Estimating of the b-Value Based on the Characteristic Earthquake Model

Abstract

[Formula: see text]-value of the Gutenberg–Richter relation as an earthquake precursor depends on the tectonic setting features. This paper presents an alternative method to calculate [Formula: see text]-value in the presence of characteristic earthquakes. The proposed equation is based on the maximum likelihood method applied on the probability density function of the characteristic earthquake model. Data from real and simulated catalogs were used to evaluate the accuracy of the proposed model. For this purpose, 224 seismic event catalogs with various properties including catalogs’ sample size, the ratios of characteristic earthquakes number to catalog’s sample size [Formula: see text] and different magnitude of characteristic earthquakes were simulated. According to the estimated [Formula: see text]-values, the earthquake occurrence probability was calculated and discussed. The results indicate that the proposed method of estimation for [Formula: see text]-value has more adaptable consideration of the characteristic earthquake behavior.