An asperity is an area on an
active fault where there is increased friction, such that the fault may become locked, rather than continuously slipping as in
aseismic creep
In geology, aseismic creep or fault creep is measurable surface displacement along a fault in the absence of notable earthquakes. Aseismic creep may also occur as "after-slip" days to years after an earthquake. Notable examples of aseismic slip i ...
.
Earthquake rupture
In seismology, an earthquake rupture is the extent of slip that occurs during an earthquake in the Earth's crust. Earthquakes occur for many reasons that include: landslides, movement of magma in a volcano, the formation of a new fault, or, mos ...
generally begins with the failure of an asperity, allowing the fault to move.
See also
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Asperity (materials science)
In materials science, asperity, defined as "unevenness of surface, roughness, ruggedness" (from the Latin ''asper''—"rough"), has implications (for example) in physics and seismology. Smooth surfaces, even those polished to a mirror finish, ar ...
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Asperity (geotechnical engineering)
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Earthquake
An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...
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Fault friction
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Fault mechanics
Fault mechanics is a field of study that investigates the behavior of geologic faults.
Behind every good earthquake is some weak rock. Whether the rock remains weak becomes an important point in determining the potential for bigger earthquakes. ...
References
External links
IRIS page on fault asperities with simple cartoon video of an asperity on an active faultIRIS page on "Modeling Asperities on a Strike-Slip Fault with Spaghetti"
Seismology
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