Estimation of the quality factor of shear waves and Coda waves in the Hormuzgan region of southern Iran

The attenuation of seismic waves is one of the basic physical parameters used in seismological studies and earthquake engineering, and is closely related to the seismicity and regional tectonic activity of a particular area. Seismic wave attenuation is caused by two major factors: scattering at heterogeneities in the earth and intrinsic absorption by anelasticity of the earth. The inverse of quality factor represents the attenuation. There are different methods for estimating the quality factor of Shear and Coda waves. In this study, the quality factors of Shear waves (Q_S) and Coda waves (Q_C) have been estimated in the Hormuzgan regionin the south of Iran. This region is located in the southeastern Zagros seismotectonic region. Several faults exist in this region, including the Main Zagros Reverse Fault (MZRF), High Zagros Fault (HZF), Zagros Foredeep Fault (ZFF), Mountain Front Fault (MFF) and Minab Fault. Recordings from the Bandar-Abbas (BNDS) station (located in the Hormuzgan region, 27.40º N_56.17º E) of the Iranian National Seismic Network (INSN) of local earthquakes with signal-to-noise ratios greater than 3were used for this study. These events were recorded from June 2004 through August 2009 and registered magnitudes of between 2.5 and 5.1 (M_L), epicentral distances of less than 100 km and average focal depths of about 15 km. In this study, the Coda Normalization Method (Aki, 1980) and the Single Back-Scattering Method (Aki & Chouet, 1975) are used for the estimation of Q_S  and Q_C at the seven central frequencies of 1.5, 3.0, 4.5, 6.0, 9.0, 12.0 and 18.0 Hz. The Shear waves on 183 North-South (N-S) components and 142 East-West (E-W) components, and the Coda waves on 200 Vertical (U-D) components, have been analyzed to estimate Q_S and Q_C, respectively. Time windows of the Shear waves were determined by the Kinoshita algorithm and the velocity of the Shear waves was estimated at 3.5 km/s. The estimated frequency-dependent relationships of Q_S on N-S and E-W components are  and , respectively. The Q_C values were computed at five lapse time windows (20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 sec), starting at double the time of the primary Shear wave from the time of origin. The frequency-dependent relationships of Q_C vary from  at 20 sec to  at 60 sec lapse time window. The results show an increase in Q_C value with increasing lapse time windows. The estimated Q_C at a greater lapse time window indicates attenuation at a greater depth. In the Hormuzgan region, the values of Q at 1.0 Hz are less than 200 for the frequency-dependent relationships of Q_S and Q_C. Therefore, the Hormuzgan region is a highly tectonically and seismically active region; also, the medium is highly heterogeneous. The results reflect sedimentary deposits and salt domes in the Hormuzgan region. The Q_S frequency-dependent relationship in the Hormuzgan region is similar to that of the Ardabil and Avaj regions in northwestern Iran, and of the Strait of Messina in the south of Italy. Moreover, the Q_C frequency-dependent relationship in the Hormuzgan region is similar to that of the Alborz and Zagros regions in Iran and in the northwest of the Himalayan region. These regions are all tectonically and seismically active.