Sea Level Changes since the Late Pleistocene in the Japanese Islands and the Related Problems

Abstract

The symposium of“Sea level changes since the Postglacial age in the Japanese Islands and some problems around them”was held on 25 August 1981 in commemoration of the annual meeting of the Quaternary Research Association of Japan at Toyama-shi, Central Japan.The purpose of this symposium is to discuss three thema as follows:The first theme is open discussions on the result of the study of studies IGCP 61 in Japan.The result of“Study on the recognition and dating of Holocene sea level in Japan Islands”was comprised. This study was investigated from 1977 to 1979 as a grant-in-aid for co-operative research, B and A the Ministry of Education, and was also related with the study of the world-wide sea level change; International Geological Correlation Program 61.The second theme is the depth of the sea level around the Japanese Islands during the Maximum Wurm age.There are two opinions about the sea level of the Maximum Wurm age. One is that it's more 100m deeper than the present sea level and the other, 80±5m deeper than the present sea level. These two opinions are discussed on the basis of the submarine features and the depth of the alluvial deposits around the river mouths in the Japanese Islands.The third theme is humidity changes at the Japan Sea side since Postglacial age. A heavy snow zone is along the Japan Sea. What age does heavy snow along the Japan Sea date back to? This problem relates with the time when cirques on the Japan Alps built, and whether Tsushima warm current flowed into Japan Sea or not in the Maximum Wurm age, in other words, whether the Korean straight was closed or not in the Maximum Wurm.