Earthquake Hazards
Home
The USGS monitors and reports on earthquakes, assesses earthquake impacts and hazards, and conducts targeted research on the causes and effects of earthquakes. We undertake these activities as part of the larger National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), a four-agency partnership established by Congress.
Latest Earthquakes
Latest earthquakes map and list (past 24 hours, M2.5+) from the ANSS (Advanced National Seismic System). Tap/click on "gear icon" for options and settings.
View EarthquakesScience for Everyone
What if the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System Had Been Operating During the M6.9 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake?
How will ShakeAlert® likely perform now on a large earthquake impacting a major urban area? How much warning will you get?
Read ArticleRemembering Loma Prieta
Leading up to the quake’s 30th anniversary, we will be sharing stories from Loma Prieta, answering questions through our Public Lecture series, sharing products developed since the quake, and more. Check back here for more information.
Video: Where were you the night the Loma Prieta earthquake hit?
Video: What were you thinking when the Loma Prieta earthquake struck?
Video: What lessons have we learned since the Loma Prieta earthquake?
Video: Are we safer today then we were 30 years ago?
Learn MoreNews
All Systems Go for First Statewide Testing of ShakeAlert in the United States
Today, the U.S. Geological Survey and the State of California pressed the “go” button to allow the first-ever statewide public testing of the California Early Earthquake Warning System, which is powered by USGS’s earthquake early warning alerts, called ShakeAlerts.
What if the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System Had Been Operating During the M6.9 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake?
How will ShakeAlert® likely perform now on a large earthquake impacting a major urban area? How much warning will you get? To answer this, let’s do a thought experiment...
Read the new Science for Everyone article at What if the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System...
The 2019 Great ShakeOut
When the ground starts to shake, what do you do? Great ShakeOut 2019: Drop, Cover, and Hold On!
Publications
The LArge-n Seismic Survey in Oklahoma (LASSO) experiment
In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey deployed more than 1,800 vertical-component nodal seismometers in Grant County, Oklahoma to study induced seismic activity associated with production of the Mississippi Limestone Play. The LArge-n Seismic Survey in Oklahoma (LASSO) array operated for approximately one month, covering a 25-km-by-32-km region with...
Dougherty, S.; Cochran, Elizabeth S.; Harrington, R. M. 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.
The HayWired earthquake scenario—Societal consequences
The HayWired Earthquake Scenario—Societal Consequences is the third volume of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Scientific Investigations Report 2017–5013, which describes the HayWired scenario, developed by USGS and its partners. The scenario is a hypothetical yet scientifically realistic earthquake sequence that is being used to better understand...
Detweiler, Shane T.; Wein, Anne M.