Scale-dependence of seismic energy-to-moment ratio for strike-slip earthquakes in Japan

Abstract

We analyzed four pairs of a large (M_w ≈ 6) and a small (M_w ≈ 3.5 to 4) shallow strike-slip earthquakes to investigate the scale-dependence of the seismic energy-to-moment ratio, an important macroscopic parameter which reflects the basic physical process of seismic slip. These earthquakes occurred in the south-western part of Japan, and high-quality close-in records (epicentral distance < 50 km) are available for both the small and large earthquakes. The paired events have almost the same focal mechanism and hypocenter location. We used the spectral ratio of the paired events in order to remove the effects of attenuation along the wave propagation path and the station site response. We then estimated the seismic energy from the source spectra estimated from the spectral ratio. The energy-to-moment ratio increases with the earthquake size. This scale-dependence is very similar to that found earlier for earthquakes in Southern California.