Seismic hazard on the Airport geological fault, East part of Managua city, Nicaragua

Abstract

The Airport seismic fault is located in the eastern part

of the city of Managua; it is a seismically active fault

zone, N-S orientation and extends approximately 16.2

km long. The Airport Failure zone represents a seismic

danger for the Capital City, which has historically been

destroyed by earthquakes of moderate magnitude (Ms

6-6.2) caused by the breakdown of geological faults,

leaving devastating effects on the constructions and

causing the loss of human lives by the total collapse of

homes and buildings.

In order to evaluate the seismic risk of the Airport

Fault, an investigation was carried out to study the

soil where geophysical methods of seismic exploration

were applied, such as; Multichannel Surface Wave

Analysis (MASW), microtremors measurements using

SPAC and Nakamura techniques. The combination of

these methods provide information for the seismic

characterization of the soil.

In the present study, the objective is to study the

conditions and seismic characteristics of the soils

in the eastern margin of Managua, specifically in

the geological fault zone of the Airport. The study

results are of great importance for earthquake

disaster prevention and territory planning and provide

information for the reduction of seismic risk in the

eastern part of the Capital City.