The Reno ShakeOut Hazard Scenario
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Authors
Eckert, Eric
Issue Date
2021
Type
Thesis
Language
Keywords
computational model , earthquake hazard , eathquake model , empirical ground motion model , physics based hazard , seismic hazard
Alternative Title
Abstract
The Truckee Meadows is subjected to significant seismic risk, primarily resultingfrom the regions proximity to Mount Rose Fault system and the urban area's presence within a large, thin (< 1Km thick) sedimentary basin. Numerous paleoseismic studies have shown the system has a history of producing large Holocene earthquakes. To help explore this hazard we leveraged SW4, a physics-based wave-equation modeling tool, to develop the Reno ShakeOut Scenario. The Scenario is a 3.125 Hz 3D simulation for a potential magnitude 6.3 earthquake within the Mount Rose Fault system. The results indicate that there is a potential for widespread and variable ground shaking at Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) magnitudes between VII and VIII (very strong to severe ground shaking), with small areas achieving violent (IX and X) motions. Distributions of high shaking are controlled by proximity to the rupture, geotechnical shear-wave velocity, topography, and most significantly basin thickness. Comparisons between SW4 peak ground velocity (PGV) calculations and PGV estimates computed from the Campbell and Bozorgnia empirical ground motion model (GMM) emphasize the degree to which very thin basins may result in greater hazards than are currently predicted. This information helps improve our understanding of regional risk by highlighting these significant basin effects and the local variability that is likely to occur with any large seismic event.
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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 United States