Seismic wave propagation in the earth

Seismic wave propagation in the earth

399 marginal basins, the papers how the papers The editors valuable and a summary and discussions were accepted should by the editors of the n...

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399

marginal

basins,

the papers

how the papers The editors valuable

and a summary

and discussions

were accepted should

by the editors of the new information

at the meeting.

be congratulated

The publication

by

by the audience. on a job

book in which highly specialized

ing scientists.

provided

It would also have been useful to know

subject

of this volume

well done, matter

having

compiled

a

is dealt with by outstand-

must be considered

as a very welcome

event. J.J. BIGARELLA

(Curitiba, ParanB, Brazil)

Seismic Wave Propagation in the Earth. A. Hanyga (Editor). Physics and Evolution of the Earth’s Interior, Vol. 2. Elsevier, Amsterdam, a coedition with PWN-Polish Scientific Publishers, (hardcover)

Warszawa,

1985, XV + 478 pp.,

US $94.25/Dfl.

245.00

In any rapidly developing science, like seismology, comprehensive summaries are particularly important and serve as milestones. In the present decade, several such books have appeared, notably by Aki and Richards (Quantitative Seismology, 1980) and Ben-Menahem and Singh (Seismic Waves and Sources, 1981). The present book, edited by the Polish theoretical geophysicist Andrzej Hanyga, is a welcome continuation in this line. Although some overlapping is unavoidable, the publication of each of these is justified by their different backgrounds and purposes. The study of elastic waves occupies a central position in seismology. Influenced by source, path and receiver properties, seismic waves provide the most reliable information on earthquake mechanisms and the earth’s internal constitution. Research methods include theories, observations and model experiments in close interaction.

The present

book deals mostly

with path properties,

gation, and the methods are essentially theoretical. Hanyga’s book is volume 2 in a series of five volumes,

i.e., wave propa-

entitled

Physics

Evolution of the Earth’s Interior and edited by Professor Roman Teisseyre. consists of five chapters, the first four of which are written by Hanyga himself.

and It

Chapter 1 (Elementary Elasticity and Plane Waves, pp. l-34) briefly reviews classical wave theory as an introduction to the following chapters. Chapter 2 (Asymptotic Theory of Seismic Wave Propagation, pp. 35-168) presents the WKBJ approximation, geometrical optics, anisotropic media, point sources, head waves and inverse problems. Chapter 3 (Propagation of Pulses in Stratified Media, pp. 169-332) deals with transformed equations, spherical layering, inversions, diffraction, theoretical seismograms and mode excitation. Chapter 4 (Nonlinear Waves, pp. 333-377) describes nonlinear elasticity, prestressed media, shock waves and acceleration waves. Chapters l-4 are strictly mathematical and mostly rather complicated. A thorough knowledge of advanced applied mathematics is a minimum requirement for

400

any reader. Clear explanations of all notations and symbols as well as more details of the mathematical developments would have improved these chapters, made them easier to read and thus appealed The final Chapter tional

methods

and

5 (Waves results

surface wave propagation

to a wider readership. in the Real Earth,

concerning

body

(E. Lenartowicz),

pp. 378440)

wave propagation

i.e., developments

reviews

observa-

(J. Pajchel)

generally

and

familiar

to

observational seismologists. A number of minor points and poor language here and there in this chapter can be quite offputting (as can the cover picture I might add). The book ends with a useful 29-page list of references Chapters independent

and an g-page subject

index.

l-4 (theoretical) and Chapter 5 (observational) stand out as relatively of each other. More cross-reference would have better elucidated the

various ways of exploring the earth’s interior. One important feature of this book is its authoritative summary of the recent literature, much of which is in Russian. Another important feature is its endeavour to approximate the earth’s actual conditions as closely as possible, e.g. by including prestress, anisotropy and nonlinear effects in wave propagation. The book can be recommended to university lecturers in theoretical seismology and applied mathematics, who could clarify the content with further explanation in their lectures. Research workers in theoretical seismology will appreciate the book as a convenient guide to the original literature. Moreover, anybody else interested in advanced wave propagation theory could find a gold mine here- though maybe somewhat hard to dig. MARKUS

Erdbeben und Erdbebengefiihrdung.. E. Hurtig and H. Stiller Verlag, Berlin, 1984, 328 pp. DM 50,OO (paperback)

BhTH

(Uppsala,

(Editors).

Sweden)

Akademie-

Earthquakes and earthquake hazards are problems of global interest. The book under review addressed itself to a wealth of related questions. It must be said at the outset that the present edition is intended in the first place for East German readers. To write a review for an international journal on a book aimed at readers in a particular country is a special challenge. In this connection, two questions will be borne in mind in this review: (1) how is the subject of the book perceived in the given country, and (2) would it be worthwhile for the book to be made available in English? The book has 10 chapters. It contains contributions from a total of nine authors. E. Hurtig is the author or coauthor of eight chapters, a fact which makes the book fairly homogeneous in content and style. The book is written for a broad range of specialists concerned with earthquakes and seismic hazard analysis. As stated in the first, introductory chapter (by H. Stiller and E. Hurtig) it aims at reaching not only geoscientists, but also engineers working in mining, construction, hydrology and