Teleseismic Indication of Magmatic and Tectonic Activities at Slow- and Ultraslow-Spreading Ridges

Abstract

Magmatic and tectonic processes in the formation of oceanic lithosphere at slow–ultraslow-spreading mid-ocean ridges (MORs) are more complicated relative to faster-spreading ridges, as their melt flux is overall low, with highly spatial and temporal variations. Here, we use the teleseismic catalog of magnitudes over 4 between 1995 and 2020 from the International Seismological Center to investigate the characteristics of magmatic and tectonic activities at the ultraslow-spreading Southwest Indian Ridge and Arctic Gakkel Ridge and the slow-spreading North Mid-Atlantic Ridge and Carlsberg Ridge (total length of 14,300 km). Using the single-link cluster analysis technique, we identify 78 seismic swarms (≥8 events), 877 sequences (2–7 events), and 3543 single events. Seismic swarms often occur near the volcanic center of second-order segments, presumably relating to relatively robust magmatism. By comparing the patterns of seismicity between ultraslow- and slow-spreading ridges, and between melt-rich and melt-poor regions of the Southwest Indian Ridge with distinct seafloor morphologies, we demonstrate that a lower spreading rate and a lower melt supply correspond to a higher seismicity rate and a higher potential of large volcano-induced seismic swarms, probably due to a thicker and colder lithosphere with a higher degree of along-axis melt focusing there.

Keywords

• teleseismicity
• mid-ocean ridge
• slow–ultraslow-spreading ridge
• seismic swarm
• melt supply