Thomas Pratt, Ph.D.
Thomas Pratt is a Research Geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey based in Reston, Virginia, and a member of the Geologic Hazards Science Center in Golden, Colorado. His research interests are in seismic imaging of active fault systems, modeling of geologic structures, studying the tectonic settings of earthquakes, and understanding ground motions during earthquakes.
Education
Cornell University BA, Geology, 1980
Virginia Tech M.Sc., Geophysics, 1982
Virginia Tech Ph.D., Geophysics, 1986
Professional Positions
Research Geophysicist, USGS, Reston, VA, 2013-present.
Central and Eastern Region Coordinator, USGS Earthquake Hazards Program, 2017-present.
Editor-in-Chief, Bulletin of the Seismological Society America, 2016-2021.
Acting External Grants Program Manager, USGS, 2016 (4-month term).
Associate Editor, Bulletin of the Seismological Society America, 2014-2015.
Research Geophysicist, USGS, Seattle, WA, 1994-2013.
Affiliate Professor, Dept. of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington, 2003-2014.
Affiliate Professor, School of Oceanography, University of Washington, 2004-2014.
Visiting Professor, Earthquake Research Institute, University of Tokyo, May 5 - August 5, 2000.
Affiliate, School of Oceanography, University of Washington, 1994-2003.
Research Geophysicist, USGS, Golden, CO, 1991-1994.
Associate Editor, Journal of Geophysical Research, 1991-1995.
Research Associate, Department of Earth Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1989-1991.
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Earth Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1986-1989.
Committees
Chair, Seismological Society of America Best Student Presentation subcommittee, 2010-2011.
Member, Seismological Society of America Awards Committee, 2010-2011.
Subject Matter Expert, USGS “Requirements, Capabilities and Analysis for Earth Observations (RCA-OE)” – a USGS-wide exercise to evaluate capabilities and needs. August-October, 2014.
Member, Hiring Committee, Earthquake Hazards Program External Grants Manager (April-May, 2016)
Member (USGS Representative), FEMA 2019 New Madrid Exercise “Shaken Fury”, Interagency Core Planning Team – 2018-2019
Member, Program for Array Seismic Studies of the Continental Lithosphere (PASSCAL) Standing Committee, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS), 1994-1998 and 2007-2010.
Chair, Seismological Society of America Best Student Presentation committee, 2010-2011.
Co-Chair (2009-2010), Incorporated Research Institutes for Seismology (IRIS) Active Source Committee; With Alan Levander of Rice University
Science and Products
Local amplification of seismic waves from the Denali earthquake and damaging seiches in Lake Union, Seattle, Washington
Wide-angle seismic recording from the 2002 Georgia Basin Geohazards Initiative, northwestern Washington and British Columbia
Earthquake recordings from the 2002 Seattle Seismic Hazard Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), Washington state
High resolution seismic imaging of faults beneath Limón Bay, northern Panama Canal, Republic of Panama
Implosion, earthquake, and explosion recordings from the 2000 Seattle Kingdome Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), Washington
Shallow seismic imaging of folds above the Puente Hills blind-thrust fault, Los Angeles, California
Urban seismic experiments investigate Seattle fault and basin
Potential seismic hazards and tectonics of the upper Cook Inlet basin, Alaska, based on analysis of Pliocene and younger deformation
Report for explosion and earthquake data acquired in the 1999 Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), Washington
Wide-angle seismic recordings from the 1998 Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), western Washington and British Columbia
Land-based high-resolution seismic-reflection surveys of seven sites in Duval and St. Johns Counties, northeastern Florida
Crustal geophysics gives insight into new madrid seismic zone
Science and Products
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Filter Total Items: 49
Local amplification of seismic waves from the Denali earthquake and damaging seiches in Lake Union, Seattle, Washington
The Mw7.9 Denali, Alaska earthquake of 3 November, 2002, caused minor damage to at least 20 houseboats in Seattle, Washington by initiating water waves in Lake Union. These water waves were likely initiated during the large amplitude seismic surface waves from this earthquake. Maps of spectral amplification recorded during the Denali earthquake on the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network (PNSN) stronAuthorsA. Barberopoulou, A. Qamar, T. L. Pratt, K. C. Creager, W. P. SteeleWide-angle seismic recording from the 2002 Georgia Basin Geohazards Initiative, northwestern Washington and British Columbia
This report describes the acquisition and processing of shallow-crustal wide-angle seismicreflection and refraction data obtained during a collaborative study in the Georgia Strait, western Washington and southwestern British Columbia. The study, the 2002 Georgia Strait Geohazards Initiative, was conducted in May 2002 by the Pacific Geoscience Centre, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the UniversityAuthorsThomas M. Brocher, Thomas L. Pratt, George D. Spence, Michael Riedel, Roy D. HyndmanEarthquake recordings from the 2002 Seattle Seismic Hazard Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), Washington state
This report describes seismic data obtained during the fourth Seismic Hazard Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS) experiment, termed Seattle SHIPS . The experiment was designed to study the influence of the Seattle sedimentary basin on ground shaking during earthquakes. To accomplish this, we deployed seismometers over the basin to record local earthquakes, quarry blasts, and teleseisms during theAuthorsThomas L. Pratt, Karen L. Meagher, Thomas M. Brocher, Thomas Yelin, Robert Norris, Lynn Hultgrien, Elizabeth Barnett, Craig S. WeaverHigh resolution seismic imaging of faults beneath Limón Bay, northern Panama Canal, Republic of Panama
High-resolution seismic reflection profiles from Limo??n Bay, Republic of Panama, were acquired as part of a seismic hazard investigation of the northern Panama Canal region. The seismic profiles image gently west and northwest dipping strata of upper Miocene Gatu??n Formation, unconformably overlain by a thin (AuthorsThomas L. Pratt, Mark Holmes, Eugene S. Schweig, Joan S. Gomberg, Hugh A. CowanImplosion, earthquake, and explosion recordings from the 2000 Seattle Kingdome Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), Washington
This report describes seismic data obtained in Seattle, Washington, March 24-28, 2000, during a Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS). The seismic recordings obtained by this SHIPS experiment, nicknamed Kingdome SHIPS, were designed to (1) measure site responses throughout Seattle and to (2) help define the location of the Seattle fault. During Kingdome SHIPS, we recorded the KingdoAuthorsThomas M. Brocher, Thomas L. Pratt, Craig S. Weaver, Catherine M. Snelson, Arthur D. FrankelShallow seismic imaging of folds above the Puente Hills blind-thrust fault, Los Angeles, California
High-resolution seismic reflection profiles image discrete folds in the shallow subsurface (<600 m) above two segments of the Puente Hills blind-thrust fault system, Los Angeles basin, California. The profiles demonstrate late Quaternary activity at the fault tip, precisely locate the axial surfaces of folds within the upper 100 m, and constrain the geometry and kinematics of recent folding. The SAuthorsThomas L. Pratt, John H. Shaw, James F. Dolan, Shari A. Christofferson, Robert Williams, Jack K. Odum, Andreas PleschUrban seismic experiments investigate Seattle fault and basin
In the past decade, Earth scientists have recognized the seismic hazards that crustal faults and sedimentary basins pose to Seattle, Washington (Figure 1). In 1998, the US. Geological Survey and its collaborators initiated a series of urban seismic studies of the upper crust to better map seismogenic structures and sedimentary basins in the Puget Lowland. These studies are called the Seismic HazarAuthorsThomas M. Brocher, Thomas L. Pratt, Ken C. Creager, Robert S. Crosson, William P. Steele, Craig S. Weaver, Arthur Frankel, Anne Trøhu, Catherine M. Snelson, Kate C. Miller, Steven H. Harder, Uri S. ten BrinkPotential seismic hazards and tectonics of the upper Cook Inlet basin, Alaska, based on analysis of Pliocene and younger deformation
The Cook Inlet basin is a northeast-trending forearc basin above the Aleutian subduction zone in southern Alaska. Folds in Cook Inlet are complex, discontinuous structures with variable shape and vergence that probably developed by right-transpressional deformation on oblique-slip faults extending downward into Mesozoic basement beneath the Tertiary basin. The most recent episode of deformation maAuthorsPeter J. Haeussler, Ronald L. Bruhn, Thomas L. PrattReport for explosion and earthquake data acquired in the 1999 Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), Washington
This report describes the acquisition, processing, and quality of seismic reflection and refraction data obtained in the Seattle basin, central Puget Lowland, western Washington, in September 1999 during the Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS). As a sequel to the 1998 SHIPS air gun experiment (also known as 'Wet SHIPS'), the 1999 experiment, nicknamed 'Dry SHIPS,' acquired a 112-kAuthorsThomas M. Brocher, Thomas L. Pratt, Kate C. Miller, Anne M. Tréhu, Catherine M. Snelson, Craig S. Weaver, Ken C. Creager, Robert S. Crosson, Uri S. ten Brink, Marcos G. Alvarez, Steven H. Harder, Isa AsudehWide-angle seismic recordings from the 1998 Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS), western Washington and British Columbia
This report describes the acquisition and processing of deep-crustal wide-angle seismic reflection and refraction data obtained in the vicinity of Puget Lowland, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and Georgia Strait, western Washington and southwestern British Columbia, in March 1998 during the Seismic Hazards Investigation of Puget Sound (SHIPS). As part of a larger initiative to better understand laterAuthorsThomas M. Brocher, Tom Parsons, Ken C. Creager, Robert S. Crosson, Neill P. Symons, George D. Spence, Barry C. Zelt, Philip T.C. Hammer, Roy D. Hyndman, David C. Mosher, Anne M. Tréhu, Kate C. Miller, Uri S. ten Brink, Michael A. Fisher, Thomas L. Pratt, Marcos G. Alvarez, Bruce C. Beaudoin, Keith E. Louden, Craig S. WeaverLand-based high-resolution seismic-reflection surveys of seven sites in Duval and St. Johns Counties, northeastern Florida
No abstract available.AuthorsJ. K. Odum, W. J. Stephenson, R. A. Williams, D. M. Worley, D. J. Toth, R. M. Spechler, Thomas L. PrattCrustal geophysics gives insight into new madrid seismic zone
No abstract available.AuthorsT. G. Hildenbrand, Eugene S. Schweig, Rufus D. Catchings, Victoria E. Langenheim, Walter D. Mooney, Thomas L. Pratt, W. D. Stanley - News