A new synthesis of Pyrenean seismicity and its tectonic implications

Abstract

The Pyrenean range, which results from the convergence of the Iberian and Eurasian plates along the North Pyrenean fault, exhibits a permanent seismic activity with moderate magnitude events. From the end of the 1980s, seismic instrumentation has been deployed in the Pyrenees, making now possible the computation of improved seismicity maps. We have gathered all the arrival times published for the period 1989–1996 by the different Spanish and French institutions in charge of the seismic survey of the range, and reprocessed them in an homogeneous way, in order to obtain a coherent seismicity map over the whole range. Particular attention has been paid to the evaluation of the quality of the locations and to the focal depth determinations. The comparison with previous maps of the Pyrenean seismicity reveals significant improvements in both the quality of locations and the threshold of detection. The new seismicity map reveals that the North Pyrenean fault is active only in the western part of the range. In the central and eastern parts, the seismicity involves other tectonic units such as the Maladeta and Canigou granitic massifs, the North Pyrenean Frontal Thrust, the Tet fault and the volcanic units in Catalonia. Despite the short time interval considered, this new seismicity file may be a valuable tool for future tectonic studies.