Recurrence Interval of Large Earthquakes in the Eastern Himalaya

I designed my master project for performing paleo-seismological research in the eastern Bhutan, where no instrumental or historic earthquake is known and where a historic surface rupture along the Himalayan front was recently identified. Based on the ages of the known large historic earthquakes in the eastern Himalaya, the newly identified surface rupture could have been produced by the ~1714 CE (Common Era), ~1255 CE, or ~1100 CE earthquake. The goal of this research is to identify and characterize paleo-seismic events in the eastern Bhutan and determine how often large, destructive earthquakes occur in the eastern Himalaya. The age of the paleo-earthquake will be determined by dating the displaced river terraces applying radiocarbon (14C) dating and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) thermochronology. The results will contribute to seismic hazard evaluation in the area and the debate about a potential for subduction-type mega-earthquakes in the Himalaya in general.

Faculty Supervisor:

Djordje Grujic

Student:

Partner:

Université de Lausanne

Discipline:

Earth science

Sector:

Sustainability & the Environment; Environmental Science and Technology; Public Service, Policy, and Governance

University:

Dalhousie University

Program: