Kinematic Analysis of Fault-Slip Data: Journal of Structural Geology
Kinematic Analysis of Fault-Slip Data: Journal of Structural Geology
Kinematic Analysis of Fault-Slip Data: Journal of Structural Geology
00
Printed in Great Britain © 1990 Pergamon Press plc
Department of Geological Sciences and Institute for the Study of the Continents, Cornell University, Ithaca,
NY 14853-1504, U.S.A.
Abstract--An array of graphical and numerical techniques facilitate qualitative and quantitative kinematic
analysis of fault-slip data. Graphical contouring and Bingham statistics of the shortening and extension axes for
kinematically scale-invariant faults characterize the distributions and orientations of the principal axes of average
incremental strain. Numerical analysis by means of moment tensor summation yields the orientations and
magnitudes of the principal strain axes as well as rotational information. Field data can be weighted for moment
tensor summation using measurements of fault gouge thickness and/or fault plane width, from which average
displacement and fault area can be estimated. The greatest uncertainties of kinematic analysis derive from
assumptions about the weighting of the data, the effects of post-faulting rotation on the data, the degree to which
sampling is representative of the entire fault population, and the spatial homogeneity of strain. These
assumptions can be evaluated for a specific data set. Geometric criteria can distinguish the kinematic
heterogeneities produced by triaxial deformation, anisotropy reactivation, strain compatibility constraints
and/or multiple deformations. Strain compatibility, material anisotropy and heterogeneity may be characterized
by integrating the results of kinematic and dynamic fault-slip analyses.
are also presented. Finally, we compare the results of describing its kinematics by its scalar Mg and dividing by
fault-slip analyses of the 1971 San Fernando, California, the volume (V) of region of interest:
earthquake sequence using graphical and numerical Mg
kinematic methods as well as graphical and numerical Vuij -'- ~ (/~iti/). (3)
dynamic methods, and evaluate the strengths and weak-
nesses of each method. Single subscripts in i andj indicate vector quantities and
double subscripts in i and j indicate tensor quantities, all
in Cartesian co-ordinates using the Einstein summation
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND notation. A convention using the sense-of-slip is necess-
ary to uniquely express tl and ti. The Vu for all observed
The calculation of the incremental strain of a region faults are then added, yielding the average incremental
due to faults within it has already been solved for displacement gradient due to all of the faults studied
seismological problems (Kostrov 1974, Molnar 1983). (Vut):
The seismic moment (Mo; see Table 1 for symbols) of Vu~i = ~" Vuij.
(4)
earthquakes is simply related to average displacement
(Uave) and fault surface area (n) (Aki 1966): faults
Because of the small strain assumption, Vu t can be
Mo = I~Uaven, (1) decomposed into symmetric and antisymmetric parts,
where/~ is the elastic shear modulus. Closely related is yielding the incremental strain and rotation tensors,
the geometric moment (Sammis et al. 1987), a purely respectively. The eigenvectors of the symmetric part of
kinematic measure of deformation magnitude which Vut give the orientations of the principal incremental
simply omits the shear modulus: strain axes and the eigenvalues give their magnitudes.
Jackson & McKenzie (1988) argue that the asymmetry
Mg = Uaven. (2) of the above tensor is an artifact of Molnar's (1983)
If slip on the three-dimensional array of faults is much implicit assumption that the co-ordinate system is
smaller than the dimensions of the region, the average attached to the fault; thus the region, not the fault,
incremental displacement gradient (Vu) accommodated rotates. This assumption cannot be evaluated with fault-
by each fault can be calculated (Molnar 1983, who slip data alone and therefore they prefer Kostrov's
referred to this quantity as the "asymmetric moment (1974) symmetric tensor. This distinction is not as im-
tensor"). The tensor describing the kinematics of a fault portant as it first appears, because Kostrov's tensor and
is asymmetric because of the inherent rotation of simple the symmetric part of Molnar's tensor are identical.
shear deformation, and is calculated by forming the diad Thus, the asymmetric tensor potentially contains more
product of the unit average displacement vector (ti) and information, because its antisymmetric component de-
the unit normal vector to the fault plane (t~). Vu is scribes either the rotation of the region or the rotation of
determined for each fault by multiplying the tensor the faults.
Symbol Parameter
to zero as a function of position along a fault. However, Fault surface trace length usually is measured from air
consistent estimates can be made by choosing a tabular photographs or maps rather than measured directly in
part of each fault zone for measurement of gouge thick- the field. Because the complicated regions near fault tip
hess. The possible presence of unidentified horses pres- lines are commonly small compared with the length of
ents another problem, particularly for large faults in the fault, the uncertainty in trace length is not severe.
incompletely exposed regions. Drag folding and atten- More difficult is the assessment of the fault geometry at
dant bedding-parallel slip pose an additional problem depth and in the rock now eroded away, which is
for large faults, because they can obscure the boundaries necessary to relate fault surface trace length (which is
of the gouge zone by deforming adjacent wall rock. generally a chord in a simple elliptical fault model) to w.
Models of fault growth (Sammis et al. 1987, Cox & For many faults there is no alternative to assuming that
Scholz 1988, Power et al. 1988) predict a linear increase they are the same, which if incorrect will always lead to
of local fault gouge thickness with local displacement an underestimation of w and therefore of umax.
(u). Data from cataclastic faults with u ranging from To use one of the empirical relationships above in
10 -2 to 104 m fit these models to within an order of estimating the deformation magnitude of a fault (prefer-
magnitude (Scholz 1987, Hull 1988, this paper): ably using locally determined constants), one must first
relate t/ave with u and/or Umax, and also somehow evalu-
u = cit, (5)
ate n. The fractal nature of faulting (e.g. King 1983,
where cl is an empirical constant. We determined an Scholz & Aviles 1986, Turcotte 1986) suggests that the
average value of cl = 70 for Tertiary red beds of north- displacement functions of faults (u as a function of
western Argentina in an environment of horizontal position on a fault surface) might be scale-invariant.
shortening (Fig. 2); we will use this value below. Hull Detailed studies show that this is generally true (Mur-
(1988) independently determined a value of 63 for a aoka & Kamata 1983, Higgs & Williams 1987, Walsh &
wide variety of rock types including Mesozoic sand- Watterson 1987), although no data have been evaluated
stones deformedin horizontal extension, from faults with kilometers of displacement. This
Elliott (1976) suggested that, empirically, the surface implies a simple linear relationship between Umax and
trace length of a fault in plan view is linearly pro- t/ave:
portional to maximum displacement (Umax). Walsh &
Watterson (1988) argue that maximum displacement is //ave C3/'/max,
= (7)
proportional to the square of maximum fault plane where c3 is a constant which depends on the shape of the
width (w), defined as the maximum dimension of a fault displacement function. For example, c3 = 2/3 for an
plane normal to its slip direction. They show that elliptical displacement function and c3 = 1/3 for a tri-
Elliott's data and newly collected data are empirically angular displacement function (Fig. 3). Faults tend to
consistent, at least for fault widths under 100 km, with have displacement functions intermediate between
the following relationship: elliptical and triangular (Muraoka & Kamata 1983,
C2 -~
Uma x = ~ W-, (6) (a) u
-2,
, r
I"max
-3 . , - , , • , -
Higgs & Williams 1987, Walsh & Watterson 1987), so we use of estimates from the scaling relationships is unjusti-
will use c3 = 1/2 below, fled.
Characterizing the relationship between u and uave is
less trivial. If one were to measure u at many points on a
fault in a random way and average them, the result APPLICATION OF KINEMATIC METHODS AND
would be a good approximation of uav¢. In fact, if one TESTS OF ASSUMPTIONS
were to measure u at only one randomly chosen point on
a fault with an elliptical displacement function, the The accuracy of analytical results from kinematic
probability is 89% that u is within 50% of uav~ (Fig. 3). fault-slip analysis is subject to uncertainties which prob-
When the error is greater than 50%, Ua~e is always ably depend less on the accuracy of field measurements
underestimated. Because the displacements observed than they do on the validity of assumptions: the weight-
for faults in typical arrays vary by several orders of ing of fault-slip data, possible reorientation of the fault-
magnitude, errors associated with assuming that tt is slip data, the degree to which sampling is representative
statistically the same as Ua~e should be relatively small, of the entire fault population, and, in a limited sense, the
Thus, we assume: spatial homogeneity of strain. We compare the methods
and illustrate some tests of assumptions with a data set
Uave ~ U. (8) collected in a trial study area, known as Quebrada
Kanamori & Anderson (1975) successfully explained Carachi (Fig. 4) in the Andes of northwestern Argentina
several empirically determined scaling laws of earth- (Marrett 1990). Fifty-nine measurements were made of
quakes using a model in which the surface area of slip is 46 faults (large faults were measured in several different
proportional to the square of average slip. Earthquakes places). Local displacement was measured for 23 of the
and faults are not identical phenomena, because a large faults and local fault gouge thickness was measured for
fault is the product of many earthquakes which have all faults studied. The results of moment tensor sum-
occurred in approximately the same place. The results of mation for the data set from the study area, as well as for
Walsh & Watterson (1988) imply that n is linearly subgroups of the data defined by ranges of u, are shown
proportional to/.lave, as seen by expressing n in terms of in Table 2. The graphical method shows simple point
w and substituting equations (6) and (7): maxima of shortening and extension (Figs. 5a & b)
~w 2 ~/A2 which are similar to the results of moment tensor sum-
n. . . . Ua~e, (9) mation (Table 2).
4e 4ec2c 3
~ 65 °
' 45'W
,
•i:i ::::::::::::::
' '.'.'.'.'.'.'.'."
/ 24°
5 km
Alluvium, landslides,
~--~ stream terraces,
take sediments
Continental dastic
strata (upper unit)
Continental ctastic
strata (lower unit)
Salta Group
Mesbn Group,
Santa Victoria Group
Tastil Granite
Puncoviscana
Formation
horizontal axes can be characterized for a given data set slip directions can be inconclusive because many data
by using a fold test similar to those used in paleomagne- sets with highly variable fault and/or slip orientations
tic studies. In the fold test, the kinematic axes are have coherent kinematics. If the unfolding produces
rotated by the amount necessary to return local bedding kinematics which are more coherent than the kinematics
to horizontal. Unfolding only the fault planes or only the of the faults in present geographic orientation, then
T a b l e 2. C o m p a r i s o n of results f r o m m o m e n t t e n s o r s u m m a t i o n ( w e i g h t e d by fault g o u g e t h i c k n e s s )
a n d l i n k e d B i n g h a m d i s t r i b u t i o n statistical analysis of fault-slip d a t a from Q u e b r a d a Carachi.
D i r e c t i o n s given in t r e n d a n d p l u n g e
Sampling test
2 ::i::ii!
...... o 60
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::......
:::: o
log N " " '~ • ~, ~ ; ~ i ~i~i!i!~!i!!!ii!i!i::!i~ii::.. ~=
o 40
O
"'":':'::::~ii~ u " ~ 20
1 8
0 o =
0,.
4 6 8 10 0
10gMg kn3} g ~° o~' c~- °o.
Fig. 6. Sampling test of fault-slip data from Quebrada Carachi (46 ~o_ ~
faults measured). Log-log plot of geometric moment (Mg) against the Displacement {m}
number of faults (N) having a geometric moment greater than ob-
served values of Mg. The line represents a model assuming that the two Fig. 7. Bar graph of percent of total geometric moment sampled for
largest faults observed are in fact the largest two faults in the study area faults with displacements of different orders of magnitude at Que-
and that the entire fault population fits power-law number-geometric brada Carachi, assuming that the two largest faults observed are in fact
moment relationship. Height of shaded area represents degree of the largest two faults in the study area and that the entire fault
undersampling, population fits a power-law number-geometric moment relationship.
line and the points representing the observed faults is a measurements from a region of northwestern Argentina
measure of the faults that should exist but which were about 400 km long and 200 km wide show remarkably
not measured. For example, there should be 13 faults little variation during the Tertiary and a more complex
having Mg > 10s m 3 but only five were measured in the but coherent pattern during the Quaternary (Marrett et
field, so about 38% of those faults were sampled, al. 1989).
For B = 0.38,
triaxial deformation, anisotropy reactivation, strain served in the contour diagram of the data. (Fig. 10d).
compatibility constraints and/or multiple deformations. Poles to faults and slip directions commonly scatter
Geologic evidence independent of fault-slip data pro- much more than the kinematic axes determined from
vides the clearest indications of these mechanisms, them. The fault sets and slip directions have relatively
although the absence of such evidence for a specific poor orthorhombic symmetry (Fig. 10e)which is much
mechanism does not demonstrate its inactivity. Graphi- closer to that of two conjugate pairs, one with dip-slip
cal analysis of fault-slip data may allow more complete faults striking NW-SE and the other with dip-slip faults
interpretation of kinematically complex faulting be- striking NE-SW. Thus, triaxial deformation apparently
cause each mechanism produces distinct patterns of does not explain the kinematic heterogeneity in this data
poles-to-faults and slip directions (Fig. 9) which may be set.
used to qualitatively assess the importance of each
mechanism in a specific case. Anisotropy reactivation
The data previously discussed were kinematically
homogeneous (Figs. 5a & b). However, data from a Simple regional deformations can reactivate local,
larger area in NW Argentina (Fig. 4) are kinematically pre-existing anisotropies that are not ideally oriented for
heterogeneous because there is a bimodal pattern of accommodating the overall deformation, thus produc-
shortening axes (Figs. 10a & b). This area, known as ing locally heterogeneous triaxial deformation. Aniso-
Quebrada del Toro (Marrett 1990), includes the study tropies which exist only in units beneath those of interest
area previously discussed, can nevertheless control the kinematics in the overlying,
previously unfractured rock. Because the orientation of
Triaxial deformation a pre-existing anisotropy is arbitrary with respect to the
reactivating deformation, slip on the plane of anisotropy
Reches (1983) showed that triaxial deformation pro-
ducesthreeorfoursetsoffauhsarrangedwithortho- ~ ~
rhombic symmetry and an equal number of distinct slip
directions, also having orthorhombic symmetry (Fig.
9a). Such patterns have been observed in the field and in
experiments (Donath 1962, Aydin & Reches 1982,
Reches & Dieterich 1983, Krantz 1988). The degree to
which the model of Reches (1983) fits a given data set
provides an indication of how important triaxial defor-
mation was in the development of heterogeneous kine- Shortening Axes Extension Axes
(e) (d)
Fig. I0. (a) & (b) Fault-slip kinematics of data from Quebrada del
Toro, northwestern Argentina (N = 222). (c) Poles to faults and (d)
slip directions for data from Quebrada del Toro. Note the greater
coherence of kinematic axes than of poles to faults or slip directions.
(e) Analyses of triaxial deformation and strain compatibility for fault-
slip data from Quebrada del Toro. Maxima of poles to faults in open
Strain Compatibility Multiple Deformations dots, fault sets in great circles (different conjugate sets represented by
different width lines), and maxima of slip directions in solid dots. (f)
Fig. 9. Models of mechanisms that can produce kinematic heterogen- Analysisof anisotropy reactivation for fault-slip data from Quebrada
eity. Great circles represent sets of fault planes, open dots represent del Toro. Contour diagram of poles to bedding (N = 248) of green-
poles to fault sets, and solid dots represent dominant slip directions of schist basement underlying faulted Tertiary strata at Quebrada del
fault sets. Toro (Omarini 1983).
982 R. MARRETrand R. W. ALLMENDINGER
may be unsystematically oblique compared with slip on completely explain their slip directions and hence can-
newly forming faults. Thus, reactivation of a basement not completely explain their kinematic heterogeneity.
anisotropy should produce a fault set and slip directions
which are not related to the other fault sets by a conju- Multiple deformations
gate or orthorhombic symmetry (Fig. 9b). Anisotropy
reactivation may produce a positive correlation between Multiple deformations commonly produce hetero-
the orientations of a fault set and basement anisotropy geneous fault-slip kinematics. A special kind of aniso-
or between spatial changes in fault-slip kinematics and tropy reactivation can result when pre-existing faults are
changes in basement anisotropy orientations, reactivated, generating a second set of striae. Thus,
In the study area, a sequence of complexly folded, individual faults may show evidence for slip in two or
greenschist facies flysch, in which bedding planes define more different directions and a single set of faults may
the most important anisotropies (Fig. 10f), lies un- have widely varying slip directions (Fig. 9d). The fault-
conformably beneath the faulted strata (Omarini 1983). slip kinematics of one deformation might also be incom-
Comparison of basement bedding poles with poles to patible with the kinematics of another deformation.
faults (Fig. 10c) shows that the E-plungingpoles to faults Independent evidence for multiple deformations in-
match basement anisotropy somewhat, but the west- clude systematic cross-cutting relations between fault
plunging poles to faults are unrelated to basement aniso- sets and mutually exclusive chronologic constraints on
tropy. The two fault sets with poles plunging to the west fault sets.
are not conjugates because their slip directions are not The slip directions for NW-dipping faults in the study
appropriately oriented (Fig. 10e). Therefore anisotropy area have highly variable slip directions, while the slip
reactivation alone cannot produce the observed kinema- directions for SW-dipping faults are mostly coherent
tic heterogeneity. (Fig. 11). This indicates that the NW-dipping faults have
been reactivated whereas the SW-dipping faults have
Strain compatibility not been. Some of the larger NW-dipping faults have
multiple sets of fault striae indicating both dip- and
Strain compatibility between two differently oriented strike-slip movement, confirming the inference based on
faults or fault segments requires that they both must slip kinematic analysis. Furthermore, it appears that some of
parallel to their line of intersection if no additional the NW-dipping faults were reactivated during the
structures form. A larger difference in the orientations movement of the SW-dipping faults and thus suggests
of the faults or fault segments produces a larger differ- that the former are older than the latter. Strain compati-
ence in their kinematics. This constraint will result in bility may have controlled the slip directions of both
multiple sets of faults which have similar slip directions fault sets during the later phase of deformation.
(Fig. 9c). Geometric analysis of the fault orientations and slip
Two slip direction maxima for the data from the study directions for faults in the study area suggest that mul-
area correspond well with intersections of fault sets (Fig. tiple deformations are mostly responsible for producing
10e). A detailed comparison of slip directions for the the kinematic heterogeneity observed there. This result
faults which most tightly define the NW- and SW- is consistent with field relations: the younger NW-and
dipping fault sets (Fig. 11) shows that the SW-dipping SE-striking faults consistently cut the older NE- and
faults have mostly coherent slip which is subparallel to SW-striking faults wherever both are present (e.g. Fig.
the intersection of the fault sets. The NW-dipping faults 4). Based on this criterion, the data can be separated
have quite variable slip, some subparallel with the fault objectively into two kinematically homogeneous sub-
set intersection but most faults have more nearly dip-slip groups representing the two phases of deformation (Fig.
movement. Strain compatibility may have controlled 12).
some of the slip on these fault sets, but it cannot
t,.
COMPARISON OF DYNAMIC AND KINEMATIC
in terms of the geometry of the fault system. The results Analytical Models Poles to Nodal Planes
of the various analyses are shown in Table 3 and Fig. 13.
The results of grid search stress inversion (Fig. 13a
a n d T a b l e 3) (Gephart & Forsyth 1984) a n d t h e i t e r a t i v e Fig. 13. Analyses of fault-slip data from 1971 San Fernando, Califor-
n u m e r i c a l s t r e s s i n v e r s i o n (Table 3) (Julien & C o r n e t nia, earthquake sequence (N = 76). Best models indicated with open
1987) are virtually identical. The results of P-T dihedra boxes for cq, open dots for 03, solid boxes for shortening directions,
and solid dots for extension directions. (a) Results of grid search stress
stress inversion are similar to the results of the other inversion with 99% confidence area in light shadin~ruling and 95%
stress inversions, both in terms of the directional distri- confidence area in dark shading/ruling (analysis provided by J.
butions of good s t r e s s m o d e l s (Fig. 13b) and the best Gephart). (b) Results of P-T dihedra stress inversion with overlap of
m o d e l (Table 3). The m o m e n t t e n s o r summation (Table 56 dihedra in light shading/ruling and overlap of 66 dihedra in dark
shading/ruling. (c) Shortening and (d) extension axes analyses of
3) is dominated by the main shock, which was signifi- graphical kinematic method. (e) Comparison of best models. 1: grid
cantly different than many of the aftershocks. Because search stress inversion (Gephart & Forsyth 1984); 2: iterative numeri-
cal stress inversion (Julien & Cornet 1987); 3: P-T dihedra stress
of this, the kinematic scale-invariance assumption of the inversion; 4: moment tensor summation; 5 and 6: graphical kinematic
graphical analysis is not rigorously met. Contours of the analysis. (f) Poles to faults and slip directions for 1971 San Fernando
shortening and extension axes (Figs. 13c & d) are domi- earthquake sequence data. Contour diagram of poles to nodal planes
of fault-plane solutions (N = 152; each fault-plane solution has two
nated by the numerous aftershocks and appear similar to nodal planes). Open box represents the pole to fault of the main event
the stress analysis methods. The graphical analysis does, and the solid box represents the slip direction of the main event.
Table 3. Comparison of best models from analyses of fault-slip data from 1971 San
Fernando earthquake sequence (N = 76). Results of grid search stress inversion and
numerical iterative stress inversion from Gephart & Forsyth (1984) and Julien & Cornet
(1987), respectively. Directions given in trend and plunge
Thrust Shortening Thrust Extension planes of the fault plane solutions show a moderately N-
~ ~ plunging point maximum and a distinct girdle with
moderately SSW- and shallowly SE-plunging maxima
(Fig. 130. The SSW- and SE-plunging maxima indicate
the orientations of the main fault and the lateral ramp,
respectively, and the N-plunging maximum indicates
their common slip direction. Two kinematically homo-
geneous subsets of the data can be obtained by separat-
J,~_____...,"'-.--r-- . ' ~ ing the faults with SSW-plunging poles from faults with
~~Z'---~_~~~ SE-plunging ones (Fig. 14 and Table 3).
The differences between dynamic and kinematic re-
~ ~ suits(Fig. 13e a n d T a b l e 3 ) might b e i n t e r p r e t e d i n
several ways: (1) the dynamic and/or kinematic methods
~,. s ~ . . - - ~ / / / ~ ~ may have failed; (2) their differences may be statistically
insignificant; or (3) strain might have been non-coaxial
~- with stress. The differences are not so great that one
(c' _.,..~ .=. must consider the analyses failures. Indeed, there are
considerable overlaps of acceptable models among the
results of grid search inversion, P-T dihedra inversion
and graphical kinematic analysis. Yet the consistency of
+ the dynamic analyses, both internally and with results
from adjacent areas in the Transverse Ranges and along
the San Andreas Fault (Jones 1988), may suggest that
the best models are more accurate than the statistics
indicate. If so, the San Fernando earthquake sequence
Ramp Shortening Ramp Extension
data represent strain which is non-coaxial with stress.
Fig. 14. Kinematically homogeneous subsets of fault-slip data from The simplest explanation of the non-coaxiality is that the
1971 San Fernando earthquake sequence. Data separated according to
whether they have a pole to nodal plane closer to the moderately SSW- strain compatibility constraint, imposed by the lateral
plunging maximum (N = 38) or the shallowly SE-plunging maximum ramp in the main fault, prevents slip from occurring in
(N = 38). (a) & (b) Kinematics of fault-plane solutions with SSW- the ideal direction.
plunging (thrust) nodal planes. (c) & (d) Kinematics of fault-plane
solutions with SE-plunging (lateral ramp) nodal planes. Bingham The kinematics of subsets of the aftershock popu-
distribution maxima of shortening and extension indicated with solid lation defined by local magnitude (M) ranges show that
boxes and dots, respectively. In center is a schematic structural both main fault andlateral ramp fault plane solutions are
contour map showing simplified contours, in kin, on the main fault
plane (modified from Whitcomb et al. 1973). Dark 0 contour rep- represented in all ranges of M < 5.0 (Fig. 15) but not
resents surface break, above. The main shock is the only event with M >5.0 for
which a fault plane solution was determined. The
hypothesis of scale-invariant fault kinematics seems to
however, display a bimodal distribution of extension break down at larger magnitudes, unless there was a
axes, hinting at an explanation, large lateral ramp event for which a fault plane solution
The differences between the results of the two kine- has not been determined. An unlocated coseismic event
matic analyses are a product of kinematic heterogeneity of M = 5.8 occurred 30 s after the main shock began
within the data set. Whitcomb et al. (1973) noted that (Hileman et al. 1975). This event may mark the begin-
two distinct kinds of fault plane solutions are common in ning of activity on the lateral ramp of the main fault once
the aftershock population: thrust events similar to the the dislocation tip propagated to it. If this is the case,
main shock and strike-slip events along a steeply NW- then the hypothesis of scale-invariant fault kinematics
dipping fault or segment of the main fault. The extension would be consistent with the data.
axes of the two kinds of fault plane solutions are suf- The various dynamic and kinematic methods of fault-
ficiently different that they produce the distinct maxima slip analysis differ in terms of assumptions, computa-
(Fig. 13d) whereas the shortening axes are similar (Fig. tional intensity, and usefulness. While it may be argued
13c). Because the results of moment tensor summation that the assumptions of kinematic analysis are not obvi-
are dominated by the main shock (thrust), they mostly ously better than those of dynamic analysis, it may be
reflect the kinematics of the thrust events, that the former are more readily testable. The P-T
Whitcomb et al. (1973) suggested that the presence of dihedra stress inversion and the graphical kinematic
a large lateral ramp in the main fault (Fig. 14) caused the method have the advantages that they are based on
kinematic heterogeneity of the San Fernando earth- simple graphical constructions. As such they are more
quake sequence data, invoking the mechanism referred suitable for preliminary analysis in the field than the
to here as strain compatibility (Fig. 9c). Aftershock other methods, which are to varying degrees computa-
locations and surface geologic data indicate that the tionally intensive. Methods which produce results in
main fault dips moderately to the NNE and that the graphical form (the grid search stress inversion, the P-T
lateral ramp dips steeply to the NW. Poles to the nodal dihedra stress inversion and the graphical kinematic
Kinematic analysis of fault-slip data 985
(a) ~ 4.0 < M < 4 . 9 ~ (b) A largely unexplored facet of fault-slip analysis is the
potential to evaluate strain compatibility, material
anisotropy, and material heterogeneity by integrating
+ dynamic and kinematic results, such as done in a quali-
tative way here for the San Fernando earthquake se-
quence. This emphasizes that dynamic and kinematic
analyses are complementary and that both types of
(c) , 3.5 < M < . 3 ~ . . . f ~ d ) analysis should be employed routinely in studies of fault-
slip data.
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Shortening Axes Extension Axes Aki, K. 1966. Generation and propagation of G waves from the
Fig. 15. Fault-slip kinematics of data from 1971 San Fernando earth- Niigata earthquake of June 16, 1964, 2, Estimation of earthquake
moment, released energy, and stress-strain drop from G wave
quake sequence representing different ranges of local magnitude (M). spectrum. Bull. Earthquake Res. Inst. Tokyo 44, 73--88.
Open boxes represent kinematics of the main event (M -- 6.4). (a) & Aleksandrowski, P. 1985. Graphical determination of principal stress
(b) Kinematics of events with 4.0 -< M --- 4.9 (N = 17). (c) & (d) directions for slickenside lineation populations: an attempt to
Kinematics of events with 3.5 -< M <- 3.9 (N = 30). (e) & (f) modify Arthaud's method. J. Struct. Geol. 7, 73-82.
Kinematics of events with 3.0 <- M <- 3.4 (N = 28). Anderson, E. M. 1951. The Dynamics o f Faulting and Dyke Formation
with Applications to Britain. Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh, U.K.
method) are more useful than those which provide only Angelier, J. 1984. Tectonic analysis of fault slip data sets. J. geophys.
Res. 89, 5835-5848.
a best model and no indication of the directional u n c e r - Angelier, J. & Mechler, P. 1977. Sur une methode graphique de
tainty. Graphical kinematic analysis may provide recherche descontraintesprincipalesegalment utilisable en tecton-
greater directional resolution than the other methods ique et en seismologie: la methode des diedres droits. Bull. Soc.
g~ol. Fr. 19, 1309-1318.
which did not discern the heterogeneity of the San Armijo, R., Carey, E. & Cisternas, A. 1982. The inverse problem in
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Arthaud, F. 1969. Mrthode de d6termination graphique des directions
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