What is the problem/issue being addressed?
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The SEISMAZE project is aimed at studying low frequency seismic tremors and earthquakes that form a broad class of signals generated by internal sources that are different from classical earthquakes. While the physical origin of this type of signals remains to be fully understood, they are related to slow transient energy release processes that occur in active geological systems during the accumulation of mechanical energy that is then released during catastrophic events, such as strong earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. Therefore, low-frequency seismic tremors and earthquakes represent a unique source of information that can be used to understand the physics of these ‘preparation’ processes and to design new monitoring and forecasting approaches.
Why is it important for society?
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Low-frequency seismic tremors and earthquakes are manifestation of the slow processes that accommodate the mechanical evolution of geologically active systems under slow large-scale forcing prior to and after cataclysmic energy release during volcanic eruptions or strong earthquakes. They provide, therefore, a new paradigm for studying active geological processes in a variety of tectonic settings and for improving monitoring methods of seismic and volcanic hazards.
What are the overall objectives?
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Modern digital seismological networks record huge numbers of tremors in different active regions, and breakthroughs can be achieved with systematic exploration of these observations that includes data analysis and physical modeling. The main objective of the SEISMAZE project is to undertake such an effort via the development of a new unified framework for the study of low-frequency seismic tremors and earthquakes. The plan to combine advanced methods for data mining, signal processing, and numerical simulations of the generating processes, to apply these to different large datasets of volcanic and tectonic low-frequency tremors and earthquakes.