Foreshock–mainshock–aftershock sequence analysis of the 14 January 2021 (Mw 6.2) Mamuju–Majene (West Sulawesi, Indonesia) earthquake

Abstract

AbstractWe present here an analysis of the destructive Mw 6.2 earthquake sequence that took place on 14 January 2021 in Mamuju–Majene, West Sulawesi, Indonesia. Our relocated foreshocks, mainshock, and aftershocks and their focal mechanisms show that they occurred on two different fault planes, in which the foreshock perturbed the stress state of a nearby fault segment, causing the fault plane to subsequently rupture. The mainshock had relatively few aftershocks, an observation that is likely related to the kinematics of the fault rupture, which is relatively small in size and of short duration, thus indicating a high stress-drop earthquake rupture. The Coulomb stress change shows that areas to the northwest and southeast of the mainshock have increased stress, consistent with the observation that most aftershocks are in the northwest.