Csem Newsletter N¡21
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No ISSN : 1607-1980 Centre Sismologique Euro-Méditerranéen European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre www.emsc-csem.org Newsletter N° 21 APRIL 2004 EDITORIAL The most disastrous earthquake in the past year, occurred in Alongside these initiatives, the core EMSC service is being Iran, centred on the town of Bam, on 26 December, with over maintained and gradually improved with our members’ 40,000 fatalities. This latest reminder of the human impact of support. Most recently, our thanks are especially due to LDG our subject underlines the value of our community’s work to for the provision of a complete upgrade of computer hardware. understand earthquakes, their hazards, causes and effects, and to seek ways of mitigating such disasters. To this end, Chris Browitt EMSC is extending its activities in two most relevant ways, at President present. Remy Bossu has been pursuing an opportunity to help rebuild and develop seismology in south-eastern Europe, which has been held back through the turmoil of recent years. CONTENT Its seismicity remains poorly monitored, cross-border data exchange is limited, expertise is low and connections with the engineering community non-existent. There is the potential • News from EMSC p.1 for countries to be overwhelmed by the next large earthquake. Working with the “Stability Pact” initiative for the region, • The database of Earthquake Mechanisms of the EMSC in coordination with ORFEUS is helping to create a Mediterranean Area (EMMA): a call for contributions p.3 framework and programme to build a modern capacity over the next few years. • The February 24th, 2004 AL Hoceima earthquake p.7 We are also working to achieve funding and development for • Structural analysis and interpretation of the a rapid damage prediction service both for the Euro-Med surface deformations of the February 24th, 2004 region and more globally, which would help in focussing Al Hoceima earthquake p.10 national resources on preparedness and both national and international efforts in the immediate aftermath of a • Superconducting gravimeters in seismology p.13 destructive earthquake. News from EMSC Group photo of the Meeting of South Eastern European Seismologists. Ig, near Ljubljana, Slovenia 16-18 November 2003 during which the proposal was finalised CSEM / EMSC Newsletter Upgrading Seismological (DPPI) of the Stability Pact for SE- Tomin managed to secure the funds Networks in South-Eastern Europe and got in contact with its necessary to make it happen. Winfried Europe Executive Secretary, Mrs C. Krajic- Hanka (GFZ/GEOFON), Salvatore Tomin. DPPI offers a framework for 12 Last November, the Meeting of South Mazza and Marco Olivieri countries of SE-Europe (Albania, Eastern European Seismologists (INGV/MedNet) thanks to their large Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, organised by the EMSC, the experience, provided very useful Croatia, FYR of Macedonia, Greece, Seismological Office of the expertise and advice during the Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Serbia Environmental Agency of the Republic discussions. Peter Suhadolc (Secretary and Montenegro, Slovenia and Turkey) of Slovenia, and the Disaster General of IASPEI) chaired a session to and as its name states, deals with Preparedness and Prevention Initiative demonstrate IASPEI’s support for this preparedness and prevention. It was (DPPI) of the Stability Pact for SE- initiative. There was an excellent then decided to focus our proposal on Europe was held in Ig (Slovenia) with working atmosphere and a strong real-time seismic monitoring as a the support of the Ministry of Defence, willingness to collaborate during the contribution for crisis management. Administration for Civil Protection and meeting and together we defined a Institutes in charge of informing their Disaster Relief and the Ministry for proposal based on bi-lateral and authorities in case of an earthquake Foreign Affairs of the Republic of multilateral collaborations. have been contacted and a team of 15 Slovenia. The proposal was finally sent early institutes from the 12 countries has December to the DPPI. Since then, there First a brief history! This meeting was been set up with the efficient help of has been a large lobbying activity, not the result of a long process initiated by Nicholas Voulgaris (Athens Univ.) who only from the project partners but also the occurrence of the ML5.2 Gnjilane had previously worked on a similar from a large proportion of EMSC earthquake (Serbia and Montenegro) initiative. ORFEUS joined our efforts th members who lobbied their government on April 24 2002. This event clearly to accurately define the current status illustrated the difficulty to locate of the different networks and to for potential financial support. We are earthquake in this region due to the identify the needs. We then decided to still trying to improve the project and limited data available. Discussions organise a meeting to finalise the notably its training component. We are have started with our colleagues from proposals. There are many people to be looking for Institutes to host visiting the region to evaluate how thanked for this meeting. I would like seismologists from some of the DPPI seismological networks could be to mention first Mladen Zvicic who has countries for periods up to a year to upgraded and EMSC agreed to look for locally organised it and who has been build-up expertise in observational potential sources of funding. Finally, in persuasive enough to get strong seismology (any suggestion is welcome!). July 2003, we heard about the Disaster support in Slovenia and make this Today, we do not know whether the Preparedness and Prevention Initiative meeting very cheap. Mrs C. Krajic- project will be funded but we strongly On the use of EMSC services I heard about an earthquake To learn more Other way 15% about seismology 19% 27% Search engine I felt an 48% earthquake 18% Friend / To learn more For other colleague about EMSC reasons 33% 19% 21% Figure 1: Why did you fisrt access EMSC web site ? Figure 2: How EMSC web site was first reached? Never or Other Press very seldom 8% 7% Rescue team 1% or civil Once a day defense 16% After a 10% significant earthquake Personal 40% Several Scientific interest times a day purpose 56% 17% Once a 25% week 20% Figure 3: The use of EMSC alert services Figure 4: Periodicity of visits 2 believe that this project is important and address by a friend or a colleague changes/improvements as rapidly as timely as the integration process of the (Figure 2). The majority of our users possible and we thanks all the European seismological community is are driven by their personal interest participants for their valuable inputs. going on. We will keep you informed on (56%), a quarter of them by scientific the future developments and the complete purpose and 10% uses the alert for New applications for EMSC proposal and the list of participants can be rescue or civil defence purposes (Figure membership found on the EMSC web site (www.emsc- 3). The are two main types of users of Three new Institutes have been csem.org/Html/BALKANS.html) EMSC web site: a third are regular discussing with us their possible visitors with at least one visit a day EMSC membership: the Seismological On the use of EMSC alert service while half of the visitors visit the site Observatory of Republic Macedonia A survey has been performed to only in rare occasions or only after a (FYROM), the Centre of Experimental analyse the use of EMSC alert service. damaging earthquake (Figure 4). Seismology (Moldova), and the Three hundred and ten users When asked about the necessary Seismological Survey of Serbia completed the questionnaire (among improvements of the current service, (Serbia and Montenegro). So, our 1,300 recipients). Half of the users first end-users have mentioned many membership continues to expand and visited EMSC web site to get items notably the addition of clickable these new members will be joining the information on a specific event or on maps, the description of the site EMSC community during our next seismology (Figure 1). Forty eight content for non-specialists and General Assembly to be held next percent find the site using search information on potential damage. We September in Potsdam during the engines and 33% following get the will do our best to implement these ESC meeting. The database of Earthquake Mechanisms of the Mediterranean Area (EMMA): a call for contributions G. Vannucci1 and P. Gasperini2 1. Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, INGV, Bologna, Italy 2. Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Bologna, Italy Abstract freely available, for scientific purposes, of the database by signaling us We present to CSEM/EMSC community to all investigators upon e-mail request missing and/or new data and possibly a database on MS-ACCESS platform of to the writers’ addresses: sending the numerical parameters by revised fault plane solutions, taken [email protected], [email protected]. e-mail or other computer media. from the literature, including We also want to take advantage of Any correction, recommendation or earthquakes which occurred in the this occasion to make a request to the suggestion is also heartily welcome. Mediterranean and in surrounding authors of papers not already A new release of the database is regions. A PC installable CD-ROM is included, to cooperate to next releases planned for mid summer 2004, the Figure 1: Spatial distribution of fault plane solutions taken from the literature (on-line CMT catalogs excluded). 3 April 2004 CSEM / EMSC Newsletter Figure 2: Distribution in space, time and magnitude of earthquakes included in EMMA database. approximate deadline for contributors et al, 2002, available at address: regions. At present time we have is at end of May 2004. http://www.ingv.it/seismoglo/RCMT/) collected in all 5100 mechanisms and by the Eidgenössische Technische coming from 141 papers, some of Motivations of the work Hochschule (ETH) of Zürich (Braunmiller which also report data from other et al., 2002, available at address: sources that we were not able to The analysis of earthquake focal http://seismo.ethz.ch/info/mt.html) examine directly (about 200).