Real-time global shear-traction model verification using atmospheric effects of radon activity

Over the last 30 years, the Cosserat continuum has gained an importance in the description of physical properties of tectonic faulting. Using the sine-Gordon equation we show that kink and antikink solitary wave solutions can be used to describe propagation of the couple-stresses through the faulted medium of the Earth’s crust. Recently it was established that the shear-traction exerted on the tectonic faults by the couple-stresses correlates with radon degassing. Degassing is estimated through atmospheric effects due to air ionization expressed in the form of the atmospheric chemical potential (ACP), thus providing a direct and measurable proof for the existence propagating couple-stresses in the Earth’s crust. The positive and negative correlation corresponds to different faulting mechanism and thickness of the Earth’s crust. Positive correlation is observed in the regions characterized by thin crust, as well as in the normal and strike-slip faulting regimes. The negative correlation is observed in the regions characterized by thick crust as well as in the reverse faulting regimes, and along very long transform faults. Using together the shear-traction modeling and ACP measurements, we can identify critical zones prone to the earthquake triggering and calculate the time-dependent probability for the future earthquakes.