Comparison of Different Methods for a Moho Modeling Under Oceans and Marginal Seas: A Case Study for the Indian Ocean

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F49777513%3A23520%2F21%3A43962131" target="_blank" >RIV/49777513:23520/21:43962131 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10712-021-09648-2" target="_blank" >https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10712-021-09648-2</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10712-021-09648-2" target="_blank" >10.1007/s10712-021-09648-2</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Comparison of Different Methods for a Moho Modeling Under Oceans and Marginal Seas: A Case Study for the Indian Ocean

Original language description

Since marine seismic studies are relatively sparse and unevenly distributed, detailed tomographic images of the Moho geometry under large parts of the world’s oceans and marginal seas are not yet available. Marine gravity data is, therefore, often used to detect the Moho depth in these regions. Alternatively, Airy’s isostatic theory can be applied for this purpose. In this study, we compare different isostatic and gravimetric methods for a Moho recovery under the oceanic crust and continental margins, particularly focusing on a numerical performance of Airy, Vening Meinesz–Moritz (VMM), direct gravity inversion, and generalized (for the Earth’s spherical approximation) Parker–Oldenburg methods. Numerical experiments are conducted to estimate the Moho depth beneath the Indian Ocean. Results reveal that, among these investigated methods, the VMM model is probably the most suitable for a gravimetric Moho recovery beneath the oceanic crust and continental margins, when taking into consideration the lithospheric mantle density information. This method could to some extent model realistically a Moho geometry beneath mid-oceanic spreading ridges, oceanic subductions, most of oceanic volcanic formations, and marine sediment deposits. Nonetheless, this model still cannot fully reproduce a gradual Moho deepening caused by a conductive cooling and a subsequent isostatic rebalance of the oceanic lithosphere, which can functionally be described by a Moho deepening with the increasing ocean-floor age. Results also indicate that the Airy method typically overestimates the Moho depth under oceanic volcanic formations, while the direct gravity inversion and generalized Parker–Oldenburg methods could not reproduce more detailed features in the Moho geometry. Since Pratt’s theory better describes a large-scale isostatic mechanism of the oceanic lithosphere by means of compensation density variations, but does not account for additional changes in compensation depth (i.e., Moho depth) that are caused by these density changes, we tested a possibility of combining Pratt and Airy’s isostatic theories in order to estimate the Moho depth under the oceanic crust. Even this combined model cannot fully reproduce a gradual Moho deepening with the increasing ocean-floor age.

Czech name

—

Czech description

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Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

—

OECD FORD branch

10508 - Physical geography

Project

<a href="/en/project/GA21-13713S" target="_blank" >GA21-13713S: Uncertainty estimates for integral transformations in geodesy</a><br>

Continuities

P - Projekt vyzkumu a vyvoje financovany z verejnych zdroju (s odkazem do CEP)

Publication year

2021

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Surveys in Geophysics

ISSN

0169-3298

e-ISSN

—

Volume of the periodical

42

Issue of the periodical within the volume

4

Country of publishing house

CH - SWITZERLAND

Number of pages

59

Pages from-to

839-897

UT code for WoS article

000664000900001

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-85111378692