Mesozoic Reservoir Predictionin the Longdong Loess Plateau

This paper summarizes a set of interpretation technologies for Mesozoic sandstone reservoir prediction in the Longdong loess plateau, such as seismic sequence processing and interpretation based on generalized S transform, the eroded paleo-geomorphology interpretation of the top of the Triassic and a variety of lateral reservoir predictions. The effects of employing these technologies are compared and analyzed, as well. The research results show that seismic sequence processing interpretation technology based on generalized S transform can distinguish 3ms (about the thickness of 6 m)sequence interface. Consequently the technology can ascertain the distribution of a sand body of the formation Ch 8 and expand the exploration area of the Xifeng oil field in the Longdong area.

Ascent schedules,acute altitude illness,and altitude acclimatization:Observations on the Yushu Earthquake

During the Yushu Earthquake on April 14,2010,a large number of rescuers from sea level or lowlands ascended to the quake areas very rapidly or rapidly less than 24 h. However,Yushu Earthquake is the highest quake in the world at altitudes between 3 750 m and 4 878 m where is a serious hypoxic environment. A high incidence of acute altitude illness was found in the unacclimatized rescuers;the mountain rescue operation changed as "rescue the rescuers". Lesson from the Yushu Earthquake is that the occurrence of acute altitude illness may be closely related to the ascent schedules. This prompted us to study the relationship between ascent rate and the incidence and severity of acute altitude illness;five different groups were compared. The first group was 42 sea level male young soldiers who ascended to quake area very rapidly within 8 h at 4 000 m;the second group was 48 sea level male young soldiers who ascended to 4 000 m rapidly less than 18 h;the third group was 66 acclimatized medical workers from 2 261 m who ascended to 4 000 m rapidly within 12 h;the fourth group was 56 Tibetan medical workers from 2 800 m who ascended to 4 000 m rapidly within 8 h;the fifth group was 50 male sea level workers who ascended to 4 000 m gradually over a period of 4 d. The results showed that the sea level rescuers ascended to 4 000 m very rapidly or rapidly had the highest incidence of acute mountain sickness (AMS) with the greatest AMS scores and the lowest arterial oxygen saturation (SaO2);the sea level workers ascended to 4 000 m gradually had moderate incidence of AMS with moderate AMS scores and SaO2 values;whereas the acclimatized and adapted rescuers had the lowest incidence of AMS,lowest AMS scores and higher SaO2;especially none AMS occurred in Tibetan rescuers. AMS score is inversely related to the ascent rate (r=-0.24,p< 0.001). Additionally,acute altitude illness is significantly influenced by altitude acclimatization. The ascent rate is inversely re- lated to the period of altitude acclimatization whereas the time of perfect recovered from AMS is positively correlated to the time taken to acclimatize. Generally,the best means of preventing acute altitude illness is slow and gradual ascent to high altitude,as this allows time for establishing altitude acclimatization and tolerance to the hypoxic environment. However,during an emergency circumstance,such as mountain rescue operation,the rescuers must rapidly ascend to high altitude,so a series of preventive strategies including pre-acclimatization,using some prophylactic drugs and oxygen supplementary are sorely necessary.

Influence of site conditions on ground motion at far field loess sites during strong earthquake

Loess is widely distributed in China and the Loess Plateau is one of the major areas where strong earthquakes often take place. The seismic amplification effects were discovered in the Plateau during the Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake and some other strong events. Based on earth tremor observation, borehole exploration and site seismic response analysis, the site effects of topography of Loess Yuan on ground motion were investigated in details. The earth tremor investigation shows that predominant frequencies at the bottom sites of Loess Yuan are greater than those at the top obviously. The sites seismic response analysis shows that the Loess Yuan may amplify peak ground acceleration (PGA) by 1.44 2.0 times. Therefore, site effects of mountains and loess topography on ground motion should be taken account into in seismic design in loess regions.

Geology and Exploration of Oil and Gas in the Ordos Basin

The Ordos basin is rich in oil and gas resources. The structures in the basin are generally rather gentle. Most of the oil and gas pools already found are belong to the types of lithologic, lithostratigraphic and paleo-geomorphic with thin reservoirs. The geology of oil and gas and the generation and distribution of oil and gas resources in the Ordos basin is analyzed in detail in the paper. It is also pointed out in the paper that what direction should be taken in oil and gas exploration in the basin, and that the important role of the seismic prospecting technologies in the discovery of large oil and gas fields in the basin could not be replaced.

A necklace of pearl in high altitude medicine and hypoxic physiology in Yushu Earthquake

During Yushu Earthquake,a large number of rescuers flocked to the mountainous quake areas. Under such a very specific circumstance,a high incidence of acute altitude illness was observed in rescuers who rapidly traveled from near sea level to an altitude of 4 000 m. It is evident that acute altitude illness leads to a significant human and economic toll,and also seriously influences the mountain rescue operation. So what does this teach us about mountain rescue in Yushu? Professor Wu Tianyi and many other authors collected shining points of the experiences and drew the lessons from the Yushu Earthquake into this special issue in Engineering Sciences which is like to thread pearl beads for a necklace. What readers learn from this special issue will have implications for the health and well-being of all high altitude populations all over the world.

Modeling the Dynamic Gravity Variations of Northeastern Margin of Qinghai-Xizang (Tibet) Plateau by Using Bicubic Spline Interpolation Function

In this paper, the spatial-temporal gravity variation patterns of the northeastern margin of Qinghal-Xizang （Tibet） Plateau in 1992 - 2001 are modeled using bicubic spline interpolation functions and the relations of gravity change with seismicity and tectonic movement are discussed preliminarily. The results show as follows： ① Regional gravitational field changes regularly and the gravity abnormity zone or gravity concentration zone appears in the earthquake preparation process; ②In the significant time period, the gravity variation shows different features in the northwest, southeast and northeast parts of the surveyed region respectively, with Lanzhou as its boundary;③The gravity variation distribution is basically identical to the strike of tectonic fault zone of the region, and the contour of gravity variation is closely related to the fault distribution.

Research on Crustal Flow and Its Dynamic Characteristics in Sichuan and Its Adjacent Area

Using the broadband seismic data of the regional stations in the Sichuan Digital Seismic Network and the mobile seismic stations in this region,the receiver function inversion method was adopted to study the characteristics of crustal flow and dynamic effects in Sichuan and adjacent areas. The results show that: Velocity in the crust and upper mantle of the Sichuan basin is significantly higher than that beneath the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. The velocity v_S is from 3. 6 to 3. 8km / s in the crust and4. 5- 4. 8km / s in the upper mantle beneath the basin,and there is no low-velocity layer in the crust. The lithology shows a hard block. The v_S velocity in the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau is lower,with average v_Sof 3. 0- 3. 4km / s in the mid crust and4. 0- 4. 5km / s in the upper mantle. Low-velocity layers are distributed widely in the crust,most of which are in the mid crust at a depth of 20km- 40 km,and there are also a few low-velocity layers appearing in the upper crust at depths of 10km- 20 km and the lower crust at depths of 40km- 60 km. Affected by the northward pushing of the Indian plate,the eastward movement of the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau is blocked by the hard Sichuan basin,producing a southward and southeastward component.Such movement process is produced by the complicated forces acting in this area. Just under the action of these forces, the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau becomes a region with complicated geology and intensive earthquake activity. Obstructed by the hard Sichuan basin,the low-velocity crustal flow is delaminated and split into two or three upward and downward tributaries. The upward flow intruded into the upper crust,causing uplift of the earths urface,forming mountain crests; the downward flow intruded into the lower crust and upper mantle,resulting in thickening of the crust and depression of the Moho. The crustal flow in the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau is mainly distributed along the active faults. The crustal flow flows out from the Qiangtang block in the middle part of the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau,the mainstream flows along the NW-SE trending Xianshuihe fault zone,then turns NS and flows to the south along the Anninghe and Xiaojiang faults. There is another crustal flow in the north of the study area,flowing in the NE and E-W directions to the Longmenshan faults.

Seismic Strain Energy Release of Active Faults in the Southeastern Margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Using the methods of the Gutenberg magnitude energy empirical formula and the Benioff seismic strain energy release curve,we make a systematic study on seismic strain energy release of historical earthquakes in the southeastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau since 1500.This paper provides a periodic table of the earthquake strain energy release in the fault zones and the fault block areas.The study shows that seismic strain energy release is strong in the east and south,and weak in the west and north.The overall seismic strain energy release of the Yushu-Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang fault system is consistent with the quasi-periodic pattern.The seismic cycle of some fault zones and fault block areas shows synchronization to a certain extent.The risk cannot be ignored in the current large release period of seismic strain energy in the southeastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau.Local seismic risk analysis shows that seismic risk is very high on the Anninghe-Zemuhe and Xiaojiang fault zones.These dangerous zones need follow-up research.In future,it is necessary to combine different research methods to improve the reliability of seismic risk assessment.

A New Upsurge in Global Seismicity

This paper studies the temporal and spatial distribution of great global earthquakes （Mw i〉 8.0） since 1900. We compare the two periods of upsurges of great earthquakes occurring in the middle of last century and beginning of this century. The former period took place between 1950 and 1965 during which 13 great earthquakes （Mw I〉 8.0） occurred, including three events with moment magnitude greater than 9. 0. The largest magnitude in this period reached 9.6. The latter period starts from the beginning of this century. In less than 12 years, 15 great earthquakes have attacked the world with the largest magnitude being Mw 9. 1. On the basis of comparison between these two upsurges of global earthquake activity, we infer that the ongoing high level of earthquake activity may continue for another five years or so. Numerous great earthquakes （Mw I〉8. 0） and many large earthquakes （Mw6.0 ~ 7. 0） will occur globally in these five years. In addition, this paper also discusses the relationships between earthquake activity along the Sumatra segment of the Indian-Australia plate boundary and that in the Bayankala block in the middle of Qinghai-Tibetan plateau as well as in the blocks of the southern plateau. The results indicate that the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau, in particular its middle and southern parts, is a likely place for future earthquakes of magnitude over 7.0.

Seismic Data Processing and Interpretation on the Loess Plateau, Part 2: Seismic Data Interpretation

The loess plateau covering the North Shaanxi slope and Tianhuan depression consists of a regional monocline, high in the east and low in the west, with dips of less than 1^0, Structural movement in this region was weak so that faults and local structures were not well developed. As a result, numerous wide and gentle noses and small traps with magnitudes less than 50 m were developed on the large westward-dipping monocline. Reservoirs, including Mesozoic oil reservoirs and Paleozoic gas reservoirs in the Ordos Basin, are dominantly lithologic with a small number of structural reservoirs. Single reservoirs are characterized as thin with large lateral variations, strong anisotropy, low porosity, low permeability, and low richness. A series of approaches for predicting reservoir thickness, physical properties, and hydrocarbon potential of subtle lithologic reservoirs was established based on the interpretation of erosion surfaces.

Kinematical and Structural Patterns of the Yingjing-Mabian-Yanjin Thrust Fault Zone, Southeast of the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibet) Plateau and Its Segmentation from Earthquakes

Segmentation of the thrust fault zone is a basic problem for earthquake hazard evaluation. The Yingjing-Mabian-Yanjin thrust fault zone is an important seismic belt NW-trending in the southeast margin of the Qinghal-Xizang （Tibet） plateau. The longitudinal faults in the thrust zone are mainly of the thrust slipping type. The late Quaternary motion modes and displacement rates are quite different from north to south. Investigation on valleys across the fault shows that the transverse faults are mainly of dextral strike-slipping type with a bit dip displacement. Based on their connections with the longitudinal faults, three types of transverse faults are generalized, namely： the separate fault, the transform fault and the tear fault, and their functions in the segmentation of the thrust fault zone are compared. As the result, the Yingjing-Mabian-Yanjin thrust fault zone is divided into three segments, and earthquakes occurring in these three segments are compared. The tri-section of the Yingjing-Mabian-Yanjin thrust fault zone identified by transverse fault types reflects, on the one hand, the differences in slip rate, earthquake magnitude and pace from each segment, and the coherence of earthquake rupturing pace on the other hand. It demonstrates that the transverse faults control the segmentation to a certain degree, and each type of the transverse faults plays a different role.

Seismic Data Processing and Interpretation on the Loess Plateau, Part1: Seismic Data Processing

Branching river channels and the coexistence of valleys, ridges, hiils, and slopes＇as the result of long-term weathering and erosion form the unique loess topography. The Changqing Geophysical Company, working in these complex conditions, has established a suite of technologies for high-fidelity processing and fine interpretation of seismic data. This article introduces the processes involved in the data processing and interpretation and illustrates the results.

Recurrence of paleoearthquakes on the southeastern segment of the Ganzi-Yushu Fault,central Tibetan Plateau

Although there are many earthquake relics preserved in the southeast segment of the Ganzi-Yushu Fault in the central Tibetan Plateau,the recurrence regularity of paleoearthquakes is not yet clear.This work studies paleoearthquakes on this fault segment since the Holocene through geomorphic investigation and trench excavation.The results show that sinistral dislocation of the T3/T2 terrace boundary is up to 80 m at the Cuoa Township.A 1.5 m-high fault scarp extends 3 km near the Renguo Township.A number of paleoearthquakes are exposed in trenches at two places,respectively.In combination with historical records,our work has identified 5 or 6 paleoearthquakes on this fault segment since last 5600 years.The occurrence times and recurrence intervals of these paleoearthquakes are estimated by 14C dating on strata in the trenches.Our analysis shows that these paleoearthquakes do not exhibit evident periodicity,but instead show a clustering characteristic.From 5600 a to present,seismicity of the southeastern segment of the Ganzi-Yushu Fault has two active periods and one quiet period,and the present-day time is just in the second active epoch.The recurrence intervals of each active epoch are different:1000-1300 a in the first one,534 a in the second one.

Crustal P-wave velocity structure in the northeastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and insights into crustal deformation

The transitional area between the northeastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, Ordos Block and Alxa Block, also being the northern segment of the North-South Seismic Belt, is characterized by considerably high seismicity level and high risk of strong earthquakes. In view of the special tectonic environment and deep tectonic setting in this area, this study used two seismic wide-angle reflection/refraction cross profiles for double constraining, so as to more reliably obtain the fine-scale velocity structure characteristics in both the shallow and deep crust of individual blocks and their boundaries in the study area, and further discuss the seismogenic environment in seismic zones with strong historical earthquakes. In this paper, the P-wave data from the two profiles are processed and interpreted, and two-dimensional crustal velocity structure models along the two profiles are constructed by travel time forward modeling. The results show that there are great differences in velocity structure, shape of intra-crustal interfaces and crustal thickness among different blocks sampled by the two seismic profiles. The crustal thickness along the Lanzhou-Huianbu-Yulin seismic sounding profile （L1） increases from -43 km in the western margin of Ordos Block to -56 km in the Qilian Block to the west. In the Ordos Block, the velocity contours vary gently, and the average velocity of the crust is about 6.30 km s^-1; On the other hand, the velocity structures in the crust of the Qilian Block and the arc-like tectonic zone vary dramatically, and the average crustal velocities in these areas are about 0.10 km s^-1 lower than that of the Ordos Block. In addition, discontinuous low-velocity bodies （LVZ1 and LVZ2） are identified in the crust of the Qilian Block and the arc-like tectonic zone, the velocity of which is 0.10-0.20 krn s^-1 lower than that of the surroundings. The average crustal thickness of the Ordos Block is consistently estimated to be around 43 km along both Profile L2 （Tongchuan-Huianbu-Alashan left banner seismic sounding profile） and Profile L1. In contrast to the gently varying intra-crustal interfaces and velocity contours in the Ordos Block along Profile L 1, which is a typical structure characteristic of stable cratons, the crustal structure in the Ordos Block along Profile L2 exhibits rather complex variations. This indicates the presence of significant structural differences in the crust within the Ordos Block. The crustal structure of the Helan Mountain Qilian Block and the Yinchuan Basin is featured by ＂uplift and depression＂ undulations, showing the characteristics of localized compressional deformation. Moreover, there are low-velocity zones with altemative high and low velocities in the middle and lower crust beneath the Helan Mountain, where the velocity is about 0.15-0.25 km s^-1 lower than that of the surrounding areas. The crustal thickness of the Alxa Block is about 49 kin, and the velocity contours in the upper and middle-lower crust of the block vary significantly. The complex crustal velocity structure images along the two seismic sounding profiles L1 and L2 reveal considerable structural differences among different tectonic blocks, their coupling relationships and velocity structural features in the seismic zones where strong historical earthquakes occurred. The imaging result of this study provides fine-scale crustal structure information for further understanding the seismogenic environment and mechanism in the study area.

Rupture segmentation and slip partitioning of the mid-eastern part of the Kunlun Fault,north Tibetan Plateau

The Kunlun Fault, an active fault on the border between the Bayan Har and Kunlun-Qaidam blocks, is one of the major left lateral strike-slip faults in the Tibetan Plateau. Previous research has not reached a consensus on agreeable slip rates along much of its length and the slip rate gradient along the eastern part, both of which play critical roles in a range of models for the eastward extrusion and thickened crust of the Tibetan Plateau. New slip rates have been determined at sites along the eastern part of the Kunlun Fault by dating deposits and measuring atop displaced fluvial terrace risers. Field investigations and interpretation of satellite images reveal geometrical features of the fault and the late Quaternary offset, new earthquake ruptures and surface-rupturing segmentation, from which long-term slip rates and earthquake recurrence intervals on the fault are estimated. The tectonic geomorphology method has determined that the long-term horizontal slip rates on the Tuosuohu, Maqin and Ma- qu segments from west to east are 11.2±1, 9.3±2, and 4.9±1.3 mm/a while their vertical slip rates are 1.2±0.2, 0.7±0.1, and 0.3 mm/a in the late Quaternary. Results indicate that the slip rates regularly decrease along the eastern -300 km of the fault from 〉10 to 〈5 mm/a. This is consistent with the decrease in the gradient such that at the slip rate break point is at the triple point intersection with the transverse fault, which in turn is transformed to the Awancang Fault. The vector decomposition for this tectonic transformation shows that the western and eastern branches of the Awancang Fault fit the slip-partitioning mode. The slip rate of the southwestern wall is 4.6 mm/a relative to the northeastern wall and the slip direction is 112.1°. The mid-eastern part of the Kunlun Fault can be divided into three independent segments by the A＇nyemaqen double restraining bend and the Xigongzhou intersection zone, which compose the surface rupture segmentation indicators for themselves as well as the ending point of the 1937 M7.5 Tuosuohu earthquake. The average recurrence interval of the characteristic earthquakes are estimated to be 500-1000 a, respectively. The latest earthquake ruptures occurred in AD 1937 on the western Tuosuohu segment, as compared to -514-534 a BP on the Maqin segment, and -1055 to 1524 a BP on the Maqu segment. This may indicate a unidirectional migration for surface rupturing earthquakes along the mid-eastern Kunlun Fault related to stress triggered between these segments. Meanwhile, the long-term slip rate is obtained through the single event offset and the recurrence interval, which turn out to be the same results as those determined by the offset tectonic geomorphology method, i.e., the decreasing gradient corresponds to the geometrical bending and the fault＇s intersection with the transverse fault. Therefore, the falling slip rate gradient of the mid-eastern Kunlun Fault is mainly caused by eastward extension of the fault and its intersection with the transverse fault.

Rayleigh wave phase velocity tomography and strong earthquake activity on the southeastern front of the Tibetan Plateau

To investigate the relationship between velocity structure and earthquake activity on the southeastern front of the Tibetan Plat- eau, we make use of continuous observations of seismic ambient noise data obtained at 55 broadband stations from the regional Yunnan Seismic Network. These data are used to compute Rayleigh wave Green＇s Functions by cross-correlating between two stations, extracting phase velocity dispersion curves, and finally inverting to image Rayleigh wave phase velocity with periods between 5 and 34 s by ambient noise tomography. The results tie structures in the studied region. Phase velocity anomalies show significant lateral variations in crustal and uppermost man- at short periods （5-12 s） are closely related to regional tectonic features such as sediment thickness and the depth of the crystalline basement. The Sichuan-Yunnan rhombic block, enclosed by the Honghe, Xiaojiang and Jianchuan faults, emerges as a large range of low-velocity anomalies at periods of 16-26 s, that in- verts to high-velocity anomalies at periods of 30-34 s. The phase velocity variation in the vicinity of the Sichuan-Yunnan rhombic block suggests that the low-velocity anomaly area in the middle-lower crust may correspond to lower crustal channel- ized flow of the Tibetan Plateau. The spatial distribution of strong earthquakes since 1970 reveals that the Yunnan region is inhomogeneous and shows prominent characteristics of block motion. However, earthquakes mostly occur in the upper crust, with the exception of the middle-Yunnan block where earthquakes occur at the interface zone between high and low velocity as well as in the low-velocity zones, with magnitudes being generally less than 7. There are few earthquakes of magnitude 5 at the depths of 15-30 km, where gather earthquakes of magnitude 7 or higher ones which mainly occur in the interface zone between high and low velocities with others extending to the high-velocity abnormal zone.