129581535
Upper crustal structure and axial topography at intermediate spreading ridges: Seismic constraints from the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge
[1] We use multichannel seismic reflection data to image the upper crustal structure of 0–620 ka crust along the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge. The study area comprises two segments spreading at intermediate rate with an axial high morphology with narrow (Cleft) and wide (Vance) axial summit grabens (ASG). Along most of the axis of both segments we image the top of an axial magma chamber (AMC). The AMC along Cleft deepens from south to north, from 2.0 km beneath the RIDGE Cleft Observatory and hydrothermal vents near the southern end of the segment to 2.3 km at the northern end near the site of the 1980s eruptive event. Along the Vance segment, the AMC also deepens from south to north, from 2.4 to 2.7 km. Seismic layer 2A, interpreted as the basaltic extrusive layer, is 250–300 m thick at the ridge axis along the Cleft segment and 300–350 m thick along the axis of the Vance segment. However, off-axis layer 2A is similar in both segments (500–600 m), indicating ∼90% and ∼60% off-axis thickening at the Cleft and Vance segments, respectively. Half of the thickening occurs sharply at the walls of the ASG, with the remaining thickening occurring within 3–4 km of the ASG. Along the full length of both segments, layer 2A is thinner within the ASG, compared to the ridge flanks. Previous studies argued that the ASG is a cyclic feature formed by alternating periods of magmatism and tectonic extension. Our observations agree with the evolving nature of the ASG. However, we suggest that its evolution is related to large changes in axial morphology produced by small fluctuations in magma supply. Thus the ASG, rather than being formed by excess volcanism, is a rifted flexural axial high. The changes in axial morphology affect the distribution of lava flows along the ridge flanks, as indicated by the pattern of layer 2A thickness. The fluctuations in magma supply may occur at all spreading rates, but its effects on crustal structure and axial morphology are most pronounced along intermediate spreading rate ridges.
129015652
Crustal thickness and the average depth and degree of melting in fractional melting models of passive flow beneath mid‐ocean ridges
In simple models of passive flow beneath mid-ocean ridges, fractional melting of the upwelling mantle produces unexpected relationships amongst crustal thickness, degree of partial melting, and the average depth of melting. If the degree of melting is estimated on the basis of basalt composition, then the average degree of melting is one-third the maximum degree of melting, and the average depth of melting is about two-thirds the maximum depth in the simplest models. The crustal thickness is about 1.5 times the product of the average fraction of melting and the height of the melting column. If the average degree of melting represented in mid-ocean ridge basalts were 10% and melt production continued to the base of the crust, then only a 40-km-high residual melting column would be required to produce a 6-km-thick crust. In more realistic models, melting beginning at 60 km below the base of the crust and continuing to the top of the mantle would produce a 6-km-thick crust with average degree of melting of 6.67% or melting beginning at 67 km and ending at 30 km below the base of the crust would produce a 6-km-thick crust with an average degree of melting of only about 5.4%. Models of composition produced by fractional melting must consider the rate of melt production and the degree of melting throughout the melting region at the points where the melt is actually produced.
129731609
Structure of the East Pacific Rise crest from multichannel seismic reflection data
Computer-processed multichannel seismic reflection profiles from the crestal zone of the East Pacific Rise near the Siqueiros Fracture Zone have revealed distinct layering in the structure not previously observed in single-channel reflection records. After processing, which included common depth point gathering, normal move-out and stack, time-varying predictive deconvolution, and wave equation migration, three distinct crustal layers emerge as coherent events across the rise crest. The base of the third layer appears to be at a depth of about 2 km below the sea floor and may represent the top of a low-velocity magma chamber, as postulated by Orcutt et al. (1975, 1976) from the results of ocean bottom seismometer refraction data. This layer appears to thicken away from the rise crest toward the edge of the raised axial block that characterizes the East Pacific Rise (Anderson and Noltimier, 1973). Illustrated in this article is the ability of modern processing techniques as applied to multichannel seismic data to enhance weak arrivals, to minimize sound source bubble-pulse reverberations, and to remove the diffraction patterns caused by rough topography.
15795064
Geochemistry of gabbro sills in the crust-mantle transition zone of the Oman ophiolite: implications for the origin of the oceanic lower crust
Gabbroic sills intruding dunite in the crust-mantle transition zone (MTZ) of the Oman ophiolite have textures and compositions very similar to those in modally layered gabbros that form the lower part of the gabbro section in the ophiolite, and different from those in non-layered gabbros near the dike-gabbro transition. The presence of gabbroic sills in the MTZ indicates that modally layered gabbros can form far below the level of magmatic neutral buoyancy and far below the dike-gabbro transition. Minerals in the sills and lower, layered gabbros are in FeMg and trace element exchange equilibrium with liquids identical to those that formed the sheeted dikes and lavas in the ophiolite. In contrast, many of the upper, non-layered gabbros resemble crystallized liquid compositions, similar to the dikes and lavas. The lower, layered gabbros probably formed in sills similar to those in the MTZ. Mantle-derived magmas cooled in these sills, where they crystallized from a few percent to 50% of their mass. Residual liquids then rose to form upper gabbros, dikes and lavas. Sills may form beneath permeability barriers created by the crystallization of cooling liquid migrating by porous flow. Once permeability barriers are present, however, porous flow becomes a less important mode of magma ascent, compared to ponding in sills, gradual increase in magma pressure, and periodic ascent in hydrofractures. Thus, gabbroic sills in the MTZ may represent the transition in fast-spreading ridge environments from continuous porous flow in the mantle to periodic diking in the crust.
128689343
Three‐dimensional seismic structure and physical properties of the crust and shallow mantle beneath the East Pacific Rise at 9°30'N
The seismic structure of the crust and shallow mantle beneath the East Pacific Rise near 9°3O′N is imaged by inverting P wave travel time data. Our tomographic results constrain for the first time the three-dimensional structure of the lower crust in this region and allow us to compare it to shallow crustal and mantle structure. The seismic structure is characterized by a low-velocity volume (LVV) that extends from 1.2 km depth below the seafloor into the mantle. The cross-axis width of the LVV is narrow in the crust (5–7 km) and broad in the mantle (∼18 km). Although the width of the top of the LVV is similar to previous estimates, its narrow shape at lower crustal depths and its significant widening in the mantle are previously unknown features of the rise velocity structure. In the rise-parallel direction the LVV varies in magnitude such that the lowest velocities are located between two minor rise axis discontinuities near 9°28′N and 9°35′N. From the seismic results we estimate the thermal structure and melt distribution beneath the rise. The thermal structure suggests that heat removal is relatively efficient throughout the crust yet inefficient at Moho and mantle depths. Estimates of the melt distribution indicate that magma accumulates at two levels in the magmatic system. One is at the top of the magmatic system and is capped by the shallow melt lens detected by seismic reflection surveys; the other is within the Moho transition zone and topmost portion of the mantle. The highest melt fractions occur within the upper reservoir, whereas the lower reservoir contains a lower melt fraction distributed over a broader area. By volume, however, there may be up to 40% more melt in the lower reservoir than in the upper reservoir. Along-axis variations in crustal melt content are similar to those in the mantle, supporting the hypothesis that the mantle, midway between the 9°28′N and 9°35′N devais, is presently delivering greater amounts of melt to the lower crust than to regions immediately to the north or south. We see no evidence (from seismic anisotropy) for diapiric mantle flow, suggesting that solid-state flow and melt migration are decoupled in the shallow mantle. Our results are not compatible with models that require a large, segment-scale redistribution of melt within the crust. Instead, our results imply that crustal magma chambers are replenished at closely spaced intervals along the rise.
13572471
Evidence for a smaller magma chamber beneath the East Pacific Rise at 9°30′ N
THE size and shape of magma chambers beneath mid-ocean ridges are fundamental features that control the availability of melt, composition of magmas and formation of oceanic crust. Models derived from the study of ophiolites1, and from thermal considerations2, include a very large magma chamber, which can exceed 1020 km in width. Cross-axis seismic reflection profiles from the East Pacific Rise, however, constrain the width of the axial magma chamber to be < 34 km (ref. 3). Even this may be an over-estimate, arising from the under-migration of diffracted energy generated at the edges of a smaller magma chamber. Here we show that forward modelling of these diffraction hyperbolae yields a distance between the best-fitting point diffractors, and by inference a magma chamber width, of only 8001,200 m. Reflectivity modelling also suggests that the available data are consistent with a magma chamber comprising only a thin layer of melt. A narrow and thin axial magma chamber would inhibit along-axis mixing4, and might thereby account for variations in magma composition along the East Pacific Rise5.
129835860
Upper crustal structure as a function of plate age
Each Lamont-Doherty sonobuoy located on well-dated crust has been carefully analyzed to determine crustal structure down to oceanic layer 3. Results from the Atlantic and the Pacific are compiled separately in order to study crustal structure as a function of plate age in both oceans, since they have very different spreading rates. 
 
Layer 2A (refraction velocity about 3.6 km/s) in the North Atlantic is 1.5 km thick at the ridge crest and thins consistently to about 100 m as the crust ages to about 60 m.y. Layer 2A in the east Pacific is 0.7 km thick at the ridge and thins to about 100 m at about 30 m.y. This difference in thickness is probably attributable to the much faster spreading rate in the Pacific. A poorly refractive acoustic basement layer about 200 m thick with similarities to layer 2A but not necessarily composed of the same materials is measured sporadically in the Pacific M-Series plates and even less consistently in the Atlantic. This layer is not recorded in the Cretaceous or the Jurassic quiet zones. 
 
Regressions of refraction velocities in layer 2A as a function of age show that its velocity increases from about 3.3 km/s at the ridge crests to that of layer 2B on crust about 40 m.y. old. There is no corresponding increase of velocity with age in any of the deeper layers. 
 
The high resolution of the air gun/sonobuoy records shows that the layer 2B refraction line breaks directly to layer 3 velocities (46 times in the present work) or to a line with a velocity of 6.1 km/s (114 times in the present work), which we call layer 2C. The variance of the velocities in 2C is one fourth that of 2A and 2B, which indicates relative lithological uniformity in 2C. 
 
It does not seem likely that layer 2A really thins; what appears to be a thinning of the layer may actually be the result of an increase of its refraction velocity with age. However, the 2A/2B interface is well-defined by large amplitude refractions from 2B on crust that is younger than about 30 m.y., which seems to rule out a transitional zone at the base of layer 2A where it ‘converts’ to 2B. The seismic observations seem to require a diagenetic process or repeated basaltic intrusions; both processes raise serious objections.
46367263
In situ evidence for the nature of the seismic layer 2/3 boundary in oceanic crust
THE igneous oceanic crust is typically thought of as comprising two layers: an upper crust ('seismic layer 2') characterized by a rapid increase in seismic velocity with depth, and a thicker lower crust ('seismic layer 3') which is distinguished from layer 2 by both a higher P-wave velocity (6.69 ± 0.26 km s -l) and a much smaller vertical velocity gradient (<1 km s-1 km-1)1–3. A direct correlation has never been established between this seismic layering and the in situ lithological and physical properties of oceanic crust. The transition between seismic layers 2 and 3 has been variously interpreted as a change in igneous rock texture from doleritic sheeted dykes to gabbro4,5, an increase in metamorphic grade from greenschist- to amphibolite-facies rocks2,6–9, or a change in bulk crustal porosity with depth2,10. We have re-examined available seismic refraction data from around Hole504B, the deepest (>1.8 km) continuous hole drilled into the oceanic crust11–13, and find that at this location the seismic layer 2/3 boundary lies within the sheeted-dyke complex, where it is associated with gradual downhole changes in crustal porosity and alteration, not a litho-logical transition from sheeted dykes to gabbro.
129794326
Lava flow layer‐East Pacific Rise
A multichannel seismic reflection profile across the East Pacific Rise near 9°N reveals an approximately 400 m thick layer at the top of the oceanic crust with seismic velocity of about 2.8 km/s at the Rise crest. This velocity increases to about 3.8 km/s, 210 km east of the Rise crest. These low velocities suggest that this layer is probably a porous lava flow layer (layer 2A of seismic refraction studies) generated by volcanic activity at the spreading center. Reflections from the base of the layer imply a relatively sharp transition between the lava flows and the underlying layer (presumably a sheeted dike complex). The underlying layer is a zone about 1.4 km thick (with velocity about 5.7 km/s) whose base may coincide with the top of a low velocity magma chamber from which the crust develops.
129624589
A multichannel seismic investigation of upper crustal structure at 9°N on the East Pacific Rise: Implications for crustal accretion
Reprocessed multichannel seismic profiles from the 9°N segment of the East Pacific Rise reveal prominent shallow subbasement events. These events are identified as wide-angle reflections from the base of seismic layer 2A, based upon modeling of expanding spread profile data and velocity functions. The layer 2A reflections typically increase from 0.15 s after the seafloor reflection at the rise axis to 0.3–0.45 s within 1–2 km of the axis, corresponding to an increase in layer thickness of 200–600 m. No further systematic increase in layer thickness is observed, although lateral variability of the order of a few hundred meters in thickness is observed at greater offsets from the rise axis. However, the intermittent character of the imaged layer 2A reflection is attributed to focusing and defocusing of energy by the seafloor bathymetry rather than necessarily to intrinsic lateral variability at the base of the layer. The base of layer 2A is interpreted as corresponding to the transition between the extrusive section, pillow basalts and sheet flows, and a sheeted dike complex. The rapid thickening of the layer near the rise axis is attributed to successive lava flows burying the initially shallow top of the sheeted dike complex as the layer passes through the neovolcanic zone. Lateral variability of layer 2A can significantly affect the imaging of the underlying axial magma chambers as average velocities within layer 2A are approximately half that of layer 2B. For an along-axis profile, apparent along-axis variability in the depth of the axial magma chamber is traced to variability in the thickness of layer 2A caused by wandering of the profile relative to axis. Within the resolution of the data, the time delay of the magma chamber reflection relative to the base of layer 2A is constant.
129657188
A global analysis of mid-ocean ridge axial topography
SUMMARY 
 
Current views of mid-ocean ridges are strongly influenced by extensive mapping of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and East Pacific Rise. The global picture of the mid-ocean ridge system, particularly in the sparsely surveyed Southern Oceans, is still based primarily on underway bathymetry profiles collected over the past 40 years. This study presents a quantitative analysis of global mid-ocean ridge morphology based on 156 of these underway bathymetric profiles, thereby allowing commonly recognized features such as axial valleys and axial ridges to be compared on a global basis. An Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) analysis is used to separate deterministic and stochastic components of axial morphology and to quantify the dependence of each on parameters such as spreading rate and axial depth. It is found that approximately 50 per cent of the variance in axial morphology may be described as a linear combination of five independent symmetric and anti-symmetric modes; the remainder is considered stochastic. Maximum axial valley relief decreases with spreading rate for rates less than 80 mm yr-1 while axial ridge relief remains relatively constant for all rates greater than 50 mm yr-1. The stochastic component of the axial morphology, referred to as bathymetric roughness, also decreases with spreading rate for rates less than 80 mm yr-1 and remains relatively constant at higher rates. Although both axial valley relief and bathymetric roughness near the ridge axis show a similar spreading rate dependence, they are weakly correlated at slow spreading centres. The distinct differences in morphologic variability of fast and slow spreading ridges may result from the episodicity of magmatic heat input which controls the lithospheric rheology at slow spreading ridges. These observations support the notion of a critical threshold separating two dynamically distinct modes of lithospheric accretion on mid-ocean ridges.
127630537
Bathymetric roughness of the Southeast Indian Ridge: Implications for crustal accretion at intermediate spreading rate mid-ocean ridges (Paper 97JB01280)
The nature of the transition from axial highs to axial valleys at mid-ocean ridges and the physical processes involved in the transition are important for understanding how axial morphology changes with spreading rate, mantle temperature, and lithospheric strength at mid-ocean ridges. In order to provide observational constraints on the nature of the changes in axial morphology, we examined the regional- and segment-scale variations in axial and flank morphology at the intermediate spreading Southeast Indian Ridge (SEIR) using newly collected geophysical data. An empirical orthogonal function analysis was used to separate regional and local components of the topography field and to estimate bathymetric roughness. Three distinct types of axial morphology were identified from the regional component of ridge topography in our area: axial highs, shallow axial valleys, and “Mid-Atlantic Ridge-type” deep axial valleys. Axial depth increases by ∼2100 m from 88°E and 118°E, while off-axis depth only increases by ∼500 m. In addition, except for one segment with a deep axial valley, there is little change in off-axis depth within segments, in contrast to the large intrasegment variations in axial depth. These observations indicate that the overall and intrasegment variations in crustal thickness are much smaller than would be predicted from the variations in axial depth and that the major portion of the variations in ridge axis depth are dynamically supported. There are step-like increases in bathymetric roughness as axial morphology changes from an axial high to a shallow axial valley and from a shallow axial valley to a deep axial valley. The step changes in roughness imply that the change from one mode of axial morphology to another is accompanied by an abrupt change in the strength of the lithosphere. The abrupt changes in lithospheric strength may be due to the existence of a “threshold” mantle temperature or crustal thickness about which the lithospheric strength is very sensitive to small fluctuations. Systematic intrasegment variations in roughness are also observed. Roughness shows V-shaped patterns within segments with axial highs but no clear pattern within segments with axial valleys. The different patterns in roughness at axial highs and axial valleys on the SEIR may result from the presence or absence of a magma chamber. The presence of a magma chamber at a ridge segment with an axial high implies weaker axial lithosphere and hence lower roughness near the center of segments relative to the segment ends.
4692003
Causes for axial high topography at mid-ocean ridges and the role of crustal thermal structure
Mid-ocean ridge topography is modeled as the flexural response to loads using a thin plate approximation and setting thermal structure of the lithosphere to allow, but not require, a region of rapid cooling near the axis. Loads on the lithosphere arise from the presence of low-density melt, densification due to cooling with distance from the ridge axis, and thermal contraction stresses. We find two end-member classes of temperature and melt structure that can produce axial high topography and gravity observed at the East Pacific Rise (EPR). One class is very similar to previous models, requiring a narrow column of melt extending to at least 30 km depth within the mantle and lithosphere which cools and thickens very gradually with distance from the ridge axis. The other is a new class, predicting lithosphere which cools rapidly within a few kilometers of the axis and then slowly farther from the axis, with melt which is contained primarily within the crust. The latter solution is consistent with tomography and compliance studies at the EPR which predict rapid crustal cooling within a few kilometers of the axis that is attributed to hydrothermal circulation. This solution also allows the melt region to be coupled to crustal thermal structure and requires no melt anomaly within the mantle. Model fits predict 0–30% melt in the lower crust, depending on how temperatures are distributed within the lithosphere and the degree to which thermal contraction stresses are assumed to contribute to topography. The model generally predicts a wider axial high for lithosphere which is thin over a wider region near the axis. This is consistent with previous correlations between large cross-sectional area of the high and indicators of higher melt presence or a warmer crustal thermal regime. For a slightly slower rate of lithospheric cooling at distances more than ∼5 km from the axis the model predicts a trough at the base of the axial high. Such troughs have been previously observed at the base of the high on the western flank of the southern EPR, where subsidence rates are anomalously low. Finally, thick axial lithosphere reduces the amplitude of the high, making it sometimes difficult to distinguish from long-wavelength subsidence. This morphology is comparable to that of some intermediate spreading ridges, where topography is relatively flat, suggesting a transition from fast to intermediate style morphology.
128829658
Relationship between axial morphology, crustal thickness, and mantle temperature along the Juan de Fuca and Gorda Ridges
We analyze gravity data over the Juan de Fuca and northern Gorda Ridges to understand the lithospheric structure of two ridges with contrasting axial morphologies spreading at the same intermediate rate (28 mm/yr half rate). The Cleft Segment, at the south end of the Juan de Fuca Ridge, has an axial high morphology while the northern segment of the Gorda Ridge has a rift valley. Residual mantle Bouguer anomalies (RMBA) on the northern Gorda Ridge are elevated relative to the Cleft Segment by 10–20 mGal, indicating thinner crust and/or a colder mantle. The minimum value (−50 mGal) of the RMBA along the Juan de Fuca Ridge is over Axial Seamount and gradually increases south toward the Blanco Transform. The observed RMBA are interpreted to result from along axis variations in crustal thickness and mantle density, both of which are controlled by temperatures in the upper mantle where decompression melting occurs. We estimate that mantle temperatures are elevated by 30°–40°C beneath Axial Seamount, resulting in an excess crustal thickness of ∼1.7 km. The Cleft Segment is associated with crust that is estimated to be only 300–700 m thicker, and mantle temperatures are only 10°–15°C higher than beneath the northern Gorda Ridge. However, even these small differences in crustal thickness and mantle temperature appear to be sufficient to produce a major change in lithospheric strength and axial morphology. These results are consistent with the predicted sensitivity of recent thermo-mechanical models for rift valley formation to small changes in crustal thickness and mantle temperature at intermediate spreading rates. We attribute the systematic differences in axial morphology, crustal thickness, mantle temperature, and lithospheric strength along the Juan de Fuca/Gorda ridge system to the presence of the Cobb thermal anomaly at Axial Seamount. The hotter mantle beneath the Juan de Fuca Ridge results in greater amounts of decompression melting and the formation of a thicker crust and a thinner, weaker lithosphere than along the Gorda Ridge.
128535335
Transitions in axial morphology along the Southeast Indian Ridge
Shipboard bathymetric and magnetic profiles across the Southeast Indian Ridge (SEIR) were analyzed in order to examine the nature of along-axis variations in axial morphology at this intermediate spreading rate ridge. Three types of axial morphology are observed along the SEIR: an axial high, a shallow (200–700 m deep) axial valley and a deep (>1000 m deep) axial valley. An axial high is found to the east of the Australian-Antarctic Discordance (AAD) (east of 128°E) and between 82°E and 104°E. A shallow rift valley is found from 104°E to 114°E and from 82°E westward past the Amerstdam/St. Paul hotspot (ASP) to about 30°S, 75°E. Deep rift valleys are found from 114°E to 128°E in the vicinity of the AAD and from the Indian Ocean Triple Junction (IOTJ) at 25°S, 70°E to about 30°S, 75°E. The transition near 30°S occurs in an area of constant zero-age depth and does not appear to result from an increase in mantle temperature. It could be the result of the rapid increase in spreading rate along that portion of the SEIR. The most likely cause of the other transitions in axial morphology is variations in mantle temperature. The transitions between the different types of axial morphology are well defined and occur over a limited distance. Transitions in axial morphology are accompanied by significant changes in ridge flank topographic roughness. The transitions from axial valleys to axial highs are also accompanied by changes in the amplitude of the seafloor magnetic anomalies. Our observations suggest that there are distinct modes rather than a continuum of axial morphology on the SEIR and that there appears to be a “threshold” mechanism for a rapid change between different states of axial morphology. The ASP has only a limited influence on the SEIR. The ridge axis is marked by an axial valley for the entire distance from the IOTJ up to and past the ASP. The ridge axis becomes shallower as the ASP is approached from the northwest but only by about 300 m over a distance of 800 km. In addition, the ridge continues to become shallower away from Amsterdam Island toward the transition to an axial high at 82°E, 350 km to the east of the ASP. The Kerguelen hotspot appears to exert a major influence on the morphology of the SEIR by feeding asthenospheric material to the ridge axis. A long, narrow finger-like gravity high extends ENE away from the Kerguelen Plateau for a distance of 500 km. Shipboard data show that the gravity high results from a large volcanic ridge. The ridge appears analogous to the Rodriguez Ridge extending from the Reunion hotspot toward the Central Indian Ridge. A series of lower and broader lineated gravity highs extend from the volcanic ridge toward the SEIR in the ridge segment between the 81°E and 85°E transforms, which is the westernmost segment with an axial high. The only region of significant off-ridge seismicity on the Antarctic flank of the SEIR is a diffuse band of epicenters extending from Kerguelen to the SEIR within the segment between the 81°E and 85°E fracture zones. The along-axis gradient in depth from 86°E to the AAD and the transitions in axial morphology at 104°E and 114°E most likely reflect along-axis variations in mantle temperature and melt production rate due to distance from the Kerguelen hotspot and the influence of the AAD.
128612353
Variations in axial morphology along the Galápagos spreading center and the influence of the Galápagos hotspot
The Galapagos Spreading Center (GSC) is marked by systematic changes in axial morphology between the Inca Fracture Zone (FZ) at 85.5°W and the 95.5°W propagator. We analyze these changes using new swath bathymetry and magnetic data acquired aboard the B/O Hesperides during the Galapagos'96 experiment. Within ∼350 km of the Galapagos hotspot the ridge axis is associated with an East Pacific Rise (EPR)-like axial high. At increasing distance from the hotspot the axial high broadens and deepens forming a distinctive transitional axial morphology (TAM). The axis in this transitional region is typically a broad zone (∼20 km wide) consisting of very rough volcanic and fault-generated topography. West of 95°W, this TAM evolves into a 20–40 km wide, 400–1500 m deep axial valley typical of the slow spreading Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR). There is not an abrupt change from axial high to rift valley along the GSC, but a distinct TAM occurs over a distance of ∼200–300 km along-axis and is accompanied by a gravity-estimated crustal thickening of >1–2 km. The boundary between an axial high and this TAM is quite abrupt and occurs along a segment that is less than 9 km long. These changes in axial morphology are primarily caused by variations in magma supply along the GSC due to the entrainment and dispersal of plume mantle from the Galapagos hotspot. However, the changes in morphology are not symmetric about the Galapagos FZ at 91°W. The axial high topography extends farther east of the 91°W FZ than to the west, and the rift valley which develops west of 94°W is not found at comparable distances along the GSC east of the hotspot. Axial depth variations are also asymmetric across the 91°W FZ. This asymmetry in both morphology and axial depth variation is attributed to a full spreading rate increase along the GSC from 46 mm/yr at 97°W to 64 mm/yr at 85°W. Off-axis depth changes are symmetric about the 91°W FZ and suggest that 15–40% of on-axis depth variation is dynamically supported.
128441609
Seismic constraints on shallow crustal emplacement processes at the fast spreading East Pacific Rise
We present the results of nine on-bottom seismic refraction experiments carried out over young East Pacific Rise crust. The experiments are unusual in that both the source and receiver are located within a few meters of the seafloor, allowing high-resolution determinations of shallow crustal structure. Three experiments were located within the axial summit caldera (ASC) over “zero-age” crust. The seismic structure at these three locations is fundamentally the same, with a thin (<60 m) surficial low-velocity (<2.5 km/s) layer, a 100 to 150-m-thick transition zone with velocities increasing by ∼2.5 km/s, and a layer with velocities of ∼5 km/s at a depth beneath the seafloor of ∼130–190 m. The surficial low-velocity layer and transition zone are defined as seismic layer 2A, and the ∼5 km/s layer is defined as the top of layer 2B. Both the surficial low-velocity layer and the transition zone double in thickness within ∼1 km of the rise axis. We model layer 2A as the extrusive sequence and transition zone and the 2A/2B boundary as the top of the sheeted dikes. The primary implication of this interpretation is that the depth to the top of the sheeted dikes deepens from ∼150 m to ∼300 m within 1 km of the ASC. The thickening of the extrusive layer is interpreted to be due to lava that either overflows the ASC walls, is emplaced through eruptions outside of the ASC, or travels laterally from the ASC through conduits. The most probable cause for the thickening of the transition zone is sill emplacement outside of the ASC, either from magma that does not reach the surface in an off-axis eruption or magma that is transported laterally during the drainage process creating the ASC. We suggest that the mechanism controlling the magnitude and rate of the dike subsidence is the mechanism that determines the thickness of the extrusive section and the total thickness of layer 2A.
53625537
Constraining crustal emplacement processes from the variation in seismic layer 2A thickness at the East Pacific Rise
Abstract A stochastic model for the emplacement of dikes and lava flows at a fast spreading ridge can generate an upper oceanic crustal structure similar to that observed in seismic data from the East Pacific Rise (EPR), in ocean drill holes, and in ophiolites. In this model the location of successive dike intrusion events relative to the ridge axis is determined by a Gaussian probability function and the cumulative flow lengths of the erupted lavas are chosen to build a Gaussian-shaped lava pile. We interpret wide-angle seismic reflections from the steep velocity gradient at the base of seismic layer 2A to be the extrusive/sheeted dike contact. Seismic data from the northern and southern EPR place constraints on the on-axis extrusive layer thickness (230 ± 50 m), the distance over which the thickening of the extrusive layer occurs (width of the accretion zone = 1–3 km) and its off-axis thickness (300–800 m). Ophiolites and ocean drill holes (DSDP Hole 504B) provide additional estimates of the thickness of the extrusive layer and constrain the thickness of the transition region from extrusives to sheeted dikes (∼ 100–200 m). A simple stochastic emplacement model, where the lavas are described by one mean flow length, fits the thickening of the extrusive layer off-axis inferred from the deepening of seismic layer 2A, but the predicted transition from sheeted dikes to extrusives is too thick. In order to match the dimensions and flat-topped shape of the seismic layer 2A boundary as well as the thickness of the extrusive-sheeted dike transition, a bimodal distribution of lava flows is used. Short flows, confined within the axial summit caldera (ASC), build up approximately half the extrusive volume. Occasional voluminous flows spill out of the ASC, or erupt outside of the ASC, and pond at a considerable distance off-axis to build up the remainder of the extrusive section. The upper part of the final extrusive section will be dominated by the off-axis flows, while the lower portions will be primarily composed of short flows erupted within the ASC. Magnetic transition widths predicted from the overlap of lavas (∼ 2 km) in this model are similar to those measured in deep-tow studies. Assuming a smoothing function which acts over one seismic wavelength, the upper crustal velocity structure predicted by the bimodal lava emplacement model is consistent with the shallow seismic velocity structure measured on the EPR. The ages of seafloor lavas in this model are younger than the tectonic spreading model ages by ∼ 30–70 kyr, in agreement with anomalously young lava ages obtained from radioisotope dating of seafloor basalts near the EPR.
55144654
Channelized lava flows at the East Pacific Rise crest 9°–10°N: The importance of off‐axis lava transport in developing the architecture of young oceanic crust
[1] Submarine lava flows are the building blocks of young oceanic crust. Lava erupted at the ridge axis is transported across the ridge crest in a manner dictated by the rheology of the lava, the characteristics of the eruption, and the topography it encounters. The resulting lava flows can vary dramatically in form and consequently in their impact on the physical characteristics of the seafloor and the architecture of the upper 50–500 m of the oceanic crust. We have mapped and measured numerous submarine channelized lava flows at the East Pacific Rise (EPR) crest 9°–10°N that reflect the high-effusion-rate and high-flow-velocity end-member of lava eruption and transport at mid-ocean ridges. Channel systems composed of identifiable segments 50–1000 m in length extend up to 3 km from the axial summit trough (AST) and have widths of 10–50 m and depths of 2–3 m. Samples collected within the channels are N-MORB with Mg# indicating eruption from the AST. We produce detailed maps of lava surface morphology across the channel surface from mosaics of digital images that show lineated or flat sheets at the channel center bounded by brecciated lava at the channel margins. Modeled velocity profiles across the channel surface allow us to determine flux through the channels from 0.4 to 4.7 × 103 m3/s, and modeled shear rates help explain the surface morphology variation. We suggest that channelized lava flows are a primary mechanism by which lava accumulates in the off-axis region (1–3 km) and produces the layer 2A thickening that is observed at fast and superfast spreading ridges. In addition, the rapid, high-volume-flux eruptions necessary to produce channelized flows may act as an indicator of the local magma budget along the EPR. We find that high concentrations of channelized lava flows correlate with local, across-axis ridge morphology indicative of an elevated magma budget. Additionally, in locations where channelized flows are located dominantly to the east or west of the AST, the ridge crest is asymmetric, and layer 2A appears to thicken over a greater distance from the AST toward the side of the ridge crest where the channels are located.
59577995
Correlated geophysical, geochemical, and volcanological manifestations of plume-ridge interaction along the Galápagos Spreading Center
[1] As the Galapagos hot spot is approached from the west along the Galapagos Spreading Center there are systematic increases in crustal thickness and in the K/Ti, Nb/Zr, 3He/4He, H2O, and Na2O content of lavas recovered from the spreading axis. These increases correlate with progressive transitions from rift valley to axial high morphology along with decreases in average swell depth, residual mantle Bouguer gravity anomaly, magma chamber depth, average lava Mg #, Ca/Al ratio, and the frequency of point-fed versus fissure-fed volcanism. Magma chamber depth and axial morphology display a “threshold” effect in which small changes in magma supply result in large changes in these variables. These correlated variations in geophysical, geochemical, and volcanological manifestations of plume-ridge interaction along the western Galapagos Spreading Center reflect the combined effects of changes in mantle temperature and source composition on melt generation processes, and the consequences of these variations on magma supply, axial thermal structure, basalt chemistry, and styles of volcanism.
128756469
The structure of 0‐ to 0.2‐m.y.‐old oceanic crust at 9°N on the East Pacific Rise from expanded spread profiles
We analyze four expanded spread profiles acquired at distances of 0, 2.1, 3.1, and 10 km (0–0.2 m.y.) from the axis of the East Pacific Rise between 9° and 10°N. Velocity-depth models for these profiles have been obtained by travel time inversion in the τ-p domain, and by x-t forward modeling using the WKBJ and the reflectivity methods. We observe refracted arrivals that allow us to determine directly the uppermost crustal velocity structure (layer 2A). At the seafloor we find very low Vp and VS/Vp values around 2.2 km/s and ≤ 0.43. In the topmost 100–200 m of the crust, Vp remains low (≤ 2.5 km/s) then rapidly increases to 5 km/s at ∼500 m below the seafloor. High attenuation values (Qp < 100) are suggested in the topmost ∼500 m of the crust. The layer 2–3 transition probably occurs within the dike unit, a few hundred meters above the dike-gabbro transition. This transition may mark the maximum depth of penetration by a cracking front and associated hydrothermal circulation in the axial region above the axial magma chamber (AMC). The on-axis profile shows arrivals that correspond to the bright AMC event seen in reflection lines within 2 km of the rise axis. The top of the AMC lies 1.6 km below the seafloor and consists of molten material where Vp ≈ 3 km/s and VS = 0. Immediately above the AMC, there is a zone of large negative velocity gradients where, on the average, Vp decreases from ∼6.3 to 3 km/s over a depth of approximately 250 m. Associated with the AMC there is a low velocity zone (LVZ) that extends to a distance no greater than 10 km away from the rise axis. At the top of the LVZ, sharp velocity contrasts are confined to within 2 km of the rise axis and are associated with molten material or material with a high percentage of melt which would be concentrated only in a thin zone at the apex of the LVZ, in the axial region where the AMC event is seen in reflection lines. Away from the axis, the transition to the LVZ is smoother, the top of the LVZ is deeper, and the LVZ is less pronounced. The bottom of the LVZ is probably located near the bottom of the crust and above the Moho. Moho arrivals are observed in the profiles at zero and at 10 km from the rise axis. Rather than a single discontinuity, these arrivals indicate an approximately 1-km-thick Moho transition zone.
128936652
Variations in upper crustal structure due to variable mantle temperature along the Southeast Indian Ridge
[1] There is a systematic variation in axial morphology and axial depth along the Southeast Indian Ridge (SEIR) with distance away from the Australian Antarctic Discordance, an area of cold uppermost mantle. Since spreading rate (72–76 mm/yr) and mantle geochemistry appear constant along this portion of the SEIR, the observed variations in axial morphology and axial depth are attributed to a gradient in mantle temperature. In this study, we report results from a multichannel seismic investigation of on-axis crustal structure along this portion of the SEIR. Three distinct forms of ridge crest morphology are found within our study area: axial highs, rifted axial highs, and shallow axial valleys. Axial highs have a shallow (∼1500 m below seafloor (bsf)) magma lens and a thin (∼300 m) layer 2A along the ridge crest. Rifted axial highs have a deeper (∼2100 m bsf) magma lens and thicker (∼450 m) layer 2A on-axis. Beneath shallow axial valleys, no magma lens is imaged, and layer 2A is thick (∼450 + m). There are step-like transitions in magma lens depth and layer 2A thickness with changes in morphology along the SEIR. The transitions between the different modes of axial morphology and shallow structure are abrupt, suggesting a threshold-type mechanism. Variations in crustal structure along the SEIR appear to be steady state, persisting for at least 1 m.y. Portions of segments in which a magma lens is found are characterized by lower relief abyssal hills on the ridge flank, shallower ridge flank depths, and at the location of along-axis Mantle Bouguer Anomaly (MBA) lows. The long-wavelength variation in ridge morphology along the SEIR from axial high segments to the west to axial valley segments to the east is linked to the regional gradient in mantle temperature. Superimposed on the long-wavelength trend are segment to segment variations that are related to the absolute motion of the SEIR to the northeast which influence mantle melt production and delivery to the ridge.
129913652
Volcanic and hydrothermal processes associated with a recent phase of seafloor spreading at the northern Cleft segment: Juan de Fuca Ridge
The northern portion of the Cleft segment, which is the southernmost segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge, is the site of a seafloor spreading episode during the mid-1980s that was originally discovered by the occurrence of anomalous hydrothermal bursts (megaplumes) and later documented by seafloor mapping of new pillow mounds (NPM) that were erupted. Several field seasons of investigations using sidescan sonar, a deep-tow camera system, and the submersible Alvin reveal that about 30 km of the ridge crest is hydrothermally active and/or has experienced recent volcanic and tectonic activity associated with this episode. The most intense hydrothermal activity within this area and all the known high-temperature vents lie along a fissure from which a young sheet flow (YSF) erupted. Extinct chimneys located within 100–200 m on either side of the fissure system represent an older (>100 years) and probably less intense, hydrothermal regime. The bathymetry and the morphology of the YSF suggest that this eruption occurred over a 1–2 km section of the fissure system that forms its eastern boundary and that it flowed to the south. Fields of lava pillars concentrated at the margins of the YSF where lava probably formed when the lava stagnated near the edges of the flow. A comparison of sidescan data sets collected in 1982 and 1987 implies that the YSF was erupted at least 7 months prior to the NPM, consistent with analysis of bottom photographs that suggests that the eruptions of the YSF and NPM were only separated by a few years. The low hydrothermal flux over the NPM relative to the YSF suggests a rapidly cooled underlying heat source beneath the former. We propose that the NPM were erupted from a dike or dikes injected laterally to the north from a magma body lying beneath the YSF. Recent evidence of a decrease in the intensity of the overlying hydrothermal plumes suggests that the system is continuing to cool down.
129752513
Active hydrothermal vents and sulfide deposits on the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge
Massive-sulfide deposits rich in zinc and silver were recovered from the Juan de Fuca Ridge 500 km west of Oregon in September 1981. The samples recovered are composed largely of zinc sulfide, with lesser amounts of iron, lead, and copper sulfide. Most of the deposits occur at a series of hydrothermal vents within a relatively continuous depression in the center of a smooth 1-km-wide valley along the ridge axis. The depression appears to be formed by collapse of a lava lake possibly modified by extensional faulting. The axial valley floor outside the depression is underlain by fresh, glassy, ferrobasalt sheet and lobate flows. Two types of sulfide-mineral deposits were dredged from one of the hydrothermal vents: (1) angular slabs of dark-gray zinc sulfide; and (2) subrounded fragments of porous light-gray zinc sulfide. The samples contain fresh sphalerite, zoned wurtzite, pyrite, and minor amounts of marcasite, galena, and chalcopyrite-cubanite. The spreading rate of the Juan de Fuca Ridge and the composition of the sulfide samples are generally similar to the East Pacific Rise lat 21° N site; however, the texture and geologic setting of the sulfide deposits are significantly different.
140677610
Bathymetry of the mid-atlantic ridge, 24°-31°N: A map series
This paper presents a series of eleven maps of the bathymetry of a 900 km long section of the crestal region of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Along with a twelfth key map, this series defines the morphology of fifteen discrete spreading segments and shows convincingly that no transform faults exist between the Kane and Atlantis fracture zones. The publication of these multi beam bathymetry data with a contour interval of 50 m and at a scale of 30 inches per degree of longitude is intended to allow easy access by a broad community of marine earth scientists to this unique and powerful data set.
129516041
High-resolution bathymetric surveys using scanning sonars: Lava flow morphology, hydrothermal vents, and geologic structure at recent eruption sites on the Juan de Fuca Ridge
The CoAxial and Cleft segments of the Juan de Fuca Ridge have isolated, chronic, high-temperature, and focused hydrothermal vent sites. Both segments also have experienced recent volcanic eruptions which produced extensive, ephemeral, low-temperature, and diffuse hydrothermal venting. To study the geologic setting of these sites, high-resolution bathymetric surveys at eight locations on the CoAxial and Cleft segments were collected between 1993 and 1999. Two 675-kHz scanning sonar systems were used, Mesotech on the submersible Alvin and Imagenex on the remotely operated vehicle Jason. The bathymetry from these surveys can be gridded at a scale of 2–4 m and contoured at 1 m and thus can resolve many fine-scale features on the seafloor that are indistinguishable in multibeam bathymetry collected at the sea surface. Bathymetric data at this resolution are particularly useful for identifying geologic features related to diking, faulting, and lava flow emplacement. For example, the high-resolution bathymetric maps show that submarine fissure eruptions that form pillow lavas last long enough to become localized and to produce point source constructs along their length, and their extrusion rate is low enough that no significant drainback occurs. In contrast, lobate sheet flows are formed by short-lived, high-effusion rate eruptions in which no localization of output occurs along the eruptive fissure, and inflation is quickly followed by drainback, resulting in extensive collapse features. However, if the process of submarine lava flow inflation occurs at a slower rate and over a longer period of time, it can create lava rises up to 25 m high with distinctive structure and morphology. The scanning sonar data also show that fissures and grabens have formed or reactivated where dikes approach the surface adjacent to recent eruptive sites. The fine-scale bathymetry establishes that all the hydrothermal vent sites studied at the CoAxial and Cleft segments are located along prominent volcanic or tectonic extensional structures which provide the physical pathway for fluids from the subsurface to the seafloor. Furthermore, the fine-scale morphology of recent lava flows can be used as a qualitative indication of eruption duration.
129128554
The axial summit graben and cross-sectional shape of the East Pacific Rise as indicators of axial magma chambers and recent volcanic eruptions
Abstract The axis of the East Pacific Rise (EPR) undulates up and down hundreds of meters over distances of 30–200 km along strike, the deep areas occurring at transform faults and other ridge axis discontinuities such as overlapping spreading centers (OSCs). We have suggested that systematic variations in depth and cross-sectional shape of the rise are indicators of the changes in the local axial magmatic budget along a given ridge segment [1]. A comparison of recently collected multichannel seismic (MCS) data [2] with our Sea Beam and SeaMARC II data have allowed us to test and advance this hypothesis. Along the EPR from 9° to 13°N there is an excellent correlation between three parameters that are all directly related to the phase of a magmatic cycle along a given ridge segment: the cross-sectional shape of the rise, the presence or absence of an axial summit graben, and the presence or absence of a shallow axial magma chamber (as interpreted from MCS data). Where the axial magma chamber is present, the cross-sectional shape of the ridge is broad and an axial summit graben is recognized along the axis. In contrast, where the cross-sectional shape of the rise is narrow and triangular, an axial magma chamber is not detected and an axial summit graben is absent. These ridge axis characteristics tend to occur along deeper portions of a given ridge segment, often near ridge axis discontinuities. We suggest that these systematic variations in ridge axis morphology (cross-sectional shape) and structure (presence or absence of an axial graben) reflect spatial and temporal variations in the magmatic budget of the ridge axis. Where the magmatic budget is waxing, shallow-level magma reservoirs in the crust and underlying upper mantle swell, creating a broad axial bulge with a summit graben. Where the magmatic budget is diminished, the crustal magma chamber is small ( This proposed correlation of shape, structure and magmatic parameters fails along only two short portions of the ridge. In these areas there is evidence for an axial magma chamber and the rise has a broad cross-sectional shape, but there is no summit graben. Bottom photographs and submersible results, however, show that in these areas the rise crest is covered with very fresh lavas undisrupted by faulting, suggesting that the summit graben has been recently filled in by lava flows, and the development of a summit graben (or a linear caldera) by volcano-tectonic collapse has not yet occurred.
128588478
Axial summit trough of the East Pacific Rice 9°–10°N: Geological characteristics and evolution of the axial zone on fast spreading mid‐ocean ridge
The nature and morphological characteristics of axial summit troughs on fast (∼90–130 mm/yr−1 full spreading rate) and superfast spreading (>130 mm/yr−1) mid-ocean ridge crests reflect the time-integrated effects of long-term magmatic cycles, short-term volcanic episodicity, and the tensional stress regime imposed on young ocean crust. Two principal types of axial trough morphology have been identified and associated with distinct volcanic and tectonic processes occurring at fast and superfast spreading mid-ocean ridge crests. (1) Narrow axial troughs, ∼300–2000 m wide and ∼30–100 m deep) on the East Pacific Rise crest are classified as axial summit graben. The dimensions of axial summit graben, as well as the morphological and structural character of their walls and floors, suggest a primary tectonic origin. An axial summit graben may contain a nested axial summit collapse trough, implying that processes responsible for these endemic features may be linked. Near-bottom, side-looking sonar and observational data collected using the towed vehicle Argo I and submersible Alvin have been used to characterize the axial summit trough of the fast spreading East Pacific Rise between 9° and 10°N. A four-stage model is presented for the evolution of this axial summit collapse trough, as well as for other well-studied portions of the East Pacific Rise crest from 21°N to ∼20°S. We propose that the transition from a narrow, surface collapse-dominated axial trough to a broader, fault-bounded graben is controlled by the relative importance of diking, volcanism, hydrothermal cooling, and tectonism along a ridge segment over time periods <104 years.
129927532
Volcanic and structural morphology of the south flank of Axial Volcano, Juan de Fuca Ridge: Results from a Sea MARC I side scan sonar survey
A 1500 km2 Sea MARC I side scan sonar survey south of Axial volcano investigated the geological structure and constitution of the South Axial Rift Zone (SARZ) and the northern 30 km of the Vance spreading segment. Relative age assignments based on structural relationships indicate that recent volcanism on the southern flank of Axial volcano has been restricted to the SARZ. The surficial volcanic morphology of the SARZ changes downrift, from linear volcanic ridges (north) to small (1-km diameter) cratered cones (south), perhaps indicating a variation in eruptive vent geometry from fissures to point sources downrift. Recent lavas on the northern and central SARZ erupted along preexisting faults in the underlying crust. By acting as pathways for SARZ magmas, these faults may have controlled the orientation of SARZ volcanic ridges and perhaps the orientation of the entire SARZ edifice. The Vance spreading segment terminates at 45°40′N and is not linked with a transform fault. The axis of spreading between 45°40′N and 46°00′N is offset west of the Vance segment and is constrained to lie between 129°54′W and 130°06′W. A discrete, structurally defined spreading axis, however, is not evident over the southern flank of Axial volcano. The divergent plate boundary may now underlie the SARZ massif, although South Helium Basin (an embayment in the southeast flank of Axial volcano) has undergone, and may continue to accommodate, crustal extension. A 48 km2 lava field discovered east of the SARZ is composed of lavas that are inferred to have erupted from the SARZ. These lavas can be traced eastward from the SARZ into the axial valley of the northern Vance segment and partially fill the valley with lavas up to 60 m thick. The eruption of these lavas, which occupy an estimated volume of 1.8 km3, may have contributed to the formation of Axial volcano's summit caldera.
129721739
Volcanic Episodicity and a Non‐Steady State Rift Valley Along Northeast Pacific Spreading Centers: Evidence From Sea MARC I
Sea MARC I side-looking sonar images and Sea Beam bathymetry along a 400-km stretch of the Juan de Fuca Ridge crest provide evidence that excessive extrusive volcanism periodically builds a crestal ridge along the axis of seafloor spreading. An elongate summit depression (ESD), or rift valley, is commonly observed in the spine of this crestal ridge. The crestal ridge volcanic landform has a distinctive shape that is recognized in bathymetric contours both along the spreading axis and at least up to 30 km away from the axis. The landform has a plan-form shape that resembles a side view of an archer's bow with the long dimension of the bow form parallel to the strike of the ridge. In cross section, the bow form is flat on top and has steep flanks. These bow-form shapes can be explained by magma that rises into the crust at a discrete center and flows laterally into belts of ridge-parallel dikes, similar to Icelandic fissure eruptions. Both the variable dimensions of the ESD along axis of the Juan de Fuca Ridge and the relationship among volcanic flow morphologies within and beyond the ESD suggest the four different segments of the Juan de Fuca Ridge presented in detail here display different stages in a cycle of oceanic crust accretion. This cycle includes episodes in which there is (1) extrusive volcanic construction which widen the crestal ridge prior to the collapse of the summit depression, (2) collapse within the summit region of the crestal ridge to form an ESD during a phase of volcanic inactivity, and (3) renewed magmatism in the ESD as its floor widens by extension and brittle fracture of the upper crust. This episodic model implies that the width of the young seafloor affected by volcanic extrusion or dominated by tectonic stretching varies through time.
128701731
Lava flows from a mid‐1980s submarine eruption on the Cleft segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge
A series of lava flows with a total volume of 0.05 km3 were erupted in the mid-1980s along 17 km of the northern Cleft segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge. Observations from camera tows and submersible dives show that the new flows are all similar in appearance and consist entirely of pillow lava with a mixture of smooth and striated surface textures, suggesting a relatively uniform eruption rate approaching 1 m3/s at point source vents. The flows vary in size from small patches to large steep-sided ridges and were probably erupted from a dike intruded along the ridge axis because they are aligned along a linear fissure/graben system. Observations at north Cleft show that the physical appearance of new flows changes more rapidly than previously realized and that earlier qualitative dating of young lavas based on sediment cover and glassy surface texture were probably overestimates by an order of magnitude. Sediment accumulation on the lavas is quite variable and locally surprisingly substantial, mainly due to hydrothermal deposits that formed while the lava flows were cooling. Biological vent communities photographed on the new flows in 1989 show that vent animals can colonize new vent sites rapidly but that warm water was still venting only in a few places. Nonvent animals are much slower to colonize the new flows and rates of colonization observed at north Cleft may be useful for making improved age estimates of young (<10 years) lava flows elsewhere. The north Cleft eruption represents about 2% of the estimated average annual volcanic output along the global mid-ocean ridge, implying that many other submarine eruptions are occurring undetected.
129141909
No spreading across the Southern Juan de Fuca Ridge axial cleft during 1994–1996
Direct-path acoustic measurements between seafloor transponders observed no significant extension (-10 ± 14 mm/yr) from August 1994 to September 1996 at the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge (44°40' N and 130°20' W). The acoustic path for the measurement is a 691-m baseline straddling the axial cleft, which bounds the Pacific and Juan de Fuca plates. Given an expected full-spreading rate of 56 mm/yr, these data suggest that extension across this plate boundary occurs episodically within the narrow (∼ 1 km) region of the axial valley floor, and that active deformation is occurring between the axial cleft and the plate interior. A cleft-parallel 714-m baseline located 300 m to the west of the cleft on the Pacific plate monitored system performance and, as expected, observed no motion (+5 ± 7 mm/yr) between the 1994 and 1996 surveys.
131517661
Structure of the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge from seismic reflection records
Twenty-four-channel seismic reflection records were obtained from the axial region of the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge. Two profiles are normal to the strike of the spreading center and intersect the ridge at latitude 44°40′N and 45°05′N; a third profile extends south along the ridge axis from latitude 45°20′N and crosses the Blanco Fracture Zone. Processing of the axial portions of the cross-strike lines resolved a weak reflection centered beneath the axis. The reflector is at a depth similar to seismically detected magma chambers on the East Pacific Rise and a Lau Basin spreading center; we suggest that the reflector represents the top of an axial magma chamber. In the migrated sections the top of the probable magma chamber is relatively flat and 1–2 km wide, and the subbottom depth of the chamber is greater where the depth to the ridge axis is greater.
129111054
Seismic structure and anisotropy of the Juan de Fuca Ridge at 45°N
A seismic refraction experiment was conducted with air guns and ocean bottom seismometers on the Juan de Fuca Ridge at 45°N, at the northern Cleft segment and at the overlapping rift zone between the Cleft and Vance segments. These data determine the average velocity structure of the upper crust and map the thickness variability of the shallow low-velocity layer, which we interpret as the extrusive volcanic layer. The experiment is unique because a large number of travel times were measured along ray paths oriented at all azimuths within a small (20 km by 35 km) area. These travel times provide evidence for compressional velocity anisotropy in the upper several hundred meters of oceanic crust, presumed to be caused by ridge-parallel fracturing. Compressional velocities are 3.35 km/s in the ridge strike direction and 2.25 km/s across strike. Travel time residuals are simultaneously inverted for anisotropy as well as lateral thickness variations in the low-velocity layer. Extrusive layer thickness ranges from approximately 200 m to 550 m with an average of 350 m. The zone of the thinnest low-velocity layer is within the northern Cleft segment axial valley, in a region of significant hydrothermal activity. Layer thickness variability is greatest near the Cleft-Vance overlapping rift zone, where changes of 300 m occur over as little as several kilometers laterally. These low-velocity layer thickness changes may correspond to fault block rotations in an episodic spreading system, where the low side of each fault block accumulates more extrusive volcanics.
130982876
Petrology and geochemistry of basalts from the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge: Controls on the spatial and temporal evolution of mid‐ocean ridge basalt
Three morphologically distinct regions within the neovolcanic zone of the Cleft segment of the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge were investigated and sampled in detail using the DSRV Alvin. Additional along-strike and off-axis samples were recovered by dredge. The southernmost region, the Southern Cleft site, is characterized by a 3-km-wide axial valley floored by ponded sheet flows and bisected by a 30- to 50-m-wide cleft. Farther north at the “Young Sheet Flow” site, the ridge axis is characterized by a distinct 500-m-wide inner graben that is largely covered by distinctly younger looking sheet flows. The northernmost of the three regions is defined by a linear series of discontinuous constructional pillow mounds that extend the trend of the Cleft segment well into the zone of overlap with the neighboring Vance segment. The pillowed lavas at the “Young Pillow Mound” site represent the most recent episode of volcanism along the Cleft segment. Strong correlations exist between degrees of fractionation, relative ages of lavas, and latitude; lavas are progressively younger looking and more mafic to the north. The compositional range of mid-ocean ridge basalts from the neovolcanic zone can generally be accounted for by 35–40% low-pressure fractional crystallization of relatively primitive, but not primary, depleted (N-type) melts. Scatter of the geochemical data about calculated liquid lines of descent is probably the result of mixing of magmas with slightly different parental compositions, generated from small-scale mantle heterogeneities. Furthermore, the chemical variability may be the result of mixing of very depleted and more enriched sources or melts that are present beneath the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge. The more primitive nature of the young pillow mound basalts and their slightly different chemical characteristics indicates they cannot be simply related to the older southernmost lavas by along-axis flow in a continuous axial magma chamber or conduit. Rather, the data suggest lavas were derived from discrete magma chambers or lenses, each in a different stage of evolution. The youngest events may be associated with a new influx of magma into the northern part of the segment and subsequent northward diking and propagation to form the new pillow mounds. The oldest stage (∼40% additional crystallization of the most mafic composition) is associated with focused hydrothermal activity and tectonic extension, whereas the youngest events are characterized by ridge inflation, diking, and dispersed hydrothermal activity. Geochemical and tectonomagmatic features observed along the Cleft segment are similar to those recently documented along the East Pacific Rise from 9°30′N–10°N suggesting the scales, processes, and stages of magmagenesis are similar along medium to fast spreading ridge segments.
140723606
Hydrothermal circulation at the Cleft-Vance overlapping spreading center : results of a magnetometric resistivity survey
We report on a magnetometric resistivity sounding carried out in the overlapping spreading center between the Cleft and Vance segments of the Juan de Fuca Ridge. The data collected reveal a strong three dimensionality in the crustal electrical resistivity structure on wavelengths of a few kilometers. Areas of reduced crustal electrical resistivities, with values approaching that of seawater, are seen beneath the neovolcanic zones of both active spreading centers. We interpret these reduced resistivities as evidence of active hydrothermal circulation within the uppermost 1 km of hot, young oceanic crust.
128828511
Fine‐scale magnetic anomaly field over the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge: Axial magnetization low and implications for crustal structure
Sea surface, deep tow, and submersible magnetic surveys show that the spreading axis of the Cleft segment of the southern Juan de Fuca Ridge (SJDF) is overlain by a distinctive magnetic anomaly low in contrast to the more typical magnetic anomaly high found over the adjacent Vance segment and most mid-ocean ridge spreading centers. Forward iterative thickness modeling, based on the near-bottom magnetic data, shows that this axial magnetic low can be produced by a thin magnetic source layer beneath the Cleft axial valley. Thick crust is required to produce the magnetic anomaly high over the Vance axial valley. This magnetic modeling demonstrates that variations in the base of the magnetic source layer, which is assumed to be equivalent to the base of the extrusive lavas, can produce a significant proportion of the observed short-wavelength magnetic anomaly signal. These magnetic layer thickness models also correlate quite well with nearby seismic results which show that seismic layer 2A thins beneath the axial valley of the Cleft and is thicker beneath the Vance axial valley. Recent seismic results over other fast and medium spreading rifts also show rapid changes in the thickness of the uppermost crust near the axis of spreading, which could produce significant magnetic contrasts. The results of this study and the correlation with independent seismic measurements suggest that while magnetization may vary due to geomagnetic behavior or because of petrology or alteration, first-order change in upper crustal thickness is one of the most important variables to consider in the production of fine-scale magnetic anomalies in young ocean crust.
140727943
The Wave Equation Applied to Migration
Claerbout's method has been implemented for the migration of stacked seismic data. A simplified description of the method is given together with an account of some of the practical programming problems and the types of inaccuracy encountered. Routine production results are considered to be comparable or superior to the results derived from alternative migration techniques. Particular advantages are 1) the possibility of using a detailed velocity model for the migration and 2) the preservation of the amplitude and character of the seismic events on the migrated time section.
128773016
Suppression of sea-floor-scattered energy using a dip-moveout approach; application to the mid-ocean ridge environment
Multichannel seismic (MCS) images are often contaminated with in- and out-of-plane scattering from the sea floor. This problem is especially acute in the mid-ocean ridge environment where sea-floor roughness is pronounced. Energy shed from the unsedimented basaltic sea floor can obscure primary reflections such as Moho, and scattering off of elongated sea-floor features like abyssal hills and fault scarps can produce linear events in the seismic data that could be misinterpreted as subsurface reflections. Moreover, stacking at normal subsurface velocities may enhance these water-borne events, whose stacking velocity depends on azimuth and generally increases with time, making them indistinguishable from subsurface arrivals. To suppress scattered energy in deep water settings, we propose a processing scheme that invokes the application of dip moveout (DMO) to deliberately increase the differential moveout between sea-floor-scattered and subsurface events, thereby facilitating the removal of unwanted energy in the stacked section. After application of DMO, all sea-floor scatterers stack at the water velocity, while subsurface reflections like Moho still stack at their original velocity. The application of DMO in this manner is contrary to the intended use that reduces the differential moveout between dipping events and allows a single stacking velocity to be used. Unlike previous approaches to suppress scattered energy, dip filtering is applied in the common-midpoint (CMP) domain after DMO. Moveover, our DMO-based approach suppresses out-of-plane scattering, and therefore is not limited to removal of in-plane scattering as is the case with shot and receiver dip filtering techniques. The success of our DMO-based suppression scheme is limited to deep water (a few kilometers of water depth for conventional offsets), where the traveltime moveout of energy scattered from the sea floor has a hyperbolic moveout with a stacking velocity that depends on the cosine of the scatterer steering angle in a manner analogous to how the moveout of a dipping reflector depends on the dip angle. The application of DMO-based suppression to synthetics and MCS data collected along the southern East Pacific Rise demonstrates the effectiveness of our approach. Cleaner images of primary reflectors such as Moho are produced, even though present shot coverage along the East Pacific Rise is unduly sparse, resulting in a limited effective spatial bandwidth.
128995175
SEISMIC VELOCITIES OF THE UPPERMOST IGNEOUS CRUST VERSUS AGE
SUMMARY 
 
Seismic refraction velocity data from the acoustic basement (called layer 2A) have been compiled for different mid-ocean ridges. The data from post-1970 studies show a strong correlation between velocity and basement age. Importantly, velocities double in less than 10 Myr for all ridges, but for older crust, up to 160 Myr in age, velocities do not increase significantly.
131320082
Seismic traveltime inversion for 2-D crustal velocity structure
SUMMARY A method of seismic traveltime inversion for simultaneous determination of 2-D velocity and interface structure is presented that is applicable to any type of body-wave seismic data. The advantage of inversion, as opposed to trial-and-error forward modelling, is that it provides estimates of model parameter resolution, uncertainty and non-uniqueness, and an assurance that the data have been fit according to a specified norm. In addition, the time required to interpret data is significantly reduced. The inversion scheme is iterative and is based on a model parametrization and a method of ray tracing suited to the forward step of an inverse approach. The number and position of velocity and boundary nodes can be adapted to the shot-receiver geometry and subsurface ray coverage, and to the complexity of the near-surface. The model parametrization also allows ancillary amplitude information to be used to constrain model features not adequately resolved by the traveltime data alone. The method of ray tracing uses an efficient numerical solution of the ray tracing equations, an automatic determination of take-off angles, and a simulation of smooth layer boundaries that yields more stable inversion results. The partial derivatives of traveltime with respect to velocity and the depth of boundary nodes are calculated analytically during ray tracing and a damped least-squares technique is used to determine the updated parameter values, both velocities and boundary depths simultaneously. The stopping criteria and optimum number of velocity and boundary nodes are based on the trade-off between RMS traveltime residual and parameter resolution, as well as the ability to trace rays to all observations. Methods for estimating spatial resolution and absolute parameter uncertainty are presented. An example using synthetic data demonstrates the algorithm's accuracy, rapid convergence and sensitivity to realistic noise levels. An inversion of refraction and wide-angle reflection traveltimes from the 1986 IRISPASSCAL Nevada, USA (Basin and Range province) seismic experiment illustrates the methodology and practical considerations necessary for handling real data. A comparison of our final 2-D velocity model with results from studies using other 1-D and 2-D forward and inverse methods serves as a check on the validity of the inversion scheme and provides estimates of parameter uncertainties that account for the bias introduced by the modelling approach and the interpreter.
129155455
CRUSTAL STRUCTURE OF ENDEAVOUR RIDGE SEGMENT, JUAN DE FUCA RIDGE, FROM A DETAILED SEISMIC REFRACTION SURVEY
A detailed seismic refraction survey was carried out over the Endeavour Segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge, a medium-rate spreading center which lies off western North America, to investigate the creation and evolution of oceanic crust. A bathymetric high and the presence of hydrothermal vents suggested that the study area was the most recent locus of spreading. Travel time and amplitude data from 15 in-line air gun/ocean bottom seismometer profiles were forward modeled using asymptotic ray theory to obtain two-dimensional velocity models consisting of four primary layers which correlate well with classic models of oceanic crust. Significant lateral variations in thicknesses and velocities on the scale of a few to 10 km are superimposed on this basic velocity structure, but they appear to be random rather than distributed symmetrically about the ridge. We attribute them to fracturing which causes porosity changes, hydrothermal circulation which fills voids and fractures with alteration products, and variations in magmatic and/or deformational processes at the spreading center. Layer 2A is found to have low (2.6–2.8 km/s) velocities, to average 0.4 km in thickness with variations up to 0.2 km, and to be bounded at its base by a sharp velocity increase to 4.8 km/s. Along the axial ridge, velocities 0.4–0.6 km/s higher than average are interpreted for layers 2B and 2C, but these values are confined to a 2-km-wide zone centered below the ridge. Velocities along ridge-parallel lines offset 10 km are normal, indicating that maturation to off-ridge structure has occurred within at most 0.3 Ma. Layer 3 velocities decrease by 0.1–0.2 km/s for arrivals traveling along and under the axial ridge, perhaps caused by higher temperatures. However, we find no anomalously low velocities beneath the ridge, indicating that no large crustal magma chamber exists. On the basis of this study, we conclude that magmatic accretion is a fully three-dimensional process within ridge segments such as Endeavour Ridge.
54054420
Fine‐scale seismic structure of the shallow volcanic crust on the East Pacific Rise at 9°50′N
upper crust in a � 3 � 3 km field area centered on the East Pacific Rise at 9� 50 0 N. We detonated 18 explosive shots (18 sources) in a circular pattern (1.5 km radius) on the rise axis and recorded seismic arrivals with eight ocean bottom seismometers (eight receivers). We observed 30–40 Hz compressional body waves from all shots (144 P waves) and 1–3 Hz Stoneley (interface) waves on a subset of source-receiver pairs (58 interface waves). Using a station correction inversion, we find that roughly half of the variance in the P wave first-arrival times results from lateral variations in the thickness of the surface low-velocity layer (SLVL), a layer of extremely porous lava and basalt breccia with an average P wave velocity of 2.2 km s � 1 . The SLVL thickness increases from <20 m along the axial summit trough (AST) to � 120 m at near-axis lava depocenters, which are not symmetric about the rise axis. Depocenters are located � 0.5 km to the west and � 1.5 km to the east of the rise axis. Tomographic inversion of the Stoneley wave first arrivals reveals that shear velocities in the SLVL covary with the layer thickness, exhibiting a similar asymmetric pattern, with shear velocities increasing from � 320 m s � 1 near the AST to � 520 m s � 1 at the near-axis depocenters. Our analysis demonstrates that the seismic characteristics of the extrusive layer near the rise axis are related primarily to volcanic features and processes. The thickness and velocity of the SLVL are low on the axis and within channel networks that deliver lava flows away from the axis and then increase rapidly at the distal ends of the channels where the lavas are deposited. We find that azimuthal anisotropy exerts only a weak influence on our P wave first-arrival times, which we model as weak (4%) seismic azimuthal anisotropy in the upper dikes with a fast axis oriented N23� –32� W. We find no evidence for seismic azimuthal anisotropy in the extrusive layer. INDEX TERMS: 3025 Marine Geology and Geophysics: Marine seismics (0935); 3035 Marine Geology and Geophysics: Midocean ridge processes; 7220 Seismology: Oceanic crust;
4416648
Melt to mush variations in crustal magma properties along the ridge crest at the southern East Pacific Rise
The determination of along-axis variations in melt properties within the crustal axial magma chamber beneath fast spreading axes is important for understanding melt delivery from the mantle, eruption history along the ridge crest, and the process of crustal accretion. Seismic reflection images have shown the molten sill to be continuous along the ridge crest for many tens of kilometres with varying widths (250–4,500 m), but variations in its seismic properties and thickness have remained elusive, despite several attempts to constrain these properties. Here we report that the melt sill along the southern East Pacific Rise, which is about 50 m thick, undergoes abrupt changes in its internal properties, ranging from pure melt to mush. The 60-km-long ridge-crest segment near 14° 00′ S is characterized by three 2–4-km sections containing pure melt embedded within a magma chamber rich in mush. These small pure melt pockets may represent a fresh supply of magma from the mantle, capable of erupting and forming the upper crust. Conversely, the 80–90% of the magma chamber which is mushy is unlikely to erupt and may influence the lower-crustal accretion.
18343787
Influence of magma supply and spreading rate on crustal magma bodies and emplacement of the extrusive layer: Insights from the East Pacific Rise at lat 16°N
Seismic reflection data from the East Pacific Rise at lat 16°N, which is spreading at the high end of intermediate rates, suggest that the depths at which axial magma chambers reside do not vary smoothly as a function of spreading rate. Rather, magma-chamber depths form two distinct populations, each associated with a distinct axial morphology and with an abrupt transition occurring within the intermediate-spreading-rate range. Our data (1) show that the melt lens at high-intermediate-spreading ridges lies at a shallow level similar to lens depths at faster-spreading ridges, and (2) provide further support for the spreading-rate invariance of ridges with axial highs noted in other ridge properties. The axial morphology of the two ridge segments within the study area differs markedly, and a large contrast in magma supply is inferred. The ridge segment with greater magma supply is associated with a broader and more continuous melt lens, a wider region over which the extrusive crust accumulates, and a thicker extrusive layer off-axis where supply to the ridge segment appears to be centered. However, on-axis, the extrusive layer is thinnest where magma supply is robust and a shallower melt lens is observed, consistent with a model in which magma pressure controls the thickness of the extrusive layer accumulated above the magma lens.
129717002
Small-scale spatial and temporal variations in mid-ocean ridge crest magmatic processes
Data from a suite of closely spaced lava flows recovered within the axial summit caldera and on the crestal plateau of the East Pacific Rise around lat 9°31′N indicate that eruptions on this fast-spreading part of the mid-ocean ridge occur throughout the crestal region and are not restricted to the axis. These eruptions contribute to a complex distribution of basalts of various ages and a significant thickening of seismic layer 2A away from the axis in our study area. Small-scale (<600 m) diversity and nonsystematic distribution of lava types may reflect rapid changes in magma chemistry that occur during crystallization and replenishment in small magma lenses, coupled with the effects of frequent low-volume eruptions both within and outside of the axial summit caldera.
128772193
Aberrant youth: Chemical and isotopic constraints on the origin of off‐axis lavas from the East Pacific Rise, 9°–10°N
[1] We report measurements of U-series disequilibria, Sr, Nd, Hf, and Pb isotopic compositions and major and trace element abundances in a suite of well-located, off-axis MORBs that span the East Pacific Rise (EPR) ridge crest from 9°48′–52′N and across it for ∼4 km on either side. The geological context of the samples are well constrained as they were collected by submersible in an area that has been extensively imaged by remote sensing techniques. Sr, Nd, Hf and 208Pb/206Pb isotopic compositions of the off-axis N-MORB are identical to the axial lavas from this same region, suggesting that their sources are similar and that melting processes are the dominant influence in establishing the U-Th-Ra disequilibria and trace element fractionations. A majority of off-axis samples have U-Th and Th-Ra disequilibria that are larger, and model ages that are younger, than would be predicted from their off-axis distance and the time-integrated spreading rate. There are, however, a few off-axis samples with U-Th ages that are consistent with their spreading rate ages. It is likely that these samples erupted within or close to the axial summit trough (AST) and aged at a rate proportional to the spreading rate. The anomalously young ages determined for most of the off-axis lavas suggest that volcanic construction along this region is occurring over a zone that is wider (at least 4 km) than the AST (10s to 100s of meters). The combined observational, chemical and isotopic data support a model for the 9°0′N area that includes a significant component of crustal accumulation resulting from lavas that breach the AST and flow down the flanks of the EPR ridge crest. However, these data also require a minor component of off-axis eruptions that occur on distinct pillow mounds and ridges. This suggests that MOR construction involves several volcanic and tectonic processes acting in concert to form a complex patchwork of lava ages and compositions along, and across, this fast spreading ridge crest.
16836066
Gridding with continuous curvature splines in tension
A gridding method commonly called minimum curvature is widely used in the earth sciences. The method interpolates the data to be gridded with a surface having continuous second derivatives and minimal total squared curvature. The minimum-curvature surface has an analogy in elastic plate flexure and approximates the shape adopted by a thin plate flexed to pass through the data points. Minimum-curvature surfaces may have large oscillations and extraneous inflection points which make them unsuitable for gridding in many of the applications where they are commonly used. These extraneous inflection points can be eliminated by adding tension to the elastic-plate flexure equation. It is straightforward to generalize minimum-curvature gridding algorithms to include a tension parameter; the same system of equations must be solved in either case and only the relative weights of the coefficients change. Therefore, solutions under tension require no more computational effort than minimum-curvature solutions, and any algorithm which can solve the minimum-curvature equations can solve the more general system. We give common geologic examples where minimum-curvature gridding produces erroneous results but gridding with tension yields a good solution. We also outline how to improve the convergence of an iterative method of solution for the gridding equations.
24565969
Seismic Structure of the Southern East Pacific Rise
Seismic data from the ultrafast-spreading (150 to 162 millimeters per year) southern East Pacific Rise show that the rise axis is underlain by a thin (less than 200 meters thick) extrusive volcanic layer (seismic layer 2A) that thickens rapidly off axis. Also beneath the rise axis is a narrow (less than 1 kilometer wide) melt sill that is in some places less than 1000 meters below the sea floor. The small dimensions of this molten body indicate that magma chamber size does not depend strongly on spreading rate as predicted by many ridge-crest thermal models. However, the shallow depth of this body is consistent with an inverse correlation between magma chamber depth and spreading rate. These observations indicate that the paradigm of ridge crest magma chambers as small, sill-like, midcrustal bodies is applicable to a wide range of intermediate- and fast-spreading ridges.
129706962
High sensitivity of ocean ridge thermal structure to changes in magma supply: the Galápagos Spreading Center
Abstract We explore the physical mechanisms for the observed apparent sensitivity of ridge axis topography and crustal magma systems to small changes in magma supply at intermediate spreading rates. Numerical experiments were carried out to simulate crustal temperature structure of the Galapagos Spreading Center, which spreads at intermediate spreading rates with its various sections appear to have been influenced to different degrees by the nearby Galapagos hotspot. Model results show a strong ‘threshold’ effect: as the crustal thickness decreases from 7.4 km at the 92°W area with an axial high westward to 6.0 km at the 94°W area with a transitional topography, the depth to the top of a magma lens is calculated to increase from 1.7 to 2.5 km. In contrast, at the 97°W area, where crustal thickness is only 5.6 km and a rift valley is present, the model results predict no steady-state magma lens in the crust. These model calculations provide a simple physical explanation for the recent observations along the Galapagos Spreading Center, where abrupt changes in both magma lens and axial morphology occur within a short distance but crustal thickness changes only modestly. Results of this investigation illustrate the critical importance of hotspots in influencing mid-ocean ridge crustal thickness and the associated changes in thermal structure, especially for ridges that spread at the sensitive range of intermediate spreading rates.
21718107
Crustal thickness along the western Galápagos Spreading Center and the compensation of the Galápagos hotspot swell
Wide-angle refraction and multichannel reflection seismic data show that oceanic crust along the Galapagos Spreading Center (GSC) between 97‡W and 91‡25PW thickens by 2.3 km as the Galapagos plume is approached from the west. This crustal thickening can account for V52% of the 700 m amplitude of the Galapagos swell. After correcting for changes in crustal thickness, the residual mantle Bouguer gravity anomaly associated with the Galapagos swell shows a minimum of 325 mGal near 92‡15PW, the area where the GSC is intersected by the Wolf^ Darwin volcanic lineament (WDL). The remaining depth and gravity anomalies indicate an eastward reduction of mantle density, estimated to be most prominent above a compensation depth of 50^100 km. Melting calculations assuming adiabatic, passive mantle upwelling predict the observed crustal thickening to arise from a small increase in mantle potential temperature of V30‡C. The associated thermal expansion and increase in melt depletion reduce mantle densities, but to a degree that is insufficient to explain the geophysical observations. The largest density anomalies appear at the intersection of the GSC and the WDL. Our results therefore require the existence of compositionally buoyant mantle beneath the GSC near the Galapagos plume. Possible origins of this excess buoyancy include melt retained in the mantle as well as mantle depleted by melting in the upwelling plume beneath the Galapagos Islands that is later transported to the GSC. Our estimate for the buoyancy flux of the Galapagos plume (700 kg s 31 ) is lower than previous estimates, while the total crustal production rate of the Galapagos plume (5.5 m 3 s 31 ) is comparable to that of the Icelandic and Hawaiian plumes.
129289673
Controls on extrusion at mid-ocean ridges
A magma lens can erupt to form extrusives only if it is under greater pressure than the static pressure in a column of magma reaching from the lens to the surface. The excess pressure results partly from overburden pressure caused by the presence of high- and low-density rocks (dikes and extrusives, respectively) above the lens. The thicker the pile of low-density extrusives, the lower the average overburden density. Thus, extrusion above a lens should be self-regulating, in that thickening the extrusive layer reduces the driving pressure for subsequent eruptions. Flexural stresses may affect extrusion by altering the pressure on a magma chamber. For ridges lacking an axial valley, we predict that deeper magma lenses should correlate with thicker extrusive layers, consistent with recent observations.
36743776
Crustal Thickness on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge: Bull's-Eye Gravity Anomalies and Focused Accretion
Spreading segments of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge show negative bull's-eye anomalies in the mantle Bouguer gravity field. Seismic refraction results from 33�S indicate that these anomalies can be accounted for by variations in crustal thickness along a segment. The crust is thicker in the center and thinner at the end of the spreading segment, and these changes are attributable to variations in the thickness of layer 3. The results show that accretion is focused at a slow-spreading ridge, that axial valley depth reflects the thickness of the underlying crust, and that along-axis density variations should be considered in the interpretation of gravity data.
128871092
Glass compositions, plume‐ridge interaction, and hydrous melting along the Galápagos Spreading Center, 90.5°W to 98°W
[1] The Galapagos Spreading Center (GSC) between 90.5°W and 98°W manifests its interaction with the nearby Galapagos plume by way of variations in lava geochemistry, crustal thickness, and morphology along the ridge axis. Natural glasses from stations with ∼9 km average spacing were analyzed for major and minor elements, H2O, and CO2. Samples can be classified as enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts (E-MORB), transitional MORB (T-MORB), or normal MORB (N-MORB) on the basis of K/Ti ratios. E-MORB dominate the GSC east of 92.6°W. T-MORB are mainly found between 92.6°W and 95.5°W. West of the propagating rift tip at 95.5°W, N-MORB dominate. High K/Ti E-MORB also have higher H2O, Al2O3, and Na2O and lower FeO*, SiO2, and CaO/Al2O3 relative to N-MORB at similar values of MgO, characteristics consistent with lower mean extents of partial melting relative to N-MORB. We examine the melting process along this section of the GSC with a set of equations that simulate a deep zone of hydrous melting related to the depression of the mantle solidus by H2O. This model constrains the range of mantle source compositions, the depth of the additional hydrous melting zone, the melt productivity in the hydrous region, and the ratio of mantle flow rate through the hydrous zone relative to the anhydrous zone (Uw/U0) that can explain the measured crustal thickness as well as the fractionation-corrected concentrations of K, Na2O, H2O, and Ti along the GSC. Far from the hot spot, the measured crustal thickness and N-MORB compositions are explained by passive mantle upwelling (Uw/U0 = 1), mean melt fraction () ∼ 0.06, and a source with ∼35 ppm K, 130 ppm H2O, 2300 ppm Na2O, and 1050 ppm Ti. The transitional zone has a source enriched in K and could have a slight excess plume-driven flow through the hydrous melting zone (Uw/U0 ≤ 1.5). The crustal thickness and glass compositions in the “enriched” region of the GSC nearest the hot spot are best explained by only a slight increase in the temperature of the mantle (<∼20°C), coupled with a mantle source moderately enriched (relative to N-MORB source) and plume-driven flow through the hydrous zone of Uw/U0 = 1.5–3.5.
129523051
The East Pacific Rise in cross section: A seismic model
In 1982 we undertook a seismic refraction experiment, known as the MAGMA expedition, to examine the detailed structure of the East Pacific Rise near 12°50′N. This segment of the rise, where the full spreading rate is about 110 mm/yr, is near the projected trace of the O'Gorman fracture zone and is the site of an overlapping spreading center as well as “black smoker” hydrothermal activity. In this paper we describe the analysis of a subset of the travel time data collected during the MAGMA expedition, namely the data from profiles which were oriented normal to the rise axis. These profiles provide a data set roughly equivalent to those collected on other experiments and sample the cross-sectional structure of the rise. We have modeled these data using a two-dimensional ray-tracing program. We have found that the seismic velocities in the young oceanic crust are rather high, with velocity gradients of 4.0–5.5 s−1 in the uppermost crust. The highest velocities at the seafloor occur beneath the rise axis itself and seem to decrease as the crust ages to 0.1 Ma. This decrease in velocity must result from an increase in porosity in the upper crust and may coincide with the development of abundant surface fissures as the crust spreads. The decrease in velocity does not appear to penetrate deeper than about 0.5 km and may reverse itself as hydrothermal alteration fills the pores and cracks. The fact that the highest velocities occur under the rise axis suggests that the hydrothermal circulation responsible for the black smokers is confined to seismically unresolved conduits, a result consistent with the high temperatures and discrete nature of the vents. Our best model includes a magma chamber some 4 km wide and extending from the Moho to within about 1.1 km of the seafloor. This magma chamber is far smaller than many models for the rise axis have predicted but larger than those inferred from seismic refraction experiments at other sites on the East Pacific Rise. These discrepancies probably arise because the magma chamber under the East Pacific Rise is not a steady state feature but changes with time because of hydrothermal cooling and perhaps because of an episodic supply of magma from the mantle or along the rise axis.
130059732
Bending as a mechanism for triggering off-axis volcanism on the East Pacific Rise
We propose that bending stresses play a key role in triggering volcanism on the flanks of the East Pacific Rise by simultaneously opening tensile cracks near the surface and increasing the pore pressure of melt bodies trapped in the lower crust. In addition, crack-tip stress intensities remain high during tensile opening, such that bending cracks propagate downward efficiently and thus have the potential to tap overpressured melt bodies trapped in the lower crust. We find that bending increases the vulnerability of the lithosphere to magmatic penetration out to distances of ∼20 km from the rise axis, corresponding to the region of abyssal hill formation and isolated seamount generation.
4357788
Volcanic growth faults and the origin of Pacific abyssal hills
The topographic features known as abyssal hills characterize >30% of the ocean floor, and yet their origin has been the subject of vigorous debate for over 40 years. Submersible-based investigations show that Pacific abyssal hills are created on the flanks of the East Pacific Rise as horsts and grabens which lengthen with time. Hills are bounded on one side by ridge-facing scarps produced by normal faulting, and on the other by more gentle slopes produced by volcanic growth faulting.
129211290
Nd- and Pb-isotopic variations through the upper oceanic crust in DSDP/ODP Hole 504B, Costa Rica Rift
Abstract The DSDP/ODP Hole 504B, drilled in the 5.9 Ma southern flank of the Costa Rica Rift, represents the deepest section through modern ocean floor basaltic basement. The hole penetrates a 570 m thick volcanic zone, a 210 m thick transition zone of volcanic rocks and dykes, and 1056 m of dykes. A representative selection of these basalt types has been investigated with respect to Nd and Pb isotopes. The ϵ Nd of the basalts varies from 7.62 to 11.16. This range in the Nd-isotope composition represents about 67% of the total range reported for Pacific MORB. The Pb-isotope composition also shows significant variation, with 206 Pb/ 204 Pb varying from 17.90 to 18.82. The isotopic data show that a small volume of enriched mantle existed in the source. The large ranges in isotopic composition in a single drill hole demonstrate the importance of small-scale mantle heterogeneities in the petrogenesis of MORB. Fractional melting and extraction of small magma batches by channelled flow, and small, short-lived crustal magma reservoirs, with limited potential for mixing of the mantle derived magmas, are favored by these isotopic data.
128428505
Upper crustal seismic velocity structure and microearthquake depths at the Endeavour Segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge
[1] We present the results of a study to invert microearthquake and explosive shot data from the Endeavour segment of the intermediate-spreading Juan de Fuca Ridge. The average isotropic P wave velocity structure, derived from the shot data, in the uppermost 1.5 km of the oceanic crust is characterized by an increase with age of ∼8% from the axis to at least 0.5 Ma, that is attributed to the sealing of layer 2A porosity by hydrothermal processes. Superimposed on this variation are axis-parallel, 2-km-wide, alternating bands of high and low velocity with a peak-to-peak variation of 5–12%. High and low velocities away from the axis correspond to bathymetric trenches and ridges, respectively and are likely due to variations in layer 2A thickness. P wave azimuthal anisotropy is present in the data that is best fit with a model of 9% anisotropy at 750 m depth, decreasing to 1% at 3 km depth and is likely due to the preferential alignment of vertical cracks and fissures in the along-axis direction. Anisotropy and velocity heterogeneity are coupled; anisotropy alone may explain the form but not the magnitude of the axis-parallel bands. There are strong trade-offs between the hypocentral depths of microearthquakes and the P and S wave velocity structures. Changing the mean hypocentral depth by up to 0.5 km leads to only modest increases in the travel time RMS but the resulting velocity models appear more feasible when the earthquakes are forced deeper than when they are forced shallower.
129011688
Accretional curvature of lithosphere at magmatic spreading centers and the flexural support of axial highs
Fluid magma should tend to rise up to the level of local isostatic equilibrium at an axis of plate spreading. The magma and underlying partial melt accretes to the side of the separating plates and gets denser as it cools and freezes. This load bends down the lithosphere and additional accretion forms a plate with concave upward curvature. The topography resulting from a curved plate passively moving off axis can be described analytically for accretion on the vertical side of uniform lithosphere when its flexural response is that of a thin elastic plate. Model predictions are consistent with the shape of the axial highs at fast spreading centers (typically ∼400m high and ∼20 km wide) as well as related gravity anomalies. This model requires at least several kilometers of lithospheric thickening within a few kilometers of the ridge axis. Seismic data appear consistent with this lithospheric structure. The magnitude and lateral distribution of faulting on the flanks of axial highs is crudely consistent with formation during plate unbending as lithosphere moves away from the axis. According to this model abandoned fast spreading centers should retain an elastically supported axial high, while for previous models abandoned highs should collapse.
128892850
Dike-induced faulting in rift zones of Iceland and Afar
Geodetic data and field observations demonstrate that the emplacement of dikes in volcanic rift zones frequently generates normal faulting and graben subsidence at the Earth9s surface. Elastic modeling of the vertical ground-surface displacements above dikes and faults indicates that the extent of graben subsidence can be achieved only if fault slip extends virtually to or beyond the dike plane at depth. A mechanical model that includes dikes and frictional faults shows that dike opening tends to compress and lock faults located to either side of the dike. Therefore, slip extending into or beyond the dike cavity must occur either (1) on faults that intersect the dike near its top, above the zone of dike-induced compression, or (2) on faults that slip ahead of the dike as it propagates laterally. Data from Iceland indicate that slip occurred on deep faults that presumably slipped in advance of the laterally propagating dike.
128901754
Dike‐induced faulting and graben subsidence in volcanic rift zones
Field observations and geodetic data indicate that dike intrusion in volcanic rift zones typically generates normal faulting and graben subsidence at the Earth's surface. Elastic models indicate that two-dimensional (infinite strike length) dikes do not lower the ground surface above the dike and that normal faults do not lower the surface significantly, more than one down-dip fault length from the fault trace. Dikes of finite length produce subsidence above the dike, but not by an appreciable amount, for appropriate dike lengths. Therefore the observed graben subsidence can be achieved only if fault slip extends virtually to the dike plane at depth. Dike intrusion increases the horizontal compression adjacent to the dike and decreases the compression beyond the dike perimeter. Therefore fault slip extending to the dike plane is most likely to occur above or in front of the laterally propagating dike. Two data sets documenting the change in surface elevation accompanying dike intrusion in the Krafla rift zone, Iceland, were inverted to determine the dike and fault geometry at depth. Ten kilometers south of the Krafla caldera, subsidence of a graben 1.5 km wide was produced by fault slip to 1.5–2 km depth, essentially to the dike top. Forty kilometers north of the caldera, subsidence of a graben 6 km wide was produced by fault slip to 4–5 km depth, well within the zone of compression adjacent to the dike. In order to determine if fault slip in front of the dike could have produced the observed subsidence north of the caldera, a three-dimensional boundary element model that computes fault slip during lateral dike propagation was developed. Results indicate that fault slip in front of the dike is capable of producing most of the subsidence observed. Additional subsidence could result from reasonable mechanical anisotropy of the rift zone. The lack of deep fault slip south of the caldera is attributed to a less favorable initial stress state. This is consistent with differences in the tectonic history of the two regions over the past several centuries.
19870103
Direct measurement of magnetic reversal polarity boundaries in a cross-section of oceanic crust
Magnetic field measurements made by submersible define the cross-sectional geometry of a magnetic polarity rever- sal boundary and the vertical variation of crustal magnetization in upper oceanic crust. Measured polarity boundaries show a systematic pattern of shallow dip towards the spreading axis within the upper extrusive lavas, and steeper dip in the lower extrusive lavas. This geometry is a consequence of the em- placement of extrusive lava at a midocean ridge. Reversal boundary geometry and magnetization estimates are used to calculate the magnetic contribution of the extrusive lava se- quence to the overlying marine magnetic anomaly signal. From the forward modeling, the highly magnetized extrusive lavas contribute the majority (50-75%) of the observed sea surface magnetic anomaly, consistent with the extrusive crust forming the primary source layer for young marine magnetic anomalies.