The seismic structure beneath the Yellowstone Volcano Field from ambient seismic noise

Abstract

AbstractWe evaluate Rayleigh wave group velocity dispersion (5–40 s) around the Yellowstone Volcano Field with ambient noise tomography, measured from vertical component noise correlation functions. We include broadband data from 239 seismic stations (1999–2012), including USArray's Transportable Array and the Noise Observatory for Imaging the Subsurface beneath Yellowstone (NOISY). Short‐period (<13 s) group velocity anomalies are imaged for the Bighorn Basin (~25% slow) and Range (~20% fast), and the Yellowstone Plateau (~10% fast). Beneath the Yellowstone caldera, Rayleigh wave group velocities are ~25% slower than the regional average with slow anomalies (<−15%) observed from 5 to 24 s. These values are consistent with a magmatic body being heated from below by an underlying plume.