Chung-Ho Wang

Influence of the Yangtze River and grain size on the spatial variations of heavy metals and organic carbon in the East China Sea continental shelf sediments

Abstract Bulk heavy metal (Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd), Al, organic carbon and carbonate concentrations, grain sizes, and δC13 of the organic carbon distributions were studied in sediments collected throughout the East China Sea continental shelf and the Yangtze River Delta. The results demonstrated that terrigenous sediments from the Yangtze River is a dominating factor controlling the spatial variations of heavy metals and organic carbon concentrations on the East China Sea continental shelf. In addition, grain size and recent anthropogenic influences are also major factors modifying the spatial and vertical variations of heavy metals. Large spatial variations with a band type distribution of heavy metals, grain size, organic carbon and carbonate were observed. Higher concentrations of heavy metal and light δC13 of the organic carbon were found primarily in the Deltaic and inner shelf sediments. The band type distribution generally followed the coastline with little variations in the north–south direction. Away from the Delta and inner shelf (west–east direction), most heavy metal concentrations decreased rapidly with the exception of Cd where high concentrations of Cd were also found in the carbonate-rich shelf break sediments. Coarse-grained relict sediments and biogenic carbonate are two primary diluting agents for the fine-grained aluminosilicate sediments from the Yangtze River with high concentrations of heavy metals. Unusually high concentrations of Cu, Pb, and Cd showed both spatially and vertically that more pollution prevention measures are needed in the Yangtze River drainage basin in order to prevent further heavy metal pollution of the East China Sea inner continental shelf.

DEEP SEA AND LAKE RECORDS OF THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN PALEOMONSOONS FOR THE LAST 25 THOUSAND YEARS

Abstract High resolution paleoceanographic proxy records from a deep-sea core in the northern South China Sea (SCS) and palynological records from a lake core in central Taiwan have been measured for the last 25 kyr. The variations in these proxy records are interpreted in terms of the past variation in the Asian monsoons. The two consistent and complementary records suggest that the East Asian monsoon system has fluctuated significantly from a strengthened winter monsoon during the last glaciation (25,000-12,000 yr BP) through a moderate to weak winter and summer monsoons during the deglaciation (12,000-10,000 yr BP) to an enhanced summer monsoon in the Holocene. Strengthening of the winter monsoon during the glacial is deduced from decreases in winter SST and increases in productivity indicators, such the abundances of alkenones and total organic carbon in the SCS. A stronger summer monsoon during the Holocene is inferred from the increases in floral productivity, the sedimentation rate of peat, the deposition of storm-related clay layers in the lake sediment, and the higher abundance of thermophyte Castanopsis. The 25 kyr paleomonsoon history registered in the SCS core and the Taiwan lake sediments is in agreement with the climatic records of the Chinese Loess plateau.

Dust: a diagnostic of the hydrologic cycle during the last glacial maximum

Dust concentrations in ice of the last glacial maximum (LGM) are high in ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica. The magnitude of the enhancements can be explained if the strength of the hydrologic cycle during the LGM was about half of that at present. This notion is consistent with a large decrease (5°C) in ocean temperature during the LGM, as recently deduced from measurements of strontium and calcium in corals.

Two Major Cenozoic Episodes of Phosphogenesis Recorded in Equatorial Pacific Seamount Deposits

Seamount phosphorites have been recognized since the 1950s, but this is the first study to provide an in depth exploration of the origin and history of these widespread deposits. Representative samples from equatorial Pacific Cretaceous seamounts were analyzed for chemical, mineralogical, and stable isotope compositions. The phosphorites occur in a wide variety of forms, but most commonly carbonate fluorapatite (CFA) replaced middle Eocene and older carbonate sediment in a deep water environment (>1000 m). Element ratios distinguish seamount phosphorites from continental margin, plateau, and insular phosphorites. Uranium and thorium contents are low and total rare earth element (REE) contents are generally high. REE ratios and shale-normalized patterns demonstrate that the REEs and host CFA were derived from seawater. Strontium isotopic compositions compared with inferred Cenozoic seawater curves define two major episodes of Cenozoic phosphatization: Late Eocene/early Oligocene (39–34 Ma) and late Oligocene/early Miocene (27–21 Ma); three minor events are also indicated. The major episodes occurred at times of climate transition, the first from a nonglacial to glacial earth and the second from a predominantly glacial to warm earth. The paleoceanographic conditions that existed at those times initiated and sustained development of phosphorite by accumulation of dissolved phosphorus in the deep sea during relatively stable climatic conditions when oceanic circulation was sluggish. Fluctuations in climate, sealevel, and upwelling that accompanied the climate transitions may have driven cycles of enrichment and depletion of the deep-sea phosphorus reservoir. As temperature gradients in the oceans increased, Antarctic glaciation expanded and oceanic circulation and upwelling intensified. Expansion and intensification of the oxygen minimum zone may have increased the capacity for midwater storage of phosphorus supplied by dynamic upwelling around seamounts; however, the bottom waters never became anoxic during the phosphogenic episodes. Fluctuations in the CCD and lysocline, CO2 fluxes, and changes in bottom water circulation and temperatures may have bathed the seamount carbonates in more corrosive waters which, coupled with increased supplies of dissolved phosphorus, promoted replacement processes. The late Eocene/early Oligocene phosphogenic episode recorded in seamount deposits is not matched by large phosphorite deposits in the geologic record, whereas the late Oligocene/early Miocene episode and middle Miocene event are matched by large deposits distributed globally. The seamount phosphorites are exposed at the surface of the seamounts and have been for most of the Neogene and Oligocene. The phosphorites do not show signs of etching that would indicate substantial undersaturation of seawater phosphate with respect to CFA. Mass balance calculations indicate that about 5.4–19 × 1012 g of P2O5 are locked up in equatorial Pacific seamount phosphorites. That amount is equivalent to about 2-7 years of the present annual input from rivers.

Detecting urbanization effects on surface and subsurface thermal environment — A case study of Osaka

Tremendous efforts have been devoted to improve our understanding of the anthropogenic effects on the atmospheric temperature change. In comparison, little has been done in the study of the human impacts on the subsurface thermal environment. The objective of this study is to analyze surface air temperature records and borehole subsurface temperature records for a better understanding of the urban heat island effects across the ground surface. The annual surface air temperature time series from six meteorological stations and six deep borehole temperature profiles of high qualities show that Osaka has been undergoing excess warming since late 19th century. The mean warming rate in Osaka surface air temperature is about 2.0 degrees C/100a over the period from 1883 to 2006, at least half of which can be attributed to the urban heat island effects. However, this surface air temperature warming is not as strong as the ground warming recorded in the subsurface temperature profiles. The surface temperature anomaly from the Osaka meteorological record can only account for part of the temperature anomaly recorded in the borehole temperature profiles. Surface air temperature is conventionally measured around 1.5 m above the ground; whereas borehole temperatures are measured from rocks in the subsurface. Heat conduction in the subsurface is much less efficient than the heat convection of the air above the ground surface. Therefore, the anthropogenic thermal impacts on the subsurface can be more persistent and profound than the impacts on the atmosphere. This study suggests that the surface air temperature records alone might underestimate the full extent of urban heat island effects on the subsurface environment.

Transient change in groundwater temperature after earthquakes

Postseismic decrease in groundwater temperature was documented on the upper rim of a large alluvial fan near the epicenter of the 1999 M w 7.5 Chi-Chi earthquake (Taiwan). We use a model of coupled heat transport and groundwater flow, constrained by documented water-level changes, to interpret this change. We show that groundwater temperature is sensitive to earthquake-induced flow and the observed temperature decrease may be explained by increased groundwater discharge due to earthquake-enhanced vertical permeability. The result implies that heat flow near active mountain fronts may be lowered by recurrent earthquakes.

Decoupling of carbonate preservation, carbonate concentration, and biogenic accumulation: A 400‐kyr record from the central equatorial Pacific Ocean

In order to investigate the paleoceanographic record of dissolution of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in the central equatorial Pacific Ocean, we have studied the relationship between three indices of foraminiferal dissolution and the concentration and accumulation of CaCO3, opal, and Corg in Core WEC8803B-GC51 (1.3°N, 133.6°W; 4410 m). This core spans the past 413 kyr of deposition and moved in and out of the lysoclinal transition zone during glacial-interglacial cycles of CaCO3 production and dissolution. The record of dissolution intensity provided by foraminiferal fragmentation, the proportion of benthic foraminifera, and the foraminiferal dissolution index consistently indicates that the past corrosion of pelagic CaCO3 in the central equatorial Pacific does not vary with the observed sedimentary concentration of CaCO3. Although there is a weak low-frequency variation (∼100 kyr) in dissolution intensity, it is unrelated to sedimentary CaCO3 concentration. There are many shorter-lived episodes where high CaCO3 concentration is coincident with poor foraminiferal preservation, and where, conversely, low CaCO3 concentration is coincident with superb foraminiferal preservation. Spectral analyses indicate that dissolution maxima consistently lagged glacial maxima (manifest by the SPECMAP δ18O stack) in the 100-kyr orbital band. Additionally, there is no relationship between dissolution and the accumulation of biogenic opal or Corg or between dissolution and the burial ratio of Corg/CINorg (calculated from Corg and CaCO3). Because previous studies of this core strongly suggest that surface water productivity varied closely with CaCO3 accumulation, both the mechanistic decoupling of carbonate dissolution from CaCO3 concentration (and from biogenic accumulation) and the substantial phase shift between dissolution and global glacial periodicity effectively obscure any simple link between export production, CaCO3 concentration, and dissolution of sedimentary CaCO3.

Holocene Mean Uplift Rates Across an Active Plate-Collision Boundary in Taiwan

Samples of Holocene fossil coral from uplifted reefs of three tectonically distinct, yet geographically proximal regions of Taiwan have been dated by uranium-series and 14C isotopes. Applying corrections for altitude change caused by sea level fluctuations enables evaluation of long-term average Holocene uplift rates for three areas across an active convergent margin: (i) the Hengchun Peninsula of the Eurasian tectonic plate; (ii) the Eastern Coastal Range of Taiwan, a plate boundary; and (iii) two offshore islands, Lanyu and Lutao, both situated on the leading edge of the adjoining Philippine Plate. The data indicate that while all three areas have experienced uplift through the Holocene, plate collision has caused significantly higher uplift rates in the region directly along the plate boundary.

Late Quaternary sea-surface temperature variations in the southeast Atlantic: a planktic foraminifer faunal record of the past 600 000 yr (IMAGES II MD962085)

Abstract A high-resolution (∼4–5cm/kyr) giant piston core record (MD962085) retrieved during an IMAGES II-NAUSICAA cruise from the continental slope of the southeast Atlantic Ocean reveals striking variations in planktonic foraminifer faunal abundances and sea-surface temperatures (SST) during the past 600 000 yr. The location and high-quality sedimentary record of the core provide a good opportunity to assess the variability of the Benguela Current system and associated important features of the ocean-climate system in the southeast Atlantic. The planktonic foraminifer faunal abundances of the core are dominated by three assemblages: (1) Neogloboquadrina pachyderma (right coiling)+Neogloboquadrina dutertrei, (2) Globigerina bulloides, and (3) Globorotalia inflata. The assemblage of N. pachyderma (right coiling)+N. dutertrei shows distinctive abundance changes which are nearly in-phase with glacial–interglacial variations. The high abundances of this assemblage are associated with major glacial conditions, possibly representing low SST/high nutrient level conditions in the southwestern Africa margin. In contrast, the G. bulloides and G. inflata assemblages show greater high-frequency abundance change patterns, which are not parallel to the glacial–interglacial changes. These patterns may indicate rapid oceanic frontal movements from the south, and a rapid change in the intensity of the Benguela upwelling system from the east. A single episode of maximum abundances of a polar water species N. pachyderma (left coiling) occurred in the beginning of stage 9 (∼340–330 kyr). The event of the maximum occurrence of this species shown in this record may indicate instability in the Benguela coastal upwelling, or the Antarctic polar front zone position. A winter season SST estimate using transfer function techniques for this record shows primarily glacial–interglacial variations. The SST is maximal during the transitions from the major glacial to interglacial stages (Terminations I, II, IV, V), and is associated with the abundance maxima of a warm water species indicator Globigerinoides ruber. Cross-spectral analyses of the SST record and the SPECMAP stack reveal statistically significant concentrations of variance and coherencies in three major orbital frequency bands. The SST precedes changes in the global ice volume in all orbital frequency bands, indicating a dominant southern Hemispheric climate effect over the Benguela Current region in the southeast Atlantic.

Palaeoceanographic change in the northeastern South China Sea during the last 15000 years

The sedimentary succession of piston core RC26-16, dated by 14 C accelerator mass spectrometry, provides a nearly continuous palaeoceanographic record of the northeastern South China Sea for the last 15 000 yr. Planktic foraminiferal assemblages indicate that winter sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) rose from 18°C to about 24°C from the last glacial to the Holocene. A short-lived cooling of 1°C in winter temperature centred at about 11 000 14 Cy r ago may reflect the Younger Dryas cooling event in this area. Summer SSTs have remained between 27°C and 29°C throughout the record. The temperature difference between summer and winter was about ca. 9°C during the last glacial, much higher than the Holocene value of ca. 5°C. During the late Holocene a short-lived cooling event occurred at about 4000 14 Cy r ago. Oxygen and carbon isotopic gradients between surface (0-50 m) and subsurface (50-100 m) waters were smaller during the last glacial than those in the Holocene. The fluctuation in the isotopic gradients are caused most likely by changes in upwelling intensity. Smaller gradients indicate stronger upwelling during the glacial winter monsoon. The fauna-derived estimates of nutrient content of the surface waters indicate that the upwelling induced higher fertility and biological productivity during the glacial. The winter monsoon became weaker during the Holocene. The carbonate compensation depth and foraminiferal lysocline were shallower during the Holocene, except for a short-lived deepening at about 5000 14 C yr ago. A preservation peak of planktic foraminifera and calcium carbonate occurred between 13400 and 12 000 14 C