Updated as of 2014/04/18

JTRACK (Tracking Tsunamigenic Slips in the Japan Trench) Workshop

Dates
May 15-17, 2014
Venue
JAMSTEC Tokyo Office, Japan

Overview

The largest earthquake slip ever observed occurred during the 2011 Mw9.0 Tohoku-oki earthquake. Bathymetric surveys record direct evidence for >50 m of lateral and 10 m of vertical motion near the trench and substantial deformation in trench sediments. The amount of coseismic slip and consequent size of the accompanying tsunami were largely unexpected by the geophysical community. Because the slip was high near the trench, the rupture zone provides an unprecedented opportunity to investigate the seismogenic behavior of subduction faults and enhance earthquake and tsunami hazard understanding around the Pacific Rim, the Indian Ocean and elsewhere.

Participants in this workshop will discuss potential IODP scientific drilling across the Japan Trench margin to investigate the controls on rupture to the trench. The discussion will build on a pre-proposal for the JTRACK project submitted in fall 2013, which included two major research goals:

  1. Define the physical and chemical properties of sediments and fluids of the near-trench megathrust that enable huge fault displacements.
  2. Develop and implement new methods for determining the recurrence of giant tsunamigenic earthquakes in the sediment record of the trench fill.

We anticipate that the results of this workshop will be a consensus on the science objectives for a full IODP proposal, and a drilling, logging, and sampling program that will help the project achieve the highest degree of success. A draft agenda is available here.

Registrations and Applications

We encourage people interested in all aspects of subduction systems to attend. Full and partial support for overseas travel will be available for a limited number of scientists from IODP member countries. Applications from early-career scientists are especially encouraged.

If you would like to attend the workshop, please send an email for registration to jtrack_ws@jamstec.go.jp. To apply for overseas travel support, please send a 2 page CV and a single page statement of interest to jtrack_ws@jamstec.go.jp. The statement should include your interest in the project, a summary of your scientific expertise in relation to understanding megathrust plate boundaries, and your relevant field experience. The deadline the travel support application is April 22, 2014.

Conveners

  • Shuichi Kodaira (JAMSTEC)
  • Jim Mori (Kyoto University)
  • Jim Sample (Northern Arizona University)
  • Michi Strasser (ETH Zurich)
  • Jamie Kirkpatrick (Colorado State University)
  • Saneatsu Saito (JAMSTEC)