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doi:10.1016/j.pepi.2003.12.007    
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Copyright © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Earthquake swarm examples and a look at the generation mechanism of the Vogtland/Western Bohemia earthquake swarms

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Jochen H. KurzCorresponding Author Contact Information, a, Corresponding Author Contact Information, E-mail The Corresponding Author, Thomas Jahrb, 1 and Gerhard Jentzschb

a University Stuttgart, Institute of Construction Materials, Pfaffenwaldring 4, 70550, Stuttgart, Germany

b Institute of Geosciences, University Jena, Burgweg 11, 07749, Jena, Germany


Received 5 March 2003; 
Revised 22 June 2003; 
accepted 24 December 2003. 
Available online 20 February 2004.

Abstract

Earthquake swarms occur at many locations all over the world. In most cases, they do not occur just once but happen rather repeatedly at a particular location. We compared intraplate earthquake swarm regions, especially the Vogtland/Western Bohemia area, with plate margins, leading to the conclusion of a fluid triggered earthquake swarm mechanism which is independent of the global tectonics. These observations were brought together with theoretical models concerning hydro fracturing with respect to pore pressure changes due to fluid movements in seismically active areas. This concept was applied to a finite element model of the Vogtland/Western Bohemia earthquake swarm region. The results show that it is not possible to get high enough stress accumulations for the generation of earthquake swarms within relatively short timespans by the regional stress field alone. But periodic pore pressure variations and linear temperature changes caused realistic deformations and stress accumulations which coincide with the measured ones of the Vogtland/Western Bohemia earthquake swarm region.

Author Keywords: Swarm earthquakes; Triggering mechanisms; Rheologies; Fluids

Article Outline

1. Introduction
2. Swarm earthquakes all over the world
2.1. Intraplate examples
2.2. Examples from plate margins
3. Theoretical models
3.1. Generation mechanisms
3.2. Fluid flow in fault zones
4. A possible model for the Vogtland/Western Bohemia swarm earthquake area
5. Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References





Corresponding Author Contact InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +49-711-6856792; fax: +49-711-6856797.

1 Tel.: +49-3641-948660; fax: +49-3641-948662.


 
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