Shear-wave splitting analysis of the upper mantle at the Niigata-Kobe Tectonic Zone with the data of the Joint Seismic Observations at NKTZ

Abstract

Abstract We conducted seismic observations with a spatially high density seismic network at the Niigata-Kobe Tectonic Zone, central Japan. The seismic network was used for the analysis of shear-wave splitting. Large lateral variations were found in the polarization direction data: the northern part of the research area yields polarization directions ofNW-SE (Region A), the central part of the research area with the polarization direction of NNE-SSW (Region B), the eastern part of the research area with the polarization direction of NE-SW (Region C), and the southern part of the research area with the polarization direction of E-W (Region D). The polarization directions in Regions B and C could be explained by the preferred orientation of olivine caused by the flow of the subducting Philippine Sea plate. However, the cause of anisotropic region which was related to the heterogeneous structure was also plausible. The polarization direction in Region A might be related to the flow caused by both of the subducting Philippine Sea and Pacific slabs. The polarization direction at the Region D could not be produced by the flow in the wedge and might be related to an anisotropic region beneath the slab. The lateral variation of the polarization direction does not support a model that the NKTZ is a collision region.