Noble gas isotopic composition of deep underground water in Osaka plain, central Japan: Evidence for mantle He and model for new volcanism

Abstract Elemental and isotopic compositions of noble gases extracted from the bore hole water in Osaka plain, central Japan were examined. The water samples were collected from four shallow bore holes (180-450 m) and seven deep bore holes (600-1370 m) which have been used for an urban resort hot spring zone. The water temperatures of the deep bore holes were 22-50°C and that of the shallow bore holes, 13-23°C. The elemental abundance patterns show the progressive enrichment of the heavier noble gases compared with the atmospheric noble gas composition except for He, which is heavily enriched in deep bore hole water samples. ³He/⁴He ratios from the bore holes reaching the Ryoke granitic basement were higher than the atmospheric value (1.4 × 10⁻⁶), indicating a release of mantle He through the basement. The highest value of 8.2 × 10⁻⁶ is in the range of arc volcanism. On the other hand, the bore holes in sedimentary rocks overlying the basement release He enriched in radiogenic ⁴He, resulted in a low ³He/⁴He ratio of 0.5 × 10⁻⁶. ⁴He/²⁰Ne and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁶Ar ratios indicate that the air contamination is generally larger in shallow bore holes than in deep ones from each site. The helium enriched in mantle He is compatible with the previous work which suggested up-rising magma in 'Kinki Spot', the area of Osaka and western Wakayama, in spite of no volcanic activity in the area. A model to explain an initiation of magma generation beneath this area is presented.     

Locally-induced nonlinear modes and multiple equilibria in planetary fluids

It is demonstrated that nonlinear Rossby modes, such as modons and IG eddies, can be excited in planetary fluids by a sufficiently strong forcing of potential vorticity. When a weak forcing is balanced with a weak dissipation, two (linear and nonlinear) equilibrium states can be produced, depending on the initial condition. When the fluid is inviscid, a sufficiently strong steady forcing may generate a sequence of propagating nonlinear eddies. A weak forcing, by contrast, only generates linear Rossby waves. The criterion which divides the high amplitude nonlinear state and the low amplitude linear state may be interpreted in terms of a ratio of a time necessary to force the eddy to a time for a fluid particle to circulate about the nonlinear eddy once.     

On nonlinear planetary waves: A class of solutions missed by the traditional quasi-geostrophic approximation

Weakly nonlinear quasi-geostrophic planetary waves on a beta-plane and topographic waves over a linearly inclined bottom are examined by use of shallow water equations for a small beta parameter. Long solitary wave solutions missed by the use of the traditional quasi-geostrophic approximation are found in a channel ocean with neither a sheared current nor a curved (non-linearly inclined) bottom topography. The solutions are missed in the traditional approach because the irrotational motion associated with the geostrophic divergence is neglected by the quasi-geostrophic approximation. Another example which calls attention to the limitation of the traditional quasi-geostrophic approximation is the nonlinear evolution of divergent planetary eddies whose scale is much larger than the Rossby's radius of deformation. Some aspects of a new evolution equation are briefly discussed.     

Temporal variations in the abundance and sinking flux of diatoms under fast ice in summer near Syowa Station, East Antarctica

To investigate the fate of ice algae released from sea ice, we investigated the abundance, species composition, and sinking flux of diatoms in the water column under fast ice near Syowa Station, Antarctica during the summer of 2005/2006. The diatom assemblage in the water column consisted of chain-forming planktonic species, in contrast to the under-ice assemblage dominated by pennate species reported from this site in the past; this dissimilarity suggests the presence of an unconsolidated platelet ice layer under the congelation ice, within which planktonic species can bloom. Among the dominant diatoms, Porosira pseudodenticulata and Pseudo-nitzschia cf. turgiduloides were dominant in the water column, and their water column stocks were higher than their mass sedimentation. These species apparently maintain their populations in the surface layer, as their production remains in the water column. In contrast, Fragilariopsis kerguelensis and Thalassiosira australis were scarce in the water column but rich in the flux, indicating active sinking and export of their production to the benthic ecosystem. This distinction in buoyancy control and sinking characteristics of the dominant diatoms on release from the fast ice influences the diatom species composition and carbon flow under the ice.     

The Hashima,Japan H4 chondrite: A newly reported meteorite

Abstract We report a new chondrite that fell in Hashima City in central Japan sometime during the period 1868–1912. The chondrite weighs 1110.64 g and exhibits distinct chondritic structure. Chondrules occupy 24 vol% of the stone and consist of olivine (average Fa_17,8), low-Ca pyroxene (average Fs_15,8 Wo_0.9), devitrified glass and lesser amounts of oligoclase (ca. Ab₈₀Or₄), kamacite, taenite, troilite and chromian spinel. Matrix occupying 76 vol% of the stone consists of olivine, low-Ca pyroxene, kamacite, taenite, troilite, cryptocrystalline minerals and lesser amounts of chromian spinel and chlorapatite. Matrix minerals have the same compositions as those in chondrules. Mineral chemistry, bulk chemistry and magnetic properties indicate that Hashima is an H-group chondrite. Well-defined chondrules, scarcely recrystallized oligoclase and relatively small variations of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene compositions indicate that Hashima is of petrologic type 4.     

Natural groundwater of a gas field utilizable for a bioremediation of trichloroethylene-contamination

Groundwater from a shallow aquifer in Mobara, a city in a natural gas field in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, was found to contain a significant amount of dissolved methane (<3.1 mM) along with nitrate, phosphate and methane-oxidizing bacteria (methanotrophs, <9.9×10⁶ MPN ml^–1) which can degrade trichloroethylene (TCE). This water exhibited high methanotroph growth activity and rapid degradation of TCE. This water was introduced into a TCE-contaminated aquifer. The concentration of TCE at the monitoring well 2 m down-gradient of the injection pit decreased from 128 g L^–1 before the injection to less than the lower detection limit of 12.5 g L^–1 after the injection, while it decreased only slightly (to 86 g L^–1) when control water was injected. These results demonstrate the feasibility of utilizing a natural groundwater resource containing methane and methanotrophs without any additives for bioremediation of a TCE-contaminated site.     

Weakening of the solar extreme-ultraviolet line emission by lyman continuum absorption as derived from line ratios

The intensity ratios of Niii, Oiii, Oiv, and Ov lines observed by the HCO experiment on Skylab are compared with the results of recent multilevel calculations. It is found that solar transition-region spectra require Lyman continuum absorption. The equivalent optical thickness of the absorbers causing the weakening is found to be 1.6–1.7 for a quiet area, 1.4–1.9 for a coronal hole, and 2.4–2.5 for active regions. These values are consistent with previous estimates from different methods.     

Quartz fabrics in an epithermal ore vein

Quartz fabrics have been studied in an epithermal type of gold-silver quartz vein. Several different patterns of fabric diagram are discriminated, each of which corresponds to a phase in the stepwise development of the mineralization of the ore deposit.As to the spatial arrangement of every quartz grain, the detailed measurements reveal that the lineage axes of adjacent three quartz grains are invariably parallel.The tectonic effects have enforced such coordinated aggregate to yield for proper direction. As a result, the characteristic patterns of the fabric diagram were here established.     

Observations of an intrusion of a warmer and less saline water mass into a bay

Detailed hydrographic observations were made in Wakasa Bay, Japan, in August 1979 as the first of a series on the topic of bay intrusions. An anomalous water tongue, evident at a depth of 50 m, was observed to move eastward into the bay at a speed of about 10 km day⁻¹. The width of the tongue was about 20 to 30 km in agreement with the Rossby internal radius of deformation. The results of current meter measurements and the observed temporal and spatial evolution of the temperature field near the front of the anomalous water tongue have suggested that ageostrophic cross-frontal motion, in balance with the along-front acceleration, may be important in our understanding of intrusion processes.     

Influence of Indian Ocean Dipole and Pacific recharge on following year’s El Niño: interdecadal robustness

The Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) can affect the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) state of the following year, in addition to the well-known preconditioning by equatorial Pacific Warm Water Volume (WWV), as suggested by a study based on observations over the recent satellite era (1981–2009). The present paper explores the interdecadal robustness of this result over the 1872–2008 period. To this end, we develop a robust IOD index, which well exploits sparse historical observations in the tropical Indian Ocean, and an efficient proxy of WWV interannual variations based on the temporal integral of Pacific zonal wind stress (of a historical atmospheric reanalysis). A linear regression hindcast model based on these two indices in boreal fall explains 50 % of ENSO peak variance 14 months later, with significant contributions from both the IOD and WWV over most of the historical period and a similar skill for El Niño and La Niña events. Our results further reveal that, when combined with WWV, the IOD index provides a larger ENSO hindcast skill improvement than the Indian Ocean basin-wide mode, the Indian Monsoon or ENSO itself. Based on these results, we propose a revised scheme of Indo-Pacific interactions. In this scheme, the IOD–ENSO interactions favour a biennial timescale and interact with the slower recharge-discharge cycle intrinsic to the Pacific Ocean.