Change in failure stress on the southern San Andreas fault system caused by the 1992 magnitude = 7.4 Landers earthquake

Science

Volumn 258, Issue 5086, 1992, Pages 1328-1332

  Stein, Ross S ^a   King, Geoffrey C P ^b,d   Lin, Jian ^c,d  

^a U S GEOLOGICAL SURVEY   (United States)

^b UMR 7063   (France)

^c WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTION   (United States)

^d S California Earthquake Center ^*

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

FAILURE STRESS; LANDERS EARTHQUAKE JUNE 1992; STRESS ACCUMULATION;

USA, CALIFORNIA, SAN ANDREAS FAULT;

EID: 0027087823     PISSN: 00368075     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1126/science.258.5086.1328     Document Type: Article

References (49)

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2. J. C. Savage, M. Lisowski, W. H. Prescott, ibid., p. 2113.
3. A. Nur, H. Ron, O. Scotti, in Slow Deformation and Transmission of Stress in the Earth, S. C. Cohen and P. Vanîćek, Eds. (Geophys. Monogr. 49, American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC, 1989), p. 31.
4. -2.
5. -2.
6. -2.
7. -2.
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9. J. R. Rice, in Fault Mechanics and Transport Properties of Rock, B. Evans and T.-F. Wong, Eds. (Academic Press, London, 1992), pp. 475.
10. R. S. Stein and M. Lisowski, J. Geophys. Res. 88, 6477 (1983). The moment used for the Homestead Valley earthquake includes postseismic slip, consistent with measured deformation from 1979 to 1981.
11. D. H. Oppenheimer, P. A. Reasenberg, R. W. Simpson, J. Geophys. Res. 93, 9007 (1988).
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13. K. W. Hudnut, L. Seeber, J. Pacheco, Geophys. Res. Lett. 16, 199 (1989); S. Larsen, R. Reilinger, H. Neugebauer, W. Strange, J. Geophys. Res. 97, 4885 (1992).
14. R. W. Simpson and P. A. Reasenberg, U.S. Geol. Surv. Prof. Pap., in press.
15. M. Lisowski, J. C. Savage, and W. H. Prescott [J. Geophys. Res. 96, 8369 (1991)] found a principal contractive strain rate of N7 ± 1°E from trilateration surveys conducted since 1979 in the Joshua geodetic network, which includes most of the Landers rupture. J. Sauber, W. Thatcher, and S. C. Solomon [J. Geophys. Res. 91, 12683 (1986)] found that the most compressive principal strain direction measured from 1934 to 1982 across the north half of the Landers rupture was N4 ± 5°E from triangulation surveys.
16. M. Lisowski, J. C. Savage, and W. H. Prescott [J. Geophys. Res. 96, 8369 (1991)] found a principal contractive strain rate of N7 ± 1°E from trilateration surveys conducted since 1979 in the Joshua geodetic network, which includes most of the Landers rupture. J. Sauber, W. Thatcher, and S. C. Solomon [J. Geophys. Res. 91, 12683 (1986)] found that the most compressive principal strain direction measured from 1934 to 1982 across the north half of the Landers rupture was N4 ± 5°E from triangulation surveys.
17. L. M. Jones, J. Geophys. Res. 93, 8869 (1988) The mean of the principal stress directions for the two segments that abut the Landers site, Banning and Indio, is N6 ± 2°E. P. L. Williams, L. R. Sykes, C. Nicholson, and L. Seeber [Tectonics 9, 185 (1990)] found that an average principal stress direction for the adjacent 50-km stretch of the San Andreas fault (San Gregorio Pass and Eastern Transverse Range-I regions) was N8 ± 5°E.
18. L. M. Jones, J. Geophys. Res. 93, 8869 (1988) The mean of the principal stress directions for the two segments that abut the Landers site, Banning and Indio, is N6 ± 2°E. P. L. Williams, L. R. Sykes, C. Nicholson, and L. Seeber [Tectonics 9, 185 (1990)] found that an average principal stress direction for the adjacent 50-km stretch of the San Andreas fault (San Gregorio Pass and Eastern Transverse Range-I regions) was N8 ± 5°E.
19. C. DeMets, R. G. Gordon, D. F. Argus, S. Stein, Geophys. J. Int. 101, 425 (1990). The Pacific-North American plate motion vector for central California is N36 ± 2°W, which yields a principal compression oriented N9 ± 2°W.
20. M. D. Zoback and J. H. Healy, J. Geophys. Res. 97, 5039 (1992). The Cajon Pass well yields an N57 ± 19°E principal stress direction. If permanent, this stress could not drive local right-lateral slip on the San Andreas fault, and has been interpreted to suggest that the San Andreas is a weak (low μ) fault embedded in a strong (high μ) crust [see M. D. Zoback and A. H. Lachenbruch, ibid., p. 4991]. The stress measured in the well may be influenced by local faults (G. Shamir and M. D. Zoback, ibid., p. 5059) and thus not represent a regional value.
21. M. D. Zoback and J. H. Healy, J. Geophys. Res. 97, 5039 (1992). The Cajon Pass well yields an N57 ± 19°E principal stress direction. If permanent, this stress could not drive local right-lateral slip on the San Andreas fault, and has been interpreted to suggest that the San Andreas is a weak (low μ) fault embedded in a strong (high μ) crust [see M. D. Zoback and A. H. Lachenbruch, ibid., p. 4991]. The stress measured in the well may be influenced by local faults (G. Shamir and M. D. Zoback, ibid., p. 5059) and thus not represent a regional value.
22. M. D. Zoback and J. H. Healy, J. Geophys. Res. 97, 5039 (1992). The Cajon Pass well yields an N57 ± 19°E principal stress direction. If permanent, this stress could not drive local right-lateral slip on the San Andreas fault, and has been interpreted to suggest that the San Andreas is a weak (low μ) fault embedded in a strong (high μ) crust [see M. D. Zoback and A. H. Lachenbruch, ibid., p. 4991]. The stress measured in the well may be influenced by local faults (G. Shamir and M. D. Zoback, ibid., p. 5059) and thus not represent a regional value.
23. All earthquakes in this study except North Palm Springs occurred on near vertical faults with dominant strike slip. We simulated the 30% dip-slip component and 59° dip of the North Palm Springs rupture by including a fault-closing (for example, dike deflation) displacement equal to cos(rake) x cos(dip). This approximation gives accurate stresses at distances greater than one fault length from the source.
24. The mean static shear stress drop calculated from the parameters in Table 1 following H. Kanamori and D. L. Anderson [Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 65, 1073 (1975)].
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27. C. E. Johnson and D. P. Hill, U.S. Geol. Surv. Prof. Pap. 1254, 15 (1982); S. H. Hartzell and T. H. Heaton, Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 73, 1553 (1983); T. C. Hanks and C. R. Allen, ibid. 79, 231 (1989); K. Hudnut et al., ibid., p. 282 (1989).
28. C. E. Johnson and D. P. Hill, U.S. Geol. Surv. Prof. Pap. 1254, 15 (1982); S. H. Hartzell and T. H. Heaton, Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 73, 1553 (1983); T. C. Hanks and C. R. Allen, ibid. 79, 231 (1989); K. Hudnut et al., ibid., p. 282 (1989).
29. -2 bars. In this plane stress calculation, the Coulomb failure stress increase was halved in the Coachella Valley, but is nearly unchanged elsewhere. Thus it is possible that we overestimated the stress change for the Coachella Valley in Figs. 3 and 4.
30. Working Group on California Earthquake Probabilities, U.S. Geol. Surv. Open-File Rep. 88-398 (1988).
31. Site of the 1948 M = 6.0 Desert Hot Spring earthquake; see L. R. Sykes and L. Seeber, Geology 13, 835 (1985).
32. Monitoring with Global Positioning System networks has not detected postseismic slip greater than several centimeters across the San Andreas fault at Cajon Pass and in the Coachella Valley (M. Lisowski, personal communication).
33. G. C. Jacoby, Jr., P. R. Shepard, K. E. Sieh, Science 241, 196 (1988); K. Sieh, M. Stuiver, D. Brillinger, J. Geophys. Res. 94, 603 (1989).
34. G. C. Jacoby, Jr., P. R. Shepard, K. E. Sieh, Science 241, 196 (1988); K. Sieh, M. Stuiver, D. Brillinger, J. Geophys. Res. 94, 603 (1989).
35. R. J. Weldon II and K. E. Sieh, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 96, 793 (1985); R. J. Weldon II, thesis, California Institute of Technology (1986).
36. R. J. Weldon II and K. E. Sieh, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 96, 793 (1985); R. J. Weldon II, thesis, California Institute of Technology (1986).
37. A. G. Lindh, in Earthquake Prediction: Present Status, S. K. Guha and A. M. Patwardhan, Eds. (University of Poona, Pune, India, 1988), p. 189. Repeat times for the Coachella Valley segment are based on K. E. Sieh, Eos 67, 1200 (1986).
38. A. G. Lindh, in Earthquake Prediction: Present Status, S. K. Guha and A. M. Patwardhan, Eds. (University of Poona, Pune, India, 1988), p. 189. Repeat times for the Coachella Valley segment are based on K. E. Sieh, Eos 67, 1200 (1986).
39. R. L. Hill and D. J. Beeby, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 88, 1378 (1977); A. Lindh, G. Fuis, C. Mantis, Science 201, 56 (1978).
40. R. L. Hill and D. J. Beeby, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 88, 1378 (1977); A. Lindh, G. Fuis, C. Mantis, Science 201, 56 (1978).
41. N. E. King, D. C. Agnew, F. Wyatt, Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 78, 1693 (1988).
42. J. C. Savage, M. Lisowski, W. H. Prescott, Eos 73 (Fall Suppl.), 364 (1992).
43. L. M. Jones, K. Hutton, D. A. Given, C. R. Allen, Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 76, 1830 (1986).
44. J. Pacheco and J. Nábelek, ibid. 78, 1907 (1988); S. Hartzell, J. Geophys. Res. 94, 7515 (1989).
45. J. Pacheco and J. Nábelek, ibid. 78, 1907 (1988); S. Hartzell, J. Geophys. Res. 94, 7515 (1989).
46. C. J. Ammon, A. A. Velasco, T. Lay, in preparation.
47. Preliminary broad band measurements of the Landers and Big Bear seismic moments are from H. K. Thio and H. Kanamori and from G. Ekström (personal communication).
48. Fault slip function from preliminary fault mapping by D. Ponti, M. Rymer, and K. Lajoie and from K. Sieh, K. Hudnut, C. Rubin, and T. Rockwell (personal communication).
49. We thank A. Nur, R. Weldon II, W. Thatcher, L. Jones, and J. Savage for thoughtful reviews and R. Simpson and R. Harris for stimulating discussion. We are grateful for financial support from the Southern California Earthquake Center.