NDLI: The atmospheric water as a triggering factor for earthquakes in the central Virginia seismic zone

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Muço, Betim
Copyright Year	2013
Abstract	Even though central Virginia is far from the nearest plate boundaries, the region is well-known for minor-to-moderate shocks, which have occurred frequently since at least the eighteenth century. Many of its people have experienced small earthquakes, while infrequent larger ones have caused damage. The largest destructive earthquake (magnitude 5.8) in this seismic zone was recorded in August 2011. Smaller earthquakes that cause little or no damage are felt each year or two. It is difficult to link the earthquakes of this zone to known small faults which are numerous, deeply buried and do not show up at the surface. The mean earthquake depth since 1960 is 6.7 km. On the other hand, central Virginia is a big collector and transporter of precipitation water, which flows to the Atlantic Ocean through the James River and its tributaries. There are about 2,000 abandoned mining sites in Virginia with underground openings that can facilitate the interception and conveyance of surface water. This paper presents evidence that seismic activity in certain zones can be associated clearly with the hydrological effects of abundant precipitation. Such effects can increase tectonic stress, which surpasses the marginal amount when an earthquake occurs. We analyze the cross-correlation between precipitation or water discharge in the rivers and earthquake occurrence in the central Virginia seismic zone. This correlation is examined both over a long-term span (57–92 years) and with regard to individual cases in which earthquakes have followed the occurrence of intense hydrological phenomena such as torrential rainfall or hurricanes. As we probe for a correlation between earthquake time series for central Virginia and the monthly precipitation series at hydrometeorological stations located in the zone, we observe that the best cross-correlation is obtained for a time period of 3 months. The same time period applies to certain historical earthquakes that were preceded by large amounts of precipitation. These results support the hydroseismicity hypothesis, which points to the role of water in the generation of intraplate seismicity.
Starting Page	135
Ending Page	150
Page Count	16
File Format	PDF
ISSN	0921030X
Journal	Natural Hazards
Volume Number	71
Issue Number	1
e-ISSN	15730840
Language	English
Publisher	Springer Netherlands
Publisher Date	2013-10-30
Publisher Place	Dordrecht
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Seismicity of CVSZ Cross-correlation Pore pressure Underground water Rainfall Natural Hazards Hydrogeology Geophysics/Geodesy Geotechnical Engineering & Applied Earth Sciences Civil Engineering Environmental Management
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Atmospheric Science Water Science and Technology

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