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The Kochi Core School offers a unique opportunity to learn from leading researchers in paleoceanography and scientific ocean drilling through an intensive lecture program. The lecture series covers a wide range of topics, including the latest developments within SPARCs, practical guide and example of preparing IODP³ proposals, and recent hot topics from legacy core projects conducted at the Kochi Core Center, such as ReC23‑01 (Indian Ocean) and ReC23‑03 (Japan Sea), which focus on Miocene paleoceanography. In addition, the program includes lectures on key paleoceanographic disciplines—such as geochemistry, micropaleontology, organic geochemistry, climate modeling, and sea‑level change—as well as emerging research trends, including the application of AI technologies to marine core studies.

In the first half of the school (Day 2 to 4), participants will acquire essential basic skills for marine core research. This course offers participants an opportunity to learn, through lectures and practical training, how to macroscopically classify the lithofacies of core samples, prepare and observe smear slides, and perform non-destructive measurements such as an X-ray CT scanner and a multi-sensor core logger.

In the second half (Day 6 to 8), participants will choose one of four practical courses to learn more specialized techniques: 

• Microfossil (Diatom) Course: Participants will learn diatom biostratigraphy and paleoenvironmental reconstruction using Late Miocene sediments from the Japan Sea.

• Non-destructive (XRF Core Scanner) Course: This course introduces high-resolution XRF core scanning for both laminated and bioturbated sediments and its application to interpreting environmental changes. 

• Foraminiferal Stable Isotope Course: This course will use Indian Ocean cores, and participants will learn how oxygen and carbon stable isotopes of foraminifera are used to reconstruct past oceanographic and climatic changes. 

• Paleomagnetism Course: This course introduces how diagenetic dissolution of magnetic minerals changes with core depth in marine sediments, focusing on identifying and interpreting paleomagnetic and rock magnetic signatures. 

Based on the results of these analyses, together with the lithological observation during the first half program, participants will make final presentations (Day 9) to engage in integrated discussions and gain hands-on experience in paleoceanography and stratigraphy.

On Day 5, we will visit the Tatsukushi Coast in the Tosashimizu Geopark, which is located in the westernmost part of Kochi Prefecture. This area features a shallow-marine forearc basin fill representing an important interval in Japan’s geological history, relating to the rapid back-arc opening that occurred during the Early Miocene time. Participants will observe various shallow-marine sedimentary structures, including soft-sediment deformation features, event beds, and unique trace fossil associations

Updated on 31 March 2026