Present-day movement characteristics of the Qinghai Nanshan fault and its surrounding area from GPS observation

The Qinghai Nanshan fault is a larger fault in the Northeastern Xizang Plateau.In previous studies,its movement characteristics are mainly investigated with geological and seismic observations,and the tectonic transformation role of the fault on its east is not yet clear.This study uses data fusion to obtain denser GPS observations near the Qinghai Nanshan fault.Based on tectonic characteristics,we establish a block model to investigate the fault slip rate,locking degree,and slip deficit.The results show that the Qinghai Nanshan fault slip rate is characterized by sinistral and convergent movement.Both the sinistral and convergent rates display a decreasing trend from west to east.The locking degree and slip deficit are higher in the western segment(with an average of about 0.74 and 1.1 mm/a)and lower in the eastern segment.Then,we construct a strain rate field using GPS observations to analyze the regional strain characteristics.The results indicate that along the fault,the western segment shows a larger shear strain rate and negative dilation rate.Regional earthquake records show that the frequency of earthquakes is lower near the fault.The joint results suggest that the western segment may have a higher earthquake risk.In addition,the insignificant fault slip rate in the eastern segment may indicate that it does not participate in the tectonic transformation among the Riyueshan,Lajishan,and West Qinling faults.

Penalized total least squares method for dealing with systematic errors in partial EIV model and its precision estimation

When the total least squares(TLS)solution is used to solve the parameters in the errors-in-variables(EIV)model,the obtained parameter estimations will be unreliable in the observations containing systematic errors.To solve this problem,we propose to add the nonparametric part(systematic errors)to the partial EIV model,and build the partial EIV model to weaken the influence of systematic errors.Then,having rewritten the model as a nonlinear model,we derive the formula of parameter estimations based on the penalized total least squares criterion.Furthermore,based on the second-order approximation method of precision estimation,we derive the second-order bias and covariance of parameter estimations and calculate the mean square error(MSE).Aiming at the selection of the smoothing factor,we propose to use the U curve method.The experiments show that the proposed method can mitigate the influence of systematic errors to a certain extent compared with the traditional method and get more reliable parameter estimations and its precision information,which validates the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.

Interseismic deformation rate of the Haiyuan fault system based on the modified SBAS method

Radar interferograms are usually influenced by factors such as atmospheric artifacts,orbital errors,and terrain errors.It is difficult to reduce the influence by using the conventional small baseline subset(SBAS)method when determining the deformation rate.This study uses the adjustment model with systematic parameters to improve the conventional SBAS method and employs it to determine the interseismic deformation rate of the Haiyuan fault system,providing a data reference for exploring the locking depth,strain accumulation state,and potential seismic risk assessment of different segments of the Haiyuan fault system.The results are as follows:(1)the simulation experiment verifies the feasibility and robustness of the modified SBAS method.This method can effectively reduce the influence of residual signals such as atmospheric artifacts,orbital errors and terrain errors in the interferograms.The deformation rate map can be significantly improved;(2)the deformation rate field in the radar’s Line of Sight(LOS)direction shows that there are obvious differences between the north and south sides of Haiyuan fault system,which is consistent with the characteristics of the left-lateral strike-slip movement of the Haiyuan fault system.The deformation rate field and profiles reflect the complex trends among different segments of Haiyuan fault system in detail.(3)the deformation rate of the Jingtai pull-apart basin is higher than that of the surrounding areas,possibly indicating strong regional activity,which provides a reference for studying the seismic risk of the Jingtai pull-apart basin;and(4)the interseismic deformation rate and profiles across the fault show that the middle section of the Lao Hu Shan(LHS)segment and the western and middle sections of the Haiyuan segment are locked.