Peter J Haeussler, Ph.D.
Most of my research is related to earthquake and tsunami hazards in Alaska, with a focus on paleoseismology, submarine landslides, and active faulting. I am the Alaska Coordinator for the Earthquake Hazards Program of the USGS. I also study various aspects of the framework geology of Alaska, with a focus on neotectonics and tectonics.
I use various tools to understand earthquakes and earthquake hazards in Alaska. I’ve studied the tectonic evolution of parts of Alaska, accretionary prisms along Alaska’s margin, forearc and splay faulting, submarine landslides, mountain building and exhumation, landscape evolution, glacial histories, and sedimentary basins. I’ve worked with marine and terrestrial seismic reflection and potential field data. Current work is focused on lacustrine paleoseismology, splay faulting, and various seismic hazards projects.
Professional Experience
1994 - Present Research Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Anchorage, AK
1992 - 1994 Postdoctoral Researcher, U.S. Geological Survey, Anchorage, AK
1992 Geologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA
1986 - 1991 Research Assistant, University of California Santa Cruz
1985 - 1988 Teaching Assistant, University of California Santa Cruz
1985 Geologist, Lancer Energy Corporation, Wilmore, KY
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. 1991 University of California Santa Cruz Earth Sciences
B.S. 1984 Michigan State University Geology
Affiliations and Memberships*
1985-present, American Geophysical Union
1985-present, Geological Society of America
1992-present, Alaska Geological Society
2010-present, Seismological Society of America
Honors and Awards
Fellow, Geological Society of America
Science and Products
Submarine slope failures near Seward, Alaska, during the M9.2 1964 earthquake
Reassessment of seismically induced, tsunamigenic submarine slope failures in Port Valdez, Alaska, USA
Holocene slip rate for the western segment of the Castle Mountain fault, Alaska
Holocene slip rate and revised characteristic earthquake parameters for the western segment of the Castle Mountain fault, Alaska
Studies by the U.S. Geological Survey in Alaska, 2005
Constraints on the age and provenance of the Chugach accretionary complex from detrital zircons in the Sitka Graywacke near Sitka, Alaska
Far-field effects of early Tertiary ridge subduction in Alaska
Deformation driven by subduction and microplate collision: Geodynamics of Cook Inlet basin, Alaska
Imaging the transition from Aleutian subduction to Yakutat collision in central Alaska, with local earthquakes and active source data
Emplacement of the Kodiak batholith and slab-window migration
Varieties of submarine failure morphologies of seismically-induced landslides in Alaskan fjords
Denali fault slip rates and Holocene-late Pleistocene kinematics of central Alaska
Science and Products
Submarine slope failures near Seward, Alaska, during the M9.2 1964 earthquake
Reassessment of seismically induced, tsunamigenic submarine slope failures in Port Valdez, Alaska, USA
Holocene slip rate for the western segment of the Castle Mountain fault, Alaska
Holocene slip rate and revised characteristic earthquake parameters for the western segment of the Castle Mountain fault, Alaska
Studies by the U.S. Geological Survey in Alaska, 2005
Constraints on the age and provenance of the Chugach accretionary complex from detrital zircons in the Sitka Graywacke near Sitka, Alaska
Far-field effects of early Tertiary ridge subduction in Alaska
Deformation driven by subduction and microplate collision: Geodynamics of Cook Inlet basin, Alaska
Imaging the transition from Aleutian subduction to Yakutat collision in central Alaska, with local earthquakes and active source data
Emplacement of the Kodiak batholith and slab-window migration
Varieties of submarine failure morphologies of seismically-induced landslides in Alaskan fjords
Denali fault slip rates and Holocene-late Pleistocene kinematics of central Alaska
*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