David J Wald
Dr. Wald is a Seismologist with the USGS in Golden. He is involved in research, development & operations of several real-time earthquake information systems at the USGS National Earthquake Information Center. He developed and manages “ShakeMap”, “Did You Feel it?”, & is responsible for developing other systems for post-earthquake response & pre-earthquake mitigation, including ShakeCast.
Wald's scientific interests include the characterization of rupture processes from complex recent and historic earthquakes using combined geodetic, teleseismic, and strong motion data; waveform modelling and inversion; analysis of ground motion hazards and site effects; earthquake source physics; and modelling earthquake-induced landslides, liquefaction, and losses, macroseismic intensity, building damage, financial and human impact, rapid damage and impact assessment, earthquake scenario development and mitigation planning and drills, and communication with the media, public, and emergency managers.
Previously at Caltech, and now at the Colorado School of Mines, Wald has advised dozens of post-doctoral, graduate, and undergraduate student research projects. Wald directly supervises 10 PhD level scientists and 5 five BS and MS level support staff, and supervises several students. Wald serves on several PhD committees at this time. This research has resulted in more than 450 professional publications that David has authored or co-authored, including journal papers, USGS publication series, conference papers, and published abstracts.
Education:
Post-doctoral Fellow, Geophysics, National Research Council, USGS, Pasadena, 1995
Ph.D., Geophysics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 1993
M.S., Geophysics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 1986
B.S., Geology & Physics, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY, 1984
Honors and Awards
2025 - Alfred E. Alquist Special Recognition Medal of Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2023 - Presidential Rank Award
2023 - USGS Shoemaker Lifetime Achievement Award in Communications
2023 - American Geophysical Union Fellow
2018—2023 - Editor-in-Chief, Earthquake Spectra
2021 - Joyner Lectureship, Seismological Society of America and the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2015—2017 - Board of Directors, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2016 - Meritorious Service Award (MSA), Department of the Interior
2015 - Distinguished Lecturer, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2015—2017 - Board of Directors, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2009—2011 - Board of Directors, Seismological Society of America
2010 - Superior Service Award (SSA), Department of the Interior
2009 - Frank Press Public Service Award of the Seismological Society of America
2004 - Seismological Society of America’s Distinguished Lecturer
2003 - U.S.G.S. Shoemaker Award. Excellence in Communications
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 162
Impact-based earthquake alerts with the U.S. Geological Survey's PAGER system: what's next? Impact-based earthquake alerts with the U.S. Geological Survey's PAGER system: what's next?
In September 2010, the USGS began publicly releasing earthquake alerts for significant earthquakes around the globe based on estimates of potential casualties and economic losses with its Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system. These estimates significantly enhanced the utility of the USGS PAGER system which had been, since 2006, providing estimated...
Authors
D.J. Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. Marano, D. Garcia, E. So, M. Hearne
Rapid estimation of the economic consequences of global earthquakes Rapid estimation of the economic consequences of global earthquakes
The U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, operational since mid 2007, rapidly estimates the most affected locations and the population exposure at different levels of shaking intensities. The PAGER system has significantly improved the way aid agencies determine the scale of response needed in the aftermath of an earthquake...
Authors
Kishor Jaiswal, David Wald
Earthquake impact scale Earthquake impact scale
With the advent of the USGS prompt assessment of global earthquakes for response (PAGER) system, which rapidly assesses earthquake impacts, U.S. and international earthquake responders are reconsidering their automatic alert and activation levels and response procedures. To help facilitate rapid and appropriate earthquake response, an Earthquake Impact Scale (EIS) is proposed on the...
Authors
David Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. Marano, D. Bausch
88 hours: The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center response to the March 11, 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku earthquake 88 hours: The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center response to the March 11, 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku earthquake
The M 9.0 11 March 2011 Tohoku, Japan, earthquake and associated tsunami near the east coast of the island of Honshu caused tens of thousands of deaths and potentially over one trillion dollars in damage, resulting in one of the worst natural disasters ever recorded. The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center (USGS NEIC), through its responsibility to respond to...
Authors
Gavin Hayes, Paul Earle, Harley Benz, David Wald, Richard Briggs
A new strategy for developing Vs30 maps A new strategy for developing Vs30 maps
Despite obvious limitations as a proxy for site amplification, the use of time-averaged shear-wave velocity over the top 30m (Vs30) is useful and widely practiced, most notably through its use as an explanatory variable in ground motion prediction equations (and thus hazard maps and ShakeMaps, among other applications). Local, regional, and global Vs30 maps thus have diverse and...
Authors
David Wald, Leslie McWhirter, Eric Thompson, Amanda Hering
Earthquake casualty models within the USGS Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system Earthquake casualty models within the USGS Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system
Since the launch of the USGS’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system in fall of 2007, the time needed for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to determine and comprehend the scope of any major earthquake disaster anywhere in the world has been dramatically reduced to less than 30 min. PAGER alerts consist of estimated shaking hazard from the ShakeMap system...
Authors
Kishor Jaiswal, David Wald, Paul Earle, Keith Porter, Mike Hearne
USGS "Did You Feel It?" internet-based macroseismic intensity maps USGS "Did You Feel It?" internet-based macroseismic intensity maps
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) "Did You Feel It?" (DYFI) system is an automated approach for rapidly collecting macroseismic intensity data from Internet users' shaking and damage reports and generating intensity maps immediately following earthquakes; it has been operating for over a decade (1999-2011). DYFI-based intensity maps made rapidly available through the DYFI system...
Authors
D.J. Wald, V. Quitoriano, B. Worden, M. Hopper, J. Dewey
Developing empirical collapse fragility functions for global building types Developing empirical collapse fragility functions for global building types
Building collapse is the dominant cause of casualties during earthquakes. In order to better predict human fatalities, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program requires collapse fragility functions for global building types. The collapse fragility is expressed as the probability of collapse at discrete levels of the input hazard...
Authors
K. Jaiswal, D. Wald, D. D’Ayala
PAGER--Rapid assessment of an earthquakes impact PAGER--Rapid assessment of an earthquakes impact
PAGER (Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response) is an automated system that produces content concerning the impact of significant earthquakes around the world, informing emergency responders, government and aid agencies, and the media of the scope of the potential disaster. PAGER rapidly assesses earthquake impacts by comparing the population exposed to each level of shaking...
Authors
D.J. Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. Marano, D. Bausch, M. Hearne
Global building inventory for earthquake loss estimation and risk management Global building inventory for earthquake loss estimation and risk management
We develop a global database of building inventories using taxonomy of global building types for use in near-real-time post-earthquake loss estimation and pre-earthquake risk analysis, for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program. The database is available for public use, subject to peer review, scrutiny, and open enhancement. On a...
Authors
Kishor Jaiswal, David Wald, Keith Porter
Global earthquake casualties due to secondary effects: A quantitative analysis for improving PAGER losses Global earthquake casualties due to secondary effects: A quantitative analysis for improving PAGER losses
This study presents a quantitative and geospatial description of global losses due to earthquake-induced secondary effects, including landslide, liquefaction, tsunami, and fire for events during the past 40 years. These processes are of great importance to the US Geological Survey’s (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, which is currently being...
Authors
Kristin Marano, David Wald, Trevor Allen
A revised ground-motion and intensity interpolation scheme for shakemap A revised ground-motion and intensity interpolation scheme for shakemap
We describe a weighted-average approach for incorporating various types of data (observed peak ground motions and intensities and estimates from groundmotion prediction equations) into the ShakeMap ground motion and intensity mapping framework. This approach represents a fundamental revision of our existing ShakeMap methodology. In addition, the increased availability of near-real-time
Authors
C.B. Worden, D.J. Wald, T.I. Allen, K. Lin, D. Garcia, G. Cua
Non-USGS Publications**
References in Google Scholar
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 162
Impact-based earthquake alerts with the U.S. Geological Survey's PAGER system: what's next? Impact-based earthquake alerts with the U.S. Geological Survey's PAGER system: what's next?
In September 2010, the USGS began publicly releasing earthquake alerts for significant earthquakes around the globe based on estimates of potential casualties and economic losses with its Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system. These estimates significantly enhanced the utility of the USGS PAGER system which had been, since 2006, providing estimated...
Authors
D.J. Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. Marano, D. Garcia, E. So, M. Hearne
Rapid estimation of the economic consequences of global earthquakes Rapid estimation of the economic consequences of global earthquakes
The U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, operational since mid 2007, rapidly estimates the most affected locations and the population exposure at different levels of shaking intensities. The PAGER system has significantly improved the way aid agencies determine the scale of response needed in the aftermath of an earthquake...
Authors
Kishor Jaiswal, David Wald
Earthquake impact scale Earthquake impact scale
With the advent of the USGS prompt assessment of global earthquakes for response (PAGER) system, which rapidly assesses earthquake impacts, U.S. and international earthquake responders are reconsidering their automatic alert and activation levels and response procedures. To help facilitate rapid and appropriate earthquake response, an Earthquake Impact Scale (EIS) is proposed on the...
Authors
David Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. Marano, D. Bausch
88 hours: The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center response to the March 11, 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku earthquake 88 hours: The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center response to the March 11, 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku earthquake
The M 9.0 11 March 2011 Tohoku, Japan, earthquake and associated tsunami near the east coast of the island of Honshu caused tens of thousands of deaths and potentially over one trillion dollars in damage, resulting in one of the worst natural disasters ever recorded. The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center (USGS NEIC), through its responsibility to respond to...
Authors
Gavin Hayes, Paul Earle, Harley Benz, David Wald, Richard Briggs
A new strategy for developing Vs30 maps A new strategy for developing Vs30 maps
Despite obvious limitations as a proxy for site amplification, the use of time-averaged shear-wave velocity over the top 30m (Vs30) is useful and widely practiced, most notably through its use as an explanatory variable in ground motion prediction equations (and thus hazard maps and ShakeMaps, among other applications). Local, regional, and global Vs30 maps thus have diverse and...
Authors
David Wald, Leslie McWhirter, Eric Thompson, Amanda Hering
Earthquake casualty models within the USGS Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system Earthquake casualty models within the USGS Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system
Since the launch of the USGS’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system in fall of 2007, the time needed for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to determine and comprehend the scope of any major earthquake disaster anywhere in the world has been dramatically reduced to less than 30 min. PAGER alerts consist of estimated shaking hazard from the ShakeMap system...
Authors
Kishor Jaiswal, David Wald, Paul Earle, Keith Porter, Mike Hearne
USGS "Did You Feel It?" internet-based macroseismic intensity maps USGS "Did You Feel It?" internet-based macroseismic intensity maps
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) "Did You Feel It?" (DYFI) system is an automated approach for rapidly collecting macroseismic intensity data from Internet users' shaking and damage reports and generating intensity maps immediately following earthquakes; it has been operating for over a decade (1999-2011). DYFI-based intensity maps made rapidly available through the DYFI system...
Authors
D.J. Wald, V. Quitoriano, B. Worden, M. Hopper, J. Dewey
Developing empirical collapse fragility functions for global building types Developing empirical collapse fragility functions for global building types
Building collapse is the dominant cause of casualties during earthquakes. In order to better predict human fatalities, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program requires collapse fragility functions for global building types. The collapse fragility is expressed as the probability of collapse at discrete levels of the input hazard...
Authors
K. Jaiswal, D. Wald, D. D’Ayala
PAGER--Rapid assessment of an earthquakes impact PAGER--Rapid assessment of an earthquakes impact
PAGER (Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response) is an automated system that produces content concerning the impact of significant earthquakes around the world, informing emergency responders, government and aid agencies, and the media of the scope of the potential disaster. PAGER rapidly assesses earthquake impacts by comparing the population exposed to each level of shaking...
Authors
D.J. Wald, K. Jaiswal, K. Marano, D. Bausch, M. Hearne
Global building inventory for earthquake loss estimation and risk management Global building inventory for earthquake loss estimation and risk management
We develop a global database of building inventories using taxonomy of global building types for use in near-real-time post-earthquake loss estimation and pre-earthquake risk analysis, for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) program. The database is available for public use, subject to peer review, scrutiny, and open enhancement. On a...
Authors
Kishor Jaiswal, David Wald, Keith Porter
Global earthquake casualties due to secondary effects: A quantitative analysis for improving PAGER losses Global earthquake casualties due to secondary effects: A quantitative analysis for improving PAGER losses
This study presents a quantitative and geospatial description of global losses due to earthquake-induced secondary effects, including landslide, liquefaction, tsunami, and fire for events during the past 40 years. These processes are of great importance to the US Geological Survey’s (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, which is currently being...
Authors
Kristin Marano, David Wald, Trevor Allen
A revised ground-motion and intensity interpolation scheme for shakemap A revised ground-motion and intensity interpolation scheme for shakemap
We describe a weighted-average approach for incorporating various types of data (observed peak ground motions and intensities and estimates from groundmotion prediction equations) into the ShakeMap ground motion and intensity mapping framework. This approach represents a fundamental revision of our existing ShakeMap methodology. In addition, the increased availability of near-real-time
Authors
C.B. Worden, D.J. Wald, T.I. Allen, K. Lin, D. Garcia, G. Cua
Non-USGS Publications**
References in Google Scholar
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.