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Educational Publications
Educational Publications
Selected publications about earthquakes In plain language.
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Mw 4.2 Delaware Earthquake of 30 November 2017 Mw 4.2 Delaware Earthquake of 30 November 2017
The 30 November 2017 Delaware earthquake with magnitude MW 4.2 occurred beneath the northeastern tip of the Delmarva Peninsula near Dover, Delaware. The earthquake and its aftershocks provide an opportunity to evaluate seismicity in a passive margin setting using much improved coverage by high-quality permanent broadband seismometers at regional distance ranges in the central and eastern...
Authors
Won-Young Kim, Mitchell Gold, Joseph Ramsay, Anne Meltzer, David Wunsch, Stefanie Baxter, Vedran Lekic, Phillip Goodling, Karen Pearson, Lara S. Wagner, Diana C. Roman, Steven Golden, Thomas L. Pratt
A digital elevation model for simulating the 1945 Makran tsunami in Karachi Harbour A digital elevation model for simulating the 1945 Makran tsunami in Karachi Harbour
The digital elevation model documented here provides a tool for calibrating tsunami models to effects of the 1945 Makran tsunami that were observed in Karachi Harbour. The DEM bathymetry is derived from soundings made mainly during the first 8 years post-tsunami. While deficient in its portrayal of interior tidelands and upland topography, the DEM accurately represents the setting of a...
Authors
Haider Hasan, Brian F. Atwater, Shoaib Ahmed
Holocene fault reactivation in the eastern Cascades, Washington Holocene fault reactivation in the eastern Cascades, Washington
Significant uncertainty remains concerning how and where crustal shortening occurs throughout the eastern Cascade Range in Washington State. Using light detection and ranging (lidar) imagery, we identified an ∼5‐km‐long lineament in Swakane canyon near Wenatchee, roughly coincident with a strand of the Entiat fault. Topographic profiles across the lineament reveal a southwest‐side‐up...
Authors
Benjamin L. Carlson, Elizabeth R. Schermer, Colin B. Amos, William J. Stephenson, Brian L. Sherrod, Shannon A. Mahan
Lessons from Mexico’s earthquake early warning system Lessons from Mexico’s earthquake early warning system
The devastating 2017 Puebla quake provides an opportunity to assess how citizens perceive and use the Mexico City earthquake early warning system.
Authors
Richard M. Allen, Elizabeth S. Cochran, Thomas J. Huggins, Scott Miles, Diego Otegui
Seismic and acoustic signatures of surficial mass movements at volcanoes Seismic and acoustic signatures of surficial mass movements at volcanoes
Surficial mass movements, such as debris avalanches, rock falls, lahars, pyroclastic flows, and outburst floods, are a dominant hazard at many volcanoes worldwide. Understanding these processes, cataloging their spatio-temporal occurrence, and detecting, tracking, and characterizing these events would advance the science of volcano monitoring and help mitigate hazards. Seismic and...
Authors
Kate E. Allstadt, Robin S Matoza, Andrew Lockhart, Seth C. Moran, Jacqueline Caplan-Auerbach, Matthew M. Haney, Weston Thelen, Stephen D. Malone
Incorporating teleseismic tomography data into models of upper mantle slab geometry Incorporating teleseismic tomography data into models of upper mantle slab geometry
Earthquake-based models of slab geometry are limited by the distribution of earthquakes within a subducting slab, which is often heterogeneous. The fast seismic velocity signature of slabs in tomography studies is independent of the distribution of earthquakes within the slab, providing a critical constraint on slab geometry when earthquakes are absent. In order to utilize this...
Authors
Daniel E. Portner, Gavin P. Hayes
Quantifying uncertainty in cumulative surface slip along the Cucamonga Fault, a crustal thrust fault in southern California Quantifying uncertainty in cumulative surface slip along the Cucamonga Fault, a crustal thrust fault in southern California
Studies of historic earthquake ground surface ruptures show that displacements along strike are spatially variable. As a result, latest Quaternary slip rates developed from a spatially restricted set of cumulative displacement measurements may not accurately represent fault velocity. Here we examine the uncertainties associated with slip on the Cucamonga Fault, which is part of a network...
Authors
Devin McPhillips, Katherine M. Scharer
Additional period and site class maps for the 2014 National Seismic Hazard Model for the conterminous United States Additional period and site class maps for the 2014 National Seismic Hazard Model for the conterminous United States
The 2014 update of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM) for the conterminous United States (2014 NSHM; Petersen and others, 2014, 2015) included probabilistic ground motion maps for 2 percent and 10 percent probabilities of exceedance in 50 years, derived from seismic hazard curves for peak ground acceleration (PGA) and 0.2 and 1.0 second spectral...
Authors
Allison Shumway, Mark D. Petersen, Peter M. Powers, Sanaz Rezaeian
The 1952 Kern County, California earthquake: A case study of issues in the analysis of historical intensity data for estimation of source parameters The 1952 Kern County, California earthquake: A case study of issues in the analysis of historical intensity data for estimation of source parameters
Seismic intensity data based on first-hand accounts of shaking give valuable insight into historical and early instrumental earthquakes. Comparing an observed intensity distribution to intensity-prediction models based on modern calibration events allows the magnitude to be estimated for many historic earthquakes. Magnitude estimates can also potentially be refined for earthquakes for...
Authors
Leah Salditch, Susan E. Hough, Seth Stein, Bruce Spencer, Edward Brooks, James S. Neely, Madeleine C. Lucas
The 19 September 2017 M 7.1 Puebla‐Morelos earthquake: Spectral ratios confirm Mexico City zoning The 19 September 2017 M 7.1 Puebla‐Morelos earthquake: Spectral ratios confirm Mexico City zoning
One important element of understanding basin response to strong shaking is the analysis of spectral ratios, which may provide information about the dominant frequency of ground motion at specific locations. Spectral ratios computed from accelerations recorded by strong‐motion stations in Mexico City during the mainshock of the 19 September 2017 MM 7.1 Puebla‐Morelos earthquake reveal...
Authors
Mehmet Celebi, Valerie Jean Sahakian, Diego Melgar, Luis Quintanar
KG²B, a collaborative benchmarking exercise for estimating the permeability of the Grimsel granodiorite - Part 1: measurements, pressure dependence and pore-fluid effects KG²B, a collaborative benchmarking exercise for estimating the permeability of the Grimsel granodiorite - Part 1: measurements, pressure dependence and pore-fluid effects
Measuring the permeability of tight rocks remains a challenging task. In addition to the traditional sources of errors that affect more permeable formations (e.g. sample selection, non-representative specimens, disturbance introduced during sample acquisition and preparation), tight rocks can be particularly prone to solid–fluid interactions and thus more sensitive to the methods...
Authors
Christian David, J. Wasserman, F. Amann, David A. Lockner, E.H. Rutter, T Vanorio, A. Amann Hildenbrand, J. Billiotte, T. Reuschle, D. Lasseux, J. Fortin, R. Lenormand, A.P.S. Selvadurai, P.G. Meredith, J. Browning, T.M. Mitchell, D. Loggia, F. Nono, J. Sarout, L. Esteban, C. Davy, L. Louis, G. Boitnott, C. Madonna, E. Jahns, Fleury. M., G. Berthe, P. Delage, P. Braun, D. Gregoire, L. Perrier, P. Polito, Y. Jannot, A. Sommier, B. Krooss, R. Fink, Q. Hu, J.M. Klaver, A. Clark
A global empirical model for near real-time assessment of seismically induced landslides A global empirical model for near real-time assessment of seismically induced landslides
Earthquake-triggered landslides are a significant hazard in seismically active regions, but our ability to assess the hazard they pose in near real-time is limited. In this study, we present a new globally applicable model for seismically induced landslides based on the most comprehensive global dataset available; we use 23 landslide inventories that span a range of earthquake magnitudes...
Authors
M. Anna Nowicki Jessee, M.W. Hamburger, Kate E. Allstadt, David J. Wald, H. Tanyas, Mike Hearne, E.M. Thompson