1. The Origin of the Low‐Velocity Anomalies Beneath the Rootless Atlas Mountains: Insights Gained From Modeling of Anisotropy Developed by the Travel of Canary Plume.
- Author
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Lee, Hwaju, Bezada, Maximiliano J., and Kim, YoungHee
- Subjects
SEISMIC waves ,SEISMIC wave velocity ,SEISMIC anisotropy ,CANARIES ,SEISMIC tomography ,PLUMES (Fluid dynamics) ,PLATE tectonics - Abstract
As the mantle plume rises from the deep mantle and reaches the base of a tectonic plate, it changes its traveling direction from vertical to horizontal. The horizontal spread of plume material is often radially asymmetric. An example is a plume found below the Canary Hotspot. Previous studies have suggested that the channeling of the Canary Plume toward the westernmost Mediterranean (Alboran Sea) and consequent lithospheric delamination may have contributed to the low‐velocity anomalies found beneath the Moroccan Atlas Mountains. Regional upwelling and edge‐driven convection have been proposed as other candidates to explain the origin of the low‐velocity anomalies. In this study, we incorporated anisotropy as an a priori constraint in teleseismic P‐wave travel‐time tomography as mantle flow can develop seismic anisotropy. We inverted a new set of travel‐time delays by removing the hypothetical anisotropy‐imposed travel‐time delays from the observations. Our improved results are more consistent with the hypothesis that the low‐velocity anomalies come from the mantle material of the Canary Plume. Plain Language Summary: The propagation velocity of seismic waves is sensitive to the temperature. Low seismic velocities in the mantle found from seismic tomography, a technique used to image the velocity structure of the inner Earth with seismic waves, are commonly interpreted as high‐temperature, hydrous regions, the presence of partial melting, changes in the compositional chemistry, and grain sizes of mantle minerals. Thus, seismic tomography has been the primary tool for revealing mantle structures, such as hot plumes rooted in the deep mantle that play significant roles in mantle dynamics. Previous studies have shown that rising plume material can drag the surrounding mantle and consequently cause directional dependence of the seismic velocities, which can also affect the results of seismic tomography. This study improved the quality of seismic tomography results by considering the directional dependence of wave speeds in the mantle to elucidate the evolution of the mantle plume and its interaction with the upper plate in Morocco. The imaged low‐velocity conduit below the high‐altitude Moroccan Atlas indicates the lateral travel of the mantle plume originating from the Canary Hotspot in northwest Africa, which may have dragged the surrounding mantle beneath the Moroccan Atlas. Key Points: Teleseismic P‐wave tomography is used in combination with anisotropy models to study the origin of the low‐velocity anomalies below the Moroccan AtlasWe incorporate anisotropy as an a priori constraint in tomography and show the reduction in low‐velocity anomalies below the Moroccan AtlasThe lateral travel of plume material from the Canary Hotspot may be the origin of low‐velocity anomalies [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2022
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