Intra-plate seismicity and inter-plate earthquakes: Historical activity in Southwest Japan

Over the last four hundred years the spatial variation of intra-plate seismicity in Southwest Japan correlates well with the occurrence of great inter-plate earthquakes. For fifty years before an inter-plate earthquake the intra-plate seismic activity is highest along a belt inland. For ten years afterwards it falls off in this belt, but rises on both sides along the Philippine Sea and Japan Sea coasts. Then it becomes low and remains low throughout the whole region until fifty to thirty years before the next inter-plate event, as shown by Utsu in 1974. An intermittent underthrusting drag exerted by the Philippine Sea plate seems to control the intra-plate seismicity, which partly takes up the relative plate motion as internal deformation. When a great inter-plate earthquake occurs, tectonic stress is released and seismic activity falls off in the central belt. The breaking of the plate boundary temporarily weakens the coupling between the two plates along the shallower part of the interface, which gently dips toward the Japan Sea coast. The decoupling causes stress concentration in the deeper part and results in increased seismic activity along the Japan Sea coast. The activity along the Philippine Sea coast may be interpreted as aftershock activity.     

Active right-lateral strike-slip fault zone along the southern margin of the Japan Sea

We describe an active right-lateral strike-slip fault zone along the southern margin of the Japan Sea, named the Southern Japan Sea Fault Zone (SJSFZ). Onshore segments of the fault zone are delineated on the basis of aerial photograph interpretations and field observations of tectonic geomorphic features, whereas the offshore parts are interpreted from single-/multichannel seismic data combined with borehole information. In an effort to evaluate late Quaternary activity along the fault zone, four active segments separated by uplifting structures are identified in this study. The east–northeast-trending SJSFZ constitutes paired arc-parallel strike-slip faults together with the Median Tectonic Line (MTL), both of which have been activated by oblique subduction of the Philippine Sea plate during the Quaternary. They act as the boundaries of three neotectonic stress domains around the eastern margin of the Eurasian plate: the near-trench Outer zone and NW–SE compressive Inner zone of southwest Japan arc, and the southern Japan Sea deformed under E–W compression from south to north.     

Birth of a major strike-slip fault in SW Japan

A 500 km-long strike-slip fault, the North Chugoku Shear Zone (NCSZ) is identified in SW Japan, responsible for four M > 7 earthquakes in the past 130 years. A new geodynamic mechanism of increased interplate coupling above an obliquely subducting flat slab is presented to explain the transfer of trench parallel motion 400 km inland from the Nankai Trough, to the level of the Quaternary adakitic volcanic arc. While Quaternary dextral strike-slip motion is widely believed to have occurred along the Median Tectonic Line (MTL), near the Miocene volcanic arc, the central segment in Shikoku has shown little seismicity for the last 1000 years. Pure dextral strike-slip focal mechanisms for 15 modern and historical events indicate that part of the transcurrent motion is being transferred from the MTL to the NCSZ.     

Restoration of Exotic Terranes Along the Median Tectonic Line, Japanese Islands: Overview

This paper reviews recent progress on the geotectonic evolution of exotic Paleozoic terranes in Southwest Japan, namely the Paleo-Ryoke and Kurosegawa terranes. The Paleo-Ryoke Terrane is composed mainly of Permian granitic rocks with hornfels, mid-Cretaceous high-grade metamorphic rocks associated with granitic rocks, and Upper Cretaceous sedimentary cover. They form nappe structures on the Sambagawa metamorphic rocks. The Permian granitic rocks are correlative with granitic clasts in Permian conglomerates in the South Kitakami Terrane, whereas the mid-Cretaceous rocks are correlative with those in the Abukuma Terrane. This correlation suggests that the elements of Northeast Japan to the northeast of the Tanakura Tectonic Line were connected in between the paired metamorphic belt along the Median Tectonic Line, Southwest Japan. The Kurosegawa Terrane is composed of various Paleozoic rocks with serpentinite and occurs as disrupted bodies bounded by faults in the middle part of the Jurassic Chichibu Terrane accretionary complex. It is correlated with the South Kitakami Terrane in Northeast Japan. The constituents of both terranes are considered to have been originally distributed more closely and overlay the Jurassic accretionary terrane as nappes. The current sporadic occurrence of these terranes can possibly be attributed to the difference in erosion level and later stage depression or transtension along strike-slip faults. The constituents of both exotic terranes, especially the Ordovician granite in the Kurosegawa-South Kitakami Terrane and the Permian granite in the Paleo-Ryoke Terrane provide a significant key to reconstructing these exotic terranes by correlating them with Paleozoic granitoids in the eastern Asia continent.     

A model with rigid rotations and slip deficits for the GPS-derived velocity field in Southwest Japan

We interpret the GPS-derived velocity field in southwest Japan by a superposition of the elastic deformation caused by fault interactions (slips or slip deficits) on the rigid motion of tectonic blocks (or plates). Based on the strain rate field and crustal seismicity, we apply a model with three blocks (Inner Arc, Outer Arc, and the northern Ryukyu block) and slip deficits along the block boundaries.Several characteristics of the synthesized contributions are found:

(1) Westward motion of the outer arc relative to the Amurian plate and the inner arc,

(2) southeastward motion of the northern Ryukyu block relative to the Amurian plate,

(3) 2−4 mm/yr deficits of left lateral slip rates along the boundary at 32°N in southern Kyushu,

(4) 0−8 mm/yr deficits of right lateral slip rates along the Median Tectonic Line and the Beppu-Shimabara Graben,

(5) slip deficit rates on the plate interface smaller than those in the case without any consideration for rigid block motions,

(6) clockwise deflection of slip deficit rate vector on the plate interface from that estimated when not taking rigid block motions into consideration.

An earthquake swarm in the northern part of the Aso caldera and migration of their foci

A seismicity gap was observed in the early stage of the activity of the earthquake swarm which has been taken place in the northern part of the Aso caldera during January 1975. In the following stage, small earthquakes began to occur, until at last the largest earthquake occured within the seismicity gap. The b-value appreciably increased after the largest earthquake. The above-mentioned characteristics of this earthquake swarm may be a typical example of the fracturing phenomena in relatively heterogeneous rocks. From the estimation of the ultimate strain energy that can be stored up in the seismicity gap, it may be concluded that the above-mentioned largest earthquake took place by the release of ultimate strain energy stored within the seismicity gap.     

Lithostratigraphy and biostratigraphy of the Campanian–Maastrichtian Toyajo Formation in Wakayama, southwestern Japan

The Upper Cretaceous Toyajo Formation is distributed around the Mt. Toyajo in the Aridagawa area, Wakayama, southwestern Japan. The formation is subdivided into three newly defined members, the Nakaibara Siltstone Member, Hasegawa Muddy Sandstone Member, and Buyo Sandstone Member, in ascending order. Close field observation elucidated the detailed biostratigraphy of the Toyajo Formation, and high-precision biostratigraphic correlation was made with the Yezo Group in Hokkaido (northern Japan) and Sakhalin and the Izumi Group in southwestern Japan.The Toyajo Formation contains diversified lower Campanian to upper Campanian heteromorph ammonoid assemblages, including Eubostrychoceras and Scaphites. Discovery of the heteromorph fauna demonstrates that scaphitid ammonoids survived until Campanian time in the northwestern Pacific region. Although Eubostrychoceras elongatum has been known in the northeastern Pacific region, the occurrence of this species in the northwestern Pacific region has been uncertain before. The rich occurrence of E. elongatum in the Aridagawa area indicates that this species was distributed widely in the northern Pacific realm.The Toyajo Formation is similar to the Izumi Group in various geologic features, and may indicate that the Toyajo Formation was deposited in a strike-slip basin along the Chichibu Belt formed by the movement along the Kurosegawa Tectonic Zone in the latest Cretaceous, like the Izumi Group, along the Median Tectonic Line.     

Dragons,brimstone and the geology of a volcanic arc on the island of the last Samurai,Kyushu, Japan

Not even Hollywood could dream of a place so magical as Kyushu. The southern‐most of the four major islands of the Japanese archipelago, this is a land of volcanoes, dinosaurs, and the last stand of the Samurai. And for good measure, James Bond visited here too, in the 1967 film You Only Live Twice. The final explosive scenes of that film featured the destruction of megalomaniac Ernst Stavro Blofeld's headquarters hidden inside the crater of one of Kyushu's most emblematic volcanoes, Shinmoedake. Kyushu also straddles the largest geological structure in Japan, the Median Tectonic Line (MTL) that runs from the western approaches of the island to the central part of Honshu. The MTL has been active since the Cretaceous, and the sedimentary basins formed along its line in Kyushu contain some of Japan's most famous dinosaur finds. The MTL also defines a fundamental divide between the geological histories of the terranes north and south of its line, a history that takes us back to the origins of the Japanese archipelago half a billion years ago.     

Global strain rates in western to central Himalayas and their implications in seismic hazard assessment

The Himalayas has experienced varying rates of earthquake occurrence in the past in its seismo-tectonically distinguished segments which may be attributed to different physical processes of accumulation of stress and its release, and due diligence is required for its inclusion for working out the seismic hazard. The present paper intends to revisit the various earthquake occurrence models applied to Himalayas and examines it in the light of recent damaging earthquakes in Himalayan belt. Due to discordant seismicity of Himalayas, three types of regions have been considered to estimate larger return period events. The regions selected are (1) the North-West Himalayan Fold and Thrust Belt which is seismically very active, (2) the Garhwal Himalaya which has never experienced large earthquake although sufficient stress exists and (3) the Nepal region which is very seismically active region due to unlocked rupture and frequently experienced large earthquake events. The seismicity parameters have been revisited using two earthquake recurrence models namely constant seismicity and constant moment release. For constant moment release model, the strain rates have been derived from global strain rate model and are converted into seismic moment of earthquake events considering the geometry of the finite source and the rates being consumed fully by the contemporary seismicity. Probability of earthquake occurrence with time has been estimated for each region using both models and compared assuming Poissonian distribution. The results show that seismicity for North-West region is observed to be relatively less when estimated using constant seismicity model which implies that either the occupied accumulated stress is not being unconfined in the form of earthquakes or the compiled earthquake catalogue is insufficient. Similar trend has been observed for seismic gap area but with lesser difference reported from both methods. However, for the Nepal region, the estimated seismicity by the two methods has been found to be relatively less when estimated using constant moment release model which implies that in the Nepal region, accumulated strain is releasing in the form of large earthquake occurrence event. The partial release in second event of May 2015 of similar size shows that the physical process is trying to release the energy with large earthquake event. If it would have been in other regions like that of seismic gap region, the fault may not have released the energy and may be inviting even bigger event in future. It is, therefore, necessary to look into the seismicity from strain rates also for its due interpretation in terms of predicting the seismic hazard in various segments of Himalayas.     

Slip sense inversion on active strike-slip faults in southwest Japan and its implications for Cenozoic tectonic evolution

Analyses of deflected river channels, offset of basement rocks, and fault rock structures reveal that slip sense inversion occurred on major active strike-slip faults in southwest Japan such as the Yamasaki and Mitoke fault zones and the Median Tectonic Line (MTL). Along the Yamasaki and Mitoke fault zones, small-size rivers cutting shallowly mountain slopes and Quaternary terraces have been deflected sinistrally, whereas large-size rivers which deeply incised into the Mio-Pliocene elevated peneplains show no systematically sinistral offset or complicated hairpin-shaped deflection. When the sinistral offsets accumulated on the small-size rivers are restored, the large-size rivers show residual dextral deflections. This dextral offset sense is consistent with that recorded in the pre-Cenozoic basement rocks. S–C fabrics of fault gouge and breccia zone developed in the active fault zones show sinistral shear sense compatible with earthquake focal mechanisms, whereas those of the foliated cataclasite indicate a dextral shear sense. These observations show that the sinistral strike-slip shear fabrics were overprinted on dextral ones which formed during a previous deformation phase. Similar topographic and geologic features are observed along the MTL in the central-eastern part of the Kii Peninsula. Based on these geomorphological and geological data, we infer that the slip sense inversion occurred in the period between the late Tertiary and mid-Quaternary period. This strike-slip inversion might result from the plate rearrangement consequent to the mid-Miocene Japan Sea opening event. This multidisciplinary study gives insight into how active strike-slip fault might evolves with time.     

Current accelerating seismic excitation along the northern boundary of the Aegean microplate

According to previous observations [Geophys. Res. Lett. 27 (2000) 3957], the generation of large (M≥7.0) earthquakes in the western part of the north Anatolian fault system (Marmara Sea) is followed by strong earthquakes along the Northern Boundary of the Aegean microplate (NAB: northwestermost Anatolia–northern Aegean–central Greece–Ionian islands). Therefore, it can be hypothesized that a seismic excitation along this boundary should be expected after the occurrence of the Izmit 1999 earthquake (M=7.6). We have applied the method of accelerating seismic crustal deformation, which is based on concepts of critical point dynamics in an attempt to locate more precisely those regions along the NAB where seismic excitation is more likely to occur. For this reason, a detailed parametric grid search of the broader NAB area was performed for the identification of accelerating energy release behavior.Three such elliptical critical regions have been identified with centers along this boundary. The first region, (A), is centered in the eastern part of this boundary (40.2°N, 27.2°E: southwest of Marmara), the second region, (B), has a center in the middle part of the boundary (38.8°N, 23.4°E: East Central Greece) and the third region, (C), in the westernmost part of the boundary (38.2°N, 20.9°E: Ionian Islands). The study of the time variation of the cumulative Benioff strain in two of the three identified regions (A and B) revealed that intense accelerating seismicity is observed especially after the occurrence of the 1999 Izmit mainshock. Therefore, it can be suggested that the seismic excitation, at least in these two regions, has been triggered by the Izmit mainshock.Estimations of the magnitudes and origin times of the expected mainshocks in these three critical regions have also been performed, assuming that the accelerating seismicity in these regions will lead to a critical point, that is, to the generation of mainshocks.     

Neotectonics of the upper Mississippi embayment

Although the upper Mississippi embayment is an area of low relief, the region has been subjected to tectonic influence throughout its history and continues to be so today. Tectonic activity can be recognized through seismicity patterns and geological indicators of activity, either those as a direct result of earthquakes, or longer term geomorphic, structural, and sedimentological signatures. The rate of seismic activity in the upper Mississippi embayment is generally lower than at the margins of tectonic plates; the embayment, however, is the most seismically active region east of the Rocky Mountains, with activity concentrated in the New Madrid seismic zone. This zone produced the very large New Madrid earthquakes of 1811 and 1812.

Geological and geophysical evidence of neotectonic activity in the upper Mississippi embayment includes faulting in the Benton Hills and Thebes Gap in Missouri, paleoliquefaction in the Western Lowlands of Missouri, subsurface faulting beneath and tilting of Crowley's Ridge in northeastern Arkansas and southeastern Missouri, subsurface faulting along the Crittenden County fault zone near Memphis, Tennessee, faulting along the east flank of the Tiptonville dome, and numerous indicators of historic and prehistoric large earthquakes in the New Madrid seismic zone.

Paleoearthquake studies in the New Madrid seismic zone have used trenching, seismic reflection, shallow coring, pedology, geomorphology, archaeology, and dendrochronology to identify and date faulting, deposits of liquefied sand, and areas of uplift and subsidence. The cause of today's relatively high rate of tectonic activity in the Mississippi embayment remains elusive. It is also not clear whether this activity rate is a short term phenomenon or has been constant over millions of years. Ongoing geodetic and geological studies should provide more insight as to the precise manner in which crustal strain is accumulating, and perhaps allow improved regional neotectonic models.     

Micro- and macroseismicity of the Dead Sea rift and off-coast eastern Mediterranean

The seismicity of Israel has been evaluated from documented earthquake records of the present century and two years of routine monitoring of microearthquake activity by means of eleven stations spreading from the Gulf of Elat to northern Galilee.

The Dead Sea rift asserts itself as the tectonic feature that accounts for the seismicity of our region. The activity peaks at zones where the fault branches sideways or at a junction with other fault systems. In particular, the crescent fault of Wadi Faria seems to be a zone of high strain accumulation. This is probably the site of many historical earthquakes which caused inland and coastal damage. It is thus found that the most active fault today which constitutes the greatest seismic risk to Israeli metropolitan areas extends along the Dead Sea rift from 31.2°N to 33.4°N.

The seismicity around the Dead Sea conforms with the proposed movement along en-echelon faults. While the southwest segment is presently inactive, most of the seismic activity there is limited to the neighbourhood of its eastern shore with extreme seismicity at its southern tip near the prehistorical site of Bab-a-Dara'a. The seismicity of the Arava is much lower than the Jordan-Dead Sea section. The seismicity of the Israeli coast was found to be somewhat higher than that of the Arava.     

Active strike-slip faulting history inferred from offsets of topographic features and basement rocks: a case study of the Arima–Takatsuki Tectonic Line,southwest Japan

Geological, geomorphological and geophysical data have been used to determine the total displacement, slip rates and age of formation of the Arima–Takatsuki Tectonic Line (ATTL) in southwest Japan. The ATTL is an ENE–WSW-trending dextral strike-slip fault zone that extends for about 60 km from northwest of the Rokko Mountains to southwest of the Kyoto Basin. The ATTL marks a distinct topographic boundary between mountainous regions and basin regions. Tectonic landforms typically associated with active strike-slip faults, such as systematically-deflected stream channels, offset ridges and fault scarps, are recognized along the ATTL. The Quaternary drainage system shows progressive displacement along the fault traces: the greater the magnitude of stream channel, the larger the amount of offset. The maximum dextral deflection of stream channels is 600–700 m. The field data and detailed topographic analyses, however, show that pre-Neogene basement rocks on both sides of the ATTL are displaced by about 16–18 km dextrally and pre-Mio–Pliocene elevated peneplains are also offset 16–17 km in dextral along the ATTL. This suggests that the ATTL formed in the period between the development of the pre-Mio–Pliocene peneplains and deflection of the Quaternary stream channels.The geological, geomorphological and geophysical evidence presented in this study indicates that (1) the ATTL formed after the mid-Miocene, (2) the ATTL has moved as a dextral strike-slip fault with minor vertical component since its formation to late Holocene and (3) the ATTL is presently active with dextral slip rates of 1–3 mm/year and a vertical component of >0.3 mm/year. The formation of the ATTL was probably related to the opening of the Japan Sea, which is the dominant tectonic event around Japan since mid-Miocene. The case study of the ATTL provides insight into understanding the tectonic history and relationship between tectonic landforms and structures in active strike-slip faults.     

Induced earthquakes in the Izu peninsula by the Izu-Hanto-Oki earthquake of 1974, Japan

Recently small earthquakes in the Izu Peninsula, central Japan, occurred in a region where differential strain, or shear strain on the nodal planes, may have been enhanced by the Izu-Hanto-oki earthquake of 1974 (M = 6.9 after JMA). It is suggested that the seismic ctivity was induced by the redistribution of strain accompanying the Izu-Hanto-oki earthquake. The activity from August, 1975, may have also been affected by an abnormal uplift in the northeastern part of the peninsula. Based on plausible models, the uplift caused the accumulation of differential strain in the focal region of the subsequent earthquakes. Quantitatively, this change of crustal strain was of the order of 10⁻⁶; it is ten times as much as the average annual accumulation. Consequently, the sudden or rapid change of strain was likely to have played an essential role in the subsequent seismic activity. This effect could be one of the factors which trigger a shallow intra-plate earthquake.     

A review of the seismicity and seismotectonics of Delhi and adjoining areas

Understanding of seismicity and seismotectonics of Delhi and adjoining areas is essential as these areas lie in the seismic zone IV and are geologically confined to the Delhi Fold Belt (DFB), juxtaposed to the Himalayan Frontal Thrust Fold Belt. Owing to the set-up, seismicity in this area is ascribed to the Himalayan Thrust System and activation of DFB Fault Systems. Considerably improved instrumental seismic monitoring in this area and data analysis had resolved three regions of pronounced seismicity that lie close to Sonepat, Rohtak and western part of the NCT Delhi, attributed to activation of various portions of the fault systems of the DFB. Based on seismic telemetry network data, the seismicity pattern analysis revealed that the Mahendragarh Dehradun Sub-Surface Fault (MDSSF) and Delhi Sargodha Ridge (DSR) are the two major zones of structural importance for the nucleation of seismicity in this region. These revelations were corroborated with the fault plane solution of the earthquakes. The dominant mechanism in nucleation of seismicity in DFB is the thrust with minor strike slip. The seismicity and seismotectonics of Delhi and adjoining areas endemic to activation of DFB is reviewed and presented in this paper.     

2015年尼泊尔8.1级大地震前后喜马拉雅带地震活动图像演变

针对2015年4月25日尼泊尔M8.1地震后喜马拉雅造山带的未来地震危险性问题,通过对喜马拉雅带历史大地震应变能释放和在尼泊尔地震发震前后的区域地震活动图像进行了分析研究。结果发现喜马拉雅带很可能已进入新-轮的地震活跃期。此次尼泊尔大地震不足以将喜马拉雅带中段的地壳应变能全部释放,喜马拉雅带中段的地震活动和藏南裂谷带地震活动具有密切的关联,在喜马拉雅带中段和藏南裂谷带还将有大地震活动。同时研究结果还显示现今在喜马拉雅带的东段存在阿萨姆围空区和不丹围空区,在喜马拉雅的西段出现噶尔围空区,喜马拉雅西段新德里和西藏接壤地区以及喀喇昆仑断裂上噶尔县地区地震危险性很高,喜马拉雅东段林芝山南地区以南的阿萨姆和不丹地区危险性很高,应引起重视。     

Space—time correlations between inland earthquakes in central Japan and great offshore earthquakes along the Nankai trough: Implication for destructive earthquake prediction

Based on the tectonic framework of central Japan, including the surrounding submarine areas, the space-time relationship between destructive inland earthquakes of magnitudesM 6.4 or greater and great offshore earthquakes along the Nankai trough was examined. From east to west, four tectonic lines are defined as lines linking active faults: the Itoigawa-Shizuoka tectonic line (ISTL), the Tsurugawan-Isewan tectonic line (TITL), the Hanaore-Kongo fault line (HKFL), and the Arima-Takatsuki tectonic line (ATTL). The TITL divides central Japan into the Chubu and Kinki districts, and probably extends southward to the Nankai trough. The Chubu district is subdivided into four blocks by boundary lines linking NW-SE trending active faults having left-lateral strike slip. In the Kinki district, N-S trending, active reverse, steep-dip faults are dominant in the triangular region north of the Median Tectonic line, between the TITL and HKFL, forming a basin-and-range province.

Starting from 1586 A.D., a seismic space-time sequence of high seismic activity in the Chubu district in which earthquake occurrence migrates from the eastern to western tectonic lines of central Japan was identified. The sequence also revealed that inland earthquakes preceded great offshore earthquakes which occurred along the Nankai trough. It was also found that a destructive earthquake tends to occur on the HKFL within 30 years after the occurrence on the TITL, and that the western Nankai trough generated great earthquakes ofM≥7.0 at intervals ranging from 8 to 49 years after the HKFL earthquakes. If the eastern Nankai trough is coupled with the western Nankai trough, a forthcoming greater earthquake measuringM 8.5 may be expected. Since such great earthquakes are always accompanied by large tsunamis, much attention should be focussed on possible tsunami disasters along the Pacific coast of central Japan.

Based on its tectonic structure, a tectonic model of central Japan is proposed. The seismic space-time sequence, which attempts to explain the cause of the sequential earthquake generation, is also discussed.     

Crustal structure, fault segmentation, and activity of the Median Tectonic Line in Shikoku, Japan

We conducted a seismic tomographic analysis to estimate the crustal structure beneath the Shikoku and Chugoku regions in Japan. The Philippine Sea slab (PHS slab) subducts continuously in a SE–NW direction beneath this region, and the crustal structure is complex. Furthermore, the Median Tectonic Line (MTL), one of the longest and most active arc-parallel fault systems in Japan (hereafter, the MTL active fault system), is located in this area, and the right-lateral strike–slip movement of this fault system is related to the oblique subduction of the PHS slab. The MTL active fault system has ruptured repeatedly during the last 10 000 years, and has high seismic potential. Our tomographic analysis clarified the heterogeneous crustal structure along the MTL active fault system. This fault system in Shikoku can be divided into two segments, an east segment and a west segment, on the basis of the velocity structure. This segmentation model is consistent with other such models that have been determined from geological and geomorphological data such as fault geometry, slip rate, and faulting history. This consistency suggests that the surface characteristics of the MTL active fault system are related to structural properties of the crust. In particular, a prominent low-velocity (low-V) zone is present in the lower crust beneath the east segment. Our tomographic images show that the lower crust structure beneath the east segment is obviously different from that of the other segment. Furthermore, this low-V zone may indicate the presence of fluid, possibly related to dehydration of the PHS slab. As the presence of fluid in the lower crust affects the activity of the fault, stress accumulation and the fault failure mechanism may differ between the two segments of the MTL active fault system.     

The Makassar Strait Tsunamigenic Region,Indonesia

The Makassar Strait region has had the highest frequency of historical tsunamievents for Indonesia. The strait has a seismic activity due to the convergenceof four tectonic plates that produces a complex mixture of structures. The maintsunamigenic features in the Makassar Strait are the Palu-Koro and Pasternostertransform fault zones, which form the boundaries of the Makassar trough.Analysis of the seismicity, tectonics and historic tsunami events indicatesthat the two fault zones have different tsunami generating characteristics.The Palu-Koro fault zone involves shallow thrust earthquakes that generatetsunami that have magnitudes that are consistent with the earthquakemagnitudes. The Pasternoster fault zone involves shallower strike-slipearthquakes that produce tsunami magnitudes larger than would normallybe expected for the earthquake magnitude. The most likely cause for theincreased tsunami energy is considered to be submarine landslidesassociated with the earthquakes. Earthquakes from both fault zonesappear to cause subsidence of the west coast of Sulawesi Island.The available data were used to construct a tsunami hazard map whichidentifies the highest risk along the west coast of Sulawesi Island.The opposite side of the Makassar Strait has a lower risk because it isfurther from the historic tsunami source regions along the Sulawesicoast, and because the continental shelf dissipates tsunami wave energy.The greatest tsunami risk for the Makassar Strait is attributed tolocally generated tsunami due to the very short travel times.