Geology topics
H.M. Benz
Publications and source records attributed to H.M. Benz.
Crustal structure of the Colorado Plateau, Arizona: Application of new long-offset seismic data analysis techniques
The Colorado Plateau is a large crustal block in the southwestern United States that has been raised intact nearly 2 km above sea level since Cretaceous marine sediments were deposited on its surface. Controversy exists concerning the thickness of the plateau crust and the source of its buoyancy. Interpretations of seismic data collected on the plateau vary as to whether the crust is closer to 40 or 50 km thick. A thick crust could support the observed topography of the Colorado Plateau isostatically, while a thinner crust would indicate the presence of an underlying low-density mantle. This paper reports results on long-offset seismic data collected during the 1989 segment of the U.S. Geological Survey Pacific to Arizona Crustal Experiment that extended from the Transition Zone into the Colorado Plateau in northwest Arizona. We apply two new methods to analyze long-offset data that employ finite difference travel time calculations: (1) a first-arrival time inverter to find upper crustal velocity structure and (2) a forward-modeling technique that allows the direct use of the inverted upper crustal solution in modeling secondary reflected arrivals. We find that the crustal thickness increases from 30 km beneath the metamorphic core complexes in the southern Basin and Range province to about 42 km beneath the northern Transition Zone and southern Colorado Plateau margin. We observe some crustal thinning (to ∼37 km thick) and slightly higher lower crustal velocities farther inboard; beneath the Kaibab uplift on the north rim of the Grand Canyon the crust thickens to a maximum of 48 km. We observe a nonuniform crustal thickness beneath the Colorado Plateau that varies by ∼15% and corresponds approximately to variations in topography with the thickest crust underlying the highest elevations. Crustal compositions (as inferred from seismic velocities) appear to be the same beneath the Colorado Plateau as those in the Basin and Range province to the southwest, implying that the plateau crust represents an unextended version of the Basin and Range. Some of the variability in crustal structure appears to correspond to preserved lithospheric discontinuities that date back to the Proterozoic Era.
Three-dimensional P and S wave velocity structure of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska
The three‐dimensional P and S wave structure of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska, and the underlying crust to depths of 7–8 km is determined from 6219 P wave and 4008 S wave first‐arrival times recorded by a 30‐station seismograph network deployed on and around the volcano. First‐arrival times are calculated using a finite‐difference technique, which allows for flexible parameterization of the slowness model and easy inclusion of topography and source‐receiver geometry. The three‐dimensional P wave velocity structure and hypocenters are determined simultaneously, while the three‐dimensional S wave velocity model is determined using the relocated seismicity and an initial S wave velocity model derived from the P wave velocity model assuming an average Vp / Vs ratio of 1.78. Convergence is steady with approximately 73% and 52% reduction in P and S wave arrival time RMS, respectively, after 10 iterations. The most prominent feature observed in the three‐dimensional velocity models derived for both P and S waves is a relative low‐velocity, near‐vertical, pipelike structure approximately 1 km in diameter that extends from 1 to 6 km beneath sea level. This feature aligns axially with the bulk of seismicity and is interpreted as a highly fractured and altered zone encompassing a magma conduit. The velocity structure beneath the north flank of the volcano between depths of 1 and 6 km is characterized by large lateral velocity variations. High velocities within this region are interpreted as remnant dikes and sills and low velocities as regions along which magma migrates. No large low‐velocity body suggestive of a magma chamber is resolved in the upper 7–8 km of the crust.
Seismological mapping of fine structure near the base of the Earth's mantle
The Earth's core–mantle boundary (CMB) juxtaposes liquid iron and crystalline silicates, and is a region of large vertical thermal gradients. The D" region, which extends up to 200–300 km above the CMB, often has elevated shear-wave velocity and suggestions of lateral variations in structure 1 . Recent improvements in our ability to assemble and analyse records from regional seismic networks have allowed us to examine long profiles of travel times, amplitudes and waveforms from more than a thousand short-period seismometers 2 . We observe, across Canada and the United States, P waves that have grazed the CMB from the powerful nuclear test in Lop Nor, China, on 21 May 1992. First-arrival travel times and large secondary arrivals are consistent with a 1.5% compressional velocity increase with depth ∼ 130 km above the CMB—about half the thickness of D" in this locality 3 . Our observations, together with evidence for the absence of such a thin, fast layer in neighbouring regions, suggest the presence of lateral heterogeneity in composition or phase at the base of the mantle.
Sharpness of upper-mantle discontinuities determined from high-frequency reflections
An understanding of the nature of seismic discontinuities in the Earth's upper mantle is important for understanding mantle processes: in particular, the amplitude and sharpness of these discontinuities are critical for assessing models of upper-mantle phase changes and chemical layering. So far, seismic studies aimed at determining the thickness and lateral variability of upper-mantle discontinuities have yielded equivocal results, particularly for the discontinuity at 410km depth 1,2 . Here we present short-period (0.8–2.0 s) recordings of upper-mantle precursors to the seismic phase P′P′ (PKPPKP) from two South American earthquakes recorded by the ∼ 700-station short-period array in California. Our results show that the 410- and 660-km discontinuities beneath the Indian Ocean are locally simple and sharp, corresponding to transi-tion zones of 4 km or less. These observations pose problems for mineral physics models 3–5 , which predict a transitional thickness greater than 6 km for the peridotite to β -spinel phase transition. In contrast to the results of long-period studies 6,7 , we observe no short-period arrivals from near 520 km depth.
Data report for a seismic refraction/wide-angle reflection investigation of the Atlantic Coastal Plain in South Carolina
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Sharpness of upper-mantle discontinuities determined from high-frequency reflections
AN understanding of the nature of seismic discontinuities in the Earth's upper mantle is important for understanding mantle processes: in particular, the amplitude and sharpness of these discontinuities are critical for assessing models of upper-mantle phase changes and chemical layering. So far, seismic studies aimed at determining the thickness and lateral variability of upper-mantle discontinuities have yielded equivocal results, particularly for the discontinuity at 410km depth1,2. Here we present short-period (0.8-2.0 s) recordings of upper-mantle precursors to the seismic phase P???P??? (PKPPKP) from two South American earthquakes recorded by the ???700-station short-period array in California. Our results show that the 410- and 660-km discontinuities beneath the Indian Ocean are locally simple and sharp, corresponding to transition zones of 4 km or less. These observations pose problems for mineral physics models3-5, which predict a transitional thickness greater than 6 km for the peridotite to ??-spinel phase transition. In contrast to the results of long-period studies6,7, we observe no short-period arrivals from near 520 km depth.
Teleseismic tomography; lithospheric structure of the San Andreas Fault system in northern and central California
No abstract available
Upper-mantle seismic discontinuities and the thermal structure of subduction zones
The precise depths at which seismic velocities change abruptly in the upper mantle are revealed by the analysis of data from hundreds of seismometers across the western United States. The boundary near 410km depth is locally elevated, that near 660 km depressed. The depths of these boundaries, which mark phase transitions, provide an in situ thermometer in subduction zones: the observed temperature contrasts require at least moderate thickening of the subducting slab near 660 km depth. In addition, a reflector near 210 km depth may mark the bottom of the aesthenosphere.
A sharp and flat section of the core-mantle boundary
The transition zone between the Earth's core and mantle plays an important role as a boundary layer for mantle and core convection 1 . This zone conducts a large amount of heat from the core to the mantle, and contains at least one thermal boundary layer 2,3 ; the proximity of reactive silicates and molten iron leads to the possibility of zones of intermediate composition 4 . Here we investigate one region of the core–mantle boundary using seismic waves that are converted from shear to compressional waves by reflection at the boundary. The use of this phase (known as ScP), the large number of receiving stations, and the large aperture of our array all provide higher resolution than has previously been possible 5–7 . For the 350-km-long section of the core–mantle boundary under the northeast Pacific sampled by the reflections, the local boundary topography has an amplitude of less than 500 m, no sharp radial gradients exist in the 400 km above the boundary, and the mantle-to-core transition occurs over less than 1 km. The simplicity of the structure near and above the core–mantle boundary argues against chemical heterogeneity at the base of the mantle in this location.
Elastic-wave propagation and site amplification in the Salt Lake Valley, Utah, from simulated normal faulting earthquakes
The two-dimensional seismic response of the Salt Lake valley to near- and far-field earthquakes has been investigated from simulations of vertically incident plane waves and from normal-faulting earthquakes generated on the basin-bounding Wasatch fault. The response to normal faulting earthquakes was simulated using a two-dimensional finite-element method and the plane-wave response was calculated from two-dimensional finite-difference simulations. The plane-wave simulations were then compared with observed site amplifications in the Salt Lake valley, based on seismic recordings from nuclear explosions in southern Nevada, that show 10 times greater amplification within the basin than measured values on hard-rock sites. While previous studies attribute this increased site amplification to the near-surface unconsolidated/consolidated alluvial fill contact, our synthetic seismograms suggest that in the frequency band 0.3 to 1.5 Hz at least one-half the site amplification can be attributed to the impedance contrast between the basin sediments and higher velocity basement rocks. Synthetic seismograms from vertically incident plane-wave sources and buried double-couple sources predict large amplitude Rayleigh-wave propagation from the edges of the basin and, in general, uniform site amplification. In contrast, near-field simulations of basin-bounding, normal-faulting earthquakes predict large-amplitude Rayleigh waves propagating westward from the fault across the basin. Spectra of synthetic accelerograms computed from the normal-faulting earthquakes shows that spectral amplification within the basin is primarily due to source directivity with a maxima near the surface projection of the fault that decays rapidly away from the fault. Importantly, the synthetic modeling of near-field earthquake sources show that near-field directivity effects are important and should be considered in an earthquake hazard assessment of the Salt Lake valley and similar geologic settings along the Wasatch Front.