Subduction zone processes are dominated by mechanical coupling and element transfer at and across the subduction plate boundary.
Unravelling major structures and rheological thresholds across the full range of spatial and temporal scales and their exact bearing on material and fluid transfer, long-term mechanics, earthquake rupture patterns is essential for our understanding of subduction zones dynamics, tsunami hazard and risk assessment.
Since 2004, a number of large subduction earthquakes with unexpected rupture characteristics resulted to the generation of catastrophic tsunamis. These events have highlighted the need to broaden our knowledge on the physical processes that govern subduction seismogenesis by identifying and incorporating new physical constraints that arise from geophysical observations, laboratory experiments, numerical/analogue modelling of large subduction earthquakes, and fluid-rock interactions.
This session welcomes contributions that would enhance interdisciplinary collaboration among observations, laboratory experiments, numerical modeling, tsunami hazard,… in an attempt to better characterize faulting and rupture complexity (e.g., spatial and temporal seismic rupture heterogeneity, fault roughness, geometry and sediment type, interseismic coupling), address the full dynamic complexity of the subduction plate interface down to ~100 km, and understand how tsunami hazard analysis can benefit from this multi-disciplinary approach.