Deformation across the Alaska-Aleutian Subduction Zone near Kodiak

Abstract

The Kodiak-Katmai geodetic array, nine monuments distributed along a profile trending north-northwestward across Kodiak Island and the Alaska Peninsula, was surveyed in 1993, 1995 and 1997 to determine the deformation at the Alaska-Aleutian subduction zone. Velocities on Kodiak Island measured relative to the stable North American plate decrease with distance from the Alaska-Aleutian trench (distance range 106 to 250 km), whereas no appreciable deformation was measured on the Alaska Peninsula (distances 250 to 370 km from the trench). The measured deformation is reasonably well predicted by the conventional dislocation representation of subduction with the model parameters determined independently (i.e., not simply by fitting the observations). The deformation of Kodiak Island is in striking contrast to the very minor deformation measured in the similarly situated Shumagin Islands, 450 km southwest of Kodiak along the Alaska-Aleutian trench.