Grain-Size Distribution of Detrital Sediment in the Amami Sankaku Basin Since Late Pleistocene and Its Provenance and Palaeoclimate Implications

The grain size composition of detrital sediments in Hole U1438A from the Amami Sankaku Basin(ASB) in the northwest of the Philippine Sea since the last 350 ka was analyzed. The result shows that the mean grain size of the detrital sediment is about 13.1 μm, ranging from 0.04 to 160 μm. The grain size distribution displays a four-peak pattern and positive skewness. Four independent grain size components were separated by using Weibull distribution function. The ultra-fine component varies from 0.04 to 0.9 μm, with a size mode at about 0.3 μm, which may be genetically related to marine authigenetic clay. The fine-grained fraction ranges from 0.2 to 32 μm, with a size mode at about 3.5 μm, and slightly coarser than the eolian dust of the North Pacific. We argued that this fraction was mainly derived from Asian dust. The coarse-grained and ultra-coarse-grained fractions show distinct size mode at about 10 μm and 40 μm, and range from 0.3 to 90 μm, and from 3 to 160 μm respectively. Both the coarse and ultra-coarse components represent volcanic materials which were mainly derived from the ridges and islands around ASB. The variation of the ratio of environmentally sensitive size population 1.3~2.2 μm/28~40 μm was similar with the ratio of fine-sized component (Asian dust) and coarse-sized component (volcanic material) (0.9~3 μm/>10 μm), showing higher value during glacial period than that during interglacial, which is also identical with the variation of the mass accumulation of eolian dust in the North Pacific and Chinese Loess Plateau, and grain size in Chinese Loess Plateau. The increased ratio responded to the enhanced aridity of Asian continent and strengthened East Asia Winter Monsoon (EAWM)/westerly during glacial period. We argued that the increase of eolian fraction was driven by the enhanced aridity of Asian continent and strengthened East Asia Winter Monsoon (EAWM)/westerly during glacial period. Therefore, the ratio of 0.9~3 μm/>10 μm can be used as a proxy of the increased aridity and enhanced atmospheric circulation of Asian continent. These results suggest that the grain size composition of the detrial sediment in the ASB can be used to reconstruct the history of Asian aridity and atmospheric circulation.