Observed and modeled tsunami signals compared by using different rupture models of the April 1, 2014, Iquique earthquake

A major interplate earthquake occurred on April 1, 2014, in northern Chile with magnitude \({M}_w = 8.1\), which ruptured part of the 1877 seismic gap segment. Following the earthquake, a tsunami was observed having a moderate impact in the nearest coastal areas. Here we propagate a tsunami generated by two different slip model distributions, as well as a homogeneous one, and compare them using observed tide gauge data from four stations along the Chilean coast, in order to estimate which best represents the measured tsunami waveforms. The heterogeneous models reproduce the general shape and amplitude of the observed data, while the tsunami signal modeled by the homogeneous slip overestimates the amplitude and underestimates the arrival time. This study shows that it is possible to accurately model near-field tsunami observations in Chile, using high-resolution bathymetry, and that they are better represented by heterogeneous sources.