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An Examination of DAS as a Possible Earthquake Early Warning Tool

Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) possesses potential for increasing the effectiveness of earthquake early warning (EEW), especially for offshore events. DAS data provide measurements of strain or strain-rate as a function of time and unlike station-based data, which are recorded at discrete locations, DAS data include recordings at high spatial density (~2 to 10 m channel spacing) along lines or in boreholes. DAS possess significant advantages for EEW such as low cost and dense deployments in previously challenging environments, such as offshore or in urban areas, but also has disadvantages such as constraints on the dynamic range and large data volumes. Here, we investigate the potential of DAS using data from two datasets: 1) strong ground motions recorded 80 m from a buried explosion and 2) an M 5.3 earthquake (5 June 2021 Calipatria, CA) recorded by 27 km dark fiber deployment in the Imperial Valley with the closest channel locations approximately 12 km from the earthquake epicenter. Currently, EEW detection schemes require: 1) seismic information to identify when large ground motions are underway, typically requiring estimates of the earthquake magnitude and epicenter; 2) determining if these detected ground motions are significant enough to issue an EEW alert; and 3) alerts issued in a timely fashion, usually prior to the S-wave arrival that carries the largest amplitude waves. We explore the potential use of DAS for each of these factors to provide information for both source-based (earthquake magnitude and epicenter estimates required) and ground-motion based (only estimates of location of large ground motions required) EEW methods.

Session: Fiber Optic Seismology: Understanding Earth Structure and Dynamics with Distributed Sensors I

Type: Oral

Room: Grand C

Date: 4/21/2022

Presentation Time: 10:00 AM Pacific

Presenting Author: Robert J. Mellors

Student Presenter: No

Additional Authors