Fig. 3: Evaluation of energy density and strain imparted at the oil seep sites during the Kahramanmaraş earthquake sequence.

a Timeline of earthquake energy densities and seep productivity at seep site 4. Black line = 2-day cumulative energy density mean. Orange line = 10-day average of slick area per image. Red line = envelope of 10-day average of slick area per image. Red and black dots = days with/without satellite data, respectively. b Distance vs. magnitude for earthquakes (circles) in our database. Black outlined circles = earthquakes occurring between 6 February and 28 February 2023 with their dynamic strain²⁹ shown in color. Squares = earthquakes known for triggering hydrological responses at sub-aerial mud volcanoes¹² and in a California well²⁸. Solid lines = constant energy densities⁷⁶. The seep sites all lie outside of the static strain zone for earthquakes in our study, suggesting dynamic strain as a mechanism. See Methods for earthquake database as well as static strain zone, dynamic strain, and energy density calculations.