A large normal-fault earthquake at the junction of the Tonga trench and the Louisville ridge

The source mechanism of a large ( M_s - 7.2) earthquake that occurred in the oceanic plate at the junction of the Tonga—Kermadec trench systems with the aseismic Louisville ridge is found by inverting long-period vertical-component Rayleigh waves recorded by the IDA network. The solution is an almost-pure normal fault, on a plane striking roughly parallel to the trench axis, with seismic moment of 1.7 × 10 ²⁷ dyn cm, and thus is among the ten largest documented shallow normal-fault earthquakes. A point-source depth of 20 km for the event is resolved by modeling teleseismic body waves; the actual rupture may have extended deeper, to 30 or 40 km. The earthquake was a multiple event, consisting of two sources separated by 16 s. A rupture velocity of 3.5 km s ^-1 is inferred. The earthquake can be interpreted as tensional failure in the shallow portion of the downgoing plate caused by the gravitational pull of the slab. The Louisville ridge may be creating a local degree of decoupling of the oceanic plate from the overriding plate, and/or a zone of extension within the slab, which could enhance the effect of the gravitational forces in the shallower part of the downgoing plate. In particular, the earthquake could be associated with the break-up of the leading seamount of the ridge, which is currently right at the trench. Alternatively, the earthquake may have been caused by stresses associated with the bending of the plate prior to subduction.