Analysis of Coseismic Surface Displacement Gradients Using Radar Interferometry: New Insights into the Landers Earthquake

Gilles Peltzer, Kenneth W. Hudnut, & Kurt L. Feigl

Published 1994, SCEC Contribution #238

The map of the coseismic displacement field generated by interferometric processing of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images taken before and after the June 28, 1992, Landers earthquake sequence brings new insights into the nature of deformation caused by these earthquakes. We use the interferometric map generated by Massonnet et al. (1993) to analyze the surface displacement field in the vicinity of the fault trace. Complexities in the fringe pattern near the fault reflect short-wavelength variations of the surface rupture and slip distribution, and attest to large displacement gradients. Along two sections of the fault, characteristic fringe patterns can be recognized, contrasting in density and direction with patterns observed away from the rupture. In order to understand the observed fringe patterns, we compute synthetic interferograms in three simple cases: (1) rigid-body rotations about a vertical axis, (2) about a horizontal axis (tilt), and (3) distributed, simple shear. The orientation and spatial separation of interferometric fringes predicted by these models help constrain near-field deformation and rupture parameters. Where the Kickapoo fault connects with the Homestead Valley fault, the interferogram shows a clear pattern of parallel N20°W fringes separated by about 160 m. This pattern and vertical offsets measured along the Kickapoo fault suggest that the block between this fault and the Johnson Valley fault may have been tilted, down to the west. A 5-km block lifted by l m on one side would be tilted by an angle of 0.01° (190 μrad), producing fringes separated by about 160 m, parallel to the tilt axis. Such a tilt, parallel to a N20°W direction, would account for the gradual, northward increase of the vertical slip component observed along the Kickapoo fault. This tilt may also explain the 1 m of reverse slip observed along the “slip gap” section of the Homestead Valley break. Between the southern end of the Johnson Valley fault and the Eureka Peak fault, where no surface rupture has been mapped, the dense pattern of fringes implies distributed shear, probably resulting from fault slip at depth. The density and direction of the fringes in the gap are consistent with a right-lateral slip of 1.2–3.8 m on a blind fault locked above the depth of 1.5–2 km. Such observations of small wavelength features in the SAR interferogram bring new insights into the near-field displacement gradient and thus on response of the uppermost crust to seismic rupture.

Citation
Peltzer, G., Hudnut, K. W., & Feigl, K. L. (1994). Analysis of Coseismic Surface Displacement Gradients Using Radar Interferometry: New Insights into the Landers Earthquake. Journal of Geophysical Research, 99(B11), 21971-21981.