US EditionHow earthquakes stop: Near-fault records uncover overlooked phase
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4 Articles
How earthquakes stop: Near-fault records uncover overlooked phase
While analyzing strong-motion data close to fault lines, a group of researchers at Kyoto University noticed something unexpected: a negative phase in the waveforms, a pattern that did not conform to the existing interpretations of rupture dynamics. Its regular appearance in the records near rupture end points suggested that the team might be seeing something new. The study has been published in Science.
Researchers Identify a Stopping Phase That Governs How Large Strike-Slip Earthquakes End
Kyoto, Japan (SPX) Apr 23, 2026 Researchers at Kyoto University have identified a distinct seismic signal - a negative phase in near-fault waveforms - that marks the abrupt arrest of large strike-slip earthquakes and carries significant implications for seismic hazard assessment near active fault systems. The findings are published in Science. The discovery emerged from analysis of strong-motion acceleration records coll
A research team from Kyoto University and other institutions announced in the US scientific journal Science on the 23rd that analysis of observational data has revealed that the rupture of faults caused by major earthquakes does not gradually weaken, but rather stops suddenly. The magnitude of an earthquake is determined by how the fault rupture stops, but the process of that stopping has not been fully understood until now.
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