The April 1996 Irpinia seismic sequence: Evidence for fault interaction

Abstract

The analysis of the Irpinia earthquake of 3 April 1996 (ML = 4.9), based on strong motion and short period local data, shows that it was a normal faulting event located within the epicentral area of the MS 6.9, 1980, earthquake. It was located at 40.67° N and 15.42° E at a depth of 8 km. The local magnitude (4.9) has been computed from the VBB stations of the MedNet network. The moment magnitude is Mw = 5.1 and the seismic moment estimated from the ground acceleration spectra is 5.0 1023 dyne cm. Spectral analysis of the strong motion recordings yields a Brune stress drop of 111 bars and a corner frequency of 1 Hz. The source radius associated to these values of seismic moment and stress drop is 1.3 km. The focal mechanism has two nodal planes having strike 297°, dip 74°, rake 290° and strike 64°, dip 25° and rake 220°, respectively. A fault plane solution with strike 295° ± 5°, dip 70° ± 5°, and rake 280° ± 10° is consistent with the S-wave polarization computed from the strong motion data recorded at Rionero in Vulture. We discuss the geometry and the dimensions of the fault which ruptured during the 1996 mainshock, its location and the aftershock distribution with respect to the rupture history of the 1980 Irpinia earthquake. The distribution of seismicity and the fault geometry of the 1996 earthquake suggest that the region between the two faults that ruptured during the first subevents of the 1980 event cannot be considered as a strong barrier (high strength zone), as it might be thought looking at the source model and at the sequence of historical earthquakes revealed by paleoseismological investigations.