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Earthquake magnitude scaling using seismogeodetic data
Author(s) -
Crowell Brendan W.,
Melgar Diego,
Bock Yehuda,
Haase Jennifer S.,
Geng Jianghui
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2013gl058391
Subject(s) - magnitude (astronomy) , seismology , geology , scaling , geodesy , amplitude , moment magnitude scale , earthquake magnitude , peak ground acceleration , data set , ranging , earthquake swarm , waveform , global positioning system , displacement (psychology) , ground motion , induced seismicity , physics , statistics , geometry , mathematics , astronomy , psychology , telecommunications , quantum mechanics , voltage , computer science , psychotherapist
The combination of GPS and strong‐motion data to estimate seismogeodetic waveforms creates a data set that is sensitive to the entire spectrum of ground displacement and the full extent of coseismic slip. In this study we derive earthquake magnitude scaling relationships using seismogeodetic observations of either P wave amplitude or peak ground displacements from five earthquakes in Japan and California ranging in magnitude from 5.3 to 9.0. The addition of the low‐frequency component allows rapid distinction of earthquake size for large magnitude events with high precision, unlike accelerometer data that saturate for earthquakes greater than M 7 to 8, and is available well before the coseismic displacements are emplaced. These results, though based on a limited seismogeodetic data set, support earlier studies that propose it may be possible to estimate the final magnitude of an earthquake well before the rupture is complete.