[ TEXT ONLY ] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Hazards in Hawai`iEngineers, seismologists, architects, and planners have carefully evaluated seismic hazards related to building construction. They have devised a system of classifying seismic hazards on the basis of the expected strength of ground shaking and the probability of the shaking actually occurring within a specified time. The results are included in the Uniform Building Code (UBC) seismic provisions. The UBC seismic provisions contain six seismic zones, ranging from 0 (no chance of severe ground shaking) to 4 (10% chance of severe shaking in a 50-year interval). The shaking is quantified in terms of g-force (familiar to race car drivers and astronauts), the earth's gravitational acceleration. The diagram below is a way of describing seismic zonation.
Zonation Based on General PrinciplesIn 1992, the USGS was asked to reevaluate the seismic hazards in Hawai`i County. A probabilistic seismic-hazards assessment was carried out according to previously established procedures.Seismic-hazards analysis combines:
For an overview of seismic hazards in Hawai`i, see the online USGS publication, Volcanic and Seismic Hazards on the Island of Hawai`i, reprinted in 1997. The URL of this page is http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/earthquakes/hazards/Contact: hvowebmaster@usgs.gov Updated: 18 June 2001 (pnf) |