Seismic reflection and refraction

Abstract

Abstract The ice cover of the Arctic Ocean restricts research vessels, limiting the number of miles of seismic reflection and refraction lines in the area. Figures 1 and 2 show the distribution of the lines, andTables 1 and 2 provide references keyed to those figures. This paper describes the distribution, collection, and processing of the seismic reflection and refraction data available in the deep basins and major ridges in the Arctic Ocean and briefly discusses the salient geological results by region. In addition, the position of seismic surveys on the continental margins and adjacent landmasses of the North American plate have been compiled for completeness. These peripheral areas are documented with recent review papers Table 1) including Eldholm and others (this volume) and Larsen (this volume). Most of the seismic reflection information in the Arctic Ocean has been collected on drifting ice stations; thus, the direction of the lines is controlled by the whims of nature. The data set presented here is incomplete due to the inaccessibility of information collected by Soviet scientists. No seismic profiling has been run from the northern margin of Greenland, and only three refraction surveys and one reflection line exist on the Canadian Polar margin from Greenland to the Beaufort Sea. Most of the reflection lines in the Canada Basin were acquired with power sources of insufficient strength to penetrate the sedimentary section. Even with this meager collection of erratically spaced and variable quality information, important trends can be seen, interesting features