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Measuring the radon concentration and investigating the mechanism of decline prior an earthquake (Jooshan, SE of Iran)

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Abstract

Variation in earth gas level like radon in soil and groundwater is a proven technique for tracing the changes in stresses due to seismotectonic activities. Radon concentrations were measured and investigated in Jooshan hot spring complex, SE of Iran, near Golbaf-Sirch fault sytem from December 2011 until March 2012. Afterward, by considering and studying environmental parameters, the relationship between radon anomalous decline and all earthquakes with ratio D/R that introducing by Dobrovolsky et al. was examined. So before earthquakes, the correlation between this ratio and level of variation in radon concentration in magnitude ranging from 2.6 to 5.4 has been studied and the correlation coefficient of 0.74 was obtained. This research shows a good correlation between groundwater radon variations and such earthquake parameters.

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  1. Environmental Protection Agency.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are extremely grateful to prof. Jamshid Shahabpour for his kind guidance during the data interpreting. Also special thanks to Dr. Mohammad Mahani, Dr. Mohammad Reza Rezaei and Mohammad Mehdi Hosseini Bioki for editing the final manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geophysics Department, Kerman Graduate University of Technology, P.O. Box 76315-115, Kerman, Iran

    Mojtaba Namvaran

  2. Electronic Engineering Department, Kerman Graduate University of Technology, Kerman, Iran

    Ali Negarestani

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  1. Mojtaba Namvaran
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  2. Ali Negarestani
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Correspondence to Mojtaba Namvaran.

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Namvaran, M., Negarestani, A. Measuring the radon concentration and investigating the mechanism of decline prior an earthquake (Jooshan, SE of Iran). J Radioanal Nucl Chem 298, 1–8 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-2162-7

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