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We introduce here the two-fractal model of earthquake dynamics. As the fractured surfaces have self-affine properties, we consider the solid-solid interface of the earth's crust and the tectonic plate below as fractal surfaces. The overlap…
Short and long range interactions between earthquakes are attracting increasing interest. Scale invariant properties of seismicity in time, space and energy argue for the presence of complex triggering mechanisms where, like a cascade…
Catastrophes of all kinds can be roughly defined as short duration-large amplitude events following and followed by long periods of "ripening". Major earthquakes surely belong to the class of 'catastrophic' events. Because of the space-time…
This paper is devoted to the theory of aftershocks. The history of discovery of the Omori law is briefly described, the initial formulation of the law is given in the form of an algebraic formula describing the decrease in the frequency of…
The interevent time distribution characterizes the temporal occurrence in seismic catalogs. Universal scaling properties of this distribution have been evidenced for entire catalogs and seismic sequences. Recently, these universal features…
We study how a stress perturbation generated by a mainshock affects a population of faults obeying a rate-state friction law. Depending on the model parameters and on the initial state, the fault exhibits aftershocks, slow earthquakes, or…
Friction plays a fundamental role in many natural processes, including earthquakes, landslides, and volcanic eruptions. Earthquakes occur when highly compressed fault surfaces accumulate large enough shear stresses, causing the faults to…
Spatio-temporal correlations of the one-dimensional spring-block (Burridge-Knopoff) model of earthquakes are extensively studied by means of numerical computer simulations. Particular attention is paid to clarifying how the statistical…
We study analytically and by numerical simulations the statistics of the aftershocks generated after large avalanches in models of interface depinning that include viscoelastic relaxation effects. We find in all the analyzed cases that the…
Catastrophic transitions, where a system shifts abruptly between alternate steady states, are a generic feature of many nonlinear systems. Recently these regime shift were suggested as the mechanism underlies many ecological catastrophes,…
A generic saddle-node bifurcation is proposed to modelize fast transitions of finite amplitude arising in geophysical (and perhaps other) contexts, when they result from the intrinsic dynamics of the system. The fast transition is…
A modified Carlson-Langer model for earthquakes is proposed, which includes nonlinear visco-elasticity. Several aftershocks are generated after the main shock owing to the damping of the additional visco-elastic force. Both the…
Nearly all dense suspensions undergo dramatic and abrupt thickening transitions in their flow behaviour when sheared at high stresses. Such transitions occur when the dominant interactions between the suspended particles shift from…
The statistics of earthquakes in a heterogeneous fault zone is studied analytically and numerically in the mean field version of a model for a segmented fault system in a three-dimensional elastic solid. The studies focus on the interplay…
We present results from a physical experiment which demonstrates that a sheared granular medium behaves in a manner analogous to earthquake activity. The device consists of an annular plate rotating over a granular medium in a stick-slip…
This chapter first presents a rather personal view of some different aspects of predictability, going in crescendo from simple linear systems to high-dimensional nonlinear systems with stochastic forcing, which exhibit emergent properties…
A review of the statistical properties of earthquakes is provided, centered mainly in the work of the author (apologies for that). We explain the scaling law for the recurrence-time distributions, its universal character for stationary…
The Omori-Utsu law shows the temporal power-law-like decrease of the frequency of earthquake aftershocks and, interestingly, is found in a variety of complex systems/phenomena exhibiting catastrophes. Now, it may be interpreted as a…
Analysis of the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake on 26.12.2004 (M = 9) has allowed us to identify two non- trivial properties of the dynamics of aftershocks. First, the strongest aftershock (M = 7.2) was likely triggered by the round-the-world…
A prominent feature of earthquakes is their empirical laws including memory (clustering) in time and space. Several earthquake forecasting models, like the EpidemicType Aftershock Sequence (ETAS) model, were developed based on earthquake…