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Pervasive low-velocity layer atop the 410-km discontinuity beneath the northwest Pacific subduction zone: Implications for rheology and geodynamics

Journal Article · · Earth and Planetary Science Letters
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [5];  [6]
  1. Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Inst. of Geology and Geophysics. Key Lab. of Earth and Planetary Physics; Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Innovation Academy for Earth Science; Univ. of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China). College of Earth and Planetary Sciences; Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China)
  2. Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Inst. of Geology and Geophysics. Key Lab. of Earth and Planetary Physics; Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Innovation Academy for Earth Science; Univ. of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China). College of Earth and Planetary Sciences; Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Inst. of Geology and Geophysics. Mohe Observatory of Geophysics
  3. Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Inst. of Geology and Geophysics. Key Lab. of Earth and Planetary Physics; Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing (China). Innovation Academy for Earth Science; Univ. of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China). College of Earth and Planetary Sciences
  4. US Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA (United States)
  5. Yale Univ., New Haven, CT (United States). Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences
  6. Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States). Dept. of Applied physics and Applied Mathematics; Ocean Univ. of China, Shandong (China). Dept. of Computer Science and Geosciences
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Regional triplication waveforms of five intermediate-depth events are modeled to simultaneously obtain the compressional (P) and shear (SH) wave velocity structure beneath northwestern Pacific subduction zone. Both the P- and SH-wave velocity models for three different sub-regions show a low-velocity layer (LVL) with a thickness of ~55-80 km lying above the 410-km discontinuity with a ~900 km lateral extent from the Japan Sea to the northeastern Asian continental margin. With the dihedral angle approaching to zero around 400 km, a minute amount of melt atop the 410-km discontinuity caused by the hydrous slab might completely wet olivine grain boundaries and result in a low seismic velocity layer in this specific subduction zone. This mechanism suggests that the 410-LVL is a low viscosity zone that would partially decouple the upper mantle from the transition zone. We infer that the widespread 410-LVL provides evidence for a water-bearing mantle transition zone beneath the western Pacific subduction zone.
Research Organization:
Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC); Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0019759
OSTI ID:
1853385
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1775737
Journal Information:
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Journal Name: Earth and Planetary Science Letters Journal Issue: C Vol. 554; ISSN 0012-821X
Publisher:
ElsevierCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Northwest Pacific subduction zonewater-bearing MTZ
low velocity layer atop the 410
mantle transition zone
waveform modeling
wetting of grain boundary