Andrea Spinelli and Gianluca Valensise

This chapter describes the structure of the GIS that governs the Database of Potential Sources for Earthquakes Larger than M 5.5 in Italy. In particular, section 2.1. provides a quick overlook of the entire software, of the relational structure, of the layer structure and of the main functions. The full detail on individual functions and on how to operate with them during a working session is given in section 3.2. Section 2.2. describes the complete architecture of the system, with a detailed description of the different table types and of the internal structure of the tables that are most likely to be updated or extended by individual future users of the Database.
 
 

2.1. Application Overview

This section provides a quick overview of the Database of Potential Sources for Earthquakes Larger than M 5.5 in Italy. This overview is especially recommended for first-time users that want to learn quickly about the main features of the Database and the essential operating requirements.
 
 

2.1.1. Operations Concept

The Database of Potential Sources for Earthquakes Larger than M 5.5 in Italy is a tool that enables geologists, geophysicists, earthquake and planning engineers to access detailed information about known Italian seismogenic sources, as well as a comprehensive set of background information, including administrative, geographical and earthquake data. The user is encouraged to refer to Chapter 1 for the definition of seismic source and of other conventional names used throughout this manual. The Database may also be used as a tool for civil defence purposes as it can generate first-level damage scenarios for an imaginary earthquake of given location and magnitude.On startup the user is presented with a map the main topographic features of Italy shown through a Digital Elevation Model. The map can be manipulated using some of the standard Geographic Information Systems (GIS) tools (e.g., zooming, panning, distance measurement, changing coordinate system, etc.). The user may superimpose on this basic map a set of layers which can be roughly classified into the three following categories:
 

• Seismic sources and tectonic lineaments

• Background information

• Scenarios

2.1.2. Application Category

The Database is a MapInfo® application; as such, it is compiled in a neutral, proprietary format which can be executed on several platforms, including Microsoft Windows 9x/NT/2000 and MacOs. We did not test the Database on a Unix platform. The application is standalone and access to data is essentially read-only. Therefore, multiple users in the same organisation must copy the database on as many workstations as required.
The Database is distributed on a single ISO 9660 CD, which may be accessed both by Windows and Macintosh computers. It requires installation of a properly working copy of MapInfo® 4.0 or higher version; MapInfo® is not included in the distribution.
 
 

2.1.3. Relational Structure

All data are stored in MapInfo® structures (tables); according to the content, they may be classified as relational tables and raster tables. Relational tables contain alphanumerical and geographical information; raster tables simply provide georeferencing for a bitmap (graphics data file). The total number of individual tables used by the system is over 650. In the rest of this section we discuss the Entity-Relationship model of the relational tables. Subsequent sections of the manual will describe relational and raster tables from a more application-oriented viewpoint.From a relational perspective, we decided to de-normalise several tables describing seismic sources, namely SourceDeep, SourceGeol, SourceHistA, SourceHistARev, SourceHistB, SourceHistBRev, SourceInferred and SourcePreferred. However, all of those tables share a single object identity pool, and may therefore be considered as a single Source table in E-R diagrams.
The first E-R diagram shows the central role of the Seismic Source concept in the Database.

An essential piece of information contained in the Database is given by earthquake catalogues of historical and instrumental seismicity and by the individual intensity reports associated with historical events. The Database contains one instrumental catalogue (the INGV official catalogue, stored as Inst_q.tab: see § 2.2.5.2.1. for further details), plus three historical catalogues, whose acronyms are CFTI 3, NT 4.1.1 and CPTI (stored as CFTI_q.tab, NT_q.tab, CPTI_q.tab, respectively: see § 2.2.5.2.2.). CFTI 3 and NT 4.1.1 have felt intensity reports associated with them, while CPTI and the INGV instrumental database have a flatter structure.
 
 

The rest of the database consist of flat tables, reflecting the co-existence of data coming from diverse sources that are integrated only by their geographic superposition. They lack any relational structure and are not presented here, although they will be discussed in detail in subsequent sections. However, there is a pattern of relationship among tables which is not reflected in the classic E-R theory, but deserves some explanation: it is formed by a table which is a catalogue of layers to be shown or hidden at the user's request. For each collection, only one layer of the collection is displayed at any one time; some additional data may also be available in alphanumeric form. The following figure documents the occurrences of this pattern.
 
 

2.1.4. Layer Structure

The following table indicates the physical order in which layers are shown and provides a brief description for each layer. The user may refer to the following sections for a more thorough explanation of structures and scopes.
 

Name	Description
Cosmetik	Cosmetic layer (INGV logo, decorations, …)
Scale	Scale
FaultScarps	Fault scarps
SourcePreferred	Seismogenic Sources
SourceGeol	"
SourceInferred	"
SourceHistA	"
SourceHistARev	"
SourceHistB	"
SourceHistBRev	"
SourceDeep	"
GenericTectLineaments	Tectonic lineaments
TransverseTectLineaments	Tectonic lineaments
AdditionalData_Open	Currently-open additional data
Intensities	Labels for intensities (earthquake catalogues with felt maps)
Felt_Reports_Selected	Additional info for felt reports
Small_Localities	Locality names
Large_Cities	"
Intermediate_Cities	"
Small_Cities	"
Instrumental_Quakes	Instrumental earthquakes from the INGV catalogue
Historical_Quakes_CFTI	Historical earthquakes from CFTI 3 catalogue
Historical_Quakes_CPTI	Historical earthquakes from CPTI catalogue
Historical_Quakes_NT	Historical earthquakes from NT 4.1.1 catalogue
ComuniBoundaries	Administrative boundaries for the Italian "Comuni"
Province	Administrative boundaries for the Italian "Provincie"
Borders	Administrative boundaries for the Italian "Regioni"
Grid_200, Grid_100, …	Grids at several spacings
Main_Rivers	Main rivers
Lakes	Main lakes
Intermediate_Drainage	Intermediate-scale drainage countrywide
Idrvda, Idrpie, Idr*	Small-scale drainage for the Italian "Regioni"
Compilation_Open	Currently open fault compilation
EuroMed	Coastline for European-Mediterranean countries, except Italy
EuroMed_Outline	Coastline for European-Mediterranean countries and Italy
Bat4000_BW, Bat*_BW	Several layers of bathymetry in Black and White
Bat4000_CC, Bat*_CC	Several layers of bathymetry, Colour Coded
Ita1_CC, Ita2_CC, Ita*CC	Tiles of the Colour Coded DEM
Ita1_SR, Ita2_SR, Ita*SR	Tiles of the Shaded Relief DEM
Ita1_BW, Ita2_BW, Ita*CW	Tiles of the Black and White DEM
Nothing	Empty layer; used as a sentinel value

 

2.1.5. Functions

The main function classes of the application may be grouped in several broad categories, which are reflected in the application menus:

a. allows the user to print or save the currently open table or map, exit MapInfo ® altogether, or close the DISS application, leaving open all the relevant tables. This feature allows for further elaboration of available data;

b. allows the user to show or hide some of the main available data layers; the application maintains a layer ordering which is meant to maximise data visibility;

c. makes the usual GIS operators available to the user and allows the standard operations of zooming, panning, distance measuring, selecting objects, selecting a new coordinate system, etc.;

d. when a seismic source has been selected, it gives access to its relational information through a series of specifically designed dialog boxes;

e. gives access to a similar but smaller set of dialog boxes showing information about tectonic lineaments;

f. allows a concerned user (for example, a civil defence officer) to simulate earthquake intensities and estimate the earthquake impact on urban nuclei, obtaining reports both in tabular and geographic format;

g. allows a system engineer to perform maintenance operations to enter new or updated information in the Database.
 
 

2.2. Architecture

This section describes how the Database is organised, how the different tables interact with each other to make it work, and the current content of its non-structural part (see description of table types in § 2.2.2.). To improve readability the text will make use of the following typing conventions all throughout:

- Courier Boldface will be used for all physical table and folder names;

- Courier Plain Text will be used for the name and format of the fields forming a table;

- Palatino Italic will be used for menu names and virtual table names;

- Palatino Plain Text will be used for all the rest, except for recurring names such as "Database" and for sentences that require special emphasis.

2.2.1. Directory Structure

The directory structure of the software reflects as much as possible the categorisation of data in the user domain. The MapInfo® compiled program, DISS.mbx, is located in the main directory of the product along with the three main subdirectories that contain all the Database information. The subdirectories contain the data layers, according to the following scheme:
 

Directory name	Description
Background_Info	Support tables
Background_Info/Administrative	Administrative data
Background_Info/DEM	Digital Elevation Model
Background_Info/DEM/Bathymetry	Bathymetry of Mediterranean
Background_Info/DEM/BW	Black and white DEM
Background_Info/DEM/ColourCoded	Colour coded DEM
Background_Info/DEM/ShadedRelief	Shaded relief DEM
Background_Info/Geographic	Rivers, lakes, coastlines
Background_Info/Geological	Geological data
Background_Info/Geological/Additional_Data	Additional data (catalogue of)
Background_Info/Geological/Compilations	Fault compilations (catalogue of)
Background_Info/Geological/Compilations/Maps	Individual fault compilations
Background_Info/Grids	Geographic grid (variable spacing)
Background_Info/Seismicity	Earthquake catalogues
Source_Data	Specific information about sources
Source_Literature	Published info about specific sources
Source_Literature/Open_Questions	Comments and open questions
Source_Literature/Pictures	Pictures about faults
Source_Literature/Previous_Studies	Summaries of Previous Studies

 

2.2.2. Table types

The Database contains three main categories of tables:

Structural tables contain the core of the Database, that is, the seismogenic sources. They include the geographic representation of each source along with all the related alphanumeric information. The structure and the content of these tables are illustrated in § 2.2.3.
Instrumental tables are used to relate to each source all the information available on it, such as references, pictures and text summaries. The structure and the content of these tables are illustrated in § 2.2.4.
Support tables contain several types of data to support the consultation of the Database and help placing the seismogenic sources in their actual seismological, geographic and administrative context. Support tables may be source-specific, source-generic, or generic. The structure and the content of these tables are illustrated in § 2.2.5.
 

Table type	Located in folder	Described in
Structural Tables	Source_Data	§ 2.2.3.
Instrumental Tables	Source_Data	§ 2.2.4.
Support Tables: - Source-specific - Source-generic - Generic	Source_Literature BackGround_Info > Geological BackGround_Info > (all others)	§ 2.2.5.1. § 2.2.5.2. § 2.2.5.3.

All tables have (1) a standard or virtual name that refers to their actual content and to the corresponding menu item, and (2) a physical name used to identify the relevant file(s) in the disk database. The menu item name was selected to allow easy identification of the scope and information content of a specific table and is normally formed by a sequence of words in "title case" (all initials are written in uppercase, e.g.: Seismogenic Sources from Geologic/Geophysical Data). The physical table filename uses the same keywords in a condensed form and with optional underscore ("_") symbols in place of blank spaces (e.g. Seismogenic Sources from Geologic/Geophysical Data " SourceGeol.tab). All filenames are subject to restrictions imposed by MapInfo® and were selected following the naming conventions of Apple OS and Windows 95 and higher.
In the following we will describe the general structure of all the tables used by the Database. A detailed description of the internal structure and of individual data fields is supplied for those tables that can be more easily updated or extended by the user. The internal structure of each table can also be explored directly using MapInfo® through the menu sequence Table > Maintenance > Table Structure.
 

2.2.3. Structural Tables

All the seismogenic sources contained in the Database are organised in six main categories, depending on how they were derived and on the overall reliability of their identification and characterisation:

• From Geologic/Geophysical Data;
• Historical - Well Constrained with Geological Background;
• Historical - Well Constrained, no Geological Background;
• Historical - Poorly Constrained with Geological Background;
• Historical - Poorly Constrained, no Geological Background;
• Deep.

2.2.3.1. Seismogenic Sources from Geologic/Geophysical Data

This category stores data on seismogenic sources for which either geological or geophysical evidence is available and that received special attention during the compilation of the Database. For all sources of this group the compiler has brought together geological, seismological and other geophysical information (essentially references and pictures) and has prepared Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source and Comments and Open Questions files. The name of the associated physical table is SourceGeol.tab.

Table structure: SourceGeol.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
SourceName	Encodes the source by a name	Char(50)
IDSource	Encodes the source by an identification number. Ranges between 1-200 for Geologic/Geophysical sources	Integer
Quality	Reliability of source data. See text for details	Char(1)
lat1 lon1 lat2 lon2 lat3 lon3 lat4 lon4	Geographic coordinates of the corners of the box representing the surface projection of the source. The corners are numbered conventionally starting from the northernmost upper one and moving in the clockwise or anticlockwise direction respectively for a W- or E- dipping plane. Note that corners 1 and 2 are always associated with the upper edge of the box	Char(8) Char(8) Char(8) Char(8) Char(8) Char(8) Char(8) Char(8)
Length	Length of segment joining the two uppermost tips of the fault plane (km)	Char(8)
Width	Down-dip width of the fault plane, that is, the length of the segment traced between the top and the bottom of the fault plane (km)	Char(4)
Strike	Strike is measured in degrees clockwise with respect to the North using the following convention: E-dipping planes strike between 270° and 90°; W-dipping planes strike between 90° and 270°	Char(10)
Dip	Angle between the fault plane and the horizontal (degrees)	Char(4)
Rake	Expresses the sense of motion of the hanging-wall with respect to the foot-wall and is measured counterclockwise (degrees) starting from the horizontal. The rake of a pure normal, reverse, left-lateral and right-lateral fault is 270°, 90°, 0° and 180°, respectively	Char(4)
Min_Depth	Min depth of fault plane from topographic surface (km)	Char(8)
Max_Depth	Max depth of fault plane from topographic surface (km)	Char(8)
Evidence	Type of evidence used to identify the source	Char(254)
latN lonN latS lonS	Coordinates of northern and southern tips of: the intersection fault plane with the topographic surface for surface-breaking faults  the intersection between the projection of the fault plane and the topographic surface for blind faults	Char(8) Char(8) Char(8) Char(8)
Compiled_by	Name(s) of the compiler(s) of the given source	Char(50)
Preferred	States with a logical character (T/F, true/false) if the source should or should not be added to the Integrated Source Dataset	Logical

Notice that the minimum depth of the fault plane from topographic surface must be intended as the depth of the seismogenic portion of the source. To avoid ambiguities and potential modelling problems, the minimum value for this parameter was conventionally set at 1 km. The underlying assumption is that the shallowest 1 km of crust above a seismogenic source may only react passively to slip on the underlying fault even if sizeable surface faulting may occur.

The rating of sources of this category through the field Quality is based on expert judgement by the compiler of each individual source. The process is very complex because of the large number and the diverse nature of uncertainty types involved in the identification and characterisation of any individual source. For example, some of the sources carry an epistemic uncertainty associated with their mere existence, or with their attitude towards generating their maximum-size earthquake versus releasing multiple smaller events. These types of non-conventional uncertainties are difficult to be incorporated into a single rating parameter and for the time being this task has been entirely left to the expert judgement of the individual compilers.

The following is a simplified scheme that was followed for rating all Geologic/Geophysical sources. Notice that additional information on the reliability of the proposed source parameters is generally contained in the Comments and Open Questions text associated with most sources.

Rating criteria: Geologic/Geophysical Sources
 

Rating	Description
A	Class A is assigned to all sources for which there exists combined instrumental, historical and geologic/geomorphic evidence. The source parameters of Class A sources are constrained by seismological or geodetic evidence that allow a finer resolution than that granted by surface geology data alone.
B	Class B is assigned to all sources for which there exists satisfactory instrumental/historical/paleoseismological and geologic/geomorphic evidence. Class B typically includes the source of earthquakes that occurred in the pre-instrumental era. The source parameterisation is jointly constrained by the extent of the historical rupture and by the occurrence of significant geologic features such as the size and extent of a basin, the intersection with known tectonic lineaments, the rupture terminations of Class A sources, etc.
C	Class C is assigned to all sources that were derived from geologic/geomorphic evidence but for which limited or no historical evidence exists, or that possess satisfactory historical but limited/debatable geologic/geomorphic evidence. The source must be on-land and associated with clearly identified large-scale features belonging to known regional trends. This class and the following Class D also include sources for which there is epistemic uncertainty as to their existence as active features and to their potential as seismogenic sources.
D	Similarly to the rating C, Class D is assigned to all sources that were derived from geologic/geomorphic evidence with limited or no historical constraints. Unlike the previous class, the source may be offshore and its location constrained only by reflection seismology data or other large-scale observations used to pinpoint regional trends of homogeneous tectonic deformation.

 

2.2.3.2. Seismogenic Sources - Historical - Well Constrained with Geological Background

Includes all seismogenic sources derived exclusively from intensity data following the method proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999] and for which the quality of the solution obtained was enough to allow the representation by an oriented rectangular box (see Figure 1 and relevant text in Gasperini et al. [1999]). For sources of this group the compiler has brought together support information (essentially references and pictures) and has prepared Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source and Comments and Open Questions files, similarly to what is done for all Sources from Geologic/Geophysical Data. The additional information, however, was not enough to allow the compiler to turn this source into a Geologic/Geophysical Source.

The name of the associated physical table is SourceHistARev.tab, where

• Hist indicates that the source was derived from intensity data exclusively;

• A indicates that sources of this type are of better quality among all those obtained from intensity data;

• Rev indicates that there has been a revision by the compiler.

Notice that the structure of this table differs from that of SourceGeol.tab for the following reasons:

• lack of fields Dip, Rake, Min_Depth and Max_Depth, all of which cannot be assessed using the procedure of analysis of intensity data proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999];

• lack of fields describing the location of the surface expression of the source;

• more quantitative definition of Quality (two distinct parameters);

• uncertainty in the definition of Strike.

Rating criteria: all Historical Sources
 

Q1	Orientation uncertainty		Q2	Number of  intensity data
A	<10°		A	>500
B	10°-24°		B	100-499
C	25°-49°		C	50-99
D	>=50°		D	20-49
E	no orientation assessed		E	<20

 

2.2.3.3. Seismogenic Sources - Historical - Well Constrained, no Geological Background

Includes all seismogenic sources derived exclusively from intensity data following the method proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999] and for which the quality of the solution obtained was enough to allow the representation by an oriented rectangular box (see Figure 1 and relevant text in Gasperini et al. [1999]). For these sources, however, no additional information is supplied by the compiler. The name of the associated physical table is SourceHistA.tab. The structure of the table is the same as for SourceHistARev.tab.
 

2.2.3.4. Seismogenic Sources - Historical - Poorly Constrained with Geological Background

Includes all seismogenic sources derived exclusively from intensity data following the method proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999] and for which the quality of the solution obtained was not enough to allow the representation by an oriented rectangular box (see Figure 1 and relevant text in Gasperini et al. [1999]). The source was then represented as a circle having the diameter equal to the estimated source length. For sources of this group the compiler has brought together support information (essentially references and pictures) and has prepared Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source and Comments and Open Questions files, similarly to what is done for the Geologic/Geophysical Sources. The additional information, however, was not enough to allow the compiler to turn this source into a Geologic/Geophysical Source.

The name of the associated physical table is SourceHistBRev.tab, where

• Hist indicates that the source was derived from intensity data exclusively;
• B indicates that sources of this type are of lesser quality among all those obtained from intensity data;
• Rev indicates that there has been a revision by the compiler.

Notice that the structure of this table differs from that of SourceHistARev.tab/ SourceHistA.tab for the following reasons:

• lack of fields Strike, Length, Width due to lesser quality of solution;

• use of Radius to characterise the size of the source.

For similarity with sources of the category Historical - Well Constrained, the field Quality contains two distinct parameters for assessing the uncertainties associated with the given source model. Notice that Q1 is always equal "E". See scheme at the end of § 2.2.3.2. for further details.

2.2.3.5. Seismogenic Sources - Historical - Poorly Constrained, no Geological Background

Includes all seismogenic sources derived exclusively from intensity data following the method proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999] and for which the quality of the solution obtained was not enough to allow the representation by an oriented rectangular box (see Figure 1 and relevant text in Gasperini et al. [1999]). For these sources, however, no additional information is supplied by the compiler. The name of the associated physical table is SourceHistB.tab. The structure of the table is the same as for SourceHistBRev.tab.
 
 

2.2.3.6. Deep

Includes sources derived exclusively from intensity data following the method proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999] and for which the compiler hypothesised a depth larger than ordinary (usually below 10 km). The assignment of a source to this category is irrespective of whether the formal uncertainties in the solution obtained would have allowed to derive a rectangular source or simply a circular source. Notice that in the case of a source deeper than usual the technique proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999] would not be able to derive correctly the true elongation of the source, and any asymmetries in the intensity pattern could more likely result from propagation effects.

The name of the associated physical table is SourceDeep.tab. To allow a better visual separation, sources of this category are drawn using hexagons.

Table structure: SourceDeep.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
SourceName	Encodes the source by a name	Char(50)
IDSource	Encodes the source by an identification number. Ranges between 901-1000	Integer
Quality	Reliability of source data expressed through two distinct parameters. See text for details	Char(3)
lat lon	Centre of the hexagon representative of the source. The source radius is provided directly by the method proposed by Gasperini et al. [1999]	Char(8) Char(8)
Radius	Radius of given source (km)	Char(8)
Evidence	Type of evidence used to identify the source	Char(254)
Compiled_by	Name(s) of the compiler(s) of the given source	Char(50)
Preferred	States with a logical variable (T/F, true/false) if the source should or should not be added to the Integrated Source Dataset	Logical

Notice that the structure of this table is virtually identical to that of SourceHistBRev.tab/SourceHistB.tab.

The field Quality contains two distinct parameters for assessing the uncertainties associated with the given source model. The assessment is done following the scheme used for sources of the category Historical - Poorly Constrained. Notice that Q1 is always equal "E". See scheme at the end of § 2.2.3.2. for further details.
 
 

2.2.3.7. Integrated Source Dataset

The structure of the Database allows for multiple solutions for the same physical seismogenic source. For example, a source of the category Historical - Well Constrained will always have also the corresponding solution in the category Historical - Poorly Constrained and possibly also in the Geologic/Geophysical. The Integrated Source Dataset (SourcePreferred.tab) displays the "preferred" set of sources, that is to say, in case of multiple solutions the compiler has made a decision concerning which source should be used for further elaborations. The decision is made by setting the field Preferred to "T" or "F" depending on whether the compiler wants the specific source to be included or not included in the Integrated Source Dataset. Notice that this field appears in all primary structural tables described in § 2.2.3. The Integrated Source Dataset is generated by the Database itself during the Maintenance operations (see § 4.5.).
 
 

2.2.3.8. Seismic Behaviour

The table Seismic_Behaviour.tab stores parameters used to characterise the behaviour of each seismogenic source for all source categories. The table contains data selected or re-interpreted from published literature. If the information available is too complicated or controversial to be expressed by a number, the compiler fills-in the corresponding field with an asterisk and explains the matter in the Comments and Open Questions.

Table structure: Seismic_Behaviour.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
SourceName	Encodes the source by a name	Char(50)
IDSource	Encodes the source by an identification number	Integer
Last Earthquake	Date of most recent earthquake rupturing the entire length of the given seismogenic source	Char(150)
Prev Max Earthquake	List age of any previous maximum earthquakes identified from paleoseismological, geologic and historical evidence	Char(254)
Recurrence Interval	Average time span between two subsequent maximum events generated by the same source, expressed in years	Char(150)
Elapsed Time	Time elapsed since Last Earthquake, in years, conventionally referred to the year 2000	Char(60)
Slip Rate	Slip-rate in mm/year, either published or estimated by the compiler based on original or published data. In either case, the section Comments and open questions should be used to explain how the slip-rate was estimated/computed	Char(254)
Average Displacement	Average coseismic displacement, in meters	Char(100)
Expected Magnitude	For Geologic/Geophysical sources: magnitude calculated from source size through empirical relations. For Historical sources: magnitude of historical earthquake (corresponding with magnitude used to assess source length and width)	Char(100)

 

2.2.3.9. Fault Scarps

The table FaultScarps.tab lists genuinely tectonic surface ruptures that are thought to slip in conjunction with one or more sources of the Geologic/Geophysical category. The ruptures are usually more than one and include primary ruptures located along the fault projection onto the surface and secondary ruptures located within the surface projection (e.g., in the hanging-wall compartment of a normal fault). Each rupture is identified by an IDScarp code and is logically linked to one or more individual sources through the IDSource code. However, this does not preclude that it may move as a result of the activation of other sources. Each rupture is characterised also by a name and bibliography references.

Notice that in the Database a surface rupture is intended as a strictly graphical object that is not described by geographic coordinates. This is due to the fact that some surface ruptures have a complex trend that may easily be described as a complex graphical object by the cartographic interface but that would be complicated to describe as a sequence of latitude-longitude pairs. The coordinates of each point of a given surface rupture can obviously be inferred from the cartographic interface using the standard tools of MapInfo®.

Table structure: FaultScarps.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
IDSource	Links the surface rupture with a seismogenic source	Integer
IDScarp	Encodes the rupture by a number. Further ruptures associated with the same source must have a different code	Integer
SourceName	Name of the source to which the surface rupture is linked	Char(32)
FaultScarpName	Encodes the surface rupture by a name	Char(60)
Reference	Reference(s) for the given surface rupture	Char(60)

 

2.2.3.10. Tectonic Lineaments

The tables TransverseTectLineaments.tab and GenericTectLineaments.tab contain linear tectonic features taken from published literature. The first table contains lineaments that lie nearly perpendicular to the general trend of the main seismogenic sources, while all the remaining lineaments are included in the second table. These two subsets are prepared by the Database itself during the Maintenance operations starting from Tectonic_Lineaments.tab (see § 4.5.). Each lineament may be mapped as a single line or as a segmented element, depending on how it was originally drawn in the referenced paper(s). The Tectonic Lineaments may or may not be active or seismogenic; under special circumstances, limited portions of them may be identified as Geologic/Geophysical sources and treated accordingly. Similarly to the seismogenic sources, each Tectonic Lineament may be assigned one or more references (see § 2.2.4.4.).

Table structure: Tectonic_Lineaments.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
Name	Encodes the tectonic lineament by the name with which it is identified in the referenced paper(s)	Char(50)
ID	Encodes the tectonic lineament by an identification number	Integer
Type	Describes the type of lineament as "G" (Generic) or "T" (Transverse)	Char(1)
Reliability	Rates the reliability of the given tectonic lineament on a scale of A (most reliable) to D (least reliable)	Char(16)
Evidence	Type of evidence available in literature to identify the given tectonic lineament	Char(80)
Notes	Describes the general geometry, kinematics and timing of the given tectonic lineament, with specific reference to the investigators that supplied the information	Char(250)

 

2.2.3.11. Summary of structural tables

The following scheme summarises the correspondence between standard and virtual names for all of the Structural Tables. "Corresponding file(s)" specifies the location of the tables within the disk database. The specification "Layer" indicates that the given table is also a layer of the Geographic Information System, that is, has graphic objects associated with it. These are drawn as specified in "Symbol" and with the colour specified in "Colour".
 

Table name/Menu item	Corresponding file(s)	Layer	Symbol	Colour
Seismogenic Sources from Geologic/Geophysical Data	SourceGeol.tab FaultScarps.tab	Y	Box	Orange Red
Seismogenic Sources - Historical -Well Constrained with Geological Background	SourceHistARev.tab	Y	Box	Blue
Seismogenic Sources - Historical -Well Constrained, no Geological Background	SourceHistA.tab	Y	Box	Black
Seismogenic Sources - Historical -Poorly Constrained with Geological Background	SourceHistBRev.tab	Y	Circle	Blue
Seismogenic Sources - Historical -Poorly Constrained, no Geological Background	SourceHistB.tab	Y	Circle	Black
Seismogenic Sources - Deep	SourceDeep.tab	Y	Hexagon	Violet
Integrated Source Dataset	SourcePreferred.tab	Y	All of above	All of above
Seismic Behaviour	Seismic_Behaviour.tab	N	----------	----------
Tectonic Lineaments	Tectonic_Lineaments.tab	N	----------	----------
Generic Tectonic Lineaments	GenericTectLineaments.tab	Y	Line	Yellow
Transverse Tectonic Lineaments	TransverseTectLineaments.tab	Y	Line	Yellow

 

2.2.4. Instrumental Tables

These tables create logical links between each individual source and the information concerning it currently available in the Database. In particular these tables are used to assign to each source:

• the Summaries of the Main Studies text file;

• the Comments and Open Questions text file;

• all the available images or photographs, either published or original;

• all the available references.

The table Assign_Studies.tab links each Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source text file with the seismogenic source to which it refers.

Table structure: Assign_Studies.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
IDSource	Encodes the source by an identification number	Integer
filename	Name of the file containing the Summaries of the Main Studies for the given source	Char(32)

 

2.2.4.2. Assign Questions

The table Assign_Questions.tab links the Comments and Open Questions text file with the seismogenic source to which it refers.

Table structure: Assign_Questions.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
IDSource	Encodes the source by an identification number	Integer
filename	Name of the file containing the Comments and Open Questions for the given source	Char(32)

 

2.2.4.3. Assign Pictures

The table Assign_Pictures.tab stores data on images or photographs associated with a given source. More specifically, the table links each source with the titles and file names of the relevant pictures and of the associated captions.

Table structure: Assign_Pictures.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
IDSource	Links the picture to a source by its identification number	Integer
Title	Title of the picture as it will appear in the Pictures dialog box. The same title cannot be assigned to more than one picture within the same source	Char(50)
Picture	Name of the relational table associated with the raster file containing the picture	Char(32)
Caption	Name of the table containing the caption for the corresponding picture	Char(32)

 

2.2.4.4. Assign References

The table Assign_References.tab lists in full detail all the references contained in the Database and links each of them to the seismogenic source or tectonic lineament to which it refers. More specifically, the table contains references:

• that were used to prepare the Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source and Comments and Open Questions text files for a given source;

• that were used to derive the source parameters;

• that contain general information on the geology, geomorphology, and seismicity of the source areas but are not directly used as a source of information;

• that describe one or more tectonic lineaments supplying their location, name and characteristics.

Table structure: Assign_References.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
IDSource	Links to the relevant source or tectonic lineament by its identification number	Integer
Authors	Authors of given reference (see table for adopted format)	Char(249)
Year	Year of publication	Char(10)
Title	Full title of reference (see table for adopted format)	Char(254)
Reference	Full reference of journal, proceedings volume or book were the given paper was published. Journal titles should be abbreviated according to the World List of Abbreviations followed by volume number, first and last page (see table for adopted format)	Char(254)
Code_Year	Internal code (same as Year of publication)	Char(4)
Code_Language	Reference language: I=Italian, E=English, O=Other	Char(1)
Code_Publication	Reference type: A, B, J, M, P, V, W respectively for: Abstract, Book, Journal, Manuscript, Proceedings, Volume, Website (see § 2.2.4.4.2. for details)	Char(1)
Code_ReferenceID	Identification number of given reference within the Database printed paper files (see § 2.2.4.4.1. for details)	Char(4)
Availability	Y if paper is available in the Database printed paper files, otherwise N	Char(1)
TpLength TpWidth	Reference contains information on the length and width of the source (T or F)	Logical Logical
TpStrike TpDip TpRake	Reference contains information on the strike, dip, and rake of the source (T or F)	Logical Logical Logical
TpMinDepth TpMaxDepth	Reference contains information on the min, max depth of given source (T or F)	Logical Logical
TpLastEq TpMaxEq	Reference contains information on the most recent earthquake and on the previous earthquake(s) generated by given source (T or F)	Logical Logical
TpRecInt TpElapTime	Reference contains information on the recurrence interval and elapsed time for the given source (T or F)	Logical Logical
TpSlipRate TpAvDisp	Reference contains information on the slip rate and average displacement for the given source (T or F)	Logical Logical
TpExpMagn	Reference contains information on the magnitude of the largest earthquake expected to be generated by the given source (T or F)	Logical

 

2.2.4.4.1. Assigning a new Code Reference

Any new reference is uniquely identified through the Code_ReferenceID, which is the code assigned to the given article, map, book or manuscript within the physical database of printed papers available at Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia in Rome. As explained in the chapter on Updating the Database (§ 4.1.4.), it is suggested that the references table be handled through a Microsoft® Excel twin copy of Assign_References.tab. This allows an easier check of the existing codes and a safer assignment of a new one, which can simply be the next available four-digit number. This number will appear printed on the paper stored in the physical database.
 
 

2.2.4.4.2. Filling-in the Code Publication field

This field is used to specify the type of publication that corresponds to each specific reference. Along with the Code_Language specifier, this field helps determining the characteristics of the papers that were used as a source of data for the compilation of the Database. The Code_ReferenceID and Availability specifiers help retrieving the publication of interest from the physical database of printed papers available at Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia in Rome.

Abstracts Includes all abstracts and posters presented at meetings or conferences regardless of whether the same material has subsequently been published on proceedings or on a journal.

Books Includes all books that are intended for commercial distribution and can be freely purchased from the publisher.

Journal Includes all articles that appear on peer-reviewed, regularly published journals, either national or international.

Manuscript Includes theses, internal reports and all other material that has not appeared in publication as such, which was not intended for distribution and that can only be obtained directly from the author.

Proceedings Includes conference proceedings that are part of a regular series of publications.

Volume Includes all publications that do not fall in any of the previous categories, e.g. conference proceedings that have been collected by one or more editors and are not part of a regular series, special celebration volumes, contributions to projects (only if available to the general public; otherwise they should be categorised as Manuscripts).

Website Indicates that the information was obtained from a World Wide Web site, regardless of whether the content of the site has been or will be published in any other form.
 
 

2.2.4.5. Summary of instrumental tables

The following scheme summarises the correspondence between standard and virtual names for all of the Instrumental Tables, along with their links to folders and subfolders of the disk database.
 

Table name/Menu item	Corresponding disk file(s)	Links to
Assign Studies	Assign_Studies.tab	Source_Literature folder Previous_Studies subfolder
Assign Questions	Assign_Questions.tab	Source_Literature folder Open_Questions subfolder
Assign Pictures	Assign_Pictures.tab	Source_Literature folder Pictures subfolder F* sub-subfolder
Assign References	Assign_References.tab	Physical database of printed papers at INGV, Rome

 

2.2.5. Support Tables

These tables contain information that supports many representation and operating functions. They are all accessed through the menu View. The support information may be Source Specific, Source Generic, or Generic. Most of the information is public domain or was derived from published datasets. The following description is organised based on these three categories of Support Tables.
 
 

2.2.5.1. Source Specific support tables

These tables contain information that relates specifically to one of the sources. Notice that this type of information is available only for sources that belong to the Geologic/Geophysical, Historical - Well Constrained with Geological Background and Historical - Poorly Constrained with Geological Background categories, with the sole exception of the References.

The following scheme summarises the correspondence between standard and virtual names for all of the Source Specific Support Tables. "Corresponding file(s)" specifies the location of the tables within the disk database.
 

Table name/menu item	Corresponding file(s)	Content
Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source	Source_Literature folder Previous_Studies subfolder S-ITA-*.txt	Summaries of papers (in chronological order) describing the source and its geologic and tectonic environment
Comments and Open Questions	Source_Literature folder Open_Questions subfolder Q-ITA-*.txt	Summary of the compiler’s comments and of aspects of the source that still need to be investigated/understood
Pictures	Source_Literature folder Pictures subfolder F* sub-subfolder F*_*.tab F*_*_CAP.tab	Published (scanned) or original pictures or photographs describing the source and its tectonic environment, and their caption containing a full reference to the source of the image
References	Source_Data folder Assign_References.tab	References contained in the Database

See also § 4.1.2. for a description of the main characteristics of the Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source and Comments and Open Questions text files, § 4.1.3. for a description of how to select Pictures, § 2.2.4.4. and 4.1.4. for guidelines concerning the References.
 
 

2.2.5.2. Source Generic support tables

These tables contain information that relates indirectly to all the sources and that may be used to place them in their seismological, geologic and tectonic context.

The following scheme summarises the correspondence between standard and virtual names for all of the Source Generic Support Tables. By definition all these tables are also layers of the Geographic Information System. "Colour" specifies the colour used to represent the given graphic objects in the Geographic Information System; for scanned images this field is omitted. "Corresponding file(s)" specifies the location of the tables within the disk database; since all the support tables are located in the folder Background_Info, this information is omitted.
 

Table name/menu item	Corresponding disk file(s)	Type	Colour
Instrumental Earthquakes	Seismicity/Inst_q.tab	Vector	B/W
Historical Earthquakes: from Catalogue of Strong Italian Earthquakes  from Catalogo Parametrico Terremoti Italiani  from NT4.1 Catalogue	Seismicity/CFTI_q.tab     Seismicity/CPTI_q.tab     Seismicity/NT_q.tab	Vector     Vector     Vector	Blue     Red     Violet
Felt Reports: from CFTI  from NT (before 1900 AD)  from NT (after 1900 AD)	Seismicity/CFTIFelt.tab   Seismicity/NTFelt.tab   Seismicity/NTFelt.tab	Vector   Vector   Vector	Black/Red   Black/Red   Black/Red
Previous Fault Compilations	Geological/Compilations/ Compilations.tab Geological/Compilations/Maps/ *.tab	Raster	---------
Additional Geophysical/Seismological Data	Geological/ Additional_Data/Additional_Data_list.tab  Geological/Additional_Data/*.tab	Vector or Raster	---------

 

2.2.5.2.1. Seismological data: instrumental seismicity

Instrumental seismicity is taken from the monthly bulletin of the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia for the period January 1985-December 2000. The information supplied by the Database is a subset of the data that appear in the bulletin and retains the essential parameters such as hypocentral coordinates, origin time, magnitude and reliability of the solution. In particular, the Q1 and Q2 quality ratings range from A (most reliable) to D (least reliable) and are assigned based on the epicentral uncertainties and on the network configuration (azimuthal gap), respectively. Each earthquake is plotted as a solid white circle. The diameter of the circle (in km) corresponds to the expected source length obtained from the earthquake magnitude using Wells and Coppersmith’s [1994] empirical relations.
 
 

2.2.5.2.2. Seismological data: historical seismicity

Historical seismicity is taken from the three largest compilations that were available at the end of 2000:

• NT 4.1.1 [Camassi and Stucchi, 1997], a parametric catalogue containing 2,488 earthquakes that is largely based on the DOM 4.1 database of macroseismic observations [Monachesi and Stucchi, 1997];

• Catalogue of Strong Italian Earthquakes, 461 b.C to 1997, or CFTI 3 [Boschi et al., 2000], the third version of a "new generation" catalogue containing parameters and basic data for 605 large Italian earthquakes;

• Catalogo Parametrico dei Terremoti Italiani [CPTI Working Group, 1999], a purely parametric catalogue derived from the two previous catalogues and containing 2,480 earthquakes.

2.2.5.2.3. Previous Fault Compilations

The Previous Fault Compilations are figures from articles or from the web or printed maps containing active faults, seismogenic faults and lineaments. The figures are representative of a wide selection of investigators and areas and the only requisite for their inclusion in the Database was the correctness of the figure’s (map’s) geographic layout. Each figure/map was georeferenced with the maximum accuracy allowed by its quality. The results are generally satisfactory with a mismatch between the raster image and the GIS grid that usually does not exceed 3 km (5-10 km at the far edges of some larger scale compilations).

A full list of the Previous Fault Compilations that are presented with the first version of the Database is supplied in Appendix III.

Table structure: Compilations.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
Title	Title or short description of given compilation	Char(254)
Authors	Author(s) of given compilation (see table for adopted format)	Char(254)
Year	Year of publication of the given compilation	Char(16)
Reference	Full reference of journal, proceedings, volume or book were the given compilation was published. Journal titles should be abbreviated according to the World List of Abbreviations followed by volume number, first and last page (see table for adopted format)	Char(128)
TableName	Name of table containing the given compilation	Char(128)
Compilation_ID	Encodes the given compilation by a progressive identification number	Char(16)

 

2.2.5.2.4. Additional Geophysical/Seismological Data

The Database may be complemented by other geophysical and seismological data that are pertinent to the general problem of identifying seismogenic sources, characterising their behaviour, or simply placing them in their tectonic context for further elaboration or representation purposes. These layers of data are fully georeferenced and may be accompanied by substantial alphanumeric information associated with the graphic objects. This information can be accessed using MapInfo® standard tools (Info Tool) and bears no logic link with the rest of the textual information presented in the Database. The actual availability of this type of support information may vary depending on the specific release of the Database.

A full list of the Additional Geophysical/Seismological Data tables that are presented with the first version of the Database is supplied in Appendix IV.

Table structure: Additional_Data.tab
 

Field name	Content	Format
Title	Title or short description of given set of additional data	Char(254)
Authors	Author(s) of given set of additioata (see table for adopted format)	Char(254)
Year	Year of publication (or preparation, if unpublished) of the given set of additional data	Char(16)
Reference	Full reference of journal, proceedings volume or book were the given set of additional data was published. Journal titles should be abbreviated according to the World List of Abbreviations followed by volume number, first and last page (see table for adopted format)	Char(128)
TableName	Name of table containing the given set of additional data	Char(128)
ID	Encodes the given set of additional data by a progressive identification number	Char(16)

 

2.2.5.3. Generic support tables

These tables contain information that may be used to place all the seismological and tectonic information in their geographic and administrative context. By definition, all these tables are also layers of the Geographic Information System. In the following schemes "Colour" specifies the colour used to represent the given graphic objects in the Geographic Information System, "Corresponding file(s)" specifies the location of the tables within the disk database. Since all the support tables are located in the folder Background_Info, this information is omitted.
 
 

2.2.5.3.1. Geographic and elevation data

The geographic interface of the Database is essentially based on a Digital Elevation Model of Italy with a regular grid of about 240 m. This was re-sampled from a public-domain archive originally compiled by Carrozzo et al. [1981]. The Digital Elevation Model was re-processed to obtain a Colour Shaded Relief, a B/W Shaded Relief and a Colour Coded version. These can be used interchangeably to emphasise specific features or to create the optimal contrast with the rest of the information displayed. The Digital Elevation Model can also be interchanged with a purely vectorial outline of Italy and surrounding countries that leaves all its inland portions devoid of any topographic information. The outline of European (except Italy) and North African countries is displayed also in conjunction with any of the realisations of the Digital Elevation Model.
The geographic interface is complemented by a series of tables that outline with different shades of blue the bathymetry of the seas surrounding Italy at 200, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 3,000 and 4,000 m depth. The bathymetry is automatically displayed in conjunction with any of the realisations of the Digital Elevation Model (with shades of grey for the B/W version).
The geographic grid is shown at fixed angular intervals that change with the scale of representation from 0.1û to 2û.
The drainage dataset is provided courtesy of E.N.E.L./Hydro (former I.S.M.E.S.) and is represented at three different levels of detail. The coarser level shows only the most important rivers countrywide (normally, all those having a length in excess of 20 km). The finest level includes most of the rivers and seasonal streams that can be derived from a 1:25,000 scale map. The intermediate level contains a selection of the latter and in particular all first and second order streams.
The following scheme summarises the correspondence between standard and virtual names and the type of representation for all of the geographic and elevation data.
 

Table name/menu item	Corresponding disk file(s)	Type	Colour
Digital Topography: Colour Shaded Relief  Colour Coded  B/W Shaded Relief	DEM/ShadedRelief/Ita*.tab DEM/Bathymetry/*CC.tab Geographic/EuroMed.tab     DEM/ColourCoded/Ita*.tab DEM/Bathymetry/*CC.tab Geographic/EuroMed.tab     DEM/BW/Ita*.tab DEM/Bathymetry/*BW.tab Geographic/EuroMed.tab	Raster Vector Vector     Raster Vector Vector     Raster Vector Vector	Palette Palette Black     Palette Palette Black     Palette Palette Black
Digital Topography: Outline Only	Geographic/EuroMed_Outline.tab	Vector	Black
Geographic Grid	Grids/Grid_*.tab	Vector	Black
Drainage: Main Rivers Only  Main and Intermediate  Full Drainage	Geographic/MainRiv.tab,Lakes.tab Geographic/InterRiv.tab,Lakes.tab Geographic/Idr*.tab,Lakes.tab	Vector Vector Vector	Blue Blue Blue

 

2.2.5.3.2. Administrative data

Most of these data are provided by I.S.T.A.T. (Italian national agency in charge of countrywide statistics on economic and demographic data) and reflect the results of the 1991 national census. The layers Large Cities and Intermediate Cities include "capoluoghi di regione" and "capoluoghi di provincia", respectively. The SmallTowns layer includes 8,100 "comuni", the smallest territorial unit in the Italian public administration. The All Localities layer is supplied courtesy of E.N.E.L./Hydro (former I.S.M.E.S.) and includes 61,595 "frazioni", small settlements that are under the jurisdiction of a "comune". To learn what "comune" corresponds to a given "frazione" use the codes provided with the table or simply plot the "frazione" along with the layer Comuni_Borders.tab.

The following scheme summarises the correspondence between standard and virtual names and the type of representation for all of the administrative data.
 

Table name/menu item	Corresponding disk file(s)	Type	Colour
Administrative Boundaries: - Regions - Provinces - "Comuni"	Administrative/Region_Borders.tab Administrative/Province_Borders.tab Administrative/Comuni_Borders.tab	Vector Vector Vector	Black Black Black
Cities: - Large Cities - Intermediate Cities - Small Towns ("Comuni") - All Localities ("Frazioni")	Administrative/Large_Cities.tab Administrative/Intermediate_Cities.tab Administrative/Small_Cities.tab Administrative/Small_Localities.tab	Vector Vector Vector Vector	Violet Orange Yellow Blue

 

2.2.5.4. Summary of support tables

The following scheme summarises the different categories of Support Tables, along with the indication of where each specific layer of information is described in better detail.
 

Category	Table name/menu item	See section(s)
Source Specific	Summaries of the Main Studies on the Source	2.2.5.1., 4.1.2.
Source Specific	Comments and Open Questions	2.2.5.1., 4.1.2.
Source Specific	Pictures	2.2.5.1., 4.1.3.
Source Specific	References	2.2.5.1., 4.1.4.
Source Generic	Instrumental Earthquakes	2.2.5.2.1.
Source Generic	Historical Earthquakes: - from CFTI 3 catalogue - from CPTI catalogue - from NT4.1.1 Catalogue	2.2.5.2.2.
Source Generic	Felt Reports: - from CFTI 3 catalogue - from NT 4.1.1/DOM (before 1900 AD) catalogue - from NT 4.1.1/DOM (since 1900 AD) catalogue	2.2.5.2.2.
Source Generic	Previous Fault Compilations	2.2.5.2.3., 4.2.
Source Generic	Additional Geophysical/Seismological Data	2.2.5.2.4., 4.3.
Generic	Digital Topography: - Colour Shaded Relief - Colour Coded - B/W Shaded Relief - Outline Only	2.2.5.3.1.
Generic	Geographic Grid	2.2.5.3.1.
Generic	Drainage: - Main Rivers Only - Main and intermediate - Full Drainage	2.2.5.3.1.
Generic	Administrative Boundaries: - Regions - Provinces - "Comuni"	2.2.5.3.2.
Generic	Cities: - Large Cities - Intermediate Cities - Small Towns ("Comuni") - All Localities ("Frazioni")	2.2.5.3.2.