Seismicity in the vicinity of the SNORCLE corridors of the northern Canadian Cordillera

The Slave – Northern Cordillera Lithospheric Evolution (SNORCLE) corridors of the northern Cordillera sample some of the most, and least, seismically active regions of Canada. The earthquake history of this region is short. Precise determination of earthquake locations and depths is not possible even today. Nonetheless, significant gains in our knowledge of the seismicity of this region have been made in recent years from studies of historic earthquakes, microseismicity studies, and advances in waveform modelling techniques combined with broadband data that allow for determination of focal mechanisms and depths for moderate earthquakes. This article summarizes our current knowledge of the seismicity and seismic hazards across the region. These detailed analyses have shown that (i) the largest historical earthquakes have occurred in regions of ongoing microseismicity; (ii) the largest earthquakes have occurred in pairs or in swarms, suggesting that stress triggering is important in this region; (iii) the a...