The Zoulang Nanshan Caledonian Subduction Complex in the Northern Qilian Mountains and Its Dynamics1

Abstract The front of the Zoulang Nanshan Caledonian volcanic island arc zone in the northern Qilian Mountains is a forearc accretionary terrane, composed of multiple accretionary volcanic island arcs, flysch accretionary wedges, high - pressure metamorphosed detachment zones and remnants of ophiolites. It resulted from the northeastward subduction of the Early Palaeozoic Qilan oceanic crust beneath the Alxa block. High - pressure metamorphism, which occurred during the subduction, progressed through three stages: the initial stage of medium T - high P, the main stage of temperature decrease and pressure increase, and the lag stage of pressure decrease and temperature increase. Finally the paper presents a retrotrench subduction dynamic model indicative of northward subduction of the central Qilian block and southward accretion of the Alxa block during the period of 450-500 M a.     

大别造山带与郯庐断裂带壳、幔结构和陆内“俯冲”的耦合效应

地质学家基于岩石年代学、峰期变质的压力差和阿尔卑斯变质沉积岩中柯石英的发现，推断在大别造山带地区发现的柯石英和榴辉岩乃是地幔深处120km左右折返至地壳浅部的结果.为了提供大别造山带与郯庐断裂带地域的壳、幔深部结构与深层动力过程的定量判据，本文利用瑞利（Rayleigh）波的频散效应反演该区S波的三维群速度结构分布.研究结果表明：（1）该区存在一由东向西陆内俯冲的高速板舌，其下插深度仅达160 km.在秦岭—大别造山带地域上地幔70km深处存在一顶部宽约500km的低速地幔热点.（2）出露的含柯石英榴辉岩是大别造山带深部物质和能量的交换，郯庐断裂带强烈平移错动及板内俯冲效应共同作用导致的深部物质(上地幔)运移和动力学效应的综合产物.     

Very-low-temperature record of the subduction process: A review of worldwide lawsonite eclogites

Lawsonite eclogites preserve a record of very-low-temperature conditions in subduction zones. All occur at active margin settings, typically characterized by accretionary complexes lithologies and as tectonic blocks within serpentinite-matrix mélange. Peak lawsonite-eclogite facies mineral assemblages (garnet + omphacite + lawsonite + rutile) typically occur in prograde-zoned garnet porphyroblasts. Their matrix is commonly overprinted by higher-temperature epidote-bearing assemblages; greenschist- or amphibolite-facies conditions erase former lawsonite-eclogite relics. Various pseudomorphs after lawsonite occur, particularly in some blueschist/eclogite transitional facies rocks. Coesite-bearing lawsonite-eclogite xenoliths in kimberlitic pipes and lawsonite pseudomorphs in some relatively low-temperature ultrahigh-pressure eclogites are known. Using inclusion assemblages in garnet, lawsonite eclogites can be classified into two types: L-type, such as those from Guatemala and British Columbia, contain garnet porphyroblasts that grew only within the lawsonite stability field and E-type, such as from the Dominican Republic, record maximum temperature in the epidote-stability field.

Formation and preservation of lawsonite eclogites requires cold subduction to mantle depths and rapid exhumation. The earliest occurrences of lawsonite-eclogite facies mineral assemblages are Early Paleozoic in Spitsbergen and the New England fold belt of Australia; this suggests that since the Phanerozoic, secular cooling of Earth and subduction-zone thermal structures evolved the necessary high pressure/temperature conditions. Buoyancy of serpentinite and oblique convergence with a major strike-slip component may facilitate the exhumation of lawsonite eclogites from mantle depths.     

GPS-derived strain in northwestern California: Termination of the San Andreas fault system and convergence of the Sierra Nevada–Great Valley block contribute to southern Cascadia forearc contraction

GPS-derived velocities (1993–2002) in northwestern California show that processes other than subduction are in part accountable for observed upper-plate contraction north of the Mendocino triple junction (MTJ) region. After removing the component of elastic strain accumulation due to the Cascadia subduction zone from the station velocities, two additional processes account for accumulated strain in northern California. The first is the westward convergence of the Sierra Nevada–Great Valley (SNGV) block toward the coast and the second is the north–northwest impingement of the San Andreas fault system from the south on the northern California coastal region in the vicinity of Humboldt Bay. Sierra Nevada–Great Valley block motion is northwest toward the coast, convergent with the more northerly, north–northwest San Andreas transform fault-parallel motion. In addition to the westward-converging Sierra Nevada–Great Valley block, San Andreas transform-parallel shortening also occurs in the Humboldt Bay region. Approximately 22 mm/yr of distributed Pacific–SNGV motion is observed inland of Cape Mendocino across the northern projections of the Maacama and Bartlett Springs fault zones but station velocities decrease rapidly north of Cape Mendocino. The resultant 6–10 mm/yr of San Andreas fault-parallel shortening occurs above the southern edge of the subducted Gorda plate and at the latitude of Humboldt Bay. Part of the San Andreas fault-parallel shortening may be due to the viscous coupling of the southern edge of the Gorda plate to overlying North American plate. We conclude that significant portions of the upper-plate contraction observed north of the MTJ region are not solely a result of subduction of the Gorda plate but also a consequence of impingement of the western edge of the Sierra Nevada–Great Valley block and growth of the northernmost segments of the San Andreas fault system.     

Microseismic activity in the Hellenic Volcanic Arc, Greece, with emphasis on the seismotectonic setting of the Santorini–Amorgos zone

The volcanic arc of the Hellenic subduction zone with its four volcanic centers is of major relevance when evaluating the seismovolcanic hazard for the Aegean region. We present results from a 22-station temporary seismic network (CYCNET) in the central Hellenic Volcanic Arc (HVA). CYCNET recordings allow to analyze the level and spatio-temporal evolution of microseismic activity in this region for the first time. A total of 2175 events recorded between September 2002 and July 2004 are analyzed using statistical methods, cluster analysis and relative relocation techniques. We identify distinct regions with significantly varying spatio-temporal behavior of microseismicity. A large portion of the seismic activity within the upper crust is associated with the presence of islands representing horst structures that were generated during the major Oligocene extensional phase. In contrast, the central part of the Cyclades metamorphic core complex remains aseismic considering our magnitude threshold of 1.8 except one spot where events occur swarm-like and with highly similar waveforms.The highest activity in the study area was identified along the SW–NE striking Santorini–Amorgos zone. Within this zone the submarine Columbo volcano exhibits strong temporal variations of seismic activity on a high background level. This activity is interpreted to be directly linked to the magma reservoir and therein the migration of magma and fluids towards the surface. NE of Columbo where no volcanic activity has yet been reported we observe a similar seismicity pattern with small-scaled activity spots that might represent local pathways of upward migrating fluids or even developing volcanic activity within this zone of crustal weakness. In contrast, the Santorini and Milos volcanic complexes do not show significant temporal variations and low to moderate background activity, respectively. Relating our results to the distribution of historical earthquakes and the GPS-derived horizontal velocity field we conclude that the Santorini–Amorgos zone is presently in the state of right-lateral transtension reflecting a major structural boundary of the volcanic arc subdividing it into a seismically and volcanically quiet western and an active eastern part.     

超高压变质作用过程中的流体——来自苏鲁超高压变质岩岩石学、氧同位素和流体包裹体研究的限定

苏鲁造山带超高压变质岩岩石学、氧同位素、流体包裹体和名义上无水矿物的研究表明，流体-岩石相互作用在大陆地壳的俯冲与折返过程中起到多重的重要作用，并形成了复杂的流体演化过程：（1）大陆表壳岩通过与高纬度大气降水的交换作用被广泛水化，并获得了异常低的氧同位素成分；（2）在水化陆壳物质的俯冲过程中发生了一系列的进变质脱水反应，所释放的流体主要结合进了高压、超高压含水矿物和名义上无水超高压矿物；（3）在超高压变质过程中，以水为主的变质流体通过选择性的吸收使其盐度逐渐升高，并在峰期出现高密度、高盐度的H2O或CO2-H2O流体。有机质的分解反应在局部形成了以CO2、N2、CH4或它们的混合物为主要成分的变质流体；（4）名义上无水超高压矿物的结构水出溶是早期退变质流体的主要来源，并在局部富集形成了高压变质脉体；（5）透入性的中、低盐度水流体活动使超高压变质岩通过一系列的水化反应转变成角闪岩相变质岩；（6）沿韧性剪切带和脆性破碎带的强烈水流体活动为绿片岩相退变质作用和低压石英脉的形成提供了变质流体；（7）可变盐度的H2O或CO2-H2O流体是整个超高压变质岩形成与折返过程中的主要流体，但局部的流体．岩石相互作用形成了非极性的变质流体。     

The Event of 26th of December 2004 – The Biggest Earthquake in the World in the Last 40 years

A great earthquake occurred at 00:58:49 (UTC) on Sunday, December 26, 2004 off the northwest coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Its revised moment magnitude was M 9.3 making it in the top four largest earthquakes in the world since 1900 and the largest since the Alaskan 1964 event. The earthquake caused tsunami waves which killed more than 300,000 people in Southern Asia and Africa. There were 31 earthquakes with magnitudes between 5.5 and 7.3 in the 48-h period after the main event, and it seemed that seismicity migrated northwards along the 1200 km fault (http: //www.ga.gov.au). Similar size events occurred in that location off Sumatra in the 19th century, but no evidence of written records of their tsunami effects in Australia is found. The devastating megathrust earthquake of 26 December 2004 occurred on the interface of the Indo-Australian and Euro-Asian plates where the first plate subducts beneath the overriding second plate and the Indo-Australian plate begins its descent into the mantle. In the epicentral region, the Indo-Australian plate moves toward the northeast at a rate of about 7 cm/year relative to the Euro-Asian plate resulting in oblique convergence and partitioning into thrust-faulting. From the size of the earthquake, it is likely that the displacement on the fault plane was up to fifteen meters. As with the recent event, megathrust earthquakes often generate large tsunamis that cause damage over a much wider area than is directly affected by ground shaking near the earthquake’s rupture. The subduction zone continues further south of the Indonesian archipelago and that area is also a potential risk of producing a megathrust event that may affect coastal parts of northwest Australia. The tragic events of Boxing Day 2004 highlighted the importance of establishing a tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean like the one for the Pacific. Issues like more and better instrumentation, and a long-term program to educate people in the region about the dangers of tsunamis, were identified as priorities. Of particular interest is the time for identifying and issuing alerts for such devastating earthquakes with possibility to reduce it in future for warning purposes.     

Development and Applications of Double-difference Seismic Tomography

Double-difference (DD) tomography is a generalization of DD location; it simultaneously solves for the three-dimensional velocity structure and seismic event locations. DD tomography uses a combination of absolute and more accurate differential arrival times and hierarchically determines the velocity structure from larger scale to smaller scale. This method is able to produce more accurate event locations and velocity structure near the source region than standard tomography, which uses only absolute arrival times. We conduct a stability and uncertainty analysis of DD tomography based on a synthetic data set. Currently three versions of the DD tomography algorithms exist: tomoDD, tomoFDD and tomoADD. TomoDD assumes a flat earth model and uses a pseudo-bending ray-tracing algorithm to find rays between events and stations while tomoFDD uses a finite-difference travel-time algorithm and the curvature of the Earth is considered. Both codes are based on a regularly distributed inversion grid, with the former for a local scale and the latter for a regional scale. In contrast, tomoADD adapts the inversion mesh to match with the data distribution based on tetrahedral and Voronoi diagrams. We discuss examples of applying DD tomography to characterize fault zone structure, image high-resolution structure of subduction zones, and determine the velocity structure of volcanoes.