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Earthquakes as Events of Inter- and Intra-disciplinary Character—With Special Reference to the Gorkha 2015 Earthquake in Nepal Read chapter Read first chapter

2018 | OriginalPaper | Chapter

Should All of Nepal Be Treated as Having the Same Earthquake Hazard?

Authors : Seth Stein, Edward M. Brooks, Bruce D. Spencer, Mian Liu

Published in: Living Under the Threat of Earthquakes

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

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Abstract

Current earthquake hazard maps for Nepal predict substantial variations in hazard within the nation, with noticeable differences between maps. We thus suggest that given present knowledge, all of Nepal may be better regarded as equally hazardous and perhaps vulnerable to much larger earthquakes than those currently known because of their long recurrence times. This proposal is based on the limitations of the historical earthquake record, the recognized deficit in seismic moment release, and GPS data showing a similar level of coupling along the arc. Support for using smoother maps can be had from analysis for Japan, which is also located on and parallel to a subduction boundary, showing that in some ways the hazard maps may be overparameterized, in that including too high a level of detail may lower the maps’ ability to predict shaking. Treating Nepal’s hazard as uniform and developing mitigation strategies accordingly may help reduce damage in future earthquakes.

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previous chapter Earthquakes as Events of Inter- and Intra-disciplinary Character—With Special Reference to the Gorkha 2015 Earthquake in Nepal
next chapter Analysis of Landslides Triggered by the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake, Nepal
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Metadata
Title
Should All of Nepal Be Treated as Having the Same Earthquake Hazard?
Authors
Seth Stein
Edward M. Brooks
Bruce D. Spencer
Mian Liu
Copyright Year
2018
Book
Living Under the Threat of Earthquakes

Print ISBN: 978-3-319-68043-9

Electronic ISBN: 978-3-319-68044-6

Copyright Year: 2018

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68044-6_2