Publications
Educational Publications
Educational Publications
Selected publications about earthquakes In plain language.
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Seismic evidence for active magmatic underplating beneath the Basin and Range Province, western United States Seismic evidence for active magmatic underplating beneath the Basin and Range Province, western United States
Near-vertical and wide-angle seismic reflection data provide evidence for the presence of a magma body at the base of the crust beneath Buena Vista Valley in northwestern Nevada. The seismic response of this hypothesized magma body is characterized by high-amplitude, near-vertical P wave reflections and a comparably strong P-to-S converted phase. The magma body, referred to here as the...
Authors
Craig M. Jarchow, George A. Thompson, Rufus D. Catchings, Walter D. Mooney
Deformation from 1973 to 1987 in the epicentral area of the 1959 Hebgen Lake, Montana, earthquake (Ms = 7.5) Deformation from 1973 to 1987 in the epicentral area of the 1959 Hebgen Lake, Montana, earthquake (Ms = 7.5)
A 40‐km aperture trilateration network centered on the 1959 Hebgen Lake earthquake epicenter has been surveyed in 1973, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1981, 1984, and 1987. The deformation inferred from those surveys is described roughly by a uniaxial, 0.266 ± 0.014 μstrain/yr, N15°E ± 1°extension that is uniform in both time and space. That extension is orthogonal to the strike (N78°W ± 5°) of the...
Authors
James C. Savage, Michael Lisowski, W.H. Prescott, A.D. Pitt
Deformation from 1973 through 1991 in the epicentral area of the 1992 Landers, California, Earthquake (Ms = 7.5) Deformation from 1973 through 1991 in the epicentral area of the 1992 Landers, California, Earthquake (Ms = 7.5)
Deformation of a 50 × 60 km trilateration network that spans the epicenter of the 1992 Landers earthquake(Ms = 7.5) was measured by seven surveys over the 19 years preceding the earthquake. Three moderate earthquakes (1979 Homestead Valley, Ms = 5.6; 1986 North Palm Springs, Ms = 6.0; and 1992 Joshua Tree, Ms = 6.1) occurred within the network during those 19 years. Here we use geodetic...
Authors
James C. Savage, Michael Lisowski, M. Murray
On the estimation of site-dependent response spectra On the estimation of site-dependent response spectra
No abstract available.
Authors
Roger D. Borcherdt
Site response estimates in Salt Lake Valley, Utah, from borehole seismic velocities Site response estimates in Salt Lake Valley, Utah, from borehole seismic velocities
The general correlation of Salt Lake Valley sites located on soft, saturated unconsolidated silty and clayey deposits (that is, deposits with low S-wave velocity) with high seismic amplification at the ground surface motivated our investigation of the relationship between the P- and S-wave seismic velocity (Vp and Vs) of these units and their corresponding observed site response. We...
Authors
R. A. Williams, K. W. King, John Tinsley
The Parkfield prediction fallacy The Parkfield prediction fallacy
The Parkfield earthquake prediction is generally stated as a 95% probability that the next moderate earthquake there should occur before January 1993. That time limit is based on a two-sided 95% confidence interval. Because at the time of the prediction (1985) it was already clear that the earthquake had not occurred prior to 1985, a one-sided 95% confidence interval would have been more
Authors
James C. Savage
GIS mapping of earthquake ground shaking in San Francisco, California GIS mapping of earthquake ground shaking in San Francisco, California
Severe earthquakes of the last decade in Mexico, Armenia, and the United States have reemphasized the importance of local geologic site conditions in estimating damage and consequent losses. Recent advances in geographic information system (GIS) technology have created new opportunities for maintaining and integrating extensive spatial databases for applications in seismic hazard...
Authors
S.A. King, Anne S. Kiremidjian, Roger D. Borcherdt, Carl M. Wentworth
The Loma Prieta, California, Earthquake of October 17, 1989: Societal response The Loma Prieta, California, Earthquake of October 17, 1989: Societal response
Professional Paper 1553 describes how people and organizations responded to the earthquake and how the earthquake impacted people and society. The investigations evaluate the tools available to the research community to measure the nature, extent, and causes of damage and losses. They describe human behavior during and immediately after the earthquake and how citizens participated in...
Authors
Dennis S. Coordinated by Mileti
The Loma Prieta, California, Earthquake of October 17, 1989: Earthquake occurrence The Loma Prieta, California, Earthquake of October 17, 1989: Earthquake occurrence
Professional Paper 1550 seeks to understand the M6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake itself. It examines how the fault that generated the earthquake ruptured, searches for and evaluates precursors that may have indicated an earthquake was coming, reviews forecasts of the earthquake, and describes the geology of the earthquake area and the crustal forces that affect this geology. Some significant...
Authors
William H. Coordinated by Bakun, William H. Prescott
The Loma Prieta, California, earthquake of October 17, 1989: Preseismic observations The Loma Prieta, California, earthquake of October 17, 1989: Preseismic observations
The October 17, 1989, Loma Prieta, Calif., Ms=7.1 earthquake provided the first opportunity in the history of fault monitoring in the United States to gather multidisciplinary preearthquake data in the near field of an M=7 earthquake. The data obtained include observations on seismicity, continuous strain, long-term ground displacement, magnetic field, and hydrology. The papers in this...
Authors
Malcolm J. S. Johnston, Jean A. Olson, David P. Hill, Anthony C. Fraser-Smith, Arman Bernardi, Robert A. Helliwell, Paul R. McGill, O.G. Villard, Robert J. Mueller, Randall A. White, William L. Ellsworth, Evelyn A. Roeloffs, Alan T. Linde, M. T. Gladwin, R. L. Gwyther, R.H.G. Hart, Michael Lisowski, James C. Savage, William H. Prescott, Jerry L. Svarc, Mark Hunter Murray, P.G. Silver, N. J. Valette-Silver, Olga Kolbek
Earthquake locations determined by the Southern Alaska seismograph network for October 1971 through May 1989 Earthquake locations determined by the Southern Alaska seismograph network for October 1971 through May 1989
This report describes the instrumentation and evolution of the U.S. Geological Survey’s regional seismograph network in southern Alaska, provides phase and hypocenter data for seismic events from October 1971 through May 1989, reviews the location methods used, and discusses the completeness of the catalog and the accuracy of the computed hypocenters. Included are arrival time data for...
Authors
Kent A. Fogleman, John C. Lahr, Christopher D. Stephens, Robert A. Page
The Loma Prieta, California, earthquake of October 17, 1989 - Public response: Chapter B in The Loma Prieta, California, earthquake of October 17, 1989: Societal Response (Professional Paper 1553) The Loma Prieta, California, earthquake of October 17, 1989 - Public response: Chapter B in The Loma Prieta, California, earthquake of October 17, 1989: Societal Response (Professional Paper 1553)
Major earthquakes provide seismologists and engineers an opportunity to examine the performance of the Earth and the man-made structures in response to the forces of the quake. So, too, do they provide social scientists an opportunity to delve into human responses evoked by the ground shaking and its physical consequences. The findings from such research can serve to guide the...