1181 ISSN 1028-334X, Doklady Earth Sciences, 2008, Vol. 422, No. 7, pp. 1181–1185. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2008. Original Russian Text © A.L. Sobissevitch, A.V. Gorbatikov, A.N. Ovsuchenko, 2008, published in Doklady Akademii Nauk, 2008, Vol. 422, No. 4, pp. 542–546. The results of multidisciplinary geological–geo- physical investigations of mud volcanism in the Taman mud-volcanic province are presented. Geophysical data on the internal structure of Mt. Karabetov mud volcano were obtained for the first time, and pathways of fluid migration down to a depth of 15–25 km were deter- mined. Mud volcanism is a surprising and quite rare natural phenomenon, whose mechanisms had not been fully studied. At present, we can consider that the correlation of mud volcanism with the dynamics of deep fluids and hydrocarbon pools has been established [2, 9]. Intense mud-volcanic activity is observed in the territory of Russia, first of all, on the Taman Peninsula, which is an integral part of the modern evolution of fluid-magmatic systems in the Northern Caucasus [9]. During the last few years, Mt. Karabetov, which is one of the most active mud volcanoes in the Taman region, has been the object of multidisciplinary geological–geophysical and geochemical investigations [3, 4]. This volcano is char- acterized by explosive type of eruptions with periodic manifestation of the whole power of this seemingly harmless natural phenomenon. During the field works of the Institute of Physics of the Earth (IPE RAS) in August–September 2007, a detailed geological-geomorphological mapping of Mt. Karabetov mud volcano was carried out and sup- plemented by remote sounding data. As a result, it became possible to trace the tectonic deformations of young forms of topography and various manifestations of exogenous geological processes in the study region. Simultaneously, profile geophysical measurements were carried out using the microseismic sounding method [5, 6]. It was shown experimentally and using numerical models that inhomogeneities of the Earth’s crust specifically distort the spectrum of the low-fre- quency microseismic field. In particular, spectral amplitudes of specific frequency f decrease above high- velocity anomalies at the Earth’s surface and increase above low-velocity anomalies. Frequency f is related to the depth of the anomaly H location and velocity of the fundamental mode of Rayleigh wave V R ( f ) as H = . The low-frequency microseismic field is considered as a superposition of wave packets of funda- mental Rayleigh modes with different frequency com- positions. The method was used as a principally new technology of microseismic sounding of near-surface (0–0.5 km) and deep (up to 50 km) structures of the Earth’s crust. The technology was successfully tested in practice on different geological objects in terms of scale and genesis [14]. Mt. Karabetov mud volcano is a high plateau with a system of individual hills located at the top of a low- angle dome-shaped uplift (145 m asl). The volcanic edifice is composed of mud-volcanic breccias. Salses, gryphons, and small salt lakes are scattered on the flat surface of the uplift (Fig. 1). The mud volcano is con- fined to the eastern periclinal closure of the eponymous anticlinal ridge. The main core of the anticline is com- posed of rocks of the Chokrakian and Karaganian stages. In two places, the domal part of the anticline is intruded by intensely dislocated Maikopian clays. The Chokrakian and Karaganian layers around the fold core dip at 60°–70°. Sarmatian rocks on the limbs rapidly flatten out. Thus, the anticline has a prominent diapir structure [1, 7, 10, 12]. Clear structural–geological regularities are observed in the arrangement of topographic forms. Gryphons and salses are usually confined to the domes of anticlinal folds or tectonic fractures. The major part of anticlines remains active up to the present time. This is indicated by deeply intended ravine valleys, which cut the folds, and by landslides on the slopes of the val- ley. The westernmost anticline (Fig. 1), which is almost invisible in the anomalous development of exogenous processes, is an exception. Lack of terraces on the walls of valleys suggests slow growth of folds during the 0.5 V R f ( ) f ---------------------- Deep Structure of the Mt. Karabetov Mud Volcano A. L. Sobissevitch, A. V. Gorbatikov, and A. N. Ovsuchenko Presented by Academician V.N. Strakhov January 21, 2008 Received January 30, 2008 DOI: 10.1134/S1028334X08070428 Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Bol’shaya Gruzinskaya 10, Moscow, 123995 Russia e-mail: alex@ifz.ru GEOPHYSICS