Characterizing Multi-Subevent Earthquakes Using the Brune Source Model

The Brune source model is widely used in studies of complex earthquakes with multiple episodes of high moment release (i.e., multiple subevents). In this study, we investigate how corner frequency estimates of earthquakes with multiple subevents are biased if they are based on the Brune source model. By assuming complex sources as a sum of multiple Brune sources, we analyze 1,640 source time functions (STFs) of Mw 5.5-8.0 earthquakes in the SCARDEC catalog to estimate the corner frequencies, onset times, and seismic moments of subevents. We identify more subevents for strike-slip earthquakes than dip-slip earthquakes, and the number of resolvable subevents increases with magnitude. We find that earthquake corner frequency correlates best with the corner frequency of the subevent with the highest moment release (i.e., the largest subevent). This suggests that, when the Brune model is used, the estimated corner frequency and therefore the stress drop of a complex earthquake is determined primarily by the largest subevent rather than the total rupture area. ;Our results imply that the stress variation of asperities, rather than the average stress change of the whole fault, contributes to the large variance of stress drop estimates.