Regional variations of the cutoff depth of seismicity in the crust and their relation to heat flow and large inland-earthquakes.

Abstract

More than 8, 000 earthquakes have been relocated to derive regional variations of the seismic-aseismic boundary in the mid-crust of the northern Kinki district of Japan. The boundary depths are estimated as 13-15 and 18-20 km in the southwestern and northeastern parts of the study area, respectively. The relationship between the seismic cutoff depth and the cause of large intraplate earthquakes is studied, making use of the present observations and other available data of seismicity and surface heat-flow, on the basis of the brittle-ductile transition of rock deformation. The regional variations in the cutoff depth of seismicity appear to be well correlated with the thermal structure of the crust. The cutoff depths in various heat-flow provinces in Japan and other countries are found to be inversely proportional to the surface heat-flow values, with the depths roughly corresponding to isotherms of 200-400°C. The shape of the depth-frequency distribution of earthquakes calculated from high-quality data is quite similar to that of the shear resistance calculated using a simple brittle-ductile transition model. Large intraplate earthquakes appear to originate at the peak or just below the peak in the depth-frequency distribution, which also corresponds to the deepest portion of the seismogenic layer. Furthermore, in the source area of large earthquakes, rupture seems to start where sharp changes occur in the cutoff depth of seismicity. Thus, the seismic-aseismic boundary is closely related to large intraplate earthquakes and, in turn, to the tectonics of island arcs.