Extending the double-difference location technique to mining applications part I: Numerical study

The location of the seismic event hypocenter is the very first task undertaken when studying any seismological problem. The accuracy of the solution can significantly influence consecutive stages of analysis, so there is a continuous demand for new, more efficient and accurate location algorithms. It is important to recognize that there is no single universal location algorithm which will perform equally well in any situation. The type of seismicity, the geometry of the recording seismic network, the size of the controlled area, tectonic complexity, are the most important factors influencing the performance of location algorithms. In this paper we propose a new location algorithm called the extended double difference (EDD) which combines the insensitivity of the double-difference (DD) algorithm to the velocity structure with the special demands imposed by mining: continuous change of network geometry and a very local recording capability of the network for dominating small induced events. The proposed method provides significantly better estimation of hypocenter depths and origin times compared to the classical and double-difference approaches, the price being greater sensitivity to the velocity structure than the DD approach. The efficiency of both algorithms for the epicentral coordinates is similar.