Encyclopedia of Solid Earth Geophysics (2^nd Ed., 2nd ed. 2021)
Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series

In the 21st century the importance of earth sciences in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding of the planet on which we live, has increased tremendously. Above all, they address the challenge of enriching human lives with the bounties of nature, while preserving the planet for future generations. The chief goals of Solid Earth Geophysics are to define and quantify the internal structure and processes of the Earth in terms of physical principles, and to provide an essential framework that allied disciplines can employ for more focused investigations.

The earliest version of The Encyclopedia of Solid Earth Geophysics was released by Van Nostrand Reinhold publishing company in 1989. More than two decades later, a completely revised and updated version, edited by Prof. Harsh K. Gupta, was published in 2011. Including over 200 articles authored by specialists from all over the world, it was very well received.

Reflecting the rapid advances in Solid Earth Geophysics over the past decade and the global need for an authentic update, this new edition of the Encyclopedia presents over 250 articles covering established and new concepts in Geophysics across various sub-disciplines such as Gravity, Geodesy, Geomagnetism, Seismology, Seismics, Deep Earth Processes, Plate Tectonics, Thermal Domains, Computational Methods, etc. in a systematic and consistent format. 

Offering an authoritative and current up-to-date reference source with extraordinary scope and gathering expert contributions by more than 300 authors around the globe, the new edition will serve as a valuable and cherished source of information for current and future generations of professionals.

Absolute Age Determinations: Radiometric;- Anthropogenic Seismicity Related to Exploitation of Georesources;- Archaeomagnetism;- Artificial Water Reservoir-Triggered Earthquakes, with Special Emphasis on Koyna, India;- Biogeophysics;- Body Waves;- Borehole Seismic Networks and Arrays;- Characteristic Earthquakes and Seismic Gaps;- Continental Crustal Structure;- Continental Drift;- Continental Rifts;- Core Dynamo;- Core-Mantle Coupling;- Crustal Reflectivity (Oceanic) and Magma Chamber;- Curie Temperature;- Deep Scientific Drilling;- Deep Seismic Reflection and Refraction Profiling;- Differential Rotation of the Earth’s Inner Core;- Earth Rotation;- Earth Tides;- Earth, Density Distribution;- Earth’s Structure, Core;- Earth’s Structure, Global;- Earth’s Structure, Lower Mantle;- Earth’s Structure, Upper Mantle;- Earthquake Lights;- Earthquake Precursors and Prediction;- Earthquake Prediction, M8 Algorithm;- Earthquake Rupture: The Inverse Problem;- Earthquake Sounds;- Earthquake Source Theory;- Earthquake, Aftershocks;- Earthquake, Archaeoseismology;- Earthquake, Focal Mechanism;- Earthquake, Foreshocks;- Earthquake, Magnitude;- Earthquakes and Crustal Deformation;- Earthquakes in the Himalaya;- Earthquakes on Oceanic Transform Faults, Unexpectedly Large;- Earthquakes, Did You Feel It?;- Earthquakes, Early and Strong Motion Warning;- Earthquakes, Energy;- Earthquakes, Intensity;- Earthquakes, Intraplate;- Earthquakes, Location Techniques;- Earthquakes, PAGER;- Earthquakes, ShakeCast;- Earthquakes, ShakeMap;- Earthquakes, Strong-Ground Motion;- Earthquakes, Volcanogenic;- Electrical Properties of Rocks;- Electrical Resistivity Surveys and Data Interpretation;- Electromagnetic Methods, Imaging Magma Bodies;- Electromagnetic Pulsations and Magnetic Storms;- Electronic Geophysical Year;- Energy Budget of the Earth;- Energy Partitioning of Seismic Waves;- Equatorial Electrojet;- Fault Zone Guided Waves;- Fiber Optic Distributed Strain Sensing for Seismic Applications;- Fiber-Optic Sensing in Geophysics, Temperature Measurements;- Floating Seismographs (MERMAIDS);- Fractal Scaling of Earthquakes;- Fractals and Chaos;- Free Oscillations of the Earth;- Geodesy, Figure of the Earth;- Geodesy, Ground Positioning, and Levelling;- Geodesy, Networks, and Reference Systems;- Geodesy, Physical;- Geodetic Pendulums, Horizontal Ultra Broad Band;- Geodynamics;- Geoelectromagnetism;- Geoid;- Geoid Determination, Computational Methods;- Geoid Determination, Theory and Principles;- Geoid Undulation, Interpretation;- Geomagnetic Excursions;- Geomagnetic Field, Global Pattern;- Geomagnetic Field, IGRF;- Geomagnetic Field, Measurement Techniques;- Geomagnetic Field, Polarity Reversals;- Geomagnetic Field, Secular Variation;- Geomagnetic Field, Theory;- Geomagnetically Induced Currents;- Geophysical Well Logging;- Geothermal Heat Pumps;- Geothermal Record of Climate Change;- GPS, Data Acquisition, and Analysis;- GPS, Tectonic Geodesy;- Gravimeters;- Gravity Anomalies, Interpretation;- Gravity Data, Advanced Processing;- Gravity Data, Regional: Residual Separation;- Gravity Field of the Earth;- Gravity Field, Temporal Variations from Space Techniques;- Gravity Field, Time Variations from Surface Measurements;- Gravity Measurements, Absolute;- Gravity Method, Airborne;- Gravity Method, Principles;- Gravity Method, Satellite;- Gravity Method, Surface;- Gravity Modeling, Theory and Computation;- Gravity, Data to Anomalies;- Gravity, Global Models;- Gravity, Gradiometry;- Great Earthquakes;- Heat and Ground Water Flow;- Heat Flow Determinations, Continental;- Heat Flow, Continental;- Heat Flow, Seafloor: Methods and Observations;- Height Systems, Vertical Datums and Their Unification;- High-frequency Seismology;- Impact Craters on Earth;- Instrumentation, Electrical Resistivity;- Instrumentation, EM;- International Geophysical Year;- International Gravity Formula;- International Polar Year 2007–2008;- International Year of Planet Earth;- Inverse Theory, Artificial Neural Networks;- Inverse Theory, Global Optimization;- Inverse Theory, Linear;- Inverse Theory, Monte Carlo Method;- Inverse Theory, Singular Value Decomposition;- Isostasy;- Isostasy, Thermal;- KTB Depth Laboratory: A Window into the Upper Crust;- Legal Continental Shelf: Geology, Geophysics, and Tectonics;- Lithosphere, Continental;- Lithosphere, Continental: Thermal Structure;- Lithosphere, Mechanical Properties;- Lithosphere, Oceanic;- Lithosphere, Oceanic: Thermal Structure;- Lithospheric Magnetic Anomalies From Satellite Data;- Magnetic Anisotropy;- Magnetic Anomalies, Interpretation;- Magnetic Anomaly Map, Global;- Magnetic Data Enhancements and Depth Estimation;- Magnetic Domains;- Magnetic Gradiometry;- Magnetic Gradiometry in Archaeo-geophysics;- Magnetic Methods, Airborne;- Magnetic Methods, Principles;- Magnetic Methods, Surface;- Magnetic Modeling, Theory and Computation;- Magnetometers;- Magnetotelluric Data Processing;- Magnetotelluric Interpretation;- Magnetotellurics, Crustal Imaging;- Magnetovariation Studies;- Mantle Convection;- Mantle D″ Layer;- Mantle Plume – Spreading Ridge Interactions;- Mantle Plumes;- Mantle Viscosity;- Mapping of Magnetic Variations from Space;- Microcontinents;- Numerical Methods for Flow in Fractured Porous Media;- Numerical Methods, Boundary Element;- Numerical Methods, Domain Decomposition;- Numerical Methods, Finite Difference;- Numerical Methods, Finite Element;- Numerical Methods, Multigrid;- Ocean Bottom Seismics;- Ocean, Spreading Center;- Orogenic Belts;- Paleomagnetic Field Intensity;- Paleomagnetism, Magnetostratigraphy;- Paleomagnetism, Measurement Techniques and Instrumentation;- Paleomagnetism, Polar Wander;- Paleomagnetism, Principles;- Paleoseismology;- Plate Motions in Time: Inferences on Driving and Resisting Forces;- Plate Tectonics, Precambrian;- Plate-Driving Forces;- Plates and Paleoreconstructions;- Poroelasticity;- Propagation of Elastic Waves: Fundamentals;- Radioactivity in Earth’s Core;- Radiogenic Heat Production in the Continental Crust;- Radiogenic Heat Production of Rocks;- Recovery of Source Magnetization Direction from Magnetic Field Data;- Remanent Magnetism;- Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques for Tectonic Studies;- Remote Sensing, Applications to Geophysics;- SAR Interferometry;- Satellite Altimetry;- Seafloor Spreading;- Sedimentary Basins;- Seismic Data Acquisition and Processing;- Seismic Diffraction;- Seismic Discontinuities in the Transition Zone;- Seismic Hazard;- Seismic Imaging, Overview;- Seismic Instrumentation;- Seismic Microzonation;- Seismic Monitoring of Nuclear Explosions;- Seismic Noise;- Seismic Phase Nomenclature: The IASPEI Standard;- Seismic Properties of Rocks;- Seismic Quiescence and Activation;- Seismic Ray Theory;- Seismic Reservoir Characterization;- Seismic Seiches;- Seismic Signals in Well Water Observations;- Seismic Stereotomography;- Seismic Structure at Mid-Ocean Ridges;- Seismic Tomography;- Seismic Velocity and Temperature Relationships;- Seismic Viscoelastic Attenuation;- Seismic Wave Propagation in Real Media: Numerical Modeling Approaches;- Seismic Waves, Scattering;- Seismic Zonation;- Seismic, Ambient Noise Correlation;- Seismic, Artificial Intelligence to Neural Intelligence for Advanced Interpretation;- Seismic, Migration;- Seismic, Receiver Function Technique;- Seismic, Reflectivity Method;- Seismic, Super-Virtual Refraction Interferometry;- Seismic, Velocity, and Density Relationships;- Seismic, Waveform Modeling and Tomography;- Seismicity, Intraplate;- Seismicity, Subduction Zone;- Seismogram Interpretation;- Seismological Networks;- Seismology and Environment;- Seismology, Global Earthquake Model;- Seismology, Monitoring of CTBT;- Seismology, Rotational;- Sentinel Satellites Initiate New Era in Earth Observatories;- Shear-Wave Splitting: New Geophysics and Earthquake Stress-Forecasting;- Single and Multichannel Seismics;- Slow Earthquake;- Spherical Harmonic Analysis Applied to Potential Fields;- Statistical Seismology;- Subduction Zones;- Surface Waves;- T Waves;- Tectonic Geomorphology;- Thermal Storage and Transport Properties of Rocks, I: Heat Capacity and Latent Heat;- Thermal Storage and Transport Properties of Rocks, II: Thermal Conductivity and Diffusivity;- Time-Dependent Seismic Hazard Assessment;- Time-Reversal in Seismology;- TOPO-EUROPE – From the Deep Earth to the Surface of Continental Europe and Its Margins;- Total Electron Content in Seismo-Ionospheric Studies;- Tracking Earth’s Water in Motion from Satellite Gravity Observations;- Trans-European Suture Zone;- Traveltime Tomography Using Controlled-Source Seismic Data;- Tsunami;- Tsunami Watch and Warning Centers;- Tsunami: Bay of Bengal;- Uncertainties in Geomodelling Related to Geophysical Inversion;- Unified Scaling Law for Earthquakes that Generalizes the Fundamental Gutenberg-Richter Relationship;- Vertical Seismic Profiling;- Very Long Baseline Interferometry;- Wavelet Analysis;-

Harsh K. Gupta is currently a Member of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (India) and President of the Geological Society of India. He has previously been a Member of National Disaster Management Authority (India), Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Ocean Development, Director of the National Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, Vice Chancellor of Cochin University of Science and Technology and a Professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, USA. He is internationally respected for his work on artificial water reservoir-triggered earthquakes and developing criteria to distinguish them from normal earthquakes. As the Leader of the 3rd Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica during 1983-84, he succeeded in setting up India’s first permanent Antarctic research station ‘Dakshin Gangotri’ in just one Antarctic summer, which is still a record. 

He chaired the Steering Committee of the Global Seismic Hazard Program. After the disastrous 2004 Sumatra earthquake, he spearheaded the establishment of the Indian Tsunami Early Warning system. He has published over 200 articles in reviewed journals, authored 5 books that have been published by Elsevier and Springer. He is a recipient of e.g. the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize; Waldo E. Smith Medal of American Geophysical Union; USSR Academy of Sciences ‘100 years of International Geophysics Memorial Medal’; the Axford Gold Medal of the Asia Oceania Geosciences Society (AOGS) and the National Mineral Award of Excellence among many honors. He is a Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy, The World Academy of Sciences and American Geophysical Union. He has been President of the IUGG, the AOGS and is the Founder President of the Asian Seismological Commission.

Vital resource for Geophysics students and professionals

Details well-established and newly emerging concepts

Features contributions by over 340 leading authorities