Seismic velocity structure of the Juan de Fuca and Gorda plates revealed by a joint inversion of ambient noise and regional earthquakes

The crust and upper mantle seismic structure, spanning from the Juan de Fuca and Gorda spreading centers to the Cascade back arc, is imaged with full-wave propagation simulation and a joint inversion of ambient noise and regional earthquake recordings. The spreading centers have anomalously low shearwave velocity beneath the oceanic lithosphere. Around the Cobb axial seamount, we observe a low-velocity anomaly underlying a relatively thin oceanic lithosphere, indicating its influence on the Juan de Fuca ridge. The oceanic Moho is clearly defined by a P velocity increase from 6.3 km/s to 7.5 km/s at about 6 km depth beneath the seafloor. The thickness of the oceanic plates is less than 40 km prior to subduction, and the structure of the oceanic lithosphere varies both along strike and along dip. Farther landward, very low velocity anomalies are observed above the plate interface along the Cascade fore arc, indicative of subducted sediments.