Satellite radar detects 230-kilometer high stress fault line in eastern Türkiye

ZONGULDAK

Satellite-based radar analyses have revealed a previously unrecognized seismic stress zone in eastern Türkiye, raising concerns over earthquake potential in the region.

Professor Şenol Hakan Kutoğlu of the Engineering Faculty at Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University announced that researchers have identified a 230-kilometer-long fault zone east of Lake Van, extending from south to north and encompassing the districts of Muradiye and Doğubayazıt.

According to Kutoğlu, the newly mapped structure produces levels of tectonic stress commparable to those observed along the North Anatolian Fault, one of the country’s most active and hazardous fault systems.

The findings emerge from a joint study conducted with the University of Leeds, using radar data collected between 2020 and 2024. By monitoring millimeter-scale crustal movements, the team generated deformation and velocity maps that reveal how strain accumulates over time.

In the color-coded stress maps derived from radar data, red zones indicate areas experiencing the highest annual strain. These sections accumulate energy more rapidly and are therefore considered to have a higher potential for generating large earthquakes.

Kutoğlu noted that while the North Anatolian Fault, stretching roughly 1,500 kilometers from east to west, remains one of the fastest-straining fault lines in the country, the newly detected zonehad not previously been identified as a concentrated stress corridor.

He emphasized that the 230-kilometer structure incorporates multiple fault systems. Although a magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck the area in 1976, that event occurred within only a limited segment of the broader high-stress zone now identified.

“This region should be carefully studied in earthquake risk reduction planning,” Kutoğlu said, urging authorities to integrate the findings into disaster mitigation strategies.

Pointing to Türkiye’s dense network of active faults, Kutoğlu warned against focusing solely on well-known seismic hotspots.

“When we concentrate on a single region, we risk overlooking emerging threats elsewhere,” he said, underlining the importance of continuous geodetic monitoring to better anticipate future seismic hazards.