[G04-12] Geoscientific Outreach of the Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu
Keywords:geoscience, geomorphology, outreach
Gusuku sites and related monuments represent five hundred years of Ryukyuan history (12th-17th century). The UNESCO world heritage consists of five castles (Nakijin-jô, Zakimi-jô, Katsuren-jô, Nakagusuku-jô and Shuri-jô), two related monuments (Sonohyan-Utaki-Ishimon and Tamaudun) and two cultural landscapes (Shikinaen and Seifa-Utaki). The castles and monuments are made of limestone, and the landscapes are located in Quaternary limestone areas. This presentation focuses on Shuri-jô and Seifa-Utaki. The two sites are located on upper Quaternary limestone (Ryukyu Groups) and lower Neogene mudstone (Shimajiri Groups), which is a typical setting of the Ryukyu Arc. These sites present suitable fields studying mass movements, such as rockfalls of limestone and landslides of mudstone. These slope processes result mainly from decomposition of limestone and disintegration of mudstone. The author interpreted such geomorphic processes in a NHK program "buratamori", and will report the methodology for outreach of geoscience.