OpenQuake Engine

State-of-the-art, open-source software collaboratively developed for earthquake hazard and risk modelling

Description

The GEM Foundation aims to combine the main features of state-of-the-art science, global collaboration and buy-in, transparency and openness in an initiative to calculate and communicate earthquake risk worldwide. One of the first steps towards this objective has been the open-source development and release of software for seismic hazard and risk assessment called the OpenQuake Engine.

This software comprises a set of calculators capable of computing human or economic losses for a collection of assets, caused by a given scenario event, or by considering the probability of all possible events that might happen within a region within a certain time span. Since its initial release in 2010, the OpenQuake engine remains as one of the most important products released by the GEM Foundation, and it has become the benchmark software for seismic hazard and risk calculations worldwide.

How to cite this work

Silva, V., Crowley, H., Pagani, M. et al. Development of the OpenQuake engine, the Global Earthquake Model's open-source software for seismic risk assessment. Nat Hazards 72, 1409-1427 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-013-0618-x

Pagani, M., Monelli, D., Weatherill, G., Danciu, L., Crowley, H., Silva, V., Henshaw, P., Butler, L., Nastasi, M., Panzeri, L., Simionato, M. and Vigano, D., [2014] “OpenQuake Engine: An open hazard (and risk) software for the Global Earthquake Model,” Seismological Research Letters, Vol. 85, No. 3, pp 692-702

Rao, A., Yepes-Estrada, C., Johnson, K., Todorović, L., Pagani, M., Simionato, M., Styron, R., Silva, V., & Crowley, H. (2025). Evolution of the OpenQuake Engine: Enhanced capabilities, collaborative development, and global adoption. Earthquake Spectra, 41(5), 3299–3336. https://doi.org/10.1177/87552930251378157

Available Versions

The latest version, distributed under a AGPL-3.0 license, can be found by clicking on "Open Repository". If your use case does not comply with the license terms, a license can be requested by clicking on the "License Request", where a specific agreement will be provided, depending on the use case. Several additional resources related to the engine, such as training, toolkits and manuals can be accessed through the repository and its documentation.

License information

There are no restrictions on the use (commercial or otherwise) of the compiled versions of the OpenQuake engine. The source code of the software is available under a GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 license, which requires:

Permissions of this strongest copyleft license are conditioned on making available complete source code of licensed works and modifications, which include larger works using a licensed work, under the same license.
Copyright and license notices must be preserved.
Contributors provide an express grant of patent rights.
When a modified version is used to provide a service over a network, the completed modified version must be made available.

Any deviation from these terms incur in license infringement.