Temporal variation of shear-wave splitting parameters before and after the 2008 Movri Mountain earthquake in northwest Peloponnese (Greece)

Abstract

On June 8, 2008, at 12:25 GMT, a Mw 6.4 earthquake, the Movri Mountain earthquake, occurred in the area of northwest Peloponnese, western Greece. The epicenter was located in the municipality of Movri, 35 km southwest of Patras. For this study, a crustal anisotropy analysis was performed in the epicentral area of the Movri Mountain earthquake. Specifically, the shear-wave splitting phenomenon and its temporal evolution in relation to the Movri Mountain earthquake was studied, using the cross-correlation method. The data analysis revealed the presence of shear-wave splitting in the study area. Both before and after the Movri Mountain earthquake, the polarization directions of the fast component of the shear waves followed a general NNW-SSE direction. The observed mean fast polarization direction was not consistent with the regional stress field, which showed a general E-W direction of the maximum horizontal compressive stress. The differences between the estimated fast polarization directions and the properties of the regional stress field suggest the presence of a local stress field in the area around the fault. An increase in time delays was observed soon after the Movri Mountain earthquake. The average value of the delay times before the earthquake was ca. 18 ±2.6 ms, while after the earthquake this was ca. 40 ±4.6 ms. This increase in the time delay indicates changes in the crustal properties, which were possibly caused by variations in the pre-existing micro-crack system characteristics related to the Movri Mountain earthquake, and the possible involvement of over-pressured fluids.