Vipul Silwal
Assistant Professor
Department of Earth Sciences
International Center of Excellence for Dams ICED (Joint Faculty)
Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR)
Uttarakhand, India


 Education
Ph.D. in Geophysics, University of Alaska Fairbanks , 2012 - 2018
Integrated Masters (B.Sc. + M.Sc.) in Exploration Geophysics, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, 2007 - 2012		 There is an image here

Contact info
Email:        vipul.silwal[at]es.iitr.ac.in, vipulsilwal[at]gmail.com
Address:    Room No. 115
                  Department of Earth Sciences
                  Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee
                  Roorkee Uttarakhand 247667
Phone:       +91 (01332) 284911

Links
 Research
 CV (pdf)
 Github page
Group members
Field trips
 Research Interests:
  • Seismic source characterization
  • Seismic event detection using AI/ML techniques
  • 3D Numerical Modeling
  • Geophysical Inversion
  • Dam Instrumentation and Monitoring
  • Full Waveform Inversion (FWI)/tomography
  • Non-Destructive Testing

Teaching:
 1. ESN-421 Numerical modeling in Geosciences (Autumn)
2. ESN-510 Numerical techniques and computer programming (Autumn)
3. ESN-422 Geophysical Inversion (Spring)
4. ESN-472 Advanced Seismology (Spring)
5. DSR-505 Dam Safety Surveillance, Instrumentation and Monitoring (Spring)

Course content: Link
Classes Github page: https://github.com/vsilwal/classes

Workshop Organized: COMPUTATIONAL SEISMOLOGY 2025





 
Publications
  1. Singh, S. P., Padhy, S*, and Silwal, V (2025). A High-resolution 3D Shear Velocity Model for Cameroon using Ambient Noise Tomography: Constraints from the CPSO algorithm, Geophysical Journal International, Volume 242, Issue 2, August 2025, ggaf227, https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggaf227.

  2. Mahanta, R., Silwal, V.*, Dwivedi, A., Maurya, V. K., & Rajendran, C. P. (2025). Relocation of major earthquakes in India from 1905 to 2011 using a non-linear probabilistic approach. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 290, 106632. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2025.106632

  3. Mahanta, R., Silwal, V.*, Sharma, M.L. (2024). Body Waves– and Surface Waves–Derived Moment Tensor Catalog for Garhwal-Kumaon Himalayas. In: Kumar, R., Singh, R., Kanhaiya, S., Maurya, S.P. (eds) Recent Developments in Earthquake Seismology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-47538-2_4

  4. Singh, S. P., and Silwal, V*, (2023), Enhanced crustal and intermediate seismicity in the Hindu Kush-Pamir region revealed by attentive deep learning model, Artificial Intelligence in Geosciences, Volume 4, Pages 150-163.

  5. Kumar P, Silwal V*, Mahanta R, Maurya VK, Kamal, Sharma ML, Ammani A, (2023). Near Real-Time Detection and Moment Tensor Inversion of the 11 May 2022, Dharchula Earthquake. GeoHazards.vol 4(4):515-525. https://doi.org/10.3390/geohazards4040029.

  6. V Kumar, V Silwal, S Ray, (2023), Simulation of Seismic Wave Propagation Using Spectral-Element Method for Uttarakhand Himalayan Region with SPECFEM3D. 2nd EAGE/Aqua Foundation Indian Near Surface Geophysics Conference & Exhibition.

  7. Silwal, V., C. Tape, and A. Lomax, (2018), Crustal earthquakes in the Cook Inlet and Susitna region of southern Alaska, Tectonophysics, doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2018.08.013

  8. Silwal, V., (2018), Earthquake source mechanisms and three-dimensional wavefield simulations in Alaska, PhD Thesis

  9. Tape, C., S. Holtkamp, V. Silwal, Y. Kaneko, J. Hawthorne, J. P. Ampuero, C. Ji, N. Ruppert, K. Smith, and M. E. West, (2018), Earthquake nucleation fault slip complexity in the lower crust of central Alaska, Nature Geoscience, doi: 10.1038/s41561-018-0144-2

  10. Alvizuri, C., V. Silwal, L. Krischer, and C. Tape, (2018), Estimation of full moment tensors, including uncertainties, for nuclear explorsions, volcanic events, and earthquakes. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, doi: 10.1029/2017jb015325

  11. Tape, C., A. Lomax, V. Silwal, J. D. Agnew and B. Brettschneider, (2017), The 1904 Ms 7.3 Earthquake in Central Alaska, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, Vol. 107, No. 3, pp. 1147–1174, June 2017, doi: 10.1785/0120160178

  12. Silwal, V. and C. Tape, (2016), Seismic moment tensors and estimated uncertainties in southern Alaska, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 121, 2772–2797, doi:10.1002/2015JB012588

  13. Tape, C., V. Silwal, C. Ji, L. Keyson, M. E. West, and N. Ruppert, (2015), Transtensional Tectonics of the Minto Flats Fault Zone and Nenana Basin, Central Alaska, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, Vol. 105, No. 4, pp. 2081–2100, August 2015, doi: 10.1785/0120150055

  14. Tape, C., M. West, V. Silwal, and N. Ruppert, (2013), Earthquake nucleation and triggering on an optimally oriented fault, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, v. 363, p. 231- 241. doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2012.11.060

  15. Trivedi, D., K. Devi, I. Buynevich, P. Srinivasan, K. Ravikumar, V. Silwal, D. Sengupta, R. R. Nair, (2012), Interpretation of Dune Genesis from Sedimentogical Data and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) Signatures: A Case Study from Ashirmata Dune Field, Mandvi Beach, Gujarat, India, International Journal of Geosciences, 2012, 3, 772-779, doi: 10.4236/ijg.2012.34078

  16. Silwal, V., (2012), Seismic moment tensor in Alaska using Body and Surface wave, Master's Thesis
 Reports/Catalogs/Datasets
  1. Harish Nasara, N., Silwal, V., & Singh, N., 2025, Global Seismic Waveform Dataset from Raspberry Shake Geophones and MEMS Sensors for Machine Learning Applications [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17265621
  2. Mahanta, R., & Silwal, V. (2024). Moment tensor inversion and uncertainty analysis for 40 Uttarakhand Earthquakes (2010-2022) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12541669
  3. Mahanta, R., V. Silwal, 2024, Processing local seismological waveform datasets for moment tensor inversion using mtuq. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10499910
  4. Vipul Silwal, 2018, Seismic moment tensors for six events in Minto Flats fault zone, 2012-2016
  5. Lomax, A., V. Silwal and C. Tape, 2018, Hypocenter estimation for 14 earthquakes in south-central Alaska (1929-1975)
  6. Vipul Silwal, 2018, Seismic moment tensor catalog for crustal events in southern Alaska
  7. Tape, C., V. Silwal and S. Holtkamp, 2017, Step-response signals recorded during earthquakes in Alaska
  8. Vipul Silwal, 2015, Seismic moment tensor catalog for southern Alaska
  9. Vipul Silwal, 2015, Seismic moment tensor catalog for Minto Flats fault zone (2000-2014)

Selected abstracts
Ryan, M., Alvizuri, C., Silwal, V. and Tape, C., MTUQ- Moment Tensor Uncertainty Quantification based on obspy, instaseis, and pymc (github.com/mtuqorg/mtuq), Abstract S53E-0458 presented at 2018 Fall
Meeting, AGU, Washington, D.C., 10-14 Dec.

Silwal, V., C. Tape, and E. Casarotti, Wavefield Simulation of earthquakes in southern Alaska for tomographic inversion, AGU Fall Meeting 11-15 Dec. 2017, New Orleans.

Mienert, J., S. Buenz, B. Ferre, G. Dutta, and V. Silwal, Long-Term Seismological Observations of Eruptions of the Håkon Mosby Mud Volcano at the Barents-Sea Continental Margin (ESONET- LOOME Demonstration Mission,  EGU General Assembly, Vol. 13, EGU2011-3892, 2011

In Media
My views on moment tensors classification approach in an EOS story, https://eos.org/articles/scientists-gain-a-new-tool-to-listen-for-nuclear-explosions
*PhD and Post Doc positions are available in field of Seismology.*
I am always interested in interacting with motivated and hard-working students that are looking for opportunity.
UG/PG students can also apply for internship under IITR-SPARK program