According to the well-known Lithosphere Ionosphere Coupling (LAIC) mechanism, tectonic activity during the earthquake preparation period produces anomalies at the ground level which propagate upwards in the troposphere as Acoustic or Standing gravity waves. Thus observing the frequency content of the ionospheric turbidity in a well extended area, in space and time, around an earthquake event we will observe a decrease of the higher limit of the turbidity frequency band. In this article we review the repeated observational results of TEC turbulent band upper limit (TBUL) on the occasion of strong earthquakes. Regorus earthquake risk estimation can not be extracted from our result since the characteristics of each event is diferent(i.e Magnitude ,epicentral distance of the nearest GPS station ect..). Nevertheless continuous monitoring of the TEC (TBUL) fo and the alarming for further investigation by comparing with the TBUL of distant stations and with the results of seismical monitoring, as well as with the results of other near earth surface precursor methods, if the TBUL tend to around 0.001Hz..

This paper is one of a series of papers dealing with the investigation of the Lower ionospheric variation on the occasion of an intense tectonic activity.In the present paper, we investigate the TEC variations during the intense seismic activity in the transition between the Dead Sea fault and the East Anatolian fault (SE Turkey) on February 6th, 2023. The Total Electron Content (TEC) data are been provided by the EUREF Network. These data were analysed using Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC turbulence band content. The results of this investigation indicate that the High-Frequency limit fo of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases as aproaching the occurrence time of the earthquake, pointing to the earthquake epicenter, in accordane to our previous investigations. We conclude that the Lithosphere Atmosphere Ionosphere Coupling, LAIC, mechanism through acoustic or gravity waves could explain this phenomenology. Keywords: Seismicity, Lower Ionosphere, Ionospheric Turbulence, Brownian Walk, East Anatolian Fault.

We report on the recent earthquakes (EQs) that occurred, with the main shock on 6 February 2023, principally in the central southern part of Turkey and northwestern Syria. This region is predisposed to earthquakes because of the tectonic plate movements between Anatolian, Arabian, and African plates. The seismic epicenter was localized at 37.08°E and 37.17°N with depth in the order of 10 km and magnitude Mw7.8. We use Graz’s very-low-frequency VLF facility (15.43°E, 47.06°N) to investigate the amplitude variation in the Denizköy VLF transmitter, localized in the Didim district of Aydin Province in the western part of the Anatolian region in Turkey. Denizköy VLF transmitter is known as Bafa transmitter (27.31°E, 37.40°N), radiating at a frequency of 26.7 kHz under the callsign TBB. This signal is detected daily by the Graz facility with an appropriate signal-to-noise ratio, predominantly during night observations. We study in this analysis the variations of TBB amplitude and phase signals as detected by the Graz facility two weeks before the earthquake occurrence. It is essential to note that the TBB VLF transmitter station and the Graz facility are included in the preparation seismic area, as derived from the Dobrovolsky relationship. We have applied the multi-terminators method (MTM), revealing anomalies occurring at sunset and sunrise terminator occasions and derived from the amplitude and the phase. Minima and maxima of the TBB signal are linked to three terminators, i.e., Graz facility, TBB transmitter, and EQ epicenter, by considering the MTM method. We show that the significant anomalies are those linked to the EQ epicenter. This leads us to make evident the precursor seismic anomaly, which appears more than one week (i.e., 27 January 2023) before EQ occurrence. They can be considered the trace, the sign, and the residue of the sub-ionospheric propagation of the TBB transmitter signal disturbed along its ray path above the preparation EQ zone. We find that the sunrise–sunset anomalies are associated with tectonic regions. One is associated with the Arabian–African tectonic plates with latitudinal stresses in the south–north direction, and the second with the African–Anatolian tectonic plates with longitudinal stresses in the east–west direction. The terminator time shift anomalies prior to EQ are probably due to the lowering (i.e., minima) and raising (i.e., maxima) of the ionospheric electron density generated by atmospheric gravity waves.

In this paper we investigate the Lower ionospheric variations from TEC observations during the intense seismic activity of October 2020 in the area of Greece (35 o £ j £ 42o N, 19 o £ l £ 29o E). The Total Electron Content (TEC) data are been provided by the Hermes GNSS Network managed by GNSS_QC, AUTH Greece, the HxGN/SmartNet-Greece of Metrica S.A, and the EUREF Network. These data were analysed using both, statistical analysis of TEC variations in order to detect uneven gross variations and Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC turbulence. The results of this investigation indicate that the High- Frequency limit fo of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases as aproaching the occurrence time of the earthquake, pointing to the earthquake epicenter, in accordane to our previous investigations (Contadakis et al., 2009; Contadakis et al., 2012; Contadakis et al., 2015; Scordilis et al., 2020). We conclude that the LAIC mechanism through acoustic or gravity waves could explain this phenomenology. Thus, observing the frequency content of the ionospheric turbidity we observe a decrease of the higher limit of the turbitity frequency band, as a result of the differential frequency attenuation of the propagating wave. In addition, the statistical analysis shows an excess greater than 3σ from the mean TEC values one and seven days before the earthquake. Since no major disturbance of the geomagnetic field occured during these days, we conclude that we probably observed precursory Ionospheric variations in accordance to analogous findings from the variation of VH/VHF electromagnetic wave propagrations over strong earthquake areas (e.g. Biagi et al. 2019) References Biagi and 11 co authors, The INFREP Network: Present Situation andRecent Results. Open Journal of Earthquake Research, vol.8, p. 101-115, 2019. Contadakis, M.E., Arabelos, D.N., Asteriadis, G., Spatalas, S.D., Pikridas, C., TEC variations over the Mediterranean during the seismic activity period of the last quarter of 2005 in the area of Greece, Nat. Hazards and Earth Syst. Sci., 8, 1267-1276, 2008. Contadakis, M.E., Arabelos, D.N., Asteriadis, G., Spatalas, S.D., Pikridas, C. TEC variations over Southern Europe before and during the M6.3 Abruzzo earthquake of 6th April 2009, Annals of Geophysics, vol. 55, iss. 1, p. 83-93, 2012. Contadakis, M. E., Arabelos, D.N., Vergos, G., Spatalas, S. D., Scordilis, E.M., 2015,TEC variations over the Mediterranean before and during the strong earthquake (M = 6.5) of 12th October 2013 in Crete, Greece, Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Volume 85, p. 9-16., 2015. Scordilis E.M., Contadakis M.E, Vallianatos F., Spatalas S., Lower Ionospheric turbulence variations during the intense tectonic activity in Eastern Aegean area, Annals of Geophysics, 63, 5, PA544, 2020

This is one of a series of papers in which we investigate the Lower ionospheric variation on the occasion of intense tectonic activity.In the present paper, we investigate the TEC variations during the intense seismic activity in Thessaly, on March 2021 over Europe. The Total Electron Content (TEC) data are been provided by the Hermes GNSS Network managed by GNSS_QC, AUTH Greece, the HxGN/SmartNet-Greece of Metrica S.A, and the EUREF Network. These data were analysed using Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC turbulence. The results of this investigation indicate that the High-Frequency limit fo of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases as aproaching the occurrence time of the earthquake, pointing to the earthquake epicenter, in accordane to our previous investigations. We conclude that the Lithosphere Atmosphere Ionosphere Coupling, LAIC, mechanism through acoustic or gravity waves could explain this phenomenology. Keywords: Seismicity, Lower Ionosphere, Ionospheric Turbulence, Brownian Walk, Aegean area.

<p>This paper is one of a series of papers dealing with the investigation of  the Lower ionospheric variation on the occasion of an intense tectonic activity.In the present paper, we investigate the TEC variations during the intense seismic activity in Arkalochori of Crete on December 2021 over Europe. The Total Electron Content (TEC) data are been provided by the  Hermes GNSS Network managed by GNSS_QC, AUTH Greece, the HxGN/SmartNet-Greece of Metrica S.A, and the EUREF Network. These data were analysed using Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC turbulence band content. The results of this investigation indicate that the High-Frequency limit <em>f<sub>o </sub></em>of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases as aproaching the occurrence time of the earthquake, pointing to the earthquake epicenter, in accordane to our previous investigations. We conclude that the Lithosphere Atmosphere Ionosphere Coupling, LAIC, mechanism through acoustic or gravity waves could explain this phenomenology.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Keywords: </strong>Seismicity, Lower Ionosphere, Ionospheric Turbulence, Brownian Walk, Aegean area.</p>

This paper is one of a series of papers dealing with the investigation of the Lower ionospheric variation on the occasion of an intense tectonic activity.In the present paper, we investigate the TEC variations during the intense seismic activity in Arkalochori of Crete on December 2021 over Europe. The Total Electron Content (TEC) data are been provided by the Hermes GNSS Network managed by GNSS_QC, AUTH Greece, the HxGN/SmartNet-Greece of Metrica S.A, and the EUREF Network. These data were analysed using Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC turbulence band content. The results of this investigation indicate that the High-Frequency limit fo of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases as aproaching the occurrence time of the earthquake, pointing to the earthquake epicenter, in accordane to our previous investigations. We conclude that the Lithosphere Atmosphere Ionosphere Coupling, LAIC, mechanism through acoustic or gravity waves could explain this phenomenology. Keywords: Seismicity, Lower Ionosphere, Ionospheric Turbulence, Brownian Walk, Aegean area.

Since 2009, several VLF/LF radio receivers have been installed throughout Europe in order to realize a European radio network for studying the radio precursors of earthquakes, called the INFREP network. The current network has nine VLF/LF receiving stations, two in Romania and Greece, one in Italy, Austria, Portugal, Cyprus, and Serbia. The receivers can measure with 1 min sampling rate the intensity of 10 radio signals in the band VLF (10-50 kHz) and LF (150-300 kHz). The scope of existing transmitters is manifold, e.g. they are used for radio broadcast (LF), for radio-navigation or time signals and mainly for military purposes in the VLF range. At the end of January 2020 an intense seismic crisis occurred in Dodecanese Islands; the main event (Mw= 6.0) occurred on January 30. This seismic activity occurred in the "sensitive" area of the INFREP network. The analysis of the data collected by INFREP receivers has revealed clear anomalies in three VLF signals appearing some days before the main earthquake. The anomalies appear in the trends collected by the Cyprus receiver and the epicenter is inside the 5th Fresnel ellipses defined by transmitters-receiver. Here we report the data analysis and we present in detail the anomalies. The possibility that they are precursors of the quoted earthquake seems significant. Biagi, P.F., Colella, R., Schiavulli, L., Ermini, A., Boudjada, M., Eichelberger, H., Schwingenschuh, K., Katzis, K., Contadakis, M.E., Skeberis, C., Moldovan, I.A. and Bezzeghoud, M. (2019) The INFREP Network: Present Situation and Recent Results. Open Journal of Earthquake Research,8, 101-115. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojer.2019.82007

We analyze the radio wave propagations of VLF/LF transmitter signals along subionospheric paths using two different reception systems localized in the Graz seismo-electromagnetic facility (15.43E,47.06N). Those systems allow the simultaneous detection of more than fifteen transmitter signals emitting in the northern (i.e. France, Germany and United Kingdom) and southern (i.e. Italy and Turkey) parts of Europe. In this work, we investigate the transmitter radio wave propagations associated with two earthquakes (EQs) which occurred, at two occasions, in nearly the same Croatian regions (Geo. Long.=16°E; Geo. Lat.=45°N). The first and second EQs happened, respectively, on March 22 and December 29, 2020, with magnitudes Mw equal to 5.4 and 6.4. The use of two complementary reception systems, i.e. INFREP (Biagi et al., Open Journal of Earthquake Research, 8, 2019) and UltraMSK (Schwingenschuh et al., Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 11, 2011), and the proximity to the epicenters lead us to characterize the behavior of the transmitter signal amplitudes particularly above the Croatian seismic regions. We analyze the amplitude variation for a given transmitter frequency starting few weeks before the earthquakes occurrences. We discuss the observed anomalies in the transmitter signals which may be considered as precursors due to the ionospheric disturbances of the transmitter ray paths above the earthquakes preparation zones.

Since 2009, several radio receivers have been installed throughout Europe in order to realize the INFREP European radio network for studying the VLF (10-50 kHz) and LF (150-300 kHz) radio precursors of earthquakes. Precursors can be related to “anomalies” in the night-time behavior of VLF signals. A suitable method of analysis is the use of the Wavelet spectra. Using the “Morlet function”, the Wavelet transform of a time signal is a complex series that can be usefully represented by its square amplitude, i.e. considering the so-called Wavelet power spectrum. The power spectrum is a 2D diagram that, once properly normalized with respect to the power of the white noise, gives information on the strength and precise time of occurrence of the various Fourier components, which are present in the original time series. The main difference between the Wavelet power spectra and the Fourier power spectra for the time series is that the former identifies the frequency content along the operational time, which cannot be done with the latter. Anomalies are identified as regions of the Wavelet spectrogram characterized by a sudden increase in the power strength. On January 30, 2020 an earthquake with Mw= 6.0 occurred in Dodecanese Islands. The results of the Wavelet analysis carried out on data collected some INFREP receivers is compared with the trends of the raw data. The time series from January 24, 2020 till January 31, 2000 was analyzed. The Wavelet spectrogram shows a peak corresponding to a period of 1 day on the days before January 30. This anomaly was found for signals transmitted at the frequencies 19,58 kHz, 20, 27 kHz, 23,40 kHz with an energy in the peak increasing from 19,58 kHz to 23,40 kHz. In particular, the signal at the frequency 19,58 kHz, shows a peak on January 29, while the frequencies 20,27 kHz and 23,40 kHz are characterized by a peak starting on January 28 and continuing to January 29. The results presented in this work shows the perspective use of the Wavelet spectrum analysis as an operational tool for the detection of anomalies in VLF and LF signal potentially related to EQ precursors.

This paper may be considered as an additional approval of the way the tectonic activity affects the lower Ionosphere. The results of our investigation, on the occasion of the recent East Aegean tectonic activity, indicate that the High - Frequency limit, f(o), of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases as the site and the time of the earthquake occurrence is approaching, pointing to the earthquake location.We conclude that the Lithosphere Atmosphere Ionosphere Coupling (LAIC) mechanism through acoustic or gravity wave could explain this phenomenology, as a result of a the frequency differential damping of the propagating turbulent in the ionosphere. Proper use of this result may lead to a method of earthquake hazard mitigation using the byproducts of the Global Positioning Network (actually Total Electron Contain, TEC, estimations) which are available freely.

In this paper we investigate the variation of the tidal triggering effect efficiency, by means of the tidal seismicity compliance parameter p, and the lower Ionosphere variations, by means of the variation of the High-Frequency limit, f o , of the ionospheric turbulence content with the time and space proximity to the site of the earthquake occurrence as well as by the intensity variations of VLF signals transmitted over the seismic area. It is shown that the “Earth tides-seismicity compliance parameter” p may be used as a medium time earthquake warning while the frequency content of the ionospheric turbulence over the earthquake epicenter, deduced directly from GPS network TEC observations or indirectly through the VLF transmission network, may be used for the short time earthquake forecasting, deserving the special attention of the authorities, the scientists and the society.

In this paper we investigate the ionospheric turbulence from TEC observations before and during the tectonic activity of the last quarter of 2019 in the Hellenic Arc, Greece (main shock at l=23.26oE, j=35.69oN, Mw=6.1). The Total Electron Content (TEC) data of 6 Global Positioning System (GPS) stations of the EUREF network, which are being provided by IONOLAB (Turkey), were analysed using Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC variations. The results of this investigation indicate that the High- Frequency limit fo, of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases by aproaching the site and the time of the earthquake occurrence, pointing to the earthquake location (epicenter). We conclude that the LAIC mechanism through acoustic or gravity wave could explain this phenomenology.

In this paper, we investigate the ionospheric turbulence from TEC observations, before and during the intense seismic activity of September 2019 at Albania (main shock at l=19.445oE, j=41.372o N, Mw=5.6) and at Marmara sea (main shock at l=28.19 oE, j=40.872oN, Mw=5.7), as well as of November 2019 at Albania (main shock at l=19.470oE, j=41.381oN, Mw=6.4), and at Bosnia-Herzegovina (main shock at l=17.961oE, j=43.196oN, Mw=5.4). The Total Electron Content (TEC) data of 6 Global Positioning System (GPS) stations of the EUREF network, which are being provided by IONOLAB (Turkey), were analysed using Discrete Fourier Analysis in order to investigate the TEC variations. The results of this investigation indicate that the High- Frequency limit fo, of the ionospheric turbulence content, increases by aproaching the site and the time of the earthquake occurrence, pointing to the earthquake location (epicenter). We conclude that the LAIC mechanism, through acoustic or gravity wave, could explain this phenomenology. In addition the proximity of the tectonic active areas to the GPS stations offer us an opportunity to discriminate the origin of the disturbances

In this paper, we present an investigation on the ionospheric turbulence from TEC observations before and during the recent activity of Etna’s Volcano. Mount Etna is located close to the eastern coast of Sicily. The last eruption of Etna volcano took place on 24 December 2018 while two days later (26 December, 02:19 UTC) an earthquake of M=5.0 occurred ~15 km to the ESE of the volcano, causing damage to the nearby city of Catania. The results of our investigation, on the occasion of the Etna’s Volcanic activity, indicate that the high-frequency limit fo of the ionospheric turbulence band content, is increasing with time to the volcano eruption while, at the same time, fo isdecreasing with distance from the volcano. We conclude that the LAIC mechanism through acoustic or gravity waves could explain this phenomenology, as it has happened in cases of earthquake activity. Our observations indicate that the effect of volcanic eruption on the band content of the ionospheric turbulence is insignificant at distances greater than 1000km (at the most), a fact that we must consider in our research on Ionospheric turbulence in relation to earthquake precursors research.

VLF/LF (20 -300 kHz) radio waves propagation is affected by different factors such as meteorological conditions, solar bursts and geomagnetic activity.At the same time, variations of some parameters in the ground, in the atmosphere and in the ionosphere occurring during the preparatory phase of earthquakes can produce disturbances in the propagation of the previous signals along their radio paths: these disturbances are the radio precursors.Since 2009, several VLF/LF radio receivers have been installed throughout Europe in order to realize a European (VLF/LF) radio network for studying the VLF/LF radio precursors of earthquakes, called the INFREP network.In this paper, at first the description of the present situation of the INFREP network is presented, that is: the location of the receivers, the location of the VLF/LF transmitters whose signal is sampled, the daily download of the data collected by the receivers on the INFREP server and the method of data analysis used in order to individuate possible radio precursors.Then the results obtained on the occasion of recent (2016-2017) seismic activities which occurred in the "sensitive" zone of the INFREP network are presented.The first case examined is the October 30, 2016 earthquake with M w = 6.5, which occurred in Central Italy, near Norcia small town; this earthquake was preceded by a strong shock (M w = 5.9) which occurred 4 days before.The second case presented is the strong (M w = 6.7) offshore earthquake which occurred on July 20, 2017, near the coast of Turkey and Kos island (Greece) and the third case is the August 8, 2017 earthquake with M w = 5.0, which also occurred near the coast of Turkey and Kos island (Greece).In all the previous cases radio anomalies were revealed in some radio signals collected by the receiver lo-