SEISMICITY of KYRGYZSTAN and UZBEKISTAN in 2016 and 2017

Abstract

In 2016 and 2017, seismic observations on the territory of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan were carried out by networks of these countries. Seismic networks of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan included 25 and 39 stations respectively. The catalog of earthquakes for 2016 included 705 events with KR=8.6–15.4. The strongest earthquake in the 2016 catalog was earthquake of November 25 at 14h24m with KR=15.4, located at the territory of neighboring China. Devastating for China, the earthquake caused panic among the residents of the border settlements of our countries. The Kyzyl-Art earthquake, which occurred on June 26, 2016 at 11h17s (KR=15.1) in the south of Kyrgyzstan, was the second by magnitude event in 2016. Its epicenter was located on the northern slope of the Zaalay Range. The Kyzyl-Art earthquake caused numerous aftershock series, which continued until the Aketao event, which had its own aftershock series that lasted until the end of the year. As a result, the number of earthquakes included to the catalog for 2016 increased by 2.3 times compared with 2015. The 2017 catalog of earthquakes included 265 events with KR=8.6–14.5, i.e. the total seismicity in the region decreased by 2.7 compared with previous year. The strongest earthquake in the 2017 catalog (KR=14.5), Karamyk earthquake, occurred on May 3 at 04h47m in the spurs of the Alai Range in the territory of Tajikistan, near the Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan border. The strong foreshock (KR=12.9) occurred 18 seconds before the main shock. The earthquake accompanied by numerous aftershocks. Another rather strong earthquake (KR=13.2) was registered on September 29 at 13h49 m on the territory of Uzbekistan.