Advancing earthquake science worldwide
This category is for the At Work column
16 September 2019–Earthquake faults have short memories—or at least, that’s what the traditional earthquake cycle model suggests. Based on the elastic rebound theory proposed by Harry Fielding Reid after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the traditional model assumes that each earthquake in an area occurs independently of one another, and … Continue Reading »
15 August 2019–Seismic networks depend on good instrumentation. But testing sensitive seismic instruments to make sure they’re working right can be a challenge, as Adam Ringler, a physical scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey, knows well. “Seismometers aren’t only sensitive to ground motion, which you want, they’re also sensitive to … Continue Reading »
15 July 2019 –Joan Latchman, a seismologist at The University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre, was born in Trinidad and Tobago and grew up just a 15-minute walk from the Centre – then known as the Seismic Research Unit. At the time, the Centre had a low profile, … Continue Reading »
13 June 2019–If you don’t know who Bailey Willis and Robert T. Hill are, Susan Hough has got a book for you. It’s her own book, actually—one that she’s working on now, about the period between 1906 and 1933, when earthquake hazard for the Los Angeles area was being debated … Continue Reading »
Despite growing up in Homer, Alaska, perched above the ruptured fault of the 1964 M9.2 earthquake, Kasey Aderhold didn’t initially consider a career in the geosciences. “I focused on the many other coastal fascinations that Homer provided, such as whales and estuarine ecology,” she says. But after moving to Indiana … Continue Reading »
When an earthquake occurs, seismic waves travel throughout the Earth. As they encounter material of different rigidity, however, they slow down or change direction. By mapping out where this happens, scientists can create images of the structures and processes within the deep Earth – a technique known as global tomography. … Continue Reading »