Relationship Between Seismic Moment and Source Duration for Seismogenic Earthquakes in Taiwan: Implications for the Product of Static Stress Drop and the Cube of Rupture Velocity

A systematic analysis of the source duration (τ) and seismic moment (M0) for seismogenic earthquakes (MW 5.5–7.1) in the Taiwan region was completed by using a teleseismic P-wave inversion method. Irrespective of the source self-similarity, the M0–τ relationship derived in this study had a power-law form, namely M0 ∝ τ3, under the assumption that ΔσVr3 is constant following a circular fault model (Δσ: static stress drop; Vr: rupture velocity). For Taiwan’s earthquakes, the derived M0–τ relationship not only provides information to predict the source duration of large earthquakes, but also probes the rupture features of seismogenic earthquakes. That is, there are different rupture patterns for earthquakes, but the product ΔσVr3 remains nearly constant.