Collaborative Research: Collection of Open Data for Broadband Seismological Observations of Aftershocks of the February 27, 2010 Chilean Earthquake

University Of Florida, Gainesville FL

Investigators

Abstract

The magnitude 8.8 earthquake off the coast of Chile on February 27, 2010 is the fifth largest megathrust earthquake ever to be recorded and provides an unprecedented opportunity to advance our understanding of megathrust earthquakes and associated phenomena. An array of 60 portable, broadband seismic stations will be deployed in the aftershock zone for approximately six months as a collaborative effort, involving scientific leadership from academic institutions like the University of Florida, University of Arizona, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and the facilities of IRIS/PASSCAL/USArray, to collect an open community data set. The deployments and subsequent data collection and research will be carried out in close collaboration with the University of Chile in Santiago and other international groups installing seismic and geodetic instrumentation in the rupture area. Recent advances in understanding episodic tremors and slow slip events at the down-dip edge of megathrust rupture zones are reshaping our thinking about subduction zone dynamics. The 2010 Chile earthquake provides an excellent opportunity to collect important observations above the seismogenic zone, the deeper episodic tremor regions, and in the down-going and over-riding plates. This segment of the Chile subduction zone has similarities with Cascadia and Alaska (shallow dip, sediments in the trench, and history of great earthquakes) and can provide important information for comparative studies. An energetic aftershock sequence will likely to continue for many months. The goal of the deployment is to produce an open community data product for the 2010 Chile earthquake for a large range of science projects. A community-wide coordinated approach will provide the best quality data set that can be utilized immediately by a wide range of PIs and institutions around the world. This award is supported by THe Earth Sciences Division of the Geoscience Directorate and the Office of International Science and Engineering, Americas Program.