Zircon fission‐track and U–Pb double dating using femtosecond laser ablation–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry: A technical note

We present a new LA–ICP–MS system for zircon fission‐track (FT) and U–Pb double dating, whereby a femtosecond laser combined with galvanometric optics simultaneously ablates multiple spots to measure average surface U contents. The U contents of zircon measured by LA–ICP–MS and standardized with the NIST SRM610 glass are comparable to those measured by the induced FT method, and have smaller analytical errors. LA–ICP–MS FT dating of seven zircon samples including three IUGS age standards is as accurate as the external detector method, but can give a higher‐precision age depending on the counting statistics of the U content measurement. Double dating of the IUGS age standards gives FT and U–Pb ages that are in agreement. A chip of the Nancy 91500 zircon has a homogeneous U content of 84 ppm, suggesting the possibility of using this zircon as a matrix‐matched U‐standard for FT dating. When using the Nancy 91500 zircon as a U‐standard, a zeta calibration value of 42–43 year cm² for LA–ICP–MS FT dating is obtained. While this value is strictly valid only for the particular session, it can serve as a reference for other studies.     

The Role of Bimodal Magmatism in Seafloor Massive Sulfide (SMS) Ore-forming Systems at the Middle Okinawa Trough,Japan

Ocean Science Journal - Igneous rocks from three distinct morphological areas, Iheya North Knoll, Iheya Minor Ridge, and Izena Hole, in the actively rifting middle Okinawa Trough, Japan, were...     

H I observations of galaxies behind the Milky Way in the Puppis region

We report 21-cm H  i line observations of 161 galaxies located behind the Milky Way, in the Puppis region. The observations have been carried out with the Nançay radio telescope, resulting in 101 detections. Most of the galaxies observed appear in the ESO catalogue, and present apparent diameters larger than 1.6 arcmin. We show that the detection rate is strongly related to the apparent diameter; it is as high as 76 per cent for diameters larger than 1.6 arcmin. Half of the non-detections result, in fact, from an insufficient velocity coverage. Global parameters of the detected galaxies are computed, after a careful discussion of the correction for Galactic absorption. Our H  I data are then compared with those obtained by Kraan-Korteweg & Huchtmeier with the Effelsberg radio telescope for 20 galaxies observed in common: the agreement is excellent, implying respective uncertainties on recession velocities and on H  I fluxes lower than 10 km s⁻¹ and 2 Jy km s⁻¹ on average. Finally, we find that the detected galaxies follow well the correlation between the optical linear diameter and the H  I mass found by Haynes & Giovanelli. This result shows that our diameter corrections for Galactic absorption A_B are quite good, except for eight objects which are heavily obscured ( A_B 2.3), or have a very small diameter, lower than 0.5 arcmin.     

Surface current structure of the Tsushima Warm Current region in the Japan Sea derived by satellite-tracked surface drifters

We examined the surface current structure in the Tsushima Warm Current (TWC) region of the Japan Sea based on a dataset from satellite-tracked surface drifters, including our new deployments during 2004–2008. The gridded mean current velocity and mean kinetic energy (KE) fields calculated from all available drifter data revealed the structure and seasonality of the three branches of the TWC. By comparing the eddy kinetic energy (EKE) field to the KE field, we found four regions where the ratio of EKE to KE was high. In particular, this ratio became extremely high east of the Oki Islands located between the first branch of the TWC (FBTWC) and the second branch of the TWC (SBTWC). Our analysis suggests that the generation of alternate warm and cold eddies east of the Oki Island induced this high ratio. The occurrence of a warm or cold eddy was related to the route—either nearshore or offshore—of the SBTWC. When the offshore route of the SBTWC became dominant, a warm eddy was frequently generated east of the Oki Islands. In contrast, when the nearshore route of the SBTWC became dominant, a cold eddy was more likely to be generated.     

Seasonal variations in abundance,growth and mortality of heterotrophic bacteria in Kagoshima Bay

Seasonal changes in abundance, growth and mortality of heterotrophic bacteria were investigated monthly from collections and dilution experiments in Kagoshima Bay, the southernmost of Japan. Bacteria occurred abundantly with considerable variation in the surface layers where chlorophyll a concentrations were high, whereas seasonal variations were obscure below 100 m. Especially, bacteria showed a decline of cell density toward summer when heterotrophic nano-flagellates increased their abundance. Seasonal and vertical variations in bacterial cell number during the study period were positively correlated with those of water temperature and pico-sized chlorophyll a concentration. Maximum growth and mortality rates showed positive correlations with water temperature but no positive relationships to size-fractionated chlorophyll a. Net increase rate (i.e. in situ rate if abundance changes) was negatively correlated with cell density of heterotrophic nano-flagellates. It is concluded that bacterial abundance is controlled by the resultant (i.e. net growth rate) of the balance between maximum growth and predatory mortality by heterotrophic nano-flagelllates which are both dependent on ambient temperature.     

Environmental control of short-term variation in the plankton community of inner Tokyo Bay, Japan

Water temperature, salinity, nutrient concentrations and the composition of the plankton community were recorded at three stations in inner Tokyo Bay over a period of 328 days (from June 8, 1995 to April 30, 1996) with a nominal sampling frequency of once per day. Inspection of the results revealed that the data could be divided into two blocs as an aid to analysis: the period from June to October was characterized by the development of stratification of temperature and salinity (stratification period), and November to March was characterized by uniform temperature and salinity in the water column due to vertical mixing (mixing period). Oxygen-depleted water forms in the bottom layer during the stratification period, but vertical mixing of the water column, due to changing wind and rainfall conditions caused by passing weather fronts, results in the breakdown of the oxygen-depleted water mass. Nutrient loads are high in the surface water due to the freshwater supply, but occasional pulses of primary production cause a depletion of phosphate in the surface water, suggesting that the phosphorus becomes a limiting nutrient for phytoplankton growth in this period. Several short-term peaks of plankton abundance (blooms) occurred as responses to temporal changes in water quality from June to November, with consequent species succession. Significant fluctuations in the densities of the diatom Skeletonema costatum and several species of ciliates corresponded to the daily changes in the physical and chemical characteristics of the coastal environment. During the mixing period, when water temperature and solar radiation decreased, there were no short-term variations in water quality and although nutrient concentrations gradually increased from November to February, primary production remained low. This study shows that the short-term dynamics of the phytoplankton community are closely coupled to fluctuations in environmental forcing, and that the degree of coupling is stronger during periods when solar radiation is greater. The results provide a novel typological understanding of seasonal plankton dynamics in a shallow, eutrophicated marine embayment, and suggest how such systems may be treated in simulation modeling.     

A Study Of The Atmospheric Boundary Layer Using Radon And Air Pollutants As Tracers

Concentrations of radon ²²²Rn andair pollutants, meteorological parametersnear the surface and vertical profiles of meteorological elements were measured atUchio (Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture, Japan) 12 km north from the coast ofthe Inland Sea of Japan. In the nighttime, the ²²²Rn concentration increased in the case of weak winds, but did not increase as much in the case of moderate or strong winds, as had been expected. In the daytime, the ²²²Rn concentrationheld at a slightly higher than average level for the period from sunrise to about 1100 JST. It is considered that this phenomenon is due to a period of morning calm, that is, a transition period from land breeze to sea breeze.NO, which is sensitive to traffic volume,brought information concerning advection.Oxidant concentrations,which reflect the availability of sunlight,acted in the reverse manner to ²²²Rnconcentrations. Thus, a set of ²²²Rn and air pollutants could provide useful information regarding the local conditions of the atmospheric boundary layer.     

云南禄丰早侏罗世一新的原蜥脚类恐龙

云南禄丰下侏罗统下禄丰组产出一新的原蜥脚类孙氏细细坡龙(Xixiposaurus suni gen.et sp.nov.),其特征为:侧视头骨背缘向前强烈倾斜,下颌高度大于齿骨最小高度的两倍,颈椎体中第四颈椎体最长,耻骨裙宽度大于肠骨的耻骨突,股骨第四转子侧视具有V形切口。其系统位置比较进步,是禄丰发现的原蜥脚类中最进步的一种。     

Acute toxicity of temporally varying seawater CO2 conditions on juveniles of Japanese sillago (Sillago japonica)

CO(2) ocean storage by which liquefied CO(2) is injected into the deep-sea to mitigate the climate change would increase the CO(2) concentrations of the surrounding seawater. The biological impacts of such dynamic CO(2) environments are, however, unknown. We examined the acute toxicity of temporally changing seawater CO(2) concentrations on juveniles of Sillago japonica. Step-wise increases in ambient CO(2) to fCO(2) (fractional CO(2) concentration of the gas mixture bubbled into seawater) levels of 7% and 9% resulted in mortalities of 0.15 and 0.40-0.67 after 18 h, respectively. In contrast, one-step increases to these CO(2) levels killed all fish within 15 min. Further, a sudden drop of fCO(2) from 9-10% CO(2) to normocapnia (0.038%) killed all the surviving fish within a few minutes. These results demonstrate that impacts of ocean CO(2) storage need to be examined under conditions mimicking the dynamic changes in CO(2) levels expected to occur by the CO(2) injection procedure.     

Grain-growth kinetics in wadsleyite: Effects of chemical environment

Grain-growth kinetics in wadsleyite was investigated using a multianvil high-pressure apparatus. Fine-grained wadsleyite aggregates were synthesized by isostatic hot-pressing and were subsequently annealed under high pressure and temperature in a controlled chemical environment. Wadsleyite samples show normal grain-growth characterized by a log-normal grain-size distribution following the relation, where n is a constant, L the grain-size at time t, L₀ the grain-size at time t = 0 and k is a rate constant that depends on temperature T and chemical environments (fO₂: oxygen fugacity in Pa, C_OH: water content in H/10⁶Si) as: