Nucleation Phase and Dynamic Inversion of the Mw 6.9 Valparaíso 2017 Earthquake in Central Chile

Abstract

The Valparaiso 2017 sequence occurred in the Central Chile megathrust, an active zone where the last mega-earthquake occurred in 1730. Intense seismicity started 2 days before the Mw 6.9 mainshock, a slow trenchward movement was observed in the coastal GPS antennas and was accompanied by foreshocks and repeater-type seismicity. To characterize the rupture process of the mainshock, we perform a dynamic inversion using the strong-motion records and an elliptical patch approach. We suggest that a slow slip event preceded and triggered the Mw 6.9 earthquake, which ruptured an elliptical asperity (semiaxis of 10 km and 5 km, with a subshear rupture, stress drop of 11.71 MPa, yield stress of 17.21 MPa, slip weakening of 0.65 m, and kappa value of 1.98). This earthquake could be the beginning of a long-term nucleation phase to a major rupture, within the highly coupled Central Chile zone where a megathrust earthquake like 1730 is expected.