Abstract
Abstract. In the Aguascalientes valley, middle Mexico, the demand of groundwater from the local aquifer system was suddenly increased after the late 1970s. Since then, several related problems have been occurring or become critical such as land subsidence, ground fissuring, and low-magnitude earthquakes. The most recent data of vertical deformation from PSInSAR, groundwater levels, and earthquakes, has provided critical information regarding the relationship amongst all these processes. In particular, that related to land subsidence, earth fissuring and seismicity. Regarding this, more satellite imagery and data from GPS stations are being revised as a possibility of a more generalized vertical deformation derived with low-magnitude seismicity. A particular seismic event recorded on 6 April 2019 has revealed critical information on the close association between vertical displacements occurred in active faults and low-magnitude seismic events.
Highlights
Land Subsidence and associated ground fissuring have been occurring in Aguascalientes valley over the last five decades (Aranda-Gómez, 1989)
The intensive pumping resulting from an increasing need of water for human activities is considered as the triggering cause of land deformation, while the last tectonic activity can be considered as an important conditioning factor for earth fissuring, since recent observations suggest that several ancient buried faults are being reactivated by land subsidence (Hernandez-Marin et al, 2015)
The relationship between groundwater withdrawal and land subsidence or earth fissuring remains with unanswered questions due to the large number of factors involved
Summary
Land Subsidence and associated ground fissuring have been occurring in Aguascalientes valley over the last five decades (Aranda-Gómez, 1989). The recent occurrence of local seismicity has been suggested to be associated to subsidenceinduced faulting, due mainly to the increase of local earthquakes after the 1980s, which corresponds to first reports of damages in constructions by faulting. In this context, Lermo et al (1996), analysed the records of local earthquakes using the national seismic net. They identified 18 local events between 1988 and 1994. Despite the current critical descent of groundwater levels, the relationship between cones of groundwater and maximum land sub-
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