Abstract
This paper reviews studies aiming to understand the relation between the large acceleration observed during the 2011 Off the Pacific Coast of Tohoku Earthquake and the effect of surface geology at strong motion stations K-NET Tsukidate and KiK-net Haga where high acceleration and high seismic intensity was observed, as well as K-NET Furukawa and JMA Furukawa where heavy building damage had occurred through analysis of observed ground motion and microtremor data from temporary observations and numerical simulations. The effect of partial uplifting of the foundation of the seismometer which is claimed to have occurred at K-NET Tsukidate during the mainshock was also investigated. By considering the amplification of the surface geology, the effect of deep underground structure, the effect of heterogeneity and topological effects were taken in account of in order to explain the observed data. Despite using different approaches to determine the velocity structure at the target location, the results seems to become a common structure, but there are still not able to get a perfectly matched structure. Also, the fact that the spatial variation of ground motions are strongly affected by the heterogeneity of surface geology and deep structures were again indicated by the intense observations of strong motion and microtremors.
