Rapid rupture characterization for the 2023 M_(S)6.2 Jishishan earthquake

On December 18, 2023, the M_(S)6.2 Jishishan earthquake occurred in the northeastern region of the QinghaiXizang Plateau, causing heavy casualties and property damage in Gansu and Qinghai Provinces. In this study,we integrate space imaging geodesy, finite fault inversion, and back-projection methods to decipher its rupture property, including fault geometry, coseismic slip distribution, rupture direction, and propagation speed. The results reveal that the seismogenic fault dips to the southwest at an angle of 29°. The major slip asperity is dominated by reverse slip and is concentrated within a depth range of 7–16 km, which explains the significant uplift near the epicenter observed by both the Sentinel-1 ascending and descending In SAR data. Moreover, the teleseismic array waveforms indicate a northwest propagating rupture with an overall slow rupture velocity of~1.91 km/s(AK array) or 1.01 km/s(AU array).

Probing signals of atmospheric gravity waves excited by the July 29,2021 M_(W)8.2 Alaska earthquake

It is commonly believed that the atmosphere is decoupled from the solid Earth.Thus,it is difficult for the seismic wave energy inside the Earth to propagate into the atmosphere,and atmospheric pressure wave signals excited by earthquakes are unlikely to exist in atmospheric observations.An increasing number of studies have shown that earthquakes,volcanoes,and tsunamis can perturb the Earth's atmosphere due to various coupling effects.However,the observations mainly focus on acoustic waves with periods of less than 10 min and inertial gravity waves with periods of greater than 1 h.There are almost no clear observations of gravity waves that coincide with observations of low-frequency signals of the Earth's free oscillation frequency band within 1 h.This paper investigates atmospheric gravity wave signals within1 h of surface-atmosphere observations using the periodogram method based on seismometer and microbarometer observations from the global seismic network before and after the July 29,2021 M_(w)8.2 Alaska earthquake in the United States.The numerical results show that the atmospheric gravity wave signals with frequencies similar to those of the Earth's free oscillations _(0)S_(2) and _(0)T_(2) can be detected in the microbaro meter observations.The results con firm the existence of atmospheric gravity waves,indicating that the atmosphere and the solid Earth are not decoupled within this frequency band and that seismic wave energy excited by earthquakes can propagate from the interior of the Earth to the atmosphere and enhance the atmospheric gravity wave signals within 1 h.

Estimation of free core nutation parameters and availability of computing options

The Earth’s Free Core Nutation(FCN) causes Earth tides and forced nutation with frequencies close to the FCN that exhibit resonance effects.High-precision superconducting gravimeter(SG) and very long baseline interferometry(VLBI) provide good observation techniques for detecting the FCN parameters.However,some choices in data processing and solution procedures increase the uncertainty of the FCN parameters.In this study,we analyzed the differences and the effectiveness of weight function and ocean tide corrections in the FCN parameter detection using synthetic data,SG data from thirty-one stations,and the 10 celestial pole offset(CPO) series.The results show that significant discrepancies are caused by different computing options for a single SG station.The stacking method,which results in a variation of0.24-5 sidereal days(SDs) in the FCN period(T) and 10^(3)-10^(4) in the quality factor(Q) due to the selection of the weighting function and the ocean tide model(OTM),can effectively suppress this influence.The statistical analysis results of synthetic data shows that although different weight choices,while adjusting the proportion of diurnal tidal waves involved,do not significantly improve the accuracy of fitted FCN parameters from gravity observations.The study evaluated a series of OTMs using the loading correction efficiency.The fitting of FCN parameters can be improved by selecting the mean of appropriate OTMs based on the evaluation results.Through the estimation of the FCN parameters based on the forced nutation,it was found that the weight function P_(1) is more suitable than others,and different CPO series(after 2009) resulted in a difference of 0.4 SDs in the T and of 103 in the Q.We estimated the FCN parameters for SG(T=430.4±1.5 SDs and Q=1.52×10^(4)±2.5×10^(3)) and for VLBI(T=429.8±0.7 SDs,Q=1.88×10^(4)±2.1×10^(3)).

A review of tidal triggering of global earthquakes

Earthquake prediction remains a challenging and difficult task for scientists all over the world.The tidal triggering of earthquakes is being proven by an increasing number of investigations,most of which have shown that earthquakes are positively correlated with tides,and thus,tides provide a potential tool for earthquake prediction,especially for imminent earthquakes.In this study,publications concerning the tidal triggering of earthquakes were compiled and analyzed with regard to global earthquakes,which were classified into three main types:tectonic,volcanic,and slow earthquakes.The results reveal a high correlation between tectonic earthquakes and tides(mainly for semidiurnal and diurnal tides;14-day tides) before and after the occurrence of significant earthquakes.For volcanic earthquakes,observations of volcanoes on the seafloor and land indicate that volcanic earthquakes in near-shore volcanic areas and mid-ocean ridges have a strong correlation with tidal forces,mostly those with semidiurnal and diurnal periods.For slow earthquakes,the periodicity of the tremor duration is highly correlated with semidiurnal and diurnal tides.In conclusion,the tidal triggering of these three types of earthquakes makes a positive contribution to earthquake preparation and understanding the triggering mechanism,and thus,the prediction of these types of earthquakes should be investigated.However,there are still several inadequacies on this topic that need to be resolved to gain a definitiveanswer regarding the tidal triggering of all earthquakes.The main inadequacies are discussed in this paper from our point of view.

Research Progress in Surface and Marine Gravimetry

Gravity field is the most basic physical field generated by the material properties of the Earth system.It reflects the spatial distribution,movement and change of materials determined by the interaction and dynamic process inside the Earth.Over the years,a variety of technical means have been used to detect the Earth’s gravity field and supported numerous studies on the global change,resource detection,geological structure movement,water resources change and other related fields of research.Here is part of the progress in surface and marine gravimetry obtained by Chinese geodesy scientists from 2019 to 2023 from the following aspects,including:①Continuous gravity network in Chinese mainland;②Application of superconducting gravity measurement;③Network adjustment for continental-scale gravity survey campaign and data quality control;④Regional time-variable gravity field and its application;⑤Research progress on novel technologies for gravity inversion;⑥Research progress on marine gravity field determination;⑦Application research on marine gravity field.

Co-seismic change in ocean bottom topography:Implication to absolute global mean sea level change

Earthquakes perturb both the ocean bottom topography due to displacements of sea floor and the geoid due to mass redistribution, which induces the relative sea level(RSL) change. However, the relative global mean sea level(GMSL) change is zero in that sea water mass is conserved. But the absolute GMSL change is not zero because earthquakes displace total ocean mass with respect to the Earth’s center of mass(CM) which remains unchanged after an earthquake. This displacement, i.e. the absolute GMSL change, may be detectable by altimetry since the satellites are orbiting around CM. In this paper, we proposed a method to estimate co-seismic absolute GMSL change caused by earthquakes based on the point dislocation theory for a spherically symmetric, non-rotating, elastic and isotropic(SNREI) Earth.This change can be directly connected to the perturbation of ocean bottom topography. We first computed co-seismic displacements as well as the change in geo-potential and solved the sea level equation to validate the insignificance of the oceans’ feedback, i.e. the loading effect due to RSL change, to co-seismic displacements. The results imply that the loading effect due to RSL change is negligible on displacements while is considerable on geoid. We then computed the absolute GMSL change caused by co-seismic vertical and horizontal displacements by making use of the integrated Green’s function method. The numerical results show that a large earthquake may raise the absolute GMSL by magnitude of sub-millimeter and the recent three large events cause GMSL to rise about one millimeter, in which the contribution from horizontal displacement is non-negligible.

Theoretical calculation of tidal Love numbers of the Moon with a new spectral element method

The tidal Love numbers of the Moon are a set of nondimensional parameters that describe the deformation responses of the Moon to the tidal forces of external celestial bodies.They play an important role in the theoretical calculation of the Moon’s tidal deformation and the inversion of its internal structure.In this study,we introduce the basic theory for the theoretical calculation of the tidal Love numbers and propose a new method of solving the tidal Love numbers:the spectral element method.Moreover,we explain the mathematical theory and advantages of this method.On the basis of this new method,using 10 published lunar internal structure reference models,the lunar surface and lunar internal tidal Love numbers were calculated,and the influence of different lunar models on the calculated Love numbers was analyzed.Results of the calculation showed that the difference in the second-degree lunar surface Love numbers among different lunar models was within 8.5%,the influence on the maximum vertical displacement on the lunar surface could reach±8.5 mm,and the influence on the maximum gravity change could reach±6μGal.Regarding the influence on the Love numbers inside the Moon,different lunar models had a greater impact on the Love numbers h_(2) and l_(2) than on k_(2) in the lower lunar mantle and core.

Source characteristics of the mainshock and aftershocks of the 2019 Changning earthquake sequence:Implications for fluid effects

The 2019 M_(S)6.0 Changning earthquake occurred in the tectonically stable Sichuan Basin,where the epicenter and its adjacent areas are important shale gas and salt mine production fields,resulting in hot debates on whether the seismogenic mechanism of the 2019 Changning earthquake is related to human activities.As source characteristics and fluid pressure can provide important constraints on whether an earthquake is induced,weinvestigate the seismogenic mechanisms of the mainshock and 9 MW≥4.0 aftershocks.In overall,the mainshock and the majority of the aftershocks are characterized by relatively shallow focal depths(1‒4 km)and significant non-double-couple(non-DC)components.However,the mainshock and the aftershocks differ in two aspects:(1)the compensated-linear-vector-dipole components dominate the non-DC components of the mainshock,whereas the isotropic components dominate the most aftershocks;(2)the fluid overpressure of the mainshock is over 30 MPa,whereas the fluid overpressure of the most aftershocks is less than 10 MPa.Thus,we propose that the mainshock is triggered by weakened fault strength with long-term fluid injection,and that its large non-DC components are associated withcomplex rupture processes.Comparatively,the aftershocks may be triggered by postseismic stress transfer by combining the Coulomb failure stress changes in the poroelastic medium.Our results highlight the possible role of fluid in the occurrence of the Changning earthquake sequence.

Advances in immune response to pulmonary infection:Nonspecificity,specificity and memory

The lung immune response consists of various cells involved in both innate and adaptive immune processes.Innate immunity participates in immune resistance in a nonspecific manner,whereas adaptive immunity effectively eliminates pathogens through specific recognition.It was previously believed that adaptive immune memory plays a leading role during secondary infections;however,innate immunity is also involved in immune memory.Trained immunity refers to the long-term functional reprogramming of innate immune cells caused by the first infection,which alters the immune response during the second challenge.Tissue resilience limits the tissue damage caused by infection by controlling excessive inflammation and promoting tissue repair.In this review,we summarize the impact of host immunity on the pathophysiological processes of pulmonary infections and discuss the latest progress in this regard.In addition to the factors influencing pathogenic microorganisms,we emphasize the importance of the host response.