Permafrost properties and its potential role for geomorphological change on Mt. Fuji

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24700943
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Geography
• Research Institution: University of Tsukuba
• Principal Investigator: IKEDA Atsushi 筑波大学, 生命環境系, 准教授 (60431657)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 永久凍土 / 微気象 / 地形 / 気候変動 / 火山

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We started a research project to understand permafrost on Mt. Fuji (3776 m asl.) in warm humid maritime Japan to monitor its change and to evaluate the impact from changes of climate and volcanic activity. From 2012, permafrost temperatures in two deep boreholes were successfully monitored until 2014. According to the measured relationships between the surface temperatures and altitudes both on the north- and south-facing slopes, the monitored ground surface temperatures were spatially extrapolated for whole area of Mt. Fuji using a GIS software. The potential lower boundary of permafrost lies at 3050-3150 m asl. on the north-facing slope and at 3450-3600 m asl. on the south-facing. Contrary to the assumption of the previous studies, permafrost absence was confirmed in another two shallow boreholes near the summit, where the highly permeable debris allows heat transportation by rain-water infiltration. This indicates quite irregular permafrost distribution on Mt. Fuji.

Free Research Field

地形学，雪氷学