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Three-Dimensional Simulations of Seismic-Wave Propagation in the Taipei Basin with Realistic Topography Based upon the Spectral-Element Method

Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Nankang, Taipei 115, Taiwan, Republic of China sjlee{at}earth.sinica.edu.tw

How-Wei Chen

Institute of Geophysics, National Central University, Jung-Li 320, Taiwan, Republic of China hwchen{at}earth.ncu.edu.tw

Qinya Liu^*

Seismological Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California lqy{at}gps.caltech.edu

Dimitri Komatitsch

Department of Geophysical Modeling and Imaging in Geosciences, CNRS UMR 5212 and INRIA Magique 3D, University of Pau, France

Bor-Shouh Huang

Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Nankang, Taipei 115, Taiwan, Republic of China hwbs{at}earth.sinica.edu.tw

Jeroen Tromp

Seismological Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125 jtromp{at}gps.caltech.edu

^* Present address: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, California 92093-0225

Also at: Institut Universitaire de France, 103 Boulevard Saint-Michel, 75005 Paris, France.

We use the spectral-element method to simulate strong ground motion throughout the Taipei metropolitan area. Mesh generation for the Taipei basin poses two main challenges: (1) the basin is surrounded by steep mountains, and (2) the city is located on top of a shallow, low-wave-speed sedimentary basin. To accommodate the steep and rapidly varying topography, we introduce a thin high-resolution mesh layer near the surface. The mesh for the shallow sedimentary basin is adjusted to honor its complex geometry and sharp lateral wave-speed contrasts. Variations in Moho thickness beneath Northern Taiwan are also incorporated in the mesh. Spectral-element simulations show that ground motion in the Taipei metropolitan region is strongly affected by the geometry of the basin and the surrounding mountains. The amplification of ground motion is mainly controlled by basin depth and shallow shear-wave speeds, although surface topography also serves to amplify and prolong seismic shaking.

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