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Modelling of 1991 Uttarkashi and 2011 Indo-Nepal earthquakes using the modified semi-empirical technique by integrating site-specific quality factor

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Abstract

Strong ground motion simulation is a reliable tool for seismic hazard assessment and mitigation of any region. The distribution of hazards during an earthquake is greatly influenced by the attenuation properties of the medium. Typically, regional attenuation characteristic is employed for strong motion simulation rather than site-specific attenuation. In the current study, the newly developed semi-empirical simulation approach is modified to use a site-specific attenuation relation. Initially, the medium attenuation characteristics are quantified by estimating frequency-dependent S-wave quality factor \(({Q_\beta}(f))\) at each recording station. These obtained \({Q_\beta}(f)\) relations at each station are further utilised to estimate the regional relation for the Garhwal and Kumaon regions as (90±4)f(0.86±0.05) and (54±2)f(0.89±0.1), respectively. These values suggest that the Garhwal region is relatively less attenuative and more credible for seismic hazards compared to the Kumaon region. The \({Q_\beta}(f)\) obtained at each recording station are further used to simulate the 1991 Uttarkashi (Mw 6.8) and 2011 Indo-Nepal (Mw 5.4) earthquakes. An improved match is perceived between the observed and simulated records with site-specific \({Q_\beta}(f)\) values instead of regional ones. This comparison successfully validates the present modification in SET. This work provides insight into getting more realistic simulated results and explores recent trends in strong motion seismology for seismic hazard evaluation.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the Director, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun, India, for his support, inspiration, and amenities (reference no. WIHG/0286). Data used in this work is attained from WIHG network; Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, India; COSMOS VDC (https://www.strongmotioncenter.org/vdc/scripts/default.plx) and www.pesmos.in, are sincerely acknowledged. The present work is an outcome of the project sanctioned by the Science and Engineering Research Board, Department of Science and Technology (DST), with Grant No. ECR/2017/000367. Authors Monika, Sandeep, and SD thankfully acknowledge the Dept. of Geophysics, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.

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  1. Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun, 248 001, India

    Monika & Parveen Kumar

  2. Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Monika,  Sandeep & Sonia Devi

  3. Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India

    A Joshi

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  1. Monika
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  5. A Joshi
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Contributions

Monika: Writing, data analysis, and results compilation; Sandeep: Interpretation, writing and editing; PK: Conception, writing original draft, review and editing; SD: Software handling and data compilation; AJ: Data acquisition and processing.

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Correspondence to Parveen Kumar.

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Communicated by Sagarika Mukhopadhyay

Supplementary material pertaining to this article is available on the Journal of Earth System Science website (http://www.ias.ac.in/Journals/Journal_of_Earth_System_Science).

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Monika, Sandeep, Kumar, P. et al. Modelling of 1991 Uttarkashi and 2011 Indo-Nepal earthquakes using the modified semi-empirical technique by integrating site-specific quality factor. J Earth Syst Sci 132, 189 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-023-02201-2

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