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Source Mechanism Study of Local Earthquakes in Kuwait

2017; Seismological Society of America; Volume: 88; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1785/0220170031

1938-2057

Chen Gu, Farah Al‐Jeri, Abdullah Al‐Enezi, Oral Büyüköztürk, M. Nafi Toksöz,

Seismology and Earthquake Studies

Research Article| August 23, 2017 Source Mechanism Study of Local Earthquakes in Kuwait Chen Gu; Chen Gu aEarth Resources Laboratory, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 U.S.A., guchch@mit.edu Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Farah Al‐Jeri; Farah Al‐Jeri bKuwait Institute for Scientific Research, Kuwait City 13109, Kuwait Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Abdullah Al‐Enezi; Abdullah Al‐Enezi bKuwait Institute for Scientific Research, Kuwait City 13109, Kuwait Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Oral Büyüköztürk; Oral Büyüköztürk cLaboratory for Infrastructure Science and Sustainability, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 U.S.A. Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar M. Nafi Toksöz M. Nafi Toksöz aEarth Resources Laboratory, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 U.S.A., guchch@mit.edu Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Chen Gu aEarth Resources Laboratory, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 U.S.A., guchch@mit.edu Farah Al‐Jeri bKuwait Institute for Scientific Research, Kuwait City 13109, Kuwait Abdullah Al‐Enezi bKuwait Institute for Scientific Research, Kuwait City 13109, Kuwait Oral Büyüköztürk cLaboratory for Infrastructure Science and Sustainability, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 U.S.A. M. Nafi Toksöz aEarth Resources Laboratory, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 U.S.A., guchch@mit.edu Publisher: Seismological Society of America First Online: 15 Sep 2017 Online Issn: 1938-2057 Print Issn: 0895-0695 © Seismological Society of America Seismological Research Letters (2017) 88 (6): 1465–1471. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220170031 Article history First Online: 15 Sep 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Chen Gu, Farah Al‐Jeri, Abdullah Al‐Enezi, Oral Büyüköztürk, M. Nafi Toksöz; Source Mechanism Study of Local Earthquakes in Kuwait. Seismological Research Letters 2017;; 88 (6): 1465–1471. doi: https://doi.org/10.1785/0220170031 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietySeismological Research Letters Search Advanced Search ABSTRACT Historically, Kuwait has relatively low seismicity; however, in recent years the Kuwait National Seismic Network (KNSN) has detected a significant number of local earthquakes. In 2015, two earthquakes—Mw 4.5 on 21 March 2015 and Mw 4.1 on 18 August 2015—were recorded by the KNSN and were widely felt across Kuwait. Most earthquakes happen in two areas close to the northern and southern oil/gas fields. The earthquakes are generally small (⁠Mw<5⁠) and are shallow with focal depths of about 2–8 km. We determined the locations and source mechanisms of the largest two of these local earthquakes, using a Bayesian inversion method. Our results show that most likely these local earthquakes occurred on pre‐existing faults and may have been triggered by oil field activities. In Kuwait, where oil fields are close to populated areas, these induced earthquakes could produce ground accelerations high enough to cause damage to local structures built without using seismic design criteria. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.