New Ground Motion to Intensity Conversion Equations (GMICEs) for New Zealand

2020 ◽  
Vol 92 (1) ◽  
pp. 448-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose M. Moratalla ◽  
Tatiana Goded ◽  
David A. Rhoades ◽  
Silvia Canessa ◽  
Matthew C. Gerstenberger

Abstract Macroseismic intensities play a key role in the engineering, seismological, and loss modeling communities. However, at present, there is an increasing demand for instrumental data-based loss estimations that require statistical relationships between intensities and strong-motion data. In New Zealand, there was an urgent need to update the ground motion to intensity conversion equation (GMICE) from 2007, developed prior to a large number of recent earthquakes including the 2010–2011 Canterbury and 2016 Kaikōura earthquake sequences. Two main factors now provide us with the opportunity to update New Zealand’s GMICE: (1) recent publication of New Zealand’s Strong-Motion Database, corresponding to 276 New Zealand earthquakes with magnitudes 3.5–7.8 and 4–185 km depths; and (2) recent generation of a community intensity database from GeoNet’s “Felt Classic” (2004–2016) and “Felt Detailed” (2016–2019) questionnaires, corresponding to around 930,000 individual reports. Ground-motion data types analyzed are peak ground velocity (PGV) and peak ground acceleration (PGA). The intensity database contains 67,572 felt reports from 917 earthquakes, with magnitudes 3.5–8.1, and 1797 recordings from 247 strong-motion stations (SMSs), with hypocentral distances of 5–345 km. Different regression analyses were tested, and the bilinear regression of binned mean strong-motion recordings for 0.5 modified Mercalli intensity bins was selected as the most appropriate. Total least squares regression was chosen for reversibility in the conversions. PGV provided the best-fitting results, with lower standard deviations. The influence of hypocentral distance, earthquake magnitude, and the site effects of local geology, represented by the mean shear-wave velocity in the first 30 m depth, on the residuals was also explored. A regional correction factor for New Zealand, suitable for adjustment of global relationships, has also been estimated.

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Xiufeng Tian ◽  
Zengping Wen ◽  
Weidong Zhang ◽  
Jie Yuan

In this study, we use the strong motion records and seismic intensity data from 11 moderate-to-strong earthquakes in the mainland of China since 2008 to develop new conversion equations between seismic intensity and peak ground motion parameters. Based on the analysis of the distribution of the dataset, the reversible conversion relationships between modified Mercalli intensity (MMI) and peak ground acceleration (PGA), peak ground velocity (PGV), and pseudo-spectral acceleration (PSA) at natural vibration periods of 0.3 s, 1.0 s, 2.0 s, and 3.0 s are obtained by using the orthogonal regression. The influence of moment magnitude, hypocentral distance, and hypocentral depth on the residuals of conversion equations is also explored. To account for and eliminate the trends in the residuals, we introduce a magnitude-distance-depth correction term and obtain the improved relationships. Furthermore, we compare the results of this study with previously published works and analyze the regional dependence of conversion equations. To quantify the regional variations, a regional correction factor for China, suitable for adjustment of global relationships, has also been estimated.


Author(s):  
Mengyao Sun ◽  
Huiyu Zhu ◽  
Jie Zhang ◽  
Haohuan Fu ◽  
Xiao Tian

ABSTRACT The ground motion from small aftershocks of the 2014 Mw 6.2 Jinggu earthquake in Yunnan Province is analyzed. With the seismic records, we assess the site conditions and develop a ground‐motion prediction equation (GMPE) for this region. The strong‐motion duration is also calculated to further understand the potential seismic hazard to nearby structures. The dataset includes 504 events with Mw 1.5–3.9 and 2956 three‐component records at hypocentral distances <45  km from 10 stations operated by the Earthquake Administration of Yunnan Province. The ground‐motion amplification factor derived from the horizontal‐to‐vertical (H/V) spectral ratio of each station ranges from 1.1 to 5.2 (0.04–0.72 in log units). The time‐averaged shear‐wave velocity to 30 m depth (VS30) for seismographic stations is estimated using fundamental frequencies associated with peak H/V ratios. GMPE is obtained using the entire dataset. The values of the geometrical spreading coefficient for the pseudoabsolute response spectral acceleration (PSA) at a frequency of 10 Hz suggest higher decay than those for the peak ground velocity, peak ground acceleration (PGA), and PSA at other frequencies. The significant duration (Ds) of strong ground motion systematically decreases with PGA but increases with hypocentral distance. However, no strong correlation is observed for Ds and magnitude or for Ds and VS30. The results of this study are compared with analogous research (Babaie Mahani and Kao, 2018) on induced earthquakes with the same distance–magnitude range. The comparison indicates that the decay of ground‐motion amplitudes with hypocentral distance in our case is generally lower than that in the other study. The Ds trends are consistent in the two studies, although the longest strong‐motion duration in the two cases apparently differs.


2021 ◽  
pp. 875529302110560
Author(s):  
Yousef Bozorgnia ◽  
Norman A Abrahamson ◽  
Sean K Ahdi ◽  
Timothy D Ancheta ◽  
Linda Al Atik ◽  
...  

This article summarizes the Next Generation Attenuation (NGA) Subduction (NGA-Sub) project, a major research program to develop a database and ground motion models (GMMs) for subduction regions. A comprehensive database of subduction earthquakes recorded worldwide was developed. The database includes a total of 214,020 individual records from 1,880 subduction events, which is by far the largest database of all the NGA programs. As part of the NGA-Sub program, four GMMs were developed. Three of them are global subduction GMMs with adjustment factors for up to seven worldwide regions: Alaska, Cascadia, Central America and Mexico, Japan, New Zealand, South America, and Taiwan. The fourth GMM is a new Japan-specific model. The GMMs provide median predictions, and the associated aleatory variability, of RotD50 horizontal components of peak ground acceleration, peak ground velocity, and 5%-damped pseudo-spectral acceleration (PSA) at oscillator periods ranging from 0.01 to 10 s. Three GMMs also quantified “within-model” epistemic uncertainty of the median prediction, which is important in regions with sparse ground motion data, such as Cascadia. In addition, a damping scaling model was developed to scale the predicted 5%-damped PSA of horizontal components to other damping ratios ranging from 0.5% to 30%. The NGA-Sub flatfile, which was used for the development of the NGA-Sub GMMs, and the NGA-Sub GMMs coded on various software platforms, have been posted for public use.


Author(s):  
Ellen M. Smith ◽  
Walter D. Mooney

Abstract We conducted a seismic intensity survey in Ecuador, following the 16 April 2016 Mw 7.8 Pedernales earthquake, to document the level of damage caused by the earthquake. Our modified Mercalli intensities (MMIs) reach a maximum value of VIII along the coast, where single, two, and multistory masonry and concrete designed buildings partially or completely collapsed. The contours of our MMI maps are similar in shape to the contour maps of peak ground acceleration (PGA) and peak ground velocity (PGV). A comparison of our seismic intensities with the recorded PGA and PGV values reveals that our MMI values are lower than predicted by ground-motion intensity conversion equations that are based on shallow crustal earthquakes. The image of the earthquake rupture obtained using teleseismic backprojection at 0.5–2.0 Hz is coincident with the region of maximum MMI, PGA, and PGV values, Thus, rapid calculation of backprojection may be a useful tool for guiding the deployment of emergency response teams following large earthquakes. The most severe damage observed was, primarily, due to a combination of poorly constructed buildings and site conditions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 110 (6) ◽  
pp. 2843-2861
Author(s):  
Giuseppina Tusa ◽  
Horst Langer ◽  
Raffaele Azzaro

ABSTRACT We present a set of revised ground-motion models (GMMs) for shallow events at Mt. Etna Volcano. The recent occurrence of damaging events, in particular two of the strongest earthquakes ever instrumentally recorded in the area, has required revising previous GMMs, as these failed to match the observations made for events with local magnitude ML&gt;4.3, above all for sites situated close to the epicenter. The dataset now includes 49 seismic events, with a total of 1600 time histories recorded at distances of up to 100 km, and ML ranging from 3.0 to 4.8. The model gives estimates of peak ground acceleration (both horizontal and vertical), peak ground velocity (both horizontal and vertical), and 5% damped horizontal pseudoacceleration response spectral ordinates up to a period of 4 s. GMMs were developed using the functional form proposed by Boore and Atkinson (2008). Furthermore, with a slightly modified approach, we also considered a regression model using a pseudodepth (h) depending on magnitude according to the scaling law by Azzaro et al. (2017). Both models were applied to hypocentral distance ranges of up to 60 km and up to 100 km, respectively. From the statistical analysis, we found that reducing the maximum distance from the event up to 60 km and introducing a magnitude-dependent pseudodepth improved the model in terms of total error. We compared our results with those derived using the GMMs for shallow events at Mt. Etna found by Tusa and Langer (2016) and for volcanic areas by Lanzano and Luzi (2019). The main differences are observed at short epicentral distances and for higher magnitude events. The use of variable pseudodepth avoids sharp peaks of predicted ground-motion parameters around the epicenter, preventing instabilities when using a GMM in probabilistic seismic hazard analysis.


2007 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 585-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir Graizer ◽  
Erol Kalkan

Spatial distribution of ground motion data of recent earthquakes unveiled some features of peak ground acceleration (PGA) attenuation with respect to closest distance to the fault ( R) that current predictive models may not effectively capture. As such, PGA: (1) remains constant in the near-fault area, (2) may show an increase in amplitudes at a certain distance of about 3–10 km from the fault rupture, (3) attenuates with slope of R−1 and faster at farther distances, and (4) intensifies at certain distances due to basin effect (if basin is present). A new ground motion attenuation model is developed using a comprehensive set of ground motion data compiled from shallow crustal earthquakes. A novel feature of the predictive model is its new functional form structured on the transfer function of a single-degree-of-freedom oscillator whereby frequency square term is replaced with closest distance to the fault. We are proposing to fit ground motion amplitudes to a shape of a response function of a series (cascade) of filters, stacked separately one after another, instead of fitting an attenuation curve to a prescribed empirical expression. In this mathematical model each filter represents a separate physical effect.


2011 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 273-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert W. Graves ◽  
Brad T. Aagaard ◽  
Kenneth W. Hudnut

The ShakeOut Scenario is premised upon the detailed description of a hypothetical Mw 7.8 earthquake on the southern San Andreas Fault and the associated simulated ground motions. The main features of the scenario, such as its endpoints, magnitude, and gross slip distribution, were defined through expert opinion and incorporated information from many previous studies. Slip at smaller length scales, rupture speed, and rise time were constrained using empirical relationships and experience gained from previous strong-motion modeling. Using this rupture description and a 3-D model of the crust, broadband ground motions were computed over a large region of Southern California. The largest simulated peak ground acceleration (PGA) and peak ground velocity (PGV) generally range from 0.5 to 1.0 g and 100 to 250 cm/s, respectively, with the waveforms exhibiting strong directivity and basin effects. Use of a slip-predictable model results in a high static stress drop event and produces ground motions somewhat higher than median level predictions from NGA ground motion prediction equations (GMPEs).


2021 ◽  
pp. 875529302110445
Author(s):  
Ivan Wong ◽  
Robert Darragh ◽  
Sarah Smith ◽  
Qimin Wu ◽  
Walter Silva ◽  
...  

The damaging 4 May 2018 M 6.9 Kalapana earthquake and its aftershocks have provided the largest suite of strong motion records ever produced for an earthquake sequence in Hawaii exceeding the number of records obtained in the deep 2006 M 6.7 Kiholo Bay earthquake. These records provided the best opportunity to understand the processes of strong ground shaking in Hawaii from shallow crustal (< 20 km) earthquakes. There were four foreshocks and more than 100 aftershocks of M 4.0 and greater recorded by the seismic stations. The mainshock produced only a modest horizontal peak ground acceleration (PGA) of 0.24 g at an epicentral distance of 21.5 km. In this study, we evaluated the 2018 strong motion data as well as previously recorded shallow crustal earthquakes on the Big Island. There are still insufficient strong motion data to develop an empirical ground motion model (GMM) and so we developed a GMM using the stochastic numerical modeling approach similar to what we had done for deep Hawaiian (>20 km) earthquakes. To provide inputs into the stochastic model, we performed an inversion to estimate kappa, stress drops, Ro, and Q(f) using the shallow crustal earthquake database. The GMM is valid from M 4.0 to 8.0 and at Joyner–Boore (RJB) distances up to 400 km. Models were developed for eight VS30 (time-averaged shear-wave velocity in the top 30 m) values corresponding to the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP) site bins: A (1500 m/s), B (1080 m/s), B/C (760 m/s), C (530 m/s), C/D (365 m/s), D (260 m/s), D/E (185 m/s), and E (150 m/s). The GMM is for PGA, peak horizontal ground velocity (PGV), and 5%-damped pseudo-spectral acceleration (SA) at 26 periods from 0.01 to 10 s. In addition, we updated our GMM for deep earthquakes (>20 km) to include the same NEHRP site bins using the same approach for the crustal earthquake GMM.


Author(s):  
Euan G. C. Smith

During the decade, the contemporaneous increase in data from moderately large earthquakes in New Zealand (and overseas) and the re-equipping of the New Zealand seismograph and accelerograph networks has seen good progress on several fronts. Earthquakes are now more accurately located and their spatial distribution is better defined. There have been improvements in the various databases used for seismic hazard assessments: active faults, earthquake catalogues, historical seismicity, and strong ground motions. The increase in strong-motion data has enabled the development of better models for Peak Ground Acceleration, and the effect of site conditions on site response, particularly for weak-to-moderate earthquake motions, has been studied in detail.


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