The New Zealand Strong Motion Database

Abstract

This article summarises work that has been undertaken to compile the New Zealand Strong Motion Database, which is intended to be a significant resource for both researchers and practitioners. The database contains 276 New Zealand earthquakes that were recorded by strong motion instruments from GeoNet and earlier network operators. The events have moment magnitudes ranging from 3.5 to 7.8. A total of 134 of these events (49%) have been classified as occurring in the overlying crust, with 33 events (12%) located on the Fiordland subduction interface and 7 on the Hikurangi subduction interface (3%). 8 events (3%) are deemed to have occurred within the subducting Australian Plate at the Fiordland subduction zone, and 94 events (34%) within the subducting Pacific Plate on the Hikurangi subduction zone. There are a total of 4,148 uniformly-processed recordings associated with these earthquakes, from which acceleration, velocity and displacement time-series, Fourier amplitude spectra of acceleration, and acceleration response spectra have been computed. 598 recordings from the New Zealand database are identified as being suitable for future use in time-domain analyses of structural response. All data are publicly available at http://info.geonet.org.nz/x/TQAdAQ.