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Title: Seasonal modulation of crustal seismicity in northeastern Japan driven by snow load

Journal Article · · Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth
 [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [3];  [4]
  1. Kyoto Univ. (Japan)
  2. Univ. of Tokyo (Japan)
  3. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
  4. Nagoya Univ. (Japan)
+ Show Author Affiliations

Numerous studies have reported that surface hydrological loading can seasonally modulate seismicity rates at crustal depths. For example, substantial winter snow accumulation occurs across the Japanese Islands, and these snowy regions appear to have seasonally modulated the occurrence of previous large inland earthquakes. Therefore, it is important to investigate the impact of seasonal stress changes on crustal seismicity to deepen our understanding of earthquake generation. Here we constrain seasonal changes in the surface load across northeastern Japan using Global Navigation Satellite System surface displacements and evaluate the potential relationship between temporal trends in inland seismicity and estimated seasonal stress changes. The spatial distribution of the seasonal surface load is consistent with snow depth along the Sea of Japan. The inland seismicity beneath northeastern Japan is modestly modulated by the seasonal stress changes that are induced by the annual snow load. However, this seasonal response is weaker than that in other regions. This weak modulation may be due to the small surface-load-induced stress perturbation relative to the long-term-averaged stressing rate and/or the limited presence of crustal fluids to trigger seismicity in Japan.

Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Chemical Sciences, Geosciences & Biosciences Division (CSGB); JSPS KAKENHI
Grant/Contract Number:
89233218CNA000001
OSTI ID:
2426775
Report Number(s):
LA-UR--23-32608
Journal Information:
Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth, Journal Name: Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth Journal Issue: 3 Vol. 129; ISSN 2169-9356; ISSN 2169-9313
Publisher:
American Geophysical UnionCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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58 GEOSCIENCES
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crustal seismicity
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