GEOL0029 Seismology I

This module covers basic principle of modern seismology. After introduction of the history of seismology and instrument, the module will go through fundamental components of seismic wave theory, source theory and the use of seismic observations in constraining Earth’s interior and earthquake source property.

Coordinator: Dr Alex Song

Module details

Title	Seismology I
UG Code	GEOL0029
Coordinator	Dr Alex Song
Other Contributors
Term	1
Credit	15 credits
Written Exam	40% (Unseen 2 hrs)
Coursework	30% Problem Sheet; 30% Mini Project
Oral Presentation
Pre-Requisites
Maths & Stats Content and Requirement	PHAS0002 Maths Methods I, PHAS0009 Maths Methods II, GEOL0058 Matlab
Total Number of Hours of Student Work	188 hours
Hours of Lectures/Seminars	20 hours
Hours of Practicals/Problem Classes	20 hours
Hours of Tutorials	As needed
Days of Fieldwork	None
Categorizing Student Performance	GEOL0029

Content

This module covers basic principle of modern seismology. After introduction of the history of seismology and instrument, the module will go through fundamental components of seismic wave theory, source theory and the use of seismic observations in constraining Earth’s interior and earthquake source property. Basic active source reflection seismology will also be introduced.

• Seismometer
• Stress and strain, wave equation,
• Introduction of body waves: travel time, amplitude and phase, generalized ray theory;
• Reflection seismology;
• Introduction of surface waves, sensitivity kernel and dispersion analysis
• Basics of normal modes;
• Seismic attenuation and anisotropy;
• Earthquake focal mechanism, Seismic moment tensor representation
• Earthquake source finiteness and directivity theory and analysis;
• Source spectra and scaling
• Earthquake energy budget
• Real time seismology

AIMS

The module is to introduce fundamental seismic wave theory and how seismic observations can be utilized to understand earthquake source physics, the interior of the Earth and applied seismology

OUTCOMES

By the end of this module, students should:

• Understand basic wave equation, ray theory and source theory;
• Understand nomenclature of seismic waves and identification in seismic recordings;
• Basic skill in collecting/processing/interpretation seismic data.
• Basic skill in reflection seismology.