Assess benefit of multiple-source modeling aligned with the Tarauacá fault

Determine whether representing the earthquake source as multiple Gaussian pulse sources aligned with the Tarauacá fault yields more accurate simulations of deep and intense earthquakes in Acre, Brazil, compared to a single Gaussian pulse source, by analyzing the resulting P–SV wavefields and seismograms.

Background

The paper models P–SV seismic wave propagation using a two-dimensional elastodynamic PDE system, with the earthquake source represented by a single Gaussian pulse function. In the Conclusions, the authors propose investigating a source model comprising multiple sources aligned with the Tarauacá fault to potentially better capture the characteristics of deep and intense earthquakes observed in Acre, which are often associated with Nazca plate subduction or block displacements within the fault.

They explicitly pose a question about whether such multiple-source modeling would improve simulation fidelity and note that only new numerical simulations can resolve this, framing it as an unresolved modeling question.