Forearc Faults Research Articles

Forearc faults in northern Cascadia do not accommodate elastic strain driven by the megathrust seismic cycle

We employ numerical models to explore the connection between subduction zone coupling or megathrust rupture and upper plate faults in the northern Cascadia forearc. Active forearc faults north of the Olympic Peninsula exhibit similar characteristics: west-northwest strike, oblique right-lateral slip senses, and low slip rates (<1 mm/yr), but a potential to generate large (M ~ 7) earthquakes. Previous hypotheses suggest that stress in the upper plate due to interseismic coupling or coseismic rupture along the subduction zone interface could drive permanent forearc strain. To test these hypotheses, we used a 3D boundary element method model to predict slip on the LRDM if interseismic coupling or coeseismic rupture cause deformation. Our model predicts reverse left-lateral slip if the strain results solely from subduction zone coupling, or normal right-lateral slip if these faults accommodate strain during a megathrust rupture. These results contradict the observed fault kinematics. Additionally, if we use our model to mimic strain partitioning, where only the strain from the strike-slip component of subduction zone coupling is accommodated in the forearc, our results are also inconsistent observed fault kinematics. These models challenge the hypothesis that subduction zone coupling or coseismic rupture are the primary driver of permanent forearc deformation in northern Cascadia.

Discovery of an Active Forearc Fault in an Urban Region: Holocene Rupture on the XEOLXELEK‐Elk Lake Fault, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

AbstractSubduction forearcs are subject to seismic hazard from upper plate faults that are often invisible to instrumental monitoring networks. Identifying active faults in forearcs therefore requires integration of geomorphic, geologic, and paleoseismic data. We demonstrate the utility of a combined approach in a densely populated region of Vancouver Island, Canada, by combining remote sensing, historical imagery, field investigations, and shallow geophysical surveys to identify a previously unrecognized active fault, the XEOLXELEK‐Elk Lake fault, in the northern Cascadia forearc, ∼10 km north of the city of Victoria. Lidar‐derived digital terrain models and historical air photos show a ∼2.5‐m‐high scarp along the surface of a Quaternary drumlinoid ridge. Paleoseismic trenching and electrical resistivity tomography surveys across the scarp reveal a single reverse‐slip earthquake produced a fault‐propagation fold above a blind southwest‐dipping fault. Five geologically plausible chronological models of radiocarbon dated charcoal constrain the likely earthquake age to between 4.7 and 2.3 ka. Fault‐propagation fold modeling indicates ∼3.2 m of reverse slip on a blind, 50° southwest‐dipping fault can reproduce the observed deformation. Fault scaling relations suggest a M 6.1–7.6 earthquake with a 13 to 73‐km‐long surface rupture and 2.3–3.2 m of dip slip may be responsible for the deformation observed in the paleoseismic trench. An earthquake near this magnitude in Greater Victoria could result in major damage, and our results highlight the importance of augmenting instrumental monitoring networks with remote sensing and field studies to identify and characterize active faults in similarily challenging environments.

Slip Deficit Rates on Southern Cascadia Faults Resolved with Viscoelastic Earthquake Cycle Modeling of Geodetic Deformation

ABSTRACT The fore-arc of the southern Cascadia subduction zone (CSZ), north of the Mendocino triple junction (MTJ), is home to a network of Quaternary-active crustal faults that accumulate strain due to the interaction of the North American, Juan de Fuca (Gorda), and Pacific plates. These faults, including the Little Salmon and Mad River fault (LSF and MRF) zones, are located near the most populated parts of California’s north coast and show paleoseismic evidence for three slip events of several-meter scale in the past 1700 yr. However, the geodetic slip rates of these faults are poorly constrained. In this work, we analyze a new compilation of interseismic geodetic velocities from Global Navigation Satellite Systems, leveling, and tide gauge data near the MTJ to constrain present-day slip deficit rates on upper-plate faults and coupling on the megathrust. We construct Green’s functions for interseismic slip deficit for discrete faults embedded in an elastic plate overlying a viscoelastic mantle. We then use a constrained least-squares inversion to determine best-fitting slip rates on the major faults and investigate slip rate trade-offs between faults. Results indicate that the LSF and MRF systems together accumulate 4–5 mm/yr of reverse-slip deficit, although their separate slip rates cannot be determined independently. Modeling of the horizontal and vertical velocities suggests that the southernmost CSZ is coupled interseismically to deeper than 25 km depth. We also find that 6–17 mm/yr of right-lateral slip deficit extends north of the MTJ and into the southern Cascadia fore-arc. These results reinforce the notion that both the southernmost Cascadia megathrust and the smaller fore-arc faults above it contribute to regional seismic hazard.

Strain Partitioning Among Forearc Faults in Southern Cascadia Inferred From GNSS

AbstractCrustal faults in the southern Cascadia forearc help to accommodate strains related to plate interactions near the Mendocino triple junction (MTJ). Geologic work has identified the Little Salmon fault, Mad River fault zone (MRFZ), and Grogan fault as Quaternary‐active structures; however, the slip rates on these major fault systems are poorly constrained. This work constructs elastic block models of the MTJ region and leverages GNSS velocity data to better understand how strain is partitioned among these three faults. We evaluate models with various forearc fault structures and apply a bootstrap analysis to provide independent slip rate distributions for each fault. Model results indicate that the Little Salmon fault zone is an important structure that accommodates both thrust and right‐lateral shear motion in the forearc. Appreciable right‐lateral slip rates on the MRFZ indicate that this system plays an important role in facilitating translation of the forearc and may serve as an extension of the northern San Andreas fault system. In contrast, the models place very little strike‐slip motion on the Grogan fault and prefer this structure to mainly host reverse slip. We observe the highest slip rates on the Bear River fault zone, indicating significant strain to the north of the MTJ.

Methane Plume Emissions Associated With Puget Sound Faults in the Cascadia Forearc

AbstractMethane gas plumes have been discovered to issue from the seafloor in the Puget Sound estuary. These gas emission sites are co‐located over traces of three major fault zones that fracture the entire forearc crust of the Cascadia Subduction Zone. Multibeam and single‐beam sonar data from cruises conducted in years 2011, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 identified the acoustic signature of 349 individual bubble plumes. Dissolved CH4 gas from the plumes combines to elevate seawater methane concentrations of the entire Puget Sound estuary. Fluid samples from adjacent terrestrial hot springs and deep‐water wells surrounding the estuary contain a helium‐3 isotope signature, suggesting a deep fluid source located near the underlying Cascadia Subduction Zone plate interface. However, limited data from this pilot study suggest that Puget Sound seawater emission sites lack both similar chemical isotope signatures and elevated thermal anomalies that would be expected from association with a deep plate‐interface reservoir. A shallow reservoir within the Holocene sediments that cover the older Puget Sound basement with horizontal transfer to the thinly covered Alki Point and Kingston Arch anticlines is also a possibility, as has been suggested for other methane seep areas. The existence of vigorous marine methane plumes arising from areas of thin sediment cover associated with deeply penetrating forearc fault zones but presenting no thermal or chemical anomalies found in other similar forearc environments, remains an unresolved paradox.

Paleoseismic Trenching Reveals Late Quaternary Kinematics of the Leech River Fault: Implications for Forearc Strain Accumulation in Northern Cascadia

ABSTRACT New paleoseismic trenching indicates late Quaternary oblique right-lateral slip on the Leech River fault, southern Vancouver Island, Canada, and constrains permanent forearc deformation in northern Cascadia. A south-to-north reduction in northward Global Navigation Satellite System velocities and seismicity across the Olympic Mountains, Strait of Juan de Fuca (JDF), and the southern Strait of Georgia, has been used as evidence for permanent north–south crustal shortening via thrust faulting between a northward migrating southern forearc and rigid northern backstop in southwestern Canada. However, previous paleoseismic studies indicating late Quaternary oblique right-lateral slip on west-northwest-striking forearc faults north of the Olympic Mountains and in the southern Strait of Georgia are more consistent with forearc deformation models that invoke oroclinal bending and(or) westward extrusion of the Olympic Mountains. To help evaluate strain further north across the Strait of JDF, we present the results from two new paleoseismic trenches excavated across the Leech River fault. In the easternmost Good Hope trench, we document a vertical fault zone and a broad anticline deforming glacial till. Comparison of till clast orientations in faulted and undeformed glacial till shows evidence for postdeposition faulted till clast rotation, indicating strike-slip shear. The orientation of opening mode fissuring during surface rupture is consistent with right-lateral slip and the published regional SHmax directions. Vertical separation and the formation of scarp-derived colluvium along one fault also indicate a dip-slip component. Radiocarbon charcoal dating within offset glacial till and scarp-derived colluvium suggest a single surface rupturing earthquake at 9.4±3.4 ka. The oblique right-lateral slip sense inferred in the Good Hope trench is consistent with slip kinematics observed on other regional west-northwest-striking faults and indicates that these structures do not accommodate significant north–south shortening via thrust faulting.

Holocene Surface Rupture History of an Active Forearc Fault Redefines Seismic Hazard in Southwestern British Columbia, Canada

AbstractCharacterizing the hazard associated with Quaternary‐active faults in the forearc crust of the northern Cascadia subduction zone has proven challenging due to historically low rates of seismicity, late Quaternary glacial scouring, and dense vegetation that often obscures fault‐related geomorphic features. We couple lidar topography with paleoseismic trenching across the Leech River Fault on southern Vancouver Island to produce the first detailed surface rupture history of an onland forearc fault in British Columbia, Canada. The results indicate that this fault produced three surface‐rupturing earthquakes in the last ∼9 kyr and is therefore capable of producing large (Mw>6) earthquakes in the future. We provide new constraints on the fault's length (∼130 km) and Holocene slip rate (≥0.2–0.3 mm/year) that, together with the earthquake ages, should be incorporated into new seismic hazard assessments and building code practices relevant to urban centers in southwestern British Columbia (Canada) and northwestern Washington State (United States).

Dynamic triggering of shallow slip on forearc faults constrained by monitoring surface displacement with the IPOC Creepmeter Array

The Mw=8.8 Maule Earthquake of February 27, 2010, remotely triggered minor surface displacement along the Atacama Fault System in Northern Chile located 1500–1800 km from the epicenter. Here we present evidence that surface displacement events recorded by the IPOC (Integrated Plate Boundary Observatory in N-Chile) Creepmeter Array are related to earthquakes on the underlying subduction zone interface or to large earthquakes around the world. Our observations document dynamic triggering of shallow slip on faults in a forearc setting. Continuous monitoring revealed that up to 30 displacement events per year occur on the monitored fault segments, >90% of them triggered by earthquakes in the near or far field synchronous to the passage of the seismic wave. We can clearly attribute far field triggering to the passage of the surface wave and near field triggering to the passage of the body wave. The most distant triggered displacement event monitored occurred after the 2011, Mw=9.0 Tohoku-Oki Earthquake located 16 468 km away following the passage of large amplitude SS waves. Comparing the triggered displacement events with other triggered phenomena like seismicity, volcanic eruptions, hydrological changes as well as with data from the California Creepmeter Array we find that the seismic energy density appropriately describes a magnitude–distance scaling relationship of slip triggering. Finally, the observed surface displacement is found to not occur by continuous creep, but rather through nearly exclusively discrete displacement events.

Slip Inversion Along Inner Fore-Arc Faults, Eastern Tohoku, Japan

Slip Inversion Along Inner Fore-Arc Faults, Eastern Tohoku, Japan

Double-difference Relocation of the Aftershocks of the Tecomán, Colima, Mexico Earthquake of 22 January 2003

On 22 January 2003, the M_w = 7.6 Tecoman earthquake struck offshore of the state of Colima, Mexico, near the diffuse triple junction between the Cocos, Rivera, and North American plates. Three-hundred and fifty aftershocks of the Tecoman earthquake with magnitudes between 2.6 and 5.8, each recorded by at least 7 stations, are relocated using the double difference method. Initial locations are determined using P and S readings from the Red Sismologica Telemetrica del Estado de Colima (RESCO) and a 1-D velocity model. Because only eight RESCO stations were operating immediately following the Tecoman earthquake, uncertainties in the initial locations and depths are fairly large, with average uncertainties of 8.0 km in depth and 1.4 km in the north–south and east–west directions. Events occurring between 24 January and 31 January were located using not only RESCO phase readings but also additional P and S readings from 11 temporary stations. Average uncertainties decrease to 0.8 km in depth, 0.3 km in the east–west direction, and 0.7 km in the north–south direction for events occurring while the temporary stations were deployed. While some preliminary studies of the early aftershocks suggested that they were dominated by shallow events above the plate interface, our results place the majority of aftershocks along the plate interface, for a slab dipping between approximately 20° and 30°. This is consistent with the slab positions inferred from geodetic studies. We do see some upper plate aftershocks that may correspond to forearc fault zones, and faults inland in the upper plate, particularly among events occurring more than 3 months after the mainshock.

Normal and reverse faulting driven by the subduction zone earthquake cycle in the northern Chilean fore arc

[1] Despite its location in a convergent tectonic setting, the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile between 21°S and 25°S is dominated by structures demonstrating extension in the direction of plate convergence. In some locations, however, normal faults have been reactivated as reverse faults, complicating the interpretation of long-term strain. In order to place these new observations in a tectonic context, we model stress changes induced on these faults by the subduction earthquake cycle. Our simulations predict that interseismic locking on the plate boundary encourages normal slip on fore-arc faults, which may result from elastic rebound due to interplate earthquakes or from seismic or aseismic motion that takes place within the interseismic period. Conversely, stress generated by strong subduction zone earthquakes, such as the 1995 Mw = 8.1 Antofagasta event, provides a mechanism for the reverse reactivation we document here. Upper plate fault slip in response to the low-magnitude stress changes induced by the subduction earthquake cycle suggests that the absolute level of stress on these faults is very low. Furthermore, seismic hazard analysis for northern Chile requires consideration of not only the plate boundary earthquake cycle but also the cycle on fore-arc faults that may or may not coincide with the interplate pattern. Though the relationships between permanent strain and deformation calculated using elastic models remain unclear, the compatibility of modeled stress fields with the distribution of fore-arc faulting suggests that interseismic strain accumulation and coseismic deformation on the subduction megathrust both play significant roles in shaping structural behavior in the upper plate.

Motion on upper‐plate faults during subduction zone earthquakes: Case of the Atacama Fault System, northern Chile

Motion on the Atacama Fault System (AFS) in northern Chile is driven by Andean subduction zone processes. We use two approaches, observational and theoretical, to evaluate how the AFS and other forearc faults responded to coseismic stress induced by one well‐studied megathrust earthquake, the 1995 Mw = 8.1 Antofagasta event. We use synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR) to search for small‐scale coseismic and postseismic deformation on individual faults. The InSAR data are ambiguous: some images show offset consistent with coseismic faulting on the Paposo segment of the AFS and others lack such signal. The fact that we do not observe the fault‐like displacement in all coseismic interferograms suggests that atmospheric contamination, not tectonic deformation, is responsible for the signal. To explore the capacity of the earthquake to trigger motion on upper plate faults, we use seven published slip maps constrained by geodetic and/or seismic data to calculate static and dynamic Coulomb stress change (CSC) on faults in the Antofagasta region. The static CSC field varies between models and depends on the distribution of coseismic interplate slip. On the basis of the CSC distribution predicted by our preferred model constrained by all available data, we suggest it was unlikely that the Antofagasta earthquake directly triggered normal motion on the AFS, and the InSAR data are consistent with this null result. Field reports of normal faulting related to the earthquake may reflect recent (but not coseismic) motion or highly localized behavior not representative of the regional coseismic stress field.

Tertiary tectonics of the Border Ranges Fault System, Chugach Mountains, Alaska: Deformation and uplift in a forearc setting

The Border Ranges fault system (BRFS) locally separates supracrustal Upper Cretaceous‐Tertiary rocks of the Cook Inlet/Matanuska Valley forearc basin on the Peninsular terrane from metamorphosed Cretaceous subduction complex rocks of the Chugach terrane to the south. This 5‐ to 10‐km‐wide zone of concentrated deformation along the inboard edge of southern Alaska's accretionary prism has suffered a protracted history, beginning with its inception as a “megathrust” by Early Cretaceous time and continuing into early Tertiary time, when it was transected by a system of steeply arcward dipping normal‐ and dextral‐slip faults. Based on detailed geologic mapping, structural analysis, metamorphic mineral assemblage data, and K‐Ar and fission track geochronology, the Tertiary history of displacements along a central part of this forearc fault system has been divided into several phases of deformation. These include a Paleocene phase of regional uplift of the forearc basin together with block faulting along the BRFS to rapidly uplift and subaerially expose low‐grade metamorphic rocks of the subduction complex (Upper Cretaceous Valdez Group) within 15 Ma of their inferred underplating at deep structural levels of the accretionary prism. Continued normal‐separation faulting along the BRFS in late Paleocene/early Eocene time to further uplift the subduction complex was recorded by deposition of a syntectonic alluvial fan system (Chickaloon Formation) across the BRFS and along the southern margin of the forearc basin. A third, mid Eocene, increment of normal‐separation faulting along the BRFS juxtaposed greenschist facies fabrics of early Eocene age in the subduction complex against the Chickaloon Formation. This latter uplift event predated intrusion of early late Eocene (∼43–48 Ma, zircon fission track minimum ages) felsic dikes into the present terrane‐bounding fault and was accompanied by no more than a few tens of kilometers of dextral‐slip faulting along the BRFS, a conclusion that does not accord with recent suggestions for thousands of kilometers of displacement along that fault system in early‐middle Tertiary time, based on paleomagnetic data. Field observations in the study area indicate that the great oroclinal bend of southern Alaska is postearly Eocene and possibly prelate Oligocene in age. A final period of deformation in middle to late Tertiary time was marked by periods of minor north‐south contraction of the forearc basin and by local reverse‐slip reactivation of earlier faults. Fission track age data on apatite indicate rapid cooling and probably uplift of both subduction complex and adjacent parts of the forearc basin in Miocene time (∼17–24 Ma). Episodic uplift of the subduction complex, either locally by normal‐separation faulting along its “backstop,” or by a more regional uplift also affecting the adjacent forearc basin, overlapped in time or closely followed discrete pulses of large‐scale sediment underplating along the Gulf of Alaska subduction margin. This coincidence suggests that major pulses of sediment underplating along southern Alaska's convergent margin may have led to isostatic uplift of its “critical‐taper” accretionary prism, an uplift that was in part accommodated by normal‐separation faulting along its mechanical backstop.

The Late Cretaceous-Cenozoic history of western Baluchistan Pakistan—the northern margin of the Makran subduction complex

Summary The study area lies some 400 km N of the Makran coast, and extends westwards for some 450 km from the Chaman Fault, a major sinistral transform fracture zone which marks the suture between the Eurasian and Indian plates. It lies to the north of the Makran ranges of Tertiary flysch, and flanks the southern margin of a stable, aseismic area known as the Dashi-i-Margo block. The Makran region as a whole has been interpreted as an accretionary prism of Late Cretaceous to Holocene age, resulting from the northward subduction of oceanic lithosphere. The geological record of the study area is consistent with such an interpretation, for the period Late Cretaceous-Palaeocene at least. Rapid northward subduction during the Late Cretaceous gave rise to profuse andesitic volcanism on the sub-parallel, ENE-trending arc massifs of the Chagai Hills and Ras Koh geanticlines. The waning of this volcanism during the Maestrichtian coincided with the accumulation and deformation of flysch sediments in a trench which extended from Mirjawa to the south of Ras Koh; also with thick forearc sedimentation in the Dalbandin Trough, between the geanticlines. In late Palaeocene times, deformed flysch—interpreted as a subduction complex—was elevated to form a structural high in the Mirjawa range. In the western Ras Koh, the flysch, along with ultramafic slices, became emplaced against the arc massif to form a new landmass. This emplacement may have been a result of a late Palaeocene collision between the northward-migrating Indian continental plate and the continental lithosphere of the Dasht-i-Margo block, the Ras Koh flysch belt taking the brunt of the initial impact. The principal forearc faults have regular, arcuate traces which, in the south-west, parallel the structural grain of the Mirjawa flysch belt. Movement on the faults influenced sedimentation in the forearc, particularly during the Eocene and Miocene. There is evidence of tensional transform movement in Eocene times. The forearc faults were especially active during the Pliocene. Movement across them during this period was compressional and associated with major folding, particularly in the Dalbandin Trough. The trend of this folding may imply dextral transform displacement within the trough.