MODERN CRUSTAL MOVEMENTS OF THE ARMENIAN HIGHLAND BASED ON HYDROGEOCHEMICAL MONITORING RESULTS

The paper presents the results of hydrogeochemical monitoring of modern geodynamic 
processes in the Earth's crust of the Armenian Highland preceding earthquakes and other 
tectonic processes within the Earth's crust. The application of the hydrogeochemical monitoring 
method for seismotectonic processes includes continuous collection of information on changes 
in the chemical composition of waters to identify and study effects genetically associated with 
the processes of preparation and occurrence of strong tectonic earthquakes, primarily precursor 
effects. Among the broad range of methods currently used for studying precursors of 
seismotectonic movements (seismological, hydrogeodynamic, deformation, and others), the 
role of geochemical methods appears to be the most effective at the stage of short-term and 
operational forecasting. It has been revealed that changes in hydrogeochemical indicators 
considered as predictive signs should exhibit an “anomalous” character, i.e., significantly differ 
from background variations. The paper examines seismicity data (earthquake catalog for 2019
2023), constructs a seismicity map, and determines the spatial-temporal characteristics of 
seismicity distribution within the territory of Armenia