Do microcrystalline dolomite inclusions provide fossil evidence for the onset of gas hydrate formation?: Isotopic and biogeochemical investigations of methane hydrate in Joetsu Basin, Sea of Japan.

• Project/Area Number: 17K05712
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Petrology/Mineralogy/Economic geology
• Research Institution: Meiji University
• Principal Investigator: Snyder Glen 明治大学, 研究・知財戦略機構(駿河台), 研究推進員 (90751777)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 鈴木 庸平 東京大学, 大学院理学系研究科(理学部), 准教授 (00359168) ; 松本 良 明治大学, 研究・知財戦略機構(駿河台), 特任教授 (40011762) ; 佐野 有司 東京大学, 大気海洋研究所, 教授 (50162524) ; 戸丸 仁 千葉大学, 大学院理学研究院, 准教授 (80588244)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2019)
• Budget Amount: ¥4,160,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥960,000); Fiscal Year 2019: ¥910,000 (Direct Cost: ¥700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥210,000); Fiscal Year 2018: ¥1,560,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥360,000); Fiscal Year 2017: ¥1,690,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,300,000、Indirect Cost: ¥390,000)
• Keywords: gas hydrate / Sea of Japan / microdolomite / Bacteriodetes / helium / stable isotopes / Joetsu Basin / biomarker / phylogenetic / stable isotope / Japan Sea / authigenesis / microbial / noble gas / seawater / ガスハイドレート / 日本海 / ドロマイト / 希ガス同位体 / 自生鉱物

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Microbial life has been found in a variety of extreme environments such as hot springs, glaciers, and in deep marine sediments. Researchers at Meiji’s GHRL recovered the first long cores of massive gas hydrate from the seafloor in Joetsu Basin, just southwest of the Japan’s port city of Niigata in order to study this unconventional energy resource. While melting the hydrate to study methane gas, a fine microdolomite powder was discovered which consists of microscopic spheroids with dark cores. Further research revealed a unique, microenvironment where microbial life is able to metabolize complex macromolecules to produce extracellular polymeric substance that promote the formation of spheroidal microdolomites. In addition, the noble gases helium and neon were also measured, permitting the discovery that gases from the mantle are involved in the migration of methane in the region which eventually accumulates as gas hydrate in shallow marine sediments.

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

Meters-thick gas hydrate was recovered from marine sediments and the role of mantle gases in methane migration and gas hydrate growth in the sea of Japan was documented. Microbial life was discovered inside of the gas hydrate, living within spheroidal aggregates of microdolomite.

Research Products

• [Int'l Joint Research] School of Geosciences/University of Aberdeen/Scotland U.K. (Stephen Bowden)(英国)
• [Int'l Joint Research] Jackson School of Geosciences/University of Texas Austin/U.S.A. (StephenPhillips)(米国)
• [Int'l Joint Research] School of Geosciences/University of Aberdeen/Scotland (Stephen Bowden)(英国)
• [Int'l Joint Research] University of Aberdeen, Scotland/Dr. Stephen Bowden(United Kingdom)
• [Int'l Joint Research] University of Texas, Austin/Dr. Steve Phillips(米国)
• [Int'l Joint Research]
• [Journal Article] Magmatic fluids play a role in the development of active gas chimneys and massive gas hydrates in the Japan Sea. (2020)
  • Author(s): Snyder, G. T. , Sano, Y., Takahata, N., Matsumoto, R., Kakizaki, Y. and Tomaru, H.,
  • Journal Title: Chemical Geology Volume: 535 Pages: 119462-119462
  • DOI: 10.1016/j.chemgeo.2020.119462
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Evidence in the Japan Sea of microdolomite mineralization within gas hydrate microbiomes (2020)
  • Author(s): Snyder, G.T., Matsumoto, R., Suzuki, Y., Kouduka, M., Kakizaki, Y., Zhang, N., Tomaru,H., Sano, Y.,, Takahata, N., Tanaka, K., Bowden, S.A., Imajo, T.
  • Journal Title: Scientific Reports Volume: 10 Issue: 1 Pages: 1-13
  • DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-58723-y
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Clumped isotope signatures of methane-derived authigenic carbonate presenting equilibrium values of their formation temperatures (2019)
  • Author(s): N Zhang, M Lin, GT Snyder, Y Kakizaki, K Yamada, N Yoshida, R. Matsumoto
  • Journal Title: Earth and Planetary Science Letters Volume: 512 Pages: 207-213
  • DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2019.02.005
  • Peer Reviewed / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Concentration and carbon-isotopic change of dissolved gas from Murono mud volcano in Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture (central Japan), just before and after the 2014 Kamishiro Fault Earthquake (2018)
  • Author(s): Kakizaki Y, Snyder G, Tanahashi Y, Ishida N, Matsumoto R
  • Journal Title: The Journal of the Geological Society of Japan Volume: 124 Issue: 2 Pages: 127-140
  • DOI: 10.5575/geosoc.2017.0065
  • NAID: 130007377711
  • ISSN: 0016-7630, 1349-9963
  • Year and Date: 2018-02-15
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access
• [Journal Article] Data report: water activity of the deep coal-bearing basin off Shimokita from IODP Expedition 337 (2018)
  • Author(s): Wataru Tanikawa, Yoko Ohtomo, Glen Snyder, Yuki Morono, Yu’suke Kubo, Yoshihiro Iijima, Takuroh Noguchi, Kai-Uwe Hinrichs, and Fumio Inagaki
  • Journal Title: Proceedings of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program, 337: Tokyo (Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Management International, Inc.) Volume: 337 Pages: 1-12
  • DOI: 10.2204/iodp.proc.337.204.2018
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Microdolmite grains in Japan Sea Gas Hydrate: What do they tell us about present and past hydrate growth? (2019)
  • Author(s): G.Snyder, R.Matsumoto, Y. Kakizaki, Y. Suzuki, N.Zhang, Y.Sano, N. Takahata, K. Tanaka, T. Imajo, S. Bowden, H. Tomaru
  • Organizer: Pacific Conference of Marine Science and Technology (PACON), Vladivostok, Russia
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Microdolomites are not MDACs: microbially-derived carbon source for microcrystalline dolomite found within massive gas hydrates and implications for the shallow marine carbon cycle (2019)
  • Author(s): G.Snyder, R.Matsumoto, Y. Kakizaki, Y. Suzuki, N.Zhang, Y.Sano, N. Takahata, K. Tanaka, T. Imajo, S. Bowden, H. Tomaru
  • Organizer: Japan Geoscience Union Meeting
  • Int'l Joint Research / Invited
• [Presentation] Microbial microdolomite aggregates found within massive gas hydrate: Implications for the Earth's deep biosphere and for extraterrestrial life? (2018)
  • Author(s): Glen Tritch Snyder, Yohey Suzuki,Takumi Imajo, Ryo Matsumoto, Yoshihiro Kakizaki, Hitoshi Tomaru, Aya Iguchi, Yuji Sano, Naoto Takahata, Naizhong Zhang
  • Organizer: American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Clumped isotopic signatures of methane-dervied authigenic carbonates and gas hydrate-derived microcrystalline dolomite in the Sea of Japan (2018)
  • Author(s): Naizhong Zhang, Glen Tritch Snyder, Keita Yamada, Yoshihiro Kakizaki, Akihiro Kano, Naohiro Yoshida, Ryo Matsumoto
  • Organizer: American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Stable isotopic composition of microdolomitic aggregates associated with saline inclusions within Japan Sea massive gas hydrate G (2018)
  • Author(s): Glen Snyder, Yoshihiro Kakizaki, Ryo Matsumoto, Naizhong Zhang, Yohey Suzuki, Yuji Sano, Naoto Takahata, Kentaro Tanaka, Takumi Imajo, Hitoshi Tomaru, Aya Iguchi
  • Organizer: International Sedimentological Congress
• [Presentation] Microdolomitic evidence for deep biosphere contained inside of the saline inclusions within Japan Sea massive gas hydrate (2018)
  • Author(s): Glen Snyder, Yohey Suzuki,Takumi Imajo, Ryo Matsumoto, Yoshihiro Kakizaki, Hitoshi Tomaru, Aya Iguchi, Yuji Sano, Naoto Takahata, Naizhong Zhang
  • Organizer: Japan Geoscience Union (JPGU) Annual Meeting
• [Presentation] Compositional and textural trends of microcrystalline dolomite found within massive gas hydrate in Joetsu Basin (2017)
  • Author(s): Glen Snyder, Ryo Matsumoto, Yoshihiro Kakizaki, Hitoshi Tomaru, Yohey Suzuki
  • Organizer: JpGU-AGU Joint Annual Meeting
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Mineralization of Dolomite Associated with Gas Hydrate Formation in Sea of Japan Sediments. (2017)
  • Author(s): G. Snyder, Y. Kakizaki, R. Matsumoto, Y. Suzuki, Y. Sano, N. Takahata, K. Tanaka, T. Imajo
  • Organizer: International Conference on Gas Hydrates (ICGH9)
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Noble Gas and Stable Isotopic Composition of Methane Hydrates in Umitaka Spur: Three End-Member Mixing and Elemental Fractionation (2017)
  • Author(s): G. Snyder, Y. Kakizaki, R. Matsumoto, Y. Suzuki, Y. Sano, N. Takahata, K. Tanaka, T. Imajo
  • Organizer: International Conference on Gas Hydrates (ICGH9) Denver, Colorado
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Stable isotopes and noble gases in marine methane hydrate and associated dolomite: Investigations in the Sea of Japan. (2017)
  • Author(s): G. Snyder, Y. Kakizaki, R. Matsumoto, Y. Suzuki, Y. Sano, N. Takahata, K. Tanaka, T. Imajo
  • Organizer: International Conference on Gas Hydrate in Continental Margins, Taipei, Taiwan
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Microcrystalline dolomite within massive Japan Sea methane hydrate: origin and development ascertained by inclusions within inclusions. (2017)
  • Author(s): G. Snyder, Y. Kakizaki, R. Matsumoto, Y. Suzuki, Y. Sano, N. Takahata, K. Tanaka, H. Tomaru, T. Imajo, A. Iguchi
  • Organizer: American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, New Orleans, U.S.A.
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Remarks] ガスハイドレートの微小空隙中の微生物活動 によるマイクロドロマイトの生成
  • URL: https://www.meiji.ac.jp/koho/press/6t5h7p000032lu9c.html
• [Remarks] Extreme Microbes Found in Sea of Japan crystals
  • URL: https://www.livescience.com/64532-microbes-inside-gas-hydrate-crystals.html
• [Remarks] ガスハイドレート研究所
  • URL: http://www.kisc.meiji.ac.jp/~hydrate/index.html
• [Funded Workshop] American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, New Orleans, U.S.A. (2017)