Seismic observation in the eastern Atlantic, 1952

Abstract

The seismic refraction shooting experiments undertaken in the eastern Atlantic and on the neighbouring continental shelf are briefly described, and the results compared with previous work. The deep-sea results show that basaltic rocks lie immediately below the sedimentary layer, which is variable in thickness, with a mean of about 1 km. The basaltic rocks extend to the Mohorovičic discontinuity at a depth of between 9 and 13 km below sea-level. The results from the stations on the continental shelf at the mouth of the English Channel confirm that the basement rocks slope gently seaward; the value of this slope and the nature of the sedimentary cover vary with position.