Provenance of colorless and brown volcanic glass in late Pleistocene tephra layers in the Western Philippine Sea

Tephra layers in the western Philippine Sea,characterized by abundant volcanic glass shards,may provide crucial evidence on the eruption history of volcanoes and tectonic evolution of the western Pacific.A 220-ka sediment core from the Benham Rise in the western Philippine Sea offers new insights into the provenance of four intercalated tephra layers(T1–T4,in chronological order)containing either colorless or brown glass shards.Relative to primitive mantle,all glass shards are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements,such as Rb,Cs,and Pb,and depleted in high field-strength elements,such as Th,Nb,and Ta,indicating a subduction-related origin.The colorless glass shards are characterized by high SiO_(2)(>78%)and light rare earth element(LREE)contents as well as high La/Sm ratios(>9),low FeO and MgO contents(<1%),low Sr/Y(<15)and high Ba/Th ratios(>100),pointing to a rhyolitic composition and a medium-K calc-alkaline serial affinity.In contrast,the brown glass shards are characterized by lower SiO_(2)(<63%)and LREE contents,higher FeO,MgO,and CaO contents,lower La/Sm(<6)and Ba/Th(<75),and similar Sr/Y ratios(<15),indicating derivation from medium to high-K calc-alkaline andesite magma.Brown glass shards from layers T3(152 ka)and T4(172 ka)were correlated with volcanic deposits from the Taal and Laguna Caldera in the Maccolod Corridor,respectively,while the colorless glass shards from layers T1(36.5 ka)and T2(61.2 ka)were likely sourced from the Irosin Caldera in the Bicol Arc.Establishing the provenance of late Pleistocene tephra layers in the western Philippine Sea is helpful to complement a Philippine volcanic history and establish a regional tephrochronostratigraphy.

The formation and tectonic evolution of Philippine Sea Plate and KPR

The Philippine Sea Plate has an extremely special tectonic background. As an oceanic plate,it is almost entirely surrounded by subduction zones with complex internal tectonic features. On the basis of enormous published literature,this paper offers a comprehensive overview of the tectonic and evolution history of the Philippine Basin and the Kyushu-Palau Ridge（KPR） in the Philippine Sea Plate,and discusses the geological features of KPR. Referring to relevant definitions of various ＂ridges＂ stipulated in United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,so the KPR is believed to be a remnant arc formed during the opening of the Parece Vela and Shikoku Basins in the Philippine Sea Plate. It is a submarine ridge on oceanic plate rather than a submarine elevation. And thus,it is not a natural component of the Japan continental margin.

Abyssal Circulation in the Philippine Sea

The abyssal circulation in the Philippine Sea(PS)is investigated,with outputs from the Simple Ocean Data Assimilation version 2.2.4(SODA224).The deep-water currents in SODA224 are carefully evaluated,with sparse in situ observations in the North Pacific Ocean.In the upper deep layer(20003000 m)of the PS,a strong westward current,which originates from the Northeast Pacific Basin and enters the PS through the Yap-Mariana Junction,exists along 1114 N.This strong westward current bifurcates into two western boundary currents off the Philippines.The northward-flowing current flows out of the PS around 2021 N,whereas the southward-flowing current transports deep water from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere.In the lower deep layer(30004500 m),the inflow water first flows northward to the east of the Western Mariana Basin and then turns westward at approximately 18 N.The inflow water mainly enters the Philippine Basin(PB),with a small part turning southward to constitute a weak cyclonic circulation.The water entering the PB mainly merges into a strong southward western boundary current in the south-ern PB.In the bottom layer(below 4500 m),both the northeast and northwest PB show single cyclonic gyres,whereas the south PB shows a single anticyclonic gyre.Moreover,comparisons with the observations indicate the possible existence of a cyclonic sense of circulation over the Philippine Trench.The current study provides the implications for future observations,which are needed to fur-ther investigate the temporospatial variations of the abyssal circulation in the PS on multiple scales.

Paleoproductivity evolution in the West Philippine Sea during the last 700 ka

In order to reconstruct the paleoproductivity evolution history of the West Philippine Sea during the last 700 ka, the vertical gradient of Δδ13C in dissolved inorganic carbon Δδ13C between those of foraminifera Pulleniatina obliquiloculata and Cibicidoides wuellerstorfi） and planktonic foraminiferal assemblages were analysed in piston Core MD06-3047 retrieved from the Benham Rise （east of the Luzon Island）. Paleoproductivity evolution in the West Philippine Sea during the last 700 ka is closely related to glacial-interglacial cycles and precession-controlled insolation. Controlling factors ofpaleoproductivity could have been both thermocline fluctuations related with ENSO-Iike processes and eolian input associated with East Asian winter monsoon, and the former could have been the primary factor. A higher productivity and a shallower thermocline coeval with the occurrence of low CO2 concentrations in the EPICA Dome C ice core might indicate that biological export production in the low-latitude could act as a significant sink in the global carbon cycle, and modify atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Spectral analysis further reveals that the paleoproductivity is mainly controlled by thermocline fluctuations subjected to ENSO processes responding to processional variability of insolation. High coherences in eccentricity, obliquity and precession periods fiuther revealing the close link between thermocline fluctuations, paleoproductivity and atmospheric CO2 levels.

Observation of the abyssal western boundary current in the Philippine Sea

Mooring observations were conducted from July 16, 2011 to March 30, 2012 east of Mindanao, Philippines （127°2.8＇E, 8°0.3＇N） to observe the abyssal current at about 5 600 m deep and 500 m above the ocean bottom. Several features were revealed： 1） the observed abyssal current was highly variable with standard deviations of 57.3 mrn/s and 34.0 ram/s, larger than the mean values of-31.9 and 16.6 mm/s for the zonal and meridional components, respectively; 2） low-frequency current longer than 6 days exhibited strong seasonal variation, flowing southeastward （mean flow direction of 119.0° clockwise from north） before about October 1, 2011 and northwestward （mean flow direction of 60.5° counter-clockwise from north） thereafter; 3） the high-frequency flow bands were dominated by tidal currents O1, K1, M2, and S2, and near-inertial currents, whose frequencies were higher than the local inertial frequency. The two diurnal tidal constituents were much stronger than the two semidiumal ones. This study provides for the first time an observational insight into the abyssal western boundary current east of Mindanao based on long-term observations at one site. It is meaningful for further research into the deep and abyssal circulation over the whole Philippine Sea and the 3D structure of the westem boundary current system in this region. More observational and high-resolution model studies are needed to examine the spatial structure and temporal variation of the abyssal current over a much larger space and longer period, their relation to the upper-layer circulation, and the underlying dynamics.

Structural characteristics of the KPR-CBR triple-junction inferred from gravity and magnetic interpretations,Philippine Sea Plate

The intersection of the Kyushu-Palau Ridge(KPR)and the Central Basin Rift(CBR)of the West Philippine Basin(WPB)is a relic of a trench-trench-rift(TTR)type triple-junction,which preserves some pivotal information on the cessation of the seafloor spreading of the WPB,the emplacement and disintegration of the proto-Izu-Bonin-Mariana(IBM)Arc,and the transition from initial rifting to steady-state spreading of the Parece Vela Basin(PVB).However,the structural characteristics of this triple-junction have not been thoroughly understood.In this paper,using the newly acquired multi-beam bathymetric,gravity,and magnetic data obtained by the Qingdao Institute of Marine Geology,China Geological Survey,the authors depict the topographic,gravity,and magnetic characteristics of the triple-junction and adjacent region.Calculations including the upward continuations and total horizontal derivatives of gravity anomaly are also performed to highlight the major structural features and discontinuities.Based on these works,the morphological and structural features and their formation mechanisms are analyzed.The results show that the last episode amagmatic extension along the CBR led to the formation of a deep rift valley,which extends eastward and incised the KPR.The morphological and structural fabrics of the KPR near and to the south of the triple-junction are consistent with those of the western PVB,manifesting as a series of NNE-SSW-and N-S-trending ridges and troughs,which were produced by the extensional faults associated with the initial rifting of the PVB.The superposition of the above two reasons induced the prominent discontinuity of the KPR in deep and shallow crustal structures between 15°N‒15°30′N and 13°30′N‒14°N.Combined with previous authors’results,we propose that the stress produced by the early spreading of the PVB transmitted westward and promoted the final stage amagmatic extension of the CBR.The eastward propagation of the CBR destroyed the KPR,of which the magmatism had decayed or ceased at that time.The destruction mechanism of the KPR associated with the rifting of the PVB varies along strike the KPR.Adjacent to the triple-junction,the KPR was destroyed mainly due to the oblique intersection of the PVB rifting center.Whereas south of the triple-junction,the KPR was destroyed by the E-W-directional extensional faulting on its whole width.

Geochemistry and Origin of Layers in Single Manganese Nodule from the Philippine Sea and Manganese Nodules from Offshore Minami-Torishima, Western Pacific

Layers from one manganese nodule dredged from the Philippine Sea（16°56＇N, 129°48＇E; water depth, 5700 m） and 45 bulk nodules from offshore Minami-Torishima Island, Japan（23°3＇N, 153°22＇E; water depth, 1200 m） were analyzed chemically and their origin is discussed based on geochemical constraints. In general, Cu, Ni, Zn and Mo tend to increase with increasing Mn content, while Co, Pb, Ba, V, Sc, Th, and the rare earth elements（REEs） show less variation with increasing Mn content. Nodule 42 H from the Philippine Sea has an average Mn/Fe ratio close to 1 and shows a positive Ce anomaly, suggesting a predominant hydrogenous origin. Profiles of 230Th230 ex and Thex/232 Th ratios in the outer ~0.3 mm of nodule 42 H indicate a steady growth rate of ~1.7 mm/Myr. Nodule E30 from offshore Minami-Torishima is characterized by lower Mn, Fe, Mn/Fe（0.53） and Mo/V（0.2） ratios but higher P and Cu/Ni（0.31） ratio relative to other nodules from that area. The Ce content of E30 is unusually low（82 ppm） when compared with other nodules from the area and it is the only nodule analyzed with a negative Ce anomaly（-0.64）. Based on the geochemical data we suggest that most nodules from offshore Minami-Torishima are primarily of hydrogenous origin except E30, which is dominated by hydrothermal input, and E45, which has about a 35% hydrothermal contribution.

Mineral provinces and matter provenance of the surficial sediments in the western Philippine Sea:implication for modern sedimentation in West Pacific marginal basin

The characteristics and distribution patterns of detrital minerals （0. 063 -0. 125 mm） in marine sediments provide a significant indicator for the identification of the origin of sediment. The detrital mineral composition of 219 surface sediment samples was ana- lysed to identify the distribution of sediments within the western Philippine Sea. The area can be divided into three mineral provinces ： （Ⅰ） province east of the Philippine Trench, the detrital minerals in this province are mainly composed of calcareous or siliceous organisms, with the addition of volcanogenic minerals from an adjacent island arc; （Ⅱ） middle mineral province, clastic minerals including feldspar, quartz and colorless volcanic glass, sourced from seamounts with intermediate-acid volcanic rock, or erupting intermediate-acid volcano; （Ⅲ） province west of the Palau--Kyushu Ridge, the matter provenance within this province is complex; the small quantity of feldspar and quartz may be sourced from seamounts or erupting volcano with intermediate - acid composition, with a component of volcanic scoria sourced from a volcano erupting on the Palau--Kyushu Ridge. it is suggested that, （ 1 ） Biogenic debris of the study area is closely related to water depth, with the amount of biogenic debris controlled by carbonate lysocline. （2） Volcaniclastic matter derived from the adjacent island arc can be entrained by oceanic currents and transported towards the abyssal basin over a short distance. The weathering products of volcanic rocks of the submarine plateau （e. g. , Benham Plateau） and adjacent ridges provide an important source of detrital sedimentation, and the influence scope of them is constrained by the intensity of submarine weathering. （3） Terrigenous sediments from the continent of Asia and the adjacent Philippine island arc have little influence on the sedimentation of this study area, and the felsic mineral component is probably sourced from volcanic seamounts of intermediate-acid composition.

Picophytoplankton abundance and community structure in the Philippine Sea,western Pacific

Flow cytometric determinations of the abundance distribution picophytoplankton （i.e. Prochlorococcus spp., orange fluorescence and community structure of Svnechococcus spp. and picoeukaryotes） were used for samples taken from the Philippine Sea in the western tropical Pacific Ocean from September to October of 2004. A fluorescence probe was employed to detect Chlorophyll a （Chl a）. Abundances of Prochlorococcus spp., orange fluorescence Synechococcus spp. and picoeukaryotes ranged from 0.1 to 58×10^3 cells ml^-1, 0.38 to 17×10^2 cells ml^-1 and 0.42 to 26×10^2 cells ml^-1, respectively. Synechococcus spp. and picoeukaryotes co-occurred in relatively shallow water with the maximum abundance observed at 50 to 70 m depth, while Prochlorococcus spp. only occurred in the 70 to 200 m layer. Prochlorococcus spp. was the dominant picophytoplankton population in terms of abundance and biomass. The cell size and carbon biomass content were estimated for the three picophytoplankton groups. In addition, among the three groups of picophytoplankton, the relative contribution of red fluorescence to the total red fluorescence varied with depth. The fluorescence and light scatter properties of individual cells indicated that in the upper 100 m layer, picoeukaryotes were a major contributor to total red fluorescence, while at the depth below 100 m, Prochlorococcus spp. and Synechococcus spp. made an important contribution to the total red fluorescence.

Paleoenvironments Recorded in a New-Type Ferromanganese Crust fromthe East Philippine Sea

We attempt to recover the paleocnvironments recorded in the accretion of a typical newtype hydrogenetic ferromanganese crust from the deep water areas of the East Philippine Sea. From detailed geochemical and U-series chronological studies, analysis of major and minor elements performed by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry （XRF） and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer （ICPMS）, three major accretion periods and corresponding paleocnvironments can be ascertained. The first period is a faster accretion period in the terminal Late Miocene to the Early Pliocene with looser structure and higher volcanic detritus content, corresponding to the active Antarctic bottom waters and depressed temperature from the intermediate Middle Miocene to the Early Pliocene. The second period is a pulse of pelagic clay deposition at the Early to Middle Pliocene, reflecting the shrinkage of the Antarctic bottom waters and the global temperature elevation of this period. The third period is a slower accretion period from the Middle Pliocene, which indicates the more violent activity of Antarctic bottom waters once again and more depressed temperature than the first period, facilitating the accretion of a more compact and pure ferromanganese zone. The paleoceanographic histories of these studied areas had not been made clear in previous research.

Statistics of underwater ambient noise at high sea states arisen from typhoon out zones in the Philippine Sea and South China Sea

Oceanic noise is the background interference in sonar performance prediction and evaluation at high sea states.Statistics of underwater ambient noise during Typhoons Soulik and Nida were analyzed on the basis of experimental measurements conducted in a deep area of the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea.Generated linear regression,frequency correlation matrix(FCM),Burr distribution and Gumbel distribution were described for the analysis of correlation with environmental parameters including wind speed(WS),significant wave height(SWH),and the inter-frequency relationship and probability density function of noise levels(NLs).When the typhoons were quite close to the receivers,the increment of NLs exceeded 10 dB.Whilst ambient noise was completely dominated by wind agitation,NLs were proportional to the cubic and quintic functions of WS and SWH,respectively.The fitted results between NLs and oceanic parameters were different for“before typhoon”and“after typhoon”.The fitted slopes of linear regression showed a linear relationship with the logarithm of frequency.The average observed typhoon-generated NLs were 5 dB lower than the Wenz curve at the same wind force due to the insufficiently developed sea state or the delay between NLs and WS.The cross-correlation coefficient of FCM,which can be utilized in the identification of noise sources in different bands,exceeded 0.8 at frequencies higher than 250 Hz.Furthermore,standard deviation increased with frequency.The kurtosis was equal to 3 at>400 Hz approximately.The characteristics of NLs showed good agreement with the results of FCM.

Identification and evolution of tectonic units in the Philippine Sea Plate

The Philippine Sea Plate is located at the convergence zone of the Eurasian Plate,the Pacific Plate,and the Indo-Australian Plate.This paper divides the Philippine Sea Plate into two second-order tectonic units and eight third-order tectonic units by summarizing the marine geological,geophysical,and submarine geomorphological data of the Philippine Sea Plate collected for years and referring to the seafloor spreading theory and the trench-arc-basin system.The two second-order tectonic units are the West Philippine Sea block and the Izu-Bonin-Mariana arc-basin system.The former includes the West Philippine Basin,the Huatung Basin,the Daito Basin,and the Palau Basin,while the latter consists of the Kyushu-Palau Ridge,the Shikoku-Parece Vela Basin,the Izu-Bonin Arc,and the Mariana Arc.Furthermore,this study concludes that the Philippine Sea Plate has undergone three stages of tectonic evolution,namely the early stage of the evolution of marginal basins with Cretaceous basement(Early Cretaceous),the middle stage of the spreading of the West Philippine Basin(Eocene),and the late stage of the subduction of the Izu-Bonin-Mariana arc-basin system(Oligocene-present).The Kyushu-Palau Ridge is a window to discover the tectonic evolution of the Philippine Sea Plate due to its unique geographical location.

Geochemistry of rare earth elements in the mid-late Quaternary sediments of the western Philippine Sea and their paleoenvironmental significance

Based on a δ180 chronology, rare earth elements （REE） and other typical elements in sediments from core MD06-3047 in the western Philippine Sea were analyzed to constrain the provenances of the sediments and investigate quantitative changes in the Asian eolian input to the study area over the last 700 ka. Among the competing processes that might affect REE compositions, sediment provenance is the most important one. Provenance analysis suggests that the study sediments have two provenance end-members; local volcanic sources are dominant, and eolian dust from the Asian continent has a smaller contribution. During glacial periods, eolian input to the western Philippine Sea was enhanced. In contrast, material supply from local volcanics in- creased during interglacial periods. Changes in eolian input to the study area were probably related to the strength of the East Asian winter monsoon （EAWM） as well as aridity in the Asian continent on an orbital time scale, and were partly influenced by local control factors on shorter time scales. Therefore, we propose that the present study expands the application of the REE-based method for quantitatively estimating the eolian component from the mid-latitude northern Pacific to the low-latitude western Pacific. Additionally, the study preliminarily confirms the influence of EAWM-transported eolian materi- al on sedimentation in the western Philippine Sea since 700 ka.

Paleoenvironment evolution of the East Philippine Sea recorded in the new-type ferromanganese crust since the terminal Late Miocene

From systemic research of microstructure, geochemistry, uranium-series and 10Be isotope dating on a new-type deepwater ferromanganese crust from the East Philippine Sea, the paleoenvironment evolu-tion of the target area since the terminal Late Miocene was recovered. The vertical section changes of microstructure and chemical composition are consistent in the studied crust, which indicate three major accretion periods and corresponding paleoenvironment evolution of the crust. The bottom crust zone was formed in the terminal Late Miocene (5.6 Ma) with loose microstructure, high detritus content and high growth rate. Reductions of mineral element content, accretion rate and positive Ce-anomaly degree at 4.6 Ma indicate temporal warming, which went against the crust accretion and finally formed an accretion gap in the terminal Middle Pliocene (2.8―2.7 Ma). The more active Antarctic bottom sea-waters in the Late Pliocene (2.7 Ma) facilitated the fast transfer to the top pure crust zone. Hereafter, with the further apart of volcanic source and the keeping increase of eolian material (1.0 Ma), although surrounding conditions were still favorable, mineral element content still shows an obvious reducing trend. It thereby offers new carrier and data for the unclear paleoceanographic research of the target area since the terminal Late Miocene.

Determination of Euler parameters of Philippine Sea plate and the inferences

Euler vectors of 12 plates, including Philippine Sea plate (PH), relative to a randomly fixed Pacific plate(PA) were determined by inverting the 1122 data from NUVEL-1 global plate motion model, earthquake slip vectors along Philippine Sea plate boundary, and GPS observed velocities. Euler vectors of Philippine Sea plate relative to adjacent plates are also gained. Our results are well consistent with observed data and can satisfy the geological and geophysical constraints along the Caroline(CR)-PH and PA-CR boundaries. Deformation of Philippine Sea plate is also discussed by using the plate motion Euler parameters.

Geological comparative studies of Japan Arc System and Kyushu-Palau Arc

Based on the published data of structure geology,geochronology,petrology and isotope geochemistry,the authors of this paper have conducted studies on the tectonic evolution history of Japan arc system and Kyushu-Palau ridge（KPR） . The studies show that the initial Japan arc system was resulted from the subduction of ancient Pacific plate beneath Eurasian Plate in Permian. It was part of an Andean-type continental volcanic arc which occurred in the offshore in the east of Asian during late Mesozoic era. The formation of tertiary back-arc basin（Japan Sea） resulted in the fundamental tectonic framework of the present arc system. Since Quaternary the system has been lying at E-W compression tectonic setting due to the eastward subduction of Amur Plate. It is expected that Japan arc system will be juxtaposed with Asian continent,which is similar to the present Taiwan arc system. The origin of Philippine Sea Plate（PSP） is still in debate. Some studies argued that it is a trapped oceanic crust segment,while the others insisted that it is a back-arc basin accompanied with ancient IBM arc. However,it is all agreed that the tectonic evolution of PSP started since 50 Ma,i.e.,PSP has drifted from the site around equator at 50 Ma to the present site,and the subduction of PSP along Nankai trough-Ryukyu Trench beneath the Japan arc system during 6–2 Ma led to the formation of the present Ryukyu arc system. Of the PSP,the KPR has been found with the oldest rocks formed at 38 Ma. Combining with its geochemical characteristics of oceanic arc tholeiite,it is suggested that KPR is an intraoceanic volcanic arc,more specifically,a relic arc（i.e.,rear arc of the ancient IBM） after rifting of ancient IBM. In addition,Amami-Daito province is of arc tectonic affinity,but has been affected by mantle plume. Therefore,based on their respective tectonic evolution history and geochemical characteristics of rock samples,it is inferred that there is no genetic relationship between Japan arc system and KPR. It is noted that rocks reflecting continental crust basement feature have been collected on the northern tip of KPR,which may be related to the process of KPR accreting on Japan arc,but the arc-continent accretion process are still at initial stage of modern continental crust accretion model. However,due to the scarcity of data of the northern tip of KPR,crustal structure of this location and its adjacent Nankai trough need to be further constrained by geophysical studies in the future.

Simulated Relationship between Wintertime ENSO and East Asian Summer Rainfall: From CMIP3 to CMIP6

El Niño-Southern Oscillation(ENSO)events have a strong influence on East Asian summer rainfall(EASR).This paper investigates the simulated ENSO-EASR relationship in CMIP6 models and compares the results with those in CMIP3 and CMIP5 models.In general,the CMIP6 models show almost no appreciable progress in representing the ENSO-EASR relationship compared with the CMIP5 models.The correlation coefficients in the CMIP6 models are relatively smaller and exhibit a slightly greater intermodel diversity than those in the CMIP5 models.Three physical processes related to the delayed effect of ENSO on EASR are further analyzed.Results show that,firstly,the relationships between ENSO and the tropical Indian Ocean(TIO)sea surface temperature(SST)in the CMIP6 models are more realistic,stronger,and have less intermodel diversity than those in the CMIP3 and CMIP5 models.Secondly,the teleconnections between the TIO SST and Philippine Sea convection(PSC)in the CMIP6 models are almost the same as those in the CMIP5 models,and stronger than those in the CMIP3 models.Finally,the CMIP3,CMIP5,and CMIP6 models exhibit essentially identical capabilities in representing the PSC-EASR relationship.Almost all the three generations of models underestimate the ENSO-EASR,TIO SST-PSC,and PSC-EASR relationships.Moreover,almost all the CMIP6 models that successfully capture the significant TIO SST-PSC relationship realistically simulate the ENSO-EASR relationship and vice versa,which is,however,not the case in the CMIP5 models.

Characteristics of gravity and magnetic fields and deep structural responses in the southern part of the Kyushu-Palau Ridge

The southern part of the Kyushu-Palau Ridge(KPR)is located at the conjunction of the West Philippine Basin,the Parece Vela Basin,the Palau Basin,and the Caroline Basin.This area has extremely complex structures and is critical for the research on the tectonic evolution of marginal seas in the Western Pacific Ocean.However,only few studies have been completed on the southern part,and the geophysical fields and deep structures in this part are not well understood.Given this,this study finely depicts the characteristics of the gravity and magnetic anomalies and extracts information on deep structures in the southern part of the KPR based on the gravity and magnetic data obtained from the 11th expedition of the deep-sea geological survey of the Western Pacific Ocean conducted by the Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey,China Geological Survey using the R/V Haiyangdizhi 6.Furthermore,with the data collected on the water depth,sediment thickness,and multichannel seismic transects as constraints,a 3D density model and Moho depths of the study area were obtained using 3D density inversion.The results are as follows.(1)The gravity and magnetic anomalies in the study area show distinct zoning and segmentation.In detail,the gravity and magnetic anomalies to the south of 11°N of the KPR transition from high-amplitude continuous linear positive anomalies into low-amplitude intermittent linear positive anomalies.In contrast,the gravity and magnetic anomalies to the north of 11°N of the KPR are discontinuous and show alternating positive and negative anomalies.These anomalies can be divided into four sections,of which the separation points correspond well to the locations of deep faults,thus,revealing different field-source attributes and tectonic genesis of the KPR.(2)The Moho depth in the basins in the study area is 6-12 km.The Moho depth in the southern part of KPR show segmentation.Specifically,the depth is 10‒12 km to the north of 11°N,12‒14 km from 9.5°N to 11°N,14-16 km from 8.5°N to 9.5°N,and 16‒25 km in the Palau Islands.(3)The KPR is a remnant intra-oceanic arc with the oceanic-crust basement.which shows noticeably discontinuous from north to south in geological structure and is intersected by NEE-trending lithospheric-scale deep faults.With large and deep faults F3 and F1(the Mindanao fault)as boundaries overall,the southern part of the KPR can be divided into three zones.In detail,the portion to the south of 8.5°N(F3)is a tectonically active zone,the KPR portion between 8.5°N and 11°N is a tectonically active transition zone,and the portion to the north of 11°N is a tectonically inactive zone.(4)The oceanic crust in the KPR is slightly thicker than that in the basins on both sides of the ridge,and it is inferred that the KPR formed from the thickening of the oceanic crust induced by the upwelling of deep magma in the process of rifting of remnant arcs during the Middle Oligocene.In addition,it is inferred that the thick oceanic crust under the Palau Islands is related to the constant upwelling of deep magma induced by the continuous northwestward subduction of the Caroline Plate toward the Palau Trench since the Late Oligocene.This study provides a scientific basis for systematically understanding the crustal attributes,deep structures,and evolution of the KPR.