Double seismic zone beneath the middle of Hokkaido, Japan, in the southwestern side of the Kurile Arc

The vertical section of microearthquakes, determined accurately by using the Hokkaido University network, shows two dipping zones (the double seismic zone) 25–30 km apart in the depth range of 80–150 km beneath the middle of Hokkaido in the southwestern side of the Kurile arc. Hypocentral distribution of large earthquakes (m_b > 4) based on the ISC (International Seismological Centre) bulletin also shows the double seismic zone beneath the same region. The hypocentral distribution indicates that the frequency of events occurring in the lower zone is four times greater than that in the upper zone. The difference in seismic activity between the two zones beneath Hokkaido is in contrast with the region beneath northeastern Honshu in the northeastern Japan arc.Composite focal mechanisms of microearthquakes and individual mechanisms of large events mainly characterize the down-dip extension for the lower zone as is observed beneath northeastern Honshu. For the upper zone, however, the stress field is rather complex and not necessarily similar to that beneath northeastern Honshu. This may be considered to indicate the influence of slab contortion or transformation in the Hokkaido corner between the Kurile and the northeastern Japan arcs.     

A new tectonic model for Abu-Dabbab seismogenic zone (Eastern Desert,Egypt): evidence from field-structural,EMR and seismic data

Abu-Dabbab area is the most active seismic zone in the central Eastern Desert of Egypt, where seismic activities are daily recorded. The reported earthquakes are microearthquakes of local magnitudes (ML < 2.0). A spatial distribution of these microearthquakes shows that the earthquakes of the area follow an ENE–WSW trending pattern, which is nearly perpendicular to the Red Sea Rift. Focal mechanisms of different fault styles were recognized with dominant normal faulting (with a strike-slip component) events characterized by focal depths greater than 7 km and reverse ones of shallower focal depths. Several lines of evidence indicating that the brittle-ductile transition zone underlies the Abu-Dabbab area occurs at a relatively shallow depth (10–12 km) and it is acting as a low-angle normal shear zone (LANF). Field-structural, EMR and seismic data (this study) reveal that the maximum compressive stress (σ1) in the area is perturbed from the regional NW–SE direction to ENE–WSW orientation. This stress rotation is evidently akin to the reactivation of the crustal scale Najd Fault System (NFS), where such reactivation is attributed to the ongoing activity/opening of the Red Sea. Our tectonic model proposes that the continuous activity on the brittle-ductile transition zone including the LANF led to stress localization, which triggering a brittle deformation in the upper crustal-levels and associated shallow dipping thrusts. Such bimodal tectonic model suggests that the deep earthquakes are owing to the tectonic movement on the LANF (transtension), whereas the shallow earthquakes are related to a brittle deformation inside the fault blocks of the upper crust (transpression). Deformation creep along this zone didn’t permit continuous accumulation of strain and hence reduce the possible occurrence of large earthquakes.     

Fault plane solutions of microearthquakes and small events in the Hellenic arc

The Hellenic arc is the most active seismic region of the transition zone between the African and Eurasian plates. In this rapidly deforming region, the physical state of the crust and upper mantle may vary laterally and vertically. However, a detailed 3D model of the region is lacking. The reliable determination of fault plane solutions is crucial if such a model is to be produced. On this basis, fault plane solutions have been determined from recent microearthquakes and small events to assess their reliability for use in tectonic interpretation. A search algorithm on first motion data and amplitude ratios and also a waveform-matching scheme were employed on data from our temporal network, operated on the western part of the island of Crete. There, a network of 47 three-component digital stations with an aperture of 60 km and an average station spacing of 5 km was operated in 1997. The majority of the shallow microearthquakes under Crete for which fault plane solutions were determined have a near horizontal T-axis oriented essentially E–W. Differences between well determined fault plane solutions from the search algorithm and the waveform-matching technique were significant (strike up to 45°, dip up to 10°, and slip up to 50°). Second, data of small events within the Hellenic subduction zone were obtained from recently installed broadband stations at local and regional distances and inverted for a deviatoric seismic moment tensor. Available solutions from other sources such as the Harvard group, EMSC, or SED show drastic differences in part. Owing to still limited azimuthal station coverage, the resulting fault plane solutions of small events have generally not been well constrained. The observed large variation of fault plane solutions for micoearthquakes and small events poses a caveat to tectonic interpretation in case of using data from a few stations only.     

山东蒙阴县西峪金伯利岩带深部综合地球物理特征及其意义

山东省蒙阴地区金伯利岩的深部地质构造特征是地学研究的热点之一。在蒙阴地区金伯利岩分布区中心部位的西峪岩带进行了10 km综合地球物理勘查,采用地震反射、大地电磁测深及重力测量解译推断出上五井和西峪两处的深部断裂构造。其中,西峪断裂带是金伯利岩浆侵入的先期控制性构造和岩浆通道,在西峪金伯利岩带内,地震反射波同相轴异常、重力低密度体、电阻率低阻异常都较为明显,且异常带有一定的连续性和规模,与已知的浅部金伯利岩体的分布形态比较吻合,推测地表延伸4 km深度内,西峪岩带内有较好的金伯利岩的发育,岩体在深部呈现节藕状间断分布。金伯利岩浆在近地表处隐爆,造成更多的破碎带和次生断裂,形成由密集零散分布的金伯利岩体组成的金伯利岩带,同时产生岩石的低电阻率和低密度异常。     

长白山火山的起源和太平洋俯冲板块之间的关系

近年来，尽管不同学科通过不同手段对长白山火山进行过广泛研究，然而，目前人们对它的起源仍不清楚。利用全球地震层析成像和区域层析成像结果，综合分析了长白山火山的起源。结果表明，它的起源既不同于夏威夷等板内热点火山，也不同于日本等岛弧火山，而是一种与太平洋俯冲板块在地幔转换带内的滞留和深部脱水等过程密切相 关的弧后板内火山。     

New data on seismicity of the middle Caspian Basin and their possible tectonic interpretation

Short-term (three months) bottom seismic observations in the area of the Yalam-Samur structure in the Middle Caspian Basin revealed a deep-seated compact zone of mantle-earthquake sources that dips beneath the southeastern Caucasus. To a first approximation, this zone may be interpreted as a seismofocal layer that characterizes thrusting of the Turan Plate under the southeastern Caucasus. However, the obtained spatial distribution of sources of microearthquakes and weak earthquakes is insufficiently reliable owing to the low aperture of the observation network of bottom seismographs. More reliable data on the position and parameters of the seismofocal layer could be obtained by the observation network with a wider spread of bottom seismographs (up to 50–100 km). If this result is confirmed, the current concept of interaction between the Alpine structures of the southeastern Caucasus, Turan, and South Caspian plates should probably be revised. The geotectonics of the Caucasus is preliminarily analyzed in the light of the newly revealed relationships.     

大柳树坝址工程断错效应分析

坐落于中卫-同心活动断裂带中间部位的黄河黑山峡大柳树坝址,距F201发震断层垂直距离不足1.5km。统计表明,在青藏高原及其周缘地区,当发生Ⅶ级以上破坏性地震时,距发震断裂两侧3～5km的范围内都有可能出现断层的分支破裂、次生破裂等错断效应。大柳树坝址处于Ⅶ级以上地震时的分支破裂发生带内,因此,存在工程错断效应问题。三维有限元数值模拟结果表明,断层F201发生错动时,坝址地段断层F93、F39、F40相对于F201的错动比率处分别达到14.38%、12.00%和9.84%以上。     

Shear-wave velocity model of the Chukuo fault zone,Southwest Taiwan,from cross correlation of seismic ambient noise

The Chia-Nan (Chiayi-Tainan) area is in the southwestern Taiwan, and is located at the active deformation front of the collision of the Eurasian continental plate and the Philippine Sea plate, which causes complex folds as well as thrust fault systems in the area. The Chukuo fault zone is a boundary between the Western Foothill and the Western Coastal Plain in the Chia-Nan area. The nature of the crustal structure beneath the fault zone, especially the eastern part of the fault zone with mountain topography, has not been well known in detailed due to lack of drilling data as well as its limitation in using other geophysical methods, such as active source survey. In this study, we deployed an array with 11 broadband seismic stations to monitor the seismicity of the Chukuo fault zone. The array has recorded more than 1000 microearthquakes around this area. It provides an opportunity to use P- and S-wave travel time data to investigate the both the crustal P- and S-velocity in the fault zone, however due to the nature of the earthquake distribution, the ray density is relatively low at depth between 0 and 7 km. In addition, the uncertainty of S-wave reading for small earthquake also a limit in building precise S-velocity profile, Thus, we take the advantages of using cross-correlation of seismic ambient noise to investigate crustal S-velocity profile in the Chukuo fault area, especially in the mountain area where crustal faulting is a dominated phenomenon. The results indicate that S-wave velocity in the uppermost crust in the Chukuo fault zone is shown to be slower than previous studies. A low velocity layer exists at depth between 1 and 2 km in the east of the Chukuo Fault. The low S-velocity is related to a highly fractured upper crust due to intensive deformation caused by the orogenic process.     

Upper mantle structure from the Trans‐Australia Seismic Survey (TASS) and other seismic refraction data

The recordings made during 1972 from large explosions at Kunanalling (W.A.), Mount Fitton (S.A.). and Bass Strait have added considerably to seismic refraction data measured over distances of 1000 km in continental Australia. Taken together with data from the 1956 Maralinga atomic bomb and 1970–71 Ord Dam explosions they show the existence of a refractor with apparent P‐wave velocity in the range 8.26–8.29 km/s, which is interpreted as the Moho under shield regions, at a depth of 34 km under Kalgoorlie and deepening eastward to 39 km under Maralinga. In northern South Australia and farther north and east this refractor is evident as a sub‐Moho refractor at a depth of about 60 km; the Moho refractor is also evident, with an apparent P velocity of 8.04 ± 0.04 km/s at a depth of 40 km. Two computer models (TASS‐1a and 2a) match the observed data. The subsequent arrivals recorded are consistent with the velocity of 8.53 km/s in a refractor at 165 km depth interpreted from the Ord Dam; there is little conclusive evidence for a low‐velocity zone above this depth.     

Deep seismic investigations in the Baikal rift zone

The largest rift zone of Europe and Asia is located in the region of Lake Baikal. In 1968–1970 deep seismic measurements were carried out along a number of profiles with a total length of about 2000 km within the rift zone and in the adjacent parts of the Siberian platform and the region of the Baikal Mountains. These investigations were of a reconnaissance nature, and therefore the point sounding method was used.A low-velocity region for compressional waves (7.6–7.8 km/sec) has been found and could be traced over a large area in the upper parts of the mantle. The width of this anomalous zone is 200–400 km. The Baikal rift lies in its northwestern part. Within the studied part of the Siberian platform the thickness of the earth's crust is 37–39 km, while in the rift zone it is 36 km, and further to the southeast the crust-mantle boundary lies at a depth of 45–46 km. The Baikal rift proper is bounded in the northwest by a deep fracture zone and does not seem to be associated with any significant “root” or “antiroot” in the relief of the Mohorovi?i? discontinuity.The reduced compressional velocity in the upper parts of the mantle beneath the Baikal zone is considered to correspond to the same phenomena found under the mid-oceanic ridges and the extended rift system in the Basin and Range province of North America. The Baikal rift in the narrow sense of the word lies over the northwestern edge of the anomalous mantle region. This asymmetric position seems to be its main peculiarity.     

Near-vertical seismic reflection image using a novel acquisition technique across the Vrancea Zone and Foscani Basin, south-eastern Carpathians (Romania)

The DACIA PLAN (Danube and Carpathian Integrated Action on Process in the Lithosphere and Neotectonics) deep seismic sounding survey was performed in August–September 2001 in south-eastern Romania, at the same time as the regional deep refraction seismic survey VRANCEA 2001. The main goal of the experiment was to obtain new information on the deep structure of the external Carpathians nappes and the architecture of Tertiary/Quaternary basins developed within and adjacent to the seismically-active Vrancea zone, including the Focsani Basin. The seismic reflection line had a WNW–ESE orientation, running from internal East Carpathians units, across the mountainous south-eastern Carpathians, and the foreland Focsani Basin towards the Danube Delta. There were 131 shot points along the profile, with about 1 km spacing, and data were recorded with stand-alone RefTek-125s (also known as “Texans”), supplied by the University Texas at El Paso and the PASSCAL Institute. The entire line was recorded in three deployments, using about 340 receivers in the first deployment and 640 receivers in each of the other two deployments. The resulting deep seismic reflection stacks, processed to 20 s along the entire profile and to 10 s in the eastern Focsani Basin, are presented here. The regional architecture of the latter, interpreted in the context of abundant independent constraint from exploration seismic and subsurface data, is well imaged. Image quality within and beneath the thrust belt is of much poorer quality. Nevertheless, there is good evidence to suggest that a thick (10 km) sedimentary basin having the structure of a graben and of indeterminate age underlies the westernmost part of the Focsani Basin, in the depth range 10–25 km. Most of the crustal depth seismicity observed in the Vrancea zone (as opposed to the more intense upper mantle seismicity) appears to be associated with this sedimentary basin. The sedimentary successions within this basin and other horizons visible further to the west, beneath the Carpathian nappes, suggest that the geometry of the Neogene and recent uplift observed in the Vrancea zone, likely coupled with contemporaneous rapid subsidence in the foreland, is detached from deeper levels of the crust at about 10 km depth. The Moho lies at a depth of about 40 km along the profile, its poor expression in the reflection stack being strengthened by independent estimates from the refraction data. Given the apparent thickness of the (meta)sedimentary supracrustal units, the crystalline crust beneath this area is quite thin (< 20 km) supporting the hypothesis that there may have been delamination of (lower) continental crust in this area involved in the evolution of the seismic Vrancea zone.     

Seismological features of island arc crust as inferred from recent seismic expeditions in Japan

Crustal studies within the Japanese islands have provided important constraints on the physical properties and deformation styles of the island arc crust. The upper crust in the Japanese islands has a significant heterogeneity characterized by large velocity variation (5.5–6.1 km/s) and high seismic attenuation (Qp=100–400 for 5–15 Hz). The lateral velocity change sometimes occurs at major tectonic lines. In many cases of recent refraction/wide-angle reflection profiles, a “middle crust” with a velocity of 6.2–6.5 km/s is found in a depth range of 5–15 km. Most shallow microearthquakes are concentrated in the upper/middle crust. The velocity in the lower crust is estimated to be 6.6–7.0 km/s. The lower crust often involves a highly reflective zone with less seismicity, indicating its ductile rheology. The uppermost mantle is characterized by a low Pn velocity of 7.5–7.9 km/s. Several observations on PmP phase indicate that the Moho is not a sharp boundary with a distinct velocity contrast, but forms a transition zone from the upper mantle to the lower crust. Recent seismic reflection experiments revealed ongoing crustal deformations within the Japanese islands. A clear image of crustal delamination obtained for an arc–arc collision zone in central Hokkaido provides an important key for the evolution process from island arc to more felsic continental crust. In northern Honshu, a major fault system with listric geometry, which was formed by Miocene back arc spreading, was successfully mapped down to 12–15 km.     

P-wave tomography and origin of the Changbai intraplate volcano in Northeast Asia

We present the first seismic image of the upper mantle beneath the active intraplate Changbai volcano in Northeast Asia determined by teleseismic travel time tomography. The data are measured at a new seismic network consisting of 19 portable stations and 3 permanent stations. Our results show a columnar low-velocity anomaly extending to 400-km depth with a P-wave velocity reduction of up to 3%. High velocity anomalies are visible in the mantle transition zone, and deep-focus earthquakes occur at depths of 500–600 km under the region, suggesting that the subducting Pacific slab is stagnant in the transition zone, as imaged clearly by global tomography. These results suggest that the intraplate Changbai volcano is not a hotspot like Hawaii but a kind of back-arc volcano related to the deep subduction and stagnancy of the Pacific slab under Northeast Asia.     

渤海海底地震仪探测试验及初步成果

利用大容量气枪枪阵震源和海底地震仪在渤海首次开展人工地震深部地球物理探测试验。本次试验布设一条NWW-SEE向垂直构造走向的勘测线,共投放海底地震仪51台,回收成功50台。试验结果和数据分析表明,所使用的枪阵有足够的能量输出,海底地震仪记录震相丰富,可识别到Ps,Pg,PmP,Pn等多种震相。初至波层析成像结果表明,9 km以上地层速度结构存在明显的横向不均匀性,渤中地区新生代沉积基底埋深5～6 km,结晶基底埋深约9 km,郯庐断裂带内存在"U"型下凹的相对低速体并有向下切割的趋势。此次试验是我国在渤海深部探测中的成功示范,有效填补了渤海海域深地震测深数据的空白,为渤海深部地壳结构研究及含油气盆地形成演化研究提供了重要的基础资料。     

2.5D seismic velocity modelling in the south-eastern Romanian Carpathians Orogen and its foreland

The DACIA-PLAN (Danube and Carpathian Integrated Action on Processes in the Lithosphere and Neotectonics) deep seismic reflection survey was performed in August–September 2001, with the objective of obtaining new information on the deep structure of the external Carpathians nappe system and the architecture of the Tertiary/Quaternary basins developed within and adjacent to the Vrancea zone, including the rapidly subsiding Focsani Basin. The DACIA-PLAN profile is about 140 km long, having a roughly WNW–ESE direction, from near the southeast Transylvanian Basin, across the mountainous south-eastern Carpathians and their foreland to near the Danube River. A high resolution 2.5D velocity model of the upper crust along the seismic profile has been determined from a tomographic inversion of the DACIA-PLAN first arrival data. The results show that the data fairly accurately resolve the transition from sediment to crystalline basement beneath the Focsani Basin, where industry seismic data are available for correlation, at depths up to about 10 km. Beneath the external Carpathians nappes, apparent basement (material with velocities above 5.8 km/s) lies at depths as shallow as 3–4 km, which is less than previously surmised on the basis of geological observations. The first arrival travel-time data suggest that there is significant lateral structural heterogeneity on the apparent basement surface in this area, suggesting that the high velocity material may be involved in Carpathian thrusting.     

The northern Walker Lane refraction experiment: Pn arrivals and the northern Sierra Nevada root

In May 2002, we collected a new crustal refraction profile from Battle Mountain, Nevada across western Nevada, the Reno area, Lake Tahoe, and the northern Sierra Nevada Mountains to Auburn, CA. Mine blasts and earthquakes were recorded by 199 Texan instruments extending across this more than 450-km-long transect. The use of large mine blasts and the ultra-portable Texan recorders kept the field costs of this profile to less than US$10,000. The seismic sources at the eastern end were mining blasts at Barrick's GoldStrike mine. The GoldStrike mine produced several ripple-fired blasts using 8000–44,000 kg of ANFO each, a daily occurrence. First arrivals from the larger GoldStrike blasts are obvious to distances of 300 km in the raw records. First arrivals from a quarry blast west of the survey near Watsonville, CA, located by the Northern California Seismic Network with a magnitude of 2.2, can be picked across the recording array to distances of 600 km. The Watsonville blast provides a western source, nearly reversing the GoldStrike blasts. A small earthquake near Bridgeport, CA. also produced pickable P-wave arrivals across the transect, providing fan-shot data. Arrivals from M5 events in the Mariana and Kuril Islands also appear in the records. This refraction survey observes an unexpectedly deep crustal root under the northern Sierra Nevada range, over 50 km in thickness and possibly centered west of the topographic crest. Pn delays of 4–6 s support this interpretation. At Battle Mountain, Nevada, we observe anomalously thin crust over a limited region perhaps only 150 km wide, with a Moho depth of 19–23 km. Pn crossover distances of less than 80 km support this anomaly, which is surrounded by observations of more normal, 30-km-thick crust. A 10-km-thick and high-velocity lower-crustal “pillow” is an alternative hypothesis, but unlikely due to the lack of volcanics west of Battle Mountain. Large mine and quarry blasts prove very effective crustal refraction sources when recorded with a dense receiver array, even over distances exceeding 600 km. New elastic synthetic seismogram modeling suggests that Pn can be strong as a first arrival, easing the modeling and interpretation of crustal refraction data. Fast eikonal computations of first-arrival time can match pickable Pn arrival times.     

论羌塘地块结构的不均一性和深部信息

根据藏北羌塘地区最新地质、地球物理资料(以MT为主)综合分析，对比西部和东部综合剖面各单元结构特征，发现羌塘地块结构不均一性特征明显。西部隆起区结构独特，浅中部与深部结构有别，存在一南倾低阻异常带。西中部剖面南羌塘坳陷与西部隆起区深部结构相似，壳内低阻层呈双层。其他地段和东部剖面均呈中隆两坳格局，壳内低阻层仅一层。中部隆起带的深部总是对应一直立极低阻异常带。北羌塘坳陷低阻凹陷规模大，基底埋深大，横向分块明显，北中段热力改造较强，深部存在l～2个极低阻异常区带。总体上表现为南北分区带、东西分块段、垂向分圈层，MT显示壳内低阻层顶界面深度不一，横向变化大，低阻层呈①直切式：从深50～60km处呈柱状直接切断两侧高阻体，升达地面；②蘑菇云状：从深100km处呈宽约50km的蘑菇云状升入到地下10km；③上下叠置三明治式：以双层低阻层或多层高阻体上下叠置呈三明治式结构。南部基底电阻率显著高于北部，基底构造分三块：西南部、中东部和东部。这种结构不均一既有其深部构造作用控制，可能存在热异常柱，又有后期改造作用的叠加。     

西藏东坡蛇绿岩体深部结构的地球物理特征及其找矿意义

在西藏西部雅鲁藏布江南岸的东坡岩体进行了多种方法的地球物理探测,由地面磁测精确定位的航空磁测异常反演了东坡岩体深部磁性体范围;反射地震探测划分出了与地表出露蛇绿岩体反射波特征不同的岩体下部弱反射部位;同时,由大地电磁法确定了岩体下部的低阻体也都处于大致相同的部位。地面出露的蛇绿岩体向下延伸,整体呈锅底状,其中部具有较低电阻和弱反射波特征,同时,在1.5~3.0 km范围的磁性矿物相对较发育,可能正是含铬岩体矿化蚀变作用较强的地段,在罗布莎矿区有类似的特征,这对找矿是有利的部位。     

中亚造山带东段浅表构造速度结构——深地震反射剖面初至波层析成像的揭露

为揭示中亚造山带浅表结构,对地壳演化与深部过程提供浅部精准约束,利用横过中亚造山带东段（奈曼旗—东乌珠穆沁旗）长达400 km的深地震反射剖面共2 186炮的初至波走时数据,运用初至波层析成像方法获得了自地表向下约3 km厚度的浅表速度结构精细模型。通过模型计算了沉积厚度变化与基岩起伏特征,并在贺根山和西拉木伦缝合带附近获得了呈低速特征的弧前沉积盆地规模与沉积厚度变化特征;在此基础上,综合速度模型与深地震反射剖面的强振幅反射信息,建立了符合剖面南北两侧的古亚洲洋双向俯冲并与中部的残存微陆块发生拼合的构造模型。结果表明：研究区的沉积厚度在0.3~3.0 km范围内变化,区内存在多期岩浆活动及活动构造,林西地区隐伏连续分布的高速结构多为造山花岗岩所导致;古亚洲洋消亡过程在经数亿年演变后仍能在大陆边缘的浅表构造中有迹可循。     

粤北地区乳源-潮州MT剖面深部电性结构及地学意义

为了揭示粤北地区岩石圈深部结构、深大断裂性质及花岗岩分布规律等科学问题,布设了乳源-潮州宽频带大地电磁探测剖面。由二维反演得出的电性结构,讨论了粤北地区岩石圈导电性结构特点。沿剖面存在3个花岗岩分布区,呈现不同的类型,可能代表不同的成因模式。沿剖面划分3条北东向断裂带:吉安-四会断裂、赣江断裂于韶关东形成宽度近20km的低阻区域,其间形成断陷盆地;河源-邵武断裂带,其两侧发育壳幔高导层并发育壳幔混合型花岗岩,深部电性结构复杂,可能为壳幔剧烈作用的场所;丽水-海丰断裂带,控制了燕山晚期花岗岩的分布。韶关、连平之间和龙川、丰顺之间50～150km存在2个巨大的低阻体,可能是地幔物质底侵作用的"通道";且底侵方向指向连平和龙川之间的区域,由于底侵作用力贡献,发育了一系列的壳内和上地幔高导层。粤北地区岩石圈从西向东逐渐减薄,从100余km减薄到60km,反映了太平洋板块对欧亚板块的消减作用。潮州100km深度以下的中-低阻特征,推断为太平洋板块俯冲作用留下的"洋壳"物质。