Matthew J. Hornbach

Research Associate

PhD., The University of Wyoming, 2004

A.B., Hamilton College, 1998

Telephone: (512) 636-5030
FAX: (512) 471-0348
email: matth@utig.ig.utexas.edu

Primary Research Interests:

My research focuses on using high-resolution 2D/3D seismic techniques in conjunction with other geophysical indicators to image, model, and ultimately link shallow geological structure with sediment stress-states and fluid flow. This research is broadly applicable to an array of current geophysical and cross-disciplinary scientific problems including understanding (1) fluid-pressures, slope-failure, and the structure and evolution of continental margins, (2) methane mobilization and its potential impact on climate, (3) the role of seeps and vents in heat/fluid transport and in sustaining diverse chemosynthetic biological seafloor communities and (4) geohazards, with particular emphasis on tsunami generation/propagation.

Currently Funded Projects:

“Ultra high resolution 3D seismic surveying of active Hydrate Ridge vents to compliment proposed CORKing,” $420,000 granted by NSF-OCE Ocean Drilling Program for a two-year study, starting summer 2008

“Assessing Slope Stability and Tsunami Generation in Caracas Bay, Curacao, The Netherlands Antilles,” $113,000 granted via a private company. Project duration: August 9^th, 2007 – August 8^th, 2009.

Students & Postdocs I've Supported as Research Assistants (past/present)

DATA EXAMPLES:

3D Seismic Imaging and Fluid Flow Analysis of the Blake Ridge Gas Hydrate Province

(Below: a movie showing in 3D the seafloor (blue), the base of the hydrate stability zone signified by a bottom-simulating reflector, or BSR (yellow), and areas thought to consist of concentrated hydrate (red). The green surfaces mark the location of eroded buried sediment waves—these features appear to control the gas distribution on the ridge. The colored surfaces in the image were created from the migrated 3D volume by using Paradigm Geophysical Software; the movie file was developed with Matlab. For more information on these data, see Hornbach et al., GEOPHYSICS,2003; Hornbach et al., JGR, 2008)

Geophysical Analysis of Fluid Flow and Gas Migration at the Blake Ridge Diapir: Below is a 2D prestack depth migrated seismic image of sediments above the Blake Ridge Diapir. The strong reflector that cross-cuts strata represent the gas hydrate/free-gas phase boundary. To learn more about this work, see Hornbach et al., GRL, 2005. For a shallow 3D image of the shallow subsurface above the diapir (and the fluid conduits that breach the surface and sustain chemosynthetic communities at the seafloor), see Hornbach et al., GRL, 2007.

(Coming Soon) Submarine Slide and Tsunami Modeling

More recently, my research has focused on using seismic data to constrain the volume and dynamics of submarine landslides, and from this, back-calculate the possible tsunami generated by these events. Below show a simplified mudflow (3D Gaussian beam) moving down an idealized continental slope, and the resulting tsunami this slide generates (program and images were created in my lab at Texas using Matlab).

Recent Publications

Frohlich, C., Hornbach, M.J., Taylor, F.W., Shen, C.C., Moala, A., Morton, A., Kruger, J., “Huge erratic boulders in Tonga deposited by a prehistoric tsunami,” Geology, (in review)

Hornbach, M.J., Saffer, D.M., Holbrook, W. S., Van Avendonk, H.J.A., Gorman, A., “3D seismic imaging of the Blake Ridge methane hydrate province: evidence for large concentrated zones of gas hydrate and morphologically-driven advection,” Journal of Geophysical Research-(Solid Earth), 113, B07101 (2008)

Hornbach, M.J, Mondziel, S.A., Grindlay, N.R., Mann, P., Frohlich, C., “Did a submarine slide trigger the 1918 Puerto Rico tsunami?” Science of Tsunami Hazards, Vol. 27, No. 2, (2008)

Frederick W. Taylor, Richard W. Briggs, Cliff Frohlich, Abel Brown, Matt Hornbach, Alison K. Papabatu, Aron Meltzner, Douglas Billy, “The 1 April 2007 Solomons Earthquake: Shallow Rupture Across a Ridge-Transform Plate Boundary” Nature Geoscience (2008)

Hornbach, M.J., Lavier, L.L., Ruppel, C.D., “Triggering Mechanism and Tsunamogenic Potential of the Cape Fear Slide Complex, U.S. Atlantic Margin,” G-cubed, (2007).

Hornbach, M.J., Ruppel, C., Van Dover, C.L, “Three-dimensional structure of fluid conduits sustaining an active deep marine cold seep," Geophysical Research Letters, 34, March, 2007.

Brown, H.E., Holbrook, W.S., Hornbach, M.J., Nealon, J., “Slide structure and role of gas hydrate at the northern boundary of the Storegga Slide, offshore Norway.” Marine Geology, May, 2006.

Hornbach, M.J., Ruppel, C., Saffer, D. M., Van Dover, C.L., Holbrook, W. S., “Coupled Geophysical Constraints on Heat Flow and Fluid Flux at a Salt Diapir,” Geophysical Research Letters, 2005, 32, L24617, doi:10.1029/2005GL024862.

Shillington, D. S., Van Avendonk, H.J.A., Holbrook, W. S., Kelemen, P.B., Hornbach, M.J., 2004, "Composition and structure of the central Aleutian island arc from arc parallel wide -angle siesmic data," Geochem. Geophys. Geosys., vol. 5.

Van Avendonk, H.J.A., Shillington, D.J., Holbrook, W.S., and Hornbach, M.J., 2004, Inferring crustal structure in the Aleutian island arc from a sparse wide-angle seismic data set, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, vol.5(8).

Hornbach, M.J., 2004, “Development and Implementation of a Portable, Low Cost Seismic Data Acquisition System for Classroom Experiments and Independent Studies”. The Journal of Geoscience Education, September.

Hornbach, Matthew J., Demian M. Saffer, and W.S. Holbrook, 2004,“Critically Pressured Free-Gas Reservoirs Below Gas Hydrate Provinces”. Nature, 427, p.142-144, January 8th.

UTIG Contributions (Publications)

Complete Publication List

Institute for Geophysics; J.J. Pickle Research Campus, Bldg. 196; 10100 Burnet Road (R2200); Austin TX 78758-4445
Phone: (512) 471-6156; FAX: (512) 471-8844
Last modified: 16 Sep 2008 19:08
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