The good, the bad and the ugly - lessons from and methodologies for extracting shear-wave velocity profiles from microtremor array measurements in urban Newcastle, NSW

Michael Asten; Clive Collins; Theodora Volti; Tatsunori Ikeda

doi:10.1071/ASEG2013ab379

ISSN: 2202-0586
E-ISSN:

oa The good, the bad and the ugly - lessons from and methodologies for extracting shear-wave velocity profiles from microtremor array measurements in urban Newcastle, NSW
Authors Michael Asten^a, Clive Collins^b, Theodora Volti^c and Tatsunori Ikeda^d
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^a Monash University, Melbourne, Vic, 3800, [email protected] ^b Geoscience Australia, Po Box 378, ACT, 2601, [email protected] ^c Geoscience Australia, Po Box 378, ACT, 2601, [email protected] ^d Kyoto University, 615-8165, , Kyoto, , Japan, [email protected]
Publisher: Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists
Source: ASEG Extended Abstracts, Volume 2013, Issue ASEG2013 - 23rd Geophysical Conference, Dec 2013, p. 1 - 7
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1071/ASEG2013ab379
- Published online: 01 Dec 2013

Abstract

We report on our experience gained in applying the multiple-mode spatially-averaged coherency method (MMSPAC) at 25 sites in Newcastle (NSW) for the purpose of determining shear-wave velocity profiles as part of an earthquake hazard study.

The MMSPAC technique is logistically viable for use in urban and suburban areas, both on grass sports fields and parks, and on footpaths and roads. A set of seven recording systems designed for earthquake after-shock observations plus a team of three personnel is sufficient to survey three sites per day.

The uncertainties relating to local noise sources from adjacent road traffic or from service pipes contribute to loss of low-frequency SPAC data in a way which is difficult to predict in survey design. Coherencies between individual pairs of sensors should be studied as a quality-control measure with a view to excluding noise- affected sensors prior to interpretation; useful data can still be obtained at a sites one sensor is excluded.

The combined use of both SPAC data and horizontal: vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) data in inversion and interpretation is necessary in order to make effective use of low frequency data (typically 0.5 to 2 Hz at these sites) and thus resolve shear-wave velocities in bedrock below 20 to 50 m of unconsolidated sediments.

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References

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Asten, M.W., 2006a, On bias and noise in passive seismic data from finite circular array data processed using SPAC methods: Geophysics,71, V153-V162.
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Boore, D.M. and Asten, M.W., 2008, Comparisons of shear- wave slowness in the Santa Clara Valley, California, using blind interpretations of data from invasive and non-invasive methods: Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 98, pp1983-2003, doi: 10.1785/0120070277.
Claprood, M., and Asten, M.W., 2009, Initial results from SPAC, FK and HVSR microtremor surveys for a site hazard study at Launceston, Tasmania: Exploration Geophysics, 2009, 40, 132-142 [2.3 Mb pdf] Available online at http://www.publish.csiro.au/? nid=224 .
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Ikeda, T., Asten, M.W. and Matsuoka, T., 2013, Joint inversion of spatial autocorrelation curves with HVSR for site characterization in Newcastle, Australia: Extended Abstracts of the ASEG 23 rd International Geophysical Conference and Exhibition, 11-14 August 2013 - Melbourne, Australia, this volume.
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Volti, T., Collins, C. and Asten, M.W., 2013, The 2012 Newcastle-Sydney SPAC survey: Extended Abstracts of the ASEG 23 rd International Geophysical Conference and Exhibition, 11-14 August 2013 - Melbourne, Australia, this volume.

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Article Type: Research Article

Keyword(s): ambient noise; earthquake hazard; microtremor; Newcastle; shear-wave velocity; SPAC

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oa The good, the bad and the ugly - lessons from and methodologies for extracting shear-wave velocity profiles from microtremor array measurements in urban Newcastle, NSW

Abstract

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