Geology topics

Faults & earthquakes

Explore USGS earthquake and fault publications. Search fault names, locations and seismic hazards; follow the original report for maps, methods and publication context.

Follow this topic with RSS

At least 919 records · Page 51Linked to original sources

USGS2003

Irregular recurrence of paleoearthquakes along the central Garlock fault near El Paso Peaks, California

New investigations at the El Paso Peaks paleoseismic site have refined and extended the record of paleoearthquakes for the central Garlock fault. Event evidence, in the form of buried fissures, scarps, folds, and upward terminations, has allowed us to identify six well-resolved earthquakes, designated as events W, U, R, Q, K, and F, within the last ???7000 years. The exposures that we excavated did not reveal additional evidence for three poorly resolved events reported by McGill and Rockwell [1998]. Evidence for event Y, identified in the previous study, was reexamined and found not to be a paleoearthquake. Radiocarbon dates of detrital charcoal, combined with a method of interpolating the event ages with revised sedimentation rates, provide our preferred constraints on the timing of faulting events. The most recent surface-rupturing earthquake, event W, occurred between A.D. 1450 and 1640. The penultimate event U occurred between A.D. 675 and 950. Event R, which was unrecognized in the previous study, occurred between A.D. 250 and 475. Event Q occurred relatively shortly before event R, between A.D. 25 and 275. Event K occurred between 3340 and 2930 B.C. The oldest identified paleoearthquake, event F, occurred between 5300 and 4670 B.C. The event ages indicate that earthquake recurrence is highly irregular at the El Paso Peaks site, with individual preferred intervals ranging from as little as 215 years to as many as 3300 years. The irregular recurrence of surface-rupturing earthquakes along the central Garlock fault may be related to temporal and spatial clustering of earthquakes proposed for faults in the Eastern California Shear Zone.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗

USGS2000

New aeromagnetic data reveal large strike-slip (?) faults in the Northern Willamette Valley, Oregon

High-resolution aeromagnetic data from the northern Willamette Valley, Oregon, reveal large, northwest-striking faults buried beneath Quaternary basin sediments. Several faults known from geologic mapping are well defined by the data and appear to extend far beyond their mapped surface traces. The Mount Angel fault, the likely source of the Richter magnitude (M1) 5.6 earthquake in 1993, is at least 55 km long and may be connected in the subsurface with the Gales Creek fault 25 km farther northwest. Northeast of the Mount Angel fault, a 60-km-long, northwest-striking anomaly may represent a previously unrecognized dextral-slip fault beneath the towns of Canby and Molalla. Vertical offsets along the Mount Angel fault increase with depth, indicating a long history of movement for the fault. Dominantly northwest- trending, relatively straight faults, consistent stepover geometries, offset magnetic anomalies and earthquake focal mechanisms suggest that these faults collectively accommodate significant dextral slip. The 1993 earthquake may have occurred on a left-stepping restraining bend along the Mount Angel-Gales Creek fault zone.

Oregon↗

USGS2022

Revisiting the 1899 earthquake series using integrative geophysical analysis in Yakutat Bay, Alaska

A series of large earthquakes in 1899 affected southeastern Alaska near Yakutat and Disenchantment Bays. The largest of the series, a M W 8.2 event on 10 September 1899, generated an ~12-m-high tsunami and as much as 14.4 m of coseismic uplift in Yakutat Bay, the largest coseismic uplift ever measured. Several complex fault systems in the area are associated with the Yakutat terrane collision with North America and the termination of the Fairweather strike-slip system, but because faults local to Yakutat Bay have been incompletely or poorly mapped, it is unclear which fault system(s) ruptured during the 10 September 1899 event. Using marine geophysical data collected in August 2012, we provide an improved tectonic framework for the Yakutat area, which advances our understanding of earthquake hazards. We combined 153 line km of 2012 high-resolution multichannel seismic (MCS) reflection data with compressed high-intensity radar pulse (Chirp) profiles, basin-scale MCS data, 2018 seafloor bathymetry, published geodetic models and thermochronology data, and previous measurements of coseismic uplift to better constrain fault geometry and subsurface structure in the Yakutat Bay area. We did not observe any active or concealed faults crossing Yakutat Bay in our high-resolution data, requiring faults to be located entirely onshore or nearshore. We interpreted onshore faults east of Yakutat Bay to be associated with the transpressional termination of the Fairweather fault system, forming a series of splay faults that exhibit a horsetail geometry. Thrust and reverse faults on the west side of the bay are related to Yakutat terrane underthrusting and collision with North America. Our results include an updated fault map, structural model of Yakutat Bay, and quantitative assessment of uncertainties for legacy geologic coseismic uplift measurements. Additionally, our results indicate the 10 September 1899 rupture was possibly related to stress loading from the earlier Yakutat terrane underthrusting event of 4 September 1899, with the majority of 10 September coseismic slip occurring on the Esker Creek system on the northwest side of Yakutat Bay. Limited (~2 m) coseismic or postseismic slip associated with the 1899 events occurred on faults located east of Yakutat Bay.

Alaska↗

USGS2006

Seismomagnetic effects from the long-awaited 28 September 2004 M 6.0 parkfield earthquake

Precise measurements of local magnetic fields have been obtained with a differentially connected array of seven synchronized proton magnetometers located along 60 km of the locked-to-creeping transition region of the San Andreas fault at Parkfield, California, since 1976. The M 6.0 Parkfield earthquake on 28 September 2004, occurred within this array and generated coseismic magnetic field changes of between 0.2 and 0.5 nT at five sites in the network. No preseismic magnetic field changes exceeding background noise levels are apparent in the magnetic data during the month, week, and days before the earthquake (or expected in light of the absence of measurable precursive deformation, seismicity, or pore pressure changes). Observations of electric and magnetic fields from 0.01 to 20 Hz are also made at one site near the end of the earthquake rupture and corrected for common-mode signals from the ionosphere/magnetosphere using a second site some 115 km to the northwest along the fault. These magnetic data show no indications of unusual noise before the earthquake in the ULF band (0.01-20 Hz) as suggested may have preceded the 1989 ML 7.1 Loma Prieta earthquake. Nor do we see electric field changes similar to those suggested to occur before earthquakes of this magnitude from data in Greece. Uniform and variable slip piezomagnetic models of the earthquake, derived from strain, displacement, and seismic data, generate magnetic field perturbations that are consistent with those observed by the magnetometer array. A higher rate of longer-term magnetic field change, consistent with increased loading in the region, is apparent since 1993. This accompanied an increased rate of secular shear strain observed on a two-color EDM network and a small network of borehole tensor strainmeters and increased seismicity dominated by three M 4.5-5 earthquakes roughly a year apart in 1992, 1993, and 1994. Models incorporating all of these data indicate increased slip at depth in the region, and this may have played a role in the final occurrence of the 28 September 2004 M 6.0 Parkfield earthquake. The absence of electric and magnetic field precursors for this, and other earthquakes with M 5-7.3 elsewhere in the San Andreas fault system, indicates useful prediction of damaging earthquakes seems unlikely using these electromagnetic data.

Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America↗

USGS2026

Fault sources of the 2020 southern Puerto Rico seismic sequence and the regional tectonic structure

The 2020 southwestern Puerto Rico seismic sequence occurred in an area not known for seismic activity and included multiple normal and strike‐slip focal mechanisms. The largest earthquake, M w 6.4, caused significant damage and permanent shoreline subsidence. The locations of the ruptured faults have been explored extensively using seismological and geodetic evidence, but no consensus has been reached. Here, we report the results of a high‐resolution seismic reflection survey that identified a north‐verging 20 km long curved normal fault spanning the upper reach of the Guayanilla canyon, which we call the Guayanilla Canyon fault. Part of the fault likely ruptured during the M w 6.4. The concave‐to‐the‐north fault bounds a south‐dipping ∼1 km deep asymmetric basin. This long‐lived structure, identified also on sediment isopach and magnetic anomaly maps, appears to control the formation of the Guayanilla canyon system, the only submarine drainage system in southern Puerto Rico, suggesting a relationship among seismic activity, geomorphology, and reef development. Our seismic reflection data do not support the existence of previously published major seismogenic faults in the area, such as the north‐northeast–south‐southwest Guayanilla fault zone, the Northern Boqueron Bay‐Punta Montalva fault, or a northwest–southeast strike‐slip fault, suggested to have ruptured as part of the M w 6.4 earthquake. We identified smaller faults in the survey area, some of which can be correlated with seafloor expressions, and/or with changes in sediment thickness and magnetic anomalies, and/or with moderate‐sized earthquakes. Multiple seismic images of Investigator fault, a prominent mid‐slope feature parallel to the south coast of Puerto Rico, show buried low‐angle thrusts and an abrupt change in the attitude of the overlying sediments, leading us to interpret this feature as the expression of a boundary between the now‐inactive upper accretionary prism of Muertos trough and a buried back‐arc basin that overlies the arc basement of Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico↗

USGS2011

Scientific drilling into the San Andreas Fault Zone - an overview of SAFOD's first five years

The San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) was drilled to study the physical and chemical processes controlling faulting and earthquake generation along an active, plate-bounding fault at depth. SAFOD is located near Parkfield, California and penetrates a section of the fault that is moving due to a combination of repeating microearthquakes and fault creep. Geophysical logs define the San Andreas Fault Zone to be relatively broad (~200 m), containing several discrete zones only 2–3 m wide that exhibit very low P- and S-wave velocities and low resistivity. Two of these zones have progressively deformed the cemented casing at measured depths of 3192 m and 3302 m. Cores from both deforming zones contain a pervasively sheared, cohesionless, foliated fault gouge that coincides with casing deformation and explains the observed extremely low seismic velocities and resistivity. These cores are being now extensively tested in laboratories around the world, and their composition, deformation mechanisms, physical properties, and rheological behavior are studied. Downhole measurements show that within 200 m (maximum) of the active fault trace, the direction of maximum horizontal stress remains at a high angle to the San Andreas Fault, consistent with other measurements. The results from the SAFOD Main Hole, together with the stress state determined in the Pilot Hole, are consistent with a strong crust/weak fault model of the San Andreas. Seismic instrumentation has been deployed to study physics of faulting—earthquake nucleation, propagation, and arrest—in order to test how laboratory-derived concepts scale up to earthquakes occurring in nature.

California↗

USGS2017

Eastern Denali Fault surface trace map, eastern Alaska and Yukon, Canada

We map the 385-kilometer (km) long surface trace of the right-lateral, strike-slip Denali Fault between the Totschunda-Denali Fault intersection in Alaska, United States and the village of Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada. In Alaska, digital elevation models based on light detection and ranging and interferometric synthetic aperture radar data enabled our fault mapping at scales of 1:2,000 and 1:10,000, respectively. Lacking such resources in Yukon, we developed new structure-from-motion digital photogrammetry products from legacy aerial photos to map the fault surface trace at a scale of 1:10,000 east of the international border. The section of the fault that we map, referred to as the Eastern Denali Fault, did not rupture during the 2002 Denali Fault earthquake (moment magnitude 7.9). Seismologic, geodetic, and geomorphic evidence, along with a paleoseismic record of past ground-rupturing earthquakes, demonstrate Holocene and contemporary activity on the fault, however. This map of the Eastern Denali Fault surface trace complements other data sets by providing an openly accessible digital interpretation of the location, length, and continuity of the fault’s surface trace based on the accompanying digital topography dataset. Additionally, the digitized fault trace may provide geometric constraints useful for modeling earthquake scenarios and related seismic hazard.

Alaska, Yukon↗

USGS1988

History of significant earthquakes in the Parkfield area

Seismicity on the San Andreas fault near Parkfield occurs in a tectonic section that differs markedly from neighboring sections along the San Andreas to the northwest and to the southeast. Northwest of the Parkfield section, small shocks (magnitudes of less than 4) do occur frequently, but San Andreas movement occurs predominantly as aseismic fault creep; shocks of magnitude 6 and larger are unknown, and little, if any, strain is accumulating. In contrast, very few small earthquakes and no aseismic slip have been observed on the adjacent section to the southeast, the Cholame section, which is considered to be locked, in as much as it apparently ruptures exclusively in large earthquakes (magnitudes greater than 7), most recently during the great Fort Tejon earthquake of 1857. The Parkfield section is thus a transition zone between two sections having different modes of fault failure. In fact, the regularity of significant earthquakes at Parkfield since 1857 may be due to the nearly constant slip rate pattern on the adjoining fault sections. Until the magnitude 6.7 Coalinga earthquake on May 2, 1983, 40 kilmoeters northeast of Parkfield, the Parkfield section had been relatively free of stress changes due to nearby shocks; the effect of the Coalinga shock on the timing of the next Parkfield shock is not known.

California↗

USGS2006

The 1906 earthquake and a century of progress in understanding earthquakes and their hazards

The 18 April 1906 San Francisco earthquake killed nearly 3000 people and left 225,000 residents homeless. Three days after the earthquake, an eight-person Earthquake Investigation Commission composed of 25 geologists, seismologists, geodesists, biologists and engineers, as well as some 300 others started work under the supervision of Andrew Lawson to collect and document physical phenomena related to the quake . On 31 May 1906, the commission published a preliminary 17-page report titled "The Report of the State Earthquake Investigation Commission". The report included the bulk of the geological and morphological descriptions of the faulting, detailed reports on shaking intensity, as well as an impressive atlas of 40 oversized maps and folios. Nearly 100 years after its publication, the Commission Report remains a model for post-earthquake investigations. Because the diverse data sets were so complete and carefully documented, researchers continue to apply modern analysis techniques to learn from the 1906 earthquake. While the earthquake marked a seminal event in the history of California, it served as impetus for the birth of modern earthquake science in the United States.

GSA Today↗

USGS2025

Fault displacement model for surface principal rupture of strike-slip faults

The probability distribution model for principal displacement accommodated on the surface main trace is a critical input to the fault displacement hazard analysis. This article presents a new model for strike-slip ruptures in the moment magnitude ( M ) range of 6 to 8.3. The new model is the outcome of a multi-year research effort to update the widely used model developed by Petersen and others in 2011. Updates include the adoption of the Fault Displacement Hazard Initiative database and enhancements to rupture and displacement data preparation. Statistical formulation and estimation have also been updated substantially. A three-parameter modified normal distribution that we refer to as the negative Exponentially Modified Gaussian distribution is adopted to model the probability distribution of the natural logarithm of principal displacement. Formulation for the mean parameter of the modified normal includes a random earthquake term, a nonlinear scaling relation with M , and an ellipse function for along-main-trace variation. The aleatory variability of the updated model now depends on M as well as site’s along-main-trace position. These updates not only significantly improve the fit to the distribution of the observed displacements but also yield reasonable 95th percentile predictions for M > 7.5 events. Alternative models representing the estimation uncertainty of the M -scaling relation are also developed. These new models are compared to the previous model in terms of percentile predictions and the calculated hazard curves. The steeper hazard curves from the new models yield a lower exceedance rate than the normal-distribution based model developed previously by Petersen and others.

Earthquake Spectra↗

USGS1996

Spatial radon anomalies on active faults in California

Radon emanation has been observed to be anomalously high along active faults in many parts of the world. We tested this relationship by conducting and repeating soil air radon surveys with a portable radon meter across several faults in California. The results confirm the existence of fault-associated radon anomalies, which show characteristic features that may be related to fault structures but vary in time due to other environmental changes, such as rainfall. Across two creeping faults in San Juan Bautista and Hollister, the radon anomalies showed prominent double peaks straddling the fault gouge zone during dry summers, but the peak-to-background ratios diminished after significant rain fall during winter. Across a locked segment of the San Andreas fault near Olema, the anomaly has a single peak located several meters southwest of the slip zone associated with the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Across two fault segments that ruptured during the magnitude 7.5 Landers earthquake in 1992, anomalously high radon concentration was found in the fractures three weeks after the earthquake. We attribute the fault-related anomalies to a slow vertical gas flow in or near the fault zones. Radon generated locally in subsurface soil has a concentration profile that increases three orders of magnitude from the surface to a depth or several meters; thus an upward flow that brings up deeper and radon-richer soil air to the detection level can cause a significantly higher concentration reading. This explanation is consistent with concentrations of carbon dioxide and oxygen, measured in soil-air samples collected during one of the surveys.

Applied Geochemistry↗

USGS1997

The 1936, 1945-1947, and 1950 earthquake sequences near Lassen Peak, California

Three vigorous earthquake sequences occurred near Lassen Peak in 1936, between 1945 and 1947, and in 1950; the latter two sequences included mainshocks of magnitude 5.0 and 5.5, respectively, and thousands of smaller events. No comparable earthquake sequences have occurred near Lassen Peak since 1950. The epicentral area lies within 20 km of the southern boundary of Lassen Volcanic National Park, in a northwest striking seismic zone that extends from Lake Tahoe to the vicinity of Mount Shasta. In comparing their time history and magnitude distribution with other earthquake sequences that have occurred in regions of Cenozoic volcanism within and east of the Cascade Range and the Sierra Nevada, we find that the Lassen earthquake sequences show similar characteristics to two earthquake sequences that occurred on Basin and Range faults near Herlong, California, and Klamath Falls, Oregon. We interpret this similarity as evidence that the Lassen earthquakes were caused by Basin and Range extension and may have occurred on one or more Basin and Range faults in the Lassen region. However, the limitations of the data do not allow other possible sources, such as magmatic injection, to be ruled out. The most important implication of the Lassen earthquake sequences is that earthquakes of M 5 or greater may occur in the Lassen region, perhaps quite close to Lassen Peak or other volcanoes. The record of Holocene volcanism and fault displacements in the region indicates that earthquake sequences driven by either tectonic or magmatic processes may occur near Lassen Peak, and any significant earthquake sequence should be carefully monitored to assess its nature.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗

USGS2012

Detection of a locked zone at depth on the Parkfield, California, segment of the San Andreas fault

The Parkfield, California, segment of the San Andreas fault is transitional in character between the creeping segment of the fault to the northwest and the locked Carrizo Plain segment to the southeast. The rate of shallow fault slip decreases from 25–30 mm/yr northwest of the epicenter of the 1966 Parkfield earthquake to zero at the southeastern end of the 1966 rupture zone. Data from a network of trilateration lines spanning the San Andreas fault near Parkfield and extending to the Pacific coast near San Luis Obispo shed light on the rate of fault slip at depth since the 1966 earthquake. In this study, average rates of line length change and shallow fault slip were inverted to determine the slip rate at depth on the Parkfield fault segment. The fault is taken to be a vertical surface with unknown distribution of strike-slip displacement in an elastic half-space. A striking result of the inversions is that all solutions providing acceptable fits to the data exhibit a locked zone essentially coincident with the rupture surface of the 1966 Parkfield earthquake. The data require that the locked zone extend nearly as far north as the 1966 epicenter; however, the vertical extent of the locked zone is not well resolved. Over much of the Parkfield segment the fault is slipping faster at the earth's surface than it is at seismogenic depths. In order to fit the trilateration measurements it is necessary to include a component of contraction normal to the trend of the San Andreas. The inversion results suggest a spatially uniform normal strain of −0.06 μstrain/yr. The orientation of the contraction is compatible with geologic and seismic evidence of active folding and reverse faulting in the region. The magnitude of the contraction is consistent with convergence rates inferred from global plate motion models.

Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth↗

USGS2012

Teleseismically recorded seismicity before and after the May 7, 1986, Andreanof Islands, Alaska, earthquake

The May 7, 1986, Andreanof Islands earthquake ( M w 8.0) is the largest event to have occurred in that section of the Aleutian arc since the March 9, 1957, Aleutian Islands earthquake ( M w 8.6). Teleseismically well-recorded earthquakes in the region of the 1986 earthquake are relocated with a plate model and with careful attention to the focal depths. The data set is nearly complete for m b ≥4.7 between longitudes 172°W and 179°W for the period 1964 through April 1987 and provides a detailed description of the space-time history of moderate-size earthquakes in the region for that period. Additional insight is provided by source parameters which have been systematically determined for M w ≥5 earthquakes that occurred in the region since 1977 and by a modeling study of the spatial distribution of moment release on the mainshock fault plane. A technically significant component of oblique convergence in the central Aleutian arc results in its breakup into clockwiserotating and westward translating blocks. The western part of the Andreanof block is distinct from and stronger than flanking regions. The greater strength of this block segment and strong coupling along the main thrust zone result in the accumulation of high levels of shear stress, which give rise to great earthquakes near its eastern boundary. The occurrence of the 1986 rupture only 29 years after the 1957 earthquake may indicate that in the central Aleutians M 7+ earthquakes ordinarily do represent the predominant mode of strain release. Segmentation of the main thrust zone into upper and lower planes is supported by spatial and temporal patterns of seismicity and by focal mechanism data. This and other lines of evidence indicate a downdip increase in fault strength and possibly in heterogeneity within the main thrust zone in subduction zone environments. Aftershocks of the 1986 earthquake were bounded to the west by the Andreanof block boundary (Adak Canyon) and to the east by an aseismic segment of the main thrust zone near the subducted extension of the Amlia fracture zone. The aftershock distribution was bounded to the south by a forearc shear zone and to the north by the base of the main thrust zone in the Hawley Ridge segment and by the downdip edge of the upper plane of the main thrust zone in the eastern segment. Aftershocks which occurred near the volcanic line at shallow crustal depths in the upper plate were triggered by the mainshock and manifest a partial decoupling of oblique slip in this region along a west-striking right-lateral fault with low shear strength. Aftershock clustering along the main thrust zone was very similar to the distribution of prior seismicity, suggesting a continuation of long-term processes and the existence of areas with distinct mechanical properties. Interconnecting regions of low seismicity during both the premainshock and aftershock periods coincided with areas of major moment release during the mainshock. Seismicity data prior to the 1986 mainshock gave few clues about the location of the mainshock nucleation point, the mainshock size, and its time of occurrence. However, a large part of the mainshock moment release did coincide with a zone of seismic quiescence monitored by the Adak local seismograph network.

Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth↗

USGS1995

Influence of static stress changes on earthquake locations in southern California

Earthquakes induce changes in static stress on neighbouring faults that may delay, hasten or even trigger subsequent earthquakes 1–10 . The length of time over which such effects persist has a bearing on the potential contribution of stress analyses to earthquake hazard assessment, but is presently unknown. Here we use an elastic half-space model 11 to estimate the static stress changes generated by damaging (magnitude M ≥5) earthquakes in southern California over the past 26 years, and to investigate the influence of these changes on subsequent earthquake activity. We find that, in the 1.5-year period following a M ≥5 earthquake, any subsequent nearby M ≥5 earthquake almost always ruptures a fault that is loaded towards failure by the first earthquake. After this period, damaging earthquakes are equally likely to rupture loaded and relaxed faults. Our results suggest that there is a short period of time following a damaging earthquake in southern California in which simple Coulomb failure stress models could be used to identify regions of increased seismic hazard.

California↗

USGS2010

Migrating tremors illuminate complex deformation beneath the seismogenic San Andreas fault

The San Andreas fault is one of the most extensively studied faults in the world, yet its physical character and deformation mode beneath the relatively shallow earthquake-generating portion remain largely unconstrained. Tectonic ‘non-volcanic’ tremor, a recently discovered seismic signal probably generated by shear slip on the deep extension of some major faults , can provide new insight into the deep fate of such faults, including that of the San Andreas fault near Parkfield, California . Here I examine continuous seismic data from mid-2001 to 2008, identifying tremor and decomposing the signal into different families of activity based on the shape and timing of the waveforms at multiple stations . This approach allows differentiation between activities from nearby patches of the deep fault and begins to unveil rich and complex patterns of tremor occurrence. I find that tremor exhibits nearly continuous migration, with the most extensive episodes propagating more than 20 kilometres along fault strike at rates of 15–80 kilometres per hour. This suggests that the San Andreas fault remains a localized through-going structure, at least to the base of the crust, in this area. Tremor rates and recurrence behaviour changed markedly in the wake of the 2004 magnitude-6.0 Parkfield earthquake , but these changes were far from uniform within the tremor zone, probably reflecting heterogeneous fault properties and static and dynamic stresses decaying away from the rupture. The systematic recurrence of tremor demonstrated here suggests the potential to monitor detailed time-varying deformation on this portion of the deep San Andreas fault, deformation which unsteadily loads the shallower zone that last ruptured in the 1857 magnitude-7.9 Fort Tejon earthquake.

California↗

USGS2015

Geologic and structural controls on rupture zone fabric: A field-based study of the 2010 M w 7.2 El Mayor–Cucapah earthquake surface rupture

We systematically mapped (scales >1:500) the surface rupture of the 4 April 2010 Mw (moment magnitude) 7.2 El Mayor-Cucapah earthquake through the Sierra Cucapah (Baja California, northwestern Mexico) to understand how faults with similar structural and lithologic characteristics control rupture zone fabric, which is here defined by the thickness, distribution, and internal configuration of shearing in a rupture zone. Fault zone thickness and master fault dip are strongly correlated with many parameters of rupture zone fabric. Wider fault zones produce progressively wider rupture zones and both of these parameters increase systematically with decreasing dip of master faults, which varies from 20° to 90° in our dataset. Principal scarps that accommodate more than 90% of the total coseismic slip in a given transect are only observed in fault sections with narrow rupture zones (<25 m). As rupture zone thickness increases, the number of scarps in a given transect increases, and the scarp with the greatest relative amount of coseismic slip decreases. Rupture zones in previously undeformed alluvium become wider and have more complex arrangements of secondary fractures with oblique slip compared to those with pure normal dip-slip or pure strike-slip. Field relations and lidar (light detection and ranging) difference models show that as magnitude of coseismic slip increases from 0 to 60 cm, the links between kinematically distinct fracture sets increase systematically to the point of forming a throughgoing principal scarp. Our data indicate that secondary faults and penetrative off-fault strain continue to accommodate the oblique kinematics of coseismic slip after the formation of a thoroughgoing principal scarp. Among the widest rupture zones in the Sierra Cucapah are those developed above buried low angle faults due to the transfer of slip to widely distributed steeper faults, which are mechanically more favorably oriented. The results from this study show that the measureable parameters that define rupture zone fabric allow for testing hypotheses concerning the mechanics and propagation of earthquake ruptures, as well as for siting and designing facilities to be constructed in regions near active faults.

Baja California↗

USGS2021

Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture

Active traces of the southern Fairweather fault were revealed by light detection and ranging (lidar) and show evidence for transpressional deformation between North America and the Yakutat block in southeast Alaska. We map the Holocene geomorphic expression of tectonic deformation along the southern 30 km of the Fairweather fault, which ruptured in the 1958 moment magnitude 7.8 earthquake. Digital maps of surficial geology, geomorphology, and active faults illustrate both strike-slip and dip-slip deformation styles within a 10°–30° double restraining bend where the southern Fairweather fault steps offshore to the Queen Charlotte fault. We measure offset landforms along the fault and calibrate legacy 14 C data to reassess the rate of Holocene strike-slip motion (≥49 mm/yr), which corroborates published estimates that place most of the plate boundary motion on the Fairweather fault. Our slip-rate estimates allow a component of oblique-reverse motion to be accommodated by contractional structures west of the Fairweather fault consistent with geodetic block models. Stratigraphic and structural relations in hand-dug excavations across two active fault strands provide an incomplete paleoseismic record including evidence for up to six surface ruptures in the past 5600 years, and at least two to four events in the past 810 years. The incomplete record suggests an earthquake recurrence interval of ≥270 years—much longer than intervals <100 years implied by published slip rates and expected earthquake displacements. Our paleoseismic observations and map of active traces of the southern Fairweather fault illustrate the complexity of transpressional deformation and seismic potential along one of Earth's fastest strike-slip plate boundaries.

Alaska↗