Shear wave splitting in the crust in North China: Stress, faults and tectonic implications

Abstract

This paper uses data from the Capital Area Seismograph Network in North China (NC), currently the largest regional seismograph network in China to investigate the compressional stress orientations from the polarizations of faster shear waves (PFS), a parameter of shear wave velocity anisotropy. Data are restricted to earthquakes deeper than 5 km to reduce the influence of the heterogeneous uppermost few kilometres of the crust. The results show that the regional compressional stress direction is ENE-WSW to nearly EW in NC, which agrees with seismic mechanisms and drilling and GPS data. Predominantly, PFS are also nearly EW in NC and are influenced by faults, geology and tectonics. PFS orientations at stations on seismically active faults are consistent with the strike of strike-slip faults and indicate large seismically active faults breaking, or nearly breaking, the free surface. PFS orientations are influenced by both regional compressional stress and by nearby faults. It is an effective way to study detailed spatial distribution of crustal compressional stress by shear wave anisotropy with dense seismograph network. Shear wave splitting may also be used to indicate hitherto unknown faults. © 2011 The Authors Geophysical Journal International © 2011 RAS.