An Mw‐Based Historical Earthquake Catalog for Mainland China

Abstract

Research Article| September 25, 2017 An Mw‐Based Historical Earthquake Catalog for Mainland China Jia Cheng; Jia Cheng aKey Laboratory of Active Tectonics & Volcano, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, China, chengjiajc@gmail.com Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Yufang Rong; Yufang Rong bResearch Division, FM Global, 1151 Boston‐Providence Turnpike, Norwood, Massachusetts 02062 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Harold Magistrale; Harold Magistrale bResearch Division, FM Global, 1151 Boston‐Providence Turnpike, Norwood, Massachusetts 02062 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Guihua Chen; Guihua Chen aKey Laboratory of Active Tectonics & Volcano, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, China, chengjiajc@gmail.com Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Xiwei Xu Xiwei Xu aKey Laboratory of Active Tectonics & Volcano, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing 100029, China, chengjiajc@gmail.com Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (2017) 107 (5): 2490–2500. https://doi.org/10.1785/0120170102 Article history first online: 27 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 Jia Cheng, Yufang Rong, Harold Magistrale, Guihua Chen, Xiwei Xu; An Mw‐Based Historical Earthquake Catalog for Mainland China. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America 2017;; 107 (5): 2490–2500. doi: https://doi.org/10.1785/0120170102 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 SocietyBulletin of the Seismological Society of America Search Advanced Search Abstract China has a nearly 3000‐year‐long earthquake record listed in various Chinese earthquake catalogs. The magnitudes in those catalogs are expressed in surface‐wave magnitude Ms⁠. However, modern seismic‐hazard analysis prefers earthquake catalogs in moment magnitude Mw⁠. Here, we compile a homogeneous Mw‐based historical earthquake catalog based on three Chinese earthquake catalogs and three global Mw catalogs. For post‐1900 earthquakes, we compare the common events with Ms in Chinese catalogs and with Mw in global catalogs, and derive Ms–Mw regression relationships using a constrained general orthogonal regression method. The regressions are performed separately over two magnitude ranges (⁠5.5≤Ms<7.0 and Ms≥7.0⁠) and three time periods (1900–1965, 1966–1975, and 1976–2015) because earthquake monitoring capabilities in China varied over those magnitudes and time ranges. We use the regression results to convert Ms magnitudes in the Chinese catalog to Mw magnitudes. For pre‐1900 events, we apply the regression results of the 1900–1965 period because the Ms values of the pre‐1900 events were converted from shaking intensity, and the Ms‐intensity relationships were derived from the post‐1900 earthquakes. We also add earthquakes from other catalogs to obtain a more complete Mw‐based catalog for China. The final catalog has about 15,700 earthquakes of Mw≥4.0. The catalog is more complete for eastern China than western China because eastern China has a much longer history of human settlement. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.