Core-catcher samples from each site were analyzed on board the JOIDES Resolution by placing 3 cm3 of material in a snap-cap vial, adding distilled water, agitating the vial, and removing part of the upper to middle suspended material with a pipette. The material from the pipette was then strewn onto a coverslip and mounted to a glass slide using Hyrax mounting media. During the postcruise phases of the research, ~200 additional samples were analyzed for diatom abundance and preservation between the core-catcher intervals. These samples were processed using a standard diatom preparation acid treatment technique whereby ~5 cm3 of material was placed in hydrogen peroxide and boiled until disaggregation of the sediments occurred. Hydrochloric acid was then added to dissolve the carbonate fraction, and the samples were centrifuged three times and rinsed with distilled water to neutralize the fluid. Strewn slides were then prepared and examined at a magnification of 500´ for stratigraphic markers. Abundances of diatoms was based on the number of specimens observed per field of view at 500´ .
Diatom abundances are recorded as follows:
A = abundant, two or more specimens per field of view;
C = common, one specimen per two fields of view;
F = few, one specimen per each vertical traverse;
R = rare, less than one specimen per each vertical traverse; and
B = barren, no diatoms present.
Preservation of diatoms was determined as follows:
G = good, both finely silicified and heavily robust forms are present and no fragmentation or dissolution of frustules is observed;
M = moderate, finely silicified forms are present but show some fragmentation and/or dissolution; and
P = poor, finely silicified forms are absent or rare and fragmented, and the assemblage is dominated by robust forms.
Tables T2, T3, T4, T5, and T6 are the result of this work and mainly show the occurrence of stratigraphically significant diatoms from Sites 1039 to 1043. Additional information about the nature of the sediments recovered from these cores is highlighted in the site report chapters in Kimura, Silver, Blum, et al. (1997). The data from the tables is summarized in the following section.