Crustal structure of east central Oregon: Relation between Newberry Volcano and regional crustal structure

Abstract

A 180‐km‐long seismic refraction transect from the eastern High Cascades, across Newberry Volcano, to the eastern High Lava Plains is used to investigate the subvolcanic crustal and upper mantle velocity structure there. Near‐surface volcanic flows and sedimentary debris (1.6–4.7 km/s), ranging from 3 to 5 km in thickness, overlie subvolcanic Basin and Range structures. East and west of Newberry Volcano, the subvolcanic basement (5.6 km/s) has been downwarped, producing 5‐km‐deep basins. The midcrust (8‐ to 28‐km depth) is characterized by velocities ranging from 6.1 to 6.5 km/s and varies laterally in thicknesses. The lower crust is characterized by art unusually high velocity (about 7.4 km/s), and its geometry mirrors the subvolcanic basement geometry. The Moho is located at a depth of 37 km and represents a transition to an upper mantle velocity of 8.1 km/s. The shallow subsurface (1.2 km) beneath Newberry Volcano is characterized by high‐velocity (5.6 km/s, versus 4.1 km/s for the surrounding area) intrusions and appears to be located on a basement high. Beneath the seismic refraction array at Newberry Volcano, an absence of low‐velocity anomalies suggests that large silicic magma chambers do not exist in the upper crust, but apparent high attenuation of the seismic wave field may be consistent with either partial melts in small volumes, elevated crustal temperatures, and/or poor geophonerecording site coupling. The east central Oregon velocity structure is nearly identical to that of the northwestern Nevada Basin and Range and the Modoc Plateau of northeastern California, and variations in the deep crustal structure about Newberry Volcano are consistent with tectonism involving crustal underplating, melting, and extension. If paleomagnetic estimates of extension in the east central Oregon area are correct, the North American continent experienced significant growth through extension, underplating, and volcanism in east central Oregon. Comparison of east central Oregon with other continental back arc areas shows similarities in crustal thickness, velocity, and heat flow.