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Tectonic strain in plate interiors?

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Abstract

Arising from: R. Smalley Jr, M. A. Ellis, J. Paul & R. B. Van Arsdale Nature 435, 1088–1090 (2005); R. Smalley et al. reply.

It is not fully understood how or why the inner areas of tectonic plates deform, leading to large, although infrequent, earthquakes. Smalley et al.1 offer a potential breakthrough by suggesting that surface deformation in the central United States accumulates at rates comparable to those across plate boundaries. However, we find no statistically significant deformation in three independent analyses of the data set used by Smalley et al., and conclude therefore that only the upper bounds of magnitude and repeat time for large earthquakes can be inferred at present.

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Figure 1: Velocities and associated uncertainties (95% confidence) at continuous GPS sites in the New Madrid seismic zone.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, 47907, Indiana, USA

    E. Calais

  2. Department of Geology, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, 72701, Arkansas, USA

    G. Mattioli

  3. Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, 53706, USA

    C. DeMets

  4. CNRS, Geosciences Azur, Valbonne, 06560, France

    J. -M. Nocquet

  5. Department of Geological Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, 0208-2150, Illinois, USA

    S. Stein

  6. School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, 30332, Georgia, USA

    A. Newman

  7. Center for Earthquake Research, University of Memphis, Memphis, 38152, Tennessee, USA

    P. Rydelek

Authors
  1. E. Calais
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  2. G. Mattioli
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  3. C. DeMets
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  4. J. -M. Nocquet
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  5. S. Stein
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  6. A. Newman
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  7. P. Rydelek
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Correspondence to E. Calais.

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Calais, E., Mattioli, G., DeMets, C. et al. Tectonic strain in plate interiors?. Nature 438, E9–E10 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04428

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