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The Baihetan Reservoir, the second largest in the world, is located at the intersection of multiple large active fault zones on the eastern boundary of the Sichuan-Yunnan rhombic block. After impoundment on 6 April 2021, many earthquakes occurred around the reservoir area submerged by water. The largest M L 4.7 earthquake in the reservoir area occurred after the water level reached its highest point. But the seismogenic structures and mechanisms of earthquakes in the reservoir area are still unclear. Based on dense array data from the reservoir area, this paper uses the experimental site submodel of USTC-Pickers, transfer learned with 'DiTing' data set of China to obtain a high-precision earthquake catalogue that is twice as large as that the manual catalogue. This study show that earthquakes in the reservoir region primarily occur on secondary faults of pre-existing ones, characterized by a prominent feature of high dip angles trending northwest to southeast. Combined with the spatiotemperal migration characteristics of earthquakes and the relationship between earthquakes and water levels, we infer that most earthquakes are rapid response type and may be induced by rapid increase in elastic stress. Only the spatiotemporal distribution image of the M L 3.2 earthquakes sequence in the dam site-Toudaogou section conforms to the law of pore pressure diffusion, and belongs to the fast response type, which may be induced by the poroelasiticity coupling mechanism. The M L 3.0 earthquake swarm with deep depths in the Heishui River section belongs to the delayed response type and may be induced by the poroelasiticity coupling mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we performed microseismicity detection and location using the deep learning method and obtained a high-precision earthquake catalog in the Changning gas field, which is one of the largest shale gas production demonstration areas in China. We found that the spatial and temporal characteristics of seismicity in the region are indicative of its correlation with industrial operations. The distribution of earthquakes at depth reflected variations in reservoir depth and provided valuable constraints on it. The horizontal layered distribution of earthquakes at depth is due to the formation of fracture surfaces from interconnected fractures near the reservoir during hydraulic fracturing (HF) operations, which clearly demonstrates how HF operations impact seismicity. We suggested that the horizontally layered distribution was driven by two fundamental mechanisms: reactivation of pre-existing faults during HF and injection of high-pressure fluids into the reservoir, leading to fracture creation. Several ML ≥4 earthquakes, which did not occur on well-defined seismogenic faults, may have been triggered by pore elastic coupling resulting from regional stress accumulation and fluid injection. Significantly, the ML 4.9 seismic sequence occurring at the basement indicates that fracking has reactivated and promoted pre-existing faults, highlighting the need for further investigation into potential seismic hazards in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After impounding the Baihetan Water Reservoir in a historically seismically active area, numerous earthquakes occurred, but it is uncertain if they are connected to the impoundment. Based on the dense seismic network, this study used local earthquake tomography to construct high‐resolution VP (P‐wave velocity) and VP/VS models (P‐ to S‐wave velocity ratio) and update earthquake locations after the impoundment of Baihetan reservoir. Our study revealed that the reservoir water spreads from the dam site to the Qiaojia Basin and the Heishuihe branch, and pore pressure diffusion along faults induces many earthquakes. Reservoir water migrates through hidden faults and fractures beneath Hulukou, spreading to both sides and saturating some rocks below 7 km beneath the dam site‐Lianhuatang section, causing multiple magnitude 3.5+ earthquakes. This study reveals that reservoir water migration drives earthquakes in the reservoir area, offering new insights into seismogenesis following the Baihetan reservoir's impoundment, potentially applicable to understanding reservoir‐induced earthquakes in other reservoirs. Plain Language Summary: Numerous earthquakes occurred after the Baihetan reservoir impoundment. It is worth considering whether the significant seismicity was caused by fluid injection. We used the local earthquake tomography to construct high‐precision earthquake locations and high‐resolution 3D VP and VP/VS models of Baihetan reservoir after the impoundment. The 3D VP and VP/VS models reveal the penetration and diffusion range of reservoir water. The relationship between seismic locations and velocity models reveals that microearthquakes are induced by pore pressure diffusion caused by fluid migration, and some of the water‐saturated areas induced bigger earthquakes. Key Points: The highest resolution 3D VP and VP/VS models of the Baihetan reservoir are obtained by using a dense seismic arrayThe relationship between the change of medium structure and seismicity caused by the impoundment of Baihetan reservoir is revealedA new understanding of the seismogenesis of a large number of earthquakes occurred after the Baihetan reservoir impoundment are obtained [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Objective] This study investigated the spatial distribution characteristics of soil erodibility K value in the valley of the Niyang River Basin in Tibet to provide references for reducing soil erosion risk in this region. [Method] A total of 122 sample plots were set up in the freeze-thaw erosion area (altitude> 4 200 m), the crisscross areas of freeze thaw and hydraulic erosion crisscross area (altitude 3 800-4 200 m) and the hydraulic erosion area (altitude<3 800 m) in the Niyang River Basin in southeastern Tibet. Basic physical and chemical properties of surface soil in the basin were measured and the EPIC model was used to calculate soil erodibility K value. The spatial distribution of K value in the valley was obtained u-sing the ordinary Kriging interpolation method. Finally, the correlations between soil erodibility K value and elevation and soil physical-chemical properties were analyzed. [Result] ➀ Physical and chemical properties of soil in the freeze-thaw erosion area, the crisscross area of freeze-thaw and hydraulic erosion and the hydraulic erosion area in the Niyang River Basin were significantly different. The freeze-thaw erosion area had the lowest soil volume quality and the highest soil porosity and contents of water, organic matter, silt and clay. ➁ The K values of soil erodibility in freeze-thaw erosion area, the crisscross area of freeze-thaw and hydraulic erosion and hydraulic erosion area were 0.263-0.431, 0.218-0.374 and 0.104-0.409 t ⋅ hm² ⋅ h/(MJ ⋅ mm ⋅ hm²) with average values of 0.349, 0.310 and 0.292 t ⋅ hm² ⋅ h/(MJ ⋅ mm ⋅ hm²) and medium variation coefficients of 11.7%, 12.7% and 21.5 %, respectively. The K values of soil erodibility factor in the Niyang River Basin decreased gradually from northwest to southeast. There were less low, medium, less high and high erodible soils in the basin without different main soil erosion types among areas. High erodible soils were mainly distributed in the freeze-thaw erosion areas, while less low and medium erodible soils were mainly distributed in the hydraulic erosion area and the freeze-thaw hydraulic erosion crisscross area. ➂ The soil erodibility K value had very significant correlation with elevation and soil physical and chemical properties (P< 0.01), with high correlation coefficients of -0.98, 0.99 and 0.62, respectively. [Conclusion] The spatial distribution characteristics of soil erodibility K value in the valley of Niyang River Basin in Tibet were investigated and the mechanical composition of soil was the main affecting factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the physical process and seismogenic mechanism of the Yangbi Ms 6.4 earthquake that occurred in Dali, Yunnan Province in 2021. The earthquake did not occur on a pre-existing active fault but on a buried fault in the eastern boundary of Baoshan sub-block. The study uses various seismological methods to analyze the earthquake sequence, seismogenic environment, and focal parameter characteristics, providing insights into the earthquake's source characteristics and trigger mechanism. [Extracted from the article]

Visible and near-infrared (Vis–NIR) spectroscopy can provide a rapid and inexpensive estimation for soil organic carbon (SOC). However, with respect to field in situ spectroscopy, external environmental factors likely degrade the model accuracy. Among these factors, moisture has the greatest effect on soil spectra. The external parameter orthogonalization (EPO) algorithm in combination with the Chinese soil spectroscopic database (Dataset A, 1566 samples) was investigated to eliminate the interference of the external parameters for SOC estimation. Two different methods of EPO development, namely, laboratory-rewetting archive soil samples and field-collecting actual moist samples, were compared to balance model performance and analytical cost. Memory-based learning (MBL), a local modeling technique, was introduced to compare with partial least square (PLS), a global modeling method. A total of 250 soil samples from Central China were collected. Of these samples, 120 dry ground samples (Dataset B) were rewetted to different moisture levels to develop EPO P1 matrix. Seventy samples (Dataset C) containing field-moist intact and laboratory dry ground soils were used to establish EPO P2 matrix. The remaining 60 samples (Dataset D) also containing field-moist intact and laboratory dry ground soils were employed to validate the spectral models developed based on Dataset A. Results showed that EPO could correct the effect of external factors on soil spectra. For PLS, the validation statistics were as follows: no correction, validation R2 = 0.02; P1 correction, validation R2 = 0.56; and P2 correction, validation R2 = 0.57. For MBL, the validation results were as follows: no correction, validation R2 = 0.06; P1 correction, validation R2 = 0.65; and P2 correction, validation R2 = 0.69. The P2 consistently yielded better results than P1 did but simultaneously increased the sampling time and economic cost. The use of the P1 matrix and the MBL algorithm was recommended because it could reduce the cost of establishing in situ models for SOC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A moment magnitude (M w) 5.0 earthquake hit Qiaojia, Yunnan, China on 18 May 2020. Its hypocentre is only approximately 20 km away from the Baihetan reservoir, the second largest hydropower station in China. The Baihetan Reservoir is located at the junction of multiple fault zones on the eastern boundary of the Sichuan-Yunnan rhombic block, an area with high background seismic activity. The Baihetan Reservoir was planned to be impounded in April 2021 and the M w 5.0 earthquake occurred during its water-retaining. Thus, it is critical to investigate the seismogenesis of the Qiaojia M w 5.0 main shock and evaluate the risk of inducing earthquakes near the Baihetan Reservoir after impoundment. In this study, we built a complete and accurate earthquake catalogue to analyse seismicity in the reservoir area before and after the M w 5.0 Qiaojia earthquake. We adopted a machine learning-based seismic phase picker, PhaseNet, to automatically detect seismic picks from continuous raw seismic data. Seismic phase picks were associated and located using sequential earthquake association and location methods, including REAL, VELEST and hypoDD. We eventually obtained high-precision locations of 1640 earthquakes by the hypoDD. The distribution of earthquake locations indicates that a concealed fault nearly vertical to the surface accommodated the M w 5.0 Qiaojia main shock. The majority of its aftershocks is located within a narrow depth range of 8–13 km, indicating that the stresses in the hypocentral area were concentrated near the hypocentre of the M w 5.0 earthquake. Along with focal mechanism solutions, we suggested that the M w 5.0 Qiaojia earthquake is more likely a tectonic earthquake. However, we cannot exclude the possibility that earthquakes could be induced after the impoundment of Baihetan Reservoir, because the identified concealed fault is located in the middle of many large fault zones and only 20 km away from the Baihetan Reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The source identification and apportionment of heavy metals (HMs) is a vital issue for restoring contaminated soil. In this study, qualitative approaches [a finite mixture distribution model (FMDM) and raster-based principal components analysis (RB-PCA)] and a quantitative approach [positive matrix factorization (PMF)] were composed to identify and apportion the sources of five HMs (Cd, Hg, As, Pb, Cr) in Wenzhou City, China, using several crucial auxiliary variables. An initial ecological risk assessment suggested that the ecological risk level in the study area was generally considered low, with the greatest contamination contributions coming from Cd and Hg. The result of the FMDM showed that Cd and Pb fit a single log-normal distribution, Hg fit a double log-normal mixed distribution, and As and Cr presented a triple log-normal distribution. Each element was identified and separated from its natural or anthropogenic sources. A map of RB-PCA combined with an analysis of corresponding auxiliary variables suggested that the three main contribution sources in the entire study area were parental materials, industrial and agricultural mixed pollution, and mining exploration activities. Each element was discussed, using the PMF model, with regard to its quantitative contributions. Parental materials contributed to all elements (Cd, Hg, As, Pb, Cr) at 89.22%, 7.31%, 35.84%, 84.81% and 27.42%, respectively. Industrial emissions and agricultural inputs mixed pollution contributed 2.94%, 80.77%, 15.93%, 4.79%, and 25.63%, respectively. Mining activities contributed 7.84%,11.92%, 48.23%, 10.40% and 46.95%, respectively, to the five HMs. Such result could be used efficiently to generate scientific decisions and strategies in terms of decision-making on regulating HM pollution in soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are closed back‐splicing products of precursor mRNA in eukaryotes. Compared with linear mRNAs, circRNAs have a special structure and stable expression. A large number of studies have provided different regulatory mechanisms of circRNAs in tumors. Challenges exist in understanding the control of circRNAs because of their sequence overlap with linear mRNA. Here, we survey the most recent progress regarding the regulation of circRNA biogenesis by RNA‐binding proteins, one of the vital functional proteins. Furthermore, substantial circRNAs exert compelling biological roles by acting as protein sponges, by being translated themselves or regulating posttranslational modifications of proteins. This review will help further explore more types of functional proteins that interact with circRNA in cancer and reveal other unknown mechanisms of circRNA regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide. Recent studies have shown that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are involved in tumorigenesis and the development of CRC. By constructing a differential lncRNA expression profile, we screened gene chips and found that DNAJC3-AS1 was highly expressed in CRC tissues and was associated with poor prognosis in patients with CRC. Further, we proved through assays such as wound healing, colony formation, and Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK8) that interfering with DNAJC3-AS1 could reduce the proliferation, migration, and invasion of CRC cells. Mechanically, we found that DNAJC3-AS1 regulates fatty acid synthase to promote the progression of CRC via the epidermal growth factor receptor/phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/nuclear factor κB signaling pathway. Therefore, DNAJC3-AS1 may be a new target for the diagnosis and therapy of CRC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we report a first major effort to measure surface wave amplitudes and to map attenuation structures of the Chinese mainland with dense modern broadband seismic networks in the country. We developed a method of phase‐matched filtering to automatically extract fundamental‐mode Rayleigh waves and to measure the spectral amplitudes. The results are compatible with those from the previous manual method with great improvement in efficiency. Using the automatic method, we extracted a large quantity of the amplitudes of Rayleigh waves at periods of 10 and 20 s recorded by 141 broadband stations from the China Digital Seismograph Network and 656 broadband stations from the China Regional Seismic Network. We performed tomographic inversions using the method of two‐station amplitude ratios and obtained images of the surface wave attenuation maps at periods of 10 and 20 s for the Chinese mainland. The tomographic model resolution reaches 1–2° in central and eastern China, 3–5° in western China, and 5° in the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau and northeastern China. The tomographic results demonstrate good correspondence with geological structures. The distribution of strong historical earthquakes indicates that in the Chinese mainland, these earthquakes occurred mainly in high‐attenuation areas or the junctions between high‐ and low‐attenuation areas. Key Points: A first major effort was made to map surface wave attenuation structures of the Chinese mainland using dense networks of stationsAn automatic method was developed to extract the fundamental‐mode Rayleigh waves with great improvement of efficiencyThe attenuation maps show important geological structures, correlation with seismicity, and similarity and contrast with seismic velocity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ambient noise correlation has been used extensively to retrieve traveltimes of surface waves. However, studies of retrieving amplitude information and attenuation from ambient noise are limited. In this study, we develop methods and strategies to extract Rayleigh wave amplitude and attenuation from ambient noise correlation, based on theoretical derivation, numerical simulation, and practical considerations of real seismic data. The synthetic data included a numerical simulation of a highly anisotropic noise source and Earth-like temporally varying strength. Results from synthetic data validate that amplitudes and attenuations can indeed be extracted from noise correlations for a linear array. A temporal flattening procedure is effective in speeding up convergence while preserving relative amplitudes. The traditional one-bit normalization and other types of temporal normalization that are applied to each individual station separately are problematic in recovering attenuation and should be avoided. In this study, we propose an 'asynchronous' temporal flattening procedure for real data that does not require all stations to have data at the same time. Furthermore, we present the detailed procedure for amplitude retrieval from ambient noise. Tests on real data suggest attenuations extracted from our noise-based methods are comparable with those from earthquakes. Our study shows an exciting promise of retrieving amplitude and attenuation information from ambient noise correlations and suggests practical considerations for applications to real data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on continuous waveform, surface wave and body wave data from teleseismic events recorded by broadband seismic network stations in the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, we retrieved 6–120 s Rayleigh wave phase velocity and 6–50 s group velocity dispersion curves for station pairs, as well as receiver functions beneath all of the stations. The Rayleigh wave phase velocity dispersions at overlapping periods based on ambient noise empirical Green's functions were found to be congruent with those based on teleseismic surface wave data. We then performed inversion to obtain a reliable 3-D shear wave velocity structure by using both the surface wave dispersion measurements and receiver functions. The resulting shear wave velocity distribution revealed that low-velocity zones (LVZs) are ubiquitous in the mid-lower crust beneath the Chuandian block, the Songpan-Ganze fold belt, and some parts of the western Yangtze platform. This result differs from those of previous studies, which indicated that LVZs are mainly concentrated in the lower crust beneath the Chuandian block. We also found that the LVZs vary substantially in terms of occurrence depth, thickness, and anomaly strength. They are also influenced by the major fault zones, especially the Lijiang-Xiaojinhe fault, and the tectonic blocks in the study area. Extremely high Poisson's ratios (σ  > 0.3) and low shear wave velocities (Vs  < 3.4 km s–1) coincide in the northwestern margin of the Chuandian block and the region to the south of the Sichuan basin, indicating the existence of partial melt in the mid-lower crust in that area. The mantle LVZs exhibit spatial consistency with crustal LVZs to some degree in the eastern Songpan-Ganze fold belt, Shangrila sub-block, and Yajiang sub-block, implying the existence of a weak and low-density layer in the upper-most mantle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lateral Moho variations and the geometry of the Main Himalayan Thrust under the Nepal Himalayan orogen are investigated to determine a new crustal model using a large number of high-quality receiver functions recorded by the HIMNT and HiCLIMB portable seismic networks. Our new model shows an evident and complicated lateral Moho depth variation of 8–16 km in the east–west direction, which is related to the surface tectonic features. These results suggest a non-uniformed crustal deformation, resulted from the splitting and/or tearing of the Indian plate during the northward subduction. Our migrated receiver function images illustrate a discernible ramp structure of the Main Himalayan Thrust with an abrupt downward bending close to the hypocentre of the 2015 Gorkha M w 7.8 earthquake. The distribution of the aftershocks coincides with the present decollement structure. Integrated with previous magnetotelluric soundings and tomographic results, our results suggest that the ramp-shaped structure within the Main Himalayan Thrust could enhance stress concentration leading to the nucleation of the large earthquake. Our new crustal model provides new clues to the formation of the Himalayan orogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The accurate knowledge of precipitation information over the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, where the rain gauge networks are limited, is vital for various applications. While satellite-based precipitation estimates provide high spatial resolution (0.25°), large uncertainties and systematic anomalies still exist over this critical area. To derive more accurate monthly precipitation estimates, a spatial data-mining algorithm was used to remove the obvious anomalies compared with their neighbors from the original Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) multisatellite precipitation analysis (TMPA) 3B43 V7 data at an annual scale, as the TMPA data are more accurate than other satellite-based precipitation estimates. To supplement the international exchange stations, additional ground observations were used to calibrate and improve the TMPA data with anomalies removed at an annual scale. Finally, a disaggregation strategy was adopted to derive monthly precipitation estimates based on the calibrated TMPA data. We concluded that: 1) the obvious anomalies compared with their neighbors could be removed from the original TMPA data sets and 2) the calibrated results were of a higher quality than the original TMPA data in each month from 2000 to 2013. The improved TMPA 3B43 V7 data sets over the Qinghai–Tibet plateau, named NITMPA3B43_QTP, are available at http://agri.zju.edu.cn/NITMPA3B43_QTP/. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Soil salinization of the reclaimed tidelands is problematic. Therefore, there is a need to characterize the spatial variability of soil salinity associated with soil moisture and other soil properties across the reclaimed tidelands. One approach is the use of easily-acquired ancillary data as surrogates for the arduous conventional soil sampling. In a reclaimed coastal tideland in the south of Hangzhou Gulf, backscattering coefficient (σ) from remotely sensed ALOS/PALSAR radar imagery (HH polarization mode) and apparent soil electrical conductivity (ECa) from a proximally sensed EM38 were used to indicate the spatial distribution of soil moisture and salinity, respectively. After that, response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to determine an optimal set of 12 soil samples using spatially referenced σ and ECa data. Spatial distributions of three soil chemical properties [i.e. soil organic matter (SOM), available nitrogen (AN), and available potassium (AK)] were predicted using inverse distance weighted method based on the 12 samples and were then compared with the predictions generated using 42 samples obtained from a conventional grid sampling scheme. It was concluded that combination of radar imagery and EM induction data can delineate the spatial variability of two key soil properties (i.e. moisture and salinity) across the study area. Besides, RSM-based sampling using radar imagery and EM induction data was highly effective in characterizing the spatial variability of SOM, AN and AK, compared with the conventional grid sampling. This new approach may be used to assist site specific management in precision agriculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The source rupture process of the M7.0 Lushan earthquake was here evaluated using 40 long-period P waveforms with even azimuth coverage of stations. Results reveal that the rupture process of the Lushan M7.0 event to be simpler than that of the Wenchuan earthquake and also showed significant differences between the two rupture processes. The whole rupture process lasted 36 s and most of the moment was released within the first 13 s. The total released moment is 1.9×10N m with M=6.8. Rupture propagated upwards and bilaterally to both sides from the initial point, resulting in a large slip region of 40 km×30 km, with the maximum slip of 1.8 m, located above the initial point. No surface displacement was estimated around the epicenter, but displacement was observed about 20 km NE and SW directions of the epicenter. Both showed slips of less than 40 cm. The rupture suddenly stopped at 20 km NE of the initial point. This was consistent with the aftershock activity. This phenomenon indicates the existence of significant variation of the medium or tectonic structure, which may prevent the propagation of the rupture and aftershock activity. The earthquake risk of the left segment of Qianshan fault is worthy of attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-resolution three-dimensional V and V/ V images in the Longtan reservoir area were obtained from local earthquake data by using 3,178 events with total 24,153 P-wave and 23,987 S-wave arrivals collected from 23 seismic stations. The tomographic images show that significant V heterogeneities can be seen at layers of different depth in the Longtan reservoir area. Low- V anomalies both beneath and around the main rivers in the reservoir area may be related to the composition of rocks which are mainly deposit carbonate and arenaceous shale, which contributes to water saturation. We deduced that the high porosity rocks beneath the main rivers may be fully saturated with water. The phenomenon that V is relatively high in the area which is 10-20 km away from the rivers indicates that horizontal saturation of water is limited within a small range of area that is about 10-20 km from the main rivers. The characteristic is significant that seismicity in the Longtan reservoir area is coincident with the distribution of the low- V area. V/ V tomographic images show that V/ V ranges from 1.8 to 2.05 in shallow layers above 4 km depth beneath the Longtan reservoir, suggesting the properties of the rocks are limestone and shale. At the depth of 7 km, the distribution of V/ V image varies quite remarkably, especially in the dam area. This demonstrates that the range of influence by the saturation of water in the media below the reservoir surface can reach 4-7 km depth in the dam area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY High-resolution 3-D QP and QS models at depths of 0∼14 km in the Longtan reservoir area, which were used to further infer the water infiltration around the reservoir, were constructed by the local earthquake tomography technique. The inversion used t* values measured from velocity spectral amplitudes of 16 134 P-wave and 17 027 S-wave observations of 2828 events recorded by 23 digital seismic stations in the Longtan reservoir area. 3-D QP and QS tomographic images suggest a close relation between the attenuation models and water infiltration. Low QP and QS exist down to 4∼7 km depths beneath the main rivers in the reservoir area, whereas high QP and QS are found both at deep layers and at shallow layers in regions other than the main river area. We inferred that the rocks beneath the main rivers are infiltrated by substantial water and water infiltration reaches 4∼7 km deep, and the ranges of water infiltration vary by region. Specifically, the zone of high water content is estimated to extend up to 10 km away from the Buliu river in the reservoir dam area where water depth in the reservoir reaches maximum, and the extent of water infiltration in rocks can only be about 5 km around from the Hongshui river and the Youla river. Low QP and high QS indicate that the carbonate rocks in the east of the Bala fault area may be saturated with water. Earthquake clusters are mainly concentrated on the low- QP and low- QS zones, indicating that water infiltration beneath the main rivers possibly plays an important role in inducing earthquakes in the Longtan reservoir area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moment tensor solution, rupture process and rupture characteristics of the great Wenchuan M8.0 earthquake are studied by using 39 long-period P and SH waveforms with evenly azimuth coverage of stations. Our results reveal that the Wenchuan M8.0 event consisted of 5 sub-events of Mw⩾7.3 occurring succesively in time and space. Rupture started with a Mw7.3 introductory strike-slip faulting in the first 12 s, then within 12-40 s, two sub-events with Mw7.6 and Mw7.4 occurred within 80 km northeast from the initial point with the dominant rupture type of thrust moving. From 40 to 62 s, a Mw7.5 and Mw7.4 right-lateral strike-slip type of sub-events occurred on the two sides of Beichuan, 120 km away northeast from the initial point. The whole rupture process lasted 105 s and unilaterally propagated from the initial point on the WS section of the Yingxiu-Beichuan fault to the NE direction, resulting in a 230-km-long surface rupture zone and the average surface dislocation is up to 4 m. Two asperities are identified and the whole rupture process is formed by WS and NE parts. In the WS part named Dujiangyang-Wenchuan, where the initial point is located, the rupture process showed reverse faulting with the maximum slip of 8.2 m. Around Mianzhu, rupture changed to right-lateral strike slip faulting and formed a Beichuan-Qingchuan large slip area. The rupture area on this part is about 10 km in depth, shallower than on the WS part. The maximum slip is 6.53 m. Consequently, there formed 2 segments with the surface dislocation larger than 6 m. One is the Dujiangyan-Wenchuan segment with the maximum surface displacement of 6.44 m, the other is the Beichuan-Qingchuan segment with the maximum surface displacement of 6.53 m. This segmentation may have its geological and tectonic background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]