Very-long-period pulses at Asama volcano, central Japan, inferred from dense seismic observations.

We observed seismic events consisting of several one-sided velocity pulses with durations of 5-30 s (hereafter called very-long-period or VLP pulses) using up to 14 broad-band seismometers installed near the summit area of Asama volcano, Japan. Particle motions do not point to a single source location despite their rectilinearities, suggesting a non-isotropic source mechanism, together with path effect. We conducted moment-tensor inversion analyses for these events using the Green's functions of not only translational motions but also of tilt motions. The best-fitting source locations are located north of the crater centre, at depths of 100-150 m below the crater bottom. The principal value ratios of moment-tensor solutions can be approximated as 5:3:2, which is indicative of a combination of a tensile crack and a cylinder, with the strike and dip angle of the crack both being nearly 70°, and symmetry axis of the cylinder being inclined by nearly 30° from the vertical. The time histories of moment-tensors are indicative of an initial sudden pressurization and subsequent gradual depressurization at the source region. We sought to model VLP pulses at Asama volcano by considering the inflow and outflow of gas at the source cavity, compensated by boiling in another deeper reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]