In the last decade of the 20th century, there has been great progress in the physics of earthquake generation; that is, the introduction of laboratory-based fault constitutive laws as a basic equation governing earthquake rupture, quantitative description of tectonic loading driven by plate motion, and a microscopic approach to study fault zone processes. The fault constitutive law plays the role of an interface between microscopic processes in fault zones and macroscopic processes of a fault system, and the plate motion connects diverse crustal activities with mantle dynamics. An ambitious challenge for us is to develop realistic computer simulation models for the complete earthquake process on the basis of microphysics in fault zones and macro-dynamics in the crust-mantle system. Recent advances in high performance computer technology and numerical simulation methodology are bringing this vision within reach. The book consists of two parts and presents a cross-section of cutting-edge research in the field of computational earthquake physics. Part I includes works on microphysics of rupture and fault constitutive laws, and dynamic rupture, wave propagation and strong ground motion. Part II covers earthquake cycles, crustal deformation, plate dynamics, and seismicity change and its physical interpretation. Topics in Part II range from the 3-D simulations of earthquake generation cycles and interseismic crustal deformation associated with plate subduction to the development of new methods for analyzing geophysical and geodetical data and new simulation algorithms for large amplitude folding and mantle convection with viscoelastic/brittle lithosphere, as well as a theoretical study of accelerated seismic release on heterogeneous faults, simulation of long-range automaton models of earthquakes, and various approaches to earthquake predicition based on underlying physical and/or statistical models for seismicity change.

In the last decade of the 20th century, there has been great progress in the physics of earthquake generation; that is, the introduction of laboratory-based fault constitutive laws as a basic equation governing earthquake rupture, quantitative description of tectonic loading driven by plate motion, and a microscopic approach to study fault zone processes. The fault constitutive law plays the role of an interface between microscopic processes in fault zones and macroscopic processes of a fault system, and the plate motion connects diverse crustal activities with mantle dynamics. An ambitious challenge for us is to develop realistic computer simulation models for the complete earthquake process on the basis of microphysics in fault zones and macro-dynamics in the crust-mantle system. Recent advances in high performance computer technology and numerical simulation methodology are bringing this vision within reach. The book consists of two parts and presents a cross-section of cutting-edge research in the field of computational earthquake physics. Part I includes works on microphysics of rupture and fault constitutive laws, and dynamic rupture, wave propagation and strong ground motion. Part II covers earthquake cycles, crustal deformation, plate dynamics, and seismicity change and its physical interpretation. Topics covered in Part I range from the microscopic simulation and laboratory studies of rock fracture and the underlying mechanism for nucleation and catastrophic failure to the development of theoretical models of frictional behaviors of faults; as well as the simulation studies of dynamic rupture processes and seismic wave propagation in a 3-D heterogeneous medium, to the case studies of strong ground motions from the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake and seismic hazard estimation for Cascadian subduction zone earthquakes.

The study of earthquakes is a multidisciplinary field, an amalgam of geodynamics, mathematics, engineering and more. The overriding commonality between them all is the presence of natural randomness. Stochastic studies (probability, stochastic processes and statistics) can be of different types, for example, the black box approach (one state), the white box approach (multi-state), the simulation of different aspects, and so on. This book has the advantage of bringing together a group of international authors, known for their earthquake-specific approaches, to cover a wide array of these myriad aspects. A variety of topics are presented, including statistical nonparametric and parametric methods, a multi-state system approach, earthquake simulators, post-seismic activity models, time series Markov models with regression, scaling properties and multifractal approaches, selfcorrecting models, the linked stress release model, Markovian arrival models, Poisson-based detection techniques, change point detection techniques on seismicity models, and, finally, semi-Markov models for earthquake forecasting.

Although geodetic monitoring techniques have been widely used in areas of seismic or volcanic activity, the difficulty inherent to their discrete nature means that they must be deployed carefully to ensure the best possible detection or sensitivity of these points (see e. g. , BALDI and UNGUENDOLI, 1987; JOHNSON and WYATT, 1994; SEGALL and MATTHEWS, 1997; Yu et al. , 2000). In many cases, a more global monitoring method, is required yet at the same time one that offers the highest level of sensitivity which enables detection of the phenomenon. Interferometry radar (InSAR) techniques have been shown to play an important role in seismic and volcanic monitoring because they cover large areas (100 x 100 km) and can be easily systematized in monitoring (see e. g. , MASSONNET and FEIGL, 1998; BDRGMANN et al. , 2000; MASSONNET and SIGMUNDSON, 2000; HANSSEN, 2001). The limitations inherent to the GPS and InSAR techniques (mainly observations at discrete surface points in the case of GPS and existence of non-coherent areas and the fact that, at present, the three displacement components cannot be obtained in SAR interferometry) can be overcome by using them together or other techniques (e. g. , PUGLISI and COLTELLI, 2001; RODRiGUEZ-VELASCO et al. , 2002; FERNANDEZ et al. , 2003).

This is the second of two volumes devoted to earthquakes and multi-hazards around the Pacific Rim. The circum-Pacific seismic belt is home to roughly 80% of the world’s largest earthquakes, making it the ideal location for investigating earthquakes and related hazards such as tsunamis and landslides. Following the Introduction, this volume includes 14 papers covering a range of topics related to multi-hazards. The book is divided into five sections: viscoelastic deformation, earthquake source models, earthquake prediction, seismic hazard assessment, and tsunami simulation. Viscoelastic relaxation can play an important role in subduction zone behavior, and this is explored in the first section, with specific examples including the Tohoku-oki earthquake in Eastern Japan. In addition to laboratory rock friction experiments, the second section examines earthquake source models for the 2016 MW 6.6 Aketao earthquake in Eastern Pamir and two earthquakes in Eastern Taiwan, along with strong ground motion studies of the 2008 MW 7.9 Wenchuan, China earthquake. The Load/Unload Response Ratio (LURR), Natural Time (NT), and “nowcasting” are earthquake prediction techniques that are analyzed in the third section, with nowcasting predictions performed for a number of large cities globally. Viscoelastic relaxation can play an important role in subduction zone behavior, assessment are the focus of the fourth section, with specific applications to the Himalayan-Tibetan region and the Xianshuihe Fault Zone in Southwest China. In the last section, a new approach in modeling tsunami height distributions is described. Rapid advances are being made in our understanding of multi-hazards, as well as the range of tools used to investigate them. This volume provides a representative cross-section of how state-of-the-art knowledge and tools are currently being applied to multi-hazards around the Pacific Rim. The material here should be of interest to scientists involved in all areas of multi-hazards, particularly seismic and tsunami hazards. In addition, it offers a valuable resource for students in the geosciences, covering a broad spectrum of topics related to hazard research.