An earlier paper from this research on outer-rise earthquakes (events occurring within the downgoing oceanic plate near the bathymetric trench axis) suggested a possibility of monitoring stress level on subduction boundaries. The results have stimulated the interest of many seismologists. This research will continue the work by extending the analysis of earthquake focal mechanisms to smaller events and relating them to the spatial and temporal variations of earthquake occurrence. Because monitoring stress level along subduction boundaries relates is a measure of the probability of earthquake occurrence in that region, the research has direct application to the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program.
