An experimental study on impact-induced alterations of planetary organic simulants

The present study systematically investigates shock-induced alteration of organic simulants of planetary bodies (OSPBs) as a function of peak shock pressure and temperature by impact experiments. Our results show that the composition and structure of OSPBs are unchanged upon impacts at peak pressures ≤~5 GPa and temperatures ≤~350 °C. On the other hand, these are dramatically changed upon impacts at >7–8 GPa and > ~400 °C, through loss of hydrogen-related bonds and concurrent carbonization, regardless of the initial compositions of OSPBs. Compared with previous results on static heating of organic matter, we suggest that shock-induced alteration cannot be distinguished from static heating only by Raman and infrared spectroscopy. Our experimental results would provide a proxy indicator for assessing degree of shock-induced alteration of organic matter contained in carbonaceous chondrites. We suggest that a remote-sensing signature of the 3.3–3.6 μm absorption due to hydrogen-related bonds on the surface of small bodies would be a promising indicator for the presence of less-thermally-altered (i.e., <350 °C) organic matter there, which will be a target for landing to collect primordial samples in sample-return spacecraft missions, such as Hayabusa2 and OSIRIS-REx.     

An extreme flood caused by a heavy snowfall over the Indigirka River basin in Northeastern Siberia

Flooding is one of the greatest disasters that produces strong effects on the ecosystem and livelihoods of the local population. Flood frequency is expected to increase globally making its risk assessment an urgent issue. In spring-summer 2017, an extreme flooding occurred in the Indigirka River lowland of Northeastern Siberia that inundated a large area. In this study, the extent and climatic drivers of the flooding were determined using the results of field observations, satellite images, and climate reanalysis dataset, and its possible effects on the ecosystem were discussed. In 2017, a significant lowland area of around 16,016 km² was covered with water even in July, which was 5,217 km² (around 4% of the total area) greater than the water-covered area in 2015 when usual hydrological condition in the area was observed. The hydrographic signature obtained for the Indigirka River water level in 2017 was unusual. Although the water level rose sharply at the end of May (which was typical for the Arctic region), it did not fall afterwards and even increased again to an annual daily maximum value in the middle of July. The climate reanalysis dataset obtained for the temporal–spatial variations of snow water equivalent, snowmelt, and runoff over the lowland revealed that a large amount of snowmelt runoff in June and July 2017 produced a large water-covered area and unusually high river water levels that lasted until summer. Snow depth from winter to spring was largest in 2017 over the period from 2009 to 2017, and the surface of the lower reach of the lowland was partially covered with snow even in the end of June due to the extreme snowfall that occurred in October 2016. Such unusual hydrological conditions waterlogged most trees over the lowland, which caused serious ecosystem devastation and changes in the material cycle.     

Application of scanning X-ray analytical microscope to the petrographic characterization of a ductile shear zone: an alternative method to image microstructures

A ductile shear zone within a metasomatic biotite band in the Ryoke granite, Teshima, SW Japan, has been studied using the scanning X-ray analytical microscope (SXAM). This enabled the quantitative distributions of major elements, such as Si, K, Fe, Al and Ca, to be determined within the shear zone. These element maps were processed to transform them into images showing the distribution of minerals such as quartz, biotite, plagioclase and K-feldspar, which form the major minerals within the biotite band and the granite protolith. Mineral profiles based on these mineral maps compared with the simple shear strain profile reveal that the shear zone is most intense where quartz and biotite have been substituted for the primary mineral assemblage of the granite protolith, suggesting that the stresses imposed on the granite caused the shear strain to localize along the biotite band to produce the observed shear zone. It appears that the rheological behavior changed around 50–60% of quartz modal composition.     

Experiment and Theoretical Study of Earthquake Detection Capability by Means of Microwave Passive Sensors on a Satellite

This letter presents the possibility of detecting earthquakes (EQs) from microwaves emitted when rock fractures. The method is based on an experiment in which microwave emission was detected from rock fracturing in a laboratory for the first time in the world. First, the method of calibrating emitted microwave power from experimental data is presented. A model of microwave emission and propagation to a satellite is then proposed. An advantage of microwaves is that they penetrate the Earth's ionosphere, unlike radiowaves of frequencies lower than several tens of megahertz. The power received by a satelliteborne receiver is estimated by assuming parameters of a radiometer currently operating in orbit. The result indicates that a satelliteborne receiver can detect microwave signals generated by an EQ. Based on this result, we attempted to detect some features associated with an actual EQ from the data of the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for Earth Observation System aboard the remote sensing satellite Aqua.     

Analysis of the geographical accessibility of neurosurgical emergency hospitals in Sapporo city using GIS and AHP

To improve the geographical accessibility of neurosurgical emergency hospitals for elderly people, we developed several alternative site plans for a new neurosurgical emergency hospital in Sapporo, Japan. Hospitals, population data, routes, and the numerical information for the Analytic Hierarchy Process computations were input into a Geographical Information System. Pairwise comparison revealed the following weights which were assigned to each of the four criteria: 0.674 for availability of hospital beds; 0.169 for the maximum road distance of the shortest routes; 0.101 for the elderly population within a 3‐km radius; and 0.056 for the median road distance of the shortest routes. The alternative proposed could cover 4000 more elderly people in the 3‐km radius of the hospitals. The integration of Geographical Information Systems and the Analytic Hierarchy Process constitutes a powerful tool for analysing traffic conditions in mid‐sized cities and for suggesting city planning to improve prognosis of stroke.     

Spatial variability of chemical tracers in surface snow along the traverse route from the coast to 1000 km inland at east Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

1　IntroductionAntarcticicesheetisaburialgroundforatmosphericdeposition .Sincethereiscon tinuousinteractionbetweentheicesheetandtheatmosphere,variousatmosphericsub stancesareinjectedtotheicesheetsequentiallyintimeandspace.Therefore,verticalanalysesoftheicesheetprovideuswithinformationaboutpastclimaticchange (Delmas1 992 ;LegrandandMayewski 1 997)andhorizontalanalysesoftheicesheetprovideuswithknowledgeregardinglong rangetransportofairbornematerials (Kamiyamaetal.1 989;KreutzandMayewski 1 999)…     

Simulations of an isotopic fractionation by freezing in an open system

1　IntroductionBasaliceofglaciersandicesheetshasbeenwidelystudiedtounderstandtheinacces sibleice bedinterface (e.g.,Lawson 1 979;Gowetal.1 979;Knight 1 994;HubbardandSharp 1 995 ,Souchez1 988) .Useofstableisotopesofbasaliceisasuperiormethodtodeterminewhetherthebasalicewasformedbymelt refreezingornon meltingattheinlandbaseofglaciersandicesheets.Inatheoreticalstudyofstableisotopes,JouzelandSouchez ( 1 982 )showedthatforaclosedsystem ,wherenowaterisinputoroutput,theslopegradientdefinedbyδ18O…     

Semi-brittle behavior of wet olivine aggregates: the role of aqueous fluid in faulting at upper mantle pressures

The role of aqueous fluid in fracturing in subducting slabs was investigated through a series of deformation experiments on dunite that was undersaturated (i.e., fluid-free) or saturated with water (i.e., aqueous-fluid bearing) at pressures of 1.0–1.8 GPa and temperatures of 670–1250 K, corresponding to the conditions of the shallower regions of the double seismic zone in slabs. In situ X-ray diffraction, radiography, and acoustic emissions (AEs) monitoring demonstrated that semi-brittle flow associated with AEs was dominant and the creep/failure strength of dunite was insensitive to the dissolved water content in olivine. In contrast, aqueous fluid drastically decreased the creep/failure strength of dunite (up to ~?1 GPa of weakening) over a wide range of temperatures in the semi-brittle regime. Weakening of the dunite by the aqueous fluid resulted in the reduction of the number of AE events (i.e., suppression of microcracking) and shortening of time to failure. The AE hypocenters were located at the margin of the deforming sample while the interior of the faulted sample was aseismic (i.e., aseismic semi-brittle flow) under water-saturated conditions. A faulting (slip rate of ~?10^?3 to 10^?4 s^?1) associated with a large drop of stress (Δσ?~?0.5 to 1 GPa) and/or pressure (ΔP?~?0.5 GPa) was dominant in fluid-free dunite, while a slow faulting (slip rate?<?8?×?10^?5 s^?1) without any stress/pressure drop was common in water-saturated dunite. Aseismic semi-brittle flow may mimic silent ductile flow under water-saturated conditions in subducting slabs.     

Multi-decadal changes in the relationships between rainfall characteristics and debris-flow occurrences in response to gully evolution after the 1990–1995 Mount Unzen eruptions

Explosive volcanic eruptions can cause long-term landscape change, leading to increased sediment discharge that continues after the cessation of the eruptions. During the period 1990–1995, eruptions of Mount Unzen, Japan, generated large amounts of pyroclastic material, resulting in 57 debris-flow events during 1991–2018. To investigate changes in the relationships between rainfall characteristics and debris-flow occurrence, we conducted the following: geometric analysis of two gullies (i.e., debris-flow initiation zones) using LiDAR (light detection and ranging)-generated 1 m DEMs (digital elevation models); rainfall analysis, based on the relationship between rainfall duration and mean intensity (i.e., considering the intensity–duration, or ID, threshold); and debris-flow monitoring during 2016–2018. Since 1991, rainfall runoff has caused erosion of the supplied pyroclastic material, generating a channel network consisting of incised gullies. With sufficient rainfall, debris flows formed, accompanied by further gully erosion; this resulted in both vertical and lateral adjustments of the cross-sectional geometry. In the two decades since the eruptions ceased, readily mobilized pyroclastic material has become scarce as the gullies have adjusted to local hydrographic conditions. At the same time, the infiltration capacity of the volcanic flank has increased, reducing the capacity for overland flow. As a result, since 2000, rainfall events with intensities above the ID threshold have occurred; however, the lack of sediment supplied by the gullies appears to have hindered the occurrence and development of debris flows. This suggests that debris flows in volcanically perturbed landscapes may occur at lower rainfall thresholds as long as the corresponding upland channels are evolving as a result of intense overland flow. However, as such channels evolve towards equilibrium geometries, the frequency of debris flows decreases in response to the reduction in sediment availability.     

Wave Dispersion Study in the Indian Ocean-Tsunami of December 26, 2004

A numerical study which takes into account wave dispersion effects has been carried out in the Indian Ocean to reproduce the initial stage of wave propagation of the tsunami event that occurred on December 26, 2004. Three different numerical models have been used: the nonlinear shallow water (nondispersive), the nonlinear Boussinesq, and the full Navier-Stokes aided by the volume of fluid method to track the free surface. Numerical model results are compared against each other. General features of the wave propagation agreed very well in all numerical studies. However some important differences are observed in the wave patterns, i.e., the development in time of the wave front is shown to be strongly connected to the dispersion effects. Discussions and conclusions are made about the spatial and temporal distribution of the free surface reaffirming that the dispersion mechanism is important for tsunami hazard mitigation.