Publications
Filter Total Items: 2057
Development of a United States community shear wave velocity profile database Development of a United States community shear wave velocity profile database
We present the details of a multi-institutional effort to develop an open-access shear-wave velocity (VS) profile database (PDB), which will include a public repository for VS profile data in the United States. VS profiles are an essential resource for ground motion modeling and other applications. The minimum requirements for a site to be included in the database are in situ geophysical...
Authors
Sean K. Ahdi, Shamsher Sadiq, Okan Ilhan, Yousef Bozorgnia, Youssef M. A. Hashash, Dong Youp Kwak, Duhee Park, Alan Yong, Jonathan P. Stewart
Injection-induced moment release can also be aseismic Injection-induced moment release can also be aseismic
The cumulative seismic moment is a robust measure of the earthquake response to fluid injection for injection volumes ranging from 3100 to about 12 million m3. Over this range, the moment release is limited to twice the product of the shear modulus and the volume of injected fluid. This relation also applies at the much smaller injection volumes of the field experiment in France reported...
Authors
Arthur McGarr, Andrew J. Barbour
The limits of earthquake early warning: Timeliness of ground motion estimates The limits of earthquake early warning: Timeliness of ground motion estimates
The basic physics of earthquakes is such that strong ground motion cannot be expected from an earthquake unless the earthquake itself is very close or has grown to be very large. We use simple seismological relationships to calculate the minimum time that must elapse before such ground motion can be expected at a distance from the earthquake, assuming that the earthquake magnitude is not
Authors
Sarah E. Minson, Men-Andrin Meier, Annemarie S. Baltay Sundstrom, Thomas C. Hanks, Elizabeth S. Cochran
An updated stress map of the continental U.S. reveals heterogeneous intraplate stress An updated stress map of the continental U.S. reveals heterogeneous intraplate stress
Knowledge of the state of stress in the Earth’s crust is key to understanding the forces and processes responsible for earthquakes. Historically, low rates of natural seismicity in the central and eastern United States have complicated efforts to understand intraplate stress, but recent improvements in seismic networks and the spread of human-induced seismicity have greatly improved data...
Authors
Will Levandowski, Robert B Hermann, Richard W. Briggs, Oliver S. Boyd, Ryan D. Gold
Application of microtremor horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (MHVSR) analysis for site characterization: State of the art Application of microtremor horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (MHVSR) analysis for site characterization: State of the art
Nakamura (Q Rep Railway Tech Res Inst 30:25–33, 1989) popularized the application of the horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) analysis of microtremor (seismic noise or ambient vibration) recordings to estimate the predominant frequency and amplification factor of earthquake shaking. During the following quarter century, popularity in the microtremor HVSR (MHVSR) method grew...
Authors
S. Molnar, J. F. Cassidy, S. Castellaro, C. Cornou, H. Crow, J. A. Hunter, S. Matsushima, F. J. Sanchez-Sesma, Alan Yong
Interaction between hydraulic fracture and a preexisting fracture under triaxial stress conditions Interaction between hydraulic fracture and a preexisting fracture under triaxial stress conditions
Enhanced reservoir connectivity generally requires maximizing the intersection between hydraulic fracture (HF) and preexisting underground natural fractures (NF), while having the hydraulic fracture cross the natural fractures (and not arrest). We have studied the interaction between a hydraulic fracture and a polished saw-cut fault. The experiments include a hydraulic fracture...
Authors
Saied Mighani, David A. Lockner, Brian D. Kilgore, Farrokh Sheibani, Brian Evans
A suite of exercises for verifying dynamic earthquake rupture codes A suite of exercises for verifying dynamic earthquake rupture codes
We describe a set of benchmark exercises that are designed to test if computer codes that simulate dynamic earthquake rupture are working as intended. These types of computer codes are often used to understand how earthquakes operate, and they produce simulation results that include earthquake size, amounts of fault slip, and the patterns of ground shaking and crustal deformation. The...
Authors
Ruth A. Harris, Michael Barall, Brad T. Aagaard, Shuo Ma, Daniel Roten, Kim Olsen, Benchun Duan, Dunyu Liu, Bin Luo, Kangchen Bai, Jean-Paul Ampuero, Yoshihiro Kaneko, Alice-Agnes Gabriel, Kenneth Duru, Thomas Ulrich, Stephanie Wollherr, Zheqiang Shi, Eric Dunham, Sam Bydlon, Zhenguo Zhang, Xiaofei Chen, Surendra N. Somala, Christian Pelties, Josue Tago, Victor Manuel Cruz-Atienza, Jeremy Kozdon, Eric Daub, Khurram Aslam, Yuko Kase, Kyle Withers, Luis Dalguer
Numerical models of pore pressure and stress changes along basement faults due to wastewater injection: Applications to the 2014 Milan, Kansas Earthquake Numerical models of pore pressure and stress changes along basement faults due to wastewater injection: Applications to the 2014 Milan, Kansas Earthquake
We have developed groundwater flow models to explore the possible relationship between wastewater injection and the 12 November 2014 Mw 4.8 Milan, Kansas earthquake. We calculate pore pressure increases in the uppermost crust using a suite of models in which hydraulic properties of the Arbuckle Formation and the Milan earthquake fault zone, the Milan earthquake hypocenter depth, and...
Authors
Elizabeth H. Hearn, Christine Koltermann, Justin R. Rubinstein
Leveraging geodetic data to reduce losses from earthquakes Leveraging geodetic data to reduce losses from earthquakes
Seismic hazard assessments that are based on a variety of data and the best available science, coupled with rapid synthesis of real-time information from continuous monitoring networks to guide post-earthquake response, form a solid foundation for effective earthquake loss reduction. With this in mind, the Earthquake Hazards Program (EHP) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Natural...
Authors
Jessica R. Murray, Evelyn A. Roeloffs, Benjamin A. Brooks, John O. Langbein, William S. Leith, Sarah E. Minson, Jerry L. Svarc, Wayne R. Thatcher
Proximity of Precambrian basement affects the likelihood of induced seismicity in the Appalachian, Illinois, and Williston Basins, central and eastern United States Proximity of Precambrian basement affects the likelihood of induced seismicity in the Appalachian, Illinois, and Williston Basins, central and eastern United States
A dramatic seismicity rate increase in the central and eastern United States (CEUS) over the past decade has been largely associated with the increase in enhanced oil and gas recovery operations and change in industry practices. However, certain areas of the CEUS that have experienced large increases in oil and gas operations, such as the Bakken and Marcellus Shale plays (Williston and...
Authors
Robert J. Skoumal, Michael R. Brudzinski, Brian S. Currie
The HayWired earthquake scenario—We can outsmart disaster The HayWired earthquake scenario—We can outsmart disaster
The HayWired earthquake scenario, led by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), anticipates the impacts of a hypothetical magnitude-7.0 earthquake on the Hayward Fault. The fault is along the east side of California’s San Francisco Bay and is among the most active and dangerous in the United States, because it runs through a densely urbanized and interconnected region. One way to learn about...
Authors
Kenneth W. Hudnut, Anne M. Wein, Dale A. Cox, Keith A. Porter, Laurie A. Johnson, Suzanne C. Perry, Jennifer L. Bruce, Drew LaPointe
Seismicity induced by wastewater injection in Washington County, Ohio: Influence of preexisting structure, regional stress regime, and well operations Seismicity induced by wastewater injection in Washington County, Ohio: Influence of preexisting structure, regional stress regime, and well operations
Recent seismicity in Washington County, Ohio, has been suggested to be induced by wastewater disposal operations despite injection ~2 km above the Precambrian basement. We investigated the relationships between disposal well locations and operational histories, spatiotemporal patterns of seismicity enhanced by waveform correlation, and mapped subsurface structures. We also analyzed...
Authors
Brian S. Currie, James C. Free, Michael R. Brudzinski, Max Leveridge, Robert J. Skoumal