Workshop on Earthquakes in North Iceland
Húsavík, North Iceland, 6 - 8 June 2013
The strongest earthquake swarm in over 30 years hit North Iceland in October 2012, with earthquakes reaching magnitudes 5.3 and 5.6. These normal faulting earthquakes occurred near the western end of the Húsavík-Flatey fault and triggered a number of earthquakes on the western part of the fault.
The activity was a useful reminder for the local authorities and for scientists that the Tjörnes Fracture Zone in North Iceland is one of the two main seismically active regions in Iceland, capable of producing magnitude 6-7 earthquakes. The last large earthquakes in North Iceland were the 1934 Dalvík earthquake (M6.3), the 1963 Skagafjörður earthquake (M7.0), and the 1976 Kópasker earthquake (M6.3). Recent research results show that stress is steadily building up in the Tjörnes Fracture Zone and that the area may be due for another large earthquake.
Workshop
In light of the new activity and newly published research results, a workshop will be held focussing on earthquakes in North Iceland. The workshop has presentations related to the geological history of the area, current tectonics, earthquake activity, monitoring; as well as on likely scenarios in case of a major event in North Iceland and on possible precautionary measures to reduce the impact of a future large earthquake. The program is available as pdf (28 Mb).
The workshop is held at Húsavík, North Iceland, 6-8 June 2013, from Thursday to Saturday.
The main goals of the workshop are:
- To present new research results on the Tjörnes Fracture Zone
- To review the current status of knowledge about this seismically active region
- To discuss a research plan for the region and ideas on how earthquake monitoring in the region can be improved
Many scientists who have been working on the Tjörnes Fracture Zone in the recent past will attend the workshop as well as representatives of the civil protection authorities and other parties who work on responding to earthquake hazard in general.
The workshop has presentations related to the geological history of the area, current tectonics, earthquake activity, monitoring, on likely scenarios in case of a major event in North Iceland, and on possible precautionary measures to reduce the impact of a future large earthquake.
Information
Questions regarding the workshop can be sent to:
The Húsavík Academic Center, (hac@hac)
Ragnar Stefánsson, Professor emeritus, University of Akureyri (raha@simnet.is)
Sigurjón Jónsson, Associate Professor, KAUST (sigurjon.jonsson@kaust.edu.sa)
Páll Einarsson, Professor, University of Iceland (palli@hi.is)
Workshop sponsors
University of Akureyri
Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Iceland
KAUST, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
Húsavík Academic Center
Icelandic Meteorological Office
Earthquake Engineering Research Centre, University of Iceland
Civil Protection Department, National Commisioner of the Icelandic Police
Iceland Catastrophe Insurance
Husavik Academic centre
Ministry of the Interior, Iceland
