Seismic background noise levels in the Italian strong-motion network

Abstract

The Italian strong-motion network monitors the seismic activity in the region, with more than 585 stations with continuous data acquisition. In this study, we determine the background seismic noise characteristics of the network by using the data collected in 2022. We analyse the spatial and temporal characteristics of the background noise. It is found that most of the stations suffer from anthropogenic noises, since the strong-motion network is designed to capture the peak ground motions in populated areas. Hence, human activities enrich the low periods of noise. Therefore, land usage of the area where the stations are located affects the background noise levels. Stations can be noisier during the day, up to 12 dB, and during the weekday, up to 5 dB, in short periods. In long periods (≥ 5 s), accelerometric stations converge to similar noise levels and there are no significant daily or weekly changes. It is found that more than half of the stations exceed the background noise model designed for strong-motion stations in Switzerland by Cauzzi and Clinton (2013) in at least one of the calculated periods. We also develop an accelerometric seismic background noise model for periods between 0.0124 and 100 s for Italy by using the power spectral densities of the network. The model is in agreement with the background noise model developed by D’Alessandro et al. (2021) using broadband data for Italy in short periods, but in long periods there is no correlation among studies.