3D fault architecture controls the dynamism of earthquake swarm
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Abstract
The vibrant evolutionary patterns made by earthquake swarms are incompatible with standard, effectively two-dimensional (2D) models for general fault architecture. We leverage advances in earthquake monitoring with a deep-learning algorithm to image a fault zone hosting a 4-year-long swarm in southern California. We infer that fluids are naturally injected into the fault zone from below and diffuse through strike-parallel channels while triggering earthquakes. A permeability barrier initially limits up-dip swarm migration but ultimately is circumvented. This enables fluid migration within a shallower section of the fault with fundamentally different mechanical properties. Our observations provide high-resolution constraints on the processes by which swarms initiate, grow, and arrest. These findings illustrate how swarm evolution is strongly controlled by 3D variations in fault architecture.
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | 3D fault architecture controls the dynamism of earthquake swarm |
| Series title | Science |
| DOI | 10.1126/science.abb0779 |
| Volume | 368 |
| Issue | 6497 |
| Year Published | 2020 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| Contributing office(s) | Earthquake Science Center |
| Description | 5 p. |
| First page | 1357 |
| Last page | 1361 |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |