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Lg Coda Q and its Relation to the Geology and Tectonics of the Middle East

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Q of the Earth: Global, Regional, and Laboratory Studies

Part of the book series: Pageoph Topical Volumes ((PTV))

Abstract

Regional seismograms were collected to image the lateral variations of Lg coda Q at 1 Hz (Q 0) and its frequency dependence (η) in the Middle East using a back-projection method. The data include 124 vertical-component traces recorded at 10 stations during the period 1986–1996. The resulting images reveal lateral variations in both Q 0 and η. In the Turkish and Iranian Plateaus, a highly deformed and tectonically active region, Q 0 ranges between about 150 and 300, with the lowest values occurring in western Anatolia where extremely high heat flow has been measured. The low Q 0 values found in this region agree with those found in other tectonically active regions of the world. Throughout most of the Arabian Peninsula, a relatively stable region, Q 0 varies between 350 and 450, being highest in the shield area and lowest in the eastern basins. All values are considerably lower than those found in most other stable regions. Low Q values throughout the Middle East may be caused by interstitial fluids that have migrated to the crust from the upper mantle, where they were probably generated by hydrothermal reactions at elevated temperatures known to occur there. Low Q 0 values (about 250) are also found in the Oman folded zone, a region with thick sedimentary deposits, η varies inversely with Q 0 throughout most of the Middle East, with lower values (0.4–0.5) in the Arabian Peninsula and higher values (0.6–0.8) in Iran and Turkey. Q 0 and η are both low in the Oman folded zone and western Anatolia.

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Author notes

  1. Lianli Cong

    Present address: Department of Earth Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, St. Louis University, 3507 Laclede Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri, 63103, USA

    Lianli Cong & B. J. Mitchell

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, 63103, USA

    Brian J. Mitchell

  2. Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, 94720, USA

    Barbara Romanowicz

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© 1998 Springer Basel AG

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Cong, L., Mitchell, B.J. (1998). Lg Coda Q and its Relation to the Geology and Tectonics of the Middle East. In: Mitchell, B.J., Romanowicz, B. (eds) Q of the Earth: Global, Regional, and Laboratory Studies. Pageoph Topical Volumes. Birkhäuser, Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8711-3_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-8711-3_15

  • Publisher Name: Birkhäuser, Basel

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-7643-6049-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-0348-8711-3

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