Seismological observation in Hungary

Abstract

Systematic earthquake data collection in the Pannonian region started early in the nineteenth century. Officially organised collection and evaluation of earthquake data started in 1881 when the Permanent Earthquake Committee was founded within the Hungarian Geological Society. We can regard this Committee as the ancestor of the Seismology Department of the Geodetic and Geophysical Research Institute (GGRI). Today the Observatory Division of the Seismology Department of GGRI (in short: Seismological Observatory) gathers instrumental and macroseismic earthquake data and also deals with determination of earthquake focal parameters, among other tasks.

The Seismological Observatory operates 7 stations in the country. Six of these stations are very broadband ones with near real-time accessibility of data. Based on the national seismograph station network and also integrating data from agencies of neighbouring countries our Division localises 80–100 local earthquakes annually. The relatively numerous localised earthquakes serve a base for, among others, crustal structure studies and also for more precise earthquake hazard evaluation.