Russian Scientific Experience of Using Web-based Geoinformation Systems in Seismology

Web GIS technologies are widely used to present the results of scientific geospatial projects in a range of thematic areas. Monitoring of tectonic processes and seismic activity, construction and updating of seismic hazard maps and seismic risk maps at global and regional scales require timely display implemented in web-GIS. Differences between web-based GIS in seismology and web-based GIS for other disciplines in geosciences are shown, consisting of the type of data used, importance of the aspect of time, spatial localization, need for a modeling and forecasting environment, user interface and target audience. Characteristics of developments and current state of web-GIS on seismology in scientific organizations of Russia are given. An analysis of web-GIS technologies in Russian seismology was carried out: projects relevant for May–June 2025 were systematized, their comparison was carried out according to the technology used, functionality, content, the possibility of transferring scientific experience and data by the users. We described web-GIS projects of the Institute of Earthquake Prediction Theory and Mathematical Geophysics (IEPT RAS), deployed using QGIS server at the Institute's IT infrastructure. Interactive geoinformation Institute’s projects contain data on three research topics: “Global test for the real-time prediction of world strongest earthquakes”, “Lineaments and places of strong earthquakes’ possible occurrence” and database “East Arctic earthquake source mechanisms”. First one shows results of medium-term forecast using the M8 algorithm at global scale, second – results of seismic hazard’s degree recognition at the intersection of lineaments of various ranks, obtained as result of author’s morphostructural zoning for several world regions as Italian region, Central French Massif, Iberian Peninsula, Black-Caspian and South Siberia. The earthquake source mechanism database includes processed data for the earthquakes that occurred in 1927–2022 in the Eastern Arctic. As review results, we noted trends in seismological web GIS as an integration and analytics environment: the spread of client-server architecture with microservices, local servers, use of Big Data and digital twins. An example of the joint use and development of web GIS in a scientific academic organization and university is given.