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Center for Nonlinear Studies |
Gutenberg - Richter(GR) scaling, that is the number of earthquakes with magnitude M has a power law distribution, is a property of fault systems and groups of fault systems. It does not seem to be a property of most individual faults, although some faults do exhibit GR scaling. In addition the GR scaling power seems to vary from one fault system to another. This raises several questions: What is the physical basis of GR scaling in single faults? Why do some faults exhibit GR scaling and others do not? How does the GR scaling on some faults relate to the GR scaling on fault systems? What is the mechanism for the variation in the scaling exponent from one fault system to another? In this talk I will present a theoretical and simulation approach to answer these questions that involves the investigation of the relation between the structure of single faults and fault systems and the underlying critical phenomena that generates GR scaling.
Host: Kipton Barros