Location
Location ANSS
The ANSS event ID is ak2026cxafty and the event page is at
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/ak2026cxafty/executive.
2026/02/10 20:42:22 61.697 -149.633 40.0 4.6 Alaska
Focal Mechanism
USGS/SLU Moment Tensor Solution
ENS 2026/02/10 20:42:22.0 61.70 -149.63 40.0 4.6 Alaska
Stations used:
AK.BAE AK.CAPN AK.CAST AK.CUT AK.DHY AK.DIV AK.EYAK AK.FID
AK.FIRE AK.GHO AK.GLI AK.HIN AK.K24K AK.KNK AK.L22K AK.PAX
AK.PPLA AK.RAG AK.RC01 AK.RIDG AK.SAW AK.SCM AK.WAT6
AV.SPCL AV.STLK
Filtering commands used:
cut o DIST/3.3 -40 o DIST/3.3 +50
rtr
taper w 0.1
hp c 0.03 n 3
lp c 0.10 n 3
Best Fitting Double Couple
Mo = 5.75e+22 dyne-cm
Mw = 4.44
Z = 54 km
Plane Strike Dip Rake
NP1 175 53 -106
NP2 20 40 -70
Principal Axes:
Axis Value Plunge Azimuth
T 5.75e+22 7 276
N 0.00e+00 13 184
P -5.75e+22 76 33
Moment Tensor: (dyne-cm)
Component Value
Mxx -1.90e+21
Mxy -7.42e+21
Mxz -1.10e+22
Myy 5.52e+22
Myz -1.40e+22
Mzz -5.33e+22
####----------
######--------------##
########----------------####
########------------------####
#########--------------------#####
##########---------------------#####
##########----------------------######
###########----------------------#######
#########--------- ----------#######
T #########--------- P ----------########
#########--------- ----------########
############----------------------########
############---------------------#########
###########---------------------########
############-------------------#########
###########------------------#########
###########----------------#########
###########-------------##########
##########----------##########
##########-------###########
#########--###########
#------#######
Global CMT Convention Moment Tensor:
R T P
-5.33e+22 -1.10e+22 1.40e+22
-1.10e+22 -1.90e+21 7.42e+21
1.40e+22 7.42e+21 5.52e+22
Details of the solution is found at
http://www.eas.slu.edu/eqc/eqc_mt/MECH.NA/20260210204222/index.html
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Preferred Solution
The preferred solution from an analysis of the surface-wave spectral amplitude radiation pattern, waveform inversion or first motion observations is
STK = 20
DIP = 40
RAKE = -70
MW = 4.44
HS = 54.0
The NDK file is 20260210204222.ndk
The waveform inversion is preferred.
Moment Tensor Comparison
The following compares this source inversion to those provided by others. The purpose is to look for major differences and also to note slight differences that might be inherent to the processing procedure. For completeness the USGS/SLU solution is repeated from above.
| SLU |
USGSMWR |
USGS/SLU Moment Tensor Solution
ENS 2026/02/10 20:42:22.0 61.70 -149.63 40.0 4.6 Alaska
Stations used:
AK.BAE AK.CAPN AK.CAST AK.CUT AK.DHY AK.DIV AK.EYAK AK.FID
AK.FIRE AK.GHO AK.GLI AK.HIN AK.K24K AK.KNK AK.L22K AK.PAX
AK.PPLA AK.RAG AK.RC01 AK.RIDG AK.SAW AK.SCM AK.WAT6
AV.SPCL AV.STLK
Filtering commands used:
cut o DIST/3.3 -40 o DIST/3.3 +50
rtr
taper w 0.1
hp c 0.03 n 3
lp c 0.10 n 3
Best Fitting Double Couple
Mo = 5.75e+22 dyne-cm
Mw = 4.44
Z = 54 km
Plane Strike Dip Rake
NP1 175 53 -106
NP2 20 40 -70
Principal Axes:
Axis Value Plunge Azimuth
T 5.75e+22 7 276
N 0.00e+00 13 184
P -5.75e+22 76 33
Moment Tensor: (dyne-cm)
Component Value
Mxx -1.90e+21
Mxy -7.42e+21
Mxz -1.10e+22
Myy 5.52e+22
Myz -1.40e+22
Mzz -5.33e+22
####----------
######--------------##
########----------------####
########------------------####
#########--------------------#####
##########---------------------#####
##########----------------------######
###########----------------------#######
#########--------- ----------#######
T #########--------- P ----------########
#########--------- ----------########
############----------------------########
############---------------------#########
###########---------------------########
############-------------------#########
###########------------------#########
###########----------------#########
###########-------------##########
##########----------##########
##########-------###########
#########--###########
#------#######
Global CMT Convention Moment Tensor:
R T P
-5.33e+22 -1.10e+22 1.40e+22
-1.10e+22 -1.90e+21 7.42e+21
1.40e+22 7.42e+21 5.52e+22
Details of the solution is found at
http://www.eas.slu.edu/eqc/eqc_mt/MECH.NA/20260210204222/index.html
|
Regional Moment Tensor (Mwr)
Moment 5.787e+15 N-m
Magnitude 4.44 Mwr
Depth 50.0 km
Percent DC 90%
Half Duration -
Catalog US
Data Source US
Contributor US
Nodal Planes
Plane Strike Dip Rake
NP1 179 51 -111
NP2 30 44 -66
Principal Axes
Axis Value Plunge Azimuth
T 5.628e+15 4 283
N 0.304e+15 16 192
P -5.933e+15 73 26
|
Magnitudes
Given the availability of digital waveforms for determination of the moment tensor, this section documents the added processing leading to mLg, if appropriate to the region, and ML by application of the respective IASPEI formulae. As a research study, the linear distance term of the IASPEI formula
for ML is adjusted to remove a linear distance trend in residuals to give a regionally defined ML. The defined ML uses horizontal component recordings, but the same procedure is applied to the vertical components since there may be some interest in vertical component ground motions. Residual plots versus distance may indicate interesting features of ground motion scaling in some distance ranges. A residual plot of the regionalized magnitude is given as a function of distance and azimuth, since data sets may transcend different wave propagation provinces.
ML Magnitude
Left: ML computed using the IASPEI formula for Horizontal components. Center: ML residuals computed using a modified IASPEI formula that accounts for path specific attenuation; the values used for the trimmed mean are indicated. The ML relation used for each figure is given at the bottom of each plot.
Right: Residuals from new relation as a function of distance and azimuth.
Left: ML computed using the IASPEI formula for Vertical components (research). Center: ML residuals computed using a modified IASPEI formula that accounts for path specific attenuation; the values used for the trimmed mean are indicated. The ML relation used for each figure is given at the bottom of each plot.
Right: Residuals from new relation as a function of distance and azimuth.
Context
The left panel of the next figure presents the focal mechanism for this earthquake (red) in the context of other nearby events (blue) in the SLU Moment Tensor Catalog. The right panel shows the inferred direction of maximum compressive stress and the type of faulting (green is strike-slip, red is normal, blue is thrust; oblique is shown by a combination of colors). Thus context plot is useful for assessing the appropriateness of the moment tensor of this event.
Waveform Inversion using wvfgrd96
The focal mechanism was determined using broadband seismic waveforms. The location of the event (star) and the
stations used for (red) the waveform inversion are shown in the next figure.
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Location of broadband stations used for waveform inversion
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The program wvfgrd96 was used with good traces observed at short distance to determine the focal mechanism, depth and seismic moment. This technique requires a high quality signal and well determined velocity model for the Green's functions. To the extent that these are the quality data, this type of mechanism should be preferred over the radiation pattern technique which requires the separate step of defining the pressure and tension quadrants and the correct strike.
The observed and predicted traces are filtered using the following gsac commands:
cut o DIST/3.3 -40 o DIST/3.3 +50
rtr
taper w 0.1
hp c 0.03 n 3
lp c 0.10 n 3
The results of this grid search are as follow:
DEPTH STK DIP RAKE MW FIT
WVFGRD96 1.0 -5 50 85 3.54 0.1403
WVFGRD96 2.0 -5 50 85 3.69 0.1822
WVFGRD96 3.0 165 65 70 3.73 0.1681
WVFGRD96 4.0 160 70 65 3.74 0.1866
WVFGRD96 5.0 150 80 60 3.75 0.2007
WVFGRD96 6.0 150 80 60 3.76 0.2131
WVFGRD96 7.0 330 80 60 3.79 0.2258
WVFGRD96 8.0 330 80 65 3.88 0.2375
WVFGRD96 9.0 330 75 60 3.89 0.2483
WVFGRD96 10.0 330 75 60 3.91 0.2572
WVFGRD96 11.0 325 70 60 3.94 0.2628
WVFGRD96 12.0 325 70 60 3.95 0.2652
WVFGRD96 13.0 315 65 70 3.97 0.2648
WVFGRD96 14.0 315 65 70 3.99 0.2628
WVFGRD96 15.0 310 65 70 4.00 0.2584
WVFGRD96 16.0 310 65 70 4.01 0.2521
WVFGRD96 17.0 65 50 30 3.99 0.2487
WVFGRD96 18.0 65 50 30 4.00 0.2464
WVFGRD96 19.0 35 65 -40 4.01 0.2495
WVFGRD96 20.0 35 65 -40 4.03 0.2525
WVFGRD96 21.0 35 65 -40 4.04 0.2537
WVFGRD96 22.0 35 65 -40 4.06 0.2551
WVFGRD96 23.0 35 65 -40 4.07 0.2562
WVFGRD96 24.0 30 60 -45 4.08 0.2584
WVFGRD96 25.0 30 60 -45 4.09 0.2591
WVFGRD96 26.0 35 65 -45 4.10 0.2602
WVFGRD96 27.0 45 70 -40 4.11 0.2618
WVFGRD96 28.0 45 65 -40 4.12 0.2640
WVFGRD96 29.0 205 45 -45 4.13 0.2660
WVFGRD96 30.0 205 40 -45 4.15 0.2770
WVFGRD96 31.0 200 40 -60 4.16 0.2895
WVFGRD96 32.0 200 40 -60 4.17 0.3040
WVFGRD96 33.0 5 50 -85 4.18 0.3223
WVFGRD96 34.0 5 50 -85 4.19 0.3368
WVFGRD96 35.0 5 50 -85 4.20 0.3468
WVFGRD96 36.0 5 50 -85 4.20 0.3529
WVFGRD96 37.0 5 45 -85 4.21 0.3585
WVFGRD96 38.0 5 45 -85 4.22 0.3651
WVFGRD96 39.0 5 45 -85 4.24 0.3717
WVFGRD96 40.0 10 50 -80 4.32 0.3880
WVFGRD96 41.0 10 45 -80 4.34 0.3940
WVFGRD96 42.0 20 45 -75 4.35 0.3991
WVFGRD96 43.0 20 45 -70 4.36 0.4053
WVFGRD96 44.0 20 45 -75 4.38 0.4117
WVFGRD96 45.0 20 45 -75 4.39 0.4174
WVFGRD96 46.0 20 45 -75 4.39 0.4229
WVFGRD96 47.0 25 45 -70 4.40 0.4272
WVFGRD96 48.0 25 45 -70 4.41 0.4311
WVFGRD96 49.0 15 40 -75 4.42 0.4334
WVFGRD96 50.0 20 40 -70 4.43 0.4362
WVFGRD96 51.0 20 40 -70 4.43 0.4383
WVFGRD96 52.0 20 40 -70 4.43 0.4384
WVFGRD96 53.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4399
WVFGRD96 54.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4403
WVFGRD96 55.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4391
WVFGRD96 56.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4397
WVFGRD96 57.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4382
WVFGRD96 58.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4365
WVFGRD96 59.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4354
The best solution is
WVFGRD96 54.0 20 40 -70 4.44 0.4403
The mechanism corresponding to the best fit is
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Figure 1. Waveform inversion focal mechanism
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The best fit as a function of depth is given in the following figure:
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Figure 2. Depth sensitivity for waveform mechanism
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The comparison of the observed and predicted waveforms is given in the next figure. The red traces are the observed and the blue are the predicted.
Each observed-predicted component is plotted to the same scale and peak amplitudes are indicated by the numbers to the left of each trace. A pair of numbers is given in black at the right of each predicted traces. The upper number it the time shift required for maximum correlation between the observed and predicted traces. This time shift is required because the synthetics are not computed at exactly the same distance as the observed, the velocity model used in the predictions may not be perfect and the epicentral parameters may be be off.
A positive time shift indicates that the prediction is too fast and should be delayed to match the observed trace (shift to the right in this figure). A negative value indicates that the prediction is too slow. The lower number gives the percentage of variance reduction to characterize the individual goodness of fit (100% indicates a perfect fit).
The bandpass filter used in the processing and for the display was
cut o DIST/3.3 -40 o DIST/3.3 +50
rtr
taper w 0.1
hp c 0.03 n 3
lp c 0.10 n 3
|
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Figure 3. Waveform comparison for selected depth. Red: observed; Blue - predicted. The time shift with respect to the model prediction is indicated. The percent of fit is also indicated. The time scale is relative to the first trace sample.
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Focal mechanism sensitivity at the preferred depth. The red color indicates a very good fit to the waveforms.
Each solution is plotted as a vector at a given value of strike and dip with the angle of the vector representing the rake angle, measured, with respect to the upward vertical (N) in the figure.
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A check on the assumed source location is possible by looking at the time shifts between the observed and predicted traces. The time shifts for waveform matching arise for several reasons:
- The origin time and epicentral distance are incorrect
- The velocity model used for the inversion is incorrect
- The velocity model used to define the P-arrival time is not the
same as the velocity model used for the waveform inversion
(assuming that the initial trace alignment is based on the
P arrival time)
Assuming only a mislocation, the time shifts are fit to a functional form:
Time_shift = A + B cos Azimuth + C Sin Azimuth
The time shifts for this inversion lead to the next figure:
The derived shift in origin time and epicentral coordinates are given at the bottom of the figure.
Velocity Model
The WUS.model used for the waveform synthetic seismograms and for the surface wave eigenfunctions and dispersion is as follows
(The format is in the model96 format of Computer Programs in Seismology).
MODEL.01
Model after 8 iterations
ISOTROPIC
KGS
FLAT EARTH
1-D
CONSTANT VELOCITY
LINE08
LINE09
LINE10
LINE11
H(KM) VP(KM/S) VS(KM/S) RHO(GM/CC) QP QS ETAP ETAS FREFP FREFS
1.9000 3.4065 2.0089 2.2150 0.302E-02 0.679E-02 0.00 0.00 1.00 1.00
6.1000 5.5445 3.2953 2.6089 0.349E-02 0.784E-02 0.00 0.00 1.00 1.00
13.0000 6.2708 3.7396 2.7812 0.212E-02 0.476E-02 0.00 0.00 1.00 1.00
19.0000 6.4075 3.7680 2.8223 0.111E-02 0.249E-02 0.00 0.00 1.00 1.00
0.0000 7.9000 4.6200 3.2760 0.164E-10 0.370E-10 0.00 0.00 1.00 1.00
Last Changed Tue Feb 10 18:06:37 CST 2026
