In her doctoral work, Annie and colleagues have researched seismic activity in the North Sea. The North Sea is a unique area, both due to the potential for CO₂ storage in the future and for today’s oil and gas operations. The thesis conducts a thorough analysis of earthquake activity in the North Sea. 

Certain areas in the North Sea exhibit elevated seismic activity, such as the 300 km-long Viking Graben and the northern part of the sea. Although the tremors are typically not very strong, several significant earthquakes have occurred, including one with a magnitude of 5.1 in March 2022. Insights into these events are necessary to carry out comprehensive risk assessments when developing infrastructure in the area. The thesis addresses the limitations of current analysis methods and the high uncertainties related to the localisation of earthquakes. These uncertainties are due both to the station network and the use of oversimplified models. 

Prior to the defence, Annie held a trial lecture on the exploitation of geothermal energy and seismicity (geothermal energy exploitation and seismicity). Photo: NORSAR

It has been enjoyable and educational to work with experts from both NORSAR and the University of Bergen through the NNSN project. The work has felt meaningful, and an improved understanding of earthquakes in the North Sea is, for example, important in connection with large-scale CO₂ storage.

Annie's PhD was awarded by the Department of Geosciences under the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at the University of Oslo. Her supervisors were research leader at NORSAR Volker Oye, Prof. Valerie Maupin (UiO), Prof. Lars Ottemöller (UiB) and Felix Halpaap (UiB).

Read more about the defence here: Defence - Annie Elisabeth Jerkins.

Our warmest congratulations!