RAPID: Seismic Imaging of the Salton Sea

索尔顿海槽是两种截然不同的形变方式交汇的关键构造；加利福尼亚州海湾南侧以扩张中心为主的变形和圣安德烈亚斯断裂系统的右行走滑变形。极高的热流、年轻的火山作用、浅层变质作用和微震活动使早期研究人员将南索尔顿海解释为具有NE向正断层系统的埋藏扩张中心。然而，到目前为止，该系统在南部索尔顿海圣安德烈亚斯断层和布劳利地震带交汇处的关键部分仍然知之甚少，这在很大程度上是由于索尔顿海缺乏地震成像。为了解决这个问题，美国国家科学基金会资助了两个项目，一个是索尔顿海槽的海洋地震研究，另一个是陆上研究。这些项目具有很强的互补性，因为这两个实验都将记录来自陆地和海上的地震信号，但为这些项目部署气枪需要一艘足够大的船来部署海底地震仪并安全地操作气枪。该项目计划于2011年3月开始，该合同将为开展该项目的合适平台提供资金。这两个合并项目的更广泛影响包括：增进对南加州地震危害的了解和对加利福尼亚州萨尔顿海研究的益处，通过加州海洋科学教育卓越中心(CACOSEE)为科学教育工作者提供研究经验，以及对研究生的支持。

The Salton Trough is a critical structure where two very different styles of deformation meet; spreading-center dominated deformation to the south in the Gulf of California and dextral strike-slip deformation along the San Andreas fault system. Extremely high heat flow, young volcanism, shallow metamorphism and micro-seismicity led early researchers to interpret the southern Salton Sea as a buried spreading center with a NE-striking system of normal faults. To date, however, a critical portion of this system at the intersection between the San Andreas Fault with the Brawley Seismic Zone (BSZ) in the southern Salton Sea remains poorly understood, in large part, due to a lack of seismic imaging in the Salton Sea. To address this problem, the NSF has funded two projects, one a marine seismic study of the Salton Trough and the other an onshore study. These projects are highly complementary in that seismic signals from both onshore and offshore will be recorded by both experiments, but the deployments of airguns for the projects requires a boat of sufficient size to deploy the ocean bottom seismometers and safely operate the airguns. The project is scheduled to commence in March, 2011, and this award will provide funds for a suitable platform to carry out the project. The broader impacts of the combined projects include improved understanding of earthquake hazards in southern California and benefits to State of California studies of the Salton Sea, a research experience for a science educator through the California Center for Ocean Science Education Excellence (CACOSEE), and support for a graduate student.