The Kalaotoa Fault: A Newly Identified Fault that Generated the Mw 7.3 Flores Sea Earthquake

Abstract

We reveal the existence of a previously unknown fault that generated the Mw 7.3 Flores Sea earthquake, which occurred on 14 December 2021, approximately 100 km to the north of Flores Island, in one of the most complex tectonic settings in Indonesia. We use a double-difference method to relocate the hypocenters of the mainshock and aftershocks, determine focal mechanisms using waveform inversion, and then analyze stress changes to estimate the fault type and stress transfer. Our relocated hypocenters show that this earthquake sequence ruptured on at least three segments: the source mechanism of the mainshock exhibits dextral strike-slip motion (strike N72°W and dip 78° NE) on a west–east-trending fault that we call the Kalaotoa fault, whereas rupture of the other two segments located to the west and east of the mainshock (striking west-northwest and southeast, respectively) may have been triggered by this earthquake. The Coulomb stress change imparted by the rupture of these segments on nearby faults is investigated, with a focus on regions that experience a stress increase with few associated aftershocks. Of particular interest are stress increases on the central back-arc thrust just north of Flores and the north–south-striking Selayar fault in the northwest of our study region, both of which may be at increased risk of failure as a result of this unusual earthquake sequence.