Shallow shear wave velocity structure in the Maltese islands

Abstract

The Maltese islands are exposed to a low-to-moderate seismic hazard with seismic activity around the islands being generally of a low magnitude. However, large events in Sicily and others as far as the Hellenic arc have affected the country and caused considerable damage. Also, much of the building stock on the Maltese islands is of load-bearing unreinforced masonry, and is vulnerable even to moderate ground shaking. Therefore even though the seismic hazard is moderate in the Maltese archipelago, the seismic risk is high making microzonation studies necessary. This study focuses on local site amplification as a consequence of the site's sedimentary geology. Ambient noise measurements and the HVSR (horizontal-to-vertical spectral ration) technique were used to detail the site response characteristics and the shallow shear wave velocity structure, for which no systematic data is available on the islands.