Tohoku Earthquake In Japan Research Articles

Ground Motion Parameters for the 2011 Great Japan Tohoku Earthquake

ABSTRACTThe 2011 great Japan Tohoku earthquake is not only the most devastating but also, one of the best recorded earthquakes in the history of seismology. A thorough study of strong motion characteristics of this earthquake is conducted using 20 well established ground motion parameters (GMPs). The behaviour of these parameters with fault distance and average shear wave velocity is examined and attenuation relationships are developed using the 1172 surface level strong motion records. In addition, all GMPs are categorized on a statistical basis using principal component analysis, which is further used to rate the damage potential of ground motion records.

A massive tsunami promoted gene flow and increased genetic diversity in a near threatened plant species

The magnitude and frequency of disturbances affect species diversity and spatial distributions, but the direct effects of large-scale disturbances on genetic diversity are poorly understood. On March 11, 2011, the Great Tohoku Earthquake in Japan caused a massive tsunami that resulted in substantial alteration of community compositions. Populations of a near-threatened tidal marsh Carex rugulosa inhabiting brackish sandbars was also affected. We found four out of six remnant C. rugulosa populations along the Pacific Ocean had become completely extinct. Newly emergent post-tsunami populations, however, had higher allelic numbers than pre-tsunami populations, indicating higher genetic diversity after the tsunami. In addition, genetic differentiation (Fst) between post-tsunami populations was significantly lower than that of pre-tsunami populations. We therefore conclude that the tsunami enhanced gene flow. Seeds of many Carex species persist for long periods in soil, which suggests that seed banks are important genetic resources for post-disturbance recovery of genetic diversity. When its brackish sandbar habitat is no longer subject to disturbance and changes to the land, C. rugulosa is outcompeted by terrestrial plant competitors and eliminated. Disturbance is a driving force for the recovery and maintenance of populations of species such as C. rugulosa—even after near-complete eradication.

MW9 Tohoku earthquake in 2011 in Japan: precursors uncovered by natural time analysis

This paper reviews the precursory phenomena of the 2011 MW9 Tohoku earthquake in Japan that emerge solely when we analyze the seismicity data in a new time domain termed natural time. If we do not consider this analysis, important precursory changes cannot be identified and hence are missed. Natural time analysis has the privilege that enables the introduction of an order parameter of seismicity. In this frame, we find that the fluctuations of this parameter exhibit an unprecedented characteristic change, i.e., an evident minimum, approximately two months before Tohoku earthquake, which strikingly is almost simultaneous with unique anomalous geomagnetic field variations recorded mainly on the z component. This is consistent with our finding that such a characteristic change in seismicity appears when a seismic electric signal (SES) activity of the VAN method (from the initials of Varotsos, Alexopoulos, Nomicos) initiates, and provides a direct confirmation of the physical interconnection between SES and seismicity.

Identifying the occurrence time of an impending major earthquake: a review

The procedure through which the occurrence time of an impending major earthquake can be determined is reviewed in the light of the recent advances. This can be achieved by analyzing in natural time the seismicity in the candidate area. To apply this general procedure, we need two important elements: first, to know when we should start the analysis, i.e., set the natural time equal to zero. This is the time at which the system enters the critical stage. Second a reliable estimation of the candidate epicentral area. If geoelectrical measurements are taken and the VAN method (after the initials of the three researchers Varotsos, Alexopoulos and Nomicos) is applied, both these elements become available upon the recording of a precursory Seismic Electric Signals (SES) activity, because its initiation marks the time when the system enters the critical stage, and in addition the SES data enable the determination of the epicentral area of the impending mainshock. On the other hand, if geoelectrical data are lacking, we make use of the following two recent findings by means of natural time analysis: First, the fluctuations of the order parameter of seismicity in a large area exhibit a minimum a few months before a major earthquake almost simultaneously with the initiation of an SES activity. Second, a spatiotemporal study of this minimum unveils an estimate of the epicentral area of the impending major earthquake. Two examples are given that refer to the strongest earthquakes that occurred in Greece and Japan during the last 3 decades, i.e., the MW6.9 earthquake in southwestern Greece on 14 February 2008 and the MW9.0 Tohoku earthquake in Japan on 11 March 2011.

Development of Tsunami Fragility Functions for Ground-Level Roads

In exploring the relationship between ground-level road damage ratios and tsunami inundation depths following the 2011 Pacific Coast Tohoku earthquake in Japan, we focused on road damage components, excluding elevated roads, bridges, and tunnels. The damage ratio is defined as the number of damage incidents per kilometer. We used the damage dataset compiled by the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. We propose four fragility function zones for ground-level roads based on differences in topographical features. We studied these zones based on numerical simulation results of tsunami propagation.

Comparison of Power and Telecommunications Dependencies and Interdependencies in the 2011 Tohoku and 2010 Maule Earthquakes

AbstractThis paper compares dependencies and interdependencies between power and telecommunication infrastructures during the 2011 MW 9.0 Tohoku earthquake in Japan with those in the 2010 MW 8.8 Maule offshore earthquake in Chile. This comparison is important to assess the extent to which particular failure modes and restoration processes are prevalent in two different cases, especially when quantification of infrastructure coupling is still in its infancy. These comparative observations are also relevant for the design and improvement of critical infrastructure and associated resilience. The analysis is conducted by comparing time series of power and telecommunication system damage, outages, and service restoration as field-collected in the regions affected by the respective earthquakes. The metrics used for the comparison, namely the dependence predominance and the restoration delay index, are based on cross-correlation functions and a measure of dependence predominance based on the peak cumulative cros...

Controversy over the ODA Budget Cuts after the Tohoku earthquake in Japan

Controversy over the ODA Budget Cuts after the Tohoku earthquake in Japan

Time variations in tidal responses of the medium before the Great Tohoku earthquake, Japan, according to the data from the source’s nearest seismic stations

The time variations in tidal response of the medium before the Great Tohoku earthquake in Japan are analyzed based on the data from the F-net seismic network stations closest to the source of this event. According to the horizontal pendulum data from these stations, which record the northward tilts, the tidal tilt amplitudes demonstrated a linear growth associated with the changes in the elastic moduli during the accumulation of the tectonic stresses. The growth phase was followed by a sharp decrease in the amplitudes of the tilts due to the release of the stresses by the earthquake.

Comparing the time variations in tidal responses of a medium in seismically active and quiet regions

A new method is suggested for determining the time changes in the tidal response of a medium in seismically active regions, which improves the sensitivity and time resolution of the standard techniques of the moving analysis by more than an order of magnitude. The time variations in tidal responses of the medium in the quiet seismic conditions, reconstructed from the observations at the Talgar station in Kazakhstan, are compared with the corresponding data in the spatiotemporal vicinity of the Tohoku earthquake in Japan, which occurred on March 11, 2011 and had a magnitude of nine.

Crustal movement estimation based on an unchanged-feature points method using TerraSAR-X intensity images: application to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake

This paper presents a method to estimate significant crustal movement caused by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan. The method is based on the assumption that independent of the dramatic changes of the ground surface, still many unchanged areas, which we call unchanged-feature points, can be found. First, we use the Scale Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) algorithm to detect the unchanged-feature point candidates in pre- and post-event TerraSAR-X images at similar locations. Then, a sub-pixel alignment procedure is used to obtain accurately matched point pairs. Finally, the unchanged-feature points are detected by eliminating unstable point pairs. The method was tested on TerraSAR-X images covering the Sendai area in Tohoku, Japan. Compared with the global position system (GPS) records and two previously published methods, our method is found to be an effective tool to detect crustal movement at a sub-pixel level.

Special Issue on Performance of Timber and Hybrid Structures

Special Issue on Performance of Timber and Hybrid Structures

On the relationship between the prices of oil and the precious metals: Revisiting with a multivariate regime-switching decision tree

This study examines the volatility and correlation and their relationships among the euro/US dollar exchange rates, the S&P500 equity indices, and the prices of WTI crude oil and the precious metals (gold, silver, and platinum) over the period 2005 to 2012. Our model links the univariate volatilities with the correlations via a hidden stochastic decision tree. The ensuing Hidden Markov Decision Tree (HMDT) model is in fact an extension of the Hidden Markov Model (HMM) introduced by Jordan et al. (1997). The architecture of this model is the opposite that of the classical deterministic approach based on a binary decision tree and, it allows a probabilistic vision of the relationship between univariate volatility and correlation. Our results are categorized into three groups, namely (1) exchange rates and oil, (2) S&P500 indices, and (3) precious metals. A switching dynamics is seen to characterize the volatilities, while, in the case of the correlations, the series switch from one regime to another, this movement touching a peak during the period of the Subprime crisis in the US, and again during the days following the Tohoku earthquake in Japan. Our findings show that the relationships between volatility and correlation are dependent upon the nature of the series considered, sometimes corresponding to those found in econometric studies, according to which correlation increases in bear markets, at other times differing from them.

Physical infrastructure interdependency and regional resilience index after the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake in Japan

SUMMARYA resilience index is used to quantify preventive measures, emergency measures, and restoration measures of complex systems, such as physical infrastructures, when they are subjected to natural disasters like earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, etc. Interdependencies among these systems can generate cascading failures or amplification effects, which can also affect the restoration measures right after an extreme event and generate a reduction of the resilience index. In this article, a method is proposed to evaluate the physical infrastructure resilience of a region affected by a disaster considering infrastructure interdependency. It is illustrated using available restoration curves from the March 11 2011 Tohoku Earthquake in Japan. The weights assigned to each infrastructure, which are used to determine resilience, are evaluated using the degree of interdependency indices which are obtain by time series analysis. Results show that the weight coefficients thus obtained do not influence the resilience index significantly; however, the methodology proposed is unbiased from subjective judgment and is able to identify the critical lifelines. Furthermore, the results of the case study presented here suggest that to obtain meaningful estimation of the weight coefficients, it is necessary to consider the period range between two perturbations (e.g., main shock and aftershock). Future infrastructure disruption data (from this and other earthquakes) would be needed to generalize this finding that will allow also to quantify the changes in the restoration curves caused by the magnitude and distance of the shocks from the epicenter, as well as the intrinsic properties of the physical infrastructures. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Special Section on Performance of Bridges under Critical Natural Hazards

In recent years, extreme monsoon events and devastating earthquakes have caused serious damage to infrastructure, including bridges. Failures of bridges not only result in threats to vehicles and people traveling on them at the time of the failure but also interrupt emergency evacuation and rescue traffic, increasing the severity of the disaster and adding to casualties and economic loss. Often, awareness of the need for design or retrofit code revisions is raised immediately following extreme hazard events. Bridges that fail during extreme natural hazards usually have complicated failure causes, including environmental system collapses and massive structural malfunctions. Forensic investigations and performance analyses for bridges suffering such natural hazard events can be more challenging than those for bridges that fail in general service condition. General investigation guidelines or specific observational methods for such forensic investigations are not an easy task. Thus, actual performance of bridges under critical natural hazards is of great interest to practicing engineers and researchers. This special section of the Journal of Performance ofConstructed Facilities (JPCF) was proposed in an effort to introduce the current state-of-the-art for forensic investigations of bridge failures in recent extreme natural hazard events and to provide insights of performance analysis for the behavior of bridges under such extreme natural hazards. Fortunately, we were able to invite professional experts who had personally been involved in forensic investigation, failure analysis, and performancemonitoring during recent extreme natural hazards including the 2011 Turkey Van Earthquake, the 2010–2011 New Zealand Christchurch Earthquakes, the 2011 Japan Tohoku Earthquake, the 2005 Hurricane Katrina in the United States, and the 2009 Typhoon Morakot that overran Taiwan. Case histories and performance data presented in these invited papers are invaluable to practicing engineers and researchers. This special section includes case histories of bridge performance involving more than 20 bridges suffering from a variety of natural hazards such as strong ground motions, soil liquefaction, tsunami, storm surge, extreme winds, scour, and debris impact. Whether the bridge was damaged, failed, or luckily survived, such performance information and analysis results are instrumental to bridge design and retrofit against critical natural hazards, including great earthquakes and massive storms. Results of the forensic investigations and analyses have deterministic influences on upgrading guidelines of risk assessment, hazard mitigation, structural design, and retrofit. Invited papers within this special section are generally divided into two major categories: bridge performance under seismic hazards and under storm hazards. The reported seismic hazards include strong ground motion in a recent Turkish earthquake and the Japan Tohoku Earthquake that caused severe damage to both highway and railroad bridges. These bridges were in locations that had undergone in-depth evaluations and design code revolutions in recent years. Very rare, yet devastating, failures caused by the tsunami accompanying the 2011 Japan Tohoku Earthquake are instructive not only to bridge engineers, but also to the general public. Studying these failures leads to a better understanding of the power of Mother Nature. A research team from the University of Canterbury at Christchurch, New Zealand, introduces valuable performance data from bridges suffering from soil liquefaction and describes useful investigation practices. Such soil liquefaction causing bridge damage was broadly observed in previous large earthquakes, yet less detailed forensic investigation works were previously reported. Both the 2005 Hurricane Katrina and the 2009 TyphoonMorakot are recognized as critical storm events. Both resulted in substantial damage to bridges and a large number of bridge failures. Invited papers contributed by the Bridge Technology Office of the U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and by Taiwanese research groups provide valuable forensic investigation and failure analysis techniques. Study efforts described in these papers are applicable internationally including advanced field investigation technologies and innovative Fig. 1. Wei F. Lee, Ph.D., A.M.ASCE, Guest Editor

Riedel megashears R' and the trend to gravitational equilibrium as main factors of tsunamigenic earthquakes

Riedel megashears R' and the trend to gravitational equilibrium as main factors of tsunamigenic earthquakes

Assessing tsunami vulnerability of structures designed for seismic loading

Wave movement with large velocity triggered by strong earthquake occurring at the sea bed is generally the primary cause of the tsunami. Occurrence of tsunami (like the one during the Sumatra earthquake in 2004 or the one during the Tohoku earthquake in Japan in 2011) causes devastating damages to the coastal structures and tremendous casualties. Seismic resistant design procedure is more popularly followed in various countries as per the relevant seismic codes. It is the need of the hour to see whether the lateral load-resisting capability attributed through seismic design is sufficient to resist tsunami loading. The present study using available design guidelines in various seismic codes and well accepted design literature for tsunami loading attempts to achieve this end in a limited form. The study may be helpful in providing a broad overview of tsunami vulnerability of coastal structures which are designed following the mandatory requirements of seismic codes. Such tsunami vulnerability is attempted to be recognized in terms of critical height that corresponds to maximum inundation depth of tsunami wave which the structure may withstand because of being aseismically designed. Thus, the results presented in this study may prove useful in assessing and reducing tsunami vulnerability of coastal structures.

Volcanic subsidence triggered by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan

The 2011 Tohoku earthquake caused high levels of crustal deformation in Japan. Analysis of satellite radar and GPS data show that the earthquake caused nearby volcanic regions to subside instantaneously, creating elliptical depressions that are parallel to the direction of quake-induced crustal extension.

Successive Groundwater Level Changes on Jeju Island due to the Mw 9.0 Off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku Earthquake

Brief Report| May 01, 2013 Successive Groundwater Level Changes on Jeju Island due to the Mw 9.0 Off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku Earthquake Soo‐Hyoung Lee; Soo‐Hyoung Lee Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Kyoochul Ha; Kyoochul Ha Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jin Soo Shin; Jin Soo Shin Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Kyung‐Seok Ko; Kyung‐Seok Ko Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Se‐Yeong Hamm Se‐Yeong Hamm Division of Earth Environmental System, Pusan National University, 30 Jangjeon‐Dong Geumjeong‐Gu, Busan 609‐735, South Koreahsy@pusan.ac.kr Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Soo‐Hyoung Lee Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Kyoochul Ha Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Jin Soo Shin Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Kyung‐Seok Ko Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM), 124 Gajeong‐dong Yuseong‐gu, Daejeon 305‐350, South Korearbagio@hanmail.nethasife@kigam.re.krjinsoo@kigam.re.krkyungsok@kigam.re.kr Se‐Yeong Hamm Division of Earth Environmental System, Pusan National University, 30 Jangjeon‐Dong Geumjeong‐Gu, Busan 609‐735, South Koreahsy@pusan.ac.kr Publisher: Seismological Society of America First Online: 14 Jul 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-3573 Print ISSN: 0037-1106 Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (2013) 103 (2B): 1614–1621. https://doi.org/10.1785/0120120054 Article history First Online: 14 Jul 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Soo‐Hyoung Lee, Kyoochul Ha, Jin Soo Shin, Kyung‐Seok Ko, Se‐Yeong Hamm; Successive Groundwater Level Changes on Jeju Island due to the Mw 9.0 Off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku Earthquake. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America 2013;; 103 (2B): 1614–1621. doi: https://doi.org/10.1785/0120120054 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyBulletin of the Seismological Society of America Search Advanced Search Abstract Changes in groundwater levels on Jeju Island, which is ∼1500 km from the epicenter of the 2011 Mw 9.0 Off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku earthquake in Japan, were analyzed. The results show a series of water level fluctuations related to the foreshock (Mw 7.3 and Mw 6.1) and aftershock (Mw 7.9) in addition to the mainshock (Mw 9.0). The groundwater‐level changes in response to the earthquake were oscillatory, and the groundwater levels at some wells had an irregular pattern after the Mw 9.0 earthquake, although they recovered in five to seven days. This phenomenon may reflect the unstable elastic aquifer properties that are present for a period of time after a large earthquake. In addition, the successive groundwater‐level change was different for each magnitude and well location. The magnitude increases the groundwater‐level change, but the response amplitude is also dependent on the hydrogeological characteristics at the well. On Jeju Island, the groundwater‐level changes due to the earthquake generally increased where there was more volcanic hard rock and more permeable layers, but these changes were inversely correlated with the presence of sedimentary deposits with less permeability and less restrictive characteristics. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Rupture History of the 2011 M 9 Tohoku Japan Earthquake Determined from Strong-Motion and High-Rate GPS Recordings: Subevents Radiating Energy in Different Frequency Bands

Abstract Strong‐motion records from KiK‐net and K‐NET, along with 1 sample/s Global Positioning System (GPS) records from GEONET, were analyzed to determine the location, timing, and slip of subevents of the M 9 2011 Tohoku earthquake. Timing of arrivals on stations along the coast shows that the first subevent was located closer to the coast than subevent (2), which produced the largest slip. A waveform inversion of data from 0 to 0.2 Hz indicates that the first subevent primarily ruptured down‐dip and north of the hypocenter and had an M of 8.5. The areas of this subevent that generated the low ( 0.2 Hz) frequency energy are located in the same vicinity. The inversion result for the second subevent ( M 9.0) has large slip on the shallow part of the fault with peak slip of about 65 m above about 25 km depth. This slip generated the tsunami. The preferred inversion has initiation of subevent 2 on the shallow portion of the fault so that rupture proceeded down‐dip and mainly to the south. Subevent 2 started about 35 s after subevent 1, which allows for the possibility of dynamic triggering from subevent 1. The slip model predicts displacements comparable to those found from ocean‐bottom transducers near the epicenter. At frequencies that most affect tall buildings (0.1–0.5 Hz), there is a strong pulse (subevent 3) in the strong‐motion records that arrives after the near‐field ramp from subevent 2. High‐frequency subevent 3 was located down‐dip and south of the high‐slip portion of subevent 2 and was initiated as rupture from subevent 2 proceeded down‐dip. The compact pulse for subevent 3 is modeled with an M 8.0 source in a 75 by 30 km area that ruptured down‐dip and to the south with a high slip velocity, indicating high stress drop.

Monitoring of Seaweed Bed by a Surface Piercing Autonomous Underwater Vehicle with a Sidescan Sonar

AUV ‘REEF’ was developed in Osaka University for monitoring environments in coastal sea areas. ‘REEF’ is characterized as a surface piercing autonomous underwater vehicle using route tracking control in horizontal plane and pitch control in waves in longitudinal plane. Route tracking controller was designed using PID control method, and pitch control is designed using H∞ control method. AUV ‘REEF’ will be operated in coastal sea areas in Tohoku to monitor the seaweed beds heavily damaged by the March 11 2011 Japan Tohoku earthquake and Tsunami. The estimation method of standing biomass of seaweed was developed using AUV ‘REEF’ equipped with a sidescan sonar.