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Daily changes of seismic velocities in shallow materials on Mars
  • +2
  • Lei Qin,
  • Hongrui Qiu,
  • Sizhuang Deng,
  • Alan Levander,
  • Yehuda Ben-Zion
Lei Qin
University of Southern California

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Hongrui Qiu
Rice University
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Sizhuang Deng
Rice University
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Alan Levander
Rice University
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Yehuda Ben-Zion
University of Southern California
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Abstract

Temporal changes of S-wave velocities at shallow depth on Mars are derived using seismic data from the InSight mission. Autocorrelation functions are computed for three-component seismic recordings to retrieve zero-offset reflection seismograms. Observed S-wave reflection phase with two-way travel time of ~1.2 s and its multiples indicate an interface at ~200 m depth. Daily relative travel time changes (dt/t) with ~5% variations are correlated well with the surface temperature. A top ~1m-thick regolith layer produces a delay of about one Martian day between the dt/t and surface temperature. Assuming the travel time changes are produced primarily in the top ~18 m sand layer, the daily velocity variations in that layer are ~40%. The dominant mechanisms driving the changes are thermoelastic strain in the shallow structure generating the time delays and possible material failures in the regolith layer.