GFZ Researcher Receives Bernd Rendel Prize 2011:

The certified geophysicist Katrin Kieling, who works at the University Potsdam and the Helmholtz Centre Potsdam GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, was awarded the German Research Foundation's 2001 prize. The Bernd Rendel Prize goes to young researchers, who have made important and inventive contributions to geoscientific basic research already prior to their PhD graduation. The prize endowed with 2,000 Euro each from the yields of the Bernd Rendel Foundation, which is under the administration of the Stifterverband Association for the Promotion of Science and Humanities in Germany, is intended to enable the four awardees, who have earned their diploma but not yet their doctorate, to participate in scientific congresses and conferences. In her PhD thesis, Katrin Kieling concentrates on developing a method, which is to support the improved estimation of the spreading of seismic waves, so that earthquakes can be forecasted fast and in as realistic a manner as possible. The intensity and variability of ground motion is highly relevant in evaluating the seismic threat within a region. Improved and more flexible computer simulations of earthquake scenarios can furthermore be used in early response systems or in danger prevention.

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