Geologic Hazards Science Center
Publications
Status of three-dimensional geological mapping and modeling activities in the U.S. Geological Survey
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), created in 1879, is the national geological survey for the United States and the sole science agency within its cabinet-level bureau, the Department of the Interior. The USGS has a broad mission, including: serving the Nation by providing reliable scientific information to describe and understand the Earth;...
Sweetkind, Donald; Graymer, Russell; Higley, D.K.; Boyd, Oliver S. Characterizing large earthquakes before rupture is complete
Whether large and very large earthquakes are distinguishable from each other early on in the rupture process has been a subject often debated over the past several decades. Studies have shown that the frequency content of radiated seismic energy in the first few seconds of an earthquake scales with the final magnitude of the event, implying...
Melgar, Diego; Hayes, Gavin P. Global earthquake response with imaging geodesy: recent examples from the USGS NEIC
The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center leads real-time efforts to provide rapid and accurate assessments of the impacts of global earthquakes, including estimates of ground shaking, ground failure, and the resulting human impacts. These efforts primarily rely on analysis of the seismic wavefield to characterize the...
Barnhart, William D.; Hayes, Gavin P.; Wald, David J. Physically based estimation of rainfall thresholds triggering shallow landslides in volcanic slopes of southern Italy
On the 4th and 5th of March 2005, about 100 rainfall-induced landslides occurred along volcanic slopes of Camaldoli Hill in Naples, Italy. These started as soil slips in the upper substratum of incoherent and welded volcaniclastic deposits, then evolved downslope according to debris avalanche and debris flow mechanisms. This specific case of slope...
Fusco, F.; De Vita, P.; Mirus, Benjamin B.; Baum, Rex L.; Allocca, V.; Tufano, R.; Calcaterra, D.
National earthquake information center strategic plan, 2019–23
Executive SummaryDamaging earthquakes occur regularly around the world; since the turn of the 20th century, hundreds of earthquakes have caused significant loss of life and (or) millions of dollars or more in economic losses. While most of these did not directly affect the United States and its Territories, by studying worldwide seismicity we can...
Hayes, Gavin P.; Earle, Paul S.; Benz, Harley M.; Wald, David J.; Yeck, William L. Characterizing and imaging sedimentary strata using depth-converted spectral ratios: An example from the Atlantic Coastal Plain of the Eastern U.S.
Unconsolidated, near-surface sediments can have a profound influence on the amplitudes and frequencies of ground shaking during earthquakes, and these effects should be accounted for when using amplitude observations for seismic hazard assessments. This study explores methods to use teleseismic arrivals recorded on linear receiver arrays to...
Pratt, Thomas L.
Airborne radiometric maps of Mountain Pass, California
Geophysical investigations of Mountain Pass and vicinity were begun as part of an effort to study regional crustal structures as an aid to understanding the geologic framework and mineral resources of the eastern Mojave Desert. The study area encompasses Mountain Pass, host to one of the world’s largest rare earth element carbonatite deposits. The...
Ponce, David A.; Ponce, David A.; Denton, Kevin M. An initial assessment of areas where landslides could enter the West Arm of Glacier Bay, Alaska and implications for tsunami hazards
Tsunamis generated by landslides in Glacier Bay are uncommon, but have potential to be extraordinarily destructive when they occur. This article identifies areas that are susceptible to landslides that could generate tsunamis and discusses approaches to characterize hazard and risk from these events.
Coe, Jeffrey A.; Schmitt, Robert G.; Bessette-Kirton, Erin Natural hazards and mineral commodity supply: Quantifying risk of earthquake disruption to South American copper supply
Mineral resources, and their mining and enrichment operations, are not equally distributed across Earth. The concentration of mineral supply in certain regions, owing to the geology or geography of the mineral resource, raises the level of risk related to supply disruption. Where mineral production coincides with areas prone to natural hazards,...
Schnebele, Emily; Jaiswal, Kishor; Luco, Nicolas; Nassar, Nedal T. Preliminary report on engineering and geological effects of the July 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence
The Ridgecrest Earthquake sequence included a foreshock event on July 4 2019 (M6.4) and a M7.1 mainshock event on July 5 2019. These events occurred in the Eastern California Shear Zone, near Indian Wells Valley, south of China Lake and west of Searles Valley. GEER has partnered with several organizations to collect perishable data and document...
Stewart, Jonathan P.; Brandenberg, Scott J; Wang, Pengfei; Nweke, Chukwuebuka C; Hudson, Kenneth; Mazzoni, Silvia; Bozorgnia, Yousef; Hudnut, Kenneth W.; Davis, Craig A.; Ahdi, Sean K; Zareian, Farzin; Fayaz, Jawad; Koehler, Richard D; Chupik, Colin; Pierce, Ian; Williams, Alana; Akciz, Sinan; Hudson, Martin B; Kishida, Tadahiro; Brooks, Benjamin A.; Gold, Ryan D.; Ponti, Daniel J.; Scharer, Katherine; McPhillips, Devin; Duross, Christopher; Ericksen, Todd; Hernandez, Janis .; Patton, Jay; Olson, Brian; Dawson, Timothy E.; Treiman, Jerome; Blake, Kelly; Buchhuber, Jeffrey; Madugo, Chris L M; Sun, Joseph; Donnellan, Andrea; Lyzenga, Greg; Conway, Erik Intensity and impact of the New York Railroad superstorm of May 1921
Analysis is made of low‐latitude ground‐based magnetometer data recording the magnetic superstorm of May 1921. By inference, the storm was driven by a series of interplanetary coronal mass ejections, one of which produced a maximum pressure on the magnetopause of ~64.5 nPa, sufficient to compress the subsolar magnetopause radius to ~5.3 Earth...
Love, Jeffrey J.; Hayakawa, Hisashi; Cliver, Edward W. Effects of infiltration characteristics on the spatial-temporal evolution of stability of an interstate highway embankment
Infiltration-induced landslides are among the most common natural disasters threatening modern civilization, but conventional methods for studying the triggering mechanisms and predicting the occurrence of these slides are limited by incomplete consideration of underlying physical processes and the lack of precision inherent in limit-equilibrium...
Hinds, Eric; Lu, Ning; Mirus, Benjamin B.; Wayllace, Alexandra