HR: 0803h
AN: NS11D-0789    [Abstracts]
TI: A long-term monitoring of resistivity variation at the Wushangting mud volcano site in Southwestern Taiwan
AU: * Chang, P
EM: pingyuc@mail.chna.edu.tw
AU: Chen, L
EM: richchen2100@yahoo.com.tw
AB: We used a two-dimensional (2D) time-lapse electrical resistivity method in monitoring the activities of mud volcanoes. The mud volcano is a geomorphic feature formed by gases and fluid gushing through fault fissures at the mudstone area. The extensively eruption of fluid in mud volcanoes in the Yanchao area of southwestern Taiwan reveals the activities of the active Chishan Fault. However, there are no direct evidence showing the relationships between erupted gas volumes and fault activities. Through the time-lapse resistivity monitoring in the area, we hope to provide useful information to evaluate the fault activities. Our in-field monitoring site is located at the Wushangting Preservation Zone, which are on the Chishan Fault line in Yanchao. The measuring period is from July 2006 to May 2007, measuring frequency is once a week in the first month and is decreased to about once a month in the following months. The average resistivity at the research site is between 3.36 to 9.43 Ohm-m. During the period, the major changes of resistivity are located between the surface and a depth of 3-m. On December 26th, 2006, three earthquakes occurred as high as 6.7, 6.4, 5.2 at the Richter scale outside the sea of PingTung county, about 100 km southwest from the monitoring site. After the earthquakes, the resistivity is found to be raised up 2 to 5 Ohm-m between the surface and a depth of 3-m. There are a lot of reasons that may cause the changes of resistivity, for example, the temperature, the humidity, the earthquake activities and its subsequent influence, i.e., gas or fluid emission from the subsurface. After examine the weather records during the monitoring period, we suggest that the decrease of resitivity in the monitoring site is most likely to be the subsequent influence of the earthquake activities. Currently, we are continuing the resistivity monitoring surveys and hope to provide more data in order to be compared with the previous observation records.
DE: 0925 Magnetic and electrical methods (5109)
DE: 5109 Magnetic and electrical properties (0925)
SC: Near-Surface Geophysics [NS]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting