Beyond basin resonance: characterizing wave propagation using a dense array and the ambient seismic field

• Published in: Geophysical journal international Vol. 206; no. 2; pp. 1261 - 1272
• Main Authors: Boué, Pierre, Denolle, Marine, Hirata, Naoshi, Nakagawa, Shigeki, Beroza, Gregory C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 01.08.2016
• Subjects: Surface waves and free oscillations; Wave scattering and diffraction; Site effects; Wave propagation; Interferometry
• ISSN: 0956-540X; 1365-246X; 1365-246X
• DOI: 10.1093/gji/ggw205

Seismic wave resonance in sedimentary basins is a well-recognized seismic hazard; however, concentrated areas of earthquake damage have been observed near basin edges, where wave propagation is particularly complex and difficult to understand with sparse observations. The Tokyo metropolitan area is densely populated, subject to strong shaking from a diversity of earthquake sources, and sits atop the deep Kanto sedimentary basin. It is also instrumented with two seismic arrays: the dense MEtropolitan Seismic Observation network (MeSO-net) within the basin, and the High sensitivity seismograph network (Hi-net) surrounding it. In this study, we explore the 3-D seismic wavefield within and throughout the Kanto basin, including near and across basin boundaries, using cross-correlations of all components of ambient seismic field between the stations of these two arrays. Dense observations allow us to observe clearly the propagation of three modes of both Rayleigh and Love waves. They also show how the wavefield behaves in the vicinity of sharp basin edges with reflected/converted waves and excitation of higher modes.