Abstract
Tidal oscillations of venting temperature and chlorinity have been observed in the long‐term time series data recorded by the Benthic and Resistivity Sensors (BARS) at the Grotto mound on the Juan de Fuca Ridge. In this study, we use a one‐dimensional two‐layer poroelastic model to conduct a preliminary investigation of three hypothetical scenarios in which seafloor tidal loading can modulate the venting temperature and chlorinity at Grotto through the mechanisms of subsurface tidal mixing and/or subsurface tidal pumping. For the first scenario, our results demonstrate that it is unlikely for subsurface tidal mixing to cause coupled tidal oscillations in venting temperature and chlorinity of the observed amplitudes. For the second scenario, the model results suggest that it is plausible that the tidal oscillations in venting temperature and chlorinity are decoupled with the former caused by subsurface tidal pumping and the latter caused by subsurface tidal mixing, although the mixing depth is not well constrained. For the third scenario, our results suggest that it is plausible for subsurface tidal pumping to cause coupled tidal oscillations in venting temperature and chlorinity. In this case, the observed tidal phase lag between venting temperature and chlorinity is close to the poroelastic model prediction if brine storage occurs throughout the upflow zone under the premise that layers 2A and 2B have similar crustal permeabilities. However, the predicted phase lag is poorly constrained if brine storage is limited to layer 2B as would be expected when its crustal permeability is much smaller than that of layer 2A.
Key Points
Long‐term monitoring of focused vent temperature and chlorinity at the Grotto mound shows significant tidal variations
The observed tidal variations reflect the poroelastic response of a hydrothermal system to seafloor tidal loading
Seafloor tidal loading affects hydrothermal venting through subsurface tidal mixing and/or subsurface tidal pumping