This essential reference for graduate students and researchers provides a unified treatment of earthquakes and faulting as two aspects of brittle tectonics at different timescales. The intimate connection between the two is manifested in their scaling laws and populations, which evolve from fracture growth and interactions between fractures. The connection between faults and the seismicity generated is governed by the rate and state dependent friction laws - producing distinctive seismic styles of faulting and a gamut of earthquake phenomena including aftershocks, afterslip, earthquake triggering, and slow slip events. The third edition of this classic treatise presents a wealth of new topics and new observations. These include slow earthquake phenomena; friction of phyllosilicates, and at high sliding velocities; fault structures; relative roles of strong and seismogenic versus weak and creeping faults; dynamic triggering of earthquakes; oceanic earthquakes; megathrust earthquakes in subduction zones; deep earthquakes; and new observations of earthquake precursory phenomena.

The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting

Whistlers and Related Ionospheric Phenomena

Attention is given to an empirical model of equatorial electron density in the magnetosphere covering the L range 2.25-8. Although the model is primarily intended for application to the local time interval 00-15 MLT, a way to extend the model to the 15-24-MLT period is presented. The model describes, in piecewise fashion, the 'saturated' plasmasphere, the region of steep plasmapause gradients, and the plasma trough. Within the plasmasphere the model profile can be expressed as logne - Sigma-xi, where x1 = -0.3145L + 3.9043 is the principal or 'reference' term, and additional terms account for: a solar cycle variation with a peak at solar maximum; an annual variation with a December maximum; and a semiannual variation with equinoctial maxima.

An ISEE/Whistler model of equatorial electron density in the magnetosphere

The ELF emissions were detected in the midnight sector of the magnetosphere in conjunction with magnetospheric substorms. The emissions were observed at local midnight and early morning hours and are accordingly called 'post-midnight chorus.' The characteristics of these emissions such as their frequency time structure, emission frequency with respect to the local equatorial electron gyrofrequency, intensity-time variation, and the average intensity were investigated. The occurrence of the chorus in the nightside magnetosphere was investigated as a function of local time, L shell, magnetic latitude, and substorm activity, and the results of this analysis are presented. Specific features of postmidnight chorus are discussed in the context of possible wave-particle interactions occurring during magnetospheric substorms.

Postmidnight chorus: A substorm phenomenon

The authors report the results of measurements of low frequency magnetic noise by two independent monitoring systems prior to the occurrence of the M{sub s} 7.1 Loma Prieta earthquake of 17 October 1989. Their measurements cover 25 narrow frequency bands in the more than six-decade frequency range 0.01 Hz-32 kHz, with a time resolution varying from a half hour in the ULF range (0.01-10 Hz) to one second in the ELF/VLF range (10 Hz-32 kHz). The ULF system is located near Corralitos, about 7 km from the epicenter. The ELF/VLF system is located on the Stanford campus, about 52 km from the epicenter. Analysis of the ELF/VLF system is located on the Stanford campus, about 52 km from the epicenter. Analysis of the ELF/VLF data has revealed no precursor activity that they can identify at this time. However, the ULF data have some distinctive and anomalous features. First, a narrow-band signal appeared in the range 0.05-0.2 Hz around September 12 and persisted until the appearance of the second anomalous feature, which consisted of a substantial increase in the noise background starting on 5 October and covering almost the entire frequency range of the ULF system. Third, there was an anomalousmore » dip in the noise background in the range 0.2-5 Hz, starting one day ahead of the earthquake. Finally, and perhaps most compelling, there was an increase to an exceptionally high level of activity in the range 0.01-0.5 Hz starting approximately three hours before the earthquake. There do not appear to have been any magnetic field fluctuations originating in the upper atmosphere that can account for this increase. Further, while the systems are sensitive to motion, seismic measurements indicate that there were no significant shocks preceding the quake. Thus, the various anomalous features in the data, and in particular the large-amplitude increase in activity starting three hours before the quake, may have been magnetic precursors.« less

Low‐frequency magnetic field measurements near the epicenter of the Ms 7.1 Loma Prieta Earthquake

Sudden changes in the amplitude of long-distance subionospheric VLF transmissions were found at night in association with whistlers. Both increases and decreases in signal strength were observed, depending on signal frequency and orieniation of the receiving antenna. Sample observations at Eights Station in Antarctica of station NSS (Annapolis, Maryland) on 22.3 kHz showed increases in signal strength that averaged 3 db, with rise times of about 2 sec and durations of about 30 sec. Coincident with every rise was a midlatitude (L approximately 2.5) whistler originating in the northern hemisphere. To explain this association, it is suggested that the whistler dumps energetic (30-300 keV) electrons into the D region. The resulting ionization then alters the properties of the earthionosphere wave guide. The mechanism of precipitation is thought to be pitch angle scattering of trapped electrons that resonate with the magnetic field of the whistler wave near the magnetic equator. (auth)

Whistler-induced amplitude perturbation in VLF propagation

A study is made of nonlinear cyclotron resonance wave-particle interaction in the magnetosphere with attention to the pitch angle scattering of energetic electrons by coherent VLF whistler mode signals. A computer simulation of the full nonlinear equations of motions for energetic particles interacting with a longitudinal whistler mode wave in an inhomogeneous magnetosphere are used. The results are compared to those of a linear theory. Test electrons distributed in energy and pitch angle are used to simulate the full distribution of particles. The scattering of the test particles and their integration over energy and pitch angle yield the precipitated flux. The results suggest that coherent VLF waves significantly influence the dynamics and lifetimes of energetic electrons trapped in the magnetosphere and magnetic shells illuminated by the waves.

Nonlinear pitch angle scattering of energetic electrons by coherent VLF waves in the magnetosphere

Electron precipitation associated with discrete very‐low‐frequency emissions

The broadband very low frequency (VLF, 0.3–30 kHz) radiation from lightning propagates in the Earth–ionosphere cavity as impulsive signals (spherics) and in the dispersive plasma regions of the ionosphere and magnetosphere it propagates as tones of descending or rising frequency (whistlers)1. VLF radio waves propagating in the magnetospheric plasma scatter energetic electrons by whistler-mode wave–particle interactions (cyclotron resonance) into the atmosphere2–6. These electrons, through collisions with the atmospheric constituents, cause localized ionization, conductivity enhancement, visual and ultraviolet light emissions, and brems-strahlung X rays. We have reported previously on the precipitation of energetic electrons from the radiation belts by the controlled injection from the ground of VLF radio waves7,8. Here we report the first satellite measurements of electron precipitation by lightning. The measured energy deposition of these conspicuous lightning-induced electron precipitation (LEP) bursts (∼ 10−3 erg cm−2) is sufficient to deplete the Earth's radiation belts and to alter subionospheric radiowave propagation (≲1 MHz). A one-to-one correlation is found between ground-based measurements of VLF spherics and whistlers at Palmer, Antarctica, and low-altitude satellite (S81-1) measurements of precipitating energetic electrons.

R. A. Helliwell

Papers

Low‐frequency magnetic field measurements near the epicenter of the Ms 7.1 Loma Prieta Earthquake

Whistler-induced amplitude perturbation in VLF propagation

Nonlinear pitch angle scattering of energetic electrons by coherent VLF waves in the magnetosphere

Electron precipitation associated with discrete very‐low‐frequency emissions

Lightning-induced electron precipitation