Creep along the Imperial Fault, southern California, from GPS measurements

[1] In May of 1999 and 2000, we surveyed with Global Positioning System (GPS) 46 geodetic monuments established by Imperial College, London, in a dense grid (half-mile spacing) along the Imperial Fault, with three additional National Geodetic Survey sites serving as base stations. These stations were previously surveyed in 1991 and 1993. The Imperial College sites were surveyed in rapid-static mode (15–20 min occupations), while the NGS sites continuously received data for 10 h d−1. Site locations were calculated using the method of instantaneous positioning, and velocities were determined relative to one of the NGS base stations. Combining our results with far-field velocities from the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC), we fit the data to a simple elastic dislocation model with 35 mm yr−1 of right-lateral slip below 10 km and 9 mm yr−1 of creep from the surface down to 3 km. The velocity field is asymmetrical across the fault and could indicate a dipping fault plane to the northeast or a viscosity contrast across the fault.

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