Seismology

School  Natural Sciences
Academic Unit
 Geology Department
Level of Studies
 Undergraduate
Course Code
 GEO_409
Εξάμηνο σπουδών  4ο
Course Title
 Seismology
Independent Teaching Activities
 Lectures and laboratory work
Weekly Teaching Hours
 2 (lectures),  2 (laboratory)
Credits  6
Course Type
 Basic, Skills Development, Science field
Prerequisite Courses
 Basic knowledge of Phycics related subjects e.g. waves, oscillations etc
Language of Instruction & Examinations
 Greek
Is the Course offered to Erasmus Students
 Υes, in English
Course Web-Page (URL)  https://eclass.upatras.gr/courses/GEO351/
Learning Outcomes

During this course the student acquires basic knowledge in Seismology, after successful completion the student will:

  • Know the basic principles of Seismology
  • Solve, simple problems related to Seismology, e.g. earthquake location, travel times, earthquake magnitude etc

Knowledge

The course aims to provide knowledge related to the structure of the Earth, the generation and propagation of seismic waves, the characteristics of seismicity in time and space, the seismic source, the seismic instruments and the seismotectonics of Greece.

Abilities

  • Ability to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of essential facts, concepts, principles and theories relating to earthquake generation, wave propagation, source properties, seismotectonics
  • Ability to apply such knowledge and understanding to the solution of qualitative and quantitative problems
  • Ability to adopt and apply methodology to the solution of unfamiliar problems.
  • Ability to apply basic seismological principles in problems related with this subject
  • Ability to solve simple seismological problems, using seismological software
  • Ability to work in a team
General Competences

By the end of this course the student will, furthermore, have developed the following skills (general abilities):

  1. Ability to apply acquired knowledge and understanding to the solution of problems
  2. Ability to interact with others in problem solving as a team
Syllabus
  1. Introduction, history and general overview of seismology
  2. Principles of elasticity, stress strain, elastic moduli. Basic principles of wave propagation theory.
  3. Theory of oscillations, wave equation
  4. Stress and Strain
  5. Seismic waves, types, wave propagation and the structure of the Earth
  6. Seismometry, types of seismometers, modern seismographs, analog digital conversion, seismic networks
  7. Causes, occurrence and properties of earthquakes.
  8. Earthquake location and magnitude, seismic scales.
  9. Seismology of Greece, seismotectonics of Greece and adjacent areas
  10. Seismic moment, focal mechanism, rupture models
  11. Earthquake prediction, seismic sequences
  12. Seismographs and interpretation of earthquake records
Delivery  Lectures and computer laboratory training using seismological software
Use of Information & Communication Technology
 Use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in teaching. The lectures content of the course, for each chapter, are uploaded in the eclass platform. Students are trained in seismological software use in the Department’s computer lab. Interaction with students is done through eclass platform also.
Teaching Methods
 
Activity Semester workload
 Lectures 2×13=26 
 Laboratory work 2×13=26 
 Preparation of laboratory exercise  26
 Hours for private study of the student 72
 Total number of hours for the Course 150
 Student Performance Evaluation

The assessment is done in the following way:

Written examination after the end of the semester which includes

  • Theory based questions
  • Assessment questions
  • Problem solving questions
Minimum passing grade:  5
Attached Bibliography
  1. Lecture notes (eclass)
  2. Tselentis Akis, Modern Seismology, Pub. Papasotiriou, 1997.
  3. Papazachos B, Karakaisis G., Chatzidimitriou P., Introduction to Seismology, Pub. Ziti, 2005
  4. Stein, Seth, Wysession, Michael, An Introduction to Seismology, Earthquakes and Earth Structure 1st edition, Blackwell, 2002
  5. Shearer M. Peter, Introduction to Seismology, Cambridge Univ. Press