Engineering Ground-Motion Database for Western and Central Australia

A database of recordings from moderate-to-large magnitude earthquakes is compiled for earthquakes in western and central Australia. Data are mainly recorded by Australian National Seismograph Network (ANSN), complemented with data from temporary deployments, and covering the period of 1990 to 2019. The dataset currently contains 1497 earthquake recordings from 164 earthquakes with magnitudes from MW 2.5 to 6.1, and hypocentral distances up to 1500 km. The time-series data are consistently processed to correct for the instrument response and to reduce the effect of background noise. A range of ground-motion parameters in the time and frequency domains are calculated and stored in the database. Numerous near-source recordings exceed peak accelerations of 0.10 g and range up to 0.66 g, while the maximum peak velocity of the dataset exceeds 27 cm/s. In addition to its utility for engineering design, the dataset compiled herein will improve characterisation of ground-motion attenuation in the region and will provide an excellent supplement to ground-motion datasets collected in analogue seismotectonic regions worldwide. This paper was presented at the Australian Earthquake Engineering Society 2021 Virtual Conference, Nov 25 – 26.