The three-dimensional P and S wave structure of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska, and the underlying crust to depths of 7-8 km is determined from 6219 P wave and 4008 S wave first-arrival times recorded by a 30-station seismograph network deployed on and around the volcano. First-arrival times are calculated using a finite-difference technique, which allows for flexible parameterization of the slowness model and easy inclusion of topography and source-receiver geometry. The three-dimensional P wave velocity structure and hypocenters are determined simultaneously, while the three-dimensional S wave velocity model is determined using the relocated seismicity and an initial S wave velocity model derived from the P wave velocity model assuming an average Vp/Vs ratio of 1.78. Convergence is steady with approximately 73% and 52% reduction in P and S wavearrival time RMS, respectively, after 10 iterations. The most prominent feature observed in the three-dimensional velocity models derived for both P and S waves is a relative lowvelocity, near-vertical, pipelike structure approximately 1 km in diameter that extends from 1 to 6 km beneath sea level. This feature aligns axially with the bulk of seismicity and is interpreted as a highly fractured and altered zone encompassing a magma conduit. The velocity structure beneath the north flank of the volcano between depths of 1 and 6 km is characterized by large lateral velocity variations. High velocities within this region are interpreted as remnant dikes and sills and low velocities as regions along which magma migrates. No large low-velocity body suggestive of a magma chamber is resolved inthe upper 7-8 km of the crust. Introduction Redoubt Volcano, Alaska, one of several active Quaternary volcanoes lying in south-central Alaska at the eastern end of the Aleutian volcanic arc (Figure la), erupted more than 20 times between December 13, 1989, and April 21, 1990. As part of its investigation of this eruption sequence the United States Geological Survey (USGS) deployed a network of 21 portable three-component seismographs in the vicinity of Redoubt Volcano for 3 weeks during July 1991 (Figure lb). The portable seismic network, complemented by a nine-station regional seismic network operated by the Alaskan Volcano Observatory (AVO), recorded thousands of volcano-tectonic (VT) earthquakes that are used to determine the three-dimensional P and S wave velocity structure of Redoubt Volcano and to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of magma migration, emplacement, and eruption.
The seismic gap theory identifies regions of elevated hazard based on a lack of recent seismicity in comparison with other portions of a fault. It has successfully explained past earthquakes (see, for example, ref. 2) and is useful for qualitatively describing where large earthquakes might occur. A large earthquake had been expected in the subduction zone adjacent to northern Chile, which had not ruptured in a megathrust earthquake since a M ∼8.8 event in 1877. On 1 April 2014 a M 8.2 earthquake occurred within this seismic gap. Here we present an assessment of the seismotectonics of the March-April 2014 Iquique sequence, including analyses of earthquake relocations, moment tensors, finite fault models, moment deficit calculations and cumulative Coulomb stress transfer. This ensemble of information allows us to place the sequence within the context of regional seismicity and to identify areas of remaining and/or elevated hazard. Our results constrain the size and spatial extent of rupture, and indicate that this was not the earthquake that had been anticipated. Significant sections of the northern Chile subduction zone have not ruptured in almost 150 years, so it is likely that future megathrust earthquakes will occur to the south and potentially to the north of the 2014 Iquique sequence.
We investigate the ongoing seismicity in the Raton Basin and find that the deep injection of wastewater from the coal-bed methane field is responsible for inducing the majority of the seismicity since 2001. Many lines of evidence indicate that this earthquake sequence was induced by wastewater injection. First, there was a marked increase in seismicity shortly after major fluid injection began in the Raton Basin in 1999. From 1972 through July 2001, there was one M ≥ 4 earthquake in the Raton Basin, whereas 12 occurred between August 2001 and 2013. The statistical likelihood that such a rate change would occur if earthquakes behaved randomly in time is 3.0%. Moreover, this rate change is limited to the area of industrial activity. Earthquake rates remain low in the surrounding area. Second, the vast majority of the seismicity is within 5 km of active disposal wells and is shallow, ranging between 2 and 8 km depth. The two most carefully studied earthquake sequences in 2001 and 2011 have earthquakes within 2 km of high-volume, high-injection-rate wells. Third, injection wells in the area are commonly very high volume and high rate. Two wells adjacent to the August 2011 M 5.3 earthquake injected about 4.9 million cubic meters of wastewater before the earthquake, more than seven times the amount injected at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal well that caused damaging earthquakes near Denver, Colorado, in the 1960s. The August 2011 M 5.3 event is the second-largest earthquake to date for which there is clear evidence that the earthquake sequence was induced by fluid injection.
Abstract.High-resolution velocity models (0.5 km resolution) of the Kilauea caldera region are obtained by the tomographic inversion of both P-and S-wave arrival times. Data are from the permanent Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO) seismic network, a broadband seismic network, and a temporary array of stations centered on the southern boundary of the caldera. A low-velocity P-wave anomaly is imaged centered on the southeastern edge of the caldera, with a velocity contrast of about 10% and a volume of 27 km 3. The
The sharp increase in seismicity over a broad region of central Oklahoma has raised concern regarding the source of the activity and its potential hazard to local communities and energy industry infrastructure. Since early 2010, numerous organizations have deployed temporary portable seismic stations in central Oklahoma in order to record the evolving seismicity. In this study, we apply a multiple-event relocation method to produce a catalog of 3639 central Oklahoma earthquakes from late 2009 through 2014. Regional moment tensor (RMT) source parameters were determined for 195 of the largest and best recorded earthquakes. Combining RMT results with relocated seismicity enabled us to determine the length, depth, and style of faulting occurring on reactivated subsurface fault systems. Results show that the majority of earthquakes occur on near-vertical, optimally oriented (NE-SW and NW-SE), strike-slip faults in the shallow crystalline basement. These are necessary first-order observations required to assess the potential hazards of individual faults in Oklahoma.
The Mw 5.1 Fairview, Oklahoma, earthquake on 13 February 2016 and its associated seismicity produced the largest moment release in the central and eastern United States since the 2011 Mw 5.7 Prague, Oklahoma, earthquake sequence and is one of the largest earthquakes potentially linked to wastewater injection. This energetic sequence has produced five earthquakes with Mw 4.4 or larger. Almost all of these earthquakes occur in Precambrian basement on a partially unmapped 14 km long fault. Regional injection into the Arbuckle Group increased approximately sevenfold in the 36 months prior to the start of the sequence (January 2015). We suggest far‐field pressurization from clustered, high‐rate wells greater than 12 km from this sequence induced these earthquakes. As compared to the Fairview sequence, seismicity is diffuse near high‐rate wells, where pressure changes are expected to be largest. This points to the critical role that preexisting faults play in the occurrence of large induced earthquakes.
The 3 September 2016, Mw 5.8 Pawnee earthquake was the largest recorded earthquake in the state of Oklahoma. Seismic and geodetic observations of the Pawnee sequence, including precise hypocenter locations and moment tensor modeling, shows that the Pawnee earthquake occurred on a previously unknown left‐lateral strike‐slip basement fault that intersects the mapped right‐lateral Labette fault zone. The Pawnee earthquake is part of an unprecedented increase in the earthquake rate in Oklahoma that is largely considered the result of the deep injection of waste fluids from oil and gas production. If this is, indeed, the case for the M5.8 Pawnee earthquake, then this would be the largest event to have been induced by fluid injection. Since 2015, Oklahoma has undergone wide‐scale mitigation efforts primarily aimed at reducing injection volumes. Thus far in 2016, the rate of M3 and greater earthquakes has decreased as compared to 2015, while the cumulative moment—or energy released from earthquakes—has increased. This highlights the difficulty in earthquake hazard mitigation efforts given the poorly understood long‐term diffusive effects of wastewater injection and their connection to seismicity.
Abstract. To constrain dynamic source properties of deep earthquakes, we have systematically constructed broadband time functions of deep earthquakes by stacking and scaling teleseismic P waves from U.S. National Seismic Network, TERRAscope, and Berkeley Digital Seismic Network broadband stations. We examined 42 earthquakes with depths from 100 to 660 km that occurred between July 1, 1992 and July 31, 1995. To directly compare time functions, or to group them by size, depth, or region, it is essential to scale them to remove the effect of moment, which varies by more than 3 orders of magnitude for these events. For each event we also computed short-period stacks of P waves recorded by west coast regional arrays. The comparison of broadband with short-period stacks yields a considerable advantage, enabling more reliable measurement of event duration. A more accurate estimate of the duration better constrains the scaling procedure to remove the effect of moment, producing scaled time functions with both correct timing and amplitude. We find only subtle differences in the broadband time-function shape with moment, indicating successful scaling and minimal effects of attenuation at the periods considered here. The average shape of the envelopes of the short-period stacks is very similar to the average broadband time function. The main variations seen with depth are (1) a mild decrease in duration with increasing depth, (2) greater asymmetry in the time functions of intermediate events compared to deep ones, and (3) unexpected complexity and late moment release for events between 350 and 550 km, with seven of the eight events in that depth interval displaying markedly more complicated time functions with more moment release late in the rupture than most events above or below. The first two results are broadly consistent with our previous studies, while the third is reported here for the first time. The greater complexity between 350 and 550 km suggests greater heterogeneity in the failure process in that depth range.
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