Ukrainian Antarctic Journal

No 1 (2020): Ukrainian Antarctic Journal
Articles

Radon as a possible indicator of West Antarctic seismicity

PDF (Українська)
  • O. Liashchuk,
  • Yu. Andrushchenko,
  • L. Liashchuk
O. Liashchuk
The Main Center of Special Monitoring, State Space Agency of Ukraine, Gorodok, 12265, Ukraine
Yu. Andrushchenko
The Main Center of Special Monitoring, State Space Agency of Ukraine, Gorodok, 12265, Ukraine
L. Liashchuk
The Main Center of Special Monitoring, State Space Agency of Ukraine, Gorodok, 12265, Ukraine
DOI: https://doi.org/10.33275/1727-7485.1.2020.376
Published July 7, 2020
Keywords
  • radon,
  • earthquake,
  • predictor,
  • seismicity,
  • meteorological parameters
How to Cite
Liashchuk, O., Andrushchenko, Y., & Liashchuk, L. (2020). Radon as a possible indicator of West Antarctic seismicity. Ukrainian Antarctic Journal, (1), 15-28. https://doi.org/10.33275/1727-7485.1.2020.376
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Abstract

The measurements of near-surface radon concentration have been carried out at the Ukrainian Antarctic Akademik Vernadsky station (Akademik Vernadsky station) since 2003. Abnormal concentrations of radon could serve as a possible valuable indicator of tectonic activity, along with other evidence, potential signs of an expected earthquake. The aim of the work is to find the relationship between the abnormal values of the surface radon concentration, which correlate with tectonic activity. During the measurements, dosimetric methods for detecting the decay of isotopes and daughter products were used. When analyzing the data, statistical analysis methods were used. The sequence of earthquakes that occurred during instrumental observations of radon concentration, has been analyzed. The potential seismic regions affecting the location of the Akademik Vernadsky station were determined. The distances were determined at which geophysical anomalies are likely to occur within the framework of the proposed model and the expected effect of seismicity on the radon yield at the observation site is estimated. The result of the studies shows low correlation between the concentration of radon at the observation point and tectonic activity in the region at distances up to 1100 km with a magnitude of M > 7. At shorter distances to an earthquake, radon anomalies can be expected at M > 6. In some cases, the increase in radon concentration in day–two before the earthquake has been observed. That can be used as a potential predictor, however, no stable recurrence of such events was measured. It is noted that for the correct interpretation of the radon concentration measurements, the analysis of meteorological parameters can be necessary.

PDF (Українська)

References

  1. Dobrovolskiy, I.P.: Teoriya podgotovki tektonicheskogo zemletryaseniya [Theory of tectonic earthquake preparation], Institute of Physics of the Earth of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 217 pp., 1991.
  2. Liashchuk, A.I., Pavlovich, V.N.: Reshenie zadach monitoringa opasnyih geofizicheskih yavleniy programmnoapparatnyim geofizicheskim kompleksom Ukrainskoy antarkticheskoy stantsii Akademik Vernadskiy [Solving the problems of monitoring hazardous geophysical phenomena by the hardware-software geophysical complex of the Ukrainian Antarctic Akademik Vernadsky station], Ukrainian Antarctic Journal, 9, 82-90, 2010.
  3. Liashchuk, A.I., Pavlovich, V.N., Russov, V.D.: Monitoring kontsentratsii radona kak predvestnik zemletryaseniy v rayone gor Vrancha [Monitoring of radon concentration as a harbinger of earthquakes in the Vrancea mountains], Geophysical Journal, 30 (2), 63-74, 2008.
  4. Sultankhodzhayev, A.N., Tyminskiy, V.G., Ulomov, V.I., Fayzullin, I.S.: Ob ispolzovanii radona dlya prognozirovaniya zemletryaseniy [On the use of radon for earthquake prediction], Uzbekskiy geologicheskiy zhurnal [Uzbek Geophysical Journal], 2, 44-49, 1974.
  5. Sukhorukov, M.V., Spivak, A.A.: Prostranstvenno-vremennyie osobennosti polya radona v svyazi s tektonicheskimi strukturami [Spatio-temporal features of the radon field in connection with tectonic structures]. Uspehi sovremennogo estestvoznaniya [The successes of modern science], 1, 94-99, 2017.
  6. Ulomov, V.I., Mavashev, B.Z.: O predvestnike silnogo tektonicheskogo zemletryaseniya [About the harbinger of a strong tectonic earthquake], Doklady AN SSSR [Reports of the USSR Academy of Sciences], 176 (2), 35-37, 1967.
  7. Alam, A., Wang, N., Zhao,G., Barkat, A.: Implication of Radon Monitoring for Earthquake Surveillance Using Statistical Techniques: A Case Study of Wenchuan Earthquake,Geofluids, 2429165, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/2429165
  8. Biagi, P.F., Ermini, A., Kingsley, S.P., Khatkevich, Y.M., Gordeev, E.I.: Difficulties with interpreting changes in groun dwater gas content as earthquake precursors in Kamchatka, Russia, Journal of Seismology, 5 (4), 487-497, 2001. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012015317086
  9. Burnett, J.L., Croudace, I.W., Warwick, P.E.: Short-lived variations in the background gamma-radiation dose, Journal of Radiological Protection, 30 (3), 525-532, 2010. https://doi.org/10.1088/0952-4746/30/3/007
  10. Cicerone, R.D., Ebel, J.E., Britton, J.: A systematic compilation of earthquake precursors, Tectonophysics, 476 (3-4), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2009.06.008371-396, 2009.
  11. Fleisher R.L.: Dislocation model for radon response to distance earthquakes, Geophysical Research Letters, 8 (5), 477-480, https://doi.org/10.1029/GL008i005p00477, 1981.
  12. Goto, M., Yasuoka, Y., Nagahama, H., Muto, J., Omori Y., Ihara, H., Mukai, T.: Anomalous changes in atmospheric radon concentration before and after the 2011 northern Wakayama Earthquake (MJ 5.5), Radiation Protection Dosimetry, 174 (3), 412-418, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1093/rpd/ncw142
  13. Hwa Oh, Y., Kim, G.: A radon-thoron isotope pair as a reliable earthquake precursor, Scientific Reports, 5, 13084, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep13084
  14. Ilić, R., Rusov, V.D., Pavlovych, V.N., Vaschenko, V.M., Hanžič, L., Bondarchuk, Y.A.: Radon in Antarctica, Radiation Measurements, 40 (2-6), 415-422, 2005. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2005.03.022
  15. Ingebritsen, S.E., Manga, M.: Hydrogeochemical pre cur sors, Nature Geoscience, 7, 697-698, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2261
  16. Kasahara, K.: Earthquake mechanics, Cambridge University Press, 284 pp., 1981.
  17. Koike, K.,Yoshinaga, T., Ueyama, T., Asaue, H.: Increased radon-222 in soil gas because of cumulative seismicity at active faults, Earth, Planets and Space, 66, 57, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1186/1880-5981-66-57
  18. Koike, K., Yoshinaga, T., Suetsugu, K., Kashiwaya, K., Asaue, H.: Controls on radon emission from granite as evidenced by compression testing to failure, Geophysical Journal International, 203 (1), 428-436, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggv290
  19. Mercier, J.-F., Tracy, B.L., d'Amours, R., Chagnon, F., Hoffman, I., Korpach, E.P., Johnson, S., Ungar, R.K.: Increased environmental gamma-ray dose rate during precipitation: a strong correlation with contributing air mass, Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, 100 (7), 527-533, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvrad.2009.03.002
  20. Mjachkin, V.I., Brace, W.F., Sobolev, G.A., Deiterich, J.H.: Two models for earthquake forerunners, Pure and Applied Geophysics, 113 (1), 169-181, 1975. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01592908
  21. Okabe, S.: Time variation of the atmospheric radon content near the ground surface with relation to some geophysical phenomena, Memoirs of the College of Science; Kyoto Imperial University, 28 (2), 99-115, 1956.
  22. Petraki, E., Nikolopoulos, D., Panagiotaras, D., Cantzos, D., Yannakopoulos, P., Nomicos, C., Stonham, J.: Radon-222: A Potential Short-Term Earthquake Precursor, Journal of Earth Science and Climatic Change, 6, 282, 2015. https://doi.org/10.4172/2157-7617.1000244
  23. Planinić, J., Radolić, V., Vuković, B.: Radon as an earthquake precursor, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, 530 (3), 568-574, 2004. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2004.04.209
  24. Riggio, A., Santulin, M.: Earthquake forecasting: A review of radon as seismic precursor, Bollettino di Geofisica Teorica ed Applicata, 56 (2), 95-114, 2015.
  25. Rikitake, T.: Earthquake Prediction, Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, 357 pp., 1976.
  26. Rusov, V.D., Maksymchuk, V.Yu., Ili , R., Pavlovych, V.M., Bakhmutov, V.G., Saranuk, D.N., Vaschenko, V.M., Skvarč, J., Hanžič, L., Kosenko, S.I.: The peculiarities of cross-correlation between two secondary precursors - radon and magnetic field variations, induced by tectonic activity, Ukrainian Antarctic Journal, 4-5, 160-181, 2006.
  27. Scholz, C.H., Sykes, L.R., Aggarwal, Y.P.: Earthquake Prediction: A Physical Basis, Science, 181, 4102, 803-810, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.181.4102.803, 1973.
  28. Tsubokawa, I.: On relation between duration of precursory geophysical phenomena and duration of crustal movement before earthquake, Journal of the Geodetic Society of Japan, 19 (2), 116-119, 1973.
  29. Whitcomb, J.H., Garmany, J.D., Anderson, D.L.: Earthquake prediction: variation of seismic velocities before the San Francisco Earthquake, Science, 180 (4086), 632-635, 1973. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.180.4086.632
  30. Woith, H.: Radon earthquake precursor: A short review, The European Physical Journal Special Topics, 224, 611-627, https://doi.org/10.1140/epjst/e2015-02395-9, 2015.