Abstract
This paper presents results from a study of variations in short-period shear-wave attenuation in the lithosphere of the Baikal Rift Zone (BRZ). We used earthquake records made at the Ulan-Bator station (ULN) at epicentral distances of ∼400–1300 km. The ratios of maximum amplitudes in the Sn and Pn waves were considered. We show that these ratios are on the whole considerably higher than those in other areas of Central Asia. It was found that zones of low shear wave attenuation coincide with the rupture zones of large earthquakes that occurred during the 19th and 20th centuries. We identified zones of high attenuation where no large (M∼ > 7.0) seismic events have occurred during at least 180 years. The hypothesis we propose is that precursory processes before future large earthquakes may be occurring in these zones. We discuss the question of whether wave attenuation characteristics may be related to seismicity.