We analyze four expanded spread profiles acquired at distances of 0, 2.1, 3.1, and 10 km (0–0.2 m.y.) from the axis of the East Pacific Rise between 9° and 10°N. Velocity‐depth models for these profiles have been obtained by travel time inversion in the τ‐p domain, and by x‐t forward modeling using the WKBJ and the reflectivity methods. We observe refracted arrivals that allow us to determine directly the uppermost crustal velocity structure (layer 2A). At the seafloor we find very low Vp and VS/Vp values around 2.2 km/s and ≤ 0.43. In the topmost 100–200 m of the crust, Vp remains low (≤ 2.5 km/s) then rapidly increases to 5 km/s at ∼500 m below the seafloor. High attenuation values (Qp < 100) are suggested in the topmost ∼500 m of the crust. The layer 2–3 transition probably occurs within the dike unit, a few hundred meters above the dike‐gabbro transition. This transition may mark the maximum depth of penetration by a cracking front and associated hydrothermal circulation in the axial region above the axial magma chamber (AMC). The on‐axis profile shows arrivals that correspond to the bright AMC event seen in reflection lines within 2 km of the rise axis. The top of the AMC lies 1.6 km below the seafloor and consists of molten material where Vp ≈ 3 km/s and VS = 0. Immediately above the AMC, there is a zone of large negative velocity gradients where, on the average, Vp decreases from ∼6.3 to 3 km/s over a depth of approximately 250 m. Associated with the AMC there is a low velocity zone (LVZ) that extends to a distance no greater than 10 km away from the rise axis. At the top of the LVZ, sharp velocity contrasts are confined to within 2 km of the rise axis and are associated with molten material or material with a high percentage of melt which would be concentrated only in a thin zone at the apex of the LVZ, in the axial region where the AMC event is seen in reflection lines. Away from the axis, the transition to the LVZ is smoother, the top of the LVZ is deeper, and the LVZ is less pronounced. The bottom of the LVZ is probably located near the bottom of the crust and above the Moho. Moho arrivals are observed in the profiles at zero and at 10 km from the rise axis. Rather than a single discontinuity, these arrivals indicate an approximately 1‐km‐thick Moho transition zone.

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Reprocessed multichannel seismic profiles from the 9°N segment of the East Pacific Rise reveal prominent shallow subbasement events. These events are identified as wide‐angle reflections from the base of seismic layer 2A, based upon modeling of expanding spread profile data and velocity functions. The layer 2A reflections typically increase from 0.15 s after the seafloor reflection at the rise axis to 0.3–0.45 s within 1–2 km of the axis, corresponding to an increase in layer thickness of 200–600 m. No further systematic increase in layer thickness is observed, although lateral variability of the order of a few hundred meters in thickness is observed at greater offsets from the rise axis. However, the intermittent character of the imaged layer 2A reflection is attributed to focusing and defocusing of energy by the seafloor bathymetry rather than necessarily to intrinsic lateral variability at the base of the layer. The base of layer 2A is interpreted as corresponding to the transition between the extrusive section, pillow basalts and sheet flows, and a sheeted dike complex. The rapid thickening of the layer near the rise axis is attributed to successive lava flows burying the initially shallow top of the sheeted dike complex as the layer passes through the neovolcanic zone. Lateral variability of layer 2A can significantly affect the imaging of the underlying axial magma chambers as average velocities within layer 2A are approximately half that of layer 2B. For an along‐axis profile, apparent along‐axis variability in the depth of the axial magma chamber is traced to variability in the thickness of layer 2A caused by wandering of the profile relative to axis. Within the resolution of the data, the time delay of the magma chamber reflection relative to the base of layer 2A is constant.

We have reprocessed seven cross‐axis common depth point (CDP) profiles between the Clipperton transform and the 9°17′N Deval (deviation in axial linearity) on the East Pacific Rise (EPR) to understand the relationship between axial magma chamber (AMC) width and seafloor morphology. Forward modeling of cross‐axis CDP profiles suggests a segmented AMC in which significant variations in width occur across minor rise axis discontinuities (e.g., Devals). The modeled rise segment widths bounded by the 9°53′N‐9°35′N Devals, the 9°35′N‐9°17′N Devals, and south of the 9°17′N Deval were < 0.7 km, 1.0–1.2 km, and 4.15 km, respectively. Transition in AMC width across these discontinuities is unclear due to the sparseness of cross‐axis line spacing; however, a simple association of Devals with decreased magma supply is doubtful: the minimum (250 m) and maximum (4150 m) AMC widths are found near the 9°35′N and 9°17′N Devals, respectively. The reprocessing of CDP profiles included repicking stacking velocities to ensure a proper stack of the AMC reflector and its associated diffractions, imaging postcritical reflections from the base of layer 2A, finite difference time migration, ray theoretical depth migration, and travel time modeling of AMC diffraction patterns. Constraints on AMC width were derived from forward modeling techniques based on analytic raytracing. Velocity models were constructed from SeaBeam bathymetry and modified expanding spread profile (ESP) velocity‐depth functions. ESP velocity models were altered to compensate for off‐axis thickening of layer 2A as imaged in the CDP reflection data. Continuous two‐dimensional velocity models constructed from modified ESP velocity‐depth functions and SeaBeam bathymetry should account for ray bending at the seafloor/basalt interface and any lateral velocity gradients induced by a thickening layer 2A. Stacked data were time migrated using a finite difference algorithm and extrapolated to depth using ray theoretical depth migration. Reflector positions were input into our forward modeling scheme to produce a zero‐offset travel time response of our migrated solution. The travel time response was then overlain on the stacked section to ensure an adequate match, especially to diffractions generated at the AMC edge. Forward modeling of AMC diffraction patterns reveals that original AMC width estimates were too large. The under‐migration of the AMC reflector resulted from the conversion of stacking to interval velocities without accounting for topographic effects on individual CMP gathers, thus resulting in improperly collapsed diffraction hyperbolae. Ship wandering relative to the AMC edge can account for variations in AMC reflector amplitude and dropout on the along‐axis CDP line. The continuity of the AMC appears unbroken across several ridge axis discontinuities between the Clipperton transform and the 9°17′N Deval which suggests an AMC whose along‐axis dimension exceeds 75 km. Reflectivity modeling of CMP gathers suggests that the available data are consistent with a magma ...

[1] Multichannel seismic reflection data collected in July 2002 at the Endeavour Segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge, show a midcrustal reflector underlying all of the known high-temperature hydrothermal vent fields in this area. On the basis of the character and geometry of this reflection, its similarity to events at other spreading centers, and its polarity, we identify this as a reflection from one or more crustal magma bodies rather than from a hydrothermal cracking front interface. The Endeavour magma chamber reflector is found under the central, topographically shallow section of the segment at two-way traveltime (TWTT) values of 0.9-1.4 s ($2.1-3.3 km) below the seafloor. It extends approximately 24 km along axis and is shallowest beneath the center of the segment and deepens toward the segment ends. On cross-axis lines the axial magma chamber (AMC) reflector is only 0.4-1.2 km wide and appears to dip 8-36°to the east. While a magma chamber underlies all known Endeavour high-temperature hydrothermal vent fields, AMC depth is not a dominant factor in determining vent fluid properties. The stacked and migrated seismic lines also show a strong layer 2a event at TWTT values of 0.30 ± 0.09 s (380 ± 120 m) below the seafloor on the along-axis line and 0.38 ± 0.09 s (500 ± 110 m) on the cross-axis lines. A weak Moho reflection is observed in a few locations at TWTT values of 1.9-2.4 s below the seafloor. By projecting hypocenters of well-located microseismicity in this region onto the seismic sections, we find that most axial earthquakes are concentrated just above the magma chamber and distributed diffusely within this zone, indicating thermal-related cracking. The presence of a partially molten crustal magma chamber argues against prior hypotheses that hydrothermal heat extraction at this intermediate spreading ridge is primarily driven by propagation of a cracking front down into a frozen magma chamber and indicates that magmatic heat plays a significant role in the hydrothermal system. Morphological and hydrothermal differences between the intermediate spreading Endeavour and fast spreading ridges are attributable to the greater depth of the Endeavour AMC and the corresponding possibility of axial faulting.Citation: Van Ark, E. M., R.

We present the results of the analysis of expanding spread profiles (ESPs) collected on and near the axis of the East Pacific Rise at 13°N. These profiles were collected at 0, 1.1, 2.1, 3.6, and 9.5 km from the rise axis, and all but the most distant profile show a distinct low‐velocity zone (LVZ) located within layer 3 of the oceanic crust. At the ridge crest, the top of the magma chamber is at the base of layer 2, while 3.6 km off axis, the roof of the LVZ is 1.1 km below the top of layer 3. The profile farthest from the ridge could possibly have a residual LVZ confined to the lower 1.5 km of the crust. The total width of the LVZ, as determined from the ESP data, is at least 6 km, and possibly much greater. This wide LVZ apparently contradicts multichannel seismic data which show cross‐axis reflections from the magma chamber with a width of <5 km. We suggest that a resolution of this apparent contradiction lies in a model of the rise axis with a small and transient central magma chamber of high partial melt fraction surrounded by a much larger and permanent region of hot rock with only isolated pockets of partial melt. The ESP data are sensitive to this larger region, while the reflection data accurately map the presence or absence of the central magma chamber with its high impedance contrast. We identify the presence of a layer at the top of the oceanic crust with initial P wave velocities between 2.35 and 2.6 km/s, while the S wave velocity is estimated as being ≤0.8 km/s. The layer thickness lies between 100 and 200 m. These velocities are consistent with previous estimates for the Pacific and recent results for the Atlantic. The thickness of this layer is consistent with that of layer 2A determined from geophysical measurements at Deep Sea Drilling Project hole 504B.

Spreading segments of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge show negative bull's-eye anomalies in the mantle Bouguer gravity field. Seismic refraction results from 33 degrees S indicate that these anomalies can be accounted for by variations in crustal thickness along a segment. The crust is thicker in the center and thinner at the end of the spreading segment, and these changes are attributable to variations in the thickness of layer 3. The results show that accretion is focused at a slow-spreading ridge, that axial valley depth reflects the thickness of the underlying crust, and that along-axis density variations should be considered in the interpretation of gravity data.

[1] Recent P wave velocity compilations of the oceanic crust indicate that the velocity of the uppermost layer 2A doubles or reaches $4.3 km/s found in mature crust in <10 Ma after crustal formation. This velocity change is commonly attributed to precipitation of low-temperature alteration minerals within the extrusive rocks associated with ridge-flank hydrothermal circulation. Sediment blanketing, acting as a thermal insulator, has been proposed to further accelerate layer 2A evolution by enhancing mineral precipitation. We carried out 1-D traveltime modeling on common midpoint supergathers from our 2002 Juan de Fuca ridge multichannel seismic data to determine upper crustal structure at $3 km intervals along 300 km long transects crossing the Endeavor, Northern Symmetric, and Cleft ridge segments. Our results show a regional correlation between upper crustal velocity and crustal age. The measured velocity increase with crustal age is not uniform across the investigated ridge flanks. For the ridge flanks blanketed with a sealing sedimentary cover, the velocity increase is double that observed on the sparsely and discontinuously sedimented flanks ($60% increase versus $28%) over the same crustal age range of 5-9 Ma. Extrapolation of velocity-age gradients indicates that layer 2A velocity reaches 4.3 km/s by $8 Ma on the sediment blanketed flanks compared to $16 Ma on the flanks with thin and discontinuous sediment cover. The computed thickness gradients show that layer 2A does not thin and disappear in the Juan de Fuca region with increasing crustal age or sediment blanketing but persists as a relatively low seismic velocity layer capping the deeper oceanic crust. However, layer 2A on the fully sedimented ridgeflank sections is on average thinner than on the sparsely and discontinuously sedimented flanks (330 ± 80 versus 430 ± 80 m). The change in thickness occurs over a 10-20 km distance coincident with the onset of sediment burial. Our results also suggest that propagator wakes can have atypical layer 2A thickness and velocity. Impact of propagator wakes is evident in the chemical signature of the fluids sampled by ODP drill holes along the east Endeavor transect, providing further indication that these crustal discontinuities may be sites of localized fluid flow and alteration.