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ISSN 2070-7401 (Print), ISSN 2411-0280 (Online)
Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa
CURRENT PROBLEMS IN REMOTE SENSING OF THE EARTH FROM SPACE

  

Sovremennye problemy distantsionnogo zondirovaniya Zemli iz kosmosa, 2025, V. 22, No. 4, pp. 149-163

Thermal anomaly dynamics in the seismically active region of Central Asia

L.G. Sverdlik 1, 2 
1 Research Station RAS in Bishkek City, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
2 Kyrgyz–Russian Slavic University, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Accepted: 10.06.2025
DOI: 10.21046/2070-7401-2025-22-4-149-163
The results of a retrospective study on anomalies in changes to the thermal stratification of the atmosphere in the tropopause region above the epicentral areas of six earthquakes with magnitudes M>6.0, which occurred in 2015–2016 in a region stretching from the Pamir-Hindukush seismic zone in Afghanistan (southwest) to Eastern Pamir (Tajikistan) (northeast), are presented. Using these events as examples, an assessment was made of the spatial scale, localization, duration, and timing of the anomalous temperature disturbances. The identification of seismo-atmospheric effects was conducted using a specially developed MERRA-2 (Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications) algorithm for processing satellite monitoring data based on calculation of the STA/LTA (Short Time Averaging to Long Time Averaging) criterion. The analysis of temperature profiles at levels from 500 to 40 hPa showed that, before each of the studied earthquakes, the atmosphere was in a disturbed state. Pre-seismic anomalies were characterized by increased values of the δTC parameter (≥1.5) and manifested as well-defined mesoscale (300–900 km) areas. The spatial scale of thermal anomalies before strong earthquakes with deep hypocenters (greater than 200 km) was significantly broader. The maximum temperature disturbances were observed 1–5 days before strong earthquakes and were localized above the epicentral areas or within several hundred kilometers off the epicenters, which fully meets the DTS-T (Deviation-Time-Space-Thermal) criteria and can likely be considered as evidence of the interaction between the lithosphere and the atmosphere during the preparation periods of strong earthquakes. Atmospheric gravity waves generated by slow oscillations of the Earth’s surface were considered the most likely mechanism of the formation of pre-seismic disturbances in the lower atmosphere layers.
Keywords: satellite measurements, temperature, earthquake, upper troposphere, lower stratosphere, STA/LTA criterion, integral parameter, anomaly
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