Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
China
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* Corresponding author:
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Shizuoka University
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E-mail: slin@ipc.shizuoka.ac.jp
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Abstract
Field investigations reveal that the Mw 7.9 Wenchuan (China) earthquake of 12 May
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2008 produced a 285-km-long surface rupture zone, with dominantly thrusting slip
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zone, and left-lateral component along the southern segment, along the Longmen Shan
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Thrust Belt, eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau. The co-seismic ruptures mainly
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faults, which are the main faults of the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt. The displacements
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measured in the field are approximately 0.56.5 m in the vertical (typically 13 m),
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southernmost segment of the rupture zone and an average right-lateral component of < 1
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m along the 100-km-long centralnorthern segments. The maximum thrust slip amount
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this finding is consistent with estimates based on seismic data. The rupture length and
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maximum displacement and shortening amount are the largest among all
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i) the Wenchuan earthquake occurred upon pre-existing active faults of the Longmen
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Shan Thrust Belt, thereby controlling the spatial distribution of co-seismic surface
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rupture and displacement, and the rupture processes of the earthquake; ii) the long
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rupture length and large thrusting slip resulted from compressive stress associated with
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the Indian Plate into the Eurasian Plate; and iii) present-day shortening strain upon the
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eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau is mostly released by seismic slip along thrust
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Keywords: 2008 Mw 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake, Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, thrusting
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1. Introduction
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The magnitude (Mw) 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake occurred on 12 May 2008 in the
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Longmen Shan region of China, the transition zone between the Tibetan Plateau and the
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Sichuan Basin, resulting in extensive damage throughout central and western China (Fig.
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September 2008 include 69,197 confirmed deaths, 374,176 injured, and 18,209 missing.
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associated with the earthquake, including rupture length, geometric characteristics, and
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slip distribution of co-seismic surface rupture, our survey group traveled to the
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epicentral area 2 days after the earthquake and undertook 10 days of fieldwork, during
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which time we collected primary data related to rupture structures and the spatial
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detailed fieldwork along the co-seismic surface rupture over the following 5 months.
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Here we report the main results of our field investigations and discuss the co-seismic
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rupturing mechanism and the implications of our findings for the tectonics of the eastern
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2. Tectonic setting
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above sea level (Mt. Gongga) and topographic relief of more than 5 km over distances
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of less than 50 km (Fig. 1), representing one of the steepest mountain fronts along any
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margin of the Tibetan Plateau. The eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau is bound by
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the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, which strikes northeastsouthwest for a distance of
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~500 km (Jia et al., 2006). The basement of the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt is dominated
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The Longmen Shan Thrust Belt is dominated by four major thrust faults: the
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1; Deng et al., 1994; Li et al., 2006). Trenching surveys and field investigations reveal
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that these faults have been active throughout the Late Quaternary, with slip rates of up
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to 1.01.5 mm/yr (Li et al., 2006; Densmore et al., 2007). Seismicity is generally
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restricted to small events in the area around the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt (Editorial
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Board, State Seismological Bureau, 1989; Li et al., 2006). The historic record of
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earthquakes in this region over the past 1400 yr reveals only three earthquakes of M > 6
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(M 6.5 in 1657, M 6.2 in 1970, and M 6.2 in 1972) and documents a remarkable lack of
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large earthquakes of M > 6.5 along the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt (Editorial Board,
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State Seismological Bureau, 1989; Editorial Board, Annals of Sichuan Province, 1998).
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However, recent trenching surveys and field investigations carried out after the 2008
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earthquake that ruptured a >200-km-long thrust fault within the Longmen Shan Thrust
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Belt, China, duplicated on the co-seismic surface ruptures produced by the 2008
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earthquakes (Lin et al., 2009). These studies demonstrate that the major pre-existing
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thrusts of the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt are currently active as source faults of large
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during the 2008 Mw 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake (herein termed the Wenchuan rupture
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zone) follows the GuanxianAnxian Fault, the YingxiuBeichuan Fault, and to a lesser
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extent along the Qingchuan Fault (Fig. 1). Within the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, these
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faults define a left-stepping en echelon pattern with ~10 km clearance (Fig. 1). The
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width (generally < 20 m), largely following the strike of pre-existing fault traces within
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Based on geometric and spatial distribution features, the Wenchuan rupture zone can
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be divided into three main rupture segments: northern, central, and southern. The
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northern segment, restricted to the fault trace of the Qingchuan Fault (herein termed the
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Qingchuan segment), extends for ~50 km, terminating at the town of Shazhou
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(~105.50E, ~32.65N) in the northeast, near the border between Sichuan and Gansu
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provinces (Fig. 1). The central segment (herein termed the Beichuan segment) is ~105
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km in length, and occurs along the northeastern segment of the YingxiuBeichuan Fault.
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The southern segment, ~130 km in length, branches into two parallel sub-rupture zones:
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one along the southwestern segment of the YingxiuBeichuan Fault between the towns
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of Yingxiu and Beichuan (herein termed the Yingxiu rupture zone), terminating to the
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south of Yingxiu town; and another along the GuanxianAnxian Fault (herein termed
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the Guanxian rupture zone), which forms the topographic boundary between the
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Longmen Shan Range and the Sichuan Basin, terminating to the south of Dujiangyan
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City (formerly known as Guanxian) near the epicentral area of the Wenchuan
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The total length of the Wenchuan co-seismic surface rupture zone, initiating south
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of Yingxiu town (~103.47E, ~31.03N) and terminating near Shazhou town to the
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with the longest reported strike-slip rupture zone of 400450 km produced by the 2001
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Mw 7.8 Kunlun earthquake upon the northern Tibetan Plateau (Lin et al., 2002, 2003;
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Lin and Nishikawa, 2007). The co-seismic surface rupture length coincides with the
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The Wenchuan rupture zone is mainly defined by distinct thrust faults, fault scarps,
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and fold structures, including mole track structures as that produced by the 2001 Mw 7.8
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Kunlun earthquake occurred in the northern Tibetan Plateau (Lin et al., 2004), and
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numerous extensional fractures. The thrust faults are generally expressed at the surface
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by fault planes, fault scarps, and fold structures developed widely along the co-seismic
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surface rupture zone (Figs. 2-4). The fault planes on which the main slip occurred were
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observed at several locations: they strike N1050E and dip to the northwest at an
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average of ~30 (Fig. 2ad). At some locations where basement rocks were exposed, the
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co-seismic fault planes (Fig. 2fh) and the geometry of fault scarps, upon which little or
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no horizontal slip is recorded (Fig. 2d). Co-seismic fault scarps generally occur on
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pre-existing active fault scarps upon which vertical offsets have accumulated (Fig. 3).
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This accumulated vertical offset indicates that large thrusting events have occurred
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repeatedly upon individual faults; however, co-seismic surface ruptures along the
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Qingchuan segment occurred along the surface trace of the Qingchuan Fault, and the
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relation between these two features is unclear because the co-seismic surface rupture
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sprays into numerous extensional cracks and push-up structures (e.g., small-scale mole
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tracks) distributed over a wide area with little or no offset (Fig. 4a).
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morphology and thrusting and folding structures (Fig. 5). Fault planes observed in
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outcrops of basement rocks generally dip at high angles (> 50) and show a linear
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surface morphology in geometry (Figs. 5a and 2fh). In contrast, fault scarps observed
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upon alluvial terrace risers and fans, where unconsolidated deposits overlie basement
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Such typical structures were observed at Site 11, where a 2.8-m-high co-seismic
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fault scarp is duplicated on a 2.6-m-high pre-existing fault scarp developed within the
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sand-gravel and soil alluvial deposits (Fig. 6). The pre-existing fault scarp is identified
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by the presence of a man-made stone wall that partially collapsed during the 2008
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earthquake (Fig. 6). The ground surface of the corn field, in addition to alluvial deposits
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and soil layers, is folded and offset, which protruded and overlapped the corn field in
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the footwall of the thrust fault plane for a distance of 5.7 m (Fig. 6). This finding
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indicates that the amounts of both thrusting slip and shortening produced by the
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This type of thrust fault scarp (Fig. 6) is termed a protruded scarp (Fig. 5e)
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(Gorden and Lewis, 1980). The observed structural features demonstrate that the
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near-surface unconsolidated deposits and surface soils were entrained in the thrust,
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overriding the ground surface of the corn field in the footwall. Similar structures have
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also been observed along the Senya Thrust, which formed during the1896 M7.5 Rikuu
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earthquake, northeast Japan (Research Group for the Senya Fault, 1986), and the Spitak
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Thrust, which formed during the 1988 Ms 6.9 Armenian earthquake (Philip et al., 1992).
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Mole track structures are widely observed along the surface rupture zone, generally
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developed within alluvial deposits and cemented ground such as roads, forming a linked
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array of contractional structures along the rupture zone (Fig. 4ac) similar to those
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produced by the 2001 Mw 7.8 Kunlun earthquake (Lin et al., 2004; Lin and Nishikawa,
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2007). The mole tracks are typically 0.31 m in height, 15 m in width, and 110 m in
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length, and generally trend sub-parallel to the overall trend of the rupture zone. The
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mole track structures that formed within the co-seismic surface rupture zone are
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Extensional cracks, sand boils, and landslides are widely distributed along the
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surface rupture zone (Fig. 4de). Numerous sand boils produced by seismic-related
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liquefaction were observed in streams and low terrace risers, with series of vents
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generally being aligned parallel to the surface rupture zone (Fig. 4ef).
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4. Co-seismic displacement
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zone based on offset linear surface-markers such as roads, stream channels, and terrace
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risers oriented perpendicular-subperpendicular to the surface rupture zone (Fig. 7). The
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amount of vertical offset at each site was measured and calculated from profiles
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measured across faults, fault scarps, and fold structures using a tape measure and an
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Advantage Laser Rangefinder (Lasser Atlanta Optics Inc., 2000) with an error of 15
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cm.
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the entire surface rupture zone (Fig. 8). The vertical displacements range from several
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observed at some locations along the surface rupture zone (Fig. 8). The maximum offset
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was measured at a location near Site 3, along the Yinxiu rupture zone, where the terrace
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riser is offset 6.5 m in the vertical (Fig. 2e). Right-lateral slip was mainly observed at 12
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locations along the 50-km-long southwestern-most segment of the surface rupture zone
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(Figs. 7ab and 8). In contrast, left-lateral slip was observed at 10 locations along the
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left-lateral slip of 4.2 m was observed at Site 4 where the co-seismic surface rupture
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strikes northwest almost perpendicular to the general trend of the rupture zone, recorded
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by the displacement of a small path through a field (Fig. 7d). The landowner at this site
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(Ms. Huang) reported that both the 4.2-m-right-lateral slip and 2.2-m-high fault scarp
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formed during the earthquake. The maximum amount of right-lateral offset was found at
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Site 9 near the town of Beichuan. Although a strike-slip component was locally
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observed along the co-seismic surface rupture zone, it was only identified at 22 of the
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This finding reveals that displacement was dominated by vertical offset, accompanied
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the earthquake.
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The amount of co-seismic slip is a key factor in assessing the seismic moment,
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rupture mechanism, and degree of seismic hazard. The slip amount recorded by
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co-seismic surface ruptures along strike-slip faults can generally be measured in the
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field, as with the strike-slip Kunlun Fault in the northern Tibetan Plateau, along which
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the 2001 Mw 7.9 earthquake produced a 400450-km-long surface rupture zone (Lin et
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al., 2002, 2003); however, it is generally difficult to measure the amount of co-seismic
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thrusting slip along thrust faults in the field due to the complex geomorphic expression
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of the co-seismic surface rupture, particularly in rupture areas with thick deposits of
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unconsolidated material and where the fault plane is not exposed at the surface.
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The Wenchuan rupture zone shows the complex morphology typical of thrust faults,
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and this made it difficult to directly measure the amount of thrusting slip in the field. At
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certain sites where the fault plane is exposed, it is possible to estimate the amount of
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thrust slip. For example, at one location, the ground surface of a corn field was observed
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in both the hanging wall and footwall of the thrust fault, and a soil-sandgravel layers
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are folded in the hanging wall (Fig. 6). These features suggest that the ground surface of
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the corn field in the hanging wall was offset by the fault and slid forward along the fault
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plane before collapsing onto the ground surface in the footwall of the fault (Fig. 9).
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Considering the dip of the fault plane observed in the trench exposure at this site (30;
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Fig. 6), the amount of thrust displacement (D) upon the fault plane is calculated as
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follows:
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where H is the vertical offset (height of the co-seismic fault scarp) and is the dip of
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the fault plane (Fig. 9). This coincides with the width of buried ground surface of 5.7 m
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observed in the exposure (Fig. 6). The vertical offsets measured in the field along the
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Wenchuan rupture zone generally range from 1 to 3 m (Fig. 8); therefore, thrusting slip
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These thrust slip amounts and the distribution of displacement along the Wenchuan
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rupture zone are comparable with estimates based on seismic inversion analyses (e.g.,
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Chen et al., 2008; Ji, 2008). The maximum amount of thrusting slip (up to 10.3 m, with
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a shortening amount of ~9.0 m) is obtained at Site 11, where the vertical offset of 5.15
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m was observed on a lower terrace riser of unconsolidated alluvial deposits (Fig. 7a),
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assuming an average dip of 30 for the main fault plane as observed at Sites 67 (Fig.
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2ab) and 11 (Fig. 6). This maximum amount of thrusting slip is also comparable with
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Institute of Technology, 2008), and 12.5 m (Chen et al., 2008). The large vertical offsets
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of > 4 m are distributed throughout two surface-rupture areas around Sites 35 and Site
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corresponding to the locations for which the maximum slips were estimated based on
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Chen et al. (2008). The large left-lateral slip components of 2.0-4.2 m observed at the
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locations around Site 4 are probably caused by the northwest-southeast trend of the
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co-seismic surface rupture would be effected by the rupture geometry and topography
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Based on field observations and seismic inversion results, we conclude that the
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maximum thrusting slip amount associated with the Wenchuan earthquake was 10.3 m,
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accompanied by 9.0 m of shortening. These values probably reflect the thrust slip of a
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surface morphology, but also the structure at depth and the pre-existing tectonic
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environment (Yeats et al., 1997; Lin et al., 2001, 2003). The geometric features and slip
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combination with the orientation of the fault plane and plunge of striations developed
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upon the main fault plane, indicate that co-seismic surface displacement is dominated
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by thrust slip, with a lesser lateral-slip component. This finding is consistent with the
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Our fieldwork results demonstrate that the co-seismic surface rupture of the
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Wenchuan earthquake occurred along pre-existing active faults of the Longmen Shan
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Thrust Belt along a distance of ~285 km. The aftershocks of magnitude > 4 that
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occurred during the first month after the Wenchuan earthquake are concentrated along a
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~300 km section of the co-seismic surface rupture zone (Fig. 1). InSar data also reveal
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Institute, 2008), coincident with the co-seismic surface rupture zone identified in this
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study. These geological and seismic data indicate that the distribution of the co-seismic
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surface rupture was mainly constrained by the orientation of pre-existing thrust faults of
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the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, as reported in previous studies (Jia et al., 2006; Li et al.,
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2006).
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oriented perpendicular to the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, resulting from relative motion
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between the Tibetan Plateau and the Sichuan Basin. Geological data from in and around
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the Longmen Shan region suggest a low shortening rate during the late Quaternary
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(Burchfiel et al., 1995, 2008; Kirby et al., 2000), and GPS data indicate an average
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active shortening rate of < 3 mm/yr within the Longmen Shan region along the
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Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, without a significant strike-slip component (Chen et al.,
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The historic record of earthquakes in this region over the past 2000 yr reveals only
three identifiable earthquakes of M > 6 (M 6.5 in 1657, M 6.2 in 1970, and M 6.2 in
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1972) and documents a remarkable lack of large earthquakes of M > 6.5 along the
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Longmen Shan Thrust Belt (Editorial Board, State Seismological Bureau, 1989;
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Editorial Board, Annals of Sichuan Province, 1998). If all large historical earthquakes
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have been perfectly recorded in the study area, the recurrence interval of
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large-magnitude earthquakes within the thrust belt, therefore, would be greater than
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1,400-2,000 years. Recent trenching surveys and field investigations carried out after
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occurred in the Tang-Song Dynasty (~AD 8001000) with an average vertical offset of
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2-3 m (Lin et al., 2009). This new finding indicates that the recurrence interval of
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Wenchuan earthquake, as estimated in this study, and a long-term shortening rate of < 3
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mm/yr revealed by GPS data within the Longmen Shan region, a recurrence interval of
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~10003000 years is estimated for the release of shortening strain energy stored within
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the Longmen Shan Thrust Belt, comparable with the estimate proposed by Lin et al.
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paleoseismic studies are required. Our results confirm that present-day shortening
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strain upon the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, resulting from eastward extrusion
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of the Tibetan Plateau as it accommodates the ongoing penetration of the Indian Plate
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into the Eurasian Plate, is released by seismic slip along thrust faults within the
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Acknowledgements
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We thank JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for kindly providing the
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ALOS imagery data, Asia Air Survey Co. Ltd. for providing the Red Relief image map,
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and PASCO Co. Ltd. for providing the Terra SAR-X image map. This work was
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Science Project (No. 18340158) of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science
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and Technology of Japan, and a Science Project (No. 40672132) of the National Natural
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Figure 1. Location maps of the study area, showing topographic features and
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distribution of the co-seismic surface rupture. (a) Landsat image of the Tibetan Plateau
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and north India, showing the location of study area. Yellow arrows indicate the
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eastward movement direction of the Tibetan Plateau. Red arrow indicates the movement
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resolution) color shaded-relief map showing the tectonic landforms of the Longmen
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Shan region [fault data from Jia et al. (2006), Li et al. (2006), and Densmore et al.
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(2006)] and aftershock distribution (black circles) following the 2008 Wenchuan
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earthquake (seismic data from China Earthquake Networks Center, 2008). White solid
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circles indicate the locations of main cities and towns. (c) Distribution map of
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co-seismic surface ruptures, showing the locations of sites referred to in this study. Red
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stars indicate the epicenter of the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, as determined by China
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Earthquake Networks Center (CENC, 2008), Harvard University (Harvard, 2008), and
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risers offset vertically by 2 m [(a: Site 7), (b: Site 6); see Figure 1 for location details] at
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sites where the fault dips to the northwest at ~30. (c) Thrust-related vertical offset of
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the river channel shown in (b) (Site 6). (d) The road shown in (b) was offset vertically
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by 2.0 m. Note the lack of horizontal displacement at this site. (e) The terrace riser was
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offset vertically by 6.5 m, which is the largest offset observed in this study (a location
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near Site 3). (f) The fault scarp observed in the basement rock (mudstone), where the
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terrace was offset vertically by 4.8 m (Site 3). (gh) Slickenside striations (yellow
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arrows) developed on the main thrusting fault plane at Site 3, which strikes N18E and
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dips to the northwest at ~85. The striations indicate a thrusting-dominated slip sense.
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pre-existing fault scarps. (a) Terrace risers and the river channel were vertically offset
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by 23 m (Site 5) at a site where the pre-existing fault scarp was higher than 5 m. (b)
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pre-existing fault scarp at Site 9. The lower terrace and river channel were vertically
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(d), and sand boils caused by liquefaction (ef). (c) Mole track structure developed on a
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folded section of road at the northeastern termination of the Wenchuan rupture zone
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(near Site 6). (b) Mole track structure developed along a road at Site 9. Prior to the
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earthquake, the road surface to the left in the photograph was the same height as that to
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the right, which now records a vertical offset of ~2.5 m. (c) Mole track structure
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developed within cemented ground at the end of the Beichuan segment (Site 12 (d)
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Typical extensional cracks (Site 13). (e) Extensional cracks and sand boils observed at
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Figure 5. Schematic diagrams of the scarp features of thrust faults observed along the
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Wenchuan rupture zone. (a) Simple thrust scarp developed in basement rocks; (b)
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collapsed fault scarp developed in thin unconsolidated deposits overlain upon basement
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rocks; (c) flexural-fold fault scarp developed in thick unconsolidated deposits; (d) mole
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track structure developed on the flexural-fold scarp; (e) protruded fault scarp developed
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within thick viscid soilclay layers that overlie thick unconsolidated sandgravel layers.
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pre-existing fault scarp of the YingxiuBeichuan Fault (Site 9). The pre-existing fault
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scarp is identified by the presence of a man-made stone wall of 2.6 m in height. Note
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that the ground surface of the corn field is buried across a horizontal distance of ~5.7 m.
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(ab) and left-lateral slip components (cd). (a) The lowest terrace in the photograph is
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vertically offset by 5.15 m, with ~1.0 m of right-lateral offset (R1.0 m) recorded by the
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displaced path (Site 11). This site records the largest vertical and horizontal offsets
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observed during our fieldwork. (b) The road was vertically offset by ~1.1 m,
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accompanied by a right-lateral slip component of 0.5 m (Site 8). (c) The road was
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4). (d) The fault scarp at this site records a vertical offset of 2.2 m, with a left-lateral slip
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Wenchuan rupture zone. (a) Each slip amount was measured at an individual co-seismic
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surface rupture. (b) Co-seismic ruptures along the pre-existing GuanxianAnxian Fault
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(blue), YingxiuBeichuan Fault (black), and Qingchuan Fault (pink). Colors in (a)
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Figure 9. Schematic diagram showing the formation of a protruded fault scarp, based on
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a real example (Site 9) observed in the present study. The surface soil layer (a) was cut
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and offset by thrusting (b). The fault scarp protruded and then collapsed during the
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earthquake. (c) The dear surface soil layer was protruded for a horizontal distance of
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~5.7 m as observed in the field (Fig. 6). The thrusting slip amount was calculated to be
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