TY - JOUR
T1 - Internal Structure of a Seafloor Massive Sulfide Deposit by Electrical Resistivity Tomography, Okinawa Trough
AU - Ishizu, K.
AU - Goto, T.
AU - Ohta, Y.
AU - Kasaya, T.
AU - Iwamoto, H.
AU - Vachiratienchai, C.
AU - Siripunvaraporn, W.
AU - Tsuji, T.
AU - Kumagai, H.
AU - Koike, K.
PY - 2019/10/28
Y1 - 2019/10/28
N2 - Although seafloor massive sulfide (SMS) deposits are crucially important metal resources that contain high-grade metals such as copper, lead, and zinc, their internal structures and generation mechanisms remain unclear. This study obtained detailed near-seafloor images of electrical resistivity in a hydrothermal field off Okinawa, southwestern Japan, using deep-towed marine electrical resistivity tomography. The image clarified a semi-layered resistivity structure, interpreted as SMS deposits exposed on the seafloor, and another deep-seated SMS layer at about 40-m depth below the seafloor. The images reinforce our inference of a new mechanism of SMS evolution: Upwelling hydrothermal fluid is trapped under less-permeable cap rock. The deeper embedded SMS accumulates there. Then hydrothermal fluids expelled on the seafloor form exposed SMS deposits.
AB - Although seafloor massive sulfide (SMS) deposits are crucially important metal resources that contain high-grade metals such as copper, lead, and zinc, their internal structures and generation mechanisms remain unclear. This study obtained detailed near-seafloor images of electrical resistivity in a hydrothermal field off Okinawa, southwestern Japan, using deep-towed marine electrical resistivity tomography. The image clarified a semi-layered resistivity structure, interpreted as SMS deposits exposed on the seafloor, and another deep-seated SMS layer at about 40-m depth below the seafloor. The images reinforce our inference of a new mechanism of SMS evolution: Upwelling hydrothermal fluid is trapped under less-permeable cap rock. The deeper embedded SMS accumulates there. Then hydrothermal fluids expelled on the seafloor form exposed SMS deposits.
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U2 - 10.1029/2019GL083749
DO - 10.1029/2019GL083749
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85074540983
VL - 46
SP - 11025
EP - 11034
JO - Geophysical Research Letters
JF - Geophysical Research Letters
SN - 0094-8276
IS - 20
ER -