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An example of science aided by cyberinfrastructure - Geodynamics of the Himalaya

An example of science aided by cyberinfrastructure - Geodynamics of the Himalaya . Chris Andronicos Institute for the Study of the Continents, Cornell University and Aaron A. Velasco, Jose M. Hurtado Department of Geological Sciences University of Texas at El Paso.

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An example of science aided by cyberinfrastructure - Geodynamics of the Himalaya

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  1. An example of science aided by cyberinfrastructure - Geodynamics of the Himalaya Chris Andronicos Institute for the Study of the Continents, Cornell University and Aaron A. Velasco, Jose M. Hurtado Department of Geological Sciences University of Texas at El Paso

  2. Can you do science with what is already out there? • The Internet provides access to a vast amount of data in various subjects but… • The data is usually not peer reviewed • Some available information is of dubious nature • Data is often available in formats which are difficult to utilize for the problem of interest • Data may be out of date

  3. Datasets and Programs Used • Harvard Centroid Moment Tensor • World Stress Map • Shuttle Radar Topography Mission • Generic Mapping Tools • Commercial software and publicly unavailable data • Motivated by results of computer generated geodynamic models

  4. World Stress Map • Extensive Database of on the state of stress in the earth from geological and geophysical data • http://www-wsm.physik.uni-karlsruhe.de/pub/home/index_noflash.html

  5. Harvard Centroid Moment Tensor Catalogue • Extensive global database of focal mechanisms with magnitude greater than 5.5 since 1977 • Easy search functionality

  6. Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) • Provides elevation data at 30 m resolution for much of the earth • Easy to produce digital elevation models for large regions • http://srtm.usgs.gov/

  7. Outline • Earthquakes and Strain Partitioning • Depth Distribution of Earthquakes • Earthquakes and topography • Conclusions

  8. Earthquake Kinematics • A focal mechanism for an earthquake gives the orientation of the greatest compression (P) and least compression (T) axis • Based on the orientations of the P and T axis we can divide the earthquakes into kinematic types • Data source: Harvard Centroid Moment Tensor catalogue and World Stress Map

  9. Kinematic Types

  10. Strike-Slip Fault P-axis

  11. Thrust Fault P-axis

  12. Transpressive Fault P-axis

  13. Normal Fault T-axis

  14. Transtensive Fault P-axis

  15. Kinematic Domains

  16. Depth Distribution of Earthquakes • Dataset developed for CTBT verification (Bombs) • Only events that included a depth phase (pP or sP) were included • Data set includes 26 “ground truth events” developed by bomb monitoring community • Possible to map brittle & ductile strain • Work by Steck, Velasco and others, 1997

  17. Beaumont et al., Nature

  18. Relief Map Data Source-SRTM

  19. A Possible Explanation

  20. Conclusions • Major faults in Tibet bound regions of transtension that are likely underlain by a fluid lower crust which is flowing eastward • Thrust events are correlated with the range margins, normal faults are correlated with high flat topography • This reflects critical taper wedge mechanics coupled with ductile lower crustal flow • Publicly available datasets allow examination of large scale problems in the Earth Sciences

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