Evidence of non extensivity in the evolution of seismicity along the San Andreas Fault, California, USA: An approach based on Tsallis statistical physics

Publication date: Available online 7 April 2015 Source:Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C Author(s): A. Efstathiou , A. Tzanis , F. Vallianatos We examine the nature of the seismogenetic system along the San Andreas Fault (SAF), California, USA, by searching for evidence of complexity and non-extensivity in the earthquake record. We use accurate, complete and homogeneous earthquake catalogues in which aftershocks are included (raw catalogues), or have been removed by a stochastic declustering procedure (declustered catalogues). On the basis of Non-Extensive Statistical Physics (NESP), which generalizes the Boltzmann–Gibbs formalism to non-equilibrating (complex) systems, we investigate whether earthquakes are generated by an extensive self-excited Poisson process or by a non-extensive complex process. We examine bivariate cumulative frequency distributions of earthquake magnitudes and interevent times and determine the size and time dependence of the respective magnitude and temporal entropic indices, which indicate the level on non-equilibrium (correlation). It is shown that the magnitude entropic index is very stable and corresponds to proxy b-values that are remarkably consistent with the b-values computed by conventional means. The temporal entropic index computed from the raw catalogues indicate moderately to highly correlated states during the aftershock sequences of large earthquakes, progressing to quasi-uncorrelated states as these die out and b...
Source: Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts ABC - Category: Science Source Type: research