Harmen Bijwaard

Closing the gap between regional and global travel time tomography

Recent global travel time tomography studies by Zhou [1996] and van der Hilst et al. [1997] have been performed with cell parameterizations of the order of those frequently used in regional tomography studies (i.e., with cell sizes of 1°–2°). These new global models constitute a considerable improvement over previous results that were obtained with rather coarse parameterizations (5° cells). The inferred structures are, however, of larger scale than is usually obtained in regional models, and it is not clear where and if individual cells are actually resolved. This study aims at resolving lateral heterogeneity on scales as small as 0.6° in the upper mantle and 1.2°–3° in the lower mantle. This allows for the adequate mapping of expected small-scale structures induced by, for example, lithosphere subduction, deep mantle upwellings, and mid-ocean ridges. There are three major contributions that allow for this advancement. First, we employ an irregular grid of nonoverlapping cells adapted to the heterogeneous sampling of the Earths mantle by seismic waves [Spakman and Bijwaard, 1998]. Second, we exploit the global data set of Engdahl et al. [1998], which is a reprocessed version of the global data set of the International Seismological Centre. Their reprocessing included hypocenter redetermination and phase reidentification. Finally, we combine all data used (P, pP, and pwP phases) into nearly 5 million ray bundles with a limited spatial extent such that averaging over large mantle volumes is prevented while the signal-to-noise ratio is improved. In the approximate solution of the huge inverse problem we obtain a variance reduction of 57.1%. Synthetic sensitivity tests indicate horizontal resolution on the scale of the smallest cells (0.6° or 1.2°) in the shallow parts of subduction zones decreasing to approximately 2°–3° resolution in well-sampled regions in the lower mantle. Vertical resolution can be worse (up to several hundreds of kilometers) in subduction zones with rays predominantly pointing along dip. Important features of the solution are as follows: 100–200 km thick high-velocity slabs beneath all major subduction zones, sometimes flattening in the transition zone and sometimes directly penetrating into the lower mantle; large high-velocity anomalies in the lower mantle that have been attributed to subduction of the Tethys ocean and the Farallon plate; and low-velocity anomalies continuing across the 660 km discontinuity to hotspots at the surface under Iceland, east Africa, the Canary Islands, Yellowstone, and the Society Islands. Our findings corroborate that the 660 km boundary may resist but not prevent (present day) large-scale mass transfer from upper to lower mantle or vice versa. This observation confirms the results of previous, global mantle studies that employed coarser parameterizations.

Geodynamics of flat subduction: Seismicity and tomographic constraints from the Andean margin

The cause and geodynamic impact of fiat subduction are investigated. First, the 1500 km long Peru fiat slab segment is examined. Earthquake hypocenter data image two morphologic highs in the subducting Nazca Plate which correlate with the posi- tions of subducted oceanic plateaus. Travel time tomo- graphic images confirm the three-dimensional slab ge- ometry and suggest a lithospheric tear may bound the NW edge of the fiat slab segment, with possible slab de- tachment occurring down dip as well. Other fiat slab re- gions worldwide are discussed: central Chile, Ecuador, NW Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, southern Alaska, SW Japan, and western New Guinea. Flat subduction is shown to be a widespread phenomenon, occuring in 10% of modern convergent margins. in nearly all these cases, as a spatial and temporal correlation is observed between subducting oceanic plateaus and fiat subduc- tion, we conclude that fiat subduction is caused pri- marily by (1) the buoyancy of thickened oceanic crust of moderate to young age and (2) a delay in the basalt to eclogite transition due to the cool thermal structure of two overlapping lithospheres. A statistical analysis of seismicity along the entire length of the Andes demon- strates that seismic energy release in the upper plate at a distance of 250-800 km from the trench is on aver- age 3-5 times greater above fiat slab segments than for adjacent steep slab segments. We propose this is due to higher interplate coupling and the cold, strong rhe- ology of the overriding lithosphere which thus enables stress and deformation to be transmitted hundreds of kilometers into the heart of the upper plate.

Tethyan subducted slabs under India

Abstract Tomographic imaging of the mantle under Tibet, India and the adjacent Indian Ocean reveals several zones of relatively high P-wave velocities at various depths. Under the Hindu Kush region in northeastern Afghanistan and southern Tajikistan, a regional northward-dipping slab is seen in the entire upper 600 km of the mantle and is apparently still attached to the lithosphere of the Indian plate. Under northern Pakistan this same slab shows a roll-over structure with the deeper portion overturned and dipping southward, as can also be seen in the distribution of earthquake hypocenters. Farther east-southeast (e.g., in the vicinity of Nepal), a well-resolved anomaly below 450 km depth is connected to the slab under the Hindu Kush, but seems to be separated from the lithosphere above 350 km. These upper-mantle anomalies are interpreted as the remnants of delaminated sub-continental lithosphere that went down when Greater India continued to converge northward with Asia after ∼45 Ma. The deeper high-velocity anomalies under the Indian sub-continent appear clearly separated from the shallower ones as well as from each other, and are inferred to represent remnants of oceanic lithospheric slabs that have sunk into the lower mantle and were subsequently overridden by the Indian plate. They occur at depths between 1000 and 2300 km and occasionally descend down to the core-mantle boundary. The anomalies form three parallel WNW-ESE striking zones. We interpret the two southern zones as remnants of oceanic lithosphere that was subducted when the Neo-Tethys Ocean closed between India and Tibet in the Cretaceous and earliest Tertiary. The northern deep-mantle zone under northern Afghanistan, the Himalayas and the Lhasa block in southern Tibet may represent the last-subducted remnant of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean, which is thought to have closed before the Hauterivian stage of the Early Cretaceous. The middle zone continues southeastward as a rather straight high-velocity zone towards Sumatra, where it becomes convex southward and parallel to the subduction zone under the Sunda arc. Comparison of this straight middle zone near India with the shallower (upper 600–1000 km) northern zone, which displays a cusp-like shape near the Yunnan (SW China) Syntaxis of the eastern Himalayas, supports the notion that the shallow northern zone represents later subduction than the deeper middle zone. The suggestion of a counterclockwise rotation (>20°) of the Indian plate during Tertiary indentation of Asia is supported by these features. The present-day latitudes of 5°–35°N of the deep slabs under India and adjacent areas correspond to the approximate paleolatitudes of the Cretaceous subduction zones. The slab remnants in the middle mantle occur therefore near the ancient locations where they started their downward journey, which implies that lateral movements in the deeper mantle were not large.

Tomographic evidence for a narrow whole mantle plume below Iceland

Iceland is known to be a centre of both hotspot and Mid-Atlantic Ridge activity. A plume origin for the hotspot has been suggested by observational, laboratory and numerical investigations as well as by several seismological studies. The latter have, however, not yielded a detailed image of the entire mantle volume below Iceland. We present tomographic images of a narrow low velocity anomaly below Iceland, extending from the core-mantle boundary to the surface. From these images we infer a bent plume with a diameter ≤500 km, rising from a broad root zone (>1000 km) and culminating in a plume top with a diameter of ∼1200 km. The anomaly amplitude can, if only controlled by temperature, be converted into excess temperatures in the upper and lower mantle of the order of 200–300 K and ∼200 K, respectively. The wavy shape of the anomaly together with its lateral branches, may indicate that the position of the Iceland hotspot is not stationary.

Mesozoic subducted slabs under Siberia

Recent results from seismic tomography demonstrate that subducted oceanic lithosphere can be observed globally as slabs of relatively high seismic velocity in the upper as well as lower mantle,. The Asian mantle is no exception, with high-velocity slabs being observed downwards from the west Pacific subduction zones under the Kurile Islands, Japan and farther south, as well as under Asias ancient Tethyan margin. Here we present evidence for the presence of slab remnants of Jurassic age that were subducted when the Mongol–Okhotsk and Kular–Nera oceans closed between Siberia, the combined Mongolia–North China blocks and the Omolon block. We identify these proposed slab remnants in the lower mantle west of Lake Baikal down to depths of at least 2,500 km, where they join what has been interpreted as a ‘graveyard’ of subducted lithosphere at the bottom of the mantle. Our interpretation implies that slab remnants in the mantle can still be recognized some 150 million years or more after they have been subducted and that such structures may be useful in associating geodynamic to surface-tectonic processes.

Geodynamics of the northern Andes: Subductions and intracontinental deformation (Colombia)

New regional seismological data acquired in Colombia during 1993 to 1996 and tectonic field data from the Eastern Cordillera (EC) permit a reexamination of the complex geodynamics of northwestern South America. The effect of the accretion of the Baudo-Panama oceanic arc, which began 12 Myr ago, is highlighted in connection with mountain building in the EC. The Istmina and Ibague faults in the south and the Santa Marta-Bucaramanga fault to the northeast limit an E-SE moving continental wedge. Progressive indentation of the wedge is absorbed along reverse faults located in the foothills of the Cordilleras (northward of 5°N) and transpressive deformation in the Santander Massif. Crustal seismicity in Colombia is accurately correlated with active faults showing neotectonic morphological evidences. Intermediate seismicity allows to identify a N-NE trending subduction segment beneath the EC, which plunges toward the E-SE. This subduction is interpreted as a remnant of the paleo-Caribbean plateau (PCP) as suggested by geological and tomographic profiles. The PCP shows a low-angle subduction northward of 5.2°N and is limited southward by a major E-W transpressive shear zone. Normal oceanic subduction of the Nazca plate (NP) ends abruptly at the southern limit of the Baudo Range. Northward, the NP subducts beneath the Choco block, overlapping the southern part of the PCP. Cenozoic shortening in the EC estimated from a balanced section is ∼120 km. Stress analysis of fault slip data in the EC (northward of 4°N), indicates an ∼E-SE orientation of σ1 in agreement with the PCP subduction direction. Northward, near Bucaramanga, two stress solutions were observed: (1) a late Andean N80°E compression and (2) an early Andean NW-SE compression.

Crustal structure of the continental margin of Korea in the East Sea (Japan Sea) from deep seismic sounding data : evidence for rifting affected by the hotter than normal mantle

Abstract Despite the various opening models of the southwestern part of the East Sea (Japan Sea) between the Korean Peninsula and the Japan Arc, the continental margin of the Korean Peninsula remains unknown in crustal structure. As a result, continental rifting and subsequent seafloor spreading processes to explain the opening of the East Sea have not been adequately addressed. We investigated crustal and sedimentary velocity structures across the Korean margin into the adjacent Ulleung Basin from multichannel seismic (MCS) reflection and ocean bottom seismometer (OBS) data. The Ulleung Basin shows crustal velocity structure typical of oceanic although its crustal thickness of about 10 km is greater than normal. The continental margin documents rapid transition from continental to oceanic crust, exhibiting a remarkable decrease in crustal thickness accompanied by shallowing of Moho over a distance of about 50 km. The crustal model of the margin is characterized by a high-velocity (up to 7.4 km/s) lower crustal (HVLC) layer that is thicker than 10 km under the slope base and pinches out seawards. The HVLC layer is interpreted as magmatic underplating emplaced during continental rifting in response to high upper mantle temperature. The acoustic basement of the slope base shows an igneous stratigraphy developed by massive volcanic eruption. These features suggest that the evolution of the Korean margin can be explained by the processes occurring at volcanic rifted margins. Global earthquake tomography supports our interpretation by defining the abnormally hot upper mantle across the Korean margin and in the Ulleung Basin.

Modelling the seismic velocity structure beneath Indonesia: a comparison with tomography

Abstract Studies of the geodynamic evolution of Southeast Asia have resulted in a number of tectonic reconstructions that exhibit a broad consensus as well as significant differences. In this contribution we apply a method to further test these surface reconstructions, using independent seismic tomography results. Our kinematic modelling procedure comprises the calculation of three-dimensional forward models of the seismic velocity structure beneath Indonesia. From information contained in the tectonic reconstructions, the effect of the proposed surface motions on the thermal structure of the underlying mantle is modelled. This results in a prediction of the present-day temperatures which are converted into seismic (P-wave) velocity anomalies. By comparing the predicted velocity models with recent tomography results of the area, the quality of the tectonic reconstructions can be evaluated. The models presented in this paper are based on the reconstructions of Rangin et al. (Bull. Soc. Geol. France, 8 (1990a) 889; Bull. Soc. Geol. France, 8 (1990b) 907) and Lee and Lawver (Tectonophysics, 251 (1995) 85). In general, we conclude that the calculated positive velocity anomalies beneath the Sunda and Banda arc show strong similarities with the tomography results. The modelled patterns of high velocities beneath southern Sulawesi are not found in the tomographic images. The model predicted from Rangin et al. (1990a,b) does not show the double-sided subduction under the Molucca Sea region that can be seen in the model predicted from Lee and Lawver (1995) and in the tomographic model. Our results indicate the potential of the method for investigating the geodynamic evolution of the Indonesian region.

Progress in updating the European Radiobiology Archives

Purpose: The European Radiobiology Archives (ERA), together with corresponding Japanese and American databases, hold data from nearly all experimental animal radiation biology studies carried out between 1960 and 1998, involving more than 300,000 animals. The Federal Office for Radiation Protection, together with the University of Cambridge have undertaken to transfer the existing ERA archive to a web-based database to maximize its usefulness to the scientific community and bring data coding and structure of this legacy database into congruence with currently accepted semantic standards for anatomy and pathology. Methods: The accuracy of the primary data input was assessed and improved. The original rodent pathology nomenclature was recoded to replace the local ‘DIS-ROD’ (Disease Rodent) formalism with Mouse Pathology (MPATH) and Mouse Anatomy (MA) ontology terms. A pathology panel sampled histopathological slide material and compared the original diagnoses with currently accepted diagnostic criteria. Results: The overall non-systematic error rate varied among the studies between 0.26% and 4.41%, the mean error being 1.71%. The errors found have been corrected and the studies thus controlled have been annotated. The majority of the original pathology terms have been successfully translated into a combination of MPATH and MA ontology terms. Conclusions: ERA has the potential of becoming a world-wide radiobiological research tool for numerous applications, such as the re-analysis of existing data with new approaches in the light of new hypotheses and techniques, and using the database as an information resource for planning future animal studies. When the database is opened for new data it may be possible to offer long-term storage of data from recent and future animal studies.

Lung Cancer from Radon: A Two-Stage Model Analysis of the WISMUT Cohort, 1955–1998

Abstract A biologically based two-stage carcinogenesis model is applied to epidemiological data for lung cancer mortality in a large uranium miner cohort of the WISMUT company (Germany). To date, this is the largest uranium miner cohort analyzed by a mechanistic model, comprising 35,084 workers among whom 461 died from lung cancer in the follow-up period 1955–1998. It comprises only workers who were first employed between 1955 and 1989 and contains information on annual exposures to radon progeny. We fitted the models free parameters, including the average growth time of one malignant cell into a lethal tumor. This lag time has an extraordinary value of 13 to 14 years, larger than that previously used or found in miner studies. Even though cohort-wide information on smoking habits is limited and the calendar-year dependence of tobacco smoke exposure was only implicitly accounted for by a birth cohort effect, we find good agreement between the modeled (expected) and empirical (observed) lung cancer mortality. Model calculations of excess relative lung cancer death risk agree well with those from the descriptive, BEIR VI-type exposure-age-concentration model for WISMUT miners. The large variety of exposure profiles in the cohort leads to a well-determined mechanistic model that in principle allows for an extrapolation from occupational to indoor radon exposure.