Advancing earthquake science worldwide
1 December 2020–A rupture along the full length of the fast-slipping Alpine Fault on New Zealand’s South Island poses the largest potential seismic threat to the southern and central parts of the country. But new evidence of a 19th century earthquake indicates that in at least one portion of the … Continue Reading »
4 November 2020–An earthquake of magnitude 8.0 or larger will almost always cause strong shaking, but a new study suggests that smaller earthquakes—those around magnitude 5.5 or so–are the cause of most occurrences of strong shaking at a 60-kilometer (37-mile) distance. Small earthquakes are expected to produce relatively weak shaking, … Continue Reading »
30 October 2020–The Seismological Society of America (SSA) announced today the appointment of Keith Koper, professor and director of Seismograph Stations at the University of Utah, as the first editor-in-chief of The Seismic Record (TSR). The Seismic Record is an open access, online only journal, publishing high-quality short form papers … Continue Reading »
20 October 2020–A paleoseismic trench dug across the Gales Creek fault, located about 35 kilometers (roughly 22 miles) west of Portland, Oregon, documents evidence for three surface-rupturing earthquakes that took place about 8,800, 4,200 and 1,000 years ago. The findings, published in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, … Continue Reading »
13 October 2020–By comparing two magnitude measurements for seismic events recorded locally, researchers can tell whether the event was a small earthquake or a single-fire buried chemical explosion. The findings, published in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, give seismologists one more tool to monitor nuclear explosions, particularly … Continue Reading »
7 October 2020–An unusually shallow earthquake triggered by hydraulic fracturing in a Chinese shale gas field could change how experts view the risks of fracking for faults that lie very near the Earth’s surface. In the journal Seismological Research Letters, Hongfeng Yang of The Chinese University of Hong Kong and … Continue Reading »