Isotope Compositions of Submarine Hana Ridge Lavas, Haleakala Volcano, Hawaii: Implications for Source Compositions, Melting Process and the Structure of the Hawaiian Plume

We report Sr, Nd, and Pb isotope compositions for 17 bulk-rocksamples from the submarine Hana Ridge, Haleakala volcano, Hawaii,collected by three dives by ROV Kaiko during a joint Japan–USHawaiian cruise in 2001. The Sr, Nd, and Pb isotope ratios forthe submarine Hana Ridge lavas are similar to those of Kilauealavas. This contrasts with the isotope ratios from the subaerialHonomanu lavas of the Haleakala shield, which are similar toMauna Loa lavas or intermediate between the Kilauea and MaunaLoa fields. The observation that both the Kea and Loa componentscoexist in individual shields is inconsistent with the interpretationthat the location of volcanoes within the Hawaiian chain controlsthe geographical distribution of the Loa and Kea trend geochemicalcharacteristics. Isotopic and trace element ratios in Haleakalashield lavas suggest that a recycled oceanic crustal gabbroiccomponent is present in the mantle source. The geochemical characteristicsof the lavas combined with petrological modeling calculationsusing trace element inversion and pMELTS suggest that the meltingdepth progressively decreases in the mantle source during shieldgrowth, and that the proportion of the recycled oceanic gabbroiccomponent sampled by the melt is higher in the later stagesof Hawaiian shields as the volcanoes migrate away from the centralaxis of the plume. KEY WORDS: submarine Hana Ridge; isotope composition; melting depth; Hawaiian mantle plume     

Aircraft observation of carbon dioxide at 8–13 km altitude over the western Pacific from 1993 to 1999

Abstract The spatial and temporal variations of atmospheric CO₂ at 8–13 km from April 1993 to April 1999 were observed by measuring CO₂ mixing ratios in samples collected biweekly from a commercial airliner between Australia and Japan. The CO₂ growth rate showed a considerable interannual variation, with a maximum of about 3 ppm yr⁻¹ during late 1997. This variation is related to the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events. A year-to-year change related to the ENSO events was also found in the latitudinal distribution pattern of the CO₂ annual mean between 30°N and 30°S. The averaged CO₂ seasonal cycle in the Northern Hemisphere gradually decayed toward the equator, and a relatively complicated variation with a double seasonal maximum appeared in the Southern Hemisphere. A significant yearly change of the seasonal cycle pattern was observed in the Southern Hemisphere. The impact of a tropical biomass-burning injection on the upper tropospheric CO₂ was estimated on the basis of the CO data from the same airliner observation.     

Hayabusa‐returned sample curation in the Planetary Material Sample Curation Facility of JAXA

Abstract– The Planetary Material Sample Curation Facility of JAXA (PMSCF/JAXA) was established in Sagamihara, Kanagawa, Japan, to curate planetary material samples returned from space in conditions of minimum terrestrial contaminants. The performances for the curation of Hayabusa‐returned samples had been checked with a series of comprehensive tests and rehearsals. After the Hayabusa spacecraft had accomplished a round‐trip flight to asteroid 25143 Itokawa and returned its reentry capsule to the Earth in June 2010, the reentry capsule was brought back to the PMSCF/JAXA and was put to a series of processes to extract recovered samples from Itokawa. The particles recovered from the sample catcher were analyzed by electron microscope, given their ID, grouped into four categories, and preserved in dimples on quartz slide glasses. Some fraction of them has been distributed for initial analyses at NASA, and will be distributed for international announcement of opportunity (AO), but a certain fraction of them will be preserved in vacuum for future analyses.     

Precipitation history of the Lake Biwa area in central Japan over the last 145 ka

The fluvial quartz flux (FQF, g cm ^-2  ka ^-1 ) to Lake Biwa of central Japan is developed as a proxy of variations in palaeoprecipitation over the lake catchment. Lake Biwa sediments spanning the last c. 145 ka are characterized by 4 main intervals when the FQF values were significantly greater than 2 g cm ^-2  ka ^-1 , and 5 main periods during which FQF values were lower. Three of the intervals with high FQF values occur from c. 128 to 78 ka BP, with peak values at c. 122, 101 and 82 ka BP; the fourth of two narrow peaks exists between c. 48 and 35 ka BP. Three main periods with lower FQF values intervene between intervals of high FQF values, and two others lie before c. 128 ka BP and after c. 35 ka BP. The data imply that palaeoprecipitation over the lake catchment increased during the intervals of high FQF values, and decreased during the periods of lower FQF values. High FQF values between c. 48 and 35 ka BP are interpreted to reflect an effective runoff of meltwater from the surrounding mountains during the interstade of the last glaciation. Relatively low FQF values during the early Holocene are interpreted to reveal a sluggish northward retreat of the polar front in the North Pacific Ocean that suppressed the northward advance of the summer monsoonal front and regional precipitation. During the last interglaciation, the increasing trend of FQF values is interpreted to indicate a progressive expansion of the Sea of Japan related to the rise in global sea level, which increased moisture advection to, and precipitation within, the Lake Biwa region.     

The Petrology and Geochemistry of Oto-Zan Composite Lava Flow on Shodo-Shima Island, SW Japan: Remelting of a Solidified High-Mg Andesite Magma

The Oto-Zan lava in the Setouchi volcanic belt is composed ofphenocryst-poor, sparsely plagioclase-phyric andesites (sanukitoids)and forms a composite lava flow. The phenocryst assemblagesand element abundances change but Sr–Nd–Pb isotopiccompositions are constant throughout the lava flow. The sanukitoidat the base is a high-Mg andesite (HMA) and contains Mg- andNi-rich olivine and Cr-rich chromite, suggesting the emplacementof a mantle-derived hydrous (7 wt % H₂O) HMA magma. However,Oto-Zan sanukitoids contain little H₂O and are phenocryst-poor.The liquid lines of descent obtained for an Oto-Zan HMA at 0·3GPa in the presence of 0·7–2·1 wt % H₂Osuggest that mixing of an HMA magma with a differentiated felsicmelt can reasonably explain the petrographical and chemicalcharacteristics of Oto-Zan sanukitoids. We propose a model wherebya hydrous HMA magma crystallizes extensively within the crust,resulting in the formation of an HMA pluton and causing liberationof H₂O from the magma system. The HMA pluton, in which interstitialrhyolitic melts still remain, is then heated from the base byintrusion of a high-T basalt magma, forming an H₂O-deficientHMA magma at the base of the pluton. During ascent, this secondaryHMA magma entrains the overlying interstitial rhyolitic melt,resulting in variable self-mixing and formation of a zoned magmareservoir, comprising more felsic magmas upwards. More effectiveupwelling of more mafic, and hence less viscous, magmas througha propagated vent finally results in the emplacement of thecomposite lava flow. KEY WORDS: high-Mg andesite; sanukitoid; composite lava; solidification; remelting     

The Petrology and Geochemistry of High-Magnesium Andesites at the Western Tip of the Setouchi Volcanic Belt, SW Japan

K–Ar ages, and petrographical and geochemical characteristicsof high-magnesium andesites and plagioclase-phyric andesitesfrom the NE Kyushu region, Japan, are presented. K–Arages range from 10·7 ± 0·3 to 14·4± 0·4 Ma, overlapping those reported for lavasof the Setouchi Volcanic Belt in other regions (11–16Ma). This, together with major and incompatible trace element,and Sr–Nd–Pb isotopic characteristics, confirmsthat the Setouchi Volcanic Belt, which is characterized by theoccurrence of high-magnesium andesites, extends for