Bergen, K.J., Shaw, J.H., Leon, L.A. et al. (8 more authors) (2017) Accelerating slip rates on the Puente Hills blind thrust fault system beneath metropolitan Los Angeles, California, USA. Geology, 45 (3). pp. 227-230. ISSN 1943-2682
Abstract
Slip rates represent the average displacement across a fault over time and are essential to estimating earthquake recurrence for probabilistic seismic hazard assessments. We demonstrate that the slip rate on the western segment of the Puente Hills blind thrust fault system, which is beneath downtown Los Angeles, California (USA), has accelerated from ∼0.22 mm/yr in the late Pleistocene to ∼1.33 mm/yr in the Holocene. Our analysis is based on syntectonic strata derived from the Los Angeles River, which has continuously buried a fold scarp above the blind thrust. Slip on the fault beneath our field site began during the late-middle Pleistocene and progressively increased into the Holocene. This increase in rate implies that the magnitudes and/or the frequency of earthquakes on this fault segment have increased over time. This challenges the characteristic earthquake model and presents an evolving and potentially increasing seismic hazard to metropolitan Los Angeles.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2017 Geological Society of America. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Geology. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Social Sciences (Sheffield) > Department of Geography (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 09 Feb 2017 11:55 |
Last Modified: | 29 Jun 2023 14:41 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Geological Society of America |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1130/G38520.1 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:111877 |