Submarine earthquakes in South-West Anatolia until the 18th century and their probable seismic sources

Abstract

Submarine earthquakes in South West Anatolia’s offshore region are a major threat to the coastal settlements therein. Many cities on Turkish and Greek territory suffered from earthquakes through historical time. The social and economic impact of these events have been documented in several historical earthquake catalogues. This article provides an analysis for the historical earthquakes from B.C. 2000 until the 18th century for the offshore region of SW Anatolia (Muğla Province). The summary consists of 17 earthquakes with intensities ranging from VII to X. A significant gap of earthquakes exists between the 6th and the 15th century (883 years). Available damage records concentrate on Rhodos and Kos island, with little information for the surrounding coastal region. Nevertheless, the historical and present day seismicity shows that the islands and coasts in SW Anatolia have experienced several destructive earthquakes between magnitudes of Mw 6 to 8. This fact should be taken into account in seismic hazard assessments and mitigation efforts for the area.

Keywords

• submarine earthquake
• seismic source
• fault
• Aegean
• Mediterranean

References

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