Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

An updated and unified earthquake catalogue for the Western Balkan Region

  • Original Research Paper
  • Published:
Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The Harmonization of Seismic Hazard Maps in the Western Balkan Countries Project (BSHAP) was funded for 7 years by NATO-Science for Peace Program to support the preparation of new seismic hazard maps of the Western Balkan Region using modern scientific tools. One of the most important outputs of the BSHAP is an updated and unified BSHAP earthquake catalogue that is compiled directly from the datasets of earthquake data providers of the region. The BSHAP earthquake catalogue described here covers the geographic area limited by 38.0°–47.5°N, 12.5°–24.5°E and includes 26,118 earthquakes that occurred in the region between 510 BC and 2012. Details of data compilation efforts including the removal of duplicate events, unification of the magnitude scales, declustering of the catalogue and completeness analysis are presented in this manuscript. New magnitude conversion equations for various local magnitude scales of the data providers are developed with the aim of having homogeneous moment magnitude estimates. Completeness time intervals for the catalogue data are provided as inputs to the seismic source models used to obtain updated seismic hazard of Western Balkan Region. The unified and updated BSHAP catalogue is found to be compatible with the current well-established European and world-wide catalogues and represents a sound basis for analysis of the seismicity of this region.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abe K, Noguchi S (1983a) Determination of magnitude for large shallow earthquakes, 1898–1917. Phys Earth Planet Inter 32:45–59

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Abe K, Noguchi S (1983b) Revision of magnitudes of large shallow earthquakes, 1897–1912. Phys Earth Planet Inter 33:1–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ambraseys NN (2001) The Kresna Earthquake of 1904 in Bulgaria. Anali di Geofisica 44(1):95–117

    Google Scholar 

  • Bayliss TJ, Burton PW (2007) A new earthquake catalogue for Bulgaria and the conterminous Balkan high hazard region. Nat Hazards Earth Syst Sci 7(3):345–359

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bender B, Perkins DM (1987) SEISRISK III: a computer program for seismic hazard estimation. US geological survey. Bulletin 1772:48

    Google Scholar 

  • Castellaro S, Bormann P (2007) Performance of different regression procedures on the magnitude regression problem. Bull Seismol Soc Am 97:1167–1175

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christoskov L, Grigorova E (1968) Energetic and space-time characteristics of the destructive earthquakes in Bulgaria after 1900. Bull Inst Geophys Sofia XII:79–107 (in Bulgarian, with English summary)

    Google Scholar 

  • Draper N, Smith H (1998) Applied regression analysis, 3rd edn. Wiley, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Duni Ll, Kuka Sh, Kuka N (2010) Local relations for converting M L to M W in Southern-Western Balkan region. Acta Geod Geophys Hung 45(3):317–323

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dziewonski AM, Chou TA, Woodhouse JH (1981) Determination of earthquake source parameters from waveform data for studies of global and regional seismicity. J Geophys Res 86:2825–2852

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ekström G, Dziewonski AM (1988) Evidence of bias in estimations of earthquake size. Nature 332:319–323. doi:10.1038/332319a0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gardner JK, Knopoff L (1974) Is the sequence of earthquakes in Southern California, with aftershocks removed, poissonian? Bull Seismol Soc Am 64:1363–1367

    Google Scholar 

  • Gasperini P, Ferrari G (2000) Deriving numerical estimates from descriptive information: the computation of earthquake parameters, in “catalogue of strong Italian earthquakes from 461 B.C. to 1997”. Ann Geofis 43(4):729–746

    Google Scholar 

  • GCMT Catalog (2014) Centroid Moment Tensor Project (1976–2014). http://www.globalcmt.org/GCMT files.html

  • Giardini D (1999) The global seismic hazard assessment program: 1992–1999. Ann Geofis 42:957–974

    Google Scholar 

  • Giardini D, Woessner J, Danciu L, Crowley H, Cotton F, Grünthal G, Pinho R, Valensise G, Akkar S, Arvidsson R, Basili R, Cameelbeeck T, Campos-Costa A, Douglas J, Demircioglu MB, Erdik M, Fonseca J, Glavatović B, Lindholm C, Makropoulos K, Meletti F, Musson R, Pitilakis K, Sesetyan K, Stromeyer D, Stucchi M, Rovida A (2013) Seismic hazard harmonization in Europe (SHARE): Online Data Resource. http://portal.share-eu.org:8080/jetspeed/portal/, doi: 10.12686/SED-00000001-SHARE

  • Grünthal G, Wahlström R (2003) An Mw based earthquake catalogue for Central, Northern and Northwestern Europe using a hierarchy of magnitude conversions. J Seismol 7(4):507–531

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grünthal G, Wahlström R (2012) The European-Mediterranean earthquake catalogue (EMEC) for the last millennium. J Seismol 16(3):535–570. doi:10.1007/s10950-012-9302-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grünthal G, Wahlström R, Stromeyer D (2013) The share European earthquake catalogue (SHEEC) for the time period 1900–2006 and its comparison to the European Mediterranean earthquake catalogue (EMEC). J Seismol 17:1339–1344. doi:10.1007/s10950-013-9379-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harvard’s CMT catalog: http://eqseis.geosc.psu.edu/~cammon/HTML/CJA_Guide/cmt_search_guide.html

  • Herak M, Herak D (2009) Analyses of seismicity as input for earthquake hazard studies in Bosnia and Herzegovina. International Conference on Earthquake Engineering, Banja Luka

  • Herak M, Herak D, Markušić S (1996) Revision of the earthquake catalogue and seismicity of Croatia. Terra Nova 8:86–94

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herak D, Herak M, Tomljenović B (2009) Seismicity and earthquake focal mechanisms in North-Western Croatia. Tectonophysics 465:212–220

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • INGV (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia) Earthquake Catalogue: http://istituto.ingv.it/the-institute/databases/view?set_language=en

  • ISC-GEM Global Instrumental Earthquake Catalogue (1900–2009), July 2012

  • ISC (International Seismological Center) Earthquke Catalogue: http://www.isc.ac.uk/iscbulletin/search/catalogue/

  • Karnik V (1968) Seismicity of the European area, part 1. Academia, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, Praha

    Google Scholar 

  • Knopoff L (2000) The magnitude distribution of declustered earthquakes in Southern California. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 97:11880–11884

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levitski G (1906) Bulletin de la Commission Centrale Sismique Permanente Année 1904, Janvier-décembre. Comptes Rendus des Séances de La Commission Sismique Permanente, Tome 2, Livraison III, p 307

  • Lolli B, Gasperini P (2012) A comparison among general orthogonal regression methods applied to earthquake magnitude conversions. Geophys J Int 190(2):1135–1151. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2012.05530.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meyer B, Armijo R, Dimitrov D (2002) Active faulting in SW Bulgaria: possible surface rupture of the 1904 struma earthquakes. Geophys J Int 148:246–255

    Google Scholar 

  • Mihaljević J, Kuka N, Duni L, Hoxha R, Glavatović B, Kaluđerović N, Kovačević S, Kovačević V, Markušić S, Ivančić I, Fiket T, Milutinović Z, Šalić R, Gülerce Z, Akkar S, Vikileniedzhad M, Sandikkaya A, Zupančić P, Živčić M (2015) Seismic Hazard Maps for Western Balkan Region (in preparation)

  • Miyamura S (1988) Some remarks on historical seismograms and the microfilming project, historical seismograms and earthquakes of the world. In: Lee WHK, Meyers H, Shimazaki K (eds), Historical seismograms and earthquakes of the world. San Diego, Academic Press, pp 401–419

  • Mulargia F, Gasperini P, Tinti S (1987) Contour mapping of Italian seismicity. Tectonophysics 142:203–216

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Musson RMW (1996) An earthquake catalogue for the Circum Pannonian Basin. In: Papanikolaou D, Papoulia J (eds), Seismicity of the Carpatho-Balcan Region, Proc XV Congress of the Carpatho-Balcan Geol. Ass., Athens, 17–20 Sep 1995, pp 233–238

  • NEIC Earthquake Catalogue: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/search/

  • Oncescu MC, Marza VI, Rizescu M, Popa M (1999) The Romanian earthquake catalogue between 984–1996. In: Wenzel F, Lungu D, Novak O (eds), Vrancea earthquakes: tectonics, hazard and risk mitigation. Kluwer Academic Publishers, New York, pp 43–49

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Regional Centroid Moment Tensors (RCMTs) the Mediterranean: http://mednet.rm.ingv.it/rcmt.php

  • Scordilis EM (2006) Empirical global relations converting MS and mb to moment magnitude. J Seismol 10(2):225–236

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SED—Earthquake Catalogue: http://www.seismo.ethz.ch/prod/catalog/index_EN

  • Shebalin NV, Leydecker G, Mokrushina NG, Tatevossian RE, Erteleva OO, Vassiliev VY (1998) Earthquake catalogue for central and southeastern Europe 342 BC–1990 AD—Final Report to Contract ETNU-CT 93-0087

  • Shebalin NV, Karnik V, Hadžievski D (eds) (1974) Catalogue of earthquakes: Part I, 1901-1970, Part II: Prior to 1901. UNDP/UNESCO REM/70/172 Project “Survey of the seismicity of the Balkan Region”, Skopje

  • Storchak DA, Di Giacomo D, Bondár I, Engdahl ER, Harris J, Lee WHK, Villaseñor A, Bormann P (2013) Public release of the ISC-GEM global instrumental earthquake catalogue (1900–2009). Seismol Res Lett 84(5):810–815

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stucchi M (ed) (1998) The EC project “A Basic European Earthquake Catalogue and a database for the evaluation of long-term seismicity and seismic hazard”. Final Report. Milano. Available from http://emidius.mi.ingv.it/BEECD/BEECDflow.html

  • Stucchi M, Rovida A, Gomez Capera AA, Alexandre P, Camelbeeck T, Demircioglu MB, Gasperini P, Kouskouna V, Musson RMW, Radulian M, Sesetyan K, Vilanova S, Baumont D, Bungum H, Fäh D, Lenhardt W, Makropoulos K, Martinez Solares JM, Scotti O, Živčić M, Albini P, Batlo J, Papaioannou C, Tatevossian R, Locati M, Meletti C, Viganò D, Giardini D (2012) The SHARE European earthquake catalogue (SHEEC) 1000–1899. J Seismol 17:523–544. doi:10.1007/s10950-012-9335-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Šalić R (2015) An advanced approach for seismic hazard assessment for the Republic of Macedonia, Ph.D. Thesis, University "SS. Cyril and Methodius" in Skopje, Skopje, p 248

  • Šalić R, Sandikkaya A, Milutinović Z, Gülerce Z, Kovačević V, Kuka N, Markušić S, Mihaljević J, Duni L, Kaluđerović N, Kotur N, Krmpotić S, Kuk K, Stanko D (2015) Strong Ground Motion Database for Western Balkan Region and Selection of Suitable Ground Motion Models for PSHA (in preparation)

  • The database of Earthquake Mechanisms for European Area (EMMA): http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/emma.php

  • Weichert D (1980) Estimation of the earthquake recurrence parameters for unequal observation periods for different magnitudes. Bull Seismol Soc Am 70:1337–1346

    Google Scholar 

  • Zsíros T (1990) Estimation of seismic risk at Paks based on seismicity (in Hungarian). Magyar Geofizika 31:124–132

    Google Scholar 

  • Zsíros T (2000) A Kárpát-medence szeizmicitása és földrengés veszélyessége: Magyar földrengés katalógus (456-1999). MTA FK GGKI, Budapest, p 495

  • Živčić M, Cecić I, Poljak M (1996) Seismicity and geodynamics of slovenia. EEC Technical Report, Project CIPA-CT94-0238

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank two anonymous reviewers for their constructive criticism that helped us to improve the overall quality of the manuscript. This work is funded by NATO SfP Program under: “Improvements in the Harmonized Seismic Hazard Maps for the Western Balkan Countries Project” (NATO SfP Award Number: 984374). BSHAP Projects are recognizing and are indebted to following institutions/data providers (by country name in alphabetical order): Institute of GeoSciences (former Seismological Institute), Tirana, Albania; Center for Seismology, Federal Meteorological Institute, Sarajevo and Hydrometeorological Institute of Republic of Srpska, Sector for Seismology, Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Science, Department of Geophysics, Zagreb, Croatia; University “Ss. Cyril and Methodius” in Skopje, Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology (IZIIS) and Seismological observatory, PMF, Skopje, Macedonia; Seismological Observatory of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro; Seismological Survey of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia; Environmental Agency of the Republic of Slovenia, Ljubljana, Slovenia for positive cooperative attitude in data releasing and continuous support, assistance and synergy during the course of BSHAP's performance as well as on full recognition of importance on making results available to wider national, regional and worldwide academic and professional community. We, the BSHAP Projects teams and authors of this paper, do expect that NATO, Public Diplomacy Divisions’ expectations and policies are meet, in terms of technical and synergic achievements, and that BSHAP’s results justify granting that we highly acknowledge.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geophysics, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

    Snježana Markušić & Ines Ivančić

  2. Civil Engineering Department, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey

    Zeynep Gülerce

  3. Institute of Geosciences, Energy, Water and Environment, Polytechnic University, Tirana, Albania

    Neki Kuka & Llambro Duni

  4. Seismological Survey of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia

    Slavica Radovanović & Svetlana Kovačević

  5. Institute of Hydrometeorology and Seismology of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro

    Branislav Glavatović & Jadranka Mihaljević

  6. Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology (IZIIS), Ss. Cyril and Methodius University, Skopje, Macedonia

    Zoran Milutinović & Radmila Šalić

  7. Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Engineering Research Institute, Istanbul, Turkey

    Sinan Akkar

Authors
  1. Snježana Markušić
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Zeynep Gülerce
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Neki Kuka
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Llambro Duni
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Ines Ivančić
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Slavica Radovanović
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Branislav Glavatović
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Zoran Milutinović
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Sinan Akkar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Svetlana Kovačević
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Jadranka Mihaljević
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Radmila Šalić
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Snježana Markušić.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Markušić, S., Gülerce, Z., Kuka, N. et al. An updated and unified earthquake catalogue for the Western Balkan Region. Bull Earthquake Eng 14, 321–343 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10518-015-9833-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10518-015-9833-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation