The project

Despite the dramatic impact of earthquakes, the physics of their onset and the short-term behavior of fault are still poorly understood. Using existing high quality seismic observations, we propose to develop a novel functional imaging of the brittle crust to clarify not only structural properties but also the dynamics of faults.

We will analyze spatio-temporal changes of elastic properties around fault zones to highlight the interplay between changes in the host rocks and fault slip. Imaging the damage structure around faults and its evolution requires new seismological methods. With novel methods to image the highly heterogeneous fault regions, we will provide multi-scale descriptions of fault zones, including their laterally variable thicknesses and depth dependence. In parallel we will image temporal changes of seismic velocities and scattering strength. External natural forcing terms (e.g. tides, seasonal hydrologic loadings) will be modeled to isolate the signals of tectonic origin. This will also allow us to monitor the evolving seismic susceptibility, i.e. a measure of the proximity to a critical state of failure.

Scientific-Overview