Fragmented Structure of Seafloor Faults May Dampen Effects of Earthquakes

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This bathymetric map of the seafloor shows the Siqueiros transform fault in the eastern Pacific Ocean illustrating the fragmented structure of the fault line. (Jian Lin Jack Cook and Patricia Gregg Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
This bathymetric map of the seafloor shows the Siqueiros transform fault in the eastern Pacific Ocean, illustrating the fragmented structure of the fault line. (Jian Lin, Jack Cook, and Patricia Gregg, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Many earthquakes in the deep ocean are much smaller in magnitude than expected. Geophysicists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) have found new evidence that the fragmented structure of seafloor faults, along with previously unrecognized volcanic activity, may be dampening the effects of these quakes.


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