Modeling the Middle American Lithosphere: Illuminating the Enigma of Cocos Plate Subduction

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Ritzwoller, MarkEAR-0207753The project initiates collaboration between scientists at UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico) and the University of Colorado at Boulder. The long-term purpose is to develop an improved seismic model of the crust and mantle beneath Mexico and the Cocos Plate. At present, there is no reference model for the region of study, which places limitations on the effectiveness of seismic hazard assessments. An improved higher resolution model is also motivated by a series of problems related to the structure and tectonics of Middle America, especially the enigmatic subduction characteristics of the Cocos Plate and the desire to understand the roots of the Mexican Volcanic Belt. The collaborative work will begin by (1) transferring three years of Mexican National Seismic Network (MNSN) data to CU-Boulder for future processing and analysis and (2) developing a thermal model of the Cocos Plate mantle wedge beneath Mexico from the current CU-Boulder 3-D seismic model.