Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Ben Melosh

Ben Melosh is a research geologist at the GMEG science center. He received his PhD in structural geology from McGill University in 2015. Since joining the USGS, Ben has focused on bedrock mapping and active tectonics in northern California and specializes in fault rock deformation and multiply-deformed terranes.

Professional Experience

  • Research Geologist, USGS, 2015  to present

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D. - Structural Geology, McGill University 2015

  • M.S. - Active Tectonics, UC Santa Barbara 2010

  • B.S.  - Geology, UC Santa Cruz 2005

Affiliations and Memberships*

  • AGU 2008-present

  • GSA 2008-present

  • CTG (Canadian tectonics group) 2011-2015

  • SCUMBAG (Sonoma County United Meeting of Biology and Geology) 2005-2007

Science and Products

Fault initiation in serpentinite

Serpentinite fault rheology is fundamental to tectonic and earthquake processes, yet links between deformation textures and strength evolution during fault initiation are poorly constrained. Here I present field and petrographic microstructural observations of unsheared and sheared serpentinite that demonstrate a progression of fault development. I compliment observations with a clast size distrib
Authors
Benjamin Melosh
By
Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center

Bedrock geology of DFDP-2B, central Alpine Fault, New Zealand

During the second phase of the Alpine Fault, Deep Fault Drilling Project (DFDP) in the Whataroa River, South Westland, New Zealand, bedrock was encountered in the DFDP-2B borehole from 238.5–893.2 m Measured Depth (MD). Continuous sampling and meso- to microscale characterisation of whole rock cuttings established that, in sequence, the borehole sampled amphibolite facies, Torlesse Composite Terra
Authors
Virginia G. Toy, Rupert Southerland, John Townend, Michael J. Allen, Leeza Becroft, Austin Boles, Carolyn Boulton, Brett Carpenter, Alan K. Cooper, Simon C. Cox, Christopher Daube, Daniel R. Faulkner, Angela Halfpenny, Naoki Kato, Stephen Keys, Martina Kirilova, Yusuke Kometani, Timothy Little, Elisabetta Mariani, Benjamin Melosh, Catriona D. Menzies, Luiz Morales, Chance Morgan, Hiroshi Mori, Andre Niemeijer, Richard Norris, David Prior, Katrina Sauer, Anja Schleicher, Norio Shigematsu, Damon A.H. Teagle, Harold Tobin, Robert Valdez, Jack Williams, Samantha Yeo, Laura-May Baratin, Nicolas C. Barth, Adrian Benson, Caroline Boese, Bernard Celerier, Calum J. Chamberlain, Ronald Conze, Jamie Coussens, Lisa Craw, Mai-Linh Doan, Jennifer L. Eccles, Jason Grieve, Julia Grochowski, Anton Gulley, Jamie Howarth, Katrina D. Zamudio, Lucie Janku-Capova, Tamara Nicole Jeppson, Robert M. Langridge, Deirdre Mallyon, Ray Marx, Cecile Massiot, Loren Mathewson, Josephine Moore, Osamu Nishikawa, Brent Pooley, Alex Pyne, Martha K. Savage, Doug Schmitt, Sam Taylor-Offord, Phaedra Upton, Konrad C. Weaver, Thomas Wiersberg, Martin Zimmer
By
Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

Science and Products

  • Publications

    Fault initiation in serpentinite

    Serpentinite fault rheology is fundamental to tectonic and earthquake processes, yet links between deformation textures and strength evolution during fault initiation are poorly constrained. Here I present field and petrographic microstructural observations of unsheared and sheared serpentinite that demonstrate a progression of fault development. I compliment observations with a clast size distrib
    Authors
    Benjamin Melosh
    By
    Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center

    Bedrock geology of DFDP-2B, central Alpine Fault, New Zealand

    During the second phase of the Alpine Fault, Deep Fault Drilling Project (DFDP) in the Whataroa River, South Westland, New Zealand, bedrock was encountered in the DFDP-2B borehole from 238.5–893.2 m Measured Depth (MD). Continuous sampling and meso- to microscale characterisation of whole rock cuttings established that, in sequence, the borehole sampled amphibolite facies, Torlesse Composite Terra
    Authors
    Virginia G. Toy, Rupert Southerland, John Townend, Michael J. Allen, Leeza Becroft, Austin Boles, Carolyn Boulton, Brett Carpenter, Alan K. Cooper, Simon C. Cox, Christopher Daube, Daniel R. Faulkner, Angela Halfpenny, Naoki Kato, Stephen Keys, Martina Kirilova, Yusuke Kometani, Timothy Little, Elisabetta Mariani, Benjamin Melosh, Catriona D. Menzies, Luiz Morales, Chance Morgan, Hiroshi Mori, Andre Niemeijer, Richard Norris, David Prior, Katrina Sauer, Anja Schleicher, Norio Shigematsu, Damon A.H. Teagle, Harold Tobin, Robert Valdez, Jack Williams, Samantha Yeo, Laura-May Baratin, Nicolas C. Barth, Adrian Benson, Caroline Boese, Bernard Celerier, Calum J. Chamberlain, Ronald Conze, Jamie Coussens, Lisa Craw, Mai-Linh Doan, Jennifer L. Eccles, Jason Grieve, Julia Grochowski, Anton Gulley, Jamie Howarth, Katrina D. Zamudio, Lucie Janku-Capova, Tamara Nicole Jeppson, Robert M. Langridge, Deirdre Mallyon, Ray Marx, Cecile Massiot, Loren Mathewson, Josephine Moore, Osamu Nishikawa, Brent Pooley, Alex Pyne, Martha K. Savage, Doug Schmitt, Sam Taylor-Offord, Phaedra Upton, Konrad C. Weaver, Thomas Wiersberg, Martin Zimmer
    By
    Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center

*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government