Abstract
The instrumental hypocenters of the Liège mainshock on November, 8, 1983, at 0:49 GMT (with macroseismic intensity VII MSK-scale and local magnitude 5.1) and its largest aftershock at 2:13 GMT (magnitude 3.0) have been calculated using weighted arrival times of direct P and S waves from 21 seismic stations in the distance range up to 144 km. A comparison of hypocenter results calculated with various velocity models shows the possibility of determining the epicentral coordinates with a precision of up to ± 1 to 2 km for the best fitting crustal model. The favoured solution for the mainshock is: Origin time 00:49:34.4 GMT, Longitude 5°30.8′ E, Latitude 50°37.9′ N, Depth 6 km. The instrumental epicenter is less than 1 km from the macroseismic epicenter at St.Nicolas.
From digital recordings in West Germany the seismotectonic source parameters of the Liège earthquakes were estimated using S wave displacement spectra of six stations and the Brune source model. In addition, the seismic energy released at the source was calculated from the time integrals of squared ground velocity seismograms. For the mainshock the following values have been found:
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Seismic Moment MO 1.6 x 1023 dyne cm
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Source Radius rO 870 m
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Average Dislocation dO 0.27 m
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Stress Drop pO 156 bar
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Seismic Energy ESO 1.3 x 1019 erg
The fault plane solution reveals a strike-slip dislocation, either right-lateral along a plane trending N 71°E, or left-lateral along a plane trending N 167°E. The P-axis is arranged NW-SE and nearly horizontal.
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Ahorner, L., Pelzing, R. (1985). The Source Characteristics of the Liège Earthquake on November 8, 1983, From Digital Recordings in West Germany. In: Melchior, P.J. (eds) Seismic Activity in Western Europe. NATO ASI Series, vol 144. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5273-7_21
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-5273-7_21
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