Comparison of Seismic, Geodetic and Geologic Moment Rates in Eastern Alborz and Kopeh Dagh

The north east of Iran، extending from central Alborz to Kopeh Dagh Mountains، is one of the most seismically active regions of Iran. Several large and ancient cities are located in this region and thus provide relatively reach documented history of earthquakes. Numerous active faults have been known in this area، some of them have already been under geological investigations، yet many needs to be studied. However، recent geodetic measurements provide a general view about rates of strike slip and shortening across the region. This study evaluates potential of implementing geologic and geodetic data in seismic hazard assessment in this part of Iran. To achieve this، the region of study has been divided to 5 structural zones. The moment accumulating rate was then calculated for each zone using both geological and geodetic measurements. This moment has been compared with moment released by earthquakes. Comparison of seismic moment released by instrumental and historical earthquakes with moment accumulating rate along major active faults suggest that geologic and geodetic data can be considered as a reliable source of information in seismic hazard analysis، especially where there is no sufficient record of earthquakes in the catalogs.