Site effect study in central Mexico using H/V and SSR techniques: Independence of seismic site effects on source characteristics

We study the influence of different source characteristics (depth, distance, type and azimuth) on the site effect in Acapulco and the Valley of Mexico. Site amplification was estimated by means of spectral ratios (both horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio and standard spectral ratio techniques were applied) from earthquake recordings at soft and hard sites. In Acapulco, 125 Mexican earthquakes covering a hypocentral range of 7–290 km and a depth range (H) of 3–61 km were analyzed in three different groups of hypocentral distances. In the Valley of Mexico, we estimate site effect at five locations using recordings from shallow-coastal interplate (200⩽Δ⩽570 km; H⩽35 km) and normal-faulting, intermediate-depth inslab (132⩽Δ⩽738 km; 32⩽H⩽178 km) earthquakes, as well as from teleseismic events. Our results seem to point to negligible dependence of site effects on the source location and type.