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Site and path effects are always required to isolate the source term from a recorded seismograph for the estimation of source characteristics. In this paper, the site and path effects are assessed in terms of site amplification and anelastic attenuation (quality factor), respectively, to obtain an isolated source term for the estimation of earthquake source parameters in the Kinnaur Himalaya. These terms are then applied to calculate the source parameters of 75 local earthquakes in the range 1.5 ≤ moment magnitude (Mw) ≤ 3.6 recorded in the Kinnaur region. The scaling relations of earthquake source parameters are also established for this region. The site amplification curves and S-wave quality factor Qs(f) are determined and further utilized to correct the Fourier spectrum of earthquake records. The obtained source spectrum corrected for these two terms is compared with the theoretical source spectrum based on the Brune (J Geophys Res 75:4997–5009, 1970) source model. The root-mean-square error (RMSE) between the observed and theoretical spectrum is formulated by implementing iterative forward modeling. The obtained range of source parameters of 75 events reveals ranges of 2.73 × 1011–3.44 × 1014 N-m for seismic moment, 0.03–13 bar for stress drop, 0.3–0.9 km for source radius, and 5.64 × 1002–1.19 × 1008 J for radiated energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the first uniformly processed comprehensive database on strong motion acceleration records for the extensive regions of western Himalaya, northeast India, and the alluvial plains juxtaposing the Himalaya. This includes 146 three components of old analog records corrected for the instrument response and baseline distortions and 471 three components of recent digital records corrected for baseline errors. The paper first provides a background of the evolution of strong motion data in India and the seismotectonics of the areas of recording, then describes the details of the recording stations and the contributing earthquakes, which is finally followed by the methodology used to obtain baseline corrected data in a uniform and consistent manner. Two different schemes in common use for baseline correction are based on the application of the Ormsby filter without zero pads (Trifunac 1971) and that on the Butterworth filter with zero pads at the start as well as at the end (Converse and Brady 1992). To integrate the advantages of both the schemes, Ormsby filter with zero pads at the start only is used in the present study. A large number of typical example results are presented to illustrate that the methodology adopted is able to provide realistic velocity and displacement records with much smaller number of zero pads. The present strong motion database of corrected acceleration records will be useful for analyzing the ground motion characteristics of engineering importance, developing prediction equations for various strong motion parameters, and calibrating the seismological source model approach for ground motion simulation for seismically active and risk prone areas of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we investigated the feasibility of using the higher-frequency waveforms to characterize the seismicity in the Koyna–Warna region, globally well-known for its reservoir-triggered earthquakes. The local seismicity and source parameters have been extensively explored by many researchers using various types of data, e.g. analog data, broadband seismological data, and deep seismic sounding data. However, here we have utilized the seismological data recorded by 97 temporary 4.5-Hz geophones to locate the local seismicity in the region. We first investigated an appropriate 1-D P-wave velocity model through the inversion of P- and S-times. In order to compensate for the thick and laterally heterogeneous basalt, we incorporated the station corrections in the 1-D velocity inversion process. The station correction varies from + 0.09 to − 0.20 s for the P-waves, with clear demarcations of positive and negative station corrections corresponding to the northern and southern regions, respectively. The patterns of positive and negative station corrections suggested that the northern part is characterized by lower velocity, while slighter higher velocities present in the southern part of the study area are relative to the estimated 1-D velocity model. The earthquake locations are further improved by using the double-difference (hypoDD) approach, which enabled us to accurately map shallow subsurface seismogenic faults in the region. The data comprises 10,062 P-wave and 9049 S-wave catalog differential times from 348 earthquakes (1.0 ≤ ML ≤ 4.5). The precisely relocated earthquakes (ERH < 0.05 km ERZ < 0.5 km and rms < 0.02 s) form the three clusters of earthquakes in the NW–SE direction along the lineaments close to Warna Reservoir. The observed seismicity trends on the surface could be due to the vertical manifestations of faults or fractures. Their alignments are confirmed by the analysis of focal mechanism which exhibits a predominant normal type of faults with one nodal plane consistent with the main alignment of the seismic events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A catalog for northeast India and the adjoining region for the period 1897-2009 with 4,497 earthquakes events is compiled for homogenization to moment magnitude M in the magnitude range 3-8.7. Relations for conversion of m and M magnitudes to M are derived using three different methods, namely, linear standard regression, inverted standard regression (ISR) and orthogonal standard regression (OSR), for different magnitude ranges based on events data for the catalog period 1976-2006. The OSR relations for M to M conversion derived in this paper have significantly lower errors in regression parameters compared to the relations reported in other studies. Since the number of events with magnitude ≥7 for this region is scanty, we, therefore, considered whole India region to obtain the regression relationships between M and M. A relationship between M and M is also obtained based on 17 events for the range 5.2 ≤ magnitude ≤ 6.6. A unified homogeneous catalog prepared using the conversion relations derived in this paper can serve as a reference catalog for seismic hazard assessment studies in northeast India and the adjoining region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

— The Indo-Burma (Myanmar) subduction boundary is highly oblique to the direction of relative velocity of the Indian tectonic plate with respect to the Eurasian plate. The area includes features of active subduction zones such as a Wadati-Benioff zone of earthquakes, a magmatic arc, thrust and fold belts. It also has features of oblique subduction such as: an arc-parallel strike-slip fault (Sagaing Fault) that takes up a large fraction of the northward component of motion and a buttress (the Mishmi block) that resists the motion of the fore-arc sliver. In this paper, I have examined the seismicity, slip vectors and principal axes of the focal mechanisms of the earthquakes to look for features of active subduction zones and for evidence of slip partitioning as observed in other subduction zones. The data set consists of Harvard CMT solutions of 89 earthquakes (1977–1999 with 4.8&nlE;Mw&nlE;7.2 and depths between 3–140 km). Most of these events are shallow and intermediate depth events occurring within the Indian plate subducting eastward beneath the Indo-Burman ranges. Some shallow events within the fore-arc region have arc-parallel Paxes, reflecting buttressing of the fore-arc sliver at its leading edge. Some of the shallowest events have nearly E-W oriented P axes which might account for recent folding and thrusting. Examination of earthquake slip vectors in this region shows that the slip vector azimuths of earthquakes in the region between 20°–26°N are rotated towards the trench normal, which is an indication of partial partitioning of the oblique convergence. It is seen that all aspects of seismicity, including the paucity of shallow underthrusting earthquakes and the orientation of P axes, are consistent with oblique convergence. The conclusions of this paper are consistent with recent geological studies and interpretations such as the coexistence of eastward subduction, volcanic activity and transcurrent movement through mid-Miocene to Quaternary period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, ground motion during the Independence Day earthquake of August 15, 1950 (Mw 8.6, B en-M enahem et al., 1974) in the northeastern part of India is estimated by seismological approaches. A hybrid simulation technique which combines the low frequency ground motion simulated from an analytical source mechanism model with the stochastically simulated high-frequency components is used for obtaining the acceleration time histories. A series of ground motion simulations are carried out to estimate the peak ground acceleration (PGA) and spectral accelerations at important cities and towns in the epicentral region. One sample PGA distribution in the epicentral region encompassing the epicenter is also obtained. It is found that PGA in the epicentral region has exceeded 1 g during this earthquake. The estimated PGA’s are validated to the extent possible using the MMI values. The simulated acceleration time histories can be used for the assessment of important engineering structures in northeastern India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]