Seismicity and seismogenic mechanism of the M_S 6.0 Luxian earthquake on September 16, 2021

Based on the seismic data recorded by the China Earthquake Networks Center(CENC) in the Luxian area from January 2009 to October 2021,the 3D V_P,V_S, V_P/V_S structures and seismic locations of the area are obtained by joint inversion using the V_P/V_S model consistency-constrained double-difference tomography method(tomoDDMC).The earthquakes in the study area are mainly concentrated at a depth of 2-6 km,and the focal depth is generally shallow.The Ms 6.0 Luxian earthquake occurred at the transition zone of high-and low-velocity anomalies and the aftershock sequence was distributed along the edge of the low-V_P zone.A small number of foreshocks occurred on the west side of the M_S 6.0 Luxian earthquake,while most of the aftershocks were distributed on the east side of the M_S 6.0 Luxian earthquake.The aftershock sequence consisted of three seismic bands with different trends,and the overall distribution was in a NWW direction,which was inconsistent with the spatial distribution of the main active faults nearby.In addition,the spatiotemporal distribution of earthquakes and the variation of b-values are closely related to the industrial water injection activities in the study area,reflecting the activation of pre-existing hidden faults under certain tectonic and stress environments leading to seismic activities in the area.

Seismogenic environment and mechanism of the Yangbi M_(S)6.4 earthquake in Yunnan,China

The Yangbi M_(S)6.4 earthquake occurred on May 21,2021 in western Yunnan,China,where moderate earthquakes strike frequently.It exhibited a typical“foreshock-mainshock-aftershock”sequence and did not occur on a pre-existing active fault.The seismogenic environment and mechanism of this earthquake have aroused considerable research attention.In this study,we obtain the three-dimensional v_(P),v_(S)and v_(P)/v_(S)images using the v_(P)/v_(S)consistency-constrained double-difference tomography method,which improves the accuracy of v_(P)/v_(S)models.We focus on characteristics of v_(P)/v_(S)images in areas with a lateral resolution of 0.1°,and reveal the seismogenic environment of the Yangbi M_(S)6.4 earthquake.The conclusions are as follows:(1)Low velocity and high-v_(P)/v_(S)anomalies are revealed at different depths around the northern segment of the Red River fault.v_(S)and v_(P)/v_(S)images along the Weixi-Qiaohou-Weishan fault and the buried faults on its west show obviously segmented feature.(2)The source region of the Yangbi M_(S)6.4 earthquake is located in a low-v_(P)/v_(S)zone implying high medium strength.High-v_(P)/v_(S)anomalies in its NW direction indicate cracks development and the existence of fluids or partial melts,which are unfavorable for stress accumulation and triggering large earthquakes.Such conditions have also prevented the earthquake sequence from extending northwestward.(3)With the southeastward extrusion of materials from the Tibetan Plateau,fluid migration was blocked by the low-v_(P)/v_(S)body in the source region.The high-v_(P)/v_(S)anomaly beneath the source region may implies that the fluids or partial melts in the middle and lower crust gradually weakened medium strength at the bottom of the seismogenic layer,and preparing the largest foreshock in the transition zone of high to low v_(P)/v_(S).Meanwhile,tectonic stress incessantly accumulated in the brittle upper crust,eventually led to the M_(S)6.4 earthquake occurrence.