Japan Geoscience Union Meeting 2025

Presentation information

[J] Poster

H (Human Geosciences ) » H-TT Technology & Techniques

[H-TT17] Geographic Information System and Cartography

Thu. May 29, 2025 5:15 PM - 7:15 PM Poster Hall (Exhibition Hall 7&8, Makuhari Messe)

convener:Mamoru Koarai(Earth Science course, College of Science, Ibaraki University), Kazunari Tanaka(Department of Civil Engineering and Urban Design, Faculty of Engineering, Osaka Institute of Technology), Kazuhiko W. Nakamura(The University of Tokyo), Tomohiko Arahori(Department of Geography, Nihon University College of Humanities and Sciences)

5:15 PM - 7:15 PM

[HTT17-P01] Creation of a geocycling map on the Mt. Tsukuba Regional Geopark: Examples of Hojo and Konda District, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture

Akira Igarashi1, *Mamoru Koarai1, Shigeki Senna2 (1.Earth Science course, College of Science, Ibaraki University, 2.NIED)

Keywords:Mt. Tsukuba Regional Geopark, geocycling map, Sakuragawa Lowland, Tsukuba Kasumigaura Ring Ring Road, microtremor observation

Mt. Tsukuba Regional Geopark is composed of three zones: mountains (Mt. Tsukuba), lakes (Lake Kasumigaura), and plains (Kanto Plain, Sakuragawa Lowlands). Mt. Tsukuba Regional Geopark was recently approved for recertification, but issues remained at the time of the previous recertification, such as reviewing the site due to the redefinition of the geosite and considering the form of diverse geotourism. In particular, with regard to geotourism, the use of Tsukuba Kasumigaura Ring Ring Road is being considered. Therefore, this study was conducted with the aim of constructing a geostory and creating a geocycling map in the area adjacent to Tsukuba Kasumigaura Ring Ring Road, leading to the resolution of issues in Mt. Tsukuba Regional Geopark.
The target areas for creating the geocycling map were the Hojo and Konda areas of Tsukuba City. In the Hojo area, there is a geocycling tour home page site created by Dr. Kodama, a former vice president of the AIST, and a master's degree project by Miss. Imoto, a graduate student at the University of Tsukuba, and the authors created a prototype geocycling map based on these examples. Although the Konda area is not currently a geosite, it is an area that can be considered to have all three elements of a geopark: geo (landform evolution and springs), eco (the ecosystem of historical green spaces), and people (the Konda Government Office Ruins and Ancient Tombs). Using outcrop observation and microtremor observation (microtremor array), a geostory and geocycling map was created with the results of the observations as evidence.
The Joso Clay Layer (upper part of the Joso Layer) is a poorly permeable layer, while the Kioroshi Layer below the Joso Layer serves as an aquifer; horizontal wells have been dug from here to convey groundwater. There are many springs at the bottom of the cliff of the middle terrace, which has led to the formation of a settlement. The underground structure was estimated from the S-wave velocity structure obtained from microtremor observations. It was confirmed that there are buried terraces around the low terraces, and that there is a buried valley below the cliff of the middle terrace, which was deeply eroded by the ancient Kinu River in the glacial period. For map representation, a shaded relief map was used for the front figure, and the CS stereogram map for the back figure, so that the undulations of the microtopography of the lowlands could be properly depicted.
By selecting spots with consideration for the three components of a geopark, a geocycling map of the Konda area was created that introduces geostories and local resources. This geocycling map may be useful for proposing new geosites and for geotourism linked to the Tsukuba Kasumigaura Ring Ring Road.