Intense seismicity during the 2014–15 Bárðarbunga-Holuhraun rifting event, Iceland, reveals the nature of dike-induced earthquakes and caldera collapse mechanisms

Over two weeks in August 2014 magma propagated 48km laterally from Bárðarbunga volcano before erupting at Holuhraun for 6 months, accompanied by collapse of the caldera. A dense seismic network recorded over 47,000 earthquakes before, during and after the rifting event. More than 30,000 earthquakes delineate the segmented dike intrusion. Earthquake source mechanisms show exclusively strike-slip faulting, occurring near the base of the dike along pre-existing weaknesses aligned with the rift fabric, while the dike widened largely aseismically. The slip-sense of faulting is controlled by the orientation of the dike relative to the local rift fabric, demonstrated by an abrupt change from right- to left-lateral faulting as the dike turns to propagate from an easterly to a northerly direction. Approximately 4,000 earthquakes associated with the caldera collapse delineate an inner caldera fault zone, with good correlation to geodetic observations. Caldera subsidence was largely aseismic, with seismicity accounting for 10% or less of the geodetic moment. Approximately 90% of the seismic moment release occurred on the northern rim, suggesting an asymmetric collapse. Well-constrained focal mechanisms reveal sub-vertical arrays of normal faults, with fault planes dipping inward at 60 9 , along both the north and south caldera margins. These steep normal faults strike sub-parallel to the caldera rims, with slip vectors pointing towards the center of subsidence. The maximum depth of seismicity defines the base of the seismogenic crust under Bárðarbunga as 6km b.s.l., in broad agreement with constraints from geodesy and geobarometry for the minimum depth to the melt storage region

Reinterpretation of the RRISP-77 Iceland shear-wave profiles

Two shear-wave profiles, E and G, collected during the 1977 Reykjanes Ridge Iceland Seismic Experiment have played an important role in models of the Icelandic crust. They were originally interpreted as indicating very low shear-wave velocities and abnormally low shear-wave quality factors in the 10–15 km depth range. These attributes, which are indicative of near-solidus temperatures, were used to support the hypothesis that the crust of Iceland is relatively thin (10–15 km) and underlain by partially molten material. More recent seismic data, however, contradict this hypothesis and suggest that the crust is thicker (20–30 km) and cooler. A re-examination of the RRISP-77 data indicates that the low shear-wave velocities are artefacts arising from source static anomalies (in the case of profile G) and misidentification of a secondary shear phase, SmS, as S (in the case of profile E). Furthermore, the attenuation occurs at ranges when rays from the shots pass near the Askja (profile E) and Katla and Oraefajokull (profile G) volcanoes. It may therefore have a localized source, and not be diagnostic of Icelandic crust as a whole. This new interpretation of the RRISP-77 shear-wave data is consistent with models having a thick, cold crust.We thank 0. Flovenz, one of the principal investigators of the SIST experiment, G. Foulger and B. Julian, principal investigators of the Hengill experiment, and the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology for providing us with copies of the data. Lamont Doherty Contribution Number 5513Peer Reviewe

Seismicity Associated With the Formation of a New Island in the Southern Red Sea

Volcanic eruptions at mid-ocean ridges are rarely witnessed due to their inaccessibility, and are therefore poorly understood. Shallow waters in the Red Sea allow the study of ocean ridge related volcanism observed close to sea level. On the 18th December 2011, Yemeni fishermen witnessed a volcanic eruption in the Southern Red Sea that led to the formation of Sholan Island. Previous research efforts to constrain the dynamics of the intrusion and subsequent eruption relied primarily on interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) methods, data for which were relatively sparse. Our study integrates InSAR analysis with seismic data from Eritrea, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia to provide additional insights into the transport of magma in the crust that fed the eruption. Twenty-three earthquakes of magnitude 2.1–3.9 were located using the Oct-tree sampling algorithm. The earthquakes propagated southeastward from near Sholan Island, mainly between December 12th and December 13th. The seismicity is interpreted as being induced by emplacement of a ∼12 km-long dike. Earthquake focal mechanisms are primarily normal faulting and suggest the seismicity was caused through a combination of dike propagation and inflation. We combine these observations with new deformation modeling to constrain the location and orientation of the dike. The best-fit dike orientation that satisfies both geodetic and seismic data is NNW-SSE, parallel to the overall strike of the Red Sea. Further, the timing of the seismicity suggests the volcanic activity began as a submarine eruption on the 13th December, which became a subaerial eruption on the 18th December when the island emerged from the beneath the sea. The new intrusion and eruption along the ridge suggests seafloor spreading is active in this region

A half-century of geologic and geothermic investigations in Iceland: The legacy of Kristjn Smundsson

One of the World's premier field geologists, Kristján Sæmundsson led immense geological mapping programs and authored or co-authored nearly all geological maps of Iceland during the past half century, including the first modern bedrock and tectonic maps of the whole country. These monumental achievements collectively yield the most inclusive view of an extensional plate boundary anywhere on Earth. When Kristján began his work in 1961, the relation of Iceland to sea-floor spreading was not clear, and plate tectonics had not yet been invented. Kristján resolved key obstacles by demonstrating that the active rifting zones in Iceland had shifted over time and were linked by complex transforms to the mid-ocean spreading ridge, thus making the concept of sea-floor spreading in Iceland acceptable to those previously skeptical. Further, his insights and vast geological and tectonic knowledge on both high- and low-temperature geothermal areas in Iceland yielded a major increase in knowledge of geothermal systems, and probably no one has contributed more than he to Icelandic energy development. Kristján's legacy is comprised by his numerous superb maps on a variety of scales, the high quality papers he produced, the impactful ideas generated that were internationally diffused, and the generations of colleagues and younger people he inspired, mentored, or otherwise positively influenced with his knowledge and generous attitud

Vp/Vs-ratios and anisotropy on the northern Jan Mayen Ridge, North Atlantic, determined from ocean bottom seismic data

In order to gain insight into the lithology and crustal evolution of the northern Jan Mayen Ridge, North Atlantic, the horizontal components of an Ocean Bottom Seismometer (OBS) dataset were analyzed with regard to Vp/Vs-modeling and seismic anisotropy. The modeling suggests that the northernmost part of the ridge consists of Icelandic type oceanic crust, bordered to the north by anomalously thick oceanic crust formed at the Mohns spreading ridge. The modeled Vp/Vs-ratios suggest variations in gabbroic composition and present-day temperatures in the area. Anisotropy analysis reveals a fast S-wave component along the Jan Mayen Ridge. This pattern of anisotropy is most readily interpreted as dikes intruded along the ridge, suggesting that the magmatism can be related to the development of a leaky transform since Early Oligocene

Evidence of a recent magma dike intrusion at the slow spreading Lucky Strike segment, Mid-Atlantic Ridge

Author Posting. © American Geophysical Union, 2004. This article is posted here by permission of American Geophysical Union for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Geophysical Research 109 (2004): B12102, doi:10.1029/2004JB003141.Mid-ocean ridge volcanic activity is the fundamental process for creation of ocean crust, yet the dynamics of magma emplacement along the slow spreading Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) are largely unknown. We present acoustical, seismological, and biological evidence of a magmatic dike intrusion at the Lucky Strike segment, the first detected from the deeper sections (>1500 m) of the MAR. The dike caused the largest teleseismic earthquake swarm recorded at Lucky Strike in >20 years of seismic monitoring, and one of the largest ever recorded on the northern MAR. Hydrophone records indicate that the rate of earthquake activity decays in a nontectonic manner and that the onset of the swarm was accompanied by 30 min of broadband (>3 Hz) intrusion tremor, suggesting a volcanic origin. Two submersible investigations of high-temperature vents located at the summit of Lucky Strike Seamount 3 months and 1 year after the swarm showed a significant increase in microbial activity and diffuse venting. This magmatic episode may represent one form of volcanism along the MAR, where highly focused pockets of magma are intruded sporadically into the shallow ocean crust beneath long-lived, discrete volcanic structures recharging preexisting seafloor hydrothermal vents and ecosystems.This study was made possible through the support of the U.S. National Science Foundation (grants OCE-9811575, OCE- 0137164, and OCE-0201692) and the NOAA Vents Program

Seismological evidence for Lateral magma intrusion during the July 1978 deflation of the Krafla volcano in NE-Iceland

The July 1978 deflation of the Krafla volcano in the volcanic rift zone of NE-Iceland was in most respects typical of the many deflation events that have occurred at Krafla since December 1975. Separated by periods of slow inflation, the deflation events are characterized by rapid subsidence in the caldera region, volcanic tremor and extensive rifting in the fault swarm that transects the volcano. Earthquakes increase in the caldera region shortly after deflation starts and propagate along the fault swarm away from the central part of the volcano, sometimes as far as 65 km. The deflation events are interpreted as the result of subsurface magmatic movements, when magma from the Krafla reservoir is injected laterally into the fault swarm to form a dyke. In the July 1978 event magma was injected a total distance of 30 km into the northern fault swarm. The dyke tip propagated with the velocity of 0.4-0.5 m/sec during the first 9 hours, but the velocity decreased as the length of the dyke increased. Combined with surface deformation data, these data can be used to estimate the cross sectional area of the dyke and the driving pressure of the magma. The cross sectional area is variable along the dyke and is largest in the regions of maximum earthquake activity. The average value is about 1200 m{sup 2}. The pressure difference between the magma reservoir and the dyke tip was of the order of 10-40 bars and did not change much during the injection

Seismic activity associated with the September 1977 deflation of the Krafla central volcano in NE-Iceland

The September 1977 deflation event in the Krafla caldera was one of a series of such events that has been in progress since December 1975. The operation of portable seismographs in the active region and favorable location of the main seismic activity with respect to the permanent seismograph network in NE-Iceland allow a more detailed study of this deflation event than most of the other events. Continuous volcanic tremor appeared on the local seismographs shortly before 16 h on September 8, 1977. Deflation of the volcano began at the same time. A small basaltic eruption broke out on a 0.9 km long fissure near the northern rim of the caldera at about 18 h. Earthquake activity increased soon after the beginning of the tremor and the first earthquakes were located in the caldera region. The earthquake activity then migrated southwards along the Krafla fault swarm with a speed of about 0.5 m sec{sup -1}, and culminated shortly before midnight with 8 earthquakes larger than magnitude 3 that were located near the Namafjall geothermal area 8 km south of the center of the caldera. Shortly after the earthquake activity migrated into the Namafjall area small amounts of basaltic pumice were erupted through a 1138 m deep drill hole there. Depths of earthquakes were 0-6 km in the northern part of the hypocentral zone and 0-4 in the southern part. The first motion pattern of P-waves suggests dip-slip faulting on steeply dipping fault planes consistent with the extensive normal faulting observed on the surface throughout the epicentral zone. The magnitude-frequency relationship was nonlinear and changed during the earthquake sequence. The seismological data strongly support the interpretation that deflation of the Krafla volcano is associated with horizontal migration of magma from the caldera region and formation of dykes in the Krafla fault swarm