GIS mapping of earthquake ground shaking in San Francisco, California

By: , and 
Edited by: A. H.-S. Ang and R. Villaverde

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Abstract

Severe earthquakes of the last decade in Mexico, Armenia, and the United States have reemphasized the importance of local geologic site conditions in estimating damage and consequent losses. Recent advances in geographic information system (GIS) technology have created new opportunities for maintaining and integrating extensive spatial databases for applications in seismic hazard analysis. Ground motion data and damage distributions from past earthquakes are combined with GIS databases of geologic information to prepare preliminary maps for inferring input ground motion levels for earthquake resistant design. Maps of bedrock elevation, surface topography, and surface geology are used to develop maps of soil thickness and predominant period. Ground motion attenuation relationships are used to create maps estimating ground shaking intensity for a uniform ground condition. Relationships between geologic characteristics, ground motion amplification, and earthquake intensity are used to produce amplification capability maps. Estimated ground shaking for the uniform ground condition is combined with amplification capability to develop maps predicting regional ground shaking intensity. The methods of predictive GIS mapping described here are useful for estimating characteristics of input ground motion in many urbanized seismic regions of the world.

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Publication type Conference Paper
Publication Subtype Conference Paper
Title GIS mapping of earthquake ground shaking in San Francisco, California
Year Published 1993
Language English
Publisher American Society of Civil Engineers
Contributing office(s) Earthquake Hazards Program
Description 6 p.
Larger Work Type Book
Larger Work Subtype Conference publication
Larger Work Title Structural engineering in natural hazards mitigation
First page 259
Last page 264
Conference Title Structures Congress '93
Conference Location Irvine, California, United States
Conference Date April 19-21, 1993
Country United States
State California
City San Francisco
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