Louisville Ridge Seamount Chain - Vp/Vs investigation of seamount structure and subduction-related deformation

Tomographic inversion of traveltime picks from both P-wave and S-wave wide-angle seismic data acquired along and across the Louisville Ridge Seamount Chain (LRSC) provides key insights into its magmatic construction and subsequent subduction-related deformation. Our P-wave velocity-depth models reveal that each seamount along the LRSC comprises an intrusive mafic-ultramafic core that rises within the crust to within 1–2 km of the seabed summit (P-wave velocity, Vp = 5.5–6.5 km s-1; S-wave velocity, Vs <3.6 km s-1), with each underlain by a crustal root ~4–5 km thick. Notably, Canopus seamount comprises two adjacent eruptive centres, and our modelling shows that the more northern is currently being internally deformed as it rides up (ascends) the Tonga-Kermadec Trench (TKT)-related plate bending outer rise. Lateral variation in Vs within models along and across the LRSC also primarily reflects subduction-related deformation, with low-velocity regions corresponding to large-scale faulting constrained within the crust. Comparison of pre- and post-LRSC-TKT collision forearc crustal structure indicates that bulk Vp properties recover within ~50 kyr, whereas Vs structure retains it fault-related fabric for at least ~740 kyr. Vp/Vs ratios (1.75-1.85) confirm a magmatic origin for all LRSC seamounts, with evidence of localized water-filled cracks due to seawater infiltration along faults, particularly beneath the TKT-ward side of the Osbourn seamount. Estimated water content within the upper crust ranges from 12–15 per cent by weight, decreasing to <10 per cent in the mid-lower crust, with no evidence of >12 per cent water content within the Pacific crust being subducted. In comparison with post-collision subduction further north, where the observed upper mantle velocity suggests up to 30 per cent water content, our models suggest that, although deformed and faulted as part of subduction, the LRSC appears more resistant to this deformation than the background Pacific crust adjacent. Our findings provide new constraints on the mechanical and compositional evolution of the LRSC, both prior to and during its collision with the overriding Indo-Australian plate.