Distribution and sources of organic matter in surficial sediments on the shelf and slope off Tokachi, western North Pacific, inferred from C and N stable isotopes and C / N ratios

Organic carbon (C) and total nitrogen (N) contents and corresponding isotope ratios were determined in surficial sediment (0–3 cm) at 94 stations ranging from 21 to 1995 m water depth off Tokachi, Hokkaido, Japan, to elucidate the distribution and source of sedimentary organic matter. Suspended particulate organic matter (POM) in the seawater and suspended POM and sediment in the Tokachi River were also examined. δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N and C / N ratios of the samples in the Tokachi River suggest that the spring snowmelt is an important process for the transport of terrestrial organic matter to the coastal waters. δ¹³C values of suspended POM in the surface seawater were higher in May and November than in August, while δ¹⁵N values of the POM were higher in May and August than in November. These changes are attributed to seasonal changes in phytoplankton growth rate and nitrate availability. δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values in the sediments off Tokachi were lowest near the Tokachi River mouth, and increased offshore to constant values that persisted from 134 to 1995 m water depth. The spatial variation in C / N ratios in the sediment mirrored those of δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N. Comparison of δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N and C / N ratios in the sediments off Tokachi with those in the Tokachi River and seawater indicates that about half of the organic matter in the sediment was of terrestrial origin near the Tokachi River mouth, and the sedimentary organic matter from 134 to 1995 m water depth was of marine origin. The organic C content in the sediment was high near the Tokachi River mouth, and also around 1000 m water depth. The C content was significantly correlated with silt plus clay content, with different regression lines for those stations shallower and deeper than 134 m, owing to several stations of higher C content with the elevated C / N ratio on the inner shelf. These results suggest that transport and deposition of organic-rich fine sediment particles by hydrodynamic processes were major factors controlling C content off Tokachi. In addition, the supply of a fraction of terrestrial organic matter with high C / N probably also affected C content on the inner shelf.     

δ15N of PON and Nitrate as a Clue to the Origin and Transformation of Nitrogen in the Subarctic North Pacific and Its Marginal Sea

Nitrogen isotope compositions of particulate organic matter and nitrate were analyzed for seawater sampled at five stations at the Alaskan Gyre, Western Subarctic Gyre and East China Sea, focusing on the samples from the surface to 5000 m water to characterize the nitrogen cycling in the subarctic North Pacific Ocean and its marginal sea. The ¹⁵N of particulate organic matter showed little agreement with a conceptual closed model that interprets isotopic variation as being caused by isotope discrimination on nitrate utilization. The ¹⁵N and ¹³C of particulate organic matter varied with the water depth. A correlation between isotope compositions and C/N elemental ratio was found generally at all stations, although some irregular data were also found in deep layers. We developed a hypothetical nitrogen balance model based on N₂ fixation and denitrification in seawater and attempted to apply it to distinguish nutrient cycling using both ¹⁵N-NO₃ ^– and N* variation in seawater. This model was applied to the observed data set of ¹⁵N-NO₃ ^– and N* in the North Pacific water and estimated the ¹⁵N-NO₃ ^– of primordial nitrate in the North Pacific deep water as 4.8. The North Pacific intermediate water for all stations showed similar ¹⁵N-NO₃ ^– and N* values of 6 and –3 µmol/kg, respectively, suggesting a similar nitrogen biogeochemistry. In the East China Sea, analysis showed evidence of water exchange with the North Pacific intermediate water but a significant influence of nitrogen from the river runoff was found in depths shallower than 400 m.     

Cooling history of pyroxene chondrules in the Yamato-74191 chondrite (L3)—an electron microscopic study

Fine textures of clinopyroxene in an excentroradial pyroxene chondrule (EPC) and a comb-like pyroxene chondrule (CPC) in the Yamato-74191 chondrite (L3) have been studied by analytical electron microscopy. Both pyroxenes consist of three regions different in composition and texture; core, mantle and marginal regions, though the pyroxenes of the CPC are more Fe-rich than those of the EPC. The core region is the most Mg-rich with no Ca component and commonly shows polysynthetic (100) twins. The mantle region is slightly calcic, and the marginal region shows a rapid increase of Ca outward.The polysynthetic twins, cracks and subgrain boundaries in the core in the EPC and CPC must have formed during the transition from proto-type to clino-type pyroxenes. The exsolution textures in the mantle and marginal regions indicate initial crystallization of pigeonite-C followed by decomposition into pigeonite-P and augite. The decomposition must have taken place by nucleation growth in the mantle region and by spinodal decomposition in the marginal region. The periodicity of 15–20 nm in the spinodal decomposition textures indicates that the cooling rate of the pyroxenes, when passing through about 1000°C, was of the order of a few tens to several degrees centigrade per hour. The cooling history of the chondrules has been explained by a monotonous cooling controlled by the cooling rate of the surrounding medium.     

Indialite from Unazuki Pelitic Schist,Japan, and its transition texture to cordierite

Indialite (hexagonal cordierite) has been found in a cordierite vein of polymetamorphosed pelitic rock, a member of the Unazuki schists in Hida terrane, central Japan. Most of the indialite grains show intergrowth textures with cordierite of orthorhombic symmetry. This is the second identification of indialite since the first one from a fused sediment in India. The intergrowth texture was formed by a nucleation-growth process accompanied with the first order transition from the hexagonal to the orthorhombic form. Characteristic pseudo-twin relation exists among the orthorhombic phases. Chemical compositions of both hexagonal and orthorhombic forms in the intergrowth have been deter-mined by analytical electron microscopy. The difference in Fe/(Mg+Fe) at the interfaces between the two forms indicates the existence of a transition loop in the (Mg, Fe)-cordierite. The transition of the present specimens is estimated to have initiated at about 700° C. A possible phase diagram of (Mg, Fe)-cordierite has been proposed, based on the result of this investigation.     

Boron isotopic composition of fumarolic condensates from some volcanoes in Japanese island arcs

Boron samples from 40 fumarolic condensates from volcanoes in the Ryukyu arc (Satsuma Iwo-jima and Shiratori Iwo-yama) and the North-east Japan arc (Usu-shinzan, Showa-shinzan, Esan and Issaikyo-yama) all have ${}^{11}\text{B}{}^{10}\text{B}$ ratios close to 4.07. Higher values, from 4.09 to 4.13, were only observed in condensates from volcanoes in the southernmost end of the North-east Japan arc (Nasu-dake), the northern part of the Izu-Bonin arc (Hakone), and the North Mariana arc (Ogasawara Iwo-jima). These higher values suggest geological interaction of the magmas with sea-water enriched in ¹¹B.     

Removal of234Th from a coastal sea: Funka Bay,Japan

In Funka Bay of Hokkaido, Japan, seawater, suspended matter and settling matter were collected once every month in the summer of 1974. These samples were analyzed for²³⁴Th, a short-lived daughter of dissolved²³⁸U. A pronounced disequilibrium between²³⁴Th and²³⁸U, and a highly variable concentration of²³⁴Th were found. Positive correlation, however, exist among the deficiency of²³⁴Th relative to²³⁸U in seawater, the concentration of particulate²³⁴Th, the fraction of particulate²³⁴Th to total²³⁴Th in seawater, the total dry weight of suspended matter, and the primary productivity during the month previous to sampling. The specific activity of²³⁴Th for the settling particles (620 ± 170 dpm/g) was nearly equal to that for suspended particles (720 ± 600 dpm/g) but much greater than that for plankton (47 ± 24 dpm/g). These facts suggest that suspended particles are somehow closely related to the removal of heavy metals from seawater, in spite of the negligibly small settling flux of suspended matter. The residence time of thorium in Funka Bay (mean depth: 60 m) is found to be about 60 days, which is nearly equal to those of²¹⁰Pb and²¹⁰Po.     

Pyroclastic flows in Japan

Bulletin of Volcanology -     

Quantitative micro‐X‐ray fluorescence scanning spectroscopy of wet sediment based on the X‐ray absorption and emission theories: Its application to freshwater lake sedimentary sequences

Micro‐X‐ray fluorescence scanning spectroscopy of marine and lake sedimentary sequences can provide detailed palaeoenvironmental records through element intensity proxy data. However, problems with the effects of interstitial pore water on the micro‐X‐ray fluorescence intensities have been pointed out. This is because the X‐ray fluorescence intensities are measured directly at the surfaces of split wet sediment core samples. This study developed a new method for correcting X‐ray fluorescence data to compensate for the effects of pore water using a scanning X‐ray analytical microscope. This involved simultaneous use of micro‐X‐ray fluorescence scanning spectroscopy and an X‐ray transmission detector. To evaluate the interstitial pore water content from the X‐ray transmission intensities, a fine‐grained sediment core retrieved from Lake Baikal (VER99‐G12) was used to prepare resin‐embedded samples with smooth surfaces and uniform thickness. Simple linear regression between the linear absorption coefficients of the samples and their porosity, based on the Lambert–Beer law, enabled calculation of the interstitial pore spaces and their resin content with high reproducibility. The X‐ray fluorescence intensities of resin‐embedded samples were reduced compared with those of dry sediment samples because of: (i) the X‐ray fluorescence absorption of resin within sediment; and (ii) the sediment dilution effects by resin. An improved micro‐X‐ray fluorescence correction equation based on X‐ray fluorescence emission theory considers the instrument's sensitivity to each element, which provides a reasonable explanation of these two effects. The resin‐corrected X‐ray fluorescence intensity was then successfully converted to elemental concentrations using simple linear regression between the data from micro‐X‐ray fluorescence scanning spectroscopy and from the conventional analyzer. In particular, the calculated concentration of SiO₂ over the depth of the core, reflecting diatom/biogenic silica concentration, was significantly changed by the calibrations, from a progressively decreasing trend to an increasing trend towards the top of the core.     

A 27-kyr record of environmental change in central Asia inferred from the sediment record of Lake Hovsgol,northwest Mongolia

Geochemistry of a sediment core from Lake Hovsgol, northwest Mongolia provides a continuous, 27-kyr history of the response of the lake and the surrounding catchment to climate change. Principle component (PC) analysis of 19 major and trace elements, total inorganic carbon (TIC), and total organic carbon (TOC) in the bulk sediment samples revealed that the 21 chemical components can be grouped into four assemblages—group-1: Na, Mg, Ca, Sr, and TIC, hosted in carbonate minerals (calcite, dolomite, and magnesian calcite); group-2: Ni, Cu, and Zn, recognized as biophilic trace metals, and TOC; group-3: Al, K, Ti, V, Fe, Rb, Cs, Ba, and Pb, composed of rock-forming minerals; and group-4: Cr, Mn, and As, sensitive to the redox condition of the sediment. The four element assemblages originated from three relevant processes. Group-1 and group-2 components are authigenic products and comprise the end member on the PC-1 score, whose variation reflects changes in the water volume, i.e. the balance between precipitation and evaporation (P/E). Group-3 components from detrital materials of the catchment contribute to the PC-2 score, whose variability indicates erosion/weathering intensity in the drainage basin, which might be controlled by the amount of vegetation cover associated with moisture change. The group-4 components of redox-sensitive elements contribute to the PC-3 score and are not an end member because of their small amount. The first two PC scores suggest a sequential record of paleo-moisture evolution in central Asia. The P/E balance in the Lake Hovsgol region, inferred from the PC-1 score, gradually increased during the glacial/interglacial transition. This resembles climate change of the North Atlantic region on the glacial–interglacial scale, but does not reflect the abrupt climate shifts such as the warm Bølling-Allerød and the cold Younger Dryas of the North Atlantic on the millennial scale. A periodic variation of ~8.7 kyr was observed in the PC-2 score profile of detrital input to Lake Hovsgol over the last glacial and Holocene. The decrease in detrital input coincided with the copious supply of moisture from the Asian monsoon regime and the North Atlantic westerly winds to the Baikal drainage basin, which includes Lake Hovsgol. Our geochemical records from Lake Hovsgol demonstrate that the climate system of interior continental Asia was strongly influenced by change on both Milankovitch and sub-Milankovitch scales.     

Implications of a non-adiabatic density gradient for the Earth's viscoelastic response to surface loading

The response of a viscoelastic Earth to the melting of the Late Pleistocene ice sheets has been the subject of a number of investigations employing PREM. In PREM, a non-adiabatic density gradient (NADG) exists in the upper mantle, and to understand the implications of this model it is thus important to examine the effects of this NADG on the Earth's response to surface loads. This paper is based on the assumption that the contribution to the depth dependence of the density that is not due to self-compression is due to compositional change. This contribution is referred to as 'non-adiabatic'. We evaluate the effects of a non-adiabatic density jump (NADJ) for the 670  km discontinuity and the NADG in the upper mantle by adopting a compressible earth model with both a compositional density gradient and a density jump. Numerical calculations based on these models indicate that the magnitude of the Earth's response associated with the NADG is much smaller than that associated with the NADJ at 670  km depth. It is also confirmed that the higher modes associated with the NADJ and the NADG are much more sensitive to the existence of an elastic lithosphere than the fundamental modes associated with the density jumps at the surface and core–mantle boundary.