Evidence of upper-mantle processes related to continental rifting versus oceanic crust in the Gulf of California

Receiver functions from teleseismic events, recorded by stations around the Gulf of California, are used to map the upper-mantle seismic discontinuities. We observe a mean transition zone thickness comparable to the global average for most of the region. A low-velocity layer is detected above the 410 discontinuity that varies in thickness along the Gulf of California. The 660 discontinuity shows complex waveforms south of latitude 30◦N as a result of the phase change of garnet to perovskite. Within the transition zone, a complex behaviour of the receiver functions is observed mainly at the southern end of the Gulf. The north–south variations of this zone are likely associated with a slab window at the northern Gulf, resulting from the cessation of subduction of the Farallon plate 12 Ma, and the subduction of the Guadalupe and Magdalena microplates at the southern end, resulting in a hydrated upper mantle. Our results suggest that change in rifting styles occurring along the Gulf of California mirrors deeper processes in the upper mantle

Crust and Upper Mantle Seismic Anisotropy Variations from the Coast to Inland in Central and Southern Mexico

Subduction zones are among the most dynamic tectonic environments on Earth. Deformation mechanisms of various scales produce networks of oriented structures and faulting systems that result in a highly anisotropic medium for seismic wave propagation. In this study, we combine shear wave splitting inferred from receiver functions and the results from a previous SKS-wave study to quantify and constrain the vertically averaged shear wave splitting at different depths along the 100-station MesoAmerican Subduction Experiment array. This produces a transect that runs perpendicular to the trench across the flat slab portion of the subduction zone below central and southern Mexico. Strong anisotropy in the continental crust is found below the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) and above the source region of slow-slip events. We interpret this as the result of fluid/melt ascent. The upper oceanic crust and the overlying low-velocity zone exhibit highly complex anisotropy, while the oceanic lower crust is relatively homogeneous. Regions of strong oceanic crust anisotropy correlate with previously found low V_p/V_s regions, indicating that the relatively high V_s is an anisotropic effect. Upper-mantle anisotropy in the southern part of the array is in trench-perpendicular direction, consistent with the alignment of type-A olivine and with entrained subslab flow. The fast polarization direction of mantle anisotropy changes to N–S in the north, likely reflecting mantle wedge corner flow perpendicular to the TMVB

Evaluation of macroseismic intensities in Mexico from recent earthquakes using ¿Sintió un sismo? (Did you feel it?)

Macroseismic investigations with data collected through online surveys has acquired relevance in recent years. Its easy access and low cost allow assessments of the severity of an earthquake from its effects as observed by the population. Furthermore, it is possible to generate attenuation curves for a particular region, visualize the condition of the buildings from a zip code-averaged distribution map, and estimate possible site effects. In regions without a good coverage of seismic networks, macroseismic intensities have proved to be a substitute for instrumental data. In this paper intensity maps for four earthquakes in different regions of Mexico are presented, based on data from the database of ¿Sintió un sismo? program, an online survey implemented in 2014. Less attenuation was found in areas considered tectonically stable than in those considered as active regions. RESUMEN Las investigaciones macrosísmicas utilizando datos recolectados a partir de encuestas en línea han adquirido un gran auge en los últimos años. Su fácil acceso y bajo costo permiten realizar evaluaciones de la severidad del sismo a partir de los efectos observados por la población. Además es posible generar curvas de atenuación para una región en particular, visualizar el estado de las construcciones y los posibles efectos de sitio. En regiones donde no se tiene una buena cobertura de redes sísmicas, las intensidades macrosísmicas han demostrado ser un gran sustituto de datos instrumentales. En este trabajo se presentan mapas de intensidades macrosísmicas para cuatro sismos en distintos puntos del país. Los datos se obtuvieron de la base de datos del programa ¿Sintió un sismo?, una encuesta en línea implementada en el 2014. Encontramos que la atenuación es menor en zonas consideradas tectónicamente estables que en regiones activas

Nonvolcanic tremor observed in the Mexican subduction zone

Nonvolcanic tremor (NVT) activity is revealed as episodes of higher spectral amplitude at 1–8 Hz in daily spectrograms from the continuous seismological records in Guerrero, Mexico. The analyzed data cover a period of 2001–2007 when in 2001–2002 a large slow slip event (SSE) had occurred in the Guerrero-Oaxaca region, and then a new large SSE occurred in 2006. The tremor burst is dominated by S-waves. More than 100 strong NVT bursts were recorded in the narrow band of ~40 × 150 km^2 to the south of Iguala City and parallel to the coastline. Depths of NVT hypocenters are mostly scattered in the continental crust between 5 and 40 km depth. Tremor activity is higher during the 2001–2002 and 2006 SSE compared with that for the “quiet” period of 2003–2005. While resistivity pattern in Guerrero does not correlate directly with the NVT distribution, gravity and magnetic anomaly modeling favors a hypothesis that the NVT is apparently related to the dehydration and serpentinization processes

Imaging the eastern Trans‐Mexican Volcanic Belt with ambient seismic noise: evidence for a slab tear

The eastern sector of the Trans‐Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) is an enigmatic narrow zone that lies just above where the Cocos plate displays a sharp transition in dipping angle in central Mexico. Current plate models indicate that the transition from flat to steeper subduction is continuous through this region, but the abrupt end of the TMVB suggests that the difference in subduction styles is more likely to be accommodated by a slab tear. Based on a high‐resolution shear wave velocity and radial anisotropy model of the region, we argue that a slab tear within South Cocos can explain the abrupt end of the TMVB. We also quantify the azimuthal anisotropy beneath each seismic station and present a well‐defined flow pattern that shows how mantle material is being displaced from beneath the slab to the mantle wedge through the tear in the subducted Cocos plate. We suggest that the toroidal mantle flow formed around the slab edges is responsible for the existence of the volcanic gap in central Mexico. Moreover, we propose that the temperature increase caused by the influx of hot, less‐dense mantle material flowing through the tear to the Veracruz area may have significant implications for the thermomechanical state of the subducted slab, and explain why the intermediate‐depth seismicity ends suddenly at the southern boundary of the Veracruz basin. The composite mantle flow formed by the movement of mantle material through the slab tears in western and southern Mexico may be allowing the Cocos plate to rollback in segments

Reconciling Teleseismic and Regional Estimates of Seismic Energy

Estimates of the radiated seismic energy based on teleseismic and regional data often differ by up to an order of magnitude, with a tendency for regional estimates to be larger than teleseismic estimates for the same event. In this study we compare the velocity spectrum determined from teleseismic data after correction for radiation pattern and propagation effects, with the velocity spectrum determined from regional data, after the corresponding corrections, for nine earthquakes in the Middle America subduction zone of Mexico. This comparison of the corrected spectra is used to identify and reduce the sources of the regional versus teleseismic energy discrepancy, which is about an order of magnitude for these events. We find that the teleseismic attenuation operator needs to be calibrated. In our case, for the tectonic environment of the Mexican subduction zone, we need a teleseismic attenuation operator that is stronger at high frequencies than the global average. A larger factor, however, is the correction needed to account for site amplification. This correction has an impact on both regional and teleseismic data, but it has a larger influence on the regional estimates because the angle of incidence for teleseismic waves is steep and the stations are located on more competent rock. By modifying the teleseismic attenuation operator and applying site corrections based on a generic site model, we essentially eliminate the order-of-magnitude discrepancy between teleseismic and regional estimates of the radiated seismic energy for these events

Subducting slab ultra-slow velocity layer coincident with silent earthquakes in southern Mexico

Great earthquakes have repeatedly occurred on the plate interface in a few shallow-dipping subduction zones where the subducting and overriding plates are strongly locked. Silent earthquakes (or slow slip events) were recently discovered at the down-dip extension of the locked zone and interact with the earthquake cycle. Here, we show that locally observed converted SP arrivals and teleseismic underside reflections that sample the top of the subducting plate in southern Mexico reveal that the ultra-slow velocity layer (USL) varies spatially (3 to 5 kilometers, with an S-wave velocity of ~2.0 to 2.7 kilometers per second). Most slow slip patches coincide with the presence of the USL, and they are bounded by the absence of the USL. The extent of the USL delineates the zone of transitional frictional behavior

Crustal structure variations in south-central Mexico from receiver functions

Mexico has a complex geological history that is typified by the distinctive terranes that are found in the south-central region. Crustal thickness variations often correlate with geological terranes that have been altered by several processes in the past, for example aerial or subduction erosion, underplating volcanic material or rifting but few geophysical studies have locally imaged the entire continental crust in Mexico. In this paper, the thickness of three layers of the crust in south-central Mexico is determined. To do this, we use P- and S-wave receiver functions (RF) from 159 seismological broad-band stations. Thanks to its adaptive nature, we use an empirical mode decomposition (EMD) algorithm to reconstruct the RFs into intrinsic mode functions (IMF) in order to enhance the pulses related to internal discontinuities within the crust. To inspect possible lateral variations, the RFs are grouped into quadrants of 90°, and their amplitudes are mapped into the thickness assuming a three-layer model. Using this approach, we identify a shallow sedimentary layer with a thickness in the range of 1–4 km. The upper-crust was estimated to be of a few kilometers (<10 km) thick near the Pacific coast, and thicker, approximately 15 km in central Oaxaca and under the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB). Close to the Pacific coast, we infer a thin crust of approximately 16 ± 0.9 km, while in central Oaxaca and beneath the TMVB, we observe a thicker crust ranging between 30 and 50 km ± 2.0 km. We observe a crustal thinning, of approximately 6 km, from central Oaxaca (37 ± 1.9 km) towards the Gulf of Mexico, under the Veracruz Basin, where we estimate a crustal thickness of 31.6 ± 1.9 km. The boundary between the upper and lower crust in comparison with the surface of the Moho do not show significant variations other than the depth difference. We observe small crustal variations across the different terranes on the study area, with the thinnest crust located at the Pacific coast and Gulf of Mexico coast. The thickest crust is estimated to be in central Oaxaca and beneath the TMVB