hercules.tex

\subsection{Forward Simulation}

The forward physics-based ground motion simulations are conducted on a finite element (FE) code called Hercules. Hercules solve plane wave propagation in 3 dimensional domain based on tri-linear elements. The mesh generation process is octree based and used absorbing boundaries at the bottom and side and traction free boundary at the surface. Hercules is tested in numerous validation and verification exercises and proved to be a stable and scalable tool for ground motion simulation on a regional scale \citep[e.g., see ][]{bielak2010shakeout}.