Geologic Hazards Science Center
Publications
Diffuse deformation and surface faulting distribution from sub-metric image correlation along the 2019 Ridgecrest ruptures (California, USA)
The 2019 Mw">Mw 6.4 and 7.1 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence (July 2019) ruptured consecutively a system of high‐angle strike‐slip cross faults (northeast‐ and northwest‐trending) within 34 hr. The complex rupture mechanism was illuminated by seismological and geodetic data, bringing forward the issue of the...
Solène, Antoine; Klinger, Yann; Delorme, Arthur; Wang, Kang; Burgmann, Roland; Gold, Ryan D. An efficient Bayesian framework for updating PAGER loss estimates
We introduce a Bayesian framework for incorporating time-varying noisy reported data on damage and loss information to update near real-time loss estimates/alerts for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system. Initial loss estimation by PAGER immediately following an earthquake includes...
Noh, Hae Young; Jaiswal, Kishor; Engler, Davis T.; Wald, David J. Geologic controls of slow-moving landslides near the U.S. West Coast
Slow-moving landslides, often with nearly imperceptible creeping motion, are an important landscape shaper and a dangerous natural hazard across the globe, yet their spatial distribution and geologic controls are still poorly known owing to a paucity of detailed, large-area observations. Here, we use interferometry of L-band satellite radar images...
Xu, Yuankun; Schulz, William; Lu, Zhong; Kim, Jinwook; Baxstrom, Kelli Wadsworth Why do my squiggles look funny? A gallery of compromised seismic signals
Seismic instruments are highly sensitive and capable of recording a large range of different Earth signals. The high sensitivity of these instruments also makes them prone to various failures. Although many failures are very obvious, such as a dead channel, there are other more subtle failures that easily go unnoticed by both network operators and...
Ringler, Adam T.; Mason, David B.; Laske, G.; Storm, Tyler; Templeton, M.
Hazard analysis of landslides triggered by Typhoon Chata'an on July 2, 2002, in Chuuk State, Federated States of Micronesia
More than 250 landslides were triggered across the eastern volcanic islands of Chuuk State in the Federated States of Micronesia by torrential rainfall from tropical storm Chata’an on July 2, 2002. Landslides triggered during nearly 20 inches of rainfall in less than 24 hours caused 43 fatalities and the destruction or damage of 231 structures,...
Harp, Edwin L.; Reid, Mark E.; Michael, John A. Down to Earth with nuclear electromagnetic pulse: Realistic surface impedance affects mapping of the E3 geoelectric hazard
An analysis is made of Earth-surface geoelectric fields and voltages on electricity transmission power-grids induced by a late-phase E3 nuclear electromagnetic pulse (EMP). A hypothetical scenario is considered of an explosion of several hundred kilotons set several hundred kilometers above the eastern-midcontinental United States. Ground-level E3...
Love, Jeffrey J.; Lucas, Greg M.; Murphy, Benjamin Scott; Bedrosian, Paul A.; Rigler, E. Joshua; Kelbert, Anna
Preliminary assessment of the wave generating potential from landslides at Barry Arm, Prince William Sound, Alaska
We simulated the concurrent rapid motion of landslides on an unstable slope at Barry Arm, Alaska. Movement of landslides into the adjacent fjord displaced fjord water and generated a tsunami, which propagated out of Barry Arm. Rather than assuming an initial sea surface height, velocity, and location for the tsunami, we generated the tsunami...
Barnhart, Katherine R.; Jones, Ryan P.; George, David L.; Coe, Jeffrey A.; Staley, Dennis M. HydroMet: A new code for automated objective optimization of hydrometeorological thresholds for landslide initiation
Landslide detection and warning systems are important tools for mitigation of potential hazards in landslide prone areas. Traditionally, warning systems for shallow landslides have been informed by rainfall intensity-duration thresholds. More recent advances have introduced the concept of hydrometeorological thresholds that are informed not only...
Conrad, Jacob Lawrence; Morphew, Michael D.; Baum, Rex L.; Mirus, Benjamin B. ShakeMap operations, policies, and procedures
The US Geological Survey’s ShakeMap is used domestically and globally for post-earthquake emergency management and response, engineering analyses, financial instruments, and other decision-making activities. Recent developments in the insurance, reinsurance, and catastrophe bond sectors link payouts of potentially hundreds of millions of dollars...
Wald, David J.; Worden, Charles; Thompson, Eric M.; Hearne, Mike When hazard avoidance is not an option: Lessons learned from monitoring the postdisaster Oso landslide, USA
On 22 March 2014, a massive, catastrophic landslide occurred near Oso, Washington, USA, sweeping more than 1 km across the adjacent valley flats and killing 43 people. For the following 5 weeks, hundreds of workers engaged in an exhaustive search, rescue, and recovery effort directly in the landslide runout path. These workers could not avoid the...
Reid, Mark E.; Godt, Jonathan W.; LaHusen, Richard G; Slaughter, Stephen L; Badger, Thomas C.; Collins, Brian D.; Schulz, William; Baum, Rex L.; Coe, Jeffrey A.; Harp, Edwin L; Schmidt, Kevin; Iverson, Richard M.; Smith, Joel B.; Haugerud, Ralph; George, David L. Evaluation of techniques for mitigating snowmelt infiltration-induced landsliding in a highway embankment
Infiltration-induced landslides threaten transportation infrastructure around the world, and impose both direct costs through repair and remediation work and indirect costs through lost economic activity. Therefore, finding the most cost-effective techniques to mitigate slope failures that can impact critical infrastructure links is desirable. The...
Hinds, Eric; Lu, Ning; Mirus, Benjamin B.; Godt, Jonathan W.; Wayllace, Alexandra Movement of sediment through a burned landscape: Sediment volume observations and model comparisons in the San Gabriel Mountains, California, USA
Post-wildfire changes to hydrologic and geomorphic systems can lead to widespread sediment redistribution. Understanding how sediment moves through a watershed is crucial for assessing hazards, developing debris flow inundation models, engineering sediment retention solutions, and quantifying the role that disturbances play in landscape evolution...
Rengers, Francis K.; McGuire, Luke A.; Kean, Jason W.; Staley, Dennis M.; Dobre, Mariana; Robichaud, Peter R.; Swetnam, Tyson