Sumer Chopra

Ambient noise levels in Gujarat State (India) seismic network

The Gujarat state seismic network (GSNet), comprising of 50 broadband seismograph (BBS) stations and 40 strong motion accelerographs (SMAs), has been operated and maintained by the Institute of Seismological Research (ISR) since 2006. Nineteen permanent BBS stations are connected through VSAT and the rest are kept in an offline mode. The local geology beneath seismic stations varies from Mesozoic to Quaternary formations. The seismic background noise (SBN) at these stations was calculated and found that it varies widely as a function of period, time and geographic location. We have studied the SBN variation along these three parameters for 14 online BBS stations of the GSNet. It was found that the stations located on the Deccan trap and Mesozoic formations are good sites with low SBN while stations on Quaternary, Tertiary and soft soil are noisy. The comparison between day and night noise spectra shows that SBN increases during the daytime at most of the stations. Three typical noisy peaks at three different periods were recorded at all of the stations, which is a global phenomenon. The results of this study will be helpful in selecting sites for future earthquake observations.

A review of strong motion studies in Gujarat State of western India

AbstractThe present work reviews the strong motion studies done in Gujarat State of western India. Prior to the 2001 Bhuj earthquake, no strong motion instrument was in operation in Gujarat. After the earthquake, number of research institutes/universities from India and abroad deployed strong motion instruments to study aftershock activity, source dynamics, path and site effects. The strong motion recordings have enhanced the general understanding of the physics of earthquakes in the region. An attempt has been made to develop attenuation relationship for the Gujarat region from the actual ground motions recorded by the strong motion networks. The Government of Gujarat with the help from Asian Development Bank, World Bank (WB), Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, has established a permanent dense network of strong motion accelerograph (SMA) all over Gujarat. In addition, the Institute of Seismological Research has been established in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, with the help of WB for carrying out seismological research. Recently, many important studies have been carried out using actual acceleration data obtained from a dense network of 54 SMA, as well as synthetic data generated using region-specific ground motion parameters. The recorded data are used to obtain region-specific ground motion parameters and ground motion prediction equation. A deterministic hazard analysis for the entire state of Gujarat has been carried out using site-specific ground motion parameters. The estimated peak ground acceleration and modified Mercalli intensity values have been used to estimate the vulnerability of the different types of buildings in 31 cities of Gujarat. As Gujarat has three distinct regions having varied geological conditions, the recorded strong motion data gave an opportunity to study the effect of geological and local-site conditions on the response spectra. This study for an intra-plate region like Gujarat is a pioneer work. Still, lots of research work need to be carried out as more and more data are available, such as development of more robust ground motion prediction equations and a 3D-velocity structure of Gujarat. Generation of shake maps in real time and a credible early earthquake warning system is need of the hour for disaster mitigation and management.

Stochastic finite fault modelling of M w 4.8 earthquake in Kachchh, Gujarat, India

The modified stochastic finite fault modelling technique based on dynamic corner frequency has been used to simulate the strong ground motions of Mw 4.8 earthquake in the Kachchh region of Gujarat, India. The accelerograms have been simulated for 14 strong motion accelerographs sites (11 sites in Kachchh and three sites in Saurashtra) where the earthquake has been recorded. The region-specific source, attenuation and generic site parameters, which are derived from recordings of small to moderate earthquakes, have been used for the simulations. The main characteristics of the simulated accelerograms, comprised of peak ground acceleration (pga), duration, Fourier and response spectra, predominant period, are in general in good agreement with those of observed ones at most of the sites. The rate of decay of simulated pga values with distance is found to be similar with that of observed values. The successful modelling of the empirical accelerograms indicates that the method can be used to prepare wide range of scenarios based on simulation which provide the information useful for evaluating and mitigating the seismic hazard in the region.

Intensity map of Mw 6.9 2011 Sikkim–Nepal border earthquake and its relationships with PGA: distance and magnitude

We compiled available information of damages and other effects caused by the September 18, 2011, Sikkim–Nepal border earthquake from the print and electronic media, and interpreted them to obtain Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) at over 142 locations. These values are used to prepare the intensity map of the Sikkim earthquake. The map reveals several interesting features. Within the meizoseismal area, the most heavily damaged villages are concentrated toward the eastern edge of the inferred fault, consistent with eastern directivity. The intensities are amplified significantly in areas located along rivers, within deltas or on coastal alluvium such as mud flats and salt pans. We have also derived empirical relation between MMI and ground motion parameters using least square regression technique and compared it with the available relationships available for other regions of the world. Further, seismic intensity information available for historical earthquakes which have occurred in NE Himalayas along with present intensity has been utilized for developing attenuation relationship for NE India using two-step regression analyses. The derived attenuation relation is useful for assessing damage of a potential future earthquake (earthquake scenario-based planning purposes) for the northeast Himalaya region.

Crustal imaging of the Northwest Himalaya and its foredeep region from teleseismic events

ABSTRACT Over 450 receiver functions from 8 broadband stations located in the Indo-Gangetic plain and Northwest Himalayan region are analyzed to examine the crustal properties across the contiguous region. We identified the P-to-S phase beneath each station and estimated the crustal thickness from time delay of this phase with respect to the direct P arrival. With the help of the slant stacking technique, we determined bulk crustal chemical properties and validated our estimate of crustal thickness. The Moho was encountered in the Indo-Gangetic plain at an average depth of 33 km and thickened towards the Northwest Himalaya with the Moho depth varying from 37 to 52 km. The thickest crust matched the highest topography, which is strong evidence of the occurrence of a crustal root of the mountain range. The time domain iterative linearized inversion technique is used to invert radial receiver functions to wave velocity structures for both tectonic regimes. From the forward modelling, we found mid-crustal low-velocity layers at different patches at a depth of 10–30 km in the Northwest Himalaya region. The presence of melts may be inferred in the mid crust with high values of Poisson ratio (σ ≥ 0.260) for the stations in the Northwest Himalaya. Towards south in the Indo-Gangetic alluvium plain, we estimated a medium to higher value of Poisson ratio (0.240 ≤ σ ≤ 0.290), but velocity modelling implies absence of an intracrustal low-velocity zone around the region.

Forecasting seismicity rate in the north-west Himalaya using rate and state dependent friction law

ABSTRACT In this study, rate and state Coulomb stress transfer model is adopted to forecast the seismicity rate of earthquakes (MW ≥ 5) in the north-west Himalaya region within the testing period 2011–2013. Coulomb stress changes (ΔCFF), considered to be the most critical parameter in the model, exhibit stress increase in the whole study region, excluding the Chaman fault of the Kirthar range where significant stress shadow has been observed. The estimated background seismicity rate varies in the range 0.0–0.7 in the region, which is preoccupied by low aftershock duration of <50 years. Furthermore, a low b-value that varies between 0.54 and 0.83 is observed in Kirthar ranges, Karakoram fault and Pamir-Hindukush region. However, areas like Hazara syntaxis of the northern Pakistan and northern Pamir of the Eurasian plate exhibit higher b-values in the range 1.23–1.74. Considering constant constitutive properties of the faults (i.e. Aσ = 0.05 MPa), our forecast model for variable ΔCFF and heterogeneous b-value successfully captures the observed seismicity rate of earthquakes. Results have been verified using statistical S-test. However, the model fails to capture the observed seismicity rate during the period when reconstructed for average b-value to be 0.86 and no change in ΔCFF (ΔCFF = 0).