[{"awards": "1744651 Wilcock, William", "bounds_geometry": "POLYGON((-62 -62,-61.5 -62,-61 -62,-60.5 -62,-60 -62,-59.5 -62,-59 -62,-58.5 -62,-58 -62,-57.5 -62,-57 -62,-57 -62.2,-57 -62.4,-57 -62.6,-57 -62.8,-57 -63,-57 -63.2,-57 -63.4,-57 -63.6,-57 -63.8,-57 -64,-57.5 -64,-58 -64,-58.5 -64,-59 -64,-59.5 -64,-60 -64,-60.5 -64,-61 -64,-61.5 -64,-62 -64,-62 -63.8,-62 -63.6,-62 -63.4,-62 -63.2,-62 -63,-62 -62.8,-62 -62.6,-62 -62.4,-62 -62.2,-62 -62))", "dataset_titles": "3D P-wave velocity models of Orca Volcano, Bransfield Basin, Antarctica from the\r\nBRAVOSEIS experiment; Bransfield OBSIC OBS network 2019-20 (network code ZX, 2019); BRAVOSEIS Onshore Seismic Array (Network code 5M)", "datasets": [{"dataset_uid": "200441", "doi": "10.14470/0Z7563857972", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "GEOFON", "science_program": null, "title": "BRAVOSEIS Onshore Seismic Array (Network code 5M)", "url": "https://doi.org/10.14470/0Z7563857972"}, {"dataset_uid": "200440", "doi": "", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "NSF SAGE Facility DMC", "science_program": null, "title": "Bransfield OBSIC OBS network 2019-20 (network code ZX, 2019)", "url": " https://ds.iris.edu/mda/18-017/"}, {"dataset_uid": "200442", "doi": "in progress", "keywords": null, "people": null, "repository": "Marine Geoscience Data System", "science_program": null, "title": "3D P-wave velocity models of Orca Volcano, Bransfield Basin, Antarctica from the\r\nBRAVOSEIS experiment", "url": ""}], "date_created": "Fri, 14 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "One of the fundamental processes in plate tectonics is the rifting or separating of continental crust creating new seafloors which can widen and ultimately form new ocean basins, the latter is a process known as seafloor spreading. The Bransfield Strait, separating the West Antarctic Peninsula from the South Shetland Islands, formed and is presently widening as a result of the separation of continental crust. What is unique is that the system appears to be approaching the transition to seafloor spreading making this an ideal site to study the transitional process. Previous seafloor mapping and field surveys provide the regional structure of the basin; however, there exists a paucity of regional seismic studies documenting the tectonic and volcanic activity in the basin as a result of the rifting. This would be the first local-scale study of the seismicity and structure of the volcanoes in the center of the basin where crustal separation is most active. The new seismic data will enable scientists to compare current patterns of crustal separation and volcanism at the Bransfield Strait to other well-studied seafloor spreading centers. This collaborative international project, led by the Spanish and involving scientists from the U.S., Germany and other European countries, will monitor seismicity for one year on land and on the seafloor. An active seismic study conducted by the Spanish will image fault and volcanic structures that can be related to the distribution of earthquakes. Back-arc basins are found in subduction settings and form in two stages, an initial interval of continental rifting that transitions to a later stage of seafloor spreading. Studying the transitional process is important for understanding the dynamics and evolution of subduction zones, and in locations where back-arc rifting breaks continental crust, it is relevant to understanding the formation of passive continental margins. The Central Bransfield Basin is unusual in that the South Shetland Islands have lacked recent arc volcanism and it appears subduction is ceasing, but this system has broad significant because it appears to be nearing the transition from rifting to seafloor spreading. This award will support the U.S. component of an international initiative led by the Spanish Polar Committee to conduct a study of the seismicity and volcanic structure of the Central Bransfield Basin. The objective is to characterize the distribution of active extension across the basin and determine whether the volcanic structure and deformation of the rift are consistent with a back-arc basin that is transitioning from rifting to seafloor spreading. The U.S. component of the experiment will contribute a network of six hydroacoustic moorings to monitor regional seismicity and 15 short-period seismometers to study the distribution of tectonic and volcanic seismicity on Orca volcano, one of the most active volcanoes in the basin. An active seismic study across closely spaced multichannel seismic lines across the rift will provide the data necessary to link earthquakes with fault structures enabling a tomography study of Orca volcano and provide insight into how the volcano\u0027s structure relates to rifting. This research will constrain the distribution of active rifting across the Central Bransfield Basin and determine whether the patterns of faulting and the structure of volcanic portion of the rift are consistent with a diffuse zone of rifting or a single spreading center that is transitioning to the production of oceanic crust. The Bransfield Basin is an ideal site for a comparative study of seismic and hydroacoustic earthquake locations that will improve the understanding of the generation and propagation of T-wave signals and contribute to efforts to compare the result of T-wave studies with data from traditional solid-earth seismic studies. This award reflects NSF\u0027s statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation\u0027s intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.", "east": -57.0, "geometry": "POINT(-59.5 -63)", "instruments": "IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e PROFILERS/SOUNDERS \u003e AIRGUN ARRAYS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e MAGNETIC/MOTION SENSORS \u003e SEISMOMETERS; IN SITU/LABORATORY INSTRUMENTS \u003e RECORDERS/LOGGERS \u003e PASSIVE ACOUSTIC RECORDER", "is_usap_dc": true, "keywords": "Back Arc Basin; SHIPS; TECTONICS; PLATE TECTONICS; South Shetland Islands; Bransfield Strait; MARINE GEOPHYSICS; Antarctic Peninsula", "locations": "Bransfield Strait; South Shetland Islands; Antarctic Peninsula", "north": -62.0, "nsf_funding_programs": "Antarctic Earth Sciences", "paleo_time": "NOT APPLICABLE", "persons": "William, Wilcock; Dax, Soule; Robert, Dziak", "platforms": "WATER-BASED PLATFORMS \u003e VESSELS \u003e SURFACE \u003e SHIPS", "repo": "GEOFON", "repositories": "GEOFON; Marine Geoscience Data System; NSF SAGE Facility DMC", "science_programs": null, "south": -64.0, "title": "Collaborative Research: The Tectonic and Magmatic Structure and Dynamics of Back-arc Rifting in Bransfield Strait: An International Seismic Experiment", "uid": "p0010498", "west": -62.0}]

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Collaborative Research: The Tectonic and Magmatic Structure and Dynamics of Back-arc Rifting in Bransfield Strait: An International Seismic Experiment

1744651

2025-02-14

William, Wilcock; Dax, Soule; Robert, Dziak

BRAVOSEIS Onshore Seismic Array (Network code 5M)	GEOFON
Bransfield OBSIC OBS network 2019-20 (network code ZX, 2019)	NSF SAGE Facility DMC
No project link provided	Marine Geoscience Data System

One of the fundamental processes in plate tectonics is the rifting or separating of continental crust creating new seafloors which can widen and ultimately form new ocean basins, the latter is a process known as seafloor spreading. The Bransfield Strait, separating the West Antarctic Peninsula from the South Shetland Islands, formed and is presently widening as a result of the separation of continental crust. What is unique is that the system appears to be approaching the transition to seafloor spreading making this an ideal site to study the transitional process. Previous seafloor mapping and field surveys provide the regional structure of the basin; however, there exists a paucity of regional seismic studies documenting the tectonic and volcanic activity in the basin as a result of the rifting. This would be the first local-scale study of the seismicity and structure of the volcanoes in the center of the basin where crustal separation is most active. The new seismic data will enable scientists to compare current patterns of crustal separation and volcanism at the Bransfield Strait to other well-studied seafloor spreading centers. This collaborative international project, led by the Spanish and involving scientists from the U.S., Germany and other European countries, will monitor seismicity for one year on land and on the seafloor. An active seismic study conducted by the Spanish will image fault and volcanic structures that can be related to the distribution of earthquakes. Back-arc basins are found in subduction settings and form in two stages, an initial interval of continental rifting that transitions to a later stage of seafloor spreading. Studying the transitional process is important for understanding the dynamics and evolution of subduction zones, and in locations where back-arc rifting breaks continental crust, it is relevant to understanding the formation of passive continental margins. The Central Bransfield Basin is unusual in that the South Shetland Islands have lacked recent arc volcanism and it appears subduction is ceasing, but this system has broad significant because it appears to be nearing the transition from rifting to seafloor spreading. This award will support the U.S. component of an international initiative led by the Spanish Polar Committee to conduct a study of the seismicity and volcanic structure of the Central Bransfield Basin. The objective is to characterize the distribution of active extension across the basin and determine whether the volcanic structure and deformation of the rift are consistent with a back-arc basin that is transitioning from rifting to seafloor spreading. The U.S. component of the experiment will contribute a network of six hydroacoustic moorings to monitor regional seismicity and 15 short-period seismometers to study the distribution of tectonic and volcanic seismicity on Orca volcano, one of the most active volcanoes in the basin. An active seismic study across closely spaced multichannel seismic lines across the rift will provide the data necessary to link earthquakes with fault structures enabling a tomography study of Orca volcano and provide insight into how the volcano's structure relates to rifting. This research will constrain the distribution of active rifting across the Central Bransfield Basin and determine whether the patterns of faulting and the structure of volcanic portion of the rift are consistent with a diffuse zone of rifting or a single spreading center that is transitioning to the production of oceanic crust. The Bransfield Basin is an ideal site for a comparative study of seismic and hydroacoustic earthquake locations that will improve the understanding of the generation and propagation of T-wave signals and contribute to efforts to compare the result of T-wave studies with data from traditional solid-earth seismic studies. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

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