The clustering of earthquake magnitudes is poorly understood compared to spatial and temporal clustering. Better understanding of correlations between earthquake magnitudes could provide insight into the mechanisms of earthquake rupture and fault interactions, and improve earthquake forecasting models. In this study we present a novel method of examining how seismic magnitude clustering occurs beyond the next event in the catalog and evolves with time and space between earthquake events. We first evaluate the clustering signature over time and space using double-difference located catalogs from Southern and Northern California. The strength of magnitude clustering appears to decay linearly with distance between events and logarithmically with time. The signature persists for longer distances (more than 50km) and times (several days) than previously thought, indicating that magnitude clustering is not driven solely by repeated rupture of an identical fault patch or Omori aftershock processes. The decay patterns occur in all magnitude ranges of the catalog and are demonstrated across multiple methodologies of study. These patterns are also shown to be present in laboratory rock fracture catalogs but absent in ETAS synthetic catalogs. Incorporating magnitude clustering decay patterns into earthquake forecasting models such as ETAS could improve their accuracy.
more »
« less
Detecting and Locating Aftershocks for the 2020 Mw 6.5 Stanley, Idaho, Earthquake Using Convolutional Neural Networks
Abstract Our study is to build an aftershock catalog with a low magnitude of completeness for the 2020 Mw 6.5 Stanley, Idaho, earthquake. This is challenging because of the low signal-to-noise ratios for recorded seismograms. Therefore, we apply convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and use 2D time–frequency feature maps as inputs for aftershock detection. Another trained CNN is used to automatically pick P-wave arrival times, which are then used in both nonlinear and double-difference earthquake location algorithms. Our new one-month-long catalog has 4644 events and a completeness magnitude (Mc) 1.9, which has over seven times more events and 0.9 lower Mc than the current U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center catalog. The distribution and expansion of these aftershocks improve the resolution of two north-northwest-trending faults with different dip angles, providing further support for a central stepover region that changed the earthquake rupture trajectory and induced sustained seismicity.
more »
« less
- PAR ID:
- 10397290
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Seismological Research Letters
- Volume:
- 93
- Issue:
- 6
- ISSN:
- 0895-0695
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 3266 to 3277
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
An unusual earthquake swarm began in December 2021 between the towns of Elgin and Lugoff in South Carolina, United States. This area is characterized by historically low seismicity, but by April 2024 it has experienced 97 small earthquakes listed in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) catalog, presenting a unique opportunity to investigate the dynamics of earthquake swarms in stable continental regions. These events are located in a north–south diffuse trend, cross cutting the East Piedmont fault system, a Late Paleozoic dextral strike-slip fault; however, the location uncertainties were too large to reveal any obvious structure. Starting from October 2022, we deployed 86 Smartsolo 5-Hz three-component seismic nodes for four months in the direct vicinity of the Elgin swarm. Using a combination of deep learning and match filter techniques for event detection, and double-difference relocation method for precise earthquake locations, we obtain up to 100 high-resolution microearthquake locations, as compared with four events listed in the USGS catalog for the deployment period. In our improved catalog, we report significantly smaller magnitudes in comparison to those listed in the USGS catalog, with a local magnitude ranging from −2.17 to 2.54 and achieving a magnitude of completeness at −0.20. The relocated catalog outlined a single-fault plane of nearly north–south strike and west dipping, inconsistent with either known fault strikes or the magnetic anomalies in this region. We also determine focal mechanism solutions for selected events in this swarm sequence, which shows mainly strike-slip faulting with nodal planes aligning with the north–south-striking seismic cluster. Our relocated catalog can be used to constrain the location of other swarm events outside the nodal recording period and provide a robust benchmark data set for further analysis of the swarm sequence.more » « less
-
Abstract Foreshocks are the only currently widely identified precursory seismic behavior, yet their utility and even identifiability are problematic, in part because of extreme variation in behavior. Here, we establish some global trends that help identify the expected frequency of foreshocks as well the type of earthquake most prone to foreshocks. We establish these tendencies using the global earthquake catalog of the U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center with a completeness level of magnitude 5 and mainshocks with Mw≥7.0. Foreshocks are identified using three clustering algorithms to address the challenge of distinguishing foreshocks from background activity. The methods give a range of 15%–43% of large mainshocks having at least one foreshock but a narrower range of 13%–26% having at least one foreshock with magnitude within two units of the mainshock magnitude. These observed global foreshock rates are similar to regional values for a completeness level of magnitude 3 using the same detection conditions. The foreshock sequences have distinctive characteristics with the global composite population b-values being lower for foreshocks than for aftershocks, an attribute that is also manifested in synthetic catalogs computed by epidemic-type aftershock sequences, which intrinsically involves only cascading processes. Focal mechanism similarity of foreshocks relative to mainshocks is more pronounced than for aftershocks. Despite these distinguishing characteristics of foreshock sequences, the conditions that promote high foreshock productivity are similar to those that promote high aftershock productivity. For instance, a modestly higher percentage of interplate mainshocks have foreshocks than intraplate mainshocks, and reverse faulting events slightly more commonly have foreshocks than normal or strike-slip-faulting mainshocks. The western circum-Pacific is prone to having slightly more foreshock activity than the eastern circum-Pacific.more » « less
-
Abstract We investigate spatiotemporal changes of intermediate‐depth earthquakes in the double seismic zone beneath Central and Northeastern Japan before and after the 2011 magnitude 9 Tohoku earthquake. We build a template‐matching catalog 1 year before and 1 year after the Tohoku earthquake using Hi‐net recordings. The new catalog has a six‐fold increase in earthquakes compared to the Japan Meteorological Agency catalog. Our results show no significant change in the intermediate‐depth earthquake rate prior to the Tohoku earthquake, but a clear increase in both planes following the Tohoku earthquake. The regions with increased intermediate‐depth earthquake activity and the post‐seismic slips following the Tohoku earthquake are spatially separate and complementary with each other. Aftershock productivity of intermediate‐depth earthquakes increased in both planes following the Tohoku earthquake. Overall, aftershock productivity of the upper plane is higher than the lower plane, likely indicating that stress environments and physical mechanisms of intermediate‐depth earthquakes in the two planes are distinct.more » « less
-
Abstract The 2016–2017 central Italy seismic sequence occurred on an 80 km long normal-fault system. The sequence initiated with the Mw 6.0 Amatrice event on 24 August 2016, followed by the Mw 5.9 Visso event on 26 October and the Mw 6.5 Norcia event on 30 October. We analyze continuous data from a dense network of 139 seismic stations to build a high-precision catalog of ∼900,000 earthquakes spanning a 1 yr period, based on arrival times derived using a deep-neural-network-based picker. Our catalog contains an order of magnitude more events than the catalog routinely produced by the local earthquake monitoring agency. Aftershock activity reveals the geometry of complex fault structures activated during the earthquake sequence and provides additional insights into the potential factors controlling the development of the largest events. Activated fault structures in the northern and southern regions appear complementary to faults activated during the 1997 Colfiorito and 2009 L’Aquila sequences, suggesting that earthquake triggering primarily occurs on critically stressed faults. Delineated major fault zones are relatively thick compared to estimated earthquake location uncertainties, and a large number of kilometer-long faults and diffuse seismicity were activated during the sequence. These properties might be related to fault age, roughness, and the complexity of inherited structures. The rich details resolvable in this catalog will facilitate continued investigation of this energetic and well-recorded earthquake sequence.more » « less
An official website of the United States government

