Consistent Distribution of Stress before Strong Earthquake from Focal Mechanisms

At some stage of a strong earthquake preparation, the focal mechanisms of small earthquakes have roughly the same direction with the tectonic stress field. According to this feature, we define the angle between P, B and T axis of focal mechanisms and the three stress axes of tectonic stress field as the consistency parameter a in studying the dynamic changes of stress fields in earthquake preparation areas. We mainly analyze the changes of the consistency parameter a of the Mw8. 3 Knril island arc earthquake and the Mw8. 4 Peru earthquake. Our study shows that before the strong earthquakes, the earthquake area saw a low consistency, and the focal mechanisms of a series of small earthquakes had small differences in the directions with the tectonic stress field, which means the foreshocks were under the control of the stress field. On the other hand, a higher consistency means the focal mechanisms of their aftershocks are scattered and have big differences in the directions with the tectonic field, which indicate that the control of background stress field starts weakening.

Research on the Source Parameters and Correlation Coefficients of Focal Mechanisms for the Yingjiang Earthquake Sequences in 2008

The source parameters of the Yingjiang earthquake sequences in 2008 are obtained by applying spectral analysis and Brunes source model,based on the digital waveform data recorded by the Yunnan Digital Seismic Network.The correlation coefficients are calculated using the low-frequency spectral amplitudes of 2 events recorded by a same station,then,events with similar focal mechanism are grouped using the clustering analysis method.Compared to the obtained focal mechanisms,it is found that there are good correlations with the azimuth of P axes in each clustering group,and the larger the correlation coefficient,the closer the azimuths of P axes.We divide the Yingjiang area into 3 regions to analyze the stress level and stress direction by combining the source parameters and the mean focal mechanism of each group.The results show:The change and transformation of the focal mechanism types at different stages can represent the temporal characteristics of the regional stress field.If the earthquake focal mechanism types are concentrated in a time period and switch to the direction of regional stress field,it may be a sign of strong earthquake.There is some relationship between the stress drop and the type of focal mechanism.Those earthquakes with stress fields revealed by focal mechanism types closer to the regional tectonic stress field will have higher stress drop,while those with the focal mechanism-revealed stress fields differing a lot from the regional tectonic stress field will generally have a lower stress drop.

Rupture process and aftershock focal mechanisms of the 2022 M6.8 Luding earthquake in Sichuan

According to the China Earthquake Networks Center,a strong earthquake of M6.8 occurred in Luding County,Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,Sichuan Province,China(102.08°E,29.59°N),on September 5,2022,with a focal depth of 16 km.Rapid determination of the source parameters of the earthquake sequence is vital for post-earthquake rescue,disaster assessment,and scientific research.Near-field seismic observations play a key role in the fast and reliable determination of earthquake source parameters.The numerous broadband seismic stations and strong-motion stations recently deployed by the National Earthquake Intensity Rapid Report and Early Warning project have provided valuable real-time near-field observation data.Using these near-field observations and conventional mid-and far-field seismic waveform records,we obtained the focal mechanism solutions of the mainshock and M≥3.0 aftershocks through the waveform fitting method.We were further able to rapidly invert the rupture process of the mainshock.Based on the evaluation of the focal mechanism solution of the mainshock and the regional tectonic setting,we speculate that the Xianshuihe fault formed the seismogenic structure of the M6.8 strong earthquake.The aftershocks formed three spatially separated clusters with distinctly different focal mechanisms,reflecting the segmented nature of the Xianshuihe fault.As more high-frequency information has been applied in this study,the absolute location of the fault rupture is better constrained by the near-field strong-motion data.The rupture process of the mainshock correlates well with the spatial distribution of aftershocks,i.e.,aftershock activities were relatively weak in the maximum slip area,and strong aftershock activities were distributed in the peripheral regions.

Local stress field inverted for a shale gas play based on focal mechanisms determined from the joint source scanning algorithm

The joint source scanning algorithm(SSA)scans locations and focal mechanisms of microseismic events simultaneously.Compared to the traditional source scanning algorithm,it yields much more events with extra information of focal mechanisms.The availability of more events and focal mechanisms make it possible to invert for a 2D gridded stress field.As a byproduct of hydrofracturing monitoring,the method offers a new way to extract stress field as a substitute to other more expensive technologies.This method is applied to a hydraulic fracturing dataset collected from one shale gas production field in the southeast of the Sichuan basin.A damped stress inversion is conducted to obtain a 2D stress field.five hydraulic-fracturing induced fractures can be determined from the result.The events associated with these fractures generally have relatively low stacked energy and are limited to the depth of horizontal well.One existing fault(possibly associated with the axis of the central Sichuan uplift)is also determined and the events associated with the existing fault generally have higher stacked energy and are more densely populated.The existing fault may also serve as a structural boundary where the rocks to the NW side are easier to be fractured while events on the other side are sparse with low stacked energy.The existing fault also divides the stress field into two regimes:the maximum compressional stress field to the NW and SE of the fault line are dominantly in NW-SE and N-S directions,respectively.

Difference between focal mechanisms of Dayao earthquake doublet sequence

Using the maximum amplitude ratios of vertical component of P and S waves recorded by a regional network, 921 focal mechanisms of Dayao earthquake doublet sequence are determined by means of synthetic seismograms of a point source of dislocation in a plane layered medium. Among them, 389 focal mechanisms are in the aftershock sequence of M6.2 earthquake occurred on 21 July, 2003 and the other 532 focal mechanisms are in the aftershock sequence of M6.1 earthquake occurred on 16 October, 2003 in Dayao, Yurman. The focal mechanism consistent parameter a of the two aftershock sequences are calculated and analyzed. According to the focal mechanism consistent parameter a, the focal mechanisms of the first aftershock sequence are more consistent than those of the second. According to the comparison of CMT solutions of the two M6 earthquakes, the physical mechanism of the doublet in the intra-plate earthquake is very complex, and many processes are involved and interacted with each other. This doublet provides insights into earthquake clustering, triggering and stress cycling.

Present Tectonic Stress Field in the Capital Region of China Inverted from Focal Mechanisms of Small and Strong Earthquakes

A dense seismic network was installed in the capital region of China in recent years,which makes it possible to resolve the focal mechanisms of small earthquakes. We gathered large earthquake focal mechanisms from the last fifty years and moderate or small earthquake focal mechanisms from between 2002 and 2004,and calculated the present tectonic stress field of the capital region by the grid search method, which weighs different sized earthquakes and can improve the accuracy of the stress field inversion. The analysis of inversion results of different sub-regions shows that the azinuth of the maximum principal compressive stress axis is NE43°- 86° in the Beijing-Zhangjiakou-Datong area,NE38°-86° in the Tangshan area,and NE79°- 81° in the Xingtai area. Inversion results of this paper are similar to previous results,which proves the correctness of the approach. As revealed by the results,the stress field of the capital region is characterized by overall consistency and sub-regional differences. This study provides reference for earthquake mechanism explanation and geodynamics research.

On correlation between seismic activities and focal mechanisms of subsequent strong earthquakes

On the basis of the results from spatial-temporal scanning of moderate seismic activities prior to 63 strong earth- quakes occurred since 1966, we investigate in this paper the characteristics of anomalous evolution of moderate seismic activities prior to strong earthquakes with different focal mechanisms in different tectonic blocks, as well as the correlation between principal seismic activities and nodal planes of focal mechanisms. The research results indicate that the moderate seismic activities prior to strong earthquakes display two significant stages of stress concentration and stress weakening, which are consistent to the evolvement of local tectonic stress field. The first stage, defined as medium-term stage, is characterized by seismic belts, seismic gaps and centralized activities; The second stage, defined as short-term stage, is predominated by continuous quiescence. For the earthquakes occurred on the strike-slip and normal faults, the two stages are relatively evident; while for the earthquakes occurred on the thrust faults, there are not characteristic images and seismic quiescence in both stages. The spatial distribution of moderate shock belts before strong earthquakes show a good coherence with that of the two nodal planes of focal mechanisms, while the spatial distribution of seismic gaps enclosed by moderate shocks display a poor coherence with the nodal planes.

Ways of Determining the Focal Mechanisms in the Carpathian Region of Ukraine

The modification to the matrix method for constructing the displacement field on the free surface of an anisotropic layered medium was presented. The source of seismic waves was modelled by a randomly oriented force and seismic tensor. A trial and error method was presented for solving the inverse problem of determining parameters of the earthquake source. A number of analytical and numerical approaches to determining the earthquake source parameters, based on the direct problem solutions, were proposed. The focal mechanisms for the events in the Carpathian region of Ukraine are determined by the graphical method. The theory of determinating the angles of orientation of the fault plane and the earthquake＇s focal mechanism was presented. The focal mechanisms obtained by two different methods were compared.

Analysis on Characteristics of Focal Mechanisms for the M_S7.3 Yutian Earthquake Sequence of February 12,2014

The paper inverts the focal mechanism solutions of the Yutian M_S7. 3 main shock,foreshocks and M_S≥3. 5 aftershocks by using the CAP method,based on the broadband waveforms recorded by the Xinjiang and Tibet Digital Seismic Networks. The results show that the M_S7. 3 strong earthquake is of strike-slip type with a normal faulting component,and combined with the analysis of focal structure and the aftershock distribution,the nodal plane I with strike 241°,dip 90° and rake- 22° is considered to be the seismogenic fault plane of the main shock. The direction of P-axis for the main shock is 194°,close to the near NS direction of the principal stress P-axis of historical strong earthquakes in this region. The focal mechanism solution of the M_S5. 4 foreshock has a good consistency with that of the main shock. Among the 18 aftershocks,10 are of strike-slip type,6 are of normal faulting type and 2 are of thrust type. 70% of the aftershocks in the sequence have a focal mechanism with P-axis in the near-NS direction. The focal depths of this M_S7. 3 earthquake sequences are distributed in the range of 5km- 28 km,with the majority in the depth range of 15km- 20 km,slightly deeper than the depth of 10 km of the main shock as calculated.

Variation Characteristics of Focal Mechanisms of Small Earthquakes before Four Strong Earthquakes in Xinjiang

With the point source dislocation model and the velocity structure of a layered medium,focal mechanisms of small earthquakes are calculated using the maximum amplitude of the direct P- and S-waves in the vertical component. By system clustering,and using the vector synthesis method,the average focal mechanism solution is obtained. Using the above method,this paper analyzes the variation characteristics of the source ruptures and the P-axis azimuths of small earthquakes around the seismic zones before four strong earthquakes occurring since 2003 in the western part of north Tianshan and the middle part of Tianshan. The result shows that 2 ~ 3 years before the strong earthquakes,the focal mechanism types of small earthquakes are distributed randomly, and obvious dominant distributions are observed one year before the strong earthquakes. There are obvious changes in the P-axis azimuth.

Research on Stress Drops and the Focal Mechanisms of the Xinyuan- Hejing ML6.8 Earthquake Sequences

Based on the digital waveform data recorded by Xinjiang Digital Seismic Network for the Xinyuan-Hejing M_L6.8 earthquake sequences of June 30,2012,this paper analyzes the stress drops of earthquake sequences and the correlation coefficients of focal mechanisms significant for strong aftershocks.Firstly,the source parameters of the Xinyuan-Hejing M_L6.8 earthquake sequences are obtained by applying the spectrum analysis and the Brunes source model.Then,the correlation coefficients of spectral amplitudes are calculated using the low-frequency spectral amplitude recorded by the same station for the different events.Finally,based on the results of the correlation coefficients of spectral amplitudes,the events with similar focal mechanisms are grouped using the clustering method.The results show that:(1)The stress drop values show a steady trend in the aftershock sequence calm period and the stress drop values show a rise-fall in strong aftershocks.(2)The moving average correlation coefficient of amplitude spectrum begins to spread after the main shock.It shows that the correlation decreases between the main shock and the aftershocks in mechanisms.(3)The results of focal mechanism groups show that the earthquake sequences are mainly strike slips.The stress distribution of the main pressure axis is nearly NS,which is the same as the structural stress field.(4)The magnitude and mechanism show that there is an agreement before the strong aftershock,which shows that the regional stress field is enhanced.

Focal mechanisms of the Lushan earthquake sequence and spatial variation of the stress field

Using broadband seismic records from regional networks, we determined the focal mechanisms and depths of 37 earthquakes in the 2013 M7.0 Lushan earthquake sequence(3.4≤Mw≤5.1) by fitting the three-component waveform data. The results show that the earthquakes are predominantly thrust events, with occasional strike-slip mechanisms. Most earthquakes occurred at depths of 10–20 km. We derived the regional distribution of the average stress field in this area using the damped linear inversion method and the focal mechanisms obtained in this study. The inversion results suggest that the Lushan region and the adjacent area are mostly under compression. The orientations of the maximum principal axes trend NW-SE, with some local differences in the stress distribution at different depths. Compared with the distribution of the stress field in the Wenchuan earthquake area, the stress field in the southwest section of the Longmenshan Fault zone(LFZ) share similar characteristics, predominantly thrust faulting with a few strike-slip events and the maximum compression axes being perpendicular to the LFZ.

Focal depths and mechanisms of Tohoku-Oki aftershocks from teleseismic P wave modeling

Aftershocks of the 2011 Tohoku-Oki great earthquake have a wide range of focal depths and fault plane mechanisms. We constrain the focal depths and focal mechanisms of 69 aftershocks with Mw 〉 5.4 by modeling the waveforms of teleseismic P and its trailing near-surface reflections pP and sP. We find that the ＂thrust events＂ are within 10 krn from the plate interface. The dip angles of these thrust events increase with depth from ~ 5~ to ~ 25~. The ＂non-thrust events＂ vary from 60 km above to 40 km below the plate interface. Normal and strike-slip events within the overriding plate point to redistribution of stress following the primary great earthquake; however, due to the spatially variable stress change in the Tohoku-Oki earthquake, an understanding of how the mainshock affected the stresses that led to the aftershocks requires accurate knowledge of the aftershock location.

Constraint on the focal mechanism of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake from the radial modes

Different from other normal modes of the Earth’s free oscillation that depend on all the six components(M_(rr),M_(tt),M_(pp),M_(rt),M_(rp),and M_(tp))of the centroid moment tensor,the amplitudes of the radial modes depend on the M_(rr)component(e.g.,scalar moment(M_(0)),dip(δ),and slip(λ))and hypocenter depth of the focal mechanism,and hence can be easily used to constrain these parameters of the focal mechanism.In this study,we use the superconducting gravimeter(SG)records after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake to analyze the radial modes_(0)S_(0)and_(1)S_(0).Based on the solutions of the focal mechanism provided by the GCMT and USGS,we can obtain the theoretical amplitudes of these two radial modes.Comparing the theoretical amplitudes with the observation amplitudes,it is found that there are obvious differences between the former and the latter,which means that the GCMT and USGS focal mechanisms cannot well represent the real focal mechanism of the 2011 event.Taking the GCMT solution as a reference and changing the depth and the three parameters of the M_(rr)moment,the scalar moment(M_(0))and the dip(δ)have significant influences,but the effects of the slip(λ)and the depth are minor.After comparisons,we provide a new constraint(M_(0)=5.8±0.09×10^(22)N·m,δ=10.1±0.08°,λ=88°,and depth=20 km)for the focal mechanism of the 2011 event.In addition,we further determine the center frequency(1.631567±2.6e^(-6)mHz)and quality factor(2046.4±50.1)of the_(1)S_(0)mode.

Towards fast focal mechanism inversion of shallow crustal earthquakes in the Chinese mainland

We have developed an automatic regional focal mechanism inversion system based on the Earthquake Rapid Report(ERR) system and the real-time three-component seismic waveform stream of 1 000 broadband seismic stations provided by the China Earthquake Networks Center(CENC). The system can rapidly provide a double couple solution and centroid depth within 5–15 min after receiving earthquake information from the ERR system.The data processing is triggered by earthquake information obtained from the ERR system. The system is capable of determining the focal mechanism of all shallow-depth earthquakes in the Chinese mainland with a magnitude of 5.5–6.5. It utilizes waveform data recorded by seismic stations located within 500 km from the epicenter,enabling the reporting of a focal mechanism solution within 5–15 min of an earthquake occurrence. Additionally,the system can assign a corresponding grade(A B C) to the focal mechanism solution. We processed a total of 301earthquakes that occurred from 2021 to June 2022, and after the quality control, 166 of them were selected.These selected solutions were manually checked, and 160 of them were compiled in a focal mechanism catalog.This catalog can be conveniently downloaded online via the Internet. The automatic focal mechanism solution of earthquakes in eastern China exhibits a good agreement with that provided by the Global Centroid Moment Tensor(GCMT), when available. The average Kagan angle between this catalog and GCMT is 22°, and the average difference in MWis 0.17. Furthermore, compared with GCMT, the minimum magnitude of our catalog has been reduced from approximately 5.0 to 4.0. The correlation between the centroid depth and crustal thickness in the Chinese mainland confirms the distribution of the centroid depth.

Focal mechanism solution statistics of seismic tsunami sources

In recent years, tsunami happens frequently in the world, which caused huge losses. In order to find objective features of tsunamigenic source, global CMT data from 1976 to 2010 and tsunami data from NOAA are analyzed statistically, tsunami is compared with bigger tsunamis. At last, some features of seismic tsunami sources are concluded.

Inversion of focal mechanism and events identification using an improved relative amplitude method

The relative amplitude method （RAM） is more suitable for source inversion of low magnitude earthquakes because it avoids the modeling of short-period waveforms. We introduced an improved relative amplitude method （IRAM） which is more robust in practical cases. The IRAM uses a certain function to quantify the fitness between the observed and the predicted relative amplitudes among direct P wave, surface reflected pP and sP waves for a given focal mechanism. Using the IRAM, we got the fault-plane solutions of two earthquakes of mb4.9 and mb3.8, occurred in Issyk-Kul lake, Kyrgyzstan. For the larger event, its fault-plane solutions are consistent with the Harvard＇s CMT solutions. As to the smaller one, the strikes of the solution are consistent with those of the main faults near the epicenter. The synthetic long period waveforms and the predicted P wave first motions of the solutions are consistent with observations at some of regional stations. Finally, we demonstrated that fault-solutions cannot interpret the characteristics of teleseismic P waveforms of the underground nuclear explosion detonated in Democratic People＇s Republic of Korea （DPRK） on October 9, 2006.

Spatial distribution and focal mechanism solutions of the Wenchuan earthquake series:Results and implications

We relocate the spatial distribution of its aftershocks. The relocation database is obtained the devastating 12 May 2008 Wenchuan earthquake and from 89 stations deployed by the China Earthquake Administration, including 54 525 seismograms from 1 376 local earthquakes over Ms3.5 between 12 May 2008 and 3 August 2008. The cross-correlation technique used in this paper has greatly improved the relocation precision by giving much more accurate P-wave differential travel-time measurements than those obtained from routinely picked phase onsets. At the same time, we pick P-wave polarity observations of the Wenchuan earthquake series （hereafter referred to as WES） from 1023 stations in China and 59 IRIS （Incorporated Research Institutions of Seismology） stations. Then, employing a newly developed program CHNYTX, we obtain 83 well-determined focal mechanism solutions （hereafter referred to as FMSs）. Based on spatial distribution and FMSs of the WES, we draw following conclusions： （1） The region near the main shock exhibits a buried low-angle northwest-dipping seismic zone with the main shock at its upper end and two conjugated seismic zones dipping southeast with roughly equal dip-angle; （2） The compressional directions of all kinds of FMSs of the WES are subhorizontal, which reflects the dominant stress in this area is eompressional; （3） The principal compressional direction of the regional stress around Wenchuan is roughly perpendicular to the strike of Beichuan-Yingxiu fault, while around Qingchuan it is roughly parallel to the strike of Qingehuan fault. In intermediate part of the Longmenshan area, the principal compressional direction of the stress should be in-between; （4） The possibly existed molten materials in the lower crust of Songpan-Garze terrain have small contribution to the local stress state in Longmenshan area. The listric geometries of the Longmenshan faults most probably resulted from subhorizontal compression along NW-SE direction in history.

Seismic relocation,focal mechanism and crustal seismic anisotropy associated with the 2010 Yushu M_S7.1 earthquake and its aftershocks

The 2010 Yushu MsT.1 earthquake occurred in Ganzi-Yushu fault, which is the south boundary of Bayan Har block. In this study, by using double difference algorithm, the locations of mainshock （33.13°N, 96.59°E, focal depth 10.22 km） and more than 600 aftershocks were obtained. The focal mechanisms of the mainshock and some aftershocks with Ms〉3.5 were estimated by jointly using broadband velocity waveforms from Global Seismic Network （GSN） and Qinghai Seismic Network as well. The focal mechanisms and relocation show that the strike of the fault plane is about 125° （WNW-ESE）, and the mainshock is left-laterally strikeslip. The parameters of shear-wave splitting were obtained at seismic stations of YUS and L6304 by systematic analysis method of shear-wave splitting （SAM） method. Based on the parameters of shear-wave splitting and focal mechanism, the characteristics of stress field in seismic source zone were analyzed. The directions of polarization at stations YUS and L6304 are different. It is concluded that after the mainshock and the Ms6.3 aftershock on April 14, the stress-field was changed.