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D. Eberhart-Phillips

Publications and source records attributed to D. Eberhart-Phillips.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2012

Seismicity and geometry of a 110‐km‐long blind thrust fault 1. The 1985 Kettleman Hills, California, earthquake

The August 4, 1985, Kettleman Hills earthquake was the third in a sequence of moderate shocks to occur beneath the northern half of a 110‐km‐long fold chain bounding the eastern California Coast Ranges. The 1982 M W =5.4 New Idria, 1983 M W =6.5 Coalinga, and 1985 M W =6.1 Kettleman Hills events define a southward progression of seismic activity beneath the fold. We use teleseismic waveforms, geodetic modeling, hypocenters relocated in a three‐dimensional velocity model, and subsurface structural data to investigate the Kettleman Hills earthquake. The main shock results from motion on a shallowly dipping thrust fault buried at ∼10 km depth. Aftershocks and coseismic fault slip extend 20 km along the fold axis, nearly the full extent of the Kettleman Hills North Dome anticline. Aftershocks occur primarily several kilometers in front of the fault tip and in the core of the anticline. The main shock and several foreshocks occurred at a 2‐km right step in the Quaternary fold axis, which also corresponds to the southern end of the 1983 Coalinga and northern end of the 1985 Kettleman Hills aftershock zones. From this we infer that the step in the fold is caused by an offset or tear in the underlying fault. The scalar seismic moment is 1.6 × 10 18 N m, consistent with the geodetic deformation, and the duration of rupture is 16 s, 3–4 times greater than for the average earthquake with this scalar moment. The slow rate of moment release provides an explanation for the low level of ground shaking and low local magnitude reported for the event. The peak of the geodetic uplift is located 5 km perpendicular to the Quaternary fold axis. We argue that the fault is propagating northeast into the undeformed San Joaquin Valley sediments and that the overlying fold is growing at about 0.5 mm/yr.

California↗
USGS2012

Three-dimensional velocity structure, seismicity, and fault structure in the Parkfield region, central California

This study examines the three-dimensional velocity structure in a 60- by 80-km region containing the Parkfield segment of the San Andreas fault. We use local earthquake and shot P arrival times in an iterative simultaneous inversion for velocity and hypocentral parameters. Using the three-dimensional model, we relocated 5251 events that occurred from 1969 to 1991, as well as the 1966 aftershocks, and computed 664 fault plane solutions. The San Andreas fault (SAF), characterized by a sharp across-fault velocity gradient, is the primary feature in the velocity solution. There is a 5–20% lateral change in velocity over a 4-km width, the contrast being sharper where there is better resolution. The model also shows significant variations in the velocity and in the complexity of the velocity patterns along the SAF. The largest across fault velocity difference is below Middle Mountain, where a large volume of low-velocity material impinges on the SAF from the northeast. This material is inferred to be overpressured and may be key to understanding the unusual behavior in the Parkfield preparation zone. A 20-km-long high-velocity slice is imaged northeast of the SAF near Gold Hill. Its along-fault length corresponds to the length of the maximum slip in 1966. The relocated seismicity shows that the San Andreas fault is a planar vertical fault zone at seismogenic depths. Ninety percent of the fault plane solutions that are on, or near, the SAF were right-lateral strike-slip on subvertical fault planes that parallel the SAF. Thus the surface fault complexities do not appear to extend to depth and therefore do not explain the rupture character at Parkfield. At Parkfield, variations in material properties play a key role in fault segmentation and deformation style. Our observations suggest that there may be a general relation between increasing velocity and increasing ability of the rocks to store strain energy and release it as brittle failure.

Journal of Geophysical Research↗
USGS2012

Active faulting and deformation of the Coalinga anticline as interpreted from three-dimensional velocity structure and seismicity

This work gives a clear picture of the geometry of aftershock seismicity in a large thrust earthquake. Interpretation of hypocenters and fault plane solutions, from the 1983 Coalinga, Coast Range California, earthquake sequence, in combination with the three-dimensional velocity structure shows that the active faulting beneath the fold primarily consists of a set of southwest dipping thrusts uplifting blocks of higher-velocity material. Above the main listric blind thrust there is a conjugate fault, steeply northeast dipping, that provides the western limit of the aftershocks within the Coalinga Anticline and that corresponds in location and spatial extent with the adjacent Pleasant Valley syncline. The character of the seismicity varies with the degree of previous deformation on each section of the anticline. Where the previous uplift was largest, the shallow seismicity shows secondary faulting on either side of the fold with orientations that correspond to the preexisting geologic structure. Diffuse seismicity characterizes the area with the least previous deformation. The mainshock rupture terminated where the fold trend was no longer uniform but had competing north and west trending features. The upward extent of the mainshock rupture ended at the approximate boundary between Franciscan and Great Valley Sequence rocks. Above that depth the main thrust appears to splay into a steeper segment and a near-horizontal segment. Thus the extent of rupture area is limited by the area of uniform structural orientation and by the variation in the type of material. With the three-dimensional velocity model each individual hypocenter moved slightly (0–2 km) in accord with the details of the surrounding velocity structure, so that secondary features in the seismicity pattern are more detailed than with a local one-dimensional model and station corrections. The overall character of the fault plane solutions was not altered by the three-dimensional model, but the more accurate ray paths did result in distinct changes. In particular, the mainshock has a fault plane dipping 30° southwest instead of the 23° obtained with the one-dimensional model.

Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth↗
USGS2012

Crustal strain near the Big Bend of the San Andreas Fault: Analysis of the Los Padres-Tehachapi Trilateration Networks, California

In the region of the Los Padres-Tehachapi geodetic network, the San Andreas fault (SAF) changes its orientation by over 30° from N40°W, close to that predicted by plate motion for a transform boundary, to N73°W. The strain orientation near the SAF is consistent with right-lateral shear along the fault, with maximum shear rate of 0.38±0.01 μrad/yr at N63°W. In contrast, away from the SAF the strain orientations on both sides of the fault are consistent with the plate motion direction, with maximum shear rate of 0.19±0.01 μrad/yr at N44°W. The strain rate does not drop off rapidly away from the fault, and thus the area is fit by either a broad shear zone below the SAF or a single fault with a relatively deep locking depth. The fit to the line length data is poor for locking depth d less than 25 km. For d of 25 km a buried slip rate of 30 ± 6 mm/yr is estimated. We also estimated buried slip for models that included the Garlock and Big Pine faults, in addition to the SAF. Slip rates on other faults are poorly constrained by the Los Padres-Tehachapi network. The best fitting Garlock fault model had computed left-lateral slip rate of 11±2 mm/yr below 10 km. Buried left-lateral slip of 15±6 mm/yr on the Big Pine fault, within the Western Transverse Ranges, provides significant reduction in line length residuals; however, deformation there may be more complicated than a single vertical fault. A subhorizontal detachment on the southern side of the SAF cannot be well constrained by these data. We investigated the location of the SAF and found that a vertical fault below the surface trace fits the data much better than either a dipping fault or a fault zone located south of the surface trace.

Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth↗
USGS2012

Three-dimensional P and S velocity structure in the Coalinga Region, California

The Coalinga earthquake sequence of 1983 provided a unique opportunity to perform a three-dimensional velocity and hypocenter inversion in an area of complex three-dimensional structure dominated by folding and blind thrusts. Additionally, since other varied geological and geophysical studies have been completed in this area, the three-dimensional inversion solution could be compared to other interpretations. Inversion of 7696 P and 1511 S first arrivals from earthquakes and 696 P first arrivals from refraction shots produced a three-dimensional velocity model with grid spacing of 1–2 km in the hypocentral area. The overall shape and location of velocity features correspond well to the mapped surface geology. The three-dimensional inversion yields details of folds where the resolution is good and the general shape where resolution is lower. The amounts of structural relief inferred for the local folds are similar to values inferred from geologic data. The three-dimensional velocity solution has several distinctive features. There is a linear high-velocity body (6.1–6.5 km/s), about 25 km long, from 6 to 8 km depth, that may represent a fragment of Coast Range ophiolite. A shallow low-velocity zone (LVZ), which extends for 20 km along the fold axis at about 6 km depth and correlates with LVZs observed in both the refraction and the reflection data, may indicate high pore pressure caused by lateral compressive strain. Deeper LVZs occur within inferred Franciscan material and are characterized by horizontal or southwest dipping zones of varied thickness, 4–8 km wide and 5–10 km long. These LVZs may represent multiple thrust faults. Their locations and geometry are consistent with thrust faults inferred with seismic reflection data. The three-dimensional velocity solution compares well to prior two-dimensional seismic reflection and refraction models and observed gravity. The shape of the inferred sedimentary section agrees well with the reflections from the Cenozoic strata. Compared to the refraction model, the three-dimensional solution has similar velocities and similar locations of velocity features but is more detailed in the hypocentral zone where it uses more data. The gravity computed from the three-dimensional velocities is similar to the observed gravity in both shape and amplitude. Both a simple one-dimensional initial model and a complex initial model derived from the refraction interpretation were tried. A simple starting model gave the best results. The S velocity solution has different resolution than the P velocity solution because it uses a different set of stations, and it has lower resolution because it uses fewer arrival times. While the general patterns of velocity variation are similar for both V p and V s , the V s solution tends to have more smearing of velocity features and can have somewhat different locations of velocity features.

Journal of Geophysical Research Solid Earth↗
USGS2006

Imaging the transition from Aleutian subduction to Yakutat collision in central Alaska, with local earthquakes and active source data

In southern and central Alaska the subduction and active volcanism of the Aleutian subduction zone give way to a broad plate boundary zone with mountain building and strike-slip faulting, where the Yakutat terrane joins the subducting Pacific plate. The interplay of these tectonic elements can be best understood by considering the entire region in three dimensions. We image three-dimensional seismic velocity using abundant local earthquakes, supplemented by active source data. Crustal low-velocity correlates with basins. The Denali fault zone is a dominant feature with a change in crustal thickness across the fault. A relatively high-velocity subducted slab and a low-velocity mantle wedge are observed, and high Vp/Vs beneath the active volcanic systems, which indicates focusing of partial melt. North of Cook Inlet, the subducted Yakutat slab is characterized by a thick low-velocity, high-Vp/Vs, crust. High-velocity material above the Yakutat slab may represent a residual older slab, which inhibits vertical flow of Yakutat subduction fluids. Alternate lateral flow allows Yakutat subduction fluids to contribute to Cook Inlet volcanism and the Wrangell volcanic field. The apparent northeast edge of the subducted Yakutat slab is southwest of the Wrangell volcanics, which have adakitic composition consistent with melting of this Yakutat slab edge. In the mantle, the Yakutat slab is subducting with the Pacific plate, while at shallower depths the Yakutat slab overthrusts the shallow Pacific plate along the Transition fault. This region of crustal doubling within the shallow slab is associated with extremely strong plate coupling and the primary asperity of the Mw 9.2 great 1964 earthquake. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

Alaska↗
USGS2006

Three-dimensional compressional wavespeed model, earthquake relocations, and focal mechanisms for the Parkfield, California, region

We present a new three-dimensional (3D) compressional vvavespeed (V p) model for the Parkfield region, taking advantage of the recent seismicity associated with the 2003 San Simeon and 2004 Parkfield earthquake sequences to provide increased model resolution compared to the work of Eberhart-Phillips and Michael (1993) (EPM93). Taking the EPM93 3D model as our starting model, we invert the arrival-time data from about 2100 earthquakes and 250 shots recorded on both permanent network and temporary stations in a region 130 km northeast-southwest by 120 km northwest-southeast. We include catalog picks and cross-correlation and catalog differential times in the inversion, using the double-difference tomography method of Zhang and Thurber (2003). The principal Vp features reported by EPM93 and Michelini and McEvilly (1991) are recovered, but with locally improved resolution along the San Andreas Fault (SAF) and near the active-source profiles. We image the previously identified strong wavespeed contrast (faster on the southwest side) across most of the length of the SAF, and we also improve the image of a high Vp body on the northeast side of the fault reported by EPM93. This narrow body is at about 5- to 12-km depth and extends approximately from the locked section of the SAP to the town of Parkfield. The footwall of the thrust fault responsible for the 1983 Coalinga earthquake is imaged as a northeast-dipping high wavespeed body. In between, relatively low wavespeeds (<5 km/sec) extend to as much as 10-km depth. We use this model to derive absolute locations for about 16,000 earthquakes from 1966 to 2005 and high-precision double-difference locations for 9,000 earthquakes from 1984 to 2005, and also to determine focal mechanisms for 446 earthquakes. These earthquake locations and mechanisms show that the seismogenic fault is a simple planar structure. The aftershock sequence of the 2004 mainshock concentrates into the same structures defined by the pre-2004 seismicity, confirming earlier observations (Waldhauser et al., 2004) that the seismicity pattern at Parkfield is long lived and persists through multiple cycles of mainshocks.

Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America↗
USGS2003

The 2002 Denali fault earthquake, Alaska: A large magnitude, slip-partitioned event

The MW (moment magnitude) 7.9 Denali fault earthquake on 3 November 2002 was associated with 340 kilometers of surface rupture and was the largest strike-slip earthquake in North America in almost 150 years. It illuminates earthquake mechanics and hazards of large strike-slip faults. It began with thrusting on the previously unrecognized Susitna Glacier fault, continued with right-slip on the Denali fault, then took a right step and continued with right-slip on the Totschunda fault. There is good correlation between geologically observed and geophysically inferred moment release. The earthquake produced unusually strong distal effects in the rupture propagation direction, including triggered seismicity.

Science↗
USGS1998

Seismotectonics of the Loma Prieta, California, region determined from three-dimensional Vp, Vp/Vs, and seismicity

Three-dimensional V p and V p / V s velocity models for the Loma Prieta region were developed from the inversion of local travel time data (21,925 P arrivals and 1,116 S arrivals) from earthquakes, refraction shots, and blasts recorded on 1700 stations from the Northern California Seismic Network and numerous portable seismograph deployments. The velocity and density models and microearthquake hypocenters reveal a complex structure that includes a San Andreas fault extending to the base of the seismogenic layer. A body with high V p extends the length of the rupture and fills the 5 km wide volume between the Loma Prieta mainshock rupture and the San Andreas and Sargent faults. We suggest that this body controls both the pattern of background seismicity on the San Andreas and Sargent faults and the extent of rupture during the mainshock, thus explaining how the background seismicity outlined the along-strike and depth extent of the mainshock rupture on a different fault plane 5 km away. New aftershock focal mechanisms, based on three-dimensional ray tracing through the velocity model, support a heterogeneous postseismic stress field and can not resolve a uniform fault normal compression. The subvertical (or steeply dipping) San Andreas fault and the fault surfaces that ruptured in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake are both parts of the San Andreas fault zone and this section of the fault zone does not have a single type of characteristic event.

Journal of Geophysical Research B: Solid Earth↗
USGS1993

Near-field investigations of the Landers earthquake sequence, April to July 1992

The Landers earthquake, which had a moment magnitude ( M w ) of 7.3, was the largest earthquake to strike the contiguous United States in 40 years. This earthquake resulted from the rupture of five major and many minor right-lateral faults near the southern end of the eastern California shear zone, just north of the San Andreas fault. Its M w 6.1 preshock and M w 6.2 aftershock had their own aftershocks and foreshocks. Surficial geological observations are consistent with local and far-field seismologic observations of the earthquake. Large surficial offsets (as great as 6 meters) and a relatively short rupture length (85 kilometers) are consistent with seismological calculations of a high stress drop (200 bars), which is in turn consistent with an apparently long recurrence interval for these faults.

California↗
USGS1991

Relations among fault behavior, subsurface geology, and three-dimensional velocity models

The development of three-dimensional P-wave velocity models for the regions surrounding five large earthquakes in California has lead to the recognition of relations among fault behavior and the material properties of the rocks that contact the fault at seismogenic depths; regions of high moment release appear to correlate with high seismic velocities whereas rupture initiation or termination may be associated with lower seismic velocities. These relations point toward a physical understanding of why faults are divided into segments that can fail independently, an understanding that could improve our ability to predict earthquakes and strong ground motion.

California↗