m s^?1 per Earth day.