Towards an Understanding of the Earthquake Process for Natural and Induced Seismicity

Explore the fundamentals of fault slip and the earthquake process in this comprehensive lecture from the University of Liverpool's Earth Sciences department. Delve into the impacts of natural and induced seismicity, including the significant loss of life and economic damage caused by earthquakes. Examine how induced earthquakes from subsurface fluid injection pose risks to industries crucial for transitioning to a greener future, such as carbon capture and storage, and geothermal energy. Learn about a fluid injection experiment in Canada's Horn River Basin that links earthquake frequency and magnitude to laboratory friction measurements, offering a method to forecast induced seismicity before injection begins. Investigate how laboratory measurements of earthquake nucleation and propagation are incorporated into large-scale models to simulate earthquake sequences and understand the relationship between small and large seismic events. Discover insights into large faults like the southern San Andreas Fault in California, suggesting they may only rupture in major earthquake events despite currently showing minimal seismic activity, and potentially have very low stress levels.