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Three‐dimensional numerical modeling of earthquake migration along a northwestern Pacific Subduction Slab
Author(s) -
Loo H. Y.,
Gao X. L.,
Sun J. X.,
Mikumo T.,
Hirahara K.,
Yoshioka S.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/92gl00021
Subject(s) - geology , subduction , slab , asthenosphere , seismology , lithosphere , deep focus earthquake , trench , lithospheric flexure , slip (aerodynamics) , geophysics , tectonics , chemistry , physics , organic chemistry , layer (electronics) , thermodynamics
Three‐dimensional numerical modeling has been performed to account for possible earthquake migration phenomena along a northwestern Pacific subduction slab, on the assumption that the lithosphere is a linear visco‐elastic body, but the asthenosphere and the mesosphere respond to the applied stress as non‐linear Newtonian materials obeying the power law of creep. On the basis of a three‐dimensional thermal structure of the northwestern Pacific region, the preliminarily computed stress regimes show that: 1) to induce a stick‐slip type trench event, prefailures at a depth of about 40 km in the front of the locked zone between two lithospheric plates are required; 2) the compositional density contrast due to phase change at typical depths is prerequisite of stress concentration to cause a dislocation type deep‐focus earthquake; and 3) the co‐seismic change in gravitational potential is a controlling factor for earthquake migration downward along the subduction slab.