Distribution and identification of the low-velocity layer in the northern South China Sea

The low-velocity layer (LVL), closely related with tectonic activities and dynamic settings, has always been a hot topic in the deep crustal structure studies. The deep seismic (OBS/OBH) and onshore-offshore experiments have been extensively implemented in the northern South China Sea (SCS) since the 1990s. Six seismic profiles were finished on the northern margin of SCS by domestic and international cooperations. The features of crustal structures were revealed and five velocity-inversion layers were discovered. Among them three LVLs with 3.0—3. 5 km·s-1 velocity are located in the sedimentary structure (2.0—6.0 km in depth and 2.0—4. 6 km in thickness) of the Yinggehai Basin and Pearl River Mouth Basin. They were identified by the reflective and refractive phases for their shallow depth. The other two LVLs with 5.5—6.0 km·s-1 velocity generally existed in the middle crust (7.0—18.0 km in depth) with an about 2.5—6.0 km thickness in the transitional crustal structure of the northeastern and northwestern SCS. They were detected by the refractive phase from their overlain and underlying layers. We explored the possible tectonic formation mechanisms combining with previously reported results, which provided evidence for the formation and evolution of SCS.