SEISMICITY of KAMCHATKA and COMMANDER ISLANDS in 2015

The seismicity review of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2015 is given. In the Kamchatka earthquake catalogue, the minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=3.5, and for earthquakes with h≥350 km under the Okhotsk sea MLmin=3.6. The Kamchatka earthquake catalogue for 2015 with ML3.5, published in the Appendix to this issue, includes 1213 events. 92 earthquakes of the catalogue with ML=3.0–6.5 were felt in Kamchatka and surrounding areas with seismic intensity I=2–6 according to the MSK-64 scale. For all events with ML5.0 that occurred in 2015 in the KB GS RAS area of responsibility, an attempt to calculate the seismic moment tensor (SMT) was made. There are 32 such events in the regional catalogue. For 28 earthquakes the SMT and depth h of the equivalent point source were calculated successfully. The calculations were performed for the SMT double-couple model using a nonlinear algorithm. In 2015, a typical location of the earthquake epicenters was observed in the Kamchatka zone. In 2015, the seismicity level in all selected zones and in the region as a whole correspond to the background one according to the “SESL’09” scale. The number of recorded events with ML3.5 and strong earthquakes with ML5.0 is close to the average annual value. Anomalous and significant events were not recorded.

STRONG EARTHQUAKES in the NORTH of the LAKE BAIKAL REGION (Mw=4.6–4.7) in 2015

The paper considers three relatively strong earthquakes that occurred in 2015 in the northern Lake Baikal region: July 7 Upper Akuli earthquake (Mw=4.6) with the epicenter at the headwaters of the Akuli River, and September 25 Gulonga-I (Mw=4.7) and December 13 Gulonga-II earthquakes (Mw=4.6) with the epicenters near the mountain lakes Gulonga. Instrumental and macroseismic data on these seismic events are reported. A seismic moment tensor, calculated from surface wave records, shows normal fault focal mechanisms for Upper Akuli and Gulonga-II earthquakes and strike-slip movements in the source of the Gulonga-I seismic event. The results obtained could be used in further studies of seismic zoning and seismic hazard assessment in the northern Lake Baikal region.

THE SEPTEMBER 2, 2015, КR=14.0, Mw=5.1, I0=7–8 TALLAY EARTHQUAKE at the NORTH-EASTERN FLANK of the BAIKAL RIFT

We consider September 2, 2015, Mw=5.1 Tallay earthquake occurred in the previously aseismic area of the North-Muya Ridge adjoining to the Muya-Kuanda basin from the north. Instrumental and macroseismic data on this seismic event are presented. Its seismic moment tensor is calculated from surface wave amplitude spectra. New data on strong ground motions are obtained within the north-eastern flank of the Baikal rift. The Tallay earthquake is found to be connected with seismogenic renewal of the second-order multidirectional faults activated in the rift stress field.

Seismic Moment Tensor Solutions from GeoNet Data to Provide a Moment Magnitude Scale for New Zealand

<p>The aim of this project is to enable accurate earthquake magnitudes (moment magnitude, MW) to be calculated routinely and in near real-time for New Zealand earthquakes. This would be done by inversion of waveform data to obtain seismic moment tensors. Seismic moment tensors also provide information on fault-type. I use a well-established seismic moment tensor inversion method, the Time-Domain [seismic] Moment Tensor Inversion algorithm (TDMT_INVC) and apply it to GeoNet broadband waveform data to generate moment tensor solutions for New Zealand earthquakes. Some modifications to this software were made. A velocity model can now be automatically used to calculate Green's functions without having a pseudolayer boundary at the source depth. Green's functions can be calculated for multiple depths in a single step, and data are detrended and a suitable data window is selected. The seismic moment tensor solution that has either the maximum variance reduction or the maximum double-couple component is automatically selected for each depth. Seismic moment tensors were calculated for 24 New Zealand earthquakes from 2000 to 2005. The Global CMT project has calculated CMT solutions for 22 of these, and the Global CMT project solutions are compared to the solutions obtained in this project to test the accuracy of the solutions obtained using the TDMT_INVC code. The moment magnitude values are close to the Global CMT values for all earthquakes. The focal mechanisms could only be determined for a few of the earthquakes studied. The value of the moment magnitude appears to be less sensitive to the velocity model and earthquake location (epicentre and depth) than the focal mechanism. Distinguishing legitimate seismic signal from background seismic noise is likely to be the biggest problem in routine inversions.</p>

Seismic Moment Tensor Solutions from GeoNet Data to Provide a Moment Magnitude Scale for New Zealand

<p>The aim of this project is to enable accurate earthquake magnitudes (moment magnitude, MW) to be calculated routinely and in near real-time for New Zealand earthquakes. This would be done by inversion of waveform data to obtain seismic moment tensors. Seismic moment tensors also provide information on fault-type. I use a well-established seismic moment tensor inversion method, the Time-Domain [seismic] Moment Tensor Inversion algorithm (TDMT_INVC) and apply it to GeoNet broadband waveform data to generate moment tensor solutions for New Zealand earthquakes. Some modifications to this software were made. A velocity model can now be automatically used to calculate Green's functions without having a pseudolayer boundary at the source depth. Green's functions can be calculated for multiple depths in a single step, and data are detrended and a suitable data window is selected. The seismic moment tensor solution that has either the maximum variance reduction or the maximum double-couple component is automatically selected for each depth. Seismic moment tensors were calculated for 24 New Zealand earthquakes from 2000 to 2005. The Global CMT project has calculated CMT solutions for 22 of these, and the Global CMT project solutions are compared to the solutions obtained in this project to test the accuracy of the solutions obtained using the TDMT_INVC code. The moment magnitude values are close to the Global CMT values for all earthquakes. The focal mechanisms could only be determined for a few of the earthquakes studied. The value of the moment magnitude appears to be less sensitive to the velocity model and earthquake location (epicentre and depth) than the focal mechanism. Distinguishing legitimate seismic signal from background seismic noise is likely to be the biggest problem in routine inversions.</p>

Understanding Micropolar Theory in the Earth Sciences II: The Seismic Moment Tensor

Seismic events produced by block rotations about vertical axis occur in many geodynamic contexts. In this study, we show that these rotations can be accounted for using the proper theory, namely micropolar theory, and a new asymmetric moment tensor can be derived. We then apply this new theory to the Kaikōura earthquake (2016/11/14), Mw 7.8, one of the most complex earthquakes ever recorded with modern instrumental techniques. Using advanced numerical techniques, we compute synthetic seismograms including a full asymmetric moment tensor and we show that it induces measurable differences in the waveforms proving that seismic data can record the effects of the block rotations observed in the field. Therefore, the theory developed in this work provides a full framework for future dynamic source inversions of asymmetric moment tensors.

Modeling of earthquake source parameters on December 12, 2018 (08:49:56,16; 36,4478° N; 140,5788° E; H = 62,0 km; Mw = 4,3, Japan)

Modeling of earthquake source parameters, such as the orientation of the fault plane and the direction of the fault slip, is important for understanding the physics of earthquake source processes, determining the stress-strain state of the geological medium and seismic hazard estimation. For modeling source parameters of the earthquake on December 12, 2018 at 08:49:56,16 (UTC) in Japan (36,4478° N, 140,5788° E, Northern Ibaraki Pref region) at a depth of 62 km with a magnitude of Mw = 4.3, the waveforms inversion was used to determine seismic moment tensor and representation it through a focal mechanism. The earthquake source is considered as a point source of seismic waves which propagate in a medium represented by a set of horizontally homogeneous elastic layers. An algorithm for determining seismic tensor components based on the forward problem solved by the matrix method, and using the generalized inverse solution, selecting only direct waves is applied. The input data for determining seismic moment components are data of only direct P waves selected from the observed records at six seismic stations of the Japanese local network NIED F-net: TSK, YMZ, ASI, ONS, SBT, KSK. The seismic moment tensor components were determined through waveform inversion using the matrix method. The obtained results, presented through a focal mechanism, are compared to the results obtained by the National Research Institute of Earth Sciences and Resistance to Natural Disasters (NIED CMT solutions). As a result of focal mechanisms comparison, it is concluded that the proposed algorithm for determining seismic moment tensor components can be used if it is impossible to use another method, or requires some refinement for another method. This approach is especially relevant for regions with low seismicity and insufficient number of stations. In addition, this method reduces the effects of an inaccurate medium model, because direct waves are much less distorted than reflected and converted, and that increases the accuracy and reliability of the method.

Joint Regional Waveform, First-Motion Polarity, and Surface Displacement Moment Tensor Inversion of the 3 September 2017 North Korean Nuclear Test

The 3 September 2017 Mw 5.2 North Korean underground nuclear test (DPRK2017) is the largest man-made explosion with surface displacements observed by Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and showed as much as 3.5 m of horizontal permanent deformation. Although regional distance waveform-based seismic moment tensor (MT) inversion methods successfully identify this event as an explosion, the inverted solutions do not fit the SAR displacement field well. To better constrain the source, we developed an MT source-type inversion method that incorporates surface ground deformation (accounting for free-surface topography), regional seismic waveforms, and first-motion polarities. We applied the source-type inversion over a grid of possible source locations to find the best-fitting location, depth, and point-source MT for the event. Our best-fitting MT solution achieves ∼70% horizontal geodetic fit, ∼80% waveform fit, and 100% fit in the first-motion polarities. The joint inversion narrows the range of acceptable source types improving discrimination, and reduces the uncertainty in scalar moment and estimated yield. The method is transportable and can be applied to other types of events that may have measurable geodetic signals such as underground mine collapses and volcanic events.

Rotational Ground Motion Measurements for Regional Seismic Moment Tensors: a Review

Seismic moment tensors are an important tool in geosciences on all spatial scales and for a broad range of applications. The basic underlying theory is established since decades. However, various factors influence the reliability of the inversion result, several of them are mutually dependent. Hence, a reliable retrieval of seismic moment tensors is still hampered in many cases, especially at regional event-receiver distances.To sample the entire wavefield due to a seismic source we need six components: three translational and three rotational ones. Up to now, only translational ground motion recordings were used for moment tensor retrieval, missing out valuable information. Using rotational in addition to the classical translational ground motions during waveform inversion for moment tensors mainly adds information on the vertical displacement gradient to the inversion problem. Furthermore, having available six instead of only three components per receiver location provides additional constraints on the sampling of the radiation pattern. As a result, the moment tensor components are resolved with higher precision and accuracy, even when the number of recording receivers is considerably reduced. Especially, components with a dependence to depth as well as the centroid depth can benefit significantly from additional rotational ground motion. Up to the time of writing this review only a few studies are published on the topic. Here, I summarise their findings and provide an overview over the possible capabilities of including rotational ground motion measurements to waveform inversion for seismic moment tensor retrieval.