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Yu
c a t an
Ba s i n
C a m p e c h e B a n k
L i g h t n i n g B a n k
C l a r kB a s i n
C o l o m b i a n B a s i n
V o l ca n B
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B a h a m a B a n k
SilverBank
CaicosBank
NavidadBank
G u a t a m a l a
Ba s i n
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B a s i n
Ma l p
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M I D D L E A M E R I C A T R E N C H
L E S S E R AN
TI L
LE
S
A T L A N T I C O C E A N
Ma
r in
er
R
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Gr a
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B
as
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AlgolSeamount
ParamountSeamount Medina
Seamount
Guardian Seamount
FisherSeamount
West CocosSeamount
C o l ó n R i d g e
To
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B
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Ba
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do
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Rid
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N I C A R A G U A
H O N D U R A S
P A N A M A
S U R I N A M E
P U E R T O R I C O ( U . S . )J A M A I C A
H A I T I
T R I N I D A D A N DT O B A G O
D O M I N I C A NR E P U B L I C
B E L I Z E
E L S A L V A D O R
V E N E Z U E L A
C O L O M B I A
P E R U
B R A Z I L
B A R B A D O S
D O M I N I C A
A N T I G U A A N DB A R B U D A
S T. K I T T ' SA N D N E V I S
S T. L U C I A
S T. V I N C E N T A N D T H E G R E N A D I N E SN E T H E R L A N D S
A N T I L L E S
G R E N A D A
B A H A M A S
T U R K S A N DC A I C O S I S . ( U . K . )
G U Y A N A
C U B A
B R I T I S HV I R G I N
I S L A N D S ( U . K . )
U . S . V I R G I N I S L A N D S ( U . S . )
C O S TA R I C A
E C U A D O R
G U A T E M A L A
M E X I C O
C a r i b b e a n S e a
H i s p a n i o l a
G R E A T E R A N T I L L E S
V e n e z u e l a B a s i n
Bahia de Panamá
G o l f o d eVe n e z u e l a
G u l f o fH o n d u r a s
Golfo de Fonseca
Golfo de LosMosquitos
Golfo de ChiriquiGolfo de Panamá
Lago de Maracaibo
Lago de
Nicaragua
Be a t a
Ri d
g e
Leeward Islands
Antigua
Barbuda
Guadeloupe (France)
Martinique (France)
Montserrat (U.K.)
Isla deMargarita(Venez.)
TobagoIsla La Tortuga(Venez.)
Aruba (Neth.)
Curaçao
Marie-Galante
Grand InaguaIsland
Isla Blanquilla(Venez.)
The Grenadines
IslaOrchilla(Venez.)
Islas Los Roques
(Venez.)
Dominica
St. Kitt'sNevis
Anguilla (U.K.) St. Martin (France & Neth. Antilles)
Grenada
St. Vincent
St. Lucia
Barbados
T r i n i d a d
St. Croix
Mona I.
Île de laGonâve
Isla de laJuventud
Isla de laRoatán
Turneffe Is.
Isla Cozumel
Arch. de las Perlas
Long I.
Crooked I.
Acklins I.Mayaguana I.
Caicos Is. (U.K.)
Vieques (U.S.)
Turks IslandJardines de la Reina
A r c h . d e C a m a g ü e y
Cayo Romano
Great Exuma
Grand Cayman I.
B a h a m a I s l a n d s
Bonaire
Isla Isabela
Isla Fernandina Isla Santa Cruz
Isla Santa Maria
Isla Pinta
I. del Rey
I. de Coiba
Isla Isabela
Isla San Salvador
Isla San Cristóbal
Isla Española
Isla MarchenaGalapagos Islands
(Archipiélago de Colón)(Ecuador)
Isla del Coco(Costa Rica)
IslaCulpepper Isla
Wenman
Cayos Miskitos
Isla de San Andres
Isla de Providencia
I. del Maiz Grande
I. Coiba
B a h a m a I s l a n d s
Woodward Islands
C A Y M A N I S .( U . K . )
C a r n e g i e R i d g e
A
B
A'
B'
C'AAA
BB
A'A'
B'B'
CC
C'C'
B'
D'
DD
D'
EEE
FFF
GGG
G'G'G'
F'F'F'
E'E'E'
600100
50
300
100
200
200
50
100
2001
1900
1902
1942
1943
1946
1958
1979
1991
1902
1934
1942
1946
1950
1976
1983
1992
Panama
Bucaramanga
Villahermosa
Tuxtla Gutierrez
MaracayValencia
Ibague
Cartagena
Barranquilla
San Pedro Sula
Veracruz
Quito
Guayaquil
Merida
Tegucigalpa
Santo Domingo
Santiago De Cuba
Caracas
Kingston
Cucuta
Maracaibo
San Salvador
Port-au-Prince
Cali
Medellin
Bogota
Manizales
Havana
Barquisimeto
Guatemala City
Managua
1906
90° 65°
10°
0°
85° 60°
10°
0°
85° 60°
15°
80°
15°
20°
75°
20°
75°
95° 70°
95° 70°
5°
90° 65°
5°
B a y o f
C a m p e c h e
G u l f o f M e x i c o
Ro
s al i n
d B
an
k
Serrani l laBank
Sue
Rid
ge
M e x i c o B a s i n
A l i c eS h o a l
P e d r o B a n k
Ki n
g s t on B
a n k
Pa
pa
ga
yo
s R
i dg
e
C a y m a n R i d g e
P A C I F I C
O C E A N
Teha
untep
ec R
idge
COCOS PLATE
P E R U
P A N A M A
BELIZE
DOMINICANREPUBLIC
NORTH AMERICA PLATE
V E N E Z U E L A
N I C A R A G U A
JAMAICA
G U Y A N A
NAZCAPLATE
GUATEMALA
M E X I C O
PUERTO RICO
SOUTH AMERICA PLATE
C O L U M B I A
COSTA RICA
HAITI
S U R
CARIBBEAN PLATE
B R A Z I L
H O N D U R A S
C U B A
E C U A D O R
20.0
20.0
81.220.0
20.0
72.6
20.0
65.0
20.0
20.0
20.0
81.220.0
20.0
72.6
20.0
65.0
20.0
70°
80° 60°
80° 60°
90° 70°
90°
0°
20°
0°
20°
10° 10°
SEISMIC HAZARD .
AND RELATIVE PLATE MOTION
.
6.5–6.9
Depth of focus
7–7.4
0–69 km
7.5
70–299 km
7.6
300–700 km
Active volcanoes
7.7
Air7.8
Nucleation pointsof M>8.3 events
7.9
Upper mantle
Distance (km)
8.0
8.1 Lower mantle
8.2
Earth structure
Crust
Dep
th (k
m)
Magnitude classes
Transition zone
4–5.96–6.4
DEPTH PROFILE EXPLANATION
Profiles of earthquake and volcanolocations are constructed from themapped data. Locations of the profileintersection with the surface aredrawn in the map and labeled tocoincide with the profile label. Lengthof the profile graphic is the same as inthe map. Distance in kilometers fromthe trench axis is indicated in the Xdirection, depth in kilometers isindicated in the Y direction. There isno vertical exaggeration. SeeExplanation at side for color key. Notall earth layers, earthquake depths andmagnitude, are visible on every map.
PROFILE X
TRENCH AXIS
-100 0 100 200 300 400 500 600
-700
-600
-500
-400
-300
-200
-100
0
100
PROFILE G
G G' -300
-100
0 -200
0
-200
-100
TRENCH AXIS
PROFILE F
-200
0
-200
-100-300
-100
0F F'
TRENCH AXIS
PROFILE E
-100
0
-300
-200
-500 0-200
-100
-400
-300
TRENCH AXIS
E E'
PROFILE D
-100 0 100 200
-100
0TRENCH AXIS
DDPROFILE C
-100
-200
2000
-100
300100
0TRENCH AXIS
C C'
PROFILE B
300
0
100
-200
400200
-100
0
-300
TRENCH AXIS
TRENCH AXIS
PROFILE A
0
-300
300
0
100
-200
400200
-100
B B'
A A'
3
1870
1897
1873
189417971853
1878
1849
1610
1843
1842
1839
1831
1788
1812
17801770
1766
1692
1875
1673
PRE-INSTRUMENTAL SEISMICITY 1500–1899
V E N E Z U E L A G U Y A N A
C U B A
H A I T IP U E R T O
R I C O
D O M I N I C A NR E P U B L I C
C O L O M B I AP A N A M A
N I C A R A G U A
H O N D U R A S
B E L I Z E
M E X I C O
C O S T AR I C A
65°
10°
85° 60°
85° 80° 60°
15°
10°
80°
15°
10°
20°
75°
75°
70°
70°
65°
REFERENCES
Bird, Peter, 2003, An updated digital model of plate boundaries: Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems, v. 4, no. 3, 52 p.DeMets, Charles, Gordon, R.G., Argus, D.F., and Stein, Seth, 1994, Effects of recent revisions to the geomagnetic time scale on estimates of current
plate motions: Geophysical Research Letters, v. 21, p. 2191–2194.DeMets, Charles, Jansma, P.E., Mattioli, G.S., Dixon, T.H., Farina, F., Bilham, R., Calais, E., and Mann, P., 2000, GPS geodetic constraints on
Caribbean–North America plate motion: Geophysical Research Letters, v. 27, p. 437–440.Dixon,
.
T.H., Farina, F., DeMets, Charles, Jansma, P., Mann, P., and Calais, E., 1998, Relative motion between the Caribbean and North Americanplates and related boundary zone deformation from a decade of GPS observations: Journal of Geophysical Research, 103(B7),p. 15157–15182.
.
Engdahl, E.R., and Villaseñor, Antonio, 2002, Global seismicity 1900–1999, in Lee, W.H.K., Jennings, P., Kisslinger, Carl, and Kanamori, Hiroo, eds,International Handbook of Earthquake and Engineering Seismology, v. 81(A), chap. 41, p. 1–26.
GEBCO, 2008, .
The GEBCO_08_Grid, ver. 20091120, http://www.gebco.net/, last accessed January 8, 2010.Giardini, D., Grünthal, G., Shedlock, K., Zhang, P
.
., and Global Seismic Hazards Program, 1999, Global Seismic Hazards Map,http://seismo.ethz.ch/GSHAP, last accessed January 9, 2007.
Hayes, Gavin, and . Wald, David, 2010, Slab models for subduction zones: U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake HazardsProgram, last accessed July, 22, 2010 at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/data/slab/.
Kanamori, Hiroo, and McNally, K.C., 1982, Variable rupture mode of the subduction zone along the Ecuador-Colombia coast: Bulletin of theSeismological Society of
.
America, v. 72, no. 4, p. 1241–1253.NOAA, 2010, National Geophysical Data Center: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, accessed on March 31, 2010 at
http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazards.Okal, E.A., 1992, Use of the mantle magnitude Mm for the reassessment of the moment of historical earthquakes: Pure and . Applied Geophysics,
v. 139, no.1, p. 17–57.Siebert, Lee, and Simkin, Thomas, 2002, Volcanoes of the world: An illustrated catalog of Holocene volcanoes and their eruptions: Smithsonian
Institution, Global .
Volcanism Program Digital Information series, GVP–3, http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/, last accessed January 9, 2007.Tarr, A.C., Villaseñor, Antonio, Furlong, K.P., Rhea, Susan, and Benz, H.M., and 2010, Seismicity of the earth 1900–2007: U.S. Geological Survey
Scientific Investigations Map 3064, scale 1:25,000,000.Weber
.
, J.C., Dixon, T.H., DeMets, Charles, Ambeh, W.B., Jansma, Pamela, Mattinoli, Glen, Saleh, Jarir, Sella, Giovanni, Bilham, Roger, andPérez, Omar
.
, 2001, GPS estimate of relative motion between the Caribbean and South American plates, and geologic implications for Trinidadand Venezuela: Geology, v. 29, no. 1, p. 75–78.
DATA SOURCES
The earthquakes portrayed on the main map and the depth profiles are taken from two sources: (a) the Centennial earthquake catalog(Engdahl and Villaseñor, 2002) and annual supplements for the interval 1900–2007, where the magnitude floor is 5.5 globally, and (b)a catalog of earthquakes having high-quality depth determinations for the period 1964–2002 and a magnitude range of 5.0≥M≤5.4(Engdahl, personal commun., 2009.)
The nucleation points of great earthquakes (M≥8.3) are designated with a label showing the year of occurrence. Their rupture areasare shown as pale reddish polygons. Major earthquakes (7.5≥M≤8.2) are labeled with the year of occurrence, while earthquakes(8.0≥M≤8.2) are labeled with the year of occurrence and also denoted by a white outline (Tarr and others, 2010).
The Seismic Hazard and Relative Plate Motion map displays the generalized seismic hazard of the region (Giardini and others, 1999) andrepresentative relative plate motion vectors of the Caribbean plate relative to the adjacent North and South America plates using theNUVEL–1A model (DeMets and others, 1994, 2000) and updates (Dixon and others, 1998; Weber and others, 2001).
Pre-instrumental seismicity for the Caribbean basin was obtained from the NOAA National Geophysical Data Center (2010) databaseof significant earthquakes; locations are approximate, based on macro-seismic reports and field investigations. We selectedearthquakes with associated reports of moderate to major damage, 10 or more deaths, an estimated magnitude of 7.5 or greater (ifknown), Modified Mercalli Intensities X, or tsunami generation.
Base map data sources include GEBCO 2008, Volcanoes of the World dataset (Siebert and Simkin, 2002), plate boundaries (Bird,2003), Digital Chart of the World (1992), and Environmental Sciences Research Institute (ESRI, 2002). Slab contours are from Hayes and Wald(2010).
TECTONIC SUMMARY
Extensive diversity of tectonic regimes characterizes the perimeter of the Caribbean plate, involving no fewer than four major adjacentplates (North America, South America, Nazca, and Cocos). Inclined zones of deep earthquakes (Wadati-Benioff zones), deep oceantrenches, and arcs of volcanoes clearly indicate subduction of oceanic lithosphere along the Central American and Atlantic Oceanmargins of the Caribbean plate, while shallow seismicity and focal mechanisms of major shocks in Guatemala, northern Venezuela,and the Cayman Ridge and Cayman Trench indicate transform fault and pull-apart basin tectonics.
The depth profile panels on this map portray earthquakes that extend from the Middle America Trench axis in the west to depths asgreat as 300 km beneath Guatemala, and from the Lesser Antilles Trench axis in the east to depths of approximately 200 km beneathGuadeloupe and the northeast Caribbean. In contrast, seismicity along the segments of the Caribbean plate margins from Guatemalato Hispaniola and from Trinidad to western Venezuela is indicative of transform fault tectonics.
Along the northern margin of the Caribbean plate, the North America plate moves west, relative to the Caribbean plate, at approximately20 mm/yr, resulting in major transcurrent faults and troughs. Farther east, the North America plate subducts beneath the Caribbean plateresulting in surface expression of the deep Puerto Rico Trench and a zone of intermediate focus earthquakes in the subducted slab.
The plate boundary curves around Puerto Rico and the northern Lesser Antilles where the plate motion vector of the Caribbean platerelative to the North and South America plates is less oblique, resulting in active island-arc tectonics. The North and South Americaplates subduct beneath the Caribbean plate along the Lesser Antilles Trench at rates of about 20 mm/yr; consequently, there are bothintermediate focus earthquakes within the subducted South America plate and a chain of active volcanoes along the island arc.
The southern Caribbean plate boundary along with the South America plate strikes east-west across Trinidad and western Venezuelaand is characterized by major strike-slip faults and shallow seismicity, resulting from relative plate motion of about 20 mm/yr. Furtherto the west, a broad zone of convergent deformation trends southwest across western Venezuela and central Columbia. Plateboundaries are not well defined across northern South America, but there is a transition from Caribbean/South America convergencein the east to Nazca/South America convergence in the west, described in more detail below. The transition zone is characterized byhigh seismic hazard.
The Nazca-Caribbean plate boundary offshore of Columbia is characterized by convergence (Nazca plate subducting under SouthAmerica plate) at about 65 mm/yr. The January 6, 1906 Mw = 8.5 megathrust subduction earthquake occurred on a shallow-dippinginterface of this plate boundary segment. The 1906 earthquake occurred in the Colombia-Ecuador region, with a seismic moment(Mo; equivalent to radiated energy) of 6×10 Exp 28 dyne-cm (Okal, 1992), and a moment magnitude (Mw) of 8.5 (Tarr and others,2010). The nucleation point of this earthquake is indicated on the map (rupture area is from Kanamori and McNally, 1982).
Along the western coast of Central America, the Cocos plate subducts beneath the Caribbean plate at rates of 72–81 mm/yr, resultingin a relatively high seismic hazard and a chain of numerous active volcanoes; here intermediate-focus earthquakes occur within thesubducted Cocos plate to depths of nearly 300 km.
8.2
200
Tsunami/deaths (yr)
600
Divergent
Magnitude classes
Mean slab depth
4–5.9
100
6–6.4
6.5–6.9
Historical earthquakes
Depth of focus
300
7–7.4
0–69 km
Deaths (yr)
7.5
Plate boundaries
70–299 km
Tsunami
7.6
300–700 km
Rupture zones
Others
7.7
Nucleation points
7.8
MAP EXPLANATION
Active volcanoes
7.9
8.0
50 km
8.1
FIGURE EXPLANATION
80.0–100.0
0–0.2 m/s²
Divergent
Relative plate motion
0.4–0.8
1.6–3.2
Subduction
20.0–39.9
Transform
6.4–9.8
Inferred
60.0–79.9
Convergent
Peak ground acceleration
Plate boundaries
0.2–0.4
Transform
0.8–1.6
11.0–19.9 mm/yr
Inferred
3.2–6.4
Convergent
40.0–59.9
Subduction
OPEN-FILE REPORT 2010–1083-ARevised September, 2011
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORU.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Seismicity of the Earth 1900–2010Caribbean Plate and VicinityCompiled by Harley M. Benz,1 Arthur C. Tarr,1 Gavin P
. Hayes,1 Antonio Villaseñor,2 Kevin P. Furlong,2 Richard L. Dart,1 and Susan Rhea1
20111U.S. Geological Survey2Institute of Earth Sciences, CSIC, Barcelona, Spain3Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA 16802 USA
600Scale
500KILOMETERS
01:8,000,000400 800100 300 700200
Universal Transverse Mercator projection
Digital map database and cartography by Susan Rhea and Art Tarr
Manuscript approved for publication Nov. 16, 2011
Any use of trade, product or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.
Although this information product, for the most part, is in the public domain, it also contains copyrighted materials as noted in the text. Permission to reproduce copyrighted items for other than personal use must be secured from the copyright owner
This and other USGS information products are available athttp://store.usgs.gov/. U.S. Geological SurveyBox 25286, Denver Federal CenterDenver, CO 80225
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This report is available at:http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2010/1083/a
For more information concerning this publication, contact:Center Director, USGS Geologic Hazards Science CenterBox 25046, Mail Stop 966Denver, CO 80225(303) 273-8579
Or visit Geologic Hazards Science Center Web site at:http://geohazards.cr.usgs.gov/
Suggested citation:Benz, H.M., Tarr, A.C., Hayes, G.P., Villaseñor, Antonio, Furlong, K.P., Dart, R.L., and Rhea, Susan, 2011, Seismicity of the Earth 1900–2010 Caribbean plate and vicinity: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2010–1083-A, scale 1:8,000,000.
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