March 30 2017 Number 143
International Institute of Seismology and Earthquake Engineering  BRI  Japan 1 Tachihara Tsukuba Japan 305-0802    tel+81-29-879-0678 facsim+81-29-864-6777
In This Issue
• Eighteen Participants Successfully Completed a Two- Month Training Course on the Global Seismological Observation • Closing Ceremony Speech on behalf of the 2016 Global Seismological Observation Course Participants • On the history of the program "Global Seismological Observation" over 20 years •  Microtremor Survey in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
IISEE-UNESCO Lecture Note IISEE E-learning Synopsis Database Bulletin Database Eighteen Participants Successfully Completed a Two-Month Training Course on the Global Seismological Observation By Mr. Yoshihiro IITAKE & Dr. Bunichiro SHIBAZAKI of IISEE The Closing Ceremony of the Global Seismological Observation Training  Course which started on January 17 was held in BRI on Friday, March 10, 2017. Eighteen participants from Egypt (2), Honduras, Indonesia (2), Iran (2), Mawawi, Myanmar (2), Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Geinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Zimbabwe attended the ceremony and have received the certificates from JICA and BRI/IISEE. Mr. Innocent Gibbon Tirivanhu Masukwedza from Zimbabwe made an address in reply as the representative of participants. (See page 2&3) The Global Seismological Observation Training Course is programmed as one of the contributions by the Government of Japan toward establishing a verification regime against nuclear tests. The participants are mainly from nonsignatories and non ratified countries of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). In the training program, participants acquire knowledge of the CTBT regime and the role of seismology in the International Monitoring System (IMS). They also study global seismological observation technologies for monitoring nuclear tests and earthquakes, and acquire data analytical techniques to discriminate nuclear tests from natural earthquakes. At the end of the program, they report each Action Plan that they are planning to carry out in their countries based on their study in IISEE. In the action plan presentation session, participants proposed their plans to utilize their knowledge what they have learned through the course to practical use in their countries. We hope that the participants will share what they learned in Japan with their colleagues. Moreover their knowledge and expertise on global seismological observation and data analysis will contribute to the reduction of earthquake disasters in their countries. Implementing the training program, we would like to express our sincere thanks to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), Ministry of Foreign  Affairs of Japan (MOFA), Japan  International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) and people concerned for their support and cooperation to the course.
Earthquakes
The 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake Reports of Recent Earthquakes Utsu Catalog Earthquake Catalog
Call for Papers
IISEE Bulletin is now accepting submissions of papers for the seis- mology, earthquake engineering, and tsunami. Developing countries are targeted, but are not limited. original Your papers will be reviewed by the editorial members and some experts. NO submission fee is need. Try to challenge!! Closing Ceremony Speech on behalf of the 2016 Global Seismological Observation Course Participants By Mr. Innocent Gibbon Masukwedza  (Zimbabwe) Dr. Yuzo SAKAMOTO, President of Building Research Institute-BRI, Mr. Noriaki NAGATOMO, Deputy Director General of Japan International Cooperation Agency-Tsukuba Center - JICA, Toshiaki YOKOI, Dr. Director of International Institute of Seismology & Earthquake Engineering-IISEE, fellow Distinguished guests and participants here present. Today, I am privileged and honoured to speak on behalf of the 2016: Global Observation Seismological training course participants who have just completed their training. First and Mr. Innocent Gibbon Masukwedza from Zimbabwe foremost, I would like to take advantage of this opportunity to express our profound gratefulness to the Government of Japan – Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Building Research Institute(BRI) and International Institute of Seismology & Earthquake Engineering (IISEE) for their invaluable coordination in making this course to be a success. During the course of the past two months we have spent here in this beautiful country of Japan, I believe that we have managed to achieve the main objective of the training which is to be able to distinguish natural seismic events from nuclear explosions. This was made possible through the efforts of the hard working lecturers who took their time to explain these concepts to us. Besides from meeting the course objective, I am confident that we can also speak basic Japanese and have also learnt about the Japanese culture as we have been sensitized to it through visiting cultural heritages in the country. Although we cannot express our sincere gratefulness to the lecturers as individuals, we would like to say to all of them:  Nintai de watashitachi o oshieru tame ni dōmo arigatōgozaimashita (thank you very much for teaching us in patience). Inasmuch as this is our closing ceremony, it is my sincere hope that this closing will not be the end of the friendship that has been established amongst fellow participants. Let us not put the resources of our sponsors to no avail but let us be instrumental in numerous ways in realizing the objectives of this workshop are put into practice in our respective countries. All good things must come to an end. Sadly, though, it's goodbye time. Tomorrow it will be a time to go back home. Although we are excited to be reunited with our families, friends, loved ones and pets, we just cannot help it, but we all feel a tinge of sadness in our hearts in leaving this place we have had to call home for these past two months. We will miss our home here at JICA- Tsukuba Center, we will miss our classroom at BRI, we will miss Sakume-san and Inadome-san who would do a head count now and again to ensure that no- one was missing. We will miss this beautiful country of Japan and its wonderful inhabitants. Once again, we thank all the organisations who made this training to be a success. We are forever indebted to you. Thank you so much (Dōmo arigatõgozaimasu) On the history of the program "Global Seismological Observation" over 20 years By Dr. Toshiaki Yokoi, Director of IISEE Mar. 10, 2017 IISEE held the closing ceremony of the program "Global Seismological Observation" that was its 22th round. From 1995 this two months’ program has been held every year and contributed the dissemination of the seismological observation technology, especially for distant earthquakes together with the discrimination technique for nuclear test ban. We have opened the special corner in ISEE Bulletin for "Global Seismological Observation". Voluntary submissions are expected, for example, congratulatory address, reminiscence, your recent state, information on tele-seismic
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The IISEE Newsletter is intended to act as a go-between for IISEE and ex-participants. We encourage you to contribute a report and an article to this news- letter.  Please let us know your current activities in your countries. We also welcome your co-workers and friends to register our mailing list. iiseenews@kenken.go.jp http://iisee.kenken.go.jp observation in your country, expectation for abolition of nuclear weapons, etc. Besides formal papers short messages from ex-participants of the mentioned course are welcome. Please consider to strengthen your connection to the worldwide human network of IISEE alumni. Back Numbers http://iisee.kenken.go.jp/ nldb/
Microtremor Survey in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
By Dr. Takumi Hayashida, Senior Research Scientist, IISEE Director Yokoi and I visited Nepal from February 10 to 18 (Director Yokoi visited from February 11 and 21) as part of a Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) program. SATREPS is a Japanese government program that promotes international joint research between researchers in Japan and developing countries, provided by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) and the Japan Microtremor Observation International Cooperation Agency (JICA). In Nepal, a project called Disaster Mitigation in Nepal Himalaya (Research Director: Professor Koketsu Kazuki at the University of Tokyo)' is being implemented until 2021. This was our second visit to Nepal for the survey under the project. During our stay, we performed large-size microtremor array survey using broadband seismometers in several areas of the Kathmandu valley to investigate deep sedimentary structure of the basin. Mr. Mukunda Bhattarai (researcher at the Department of Mines and Geology; 2004-2005, 2013-2014 Seismology course) is in charge of the survey on the Nepal side and he energetically worked in selection of sites, negotiation with landowners/institutes for land use, and setting instruments. Thanks to his efforts, we could finish our survey as scheduled, without serious difficulties. Also, we saw many ex- participants during our stay and received a very warm welcome. We are planning to visit Nepal several times in this year and we are looking