SCIENCEHigh Hopes for Research on Mt. Fuji
Rising to an altitude of 3,776 meters, Mt. Fuji is Japan’s highest
mountain. For many years the Mt. Fuji Weather Station located at its
summit has played a significant role as a base for weather observation.
In recent years the station was made available for use by generalscientists, which has led to a host of new research taking advantage ofthe benefits of its high altitude. Katsumi Asano, professor emeritus at
the University of Tsukuba and chairperson of Valid Utilization of Mt. Fuji
Weather Station, discusses the significance of research made on Mt. Fuji.
the high altitude, as well as for weather observation.
In other countries, an array ofachievements has been made by research conducted in high-altitude
bases, such as the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii (3,396 m) which isnoted for greenhouse gas observations,the High Altitude Research Station
Jungfraujoch (3,578 m) in Switzerland,
which conducts astronomical research,and the Monte Rosa Laboratory (4,559m) in Italy, which is famous for highaltitude medicine.
Moreover, a participant in theconstruction of the Mt. Fuji WeatherStation says that proper maintenancewill permit another 100 years ofproblem-free usage of the building itself, remaining resistant to the severe
climate conditions where the average
low temperature is -15°C and averagewind speed is as high as 15 m/sec.
COURTESY OF SHIZUOKA SHIMBUN

In 1932, the temporary observatoryof the Central MeteorologicalObservatory, the predecessor ofthe Mt. Fuji Weather Station, wasestablished atop Mt. Fuji and yearround weather observation commenced at the site. Since that time,
meteorological data such as temperature, atmospheric pressure, precipitation and humidity have been collected
there. In 1964, a weather radar was installed at the site to instantaneously
detect typhoons approaching Japan; ameasure taken in response to the greatdamage from the Isewan Typhoon(Typhoon Vera) that hit the country in
September 1959 and left more than
5,000 people dead or missing.
However, because of the development of weather satellites and technologies that enable collection of meteorological data from remote areas,
the Japan Meteorological Agency
stopped using the weather radar for
observation in 1999, and since 2004,the station has been unmanned.
Currently, meteorological data at
the summit of Mt. Fuji are collected
automatically by the meteorologicalequipment installed in the Mt. Fuji
Weather Station. However, it must be
stressed that this highest point of ourland is the perfect site for a variety of
research that utilizes the benefits of

Its utility as a weather radar system (from1964) superseded by satellite technology, Mt.
Fuji Weather Station today serves as a base in
the summer months for research in numerous
scientific fields, as well as for (unmanned)
meteorological observation.
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Treatment ofAltitude Sickness
With this as the background, we established Valid Utilization of Mt. Fuji
Weather Station, an NPO with morethan 200 members, including researchers and mountaineers. The organization began observation and research atthe Mt. Fuji Weather Station after receiving permission to use the facilities
from the Japan Meteorological Agency in the summer of 2007, when thestation became available for summer
research work by the private sector.
For two months between July andAugust of 2007 and 2008, nine andthirteen research studies were respectively conducted at the Mt. Fuji
Weather Station, on themes including
high-altitude medical sciences, atmospheric chemistry, ecology and training and cosmic radiation. In the areaof high-altitude medical sciences, myresearch group has been studying theapplication of acupuncture for thetreatment of altitude sickness. Everyyear, about 50,000 Japanese overseas
go to altitudes of more than 6,000
meters, either for mountaineering orfor business, and their mortality rate
exceeds 2% each year, which is quite
high. Mt. Fuji attracts about 400,000
climbers every year, and several die ofcardiac failure or other causes. One ofCOURTESY OF YOMIURI SHIMBUN

A researcher sends electric current toa needle inserted into the thumb of theauthor as part of an experiment tomeasure the degree of oxygen
saturation in the blood.

the major causes of death at high altitudes is severe disorders caused bylow oxygen, or altitude sickness. At aheight of more than 3,000 meters, thelower atmospheric pressure reduces
the amount of oxygen in the blood by
60% compared with when the person
is on level ground. The stress causedby the severe condition triggers hyperactivity of the sympathetic nerve,
leading to the onset of altitude sickness. However, the stress can be effectively controlled by stimulatingenergy centers, which puts the parasympathetic nerve to work. This led
us to assume that stimulating energy
centers would alleviate altitude sickness. So we conducted an experimentwith twelve examinees lodging in theMt. Fuji Weather Station. For eachexaminee we inserted a needle into thegoukoku, an energy center located at
the base of the thumb, sent electric
current to the needle several times aday, and measured degree of oxygen
saturation in the blood. We obtained apositive result from this experiment,
which suggests that stimulating apower center might alleviate thesymptoms of altitude sickness.
We also conducted an experimentfor verifying the effectiveness of highaltitude training, which many athletes
have been undergoing in recent years.
Many of these athletes go overseas fortraining because there is no appropriate venue in Japan. In each of the past
two years we used eleven examinees,
who stayed at the Mt. Fuji Weather
Station for two nights, and measuredfluctuations of their physiological responses and physical working capacity. The results showed that their arterial blood oxygen saturation, aparameter for oxygen intake potential,increased after they climbed Mt. Fuji.
The experiment also showed improvements in their heart rates and blood
lactate levels, which indicate the degree of fatigue. These results indicatedthat Mt. Fuji may provide altitude
training effects over a short period andthat the mountain could serve as a site
for training those traveling to high altitudes or for judging their fitness forhigh-altitude environments.

Atmospheric Chemistry
In the area of atmospheric chemistryresearch, groups of scientists fromWaseda University and the Tokyo
University of Science observed volatile organic compounds (VOCs), suchas toluene and benzene, and substances such as aerosol (suspended particulates) contained in the atmosphere.
These substances are said to be closelyrelated with air pollution and climatechange, but many points remain unknown regarding how much of whatsubstances are generated, and fromwhere. Mt. Fuji’s advantage in observing such substances lies in the fact thatdata can be collected without direct
influence from automobile and factory
fuel emissions because the mountainis located away from metropolitan
areas. Moreover, the summit of Mt.
Fuji extends into the free troposphere,
the atmosphere between an altitude ofone kilometer aboveground and thestratosphere. In this layer, substances
travel long distances without being
subject to land surface frictions. Infact, black carbon generated by a firein Siberia, and yellow sand from
China were each observed at the summit of Mt. Fuji. Since substances generated on the Eurasian Continent arecarried from west to east by westerly
winds generated in the mid-latitude of
the northern hemisphere, Mt. Fuji, located at the eastern edge of theEurasian Continent, is the optimumsite for such observation.

International Appeal
Because of these advantages, Mt. Fuji
also draws a great deal of attention
from overseas researchers. In each of
the past two years, scientists from theNational Central University of Taiwan
visited the site to observe mercury concentration. This year, scientists fromthe ABC-Pyramid atmospheric observatory (5,079 m) in the Himalayas plan
to observe aerosol on Mt. Fuji. Moreover, the Lulin Baseline Station in
Taiwan (2,862 m), ABC-Pyramid atmospheric observatory, Mauna Loa
Observatory in Hawaii, and Valid
Utilization of Mt. Fuji Weather Station
will begin collaboration this year in
networked observations. Real-time
meteorological data from the respective sites will be transmitted and shared
online among the laboratories.
Other research conducted on Mt.
Fuji includes observation of cosmic
radiation exposure. Cosmic radiation
intensity grows stronger the higher
one goes because the atmosphericlayer becomes thinner. This has raised
concerns about the effect of cosmic
radiation on the health of aircraftcrews. In relation to global warming,measurement of CO 2 concentrationand investigations on permafrost havealso been conducted at the site.
Based on all this evidence, it isclear that observations and research
conducted at the Mt. Fuji Weather Station are directly related to human lives.
In July 2007, we held the World EcoScience Network Conference in Tokyo,
which was attended by members ofrepresentative high-altitude laboratories from all over the world, includingValid Utilization of Mt. Fuji WeatherStation. The conference concluded
with the release of the Declaration on
the formation of a global environmental watch network, under which thelaboratories will collaborate for protecting our planet’s future. We are determined to continue research for passing on a better global environment tocoming generations by making use of
the geographical advantages provided
by Mt. Fuji and through cooperation
with laboratories in other countries.
Katsumi Asano is professor emeritus at the University of Tsukuba
and chairperson of Valid Utilization of Mt. Fuji Weather Station.

Highlighting JAPAN —through articles— April Issue

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