Abstract: The Indonesia region is one of the most seismically active zones of the earth. On December 26, 2004 an M_S 8.7 (given by China Seismograph Network, M_W=9.3 given by USGS) earthquake occurred off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. Its magnitude classifies it as the fourth largest earthquake in the world since 1900 and the largest since the 1964 Alaska earthquake. The spatial distribution of the relocation of larger aftershocks (M＞4.5) following the main shock suggests a length and width of the rupture of about 1200km and 200km, respectively. The shock triggered massive tsunamis that affected several countries throughout South and Southeast Asia. It is a shallow interplate event of thrust type in the trench. Its epicenter is located at the northwestern end of the Indonesia-Melanesia plate boundary tectonic zone. In 2004, eight events of M≥7 happened in this zone, showing a migration from east to west. It implies that these shocks represent a correlated and consistent dynamic process along this subduction zone. These interplate events are associated with convergence of several plates and their fast motion in this region, which result in strong and complex structures and deformation. The India-Australia plate is underthrusting toward the Sunda continental block or Burma plate at a low angle, producing a great locked area on the shallow portion of the subduction zone where enormous strain is accumulated. Interseismic uplift recorded by coral growth and horizontal velocities measured by GPS show the geometry of the locked portion of the Sumatra subduction zone. The vertical and horizontal data are reasonably well reconciled with a model in which the plate interface is fully locked over a significant width. This locked fault zone extends to a horizontal distance of 132km from the trench, which corresponds to a depth of 50km. The sudden ruptures and large-scale slip of this locked area as the release of stress are the direct cause of the M 8.7 earthquake near Indonesia in 2004.

Key words: M 8.7 earthquake near Indonesia, subduction zone, earthquake migration, locked area

摘要： 2004年12月26日印度尼西亚西北近海8.7级大地震,是一次浅源的海沟俯冲型板间地震。震中位于印尼-美拉尼西亚板块边界构造带的西北端,2004年沿该带发生的8次M≥7地震显示总体由东向西迁移的特征,表明它们具有相互联系的统一动力过程。这些板间地震的发生与该地处于几个板块汇聚地带和较大的板块运动速率有关,它们导致了强烈而复杂的构造变形和构造活动。印度洋-澳大利亚板块向东南亚陆块的低角度俯冲,在俯冲带浅部形成积累应变能的巨大闭锁区,它的突然破裂和大尺度滑动是造成印尼8.7级大地震的直接原因。

关键词: 印尼8.7级大地震, 俯冲带, 地震迁移, 闭锁区