Comparison of Numerical Methods for Seismic Wave Propagation and Source Dynamics - the SPICE Code Validation

The Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) organized the 3D Numerical Simulation Code Validation Project for wave propagation in the past years. Recently, SCEC organizes an earthquake source physics code validation/comparison exercise. The goal of both efforts is to validate 3D earthquake simulation methods and foster their application by engineering community. Development of the earthquake motion numerical simulation methods is one of the primary goals of the Seismic Wave Propagation and Imaging in Complex Media: a European Network (SPICE, www.spicertn. org), the EU FP6 project. SPICE provides a reasonable platform for a code validation effort in Europe. We present here the SPICE Code Validation. The intention is to create a long-term basis for possible tests/comparisons/validation of numerical methods and codes for the earthquake motion simulation. The basis should serve even after the SPICE project is completed. Technically, the code validation process will be facilitated using the web-based interface (http://www.nuquake.eu/SPICECVal/). The submitted solutions will be evaluated and compared using quantitative misfit criteria based on the time-frequency representation of the signals