Katherine (Kate) Scharer
Dr. Scharer holds a Ph.D. from the University of Oregon and a B.S. in Geological Sciences from the University of Washington.
Prior to coming to the USGS, she was a professor at Appalachian State University in North Carolina. Dr. Scharer studies the timing and size of pre-historic earthquakes along the San Andreas Fault and other active faults in southern California, Alaska, and the Dominican Republic. She also investigates the deformation produced by tectonic motion through a combination of field mapping, lidar analysis, and Quaternary geochronologic methods.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 49
Holocene depositional history inferred from single-grain luminescence ages in southern California, North America Holocene depositional history inferred from single-grain luminescence ages in southern California, North America
Significant sediment flux and deposition in a sedimentary system are influenced by climate changes, tectonics, lithology, and the sedimentary system's internal dynamics. Identifying the timing of depositional periods from stratigraphic records is a first step to critically evaluate the controls of sediment flux and deposition. Here, we show that ages of single-grain K-feldspar...
Authors
Sourav Saha, Seulgi Moon, Nathan Brown, Edward Rhodes, Katherine M. Scharer, Devin McPhillips, Sally McGill, Bryan Castillo
Prehistoric earthquakes on the Banning strand of the San Andreas fault, North Palm Springs, California Prehistoric earthquakes on the Banning strand of the San Andreas fault, North Palm Springs, California
We studied a paleoseismic trench excavated in 2017 across the Banning strand of the San Andreas fault and herein provide the first detailed record of ground-breaking earthquakes on this important fault in Southern California. The trench exposed an ~40-m-wide fault zone cutting through alluvial sand, gravel, silt, and clay deposits. We evaluated the paleoseismic record using a new metric...
Authors
Bryan Castillo, Sally McGill, Katherine M. Scharer, Doug Yule, Devin McPhillips, James McNeil, Sourav Saha, Nathan Brown, Seulgi Moon
Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture
Active traces of the southern Fairweather fault were revealed by light detection and ranging (lidar) and show evidence for transpressional deformation between North America and the Yakutat block in southeast Alaska. We map the Holocene geomorphic expression of tectonic deformation along the southern 30 km of the Fairweather fault, which ruptured in the 1958 moment magnitude 7.8...
Authors
Robert C. Witter, Adrian Bender, Katherine M. Scharer, Christopher DuRoss, Peter J. Haeussler, Richard Lease
The San Andreas fault paleoseismic record at Elizabeth Lake: Why are there fewer surface-rupturing earthquakes on the Mojave section? The San Andreas fault paleoseismic record at Elizabeth Lake: Why are there fewer surface-rupturing earthquakes on the Mojave section?
The structural complexity of active faults and the stress release history along the fault system may exert control on the locus and extent of individual earthquake ruptures. Fault bends, in particular, are often invoked as a possible mechanism for terminating earthquake ruptures. However, there are few records available to examine how these factors may influence the along‐fault...
Authors
Sean Bemis, Katherine M. Scharer, James Dolan
A revised position for the primary strand of the Pleistocene-Holocene San Andreas fault in southern California A revised position for the primary strand of the Pleistocene-Holocene San Andreas fault in southern California
The San Andreas fault has the highest calculated time-dependent probability for large-magnitude earthquakes in southern California. However, where the fault is multistranded east of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, it has been uncertain which strand has the fastest slip rate and, therefore, which has the highest probability of a destructive earthquake. Reconstruction of offset...
Authors
Kim Blisniuk, Katherine M. Scharer, Warren Sharp, Roland Burgmann, Colin Amos, Michael Rymer
Documentation of Surface Fault Rupture and Ground‐Deformation Features Produced by the 4 and 5 July 2019 Mw 6.4 and Mw 7.1 Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence Documentation of Surface Fault Rupture and Ground‐Deformation Features Produced by the 4 and 5 July 2019 Mw 6.4 and Mw 7.1 Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence
The MwMw 6.4 and MwMw 7.1 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence occurred on 4 and 5 July 2019 within the eastern California shear zone of southern California. Both events produced extensive surface faulting and ground deformation within Indian Wells Valley and Searles Valley. In the weeks following the earthquakes, more than six dozen scientists from government, academia, and the private sector...
Authors
Daniel Ponti, James Blair, Rosa M, Kate Thomas, Alexandra Pickering, Sinan Akciz, Stephen Angster, Jean-Philipe Avouac, Jeffrey Bachhuber, Steven Bacon, Nicolas Barth, S. Bennett, Kelly Blake, Stephan Bork, Benjamin Brooks, Thomas Bullard, Paul Burgess, Colin Chupik, Timothy Dawson, Michael DeFrisco, Jaime Delano, Stephen DeLong, James Dolan, Andrea Donnellan, Christopher DuRoss, Todd Ericksen, Erik Frost, Gareth Funning, Ryan Gold, Nicholas A Graehl, Carlos Gutierrez, Elizabeth Haddon, Alexandra Hatem, John Helms, Janis Hernandez, Christopher Hitchcock, Peter Holland, Kenneth Hudnut, Katherine Kendrick, Richard Koehler, Ozgur Kozaci, Tyler Ladinsky, Robert Leeper, Christopher Madugo, Maxime Mareschal, James McDonald, Devin McPhillips, Christopher Milliner, Daniel Mongovin, Alexander Morelan, Stephanie Nale, Johanna Nevitt, Matt O’Neal, Brian Olsen, Michael Oskin, Salena Padilla, Jason Patton, Belle Philibosian, Ian Pierce, Cynthia Pridmore, Nathaniel Roth, David Sandwell, Katherine M. Scharer, Gordon Seitz, Drake Singleton, Bridget Smith-Konter, Eleanor Spangler, Brian Swanson, Jessica Thompson Jobe, Jerome Treiman, Francesca Valencia, Joshua Vanderwal, Alana Williams, Xiaohua Xu, Judith Zachariasen, Jade Zimmerman, Robert Zinke
Kinematics of fault slip associated with the July 4-6 2019 Ridgecrest, Californai earthquakes sequence Kinematics of fault slip associated with the July 4-6 2019 Ridgecrest, Californai earthquakes sequence
The 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence produced observable crustal deformation over much of central and southern California, as well as surface rupture over several tens of kilometers. To obtain a detailed picture of the fault slip involved in the 4 July M 6.4 foreshock and 6 July M 7.1 mainshock, we combine strong‐motion seismic waveforms with crustal deformation...
Authors
Frederick Pollitz, Jessica Murray, Jerry Svarc, Charles Wicks, Evelyn Roeloffs, Sarah Minson, Katherine M. Scharer, Katherine Kendrick, Kenneth Hudnut, Johanna Nevitt, Benjamin Brooks, David Mencin
A maximum rupture model for the southern San Andreas and San Jacinto Faults California, derived from paleoseismic earthquake ages: Observations and limitations A maximum rupture model for the southern San Andreas and San Jacinto Faults California, derived from paleoseismic earthquake ages: Observations and limitations
Paleoseismic rupture histories provide spatiotemporal models of earthquake moment release needed to test numerical models and lengthen the instrumental catalog. We develop a model of the fewest and thus largest magnitude earthquakes permitted by paleoseismic data for the last 1,500 years on the southern San Andreas and San Jacinto Faults, California, USA. The largest geometric complexity...
Authors
Katherine M. Scharer, Doug Yule
EERI earthquake reconnaissance report: 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence EERI earthquake reconnaissance report: 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence
The Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence began the morning of 4 July 2019 with an M6.4 earthquake at 10:33 a.m., closely following several small foreshocks. The epicenter of this event was roughly 11 miles (18 km) east-northeast of Ridgecrest (Figure 1) within the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake (NAWS-CL). Seismic and geologic data established that the M6.4 earthquake occurred primarily...
Authors
EERI Program, Katherine M. Scharer
Surface displacement distributions for the July 2019 Ridgecrest, California earthquake ruptures Surface displacement distributions for the July 2019 Ridgecrest, California earthquake ruptures
Surface rupture in the 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence occurred along two orthogonal cross faults and includes dominantly left‐lateral and northeast‐striking rupture in the Mw 6.4 foreshock and dominantly right‐lateral and northwest‐striking rupture in the Mw 7.1 mainshock. We present >650 field‐based, surface‐displacement observations for these ruptures and synthesize...
Authors
Christopher DuRoss, Ryan Gold, Timothy Dawson, Katherine M. Scharer, Katherine Kendrick, Sinan Akciz, Stephen Angster, Jeffery Bachhuber, Steven Bacon, Scott Bennett, Luke Blair, Benjamin Brooks, Thomas Bullard, W. Burgess, Colin Chupik, Michael DeFrisco, Jaime Delano, James Dolan, Erik Frost, Nick Graehl, Elizabeth Haddon, Alexandra Hatem, Janis Hernandez, Christopher Hitchcock, Kennth Hudnut, Jessica Thompson Jobe, Richard Koehler, Ozgur Kozaci, Tyler Ladinsky, Christopher Madugo, Devin McPhillips, Christopher Milliner, Alexander Morelan, Brian Olson, Jason Patton, Belle Philibosian, Alexandra Pickering, Ian Pierce, Daniel Ponti, Gordon Seitz, Eleanor Spangler, Brian Swanson, Kate Thomas, Jerome Treiman, Francesca Valencia, Alana Williams, Robert Zinke
Late Quaternary slip rates on the Sierra Madre fault zone and paleoseismic evidence on the size and frequency of past ruptures Late Quaternary slip rates on the Sierra Madre fault zone and paleoseismic evidence on the size and frequency of past ruptures
The Sierra Madre fault zone is a south-vergent, active reverse fault that accommodates shortening between basins on the northern margin of the Los Angeles region and the San Gabriel Mountains. The preservation of late Quaternary alluvial fill and fan surfaces in the hanging wall of the fault provides evidence of long-term uplift. Surface rupture from the 1971 Mw 6.6 San Fernando...
Authors
Reed J. Burgette, Katherine M. Scharer, Scott Lindvall
Airborne lidar and electro-optical imagery along surface ruptures of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, Southern California Airborne lidar and electro-optical imagery along surface ruptures of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, Southern California
Surface rupture from the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, initially associated with the M 6.4 foreshock, occurred on July 4 on a ~17 km long, northeast-southwest oriented, left-lateral zone of faulting. Following the M 7.1 mainshock on July 5 (local time), extensive northwest-southeast-oriented, right-lateral faulting was then also mapped along a ~50 km long zone of faults, including...
Authors
Kenneth Hudnut, Benjamin Brooks, Katherine Scharer, Janis Hernandez, Timothy Dawson, Michael Oskin, J. Arrowsmith, Christine Goulet, Kelly Blake, Matthew Boggie, Stephan Bork, Craig L. Glennie, J.C. Fernandez-Diaz, Abhinav Singhania, Darren Hauser, Sven Sorhus
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 49
Holocene depositional history inferred from single-grain luminescence ages in southern California, North America Holocene depositional history inferred from single-grain luminescence ages in southern California, North America
Significant sediment flux and deposition in a sedimentary system are influenced by climate changes, tectonics, lithology, and the sedimentary system's internal dynamics. Identifying the timing of depositional periods from stratigraphic records is a first step to critically evaluate the controls of sediment flux and deposition. Here, we show that ages of single-grain K-feldspar...
Authors
Sourav Saha, Seulgi Moon, Nathan Brown, Edward Rhodes, Katherine M. Scharer, Devin McPhillips, Sally McGill, Bryan Castillo
Prehistoric earthquakes on the Banning strand of the San Andreas fault, North Palm Springs, California Prehistoric earthquakes on the Banning strand of the San Andreas fault, North Palm Springs, California
We studied a paleoseismic trench excavated in 2017 across the Banning strand of the San Andreas fault and herein provide the first detailed record of ground-breaking earthquakes on this important fault in Southern California. The trench exposed an ~40-m-wide fault zone cutting through alluvial sand, gravel, silt, and clay deposits. We evaluated the paleoseismic record using a new metric...
Authors
Bryan Castillo, Sally McGill, Katherine M. Scharer, Doug Yule, Devin McPhillips, James McNeil, Sourav Saha, Nathan Brown, Seulgi Moon
Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture
Active traces of the southern Fairweather fault were revealed by light detection and ranging (lidar) and show evidence for transpressional deformation between North America and the Yakutat block in southeast Alaska. We map the Holocene geomorphic expression of tectonic deformation along the southern 30 km of the Fairweather fault, which ruptured in the 1958 moment magnitude 7.8...
Authors
Robert C. Witter, Adrian Bender, Katherine M. Scharer, Christopher DuRoss, Peter J. Haeussler, Richard Lease
The San Andreas fault paleoseismic record at Elizabeth Lake: Why are there fewer surface-rupturing earthquakes on the Mojave section? The San Andreas fault paleoseismic record at Elizabeth Lake: Why are there fewer surface-rupturing earthquakes on the Mojave section?
The structural complexity of active faults and the stress release history along the fault system may exert control on the locus and extent of individual earthquake ruptures. Fault bends, in particular, are often invoked as a possible mechanism for terminating earthquake ruptures. However, there are few records available to examine how these factors may influence the along‐fault...
Authors
Sean Bemis, Katherine M. Scharer, James Dolan
A revised position for the primary strand of the Pleistocene-Holocene San Andreas fault in southern California A revised position for the primary strand of the Pleistocene-Holocene San Andreas fault in southern California
The San Andreas fault has the highest calculated time-dependent probability for large-magnitude earthquakes in southern California. However, where the fault is multistranded east of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, it has been uncertain which strand has the fastest slip rate and, therefore, which has the highest probability of a destructive earthquake. Reconstruction of offset...
Authors
Kim Blisniuk, Katherine M. Scharer, Warren Sharp, Roland Burgmann, Colin Amos, Michael Rymer
Documentation of Surface Fault Rupture and Ground‐Deformation Features Produced by the 4 and 5 July 2019 Mw 6.4 and Mw 7.1 Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence Documentation of Surface Fault Rupture and Ground‐Deformation Features Produced by the 4 and 5 July 2019 Mw 6.4 and Mw 7.1 Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence
The MwMw 6.4 and MwMw 7.1 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence occurred on 4 and 5 July 2019 within the eastern California shear zone of southern California. Both events produced extensive surface faulting and ground deformation within Indian Wells Valley and Searles Valley. In the weeks following the earthquakes, more than six dozen scientists from government, academia, and the private sector...
Authors
Daniel Ponti, James Blair, Rosa M, Kate Thomas, Alexandra Pickering, Sinan Akciz, Stephen Angster, Jean-Philipe Avouac, Jeffrey Bachhuber, Steven Bacon, Nicolas Barth, S. Bennett, Kelly Blake, Stephan Bork, Benjamin Brooks, Thomas Bullard, Paul Burgess, Colin Chupik, Timothy Dawson, Michael DeFrisco, Jaime Delano, Stephen DeLong, James Dolan, Andrea Donnellan, Christopher DuRoss, Todd Ericksen, Erik Frost, Gareth Funning, Ryan Gold, Nicholas A Graehl, Carlos Gutierrez, Elizabeth Haddon, Alexandra Hatem, John Helms, Janis Hernandez, Christopher Hitchcock, Peter Holland, Kenneth Hudnut, Katherine Kendrick, Richard Koehler, Ozgur Kozaci, Tyler Ladinsky, Robert Leeper, Christopher Madugo, Maxime Mareschal, James McDonald, Devin McPhillips, Christopher Milliner, Daniel Mongovin, Alexander Morelan, Stephanie Nale, Johanna Nevitt, Matt O’Neal, Brian Olsen, Michael Oskin, Salena Padilla, Jason Patton, Belle Philibosian, Ian Pierce, Cynthia Pridmore, Nathaniel Roth, David Sandwell, Katherine M. Scharer, Gordon Seitz, Drake Singleton, Bridget Smith-Konter, Eleanor Spangler, Brian Swanson, Jessica Thompson Jobe, Jerome Treiman, Francesca Valencia, Joshua Vanderwal, Alana Williams, Xiaohua Xu, Judith Zachariasen, Jade Zimmerman, Robert Zinke
Kinematics of fault slip associated with the July 4-6 2019 Ridgecrest, Californai earthquakes sequence Kinematics of fault slip associated with the July 4-6 2019 Ridgecrest, Californai earthquakes sequence
The 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence produced observable crustal deformation over much of central and southern California, as well as surface rupture over several tens of kilometers. To obtain a detailed picture of the fault slip involved in the 4 July M 6.4 foreshock and 6 July M 7.1 mainshock, we combine strong‐motion seismic waveforms with crustal deformation...
Authors
Frederick Pollitz, Jessica Murray, Jerry Svarc, Charles Wicks, Evelyn Roeloffs, Sarah Minson, Katherine M. Scharer, Katherine Kendrick, Kenneth Hudnut, Johanna Nevitt, Benjamin Brooks, David Mencin
A maximum rupture model for the southern San Andreas and San Jacinto Faults California, derived from paleoseismic earthquake ages: Observations and limitations A maximum rupture model for the southern San Andreas and San Jacinto Faults California, derived from paleoseismic earthquake ages: Observations and limitations
Paleoseismic rupture histories provide spatiotemporal models of earthquake moment release needed to test numerical models and lengthen the instrumental catalog. We develop a model of the fewest and thus largest magnitude earthquakes permitted by paleoseismic data for the last 1,500 years on the southern San Andreas and San Jacinto Faults, California, USA. The largest geometric complexity...
Authors
Katherine M. Scharer, Doug Yule
EERI earthquake reconnaissance report: 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence EERI earthquake reconnaissance report: 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence
The Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence began the morning of 4 July 2019 with an M6.4 earthquake at 10:33 a.m., closely following several small foreshocks. The epicenter of this event was roughly 11 miles (18 km) east-northeast of Ridgecrest (Figure 1) within the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake (NAWS-CL). Seismic and geologic data established that the M6.4 earthquake occurred primarily...
Authors
EERI Program, Katherine M. Scharer
Surface displacement distributions for the July 2019 Ridgecrest, California earthquake ruptures Surface displacement distributions for the July 2019 Ridgecrest, California earthquake ruptures
Surface rupture in the 2019 Ridgecrest, California, earthquake sequence occurred along two orthogonal cross faults and includes dominantly left‐lateral and northeast‐striking rupture in the Mw 6.4 foreshock and dominantly right‐lateral and northwest‐striking rupture in the Mw 7.1 mainshock. We present >650 field‐based, surface‐displacement observations for these ruptures and synthesize...
Authors
Christopher DuRoss, Ryan Gold, Timothy Dawson, Katherine M. Scharer, Katherine Kendrick, Sinan Akciz, Stephen Angster, Jeffery Bachhuber, Steven Bacon, Scott Bennett, Luke Blair, Benjamin Brooks, Thomas Bullard, W. Burgess, Colin Chupik, Michael DeFrisco, Jaime Delano, James Dolan, Erik Frost, Nick Graehl, Elizabeth Haddon, Alexandra Hatem, Janis Hernandez, Christopher Hitchcock, Kennth Hudnut, Jessica Thompson Jobe, Richard Koehler, Ozgur Kozaci, Tyler Ladinsky, Christopher Madugo, Devin McPhillips, Christopher Milliner, Alexander Morelan, Brian Olson, Jason Patton, Belle Philibosian, Alexandra Pickering, Ian Pierce, Daniel Ponti, Gordon Seitz, Eleanor Spangler, Brian Swanson, Kate Thomas, Jerome Treiman, Francesca Valencia, Alana Williams, Robert Zinke
Late Quaternary slip rates on the Sierra Madre fault zone and paleoseismic evidence on the size and frequency of past ruptures Late Quaternary slip rates on the Sierra Madre fault zone and paleoseismic evidence on the size and frequency of past ruptures
The Sierra Madre fault zone is a south-vergent, active reverse fault that accommodates shortening between basins on the northern margin of the Los Angeles region and the San Gabriel Mountains. The preservation of late Quaternary alluvial fill and fan surfaces in the hanging wall of the fault provides evidence of long-term uplift. Surface rupture from the 1971 Mw 6.6 San Fernando...
Authors
Reed J. Burgette, Katherine M. Scharer, Scott Lindvall
Airborne lidar and electro-optical imagery along surface ruptures of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, Southern California Airborne lidar and electro-optical imagery along surface ruptures of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, Southern California
Surface rupture from the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, initially associated with the M 6.4 foreshock, occurred on July 4 on a ~17 km long, northeast-southwest oriented, left-lateral zone of faulting. Following the M 7.1 mainshock on July 5 (local time), extensive northwest-southeast-oriented, right-lateral faulting was then also mapped along a ~50 km long zone of faults, including...
Authors
Kenneth Hudnut, Benjamin Brooks, Katherine Scharer, Janis Hernandez, Timothy Dawson, Michael Oskin, J. Arrowsmith, Christine Goulet, Kelly Blake, Matthew Boggie, Stephan Bork, Craig L. Glennie, J.C. Fernandez-Diaz, Abhinav Singhania, Darren Hauser, Sven Sorhus