Craig, TJ orcid.org/0000-0003-2198-9172, Calais, E, Fleitout, L et al. (2 more authors) (2016) Evidence for the release of long-term tectonic strain stored in continental interiors through intraplate earthquakes. Geophysical Research Letters, 43 (13). pp. 6826-6836. ISSN 0094-8276
Abstract
The occurrence of large earthquakes in stable continental interiors challenges the applicability of the classical steady-state ‘seismic cycle’ model to such regions. Here, we shed new light onto this issue using as a case study the cluster of large reverse faulting earthquakes that occurred in Fennoscandia at 11-9 ka, triggered by the removal of the ice load during the final phase of regional deglaciation. We show that these reverse-faulting earthquakes occurred at a time when the horizontal strain-rate field was extensional, which implies that these events did not release horizontal strain that was building up at the time, but compressional strain that had been accummulated and stored elastically in the lithosphere over timescales similar to or longer than a glacial cycle. We argue that the tectonically-stable continental lithosphere can store elastic strain on long timescales, the release of which may be triggered by rapid, local transient stress changes caused by surface mass redistribution, resulting in the occurrence of intermittent intraplate earthquakes.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2016, American Geophysical Union. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Geophysical Research Letters. Uploaded with permission from the publisher. |
Keywords: | intraplate earthquakes; tectonic strain; seismic hazard; Fennoscandia |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Earth and Environment (Leeds) > Inst of Geophysics and Tectonics (IGT) (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 21 Jun 2016 12:57 |
Last Modified: | 21 Oct 2017 04:03 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2016GL069359 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | American Geophysical Union (AGU) |
Identification Number: | 10.1002/2016GL069359 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:101205 |