Noriko Tsumura

Variations of fluid pressure within the subducting oceanic crust and slow earthquakes

[1] We show fine-scale variations of seismic velocities and converted teleseismic waves that reveal the presence of zones of high-pressure fluids released by progressive metamorphic dehydration reactions in the subducting Philippine Sea plate in Tokai district, Japan. These zones have a strong correlation with the distribution of slow earthquakes, including long-term slow slip (LTSS) and low-frequency earthquakes (LFEs). Overpressured fluids in the LTSS region appear to be trapped within the oceanic crust by an impermeable cap rock in the fore-arc, and impede intraslab earthquakes therein. In contrast, fluid pressures are reduced in the LFE zone, which is deeper than the centroid of the LTSS, because there fluids are able to infiltrate into the narrow corner of the mantle wedge, leading to mantle serpentinization. The combination of fluids released from the subducting oceanic crust with heterogeneous fluid transport properties in the hanging wall generates variations of fluid pressures along the downgoing plate boundary, which in turn control the occurrence of slow earthquakes.

Delamination‐wedge structure beneath the Hidaka Collision Zone, central Hokkaido, Japan inferred from seismic reflection profiling

In the Hidaka Collision Zone of Hokkaido, northern Japan, the Kuril island arc collides with the northeast Japan arc. In order to better understand the collision process, new high resolution information about lithospheric structure was obtained by means of a series of seismic reflection surveys. These seismic profiles reveal distinct zones of seismic lamination in the lower crust of the Kuril arc. The upper portion of the lower crust is characterized by numerous east-dipping reflectors. In contrast, west-dipping reflectors dominate the lower part of the lower crust. From this reflector configuration, the lower crust of the Kuril arc is interpreted to be delaminated by the collision. The geometry of delamination is consistent with other geophysical data, as well as the peak metamorphic grades exposed in the Hidaka mountains. As earthquakes indicate that delamination here is ongoing, the Hidaka Collision Zone represents an active model for continental growth by arc accretion with delamination of lower arc crust.

Mapping of a magma reservoir beneath Nikko‐Shirane volcano in northern Kanto, Japan, from travel time and seismogram shape anomalies

Since ray paths of direct P and S waves are largely distorted in a magma body, a seismic shadow zone is created. However, scattered or diffracted waves with very small amplitudes can arrive in the shadow zone because their ray paths are different from those of the direct waves. They become the first arrival in the shadow zone. More than 100 seismologists from many institutions in Japan joined together to perform an intensified seismic study in the Nikko-Ashio area, northern Kanto, Japan. It was suggested that there is a magma body beneath Mount Nikko-Shirane, an active volcano, that causes a seismic shadow zone, because P waves recorded by the joint observation are anomalously attenuated in cases when they propagate through a zone beneath the eastern part of the volcano. We developed a new method to estimate the shape of the anomalous attenuation zone by proposing the use of a new parameter, the energy ratio between directP or S waves and their coda waves, to discriminate whether or not each observation station is located inside or outside the shadow zone. We estimated the shape of the anomalous attenuation zone by dividing the study area into blocks with dimensions of 2 km × 2 km × 1 km and using the energy ratio data of P waves for local events. The obtained result shows the existence of an anomalous attenuation zone in the area east of Nikko-Shirane volcano with a diameter of about 10 km at depths greater than 3 km. It was also found from plots of deep event seismograms recorded by the same observation that travel times are delayed by about 0.7 s for ray paths crossing the anomalous attenuation zone obtained by the energy ratio data. This value requires the P wave velocity in the anomalous zone to be less than that of the surrounding crustal material by at least about 30%, suggesting the existence of a huge magma reservoir in this area.

Seismic reflection profiling across the seismogenic fault of the 1995 Kobe earthquake, southwestern Japan

Abstract The 1995 Kobe (Hyogo-ken Nanbu) earthquake (Mw 6.9) surface rupture appeared along the Nojima fault on the northwest coast of Awaji Island. The aftershock epicentres in northern Awaji Island are not aligned with the surface faulting. suggesting a complicated active fault structure. To reveal the structure of the seismogenic fault and its associated active faults, a perpendicular 41.6-km-long seismic reflection survey was undertaken across northern Awaji Island. The Trans-Awaji seismic reflection profile reveals the fault geometry beneath the area. Awaji Island was uplifted by movement on the Kariya fault along its east coast, which produced an asymmetry in Neogene basin that is shallower in the western part than in the eastern part. The faults beneath Awaji Island show a ‘pop-up’ or a ‘positive flower structure’ and the basement is bounded by two active faults, the Nojima along the west coast and the Kariya along the east coast. Both are high-angle, reverse faults with a right-lateral, strike-slip movement. The cluster of aftershocks in the northern part of Awaji Island has a Y-shaped hypocentral distribution. The Nojima and Kariya faults thus appear to connect in the middle of the upper crust at about 7 km depth, forming a seismogenic master fault. Three major seismic events have been reported on the active faults in northern Awaji Island: a prehistoric event dated 2000 yr BP, the 1596 Keicho-Fushimi earthquake, and the 1995 Kobe earthquake. Based on the structural relationship of the active faults that we observed in this study, we suggest that these events occurred on the proposed master fault at mid-crustal depth.