Ambient noise Rayleigh wave tomography of New Zealand

Abstract

SUMMARY We present the first New Zealand-wide study of surface wave dispersion, using ambient noise observed at 42 broad-band stations in the national seismic network (GeoNet) and the Global Seismic Network (GSN). Year-long vertical-component time-series recorded between 2005 April 1 and 2006 March 31 have been correlated with one another to yield estimated fundamental mode Rayleigh wave Green's functions. We filter these Green's functions to compute Rayleigh wave group dispersion curves at periods of 5–50 s, using a phase-matched filter, frequency–time analysis technique. The uncertainties of the measurements are estimated based on the temporal variation of the dispersion curves revealed by 12 overlapping 3-month stacks. After selecting the highest quality dispersion curve measurements, we compute group velocity maps from 7 to 25 s period. These maps, and 1-D shear wave velocity models at four selected locations, exhibit clear correlations with major geological structures, including the Taranaki and Canterbury Basins, the Hikurangi accretionary prism, and previously reported basement terrane boundaries.