Magnitude and duration of surface uplift above the Socorro magma body

Abstract

We use interferometric synthetic aperture radar and geomorphic data to constrain the magnitude and duration of uplift driven by the magma body beneath Socorro, New Mexico, United States. Interferometry spanning 1992–2006 confirms uplift of the Socorro magma body at a rate of ~2.5 mm/yr. However, we find no clear evidence for volcanic uplift after an examination of three rivers (Rio Salado, Rio Puerco, Rio Grande), and two terraces (Llano de Manzano, Llano de Albuquerque) crossing the Socorro magma body. Our geomorphic measurements permit at most 25–50 m of cumulative surface uplift above the Socorro magma body since the middle Pleistocene, but require no long-term uplift. Given previously articulated thermal arguments for the Socorro magma body, we therefore suggest either a recent (within the last few centuries) initiation of uplift at Socorro, or that long-term uplift and subsidence have been essentially equal.