Waveform modeling established that the faulting originated at a depth of with the epicenter on the Alavar thrust fault on the slopes of the Lesser Caucasus mountains north of Mount Aragats. The mainshock produced surface rupture and propagated to the west with a separate strike-slip sub-event occurring two seconds later that propagated to the southeast. Going westward the fault split into two branches, a north-dipping reverse fault (north branch) and a right slip fault (south branch), but neither produced surface rupture. A total of five sub-events occurred in the first eleven seconds and an aftershock measuring 5.8 (local magnitude) occurred four minutes and twenty seconds later.