Recent progress on earthquake geology

Researchers from countries around the world have contributed to this book, shedding light on studies of seismoinduced phenomena associated with recent and historical earthquakes. Included herein is also an article about the devestating earthquake of L'Aquila in Central Italy on April 6, 2009. With basic knowledge, it is possible to reconstruct the geo-history of the phenomena induced by earthquakes. Earthquake geologists study the surface expression of earthquake-like faults and ground failures caused by strong ground shaking. Moreover, ground deformation phenomena and other secondary effects such as tectonic subsidence and uplift, liquefaction, shaking-induced landslides, tsunamis, and also the migration of hydrogen as protons, can be used to identify earthquakes. Finally, with Paleoseismology, a branch of Earthquake Geology, we can define timing, location, and size of prehistoric earthquakes. The collected articles highlight the importance of the geology of the events. Only through the reconstruction of the past can we try to do forecasting for the future. Otherwise, our tools would be limited to mere preventive measures. The knowledge of when, where, how often, and with what magnitude large earthquakes occur is crucial for understanding and characterizing the seismic hazard of a region. For this purpose, the papers regard the recent progress in the study of recent and past seismic events on the base of the descriptions and analysis of primary effects (surface ruptures) and secondary ones (tsunamis and liquefactions).