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35 - Strength and energetics of active fault zones 35 - Strength and energetics of active fault zones

The strength of active fault zones, i.e., the shear stress level required to cause fault slip, is fundamental to understanding the physics of earthquakes and to assessing earthquake hazard. Although many researchers have concluded that fault zones are weak (shear stresses 10 MPa or less averaged between 0 and ˜20 km depth), others maintain that faults are strong (˜100 MPa average of an...
Authors
James N. Brune, Wayne R. Thatcher

Shallow seismic imaging of folds above the Puente Hills blind-thrust fault, Los Angeles, California Shallow seismic imaging of folds above the Puente Hills blind-thrust fault, Los Angeles, California

High-resolution seismic reflection profiles image discrete folds in the shallow subsurface (
Authors
Thomas L. Pratt, John H. Shaw, James F. Dolan, Shari A. Christofferson, Robert Williams, Jack K. Odum, Andreas Plesch

Eros: Shape, topography, and slope processes Eros: Shape, topography, and slope processes

Stereogrammetric measurement of the shape of Eros using images obtained by NEAR's Multispectral Imager provides a survey of the major topographic features and slope processes on this asteroid. This curved asteroid has radii ranging from 3.1 to 17.7 km and a volume of 2535±20 km3. The center of figure is within 52 m of the center of mass provided by the Navigation team; this minimal...
Authors
P.C. Thomas, J. Joseph, B. Carcich, J. Veverka, B.E. Clark, J.F. Bell, A.W. Byrd, R. Chomko, M. Robinson, S. Murchie, L. Prockter, A. Cheng, N. Izenberg, M. Malin, C. Chapman, L.A. McFadden, Randolph L. Kirk, M. Gaffey, P. G. Lucey

Lower crustal deformation beneath the central Transverse Ranges, southern California: Results from the Los Angeles Region Seismic Experiment Lower crustal deformation beneath the central Transverse Ranges, southern California: Results from the Los Angeles Region Seismic Experiment

We present a P wave velocity model derived from active source seismic data collected during the 1994 Los Angeles Region Seismic Experiment. Our model extends previously published upper crustal velocity models to mantle depths. Our model was developed by both ray tracing through a layered model and calculating travel times through a gridded model. It includes an 8-km-thick crustal root...
Authors
N. J. Godfrey, Gary S. Fuis, Victoria E. Langenheim, David A. Okaya, Thomas M. Brocher

Geomorphic studies of landslides in the Tully Valley, New York: Implications for public policy and planning Geomorphic studies of landslides in the Tully Valley, New York: Implications for public policy and planning

On April 27, 1993, a large landslide in the Tully Valley, Onondaga County, NY, destroyed three houses and resulted in the evacuation of four others; it also triggered a loss of potable drinking water for about 15 homes north of the slide area and affected a total of 20 ha of land. In the 7 years following this slide, several studies have been conducted by federal and state environmental...
Authors
D. L. Pair, W. M. Kappel

Fault structure and kinematics of the Long Valley Caldera region, California, revealed by high-accuracy earthquake hypocenters and focal mechanism stress inversions Fault structure and kinematics of the Long Valley Caldera region, California, revealed by high-accuracy earthquake hypocenters and focal mechanism stress inversions

We have determined high-resolution hypocenters for 45,000+ earthquakes that occurred between 1980 and 2000 in the Long Valley caldera area using a double-difference earthquake location algorithm and routinely determined arrival times. The locations reveal numerous discrete fault planes in the southern caldera and adjacent Sierra Nevada block (SNB). Intracaldera faults include a series of...
Authors
Stephanie Prejean, William L. Ellsworth, Mark Zoback, Felix Waldhauser

Drowned reefs and antecedent karst topography, Au'au channel, S.E. Hawaiian Islands Drowned reefs and antecedent karst topography, Au'au channel, S.E. Hawaiian Islands

During the last glacial maximum (LGM), about 21,000 years ago, the Hawaiian Islands of Maui, Lanai, and Molokai were interconnected by limestone bridges, creating a super-island known as Maui-Nui. Approximately 120 m of sea-level rise during the Holocene Transgression flooded, and then drowned, these bridges separating the islands by inter-island channels. A new multibeam high-resolution
Authors
R.W. Grigg, E. E. Grossman, S.A. Earle, S.R. Gittings, D. Lott, J. McDonough

Processes of lithosphere evolution: New evidence on the structure of the continental crust and uppermost mantle Processes of lithosphere evolution: New evidence on the structure of the continental crust and uppermost mantle

We discuss the structure of the continental lithosphere, its physical properties, and the mechanisms that formed and modified it since the early Archean. The structure of the upper mantle and the crust is derived primarily from global and regional seismic tomography studies of Eurasia and from global and regional data on seismic anisotropy. These data as documented in the papers of this...
Authors
I.M. Artemieva, Walter D. Mooney, E. Perchuc, H. Thybo

Puente Hills blind-thrust system, Los Angeles, California Puente Hills blind-thrust system, Los Angeles, California

We describe the three-dimensional geometry and Quaternary slip history of the Puente Hills blind-thrust system (PHT) using seismic reflection profiles, petroleum well data, and precisely located seismicity. The PHT generated the 1987 Whittier Narrows (moment magnitude [Mw] 6.0) earthquake and extends for more than 40 km along strike beneath the northern Los Angeles basin. The PHT...
Authors
J.H. Shaw, A. Plesch, J.F. Dolan, T. L. Pratt, P. Fiore

Seismic velocity structure of the continental lithosphere from controlled source data Seismic velocity structure of the continental lithosphere from controlled source data

The purpose of this chapter is to provide a summary of the seismic velocity structure of the continental lithosphere, i.e., the crust and uppermost mantle. We define the crust as the outer layer of the Earth that is separated from the underlying mantle by the Mohorovičić discontinuity (Moho). We adopted the usual convention of defining the seismic Moho as the level in the Earth where the...
Authors
Walter D. Mooney, Claus Prodehl, Nina Pavlenkova

Submarine landslides: advances and challenges Submarine landslides: advances and challenges

Due to the recent development of well-integrated surveying techniques of the sea floor, significant improvements were achieved in mapping and describing the morphology and architecture of submarine mass movements. Except for the occurrence of turbidity currents, the aquatic environment (marine and fresh water) experiences the same type of mass failure as that found on land. Submarine...
Authors
Jacques Locat, Homa J. Lee
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