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GEOPHYSICAL SUBSOIL CHARACTERIZATION OF A HOUSING UNIT SHAKEN BY THE EARTHQUAKE OF SEPTEMBER 19, 2017 (MW 7.1)
  • +2
  • Martín Cárdenas-Soto,
  • Jesús Sánchez-González,
  • Jose Antonio Martinez-Gonzalez,
  • Gerardo Cifuentes-Nava,
  • David Escobedo Zenil
Martín Cárdenas-Soto
National Autonomous University of Mexico, Geophysical Engineering, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Geophysical Engineering

Corresponding Author:martinc@unam.mx

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Jesús Sánchez-González
National Autonomous University of Mexico, National Autonomous University of Mexico
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Jose Antonio Martinez-Gonzalez
National Autonomous University of Mexico, Geophysical Engineering, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Geophysical Engineering
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Gerardo Cifuentes-Nava
National Autonomous University of Mexico, National Autonomous University of Mexico
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David Escobedo Zenil
National Autonomous University of Mexico, National Autonomous University of Mexico
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Abstract

September 19, 2017 earthquake considerably affected the southern area of Mexico City; specically, in the transition zone, some local subsidence problems were accentuated. This site is associated with a high geological hazard due to faults, cracks, subsidence, landslides, and collapses. The lesson learned from this earthquake showed that much remains to be known, and detailed characterization is needed to dene vulnerable sites that allow for reduction seismic-geological risk. This study used various geophysical methods to explore the subsoil of a housing unit south of Mexico City. The houses began having structural damage on the site, and the surface of the land presented cracks since the year 2012, problems that were magnied after the earthquake. We apply electrical tomography, seismic noise interferometry, and H/V methods. The results show the properties of the subsoil vary drastically both in the lateral direction and in-depth. In particular, it highlights the presence of a discontinuity that divides the area into two different structures. Our interpretations show that the observed damages are due to a series of conjugated events that accentuate differential subsidence: irregularity in subsoil structure and properties, local overexploitation of groundwater, and dynamic amplication effects that accelerate relative displacements during seismic motions.