Revisiting evidence for widespread seismicity in the upper mantle under Los Angeles

We revisit the finding of widespread deep seismicity in the upper mantle imaged with a dense, temporary nodal seismic array in Long Beach, California using back-projection to detect candidate events and trace randomization to develop a reliable imaging threshold for candidate detections. We find that nearly all detections of small events at depths greater than 20 kilometers in the upper mantle fall below the reliability threshold. We find a modest number of small, shallower events in the crust that appear to align with the active Newport-Inglewood Fault. These events occur primarily at 15- to 20-kilometer depth near the base of the seismogenic zone. Localized seismicity under fault zones suggests that the deep extensions of active faults are localized and deforming, with stress concentration leading to a concentration of small events, near the seismic-aseismic transition.

Automated summary

This study revisits the widespread deep seismicity in the upper mantle in Long Beach, California, utilizing a dense nodal seismic array to detect candidate events and develop a reliable imaging threshold. The results show that most small events detected at depths greater than 20 kilometers in the upper mantle fall below the reliability threshold, while a modest number of small, shallow events in the crust appear to align with the active Newport-Inglewood Fault.