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Material Cycle Science Lab (Urumu Tsunogai)
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The lab uses isotopes and chemical analysis to uncover how materials flow through the atmosphere, oceans, and land.
AboutAbout the lab
Measuring the flow of materials around the Earth.
The lab studies how materials move among the atmosphere, oceans, and land, and the mechanisms behind that movement.
The cycling of light elements such as carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, and hydrogen, and of their compounds, is closely tied to the environment at the Earth's surface.
Through observation, experiments, and numerical analysis, the lab explores how the global environment has changed in the past, is changing now, and will change in the future. It also develops new methods for measuring material cycles.
The lab examines a wide range of subjects, including lakes, rivers, hot springs, atmospheric fine particles, corals, and marine organic matter.
Key terms
- Stable isotopes
- Atoms of the same element that differ slightly in weight and do not decay. Their ratios can be used to trace the origin and transformation of materials.
- Aerosols
- Fine particles suspended in the atmosphere, such as dust, smoke, and tiny water droplets.
- Biogenic carbonates
- Masses of calcium carbonate produced by living organisms, such as coral skeletons and shells.
NewsLab news
A study by Prof. Tsunogai and colleagues that clarified the mechanism by which nitrate in river water increases when it rains has been published
A doctoral student received the Outstanding Student Presentation Award at the Volcanological Society of Japan Fall Meeting
A paper estimating the body temperatures of Jurassic and Cretaceous marine reptiles from the isotopic composition of phosphate has been published
A master's student received the Student Encouragement Award at the Annual Meeting of the Geochemical Society of Japan
A master's student received the Outstanding Student Presentation Award at the JpGU Meeting 2025
ResearchResearch themes
Aiming for a comprehensive understanding of the Earth and for predictions of its future, the lab uses observation, experiments, and numerical analysis to clarify the mechanisms of material cycling among the atmosphere, oceans, and land, and the diversity of its variability. It also works on developing new methods for quantifying material cycles.
*Illustrative imageMeasuring material cycles with stable isotopes
Using the atmosphere, oceans, lakes, rivers, forests, and hot springs as study sites, the lab uses stable isotopes of light elements as indicators to quantify the rates of material cycles driven by biological activity. The results are used to evaluate the environment's capacity for self-recovery and to understand interactions between the Earth and the biosphere.
*Illustrative imageAerosols such as Asian dust and PM2.5
The lab focuses on atmospheric fine particles such as Asian dust and PM2.5, and also studies the source gases, rain, and snow. It covers the whole process from particle formation through transformation in the atmosphere to deposition on the ground, and also develops observation methods and instruments.
*Illustrative imageOrigins of environmental substances and the speed of their cycling
The lab investigates where substances that strongly affect the Earth's environment and human living environments come from, and how quickly they cycle through the atmosphere, oceans, and land. It quantifies the amounts of substances emitted by human activities and evaluates their impacts.
*Illustrative imageCoral reefs and climate change
The lab studies the relationships among climate change, material cycles in low-latitude oceans, and coastal ecosystems, including humans. Its main methods are fieldwork, chemical analysis of biogenic carbonates such as corals and bivalves, and observation of their structures.
MembersFaculty
- ProfessorUrumu Tsunogai
- ProfessorKazuo Osada
- Associate ProfessorFumiko Nakagawa
- LecturerAtsuko Yamazaki
- Assistant ProfessorOsamu Abe
- Assistant ProfessorTamihito Nishida
- Project Assistant ProfessorSayako Ueda
- Project Assistant ProfessorTakashi Sambuichi
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “EA-IRMS, isotope ratio mass spectrometer with elemental analyzer for the determination of isotope ratios of stable isotopes in wines, spirits, honey and natural sweeteners, in CAFIA laboratory” Sarka Na kopci / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Measuring material cycles with stable isotopes: “Gas-samples-for-stable-isotope-analysis-are-collected-from-tundra o ( )” Oak Ridge National Laboratory / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Aerosols such as Asian dust and PM2.5: “Plume Flow 2 personal air pollution sensor and smartphone map” Explain That Stuff / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Origins of environmental substances and the speed of their cycling: “Air pollution3” Janak Bhatta / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Coral reefs and climate change: “Coral Outcrop Flynn Reef” Toby Hudson / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Geology and Geobiology Lab): “Rock Strata in Glen Nevis” Bill Kasman / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Global Environmental Change Lab): “GRINNELL GLACIER LANDSCAPE B FOOTAGE ( )” GlacierNPS / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Global Water Cycle Science Division, Atmospheric Chemistry Lab): “Haze over China” Jeff Schmaltz / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (Global Water Cycle Science Division, Oceanography Lab): “Infrared satellite image from the Pacífic Ocean” GOES Satellites / Public domain (cropped)
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