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No evidence for an active margin-spanning megasplay fault at the Cascadia Subduction Zone

Madeleine C. Lucas·Anna M. Ledeczi·Harold J. Tobin·Suzanne M. Carbotte·Janet Watt·Shuoshuo Han·Brian Boston·D. Jiang
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Abstract

It has been previously proposed that a megasplay fault within the Cascadia accretionary wedge, spanning from offshore Vancouver Island to Oregon, has the potential to slip during a future Cascadia subduction zone earthquake. This hypothetical fault has major implications for tsunami size and arrival times and is included in disaster-planning scenarios currently in use in the region. This hypothesis is evaluated in this study using CASIE21 deep-penetrating and U.S. Geological Survey high-resolution seismic reflection profiles. We map changes in wedge structural style and seismic character to identify the inner-outer wedge transition zone where a megasplay fault has been previously hypothesized to exist and evaluate evidence for active faulting within this zone. Our results indicate that there is not an active, through-going megasplay fault in Cascadia, but instead, the structure and activity of faulting at the inner-outer wedge transition zone is highly variable and segmented along strike, consistent with the segmentation of other physical and mechanical properties in Cascadia. Wedge sedimentation, plate dip, and subducting topography are proposed to play a major role in controlling megasplay fault development and evolution. Incorporating updated megasplay fault location, geometry, and activity into modeling of Cascadia earthquakes and tsunamis could help better constrain associated hazards.

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SeismicaArticle
90° N90° S · 180° W ← longitude → 180° E
Source-reported bounding extent: 42° to 49.5° latitude; -129.8333° to -123° longitude. This indicates report coverage, not an exact sampling location. View area on OpenStreetMap.

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Madeleine C. Lucas, Anna M. Ledeczi, Harold J. Tobin, Suzanne M. Carbotte, Janet Watt, Shuoshuo Han, Brian Boston, D. Jiang. 2025-05-07. No evidence for an active margin-spanning megasplay fault at the Cascadia Subduction Zone. https://doi.org/10.26443/seismica.v2i4.1477

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Canada, United States placeCascadia Subduction Zone placeArticle subjectBritish Columbia, Oregon, Washington placeSeismica subject

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