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Moho modeling of the Yellow Sea (West Sea) from spectrally correlated free-air and terrain gravity data

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Abstract

Moho estimates for the Yellow Sea and Bohai Basin were developed from the EGM2008 gravity, ETOPO1 topography/bathymetry, and NOAA’s sedimentary thickness databases. Spectral correlation analysis between the free-air gravity anomalies (FAGA) and the terrain’s gravity effects (TGE) at 20 km altitude was made to estimate the terrain-correlated FAGA, which can provide information on the isostatic status of the study area. This study included the additional terrain gravity effects due to density contrasts from sedimentary rock thickness variations over the Yellow Sea. Spectral correlation filtering of the FAGA with the TGE estimated the terrain correlated FAGA, which were subtracted from the TGE to infer isostatically compensated gravity effects for inversion constraints on the Moho modeling. The derived Moho estimates show considerable sensitivity to the sedimentary thickness variations and tectonic features of the Yellow Sea region. In addition, the gradients in the dynamic crustal topography inferred from the terrain-correlated FAGA show apparent associations with the distribution of the Yellow Sea’s earthquakes with predominantly strike-slip focal mechanisms.

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Acknowledgments

Grants from the Human Resources Program in Energy Technology of the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP), the Republic of Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (No. 20194010201730), and the Korean Meteorological Agency (KMIPA 2018–02810) supported elements of this study. This work also benefitted from the constructive comments and recommendations of two anonymous reviewers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of GeoEnvironmental Sciences, Kongju National University, 56, Gongjudaehak-ro, Gongju-si, Chungcheongnam-do, 32588, Republic of Korea

    Hyung Rae Kim, Mancheol Suh, Kyung Jun Park & Haeun Yu

  2. Yellow Sea GeoEnvironmental Institute, Kongju National University, 56, Gongjudaehak-ro, Gongju-si, Chungcheongnam-do, 32588, Republic of Korea

    Hyung Rae Kim

  3. Dokdo Research Center, Korea Institute of Ocean Sciences and Technology, 48, Haeyanggwahak-gil, Jukbyeon-myeon, Uljin-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do, seoul, 36315, Republic of Korea

    Soon-Young Choi

  4. School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, 275 Mendenhall Laboratory, 125 South Oval Mall, Columbus, Ohio, 43210, USA

    Ralph R. B. von Frese

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  1. Hyung Rae Kim
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Kim, H.R., Choi, SY., Suh, M. et al. Moho modeling of the Yellow Sea (West Sea) from spectrally correlated free-air and terrain gravity data. Geosci J 24, 531–540 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12303-019-0044-5

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