Large hatchling size in Cretaceous nautiloids persists across the end-Cretaceous mass extinction: New data of Hercoglossidae hatchlings

The hatchling sizes of the Cretaceous nautiloids (Hercoglossa forbesianus and Cimomia angustus; Hercoglossidae) are reported here for the first time as ranging between 20.4-22.2 mm in diameter. These new data for Hercoglossidae and the previously reported data for Nautilidae and Cymatoceratidae suggest that all Cretaceous nautiloids had large hatchlings irrespective of their taxonomy relative to those in ammonoids. Based on the relationship between hatching events and the nepionic constriction in modern nautili, the hatchling size of nautiloids can be recognized by the constriction on the shell surface of the innermost whorl. The range of hatchling diameter in all Cretaceous nautiloids (9-35 mm) is comparable to those of modern nautili (20-32 mm), although the Cretaceous nautiloids are characterized by a wider range with the smaller minimum diameter. The large hatchling size in Cretaceous nautiloids stands in marked contrast to those in ammonoids, which had much smaller hatchling size (mostly <2 mm in diameter) and became extinct at the end of the Cretaceous. Such distinct differences in reproductive strategy (i.e., hatchling and egg sizes) suggest that these differences may have played a significant role in the fate of ammonoids and nautiloids through the K/T mass extinction, as previously hypothesized by several paleontologists.     

Hawaiian double volcanic chain triggered by an episodic involvement of recycled material: Constraints from temporal Sr–Nd–Hf–Pb isotopic trend of the Loa-type volcanoes

The two parallel loci of recent Hawaiian volcanoes, Kea and Loa, have been regarded as the best targets to interpret the chemical structure of an upwelling mantle plume derived from the lower mantle. Here we show that the Sr–Nd–Hf–Pb isotopic data of the shield-building lavas along the Loa locus form a systematic trend from the main shield stage of Koolau (> 2.9 Ma) to the active Loihi volcanoes. During the growth of the Koolau volcano, the dominant material in the melting region successively changed from the proposed KEA, DMK (depleted Makapuu), to EMK (enriched Makapuu) components. The proportion of EMK, dominated by a recycled mafic component, is typified by some Koolau Makapuu-stage and some Lanai lavas. Subsequently, the EMK component decreased and LOIHI component increased toward the Loihi lavas. The temporal coincidence between the episodically elevated magma production rate and the abrupt appearance of the typical Loa-type lavas that is restricted to the last 3 Myr should be linked to magma genesis. We suggest that the abrupt appearance of Loa-type magmatism should be attributed to the transient incorporation of the relatively dense recycled material and surrounding less degassed lower mantle material that accumulated near the core–mantle boundary into the upwelling plume. This episodic involvement could have been trigged by episodic thermal pulses and buoyancy increases in the plume. The continuous appearance of Kea-type lavas during the long history of Hawaiian-chain magmatism and the larger magma volume of Kea-type lavas relative to that of the Loa-type lavas in the last 3 Myr indicate that the Kea locus is closer to the thermal centre of the Hawaiian plume relative to that of the Loa locus.     

Regional climatic effects according to different estimations of biogenic volatile organic compounds during the asian summer monsoon

A series of 60-year numerical experiments starting from 1851 was conducted using a global climate model coupled with an aerosol-cloud-radiation model to investigate the response of the Asian summer monsoon to variations in the secondary organic aerosol (SOA) flux induced by two different estimations of biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOC) emissions. One estimation was obtained from a pre-existing archive and the other was generated by a next-generation model (the Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature, MEGAN). The use of MEGAN resulted in an overall increase of the SOA production through a higher rate of gasto-particle conversion of BVOCs. Consequently, the atmospheric loading of organic carbon (OC) increased due to the contribution of SOA to OC aerosol. The increase of atmospheric OC aerosols was prominent in particular in the Indian subcontinent and Indochina Peninsula (IP) during the pre- and early-monsoon periods because the terrestrial biosphere is the major source of BVOC emissions and the atmospheric aerosol concentration diminishes rapidly with the arrival of monsoon rainfall. As the number of atmospheric OC particles increased, the number concentrations of cloud droplets increased, but their size decreased. These changes represent a combination of aerosol-cloud interactions that were favorable to rainfall suppression. However, the modeled precipitation was slightly enhanced in May over the oceans that surround the Indian subcontinent and IP. Further analysis revealed that a compensating updraft in the surrounding oceans was induced by the thermally-driven downdraft in the IP, which was a result of surface cooling associated with direct OC aerosol radiative forcing, and was able to surpass the aerosolcloud interactions. The co-existence of oceanic ascending motion with the maximum convective available potential energy was also found to be crucial for rainfall formation. Although the model produced statistically significant rainfall changes with locally organized patterns, the suggested pathways should be considered guardedly because in the simulation results, 1) the BVOC-induced aerosol direct effect was marginal; 2) cloud-aerosol interactions were modeldependent; and 3) Asian summer monsoons were biased to a nonnegligible extent.     

Relativistic expansion of magnetic loops at the self-similar stage

We obtained self-similar solutions of relativistically expanding magnetic loops taking into account the azimuthal magnetic fields. We neglect stellar rotation and assume axisymmetry and a purely radial flow. As the magnetic loops expand, the initial dipole magnetic field is stretched into the radial direction. When the expansion speed approaches the light speed, the displacement current reduces the toroidal current and modifies the distribution of the plasma lifted up from the central star. Since these self-similar solutions describe the free expansion of the magnetic loops, i.e.  d v /d t = 0  , the equations of motion are similar to those of the static relativistic magnetohydrodynamics. This allows us to estimate the total energy stored in the magnetic loops by applying the virial theorem. This energy is comparable to that of the giant flares observed in magnetars.     

The peculiar taphonomy of the streamlined late Campanian ammonite Metaplacenticeras subtilistriatum from northern Hokkaido, Japan

The peculiar taphonomy of the late Campanian ammonite Metaplacenticeras subtilistriatum is reconstructed on the basis of stratigraphic occurrence within the Hakobuchi Formation of northern Hokkaido (Japan), as well as of host rock and patterns of fragmentation. The species' taphonomy is closely linked to its streamlined, oxyconic shell with flat flanks and a smoothly tapered venter. Such shells were accumulated, together with numerous pebbles, by bottom currents (>0.25–0.5 m/s), in such a way that ventral portions of some shells fractured by collision with pebbles. Small holes and depressions in the external shell surface, presumably formed during compaction after final burial, are restricted to phragmocones. On this evidence, it is suggested that this species was nektobenthic, lived in a shallow environment (shoreface–inner shelf) where its streamlined shell allowed it to align with prevailing currents, similar to a wind vane.     

Dissolution Kinetics of Calcite in 0.1 M NaCl Solution at Room Temperature: An Atomic Force Microscopic (AFM) Study

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to study the rates of migration of the (10¯1 4) plane of a single-crystal of calcite dissolving in 0.1 M NaCl aqueous solutions at room temperature. The solution pH and P_{CO 2} controlled in the ranges 4.4 < pH < 12.2 and 0 < P_{CO 2} < 10^-3.5 atm (ambient), respectively. Measured step velocities were compared with the mineral dissolution rates determined from the calcium fluxes. The step velocity is defined as the average of the velocities of the obtuse and acute steps. Rates of step motion increased gradually from 1.4(±0.2) at pH 5.3 to 2.4(±0.3) nm s^-1 at pH 8.2, whereas the rates inverted and decreased to the minimum value of 0.69(±0.18) nm s^-1 at pH 10.8. For pH > 10.8, only the velocity of the obtuse steps increased as pH increased, whereas that of acute steps gradually decreased.The dissolution rate of the mineral can be calculated from the measured step velocities and average slope, which is proportional to the concentration of exposed monomolecular steps on the surface. The average slope of the dissolving mineral, measured at pH 5.6 and 9.7, was 0.026 (±0.015). Using this slope, we calculate bulk dissolution rates for 5.3 < pH < 12.2 of 4.9(±3.0) × 10^-11 to 1.8(±1.0) × 10^-10 mol cm^-2 s^-1. The obtained dissolution rate can be expressed by the following empirical equation:R_dss = 10^{-4.66(±0.13)}[H⁺] + 10^{-3.87(±0.06)}[HCO₃ ^-] + 10^{-7.99(plusmn; 0.08)}[OH^-]We propose that calcite dissolution in these solutions is controlled by elementary reactions that are similar to those that control the dissolution of other amphoteric solids, such as oxides. The mechanisms include the proton-enhanced hydration and detachment of calcium-carbonate ion pairs. The detachments are enhanced by the presence of adsorbed nucleophiles, such as hydroxyl and bicarbonate ions, and by protons adsorbed to key oxygens. A molecular model is proposed that illustrates these processes.     

Paleoseismic study of the Kamishiro Fault on the northern segment of the Itoigawa–Shizuoka Tectonic Line,Japan

The M_w 6.2 (Mj 6.8) Nagano (Japan) earthquake of 22 November 2014 produced a 9.3-km long surface rupture zone with a thrust-dominated displacement of up to 1.5 m, which duplicated the pre-existing Kamishiro Fault along the Itoigawa–Shizuoka Tectonic Line (ISTL), the plate-boundary between the Eurasian and North American plates, northern Nagano Prefecture, central Japan. To characterize the activity of the seismogenic fault zone, we conducted a paleoseismic study of the Kamishiro Fault. Field investigations and trench excavations revealed that seven morphogenic paleohistorical earthquakes (E2–E8) prior to the 2014 M_w 6.2 Nagano earthquake (E1) have occurred on the Kamishiro Fault during the last ca. 6000 years. Three of these events (E2–E4) are well constrained and correspond to historical earthquakes occurring in the last ca. 1200 years. This suggests an average recurrence interval of ca. 300–400 years on the seismogenic fault of the 2014 Kamishiro earthquake in the past 1200 years. The most recent event prior to the 2014 earthquakes (E1) is E2 and the penultimate and antepenultimate faulting events are E3 and E4, respectively. The penultimate faulting event (E3) occurred during the period of AD 1800–1400 and is associated with the 1791 M_w 6.8 earthquake. The antepenultimate faulting event (E4) is inferred to have occurred during the period of ca. AD 1000–700, likely corresponding to the AD 841 M_w 6.5 earthquake. The oldest faulting event (E8) in the study area is thought to have occurred during the period of ca. 5600–6000 years. The throw rate during the early Holocene is estimated to be 1.2–3.3 mm/a (average, 2.2 mm/a) with an average amount of characteristic offset of 0.7–1.1 m produced by individual event. When compared with active intraplate faults on Honshu Island, Japan, these slip rates and recurrence interval estimated for morphogenic earthquakes on the Kamishiro Fault along the ISTL appear high and short, respectively. This indicates that present activity on this fault is closely related to seismic faulting along the plate boundary between the Eurasian and North American plates.     

Temporal stress variations along a seismogenic megasplay fault in the subduction zone: An example from the Nobeoka Thrust,southwestern Japan

The Nobeoka Thrust, an ancient megasplay fault in the Shimanto Belt, southwestern Japan, contains fault rocks from the seismogenic zone, providing an accessible analog of active megasplay faults in deep subduction settings. In this study, the paleostress along the Nobeoka Thrust was analyzed using multiple inversion techniques, including k‐means clustering of fault datasets acquired from drillcores that intersected the thrust. The six resultant stress orientation clusters can be divided into two general groups: stress solutions with north–south‐trending σ₁ axes, and those with east–west‐trending σ₁ axes. These groups are characterized by the temporal changes for the orientations of the σ₁ and σ₃ principal stress axes that involve alternation between horizontal and vertical. The findings are probably due to a change in stress state before and after earthquakes that occurred on the fault; similar changes have been observed in active tectonic settings, such as the 2011 Tohoku‐Oki earthquake (Japan).     

MHD simulations of jets from accretion disks

We present the MHD simulation including accretion flows in disks, acceleration of outflows from disks, and collimation of the outflows self-consistently. Although it was considered that this kind of simulations only shows the transient phenomena of jets, we found that the outflow and accretion flow reached a quasi-steady state by performing a long-term calculation in a large calculation region. Though the final stage is not exactly the steady state, the acceleration and collimation mechanisms of the outflow were the same as those of the steady theory. The scale of the calculation is approaching to the scale that was observed by the VLBI technique, which provides the current highest resolution for YSO jets.