Nature of “transparency windows” in the broadband spectrum of seafloor microseisms

The peculiarities of the microseisms spectra shape when recording on the ocean floor in the frequency band of 0.003–20 Hz are examined. The origin of the stable minima in the microseisms spectrum (“transparency windows”) at frequencies of about 0.02–0.1 Hz and 5–15 Hz is analyzed. In these frequency bands, weak earthquake signals are recorded by bottom instruments. The origin of the low-frequency “transparency windows” can be explained by the conditions of the microseisms propagation in the oceanic waveguide (between the bottom and the water’s surface) in the abyssal plain zones. The results of the full-waveform numerical simulation of the seismoacoustic waves propagation in the oceanic environment and on the ocean-continent border are presented, and the experimental data as well. The peculiarities of the microseisms spectra in the band of high-frequency “transparency windows” can be caused by the constructive resonance in the water-saturated layer of bottom sediments. The theoretical foundation and experimental results are given.     

Coupling of ocean bottom seismometers to soft bottom

Unlike response of seismometers resting on hard rock where the seismometer case moves with the rock to high frequencies, the response of ocean bottom seismometers (OBS) can be strongly affected by the low mechanical strength of ocean sediments. The motion as measured by the seismometer will not follow the expected relationships between pressure and particle motion for different wave types. Cross coupling between horizontal and vertical motions can occur, especially when there is differential motion between water and sediment. Resonant amplification and attenuation of higher frequencies also occur. Secondary seismic arrivals are especially subject to distortion. Overall response is strongly dependent upon the mass and configuration of the OBS and the rigidity and density of the bottom material. Tests at Lopez Island, Puget Sound using both directly applied mechanical transients and seismic signals with various instrument configurations demonstrate the above effects and provide some guidance for improved designs.Hawaii Institute of Geophysics Contribution No. 1172.     

A digital event-recording ocean bottom seismometer capsule

The ocean bottom seismometer capsule contains a 1 Hz. vertical seismometer and triggerable or programmable digital recording system. The output of the seismometer is continuously digitized at a preselected rate of 64, 128, or 256 samples/sec. The digital data words are mixed with a time code and synchronization characters, serialized and passed through a 1536 sample shift register which acts as a delay line. The serial output bits are then encoded and recorded on a SONY TC800B tape recorder which is turned on when a seismic event occurs. The event trigger occurs when the seismic signal jumps to 8 times the time averaged input signal. A memory may be programmed to run the recorder on a schedule so that small amplitude signals from refraction shots are sure to be recorded. Data are recovered using the same recorder for playback and a decoder which provides an analog output for field data interpretation or a digital output for computer analysis. An acoustic transponder allows precise ranges between the capsule and ship to be determined. In addition, commands for the capsule to release or to transmit diagnostic data may be given from the surface ship. The capsule falls freely to the ocean bottom. After a predetermined time or when a release command is received, it is released from a 68 kg steel tripod and floats to the surface. A dual timer and explosive bolt system is used to increase recovery reliability.The first capsules were designed and constructed between October 1972 and October 1973. Good results were obtained from 38 out of 43 launchings made on six expeditions in 1974, 1975, and 1976. Four capsules have been lost.     

台湾海峡OBS地震记录中二次Ps震相的特征及应用

在海底地震仪(ocean bottom seismometer,OBS)广角地震记录剖面上,经常可以见到震相清晰且连续的多次波信号,多次波和初至波是由相同的震源信号产生的,也是地壳真实结构的反映。但是在通常的OBS数据处理过程中,经常将多次波作为无效信号剔除掉,对其属性及应用的研究比较少。文章通过对台湾海峡南部OBS探测测线HXN01数据的处理,对多个台站记录到的二次震相进行了识别与拾取,并以OBS0106台站为例,对识别出的二次Ps震相进行了系统的研究分析,发现二次Ps震相的波形特征和质点运动轨迹与初至震相相似,但波形最大振幅值明显大于初至震相。通过Rayinvr射线追踪方法模拟,确定了二次Ps震相的主要反射层,并发现加入二次震相后,台站下方浅部沉积层射线覆盖密度有显著提升,射线覆盖的区域也明显增加,为沉积层精细结构的反演提供了更为丰富的数据基础。另外,对理论模型的地壳结构进行加入二次Ps震相前后的反演测试,结果显示加入二次Ps震相数据后,沉积层的界面深度误差得到明显的改善。     

Mitobs: A seismometer system for ocean-bottom earthquake studies

The MIT ocean-bottom seismometer is a free-fall, pop-up instrument capable of recording three components of seismic data on the sea floor for periods of at least one month. Data are recorded in digital format on a specially designed magnetic tape recorder. An event recording scheme and semiconductor memories assure both efficient data storage and preservation of first motion information. Sensors and recording electronics are housed in a cylindrical pressure vessel, which sits vertically atop an expendable base plate on the ocean bottom. Attached to the pressure case are three glass spheres for buoyancy. After a pre-set time interval, a motor-driven mechanical latch release frees the instrument to float to the ocean surface for recovery.     

底床粉质土液化下波动水体含沙量垂向L型分布特征试验研究

根据现场大风浪条件下的实测资料,粉质土海岸水体中的含沙量沿垂向具有上部均匀、近底突增的分布特点,即呈L型分布特征。利用黄河三角洲粉质土作为试验底床开展波浪水槽试验研究,揭示了底床粉质土在波浪作用下产生液化情况的水体含沙量沿垂向存在L型分布特征。根据试验现象以及悬沙粒度变化,分析认为底部高含沙层的形成主要受粉质土液化后细颗粒析出的影响,上部水体中悬沙由湍流脉动维持。对粉质土海岸大风天气期间水体含沙量剧烈增加采用波致粉质土液化的观点进行了初步解释。     

Generating interface waves using a freely falling, instrumentedsource

In recent years, interface waves such as the Scholte wave have become important tools in the study of the geoacoustic properties of near-bottom seafloor sediments. Traditionally, these waves have been generated by explosive or pneumatic sources deployed at or near the seafloor and monitored by ocean-bottom seismographs or geophone arrays. While these sources generate the requisite interface waves, they also produce higher frequency compressional waves in the water and sediment that tend to contaminate the surface wave and make inversion of the data difficult in the near field. In this paper, a new source consisting of a freely falling projectile instrumented with an accelerometer is described. When the projectile impacts the bottom, the exact time history of the vertical force applied to the sediment is known and therefore may be convolved with the transfer function of a sediment geoacoustic model to produce accurate synthetic seismograms. Moreover, the vertical force applied to the seafloor is very efficient in generating surface wave motion while producing very little compressional wave energy so that the near-field signals are much more easily analyzed. An example of the use of the new source is presented including inversion of the received signals to obtain shear-wave velocity and attenuation as a function of depth in the near bottom sediments at a shallow-water site     

Characteristics of Gas Hydrate and Free Gas Offshore Southwestern Taiwan from a Combined MCS/OBS Data Analysis

In this study, we present the results of the combined analyses of ocean bottom seismometer and multi-channel seismic reflection data collection offshore southwestern Taiwan, with respect to the presence of gas hydrates and free gas within the accretionary wedge sediments. Estimates of the compressional velocities along EW9509-33 seismic reflection profile are obtained by a series of pre-stack depth migrations in a layer stripping streamlined Deregowski loop. Strong BSR is imaged over most of the reflection profile while low velocity zones are imaged below BSR at several locations. Amplitude versus angle analysis that are performed within the pre-stack depth migration processes reveal strong negative P-impedance near the bottom of the hydrate stability zone, commonly underlain by sharp positive P impedance layers associated with negative pseudo-Poisson attribute areas, indicating the presence of free gas below the BSR. Ray tracing of the acoustic arrivals with a model derived from the migration velocities generally fits the vertical and hydrophone records of the four ocean-bottom seismographs (OBS). In order to estimate the Poisson’s ratios in the shallow sediments at the vicinity of the OBSs, we analyze the mode-converted arrivals in the wide-angle horizontal component. P-S mode converted reflections are dominant, while upward P-S transmissions are observed at large offsets. We observe significant compressional velocity and Poisson’s ratio pull-down in the sediment below the BSR likely to bear free gas. When compared to Poisson’s ratio predicted by mechanical models, the values proposed for the OBSs yield rough estimates of gas hydrate saturation in the range of 0–10% in the layers above the BSR and of free gas saturation in the range of 0–2% just below the BSR.     

A note on the seafloor coupling characteristics of the new ONR ocean-bottom seismometer

A series of transient tests were conducted to determine the seafloor coupling characteristics of a new ocean-bottom seismometer (OBS) developed for the United States Office of Naval Research (ONR). The OBS comprises a large recording package and a separate sensor package that is deployed from the recording package. In addition to the coupling characteristics of both the sensor and the recording packages, the seismic energy radiated from the main recording package as a result of motion of the recording package was measured. The observed vertical coupling resonances of both the recording package and the sensor package are in good agreement with those predicted by a simple model of soil-structure interaction. The most important result of this study is that significant energy is radiated from the recording package in response to horizontal motions of the recording package. When the sensor package is 1 m from the recording package, the amplitude of the recorded signal is similar to that recorded in the recording package. In the field, this effect will result in distortion of seismic signals and increased background noise recorded by the sensor package if the recording package is disturbed by seafloor currents or biological activity. The amplitude of this signal attenuates by approximately a factor of two as sensor/recorder separation is increased from 1 to 6 m, suggesting that an improved response can be achieved by increasing the separation between the recording package and the sensors. This effect is much less severe for vertical disturbances of the recording package.     

Influence of quasi-geostrophic currents and inertial waves on the elution of fine sediments in the Southeast Baltic

Numerical simulation based on the Princeton Ocean Model (POM) was performed for a region of the Southeast Baltic in order to compare data on the spatial distribution of velocity and bottom sediments. Special attention was focused on the influence of western and northeastern winds, which generate intense quasi-geostrophic currents can may cause very high velocities in the near bottom layer, which results in the elution of bottom sediments and transport of their fine fractions. An abrupt change in wind velocity intensifies the effect of elution due to generation of inertial internal waves that penetrate into the bottom layer. The spatial distributions of the velocity in the surface and near bottom layers are compared with data on bottom sediments. It turned out that areas with the highest velocities that formed under the effect of western and northeastern winds in most cases coincide with areas where bottom sediments are represented by coarse-grain fractions of gravel and sands.     

Very low frequency Ocean Bottom ambient seismic noise and coupling on the shallow continental shelf

Sources of very low frequency (0.01 to 1.0 Hz) ambient seismic noise in the shallow (<100 m) water continental margin sediments are investigated using Ocean Bottom Seismometers (OBS). The predominant seismic motions are found to be due to surface gravity (water) waves and water-sediment interface waves. Actual experimental measurements of seabed acceleration and hydrodynamic pressure are given, including side by side comparisons between buried and plate-mounted OBS units. OBS-sediment resonant effects are found to be negligible at the low frequencies under investigation. Wherever there exists relative motion between the seabed and the water, however, an exposed OBS is subject to added mass forces that cause it to move with the water rather than the sediments. Calculations based on measured seabed motions show that a neutral density, buried seismometer has superior sediment coupling charactersitics to any exposed OBS design.     

胜利埕岛海域海底松软沉积物声学探测方法探讨

胜利埕岛海域位于复杂的黄河三角洲沉积体系中．由于黄河的断流,在风浪和海流作用下原三角洲体系受到侵蚀．在部分海底具有松散沉积物沉积。采用侧扫声纳、双频测深仪及浅地层剖面仪3种海上物探方法,对埕岛海域海底松软沉积物进行声学探测,确定了浮泥、软土层顶、海底界面及浮泥和软土层和海底界面及浮泥和软土层的厚度,研究了埕岛海域海底松软沉积物的基本分布变化规律,为今后海洋工程地质勘察海底松软沉积物奠定了基础。     

A permanent seismic station beneath the Ocean Bottom

The Hawaii Institute of Geophysics began development of the Ocean Subbottom Seisometer (OSS) system in 1978, and OSS systems were installed in four locations between 1979 and 1982. The OSS system is a permanent, deep ocean borehole seismic recording system composed of a borehole sensor package (tool), an electromechanical cable, recorder package, and recovery system. Installed near the bottom of a borehole (drilled by the D/V Glomar Challenger), the tool contains three orthogonal, 4.5-Hz geophones, two orthogonal tilt meters; and a temperature sensor. Signals from these sensors are multiplexed, digitized (with a floating point technique), and telemetered through approximately 10 km of electromechanical cable to a recorder package located near the ocean bottom. Electrical power for the tool is supplied from the recorder package. The digital seismic signals are demultiplexed, converted back to analog form, processed through an automatic gain control (AGC) circuit, and recorded along with a time code on magnetic tape cassettes in the recorder package. Data may be recorded continuously for up to two months in the self-contained recorder package. Data may also be recorded in real time (digital formal) during the installation and subsequent recorder package servicing. The recorder package is connected to a submerged recovery buoy by a length of bouyant polypropylene rope. The anchor on the recovery buoy is released by activating either of the acoustical command releases. The polypropylene rope may also be seized with a grappling hook to effect recovery. The recorder package may be repeatedly serviced as long as the tool remains functionalA wide range of data has been recovered from the OSS system. Recovered analog records include signals from natural seismic sources such as earthquakes (teleseismic and local), man-made seismic sources such as refraction seismic shooting (explosives and air cannons), and nuclear tests. Lengthy continuous recording has permitted analysis of wideband noise levels, and the slowly varying parameters, temperature and tilt.Hawaii Institute of Geophysics Contribution 1909.     

Quantitative evaluation of a passively leveled ocean bottom seismometer

A problem in the use of ocean bottom seismometers is the difficulty in leveling the sensors while ensuring good coupling to the seafloor. We have investigated the coupling characteristics of the seismic sensors in the new ONR ocean bottom seismometer. In the deployable sensor package for that instrument, a three-component seismometer set is suspended on a 2-axis passive leveling gimbal and is immersed in a viscous fluid. We report tests, conducted in a seismic vault, comparing the output of a gimbaled seismometer set to that of a set rigidly coupled to the ground. Our results show that the degree to which the gimbaled set is coupled to ground motion is a function of the viscosity of the coupling fluid. The coherence between the two sensor sets is poor (<0.4) at some frequencies within the band of interest (0.15 to 20 Hz) and on some components when the viscosity of the coupling fluid is comparatively low (14 Pa-s or 0.16 kSt kinematic viscosity). In addition, the outputs of some components over portions of this frequency band are attenuated and are phase-shifted relative to the outputs of the set rigidly coupled to the ground. Coherence and phase response similarity improve as the viscosity of the coupling fluid is increased. With a coupling fluid viscosity of 980 Pa-s (10 kSt), coherence and phase agreement between the two sensor sets is good (>0.9) across nearly the entire band of interest on all three components. A simple analytical model of the gimbaled seismometer set as a damped, driven, compound-pendulum provides a basis for understanding the test results.     

Crustal structure and mantle transition zone thickness beneath a hydrothermal vent at the ultra-slow spreading Southwest Indian Ridge (49°39′E): a supplementary study based on passive seismic receiver functions

As a supplementary study, we used passive seismic data recorded by one ocean bottom seismometer (OBS) station (49°41.8′E) close to a hydrothermal vent (49°39′E) at the Southwest Indian Ridge to invert the crustal structure and mantle transition zone (MTZ) thickness by P-to-S receiver functions to investigate previous active seismic tomographic crustal models and determine the influence of the deep mantle thermal anomaly on seafloor hydrothermal venting at an ultra-slow spreading ridge. The new passive seismic S-wave model shows that the crust has a low velocity layer (2.6 km/s) from 4.0 to 6.0 km below the sea floor, which is interpreted as partial melting. We suggest that the Moho discontinuity at ~9.0 km is the bottom of a layer (2–3 km thick); the Moho (at depth of ~6–7 km), defined by active seismic P-wave models, is interpreted as a serpentinized front. The velocity spectrum stacking plot made from passive seismic data shows that the 410 discontinuity is depressed by ~15 km, the 660 discontinuity is elevated by ~18 km, and a positive thermal anomaly between 182 and 237 K is inferred.     

基于OBS和MCS数据的水合物地层速度特征

天然气水合物是一种新型的清洁能源, 南海北部神狐海域的地质条件有利于水合物的形成和储藏。传统的多道地震(MCS)数据难以得到精确的速度信息, 并且只能从时间域上判断地质体纵向分布。海底地震仪(OBS)是一种常用的主动源地震仪器, 可以接收到更清晰的气枪信号。相比于MCS, OBS剖面上的折射震相可以揭示较深部的地层速度信息。文章结合MCS和OBS的优势, 识别水平叠加剖面上的反射层位, 并得到初始模型; 将OBS剖面和水平叠加剖面拼合, 从而判断OBS剖面上反射震相所对应层位; 拾取OBS台站上的反射和折射震相, 使用RayInvr软件正演模拟得到水合物存在区域的二维速度模型, 解决了MCS中较为困难的时深转换问题。最终模型显示了水合物、游离气区域的埋深、厚度和速度, 以及似海底反射(BSR)下方更深部界面的深度和速度特征。     

Fidelity of ocean bottom seismic observations

The often poor quality of ocean bottom seismic data, particularly that observed on horizontal seismometers, is shown to be the result of instruments responding to motions in ways not intended. Instruments designed to obtain the particle motion of the ocean bottom are found to also respond to motions of the water. The shear discontinuity across the ocean floor boundary results in torques that cause package rotation, rather than rectilinear motion, in response to horizontal ground or water motion. The problems are exacerbated by bottom currents and soft sediments. The theory and data presented in this paper suggest that the only reliable way of obtaining high fidelity particle motion data from the ocean floor is to bury the sensors below the bottom in a package with density close to that of the sediment. Long period signals couple well to ocean bottom seismometers, but torques generated by bottom currents can cause noise at both long and short periods. The predicted effects are illustrated using parameters appropriate for the operational OBS developed for the U. S. Office of Naval Research. Examples of data from ocean bottom and buried sensors are also presented.     

Modelling of underwater seismic centres and the generation and transformation of tsunami waves in seismic areas

The mechanism of underwater earthquakes and tsunami wave generation in the Azov Sea-Black Sea region is studied, and theoretical principles of selecting simulation models are elaborated. In this connection, the geophysical data on the distribution, intensity and mechanisms of underwater seismic zones that may give rise to catastrophic disturbances of the marine environment are summarized and categorized, specifically, those that give rise to tsunamis. This makes possible the development and updating of mathematical models for the generation of seismic and surface gravity waves, considering geological heterogeneities, bottom irregularities, bottom sediments, etc. Translated by Vladimir A. Puchkin.     

SEDIS IV型短周期自浮式海底地震仪数据校正方法

利用15台SEDISIV型短周期自浮式海底地震仪在南海中、北部地壳深部结构调查中所获得的资料,探讨了海底地震仪数据校正的方法和校正后的效果,结果表明:使用该地震仪所获得的原始资料经过放炮时间、炮点坐标数据局部化、海底地震仪位置误差以及记录时间漂移4方面的校正后,数据更趋合理,误差显著降低。放炮时间的校正消除了时钟漂移和时间延迟的误差;炮点坐标数据局部化处理消除了炮点位置整体趋势性偏移的现象;试错法进行位置误差和记录时间的精细校正时,时间漂移的校正量值约为几个到十几个毫秒,位置校正的量值仅在几米到数百米之间,实测数据所绘曲线的形态和位置都与理论曲线十分吻合,可见校正后误差显著降低。     

The vertical response of an ocean bottom seismometer: Analysis of the Lopez Island vertical transient tests

A lumped-parameter model was developed to predict the response of an ocean bottom seismometer, resting on relatively non-stiff sediments, to vertical ground-motion. The model predictions were compared with the response of an instrument on a foundation of foam rubber to a sinusoidal input. Comparison of the model data to the measured Lopez Island vertical transient test data showed that bearing pressure of the instrument in a nonuniform vertical soil profile causes certain instruments to experience a shear modulus higher than the mean.