Absence of spectral peaks in short-period oscillations from the Chilean Earthquake

Abstract

On the occasion of the great Chilean earthquake of May 1960, various modes of free oscillations of the earth were observed: spheroidal oscillations of wave number n = 2 (period 53 min) to 38 (3.7 min) [Benioff et al., 1961; Ness et al., 1961; Alsop et al., 1961; Bogert, 1961] and torsional oscillations of n up to 24 (5.2 min) [Bolt and Marussi, 1962; Brune et al., 1961]. From a rather negative result that the shorter-period oscillations were not well observed, we try here to deduce some conclusions regarding the earth's upper mantle structure or the oscillation mechanism of the earthquake. The result may be due to horizontal inhomogeneities of the upper mantle of the earth making the resolution of spectral peaks in shorter-period oscillations difficult, or it may be due to weak excitation of shorter-period oscillations by the source.