Life habit of vesicomyid clam,Calyptogena soyoae,and hydrogen sulfide concentration in interstitial waters in Sagami Bay,Japan

In and around the beds of vesicomyid clam (Calytogena soyoae) located off Hatsushima Island in Sagami Bay, central Japan, hydrogen sulfide concentration in bottom water and interstitial water was measured every 10 cm from just above seafloor to 40 cm deep usingin situ separative dialysis bags. While hydrogen sulfide over 0.01 mmol/kg was not measured from the seawater just above the dense clam beds, the concentration of hydrogen sulfide increased rapidly below 10 cm deep. The results indicate that the habit of the clam is correlated with high concentration of hydrogen sulfide contained in pore waters of sediments between depths of 10 and 20 cm from the bottom surface. Concentrations of hydrogen sulfide ranging from approximately 0.05 mmol/kg to 0.6 mmol/kg might be suitable requirement for the habitat ofC. soyoae.     

Active spreading and hydrothermalism in North Fiji Basin (SW Pacific). Results of Japanese French Cruise Kaiyo 87

The aim of the Japanese-French Kaiyo 87 cruise was the study of the spreading axis in the North Fiji Basin (SW Pacific). A Seabeam and geophysical survey allowed us to define the detailed structure of the active NS spreading axis between 16° and 22° S and its relationships with the left lateral motion of the North Fiji Fracture Zone. Between 21° S and 18°10′ S, the spreading axis trends NS. From 18°10 S to 16°40 S the orientation of the spreading axis changes from NS to 015°. North of 16°40′ S the spreading axis trends 160°. These two 015° and 160° branches converge with the left lateral North Fiji fracture zone around 16°40′ S to define an RRFZ triple junction. Water sampling, dredging and photo TV deep towing give new information concerning the hydrothermal activity along the spreading axis. The discovery of hydrothermal deposits associated with living communities confirms this activity.     

Determination of the lithium and rubidium in sea water by double channel flame emission spectrophotometry

A precise and accurate technique for the determination of Li and Rb in sea water has been developed by using a double channel flame emission spectrophotometer. The advantage of this technique is that it is possible to correct the background emission by making use of the double channel system of the apparatus and to obtain constant intensity of emission even if there are large scale changes in the salinity of the sample. Sea water samples collected in the open sea and coastal areas of Japan were analyzed by this method. In one of the coastal areas, an extraordinarily high concentration of Li was found.     

Stratigraphy and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of a Quaternary sequence along the Dong Nai River, southern Vietnam

The pre-Holocene Cenozoic sequence outcrops in the terrestrial part of the eastern margin of the Mekong Basin. However, the stratigraphy of the sequence is still unclear. Its detailed stratigraphy and chronology were therefore studied along the Dong Nai River, southern Vietnam, and the lithofacies and the relations among the formations were investigated from the outcrops. The ages of the deposits were determined by using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating.The Ba Mieu Formation was deposited about 176±52 ka during marine isotope stage (MIS) 7–6. The Thu Duc Formation was deposited about 97±27 ka during MIS 5. Both the Ba Mieu and Thu Duc formations are composed of fluvial and tidally influenced coastal deposits. The newly proposed Nhon Trach Formation was originally an eolian (blanket) deposit, but it has been partly reworked by fluvial processes. The Nhon Trach Formation was deposited about 10.9±4.7 ka, in the last part of the Pleistocene to the beginning of the Holocene. The OSL ages for the Ba Mieu, Thu Duc, and Nhon Trach formations are younger than the ages previously assigned to these formations.     

Elemental and isotopic fractionation of Type B calcium-, aluminum-rich inclusions: experiments, theoretical considerations, and constraints on their thermal evolution

Experiments exposing Type B calcium-, aluminum-rich inclusion (CAI)-like melts at high temperatures to high vacuum or reducing hydrogen-rich gas mixtures were used to determine the rates and consequences of elemental and isotopic fractionation by evaporation. Silicon and magnesium were found to evaporate much faster than calcium and aluminum, and the resulting residual liquid trajectories in composition space are reproduced via a thermodynamic model for the saturation vapor pressure of the evaporating species. Isotopic fractionations associated with evaporation were measured for magnesium. The resulting relationship between fraction of magnesium lost and enrichment of the residue in the heavy isotopes of magnesium follows a Rayleigh fractionation curve with a fractionation factor that is close to, but not exactly, the theoretically expected value. The rate of evaporation is found to be a strong function of temperature, oxygen fugacity, and melt composition, which can be understood and modeled in terms of the dependence of the saturation vapor pressures on these variables. The relationship between evaporation rate, which we measure, and calculated saturation vapor involves empirical evaporation coefficients that we find to be significantly less than one (∼0.1). Analytical and numerical models are used to characterize how diffusion in both the melt and in the surrounding gas affects evaporation rates and the degree of chemical and isotopic fractionation. The experimental data and theoretical considerations are combined to give a parameterization of the rates and consequences of evaporation of Type B CAI-like liquids, which is then used to translate the measured isotopic fractionation of Type B CAIs into constraints on their thermal history. Cooling rates of the order of 10°C per hour are indicated.     

Candidate precursors: pulse-like geoelectric signals possibly related to recent seismic activity in Japan

Telemetric network observations of pulse-like geoelectric charge signals using a vertical dipole buried under the ground were undertaken at various observation sites over a wide area in Japan from April 1996. From continuous records of the signals during the six months following that, we attempted to select anomalous signals, possibly related to seismic electric activity. Special attention was paid to the elimination of noise resulting from industrial and meteorological electric activity, comparison with other electromagnetic signals in the VLF band and the relation between the precursor period and the distance from the eventual main shock that occurred in Japan. Four candidate precursor electric signals, which were not contaminated by industrial and meteorological electric activity, were then selected, of which the second appeared before the Akita-ken Nairiku-nanbu earthquake swarm, for which the maximum M = 5.9 occurred on 1996 August 11, and the third and fourth before the Chiba-ken Toho-oki earthquake, M = 6.6, on 1996 September 11. A tentative qualitative model explaining why the candidate precursory signal is related to stress building up before an earthquake is presented in terms of the electrification of gases released from fracturing rocks immediately prior to the main shock.     

Construction and Visualization of a Three Dimensional Geologic Model Using GRASS GIS

The present work aims at introducing a basic theory, implementing methodology and algorithms for 3‐D modeling, and visualizing a geologic model using the Open Source Free GIS GRASS environment. A 3‐D geologic model is constructed from the boundary surfaces of geologic units and the logical model of geologic structure. The algorithms for construction and visualization of the proposed model are based on the geologic function g . The geologic function g assigns a unique geologic unit to every point in the objective 3‐D space. The boundary surface that divides the objective space into two subspaces is estimated using data from field survey. The logical model showing the hierarchical relationship between these boundary surfaces and geologic units can be automatically generated based on the stratigraphic sequence and knowledge of geologic structures. Based on these algorithms, a 3‐D geologic model can be constructed virtually in the GRASS GIS. Applying this model, various geologic surfaces and section models can be visualized in the GRASS GIS environment. “Nviz” was used for dynamic visualization of geologic cross‐sections and generation of animated image sequences. Further, the described algorithms and methods are applied and an online 3‐D geologic modeling system is developed.     

Formation and shortening deformation of a back-arc rift basin revealed by deep seismic profiling, central Japan

The northern Fossa Magna (NFM) basin is a Miocene rift system produced in the final stages of the opening of the Sea of Japan. It divides the major structure of Japan into two regions, with north-trending geological structures to the NE of the basin and EW trending structures to the west of the basin. The Itoigawa-Shizuoka Tectonic Line (ISTL) bounds the western part of the northern Fossa Magna and forms an active fault system that displays one of the largest slip rates (4–9 mm/year) in the Japanese islands. Deep seismic reflection and refraction/wide-angle reflection profiling were undertaken in 2002 across the northern part of ISTL in order to delineate structures in the crust, and the deep geometry of the active fault systems. The seismic images are interpreted based on the pattern of reflectors, the surface geology and velocities derived from refraction analysis. The 68-km-long seismic section suggests that the Miocene NFM basin was formed by an east dipping normal fault with a shallow flat segment to 6 km depth and a deeper ramp penetrating to 15 km depth. This low-angle normal fault originated as a comparatively shallow brittle/ductile detachment in a high thermal regime present in the Miocene. The NFM basin was filled by a thick (>6 km) accumulation of sediments. Shortening since the late Neogene is accommodated along NS to NE–SE trending thrust faults that previously accommodated extension and produce fault-related folds on their hanging wall. Based on our balanced geologic cross-section, the total amount of Miocene extension is ca. 42 km and the total amount of late Neogene to Quaternary shortening is ca. 23 km.     

High-reliability zircon separation for hunting the oldest material on Earth: An automatic zircon separator with image-processing/microtweezers-manipulating system and double-step dating

Despite the recent development in radiometric dating of numerous zircons by LA-ICPMS, mineral separation still remains a major obstacle, particularly in the search for the oldest material on Earth. To improve the efficiency in zircon separation by an order of magnitude, we have designed/developed a new machine-an automatic zircon separator(AZS). This is designed particularly for automatic pick-up of100 μm-sized zircon grains out of a heavy mineral fraction after conventional separation procedures. The AZS operates in three modes:(1) image processing to choose targeted individual zircon grains out of all heavy minerals spread on a tray,(2) automatic capturing of the individual zircon grains with microtweezers, and(3) placing them one-by-one in a coordinated alignment on a receiving tray. The automatic capturing was designed/created for continuous mineral selecting without human presence for many hours. This software also enables the registration of each separated zircon grain for dating, by recording digital photo-image, optical(color) indices, and coordinates on a receiving tray. We developed two new approaches for the dating; i.e.(1) direct dating of zircons selected by LA-ICPMS without conventional resin-mounting/polishing,(2) high speed U-Pb dating, combined with conventional sample preparation procedures using the new equipment with multiple-ion counting detectors(LA-MIC-ICPMS).With the first approach, Pb-Pb ages obtained from the surface of a mineral were crosschecked with the interior of the same grain after resin-mounting/polishing. With the second approach, the amount of time required for dating one zircon grain is ca. 20 s, and a sample throughput of 150 grains per hour can be achieved with sufficient precision(ca. 0.5%).We tested the practical efficiency of the AZS, by analyzing an Archean Jack Hills conglomerate in Western Australia with the known oldest(4.3 Ga) zircon on Earth. Preliminary results are positive; we were able to obtain more than 194 zircons that are over 4.0 Ga out of ca. 3800 checked grains, and 9 grains were over 4300 Ma with the oldest at 4371 ± 7 Ma. This separation system by AZS, combined with the new approaches, guarantees much higher yield in the hunt for old zircons.     

Landslides triggered by the 2016 Mj 7.3 Kumamoto,Japan, earthquake

The aim of this study is to establish a detailed and complete inventory of the landslides triggered by the Mj 7.3 (Mw 7.0) Kumamoto, Japan, earthquake sequence of 15 April 2016 (16 April in JST). Based on high-resolution (0.5–2 m) optical satellite images, we delineated 3,467 individual landslides triggered by the earthquake, occupying an area of about 6.9 km². Then they were validated by aerial photographs with very high-resolution (better than 0.5 m) and oblique field photos. Of them, 3,460 landslides are distributed in an elliptical area about 6000 km², with a NE-SW directed 120-km-long long axis and a 60-km-long NW-SE trending short axis. Most of the landslides are shallow, disrupted falls and slides, with a few flow-type slides and rock and soil avalanches. The analysis of correlation between the landslides and several control factors shows the areas of elevation 1000–1200 m, stratum of Q₃-Hvf, seismic intensity VIII and VIII+, and peak ground acceleration (PGA) 0.4–0.6 g register the highest landslide abundance. This study also discussed the relationship between the spatial pattern of the landslides and the seismotectonic structure featured by a strike-slip fault with a normal component and the volcanism in the study area.