The sinking of lithosphere at subduction zones couples Earth’s exterior with its interior, spawns continental crust and powers a tectonic regime that is unique to our planet. In spite of its importance, it is unclear how subduction is initiated. Two general mechanisms are recognized: induced and spontaneous nucleation of subduction zones. Induced nucleation (INSZ) responds to continuing plate c...

This review is primarily concerned with the rupture process of large subduction-zone earthquakes determined by various seismological methods, and with its interpretation in terms of an asperity model. It is not possible to make a thorough and extensive review on the subject because of the limited length. Consequently, this review is inevitably biased toward the works in which I was directly inv...

west directed subduction zones show common characteristics, such as low structural elevation, deep trench, steep slab and a conjugate back-arc basin that are opposite to those of the east directed subduction zones. the tectonomagmatic and metallogenic setting of the lut block is still a matter of debate and several hypotheses have been put forward. despite some authors denying the influence of ...

We identified seven locations on or near the transform plate boundary in California where nonvolcanic tremor was triggered by the 2002 Denali earthquake. This result implies that the conditions essential for nonvolcanic tremor exist in a range of tectonic environments. Models explaining tremor typically require conditions endemic to subduction zones, that is, high temperatures and fluid pressur...

For decades seismologists have sought causal relationships between maximum earthquake sizes and other properties of subduction zones, with the underlying notion that some subduction zones may never produce a magnitude ~9 or larger event. The 2004 Andaman Mw 9.2 earthquake called into question such ideas. Given multicentury return times of the greatest earthquakes, ignorance of those return time...

Abstract Arc magmatism is thought to be driven by peridotite melting in the mantle wedge. Yet pyroxenites are ubiquitous region beneath magmatic arcs. Because they typically have lower solidi temperatures and higher melt productivities compared peridotite, likely play a significant role magma generation. Here, we use Zn/Fe ratios of global database Pliocene–Holocene primitive arc magmas show th...