Earth processes in wake of Gujarat earthquake reviewed from space

Abstract

Two years after a devastating earthquake in Gujarat, India, scientists from many disciplines met at an international workshop to share the latest knowledge about Earth system processes related to this natural disaster. The meeting particularly focused on the use of spaceborne technology to study the effects of lithosphere‐atmosphere‐ionosphere interaction prior to and following the earthquake. More than 80 of the participants were affiliated with research and academic institutions in India, and several scientists from the United States, Germany Russia, and China also participated.Soon after the earthquake on 26 January 2001, Indian scientists established a Global Positioning System (GPS) network to monitor crustal motion around the earthquake's epicenter in cooperation with scientists from Japan, Germany, and the United States. Observations made by routine GPS measurements in the past have shown that the Bhuj area has significantly shifted anti‐clockwise. The leveling observations made by the Survey of India show that the Santal Pur Bhuj Block was uplifted up to 60 cm, while Bhuj, Bhachau, and Mundra subsided ∼60 cm. The need to establish a dense network of level lines and gravity stations in Kachchh was stressed at the meeting.