Upper crustal P-wave velocity structure of Kii Peninsula, SW Japan by first-arrival traveltime inversion of the Kawachinagano-Kiwa refraction profile

Summary We investigated the upper crustal P-wave velocity structure down to 5 km in the Kii Peninsula, SW Japan by a tomographic inversion of the first-arrival traveltimes from the seismic refraction experiment performed by the Research Group for Explosion Seismology (RGES) in 1988. The observations were carried out on a profile running in the N-S direction from Kawachinagano, Osaka Prefecture to Kiwa, Mie Prefecture. The profile extends for about 65 km across the major geological zones, which characterize the geological features of SW Japan. Six shots were fired and the generated seismic waves were recorded at 86 temporary observation sites. The inversion scheme was applied to 359 first-arrival times to delineate the velocity structure along the profile. In the tomographic scheme, velocity estimation was achieved by an iterative, linearized least-squares inversion. The Jacobian matrix was constructed via a finite-difference approximation by perturbing the slownesses of the cells instead of performing ray tracing. Traveltime calculations were carried out by using a fast finite-difference eikonal solver. Velocity updates were obtained by a matrix inversion algorithm using a conjugate gradient least-squares scheme. In addition, model covariance and model resolution matrices were obtained to assess the velocity image. Two low-velocity zones observed in the northern and southern parts of the profile are the most prominent features of the tomogram. The P-wave velocity structure is generally consistent with the surface geology, and the fault zones associated with the Median (MTL) and Gobo-Hagi (GHTL) tectonic lines across the peninsula.