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North-South and Vertical Deformation Across the Western Anatolian Extensional Province (Türkiye) from Sentinel-1 InSAR
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  • Manuel Diercks,
  • Ekbal Hussain,
  • Zoe K Mildon,
  • Sarah Jean Boulton,
  • Milan Lazecky
Manuel Diercks
University of Plymouth

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Ekbal Hussain
British Geological Survey
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Zoe K Mildon
University of Plymouth
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Sarah Jean Boulton
University of Plymouth
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Milan Lazecky
University of Leeds
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Abstract

Quantifying interseismic deformation of fault networks which are predominantly deforming in a north-south direction is challenging, because GNSS networks are usually not dense enough to resolve deformation at the level of individual faults. The alternative, synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR), provides high spatial resolution but is limited by a low sensitivity to N-S motion. We study the active normal fault network of Western Anatolia, which is undergoing rapid N-S extension, using InSAR. In the first part of this study, we develop a workflow to assess the potential of decomposing InSAR line-of-sight (LOS) velocities to determine the N-S component. We use synthetic tests to quantify the impact of noise and other velocity components and outline the requirements to detect N-S deformation in future studies. In its current state, the N-S deformation field is too noisy to allow robust interpretations, hence in the second part we complement the study by including vertical deformation. Since most faults in the study region are normal faults, the high-resolution vertical velocity field provides new insights into regional active faulting. We show that tectonic deformation in the large graben systems is not restricted to the main faults, and seemingly less active or inactive faults could be accommodating strain. We also observe a potential correlation between recent seismicity and active surface deformation. Furthermore, we find that active fault splays causing significant surface deformation can form several kilometres away from the mapped fault trace, and provide an estimate of current activity for many faults in the region.
06 Sep 2023Submitted to ESS Open Archive
11 Sep 2023Published in ESS Open Archive