Coda Wave Analysis in Central-Western North America Using Earthscope Transportable Array Data

We determined seismic wave attenuation in the western and central United States (e.g. Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas) using coda waves. We selected approximately twenty moderate earthquakes (magnitude between 5.5 and 6.5) located along the Mexican subduction zone, Gulf of California, southern and northern California, and off the coast of Oregon for the analysis. These events were recorded by the EarthScope transportable array (TA) network from 2008 to 2011. In this study we implemented a method based on the assumption that coda waves are single backscattered waves from randomly distributed heterogeneities to calculate the coda Q. The frequencies studied lie between 1 and 15 Hz. The scattering attenuation is calculated for frequency bands centered at 1.5, 3, 5, 7.5, 10.5, and 13.5 Hz. In this work, we present coda Q resolution maps along with a correlation analysis between coda Q and seismicity, tectonic and geology setting. We observed higher attenuation (low coda Q values) in regions of sedimentary cover, and lower attenuation (high coda Q values) in hard rock regions. Using the 4-6 Hz frequency band, we found the best general correlation between coda Q and central-western North America bedrock geology.