The Azores Node
outline of talk :
• principal objectives
• who are the actors so far & what has been achieved ?
• what experiments are currently running ?
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
• Principal objectives
Eu
NA
Af
Pico Volcano - the Azores
@ Ifremer
The Azores Node
An observatory of deep sea
ecosystems and active
processes related to
seismicity, volcanism, and
hydrothermal circulations in
the Azores region
Lucky Strike hydrothermal field
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
Seismic and Volcanic Risk in the Azores
Earthquakes and Volcanoes had a
tremendous impact in Azores
economy over the five centuries of its
history.
The ESONET node will :
Pico Volcano - the Azores
> Extend the on-land seismic
monitoring network off-shore and
address the links between risk onshore and plate boundary processes;
> Promote a collective consciousness
in the population, for a better
understanding of earth processes both
as risk factors and as potential
resources;
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
Deep sea ecosystems in the Azores region
Seamounts harbour important
fishing resources, both as
resident and visitor species, and
“priority conservation”
invertebrate species like cold
water corals and deep-sea
sponges.
Hydrothermal vents harbour
invaluable resources in terms of
biodiversity and biotechnology
potential
The ESONET Azores node will
provide needed holistic
information concerning these
habitats, essential for an
ecosystem-based management of
the area.
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
@ Ifremer
Dynamics of hydrothermal ecosystems…….
MENEZ GWEN
Basaltic-hosted
Depth 830 m
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
hydrothermal fields : the
MoMAR* project
* Monitoring the Mid-Atlantic Ridge
LUCKY STRIKE
Basaltic-hosted
Depth 1700 m
RAINBOW
Ultramafic-hosted
Depth 2300 m
@ Ifremer
pillow lava - basalt
@ Ifremer
@ Ifremer
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
@ Ifremer
Dynamics of hydrothermal ecosystems…….
« geological » forcing
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
Dynamics of hydrothermal ecosystems…….
Why is host rock important (1) ?
T°C
pH
Charlou et al., 2002
H2
Fe
CH4
mmol/kg
µmol/kg
mmol/kg
Rainbow
365
2.8
16
24000
2.5
L. Strike
170364
3.53.7
0.02-0.7
30-862
0.5-0.9
Global fluxes
Elderfield and Schultz, 1996
basalt
Serpentinized
ultramafic rock
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
Dynamics of hydrothermal ecosystems…….
Why is host rock important (2) ?
Rainbow
Zbinden et al., 2004
Rimicaris exoculata: a new
type of symbiosis based on
iron oxidation
@ Ifremer
Iron oxidation as an additional (+CH4 + sulphides)
energy source in the vents ecosystem ?
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
Dynamics of hydrothermal ecosystems …… geological forcing
Estimated energy flux for one large MidAtlantic Ridge vent field : ~ 1000 MW*
…. This is about the estimated timeaveraged flux for 50 km of ridge !
0
- Do Mid-Atlantic Ridge
hydrothermal vents mine heat over
50 km along-axis ?
2km
- Or are they associated with
transient magmatic events ?
A simple 2-dimensional
model ….
- How do hydrothermal convective
cells work ?
- What rocks do they encounter ?
* ~ 1 nuclear power plant reactor
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
The two MoMAR focus sites for long-term observation :
Lucky Strike :
A complex 3-dimensional setting
Segment-scale
approach and basalthosted ecosystem on
active axial volcano
Rainbow :
Ultramafic-hosted
ecosystem on active
detachment fault
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
who are the actors so far
& what has been achieved ?
Extensive site surveys and cruise-based time-series
work since the early 90s (FP3, FP4, FP5 projects
MARFLUX, AMORES and VENTOX & national
programs).
MoMAR initiative launched in 1998 in Lisbon. …. site
survey cruises continue… LabHorta facility set up
in Faial….
Observatory-dedicated work funded by EC FP6
EXOCET-D (STREP 2003-2007), and MoMARnet
(Marie Curie RTN 2004-2008), Marbef
MoMAR-Fr steering committee set up jointly by
Ifremer and CNRS in 2004.
Marine component of EC FP6 NERIES (Support for
Research
2005-2009). Areas (Menez
MoMAR identified as ISS by US-Ridge,
andInfrastructure
Marine Protected
Gwen, Lucky Strike and Rainbow) initiative led by Portugal approved by OSPAR in june
2007 ..
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
oceanographic mooring
… first autonomous observatory experiments set up in
- 2005: regional Hydrophone Array / serviced in 2006 and 2007, 2 years of
continuous seismicity recording over the entire Azores region (M > 2-3, x-y
relocation, no z)
- and 2006 : biologie, vent temperature, geodesy and oceanography at
Lucky Strike / unfortunately not serviced in 2007 due to ROV problems.
Most instruments are still on site, not recording / 1 year of data stored.
@ Ifremer
Colonization
boxes
CHEMINI
@ Ifremer
@ Ifremer
pressure gauge
@ Ifremer
TEMPO
T-probes
@ Ifremer
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
… ongoing autonomous observatory experiments / regional
regional
Hydrophone
Array monitors
seismicity
Moored hydrophone
@ cnrs/UBO
Example of event recording
2 Broad Band
OBSs form a
component of
the NERIES
european array
BB-OBS
(NERIES)
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
@ cnrs/IPGP
… ongoing autonomous observatory experiments / local
Seismic
activity, fluid
circulations
and ground
deformation
OBS
@ Ifremer
@ Ifremer
@ cnrs/IPGP
benchmark
pressure gauge
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007
ESONET Demo ……..
Please ask me or Ana Colaço, or Pierre Marie Sarradin, or Miguel
Miranda, or Ricardo Santos, for further details, web page contacts, PIs
names for the experiments outlined in this talk etc….
M. Cannat / presentation of Azores Node / ESONET All Regions Workshop Barcelona, sept 5-7 2007