The 1997 Umbria-Marche earthquakes (Italy): relation between the surface tectonic breaks and the area of deformation

We classified the most outstanding rupturesof the 1997 Umbria-Marche seismic sequence assecondary tectonic effects that occur within the zoneof deformation induced by the deep displacement on theseismogenic structure. The trend of the surfacedeformation is homogeneous within the entire area ofinterest and consistent with NE-oriented extensionevidenced by CMT focal solutions of the three mainshocks. We extrapolate the discontinuous sites ofbreak measurements and suggest that the localdeformation concentrates along four narrow bands.Location and direction of these bands are locallycontrolled by pre-existing structures. The comparisonbetween our data with the seismological data – such asmain rupture planes and spatial aftershockdistribution – highlights that three bands mark partof the boundaries of the NW-SE elongated aftershocksarea and the fourth occurs where this area is widest.Moreover, the analysis of the structural setting ofthe area suggests that N-S shear zones have stronglycontrolled the extension of the main rupture segmentsand the aftershock distribution. The surface rupturesare located within the area of coseismic deformationresulting from DInSAR data; we propose that theyrepresent the localized response to the verticalground deformation of the area. Finally, we discussthe contribution of the pattern of the 1997 surfacebreaks to the characterization of the seismogenicsource.