• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.680-690
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• 2022

Tephrochronology uses regional tephra for age dating and stratigraphic correlations. Regional tephras are important in Quaternary geology and archaeology because they can be used as stratigraphic time-markers. In this review, identification and dating methods of tephra are summarized. In addition, the characteristics of regional tephras in terrestrial deposits of the Korean Peninsula are elaborated, and geological applications and limitations of the regional tephra layers are also discussed. So far, AT, Ata, and Kb-Ks tephra layers from Kyushu, Japan have been found in Pleistocene paleosol, marine terrace deposits, and lacustrine deposits in Korea. Also, although not officially confirmed, Aso-4 tephra is likely to occur in terrestrial deposits. The regional tephra layers are vital for dating, especially with regard to sediments over 50 ka beyond the range of radiocarbon dating, and for dating of active faults. Furthermore, it can provide important information for preparing countermeasures against volcanic disasters. However, in order to use the tephra layer geologically, it must be confirmed whether it is a primary deposit based on sedimentological study.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.225-232
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• 2003

Three piston cores. obtained from the northwestern Ulleung Basin of the East Sea, are analyzed to study the tephrostratigraphy of the late Quaternary core sediments and to reveal the comparative characteristics of the tephra layers. The cores consist mainly of the muddy sediments that are partly interbedded with lapilli tephra and ash layers. The muds are further divided into hemipelagic and turbiditic mud facies. The hemipelagic facies is dominated by bioturbated mud and crudely laminated mud, whereas the turbiditic facies includes mainly thinly laminated mud and homogeneous mud, and often alternates with non-turbiditic muds. According to microscopic observation and EDX analysis, three tephra layers of the Ulleung-Oki (U-Oki; ca. 9.3 ka), Aira-Tanzawa (AT: ca. 22~24.7 ka) and Ulleung-Yamato (U-Ym; ca. 25~33 ka) are identified in the study cores. Among these, the U-Oki and U-Ym layers, originating from the Ulleung Island, consist mainly of massive-type glass shards with alkali feldspar. Both of the tephra layers contain a lower content of SiO$_2$ (57~66.5 wt.%) and a higher content of Na$_2$O+K$_2$O (11~16 wt.%) than the AT layer (SiO$_2$=75~78.5 wt.%, Na$_2$O+K$_2$O=6.5~9 wt.%) that consists of typical plane-type and/or bubble-wall glass grains. Compared with that of the U-Ym layer, a sedimentary facies of the U-Oki layer is very thick and contains three stratigraphic units, probably due to relatively large and different supplies of pyroclastic sediments. Thus, the eruption of Ulleung Volcano (ca. 7,300 B.C.) is thought to have had a more powerful effect on depositional environment than the U-Ym eruption.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.171-177
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• 2002

Two piston-core sediments, obtained from the southwestern margin of the Ulleung Basin in East Sea, are analyzed to investigate the stratigraphy and sedimentary environment of the Late Quaternary. The cores consist mainly of cuddy sediments with silty sands, lapilli tephra and ash layers. The chronostratigraphic correlation with known eruption ages reveals that the core sediments contain the stratigraphic document over the past 46.1 kyr and the sedimentation rates during the last glacial period were relatively higher (12.1-14.9 cm/kyr) than those in pelagic ocean. Several sedimentary facies, mainly affected by turbidity currents, are commonly present in the core interval accumulated during the oxygen-isotope stage 2. Many of horizontal voids, which are thought to have formed by gas expansion, are observed in fore 00GHP-07. The total organic carbon (TOC) contents of the core sediments are noticeably high (average 1 .8%). Particularly, these TOC valuers increased during Termination I, suggesting that dering this time interval the sedimentary environment of the study area was changed to more anoxic.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.829-837
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• 2011

A study on the grain size change, sedimentary facies and age indicator of volcanic tephra was analysis through four cores (P1 ~ P4) at the Ulleung Basin in the East Sea of Korea. The two cores (P1 and P2) were collected in the northeastern side of the Ulleung Basin (about 2,000 m in water depth), while the other two cores (P3 and P4) with the water depth of about 1,500 m and 1,700 m, respectively, were collected from the continental slope of the southwestern and western side of the Ulleung Basin. Four sedimentary facies and eight sedimentary subfacies were identified. The four facies were massive sand, bioturbated mud, homogeneous mud, and laminated mud. The eight subfacies were further divided as pumiceous ash massive sand, scorieaous massive sand, plain bioturbated mud, pyrite filamented bioturbated mud, distinctly laminated mud, indistinctly laminated mud, thinly laminated mud and homogeneous mud. The homogeneous mud was not found in the core of P3 which is located in the western side of Ulleung Basin (close to the Korean coast). In the case of laminated mud facies, the thinly laminated mud facies was dominated in the lower part of core sequences of the Ulleung Basin (P1 and P2), while the indistinctly laminated mud were overally distributed in the core sequences from the continental slope of Ulleung Basin. The Tephra layers from the core sequences of central Ulleung Basin were more dominated and distinctive than those from the core sequences of continental slope. This is related to the distance from the volcanic source and the amount of sediment supply. The core locations of Ulleung-Oki Tephra layers in the central Ulleung Basin were in the upper part of core sequences, while those in the continental slope were in the lower part of core sequences. This is indicated that the amounts of sediment supply in the continental slope after the Ulleung-Oki eruption were very high and different sedimentary environment between upper and lower of Tephra layer.

• The Korean Journal of Quaternary Research
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.1-24
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• 2009

Paleosol layers lying on top of the terrace in Jeongdongjin area appear to have been deposited under generally well-drained condition with periodic waterlogging. From a 4.5m-long profile observed, a total of 6 stratigraphic units were identified. Grain-size analysis indicates the dominance of silty and clay materials with some portions with high sand content. Major mineralogical elements are quartz, feldspar, mica and chlorite. Geo-chemical composition shows little change throughout the stratigraphy with some fluctuation in chemical weathering index. Marked increase in magnetic susceptibility is recognizable where stratigraphic unit changes. Soil- wedge layer is developed around 50cm below the surface with concentration of grains of AT tephra (c. 25,000 BP). An OSL date of c. 110,000 BP was obtained from a sand layer lying below the paleosol.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.270-279
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• 2016

This study explained vertical distributions and growth environments for woody vegetation. It had been degenerated by long-term volcanic activity of Sakurajima; vegetation and thicknesses of tephra layers and forest soils were investigated at 5 sites (250-700 m in altitude) with different altitudes localized at the northwestern-northern flanks of Sakurajima in Kagoshima Prefecture. The results in 2015 were compared with the vertical distribution of woody vegetation in 1963, when the volcanic activity of Sakurajima was relatively moderate. Thus, we investigated temporal changes in the vertical distribution of woody vegetation owing to volcanic activity over about 50 years (1963-2015). We indicated altitude decreased, the number of woody vegetation, number of species, sum of cross-sectional area of tree diameter at breast height, Fisher-Williams's diversity index ${\alpha}$, and forest soil thickness increased. However, these values were found to be degenerated when compared to climax forest values, and succession was incomplete. It seems that because the woody vegetation of the flank was affected by volcanic activity for a long time, exposing them to severe growth environments, areas with lower altitudes became distant from the craters of Sakurajima, thereby weakening the effect of volcanic activity in these areas at lower altitudes. a at the same altitudes over about 50 years (1963-2015) decreased by about 31-72%, and the sum of the cross-sectional area in tree diameter at breast heights decreased by about 14-62%. Thus, comparative growth environments for woody vegetation in 2015 were more severe than that of 1963, with respect to tephra layer thickness. In addition, for vegetation succession in the flank of Sakurajima, vegetation restoration should be promoted through the introduction of artificial woody plants covered by symbiotic microorganisms or organic materials.

• 한국석유지질학회:학술대회논문집
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• autumn
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• pp.56-62
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• 2001

울릉분지 남서부 해역에서 채취한 두 개의 피스톤 코어 (piston core) 시료를 이용하여 퇴적학 및 지화학적 특성을 연구하였다. 코어는 제4기말의 이질 퇴적물로 대부분 구성되어 있고, 테프라 (tephra layer)와 사질 퇴적물이 일부 협재되어 나타난다. 기존 확인된 울릉분지의 테프라를 이용하여 층서 대비를 한 결과, 두 코어는 대양보다는 높은 퇴적률 (10-12cm/kyr)을 갖는다. 이는 코어가 약 4만 4천년 전의 기록부터 시작하고 있음을 의미한다. 동위원소 층서 2 (마지막 빙기) 중에 형성된 구간에서는 저탁류의 영향을 많이 받은 여러 종류의 퇴적상들이 교호하여 나타난다. 코어의 하부 구간에서는 가스의 방출에 의하여 형성된 것으로 사료되는 수평균열이 다수 관찰된다. 두 코어에서 측정된 유기탄소 (organic carbon) 함량은 평균 $1.8\% $(0.1-4.5\%)$으로 열린 바다 (open sea) 퇴적물의 유기탄소 함량보다 높다. 이는 Termination I 시기 때 해수면 상승으로 인해 산소가 다소 결핍된 환경으로 전이되면서 유기탄소의 양이 증가하였음을 보여주는 것으로 해석된다.

• Journal of The Geomorphological Association of Korea
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.63-75
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• 2018

The lower marine terrace 1 and 2 surfaces distributed between Ulsan and Pohang coast in the southeastern coast of the Korean penninsula have been correlated with MIS 5e and 5a (or 5c) by amino acid dates, 14C dates, wide-spread tephra correlation and pollen analysis respectively. In this study, to test the reliability of the OSL method for the estimation of the numerical burial age of marine sediment deposits, we analyzed the samples from the marine terraces which have been known as typical marine terraces formed during MIS 5e and MIS 5a in the above-mentioned coast. The burial ages of the marine deposit of the lower marine terrace 1 and 2, with paleoshoreline altitudes of 18m to 19m and 10m to 11m respectively, both showed about the same age of 60 ka BP. The lower marine terraces 1 and 2, however, were divided into two terrace surfaces by a clear terrace cliff. Besides, the OSL dates of the lower and upper parts of the lower marine terrace 2 of the Bonggil coast showed the reversed burial ages. In the lower marine terrace 1 of the Sanhari coast, almost the same burial ages were derived from both the lower part (marine rounded gravel layer) and the upper part (terrestrial angular gravel layer) of the terrace deposit. Therefore, at the present time, judging from only the OSL dates measured in this study, it could be argued that the OSL method is not the best for the estimation of forming periods of the lower marine terraces 1 and 2 and their classification.