Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-year-2-of-the-earth-sciences-geology-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2024/paper-3/3/e/iv/solution
Past exam of the year 2 of the earth sciences (geology) course of the University of Oxford 2024 Paper 3 3 e iv Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-25
For a unilateral finite-source rupture advancing at approximately constant rupture velocity , the along-fault propagation length isThere is no supplied or calibrated seismic source time function, so a unique spatial extent cannot be read directly from Figure 4. For illustration, and an assumed would give . Allowing – and assumed – gives lengths of order 8–15 km. These are explicitly conditional scale estimates, not measured fault dimensions.
If equal-and-opposite ray geometry and phase pulse durations were known, the directivity model in solution would instead constrain a projected length,where is the angle between the rupture direction and the northern ray. Distinct P and S wave speeds, unknown takeoff angles, smooth pulse boundaries and the clipped southern S tail prevent a reliable independent numerical inversion here. This observation is consistent with a few-kilometre projected extent while the actual along-fault length can be larger. A rupture length is not the accumulated fault slip, the width of the whole fault plane, or the approximately 50 km station distance.
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