Shear Wave Velocity Structure Beneath the Western Basin and Range Province, Eastern California: Implications for Crustal-scale Tectonic Models

Broadband seismic data from three seismic stations located within the western Basin and Range Province of eastern California were analyzed in order to image the shear wave velocity structure of the crust and upper mantle in the region. The stations include: (1) Manual Prospect Mines, Trona, (2) Cottonwood Creek, Lone Pine, and (3) Slate Mountain, Trona. The area of the study is characterized by a complex geologic history predominantly involving the Mesozoic emplacement of the Sierra Nevada batholith and Cenozoic extension, uplift, and volcanism. Lateral and vertical velocity variations deduced from receiver-function analyses indicate complex lithospheric structure in this region. The crustal configuration beneath the stations depicts a low-velocity zone (LVZ) that is present between 16-18 km depth and the Moho at about 30-km depth. These results are consistent with extensional models of the region involving lateral flow of mid- to lower-crustal material and/or delamination of the lower crust.