Relationship Between Seismic Moment and Source Duration for Seismogenic Earthquakes in Taiwan: Implications for the Product of Static Stress Drop and the Cube of Rupture Velocity

• Published in: Pure and applied geophysics Vol. 177; no. 7; pp. 3191 - 3203
• Main Authors: Hwang, Ruey-Der, Ho, Cheng-Ying, Lin, Tzu-Wei, Chang, Wen-Yen, Huang, Yi-Ling, Lin, Cai-Yi, Lin, Chiung-Yao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.07.2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Duration; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Earthquake prediction; Earthquakes; Geophysics/Geodesy; Legal issues; P waves; Rupture; Rupturing; Seismic activity; Self-similarity; Velocity; Taiwan; waves; Source duration; teleseismic; static stress drop; seismic moment; rupture velocity
• ISSN: 0033-4553; 1420-9136
• DOI: 10.1007/s00024-020-02429-9

A systematic analysis of the source duration ( τ ) and seismic moment ( M 0 ) for seismogenic earthquakes ( M W 5.5–7.1) in the Taiwan region was completed by using a teleseismic P -wave inversion method. Irrespective of the source self-similarity, the M 0 – τ relationship derived in this study had a power-law form, namely M 0 ∝ τ 3 , under the assumption that Δ σV r 3 is constant following a circular fault model (Δ σ : static stress drop; V r : rupture velocity). For Taiwan’s earthquakes, the derived M 0 – τ relationship not only provides information to predict the source duration of large earthquakes, but also probes the rupture features of seismogenic earthquakes. That is, there are different rupture patterns for earthquakes, but the product Δ σV r 3 remains nearly constant.