Abstract:
Abstract Station “Khibiny”, equipped with a powerful magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) generator and/or diesel generator, has been successfully used since 1976 to study the electrical conductivity of the Earth's crust in the northern part of the Baltic Shield. The present paper describes the techniques of measurement, data processing and interpretation of the five-component electromagnetic fields created by this source. A longitudinal conductance map for the upper 10 km of the Earth's crust has been constructed. Several blocks, with conductances varying from 0.1 to some thousands of Siemens, have been revealed on the Kola Peninsula, in northern Karelia and in northern Finland. The blocks of high conductance are connected with relatively young complexes of Early Proterozoic and Late Archean ages. In some places, they create thick and extensive conductive belts such as the Imandra-Varzuga and the Pechenga zones. More often, they appear in the shape of vast regions with enhanced conductivity (e.g., the granulite belts and the Allarechen region). The geoelectric cross-section of the Imandra-Varzuga ore-critical structure has been studied in detail, using the method of electromagnetic field migration. Its depth extent is approximately 10 km. Highly resistant blocks are associated with the most ancient geological units, of early Archean age. Resistant regions have been found in the Murmansk and Central Kola regions, as well as in the Kovdor massif and in the Central Finland granite area. These regions are the most promising ones for deep electromagnetic sounding of the lower crust and the upper mantle of the Earth.