About the research

The Husavik-Flatey Fault in North Iceland is one of the largest transform faults in the country. The last damaging earthquake on the fault occurred in 1872 and currently it is estimated to be due for a magnitude 6.8 earthquake. The largest earthquake sequence in over 30 years occurred during winter of 2012-2013.

The ground motions were recorded on the new ICEARRAY II, a strong-motion and geodetic array deployed in 2012 that traverses the fault with a dense instrumentation inside Husavik. These unique recordings are the first ones to quantify the variable earthquake effects in a dense urban setting in North Iceland.

Preliminary analyses suggest it is imperative to develop models of systematic and variable seismic risk within urban areas. Such models are of practical significance with respect to aseismic design, urban planning, and earthquake insurance. The unique dataset will be utilized in a comprehensive reassessment of the earthquake hazard in Husavik. The spatial variability of earthquake ground motion due to seismic wave propagation and localized site amplification effects will be modeled.

Scenario earthquakes will be simulated on the fault using physically based models, with emphasis on near-fault effects, and the spatial variability models used for a complete reassessment of the relative seismic risk in Husavik. A real-time monitoring system of fault movements will be developed and implemented for the purpose of instantaneous seismic risk assessment during earthquakes.

See further details