Frictional properties of gabbro at conditions corresponding to slow slip events in subduction zones

Slow slip and the transition from fast to slow fronts in the rupture of frictional interfaces.

The failure of the population of microjunctions forming the frictional interface between two solids is central to fields ranging from biomechanics to seismology. This failure is mediated by the propagation along the interface of various types of rupture fronts, covering a wide range of velocities. Among them are the so-called slow fronts, which are recently discovered fronts much slower than th...

Subduction Zones

[1] Subduction zones are where sediments, oceanic crust, and mantle lithosphere return to and reequilibrate with Earth’s mantle. Subduction zones are interior expressions of Earth’s 55,000 km of convergent plate margins and are the geodynamic system that builds island arcs. Excess density of the mantle lithosphere in subduction zones provides most of the power needed to move the plates while in...

Frictional Characteristics in Deeper Part of Seismogenic Transition Zones on a Subduction Plate Boundary

Tremors and Slow Slip Events Slow Earthquakes Coincident with Episodic

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Slow earthquakes, preseismic velocity changes, and the origin of slow frictional stick-slip.

Earthquakes normally occur as frictional stick-slip instabilities, resulting in catastrophic failure and seismic rupture. Tectonic faults also fail in slow earthquakes with rupture durations of months or more, yet their origin is poorly understood. Here, we present laboratory observations of repetitive, slow stick-slip in serpentinite fault zones and mechanical evidence for their origin. We doc...