Faults break under the stress of plate tectonic forces, but the processes immediately preceding rupture are enigmatic. Monitoring of a remote oceanic fault that breaks regularly indicates that rupture is controlled by physical properties of the fault zone.
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Braunmiller, J. Caught in the act. Nature Geosci 5, 307–309 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1463
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1463