Daikoku Seamount
| Daikoku Seamount | |
|---|---|
Stratovolcanoes | |
| Last activity | 2014 |
Daikoku Seamount (
Geography
The seamount is located around 850 km (528 mi) north of Guam[1] in the Micronesia region of the Pacific Ocean, a region consisting of hundreds of islands.[2] Morphologically, Daikoku is a volcanic cone sitting on top of an older caldera, which has been almost completely filled during periods of volcanic activity. The modern cone of Daikoku rises around 700 m (2,297 ft) from the caldera base, at a depth of 1,050 m (3,445 ft), and has a 200 m (656 ft) wide summit crater that is slightly breached on the northwest side. At several sites near the summit molten sulfur has been observed, forming both rivulets and ponds. One such pond has been stopped from crusting over by bubbling gases.[3] It has been called the "Sulfur Cauldron" and compared to the sulfur volcanism on Io, a moon of Jupiter.[4]
Geologic setting
The seamount is located in the Mariana Island Arc, a volcanic island arc formed from magma generation in the process of
Submarine arc volcanoes are the main route by which volatiles, including CO2 (carbon dioxide) and SO2 (sulfur dioxide), released from subducting plates return to the ocean and make up a part of the oceanic volatile budget.[6]
Fauna
The volcano has many hydrothermal vents, which can host various animal species including the one which makes this seamount widely known, the tonguefish Symphurus thermophilus.
On Daikoku, this species lives at depths of 475–320 m (1,558–1,050 ft), which coincide with the locations of hydrothermal vents.
Also common on the
Tubeworms (Lamellibrachia satsuma) can be found on the slopes of Daikoku at depths of around 400 m (1,312 ft).[10][3] Like the tonguefish, the tubeworms also are mostly found near hydrothermal vents.[11]
Activity
The record of eruptive activity in Daikoku is not known, although it is known that it has erupted in Holocene age with an andesitic composition.[1] However, hydrothermal activity on Daikoku has been continuing for the last two decades, via the emission of high concentrations of gas with high temperatures along with the molten sulfur pond.[12][4] Several expeditions have been carried out by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) over the last few years, and activity was persistent whenever an expedition was there to observe it. In 2014, an eruption was apparently occurring according to high hydrogen concentrations in water samples from above the summit.[13]
2006 expedition
The "Submarine Ring of Fire 2006" expedition took place between April 18 and May 13, 2006, and targeted the exploration of the Mariana Islands volcanoes. On May 4, 2006, the
2016 expedition
In June 2016, the Okeanos Explorer research vessel was involved in an expedition in the region of the Mariana Islands, and its remote operated vehicle (ROV) made a dive at the Daikoku seamount. Two days before the dive to Daikoku, the Okeanos's sonars detected a strong plume which could have been a hydrothermal bubble plume near the peak of Daikoku. This led to the change of some equipment on the Daikoku dive from the dive on Eifuku.[13]
ROV Deep Discoverer landed on the flanks of the Daikoku Seamount. During the 10-hour dive, the visibility was low due to the smoke from the sulfur vents. Despite that, the ROV was still able to operate. The slopes were reported to be covered with
Other than volcanic activity, the animals that live on the seamount were also observed. For the first time,
See also
- Nikkō Seamount
- Eifuku
- Izu-Bonin-Mariana Arc
References
- ^ a b c d "Daikoku". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ "Subregion: Micronesia". AntWeb. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ a b Embley et al. 2007, p. 77.
- ^ NOAA. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ "Pagan Island, Northern Mariana Islands". NASA. January 29, 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
- ^ Embley et al. 2007, p. 70.
- ^ a b Tunnicliffe, Tyler & Dower 2013, p. 175.
- ^ a b Tunnicliffe, Tyler & Dower 2013, p. 177.
- ^ Tunnicliffe, Tyler & Dower 2013, p. 178.
- ^ Kojima et al. 2012, p. 146.
- ^ Kojima et al. 2012, p. 147.
- ^ Embley et al. 2007, p. 73.
- ^ a b Cantwell & Newman 2016, p. 3.
- ^ a b Cantwell & Newman 2016, p. 4.
Sources
- Embley, R. W.; Baker, E. T.; Butterfield, D. A.; Chadwick Jr., W. W.; Lupton, J. E.; Resing, J. A.; De Ronde, C. E.; Nakamura, K. I.; Tunnicliffe, V.; Dower, J. F.; Merle, S. G. (2007). "Exploring the Submarine Ring of Fire Mariana Arc – Western Pacific". Oceanography. 20 (4): 68–79. JSTOR 24860145.
- Tunnicliffe, V.; Tyler, J.; Dower, J. F. (2013). "Population ecology of the tonguefish Symphurus thermophilus (Pisces; Pleuronectiformes; Cynoglossidae) at sulphur-rich hydrothermal vents on volcanoes of the northern Mariana Arc". Deep Sea Research Part II. 92 (1): 172–182. .
- Kojima, S.; Murakami, S.; Nemoto, S.; Watanabe, H.; Miyake, H.; Tsuchida, S. (2012). "Genetic diversity and population structure of a vestimentiferan annelid Lamellibrachia satsuma in Japanese and northern Mariana waters". Plankton & Benthos Research. 7 (3): 146–150. .
- Cantwell, K.; Newman, J. (2016). Okeanos Explorer ROV dive summary, EX1605L3, June 26, 2016 (Report). NOAA. Retrieved January 7, 2023.