Repeated large Slow Slip Events at the southcentral Alaska subduction zone

Abstract

We identify and study an ongoing Slow Slip Event (SSE) in the southcentral Alaska subduction zone using GPS measurements. This is the second large SSE in this region since modern geodetic measurements became available in 1993. We divide the ongoing SSE into two phases according to their transient displacement time evolution; their slip distributions are similar to each other but slip rates are slightly different. This ongoing SSE occurs downdip of the main asperity that ruptured in the 1964 Alaska earthquake, on the same part of the subduction interface as the earlier 1998–2001 SSE. The average slip rate of this SSE is ∼4–5cm/yr, with a cumulative moment magnitude of Mw 7.5 (Mw 7.3 and Mw 7.1 For Phases I and II, respectively) through the end of 2012. The time and space dependence of the GPS displacements suggest that the slip area remained nearly the same during Phase I, while the slip rate increased with time. The SSEs occur on a transitional section of the subduction plate interface between the fully locked updip part and the freely slipping deeper part. During the 1964 earthquake, slip on the region of the SSE was much lower than slip in the updip region. Based on this observation and the repeated SSEs, we conclude that this part of the interface slips repeatedly in SSEs throughout the interseismic period and does not build up a large slip deficit to be released through large slip in earthquakes.