HR: 0804h
AN: NS11E-0832    [Abstracts]
TI: Understanding Seismic Hazard in the Caucasus. Past, Present and Future.
AU: * Elashvili, M
EM: m.elashvili@seismo.ge
AF: Seismic Monitoring Centre, Nutsubidze Str. 77, Tbilisi, 0177, Georgia
AU: Javakhishvili, Z
EM: z.javakh@seismo.ge
AF: Seismic Monitoring Centre, Nutsubidze Str. 77, Tbilisi, 0177, Georgia
AU: Godoladze, T
EM: tea@seismo.ge
AF: Seismic Monitoring Centre, Nutsubidze Str. 77, Tbilisi, 0177, Georgia
AB: It took more then a century for mankind first to understand a nature of most devastating catastrophes on the earth – earthquakes and then to reach more or less realistic seismic hazard assessment for particular regions. Seismic observations in the Caucasus had started in the end of XIX century. In 1899 the Tiflis (now Tbilisi) seismic station has been founded in the former Caucasian district of Russian Empire. After the well-known Shemacha earthquakes, The Permanent Central Commission of Seismicity (PCCS) in Russia founded seven seismic stations in the Caucasus region in 1903–1908. The Bulletins of the PCCS also were published. In 40- ties the formation of regional network was finished. From the beginning of 1960 network was equipped by high sensitive seismographs of different types. In eighties more than a hundred seismic stations were operated in Caucasus region, including Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia. Seismic hazard assessment in the region was developing along with the worldwide achievements in the field. First hazard maps dated back to forties and seventies were greatly dependent on observed seismic activity. Understanding of "seismic source zones" and local attenuation models were developed on later versions, though the devastating Earthquakes of Spitak in 1988 and Racha in 1991 have tremendously revised the official Seismic hazard Assessment maps. The most recent hazard maps for the region, created during the number of international projects, are based on probabilistic methodology using logic tree approach, though the main problem remains identification and quantitative characterization of active structures. Due to the extremely complex tectonics of the Caucasus – representing continental collision, it remains to be one of the purely studied areas in the world with rather high seismic activity. This is the main topic addressed by most recent activities in the region, involving GPS and SAR technologies.
UR: http://www.seismo.ge
DE: 0468 Natural hazards
DE: 7200 SEISMOLOGY
DE: 7215 Earthquake source observations (1240)
DE: 7230 Seismicity and tectonics (1207, 1217, 1240, 1242)
DE: 7294 Seismic instruments and networks (0935, 3025)
SC: Near-Surface Geophysics [NS]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting