Datasets
The following datasets are associated with GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences.
Heat flow and temperature gradient data from Spain
This dataset provides geothermal gradient and heat flow estimates derived from temperature loggings in 187 oil exploration wells across Spain, including 43 located in offshore marine areas. The measurements were used to create a preliminary heat flow map of the Iberian Peninsula and surrounding shelf waters. The mean heat flow on land is 82 mW m⁻², while offshore areas exhibit higher values averaging 99 mW m⁻²—both exceeding the European continental average. A regional trend shows increasing heat flow toward the Mediterranean coast, which inversely correlates with crustal thickness. Corresponding Moho temperatures range from 720°C in central Spain to 880°C near …
Heat flow and thermal regime in the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California: Estimates of conductive and advective heat transport
This dataset presents heat flow estimates from eight drilling sites in the Guaymas Basin, Gulf of California, collected during the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 385. The data capture the thermal regime of a sediment-filled, magmatically active rift basin where sills intrude into organic-rich sediments. Sedimentation-corrected heat flow values range from 119 to 221 mW m⁻² across the basin and rise dramatically to 257–1003 mW m⁻² at a young sill complex known as Ringvent. Thermal and hydrological modeling indicates that Ringvent is currently cooling via hydrothermal circulation, with discharge velocities of 10–200 mm yr⁻¹. The results provide critical insights …
Systematic heat flow measurements across the Wagner Basin, northern Gulf of California
This dataset comprises heat flow measurements collected along a 40 km transect across the Wagner Basin in the northern Gulf of California, a region of active continental rifting. Measurements were taken using a 6.5 m violin-bow probe at ~1 km spacing, co-located with a seismic reflection profile. Bottom water temperatures were corrected using long-term CTD (conductivity-temperature-depth) records. After correction, mean heat flow values were 220 ± 60 mW m⁻² (western basin), 99 ± 14 mW m⁻² (central basin), and 889 ± 419 mW m⁻² (eastern basin). Additional corrections for sedimentation are estimated to increase central basin heat flow by 40–60%. …
The surface heat flow of the Arabian Shield in Jordan
Andrea Förster, Hans Jürgen Förster
Surface heat flow in southern Jordan was determined from a cluster of five boreholes, each reaching depths of up to 900 m and penetrating Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. The study area lies along the eastern margin of the Dead Sea Transform fault system and covers approximately 300 km². Continuous temperature logs were collected from each borehole and combined with laboratory measurements of thermal conductivity obtained from drill cores and surface rock samples to calculate heat flow values.
GFZ Thermal Petrophysics Lab – Data Report 2024-01: Thermal properties of the shaly Jurassic (Upper Toarcian) formation at the Tournemire underground research lab (Tournemire, France)
Ben Norden, Sven Fuchs, Robert Peksa
The thermal characterization of the clayey Jurassic (Upper Toarcian, ca. 180 My old) is contributing to the site characterization of the Tournemire Underground Research Lab (URL), located in Southern France. This URL is installed in a former railway tun-nel to better understand the physical processes resulting from thermal and hydrau-lic loading in a small fault zone in a highly consolidated shale formation (Bonnelye et al., 2023). At the Tournemire site, faults and fractures of different sizes extend from the surface (sedimentary cover) to the crystalline basement. At one specific gallery (Gallery East 03) installed in the former tunnel, thermally controlled …