Thin low-velocity zone within the krafla caldera, ne-Iceland attributed to a small magma chamber

We examine seismograms from microearthquakes recorded at Krafla central volcano, in the Northern Volcanic Zone of Iceland, during a short inflation period in 1988. We produce record sections for propagation both to the north and to the south of the center of the caldera by combining seismograms from many earthquakes. The northern record section contains clear evidence of a low velocity zone (LVZ), including a low amplitude diffraction of the P wave as it impinges on top of the LVZ and high amplitude reflections from beneath the LVZ. The absence of clear shear waves indicates that the LVZ is at least partially molten and should be interpretated as a magma chamber. The magma chamber is less than 1 km thick, with a top approximately 3 km beneath the surface. We find no evidence for a LVZ in the southern part of the caldera.

[1]  P. Einarsson Earthquakes and present-day tectonism in Iceland , 1991 .

[2]  S. Solomon,et al.  The three-dimensional seismic velocity structure of the East Pacific Rise near latitude 9° 30′ N , 1990, Nature.

[3]  John A. Orcutt,et al.  The structure of 0‐ to 0.2‐m.y.‐old oceanic crust at 9°N on the East Pacific Rise from expanded spread profiles , 1990 .

[4]  H. Ármannsson,et al.  Exploration and development of the Krafla geothermal area , 1987, Jökull.

[5]  E. Tryggvason Multiple magma reservoirs in a rift zone volcano: Ground deformation and magma transport during the September 1984 eruption of Krafla, Iceland , 1986 .

[6]  Axel Björnsson Dynamics of crustal rifting in NE Iceland , 1985 .

[7]  E. Tryggvason Subsidence events in the Krafla area, North Iceland, 1975-1979 , 1980 .

[8]  P. Einarsson,et al.  Seismic activity associated with the September 1977 deflation of the Krafla central volcano in northeastern Iceland , 1979 .

[9]  Páll Einarsson,et al.  S-wave shadows in the Krafla Caldera in NE-Iceland, evidence for a magma chamber in the crust , 1978 .

[10]  P. Einarsson,et al.  Seismological evidence for Lateral magma intrusion during the July 1978 deflation of the Krafla volcano in NE-Iceland , 1978 .

[11]  R. S. J. Sparks,et al.  Gas release rates from pyroclastic flows: a assessment of the role of fluidisation in their emplacement , 1978 .

[12]  K. Grönvold,et al.  Current rifting episode in north Iceland , 1977, Nature.

[13]  S. Arnott A seismic study of the Krafla volcanic system, Iceland , 1990 .

[14]  Takeshi Minakami,et al.  Seismology of Volcanoes in Japan , 1974 .