Experimental observations of radon emission at the Chervonaya Sloboda-Malodusha fault due to induced seismicity within the Soligorsk Mining Region

The Starobin deposit of potassium salts is the largest one in Europe, it was discovered in 1949 and has been developed since the early 1960s. Together with the town of Soligorsk and its adjacent territories it forms the Soligorsk mining region. This region is located in the Starobin centrocline within the Pripyat Trough northwestern part and is characterized by a high level of man-made impact on the subsoil due to the underground development of potash horizons. The problem of increased geodynamic activity monitoring within the territory of the Soligorsk mining region has become extremely urgent since the end of the 1970s, when the first significant earthquake occurred there on the 10th of May, 1978 (Aronov et al., 2010). Experimental investigations, aimed at measuring the radon volume activity, were carried out on the outskirts of Minsk in the winter period 2024—2025 and in the southern part of the Starobin potassium salt deposit within the Chervonay Sloboda-Malodusha fault in the autumn–summer period 2025. Measuring System “Alpharad plus” for radon volume activity monitoring equipped with data transmission capability was used for experimental observations. Measurements were carried out in accordance with the diagrams and modes recommended by the System manufacturer (Manual, 2021). First results of the radon emission monitoring were obtained, and a series of anomalous radon emission values was observed prior to the occurrence of seismic events.