Seismic Hazard Maps of the Northwest and Central Caucasus on a Detailed Scale

The paper presents the results of a new generalization of seismic hazard data for the northwestern and central sectors of the Greater Caucasus. A fundamentally new model of the seismotectonic basis for the seismic hazard map of the region has been prepared. The model is used to calculate seismic impact on a probabilistic basis. The work included three stages. At the first stage, seismotectonic studies were carried out, as a result of which a seismotectonic model was created and a map of zones of possible earthquake centers was compiled. At the second stage, the seismicity and seismic regime were studied in detail. The third stage calculated the frequency of seismic vibrations of various intensities in the study area based on the parameters of the macroseismic field equation, seismic activity patterns, zones of possible earthquake sources, and the slope of the earthquake frequency of the earthquakes. As a result, seismic hazard maps were compiled. The northwestern and central sectors of the Greater Caucasus look like a seismic hazardous area, where the level of seismic impacts reaches 8.5 on maps A and B. At the same time, compared to the data from the GSZ-97 and GSZ-2015 maps, the results appear more differentiated and generally significantly reduce the level of seismic hazard in the region. The study is important from the methodological aspect in light of seismic risk management of this densely populated and actively developed territory of Russia.