Lecture 2: Earthquake observations & Signi cance

Asst. Prof. Deepa Mele Veedu

WL 226, 3 Aug 2023, Thu. ES665A: Physics of earthquakes

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Studying earthquakes is interdisciplinary
Physics
(mechanics, Coding
Geology
friction (numerical
(structural,
experiments, modeling,
faults)
analog plotting)
modeling)

Maths
Seismology
(DE,
(seismic wave
numerical
properties)
modeling)

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 Different branches of earthquake study
1. Observational seismology 2. Physical seismology 3. Exploration seismology

4. Analog modeling 5. Biaxial shear experiments 6. Numerical modeling

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 Different branches of earthquake study
1. Observational seismology

2. Analog modeling 3. Biaxial shear experiments 4. Numerical modeling

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 Different branches of earthquake study
1. Observational seismology
 Different branches of earthquake study
1. Observational seismology
Location Seismometers Source parameters
 Different branches of earthquake study
1. Observational seismology
Location Seismometers Source parameters

2. Analog modeling 3. Biaxial shear experiments 4. Numerical modeling

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 Course materials
Hello IITK
https://hello.iitk.ac.in/home

Dropbox
https://www.dropbox.com
Basic account
2GB free storage
Slides will be added in ES314A_class

All students must send the below information to the TAs by 6th Aug 2023, Sun.
1. Full name
2. Roll number
3. Email id
4. WhatsApp number

Tasks for TAs by Lecture3, 8th Aug 2023, Tue.

1. Complete the Google sheet on students’ details (Name, Roll No., email id, WhatsApp No.)
2. Create a WhatsApp group for ES665A with the students and two TAs.
_/3. Create another WhatsApp group including 2 TAs and the instructor. 10
 Students’ info
Fill the google form by 7th Aug 2023, Mon.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfPsAnecAj_68Nqc5zJB16HWTGBzqdS7e9CNJm14aGup5swhA/viewform

1. Name
2. Roll Number
3. Email id
4. WhatsApp number
5. Bachelor's and master's degree – subject and university.
6. The program you are enrolled in and your current year and semester.
7. If you are doing a project, who do you work with, and what is your research eld?
8. Which Opera ng System do you use (Windows/Linux/Mac)?
9. Have you used Bash script, LaTeX, Generic Mapping Tools (GMT), Seismic Analysis Code,
Matlab, Python, Gnuplot?
10.Have you taken any of these courses (Mathema cs for Earth Sciences, Experimental Rock
mechanics and rock physics, Ac ve Tectonics and Paleo seismology, Advance Structural
Geology, Microstructures in Earth Sciences, Natural Hazards, Geodynamics) from the ES dept,
IIT Kanpur?
11.Have you taken any course on earthquakes so far from any ins tute? If yes, kindly write.
12.What do you expect from this ES665A course? Why do you plan to enrol in this course?

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40+ students
registered

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 ES665A 2022-23-I: All PG students

Previous
students’ grades

Most were new to the softwares (bash, GMT, Matlab, LaTeX, etc.)
Still, secured good grades by nishing the required tasks on time.

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 Class reschedule
3 holidays fall on Tuesdays and Thursdays
So, 3 lectures are rescheduled from 3:30 - 5 pm as below:

Actual class Rescheduled class

15 Aug, Tue. (Independence day) 19 Aug, Sat.
7 Sept, Thu. (Janmashtami) 9 Sept, Sat.
28 Sept, Thu. (Id-e-Milad) 30 Sept, Sat.

Attendance for 3 days will be given to all students irrespective of their absence/presence

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 Learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1. Recognize earthquakes as one of the natural hazards.
2. Understand where earthquakes commonly occur.
3. See the e ects of earthquakes on human lives and communi es.
4. Familiarize with historical earthquakes.
5. Consider interes ng seismological observa ons.
6. Use Elas c Rebound theory to de ne an earthquake and explain how an
earthquake occurs
7. Understand how tectonic plate mo on and rock proper es act together
to cause earthquakes

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 Learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1. Recognize earthquakes as one of the natural hazards.
2. Understand where earthquakes commonly occur.
3. See the e ects of earthquakes on human lives and communi es.
4. Familiarize with historical earthquakes.
5. Consider interes ng seismological observa ons.
6. Use Elas c Rebound theory to de ne an earthquake and explain how an
earthquake occurs
7. Understand how tectonic plate mo on and rock proper es act together
to cause earthquakes

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Geohazards are a signi cant challenge of
living on a dynamic planet
Earthquakes
Volcanic eruptions
Landslides
Typhoons
Tsunamis
Sea-level rise
Floods
Climate crisis

Earth 20
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 Learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1. Recognize earthquakes as one of the natural hazards.
2. Understand where earthquakes commonly occur.
3. See the e ects of earthquakes on human lives and communi es.
4. Familiarize with historical earthquakes.
5. Consider interes ng seismological observa ons.
6. Use Elas c Rebound theory to de ne an earthquake and explain how an
earthquake occurs
7. Understand how tectonic plate mo on and rock proper es act together
to cause earthquakes

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Pangaea, Panthalassa, Gondwanaland,
Laurasia and Tethys
Earthquakes occur along fault lines,
cracks in Earth's crust where tectonic
plates meet.

Plate boundaries (divergent,

convergent, transform) where plates
are subducting, spreading, sliding

About 80% of earthquakes occur

where plates are pushed together,
called convergent boundaries.

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Why are there earthquakes in China and India?
• Continental-continental collision
• Earthquakes are common in
convergent plate boundaries

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Why are there earthquakes in Sumatra?

Sumatra

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 Learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1. Recognize earthquakes as one of the natural hazards.
2. Understand where earthquakes commonly occur.
3. See the e ects of earthquakes on human lives and communi es.
4. Familiarize with historical earthquakes.
5. Consider interes ng seismological observa ons.
6. Use Elas c Rebound theory to de ne an earthquake and explain how an
earthquake occurs
7. Understand how tectonic plate mo on and rock proper es act together
to cause earthquakes

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 Why do we study earthquakes? The 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku-Oki
It causes loss of lives and property damage earthquake and tsunami

~ 20, 000 deaths

Property damage $360 billion USD

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Why do we study earthquakes? The 2004 Mw 9.15 Sumatra
earthquake and tsunami
~ 230, 000 deaths
Property damage >$4.4 billion USD

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Why do we study earthquakes? The 2015 Mw 7.8
Nepal earthquake
~ 9000 deaths
Property damage $10 billion USD

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 Learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1. Recognize earthquakes as one of the natural hazards.
2. Understand where earthquakes commonly occur.
3. See the e ects of earthquakes on human lives and communi es.
4. Familiarize with historical earthquakes.
5. Consider interes ng seismological observa ons.
6. Use Elas c Rebound theory to de ne an earthquake and explain how an
earthquake occurs
7. Understand how tectonic plate mo on and rock proper es act together
to cause earthquakes

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 Earthquakes that hit India
Date Location Magnitude Intensity Deaths Injuries Total damage

8 October 2005 Kashmir 7.6 Mw VIII 86,000–87,351 69,000–75,266 2.8 million displaced

26 January 2001 Gujarat 7.7 Mw X 13,805–20,023 ~166,800

15 August 1950 Assam, Tibet 8.6 Mw XI 1,500–3,300

20 Oct 1991 Uttarkashi 6.8 Mw IX 768–2,000 1,383–1,800

National Geophysical Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Seismic hazard maps

• Better understanding of seismic hazards
• Better prepare for earthquakes and
related hazards

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 Learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1. Recognize earthquakes as one of the natural hazards.
2. Understand where earthquakes commonly occur.
3. See the e ects of earthquakes on human lives and communi es.
4. Familiarize with historical earthquakes.
5. Consider interes ng seismological observa ons.
6. Use Elas c Rebound theory to de ne an earthquake and explain how an
earthquake occurs
7. Understand how tectonic plate mo on and rock proper es act together
to cause earthquakes

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 • SAF don't open up - No Mode I crack.
• The San Andreas (strike-slip fault)
cannot produce a big tsunami

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 Earthquakes and fault creep: Two end-member behaviors

Ruth Harris, 2017; Obara and Kato, 2016; USGS

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Used Generic Mapping Tools (GMT)
 Earthquakes, slow slip, and fault creep

Ruth Harris, 2017; Obara and Kato, 2016; USGS

34 Used Generic Mapping Tools (GMT)

The Park eld tremors reveal slow and fast ruptures on the same patch
(Veedu & Barbot, Nature, 2016)

Tremor family is located along the San Andreas Fault

121.0˚W 120.5˚W 120.0˚W
36.5˚N

N-AM • Location map

40˚ CA Park eld, CA
Cr

Parkfield
ee
pin

35˚
g
se
g

Parkfield
m

PAC
• Mw=6.0
en

30˚
t

-125˚ -120˚ -115˚

2004 Park eld

Sa

NW
n
An
36.0˚N

dr

earthquake
ea

Pa
s

rk
Fa

f
ie
ul

ld
t

se
gm
en

Tremor family
t

2004 Mw 6.0
Parkfield earthquake • Tremor family

SE
Ch
o
35.5˚N

la
m
e
se
gm
en

0 20 km
t

Tremor location from Shelly (2010)

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Used Generic Mapping Tools (GMT) Earthquake catalogue from NCEDC
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 Tremors occurred below the seismogenic zone

Tremor depth is around 30km

Recorded by seismometers

NW Parkfield segment Seismometers SE

0 0
Creeping segment Cholame segment
Coupled

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2004 Mw 6.0 Parkfield
Depth (km)

Depth (km)
earthquake

20 20

Moho
30 Tremor family 30
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Along−fault distance (km)

Tremor location from Shelly (2010)

Earthquake catalogue from NCEDC
36 Moho depth from Tape et al., 2012
Used Generic Mapping Tools (GMT)
 Tremors are observed as a burst of low-frequency events

• Seismogram
• Each tremor event has a group of low frequency events
Amplitude
Amplitude

Shelly (2010)

SAC - Seismic Analysis Code 37

 Tremors occur with doubling intervals

Single tremor event

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mid-2003 end- 2004

8
Time sicne previous event (days)

2004 Parkfield
earthquake
0
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Year
Shelly (2010)
Gnuplot 38
 Tremors occur with variability in the number of LFEs

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5

Number of low-frequency earthquakes (LFEs)

8
fewer LFEs
4
Time sicne previous event (days)

4
Diverge

2
2
many LFEs
2004 Parkfield
earthquake
0 1
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Year
Shelly (2010)
Gnuplot 39
 Observations arise 3 main research questions

3
10
5
mid-2003 end- 2004

Number of low-frequency earthquakes (LFEs)

8
fewer LFEs
4
Time sicne previous event (days)

2
6

4
1

2
2
many LFEs
2004 Parkfield
earthquake
0 1
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Year
Shelly (2010)
Gnuplot 40
 Research question 1 : Doubling intervals
Research question 2 : Change in the recurrence intervals
Research question 3 : Variability in the number of LFEs
3
10
end- 5
mid-2003 2004

Number of low-frequency earthquakes (LFEs)

8
fewer LFEs
4
Time sicne previous event (days)

6 2
3

1
2
2
many LFEs
2004 Parkfield
earthquake
0 1
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Year
Shelly (2010)

Period-doubling events:
Studied mainly because instead of having single interval of 3 days,
it is interesting (pattern) the system bifurcates into two intervals,
and important (seismic hazards) oscillating between 3 days and 6 days
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Thank you!

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