Kamchatka Earthquakes Research Articles

SEISMICITY of KAMCHATKA and COMMANDERISLANDS in 2018–2019

The seismicity review of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2018–2019 is given. In the Kamchatka earthquake catalogue, the minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=3.8, and for the Kamchatka seismically active region (latitude = 50.5–56.5° N, longitude = 156.5–167° E) MLmin=3.7, and for earthquakes with h≥350 km under the Okhotsk sea MLmin=3.8. The Kamchatka earthquake catalogue for 2018–2019, published in the Appendix to this article, includes 3646 events with ML≥3.5; 228 earthquakes with ML=3.65–7.3 were felt in Kamchatka and surrounding areas with seismic intensity I of 1–2 to 6–7 according to the Seismic Intensity Scale-2017 (Russian state standard). For 134 events with ML≥5.0 that occurred in 2018–2019 within the area of responsibility of Кamchatka branch of Geophysical Survey RAS, an attempt to calculate the seismic moment tensor (SMT) was made. The SMT and depth h of the equivalent point source were calculated for 67 earthquakes in 2018 with a range of ML=5.0–7.3, and for 67 events in 2019 with a range of ML=5.0–6.45. The level of seismicity according to the "SOUS'09" scale in 2018 corresponded to the “background increased”, but within the assessment accuracy – “high”; for 2019 it was the “background average”. On December 20, 2018, there was a strong earthquake with Mw=7.3, named “the Angular Uplift earthquake”. This earthquake was the strongest intraplate event, which belongs to the region south of the junction zone of the Kamchatka and Aleutian trenches The earthquake was accompanied by a large number of aftershocks.

MONITORING OF CHANGES IN THE STRESS-STRAIN STATE OF GEOENVIRONMENT AT THE PETROPAVLOVSK GEODYNAMIC TESTING SITE BASED ON THE MULTI-INSTRUMENTAL BOREHOLE AND GPS DATA DURING THE ACTIVE PHASE OF PREPARING THE ZHUPANOVSKY EARTHQUAKE (JANUARY 30, 2016, Mw 7.2)

The paper presents the results of comparative analysis of the data regarding the multi-instrumental borehole monitoring data of changes in the geoenvironment stress-strain state and GPS data obtained in the time vicinity of the close strong Zhupanovsky earthquake. The purpose this study was to assess the feasibility of using GPS measurements on routine basis for effective monitoring of strong Kamchatka earthquakes in the area of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. The Zhupanovsky earthquake active phase was chosen as a "test" time interval for comparing GPS and borehole monitoring data. This earthquake has been the strongest seismic event since 2000 in terms of the ratio of the earthquake focus length to the hypocentral distance. The time series borehole electromagnetic and geoacoustic data were compared with the dilatation series reflecting the relative changes in the area of a triangle composed of Kamchatka GPS observation network located in the Petropavlovsk geodynamic testing site. The analysis indicates a high degree of consistency in these time series. GPS data obtained during the active phase of the earthquake preparation is agree with the results of mathematical modeling expected values of volumetric strain on the daylight surface on the eve of the earthquake. A joint analysis of borehole and GPS data made it possible to specify the time limits for the stages of change in the stress-strain state of geoenvironment and to resolve ambiguity of interpretation of the electromagnetic and geoacoustic borehole measurement results at the final stage of preparing the Zhupanovsky earthquake.

Staging of Occurrence of Seismicity Anomalies before Earthquakes in Kamchatka, Japan and Iceland

Staging of Occurrence of Seismicity Anomalies before Earthquakes in Kamchatka, Japan and Iceland

Staging of Occurrence of Seismicity Anomalies before Earthquakes in Kamchatka, Japan and Iceland

Abstract—The paper presents the results of a study showing that anomalies in the seismic regime parameters before earthquakes of various magnitudes occur in stages. The occurrence in stages means the correlation between the times of formation and development of anomalies in various seismic regime parameters. Earthquakes in regions with two general types of tectonics are selected for analysis: in the subduction zone (Kamchatka and Japan) and in the rift zone (Iceland). The selection of regions is primarily based on the availability and quality of regional seismic catalogs. GR b-value and the composite parameter known as the RTL are used as the seismic regime parameters. The detection of spatiotemporal anomalies before the selected earthquakes is based on the known “precursory patterns” of the seismic regime parameters. Comparing the durations of the detected anomalies shows that the anomalies of b-value generally occur earlier than the RTL anomalies. Possible reasons why the anomalies occur in stages are suggested. In the vicinity of the studied earthquakes, a change in the seismogenic rupture concentration parameter within the corresponding seismic cycles is also estimated. Comparing the times at which the detected seismic regime anomalies occur with the values of the seismogenic rupture concentration parameter corresponding to these times shows that the formation of seismic regime anomalies occurs at a stage when the system of seismogenic ruptures accumulated during the seismic cycle has almost reached its critical value.

Seismohydrogeological Phenomena as an Earthquakes’ Trigger Impact on Groundwater (by the Example of the Wells of the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Test Site, Kamchatka Peninsula)

Based on the long-term observations of the wells on the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Test Site, the Kamchatka Peninsula, the paper analyzes manifestations of three main types of seismohydrogeological effects – hydrogeological precursors, coseismic pressure jumps and postseismic effects of the vibrational impact of seismic waves in measurements of the pressure and chemical composition of groundwater, depending on the earthquake parameters (magnitude, epicentre distance, intensity of seismic impact in the observation areas). The paper presents data on the earthquakes that were preceded by hydrogeological precursors in several (n = 2–4) wells. It is discussed whether it is possible to use hydrogeological precursors to predict strong earthquakes in Kamchatka. The authors also discuss the results of their experimental use in a real-time environment with weekly reports on the current observational data for the Kamchatka Branch of the Russian Expert Council. By the example of water level observations in YUZ-5 Well, the authors analyzed coseismic jumps in the groundwater pressure due to rupture formation in the sources of local Mw 6.0 earthquakes and four types of effects of the vibrational impact of seismic waves during local and distant Mw = 6.8–9.3 earthquakes at epicentral distances from 80 to 14 600 km; the study demonstrates that such effects depend on the earthquake parameters and the intensity of seismic impact in the well area.

A Technology for Seismogenic Process Monitoring and Systematic Earthquake Forecasting

Earthquakes are a severe natural phenomenon that require continuous monitoring, analysis, and forecasting to mitigate their risks. Seismological data have long been used for this purpose, but geodynamic data from remote sensing of surface displacements have become available in recent decades. In this paper, we present a novel information technology for monitoring, analyzing seismogenic fields, and predicting earthquakes using Earth remote sensing data presented as a time series of surface displacement points for systematic regional earthquake prediction. We demonstrate, for the first time, the successful application of this technology and discuss the method of the minimum area of alarm, which was developed for machine learning and systematic earthquake prediction, as well as the architecture and tools of the GIS platform. Our technology is implemented as a network platform consisting of two GISs. The first GIS automatically loads earthquake catalog data and GPS time series, calculates spatiotemporal fields, performs systematic earthquake prediction in multiple seismically active regions, and provides intuitive mapping tools to analyze seismic processes. The second GIS is designed for scientific research of spatiotemporal processes, including those related to earthquake forecasting. We demonstrate the effectiveness of platform analysis tools that are intuitive and accessible to a wide range of users in solving problems of systematic earthquake prediction. Additionally, we provide examples of scientific research on earthquake prediction using the second GIS, including the effectiveness of using GPS data for forecasting earthquakes in California, estimating the density fields of earthquake epicenters using the adaptive weighted smoothing (AWS) method for predicting earthquakes in Kamchatka, and studying earthquake forecasts in the island part of the territory of Japan using the earthquake catalog and GPS. Our examples demonstrate that the method of the minimum area of alarm used for machine learning is effective for forecasting both catalog and remote sensing data.

The 2013 Slab‐Wide Kamchatka Earthquake Sequence

AbstractStudies of initiation of large earthquakes are usually focused on frictional instabilities occurring in the near vicinity of the future rupture. Possible contributions of long‐distance interactions with large‐scale tectonic instabilities remain unknown. Here we analyze seismic catalogs and geodetic time series during a few months preceding the 2013 M = 8.3 deep‐focus Okhotsk earthquake. This deep‐focus event is preceded by four intense seismic clusters in the seismogenic zone. GNSS time series in Kamchatka revealed a transient landward motion episode 1 month prior to the mainshock, consistent with an increase of seismogenic zone loading. This transient loading episode is accompanied by a doubling of the intermediate depth seismicity rate suggesting a transient slab pull as the origin. These observations question the constant subducting velocity hypotheses and may have implications in the understanding of the long‐distance along‐slab stress interactions and in their contribution to initiation of large deep‐focus earthquakes.

К ВОПРОСУ О МЕХАНИЗМЕ ИЗМЕНЕНИЯ ХИМИЧЕСКОГО СОСТАВА ВОДЫ САМОИЗЛИВАЮЩИХСЯ СКВАЖИН В УСЛОВИЯХ НЕСТАЦИОНАРНОГО РЕЖИМА (НА ПРИМЕРЕ СКВАЖИНЫ ГК-1, ПОЛУОСТРОВ КАМЧАТКА)

The ГК-1 self-discharging well is located in the southeastern part of the Kamchatka Peninsula. The well is part of a network of continuous observations of the groundwater regime, conducted in order to identify and study the hydrogeochemical precursors of strong Kamchatka earthquakes. The article discusses data on changes in the flow rate and chemical composition of well water for the period from 1970 to 2022. The subject of the analysis is the hydrogeochemical effects appearing under the conditions of non-stationary regime arising due to drainage of the pressure reservoir by the well and as a result of changes in bottom-hole pressure. The mechanisms of formation of long-term (decades) and relatively short-term (tens of days) changes in the chemical composition of water at the mouth of the ГК-1 self-discharging well are discussed within the framework of the concepts of water-bearing rocks as a heterogeneous block medium with double porosity.

SEISMICITY of KAMCHATKA and COMMANDER ISLANDS in 2016–2017

The seismicity review of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2016–2017 is given. In the Kamchatka earthquake catalogue, the minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=4.0, and for earth-quakes with h≥350 km under the Okhotsk sea MLmin=4.3. The Kamchatka catalogue of earthquakes with ML=3.6–7.3 for 2016–2017, published in the Appendix to this article, includes 2898 events. 191 earthquakes of the catalogue were felt in Kamchatka and surrounding areas with seismic intensity I=2–6 according to the MSK-64 scale. For all events with ML≥5.0 that occurred in 2016–2017 within the area of responsibility of Kamchatka branch of Geophysical Survey RAS, an attempt to calculate the seismic moment tensor (SMT) was made. There are 109 such events in the regional catalogue. For 102 earthquakes the SMT and depth of the equivalent point source were calculated. The calculations were performed for the SMT double-couple model using a nonlinear algorithm. The level of seismicity according to the “SOUS'09” scale in 2016 corresponds to the “background increased”, for 2017 it is also the “background increased”, but within the assessment accuracy – “high”. In 2016–2017 within the Kamchatka branch area of responsibility, an atypical pattern of the location of earthquake epicenters was observed due to the occurrence of two strong events – the Near Aleutian (Mw=7.8, July 17, 2017) and South Ozernovsky (Mw=6.6, March 29, 2017) earthquakes and their aftershock processes.

Fundamental Achievements of Academic Science in Studies of Volcanoes and Earthquakes in Kamchatka

Fundamental Achievements of Academic Science in Studies of Volcanoes and Earthquakes in Kamchatka

SEISMICITY of KAMCHATKA and COMMANDER ISLANDS in 2015

The seismicity review of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2015 is given. In the Kamchatka earthquake catalogue, the minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=3.5, and for earthquakes with h≥350 km under the Okhotsk sea MLmin=3.6. The Kamchatka earthquake catalogue for 2015 with ML3.5, published in the Appendix to this issue, includes 1213 events. 92 earthquakes of the catalogue with ML=3.0–6.5 were felt in Kamchatka and surrounding areas with seismic intensity I=2–6 according to the MSK-64 scale. For all events with ML5.0 that occurred in 2015 in the KB GS RAS area of responsibility, an attempt to calculate the seismic moment tensor (SMT) was made. There are 32 such events in the regional catalogue. For 28 earthquakes the SMT and depth h of the equivalent point source were calculated successfully. The calculations were performed for the SMT double-couple model using a nonlinear algorithm. In 2015, a typical location of the earthquake epicenters was observed in the Kamchatka zone. In 2015, the seismicity level in all selected zones and in the region as a whole correspond to the background one according to the “SESL’09” scale. The number of recorded events with ML3.5 and strong earthquakes with ML5.0 is close to the average annual value. Anomalous and significant events were not recorded.

Determining the Double Couple Moment Tensor for Kamchatka Earthquakes from Regional Seismic Waveforms

Determining the Double Couple Moment Tensor for Kamchatka Earthquakes from Regional Seismic Waveforms

Estimation of the Epicenter Position of Kamchatka Earthquakes

In this article, we describe a method for predicting of the epicenter location region of Kamchatka and Commander earthquakes (EQs). It is based on the properties of the precursory atmospheric ULF/ELF (1–30 Hz) radiation and the spatial statistics of local EQs in relation to the Kuril-Kamchatka and Aleutian trenches. From this statistics, it follows that more than 90% of events with magnitude (ML) of more than 5 occur in the gap ~ 150 km west of the Kuril-Kamchatka trench and north-east of the Aleutian trench. Additionally, we obtain the approximate location of the epicenter by determining the position of the radiation source. We suppose that it is caused by gas eruption from the hearth of the EQ to the trench and has the nearest location to the EQ epicenter. Further, we obtain other parameters of supposed position of the epicenter from spatial statistics of EQs relative to the projection of radiation source, which approximately coincides with gas emanation area in the ocean surface. The main drawbacks of the method are the dependence of its accuracy on the industrial interferences and the ambiguity of determining the epicenter location in the case of single-point registration of radiation when the main lobe of the azimuthal distribution of radiation crosses both trenches.

An Awakening Magmatic System beneath the Udina Volcanic Complex (Kamchatka): Evidence from Seismic Unrest of 2017–2019

Abstract —The Udina volcanic complex located in the southeastern part of the Klyuchevskoy group of volcanoes in Kamchatka remained dormant for several thousand years, but the magmatic system beneath the area may be awakening judging by seismic unrest. Seismicity in the area is characterized by data from permanent regional seismic stations and campaign local stations, as well as by data of the Kamchatka earthquake catalog. Seismic activity having nucleated at shallow depths in the vicinities of the Udina volcanoes since October 2017 may reflect a beginning cycle of volcanism. The earthquakes are mainly long-period (LP) 0.5–5 Hz events, which are commonly attributed to the movement of viscous magma and resonance phenomena in magma conduits. Such earthquakes may be a response to inputs of new magma batches to the plumbing system that feeds the volcanoes and thus may be precursors of volcanic unrest. Seismic campaigns of May–July 2018 near the Udina complex provided more rigorous constraints on earthquake coordinates and origin depths and showed that most of the earthquakes originated within 5 km beneath the Bolshaya Udina Volcano. Seismic tomographic inversion using the LOTOS code revealed a zone of high P-wave velocities, low S-wave velocities, and a high vP/vS ratio directly beneath the volcano. Such a combination of parameters typically occurs in active volcanic areas and marks intrusion of partially molten magma and/or liquid fluids. The velocity anomaly detected in 2018 is shallower than that recovered in 2014–2015. The seismic evidence, along with the available geological and geophysical data, record the movement of viscous magma related to the Udina feeding system in the middle crust, which is implicit proof for connection between the intermediate crustal and deep mantle magma sources renewed after a long lull.

KAMCHATKA AND COMMANDER ISLANDS

The seismicity review of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2014 is given. In Kamchatka earthquake catalogue minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=3.5, and for earthquakes under the Okhotsk sea with h≥350 kmMLmin=3.6. The Kamchatka earthquake catalogue for 2014 with ML3.5, published in the Appendix to this annual, includes 1114 events. 86 earthquakes of the catalogue with ML=3.35–6.2 were felt in Kamchatka and surrounding areas with seismic intensity I ranged from 2 to 5 according the MSK-64 scale. For all events with ML5.0 occurred in the area of responsibility of the KB GS RAS in 2014, an attempt to calculate the seismic moment tensor (SMT) was made. There are 40 such events in the regional catalogue. For 36 earthquakes, the SMT and depth h of the equivalent point source were calculated successfully. The calcu-lations were performed for the SMT double-couple model using a nonlinear algorithm. In 2014, a typical location of the earthquake epicenters was observed in the Kamchatka zone. In 2014, the seismicity level in all selected zones and in the region as a whole corresponded to the background one according to the “SESL’09” scale. The number of recorded events with ML3.6 and strong earthquakes with ML5.1 is close to the average annual value. Anomalous and outstanding events were not recorded.

The 29 March 2017 Yuzhno-Ozernovskoe Kamchatka Earthquake: Fault Activity in An Extension of the East Kamchatka Fault Zone as Constrained by InSAR Observations

ABSTRACTRecent earthquakes off the northeastern Kamchatka coast reveal that this region is seismically active, although details of the locations and complexity of the fault system are lacking. The northern part of Kamchatka has poor coverage by permanent seismic stations and ground geodetic instruments. Here, we exploit the Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (DInSAR) technique to characterize the fault geometry and kinematics associated with the 29 March 2017 Mw 6.6 Yuzhno-Ozernovskoe earthquake. The aim is to contribute to identifying the active fault branches and to better understanding the complex tectonic regime in this region using the DInSAR technique, which has never before been applied to the analysis of coseismic offsets in Kamchatka.We produced coseismic deformation maps using Advanced Land Observation Satellite-2 ascending and descending and Sentinel-1A descending Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) scenes and detected a predominant uplift up to 20 cm and a westward motion of approximately 7 cm near the shoreline. We jointly inverted the three geodetic datasets using elastic half-space fault modeling to retrieve source geometry and fault kinematics. The best-fit solution for the nonlinear inversion suggests a north–west-dipping oblique reverse fault with right-lateral rupture.The model fault geometry is not only generally consistent with the seismic data but also reveals that a hitherto unknown fault was ruptured. The identified fault structure is interpreted as the northern extension of the east Kamchatka fault zone, implying that the region is more complex than previously thought. Important implications arise for the presence of unknown faults at the edges of subduction zones that can generate earthquakes with magnitudes greater than Mw 6.

Coseismic coastal subsidence associated with unusually wide rupture of prehistoric earthquakes on the Kamchatka subduction zone: A record in buried erosional scarps and tsunami deposits

The prograding strand plain of Avachinsky Bay, Kamchatka, Russia, along the highly active Kamchatka subduction zone, exhibits geological evidence--buried erosional scarps--for coseismic subsidence only three times in the last four millennia, the last event about 1200 years ago. This same coast has a historical record (since A.D. 1737) of five subduction-zone earthquakes with large tsunami runup (>5 m), the last of which was the 1952 Mw 9 Kamchatka earthquake, and a geological record of more than 30 large tsunamis in the last 4000 years. This rarity of buried scarps relative to large earthquakes contrasts with the Cascadia strand plain in SW Washington State, where most or all large events are represented by buried scarps. A strong factor in the amplitude and sign of coseismic deformation is distance from the seaward edge of a subduction zone (the trench); the Avachinsky Bay coastline is 180–200 km from the trench, with ∼25° slab dip, requiring unusually wide ruptures to generate significant coseismic subsidence. This coastal zone is undergoing net subsidence approximately equivalent to the total of the three coseismic subsidence events, generating a sequence of beach ridges that increase in elevation seaward.Each of the three unusual (coseismic subsidence) events comprises a) an earthquake whose deformation field caused b) onshore coseismic subsidence, thus local sea-level rise and c) sufficient deformation offshore to produce a large tsunami; a,b,c followed by d) a period of coastal erosion and shoreline retreat, leaving e) an erosional beach scarp that was f) subsequently buried once progradation resumed. We identified, dated and correlated the scarps and tsunami deposits from these events with several field methods, including trenching, tephrostratigraphy and ground penetrating radar. The scarps were correlated over an alongshore distance of 50–70 km. The most recent event (event 1) occurred ∼800 cal AD (1100–1250 14С years BP), event 2–600 cal BC (2400–2450 14С years BP), and event 3–1700 cal BC (3300–3500 14С years BP). We developed methods for quantifying subsidence, coastal erosion and tsunami size for each of these events. All three retain evidence of ∼0.4–1.2 m of coseismic subsidence; coastal erosion in the case of event 1 averaged more than 100 m; all three “event” tsunamis were amongst the largest in the last 4000 years.

Responses to the preparation of strong Kamchatka earth-quakes in the lithosphere–atmosphere–ionosphere system, based on new data from integrated ground and iono-spheric monitoring

The experience of short-term forecasting of Kamchatka earthquakes based on complex well measurements at the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky geody-namic polygon (PGP) shows that, as a rule, the preparation of strong Kamchatka earthquakes is fairly reliable in the medium-term time scale (months or years be-fore the earthquake). However the determination of the stage beginning imme-diately preceding an earthquake (weeks or days before the main event) is a very difficult task. At present time, the solution of this problem is largely associated with the involvement in the preparation of forecast conclusions of data from continuous monitoring of the ionosphere, carried out by ground-based means of vertical radiosonding and measurements of total electronic content (TEC) using the global navigation satellite system GLONASS and GPS. This is due to the fact that significant changes in a number of ionospheric parameters occur mainly 1-5 days before the Kamchatka earthquakes. The results of the compar-ison of the data of daily monitoring of the ionosphere, including information on TEC, with the data integrated downhole measurements showed a rather high correlation of occurrence of anomalies in the ionosphere before strong earth-quakes with changes in the complex parameters in borehole measurements. As one example, the report presents the results of ionospheric and borehole monitoring obtained in the time neighborhood of the strong (MW= 7.5) the earth-quake that occurred on March 25, 2020 in the area of the Northern Kurils. The results show a high correlation between changes in the specific electrical resis-tivity of the Geospace in the area of the PGP with variations in the TEC and the formation of a number of other anomalies in the ionosphere a few days be-fore the earthquake. These results indicate that it is possible to determine fairly reliably the beginning of the final stage of preparation for a strong earthquake. Currently, methods based on atmospheric parameters monitoring are used quite successfully for predictive estimates of the epicenter and magnitude of an earth-quake: the method of chemical potential corrections for measurements at an altitude of ∼ 100 m, as well as data from measurements of outgoing long-wave infrared radiation (OLR) at the level of the upper edge of clouds (heights of 10 -15 km).

Precursor Variability of Lineament Systems Detected Using Satellite Images during Strong Earthquakes

The possibility of using the dynamics of lineament systems as precursors of seismic events has been studied based on the example of strong earthquakes (M ≥ 5) in California (United States), Peru, Iran, Turkey, Transbaikalia, and Kamchatka, as well as in other regions. The pattern and time intervals of changes in lineament systems during earthquake preparation and occurrence are analyzed. It is shown that the features of changes in rose diagrams, ratios of total lengths of local lineaments (strokes) of different directions, orientation of elongation lines of rose diagram of strokes, and other characteristics that were revealed using satellite images can be used as mid- and short-term precursors of seismic events. A methodology for the automated lineament analysis of satellite images is suggested and prospects of its development for monitoring seismically dangerous areas are determined.

Камчатка и Командорские острова

The seismicity of Kamchatka and surrounding territories for 2013 is viewed. The minimum local magnitude of completeness is MLmin=3.25 in the Kamchatka earthquake catalogue totally, and MLmin=4 for earthquakes under the Okhotsk sea (with h≥350 km). The Kamchatka earthquake catalogue of 2013 with ML≥3.6, which includes 1750 events, is published. 146 earthquakes of published catalog with ML=3.6–7.8 were felt with seismic intensity ranged from 2 to 7 of the MSK-64 scale in Kamchatka and surrounding areas. Focal mechanisms were determined in two ways: 1) from first motion P-wave arrivals for 107 earthquakes; 2) using waveforms for 25 earthquakes. The background seismicity level (SESL’09) within the Kamchatka responsibility zone was extremely high in 2013. It exceeded the rate of seismicity in all previous years of observations. There were 6672 earthquakes, including 129 events with КS≥11.5 (ML≥5) in the region during the year. The mechanisms of 107 earthquakes were defined. 148 earthquakes were felt with intensity from 2 up to 7 on the territory of Kamchatskii Krai, North Kuril Islands, and Komandor Islands. There were several unusual events in 2013. The strong earthquake with magnitude Mw=5.8 on March 13 in the area of the Kamchatka Isthmus (Il'pyr earthquake), which is a rare phenomenon for the Northern Kamchatka. There was the strongest deep earthquake in the world (Mw=8.3) on May 24 under the Sea of Okhotsk (Okhotsk earthquake) at the depth of 630 km. The event caused an abnormal macro-seismic effect. The intensive earthquake swarm was observed in the Avacha Bay (Mwmax=6.1) in May 2013. It is the strongest earthquake swarm registered by the Kamchatka network during the period of detailed seismological observations since 1962