Carter W. Roberts

The mechanics of unrest at Long Valley caldera, California. 2. Constraining the nature of the source using geodetic and micro-gravity data

Abstract We model the source of inflation of Long Valley caldera by combining geodetic and micro-gravity data. Uplift from GPS and leveling, two-color EDM measurements, and residual gravity change determinations are used to estimate the intrusion geometry, assuming a vertical prolate ellipsoidal source. The U.S. Geological Survey occupied the Long Valley gravity network six times from 1980 to 1985. We reoccupied this network twice, in the summer of 1998 (33 stations), and the summer of 1999 (37 stations). Before gravity data can be used to estimate the density of the intrusion, they must be corrected for the effect of vertical deformation (the free-air effect) and changes in the water table. We use geostatistical techniques to interpolate uplift and water table changes at the gravity stations. The inflation source (a vertical prolate ellipsoid) is located 5.9 km beneath the resurgent dome with an aspect ratio equal to 0.475, a volume change from 1982 to 1999 of 0.136 km 3 and a density of around 1700 kg/m 3 . A bootstrap method was employed to estimate 95% confidence bounds for the parameters of the inflation model. We obtained a range of 0.105–0.187 km 3 for the volume change, and 1180–2330 kg/m 3 for the density. Our results do not support hydrothermal fluid intrusion as the primary cause of unrest, and confirm the intrusion of silicic magma beneath Long Valley caldera. Failure to account for the ellipsoidal nature of the source biases the estimated source depth by 2.9 km (a 33% increase), the volume change by 0.019 km 3 (a 14% increase) and the density by about 1200 kg/m 3 (a 40% increase).

Regional extent of Great Valley basement west of the Great Valley, California: Implications for extensive tectonic wedging in the California Coast Ranges

Interpretation and modeling of the magnetic field of central California indicate that the magnetic basement of the forearc deposits of the Great Valley sequence extends westward beneath the coeval subduction-related rocks of the Franciscan Complex. The basement surface slopes gently to the west, reaching midcrustal depths (15-19 km) at distances of 50-100 km west of the Great Valley. This magnetic basement is disrupted by the Hayward-Rodgers Creek Fault system and is cut by the San Andreas Fault at the south end of the Great Valley and possibly throughout much of central California. The widespread presence of the Great Valley basement beneath rocks of the Franciscan Complex implies that the basement is more extensive than proposed in earlier interpretations based on seismic studies near the Franciscan Complex-Great Valley sequence contact. This result forces major modifications to ideas concerning this fossil subduction complex and other subduction zones. The eastern boundary fault of the Franciscan Complex (Coast Range Fault) is not (and never was) a subduction zone thrust fault but rather was originally a roof thrust (wedge-roof fault) formed above the eastward wedging mass of Franciscan Complex intruded along the top of the basement beneath the Great Valley deposits. This tectonic interpretation offers a solution for the question of how high-pressure metamorphic rocks of the Franciscan Complex were juxtaposed at the Coast Range Fault against low-pressure metamorphic rocks of the Great Valley sequence. This interpretation also implies an older flat-lying thrust fault (wedge-floor fault) that forms the top of magnetic basement between the active San Andreas and Hayward Faults at depths of 15-17 km. This older thrust fault may today transfer strain between the two young strike-slip faults, possibly explaining the apparent coupling of major nineteenth century earthquakes on these two faults. The former east dipping subduction zone along which the rocks of the Franciscan Complex accumulated must lie west of the western limit of the Great Valley magnetic basement.

Correlation of Changes in Gravity, Elevation, and Strain in Southern California

Measurements made once or twice a year from 1977 through 1982 show large correlated changes in gravity, elevation, and strain in several southern California networks. Precise gravity surveys indicate changes of as much as 25 microgals between surveys 6 months apart. Repeated surveys show that annual elevation changes as large as 100 millimeters occur along baselines 40 to 100 kilometers long. Laser-ranging surveys reveal coherent changes in areal strain of 1 to 2 parts per million occurred over much of southern California during 1978 and 1979. Although the precision of these measuring systems has been questioned, the rather good agreement among them suggests that the observed changes reflect true crustal deformation.

Preliminary gravity inversion model of basins east of Yucca Flat, Nevada Test Site, Nevada.

The Yucca Flat eastern extension study area, a 14 kilometer by 45 kilometer region contiguous to Yucca Flat on the west and Frenchman Flat on the south, is being studied to expand the boundary of the Yucca Flat hydrogeologic model. The isostatic residual gravity anomaly was inverted to create a model of the depth of the geologic basins within the study area. Such basins typically are floored by dense pre-Tertiary basement rocks and filled with less-dense Tertiary volcanic and sedimentary rocks and Quaternary alluvium, a necessary condition for the use of gravity modeling to predict the depth to the pre-Tertiary basement rocks within the basins. Three models were created: a preferred model to represent the best estimate of depth to pre-Tertiary basement rocks in the study area, and two end-member models to demonstrate the possible range of solutions. The preferred model predicts shallow basins, generally less than 1,000m depth, throughout the study area, with only Emigrant Valley reaching a depth of 1,100m. Plutonium valley and West Fork Scarp Canyon have maximum depths of 800m and 1,000m, respectively. The end-member models indicate that the uncertainty in the preferred model is less than 200m for most of the study area.