Post-seismic Deformation of Mojave Earthquakes using Full-Resolution InSAR Time-Series Analysis

Abstract:

Surface deformation in the Mojave Desert in the last two decades has been dominated by the effects of the 1992 Landers and 1999 Hector Mine earthquakes. In the post-seismic periods following these events, broad scale patterns were interpreted as afterslip on deep parts of the faults or viscoelastic relaxation in the lower crust and upper mantle. In the near-field of the faults, smaller size features of the displacement field were interpreted as poro-elastic relaxation of crustal fluid pressure gradients produced by the co-seismic stress change. We reanalyze the entire archive of the European Space Agency ERS-1/2 and ENVISAT radar data to define the spatial and temporal characteristics of the near-field deformation following the two events, achieving coverage during the 1992-2010 time period. The raw data are processed into interferograms using the JPL ISCE software. The interferograms are corrected for the tropospheric phase delay using the ECMWF GCM and orbit errors are estimated in the data network over entire scenes. Time-series of surface displacement maps of sub-regions near the faults are then constructed using the full resolution of the radar images (~20 m).

Deformation features within and near the earthquake faults are characterized by a fast LOS velocity exponentially decaying with time over 1-2 years, followed by a steady deformation corresponding to the long-term strain in the Mojave. Shorter relaxation times are generally observed in regions where the crust sustained extension during the preceding earthquakes suggesting that crustal tension increases the diffusivity of fluids in the shallow crust. In the Johnson Valley-Homestead Valley pull-apart we estimate a relaxation time of ~400 days. Along the northern section of the HME fault rupture, the narrow zone of subsidence has a relaxation time of ~240 days, which can be explained by intensely damaged rocks within the fault zone.