Installation of the Compact Precision Laser Inclinometer in Kamchatka
On December 3−10, 2022, in accordance with the Agreement on Cooperation between JINR, the Vitus Bering Kamchatka State University (KAMSU) and the Federal Research Center “Unified Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences” (UGS of RAS) (Kamchatka Branch), the compact precision laser inclinometer (CPLI) was installed in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. It was adjusted, calibrated and mounted by the JINR group – M. V. Lyablin, A. V. Krasnoperov and A. M. Kuzkin.
In October−November 2022, the staff members of KamSU and UGS Daniyal Israpilov and Vitaly Glukhov took a training course at JINR. Together with specialists of the DLNP Laboratory of Metrology, they assembled one CPLI which was transported to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. The inclinometer was installed in a seismic monitoring chamber on the UGS site at a depth of 5 m.
Preparing for CPLI adjustment | Photo by Daniyal Israpilov
Installing the CPLI on the concrete base of the UGS seismic chamber | Photo by Mikhail Lyablin
Today, seismic activity in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is being monitored round the clock. There is a crustal fault near the city. This fault located in the ocean 200 km off the shore is a source of intense earthquakes. Studying seismic signals and crustal movements in the zone of this fault is a serious scientific task.
At present, the CPLI is monitoring microseismic signals at a frequency of up to 10 Hz and with a sensitivity of 10 -8 radian in the frequency range from 10 -4 to 10 Hz. The main objective of the studies is the determination of stable operation time of the CPLI while detecting inclinations of the Earth’s surface and its sensitivity in the region of ultralow frequencies from 10 -8 to 10 -6 Hz.
Almost daily, earthquakes are detected in the fault zone, as well as all microseismic vibrations of the “microseismic peak” type, the phenomena related to resonance vibration of water mass in the ocean.
The earthquake detected on December 8, 2022, with “microseismic peak” vibrations in the background
It is planned to monitor seismic activity using the CPLI and compare the data with those of other standard seismic sensors.
The CPLI is located at a distance of about 25 km away from the group of volcanos – Koryaksky, Avachinsky and Kozelsky. It is also planned to examine signals related to these volcanos.
The group of the Kamchatka volcanos near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky | Photo from Wikipedia
Our programme includes the manufacturing of the CPLI adapted to the use in the regions and test sites near the Kamchatka volcanos.
The installation of this compact precision laser inclinometer is the starting point of our cooperation with seismologists and volcanologists of Kamchatka on detection of seismic signals and prediction of volcanic activity in this region. For sure, this cooperation will bring us new interesting insights.
Mikhail Lyablin, Vladimir Glagolev
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