Walters, RJ, Gregory, LC orcid.org/0000-0001-5525-5447, Wedmore, LNJ et al. (12 more authors) (2018) Dual control of fault intersections on stop-start rupture in the 2016 Central Italy seismic sequence. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 500. pp. 1-14. ISSN 0012-821X
Abstract
Large continental earthquakes necessarily involve failure of multiple faults or segments. But these same critically-stressed systems sometimes fail in drawn-out sequences of smaller earthquakes over days or years instead. These two modes of failure have vastly different implications for seismic hazard and it is not known why fault systems sometimes fail in one mode or the other, or what controls the termination and reinitiation of slip in protracted seismic sequences. A paucity of modern observations of seismic sequences has hampered our understanding to-date, but a series of three Mw > 6 earthquakes from August to November 2016 in Central Italy represents a uniquely well-observed example. Here we exploit a wealth of geodetic, seismological and field data to understand the spatio-temporal evolution of the sequence. Our results suggest that intersections between major and subsidiary faults controlled the extent and termination of rupture in each event in the sequence, and that fluid diffusion, channelled along these same fault intersections, may have also determined the timing of rupture reinitiation. This dual control of subsurface structure on the stop-start rupture in seismic sequences may be common; future efforts should focus on investigating its prevalence.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) |
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) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number NERC NE/I02318X/1 Royal Commission For Exhibition of 1851 No external ref NERC Not Known Royal Society UF150282 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 02 Aug 2018 12:12 |
Last Modified: | 23 Jul 2020 14:09 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.epsl.2018.07.043 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:134010 |