THE RELIEF OF THE FLOOR AND THE BOTTOM DEPOSITS IN THE NORTH-WEST PACIFIC

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Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Next 1 Page(s) In Document Denied Iq Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 THE RELIEF OF THE FLOOR AND THE BOTTOM DEPOSITS IN THE NORTH-WEST PACIFIC . By B. P. Petelin Le relief et les depots du fond oceanique dans la partie nord-ouest du Pacifique sont etudies depuis 1949 par l'Institut d'Oceanologie, dependant de l'Academie des sci- ences de I'URSS. Le navire " Vitiaz " a ate affecte a ces recherches. Grace aux explorations effectuees par cc navire, la fosse qui s'etend le long des Iles Kouriles et du Kamtchatka est actuellement, entre routes les fosses oceaniques du monde, Tune des mieux etudiees. Sa longueur, dans les limites de l'isobathe de 6.000 metres, est d'environ 2.000 kms, aver une largeur variant de 20 a 60 kms. La partie de cette fosse dont la profondeur depasse 9.000 metres est situee au sad ; elle a environ 550 kilometres de long sur 1 a 5 kms de large. La profondeur maximum de la fosse des Kouriles et du Kamtchatka (point baptise du nom du " Vitiaz ") est de 10.382 m. ; elle se trouve par 42?15'2" de latitude nord et 150?34'2" de longitude est. La declivite moyenne des pentes de la fosse est de 5 a 6? dans la partie superieure, et de 15 a 20? dans la partie inferieure. La regularite des pentes est interrompue par des terrasses et par des escarpements, dont la declivite atteint par endroit 25?. Une profondeur de 7.037 metres a 'etc relevee par le Vitiaz dans la partie occidentale de la fosses des Aleoutien- nes, en un point ou elle rejoint la fosse des Kouriles et du Ramtchatka. Cette profondeur s'accroit sensiblement en direction des lies Aleoutiennes. La declivite des pentes nord et sud de cette fosse est de l'ordre de 30 a 40?. La regularite des pentes est interrompue par des terrasses et par des escarpements dont la declivite atteint 45?. Le fond plat de la fosse a une largeur de 10 a 20 kms. L'existence pen elevees, mais larges, a etc decelee du cote oceanique de la fosses du Japon, de la fosse des Kouriles et du Kam- tchatka et de la fosse des Aleoutiennes. Apparemment, ces ondulations sons liees organiquement a la structure mor- phologique des fosses. Un vaste haut-fond ou Yon releve des profondeurs in- ferieures a 3.000 metres a ate decouvert dans la zone du Pacifique nord-ouest, ou la fosse des Kouriles et du Kam- tchatka rejoins la fosse des Aleoutiennes. Nous proposons de dormer a cc haut-fond le nom de 1'academicien Obru- chev. Il a etc reconnu que la crate sous-marine vers le nord- ouest au large des Iles Hawai ne prend pas fin a la latitude de 45?, mais qu'elle se poursuit au-dela, en se divisant a la latitude d'environ 49?. Une branche se dirige vers le haut- fond Obruchev, Landis que. l'autre se dirige vers la fosse des Aleoutiennes, dans la region ? des Iles Near. Cette crate, dont le sommet atteint 4.000 metres, divise la partie nord- ouest du Pacifique en deux bassins dont les masses d'eau et le peuplement different. Au tours de 1'etude faite par sondages acoustiques du fond oceanique, plus de 20 montagnes coniques d'une hauteur atteignant parfois 4.500 metres ont ate decouvertes ; d'interes- santes donnees sur des details de la topographic du fond ont etc recueillies. Le carottage de la couche superieure des depots marins a permis de dresser des cartes de la repartition des sedi- ments contemporains et de leurs elements constitutifs. II a etc constate que les depots oceaniques du Pacifique nord-ouest ne renferment pas plus de 20% de silice authigene (amorphe) ; ces depots ne peuvent done pas titre classes avec les boues siliceuses a diatomees dont la caracteristique est de renfermer plus de 30%o de silice authigene. Les recherches effectuees an tours des campagnes du Vitiaz ont montre que, dans les parties pe'ripheriques de i'Ocean Pacifique, l'argile oceanique rouge (les brunes ou brown oozes), dont font etat les cartes de repartition des sediments pour le Pacifique nord-ouest, presente a la partie superieure une mince couche riche en oxydes de fer et de manganese, analogue a la couche oxydee brune des depots qui se trouvent dans les regions centrales des mers d'Ex- treme-Orient. A mesure que Pon va vers le grand large, 1'epaisseur de cette couche s'accroit, finissant par atteindre plusieurs metres. Ctte couche brune est formee par la migration verticale du fer et du manganese, de la zone de reduction a la zone d'oxydation. Son epaisseur est inverse- ment proportionnelle a la vitesse d'accumulation des sedi- ments. La formation de cette couche dans les sediments oceaniques est facilitee par une plus faible teneur en matieres organiques. La couche oxydee brune, dont 1'epaisseur varie de quelques millimetres a plusieurs metres, recouvre le fond de tout le Pacifique nord-est, a l'exception de la crate sub- mergee des Hawai et de plusieurs montagnes, qui sons recouvertes de sables et de boues a giobigerines. D'importantes formations de sediments resultant du depot de particules raises en suspension par des glissements de terrain sous-marins ont ate decouvertes dans la partie septentrionale de la fosse des Kouriles et du Kamtchatka et dans la partie occidentale de la fosse des Aleoutiennes. L'e'tude de carottes longues d'environ 34 metres a montre que la couche sedimentaire superieure, form6e de bones siliceuses biogenes, date de la periode post-glaciaire. Salon diverses donnees, Page de cette region est compris entre 8 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 The relief of the floor and the bottom deposits in the north-west pacific et 20.000 ins ; si cette supposition est exacte, la vitesse de L'etude des carottes a confirm& que les rivages des formation de la couche de boue siliceuse biogene vane, dans mers de 1'Extreme-Orient avaient subi une double glaciation la met d'Okhotsk, entre 10 a 25 mm et 1 a 2,5 m. par et que l'activite volcanique de la zone des Kouriles et du millier d'annees, tandis que, dans la fosse des Kouriles et Ka.mtchatka s'etait sensiblement accrue au milieu et a la du Kamtchatka, elle vane entre 5 a 10 mm. et 0,5 a 2 m. fin du pleistocene. par millier d'annees. Not long ago the scientific data on the sea floor relief and the bottom deposits in the Far Eastern seas, as well as in the adjacent part of the North- West Pacific was very scanty. As to the open parts of the mentioned areas, still less was learned about them due to the absence of appropriate technical means employed by the oceanographic expeditions undertaken in those years. Some 25 years ago, Soviet scientists, under the guidance of K. M. Deryugin, P. V. Ushakov and G. E. Ratmanoy, on board of survey vessels " Gagara," "Lebed," " Plas- tun," " Rossinante," " Krasnoarmeyets," " Dalnevo- stochnik " and others sponsored by the State Hydro- logical Institute and the Pacific Institute for Fishery (renamed later into the Pacific Institute for Fishery and Oceanography) collected important data con- cerning the depths of the Seas of Japan, Okhotsk and Bering. However, the information collected was comparatively insufficient owing to the absence of echosounding devices. The findings of such foreign expeditions as of the Albatros (USA) into the Seas of Okhotsk and Bering and into the north- west part of the Pacific, undertaken towards the end of the past and in the beginning of the present centuries, gave very little information to improve our knowledge of the sea-floor relief in the above- mentioned areas ; same goes for the Yamato (Japan) voyage into the Sea of Japan, in the thirties of this century, the Tuscarora (USA) voyage into the area of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench in the eighties of the recent century, and the Carnegie (USA) expedi- tion into the north-west part of the Pacific in the thirties of this century. The information on the sea floor relief in the Far Eastern seas and in the north-west Pacific, col- lected prior to the recent World War, was carefully analyzed and studied by Soviet geographers-carto- graphers when compiling the " Marine Atlas " (1950) and the "Hypsometric Chart of the USSR" (1949). As to ,foreign studies of the same subject, it is necessary to mention the "Bathymetric Chart No. 6901, " published' recently . in Japan. The Chart sums up the information collected by various ex- peditions, including the Japanese hydrographic ex- peditions of 1939-1945. The study of the bottom sediments in the Far Eastern seas and in. the north-west Pacific, under- taken by the above-mentioned expeditions, was also insufficient. The information, concerning the mecha- nical, and to a certain extent, the mineralogical compositions of the upperest layer of the sediments, published in this country and abroad is inaccurate and 'superficial. The vertical investigations of the bottom sedi- ments were either lacking altogether or were made on a very small scale. Such scanty and inaccurate information on the bottom deposits prevented the understanding of the regularity and of the historic process of the sedimentation in Far Eastern seas and in the north-west Pacific in the quaternary epoch. In the forties of our century, B. A. Skopintsev, of the State Institute for Oceanography, used the information, collected by expedition detailed by the USSR and other countries to compile approximate charts on the distribution of various sediments in the Seas of Okhotsk and Bering. These charts have lost their value following the "Witiaz " vessel ex- pedition, sponsored by the Institute of Oceanology under the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. The " Witiaz " arrived in the Far Eastern waters in 1949. Since then a systematic, comprehensive study was started of the Sea of Japan, Seas of Okhotsk and Bering, and of the adjacent north- west part of the Pacific. By now, "Witiaz" has completed 20 and is completing its 21st voyage in the' Far Eastern waters. One of the principle themes in the plan for comprehensive oceanographic study of the north-west part of the Pacific basin is the investigation of marine geology, conducted under the general guidance of Professor P. L. Bezrukov ; this theme includes the investigation of the sea floor relief, of the bottom sediment's nature and of the space and time sedimentation regularities. The sea floor relief to a great extent determines the nature of the dynamic and of the physico-chemical state of the water masses, the distribution and ac- cumulation of bottom sediments, the. distribution of various organisms on the bottom surface and so on. This is why the study of the sea floor relief. is of such importance for the understanding of the earth crust structure, and for the part played by the relief in the formation of submarine landscapes. The study of bottom sediments reveals the sedimentation regu- Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 The relief of the floor and the-bottom deposits in. the north-west pacific Jarities both for - the present : geological time and for the geological past;% it facilitates the understand- ing of.paleogeography and of the geological de- velopment.of sea,.basins and of.their coasts ; it helps to understand the. processes of distribution in sedi- ments of ;certain chemical elements, resulting in ,the -formation. of mineral resources of sedimentation origin, it also helps to understand the transforma- .tions of the sediment matter 'at the early stages 'of .the diogenesis. The investigation of the sea floor relief and of the bottom sediments in . the contem- porary geosyncline region, situated in the Pacific Ocean, is highly interesting: The information ob- tained from, this study enables- the scientists to understand the geological processes within the geo- synclines - of the ? geological past,.. occupying vast territories on. the surface of the earth and 'rich with diverse , natural resources. The .study of the , sea floor , relief.-.and .9f the bottom sediments in 'seas and oceans is of great importance for man's activity, particularly.- in the sphere of navigation. and fishing industry. In .the postwar ?period -(1947-1949) prior to the arrival of "Witiaz" in the Far, Eastern waters, -the bottom. relief of the Japan, Okhotsk Seas, and - to,,a certain degree of the, north-west ;Pacific was, to a certain extent, studied by the Kurile-Sakhalin ex- .pedition -sponsored -by the Institute of. Zoology of .the USSR Academy of Sciences .and, by the -Pacific Institute for Fishery and Oceanography., This, ex,- ?pedition- conducted' echo-sounding. operations, and .gained; .very' valuable: information. Beginning with 1949 the sea floor relief of the Far Eastern seas and of the adjacent part of north- west Pacific was subject of detailed study by a body of scientists of the Institute of Oceanology under the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. This study was conducted by the "Witiaz" vessel equipped with most up-to-date means for oceanographic 're- searches. The soundings, made by the echo-record- ers, and the interpretation of the data received was conducted under the guidance of G. B. Udintsev. The tasks and purposes of the, sounding operations .were determined by the problems of all-round anographic research as follows : 1. The research should not be limited to any spectfic depths or areas of investigation. It should embrace the entire area under investigation so that a most detailed picture. of the 'submarine relief was obtained for all depths. . 2. The data gained by- sounding operations should be presented in a form most ' suitable for practical use and for ;scientific conclusions, particu- larly for. the geological interpretations with the aim of finding out the origin of the sea floor. relief; its geology and the geological history of the Far Eastern .seas and. north-west Pacific. ' . 3. Certain regions with intricate submarine re- .lief, both shallow and deep-water regions, presenting -particular scientific and practical interest, should be subjected to a more detailed and accurate study as -compared with the. other areas, subject of ordinary all-round . investigation. The Institute of Oceanology of the.USSR Acade- my - of Sciences, acting in conformity with these tasks,-;worked -out particular methods for the research work and -sounding operations, carried out by the "Witiaz " ex'p'edition. The .principle features: of these methods are: 1. Employment . of various types of echo-re- corders 2.. Application- of new methods for echo-record- .ing, providing for. highly detailed information_'on sea floor relief,, both for -shallow water areas. and .big depths. , 3. Constant, short-interval soundings along the entire route of the vessel. - ' . .4. Systematic sounding operations in accordance .with the tack-plan' prepared.. for.; the entire . north; west Pacific.., , .:.. 5. Detailed soundings 'of certain .areas present- ing particular, scientific and practical,interest. The results of the soundings are used,for,chart- ing detailed profiles for the entire route, of ". Witiaz ", and for the. compilation. of, diverse scale bathymetric charts giving a good picture of the sea floor relief structure. The bathymetric charts prepared by the Institute of Oceanology under the Academy of Sciences of the USSR are used in various branches of national economy. Thus, for instance, they were utilized for the compilation of a number ; of maps issued by the State Department for Geodesy and Cartography, as well as in the " World Atlas" (1954), in the " USSR Atlas" (1954), and in the Big Soviet Encyclopedia. . Our plans include the preparation of different specialized gaomorphological maps which will fa- cilitate the geological interpretation of the data on submarine topography. The new methods of sound- ing and the system for analyzing the information obtained is being steadily improved. Alongside of sounding operations a study ,was conducted of an- cient relief buried on the shelf, of the possibilities for the determination of sediments nature and of their cleavage features, with the help , of echo- recorders, in. various depths. The distribution of Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 'The relief of the floor and the' bottom deposits.in the north-west pacific 'shoals and of the water-reflecting. 'layer' was also subject of investigation. At 'present; the larger part of the Sea of Japan, the entire territory of the Okhotsk Sea, the western part of the Sea of Bering, as well as the adjacent north-west part of the Pacific Ocean is covered by 'a network of sounding tacks. The_` Witiaz" has conducted soundings along these tacks, investigating the submarine relief, steading the 'depths, with sound- ing intervals averaging from 5 to 50 metres. Results of the submarine relief study conducted 'by the Institute of Oceanology on board "Witiaz " include : principle features regarding the composition 'of the bottom surface in the Seas of Japan, Okhotsk and Bering have been clarified (there.had been very little information heretofore on the open parts of these seas); The submarine relief of the Kurile- Kamchatka Arc, heretofore practically unknown, has 'been studied ; the basic pecularities had, been, deter- mined as regards the sea floor relief of the' north- west part of thePacific Ocean adjacent to the above- mentioned seas. A detailed study has been made 'of a number of regions presenting a particular scientific and practical interest. Numerous, formerly absolutely unknown, forms of the ' sea floor relief (submarine elevations, vol- canoes etc.) have been found in the Sea of Japan. It.has been determined that the Okhotsk Sea depression is divided into three large basins (fig. 1, 2,) The southern basin, where "Witiaz " registered a 'maximum depth 'of 3370 metres, is. the deepest. The second'basin with a maximum depth of 1744 metres is situated in the north-west part of the depression;' by "the shores of Northern Sakhalin. We 'suggest that this -basin be named after a well-known 'explorer : of the Far Eastern seas K. M. . Deryugin. The third basin, with a 'maximum depth of 993 m:, -is located by the mouth of the Gulf of Shelikhov. We suggest that this basin be given the name of 'the " Pacific Institute for Fishery and Oceanography," which has been conducting investigations of the north-west part of the Sea of Okhotsk for a number .of years., The second and third basins are connected with the first basin' by two .'depressions which we 'suggest to name after Piotr Schmidt and the "Lebed" : a survey vessel of the Pacific Institute for Fishery `and Oceanography. . Between these basins-lie two submarine eleva- tions which . we suggest to name after the Academy of Sciences of the USSR and the 'Institute of Oce- anology. The first elevation has a minimum depth of 894 in. and' the second-1000 m. These elevations are separated by a depression which -we suggest to be given the name of Stepan Makarov. It should be noted 'that this year' " Witiaz," covering a special sounding tack, in the southern basin of the Sea of Okhotsk, did not find the sub- marine mountain shown on the Japanese bathymetric chart No. 6901. The submarine relief' in the area of -the Kurile Islands range is characteristic 'of highly intricate configuration.' ' According to the data ' collected by "-Witiaz '.' this range is a complex of two submarine mountain Fig. 1. Geographic discoveries of the survey vessel," Witiaz " 1949-1955. PEOPPA(UN'1LCHYIE OTHPb1TNH 1~c "BHTR3b" '/A49-S4 e, Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 1. Basin of the Pacific Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography. 5. The South Basin of the Okhotsk Sea. 2. Deryugin Basin. 6. The outer ridge of the Kurile Island Arc. 3. Elevation of the Institute, of Oceanology. 7. The Kurile Trench. 4. Elevation of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. 8. Shirshov ridge. Compiled by G. B. Udintscv. ridges: an outer and an inner ridge, separated by longitudinal depressions and broken up by trans- versal disruptions (the Bussol and the Krusenstern straits) into three links. More than 35 formerly unknown submarine volcanoes form a chain situated along the north-west slope (open on the Sea of Okhotsk) of this mountain group. One of the largest volcanoes we suggest to name after Academi- cian Sergei Vavilov. The submarine volcanoes are connected with the transversal disruptions of the Kurile mountain complex, and the Kurile Straits pass through these disruptions. The outer i. e. the eastern ridge of the Kurile mountain complex, named after "Witiaz," is covered by the waters of the Pacific Ocean and comes to the surface in the form of Small Kurile Islands only in its southern part. This ridge consists of a northern and a southern link which are connected with the appropriate links of the inner ridge. The outer ridge lacks the middle link, its place being occupied by a broad salient of the south-eastern slope of the inner ridge, the summits of which rise above the sea level in the form of the Big Kurile Islands. The abrasion flattened surface of the "Witiaz" ridge carries a group of submarine volcanoes. The structure of the continental Kamchatka slope happened to be rather intricate,. too. Three big, meridianal mountain ridges were found there, springing from the capes of Shipunsky, Kronotsky and Kamchatka. There were also found several huge and intricately branching submarine valleys. The initial parts of these valleys stretch in the direction of tectonic depressions and to the corres- ponding coastal river valleys. In the Sea of Bering "Witiaz " discovered a submarine ridge stretching meridianally, southwards from the Olutorsky peninsula and dividing the deep- water part of the sea into the western and the eastern basins. The height of this ridge reaches almost 3000 m. We suggest that this ridge be given the name of a well-known Polar explorer, Academician Pyotr Shirshov. Characteristic of the broad shelf of the North-East part of the Sea of Bering is the presence of an ancient buried relief covered by a layer of contemporary sediments. This relief was discovered by means of echo-sounding. It should be noted that the ancient buried reliefs, but on smaller areas, have been also registered in the Sea of Okhotsk, in the South Kamchatka area, and in the Gulf of Aniva. A long, narrow and deep depression stretching from the Hokkaido Island to the Commadores is situated south-east off the Kurile-Kamchatka Arc. Formerly, this depression was called the Kurile Trench and the bathymetric charts pictured it being shorter, broader and with smaller depths than proved to be true. As has been found out, this trench runs not only along the Kurile, Islands, but along the Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Fig. 3. Schematic bathymetric map. of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench, compiled from the materials of the Institute of Oceanology of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR collected by the survey vessel "Witiaz" in 1949-1953. Compiled by G. B. Udintsev. ..oe Kow~omo ~ r i PI o M / \3000 AX" 5000 000 Lines-depths exceeding 5000 m. Compiled by G. B. Udintsev. 000 6000 JNP 10362M ?zny6ur0 ( ke W, e z dcpfb BumPJA" Lines-depths exceeding 6000 m. Black-depths exceeding 9000 m. Compiled by G. B. Udintsev. Fig. 6. Cross-section of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench. The vertical scale being 37 times larger than the horizontal. Compiled by_G. B. Udintsev. '42 146 150 154 156 1 62 166 54 I 51 ~ i?. / d an - s9 42 11,5 146 ,r' . t54 130 161 16 6 Fig. 7. Longitudinal profile of the Kurile-Kamtchatka Trench. Vertical lines correspond to maximum depths of the depression, the measurements made during transversal crossing of the depression. The vertical scale being 30 times larger than the horizontal. Compiled by G. B. Udintsev. e4 ve, ,eC.ry. y' ua~ eAe.mm.e~eKrymW IIII~'I 1 A Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 The relief of the floor and the' bottom deposits in the north-west pacific Kamchatka, too. Therefore, it was deemed expedient to substitute its former name with a new one and to call it the " Kurile-Kamchatka Trench. " (fig. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) Thanks to the comprehensive oceanographic in- vestigations conducted by the "Witiaz, " the Kurile- Kamchatka Trench may be considered the best studied trench of the World Ocean. It takes its beginning close to the Tsugaru Strait latitude, stret- ches north-eastwardly and enters a strait between the Kamchatka and the Commadore Islands. Here- tofore, this strait had no name and therefore we suggest to call it the Kamchatka strait. The length of the trench within the 6000 in., isobath reaches almost 2000 km., its width ranging from 20 to 60km. ; (its southern part is the broadest). Here are the depths exceeding 9000 metres, stretching for about 550km long and 1-5 km wide. The maximum depth of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench (the " Witiaz " depth) is 10382 m.,-50 metres, at 44?17,6' N. Lat., 150?30,1' E. Long. The transversal profiles of the trench are strictly V-shaped for the entire length. The mean slope steepness in the upper part of the trench is 5-6?, and in the lower 15-20?. The slopes are broken up into terraces and escarpes, their steepness reaching and, at certain spots, even exceeding 45?. The deepest part of the trench has a flat bottom, with the width close to 1 km in depths exceeding 9000 metres,? ranging from 8 to 10 km in depths close to 8000 m. in the middle part, but in the majority of cases it does not exceed 5 km. It seems probable that the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench originated in the south and is developing northwardly, as can be judged from the growth of the volcanic activity in the same direction, and also from the tilt of the flattened surface of the " Witiaz " submarine ridge towards the deepest southern part of the trench. The Aleutian Trench was itvestigated by the "Witiaz" only in its western part, beginning from the place where it joins the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench and to the meridian 60 miles West off the Attu Island. In the West, where both trenches come together, and where a submarine elevation, with depths below 3000 metres, lies on the ocean floor,. (we suggest that this elevation be given the name of Academician Obruchev) the width of the flat bottom of the trench, within the limits of the 7000 in. isobath, reaches 20 km. Here the maximum trench depth, found by "Witiaz ", is 7037 m. The slopes of the trench are very steep : 30-40? on the side of the Obruchev Elevation, and 30-35? on the side open on the Commadores. The flat bottom of the studied part of the Aleutian Trench, in the East, is 9-10 km wide, within the limits of the 7000 in. isobath : Here, the maximum depth of the trench exceeds 7250 in. Between the western and the eastern parts of the investigated stretch of the trench there seem to lie a practically unknown submarine sill. The slopes of the Aleutian Trench, as those of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench are disrupted by escarpes. and terraces, their steepness reaching 45?. In the area of the Obruchev Elevation, one such escarpe, high 1600 m. and 40? steep, was traced for 70 km. Investigations in the northern part of the Japan Trench revealed its morphological similarity with the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench. It had been deter- mined that depths exceeding 8000 m., formerly shown- for this area, are incorrect, actually they do not exceed 7600 m. The sea floor of the North-West Pacific, studied by the " Witiaz ", has a number of singular features. For example a broad swell stretching by the very edge of the ocean floor along the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench and finally merging with the Obruchev Elevation. The swell rises some 200-300 m above the ocean floor, however, its height increases as it nears the Kamchatka strait. A number of conical mountains and- hills with steep slopes, contrasting against the relatively flattened landscape, have been found on the crest of this swell which we suggest to name the " Zenkevich Submarine Elevation. We believe that these conical mountains are of volcanic origin. Another swell was found on the southern side of the Aleutian Trench, and the third on the eastern side of the Japan Trench. Most likely these swells are connected organically with the morphological complex of the trenches. A submarine ridge runs from the Hawaii to the north-west. It was supposed heretofore, that this ridge, disrupted into separate mountains, ends approximately at the 45? Lat., how- ever, the information obtained by " Witiaz" in 1954 proved that this ridge stretches hundreds of miles across the northern part of the ocean and falls into the Obruchev Elevation. Hence, the depths exceed- ing 6000 m. shown previously on the maps for this region, do not exist ; in fact, there stands a tre- mendous mountain ridge almost 4000 in. high, link- ing the Hawaiian ridge with the Obruchev Elevation. Certain summits of this ridge rise to depths off- standing from the surface 1200-1500 in. The summits of this submarine ridge are flattened, most likely by abrasion. In 1955 the investigations - of the ocean. floor, Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 The relief of the floor and the bottom' deposits in the, north-west pacific south. of the Aleutian. Trench showed that this ridge branches at 49? Lat., the greater branch (2120 in high, and 30 miles wide at the foundation) runs north-westwardly towards the Obruchev Elevation, while the other (2760 in. high and with a foundation width of 35 miles) stretches northwardly to the Aleutian Trench ? in the region of the Near Aleutian Islands (fig. 1). Transversal soundings of these branches proved that their slopes are disrupted by escarpes, some of them several hundred metres high with steepness. reaching 40-45?. Somewhat west, off the north-westward branch we crossed a sub- marine ridge almost twice less in height and further on a number of still lower ridges separated by longitudinal 'depressions were crossed. Hence, it may be supposed ' that the north-westward branch gives, in its turn, other branches. Thus, it has been determined that the northern part of 'the Pacific Ocean is divided by a submarine ridge into north- western and northeastern basins, the ridge stretching from the Hawaiian Islands to the western part of the Aleutian Trench. Both' sides of the ridge are, washed by two separate masses of water, differing as regards their physical-chemical characteristics, and populated by different associations of deep-water fishes and bottom animals. Another important feature of the sea floor relief of the north-western basin' is a vast plateau rising above the ocean floor 1500 metres and stretch- ing north-eastwardly from the 31 to the 44 parallel. The sea floor structure in the investigated part of the. Pacific Ocean is more intricate than the floor structure in the Far Eastern seas, however, it is less complicated than the relief of the continental slope' which is particularly intricate in the Sea of Bering. Various relief elements' can be found on the surface of the ocean floor : closed basins with absolutely flat surfaces, hills, branching depressions, steep es- carpes etc: The variation in the ocean floor depths, in certain cases, reach 200-300 metres. The data on the small forms of the Pacific Ocean's bottom relief has been obtained by means of new methods of echosounding and was unknown heretofore. The zone of highly disrupted sea floor surface in north-west Pacific stretches parallel to the Kurile- Kamchatka Arc, some 100 miles away from the axis of the Kurile-Kamchatka' Trench. - This is a zone of tectonic disruptions of the ocean floor, as can be judged from several profiles, prepared on the basis of the sounding results received by a? transversal tacking of zone in question. The ocean bottom relief is characteristic of separate submarine moun- tains with heights up to 3000 m. and steepness reaching 25?. At present, "Witiaz " has discovered more than 20 such mountains in the investigated part of the ocean. One of the largest mountains, 4500 metres high, east off the Japan Trench we suggest to name after Admiral Isakov. In 1954 " Witiaz " made a study of the area where according to the maps was a group of the " Ganges " Islands,' consisting of four islands and a number of reefs. No islands were found at that place. Moreover, the place mentioned, lacked even more or less noticeable submarine mountains the summits of which could have risen above the surface in the form of islands and rocks or rise to the surface in the form of banks. " Witiaz " has collected abundant material for the study of bottom sediments in the Far Eastern seas and the adjacent north-west Pacific. These. materials were collected with the employment of new devices, designed at the Institute of Oceanology. Mention should be made here of most modern core samplers, of new designs of bottom samplers, of a device for mass collection of water and atmospheric hard suspension samples, of an apparatus for the determination of bottom sediment' thickness, etc. Echo-recorders have been used extensively iri 'the investigation of the nature of the sediments in various depths and in the structure study of the bottom sediments layer for several scores of metres in depth. The data and the samples collected,'have been subjected to an all-round investigation: the study of ' the mechanical composition of all types of sediments, including the deep sea big fragment ary material, and their mineralogy ; chemical and spectroscopic methods are used to study the ele- ments distribution in the sediments, a micropale- ontological analysis of the sediments was also carried out (the study of pollen and spores of ground plants, the remnants of diatom algae and. foramineferas), as well as the study of the organic matter and plant pigments found in the sediments. Atmosphere and water hard suspended matter re- present a rudiment in the initial stage of formation were also studied in detail. The study of the bottom deposits is conducted under the guidance of Pro- fessor P. L. Bezrukov at the laboratory of marine geology under the Institute of Oceanology. The area of the north-west part of the Pacific basin, investigated by " Witiaz " has been covered by a comparatively proportional network of geo- logical stations, their total number exceeding 2600. The investigation of samples' taken from the upperest layer of bottom sediments enabled us to ' prepare distribution charts for various types of contemporary Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 The relief of, the floor and the bottom deposits. in the north-west pacific sediments and their components. The study of mineralogical research is unprecedented. Besides Sediments teVealed a number of new types of facial the allotigenic minerals, the aggregate number of unknown for the studied area. These in- which in the sediments of the Far Eastern seas is clude certain volcanic sediments, pebble-gravel de- almost 100, a number of new, authigenic minerals posits originating from the transporting action of was found and partially studied. These minerals the ice and algae, various biogenic. sediments, the originating at the early stages of the diagenesis bulk of which consists of animal remnants with include glauconite and calcite, described for the Sea silicon (diatom oozes, silicon-sponge sediments), and of .Okhotsk by B. P. - Petelin, and iron sulphides, limy sceletal parts (foramineferal sands, sediments studied by E. A. Ostroumov in the sediments of the composed of sceletal parts of hydrocoralls briozoa, entire investigated- area, and other minerals. ciripedia and various mollusca). During the study of sediment composition, much The combination of diverse. factors of terrigenic, attention was given to chemical investigation con- volcanogenic and biogenic sedimentation under ducted under. the guidance of Doctor E. A. Ostrou- complex conditions of climate, bottom morphology mov. This investigation was characteristic of mul- and water mass dynamics produces a great variety titude in the number of components that were in the distribution of bottom sediment types and in subject of defining (organic carbon, carbonates, their composition. Against the general background authigenic silica, phosphorus, vanadium, titanium, of the distribution of sediment types in the Far diverse compounds and total content of iron, Eastern seas and in the adjacent part. of the Pacific manganese, sulphur, etc.) Detailed chemical research Ocean, the areas of tectonic and volcanic arcs are of the sediments brought to light certain 'new characteristic of singular complexity. Extremely features in the distribution of such elements as iron, varied distribution of sediment types, similar to manganese, phosphorus, vanadium and titanium. that of the geosynclines of the past, as well as of Thus, for instance, as we draw closer to the Kurile- zones of great sediment accumulation and of zones Kamchatka volcanic belt, with the transition from with practically complete absence of contemporary fine sediments to coarse ones, the presence of these sedimentation has been found in these areas. elements does not diminish, as was usually witnessed, In the study of sediment composition much but, to the contrary, increases- radically. ? This is so 'attention was given, to the relation between their owing to the pecularities of the petrographic com- terrigenic components and the composition of the position of the rocks in the supplying provinces coastal rocks. Basing upon the. results of the Petro- and the conditions of their weathering. graphic analysis, (A. P. Lisitsin) of big fragmentary The general pattern of the sediment types dis- material, widely present in the sediments of the tribution in the Far Eastern seas may be described Far Eastern seas, a number of provinces with specific in the following way. Sea floor sectors lacking petrographic composition was detected on the sea sediments, bolder-pebble and gravel-pebble sediments floor, moreover, the paths of transportation of the and the sands are usually characteristic of the near material from coastal supplying provinces were traced shore shallow waters. Their distribution depends also.. This investigation proved the significance of greatly upon the dynamics of the sea floor waters drifting ice and algae for the transportation of big and upon the material transported from the coasts. fragmentary material ; it also established a broad We also find here various biogenic carbonate and distribution in the peripherial part of the ocean of silicon sediments. On the shelfs and in. the sectors rocks transported from the coasts of the Sea of with slow bottom waters we can meet also finer Bering, the Kamchatka and the Kurile Islands. sediments of silt or clay-silt types, distinguished, in The information obtained from the mineralogi- a number of cases, by a sharply expressed process cal analysis of the sediments helped to determine a of iron sulphydes formation (hydrotroilite, marcasite) number of mineralogical provinces in these seas. On and of free hydrogen sulphyde, the latter is usually the basis of study of numerous distribution. charts abundant in the sediments of fjord type bays. The of various minerals (for the Okhotsk Sea, more than dimensions of the sedimentation material decreases 40 charts were prepared by B. P. Petelin, and for with progress to the lower parts of the shelf where the. western part of the Sea of Bering, more than 30 the silts are predominating. were prepared by A. P. Lisitsin) the paths and means It should be noted that the fragmentary material of their transportation into the sediments from the present in the Far Eastern sediments is distinguished supplying provinces were defined. It should be also by great mineralogical diversity. The reason for noted that launching of such large-scale and detailed this is the great variety in the petrographic com- 233 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 position of coast rocks and also by the fact that the fragmentary material coming with the drainage waters in the form of wave and ice abrasion pro- ducts, in the form of volcanic products, etc, does not suffer any noticeable changes in its composition owing to climatic or other conditions. Alongside of silt sediments, the shelf, particular- ly its upper part, is often characteristic of rocky regions surrounded by zones of pebble and gravel sediments and sands. Their distribution is depend- ent upon both, the dynamics of the sea floor waters and on the continental slope relief. Towards the lower part of the continental slope we usually witness a decrease in the coarseness of sediments and the predomination of silty, silty-clay and clay sediments. The fine sediments of the continental slope, in some places, are highly characteristic of iron sulphyde formation. The bottom of the open parts of the Far Eastern seas is usually covered by clay-diatom and diatom oozes with interlayers of volcanic ash. The greenish-gray diatom and clay- diatom oozes in the central parts of the seas have an upper brown oxidyzed layer conditioned by the presence in the oozes of iron and manganese in the higher degrees of oxidation. The thickness of this oxidyzed layer of clay-diatom and diatom oozes ranges from several milimetres to 8-10 centimetres. The content of authigenic (amorphous) silica, present mainly in the shells of the diatom algae and deter- mined in a double 5% soda extract, in the sediments of this type reached 56% in several samples. Ac- cording to data presented by- P. L. Bezrukov the greatest content of authigenic silica is found in the deep-water sediments of the Sea of Okhotsk. These sediments, in the very centre of the sea, are in fact typical diatom oozes with a specific weight of 0.4. According to A. V. Solovyov the maximum content of the authigenic silica in the deep-water sediments of the Sea of Japan reaches 20-25 6, while in the Sea of Bering (according to A. P. Lisitsin)-34%. Against the general background of fine sedi- ments with pelitic fractions content reaching 85;0, there are cases when silts and even sands are found in the open parts of the seas. The existence of this phenomenon is - explained by the presence of substantial submarine elevations of such type as the Shirshov ridge in the Sea of Bering, and of such elevations as the " Academy of Sciences " and " Insti- tute of Oceanology", in the Sea of Okhotsk. Another reason for this may serve the relatively high velocity of bottom waters caused by other factors than the decrease in the cross section of the water mass above the submarine elevations . Within the area of the Kurile mountain complex with an intricate sea floor relief and strong tidal currents, the region of the sea floor deprived of sediments or covered. by very coarse sediments such as bolders, pebbles and -gravel are found even in depths of 1000-3000 metres. These sediments have been detected not only upon positive forms of the submarine relief (submarine mountains and vol- canoes), but upon negative forms (trench slopes deep straits) too. Here, sands are found in depths up to 3200 metres, while silts have been registered in depths reaching 5000-6000 metres. Common for these regions are carbonate sediments composed of sceletal parts of ciripedia, of various mollusca, hy- drocoralls, briozoa, foramineferas and others. In certain places 80% of the sediment content, consist of the skeletal elements of the silica sponges, which may be considered analagous to the spongolites (B. P. Petelin). The main role in the formation of such sediments is played by the remnants of sponges, (Monoctinnelida and Tetractinnelida). Mineralogical composition of sediments in this area as compared with the same for the sediments of the continental shelf zones and for the sediments in the open parts of the Far Eastern seas is rather poor. This is explained by the fact that the prin- ciple role in the sediment formation is played here by the products of volcanic activity, their composi- tion corresponding most of all to pyroscenic ande- sites. This is why the basic minerals of these sediments include only volcanic glasses, fragments of volcanic rocks, plagioclases, pyrocsenes and mag- netite. In small quantities we find admixtures of quartz, potassium feldspar, common and basaltic hornblendes. Such elements as titanite, rutile, zircon, analcime and others are very rare. The presence of authigenic glauconite, the formation of which in the sediment takes place at the early stages of its diagenesis (B. P. Petelin), was found in the southern part of the Kurile Archipelago area. This glauconite, as compared with the glauconites found in other places, is distinguished by a low content of K2O (1.85%). Judging by the debyegramm, its structure is very close to that of nontronite. The sea floor sectors lacking sediments are being met in great depths and trenches. Thus, during the deep sea trawling on the western slope of the Japan Trench, the trawl brought fragments of argilite rock type from depth of 6600 metres. Similar rocks were delivered by bottom samplers from the " Witiaz " submarine ridge and by trawls from the western slope of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench. Deep sea trawling on the southern slope of the Aleutian Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Approved For Release 2009/07/31: CIA-RDP80T00246AO07500290001-7 Trench gave fragments of magmatic' rocks with a fresh break on one of the sides, as well as fragments of green and pink tuffogenic argillites from depths close to 7000 metres. Exceedingly steep tilts of the escarpes, characteristic of the. trench slopes, prevent the accumulation of sediments and the bottom rocks stand bare. Sediments of diverse mechanical com- position may be found here depending upon the tilt angles and the relief of the trench slopes. The floor of trenches is covered by weak diatom clay oozes with a very thin (several milimetres) oxidyzed brown layer with volcanic ash interlayers. The investigation in the western part of the Aleutian and the northern part of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench revealed a widely spread development of peculiar sediments. The origination of these sedi- ments is traced to the submarine slips from the slopes of trenches (B.P. Petelin and E.A. Ostroumov). These sediments are present in the form of semi- liquid clay mud with an admixture of silt and sand, particularly in the lower part of the horizon, re- deposited from slip suspensions with mechanical differentiation of material. During the same inves- tigations, a new authigentic mineral, unknown in literature, was found in the dense clay-diatom ooze of the Kurile-Kamchatka Trench, 45-55 centimetres below the surface of the sediment. The mineral was present in the sediment in the form of irregular, transparent crystals of yellowish colour with the sediment matter penetrating a certain depth of its surface, the dimension of the crystals reached one centimetre. There was no time to subject it to a microscopic analysis and it. was left for one day in the .laboratory. By next. day the crystals turned into a white powder. When. several small partially decomposed and nontransparent fragments, extracted from the powder, were subjected by B. P. Petelin to a microscopic analysis; they were classed with carbonates and the rhomboid singonium of the crystals was determined. Accurate determination of optical constants was already impossible because by that time the mineral had lost its principle optical properties. E. A. Ostroumov, by means of qualitative chemical analysis, confirmed that this mineral be- longs to the carbonate group. The mineral proved to be a calcium carbonate with an admixture of manganese and traces of sodium. Inasmuch-as crushed shell material of molluscs was found in the sediment, it may be supposed, that this material served the origin for the formation of the abovementioned mineral. Hence, the mineral is a calcium hydrocarbonate, the existence. of which appears to be. possible only under high pressure conditions. which at that spot (8000 m.) exceeded 800 atmospheres.. Under the conditions of normal atmospheric pressure, the mineral lost its crystaliza- tion water and quickly decomposed. ' .The - ocean floor . is covered by clay sediments Fig. 8. The distribution of amorphous silica sediments in the surface layer. /~ II O l j /II C` t III ri ~ \ ~ I t ~ ~ I III i ll l ,~ t ?- 7, _ 3 I li. ` Z I I iIIIII \ ? \ `1t.\ III 1 .. ` q KeHHbIX nopOJ[ H HX Ty().)OB, TO Ha KaMtiaTKe MO}KHO Ha6JHoaaTb o6nlHpHble rIJ[oluaAH, CJIo}K'eHHble OCaAOIIHbIMH H McTaMOp(1H4eCKHMH nopoaaMH [9, 30 H ap.]. 17P0AyKTbI pa3pyLIIeHHSr nOCJreAHHX OKa3bIBaIOT McCTaMH 3aMeTHOe BJIHSIHIIe Ha 'COCTaB O6JIOMOLIHOrO MaTepHaJIa, CHH>Kaq KOHueHTpauHH }Kejre3oco4ep}Kawvlx MHHepaJIOB. 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