Seismic evidence for velocity heterogeneity along ~40 Ma
old oceanic crustal segment formed at the slow-spreading equatorial
Mid-Atlantic Ridge from full waveform inversion of ocean bottom
seismometer data
Abstract
In slow spreading environments, oceanic crust is formed by a combination
of magmatic and tectonic processes. Using full waveform inversion
applied to active-source ocean bottom seismometer data, we reveal the
presence of a strong lateral variability in the 40 – 48 Ma old oceanic
crust at the slow-spreading Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the equatorial
Atlantic Ocean. Over a 120 km-long section between the St Paul fracture
zone and the Romanche transform fault, we observe four distinct 20-30 km
long crustal segments. The segment affected by the St Paul FZ consists
of three layers, 2-km thick layer with velocity <6 km/s, 1.5
km thick middle crust with velocity 6-6.5 km/s, and an underlying layer
with velocity ~7 km/s in the lower crust. The segment
associated with an abyssal hill morphology contains high velocity
~7 km/s from a shallow depth of 2 – 2.5 km below
basement, indicating the presence of primitive gabbro. The segment
associated with a low basement morphology seems to have 5.5 – 6.5 km/s
velocity starting near the basement extending down to ~4
km depth, indicating chemically distinct crust. The segment close to the
Romanche transform fault, a normal oceanic crust with velocity 4.5-5
km/s near the seafloor increasing to 7 km/s at 4 km depth indicates a
magmatic origin. The four distinct crustal segments have a good
correlation with the overlying seafloor morphology. The observed strong
crustal heterogeneities could result from alternate tectonic and
magmatic processes along the ridge axis, possibly modulated by chemical
variations in the mantle.