Most seismological models for the interior of Mars lack an upper mantle low velocity zone. However, there is expected to be a large thermal gradient across the stagnant conductive lid (lithosphere) of Mars. This gradient should tend to decrease elastic wave velocities with increasing depth, with this effect dominating the opposing tendency caused by increasing pressure with depth because Mars has low gravity. An upper mantle lithosphere with a low velocity zone (LVZ) beneath a thin high velocity “seismic lid” is thus predicted. The upcoming NASA InSight mission includes a three-component seismometer, which should provide the first opportunity to directly detect any lithospheric LVZ in Mars. Seismic wavefields expected for Mars mantle velocity structures with or without a strong LVZ are very distinct. The LVZ models predict shadow zones for high-frequency seismic body wave phases such as P, S, PP and SS, etc. The most diagnostic waves that can be used to evaluate presence of a lithospheric LVZ given a single seismometer are intermediate-period global surface waves, which travel along the great circle from a seismic source to the seismometer. An LVZ produces distinctive dispersion, with a Rayleigh wave Airy phase around 100 s period and very different surface wave seismograms compared to a model with no LVZ. Even a single observation of long-period surface waves from a known range can be diagnostic of the lithospheric structure.

Enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) require cost-effective monitoring of fracture networks. We validate the capability of using borehole distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) ambient noise for fracture monitoring using core photos and core logs. The EGS Collab project has conducted 10 m scale field experiments of hydraulic fracture stimulation using 50-60 m deep experimental wells at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead, South Dakota. The first EGS Collab testbed is located at 1616.67 m (4850 ft) depth at SURF and consists of one injection well, one production well, and six monitoring wells. All wells are drilled subhorizontally from an access tunnel called a drift. The project uses a single continuous fiber-optic cable installed sequentially in the six monitoring wells to record DAS data for monitoring hydraulic fracturing during stimulation. We analyze 60 s time records of the borehole DAS ambient noise data and compute the noise root-mean-square (rms) amplitude on each channel (points along the fiber cable) to obtain DAS ambient noise rms amplitude depth profiles along the monitoring wellbore. Our noise rms amplitude profiles indicate amplitude peaks at distinct depths. We compare the DAS noise rms amplitude profiles with borehole core photos and core logs and find that the DAS noise rms amplitude peaks correspond to the locations of fractures or lithologic changes indicated in the core photos or core logs. We then compute the hourly DAS noise rms amplitude profiles in two monitoring wells during three stimulation cycles in 72 h and find that the DAS noise rms amplitude profiles vary with time, indicating the fracture opening/growth or closing during the hydraulic stimulation. Our results demonstrate that borehole DAS passive ambient noise can be used to detect fractures and monitor fracturing processes in EGS reservoirs.