Source Parameters of Microseismic Swarm Events Induced by the Explosion at the Korobkovskoe Iron Ore Deposit

Izvestiya, Physics of the Solid Earth - Abstract—Despite extensive research, it is still unclear, to what extent studying the parameters of weak seismicity facilitates the interpretation of...     

Detection of regional phases of seismic body waves using an array of three-component sensors

A small-aperture seismic array consisting of seven three-component seismometers carried out continuous measurements of regional seismicity in a selected area of the Nizhni Novgorod nuclear power plant during four months of 2013. Automatic signal detection using beamforming was applied separately for each motion component. Two horizontal components were transformed into radial and transverse components for the given values of the velocity and azimuth of the plane wave front. We have investigated the dependence of the coherence of microseismic noise on frequency, azimuth, and slowness, as well as determining the level of cross-correlation between signals on separate channels in order to estimate expected improvement in the signal-to-noise ratio, which is crucial for signal detection. Most signals detected by the seismic array from regional sources are associated with quarry blasts. Using repetitive explosions at seven quarries, we have quantitatively estimated and compared the increase in detection efficiency of regional seismic phases using a three-component small aperture seismic array and a subarray of vertical sensors. Horizontal sensors showed a higher efficiency in the detection of transverse waves, while the subarray of vertical sensors missed S-waves from certain events. For one of the nearby quarries, the vertical subarray missed up to 25% of events (5 of 20). The results of the investigation point to the need for the use of three-component seismic arrays for the study of regional seismicity.     

Formalization of assessing radioactive waste burial site seismic regime parameters from seismological and geological data

A model is proposed that shows the relation of the block structure of the crust and earthquake sources (Sadovskii, 1979; Rodionov, 1979, 1984, 1994; Bugaev, 1999, 2011, 2014, 2015). The model can formalize how to assess the prediction of seismic regime parameters depending on the elastic limit and conditions and rate of deformation of the Earth’s crust. The spent nuclear fuel repository site in Olkiluoto (Finland) and a site in the area of the Krasnoyarsk Mining and Chemical Combine are considered as examples. It is demonstrated that the parameters of the prediction graphs limit the location of the points of magnitude repeatability graphs calculated for a site based on samples of earthquakes in the area according to different authors. This makes it possible to recommend predictive assessment of seismic regime parameters for stability monitoring of the seismic regime and safety analysis of a geological environment’s insulation properties for waste sites from the results of seismological monitoring and high-precision observations of modern movements of the Earth’s crust.     

Dynamic processes in the system of interacting geospheres at the Earth’s crust-atmosphere boundary

Results of various instrumental observations of geodynamic processes in the Earth’s crust and geophysical fields at the crust-atmosphere boundary in the Oka area of the Nelidovo-Ryazan tectonic structure and adjacent fractures and in the zone of the Gornyi Altai earthquake of September 27, 2003, are presented. The correlations between the geophysical fields are determined from the results of processing and analysis of microseismic vibrations, the emanation field of natural radon, and variations in the electric field in ground and the magnetic field in the surface atmospheric layer. Tidal deformations of the crust were considered as external effects enhancing the interactions between the geospheres. It is noted that tectonic faults determining the block structure of the crust are recognizable as anomalous variations in the geophysical fields and their high cross-correlation.     

Modeling Supershear Rupture Propagation on a Fault with Heterogeneous Surface

Izvestiya, Physics of the Solid Earth - Abstract—The formation of supershear rupture (with a slip front propagation velocity higher than S-wave velocity in the material) along a model fault...     

Slope Failure Initiation by Seismic Loading from Different Sources

Izvestiya, Physics of the Solid Earth - Abstract—We present the results of laboratory studies of slope failure criteria by dynamic impulse loading in the range of peak ground velocities (PGV)...     

Precessional motions of structural blocks of the Earth’s crust

Instrumental observations revealed a new type of motion previously not described in the literature, the precessional motions in the structural blocks of the Earth’s crust. The precession-nutation motions are caused largely by a complex response of a structural block and the adjacent tectonic structure, acting as a discontinuous zone between blocks, to tidal deformation. Irregular precession with a period of about one day complicated by the half a day period nutation defines a complex loading pattern characteristic of the internal structure of faults adjacent to the block.

     

On the Initiation of Dynamic Slips on Faults by Man-Made Impacts

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics - The subject of research is dynamic slips on large faults initiated by man-made impacts. In addition to recognized types of man-made impacts such as...     

Recovery of long-period ground vibrations from short-period seismometer records

The possibilities of recovering long-period ground vibrations from the records of short-period seismometers, geophones, and vibration sensors are considered. The procedures of recovering vibrations with periods equal to several minutes and several hours from initial seismograms recorded by short-period seismometers are presented.