Geology topics

Research about Chile, Peru

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including Chile, Peru.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2015

The Iquique earthquake sequence of April 2014: Bayesian modeling accounting for prediction uncertainty

The subduction zone in northern Chile is a well-identified seismic gap that last ruptured in 1877. On 1 April 2014, this region was struck by a large earthquake following a two week long series of foreshocks. This study combines a wide range of observations, including geodetic, tsunami, and seismic data, to produce a reliable kinematic slip model of the M w =8.1 main shock and a static slip model of the M w =7.7 aftershock. We use a novel Bayesian modeling approach that accounts for uncertainty in the Green's functions, both static and dynamic, while avoiding nonphysical regularization. The results reveal a sharp slip zone, more compact than previously thought, located downdip of the foreshock sequence and updip of high-frequency sources inferred by back-projection analysis. Both the main shock and the M w =7.7 aftershock did not rupture to the trench and left most of the seismic gap unbroken, leaving the possibility of a future large earthquake in the region.

Geophysical Research Letters↗

USGS1981

Estimation of depth to magnetic source using maximum entropy power spectra, with application to the Peru-Chile Trench

Estimations of the depth to magnetic sources using the power spectrum of magnetic anomalies generally require long magnetic profiles. The method developed here uses the maximum entropy power spectrum (MEPS) to calculate depth to source on short windows of magnetic data; resolution is thereby improved. The method operates by dividing a profile into overlapping windows, calculating a maximum entropy power spectrum for each window, linearizing the spectra, and calculating with least squares the various depth estimates. The assumptions of the method are that the source is two dimensional and that the intensity of magnetization includes random noise; knowledge of the direction of magnetization is not required. The method is applied to synthetic data and to observed marine anomalies over the Peru-Chile Trench. The analyses indicate a continuous magnetic basement extending from the eastern margin of the Nazca plate and into the subduction zone. The computed basement depths agree with acoustic basement seaward of the trench axis, but deepen as the plate approaches the inner trench wall. This apparent increase in the computed depths may result from the deterioration of magnetization in the upper part of the ocean crust, possibly caused by compressional disruption of the basaltic layer. Landward of the trench axis, the depth estimates indicate possible thrusting of the oceanic material into the lower slope of the continental margin.

Memoir of the Geological Society of America↗

USGS1970

Mechanism of the Chilean Earthquakes of May 21 and 22, 1960

The Chilean earthquake sequence of May 21–22, 1960, was accompanied by linear zones of tectonic warping, including both uplift and subsidence relative to sea level. The region involved is more than 200 km wide and about 1000 km long, and lies along the continental margin between latitude 37° and 48° S. Significant horizontal strains accompanied the vertical movements in parts of the subsided zone for which triangulation data are available. Displacements were initiated near the northern end of the deformed region during the opening earthquake of the sequence (M s ≅ 7.5) on May 21 at 10h 02m 50s GMT and were extended over the remainder of the region during the culminating shock (M s ≅ 8.5) on May 22 at 19h llm 17s GMT. During the latter event, sudden uplift of adjacent portions of the continental shelf and much or all of the continental slope apparently generated the destructive tsunami that immediately followed the main shock. Available data suggest that the primary fault or zone of faulting along which displacement occurred probably is a complex thrust fault roughly 1000 km long and at least 60 km wide; it dips eastward at a moderate angle beneath the continental margin and intersects the surface on the continental slope. Dip slip required to satisfy the surface displacements is at least 20 m and perhaps as large as 40 m. There is some evidence that there was a minor component of right-lateral slip on the fault plane.

GSA Bulletin↗

USGS1968

Spreading of the ocean floor: Undeformed sediments in the Peru-Chile Trench

None of the expected stratigraphic and structural effects of a spreading sea floor have been imposed on the sedimentary fill of the Peru-Chile Trench. During at least the last several million years, and perhaps during much of the Cenozoic, the trench has not been affected by an oceanic crust thrusting under the continent.

Peru-Chile Trench↗