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Ring-Shaped Seismicity Structures in the Areas of Sarez and Nurek Water Reservoirs (Tajikistan): Lithosphere Adaptation to Additional Loading

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Abstract

Seismicity characteristics in the areas of Sarez Lake and the Nurek water reservoir are studied. Ring-shaped seismicity structures in two depth ranges (0–33 and 34–70 km) formed prior to the Pamir earthquake of December 7, 2015 (M w = 7.2). Seismicity rings cross each other near the Usoi Dam, which formed after the strong earthquake in 1911 and led to the formation of Sarez Lake, and near the epicenter of the Pamir earthquake. In addition, three out of the four strongest events (М ≥ 6.0) recorded in the Pamir region at depths of more than 70 km since 1950 have occurred near Sarez Lake. An aggregate of the data allows us to conclude that the Pamir earthquake, despite its very large energy, refers to events related to induced seismicity. Ring-shaped seismicity structures in two depth ranges also formed in the Nurek water reservoir area. It is supposed that the formation of ring-shaped structures is related to the self-organization processes of a geological system, which result in the ascent of deep-seated fluids. In this respect, the lithosphere is gradually adapting to the additional load related to the filling of the water reservoir. The difference between Nurek Dam (and many other hydroelectric power stations as well) and Usoi Dam is the permanent vibration in the former case due to water falling from a height of more than 200 m. Such an effect can lead to gradual stress dissipation, resulting in the occurrence of much weaker events when compared to the Pamir earthquake of December 7, 2015, in the areas of artificial water reservoirs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

    Yu. F. Kopnichev

  2. Institute of Geophysical Research, Ministry of Energy, Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty, Kazakhstan

    I. N. Sokolova

Authors
  1. Yu. F. Kopnichev
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  2. I. N. Sokolova
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Correspondence to Yu. F. Kopnichev.

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Original Russian Text © Yu.F. Kopnichev, I.N. Sokolova, 2016, published in Geofizicheskie Protsessy i Biosfera, 2016, Vol. 15, No. 4, pp. 64–76.

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Kopnichev, Y.F., Sokolova, I.N. Ring-Shaped Seismicity Structures in the Areas of Sarez and Nurek Water Reservoirs (Tajikistan): Lithosphere Adaptation to Additional Loading. Izv. Atmos. Ocean. Phys. 53, 748–756 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0001433817070052

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