Geologic heterogeneity can produce aseismic slip transients

Skarbek, R. M.; Rempel, A. W.; Schmidt, D. A.

doi:10.1029/2012gl053762

Cited by 124 publications

(204 citation statements)

References 39 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

183

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…4 were run at a nominal scaled slip surface length L=h * = 2. However, we performed additional model simulations with 2 ≤ L=h * ≤ 8 because the ratio L=h * has been found to control the failure mode along faults (12,13,53). Although dynamic motion occurred for L=h * ≥ 2, we did confirm an apparent stress perturbation size threshold that decreases with increasing L=h * (Fig.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 53%

“…Landslides composed of rate-weakening material display both slow (seasonal) and dynamic (catastrophic) sliding, with the character depending on the size of the sliding surface, or slip patch, relative to the critical nucleation length. This is directly analogous to behavior that is well established in fault mechanics, where a similar variety of slip modes is observed (12,13). Given that slow-moving landslides occur in a wide variety of lithologic units, we expect many of them to contain rate-weakening material.…”

Section: Discussion and Concluding Remarksmentioning

confidence: 77%

“…Fig. 1 displays a schematic diagram of the model domain, which parallels well-established rate and state descriptions for the behavior of tectonic faults (12,13). We focus on how perturbations to the momentum balance cause variations in the slip velocity v. Accordingly, Eq.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similar descriptions that have been refined over the past 30 y yield successful predictions for a wide range of fault behavior, including stable sliding, slow slip and tremor, and the nucleation of earthquakes (11)(12)(13). These empirically based models subsume many complex processes that operate along fault zones, and, furthermore, can be parameterized to account for mechanical-hydrologic interactions such as dilatancy (7,9).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By considering the associated elastic interactions we are able to explore feedbacks between sliding velocity and both localized and spatially extensive stress perturbations. Although similar formulations have become standard in fault mechanics studies (12,13,20), the inclusion of elastic effects represents a key advance over previous rate and state friction models for landslides that ignore resistance to differential slip (23)(24)(25)(26). As on tectonic faults, we suggest that whether incipient slip along a landslide surface accelerates or decelerates depends critically on a balance of forces involving both friction and elasticity.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Rate-weakening friction characterizes both slow sliding and catastrophic failure of landslides

Handwerger

Rempel

Skarbek

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Catastrophic landslides cause billions of dollars in damages and claim thousands of lives annually, whereas slow-moving landslides with negligible inertia dominate sediment transport on many weathered hillslopes. Surprisingly, both failure modes are displayed by nearby landslides (and individual landslides in different years) subjected to almost identical environmental conditions. Such observations have motivated the search for mechanisms that can cause slow-moving landslides to transition via runaway acceleration to catastrophic failure. A similarly diverse range of sliding behavior, including earthquakes and slow-slip events, occurs along tectonic faults. Our understanding of these phenomena has benefitted from mechanical treatments that rely upon key ingredients that are notably absent from previous landslide descriptions. Here, we describe landslide motion using a rate-and state-dependent frictional model that incorporates a nonlocal stress balance to account for the elastic response to gradients in slip. Our idealized, one-dimensional model reproduces both the displacement patterns observed in slowmoving landslides and the acceleration toward failure exhibited by catastrophic events. Catastrophic failure occurs only when the slip surface is characterized by rate-weakening friction and its lateral dimensions exceed a critical nucleation length h * that is shorter for higher effective stresses. However, landslides that are extensive enough to fall within this regime can nevertheless slide slowly for months or years before catastrophic failure. Our results suggest that the diversity of slip behavior observed during landslides can be described with a single model adapted from standard fault mechanics treatments.landslides | slope failure | rate and state friction | pore-water pressure | effective stress L aboratory experiments (1, 2) and numerical models (3,4) suggest that for slow-moving landslides that persist over periods of years to centuries (5) the shear strength that resists motion increases with slip rate-a characteristic referred to as rate strengthening-whereas the opposite is true for landslides that exhibit runaway acceleration and catastrophic failure. Two primary mechanisms are invoked frequently to describe the former rate-strengthening behavior. The first characterizes landslide materials as viscoplastic (i.e., Bingham-plastic), so that an increase in velocity corresponds with an increase in strain rate and viscous resistance. These models are able to reproduce field-based measurements of velocity for seasonally active slow-moving landslides (3). However, this constitutive behavior contradicts measurements that suggest landslide displacement is dominated by frictional sliding along basal and lateral faults (6); furthermore, such rheological models are unable to capture the transition from slow sliding to catastrophic failure. The second modeling approach applies Coulomb friction and invokes shear-zone dilatancy to regulate porewater pressure changes so that sliding increases strength because of ...

show abstract

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 53%

Section: Discussion and Concluding Remarksmentioning

confidence: 77%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Rate-weakening friction characterizes both slow sliding and catastrophic failure of landslides

Handwerger

Rempel

Skarbek

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Newly observed, deep slow slip events at the central Hikurangi margin, New Zealand: Implications for downdip variability of slow slip and tremor, and relationship to seismic structure

Wallace

Eberhart‐Phillips

2013

Geophysical Research Letters

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We present previously undocumented deep (25–45 km depth), moderate‐duration (2–3 months) slow slip events (SSEs) directly downdip of known shallow (<15 km depth), short‐term (2–3 weeks) SSEs at the central Hikurangi margin, New Zealand. The moderate‐duration SSEs produce 2–6 mm of horizontal displacement at continuous Global Positioning System stations in 2006 and 2008, similar to Cascadia SSEs. They involve 2–5 cm of slip over ~5000 km2 of the subduction interface. Tremor occurs just downdip of the deep SSE source area. We also present results from a large, shallow (<12 km) SSE in 2013 just updip of the 2006/2008 SSEs. The location of deep SSEs between shallow, short‐term SSEs and tremor indicates strong downdip variation of subduction interface slip behavior at central Hikurangi. The deep SSEs occur where Qp and Vp/Vs data suggest an accumulation of fluid‐rich underplated sediment at the interface, consistent with the idea that SSEs occur under high fluid pressure.

show abstract

Brittle‐viscous deformation, slow slip, and tremor

Fagereng

Hillary

Diener

2014

Geophysical Research Letters

103

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Geophysical observations have illuminated a spectrum of fault slip styles from continuous aseismic sliding to fast earthquake slip. We study exhumed intercalated lenses of oceanic crust and sedimentary rocks, deformed to high shear strains. Deformation was partitioned between fractured, rigid blocks, with lengths of tens to hundreds of meters, and surrounding metapelites characterized by interconnected phyllosilicate networks. Under inferred conditions of low effective stress at temperatures > 500°C, locally and transiently elevated shear strain rate in phyllosilicates deforming by dislocation creep can reach those needed for transient slow slip. Concurrently, increased matrix strain rate likely stimulates brittle failure in rigid lenses. The ubiquitous presence of quartz veins and microfractures within rigid material provides evidence for brittle deformation occurring coincident with viscous shearing flow. We suggest that geophysically observed tremor and slow slip may be a manifestation of strain partitioning, where deformation is accommodated viscously in a matrix enveloping rigid lenses.

show abstract

Geologic heterogeneity can produce aseismic slip transients

Cited by 124 publications

References 39 publications

Rate-weakening friction characterizes both slow sliding and catastrophic failure of landslides

Rate-weakening friction characterizes both slow sliding and catastrophic failure of landslides

Newly observed, deep slow slip events at the central Hikurangi margin, New Zealand: Implications for downdip variability of slow slip and tremor, and relationship to seismic structure

Brittle‐viscous deformation, slow slip, and tremor

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About