Earthquakes move northeast in the Midland Basin, Texas

AUSTIN, Texas – After analyzing seven years of seismic data from the Midland Basin, a team of scientists at the University of Texas at Austin has discovered that seismic activity may be moving northeast toward the community of Big Spring.

Although most of the previous earthquakes occurred in the southwestern region near Odessa and Midland, researchers have identified a seismic trend moving along a newly identified large-scale seismic fault zone extending toward the northeastern edge of the basin.

“The fault zone has been activated, and it has the potential to generate additional earthquakes that can be felt by humans, especially since it is so close to major cities along Interstate 20,” said Dino Huang, an assistant professor at the Jackson School of Physics. Earth Sciences who led the research.

The results were published in the journal Earthquake Research Letters.

The study is based on data collected by TexNet, a statewide seismic network managed by the Bureau of Economic Geology, a research unit at Jackson College. From January 2017 to November 2023, TexNet recorded 1,305 earthquakes in the region, the vast majority of which are very small and do not cause any damage.

TexNet seismometers detect earthquakes by recording ground motion caused by seismic activity. The researchers used this data to determine the depth, location and orientation of geological faults — large cracks underground where earthquakes can occur — using a technique called passive seismic analysis. Unlike active seismic analysis, this technique does not require manually firing a seismic energy source, such as an air gun, to explore underground fault structures.

The analysis allowed researchers to piece together previously unmapped parts of the Midland Basin rift system. Key features include what looks like a fault structure running across the middle of the basin in the deep basement rocks that slowly widens over time. This fault structure is surrounded on both sides by a complex network of smaller faults.

Within this fault system, the researchers identified 15 different earthquake-producing zones, which are places where earthquakes have already occurred and where earthquakes can be traced back to common stress sources in the Earth's interior. Next, the researchers combined data on earthquake frequency and magnitude from all regions to determine the future seismic potential of the entire Midland Basin—that is, the likelihood of future earthquakes occurring.

Composite figure showing the Midland Basin seismic landscape from 2017-2023. Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin recently described earthquake-producing structures and zones in the region. The research shows that the earthquakes appear to move northeast toward the basin edge along the fault structure. The figure shows induced earthquakes (gray crosses), large earthquakes of magnitude 4 or higher (light blue stars), subsurface structure that researchers believe is a fault (pink dashes), and earthquake production zones (green numbered boxes). A dark blue star marks the location of the Ring Hill event, a 5.2 magnitude earthquake that occurred on November 16, 2022. After the event, two earthquake swarms (indicated by two black circles) occurred in March and November 2023 (labeled A and B, respectively), indicating Until the earthquake swarms migrated towards the northeast. The cluster of earthquakes near Snyder is outside the scope of study of the Midland Basin but is currently being studied by scientists. Credit: Credit: Dino Huang, et al. /Jackson School of Geosciences

Using statistical analysis of TexNet data, the researchers determined that the basin's seismic activity has increased since 2018. Although this possibility suggests that the basin has a greater likelihood of future earthquakes than the pre-2018 earthquake risk, it does not provide insight into the frequency of earthquakes. In the future. Their size or when they might strike. However, based on recent seismic activity, researchers have an idea of ​​which areas will be more vulnerable to earthquakes in the future.

The team hypothesizes that a 5.2 magnitude earthquake that struck the Range Hill area in 2022, which is located in District 6 and northwest of Midland, put additional pressure on a fault system that propagated northeastward along the same path as the fault structure it exposed. Passive seismic analysis. Scientists expect more earthquakes to occur in Zones 6-8, northwest of the cities of Big Spring and Stanton, where stress is transmitted through the fault system. Researchers point to two recent earthquakes in Zone 8 – magnitude 3.7 and magnitude 3.8. Which occurred in March and November of 2023, as evidence of their hypothesis.

The Midland Basin is one of the major hubs of oil and gas extraction in Texas. Over time, the injection of wastewater from these processes below the surface created pressure along faults that caused earthquakes. According to the researchers, data from TexNet helps them understand the stress state on the fault system and how to mitigate associated induced earthquakes. Knowing the areas where earthquakes are most likely to occur can help operators make adjustments to wastewater injection operations to maintain low pressure and basin productivity.

The research was funded by the Bureau's Center for Integrated Earthquake Research. TexNet Director and Research Professor Alexandros Savadis and Research Assistant Professor Yangkang Chen are co-authors of the study.

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