Segmented Hellenic slab rollback driving Aegean deformation and seismicity

The NE dipping slab of the Hellenic subduction is imaged in unprecedented detail using teleseismic receiver function analysis on a dense 2-D seismic array. Mapping of slab geometry for over 300 km along strike and down to 100 km depth reveals a segmentation into dipping panels by along-dip faults. Resolved intermediate-depth seismicity commonly attributed to dehydration embrittlement is shown to be clustered along these faults. Large earthquakes occurrence within the upper and lower plate and at the interplate megathrust boundary show a striking correlation with the slab faults suggesting high mechanical coupling between the two plates. Our results imply that the general slab rollback occurs here in a differential piecewise manner imposing its specific stress and deformation pattern onto the overriding Aegean plate

3-D sediment-basement tomography of the Northern Marmara trough by a dense OBS network at the nodes of a grid of controlled source profiles along the North Anatolian fault

A 3-D tomographic inversion of first arrival times of shot profiles recorded by a dense 2-D OBS network provides an unprecedented constraint on the P-wave velocities heterogeneity of the upper-crustal part of the North Marmara Trough (NMT), over a region of 180 km long by 50 km wide. One of the specific aims of this controlled source tomography is to provide a 3-D initial model for the local earthquake tomography (LET). Hence, in an original way, the controlled source inversion has been performed by using a code dedicated to LET. After several tests to check the results trade-off with the inversion parameters, we build up a 3-D a priori velocity model, in which the sea-bottom topography, the acoustic and the crystalline basements and the Moho interfaces have been considered. The reliability of the obtained features has been checked by checkerboard tests and also by their comparison with the deep-penetration multichannel seismic profiles, and with the wide-angle reflection and refraction modelled profiles. This study provides the first 3-D view of the basement topography along the active North Anatolian fault beneath the Marmara Sea, even beneath the deepest part of three sedimentary basins of NMT. Clear basement depressions reaching down 6 km depth below the sea level (bsl) have been found beneath these basins. The North Imralı Basin located on the southern continental shelf is observed with a similar sedimentary thickness as its northern neighbours. Between Central and Çınarcık basins, the Central High rises up to 3 km depth below (bsl). Its crest position is offset by 10 km northwestward relatively to the bathymetric crest. On the contrary, Tekirdağ and Central basins appear linked, forming a 60-km-long basement depression. Beneath the bathymetric relief of Western High low velocities are observed down to 6 km depth (bsl) and no basement high have been found. The obtained 3-D Vp heterogeneity model allows the consideration of the 3-D supracrustal heterogeneity into the future earthquake relocations in this region. The topographic map of the pre-kinematic basement offers the possibility to take into account the locking depth variations in future geohazard estimations by geomechanical modelling in this region

Interaction between contrasting rice genotypes and soil physical conditions induced by hydraulic stresses typical of alternate wetting and drying irrigation of soil

Background and aims: Alternate wetting and drying (AWD) saves water in paddy rice production but could influence soil physical conditions and root growth. This study investigated the interaction between contrasting rice genotypes, soil structure and mechanical impedance influenced by hydraulic stresses typical of AWD. Methods: Contrasting rice genotypes, IR64 and deeper- rooting Black Gora were grown in various soil conditions for 2 weeks. For the AWD treatments the soil was either maintained in a puddled state, equilibrated to −5 kPa (WET), or dried to −50 kPa and then rewetted at thewater potential of −5 kPa (DRY-WET). There was an additional manipulated macropore structure treatment, i.e. the soil was broken into aggregates, packed into cores and equilibrated to −5 kPa (REPACKED). A flooded treatment (puddled soil remained flooded until harvest) was set as a control (FLOODED). Soil bulk density, penetration resistance and X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) derived macropore structure were measured. Total root length, root surface area, root volume, average diameter, and tip number were determined by WinRhizo. Results: AWD induced formation of macropores and slightly increased soil mechanical impedance. The total root length of the AWD and REPACKED treatments were 1.7–2.2 and 3.5–4.2 times greater than that of the FLOODED treatment. There was no significant difference between WET and DRY-WET treatments. The differences between genotypes were minimal. Conclusions: AWD influenced soil physical properties and some root characteristics of rice seedlings, but drying soil initially to −50 kPa versus −5 kPa had no impact. Macropores formed intentionally from repacking caused a large change in root characteristics

Earth's free oscillations recorded by free-fall OBS ocean-bottom seismometers at the Lesser Antilles subduction zone

Three unburied ocean bottom seismometers (OBS) equipped with Trillium 240 s broad-band seismometers recorded spheroidal free oscillations of the Earth out to periods over 1000 s period, for the M = 8.1, April 1, 2007 Solomon Islands earthquake. In contrast to broadband observatories of the global network that operate in quiet continental locations, these instruments were dropped on the several-km thick layer of sediments of the forearc and accretionary wedge of the Lesser Antilles subduction zone. Furthermore, a high ambient noise level due to the ocean surface infragravity waves is expected to cover the frequency band of Earth's normal modes band when recorded at these sites. In spite of these hostile environmental conditions, the frequency of clearly defined peaks of the Earth's normal modes were measured after the earthquake. This suggests that the recording of normal modes and long period waves can be extended to parts of the hitherto inaccessible ocean with currently available OBS technology

Serum levels of pentraxin-3 and other inflammatory biomarkers in migraine: Association with migraine characteristics

PMID = 2624375

Pre-stack depth Migration imaging of the Hellenic Subduction Zone

International audienceIn 365 AD, a major M>8-tsunamignic earthquake occurred along the southwestern segment of the Hellenic subduction zone. Although this is the largest seismic event ever reported in Europe, some fundamental questions remain regarding the deep geometry of the interplate megathrust, as well as other faults within the overriding plate potentially connected to it. The main objective here is to image those deep structures, whose depths range between 15 and 45 km, using leading edge seismic reflection equipment. To this end, a 210-km-long multichannel seismic profile was acquired with the 8 km-long streamer and the 6600 cu.in source of R/V Marcus Langseth. This was realized at the end of 2015, during the SISMED cruise. This survey was made possible through a collective effort gathering labs (Géoazur, LDEO, ISTEP, ENS-Paris, EOST, LDO, Dpt. Geosciences of Pau Univ). A preliminary processing sequence has first been applied using Geovation software of CGG, which yielded a post-stack time migration of collected data, as well as pre-stack time migration obtained with a model derived from velocity analyses. Using Paradigm software, a pre-stack depth migration was subsequently carried out. This step required some tuning in the pre-processing sequence in order to improve multiple removal, noise suppression and to better reveal the true geometry of reflectors in depth. This iteration of pre-processing included, the use of parabolic Radon transform, FK filtering and time variant band pass filtering. An initial velocity model was built using depth-converted RMS velocities obtained from SISMED data for the sedimentary layer, complemented at depth with a smooth version of the tomographic velocities derived from coincident wide-angle data acquired during the 2012-ULYSSE survey. Then, we performed a Kirchhoff Pre-stack depth migration with traveltimes calculated using the Eikonal equation. Velocity model were then tuned through residual velocity analyses to flatten reflections in common reflection point gathers. These new results improve the imaging of deep reflectors and even reveal some new features. We will present this work, a comparison with our previously obtained post-stack time migration, as well as some insights into the new geological structures revealed by the depth imaging

Deep Seismic Imaging of the Hellenic Subduction Zone with New MCS Data of the SISMED Project

International audienceThe southwestern segment of the Hellenic subduction zone has generated a M>8 tsunamigenic earthquake in the past (365 AD), the largest event ever reported in Europe, but fundamental questions remain about the deep geometry and characteristics of the interplate fault and connected splay faults in the overriding plate that might be rooted in the megathrust. In the Fall 2012, the ULYSSE seismic program acquired deep penetration multichannel seismic (MCS) and OBS refraction profiles across a 300-km-wide section of the forearc domain. MCS data were acquired with a 4.5 km-long streamer on board the R/V Le Pourquoi Pas? from the French IFREMER facilities. The two 240 km-long seismic reflection dip profiles reveal a large and rough topography of the top of the forearc crust in both the outer and inner domains, including a several km thick forearc basin. Despite the thick Messinian evaporites at shallow depths, the 11000 cu.in airgun source reveal several discontinuous arcward-dipping reflections at 15 km depth beneath the outer forearc domain that could be related to the top of the subducting oceanic crust. Unfortunately, the 4.5 km-long streamer is too short for improving their lateral continuity and getting more detailed constraints on their geometry. In the Fall 2015, we chartered the R/V Marcus Langseth equipped with unmatched seismic facilities in the European academic fleet by means of a strong mobilization of the French and American involved laboratories (Géoazur, LDEO, ISTEP, ENS-Paris, EOST, LDO, Pau Univ.) and their research agencies (CNRS, NSF, OCA, and UCA). During the SISMED survey (Seismic Imaging inveStigation in MEDiterranean Sea for deep seismogenic faults), we collected with the R/V Marcus Langseth a 210 km-long profile coincident with the eastern ULYSSE transect with the 8 km-long streamer and a 6600 cu.in tuned airgun array shot every 50 meters. The source and the streamer were towed at a depth of 12 m to maximize low frequencies and deep imaging. Here, we will present the preliminary results of the newly acquired high-quality, high-resolution and deep-penetration data and we will provide a comparison of the two datasets collected with different acquisition parameters