Shear Wave Splitting Measurements in British Columbia

The Canadian Cordillera has a complex tectonic history that includes transpressional deformation, accretion of allochthonous terranes, and deformation of autochthonous structures. We use a new shear wave splitting method to investigate anisotropy in the region. This method incorporates the effects of pre-event microseismic noise to more accurately estimate uncertainty and allows for a formal statistical estimation of station-averaged splitting parameters. Our goal is to consider whether tectonic inheritance is a major cause of shear wave splitting, or if asthenospheric flow is a more likely cause of observations. Many of the stations in this region have data that is not available through the IRIS Data Management Center, and we believe this may be the first wholistic examination of this highly deformed region.