Course : GEOP3000 Earthquakes and Society

Instructor : M. Younis Khan

 Earth’s Structure

Table: The average densities <σ > in kg/m

(Adapted from Keary and Vine (1990).

Figure: Cross-section of a segment of the Earth showing major first-order

internal subdivisions in composition and mechanical or rheological properties.
Plate boundaries and the concept of stress and strain at the regional to local
scale

Earth’s lithosphere is made up of a series of plates that

float on the mantle. Scientists think the convection of
the mantle causes these plates to move,
triggering earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain-building
events, or trench formation. These plates creep along
at a rate of approximately five to 10 centimeters (two to
four inches) per year.
Types of plate boundaries
These plates move in primarily three main ways. They
slide past one another along transform (strike-slip)
boundaries, they push against each other at
convergent boundaries, or pull away in opposite
directions at divergent boundaries. Each one of these
interactions creates different types of landforms. For
example, the steady pressure of the Indian Plate and
the Eurasian Plate built the Himalaya mountains and
the Plateau of Tibet. The divergent boundary between
the African Plate and the Arabian Plate formed the Red
Sea.
Tectonic plates and movement
 Stress vs Strain Relationships
 Stress is a force applied per unit area. Force applied to change
the size or shape of a material.
 Strain is the associated deformation (Unitless).

 Elastic deformation is a reversible (non-permanent) change in volume of

shape. When the stress is removed, the solid returns to its original shape and
size. Sir Robert Hooke (1635-1703) demonstrated that a plot of stress vs strain for
material behaving in an elastic fashion is a straight line, as shown in the figure to
the right. There exists, however, a limiting stress, known as the elastic limit (point
Z), beyond which a solid suffers permanent deformation and does not return to its
original shape.
 Ductile deformation is an irreversible change in size and/or shape in solids that
have been stressed beyond the elastic limit. If the stress is removed at point X', the
material will partially return to its original shape -- a permanent strain, equal to XY,
has been introduced into the material.
 Fracture occurs in a solid when the limits of both elastic and ductile deformation
are exceeded. A material is said to be brittle when it deforms by fracture
(breaking). Different materials have different stress-strain relationships. Elastic
materials such as rubber are dominated by the elastic portion of the
curve. Materials such as wood have some elastic properties and virtually no region
of ductile character. Common rocks exhibit elastic and ductile behavior before
ultimately breaking by brittle fracture.
 Faults and Factures
Fractures are simply cracks in the crust where there is no movement. Faults are classified according to the direction
of relative movement along the fault. Why we calculated slip in the lab session? Any use in earthquake seismology?
 What is an Earthquake? Main, fore- and aftershock?

 An earthquake is the vibration of Earth produced by

the rapid release of energy which often happens when
two blocks of rocks move past each other.
 The released energy radiates in all directions causing
destructions at the surface.
 Present is the Key to the Past. Faults suggest that an
earthquake happened.
Seismology and seismogram
 Waves
 Waves varies in their wavelength
(frequency) and energy
(Amplitude).

 Frequency of seismic waves varies

quite considerably. In earthquake
seismology the frequency of
waves is lower than exploration
seismology (hydrocarbon
exploration)

 Seismic phases: seismic waves

travelling with different velocities
and propagation mode. (P-wave,
S-wave etc.). Additionally, their
travel path determines their phase
type.
Parameters related to Earthquake records
 Seismic wave types
 Body waves: Traveling through the interior of the earth, body
waves arrive before the surface waves emitted by an earthquake.
These waves are of a higher frequency than surface waves but lower
amplitudes.
 P wave or primary wave. the fastest kind of seismic wave. the
first to 'arrive' at a seismic station. The P wave can move
through solid rock and fluids. It pushes and pulls the rock it
moves through just like sound waves push and pull the air.
particles move in the same direction that the wave is moving in

 S wave or secondary wave. the second wave you feel in an

earthquake. An S wave is slower than a P wave and can only
move through solid rock, not through any liquid medium. It is
this property of S waves that led seismologists to conclude that
the Earth's outer core is a liquid. S waves move rock particles
up and down SV, or side-to-side VH--perpendicular to the
direction that the wave is traveling in
 Seismic wave types Link
 Surface waves: Travelling only through the crust, surface
waves are of a lower frequency than body waves and are easily
distinguished on a seismogram as a result. Though they arrive after
body waves, it is surface waves that are almost entirely responsible
for the damage and destruction associated with earthquakes. This
damage and the strength of the surface waves are reduced in deeper
earthquakes.
 LOVE WAVES. The first kind of surface wave. It's the fastest
surface wave and moves the ground from side-to-side. Confined
to the surface of the crust, Love waves produce entirely
horizontal motion.
 Rayleigh wave. A Rayleigh wave rolls along the ground just
like a wave rolls across a lake or an ocean. Because it rolls, it
moves the ground up and down, and side-to-side in the same
direction that the wave is moving. Most of the shaking felt from
an earthquake is due to the Rayleigh wave, which can be much
larger than the other waves.
• For a wave reflected from a flat interface,
the angle of incidence EQUALS the angle
or reflection.
incidence  reflection
• When a ray traverses a velocity contrast (change), the ray
MUST refract. Also, in most all cases a reflected wave is
made.
• All waves refract: e.g., seismic, light, EM, water waves.
 Mode conversion
 Mode conversion occurs when a wave encounters an interface between materials of different acoustic
impedances (velocity * density) and the incident angle is not normal (orthogonal) to the interface.
 • When a P-wave hits a velocity boundary, it makes 2 P-waves: a refracted and a reflected wave (mode
conversion). But, it also forms a reflected and transmitted S-wave too! Snell’s law still works, except when the
outgoing ray is a S-wave, the S-wave velocity must be used in Snell’s Law. Mode conversion happens at oblique
incident angle.

Incident P-wave: P-
Reflection, P-transmitted,
laser S-reflection, S-transmitted
first
a

layer 0
Thdlaser
 Anisotropy

 The seismic wave velocity is different in different direction.

 Anisotropy arises because of fractures and mineral alignment

 Shear wave splitting is a common phenomenon in anisotropic

media (Has a lot of application in oil industry like Determination
of intensity and fracture length)

a
 Earthquake records
 A seismogram is a record written by a seismograph in response to ground motions produced by an earthquake,
explosion, or other ground-motion sources.
 A seismograph is an machine
instrument for measuring earthquake (seismic) waves. They are held in a very solid position,
either on the bedrock or on a concrete base. The seismometer itself consists of a frame and a mass that can move
relative to it.
 An example of earthquake record is shown below from the station (seismograph). Link

seismograph seismogram
 How a seismogram is made?
The four effects that make a seismogram are earthquake source, propagation, site response, and instrument
aaaa

mail.in i
A typical seismogram from one of the most seismically active countries?
 Arrival Times and Seismic Waves

 The most important processing task in

seismology is to determine the arrival times
of seismic phases 3
 Seismic phases used to understand the
internal structure of the earth
 How to accurately determine them on a
seismogram is very important.
 The accurate determination of earthquake
location depends on arrival times and earth
velocity structure. I
 Arrival time picking nowadays can be done
automatically, but quality control by a
human is important.
 Local vs global record of earthquake

Local earthquakes (distance to stations < 1,000 km), regional earthquakes (distance to stations 1,000–
2,000 km) and global earthquakes (terms teleseismic and distant also used) where the distance is > 2,000
km. 21000
Local
regional 100022000
global 2000
Local earthquake

Global earthquake
 Earth’s Structure
 Looking into the earth from the surface, the basic layers are the upper solid crust, solid mantle, liquid
core and solid inner core.
 Most earthquakes occur in the crust and with a lessor degree the upper mantle
 Earth crust is thicker in continents (70 km) than in the ocean (8 km).

Ocean crust have higher density than

continental crust. isostasy

Crust thickness map

Velocity Structure
of the Earth

The relatively rigid mantle

and crust above the low
velocity zone is called the
lithosphere 202
while the area below is
called the asthenosphere.

low-velocity zone (LVZ)

seismic P-waves, and S-waves
are slowed It is attributed to the
presence of a 0.1% fluid and
commonly ascribed to the
partial melting of mantle rocks
at these depths

The transition zone - sharp hold

velocity gradients
Seismic Waves Behavior Propagating Through Earth’sh Internal Structure
Play the
video
Play the video
 What determines seismic velocities

 Stress & Strain

 Stress = force/area
– So both force and area of contact are important
– Stress: Pascals = Kg⋅m-1⋅s-2
– Types: tension, compression, shear

 Strain = Δl/l
– Measures change in size/shape (i.e. deformation)
– Dimensionless (i.e. it is a percent).
– Types: extension/dilatation, contraction, shear Elastic
modulus

 Most scientists agree that stress causes strain

 Elastic means : you can deform it, and it springs back to its
original when you let go

 Modulus (elastic): It expresses the ratio of a particular type

of stress to the resultant strain.

Imagine stretching a block of rubber,

like the picture here.

 If you measure the stress F/W2 (i.e. the pressure is force per
unit of cross-sectional area) and strain ΔL/L (the stretch as a
proportion) along the direction of stretch ('longitudinally’)

 then the stress/strain ratio gives you Young's modulus, E

‫‪•Shear modulus, a measure of shear elasticity. Bulk modulus, a measure of volumetric elasticity.‬‬

‫‪in‬‬ ‫‪a‬‬
‫‪t.EEentiation‬‬
‫‪w‬‬

‫الصورة توضح الفروقات بني ثالثة أنواع من معامالت املرونة )‪ (Elastic Moduli‬التي تصف خصائص املواد من حيث استجابتها للتشوهات امليكانيكية‪ .‬هذه املعامالت هي‪:‬‬

‫معامل يونغ )‪:(Young’s Modulus‬‬ ‫‪.1‬‬

‫هو مقياس للمرونة الطولية أو التمدد‪ .‬يصف كيف تستجيب املادة عندما يتم تطبيق قوة على طول اتجاه معني )مثل سحب أو ضغط املادة(‪.‬‬ ‫•‬
‫الصيغة‪ :‬‬ ‫•‬
‫يتم تطبيق قوة على مساحة معينة من املادة ويحدث تشوه طولي أو تغيير في الطول )( بالنسبة للطول األصلي )(‪.‬‬ ‫•‬
‫معامل القص )‪:(Shear Modulus‬‬ ‫‪.2‬‬
‫يصف مدى مقاومة املادة للتشوهات التي تحدث عند تطبيق قوى في اتجاه مائل على سطحها‪ ،‬بحيث يحدث تشوه جانبي )‪.(shearing‬‬ ‫•‬
‫الصيغة‪ :‬‬ ‫•‬
‫يشير إلى تشوه زاوي ناتج عن قوة مائلة بحيث يحدث إزاحة في الجوانب )وليس تمددا ً أو انضغاطا ً كما في معامل يونغ(‪.‬‬ ‫•‬
‫معامل الحجم )‪:(Bulk Modulus‬‬ ‫‪.3‬‬
‫يعبر عن مدى مقاومة املادة للتشوهات الحجمية )‪ (volumetric changes‬عندما تتعرض لضغط منتظم من جميع االتجاهات‪.‬‬ ‫•‬
‫الصيغة‪ :‬‬ ‫•‬
‫يحدث تشوه في حجم املادة )( نتيجة تطبيق ضغط ‪ ،‬مع مالحظة أن التشوه هنا ثالثي األبعاد‪.‬‬ ‫•‬

‫الفروقات الرئيسية‪:‬‬

‫معامل يونغ يقيس التشوه الطولي )في اتجاه واحد(‪ ،‬بينما معامل القص يقيس التشوه الجانبي أو الزاوي )في اتجاهني(‪ ،‬و معامل الحجم يقيس التشوه الحجمي )في ثالثة أبعاد(‪.‬‬ ‫•‬
‫معامل يونغ و معامل القص يتعامالن مع القوى الخارجية املوجهة‪ ،‬في حني أن معامل الحجم يتعلق بالضغط املنتظم الذي يؤثر على الحجم الكلي للمادة‪.‬‬ ‫•‬

‫‪stated‬‬ ‫‪en‬‬
Seismic Velocity and its relationship with elastic moduli
Basic parameters related to Earthquake
Basic parameters related to Earthquake records
Why do earthquakes Occur?

Ring of fire
 Why earthquakes Occur?
Ring of fire
 Plate tectonic the main driving force causing
earthquakes. link
 Most earthquakes occur along plate
boundaries, however, there are significant
number of intraplate earthquakes.
 Areas with frequent number of earthquake are
known as active seismic zones.
 Volcanic activity are also associated with
earthquakes.
 Meteorite impact can cause earthquake
depending on the size of the impact.
 Explosions- Beirut (Lebanon) explosion in 2020
caused an earthquake of magnitude 4. link
Notice that in all these
 Drilling and pumping activities into the activities the energy is
subsurface. Changing pore-pressure might released suddenly
case collapse and faults, producing variable
magnitude earthquakes.
 Classification of earthquake

 Earthquake happens in the earth crust

and the upper part of the mantle.
 Deeper earthquakes usually have lower
destructive power than shallower
earthquakes regardless of their
magnitude. (attenuation of waves and
geometrical spreading). link
 Seismic station
 Nowadays seismic station are self-operational. They
send data continuously to the observation offices
(Earthquake monitoring center at SQU). The data are
recorded digitally (No paper).
 They are broadband system which can record a wide
spectrum of frequencies.
30ᵗʰ
g
 Oman seismic monitoring network

 Expanding every year and works jointly with other networks

(e.g. UAE)
 We will have a visit to their offices (SQU) – Virtual visit. I record
you watch!

Link

Why there are few stations in the central part of

Oman? Aseismic zone and low-density population.
 Seismic map of Oman
1. Events are color-coded based on their magnitudes.
2. Compare between location of plate boundaries and the distribution of earthquakes surrounding Oman (Deif et al., 2012).

tropical giolocal map Earthquakes map

O i
go.to

O
00
 Seismic map of Oman
 Oman is considered aseismic zone.
 Most of the active seismic zones are located along
the plate boundaries.
 Major earthquakes affecting Oman are originated in
the subduction zone between Arabian plate and
the Euro-Asian Plate. Zagros belt and Makran trench
 Risk of high horizontal acceleration maps (Hazard
map). The higher the m/s2 the higher the hazard.
These maps are generated using advanced
seismological techniques.

Hazard Map
Earthquake impacts on society are always negative?
Positive impacts of Earthquake on society?
Positive impacts of Earthquake on society?