Subducting seamounts control interplate coupling and seismic rupture in the 2014 Iquique earthquake area.

Geersen, Jacob M. , Ranero, César R., Barckhausen, Udo and Reichert, Christian (2015) Subducting seamounts control interplate coupling and seismic rupture in the 2014 Iquique earthquake area. Open Access Nature Communications, 6 . p. 8267. DOI 10.1038/ncomms9267.

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Abstract

To date, the parameters that determine the rupture area of great subduction zone earthquakes remain contentious. On 1 April 2014, the Mw 8.1 Iquique earthquake ruptured a portion of the well-recognized northern Chile seismic gap but left large highly coupled areas un-ruptured. Marine seismic reflection and swath bathymetric data indicate that structural variations in the subducting Nazca Plate control regional-scale plate-coupling variations, and the limited extent of the 2014 earthquake. Several under-thrusting seamounts correlate to the southward and up-dip arrest of seismic rupture during the 2014 Iquique earthquake, thus supporting a causal link. By fracturing of the overriding plate, the subducting seamounts are likely further responsible for reduced plate-coupling in the shallow subduction zone and in a lowly coupled region around 20.5°S. Our data support that structural variations in the lower plate influence coupling and seismic rupture offshore Northern Chile, whereas the structure of the upper plate plays a minor role.

Document Type: Article
Keywords: 2014 Iquique earthquake, seamount subduction, northern chile, seismic gap, plate coupling, seismic rupture, RV Sonne, SO104
Research affiliation: OceanRep > The Future Ocean - Cluster of Excellence
OceanRep > The Future Ocean - Cluster of Excellence > FO-R06
OceanRep > GEOMAR > FB4 Dynamics of the Ocean Floor > FB4-GDY Marine Geodynamics
Refereed: Yes
Open Access Journal?: Yes
Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
Projects: Future Ocean
Expeditions/Models/Experiments:
Date Deposited: 01 Oct 2015 07:26
Last Modified: 19 Dec 2017 12:51
URI: https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/29858

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