ANCORP 96: Velocity Image of the Central Andes derived from Refraction and Wide-Angle Observations

S. Lueth*, R. Patzwahl*, E. Lueschen+, M. Schmitz*, P. Wigger*, J. Mechie+, *Free University of Berlin, Department of Geophysics, Germany
+GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam, Germany
M. Araneda~, N. Tellez*, R. Luterstein^, R. Roessling#, A. Schulze+, P. Giese* ~Universidad de Chile, Santiago
^CNEA Buenos Aires, Argentina
and ANCORP Research Group #Sergeomin, La Paz, Bolivia SFB 267

DISTANCE (km)

5.00
0

5.00 5.00
5.00 5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
50

5.00
5.50
4.00
4.50
4.00
4.50
4.00
4.50
4.00
4.50
4.00
4.50
4.00
4.50
4.00 4.00 5.00
100

5.00
5.50
5.00 5.00 5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
150

5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
5.00

5.50
4.00

4.50
4.00

4.50
4.00
4.50
4.00
4.50
4.20

4.70
4.20

4.70
4.20
4.70
4.20
4.70
3.85
4.35
200
3.85
4.35
3.50
4.00
3.50
4.00
3.25
3.75
3.25
3.75
3.00
3.50
3.00
3.50
3.00
3.50
3.00
3.50
3.00
3.50
250
3.00
3.50

5.35
3.08
3.58

5.35
3.08
3.58
3.33

3.83
3.33

3.83
3.42

3.92
300
3.42

3.92
3.50
4.00
Correlations
4.50 4.50 5.50 5.50 5.35 5.35 5.35

0
5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.31
5.50
6.15 6.15 6.15 6.15 5.85 5.85 5.35 5.35 5.31 5.17
6.15
6.15
6.15 6.15 6.15 6.15 6.15 5.95 5.95 5.35
6.15 6.15 6.15 6.15

Introduction
Steep and wide-angle re ections in the shot sections of the seashot and the regis-

20
6.70 6.70 6.70 6.70 6.70 6.70 6.70 6.70 6.70 6.50 6.50
6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.10 6.10 6.10 6.10

76W 74W 72W 70W 68W 66W 64W 62W

6.90 6.90 6.30 6.18 6.18 6.10 6.10 6.10

7.00
6.90 6.90 6.90 6.90 6.90 6.90 6.90 6.80 6.80

trations from the copper mine Quebrada Blanca have been correlated and used for a
6.75 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50
7.00
7.00
7.00 7.00

Active and passive seismological investigations in the Southern Central Andes in the
6.85 6.75

DEPTH (km)
6.75
6.50
6.75 6.75

40
7.00 6.85 6.85 7.00 7.00
6.50
7.25 6.50
7.00
6.75 7.00 7.00
7.00
6.75

forward modeling. The re ections are:

20S 20S
7.35
7.25 7.25
8.00 7.35 7.35 6.70 6.70
6.85 6.85

framework of the Special Research Project 267 and previous initiatives have a long
8.00
6.85
Iquique 6.85
6.50 6.50
7.00 7.00
6.75 6.75 6.50 6.50
8.00 7.25 7.25 6.50

6.50
6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30 6.30

BOLIVIA

60
7.35 7.35

7.00
7.00
6.50 6.85

- oceanic Moho (blue rays)

6.50 6.85
Uyuni 7.25

7.35
7.25

7.35
7.00 6.50 6.50
6.75 6.75 6.75 6.75 6.75 6.75 6.75

tradition, reaching at least back into the early 1980s. Since this period a net of
7.00
8.00 7.25
7.25 7.00 7.00 6.85 6.85 6.85 6.85 6.85 6.85 6.85
8.00
CINCA 1995 ANCORP 1996 7.35 7.35 7.25 7.25 6.50 6.50 6.50

80
6.50 6.50 6.50 6.50

- upper frontier of the west-east dipping re ecting band (green rays)

7.25 7.00 7.00
7.25 7.25
7.25

mainly refraction seismic proles and also on- and oshore re ection measurements
7.35 7.35
8.00 7.00
7.00 7.00 7.00 7.00
8.00
Ollage 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 7.35
7.25 7.25 7.25 7.25 7.25

- continental Moho(?) (pink rays)

8.00 8.00 8.00 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35 7.35

8.00

Tarija

and several seismological networks have been realized (sea g. 1). The registrations
22S 22S
- border between upper and lower crust (orange rays).

30
Tocopilla
Calama made during the project ANCORP 96 are the prolongation of one of the airgun-
proles of the CINCA 95 campaign. These airgun-proles also had been registered at

25
San Pedro
ARGENTINA
wide-angle-distance by means of receivers installed onshore.

20
The wide-angle registrations on the ANCORP 96 prole consist of eight shotgathers.
Antofagasta

24S 24S
La Escondida Jujuy
SEISMIC STUDIES ANDES In addition to the borehole-shots at the marked locations, eight oshore-explosions

15
T-D/6 (s)
Socompa
1982
Salta- 1996 experiments
and several mine blasts from the copper mine Quebrada Blanca were registered.
Velocity Model of the Subduction Zone
shot points
Especially these registrations proved to be very usefull due to their good quality and

10
Trench receiver locations
Taltal
CHILE Air-gun profiles CINCA 1995
profile ANCORP 1996 the high amount of energy.

5
26S 26S
Data examples, correlations and a velocity model coming from evaluation of CINCA Fig. 4: Ray-tracing The combined velocity model (g. 5) consists in fact of three models put together.
76W 74W 72W 70W 68W 66W 64W 62W
wide-angle data (Patzwahl) and ANCORP wide-angle data are presented. Furtheron, On the right side, from -190 km to 0 km, the result of wide-angle registrations of

0
a velocity model of the subsurface of the ANCORP prole using the rst arrivals of and traveltime fit 0 50 100 150 200 250 300
the CINCA airgun-prole at 21 S is plotted. the continuation on the left side is
the steep-angle data has been computed. DISTANCE (km)
delivered by the velocity model obtained from the evaluation of the forearc data of
Fig.1: Overview Map of seismic profiles measured since 1982 the ANCORP prole.
Near Surface Velocity Model Both parts have been obtained from manual interactive forward modelling following
the trial and error method. The ray-tracing program by C. Zelt (1992) has been
used. Due to the low and very irregular ray-coverage the traveltimes have not been
The velocity image of the subsurface of the ANCORP prole has been computed inverted.
with the rst arrivals of the 65 steep-angle re ection shots. A laterally homogeneous The isovelocity-lines plotted over the left half of the model represent the rst result of
initial model consisting of two layers (with respect to the topographic surface) has a 2D tomographic inversion of the earthquake traveltime data registered during the
70 km 230 km
been used. The plot shows the result after six inversion-iterations of the algorithm passive seismological campaign in ANCORP 96. The dots show locations of earth-
by Zelt (1992). Although this algorithm had been designed for wide-angle refraction
71W 70W 69W 68W 67W 66W
quakes between 20.5 S and 21.5 S. In depths greater than 100 km, the center of
20S
Iquique
Salar de Uyuni
BOLIVIA
20S
and re ection data with a relatively low number of model parameters to be inverted it the cluster coincides with the prolongation of the correlated oceanic Moho.
0 Uyuni proved to be stable also in this attempt with a very high discretization of the model.
PACIFIC
Velocity nodes are specied each 5 km, average receiver distance is 100 m.
21S 21S
OCEAN Ollage
T-X/6 [s]

22S 22S
Tocopilla
CHILE
10000 70 69.5 69 68.5 68
Calama ARGENTINA
0 7.6
8000

time [ms]
Coastal Cordillera Preandean Depression Eastern Cordillera Salt Lake
San Pedro 6 7.4
23S Longitudinal Valley Western Cordillera Wide-Angle shotpoint 23S
Precordillera Altiplano Plateau Steep-Angle shotpoint 6000 7.2
-20
7.0

6
4000 6.8
71W 70W 69W 68W 67W 66W
-40 6.6
11 2000

depth [km]
6.4
7

Fig. 3: Seashot (upper section) and mine blasts (lower section). 0 6.2

7
-60 V
250 400000 500000 600000 700000 8 6.0 p
5.8
200
-118 km -5 km 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340
-80 5.5
offset (km)

5.0
8
150
5 5 4.5
-100
3.5
0 100
1.6
0 0
50 -120 1.0
-180 -160 -140 -120 -100 -80 -60 -40 -20 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200

0 -5 -5 distance from coast [km]

300 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340
UTM (km)
T-X/6 [s]

Fig. 2: Close view to the profile and coverage Fig. 5: Velocity model from wide-angle
and seismological data (isolines)
of wide-angle-shots
0 2 3 4 5 6 7

11 Fig. 6: Traveltimes and velocity model from inversion of first arrivals