Preliminary Results From the November 25, 1988 Saguenay (QUEBEC) Earthquake

1989 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 89-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert G. North ◽  
Robert J. Wetmiller ◽  
John Adams ◽  
Frank M. Anglin ◽  
Henry S. Hasegawa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Frequency ◽  
Main Shock ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Seismic Zoning ◽  
Aftershock Activity ◽  
Thrust Faulting ◽  
Largest Aftershock ◽  
Felt Area ◽  
Historic Seismicity ◽  
Field Network

Abstract The November 25, 1988 Saguenay, Québec earthquake (mb 5.9) was preceded by a foreshock 62 hours earlier (mb 4.4) and followed by over 50 aftershocks, of which only two have been larger than magnitude 3. The unusually large 29 km depth of the main shock is well determined using a field network deployed after the foreshock. Nearly all of the aftershock activity is shallower than the main shock, suggesting that the rupture propagated upwards. The event produced unexpectedly large amounts of high frequency energy, as evidenced by the value of mbLg (6.5) and by high accelerations observed at distances ranging from 40 to 800 km. Focal mechanisms for the foreshock, main shock and largest aftershock indicate thrust faulting. The felt area exceeds 3.5 million km2 and closely approaches that of the 1925 Charlevoix earthquake. The location of the Saguenay event in a region with little historic seismicity, its depth, and its large high-frequency generation, pose several problems for existing models of seismic zoning and hazard assessment for Eastern North America.

A fault model for the Nahanni earthquakes from aftershock studies

1990 ◽  
Vol 80 (6A) ◽  
pp. 1553-1570 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. B. Horner ◽  
R. J. Wetmiller ◽  
M. Lamontagne ◽  
M. Plouffe
Keyword(s):  
Stress Drop ◽  
Main Shock ◽  
Fault Zones ◽  
Aftershock Sequence ◽  
Aftershock Activity ◽  
Thrust Faulting ◽  
Rupture Plane ◽  
To Come ◽  
Activity Mechanism ◽  
Secondary Fault

Abstract Relative locations of 323 large aftershocks (M 3.0 or greater) in the period from 5 October 1985 to 25 March 1988 show that the Ms 6.6 event on 5 October 1985 initiated at 62.208°N, 124.217°W, about 2.5 km northeast of the Ms 6.9 main shock on 23 December 1985. The overall aftershock distribution suggests the October rupture was primarily a west-dipping, low-angle thrust. In subsequent aftershock activity, the main rupture plane was marked by a distinct quiescent area of about 200 km2 that persisted until the 23 December event. Most of the stress drop and slip occurred in this area. Following the 23 December rupture, a similar sized quiescent zone was also observed; however, it was only evident during the first 24 hr of the aftershock sequence, and the area was about 50 per cent too small to yield the overall stress drop. The additional area appeared to come from secondary rupture zones that developed coincident with the main shock rupture. Precise locations of 182 small (M 3.0 or less) aftershocks recorded during a third field survey from 12 to 21 September 1986 indicated at least one and probably three high-angle faults. Composite mechanism solutions showed thrust faulting except in a region directly south of the main shock rupture areas where there is a bend in one of the secondary fault zones and a concentration of aftershock activity. Mechanism solutions calculated for five of the largest aftershocks in the same region also indicated a similar variability. Development of secondary fault zones explained the increased complexity of the December event and may also provide an explanation for the vertical peak acceleration exceeding 2 g that was recorded about 10 sec after the December rupture initiated.

Evaluation of models for earthquake source spectra in eastern North America

1998 ◽  
Vol 88 (4) ◽  
pp. 917-934
Author(s):  
Gail M. Atkinson ◽  
David M. Boore
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Ground Motion ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Ground Motions ◽  
Source Model ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Long Period ◽  
Source Models ◽  
Felt Area ◽  
Large Earthquakes

Abstract There have been several relations proposed in the last few years to describe the amplitudes of ground motion in eastern North America (ENA). These relations differ significantly in their assumptions concerning the amplitude and shape of the spectrum of energy radiated from the earthquake source. In this article, we compare ground motions predicted for these source models against the sparse ENA ground-motion database. The source models evaluated include the two-corner models of Boatwright and Choy (1992), Atkinson (1993a), Haddon (1996), and Joyner (1997a,b), and the one-corner model of Brune [as independently implemented by Frankel et al. (1996) and by Toro et al. (1997)]. The database includes data from ENA mainshocks of M > 4 and historical ENA earthquakes of M > 5.5, for a total of 110 records from 11 events of 4 ≦ M ≦ 7.3, all recorded on rock. We also include 24 available rock records from 4 large earthquakes in other intraplate regions; conclusions are checked to determine whether they are sensitive to the addition of these non-ENA data. The Atkinson source model, as implemented in the ground-motion relations of Atkinson and Boore (1995), is the only model that provides unbiased ground-motion predictions over the entire period band of interest, from 0.1 to 10 sec. The source models of Frankel et al. (1996), Toro et al. (1997), and Joyner (1997a,b) all provide unbiased ground-motion estimates in the period range from 0.1 to 0.5 sec but overestimate motions at periods of 1 to 10 sec. The Haddon (1996) source model overpredicts motions at all periods, by factors of 2 to 10. These conclusions do not change significantly if data from non-ENA intraplate regions are excluded, although the tendency of all models toward overprediction of long-period amplitudes becomes more pronounced. The tendency of most proposed ENA source models to overestimate long-period motions is further confirmed by an evaluation of the relationship between Ms, a measure of the spectrum at 20-sec period, and moment magnitude. A worldwide catalog of shallow continental earthquakes (Triep and Sykes, 1996) is compared to the Ms-M relations implied by each of the source models. The Atkinson source model is consistent with these data, while other proposed ENA models overpredict the average Ms for a given M. The implications of MMI data from historical earthquakes are also addressed, by exploiting the correlation between felt area and high-frequency source spectral level. High-frequency spectral amplitudes, as specified by the Atkinson and Boore (1995), Frankel et al. (1996), Toro et al. (1997), and Joyner (1997a,b) source models, equal or exceed the levels inferred from the felt areas of most of the large ENA events, with the noteable exception of the Saguenay earthquake. By contrast, high-frequency spectral amplitudes specified by the Haddon (1996) source model agree with the felt area of the Saguenay earthquake but overpredict the felt areas of nearly all other large events. In general, models that fit the Saugenay data—be it intensity data, strong-ground-motion data, regional seismographic data, or telescismic data—will not fit the data from the remaining earthquakes. A source model derived from the California database, suitably modified for regional differences in crustal properties, is also evaluated. This model is not significantly different from the Atkinson model for ENA. There is an important practical application of this similarity, which we develop as an engineering tool: Empirical ground-motion relations for California may be modified to predict ENA ground motions from future large earthquakes.

scholarly journals Characteristics of seismic activity before and after the 2018 M6.7 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi earthquake

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takao Kumazawa ◽  
Yosihiko Ogata ◽  
Hiroshi Tsuruoka
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Activity ◽  
Main Shock ◽  
Aftershock Sequence ◽  
Aftershock Activity ◽  
Background Rate ◽  
Etas Model ◽  
Epidemic Type Aftershock Sequence ◽  
Aftershock Sequences ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Largest Aftershock

AbstractWe applied the epidemic type aftershock sequence (ETAS) model, the two-stage ETAS model and the non-stationary ETAS model to investigate the detailed features of the series of earthquake occurrences before and after the M6.7 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi earthquake on 6 September 2018, based on earthquake data from October 1997. First, after the 2003 M8.0 Tokachi-Oki earthquake, seismic activity in the Eastern Iburi region reduced relative to the ETAS model. During this period, the depth ranges of the seismicity were migrating towards shallow depths, where a swarm cluster, including a M5.1 earthquake, finally occurred in the deepest part of the range. This swarm activity was well described by the non-stationary ETAS model until the M6.7 main shock. The aftershocks of the M6.7 earthquake obeyed the ETAS model until the M5.8 largest aftershock, except for a period of several days when small, swarm-like activity was found at the southern end of the aftershock region. However, when we focus on the medium and larger aftershocks, we observed quiescence relative to the ETAS model from 8.6 days after the main shock until the M5.8 largest aftershock. For micro-earthquakes, we further studied the separated aftershock sequences in the naturally divided aftershock volumes. We found that the temporal changes in the background rate and triggering coefficient (aftershock productivity) in respective sub-volumes were in contrast with each other. In particular, relative quiescence was seen in the northern deep zones that includes the M5.8 largest aftershock. Furthermore, changes in the b-values of the whole aftershock activity showed an increasing trend with respect to the logarithm of elapsed time during the entire aftershock period, which is ultimately explained by the spatially different characteristics of the aftershocks.

Observations of the Coyote Lake, California earthquake sequence of August 6, 1979

1980 ◽  
Vol 70 (2) ◽  
pp. 559-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. A. Uhrhammer
Keyword(s):  
San Francisco ◽  
Fault Zone ◽  
Strong Earthquake ◽  
Main Shock ◽  
B Value ◽  
Aftershock Sequence ◽  
The South ◽  
The North ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Characteristics ◽  
Largest Aftershock

abstract At 1705 UTC on August 6, 1979, a strong earthquake (ML = 5.9) occurred along the Calaveras fault zone south of Coyote Lake about 110 km southeast of San Francisco. This strong earthquake had an aftershock sequence of 31 events (2.4 ≦ ML ≦ 4.4) during August 1979. No foreshocks (ML ≧ 1.5) were observed in the 3 months prior to the main shock. The local magnitude (ML = 5.9) and the seismic moment (Mo = 6 × 1024 dyne-cm from the SH pulse) for the main shock were determined from the 100 × torsion and 3-component ultra-long period seismographs located at Berkeley. Local magnitudes are determined for the aftershocks from the maximum trace amplitudes on the Wood-Anderson torsion seismograms recorded at Berkeley (Δ ≊ 110 km). Temporal and spatial characteristics of the aftershock sequence are presented and discussed. Some key observations are: (1) the first six aftershocks (ML ≧ 2.4) proceed along the fault zone progressively to the south of the main shock; (2) all of the aftershocks (ML ≧ 2.4) to the south of the largest aftershock (ML = 4.4) have a different focal mechanism than the aftershocks to the north; (3) no aftershocks (ML ≧ 2.4) were observed significantly to the north of the main shock for the first 5 days of the sequence; and (4) the b-value (0.70 ± 0.17) for the aftershock sequence is not significantly different from the average b-value (0.88 ± 0.08) calculated for the Calaveras fault zone from 16 yr of data.

Common features of the reservoir-associated seismic activities

1972 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 481-492 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harsh K. Gupta ◽  
B. K. Rastogi ◽  
Hari Narain
Keyword(s):  
Main Shock ◽  
Detailed Examination ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
B Values ◽  
Common Features ◽  
Rate Of Increase ◽  
Tremor Frequency ◽  
Earthquake Sequences ◽  
Largest Aftershock ◽  
Frequency Magnitude

abstract A detailed examination of the behavior of earthquakes associated with over a dozen artificial lakes shows that, in all cases, the tremors were initiated or their frequency increased considerably following the lake filling and that their epicenters were mostly located within a distance of 25 km from the lakes. Among the factors affecting the tremor frequency are the rate of increase of water level, duration of loading, maximum levels reached, and the period for which the high levels are retained. The study of these reservoir-associated earthquake sequences reveals that the ratio of the largest aftershock to the main shock is high (about 0.9), and the b values are also high in the frequency-magnitude relation, which is contrary to the normal earthquakes of the concerned regions.

The earthquake sequence in Friuli, Italy, 1976

1979 ◽  
Vol 69 (6) ◽  
pp. 1797-1818
Author(s):  
Vittorio Cagnetti ◽  
Vincenzo Pasquale
Keyword(s):  
Main Shock ◽  
Eastern Alps ◽  
Earthquake Sequence ◽  
Laboratory Studies ◽  
Fault Movement ◽  
Stress Changes ◽  
Entire Sequence ◽  
Strain Release ◽  
Largest Aftershock ◽  
Aftershock Region

abstract The seismic activity of the May 6, 1976 Friuli earthquake has been investigated. It provides clear evidence of internal clustering of shocks, with the largest aftershocks being followed by their own series of aftershocks. Late large aftershocks with their own aftershock series occurred 4 months after the main shock, when aftershocks had subsided. Thus, in the entire series of aftershocks, six phases of strain release are found, and part of the aftershock region is not included in the aftershock volume of the main shock. All this indicates that a few aftershocks are at least partially independent from the main shock. The value of b is estimated for the entire sequence and for the separate phases; during the activity, b shows an increase after the main shock, a decline immediately before the largest aftershock, and a second increase immediately afterward. This can be explained in terms of stress changes, and is consistent with laboratory studies of rock deformation. The compressive stress is perpendicular to the Eastern Alps, and may be considered as the principal cause of the earthquake sequence. The solution of the main shock of the sequence is a reversed fault movement, unlike most of the mechanisms in the focus of the earlier Friuli earthquakes which are of the transcurrent type.

High-Frequency Seismic Wave Propagation in Northeastern North America

1990 ◽  
Vol 61 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 193-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Hough ◽  
K. H. Jacob ◽  
L. Seeber
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Characteristic Length ◽  
Body Waves ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Western North America ◽  
Energy Propagation ◽  
Length Scales ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
High Frequencies

Abstract A key element in the assessment of seismic hazard is the estimation of how energy propagation from a given earthquake is affected by crustal structure near the receiver and along the more distant propagation path. In this paper, we present data from a variety of sources in eastern North America recorded at epicentral distances of a few to 800 km, and characterize and interpret systematic features. Site effects have been classically considered in terms of amplification either within a sediment-filled valley or from a single topographic feature (Geli et al., 1988). We present evidence of high frequency (5–30 Hz) resonances observed in hard-rock recordings of both body waves and Lg waves, and suggest that site effect should be expanded regionally to include structural and topographic information over sufficiently large areas to include several wavelengths of any features that may interact with seismic waves in the frequency range of interest. A growing body of evidence suggests that ground motions at high frequencies recorded at large epicentral distances in eastern North America are controlled by resonance effects. We hypothesize that a fundamental difference between eastern and western North America spectra stems from a combination of differences in the character of topography and near-surface structure. Active tectonics of western North America gives rise to a complex crust that scatters seismic energy in a random manner and results in very effective attenuation of high frequencies. The older eastern North American crust contains scatterers that are more ordered, with characteristic length scales that give rise to resonance phenomena in the frequency band critical for earthquake hazard. We present preliminary analysis of topographic data from the Adirondack Mountains in New York that demonstrates the existence of characteristic length scales on the order of up to 1–3 kilometers. Features with these length scales will effectively scatter energy at frequencies in the 1 to 10 Hz range.

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