Unexpected far-field deformation of the 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes revealed by space geodesy
The spatiotemporal pattern of surface displacements from large earthquakes provides crucial insights about the deformation of Earth's crust at various scales and the interactions among tectonic plates. However, the lack of extensive and large-scale geodetic networks near such seismic events hinders our thorough understanding of the large-scale crustal deformation resulting from earthquakes. Using Türkiye's extensive and continuous global navigation satellite system (GNSS) network during the moment magnitude 7.8 and 7.6 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes on 6 February 2023, we show that large earthquakes can induce far-field crustal deformations (>700 kilometers), exceeding current predictions from elastic dislocation models. They can lead to the mobilization of tectonic plates and the triggering of far-field earthquakes, which carries profound implications for seismic hazard assessments and necessitates a new perspective on crustal deformation and earthquake mechanics.
Authors
- Ali Ihsan Kurt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2367-2152)
- Michael Floyd (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1657-2084)
- Philippe Vernant (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5185-0070)
- Uǧur Doǧan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1619-2652)
- Ziyadin Çakır (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3050-5619)
- Alpay Özdemir (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1099-2002)
- Efe Turan Ayruk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4566-6925)
- R. Çakmak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-8218-2491)
- Hannes Vasyura‐Bathke (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3826-0663)
- Hayrullah Karabulut (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3975-761X)
- Onur Tan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5395-8349)
- Semih Ergintav (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7080-183X)
- İlay Farımaz
- Diğdem Acarel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3179-6342)
- A. Ö. Konca (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3198-7763)
- Seda Özarpacı (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1900-3725)
- Muhammed Turğut (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0504-4220)
- Ö. Özel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5192-9985)
Institutions
- Gebze Technical University (TR)
- Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Araştırma Kurumu (TR)
- Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute (TR)
- Yıldız Technical University (TR)
- Tarımsal Araştırmalar ve Politikalar Genel Müdürlüğü (TR)
- Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa (TR)
- Géosciences Montpellier (FR)
- GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences (DE)
- Boğaziçi University (TR)
- Istanbul Technical University (TR)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
- Istanbul University (TR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Science
- Published
- 2024-10-17
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.ado4220
- Citations
- 16
- Primary Topic
- earthquake and tectonic studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 8.55